Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
Falkenburg
Monthly Donor
I had the oddest impression of her being what the priest would see as an unrepentant sinner, perhaps having left an abusive husband.
Just something about the interaction spoke of a “You don’t belong here” attitude.
I can see how such a thing might lead to complications for Ritchie.
Or not. Just one of those odd ideas that engaging TLs provoke.
My little sister said the exact same thing to our grandmother. Interesting conversation is a massive understatement.
If Margot complains to Malcolm, he should reply that he's surprised that it hadn't happened earlier, that she should have known that this was coming because the kids aren't blind or stupid and to expect to repeat the conversation with their daughter's children in a year or two.
Part 111, Chapter 1836
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Six
18th February 1968
Mitte, Berlin
Even in death Ernst Thälmann was being as annoying as he had ever managed be throughout his life. He had died a few days earlier at the age of eighty-one and despite the rancor that nearly everyone in the Reichstag felt towards him, Thälmann was still intitled to a State burial with full military honors. He had insisted on it knowing that everyone of note from Louis Ferdinand on down would be obligated to attend.
Having spent most of his early career attacking Augustus Lang from the left. Thälmann had not let the retirement and eventual death of the Chancellor get the way of continuing that pursuit. With his constituency in the urban core of Hamburg when it was fondly remembered that he had come up in the labor disputes with the dockworkers, it was considered nearly impossible to have removed him through electoral means. Mostly Thälmann had spent the last forty years at war with the Social Democratic Party and National Liberals as worthless sellouts for their association with Louis Ferdinand. Ironically, that was much to the delight of Monarchist/Nationalist Block. One would have thought that Thälmann would have been chagrinned by the opening of the Soviet archives. Finding out what Stalin and his henchmen really thought of him; A useful idiot who was extremely high on the list of those to be immediately liquidated if the Russians had made it into Berlin. If he had been, Louis had never seen a sign of it.
Looking at the mirror, Louis straightened his tie and brushed a bit of lint off the black suit he wore to funerals. The way things had worked out, Thälmann was getting the last laugh wherever he was, because he had forced everyone to jump though one last hoop for no other reason than to spite them. Louis wasn’t coming in his capacity as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces though. Ernst Thälmann would face eternal judgement with that slight being the first word on the matter.
With that Louis put on his hat and told his Valet to check on Charlotte. They had a funeral to attend and normally you offer condolences to the family, Louis thought to himself.
Los Angeles, California
It had been snowing when Ritchie had left New York. Today he was trying to help his brother Bob keep his 1962 Chevy Nova 400 alive for another week in the driveway in front of their mother’s house wearing a t-shirt and blue jeans. The unbelievable part was listening to people complain about how cold it was. Presently, it was Ritchie working on the straight-six engine, though it was starting to feel like trying to raise the dead, while Bob was sitting in the driver’s seat drinking beer and listening to a basketball game on the radio. By some mystery that Ritchie could never understand, the radio always was the last thing to go in one of his brother’s cars. If only Bob took care of his things, Richie thought to himself. This car had been nice when he had bought it a couple years earlier. Then Bob had subjected it to LA traffic without proper maintenance, basically beating it to death.
Pulling a spark plug out of the engine, Richie saw that it was gummed up with what looked like motor oil.
“I think I found the problem!” Richie yelled, “You have bad rings on one of your pistons.”
Ritchie heard Bob cursing about that. Even with Ritchie was willing to do the work, that wasn’t going to be an easy or inexpensive thing to fix. He had been so focused on the engine he didn’t see anyone approach until a shadow fell across him.
Looking up, he saw the same woman from the Church mixer the other night.
“Mind telling me why you’ve been asking around about me?” Lucia asked.
“I only asked my mother who you were after I saw you get into that argument with Father Martinez the other night” Ritchie replied as he got out from under the hood.
“You might as well have asked the entire neighborhood their opinion of me” Lucia said sharply, “The golden boy home from the Army, that will give them something to talk about for weeks.”
“I’m sorry, but…” Ritchie started to say only to have Lucia glare at him.
“You, your mother, this neighborhood, and that goddamn fucking hypocrite Priest need to mind your own fucking business!” Lucia snapped before stomping off.
Using a rag to wipe the worst of the grease off his hands, Ritchie could see that Bob had watched that exchange with a great deal of amusement.
“Mind telling me what that was all about?” Ritchie asked as Bob handed him a beer.
“Old story with a twist” Bob said, “Girl gets knocked up and everyone pressures her to get married to her boyfriend. Except she tells them to go pound sand. Two years later, Lucia didn’t get married and she sure as hell doesn’t have a kid. Do I need to fill in the blanks?”
“No” Ritchie replied.
“Now, do I need to tell you what men in our family do about women like that?” Bob asked.
Ritchie could only imagine, knowing Bob’s personal history this was probably going to be a doozy.
“No, what?”
“We date ‘em” Bob said with a wicked grin.
Ritchie rolled his eyes.
“I doubt that will come up” Richie said, “You heard her tell me to mind my own business.”
“A girl like that, telling you off right to your face” Bob said, “She totally wants you to ask her out.”
“No means yes in your thinking?” Ritchie asked, “That explains a great deal. Mind telling how you’ve avoided getting sent to Chino?”
Bob just shrugged and laughed.
18th February 1968
Mitte, Berlin
Even in death Ernst Thälmann was being as annoying as he had ever managed be throughout his life. He had died a few days earlier at the age of eighty-one and despite the rancor that nearly everyone in the Reichstag felt towards him, Thälmann was still intitled to a State burial with full military honors. He had insisted on it knowing that everyone of note from Louis Ferdinand on down would be obligated to attend.
Having spent most of his early career attacking Augustus Lang from the left. Thälmann had not let the retirement and eventual death of the Chancellor get the way of continuing that pursuit. With his constituency in the urban core of Hamburg when it was fondly remembered that he had come up in the labor disputes with the dockworkers, it was considered nearly impossible to have removed him through electoral means. Mostly Thälmann had spent the last forty years at war with the Social Democratic Party and National Liberals as worthless sellouts for their association with Louis Ferdinand. Ironically, that was much to the delight of Monarchist/Nationalist Block. One would have thought that Thälmann would have been chagrinned by the opening of the Soviet archives. Finding out what Stalin and his henchmen really thought of him; A useful idiot who was extremely high on the list of those to be immediately liquidated if the Russians had made it into Berlin. If he had been, Louis had never seen a sign of it.
Looking at the mirror, Louis straightened his tie and brushed a bit of lint off the black suit he wore to funerals. The way things had worked out, Thälmann was getting the last laugh wherever he was, because he had forced everyone to jump though one last hoop for no other reason than to spite them. Louis wasn’t coming in his capacity as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces though. Ernst Thälmann would face eternal judgement with that slight being the first word on the matter.
With that Louis put on his hat and told his Valet to check on Charlotte. They had a funeral to attend and normally you offer condolences to the family, Louis thought to himself.
Los Angeles, California
It had been snowing when Ritchie had left New York. Today he was trying to help his brother Bob keep his 1962 Chevy Nova 400 alive for another week in the driveway in front of their mother’s house wearing a t-shirt and blue jeans. The unbelievable part was listening to people complain about how cold it was. Presently, it was Ritchie working on the straight-six engine, though it was starting to feel like trying to raise the dead, while Bob was sitting in the driver’s seat drinking beer and listening to a basketball game on the radio. By some mystery that Ritchie could never understand, the radio always was the last thing to go in one of his brother’s cars. If only Bob took care of his things, Richie thought to himself. This car had been nice when he had bought it a couple years earlier. Then Bob had subjected it to LA traffic without proper maintenance, basically beating it to death.
Pulling a spark plug out of the engine, Richie saw that it was gummed up with what looked like motor oil.
“I think I found the problem!” Richie yelled, “You have bad rings on one of your pistons.”
Ritchie heard Bob cursing about that. Even with Ritchie was willing to do the work, that wasn’t going to be an easy or inexpensive thing to fix. He had been so focused on the engine he didn’t see anyone approach until a shadow fell across him.
Looking up, he saw the same woman from the Church mixer the other night.
“Mind telling me why you’ve been asking around about me?” Lucia asked.
“I only asked my mother who you were after I saw you get into that argument with Father Martinez the other night” Ritchie replied as he got out from under the hood.
“You might as well have asked the entire neighborhood their opinion of me” Lucia said sharply, “The golden boy home from the Army, that will give them something to talk about for weeks.”
“I’m sorry, but…” Ritchie started to say only to have Lucia glare at him.
“You, your mother, this neighborhood, and that goddamn fucking hypocrite Priest need to mind your own fucking business!” Lucia snapped before stomping off.
Using a rag to wipe the worst of the grease off his hands, Ritchie could see that Bob had watched that exchange with a great deal of amusement.
“Mind telling me what that was all about?” Ritchie asked as Bob handed him a beer.
“Old story with a twist” Bob said, “Girl gets knocked up and everyone pressures her to get married to her boyfriend. Except she tells them to go pound sand. Two years later, Lucia didn’t get married and she sure as hell doesn’t have a kid. Do I need to fill in the blanks?”
“No” Ritchie replied.
“Now, do I need to tell you what men in our family do about women like that?” Bob asked.
Ritchie could only imagine, knowing Bob’s personal history this was probably going to be a doozy.
“No, what?”
“We date ‘em” Bob said with a wicked grin.
Ritchie rolled his eyes.
“I doubt that will come up” Richie said, “You heard her tell me to mind my own business.”
“A girl like that, telling you off right to your face” Bob said, “She totally wants you to ask her out.”
“No means yes in your thinking?” Ritchie asked, “That explains a great deal. Mind telling how you’ve avoided getting sent to Chino?”
Bob just shrugged and laughed.
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And a lot of business that the deceased repeatedly blocked will be concluded at the funeral as a posthumous 'Fuck You" to the deceased.
Monitor
Donor
I have a feeling that something is happening. I am not sure what, but we might actually have all hell breaking loose at roughly the same time (Poland, America, whatever colonial problem we can find...). Which might be fun. Or not. I believe it will be mostly fun for us, although I have the suspicion that the characters of this story would be of a different opinion if they were real 
Part 112, Chapter 1837
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Seven
22nd February 1968
Tempelhof, Berlin
There was a flurry of birthdays in the house. Tatiana and Malcolm on the 21st of February, then Suse on the 29th, and finally Marie Alexandra was turning twelve on the 15th of March. Sophie heard this with absolute terror. For years, her mother had told her that she would inevitably become something terrible when she turned twelve, completing the destruction that she had wrought on her mother’s life from the moment she had been born. When Sophie had been younger, she had resolved never to turn twelve and had thought that her mother would be happy with that. Instead, her mother had gotten furious and had accused Sophie of mocking her.
Marie though, she was the greatest, bravest, most amazing girl in the world. Sophie remembered that night in the castle when they had been scared by the storm and the window had blown open. Marie had gotten up and closed it as if there was nothing to be afraid of, she had then ordered Sophie along with Nella and Nan back to their own beds. They hadn’t listened and Marie had ended up sleeping in Nella’s bed. It was a reminder of how last summer had been so perfect. Even the chores around the castle had a lot of fun because of how they had done everything together, it really had all been a game. Then had come the crash back to the reality of Sophie’s life and everything that had followed since. Living in this house with Marie was vastly different than in the castle. Though she was a few years older than Sophie and that was a huge gulf there, still she got to watch as Marie did the most amazing things all the time. The thought that something horrible might happen to her was more than Sophie could bear.
Finally, on Friday afternoon it all came to a head when Katherine got a call from Sophie’s school. Her reaction was absolutely shocking to Sophie. She didn’t yell or hit her, instead she had mentioned that according to her teacher Sophie had said that she had seemed distracted and sad all week before hugging her and asked to know what was going on.
“Can you please tell me what is going on?” Katherine asked.
Sophie had been not expecting that at all. A simple question that complete disarmed her.
“When I was not much older than you, I had someone hurt me terribly” Katherine said, “I didn’t talk to anyone for nearly a year and the problems never went away until I dealt with them. Silence just made it worse.”
With that Katherine went back to looking at the papers on her desk. Sophie knew that there were things going on in the world that Katherine couldn’t talk about, important matters and she could see that this woman who had taken her in seemed to have the weight of the world on her shoulders, yet she had taken time from her day to find out what was going on. Sophie felt a stab of guilt over having done that and sitting there watching Katherine work turned out to be excruciating. Before she knew it, she had blurting out everything and Katherine just sat there listening.
“Your mother… is not well and is finally getting help” Katherine said, “Growing up can be horrible at times, but it is not something that you need to fear. As for you becoming something terrible, she was projecting her own past onto your future and I doubt that will occur. It is perfectly natural to be scared about what might happen to someone in your family, Marie will be alright and you as well.”
Sophie found that last part particularly jarring.
Los Angeles, California
“Where did you learn to do this?” Ritchie’s mother asked as she saw engine that was completely disassembled on a table in the garage. Ritchie had pulled the engine from Bob’s car and was rebuilding it. It was something that would need to be done if he was going to be replacing the piston rings anyway. There was the added bonus of Bob having to take the bus to work all week as well.
“John Casey, my original team leader insisted that everyone learn because it isn’t like if we can call road service when deployed” Ritchie replied.
“He sounds like a smart man” Concha said.
“He was” Ritchie replied, his mother gave him an odd look and he kicked himself. She had to have noticed that he had just referred to Jonny in the past tense. It was something that he had tried to avoid mentioning around her, how even at the best of times his job could be dangerous. Telling her that even someone like Jonny had gotten killed would upset her. Jonny had oozed cool and was tough as nails had ended up with a quiet burial at Arlington, that the details of his final mission would remain secret, probably forever, because to do otherwise might start a war. It wasn’t a big leap of logic to see that it could just as easily happen to Ritchie.
“Never mind that” Concha said, “Bobby said that Lucia Cruz came around the other day.”
So, Bob had figured out a way to get even with Ritchie for taking his time fixing his car.
“She told me to mind my own business” Ritchie said as he got back to work on the engine.
“You have a career, most men in the neighborhood cannot say that” Concha said, “Perhaps she will come around.”
“She will see the realities of my career and run the other way” Ritchie replied, the full truth was the best thing he could say here. “I can be deployed at a moment’s notice, be gone for weeks and not be able to breath a word about it afterwards. Pure poison if you want to have a relationship. Not many women put up with that.”
“Funny, except for the secrecy, you just described your father’s work” Concha said, “Ever thought that the problem is just that you’ve been fishing off the wrong pier?”
22nd February 1968
Tempelhof, Berlin
There was a flurry of birthdays in the house. Tatiana and Malcolm on the 21st of February, then Suse on the 29th, and finally Marie Alexandra was turning twelve on the 15th of March. Sophie heard this with absolute terror. For years, her mother had told her that she would inevitably become something terrible when she turned twelve, completing the destruction that she had wrought on her mother’s life from the moment she had been born. When Sophie had been younger, she had resolved never to turn twelve and had thought that her mother would be happy with that. Instead, her mother had gotten furious and had accused Sophie of mocking her.
Marie though, she was the greatest, bravest, most amazing girl in the world. Sophie remembered that night in the castle when they had been scared by the storm and the window had blown open. Marie had gotten up and closed it as if there was nothing to be afraid of, she had then ordered Sophie along with Nella and Nan back to their own beds. They hadn’t listened and Marie had ended up sleeping in Nella’s bed. It was a reminder of how last summer had been so perfect. Even the chores around the castle had a lot of fun because of how they had done everything together, it really had all been a game. Then had come the crash back to the reality of Sophie’s life and everything that had followed since. Living in this house with Marie was vastly different than in the castle. Though she was a few years older than Sophie and that was a huge gulf there, still she got to watch as Marie did the most amazing things all the time. The thought that something horrible might happen to her was more than Sophie could bear.
Finally, on Friday afternoon it all came to a head when Katherine got a call from Sophie’s school. Her reaction was absolutely shocking to Sophie. She didn’t yell or hit her, instead she had mentioned that according to her teacher Sophie had said that she had seemed distracted and sad all week before hugging her and asked to know what was going on.
“Can you please tell me what is going on?” Katherine asked.
Sophie had been not expecting that at all. A simple question that complete disarmed her.
“When I was not much older than you, I had someone hurt me terribly” Katherine said, “I didn’t talk to anyone for nearly a year and the problems never went away until I dealt with them. Silence just made it worse.”
With that Katherine went back to looking at the papers on her desk. Sophie knew that there were things going on in the world that Katherine couldn’t talk about, important matters and she could see that this woman who had taken her in seemed to have the weight of the world on her shoulders, yet she had taken time from her day to find out what was going on. Sophie felt a stab of guilt over having done that and sitting there watching Katherine work turned out to be excruciating. Before she knew it, she had blurting out everything and Katherine just sat there listening.
“Your mother… is not well and is finally getting help” Katherine said, “Growing up can be horrible at times, but it is not something that you need to fear. As for you becoming something terrible, she was projecting her own past onto your future and I doubt that will occur. It is perfectly natural to be scared about what might happen to someone in your family, Marie will be alright and you as well.”
Sophie found that last part particularly jarring.
Los Angeles, California
“Where did you learn to do this?” Ritchie’s mother asked as she saw engine that was completely disassembled on a table in the garage. Ritchie had pulled the engine from Bob’s car and was rebuilding it. It was something that would need to be done if he was going to be replacing the piston rings anyway. There was the added bonus of Bob having to take the bus to work all week as well.
“John Casey, my original team leader insisted that everyone learn because it isn’t like if we can call road service when deployed” Ritchie replied.
“He sounds like a smart man” Concha said.
“He was” Ritchie replied, his mother gave him an odd look and he kicked himself. She had to have noticed that he had just referred to Jonny in the past tense. It was something that he had tried to avoid mentioning around her, how even at the best of times his job could be dangerous. Telling her that even someone like Jonny had gotten killed would upset her. Jonny had oozed cool and was tough as nails had ended up with a quiet burial at Arlington, that the details of his final mission would remain secret, probably forever, because to do otherwise might start a war. It wasn’t a big leap of logic to see that it could just as easily happen to Ritchie.
“Never mind that” Concha said, “Bobby said that Lucia Cruz came around the other day.”
So, Bob had figured out a way to get even with Ritchie for taking his time fixing his car.
“She told me to mind my own business” Ritchie said as he got back to work on the engine.
“You have a career, most men in the neighborhood cannot say that” Concha said, “Perhaps she will come around.”
“She will see the realities of my career and run the other way” Ritchie replied, the full truth was the best thing he could say here. “I can be deployed at a moment’s notice, be gone for weeks and not be able to breath a word about it afterwards. Pure poison if you want to have a relationship. Not many women put up with that.”
“Funny, except for the secrecy, you just described your father’s work” Concha said, “Ever thought that the problem is just that you’ve been fishing off the wrong pier?”
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Sophie's biological family has really fucked her over. It will take years for the damage to be repair and the scars will be there forever. Fortunately, Kat learnt from the master on how best to coax a terrified soul out of her shell. Gently, and with love, over time. Even better, she has direct access to that expert.
Peter Holz really should sit down with Doug and write down exactly how Doug did it.
Peter Holz really should sit down with Doug and write down exactly how Doug did it.
I reckon it was the combination of two 'masters' (Peter Holz & Doug Blackwood) and their use of both hard science and soft skills of love and patience to bind up Kat's wounds and heal the worst of her injuries. Plus the patient & 'tough love' of Aunt Marcella & Uncle Klaus to keep Kat on the straight and narrow.
The others, including her friends, stopped her self-destructive slide, picking up the pieces once they became aware of just how badly damaged she truly was, but they all knew that she remained firmly within that protective shell that she had built around herself. Not even Aunt Marcella could do more than crack it. Peter forced her to recognise and admit that the shell existed, and why. Doug, however, coaxed her out of it and helped her transform the shell into armour that she could remove.
Part 1838, Chapter 1838
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Eight
28th February 1968
Halle, Anhalt
Kiki was at the FSR depot on the grounds of the Heer and Luftwaffe Signals School just south of the University Hospital to requalify on weapons. She didn’t have any objections because it meant that she wouldn’t get recalled to Laupheim over the following year baring national emergency. She already had a full plate with having been told that as soon as she completed the second State examination Kiki was to report to the Prussian Staff College in Berlin. That meant a few months away from what she wanted to be doing, much to her complete frustration. She was also to accept promotion to Oberstabsarzt/Major with the date of promotion being when it had first been deferred almost a year earlier without further protest. It seemed that someone in Koblenz had gotten fed up and decided that kicking her in that direction was in their interest. What she did object to was the stares that the new pistol she had been “issued” was getting her.
Then she had learned that the pistol she had been issued wasn’t at the FSR Depot in Halle and that she had needed to go to Walther’s factory in Zella-Mehlis a few days earlier. The pistol that she had gotten was the right serial number according to the records of the FSR and externally it looked like any other service weapon. However, their experts had completely reworked the internals to the point where it performed in a manner far beyond the usual service pistol. Kiki understood the reason why Walther had done that for her, why she had to thank them graciously even though she wished they hadn’t done it. Just down road from Zella-Mehlis in Suhl, Sauer & Sohn in partnership with a company called the Swiss Industrial Company that had made farming implements in the past. They made a pistol that was derivative of Browning Hi-Power that had joined the cz.60 as substitute standard for the German Military. While it was not the same quality as pistols made by Walther, the latest version of the P50 had a proven record with the Swiss Army and Police Forces. It had been modified to use the same 16-round magazines as the cz.60 and a relatively low unit cost. Walther had been experimenting with double-stack magazines for some time and the P66 was swiftly rushed from prototype to production when the phasing out of the P38 was announced. Putting one of their pistols in Kiki’s hands was a public relations coup for them at a time when they needed it and her father had suggested rather firmly that she do her part to help promote domestic industry.
The trouble was that the training course struck Kiki as being completely inadequate and she could hear Kat’s voice in her head saying that if she recognized a problem then it was her responsibility to do something about it. Though in this case, there didn’t seem to be a whole lot she could do. She spent the afternoon shooting paper targets, first with a rifle and then with a pistol. There were none of the real-world exercises that she had done with Kat ahead of the first time she went to Korea and had repeated in Laupheim a few times since. This time there had been a brief lecture on how disassemble, clean, and reassemble the pistol. The P66 looked and worked differently than the P38 had with the full-length slide and part of the barrel formed a steel plug that completely filled the ejection port when it was locked in battery making it difficult for debris to enter.
The bored looking range officer recorded her score once she had finished firing a few magazines through the new pistol and noted the improvement over the last time she had needed to qualify. That was hardly a surprise, the new pistol didn’t have the heavy trigger of the old one and the alloy frame lightened it considerably, making it easier for Kiki to hold as she aimed. As much as she didn’t like being treated differently than others, this time it certainly made sense for her to just except it.
Leaving the shooting range, Kiki handed the earmuffs she had been using to the attendant and started to walk across the extensive military installation. The Administrative building was obnoxiously far away, and she would need to turn in the paperwork saying that she was qualified to use the weapons she had been issued in the field. It was an unfortunate necessity, as a Field Surgeon she was required to see to her personal safety and that of those under her care. The long walk gave her time think about things as well. What was coming, both good and bad.
Vicky was going through with that absurd wedding in April. Something had happened in Vietnam that had strengthened her resolve. While she hadn’t told Kiki what it was, she had said that it was the only way that she could be safe from those who would hurt Vicky for being who and what she was. Kiki remembered how carefree her younger sister had been when they had been traveling through the American Upper Mid-West. It was too bad that Vicky couldn’t be like that here. What that meant for Kiki was that Vicky was moving out of the house in Jena, so she was thinking that she didn’t need that much space. Kiki had been thinking that she might rent an apartment here in Halle. Not having the long commute to contend with would make things easier. Then she had gotten the orders sending her back to Berlin for an extended period, ruining her plans.
28th February 1968
Halle, Anhalt
Kiki was at the FSR depot on the grounds of the Heer and Luftwaffe Signals School just south of the University Hospital to requalify on weapons. She didn’t have any objections because it meant that she wouldn’t get recalled to Laupheim over the following year baring national emergency. She already had a full plate with having been told that as soon as she completed the second State examination Kiki was to report to the Prussian Staff College in Berlin. That meant a few months away from what she wanted to be doing, much to her complete frustration. She was also to accept promotion to Oberstabsarzt/Major with the date of promotion being when it had first been deferred almost a year earlier without further protest. It seemed that someone in Koblenz had gotten fed up and decided that kicking her in that direction was in their interest. What she did object to was the stares that the new pistol she had been “issued” was getting her.
Then she had learned that the pistol she had been issued wasn’t at the FSR Depot in Halle and that she had needed to go to Walther’s factory in Zella-Mehlis a few days earlier. The pistol that she had gotten was the right serial number according to the records of the FSR and externally it looked like any other service weapon. However, their experts had completely reworked the internals to the point where it performed in a manner far beyond the usual service pistol. Kiki understood the reason why Walther had done that for her, why she had to thank them graciously even though she wished they hadn’t done it. Just down road from Zella-Mehlis in Suhl, Sauer & Sohn in partnership with a company called the Swiss Industrial Company that had made farming implements in the past. They made a pistol that was derivative of Browning Hi-Power that had joined the cz.60 as substitute standard for the German Military. While it was not the same quality as pistols made by Walther, the latest version of the P50 had a proven record with the Swiss Army and Police Forces. It had been modified to use the same 16-round magazines as the cz.60 and a relatively low unit cost. Walther had been experimenting with double-stack magazines for some time and the P66 was swiftly rushed from prototype to production when the phasing out of the P38 was announced. Putting one of their pistols in Kiki’s hands was a public relations coup for them at a time when they needed it and her father had suggested rather firmly that she do her part to help promote domestic industry.
The trouble was that the training course struck Kiki as being completely inadequate and she could hear Kat’s voice in her head saying that if she recognized a problem then it was her responsibility to do something about it. Though in this case, there didn’t seem to be a whole lot she could do. She spent the afternoon shooting paper targets, first with a rifle and then with a pistol. There were none of the real-world exercises that she had done with Kat ahead of the first time she went to Korea and had repeated in Laupheim a few times since. This time there had been a brief lecture on how disassemble, clean, and reassemble the pistol. The P66 looked and worked differently than the P38 had with the full-length slide and part of the barrel formed a steel plug that completely filled the ejection port when it was locked in battery making it difficult for debris to enter.
The bored looking range officer recorded her score once she had finished firing a few magazines through the new pistol and noted the improvement over the last time she had needed to qualify. That was hardly a surprise, the new pistol didn’t have the heavy trigger of the old one and the alloy frame lightened it considerably, making it easier for Kiki to hold as she aimed. As much as she didn’t like being treated differently than others, this time it certainly made sense for her to just except it.
Leaving the shooting range, Kiki handed the earmuffs she had been using to the attendant and started to walk across the extensive military installation. The Administrative building was obnoxiously far away, and she would need to turn in the paperwork saying that she was qualified to use the weapons she had been issued in the field. It was an unfortunate necessity, as a Field Surgeon she was required to see to her personal safety and that of those under her care. The long walk gave her time think about things as well. What was coming, both good and bad.
Vicky was going through with that absurd wedding in April. Something had happened in Vietnam that had strengthened her resolve. While she hadn’t told Kiki what it was, she had said that it was the only way that she could be safe from those who would hurt Vicky for being who and what she was. Kiki remembered how carefree her younger sister had been when they had been traveling through the American Upper Mid-West. It was too bad that Vicky couldn’t be like that here. What that meant for Kiki was that Vicky was moving out of the house in Jena, so she was thinking that she didn’t need that much space. Kiki had been thinking that she might rent an apartment here in Halle. Not having the long commute to contend with would make things easier. Then she had gotten the orders sending her back to Berlin for an extended period, ruining her plans.
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Kiki's father, the Kaiser had to school Kiki that one of the most important duties that a modern day Royal has to do is to promote the commerce, industry, and products that the country has to offer and for this timeline Kaiser Louis Ferdinand has been very good for Germany and the other parts of the Empire at this part of the job.
Kiki is also going to have to understand that Vicky in a completely contradictory circumstances is going to have much more freedom to be herself by being married then to either live in the shadows or forced to live openly in a world thinks of her sexuality as being deviant, mentally ill, a crime against God and Nature amongst other things with her family supporting her as much as they can, but they can only support her so much before it becomes a liability to the standing of The House of Hozenhollern.
Kiki is also going to have to understand that Vicky in a completely contradictory circumstances is going to have much more freedom to be herself by being married then to either live in the shadows or forced to live openly in a world thinks of her sexuality as being deviant, mentally ill, a crime against God and Nature amongst other things with her family supporting her as much as they can, but they can only support her so much before it becomes a liability to the standing of The House of Hozenhollern.
A lot of Kiki's issue, at least as a former post hinted, is that she doesn't think that the marriage will actually hold up and that sooner or later the truth will come out anyway, so why bother.
I think a big part of that is that she's actually intelligent and doesn't realise that, in fact, many people less intelligent than her would automatically not believe Vicky or Franz are gay 'because they're married, silly!'
EDIT: Actually, I'm not sure if it was raised before because of the importance of Germany/the Germanosphere and the US ITTL, but what is the situation re the rest of the world and this? OTL, the Scandinavian countries were fairly ahead of the curve in legalising it - Denmark did in 1939, Sweden did a few years after the war - and by this stage IIRC, Britain would have legalised it too OTL...
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As I was rereading the last update about the weapon that was basically custom made for Kiki I was wondering what would the "Gun Culture" in Germany is like at this point ITTL?
If Walther could get the new weapon in the hands of the female protagonist in an action movie it could open a new market for them with women especially in the United States with it being marketed unofficially as the "Kristina" model or of course the "Kat".
If Walther could get the new weapon in the hands of the female protagonist in an action movie it could open a new market for them with women especially in the United States with it being marketed unofficially as the "Kristina" model or of course the "Kat".
Part 112, Chapter 1839
Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty-Nine
1st March 1968
Falkensee, Brandenburg
When faced with a reality that is deemed unbearable the human mind will except, and often fabricate, that which it knows is not real to feel as ease…
Asia continued reading through the manuscript, it was fascinating, but it also chilled her to the bone because she understood the implications far better than most people. The Psychology Department of the University Clinic in Berlin had spent years researching how the brain worked, what happens when certain stimuli are applied or removed entirely. The draft report had been referred to the Falkensee School where Asia had been an Instructor in advanced fieldcraft since she had come back from convalescing following her imprisonment by the Americans with only gap being when she had taken maternity leave after Heinrich was born. Beaten, deprived of even the most basic of necessities, and finally they had electrocuted her repeatedly after pumping her full of drugs whose effects were not completely understood. The entire time they had been demanding information about the American Division of the BND that she didn’t possess. Gia had not mentioned it to her, but Asia had found out from others that the suggestion had been thrown around to send her back to Germany severely brain damaged as a warning to anyone who might follow. The man who Gia had shot had apparently been there to do exactly that on that last terrible day. Many felt that he had gotten his just deserts when the bullet that had scrambled his brain had left him effectively lobotomized.
Where the manuscript came in was that Asia remembered how easily she had slipped into fantasy during the hellish weeks she had spent in the Danvers State Hospital. It was either that or be driven completely insane by the situation that she had found herself in. The conclusions reached were the most unsettling aspect of the entire thing. The discoveries could be used to resist interrogation, conduct interrogations themselves or provide the most insidious means of getting inside people’s heads. The questions about how this information might be used needed to be asked, the problem for Asia was that she doubted that she was the right person to be asking them because she was unable to be objective in such a matter. If she thought that it would do any good, she would burn every copy of the manuscript because she felt that it represented the potential for the sort of evil she had been subjected to.
Washington D.C.
President Rockefeller was looking at what had come in with the latest diplomatic pouch from Berlin. It was something that the CIA had brought to his attention ahead of the wedding that was coming up next month in Bavaria that he had gotten an invitation to. There was speculation in the State Department that it was a political marriage, being done to shore up support for the House of Hohenzollern ahead of the transfer of power from Louis Ferdinand to his oldest son Friedrich. That was considered likely because King Albrecht of Bavaria was considered the one who could successfully challenge Friedrich for the mantle of Kaiser if it came down to it. The marriage put Albrecht firmly on the side of the Hohenzollerns. Victoria was considered completely vanilla and getting married to the Crown Prince of Bavaria was arguably going to be the most interesting thing that she had done during her twenty-three years of existence. That was in wild contradiction to her older, far more interesting, sisters. The sales pamphlet that the CIA had gotten was an excellent example of that. The present focus might be on Victoria, but the instant Kristina’s name got mentioned all eyes turned to her.
The photograph in the sales pamphlet was a bit odd when coupled with the latest personality profile that Analysts at the CIA had compiled over the last few years. Many might have wondered why the CIA was wasting resources on a Princess. However, they had been alarmed by how easily she had wooed Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore. The company they recently founded, Integrated Electronics or Intel, was developing technology that was extremely promising and Kristina von Preussen had been one of their early investors. Apparently, it had been done with the understanding that they would locate their European production facility in the Principality that Kristina ruled within Germany.
The pamphlet had been put out by Carl Walther GmbH, an arms manufacturer who most Americans had only heard of because of the James Bond movies. In the photograph, Princess Kristina was seen wearing what was said to be the field uniform of the German Joint Medical Service’s elite Para Search and Rescue. A red coat with various patches on it that denoted the wearer being in the FSR and their Unit. Big white letters across the back proclaimed that she was a Field Surgeon, though according to the CIA she was still in Residency. She was seen in the photo accepting a new pistol from Fritz Walther as the pamphlet proudly implied that it was a tacit royal endorsement of their latest product.
The detail that struck Rockefeller as strange was that while companies like Walther took pride in their long histories and loudly proclaimed how their products were the best in the world, they were doing it in a country where firearms were strictly regulated as a result of the body of laws that were passed in the wake of the Reichstag bombing. If you wanted a gun over there you had to apply for a permit, those permits were subjected to rigorous review and God help you if you got caught with a gun without the proper paperwork. The alternative was to a join a hunting club or the military which were exempt under the law. The standards the hunting clubs maintained for their membership were exacting, they generally understood the special place they had been granted under the law and were rumored to be particularly vicious towards those who might rock the boat. Over the last few years CIA agents had been tripped up by Germany’s restrictive gun laws.
1st March 1968
Falkensee, Brandenburg
When faced with a reality that is deemed unbearable the human mind will except, and often fabricate, that which it knows is not real to feel as ease…
Asia continued reading through the manuscript, it was fascinating, but it also chilled her to the bone because she understood the implications far better than most people. The Psychology Department of the University Clinic in Berlin had spent years researching how the brain worked, what happens when certain stimuli are applied or removed entirely. The draft report had been referred to the Falkensee School where Asia had been an Instructor in advanced fieldcraft since she had come back from convalescing following her imprisonment by the Americans with only gap being when she had taken maternity leave after Heinrich was born. Beaten, deprived of even the most basic of necessities, and finally they had electrocuted her repeatedly after pumping her full of drugs whose effects were not completely understood. The entire time they had been demanding information about the American Division of the BND that she didn’t possess. Gia had not mentioned it to her, but Asia had found out from others that the suggestion had been thrown around to send her back to Germany severely brain damaged as a warning to anyone who might follow. The man who Gia had shot had apparently been there to do exactly that on that last terrible day. Many felt that he had gotten his just deserts when the bullet that had scrambled his brain had left him effectively lobotomized.
Where the manuscript came in was that Asia remembered how easily she had slipped into fantasy during the hellish weeks she had spent in the Danvers State Hospital. It was either that or be driven completely insane by the situation that she had found herself in. The conclusions reached were the most unsettling aspect of the entire thing. The discoveries could be used to resist interrogation, conduct interrogations themselves or provide the most insidious means of getting inside people’s heads. The questions about how this information might be used needed to be asked, the problem for Asia was that she doubted that she was the right person to be asking them because she was unable to be objective in such a matter. If she thought that it would do any good, she would burn every copy of the manuscript because she felt that it represented the potential for the sort of evil she had been subjected to.
Washington D.C.
President Rockefeller was looking at what had come in with the latest diplomatic pouch from Berlin. It was something that the CIA had brought to his attention ahead of the wedding that was coming up next month in Bavaria that he had gotten an invitation to. There was speculation in the State Department that it was a political marriage, being done to shore up support for the House of Hohenzollern ahead of the transfer of power from Louis Ferdinand to his oldest son Friedrich. That was considered likely because King Albrecht of Bavaria was considered the one who could successfully challenge Friedrich for the mantle of Kaiser if it came down to it. The marriage put Albrecht firmly on the side of the Hohenzollerns. Victoria was considered completely vanilla and getting married to the Crown Prince of Bavaria was arguably going to be the most interesting thing that she had done during her twenty-three years of existence. That was in wild contradiction to her older, far more interesting, sisters. The sales pamphlet that the CIA had gotten was an excellent example of that. The present focus might be on Victoria, but the instant Kristina’s name got mentioned all eyes turned to her.
The photograph in the sales pamphlet was a bit odd when coupled with the latest personality profile that Analysts at the CIA had compiled over the last few years. Many might have wondered why the CIA was wasting resources on a Princess. However, they had been alarmed by how easily she had wooed Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore. The company they recently founded, Integrated Electronics or Intel, was developing technology that was extremely promising and Kristina von Preussen had been one of their early investors. Apparently, it had been done with the understanding that they would locate their European production facility in the Principality that Kristina ruled within Germany.
The pamphlet had been put out by Carl Walther GmbH, an arms manufacturer who most Americans had only heard of because of the James Bond movies. In the photograph, Princess Kristina was seen wearing what was said to be the field uniform of the German Joint Medical Service’s elite Para Search and Rescue. A red coat with various patches on it that denoted the wearer being in the FSR and their Unit. Big white letters across the back proclaimed that she was a Field Surgeon, though according to the CIA she was still in Residency. She was seen in the photo accepting a new pistol from Fritz Walther as the pamphlet proudly implied that it was a tacit royal endorsement of their latest product.
The detail that struck Rockefeller as strange was that while companies like Walther took pride in their long histories and loudly proclaimed how their products were the best in the world, they were doing it in a country where firearms were strictly regulated as a result of the body of laws that were passed in the wake of the Reichstag bombing. If you wanted a gun over there you had to apply for a permit, those permits were subjected to rigorous review and God help you if you got caught with a gun without the proper paperwork. The alternative was to a join a hunting club or the military which were exempt under the law. The standards the hunting clubs maintained for their membership were exacting, they generally understood the special place they had been granted under the law and were rumored to be particularly vicious towards those who might rock the boat. Over the last few years CIA agents had been tripped up by Germany’s restrictive gun laws.
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Ok......(SNERK)....that last bit it was amusing as heck in the American viewpoint of Gun Regulations.......
So much to unpack here...
First off the CIA and the point are still missing each other.
Second the wedding is more about the succession of the Bavarian throne then it is about Friedrich becoming the next Kaiser and there is the possibility if the Polish Question goes hot the Kaiser may hold off on a transfer of power (symbolically).
As a side note going to this Wedding should be a job for the First Lady, the Vice President, and the Ambassador to Germany.
Third the President should be more concerned about Intel opening shop in Germany then about Walther using Princess Kristina as a marketing tool.
By the way holynight is very right in thinking that the real target (No irony intended) is the American public especially upscale women who want a firearm with sufficient stopping power but is also is easy to handle, having Princess Kristina as the face of the weapon makes it the most logical choice for them.
Asia is finding out there are bastards on her side who are more then willing to the other side what was done to her.
First off the CIA and the point are still missing each other.
Second the wedding is more about the succession of the Bavarian throne then it is about Friedrich becoming the next Kaiser and there is the possibility if the Polish Question goes hot the Kaiser may hold off on a transfer of power (symbolically).
As a side note going to this Wedding should be a job for the First Lady, the Vice President, and the Ambassador to Germany.
Third the President should be more concerned about Intel opening shop in Germany then about Walther using Princess Kristina as a marketing tool.
By the way holynight is very right in thinking that the real target (No irony intended) is the American public especially upscale women who want a firearm with sufficient stopping power but is also is easy to handle, having Princess Kristina as the face of the weapon makes it the most logical choice for them.
Asia is finding out there are bastards on her side who are more then willing to the other side what was done to her.