Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III

Part 118, Chapter 1966
Chapter One Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty-Six



6th March 1970

Yangtze River, Hubei Province, China

With the arrival of Spring, the forces under the command of Sun Li-gen had launched a general offensive north with the aim of taking Zhengzhou. The orders of the HMS Darner were that they were to assist them where they could. What that looked like was conducting fire support for the bridgehead at Wuhan and as Smythe knew full well, that meant the other side was close enough to shoot back. He heard the shriek the high velocity shell, a series dull thuds, finally the large splash of the shell hitting the water a couple hundred yards past the Darner and exploding. The gunnery tower, where Smythe presently was, and the bridge were the only things actually armored above the waterline, with splinter shields provided for the crew served weapons. So, the shell had passed through the main deck of the Darner, the sheet metal and plywood bulkheads hardly slowing it down. With luck, nothing of importance or any of the men had got caught in the path of that thing.

“That sounded like a PAK 40” Hastings said over the intercom.

One of the annoying things about the Sublieutenant was his ability to state the obvious. The Germans had built tens of thousands of the 75mm anti-tank guns and after the war had sold them widely. They remained very potent weapons even if they had grown obsolescent in their original role.

“Will the gunners get some smoke between us and him before he realizes the nature of his mistake” Smythe heard Courtenay calmly order the gunners of the thumper guns who started firing smoke grenades at the riverbank. The mistake he had referred to was in regards the type of shell that had just been fired at the Darner, if it had been high-explosive… “If you could please engage the enemy Mister Smythe.”

It was something that Smythe didn’t need to be told twice. He gave a nod to the ship’s Gunnery Officer who used the director to guide shells from the four-inch guns at the area he thought the fire was coming from as Smythe observed the falling shells with his binoculars. The thumpers got into the act, lobbing grenades into anything they suspected were enemy positions. He saw what he thought was a burst of fire from one of the Bofors guns and knew he would have to chew out the gun captain who had fired it. The Bofors crews were supposed to be keeping an eye out for the helicopters and attack aircraft who could really ruin their day.

Another volley fired from the four-inch guns and Smythe saw a secondary explosion that had the telltales of an artillery piece and ammunition limber brewing up. That was one threat eliminated. With that, Smythe resumed the work of scanning the land above the river for additional threats.



Los Angeles, California

It was early in the morning. Ritchie figured that the sunrise would be a pale glow on the eastern horizon if it were visible, the bright glow of the city lights reflecting off the clouds made that impossible. Presently, it was about as quiet as it ever got in the Central Division and this being the Financial District the streets were mostly empty. He had spotted janitorial crews taking a smoke break outside their buildings a few times. With the shift, and week, being nearly over Wilkinson was clearly driving them around in a patrol pattern of the sort that was referred to as search and avoid in the Army.

The last four nights had been a blur as he had worked Skid Row and Chinatown. Mostly that had involved breaking up fights, dealing with mean drunks or vagrants. Tactics in hand to hand fighting that he had been trained to use by the Army that had never been used, that had changed in a hurry as he had a knife pulled on him on the second day. Wilkinson seemed pleased after he had watched Ritchie slam the man into a concrete wall, the knife left on the sidewalk as its owner was complaining about Ritchie having dislocated his shoulder. “That’s what you get for being stupid” Wilkinson said as he went through the man’s pockets. They had swiftly discovered the reason for the man’s actions, a large amount of cash on his person. While that wasn’t illegal per say, it was not something that one would want to be carrying in that neighborhood at that time of night. If the man had a legitimate reason to have it then it would be returned, if not then it would be a self-correcting problem. When Wilkinson told Ritchie that the money needed to be vouchered and put in evidence, he said that they had no way of knowing if it was a set up. That had been a clear warning to Ritchie about what could happen to sticky fingers.

That incident had also prompted an action that Ritchie was sure Wilkinson wouldn’t be as pleased with. Getting stabbed for his trouble was a real possibility and he figured that it would be smart to be proactive. He remembered the flak vest that he still had as a part of his kit that had been a gift of sorts from the Liaison Officer back when he had been working with the German Special Forces in that Greek mess. According to the Germans, that vest could stop a knife as well as bullets and shrapnel. Kristina had said at the time, she had done it because she was a Medic and for her it was about saving lives. Security be damned. He knew that she had become a Doctor since then and probably still believed the same thing. So, he had written her a letter asking if she knew who the manufacturer was and if it would be possible for him to buy one in a civilian capacity outside of Germany. He figured that it was probably stupid, and that Kristina probably had a million better things to do. He wasn’t expecting a response.

It was then that Dispatch alerted them that an Officer had requested backup. Wilkinson had thrown the car into a sharp U-turn and floored the accelerator peddle as Ritchie called in to Dispatch that they were responding. As they flew down the streets, lights and siren on, he had to admit that there were some parts of this job that were fun.
 
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The body armour will be interesting for the cops, seeing it being introduced. Is it before or after OTL i wonder?
This is about a decade ahead of OTL in some respects, two to three decades in others. IOTL the police started wearing soft vests around 1980. The sort of vest that Ritchie is considering didn't see widespread adoption until around 2000.
 
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This is a good way for the German company to expand their market and I believe that police in Germany are already wearing vests.
The main objections to the vests are that wearing one is “unmanly” and the costs may be deemed to be prohibitive which will be countered with it will be cheaper then hospital bills and funerals.
This may prompt the United States to manufacture their own vests that are just as good or even better then the Germans and having the vests being bought by civilian law enforcement agencies will drive down the costs somewhat:
Also I remember that in some cities and countries there were fundraisers to buy the vests.
 
The main objections to the vests are that wearing one is “unmanly” and the costs may be deemed to be prohibitive which will be countered with it will be cheaper then hospital bills and funerals.
Richie: fuck manliness, I get to S U R V I V E, baby~

^dunno why but when I typed that out, I was picturing Micheal Pena

Marc A
 
Richie: fuck manliness, I get to S U R V I V E, baby~
Excellent point but IOTL at this time many police officers thought that wearing a vest was sign of weakness and the first vests themselves were considered to be too bulky for regular patrol officers and was restricted to specialized tactical teams that later evolved to SWAT teams.
It was only later when the vests became lighter and allowed for more flexibility that the vests became more acceptable to wear.
 

ferdi254

Banned
That would be the first step in the wrong direction the OTL police forces in the USA did take. If you simply improve (militarize) the gear but do not improve the training and education you end up with more bang for people who could not be trusted to use the existing bang properly. The results are predictable.

And before anyone takes offense that has nothing to do with criticism about the individual policeman, his attitudes or his eagerness to do the right thing it is just that those things can ameliorate the damage done by a bad system but not eliminate them.
 
This is a good way for the German company to expand their market
If they're sensible, they'll set up an American subsidiary with an American board reporting to the head office in Germany, but far enough removed it can be branded as an American Company.
Then you're opening up both the LEO and Military market.
 
Part 118, Chapter 1967
Chapter One Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty-Seven



9th March 1970

Jena

“Is this necessary?” Kiki asked as she fought the urge to scratch her scalp, which had EEG probes glued to it.

“It’s a follow up” Doctor Lehrer said, “Surely you must understand the importance?”

Kiki had been involved in Doctor Lehrer’s Neurology research since she had developed secondary issues after having suffered a skull fracture at the hands of self-styled revolutionaries six years earlier. While she understood that Lehrer was one of the foremost experts in his field, Kiki also knew that he had spent years studying the brains of living people and the work had been painstakingly slow. What Lehrer and his team were doing was looking into the unknown and poking it with sticks. Their interest in Kiki was because she was a unique individual, EEGs had been performed on her before and after she had been injured. Who knew that her mother glomming onto the idea that Kiki had something wrong with her would eventually prove valuable?

“We are now going to try some stimulus” Lehrer said, “Let me know if are feeling discomfort.”

Kiki hoped that her annoyance wasn’t apparent on the EEG as the strobes and noise started. She had wondered if Lehrer had turned to a hyperactive nine-year-old boy to help him design this form of torture. All in an effort to see if they could get Kiki to suffer a seizure, something that mercifully had stopped happening after she had healed from the initial injury. After what seemed like an eternity, Lehrer paused what he had euphemistically called stimulus.

“That is probably enough for now” Lehrer said, “Now I must ask. Have you felt anything like that recently? I understand that you have been under a lot of pressure lately, your employment and upcoming marriage.”

“I am the Executive Officer of a Medical Services Regiment that is spread across the 3rd Military District” Kiki replied, “And I agreed to come here today to avoid talking about the plans for that marriage. That ought to tell you something.”

Every time the subject of that marriage came up it became an even bigger production. And it seemed like no one was interested in listening Kiki about what she wanted. Eventually she had ended up telling those making the plans that if they liked the idea of getting married so much, perhaps they ought to all get married themselves and leave her out of it. Klaus Voll, who had designed the dress that Kiki was going to wear had pointed out that would be impossible, so they were going to do the next best thing. Voll had clearly been trying to make her feel at ease by telling her that joke, but she had never liked being at the center of attention. If she could have the others in that room enjoy the insomnia, acidy stomach, and other health problem associated that she had been enduring she would have happily done it. Compared to that, being the XO of the 34th Medical was an escape because while she was traveling around the Berlin/Brandenburg Region she was difficult to reach when there was a question about the cake or the Champagne that was to be served at the reception.

When Doctor Lehrer had invited her back today so that he could conduct the follow up, there had been tests to make sure that there were no other conditions that might interfere with their research. A dark part of Kiki had gone through the lab results with considerable interest. Knowing that a particular result would enable her to have the paperwork expedited and having the wedding quickly and quietly executed so that she and Benjamin could just get on with their lives. However, there several serious flaws in that plan. The forced leave of absence from the Medical Service in about six months and massive commitment of time beyond that just for starters. Fortunately, that wasn’t an eventuality that Kiki needed to think further about today, but it did prove the old joke about how every mushroom cloud had a silver lining because she understood that it would seriously not be worth it.

“So, you are saying that you have been under considerable stress?” Lehrer asked.

“Welcome to my life” Kiki replied, “Glamourous, isn’t it?”

“Complicated, I’ll grant you that” Lehrer said, “I saw a few years ago how you benefited from living in a shack on a mountainside for a couple months.”

“It doesn’t get less complicated than that” Kiki said, “Having to wash laundry by hand left a lot to be desired though and my dog kept wanting to play with the sheep in the meadow.”

“A Princess who chooses to go live in the cottage in the woods after saying to Hell with the Kingdom” Lehrer said, “I doubt that UFA or Disney would ever consider that angle.”

“That perfectly describes my current living arrangement” Kiki said, “Though I doubt that Cinderella, either version, or Snow White ever had to consider that they were living too close to their youngest sisters.”

“Is there a problem there?”

“Don’t get me wrong” Kiki said, “I love Nella and Nan, but they can be a handful at times and like all children, they aren’t exactly aware of boundaries.”

Looking at the EEG machine, Kiki saw Lehrer write an additional notation on the paper as it spooled out.

“We are just about done here” Lehrer said, “My Assistant will be in to get those probes off your scalp in a moment.”
 
Unfortunately for Kiki she has too many obligations that she has to meet for this wedding.
There are the service Chiefs that has to be invited beyond the head of the JMS, key members of the Reichstag that control the appropriations for the JMS, the Chancellor and the relevant Cabinet Ministers, hospital administrators.
All the Electors for the upcoming sector the next Kaiser have to invited or otherwise they will be insulted and take it out on her brother Friedrich.
There are the various members of the royalty and nobility who will never pass up a free meal and drinks at her father's expense.
Invitations have to be sent out to the Diplomatic Corps even through this is a Royal Wedding it is not a State Wedding that her brothers had.

For Nella and Nan Kiki is the best sister that anyone can have and she is their hero, the fact that it is Kiki who is not setting boundaries to her sisters and Kiki needs to get with Charlotte to help her to set and more importantly enforce the boundaries to the girls.
the one not setting boundaries
 
Unfortunately for Kiki she has too many obligations that she has to meet for this wedding.
There are the service Chiefs that has to be invited beyond the head of the JMS, key members of the Reichstag that control the appropriations for the JMS, the Chancellor and the relevant Cabinet Ministers, hospital administrators.
All the Electors for the upcoming sector the next Kaiser have to invited or otherwise they will be insulted and take it out on her brother Friedrich.
There are the various members of the royalty and nobility who will never pass up a free meal and drinks at her father's expense.
Invitations have to be sent out to the Diplomatic Corps even through this is a Royal Wedding it is not a State Wedding that her brothers had.

Surely though she doesn’t have to handle that? Like, the royal family has a whole court and staff - they should be handling the invites, protocol etc., all she has to do is turn up.
 
Surely though she doesn’t have to handle that? Like, the royal family has a whole court and staff - they should be handling the invites, protocol etc., all she has to do is turn up.
You forget that Kristina has always heaped unnecessary burdens upon herself. Ben wasn't wrong when he said that she was always looking for an excuse to feel miserable.
 
You forget that Kristina has always heaped unnecessary burdens upon herself. Ben wasn't wrong when he said that she was always looking for an excuse to feel miserable.
True, but in this case odds are her family would notice.

‘Kristina...as your father, and the one financing this wedding, I am putting my foot down. We have People to handle all this. All you need to do is go to the fittings your stepmother arranges, get your sister to tone down her suggestions for your bachelorette party, and be at the church when the day comes’.
 
Surely though she doesn’t have to handle that? Like, the royal family has a whole court and staff - they should be handling the invites, protocol etc., all she has to do is turn up.
This is Kiki we are talking about, she thinks that she is responsible for the whole world.
The Palace staff has everything under control as they are old hats when it comes to things like Royal Weddings and the planning sessions with Kiki and Ben should goes something like this: Royal Florist: Here are some ideas about the flowers for the Church, Bouquet, and Centerpieces make your selection, that should take less than a half hour to decide.
Royal Chef: Here are some ideas for the menu including special diets and here are some ideas for the cake, that is another half hour out of their lives.
The only real headache for Kiki and Ben is going to be the final guest list as most of the guests have been predetermined by the Protocol Office and the final 10-15% of the invitations will be up to them.
But as it has been pointed out before Kiki is just wanting to make herself miserable to everyone around her even through deep in her heart she wants to marry Ben.
 
Part 118, Chapter 1968
Chapter One Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty-Eight



13th February 1970

Mitte, Berlin

As the Head of the Office of Royal Protocol, Nancy was used to the proclivities of the family whose public face she managed to a certain extent. Working directly with the Princess Royal was an entirely different experience though. It seemed like every time there was an important decision that needed input from Kristina, it took hours to track her down. It was not as if the process was difficult for her because Nancy’s staff was doing all the heavy lifting. So, it was things like selection of the decorations or the menu that were supposed to reflect the desires of the bride where Kristina’s input was mandatory that were causing the most aggravation. The worst part though was whenever Nancy managed to corner Kristina she would watch as she would just sort of shut down or worse, question the need for it to be such a large production.

It was all Nancy could do not to throttle Kristina when she did that.

Finally, having grown fed up with Kristina’s behavior, Nancy had asked her what she really wanted. The answer was like a slap across the face for Nancy. Kristina unknowingly described Nancy’s own wedding to Tilo years earlier, the one where everyone had politely refrained from mentioning that Sabastian had been an inadvertent part of the wedding party. It had been obvious to Nancy at the time that it was still something that most of the people present had been thinking about. Kristina didn’t seem to have a clue about how people would make the same assumptions and that this wasn’t an unnecessary production. Asking Kristina if there was a reason for her wanting this done quickly and quietly had shut that conversation down, she had said there wasn’t and that was the end of it.

This wasn’t the first time that a member of the family that Nancy worked for had made themselves a bother for her. Marie Cecilie was arguably one of the most useless people who Nancy had ever met. Michael could be about as smart as a box of rocks at times. Victoria’s personal arrangements gave Nancy pause. And finally, Louis Junior seemed to have inherited his grandfather’s wandering eye, so it was just as well that he had remained unmarried for now. In the past, she had never given Nancy much trouble, in fact Kristina actually made the rest of her job easier. She had made her own money, pursued her goals without much fuss, and her own introverted nature had meant that whenever Kristina had appeared in public it was almost always in a professional capacity. Being a Surgeon in Emergency Medicine meant that if her name was mentioned in the news it was because she was trying to save lives. That had all changed with this wedding because the public was demanding a show and it seemed that Kristina was just not inclined to give them one.



Los Angeles, California

The man behind the register at the all-night convenience store didn’t charge them for the coffee. “One of the perks of the job” Wilkinson put it as they left the store, “But remember, he charges prices that amount to highway robbery on everything else in the store.”

It was supposedly company policy to give Police Officers free coffee because their presence was enough to cause most of the lowlifes in the neighborhood to keep their distance. Ritchie learned most of the Cops he worked with frequented this store for that exact reason. Once they were back in the car Wilkinson didn’t bother to start the engine as midnight came and went.

“We made it” Wilkinson muttered.

“Made what?” Ritchie asked.

“Friday the 13th.”

“That’s just a superstition.”

Wilkinson just shrugged. “It might not be particularly unlucky because of the date” He said, “But anything that gives the animals an excuse they will take and that can make for a bad night, sort of like when there is a full moon.”

It was a reminder of just how new Ritchie was to this. He had been working ten-hour Graveyard shifts four nights a week in Central Division and was finding that the commute back to San Fernando Valley at the end of the shift was an exhausting exclamation point at the end of it. Perhaps living closer to where he worked would be a good idea. He had mentioned that to Wilkinson and the Sergeant had just said that working in his own neighborhood was not a great idea, unless he liked the idea of busting people he knew. That caused Ritchie to drop the whole thing.

At least it was a nice night though. The weather had warmed a bit and the rain from the previous month had not recurred. Still, there was the long summer ahead and Ritchie figured that would add more complication and that was before Lucia’s plans for June were factored in.

That was when another squad car pulled into the lot. Wilkinson must have recognized whose car it was because he bristled before the window rolled down.

“How’s working with Pancho there treating you Billy?” One of the Officers, the driver, in the other car asked.

“The Boot know he’s rolling with Billy the Kid?” The other said with a laugh.

With that, Wilkinson rolled up the window before starting the ignition and pulling out of the parking lot.

“What was that all about?” Ritchie asked, beyond the obvious.

“Let’s just say getting a certain kind of reputation is a double-edged sword” Wilkinson replied, “At the same time, if those two ever found themselves in deep shit they would want me to be one of those responding.”
 
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Marie Cecilie was arguably one of the most useless people who Nancy had ever met.
While I could see why she would cause continual headaches for her families PR department I would hardly call the person who conned half the world into thinking she was gay to cover for her sister and got a patchwork newly formed country to adopt a functional constitution that served her own liberal interests useless.
 
. And finally, Louis Junior seemed to have inherited his grandfather’s wandering eye, so it was just as well that he had remained unmarried for now.
Well, thats appealing.

Zella kinda needs to move sooner or later.,
That had all changed with this wedding because the public was demanding a show and it seemed that Kristina was just not inclined to give them one.
Stupid Luck and Happenstance just = ELOPEMENT.
 
Nancy has a more clear eyed view of Kiki and her siblings and her perspective while not spot on it is closer to the truth then other peoples opinions.
Nancy should tell Kiki that the wedding is basically the last time that Kiki is going to be the main focus of the public's attention because after the wedding Kiki and Ben are going to be living basically an Upper Middle Class Professional lifestyle that is sad to say boring to most people.
With the abdication of Louis Ferdinand coming soon Nancy may find herself out of a job because whomever the new Kaiser is they are going to have their own people (as they should) in place.
With that in mind Nancy is going to find dump trucks full of money coming to her home from companies who will want her to be their Public Relations head, Nancy could also open up her own consulting business that deals with both marketing and P.R. which she will be in high demand.

Louis Ferdinand Jr being a womanizer may make the Romanian scenario that I have (Louis Ferdinand Jr marries the oldest daughter of King Michael because he has no sons and IOTL the rules at that time makes the main branch of the Hohenzollern next in line for the crown) more likely.
 
Nancy has a more clear eyed view of Kiki and her siblings and her perspective while not spot on it is closer to the truth then other peoples opinions.
To be honest, Nancy doesn't sound clear eyed to me, more deep in her own biases. Especially where it comes to Kiki and the wedding. She doesn't seem to understand that an introvert might want a small affair, instead of the Nancy's wish fulfilment fantasy wedding. Her opinion on Kiki's sisters only reinforces that impression.
Nancy should tell Kiki that the wedding is basically the last time that Kiki is going to be the main focus of the public's attention because after the wedding Kiki and Ben are going to be living basically an Upper Middle Class Professional lifestyle that is sad to say boring to most people.
And if she believes that then she's insane. Considering the status the two of them already have, the public's attention is never going to go away. Not unless they move somewhere far abroad anonymously, and even then there will be the periodical 'where are they now' articles and some journalists trying to hunt them down anyway.
With the abdication of Louis Ferdinand coming soon Nancy may find herself out of a job because whomever the new Kaiser is they are going to have their own people (as they should) in place.
I mean the institution is already changing very much, with the abdication and the new elective process. There especially it should be very important to keep continuity in place. It's the Crown of Germany staying in the same family, not the political opponent taking over the White House. (Now if a dark horse outsider wins the election this might be different...)

Though to be honest, I didn't really like Nancy in that role in the first place. Even if it's "just" PR, I would have expected it to be staffed with someone living and breathing court protocol, not some American who did most of her work in advertisement. The chance to offend someone of actual importance is high otherwise, you know, the reason that kind of protocol exists for in first place. Some kind of deputy position to the PR head would have fit better in my opinion.
 

ferdi254

Banned
Actually it was pretty expensive to bid for German emperor if their was a competition and none of the electorates at any given time was shy to take money no matter where it came from.
 
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