We don't know what the laws about privacy, assault and self-defense are in Germany at this time. If the paparazzi get to the point of OTL I can see Kat needing a protective detail of 6-8 people just to keep the crazies out of range 'for their own protection' (and the local hospital sending an ambulance 'just in case').
Stupid Luck and Happenstance.
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
We don't know what the laws about privacy, assault and self-defense are in Germany at this time. If the paparazzi get to the point of OTL I can see Kat needing a protective detail of 6-8 people just to keep the crazies out of range 'for their own protection' (and the local hospital sending an ambulance 'just in case').
Here's the thing, it's not a matter of laws, as it is the fact she's a noblewoman with friends in high places, in addition to wearing Size 10 Boots of Asskicking, in addition to her Claw.
Sure, she might not have a legal case, but if you think for a second any newspaper is going to risk say, a "surprise inspection" by the politzei, or some Paras on leave "accidentally" busting up their printing press....
Part 30, Chapter 347
On a side note, something that hasn't been included in the discussion is that one of the jobs that Kat Mischner had was as Maria Acker's assistant at a major newspaper in Berlin.
Chapter Three Hundred Forty-Seven
25th November 1943
East Bank of the Volga River, Russia
It had been about as popular of a decision as Hans had figured it would be. Wet clothes, freezing temperatures and all, but they hardly had time to think about any of that. Hans’ Platoon made it across the river without being noticed by the Russian gunners who had been shooting at the Luftpanzer without much effect. While the Luftpanzer might not have the thick hide of its larger cousins, 7.62mm bullets largely didn’t bother it. By the time they were noticed APCs were fording the river and the scattered infantry were the least of the Russian gunners worries. What followed was a night of chaotic fighting with the Russians falling back to the north.
The next morning as the sun came up they were still trying to dry their clothes as best they could.
“Congratulations” Jost said to Hans, “That was a real dick move making us wade across that river, you’ve started thinking like a thrice damned officer.”
Sorin said nothing, he just walked after Jost.
What was Hans supposed to have done? Let that Panzer crew get clobbered by the Russians then watched as that portion of the river was reinforced?
----------------------------------------------------------------
Hans was waiting on the north bank of what he had learned was the Akhtuba river waiting for further orders. That was when he saw possibly the only person who might understand his situation coming across, Walter Horst. The rest of the Division was massing for something but the signal to go ahead had yet to come. He hadn’t spoken with his former commanding officer since he’d gotten promoted to Division XO but Hans understanding was that he was just as much of a hard ass as he ever was.
Hans waved Horst’s car down, the same old Kubelwagen that he’d had for years.
“Need a ride, Spear?” Horst asked.
“Yes, Sir” Hans said as he jumped into the back seat.
They sat down and sat there for a few minutes in the stop and go traffic before Horst turned around in his seat. “So, what’d you want Spear?” He asked.
“Got told off by one of my men for what happened yesterday” Hans said.
“And I hope you tell me you kicked his butt” Horst said.
“Not yet” Hans said, “I’m not sure I’d want to make an enemy of this one.”
“A good man or a real hard one?” Horst asked.
“Both” Hans answered.
“I see” Horst said, “Because you ordered your Platoon to follow that Panzer across the river?”
“How did you know about?” Hans asked.
“I always keep track of my people” Horst said, “You made the choice that was for the good of your whole outfit, better to be backing up armor than if you’d tried that crossing without it. But that was obviously not the popular choice.”
“Let’s just say that the outfit takes a different perspective” Hans said, “I got told that I was thinking like an officer.”
Horst found that humorous. “You know that all you have to do is say the word, Mischner” He said, “You’d be an Oberfähnrich the instant the paperwork clears.”
That was it, something that would radically alter his entire career.
“I’m aware of some of the things that are said about why you’ve been holding out” Horst said, “You got the Member’s Cross for your role in establishing the beachhead but you’ve never struck me as being in it for that sort of thing.”
That was it, the coveted version of the Knight’s Cross for enlisted men. Hans had gotten the last medal that an enlisted man could get without a long service medal coming with it. But Horst was right, he’d never really cared about that sort of thing. What did he really have to lose here?
“If you could do that, Sir” Hans said.
Horst looked at him, bemused. “Welcome to the mustangs” He said, “Your outfit is attacking the rail line that is the last link between Stalingrad and the outside world. Try not to get yourself killed.”
Hans just nodded. That was going to be a meat grinder. That was also going to be an unpopular with his Platoon. He was starting to see why Horst had to be such a hardass.
South China Sea
When Tilo woke up aboard the hospital ship, the SMS Prinzessin Kristina, he didn’t have the first clue as to where he was. He had felt like crap for the last few days as his Squad had come in from the field. It had culminated with him being found in his tent burning up with a fever and no one being able to wake him up. A couple weeks later he’d gotten better but remained in quarantine. Until the Doctors figured out what he’d had or if he remained contagious they had kept him in this tiny berth. He could see that there was another bunk folded against the bulkhead. At least he didn’t have company for this misery.
When he had been aboard the transport that had taken him from Cuxhaven to Freemantle he would have loved nothing better than to have a room to himself. This, on the other hand, was ridiculous. Especially when he discovered that he was talking to the medical staff through surgical masks and a glass window that looked in on him. The only good thing about that was that it was air conditioned. For the life of him he couldn’t figure out why they needed to have hospital food halfway around the planet?
Chapter Three Hundred Forty-Seven
25th November 1943
East Bank of the Volga River, Russia
It had been about as popular of a decision as Hans had figured it would be. Wet clothes, freezing temperatures and all, but they hardly had time to think about any of that. Hans’ Platoon made it across the river without being noticed by the Russian gunners who had been shooting at the Luftpanzer without much effect. While the Luftpanzer might not have the thick hide of its larger cousins, 7.62mm bullets largely didn’t bother it. By the time they were noticed APCs were fording the river and the scattered infantry were the least of the Russian gunners worries. What followed was a night of chaotic fighting with the Russians falling back to the north.
The next morning as the sun came up they were still trying to dry their clothes as best they could.
“Congratulations” Jost said to Hans, “That was a real dick move making us wade across that river, you’ve started thinking like a thrice damned officer.”
Sorin said nothing, he just walked after Jost.
What was Hans supposed to have done? Let that Panzer crew get clobbered by the Russians then watched as that portion of the river was reinforced?
----------------------------------------------------------------
Hans was waiting on the north bank of what he had learned was the Akhtuba river waiting for further orders. That was when he saw possibly the only person who might understand his situation coming across, Walter Horst. The rest of the Division was massing for something but the signal to go ahead had yet to come. He hadn’t spoken with his former commanding officer since he’d gotten promoted to Division XO but Hans understanding was that he was just as much of a hard ass as he ever was.
Hans waved Horst’s car down, the same old Kubelwagen that he’d had for years.
“Need a ride, Spear?” Horst asked.
“Yes, Sir” Hans said as he jumped into the back seat.
They sat down and sat there for a few minutes in the stop and go traffic before Horst turned around in his seat. “So, what’d you want Spear?” He asked.
“Got told off by one of my men for what happened yesterday” Hans said.
“And I hope you tell me you kicked his butt” Horst said.
“Not yet” Hans said, “I’m not sure I’d want to make an enemy of this one.”
“A good man or a real hard one?” Horst asked.
“Both” Hans answered.
“I see” Horst said, “Because you ordered your Platoon to follow that Panzer across the river?”
“How did you know about?” Hans asked.
“I always keep track of my people” Horst said, “You made the choice that was for the good of your whole outfit, better to be backing up armor than if you’d tried that crossing without it. But that was obviously not the popular choice.”
“Let’s just say that the outfit takes a different perspective” Hans said, “I got told that I was thinking like an officer.”
Horst found that humorous. “You know that all you have to do is say the word, Mischner” He said, “You’d be an Oberfähnrich the instant the paperwork clears.”
That was it, something that would radically alter his entire career.
“I’m aware of some of the things that are said about why you’ve been holding out” Horst said, “You got the Member’s Cross for your role in establishing the beachhead but you’ve never struck me as being in it for that sort of thing.”
That was it, the coveted version of the Knight’s Cross for enlisted men. Hans had gotten the last medal that an enlisted man could get without a long service medal coming with it. But Horst was right, he’d never really cared about that sort of thing. What did he really have to lose here?
“If you could do that, Sir” Hans said.
Horst looked at him, bemused. “Welcome to the mustangs” He said, “Your outfit is attacking the rail line that is the last link between Stalingrad and the outside world. Try not to get yourself killed.”
Hans just nodded. That was going to be a meat grinder. That was also going to be an unpopular with his Platoon. He was starting to see why Horst had to be such a hardass.
South China Sea
When Tilo woke up aboard the hospital ship, the SMS Prinzessin Kristina, he didn’t have the first clue as to where he was. He had felt like crap for the last few days as his Squad had come in from the field. It had culminated with him being found in his tent burning up with a fever and no one being able to wake him up. A couple weeks later he’d gotten better but remained in quarantine. Until the Doctors figured out what he’d had or if he remained contagious they had kept him in this tiny berth. He could see that there was another bunk folded against the bulkhead. At least he didn’t have company for this misery.
When he had been aboard the transport that had taken him from Cuxhaven to Freemantle he would have loved nothing better than to have a room to himself. This, on the other hand, was ridiculous. Especially when he discovered that he was talking to the medical staff through surgical masks and a glass window that looked in on him. The only good thing about that was that it was air conditioned. For the life of him he couldn’t figure out why they needed to have hospital food halfway around the planet?
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I think we are a bit to "Kat" focused, there are also the two other furies that can be followed (much safer for limb and life) and of one those loves attention and the other is "proper" lady and should be "nice" etc... Then there is their sefl acclaimed mentor, the "Mad Art Lover", and don't forget their patroness, Empress Kira. They alone will generated a lot of "News" A Bonus is that Kat will be with them a lot and they will keep her from overreacting towards the paparazzi, just basic survival. I hope that will not notice her young niece.
It was inspired by the death of a British General during this same time period who thought that defeating tropical disease was a matter of will. I figured the DKMD Medical Corps would have a different perspective based on this real incident from OTL. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_Lazowski http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/how-a-fake-typhus-epidemic-saved-a-polish-city-from-the-nazis
Naturally, who else but Tilo Schultz would end up trapped in a room the size of a phone booth for weeks while infectious disease specialists try to figure it out.
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That Luftpanzer's crew is in for a helmetful of medals.
"The thinner the armor the larger the balls."
We are a bit Kat focused - and PM has created so very may interesting Point of View characters with interesting thing which are and could happen around them. This of course might just be me as Kat is a lot like my favourite niece when rilled and I get quite enough of that in real life.
Part 30, Chapter 348
Chapter Three Hundred Forty-Eight
28th November 1943
South China Sea
“Is that some sort of sick joke?” Tilo asked.
“No, it isn’t, Gefreiter Schultz” Doctor Dubanowski said, his voice sounding tinny over the intercom, “There was a recent incident that caused us to reevaluate the protocols on how we handle infectious diseases of unknown origin which is why we are taking your case so seriously.”
Dubanowski was trying to be helpful but after a few days in here Tilo was growing stir crazy. Even in here Tilo had heard about the incident that the Doctor was referring to. An Oberst had caught a disease of a social nature that had caused his privates to swell up and turn black. The rumor was that the Doctors had never seen anything like it before. That meant that Tilo was stuck in this tiny room because some Oberst got an exotic form of the clap. Tilo was sure that Reier and Edmund would get a laugh about that, he just would really like to know when he’d get a chance to tell them.
“How much longer am I stuck in here?” Tilo demanded.
“Until we can determine exactly what you had and if you're still contagious” Dubanowski said, “We have our lab working on it but unfortunately you are not exactly a priority.” Tilo suspected that the Oberst with the black cock was.
“Can you arrange something for me to do in the meantime?” Tilo asked.
“Your file says that you are Catholic” The Dubanowski said, “It’s Sunday, so perhaps we could send the Chaplin around to talk to you if you think that would help.”
It had been a very long time since Tilo had filled out that form when he’d been conscripted. His Father and brothers had warned him that putting down that he was an atheist on that form would be giving the Drill Instructor the perfect means and excuse to kick his ass. It would also give him a chance on Sunday mornings to grab a couple extra hours of sleep. That last part had been true but the Drill Instructor had plenty of other excuses to kick Tilo’s ass, most of them provided by Tilo’s own mouth. These days Tilo wasn’t sure what he was and the last thing he wanted was to be a captive audience to someone else’s religious beliefs.
“That won’t be necessary, Doctor Dubanowski” Tilo said, “But if you could get me a couple books, a deck of cards or something.”
“I think something like that could be arranged” Dubanowski said.
Tilo wasn’t going to hold his breath until that happened.
Bryansk Oblast, Russia
Emil would have liked to have grabbed a rifle and proceeded to the front. That was easy to understand, simple. Instead he was in the Corps Headquarters trying to get a handle of what was happening and figure out the best way to employ his men while minimizing the losses. The Paras had advanced to a one intersection village called Roshcha that the Russians were putting up quite the fight over. When this was over Emil figured there wouldn’t be a whole lot left of the place. Who knew what had happened to the civilians who had lived here.
As one of the Corps Commanders Emil had Field Marshal von Manstein breathing down his neck. The Fallschirmjäger Corps were supposed to be miracle workers. But in this relatively conventional battle against a determined enemy they had the same strengths and weaknesses as any other light infantry. Emil understood the Field Marshal’s frustration. They were the Army Group that was closest to Moscow, the ultimate prize of this entire war. But they were also the only one that had not achieved a breakthrough yet.
So, as a result Emil knew better than to bring up the performance of his old unit with Manstein. He saw that the 140th Regiment was leading the charge of the 4th Panzer Division and the 2nd Army Corps along with it. They had reached the plains east of Stalingrad were driving north on the east bank of the Volga River. Emil didn’t know if they were going to turn east or keep going north. Emil had heard von Manstein’s opinion enough times, that his being transferred to Army Group Center had been a step down from his command during the siege of Leningrad even if it had come with a promotion to Field Marshal. Emil had a different perspective. There was obviously enough glory to go around and so long as the Soviet Army Group, the absurdly named Belorussian Front couldn’t disengage from Army Group Center it couldn’t move to head off the other thrusts.
London, England
Kat had come at Elizabeth’s invitation. Unfortunately, no one had seemed to have told the family dog. He was nipping at Kat’s heels until she turned and issued a sharp command at the animal. “Sit!” It wasn’t until she said that that she realized that there was no reason to expect this dog to understand the command in German. To her amazement the dog sat and looked up at her, his long tongue hanging out of his mouth. He was a strange looking dog, like someone had sawed off a German Shepherd.
“Dookie, isn’t bothering you, is he?” Elizabeth asked, “My goodness Katherine, I hardly recognized you.” She used the English pronunciation of her name.
Today Kat had worn clothes that were not old and faded like what she normally wore on her own time because of where she was but still to her taste. She’d also not bothered to braid her hair. Kat had inadvertently gone with one of the first rules of disguise, don’t look like yourself. Or in her case, not looking like what people expected. Kat seldom wore her hair down like this because it made her look like she was much younger than she really was.
“I apologize” Kat said.
“There’s nothing for you to apologize for” Elizabeth said, “This is your day off I guess. Any other surprises?”
“Just my name” Kat said, “I say it differently is all.”
“Really” Elizabeth seemed delighted by that, “How?”
Kat told her.
“Kat-her-eena” Elizabeth tried to repeat.
“Close enough but just call me Kat like my friends do” Kat said, “It’s easier.”
“Your file said something about that” Elizabeth said, “What you friends in the paratroopers call you translates to Little Cat.”
“Did that file say anything else?” Kat asked.
“It did mention that you meet your friends for coffee on Sundays” Elizabeth said.
Kat saw Elizabeth’s face and saw that there was a bit of hero worship here but also hope that Kat would include her as a friend.
“While it doesn’t surprise me that the file you mentioned exists, you probably shouldn’t have mentioned it to me” Kat said, “And if you’ve got coffee I’ll be happy to stick around.”
In spite of Kat’s gentle rebuke, the Princess smiled.
28th November 1943
South China Sea
“Is that some sort of sick joke?” Tilo asked.
“No, it isn’t, Gefreiter Schultz” Doctor Dubanowski said, his voice sounding tinny over the intercom, “There was a recent incident that caused us to reevaluate the protocols on how we handle infectious diseases of unknown origin which is why we are taking your case so seriously.”
Dubanowski was trying to be helpful but after a few days in here Tilo was growing stir crazy. Even in here Tilo had heard about the incident that the Doctor was referring to. An Oberst had caught a disease of a social nature that had caused his privates to swell up and turn black. The rumor was that the Doctors had never seen anything like it before. That meant that Tilo was stuck in this tiny room because some Oberst got an exotic form of the clap. Tilo was sure that Reier and Edmund would get a laugh about that, he just would really like to know when he’d get a chance to tell them.
“How much longer am I stuck in here?” Tilo demanded.
“Until we can determine exactly what you had and if you're still contagious” Dubanowski said, “We have our lab working on it but unfortunately you are not exactly a priority.” Tilo suspected that the Oberst with the black cock was.
“Can you arrange something for me to do in the meantime?” Tilo asked.
“Your file says that you are Catholic” The Dubanowski said, “It’s Sunday, so perhaps we could send the Chaplin around to talk to you if you think that would help.”
It had been a very long time since Tilo had filled out that form when he’d been conscripted. His Father and brothers had warned him that putting down that he was an atheist on that form would be giving the Drill Instructor the perfect means and excuse to kick his ass. It would also give him a chance on Sunday mornings to grab a couple extra hours of sleep. That last part had been true but the Drill Instructor had plenty of other excuses to kick Tilo’s ass, most of them provided by Tilo’s own mouth. These days Tilo wasn’t sure what he was and the last thing he wanted was to be a captive audience to someone else’s religious beliefs.
“That won’t be necessary, Doctor Dubanowski” Tilo said, “But if you could get me a couple books, a deck of cards or something.”
“I think something like that could be arranged” Dubanowski said.
Tilo wasn’t going to hold his breath until that happened.
Bryansk Oblast, Russia
Emil would have liked to have grabbed a rifle and proceeded to the front. That was easy to understand, simple. Instead he was in the Corps Headquarters trying to get a handle of what was happening and figure out the best way to employ his men while minimizing the losses. The Paras had advanced to a one intersection village called Roshcha that the Russians were putting up quite the fight over. When this was over Emil figured there wouldn’t be a whole lot left of the place. Who knew what had happened to the civilians who had lived here.
As one of the Corps Commanders Emil had Field Marshal von Manstein breathing down his neck. The Fallschirmjäger Corps were supposed to be miracle workers. But in this relatively conventional battle against a determined enemy they had the same strengths and weaknesses as any other light infantry. Emil understood the Field Marshal’s frustration. They were the Army Group that was closest to Moscow, the ultimate prize of this entire war. But they were also the only one that had not achieved a breakthrough yet.
So, as a result Emil knew better than to bring up the performance of his old unit with Manstein. He saw that the 140th Regiment was leading the charge of the 4th Panzer Division and the 2nd Army Corps along with it. They had reached the plains east of Stalingrad were driving north on the east bank of the Volga River. Emil didn’t know if they were going to turn east or keep going north. Emil had heard von Manstein’s opinion enough times, that his being transferred to Army Group Center had been a step down from his command during the siege of Leningrad even if it had come with a promotion to Field Marshal. Emil had a different perspective. There was obviously enough glory to go around and so long as the Soviet Army Group, the absurdly named Belorussian Front couldn’t disengage from Army Group Center it couldn’t move to head off the other thrusts.
London, England
Kat had come at Elizabeth’s invitation. Unfortunately, no one had seemed to have told the family dog. He was nipping at Kat’s heels until she turned and issued a sharp command at the animal. “Sit!” It wasn’t until she said that that she realized that there was no reason to expect this dog to understand the command in German. To her amazement the dog sat and looked up at her, his long tongue hanging out of his mouth. He was a strange looking dog, like someone had sawed off a German Shepherd.
“Dookie, isn’t bothering you, is he?” Elizabeth asked, “My goodness Katherine, I hardly recognized you.” She used the English pronunciation of her name.
Today Kat had worn clothes that were not old and faded like what she normally wore on her own time because of where she was but still to her taste. She’d also not bothered to braid her hair. Kat had inadvertently gone with one of the first rules of disguise, don’t look like yourself. Or in her case, not looking like what people expected. Kat seldom wore her hair down like this because it made her look like she was much younger than she really was.
“I apologize” Kat said.
“There’s nothing for you to apologize for” Elizabeth said, “This is your day off I guess. Any other surprises?”
“Just my name” Kat said, “I say it differently is all.”
“Really” Elizabeth seemed delighted by that, “How?”
Kat told her.
“Kat-her-eena” Elizabeth tried to repeat.
“Close enough but just call me Kat like my friends do” Kat said, “It’s easier.”
“Your file said something about that” Elizabeth said, “What you friends in the paratroopers call you translates to Little Cat.”
“Did that file say anything else?” Kat asked.
“It did mention that you meet your friends for coffee on Sundays” Elizabeth said.
Kat saw Elizabeth’s face and saw that there was a bit of hero worship here but also hope that Kat would include her as a friend.
“While it doesn’t surprise me that the file you mentioned exists, you probably shouldn’t have mentioned it to me” Kat said, “And if you’ve got coffee I’ll be happy to stick around.”
In spite of Kat’s gentle rebuke, the Princess smiled.
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The U.S. election is less than a year away, the economy is doing great with exporting food and goods to the warring nations.
The armed forces are undergoing modernization and build up for a potential entrance to the war.
The American people are buying a lot of consumer goods after a long depression.
On the Republican Party side, I think the main candidates are going to be Sen. Robert A Taft representing the isolationist side, Charles A Lindbergh, the pro interventionist side, and Gov. Thomas E Dewey taking whatever side that will get him the most votes (even if it means taking both positions in the same speech).
On the Democratic Party side if President Garner decides to run ( he will be 76 at the time of Inauguration) he will face a challenge from the left supported by Labor,and Civil Rights groups. I don't know who that will be.
The armed forces are undergoing modernization and build up for a potential entrance to the war.
The American people are buying a lot of consumer goods after a long depression.
On the Republican Party side, I think the main candidates are going to be Sen. Robert A Taft representing the isolationist side, Charles A Lindbergh, the pro interventionist side, and Gov. Thomas E Dewey taking whatever side that will get him the most votes (even if it means taking both positions in the same speech).
On the Democratic Party side if President Garner decides to run ( he will be 76 at the time of Inauguration) he will face a challenge from the left supported by Labor,and Civil Rights groups. I don't know who that will be.
So in proper Murphy fashion, someone in Japan its going to fuck up things royally and decide that its a good idea to invade the Philippines.
They're already in a much bigger fight than they were IOTL. Also, they have been spanked both by land and by sea (I don't know the 'by air' score), as opposed to OTL. There's bravery, there's recklessness, there's stupidity, and there's attacking a neutral Great Power that you still have some commercial relations with while other Great Powers are already kicking you in the nadgers.
If somebody raised the idea at a meeting of the Imperial Japanese equivalent of the War Cabinet he'd probably get dope-slapped by everyone else.
My own theory on how the U.S. gets in the war is Japan is being pressed by the Allied Combined Fleet and they need bases in Guam and the Philippines to strike back.
Then Japan somehow gets the idea that the U.S. is going to make a deal with the Allies to let the Allies use Guam as a staging base for an attack against the Northern Marianas and Japan demands that the U.S. turn over Guam, Wake Islands, The Philippines, and Pearl Harbor for Japanese use or face "Immediate Destruction".
Then Japan somehow gets the idea that the U.S. is going to make a deal with the Allies to let the Allies use Guam as a staging base for an attack against the Northern Marianas and Japan demands that the U.S. turn over Guam, Wake Islands, The Philippines, and Pearl Harbor for Japanese use or face "Immediate Destruction".
Part 30, Chapter 349
Chapter Three Hundred Forty-Nine
29th November 1943
London, England
“You do understand that woman is a spy?” John Godfrey said.
Ian Fleming just shrugged. “Of course, I know that, it’s the entire reason we invited her in the first place” He said, “And what we overheard from that conversation was extremely valuable. That’s why the file in question was actually a few selected excerpts. The real file is a rather sizable box. Mostly publicly available information.”
“You did all of this because that girl put one over on you?” Godfrey asked, “For pride?”
“No” Fleming said, “Because she is a future rival and I’d be willing to bet that she’s been doing likewise in her own way.”
“And what exactly did you determine?” Godfrey asked.
“The Baroness has only one real weakness” Fleming said, “She can’t resist making connections to others who are like her, otherwise alone.”
“But did you have to involve the Princess?” Godfrey said, “If his Highness ever finds out then we’ll be lucky to be posted to a battleship refueling depot in Alberta.”
“That was by accident” Fleming said, “The Princess asked for the information and someone thoughtlessly gave it to her. The Baroness actually explained to the Princess some of the concepts of tradecraft, the value of information and told her directly that she shouldn’t have told her about that file. That will serve the Princess well in the future. And the Baroness said something interesting. That she got herself promoted to lead a spy team that will probably never exist so that no one else could ever control her.”
That raised Godfrey’s eyebrows. “What did she have to do to get her superiors to agree to that?”
“That we don’t know” Fleming said “But the German principalities and Duchies don’t just give medals out for no reason. While she says freely that there were political motivations for some of them the Baroness bled for the more important ones, whatever it was she had to do.”
West of Kamyshin, Russia
The road stretched on, a rutted path between endless fields of snow. Kurt was sitting in the cupola trying to keep an eye on things through the vision blocks. He’d attempted to ride with the hatch open but that had caused Olli and Volker to crank up the heater's blower and it had been like sitting in a chimney. With the Panther buttoned up the interior quickly smelled like wet wool, dirty socks and there was condensation dripping down the walls.
As it got dark, visibility had grown worse and Kurt had resorted to using the Sperber device that was mounted in front of the cupola. Volker had a version of the night vision scope as part of the gunsights but as they had discovered the system was less than dependable when they fired the main gun. Either the scopes failed or the infrared spotlight did and they’d be getting bawled out by the Oberst for breaking the damn thing. It was a lot easier just to leave it off. In this situation, it was proving quite useful as Kurt used it to call directions to Lars so they could stay on the road.
They had done this for a while when Kurt spotted a dark shape in the road a few hundred meters ahead. Between the blowing snow and the scope which was like looking through the wrong end of a telescope at the bottom of a swimming pool under eerie green light. It was hard to see detail.
“I think we got some T-34s” Kurt said, “Two or three hundred meters ahead.”
If anyone in the Panther was asleep before they weren’t after Kurt said that. The Russian medium tanks may not have been a match for a Panther on an individual basis but a Company of them could easily overwhelm them by weight of numbers. The Panther ground to a halt as Volker looked through the scope trying to get detail on the Russians. There was no movement and the scopes revealed no heat.
“Load HL Olli” Kurt said. Referring to the high explosive shells that relied on being shaped charges as opposed to kinetic energy like the usual armor piercing shells.
“You sure about that?” Olli asked.
“At these distances, anything else would be overkill” Kurt said.
That was the truth, this close and any scrap would be a brutal knife-fight in the dark. They waited for something to happen. Still, nothing.
“Let ‘em have it, Volker” Kurt said.
Volker didn’t need any encouragement, he stomped the peddle firing the main gun. The scopes went dark as something went wrong with the Sperber. Not that it mattered, Kurt could see that the lead T-34 had been hit through the vision blocks and was on fire. The other T-34s were visible in the firelight. They remained parked on the road when there should have been a mad scramble to get off the road. What was happening here? Kurt could hear the Panther’s engine racing. Lars was preparing to make a quick getaway if they had to.
“See if you can bring us closer” Kurt said to Lars over the intercom.
“You sure about that?” Lars asked.
“The alternative is to wait for the rest of the Company to show up” Kurt said. And who knew how long it would be before that happened.
The Panther advanced at a crawl until they were a few dozen meters from the burning T-34. As Kurt opened the hatch, the blast of cold air that came in was a shock.
“Olli, you’re with me” Kurt said and then into the intercom “Kolbe, Lars, I need you two to see if you can get the Sperber working again and Volker, if it moves light it up.” Aside from Volker none of the crew were thrilled with what they were asked to do but were going along with it, grudgingly.
Kurt climbed out of the hatch, checking to make sure his pistol was in working order, Olli followed with a machine pistol. Walking up to the first undamaged T-34 Kurt saw that it was empty. The hatches were open allowing snow to blow in but other than that it was undamaged. Later they would find five more T-34s in the same state. It took some time but they discovered that the fuel tanks were empty. The crews had run out, then walked away.
29th November 1943
London, England
“You do understand that woman is a spy?” John Godfrey said.
Ian Fleming just shrugged. “Of course, I know that, it’s the entire reason we invited her in the first place” He said, “And what we overheard from that conversation was extremely valuable. That’s why the file in question was actually a few selected excerpts. The real file is a rather sizable box. Mostly publicly available information.”
“You did all of this because that girl put one over on you?” Godfrey asked, “For pride?”
“No” Fleming said, “Because she is a future rival and I’d be willing to bet that she’s been doing likewise in her own way.”
“And what exactly did you determine?” Godfrey asked.
“The Baroness has only one real weakness” Fleming said, “She can’t resist making connections to others who are like her, otherwise alone.”
“But did you have to involve the Princess?” Godfrey said, “If his Highness ever finds out then we’ll be lucky to be posted to a battleship refueling depot in Alberta.”
“That was by accident” Fleming said, “The Princess asked for the information and someone thoughtlessly gave it to her. The Baroness actually explained to the Princess some of the concepts of tradecraft, the value of information and told her directly that she shouldn’t have told her about that file. That will serve the Princess well in the future. And the Baroness said something interesting. That she got herself promoted to lead a spy team that will probably never exist so that no one else could ever control her.”
That raised Godfrey’s eyebrows. “What did she have to do to get her superiors to agree to that?”
“That we don’t know” Fleming said “But the German principalities and Duchies don’t just give medals out for no reason. While she says freely that there were political motivations for some of them the Baroness bled for the more important ones, whatever it was she had to do.”
West of Kamyshin, Russia
The road stretched on, a rutted path between endless fields of snow. Kurt was sitting in the cupola trying to keep an eye on things through the vision blocks. He’d attempted to ride with the hatch open but that had caused Olli and Volker to crank up the heater's blower and it had been like sitting in a chimney. With the Panther buttoned up the interior quickly smelled like wet wool, dirty socks and there was condensation dripping down the walls.
As it got dark, visibility had grown worse and Kurt had resorted to using the Sperber device that was mounted in front of the cupola. Volker had a version of the night vision scope as part of the gunsights but as they had discovered the system was less than dependable when they fired the main gun. Either the scopes failed or the infrared spotlight did and they’d be getting bawled out by the Oberst for breaking the damn thing. It was a lot easier just to leave it off. In this situation, it was proving quite useful as Kurt used it to call directions to Lars so they could stay on the road.
They had done this for a while when Kurt spotted a dark shape in the road a few hundred meters ahead. Between the blowing snow and the scope which was like looking through the wrong end of a telescope at the bottom of a swimming pool under eerie green light. It was hard to see detail.
“I think we got some T-34s” Kurt said, “Two or three hundred meters ahead.”
If anyone in the Panther was asleep before they weren’t after Kurt said that. The Russian medium tanks may not have been a match for a Panther on an individual basis but a Company of them could easily overwhelm them by weight of numbers. The Panther ground to a halt as Volker looked through the scope trying to get detail on the Russians. There was no movement and the scopes revealed no heat.
“Load HL Olli” Kurt said. Referring to the high explosive shells that relied on being shaped charges as opposed to kinetic energy like the usual armor piercing shells.
“You sure about that?” Olli asked.
“At these distances, anything else would be overkill” Kurt said.
That was the truth, this close and any scrap would be a brutal knife-fight in the dark. They waited for something to happen. Still, nothing.
“Let ‘em have it, Volker” Kurt said.
Volker didn’t need any encouragement, he stomped the peddle firing the main gun. The scopes went dark as something went wrong with the Sperber. Not that it mattered, Kurt could see that the lead T-34 had been hit through the vision blocks and was on fire. The other T-34s were visible in the firelight. They remained parked on the road when there should have been a mad scramble to get off the road. What was happening here? Kurt could hear the Panther’s engine racing. Lars was preparing to make a quick getaway if they had to.
“See if you can bring us closer” Kurt said to Lars over the intercom.
“You sure about that?” Lars asked.
“The alternative is to wait for the rest of the Company to show up” Kurt said. And who knew how long it would be before that happened.
The Panther advanced at a crawl until they were a few dozen meters from the burning T-34. As Kurt opened the hatch, the blast of cold air that came in was a shock.
“Olli, you’re with me” Kurt said and then into the intercom “Kolbe, Lars, I need you two to see if you can get the Sperber working again and Volker, if it moves light it up.” Aside from Volker none of the crew were thrilled with what they were asked to do but were going along with it, grudgingly.
Kurt climbed out of the hatch, checking to make sure his pistol was in working order, Olli followed with a machine pistol. Walking up to the first undamaged T-34 Kurt saw that it was empty. The hatches were open allowing snow to blow in but other than that it was undamaged. Later they would find five more T-34s in the same state. It took some time but they discovered that the fuel tanks were empty. The crews had run out, then walked away.
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well this spells the end of the Russian forces ability to defend the motherland effectively.
Again, that requires for the Japanese leaders to be idiots without a shred of common sense. The Japanese leaders (like most leaders in general) had to have either remarkable competence, a finely tuned political talent, or smart councilors from the people who propped them into power.
Though if the USA wanted to join the war, the most probable incident to make it happen would be a Japanese attack (staged or not) against an US ship. Think Lusitania.
Honestly, the USA would probably prefer that the European Allies incur more loses and are more weakened before joining in. They had somewhat friendly relations, but they also had their own ambitions.
Also, ITTL they had a bit of a rivalry with Germany for influence in South America. And their relations with Britain are not without some troubles, thanks both to the German Abwehr and their own actions.
Lastly, this is OTL 1939 British Empire.
Between them, the Dutch and the French, the European Allies have enough bases not to need any American ones.
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Let's just say that when the James Bond books get published in this time time they are going to be very interesting.