“And this concludes my presentation on the long-term security threats to Pridwen and my plan to neutralize those threats.” I said in my best professional tone. “I imagine you have a lot of questions for me, so please ask away.”
Skera raised her hand. “I’ve got one- are you bloody insane!?” Fair enough, I supposed. After all, I did just tell her that on top of our probably-hostile Elven neighbors who could summon hordes of mana-beasts straight to our doorstep, we were in direct conflict with the Imperial Pantheon that she worshiped for most of her life.
I wryly smiled. “I wish.” I walked towards her. “They are coming for us, Skera. Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same.” I’d always wanted to say that line from that classic movie from my old world. Skera, however, did not share my enthusiasm for the quote.
“So what upcoming threat is so terrifying that the Pantheon thought it was necessary to send you memories of a foreign world? And why you? If anything, you’re the worst person that should have these memories.” Emma asked.
“I wish I knew. But they seemed convinced that my ranged weapons are the key. So perhaps some sort of flying or aquatic mana-beasts since the melee attacks of Paladins and Knights wouldn’t do well against them?” Heck, any guess was as good as mine.
Tali widened her eyes, seemingly realizing something. “Ah, so that’s why you designed these weapons of unbelievable might. You were preparing for them.”
“That’s right. The 88 mm Flak 37 Gun will shred anything on land or in the air while the 60 mm M2 Mortar has the ability to wreck anything on land and sea. I’m confident we can even decimate a horde of Tyrants if we have enough of those on our wall.” Of course, I’d have to heavily modify the shell to have a depth charge capability, but that was a problem for future Rummy. For now, I needed a reliable way to take out Tyrants without me cosplaying a freaking dive-bomber.
Emma had a concerned expression on her face when she asked. “How long will that take? Will we have time to mass-produce these weapons before they attack?”
“Relax, my wife. Nobody is in a rush to come to the Wilds, even if they’re some world-ending mana-beasts. If anything, I predict the Imperial capital, Caliburn, would be the first to go. Then the feudal capitals like Galahad, then the frontier cities like Carnwennan. We’re most likely last on the list, if we’re even on the list.” I assured Emma. “Either way, we should have all the time we need. What we don’t have is the necessary iron ores and the mana crystals.”
Skera seemed confused. “I thought you said the black sands on the banks of the Acheron would have enough iron for us.”
“Enough for rifles and pistols, yes. But a single Flak gun is as tall as this longhouse and shoots out ammo half as tall as this table.” I explained. “I suspect there are lots of mana crystals and iron ores further north, closer to the Fae Mountains, but that is Elf territory and I would very much like to avoid them before we are ready for a real war.”
Tali sighed. “So you mean to travel back to Carnwennan to procure the iron ingots?”
“Yes. And I also have a couple of other errands to run there.”
“Are you not concerned about your safety?” Skera asked.
I smiled at her. “I’m touched, Skera. But I doubt anybody important would pay any attention to a peasant forge-smith. I was considered as a failed journeyman by most, and the ones who suspected me of being anything more than that were all killed that night. As long as I keep a low profile while buying the ingots, I should be fine. Failing that, I am pretty good at running away into the Wilds.”
Sure, if I were them, I’d Dream Pull one of the Legion Consuls and order them to arrest me on sight, but based on my experience with them, Dream Pulls aren’t something they could do on a daily basis (otherwise, I’d be seeing their arrogant mugs on a nightly basis). It's not without risk, but it's a gamble I had to take if I wanted the iron.
Emma seemed satisfied with that answer. Tali then switched topics. “I suppose we are done discussing this issue. The next issue I’d like to discuss is what you found out that night you released Cornelius.”
“Well, the good news is that the Pantheon has very limited ability to actively interfere.” I stated. “They couldn’t manipulate mana-beasts like the Elves could, and the way they manipulate people was very subtle. The rangers that ran into Cornelius seemed genuinely lost and were genuinely surprised to run into Cornelius. They didn’t know they were intentionally sent on a rescue mission.”
Tali nodded. “And the bad news…?”
“The duration of manipulation is impressive. They managed to drag a Ranger patrol some 10-15 klicks off their usual patrol route in their attempt to save the rat. On top of that, the Rangers wouldn’t abandon the rat to save themselves.”
Skera recoiled at the news. “You…”
“Yes. I made sure they lost against the goblin war party.” I grimly answered.
Ah-ha! There was that judgmental face from Skera that I’d come to adore. “They were your comrades! They are innocent bystanders!” She angrily shouted.
“Wrong.” I sharply refuted. “They were pawns of a plan to force me to serve under the Emperor. And by extension, they were pawns of a plan to cripple Lady Natalia’s plans for Pridwen. That makes them my enemies. Our enemies.”
Skera looked down in a moment of uncomfortable silence.
“I know what you’re thinking, Skera. After all, you’re the most devout worshiper of the Pantheon here. For what it's worth, I doubt they could turn you against us. They simply cannot force somebody to do something that they are dead set against doing. Otherwise, I’d be in Caliburn already forging guns for those assholes.”
After another moment of contemplative silence, Tali shifted the topic again. “So, where does that leave us? What do we do?”
I shrugged. “It doesn’t mean anything to us. Our plan remains the same- continue building up Pridwen’s strength by mass producing the machine guns and stocking up on food. I will now focus on the water infrastructure by improving the sewer system and building a groundwater well for us to use in case of siege. Once we have the guns, the food, and the water, we could withstand a siege from anybody.”
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“I see. And when could we start recruiting new residents from Carnwennan?”
“I estimate in a year or two. After that, not even the entire 626th Imperial Ranger Legion could take this town.”
Sadly, that wasn’t the answer Tali wanted to hear. “Hundreds of souls perish every year in that wretched city.” She then stretched out her hand. “We are so close to saving them all, but yet so far…” A brief look of frustration welled up in her expression. Then she sits up, exhales, and re-centers her mind. “Very well then, we shall do as you suggest. Now, before we adjourn this meeting…”
***
The 88 mm Flak 37 Gun was the centerpiece of my endgame defense strategy. Granted, American and Soviet WWII artillery units rightfully earned their place in history either through superb accuracy and fire control or with the banshee-like screams of the Katyushas, but the premier field gun on both sides of the field had to be the 88 mm Flak 37. Although it started out as an anti-aircraft gun, it was also utilized as an anti-tank and anti-personnel field gun. Its versatility and effectiveness struck fear into many Allied soldiers in the European theater, especially the airmen.
I remembered seeing one up close in the National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana, on a school trip. And what a mighty beast it was. Its massive frame (roughly 6 meters long, 2 meters wide, and 7 meters tall) and weight (7.4 tons) gave it the ability to accurately hurl 37 kg shells at targets 15 klicks away and up to 8 klicks up in the air. Even a flock of world-ending mana-beasts would be shredded in the presence of a full battery of Flaks.
Aside from its ability to strike at targets in the air and on land, it had many paths of upgrade I could pursue for the next 5-10 years. I could focus on shell accuracy with an analog targeting computer (like the kommandogerät 40). Or I could improve the reaction speed and the accuracy of the battery by adapting RADAR technology into the fire control system.
But the ultimate upgrade I was eyeing was to build the proximity fuses that would explode the shell when it detected a target nearby. Shells were ruinously expensive to make (especially since they were single-use), so if I could guarantee a hit with every shell I shoot, I’d be jumping with joy.
If the Flak were to be my ultimate shield, then my ultimate spear (for now) would be the M2 Mortar. The 60 mm version of this American classic was very portable- less than a meter long and weighing only 20 kilos. In fact, a 3-man patrol team riding on their wolves could set up a firing position up to 1.8 klicks from the target (its max range) within minutes. By utilizing a shoot-and-scoot tactic, any enemy Legion without skilled light cavalry skirmishers screening the main army would be fucked harder than the guy who dropped his soap in the middle of the prison shower room.
And because Artorian society pathologically glorified the Knights of the heavy cavalry and the Paladins of the heavy infantry, I wouldn’t bet on seeing any skilled light cavalry units coming my way. In fact, the closest thing Imperial Legions have to a scout or a skirmisher were unmounted Rangers. I had a ton of professional respect for those guys, but they’d be too slow to seriously threaten this tactic.
After years of living in this society and learning all about their ideals and ethos, I’d come up with the ultimate counter to the Imperial Legion should they ever march against my dream harem. Their organizational disregard for speed and scouting would be their fatal undoing should they ever bare their fangs at me.
But before any of this military planning could materialize, I gotta build an economy and industry that could support it first. The sheer amount of materials needed to build all these weapons AND the shells was horror-inducing. Not to mention all the R&D work I’d have to put in to develop the damn things. I could work 100 years by myself and still have plenty of work left undone.
In fact, I knew then that I was approaching what I could do as a lone smith- the knockoff MG and Garand were made with a cast-steel forging method that vastly shortened their service lifespans. It was good enough for a solo-act, but equipping an army with cheap shit that breaks easily is a bad idea no matter the era. Besides, I doubt a Flak built with that crude methodology would last more than a dozen firing sequences.
No, I needed an industry composed of well-trained smiths and heavy machinery supported by a robust economy that could churn out the needed materials around the clock. And the first machine I needed to build was a drop forging hammer. With the ability to drop forge, my steel should be high enough quality for military use. Only then would I have the weapons to keep me safe from whatever this shitty world wanted to throw at me.
So until I’d somehow built a kingdom with robust economy and industry in the middle of the damn Wilds, those dreams of invincibility through superior firepower would stay as mere dreams. Sigh… my poor workload…
Field Inventory
Primary Weapon
M1D Garand v.2.0 [Christened Severance Pay]
MG-42 General-Purpose Machine Gun v.1.0 [Christened Lady Vengeance]
Secondary Weapon
Colt M1911A1 Semi-Automatic Pistol v.3.0 [Christened Aurelia]
1x mithril parrying dagger [Christened Swordbreaker]
Armor
Crystal-modified dragon leather body armor set {<
Mana Crystals
1x Adept-level fire elemental mana crystal
1x Adept-level ice elemental mana crystal
1x Adept-level space elemental mana crystal
1x Expert-level earth elemental mana crystal
1x Expert-level space elemental mana crystal
Stash of various mana crystals
Misc.
1x storage bracelet, 2x goggles
Utility belt, grappling hook, rope, dark green cloak, field satchel, puppy backpack, waterskin, rations, boarskin map and steel knife
1x .45 ACP steel centerfire pistol suppressor
1x .30-06 Springfield steel centerfire rifle suppressor
1x crude telescopic sight
10x en bloc clips of .30-06 Springfield armor-piercing ammo
5x magazines of .45 ACP hollow-point ammo
6x belts of 150 .30-06 Springfield armor-piercing ammo
Spare ammo
3x mithril dagger
1x male mutated Champion wolf mana-beast [Christened Loki]
1x female Champion wolf mana-beast [Christened Freja]
2x female wolf mana-beast
10x mutated wolf mana-beast