On this cold morning, the King was watching the sea from the upper deck. Since the confrontation, the sun had been high in the sky.
As the Hopepe, accompanied by the Bad Büden, gradually approached a landmass barely discernible on the horizon, the king gazed at the small, distant piece of land that was growing larger by the minute. "These are islands." He thought.
The crew, for their part, were looking at an island covered in craters and ashes, wondering what could have happened there.
"What's that?" Said the king, pointing to a series of small black masses protruding from the horizon. Sugnus and the captain immediately pointed their binoculars in the direction indicated and looked stunned. "These are shipwrecks, and they're all from the Empire." The captain explained as the cabin door opened, letting in a small group of German sailors.
"Fog bank is expected in the area, from now on we take the helm to steer you to safety." Explained the group's translator.
Despite some reluctance, the captain agreed to hand over the helm. As soon as the Germans had the helm, the boat quickly changed course. "Make a course change to 130° for 4 miles." Indicated one of the Germans to the helmsman, before the latter changed the boat's trajectory.
After around twenty minutes, the boat was now 2 kilometres from the islands and no harbour was visible to the sailors.
"Why are we taking this course?" Asked the confused captain.
"Your boat's hull is too deep to stand a chance of getting into the island's harbour. Ships from other countries can easily get in, but yours is too deep." The man explained, pointing to numbers on a blue part of the map.
After a few more minutes of sailing, the boat came to a final stop, dropping anchor not far from the coast.
"Aren't we too close to anchor?" Asked the captain, seeing the coastline just over a kilometre away.
"Normally, this is an anchorage area for small boats, but yours is wanted by the Empire, so we've been asked to get you as close as possible." Explained the man.
On the deck of the Hope, the sailors busied themselves preparing the boats that would allow them to leave the ship, where the local authorities were waiting for them, while the helicopter on board prepared for its turn.
In their cabin, the royal family was preparing to leave the ship for the safety of German territory when they were disturbed by someone knocking on the door.
The person entered and knelt down just inside the doorway. "I apologise for being the bearer of bad news, but your departure is going to be delayed due to worsening weather conditions." Informed the man before leaving again.
The fog was now so thick that none of the islands were visible, leaving a feeling of being alone on the water. "What do you think life is like in their country?" Wondered some soldiers playing cards in the refectory.
One of the soldiers put down a glass and said. "If you ask me, it's the same shit as everywhere else. It's just that they're idolised for being able to stand up to the Empire. Inside, there are as many rich people exploiting the poor like cattle as there are oppressions."
The group's game was interrupted when someone placed a wager on the table, looking away from the soldiers. "We almost thought you weren't coming." Jacassed the soldiers, observing that the person joining them was the prince.
The prince pulled up a chair and sat down in silence before helping himself to some cards.
"I didn't think I could come." He said in a hoarse voice, as the other soldiers returned to their game.
After several minutes of playing, one of the soldiers decided to ask the question that was on the lips of the entire crew. "We were wondering, how does your father plan to talk about the divines and their technology?" The soldier's question provoked looks of astonishment from the other soldiers seated at their table.
"If only he would tell me everything he had in mind. The only thing I know is that he'll wait for more information before discussing it." Replied the prince, laying some cards on the table. "It looks like I've won." He continued, collecting the wager from the other soldiers. "No, seriously." Chattered the soldiers as they placed another bet.
later
It was around 11 o'clock when the fog finally dissipated sufficiently to allow the boats and helicopter to leave the ship. The noise from the deck was deafening as the Royal Family and senior officers boarded the helicopter while the other sailors looked on.
Once inside, and with the doors now closed, the Germans helped the dwarves into the seats of the Super Puma.
After a few minutes, the rotors began to rotate before reaching flying speed and gradually lifting the helicopter into the air. It wasn't long before the helicopter emerged from its ascent phase, heading straight for the island of Heligoland.
"Make a representation of the aircraft's architecture." The King asked as someone at his side sketched the helicopter.
"Yes, Your Highness, the design is complex but easy to understand." He replied.
Only after a few minutes in the air did the helicopter stop and begin its descent, finally landing on a wide concrete runway not far from the port. Getting out of the helicopter, the group of dwarves looked around the landing area.
At the end of the runway, near a brick building, three people were gradually approaching where they were. The runway itself was bordered by two relatively open areas from which the prince could see a few curious onlookers watching them, but not trying to get any closer.
As the dwarves frantically scanned the landing area, the trio they had seen earlier were now within range of the group. Just then, one of the Bad Büden policemen accompanying them began to speak. "Gentlemen, may I introduce the mayor of the town accompanied by the local police chief and the interpreter who is being provided for you during your stay on the island." He finished. Just as the policeman had finished, the person who had been introduced as the mayor stepped forward accompanied by the interpreter. "Hello and welcome, I'm the mayor of Heligoland."
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"Are they really trustworthy?" Some passers-by exclaimed as they stared at the group passing in front of them.
Several hours had passed since the landing, by which time a large part of the Hope had disembarked. The sailors could sense the locals' mistrust caused by the Empire's invasion.
As the clock struck 4pm and the sun neared the horizon, some of the dwarves had already returned aboard the Hope, while the others, along with the King, were taken inside the Hochseeinsel hotel, whose interior surprised many.
Inside, the walls were a plain white, accompanied by a lot of wood, which made it all warm to the eyes of the dwarves.
The building had recently been reconnected to the power grid, allowing the dwarves to discover different things from what they already found in their country.
The more expert dwarves were fascinated when presented with a colour television in their room, some even holding back from opening it to understand how it worked.
Night came and the Prince was exhausted from the day he had had.
Despite this, he was still impressed by the short presentation on the history of the island and began to jot down his impressions of Germany in a notebook.
23rd January 2022
23rd passage 1 Ogdea 1650
Volcist Empire Imperial Palace
Inside the capital, life went on as usual. The war was long gone and, since the great invasion, life had improved for the inhabitants. Resources were now plentiful and every citizen could be sure of finding a job.
It was in this relative peace that the door to the Demon King's office was opened with a bang, letting the princess into the room where her father was examining a pile of documents. "Father, it's urgent." The princess exclaimed as she quickly approached her father's office.
The demon king watched as his daughter, who was usually calm and thoughtful, became more agitated than usual.
"What's got you in such a state?" He asked after taking his eyes off what he was doing. Seeing that she had caught her father's attention, the princess launched in.
"You must come with me, I have some very important things to show you that could influence the survival of the empire." She listed.
"But you see, we can have military setbacks, but nothing that will destroy the empire I've built." The emperor replied.
"Germany is much stronger than people think." She retorted.
The emperor rose to his feet. "What do you mean by that? Have you discovered something that our intelligence services have not yet discovered?" The Emperor asked, more worried.
Seeing that she had aroused her father's interest, she continued. "I've got something even better than that, but you'll have to follow me to the Center for Magical Research (CMR) to get a better idea of what I'm talking about."
The streets of the capital were gradually filling up with curious onlookers, attracted by the news of the royal family's arrival. Every citizen rushed into the streets for the chance to see the royal family for themselves.
The streets were filled with cheers from the people as soon as the emperor's distinctive black car appeared. "The warrior emperor is here!" Some civilians cheered, as the car continued to pass with its escort.
The imperial escort finally stopped at the entrance to the complex where an alley of soldiers awaited them, each in turn saluting the imperial family.
"Follow me, father. What I wish to show you is in the special section." She explained before the escort took them to the right place.
The Emperor was now facing one of the buildings in the special section. This was not a large building, but surveillance seemed to be more intense than in the rest of the complex.
The Emperor looked from right to left, scanning the equipment surrounding the researchers, intrigued. "Of all the things in this room, what makes you think that the Germans have a clear superiority over us?" The emperor asked.
"Now is the time." Said the princess as she approached the group of researchers who were taking notes in front of a long object equipped with fins meticulously fixed to a support.
"Wernsi Va Brane, can you explain to Her Majesty what this weapon is?" She asked, as the scientist turned to come forward.
"This weapon is a rocket. It's a type of weapon I've been working on for over 10 years.
Although my model is still at the prototype stage, the model made by the Germans is much more sophisticated.
It's much more precise and manoeuvrable, and even seems capable of rectifying its trajectory on the move, probably thanks to a highly complex on-board computer." He concludes.
The Emperor looked at the scientist and the rocket behind him before stepping forward. "So, you managed to get hold of one of their most formidable weapons, and to top it off, it's a weapon that we are designing." Suddenly, the emperor paused in his tirade before turning around. "But that's not the only reason you asked me here, is it?"
"As always, nothing escapes you. This was just a foretaste of the threat the Germans seriously pose." She finished before turning around.
As the princess turned, she signalled to two soldiers who approached a large object hidden under a sheet before removing it, revealing a large plate of charred and perforated metal. The emperor examined the metal plate in complete silence.
"This is an armour plate recovered from Peacekeeper number 6. It was the target of an attack by the German air force, and by means of a large number of rockets, they ended up destroying it." The princess explained, before arranging a series of photographs on a table.
The Emperor stared at the photograph in deadly silence. An eternity seemed to pass before the Emperor's voice was heard again. "Oune, can you clear the room? I need to speak to you alone."
The room was now empty, and only the emperor and the princess remained. In a macabre silence, the emperor moved, brushing the walls of the missile. The Emperor seemed to be deep in thought in front of the weapon, before being brought out of his contemplation by the clearing of his daughter's throat. "What exactly do you want to talk to me about, father?"
"If you're telling me they're more powerful than we think, I believe you. You have enough experience to judge. I want to know how you feel about them." He asked.
The princess paused for a moment before replying.
"From what I've seen of their weaponry, it's superior to ours. But it seems that they can only field a small number of these weapons at the front, which is to our advantage, with great progress on the front lines combined with the intelligence network."
The emperor listened attentively to what his daughter had to say, allowing him to devise some strategies. "So all we'd have to do is create a blockade across the entire Parvum Sea to block their supply route and get rid of their stockpile of superior weapons." The Emperor muttered before chuckling.
"Yes, we'll do it that way. Our scientists have been working for a few years on a golem-core torpedo. Tell them to speed up the test phases and start production next month. I want a blockade in the Parvum Sea. I'll use the opportunity to remobilise troops from our colony on the continent and in Narlux to launch an offensive once the blockade is complete." He explained before opening the hangar door. "I thank you for informing me of your discoveries, which will lead us to victory." He said before leaving, leaving the princess alone in the building.