Chapter 4

Outside of Greydorf, Germany

After meeting up with Kruger and the troops, Harbin went to the base with him as planned while Helga and Ulrich went to the town square.  Kruger was a battle hardened man with the scars and missing left eye to prove it.  He had been picked up by the Wulfkorp around the same time as Ulrich had after the Prussian-Polish conflict.

They arrived at the base to see a fire-fight erupt between the base troops and what looked like the Blood Knights.  “Damn it” Kruger spat “They’re already here, orders Savant?  Harbin was snapped out of his thoughts.  “Alright, Kruger you and five of your men are with me and we’ll attempt to secure the main gate, the rest of the troops surround and secure all ways in and out.  Kurt may already be in there, so our job is probably half-done.”  Kruger nodded “alright troops that’s the plan, so split up into ten-man squads and let’s take those bastards out.  Watch out for friendly fire.”  With that the troops moved out.

Prussian army troops issued with the standard Mauser Rifles that were just issued last year were proven effective, but against the Blood Knights, they would prove quite useless.  They wore a similar kind of armor plating that the heavy cuirassiers wore, except it was much heavier and it covered the entire upper body and neck, at least that was what the Wulfkorp learned so far about the organization.  Their weapons were also different.  It was type of automatic rifle that had a long magazine that went downwards, along with a medium-length muzzle and sort of explosive launcher under the stock.

But the Wulfkorp also had such extravagant weapons too.  Their standard issue weapons were also a type of automatic weapon.  It had a short, rectangular stock, a switch that would change between single, triple and full-auto firing, with a somewhat triangular butt-stock and a fifty-round magazine attached.  Their standard issue pistols were the same as what Helga carried.

Harbin, Kruger and their ten-man squad of troops encountered the group of Blood Knights at the main gate.  Both troops hit the ground in a crouching position and began exchanging fire.  One Knight tried to flee into the base to warn those inside, but a well-placed shot from Harbin’s rifle put him down for good.  The fire-fight was over just as it had begun.  “A single wound here and there, but nothing serious” Kruger reported.  Harbin nodded “Alright, inform the troops that the main gate is secured.” Kruger nodded and ordered the radioman to give out the ordered.

Kurt had entered the base easier than he thought.  After disarming the bombs in the residential district, he made an attempt to look for the other bombs when noticed a familiar individual leaving city hall.  “Hideo Sasaki!!!!! I had a feeling he’d be here.  That murderous troll must have planted bombs there.”  Kurt then began the search for the bombs there, when he found them, they were nothing more than fakes.  “What the hell are you planning Sasaki?  Murder and mayhem may not be your thing, but working for scum like Fallion only proves that you have stooped to a new low.”  That’s when the bombs went off and that’s when Kurt realized the horror that had unfolded.   “So that’s what your plan was you scum” Kurt growled.  “The bombs in the residential area and city hall were a distraction.  You were planning to attack the city center, where you would cause the most chaos and attack the Prussian troops in the one place they would be gathered altogether.

Kurt focused back on the present; he had just snuck into the base and dispatched a few Blood Knights on the way in.  When he had slain many of the Blood Knights who had been guarding the entry ways into the base, in swift and silent manner, his arch-rival appeared out of the shadows.  “Kurt Holden, as I live and breath” Hideo Sasaki smiled coldly.

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The thing, whatever it was called, approached the city square with death and destruction on its mind.  It looked like a thing of steel, but molded with flesh, it was half the size of a building.  It had sharp spikes on its metallic parts, a huge double-headed battle-axe in its right hand and sharp claw-like talons that were its fingers.  Heinrich stopped hesitating and fired his rifle at its head.  Upon contact, it gave a long, ear-piercing howl.

“I think you made it mad” Bruckner said curiously.  With that the vicious behemoth swung his axe with lighting speed.  Schroeder and Bruckner just barely got out of the way of the creatures swing zone, but a few soldiers were not so lucky.  They got chopped in half by the thing’s axe and blood just spilled out like wine.  A group of troops entered the city square with what looked like a Lovett model cannon.

Bruckner grinned “Let’s see that abomination stand up to that.”  Just as he said that the men with the cannon fired upon the flesh and steel abomination.  Much to the dismay of the troops, it only wounded the creature and thus made it madder.  A group of cavalry troops came charging down the street.  Unfazed by the creature that stood in the city square, they made a mad dash towards the creature; those with drawn sabers slashed at the creature as best they could while those with carbines took pot shots at whatever parts weren’t metallic looking.

Though it didn’t seem to hurt the creature that much, it still managed to confuse it.  A cavalry officer with a rider-less horse came up to Schroeder.  “Captain Schroeder, sir, we heard the explosions come from the town and we thought it was an attack.  When we came we were attacked by enemies equipped with strange weapons.”  Schroeder nodded “You were attacked by the Blood Knights.  That thing must be working with them.”  The officer spat as he heard the name.

“Those damned Blood Knights.  What do they got against the Prussian fatherland?  Why don’t they attack those damned limey’s over in England?  Lord knows those Blood Knight bastards would be doing us a favor.”  Schroeder shrugged as he climbed on the horse.  "I have no idea why they want to attack us now, but if it’s a fight they want it’s a fight they’ll get.”  The officer laughed in agreement, Schroeder looked down at Bruckner.  “Sergeant, rally the troops and coordinate an assault with the cavalry troops.  Let’s hit that vile thing with everything we got.

Bruckner saluted the captain and went off to rally the troops.  “What’s your name soldier?” Schroeder asked the other man. “Schwartz, sir, Wilhelm Schwartz, I’m a cadet, fresh out of the academy sir.”  Schroeder nodded “Alright then Cadet Schwartz, what’s say we have a go at that creature?”  Schwartz grinned in anticipation “Yes Herr Captain lets.”

Just as the Captain Schroeder urged his horse forward, Cadet Schwartz pulled out his bugle and blew the rally call.  Every cuirassier, hussar and dragoon within distance of the call fell back, except for Schroeder who charged at the vile creature with all speed and saber drawn.  The first pass he was able to cut the beast in the leg, the second time his left arm, the third nothing.  Just as he was about to go for a fourth pass, but then creature’s battle-axe connected with his saber and shattered it to pieces, it knocked the captain of his horse and on to the hard cobblestones.

“By the almighty, he’s doomed” one of the cuirassiers shouted.  “Save the captain” said another.  With that the cuirassiers drew their sabers, pistols and carbines and charged at the beast just as it was picking up the unconscious body of the captain with his left arm.  Those with pistols and carbines took precision shots at the creature in order to avoid hitting the captain while those with sabers drawn made an attempt to strike the creature, but were beaten aside with one massive swipe of the creature’s right arm.

After beating aside what the thing considered insects, it was about ready to rip the captain apart.  “Steel Monger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” a loud voice came from the rooftops.  The creature looked up at where the sound came from; the attacking troops did so as well.

A hulking mountain of a man with a strange looking device, possibly a weapon, began firing it at the creature.  “You killed my men, I am here to return the favor you demon of hell.”  With that the creature dropped the limp form of Heinrich Schroeder and mad a dash at the building the giant man was standing on.

The creature called Steel Monger took a mighty swipe of the building and with that it began to collapse.  The giant man grinned as he jumped of the building and on the creatures back.  He had a giant knife in his procession and began constantly stabbing the creature in the back.  With that the beast gave a pained howl and was desperately trying to shake off the giant man.  The beast attempted to smash the man against the back wall, again and again but to no avail.  

When the beast was going to take one final smash, the giant-man leapt off the beast’s back and the creature crashed into the vey building he was smashing against
The giant-man rose to his feet, with his large knife drawn, he was bloodied and bruised, but not down for the count.   A loud roar came from the building and the man was pleased to see that vile thing wanted more of him.  “Want some more, do you? You foul piece-of-shit.  WELL COME AND GET SOME!!!!!!” The giant man roared.  The beast unsheathed his claws and the giant-man took a fighting stance, they then both charged at each other.