Tyranny of Steel

Berengar sat back in the Royal Train with a drink in his hand as he watched the Austrian Landscape go by. Since German Unification a year ago, substantial progress had been made on the German National Railway, and though it was far from completed, many cities across Southern Germany were now connected in a way they had never been before.

The young emperor took a sip from his drink before placing it down on the table in front of him. The kitchen cart had prepared a hot meal, and Berengar dined on one of his favorite breakfasts. By introducing the potato, many staples of German cuisine from Berengar ’s past life had now been introduced to his empire.

Among these was a meal referred to Bauernfrühstück which was a dish made from fried potatoes, eggs, green onions, parsley, cheese, and bacon and ham. With a warm glass of milk by his side, Berengar dined upon this breakfast with a satisfied smile on his face.

Eventually, a servant approached Berengar and handed him a telegraph report. After doing so, the young woman silently scurried off, leaving the German Emperor alone. Berengar waited until after his meal was complete to read the report in his hands.

When he did, he could not help himself from smiling. This report contained the latest news from the conflict in Iberia. During his absence Madrid had fallen, and the German-Granadan forces marched further north, seeking to cut off any response by the Catholic World before they could pass through the Pyrenees.

It appeared the restoration of Al-Andalus was merely around the corner. All he had to do was sit back and wait as his forces unified the lands under the rule of the Al-Fadl dynasty. As Berengar gazed out the window, he reflected on everything that had happened to him recently. If there was one thing that left an unsettling feeling in his gut, it was the encounter he had during his visit to Baduhenna ’s grove.

Since then, he had established a government department of archeology to dig up any information they could find on the old gods of Germania, and yet despite their best efforts, nothing had been revealed. Or at least nothing he did not already know. Thus, he could only sigh in defeat as he dwelled on the words the girl had spoken to him.

Ultimately, he left this matter to be. Whether the gods truly existed, and if they had some plans for him, would reveal themselves in time. For now, he would focus on securing his Empire ’s position in the world. Now that his Empire was unified, and on the path to industrialization, he would need to secure many of the world ’s hidden resources if he wished to transform Germany into the industrial powerhouse he desired it to be.