"The final batch of ammunition will come at dawn at most." Friedrick said fiddling about a stack of paper. "Make sure the goods are delivered safe and smoothly. And if needed. Kill."
"Yes, sir!" They bowed slightly, turning 180 degrees on the same spot they stood and leaving the small room.
The 'headquarters' at that time were not established. To Friedrick's papers and estimates, the ammo was half piled, emergency rations were decently packed, and gasoline fit for two to three tanks were available. And all of this was done in the dead of night. It had first began the morning after the meeting about 'operation shadow.'
---
A brigade of trucks left Unchean at approximately four in the morning, the cold of the night still adamant, yet the heat of the sun seeped through well with it's red gradient flooding the cold blue sky
Friedrick patted Friedrick on the back as she left on the front truck, a simple goodbye. Of the thousand troops Friedrick had in his ranks were mostly trained, there were some amount of newer soldiers, but all-in-all it was pretty stacked. From truck to truck there was alot of equipment inside.
Tools to make houses, money (gotten from the viscount), and food for the soldiers. Speaking of the soldiers, they all wore clothing fit for a commoner, with only some of the black Venit soldiers and Friedrick wearing more noble wears.
"It's simple." Friedrick said abruptly, looking still at the dirt road ahead. "The capital contains the things we need, though after the bombardment it's been left to ruins, the housing around the castle is not as badly hit. Because of that, we take the carriages, and after we get halfway to Hesia, we switch vehicles."
"Aye, sir."
Indeed the plan was simple, and when the trucks stopped at their location at the Capital, the soldiers immidiately started looking and getting the carriages loaded to the brink. Horses were a commodity even in the outlawed grasses just west the capital, there was an overwhelming abundance of horses tame enough to be ride with.
The ammuniton and what not was disguised in boxes of wood; to the unsuspecting eye, it would seem merely that a merchant was delivering his wares, perhaps food? Other wares? Whatever it would be, be darned that no knight would check it.
Before they would travel by carriage, the sheer estimated distance of Hesia would be too severe, Friedrick proposed the horses be put onto the carriages, whilst ropes will carry the carriages along with the trucks. Fro and past the streams, the tiny grass hills and the changing dirt roads, then to cobble, then the air had seemingly gotten bits colder.
To Friedrick's understanding, the eastern portion of Latessia is of a barren yet mountainous muck. Where cold and despair lived two and the same in a dire environment. Hesia, was merely standing at the edges of it.
After seeing the first signs of 'life' at the distance, Friedrick ordered his men to unleash the carriages and buckle on the horses. Where on, about twenty drivers left without the crowd and drove back towards Unchean to recieve more equipment.
There were fifty carriages, with each carriage carried enough ammunition and food to supply a small militia, there was five carriages of the fifty that contained cleaning supplies and money.
Of the thousand soldiers dressed in commoner's wear, a hundred; Friedrick picked personally was to go with him to the first city, and the others, left to graces of their lieutenants, were to spy upon and build smaller bases containing radioes and ammunitons, if ever the time were to arise.
"Chilly weather, makes me wonder why the hell people even want to live comfortably." Friedrick smirked. "Just say damn to the heat of the west lets go to the mountains!"
Laughter filled his carriage!
"Now, men, said simple; everyone is a commoner, you aren't a soldier, and you damned aren't from Krimvald or from Germany, we are from the Betelion Empire! Hear me!? Betelion Empire!"
"Yes sir!"
"Ah! You've all failed the first order." He crossed his arms. "Again."
"Aye, mister!"
"Better." Friedrick turned around and sat down, flicking the leash and came roared the horses.
---
"Ah the luck!" It was approximately nine in the morning, and at nine came the crux, the climax of the journey, where they reached the doors of Hesia's first city, the port city of Geo.
When... Waiting in line, exasterbated by Friedrick's own fifty carriages. The port city was inspecting wares. "What for!?" Sweat came dropping off his face. "Everyone, we will not panic, stick to our plans, and don't make them open a single crate."
They nodded, still acting as commoners.
The carriages were advancing inside slowly, with some unlucky few getting booted off from the line. The knights were intently searching the carriages, and, at that rate, they'll get found out. "Mie people!" The knight introduced his presence to Friedrick atop the carriage. "And sie! We are doing a routine check, your merchant's pass please?"
Friedrick fondled something from within his front pocket, then out came a hard parchment pass. Handing it over to the knight, he said; "Ten carriages, wares for a store I'll be building."
"I see, I will need to see, Betelion man."
"Kindly," Friedrick hopped down to the ground; walking around to the back, "Have a gander!" His heart took a step back. The knight grabbed ahold of the small wooden ledge, into the carriage, a great amount of crates faced him.
"A whole lot of crates, mister." His eyes caught the attention of a small glint, like a silver reflection from a slightly opened crate. His hands slowly went towards it;
Touching; "Just spoons, mediocore." Friedrick smiled, holding his hand touching the box.
"Ah, I see." Out the carriage he went. "I suppose the other carriages are of similar things? To build as well as to supply, mie man?"
"Yes." Friedrick said. "Will you care to uncover all of the crates?"
"Ah..." The knight looked at the horizon-breaking line of carriages. "I will not, you may continue on. And this, your card, mie man."
"Thank you." He put it on his pocket and the knight left to his post.
---
This was not the end of the venture! Nigh was it actually just the start of it, as soon as Friedrick and his fifty carriages entered the port city of Geo, whereupon the hundreds of people on the road crowded and were aboslutely shocked by the amount of carriages moving into the city. People rocked heads, and roads were cleared to make way.
Then, Friedrick stepped out, standing infront of him, a rather tall stone inlaid building. "The Merchants Guild building of Geo is less fancy than that of Unchean, that I give it." Friedrick commented.
"Aye, mister." Played in his soldier.
"Give me the bags of money by the second carriage."
Walking with a fierce almost noble-like stance, he pounded the merchant guild's front wooden door open.
Three disguised soldiers went in, Friedrick leading, his sack of money he wore on his back. The four brought newfangled interest and chatter among the some few merchants browsing about the receptionist's desk.
Coming up, a young modestly dressed lady rang up and answered the beck;
"Good Morning sir, what will we assist you with today?"
"A plot," a heavy thud caused by the weight of the sack slamming on the wooden receptionist table. "Preferably big and one with a basement if possible."
The lady hid her awkward jest, sweating as she took a look inside. A nervous grin; "For this amount of money... You'd be able to buy most of the main block, sir." She jokingly implied.
"One plot, and with the specifics I mentioned earlier would suffice."
She quickly bolted open her desk's drawer, and in it browsed through a catalogue of papers (not as fine as Germany's). She went from 'A-to-Z,' sifting through the first and the last of plots available in Geo. There came up three plots, she showed it to Friedrick.
"Their locations are quite prime, expensive, sir; however it's condition remains unknown, for these three lots have remained abandoned for quite a long time."
"No worries, take me through all of them, no matter the price."
( * )
The city of Geo was a bustling and quite large city. Especially since it was a port city, the economical aspect of it all was quite rampant. The fisheries and the merchant ships made the port boom in popularity, for the east atleast. It was some ways off the Latessian map, hence the aspect of uncertainty.
"It is certainly beautiful for a city right next to rocky, cold mountains." Friedrick said, manning the horse onward the crowd; he looked up towards the mountains, and saw the number of houses built on it, unafraid of the angle and of the mountain's hidden hazard.
"A certain farcry from our urban, this place is more than urban. Densely so for them to start building upwards."
"Indeed, mister." The soldier agreed. "Can I inquire?"
"Of what?"
"This plot you had chosen from the merchant guild, where is it located and why so have we departed so far away from the main gate?"
"This was the largest, with a basement, and close enough plot than the other two the girl mentioned-" exagerating the 'a;' and... Here we are!" He jolted the horses to a complete stop and dramatically so looked at the building just left of the carriage.
"Big, cobble, tower." The soldier smiled.
Friedrick jumped first onto the pavement, the keys for the building already in his hand. The two made their way to the door, walking up a few steps and finally; after a brief twist, the big red cedar door opened.
"Goodness!" Friedrick exclaimed sneezing indefinitely.
"The place has not been opened for quite a long time." The soldier covered his mouth and brushed the fine gust of dust that blew on their faces.
"Isn't it so?" Friedrick sneezed again before putting cloth over his mouth. "Anyways, enter."
A big room, the place seemed to have been a bar of sorts for the arrangement of the furniture, the very noticeable long desk that a bartender'd maintain, and the bottles and bottles of gin and tonics lined up, albeit broken, on the wooden cabinet behind, screamed a bar.
"Windows, please?" Friedrick said.
Immidiately the soldier went for the curtains; drawing them up; a cloud of dust and other dandy covered his suit, Friedrick sneezed once more. The sunlight shone throughout the room, and the place; now illuminated, felt more habitable.
Soon the other soldiers came knocking in, Friedrick turned to them. "Know the drill, men, clean the place out."
"Aye, mister!"
( * )
One, "Hip!" Two, "Hip!" The soldiers developed this chant suitable for a war's parade. As they, covered in a cleaner's wears, armed to the teeth with all sorts of cleaning materials; sweapt from up to down. Friedrick watched from the second floor balcony, overseeing the whole thing almost amused.
"What are we to turn it into?"
"The same thing it was, a bar. If war turn'eth naught, then we could even make a killing here selling wares from Germany." He smiled, "but the tables and chairs are already broken here, repairing is a damned process, takes too long. Say; you and some other comrade of yours, take a pouch of gold and make ready for some hardware shop down the street, pick up a good mount' of chairs; twenty shall suffice. Ah, don't forget the tables."
"Yes, sir."
Friedrick nodded. He saw the soldier go down and towards one of the cleaners, and out they went.
A "hip!" To a, "ho!" And the broken wooden chairs and tables were sent flying outside, with the decor out the way of the floor, they scrubbed it wax-smooth, polishing it with the chemicals that came with the thirty-second carriage. It started looking livelier than ever!
The windows were made of glass which without doubt explained the lot's price of two hundred gold coins. The soldiers wiped it down, with cloth and soapy water, turning opaque into transparent. And, to ventilate it the whole place, the windows were opened and in came fresh air and the loudly vibrance of a city.
Almost like the gusts of wind pushing forth inside, the soldiers were energized to continue cleaning. They rid the place of the bottles that climbed the wooden shelves, of the dainty old portraits of landscapes than hung on the walls, and the very sketcky looking 'hanging' chandelier at the middle.
And; in due time, when the duo returned with two carriage's worth of tables and chairs, the whole main place was cleaned out of all the gunk and dust that piled from it's years of no-use.
The chairs and tables were set, nice wooden chairs, as polished and sparkling looking as did the floor the furniture rested. Perfect for a high-end bar this place was going to be. Throwing down the towel,
"Treat yourselves some rest gentlemen!" Friedrick yelled out, wiping the wooden balustrade (railing) of the second floor balcony. Clean. He threw to them a pouch of silvers. "Have at you!"
"Thank you sir!" The men, all giddy; rushed out in both excitement and exhaustion from a long day of cleaning. It was afternoon when the cleaning ended, and with the front facade finished, the rest of the day was allotted to making it's true face.
Friedrick opened the service door situated just after the long wood bar table. Immidiately, he was hit with the same horrific dusty situation as did when he first entered the establishment. He covered his nose in preparation.
With a lamp, he went further in, his eyes had stinged with the dust entering his eyes, making him lump out a tear in irritation. Cobwebs were riddled everywhere, but to his suprise, no mold nor stagnant water riddled about. There was a staircase leading further down, not hesitating; he walked down.
Ignoring the oddity of the steps being lower than expected, he persisted and at the very bottom, a rather large room. It was riddled of barrels of presumably wine, when he looked down, he saw a red puddle; "Red Wine?" He thought, but; he wasn't taking chances, there was something about this place that made him want to take his gun out, and so he did.
He could see just about three meters infront of him, but was not enough to illuminate the whole room. But, to his understanding; there were many shelves of barrels, whereupon wall to wall studded and lined in columns, to see the other side of the barrels was but a dream.
He gulped; he took the cloth off from his mouth for a second.
*Sneeze!
A rumbling sound!
He looked behind him, then infront of him; but the sound that erupted out of nowhere was seemingly phasing between left and right that he couldn't accurately pin point it's direction. "Who's there! Show yourself!"
The rumbling stopped.
A dark silhouete appeared at the corner of his eyes,
with the illumination of the warm, red and orange light of his torch; the figure seemingly danced. He turned to it, raising his gun. "Reveal your face!"
One step.
Two steps.
With each step, Friedrick gripped his pistol harder. With the fifth step, he could just barely make out a face.
The sixth step.
The figure vanished!?
He trained his eyes still at the direction of where the figure was, he couldn't have phased out of view, there simply was no way that could have happened, not with the training he's had.
He looked down.
-
A rat.
( * )
The soldiers came back after a long break, about an hour, and found Friedrick sitting on a wooden stool with his legs extended outwards with his arms supporting his head. He looked up;
"Ah, you all are back."
"Aye, sir." They said in unison.
"What's happened?" One questioned.
"Nothing at all." He smiled and stood up. "Barrels of red wine in the basement, I want it out by midnight, if the barrel's too heavy, drain the contents and smash it to bits, but you might find some quality wine still there, maybe..."
"Aye, sir; we will ready ourselves."
Friedrick sighed.
( * )
The second day was the crux of the adventure, finishing at exactly midnight, the basement was now filled to the brim with ammunition and rations carefully stored in metal crates and arranged in a way that the needed are front and center. Now, the second day was all about the...
"Business and spying." Friedrick put down a piece of paper on the table. "During the first day, about fifty soldiers have infiltrated the city's inside and outsides, on this paper are the places explored and thing investigated. By far, we've recieved one radio call extreme north, a city called; Helen. Landlocked, but is strategically a valley."
"However, for all of you here today, you will become servers, butlers, and maids."
An audible sigh.
"This is like a vacation, except you will be working on maintaing this store for the weeks, maybe days that we will be operating it until war dawns. Alright?"
"Yes, sir!"
---
"Have you heard?" Whispered the passerbys, "That old abandoned bar's opening again sometime this afternoon."
"Really?"
Looking at Geo's citizens passing by the store on his third floor room, Friedrick sighs. Running a bar was not that hard, was it? Of the soldiers he picked to be by his side, the about fifty here would be more than enough to run a 'simple' bar.
The men and some few women downstairs were cleaning, preparing glasses and, luckily, Hierd prepared a carriage of wine for them. Vinho Verde, and other beginner wines were at the ready; and, for the only 'experienced' personnel there, he tended and will be the one manning the bar.
The others shall be waiters and to the others, they wore the wears of a commoner, posing as descrete customers, pistols on their hips.
As finishing touches, plants and a soldier who knows his ways around some music were put front and center, making the place romatic yet lively. But now came the problem of food. The only food they had were rations, and there was really a stove or a fire they could work with that was indoors.
A defeated sigh; "I need someone to come with me to buy things at the local market."
Raising her hand indefintely. "Sir! Sir! May I come!?"
Confused by the immidiate answer, he easily gave in; "Yes. Alright! I will be back at sixteen-hundred!"
"Aye, sir!" They said in unison.
The pair gathered a basket and with Friedrick's pouch of money, they made their way to the market, market where? They didn't know, but the locals should. Friedrick's escort carelessly made her way over to a person walking;
"Hello!" She said with butterflies for eyes. "We are new, where is the market, if you don't mind me asking?"
"Ah, hello;" the older gentleman pointed his hand downwards somewhere towards the dock. "The market'sat the pier, the bounty of fishermen'll lead you the ways."
"Thank you!" She bowed slightly and returned to Friedrick, sticking close a little too near.
With the dramatic upwards climb of the mountain, the ways down was quite an easy venture, but the two were already feeling the pain of needing to walk up all those steps back to the base.
As Geo was quite the developed city, the pavement was rather nicely put, the architecture suited for the cold environment, and the walkways were very nicely designed, yet as one would stress in building on the elevation of the mountain; stairs. Stairs everywhere.
It was quite a maze for the two to traverse, but soon enough they made their way down to the cold pier whereupon they saw a sea of water and a sea of sailors and a sea of customers.
"Busy place." Friedrick remarked, thinking of something he said; "We will need some lettuce, tomato, for meat I'd want chicken and steak, maybe pork. Something we can buy in bulk would be nice. We're not expecting a party."
"Aye, mister." She smiled looking at him.
"Ah, we better get moving." He moved past her and forward he went through the crowd of people. There was a cacophony of noise everywhere, sailors yelling, people bargaining prices, and people complaining about prices. And if the air traveled faster, they two could hear the crashing of the waves on the cobbled pier.
Friedrick was yellow in red, what he wore was different than others, a noble that he looked, a merchant sure, but noble better; his escort hadn't a hard time locating him in the crowd even if she was pushed back by a backward flow of people bumping and pushing, racing for anything that met and radiated in their eyes.
Encased in ice crystals, a pig's perfectly harvested body, nobody has bought it yet because of the price, but Friedrick wasn't letting down the chance to get the pig in his hands.
"I'm buying this pig." Said he nonchalantly; "I'd like to bargain four gold instead of six."
"I don't know mie mister, but this pig's of higher quality as it's also frozen, it's bout the same was it when it first was hunted! Five. Five gold coins and it's yours for the pickin' ain't no one'll haggle this up for the day otherwise! Oh and, I say higher quality because this pig right here's special, leaves a taste in your mouth that'll make you come back buyin' more from me!"
"Ah, alrigh-" She stepped in;
"No, we'd like the pig at one coin tops!"
Friedrick looked at her with amusement as did the butcher. "Mie madel; I won't be hagglin' that bad! One gold coin!? You're rippin' me to shreads as did I this pig rite' naw!"
"Ah,"-she waddled her finger as if the butcher missed a crucial error- "This pig here's atleast five hundred silvers, she's branded natural and she's a ordinary breed; and the way the stomach's bumped, betcha' there's fat stuffin inside, and I bet you again you won't be here tommorow. There ain't gonna be a savoury aftertaste as you said it'd have, so unless you want the knights here, I want this pig at one gold, I'm even giving you a chance!"
The butcher was sweating buckets, twidling his thumbs and making a nervous smile. "A-a no, no. No need to worry bout price actually! Ahaha... You can have the pig and the case for a grand case of five-hundred-silver!"
"How generous of you!" A sinister darling smile, she untwisted the pouch and leaped out five, hundred silvers. The butcher was already packing his things as the sellers and the potential customers around him were looking at him with daggers, muttering about.
"Oh and do you have chicken?" Friedrick swooped in before he could pack everything up.
"Y-yes! How much do you need?"
A stern face. "Fifteen."
---
Friedrick's left arm was handling the burden of one raw pig and fifteen chickens, yet he carried the ton with almost no strength, almost as if he was lifting just a blade of grass in a field of them. His escort came back with two baskets full of lettuce and all other vedgetable junk Friedrick couldn't care to list out the names of.
"Let's go?" She questioned.
"Yes."
Friedrick was already walking ahead, feeling as if he wasn't hearing the woman's footsteps behind him, he turned around.
She was gazing, engrossed by a jewel from a store, her hands on her chest. It was the same color as her eyes.
"Weren't we going!?" He yelled to her.
She jolted awake; "Sorry, sir!" She ran to him, still looking at the jewel.
"Blue."
( * )
As the two came back, there was already actually a number of customers there already. Confused, Friedrick asked one of his soldiers why they opened without his permission. To which the soldier replied; "that guy," he pointed at the man at the bar table; "he's famous for being a 'wine' conneseiur. A failed noble I call it, sir, but if we didn't let him in, I'm afraid we'd have lost a great opportunity."
Friedrick nodded. "Thank you, get back to your station, oh and; take these with you." He lended the bought items to him and one other soldier to ease the burden.
"Aye, mister."
The only man sitting on the front table surely looked like a noble. Wearing formal attire, with slicked back hair and a fancy tie, you couldn't help but not not imagine him as some 'master of something.' Friedrick walked over to him.
"These wines are not of Latessia or of the Eastern continent." The connesieur noted. "Where ever did you come into possession of such an esteemed work!" His face lit up with a smile, then a tear.
"I!" He exclaimed so dramatically. "For all my years scouring every place in the world that has been given to us so kindly. Every bar, every tavern. From ale, wine, to bitter drinks. I had yet to discover true wine!" He cowered to his face, burying it on the wooden table.
"But this!" Tears ran down his eyes as he lifted and looked at Friedrick. "This was the meaning of my journey! This is the thing that has ended it! This noble name; Burdeaux... Has changed my understanding of wine! A bold aroma, mixing within my tongue; this sweet ripe-fruit bouncing around my taste buds! As I wisk up for another sip, my nose is delighted by that hint of blackberry. Oh...! I feel as if I am living inside an orchard farm!"
Whilst the man rambled upon his fanatic dream of the wine he tasted; Friedrick was in a whole bunch of emotions, namely; the emotion of what, why, and why...?
( * )
Word traveled around fast throughtout the city that the newly opened bar has the singular wine that made the famous wine conesseuir weap and cry in tears of joy and satisfaction. Street by street the men and women were cramming up and whispering. "If that 'failed noble' wine sniffer's got the heart to keep up for years, this wine bein' the only thing that made him leave happily, well may I be damned if I don't try it!"
Of all corners, nobles and commoners, they piled on and a line started to form just outside the store, with the ever expanding line getting longer and longer, the prestige to first place was ever so a challenge. With there being 'bus boys' who stayed close to the front selling their position for five hundred to even a single gold coin!
Friedrick's face was in shock, they had drawn too much attention to their covert military storage base, and he couldn't do anything about it. From his third story office, he could hear the singing of the guitarist soldier, and the whispers of the listeners and wine enjoyers.
There certainly was no food yet, yet they were being fed plenty enough.
Friedrick imposed a plan as the line got too big and the knights were getting angry, the amount of people were causing some blockages around the city, and the merchants down under were not having a good time. He went out, his presence sending the people into a sort of shock thinking that the bar was to close or that there was no more wine left!
"Everyone! Pass my words; 'You will only be allowed to stay for five minutes maximum, nothing more! Thank you!" He bowed before entering once more.
The line was lessening in size, and the people entering were leaving with satisfied faces and smiles. The price of the wine jumped from just twenty silvers the first thirty minutes, to three hundred silvers the first hour! The wine cases were flying out the shelves, with Burdeaux being taken the most.
As night fell, the line shortened and shortened to a halt;
The last person left and the bar was closed.
( * )
"That was something." Commented Friedrick, his hand on his chin. "How much money did we gain?" He said while looking at the bartender
"About thirty gold's worth, sir."
"Let's send that to funds. In the meantime, clean up."
"Aye, mister!"
The soldiers left;
A knock on the door. Friedrick looked behind, and walked towards it.
Opening it; it was five soldiers; who was sent to spy the first day. "Sir." They bowed a little. "We came across a letter written from some admiral. Says this;" The soldier carefully put it on Friedrick's hands.
It read;
"At night when the whole city has slept; three galleons and two clippers will be going on a journey towards Capital, our dragoons have yet to return, and the higher-ups want answers. Admiral, Graff Stent, satisfy the need of the king and retrieve the dragoons. Come back without anything and your children will die."
"Quite a grim message to a father." Friedrick commented on the choice of words. "But... Three Galleons and a clipper... I am sure our K-3s can handle those warships, but I am sure push will come to shove. We;ll radio in a signal notifying the lord."
"Aye, mister."
"You may go now, focus on the ships as well, we want as much knowledge as possible regarding it."
"Aye, mister."
ns 15.158.61.20da2
