With the Summer Olympics going on right now in Munich and there are many Americans there from tourists to journalists to others who are at the Games in one capacity or another King Albrecht may try to mitigate the ongoing fallout by promoting a "Buy an American a Beer" PR campaign. What I would really like is if our two favorite American Tourists Frank and Midge are there for the Games and how they are reacting to everything.
Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread III
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
Now I really hope he did write that completely preposterous fictional spy novel and that he filled it with outlandish claims of what "Schiltz" was up to. A novel that, in light of the recent revelations, becomes a belated overnight success and suddenly attracts a lot of attention from certain agencies with a certain list of questions. Agencies that can't quite grasp Admiral Heinlein's assertions that he "just made it up" and that it's "not his fault that his imagination happened to almost perfectly coincide with reality".He's probably gone on to write a "Fictional" account of a German secret agent named "Schiltz" who has acted like an oaf but completely undermined the Enemy Country as a science fiction spy novel that's been panned as being completely preposterous.
Although the "enemy" in Starship Troopers, (if he writes it), will be a touch more "Teutonic" in attitude this time, which might be a bit more successful ITTL.
Part 128, Chapter 2172
Chapter Two Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Two
31st August 1972
Munich, Bavaria
King Albrecht of Bavaria had given a brief speech during the Opening Ceremonies of the 1972 Munich Games. He had talked about how in the Ancient Games the City States of Greece had put aside all their differences during the Games. All warfare ceased for the duration. They had even gone so far as to sanction their own countrymen for continuing a war against a foreign adversary during the Games. Albrecht had said the need for that was just as true now as it had been then.
The Olympic Games were far more than either Niko or Bas had imagined when Opa had told them they were going. This was especially true because Opa liked congratulating every medalist regardless of nationality or meeting with the various competitors. Of course, many of them also wanted to meet the legendary, or infamous depending on one’s perspective, “Red Barron.” The result was that they found themselves meeting dozens of athletes from around the world. There had been an African Marathon Runner who had been surprised to discover that Opa knew some of the language of his home country or the bubbly Russian Gymnast who had spoken incredibly fast, she was incredibly happy just to be in Munich who stood out in Niko’s mind. It was a dizzying kaleidoscope of people and events that they were shuttled between.
There had been some concern that recent events would cast a pall over the Munich Games, what Opa said was the result of skullduggery and Bas’ late paternal grandfather being a bit too good at his job. That was news to Bas, what he knew about his grandfather was the side of him that his grandmother preferred to remember. The fact that he was a spymaster who had orchestrated the insertion of an agent into the very highest levels of the US Government was amazing. Opa had said that it wasn’t something should necessarily be celebrated. He said that organizations like the BND and BII necessary evils. Their very existence was a threat to the honor of individual men and States alike by offering simple solutions to complex problems. The idea that a crisis could be solved with a single rifle shot, a knife in someone’s back, or a bit of poison in the right cup was enticing. All one had to do was look at the current mess with the Americans collectively huddled in fearful crouch and basically taking an meataxe to their own institutions because Johann Schultz and Jacob Schmidt had been a bit too clever a few decades earlier. Everyone knew that this wouldn’t result in a war, but the resulting distrust was going to linger for the next several years.
That was why Niko had taken particular interest in the Men’s 300 Meter Rifle Three-Position competition. An American had dominated the event and was running up a record-breaking score in the process. When Opa talked to him after the event concluded for the day, he had happily shaken his hand and spoke with an accent that Niko had only ever heard before in movies. Apparently, he was from a place in Arkansas, but taught Marksmanship for the US Navy and Marine Corps in Virginia these days. That was what he told Opa.
“I think that Manny could have beat you” Bas said to the American.
“Who exactly is that?” The American asked.
“Manfred the Younger” Opa replied, “My oldest grandson and namesake. These two have idolized him since they were old enough to walk.”
“Can he really shoot the way your boy says he can?”
“Probably better than you can imagine” Opa said, “It has been said that he is possibly the best living shooter in the Heer, comparable to Heinz Thorwald.”
“Interesting” The American replied, “Tell him that if things ever get straightened out between Washington and Berlin, Ol’ Carlos would be happy to put that to the test in a friendly match.”
With that, the American walked off.
“Let that be a lesson to both of you” Opa said.
Silesia
Laying in her bed, the events of the day kept replaying in Mathilda’s head. That was keeping her awake, even before the storm had blown in with the wind and drumming rain.
Everyone assumed that Mathilda was supposed to be great friends with Anna and Gretchen because she fit neatly in age between the two of them. That had turned out not to be the case. Anna had told Mathilda that she was embarrassing. On the other hand, Gretchen lived to be oppositional to every expectation that was given to her, so she had given Mathilda the cold shoulder. That was why Anna was unhappy to learn that Mathilda would be starting at her school a year behind her.
“She worships trees” Anna had wailed in a rather poor understanding of what Mathilda believed. “Do you have any idea what a laughingstock that will make me?”
And all at once, Mathilda knew exactly why Gretchen had opted to go to the Prussian Institute. There she would only have to put up with harsh rules and the awkward position of being one of only a handful of girls there. As opposed constantly having to fight the urge to bludgeon Anna to death with the first heavy object that she could lay her hands on.
It was Mathilda who would go with Anna to the Tzschocha Gymnasia, considered the Sister Institution to the Wahlstatt Institute. When Ilse and Ina had taken Mathilda to visit the place a few days earlier, the Headmistress had made it very clear that academic rigor were what the school stressed and that any excuses for failing to live up to the school’s high standards would not be accepted. The Headmistress had also known that the Emperor himself was Mathilda’s patron. In her thinking that meant that she had an even higher standard to live up to, because Mathilda’s personal failures would reflect on him. She had made that very clear to Mathilda.
There was flash of light, and Mathilda counted down the seconds until there came the crash of thunder. She had always loved the idea that it was Thor riding his chariot across the sky through the storm clouds and the flashes were from Mjölnir. Perhaps he should be so kind to spare a bolt of lightning or two for Anna, Mathilda thought to herself. Not to hurt her, but just to knock some sense into Anna’s head.
31st August 1972
Munich, Bavaria
King Albrecht of Bavaria had given a brief speech during the Opening Ceremonies of the 1972 Munich Games. He had talked about how in the Ancient Games the City States of Greece had put aside all their differences during the Games. All warfare ceased for the duration. They had even gone so far as to sanction their own countrymen for continuing a war against a foreign adversary during the Games. Albrecht had said the need for that was just as true now as it had been then.
The Olympic Games were far more than either Niko or Bas had imagined when Opa had told them they were going. This was especially true because Opa liked congratulating every medalist regardless of nationality or meeting with the various competitors. Of course, many of them also wanted to meet the legendary, or infamous depending on one’s perspective, “Red Barron.” The result was that they found themselves meeting dozens of athletes from around the world. There had been an African Marathon Runner who had been surprised to discover that Opa knew some of the language of his home country or the bubbly Russian Gymnast who had spoken incredibly fast, she was incredibly happy just to be in Munich who stood out in Niko’s mind. It was a dizzying kaleidoscope of people and events that they were shuttled between.
There had been some concern that recent events would cast a pall over the Munich Games, what Opa said was the result of skullduggery and Bas’ late paternal grandfather being a bit too good at his job. That was news to Bas, what he knew about his grandfather was the side of him that his grandmother preferred to remember. The fact that he was a spymaster who had orchestrated the insertion of an agent into the very highest levels of the US Government was amazing. Opa had said that it wasn’t something should necessarily be celebrated. He said that organizations like the BND and BII necessary evils. Their very existence was a threat to the honor of individual men and States alike by offering simple solutions to complex problems. The idea that a crisis could be solved with a single rifle shot, a knife in someone’s back, or a bit of poison in the right cup was enticing. All one had to do was look at the current mess with the Americans collectively huddled in fearful crouch and basically taking an meataxe to their own institutions because Johann Schultz and Jacob Schmidt had been a bit too clever a few decades earlier. Everyone knew that this wouldn’t result in a war, but the resulting distrust was going to linger for the next several years.
That was why Niko had taken particular interest in the Men’s 300 Meter Rifle Three-Position competition. An American had dominated the event and was running up a record-breaking score in the process. When Opa talked to him after the event concluded for the day, he had happily shaken his hand and spoke with an accent that Niko had only ever heard before in movies. Apparently, he was from a place in Arkansas, but taught Marksmanship for the US Navy and Marine Corps in Virginia these days. That was what he told Opa.
“I think that Manny could have beat you” Bas said to the American.
“Who exactly is that?” The American asked.
“Manfred the Younger” Opa replied, “My oldest grandson and namesake. These two have idolized him since they were old enough to walk.”
“Can he really shoot the way your boy says he can?”
“Probably better than you can imagine” Opa said, “It has been said that he is possibly the best living shooter in the Heer, comparable to Heinz Thorwald.”
“Interesting” The American replied, “Tell him that if things ever get straightened out between Washington and Berlin, Ol’ Carlos would be happy to put that to the test in a friendly match.”
With that, the American walked off.
“Let that be a lesson to both of you” Opa said.
Silesia
Laying in her bed, the events of the day kept replaying in Mathilda’s head. That was keeping her awake, even before the storm had blown in with the wind and drumming rain.
Everyone assumed that Mathilda was supposed to be great friends with Anna and Gretchen because she fit neatly in age between the two of them. That had turned out not to be the case. Anna had told Mathilda that she was embarrassing. On the other hand, Gretchen lived to be oppositional to every expectation that was given to her, so she had given Mathilda the cold shoulder. That was why Anna was unhappy to learn that Mathilda would be starting at her school a year behind her.
“She worships trees” Anna had wailed in a rather poor understanding of what Mathilda believed. “Do you have any idea what a laughingstock that will make me?”
And all at once, Mathilda knew exactly why Gretchen had opted to go to the Prussian Institute. There she would only have to put up with harsh rules and the awkward position of being one of only a handful of girls there. As opposed constantly having to fight the urge to bludgeon Anna to death with the first heavy object that she could lay her hands on.
It was Mathilda who would go with Anna to the Tzschocha Gymnasia, considered the Sister Institution to the Wahlstatt Institute. When Ilse and Ina had taken Mathilda to visit the place a few days earlier, the Headmistress had made it very clear that academic rigor were what the school stressed and that any excuses for failing to live up to the school’s high standards would not be accepted. The Headmistress had also known that the Emperor himself was Mathilda’s patron. In her thinking that meant that she had an even higher standard to live up to, because Mathilda’s personal failures would reflect on him. She had made that very clear to Mathilda.
There was flash of light, and Mathilda counted down the seconds until there came the crash of thunder. She had always loved the idea that it was Thor riding his chariot across the sky through the storm clouds and the flashes were from Mjölnir. Perhaps he should be so kind to spare a bolt of lightning or two for Anna, Mathilda thought to herself. Not to hurt her, but just to knock some sense into Anna’s head.
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For those who don't get the reference. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Hathcock
Manfred von Richthofen and King Albrecht are doing damage control on Germany’s image right now and by congratulating as many of the winners possible regardless of nationality there are going to be pictures of the Red Barron and the latest Gold medal winner in the next day home town newspaper with the winner saying how much of a great honor it was to meet the Red Baron.
Because of a certain comic strip dog having imaginary dog fights against the Red Baron von Richthofen is a cultural icon in America and the exposure he is getting in Munich will do much in overcoming the current PR disaster that is goin on.
Because of a certain comic strip dog having imaginary dog fights against the Red Baron von Richthofen is a cultural icon in America and the exposure he is getting in Munich will do much in overcoming the current PR disaster that is goin on.
What Tzschocha looks like. It has been compared to Hogwarts, just it exists in real life. It is a hotel in OTL. So, of course, I would try to find a way include it.
You forgot Michael of Bohemia and Kiki, both of whom are present playing the similar roles.
That is true but has anyone made a hit novelty record about them?
I Figured it was Ol' White Feather. In OTL, his record for longest confirmed sniper kill (2,286 m) set in 1967, wasn't broken until March 2002.
I can understand that Kiki being The People's Princess is there in an official medical capacity that is being publicized but for the American people the only time Michael was in America it was for both the Squad Valley Olympics and the State Funeral of FDR were her wore his Calvary uniform which by Prussian tradition was all black which raised eyebrows across America but a point in his favor he is well known for his love of "American Cowboy" music.
Meanwhile Crown Prince Franz of Bavaria is the Chairman of the Olympic Arts Festival and his Consort Princess Victoria is making her first major public appearances since the tragic death of their newborn child.
Meanwhile Crown Prince Franz of Bavaria is the Chairman of the Olympic Arts Festival and his Consort Princess Victoria is making her first major public appearances since the tragic death of their newborn child.
Part 128, Chapter 2173
Chapter Two Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Three
2nd August 1972
Tempelhof, Berlin
The entire household was in mourning after Fleur, the elderly Rat Terrier mix had needed to be put down after she had suffered something that had caused a neurological deficit that had left her partially paralyzed. She had been a part of the family for last seventeen years so everyone was upset.
For Kat, it felt like everything was happening all at once. The girls were back from camp, and they were supposed to be preparing for school tomorrow. Instead, they were in the back garden as Douglas and Malcolm were digging a small grave for Fleur's ashes, debating about exactly how deep it needed to be. Having Tatiana and Malcolm home was a constant reminder of the difficulties that she was having with her oldest children.
Tatianna had spent the summer in Ireland, though Kat had no idea exactly why she had been sent there. Tatiana refused to say why, and Kat didn’t want to force the issue because she was afraid of what the most likely answer would be. Malcolm had progressed with his studies in Computer Science had progressed from the classroom into applied research. The Computer Research Department in the Friedrich Wilhelm University did a lot of work for Military Intelligence. Malcolm hadn’t said anything, but he was working on projects that he wasn’t allowed to discuss with anyone below a certain level of clearance. This was difficult for Kat. She had woken up one day and discovered that both of her oldest children were going into fields that she didn’t approve of, yet if she tried to forbid them from doing so then she feared that she would lose them.
Marie Alexandra and Sophie were understandably upset. Fleur had been Marie’s companion for her entire life. There were several photographs of how Marie had included Fleur in her games. Kat’s favorite was of Marie dressed like Robin Hood engaged in a comical attempt to dress Fleur and Cheshire, the family’s big tabby cat, up as her Merry Men. It worked about as well as anyone other than Marie at that age could have predicted with the dog and cat not inclined to cooperate with each other or with Marie. Douglas had photographed the scene of chaos with Marie at her wits end. The look on her face suggesting that she might have been dismayed that her idea hadn’t worked but there was going to be another idea at any second.
Sophie had delighted in watching the antics of the old terrier as she had carried on her low-key war against Petia’s desire for a well-ordered house. She had never had any pets when she had lived with her mother and grandparents. When Sophie had first moved in with Kat’s family, she had found the ready acceptance that she received from Fleur and Cheshire to be a comfort.
Washington DC
The Capital was in turmoil.
With the real nature of the FBI Director having been discovered there were calls for an investigation and Congressional hearings. If for no other reason than to ensure that something like this never happens again. A lot of heads were going to roll because of this. The trouble was that Dillinger was dead and all they knew was the two pieces of information he had left. The first was the shocking detail that John Aleshire had been in on the murders of J. Edger Hoover and Clyde Tolson that had been left on the desk of FBI Director to draw him out. That alone would have been enough to bury Aleshire, but Dillinger had clearly not been satisfied with that alone. He had confronted Aleshire alone after dropping off a folder containing proof of Aleshire’s duplicity at the Washington Post knowing full well that he was unlikely to walk away from that meeting.
After what had happened, Aleshire remained in Federal custody not having realized that he needed to flee until it was already too late. He had tried to make a deal, but had discovered that all his contacts had evaporated, so he was left swinging in the wind. President Rockefeller was left pondering if that had been Dillinger’s intention all along.
“This has been confirmed?” Rockefeller asked in disbelief.
“Yes” James J. Humes, the Navy Pathologist who had been asked to perform the autopsy on the man who the Washington Post claimed was John Dillinger replied. “The fingerprints and scars bear out the man’s identity.”
“Anything else?” Rockefeller asked.
“He had advanced cancer” Humes replied, “That might explain his actions. A man with nothing to lose.”
“I guess” Rockefeller said. He was aware of the real reason that Humes had been asked to take this case. In light of Dillinger coming out of hiding and sacrificing his life to expose what was turning out to be one of the worst intelligence failures in American history, the US Navy was reexamining the Dishonorable Discharge that Dillinger had been given back in the 20’s. At first, he had thought that was a joke, until the Secretary of the Navy told him otherwise. There was also public pressure to do more than that. It was very possible that the man dubbed Public Enemy Number One might have been the hero that America had been looking for. It was preposterous. What the autopsy had not shed any light on was where Dillinger had been for the last forty years. It wasn’t as if he could answer that question himself.
2nd August 1972
Tempelhof, Berlin
The entire household was in mourning after Fleur, the elderly Rat Terrier mix had needed to be put down after she had suffered something that had caused a neurological deficit that had left her partially paralyzed. She had been a part of the family for last seventeen years so everyone was upset.
For Kat, it felt like everything was happening all at once. The girls were back from camp, and they were supposed to be preparing for school tomorrow. Instead, they were in the back garden as Douglas and Malcolm were digging a small grave for Fleur's ashes, debating about exactly how deep it needed to be. Having Tatiana and Malcolm home was a constant reminder of the difficulties that she was having with her oldest children.
Tatianna had spent the summer in Ireland, though Kat had no idea exactly why she had been sent there. Tatiana refused to say why, and Kat didn’t want to force the issue because she was afraid of what the most likely answer would be. Malcolm had progressed with his studies in Computer Science had progressed from the classroom into applied research. The Computer Research Department in the Friedrich Wilhelm University did a lot of work for Military Intelligence. Malcolm hadn’t said anything, but he was working on projects that he wasn’t allowed to discuss with anyone below a certain level of clearance. This was difficult for Kat. She had woken up one day and discovered that both of her oldest children were going into fields that she didn’t approve of, yet if she tried to forbid them from doing so then she feared that she would lose them.
Marie Alexandra and Sophie were understandably upset. Fleur had been Marie’s companion for her entire life. There were several photographs of how Marie had included Fleur in her games. Kat’s favorite was of Marie dressed like Robin Hood engaged in a comical attempt to dress Fleur and Cheshire, the family’s big tabby cat, up as her Merry Men. It worked about as well as anyone other than Marie at that age could have predicted with the dog and cat not inclined to cooperate with each other or with Marie. Douglas had photographed the scene of chaos with Marie at her wits end. The look on her face suggesting that she might have been dismayed that her idea hadn’t worked but there was going to be another idea at any second.
Sophie had delighted in watching the antics of the old terrier as she had carried on her low-key war against Petia’s desire for a well-ordered house. She had never had any pets when she had lived with her mother and grandparents. When Sophie had first moved in with Kat’s family, she had found the ready acceptance that she received from Fleur and Cheshire to be a comfort.
Washington DC
The Capital was in turmoil.
With the real nature of the FBI Director having been discovered there were calls for an investigation and Congressional hearings. If for no other reason than to ensure that something like this never happens again. A lot of heads were going to roll because of this. The trouble was that Dillinger was dead and all they knew was the two pieces of information he had left. The first was the shocking detail that John Aleshire had been in on the murders of J. Edger Hoover and Clyde Tolson that had been left on the desk of FBI Director to draw him out. That alone would have been enough to bury Aleshire, but Dillinger had clearly not been satisfied with that alone. He had confronted Aleshire alone after dropping off a folder containing proof of Aleshire’s duplicity at the Washington Post knowing full well that he was unlikely to walk away from that meeting.
After what had happened, Aleshire remained in Federal custody not having realized that he needed to flee until it was already too late. He had tried to make a deal, but had discovered that all his contacts had evaporated, so he was left swinging in the wind. President Rockefeller was left pondering if that had been Dillinger’s intention all along.
“This has been confirmed?” Rockefeller asked in disbelief.
“Yes” James J. Humes, the Navy Pathologist who had been asked to perform the autopsy on the man who the Washington Post claimed was John Dillinger replied. “The fingerprints and scars bear out the man’s identity.”
“Anything else?” Rockefeller asked.
“He had advanced cancer” Humes replied, “That might explain his actions. A man with nothing to lose.”
“I guess” Rockefeller said. He was aware of the real reason that Humes had been asked to take this case. In light of Dillinger coming out of hiding and sacrificing his life to expose what was turning out to be one of the worst intelligence failures in American history, the US Navy was reexamining the Dishonorable Discharge that Dillinger had been given back in the 20’s. At first, he had thought that was a joke, until the Secretary of the Navy told him otherwise. There was also public pressure to do more than that. It was very possible that the man dubbed Public Enemy Number One might have been the hero that America had been looking for. It was preposterous. What the autopsy had not shed any light on was where Dillinger had been for the last forty years. It wasn’t as if he could answer that question himself.
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How much of Dillingers information is varifiable?
Because why would he have real hard information on a German agent in the FBI? Maybe some hearsay from his contacts, but real data?
And what can the USA do if Germany keeps mum about this and Aleshire denies involvement with the Germans outside of the known contacts?
I could see this as being constructed as another witch hunt by the USA to paper over other problems. Like the still unsolved racial equality matters. Not only with Blacks but also Mexican and Asian Americans.
Because why would he have real hard information on a German agent in the FBI? Maybe some hearsay from his contacts, but real data?
And what can the USA do if Germany keeps mum about this and Aleshire denies involvement with the Germans outside of the known contacts?
I could see this as being constructed as another witch hunt by the USA to paper over other problems. Like the still unsolved racial equality matters. Not only with Blacks but also Mexican and Asian Americans.
Maybe this thread needs renaming to Stupid Luck, Happenstance and Abject Chaos?
I am really enjoying this, however, every now and then, I do wonder when we'll hit the end phase for this story. Something like 55 years of story arc have been covered in fantastic depth especially with the event ripples.
This is an immense work and it still amazes me.
I am really enjoying this, however, every now and then, I do wonder when we'll hit the end phase for this story. Something like 55 years of story arc have been covered in fantastic depth especially with the event ripples.
This is an immense work and it still amazes me.
When I get bored with it and run out of ideas, then nukes will fly and cockroaches shall inherit the Earth. We aren't there yet though.
Found our beloved FBI director first post in 1944. (First thread, by the way)
So his family seem to have been in the US from before the First World War when they changed their name from Alsher to Aleshire, which means its far more probable the fact that John Aleshire was bon in the US.....
Oh boy, a US born german-Agent. As Head of the FBI.
Well, thats going to hurt quite a lot.