Tyranny of Steel

Perhaps Berengar had mellowed out with old age, after all maturity came with experience, but for whatever reason, over the last few years, the man had no longer felt the need to flatten cities to prove a point to the world. However, despite having a long fuse to anger, once fully provoked. Berengar's fury was one that was as destructive as a thermonuclear warhead.

Despite maintaining the peace in the world for the last five years, or perhaps because of it, the world had seemed to have forgotten the warlord who twenty years ago rose from nothing, and trampled entire cities beneath his boot as he claimed his place as the global hegemon.

At least that was what Berengar was thinking as he washed the fresh blood of his victim from his hands and face. There was no force on this earth. That was more terrifying than Berengar when one of his loved ones came under attack. Thus, after wiping the filth from his body that belonged to the crown Prince of Tlemcen, Berengar gave an order which shocked the world's many rulers..

"Find out which nation this fat sack of shit belonged to and execute his entire family."

Upon realizing that her beloved father had not yet quelled his bloodlust, Zara thought to further endear herself to the man, as she milked her 'injury' while informing the man of the information which he desired. After biting her lip once more, so that she could 'cough up blood’, the young princess immediately informed her father of just who had dared to trespass on his dynasty's dignity.

"Daddy... Zara knows who did this. The fat pig said who he was after he struck Zara. He was the Crown Prince of Tlemcen."

Berengar immediately checked on Zara's health when he saw the blood fall from her lips and gave an immediate order to get her to a proper facility for treatment.

"Get my daughter on the first plane back to civilization. I want her thoroughly examined by a proper doctor within the hour!"

The members of the Leibgarde rushed to be the first one to escort the princess back to the Reich via a supersonic transport. After all, it was their responsibility to look after the Royal Family, and they had allowed the Kaiser's most beloved daughter to sustain such an injury. In an attempt to save their own necks, several men retrieved a wheel chair and immediately wheeled the young woman off to the transport. As for the rest of Berengar's elite bodyguard, they were given an order that shocked the rest of the world's leaders.

"Arrest the Royal Family of Tlemcen and have them shot in the public square!"

This was truly something unthinkable. Berengar was now acting as if he was the ruler of the world, and was not respecting the rights of other monarchs. Especially when one considered that the Emir of Tlemcen was not a subordinate state to the Reich. To the many rulers who still considered themselves Sovereign, this was outrageous, and thus a riot was about to take place as they screamed obscenities to the Kaiser.

"Who do you think you are to condemn the Emir of Tlemcen and his family to death?"

"You think you have the right to kill a foreign monarch? Under what grounds!"

Shouting occurred, and many of the guests from the Arab world had begun throwing things at the Leibgarde. That is, until the Leibgarde racked the charging handles of their short barrelled Stg-952s, and aimed their red dot sights at those monarchs who dared to resist. The sudden threat of instant death immediately quelled those who were making trouble. As for Berengar, he stepped forward and introduced himself to the crowd.

"My name is Kaiser Berengar von Kufstein, and as of this moment, the German Reich is officially at war with the Emirate of Tlemcen. For crimes against my family, I will seize the members of their royal family, and have them rightfully executed. Any man who seeks to intervene shall share their fate..."

After such a bold and chilling threat, no man step forward to defend the Emir of Tlemcen and his family, who were quickly rounded up, and brought away by the Leibgarde. Though the Arab rulers looked at Berengar with complete disdain, they did not say a word in retaliation.

Berengar did not hesitate to look after his daughter. He went so far as to join Zara onboard a supersonic transport, which transported them both back to the Reich. Within the hour, Berengar and his daughter were back in Kufstein, where the girl was treated by medical professionals who confirmed that she sustained no real damage.

Despite his relief at this much welcomed news, Berengar would not let things slide, simply because his beloved daughter was unharmed. The fact that a man had dared to touch her without his permission, let alone assault her, meant that there was only one fate which awaited his people.

Thus, while Zara was enjoying the attention that her father was giving her, Berengar gave an order which would condemn the entire nation of Tlemcen to extinction. While the doctors performed a thorough examination of Zara's body to ensure that nothing was wrong with it, Berengar found the nearest phone and dialed the headquarters of the Wehrmacht. His voice was completely emotionless as he gave a chilling command.

"Verification code 12646A-K3... I hereby authorize a full-scale launch of our nation's arsenal of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles. The target is the Emirate of Tlemcen..."

The verification code that Berengar used was just one step in unleashing the Reich's massive arsenal of conventional intercontinental ballistic missiles. Each of which had the explosive yield of a small tactical nuclear weapon.

Over the last five years, the Reich had rapidly developed its military capabilities and was now capable of producing thermobaric weapons of immense power. Thus, he decided to launch all twenty-five thousand missiles to annihilate the Emirate of Tlemcen.

After Zara had completed her checkup and confirmed that she was in perfect health, she snuck up behind her father and hugged him from behind. And yet he did not react like normal.

Instead, his gaze was directed outside the window, staring into space. Her father's lack of reaction immensely confused Zara and, as a result, she was quick to inquire about why this was the case.

"Why is daddy staring out the window?"

A cold response came out of her father's lips, along with a single sentence.

"Wait for it..."

Naturally intrigued by what her father meant, Zara stared out the window, just as Berengar was doing, and was suddenly shocked by what she saw and heard. All over the fatherland and its colonies, as well as the world's oceans, intercontinental ballistic missiles were being launched from their silos and submarines, as they flew into the sky and darted off towards every single inhabited region of Tlemcen.

Zara could not even count the number of missiles that streaked through the air. To the German people, it was as if the sky ha suddenly fallen. As suddenly, twenty-five thousand missiles shot out of the ground and into the sky.

Many people gathered to witness the spectacular sight and recorded the scene on their camcorders. As for Zara, she was an astronautical engineer who worked for the German Space Program. As someone infinitely familiar with rockets, and the many types which the Reich employed in all of its sectors, she was horrified by that which she saw.

Naturally, she knew exactly what it was that her amber eyes gazed upon. Her arms, which hugged around her father, suddenly began to quiver as her voice trembled in fear, and perhaps guilt, knowing that she was, in fact, to blame for the untold destruction that was about to occur.

"D.....Daddy.... What have you done?"

A sadistic smirk curved itself upon Berengar's lips as he continued to gaze upon his missiles which took to the sky, and in that moment he finally understood what Oppenheimer meant when he said the words.

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds..."

Which Berengar said aloud, to the horror of his beloved daughter.