Tyranny of Steel

Berengar gazed at the scene before him. Moments ago, the Austrian and rebel forces had caught the soldiers of Luxembourg in a pincer attack. A slaughter was unfolding as the Austrians retreated from the firing range and unleashed their own volleys upon the unsuspecting knights and men at arms who valiantly defended the ruins of the city gatehouse. 

However, just as the City's defenders were about to be annihilated, a man rode out through the palace gates and towards the city's entrance waving a white flag. Sitting upon horseback in front of him was none other than the bastard of luxembourg who was bound and gagged. The moment Berengar saw this scene, a wicked smile formed on his face as he ordered a ceasefire among his forces.

"Hold your fire! Hold your fire! The enemy surrenders!"

The officers quickly relayed these orders among the ranks of Austria's finest soldiers, causing them to clear their weapons and lower their rifles. Just like that, the carnage had ended, as the smell of smoke and blood filled the air. 

Hilmar quickly jumped off his mighty steed, and tossed the bastard of luxembourg to the ground, where he grunted in pain. The bleeding in his leg had stopped and was firmly wrapped with a bandage. His life was secure for now.

Berengar gazed upon the villain with a hate filled expression. This scoundrel had so boldly ordered an assassination attempt on him in his own home, in doing so grievously wounding his sister. Such a thing was simply unforgiveable. 

With this in mind, the King of Austria rapidly approached the prisoner and began stomping at his ribs. The resulting pain was visible in the man's appearance. Eventually, the Royal Guard pulled away their King from his victim, where he merely spitted on the man's bruised face with disgust. After doing so, Berengar addressed the brave soldiers who fought for control of this city, as well as the rebels who had secured Austrian Victory.

"Men of Germany! We stand here today, having worked together as both Austria and Luxembourg to depose a tyrant! A man who unlawfully tries to murder his rivals in their own homes! I assure you, he will suffer greatly for his sins, but for now, rest, and know that we are one step closer to our dream of a unified Germany!

To those brave men who took up arms to ensure that Hartman suffers at the hands of justice, I applaud you, and will commend each one of you with a medal for your heroism! Without you, this battle would have surely devolved into brutal urban warfare, where at the behest of this villain, average citizens would fight to their last breath against my soldiers. 

As for those men who defended Luxembourg until their last dying breath, I hereby pardon you for your crimes. You may live peacefully among your people until the end of your days. I am not a cruel man. There is only one person who has to suffer for the crimes committed against my Kingdom, and my family. To victory! To the fatherland!"

The soldiers beneath Berengar's command raised their rifles into the air and cheered for their King, and the victory they had earned on this day.

"For King and fatherland!"

"Hail Victory!"

"God with us!"

The three common battle cries of the Austrian Army resounded in the air as thousands of soldiers repeatedly chanted them. Berengar, on the other hand, was more fixated on his newest victim. He quickly issued an order to the Field Marshal of his Royal Guard, which was drowned out by the cheering of Austria's soldiers. 

"I want this man secured and brought back to Austria. Ensure that one of our specialists welcome him with enhanced interrogation. Until this bastard dies of old age, he will know nothing but pain and fear. As far as the world is concerned, Hartman von Luxembourg died of his wounds on his journey to Austria. Am I understood?"

Heimerich nodded his head when he heard this, taking a moment to clarify his orders just in case he was mistaken.

"You want me to take him to a black site?"

Berengar merely responded with a silent nod. Upon seeing this, Heimerich responded in kind before offering a salute to his King. 

"It will be done, your Majesty."

After saying this, a unit of the Royal Guard quickly secured Hartman and dragged him off from the celebration that was taking place within the city square. As for Berengar, the conflict had exhausted him. Thus, he did not hesitate to claim the Palace of Luxembourg for himself. 

"When you have found the Duke's sisters, bring them before me. I don't want a single strand of their hair harmed. If I find out that they have been mistreated, the abuser shall have his head removed!"

The guards immediately nodded their heads. They would do as commanded. With that said, the King of Austria was about to get some much needed rest as his soldiers secured the city. Thus, he quickly found himself in the Duke's former quarters and shut the shades as he drifted off to sleep. 

A few hours later, a knock resounded on Berengar's door, quickly awakening the young king. He slowly rose from his bed before wiping his eyes. After doing so, he retrieved his eyepatch from the nearby bedstand and placed it over his scarred eye. 

Only after he had ensured that he was visibly appealing did he open the door to reveal Heimerich, along with several members of the Royal Guard. These men currently held onto three women in their early to mid-twenties. A look of fear was on their faces as they gazed at the Austrian King who now sat within their brother's quarters.  The Field Marshal was quick to announce their presence.

"Your majesty, we have secured the Duke's sisters, and I have brought them here as requested."

Berengar merely yawned before motioning for the guards to bring the women into his room. The three young women were trembling in fear as they gazed upon the man whose armies had so rapidly conquered their lands. As Heimerich was about to leave Berengar alone with the three women, the voice of his monarch stopped him.

"Not you... Stay"

The man instantly froze to his spot, before turning around, where he forced a smile before bowing.

"Of course, your Majesty."

He did not know what Berengar could want with him, but rumors of the King's odd tastes in the bedroom were quite abundant, and thus, he feared the worst. Berengar only made matters worse as he motioned over to the women and said a simple phrase.

"Pick one"

Heimerich immediately struggled to understand what was going on and thus asked for clarification on the matter.

"Excuse me?"

Upon seeing the confusion in his subordinates face, Berengar sighed heavily before revealing his intentions. 

"A duchess is a rare and valuable commodity. You have brought me three of them, thus I am giving you the one you desire most to be your lawfully wedded bride. You have earned this reward, don't you think?"

It dumbfounded the Field Marshal of the Royal Guard to hear this claim. He glanced towards the three women and back to his monarch with confusion in his heart. Truthfully, such a reward was beyond his measure of valor, but he accepted it nonetheless. After all, marrying a duchess would give him prestige, and that would allow him to gain favor with his father towards the succession. 

Thus, he examined the three women. Rather than focus on aspects such as bust, hip, or rear size, the Field General gazed into the eyes of each of the three women. He would choose his bride based on how they reacted to his scrutiny.

The first of the three women immediately looked away in fright when his cold gazed pierced into her soul. The second fared little better. She instantly trembled and practically fell to her knees in fright. Finally, when he gazed at the third, and youngest of the three women, she met his glare with equal resolve. There was no fear, no hesitation, only fierce determination.  Upon seeing this, Heimerich chuckled and grabbed hold of the woman's dainty hand before kissing it. As he did so, he smiled and put on a charming facade.

"Your grace, might I have the pleasure of knowing your name?"

The woman's sisters gazed at her with relief and a bit of pity. They considered themselves lucky for being passed over. As for the young duchess in question, she sighed before revealing her identity. 

"I am Margaret von Luxembourg. I presume you have selected me to be your bride?"

The cold indifference in which she announced each word displayed her utter sense of defeat. She knew what her fate entailed now that her brother had lost the war that he provoked. She could only pray that her husband was a kind man.  When Heimerich heard these words, he could tell that she was suffering from depression, thus he grabbed ahold of her face with his hand and stared her directly in the eyes.

"I did not choose for this to happen, but since the King has given his orders, I promise to provide for you, and treat you with the respect and dignity I should afford a woman of your position. If you will have me, that is..."

The woman gazed around to see everyone's reactions, ultimately when she met Berengar's chilling gaze, she knew she had no choice in the matter, thus she sighed once more before accepting her destiny.

"Very well. I suppose there are worse fates in the world."

After saying this, she met Berengar's glare with one of her own before fiercely advocating for her sisters.

"Tell me, King Berengar, what will become of my sisters?"

Berengar's expression did not shift in the slightest as he confidently uttered the words that the other two women undoubtedly did not want to hear.

"Like you, their fate is to be rewards for the efforts of my battle hardened Generals. I have two men in mind who are suitable candidates and utterly lacking in wives. Thus, I will gift the two women over to them at an appropriate time. I promise you, they will be well taken care of. After all, I have laws in place that protect women from spousal abuse."

Margaret simply nodded her head in silence as the other two women trembled at the thought of who they would be sold off to. Ultimately, they had nobody to blame for their fate other than their brother. After concluding on this matter, Berengar issued a command to his field marshal. 

"I will ensure that your woman is safely returned to Austria. As for you, we still have much work to do. I must remind you that the Empire is not unified just yet. The other Northern States have yet to surrender. Thus, after this war is over, you can wed your wife. Until then, I expect you to perform your duties to your fullest ability."

Heimerich immediately snapped into a salute as he responded to Berengar's orders.

"Yes, my King!"

With this said, the war for German Unification was one step closer to completion. In the coming days, news would spread of Hartman's capture and of Luxembourg's surrender, placing an even greater pressure on the Northern German States to surrender to the whims of Berengar.