Tyranny of Steel

Roughly eight hours had passed since Berengar first exited the Great Pyramid of Giza, and he had spent most of that time on the plane back to Kufstein. During his flight, he explained in great detail what he had witnessed within the depths of the tomb. So much so that Adelbrand and his men never would have believed him had they not seen the egyptian god of death themselves.

Berengar forced the men to take a strict vow of silence on what they had seen. They could not even inform their families about it. If the truth about the existence of all religions spread across the Reich, it would cause a serious disruption to his society as a whole. Thus, only a select few were entrusted with such a level of security clearance. 

Upon landing in Kufstein's air field, Adelbrand practically fell to the ground and kissed the dirt beneath his feet. He was immensely happy that they did not AirDrop into the city like they did in Cairo. Berengar, on the other hand, was as calm as usual as he placed his hand on Adelbrand's shoulder and informed him of his newest task..

"Take the next two weeks off and get accustomed to the life in the Reich. The train will take you to Salzberg, where you can enjoy the wealth of your family's estate. You have more than earned a break, my friend. I will summon you when I require your assistance. Until we meet again..."

Upon hearing this, Adelbrand saluted his Kaiser, who responded in kind, before the two men departed via separate methods. Berengar would take a car to his palace, where he would regroup with his family. Meanwhile, Adelbrand would take a bus to the train station before heading home via the national railway. 

Berengar relaxed in the back of his car, which was driven by a member of his leibgarde. He enjoyed the sights of the city of Kufstein, which had undergone monumental changes over the past decade. From a small medieval farming town to a thriving metropolis straight out of the roaring twenties, the city of Kufstein was without a doubt the greatest city in the world. 

Eventually Berengar's car reached his palace, where before he could even fully step foot into the building, the redheaded beauty that was his favorite wife assaulted him. Linde gazed upon Berengar with a loving expression, as she stuffed his head into her substantial bust. 

Though travel was much faster in this era of flight, it did not mean that Linde was not worried about her soulmate's very survival. After all, she knew all about the dangerous missions to the Great Pyramid of Giza, and thus, had been drinking to compensate for her woes. 

Berengar could smell the booze on the woman's breath, as she kissed him passionately, entirely unaware of the major change that his appearance had undergone. Ultimately, Linde released her grip and smiled, before slowly shifting into a state of shock.  It was at this moment; she noticed the golden iris of Berengar's right eye, and quickly grabbed hold of his face, worried for the man's safety. 

"Oh my god, what happened? Why is your eye gold? Don't tell me the eye of Horus fused with your own? Are there side effects? Did you have to pay a certain price? Please tell me everything is fine!"

Linde, as intelligent as was, quickly guessed what might have happened to her man while he was away, causing Berengar to chuckle and hold her tightly in an attempt to calm her down. 

"Relax, I'm fine. In fact, I'm better than ever. My sight has returned to me. Nevermind the details, after twelve years, I can once more gaze upon your beauty with two eyes instead of one. There is nothing to worry about."

Like a dog who had received praise from her master, Linde immediately became obedient as she nuzzled her head into her husband's broad chest. It was at this moment Berengar activated the effects of his newfound treasure, in an attempt to see how the woman he loved truly felt in this moment. 

Upon seeing such an overwhelming pink aura, Berengar had nearly vomited. Even the radiant gold light of Anubis's divine aura failed to compare to what he was seeing right now. As if the aura of her love was a nuclear fusion reactor, it had completely illuminated the palace with a glowing neon light. So much so that Berengar temporarily went blind once more, as he struggled to deactivate the divine artifact's affect. 

Once his sight had returned to him, Berengar gazed at Linde with a hint of concern on his face. What he had witnessed was too much love for one man to possibly handle on his own. Just how the hell did she think of him? He began to feel a bit concerned that perhaps he was failing to live up to Linde's expectations when the woman grabbed hold of his hand and asked him what was wrong with him.

"Is everything alright? You look a little spooked?"

Berengar shook his head in disbelief before coming back to reality. Obviously, he could not tell the woman that the sheer volume of her love had frightened him. Instead, he just sighed in defeat, realizing that perhaps it was a good thing she loved him so much.

After all, should Linde ever turn on him, she would easily be the most frightening enemy he would have to face.  Thus, after taking a deep breath, he patted the woman on the head, before assuring her that everything was fine.

"Everything is fine, my love. I was just a little overwhelmed by the stench of booze. You have been drinking, haven't you?"

Linde looked away in shame at this moment. She had indeed been drinking. After all, it was the only thing that could calm her nerves when she thought about the precarious situation her man had once again put himself in. She was ready to receive a scolding, but instead Berengar shocked her by wrapping his arms around her and kissing her forehead.

"Thank you for always worrying about me. I promise you, I won't do anything to get myself killed. Besides, I couldn't leave you all alone to raise our five kids by yourself. After all, Bruno was just born recently. Who would be his father if I were to perish in some forgotten tomb?" 

Before Linde could respond to his comments, Yasmin walked down the stairs and noticed Berengar's return. Though she did not know what perilous journey he had gone on, she could tell that something serious had happened now that his right eye was golden. The Moorish Princess immediately yelped in shock, which alerted the entire Palace to Berengar's return.

"Oh, my goodness! What happened to your eye?"

Before long, Berengar's other women scurried into the entryway of the Palace, along with several of his children as they gazed upon the man's strange appearance. Berengar was struggling to explain how he had come to possess a new eye when Veronika stumbled in and stiffened on the spot. 

Unlike Berengar, the Bohemian Princess was born with heterochromia. Because of this, she had suffered dearly early in her life. To see the man who had saved her from her family's abuse suddenly share the same curse as her.

It was too much for the young woman to handle, and she instantly broke out into tears. Upon seeing this, Berengar felt the need to come up with some form of excuse, and he suddenly explained his condition as a miracle from God. 

"Everybody, make no mistake, I am perfectly fine. In fact, I am better than fine. The lord God almighty has restored my sight to me. I was in the holy land, saying my prayers to Christ at Golgotha, when all of a sudden a golden light enveloped me. In that brief moment, I felt a divine warmth soothe my wounded eye and when it finally vanished, I could see again!

After nearly twelve years of blindness, my sight has returned to me. It is truly a miracle. I can not explain why the eye color is different from before, but all I know is that for the first time in my entire life, I can now gaze upon my beloved family with two eyes. So do not fret, for this is the will of God."

If Hans were here to witness his father's shameful preaching, he would have merely scoffed at the notion that divine intervention healed his father, and instead assumed that the man was hiding things like usual. However, the majority of his family chose to believe his words, and gathered around to hug the head of their house, who had been healed by the lord himself. 

This would be the same lie that Berengar peddled to the public about his sudden transformation, further strengthening the idea that he was a man chosen by God. Clearly, the eye was golden because it contained the light of God. Or so the people would think. 

Incidentally, this bit of propaganda would cause some less educated people to forget their prejudice toward Heterochromia people, something Veronika had suffered through, even during her school life. 

As for Linde, she could only shake her head in disbelief before muttering a single phrase under her breath. Even she found the propaganda that Berengar had thought up of on the top of his head to be a bit too shameless. 

"Your ability to bullshit your way through life never ceases to amaze me..."