Tyranny of Steel

It had been years since the Pax Germania first began, and during this time the German people had spread across the globe, colonizing massive swaths of land for their own purposes. Perhaps the first of the German Colonies, New Vienna, had undergone the most monumental change. 

Years had passed since Arnulf's death, and during this time his widow and young son were forced into a life of house arrest within the colony of New Vienna, or Neu Wien, as it was known in the German tongue. The native woman was forced to sit back and watch as her people were driven out of their lands and hunted for sport by the German settlers. 

Berengar had promised to look after Arnulf's family if he chose the easy way out, and he had lived up to that promise. The mother and child had lived a life of utter luxury, though despite this, Kahwihta suffered from a depression that only one who caused the death of their culture could feel. 

The Colonialists who came to New Vienna began to spread around the east coast of Lindheim, which was previously known as North America in Berengar's previous life, like a swarm of locusts. With the overwhelming number of cargo ships that existed in the German Empire's possession, goods were transported in between the colonies and the Fatherland on a regular basis, allowing for these colonial towns to develop rather quickly. 

It was no exaggeration to say that the entire coastline from Maine to Texas was littered with German Colonies which varied in size. After all, the ownership of cheap land in the New World without having to sacrifice too much of the standard of living which was found in the fatherland was a tempting prospect for many young German men who had just ended military service and were seeking to start a peaceful life with a family of their own. 

Naturally, each colony grew its own food surplus and developed their own resources. Jobs of all kinds were plentiful in the colonies, and yet despite the distance between them and the fatherland, the colonials still considered themselves Germans of the purest breed. 

Culture flowed from Austria and spread across the rest of the German Empire like a wildfire. What was popular in Kufstein would end up being popular in the colonies months after its invention. However, Lindeheim was not the only place that was being developed.

In the Caribbean, small island colonies appeared on every habitable island. Where there was land to settle, the German people took advantage of it. These colonies could exist in the size of a few hundred people, to a few thousand.  The natives of these islands soon found themselves entirely obliterated by either disease or conflict with the German population. 

In Adelheim, or what was once known as South America, in Berengar's past life. German colonies spread from Gran Columbia to Brazil's coastlines. The Río de la Plata in particular became widely settled by prospectors looking to make it rich with the discovery of mass quantities of gold and silver. Ultimately, Berengar was forced to enact laws which restricted the amount of silver and gold that could be extracted every year, so as to not crash his economy.

Finally, the Colonies in Southern Africa had extended northward. With the invention of hydroxychloroquine, the German people no longer needed to worry about malaria. As a result, they began to spread further inland, taking the land with a storm of blood and iron.

Madagascar was settled, and a naval base was established. As a result, not only did the German Empire control trade through the Kaiser's pass, but also any merchant traffic that made its way through the southern tip of Africa. 

The African Goddess who Berengar had previously made a deal with led her tribe north into Zambezi, where she forged herself a mighty Empire. The Zulu culture was born early as a result of this expansion, and their Empire paid tribute to the Reich.

Why she had gone so far north? Because Berengar had previously told her he intended to expand all the way into the area that was once known as Rhodesia in his past life, and the last thing she wanted was another conflict with the Reich. 

With the surplus of goods flowing in from the colonies, as well as the establishment of a global trade network. The German Empire had reached a new height of prosperity. Hence, the Pax Germania had become considered by many within the borders of the Reich to be a new golden age. One that was greater than any civilization had ever faced throughout history. 

Though the percentage of GDP which was spent on defense was a flat rate of 15%, this was a staggering sum of money which was astronomically higher than what the united states of America spent on its military during Berengar's past life. 

It was because of this that Berengar could throw barrels of cash into the construction of hundreds of naval vessels, thousands of aircraft, and ten thousand plus armored vehicles, Most of which were still under production. 

The arms industry of the German Empire was in a state of daily production. Unlike Japan, Berengar did not feel the need for the time being to work his citizens to the bone. Because of this, the manufacturing of weapons systems only took place during daytime hours. 

Even then, with each passing week, more and more armored vehicles and aircraft entered service. They were no longer simply found protecting the fatherland, but were, in fact, deployed to colonies around the world.

For the most part, bombers and reconnaissance aircraft made their ways to the new world, and southern Africa. While fighter planes were stationed in the fatherland, and within the Pacific. As a result of this increase in aircraft, Officers were upon request transferred from the Army to the Air Force, where they underwent pilot training to compensate for the lack of qualified pilots. 

While this era of Global Expansions was occurring. Kaiser Berengar von Kufstein spent most of his time at home, where he worked hard to ensure that his civilization was heading in the right direction. What little free time he had he spent with his family. 

Currently, Berengar was sitting in the living room, playing a game of chess with his daughter, Zara Al-Fadl. The girl had a keen glint in her amber eyes as she watched her father's lackadaisical move of his pieces. By the expression Berengar was making, it was almost as if he did not care about the match.

However, Zara could tell that with each move, her father had expertly anticipated her own, and in doing so, was playing to the best of his ability. Still, the girl had a mind as brilliant as her eldest Brother, and because of that, she was not the least bit concerned. 

While Berengar may be a great intellect, he was far from the level of a super genius like his children. Sure, he had a high IQ, but what really made him shine was his perfect memory, which allowed him to actively call upon what he had learned in his past life, and implement it within this alternate reality. 

In terms of sheer intelligence, he was lacking when compared to Zara and in a game of chess, which relied on such a thing. It was only a matter of time before she beat him. Whether that would happen today, or at a later age, that had yet to be decided. 

Upon moving her Knight in a way which took out her father's Bishop, the man grimaced. He had long since played every possibility he could think of that Zara would make in his mind, but he had failed to account for this specific action. The moment Zara saw her father's expression, she giggled and made fun of the man. 

"Daddy wasn't expecting that, was he?"

Berengar sighed and nodded his head as he moved his queen to claim his daughter's knight. The moment he did so, her excitement turned to bitterness as she pouted towards the man, hoping that perhaps her expression would distract him. As for Berengar, he simply scolded the girl for her action. 

"While it was true that I was not expecting such a move, in the end you left your Knight open to a counterattack. I fear as if you are still young to best your old man."

Zara continued to pout for some time as she debated on her next move, which she ultimately made after a few moments of thought. The game would continue for another hour before ultimately Berengar won. 

Though Zara didn't cry, there were clearly tears in her eyes as she pouted towards her father. She could not help but express her discontent to the man as she latched onto his arm and tugged on it in a fit of fury.

"No fair! Daddy's smarter than me! Why can't you give me a handicap!"

In response to this, Berengar merely scoffed, before dragging his Zara into his lap, and hugging her. The action of which caught the young girl off guard, and in doing so silenced her long enough for her father to lecture her. 

"Because if I gave you a handicap, you would never learn. You are getting better at the game of chess with each defeat. I'm sure that before long you will beat your old man. However, for now, you need to focus on learning from your defeats and improving at each attempt."

Despite this being the same lesson her father taught her every time she lost, Zara gazed upon the man with sparkling eyes, as if his words of wisdom had come from God himself. Her mood had throughly changed from one of fury to happiness as she smiled and nodded her head before responding to Berengar.

"I'll do that!"

After saying this, the two of them shared a laugh before another one of Berengar's children interrupted them. The Kaiser would spend the rest of his day with his family before waking up the next morning, and engaging in a game of chess on a global scale against the Japanese Empress.

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