Re: Blood and Iron

Word quickly reached the Fatherland of the assassination of the attempt on Bruno's life while in the streets of Saint Petersburg. While Russia was currently in a civil war, Saint Petersburg was considered a stronghold of the Tsar and his Loyalists, especially after the Siege it endured in the past few months.

After all, anyone even remotely suspected of having loyalty to the Bolsheviks, or even sympathy for that matter had been dragged from their homes and shot in the streets. Because of this, it was considered relatively safe. Or at least as safe as an area could be in a country currently embroiled in a civil war.

Still, in the middle of broad daylight, a man had shot the leader of the Iron Brigade in a botched assassination attempt. And this had generated many headlines. Luckily for Bruno a habit of his that was utterly detrimental to his health had ironically saved his life.

Bruno was, after all, a man who relied heavily on substance abuse to cope with his increasing PTSD. And it was because of this that he kept a pack of cigarettes and a flask of hard liquor on him at all times. This steel flask had taken the primary impact of the bullet, allowing it to just barely penetrate his flesh at a depth that was not lethal.

He had survived the attack on his life, and rumor had it the man had chased down his assailant and beat him half to death after having quite literally just been shot in the chest. The reality of the situation was that the would be assassin was already caught by Bruno's guards when the man vented his rage upon him.

But soldiers had a way of exaggerating things, and the tale which the soldiers spun was quickly over time morphed into something more myth than reality. Even so, the Wolf of Prussia had gained a reputation for being both "impervious to bullets" and ruthless in retaliation.

Of course, the would be assassin, after being discharged from the hospital was transferred into the care of the German Army's Foreign Intelligence division. Who did a number on the man in order to get the truth to him? The man tried his best to bite his tongue, but ultimately he gave up everything he had on his masters and their plans to eliminate Bruno from the chessboard.

Naturally, when the Kaiser learned that the French had dared to try to assassinate one of his Generals he was pissed. He had after all invested a significant sum of resources into Bruno's development as a general.

But the Kaiser's fury paled in comparison to that of Bruno's wife. Heidi was quickly alerted to what had happened. And when she did, she kept in contact with her cousin who worked at the German Army's Foreign Intelligence Division. The man kept her up to date on all the latest information gained from their victim.

And in the end, after he had divulged everything he knew, Heidi's reaction would have been terrifying had anyone witnessed it. The normally timid and submissive housewife had a haunting expression on her otherwise flawless face. One that conveyed an urge to personally flay the flesh from the bones of the man who had dared to try to take her husband away from her and her young children.