Chapter 420: Fear of the Dark
Hours had passed since Bruno first received the desperate call from the Grand Duchess of Luxembourg. She had immediately relayed his orders to her people while she and her family took shelter in the cellar of the estate.
What remained of her armed forces—a mere company of gendarmes, whose primary task had been law enforcement, not civil defense—took up positions with old bolt-action rifles and began firing at the French brigands.
The palace grounds had become an active combat zone. Fortunately for the royal family, the few "soldiers" they had were expert marksmen. Using the palace interior as a kill zone, they dropped the French veterans—men who had turned to banditry in order to survive the collapse of the Republic—one by one, as they dared to intrude upon its depths.
Tanks were impossible for the brigands to procure. Most of what France had built during the war had been scrapped by the Germans during their march to Paris, and what little remained was either destroyed or rendered useless during the ensuing civil war.
But armored cars? A few still existed. And the larger war bands had managed to get their hands on them. Light artillery under 100mm? That too. But anti-aircraft weaponry? No... they had none.
Because of this, the Werwolf Brigade’s elite airborne battalion had managed to drop behind enemy lines without detection—and without resistance. Bruno regrouped with the soldiers under his command at the designated rendezvous point, where all of them arrived without incident.
After a quick gear check, he ensured that they were prepared to infiltrate the city’s outskirts and begin their steady, tactical advance toward the palace. The majority of the brigands were no doubt still in the process of encircling the estate, shelling its exterior and hoping to scare the Grand Duchess out of hiding.
Fortunately, they had arrived just in time. Bruno, after issuing orders, addressed his men directly:
"No heroics. You’re here to do a job—and get paid—so you can spend that wealth when you get home. Do what’s necessary to eliminate the enemy, but don’t take unnecessary risks. They have superior firepower, so we’re going to rely on surprise—and the swiftness of our attack—to take these fuckers out. Now move!"
With that, Bruno flicked off the safety on his weapon and began advancing with the company directly behind him. The battalion split into elements, surrounding the small city and infiltrating from multiple entry points.