Tyranny of Steel

Chapter 628: Mysterious Disappearances

Months had passed since Berengar’s arrival in Mesoamerica, and now a star fort had built on the coastline of the Region. This was no simple stronghold, but a well-fortified miniature colony which housed a thousand soldiers of the German Armed Forces. It was defended with rifled breechloading artillery, revolving cannons, and hand-cranked machine guns, along with the individual rifles of the soldiers who acted as its garrison.

A large dock extended into the sea and provided a staging point for the small fleet that had ferried these soldiers and their supplies into the New World. Despite what one might think, the Kaiser and his soldiers were not cut off from the fatherland, the long range wireless telegraph built on board his flagship vessel acted as a means of instant communication with his Empire across the atlantic.

Because of this, Berengar was aware of every movement his rivals made overseas, and could instantly communicate to his forces on how to counter it, should such a thing be necessary. While this fortress existed on the coastline of Mesoamerica, the natives were completely unaware that foreigners had long since invaded their lands and built a stronghold.

It was because of this that the Aztec Emperor of this world, a man by the name of Itzcoatl, was completely dumbfounded on why his scouts kept going missing whenever they investigated the region in which his daughter was last seen. Several native men were gathered in the Aztec Emperor’s palace as he discussed the strange things that were occurring within his lands.

“My daughter has been missing for months, without the slightest hint of her whereabouts. I would believe she was dead, if not for the fact that every man I have dispatched to find her has similarly gone missing. Just what is happening on the coastline?”

One of the Emperor’s advisors had a worried tone in his voice as he discussed some of the rumors that he had heard that originated from the villages near the coast.

“The villagers near the region speak of thunderous roars and strange sounds coming from the coast. Similarly to our scouts, everyone they have sent to investigate these noises has gone missing. However, recently a corpse was found in the woodlands and was back in one of these villages.”

After saying this, the advisor pulled out a small copper jacketed lead bullet and placed it on the table. When the Emperor gazed upon it, he was furious. He did not know what he was looking at and merely responded to the fool for wasting his time.

“Just what in the name of the gods is this supposed to be?”

The Advisor merely shook his head before responding with a grim tone.

“We don’t know, but it was dug out of the boy’s chest, or what remained of it. Whatever this thing is, it left a grievous wound the likes that our most esteemed healers can not identify. However, if you ask me, I think that our shores have been invaded, and this is some kind of strange new weapon who its wielders have used to eliminate anyone who comes close to the territory they have conquered.”

It was at this moment that another voice interrupted the advisor and complained about his reasoning.

“That’s preposterous. If our shores were invaded, then we would know of it. None of our rivals have made any attempt to encroach on our border. To eliminate all of our scouts to such a degree that they can’t even report back to us would require such a large volume of troops, that there is simply no feasible way to move them into the area without us noticing!”

The first man to speak merely gazed upon the man who complained about his reasoning with a chilling gaze before speaking further about his thoughts.

“Unless this hostile force came from across the great sea… Perhaps the feathered serpent has finally returned to our lands and is angry with us…”

The moment Itzcoatl heard these words, he shivered before asking the immediate question on his mind.

“It is a one reed year, this year, isn’t that correct?”

The first advisor nodded his head in silence, while the other scoffed at the very mention of it. Ultimately, it was up to Itzcoatl to decide on how to proceed with this new information.

“If the feather serpent has returned, then should it not be something to celebrate? Why is he angry with us?”

When the second advisor heard this line of reasoning, he immediately protested.

“Your majesty, do you honestly believe such nonsense? We should not jump to conclusions, instead we should send a larger force to investigate the region, and figure out just why our people keep going missing.”

Upon listening to such solid reasoning, rather than the superstitions that his other advisor voiced. Itzcoatl realized he should not immediately assume that a vengeful god had returned, and instead find out the cause of these disappearances before jumping to conclusions. With a stern expression on his face, the Aztec Emperor issued forth a decree.

“You are right. We must investigate this thoroughly. If such small numbers of scouts keep disappearing, then we will send an army to figure out why these disappearances keep happening. Prepare to send a full force of our greatest warriors to the region. I dare to see if so many men vanish into thin air!”

With that said, the two advisors bowed respectfully to their emperor before enacting his orders.

“As you command!”

After saying this, they departed from the Palace leaving Itzcoatl by his lonesome. The man gazed off through a clearing into the distance where the shores lie, uttering single phrase in his grief.

“My sweet Tlexictli, please be alright…”

—

Within the confines of the German Stronghold on the coasts of Mesoamerica, Tlexictli sat within a large stone suite. Despite the overall size and luxury of her quarters, the Aztec Princess was little more than a prisoner. Which the bars on her window and the thick steel door made completely obvious.

Since the moment Honoria and the German soldiers found the missing Emperor, they had taken Tlexictli prisoner. During the months, her quarters had shifted from time to time, until the Germans finished constructing their fortress. She had witnessed little during her time as a prisoner, as Berengar ensured she could observe nothing of strategic value. Thus, the only windows in her room had a view of the vast Atlantic ocean and nothing else.

Despite being a prisoner, she lived fairly well, perhaps even better than if she was still at the Aztec Palace in Tenochtitlan. At any time of the day, if she felt hungry, she could order room service from a large menu of German delicacies. The blonde-haired men showed no sign of hostility when they served her, and her captors never appeared to run out of supplies. She was completely unaware that routine supply drops between the fatherland and the coastal fortress were the norm.

Aside from the delicious food that she could dine on as much as she desired. Tlexictli had fully functional plumbing and a library of German books to keep her entertained. Which she took an interest in reading. Though she could not remember exactly how she had come to learn the German language, she increased her knowledge of Berengar’s world as much as she could.

When she wasn’t reading, she was exercising, maintaining her muscular figure with a set of weights that Berengar had provided, and keeping up with her cardio via a large punching bag and a grappling dummy. In fact, she had grown so accustomed to these luxuries that she had nearly forgotten she was a prisoner.

That is, until, of course, Berengar came to visit her for the first time since she was imprisoned. A knock resounded on the door as Tlexictli was doing situps, something she initially moaned about, but ultimately halted her exercise long enough to check who intruded upon her activities. When she opened the door, she was shocked to see none other than Berengar standing in front of her with a wide smile on his face.

The two of them could not be more differently dressed. Berengar wore his Imperial regalia, while Tlexictli was dressed in a black sheer thong and nothing else. Evidently, she had assumed that German undergarments were the most efficient form of clothing for exercise because she did not understand in the slightest their intention.

When Berengar gazed upon the half naked woman, his jaw completely dropped. Perhaps it was because all of his wives and mistresses were dainty flowers, but his eyes were drawn to every perfectly sculpted muscle on the woman’s body, which was now glistening with her sweat. She did not take notice of his lustful gaze and instead frowned when she saw him; rebuking the German Emperor for not visiting her sooner.

“You’re late…”

Berengar merely chuckled as he asked permission for entry.

“I’m sorry about that. I have been dreadfully busy since I reunited with my comrades. May I come in?”

In response to this, Tlexictli merely snorted, but she opened the door large enough for Berengar to enter, where he quickly took a seat at her table. He had a confident expression on his face as he gazed upon the woman, who did not even bother to get dressed. Instead, she grabbed a flagon of beer and downed its contents to quench her thirst. After doing so, she inquired about Berengar’s reasoning for visiting.

“So, why are you here now, after all this time?”

Berengar merely smiled before uttering a simple phrase, leaving the girl with many questions.

“The time has come…”