The Eternal Empire (36 page)

Driving on until a bend in the road sheltered
him from the soldiers; Cornelius stopped and pulled out his map. There was
another dirt track leading to the Rhine about ten miles further on. After that
the road bore sharply to the east and away from the frontier. However, if that
track was blocked as well, which Cornelius thought was highly likely, he would
have to find another way out of Saxony, probably on foot. That would take him
two or three days at least, even longer if they had patrols out looking for
him.

28th
July 1920

Saxon
Army General Head Quarters

Franz had not slept at all since the
discovery of the open safe and only the adrenaline kept him going. As soon as
Godisger had signed the order authorising him to begin the secret mobilisation,
he had driven over to army head quarters. He began by summoning all the other
staff officers by telephone if they were connected or by sending an orderly if
they were not. By mid morning they were all in one of the briefing rooms and
Franz informed them that the war plan was to be put into action immediately. He
did not tell them about the theft of the plans.

Their initial reactions ranged from
exhilaration from the more belligerent to silent reflection by the more
thoughtful. Then the questions began, most of which were variations on those
which general Godisger had posed earlier. This time Franz was more honest with
his answers because he already had what he wanted and the audience before him
were better acquainted with the current status of the preparations.

"We're taking a big risk by
attacking now," said one of the officers, "another two weeks and
everything will be ready. Why the sudden urgency?"

There were murmurs of agreement,
especially from those involved with the detailed planning.

"Circumstances are such that
General Godisger has decided to strike now," replied Franz. "An
opportunity has arisen and we must seize it!"

"What about the co-operation with
the Arabs and Turks?" asked the tribune responsible for liaison with the
diplomatic service. "Negotiations are still in progress to obtain their
support."

"I'm sure that we can speed up the
negotiation process," replied Franz with aplomb. "If not, they'll
want to join in when they see the legions being smashed by our armies. They
won't miss an opportunity to have a go at the Empire."

There were other questions but Franz
fielded them with ease and confidence. Over the past twelve hours he had
travelled from the depths of abject despair when he had discovered the open
safe to the heights of exhilaration as he ordered the Saxon army staff to implement
his invasion plan. In a few days Saxon troops would storm across the Rhine and
within a month the cream of the western Roman army would be scattered across
Gaul or isolated in Britannia.

And all because of his plan. For the
first time Franz saw himself as a latter day Arminius, freeing the German
people from Roman domination. Until tonight Franz had always cast Godisger in
that role but the meeting that he had had with him earlier had changed that.
The general had been his hero, his determination and single minded pursuit of
revenge had always been an inspiration to Franz and scores of other officers.
But his hesitation and vacillation when confronted by the theft of the plans
had shattered his picture of Godisger as the avenging leader of Saxony. He no
longer believed that the general was up to the task ahead and that Franz
Maleric would be the one to lead the Germanic people to victory.

28th
July 1920

Saxony,
near the frontier

Cornelius finished hiding the motor
carriage and stood back to check his work. Not a particularly professional job
of camouflage he had to admit, but it should buy him some time. He did not
think that Katherine would approve of the way that he had treated her prized
vehicle but he was sure that she would understand. He only wished that he knew
how she was and if she was safe.

As he had expected, the other track
through the forest had been sealed off. If he stayed with the vehicle he would
eventually be caught. He had to abandon it and make his way on foot.

He had spotted an area of the forest
where the vegetation was not as dense and had turned off the road, driving into
the woods for about a hundred and fifty yards. Finding a slight depression
which would help to shield the vehicle from the road, he had stopped and cut branches
from nearby trees to add to the natural cover.

Despite feeling tired and hungry
Cornelius picked up the rucksack and set off at once, keen to put as much
distance between him and the motor carriage as possible. He stopped at the
roadside to check for movement or the sound of approaching vehicles and when he
was certain that it was all clear he walked across briskly. He checked his
compass and then headed deep into the forest towards the Rhine.

Cornelius maintained a steady pace,
keeping to parts of the forest where he could hide quickly if necessary but
where he also had a good view of the immediate area. Every fifteen minutes he
would stop and check that he was still heading in the right direction. He was
all too aware of how easy it would be for him to walk in circles in this type
of terrain.

After a couple of hours of relatively
easy progress, his pace slowed as he began to encounter steep sided hills and
dense undergrowth. He estimated that he was covering half a mile an hour at the
most. So far he had not seen anybody, but he knew from the map that as he
neared the river the number of settlements and the possibility of being seen
would increase.

It was about midday when Cornelius got
to the crest of a hill that had been particularly difficult to climb. He sat
down for a rest and checked his compass. He took out his binoculars and
searched for any sign of the Rhine, but the hills to the west were higher than
his present location and all that he could see was a canopy of trees. Feeling
mildly despondent, he removed his rucksack and took out some bread, cheese and
sausage. While he ate his lunch, he started reading the copy of the Saxon war
plans that he had taken.

28th
July 1920

Saxony

At about the same time that Cornelius
was digesting his lunch and the first few pages of the stolen documents, the
officers of the Saxon General Staff were busy preparing to implement those same
plans. Operational orders that had been drawn up weeks earlier were retrieved
from their files and hastily updated.

Telephone calls were made to senior
commanders, but most instructions and orders went by motor cycle couriers.
Regimental commanders along the Rhine were visited in person by a staff officer
who explained their orders to them and emphasised the importance of timing and
secrecy.

From the main base of the Royal Saxon
Navy, a short coded message was sent from the most powerful radio transmitter
in the country across the sea to Caledonia. The message was repeated every
fifteen minutes until an acknowledgement was received.

That night there was an increase in the
level of activity at the airfields along the Saxon border with the Ottoman
Empire that got the attention of the various Turkish agents – merchants, mixed
blood residents or simply mercenary Saxons – near the bases. They reported to
their contacts in Turkish Intelligence that throughout the night a continuous
stream of aircraft had taken off and headed west. By the morning most of the
airfields were empty.

In cities and towns across Saxony, the
colonels of selected reserve regiments were visited by senior officers and
informed that hostilities with the Empire were imminent. The colonels in turn
went to see their regimental tribunes who in turn contacted the centurions who
then called upon their men, warning them to be ready to move in twenty-four
hours. Again the need for secrecy was made clear. The regiments chosen for the
first wave of mobilisation had been selected according to the sentiments of
their senior officers. Colonels considered 'suspect' in the fervour of their
hatred of the Empire were scheduled to be called up once hostilities had begun.

The Saxon army depots and barracks were
curiously quiet, but at secret locations near the border, ammunition and
supplies that had been painstakingly accumulated over the past few months were
loaded onto wagons, trucks and trains before being moved to designated
mobilisation points. In scores of forest clearings along the Rhine, technicians
checked the landships, armoured motor carriages and artillery pieces that had
been transferred in ones and twos from units in the east over the past months.
Units on manoeuvres were contacted and ordered to converge on specific map
locations where they would find stocks of ammunition and other supplies.

Throughout the night, steam engines
arrived at the railway yard that served the naval gun foundry at Setuanaa. Each
left a few hours later pulling a single, long flatbed truck and several wagons.

Franz had overseen issuing of the
mobilisation orders and had then retired to a camp cot that had been set up in
his office. He had been awake for over thirty six hours and could not stay
awake any longer. He kicked off his boots, hung his tunic over a chair and lay
down on the thin lumpy mattress. Within minutes he was in a deep sleep.

28th
July 1920

Saxony,
near the frontier

In the late afternoon Cornelius halted
at the top of another hill and made a camp for the night. He dug two shallow
holes in the ground, a rectangular one for himself to sleep in and another,
small round one in which to build a fire. As dusk began to fall he lit the pile
of twigs, dry leaves and branches which he had gathered. The twilight hid the
smoke and light that rose from the flames before the fire settled down to a
warm glow. Cornelius took one of the tins of soup that he had bought, opened it
and placed it amongst the red hot embers. As the liquid warmed he would stir
it, taking the occasional spoonful. When he was happy with the temperature
Cornelius removed the tin from the fire with a cloth.

As he ate, he listened to the noises of
night animals as they went about their nocturnal business, and would
occasionally catch the sound of a barge blowing its horn on the Rhine. He was
settling into his sleeping bag when a sound attracted his attention. The noise
was distant but not part of the natural background sounds of the forest. He
could hear voices, the metallic thud of tools being used and large objects
being moved. Every now and then he could make out the deep roar of an engine
being started, run for a few moments and then switched off. Looking in the
direction of these unexpected sounds, Cornelius could make out the flickering
of light through the trees. He was both worried and intrigued by what was going
on, but was too exhausted to even consider investigating. He mentally marked
the spot where he could see the lights and then snuggled down beneath the
leaves to sleep.

28th
July 1920

Royal
Palace, Minden

Before going to see the King, Godisger
summoned all the senior members of the Royal Council whom he knew to be in
favour of a war with the Empire. He informed them that the time had come to
strike.

"We can't afford to wait any
longer," he told the Counts who had assembled in his Minden townhouse.
"The theft of the war plans has forced our hand. When Constantinople
receives them they'll use it as an excuse to launch an attack on us to regain
the Duchies. At the moment they are weak and unprepared but if we wait then
they'll have time to transfer troops to the Rhine from other areas."

Godisger knew he was preaching to the
converted and his 'hit them before they hit us' argument suited the facts and
played to the audiences prejudice. By the end of the meeting he had persuaded
them to come with him to the palace and demand that the King sign a declaration
of war.

Otto received them in the audience
chamber. Normally he preferred to see members of the council in his private
office, but Godisger's delegation was too large to fit everybody in.

He listened patiently, but with growing
alarm as Godisger described the theft of the plans, which he again represented
as a pretext for an attack on Saxony by the Empire. By the time that the
general had concluded with his request that the King sign a declaration of war,
Otto was thoroughly agitated.

"Are you trying to tell me general
Godisger," the King said, his voice a mixture of anger and panic,
"that the plans that you persuaded me were 'necessary for the protection
of the Kingdom' will now be the cause of a war?"

Godisger bowed his head in a token
apology. "Unfortunately, your Majesty," he replied "it would
appear that the Empire is looking for an excuse to attack Saxony and to regain
its position of influence over the Duchies. Our plans, which depended on
surprise, could easily be presented to the Imperial Assembly as evidence of
aggression on our part, and used to justify a 'preventative' attack on
us."