“Good question, Oberst,” answered Harrison, taking the nod from the General. “Somewhere between three and six hundred thousand by our best guess. How many of those are of military age, or have had military training? Your guess is as good as ours right now. At least a hundred thousand, hopefully.”
“And how are we going to feed so many people?” asked the Oberst, his face drawn.
“From whatever we can plunder from the Ellala in our current campaign,” said Harrison with a smile. “Whatever we can get from those who see us as the hope for their world. Whatever we can get into the ground here in this valley and in other surrounding valleys with the help of our friends. It might be a tight first year, and we might have to tighten some belts. But the German people are well known for their industriousness and work ethic. If they can’t develop an agricultural and industrial base for us to work with I can’t think of any other human people who could.”
“What about this magic we’re facing?” asked an American Major with the flash of the signal corps on his collar. “It’s all well and good to face down these mages with tanks and personnel carriers. It’s another thing to face them standing in close ranks. Can these Wood Elves give us a hand with magic, enough to stand up to these other Elves?”
“We have considered that as well,” said Harrison, a frown on his face. “And no, the Wood Elves use mostly divine healing magic and nature magic. They aren’t so accomplished when it comes to combat magic. Those who are combat mages are nowhere near the class of the Ellala war magicians. But,” he said, over the murmurs that were erupting again around the table, “we are working on that problem. We have a team of physicists from a German University who came over as an intact group. We are going to set them up as a Manhattan Project to see if they can bootstrap us up on the magic. We feel if we can at least develop a defense against it, our tactics and training should allow us to fight this Empire on an even footing.
“There is also the religious factor,” continued the Colonel. “I don’t know how many of you are religious. God knows I’m not. But it seems that our Earth faiths may have some mitigating factor when it comes to dealing with magic and supernatural beings.”
“What do you mean, sir?” asked a light Colonel with the cross of a chaplain on his collar.
“It seems we have gotten reports of some of the men being immune to magical attacks,” said Harrison, his expression showing that he wasn’t sure he believed it either. “How this immunity works we have no idea. But it seems that only the truly devout are protected.
“And that leaves you out Tom,” yelled someone further back in the tent, to the laughter of others at the young chaplain.
“And that’s all we can say about that now, ladies and gentlemen,” said the General in a loud voice. “We will now break up into division staffs to go over the operations I have planned. I will meet with Corps and support staffs. Oh, and by the way, by the authority given me as the ranking NATO officer on this world, I promote myself to Lt. General. Brigadier General Walthers is promoted to Major General and assistant Corps Commander. Colonels Delgado and Wittman, when he gets here, are promoted to Major General and will assume command of the divisions. Other officers will be promoted to fill the vacancies. Dismissed for now.”
The General turned and walked from the tent as the assembled officers got to their feet and stood at attention. As soon as the tent flap shut they broke into conversing groups, discussing what they had just heard. The feelings in the tent were mostly upbeat, as the officers realized that they had a decisive commander who had a plan. And what more could an army want?
Chapter Sixteen
The UH-60C6 Blackhawk helicopter banked over the hills and climbed into the valley that was its destination. The pilot, copilot and crew chief had flown from this location, but were looking intently at the changes that were being made to the long, wide valley. Theirs had been a priority mission. Anything that caused the use of precious fuel to ferry civilians across a hundred miles had to be a priority mission. They had not been given too many details about their passengers. Only that they were considered vital to the human race and were to be protected at all costs. All costs included firing the skid mounted mini-guns at a dragon and pushing the helicopter to its limits to get away from the dragon’s consorts.
The eight civilians in the helicopter had not seen the valley to this point. To them it appeared as many other valleys on the way had appeared, covered in forest except for some large stretches of open area near the central river. There was a gorgeous waterfall in the distance, tumbling down granite cliffs into a crystal clear lake, which fed a stream that flowed winding into the river. Looking down they could see a narrow pass between two mountain tops, a winding road scraped into the earth up through the pass, and the ant like forms of men and their larger machines constructing an earthen fortification to hold the opening.
“Look at that,” yelled Dieter Sturmfeld to the man sitting on the seat beside him. The doctoral candidate in chemistry pointed a long finger at the river, where a half dozen large dozers were scraping away the thick forest, expanding the farmland.
James Drake looked over at the farmland, then turned his head to note several large earthen forts going up around that fertile area. Whoever was in charge here was working as quickly as they could to build up a military and agricultural infrastructure. Going full bore before they had the resources pulled from them by the impacting physical laws of this place. Physical laws that as far as they could tell made it impossible to make explosives or internal combustion engines. Only because the machines of the Earth people had come from a universe where those were possible were they still functioning. But it wouldn’t last forever.
“The Army is working damned efficiently,” said one of the other graduate students.
Even as they watched a long column of armored vehicles was working its way to the end of the valley, where the largest entrance, two kilometers wide, was opened by the river. James had to admit that the Army was not sitting around in confusion like most civilian governments would at a perplexing time like this. He had read quite a bit of history, and though he knew they were nothing near perfect, he knew good military organizations hit their stride during crisis situations. And this was as much a crisis situation as most people could imagine.
The helicopter flew over the river at about a four hundred meters above ground, headed for another area of rising dust near the slopes of the mountain foothills that made up the edge of the valley. James watched the sunlight sparkling on the river. His brain shifted gears for a moment and he saw the bright lines of energy that ran along with the water in the channel. There were other lines of energy rising from the river to infuse the land on either side. The sunlight contained the same type of energy, scintillating flakes floating through the air, as did the forests surrounding the cleared land, columns of glowing green rising from ground to leaves.
And my mind can see that energy, thought James, watching the world through his enhanced eyes. Soon I will be able to use that energy. To shape it to my purpose in the aid of my fellows. Once we crack the mysteries of this world. The brain that had been wired for delusions, hallucinations and insanity on Earth was wired here to manipulate the forces of nature. This was the world he had been meant for, not Earth. And this was the time that he had been meant for.
The helicopter dropped under him and he grabbed at the seat before remembering that he was belted in. The chopper came to a hover for a moment ten meters over a landing field occupied by more of the rotary winged craft. It lowered those last ten meters to touch down softly on the ground. The crew chief motioned for them to unlatch their belts, then reached over to aid the few geniuses that couldn’t figure out the simple device. He slid one side door open, then moved across the small cabin to slide the other over, while patting the top of his helmet to remind his passengers to keep heads down while exiting the chopper.
Drake kept his head down as he ran from under the wash of the blade, remembering what he had heard
about people having their heads taken off by a downdraft pushing the blade low enough to cut through a neck. He didn’t want to have survived the holocaust on his home world and the transit to this one just to be killed by some stupid accident that could be avoided. Of course, the future looked anything but certain here, but he wanted to experience that future, or as much of it as he could.
A man in German field gray fatigues waved the group over. As they assembled on him he moved away from the rotor wash. The helicopter jumped into the air when all were away and headed down the cleared area to where the other rotary winged craft were gathered. The man, wearing the tabs of a hauptman, counted heads, then motioned for the scientists to follow him. They straggled along behind him off the landing area to a series of tents that had been set up within a four foot high berm. The Hauptman looked back at them several times in exasperation as one or another of the learned men and women stopped to gawk at something or other, and generally stretched the line out beyond what the military probably thought of as proper.
The tent they entered had a couple of long, folding tables set down its center, with camp chairs on either side and one at the far head. A man in United States Army fatigues waved a few of the scientists who tried to usurp that position away, and the scowl on his face, along with the pistol on his side, dissuaded any attempts to occupy the favored seat. Within a relatively few seconds the seats were occupied, and the scientists started to engage in rapid conversation about the wonders of the new planet.
“Attention,” yelled the Orderly Sergeant at the same moment that the German officer was barking “Achtung.” The soldiers glared at the scientists who continued to remain seated as they all swiveled their heads to look at the short man in American BDUs entering the tent, twin black stars on his right collar, followed by a taller man with a black eagle on his right collar.
“It’s OK, Karl, Manny,” said the shorter man as he sat quickly in his seat. The taller man stood at his right shoulder.
“My name is Zachary Taylor,” said the older man, nodding to the scientists. “I am a Major General in the United States Army and the ranking NATO officer on this world, as far as we know. I have just promoted myself to three star so I can set up the proper rank structure for the forces I command. I realize that most of you have not had contact with the military, with the exception of grants and presentations, and that you are not military men.”
“Do you have a civilian government in place yet, General?” said a woman with graying hair who sat near the head of the table.
“And you are, Frau?” asked the taller man standing behind the General.
“Professor Margaret Deitricht,” said the woman. “I am currently Fraulein Deitricht, mein General. And I ask again. Do we have a civilian government in place yet? For I have little trust of the military.”
“You don’t have to trust us, ma’am,” said the General, locking eyes with the professor. “You just have to work with us.”
The General turned his gaze around the tent, locking eyes with each scientist for a moment before moving on.
“I’m sure you’ve seen how dangerous this world can be,” said the officer, raising his voice as if lecturing a classroom. “Dangerous enough that if we, the military, were not here, in force, you would all be in risk of your lives at this very moment. And, as I have been told by some of the natives we have met with, your souls as well.”
“Poppycock,” said one of the middle age scientists, raising his eyebrows.
“You don’t have to believe that you have an immortal soul,” said the General, spearing the man with his stare. “I’m not so sure about mine, at that. Or its final destination. But I have it on faith from some of the Conyastaya, that’s the Wood Elves for those who don’t know, that we do have a life force. And some of the people we’re dealing with can do very nasty things to that life force. Be that as it may, I’m sure you realize that we are what is standing between you and forces which mean you no good. And until that situation is rectified, we will not consider a transition to a civilian government. We are at war, for our very survival. And we must marshal all of our resources to win this war. Now does that answer your question, ma’am?”
“Professor Deitricht is a Nobel Laureate,” said an older man, nodding his head at the woman. “So whatever her faults, lack of understanding is not one of them.”
“And you are, sir?” said the General, looking over at the man.
“Professor Heinrich Raeder, General,” said the man. “Chair of the Physics Department, Technical University of Munich. Or rather the refugee faculty from that institution. And I for one realize that we are in a serious predicament. I am willing to defer to your judgment on matters of survival, and I will see to it that those who don’t cooperate.”
“We are under martial law, ladies and gentlemen,” said the General. “It doesn’t matter to me if you like me or my rule of law. But, we must work together to survive this situation we find ourselves in. Now, I don’t claim to be at your level as far as your areas of expertise go.”
“I would hope not,” said Deitricht, glaring at the General. “Probably a lower level degree in military science.”
“Actually ma’am,” said the General, returning the stare with a sharkish smile, “I have a trio of doctorates. Military science from the Army War College, history of warfare from Harvard, and political science from the University of Berlin. I may not have received a Nobel in any of those fields, but I have a lot of real world experience to go with them.”
The Nobel Physicist dropped her head for a moment as silence fell over the room. After a second she looked back up and shrugged her shoulders.
“I apologize for my attitude, General,” said the woman. “My father was killed in the war, when I was still a baby. My mother talked at length about the evils of the army, and the men who ran it. I can see that we are in a tough situation, and that the military is in its element. And that you and your men, and the men of the German Army, are not those evil men. I will work with you in whatever capacity you feel is best for me. To do otherwise would be ignorant of me.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” said the General, nodding his head. “And don’t worry. I’m not about to put your brain trust to work breaking ground or planting crops. Nor do I see any of you carrying weapons. At least until we are under direct attack in this valley, which hopefully will not be soon.”
“And what use have you figured for us, General?” said another silver haired Frau, leaning forward to get a better look at the officer. “And before you ask, I am Professor Gertrude Fleiger, chemist. And while I have not won a Nobel myself, I would say I am no slouch at my discipline.”
“I would hope not, ma’am,” said the General. “Whether you believe in God or not, all of you. It would seem that we came to this world with all of the resources we need to survive here. The natives here have a legend, a prophecy if you will. They believe that we have come here to free them from the threat of the worshippers of evil who just happen to control this area we find ourselves in. If that is so, then we should have what we need to do that. And I believe, ladies and gentlemen, that you are a big part of what we need. I need your brains, and I need your sweat.”
This man knows what he is about, thought James Drake, nodding his head and liking what he was hearing.
“We are physicists and chemists, General,” said Professor Raeder, looking over his steepled fingers. “I am not sure if our special knowledge will be of much use here. I am sure you have noticed that things seem to work a little bit differently in this place.”
“You mean magic?” asked the General with a snort. “That is just the place where I need your greatest concentration. That and materials science,’ he nodded at Fleiger, “for those of the more chemical bent. I think I have the military and political aspects under control, at least for now. What I need for you to do is to figure out how magic works. And how we can work it to our advantage.”
“We know nothing of it,” said Professor Deitricht, exasperatio
n creeping into her voice. “How can we figure out, as you say, that which is so foreign to us?”
Why are you being so obstinate, Professor Deitricht? thought James, looking over at his major professor.. Don’t you see that this man is trying to find some use for us that doesn’t involve digging?
“First off you set up your teams and brainstorm,” said the General, looking around the table. “We’re going to funnel any people of education that you might be able to use into your project. We will get you Conyastaya and Ellala wizards and mages to consult with. Gimikran and Kashana’liya, the little people who farm so well, priests and druids. But we need to be able to manipulate magic, to defend ourselves from those who would use magic against us. And if anyone can do that among those who came here, it is you people.”
“I don’t know, General,” said Raeder, shaking his head. “This is so foreign to our way of thinking. We are scientists, not witch doctors.”
“Then use the scientific method on the problem,” said the tall officer standing behind the General. “It may take some trial and error. But as the General said, if anyone can do it you are the people. And we will funnel any other scientist we find to you.”
“Colonel Harrison is correct,” said the General. “Imagine that this is the Manhattan Project, and your efforts will determine who wins or loses this war.”
“Your people are not going to be fighting very long with the equipment you have,” said Raeder. “We have already determined that within weeks our technology will cease to function on this world.”
“We’re way ahead of you, professor,” said the General. “We are going to use the equipment while we have it to create a military waste zone as far around our position as we can.”
“Military waste zone?” asked Raeder, raising his eyebrows.
“We intend, professor, to destroy all of the enemy’s military potential within a couple of hundred kilometers of this position. Farther if we can manage it, as well as destroy fortifications and bridges, with the exception of those we can capture for our own use. Then the enemy will have to bring in forces from a distance, and supply them, while we work on phase II of our campaign.”
Refuge: The Arrival: Book 1 Page 25