“Release him please,” said the older of the two officers, and reluctantly Hanz complied.
“Now, what is your name?” the other officer asked.
“Hanz Burning. I am an elected Reichstag representative and member of the Liberal Democratic Party.”
“Hanz Burning, I am placing you under arrest for interfering with a police investigation,” the older officer declared.
“What? Don’t be ridiculous. They’re destroying our office.”
In response, the policeman simply nodded to the Brownshirts standing behind. “Take him to the station house.”
Hanz resisted at first, but then changed his mind given the futility of his situation. “This is all illegal. Every detail of this incident will appear in the next edition of our paper.”
The Brownshirts just laughed as they hauled him away. “Actually this is all perfectly legal. As for your commie rag of a paper, there will never be another edition.”
Hanz only spent a few hours behind bars before verification of his status as a Reichstag parliamentary member came through. He was one of the lucky ones. Over the course of the next few weeks, nearly four thousand suspected communists found themselves shipped to holding/labor camps without trial amid the ridiculous show trial of Marinus van der Lubbe for his crime of burning the Reichstag building.
The Nazis rode the wave of national gratitude for their swift actions in the crisis to huge electoral gains in the following election. They commanded fifty-two percent of the votes and Hitler was so confident in his newfound majority that he now proposed his Enabling Act.
It was a preposterous piece of legislation that gave the Chancellor, namely Adolf Hitler, the power to pass laws by decree. It effectively bypassed both the Reichstag and President Hindenburg himself to give Hitler complete authority over the country.
These ‘special powers’ were to remain in effect for only four years, but who did they think they were fooling? The Nazis and their Brownshirts would do their damage and solidify their hold long before that timeframe ran out.
The only saving grace for Hanz was the fact that this Enabling Act was an amendment to the constitution and required a two-thirds majority vote. This fact allowed him to walk up to the Kroll Opera House with confidence that the measure would be defeated.
Since the fire rendered the Reichstag building unusable, this beautiful building situated on the other side of Königsplatz, opposite the charred Reichstag served as a temporary house of German parliament. A sense of alarm ran up Hanz’s spine when he saw that every entrance was barred by Brownshirts. They admitted those in Nazi uniforms without question, but everyone else had to produce credentials.
A tiny boy not even a quarter Hanz’s age looked him up and down with nothing but contempt in his eyes. Much to the child’s displeasure, the credentials checked out and Hanz received permission to pass. After gaining entrance, he looked back at his fellow members of parliament still suffering harassment while being ordered about by the Nazi goon squad. In his fellow representative’s eyes, he saw far more fear than anger; this was blatant, yet extremely effective intimidation.
Hanz walked up to one of his fellow Social Democrats, and they both looked on in dismay. Hanz asked, “Is this how Hitler plans to pass his legislation, by preventing us from entering the chamber to vote?”
“They can’t exclude everybody who will vote against the measure. Hitler needs at least 647 voting members present or else the quorum count will not have been met and there cannot be a binding vote,” his companion commented.
Hanz pointed to a cluster of men wearing dark suits and Russian style fur caps. Those men were all that remained of the seventeen percent voting bloc controlled by the Communist party, none of whom were allowed to pass through the Brownshirt’s and their checkpoints.
“You’re forgetting that last week Reichstag President Hermann Göring announced that any communist representatives absent because of their imprisonment did not count in the rolls.”
“What, he can’t just do that?” his fellow Social Democrat protested.
“You’re right, it’s illegal, but no one thought much of it at the time,” Hanz replied and did some quick math that all parliament members were accustomed to performing in their heads on the fly. “That means he now needs 567 votes present to meet quorum.”
“And that means Hitler only needs 378 yes votes for the amendment to pass. They have it.”
“God help us,” Hanz sighed in defeat upon hearing the conclusion. “This is how democracy dies in Germany; to an underhanded trick of electoral math.”
And it did.
Chapter 20: Paving the Road to War
For Gallono, today had the potential to be extremely good or incredibly bad, with almost no room in between. That is how things were when dealing with Tomal, especially these last four hundred years or so, owing to his deteriorating mental state.
Gallono had assembled his battalion on the exercise grounds. Every soldier under his command stood at rigid attention in rank and file lines across the field on this crisp autumn morning waiting for inspection by Chancellor Hitler.
This would be Gallono’s first opportunity to meet the undisputed master of Germany. If Tomal managed to remember that they were both working toward the same goal, the meeting could work wonders for their mission. However, Tomal was just as likely to forget himself in a fit of jealousy or insecurity and have Gallono demoted or even executed.
Gallono did not fear execution, the ability to regenerate through the Nexus was quite convenient in that regard, and his ego could live with a demotion. What kept him up at nights these days was a fear of failure. Time was growing tight with the Alpha base on Mars. There was no margin for error anymore. A setback now would mean failure to their overall mission, and that failure would bring with it his death and the destruction of the Nexus. Much was riding on the next few hours.
While waiting for Hitler and his supporting cast to arrive, Gallono’s gaze drifted to the edge of the muster field. He spotted a woman there standing alone in her long brown skirt and white shirt. Her name was Lucie, and he had gotten to know her quite well over the last few months since she was the secretary to his commanding officer.
At first Gallono took interest in her because any productive relations with a military officer began with his secretary. As the months went by, against all efforts to deny it, Gallono found his relationship with Lucie ran deeper than just work.
For the longest time Gallono carried absolutely no interest in these humans. They were a means to an end and nothing more. These humans were not his species; therefore, any romantic involvement was out of the question. It would be like asking one of these humans to mate with a kimono dragon or a humpback whale. It was unnatural, and he did not find the creatures the least bit physically attractive – all that hair.
Now, looking at her standing alongside the muster field, Gallono realized his interest in Lucie ran far deeper than even physical attraction. She knew he was nervous about today’s events, and here she stood lending visible support to a person to whom she had no obligation. She seemed to understand him in a way no one ever had, except maybe Hastelloy. Perhaps preferences could change over time; four thousand years spent living as a human could do that he supposed.
Lucie cast a bright, reassuring smile Gallono’s way and pointed to her left where a long line of cars approached as the Chancellor’s motorcade drove onto the grounds. The sight forced Gallono to redirect his thoughts away from Lucie to focus once more on Hitler’s visit.
Heinrich Himmler was the first to emerge from the lead vehicle. The head of the SS, a paramilitary arm of the Nazi party, was dressed in a midnight black uniform and set about issuing orders to the rest of his men in black. Their uniforms were a stark contrast to the khaki brown political uniforms that Tomal and Hitler donned for this occasion.
Gallono watched from afar as they all greeted one another with a straight-armed salute, but not all of them. Hitler kept his elbow against his side and
lifted his hand in response. The man was either too lazy to execute his party salute properly, or his ego required that he have his very own to give in return; somehow, he suspected it was the latter.
When all of the silly salutes made by civilians to one another were finished, Gallono watched Himmler turn his attention to the side of the field and wave to his men. Moments later two rows of SS members, dressed in black, marched onto the field to stand in front of Gallono’s assembled men. Himmler even had the nerve to join them on the field and assumed the place of honor as head of the formation.
It was an almost laughably transparent grab for attention; however, one sideways glance behind at his soldiers being subordinated to these non-military types let Gallono know this was no laughing matter to them. Each one, to a man, took extreme umbrage with the situation. To resolve the matter, Gallono, broke with protocol by stepping out of the formation and prowled over to Himmler standing tall and proud in his all black uniform. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“We are here for the inspection of course.”
“An army inspection,” Gallono clarified. “Your men are not in the military and therefore have no place in this presentation.”
Himmler turned his head to look at Gallono with mild annoyance at having to explain something he clearly thought was self-evident. “Our place is as security. My men have the task of keeping the Führer safe from harm. As such, we will be in position between your men and the Führer.”
“The hell you will,” Gallono fired back while barely managing to restrain his impulse to dismember Himmler where he stood. “My soldiers of the Reich will not be subordinated to civilians. Least of all to pathetic whelps like you and your pretty boys dressed in black pretending to be soldiers. If you want the privilege of standing in this formation, you are going to have to enlist like the rest of these honorable soldiers. Otherwise you’ll get your asses out of the way unless you’re looking for a demonstration of what real soldiers can do to dressed up props.”
“How dare you?” Himmler began, but the arrival of Tomal cut short his tirade.
“Is there a problem, gentlemen?” Tomal asked knowing full well the issue at hand. This little power play had Tomal’s stench draped all over it.
“The colonel has an issue with my security detail being present for this inspection. I was in the process of informing him that the SS goes wherever the Führer goes, without exception, to provide for his protection.”
“The notion that Chancellor Hitler needs protection among soldiers of his army is as insulting as it is ludicrous. I will not subject my soldiers to such indignity. Either they leave this field, or my men do, and this little show is over before it begins. Now which will it be?” Gallono demanded.
Tomal held an amused smirk for a few seconds too long for Gallono’s liking, but in the end ordered Himmler to stand down. Gallono watched the spirits of his men soar to new heights as the boys in black departed from their presence. They were members of a noble and elite institution, and they revered Gallono for proving that point to them in the presence of their chancellor.
The rest of the inspection ceremony went off without any further drama. Hitler walked up and down between the lines of soldiers sworn to his service, and carried with him a mild grin of satisfaction. Afterwards Gallono was surprised to find himself invited to a private dinner with the Chancellor.
Gallono arrived for dinner at the appointed hour and found himself escorted into a dining hall featuring a rectangular table with place settings for twelve. Hitler, of course, sat at the head of the table with Tomal on his right and Himmler to his left. Field Marshals from the army, Admirals of the Kriegsmarine, and Generals of the Luftwaffe occupied the remaining chairs.
Since attaining the rank of colonel, Gallono rarely found himself the lowest ranking officer in a room. This was one of those rare occasions, and that had him very nervous. Would Tomal make political hay for himself by serving up retribution for Gallono standing up to Himmler earlier in the day?
“Ah, Colonel Rommel, thank you for joining us this evening,” Hitler graciously announced upon making eye contact with Gallono. “Won’t you sit down? We all have much to discuss now that you’re here.”
“As always, I’m at your service, my Führer,” Gallono answered on the way to his seat.
“Good,” came Hitler’s sharp reply as he looked over at Tomal. “I had your book entitled Infantry Attacks recommended for me to read along with numerous papers you have composed on the topic of combined warfare tactics.”
“I must say that I, or rather all of us,” Hitler amended as he gestured around the table, “Are fascinated by your theories of employing infantry, armor, and aircraft forces in concert with one another.”
“I am afraid at this point they are only academic theories,” Gallono responded. “Per the terms of the Versailles Treaty, we are precluded from constructing heavy aircraft or armored vehicles in quantities able to support any offensive efforts in line with my theories.”
Hitler raised a hand to put a halt to Gallono’s reply and looked around the table with great intensity in his eyes. “That is why all of you are here, because our military capabilities are about to expand. As we sit here tonight, it is 1932. Within ten years of this date, I expect our aggressive foreign policies to have provoked an armed conflict with one or more of our neighboring nations. Your solemn duty as leaders of my military, sworn to my service, is to make sure our armed forces are ready when that day comes.”
The top military brass in the room took turns exchanging looks of concern and disbelief at what they heard. One of the Admirals found the nerve to ask, “How? The League of Nations will never stand for it.”
Tomal looked toward Hitler and received an inclined nod giving him leave to speak for the Chancellor. “At first our industrial capabilities will be bolstered in secret. By the time our oppressors learn of our growing capabilities and try to resolve things through proper diplomatic channels, it will be too late. None of them wants another war; they will do or give almost anything to avoid it. We must use that to our advantage if we are to pull ourselves out of this twenty-year long hell that we as a nation have endured.”
“This is my command,” Hitler added with a pounding of his fist upon the table. “This is how our economy recovers and how our nation regains its standing and identity. The only question is, where do we focus our industrial might? That is where you come in, Colonel Rommel. Based on your forward strategic and tactical thinking in the matters of modern warfare, I am appointing you as Commandant of the War Academy. Your teachings will lead the way for our manufacturing as well as research and development efforts.”
Gallono had no hope of suppressing his delight with the news. Tomal had come through. Gallono may not like that the Nazi rise to power was based on backstabbing, bigotry, and hatred, but it got results. Everything in Germany had now aligned to make a legitimate play at uniting all of Europe under one banner.
Tomal even had the humility to step aside and have Gallono do what he did best – warfare. He focused his attention squarely on Tomal and raised his wine glass in a silent toast between the two of them for a job well done.
Chapter 21: Where They Burn Books…
Tomal stood atop a hastily erected stage in the crisp evening air in Berlin with a curious sense of serenity about him. It certainly had nothing to do with his chaotic surroundings at the moment. He presided over a gathering of some forty thousand students, Brownshirts, and Hitler Youth in Opernplatz Square.
Behind the gathering rose the green dome of St. Hedwig’s Cathedral. To the left stood the State Opera, and encasing the right side stood the blocky architecture of the Humboldt University law building. Set between the three immense structures was a cobblestone-paved courtyard with a blazing bonfire in the center.
Logs and kindling did not fuel this towering inferno that stood thirty-feet wide at its base, instead the flames fed off paper. The paper was from the pages of books that Tomal and his Nazi pro
paganda division deemed un-German in spirit.
Tomal looked on marveling at the complete control he carried over these people. Boys grabbed books by the armful and eagerly flung them into the flames with malice. This was something Tomal took no pride in because, after all, they were children and easily manipulated. What truly warmed his heart was watching the university students do the same. These men should value the knowledge housed between the covers of a book more than anyone, yet they eagerly participated. These were supposed to be the free thinkers in society, and they too gave in to the group mindset that Tomal commanded. In fact, it was a student group that organized this event and invited Tomal to attend as the keynote speaker.
They had come so far from the fledgling years of the Nazi party, and now they reigned supreme. They did whatever they wanted without recourse, both inside the borders of Germany and more recently, outside the borders as well.
A few years earlier, they tested the resolve of foreign nations to hold Germany to the terms of the Versailles Treaty. Per the terms, Germany was forbidden to maintain or construct any fortifications in the Rhinelands along the western borders with Belgium and France. The world did nothing when Hitler sent three thousand soldiers into the region to reclaim it as German land under German protection.
The fact that an additional thirty thousand German troops stood ready to take action if there was trouble played no small part in the inaction of the surrounding nations. True to Hitler’s earlier prediction, the rest of the world was willing to do almost anything to avoid another conflict, and since the Rhineland was German territory to begin with, the rest of the world collectively looked the other way as it happened.
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