Against all Odds: The British Empire in World War Two

Huh... That is actually a coincidence, I didn't notice until you pointed it out to me. Suffice it to say, things will not go as planned.

Agent Larkin Suggestion, to know the General from OTL, watch from "The Spy who loved me" up to and including "The Living Daylights".

The Soviets, as the Germans, are using up existing stocks of heavy tanks. The Germans have run out by now, but the Soviets have a few in ever-shrinking Heavy Companies attached to their Infantry Divisions.

Einheit_elf That's for me to know and for you to find out.

Well it's more that the AI wasn't really building heavy tank brigades, and I did some research and concluded that Heavy Tanks were pretty much a pointless waste of resources nine times out of ten that played into my hatred of the way the Napkinwaffe fanboys adore the Tiger II, so I decided to use the AI's oversight and have the Axis stop building heavies as well.

The Germans aren't really feeling the pinch yet. They haven't lost all that much of their industrial potential at this point, and TTL Bomber Command is a lot smaller and doesn't really have the muscle to go after the Ruhr Area the way they did OTL, so those two combined let the Germans keep the Wehrmacht in guns and ammo even though their base is somewhat smaller (No Denmark, Norway or Western USSR to plunder).

The ASBness in the US was mostly done to have a suitable pretext for them never getting involved in Europe and because I wanted a Cold War at some point.

A Mr. Smith has appeared. The others are references I make to work of fiction I love, they aren't those same characters. For example, Lethbridge-Stewart's son will be working for the BBC after invaliding out of the Army (stiff leg or something) so the Brigadier in TTL's Dr. Who will have a different name.

As for Boeing: Nationalized, though some executives tried to set up a company in Canada, this eventually failed and they were swallowed by what would become Avro Canada.

Also, I am terribly sorry for the delay. I have been working on my first real novel, and it took up most of my free time. Right now I've hit a bit of a snag there, and I think I may have the next part out by next sunday.

SotV said:

Excellent! Looking forward to it.

And just so long as he's still called The Brigadier.

Click to expand...

Well of course he will be. He'll probably also still be a Lethbridge-Stewart, but of course played by a different actor and with a different first name....

Chapter 372​

The defection of Sergey Korolev to the Allied cause is one of the most fascinating adventures of the war. To his death, Korolev refused to name the two officers that had enabled him to escape, but it is known that Operation Paperclip was involved, because this is the last known assignment before the entire senior staff was temporarily re-called to Britain. Personnel rosters are still on the secrets list, presumably until the last have expired and can no longer reveal things London would rather have forgotten. The more outlandish rumours about Paperclip are well known, but this was one that did not actually become an issue until several years after the war when the general public first became aware of Korolev's name and his place in the Space Programme.

Strangely enough the things that are definitely known about the events of the last day of June and the first week of July 1943 were released to the public rather quickly.

In any case, after the contact was made, the Soviet representatives quickly explained just who the prospective defector was [...]


“The Scavengers – Operation Paperclip”, Penguin Publishing, London 1999


“So, Gospodin. Korolev, I take it that your desire to... let's call it not work for the motherland are genuine?”

It was glaringly obvious that this carried a threat all it's own, and Ian had intended it this way.

Goading Korolev was the best way to get around his defences, and if the average Soviet boffin was anything like his British counterpart, this was easily done.

Korolev didn't disappoint, but didn't really explode with rage. Instead he said, with enough acid in his voice to blister the paint off a Dreadnought: “I may not be one of those who wish the return of the Tsars or a religious fanatic, but I do have my principles. There is also the slight issue of Stalin having betrayed the Soviet Union, and even then that Union did it's level best to kill me and my family. Because of that I feel no loyalty at all to them.”

Ian strongly suspected that Korolev wouldn't feel all that loyal to the Empire either, but at least he was enough of a clear thinker to realize that the evil imperialist British were his best bet of living another week, never mind to a ripe old age.

“In that case, Gospodin Engineer, we shall not sit about here needlessly. My superiors are most anxious to find out why we have been summoned, and frankly, I would rather not spend the rest of the war in current company. No offence, General.”


“None taken.” Gogol replied. He quickly barked something in Russian, and one of his man brought a crate onto the clearing, and to the surprise of the two British officers, it was marked with the badge of RSMF at Enfield, though most likely it came out of one of the shadow factories, because when they opened it, the crate contained three silenced Stens and also two similarly equipped -40s.

“I take it you wonder why we have these guns with us?” Gogol asked, and without waiting for an answer gave a quick order in Russian. What was brought forward amazed Ian and Felix even more, as it were half a dozen SS troops and three Soviet soldiers wearing the badge of the NKVD, bound and gagged.

They were placed at the end of one clearing, and the GRU troops then proceeded to shoot them, the SS troops with the Stensand the NKVD men with the MP 40s.

When Ian had recovered from the surprise, he couldn't help but admire the ruthlessness.

“We will do the following,” Gogol said, “I will say that I came across the scene of this massacre, too late to save any of them, but seeing how the SS had bled out. The last survivor, before he expired, told that they had handed over the Comrade Engineer here to the British an hour ago, and had executed the NKVD prisoners before being stabbed in the back by you.

“Oh bloody hell!” Felix exploded, “do you want them to catch us? With something like that they will not be playing around, they will send everything they have!”

“Of course, Commander. But I have my own position to consider. Besides, wouldn't it be in your interest as well as mine if the RSHA and the NKVD started hating each other as much as you?”

Felix was about to give a hot reply, when he glanced at Ian who showed that he was in agreement with Gogol, as much as he hated to do it, and Felix, now that he thought about it, had to admit as well that any rivalry between the various Axis intelligence services would be to the Allies' advantage.

“You are right of course, General.”

Felix grinned. “In fact... Captain do you still have a few examples of a certain item?”

Ian turned and grinned as well, knowing what his old friend was on about.

“But of course I do.”

The card that had so angered the Germans several times was handed over to Gogol who raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Those were left by the two of you?”

Grinning, Ian nodded. “By us or by people acting on our behalf. I see that our fame has spread far and wide indeed.”

“Infame more like. Heydrich has made it his personal mission to kill the both of you, something about that limp he walks with.” Gogol said, obviously impressed and seeing the two British officers in front of him in a far different light.

Why the Soviets... no, the GRU hadn't made the connection between the cards and Operation Paperclip was a question Ian would have loved to ask, but which was not something they had time for right now.

“Commander, would you please escort our guest to our vehicle?” Felix nodded, and led Korolev towards the Kübel. “General, I have a small favour to ask. Could you take this card and make sure it reaches the appropriate hands?”

Gogol smiled. This was the sort of thing he liked, and this British officer was someone who played the game well. Unlike most of his countrymen, Gogol knew that most of the propaganda about the British was, to use their own words, complete hogwash, but somewhere in the back of his mind, he had expected the two of them to be the typical upper-class British Officers, instead of the two men who somehow still saw the humour in the grim work they did.

“I will.”

With that, the Captain picked up the two bags that Korolev had brought and followed his fellow back to their car. He wished them luck, but personally, he gave them a fifty-fifty of making it. Still, anything that put a wedge between the NKVD and the SS was a good thing for the GRU, and if it cost the lives of a few men, then so be it. He didn't like it, but there was a war on.

Yet, if they made it, then he would see those two men again, he was sure of that. With a grin, he stared after them for a moment before deciding that discretion was the better part of valour today.

“Collect everything has ordered!”


~**---**~


It didn't take Ian too long to notice that Korolev was worried, as well he should be. After all, who was to say that he really was in the presence of British Officers? For all he knew, it was an over-elaborate set-up of some sort, and he was nothing but a pawn. And there was little Ian could do at the moment. Hopefully, Korolev was smart enough to realize that his best bet of living through the next few hours was to play along, and with luck the sight of British troops in uniform would persuade him.

Felix at least had found his good humour again, and this was putting Korolev at ease, but there was still something about him that reminded Ian of a hunted animal.

Nothing they could do at present.

At the moment he was storing the bags in the small boot placed between the rear seats and the engine compartment in a somewhat complicated and typically German arrangement.

Korolev was already sitting in the back when Ian, as the senior rank and in character as being the one escorting Korolev, sat down behind him, also answering the obvious question.

“We will first be re-joining my men, then cross the front into Allied territory.”

“That simple?”

“By no means, Gospodin Korolev, but live is never easy. It is the quickest way to get into a place where we will not be shot at.”

Things started to go seriously wrong forty minutes later as they rounded a bend in the road and saw themselves faced by a road block that had not been there before, behind a crossroads and of course in the exact direction they had to take. Even worse, it was manned by SS.

Ian carried a sett of superbly faked priority passes, but if they were on the lookout for Korolev, they would have no issues shooting him and Felix alongside the Russian.

Felix, as the driver, had to choose among a number of bad choices. One was to continue on and hope they could bluff their way through it, one was to stop and turn, though that would invite pursuit as much as option three, break through.

Number one it was, though their chances were slim at best.

However, there was a fourth option, which afforded the least risk right now but might prove fatal long term, which was to take a different road. The team had orders to return on their own if Ian and Felix didn't return after a set time after all, so at least the men of the South Essex Light Infantry would not be caught and die as well. Hitler's Commando Order would be extended to them after all, never mind them all being in Uniform.

“Go left.”

“Will do.”

With that all their fates were changed. As they turned left, the SS men at the checkpoint, by now clearly visible, looked at them in puzzlement, and began to shout things at each other.

Sure enough, almost immediately another Kübelwagen lunged forward to follow them. Felix floored it without having to be told and they lunged forward. Seeing this as all the proof they needed, the SS men in the second Kübel opened fire. It was the open-topped variant, but luckily it lacked the MG-42 that German Light Infantry units often had there.

“EVERYBODY DOWN!”

Bullets slammed into the car and Ian pushed Korolev down as much as he could, raising his rifle. His chances of hitting something with a bolt action rifle from a car that was deliberately not staying straight and level were slim to none, but he tried anyway.

Quickly deciding that it was pointless, he decided to try something else. “Slow down, let them come closer!”

Felix was puzzled as to why, but only nodded when Ian took his shotgun, and slowed down, perfectly imitating a damaged engine.

All this hinged on the SS hopefully having orders to try and bring Korolev in alive, or at least that they wouldn't shoot right away, as the 12 gauge M1897 only had an effective range of about 22 yards with normal shells, so he waited. When they still hadn't fired at 23 yards, he rose from behind the seats, aimed the gun through the shattered rear window at the other car and fired twl shots in quick succession.

The first of the heavy slugs slammed into the spare tyre on the front bonnet and did little other damage, but Ian was unused to the gun and over-compensated for the recoil and aimed the second one low, sending it right into the right front wheel. By this time the second Kübel was still going a brisk sixty kph, and the sudden loss of traction just as they entered a another bend in the road had obvious consequences as the driver lost control and the car over-steered, slamming into a few trees at the side of the road.

Without checking what had happened to it's occupants, Felix floored the pedal again and they raced onwards, hoping to get as far away as they could before someone from the checkpoint came to check on the second car.


Korolev wasn't particularly shaken by what had happened, as someone who had lived through the the more...shady parts of the Soviet penal system was not likely to be.

“What happens next?

“If we make it in time, we'll be back behind Allied lines by this time tomorrow. If not, then... well, Switzerland is only fifty miles away, but we will need a new car for that.”




tbc





A mint-condition Kübelwagen