30th October 1944
We return, not to Bratislava, but to another capital city. Instead we are in Paris where General Jurech is seeing how the 2nd (Brackets Slovak) Division will fit into the German defence plans alongside the famous 6th Panzer.
"Hitler has declared Festung Paris." General Lattmann pointed at the relevant telegram.
"That means Fortress Paris?" Jurech translated the German.
"No, it's an acronym for Fully Entrenched Strategic Target Unarguably Now German." Lattmann explained. "But, your fortress idea does sound good."
"We will be slotting in beside your tanks and supporting them." Jurech tried to drag the conversation back to the subject.
"No, you will be defending Paris. We will be leaving the city."
"You're running away to try and surrender. Again." Jurech glared accusingly.
"No! Honestly, you surrender once and suddenly everyone keeps accusing you of trying to surrender." Lattmann sighed. "Urban warfare is no place for tanks...."
"You learned that at Stalingrad." Jurech interrupted.
"Yes we did."
"So your going to surrender again, like you did there."
"No!" Lattmann screamed.
"Ahh, it's not surrender it's just running away. Like you did at Vernon." Jurech said.
Lattmann let lose a bestial roar, glared at Jurech and then stormed out to rejoin his tanks.
"They are definitely running away from the fight." Jurech explained to his staff.
"He's probably just scared of facing the Allies in those terrible Czech *spit* tanks." His Chief of Staff offered.
Jurech *spat* on the floor and nodded in agreement.
Shortly afterwards, in Bratislava.
"I bring news from the West!" General Kubela announced.
"It'd better not be more rubbish from South America." Tuka threatened.
"No, of course not." Kubela replied.
General Malar coughed shiftily while dropping some paper.
The Ecuadorian leadership continues to hold out in Fortress Quito. Despite being at war with the entire Allies, including most of South America, they are holding firm despite being utterly surrounded. The only reason this isn't a source of inspiration and hope to Slovakia is the fact they are so obviously doomed and this is only delaying the inevitable.
"So what is your news?" Tiso asked suspiciously.
"General Jurech has reached Paris and is digging in." Kubela announced.
"We have had confirmation from Berlin, the plan calls for 6th Panzer Division to leave Paris and use it's superior mobility to strike at the Allied supply lines." Malar explained the scheme.
Von Killinger asked the obvious question
"And what will the (2nd) (Brackets) Division be doing?"
"Hold any attack in place and hopefully dying in the process." Malar read from the plan.
"Ah, to die as part of a plan from the Fuhrer. They are lucky men. "Von Killinger sighed.
Here we see the Mexican and Canadian forces primed to launch their encirclement of the Slovak division defending Paris. Not a sentence I expected to ever write.
--
Notes:
General Lattmann continues to have surrendered to the Soviets at Stalingrad in 1943, while leading the "Always Running Away" 6th Panzer. The 6th Panzer spent much of the war with pre-war Czech tanks, they probably had been equipped with proper ones by now, but old prejudices die hard. Particularly in Slovakia, a people who cannot complain about the quality of anyone else's tank until they at least develop internal combustion engines. Or the Wheel. Or Fire.
Jurech and his band of Infantry and Military Policeman chose to flee from Claremont and head to Paris, not the safest long term choice but one that should be good for the narrative I hope.
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