The French Question
10:00 AM
“…and that is why the fate of France must be a top priority. Since it is the most high profile non-German and non-Greek region, it would set a precedent for the fate of all other minority groups in a post-committee Reich.” Angelica finished her presentation. It was supposed to be a slideshow, but after a recent cyberattack, Angelica had printed out her slides on large posters and taped them to the walls, using markers to circle and underline important points.
At least this briefing stayed on topic. Though it would be in really bad taste if the topic suddenly shifted to something mundane like my college history or music preferences. Again.
“Thank you, Angelica,” Wilhelmina said.
Angelica clasped her hands. “So what are you thinking so far?”
“Honestly, I don’t know yet,” Wilhelmina said, “All you told me was what’s happening in France.”
Not her fault. That was the only thing she could talk about, really.
“I know I must sound impatient,” Angelica said, “But the situation is urgent.”
I know.
“We told you about what happened to Alençon,” Billy said.
“And Perpignan,” Ruby said.
Their own slides were also taped to the walls.
“We just want to make sure nobody else has to suffer their fate,” Angelica said.
“What I saw there…” Tania said. “Nobody should have to live through that. The madness must end.”
Sounds like something Olga would say. Breaking cycles and forging a new path was her brand. If only she was here with us...
“Tania, you’re Olga’s niece, right?” Wilhelmina said.
“Yeah.”
“What would Olga have done?”
Tania thought for a moment. She briefly winced, no doubt remembering what happened to her aunt. But she quickly recollected herself. “For fifty years after the last war, Russia was stuck in a constant cycle of economic malaise and constant financial insolvency. But thanks to Aunt Olga, that came to an end. How? Previous chancellors harshly suppressed equalist remnants and dismissed any genuinely useful tools and ideas they might have had out of hand.”
“But didn’t they backtrack after Chernomyrdin?” Wilhelmina said.
“Sort of, but even Petrov couldn’t do enough to get out of the slump. Aunt Olga finallly fixed things by reaching out to all corners of Russia. Left and right, worker and employer, Russian and non-Russian…equalist and capitalist. She brought everyone together, forgot nobody. Made things were done in a new and better way.”
“Funny that, a former equalist adopting such an approach,” Wilhelmina said, “Olga always felt open to that, actually.”
“She hated Varennikov for what he did to her personally, but she didn’t let him dictate the path she chose for herself and her nation.”
“Tani, are you suggesting we use Russian economic policy to rebuild France?” Angelica said.
“I’m suggesting we use it as inspiration,” Tania said, “Any path forward for France will need to include the French as equals of the Germans. We can’t retread the same ground. It’ll just end up the same way, with the Germans killing the French. We have to do this another way. Bring in new people with new ideas. Bring in the French.”
“What do you think I’m doing?” Angelica said.
“What do you think we’re doing?” Billy said.
“I get it,” Wilhelmina said, “I don’t deny we need a new approach. The old way—the province of Gallia—doesn’t work. We’ve tried it for a thousand years, and nothing changed. So what I’m thinking is…maybe we do away with provinces altogether. Overhaul the Länder system too, if not do away with that as well.”
“For the whole Reich?” Ruby said.
“Yeah. France can’t receive special treatment. It would only inflame tensions again. And we need to adopt the same model for other regions like Poland and Arabia.”
“Are you suggesting an autonomous region for the French?” Angelica said. “And other groups?”
“I don’t think that’s wise,” Tania said, “Further decentralization like that would lead to the splintering of the Reich. If the French gain autonomy, and the Poles and Arabs and every other formerly oppressed minority as well, then they might as well just declare independence.”
“You’re right,” Wilhelmina said, “That wouldn’t set a good precedent. I was thinking of reforming the Länder system and Diet to move away from the old qualifications system. I want to make meritocracy fairer and more representative.”
For almost a hundred years, we’ve been effectively ignoring the voices of our African citizens. Then we decided to round them up and shoot them like cattle. Anything I could do for them might be too little and too late. They might not even want it. They might not trust me or Berlin anymore. I wouldn’t blame them if they did, because I’d do the same if I were an African.
“How exactly?” Angelica said.
“I’ll have to work on it.”
“Fair enough.”
“And one more thing.” Wilhelmina leaned forward, like she did when she reached an important cutscene or boss fight. “I intend on fully disarming the Reich.”
Angelica’s eyes widened. “Hein?!”
“You heard me. Once I’m Kaiserin, I’m completely disbanding the Roman Armed Forces. I’ll hand over all of our nukes and equipment to the UN. We’ll never raise an army again. Only the bare minimum for self-defense.”
“You—you can’t be serious!” Ruby said.
“You’ve seen what the Crusaders have done,” Wilhelmina said, “It’s not a stretch to say they’re just the old Heer with a new name and uniforms. They’ve oppressed our people for the last eight years. They’ve visited unspeakable atrocities on us. Now they’re exporting those atrocities to the rest of the world. An army that large and with that much firepower…well, it’s more than a match for the entire world combined. If we win—no, when we win—I can’t let us repeat the same mistakes. A war this terrible cannot be allowed to happen again. It’s time to turn our swords into ploughshares and stop fighting altogether. The Reich has fought enough wars in its thousand years.”
The room remained silent for several seconds. Then Billy spoke up. “Gunduz’ll explode when she hears this.”
“Like she did when she heard my idea for the monarchy,” Wilhelmina said, “I know it’s shocking to hear it, but at this point, it’s necessary. We don’t deserve anything less, after what we’ve done. When this war is over, there will be a reckoning for our country and people. And we completely deserve everything that’s coming for us.”
---
After the briefing concluded, Wilhelmina gathered up her notebook and left the room, but Angelica caught up to her.
“Uh, ma’am?” she asked.
“Please, just call me Wilhelmina.”
“I…I have something to ask of you.”
Wilhelmina nodded. “Don’t be shy.”
“On Bloody Tuesday, nine years ago…” Angelica hesitated for a moment. “I was told you were on your way to attend the Kaiser’s New Year’s Day address. But you didn’t arrive in time. Where were you?”
Wilhelmina thought deeply, remembering where she was on that fateful day. “I was…stuck in traffic. I was told an Athanatoi car got in a crash and caused a jam.”
Angelica nodded. “That solves things. I believe I caused the traffic jam.”
“You…did?”
“Yeah, my team was rushing to the Reichstag building to stop the massacre from happening. I failed, of course, and everyone on my team died a horrible death, but now I know at least one good thing came out of that.”
“You…saved my life,” Wilhelmina said.
“I did,” Angelica said, “Accidentally. In two senses of that word.”
“I have to thank you for that,” Wilhelmina said, “I wouldn’t be here if not for you.”
“I was just doing my job,” Angelica said, “Horribly. If I had gotten there faster, I could’ve stopped the massacre and you’d still be saved anyways, along with way more people.”
“Still, what you did saved me,” Wilhelmina said, “If not for that traffic jam, I’d have arrived at the Reichstag and been gunned down immediately.”
Along with Franz and Joseph. Then there’d be nobody to threaten Uncle Karl’s claim to the throne. And when he died, so too would the main Hohenzollern line.
“I have to thank you somehow,” Wilhelmina said.
“Don’t sweat it,” Angelica said, “You don’t have to.”
She thought for a moment. “Wait a minute, there might be one thing.”
“Yeah, anything,” Wilhelmina said.
“Come to my bakery and try my pastries.”
Wilhelmina stared at her. “You have a bakery?”
“Certainly not now, but I plan on starting a bakery once this war’s over,” Angelica said, “I’m thinking of leaving the Athanatoi when my combat skills are no longer needed. But…my team got slaughtered on Bloody Tuesday. I’m the last survivor. Do you think abandoning the Athanatoi is cowardice? Betraying their sacrifice?”
Wilhelmina put a hand on Angelica’s shoulder. “I don’t think so. It’s your call to leave the Athanatoi, not your team’s. It’s not cowardice to choose a new career. If anything, I think it’s strength. You have the strength to leave something you’ve done for a long time and start on a new path. I think your team would love that, if they were here.”
“Perhaps,” Angelica said.
“And I’ll definitely make sure to stop by. I bet you’ll be a great baker.”
“You think?”
“Why don’t you demonstrate this afternoon? I’d love to try out anything you make!”
Angelica’s face reddened. “Oh, no, not today, today’s not a good time.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t be too harsh. And besides, you’re already confident enough to open a bakery. Your pastries most certainly aren’t that bad!”
“Yeah, stop selling yourself short!” Billy said.
“I agree!” Ruby said.
“Don’t worry,” Tania said, “We’re here for you, Angelica.”
Angelica hesitated for a moment. Then she relaxed a bit.
“Alright, I’ll trying baking something this afternoon,” she said, “You’re welcome to try.”
Wilhelmina smiled. “Looking forward to it.”
11:00 AM
There were other surviving Hohenzollerns. Actually, more like “surviving Hohenzollern.” The Schweinfurt sitting in front of her looked nothing like she imagined. He was a young man, a little younger than Joseph, with curly brown hair—the familiar if generic Hohenzollern brown—and wearing medical scrubs. The badge in his shirt pocket identified him as a field medic for the Artesh units stationed in the city.
Brown hair. We all have brown hair. Except for Mom. Why did I get Dad’s hair instead of hers? Oh wait. Remember that time you dyed your hair blond? Let’s not think about that again.
This wasn’t exactly another briefing. Wilhelmina just wanted to meet the last surviving Schweinfurt in the world. Julian, the brother of the late mayor of Bremerhaven, had come along because he had things to share with her.
“So I suppose we’re cousins,” Wilhelmina said.
“In a way,” August said, “But more like extremely distant relatives.”
“I suppose you’re also the last of the Schweinfurts?”
August shook his head sadly. “Yes, unfortunately. I watched the Crusaders gun down my family in front of me.”
So…the time when I finally pressed my claim, and the committee responded by wiping out my entire family. They hit everyone. Main line Hohenzollerns, Schweinfurts, and now Romanovs…they meant to exterminate us entirely.
“I’m sorry,” Wilhelmina said, “It’s all my fault. I got your family killed.”
“What do you mean?”
“I announced I was going to press my claim on the throne. Announced I was the rightful Kaiserin. In retaliation, the committee killed the rest of our families. To punish me. It’s my fault everyone is dead. I got them killed.”
“You couldn’t have known, though,” August said, “You were only doing what you thought was right. Nobody could have known the committee would carry out the purge right afterward.”
“I get that a lot,” Wilhelmina said, “‘You couldn’t have known’ this, ‘you were only doing what you thought was right’ that. They always say that to make me feel better, but it doesn’t, really.”
“I’m only trying to help.”
“I get that, and I appreciate it, but honestly, I still feel the same way. Only a little bit of improvement. Nothing’s changing the fact that the entire family was purged right after I made that speech. I can’t help but make a connection.”
“Okay, so there’s a connection,” Julian said, “If you can’t deny it, then why try suppressing it?”
“What do you mean?” Wilhelmina said.
“You’ll always feel that way no matter what, as you said. So why are you letting it hold you down? Instead of letting it remind you of a failure, use it to push you forward. Make sure it never happens again.”
He’s right. This keeps happening to me. I always let my failures come back to haunt me. I can’t keep doing this.
“Sometimes, I feel unlucky to have been born into this family,” Wilhelmina said, “Most people would say I’m lucky to have been born a Hohenzollern. But it’s like a curse at times.”
“I feel that way too,” August said, “Since I’m the last of my family, I have…greater responsibilities now.”
“Like restoring the Schweinfurts?”
“I’m currently the head of the family by default. I never wanted to lead this family. All I wanted was to finish my medical studies and maybe open a hospital. Let my distant relatives handle all that dynatoi stuff. But no. I’m now in charge. I have to carry on the family lineage. The legacy of 800 years of Schweinfurts solely rests on my shoulders. It’s…terrifying.”
“A shame, what happened to the Schweinfurts,” Julian said, “A family with a legacy of service to the common people, going back all the way to Saint Gunhilda. After everything the Schweinfurts have done for the people, they’re almost wiped out.”
“Saint Gunhilda would be rolling in her grave, but the committee burned her body. Disgraceful.”
“I feel the same way, August,” Wilhelmina said, “Growing up, I was always the Crown Princess’ daughter. Then, in college, Mom and Dad died. The nobles pressured Grandpa to make Uncle Karl the new heir, instead of me. In an instant, I became an irrelevant footnote. The line of succession ignored me. The throne was no longer my destiny. It was like that for the next thirty years. Grandpa died, Uncle Karl took over, and Bloody Tuesday happened. In Russia, I was asked to press my claim. I was confused, shocked, and terrified. I hadn’t been in line to the throne for thirty years. And now people had died getting me Enonon to relegitimize my old claim. It was all so sudden. Everyone wanted me to assume a destiny I hadn’t had for years. So naturally, I didn’t accept it at first. But the times left me no choice, in the end. I was shocked when the purge began days after I made the announcement. But as you say, Julian, I can’t let it hold me back. You should do the same, August.”
“What do you suggest I do, then?”
“Well…” Wilhelmina said. “I think you should just do what you do best. Put the Schweinfurt stuff to the side for now. You’re a medic, right? I see that Artesh medic badge.”
“Yeah.” August took out his badge.
“So be a doctor. Save lives. You wanted to do that, right?”
“I did,” August said, “I’m not a fighter or a leader, but I do want to heal people.”
“Then do that,” Wilhelmina said, “Help the wounded. Make sure nobody else ends up like your family. Or leaves behind family who share your fate.”
August nodded, regaining resolve. “Thanks, Wilhelmina. That’s a good idea. I’ll work on that.”
“And you, Julian?” Wilhelmina asked. “What will you do? Restore your family?”
“As with August here, it’s not much of a priority for me,” Julian said, “My first duty is to help rebuild the Reich. That is the legacy Eva would’ve wanted for me.”
“But what kind of Reich are we going to build?” August said. “We can’t simply bring back the old system.”
Wilhelmina remembered what she and Tania had been talking about earlier. “Agreed. We’d only be repeating history. In the end we’ll just end up here again.”
“Sometimes, I wonder if the Reich even is worth restoring,” August said, “We’ve worked for a thousand years to build a fair society where the hatreds and divisions of the past are eradicated, but in the end, it was for nothing.”
“Don’t be so defeatist, August,” Julian said.
“How can I? My family tried to help regular people out for centuries, and how were they repaid? With death.”
“Still, the Reich has done a lot of good over the years,” Julian said, “I mean, it has survived this long.”
“He’s right,” Wilhelmina said, “If the Reich truly failed, it would have collapsed centuries ago. But it didn’t.”
“Why?” Julian said. “Because of Romanitas. For all of its faults, the idea still remained in people’s minds. Or at least the ideal of Romanitas. People believed it could work. Former rivals and enemies working together for a common goal. Historical enmities moved past. The cycle of violence and hatred broken. People didn’t want to kill each other anymore. So they believed Romanitas could bring about a better world.”
“But it was all for nothing in the end,” August said, “As we speak, the committee’s twisted Romanitas into the very embodiment of hatred and violence it was supposed to destroy. How do we recover from that?”
“I admit I don’t know yet,” Wilhelmina said, “But I also know that we’ll find a way.”
“What do you mean?” August said.
“Everyone thought Romanitas was dead as soon as Friedrich the Great took a different path from his predecessors. Or when Friedrich the Glorious united two empires that had been historically at odds with each other in many ways. Or when the Thirteenth Century Crisis began. When the Mexica swept through the west and the Mongols the east. When the Maximists rose up. When the Chinese began our greatest rival. When the Angeloi were on the cusp of victory. When the Soviets took half of our heartland. When the Soviets invaded. We survived all those times. We can survive and recover from this one. And hopefully, we’ll build something better when this is all over.”
“I agree,” Julian said, “We should bring Romanitas back to its roots. Back to its intended purpose: breaking the cycle of violence and hatred.”
“I promise, we will rebuild the Reich,” Wilhelmina said, “And I’ll make sure it once again becomes the nation my ancestors hoped it would be.”
- 2
