NOW 7

Chapter Seven

News of the World, 5^th December 1963

'Prime Minister to re-define Space Command Mission' (The Times)

'After last year's manned flight by both the American and the British Space Agencies Prime Minister Wilson has pledged to continue British participation in the 'peaceful exploration of the great beyond' and has announced that he would define Space Command's new mission in a land-mark speech tomorrow..'

'Cuban Insurrection continues' (Kingston Observer, late Edition)

'Sources close to Government House revealed today that the rural Insurrection on Cuba against the ruling Military-Ogliarchic Regime is still going on in spite of assurances out of Havanna that 'the Army is eradicating the rebel Forces'...'

'Government pledges Empire-wide electrification by 2000' (BBC World Service)

'The Minister for Economic Development spoke to the Imperial Parliament at Canary Wharf yesterday and revealed plans after which the Government plans to have the British Empire 100% electrified by the year 2000...

'Indochinese economy continues recovery' (Financial Times)

'The economies of the nations of Indochina continue to recover as the region starts to heal from the damages of the Indochina War. The Republic of Vietnam announced that the increase in tourism in the area around Da Nang...

'Peace protests continue country-wide' (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

'The series of Peace protests that have taken place both in front of the Ministry of Defence and around Bundeswehr installations all over the country intensified recently after rumours surfaced that one Luftwaffe Wing was to conduct a long-distance transfer flight and take part in the British Advanced Air Combat Course held in British-Sudan at the local training grounds...'

'German Verfassungsschutz fears rise in left and right-wing violence'[1] (The Guardian)

'In Frankfurt the organization, charged with protecting the Democratic Order of the German State, released a paper claiming that a clandestine network of left and right-wing extremist groups has been established over the last ten years, especially after the near-revolution in France during the closing days of the Indochina War. It is claimed that these groups might eventually resort to outright violence in order to promote their political aims and...'

'Royal Saudi Navy cancels County-Class contract' (The Times)

'The Royal Saudi Navy officially cancelled the contract signed in 1961 and has indicated willingness to buy four Russian-built M-57 Class Destroyers...'[2]

'West Japan signs economic agreement with RoC' (Financial Times)

'West Japanese and Chinese Officials came together in Taipe yesterday to sign a landmark economic co-operation treaty between the two nations. Relations between the Republic of China and the Republic of Japan have slowly been normalizing since the end of World War Two and this treaty is thought to be the first step towards an economic co-operation between the two biggest non-imperial economic powers in Asia..'

'Navy, RAF sign Rotodyne contract' (Jane's Defence Weekly)

'Fairey Aviation released a press statement yesterday after which the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy have signed a contract over at least 200 militarized examples of the company's upcoming aircraft and...

~*~---~*~

Kelso watched as Wachmann detailed the twelve policemen that he had weaselled out of his Chief into two groups and reflected over the last three hours. When Wachmann had heard the name in the surplus store he had pushed the owner of it into a shelf loaded with old medals and run out of the store without bothering to look if Kelso was following him. As they climbed into the car Kelso started the engine and the Land Rover jumped out of the parking space into the sparse traffic.

“Go to this address, and fast.”

Tires squealing the car turned around in the middle of the street and sped off, ignoring the honking of the other cars completely. Kelso flipped a switch and on the roof the siren and the light came to life.

“We have to be fast, if my hunch is correct he'll know about our visit to the shop within half an hour at most.”

Kelso was far too busy navigating the traffic to really listen to anything so Wachmann decided against a full explanation until they reached the Friedrichsstraße fifteen minutes later where they were simply forced to slow down as the city was replacing faulty water lines in the area.

“Richard König, small-time crook, part-time writer and newspaper publisher. Late of the Reichspartei before it was banned and well known for having views that'd make the Bavarians seem like the bloody Communists. We've never been able to pin anything on him, but I would bet my left arm that he was the bloke behind that Tiger thing when I was OK[3].”

“So you think he's the stabber?” Kelso said. The Land Rover cleared the construction and turned eastwards onto Unter den Linden.

“No, he's about seventy years too old for that. But he does like to claim that he can be spotted in the first row of one of the Hitler Youth marching blocks in Triumph des Willens, and we busted him once for having a copy of Mein Kampf.”

“Ouch.”

“That's an understatement.”

They crossed the river and moved onto Kaiser-Wilhelm-Straße[4] and eventually turned left again.

After a record thirty-seven minutes for this distance Kelso switched off the siren and parked the car. Wachmann decided against stepping into the nearby phone booth and call this in, time was of the essence. Much to Kelso's surprise he produced an FN Hi-Power next.

“Jesus, what are you expecting?” he asked even as he removed his own 9mm from it's holster at his hip.

“Nothing, but with these bastards it helps to be prepared.”

The two dashed into the seven storey house, past a very disgruntled old lady that was far too busy with her shopping bags to notice that they were armed or that one of them wore the uniform of an Australian Military Policeman. Luckily for them the culprit lived on the second floor, and when Wachmann pressed the button to ring, they waited.

“Who's there?”

“Kriminalpolizei, open up!”

No reply came, but just as Wachmann was about to ring again he heard a metallic sound behind the door. Kelso had heard it too and in one swift motion they took cover on either side of the door.

None to soon as a milisecond afterwards the door was torn to shreds by 9x19 mm Parabellum rounds fired from a meticulously maintained MP-40.

Wachmann and Kelso merely glanced at each other before Wachmann yelled: “König you idiot! Surrender!”

Another burst was the only reply. Wachmann fired three rounds blindly around the corner, more to announce that he was armed than anything else and looked over at Kelso.

“You better go and call this in, Lieutenant.”

As Kelso made his way down the stairs Wachmann turned his attentions back to the man in the flat, but before he could react or move he heard the sound of a window being smashed. He cursed loudly and ran inside the flat. He ignored the Hitler picture at the far wall and the Nazi War Flag hanging over it and ran past the chair König had been sitting on and towards the living room window that he could just so see. He saw König climbing down the fire escape.

“HALT!” he yelled. König hesitated and looked upwards. The MP 40 swung around, but before König could fire Wachmann shot in the arm and the gun fell towards the street below. Knowing that he had no other choice König raised his unwounded hand.

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Comments, questions, rotten tomatoes?

I decided to use this age-old trick to widen the window into this world. I have been doing a lot of thinking about the world after the end of World War Two almost immediately since I started this and I have found that these narrative stories, while good at exploring one particular issue, are unsatisfactory for giving anyone a general overview without it de-generating into a fact dump. Henceforth we will see these press overviews regularly. Ish. Anyway, I reserve the right to detail any of these in any given medium at a later date.

[1] Self explanatory. Their job is to protect the constitution. Amongst other things they watch Scientology and various extremist groups. Just what they do exactly and how is shrouded in mystery, albeit sometimes they are seen with the same lack of respect as any other Government institution, especially when their use of undercover men screwed up the attempt to have the NPD banned...

[2] OTL Kashin Class. Some details are different, mostly slightly more advanced electronics and Radars.

[3] Organisierte Kriminalität, Organized Crime

[4] OTL Karl-Liebknecht-Straße IOTL after the co-founder of what was to become the German Communist Party.