Demang marched his rested and rearmed army to Moscow. He would succeed where the other two crap leaders had failed. Napoleon and Hitler were both imbeciles. Not a genius like him fuelled on Pepsi and junk food. The distances were huge so Demang used old but well maintained trailer trucks to travel in. The truck was fitted with a rifle position in the roof with a door and hand holds for accurate shooting. In tests his troops had hit targets three hundred yards away while the vehicles were moving. It was a potent capability. The troopers would be inside each trailer, forty in each but with a maximum of double that. Upper and lower rifle firing slits had been cut into each trailer side wall to give all round defence. There were three firing positions atop one at either end and one in the middle. This gave all round firing and observing. Each rear door had firing positions which could be used too. The troops could sleep, eat, shit, shoot in the trailers.
The trucks ran off fuel made from distilled grass and wheat from a technique invented by scientist Noben, a genius local scientist. In Holland grasslands were plentiful and allowed a large amount of fuel to be made for vehicles. The trucks were only used on long range missions. On the Belgium operation horses and elephants had been used to tow guns and supplies. Demang would bring a small number of animals to Moscow to see how they handled the journey and cold. He had winter army uniforms made out of grass. It was Noben came up with this idea. The grass was a natural resource not just in Holland but also Belgium and Denmark and other old nations. His soldiers and a few civilians harvested it and the scientist came up with the best production techniques. The end result was comfortable padded waterproof uniforms made from grass. Added to the grass made fuel it was a good factor for his army and made them more self-sufficient.
A force of seven thousand soldiers would be used for the Moscow operation. This included the troopers, truck drivers, animal keepers, artillery men, supplies staff and command support staff. Everything needed to keep an army on the move. Weapons wise they now had captured and newly made Enfield rifles from the Belgium operation factory. These had been re-barrelled for 7.92mm bullets that his troops Mauser rifles fired. Then only one type of bullet was needed not two. Demang spent time thinking of plans for the mission. He had twenty seven plans in total and several of these were back up ones. They covered all contingencies including combating the witch. He trained his men, increased their food rations and was lenient discipline wise. It would be a long difficult dangerous mission and he needed every man to do his bit. Their wives and girlfriends in their garrison town were depending on them to win the war. He would bring his grey horse and also ride in the lead command truck.
***
Demang’s army had prepped and was now on the way. The truck units led the way. It was a warm spring day. The troopers had the doors open and gun positions manned. The horse and elephant mounted troops pulling artillery and supplies moved at their own speed. Some troops chose to walk. They followed the path through the grasslands made by the trucks. It was leisurely progress. Unlike hikers from yesteryear they were an army on the march to Moscow and all carried loaded rifles. If there was an enemy they would engage.
They snaked their way over land down old roads and motorways and autobahns after leaving the grasslands. Towns were derelict and over grown as were old roads. The big trucks could pass by on most. Where there were collapsed bridges or blockages by abandoned vehicles they had to navigate a different route. Crossing old Germany, Poland, Belarus and then into Russia it was Demang’s jolly trip out. His food supply was hundreds of bottles of Pepsi and specially preserved steak and dried army rations. Not like his soldiers food but high quality. His own support and secretary ate a lower standard of these. Demang was the boss so got the best food. Packets of crisps and chocolate bars also fuelled his trip. His grey horse got the best feed too.
They were first engaged by enemy combatants while crossing Germany. The fascist fighters were equipped with spears and bows and arrows. A few had rusty pistols and single shot muskets. No rifles or artillery. They were still dangerous by the intent and presence.
A fire of burning wood and old small vehicles blocked a section of autobahn. Demang ordered a halt. There was a road turn off past the obstruction they needed to take to head north east into Poland. Three dozen red faced fascists carrying roughly painted flags with swastikas and other old fashioned Nazi symbols on confronted them. There was no leader advancing just many thin scrawny unwashed fascists armed with basic weapons blocking their way. They shouted and screamed in gibberish. Demang was in the command truck at the head of the column and stopped a hundred and fifty metres away. He used his field glasses to observe them. The fat man grunted and nodded. Low level thugs no more.
Demang opened the hatch above his head and slowly climbed up to the viewing gun position. He carried his newly issued Enfield ten shot rifle. It looked like a toy in his hands. Time to test it in a combat situation! The four hundred pound general was a big plump target even for a lowly musket rifle. He shouldered his own rifle and squinted down the barrel. There! The Nazi wearing a red headdress and dirty white t shirt with a swastika on it, he was dancing on the spot and carried a bow. He would die first for delaying the advance! Demang grumbled and muttered under his breath. The enemy force was preparing to attack loading muskets and their bows. A single well aimed shot banged out and hit the target square on. His dirty t shirt turned red and the thug looked down at the blood. His pals stood there in shock and awe.
Demang did the bolt action and smoothly reloaded. His target was on the ground now dead. Demang aimed again as the opposing force opened fire. Arrows flew the distance and fell short. A couple of spears fell even shorter. What idiots! Demang fired a second shot as the first musket shots belted out. Demang fired a third time and wounded a crouching fascist who was just observing. Musket balls thudded into the ground and one pinged heavily off the front armoured grille and another hit the triple mesh covered windscreen. It didn’t penetrate and was caught between the mesh layers. A large slightly miss shaped lead ball. Demang’s blood was up now and he quickly went through his ten rounds hitting with eight out of ten. They were out of the fight. Five were dead and three wounded. Could be better a ten was perfection! The general told his men to finish them off. In seconds rifle fire from truck mounted soldiers and those kneeling in the grass cut into the Nazi fighters. They still returned fire with arrows and muskets. Two foolish Nazis ran forwards in order to throw spears. They crossed twenty yards before being cut down. Another one held a pistol and fired four shots before falling down dead. Demang’s riflemen fired till all enemy combatants were neutralised and there was no incoming fire.
Demang ordered the column slowly forward. They stopped just before the dead spear throwers. Demang dismounted the truck and carried his rifle. He fixed the bayonet and drank from a Pepsi bottle. A Mars bar disappeared in his mouth then he fixed his bayonet. He advanced alone to the motionless Nazis. His riflemen covered him with loaded guns. Demang took his time and examined the spear throwers. Their weapons were made from wood from old buildings. Not as effective as from a tree. Moving to the rest he kicked a body. When it groaned Demang lofted his rifle and gleefully plunged the bayonet into the Nazi’s chest. Now he was dead! The fat man randomly bayoneted bodies. Most were really dead but one or two groaned or moved in their death throes. A death rattle was never nice to hear. He needed a piss so took one. The fat man shouldered his rifle, held his Pepsi bottle in his teeth and popped his shrunken cock out. He focused and a golden stream of warm piss pitter-pattered onto a corpse. This was the ultimate disrespect! When done he zipped up and finished his Pepsi. He threw the bottle by the body and munched another Mars. From his pocket he took out a Zippo lighter. He didn’t smoke but used it for his camp fire. He set alight four of their crude Nazi flags and smiled. Looking down he spotted one of their old guns. Demang checked out one of the old muskets. It had a date stamped on the side said 1819! Demang kept this old weapon for it was history. It would add to his war booty. There was nothing of use with the rest of the bodies. Their weapons were near useless. They had no maps or written plans. Such people were incapable of that. Two of the truck units were unhooked from their trailers and with chains they dragged the still smoking wrecked cars out of the way. Leaving the bodies to rot Demang issued orders and they went on their way off the autobahn and onto Poland.
***
Juniper’s Daughter hadn’t been idle during Demang’s march. She had followed and observed. Always being there watching observing collecting intelligence. Her pet pigeons spied on the army column and she used spells and telepathy too. She knew his plans the moment he came up with them. He had so many plans and she sifted through them to give each a percentage of success. Some were better than others. This percentage changed if she stepped in, so she had a good idea of what to do if she needed to. The column advanced slowly and she monitored it. It was boring but she knew how to spice things up. The witch tickled her most secret sensual place. She went into trance while doing this and focused part of her intent downwards. This brought up snippets of conversation and random thought from the troopers and Demang. It was saved in the file in her brain. When she came it felt so sublime.
She saw the one sided battle with Demang and his army versus the Nazis. The witch could’ve helped and saved the Nazis but they were set in their ways and of low intelligence. Even by taking away their racist beliefs and dogmas they could easily fall back onto that path again. Demang was dangerous with his rifle. Of that she took note. Her craft was bullet proof and she could protect herself with spells incantations and a type of physical shield. Still he was hazardous and not to be ignored. Maybe she should just laser the fat bastard and his stupid soldiers out of existence? Right now Juniper’s Daughter hovered five hundred feet above the moving army group as if snaked into Poland. Looking down via her vision window she brought a big red target cross onto the glass. She grimaced as she rubbed the eighteen inch silver firing control. It was shaped like a penis. She tickled the end and her laser cannon immediately fired. Her craft was still invisible to anybody down below. The green laser fire exploded down on the grass and trees by the pitted road. She fired again this time a line of fire over the grass and at an old medium size building. It caught light in an inferno. Juniper’s Daughter raised her fist and screamed. She fired yet again. Now rifle fire was being directed upwards. Most missed but several shots pinged off the hull. The witch made her craft visible. It hovered above the riflemen; a round silver disc under a cloudy blue sky. Two hundred rifles fired as one at her. Zing ping a metal rain like ball bearings on a tin roof. The witch fired a third time closer to the lead truck with Demang standing visible at the roof hatch. He fired his rifle shot after shot and worked the bolt. Her laser fire cut in front of his vehicle a wall of heat and fire. The hair on his head singed. He removed his officer’s cap and held it before his eyes such was the intense heat from the fire from the burning tarmacadam. He remained where he was glaring at the witch. He knew she saw him and raised a middle finger. As suddenly as her disc was visible it vanished and a sonic boom echoed over the area. The burning asphalt cooled down and they went on their way. A fast violent needed demonstration.
***
Inside Demang was furious from the witch’s firepower demo but he remained calm. He issued orders via the radio and later at a meeting. We know the witch is following us. Probably from when we set out. She will have seen our fight with the fascists and knows our capabilities. Our rifles will not bring down her ship. We must hit it with artillery next time. I want two artillery guns mounting atop our truck trailers. Take the wheels and shield off. Make sure the gun can elevate and traverse. Get your best engineers to fix it. You have two hours to do it. Load high explosive shells with contact fuses. That will kill the witch and destroy her craft. We still march to Moscow as planned.
They were in Poland now and again crossed grasslands. This was a different kind of grass a darker green and longer. They made camp each night with armed guards and buttoned up trucks. It had been this way since leaving old Holland. Now they knew they weren’t alone, they were stalked by the witch. A week after the laser demo the witch returned. She gave a light show in the sky. Her disc glowed green blue yellow red and more colours. Demang saw this and ordered his men to ignore it and go back to sleep. Their advance continued and they crossed into Belarus. This was considered Russia by some men and they felt a greater sense of purpose now. An attack could come any time now. From either the witch or groups of armed fighters they knew was out there.
The attack came from two men. They were armed with timeworn Russian repeater rifles. They engaged the third truck. Their fire killed two men and injured three more. Return fire drove the two off, one with a round in his left shoulder. Demang was going to issue orders that three of his horsemen chase the two down but his secretary and support advised him it was a trap. Wait and be patient to get even. They are testing us.
They passed an old town much like the abandoned ones in Holland or Germany. Here the structures were even more dilapidated and subsiding. Another attack came out on a hilly area after the town. Rifle fire and some type of small artillery were fired from the high ground. Demang ordered his own big guns return fire. He had two on the trucks for defence against the witch and eight other cannons towed by elephants. These were quickly prepared and fired their first war rounds of the mission. A petrol drone was launched to spot the fall of the shells and watch the enemy. There were only two small barrel loading enemy guns. Demang had them targeted by twenty rounds. They soon stopped firing. He ordered scattering fire over the high ground to kill hurt or distract the enemy spotters and fighters. His riflemen fired random shots too. Then they continued their journey, the drone orbiting nosily above keeping an eye out. There were no more enemy or attacks and they entered real old Russia now. Moscow would be his!
***
The witch saw the Belarus engagements. It was obvious things were more organized here. She knew Demang knew that too. He still advanced and was all set on taking Moscow. The witch knew of the surprises he would soon face but she kept them to herself! Russia would be Russia even if this was an old version of that once great and powerful nation. Like elsewhere most towns and cities were abandoned and nature ruled the land. There were still some inhabited areas and most of those were ruled by armed groups of varying size and strength. Moscow was the largest occupied built up area. Or parts of it were. Demang would capture it or die trying along with his entire army. She was familiar with this situation, having seen it in ancient Greece and Asia Minor plus others. There she’d intervened and settled the peace by killing thousands of warriors full of bloodlust. Now her own actions in both locations were still remembered as distant and inaccurate fairy tales. What fights they had been! The smell of carbonised bodies made even she gag.
What had needed doing before would be done again, if needed. The witch was not just a healer she was also a soldier. If any mere mortal or even Satan mistook her pretty your face and athletic figure as a sex object they had a rude shock coming. The witch was trained in hand to hand combat, the use of all weapons and in spell craft. This included Earth based weapons and also several alien types of armaments. She had travelled extensively throughout the galaxy but rarely told any humans. They struggled to comprehend and accept that there was alien life scattered among the stars of deep space. Imagine what people like Demang would do with access to alien weapons or her flying disc? And Satan would be the universal master if he got his grubby evil hands on them. So she was always busy never idle not even when at rest. Darkness was her enemy and she eternally protected the light from it. Just like her mother Juniper had all those millennia before. Juniper’s Daughter regularly talked to her mother in dreams and telepathically. Her pet pigeons and most animals could also send a message to Mother Juniper. She was Mother nature the ultimate creator of all things especially the light.
***
Demang kept his forces advancing. They refuelled twice daily from their grass/wheat made fuel supplies of which there was plenty. Their animals were fed also twice a day. As was the troops. No troopers still walked all were inside the vehicles or on the animals. The miles were too great. One time they were attacked just as darkness fell. Demang ordered fires of wood to be lit to see any enemy fighters. Gunfire crackled in the night and a soldier was killed. His troops fired back as did Demang. This drove off whoever it was.
In the morning they moved camp and advanced. The noisy drone flitted here and there. Armed riflemen were at all the upper gun positions locked and loaded. Their trailer trucks and four legged supply train threaded its way over the steppe. When possible they followed old roads and highways. Their condition was terrible, they were old Soviet roads. At a wide river they simply crossed the bridge. This was in good condition even if a thousand plus years old. Across the bridge they ran into six fighters armed with the worn out automatic rifles. They had to get close to use them and were all picked off by the riflemen who suffered no injuries. Demang dismounted and examined the dead. Their automatic rifles were AK47 type weapons only half a century younger than the Mauser and Enfield rifles. These guns were shabby and badly maintained. They were as dangerous to the firer as to the target.
Further on Demang and his army passed a small settlement of wood huts and branch covered dwellings. They simply drove their big trucks slowly over and through several of the structures which collapsed. Out of one a middle aged woman with saggy tits ran out shouting and waving her arms. She threw a samovar at the fat general. He blocked it with an arm. She turned to run and Demang shot her in the back with his Enfield. More shots rang out as his men had some target practise on live targets. There was no opposition only fear and confusion.
Leaving the ruined settlement they continued on for twenty miles then stopped to refuel and eat. The vehicles were checked and animals fed. It was afternoon on a sunny spring day. The grass was turning yellow and the sky was cloudless. Demang sent out his drones to reconnoitre. There was a big town ahead and a river on one side and a forest on the other. He decided on straight ahead. Now everybody was vigilant. They were deeply inside enemy territory. Napoleon and Hitler had passed by here and failed. He wouldn’t. This town was a maze of derelict collapsed roofless buildings. A stone building was the only structure standing. Demang ordered the two anti-aircraft artillery guns to fire at it for fun. Each gun fired one shell at the sandstone building which exploded on impact. Part of the wall collapsed in a cloud of dust. A dozen or so fighters rushed out of the bank side door shouting most of them armed with the same worn out rifles and curved swords. Demang’s riflemen were ready and zapped them all. Only wild ineffective fire peppered the sky. Demang killed two. His army kept going and left the town with no further trouble. They saw groups of unwashed ill looking people wearing rags. His soldiers shot at them to wound them and drive them off.
Night fell and camp was made on a long straight stretch of overgrown road. Fires of wood were lit and armed guards patrolled up and down the truck line and out to two hundred metres all around. Moscow was close and they had to be alert. Demang slept in the truck cab with his rifle for company. It was loaded and the safety was off. Oddly nothing happened that night or the one after. The days were tense and his men shot anyone who came close. Most people begged for food, hunger overcoming their fear. Demang liquidated three of them by giving them a lead pill for dinner. Twice they were attacked on the outskirts of Moscow. His riflemen shot all enemies but suffered four killed and two wounded. Their attackers were appeared to be Cossacks or belong to a very old branch of Communism. Their rags were subtly different. The second group carried crude flags with red stars on. At four hundred yards this made it possible to both see and then shoot them.
The road became impassable. A giant vehicle of some kind blocked both sides. There were two lanes either side and the massive rusty crane straddled both sides. Demang sent off his drones and scanned the terrain with his field glasses from atop his grey horse. He gave orders into his shortwave and rode his horse away from the blockage. They went off road over the grasslands bypassing several small towns. For two more days there slowly went this way. Then Moscow proper was there. There were still tall buildings and half collapsed domes visible. This was his prize and he was here! Victory would soon be his.
He camped by a large church and his troopers slept both inside the half ruin and inside their trailers. Four artillery guns were positioned one facing each direction to give covering fire on any enemy attack. Nothing happened. Demang made camp here with his mobile HQ and support staff. His secretary and grey horse were housed inside the big stone church. One of his petrol powered drones lazily circled overhead at all times sending back black and white video of the area. It was useless at night except when fires were lit. Another drone videotaped Moscow and plotted some defensive positions and enemy fighters who freely walked about. This arrogance that they were in change in Demang’s victory price mildly annoyed him. To humour them he ordered the four defensive cannons to fire thirty explosive rounds to shake them up. He watched the drone film and rubbed his hands together in glee when they ran like poodles or were blown to pieces. He drank two bottles of Pepsi and ate twenty five Snickers bars. Then he got his cooks to make him steak with bread. His troopers ate noodles and rice, a double helping. Tomorrow he would attack.
***
Juniper’s Daughter followed their route. She watched observed and recorded it all. As Demang’s army reached the city outskirts she made her craft visible and flew over at a thousand feet. A couple of trigger happy soldiers fired at her and did hit her craft. Most held fire for it was pointless. Now they knew she was still here. The witch observed the attack. Here we go she thought. It was always the same and never changed except the location and the year. This was the way it always was and would be. She wanted to break that cycle once and for all.
***
Demang’s men advanced some on foot a few on horses and elephants. Most were in trucks and every gun port had rifles sticking out. His artillery guns kept firing a constant barrage. Enemy artillery fired back. Dozens of enemy fighters rushed forth to confront the marauding force. They were met by explosive shells and were decimated. A follow up force suffered the same fate. Demang allowed the third wave to get closer and his riflemen took them all out at two or three hundred metres where possible. The old worn out AK type guns couldn’t shoot accurately past one hundred metres. No prisoners were taken. Some enemy fighters hid near old buildings or rusty vehicles or in holes dug into the grasslands. Demang knew all these tricks from his previous campaigns and ordered his troops to act accordingly. They sniped and shot all enemy targets dead. His losses were light except for two trailer trucks hit by enemy artillery. These were damaged or set on fire killing thirty men and wounding as many. He ordered more men to dismount and advance on foot.
Moscow proper was six miles away and they had made it! His army column was spread out and fighting hard. He ordered his men to take up several positions and for others to advance. His big guns now supported the advance. Every single cannon was in action including the ones atop his trucks. He couldn’t fail now! Time speeded up and the fighting was among ruined buildings and trees. Riflemen bayoneted stinking scruffy Russian fighters who rushed them screaming gibberish. Demang’s men captured three roads leading into the old city centre. One led to Red Square. He rode his command truck to victory! In the cab with him was a special gift to the city of Moscow.
***
The witch circled her disc in a wide circle a thousand feet up. Now she was completely visible. Nobody fired at her. They were too busy killing each other to bother. The fight was vicious but one sided. Demang had better troopers with better weapons. He had plans and knew when and where to use them. Plus he was foolish and brave engaging in combat from the gun position in the roof of the command truck. She snidely thought of redirecting a single bullet to blow his head off. Nobody would know it was her except herself. She shook her head and deleted the thought. Her job here was to watch and not alter the course of the battle. Do nothing her mother had told her. If you interfere you could help Satan win. That must not happen. Demang worked for him and his aims but it was Demang and his army fighting on the ground not the Devil directly. You must only watch. She made a silent promise to the Universe things would be different next time.
***
The fighting was now over. Four fifths of the defending force was dead wounded or had fled. Now Demang was the victor and it was a sweet feeling.
He went into the ruins of the Kremlin and took a shit on Putin’s old desk. He had a special key that opened the metal and wood door; a door twelve feet tall and six inches thick. History would remember him as the greatest military leader that Planet earth had ever seen. Demang opened a bottle of Pepsi from his bag and six packets of assorted crisps. Nodding he looked about Putin’s old lair. It was all right. As was the old armoured box with Soviet field rations inside. The combination lock was 666. And the food was still edible. He ate it all!
Now it was time to destroy the Kremlin. Fuel was then spread on anything that would burn and it was lit. Black smoke wafted up into the blue grey sky and it burnt for hours. His finest victory worth the effort in blood and sweat; he celebrated with Pepsi and Snickers bars. His catering staff prepared a meal of steak for him with the best cognac. His soldiers ate dried food. They rested after the long march and bitter battle.
Later he ordered his trucks parked up and set up his gift for Mother Russia and old Moscow. A nuclear bomb in a suitcase! The weapon was originally from here and he brought it home. He opened the case and entered the numeric code 666. Before he died in the blast he drank some Pepsi and ate a Mars bar and nodded. This version of Demang had been a good general. He was the King of Moscow in this version of reality! Now his experiences and skills were added to the Satanic database for the next Demang. The timer counted down and it detonated. The explosion was small when compared to what nuclear weapons had been capable of. This bomb was a blast wave neutron weapon. Neutrons irradiated everything for dozens of miles as the blast kicked out. All alive would soon die. Moscow was his. An irradiated ruin.
***
Juniper’s Daughter was parked a thousand feet up over the Kremlin. Her craft was still visible. She instinctively knew what Demang was doing. It was one of his end game plans; the final game but a different version in a second reality. She knew which truck contained the nuke and wanted to steal it with her gravity lifting gear. Her Mother had forbidden her from direct action. The device was taken inside to be set off so she readied her protective shield. Some time went by and then there was a huge flash and blast wave. All this whizzed past her craft as Moscow was obliterated. The witch sadly smiled as the fat man died. His soon to be corpse was a hideous sight and his death was even worse. He begged for his mum to make everything all right. That was impossible. Not even the witch had that power. What she wanted to do was burn his remains by laser fire from her disc. In the brief life of the thermonuclear explosion it flamed and sizzled so much fat! Now the Devil had one less helper and one less army to help him. The witch won again. Satan would never learn. Sending an insane fat man to kill conqueror and kill some more. To commit suicide and selfishly eradicate his army was just nonsense. It was one of the oddest events she’d ever experienced. Now it was over. Where next? Where would the next murdering bastard controlled by Satan be and who would it be? She had to always be ready no matter what the dark experiences learned. She gained new skills too. All around her Moscow was aflame in a huge firestorm and radiation seethed out. It was time to leave. She had to check her craft was ok as it had been at the centre of a nuclear blast.
***
Born in Oldham, a Lancashire mill town in 1971, NICK ARMBRISTER has lived in various places and now in SE Asia. Has many interests include writing, studying history, military aviation, current affairs. He loves Gothic music and metal, likes the 1980s for what is was (trash decade!), loves tattoos and wants more. His writing is both varied and broad covering many subjects in poetry and stories. His work has been published in zines, online, in anthologies, and he has worked with several international writers/poets/authors.
