Die Glocke

by M C Drake

  The artillery shells were barely managing to hold the Aryan forces back. The last Patton's opened fire on the advancing Tiger's, they weren't trying to destroy the tanks but were aiming to track them in place so the artillery could finish them off.

  Sergeant Major Wills looked up to the sky just in time to see four ME 262's race overhead.

  “Shit.” He said under his breath.

  “Sergeant Peters, get your boys out of there! You have incoming enemy air.”

  “We see them Sir, we don't have time. We have three Vulcan's with us. We will keep firing as long as we can sir.”

  The ME 262's swooped in low and fast, so fast even the Vulcan's Gatling guns could not track them. The four fighters released four orbs of light that sped to the ground and instantly vaporized the American forces caught in the blasts.

  Sergeant Peters watched as the jets almost turned on the spot and came in for another bombing run. The planes dropped the orbs which smashed into the helpless soldiers. Peters stood his ground as the last orb fell towards him; the round hit and a brief moment of intense burning pain was the last thing he felt.

  In the town the artillery shells stopped coming.

  “This is it men, this is our last stand. America is proud of you...I am proud of you!” Wills said.

  Strangely the Tiger tanks started to withdraw. They pulled clear of the small town.

  “What's going on Sir? They had us.”

  “Maybe we scared them off!”

  "I doubt it, whatever they are planning. It won't be good." Wills said.

  Two minutes passed without anything happening until in the distance a gently whooshing sound was barely audible. It grew in intensity as it got closer. Wills' eyes widened as the sky above filled with bright violet streaks that each looked like stars hanging in the daytime sky.

  “What the hell is that?”

  The stars grew larger as the fell into the town; they exploded in powerful balls of superheated light. The town was enveloped in overlapping fields of plasma. A burning wave of heat washed over the church causing the troops to scream out in pain; the church took a direct hit and the last pocket of American resistance before Washington was vaporized in an instance.

  Angel Flight

  The men in the emergency bunker located under the White House hung their heads; they were listening to the battlenet radio which had now gone silent on both fronts. Only two figures did not react to the situation with despair.

  “Inform the President that Washington will soon be under attack and then we suggest you make sure the finishing touches to the defense of the city are completed.” The monotonous tones of the men in black said in unison.

  Richard Nixon listened to the terrible plight his nation was now in, he rubbed his forehead as the battle reports came in.

  When the General had finished his report Nixon took a minute to think. Finally, he spoke, “I want a broadcast to go out to every American citizen that it is now up to them to defend their right to life. I want anyone who volunteers to be supplied weapons. If that is not possible then they can steal them from gun shops.”

  “Sir do you think the situation is really that bad?”

  The President nodded, “We can't get hold of Brezhnev, the last call we had he said they had no choice but to nuke the area but they have not called back and we can't get anybody to answer our calls.”

  The Vice President thought a moment, "They would have launched by now if they were going to do it?"

  Nixon agreed, “Maybe they have changed their mind.”

  “I doubt it.” The men in black interjected, “It is more likely they have been dissuaded otherwise by Sporrenberg.”

  “What do you mean?” Nixon asked angrily. “Do you know something we don't?”

  “We know a lot that you do not, we are trying to contact our man in Moscow but have so far been unable to.”

  An alarm rang out in air force one. The pilot came across the intercom, "Strap in, we have contacts approaching us fast from the East. Currently, four miles out."

  "Shit," Nixon swore as he buckled his seat belt. He looked out of the window as two of the Phantom escorts peeled off to face the threat.

  The Phantoms accelerated towards the two enemy bogies while the radar operators tried desperately to get a lock on but the equipment just would not work and they could not achieve that precious lock on at that distance.

  The lead Phantom noticed something in the distance but he did not know what it was.

  “Charlie do you see that? Is that the enemy directly in front?”

  “I see it Bobby... I'm not sure.”

  The object got bigger very quickly, it was traveling at great speed and by the time the pilot realized what was happening; it was too late. He could not react in time as the ball of burning light smashed into his aircraft turning it to debris in a split second.

  A second orb raced towards the Phantoms wingman but he had the time to break left and roll out of harm’s way.

  “Air force one, get out of here now. Angel one is down. Repeat Angel one is down.”

  Immediately the pilot of Air Force one pulled hard on the controls and the aircraft started to climb. It was a sudden change and most of the occupant’s ears popped uncomfortably. Two Phantoms climbed with it.

  Angel two flew directly towards the two closing enemy fighters, as he got into view range he saw the ME 262's closing fast but to his horror, there were four fighters and not two like the radar suggested.

  “Holy shit, there are four of them, repeat four bogies.”

  “Roger that Angel Two.” The other Phantoms said, they wanted to help but they could not leave the President.

  The first two Me 262's roared straight passed the outnumbered Phantom and pitched their noses almost vertically while the other two engaged.

  “Two Phantoms on your six, climbing fast Angel three.”

  Streams of plasma snaked out at the Phantom who managed to roll inverted and then loop around behind the ME 262's in a smooth maneuver. Charlie Brady heard the familiar growl in his ear as the Aim 9 sidewinder locked on to the target, he pulled the trigger and the missile streaked towards its target.

  The ME 262 seemed to slow almost like it was drawing the missile in and then at the last moment it rolled right and dove towards the deck. Brady still had missile lock and pulled the trigger again as he dived after the target but this time the missile just fell from the bottom of the plane as the motor failed to ignite.

  Brady swore but he was undeterred and continued to follow the fighter towards the ground. Brady's radar operator checked their six was clear of the enemy. Angel two was just about ready to fire again when the ME 262 in front turned around completely to face him.

  "That's is impossible," Brady said in disbelief.

  The ME 262 opened up its canons and plasma washed over the Phantom, burning holes in the nose and canopy of the aircraft. Angel two was too close to avoid the fire and Brady was killed instantly; his radar operator tried in vain to eject but the Phantom smashed into the ocean below.

  “Angel two is down.” The pilot of Air force one said glumly.

  “What the hell is going on back there?” Nixon shouted but nobody responded.

  Nixon looked out of the left-hand window just in time to see the Phantom escort turn into a ball of flames as it was struck by a bright orb of light.

  "Dear God." Was all the President managed to say.

  The Phantom on the right-hand side managed to roll and invert to avoid the first orb but the second ball of plasma impacted right in the center of the plane, turning it into falling bits of metal.

  “Shit, we have not protection. Repeat we have no defensive options left.” The pilot of Air Force one said. He pushed down on the controls and put the large plane into a steep dive; trying to gain speed.

  The Passengers were pulled into their seats by the intense g-force and this only intensified as the pilot tried to force the aircraft to roll, thinking it was a nimble fighter. He was taking it pas
sed its design limits and small pieces of the airframe peeled off.

  As Air Force one tumbled from the sky it managed to avoid the plasma raining down after it but the pilot was taking a great risk and he was not sure if he could even recover the aircraft.

  They tumbled through fifteen thousand feet and suddenly the pilot shouted to the copilot to pull on the controls with all his might; the two men struggled to pull the aircraft's nose up as the continued to fall.

  They smashed through ten thousand feet and then through eight when finally, Air force one responded, slowly the nose pulled up and they came out of the great dive. The plane was still in one piece but only just. The pilots noticed some vibrations in the foot pedals.

  The pilots checked the radar for enemy contacts but they appeared to be clear. One of the stewardesses had thrown up all over the place and the smell spread through the plane.

  Nixon tried to wipe tears away and his brow was extremely pale.

  The Copilot turned to the Captain to discuss their next move when the color drained from his face. To the left of Air force one barely ten feet away sat two ME 262s. The pilots could clearly see the enemy pilot looking over at them.

  “Shall we ram them?”

  “Negative that is too dangerous.”

  “What shall w...”

  A great explosion rocked the aircraft, the shockwaves rippled through the fuselage as the cockpit was severed clean from the rest of the plane. The Stewardess sat in the front was ripped from the falling wreckages, still strapped into her seat.

  Nixon barely managed to look up when another explosion hit the rear of the plane, a great fireball spread quickly through the enclosed area. Nobody could survive the inferno.

  Unconditional Surrender

  Stunned silence spread across the emergency bunker buried deep in the bowels of the White House. There were no further radio communications between Air force one and Angel flight and those in the control room could not raise anybody on Airforce one.

  The people in the room looked at each other with disbelief, not one of them was prepared for this moment even though the sudden war had not been going well from the beginning.

  The two men in black surveyed the room, Edgar Hoover the head of the FBI just looked straight ahead with a blank expression while the Vice President had his head in his hands; the two men unfolded their arms and walked forward in unison. One of them turned the battle net radio down.

  “Listen up we have suffered another setback, that is true but until we have confirmation about the Presidents status we have to assume the worst.” They paused. “That means Mr. Vice President you are in command.”

  Spiro Agnew took his head out of his hands and looked up with red eyes. He looked at the two unearthly men, “Shouldn't we wait until the confirmation that Richard hasn't made it?”

  They shook their heads, “No we need to act now, the inevitable attack on the capital is coming and our forces need leadership.”

  Spiro could not hide his fear, “What would be your suggested orders, how do we counter them and their seemingly untouchable technology?”

  The men in black's trademark sinister smile flashed across their faces, “We cannot have anybody retreat, everybody who remains in the city are taking up arms as we speak. We can only hope that the rest of the world realizes the enormity of the threat and sends their assistance. This is not a battle we are likely to win but it is one that we must fight it.”

  The screens monitoring the news broadcasts flashed off and then flickered on again. A familiar German accent narrated over the blank broadcast screens.

  “Welcome my fellow Americans.” He announced. “Your armed forces have been fighting and dying hard. Aryan troops have broken through this minor obstacle this morning and are splitting your country in two as we speak.”

  The screens flicked on to show burnt out Patton tanks and dead soldiers where they had fallen in combat, and then the images changed to show warships bombarding a coastline. The film lasted for thirty seconds before changing again; this time it was showing Latin troops smashing through the Mexican border from Guatemala.

  “As you can see the Argentinian navy is taking out targets in Mexico, our new allies from South and Central America are attacking strategic targets in Mexico. They will not be coming to your aid.”

  Spiro Agnew rubbed his furrowed forehead.

  Sporrenberg continued to narrate as a new darker film appeared.

  “America you may not have realized it but the Soviet Union was planning to launch a nuclear strike against your beloved country. They thought they would take us all out with one attack.”

  The film showed the spire of the Kremlin and then the surrounding areas, it looked peaceful but something was not quite right. As the camera zoomed in cars came into focus, none of them were moving and most of them had doors open.

  The camera continued to zoom in and the first sign of clothes came into view and then another set and then another until they could see the floor was covered in abandoned clothes. As the images grew, strange black goo coated the items of clothing and soon it became evident there was blackened bone mixed in amongst the tar-like substance.

  “The Soviet leadership cast has been destroyed, along with every other living creature in Moscow.” Sporrenberg continued as the camera switched to show piles of fur and feathers dotted around the place; the skeletons were blackened and mangled with goo.

  "This is our countermeasure to any nuclear threat sent our way, this was just a small warhead armed with Xerum 525 which will destroy all living cells within the target area. We have an enormous supply of these missiles and we will use them again if necessary.”

  Finally the screens switched to Sporrenberg's expressionless face. “We are pleased to announce we have accepted a peace settlement with the Soviet Union only a few minutes ago.” Sporrenberg leaned forward into the camera. “We would be willing to discuss surrender terms for the United States with your Vice President Spiro Agnew.”

  The footage changed to the view out of the cockpit of an ME 262, the fighter had Air Force one clear in its gunsights.

  A purple orb flew into the helpless aircraft and an explosion rocked the airframe; slicing of the cockpit. A second orb raced outwards and impacted into the fuselage causing a large fireball that engulfed the screen for a few seconds until it died away just leaving metal debris to fall.

  There was a pause and then the screens flickered back to Sporrenberg, “Unfortunately as you can see we are no longer able to speak to President Nixon. We are willing to accept terms of unconditional surrender only. We await your response Vice President. If we do not receive a satisfactory reply before 16.00 hours we will have no choice but to launch an all-out attack on Washington.”

  “Have a good afternoon, auf wiedersehen.”

  The screens clicked off.

  Siege

  16:00 hours was quickly approaching by the time Spiro Agnew had barely finished his speech, his call to arms and his battle cry to the American people. The Vice president had made the Countries position clear. There would be no surrender.

  The latest battle reports showed that the Aryan forces had smashed straight through light resistance in a host of major and minor cities along the way. The mass evacuation initiated by the late President Nixon had worked and the Aryan troops were greeted by ghost town after ghost town.

  A huge force had come to a halt just at the edge of Leesburg and another large group of armored vehicles spread out from Fredericks on the way to Baltimore to the north of the capital. The encirclement of Washington had begun.

  The likelihood of Washington being attacked was always high so the city had been preparing its defenses for some time. Anti Tank trenches had been dug and as many mines as possible had been laid in the open spaces between Gaithersburg, Baltimore, Reston and Fairfax.

  Artillery and anti aircraft emplacements flooded the city and desecrated nearly every national landmark. There was a heavy concentration around the White House and the United
States Capitol building with its iconic dome being used as a vantage point.

  At 16.16 fighting broke out in Baltimore as a unit of concealed Patton medium tanks opened fire at advancing Tiger tanks at point black range. Machine gun nests let out bursts of fire on troops marching through the deserted streets.

  The Aryan forces did not advance into Gaithersburg but instead launched a savage artillery bombardment until the buildings were leveled and the area was just a desolate rubble-strewn, crater-filled wasteland.

  Civilian volunteer armies stayed to fight in Chantilly, Centreville and Reston but they had received little training and were quickly captured but the Aryan forces. They had their DNA checked immediately and anybody without a high percentage of Aryan heritage was quickly dispatched.

  As the evening twilight faded the enemy forces had quickly gained a lot of the land around the capital city. After a few initial casualties from the massive amounts of mines laid down, the huge super heavy Maus tanks were used to clear a path through to Fairfax and North through Rockville.

  This rapid advance of enemy forces was the cue for the huge collection of American M107 and M110 self-propelled guns to open fire. Artillery shells rained down in the darkening nights’ skies. Their fire was directed by brave Sheridan light tank crews that stayed outside of the cities defenses to report on hostile positions; many paid dearly with their lives.

  Despite being under heavy fire the Aryan vehicles continued their advance in Annandale and Springfield to the South and Bethesda to the North. Again they encountered light resistance from the volunteer armies but this posed little danger and actually, many of these were killed by friendly fire from the 175 mm and the 203 mm howitzer shells.

  Baltimore was completely cut off and encircled at 20:45 with only a small pocket of American soldiers fighting on until their ammunition ran out completely at 22:00. The Patton tanks were all out of action about an hour before this. The remaining troops were quickly overwhelmed and all were dead five minutes later.