Tyranny of Steel

It had been months since relations had soured between the Kalmar Union and the German Empire. In retaliation for how poorly Alvar had treated his wife, Berengar had not only closed the Reich's borders with their northern neighbor, but had also halted any and all trade.

The official reasoning for such a drastic measure? The human trafficking ring that had previously existed within the Kalmar Union. As far as the German people were concerned, it was no longer safe to travel north.

At first, Alvar had laughed at this petty response by the Kaiser. However, now he was beginning to become desperate as the Kalmar Union's reserves of both luxury goods and necessities, which had previously been imported from the Reich, were now drying up.

For too long, the Nordic Kingdoms and their economies had relied upon the overwhelming amount of trade which existed between their region and their southern neighbor. Without these resources, the economy of the Kalmar Union was now in shambles, and even worse, people were dying. Not only from malnourishment but also diseases which had previously been cured by German medicine.

Public outrage among the Nordic people was at an all-time high, and the demand to deal with these human traffickers had sparked protests outside High King Alvar's palace. As a result, the man, and his family were trapped inside their own hold, waiting for the people's wrath to pass.

Ingrid was particularly worried about the whole ordeal. She had thought that her relationship with Hans was going great, but instead, the boy merely used her to feed his growing desires. Now she was left without an engagement to the boy who would one day become the most powerful man in the world.

Self-reflection was not in a woman's nature, and yet at this moment, Ingrid sat in her room, disparaged by everything that had occurred in these last few months. No man wanted her, after rumors of her actions had spread across the Nobility of Scandinavia.

At most, she would be able to marry the second or third prince of some backwater, like Scotland. Something she could never be satisfied with after living in the Reich for the past few years. Needless to say, her future was utterly ruined.

While Ingrid sulked in her depression, Alvar bit his nails with anxiety. If he did not solve this dispute soon, then his reign would come to a bitter and bloody end. However, after so rudely biting the hand that fed him, he would have to grovel like a properly beaten hound, something which he knew Berengar would take full advantage of. The price for his sins would be heavy, and Alvar did not know if he could actually afford it.

Despite this reality, the Danish King had no option but to escape from the mob outside his gates and enter the German Embassy in Copenhagen, hoping that they would have some means to contact the Kaiser of the German Empire. With this in mind, he carefully plotted his venture before embarking towards his destination.

The call came late in the night. So much so that when the maid entered the Kaiser's bedchamber to awaken her master, Berengar was lying naked in his bed, next to his sister and cousin, all three of whom were fast asleep.

After being physically reborn, Berengar's body no longer required many hours of sleep. Four was a healthy number, and despite this fact, he hated more than anything to be unnaturally awoken from his slumber.

Thus, when the servant entered his room and quietly woke him, Berengar glared at the woman with intense fury. An act which caused the girl to shiver in fear. She could barely get the words out of her mouth as she informed the man of what had occurred north of his borders.

"M... My... Kaiser... There is a telephone call for you from the German Embassy in Copenhagen. They apologize for contacting you at this late hour, but the ambassador says the matter is urgent."

Berengar rose out of his covers and sighed heavily when he heard this, his pale white figure glistening under the moonlight. A sight which caused the maid to flush in embarassment. Though she had on more than one occasion seen her master naked, she had never gotten accustomed to the sight.

Naturally, as a man who was confident in his own appearance, Berengar did not care in the slightest that his flesh was exposed for the young woman to see. Instead, he climbed out of his bed nonchalantly, and wrapped a silk robe around his body, before informing the girl to make some preparations for his call.

"Prepare me a cup of coffee. If I'm going to be entertaining Alvar this late at night, then I will need something to help keep me awake."

The girl instantly nodded her head before running off from the room to do as she was instructed. Meanwhile, Berengar yawned as he left his bedroom and strode through his halls until finally entering his study, where he quickly shut the door behind him. Berengar then sat down at his desk where he dialed the German Embassy in Copenhagen on his telephone.

Over the past two years, Berengar had invested a substantial sum of money into establishing a landline phone network, which extended across the entirety of the fatherland, as well as into Denmark, for swift contact with the German Embassy in the region.

Currently, there were even efforts to lay down transatlantic underwater cables so that Berengar could have easier contact with his colonies. His plan was for in the next five years to have an empire wide phone network, which would allow all citizens from every corner of the Empire to contact one another with their personal telephones.

After his call went through, Berengar heard a rather timid voice answer the line. The Kaiser recognized who it was immediately. The voice belonged to the German Ambassador to the Kalmar Union.

"My Kaiser, I am terribly sorry to awake you at this ungodly hour, but the High King of the Kalmar Union is sitting in my office, begging for a chance to speak with you. I figured this matter was urgent enough to warrant this terrible sin of mine."

Berengar sighed and rubbed his fingers onto the bridge of his nose, as he struggled to deal with this matter with some form of tact. He was silent for several moments before speaking to his ambassador.

"It's fine, put Alvar on the line..."

The obvious hint of dissatisfaction in the Kaiser's voice did not go unnoticed, but rather than further waste his superior's time, the German Ambassador quickly did as instructed. The moment Berengar heard Alvar breathing on the other end, he began to chew out the man.

"You have a lot of nerve for calling me so late at night. Whatever you have to say, get on with it. I don't want to waste any more time than I have to..."

Despite the obvious rudeness in Berengar's tone, Alvar bit his tongue and spoke like a properly beaten dog, with the utmost respect in his voice.

"Kaiser Berengar von Kufstein. I ask this as your friend and ally. Hasn't this blockade gone on long enough? My people are dying! You've already eliminated those who were responsible for the grave sin of human trafficking. Won't you lift your sanctions already and restore the peace between our realms?"

Contrary to the response Alvar was expecting, Berengar merely scoffed. The moment he did, so the door opened to reveal his maid, who had prepared him a proper cup of coffee. She handed the cup over to her master before silently leaving. Once she was gone, Berengar took a sip from his drink before responding to Alvar's questions.

"Where was this respect when you were last in my palace? While I am away on important matters of state, my wife saves your kingdom from open rebellion, while your bitch of a daughter takes advantage of my underage son.

And yet, you dare behave so rudely to my woman, even after everything she has done for you? Maybe it would have been better to have removed you along with the catholics. You have disappointed me, Alvar."

Berengar could practically hear the Danish King bow his head in regret on the other end of the line. However, he did not give the man a chance to speak, and instead made his demands outright.

"There is only one way that I will reopen my borders and continue trading with your realm. The day that my son Kristoffer comes of age and marries your granddaughter Astrid, you are to name him your sole heir. You are then to abdicate your throne and forsake any claims your family has to it. This is non-negotiable.

It has become increasingly clear to me that only a member of my household is fit to rule over the North. Swear to me that you will do this under pain of death, and I will restore things to the way they were prior to your lack of respect."

Alvar had known when he first visited the German Embassy that he would have to pay a heavy price to re-establish ties with the Reich. However, to give up his throne to an outsider. That was far too cruel for him to accept.

And yet, the man had no choice. If the flow of goods from the Reich was not restored soon, the most likely outcome would be open rebellion. Something he was not prepared to face. Especially if Berengar decided to fund the rebels.

Not only that, but his granddaughter was essentially a hostage at this point in time. She had remained in the Reich while Alvar had taken his daughter home with him. If he refused this demand, any number of things could happen to the sweet little girl.

Of course, Berengar would never harm a hair on the innocent girl's head. He was many things, but a monster was not one of them. Still, Alvar did not know this, and thus he sighed heavily before finally accepting his utter defeat.

"Very well. If that is the price to pay, I shall pay it in full. I swear to you, that the moment your son comes of age, and marries my granddaughter, I will name him my sole heir, before abdicating my throne, and forsaking any claims my family might have to it, once and for all. If I fail to live up to this vow, then you may claim my worthless life whenever you see fit."

The line remained silent for several moments as Berengar continued to sip on his coffee with a sadistic sneer on his face. It was only after he had finished his drink did he respond to the Danish King's vow.

"Good... Get a good night's rest, Alvar, for tomorrow I will reopen my borders and restart the flow of goods into your lands. I trust you won't disappoint me a second time."

After saying this, Berengar hung up the line, not giving the man a chance to respond. Though Alvar had no way of knowing it, Berengar had recorded the entire conversation. Thus, even if Alvar did try to back out of this deal, the evidence of his pledge would still exist, and could easily delegitimize the Danish King and his entire family line.