Re: Blood and Iron

Tsar Nicholas II stood within the hallowed steps of his family's luxurious palace. He was dressed in full ceremonial regalia, as he gazed upon the painting commissioned by one of his court artisans. The piece depiction Bruno in almost saintlike light.

Wearing his Russian Field Marshal uniform with full honors, which he had been granted, Bruno was clutching a Fedorov Avtomat to one arm while holding a Russian Orthodox bible within the same hand which the rifle was shouldered.

As for his free hand, it was held up in a religious position with Orthodox prayer beads dangling from it. The aura of light raining down on him, and the saintly circle behind his head did little to hide the fact of the veneration which the house of Romanov had to their great protector.

Passing by the painting which Nicholas was inspecting with a satisfied smirk on his face was his youngest daughter, Anastasia. The painting depicted Bruno in his younger years, as he was when he first met the Russian Tsar.

And Anastasia was just a little girl back then, barely able to remember the sight of the Red Scourge who had devastated the Bolshevik Party and their other Marxist allies in a brutal civil war of extermination.

Even so, she knew exactly who Bruno was, not only from the handful of times she had met him since, but as well as the fact that his face was constantly in the papers.

However, most notable of all was the fact that while she was growing up beside her oldest sister, the girl was constantly gushing on about the man, and even secretly wore a necklace which concealed a photo inside of it for many years.

Anastasia's remarks on the painting, which was photorealistic, and depicted a much younger version of Bruno displayed her shock at how little he had aged over the years.

"Father, is that really how he appeared all those years ago during the war? I saw his appearance in the paper last week. He does not look a decade older in the slightest?"

Nicholas sighed before glancing towards his daughter with a stern gaze. He was quick to lay down the law with her as he had failed to do with Olga years prior.

"Anastasia, if you are remotely even developing feelings for the man, I will put my foot down right now. I tolerated your sister's infatuation with my dear friend for a while, because I thought they were just passing fancies of a young girl. But I will not have you end up heartbroken like her when you realize that your dreams will not remotely come true…."

The young Russian grand duchess was quick to correct her father's misunderstandings, as she denied having any inclinations towards Bruno while clarifying why she had asked.

"Oh heavens no, the man is practically old enough to be my father! I was merely surprised at how well he has aged, considering what I have heard regarding the rapid aging men go through while at war!"

Aging was highly correlated with stress, the more stressed one was, the faster they aged. Typically, that is. Some people were just genetically gifted to age well, regardless. Bruno was of such a variety. In fact, his entire family line was.

But such knowledge wouldn't be come proven for many decades to come. And as a result, the Tsar was quick to nod his head in agreement with his daughter's statement.

"Indeed, the man seems to be keeping the specter of time away somehow. Or perhaps war is simply his place in this world and has no effect on him as a result. It would most certainly explain why he is such a visionary in the field…"

This, of course, prompted the Princesses' next question, one that her royal father was not the least expecting.

"Speaking of… Father… Are we going to field tanks of our own? I have heard that the Allies are now building them by the thousands, so then why must the Germans be the only ones to produce their Panzers? Is our empire so behind that we lack the industry to do so?"

Considering it was his youngest daughter posing this question to him, and not his only son, the Russian Tsar was rather perplexed why she seemed to care so much about military matters, or politics in General and was naturally quick to inquire about the origin of her knowledge.

"And who exactly has been telling you about the ongoings of the war? How do you even know what tanks are?"

Naturally, this information had come from Olga, who had remarkably loose lips when it came to what she and her little cabal of imperial princesses discussed over the phone regarding the war effort and Bruno's role in it.

Curiously enough, Anastasia's eldest sister was quick to the rescue as she confirmed it had been her to speak of the matters.

"I assure you, father, this is entirely my fault. I was discussing the matter with the Archduchess Hedwig and the Princess Victoria-Louise. We have a vested interest in the war after all, and have been discussing what we have been able to learn to regard its current state…"

The Grand Duchess looked almost guilty as she said this, and Nicholas narrowed his gaze at her. Sighing heavily as he shook his head, not wanting to get into a discussion about his eldest daughter still having some inclination towards Bruno and his wellbeing. Instead, he shifted the subject towards answering what Anastasia had asked him.

"It's only a prototype design, but yes we have learned quite a bit regarding tanks, and how they function as a result of studying the German Panzers in the field. And we do believe that we have something that while maybe not as effective as the German designs will most certainly be able to help our allies push through the Italian ranks in the alps.

By the summer we hope to field an armored battalion in full support of the German advance. Would you like to see our current design?"

The two young Grand Duchesses were shocked that their father, the Tsar of the Russian Empire, had even bothered asking if they wanted to see the current prototype. But they were both quick to agree without any hesitation on their part.

"Lead the way!"