Tyranny of Steel



Immediately after Eckhard's death, Berengar began preparations for the man's funeral. He would not spare a single expense in ensuring that the entirety of the German Empire mourned the loss of his greatest friend. 

Before long, the leaders of the Reich, had gathered once more in Kufstein, specifically within its Grand Cathedral to mourn the passing of one of its greatest heroes. The sad truth of the matter was that most people paid their respects to Berengar's parents, simply because of the fact that they were his parents. 

Their greatest act in life was raising Berengar to be the world's greatest leader. But Eckhard was different. His actions had changed world history and had deliberately led to the creation of the German Empire. 

There was a line as long as the eye could see, waiting to pay their respects to the General who had been by Berengar's side from the very beginning. A man who was in the eyes of many a military genius, second only to the Great Kaiser. 

Naturally, Berengar himself was at the funeral front and center like he had been for his parents. Once more Ludolf, now an elderly man himself, had gathered the masses in his cathedral so that he may properly send off a man of great importance to the afterlife. 

The sermon was brief, but was sufficient to honor the dead, where Ludolf then asked those who were particularly close to Eckhard to step forward and speak a few words about them. Unlike his parents, Berengar did not go first this time. Instead, he silently waited, as his wives held his hands in a desperate attempt to comfort a man whose friends and relatives were dropping like flies. 

Eventually after Eckhard's wives, and children each said their words, Adelbrand stepped forward, and spoke of the battles he had fought by the man's side. As did the other Generals who had served during Eckhard's time. 

Then the men who had attended his lectures at the Academy stepped forward to speak of how great of an instructor he was, and how his lessons had saved their lives during the wars that followed his retirement. 

And finally, after everyone of the note had told their stories, Berengar stepped forward. Like with his parents, there was a completely stoic look on his face as he took the podium to say his final farewell to a man who he had started this long journey with. 

"Eckhard von Marienburg, or Eckhard von Hallstatt as I had known him, was a man who was very influential in my life's story. When I met Eckhard, he was nothing more than a beggar knight, who had travelled across Austria, and ended up in my father's lands in search of little more than wine. 

In those days, I had just begun to form a militia, of peasants who would form what would eventually become the backbone of what is today the German Army. In those days, firearms were frowned upon for being crude and ineffective. But my designs were superior, and Eckhard immediately realized their potential. 

He stepped forward, and swore his service not to my father, who was at the time the Baron of Kufstein, but to myself, as my sworn knight, and protector. But I had no need of a knight, because I already knew that my weapons would shortly bring about the end of their age.

What I needed was a General, someone who could not only understand the new tactics I was introducing, but train those with a mind for strategy in their use. And Eckhard was just this man. By now, most of you have seen the film the Mines of Wildschönau, which has become a classic film in our culture. And indeed, that story is based upon a true story. 

When I was buried beneath the mines, after my brother had betrayed me. It was Eckhard who gathered the militia in the dead of night, and marched them to save me. When I was too wounded to effectively lead the defense of the shantytown that had been established within the mine's immediate vicinity, it was Eckhard who commanded the militia to defeat the forces of the rebel lord. 

From that day forward, Eckhard had gained my trust and my loyalty. He quickly became among my closest confidants and followed my every order to perfection. Together, we overthrew the Habsburgs and united the Kingdom of Austria. And over the years, Eckhard led my forces to victory against all our foes, until finally Germany was reunited. 

Yet Eckhard's story did not end there. After uniting Germany into a single Empire, Eckhard asked me to allow him to retire. Which I allowed, because he had more than earned his peace. Under the condition, however, that he teaches at the War College in Vienna, which he did so marvelously. 

As you have already witnessed today, it was Eckhard's understanding of what became a new generation of warfare that allowed our officers to become the best in the world. Eckhard may no longer be with us, but his legacy lives on. Not only in the blood of his family, but in the minds of those officers who continue to teach at the Vienna War College, and all the students who carried his lessons into battle. 

Without Eckhard, there would be no Germany. Hell, without Eckhard, I would not have lived long enough to accomplish all of my deeds. So, today we mourn the loss of one of Germany's greatest heroes. And pray that his soul may finally find rest in the afterlife. Whatever that maybe..." 

After saying this, Berengar stepped down from the podium and rejoined the crowd. Where Ludolf began to perform the last rites of the deceased. Then, Berengar witnessed Eckhard's coffin be interred on the Earth. Just as had been done to his parents not too terribly long before. 

Unlike with his parents' funeral, Berengar did not forget that which followed. Instead, he held a grand feast in Eckhard's honor and announced the construction of the grand monument in the man's memory. For which the Reichstag immediately approved the funds for on the spot. 

Ultimately, it was decided that this monument not be built in Marienburg, where Eckhard had ruled as King of Prussia, but instead in Hallstatt, the small lake town in Austria where Berengar currently resided. After all, it was the place of Eckhard's birth, and where his old family had once ruled as landed knights long ago. 

Berengar himself would drink himself to sleep that night, as it was the only way he could overcome the grief that plagued his heart, knowing that yet another one of his friends and relatives was now buried beneath the dirt.