Re: Blood and Iron-Chapter 482: Greater Hungary Restored
The Royal Hungarian Army had been through hell since the collapse of the Dual Monarchy. Words could not express how many of its men had been lost—a combination of desertion, drug overdose, attrition, and combat-related fatalities had plagued its numbers.
But things were changing. Hungary had more or less held its ground against a variety of pressing threats, and the banners of the independent kingdom now flew proudly once more. As per his agreement with the new king, Bruno had begun investing in the nation's infrastructure.
In doing so, he had enabled the production of a new generation of Hungarian armor. The best way to describe these tanks was as a Tas 44m built to the weight and size of a 40M Turán I, featuring a similar-sized main gun and a welded steel turret of comparable shape. Though built in small batches during the Great War, they were modern by regional standards and largely inspired by German armor designs.
Currently, soldiers deployed on the backs of these tanks Soviet-style—rifles in hand—jumped off the hulls the moment they entered the battlefield, while the tanks engaged in enemy armor and infantry as mobile support. It was an earlier form of armored doctrine, but still far more advanced than what the British were fielding, with their reliance on tanks as mobile shields for advancing infantry.
Though inferior to the German Army, within the Balkans, this was the greatest military force in the region. And with it, the King of Hungary planned to move his armored divisions into the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia, which was attempting to secede from Hungary and establish an independent national government.
There was one problem. The King of Hungary considered those lands his by right—of history and of blood—due to the significant Hungarian minority still residing there. It was a similar reason which propelled his attempt to annex Transylvania, which itself was still a matter of grievance between him and Bruno.
This was only one of several contested borders Hungary faced, but it was the most active. As a result, the Hungarian king had devoted substantial effort to modernizing and mobilizing his military along the Croatian frontier, with the aim of seizing Zagreb in a swift and brutal campaign modeled after Bruno's push into Albania during the Great War.
In this day and age, any army without tanks was effectively begging to be obliterated by one that had them. And Croatia had inherited little from the Austro-Hungarian Army's former stockpile.
After weeks of preparation, everything was in place. The Hungarian king stood ready to give the order to march on Zagreb, to annex the disputed territories and extinguish any further dreams of Croatian sovereignty before they could truly take root.
Inside the war room, his generals gathered to finalize operational details and discuss the deployment of the armored divisions. One general, however, raised a concern that had been quietly circulating.
"With all due respect, Your Majesty, do you think it's wise to escalate these border skirmishes into a full-blown war? If we provoke the Lion of Tyrol, it would be an unmitigated disaster."
Still bitter over Bruno's interference in the Transylvanian affair, and the role he played in Hungary's current precarious position, the king barely restrained himself from snapping. His voice came out cold and tight, teeth clenched as he hissed his reply:
"Bruno von Zehntner may be powerful, and he may control the German Armed Forces, but he is not the Emperor of Europe. He has no right to interfere in a war between us and the Croatians. We have a valid casus belli, and I will not be denied my right to pursue claims which my house has maintained for generations simply because it offends his sensibilities."
He turned back toward the operational map, eyes burning with conviction.
"The preparations are complete. Our soldiers are in place. Our supply lines are secure. Give the order. While the enemy sleeps, we strike. By the time they awaken, they will see the Hungarian flag raised above their homes and cities—as it should have been all along."
Silence followed. No man in the room dared challenge their king further. And in truth, he was right. Bruno had no desire to intervene in the conflict east of the Adriatic.
He wanted Hungary to reclaim the lands they believed were theirs—on their own. Only through struggle and sacrifice would they gain the foresight and experience necessary to stand as a meaningful ally in the wars to come.
If Germany and Russia fought every battle for their allies, what would be left of those nations except dependency?
So, as the sun began to set over the Croatian and Slovenian frontiers, tank engines rumbled to life. Orders were shouted. Men climbed onto painted hulls, weapons ready. And the first armored spearheads pushed past Hungary's borders.
One way or another, Zagreb would fall. Either Hungary would reclaim the lands it had lost, or this would spiral into a long and brutal hell.
Bruno would watch either way. Because as of that evening, his greatest concern was no longer in the Balkans, nor across the Atlantic. It was west of the Reich—in France.
And what he saw there made him uneasy. Things were unraveling fast. And if left unchecked, they could become far worse than even he had imagined. However, the matter could not be recklessly interfered with.
Too many players were actively tampering with the board, and Bruno who had chosen to be an observer until now did not want to make a move too quickly, or violently. To do so posed the very real possibility of provoking the ire of all others with a stake in France. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
As for the fate of Croatia? Only they could determine what it would be, as they alone could resist the tidal wave of steel that was about to come their way. Whether their attempt to become an independent nation would be crushed in its infancy, or serve as an example for the Balkans to follow only time would tell.
