Eiche
This too shall pass.
Osterley felt Newkirk lean in close, speaking into her ear rather than raising his voice.
"It's unlikely that both Moritz and Yorck are here. We should eliminate the one and find the other."
"But how?"
"Go with Beckton. Provoke them into firing at you. I will handle it from there."
She fished a fresh magazine from her apron pocket, reloaded her weapon, then nodded. Private Carson and the other GIs fired wildly around the corner to cover her, and she ran nimbly out into the road before ducking behind a slightly scorched delivery van.
The Army troops had made considerable progress even during their short conversation - the enemy spellcaster had clearly decided to take stock in the light of Newkirk's dramatic entrance, and without the extra support the overcoated force was being pushed back.
Osterley stayed behind the van only briefly, checking the route was clear before moving on - her real object of interest was a huge red fire truck resting on blown-out tires further up the street.
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HSAR
Operation Eiche was a German raid carried out in Italy to liberate the deposed Benito Mussolini from captivity. Paratroopers stormed the hotel he was staying in, overwhelmed the guards in a brief struggle, then flew their target out in a plane modified for short-distance takeoff and landing.
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The whipcrack sound of a bullet flying past brought Osterley out of her metathaumaturgical musing. S…
Bernhard- Published 6 years ago.
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HSAR
I would like to pause to briefly note that, although unnoticed by the point-of-view character Osterley, someone has taken command of the green-uniformed GIs in the absence of their sergeant. Agent Beckton shall never receive the credit he's due, except here in the comments.
Newkirk is simply applying common sense here - Yorck and Moritz could not have foreseen that the local garrison would have been such an obstacle, nor be so quick to respond, but they would not have let themselves be so distracted from their most important goal, to get Bleecker.
In earlier drafts Newkirk brushed aside the enemy bullets and walked out unimpeded to face the two enemy spellcasters. While that might be an accurate depiction of him at the height of his power, he chooses to deploy his magic much more sparingly here. Furthermore, I wanted to save such a daunting display of how much more powerful wizards are than human soldiers for a later, more impactful moment in the story.