He had made peace with his fate.
That's what he continually told himself, as he stared at the cyanide pill he had placed before him.
He reflected on his life; his accomplishments, his goals, his family and his fate. He had informed and made peace with his family, but he could only feel anger at the choices his Fuhrer had given him.
He had perpetually served the state, and in connection served the Fuhrer, yet he was given the horrifying choices of either committing suicide or risk having his family punished for a crime he had no associations with.
He stared around his room; it being windowless and having one door. He was somewhat grateful that the guards gave him privacy, but the emptiness of the room amplified his dread.
He took a deep breath.
He grabbed the pill.
"..."
He stared at it for the last time; eyeing its shape cautiously.
.
14th October 1944. Death of Erwin Rommel.
.
Rommel opened his eyes. Darkness greeted him. He tried to move, but his attempts turned into futile frails as he seemed to be in a vacuum. He began to think.
"Where am I?" He asked; his voice echoing as if he was in a long tunnel. Was he in purgatory? Was this hell? Was this punishment for all the lives he had failed to save by ignoring the Fuhrer's camps?
He continued to think of the possibilities; ignoring the light which was quickly approaching him, which eventually surrounded him as the darkness had before.
Rommel looked around himself; "What is going o-"
*FWOOSH!*
Rommel's surrounding scene immediately changed into the sky, as he was sent diving towards the ground almost immediately.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Rommel desperately frailed in the air; not realising his new appendages and body. He willed himself to stop; to slow; TO FLY!
An inhuman and unfamiliar instinct immediately took over, as Rommel's body acted on its own to save its host; angling the torso, wings and limbs to glide and hopefully avoid the ground.
His body's attempts would be futile, however, as he was sent rolling into the ground as he had accumulated too much speed. His tumbles would be stopped by a slam against a tree; causing leaves to fall around him whilst he groaned in pain.
"Urghh..." He groaned, as he surprisedly picked himself up almost instantly, owing to his new, sturdier body. He began rubbing his head and removing the dirt from his eyes, which made him finally notice his new appendages.
He recoiled from his claws but immediately leaned towards it with a glare. "...Huh...." He further observed his entire body; noticing his wings, feathers and a lower half that resembled a lion. "Am I... A griffon?"
He scratched his chin. At first, he thought he was in the afterlife; in heaven or between based on the fact that nothing was burning or screaming around him. It would explain his new anatomy, and why he felt very little pain, and why he felt like he could lift an entire train.
But he quickly dismissed it, as he had no fantasies, dreams nor hope to ever become a griffon. He hadn't even considered it once! So, he continued to think.
"It cannot be a dream... It can't be something from the bible... Perhaps from Greek mythology?" Rommel pondered; not even getting close to the real answer. His self-questioning would be interrupted, however, as he began to hear an unmissable noise; soldiers marching.
He immediately scrambled off the tree; madly dashing towards the sound until he saw a road. A road with marching... Griffons?
He squinted at the distant soldiers, and in doing, accidentally zoomed into them, causing him to yell loudly in surprise; garnering the soldiers' attentions.
"OI! WHO GOES THERE?!" A soldier shouted as he and the rest of his squad took flight towards the sound.
"They're speaking English?" Rommel realised, while his claws were still firmly clasped around his beak. "The last time I spoke English was speaking to the POWs' in North Africa..." Rommel reflected, as he realised he would need to speak it again for this situation.
"Looks like a savage sir, no clothes." One of the soldiers said as he and the others landed behind Rommel.
"Oh great... We're going to have to babysit another one..." An imposing figure among them muttered as he gestured for two of the men to follow him, "On me... Don't want the native to scratch my beaks off..."
Rommel cleared his throat, (A little footnote; Erwin Rommel's fluency with English is disputed, but his accounts with British POWs' suggest he was pretty fluent with the language) "Where am I?" He asked; not bothering to ask about the 'savage' bit, based on his lack of clothes.
"Somewhere far worse if you resist," The imposing figure responded, as the two soldiers following him grabbed Rommel by the shoulders, and began carrying him.
As Rommel continued to observe the soldiers and their uniforms, he realised it; "YOUR UNIFORMS! THEY'RE GERMAN!" He yelled whilst pointing at them; flinging the soldier who had his arms around his away.
The imposing figure- which Rommel had identified as a sergeant based on the uniform, stared at the flung griffon in disbelief. He violently shook his head, and growled at Rommel, pointing a gun at his head. "WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT RESISTING MAGGOT?!"
Rommel recoiled from the barrel but retained his expressions; "Sorry... Getting used to the strength... But your uniforms! They're parade designs from the Great War!"
"-The what now?" The other soldier holding him asked in bewilderment; having snapped away from his shock of his friend being flung aside so easily.
Rommel pondered at the question; "Okay... So this isn't some bizarre alternate universe... But why are they wearing German Uniforms and have German weapons?" His eyes began to wander and centre at the gun's holster; which had an unmissable inscription of the Mauser brand.
"Mauser..? The Luger?" Rommel sputtered out, causing the sergeant to hesitate and lower his pistol.
"-Wait. How did you know the name of the pistol?" The sergeant raised a brow, "No savages would know these bad boys!" The sergeant gently stroked the gun, causing Rommel to cringe at the displayed gun-worship.
"Could you please tell me where I am? I am no savage; despite the lack of clothes telling otherwise." Rommel firmly asked as the other soldier loosened his grip on his arms.
The sergeant looked to question his cluelessness but was cut off by the soldier he had just flung; who seemed to be perfectly fine. "You're in New-Alsace, my friend! In the newly incorporated territories of the said state that is!"
"...New... Alsace?" Rommel slowly sputtered; in disbelief of the familiarity.
"Yup! Our glorious Emperors has acquisition new land for our growing Empire!" The soldier chirped, "ALL HAIL BISMARCK AND MAUSER!" He cheered; prompting the rest of his squad to do as well.
Rommel simply blinked.
"...I would like an audience with the emperors..." Rommel quietly asked.
He would need to pass through a horde of bureaucracy to meet them... But eventually, he would.
very nice to see Rommel, one of my favorite German officers
10938567
If Patton doesn't get chosen in the polls, I will consider adding him in later to join Rommel AnD hIS wAcKy AdVeNtUrEs
How am I supposed to write Roosevelt and Churchill as changelings?
I am going to have a bad day...
How many chapters long will this story be?
10938605
I can imagine Churchill being more like a Yak that has a balding head (for whatever reason) that is the kind to make his own cigars when he can't find any.
Just imagine a British Yak with a 'home made' cigar in a top hat and a suit on the verge of ripping from his size.
You may wish to prepare yourself Rommel. Once you’ve established that you’re also from their world and you let them know exactly what happened after they were gone, all hell is gonna break loose with Bismarck. If he doesn’t attempt to murder you right there, I expect him to have a stroke/heart attack or both at the same time from the emotions he’d be feeling. As a historian once put it:
Abhorred that an Austrian, (a freaking Austrian!), was able to rise through the political ranks of Germany and ascend to the highest post of Chancellor. A stain on Germanic history for Bismarck, someone who went to great pains to prevent the Catholic state from joining his newly christened union.
Aghast at the expansionist tendencies of the Fuhrer, especially in regard to Russia. A pure amateur in his eyes, Bismarck would agree with the decision to sign the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact but again would recoil in horror at its very disintegration with Operation Barbarossa, at least without serious diplomatic support from allied nations.
Disappointed in how his precious Junker class has now become subservient to this Austrian corporal, a commoner with no noble heritage, no house of repute, nothing to his name except vitriol hatred and the pantomime of anti-Semitism.
Infuriated at the loss of Prussia and the ham-fisted nature of the Fuhrer’s attempts to reclaim it, even after threats of war materialized from both Great Britain and France. A master of realpolitik, this recklessness would almost certainly earn the ire of the Iron Chancellor.
Confusion as to why the Fuhrer would purposely antagonize Great Britain, knowing the latter’s role in maintaining what she saw as a favorable status-quo.
Nostalgic for the times of the monarchy, long since removed from Germany and replaced with a new model of dividing federalism, divisions and all.
Revolted at the very nature of the Holocaust and the stain it would leave on Germany in the decades to come, unable to escape it nor redeem itself. If there ever was to be a permanent stain on a country’s record, the Holocaust stands in sad attention as a mistake that should have never been committed. A once proud Germany built by Bismarck all but relegated to mediocrity at the hands of an ignorant, malformed, and ultimately unstable Austrian corporal.
10938605
OH OH OH maybe make them be deers or something
10938650
I don't know. I'll probably just disappear before I finish this
10938735
*vanishes from reality for a month due to school*
10938768
Good idea!
10938734
I can't. The poll controls me now
Alright. Now the ponies stand no chance.
10938605
You could use the runner up and have them be dragons? Can see that a bit easier.
If not, then have them figure out their powers and infiltrate whatever civ they think suits them best and seize power. Maybe have them make a coalition of various other races, I dunno.
A fucking Nazi , seriously?
10938605
Churchill is a deceptive bastard without care for sentient live , Roosevelt Idkn. A characters you could include are Buenaventura Durruti and Companys
Oh yeeeees! It's very gut
Shame you didnt went with hans Valentine hube one the lesser known german generals who in my opinion did a much better job at trying to save the reich then the likes of rommel manstein keitel etc
Bruh, another one comes.
10938912
not all garmins were nazis, not all nazis were garmins.
10939809
Nah Rommel was very loyal to Hitler and admired him.