Barry Reese
Götterdämmerung
Foreword
Per the online dictionary, Götterdämmerung (göt·ter·däm·mer·ung) means: A turbulent ending of a regime or an institution, and you’d better believe ace new pulp fictioneer Barry Reese fully delivers on the promise of that title in this, the latest installment of his Sovereign City Saga.
For those of you stepping into Sovereign City for the first time, be prepared for a thrilling, if worrisome, visit to a town which teeters precariously on the edge of evil, and is in danger of falling into the dark abyss at any moment, were it not for the efforts of Laurus Gray and his superhuman associates.
As described by Reese: “There was an ambience to Sovereign City that spoke of lost idealism and tarnished dreams. It seeped into the bones and souls of the people who called the city home, leading many into lives of degradation and crime.”
The city itself is a major character in all the stories set within its borders. The descriptive passages concerning its haunted ambience make it seem alive with horrors both large and small. Its streets reek with an indescribable funk which the city’s inhabitants try to ignore with little success. But lately even the smell of Sovereign is even worse and the atmosphere has become so oppressive that there has been a sudden wave of suicides.
It’s 1938 as Götterdämmerung begins, and a newly married but weakened Lazarus Gray returns to the troubled metropolis, only to find it in greater danger than ever before. He senses the sudden increase of suicides is the harbinger of a coming encompassing terror. His fellow heroes The Gravedigger, The Perigrine and Gray’s own Assistance Unlimited crew are aware of the rising tide of evil, too. For the first time all are compelled to work as an uber-team against the machinations of evil whose seeds were sown a year before in Nazi Germany.
There, in an attempt to curry Adolf Hitler’s favor, Heinrich Himmler created the Occult Forces Project, aimed at creating a Nazi army of superhumans gifted with supernatural powers. And he, to his future regret, has succeeded. Creatures with vile powers now work with the German empire, but only insofar as it serves their own goal of the ultimate domination and destruction of mankind, including Herr Hitler and his mad Reich.
Reese deftly weaves a complex tale featuring not only the heroes and villains of his own creation, but his fresh new takes on classic characters like the Black Bat, Heap, and Black Terror, as well as the historical figures who become major players in this alternate history. And Götterdämmerung, the sudden turbulent fall, is an appropriate description of what happens to every group of heroes, villains and demons involved in the story. Including an ending which shakes the Sovereign City universe to its very foundation.
This is the epic hero crossover you wish the editors at Street and Smith and Standard would have granted their readers back in the heyday of the pulps.
Will Meugniot
2015
CHAPTER I
Broken Men, Broken Dreams
Heinrich Himmler was nervous. He sat perfectly still, barely touching his food, as the Füehrer ate in front of him. They were sitting outside on a patio, enjoying a sunny day at Hitler’s mountain home, The Berghof, and Himmler found himself unable to appreciate the lovely view the site provided.
“You aren’t hungry?” the Austrian asked, gesturing at Himmler’s plate with a fork. “Herr Kannenberg will be insulted.”
“Your chef’s culinary skills are second to none, Mein Füehrer.” Himmler reached up and pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. “Alas, I had a large breakfast.”
Hitler nodded and finished his own meal. A vegetarian, Hitler was quite exacting about the quality of his food and the Bavarian chef was rightfully renowned for the savory and rich creations he produced.
When he was done, Hitler dabbed at the corners of his mouth and set his napkin on the table. Immediately, servants appeared and carried away the plates. “I want to talk to you about The Ahnenerbe.”
Himmler nodded, having known that this moment was coming. The Ahnenerbe had been founded in 1935 by Himmler, Herman Wirth, and Richard Walther Darre, with the express purpose of providing new evidence of the accomplishments and merits of their Germanic ancestors. To that purpose, they had chosen the name Ahnenerbe, which meant “Inheritance of the Forefathers.” To the public, they went by the rather ostentatious name of Forschungs und Lehrgemeinschaft das Ahnenerbe e.V., which translated in English as “The Research and Teaching Community of the Ancestral Heritage, registered society.” It was all a bit showy, even for Himmler, who believed in its purpose with all his black heart.
“What would you like to know, Mein Füehrer?” he asked, hoping his voice betrayed no concern.
“The group has grown by leaps and bounds,” Hitler pointed out, leaning forward and staring at Himmler with the intensity that so spellbound his followers. “And I have approved of this at every stage. When you asked for 300,000 Reichsmark to build that headquarters in the Dahlem neighborhood of Berlin, did I balk? No! And when you started opening all those departments of research, I nodded and said, ‘Good, Good.’ Isn’t this so?”
“You have always been very supportive,” Himmler confirmed.
“And all of the expeditions related to the group — all approved and very good. But now I learn of something called… the Geheimnisvolles Kraft-Projekt? It seems very expensive and I know nothing of it!” Hitler’s eyes blazed now and he reached across the table to tap it with a forefinger. “You do not keep secrets from me, Heinrich. Ever.”
“I did not mean to do so,” Himmler stammered, feeling sweat on his upper lip. “The Occult Forces Project is something quite radical and I wanted to have several successes before I unveiled it to you. I only wanted to please you.”
“Successes,” Hitler repeated. “Like Strauss and Raeder?”
Himmler failed to hide his surprise and Hitler suddenly smiled.
“Yes, I know of them. I know everything you’ve been doing. Nothing escapes my attention.” Hitler stared hard at him, that smile still on his lips. “And I am pleased!”
Himmler relaxed, letting loose a breath that he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding. “You are?”
“Of course! A new breed of German soldier to combat the likes of Leonid Kaslov, The Peregrine and Lazarus Gray? It is much needed! Those degenerates are capable of seizing the public’s mind and we need to answer it and show our superiority. I have already spoken to Goebbels and he will ensure that the press covers them to the fullest.” Hitler paused and added, “But they need names that speak to the people.”
Himmler thought it over and replied, “They have codenames we use for their files. Strauss is known as Geist and Raeder is The Silver Wolf.”
“Good, good. All future creations will have the same sort of thing. Understood?”
“Of course, Mein Füehrer!”
“And we have more of these soldiers on the way?”
“Many more! And not just soldiers… We have plans for things that could be much, much bigger. We are looking into the very forces of creation itself!” Himmler felt emboldened and added, “From a public relations standpoint, we may even have something in the works that Goebbels could work his magic on.”
“Go on.”
“You’re familiar with the story of Baron Eric Von Emmelmann?” Seeing the Füehrer’s nod, Himmler said, “He was a great German hero before his plane was shot down over a Polish swamp in 1918. Amazingly, he has somehow survived, though in greatly altered form. Through sheer force of will, he clung to the smallest shred of life, even as his body decayed and melded with the vegetation around him. His body is now a heap of plant-life and human flesh but there is an intelligence in those alien eyes!” Himmler sighed. “Unfortunately, he escaped his holding cell and is now somewhere loose in the countryside but he will soon be back in our grasp. His survival is proof of the strength of German will!”