Chapter 398: Establishing Special Operations (1/2)

Berengar, Linde, and Hemma were currently within the King's Office inside the Royal Palace. As Berengar sat down at his seat, Linde stood by his side as they read the report given to them by the Deputy Director of Royal Intelligence.

Hemma had proven herself a capable field agent in the past and was well aware of the dangers associated with the mission she had been ordered to give out to the men and women under her command. However, one of her people was captured, and she currently lacked the means to extract them from their compromised position.

The only option left was to ask for assistance from the armed forces, directly under Berengar's command as both King and Reichsmarschall of Austria. Berengar gazed at the report with a complicated expression; he knew that he had issued the order to assassinate high-profile targets, but taking out the leader of the Golden Horde was a rather foolish decision on Royal Intelligence's part.

After coming to a thorough understanding of the current situation, Berengar sighed heavily as he placed the report down upon his desk. After doing so, he put his fingers together in contemplation. He sat there in silence for a few moments before he finally asked the question on his mind.

”What is it exactly that you are requesting of me?”

Hemma gulped the saliva pooling in her mouth as she struggled to find the means to express her desire. Eventually, she steeled her resolved and asked Berengar for the support she had in mind.

”I request that you dispatch your forces to enter the camp covertly and either extract or eliminate Jürgen to prevent classified information from being leaked to the enemy.”

Berengar thought about the question at hand for a few moments. Though his field agents were talented in espionage, assassination, and sabotage, they were not skilled in military matters. As a result, if they attempted to rescue the target, it would fail.

Berengar had not thought of establishing a dedicated special operations unit until now. The reason was quite simple; he believed the superiority of his forces was so overwhelming that the use of specialized units to fulfill unconventional tasks was not required.

Yet, here he sat, with a mission that not even his Jaegers could easily pull off. After all, covert operations were not exactly in their job description; they were direct action, light infantry specialists.

With this in mind, he pulled out a piece of paper and began to draft a Royal Edict to immediately establish a task force under the command of the Austrian Royal Army. If Austria's Jaeger Corps were based upon the 75th Ranger Regiment from his past life, this unit would be based on the Green Berets.

This Special Forces unit would be labeled as Jagdkommandos and trained in land and seaborne operations. They would act as the silent professionals needed to complete Austria's dirty work. As for Airborne operations, unfortunately, Berengar did not yet have the means to manufacture aircraft; as such, he could not train them in such methods. After finishing the edict, Berengar put down his fountain pen and announced his decision.

”I am authorizing the establishment of a special operations force, designed to handle covert operations like these. They shall be known as Jagdkommandos. They shall be equipped with specialized equipment for their missions that will not see use in the standard armed forces for many years; after all, for what I have in mind, we will only be able to produce a small number of such weapons. You have my permission to take whoever you see fit from the Army to establish this unit.

I want Agent Jürgen extracted alive if possible; however, if such a feat proves too challenging to achieve, he needs to be eliminated in a way that does not draw attention to us. A bayonet to the heart will suffice. You have two weeks to form this unit and dispatch them to Poland.  Any longer than that, and I fear the man will break and reveal everything.”

Hemma immediately stood up and saluted Berengar after receiving her orders. She did not know how effective the unit would be within two weeks; however, it was better than what she currently had available.

”Heil Victory!!”

After saying this, Berengar nodded, stood up, and returned her roman style salute before dismissing her. After doing so, he sat back down in his seat with a weary expression. Though the Golden Horde had split apart for the time being as they tried to elect a new Khan. One of his agents was captured and would require a specialized team to extract or eliminate him.

For the time being, the troops sent on this mission would undoubtedly be recruited from the most elite Jaegers and field agents; after their task was completed, they would be trained into the elite force that Berengar had mentioned earlier and equipped with more advanced weapons than what was currently available to his Army.

After dwelling upon this for a while, Berengar felt his shoulders being rubbed and looked up to see Linde's beautiful smile as she comforted him. After all, ordering the potential elimination of one of his agents was not easy to accept, and thus she knew her husband was likely conflicted.

”It's okay; even if it comes to what you fear most, he will have died for the sake of the Fatherland. What Jürgen knows can't be released to the Mongols. It would invite danger to the people here at home.”

Berengar began to relax as his second wife gave him a message. He knew the reasoning for doing such a horrid task, but just because it was logical did not make it any easier on his conscience. While Linde was rubbing his shoulders, Berengar cracked a joke to his wife about her Deputy Director.

”Hemma looked good in her uniform; maybe you should dress up in yours more often?”

When Linde heard this, she immediately rolled her eyes; though she was director of intelligence, she had never actually gotten a uniform tailored for herself. After all, she spent more time at home in the palace looking after the kids than she did at headquarters.

Because Austrian Royal Intelligence acted as both a Domestic and Foreign Intelligence agency, there were uniforms in place for members who spent most if not all of their time within the Nation's borders. These uniforms were partially based upon those of the Stasi from East Germany, with the primary difference being that the collars were in the form of those used by the Wehrmacht in WW2.