There were a series of awards Bruno was to be given for his performance in the Great War. Like any Field Marshal of the era, it was not uncommon for the man to be granted decorations from allied nations.
But the Kaiser was adamant to be the first one to award his greatest general, and give Bruno what he felt the man had been owed for far, far too long. Because of this, it was a day of celebration for the German Reich and its allies.
Not just because of Bruno’s victories, but rather because of the scale of them. Whether it be the Boxer Rebellion, the Russo-Japanese War, or the Russian Civil War. All paled in scope when compared to the ongoing Great War, which involved nearly every continent of the planet in some capacity or another.
It had not been since Napoleon that a war of such magnitude had been waged. And yet, nobody could deny that the victory in the Balkans, and the lands east of it had been accomplished by a single man.
Bruno had not only led the charge in the Theater against Serbia, Albania, Bulgarian and the Ottoman Empire, but his defensive strategy which replaced the poorly thought out Schlieffen plan of his past life had proven to be a winning formula.
Losses on the Western and Alpine front for Germany and its allies were minimal. Over the course of a year, and against the combined might of the British, French, and Italian armies, the Central Powers in the west had suffered less than 50,000 casualties.
Meanwhile, the Allies in the same theater had lost well over 200,000 men so far, and had endured hundreds of thousands of more wounded in action. Had these western fortifications not been prepared in advance, and the German army equipped with an overwhelming technological advantage spearheaded by Bruno’s investments and personal intervention?
Then it was entirely likely that the war would be a brutal stalemate in the west right now, rather than a one-sided affair in favor of the Germans and Austro-Hungarians. Thus, despite no peace treaty having been signed, officially ending the war in the east, nor any negotiations for its terms having yet begun.
The fact remained that the enemies in the Balkans and the Near Eastern world were defeated in such a thorough fashion that their ability to continue to wage war was no longer existent. And as a result, an armistice was declared.
There was one man to thank for all of this, and that was Generalfeldmarschall Bruno von Zehntner, hence, why the Kaiser had recalled him, and the men of the 8th Army, which was directly under his operational authority back to Berlin.
First and foremost, to gain some much needed recuperation after nearly a year of hard fighting with little relief. And second, to reward the men who had conquered a theater of war without a single loss in battle to speak of.
Because of this, Bruno was standing in uniform before the German Kaiser, a man he had known for many years, a man who may think of himself as Bruno’s friend, but who Bruno himself believed was too humble to consider the same.
Wilhelm had just given a Grand Speech about the victory in the Balkans, what it meant for the future of the German Reich, and their allies in the Central Powers. And how the forces of the 8th Army would be granted much needed rest and respite, to heal their wounds, and prepare for war in the Spring after a proper treaty had concluded this theater of operation once and for all.
After which he stood before Bruno, the first of many men he would be granted honors for distinction in combat and military leadership on this day. And by the Kaiser’s side were several other members of the German High Command.
Each of which had looked down on Bruno in the past for his rapid rise in the military, which they felt was nothing more than an abuse of power on the Kaiser’s part, and a fragrant act of nepotism for a young military officer whose family had loose ties to the House of Hohenzollern.
But such rumors were long since obliterated by the overwhelming performance Bruno had shown in the field. By now, the man had personally led over a dozen major battles across the world, and throughout four major wars. Each of which proved pivotal in ending conflicts that could have otherwise spanned the course of years after the fact.
He was not only undefeated, but had obliterated the enemy he was fighting against in every battle he received. This was a rarity in human history, and because of this there were major awards to be given to any commander who could annihilate an enemy army, or force it to route and desert.
Highly distinctive awards even. One of those was currently being wrapped around Bruno’s collar by the Kaiser himself. There was a friendly smile on the man’s aging face as Bruno stared in awe at the legendary award. One he knew that only five men before.
The Pour le Mérite was already one of the most distinctive decorations a military officer of the Prussian and later Imperial German Amry could receive for his gallantry on the field of battle. But there were technically four grades of such an esteemed honor.
There was the Pour le Mérite, the Pour le Mérite with oak leaves, the Grand Cross of the Pour le Mérite, and the Grand Cross of the Pour le Mérite with oak leaves. The one which Bruno was being granted was the variation of the order without oak leaves.
However, after taking off the 1st Class of the Cross of the Iron Division, which was a medal recognized by the German Reich as an official military decoration granted to those who had performed to the same standards as deserving an Iron Cross First Class while serving as volunteers during the Russian Civil War.
The Kaiser took the medal Bruno previously had off of its ribbon and attached it to the link which would normally connect the Grand Cross of the Pour le Mérite to its own ribbon where it now hang below the greater and larger decoration.
The Kaiser then pulled out the second Medal Bruno was to be granted on this day, which was the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, and added it to the trio, where it now hung the highest and grandest of all the three medals.
After doing this, the Kaiser wrapped the black and white ribbon of the Grand Cross of the Iron around Bruno’s neck, which now contained three medals hanging perfectly in tandem with one another before fitting it neatly beneath his collar.
Where the Kaiser then pinned the Star of the Grand Cross of the Pour le Mérite beneath the medals Bruno already had pinned on the left side of his chest.
Having thoroughly given Bruno what he was due, as the man was now highly decorated in a way that was very fitting for his position. The Kaiser then wrapped the two ribbons of the 1st Class Cross of the Iron Division around Bruno’s shoulders, as well as the one for the Grand Cross of the Order of the Pour Le Merit.
Meaning that is it currently stood, Bruno had been awarded the China Medal, the 1st and 2nd Class Cross of the Iron Division, the 1st and 2nd Class of the Iron Cross, the Prussian Order of the Crown 3rd Class with Swords, the Knight’s Cross with Swords of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, the Grand Cross of the Grand Cross of the Pour le Mérite, and the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross.
There truly wasn’t much left for Bruno to earn at this point, as he had more or less been given all the major awards a Military Officer could receive for distinctions in combat and military leadership on the field of battle.
Even so, after saluting the Kaiser, the Kaiser smiled as he did the same, while the audience that witnessed this grand celebration cheered. Bruno had become a decorated war hero worthy of his achievements.
And as the defeaning cries of the crowd drowned out what needed to be said in private, the Kaiser leaned in and whispered a promise to Bruno, one that caught his surprise.
“By the time we win this war, you will have earned the oak leaves for that Pour le Mérite, and a star to match that Grand Cross of yours… That is assuming you continue to perform as you always have…”
Bruno’s response shocked the Kaiser, who had seldom seen the man smile in his life before this moment. But Bruno was quick to do so, gazing upon the medals on his chest, thinking that maybe, just maybe, his previously cynical comments regarding chasing medals had been proven wrong here and now.
Because these medals, though worth little on the materials they were made from. Were invaluable to future generations of his family, who could gaze upon them and boast of the deeds that he had done in this life. And the excellence which he performed during a time of war that few men in history could match.
Hence, Bruno’s words were as much as a promise to the Kaiser as they were to himself as he responded to the German Emperor’s statement.
“I look forward to proving myself worthy of such honors in the coming days.”