German Plans: The GD General Staff divided the available men and “terminators” into 123 divisions, in four army groups. Army Group A under General Holk contained three armies and Army Group B under General Zeller had three armies. They held the bulk of the North American GD force and had the farthest to fight and travel.
Holk’s task was to smash through the Canadians along the Quebec-Ontario border, driving south toward Detroit in a classic blitzkrieg run. Behind would follow Zeller, mopping up bypassed enemy positions. The initial prize was Southern Ontario between Lake Huron, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Before reaching the final goal of Detroit, the GD would reveal the campaign’s true objectives. Turning sharply left—from the German perspective—waterborne hovercraft, tanks and infantry would launch across Lake Ontario and Lake Erie in an amphibious-blitzkrieg surprise. Once reaching the other side, they would begin the invasion of New York and Northern Pennsylvania, heading in the direction of the Atlantic Coast.
The timing of the second hook would be critical. Once the lead elements of Army Group A and B reached the western Appalachian foothills, Operation Poseidon would commence. The amphibious force in Cuba—General Kaltenbrunner’s Army Group D of two armies—was to land along the New Jersey shores. Their task was to drive northwest toward Niagara Falls-Buffalo. The two-pronged pincer move would meet in mid-state New York and Northern Pennsylvania, trapping the bulk of the American force holding New England, New York and New Jersey.
To the north of the New England states was Army Group C of Marshal Fromm, holding Quebec and occupied New Brunswick. The area south of the Saint Lawrence River contained three smaller GD siege armies. Their task was to protect the Saint Lawrence River lifeline.
The proposed destruction of large American and Canadian forces would bring four critical results. It would 1) sustainably weaken the North American allies 2) broaden GD holdings behind defensible terrain 3) allow Kleist to begin his political experimentation in North America and 4) provide a suitable springboard for the 2041 offensives.
American plans. With the bulk of Army Canada stationed along the Quebec-Ontario border, the Prime Minister and his Chief of Staff continued to argue for an invasion of Quebec. Combined with New England forces and the coming summer reinforcements, they would have more flesh and blood numbers than the GD. The Canadians insisted President Sims honor his word and commence Operation Liberty against Quebec. The debate continued to rage until the German invasion forced the Allied hand.
Chinese plans. Exhausted by last year’s offensives, the Chinese planned to eradicate all American partisans in occupied territories. Otherwise, they would hold in place. The Navy planned intensified anti-submarine warfare in the Pacific. Once the routes were secured, full rearmament of the Invasion Army could continue with accelerated speed.
2040, April 4-11. Occupation Maritime. GD shock troops disgorged from freighters in Canadian Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. In a relatively bloodless coup, airmobile brigades and a swift tank column from Quebec completed the occupation of these four Maritime Provinces. (Quebec already physically split them from the rest of Canada.) Heightened tensions poisoned edgy GD-American relations.
2040, May 26-June 10. The Ontario Assault. Following predawn bombardments of all major Ontario and nearby American airfields, GD air-superiority fighters quickly gained local dominance. Army Group A simultaneously gained operational surprise against the Canadians and northern New York forces. In true blitzkrieg fashion, German armor boldly raced south and west, cutting supply to large portions of the Canadian Army along the Quebec-Ontario border. The AI Kaiser hunter-killers and Leopard IV tanks proved devastating, as the Canadians had nothing to match them. Even so, the Canadians fought valiantly, reminding some GD generals of Polish courage and resistance in 1939. Army Group B followed in close coordination, engaging in hard-fought contests. On June 4, the Ottawa Pocket finally collapsed, netting the Germans 40,000 starving Canadians along with 200 tanks and 150 artillery pieces. GD hovertanks proved particularly effective along the Lake Ontario shores. On June 10, the Kingston Pocket surrendered and 70,000 Canadian and Americans troops marched into captivity.
The main Canadian Army was now split in two, with roughly 200,000 soldiers of Army Group West moving north to Sudbury and Manitoba. Roughly, another 200,000 Canadians of Army Group South retreated toward Toronto as the Germans followed. That left approximately 200,000 Canadians dead on the field of battle or marching into GD captivity.
2040, June 6-19. Drive on Toronto. The entire American strategic reserve (200,000) sped to Southern Ontario, linking with Canadian Army Group South. Ultimately, U.S. High Command wished to protect the new Behemoth Manufacturing Plant in Detroit. But they also concentrated on holding the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario: the urban concentration—one of the heaviest in North America—wrapped around the western edge of Lake Ontario from Oshawa-Toronto-Hamilton to Niagara Falls.
GD Army Group A (Holk) found increasing resistance as the Canadian formations rallied around the American veterans. In hard-fought, bloody battles, with “suicidal” Kaisers and Sigrid drones driving up the gut, Army Group A pushed into Markham. Before attempting to capture the bulk of the Golden Horseshoe, Holk wished to consolidate his weary forces and resupply.
Commanding General Mansfeld ordered Holk into an immediate full-scale attack. Then, in one of the most brilliant and bold maneuvers of the war, Mansfeld initiated the first GD mass airdrop of tanks, a corps level event. It caught the Allies by surprise and trapped substantial forces in Toronto, splitting Southern Ontario Allied Command. GD “terminator” battalions began the harrowing Toronto Ordeal.
-2-
Desperation
Dark clouds raced overhead as Master Sergeant Paul Kavanagh stood up. His left knee flared with pain for a moment until it popped. He hardly noticed. His senses had overloaded and he began to hyperventilate.
The thunderous booms of GD artillery faded away in his mind. The flashes on the horizon…Paul frowned. In his jumbled thinking, it seemed like lightning. Maybe it was going to rain soon, eh. The crashing shells hammering their area—was the shaking under his boots an earthquake? He turned his head and witnessed a chunk of masonry sloughing off a tall office building. The mass came away in seeming slow motion much like an iceberg would from a glacier in the Arctic Ocean. The falling—why was it so quiet now? Was there something wrong with him? In seconds, silent, billowing dust rolled upward from the city street where the cement hit.
Why can’t I hear anything?
Paul blinked incessantly and he swayed back and forth. Dully, he realized that Romo shouted in his ear. His Mexican-Apache friend gripped his right shoulder, pulling and pushing, which caused the motion. Paul moved his mouth but was mildly surprised that he couldn’t hear his own words. Something was wrong with him. He turned to Romo. Worry showed in his friend’s eyes.
Bending forward, trying to massage his forehead, Paul discovered he wore a helmet. It came to him then: where he was, who he was and why.
Sounds rushed upon him. GD artillery boomed thunderously. Shells screamed and slammed near. Explosions rocked Paul and bits of masonry pelted his body armor like killer hail.
“Amigo!” Romo shouted. “Get down!”
Something that might have been panic gobbled in Paul’s throat. He tried to swallow and found it impossible to do. He hyperventilated—something he hadn’t done since his first year in combat. Man, he needed to get a grip, to think. He threw himself onto the ground. It was barely in time. Chunks of masonry and bent iron girders flashed overhead. They would have decapitated him if he hadn’t ducked.