Chapter 746 Negotiating with an AfricanGoddess
After wiping out the grand army of the tribal coalition with chlorine gas, Berengar was left with a relatively easy conquest. All he needed to do was to expel the natives from their homes through a series of surgical strikes and use further chemical weapons where needed. The overwhelming majority of fighting age African men within the immediate vicinity of Berengar's colony were now dead.
Berengar had desired to lead his forces northward, but he was afraid of one potential enemy. The African goddess he had previously come across appeared unafraid of intervening in mortal affairs, because of this he wanted to either hunt her down, and force her to submit, or negotiate with her in a way that would allow him to achieve the goals he desired.
Thus, immediately after wiping out the army of the tribal coalition, Berengar led a sizeable force of his own troops northward towards the mountains where he was previously attacked. After ascending the slopes with a small number of elite troops, he soon found himself mysteriously alone. In Berengar's experience, this meant that he had entered a divine domain belonging to a god or goddess.
Given the circumstances, he immediately became on high alert, as he kept his head on a swivel. In a god's personal domain, they could take whatever form they desired, and even then, this deity appeared to have shape-shifting abilities outside of their divine realm. This was proven by her previously taking the form of a leopard. It was unknown if she could change into any animal, or just leopards. Either way, Berengar was cautious as he continued to ascend up the mountain and through the cloud cover.
Eventually, Berengar noticed a leopard with a pair of blue eyes. He could tell by the pain in his biceps that this was the same beast that bit him. Thus, he instantly raised his rifle and aimed down the iron sights. That is, until he felt the warm sting of a woman's breath on his neck, and heard the following words.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you..."
Berengar instantly turned around to see the figure of a beautiful African woman. This time she wasn't naked and was instead dressed in the skins of animals, while wielding a short spear. Berengar immediately questioned how she knew his language.
"You speak German?"
The woman was equally cautious as Berengar. This man was a reincarnator, and naturally he posed a threat to her people, as well as potentially to herself, assuming he made contact with other deities and had been gifted certain powers or weapons.
There was undoubtedly at least one boon in his body, and something else that was more mysterious. For example, he had actually harmed her when he struck her with the stock of his rifle, something a mere human should not be able to accomplish.
Berengar kept his view bouncing from the Leopard that was stalking him from behind, and the woman in front of him, wielding a short spear that appeared to be made of a mysterious metal. The woman redirected his attention towards herself as she responded to his question.
"German? Is that the name of your native tongue? No, I do not speak your language, but you have penetrated into my divine realm, naturally I control all things in here, therefore I am able to communicate with you if I so desire. What is your purpose in being here, mortal? Your kind should not invade these lands for another few centuries, at least!"
Berengar's brow raised slightly as he heard this before asking the question most important to him.
"You are aware of the future?"
The woman scoffed before scolding Berengar for his ignorance on the divine.
"I am a goddess, naturally I am aware of my people's fate, and your presence here threatens that! So I will repeat myself only once more. What is your purpose in being here?"
Berengar smugly smirked when he heard this before responding in an arrogant tone.
"Isn't it obvious? Resources, just like those who were originally supposed to conquer this land, I have come to claim it as my own! After all, the region is sparsely populated by a few stone age tribes. Why should I not claim it for the Reich?"
This answer angered the goddess, who glared at Berengar fiercely. Despite flanking Berengar with her familiar, she was fearful of the weapon in his hands. One wrong move could end both of their lives. She did not immediately attack him, despite his intentions for Africa. She could only curse him for his greed.
"You fucking white devils, all you do is cause needless suffering through your endless wars and conquests. You should leave this land before it becomes your grave!"
Berengar frowned when he heard the woman verbally scold him. He was doing nothing that her people had not already done, nor that which any other ethnic group was already responsible for. For this, he retorted with a bit of a spiteful remark.
"You're one to talk. These lands used to belong to the Khoisan, until the Bantu invaded, conquered, and ethnically cleansed the region. Don't preach to me of my people exclusively being responsible for war and suffering, sweetheart. That is something all of humanity has done at some point.
You don't hate my people because we are conquerors. You hate us because we are the best at it! After all, if it weren't for my intervention in the timeline, your people would continue to run around wearing animal hides, while wielding sticks and stones well until other Europeans conquered them in the 19th century.
This world is survival of the fittest. You and your people are sitting on valuable resources, and it is only natural for a more powerful force to come and take them. Whether that is the Germans, the English, the Asians, or the Arabs.
You only have yourselves to blame for being so primitive compared to your potential rivals. Now why don't you be a good little goddess, and tell your people to withdraw beyond the Orange river so I don't have to waste ammunition on removing them myself!"
Berengar's words immediately outraged Mbaba Mwana Waresa. Partially because of her personal animosity towards him, but most of her frustration came from the fact that Berengar spoke the absolute truth. The people who worshipped her were neither pacifists nor saints. Their ancestors had invaded these lands and purged the local inhabitants. Few of the natives still existed in Southern Africa, and they would never be able to reclaim them.
She also understood the principle that Berengar was speaking, even if the Europeans never step foot in Southern Africa, sooner or later some other more powerful force like the Asians, or the Arabs would come along and claim the land for themselves. The Africans were too primitive to compete with nations that could mass produce firearms and artillery.
However, despite the reality of Berengar's words, she was still upset. What he had done in Africa so far was unforgiveable, especially from the standards of the world he came from. She would not easily use her limited powers to compel her people to withdraw beyond the Orange River. After all, it was entirely unlikely that Berengar only planned for colonial expansion into such territory, sooner or later his people would invade further inland.
Berengar noticed that the goddess was becoming more aggressive as she circled him, and thus he responded by smacking her across the face with the stock of his rifle. She fell backward onto the floor. Where Berengar pointed the bayonet at her neck. Before her familiar could pounce, Mbaba Mwana Waresa had become a hostage. Berengar snickered as he gazed upon the pitiful state of the goddess before making a sinister comment.
"The fact that I can hurt you with my weapons means I might be able to kill you. Do you want to test out this theory?"
Mbaba Mwana Waresa did not know whether Berengar had the ability to kill her or not, but she was not willing to test it out. She had been beaten before she could launch an attack, and because of that, she called out to her familiar.
"Stand down Azisa!"
Upon seeing the mighty leopard back off from the situation, Berengar smiled. When Mbaba Mwana Waresa saw this, she sighed before asking the only question she could.
"What do you want?"
Berengar gazed upon the submissive state of the woman and smiled with excitement. He removed the bayonet away from the woman's neck now that she was being more obedient before outlining his desires.
"First, I want a leopard cub, preferably one as intelligent as your friend here..."
Azisa immediately snarled at Berengar, but the look on the goddess's face quickly shut him up. Seeing that the goddess was being agreeable, Berengar listed his second demand.
"Secondly, I want you to use your influence to compel your people to withdraw beyond the Orange River. I am not afraid to spill the blood of savages, but a peaceful solution to my problems is more preferable."
Mbaba Mwana Waresa sighed as she heard this before stating her terms.
"The leopard cub, I can guarantee. After all, Azisa has more than a few of them. However, very few of the tribes south of the Orange river worship me. Only a small portion of the Nguni does so. Because of this, I can only ensure that those who follow me hear my words and make an exodus beyond the Orange river.
The remaining tribes, you will have to deal with yourself. However, the question remains, what do I gain from these two things? You're certainly not going to say something as dastardly as my life, are you?"
Berengar smirked when he heard this, before helping the woman to her feet. After doing so, he informed the goddess of how he would aid her if she complied with his demands.
"If you go the extra mile and withdraw your people beyond the Zambezi, I will give them the means to carve a mighty empire of their own in east Africa. They will worship you as their primary deity, and your power will expand beyond that of a minor goddess. What do you say? Interested in my proposal?"
Mbaba Mwana Waresa was not the slightest bit shocked Berengar intended to conquer all of southern Africa for his Empire. However, the prospect of becoming a mid-level deity centuries earlier than she normally would have definitely appealed to her.
She also didn't care what Berengar did with those tribes who did not worship her. Thus, after thinking about it for a few moments, the goddess nodded her head in agreement, thus sealing the fate of Southern Africa.
"Very well, so long as you keep your promises, I will do as you ask..."
Berengar smiled as he heard this before, assuring the woman that he would honor their arrangement.
"Not to worry, I always fulfill my agreements."
With this Berengar had come to an agreement with an African deity that would see her people moved further north into what was once known as Rhodesia in Berengar's past life, where under the tutelage of their German allies, would carve a mighty Zulu Empire far north of where they normally should have been established.
As for the Germans, their purge of the non-compliant tribes would begin shortly after this divine agreement had been made. Berengar would not offer the same terms to another group in the region, and the death toll would rapidly rise as the Germans secured more territory for their own future colonists.