The Return of Napoleon

Chapter 2: Movement Along the Countryside

"The future of France? What do we have to do with that? Did the Americans start a war?" Reasonable questions.

"No, no! The scientists over at Lozère have found a miracle! A portal to the past is what they said. If we follow them, we gain riches!" Grant opened the bag on his side to show the gold and medals he earned just by being there. The bulky man looked amused.

"Yes, yes. Can I see your squad? I don't think we should be coming up with frivolous ideas with each other." Grant guided the man over the hill. Over 2,000 cars, 33 tanks, and 2 tied-up helicopters appeared out of nowhere. Hundreds of trucks and fuel tankers were following behind. It was a fantastic sight to see.

"What do you think?" The man let out his breath. "I think, how much do we get paid?"

Grant smiled. " Welcome aboard. €10000 every year, with food and housing, covered. You'll be expected to help rebuild society. Now, let us confront the rest of the battalion."

The man smiled, and they returned to the town.

-------------------------------------------

As the General Staff waited for Grant to return, Jules met a few civilians willing to put on some plays for everybody. Unrest and confusion were still high, and a disproportional amount of homeless and generally poor people would pose a challenge. Quick electrical advancements were to be made to store food and keep military equipment in check. Forced study lessons would be held once buildings were built.

While the General Staff continued to think of ways to counteract their issues, Napoleon laid on his chair and pondered. Everything happened so quickly, and many people joined his side. However, he knew that this wouldn't last long. He needed quick riches to uphold the loyalty of his men.

I did not sleep once. I should get to it.

-------------------------------------------

As Napoleon dozed off, Sergeant Grant returned to the militia with 300 men behind him. Jules knew they had no money, so the Staff talked once more.

"Let us form a mining group. Depending on where we land, we can plunder the resources nearby." Mikus wanted to form multiple mining groups, each containing 10 soldiers and 20 miners. Depending on where they would land, they would either increase or decrease the number of groups they would have. The severity and lack of manpower in certain situations would almost certainly cause difficulty as well.

Burke spoke up."First, let us gather how much equipment and people we have." The rest nodded their heads.

"The reports from the various sections list how many vehicles we have." He coughed and began listing off every single item.

"First, the military. We have 33 tanks, 2 helicopters, 670 military jeeps, and 1,200 soldiers. If we land in an area with locals, we can use military force to subjugate them if required.

Next, resources. We have 140 fuel tankers, 355 trucks loaded with iron, copper, and other rich metals. There are dozens of smaller container cars carrying seeds, live animals, and ten thousand tools to use. This includes 50 jackhammers, 50 saws, 120 hammers, and thousands of utensils and other required tools.

Now, the civilians. We have almost 7,000 civilians, with the majority being poor, homeless, or a mix of both. 2,000 civilians were relatives of the soldiers, while another 1,000 were random people who sought new lives. The rest were homeless with nowhere to go. There was a majority of males, with 2 males for each female. Most females were married, as well. If we can convince the homeless to help build houses in exchange for well-endowed jobs, the service pool can increase threefold.

Finally, I want everyone here to understand that these numbers are not absolute. Although we might decrease in manpower, we will always obtain more resources. In the worst-case scenario, we would have to wait longer to get transported to a desirable location."

Once the scribe inside the truck finished typing down the final word, honks were heard in the distance.

-------------------------------------------

The convoy had returned from their final destination with fantastic news.

"We arrived in Madagascar in 1819!"

Madagascar? What a fantastic place!

"Notify Napoleon! We shall continue moving!" Jules looked on with glee. Madagascar was resource-rich. They could ferry iron between the continent and the island. The General Staff all thought it was a fever dream.