The Calm Before the Storm (ATTN Korrodos) (Closed)

[Salzland]

(OOC: Invite only.)

Korrodosian Consulate
Rostov, Salzland

Foreign Relations Minister Davis drummed his fingers along the edge of his chair, as he awaited the arrival of the Korrodosian delegation. When the Salzland delegates arrived at the Consulate they were quickly shown in and ushered to the conference room they were currently occupying, with assurances that the hurriedly-requested meeting would begin soon.

The hope was that meeting at the consulate would draw less attention than a series of VIPs flying into Rostgard and heading straight to the Embassy. It was expected that word of the meeting would leak soon, but perhaps not soon enough to tip off anyone unduly.

It wasn't anxiety over the delay that prompted the finger drumming. After all, yet again the Armed Republic would be embarking on a path that almost certainly would lead to war. The Korrodosian government certainly had less warning than their Salzlander counterparts, so they couldn't be faulted for responding in the manner they did. Minister Davis was certain that even now, the Korrodosian delegates were in contact with their superiors back home, making final preparations.

No, the finger drumming provided a distraction from the latest mess that the Salzland military would, in all probability, soon be asked to clean up. Or die, heroically yet messily, while trying to.

Intelligence assets indicated that the Greater Vakolicci Haven, or the 'Goddamned Vakolicci,' as they were more commonly known, were preparing to launch another assault against the Alexiandrans. IMINT and ELINT indicated increased formations of veteran troops massing on the borders of Vakolicci-aligned territory. That never led to anything good.

It went without saying that the Armed Republic would honor it's longstanding defensive agreement with the Alexiandran government. It would not be the first time the agreement would be invoked while staring down a Vakolicci threat, and it was beginning to look like it wouldn't be the last time either.

'We dropped a hundred thousand nukes on the bastards, and they're still crawling back for more,' the Minister thought, shaking his head out of sadness. 'What is it going to take to stop them this time?'

That concern was what prompted the meeting. No, there was no doubt that the Armed Republic would do everything in its power to ensure the security and territorial integrity of the Alexiandrans. There was too much spilled blood, and too many times where both nations united to stare down whatever hellspawned-menace clawed it's way into a position of leadership in the Haven. A rogue state which wantonly used its weapon of mass destruction arsenals while preying on other, weaker nations for the burgeoning Vakolicci slave trades, or to somehow strengthen the Vakolicci economy, or because whoever was their head of state in a given week thought it would be amusing to exterminate half a billion people.

Now it would fall on Salzlanders to take up arms once again, and repulse the bottom-feeding parasites. The rest of Nova had to be notified, and preparations had to be made.

President Phillips was engaged in a whirlwind of phone calls and emergency meetings with allied leaders in Nova and across the globe. However, it fell to Minister Davis to treat with the Korrodosians, who deserved more than a brief telephone call and later an in-depth follow up from less prestigious officials. The President had already spoken to the King, briefly, and sent Minister Davis to personally handle the follow up.

The Korrodosians, as the Armed Republic's only organized neighbors, by far had the most to lose by the conflict entering Nova. Massed nuclear strikes, as attempted in past wars of aggression launched by the Vakolicci and their allies, would be crippling to both the Armed Republic and the Empire. Even conventional warfare would be highly damaging.

Thus, the Foreign Relations Minister found himself sitting with a half dozen assistants, waiting for perhaps the most important meeting of his long career to begin.

[Falkasia]

Kazyenko Independence Tower
Ekaterine, Falkasia

Kazyenko nodded rhythmically as he read over the conversation transcript. Only a few hours prior, the President of Salzland had called and requested his help in dealing with a rather brutish threat to the sovereignty of some other nation in Nova. He personally didn't care which nation it was, or who was doing the threatening, but a direct request from one of his nation's oldest and most sacred allies was not something to be brushed aside lightly. If the Salzlanders needed help, he'd be hard-pressed not to do the utmost to provide it.

Outside his penthouse's floor-to-ceiling windows, the clouds hung closely to the city below. Moisture collected on the exterior of each glass pane, signalling to him the likelihood of typical summer rains far below. He enjoyed the humidity, and the cool downdrafts of his country's summer months. It was a much-needed change of pace from the frequent reports he received from military operations in Hutanjia, and talks of triple digit temperatures and equally higher numbers of severe sunburn cases. With three divisions worth of combat power tied up on some obscure island chain, and with the prospect of it evolving far beyond its present scope, the Premier inwardly considered for a moment as to whether or not he possessed the will to order more troops into battle. It wasn't a matter of whether the numbers were available, but whether the Falkasian people would be willing to endure another war... and one somewhat closer to home.

Leaning forward, he gently let go of the transcript and watched it flitter down onto his heavy oak desk. His attention was turned to the disposition his Defense Minister had provided, detailing all available assets that could be committed to a combat operation. Without removing present forces in Hutanjia or their reserves, he had access to no less than thirty individual divisions. Those numbers, he concluded, did not even include the more specialized fighting units he could call upon should the need arise. He turned the page, and noted that this time it was filtered by units who had or were receiving advanced NBC training. Nuclear war was a very common occurrence in Nova, he knew, so being prepared was definitely a requirement. Vlad knew that, despite the many thousands of men he had knowingly sent to die for Falkasia, he was not willing to live with the notion that he hadn't done his best to protect them.

He sighed and shrugged, leaning back in his chair as he let the dossier fall again to the floor. His head hurt, as it frequently did since he decided to quit drinking excessively. "With age comes wisdom," his father had frequently told him growing up. Not until recently had he realized that his addiction to alcohol was something he should not have been proud of. A drink every so often was fine, but nursing perpetual hangovers were not.

He reached for his phone, pressing the first speed-dial button. The many perks of having an ally, he mused.

"President Phillips," he began, "This is Vlad... We talked earlier. I've run the numbers, and we'll begin mobilizing forces immediately. At your earliest leisure, I would greatly appreciate you letting me know who I can expect to see in our coalition. It'll take a bit to adjust the IFF."

[Korrodos]

Brigadier General Gerard en Kneskn walked into the room with his aide, a major who had not been introduced yet. They both were in uniform, the General wearing the trappings of a former airborne commander and the major a former imperial marine. They sat at the table without speaking, and then opened up a packet of papers.

“I apologize for the delay, the Kaiser called an emergency session of the High Council to talk on this matter.” The General said slowly. It was laborious for him to speak in the native tongue of Salzlanders at this time, given the hour and the stress of the situation, but he would not disrespect them by switching to another language after they so graciously allowed them to build embassies in their country.

“We have not had many- er- much contact before. We have been watching the situation unfolding as forces amass yet again against Alexandria. Although we do not particularly care for the Alexandrians, we do however believe action against this common enemies is in our best interest, and in the best interest of the international community at large. "

The General thought over things for a moment, the situation here was momentous and extraordinary. The Korrodosian Empire had been isolated, concerned with the constant war with the Rshev Empire. There was very very little historical context between any country and Korrodos, perhaps except for Atrea, Lyras and Lamoni. Korrodos was known as militaristic, but the reason could be merky to outsiders. Were they afraid of the Rshev? Were there other threats to the empire? Unrest at home? Did they have plans to invade their neighbors?

Surely the most recent exploits of Operation Vigilant Kingfisher were still fresh enough in everyone’s minds to recall the details. It probably provided the most information to outsiders on how Korrodos worked, what made it happy, what upset it and how it viewed the outside world.

The relatively stable Protectorate of Itotnor had its ruling government assassinated, capitol bombed by terrorists all under the orders and control of the Brankovian Socialist Republic. The BSR then launched a massive attack against the out dated and ill trained Itontor Defense Force.

The Korrodosians had been negotiating closer relations with the protectorate. The response to the BSR’s aggression had been overwhelming. The technologically superior Korrodosians air dropped three airborne divisions overnight, airlifted in a cavalry division the next day, began skirmishing with the advancing forces for the next week, before two more divisions of Marines were deployed.
Over the next few weeks the Korrodosians beefed up their commitments to the theater with several more divisions, eventually outnumbering the Brankovians, who, though well equipped and trained could not wistand the speed of the Korrodosian forces. They moved with the speed of internet, and advanced logistical systems. It was over in a matter of weeks. Now, even more so, with thousands of peacekeeping troops, and thousands of contractors in the former Itontor, Dartia and BSR, all of which were much closer to the borders of Salzland than if they were on the mainland of Korrodos.

“Our might upholds the weak, our strength defends the hopeless” - Motto of the Korrodosian Imperial Guard.

“Look, I will speak plainly… an attack on you with nuclear weapons would not be good for us. An attack on anyone in Nova with nuclear weapons would be considered an attack on the Empire itself… We will assist you by coordinating security patrols with whatever forces you are not committing to the campaign and will be staying behind in Nova. Furthermore, with proper coordination of security, we will allow full access to Korrodosian Military bases throughout the globe. Fly over rights of Korrodosian territory is hereby granted, immediately, with proper security coordination. We would also make available for deployment some of our forces to assist in the campaign. ”

“We do, of course have some requests, mostly involving technology assistance, but, we would like to give you a moment to ask any questions you may have at this point.”