Vapor: IC Thread: 1885 Railway Dispute

by **Wirbel** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 4:18 pm

OOC Thread

VAPOR ONLY.

Latest map
(Updated 8/26/12)

by **Wirbel** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 4:35 pm

Kohlenstoffburg, Central Wirbel
1885

Kaiser Otto von Adifikum rode his horse across a stone bridge to a small open field. The hooves clapped against the ground. He eventually stopped in the middle of the field near an odd looking contraption. It was like a giant balloon, but with a boxy tail-like structure on the back and a boiler attached to a screw propeller. He got off of his horse.

"What's this?" he asked the man standing behind the boiler.

"It's like a ship. But it flies like a bird," the man said.

"That's interesting," said Kasier von Adifikum. "Did you build this?"

"With the help of a few colleagues," the man replied. "If you like, we can demonstrate."

"The would be wonderful," said the Kaiser.

Three men climbed out of the boiler.

"I heard you wanted a demonstration," one of them said.

"Yes," replied the Kaiser.

The man behind the boiler finished what he was doing and walked aboard the airship. The other three men had a horse pull a wagon full of coal. The horse stopped at the boiler. Another horse with another wagon came by. This wagon was a lot smaller. It was also more of a tank than a wagon. The tank was marked Hydrogen.

by **Cyprum Xecuii** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 5:21 pm

A Xecuiian painter was walking along the same field in which he had hoped to find a nice landscape to paint so he could have a memento of the country for when he would leave back for the homeland. Although the lush greenery was quite beautiful, he noticed nothing that was out of the ordinary to capture. Searching thoroughly however, he noticed something in the distance, a large object but not quite capable of figuring out what it was. But there were people too, and so out of pure curiosity he moved towards the people and unknown contraption. When he got there, they were already setting up the materials to start up the machine. He noticed the coal and realized that it was probably a mechanized vehicle, although he could not get the gist of how it would work.

"Excuse me sirs, but can you tell me what this...thing is?" He said with confusion

A man came and told him "I'll tell you the same thing I said to him. It's like a ship. But it flies like a bird."

"Ships can't fly...regardless it looks more like a large balloon, I've seen them on the newspapers but never up close"

"Well we were just about to start, so if you'd like wait for a while, we could demonstrate how it works, and now you could have something to paint, am i right?

"How did you kno-"

"You're holding a brush."

"Oh...i mean...If it's that significant then i guess i could stay and watch"

"Oh don't worry, it will certainly be worth the wait"

The man goes to help the other prepare the machine and the painter finds a place to stand, setting up his easel, board, and canvas.

by **Wirbel** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 5:37 pm

A man stood in the airship in between three wheels. The coal was poured into the bottom of the boiler. As the flames inside the boiler grew hotter, the screw propeller started to spin faster and faster. The three men who were not inside the airship ran around and unhooked several ropes that were holding the craft to the ground. A space appeared under the airship. It was beginning to float. The pilot pulled a lever. The propeller spun faster. The airship began to move forward. Inside the craft, water was being turned into steam, and then was injected back into the boiler.

The craft started to fly around the field. It flew around the capital building, over a few houses, and then in front of the painter. It stopped in the air.

"This will make for a fine piece of artwork, don't you think?" asked one of the men on the ground.

The Kaiser looked up at the airship. "This is great! The nation of Wirbel now has access to the sky!" he said.

OOC: Physics Error Fixed

by **Wirbel** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:06 pm

Request for a Meeting

Hello, Government of Fanaglia,

Recently, with all of the developments in conflicts and technology, I think we should have a meeting. The dispute over the land northwest of Vijay between Fanho de Ferro and Vijay has caused problems with the company that is trying to build the railroad. This company was going to build the track segment that runs through Wirbel, but they won't build until the dispute is over. They also wish to know from both governments if they are even allowed to build. If we could get this railroad finished within a timely manner, then the economies of Wirbel and Fanaglia will flourish.

Otto von Adifikum

by **Fanaglia** » Thu Jul 19, 2012 8:58 pm

Miss Alans sat in her office, casually sipping a glass of scotch as she sorted through the queen's mail; a warm, pleasant breeze wafted in over the garden and through the open window. She did have an assistant for that, of course, but she found the work relaxing and a way to keep herself occupied; her assistant was enjoying her day off down at the shops. "That's curious; it's from the emperor of Wirbel," she muttered to herself. He was requesting a meeting with the queen. And he was right -- a railroad between the West and the East would certainly benefit everyone. She wondered if Mr. Evans or Mr. Tagan were involved in this somehow. Regardless, the issue was something that deserved her attention.

She found that Queen Autumn was seated on a blanket on the grass in the courtyard, teaching Young Alice how to play whist. "Afternoon, Miss Alans!" The young queen called to Miss Alans, who was more than just an adviser to her, but her best friend.

"A good day to you, your highness," she smiled. "You've a message from Kaiser von Adifikum of Wirbel. He wishes to arrange a meeting regarding the possibility of connecting our nations to the East by rail. Apparently, a possible dispute between Fanho de Ferro and Vijay may be hindering or halting construction."

"Well, then, it hardly seems that this is simply a a Fan-Wirblian issue, then, doesn't it?"

"No, your highness. Would you like me to invite the leaders of the surrounding nations, as well?"

"Yes, please do, Miss Alans. Ticciano seems a well enough place to hold the conference. It is nearly as impressive as Kraftenberg and just as beautiful, but it has one thing that Kraftenberg does not -- a deepwater port." Miss Alans nodded and returned to her office to type up her response to the emperor, as well as her invitations to the other nations.

To Kaiser Otto von Adifikum of Wirbel,

Queen Autumn would love to meet with you to discuss this western railroad. The benefit, not only economically, but culturally as well, is clear and would be unwise not to take this opportunity to accomplish such a feat of engineering fit to usher us into the fast-approaching twentieth century.

If it would suit you, the Queen would like to meet with you in the great Fanaglian city of Ticciano on the southwestern coast of the duchy of Pisiano in ten days' time. Should it suit you as well, I shall take the liberty of inviting several of our neighboring nations as well, so that we may work together for the benefit of all.

May the wind be always at your back,

Miss Lucy Alans,
Chief, Dept. of Fanaglian Agriculture

Dear leaders of the world,

In ten days, Queen Autumn of the great Kingdom of Fanaglia shall host a conference discussing the possibility of laying rails over the isthmus to connect the West to the East. You are hereby cordially invited to attend, so that perhaps all of our nations may benefit.

The conference shall be held in Ticciano, on the southwest coast of the Fanaglian duchy of Pisiano. The Queen and I look forward to meeting you there.

May the wind be always at your back,

Miss Lucy Alans,
Chief, Dept. of Fanaglian Agriculture

by **Voerdeland** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 1:40 am

President Alexander Kitshoff clumsily climbed to his airship. Without saying anything he sat on at the back of the cabin. He had never used his airship for official visits before, and, to be honest, never actually trusted these machines. Unlike some other officials, who after being given Narwhal-class airships used them even for visits in neighbouring countries.
Kitshoff wasn't even sure whether he would look serious in the Narwhal. After all, it was a relatively small airship and other leaders probably used more... impressive ones.
But some issues are too important to ignore them. If construction of a railway connecting Voerdeland with the East required flying to some conference, President's refusal to go there would result in his political death.
So, off we go!

by **Vjiay** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 5:01 am

Matthew Wotton leaned back on his rocking chair, inhaling a large breath from his pipe as he did so. Holding it in for a second, he closed his eyes, simply listening to the rain patter heavily onto his conservatories’ roof. Despite it being slightly chilly, he undid a button of his aqua coloured waistcoat, rocking forward again and opening his eyes. There was a light knock on the window behind him. Turning, he saw his wife smiling,

‘Caleb Downey here to see you, love.’

Matthew nodded, motioning for her to send his assistant in, slightly disgruntled that his day off was being interrupted already, no doubt with something that would continue to be a nuisance, if it was important enough for the Ministry to send a runner. The patio opened and in walked his assistant, Matthew barely concealed a smile as he observed the drenched and shivering figure that was stood in front of him, clutching a steaming pewter cup that one of the maids had obviously immediately fetched him in one hand and a surprisingly dry brown envelope in the other.

‘Caleb, my boy, what brings you out here on such a lovely day?’ he asked, turning back to look out upon his grounds.

Caleb stepped forward, combing his long, wet hair back from his forehead as he did so and taking a sip of his drink to settle his voice,

‘Sorry to disturb you minister, the Prime Minister sends his apologies, but this morning he received an invitation from the Fanaglians, to some sort of meeting apparently. I wasn’t briefed on the particulars.’

Matthew raised his eyebrows, The Fanaglians?, he mused, taking another breath of his pipe, Bit of a journey. He set his pipe down on a small table beside him, under which a dog was snoring slightly and motioned for his assistant to bring forward the envelope, pulling out a knife at the same time. Carefully, but with an air of a practised hand, he cut beneath the wax seal that displayed the crest of the Foreign Ministry and pulled out the single piece of paper inside, quickly discarding the envelope and flitting his eyes over the document.

‘A railway over Valoria,* interesting,’ He picked up his pipe once more, though hesitated from taking a breath, ‘Similar ideas have been considered before, of course, with no luck. But with international interest, perhaps it could be possible.’

Caleb was used to this. Matthew, or, ‘Foreign Minister’ as he was supposed to be referred, would often go off into reveries when mulling over a subject in his mind and, as was happening here, sometimes air his thoughts out loud.

Matthew shook a bell which, despite only making a quiet tinkling sound, woke the sleeping dog with a bark and summoned a black suited servant.

‘Laurence,’ Matthew said, addressing the new arrival and scratching the ears of the dog, ‘Ready my carriage would you; I need to return to the Ministry.’

Thirty-Six Hours Later

The reply had been sent, affirming that a Vjiayan diplomatic team would arrive in Fanaglia the day before the meeting, if all went to plan. It also requested that the Vjiayan ships that would be carrying and escorting the party would be re-fuelled with coal upon arrival in the country for the journey back, which, of course, would be paid for.

It had all been planned post-haste, as it had to be if the Vjiayan delegation were to meet in Fanaglia by the specified time, taking around seven or eight days as it would. As a result of this, nearly all of the six man group were bleary eyed as they sipped their tea in the window of a cafe, watching through the unrelenting rain as their ship, the V.S.S. Horizon was readied for their departure. It was a good looking ship, Matthew thought. The hull was mostly a shiny black, with a pearly white strip reaching the hundred metres from the bow to the stern and dotted with portholes. A single funnel rose from the deck, just forward of the middle, with two masts towering over it ahead of it, and two similar ones to its rear. It was already showing off the bright liveries of a diplomatic mission from ropes strung between the masts, though the sails wouldn’t be raised until they were out to sea. The two escorting ironclad warships, which Matthew understood to be the SQ Pathfinder and Pioneer were already somewhere out there, waiting patiently to get underway proper.

The man opposite Matthew pulled out a silver pocket watch from beneath his overcoat,

‘Seven-Fifteen. What a lovely time to be awake, I wonder, do these diplomatic missions ever leave on time?’ He paused, ‘Still, at least we’re not Wibellian, no doubt their ‘airships’’, he said that last word with a slightly comical accent, ‘have been blown further out to sea than we intend to go this week.’

The rest of the party laughed. This man, William Pelly, was the current Prime Minister of Vjiay and was well liked for it by all, surprisingly. He had warm eyes and a strong jaw line, which was emphasised by the dark sideburns that reached down from his thick, swept over hair down to the side of his chin. He wore a black silk puff tie over a white, collar up shirt, with a black waistcoat, black jacket and a grey frock coat over them to keep the rain off, at his side, against the wall, stood a dark umbrella.

With devilishly good timing, Matthew noted, his assistant, the ever able Caleb, once more drenched, opened the cafe door, letting in a swirl of rain and wind in with him.

‘Sirs, the captain informs me that the ship is about ready to depart and requests, on your own leisure that you climb aboard.’

‘Right you are, Caleb,’ the Prime Minister said, collecting his belongings and standing up. Caleb, noticed by no-one but Matthew allowed himself a little smile at the use of his first name by his head of government, ‘Gentlemen, our voyage begins.’

by **Cyprum Xecuii** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 6:34 am

2 days after the Xecuiian painter had came back to the homeland
Capital building, at the urban interior of the Xecuii nation.

"Sir! Sir!" a government official raced to the desk of the exploration administrator

"Oi, there's no need to panic, what the hell is wrong with you?'

"Sir, I don't know what's going on, but this article in the newspaper talks about some conferen-"

"And?"

"And sir, they haven't invited us to the conference."

"How is that any of our business?"

"Sir, if you'll just listen to me, you'll learn that they're going to build a railroad line around 2000 or so miles from us."

"Still not our problem, it's too far."

"That's true sir, but look at this!" he points to the steam balloon in another article, painted (then miniaturized into the newspaper) by the xecuiian painter.

"So what? We have steam balloons as well."

"Everyone out there is thinking that they're going to use the railroad as a way to deliver steam balloons to the nation up north, and with the usual drafts leading downwards to the south, they can use that as an expressway to invade the country!"

"You're just being hysterical now, nothing is going to attack us, we have no use to them besides being a port/exchange nation so there's no reason to be afraid."

"I've gotta tell this to the internal affairs officer, maybe he'll do something"

"wait!" the official already left, going to find someone who would believe him.

"Ah dear" He rubs his head and starts to light a cigar "hope he doesn't do anything stupid..."

by **Wirbel** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 10:12 am

Flight to Meeting

Hello Again, Miss Alans,

I told my engineers that I would really like to fly to Fanaglia, but I'd prefer that they test their craft a little bit more before I fly. They said that the craft was good built well enough to travel down to Fanaglia and back. They demonstrated their craft again and finally convinced me. I will be flying the nearly two thousand kilometer journey to Ticciano. The engineers also tell me that they are working on a more capable airships called the Wnr.2, which will have a six hundred kilometer range. So, the next time I come to your nation, I will probably come in a craft with more range and power.

Otto von Adifikum

by **Wirbel** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 11:07 am

Kohlenstoffburg, Central Wirbel

A man was lying inside of the boiler, cleaning out the mess from previous flights. Kaiser von Adifikum walked up to the airship.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Cleaning out the boiler for your flight to Ticciano," the man replied.

The Kaiser came into the boiler and start to clean the opposite side.

"Thank you," said the man who had been cleaning the boiler. The two of them worked for a little while more until the boiler was completely cleaned. The man then called out "Hey, Yitzhak, you can bring the coal now!"

A horse with a wagon brought the coal to the airship just like in the demonstration.

"Ok Rudolf, you can fill the ship with coal. I'll go back and get the Hydrogen," said Yitzhak.

"So, Rudolf, are you and Yitzhak planning on starting a company?" asked the Kaiser.

"Yes- we are planning on that. We'll manufacture aircraft. We are probably going to call it AeroWirbel, if that's ok with you," said Rudolf.

"Yes, that's fine," replied the Kaiser. The Kaiser looked up at the Sun. "Well, it looks about time for me to go back to my house and eat dinner. Good night, Rudolf."

"Good night, Kaiser." replied Rudolf.

Rudolf continued working on the airship to make sure that it would be ready for takeoff the next morning. Yitzhak came back with the Hydrogen tank. He attached a tube to a small spot on the airship designed to open and close. Pressurized Hydrogen began to flow into the airship. I hope this will fly nicely, thought Yitzhak. Our idea of an aircraft manufacturing company will be doomed if it doesn't.

"Rudolf," said Yitzhak.

"Yes?" asked Rudolf.

"Do you want to fly to Ticciano or should I fly to Ticciano?" Yitzhak asked.

"It doesn't matter. If you wish to go, you can," replied Rudolf.

"Ok," said Yitzhak.

by **Cyprum Xecuii** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 3:01 pm

Capital building, Urban interior of Xecuii

The Foreign Affairs Minister, lead Internal Affairs Officer, and Exploration Administrator have all come to Kommandant Sumiya Kuno's Office for a meeting, while waiting for her to make an appearance; they contemplate what Exploration Administrator and Internal Affairs Officer have heard from the government official which told them of the conference to the west and the railroad construction to the north.

"The kid's just crazy" The Exploration Administrator (EA for short) says "Probably just paranoid of war since his father talks to him about it all the time."

"Didn't the man fight in the last war over the islands? He's a veteran I'm sure," the Internal Affairs Officer (IAO) says

"That's right, i read it in his documentations, he's a good kid but coming from a family with a history of joining the military isn't going to help his paranoia, haha"

The EA turns to the Foreign Affairs Minister (FAM), "What's got you down Kunai? You look as if the steamrollers paved right over ya."

The FAM responds "Well there's something about what the kid said when he mentioned the steam balloon."

"What? you don't really think they'll use those to attack us right?"

"Well no, but don't you think we're losing the air race?"

"What are you talking about? We have balloons too ya know."

"We have many balloons, but we have ONE Steamballoon. Worst of all, it's a prototype in which i don't even know whether it still works."

"But of course it works! The team developing it was made under my supervision."

"Which means by now it's going to suck harder then it ever did."

"Hah, I'd get angry but it's not like you've made any progress with your development team either."

"But of course we have."

"Oh really? Last time i heard, your lead researcher was constructing that what was it...oh that's right, a gun-tractor?"

"...what's your point?"

"Are you serious? At least the Steamballoon can actually get off the ground, compared to that...thing which goes at a pace of around 4 kilometers an hour, hell man I'm pretty large but i can walk faster than that so that's very sad. I mean really, your researcher has a good idea, but strapping a field cannon onto a tractor chassis isn't going to work out right, the thing itself will probably flip over from the recoil."

"Look I'm sure he can do it, it doesn't work right now, but i know it will get somewhere"

"Heh, whatever you say"

The IAO notions the two to stand up "I don't mean to interrupt but the Kommandant is here."

They get up from their seats and stand at attention and enters Miss Sumiya from the doorway.

"For Xecuii (the salute greeting)" She says

"For Xecuii" They say as well.

"Alright gentlemen you may sit down" They all take back their seats

"Now...why I've called you here...We have an Dilemma surrounding what you've men have already heard...the railroad case; is that right" She motions to the infantrymen standing at the door and he responds in the affirmative.

"Wait," the EA says "Don't tell me you agree with the kid that the railroad is a big deal right?"

"In what the railroad really means, no. According to expedition forces up north, the railroad is merely for the economic benefit of the nation up north and the westerners."

"So what's the big deal?"

"The main issue, which should be a very big issue to the Foreign Minister, is why we were not informed about this."

"What do yo-"

"I mean, we should be at least informed about why they were doing this, at least by telegram or so. I don't know why they would have left us out."

"You think they're hiding something from us?"

"Unlikely, if they were willing to allow the picture of the steamballoon on the nation's newspaper, it's obvious that they don't mind us knowing what technology they have. However the fact that they didn't tell us about the railroad is strange. Look, as of now I'm probably being paranoid myself, it could have been a mistake, but since the last war, it's been hard to make judgements on whether to trust the the west on their means for doing this."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Well with this, I've ordered a force of 1,000 infantrymen to make the advance towards the north, which should take about 7-9 days using our own rail lines going outside of the nation and then taking a march past our outposts. Overall, they won't be safe for about 56 miles between our outposts and railines, and their new railine. As for you men, all i ask is that you" She points to the FAM "find out the real reason to why they didn't inform us, you" She points to the IAO "To secure the country's defenses to a tighter protection, which means send back the ironclads to secure the shores and islands, and have the larger cruisers keep a patrol around the mainland." She finally goes to the EA "As for you, i need you to telegram the expedition forces to return back to the homeland, to allow more manpower if anything goes wrong and we need the extra manpower."

After some silence, she calms down and says "...Those are your orders...is that clear enough?"

"Yes, miss Sumiya!" They say

"Alright then, you may stand and commence your duties"

At that, they all leave the room and proceed to their orders.

by **Dalruanazkal** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 3:23 pm

Atrahasis-kal-ammi, Dalruanazkal
King Maruduk-izkur IV

The only real way to start a day is with a cup of Dalruanazkalian coffee. The company slogan was true, even though I had dobuts about this 'capitalism' that the Elder Council had recently allowed to operate. The coffee that grew south of the Gulf of Dalruanazkal was certainly the best in the world, and now our nieghbors would realize that as the Irigibel Foods company exported our coffee beans. Maybe I am just stuck in the old ways to not see progress. To think I ascended to the throne with political and military reform on my agenda, only to left behind while my people produced goods and organized themsleves in new and strange ways!

One of these new strange ways of organizing had to the railroad. My citizens no longer relied on beast to move themsleves, but instead releyed on steam engines. Riding on scraps of metal powered by nothing but water and rocks! Though I never understand how these 'trains' worked, I understood how important they were to the military and I've been told that the businessmen adored them for some reason. This must have been the reason that a conference was being held in Fanaglia. Though I found it odd to see the letter inviting me to this conference was signed by the head of their agriculture department, I decied to accept the invitation on behalf of Dalruanzkal.

Dear Miss Lucy Alans,

I wish to inform you and your government that Dalruanazkal will be sending a delegation to your conference. Alam Kir-Shamash, is a young but diligent and forward thinking man. As the head of our Foreign Minsitry, Kir-Shamash will be honored to attend as the face of Dalruanazkal in Ticciano. He is arriving aboard a steampowered and will be the conference in due time.

Blessings upon you,
King Maruduk-izkur IV

by **Novairia** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 10:31 pm

Deep Haven, Capitol of Novairia

Deep Haven Grand Station
"The first time you've been here? Ahh the sounds and sights of the capitol will captivate you lass" the old baggage handler coo'ed to Ms. Valclair "it is made even more amazing that most of the city is in the mountain. Those towers up there, while some hold cannon and guards, most are exhaust and ventilation stacks hehe".
"You don't say" as she grabbed her bags "Im just glad that I was summoned here in the summer, I hear this valley has horrendous winds in the winter. Why didn't they build the train station into the mountain with the rest of the city?"
"Twas a security concern lass, they didn't want a direct line into the mountain, so you take the trolly the rest of the way in." he said with a smile. And almost if that was its cue, a capitol trolly rolled into the other end of the station and tweeted its whistle twice. "Thank you again for your help" Ms. Valclair said as she hurried away.
The old baggage hander watched her out of the corner of his eye until she reached the trolly, and as soon as she got on, he noded to a man in uniform a few rails away.

Deep Haven Power District Control Station 3
"THOMAS! GET VALVE 14-B CLOSED NOW!" the shift supervisor yelled across the pipeyard.
Little did he know that Thomas P. Nalchuck, 8 year veteran of the Power District ever since his father brought him to work one day when he was 12, already had steam valve 14-B one third of the way closed. Thomas knew the order was comming as soon as he heard the deep hiss of Engine 3 grow to a high pitched whine, which ment that once again its main shaft front bering had seized.. again. "Long day ahead of us lads" Thomas said as Engine 3 screeched to a stop.
"Five engines down on the same day? Oh boy is the Chairman gunna be pissed eh Thomas?" one of the mechanics asked while draining the lube oil. "Only if his lights go out Bob" Thomas replied while grabbing a pipewrench.. *sniff sniff* .. "Dammit Bob, what oil is in there? That smells to high hell". "The cheapest the boss could find I expect" as Bob dipped a pinky into the stuff, and then tasted it *PATOOEE* "It tastes like burnt cod oil, the dammed fools, these old ladies deserve better for the hours they have put out". "That they do Bob, keep at it, i'll tell the office we need some real oil down here, not some crappy fish knock off" Thomas replied as he got up.

by **Fanaglia** » Fri Jul 20, 2012 10:46 pm

The date of the conference was approaching and Queen Autumn was anxiously looking forward to the break in the routine, the chance to meet some fresh faces. Several RSVPs had already arrived and Miss Alans had made sure to telegram instructions to the proper parties. Arrangements had been made for them to stay at the Hotel Luna Rossa on Via Casanova, which was not ten minutes' walk from the beautiful Imogen Ocean. The conference would take place in the hotel's lounge at four o'clock on the afternoon that had been agreed upon.

Most of her guests, it seemed, were to arrive by ship, which was fine. However, at least one of the delegates had announced his intention to arrive by dirigible, which meant she would not be able to arrive by train as she usually did on her visits to Ticciano. If airships were to be involved, it simply would not stand for her to arrive in anything but the most lavish and impressive of all the ships present. Though travel by rail made more sense for such a relatively short trip, logistically, she had made up her mind that she would settle for nothing less than the massive Rosalind.

Miss Alans had already gone ahead of her to oversee that the proper preparations were made in Ticciano and the airfields between the destination and the border had already been notified of the emperor's arrival; the great airship was nearly ready to carry she and Captain Gonzalo, her loyal captain, bodyguard, and friend, to a fashionably late arrival at the Aerodromo Ticciano.

She was looking forward to this conference, indeed.

by **Wirbel** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 10:59 am

Otto von Adifikum woke up early the next morning. He had quick breakfast of one apple and five grapes with a slice of cold bread. He then took a bath in a tub of water and ran downstairs. He climbed aboard his bicycle and rode across the stone bridge to the capital building. In the field in front of it was the airship. Today he would be flying off to Ticciano- almost a two thousand kilometer journey. He knew that the train would have been more economical, but the men who built the airship really wanted a situation to test their new technology. They decided to pay some of the costs for the flight. The first two hundred kilometer leg of the trip would take sixteen hours. The leg may extend to three hundred kilometers if the wind happened to be with them- then they could drift.

"Are you ready to fly, Mr. von Adifikum?" asked Yitzhak.

"Yes, Mr. Wechsler," replied the Kaiser.

"Alright, just sit down in this area," said Yitzhak pointing to the "gondola" of the airship.

The Kaiser stepped into the craft and sat down. Yitzhak placed a rifle into the airship.

"What's that for?" asked the Kaiser.

"Oh, just for safety- I mean, you are the Kaiser," said Yitzhak.

"Ok," replied the Kaiser.

The smell of fire and small cracking sounds began to come from the boiler. The screw propeller began to spin. Rudolf ran around the airship, checking for any problems.

"Good to go!" Rudolf shouted.

Yitzhak nodded and pulled a lever. The propeller spun faster. Rudolf unhooked the ropes from the ground. The craft began to float and move forward.

"Good luck!" said Rudolf.

The airship flew over nearby trees. Yitzhak pulled out his compass and map. While Yitzhak stared at the map, the Kaiser began to look at the ground below. Yitzhak turned the airship towards Inoroth.

"How high are we?" asked the Kaiser.

"Around four hundred meters," replied Yitzhak. "The flight will take sixteen hours. If you get hungry, there is a basket with food inside."

The airship flew over a some houses in Kohlenstoffburg. Most of the people on the ground stopped what they were doing and looked up, since they had never seen aircraft. But the airship eventually disappeared over the horizon.

by **Inoroth** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 4:11 pm

To the Nation of Fanaglia, and the Illustrious, Magnificent Queen Autumn

I, The Esteemed King, Victor Emanuel Vinchero the Valiant, will be attending your meeting per the building of the railroads. Perhaps we could also arrange a meeting regarding the construction of railroads between our two glorious nations. It is high time for our nations to begin connecting in ways unimaginable only a century ago. Connection, Communication, and Friendship can only be an aid to our strength, and railroads are the way to accomplish them.

Success's continually in all your endeavors,

Victor Emanuel Vinchero, King and Ruler of Inoroth

by **Vjiay** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 4:32 pm

It was the third night in a row that Matthew couldn’t sleep. His old bones were creaky in the cold night sea air, despite the layers of warm clothes. He had pulled his collar up, which meant his face was mostly covered, though his nose felt raw and his eyes occasionally watered when a breeze passed over. Despite being late at night – or extremely early morning should you choose to think like that – the moon and stars in the clear night ensured a visibility up to a few miles. The two accompanying warships glinted a few hundred yards off to the port and starboard, their sails fully up and their steam engines lightly smoking. The wind had actually been on their side and they were making good time without using a huge amount of coal, if it kept up for the next few days then they would be in Fanaglia with plenty of time to spare.

It had been a busy day, a Vjiayan railway building company – Ardish & Bagnall Rail Incorporated – had sent representatives along with the delegation and were explaining how they would build the proposed railway, which they referred to as the Great Western Line. It was optimistic; they felt they could have it up and running in as little as two years. Of course, the delegation could see through this as a simple attempt by the company to get the contract but then, it was an attempt that was to be expected.

‘Can’t sleep, Foreign Minister?’

William had emerged silently at Matthew’s side, wearing a storm coat over his underclothes but with a totally exposed face, he didn’t seem to even be feeling the cold.

‘Haven’t been for the past few nights, I think it must have something to do with the sea.’

‘Yes, most likely, or you’re nervous about meeting our Fanagalian friends perhaps?’, the Prime Minister joked, making his way to the wooden rail at the bow of the ship. Matthew followed him,

‘Whereas you’ll sit idly by whilst I do all of the work, yes?’ Matthew retorted, ‘I think our strategy is pretty clear though, so we’ll be fine.’

William sniggered, ‘Delegation, my friend, it’s my job.’ He thought for a moment, ‘Well, yes. The railway would represent great opportunities, particularly if it was built by ABRI but, like we discussed, we’ll have to ensure our own security first. I think the rest of the region thinks we’ll readily allow goods and people through our territory unrestricted.’

‘Which, of course, can’t happen.’ Matthew agreed.

Nodding, William turned to face his friend, ‘Well, I’m sure you’ll defend our rights admirably in a few days. But, right now, I need sleep.’ He patted the Foreign Minister on his shoulder, ‘I hope you sleep better tonight, but if not, I hear we have bacon for breakfast.’

by **Wirbel** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 5:09 pm

Meanwhile, back in Kohlenstoffburg

Rudolf sat at his desk, looking at the blueprints of the Wnr.2. He noticed that the airship would be more rugged if he added a small metal "spine" to it. He thought about that for a moment, and then, modified the blueprints. I'll rename it, he thought, the Wsr.3. The "Wsr" would stand for "Wirbel", from "AeroWirbel", and "Semi-Rigid". Rudolf already had an idea of an airship with a full frame- a rigid airship- but he could not think of what material to use for the frame or what kind of engine to use to propel such a craft. Well, I'll just think about the Wn- I mean, Wsr.3- for now, he thought.

Rudolf then started writing a letter to Yitzhak. He would send it to the destination city.

Airship Design
To: Yitzhak Wechsler | From: Rudolf Oelberg | 45435, 47^th St, Wasserstoffburg, Wirbel

Hello, Yitzhak,

I have come up with an idea that might make our old Wnr.2 design even better! If we add a metal "spine" to the airship, then we can make the entire thing more rugged. We can also build a bigger airship with this design. If we decide to use the metal "spine" idea, I think we should redesignate the design "Wsr.3". A picture of the design will be included with this letter.

by **Fanho de Ferro** » Sun Jul 22, 2012 10:09 am

Railroad and Land Dispute

To: Miss Lucy Alans | From: President Medeiros of Fanho de Ferro

Dear Miss Lucy Alans,

I would love to come to the meeting to discuss the railroad, although it might take me longer because I have to sail. Hopefully if I can stay long
enough I will discuss the disputed land. I plan sail to Wirbel and then take the train to Ticciano. I would just like to know if that would be ok with your government. If it is, you can expect to see me at the conference.

President Medeiros of Fanho de Ferro

by **Fanho de Ferro** » Sun Jul 22, 2012 10:27 am

Travel To Ticciano

To: Otto von Adifikum | From: President Medeiros of Fanho de Ferro

Dear Emperor Otto von Adifikum,

Would it be alright if I sailed to your nation and then took the train to Fanaglia? My nation will pay all of the expenses of travel and will not disturb your nation at all. Also, if you need to know why I am coming through your nation, I will tell you. It is because I would like to attend the meeting in Ticciano, a port city in Fanaglia. I am sure you already know this, because I saw in the news that you will be taking an airship to the meeting. Thank you for reading this letter and at least considering my request.

President Medeiros of Fanho de Ferro

by **Fanaglia** » Sun Jul 22, 2012 9:40 pm

Dear President Medeiros,

I look forward to meeting you when you arrive here in Ticciano. Godspeed to you; I will see you at the soonest time convenient to you.

May the wind be always at your back,

Miss Lucy Alans,
Chief, Dept. of Fanaglian Agriculture[/i]

by **Vjiay** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 3:11 pm

The Imogen Ocean had been kind to the delegation. Whilst a storm or two had appeared to be forming on the horizon to the South, the worst the ships suffered was a light but persistent rain on the fifth night. As a result, they had made good time and reached Fanaglian waters twenty hours earlier than expected. The ships anchored dozen miles from the countries shore and waited for the morning. When it came, the two warships escorted Horizon to within two miles of Ticciano, before again weighing anchor and allowing the diplomatic ship to progress on its own slowly, making sure its flags and insignia were visible, waiting for an escort to emerge from the cities ports to usher them into a mooring position.

by **Cyprum Xecuii** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:10 pm

Somewhere in the Exterior regions of Xecuii
25 hours after Foreign Affairs Minister Kunai imayaku had been given his orders

Kunai walks towards a small hangar once used to store military observation balloons. It's around 11:40 AM, and he sees someone coming out wearing an odd helmet of some sort and a dirty apron, stained with metal lubricants and oil. But of course he knows the worker and goes to greet him.

"Ah Solan my friend, how are you doing?" Asks Kunai with a slight smile

"Oh Kunai, strange to see you here, i thought you were going to Fanaglia under Kommandant Sumiya's orders"

"Well, i had to stop by to see how the project has been going, besides i can't let myself get beat by the exploration administrator"

"Why say his title? he has a name"

"I don't want to say it, he's got me ticked off"

"Hah, like a child you are, but no matter since it's not my conflict. But anyways, you wanted to check the machine?"

"Well i would like to, although i have to question, what's with the headgear?"

"Oh this?" He takes it off and shows Kunai

"This, my friend is a modified military helmet for the vehicle operators"

"You mean for the gun-tractor?"

"Yep, the helmet been changed and issued since operation in the vehicle is more hazardous than it was before"

"before? man last time i was here it moved as slow as crippled stallion, how can it be any more dangerous?"

"Well, I've realized that when you put people inside a tightly enclosed space, you have to make sure they don't smack their head on anything and rip a hole in their skull, so the shell of the helmet has been contoured to protect against such hazards"

"wait...tightly enclosed...wasn't the gun-tractor supposed to be just an artillery piece mounted on a tractor chassis? You know like cannons on a cruiser, mortars on bombardier/siege ships, and whatnot?"

"Well it was, but we seemed to notice that if we did that, it'd be no better than using a horse to move the cannon from place to place."

"So what did you do to it?"

"Well, heh, it's probably not really a tractor anymore but if you want to see, just wait right here..." He yells to a soldier coming out of the hangar

"Sakuen! Bring it out, my friend wants to see it!"

"Yessir!" He goes to a hand crank and turns it, opening the hangar doors slowly. As it reaches halfway, Solan and Kunai walk towards the hangar but Kunai stops when he starts to notice the ground slightly shaking as he gets closer.

"Solan, what the hell did you build? Whatever it is, it's moving the gr-holy crap what the hell is that?!

He sees the machine Solan had created, the gun tractor. The gun part of it is no lie, it definitely has cannon on it, however the only resemblance to a tractor are the large wheels to the back of the machine, which even then don't look like they were made for tractors. Despite what had been said earlier about the machine being unwieldy and slow, most of the defects had been removed, creating a weapon suitable for ground warfare.The cannon is enclosed in a mobile cupola (turret we'd call it) in which a soldier comes out to salute the two men on the ground, then telling the driver (who is in the hull area of the vehicle) to move towards the others, saluting the other soldiers as well. Kunai then get's his head straight and turns towards Solan; who was making a stupid smile.

"Solan..."

"Yessssss?"

"Is this the gun tractor?"

"mmm hmm"

"Man...i can't believe you made it ha....ha...errr....yeah.."

"Yes i know your in awe, but don't worry, the magnificentness will be numbed once you read about its action in the newspaper."

"wait...isn't this the only one?"

"Of course not, after it was tested and accepted, the military chose to have factories built for it."

"What?! It's already in production?!"

"Yep, we'll be seeing some of these be used in the advance north to check the railroad construction by the west, you should know about this, Kommandant Sumiya told you."

"Well i didn't know you'd sending these...things...up there too!"

"Ha, then that's a surprise for you."

"Do you think they'll fair well against air attacks, i mean even if it's fast enough to evade bombs dropped from the air, do you think it could work?"

"Well, the only thing that any bomb would do at close range without hitting the machine itself would be immobilizing it.

"how about bombs dropped onto the manhole-hatch?"

"Well obviously that's going to kill them my friend haha, but don't worry the chances are unlikely, and besides, the military can easily replace these."

"How about against Calvary?"

"Kunai. if a horse charges into this metal contraption, the horse will either get a horrifying concussion, or bleed to death because the density of the metal crushed the skull......plus they could just shoot the horse...."

"against artillery?"

"it'll either be too fast, or the shrapnel shells will bounce off, round slugs, will bounce off, and etc."

"So it's prepared huh..."

"It's sure is..."

"One more question then before i go...when did you finish the prototype and started to manufacture them?"

"about 1 and 1/2 months ago actually, you came about 5 months ago for the annual check at the other testing field over at Inabaru or so....so you missed alot."

"Well...alright then....I guess I'll be taking my leave and off to the conference then...un-invited of course"

"hahaha heh...ahem..well it's been nice to see you again Kunai, tell the family i said hello when you get back to the homeland."

"Sure, Solan I'll do so, now anyways good bye for now, I'll see you when i get back hmm?"

"alright, Bye then"

"Bye friend"

And with a tip of his hat, Kunai goes off, leaving Solan and his crew to pack up the equipment, put the machine back in the hangar, and head home.

by **Wirbel** » Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:11 pm

Ticciano, Fanaglia

A Picture of The Airship

Early on the fifth day of travel, in the morning, the airship arrived over Ticciano. It slowly began to sink as Yitzhak vented Hydrogen. The control surfaces were also pointed in the direction which would cause the airship to go down. As the airship got lower, Otto von Adifikum took a picture.

"I think I got a nice shot of the harbor," said the Kaiser.

"Awesome," replied Yitzhak.

The airship drifted slowly towards the water. It loitered a little bit over the ocean. Yitzhak then began to turn a wheel, which moved the control surfaces and caused the airship to turn around and head for the city. Again, the airship dropped some altitude.

"So, where is the Hotel?" asked the Kaiser.

"Right about there," said Yitzhak, while pointing a finger.

"Okay, I see it now," replied the Kaiser.

The airship began to drift toward the landing field. The airship began to pass only about ten meters above the rooftops.
The Kaiser waved to the many people on the ground. He dropped a few pieces of gold to a poor family. The distance
between the ship and the roofs was cut in half. The roofs below finally disappeared and gave way to a field. The
airship was over the field. It was only a few more meters before the ship would have to land. Yitzhak pulled a lever
that disconnected the pistons from the propeller. The airship began to slow. A small amount of steam began seeping
out of the boiler. Ropes were dropped to the ground. The ground crew pulled on them to bring the ship down.

"Welcome to Ticciano, Mr. von Adifikum!" was the first thing the Kaiser heard.

Otto von Adifikum's Picture

Nation Name	Government Type	Name/Title of Leader	Language(s)	Land Area/Pop.
The Empire of Bessavaria (Kaissereich Bessavaren) (Bessavariches Reich)	Imperial federation	His Majesty Otto Nikolaus II, King of Deudaz and Allemania, who rules over the Dukes of Teutonisia, Princes of Ashkenazia, and Archdukes of Vuketia, by Divine Providence, Emperor of All Bessavaria and her realms/Seine Majestät Otto Nikolaus II, König von Deudaz und Allemanien, der über die Herzöge von Teutone regiert, Fürsten von Aschkanaz und Erzherzöge von Vukezian, von der Göttlichen Vorsehung, Kaiser von Ganze Bessavaren und ihre Reiche	de jure: German de facto: Italian, Yiddish	??? km² 56 million
Banded Folkdoms of Svealand (Conscentia)	Parliamentary system Directorial system Federal Kingdom	King Orwell Andersson Foresitter Alfred Haraldsson	de jure: Svealish (Anglish) de facto: Svealish, German, English, Russian	7,200,000 km² 48 million
The Utilitarian State of Cyprum Xecuii	People's Dictatorship	Autarchess Nozumu Xecus	de jure: Xecui de facto: English, Japanese	8,500,000 km² 310 million
The Holy Kingdom of Dalruanazkal	Constitutional Monarchy Council republic Theocracy	King Maruduk-izkur IV	de jure: Dalruanazkalian de facto: English, French	3,313,155.5 km² 192.3 million
The Confederacy of Desaltonia	Confederated absolute monarchy	King Auberon Umberto Desenta	de jure: English, German, Italian de facto: English,German, Italian, Yiddish,Hebrew	10,359,950 km² 100 million
The Kingdom of Fanaglia	Absolute Monarchy	Queen Autumn	de jure: French, English de facto: Italian, German, Polish	2,587,324 km² 298.4 million
The Nation of Fanho de Ferro	???	President Fernando Medeiros	de jure: ??? de facto: ???	??? km² ??? million
Gratia Infinita	Theocratic Oligarchy	Vocator Peter Agelastus	de jure: Latin de facto: Latin, English	??? km² 10 million
Kingdom of Inoroth	Monarchy	King (Il Re) Victor Emanuel Vinchero	de jure:Italian, English de facto: Italian, English, French	3,692,927 km² 238.5 million
The Federal Republic of Landgovia	Federal Republic	Chancellor Edouard Thiele	de jure: Dutch de facto: Dutch	??? km² 5 million
The Empire of Novairia	Democratic Empire	Elad Nossral, Lord Chairman	de jure:Novairian Dialect 27-Ver.C de facto: Novairian Dialect 23 through 27-C, Trade Common Dialect Ver.8 (English)	9,200,000 km² 240 million
(NuSheba) Nyuesiwa "The Black Isles"	Anarcho-Feudalism	N/A General Darrius Graza Grand Duchess Kho-Fe Weusi	de jure: none de facto: English, Ahi-Krio, Ake-Krio, Swahi	1,246,700 km² 17.4 million
The Allied States of Rosswood	Democracy	President Alexander Anderson	de jure: ??? de facto: English	??? km² ??? million
The Greater Federal Empire of East Servoth	???	Kaiser Drietmach	de jure: ??? de facto: ???	??? km² 76 million
The People's Republic of Sri Tschow	Communist-influenced republic	Consul Seoul Chang IV	de jure: Traditional Chinese de facto: Japanese, Thai, English	210,115 km² 14 million
The United Kingdom of Taltaria	Absolute Monarchy	King Ambrose II	de jure: Taltarian (English) de facto: Aeronaut, Dalarian	11,543,567 km² 103 million
Kingdom of Vitzenburg	Absolute Monarchy	Kaiser Felix IV	de jure: German de facto: English, French, German, Danish	??? km² 129.7 million
The Rightful Queendom of Vjiay	Constitutional Monarchy	Queen Olivia II	de jure: Vjiayan, English de facto: Vjiayan, English	1,842,802 km² 41 million
The Voerdish Free State	Democratic republic	President Alexander Kitshoff	de jure: English, Russian de facto: Voerdish, Polish, Yiddish	2,700,00 km² 1.8 million
The Holy Empire of Wirbel	Absolute Monarchy Empire	Emperor Otto von Adifikum	de jure: German de facto: Yiddish, English, Hebrew, German	2,028,216 km² 82 million

Vapor: IC Thread: 1885 Railway Dispute

Vapor: IC Thread: 1885 Railway Dispute

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