Cold Brew Conflcit(IC; Sunalaya-Only)

[De Fleuves]

Cold Brew Conflict

[Engleberg]

July 2 - 12:59
Near the western coast of Engleberg
SMS Falke

SMS Falke At Full Steam in the Totensee

Fregattenkapitän Ludwig Schmekn stood on the deck of the SMS Falke, admiring the ship and the surrounding water. The SMS Falke was a large battlecruiser, built in 1916, as a replacement for the older classes of battlecruisers in the Englean Kaiserliche-Marine at the time. For about 40 years now, the Falke would go out on an annual patrol under her own power around Englean waters to celebrate her age and use during the Two World Wars. Naturally she would be armed for any possible encounter that she might come across, and was also installed with modern communications. Today marked her 100th anniversary of commissioning, and she was flying the flag of the Englean Kaiserreich as it looked 100 years ago.

Schmekn continued admiring the vessel, when a gust of wind nearly knocked his hat into the sea. Luckily he caught it in time, and headed towards the center of the vessel. Her two stacks billowed out black smoke, which caused the blue sky behind the smoke to disappear. Her superstructure was a mix of tan and grey, with the bridge being a classic "box" design in the center. Schmekn was looking at the antique flag when his first officer, Kapitänleutnant Hans Schlieffer, ran up to him. "Kapitän! We have spotted a vessel entering Englean waters on radar. Your presence is needed on the bridge, and I have already ordered flanking speed to intercept the vessel."

As the two entered the bridge, Schmekn immediately went to the radar. It may be 73 years old, but the technology still allowed accurate readings. As he leaned over the console, he noticed that the unidentified object was not the size of a warship. "Well, at least we are hopefully not going to be engaging in any naval battle today with a modern vessel as our opponent." He said, joking with the bridge crew. "We should be finding out who this is at about 13:14 when it appears on the horizon. Continue this course, and make the speed 29 knots. Schlieffer, check the forward turret. Ensure they have one armor piercing and one high explosive ready. We might have to use these 13 inches." For the first time since WWII, the ship was in a "combat" situation. Schmekn ordered the Englean Kriegsflagge raised on the bow and stern, to ensure the unidentified vessel recognized this ship. The Falke continued on course, ready for whatever was to come.

[De Fleuves]

July 2nd 13:14

"shit shit shit shit shit..." shouted Nicolaj silently as he rushed from his position, his rifle swung around his body as he rushed to the telephone. Almost slipping he manages to grab the ship's railing on his way and recover from the almost fall. Closing the gap between his legs that formed when he slipped, he reaches for the phone, grabs it and presses the button labeled "Captain Cabin" and in a relief leans on the wall. "Amélio, we have contact, six o'clock. Black smoke, looks like the thing is a hundred years old but it's operational and carries Engleberg's flag." at the cabin Amélio's heartbeat doubled it's pace. "Fucking hell, we're so close to the shore!" Amélio grabbed the wheel and steered the ship 90 degrees north away from the incoming ship.
"I estimate it moves at around 30 knots, more or less."
"It's approaching from the rear, around 79 degrees from our ship. That old fucking junk can't compete with the CR Cas Karcara on speed it's only moving at 29 knots." Nicolaj already could feel the ship steering, although that also came in slowing down. He left the phone hanging and went to the railing and looked straight down looking at the water ripples from the ship's movement. He returned to the phone with the Captain
"Oi! Don't push it too hard we're losing valuable speed!"
"Shut up, the faster we turn the more we get away."
"That's not how this works!"
In anger Nicolaj threw the phone and disconnected the call. He started walking slowly back to his position, before stopping and realizing they'll have to engage the Englebergian ship. He held his rifle at his arm and cocked it before returning to the phone and again picking it up and dialing the captain cabin
"Are we clear to engage in case we need to?"
"Fuck no!"
Nicolaj sighed and pushed his scalp with his hand, after a brief moment of silence Amélio returned
"Listen, we'll get out of this situation their ship is a brick. In any case get up to the cabin, you're the head security staff and it's best you be here."
"Right, I'm coming up"
Nicolaj ended the phone call and returned it on the wall. He quickly skipped his way up to the captain's cabin.

The CR Cas Karcara had wooden floors and neat railings on the deck, it was all modern and clean ready to home passengers for their voyages but it was on a strange mission for a ship of this type. The hall ways all followed the same pattern, wooden lower walls and floors and white ceilings and walls all neat and clean. the stairs weren't your usual ship stairs they also were clean and decorated, ready for passengers but house armed men and military equipment instead. Nicolaj reached the cabin and entered it meeting with Amélio.

"Get in contact with all our security personnel, over there" Amélio pointed towards and empty chair with a phone panel allowing Nicolaj to communicate with anyone he wishes to
Nicolaj instead raised his hand and showed a radio communication device "We have these, you know?" Amélio shushed him off and returned to the wheel. Nicolaj sat at the table and began contacting everyone.

"So what are our engagement rules?"
"Asking me? You're the head of security staff. It's your responsibility"

Amélio stared at the captain for a few good seconds before activating his communications device
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. We seem to have contact on the horizon, a hostile ship, do not engage until my command. We should get out of this fine, so just stay low. The ship still haven't send us any hails so I doubt they see us as a concern. However, if they do engage they will most likely assume we're rouge civilians and try to board the ship, in that case, fire at will as soon as a single enemy foot steps on this ship."
"You're really risking so many lives like this?" Amélio commented
"Report anything you see and wait for future orders." Nicolaj shut the radio down and looked again at Amélio
"Shut up you, I wonder how many armed personnel are on a 100 year old ship."

[Dormill and Stiura]

OOC: Following in the same style of fellow Sunalayans, I will designate colors for the languages spoken by my characters.
Anything in the Normal Black text is spoken in English
Blue Marks anything spoken in Dormillian (French)
Green marks anything spoken in Stiuraian (German)

---

July 3-19:51 Local Time
Dormill City
Department of Defense Headquarters

"Tanner." Jack Tuckthaem sounds off from the end of the room, snapping Emperor Tanner Goebel-Westfallen III from a daydream

"Huh, huh? Oh, Jackson, sorry, must've gotten lost in my thoughts"

"It's alright, Majesty. Care to hear over the situation again?"

Within the situation room, populated by only the pair of them, is the map of the local area, presenting two set of hot spots. The first of these is in the territorial waters of Engelberg, where a d'Fleuvein merchant ship carrying military cargo has entered yesterday and was followed by an expected Englean response, the aspect of this that catches the attention of Dormill and Stiura is who precisely to ally with, both are strong prospects for a future long-term ally, but choosing one over the other will cause tension between the Empire and the nation that the Emperor doesn't ally with. This factor of a rival has been rattling in Emperor Goebel, it was a matter of making a rival with many nations who support communists and are allied to the overlords that were the d'Fleuveins, or a rival with probably one nation who holds the same ideals as Tanner.

"Yeah, what have I missed?" Tanner finally responds, fully regaining his attention

"Alright. As you know, two powers, De Fleuves and Engleberg had a misunderstanding in Englean waters, and in order to finally make our mark on the world, I found it necessary that we should take a side, even at some expense to future plans in either direction. The safe choice is to ally with the d'Fleuveins to both solidify our relations and defend Dormill and Stiura from a fairly large coalition of hostile nations, at the expense of possible expansion. The other, and potentially more prosperous and dangerous choice is to ally with the Engleans, which opens up De Fleuves to possible future expansion. In my honest opinion, in order to preserve our borders from a massive coalition, we should go with De Fleuves. However, as Emperor, I should allow you a voice in this opinion."

"I don't trust the d'Fleuveins, their rule over us and our affairs are over. What about the Serrans?" Tanner inquires, now focusing on the second hot spot on the Vukmiri-Serran area, and the conflict with the regions of Yokohaul and Diezina as the focus points.

"As for the Serrans, assuming we follow through with your alliance with the Engleans, we should take up arms with them as well, their history of masterful generals and strategists could be useful for our needs." Jack replies

"In Knowledge, Follows Victory. Send out the First Fleet to meet with the Engleans and send an envoy to both Serra and Engelberg, requesting for the establishment of permanent embassies." Tanner says while standing up, bowing to the Prime before heading out and back to his palace.

"Of course my Emperor." Jack notes, bowing before Tanner he heads out of the room, following this he gets in contact with High Admiral Lord Landon Berger about moving the First Fleet to Engleberg.

[Bohekistan]

00:54, Boheki Kremlin, Hrometska City

While Hrometska was fast asleep, the Boheki Kremlin was buzzing with activity. Both politicians and their couriers were running back and forth, delivering orders and messages to their superiors and subordinates. Most offices vacant, mail began to pile up. One such office was that of the General Secretary himself, the centre of attention on this evening. Indeed, the General Secretary was reclined in the office of the Armádní Generál of the Air Force, Samuel Láska.

Sipping from a cup of water, the General Secretary spoke.

"Generál, what is it exactly which you have planned?"

The Generál replied.

"Planned? No, this is already in action. I wanted you to hear it from me before you hear it from DEI news in the morning."

"I don't like where this is going." Remarked the General Secretary.

"I have a feeling you won't." Said the Generál.

"This is about Komstadt, isn't it? I've already said I will not support those fools."

Producing a map of the world with considerable troop movements and arrows drawn into Komstadt, the Generál said, "Trust me, we are not supporting Komstadt."

Understanding slowly seeped into the General Secretary's face, which turned pale as his cup of water fell from his hands.

"What?" He nearly whispered.

---

00:58, Somewhere over Tambinia

"Iron!" Alois yelled.

"Would you shut up? It's nearly 01:00 hours. I'm trying to nap" A voice replied from behind. Various murmurs from the men gave their assent.

"No, listen," Alois said. "The government doesn't like these Komstadt rebels, right? And, neither does Engleberg. And, we're allies with them. And, it's no secret the international price of Iron is through the roof right now. So, they send us across the sea to kick arse and take iron. I bet you, not even the third day we're here will engineers roll up in their fanc-"

"Cadet Alois, shut up." Said the Corporal. "It's too late for your bull. You sound like a damn baby."

From outside, rain blasted the fuselage of the Boheki HW-4 Transport. Four turboprop engines roared into the storm outside.

A voice crackled through an intercom.

"Alright pansies, rise and shine. Time for a quick briefing."

Each soldier jumped up. The Armándi Generál himself was commanding this mission, and excellence was required.

"You're over Tambinia now. Expect to arrive in two hours. The General Secretary has been briefed, and although he doesn't like this plan, he's letting us go through with it. He has send a notification to Engleberg, we will see how they respond. This plan will succeed, lest Bohekistan become the world's fool. Do you hear me?"

"Áno, Armándi Generál!" The soldiers replied, now very awake.

"Good. You are tasked with securing your target facilities until the morning; by then, the main army should relieve you. Let me make myself clear; you do not have permission to die. Your commander will brief you on the specifics of the mission upon your being one hour away from the target. May God be on our side."

The intercom crackling back to silence, the soldiers sat back down and continued to rest. This night would need to find them rested. The Boheki invasion of Komstadt was just hours away.

[Rhodevus]

Rhodeve War Room, Base S113
SuperFruitland

The military base in SuperFruitland was a small one, by Rhodeve standards, with only 50 men on base at any given time. The base was mainly used as an early warning checkpoint for any possible attacks coming from the area. It had been relatively quiet for the last few years, with little information coming from it. It was known as a resting spot for soldiers who had been on active duty for quite a while. Most soldiers who spent time on Base S113 felt it was more like a vacation than actual work.

But, on that most unfortunate day, the scanners picked up some noise. Private Damien, who was sitting in his chair, with his feet up on his desk, drinking a hot cup of coffee, stared at the screen. He leaned back and called into the other room. "Uh, Commander Yohanson? I think we have a slight situation starting."

"Did you try re-calibrating the equipment? The darn tools are old. May be two friendlies in the water." The commander called back from the other room, not bothering to even get up. A couple minutes later, she said, "And?"

"Looks like two different nations. De Fleuve ship and an Englean. An old ship by the looks of it. I checked our recent relationship statuses with both nations. Allied to De Fleuves, and a big trade agreement in the makings with Engleberg. But, both nations don't seem to be getting along quite well with each other."

"Alright, gimme a second." Commander Yohanson said, walking into the room. She stared at the screen, over private Damien's shoulder, one hand on his chair. "A situation definitely seems to be starting, but nothing yet has happened. I want you to keep an eye out for any changes. If a shot is fired by either side, I want to know who done it and precisely when it was done. I'll raise the base status to 2, just in case. Gonna call Rhodevus and tell them that we'll handle this. Will tell them we'll call if we need any reinforcements... Why am I even telling you this?"

"I must've got that type of face." Damien smirked.
"Get back to work soldier." She said, smacking him on the shoulder.
"Aye aye commander."

[Engleberg]

(Every quote, unless stated otherwise, is in German. I keep it in English for other users.)

-snip-

July 2 - 13:19

SMS Falke

"Herr Kapitänleutnant, the vessel is now in sight and is turning away from us." Spoke the helmsman, watching the ship from the bridge. Schlieffer immediately looked into his binoculars at the contact. "That's not a military vessel, it's civilian. They should not be entering these waters, for the situation in Komstadt has caused this area to be off limits to unidentified vessels." Schlieffer then called Schmekn from his cabin; and the Fregattenkapitän entered dressed in an Englean Kaiserliche-Marine from 1916. It was a large dark black trenchcoat, sported a white cap, and Schmekn wore an antique armband of the Englean Monarchist Party. "Herr Fregattenkapitän...why the uniform?" Asked Schlieffer, who was in his modern uniform. Schmekn simply replied, "Special times call for special uniforms." He proceeded to head to the radiohouse, behind the bridge. "Fähnrich, send three hails to the vessel. First in German, second in French, and the third in English." Turning to Schlieffer, "Schlieffer, if they do not respond to the third, fire a shot forward of their bow. High explosive. Repeat the messages after the shot, and if there is no response, turn the ship and fire all our 13 inch guns. Radio the nearest destroyer, die Hurrikan, to rendezvous with us in case we must capture this vessel. It should get here in 30 minutes. " Schliffer saluted, then gave the order to ready all guns. The message sent in three languages was:

UNIDENTIFIED VESSEL. THIS IS A HAIL FROM THE ENGLEAN BATTLECRUISER SMS FALKE. RESPOND IDENTIFYING YOURSELF AND BUSINESS HERE. THESE ARE RESTRICTED WATERS AND YOU ARE COMMITTING A CRIME ENTERING THEM. IF YOU FAIL TO RESPOND, OUR 13 INCH GUNS ARE AIMED AND ARMED. WE WILL FIRE.

-snip-

July 4, 10:19

Totensee, Outside Englean Waters

Naval Recon TR-99

TR-99 In Flight over the Totensee

"You know, I'm surprised the old Falke was able to capture that ship." Spoke Oberleutnant Fritz Jäger, the co-pilot of the TR-99 codenamed "Möwe." The pilot, Hauptmann Joseph Schäferfeld, turned to him and said, "You're surprised by the Falke. You should be surprised about the captured ship being from De Fleuves. It seems we will be fighting Floof Fighters soon." He chuckled at his joke, but then returned back to a serious look and continued flying the aircraft.

Jäger continued speaking; "That's also surprising. Why would they support communist rebels that separated from us? That is just insane-" He was cut off by the radar beeping. "What..." He said, leaning in to look. On the radar was what looked to be a fleet. Schäferfeld looked out the window, and below them he saw the fleet poking out of the clouds. He immediately radioed the ERS Lübeck, a battleship, the position of the fleet. "Jäger, try to make contact with that fleet. They haven't fired on us, so they may be neutral or friendly." Jäger nodded, and then hailed on all frequencies in German;

UNIDENTIFIED FLEET, THIS IS AN ENGLEAN RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT ABOVE YOU. IDENTIFY YOURSELF AND YOUR PURPOSE IN THESE WATERS.

[Rezua]

RIN Silas

The graceful lone shark moved in international waters. The Silas was a diesel submarine, ordered to monitor Ventismarian activity. The Silas acted as a warning system for Rezua if trouble came around.

In the command center Specialist Michael Larkks looked over a sonar. He grumbled to himself, manning the sonar was boring. He'd been watching it since they left, it had been a whole two months. Now in Engleberg, Larkks hoped that something would happen. A need for restocking of goods, a day off, refueling, anything. He was so bored...

Then his ears perked up, ping. Larkks saw it, a ship. It sounded like it was a warship. He focused his ears and listened. It was Eaglean, but very old. And a civilian ship was close by it. Why was a d'Fleuvein ship being met by Engleans in an old ship? Larkks called over his captain. The older man looked over at the specialist with a questioning look. Larkks said "Sir, a d'Fleuveim civilian ship has entered Engleberg. A Englean warship is close to it and seems very old. Strange no?"

Royal Palace

Christina sighed " A d'Fleuvein ship has entered Englean waters. It seems like that old Eaglean ship is going after it." Prime Minister Hoelmon frown with Admiral Gruber. This news was not what anyone wanted to hear. They didnt want to deal with another trouble. The Prime Minister said "Alert both nations. Tell them we want a meeting. Tell the sub to stay alert but not threatening."

[Zanera]

[]

[United Soviet Jason Republic]

Soviet Sailing Vessel Red November

75 Meters Below the Ventismarian Sea
10 Kilometers

Captain Lavrenty sat at his seat on the bridge looking at the passive sonar display. The green light did not harm his eyes, for many years of practice had made the man immune to fatigue caused by starning at the screen for long durations of time. However, he could still be tired. The man raised his still hot tea to his lips and took in the warm liquid. Due to their depth, and the added pressure on the entire crew and atmosphere, the canteen could heat the water to above one hundred degrees without it boiling off. Scolding hot tea in the Republican navy had a nickname, Devil’s Brew. Incredibly bitter and hot, the beverage was sure to wake up any mariner who downed it. Of course, caution was advised. There were no replacements this far out at sea.

Ipati Lavrenty’s nuclear attack submarine was one of the most advanced vessels in the world. Indeed, the man had distinguished himself well after the collapse of Ophion, showing a knack for all things naval. In addition, it helped that the man had no real attachments to the outside world. He was a man who spent too much time at work. Of course, he did not have much of a choice. His life entailed being stuck in composite hull submarine for weeks, if not months, at a time. His submarine could handle one hundred days underwater without surfacing. The Red November rarely tested that limit, however. For the past three months the submarine and her crew have been patrolling the waters of the Ventismarian Sea, using the Republican naval bases in Superfruitland as their resupply base. Facilities on Fruitland were up to date, an example of the Republic’s effort to maintain its advanced submarine fleet in the wake of ever advancing western naval technology and presence. Indeed, nearly two thirds of the Republican fleet were either stationed in the North Sea or Ventismarian Sea. Operating from naval bases either within the USJR or allied states, the Republic maintained an every watchful eye under the surface.

The mariners of the Republican fleet were not alone, however. Months after Aznazian news outlets picked up the increase of submarine deployments in and around Ventismar, other countries began upping their submarine and surface presence. In some ways, patrolling some of the most noisy waters in all the world had a benefit. The sea, being mostly shallow, and a major commercial shipping area, led to most civilian craft using sonar. The incredible amount of noise caused by the horde of vessels, and the waves reflecting off the shallow surface, led to the nuclear submarine, already a silent craft, being drowned out. It did make finding surface craft slightly more difficult, but in the end the extra noise played into the hands of the Republic.

After three weeks shore leave and resupply at the Anastasiy Naval Base in Superfruitland, the crew were at it again. But this time, they were assigned a new mission. Patrol the waters of Engleberg, but avoid contact. If possible the submarine was going to see what coastal defenses the nation had. Satellite imagery delivered three days ago was basically no help to the Captain. For now, while they were in deeper waters, the submarine had its towed array out on passive sonar. The crew would take in the noise of the world around them, and wait.

[De Fleuves]

July 2 13:20
Onboard CR Cas Karcara

The air in the ship's bridge was tense as the crew tried to steer the ship away from the incoming Englean war vessel. "How are we Amélio?" Nicolaj was at his computer occasionally contacting each of the eight armed personnel on-board.

"I'm not sure, uh, I think the..." Amélio was interrupted by the coms on the ship.

"What is it?"

A voice was heard from the coms, it wasn't the most clear thing and certaintly wasn't understood by any of the crew members who sat in silence. The voice repeated itself and again no one of the crew understood. And then it repeated itself one last time this time in an understood fashion.

Code: Select all

UNIDENTIFIED VESSEL. THIS IS A HAIL FROM THE ENGLEAN BATTLECRUISER SMS FALKE. RESPOND IDENTIFYING YOURSELF AND BUSINESS HERE. THESE ARE RESTRICTED WATERS AND YOU ARE COMMITTING A CRIME ENTERING THEM. IF YOU FAIL TO RESPOND, OUR 13 INCH GUNS ARE AIMED AND ARMED. WE WILL FIRE.

"What the fuck? 13 Inch guns? They're going to sink the ship like it's nothing!"

Nicolaj sat in silent horror

"If they sink this ship they practically sunk a civilian ship that could have up to a hundred passengers and no one will know."

"You say that like it's a good thing! We're going to die!" shouted Nicolaj

He stood up and went to Amélio's desk extending his arm to the coms button. Amélio quickly pushed him back

"Dude, no"

"Dude, what? You're going to get all of us killed!"

"Get your men ready for impact, we're not answering our ex's call"

Nicolaj head back to his chair and began contacting everyone onboard

[Dormill and Stiura]

July 4 10:21
50 KM from Englean Waters
HMS Primarch

High Admiral, Lord Landon Berger of the First Imperial Dormill-Stiuraian Fleet paced the Bridge of the Primarch, her massive flight deck just above him, preparing and launching aircraft every few moments, the bow cutting through the warm waves of the Totensee instilled a sense of pride to the aging man. This was the first time a Dormill-Stiuraian Fleet has left the Parkland since the Second World War and Berger was intent on making a good impression to the navies of Sunalaya, in this sense, he was happy to hear the boom of German on the radio and he quickly grabbed the microphone himself to respond in kind.

Code: Select all

This is High Admiral Lord Landon Berger of the First Imperial Dormill-Stiurian Fleet, sent here on the Orders of His Excellency, The Right Honorable Lord Jackson David Tuckthaem, Prime of the Empire, Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Armed Forces to support Englean Operations in the Totensee. Though it seems we were late to the party, I would like to extend my greatest hand of friendship to any Englean who wishes and I hope we could foster future cooperation between our nations.

Moving away from the comm, another officer flags him down,

"Sir! What happens after we are done here?"

"We move along to Serra, not before we refuel and carry on some troops from the mainland first. In order for Dormill and Stiura to gain relevancy in Sunalaya, we must become more powerful and gain friends in high places."

Moving along to the deck of the Primarch, Berger feels the warm sea breeze pass against his wrinkled face, reminding him of his days of youth, serving as a midshipman aboard the HMS Deth when she was first put to service just a few decades ago. Now he serves on the biggest and grandest of Dormill and Stiura's ships as her commander, with great pride surging through his old bones, Berger looks on to the waves with confidence in the future of Dormill and Stiura.

[Engleberg]

-snip-

July 2 - 13:22

SMS Falke

EKS Hurrikan En Route to the SMS Falke

By this time, the Falke was close enough to the other vessel that she could fire her smaller 20mm guns. There was no answer, to any of the languages, to the hail. "They wish to remain silent. Well gentlemen, let's give them a proper Englean welcome, ja?" Schlieffer said to the bridge crew, who responded with seemingly joyous reactions. He walked towards the comms, and spoke. "Alle Hände, es ist Zeit." He then pressed a button, which caused a light in the forward turret to turn green - indicating approval of firing. There was a slight pause, but one voice was heard before the guns roared to life. "FEUER!"

Almost exactly the same time that the word was given, the the right gun fired. It was a deafening noise for anyone in the vicinity of the turret outside, and could be heard from even the EKS Hurrikan, nearly 20 minutes away. A large, 330.2 millimeter shell was lobbed out of the gun towards the Cas Karcara. The shell flew for a small while, and then landed just shy of the vessel's hull. Not enough to cause serious damage, but enough to shake the crew inside around. Schlieffer, still on the bridge, smiled. "That should prompt them to answer now. Prepare for boarding, and ensure the Hurrikan knows of the situation. Herr Fähnrich, send another message in German and English to the ship. State:"

UNIDENTIFIED VESSEL. THE PREVIOUS SHELL WAS TO DISPLAY AN "ENGLEAN WELCOME" IN RESPONSE TO YOUR FAILURE TO IDENTIFY YOURSELF. CEASE ALL OPERATIONS AND PREPARE FOR BOARDING. THE EKS HURRIKAN IS EN ROUTE, AND WILL BE ASSISTING IN BOARDING. FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL LEAD TO YOUR VESSEL BEING DESTROYED AS A HOSTILE.

Meanwhile, a boarding party of 10 Englean sailors were arming themselves for a possible firefight. All they had were standard assault rifles and armor, but they were hoping they would not need anything more. The destroyer was nearly 15-20 minutes away, and wouldn't be there until they boarded. Each sailor had no idea what was to come, except that the ship may be full of hostiles.

[United Soviet Jason Republic]

Some Distance from St. Paulsburg
Three Weeks Ago

Theme

Despite the lashing rain and rough seas, the plan still went forward. The tugs kept the barge in place, slowly bringing it above its watery resting place. Like the rest of the crew, the men did not know what was on the barge. But it did not matter. The sums of money they were being offered to sink it was nothing to stick their noises up at. In fact, the money was most than what these sailors made in two years of work. The requirements of sinking the barge were suspect, but none of the men questioned it. Money was money. The crews continued their labor in the rolling seas, most trying to stay indoors. The heavy lines did not snap despite the tension they were under. The barge, according to the employer, had to be sunken on a cloudy day. It was above the man’s pay to know why, exactly, this was the case.

The ships bobbed like toys in the surge. White caps were ever prevalent. The bilge pump was hard at work taking out rain water and spray off the bow. The starboard most tug was almost at full power in an effort to push against the rain and surf. A man in a trench coat at in the wheelhouse watching the mission. He had a cigarette in hand, and spoke very few words to the crew. No one minded that the man was smoking, but his presence only added to the bizarreness of the mission. He had his clearly expensive black hat off, resting on the desk beside him. Despite the heavy seas, the man did not appear to be disturbed. In his hand, he held a small electric device.

“This is the spot, captain,” he finally said between puffs of smoke. “Tell your men to sink the barge when read.” The captain, in a thick rubber jacket, turned to the radio and hailed the other vessels. After ten minutes of holding position, the air pockets within the barge were flooded. Slowly, the black behemoth slugged out to the middle of the ocean began its descent into the depths of the ocean. It was only a hundred meters deep here. Why the package was sunk here, the captain wondered, was beyond him. The tarp on the barge let out a few last gulps of air as it slid beneath the waves, rolling back and forth.

With the mission complete, the small fleet turned back to the safety of port. It would be another three hours before they reached the sanctuary of Saint Paulsburg’s barrier islands and breakwaters, which turned the rough sea into a comparatively calm ride on a seesaw. The tugs were brought to their warfs. The smoky man was the first to disembark. Awaiting at each crew’s house next morning would be a brief case full of their reward for a hard day’s work. The smokey man’s day was not complete, however. Walking from the warf to a waiting black car, he entered. Without a word, the driver took off. There was a man already waiting inside.

“Director,” the man said with a smile. He sat relaxed in the leather chair, reclining somewhat. He was dry, a clear sign he had been waiting for some time. His jacket and hat were off, neatly folded on the seat next to him. “How was your voyage?”

“The voyage was uneventful. As per usual, the North Sea was rougher than my wife.”
“I hope you did not get sea-“

“I was fine, Daughter. Please, I understand the desire for such formalities, but I am a blunt man.”
“It is just unusual to meet one of the higher echelons. I hope you understand.”

“Of course, of course. We all woo our bosses, no? I understand,” the smokey man said, taking the time to light another cigarette. Of course, he had no boss. But this man did not know that. Or need to know otherwise. “You will find,” the man continued, taking his newly lit pleasure out of his mouth, “that the barge was delivered twenty five meters from the sonar station. It must be protected at all costs. I am sure that you understand the importance of this to the Motherhood’s cause. Seeing your position, you are the right man for the job.”

“It is a duty to serve, Director,” the Admiral replied. “It is in safe hands and in a very well trained fleet. I take pride in my boys, if I may say so. We are another family.”

“That is to be judged in time,” the Director replied, taking a moment to inhale the smoke and slowly let it out. The car stopped at a light. For the duration of the light the two men sat in silence.
“Are there any other orders?”

“None. Just keep that barge safe. If not, I am afraid of the consequences….” The smokey man let his voice trail off.

“Of course.” The Admiral said back. Suddenly, the car made a turn onto a side alley and came to a rest. The two men continued to be calm.

“This is my destination. Admiral, the Motherhood thanks you for your service,” the Director said, dawning his hat and opening the door to exit the vehicle. Within seconds the car sped off back to the main road.

[De Fleuves]

July 2nd
13:23

Onboard the CR Cas Karcara

A loud bang was heard from the ship's starboard and it echoed again from the port revering through the air. Before the sound could finish echoing and revering a red trace flew through the ship and hit the uppermost sections of the superstructure snapping if off completely. None of the crew were in the vicinity of where the shell hit but the area was soon rushed to be repaired. The entire ship shook and drifted sideways, some of the crew fell down, others managed to hold on the wall or railing, Nicolaj and Amélio were both sitting.In the moments before impact, in the few milliseconds the blast was still echoing, Nicloaj shouted

"Oh shit no!"

Before falling of his chair to the side.

"You okay?" said Amélio after getting his bearings and recovering from the impact. The echos continued.

Nicolaj got up, stood his chair again and sat on it, putting on his headset and said

"Uh, yeah. They shot way too high to sink us."

"I don't think they planned to sink us anyway."

Nicolaj stared at Amélio, who a few moments ago wanted the ship to sink and put up a middle finger. Amélio laughed it off and told Nicolaj to get back to work, as the defenses need to be put up. Before Nicolaj could open communications a messages was sent to the ship

Code: Select all

UNIDENTIFIED VESSEL. THE PREVIOUS SHELL WAS TO DISPLAY AN "ENGLEAN WELCOME" IN RESPONSE TO YOUR FAILURE TO IDENTIFY YOURSELF. CEASE ALL OPERATIONS AND PREPARE FOR BOARDING. THE EKS HURRIKAN IS EN ROUTE, AND WILL BE ASSISTING IN BOARDING. FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL LEAD TO YOUR VESSEL BEING DESTROYED AS A HOSTILE.

Nicolaj promptly showed Amélio the middle finger once again upon hearing the word "Destroyed" and also promptly asked

"We are not going to stop, are we?"

"Nope" said Amélio as he regained control over the ship and throttled the speed back up.

[Rezua]

Somewhere off the Coast of St. Paulsburg

The silent shadow dared to go where no ships were allowed. The RIN Krisbin was a nuclear submarine, and it was in Soviet Wars. The Krisbin was observing the naval formations of the Soviets, watching from just within the border in order to see where the ships were going. Rezua had been surprise attacked once, that was never going to happen again. If a fleet, meaning 4-9 ships moved closer to Rezua than what is usual, the nuclear sub would leave Soviet waters and then send a warning back home.

This patrol would be like the others, a silent waiting game. Or so Captain Hubert Johannes thought. Johannes never thought that his mission would prove to be a deathly game between his ship and a shadowy unit within the USJR. Near the Krisbin's location was a barge of nuclear warheads, weapons that were said to be destroyed. As the submarine drafted slowly through the waves, it got closer and closer to discovering this dark secret.

[United Soviet Jason Republic]

St. Paulsburg
Admirality
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cno20onK9dY
The sun rose over the city in a peaceful fashion. The sky slowly turned from a black, barely starry sky into a red ring around the city. Street lights and signs slowly began to adjust for this change in the environment, as if they were awake. Slowly, commuters rose to begin their daily routine. Cars and people began to flood the streets of St. Paulsburg, heading too and from any direction, as if at random. Each car used its lights during the morning hours, and in an organized stream of chaos, went down streets, turned, stopped, and continued on their merry way. Pedestrians too took their turns crossing the streets, sometimes directed by traffic lights, sometimes on their own whim. Many were busy on their smart phones, craning their next or stopping to take a selfie or photo of the picturesk morning. Some held coffee or breakfast in one hand, while holding a phone, paper, or more food in the other hand. Some took the time to stop at the local cafes to grab a bite to eat, either in solitude or with company. Even the pigeons were getting in on the morning food frenzy, picking up what they could.

The Admiral rose next to his wife, which he kissed goodbye as he rose into the next room. After changing into his standard uniform for daily work, he rose to get to a waiting car in front of his apartment. The building was a brownstone located thirty minutes from the heart of the city, where Admirality was located. The man sat in the back of the car. During his ride, he reached for a waiting coffee cup and read through the morning debriefing papers that awaited him in the car. Once in a while he took a glance outside. The ride was poor. All the news was poor. The situation in South Sunrisia was a mess. The Supreme Leader had missed his chance to solidify his power in the country, and instead was toppled. Overtures to the man insisting that he take more actions to rain in the protests were rejected. Now he was without a job. The Admiral took a sip and continued on his trip. While crossing over the Eva he took the time to admire the Winter Palace. The bridges were built long after the man who built the city, and indeed so were most of the old goverment buildings, but anyone could admire the old feel of the city. Small craft made their way along the river into the greater ocean. The two great pillars, former lighthouses, were passed in seconds. Over one last bridge, the car turned into Admirality. An armed guard rose to open the car door. The Admiral exited the car, leaving his coffee but taking the packet of news. His black shoes clicked against the old stone. Entering the indoors, the man showed his ID and went passed a metal detector. Once passed security, he continued down the hallway until he got to an elevator. Waiting was easy and normal for the man. He waited until the elevator arrived, and entered. He was the only one in it. Arriving at the proper floor, he turned right towards his office. He passed by a blond secretary in military uniform, whom the Admiral greeted with a smile. The woman smiled back, and gave a warm welcome to the man. The Admiral continued into his office. On two sides, the eva could be seen. The side of the winter palace was also visible, along with the road he entered on. Charts, pictures of old sailing vessels, and flags filled the walls of the office. Everything in the office was old, except for the computer. Even the floors creaked under the weight of the man, along with the chairs as well.

The man looked down at the notes on his desk. The secretary leaves them, normally important information left out of the debriefing packets. But, already, there was an oddity in the package. Reaching down, he grabbed a vanilla folder which was unmarked. He looked around the room, as if looking to see if someone was there to explain why it was there. Of course, no one was. So he opened it up. It was a radiation report, but this one was different. It was not a fish report, naw, it was for a seemingly random location off the coast. A radiation spike was detected by coast guard craft surveying fishing areas. Of course, this one was kept off the record by an affiliate of the Motherhood. The Admiral glanced down at the report which showed a radiation spike around the site of the barge. Silently he put the report aside. It would be destroyed. He put it into the shredder next to the old wooden desk. A small moan was made by the shredder as it tore the report apart. He was in charge. Who would look around that site, anywho? It was protected. He would know if someone was getting too close to the barge.

[Rezua]

Soviet Waters,
Off the Coast of St.Paulsburg

Captain Hubert Johannes sat in his chair watching Lieutenant Meghan Sauer and Lieutenant Simon Pfeiffer fumble around with the map. Sauer's hands had long narrow fingers that moved with speed but were also steady. She wore her brown hair in a pageboy type cut that came down just past her ears. Her face was still one of a young woman, almost teenage looking, but was already 31. She was using a ruler and marker to plot the course of the Krisbin. Pfeiffer watched her work, idly sipping on his coffee as he read out coordinates to her. He was her opposite, fidgety, tired looking, and not as steady handed.

Seated in a chair besides the lieutenants was their specialist, Martin Janson. He was a younger man, around 25, with a thick mustache. He sat quietly, as he always did, religiously watching the sonar. Johannes stood up and tapped Sauer's shoulder "Meghan, I'm going to use the head, you're in charge." Sauer didn't seen look up from the chart, and may not have even heard. However, she replied with a "Aye, Captain." Pfeiffer kept reading coordinates. Johannes moved to the restroom a bit slower than usual. He was a bit sad to see his crew the way they were.

Meghan and Simon were more alive when they came onto this ship. They joked, they laughed, they royally annoyed him, but now he missed their youthfulness. He was getting old, he could retire in a few years and he had grown sad at heart. His wife had died young, a drunk driver hit her when she was heading back from a party. He only had one child, a son, and he was already as old as Meghan and twice as boring. The truth was, Johannes used the sea to escape his life, to hide the guilt and shame he harbored within himself. He was never home enough, was not there to watch his son grow, wasn't there in time to see his wife die in the hospital. The Navy was the life he choice but it had stolen away his family. Sauer and Pfeiffer were energetic once, and had given him the chance to watch his children grow, because he considered his crew his children.

Johannes turned left into the head, walking past a sailor who saluted him and continued on. Johannes relieved himself and then turned to the sinks. He washed his hands and then cupped them and splashed water in his face. The cold water helped wake him and he looked up into the mirror. Who was that old man? The man with grey hair, the man with wrinkles, the man with the tired eyes. Where had his youth gone? Were had his life gone? Johannes sighed and dabbed his face with a towel. Then he turned and headed out towards the bridge again.

Johannes silently prayed that Sauer would be wearing his hat, sitting in his chair, feet resting up on some console. He prayed to see his crew not let their lives slip away from them as he had let his slip away. Johannes entered the brigade, to see Sauer and Pfieffer doing the same thing they were doing when he left. He sighed sadly, he'd hoped for too much. He took his chair again and closed his eyes, wondering how many days at sea were left. Perhaps he could go see his grandchildren soon. But they were getting older too.

Suddenly, Janson's voice broke the ritual-like performance between Sauer and Pfieffer. His voice wasn't loud, but somehow could travel a room. "I've found something. Man-made by the looks of it." Sauer's hands stopped mid-copy, Pfeiffer's voice ended mid-sentence. All was quiet on the brigade, the other 4 officers were looking Janson's way. Johannes stood up and asked the question everyone was thinking "Is it a sub?" Janson shook his head "I don't think so, but one can never be certain. But its just sitting there, could be a wreck." Johannes ordered the submarine closer to the unknown object, countermeasures and torpedoes loaded. However, the unknown object gave no response. Johannes ordered the para-scope up and looked out into the sea.

It was a barge, a civilian one. What was most strange was that there were no signs of damage of any kind, like the ship had just sunk one day. It was strange enough to be investigated. A dive team was sent out, after it was made certain they were in shallow enough water for people to not be crushed by pressure. The team headed out slowly, armed with spear guns and cameras, watching for any signs of a Soviet trap. Once they were near the barge, they looked around the cabin and found nothing inside, except furniture and the odd personal item. But there were no bodies. It was possible, even likely, that animals had eaten the rotting corpses or for currents to take the dead. But the door was closed, and still, not a single body was found. They took pictures of the cabin and then went to the cargo hold.

The doors were locked, but luckily one of the driver had a small welder in his tool belt. He had a thin protective coat over his mask and gestured for the others to turn away. He broke the lock quickly and then had the others help him lift the doors. They were shocked by what they saw. Nuclear warheads filled the entire cargo hold. They were missiles marked with the distinctive radio-active sign. They took pictures and then closed the doors, placing the lock in a position so that might still look locked. They swam off as fast as they could do safely and went through the process to rejoin the Krisbin

Johannes was shocked by the news. He stared at the pictures provided, and there were plenty. He called to Pfeiffer "Simon, mark this position down." Pfeffier did so quickly. Sauer said "We have to destroy these somehow." Johannes shook his head "I'm not torpedoing those. That's too dangerous." Sauer insisted "There must be something. Perhaps we could-" Johannes continued "And we certainly can't take them with us, we can't lift them. We must warn the Empress." And with that, the Krisbin began its journey homewards, unaware of the dangers that lay ahead.

[United Soviet Jason Republic]

St. Paulsburg
Admirality

Admiral Gryzlov sat at his desk looking down at the papers before him. Outside, the rush of the city was in full swing. For the most part, the man sat in silence. Occasionally a horn or car engine disturbed the peace of the office. Behind the man, the river was full of tourist vessels, barges, and pleasure craft heading up and down the Eva. His cup of coffee was long empty. Instead, it was replaced be a glass of water from lunch, which the man picked up at the cafeteria within the building. After a half an hour of social interaction, the man returned to his desk to finish reviewing the fleet status reports before him. It was a job that had to be finished before the end of each month, so that a general fleet status could be handed to the President at the start of each month. If the man actually read the reports, Gryzlov did not know. Most of the stuff was request for supplies, some risky complaints about submarine priorities, inquires into shore leave, and to the man's chergrin, complaints about how they update the list of wrecks and shoals for civilians. Each report came from each vessel, then from each squadron up to the Admiral. He was a fleet admiral, and gave his report to the commodore. This report was from a destroyer asking for repairs to be made to their anti submarine warfare torpedo tubes.

Then the knock came.

"Yes?" the Admiral stated to the faceless intruder. Slowly the large wooden door came open. It was the secretary. She smiled, knowing she was disturbing the man when he had clearly ordered to be left alone.

"Admiral, it is Commander Ilianov. He has urgent news for you," she said. "May he?"

"Yes, yes," Gryzlov replied, casting aside the papers before him. "Let him in at once." The Admiral kept adjusting his papers, making his desk somewhat less chaotic before the man entered. Soon the secretary was replaced by a blank face Commander who gave the Admiral a salute. Gryzlov gestured for the man to take a seat, clearly upset with being disturbed. Ilianov entered at once and took his seat in the creaky wooden chair before his Admiral.

"Sir, I hate to disturbed you, but-"

"Yes Commander?" the Admiral replied back in a neutral tone. He was not into bullshit.

"Hydrophone One Uniform Oscar Sierra has been tripped. I listened to the recording myself. There is no doubt someone filled their torpedo tubes. Close, I may add." The man knew that his station was off the grid. Both were members of the Motherhood. The Admiral was the one who charged him with keeping tabs on the secret hydrophone station. He could see the Admiral's face not change as he heard the news. The room was filled with silence for nearly ten seconds as both men sat, staring at each other. "Sir?" the Commander asked, breaking the silence.

"How long ago was this?"

"Ten minutes, sir. I had to confirm the reports, it was a rather a unique sound that sounds like a west-"

"I want two anti-submarine helicopters over the site dropping active sonobouys within the hour. I want you to send those sounds to two of your joinior officers and try to isolate the sound of the engines. I want to know who was there."

"Sir," the man replied back, and began to rise up from his seat. "I shall-"

"I also want the destroyer Korchkov deployed as soon as possible near the site." the Admiral finished. "And a report of what else can be rapidly deployed-"

"Sir, would all this action not tip off someone that we are trying to hide the location?" The comment made the Admiral pause for a moment.

"It shall be a surprise live action drill for the men. Now get to it, man." The Commander turned tail and left the room. The Admiral stood up when the door closed and walked over to the window over looking the Eva. He placed two hands on the window sill and lowered his head.

Twenty Minutes Late, St. Paulsburg Naval Yard

The crew of the two helicopters jogged towards their waiting craft at a moderate pace. Already the ground crews had prepared the craft for takeoff. Within minutes pre-flight checks were complete. After the first helicopter took off into the blue sky, the second followed. Soon the aircraft were over the ocean at a height of two hundred meters, making quick speed out into the middle of the ocean. Soon, they were over the horizon. Land dissipated as they approached the target area. Once over the target, the first craft dropped one sonobouy. It shot out off the craft with a small parashoot soon deploying. It splashed down, and released its mechanism. Within a minute it began to ping the water, and give readings back to the orbiting helicopters. fifty meters away, the barge was still below the surface, waiting.

[Engleberg]

-snip-

July 2 - 13:27

EKS Hurrikan

Boarding Party Preparing on the SMS Falke


Boarding Party Prepared on the EKS Hurrikan

"We have reached the Falke and the hostile vessel, Herr Kapitän." Spoke the first officer of the EKS Hurrikan, an Englean destroyer. The captain of the Hurrikan, Joseph Rädel, peered through his binoculars at the vessel in question. "The Falke fired a shot at her, and they refuse to stop? They must be insane, or desperate for us to not find whatever may be in there." He then turned to a man who just walked in the bridge, dressed in full-combat gear. "Are they ready?" The man nodded, and then walked out. "Notify the Falke that our helicopter will be picking their party up before boarding the vessel."

Outside before reaching the hangar deck, 10 men were standing and in full combat gear like the man in the bridge. The squad leader stood in front, with a paper in his hand, describing the situation with the men. "We do not know the exact layout of this vessel, but by their actions, I would suppose that they are armed and will be hostile. Use of force is authorized, and incapacitate on sight if they appear to be armed. Our primary goal is to capture the bridge and its crew. We will be joined by the boarding party from the Falke, so we will not be alone. Let's give them a visit to remember." With this, each man walked to the hangar deck, where a gray helicopter was waiting. Each man entered the aircraft, and it took off soon after; headed to the Falke.

July 2 - 13:30

SMS Falke

Despite being a relatively small boarding party, "Echo Squad" was prepared as well as anyone could. They were using the Englean boarding uniforms from the 80's, which was entirely green and splashes of tan. They were on the stern of the Falke, waiting for the helicopter from the Hurrikan. "The Kapitän stated that if we are unsuccessful in capturing the vessel, we will ensure that no civilians are on board as we make it back to the LZ. Then the Falke will sink the vessel. Ensure radio contact at all times. We are to clear out the midship decks, and make our way to the bridge. Incapacitate on sight anyone who appears armed." When the leader finished his orders, the RK-546 arrived. Ladders were thrown down, to allow Echo Squad to enter the aircraft. 3 minutes later, the helicopter neared the stern of the vessel. The pilots noticed the name of the ship, and radioed to the Hurrikan. "It says on the rear 'CR Cas Karcara.' Isn't CR the title given to D'Fleuvian vessels?" After rounding the stern, the helicopter landed the Echo squad in the stern, and Alpha Squad on the top of the vessel, where a door leading in was spotted. Each soldier readied their rifles, and headed in the direction of the bridge.

RK-546 Prepared for Takeoff

[Rezua]

Aboard the Krisbin


Captain Johannes had ordered the Krisbin down to the lowest possible sea level before the sub would beginning to experience trouble with the undersea pressure. Lieutenant Sauer and Lieutenant Pfeiffer were raking their brains with ways to avoid the enemy, should they detected. A submarine used passive sonar to navigate, thus gave them a way to remain hidden for awhile. But should the enemy send many ships or sonar buoys then they would eventually be found.

Therefore, the two lieutenants came up with a plan to throw off the enemy. They would fire off decoys into the sea to try and spread out the amount of sea the enemy would need to search. Since they did not actually know they were being tracked, they did not deploy all their decoys, and only used two of them. For now, they would have some breathing room.

Sauer and Pfeiffer took their posts beside the captain with a certain tenseness. Sauer asked casually "So...what do you think the government is going to do with this information?" Johannes said solemnly "Hopefully nothing. It should be noted but not told to anyone. Any nation would rat us out to the Soviets. None can be trusted." Pfeiffer muttered "Surely the Rhodeve-" Johannes answered "And what of them? Are they not trading with our enemy? They can't be trusted with this knowledge. It must be a dark kept secret."


OOC: Really don't know what else to put.

[De Fleuves]

Situation
Red - Karcara Crew
Blue - Englean Forces

July 2nd
13:39
Onboard the CR Cas Karcara

A distant buzz was heard on the ship's deck. similar to a fly close by, and it was something similar to a fly which was really close to something that was at least 50 miles away and barely visible on the horizon.

Meanwhile in the Bridge, two fellows finished drinking their eighth shot of vodka and were ready to do anything but navigate a ship, which they weren't going to anyway since they too, have noticed the distant buzz.

The large one wearing green tactical vest, black shades and and an automatic assault rifle, also known to some by a fairly nice name: Nicolaj. Inserted a magazine into his gun, cocked the chamber and flipped a little switch to the steel engraving visualised as three bars.

"Bring out more vodka, we've got party guests."

"We're heading down to the maintenance?"

"Yep, gonna rig this ship up. They will have twenty minutes as soon as they touch the Karcara until we all bow down to Lucifer. "

They exited the bridge and met with another one of the team. He was ordered to entrench inside the crew quarters. Before the Englean helicopters were well in sight the two were already down at the maintenance room pushing boxes blocking the staircase and wiring up explosive stored there.