Caught In The Web: Astyrian Conflict & Intrigue (IC/Closed)

[Trellin]

From: His Imperial Majesty King Mahrim II Date: 12 / 09 / 2014 To: The Empire of Andamonia cc: Ladron Ma'alathig Khadeg, Moethet Berendego Kur'zhetai, Methet Serekh Berendika Arimathe'ka, The Trellinese people of Rha'gutza and Khorvu, The governments of the sovereign nations of Astyria To whom it may concern, It has been nearly seven months since the Sidereal Crown announced its intention to resume its sovereign authority over the Trophy Ports of Rha'gutza and Khorvu. Though there were calls for a swift descent in arms on the Ports, I chose to restrain our armed forces lest we find ourselves faced with a recurrence of that most ignominious of wars. We delayed our planned reunion for over half a year, to give time for the people and garrisons of the Andamonian Empire to withdraw from their occupied territories. We cannot be accused of inequitability; we have been more than generous in postponing what is our singular right of dominion, our inheritance of the unified Ethlorek people. Now, it appears that our generosity has not been welcomed by the Andamonian governments of Rha'gutza and Khorvu. In fact, I am given to understand that there has been no effort by the Andamonian governments to abandon their unlawful presence in our Ports. Furthermore, that the unjust occupier continues to exercise authority granted purely by virtue of military force, even as it imposes curfews and martial law on the Khalitan people in the face of their righteous anger, denies their right to self-determination as a sovereign people and forbids them from instituting their own local government despite their clear desires, is a grave insult to the Trellinese people and to the Sidereal Crown. We have not spent nigh one hundred and twenty years segregated from our kin to have our inheritance denied us, and we can no longer permit the Andamonian Empire to maintain this status quo. Therefore, our last recourse is to issue an ultimatum to the Andamonian emperor, Amahuiz Tlacapilzi. If he does not order an immediate withdrawal of all his troops, people and representatives in both Rha'gutza and Khorvu within 48 hours, it shall be the solemn duty of the Trellinese Empire and all its constituent states, dominions and protectorates to declare a state of war to exist between it and the Empire of Andamonia. That war will be prosecuted until such a time as the five Trophy Ports are once more united under the Sidereal Crown. It is my devout hope that he will see reason and comply with this directive, in the interests of more amicable future relations among the nations of the Sea of Velar. Failing this, the Trellinese Empire will have no choice but to uphold its oaths by force of arms. God willing, such a thing will not come to pass. His Majesty Emperor Mahrim II of the Most Ancient Sidereal Crown, King of Trellin, King of the Isles of Velar, Emperor of Hysera, Protector of Arimathea, Txekrikar, Kur'zhet and Cadenza, Prince of Elori, Ludef, Tar Pegalim and Txakla, Lord of Ledigar, Zha'tar, Khatax and Ternos, Guardian of the Straits of Jajich, Lord Holder of the Trophy Ports Durats, Khorvu, Mintra, Rha'gutza and Vacoas, Duke of Mar'theqa, Ka'alkë, Asketon, Halith and Zynaxa, Marquis of Khem, Tidros and Kethros.

[Dungeyland]

20:48
Liberty Square
Rha'gutza
Andamonian-held Trophy Port

The Imperial government's view on the Andamonian-held Trophy Ports was one guided by the principle of self-determination. Unfortunately, the Imperial government much preferred realpolitik to lofty ideals. The ports of Rha'gutza and Khorvu, pene-exclaves of Andamonia in the west of Dungeyland, were politically unstable. Seized by the Andamonians in a war long past, their Trellinese population was highly agitable. Standing just a few feet from the Council Hall, a symbol of Andamonian rule, was Gavin Harris, an operative for the Imperial Research and Analysis Institute, or IRI.

Harris' mission was purely reconnaissance, and that made it quite dull. On previous missions across the world, from Insula Fera to the United Kingdom, Harris' task had been to play the saboteur, whether against the local government or against a third party threat. It seemed to him that this assignment was punishment for the Insula Fera fiasco. The IRI had failed to ensure the failure of Aquitaynian attempts to reach Corvus before the Imperial-Confederate coalition. The memory pained Harris, for the blame did quite rightly land squarely on his shoulders.

Nevertheless, he had to think of his current mission as being equally important. Rha'gutza bordered Dungeyland, and was less than an hour from the Empire's second city of Intel. Any crisis in the two eastern Trophy Ports would have a knock-on effect on the Dangish Empire and its economy. For these reasons, the Empire was so concerned with Trellinese attempts to retake the ports. Just a few hours prior, Harris had received a message from the Theologian-General (head of the IRI) that the Trellinese government had issued a 48 hour ultimatum against Andamonia for the unconditional transfer of sovereignty of the ports. Such a situation was unacceptable to the Imperial government, for fear of instability in the Empire's backdoor.

So, Harris was sent to the Council Hall to speak to the Governor on behalf of the Crown. It was an usual exercise for an undercover operative. Unfortunately, the Dangish had no official representation in the Trophy Ports, and it was crucial that communications between Andamonia and the Ports were maintained. The Foreign Office were well aware that Harris' diplomatic skills were undoubtedly inadequate, but he would simply have to do. Of course, the venerable Foreign Office saw no ideal way out of the quagmire.

With time, the Trophy Ports would have to be returned to Trellin. Such is the way empires crumble, and the Andamonian Empire was certainly crumbling. The Imperial goal was to smooth out any transition. A period of joint sovereignty might suffice. A period of international administration as the institutions of state are reformed. A power-sharing agreement between the Andamonians and the Trellinese, or an agreement in which the rights of naturalised Andamonians are protected. Some vocal Dangish partisans were even advocating a unilateral declaration of a mandate by the Empire; these proposals were deftly ignored by the Foreign Office in the light of an ancient, but still standing Dango-Trellin Treaty granting sovereignty forever to Trellin.

The Cratley government had previously announced its intention to unilaterally cease the protection of Andamonian traffic through the Strait of Trellin. This was right before a general election, however, and the Marquess had quite flatly lost. The incoming government did not agree with the Marquess, and so Andamonian sea traffic was duly protected by Royal Navy enforcement of the open seas. Such a policy was widely criticised within the Empire, but to be frank, it was an excellent negotiating card in future sovereignty decisions. Nobody wanted the people of the Ports to starve, and the Empire held the key to access to the two exclaves.

---

On behalf of Her Majesty the Queen
The Office of the First Lord
The Dangish Empire

To:The Empire of Andamonia, HIM King Mahrim II
CC: The governments of the sovereign nations of Astyria
Regarding: The Trophy Ports ultimatum

To whom it may concern,

The primary concern of Her Majesty's Government is the maintenance of stability within the region of Astyria. It is this belief which guides Imperial foreign policy with regards to the Andamonian-held Trophy Ports, including Rha'gutza and Khorvu, which border the Dangish dominion of Dungeyland. The unfortunate geography of Rha'gutza and Khorvu make the future of the Trophy Ports of key concern to Her Majesty's Government, as the maintenance of domestic stability must also be considered.

In simple terms, an abrupt transfer of sovereignty, accompanied by conflict, will destabilise the economies of Trellin, Andamonia, the Ports and southwestern Dungeyland. Such a situation is intolerable to Her Majesty's Government, and as such we intend to pursue all measures within our power to ensure a smooth transition and to maintain the peace. The Empire of Andamonia and the Sidereal Crown must accept that the wishes of the people of the Trophy Ports are what the Dangish Empire aims to enforce. To these ends, the Dangish Empire has proposed a set of measures within the Trophy Ports in lieu of the 48 hours ultimatum provided by the Sidereal Crown.

Her Majesty's Government believes it would be conducive to the peace if a plebiscite on sovereignty were to occur in the Trophy Ports under the question "which country should the Trophy Ports be part of?" There would be three answers provided: Andamonia, Trellin, and "The Trophy Ports should be an independent state." Such a plebiscite would naturally not occur overnight. The Crown would expect it to occur within three months. In order to ensure the vote is fair, the Crown would deploy officers, and welcomes the Astyrian community to do the same. Regardless of the plebiscite's result, any new government would be required to ensure the respect for the rights of any minority group. A timetable will be produced with the aim of a gradual transition of sovereignty.

With regards to the Trellinese ultimatum, it must be stated that the ultimatum is unacceptable to the Dangish Empire. Indeed, should the Sidereal Crown fail to accept the measures proposed by the Dangish Empire, it would be the Crown's moral duty to intervene. The intervention would involve a mandatory occupation of the Trophy Ports, so that a plebiscite can be safely held. Hostilities would not extend to measures against the Trellinese state proper. Should the Andamonian Empire fail to accept the measures proposed, a similar situation will exist.

I urge you on behalf of my Queen to call off this ceasefire and sit down to talk about the future of the Trophy Ports. If they are as Trellinese as you believe, you have nothing to fear.

Yours faithfully,

Lord Scylla

The First Lord of the Treasury
The Dangish Empire

[Trellin]

From: Office for External Affairs Date: 13 / 09 / 2014 To: The Dangish Empire cc: Ladron Ma'alathig Khadeg, Moethet Berendego Kur'zhetai, Methet Serekh Berendika Arimathe'ka, The Trellinese people of Rha'gutza and Khorvu, The governments of the sovereign nations of Astyria, The Empire of Andamonia Lord Scylla, On behalf of His Majesty the King I wish to thank you and your government for your concern for the well-being of the Khalitan people. We greatly appreciate your commitment to the stability of the nations around the Sea of Velar and assure you we are grateful for your efforts to maintain order. The Dangish Empire has long been a good neighbour to Trellin, and its clear intent to uphold the status quo in the region is perfectly understandable to us. Unfortunately, your government has fundamentally misunderstood the nature of our current situation and why the proposal you have made is utterly unfeasible. The issuance of an ultimatum was not our first choice, and it was with great regret that the decision was made to make a final demand. We did so only because all other avenues had failed us when the Andamonian government refused to heed our declaration of intent made at the end of this February. We gave them fully six months to rethink their rash decision, and nothing positive has come of it. We remain convinced that the only way to bring about the desires of the Khalitan people is by forcing the hand of what we continue to regard as an illegal occupying force. That the actions of the Andamonian-imposed governments have made no efforts at protecting the interests of the native people of Rha'gutza and Khorvu are stark evidence of the inevitable failure our inaction will have. The Khalitan populations have spent the last century imploring their conquerors to allow them to return to the Trellinese Empire, and no semblance of democracy has been granted them. Despite a population that is overwhelmingly Trellinese in ethnicity, the central government back in Zadé Axochizin insists on appointing two thirds of representatives to both Ports' councils. When the remaining Trellinese councillors made calls for reunification, there was a virtual prohibition of assembly. Are these the actions of a state which desires a smooth transition? Can the proposed plebiscite even go forward under the purview of so rogue a state as the Andamonian Empire? Even assuming that, against what appears to be the natural order of things in Andamonia, a referendum is decided to be held on the matter, three months is far too distant. We have spent close to one hundred and twenty years waiting for reunification. We have no more desire to see this postponed. Further, the possibility of a 'gradual transition of sovereignty' is entirely out of the question. It is impossible for the Trellinese and Andamonian empires to see eye to eye on this matter; this I can promise you. To make such an impossible demand of us, to presume that the acceptability of our ultimatum to the Dangish Empire should become a factor in this reunification is truly a surprise to us. To then state that you would intervene in our domestic affairs - for the Trophy Ports are, by all standards of international law, still Trellinese territory - with the occupation of said ports does not fall short of appalling and is an affront to our nation. An occupation of the Trophy Ports would be by its very definition an action against the Trellinese state proper and could only lead to war. We are compelled to - indeed, we must - reject your proposal in its entirety. Do not take this to mean we are ungrateful for your offers of help. The Dangish Empire has been most commendable in its intentions, but this is a matter which cannot now be resolved through a democratic process. Either Andamonia will adhere to our ultimatum or there will be action. Nothing else is now possible. Tizarek Kozarin, Office for External Affairs

[Dungeyland]

On behalf of Her Majesty the Queen
The Office of the First Lord
The Dangish Empire

To: Tizarek Kozarin, the Trellinese Empire
CC: The governments of the sovereign nations of Astyria, the Empire of Andamonia, the Governor of Rha'gutza
Regarding: The Trophy Ports ultimatum

Dear Mr Kozarin,

I regret to have received and discussed your letter in a full meeting of the Privy Council, in which the decision was made to hold firm the Imperial offer of peace.

Her Majesty's Government fully respects the right of a sovereign state to full control over what occurs within its territories, but rejects that such full control can extend to unilateral ultimatums and the rejection of self-determination. The beliefs of the Sidereal Crown may be mistaken, and international law requires the exercise of self-determination. If such self-determination is not exercised, the result will be sectarian violence and troubles between Andamonian and Trellinese segments of the population. The proximity of Rha'gutza and Khorvu to western Dungeyland simply makes this even more pressing an issue.

If Zadé Axochizin does not wish to grant a plebiscite to the people of Rha'gutza and Khorvu, the Dangish Empire, as previously declared, will support Trellinese efforts to bring about one. Nevertheless, the Crown must insist that a new Trellinese government do its due diligence and offer the people a voice. Should Mar'theqa choose to offer a plebiscite sooner than in three months, the Dangish Empire shall not object. Indeed, as previously stated, the Dangish Empire will provide passive assistance to Trellinese forces if the Andomonian Empire does not agree to a fair plebiscite.

I remind you of the proximity of the Dangish Empire to the conflict zones. I also remind you of the pre-eminent position of the Royal Navy in the Strait of Trellin. I remind you that the nature of the Dangish Empire is not belligerent. I send these reminders simply to make the Sidereal Crown, and other international parties, acutely aware of the response that Her Majesty's Government must take in the event of the death or injury of an Imperial subject.

Yours faithfully,

Lord Scylla

The First Lord of the Treasury
The Dangish Empire

[Andamonia]

Tlanecentlalanzi ha'Ahandémon - the Grand Assembly of Andamonia,
Zadé Axochizin
13^th September

The main chamber of the Grand Assembly was filled to the rafters for what seemed like the first time in living memory. Like so much else in the Andamonian state, the political system had entered a long slow decline in the aftermath of the Trophy Wars. That the assembly held little more than an advisory status had not helped halt the drop in attendance numbers, and for the last four years there hadn't been a single session where more than one in five of its members had bothered to show up. As the instruments of government rusted from disuse, the country they were meant to help rule stagnated. All the monarchy now seemed to care about was holding onto its last two prizes of past glory, victories that would have long been forgotten if it weren't the only thing the rest of the world knew the country for. Andamonia was an empire in neglect, possessing neither the strength it once had nor the conviction of its people. To be remembered for nothing but a brutal and bloody war is one thing; to be faced with the prospect of another just like it, over the exact same thing but this time with no hope of victory, was quite another.

So here they all were, the Councillors of the Grand Assembly, all crowded into this one room to hear their emperor, Amahuiz Tlacapilzi, speak to all his gathered advisors. Only now were they realising that the room truly wasn't large enough to seat them all, it had been so long since there had been a large gathering. All of them knew he would rail against the Trellinese - wasn't that all he did these days? - but whether he would call for war or acquiesce to the demands of the Dangish and allow a referendum - unheard of - was not so certain. A few people coughed in the heavy air in the chamber, but otherwise there was silence. Then a single bell chimed and they all rose, almost jostling for space to stand, as the emperor walked in.

He was tall; that was the first thing most of his audience noted. Much taller than the man who walked behind him, though the latter walked with lighter steps and seemed less burdened by the troubles of the world. This second man, they knew, was the First Speaker, Mocat Xekomo. There were those who called him the power behind the throne, but Xekomo made no pretensions of personal power. He considered himself first and foremost the emperor's servant. His only regret was that the emperor was completely mad.

Not mad in the traditional sense, of course. Amahuiz was quite sane, in total control of his senses and his actions. He was markedly intelligent, having very nearly pursued a career in physics before the untimely death of his brother had made him next in line for the throne. A week later his father had died, and Amahuiz Tlacapilzi found himself on the throne of a country he had never been trained to rule. He understood few of the practicalities of office, preferring to delegate liberally and without concern for the ability of those to whom he deferred authority. When he made decisions of national importance they were rarely very thoroughly considered, but he had no respect for the Grand Assembly, whom he considered little better than a pack of scavenging jackals, and so he rarely if ever called on them for advice. Xekomo was the only man whose judgement he would trust, and Xekomo guided him excellently.

Until today.

Amahuiz had come to him after hearing of Trellin's ultimatum and asked what he thought. Mocat had been honest and thorough in telling his emperor that under no circumstances should he allow Andamonia be dragged into a war they could not win. Imperial honour was nothing compared to the danger the Trophy Ports now posed to the nation's integrity. Amahuiz had disagreed. There was an argument. Xekomo lost his self-restraint and in no uncertain terms told his emperor that he was the most incompetent ruler Andamonia had had in a century, and that it was only his First Speaker who had managed to keep the empire together. Amahuiz said he would speak to his advisors.

And now here they were. The jackals had gathered.

Amahuiz approached the dais on which was set a throne and a lower chair. He stood in front of his throne but did not sit, gesturing instead for the crowd to do so. They sat, and so did Mocat Xekomo. With bated breath the Grand Assembly waited for the emperor to speak and reveal what wisdom had been imparted to him by Mocat Xekomo, and so did Mocat Xekomo.

"Members of the Grand Assembly," began Amahuiz, belatedly realising he needed to clear his throat first. He did so. "Thank you for gathering here today. As you are all no doubt aware, you are here in response to the Trellinese ultimatum which gave us forty-eight hours to withdraw from the Trophy Ports. If we fail to comply, or refuse to do so, they threaten to remove us by force.

"I know what you are all thinking. We should concede the Ports, a pair of prizes which have brought us more grief than glory. They were never really ours, anyway. Too much blood was spilled in their conquest, and what good are they to the Andamonian Empire? Bases from which to conquer? Conquer whom? Who now trembles before our might? Who in all Astyria thinks of Andamonia as a great power? Our heyday is behind us: war machines rust in the wilds of Tiketli; our great armies are bleached bones in the fields of the Usmalím; Utiri's armada lies at the bottom of the sea. Surely to stand against the Trellinese Empire would be our doom." Many in the crowd were already nodding emphatically as he continued.

"But if we fail to draw the line here, to say we will not allow them any further, where shall it end? Are we to take diplomacy from the mouth of a cannon? Is this to be the way of the world from now? I fear for the future of my people, of my country, if we do not stand up for what is ours and what have we made. If we give them what they demand, what then? Will they take our Trophy Ports and then all our others? Will we see Trellinese armies marching, once again, down the road into Zadé Axochizin? Will their Txekri vassals demand to be given back their old conquests? Are we to see a renewed era of Trellinese imperialism and irredentism?

"I say no. I say we cannot stand by and allow them to make demands of us while we meekly acquiesce. They have not spent seventy years hidden away for us to surrender as soon as they come out of the shadows.The world has changed around them, and they are not the mighty power they once were and believe themselves still to be. We will not permit them to make bold claims of their past glories and deny us our current ones. If they are so eager to seize our lands, then they shall have to seize them in force, for the Andamonian Empire will not stand by and let them take what is ours by right. If they wish to come, let them come! And when they do, we will be ready for them! We will not succumb!"

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause as they all rose to cheer, swayed completely by the impassioned speech. Xekomo groaned inwardly as he, too, applauded his emperor. It might just be time to go job-seeking.

[Agrincourt]

Fort Beaumont, southwestern Agrincourt
55 kilometres from the front

---

Weeks and weeks of artillery bombardments and air strikes had left the front lines scarred and scorched; casualties mounted on both sides, especially on the Casegenian side, but the hesitancy of the Agrincourtian War Cabinet to act on what had once been planned had caused the war to come to a stalemate. The plan, of course, was to lure the Casegenians further into Agrincourt, then assault from the flanks and cut them off - a classic pincer movement. However, it was scrapped after it was deemed too risky. This was regardless of the fact that the Agrincourtians had GHawkins, Neu Engollon and the Gauls on their side. The fact of the matter was, the Agrincourtians would have to act sooner or later, for even though the Casegnians were not winning, they had not yet given up. The war should have ended weeks ago and it should have had ended sooner rather than later.

The lack of confidence and inaction of the Prime Minister, Lord William Ainsworth, had caused significant outrage within the House of Commons. This outrage turned into open action, leading to several high-profile defections from the ruling party - the Agrincourtian Conservatives - to the opposition, The Liberal Labour Party. This culminated in a motion of confidence initiated by George J. Wilson, the leader of LLP, which was won by 459 votes to 200. A snap general election followed, with a voter turnout of 71% and a landslide victory for the LLP. Shortly after their election, the House of Commons passed an Act to allow the Chief of Staff of the Agrincourtian Armed Forces to plan and execute all operations against Casegene with free reign. Of course, Casegene wasn't their only problem.

Danger loomed over the north of Agrincourt, with recent conflict in Kamalbia, Marqueville and the Confederate deployment to Terra Azure numbering over fifty thousand men. Significant danger, but nothing could be done. However, the government had already begun mobilising additional territorial forces to amplify the northern border, as well as the whole coastline of Agrincourt. This would take time, of course, but with the recent arrival of GH, NEDM and Gaul forces, many units of the Agrincourtian Armed Forces were freed up and the pressure was off. For the time being.

Meanwhile at Fort Beaumount, the largest and the most important operating base in the southwest, Marines from the 3rd and 4th battalions of the 1st Marine Regiment were preparing to head out. They were to act as an assault force, acting under the direction of General William Anderson who was the current Chief of Staff of the Agrincourtian Armed Forces. They were also to act as replacements for returning combat troops of 2nd Infantry Brigade who had been out there for the past few weeks, taking more than thirty casualties. Agrincourtian casualties had mounted slowly, for the most part; or as slow as they can in a war of attrition. Casegenians were faring worse, a lot worse, with the highest estimate being up to four thousand dead, and several thousand wounded. Still, relentlessly, the Casegenians mounted attacks, shelled the border and they had no intention of surrendering any time soon.

General Anderson was a burly man, tall, with dark and greying hair. Despite his age of 62, he remained fit. Or as fit as a sixty-two year old can be. He had been the Chief of Staff for the Agrincourtian Armed Forces for the past two years, having previously served as the Commander, Joint Special Forces Command. His background was in Special Forces, having served with the Special Air Service and, before that, as a paratrooper in the Parachute Regiment. One could assume that it was because of these experiences that General Anderson was fit. It could also explain his war strategy which combined an adaptive defensive style of warfare with surprise special forces raids. Until now, the only thing stopping him from employing his forces as he saw fit, was the Parliament. His thoughts were disturbed by the arrival of his aide, a young Captain in the Army, who entered through the tent's flap.

The young Captain saluted, but was quickly dismissed and told to get on with it.

"Yes, sir. The generals are here."

"Ah, good. Lead them in."

He nodded once, leaving after a quick salute. He returned a few seconds later, with the Generals in tow. As they entered, Anderson stood and nodded to each as they came in.

"Good to finally meet you in person, gentlemen."

They all nodded once.

"Shall we get down to it?" Anderson asked.

"Indeed. May I begin?" General Trojan, of the GHawkins Armed Forces, begun.

"Go ahead, General.

"Thank you... very well. From what I have been told from my own intelligence personnel, is that the current situation resembles one that the GHawkins military has long anticipated to find itself in. Except that the enemy isn't who we thought it was... though even with that, we're not entirely sure..."

"Could you please elaborate on that?"

Damont, the Commander of Gaul forces, chimed in before General Trokan could say anymore. "I meant to talk to you more in depth about that too, General... eh... let me not derail your train of thought, ami..."

"I was going to get to that in a minute, but I guess I can do so now as well. General, you have some type of beamer I can use?"

General Scolatti, of Neu Engollon, dug into his pocket, fishing out a laser pointer. In response, General Trojan offered him a smile, shaking his head.

"I actually need to display some pictures we've taken a little while ago."

"Oh."

"Hah. Well... laser pointers are nice, but they can't project satellite imagery, can they?"

Scolatti shook his head. "I misunderstood your use of the word 'beamer', General, forgive me."

Trojan nodded once. "No problem. Thank you for the offer." After spotting a projector, along with a computer. He grabbed onto his suitcase as he took a few steps to it, setting the projector up and plugging the USB stick into the port. His face would turn rather serious then.

"Alright, what I am about to display is highly classified. Even I was only informed about these images less than forty-eight hours ago." He would press a button, displaying an image of a rather remote, almost abandoned airfield in the middle of a desert.

"We don't know the name of this airfield, but it belongs to the Casegenian air force. I have no doubt the Agrincourtian intelligence knows about it and they will most likely be able to tell me more about it than I can tell you... However, it's not the base itself I am interested in. What do you see gentlemen?"

General Damont smirked. "That our initial airstrikes did some good work?"

Trojan raised an eyebrow. "Actually, this field hasn't been touched yet by any ATO aircraft."

Damont, eager to clarify, shook his head. "By that I mean, that while we didn't strike this airfield per se.. but the lack of freely operating aircraft is telling.. they have less to go around, do you know what I mean?"

All nodded, and Anderson urged Trojan to continue.

"Well gentlemen, I wish I could tell you that was the reason... However, would you believe if I told you this is the same airfield, this picture taken eight hours earlier?" He would change the image once more, displaying a more recent one; it would display infrared imagery of the same airfield, at night, with one major difference. Transport aircraft, with their engines glowing, as well as transport trucks and men scattered about.

General Damont raised an eyebrow, as did the other two present. General Anderson knew the implications of this.

"Please explain, sir. What is the significance?"

"An airport, in the desert, in day-time not a living soul spotted, suddenly turns into a hub of activity at night, with aircraft not in the Casegenian inventory landing and unloading equipment and possibly personnel, from Gods know where, before disappearing and leaving without a trace before the break of dawn."

"I won't argue that General, but who confirmed these are not in the Casegenian inventory? I mean, in most respects, this would be normal resupply operations for a country at war...Understand, that I'm playing devil's advocate here. I'm not really that sceptical about what you're saying. We have air superiority, why would the Casegenians not take advantage of night cover to conduct such operations?" Was Scolatti's clear, objective point.

Trojan nodded once, undismayed. "General Scolatti, I understand your scepticism regarding the significance of this. However, this is one of Casegene's northernmost bases. The front, as we all know, is to the south. What practical use is there, to ship supplies that should be going south, to the north? Why unload supplies that far north, when the place these supplies were stashed, are further south and closer to the lines?" A brief pause... "I can compare that to wanting to drive from Neu Engollon to Gaul and taking a detour via the Dangish Empire.

Damont let out a brief sigh. "Ah...I see. Possibly they are planning for the future, when we may push back over their borders and they need to fortify?"

Trojan nodded once. "A possibility, indeed. Stashing some last ditch hold-out, perhaps even a continuity of government complex."

"I would like to get back to the point you made about these not being Casegenian aircraft," Scolatti urged.

"I was about to return to that as well."

"Was this GSA information?"

"You're looking at imagery from the GHawkins Space Command."

"Has this been shared with BGSE...and RIS and NESA for that matter?"

"Just a minute, General Damont. So..."

"I have been informed of this forty hours ago, or something like that. I do not know who knows about this and who doesn't. All I know, is that I had to inform you at the first opportunity."

Scolatti shook his head. "General, were you given a full analysis along with these photos? Considering their freshness."

"I am telling you everything I have been told about them. And what I was going to say is that this aircraft's engines..." -- he pointed to one of the IR shadows of a transport aircraft on the screen. -- "Are designed to have a big action radius. If the men with glasses are correct, these aircraft can fly to any base in Casegene, fly back to where they came from and then do it again for another three times. If not more."

Scolatti, along with the rest of the generals, nodded slowly. "Taking your assumption that they are not domestic, they would need to fly in either through the north, from the south, or less likely, through an unmonitored air corridor in Kamalbia. As they would most certainly have never overflown Agrincourtian or Marqueville airspace."

All agreed with this assumption.

Trojan added on to Scolatti's explanation. "Now, conservative estimates indicate they -may- reach central Kamalbia. However, on the other end of the scale, they might be able to reach as far as the Dangish Empire."

A silence hanged in the air for a moment.

"E... A... T... A. Is that what we're implying here?"

His question went unanswered as an uncomfortable silence was replaced with Scolatti's voice.

"I would like to bring something up that may relate to this. Which I have discussed with General Damont previously."

Anderson nodded slowly. "Go ahead, General Scolatti."

He nodded back. "As you may know, our contribution is mainly logistical to these operations, and that will only increase with the new year, which we can discuss later... both the NEDM and Gaul forces have had to divert a considerable amount of forces to protecting our supply lines. That is Agrincourtian, Gaulic, and NEDM supply lines... Commando raids have been a problem."

Anderson sighed heavily. "Indeed... my own subordinate officers have raised this issue before."

"Oui. To cut to the point, we don't think that the Casegenians can pull off that sophistication of infiltration on their own."

Scolatti nodded. "Although, to be fair, the enemy bodies recovered are consistent with Arabic or Levant racial makeup, in Casegenian uniforms."

"My analysts have informed me that the capacity of the unknown aircraft fall within the boundaries of the information we have of the commando raids. In other words, it is possible those aircraft are related to the raids... now I have taken the liberty of ordering my staff to begin assembling a plan on how to that airfield out of business as fast as possible. Of course, I have yet to receive information on the status of the planning."

"A cruise missile strike?" Damont chimed in.

"I will be sure that it's an option we look at. "

Scolatti was more sceptical. "Well...so, then they move to another airfield. Or use a strip of highway. That doesn't get to the root of the problem.."

"But it actually does something. General, say you are part of a clandestine operation. You are deep behind enemy lines, dressed up in another nation's uniform. You rely on your opponent not knowing where you are, who you are or where you are really from. And you know your country will most likely deny sending you if you are captured. And you wake up on one beautiful Sunday morning, ready to do some more raiding on unsuspecting convoys, only to be told your fall-back base, which nobody was supposed to know you used, was bombed while your false-flag operatives were in the process of unloading another batch of materiel. I would not know how to bring the message "Hey frakkers, we know you are here and we're coming for you" across any clearer." Trojan smiled as soon as he finished his statement. Anderson smirked in response and nodded in agreement.

"It does send a message."

"Well, yes. A message is sent. if I was well trained, I could rely on captured supplies, both domestic and military, as well as the Casegenians... So, while a clear message is sent, the practicality of it may be lost on the commandos, who can make do. They are already in country, General Trojan."

Anderson nodded once, then sighed. "Very true. Perhaps we can amplify the amount of security each convoy receives?"

"Well... I think we've gotten the problem fairly under control. Let me backtrack here. If this unknown benefactor of Casegene is determined, a strike on their supply craft and losing some operatives won't fully deter them. We need to look at cutting off the pipeline. That doesn't mean just militarily."

"If we can narrow down who it is, and if I may...there is a big gorilla in the room and I think his name is Billy C," General Scolatti continued,
"The risk was made the moment the first plane was sent, General Trojan. Further, that risk was amplified to them when they sent commandos to hit ATO lines."

"Yes. But, up to now they have elected to remain behind the curtains. For a reason, they don't want to actually fight us. Not in open combat, anyway, but they want to see us lose," Trojan pointed out. "Would, whoever it is - Billy C or otherwise, risk us finding out their identity and imposing sanctions against them or worse?"

"Indeed. However, by destroying their current base of operations, we let them know we are onto something. It might, at least temporarily, rob the commandos of their support. And I have no doubt they could make due."

"I get it. I do. It just seems like a band aid to a bigger wound."

General Anderson, whose silence was notable over the past few minutes, finally spoke. "What do you propose, General Scolatti?"

"Diplomatic pressure. But we need the proof, of course. What if it's the Riysians?"

General Anderson shook his head slowly. "Would you expect it to be them, General Scolatti? I certainly wouldn't."

Scolatti nodded. "I mean, they did send a whole bunch of troops to the border of Ar-Raha, didn't they?"

"Well, yes. That is true."

Trojan turned to both. "Let's slow down a bit. Right now, I am wondering if it should be a priority to know who this is. I would like to remind people here that Billy C almost invaded this same nation we are now trying to defend. If we uncover that this is again Billy C's doing, what stops him from pushing through with that plan this time?"

General Anderson agreed wholeheartedly. "I have been worried that if we do uncover the... third party, nothing would be in the way of them openly engaging in combat."

As did Scolatti. "Yes, we can squash some commandos, but, like General Trojan said, what about the mass of forces in Terra Azura right now? What if those were shipped south?"

"That is my worry exactly. If we openly uncover whoever it is. They can raise the curtain and we can possibly be looking at en masse reinforcements for Cassegene."

Damont shook his head slowly. "We -all- worry. I think the issue is to know who we're dealing with. Not necessarily to out them to the world community."

Trojan agreed. "That is the point I am trying to press."

"That is another reason why not all of our forces are located on the front lines."

"Right... so. If we do find that EATA or BC forces are actively helping Casegene, do we act on that? Or do we just incorporate it into strategy and hope they don't escalate?"

Trojan was the first to answer. "Incorporate it. If we know who it is, we can start looking more... focussed on things; Equipment, troops, things like that. I think I speak the mind of everyone here, we don't want to escalate like our big friends across the river have done, by bombing airfields of a sovereign nation within hours after a small skirmish."

Anderson was on the same side. "Mm.. Yes... I agree."

Scolatti, always the sceptic, chimed in with his thoughts. "That is the fear...We can't guarantee that they won't escalate, if it is who we think it is. No matter if we openly accuse them or not... who's to say they won't arbitrarily decide to send in heavier forces and do away with the subterfuge?"

Trojan had a counter-argument, however, "If, and that's a big if, this is who we think we are dealing with. It's the simple fact of their alliance that's holding them back. The Dangish Empire has no interest in war with my Republic and they have openly stated so."

Scolatti thought about that briefly, before speaking. "What if we could get a break or schism in the EATA to work for us? A friend from Foreign Affairs mentioned a similar outreach from the Dangish to them."

Trojan nodded. "That would be quite awesome. However, I am not going to let my Corps be destroyed by Confederacy forces to have that happen. I think that's a mindset we all have. Breaking EATA is a job for the politicians. I'll find out in due time if that means I'll be facing Confederacy forces or Dangish forces."


"But it is up to us to let them know that a speeded up timetable may aid in our future operations, were they to increase pressure on that split."

"Actually. I think we don't need to actually hit anyone to get that done."

Scolatti was puzzled. ""Hit?" You mean the airfield?"

Trojan shook his head. "I actually meant we don't have to fight at all. I do know the pictures I have shown you have also been seen by some other governments." - he paused briefly as another silence enveloped the room. - "This is not to be officially known by any of us."

Damont was first to respond. "Other governments that are not ATO affiliated?"

Trojan, eager to explain, didn't answer. Or he did, but rather indirectly. "Let's say the Seraphic Empire has opened its military airbases to the Republic. I officially don't know why, other than that they did. However, a bird might have happened to tell me they didn't really like the possibility of Billy C influencing a country so close to them. And that they might have been shown the same pictures you see. And that they might have drawn a similar conclusion..." He paused.

His pause was filled with Scolatti's voice. "Have they gone so far as to pledge military support? Not just bases, but actual air or troop support?"

Trojan shook his head once more. "That, I do not know. However, the GHawkins Air Force was allowed to refuel at their bases and use them to service their craft, before moving onto Agrincourt."

"Ah, I see."

Sensing his chance, Damont spoke with some eagerness. "I want us to hit that airfield. I want the message sent. This bears on Gaul's situation here. We are very concerned about the amount of EATA forces in Terra Azura, as well as meddling in Kamalbia, and now possibly Casegene. We do not want to lose Marqueville anytime soon. Of course, we also value our allies here in the area..."

"I wouldn't count on EATA being much of a problem in Kamalbia. GHawkins forces back in the nineties were already superior to everything modern-day EATA forces can call upon and yet we..." - he paused briefly, yet everyone was aware of what Trojan was speaking about. Especially Anderson. "Let's say we enjoyed the same level of overconfidence EATA forces appear to have nowadays and that that was our biggest mistake.

Damont nodded. "I understand what you're saying, General Trojan, and we are very sorry for the troubles from a couple decades back. But I think we are looking at sheer numbers here, were things to get out of control. COIN is a different war. Let me put it this way... as the CO of a theatre of operations, we have to have some political concerns, whether we like it or not..."

Trojan nodded in agreement. "That is true, as much as I hate politics."

"Yes. For my nation, that concern is that our interests are not threatened here... which is not the case at the moment. We are very alarmed at the mass of troops in Terra Azura and the past designs they have had here. In Kamalbia, on Agrincourt..."

"We share similar concerns."

Nod. "Ideally, Terra Azure would become demilitarised and return to a rational regime, Kamalbia would also become stabilised, with your help, and Casegene would see a regime change. Which we may be able to effect soon.

Trojan wasn't so sure. "Well, let us first tackle one problem - that of a stalemate."

"Yes, but they are all inter-related. This is chess, General, we need to see the moves ahead."

"Yes, however, we're currently talking about taking on a queen while we have yet to move our first pawn. Chess, at the start of a match, is a stalemate."

"But which pawn do we move? The one that gets us to break the deadlock, or the one that eases our eventual taking of the queen? Are they the same?"

"In my eyes, yes. Breaking this stalemate, either by destroying the Casegenian ability to project offensive power, or by punching through their lines, will allow our opponent to move a pawn..."


"Then let's move the pawn that smashes this airfield. I am still on board with that. Let's take it out. Send that message."

"Without unnecessary risk."

"That, is something my staff has already been sketching out for me. This war started with a surprise attack, followed by an attempt to rapidly dominate the battlefield by Casegene, correct?

"Correct, General Trojan."

"I suggest we give them a taste of their own medicine in that case. As that's what the GHawkins military does best."

After discussing the smaller, more specific details of the plan, they had all agreed on a clear plan of action. No details were to leave that tent, except for orders delivered to their subordinate officers through secure channels. They finished up the rest of the plan, distribution of logistics and combat troops, doing so within an hour. By the time they had finished talking, it was midday. At least five hours had passed since their conversation started. Scolatti notified the rest of the new government and, with it, the fact that they would have to leave by the end of year. Anderson knew that already. And so, they all left the tent to distribute the orders.

Co-written with NE and GHawkins via the IRC

---

[Empire of Symphonia]

AFN Congressional Hall
West Genevira, Hitachi Province
Metropolitan Symphonia, AFN-UK

Ever since the start of the UK Intervention in Insula Fera, the Symphonian people were having doubts about the end of the operation. The previous Singh Ministry had already collapsed from the combined weight of the criticisms in both houses of the Imperial Legislature, and pressure was mounting on both the Emperor and Prime Minister vi Contruum to seek an end to the conflict. Prudensian resistance to Symphonian occupation was growing as the resistance fighters from neighboring Pangus flowed in over the porous border between the two regions. To some critics, the UK mission was already going to consigned as another list of "victories in name", as the government would try to clean up the mess that the previous one had caused. Missions to Aquitayne had been met with the same response: that UK Prime Minister Samuel Reich was intent on ending this on terms favorable to the UK.

The Ministry of Information, which monitered cross-communication between Aquitayne and Symphonia, could not perfectly get Aquitaynian officials to set an explicit deadline to the intervention. And so, many in Symphonia and the rest of the AFN were worried about the possibility of the Spartanian Question dragging on longer than usual.

In the halls of power, it was a different story. The AFN Congress and the Imperial Senate openly clashed in joint sessions of the Imperial Legislature, breaking on which path to quickly resolve the issue, with the Emperor and the Prime Minister wisely choosing to avoid taking sides in public. However, after months of debate and conflict, the meeting here would decide the next step in Symphonia's rise to power in Astyria. Key players in the government had already assemebled in the core chamber of the hall: the Emperor, the prime minister, Chancellor of the Senate, President of the Congress, and several department heads including the ambassador to Aquitayne.

A black motorcade stopped in front of the hall, the Imperial Regalia on the hood and roof signaling that the final member of the conference had arrived. Throngs of reporters from across the AFN, the UK, and some from foreign news agencies rushed to the fore, and were shouting questions as Empress Seondeok swept out and was quickly escorted by the aides and into the building. As soon as the doors to the chamber opened, the other members of the conference stood up and bowed, taking their seats after she had.

The group were seated in a hemicycle, facing the projection of the map of Prudensia, indicating zones of effective control and where the rebel activity was strongest. Symphonian forces were clustered around the major cities, with considerable presence in towns and villages in the north and south. Rebels held control over the mountainous regions with bisected the country and well as in the north and northeast. A provisional government was being set up in Port Agincourt to administer the area.

"Your Majesty, as you have requested," started the chancellor," We have finished the policy by which we can govern Prudensia while putting an end to the threat of rebel activity and terrorism in Insula Fera as well as in Symphonia Propera. We have agreed that at this time, it would be best if Prudensia were to be annexed into the United Kingdom as a free-standing province under the joint administration of Aquitayne and Symphonia."

There was a pause as Seondeok visibly arched one eyebrow, giving a quick glance to Prime Minister Akira, who kept a straight face.

"Your Majesty?" questioned the chancellor.

"It seems as if we are going to be taking a whole new step from the modern world," the empress replied smoothly," No country has made such a blatant land grab since the 20th century, and Symphonia above all has a bad experience with foreign colonies."

"But here is the difference, Prudensia will not be called a colony, but merely be relegated to the same status of Cape Town," replied the chancellor," Furthermore, neither country in the UK can claim ownership of the region, even if Pangus and Prudensia were to be lumped together as one administrative unit. They would be technically a member of the United Kingdom, though governance would come from our supervision until such time that we decided that it was safe for their own autonomous rule."

"Mr. Chancellor," interjected the president," I don't see how this would be justified with the other powers, notably both the Blackhelm Confederacy and the Dangish Empire, which have vested interests on Insula Fera. They can declare this move to be a unilateral annexation of half the island, which could lead to unnecessary consequences."

There were a couple derisive chuckles from the department heads, mainly from the Defense Minister and the chairmen for the navy and air force. Seondeok looked over and frowned, by which the men quickly silenced themselves. She glanced over again at Akira, but he only gave a smile and nod of recognition. Deep down though, the empress knew that she had no power over this. Akira vi Contruum was a cunning man, made so from the experience in dealing with the scheming nobility and various bureaucratic power mongers. It was quite clear to her, that the new Imperial Cabinet was filled with allies and supporters of the prime minister, no doubt supporters of the new brand of "imperial democracy".

For all the talk about restoring the Celestial Throne to its historical powers, the leading factions within the Crown Democratic Party had now chosen to make the Imperial Family and the regional governments rubberstamp the process of constitutional democratic monarchy in the AFN. With support from the other fringe factions in the Imperial Legislature, this faction would perhaps gain a strong base from which to control the domestic issues within the AFN, by extension would affect foreign policy as well.

"Mr. President, both the Dangish and Confederate governments have yet to act fully on their threats against the UK," replied the defense minister," The Aquitaynians have already shown them the door in Pangus, and no one has yet to contest our position in Prudensia. Without taking this step, we cannot have a secure northern border which is in our favor and the UK would be separated by hundreds of miles. This is not just a political move, it is a security move as well."

The president was about to reply when Akira interjected.

"Regardless of our differences, the point being here today is that Her Majesty asked us for a plan on how to deal with this issue, and we have come back with a compromise," he said a smile before turning to the empress," Your Majesty, you have heard the final arguments. Do you have any objections to this plan?"

There was something within Seondeok that wanted her to rake her nails down the side of the man's face, perceiving that he was only lording it over her that the new government was not going to be as lax about monarchial powers as the previous ministry. It was within the legal rights for the prime minister to exclude the Throne from the executive process, except for approval. But no man had ever dared to cross the Imperial Throne and expect to not get backlash.

Turning her head slightly, Seondeok nodded towards the Aquitaynian ambassador who stood up and swiftly took the file containing the bill from the hands of a surprised chancellor.

"Prime Minister, I believe that because this is an issue that effects the entire United Kingdom, I must act within my role as UK Head of State," Seondeok replied with a smile as the man's lip slightly twitched," I will withhold Imperial Consent until our counterparts in Aquitayne have properly and thoroughly reviewed this bill and I will invite Prime Minister Reich to address the Imperial Senate on this issue."

With that, the empress stood up and left the room, followed by the president and the ambassador, leaving the rest of stare after her with mixed expressions.

The United Kingdom of Aquitayne and Symphonia
Sister State of the Asian Federation of Nations
Office of Her Imperial Majesty Seondeok vi Kiramashi-Reich
Head of State of the United Kingdom
The Imperial Palace of Relum
000 St. Irene's Square, Hamasaka District
Metropolis of Symphony, Metropolitan Symphonia

---

The Genevira Declaration

---

Believing that the current governing status of Pangus and Prudensia warrants immediate attention
Urgently noting that the UK Intervention in the former ISE has gone on for an extended period of time
Recognizing the critical state of infrastructure and public services in UK area of control

The Imperial Senate of the United Kingdom of Aquitayne and Symphonia hereby establishes the Spartia Administration as the interim government agency in dealing with affairs involving the territories of Pangus and Prudensia, which shall be merged into a larger entity called Spartia. The agency will be the governing authority of stated regions while UK intervention and counter-terrorism operations are ongoing. The agency will comprise of officials from both Aquitayne and Symphonia, with some powers over public services remaining with districts and municipalities, though the agency will have final say in all matters.

By this Act, the Imperial Senate of the United Kingdom also acknowledges the sovereignty of Pangus and Prudenisa as being in association with the United Kingdom unless otherwise repealed. As such, the residents of Pangus and Prudensia shall be given rights and protections listed in the Pendragon Statue of 1862, which guarantees due process, right of assembly, right to free speech, freedom of religion, and freedom of expression. Residents of the region of Spartia, which shall be used to define both Pangus and Prudensia, will be entitled to an elected assembly whose powers will be to oversee the actions of districts and municipalities, except in cases where the Administration deems unnecessary. Spartia's governing structure explicitly will not be allowed to be incorporated into either member of the United Kingdom, unless circumstances deem otherwise.

The Province of Spartia is forbidden to conduct its own foreign affairs, maintain its own military forces, or be freely allowed to set tariff and budget policies. The Imperial Senate of the United Kingdom reserves these rights and powers in the name of the Crowns of Aquitayne and Symphonia. The instruments for such powers will be provided and carried out by the Homeland nations.

Hereby establishes the basis for the Province of Spartia and the Spartia Administration, in the names of His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Jacob von Riech-Kiramashi; Her Imperial Highness, Empress Seondeok vi Kiramashi-Reich; and His Imperial Majesty, Prime Minister Samuel Reich.

Signed and supported by:

• Akira vi Contruum, Prime Minister of the Asian Federation of Nations and the Empire of Symphonia
• Peter Klein, Defense Minister of the Asian Federation of Nations and the Empire of Symphonia
• Andrew vi Shimurazaki, Chancellor of the Imperial Senate of the United Kingdom and the Empire of Symphonia
• Sirdubar al-Malik, President of the Federation Congress of the Asian Federation of Nations

[Aquitayne]

"What is this?"
"Symphonia's idea of a way out."
"A way out? You call this a way out?"
"That's what the Senate is saying."
"Prepare a delegation. We leave tonight."

6:15 am,
Li Yuanhong International Airport,
Symphonia

The Internal Ministry had been hard at work over the last ten hours preparing the necessary items required for a royal trip to the sister state Symphonia of the United Kingdom. Although the logistics were easier than, say, flying to Neu Engollon, they were still drastically challenging given such a small window of time and a completely unexpected announcement of travel from the King. While Samuel Reich was known for being rather spontaneous, news outlets across the United Kingdom as well as the rest of the region were buzzing in speculation as to why the King had suddenly dropped everything and flown across an ocean to visit Symphonia proper.

To add to the rumors and hype, it had been said that the King was to address the Symphonian Senate and Congress in a widely publicized event. Cameras, reporters, as well as all members of the Senate and Congress were expected to be there. This meant that many of the Congressional and Senatorial leaders that had been away on vacations were scrambling to be back in time for the speech.

Though an invitation had been extended to the King to speak, neither the Symphonians or the Aquitaynian governments, respectively, expected the offer to be taken up within eight hours of it being received. This was abnormal, and obviously it fueled speculation as to problems within the engagement in Insula Fera. The relations between the United Kingdom and the Dangish Empire, as well as the Blackhelm Confederacy, had plummeted over the conflict, all due to the Dangish's abhorrently imperialistic Osborne Doctrine which they used to intercede in just about everything under the name of status quo.

As the Monteluci A360-400EX aircraft which the King now used to travel abroad rolled up to the carpet and Honor Guard awaiting his arrival, Samuel put on his overcoat and stood by the door waiting to exit. Within a few minutes the door had been released, a staircase brought up, and himself already scaling the steps down onto Symphonian soil. He walked past the Honor Guard, saluting them as he always did, and entered one of the black limousines bearing the Aquitaynian colors on the hoods and almost completely ignoring the more than 50 or so reporters shouting questions and taking pictures.

The motorcade went without problems, and unsurprisingly, there were Symphonians and tourists lining the abruptly closed streets to see the motorcade as it passed. Sam peered out the window, watching the buildings float by, wondering what it was that made this place feel so much different from home when it looked almost exactly the same. It was almost like he had lived--

"Your Majesty?"

Snapping back to the events at hand, Sam turned. "Yes?"

"We need to discuss why we're here, you still haven't told anyone anything." Sam's speech writer and close friend was sitting upright, obviously concerned and wary that they were on their way to the Symphonian Congress and - in his mind - had no speech to give. This was unlike Sam, and everything about this trip wreaked of underlying fear.

"You need to know nothing, Tyrel. I already have a speech made." Sam averted his gaze back to the outside, leaving his counterpart baffled and even more worried than before. Sam could feel the anguish in the air, that he was leaving his friend in the dark, but there was something inside of him that forbade him from saying anything, not until he spoke with the Empress. Not until the Symphonians knew there was an end to all of this, that this was not the final outcome.

The motorcade halted as it finished winding around the circular drive in front of the governmental building where the Senate and Congress were housed. The door opened and immediately the interior of the car was lit alight with the flashes from photographers and reporters. Stepping out slowly and firmly, Sam stood and pulled the bottom of his jacket down, his face firm. He began ascending the steps of the large structure towards the Empress, who stood waiting for him next to the President of the Senate and Congress, to whom all three Sam shook hands. As family, however, Sam took the Empresses hand and kissed her cheeks softly, pausing at the last one and whispering softly to her ear that no one else might understand, "We need to speak."

They stood for pictures for a brief moment, everyone but Sam smiling in occasion for his arrival, before the entourage walked the rest of the staircase and entered the building itself. There, a select group of reporters stood to take more photographs, and then it was into the large Chamber where Sam would give his address. Stopping at the door, he and the Empress stood side-by-side as their presence was announced.

"Honorable Congressmen, Women, and Senators - I do announce to this Chamber Her Imperial Highness, Empress Seondeok vi Kiramashi-Reich, and His Majesty, Lord of the Northern Isles, King of the Constitutional Monarchy of Aquitayne and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Samuel Arthur Reich!"

Almost simultaneously the chamber stood and began their applause, as Sam and the Empress began walking down the center aisle towards the large podiums where the speaker would stand and the heads of state and congress would sit. The Empress did most of the hand shaking along the way, as Sam's resolve was strong and firm and it did not deem hand shaking and fake pleasantries to be a priority. They made their way in average speed to the front, where Sam was given the floor to speak after embracing the Empress one last time.

Here, he stood at the pinnacle of United Kingdom relations, he stood at the forefront of the next few years of history for the United Kingdom, he stood in a place where others would absorb his words and interpret them; he stood a figurehead like his father to enter himself in the annals of time.

Taking a deep breath, he began.

"Ladies and Gentleman of the Congress and Senate, it is my true and honest pleasure to be here with you on this fine day. On my way over here from Li Yuanhong, I was thinking to myself that Symphonia proper does indeed look like home to me. The faces are different, the clothing different, the buildings different and yet it all looks abnormally the same. It was during the ride to your Chamber this morning that I finally realized why it is our two great nations are bonded together in such a way as the United Kingdom: we are a family. Not in the regard of royal ties and bloodlines, but as peoples.

"Symphonians have been there for Aquitaynians and Aquitaynians have been there for Symphonians throughout all odds. We have gone to war for one another, we have shed blood for one another, we have seen horrid things and fought terrible foes for one another because that is who we are and that is what we know is right. Symphonia stood strong with Aquitayne during the Great War, and Aquitayne stood strong with the right and true government of Symphonia when rebellion was raised and millions of lives lost.

"We know, better than any other, the true cost of war. We have seen its effects on our shores, we know the terrible price that must be paid whenever conflict is arisen in the world. We know this, because we feel it. We can see the effects of conflict on our streets, in our veterans, in our leaders and our families. I know that more than a few of the men and women sitting in this chamber today fought against the Shogunate, and I know even more fought against the Comradens alongside my father and my people during the Great War - we have living memories of the horrors, we know the cross we bear.

"And so the question must be raised: why go to war yet another time? Why send young Symphonians and Aquitaynians, who are brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles, mothers and fathers, to a place they have never once thought to go to fight a conflict that seemingly has no end? It is a valid question, it is a question which must be raised in any good democratic government. For without questions there are no answers, only orders, and in that there is no people, no voice, only absolute authority and submission and in this we cannot allow ourselves to fall victim.

"Aquitayne called on Symphonia to this conflict. It is Aquitayne's conflict. The Legislature here need only ratify a bill which removes Symphonian troops from the field of battle and they will leave and Aquitayne will rejoice in your decision. That is your right. You are the electorate, you are the voice of the people of this nation and do not doubt yourself in the absolute responsibility that office and trust holds. You are the country, you are Symphonia, and you are my family.

"This conflict that we are waging, it is not one of imperialist agenda. It is not one which we sought after so as to gain ground on a widely uninhabited rock and it is certainly not the agenda of this nation nor the United Kingdom to establish any protectorate or colony or administrative region under a singular state thereof. There are calls for battle, calls for peace, and calls for resources. I know this all too well. Do not let yourself fall victim to the Symphonia of old. This is the new age, a new beginning for us all, and if we are not careful we can only rue what we have sown, and in that you will find nothing but war.

"This battle is not one against the Dangish, nor the Confederacy, but against anarchy. We intervened in a lawless state because it was lawless and the government of which it had belonged had failed. We intervened because we knew these people needed help, because we knew that it was the right thing to do and that we are a beacon of light in the world that need assist the lost and lonely boats that look for the harbor. We are guidance, we are a people, and we are strong together now more than ever before and I firmly believe that what we do here, right now, on that rock, will be the determinate for many years to come.

"Can I tell you when this conflict will be over? No. Can I tell you how many lives will be lost? No. Can I tell you how many billions of Aero's will be spent? No. But what I can tell you, and this I say for certain, is that we are doing the right thing. Not for ourselves, not for self-interests or interest groups or for political gain. We are doing this because our fellow man, human beings, individuals with lives and stories and triumphs and failures and love and heartbreak - just like you - need us. That is why we go, that is why we fight.

"We can no longer work against those who mean to do the same as us. Here, in front of my friends and family, I announce that a joint command made between the United Kingdom and the Dangish Empire will be established, with the commander being of Aquitaynian rank, so that we may better help those who need us. This is not a battle that need be fought against ones who are not our enemies. If we want to end this battle within the next five years, we need to work together.

"This means standing strong and firm. This means working together across party lines and throughout the backlash. You need only remember to do what you know is right, and what is just in this world. For that, and that alone, is something that no man or woman can ever judge you on. We are a family, we are a union, and without one another we are nothing more than two states who send things to another and talk every now and then but we're more than that. We are Aquitayne, we are Symphonia, we are the United Kingdom.

"We will not fail in our endeavors. We will not fall or falter nor shake in fear. We are strong, we are unified, we are resolute in our goal to bring help and a modern world back to those who have lost it. And that means nothing less than complete devotion to our task, complete resolve to accomplish the goals set before us and absolute duty not to ourselves but to those who need us.

"That is why we fight, that is why we answer a call no one uttered. That is why we are the United Kingdom."

[Empire of Symphonia]

Imperial Diet Building,
502 Republica Avenue, Hamasaka District,
Metropolis of Symphony, Symphonia Propera
AFN-UK

As Samuel's speech ended, murmurs broke out among the representatives and senators present. There was no doubt as to the nature and content of the speech, and the King's statements were barely surprising given the official response of the Aquitaynian government to similar arguments before. However, this bill had been backed by a majority of the Senate and the Congress, at the behest of the Contruum Ministry. Samuel's speech had gone completely against what they had wanted, and now some were struggling to articulate a response. Members of the Imperial Senate, many whom still backed Aquitayne unconditionally, were at a loss on how to recover from the complete rejection of their bill. Seondeok, from her balcony seat above where Samuel stood, noted the glances that were being exchanged between Akira and several cabinet members.

Before long, they were being ushered out of the chamber, the president of the Congress thanking Samuel for his input. The applause that had greeted the delegation was noticeably smaller and less certain than before, reporters asking for the opinions of the delegates and senators as some left.

As the delegation left the chamber, the media awaiting outside crowded around them. Samuel was as brisk as he had entered, quickly walking the down steps of the Diet and entering the waiting limousine. Seondeok followed similarly, before stopping at the door before turning around to speak to the reporters.

"Your Majesty, given the speech by Aquitayne's king," asked one," What does this mean? Is he doubting the resolve of Symphonia?"

The empress raised an eyebrow, causing the throng to quiet down.

"No, I do not believe that His Majesty means that our soldiers and our government lack the strength to continue in our mission in Insula Fera," she replied," Rather, he is responding to anxiety in the Imperial Legislature that this conflict will drag out longer than expected."

Immediately, the crowd roused up again.

"Your Majesty, is it true that the UK is going to invite the Dangish and Confederate government's into discussion into multilateral talks," shouted another reporter," We don't have an official plan for this, so is King Samuel going to do this without consultation from Symphonia?"

"To put it shortly," the empress replied while getting into the limo," we will be discussing this in a private conference in Relum. The Government will release details later on. Thank you."

With that, Seondeok closed the door and motioned for the vehicle to begin moving. Before long, the limo had begun travelling down the avenue, away from the Diet.

Relum Imperial Palace,
000 St.Irene's Square, Hamasaka District,
Metropolis of Symphony, Symphonia Propera
AFN-UK

The motorcade bearing both royals had raced through the streets of Symphony. Crowds of tourists and Symphonese had milled along Republica Avenue, following the motorcade as it entered St. Irene's Square and passed through the iron gates of Relum. The motorcade stopped in a circular driveway, servants from the palace opening the doors of the vehicles as the occupants stepped out. The assembled Imperial Guardsmen saluted as Seondeok and Samuel stepped out, the palace servants bowing as the pair walked towards the main path that led to the palace.

Xinshang Road, the main path to Relum Imperial Palace

In the midst of a city of fifty million, the sound of traffic was muted by the dense forest and the sounds of birds. It was a quiet place, one that had suited the needs of the Imperial Family when the stress of ruling over one and a half billion people become too much. More importantly, the secure grounds kept most outsiders from penetrating and listening in on sensitive conversations. For a foreigner and foreign royalty to be one the few to ever be invited into this most reclusive of palaces was something that most people would not overlook, especially nations and individuals that took an interest in the workings of the United Kingdom.

As the royal pair walked down the path, Seondeok motioned for the guardsmen to leave, at which they immediately stopped escorting and marched back towards the front gate.

"You know Samuel," she began," I'm actually surprised that you gave that speech. I was half expecting that you were going to chew out some members of the legislature for trying to antagonize the Dangish and the Confederates. I'm pretty sure your speech is going to change a couple minds in the Senate."

The duo came to a bend in the path, in the distance stood the palace complex itself, the faded granite gleaming in the afternoon sun. The gates were already wide open for entry.

"I don't like the direction that Akira is taking the country," the empress continued," We've slowly become intolerant of other peoples during the past few months, especially against the ethnic Gauls who make up the population of Pangus and Prudensia. And there is growing resentment of the Dangish and Confederates as well. And Akira is only capitalizing on this to get public support for whatever he might be planning in future."

"I think that Akira, by introducing this bill, is trying to put the focus of the AFN on empire-building, so to cover the growing signs that Symphonia's influence is stagnating. If he can annex Insula Fera into the UK, what is it to say that he won't go after Terre des Gaulles in the name of justice? Or joining the war on the Yellowsians? Or even perhaps restarting the cold war between Symphonia and the Confederacy? What's scary is that many people support his leadership. They want Spartia to be a part of the UK, the poor misguided souls they are. You saw the bill yourself. If both the chancellor and the president signed it, it means that there is a majority that wants an expansion of the UK, and we already can imagine how that will play out in New London."

The two reached the front courtyard of the palace, and were sitting on a bench facing the entrance fountain.

"What we have here isn't a Symphonia that is wanting a way out," Seondeok said in finality with a sigh," You saw the Times of the East article right? The editors weren't so far off when they said that the latest elections had been run from nationalist platforms. The Imperial Senate now knows the full extent of which you are determined to end this conflict in an honorable manner, but I think that the radicals who spout the new version of 'imperial democracy' really meant it when they wanted to bring Symphonia back to the forefront of regional politics."

[Insula Fera Pirates]

UK Security Zone

The United Kingdom had set up a rather tight cordon on this stretch of rocks, but despite this, the pirates who called this place home were still doing their best to keep attacks on the invaders a daily occurrence. Increasingly, the foreign agents who were directing these men were ordering more and more attacks to be focused on Symphonian rather than Aquitaynian troops, and the pirates (more often than not) did as they were instructed. Armed with highly advanced Doomani AAT.X Acer MANPADs, Russian made OSV-96 anti-material rifles, and all manner of small arms, these men we now a well equipped, battle hardened, albeit poorly trained force that was adamant about hurting their enemy by any means possible.

IED's and land mines would become an increasing problem for Symphonian convoys as they moved through some of the more narrow passes on patrols. Neglecting to move into these area would only cause them to be safe havens, from where mortar attacks would pour out of. Well hidden snipers lined the cliffs and outcroppings, many with heavy rifles capable of penetrating even lightly armored vehicles. Other groups waited for the cover of darkness before springing their ambushes on patrols or outposts, hoping to capture enemy supplies and deal even further blows upon their Asiatic enemy.

Today, however, the target was a Symphonian helicopter. A small team of pirates had been assembled and given the order to carry put this mission, and now waited within a small cliff cavern for an enemy chopper to near them. With a range of eight thousand meters, and one of the most advanced EO/IR seekers on the market to date, the men felt entirely confident that their Acer would do its job and allow them to escape safely. It was not long before the men in the cave heard the steady thump-thump-thump of a helicopter off in the distance. With an assured nod, the man tasked with taking down the bird picked up his weapon and stepped out onto the ledge, pointing the rocket launcher in the direction of the Symphoinan intruder. e paused for a moment, ensuring that he had a lock before squeezing the trigger. The deadly warhead immediately tore from it's tube, screeching through the sky, and the pirate and his team immediately retreated back down into the cave system, not wanting to stick around to even see if their attack was successful or not.

[Aquitayne]

Relum Imperial Palace,
000 St.Irene's Square, Hamasaka District,
Metropolis of Symphony, Symphonia Propera
AFN-UK

Sam simply followed the lead of the Empress as they exited the motorcade and made their way 'round into the garden that was much more than a simple project by a homeowner. It was an enclosed environment for thousands of creatures, set in the middle of a bustling city of millions; it was anticlimactic, rather, that such a quiet and hospitable place were to exist among the throngs of the modern and industrialized world.

Nevertheless, Sam could not deny its beauty. The large and ancient trees which sprouted from the earth towered above the cobblestone pathways as if they were the Titans of the earth, all knowing beings which had seen the course of human history in ways no one man could understand. Then, of course, were the smaller things: lilacs, lillies, earth worms and the birds. Songbirds, mostly, that hummed a tune which drummed out the noises of the city, and replaced it mostly with their own, soothing and relaxing tune. It became quickly obvious to Sam why the Empress favored using this as a place of meditation and counsel.

Sam simply walked beside the Empress, hands clasped behind his back, as they walked slowly around the winding pathways that seemed to only fold back into itself like the great serpent Jörmungandr. He nodded as she spoke, listening intently to her words, understanding fully the gravity of the situation and the ramifications of the speech he had made. Sam sat next to the Empress calmly, looking out over the fountain, smiling contently just as he had many moons ago with Lori on a late night riverside excursion.

"Seondeok, I understand that what I have done here today - through the words said and those I've left unspoken - will have wider reaching implications of which I cannot yet fully appreciate. However, as I'm sure you know, and as does your staff know, it was imperative that this be done. Akira is on a war path that we cannot follow; not you nor I can stand to gain or survive any ground he makes on an annexation or territorial ascension on Insula Fera. As I said in my speech, anything this man attempts to do in that regard will bring nothing but war.

"It is imperative that you keep those loyal to the Crown and those true to the right cause of our expedition close to your bosom and even closer in friendship and heart. Without them, we stand no chance of fighting the Contruum Ministry in a nation where his beliefs are being accepted and embraced. Was I wrong to disrespect the aristocracy of Symphonia and chastise them in such a way where they were nothing more than regular men and women? Of course I was, but it needed to be done.

"Until Akira and his party were knocked down a peg they could not understand that there was any other side to this argument. They needed to be told and shown who was in charge of this endeavor and that without Aquitaynian support there would be no action and there will be no action. Akira will take his time in preparing a response and in doing so will show the people of this nation that their leader was wrong.

"The question really boils down to this, simply: can and will Symphonia be a strong power once more? Akira says yes, through the might of its armies; you say yes, through the power of its industries. You need to sell the industry to the people. It's easy for young men and women to see their families in uniform and shout their support to the heavens and to back a government which backs them, it is even easier for the working people of this nation to rally behind a common cause: growth. You give them jobs, opportunity, and a strong working class, and everything else will follow.

"I trust, however, that I my Ministries will be receiving no more of these ludicrous propositions from the Contruum Ministry. It sickens me to even think that a bill like that passed through the Senate."

[Dungeyland]

12:47
The House of Commons,
The Green Palace, the City of Ligradon
New London, Dungeyland
The Dangish Empire

Two minutes after the scheduled start of Second Lord's Questions, MPs were still filing into the packed House of Commons. The weekly session was an opportunity for ordinary parliamentarians from across the Empire to question Her Majesty's Government. Normally, the First Lord would be subject to the notoriously tough session, but the Lord Scylla was not a member of the Commons but of the Lords, and so the Second Lord, Mr. Osbourne, was answering questions in his stead. As the flow of MPs began to cease, the Speaker called out:

"Order, order! Questions to the Second Lord of the Treasury!"

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker," cried Osbourne to the jeers of opposition MPs, themselves met with shouts of "order!" from the Speaker. "I'm sure the whole House would like to join me in paying tribute to Corporal Mark Volvic of the 3rd Varrockians, who sadly died this morning in Pangus. The death of anybody is an immensely tragic occurrence, made even more so by the nature of his work and the incredible sacrifice made for this country and this crown."

"Ms Susan Bacon!" roared the Speaker, and an elderly Conservative MP with olive skin and wispy grey hair stood in the furthest corner of the Commons.

"Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the local hospital in my Sitr-del-Moor constituency of Swairn is closing. The Liberal dominion government believes that my constituents should travel up to 60 miles to receive basic secondary health provision. Does the Second Lord agree that such poor provision is an outrage, and in violation of the Liberal government's own health legislation?" asked the MP, her grey hair waving in the air-conditioned air, to a loud and unruly House, once again deftly quietened by shouts of "Order!" from the Speaker's chair.

"The Honourable Member of Swairn is quite right that the First Lord and Her Majesty's Government is committed to the extension of universal health care throughout the Dangish Empire," deftly responded Osbourne. "However, when this Empire was formed, it was formed as a federal nation in which the people of Sitr-del-Moor have just as much right and ability to democratically decide their fate as the people of Dungeyland, of Varrockia, of Quessex, of New Faentland, and of the other dominions and colonies beyond the sea. Now, further to this cause, Liberal policy in Sitr-del-Moor and indeed most dominions is not set by the First Lord or the Liberal Central Committee, but by the local parties themselves. I therefore advise the Honourable Member to raise the issue in the Sitr-del-Moor assembly. In regards to violating Imperial legislation, any such violation would be a very serious matter, and I believe the Dangish Empire has the institutions in place to deal with it."

"The Shadow Second Lord, Mrs Saskia von Karella!" cried the Speaker, and this time a middle-aged Conservative lady stood up opposite the Second Lord. Wearing a long red dress, she certainly stood out from the rest of the House. In reality, though, it was here demeanour and ability to grill the Second Lord which made her such an excellent shadow minister, and, if rumors were to be believed, the most likely person to replace the ailing Leader of the Opposition.

"I welcome the Second Lord's acceptance of the seriousness of a provincial Liberal government being unable to follow the rules and indeed the ideologies that drive the Liberals here today. Perhaps the Second Lord should consider whether the difficulty that Her Majesty's Government is having in enforcing health care legislation is due to its shoddy implementation. Whilst the Noble Baron of Viney, our First Lord, is not present in this House today, I'm sure the Second Lord can inform the House of Liberal plans to repeal its own health care bill within two years, plans revealed to us by none other than our favourite of liberal newspapers, the Intellitza Times."

"The Right Honourable Lady will note," began Osbourne before changing track to the sound of Conservative jeering. "The Right Honourable Lady leads a Conservative Party in the House that has never been more divided on an issue that on health care! No party but the Liberals even attempted to deal with the health care question in thirty years! To try to pin such feelings of... inadequacy on the First Lord and Her Majesty's Government is an outrageous attempt to hide the failings of the Loyal Opposition that will surely fail at the next general election. Mr. Speaker, this House passed health legislation and this House shall enforce it. Her Majesty's Government firmly believes in its health legislation, and shall see it through."

"Oh, Mr. Speaker," began von Karella, glancing at a clearly relieved Osbourne. "Mr. Speaker, Her Majesty's Government's credibility has never been so in question. Alas, I must move on. In Piketts, my constituency, and indeed across the entire country, we are anxious. Anxious not only about the respect for international law in Astyria, but for the lives of thousands of Imperial subjects whose lives might be seized at any moment. May I ask the Second Lord about how exactly he plans to de-escalate the situation in Insula Fera and prevent further losses of life."

Osbourne rose gravely as the House fell silent. "Mr. Speaker, the situation in Insula Fera is precarious at best. The Coalition we have formed with the Blackhelm Confederates has thus far proved successful. Large swathes of Pangus are now being protected by this Coalition, in which the Confederate contribution must not be forgotten. Our mission was both to prevent the takeover of Pangus and Prudensia by terrorist groups hostile to our democracy and to ensure that safeguards were placed on the much larger military operation undertaken by the United Kingdom. In Pangus, where operations were led by Aquitayne, we have had the most success. Indeed, our success was such that we have persuaded the Aquitaynians to abandon their military command and join a third command based in our operational headquarters in Orsetta."

"Regarding Prudensia," he paused, then continued. "It was never in the original war plans for the Dangish Empire to intervene militarily in Prudensia. Intelligence provided to the First Lord by Her Majesty's Loyal Servants at the Imperial Research and Analysis Institute suggested that Prudensia, in which the UK intervention was led by Symphonia, would be relatively stable. The Symphonian government at the time did not seem to be as likely to attempt a violation of international law, and with the developing situations in the Trellinese Trophy Ports and, at the time, in Terra Azure, Her Majesty's Government did not believe a pre-emptive intervention would be fruitful. With Symphonia now led by Mr. Contruum, Her Majesty's Government is assessing the situation. The United Kingdom appears quite disunited, but rest assured that the Crown fully intends to fulfil its foreign policy objectives should the Symphonian government choose to annex the region."

Saskia von Karella rose solemnly. "Mr. Speaker, I think the whole House can agree with the Second Lord that it is unacceptable to annex another country in this day and age, and that the Dangish Empire should stand up for the self-determination of the Prudensian people."

"I thank the Right Honourable Lady, and agree wholeheartedly," replied Osbourne. "For the record of the House, Mr. Speaker, I must state that the First Lord instructed the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force to mobilise the appropriate divisions to remove the threat of any Symphonian aggression. I understand that troops have been diverted from other regions of the Empire, and that the outlook for any conflict with Symphonia is good."

"I thank the Second Lord for fulfilling his duties as a member of the House. Moving on, then. Mr Nathaniel Script!"

A pale, elderly man stood, and Second Lord's Questions continued...

[Empire of Symphonia]

50 kilometers west of Noveau Avignon
United Kingdom Security Zone, AFN-controlled Prudensia
Southern Prudensia

Private Wang Huan-yi was having a good day. He had spent the day mostly taking his well-deserved break in one of the entertainment districts of Noveau Avignon, away from the despondent frontlines of the UK Security Zone in the interior of Prudensia. The central highway connecting the port to the interior was under constant artillery attack from rebels hiding in the nearby hills and mountains, and Wang's previous assignment had been on one of the convoys, tasked to prevent the shipment of weapons and ammunition from falling into the hands of the Prudensian terrorists.

Today was his last day on break, but he pressed his sergeant to allow him to help out with the logistics forces. After all, he knew most of the crew who flew the supply helicopters. It would be a nice start to getting back into official duty.

The KV-107 Shirasagi roared through the air, carrying the usual shipments soldiers and supply between Noveau Avignon and the smaller villages along the southern Prudensian coast. One of the towns came in sight, a little settlement hugging the rim of a small harbor. Small fishing boats could be seen, tied to the piers, and the morning Sunday fish market still bustling.

Wang sighed, if only he had another week off. His next assignment was in the Prudensian capital of Trina, a hotbed of terrorist activity. Many of the soldiers in the Army had been dreading assignments within the interior of Prudensia, because no one could tell where the enemy would be coming and who might be an informer. To top it off, the ethnic differences made it easy to spot an AFN soldier, and many were given grudging looks by the local inhabitants.

As Wang was about to sigh again, an explosion rocked the helicopter, sending the aircraft into freefall over open water. To Wang's horror, the cockpit had been blown away, the pilots and other soldiers gone. For the few seconds before everything turned black, Wang could only feel the lurch in his stomach as he plummeted into the sea.

[Insula Fera Pirates]

UK Security Zone

Other men along the mountains let out a great cheer as they watched the missile slam into the big tandem rotor helicopter moving through the sky. With one great fireball, the entire front of the machine was torn away, leaving the rear half to fall with a splash into the sea below. Rum was thrown about joyously upon seeing it, and many a pirate in the coves drank their fill to celebrate. One, however, was not quite as celebratory. He held a video camera in his hand, and recorded the whole affair from just before the rocket smacked into its mark to the minutes after, as Symphonian bodies began to float to the surface of the water. Cheers were heard in the background of the video, as heavy metal music was edited over the entire thing. Within minutes, the video was uploaded to the internet to begin making its rounds across the region and soon enough across the planet. The world would soon know that the population on Insula Fera was not being passively put to rest. No, they were resisting the invaders. This was not the easy peace keeping operation the United Kingdom was adamant to portray it to the world as. This was war.

After this, the heat would be turned up for sure. The pirates, still receiving their shipments merrily and now toting advanced MANPADs and many wearing heavy body armor, pulled back into their coves for now. Ambushes would still take place, but no more high profile attacks like the one on the KV-107 would happen. At least not for a while. The fire was too hot for any more of that at this time.

[Nation of Polarus]

For your listening pleasure

Southwest Agrincourt

Captain Hanin ran his fingers over his pencil thin mustache as he looked out over the desert. He was crouched, alongside about a dozen of his men along the top of a sand dune, each under their IR shielding blanket to protect them from from the prowling eyes of coalition helicopters and drones over head that were desperate to eliminate the commando raids. His men had been receiving heavy losses in the past few ambushes as the Gauls and their friends were beginning to deploy increasingly heavy armor along with their convoys, as well as air support to chase the commandos off into the desert and finish them off. Finally, out in the distance, he saw the tell tale signs of his mark. The large dust clouds kicked up by so many vehicles moving through some shitty desert road could be seen for miles, and his men all hugged the earth, some even covering the top of their shrouds in a layer of sand to further blend into the surroundings.

The Polarussians had since the beginning of the conflict been using some of the most advanced ATGM's in the world against their Gaulic, Neu Engollian, and Agrincourtian opponents. Now, however, two of them were also carrying Doomani made AAT.X Acer SAM launchers. The primary purpose of this raid was not even to really damage the trucks, although that would be a nice bonus, especially if they could disable a tank or two while they were at it. Instead, they were on a mission to knock out as many helicopters from the sky as possible. they had already succeeded in forcing the hand of the Allied commanders to divert armor from the front, if they can force additional aerial assets away from the Casegenians, they would be giving their brothers even that much more room to breath in their struggle, a struggle which they were seeming to lose with each passing day.

Elsewhere in the country too, there were dozens of other men just like Captain Hanin, most in groups of only three or four, hiding amongst the sand dunes and waiting. Many of these men were not even near the main roads, but rather were laying on lanes they had observed were frequented by supply helicopters. These would be an even greater prize than the attack birds escorting the convoys, as not only would they pull yet another expensive weapon from the hands of the coalition, but they would also likely cause a significant loss of life and deprive the men at the front of whatever supplies those helicopters were carrying. Even low flying fixed wing aircraft would make a perfect target, although the likelyhood of one flying at just around 12,000 feet was not good.

These groups, moving through the desert with their kits packed full of food, water, and surface to air missiles, continued moving over the sands beneath their IR shrouds, trying to get as close as possible to coalition airfields. They knew that the closer to these positions they were able to creep, often moving only under the cover of night and holding their positions throughout the day unless a suitable target presented itself, the better their chances were of knocking out a high value target. and with the new arrival of the Ghawkins Air Force on the scene, which was sure to tip the balance of power heavily in favor of the Coalition, the mission of these men was made even more important.

[Riysa]

OOC: ITS FINALLY HERE, DUDERIGOS

Off the Coast of the Yellow Star Republic

As the naval battle raged and ended below, the Riysian carrier air group soared through the skies. Almost at once, the Shrike's radar systems picked up the Yellowsian bogies, still ways away, but moving away from an attack run on the allied combat ships. ELINT had detected the higher-flying ones as being MiG-25s, while the low-flying aircraft were thought to be MiG-27s, based on the Kh-35s they had managed to fire off and previous intelligence. Easy prey, especially compared to the MiG-29s and Su-27s they had been prepared to face. The outdated interceptors and radar-less ground attack aircraft had almost no chance against the modern multirole fighters, but still, there wasn't any reason to not be careful.

The aircraft closed in, slowing down after entering the range envelope to gently let their BVRAAMs gain an accurate lock, and to maintain their superior standoff characteristics. Two missiles apiece, SJJ-9As to be exact, were launched from each of the planes; the first one was to kill, and the second one was for insurance in case they managed to dodge or deflect the first missile. It wouldn't take too long for the missiles to travel 120 kilometers from the aircraft to their targets.

1st Infantry Division, Nouvel Ecosse

Major General Talal Mansour of the Riysian 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized) sat in the back seat of the staff car, looking out the window as the aide drove the car to ATO HQ at Haverville. Earlier that week, the 1st, along with some other Riysian elements had arrived in a naval base just south of Edinburgh, safe passage courtesy of Carrier Group London after the Tikriti had handed them over following Operation Shibal. They had modestly paraded their way through the capital and the city of Vivace, before settling down in their assigned headquarters at Starkley. There, they started preparing for combat, although the proposed Riysian offensive - termed "Operation Istiqlal" - had to be cleared with the ATO, as they would be fighting in an area under the ATO's jurisdiction.

General Mansour's job was to convince the ATO joint command to let Riysian forces tumble across northern Glisandia to smash the YSR forces there, in more diplomatic terms of course. He had been informed of the two generals who'd be listening to his case - General von Zeingraf, of the NEDF, and General Benceau, commander of the Gaulish forces in the area. He was running plans in his head when the driver turned back to face him. "Sir, we're here."

"Here" was in fact a forward guard post, not the actual headquarters. It made sense; you didn't want infiltrators to gain easy access to the top generals in the area. With a quick confirmation of Mansour's identity, the car was let through, eventually arriving at the headquarters building itself. The general stepped out, picked up his briefcase, straightened his uniform, and tapped on the window.
"It should only be a few hours. Feel free to head back or do whatever until then. I'll call you when I'm ready."
"Yes sir." The driver nodded, rolled up the window, and drove away. Mansour walked inside. Here went nothing.

20 kilometers from the Glisandian-Ecossian Border, Several Days Later

Thankfully, the ATO had given the a-okay for the operation, even if there might have been a bit of trepidation of letting a non-aligned nation operate in ATO territory. They had been helpful and shared some information they already knew, and also informed Mansour of the Yellowsian pillaging of Glisandian territory.

Intriguingly, he had also met someone he hadn't been expecting - the commander in chief of the Glisandian Armed Forces, or rather, what was left of it. With some reluctance, Mansour had allowed his 1st Glisandian Regiment to join in the Riysian operation; it wasn't the fear of having to share credit, or distrust of outsiders, but rather, the commander would be operating on the field, putting him at great risk, which Mansour didn't want. In the end, though, he had won the argument, and Mansour took on the 1st Glisandian. He appreciated that he had a cadre of the Glisandians fighting by his side, for no doubt they were highly motivated by the terrible loss they had suffered, and as natives they would be useful in getting the population to subvert the Yellowsian occupation. He already had a vital task for them, which was to protect the vulnerable right flank of the Riysian march. Their mobility, provided by Riysian trucks and Gaulish APCs, would allow them to quickly respond to any flanking movements made, freeing up the rest of the Riysian division from having to respond and thus putting themselves at risk for a coordinated bait-and-trap attack.

The soldiers had met up at Starkley, the HQ of the Riysian forces, and had marched all the way down to Chong-Hue. From Chong-Hue, the forces moved down near the border with Glisandia, only about 20 kilometers away. Throughout the march, Mansour had enforced communications silence, with the battle management systems and radios set to receive only - even if all communications were secure, there was absolutely no reason to give the Yellowsians any indication that there was a force marching towards them. Instead, signal flags, vehicle horns, motorcycle riders, and traffic police were used; elements of the division's APC regiment had ran ahead and marked the march path and day rest area for the rest of the force. The engineers and signals troops had been kind enough to set up a cable telephone connection back to Starkley, allowing the general and the division to contact the temporary Riysian base back there.

"Sir, the 1st Infantry Regiment, 5th Engineer Battalion, and 9th Anti-Air Regiment report that they have fully rested and are prepared for an offensive." A rider saluted, entering the mobile command post, and handed Mansour a couple of reports from the units.
"Thank you, soldier. Take these orders back to them." Mansour saluted, and went back to the papers he was reading over. Everyone was now in place, all that waited was the first blow. Photographic recon had identified fortifications along the border, but what was in use and what was hidden, was not fully known. Nevertheless, the bunkers would be flattened and the defenses softened by the first part of the plan, a massive artillery bombardment supported by aircraft. He picked up the telephone and called the Starkley base, requesting an airstrike. With that, he took up the radio (speaking in English for the benefit of the Glisandians), calling for the start of the offensive.

"O warriors, o men, the time has come. The socialists have been running amok gleefully, pillaging the lands that had fallen to their nation, the Yellow Star Republic. It is our duty to help those ravaged by this foe, and today, now, we strike back at them! We will make them drink from a cup of death, we will teach them fear and war! O men, take up your weapon, and prepare yourself, for the Mother of Battles!" He let that sink in for a second. "Commence bombardment. Radio silence is no longer in effect."

With that, Riysian rocket and shell artillery started bombarding the Yellowsian fortifications, as all units set their radios and battle management systems back to normal. He watched the units report in on the system, and waited. In a few minutes, Riysian aircraft would join in, hunting in striking strategic targets.

[Blackhelm Confederacy]

Ecossian/Adlerite Border
Night Before D-Day

White and Conurbii officers walked about the base often chatting with their Ecossian counterparts as the dark skinned Hesperidisean native troops gathered in small circles around fires on the parade grounds. A white centurion looked over and noticed what was going on, and grabbed one of his Ecossian counterparts by the shoulder. "Watch this" he said. "This will be good"

As he said that, an older member of the circle furthest to the left of the parade ground stood and shouted, very loudly, "NAAANTS zambekEE-ZI bag-eethee baba!" As he finished, the rest of his circle began to chant over and over "Sithi um zam-ba-kay-zeeee zam-ba-kay-zeee" while the leader of the next circle down stood and belted out his own shout of " "NAAANTS zambekEE-ZI bag-eethee baba!" and his circle repeated their own chant. This process repeated itself until it had reached the very last circle on the far right of the parade ground, by which time the chants of all of the other circles was filling the air, creating an almost surreal experience on the base.

"What are they saying?" the Ecossian asked.

"The old one" the centurion explains "Is announcing that the dragon has arrived. The others are confirming that the dragon is here"

As he spoke he was cut off as the circles suddenly grew silent, contrary to the usual ending of the chant, and the one on the far left started all over again, with the man one the far left standing again, but this time belting out "NAAANTS isilwan-yaaaay bag-ee-thee baba!" and then the others in the circle began to chant "Sithi um is-il-WAN-yay". This once more worked itse way from left to right, with leaders calling out and the rest of those around the campfire chanting along.

""Isiliwanye...that means walrus" the centurion laughed. "This one is for you!" he said clapping the Ecossian on the shoulder. "I've never seen this before."

Finally, when then very last leader made his call, all the leaders rose together and shouted out "Siyo Ngoba!!", and the centurion translated to his friend "we are going to conquer", to which the rest of the circles replied in a loud, booming voice "Zambekzi nengwe isilwane", "Dragon with the Walrus"

Skies over Casegene

Confederate pilot Maximus "Max" Redcap was leading a group of Casegenian fighters on a routine air patrol over the front lines. The group, a seven plane flight in a mix of Su-27's and J-11's, were on the lookout to intercept any of the coalition planes that had been making life such a misery for the troops on the ground. Suddenly a report cackled in over the radio, a group of Gaulic Mirages had crossed the border and were heading towards a supply depot. Immediately, Redcap and his group cut a path to interception, however, it was too late for the doomed supply station.

The Gauls, in the meantime, had felt reasonably confident in their air supremacy, and broke into two groups, one returning home and the other, of three aircraft, remaining to make a recon run before it too would cut back to base. This recon mission, however, brought them head on with the Casegenian/Confederate air group. It was over very shortly, as a veritable storm of Soviet and Chinese missiles screamed through the air for the Mirages, obliterating two of them as the third cut and made a run for it, the Casegenians in hot pursuit.

The Casegenian pilots were starting to express their concern as they raced ever closer to the border, the Mirage desperate to cross that imaginary line in the sand that separated him from safety or disaster. One by one, the Sukhoi and Shenyang made aircraft began to peel off the pursuit, until finally it was just Redcap and the froggie. Before he knew it, Redcap was over the border, but he was nearly upon the enemy aircraft to use his short ranged missiles, having expended anything with a longer range against the Gauls comrades earlier. He was just nearing in for the kil when suddenly his own sensors began screaming. Missile lock.

Max pulled up hard and began dumping flares and chaff desperate to shake whatever coalition weapons were tailing him. He watched as one of them exploded near the flare, the IR proximity fuse falling for his decoy as he was now the one cutting back towards the border, the Mirage disappearing off into the distance in the opposite direction. Another missile exploded nearby, rattling his J-11 and causing every alert in the cockpit to start screeching into his ears. He was almost at the border though, and he knew with just a little more effort he could cross back to safety. He was nearly there when another explosion tore thee wing from his plane, and before he knew it he was launched through his canopy and drifting down towards the desert below.

As he peacefully descended, he checked himself to make sure he had his sidearm and a map. He had to make it back to Casegene, he couldn't fall into coalition hands. Not like this.

[Arglant]

0632,
Royal Palace,
The Kingdom of Vedria

King William was sitting at the large desk in his spacious office. It had been finely decorated in the nineteenth century, and the only changes made since then were the additions of several large-screen televisions on the large wall, and a powerful computer on the desk linked to just about every government network in Vedria.

Assembled with him in the room were just about all of his ministers, and most of his senior Military staff. He knew why they were there, but he let General Armstrong explain it anyway.

"Your Grace. It has come to our attention that our allies are fighting in Agrincourt. As part of us having signed the ATO charter, we are obliged to send support. Our eye in the sky reports no movement since the yesterday. It could be everyone is just consolidating their forces before pushing again. I recommend we activate our reserve forces, and send the 'Blue Jackets' that way. "

The King sat there for a few moments, contemplating what he needed to do. Activating the reserves was a certainty. They'd have to, to make any real contribution. He also wanted to send the Marines in, but needed more info first.

The King stood up. "Activate the reserve forces." he simply said. He knew what was next. Because in the past the reserves had been activated without reason. The law demands that every reservist that is activated needs to be on duty for three months at least, which caused quite some damage on the morale and even the economy. A two-man rule had been put in place so that such a thing would never happen again.

"As you know, sir, the two man rule. I'm going to need you to clearly give your name, rank and the order to activate the reserves into the screen over here. Then you will need to verbally give your authorization code. Once the first light turns green, the General here needs to confirm it by going through the same process." the First Minister said.

The King stepped in front of the screen, cleared his throat and then spoke up. "William Rendower, King of Vedria. I give the order to activate the Vedrian reserve forces. My authorization code is: Whiskey-Hotel-Six-Two-Nine-Foxtrot-Alpha." With that, the red light turned green and a confirmation sound was heard.

The King stepped out of the way, and the General stepped up. "James Castleton. General of the Armies of Vedria. I confirm the order to activate the reserve forces. My authorization code is: Uniform-Delta-Five-Eight-Four-Sierra-Kilo." The second light turned green and again the confirmation sound was heard.

Then the King hit the button to send the order. Within thirty-six hours, four Reserve Regiments would be standing by, ready to leap into action within 12 hours at any given time. Most of the people then left. They had accomplished what they wanted to accomplish, and thus had no reason being there anymore.

Then the King sat down again. He wrote a letter to the Agrincourtian leader.

TO: Head of Government, Agrincourt
FROM: William Rendower (William.Rendower@Vedria.Ve)
SUBJECT: Help

To whomever it may concern,

I am writing to you today to formally offer Vedrian help. As a member of the Astyrian Treaty Organization, it is our duty to come to the aid of any of its members. We may be a little late, but it is better to be late than not to come at all, correct? Please forward us any information you have, allied force locations and battleplans, so that we may form a plan of our own and get boots on the ground ASAP.

Yours faithfully,
William Rendower,
King of Vedria

[Nation of Polarus]

Homestead
Southwest Agrincourt

Hanin opened the refrigerator door and took out a bottle of water, unscrewed the cap and then gulped it down eagerly. He let out a sigh of relief, finally recieving some hydration after spending so long in the hot sun and he wiped some sweat from his forehead with his arm. In the other rooms, his men were sitting about, some watching the Agrincourtian news on the TV of the family that once lived in the home. Others relaxing, reclining on couches, some even catching a nap on the beds upstairs and others affording themselves the luxury of a shower. Suddenly, the team's radio in the living room crackled up over the heavily encrypted channel. A plane had gone down over Agrincourtian territory, and all available commando teams able to assist were ordered to make their way towards the landing site and retrieve the downed pilot.

The captain shook his head as he heard the brief report. "It's too far" he said in his Polarussian Berber dialect. "Others will make it there. We will continue with the original mission."

The others in the room nodded in agreement as one unwrapped a candy bar, throwing the wrapper on the ground. "When will Bouzid and his group arrive? They should have been here an hour ago" the soldier said before taking a bite of his snack.

"Patience, my brother" Hanin said calmly. Almost as if on queue, commotion was heard outside and the men grabbed their rifles and made for the windows. It was Bouzid and his men, however, not an ATO search party luckily. Unfortunately, however, one of the men hung limply, his arms over the shoulders of two of his comrades and they hustled him into the house. The men had been through this before, and they tossed him onto the now blood stained dining room table as the medic of the team began getting to work, desperately trying to save his wounded comrade. It was useless, however, and within a few minutes the medic ceased with is frantic work and stood back, shaking his head. Another soldier went upstairs, and returned a few minutes later with a white bed sheet.

"This is the last of them. No more clean sheets upstairs" he said solemnly as he and the doctor began the process of wrapping their fallen brother. Once the process was completed, the doctor picked the body up at the shoulders while his assistant seized the feet, and the two carried him off to the cellar. There, stacked neatly, were five other linen wrapped bodies. Three of them belonged to other fallen commandos. The final two were the former owners of the house.

Casegene-Agrincourt Border

A near emergency had now broken out as news of the Confederate pilot being shot down began to circulate. A number of commandos began racing to the scene, and Polarussian advisers ordered all available Casegenian troops to make a concentrated push into the area that the pilots last signal came from. The men were desperate to retrieve their fallen comrade, and virtually every effort possible was being called upon to make sure that the man was returned safely.

Dozens of commandos were converging on the area, still making sure to move beneath their IR shielding blankets, constantly scanning the skies for any potential threats. One of the added benefits that could be seen out of this downing was that it was likely the enemy would also be racing to the crash site as well. In that case, they would not be paying as much attention to their own safety, making them easier targets for the commandos one the way to the rescue to pick off.

[Aquitayne]

"They're not bluffing."
"Are you sure? We have other sources claiming they don't have the capabilities."
"They had the capabilities to invade Ecosse. We underestimated them then."
"Do you think this Greta girl can stop a launch?"
"No, I don't."

Joint-Base Lewis-McChord
Strategic Command Headquarters
Somewhere in the Aesir Mountains

Joint Base Lewis-McChord was one of the largest and most secluded military installations within Aquitayne. It was home to two central command and control divisions, notably Central Command and Strategic Command. Due to its position, dug into the side of a low-lying mountain which sat at the heart of the Aesir Mountain Range, it was the most convenient area for defense against nuclear weapons and an invasion of foreign forces onto Aquitaynian soil. It had two main access tunnels, both of which were hardened against nuclear blasts and could withstand a nuclear explosion causing up to 600 psi (4,100 kPa) overpressure at the exterior surface of the mountain.

It was now the center of a rising crises arising from the north: the Yellow Star Republic was threatening a nuclear launch on Coalition states and by extension mainland Aquitayne through the Tel Al-Riyah Pact. While nuclear proliferation had been a key entanglement in Astyrian affairs over the past forty years, the Republic was the first to try such brinkmanship in the new century and given their situation military officials had every reason to believe they would be true to their word.

Grand Field Marshal Taylor Niemi, commanding general of Strategic Command, sat in his office shuffling through papers and reports detailing the current situation, powers-at-large in the Republic, last known Yellowsian nuclear capabilities and launch apparatuses, and their mobile ICBM brigades and locations. Satellites were being redirected to arch over the Republic in search for their missiles, just in case, and he was already drafting orders to mobilize the missile defense brigades. Underlining a sentence of note in one of the reports, Field Marshal Niemi sighed and rubbed his hand against his forehead, clearly distressed at the situation.

His moment of disdain was interrupted as the voice of his secretary came over the speaker on the desk phone. "Marshal Niemi, the King is on the line for you."

Sitting up in his chair, the Field Marshal nodded and cleared his throat. "Put him through." With a loud click he and the King were connected.

"Field Marshal Niemi, how are you? It's been quite some time since we last spoke."

Niemi was taken aback by the rather lax disposition the King had in his voice over the phone. He had expected something much more distressed, concerned, or worried - but not casual conversation. "E-everything is fine, sir. Just getting through the day-to-day as usual." Niemi could hear Sam laugh on the other end of the phone.

"Alright Taylor, what's going on."

Niemi cleared his throat. "Well, Sir, the Yellowsians are claiming they are going to launch against Coalition forces, and they're not. We have credible intelligence that puts Yellowsian missile battalions on the move and mobilizing, and we have the current government sitting with the launch codes. However, there is another faction, a --" Niemi shifted through his notes briefly, finding the information he needed before continuing, "RLO headed by a woman calling herself Gerta. It seems they assaulted the National Palace and made a broadcast of her own stating the state did not have launch capabilities."

"Well, which is it?"

"It's...rather unclear, Sir. The threat is credible, but the fact that this woman made a broadcast using the same systems and what looks to be the same setting as Torgesson's, given that they assaulted the Palace, begs the question of who is really in control of the nuclear arsenal and, more importantly, the launch codes."

There was a pause and silence from the other end of the phone, and Niemi waited for a reply as the King gauged his options. "Right. You're telling me the threat is credible, and therefore we must act appropriately. Mobilize Strategic Command and use whatever resources are necessary to ensure the safety of the homeland. Ensure word is spread to the strike groups so that we have firing solutions on strategic targets should it become necessary."

"Yes Sir, I'll get right on it."

Somewhere in the Mare Ferum
H.M.S Vallenfyre
941 Dobruuh Class SSBN Submarine

The H.M.S Vallenfyre patrolled the northern reaches of the Mare Ferum, moving quietly and submerged on its mission to remain unseen. It sat perched just to the rear of the Riysan fleet, unbeknownst to them, and sat at a strategic point in the northern Mare Ferum, with apt strike capabilities to northern Lorecia as it was intended. It was one of four such submarines patrolling the areas between Aquitayne, the Dangish Empire and the Confederacy, ensuring Aquitayne's nuclear deterrent could be accurately and aptly used if necessary.

Lieutenant Commander Bern Harkovich was the commanding officer of the vessel, which had sailed from port in Cape Town some months ago after three weeks of shore leave for the personnel. Living on a submarine was not easy. It took its toll mentally and emotionally on the crew, especially being that of an SSBN, as the communication restrictions were much tighter due to the sensitivity of their work. Harkovich hadn't spoken to his wife or children in more than two and a half months and was growing tired of the silence, though he was content in knowing he had prepared video messages that he gave to a close friend to give to them periodically, so that they wouldn't be without him for too long.

Harkovich sat in his quarters, writing in his journal about the voyage. He did this often, and for good reason: it was a documented record of events and his thoughts as commander of the vessel, and could be used later if an incident occurred. Mostly, though, it was a way for him to vent his frustrations and anxieties without having to do so to his crew. A strong presence of command was necessary on a submarine such as his. Just as Harkovich turned the page to continue, a loud knock was heard at the door. "Come in."

The door swung open, and Major Cern, the ships Executive Officer and Harkovich's right hand man, stood before him. He was a stout man, not tall but not short, either, and stood firm like a tree with a barreled chest and thick legs. He stood lax in the presence of his commander, given that no subordinates were present. "Sir, we've received an Emergency Action Message."

Harkovich stood and placed his pen down, tugging on the bottom of his blouse. "Let's go read it then, yes?" Cern nodded and side-stepped to allow Harkovich to step through the doorway, closing his quarters behind him. He and Cern walked through the maze of the submarine towards the bridge, hastily climbing up staircases and returning salutes as the enlisted personnel plastered their bodies against the walls to get out of the way. Harkovich stepped into the nerve center of the submarine, taking a seat in the center below the various radios.

"CO has the CON!"

Cern walked over to Harkovich and handed him the transmission, which he read carefully.

//TOP SECRET//FOR EYES ONLY//STRATEGIC COMMAND//TOP SECRET//FOR EYES ONLY//

1. Situation: Yellowsian officials have given credible threats of a nuclear first-strike against Coalition states including Nouvel Ecosse, The GHawkins Republic, Aurora and Blackhelm Confederacies, the Mederano Peninsula, the Arctic Isles and Ar-Raha.

2. Mission: Remain radio silent. Move to strike position. Await further instruction.

Harkovich read the simple and short message and looked up. "Turn course bearing two-four-zero at two-five knots. Rig for ultra quiet."

Cern nodded and repeated the command, "Aye Sir! Turn course bearing two-four-zero at two-five knots. Rig for ultra quiet!"

Then the young seaman at the helm of the ship acknowledged the command. "Turn course bearing two-four-zero at two-five knots, aye Sir!"

Harkovich sat in the seat, biting his lip softly as he read the paper again. It was unfortunate, but he knew if the time came, he would turn the key.

---

OFFICE OF HIS MAJESTY THE KING
THE FOREIGN MINISTRY

---

In repose to Premier Arno Torgesson's broadcast, on behest of His Majesty, in tandem with the Office of the Prime Minister, dated 01 December Year of Our Lord 2014;

---

To whom it may concern,

The Constitutional Monarchy of Aquitayne has thus taken a neutral stance towards the crisis that has been engulfing the Yellow Star Republic and Nouvel Ecosse. However, the broadcast given by Premier Torgesson has rattled the public of Aquitayne and has endangered the lives of millions of people. Not only has Premier Torgesson elevated this conflict to a new playing field, he has done so recklessly and without regard for the individuals he claims to protect.

It should be stated now to the Premier that Aquitayne, nor Riysa, will be held hostage at the threat of nuclear force. Though Aquitayne was not mentioned in the broadcast given a few hours ago, as a member of the Tel Al-Riyah Pact, we are bound respond to any threat. It should be noted that the continuation of using the threat of nuclear force will not be tolerated by His Majesty's government nor the government of Riysa.

His Majesty would remind Premier Gerta that any launch against any state of Astyria will be met with a counter-strike that will undoubtedly overwhelm Republican defenses and obliterate anything in its way. His Majesty would also remind Premier Gerta that any strike against Aquitayne or its allies will result in a counter strike on multiple military and industrial targets that will result in the complete destruction of the Republican war machine.

The combined retaliation of weapons from the Coalition you are combating would destroy the Republic twenty times over, and remove all chance of a peaceful resolution to this conflict. There are no alternatives, Premier. There are no more ultimatums. You have escalated the conflict to the point of no return and it is here that the forces that you are so desperate to dissuade will stand firm and resolved. You are responsible, solely, for the outcomes of the next forty eight hours.

His Majesty implores you to see reason and disarm and demobilize your missile brigades. It is his hope that you might be willing to seek council and meet at a summit in a neutral country so a peaceful resolution to this crisis may be achieved. However, no such compromise can be made with nuclear weapons being a valid threat. Think carefully about what you are willing to gamble, and what you are willing to sacrifice for your final victory - if you even still believe one is possible.

You have twenty four hours to demobilize your missile brigades.

Us fayervamblen tas, Us kraermavlen kas, Us mayern yuter vas.


Undersigned,


His Majesty Samuel Tiberius Riech

[Trellin]

Sea of Velar, east of Mintra
15 September 2014

Five ships. Just five ships. There's only so much you can do with five ships. You can blockade a narrow strait quite effectively, but you can't control a sea or something like the Gulf of Andamonia. Five ships is the sort of thing you send out to protect oil tankers in Yellosian waters, but even then its maybe a bit on the excessive side. One ship is just a gesture of friendship to Arimathea, two is about right for a drug interdiction off the Eth Khadeg. You need more if you want a formation worthy of the navy's website and Christmas cards but that's more expensive than the admiralty wants to hear about. These days, deciding how many ships to deploy anywhere costs nearly as much as the deployment itself.

It had taken most of the last six months to reach the figure of five ships. Until the last minute it had seemed they were to send countless dozens of fully-armed warships to storm first Rha'gutza and then Khorvu and oust their Andamonian garrisons by force. Then, three days ago, the Dangish had stepped in and insisted that Trellin had no right to do so. 'The nerve of them!', every man, woman and child in Trellin exclaimed at once, even those discontented isolationists out near Dungeyland itself - the arrogance of another nation thinking it could command the Sidereal Crown instantly quelled all talk of secession or republics and united the empire behind its emperor. Only now the emperor was reconsidering; Mahrim II, King of Trellin, had no intention of repeating his grandfather's mistake and starting another failed Trophy War. This time, Trellin would not fire the first shot. It would not go in to annex the Ports, ships bristling with cannons, the imperial standard draped over the rails and legions of marines waiting to leap overboard and assail the beaches and quays. This was to be a peaceful mission.

Now they were sailing in to oversee the voluntary transition of the Trophy Ports to the administration of the Sidereal Crown, after a free and democratic plebiscite where Dangish observers would be openly (grudgingly) welcomed. The five - not fifty - warships finally chosen had experienced captains and crew, and would be more than sufficient if the garrison in Rha'gutza tried anything. The Andamonians would be instructed to hand over the administration to the new arrivals in order to facilitate the referendum and asked, politely, to leave. Then four of the ships would continue on to Khorvu to rinse and repeat.

That was the idealists' scenario, the scenario the Dangish were commanding and anticipating. The Trellinese, under Admiral Tarmüz Siveka, weren't going to complain if it panned out that way, but a peaceful transition was only the backup plan. Andamonia's government had no intention of cooperating with it and the Trellinese were barely even pretending to expect it. What seemed more likely was that the ships would sail into the Rha'gutza's harbour, submit their request for the Governor Nethil to step down and be met with barrages from the city's shore batteries. Siveka would be forced to order his men to return fire. They had intel on the port and knew where the main batteries lay; tactical shelling would solve that problem. Marines could then safely land and secure the key locations, capture the Governor and suggest he command a ceasefire. Minimal loss of life on either side, and the Andamonians would be forced to withdraw. A small fleet waiting in Mintra would then follow up and move into the port while this squadron carried on to Khorvu, which would surrender immediately - Azanj Timaloc was not as brave a man as his counterpart in Rha'gutza, and he had an even smaller garrison to his name. The Trophy Ports would be secured within 48 hours and finally be reunited with the empire.

Five ships. Just enough to start a war.

[Blackhelm Confederacy]

Chancellery
Paradise City,
Blackhelm Confederacy

A group of military men were gathered about a large oak table in the ostentatiously decorated dining hall of the Confederate Chancellery. The building had been designed back when the nation was still an Empire, and the result was all of the Imperial gaudiness that comes along with the position. Large gold chandeliers with crystal decor dangled overhead, and fine red rugs lay beneath the men's feet. Massive portraits of past Chancellors and heroes, and the heads of all manner of beast, adorned the walls as well, giving a very unique, old world feel to the room where these men of war no discussed the business at hand. At the head of the table, looking very grim indeed, sat the figure of Octavius Eaglebrand, the current head of the Blackhelm Confederate government.

"Are we sure that they are pushed all the way back?" he asked one of the legates nearest to him.

"Aside from possibly a few small pockets of resistance and the commandos behind their lines, we are sure of it" the legate answered.

"Additionally, it appears that the ATO forces are preparing for a counterattack. It's not off the table that they mat march straight into Longmount and try to replace the government as well" another chimed in.

The Chancellor nodded solemnly. "And they are capable of this?"

"Unquestionably" the second legate responded. "The Casegenian troops had their hands full enough just fighting the Agrincourtians. With the combined force of the ATO, they will be cut through within days."

The Chancellor sighed deeply. "Then it looks like I have an announcement to make."

One hour later

The chancellor now appeared in his office, his face on the screens of people across the Blackhelm Confederacy, and transmitted to leaders across the region.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the world. I come to you bearing a message of peace. Earlier today, members of my government spoke with the President of the nation of Casegene, William Cornell. He has assured me of his desire for an amicable peace, and is willing to bear responsibility for the conflict that is currently raging between his nation and that of the nation of Agrincourt and her allies. Casegene stood alone against the waves of ATO missiles, rockets, and bombs, and now they know that their time is up. The Blackhelm Confederacy is now standing up for this battered nation, and we invite representatives from both sides of this conflict to meet in Paradise City, where we can hopefully work out a reasonable, peaebale resolution to the war. It is the deepest and most sincere hope of the Blackhelm Confederacy that we will be able to end this war without further bloodshed, and that once again peace can prevail throughout Astyria.

Thank you, and good night"

Occupied Adler

"Politia arrest me my ballo too sexy" blared out of a nearby Adsertor as the men of the Lupus Squad, 9th Platoon, moved their way through a shattered village. They were nearing the Ferdinand Rhein, and a crossing was likely not going to be easy. Engineers were being brought up from the rear as artillery and Grad rockets seemed to pour endlessly onto the opposite bank, supported by both the heavy and light mortars of the platoons on the Confederate held side of the river. The little village had been blasted by loudspeakers prior to the assault, ordering all noncombatants to evacuate the area within two hours before the artillery shattered this place too, but even despite the barrage, a full twenty minutes of pummeling by all manner of munitions, some of the enemy had stubbornly held their ground. Yellosians and their APLA counterparts dug themselves out of the rubble and offered stiff resistance, much more difficult than was expected, to the Confederate who were making their way through the debris.

"Politia arrest me my culus too sexy" the female voice sang as the upbeat music played in stark contrast to the surroundings, with fire and debris as far as the eye can see. Shattered buildings and even the random broken body part were everywhere as the men of Lupus took their positions. A sniper had just moments ago opened up on the men, slamming into the body armor of the top gunner of the now parked vehicle and causing him to crumble in a heap to he floor of the truck. He had survived, thanks to the armor, but not without a solid bruise and the wind knocked out of him.

The men all stood crouched in a semi circle behind whatever pieces of building they can find as the music continued to play on in the background. One of the men couldnt help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation at hand. Who the hell even put Luna on in there? A bunch of grown men, pumping Sancte Crucis party music. The whole thing was pretty ridiculous. Meanwhile, crouched over behind the Adsertor their decanus crouched, connected on a line back to High Command in Matvayez. After the initial wise crack about it sounding like he was at a club rather than a warzone, a snide comment that very well could have cost lives with the wasted time if the commanders cared at all for the men here, they finally got down to business. In minutes, 60mm mortars began falling into the wreckage ahead of them and the men hunkered down.

"These guys are getting fucking close!" one of the younger miles shouted as he covered his helmet with his hands while debris fell around them. A few more shells came in behind that volley before a jet streaked in and deposited its own ordnance into the ruined town. "They are gettin real fucking close!!" the mile repeated. "I think we got everything though" the decanus repeated as he stoof up from his covered. BANG! A shot zipped out from a crushed house and tore into the NCO's shoulder, knocking him backwards. The entire squad opened up in the direction of the gunfire as their leader lay clutching his wound. "These fucking Adlerites man, they dont wanna quit...how is he even still alive"

Sure enough, when the men finally made it to the rubble, the offending sniper was indeed a member of the Adlerite People's Liberation Army. "These guys really think they are saving their country bringin' this commie shit here" one of the men asked as he rolled the body over with his foot. "Everyone needs to have a cause man. Some people think their cause is really worth dyin' for" another soldier answered as he lit a cigarette.

"This shit is only gunna get worse on the other side of the river isn't it?" the first man asked.

"O yea" the second guy said as he took a long drag. "And once we get to Ironfalcon...hell forget about it man. We just better hope that those Ecossian boys are as good as they say, because I'm not gettin my ass shot up out here for nothin'"

"We got the Guards too ya know"

"Fuck the Guards. A bunch of assholes and cowboys. They get their way and they'll just level the whole damn city. The only thing that'll do is send more people to the APLA, and give us more assholes to kill"

The first man laughed and shook his head. "You think to much Julius, ya know that?"

"That's what they pay me the big bucks for" Julius smiled. "Come on, that Luna CD is probably just about over by now"

This is the song, just imagine a Latin version instead of Spanish https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb607OeSlZ8

[GHawkins]

F-1 Minuteman III missile silo,
Reinland Missile Base,
Leonis, GHawkins

"Rook from 5a to 5d."
Two times a shifting noise sounded.
"Knight from 4f to 5d. There goes your rook."
Two further clacks sounded.
"Rook from 2d to 5d. Thaaaank you."
Again, the noise of pieces being moved sounded twice. Then silence reigned for some time.
"You gonna make a move or what?"
"Shut up I'm thinking."

Lieutenant James Morrow took a sip from his coffee, swivelling in his chair in a 360 degrees circle. Except for Lieutenant Leo Desmont, the entire launch command centre of the ICBMs was empty. The clock indicated it was nearly three o'clock. The only reason Morrow knew that this meant three o'clock in the night is because he had been cursed with the Wednesday night shift every week. 'Just' three more hours till his relieve came.

And like every Wednesday, Morrow and Desmont had taken up a game of chess to pass their dull shift. Nothing ever happened during the night shift, even the wild animals that sometimes set off the motion sensors around the launch bases' perimeter were now asleep. So, a good way to pass the time was chess.

"You've got three hours to make a move, no sweat Leo" Morrow said teasingly.
"I told you to shut up!" Desmont returned from the other side of the command centre, annoyed at his companion's upper hand in this game.

Since the duo of lieutenants were separated by nearly ten meters, to prevent any one person from ever turning both keys required to launch their Minuteman III, nuclear armed, MIRV'ed ICBMs, they both had a chess board set up on their console and called their moves out to one another.

"Bishop from 4h to 8d" Desmont called out and immediately regretted it, "Oh frak no-"
"Too late Leo!" Morrow said as he triumphantly moved Desmont's piece to the place he indicated and immediately moved his rook to it.

"Rook from 5d to 8d. That's check."
A grunt came from the other side of the centre.
"Well, it's not yet check mate. You haven't won yet."
"It's only a matter of time Leo, you know it."
"Just don't go celebrate you-..."

Desmont didn't get to finish his sentence, as suddenly the white, regular lights in the bunker died and were replaced with red lights as an alarm started blaring. In both their consoles a small printer came to life and began ticking away on the small piece of paper coming out.

"Incoming message!" Morrow, the senior of the two.

Desmont took the opportunity and flipped the chess board off his console. Reluctantly, Morrow did the same to remove any distraction from the soon-to-be very serious business. Morrow would have to take his revenge another time.

Soon, the two ripped the paper out of the printers at their consoles and compared them to the example message taped next to their screens.
"Message is valid! This is a stand-by order!" Morrow called.
"I agree the message is valid!" Desmont called.
"Stand by for authentication" Morrow stated as he left his seat and walked over to the bright red safe in the centre, removing a small key from his breast pocket.
"I agree with authentication" Desmont said, as he likewise stood up and moved himself over to the safe, producing his small key from his trousers' pocket.

When the duo reached the safe, both of them placed their key into the two separate keyholes and turned at the same time, unlocking the safe. Removing their keys again, they reached inside and took out two flat, plastic containers, inside them the authentication codes for a stand-by order. There were more containers in the safe, for a total of six. Three for each of the duty officers, with one of them being stand-by orders, one stand-down orders and the other the feared launch orders.

The duo reached their respective seats again and broke the plastic container in two, producing the authentication papers for the order. Each compared the bright red paper with the one he had taken out of his printer. If the message was valid, the authentication paper would be the same as the orders transmitted to them.

It was.

"Enter stand-by code!" Morrow called, typing in the code into his computer as displayed on the printed message.
"Entering code!" Desmont replied, doing likewise. "Stand-by order confirmed!"

Blinking on Desmont's screen were the words "STAND-BY CONFIRMED".
In rapid sequence, the computer acted on the provided stand-by code and began computing the entire launch. Desmont read out what the computer did.

"Target selection, complete. Time on target sequence, complete. Yield selection, complete."
"Insert launch key" Morrow called, pulling down the protective cover over the key hole, pushing in the launch key he had worn around his neck like a necklace.
"Launch key inserted" Desmont said, as he likewise put his key into the keyhole.
"Turn key to "SET" on my mark. Three... Two... One... Mark!"

Both turned their keys to the "SET" status, one which was dangerously close to "LAUNCH" and ten lights came to life on their consoles, all burning red.
"Key is set!" Desmont called, as he pushed himself to the now lid-up part of his console.
"Enable missiles!" Morrow called.
"Number one, enabled. Number two, enabled.."

Desmont and Morrow started calling out all missiles as both of them flicked the switches of the respective missiles to enabled, allowing the missiles to be launched on a moment's notice if required. The silo's under their control would all slowly open their silo's, allowing for a snap launch and all supports that would secure the missiles during peacetime would retract.

Another message started coming in via the printers, brining them the second part of the stand-by order; the confirmation that this is not a drill but that should a launch order come, it would not be a drill either. This message was also authenticated and confirmed to be valid and originating from GHawkins Missile Command.

Now, the two lieutenants waited. Waited to unleash their nuclear Minuteman III missiles, each of the ten carrying 3 warheads of 350 kilotons each, on their assigned targets. Their targets within the Yellow Star Republic, who had, while most of GHawkins was asleep, ousted the threat to bring nuclear fire to the Republic. If the Yellow Star Republic attempted to make good on that threat it would take eight minutes for the missiles to reach their re-entry location and turn the YSR's entire Command network, air force, air defence network, navy, strategic forces and capital to atomic cinders.

Hewitt Air Force Base,
Sagittaron, GHawkins

"Scramble, scramble, scramble!"

Despite the hour, everyone on the base was up and running seconds after the alarm sounded. Pilots that hadn't been on stand-by were fighting themselves into their flight suits, while the pilots that had been on alert were already sprinting to their F-15C's. Amongst them, ground crews were removing the safeties from their aircraft, assisting the pilots in getting into their aircraft and doing hasty pre-flight checks.

"I say again. Scramble, scramble, scramble!"

By the time the first non-alert pilots left their barracks and were making their way towards the hardened shelters to get their fighters fuelled, armed and ready to go, the first F-15's were thundering down the runway. Their afterburners looked majestic as the pilots went full throttle to get airborne as fast as possible. The 9th Fighter squadron was coming to life.

On the other side of the airbase, a similar thing was happening with the contingent of four aircraft from the 1st Bomber Squadron, the B-1 Lancers, or "Bones". The 1st Bomber Squadron was a nuclear alert squadron, which meant that at any credible threat of attack on the Republic, these bombers would launch. While in the air, they'd be briefed on their mission and potentially launch a nuclear counter-attack against whoever had attacked GHawkins.

Each bomber of the 1st Bomber Squadron was equipped with 24 B83 nuclear weapons. Each of these bombs had a yield of 1.2 Megatons. If detonated, one such bomb would flatten 226 square kilometres around ground zero and third degree burn wounds would occur within 500 square kilometres. The most powerful bombs in the GHawkins arsenal. As such, the fastest bomber was chosen to carry it as it was one of the few that could escape its blast radius.

To prevent this powerful retaliatory or offensive weapon to be destroyed in one strike, the 1st Bomber squadron had been spread over eight air bases. And at all of these bases they were now scrambling.

Within eight eleven minutes, the entire 1st Bomber Squadron was airborne and accompanied by their escorts. Their orders were to hold station above GHawkins and, if required, move to Nouvel Eccosse and drop their payload on the YSR from there.

The Hill House,
GHawkins City, GHawkins

President Galen Howard rolled over in his bed. Despite it being nearly three o'clock, as his alarm indicated, he had woken for some reason. With the little light coming into the room trough the curtains, he could see his wife laying next to him in bed. He smiled as he kept his eyes on her for a little, before quietly slipping out of the covers and walking to the bathroom.

He made sure to shut the door behind him before turning on the light, as to not wake his wife. He looked at the mirror and ran his hands down his face, muttering something to himself.

"Mister President!", followed by a large crash as someone had come through the door before fully opening it.

Damnit. He didn't even have the chance to take a piss. He was already back in the main bedroom, to be greeted by four of his secret service agents.

"Mister President, we're getting you airborne."

Before he could protest, Howard was already being taken out of the room by the agents.

"What's going on?"
"You will be briefed in the air Mister President, now please hurry."

Following a quick helicopter ride, in which Howard got dressed, they touched down at Hawkins Air Force Base, just outside GHawkins City where the large airborne command centre waited for him.

Soon, he was airborne.

Soon after,
Blackhelm Confederacy

The Chancellor sat stone still for a few moments as he listened to the reports out of the Yellow Star Republic. The color had visibly drained from his already pale face as he contemplated the consequences of a possible nuclear war. He had the Brilliant Pebble systems in place in orbit, so that provided him some consolation, but there was still the chance that missile would break through and shatter his cities. Not only that, but there was also the possibility that the communists could launch missiles against his troops in the YSR using missiles that never left the atmosphere, thus rendering his orbital defenses obsolete.

After several minutes of thinking, he picked up the little red phone on the corner of his desk. It connected directly to the office of his counterpart on the other side of the region, that of the Ghawkins president, Galen Howard.

He took a deep breath as he heard the other phone pick up.

His staff had just informed him of the details of the threat and the status of GHawkins’ nuclear triage. Several nuclear submarines had already left their staging areas and were heading towards pre-determined launch positions near the northern continent of Astyria. The 1st Bomber Squadron, with the “Bone” bombers each carrying enough firepower to level a small country were circling at their staging areas and the 5th Missile Squadron reported all Minuteman III’s were ready for launch within minutes.

“Well, what now?” Howard asked, just as his staff finished briefing him, “Their threat credible?”
“Oh it certainly is credible sir, though not via ICBM. They don’t have any missiles that stay in one piece for us to be hit with. Maybe their submarines, though they can be heard from kilometres away like oncoming freight trains” Steven Jackson, GHawkins’ Secretary of Defence replied.

Howard rubbed his forehead a bit, sighing.
“Do we know the reply from-...”
On the table, one of the imbedded phones started ringing. The one directly in front of Howard. He glanced around the situation room, the plane shaking slightly under some turbulence, before he reached for it.

“Howard” he replied.
“Mister President” a female voice on the other side said, “The red phone is ringing.”
“I guess that bastard is eavesdropping on us then… Put him through.”

There was a small clack and a white noise, before the voice of the BC Chancellor came on.

“Well Galen...what now?” the Chancellor asked, his voice sounding stressed and more than a bit concerned, but still he tried to maintain his composure and come off with as much calm as possible, given the situation.

“Well, Octavius, nice of you to call. How about we start by keeping our missiles in the silo’s before we pour Astyria into a nuclear winter?” Howard replied dryly, which resulted in a smirk from his SECDEF.

“And let these Vikings rain a nuclear holocaust on our countries? I believe a first strike is our best answer to this problem, and a joint strike by both of us can guarantee we end this mess before it starts”

“If your intel was any good, you’d know the YSR has no capability to reach either of our countries in a first strike. They’d need a type of missile they simply don’t have, submarines that won’t be detected until they launch, which they don’t have or air bases near our countries, which they don’t have. If either of us launch anything, the only result we’ll get is this; A lot of innocents dead, Falkasia, Thomaion, Glisandia and Adler a radioactive zone, the entire YSR a wasteland, thousands of ATO and your troops contaminated or dead, all because we reacted pre-maturely.”

“First off, there are no innocents in the YSR. The only good communist is a dead one. Second, while they might not be able to hit us proper, they can still wipe out the coalition troops in Adler and Glisandia. Now I am not saying a full on nuclear carpeting. I am saying we knock out Arkljestad and whatever bases we know they have. It wont spread anywhere as long as we do this the right way”

“The YSR isn’t a communist state, it’s socialist. There’s a difference. Anyway, there are innocents. You really want to be the one who turned the YSR into a wasteland? Contaminated four other countries? Killed an entire eco-system? If we act without properly thinking about this, that’s the result. This situation can be contained, without the use of nuclear weapons.”

“They are the same thing in my eyes” Octavius retorted. “But anyway, what do you propose then? Just let us have our soldiers be engulfed in a nuclear flame while we sit by and watch?”

“You use nuclear weapons, they are certainly going to be engulfed in nuclear fire” Howard shot back, “You don’t use nuclear weapons, they might not use nuclear weapons. I know, might is not a guarantee. But it’s a lot better than having them use those weapons for sure. Right now… one second.”

Howard motioned for an aide, placing his hand on the phone.
“Get me the folder about that arsenal” he said, motioning to the folder on the other side of the table, where SECDEF had left it.

When Howard had it, he continued.

“Yeah. Right now, the YSR’s main arsenal of weapons are gravity bombs and short range missiles. That means they either have to be delivered by fighter-bomber, bomber or SCUD missile. Or whatever launch platforms they build by now. However, at this present time, there’s no way to prevent those weapons systems from being used even if we knew where they were. We launch, they move those weapons. They can scramble in under fifteen minutes. Most likely, even if we knew which base to hit, it would result in -some- planes taking off. And again result in nuclear weapons being used on ATO and BC troops…”

Howard reached for and took a sip from his coffee, which had been carefully brewed, considering the early hour.

“If we don’t nuke the YSR, which I still advocate, they won’t have to use weapons. And if we do, we still get to beat them. Way I see it over here, the best course of action is preparing to retaliate, hope that asshole on that high chair there fears death more than his image and he’ll back down.”

The Chancellor thought a moment on what his counterpart had said before he finally nodded a bit. “So we just wait then?”

“We wait.” Howard said simply, “Right now, when I look at the video of that broadcast, I see a madman. I see someone who’s afraid of losing it all now that it turned against him. He’s trying to play a big hand, by threatening us with nuclear weapons. He thinks that would scare us off. He hopes that we won’t make a first strike and that we back off. Now, this is the same person who over a year ago nearly sank one of my carriers. I know who we’re dealing with. He’ll back down eventually, especially when our retaliatory preperations are shown to the world. Images of missile silo’s opening have a nice effect on other nations whom the missile inside is pointed at.”

Octavius sighed. “If this goes wrong, it’s on you” he said before hanging up the phone. He pushed a button on his desk, sending a message to his secretary. “Valeria..” he said into his intercom. “Order Missile Command to stand down….this is going to turn into a waiting game.”

Howard placed the phone back on the hook, sighing.
“It’s always on me, even if I am just eating breakfast half a world away, asshole.”
“What’d he say?” Jackson asked, cocking an eyebrow.
“He’s playing along with us. He won’t launch, for now, thankfully.”
“That’s a relief” Jackson said somewhat sarcastically.
“Just make sure that the moment we detect nuclear detonation in the YSR, or see ICBMs or whatever they have going up, we bomb them.”
“That has been the plan since the early fifties.” Jackson said, smirking.

[Andamonia]

Rha'gutza
6 AM, 16 September 2014

You had to hand it to the Trellinese; they might not act very often, but when they did they were quick and they were thorough.

It wasn't even sunrise yet in Rha'gutza, and its governor - ex-governor now, he supposed, and unlikely to get any better title again - Iizok Nethil was out in the middle of Liberty Square on his knees and with his hands behind his head. How he came to be in this rather undignified pose was something he had to stop and consider for a moment. It looked like he'd have a lot of free time ahead of him anyway.

He'd been asleep when he'd gotten the call from port traffic control, at about twenty past midnight if he recalled the little red LED lights right. A bunch of Trellinese warships had appeared in the harbour and were politely asking if Governor Nethil wouldn't mind leaving the city, never to return, and taking his army with him so that the Trellinese could hold a plebiscite as per the requests of the Sidereal Crown and their Dangish neighbours. Rubbing his eyes aggressively, Nethil had instructed the port controller to explain to the Trellinese that they should turn their ships around, go home and subsequently burn in the eternal inferno of their fire god's realm. In a moment of inspiration he added that a round from the New Battery would probably speed them on their way. Apparently that hadn't gone down at all well, because the next call, coming mere minutes after he'd gotten back into bed, was to ask Nethil if the troops manning the Old Battery could surrender.

It was a bewildering escalation for someone who'd been asleep just three hours and now awake just six minutes. He slowly came to terms with the realisation that the Trellinese probably outgunned the so-called New Battery (it was, in reality, almost as old as the local Andamonian government) and the Old Battery (older still), even with just the handful of warships reported. The harbour's overall defensive layout was practically unchanged since the start of the 20th century, and as the low thundering of guns faded out he realised the defenses had probably already fallen. Coming to his senses, he'd dressed quickly and poorly and run to his car. It was a quick drive down the hill to the Council Hall; hopefully the loyal Councillors, or at least the garrison commanders, would be there.

Break the speed limit. Brake for the barricades. Foreign soldier in camo knocks on the window, gestures for you to get out. Nod. Gear shift. Accelerator. Foot off brake. Reverse. 180. Back up the hill, gunshots smashing the back glass.

It was a terrified Iizok Nethil who'd arrived at the Barracks, fumbling desperately for his absent wallet and ID card at the security check. The guard, fortunately, recognised him and waved him through. The whole place had been in disarray, soldiers running around with their weapons, a couple of trucks being haphazardly loaded by nervous men. Was this how a disciplined army was supposed to deal with an invasion? He was surprised to feel disdain; he was suddenly curiously detached from everything, and even with the rear pane missing from his car his own terror minutes before now seemed distant and unreal.

What brought him back was the approach of two men he knew well, Yarsu Iriyed and Cuvai Faliaan, the base's major and his aide. Or something. He could never remember what Faliaan's job was. Both men seemed distressed, and Nethil had to concede the legitimacy of that emotion. The major spoke before Nethil could.

"Governor," he urged, "we have to surrender."

What? No. No. Nethil tried to reject the suggestion but Faliaan cut across him before his mouth even opened. "Yes, governor, we know, but we don't have a choice."

"Of course we have a choice," Nethil replied, his world already slipping out from under him. He was desperate and he knew it. "Can we not entrench here and hide behind your walls and barbed wires?"

Iriyed shook his head, his resignation palpable. "If they didn't have ships, that'd be a remote possibility, but they can shell us from out there and there's nothing we can do to retaliate. Not now that they've taken the batteries."

"They took the batteries?" Disbelief tinged Nethil's voice.

"Like I said, we don't have a choice. Sir." Faliaan was not a comforting man to have around.

"Sir," called a voice from the gate, and all three men turned to look.

The out-barrier was still up, having just let one of the garrison's trucks out with troops for the firefight on the quays, and through this barrier now came another truck - a delivery truck from a local supermarket chain. It suddenly swerved and came to a halt as a team of Trellinese commandos leaped out from its open back, guns up, pointing every way at once.

Time stopped. The shouting stopped. His heart stopped. Only Nethil's mind kept going, and it made full use of that brief eternity to weigh up its options. The full meaning of Iriyed and Faliaan's words came to him - surrender, become a captive of your ancient foe, live but maybe never again to see daughter, wife, home. Run, be shot in the back, remembered as a coward, or maybe captured again. Same as above. Stand your ground. Grab that gun Faliaan's not using, shoot one of the commandos. Blaze of glory, remembered forever as Nethil, Hero-Governor of the Second Trophy Wars, immortalised in marble sculpture in Liberty Square. He raised his hands.

Here he was again, Liberty Square, his hands behind his head and him a metre away from the now-empty plinth of Hanrel Mata's statue. Voices all around him, speaking in Trellinese, the occasional gunshot sending half a dozen men running to locate the sniper. It was a pathetic resistance; in virtually every house the reaction was celebration. He just knew it.

A rifle-butt nudged him, calling him to sudden attention, and he looked up. A man in uniform.

"Governor Nethil," the man said to himself in his native tongue. Nethil nodded anyway. "I am Admiral Tarmüz Siveka of the SCS Lüsya."

"A pleasure, I'm sure," he replied, still kneeling. "If only we had met in better circumstances."

"If you had had the good grace to surrender in the first place there would be better circumstances, Governor. I'm only here to carry out orders and carry out a referendum."

Nethil almost laughed. "You're still going through with that? You've already won. There's no need to rub it in."

"The Dangish disagree."

Oh boy, the Dangish. Nethil understood instantly, and both men shared a look of utter exasperation. "Well, if it's the Dangish..." Nethil allowed.

"You see where we're coming from here. Obviously there's only one way this can go, but if we're to avert a war this thing needs to be done peacefully. We're going to guarantee your safe passage home, and-"

Nethil interrupted him. "It's too late for that, Admiral. Did you hear the Emperor's speech? If there aren't Andamonian tanks rolling across the Usmalím by evening I won't believe it's Amahuiz on the throne."

Siveka stared into the distance. "Five ships, eh? They thought it'd be just enough to start this and wrap everything up."

"Nothing's that easy, Admiral. Did you forget how the Trophy Wars went? You took two ports and then we invaded Txekrikar."

"History," Siveka lamented, "has this irritating tendency to remind us what it's already done by doing the exact same thing again and again. Still, we do what we must. On your feet, Governor. I have another Trophy Port to recapture by tomorrow night."

[GHawkins]

Following the publication made by the Blackhelm Confederacy, the following reply is delivered to both Casegenian and Blackhelm governments via diplomatic channels.

On behalf of the countries allied under the Astyrian Treaty Organisation and engaged in combat operations against the Republic of Casegene, we welcome the Casegenian willingness to engage in peace talks. We however severely regret that the government of the Republic of Casegene has not shown willing to engage in such talks at an earlier point, despite being given the opportunity to do so, which has led to unnecessary continuation of this conflict.

We however feel that, in the interest of all belligerents in this conflict, the proposed peace talks should not be conducted on the soil of a nation aligned to either the Astyrian Treaty Organisation or the East Astyrian Treaty Alliance. Despite our recognition of the good-willed intentions the Blackhelm Confederacy has displayed by proposing the peace talks, in the interest of the circumstances in which these talks will be held and under which a treaty might be signed, the Astyrian Treaty Organisation insist these peace talks will be held on a country not involved in the conflict and not aligned with either the Astyrian Treaty Organisation or the East Astyrian Treaty Alliance.

As an act of good will, to display that the Astyrian Treaty Organisation does seek peace with the Republic of Casegene rather than continued hostilities, the Republic of GHawkins has approached the Grand Sidereal Monarchy of Trellin with a request to host the peace conference. Sharing the Astyrian Treaty Organisation’s desire for peace in Casegene and Agrincourt, the Sidereal Crown has agreed to facilitate talks. The Sidereal Crown has made arrangements for the peace talks to be held in the Unarta Mlíka, the Whiterock Hotel, in the city of Bara ti'Emla.

To ensure that the peace talks go without problems and to prevent degradation back to a state of active combat, the Astyrian Treaty Organisation proposes a ceasefire between the following parties:

• All military and paramilitary forces, including but not limited to ground, air and maritime forces, who may or may not bear the flag of the Republic of Casegene but answer to her chain of command or conduct operations in her interests.
• All military and paramilitary forces, including but not limited to ground, air and maritime forces, who may or may not bear the flag of the Noble Kingdom of Agrincourt, the Republic of Terre des Gaules, the Confederacy of Neu Engollon and the Republic of GHawkins but answer to their chain of command or conduct operations in their interests.

As part of this ceasefire and to ensure no party involved in this conflict will use the peace talks as cover to reorganize, reinforce and resupply their combat forces in an effort to continue combat operations against the other party, both sides should adhere to the following conditions:

• All combat forces in the theatre (all of Casegene and Agrincourt) will stand down and no longer pursue combat operations against the other party.

o To prevent the requirement of self-defence during the ceasefire, all combat forces are to ensure they are not engaged in offensive combat operations at the time the ceasefire is in effect.

 Combat forces shall be defined as any and all military and paramilitary units capable of engaging in combat, including but not limited to any form of ground, air and naval forces.
• All combat forces within 40 kilometres (20 km on either side) of the front line may not engage in manoeuvres as long as the peace talks are ongoing.

o Troop movement out of the 40 kilometre zone is authorised. Casegenian troops may move north, to exit the 40 kilometre zone. ATO troops may move south, to exit the 40 kilometre zone.
o The only movement that is authorised to head into the 40 kilometre zone are convoys carrying necessities of life (food, water, medical supplies, bedding, shelter).

 Convoys transporting supplies or reinforcements meant to increase combat strength for units within the 40 kilometre zone is strictly prohibited and will be considered a breach of the ceasefire.

• Supplies of that nature include: All types of munitions, all types of armed military vehicles, all types of manpower reinforcement.
• All forces behind the lines of the opposing party at the time of the ceasefire are to surrender to the nearest military unit of the nation which controls that area, or cease all operations. In case of surrender, the surrendering forces are to be treated as Prisoners of War.

o Failure to surrender when confronted or continued resistance while the ceasefire is in effect will result in deadly force used to subdue these forces.
o It is the responsibility of the party whom deployed these forces behind the opposing party’s lines, either purposely (infiltration) or accidentally (encircled), that these forces are informed of the ceasefire and their orders to surrender.

 Continued combat operations by forces behind the opposing party’s lines will be considered a breach of the ceasefire.
• This ceasefire shall be observed whilst negotiations for a long-term peace treaty are ongoing. In the event of a breakdown of negotiations and both parties cease talks, this ceasefire is to be observed for an additional 24 hours.

o This is required to prevent either side using the ceasefire and peace talks as a ruse to strengthen their forces in an effort to gain the upper hand.
• Responsibility for compliance with and enforcement of the terms and provisions of this ceasefire is that of the signatories hereto and their successors in command. The Commanders of the opposing sides shall establish within their respective commands all measures and procedures necessary to insure complete compliance with all of the provisions hereof by all elements of their commands. They shall actively co-operate with one another in requiring observance of both letter and the spirit of all of the provisions of this ceasefire.

If the government of the Republic of Casegene wishes to proceed with the peace negotiations as described above and agree with all terms of the ceasefire under which it, along with all countries participating in ATO operations in this theatre, will fall, this ceasefire shall be considered in effect by both belligerents of this conflict.

Within 72 (seventy-two) hours of the start of this ceasefire, peace negotiations are to commence as described above.