WFF Series 2: Mederune Sunrise [IC, CLOSED]

by **Turmenista** » Wed Sep 04, 2019 3:34 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E8
"SHARK ATTACK PART 2"

Operation Two Birds

For quite some time now, SOSEC's Kir Branch has operated in Kir and Avalon from the blacksite airfield known as The Aviary, a large military complex on Cornwallis Island home to many mercenary squadrons. With an airbase large enough to maintain several squadrons of SOSEC-owned aircraft that can deploy troops at a moments notice anywhere in Avalon or Kir, such a site is obviously considered a massive target. Control of it is crucial to maintain aerial dominance over South Avalon. Your objective today is simple: assist the Sharks in taking over the Aviary, or, at least, forcing a SOSEC retreat. Once the Aviary's command structure in the ATC tower and command center is taken out, it will allow MILINT and the Sharks to fly in and station their own aircraft at the base.

_{DATE: 2100 hrs. - November 17, A.C. 424 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi, "The Scarab" | LOCATION: Cornwallis Island | Atlantic Ocean}

The Aviary.

The Aviary stood before them in all of its glory, the blacksite by the sea visible just beyond the crest of the hill. Aircraft of all different sizes and shapes, from STOL Cargo Aircraft, to jet fighters, to strange-looking helicopters, all were at various places on the base, unaware of the dozens of MILINT-aided Sharks that had just landed on the island on RHIBs.

Ali watched as Yasmine approached him from the rear, carrying his NiBR-99 anti-materiel sniper rifle in its portable carrying position in one hand. Had it not been for the fact that Ali inherently knew she was behind him, he would've thought she had just appeared behind him due to her silent movements, all thanks to the skin-tight "stealth suit" she wore. He wasn't sure if it was just something she had for herself or if it was official Providence Office gear, but what he did know was that he didn't have it, leaving MILINT to do stealth the old fashioned way: with high speed, low drag operator gear and night vision. "So, this is the Aviary..." she said unceremoniously, her voice trailing off as she bebgan planting herself by one of the rocks that Ali had already perched up on. "As if it wasn't obvious already."

"It's bigger than I thought.." Ali muttered and brought up his night vision goggles. The base was well-lit enough to not necessitate the use of night vision, so he could begin inspecting the base through his rangefinder now, simultaneously bringing up his radio to begin calling out targets for friendly fire support.

MAAT CONGLOMERATE ELECTRONICS DIVISION
COMMLINK v. 2.3.1α
JOINT MILINT/PROVIDENCE OFFICE
CHANNEL ONYX DIVISION - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "How the hell are these guys able to afford such an airbase like this..?"

\\\ [- [INOPS/CMD][CDT. Ismael Sadiki-Ra-hotep of Qadesh] -] \\\ - "That's what being perhaps the largest PMC in the world can buy you, Lieutenant. They'll work for anyone so long as they're being paid well...including us, the Velezians, Euphemians, Utsanji... and the Avalonians"

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Right.. Shark mortar support and fire support from the Mandelaesi should be enough to cover their advance into the airbase. I take it I'll just be JTAC for this one?"

\\\ [- [INOPS/CMD][CDT. Ismael Sadiki-Ra-hotep of Qadesh] -] \\\ - "Precisely. Hit targets of high importance: parked aircraft, namely."

\\\ [- MILINT ACQUISITIONS / RXQ-559 Eclipse Unit #007 | Ancilla HASTUR -] \\\ - "++UPDATE: I HAVE SPOTTED NO SOSEC AIRCRAFT IN THE IMMEDIATE AO.++"

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Right. The Sharks should be launching their first volley of mortars now..."

\\\ [- ANS Somtaaw - WEAPONS CNTR -] \\\ - "We've still got one CM-99 Sunstrike Trident missile in the air, inbound towards the Aviary. Time left to target is approximately two minutes. Once it hits, it's showtime, and you'll be free to call in strikes as necessary."

MAAT Conglomerate ©423 All Rights Reserved

Alarms suddenly began to blare all across the blacksite as the Sharks fired off their first volley of M91 light mortars towards the base. Flare rounds burst all across the base, lighting up the area as small explosions were reported on various sections of the airfield...but then, something began shooting in the background—and something rather large, at that. It was an Akhmanari-made CR-103 Pallas emplacement, stationed somewhere in the base. The multipurpose CIWS and CRAM system used complex sensors and radar to detect inbound projectiles like rockets, mortars, artillery, and missiles, destroying them with rapid-firing twin 30mm autocannons, and could additionally tear up any light aircraft or helicopters within range rather quickly. The naval variant of the Pallas also carried four ready-to-fire missiles similar to the ones carried onboard the AD-M22 SPAAG, each fed by a reloading system that could store up to 32 missiles in ready-to-launch containers—but, again, that was the naval variant. This ground-based variant consisted of only the guns, but it was still an effective means of repelling inbound threats like rockets, artillery, mortar, and missiles.

Because it was so new—or, rather, its use as a CRAM emplacement was so new—the Aviary only had one of them, and it was already showing off as being quite effective by eliminating a few of the inbound mortars. The attack formally began once something swooped in with a loud WHOOOSH, striking the ATC tower and annihilating it—as well as the CR-103 Pallas—in a massive explosion. With surgical precision, the ATC tower and the Pallas had been flattened by the CM-99 Sunstrike Trident missile from the Somtaaw, cutting off the Aviary’s main means of coordinating counterattacks and scrambling aircraft, and shooting down inbound rockets and mortars.

"Come on, sniper guy, let's hit some targets!" Yasmine called out, motioning for Ali to follow her as she shifted position on the hill, setting the rifle down on another rock as she scoped out the hangars of the airbase.

It wasn’t often that Ali got to serve as the spotter for a sniper—let alone for a woman. Despite its weight, Yasmine wielded the Raider’s own NiBR-99 anti-materiel rifle as if it were nothing, quickly darting to a new position atop their hill in spite of the fact that she was carrying heavy webbing and ammo on her shoulders. She swiftly planted herself on the ground in a prone position, looking down at the now-besieged airfield through the sniper’s scope. “Start making yourself useful and coordinating some strikes. We've got about 3 AD-154 Archimedes SAMs on the base, I'll pick off a few pilots scrambling to the jets with your rifle. You can make yourself useful and start organizing strikes against their AA.

Too mesmerized by the woman’s prowess with his own rifle—and perhaps her other assets, specifically around her thighs and hips—Ali snapped out of it and quickly brought up out laser designator, quickly switching it on. “Okay.. Right.”

CA-THUNK

In a blur, a single tracer round fired from Ali's weapon flew downrange, swiftly disabling one of the parked mercenary jets that was outside of one of the hangars in a single shot. More mortars came down around the base, buffeting various parked aircraft, pre-fabricated buildings, and storage units throughout the base—and with no Pallas CRAM to destroy the inbound mortars, a few of the aircraft under fire that were either on their way out of the airbase or still parked inside hangars or outside simply couldn't keep up with the amount of firepower being dumped onto the base, a few being mangled and destroyed by the mortars themselves. There was, however, something else that was shooting out from the Aviary above the copious amounts of gunfire and carnage—more missiles. Orbs of light flew from three distinct locations on the aviary, one of them annihilating a friendly Shark-owned MH-88 Sparrow light utility helicopter right above the two.

"The Archimedes SAM sites are still up.." Yasmine reminded Ali, who panned his laser designator over to one of the emplacements in question. "But not for long.."

MAAT CONGLOMERATE ELECTRONICS DIVISION
COMMLINK v. 2.3.1α
JOINT MILINT/PROVIDENCE OFFICE
CHANNEL ONYX DIVISION - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- MILINT ACQUISITIONS / RXQ-559 Eclipse Unit #007 | Ancilla HASTUR -] \\\ - "++AG-39 SLEDGEHAMMER INBOUND ON YOUR LASER LOCK, LIEUTENANT.++"

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Copy that. I'll keep my head down."

\\\ [- ANS Somtaaw - CIC/INOPS -] \\\ - "Scarab, be advised, new support units are now on standby."

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Say again, you said 'new support units'..?"

\\\ [- ANS Somtaaw - CIC/INOPS -] \\\ - "Wait one."

CHANNEL ANF SOUTH ATLANTIC FLEET PRIVATE - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- ANS GORGON - CIC/INOPS -] \\\ - "Onyx Division, this is INOPS from the Gorgon speaking on a MILINT private channel. We've have been informed of an ongoing MILINT operation near the South Atlantic Fleet that may require some assistance from the Gorgon. I've already launched some fighters to help take out this so-called "black-site" on Cornwallis island. I'll look and see about getting naval gun or missile support from any of our other ships. For the time being, enjoy some fighter support."

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "I.. appreciate the help? Thank you, sir.."

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-283| VIPER ONE -] \\\ - "Viper One to Scarab, we're happy to assist."

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-284| VIPER TWO -] \\\ - "Viper Two to Scarab, show us the targets and we'll be happy to give them some Sledgehammers! Or, if it's AA you fancy, we've got the anti-radiation versions of the AG-24 carried onboard."

MAAT Conglomerate ©423 All Rights Reserved

"What was that about support units again?" Yasmine asked, curious, as Ali moved back to the radio to begin coordinating more mortar strikes and airstrikes, the base continuing to be peppered by small explosions as more Sharks moved in by land. Ali turned back around, removing the radio from his ear. "We've now got... er... how do I put it.. actual support from the Akhmanari Navy, I guess...?"

"What?!"

Yasmine's rather animated and comical exclamation was backed up by a sudden and thunderous explosion, Hastur's missile impacting the target with the usual pinpoint accuracy. Once more, the Ancilla had used complex calculations on the fly to ensure a direct hit as the UCAV above quickly exited the AO, although his high-altitude movements were practically invisible to them and other ground-based AA on the ground that were mostly preoccupied with the Shark-owned Sparrows. With little warning, a hangar near the SAM site collapsed inwards from the sheer amount of firepower packed in the Sledgehammer, flattening it and, presumably, any aircraft or people still inside of the hangar. The shockwave buffeted the two operatives once it expanded outwards, kicking up dust from the rocky hills and parting the clouds above...and the battle raged on.

"You're telling.. me that Ismael broke OPSEC, all so he could get some fancy jets from the navy to help us?" Yasmine grunted, visibly pissed even as the firefight continued in the background. "Damn it, I knew I had a bad feeling about this from the start.. now the entire Akhmanari Navy will know who the Onyx Division are. That wasn't the point of the operation... and if these fucking buffoons followed OPSEC.."

"Not exactly," Ali murmured. "Apparently, INOPS on the Gorgon knows what's going on and they referred to us as "Onyx Division," but the rest of the fleet doesn't. We might be in the clear, for now."

"Yeah, well, the way I see it, once we take over the Aviary, MILINT isn't gonna be the only ones flying their own planes in." Yasmine sighed, turning back to the base. "It's nothing we could've done, Ali. Let's just hope this takeover is smooth and swift.."

"I actually think you might be right on that one." While Ali only nodded in agreement to what Yasmine had to say, his attention was elsewhere—and no, it wasn't on Yasmine's posterior now. It was more towards a hazy spiral far off in the distance towards inland Avalon, where he saw a foggy vision of what appeared to be Avalonian-made and presumably SOSEC-operated HF-1G Gunships currently inbound from the northeast. Was it, perhaps, his precognition kicking into effect once again?

MAAT CONGLOMERATE ELECTRONICS DIVISION
COMMLINK v. 2.3.1α
JOINT MILINT/PROVIDENCE OFFICE
CHANNEL ONYX DIVISION - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Scarab to Hastur, I've got eyes on times three HF-1G gunships inbound."

\\\ [- MILINT ACQUISITIONS / RXQ-559 Eclipse Unit #007 | Ancilla HASTUR -] \\\ - "++.... HF-1GS SPOTTED ON THE WAY TO THE AO, BOUND FROM AN AVALON AIRBASE IN CORNWALLIS. THAT WOULD MEAN THEY WERE OUTSIDE OF YOUR VISUAL RANGE. HOW DID YOU SPOT THEM?++"

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "...I don't know, but they're there."

\\\ [- MILINT ACQUISITIONS / RXQ-559 Eclipse Unit #007 | Ancilla HASTUR -] \\\ - "++INTERESTING. MOVING POSITION TO INTERCEPT THEM. THEY SHALL NOT STAND A CHANCE.++"

CHANNEL ANF SOUTH ATLANTIC FLEET PRIVATE - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-283| VIPER ONE -] \\\ - "Viper One to Scarab, I can see you're currently lasing a target—is that a SAM?"

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Affirmative."

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-284| VIPER TWO -] \\\ - "Viper Two to Viper One, let's blow this popsicle stand, as the Euphemoids say."

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-283| VIPER ONE -] \\\ - "Roger that. I've got a lock now. Sledgehammers away."

MAAT Conglomerate ©423 All Rights Reserved

For a moment, it seemed as if the harsh screeching of jet engines was audible above the gunfire and mortars going off all around them, two elusive knife-like objects only briefly penetrating the clouds high above and firing something off as they quickly pulled away from the inbound AA and small arms fire. Seconds later, what remained of the SAMs were surgically and precisely eliminated by the standoff weapons, large explosions flowering outwards from them as the Sharks continued their assault on the airbase. HASTUR's work also seemed to have been evident as some helicopters not too far off from the combat area peeled away, some tracers from the sky lighting them up as they scrambled to either land and get their passengers out, or get out of there.

MAAT CONGLOMERATE ELECTRONICS DIVISION
COMMLINK v. 2.3.1α
JOINT ONYX DIVISION/SHARK UNIT COMMS
CHANNEL TWO BIRDS - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [SNIPER][LT. Ali Sebek-nefru of Kipisi] -] \\\ - "Cap'n, are you pinging me?"

\\\ [- [CAP'N][Hank J. Prurient Chances Southpaw Gambino Wimbleton] \\\ - "Affirmative. Double time your behinds over to the command center—I think we got this one in the bag.."

MAAT Conglomerate ©423 All Rights Reserved

It didn't take long for the two snipers atop the hill to realize that the Sharks greatly outnumbered the defending SOSEC forces, the rather rocky hill proving to be trouble for them to navigate down for a moment, but that was what night vision was for. Still, Ali led the way as if he knew his environment well, crossing through the area like a breeze, his KT-95 suppressed DMR up as he made his way down the hill, scanning his surroundings while walking towards the chain link fence surrounding the base. Yasmine easily and effortlessly wove past Ali and somehow managed to tear a hole in the fence in record time with some bolt cutters or something, but Ali wasn't focused on her to figure out how she had done such a task.

The base, as said before, was a collection of warehouses, garages, pre-fabricated buildings, and housing units that SOSEC was using for their little blacksite. Avalonian-made light armored vehicles—at least, the ones that weren't destroyed—were messily strewn around the place as if a great storm had come through, and even more concerning was the sheer amount of people that the Sharks had managed to both kill and capture. Sure, Ali was pretty much adapted to violence at this point and walked through it as if it wasn't his concern...but the Sharks truly were methodical in the way they cleared out the base, lining up those who surrendered for extraction and interrogation later.

They made their way towards the command center, the central command nexus of the blacksite, which was similar to most command centers on Akhmanari airbases in that it was reinforced and well-protected. This time, though, it was guarded not by SOSEC paramilitaries, but rather, by Shark Team Storm, the elites of the Shark Unit-01, who had their SOSEC counterparts at gunpoint and on the wall, hand behind their backs.

"Hands where I can see 'em, asshole." One of the Shark Team Storm barked, only nodding as the two "Onyx Division" operatives entered. The SOSEC operative responded an insult in Akhmanari that the two instantly recognized, Yasmine and Ali both looking at one another for a moment as another Shark guided them inside. "Cap'n's waiting for you in the situations room."

The command center itself was little more than, well, for lack of a better word, an Aviary, with many caged and freely-roaming parrots, birds of prey, and birds of paradise all surrounding the two as they made their way through the labyrinthine building, noting that a few sections had been turned into indoor gardens for parrots and other birds to roam about freely, singing some random songs or spouting something out at the two Akhmanaris. Soon enough, they entered the situations room, noting that Hank, Hyena, and Petrosky were all in there. The Shark commander himself was wearing his usual Stealth BDU fitted with ceramic plates and other external armor to function as a sort of "battle dress," which seemed to have been shot up a few times. For the most part, he was intact, but holding something very unusual up to what would otherwise amount to a civilian: an Utsanji Katana.

Ali took a moment to look at the civilian. She wore a two-piece dress and jewelry typical of an Akhmanari tourist of high status, but just something about her appearance and demeanor screamed power inaudibly. "A civilian...?"

"Nope." Hank shook his head at Ali's question. "This lady right here is named Sonya. She's in big with SOSEC's Kir Branch and owns the Aviary—out of her own pocket, of course. And she's also the one that ordered the SOSEC surrender. Isn't that right, m'lady?" As if to reassure her, he moved his blade closer away from her neck.

Sonya, owner of the Aviary.

"You damned sharks.." She muttered, obviously pissed. "I knew we should've made the first move, but we just needed time."

"Saw you were doing something there with those mercenary squadrons—this isn't South Ophir, though." Hank scoffed. "We're not gonna let you, or anyone else operate unopposed in Avalon, no. My interests have changed from monetary to ideological—while working for Anders is cool and all that, I also want to work for myself. For all the oppressed soldiers and peoples in Avalon, 'cause that shit makes me feel good. It didn't take much to change my way of thinking, not unless you count this fella here." He pointed to Ali with the blade of the sword. "Anyways, like I said, we're going to be taking over the Aviary now. The Onyx Division here...well.. they've informed me that they want to fly some of their own aircraft in."

The Akhmanari woman turned to Ali, and then Yasmine, and then back to Hank. This caused the "Onyx Division" leader to place her hands on her hips. "Don't look at him. We agreed to this before we raided your base. We're going to be securing all of the assets on the Aviary, effective immediately...and unless you want to join us, I have no qualms with sending you and your men back to Torch City or wherever the Ophir Branch is located, hopefully not in bodybags."

Sonya thought long and hard for an answer, finally turning to Yasmine and Ali, where she promptly said "fuck you" in her native tongue. Hank laughed, evidently able to understand what she said. "Aight. I'll take over from here.." Motioning for Petrosky and Hyena to assist, he placed his hand on Yasmine's shoulder and moved her up onto her feet. "Guess we're done with that. While we work with sending these assholes to Torch City, you guys can fly in your aircraft and everything, I guess. We'll be flying our own choppers in and taking whatever SOSEC shit we can find. Hopefully none of the jets got demolished, heh..."

Before Hank left, he turned a head over his shoulder, winking at Yasmine. "We 'preciate the help... and I think this is gonna be the start of one big, long, happy relationship."

"And I think it's about time we rewarded ourselves for a job well done, maybe a trip to the so-called "legendary beaches" of Cornwallis island.." Yasmine thought aloud, a grin forming on her face. Once he left, there was only one person left with Yasmine in the bird-filled room...and that was Ali, who suddenly snapped his eyes upwards and stood at attention as Yasmine looked him over. "You sure do love looking at my ass, don't you, Ali?"

Well.. he had to admit, it was, objectively, a rather sizable ass for someone of Yasmine's size, and she did have some strange charisma to her...

"I guess you do.." her tone suddenly shifted as she began walking out and smiled, swaying her hips as if to emphasize her point. "But it'll have to wait for now. We'll have plenty of time for that later."

MAAT CONGLOMERATE ELECTRONICS DIVISION
COMMLINK v. 2.3.1α
cmdprompt v3.1
:: NAV PROMPT ::


ALERT (most recent call):
  FUNCTION "<GRIDREF>" in <NAV>
CURRENT GRID REFERENCE: Z-1837-ACHEM
CHANNEL ANF SOUTH ATLANTIC FLEET - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- Onyx Division / Aviary Mobile Air Traffic Control Tower | SGT -] \\\ - "Viper One, you are cleared to land at Runway 01.”

\\\ [- Akhmanar Naval Forces /ANS Gorgon (CVN-004) / N-57KM1NAV HARPY #419-283| VIPER ONE -] \\\ - "Copy that."

MAAT Conglomerate ©423 All Rights Reserved

The sleek N-57KM1 "Harpy" fourteenth-generation fighter aircraft came in for an IFR landing at the runway due to the fog and darkness, the pilot noting how quickly the airbase had been vacated of SOSEC aircraft. Avalonian-made HF-1 utility helicopters were replaced with Akhmanari HG-70s, and, most strange of all, there were signs that there was a friendly naval presence on the island right by the sea: An Avalonian Rafiki-class destroyer named the Mandelaesi was there, slightly modified by the Shark mercenaries and flying a yellow and black skull banner, rather than a national flag.

Viper One clambered out of the Harpy after it taxied over to one of the hangars, the engine cutting off as the canopy opened, allowing them to exit. As the pilot made their way over to the command center, undoing certain parts of the flight harness they wore, some ground crew and security personnel approached, moreso the latter than the former, all of whom wore black BDUs that lacked any national identity. "You're from the Gorgon.." They figured this out rather quickly, noting the pilot's respective patches on their green flight suit, indicating they were from the Atlantic Carrier Group in question. "State your intentions, pilot."

"I'm here for a meeting with a Commandant. You may know who I'm talking about." Not bothering to show their face, the pilot looked down the odd couple of spooks who nodded, leading the way towards the command center. Inside, it had been quickly refurbished into a proper command center, though, probably for personal reasons or aesthetics, the titular birds of the Aviary remained, proving to be quite an unusual but welcoming sight for Viper One as they approached the situations room. Inside, however, was a different story. A tall, black man was overlooking several maps, thinking to himself as the door opened to allow the pilot in. "Ah, Captain. I was expecting you.. and read up on your file there."

Viper One reached for their helmet and took it off, revealing tanned skin and short, frizzy brown hair that was currently tied into a bun. "The amount of jokes I've had to weather through from Viper Two and ridicule from the Gorgon—they even had me bunk with another guy just because they couldn't accommodate.." She placed her hands to her side, setting her helmet down. "I was recruited into MILINT about two months ago and even they've been hell when it comes to accepting me. Thankfully, your waivers helped, and now, I'm here."

CDT Ismael frowned and thought for a bit as he turned to her. "I would consider myself to be a very conservative person. I follow the rules..except, of course, when you follow what I was doing in Zaratia. That was all me. Anyways..normally, I would be totally opposed to the notion of female fighters, let alone female pilots, in my service...but you seem to be of...optimal stock, even if you did lie about your gender and all. I remember hearing of a MILINT tank commander in Manae who had a female in his crew...I believe it was Atum Hotep-ptah or something like that, and even he is regarded as a legend."

With a pause, he turned away. "Damn the regulations—Consider yourself officially a part of MILINT Team Blackstar and reassigned to operations over Avalon. I'll let you fly under the Onyx Division publicly—and MILINT privately—but I need something of you in return.."

"And that is?"

"Don't worry about it yet, Captain. Just something regarding debts..reputation, maybe. You know the deal." The enigmatic commander folded his arms behind his back. "I want you to go out and meet my two operatives, Ali and Nader, and the woman who's essentially running the show here at the Onyx Division, Yasmine. Keep an eye on that woman for me, would you? I'll need someone of good intelligence-gathering skills for this one."

"As you wish." The pilot nodded, reaching for her helmet. "Glad I could be onboard for such an endeavor."

Camping on the beach and watching the stars in the exact country one was trying to coup (or at least force regime change in) was, to say the least, an interesting time. The minimal light pollution meant that all the stars in the sky could be seen, including the closest star to Cleon, Praelia Caicos, which was visible as a blue dot in the sky, and removing all that extra gear did feel nice on his shoulders. For now, he'd taken off the charcoal-colored plainclothes long sleeved shirt he wore underneath chest webbing and his gear in favor of just a black t-shirt, leaving on his boots and bdu pants just out of personal choice.

Of course, Ali wasn't alone out here. For whatever reason, Yasmine had decided to join him on his little impromptu camping trip, making things all the more awkward for him given her enigmatic nature and the obvious tension between the two, and the fact that she still wore her so-called "stealth suit"—perhaps it was her own personal choice, too. Still, though, it was a nice time, and, as the Turmenistan saying went, nice times like these never tended to last very long.

As Ali watched Yasmine approach their tent, it dawned upon him the sheer amount of planning the woman had done to ensure they were as comfortable as possible, not including the wine which was just complimentary on her behalf, of course. He watched her enter and sit down, taking up one of the wine glasses. "Sorry if this feels, you know... awkward or—"

"No, no.. it's fine." Ali fibbed, taking a sip of wine himself. "I'm just.. impressed, usually I don't bring much camping. This is a whole different story."

"I guess growing up in Yevosh teaches you different things about class and expectations." Yasmine sighed. "I just wanted to thank you for today, you know, organizing the whole Aviary raid, helping even as a JTAC, all that. I wouldn't have done it without you, and you..you're someone I can trust. This mean we're friends now, Ali?"

Expecting a joke to follow, Ali laughed a bit, but Yasmine's serious demeanor made him unsettled a bit. "I guess, yeah, you could call us friends. I don't have too many myself."

"Good, 'cause I don't want my "friend" saying stuffthat's best kept between the two of us to other people, no?" Yasmine suddenly grinned, giving him a reassuring tap on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it. It's nothing serious—I was just messing with you on that one, but, seriously, we're cool, right."

"Yeah, we are.." Ali took another sip of his wine and set the glass down. "So.. what's this thing between you and Commandant Ismael? I'm aware you two are...uh.. rivals, I guess, given different offices and all.. why don't you trust him? I think he's one of the most trustworthy men I've ever met in my life, aside from Nader, of course."

Yasmine seemed to pause for a moment. "From what I know about you, Nader, and your Commandant here, I think he's somewhat of a glory hound. Going off and running his own operation in Zaratia is impressive..but out of his bounds. Taking command of the Somtaaw's mission when it was going to be a test run, at least, partly—until the Office became involved—that was a bit of a stretch. If it wasn't for a few mishaps here and there, he'd be as high up as the enigmatic suits in MILINT's inner circle, and he's just there. My reasoning is that he thinks if he is successful with establishing this intelligence network in Avalon and assisting the Tayaris, he'll be promoted, which is why he's especially on edge. With the PO and MILINT working side by side, though, this may be harder to achieve than it seems.

"He wouldn't do something outlandish, like going so far as to sabotage the Providence Office, would he?" Ali asked, to which Yasmine quickly shook her head. "Ali, all I ask of you is to stay vigilant, as the Providence Office motto goes. Whoever you choose to trust, trust them. Whoever you choose to not trust, don't trust them. All I, Yasmine Nefer-u-ptah, am telling you, is that I am on your side. I'll be 100% honest with you on whatever I can answer that is within my clearance, and, if I need to, I'll be blunt and provide criticism, like how you keep looking at my ass and thighs."

Ali felt his face become flushed with heat as he leaned back onto his sleeping bag, trying and failing to make himself seem like he was in much less of an awkward predicament. "Uh.. er.. okay. Sorry."

"Now.." She began, suddenly looming over him and uncomfortably close. "I'm feeling a little playful, and all I have to go off of you is some documents, half of which are blacked out in dark ink.."

"I could say the same for you, except.. uh, I don't have anything at all." Ali laughed awkwardly. "Question and answer? I guess you PO types can tell if I'm lying, but we're both being honest here, so I'll start. Who are you, really?"

"What kind of question is that?" Yasmine giggled. "I'm Yasmine. 27 years old, graduated top of my class with a criminal justice degree, didn't wash out of the accessions process, became an agent, and moved to Special Agent for a Zaratia investigation as well as this one. Your turn. Who are you?"

"I'm... Ali." Ali began awkwardly. "27 years old, joined the AAF and passed training with flying colors, promotion after promotion, became an officer through the OCS process and joined the Raiders. I spent almost a year out in the desert training along the Taiidari who basically called me their own. After that, I wound up in Zaratia under the command of Ismael, brought about an end to the Blue Dawn with Nader, met you and Cyrus, and the rest is history.. Next one: ever had any.. strange dreams?"

"I've seen things you wouldn't believe in my dreams," Yasmine began. "Spaceships orbiting over planets similar but different to ours, a world of men and monsters like the fantasy tabletop games you like, and so on. Point is, my dreams are weird. You?"

"Well.." Ali began to trail off. "I did have this one dream.."

"Don't lie to me." Yasmine scoffed. "We're supposed to be able to tell if someone's lying, and you have red flags all over you. I was truthful to you...you wanna be truthful to me?"

The Raider gave a sigh. "Alright. Every so often, I get these dreams where I wake up in some garden of stars...I see a winged wolf, you know, like the one of Turok, some beautiful woman, and some little man that likes to dance. They tell me these weird things, it can be as mundane as what people look like to as precise as when the best time to head out for a mission would be, or when a target would arrive. Sometimes I feel like this seeps into reality...case in point, I think I can tell the future."

Yasmine was quiet for a moment. "I've never heard of any precogs popping up lately, ever since the rumors of that Euphemian pilot came around. But.. I'm interested." She grinned. "How m-"

Time slowed down for Ali as a hazy spiral appeared in his mind, along with the vision of Yasmine holding up two fingers. "Two fingers. You were going to hold up two fingers."

She nodded. "Okay, but I'm not impressed. I-"

Another spiral, then silent mouthings that Ali said out loud. "The next words out of your mouth were going to be, 'Is it really precognition, or is it just just fancy guessing, Ali? There's a difference between simply reading my mind like a magician, and actually seeing the future.' Is that not what you were going to say?"

A grin appeared on the woman's face as her right hand began moving for her chest, another hazy vision filling Ali's mind of Yasmine reaching for the zipper on the front of the "stealth suit" and proceeding to undress herself. "And you're wearing black undergarments." Once again, his precognition proved to be working, as sure enough, once she unzipped the top half of the stealth suit and let it fall to her waist, he saw the black lace undergarments right away, a smile slowly forming on his face. "And I sure do like what I see here."

"I think it's time we stop this game and find something else to screw around with while we're out here." Yasmine said.

Ali shook his head. "Screw around? No... I think we can do that right here.. friend."

Hudson Croix was pissed. For every one mission his Wyrmhaund went on, impossible odds were achieved, some might even call them miracles. Every single mission was a textbook example of what happens when one does everything they are told—and unprecedented losses are rare, if they even happen at all. Although it was a relatively small crack regiment, with the combined 1. Squadron “Battle Brothers,” 2. Squadron “Bad Rats,” 3. Squadron “Crazy Ants,” and 4. Squadron “Zombie Slayers” rounding out to about a thousand men each, there was a reason the Wyrmhaund was regarded as the most deadly group of men and women on the continent of Kir right now. It was a combination of a paramilitary counterinsurgency, counterintelligence, and law enforcement unit managed by the Avalonian Department of Defense itself, that often bailed it out of trouble when the public came knocking. Still, there was a reason the public was better off not knowing what the Wyrmhaund did—it was for their own good.

Today's mission was executed perfectly...and even then, no one had ever informed him of the massive amount of firepower the Sharks were carrying with them. Hudson knew the Department of Defense like it was the back of their hand and could read them like a book any time: Wyrmhaund was expendable, at best. Valuable, yes, but a unit that formally was not part of the military was, well, not treated like part of the military, and thus losses by Wyrmhaund and concerns about funding were neglected by the DoD. Minor losses to people like Hudson were devastating enough, but to the men and women in the DoD Headquarters, working behind their walls and in their suits, they could hardly ever bat an eye to the losses. It was the hard, cold truth, but Hudson knew it, and had to accept it.

100 of his men were never going to see the glorious day of a Kir free of war perpetrated by the Medeuropan raptors of Akhmanar and Zachod. 100 of his men were brutally killed by mercenaries that gave allegiance to no nation and did as they pleased, including taking over the Aviary with the assistance of another mercenary group. But to the DoD, one death was passed off as non-critical, whereas one death to Hudson was like a child lost to him. Every single man and woman in the Wyrmhaund was exceptional and far from non-critical pawns, and deserved better.

He pouted on a bench in the hallway outside of the meeting room, a large painting of the legendary Tayari tribal king Momofati III looking down upon him, arms folded, as if he were perpetually in a mixture of pain and sadness and disappointment. He could've hardly cared what that black swartaap piece of shit wanted of his country that wasn't even his to begin with. After all, killing his people was just second nature to Hudson, and the Tayaris were the one that started the insurgency to begin with. He figured Momofati, in whatever afterlife he resided in, was seething right now watching suits and spooks and bureaucrats converse in the room behind him regarding Wyrmhaund.

When the doors finally opened, Hudson stood up and picked up his red beret, watching several high-ranking men, including the borderline geriatric and liberal-thinking President, Rupert Harewell, his polar opposite—the young, conservative Prime Minister Jack Gibson, and an entourage of suited officials and guards from the Avalonian intelligence community and Department of Defense. Finally, some familiar faces appeared, including the Minister of Defense, and an Avalonian top general, General Cody Parsons, who only turned to him, sighed, and continued on, his head low. "Sorry, mate."

"Sir?"

He said nothing more. Hudson raised an eyebrow at the man's farewell, then stormed off after him, as if he were marching but at a running pace. "What happened? Why are you saying "sorry," Parsons? What do ya mean, sorry?"

"...I tried to reassure them."

"Cody, just tell me what's going on."

The man's head was low now, but he looked back up to Hudson, a look of defeat in his eyes. "They're going to be cutting funding to Wyrmhaund for the sake of public approval."

"They what?"

"I meant exactly what I said, Hudson. I tried to give you as much support as I can, but they've decided against just continuing the fight against the TAF and SFP and just negotiating with them. Their reasoning that Wyrmhaund is too much of a stain on Avalon's reputation, but you know what the Tayaris can do and what they will do, and what just happened today with the Sharks. At this rate, they're going to disavow it and send the members to regular special forces..

"Those konts can't do this, man." Hudson swore with a hiss, biting his lip—a sign that he was nervous. "I mean, look at what all I've done for this country. What we've done for this country."

"I guess the DoD can, since they just did..and by the middle of the year, I think your funding will be gone. All of it. And I can't help you or else I'll be fucked..and you'll be fucked, too. Arguing with these kinds of people is suicide," Parsons sighed. "And it's not like I could say much, anyways..."

"Well I'm not afraid to say what's on my mind—I could care less about what some idiot politician thinks. I should've been in there."

"For now, they want you and the command of Wyrmhaund to go on shore leave and take a little break." Parson's voice trailed off. "Maybe it'll be for the best of all of us if we—"

Hudson suddenly scoffed in a hostile tone. "A break? They want me to take a break? After what I've done? What I've seen? I need to be back out there, man, you don't understand—this war sings to me, it's like a song that we all've gotta sing together in harmony. It's done things to people like you and me, and you know this. I know what the Tayaris are capable of... those... animals, they'll tear my men apart limb by limb if they have the chance, and they won't just stop at me, no. They'll go for you and then the suits next, just only further perpetuatin' the violence. I fuckin' get back and hear that 100 of my men were killed in two separate raids by the Sharks on the Aviary and one of my camps this week, and now they suggest for me to tale a break?" He scoffed. "Unbelievable, man. Fucking unbelievable. These government bureaucrats and military leaders—barring you—have no idea what's going on. And you know this. Fuck off."

"Again, Hudson.." Parsons gulped. "I couldn't do anything."

"Of course you couldn't, because you didn't," Hudson snapped his hand out, palm flat as if he were about to karate chop the man, but used it to point at Parsons judgingly. "A real soldier would stand up for his buddies and say what's right, even if it means going beyond your orders. I can't keep living like this, being pushed around by people who I should trust, being told to do the exact opposite of what we're supposed to do..." He executed an about face and stormed towards the exit of the building, but then halted, turning his head around his shoulder. "Fuck what they say—I'm finishing this fight. On my own, and with or without you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a casualty report to write and 100 boys to bury. Good day, General."

He left without a word, his fists balled. He was still fuming with anger as he left the building, making sure to put on his red beret one more time as he stepped outside.

by **Forest State** » Wed Sep 04, 2019 8:20 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

With the nation on the back foot thanks to losses at sea and in the port, the Royal Intelligence Agency has begun formulating a new plan to further the nation's ambitions in the Jade Sea and beyond - a number of agents have been called into the RIA’s headquarters in Pailtea, after receiving word that they have been selected for a special task that will stretch across two different locales…

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 16: “THE FOREIGN DEPARTMENT”

Pailtea, Victorian Commonwealth
February 2nd, 425

_______________________

“REMEMBER TO REPORT ALL AKHMANARI ACTIVITY TO YOUR LOCAL POLICE FORCE. FOLLOWING THE DEPORTATION ACT OF 425, AKHMANARI ACTIVITY IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VICTORIA IS ILLEGAL. REMEMBER THAT THE AKHMANARI PEOPLE ARE A HOSTILE RACE WHO SUPPORT THE GENOCIDAL TAYARI REBELLION AGAINST YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN AVALON. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION IN KEEPING VICTORIA SAFE… FOLLOWING THE DEPORTATION ACT OF 425, REPUBLIC OF SINICAN ACTIVITY IN VICTORIA HAS BEEN MADE ILLEGAL. PLEASE REPORT ANY AND ALL REPUBLIC OF SINICAN NATIONALS TO YOUR LOCAL POLICE FORCE...”

The announcements continued on in the background in a rainy day in Pailtea, a city that itself had been pulled into the largest naval engagement in recent memory not long ago. Of course, it hadn’t been pulled into it in any good way. No, the battle had left plenty of civilians from around Victoria lying dead thanks to the ballistic missile strikes on what was essentially one large megacity, where the military and civilian properties were located dangerously close to each other, owing to a lack of space… To say the battle had outraged the Victorian public was an understatement. Although, while they weren’t exactly happy with the results of the engagement, more of the anger was directed elsewhere than inwards - they knew that the Victorian navy had been outmatched, and that the nation had done the best it could, in a spot where they had little options… It wasn’t like there had been one big tactical blunder which cost a number of Victorian lives. Rather, they had been pushed into something and had done the best they could with the situation they were stuck in.

Akhmanar truly had pushed them into this - the nation was a menace, something that had to be dealt with, a nation of hypocrisy that could compete with the Victorians themselves when it came to propaganda. While Victoria had been somewhat content to support their allies indirectly, the Republic of Sinica and Akhmanar felt the need to step things up by deploying tens of thousands of men and creating quarantines with carrier groups, doing everything they could to start a war without officially declaring one… Each thing in isolation may not have been enough to start a war but combined, their activities were the type of aggression that they accused Gallia of encouraging - it wasn’t the Gallians starting the regional conflict this time and it wasn’t the Victorians either, but the menace of the Erebus Concordat.

Still, though, for as menacing as this group of nations was to the Victorians and the Gallians, they had won in the Jade Sea in the sense that they hadn’t been destroyed, and now there was a future naval battle which both nations would have to worry about… The Victorian people weren’t just about to give up, though. The populace had supported expansionism in the first place and if the government just folded on that issue and declared that the battle had been for nothing and that they were going to drop their ambitions, they would have problems with their own people on hand and not just with other nations.

There were alternative methods of pursuing this other than just relying on the Navy, of course.

Which was why Marshall Rains had once again been brought to Pailtea, specifically to the towering and brutalist building of the Royal Intelligence Agency, which wasn’t that far off from some of the densest parts of downtown - in the urban jungle which was filled with bright lights and shiny glass, the building was kind of unusual. Perhaps because of its design. It was little more than one large cube made of concrete, with small windows that seemed to fit the minimalist and brutalist aesthetic. Across the front of the building above the massive steps which led up to a large set of glass doors, there were words in a dark shade of blue, nearly black… “VICTORIAN ROYAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY HEADQUARTERS.”

The business today was important enough that Marshall and everyone else had been called to the headquarters itself. Not some side office, but the main building in Pailtea where the organization’s leadership was located. But that was somewhat fitting. Supposedly, they were about to have a meeting with the Director of the RIA himself as well as the Lord Protector, Princess Locke Weston - the position that she had been given essentially elevated her and made her a pseudo-leader figure among the military, as the main proponent of expansionism. While her first attempt at all of this hadn’t panned out, it seemed the royal family would rather give her more authority to fix things than pull the plug on her experiment entirely.

But they hadn’t been told every detail.

As Marshall moved towards the large glass doors, he recognized one of the other agents that was going to be present at this meeting. “Sapphire,” he said, getting her attention. They hadn’t worked together in the past or anything, but they had been given each other’s files to look through since they were apparently going to be working with each other. “You’re one of the out of towners they’re calling in, eh?”

The blonde woman turned to look at him, offering a nod - their dress was a bit different from each other’s, Marshall's reflecting a more tactical style while Sapphire looked like she would fit in at some lab or in the tech department. But then again, she had been described as an electronics expert in the file, so maybe that was just her role. “Not exactly an out of towner being from here in Pailtea… But I am getting called to the HQ. Usually do most of my work at the other office up north, makes me wonder what we all need to come here for.”

“Right… I’m Marshall,” stated Marshall as the both of them stepped through the two sets of glass doors, entering a large lobby with marble floors, a high ceiling, and multiple desks for different departments, a number of RIA and civilian people hanging around and working on different things. The place was usually busy. It was probably busier right now, during what was essentially wartime. Even if they weren’t fighting in the trenches just yet, the war wasn’t over with the one battle, and the Foreign Department was busier than ever.

Actually, the Foreign Department was the one that they were headed towards. The one that had called them in.

Someone was already there to meet them by the time they reached the center of the lobby, which had the RIA logo displayed on it. “You can come right this way,” the secretary informed them, both of the agents nodding as they followed after the woman until they ended up in an elevator, where she pressed a button to head to one of the higher floors. This place wasn’t a skyscraper by any means but it was pretty big for what it was. Then again, it wasn’t that surprising, considering it was one of the nerve centers of the intelligence operation in Victoria and potentially the one that was the most visible - there were other important sites, such as the ones that hosted the National Security AIs, but they were better hidden than this or they were under the ground.

As far as the visible face of the intelligence community in Victoria, though, this place took the cake.

The doors slid open and they went down one more hallway before entering a room with a number of recognizable figures - Ridley Dunn, the Director of the RIA, a somewhat old fashioned and hardline type that had aided the state greatly in their fight to keep control and avoid dissent. Locke Weston, a Princess who wasn’t just the eldest of King Trent I’s children but now someone that held the title of Lord Protector, which was vague but essentially gave her control over the military to an extent - mainly, so she could continue what she had helped to start. The country’s efforts in imperialism, that was, as the political face of it. The intel and military side, though, was partly being handled by the rest of the people in the room. People that Marshall had already been made aware of from their files.

Aside from Sapphire, there were a number of others sitting around the table, with Locke at the head of it and Dunn sitting off to her left. Paige Ayers, a grenadier. Most notable thing about her was that she was connected indirectly through her family to the Ravenfall Syndicate Group, a company whose products and services stretched across a large number of areas with a number of different smaller companies making up the overall conglomerate - Ravenfall Steel, Ravenfall IT, Ravenfall Aviation, and others.

There was Cole Burnell, automatic rifle operator from New Ravenfall. Supposedly former regular military, but someone who had ended up in the RIA upon recommendation from another agent. Darcy Belanger, designated marksman who had worked counterterror before this and had been involved in stopping a number of anti-government plots already, despite coming in as the youngest member of the group at 21. Despite the young age, the sniper seemed confident in his abilities, however, not sweating being around more experienced people. Finally, their medic was Pris Morris, who had been around the RIA for a couple years working in field teams after graduating with high marks from the academy.

Additionally, there were a couple of others in the room, a dark skinned woman who seemed interestingly enough to be of Kirian descent, and a blonde young man who didn’t seem Victorian in appearance, although it wasn’t entirely clear what his nationality was instead. Their dress was also ever so slightly different from what one would see in Victoria, further increasing the likelihood they were from abroad.

“Have a seat, lads,” Ridley said to the duo that had just stepped into the room. Doing just that, Marshall took a look around at the others one more time before focusing in on the Director. “I’m sure all of you are wondering why you’re here today. So let me get right to it, now that you’re all here… Fact of the matter is, we can’t just give up in this war because of one defeat at sea. The Akhmanari devils were able to get the better of us, sure, but that was one front. With it getting harder to offer support for our causes conventionally, we just have to shift focuses - of course, we’re not giving up on the conventional fight completely, but I’ll get to that in a minute.”

“You’re all being assigned to Special Unit Camelot. Consider it a team outside of the main RIA units, under the jurisdiction of the Foren Department and the crown. You’re going to move around a lot, you’re going to work behind enemy lines in Kir and the Jade Sea alike, maybe in Medeuropa depending on how things go. Your tasks will range from purely quiet ones to more ‘loud’ routes that will require combat. We’ve picked people for this, of course, that should be able to handle both roles. You have a big task in front of you, yes. But… You were only selected because there’s a belief that you can handle it. As far as what you’re going to handle…”

A map was displayed on a screen and Ridley pointed to it. “As I said, your task force is going to operate outside of normal boundaries and such. And in this case, we have two main areas of operation to begin with. We have other plans, yes, but we have to work on these things in the right order… Your team is going to split into two for now, and each team will also be assigned further assets once in the field. The first of these teams is going to aid the Gallian DRN in Nasse, where our nations will work together to bring the nation back into friendly hands - and perhaps to put a Victorian in a position of power, too. We do need some success to justify entering conflict with Akhmanar, after all, and with the situation in Avalon looking bad, finding an ally in Nasse would help to balance things out. The country also has ports which would be of use to us, and bringing it into friendly hands would be an aid to our own economy with the Republic of Sinica making things difficult…”

Ridley continued and pointed to another part of the map. “Additionally, the second team will be sent to the South Molvic Republics in the northern part of Acasia. Your goal is, to put it simply, take Acasia out of the war by forcing them to focus on a domestic problem. The South Molvic Republics desire independence and lay between Pristio and Acasia - make them rise up, and supplying the Acasian puppet state in southern Pristio will be much harder. The shift in priorities for Acasia will ensure that they are… Neutralized in the conflict with Gallia, and by extension the future conflict with ourselves.”

“You will be aided in this task by forces from the Federation of Kael, who has similar interests against the Republic of Sinica and their allies and would like to see to it that this Kirocentrist movement is defeated. I have two members of the Kaelic Heavenly Brigade’s Task Force Chariot here with us… Brigid Cleary and Fionn Devey,” Ridley said, gesturing off to the dark skinned woman and the babyfaced blonde boy. “They’re going to be involved in helping you in Acasia, along with some other members from their team. As you know, the irregular forces in Kael are already experienced in taking a role in active conflict. I believe the help provided to this second team will ensure that Acasia’s days as the rulers of the South Molvics will be numbered.”

Finally, Princess Locke spoke up. “Your efforts will greatly impact whether or not our dreams of an empire are made true or not - and with aggressive posturing from the Republic of Sinica, may end up having an impact on more than just that. I trust that you’ll fight as hard as the Navy did despite being outmatched in just about every area by the Akhmanari war machine. Remember what’s at stake and I’m sure the work, in fact, won’t be hard at all.”

She paused for effect for a moment. “With that, I think you know what you need to know. You’ll get detailed briefings tomorrow, and you’ll find out which of you are going to what place. At least for now. Changes might happen in the future but we’ll have an initial list for assignments. Flights should be headed out by the end of the week, if things run on schedule… The Republic of Sinica is a pressing issue. Good luck, team… I will check in on you again personally when you get further into your assignments.”

With that, Locke stood up. As did everyone else in the room. And for Marshall… The overwhelming pressure of the situation was apparent, and they had been given little warning on what they were being thrown into. But it was the situation they had on their hands now, and the only thing they could do was do their best with the job. Even if the weight of an empire did seem to rest on their shoulders.

by **Western Pacific Territories** » Thu Sep 05, 2019 4:06 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Welcome to the first joint operation between the Victorian RIA and the Gallian DRN, agents… Your mission today will be just one part of the defense of the Victorian and Gallian homelands against the Sinican menace - Kymbra is a neutral country which has not yet picked a side in this conflict, but its strategic position means it cannot be ignored. Your goal today is to secure two locations within the country... A container ship and a civilian farm located on high ground. You are authorized to use any and all methods to complete your objective. Saluer Gallia, and Rule Victoria!

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 17: “OPERATION CANNIBALE”

Newport, Holy Republic of Kymbra
February 3rd, 425

_______________________

Kymbra might as well have been an alien planet to the group of agents in terms of culture - it wasn’t much like Victoria or Gallia at all, the scenery looking good but the country itself being little more than a theocratic hellhole which had maintained its position by mostly staying out of international politics and avoiding pissing off the wrong sides. Even the name of the operation was a reference to the urban legend that had spread around Aurelianet and other such sites stating that Kymbra was home to secret cannibal cults in the hills, related to the state religion and oftentimes allowed by them to operate without much interference. To say that it was different from home was an understatement.

It was also a place of great strategic importance, which was why the Gallians and Victorians were coming here - the culture was different, but fortunately, they blended in well enough with the local population in terms of appearance to have good odds here… This wasn’t a combat operation per say. It was related to the war, yes, but things would go better for them if they didn’t make a scene in this place. Local police attention was bad, and getting in and out without making too much of a fuss was good in the eyes of the ones overseeing the mission.

For the force on the ground, though, it was a matter of something that was easier said than done.

“We’re approaching the port… and the Halstead,” said Sapphire Fay, in the driver’s seat of the rental car which the group of four was driving away from the airport, and towards the port of Newport, one of the larger ones in Kymbra thanks to its location on the coastline and its accessibility to the nations of the Jade Sea. Even if the nation itself wasn’t the most popular in some of the more advanced parts of the world. The ‘Halstead’ that Sapphire was referring to was the first place that they had to go for this mission - a ship belonging to the Kymbran Line, the state shipping company, it was quite the large container vessel and would suit the purposes that the DRN intended for it. First, though, they had to secure the vessel in the first place.

Another thing that was easier said than done, but despite the size of the ship, the max crew was 35. Unlike the large military warships of the top nations of the world, this ship featured a decent amount of automation that allowed a relatively small crew to run it despite the massive size and massive amount of cargo carried.

“Have we… decided on the route we’re taking with this?” asked Darcy Belanger, the Victorian marksman sitting in one of the back seats, watching the scenery pass by outside the window as a bag rested on the floor of the car in front of him, positioned vertically to fit - the bag had his marksman’s rifle inside, where it would stay hidden until they maybe needed it a bit later. For now, both of the Victorians, Sapphire and Darcy, were keeping their weapons concealed… Both of them had HG-78 semi-automatic pistols hidden on their body, and would be willing to use them if things ended up heating up and it came down to going loud or failing their objectives. Darcy, additionally, kept a knife in a sheath at his side. While he was a marksman primarily, he wasn’t one dimensional.

“Keep it quiet.” Of course, as this mission had a significant degree of involvement from the Gallian DRN, they’d sent two of their own agents to assist. A caporal and his assistant, namely.

“The quiet route might still involve the threat of force… we are technically looking to steal this from the Kymbran government,” noted Darcy, pausing. “Although, maybe a bribe would be in order. We are authorized to spend money from back home, of course - through some shell companies based in Caleporto or Zaratia or somewhere like that, presumably…”

They grew closer to the port, eventually ending up in the district of the city where the water was in view, as were the towering cranes that lifted and moved cargo on and off the different container vessels that came here. Sapphire brought the car to a stop when they were almost to the entrance of the main ‘port’ area, the place where most of the others they saw would be working with the various shipping companies. They probably could get in easily… they just had to act like they belonged there.

“Then again…” said Sapphire, as they parked. “If we go the bribe route, we can probably avoid a shootout with the mercs they almost definitely have protecting themselves from pirates.”

“Big pockets, big brains...” The second of the two DRN ‘spooks’ remarked. His superior seemed to agree with the motion. “If we cause a shootout, there’ll be a shitshow... might draw too much attention to what we want put on that ship.”

Pausing for a moment, Darcy nodded. “We won’t hide that we can hurt them… But we’ll offer them the peaceful resolution. After all, we’re offering this crew more than the Kymbran government is - getting through the mercs might not be the easiest, but at the worst we can ask them to take us to the crew. Or try to find another way around if they block us. It’s a large ship, after all.”

The group started towards the port, and it indeed wasn’t a guarded location. It was probably too busy to properly restrict access, even though this was the place where the more expensive cargo ships were located. Perhaps sabotage and the like just weren’t something on the minds of the people of Kymbra, being a nation that didn’t make too many enemies and didn’t suffer from too much in terms of internal dissent.

As they walked down the shore, only a fence separating them from the ocean and the crashing of the waves, with some of the water hitting them every now and then as the barrier kept the waves from coming ashore, they could see their target in the distance. The Halstead, flying the Kymbran flag and bearing the distinctive dark blue and red markings of the Kymbran Line. It would be in port for a while, as apparently, it didn’t have a contract it was working on at the moment and there weren’t as many companies looking to send their freight on such a large ship when smaller and more affordable options were available.

There were still some containers on it from its last trip, and the large dock cranes seemed to have been in the process of getting them moved. Nothing was happening right now, though, with no one inside any of the cranes and the activity around the ship rather calm. The crowds around this area were moving past it, sure, but no one was paying the ship any mind. Which was to the benefit of the team of agents.

“And here we are,” said Sapphire, looking up at the walkway immediately in front of them which led onto the vessel, unguarded. There were probably mercenaries around somewhere, but they weren’t watching the entrance. Or this entrance, anyway. “Looks like we’re good to head right up.”

“So I guess it’ll be that easy?” One of the Gallians mused.

“If we can get to the crew, I suppose. Or rather, the Captain around here,” stated Darcy, as they continued on, entering the main deck of the ship where cargo towered around them. Rows and rows of it. The ship was big but it was larger when one was standing there in person and looking at how high the stacks of containers went. They hadn’t gotten all that far into unloading yet, which worked for their benefit. Gave them a reason to stay here in port. The group kept going, though, not encountering the mercenaries they had heard of.

It did seem they were present on the ship, though. Sapphire had spotted one of them near the side, but it seemed they weren’t all that focused on the job. Not that much happened in port, so it was somewhat understandable. They were mainly here to protect the ship from pirates, and piracy wasn’t something that happened in port. “Bridge is that way,” Darcy pointed out, and they shifted directions, moving towards the towering structure which loomed over the ship, the bridge painted in white which contrasted with the navy blue of the hull.

When they reached it, there was a large stairway they’d have to climb up to get to where they wanted to go. Looking around one more time and not spotting mercenaries, Sapphire gestured for them to start heading up - as they reached the top after a bit of a climb, which was mildly exhausting for someone that wasn’t fit, perhaps, they found themselves at a doorway.

“Might as well open it. We going guns out or nah?” asked Darcy, ever the confident one, speaking casually about the idea of storming the bridge with pistols out. Either way worked… but if there was an armed response inside to their intrusion, they’d be able to respond quicker if their guns were already out rather than concealed.

“Intimidation works. Especially if we run into any guards.”

Staying silent, Darcy reached into his jacket and took out the pistol that was inside, Sapphire staying just behind but doing the same thing. “Headed inside in… three… two… one…” Darcy said, before pushing the door open and rushing into the bridge, the crew turning and giving their attention to the intruders, some of them putting their hands up, no mercenaries seemingly present in the room.

“Alright, everyone… here’s how this is going to go… some friends of ours need this ship for something real soon, and you’re going to stay in port while they do it. You’re not going to have to stay for long but you’ll have to follow our orders and then you’ll be able to go free and keep doing what you do, alright? Of course, you’ll be compensated for your efforts on our behalf. We’re offering a couple million to be split between the crew of this ship… enough that all 35 of you will make more than you would have doing whatever the next job the Kymbran Line has waiting for you,” Darcy said, leveling a pistol towards the captain while Sapphire kept her pistol trained on some of the other members of the crew in warning.

It didn’t take long for hands to go up as the crew realized the situation and that they probably didn’t have time to call security before the agents shot. Well, they definitely didn’t have time. It was also a somewhat attractive offer - the agents were offering more than what they would make working legitimately, as they had said. “W-What are you asking us to do?” asked the one in the captain’s uniform.

“You don’t have to do anything but stay here on this ship… our friends will show up later today or tomorrow to set up the rest,” Darcy stated. “Only thing that we need from this vessel is your cooperation and your secrecy, alright? And no one will get hurt that way…”

“If you decide to call your mercenaries on the other hand,” Sapphire said, moving closer to the crew and swinging the pistol around, taking the bad cop role. “It’s going to end badly for you. They’re not going to be able to get here in time to save you, you know.”

This made the crew go silent, before the captain spoke once again. “I have to say, that is a good offer that you’re presenting…” the man said nervously, backing up slightly before stopping. “I’ll have to talk it over with the others-”

“See to it that you do,” Sapphire said, not taking her pistol off of them as she stepped up the intimidation.

And so the staff that were on the bridge gathered together to discuss the choice that was in front of them - go rogue from their job and accept a large payment for it, in exchange for getting involved in some shady and almost certainly illegal activity, or call for the mercenaries but face a situation where multiple people would almost certainly be dead by the time it was over, even if the mercenaries did defeat these intruders… Eventually, they came to a decision.

“I think that your offer… would be very profitable for us,” the captain stated eventually, the guns lowering at that point.

“And I think that you’ve made the right choice, Captain,” Darcy replied, the ‘good cop’ of the two Victorians. “We’ll just wait here… our friends will be over to set things up soon.”

by **Forest State** » Fri Sep 06, 2019 9:38 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

S4E12

Operation Stresser

The regional capital of Kindamtou, the administrative center of Msiriland, lays just beyond our front lines. The town and it's airport are being used both by Gonkolese and Akhmanari alike, seeking to resecure the region. Capturing it will hamstring enemy logistics in the area of center and southern Msiriland to a severe degree.

_{DATE: 1200 hrs. - February 4, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Sgt. Britta Riber | LOCATION: Frontline Outpost Thys Theunissen, Vrystaat Forward Territories}

Today was once again a day with an operation taking place, and Britta Riber’s mind was on a few different things. What they would have to do later today, her crew, and some other personal things that she found herself pondering more and more of the past couple of months, as she settled into leading her crew and grew somewhat accustomed to the dynamics around here. She wasn’t the best commander in the world, sure, but she had managed to get things to a point where the crew wasn’t actively protesting against her either. Even if it took some sacrifices and putting up with things to keep it that way - she wasn’t entirely sure if things would get better or worse from here, but she supposed a success in this important operation would aid her case with them.

She could see their point of view to an extent, anyway… They held her to a high standard because her decisions as commander helped decide their fates as the crew. Even if she wasn’t exactly the highest in the pecking order overall in the platoon, and many times was just following orders herself.

That crew of hers was what she was looking for right now, and she came across them at their usual gathering spot by the tank, the three of them looking up at her as she approached. “Back for more?” Konrad asked her, and she just offered a shrug in response.

“Have a few things to handle for now, but I did want to say something about that,” Britta stated, which got their attention and caused them all to turn to her. “If you behave yourselves today, and uh, avoid distractions like last time, I was thinking of doing something for you guys.”

“And what would that be?” asked Ulf, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

“I was thinking of looking for something new to wear…” Britta said, blushing ever so slightly at the thought, some chuckles coming from her crew.

“Something that we’d like?”

“Of course,” Britta replied. She was getting a better feel of what it took to keep her crew in line, and getting better at playing the social game that frequently went on between both sides.

“Guess we can listen a bit more for one op,” shrugged Konrad. “Better be something good, though. Or we might have to punish you.”

She smiled slightly at the remark as she took a step back. “Guess I’ll have to make sure I don’t disappoint you, then,” she said, before turning, lingering for a moment longer. “Anyway… I’d stay and chat but I have another thing or two to do before we have to head to the briefing. See you guys a bit later, I guess.”

There were some further remarks and murmurs as she turned and left, stopping for a moment to figure out where exactly she was going to go - and whether or not she really wanted to do what she was going to do - before deciding that she wasn’t going to talk herself out of it. It might be an awkward talk, but she’d been thinking about having it for a while. So with that, she set out looking for none other than her colleague Pretorius.

Per usual, the man was at his tent, whiskey flask in hand as he perused the newspaper he held in his hands — everyone knew what the top headline was: Gallian defeat in the Jade Sea. It was especially troubling to the Vrystaat, given how much Gallian advisory helped the country's domestic military industries, particularly the air force. Visitors seemed to be a frequent thing at his place, given a few of Anneline's own belongings had been left behind here and there with little care.

“News has been interesting lately, eh?” said Britta, taking note of the newspaper as she approached, speaking to make her presence known. She didn’t go right into what she wanted to talk about - no, that’d be awkward. Instead she hung around, not quite coming too close, but staying close enough it was clear she wanted to talk.

"I assume something's pertinent to bring you here," Pretorius spoke up, noting her presence with a mild chuckle. "Don't think you've ever come to my tent before."

“Boredom,” Britta said, pausing slightly before shrugging, admitting that he was right. “No, you’re right. Guess I had something on my mind and you seem like a decent person to talk to.”

Setting the newspaper down, he glanced over to Britta. "I'm all ears, then."

“Well…” started Britta, her voice trailing as she sat down, brushing a little bit of her hair out of her face absentmindedly. “Do you… think I’m a bad person for what I’ve done with Van Schoor? I mean, I kind of am fighting for this country and at the same time… I’m breaking the rules, aren’t I?”

"I don't think you are doing anything wrong... regardless of what the rules say. It's certainly not the kind of relationship I'm in — but maybe that's a good thing." Pretorius replied, only vaguely hinting to his own activities with his superior.

“Guess it just feels a little hypocritical and all, it… I dunno, guess it’s not the kind of thing I could have imagined a soldier getting into before I joined the military. But here I am anyway, and I’ve been thinking of… if I should try and make more of a move or not,” Britta said with a shrug. “Because my head says it’s a bad idea but my heart’s telling me that I love her.”

"I might think this or that, but it's not a bad thing. I don't understand it, sure, but it's nice to look at. Men and men, women with women... they're rather different things. I don't mind the latter." Pretorius expressed his opinion frankly, taking a swig from his flask and offering it to Britta.

“You… I can imagine you took a risk to be with someone you like… was it worth it?” Britta asked. She’d figured out enough about the dynamics of this platoon, and it had been a while ago that she had found herself questioning just what the relationship of the other two members was - and the rather public shock collar incident had just confirmed to her what she had thought. Although, one part of her still believed that it went deeper than just screwing around, which was perhaps why she posed the question… it wasn’t the same situation, but she could see some resemblance to her own case, at least on some level.

"At the end of the day, we all just want to be loved," Pretorius shrugged. "With this neverending war, I've learned in... well, all these years... that having someone to lay by your side in the worst of nights helps you carry on." He noted, briefly reminiscing. "She's not the first, of course. I wouldn't want to lose her like I've lost those that came before... there's a degree of worry you get when you become a bit more committed. And I feel she needs someone like me to keep her going forward sometimes. Feel a little sorry for her now and then, but she's a good leader — and a good woman, above all else."

Britta paused for a moment to consider what had been said. “Haven’t always been the happiest with her decisions but I guess I can’t say I’d do any better,” she admitted, pausing briefly again. “I… think I’ll try to take things further with Van Schoor… just one more question, though, and maybe it’s a strange one, but… how did you get Anneline to agree to stuff like… a shock collar of all things?”

"I suppose it all started when I walked in on my superior enjoying literature of a rather... particular taste. Didn't take long for me to realize she was into all that — half the time it's her begging me for punishment these days." Pretorius noted, chuckling to himself. "I suppose it was a perfect match — one that allowed the both of us to exercise our fantasies and relieve our combat stresses."

“Would you… give me advice maybe? Believe it or not, you’re probably more experienced with this kind of thing, even if uh…” Britta started, her face turning slightly red. “I’m kind of known for getting around.”

This had warranted a laugh from Pretorius, though he quickly composed himself. "I wouldn't mind. You do seem a bit insecure at times — I'm sure I can help you overcome whatever's troubling you."

“I won’t hide that I am a bit, guess with the modeling thing I’ve done on the side I just care a lot about what others think,” Britta said, shrugging slightly. “But… I know that even with that being a problem I…” she started, pausing a bit longer, as if she was having a hard time making herself finally say it. “I really want to make Mariete mine,” she blurted out finally. “I realized during that… shock collar incident that, well… I wanted something like that for myself, but I don’t know how the hell to approach something like that so… I’m asking for advice.”

"It's always consensual. Even if you're in control, your partner is, of course, consenting to the act." Pretorius replied. "So ask yourself if you think Van Schoor really would like that... I can't help but be a little protective of her since the incident. She's a tough one, been through a lot and she keeps moving forward — I'll give her that much."

“I uh… I’ll talk to her, I suppose. I’ll probably manage to make it awkward but… such is life,” said Britta, pausing for a moment. “But anyway… thanks, you helped more than you realize…”

"Right, no problem." Pretorius nodded. As Britta took her leave, he interjected with a bit more assurance. "You're a good person, Riber. Keep your mind set on our goals out here, and you'll be set for success."

“T-Thanks… I’ll try not to leave so much of the mission to you today,” Britta said, nodding towards Pretorius one more time before she moved away, her mind now on what she would do later. Before she could talk herself out of it or lose the courage she’d summoned today. That, though, was for after the mission. The next important thing right now was the briefing.

With earlier affairs out of the way, all that laid ahead now was the briefing - the unit would probably be fighting an enemy not familiar to them, so the rumor mills said. Namely, Akhamanari Velezians, deprived of any real homeland after the brutal acts of destruction that had befallen the now-defunct country. It wasn’t just defunct, many wanted to make the concept of Velezia extinct. One supposed only the Luitenant would provide confirmation on that, though...

With the platoon gathering around, things were off to a rather quick start, the Luitenant quickly rousing their attention as always.

“Alright, ladies, gentlemen! We’ve been assigned today with one of the more important jobs command had laying around for us to do. The town of Kindamtou,” She proceeded to point off towards the north, gesturing towards their town specifically. “Administrative capital of all of Msiriland... just over there. This town, one might expect, is being flooded with Gonkolese and mummies tryna retake our gains. We’re not talking actual mummy troops, though. A certain ‘Half Moon Contractors’, mercenaries, are occupying the place. Probably funded by the mummy government, they’re using Kindamtou’s airport to bring in their own men. Our job here today, then, is to spearhead into Kindamtou and head for the airport, killing anything that tries to stop us. Once we get there, we’ve been tasked to target the PMC’s airplanes so they can’t try escaping. If we do that, Half Moon will be stuck in Kindamtou... and our comrades will mop them up. Dis-missed!”

Britta stood silently, her mind having shifted to the operation and away from her previous thoughts, as she and her crew started towards their tank… fighting with Akhmanar and their allies had gone bad for them at least one notable time, and well, it was a scary experience whenever it happened. They seemed to have a slight edge in terms of support, but then again, it had been months since their unit had clashed with the northern power. Perhaps this time they would have better luck and would end up under fire less from enemy supports.

“You feeling good about this one?” Jesper asked as Britta approached the tank.

“Don’t know… just hope it’s not like some of the other times,” she admitted, climbing inside.

Things were a bit quiet as the tanks started off, Britta’s crew a bit less adventurous than usual, probably because of the promise Britta had made earlier. They did seem a bit more focused this time, a bit of conversation filling the inside of the tank as they continued while keeping on the watch for the first signs of the enemy as they continued down the slightly bending road, about the enemy ahead and this ‘Half Moon’ group they would be fighting. It was interrupted, however, by the sudden attack of the enemy. Without warning, it would dawn upon the three-tank group that Gonkolese forces lurked behind the brush, Galadheim tanks and WA-74CB AFVs alike lurking amidst the flora. In abrupt unison, the two AFVs and the two tanks fired upon the armored group, hitting two of them - Hercules was one of the ones to get hit, and Britta realized that Luiperd had been the other one soon afterwards, their armor taking some damage.

“Already…” muttered Britta, somewhat used to taking and absorbing hits by now, simply looking around the scene right after the damage was sustained and making an attack order on the enemy that had hurt their armor. “Konrad, load ATGM…”

Skokiaan had endured a similar fate, one of the WA-74CB armored fighting vehicles firing away — putting a fair dent in the tank's frontal armor.

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 3PLT - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0111 "Skokiaan II"] [ [CMDR] 2Lt. Francois Pretorius] /// "Fuckers caught us by surprise!"

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “Ah fuck!”

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0111 "Skokiaan II"] [ [GNNR] Sgt. Edouard Pierlot] /// "Back to being the squeaky toy of the platoon, are we?"

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “..no!”

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

Skokiaan would be first to fire — only for the APFSDS round to uselessly whiz past the tanks ahead, disappearing amidst the trees. One could only imagine the frustration aboard Skokiaan at the moment...

One could similarly imagine an identical frustration brewing in Luiperd nearby, the tank firing off a shot which also flew past it’s intended target.

As if to make up for missing the enemy in the first place, Hercules took aim at one of the T-215s and fired an ATGM round which shot forwards before hitting the front of the enemy tank and causing an ammunition cookoff which resulted in a second explosion not much longer afterwards - impressive, but it didn’t improve their odds at this very moment, with three enemies still left to deal with after the misses.

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 3PLT - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “To hell with this! I’m calling in bombers...”

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

It didn't take long for the Bv-79 to cross over the horizon, bringing with it the death and destruction that most Vrystaat tank operators likely anticipated at this point — fireballs engulfed the positions ahead, dried brush set alight as the rest of the enemy formation was promptly obliterated, allowing the unit passage forward.

“Always seems to take a scare to get the air support in…” muttered Ulf, not the happiest with the situation and how they’d have to go the entire operation with damaged armor from the very beginning.

“Well, we wouldn’t want to waste it if we can take them out ourselves,” shrugged Britta. It wasn’t her choice whether or not they called support, so the only thing she could do was explain the reasoning behind it. “And we don’t have to head that far this time, we’ll be fine.”

That was true. The enemy airfield wasn’t that far away from them, and this wasn’t some operation where they’d have to trek miles and miles into enemy territory. It remained to be seen if there’d be anything at the airfield itself, though, that managed to give them a scare… even if they were fighting less enemies total in this mission.

“I have a bad feeling about attacking an airfield,” stated Konrad. “Y’know, where they keep planes…”

“There’s more air support,” Britta stated simply. If they ran into something in the skies, they wouldn’t be alone… probably.

The conversation was once again cut off by an attack from the enemy as they finished rounding a turn and continued on their way - this time from a 30mmm cannon, not hitting them but rather Luiperd. “Another ambush!” shouted Britta, bringing Hercules to a halt as Ulf moved to aim the gun towards the enemy vehicles in front of them - Zachod made APCs, not tanks.

Skokiaan would return fire quickly enough, HEAT round ripping one of the Epickiraptor IFVs ahead to shreds.

This surely must’ve startled Luiperd’s crew, another shot being returned - again missing. One might’ve wondered if the Luitenant was getting any reminders of how her first gunner had died at the hands of the Zachods...

Hercules also took a shot but unlike the first time around, they wouldn’t make up for the previous miss, the shot sailing past and not landing anywhere near the intended target. “Damn it!” Britta shouted, looking back through the optics. “Only one left…”

The Epickiraptor would return fire with a brief volley of rockets fired away from its turret, trailing away and pelting Skokiaan and Luiperd to little effect. Skokiaan would return fire once again, missing the vehicle in question — and leaving its fate up to the rest of the unit's proficiency.

The unit’s proficiency, though, seemed to be rather questionable at this moment - Luiperd firing off an ATGM, said ATGM becoming another addition to the list of shots taken and missed by it’s crew. They seemed to be performing almost inexplicably badly today, which left things in the hands of Britta’s tank.

Britta’s crew was once again able to keep a bad situation from becoming a worse one, scoring a kill with an ATGM - a regular HEAT round hadn’t been enough last time, so this time, Britta had ordered a more guided strike, which resulted in the last Epickiraptor being reduced to flaming wreckage just about immediately.

The peace that they had after taking out the previous group, though, didn’t last long as they kept going and started to transition from moving through the countryside to moving through streets and buildings - a dangerous place for an armored unit, as would be proved when Luiperd was suddenly hit by yet another attack that came out of nowhere — it seemed there were a few stragglers in the bushes.

Luckily Skokiaan would have them covered — to which it'd be smooth driving through the dirt backroads of Msiriland, Gonko for a few more minutes — until they were faced by another Gonkolese motorized column ahead.

It didn’t take long for Hercules to fire at the enemy group of vehicles, one of the two Zabójcaraptors going up in flames as the ATGM round hit it. However, this was still potentially a good time to call support. They were, after all, outnumbered quite a bit even after the destruction of one of the enemy IFVs.

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 3PLT - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0100 "Hercules"] [ [CMDR] SSgt. Britta Riber] /// “Luitenant, you think we can get some support before things get bad this time?”

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “We barely have any. I try the best I can...”

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

Skokiaan would fire away, round striking the face of one of the enemy armored vehicles with explosive result — one of the SK/OT-93 Raptors reduced to a flaming carcass of wreckage upon the roadside.

Luiperd seemed to have gotten adjusted back into the shape of things though, launching another ATGM to bring one of the Raptors to an untimely, and certainly explosive, premature end. All that the Zachods deserved, really.

Another shot rang out from the enemy Epickiraptor, and this time it managed to hit Hercules, although fortunately for the crew inside, the armor held - the shot left their ears ringing somewhat of course after the noisy deflection, but better that than risk injury or worse.

With much of the formation obliterated, the vehicle backing the enemy Epickiraptor, a single SK/OT-93 Raptor, would fire away a cluster of 30mm rounds — uselessly whizzing past the group only to cut down a few nearby trees in the process. With an effortless shot, Skokiaan would obliterate the adjacent Epickiraptor, while Britta directed a HEAT round on the other target, blowing away the Raptor with a clean shot that struck the center mass.

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 3PLT - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0111 "Skokiaan II"] [ [CMDR] 2Lt. Francois Pretorius] /// "So this airbase up ahead... mercenaries, wasn't it?"

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “Correct...”

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0100 "Hercules"] [ [CMDR] SSgt. Britta Riber] /// “Paid by Akhmanar at that… guess this is our chance to get back at them a bit.

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “Right. Just what are Zachods doing here?”

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A1 #0100 "Hercules"] [ [CMDR] SSgt. Britta Riber] /// “Do we know if those were Zachods in the first place? Or are they mercenaries using their tech?”

/// [VRYFOR] [HGT-94A2 #0286 "Luiperd"] [ [CMDR] Lt. Anneline Raubenheimer] /// “Far as I care, they’re Za-Ko. Who fucking knows anymore...”

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

The group of tanks, after clearing the enemies that had attacked them in the streets, were able to make it safely to the mercenary airfield, where they’d just have one more fight to get through before they could call it a day… what they didn’t expect, though, was the toughest opposition that they had faced yet. Before Britta could spot where the enemy was, the tank was already getting pounded, the armor penetrated and the crew ducking out of instinct as the turret was penetrated from the right side - panic didn’t set in often for Britta, but in this case she didn’t even know where the round had come from, which… was unnerving to say the least.

“Holy shit!” she shouted, before looking to Ulf - the gunner had been the one closest to the path of the projectile. “Are you alright?”

“Didn’t get hit… hell of a scare, though,” Ulf replied, a bit less confidently than usual. Most people, after all, would be less confident after such a near death experience.

“Konrad, load a HEAT round… we’re going to get them back for that-”

Britta didn’t get to finish her sentence before there was a loud bang that threatened to shake them off their feet, putting her violently into the wall of the vehicle as something hit the engine compartment. An AT attack from infantry… just their luck today. “Fuck! Don’t think we’re going anywhere after that… fucking hell…” she said, looking to the others. “Seems like the others are going to have to cover us now…”

They could still shoot even if they couldn’t move, at least, and Britta switched her order for a HEAT round to an ATGM round - they were a bit more desperate right now. But when the shot was fired, it seemed the rushing had impacted the quality of the attack… they didn’t hit anything, the round exploding harmlessly on the ground.

Skokiaan held its own against the enemy, round cutting down one of the Raptors with ease.

Luiperd’s performance today just really seemed to be off. Perhaps it wasn’t much of a surprise, then, that the Luitenant was going to be quick in resorting to precious air support. A near-death experience for a platoon member was bad enough, a death experience... she just didn’t need that.

It didn't take long for friendly air support to arrive in the form of a single Bv-79 Aasvoël E, engines roaring as the aircraft soared past — and in another moment much of the enemy formation had been obliterated. It seemed there had been something Anneline hadn't prepared for when she'd called in air support against the enemy — air defenses. Six missiles would fire away from the airbase, from AA-M185 Birch anti-air sites. Euphemian-made, albeit centuries old — it'd become rather widespread in the global south since then. It didn't take long for the missiles to meet their target, the two pilots ejecting just in time as the Bv-79 was reduced to flaming wreckage, spiraling down to the earthly abyss below.

While they couldn’t move, the Hercules crew could do something about the situation - Britta ordered a HEAT round down range at one of the AA-M185s, and without protection, it was easy pickings… the old air defense vehicle went up in flames just about immediately, as Britta ordered another round into the breach.

Skokiaan would soon join in finishing off the enemy air defense sites, another one of the launchers being promptly destroyed by the tank's last HEAT round. Luiperd followed, expending off another one of it’s ATGMs - the Luitenant seemed to prefer the guided rockets over regular AP rounds. It didn't take long until nothing remained of the enemy, those soldiers that hadn't been eliminated in the bombing runs promptly fleeing the site — leaving the tank crews to investigate what remained.

Inside the actual airbase, which was vacant by now, it seemed quite a bit had been left behind by its occupants, Pretorius being first among the three to find something: a rather ornate gilded KT-91 assault rifle. Akhmanari in origin, it left little to the imagination as Pretorius studied its gold finish and tucked it into his backpack. "Figure I'll make some quick cash out of this one back at base..." He muttered to himself.

Pushing herself out of the disabled tank which couldn’t move any closer to the buildings thanks to a lack of a functional engine, Britta started to follow after the others, wondering just what she would end up finding this time - she went into one of the main buildings, one that looked like it was the control tower for whatever air operations had been run here, and quickly took a look through some of the things the soldiers had left on the ground floor before they fled the scene. At least one thing, a PlayTsion magazine, caught her eye, and she picked it up with interest. Would make for an interesting read later.

Anneline, meanwhile, was performing some quick reading of less raunchy contents, glazing her eyes along a newspaper. “Something ‘bout mercenaries attacking each other... interesting.”

Pretorius would soon find another interesting item — a book, seemingly the memoirs of a Gallian bomber pilot's time in Tangaliroan service, titled 'I Remember Etoile Marin'. Given he was a rather avid reader, Pretorius didn't hesitate to tuck the book away after a brief skimming.

Stepping out of the control tower and heading into another building which seemed like an office of come kind, Britta stumbled upon some papers which would be of interest to the unit. “Found something interesting, guys… I guess we already figured it, but there’s a contract here from Akhmanar,” she called out to the others, looking it over.

“Keep ahold of it.” Anneline ordered, hesitating just a little to approach her subordinate. She was more interested in an issue of MERCENARY, a magazine popular among the PMC soldiers of Kir. This edition was from 388 - older than anyone in the platoon. For this alone, she was content to divert a few moments of time to picking it up and taking it with her.

"Suppose that's everything this place's got," Pretorius noted, beginning for the door. Outside, one could see the regular forces were already beginning to arrive, effectively securing the perimeter of the airstrip — and by extension, Kindamtou itself. Msiriland had been seized by the Vrystaat, and with it, a decisive blow had been dealt against the government of the Gonko.

by **Turmenista** » Sat Sep 07, 2019 12:26 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E12
"R and R"

Things have been going surprisingly better than expected on the Sharks and MILINT's end—following its raid and takeover, the Aviary was quickly repurposed into a base of operations for the Onyx Division and the Shark Unit-01, who have been using it ever since to carry out missions in Avalon. However, the takeover seemed to have grabbed the attention of a group that, admittedly, is on the verge of being disavowed, but is still very dangerous: Wyrmhaund.

_{DATE: 0800 hrs. - February 3, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Yasmine Nefer-u-ptah | LOCATION: The Aviary, Cornwallis Island | Atlantic Ocean}

While the music on her playlist played from her Clancy Entertainment Systems Soundster CE-7 Music Player, Yasmine stared blankly up at the ceiling, silent as ever, letting out a sigh as she thought about things—in particular, she thought about the situation in Avalon, the Vrystaat, the Jade Sea, and Kir for a larger picture. The Aviary raid back in November was practically legendary among both the sharks and MILINT in how well it was executed, with Avalon not making any moves on their end as the "Onyx Division" sent more aircraft in to their new airbase in the Atlantic Ocean. Things were going well not just for Ismael, but for her as well—she'd managed to assemble a metaphorical laundry list of friendly contacts within Avalon..including one of Ismael's own men.

Ali and Nader were, to say the least...good, at what they did. Nevermind the fact that they had little to no outside experience with MILINT, they'd made great additions to the Onyx Division team as trainers for the Tayari Action Front, particularly the South Avalon cell, according to her civilian liaison, Cyrus. The Tayaris were grateful for the support from their Akhmanari and Shark "mercenary" support, also granting her the ability to, effectively, order around some Tayari troops and assets for the sake of completing her mission, so long as she was actively helping take down the oppressive minority white government or at least forcing a government or regime change. Avalon, as passive as it was, seemed to be gradually orienting itself towards a peaceful resolution of the conflict. That was admittedly a good thing, but it was worrying when one took into account the existence of the highly-jingoistic Vrystaat, and elements within Avalon that wouldn't be so happy to such a takeover...like Wyrmhaund. Her only gripe with the situation here was that they only had one man to go off of: Hudson, and such an enigmatic man was also highly mobile and knew how to cover up his tracks, perhaps having some intelligence training in the past.

Three vibrations to her side caused her to rise up from her trance of looking up at the ceiling while listening to Utsanji U-Pop music. She turned to her side, picking up the blocky MAAT Electronics SMP.9 smartphone to her side and turning on the phone. She was met with the face of her assistant, Cyrus, who scowled at her with a rather disgusted face on the monochrome screen...that also seemed to have a smile to it. "Well, you look nice... What's up?"

"You're the one who called me." Yasmine said as she corrected her hair, crossing one leg over the other and tracing a finger over her bare leg as she looked to her right, at Ali, who was still asleep somehow. "What is it?"

"First off, I need you turning the phone off speaker mode for a moment," Cyrus said, to which Yasmine promptly flicked a button on the front of the phone and placed it onto her ear. "And?"

"And looking around for any bugs." Immediately, Yasmine went to work, thoroughly searching the room once to find something ingeniously hidden in the light fixture above her bed. Her heart dropped as she suddenly crushed it it between her hands, trying to make sense of the bug as Ali only shifted around once more. "How in the—why would this happen here? I thought Avalon's Central Intelligence Command^[1] was lackluster when it came to stuff like this.

"No, it's not the CIC.. it's MILINT, if you looked at the bug before you crushed it. I'm speaking to you on this burner because I know we run the risk of being watched..and I fear we already are being watched not by Avalon or the NSS of the Vrystaat, but by our own guys. By Ismael. I'm sure we both know why." Cyrus's voice trailed off. "I'm here training the Tayaris in Zoi, might have to bug out on the latest CYBIT flight back to Cornwallis soon. They sure do love the technology at their schools." Of course, these were all code euphemisms for things they'd rather not say aloud, especially given the espionage paranoia happening now after the assassination of an Akhmanari Vizier in the Gonko, which was allegedly linked to agents from either Avalon or the Vrystaat according to other Providence Office agents in the Gonko.

"I bet.." Yasmine muttered.

"How much does he know?"

"Who, Ali?" Yasmine said in a hushed voice. "Not much, not much about the Office either, as expected. It'll be that way for a while."

"Good. I fear your.. uh.. thing with him may jeopardize some things between you and I." Cyrus gave a cough as Yasmine, pulling on a tank top, slid off the side of her bed and into her stealth suit, choosing to wrap the top part around her waist rather than putting on the uniform fully. "Also, uh.. Yasmine..."

"Hm?"

"You, uh.. well, last night, you left your comms on. Somehow."

Heat immediately rushed to her face as she took her Magnus .45 pistol from the desk beside her, placing it into the holster by her hip. "How much did you hear? How much did... Ismael..hear?"

"Yasmine, I heard.. everything." Cyrus said plainly. "Anyways.. I'll, uh.. I'll let you know when I get to Cornwallis. Until then, I think Ismael was expecting you.."

Yasmine looked at the remains of the microphone bug that she had scattered on her desk, which had been crushed into little more than a powder from her strength. "Yeah. I'm going to be expecting a meeting from him as well."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E12.5
"Freeky Boiz"

Tayari strongman and populist Derek N’jobu has been a royal pain in the Avalonian parliament’s arse ever since he became a member in 410, always undermining the ruling white Labour Party as if he were making a loophole out of the Tayari Party ban. The government's appeasement towards those monstrous people is heretical, disgusting, and unacceptable, so it's time the Wyrmhaund take matters into their own hands and remove him from the equation to save the country from men like N'jobu.

_{DATE: 1200 hrs. - February 3, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Hudson Croix | LOCATION: Kikowani, Avalon}

Hudson had tasked two seven-man teams from Wyrmhaund's most veteran squadron, 1. Squadron "Battle Brothers," for the task at hand today. He personally commanded Team 1 that exited the warehouse first, flanked by a man perhaps larger and more imposing than himself: Darren." The bald Avalonian man had a penchant for using heavy or experimental weapons just like Hudson did, and today was no exception: slung over one shoulder was a revolver-like six shot 40mm grenade launcher, the GL3, as well as a RSAW, an Avalonian-made general purpose machine gun. If he was to guess, the 300lb beefcake of a man likely was used to carrying so much over his shoulders.

"We ready." Darren nodded, walking towards one of two plain-looking civilian SUVs parked out in front of the safehouse. As all of the plainclothes Wyrmhaund left the building, they each pulled down balaclavas over their faces, masking their identities for the mission at hand, if the plainclothes and flak jackets a few occasionally wore didn't help. Without further delay, Hudson turned the key in the car's ignition and left the warehouse, the radio playing some popular song of the time as the seven men sat in the packed SUV: Darren sat beside Hudson on the passenger seat in the right, three other boys sat in the seats in the middle, and two were in the trunk, the tinted windows serving to mask their identities even further—if the balaclavas didn't enough.

The SUV briefly fishtailed over a hill in the side road as they entered the main road towards the Black Quarter of Kikowani's metropolitan area, skyscrapers off in the distance looming over them. Hudson cursed the city's incompetence in fixing such basic things as potholes, but, at least it wasn't as major of an issue in the majority white parts of the city than the majority black. Kikowani was different than cities in the Vrystaat in that there was actual proper integration among the races, even if the blacks outnumbered the whites five to one here. Rather than segregating them to ghettos, the blacks had their own predominantly-black areas of the city that were, admittedly, quite nice, with many successful black-owned businesses here. However, they were also hotspots for crime that often seeped into the white quarter of the city, which included the funneling of arms, personnel, and training to the Tayari Action Front and Social Front Party, as well as petty crime done by mostly poor, young people.

Hudson continued to gain speed as he bit his lip—a sign that he was showing a modicum of anxiety—but this was perhaps due to his admittedly deteriorating mental state. Their car increased in speed as they overtook slower-moving cars on the highway, most of which honked at them while others instinctively moved to the side, lest they be rammed by the strange-looking SUVs.

"We're already runnin' late." Hudson cursed, checking his Sodex™ watch for the time. "Man must've already left, but we may catch him by surprise."

"Wouldn't hurt just to check his apartment anyways," Darren said in a neutral tone.

"You're right." Hudson suddenly indicated they were going to be taking a right, barreling his SUV down the road towards the nicer part of the Black Quarter, where a few luxury apartments were. Blasting past palm trees and nice-looking suburbs alike, they approached a more futurist-looking building that was taller than the others: the Gran Cygnus Highlands, with each apartment being more of a luxury penthouse than a, well, apartment.

"Fuckin' hell." Hudson cursed as they pulled up to the building, inspecting it in all its glory. "Now I know where our funding is going, eh?"

"Probably crawlin' with rich urbanites," Darren scoffed, pulling the slide on his RSAW's charging handle back. "I'm ready to blast a motherfucker, are you?"

Hudson turned around to the trunk, towards the sole black man in his group. "Johnny.. watch the outside. Don't do anythin' stupid, 'cause I got Rico watching you with you."

"Yeh. I won't." The Tayari said. "I hate N'jobu just as much as you do, sir. Please, kill him for me."

"Very well." Hudson flicked the unlocking mechanism to the doors, and the Wyrmhaund Team 1 piled out, along with Team 2, all flicking off their safeties as they made their way out and up the small flight of steps towards the apartment. They moved into the apartment building like a well-oiled machine, two of Hudson's boys immediately snapping their AR1s up as the receptionist in the front lobby, a Tayari woman with short hair, first spotted them. She held both her hands up in protest and shrieked. "P-lease! Don't shoot me—I'm not with the TAF!"

Hudson reached towards his thigh holster and revealed his SMG2, pointing it towards the woman with one hand. "And don't you DARE touch that silent alarm. You're lucky today, missus. We ain't lookin' for the TAF," Hudson, in a voice much deeper than his natural tone (and slightly muffled due to his balaclava), leaned over the desk, partially pointing the SMG in the woman's direction as he set it on the desk, but still kept a hand on it. "We're lookin' for someone who lives here. Derek N'jobu. Is he still here? I want his floor and room number, please."

"H-he should be here.." The woman stammered. "S-second floor, room 212.."

Motioning for two of his boys outside to keep watch, the other four immediately made their way upstairs without a word. Hudson smiled, turning to the woman. "Thank you kindly, ma'am." He then proceeded to knock her out with a well-placed pistol-whip to her temple, sending her onto the ground, out cold.

Already beginning to move, Hudson reached to the side of his SMG2, where he unfolded the stock as if it were second nature and made his way upstair. Team 1 was already stacked up on the door in question, awaiting Hudson's order. With a nod from Hudson, one of his boys raised a SG1 and blew the doorknob out, kicking open the door and entering the dark room, the Wyrmhaund operatives illuminating the room with bright flashlights strapped onto their guns. There was no trace of Derek N'jobu here but, judging by the footprints on the polished floor, and the scattered papers, Hudson knew someone was definitely here...almost as if the politician had left in a hurry.

Hudson balled his fist and cursed loudly, one of his eyes twitching as he, once again, bit his lip, tipping over a nearby nice-looking Tayari vase and smashing it to the floor. "FUCK!!!"

Darren gulped. "Hey, boss? Take it easy—"

"No, that fucking KONT thinks he can best ME? And—and that BITCH!! I'm gonna fuckin' kill that swartaap downstairs for lyin' to me—I need you to get on with Team 2, tell them to fan out around the city, and find N'jobu, NOW!"

"Already on it." As Darren was reaching to his radio strapped onto his Flak Jacket to send the news to Team 2, Johnny, and Rico, Hudson was already making his way downstairs, pointing the SMG2 towards the woman working at the front desk, who raised her arms and hands and shrieked. Her scream was cut off by a burst of gunfire from Hudson, who vaulted onto the top of the front desk and proceeded to empty the rest of his magazine into the woman.

Hudson tucked the spent magazine into his flak jacket's pocket and slapped in a new one as he left, stomping out towards the SUV. He entered the driver's seat and turned on the car once more, the song now switching to a fittingly energetic tune. Their police scanner suddenly crackled on with the monotonous female voice of the dispatcher for the Kikowani Department of the Avalon Police Service, the national police of Avalon, alerting local police of the situation.

ARMS MANUFACTURERS OF AVALON CONGLOMERATE
COMMS OS V.4.1.5a

AVALON POLICE SERVICE / KIKOWANI DEPARTMENT [SCANNER]
CHANNEL 1 - STAND ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [DISPATCH] -] \\\ - "We have reports of shooting coming from 66 Ingram Boulevard, Black Quarter, near the luxury apartments of Gran Cygnus highlands."

\\\ [- [OFFICER][SGT. Otto Ross] -] \\\ - "Tayari Action Front? SFP? Or just some criminals?"

\\\ [- [DISPATCH] -] \\\ - "Witnesses say heavily armed men in balaclavas, Sergeant. One black man with them. We believe they're using SUVs in a convoy fashion to get around."

\\\ [- [OFFICER][SGT. Otto Ross] -] \\\ - "10-4. We're on the way. I'll get another unit there, too."

ARMA Conglomerate ©420 All Rights Reserved

Team 1's s SUV was barreling down the highway at this point, each of the Wyrmhaund operatives onboard watching their surroundings as the music increased in intensity. A sudden callout from Team 2's radio indicating that the MP's car was moving down Highway H-3 towards the savanna prompted Hudson to turn off the highway, their SUV's offroad capabilities being evident now as it effortlessly bounded across uneven ground, kicking up dust as it made its way towards the location in question.

ARMS MANUFACTURERS OF AVALON CONGLOMERATE
COMMS OS V.4.1.5a

WYRMHAUND 1. SQUADRON "BATTLE BROTHERS"
CHANNEL UNICOM - MAX ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [TEAM 2][LEAD][Jenson Kennedy] -] \\\ - [GUNFIRE] "N'JOBUS CAR IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF US!"

\\\ [- [TEAM 1][CDR][Hudson Croix] -] \\\ - "We're right there! Is he armed?"

\\\ [- [TEAM 2][LEAD][Jenson Kennedy] -] \\\ - "GOD- GRR, FUCK—THREE ASSHOLES WITH HIM, ALL ARMED. BOSS, BOX HIM IN AT THIS UGLY ASS SHACK UP HERE."

ARMA Conglomerate ©420 All Rights Reserved

It was at this point that Hudson's SUV saw another dust cloud approaching from the opposite road, which led further out into nowhere. Two cars had broke off from the road: a nice-looking sedan covered in dust, and the other being Team 2's SUV. As Hudson saw N'jobu's car prepare to make a run for it, he lowered his window and pointed his SMG2 out, showering the side of the SUV with 9mm rounds. A spray of blood on the windshield confirmed that the 1st passenger beside the driver had been killed. The driver, seemingly in a panic, suddenly served off the already bumpy dirt road and went over a ditch, the car flipping for a moment as it landed on its roof beside the shack in question that Team 2 was told to meet with Team 1 at.

The music still blasting at deafening volumes, Hudson slammed on the brakes and was out first, Darren beside him, who brought up his RSAW and began hosing down the car as he moved into a crouch. If the driver wasn't dead already, then Darren's use of his LMG would've likely been the thing that killed him, judging by the blood splatter on the dusty ground near the driver's side. In his folly, Darren failed to see that one of the gunmen popped up over the overturned car and fired a burst at Darren, downing the man with some shots to his flak jacket.

Darren cried out in pain as Hudson went berserk and rushed out of cover, immediately emptying his SMG at the man as he sprinted towards the shed. Enraged that he still wasn't dead (or, at least, dodged all the bullets), Hudson tossed his SMG aside and picked up Darren's RSAW, practically blindly firing it both at the shed and the overturned car. The rest of Wyrmhaund chimed in as automatic weapons fire tore through the shed, a bullet-riddled black man stumbling out with a Varennikov in one hand as, in one last ditch effort, he pointed towards Hudson, then crumpled to the ground from something invisible.

Still enraged, Hudson stomped towards the side of the car and simply sprayed the inside, mercilessly gunning down the still-entrapped second and third passenger as he swept his gun to the rear of the car, towards a very frightened Derek N'jobu. Tossing the RSAW aside, Hudson unsheathed a rather large bowie knife and dragged the man out, putting the knife to his throat. "Fucking swartaap piece of SHIT. I finally got you.. I oughta just skin you right here."

"BOSS! Coppers are coming!" Johnny screamed. "They'll be here soon, we gotta run!"

It took another Wyrmhaund operative to physically move Hudson off of N'jobu, a bag being placed on the politician's head as they made their way back to their vehicles. Whatever trace of their involvement here was left to be burned when a Wyrmhaund operative doused the overturned car, its dead inhabitants, and the shed with a gasoline-filled can, lighting
a match and throwing it onto the remains of the site.

Without another word, Hudson scooped up the still alive but wounded Darren and stomped towards the car, leaving the burning site behind them with a cloud of dust as they escaped towards the side roads leading west out of Kikowani's metropolitan area.

ARMS MANUFACTURERS OF AVALON CONGLOMERATE
COMMS OS V.4.1.5a

AVALON POLICE SERVICE / KIKOWANI DEPARTMENT [SCANNER]
CHANNEL 1 - STAND ENCRYPTION

\\\ [- [OFFICER][CPT. Bono Terry] -] \\\ - "There was another gunfight out in the boondocks of the metro area, near some shed. Chopper found it first."

\\\ [- [OFFICER][SGT. Otto Ross] -] \\\ - "Well? Did you find the heavily armed men?"

\\\ [- [OFFICER][CPT. Bono Terry] -] \\\ - "No, Sergeant. The site was burned to the ground, car as well. The bodies are unidentified, but we can deduce the car to be a Perzana Sedan. Derek N'jobu's Perzana."

\\\ [- [OFFICER][SGT. Otto Ross -] \\\ - "My god.. who could do such a terrible act, and why to someone like N'jobu?"

ARMA Conglomerate ©420 All Rights Reserved

(Soundtrack)

The vast Kawanahi Savanna was full of a myriad of natural wonders like lions, cheetahs, and impala, but the Wyrmhaund HF-59 Gazelle suddenly coming down and scaring away the animals obviously wasn't quite natural.

Hudson, wearing his Wyrmhaund uniform and a red beret, stepped off the side of the helicopter, herding the bagged, bound, and blinded N'jobu away from the now-landed helicopter, taking him towards a nearby boboaboba tree. He set the man down beside the tree and lifted the bag off, sneering at the man with some malicious intent in his eyes. "Well.. hello, Derek N'jobu."

"W-Wyrmhaund..? But, I am not a Tayari Action Front member.." Njobu looked confused, looking down, to the side, and eventually away from Hudson as he tried to make sense of the situation. "W-why must you do this to me..?" N'jobu stammered, looking up weakly at the Wyrmhaund operative that loomed over him. "I am an Avalonian citizen, just as you. I walk, talk, breathe, eat, and sleep, just as you do. Why am I so different?"

"One of us is a man who serves his country against unspeakable evils, and has done so for generations upon generations.." Hudson began, his arms folded behind his back. "And the other," he pointed a finger at N'jobu, who suddenly flinched. "Is some little rat that undermines the ban of the Tayari party, who actively supports the terrorists that try to ruin what we all worked for in Avalon, who works with the mummies that ain't even black themselves. I know what yuh are, N'jobu. You're just another brick in the wall—another swartaap, just like the others. You're nothin' special, but, unlike the good ones, you don't sit and do as you're told. You're dangerous—that one negro in ten thousand, as I say, the one rebellious one."

"What do you mean?" N'jobu stammered.

"Our country is founded upon the principles of strict conformity with several foundations—one of these foundations is the great truth that the black man is not equal to the white man; that slavery and subservience to the white man is the black man's natural status. This is what Avalon and the Vrystaat was founded upon—even Momofati III believed this truth. However, I couldn't give any shit about going on some long tirade about the race question in Avalon—if I could, I'd be a politician. But, no, Derek." He leaned in further to the man. "I am a soldier, a soldier who refuses to be cast aside as a commodity by my own government. A soldier that has fought and sweat and bled and died for this country, again, and again. I'm the living spirit of the soldier's dream—that is, a state run by us, for us."

"W-what you're talking about is a coup and ideologies better left in Paradys." N'jobu said plainly.

"Paradys has become tainted, just a cesspit for mercs to do whatever they wish. It's lost the dream, but I haven't. I came to Avalon because I knew it was the mercenary and soldier's heaven, and it could be much more. Swartaaps like you, though, threaten this dream. I've taken it upon myself to become the figurehead of this dream."

"Then wh-who are you?" N'jobu asked. "And what do you plan on doing, and why me?"

This caused Hudson to chuckle as he unfolded his arms behind his back. "I've been known by many names, Derek N'jobu. A saint, a prophet, arbiter..." Without saying anything else, N'jobu could only but sit and watch as Hudson reached to his side and, in one swift motion, drew his prized Euphemian gun, a Ulysses-Wesker Model 500^[2]. "But, for today, I shall be known as... executioner. Soon, Avalon's gonna see the truth of what it's become, and the world's gonna see that I am right. And it all starts with you."

In one motion, Hudson pulled the revolver's hammer back with his thumb and fired, promptly blowing half the man's face off and compromising him to a permanent, gory end.

For Hudson, though, this was just another kill for another day—for someone like him, so adapted to violence, so unhinged, and so devoted to his task, killing was as natural as breathing in and out when you were pushed to the edge. He inhaled deeply and exhaled loudly, spinning the revolver in one finger as he placed it back into its holster, then began the long walk back for the helicopter.

CONTEXT NOTES

1 - Central Intelligence Command - The Central Intelligence Command is Avalon's primary intelligence agency, for both external espionage and internal investigations. It is split up into three branches called Sections, with each branch responsible for a different intelligence function in Avalon. Section 1 deals with internal affairs, while Section 2 deals with SIGINT, ELINT, Early Warning, and propaganda. Section 3 deals with espionage, black operations, and external intelligence.

Over the years, the CIC has garnered a reputation for being quite bloated with bureaucracy, and while its operatives are skilled, the way they go about gathering intelligence is, at times, archaic and slow.

2 - Ulysses-Wesker Model 500 revolver - The Ulysses-Wesker Model 500 revolver, also known as the “Big Fucking Revolver” or “Big Iron,” is a large double/single action revolver produced by legendary Oesterran (now Euphemian) arms manufacturer Ulysses-Wesker, firing the .500 U&W Magnus cartridge. It was built on a new frame specifically to compensate for its immense muzzle velocity and the pressure generated from firing the massive .500 U&W round. While some critics see it as “over the top” or “detrimental to one’s wrists,” the fact remains that the Model 500 is one of the most powerful handguns on the planet, it’s power matched by very few. It even has made a lasting impact in Euphemian and Oesterran culture, due to its gratuitous depiction in film.

by **Valefontaine** » Sat Sep 07, 2019 8:43 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

S4E13

Assassination

Regentor has loomed over Kir like a hungry beast for some time now, a probable backer to our own nation-state. The pride of Regentor is, of course, the Geirröd Fleet — boasting a battleship and an aircraft carrier to its name. With South Ophir pacified, the Federation of Regentor is keen on expanding across the world-ocean, and Ugbiria will serve as a firm gateway into the rest of Kir. With CSG II becoming a Jade Sea concern, Regentor now sees fit to declare itself the Teutonic Empire on the Occident, embracing its claims on former colonies. Ugbiria today is a disorderly mess of ethnic groups, weak governments and political unrest — one Regentoric jackboot is enough to tear the house down. There is another motive behind this, however: Amselburg Telecom, the largest Internet providers in South Ophir, intends to establish a telecommunications monopoly in Kir, using Ugbiria as an expansion of its current IPv8 and 6G services. The Ugbirian government's protectionist policies have thus far prevented this, to which the Regentoric invasion of Ugbiria has near-unwavering support from the corporate oligarchy.

Regentor's plan is simple — a coup d'etat, from which the new government is to submit to Regentor to allow them to 'save the nation'. The NSS will, of course, be involved. Our knowledge regarding Kir is vital to the functionality of this operation.

_{DATE: 1300 hrs. - February 10, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Agent Gia Becker | LOCATION: Opobo, Ohanjiko Ohaneze Ugbiria}

Ugbirian scenery.

A new mission had befallen the NSS, to which Ugbiria's disorderly streets and decadent sprawl had become the backdrop to much of agent Gia Becker's journey into the west Kirian country, along with her two fellow agents, Josien de Haas and Elna Rynevald. Things in Ugbiria hadn't been well since the Gonkolese had violently seized contested Emeka Province, effectively ending its status as a landlocked country and answering a long-disputed question as to the sovereignty of the border territory. Indeed, Ugbiria was unstable and disorderly... just the right conditions for what was to occur.

Per usual, Gia was in the backseat, toying with her lighter as she watched the rather typical post-post-colonial scenery just outside the jeep. The M375 jeep was something of a relic of yester-century, having come about in 274 A.C. and becoming an iconic staple of the Federal States military. It was long out of service now, though its influence was widespread in the southern hemisphere. Its simple, all-terrain design made it especially appealing to anyone from locals to military forces. Of course, theirs was a more 'civilian' looking variant, painted a plain red.

The M375 jeep.

A particular song on the radio would serve as background music as Gia waited for her superior, and the group's designated driver, Josien. Opobo wasn't far — if anything, they were in the Ugbirian capital's outskirts,

Josien was driving once again as usual, and as she arrived and climbed into the driver’s seat, she seemed amused that Elna happened to be next to her once again. “I’ll try not to leave you too shaken up after this one,” she said with a chuckle, looking her subordinate over before reaching out, brushing her hair out of her face slightly - it seemed getting touchy with Elna was just something she liked doing. “It looks prettier like that, you know.”

“...could you not?” Gia’s other partner asked. Her superior’s... advances towards her seemed only to make the agent more and more uncomfortable about the prospect of going out into the field, so to speak.

“Hmmm?” asked Josien, pulling out of their parked position and starting them en route to their destination, acting innocent as if she had no idea what she had done to annoy her partner.

Gia was oblivious to the obvious tension between the two agents as she looked on outside. "I can't say we've really worked with the Regentorics before. I'm sure the timing of this move has something to do with CSG II setting its sights upon the Jade Sea."

Josien shrugged in response to that. “It’s either smart or stupid… depends on whether or not that carrier group comes out intact from the Jade Sea or not, I think.”

"Buying their allies time... and keeping the Concordat's sights off of us, I suppose." Gia replied.

Entering Opobo proper, one could see the transition from rural makeshift housing, forests, swamps and plantations to haphazardly-built apartment blocks and crowded streets flanked at all sides by street vendors, open-air sewage canals and the occasional sight of military patrols along the busy capital. This brutal display of what was capitalism in the west Kirian nation served as a reminder of civilization's weaknesses, particularly in the minds of the rather racially-charged agents of the Vrystaat. Indeed, the air was polluted and oppressive, tinged with an aura of oppression.

“Little more than a cesspit...” Elna remarked, evidently not too approving of the sights. She seemed to be the more extreme members of the group when it came to racial issues.

"It gets a little better," Gia assured.

Class plight concealed behind a veneer of concrete.

These miserable sights wouldn't last long as they stopped at the Capitol Wall, a 250 ft-tall reinforced concrete fortification that was designed exclusively to keep the slums of Opobo out of sight, and ensure the more pleasant features outside the city — particularly the hills and mountains — were kept in view of tourists in the heart of the capital.

A brief customs check would be met by falsified documents without issue, the journey taking them on through Kirofuturist sights, lavish resort hotels and hedonistic casinos. Malls towered upward, recreational pharmacies distributing most drugs conceivable to the western tourist's mind. Every vice imagineable seemed to be on display on billboards, a mind-numbing consumerist high seemingly the centerpiece of metropolitan Opobo.

The financial district itself towered above, within view just beyond the mishmash of advertisement-buildings, hotels and assorted, crowded apartments as Josien drove along the city's highways. The safehouse was at the edge of the financial district, within walking distance of the presidential palace.

"So, uh, what exactly went on last mission?" Gia finally asked, oblivious to just how things had been resolved the previous time.

“Still don’t want to talk about it...” Elna started off, leaving the task of explaining things to Josien.

“Well, we did what we had to do to get the job done,” shrugged Josien, not making a big deal of it - she was clearly able to take having to make tough choices better than her other subordinate. Well, in this case, it had mostly been her choice in the first place to do what they did. “Let’s just say it made her quiver…”

It'd been a dawning moment for Gia, to say the least, as she finally put two and two together. "Oh, I see how it is." Another awkward silence would ensue until Gia made a rather ill-thought gaffe perchance rooted in her own issues. "Sensitive, Rynevald?" She blurted out, quickly composing herself as it occurred to her what she'd said.

This, of course, was not really well received from the agent, who almost gasped in shock. “You people... swear to God!” Adding onto her words, she let out a deep sigh.

Gia only meekly nodded. Her tendency to blurt things out at times did make socializing difficult. "—s-sorry. If it puts you at ease, I don't swing that way—"

“My offer to make it up to you personally is still on the table,” Josien said with a slight chuckle, not at all fazed by how flustered her colleague was.

“Shut up!” Elna clearly seemed rather uninterested in the offer... or insecure about her own orientations.

It wouldn't be long until they reached the safehouse, a rather unassuming apartment building with a pleasant overview of the more government-oriented district of Opobo. Much of the foreign consulates weren't far either, to which the palm-tree lined promenades were well within view as the jeep came to a halt roadside just before the safehouse.

"Let's meet this guy, I guess..." Gia shrugged, allowing her superior to lead the way out of the vehicle. Walking up to the apartment in question, they'd reach the specific room soon enough. Most of these condos were largely rented out by foreigners during summer in the southern hemisphere, to which it wasn't exactly suspicious for them to be around. Reaching the room in question, Gia would ring the bell.

The door would open up, to which they would be faced by their Regentoric counterpart — Cordtt Wolland. The man was certainly more physically imposing in height than the rest of the group, a red tropical shirt and aviator sunglasses his most distinguishing feature beyond his blonde crew-cut hair. The man was an operator of 3. Nachtkommando, one of Regentor's prime special forces units. With a long record of experience pertaining to suppressing the Courburgese and combatting the Velezians, Wolland was more than aptly equipped to the current job at hand. "Well, this certainly isn't what I'd been expecting." He spoke Euphemian fairly fluently, which was just a bit harder to understand for Josien, given she only spoke Victorian — which was a good four centuries apart from Euphemian at this point.

“We may not look it but we’ve already proven we can get the job done,” Josien replied with a shrug after taking a brief pause due to the slight language gap between them - she was a quick learner, though. Not the type of person to let something like that get in the way of the mission.

"Fair enough. Come on in," Leading the group in, it would become apparent as the door closed behind them that there were a few more Regentoric operators present, all donning relatively unsuspecting civilian clothing. In a moment's notice it would further become apparent that the bedroom had been converted into the briefing room of sorts, the windows obscured by curtains for discretion. "There's a few options through which we can pursue our plan, of course." Wolland explained, gesturing to the whiteboard. Once the president is out of the picture and our man's in power, the Geirröd Fleet will handle everything else."

There were a few options — attacking the palace, sneaking through the palace, a truck bombing, a simple sniper-based assassination, a high-profile distraction — that is, a shooting that would direct the Ugbirian military's attention elsewhere — and disguising oneself as personnel that frequented the palace — electricians, plumbers, or... concubines.

"We've been told your unit's well tasked to these ends," Wolland noted. "To which I leave the decision up to the three of you."

Josien paused to consider the options, although she couldn’t help but poke fun at her colleague a bit more. “I dunno, based on last time I’m sure we could just send Elna in as a concubine and she’d get the job done,” she said, glancing to her subordinate and winking.

The fact Elna’s superior seemed to be comfortable with casually mentioning that, in front of a group of Regentoric operations, well... it was a bit embarrassing. “No. Nope, nope, nope. Let’s try something else.” She proceeded to return to analyzing the board, weighing the group’s options.

"Truck bomb might be too high profile..." Gia thought aloud, studying the whiteboard.

“I’m not sure how comfortable I am sneaking around and just hoping we don’t get caught, though… if there’s a high chance this thing is going to go loud… well, it might help to just start with something loud, then,” Josien said, after taking another few moments to consider.

"What about sniping? I'm not too bad a shot myself..." Gia proposed.

Josien gave a slight shrug. “I think we should vote on it… there’s a number of ways this could go. Let’s make the choice as a team instead of going with one person’s idea.”

“I’m fine with sniping.” Elna chimed in. “..maybe we should decide who’s the shooter as a group, though?”

"We've got a rather powerful rifle. The WKW-501 — Zakod made, but it's what our unit could secure for this op. Using our nation's own firearms for this phase of the operation wouldn't be good for business." Wolland didn't hesitate to kneel down by the bedside, reaching for a rather long briefcase and setting it upon the bed. "Here's your gun." He said, opening the case.

Gia took a moment to note the weapon, glancing over to her fellow agents. "Maybe Rynevald is best suited for the job?" She proposed, a bit nervous herself about having the entire fate of the mission hinged upon her own competence.

“I’m a rifles person myself. Sure..” Rynevald replied.

“Just don’t get nervous and start quivering or something, yeah? Anyway, I think that’s a good enough idea. Let’s do it,” Josien said, nodding at the idea of going the sniper route. “Just have to find somewhere to set up now.”

It wouldn't be long until they were back on the streets of Opobo, walking through Kirofuturist promenades in search of a vantage point. Elna’s main priority, personally, was focused on escape, unsurprisingly. Perhaps as a consequence of ‘convincing’ city officials to look the other way, or oversight of the city’s government, or just plain lack of care, none of the buildings around seemed to have any sort of fire escapes - the only really conventional and convenient way up to and down from a roof.

“These buildings seem to not have any fire escapes...” Elna noted, continuing to lead the group forth as they walked through the city streets, receiving the occasional odd glare from one or two of the denizens of Opobo. This would continue on for a few minutes, Gia’s partner seemingly becoming more annoyed as they continued to try and find an overlooking position - and continued to fail. Eventually, though, she’d given up.

“Can’t find a single roof in this god-damned city we can get up on... plan B?” Elna asked.

"Guess it can't hurt to try." Gia shrugged.

“Are you kidding me? You can’t find a single spot?” Josien asked, her voice calm even though her words were irate. She raised an eyebrow. “Could it be that you’re distracted? ^{by me, maybe?}”

“Zip it...” Her subordinate complained.

Gia took a cursory glance amidst the buildings — most were either occupied or lacked fire escapes. "I think Rynevald's right... we're just not at a particularly lucky hour."

“Truck bomb is also an option, I guess,” shrugged Josien, letting out a short sigh. “Not the original plan… but if we can’t find something, well, we can’t find it.”

“Let’s go back to the safehouse, then. Figure out what’ll need to happen.” Elna said. “I’d say we need to start with a bomb...”

“Guess I’m the one doing this… engineering knowledge and all,” said Josien. When they headed back to the safehouse, she took a hard look at what they had in front of them, comparing it to her existing knowledge before reaching out and starting to put the different parts together, connecting wires and larger sections and binding all of it together - they needed a large blast if they were going to succeed in the goal they were out to accomplish, after all. The process… took more than a few minutes, but this wasn’t the kind of thing Josien wanted to mess up.

After all, that would likely result in them being the ones taken out by the explosion rather than their target. “Alright, this should be… good,” Josien said eventually, looking at the bomb in front of her. “Or as good as we’re going to get it. For now… we just need the delivery method. Otherwise known as the truck.”

“What means are we gonna acquire one?” Elna couldn’t help but feel like asking.

“I’m not sure why the bosses didn’t make sure we’d have one available,” Josien sighed. “But since they didn’t, guess that means we’re eating into the budget and buying one.”

“Or we could just take one...” She suggested.

"We have plenty of cash, but... it'd take awhile, I'd imagine." Gia thought aloud.

“If we take one, we might end up with the locals on our ass for something that’s not even related to the mission. If you’re confident, maybe… but I’d like to cut down on the chances of this going bad. Don’t need the cops stopping us for driving a stolen truck and then finding what’s inside,” shrugged Josien, looking to the others. “But I can work with things either way.”

"I don't think we have the time for paperwork or any of that. Maybe find a rental place — or grab ourselves a truck either way." Gia replied.

Josien paused for a moment before looking to Elna. “And what do you think about this, sweetie?”

Giving a good eye roll, she made her opinions known. “Coming up with fake identities or whatever just to fill out some paperwork sounds like too much of a pain. This place seems pretty lawless, anyhow.”

“Sure,” Josien said. “We’ll go ahead with stealing one… just have to go and find it now and not fuck up with getting it running…”

In the immediate area around the safehouse, though, they would have a hard time finding a suitable vehicle for what they were looking to do - and the two that they did find seemed pretty well secured, and there was no way for them to open the door and get the engine running without making a scene to the people all around them. Too busy, and neither of the doors were unlocked - breaking the window would just draw attention to themselves. “Fuck this, we should just go the concubines route… worked out decent enough last time,” Josien stated.

“You can do that, but I’m not going with you.”

“Abandoning the team?” tsked Josien, raising an eyebrow. “It’s not like anything else we’ve tried has worked so far…”

"You know what, fuck it!" In a moment, Gia had broken one of the passenger windows, hurrying inside and hotwiring the truck — just as five uniformed officers conveniently arrived, bystanders fleeing the scene in terror. If they were to haul that truck out of there, they'd need to get past the men in question first.

Elna, cussing under her breath, was the first to react, whipping out her own Handwapen W98 to pop off a few shots at the officers in question, striking and taking down one.

Gia, on the other hand, was a quick enough shot, Submasjiengeweer M71 dropping three of the officers before they could fire, quickly ducking and reloading from the driver's seat as the last officer hurried to cover, barking orders into his radio.

“Why the fuck did you… ugh,” Josien started, before realizing the situation was a bit too advanced already to undo. No point questioning the decision which she considered… a rather poor one, when they were already in a gunfight. Reaching for her own SMG, Josien pressed herself against the truck to make herself a smaller target before leveling the weapon towards the enemy and spraying, the burst hitting the last of the group.

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 13285192357 - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [Agent Gia Becker] /// "We've got the truck, get the payload ready!"

/// [REGFOR] [Oberst Cordtt Wolland] /// "Understood."

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

"Come on!" Gia called to her two comrades, the engine of the truck revving to life as she hotwired the vehicle in question. Josien was quick to climb inside, opening her mouth to say something irate about the fact that they already had some heat on them but… deciding that it was better saved for later, remaining silent. Elna proceeded to hop in, the truck making its way off through the streets in quick time.

It was certain there'd be more trouble to come if they didn't get things done fast — to which Gia was quick to drive them back to the safehouse, reaching the building in question. A few of the Regentoric operators were already outside, the payload quickly being loaded aboard the truck before they were back on the road.

"Well, we pulled this one off... somehow. Not out of it yet." Gia noted.

“How close we need to be to the Palace to set this one off?” Elna questioned.

“Don’t know the exact number but let’s not leave a chance to mess this up - I want us close as possible,” Josien stated.

It didn't take long for Gia to drive them through the busy streets of Opobo until they'd reached the palace proper. It was more akin to a castle of sorts, given how the building seemed to tower upward with brutalist watchtowers and manned parapets above. Parking just opposite the president's office, Gia quickly stepped off, trying to keep a discreet look as she led the way down the sidewalk. The explosive in question would span a few city blocks — to which the three agents would probably want to get somewhere safe.

“Come on…” Josien told Elna - and as if she couldn’t figure out what they needed to do for herself, she grabbed her hand once again to practically drag her after Gia, her grip like a vice. She… knew what she was doing, although she acted innocently enough.

"I suppose after the bomb goes off, the real fireworks show will begin..." Gia mused, oblivious to the continuous tension between the two NSS agents.

“Coup’ll go by pretty fast...” Elna remarked, glancing towards the... awkward positioning of her superior’s hand, thinking to herself about whether it’d be more embarrassing to try and pull out of it and possibly fail than to just not do anything.

“We can find somewhere to relax and watch the news after this, I guess,” Josien replied, looking back and winking at Elna.

It didn't take long for the group to find themselves a fair distance away. A few distant sirens indicated the police were still searching for the stolen truck. "Three... two... —oh wait."

ENGELBRECHT DYNAMIKA OS v3.14.15.9
KOMMUNIKASIES TRANSKRIPTELESER v1.9.5
KANAAL 13285192357 - MAKSIMUM ENKRIPSIE

/// [VRYFOR] [Agent Gia Becker] /// "Bomb is in place. Detonating."

/// [REGFOR] [Oberst Cordtt Wolland] /// "Got it!"

©424 Engelbrecht Dynamika
^{Alle regte voorbehou.}

"...one..."

CLICK

The ground violently trembled as the bomb exploded, ravaging the city blocks in the vicinity of the immediate blast. The presidential palace itself had no doubt been swept in the explosion, taking with it the country's leadership in the process. It felt as if they were right there — even if they were numerous city blocks away, the force with which the ground shook had warranted Gia to nervously steady herself as the tremor rocked the Ugbirian capital.

"H-how's that for a fireworks show?" Gia asked, nervously chuckling to lighten the mood.

The force of the explosion had given Elna a sufficient reason to jerk her hand away from the blast wave of the explosion, looking back towards the chaos. Everyone was now, of course, shoken up as chaos was surely already on it’s way to overtaking the city. “Fuckin’ impressive...”

“That’s one way to coup a government,” Josien said calmly, staying with the others, keeping her head down generally - she did want to avoid becoming a suspect. It was clear, after all, that they weren’t from around these parts.

The walk back to the safehouse would precede their exit from Opobo — by the time they had, Regentoric forces pertaining to the Geirröd Fleet had secured much of the Ugbirian capital, the fate of the nation effectively sealed.

Once the mission had finished and the team was back at the safehouse, Josien found herself looking for the one agent that was probably worried about seeing her at this point - she had some words for Elna, and she couldn’t deny that she had thought about what she was going to say ahead of time… it had even factored into her earlier actions to an extent, subtly.

The rather limited confines of the safehouse, however, made this task a relatively short one, the agent having relocated herself to one of the bedrooms to slink away from her team... it’d just be a matter of walking in through the half-opened door. It was also maybe fitting that this was where Josien found her colleague.

“Hey,” she said, making her presence known. “Wanted to talk to you about something… well, I know you might not want to talk, but it’s about that whole thing actually.”

“..huh?” She evidently seemed a bit surprised, not too much though, at her superior’s presence. “Whole thing?”

“You know… the teasing and stuff,” Josien said, coming closer and flashing her usual devilish smile. “I want to ask… does it embarrass you, being teased in public?”

Some muttering followed from the agent. “You think? I’m not exactly... interested in you.”

“And you say that before you’ve even been with me…” said Josien, pausing. “I might have gone a bit far, though. I uh… guess I can say I’m sorry for embarrassing you in front of the foreigners.”

“That’s...” Elna paused, picking up after a brief moment. “Thanks, I guess.”

Despite the apology, Josien still moved forward, placing her hands on Elna’s shoulders. “But while I’ll admit I… went a little too far… it’s hard working around you, you know. Finding myself distracted all the time, like today… perhaps harder on me than it’s been for you…”

“...can you not take a hint?” She angrily replied, evidently annoyed.

“I’m saying I can ease up on the public stuff…” Josien started, before pausing, massaging her colleague’s shoulders. “But I think it’s only fair to get something back from it… I can mess with you less if you help me with my distraction problem…”

“Go mess with somebody else-” She’d only finished that sentence when she suddenly realized what that would mean if her superior took such advice to heart... Elna didn’t exactly wish this upon Gia. “..but I’m not going to ‘help’ you.”

“Why do you have to be like this? The government or whoever isn’t going to find out, we’re far from home right now… and besides… we do enough good to break the rules from time to time,” Josien pressed. “I mean… I could ask Gia for help but I doubt she would even realize what I’m talking about…”

Getting up from her current position, Elna continued the battle of words that was going on between them. “People are different. And I’m not interested. Doesn’t matter if we’re in Vaalfontein or Torch City.”

“I’m not looking for love or something… just a little deal,” stated Josien, her voice getting slightly irate. “So why don’t you… reconsider?” she added, a different sharpness in her voice, her temper perhaps triggered - it was always there, a certain fire in her, the same fire that had pushed her to get here in the first place. Most of the time, though, she kept it contained and focused.

“What would you... want, then?” The fact Elna was at least still considerant enough to hear her superior out was perhaps a testament to her meekness, or fear of just what she could do.

“For you to give me a chance…” Josien said, placing her hand under Elna’s chin and making her look up - upwards at her eyes. “And if you still wanna act cold to me after, fine, but at least give me a chance… instead of just thinking something’s bad because you’re told it is…”

“You’re... confident, I’ll give you that...” Elna trailed off. “But I think we both know what your idea of a chance is. And, well, sorry... that’s just not what I want.” She continued, backing off away from her superior, shifting towards the door. Elna’s demeanor seemed to have gotten less outright hostile, at least.

“Or are you just scared of what’ll happen if you do give me a chance? Scared you don’t know yourself as much as you think?” asked Josien, staying where she was and not following… for now, anyway.

“I think we’ll both be disappointed if I do. And anyhow... I’m quite happy as I am.”

Josien gave a long pause before she pushed past and moved to the doorway herself, stepping out. “Fucking fine, then,” she snapped, clearly frustrated… and taking her ounce of effort she could muster to restrain herself, as she lingered for another long few moments and considered whether or no she wanted to say anything else. “Suit yourself,” she said eventually, slamming the door in Elna’s face as she left the scene.

by **Forest State** » Sun Sep 08, 2019 1:22 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As the Gonshawar dynasty of Vajraya continues welcoming the Kaelics into its borders, in preparation for teaching its neighboring nation of Byunan a lesson, two mercenary pilots prepare to embark on a daring mission with great rewards… Meanwhile, the Riley-Shae Corporation competes with Gnothas Mearn in one of the most cutting edge fields - AI, and a mysterious pilot shows up.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 18: “STRANGE THINGS”

Ushmanapur, Gonshawar Dynasty Controlled Vajraya
February 3rd, 425

_______________________

How could one fight an enemy that they couldn’t see?

It was the situation Lauressa Bury-Me-With-All-My-Ice-On Elle found herself in… A suicide mission. Facing down against possibly the most terrifying fighters around right now, with support from… Four Kaelic Specters, who were still a formidable enemy even if they weren’t equipped with the same stealth tech? The presence of the Specters was impossible to understand considering the pro-Canguarian alignment of the Kaelic military and the fact that the Kaelics likely had no problem with what was set to happen to Las Playas, but… There was no time to think about that right now, there was only time to consider the options.

Leave and take their chances with getting shot down by their own formation, or keep going and risk getting shot down by the Euphemian and… By the Euphemian and Kaelic formation that was approaching them from the back, threatening to catch up with them and get into missile range soon. Sure, the escort fighters weren’t the main target, but unless they bailed and risked getting shot down… They would be in the way of this threatening force. And they didn’t have long to make the decision.

Lauressa heard a voice come over her radio not much longer after they were presented with the choice - the voice of Jock McLean, the North Ophiric mercenary who was leading the flight. “Elle, get on my six… No such thing as an invisible fighter, we’re going to be just fine,” McLean stated, perhaps a bit too confidently.

“I’m not saying they’re invisible… I’m saying we won’t be able to put missiles on them,” growled Lauressa. “We’re dead in the water… Or in the sky, to be accurate-”

“Are you with me or are you not, Globetrotter?”

Gritting her teeth, Lauressa paused. “Of course I am, but our odds here are shit… Don’t know if it would be better to risk getting shot down by the drones, at least we have a better chance of dealing with those than we do dealing with the Hierofalcons on our ass!”

McLean paused before speaking once again as Lauressa pulled next to him. “It’s going to be a suicide mission either way, I don’t think running is going to save us… But we’ve handled shit odds before, so hang in there and we’ll help each other get out of this…”

“This isn’t the same as all that, McLean!” shouted Lauressa, although she still accelerated to follow after the leader of the flight. “At least the other times we’ve been outmatched, we could actually fire on the enemy! What the hell are we going to do here? Hit them with IR missiles they’ll just shrug off? Ram them and take ourselves out, too? We’re overmatched… And I’m from that country, I’ve seen those planes and I know what they can do-”

“We don’t have options… Either follow after me, or test your luck on your own… Either way… Tell me if you’re in or out…”

“FUCK!”

The scream of frustration was the only thing Lauressa could muster as she remained on the wing of the flight leader, chasing after McLean’s plane even as the odds spelled certain doom. Because really, they had lost the moment that they showed up… And maybe it was better to just take it as a group than head their separate ways and most likely still die… So, as uncertain as she was, Lauressa kept going.

“Is that Lauressa?”

The question had been posed by Mallory Belmont, who was walking behind Teige Davin as the pair of pilots stepped into the hangar at the airbase in Ushmanapur, where Kaelic forces were setting up more and more for their operations in the country - there were both government affiliated pilots from the 1st Special Purpose Squadron, and mercenary pilots such as Mallory and Teige from the Riley-Shae Corporation. Right now, Vajraya was a hot destination and it seemed that something was going to happen soon with the country and their rival Byunan - and the Kaels were poised to be the frontrunners in these operations, especially with the Victorians being suddenly tied up with problems at home.

However, the scene in front of them was a strange one - their Squadron Executive, Lauressa Elle, was walking slowly away from her V-40 Gale jet fighter, a few technicians standing around her and working on getting off what seemed like some complex and experimental equipment. The equipment blended in decently with her black flight suit but it was still visible, but that wasn’t the thing that was strange… No, it was her behavior, like she was shaken by something even though there had been no combat sortie.

The technicians were talking to her about something. “Is it-” one of them started, before she cut the question off before they could continue with it.

“No, it’s nothing about the gear or anything,” Lauressa said, getting the heavy helmet off and managing to straighten herself out a little bit, wiping some sweat from her brow and looking at the two other pilots who were approaching. “Just some problems of my own, that’s all. The project… Is something else entirely.”

“If there’s problems, we need to know… We have to be able to account for them-” the technician started, but Lauressa once again didn’t allow him to finish as she pulled the large black harness off after unbuckling it in a couple of places.

“Don’t think I had any trouble in the cockpit,” Lauressa said plainly, as Teige and Mallory approached.

“What’s up, Laur? That… Equipment looks pretty strange,” Teige pointed out, looking her up and down. “And you don’t look so great. Something the matter?”

For once, Teige was concerned rather than being the joker that would find a way to make a joke about whatever situation was happening, or if not a joke, some sly remark. There were no sly remarks right now… Just genuine interest mixed with concern for someone who, so far, had been a pretty above average squadron leader.

“The equipment is just some stuff for the RSC. They’re tracking my movements and my performances and stuff, trying to… Get to the bottom of what makes me an ace. They want to figure out how to train their pilots better and they want to integrate flight data from good pilots into the AI programs they’re working on, so the AI can give better advice to the pilot and stuff...Gnothas Mearn has a head start in this area. Execs don’t want to let them get too far ahead…” Lauressa said, her face still covered in cold sweat.

“As for me…” she stated, letting out a sigh as she wiped her face with her sleeve. “I just had some trouble with something after getting on the ground - saw something that made me remember some things… I might be an ace, bu I have some things to work through still, you know.”

“Something that reminded you of… The Zone wars?” asked Teige, raising an eyebrow.

“Saw a black Specter on the ground and it brought me right back to facing off with Hierofalcons… And those ‘Florian Specters’ that certain corners speculated on a lot. It’s not a rumor… Everyone’ll deny it but I saw it with my own eyes. Saw one of our own, one of our best pilots, someone I was perhaps too hard on that I never had a chance to fix things with… I saw her get shot down by one. As for me, I wasn’t that far off from having the same fate… Just survived because of luck, really,” Lauressa said, speaking slowly and pausing often, breathing heavily but steadily stabilizing her breath as she looked between the two. “I don’t know the truth of everything… But I know that Kaels fighting for Kaelic enemies against Kaelic allies was something that happened on that day…”

“And I’ve been fucked up since that day…” Lauressa said under her breath, dropping the helmet on the ground and continuing to walk. She changed the subject quickly, deflecting the attention off herself and towards her colleagues. “What are you two doing in your flight equipment? You aren’t up for patrol today, I think.”

“We have… Something to handle,” Teige said, looking over to Mallory, who kept her mouth shut for now and didn’t add anything. “Safe to say we’ll be getting paid handsomely for it.”

“You’re doing a merc job with just the two of you?” asked Lauressa, surprised, and some concern of her own entering her voice. “What kind of job is this?”

“Just sending a bit of a message to Byunan and heading back,” Teige stated. “On behalf of one of the Emperor’s sons that’d like to prove he can handle these types of things. Handling it involves calling us in, of course.”

“Byunan’s air force doesn’t have the best planes in the world but it’s not a joke,” stated Lauressa. “Going out there with just yourselves is pretty fucking risky-”

“Well, I’m also not that bad of a pilot, and I have Mall here. She’s following after your footsteps in becoming an ace, you know,” said Teige, causing Mallory to look away slightly - the sudden shift of the attention on her wasn’t something she liked.

“Yeah, I’m sure we’ll be able to handle some passed down Sinican stuff bought at a discount,” said Mallory, continuing on in the direction of their planes.

“Just be careful, if you have to do this,” Lauressa said eventually, as the technicians started to move to usher her on elsewhere, telling her she had to be somewhere. It also seemed that the two other pilots would have to wait for one more Gale to depart before they could head out - there was one more plane in front of theirs, which had been readied with weapons according to their instructions earlier in the day. Now, the only thing left was waiting and getting started up.

They weren’t familiar with the other pilot. Lauressa, however, seemed to know her, approaching the helmeted figure as she approached her own plane, a Gale in a fresh coat of paint that seemed to signify another corporate pilot - the scheme was closer to the more eccentric color schemes the mercenaries used than the uniform ones of the regular military. “You’re going to do good in there,” Lauressa said, slapping the side of the helmet of this mysterious pilot - the equipment the smaller pilot was wearing wasn’t all that different from the equipment Lauressa had been wearing not long before. “And the execs are going to be impressed. I’m sure of it, alright?”

The pilot said something else to Lauressa but Teige and Mallory weren’t in a position to hear it. With that, the pilot moved to her Gale and climbed inside, not taking long to get the engines running and to getting on the runway, making room for Mallory and Teige to continue to their own planes and exit the hangar, heading out to the taxiway to position for the next takeoff after the mysterious pilot.

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “You ready for this, Mall?”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “Ready as I’ll ever be. Let’s do this before I find a way to talk myself out of it.”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Don’t see why you would… Together, we’ve got this.”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

Some time after they had taken off, the pair of V-40 Gale fighters were approaching Byunanese territory - the military of Byunan wasn’t the best but it was well drilled at least and the nationalist and monarchist government ensured that it was one of the national priorities, and this status had led to plenty of conflict on the border with Vajraya and its multiple internal states. They seemed to believe that there wasn’t going to be a good response from the Vajrayans because of how divided they were, and because of the problems that plagued the country. However, with the Gonshawar Dynasty making moves to acquire foreign support and strengthen their base within the country, the current system was changing.

They had been hired by one of the top sons of the dynasty to send a message to the Byunanese and that was exactly what they were going to do, even if Vajrayan hired fighters taking out Byuanese targets in their airspace might escalate things to a full on war rather than just a border conflict - the dynasty believed that they could take the smaller country if it came down to that, and he Vayrayan royalty was emboldened by that fact. More importantly, though, it would restore some legitimacy to an emperor that was often disregarded within his own country. How was an emperor supposed to influence powerful subjects, after all, if said emperor never responded to attacks?

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Increase your radar search range. This is where we’re supposed to run into the patrol.”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “On it. Let’s see what we find…”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

Mallory adjusted the radar, looking at the screen as the bars moved back and forth, eventually picking something up. It looked like, in this case, the enemy was a pair of J/Q-14 fighters bought from the PRS - while Byunan and the northern giant didn’t exactly have the closest relationship owing to things such as differences in ideology and a level of fear that the PRS would eventually come for them and their relative ally of Chengxia, they did buy some of their arms from them. They had a mix of good to decent tier weapons and vehicles from the PRS and worse quality indigenous ones filling the gaps, and it looked like this time the two mercenaries were going to get something from the better end of the spectrum.

It didn’t take all that long for them to be detected themselves, as was indicated by the radar tone.

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “They’re spiking us.”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “As expected… We are in their territory, after all. Let’s go for ‘em as soon as they’re in range… Not letting them get the first shots off.”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

Teige followed up on the suggestion by doing just that and firing off a shot to force the first of the two enemies onto the back foot as soon as they came into range - their older missiles didn’t have the same range as the more modern ones being used by the RSC, and it kept the Byunanese fighter duo from attacking as the Kaelic pilots roared towards them, the gap closing slowly but surely. As they ended up getting closer and closer to the enemy formation, though, that sense of things moving slowly was gone entirely. No, they were moving fast and it was apparent now.

Mallory, of course, had fired also, around the same time as Teige - from this range, the missiles weren’t as accurate and they wouldn’t strike, but they had given breathing room to the Gales and allowed them to get closer to the enemy… Except, now they had to win in this part of the battle. After evading, the first of the J/Q-14s fired back with a pair of shots of its own which caused the warning receiver to flash and make an audible tone, warning Teige to what was happening.

“Shit…” Teige muttered, checking and seeing that the ECM was indeed turned on, and popping flares and chaff while going into an evasive pattern. It was now the Kaelics that were on the back foot - but if they got past these missiles, they would probably be able to end the fight. They had swung and missed, slightly intentionally, and now they just needed to make their enemy swing and miss before they would deliver the metaphorical knockout. There was a certain art to fighting with jets, and this was just one part of it. Swinging and missing, and trying to be the first one to land a real blow.

One of the missiles dropped off due to ECM, the other one losing momentum as Teige forced it to go at an odd angle and change directions once it was already running out of fuel and energy. With that, Teige gave a hard pull on the stick and spun the plane around, facing the enemy and firing two missiles of his own - perhaps more than what was needed, but a miss in this case wouldn’t help them. The J/Q-14 exploded shortly afterwards, the wings ripped off by the force of both the missiles hitting it at once.

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Splash one Where are you…?”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “Defending against the other one… Think I’m safe, just have to make a couple more turns and lose this guy…”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Unless you’ve got eyes on him, you can’t say you’re safe. I’ll come over and see what I can do to help-”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “If you want, but there’s no need, I think I’ve got him on my own.”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

Teige gave chase after Mallory’s plane, which was visible on the radar, the enemy contact coming in more clearly now - Teige could see that they were ducking and weaving above the jungle, the elevated ground in some areas helping to hide the deadly dance that was going on between the two… And Mallory did indeed manage to lose the lock before Teige showed up, before bursting around in a loop towards the rear of the enemy as they both ascended again, attacking with missiles of her own and placing them well on the target.

There was a bang, and the second plane was down, clearing the group. Mallory leveled off and continued gaining altitude calmly, not disturbed by the encounter. It was peaceful for a moment as they continued briefly into the deeper part of enemy territory, getting a good look at the view of the hills and mountains around them in the process. The peace, though, didn’t last for that long as another contact showed up on radar.

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “What the hell? It’s showing as unknown.”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “Glitch in the radar?”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Never had that happen before… I’m more wondering what the hell the Byunanese have that shows up as an unknown contact.”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

They kept heading in the direction of the contact to check it out. “Missiles incoming…” Mallory reported over the comms channel, causing Teige to pull on the stick and go evasive as his plane also warned him of the incoming threat around the same time Mallory made the announcement. Once again, both the electronic countermeasures and the evasive moves helped to knock one of the missiles off their trail, but there were still a couple more headed Teige’s way - it looked like the pilot was especially intent on locking up the kill early…

One of them exploded dangerously close as Teige handled expertly to cause one to miss at what would have been the point of contact, and from there, a drop in altitude and coming close to the terrain was enough to throw off the final missile - with all three out of the way, Teige looked up to see if there was a visual yet on the mysterious enemy plane, and whether or not Mallory was in a safe position. It seemed Mallory was being targeted at the moment, and not willing to leave her to fend for herself, Teige chased after the strange fighter - visually, it had an experimental look to it, painted in a dark grey and with a wing design that Teige had only seen in photographs before… Never in person. Even so, the specific design overall was something Teige hadn’t even seen there. Perhaps it was based on some plane of the past, but what they were looking at was a plane of the future.

The lock tone sounding, Teige fired three missiles of his own, taking a risk by spending the ammo on this target. It was enough to force the enemy off the six of Mallory, and the pilot went into a high climb and dropped backwards to attempt to avoid the missiles, a couple of them falling away when they got close due to ECM… Mallory, on the other hand, went into a sharp turn to ditch the one missile which had already been fired at her, pushing the airframe to the limit when it came to G forces. But better to stress the airframe a bit than die in an explosion.

RSC Information Systems
COMMUNICATIONS TRANSCRIPT
CHANNEL 'TACTICAL FIGHTER SQUADRON C' - MAXIMUM ENCRYPTION
[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #008 "Cowgirl"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “Fucking close call! Thanks for the assist… But what the hell is that thing?” [deep breath]

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “Some of the design looks Sinican but I don’t know more than that…”

[Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “Since when have the PRS and Byunan been allies?”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “I don’t think they are… Doesn’t mean the Byunanese don’t end up with their hands on Sinican tech anyway…”

Plt. Grade II] // [Mallory Belmont] // “I’m looking at my radar and it looks like he’s returning to base…”

[Tactical Fighter Squadron C] // [V-40 Gale #009 "Rudeboy"] // [Plt. Grade II] // [Teige Davin] // “I’m not chasing that thing. Besides, they have air defenses set up if we head deeper. It’s a trap, I’d imagine.”
©425-426 Riley-Shae Corporation
^{All Rights Reserved.}

Accelerating further and picking up speed to get away from the bad situation quicker, Teige and Mallory flew back towards the Vajrayan side of the border as fast as they could without running out of fuel, watching their radar screens carefully for any alert of ground based air defenses or the strange and seemingly Sinican made enemy fighter that had just challenged them. They weren’t entirely sure why the fighter had left, but well… Teige theorized silently that the fighter might have spent his ammo, considering at least four shots had been fired, and there could likely have been others that Teige missed.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Teige rested back in the cockpit a bit, feeling somewhat beat up by the G forces. Well, not somewhat, but a lot - it was almost like the feeling of coming out of a boxing match where the opponent had landed a number of body shots. Still, they were alive, which was the most important thing. The ride back was actually peaceful, unlike the false period of peace they’d had before the third fighter appeared out of nowhere and gave them a scare.

The planes touched down on the runway without problem and made the run back to the hangar as normal, coming to a stop once they were inside before the pilots pulled the levers to open the canopies and climbed out, their heavy flight gear still on. “One hell of a fight,” said Teige, looking to Mallory as she messed with her helmet and then pulled it off entirely, shaking her hair out.

“Yeah, I’m curious about the last fighter,” she remarked, the two of them starting to make the walk towards the barracks as the ground crew moved to deal with the two fighters that had just landed, checking them for problems and damage and removing the weapons that hadn’t been fired. “Especially if the PRS actually is involved in it…”

“I doubt the PRS proper is involved,” tsked Teige, seemingly not taking the idea as one within the realm of possibility. “They’re a bit too distant from Byunan in terms of politics and getting along with each other - from what I’ve read, the Byunanese don’t trust them,” Teige added, showing that despite how he acted sometimes, he had done his research. “But… That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t throw them a few planes to see how they do in combat, maybe.”

“You read up on this,” Mallory remarked, surprised at the fact. “Didn’t think you were the type.”

Teige raised an eyebrow at that. “What can I say? This merc thing is, well… It’s growing on me, I guess you could say. And knowing the enemy is half the battle, or something like that. Don’t make me get into philosophy…”

They continued through the hallways of the large complex, looking for the other two members of their flight. “I think we should check on Laur, see if she’s doing better,” Mallory stated, as they walked.

To which Teige nodded. “Right. And if anyone has an idea what the hell that experimental fighter was supposed to be… I’m sure it’s going to be our ace,” Teige added to Mallory’s statement.

It was a very strange situation, yes. Maybe the most experienced member of the unit in terms of being in high pressure combat situations would know more about what they had seen, about the strange design characteristics, about where the PRS lay in all of this. Although, based on what they had seen earlier with talks about the RSC’s AI and Lauressa being part of the program, and her shaken behavior earlier, it seemed like she already had enough on her mind at the moment...

by **Turmenista** » Sun Sep 08, 2019 7:55 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E13
Thousands of Miles Away

For a time, the Akhmanar Empire and the Angecalian Republic have long since been at odds with each other—both nations saw each other as unstable, weak business partners that were detrimental to their geopolitical interests, and both effectively ignored each other for much of the 400s simply out of geographical length and neglect. However, perhaps by some twisted turn of fate, both Akhmanar and Angecalia have found themselves with a common foe in South Ophir: Kael.

For the first time in decades, an Akhmanari politician will be stepping foot in Angecalia after an uncomfortably lengthy period of silence between both nations. Such an event marks a great milestone in Akhmanari-Angecalian relations, but just what exactly will this meeting entail, aside from the usual diplomacy?

_{DATE: 0925 hrs. - February 20, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Vizier Kaaba-shen Sekhmet of Djarzurma | LOCATION: Providência, Aurantia | Angecalian Republic}

Vizier Kaaba-shen Sekhmet of Djarzurma often liked to compare his visits to faraway countries in the pacific to landing on a new planet out of some popular science fiction movie or novel. He often wondered what it was like to be one of those many humble Pharaist missionaries that went out to third world nations in Kir and the Pacific to spread the gospel, all venturing out to the strangest of lands in Tsion and living off the land and among the people.

Thus, he saw landing in Angecalia much like an astronaut would’ve landed one one of the strange, mysterious planets within Cleon’s solar system, places only visible through telescopes and grainy photographs taken by Victorian and Euphemian probes launched before the Calamity struck. Angecalia had an aesthetic he simply couldn’t grasp his fingers on—there was a bit of Alvimian here and there, but also some Pacific influences he simply couldn’t understand at first until he was fully exposed. Akhmanar certainly had the capability to go into the pacific, but flights and ship voyages out here were rare, if they ever happened at all…

Driving through Angecalia in his motorcade, Kaaba-shen could only but glimpse at countless wonders and architectural accomplishments in the city of Providência. A seemingly endless number of skyscrapers, apartments, office buildings, and historical sites made up the Angecalian capital city as they drove, a Pacific Aerodynamics A282 supersonic airliner clearly visible to the motorcade as they saw it taking off from the airport they came from. Much like Akhmanar itself, as well as its Jade Sea neighbor Imalakia, and perhaps even Euphemie and Utsan, it seemed as if Angecalia had taken a few pages out of the imaginary book, “How to set up good public transportation networks,” as supersonic airliners and high speed rail were utterly ubiquitous here. Travel was seamless and quick, something cities like Yevosh, Analamanga, and Torch City simply couldn’t match in terms of efficiency.

Most interesting of all in the Angecalian skyline was the Nakata Building, a futurist triangular-looking thing that was a trade center of sorts, but blended into the skyline quite well despite eclipsing a few of the older buildings in terms of youth.

The Nakata Building.

Soon, Kaaba-shen’s motorcade found itself merging with the local police, the Polícia Governamental, who escorted them further into the city towards the “political quarter,” so to speak. The Palácio da República awaited the Akhmanari motorcade that approached the building in question, a contingent of the Angecalian PG awaiting the Akhmanari diplomat and his Providence Office counterparts. To put it lightly, Kaaba-shen saw it as impressive that a nation in such a position like Angecalia was capable of feats like these—the only other Pacific nations he could name off the top of his head were Adunu and Pulabesar...and everyone knew how those two nations were like.

The Palácio da República.

Waiting for him as he exited the motorcade was the Angecalian President, Leandro Gimenes Alcantara, quite the photogenic man that he’d only seen in nondescript South West Ophir and West Ophir news articles, mostly from the enigmatic LKI and EBN...on side stories. It was quite a shift, really, covering a nation that had a remarkably low profile on social media and geopolitics, and one that Akhmanar had neglected for much of its history out of some petty differences.

Score one more for diplomacy, it seems. Kaaba-shen approached the man and held out a hand to shake—the first official Akhmanari-Angecalian handshake in what seemed like decades. Again, mostly a symbolic move, but it meant the world to the Vizier. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you in person, President Alcantara.”

"Certainly," President Leandro Gimenes Alcantara was a busy man, of course — a new administration came with its difficulties and challenges, one might imagine. "Angicália welcomes you."

Thanking the president, Kaaba-shen was led into the palace, taking a moment to actually take in the place itself rather than blindly walking by important sites of interests, modernist paintings well ahead of their time, artifacts, and the like. The Palácio da República was an avant-garde masterpiece, the paintings flanking their entry into the building while bright red carpets let them on deeper into the building. It certainly was an entirely different world to the usual architecture and aesthetic of Yevosh, though that went without saying. "Discussions certainly have been in order for some time," Alcantara began, leading the way on. It wouldn't be long until they'd reached the President's office, Alcantara seating himself opposite to Kaaba-shen.

“One way or another, I knew this day was going to come,” Kaaba-shen began cryptically, accompanying the Angecalian president as they walked into the office. “I’m sure you’re well aware of the capabilities of your northern neighbor, Kael. What they’ve done, what they’re capable of doing, et cetera.. We now find ourselves with a mutual problem on our hands: that problem being Kael and its expanding sphere of influence. I’ve discussed with the Viziers about this beforehand, and they’ve all said the same thing: the best Kael is a contained Kael, and knowing their interests in Kir and their track record in South Ophir, it’s easy to know why.”

Alcantara hesitated briefly, silently nodding. "We do not wish to become another Velezia." One could interpret the statement twofold — that he did not desire Angicália to be beholden to Akhmanar's foreign interests as Velezia had been, and that he did not wish Kael to inflict upon Angicália the same fate that had befallen Velezia.

The Vizier seemed to have understood this without any explanation and calmly continued. “It is not in the Empire’s interest to expand its influence to Angecalia in the same manner we did in Velezia. ...That being said, we do not want another “Velezian diaspora” emergency to happen in your country. Kael as a country is nothing you are capable of fending off yourself, but you must be aware of its allies, Regentor and Hesperia. It’s not in my interest to start a fight between your country and Kael and its allies, but we can, perhaps, geopolitically isolate them in ways that do not require bloodshed.”

"They are naturally a threat to the interests of the Republic," Alcantara agreed. "Competing with them is good for business — and we would never tolerate a genocidal nation of slavers."

“Indeed.” Kaaba-shen nodded. “While full-fledged warfare against Kael is not in my interest or the Vizier Assembly’s interest, we feel as if their influence can be curbed with enough pressuring and actions on both of our ends. Politically isolating them is one tactic, but one I have personally thought of is imposing sanctions or, even better, a full on embargo on Kael. Akhmanar would be willing to provide Angecalia the air routes needed to continue trading in Medeuropa while also providing the support to maintain an active embargo on the slavers. As for Velezia, it was a tragedy brought about by an inept and bloated government. Now, millions of Velezians are paying the price, suffering under an iron fist and chattel slavery by genocidal people who wish to erase their national identity. It seems unfathomable that such a heinous act would be happening right here, right now, to a country in South Ophir, but it’s real. We do have a chance to stop it, however.”

"The Euphemie of four decades prior would have put a stop to this." Alcantara noted. "We cannot rely on the heart of modern civilization on Tsion forever, of course. I merely find it questionable that Akhmanar did not condemn this diplomatically when it happened — we are among the few to have imposed not just mere economic sanctions, but a full-scale embargo on Kael."

“Perhaps that question can be better answered by the Emperor but, I digress.” Kaaba-shen folded his arms. “Euphemie and the FRNO have since rescinded their roles as the “world police,” so to speak, so we simply cannot rely on them to contain Kael or its allies anymore. Not to mention, Euphemie still aligns itself with the slavers—even in spite of the rumors of Kaelic interference in Turmenista. I firmly believe that cutting off Kael’s air routes and imposing a sustained embargo would do more to keep it at bay than a full military intervention—we only would like to know if your country would support us in this endeavor.”

"Drastic action isn't good for my nation's business. I believe Akhmanar cutting a few air hubs and granting our own airliners a few more would be... appreciated. Whether or not Akhmanar intends to impose fiscal consequences is not our decision, or place to decide. That is your own. A free and progressive society is built upon trade and the exchange of ideas, and we aspire to achieve profitable relations with the Akhmanari Empire."

Kaaba-shen nodded. “Indeed. As distant as our countries may be, it is imperative that we maintain amicable relations with one another for the future. As for whether or not we impose economic sanctions on Kael, again, I believe that the seizure or stopping of Kaelic ships in the North Atlantic and the cutting of Kaelic air routes would be necessary steps on our part to ensure these slavers are kept in check. We’re not asking of Angecalia to do anything more than they already are. All we are asking for is the improvement of relations between our countries and the sponsoring of trade and positive ideas.”

"Aside from our preexisting discussions regarding airliner routes; our investors, of course, have their concerns and worries given the situation in the Jade Sea. I am certain however that the Atlantic's ports are safe and offer bountiful economic return. Reducing your nation's tariffs towards products from Angicália would be an excellent start to attracting our nation's investment, if that is what you desire."

The Vizier nodded, as if the Angecalian president were expecting such a response. “That would be more than welcome to the Empire’s own investors.

"I believe we can shake hands on this deal, then." Getting up, Alcantara offered Kaaba-shen a handshake, which the Vizier promptly took with a firm grip. "Our companies will be in touch... I'll be making a few calls. I'm sure the airliners will be pleased to hear they'll have new opportunity in pristine Akhmanar... and I'm sure the tourists will love it, too.”

“I’m glad to hear that we could meet on the same page in regards to this,” Kaaba-shen said, a smile on his face. “And our tourists will love this place as well. Now, about Angecalia, I heard on the news there was this one restaurant that was the best in all of South Ophir…”

As they left from the palace to go to that nondescript five-star restaurant the president couldn’t stop talking about, Kaaba-shen couldn’t help but congratulate himself for yet another diplomatic success abroad—this time in the Pacific. While Angecalia and Akhmanar were far from allies in the geopolitical sense, the warming of relations between both countries was definitely something that was a well-needed change from the usual geopolitical distancing and hostility. A deal with Angecalia definitely seemed to be profitable not just for Akhmanari interests, but also for their ongoing odds with Kael and their geopolitical sphere.

As for how they would go about economically and politically isolating Kael… well, the political side of things was already handled here. Kaaba-shen wasn’t much of a military man and especially not a naval man, but he knew going about economically isolating Kael in the North Atlantic was a task best done by the Akhmanar Naval Forces...which was where he was going to next.

by **Valefontaine** » Mon Sep 09, 2019 12:22 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

S4E14

Diplomacy

The Angecalian Republic has long stood in the sidelines of Tsion's geopolitics, tensely contending its peace at odds with neighboring states. Upholding the moral traditions preceding the calamity, Angecalia is something of an anomaly among wartorn, totalitarian neighbors. In this isolation, it seeks closer ties with foreign friends abroad — particularly the People's Republic of Sinica, with which Angecalia shares a lengthy history of joint military technological cooperation.

_{DATE: 0900 hrs. - February 23, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Presidente Leandro Gimenes Alcantara | LOCATION: Donghai, People's Republic of Sinica 华夏人民共和国}

The roar of jet engines served as backing orchestra to President Leandro Gimenes Alcantara's flight into Donghai. The ANGAER A155 supersonic airliner, bearing the unmistakable yellow and black livery of an aircraft pertaining to the state. It wasn't a visit made on short notice, of course. Blissful neutrality in the affairs of things gave Angecalia time — plenty of it, in fact. The tarmac would welcome the aircraft's landing gear, quiet murmurs among the detachment of PG^[1] agents as the aircraft taxied to its stop upon the tarmac — to which President Alcantara readied himself.

Publically, it'd be a meeting to discuss expanding business into Sinica. Given their system of government, negotiation of this sort occasionally came into play to permit favorable deals. Angecalia thrived on its exports and its bustling aerospace industry, which brought with it airliners and much more of the sort. Where many saw upon maps cities and perhaps borders here and there, Angecalia still hinged itself upon the globalized neoliberal ideals that had once forged Tsion over four centuries prior — to which the shrewd Angecalian businessman could see here and there air hubs, potential routes, and new sources of income. That wasn't to insinuate it was some immoral worship of the Dollar, akin to the Euphemians. No, profit could be made without entirely abandoning one's morals.

It was a wise time to come to Sinica. Sinica had, after all, been devastated by the brief but terrible Teuton War, millions dead to the proliferation of anthrax weapons from the Teuton lines. This atrocity was fresh in the minds of the Sinican people, and while they had ungracefully squandered a way into Medeuropa, business still presented itself in Ophir — business still presented itself in the form of Leandro Alcantara.

Stepping off the aircraft, met by the occasional camera flash here and there as he descended the steps, Leandro figured it would be simple enough — talk to the Sinicans and achieve something sufficiently favorable, mutually beneficial to both sides.

“Welcome to Sinica, President Alcantara.” The Sinican foreign minister, Wang Dongliang, approached the group, extending his hand for a friendly handshake.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet face-to-face." He smiled, returning the gesture with a firm handshake. "I suppose Donghai awaits us, then."

“Indeed, I’m confident the Pearl of the Orient will not disappoint. It is our pride on the eastern shore, after all.”

"Of course." Nodding, Alcantara allowed his Sinican counterpart to lead the way, most of his security detachment save for two agents keeping behind at the aircraft.

Wang led his Angicalian counterparts towards the row of Donghai Motors DQ-422 bulletproof SUVs waiting on the side. At the sound of motors going alive, the convoy headed off on their trip to the Donghai Republican Palace.

As the convoy proceed on their way, Wang pointed outside the window of the SUV. On the direction of where he pointed at sits a monument statue beside the sea. The statue portrays two men dropping their weapons and holding hands in understanding.

“My dear visitors, on our right-hand side is the Monument of Peace. It was built after the Transatlantic War, as a monument to the terrible Transatlantic War that ravaged Tsion thirty-two years ago. The statue holds the hope of the Sinican people that such horror will not repeat itself, not for the Pacific, not for the Atlantic, not for the world.”

"It is by the solemn grace of God and Providence that we were spared the conflict's worst horrors." Leandro agreed. "Angecalia is committed to upholding the notion that this atrocity may never befall the world again. Even now, the times test the firmaments of the global stage."

“It is of deepest misfortune for Tsion that the world has not become a better place since the last war. In Mederum, Kir and Southern Ophir, military conflicts continued to break out one after another, nations and regimes resorting to violence when there could have been more moral and peaceful means to settle their differences. Imperialism, racism and slavery continued to run rampant in the Atlantics. It seemed the horrors of the Transatlantic War did not teach them the lesson they need.”

"It is an unfortunate story... that those men and women who died for peace merely paved the way for another chain of wars to burn through the continent." Alcantara noted, grimly shaking his head.

The convoy went up on a highway. From outside the window, the Donghai skyline entered the sights of the SUV’s passengers.

“It is of me and my many predecessors’ strongest beliefs that prosperity should be forged by cooperation and not war, slavery and military aggression. Just like the Donghai skyline, it was never built with the weapons of war, but the people in peace. Without the peace in the Pacific, Datong would have never become the pearl it is.”

"If the great men who'd built the modern world we live in, four centuries on past the Apocalypse, looked upon how we've squandered their legacy of globalization and progress, they would surely turn in their graves. We, of this day and age, are simultaneously an object of surprise and great disappointment to our ancestral predecessors."

Wang nodded in agreement. “It would not only disappoint those who sweated and bled to build us this world, if these great people who pioneered the basis of mankind’s civilization from long before the apocalypse see the decadence of our world, I’m sure our ancestors would weep at how we defaced the future which they admired with the hope that mankind would eventually build a world where understanding and wisdom would eventually replace hostility and war as well. I have studied about the world prior to the Calamity in University before I became a diplomat, while the history book would inevitably lead to the war that doomed mankind four hundred and twenty five years ago, there were also better times where the international community back then could nurture an understanding with each other despite their differences. There were also wars, but everyone believed in the notion of a better world where war would no longer be the first solution to problems troubling the world. That notion became the very inspiration for me to become a diplomat.”

"Perhaps the people of the world will learn once again to dream." He vaguely commented. There was, after all, something that could be aspired towards, one could suppose.

The convoy has finally reached the venue of the meeting - the Donghai Republic Palace. The exterior of the building represented a harmonic mix of traditional east Sinican and modernist architecture. Wang opened the door of the SUV, and invited his Angicalian counterparts to enter the building. “We have arrived, welcome to the Donghai Republican Palace.”

"It's an honor." Nodding, Alcantara stepped off, taking a brief moment to take in the cool air before beginning towards the palace.

The interior of the Republican Palace was decorated with gorgeous relics of Sinican history and art pieces depicting the past of Sinican civilization. Walking through the corridors, the visitors could feel the pride Sinicans take in the long history of their civilization, yet at the same time, as the portrayed period hits closer to modern day, the paintings on the wall had a switch in tone, emphasizing the achievements of reforms and opening up, reminding people that even for a country as vast and ancient as Sinica, prosperity was not achieved by sticking blindly onto what things had been for thousands of years, but the courage to set aside pride and embrace progress. Wang approached a wooden door standing in front of the group, and gently pushed it open. “We have arrived.” He invited.

"Lead the way." Leandro gestured in. His security detachment had already assumed their cue to wait by the door idly, complying accordingly.

"Very well." Wang nodded, then led Leandro into the room, the door closing behind.

Compared to the gorgeous decorations outside, the room held a much humble yet practical interior, a large round table in the center and simple but comfy-looking seats on the sides. Sitting on the innermost seat of the room was none other than the Sinican Prime Minister Li Wancai himself.

"Welcome, President Leandro! I hope you enjoyed the trip." Li stood up and greeted the group, inviting them to their seats. Li held the appearance of an average middle-aged Sinican man, but despite his age, the man was energetic.

"My trip to the Orient has treated me well, thank you." Alcantara seated himself opposite Li, getting right to the point. "To get to the point: I'm sure you've heard of Akhmanar's recent posturing in the northern Atlantic, yes?" He questioned. It wasn't exactly related to the matter at hand — but in another way, it most certainly was.

"Yes." Li nodded, with Wang sitting beside him. "If you are speaking of the Akhmanari seizing or sinking Kaelic vessels in the Northern Atlantics, we were made aware of the situation. A concerning move, but nonetheless understandable under the current circumstances between the two. There wasn't really any internationally recognized law forbidding the sinking of civilian vessels since the first Calamity, and it is not exactly easy to clearly define the line where civilian ends and military starts in Kael, they are a country of mercenaries mostly, after all. I assume your visit today here has a relation to the matter?"

"It's a matter pertinent to business, you could say." Alcantara replied. "Our investors are confident in the expansion of our airliners, and they see opportunity and promise in the People's Republic. However, much of this preferential service at present is granted to the neighboring Kaels rather than Angicália. On the behalf of the Angecalian Republic's corporate sector, we are requesting a clarification on the Sinican's part regarding their tolerance of business with a nation that actively commits genocide, slavery, and wages war in Ophir and Kir alike." There was little need to hide his intentions here — Leandro aspired that Angicália would replace Kael in air routes to the People's Republic of Sinica, superceding its neighbor in its status of being the 'gateway to the east'. There was moral reasoning behind this too, of course — Kael's politics were reprehensible, intolerable even, to the Angecalian government.

"The crimes and increasingly questionable practices that has been committed by the Kaelic government were not left unseen by the Sinican government and her people, especially after their alignment with the Lecanuets, we have even less reason to continue our tolerance to their behavior. However, what Sinica could do against them alone in our current status among the international community has been and, by records, would remain limited without support from Mederum and the rest of the world. While the majority of the world turned blind on their atrocities, what we could do against them would merely be a glass of water on a cart of burning woods. I see that you have an ambitious aspiration against the Tsaoir clan and their collaborators in our market, the people of Angicalia has long been a friend to the people of Sinica, if you have more to elaborate on your plan, please do, I am listening." Li answered, letting out a subtle tone of disdain to the leadership of Kael in his words.

"The political system of Sinica requires political negotiation beforehand, and on the behalf of the Angecalian Republic I intend to expand our preexisting air routes with the People's Republic, with the establishment of a new hub in Tianyang, an expansion of our current one in Donghai, and brand new SST routes into East Datong, expanding preexisting hubs. Imagine it — Providência to Datong in six hours. The future's in the skies, of course — but I'm required to state, on behalf of our corporations, that it would be most cost-effective for the People's Republic if they simply... freed up some space. Kael relies on the People's Republic as a gateway for civilian travel... that ultimately funds their terrorist warmongering in southern Ophir and Mederum at large. We seek the gateway status the Federation of Kael's airline industries presently hold in Sinica. A bridge between west and east, truly."

"The offer you present is indeed one that interests us. As for the Kaelic enterprises, by the time your corporations are here, there will be no warmongering competitors for their sights." Li smiled, hinting the obvious. "However, we do have a favour to ask in return. As you may know, while the People's Republic and the Federal States of Euphemie maintains a relatively healthy relationship in the Pacific, due to past affairs, our relation with them in the Atlantic is not exactly as good as it is in the Pacific. A successful enforcement of a better future where morals can return to the politics of our world requires a stable and healthy cooperation between those who hold the power to make a change. It would be for the best if Angicalia can continue to act as a bridge between Sinica and Euphemie in helping the nurturing of potential cooperation to achieve a more mutually-beneficial partnership for us all, and to further lower the risks to repeating our predecessors' mistakes in the past for the well-being of the world."

"Building bridges, and not walls, is the cornerstone of the ideals this nation was founded upon. Angicália would be more than glad to host any bilateral negotiations between the two brethren states." Alcantara offered a smile, noting the benefit of the Sinican's offer. "Preserving the peace is good for business, after all."

"Indeed, when everyone has their business benefits tied to each other, they are also less likely to turn on each other. Peace and business together nurtures a good cycle for the betterment of our world." Li agreed. "It is the right way to go for the world as an alternative to the status quo. I have our countries have a common ground on the matter, the expansion of our cooperation will be a pleasant one, I can believe. Do you have any other offers or matters that you would like to discuss with us?"

"I offer you a tourism boom," Alcantara replied, chuckling to himself. "All jokes aside, I suppose we can shake our hands on this matter. To continued cooperation..." He extended his hand, offering Li a handshake.

"Indeed, pleasant cooperating with you." Li extended his hand and gave Alcantara a firm handshake. "And may the future be bright for Tsion."

CONTEXT NOTES

1 - PG - The Polícia Governamental (Governmental Police) act as a praetorian guard of sorts for the political leadership of Angicália, providing security for leaders at home and abroad.

by **Forest State** » Mon Sep 09, 2019 5:07 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

While an increasing anti-Kaelic sentiment grows in some parts of the world, some of the top business and political figures of the pro-Kaelic Free States League have gathered to meet at Falkirk, one of the ethnic Kaelic settlements within the colony of Plantacion. The discussion is mainly about improving economic ties in the face of the humanist shift happening in some locales… And how to plan around such moves.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 19: “PLANNING AHEAD”

Falkirk, Republica Autonoma de Plantacion, Federation of Kael
February 25th, 425

_______________________

Plantacion - depending on who you asked, it was either an autonomous Kaelic region which was home to resources, a decent sized workforce, and an administrative regime that was aiding the future stability of the autonomous territory and the Kaelic nation at large by pressing the matter of assimilation, or it was the face of oppression in Ophir, a place where slavery and the active destruction of the Velezian culture still went on. What someone’s opinions of Plantacion were largely depended on political lines - the allies of Kael tended to have opinions ranging form the Velezians deserving it, to indifference, and not caring enough to complain.

In Kael itself, the policies were something that few from even the opposition clans and parties would speak out against… The fact of the matter was, Velezia had been a threat to the Kaelic way of life. They only had themselves and Akhmanar to blame for their plight, or at least that was the prevailing opinion within the decidedly post-moral populace. Internationally, the opinions depended to an extent on which nation was being asked. One would be hard pressed to find Gallians, Victorians, or Ruiters complaining about such treatment, and plenty of nations in South and Central Ophir were some mix of happy that Velezia was gone and indifferent to their current plight because of it, or they were simply satisfied to keep doing business without paying much heed to the shadier aspects of it all.

Which was why Kael, Hesperia, Canguari, Edonia, and the Ophiric Rouge had signed a deal to become the Free States League, a multinational alliance which was committed to the continued existence and prosperity of all of the involved nations. It was a diverse bunch, really. The Kaelics and their gunboat capitalism, the traditional Hesperians - although this was starting to shift slowly as Kaelic cooperation brought both more cutting edge technology and different ideas into the Hesperian borders, the Canguarians who had finally made it into an actual alliance with Kael following a complex geopolitical situation involving the attempted nationalist coup and the FSE, the Edonians and their… Autocratic government, Ourielist heresy, and instability, and finally the Cortina Roja or the Ophiric Rouge as it was known in some circles, the only Velezians that the Kaels were fine with and a new communist nation that peculiarly enough found themselves working with a nation like Kael.

It was a strange partnership, yes, but the Kaels had been embedded into the organization ever since the war with Velezia, and a landlocked country run by former guerillas with a communist government wasn’t the most attractive location for investors. In other words, they were fine taking the assistance and keeping their identity while the remnants of the ‘fasicst’ Velezian state of old were torn down… The Cortina Roja had always been more of an indigenous movement anyway, separate from the identity of the city dwelling Velezians that found themselves under the iron grasp of the Autonomous Republic right now in Plantacion.

It was in this territory, specifically in the ethnically Kaelic and Hesperian settlement of Falkirk, that a number of people from all of these territories were meeting to talk business and politics - well, except for the Cortina Roja. Business meetings weren’t exactly their thing, and most of the communications between them and their Free States League allies were through more discreet methods than a high class ‘party’ on the property of Mave Devine - of course, Devine was the head of the Gnothas Mearn company, one of Kael’s top defense and IT firms and the producer of the F/A-20 Specter that had bounced back from a rough start to see regular use in the Kaelic military… And now that some more deals had been signed, the Canguarian military too.

The scene of the party…

Rorie and Shevon Faolain were just two of the ones in attendance, and despite their surname, they weren’t nearly the most important - the Faolain clan was, of course, the one that was historically the most powerful in Kael. They’d unified the country and they’d had a number of their members reach the position of Ceannasai. The Tsaoir clan was on top right now, but even then, the Faolains still brought in consistent profits while working with the nation’s state owned enterprises, guiding them with a steady hand and helping to push the progress of technology in the country through their funding.

It was just that, the brother and sister who were sticking close to each other at this high profile gathering weren’t exactly in the best position right now with the rest of the family - they had the surname, yes, but the both of them felt that it’d just take a couple wrong moves for them to suffer severe consequences in their family standing. In other words, despite being the children of Riordan Faolain, who was the brother of the clan’s heir apparent, they were seen as… And it was hard to term it as anything else… losers. Disappointments. They were said to not have the same skillsets that ran in the family, and neither of them had finished college without dropping out. Perhaps that had been a mistake on their part that led to the questioning of their work ethic, but it was too late to take it back now.

“... Anyway, there’s no such thing as an impassable blockade. I’m sure we’ll find a way to make up for all this, whether it’s changing the means of travel or whether it’s getting ‘em to back down a little and stick to a normal embargo,” said Odran Faolain, their uncle and the one who was most likely going to inherit the clan leadership from Cristor Faolain. Odran was also the head of the Gabháltais Náisiúnta, also known in Euphemian as the National Holdings Company. It was just what it sounded like. A large state owned conglomerate which had its hands in both real estate and a number of other things.

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll find your way,” said Viktor Hirsch, the Premier of the Cooperative Sphere of Edonia. It was a bit of a peculiar title - one would think that Edonia was communist from the title, but really, the nation was just, well, authoritarian. It took from communism, it took from fascism, but at the end of the day it was neither, and was left with a brand of politics that amounted to the government working to keep everyone else in line… And exercising an iron grip when they perceived there to be a need for it. Their conversation was of course referring to the Akhmanari moves in the North Atlantic to block all Kaelic vessels - civilian and not just military.

“But there’s no boycotts in Edonia, you know. We could use some more things from your company, I’m sure. Helps with keeping the people satisfied, having the latest things,” added Viktor, chuckling. It seemed the dictator was at least somewhat self aware of the nature of his rule. “Make flat screen TVs affordable for everyone and the people will watch it instead of heading out into the streets, yeah?”

“Comfort does have a way of breeding stability,” Odran stated, his eyes traveling to the two younger members of the clan who were kind of hanging around, not quite making it obvious but definitely listening in on the conversation. “These here,” started Odran, bringing attention to the pair. “Are my nephew and niece… You’ll have to forgive them for their lack of manners in introducing themselves. You could say that they’re… The black sheep of their generation-”

“It’s not that bad,” Rorie remarked, a bit miffed that they were being called out in front of a national leader from the neighboring country over. “Anyway, I’m Rorie. Rorie Faolain, of course.”

“And I’m Shevon,” his sister said, also extending her hand. “And no, we’re not twins… We just look like it. Anyway, we’re uh…”

“Already familiar with who you are,” Rorie picked up for his sister’s sentence. “We heard you talking about trade and the like. You know, if you’re interested, the family actually gave us a business to run that’s in the category of all that… We’ve, uh, had some troubles with getting kicked out of the PRS, so we’re actually looking for new clients.”

This just made the Edonian dictator chuckle again. “Well, I’d have to say I’m honored that you consider my nation as a replacement for the PRS… What would this business involve, per say?”

Rorie reached into his suit - which the clan had all but forced him to wear for this event, he wasn’t the type of person to wear one normally - and pulled out a business card, showing it to Hirsch. There were words written in bold lettering on it, in the company colors: Loighistic Clover. Or to the outside world, Clover Logistics. “We ship freight, actually. On large planes, small planes… We’re working on getting the ground delivery part of it set up. At the end of it all we’re supposed to have one of the largest fleets in Ophir - for now, though, we’re looking for some regional contracts, perfect for your nation…”

The speech was almost slightly nervous sounding, as if Rorie hadn’t given it before, but that was alright. The point had gotten across enough. “I suppose the boring parts of trade, the shipping things back and forth, the logistics and the like, are some of the most important… Our government will give it a look,” said Hirsch. Which made sense. Not many prestigious companies probably wanted to set up in Edonia, where ethnic clashing happened and where the police and military tended to clash with said factions in response to them getting too rowdy. In other words, it was a market that could heat up at any moment. Not the best from the perspective of a CEO - or a co-CEO in the case of Rorie - but it did mean the contract would be worth more. Dangerous jobs tended to be more rewarding, after all.

“That was a surprisingly good sell from the black sheep of the family,” remarked Odran, seemingly set on embarrassing the two of them. It wasn’t that much longer afterwards that they slinked off, avoiding their uncle and continuing to walk the room, the business on their mind. There would be time to relax later. But for now, the business and meeting clients was the most important thing - if they failed in this venture, it wasn’t like the family was ever going to put them in charge of an important company again.

“I swear to Ouriel…” muttered Shevon. Interestingly enough, the Faolain clan did have a history with Ourielism moreso than the common paganism around Kael. Although, the Kaelic branch of Ourielism was nearly the same as the Edonian branch, mixed in with pagan ideas and altered to fit the national culture and philosophy - the religion, not having all that much in common with its more traditional forms, believed more in self reliance and self advancement, in getting to heaven through making a success of oneself. Very different values, but also very Kaelic. It was their cutthroat desire to make successes of themselves that had brought so many mercenaries from Kael to the south of Ophir in the first place.

“Don’t know what we did to get on his wrong side,” Rorie said, bristling at the remarks from their uncle - kind of hurt, especially from someone they aspired to be like. Odran was, of course, a very successful businessman and the type of person the Faolains wanted their younger generation to grow up to be like.

“Dropping out of college had something to do with it,” mused Shevon as they continued on through the party. It would have been easy to call it quits here, to just mingle socially and hang out with the couple of friends they had spotted while making the rounds, but that wouldn’t help their case with the business. They needed all the important clients they could get which meant talking to all the important people they had access to.

They found themselves looking at a high profile conversation that was happening right in front of them, as they kept going. Maura Tsaoir, the Empress-Ceannasai, the top leader of the Kaelic people… And a man that was sitting next to her, flanked by a couple of Velezian women, presumably geneslaves, and talking. The man happened to be the President of Hesperia, Reid Belmont-Walker. “Now, I have to admit I had some ideas about you Kaels, but the accommodations here are nice. And the settlement, strangely enough it feels like it could be some town back home in Hesperia. I’m impressed,” Belmont-Walker said, causing Tsaoir to grin.

“You see, this is the difference between us and the Angicalians. We have our differences in ideas, yes, but at the end of the day we respect your border and you return that for us… The big nation to the south on the other hand, you do something in your own territory and you’ve got them singing to the world about it. I’m not oblivious about what happened in the PRS. We get kicked out, suddenly Angicalia shows up there with new routes. I doubt it’s just the supersonic shit that made them make that decision,” said Tsaoir.

She reached for a glass of alcohol on the table in front of them, sipping at it. “So they’ve got supersonic transports, whatever. I’ll put the boys in Whiteford into topping it and they’ll come up with something, I’m sure - the KAC’s a hell of a company, the advantage of the southerners isn’t going to last for long… But as far as this boycotting and embargo shit goes, I have the feeling your nation is going to be one of the next ones on their list because you might be a bit too traditional for their tastes. And because of your ties with us.”

Pausing, Tsaoir gave a light shrug. “So I’m not saying you should mess with their stuff headed through the straits. But I am saying that, you know, you might as well make a point and embargo them first… And if you agree to let Kaelic corporations increase their presence in Hesperia - which I’m sure will also encourage the reverse, with our companies working with yours within our own borders, we can make up for the economic troubles. Together. They’re waging warfare against us, just because it’s not being fought with guns and bullets doesn’t mean it’s not the same thing. So we band together, weather things out, and we can now see who our real partners are - turns out despite having trade with them before, the PRS was never one of them. You feel me?”

Reid nodded at that statement. “I get what you’re saying. I suppose that while they aren’t exactly a big trading partner with us in the first place, a ceremonial embargo of their products in Hesperia wouldn’t hurt - and this deal that you’ve been selling us on, I don’t think that’d hurt either. I can see the writing on the wall… That there’s a shift happenin’, with the mummies seizing ships now and the PRS tryna’ act like the good guy… You know what, we’re already deep enough in this that I don’t think we’re going to, you know, fold. We’ve got land in Velezia too, after all. Not gonna betray our own people who live there now by pulling out of it. When I get back to Continentam, I’ll see about gettin’ those papers ran past the Senate. And from there.... It’s just a matter of signing.”

“I knew I could count on the Hesperians to stick to their values and not back down to… International pressure,” said Tsaoir, letting out a short sigh as she said the last part. “But seriously, you’ve got my promise not just as a politician, but personally. This isn’t going to break us. Just show us who the trustworthy ones are and who the fakes are, really. I’m intending to get in talks with Zhou and I know that Aer Naisiunta is already working on shifting some of the old PRS air routes into heading to Qarik City. They might be able to take away someone like the PRS, yeah… But I’d rather not have our economy change on the whims of a nation as inconsistent as the PRS, anyway. We’ll be fine. Better long term, even.”

As the conversation happened, Rorie and Shevon found themselves approached from behind from someone that they were familiar with - Mave Devine, the one that owned the property and also acted as the CEO of Gnothas Mearn. Their family tended to get around to meeting a lot of important people and Mave was someone the siblings had talked to more than a couple of times, who seemed to take an interest in them. Perhaps because she herself was somewhat of a maverick, not coming from a traditionally powerful clan but heading one of the more important companies in the defense industry - even if they weren’t having their best years that they’d ever had in total sales.

“Rorie, Shevon, nice to see you again,” Mave said as she approached. “Heard about your air company getting kicked out of the PRS, hopefully things are going alright with that. Not too hard on you, right? Anyway, I know a place you might be able to pick up a couple more contracts… Actually, it’s a landlocked nation so most of their freight is going to go by land or air. Might be profitable for you. And since I’m headed there soon to talk… Maybe you two should come on this trip also?”

Rorie raised an eyebrow at the suggestion. “And where would this country be? Somewhere in Vajraya?”

“Not in there but not that far from it either. The Teuton Volksrepublic, actually. I’m headed there with Ruarc Carmody… Government really wants to secure support from some more places now that stuff’s falling out elsewhere and we’re going to try to make some deals, and maybe sell some arms. Mine included, possibly. Might as well tag along… See if there’s anyone in government or somewhere else that wants to ship freight to any of the locations you guys are based in,” Mave continued with a shrug.

“I’m sure that will be an interesting trip,” said Shevon, mentally thinking back to the schedule they had set ahead of time for what they would be doing this week. “I think we can come… Shouldn’t be a problem.”

“I look forward to seeing you there… And who knows, you might end up finding a contract or two in Vajraya on the way back,” Mave said, smiling. She did tend to be an upbeat type of person. “Anyway, I think you two are good enough to handle the PRS stuff without getting screwed over too much. You’ll find other markets - ones where the government doesn’t flip stances overnight as soon as someone offers slightly more money. Even if it’s a bit harder…”

Indeed, it was harder. But that went with the territory of not bending to international pressure. Just so happened that they would have to go the hard route rather than making more obvious moves that other nations could rely on such as trading with the PRS. Would it work out for them?

Well, they would have to wait and see… Their future having a respectable future with the clan and their business ventures might depend on it.

by **Tangaliro** » Wed Sep 11, 2019 10:40 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E15
合众为一

In a long period of time since the Liuist rebellion that founded Zhou as a nation separate from Liang, and perhaps Sinica, Liang and Zhou had been at odds with other, with Liang desiring a reunification of Sinica under the One Sinica Policy, while Zhou resisted the ambitions of Liang in preservation of its own independence. However, as centuries passed since the Calamity, with the original Liuism in Zhou degrading into a mere neo reactionary ruling system where states within Zhou were organized into what was called sovcorps (Sovereign Corporations), and the Sinican nation having unified with its western brethren and reformed into the democratic and federal People’s Republic of Sinica, the scene of Sinican-Zhou relationship had started changing. The People’s Republic abandoned the Liangan doctrine of using military threats to enforce a unification, and instead offered an olive branch to their eastern counterpart. Starting by allowing Zhou people to take part in the Sinican National Representative Assembly and do business in Sinica, the People’s Republic began taking a new approach to reconciliating with the Zhou people.

Now, as the geopolitical scene in Tsion began shifting, the People’s Republic once again looked to their east, this time armed to the teeth and more ready than ever, but instead determined to resolve the division between Sinica and Zhou in peace.

_{DATE: 11:30 AM Eastern Sinican Time - February 28, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Wang Zhongsheng, CEO of General Aeronautics Group | LOCATION: Ding’An | Republic of Zhou}

Wang Zhongsheng patiently waited in the dining hall. This closed lunch meeting in Ding’An Hotel is, by definition, a business meeting, but at the same time, the General Aeronautics Group CEO was very aware that he and his colleagues in this business visit also carried an important agenda with them on behalf of the Sinican government. He looked at his surrounding, the dining hall was furnished with a luxurious mix of furniture and decorations from all around the world, you would find Akhmanari potteries lined up on the sides of the room on top of marble stands originated from Gallia, while seeing candlesticks imported from Victoria sitting on the wooden table in the center of the room, which was made from Alvimian woods and covered in Sinican silk tablecloth. The dining hall took an interesting approach on its interior, mixing Sinican and western architectures in its design. The room and its contents formed an odd but surprisingly harmonious mix, somewhat a great reflection on how the world could be if everyone just decides to settle down and do business in peace, Wang thought.

“各位來賓，我地定安酒店個宴會廳感覺如何啊？” Someone pushed open the door, entering the room was the energetic Chow Dai-Tsuen, the CEO of the Ding’An sovcorp and the owner of the Ding’An Hotel, along with the group of sovcorp leaders behind him, supposedly led to the dining hall by him.

“素有耳闻贵国定安酒店装横别有特色，今日一见，果然名不虚传。我过往因为工作需要曾入住过很多酒店，像您的酒店这样的，着实是第一次见。您，就是定安主权公司的首席执行官周大全周先生吧，久仰，久仰。” Wang and the other Sinican businessmen stood up and did a Sinican bow, greeting the group. Their Zhouese counterparts returned the bow. While the two groups spoke a different branch of Sinican language, the presence of translators ensured that communication can ensue fluently.

“哈哈哈，你真係識講野，不愧係生意人阿哈！貴公司既機場同樣唔錯，上次我去扶桑公幹，一落機，哇，個機場幾氣派啊！” Chow complimented. It’s never a bad thing to compliment each other a little before getting to business.

“您过奖了。“ Wang laughed. Then gestured for his Zhouese counterpart to take a seat.

“所以今日你地十幾個人遠道而來，揾黎我地咁多人商量，係有麽野大生意想同我地傾啊。咁大陣仗，你地唔會只係黎賣飛機啊？” Chow joked. The attendants from both sides of the meeting laughed in response.

“周兄真是说笑了，今日前来，确实是有个大买卖想和诸位商量，国家级的大买卖。” Wang said. “诸位，虽然有点唐突，但我们想商量入股各位的主权企业。”

What Wang said caused a confusion among the Zhouese, this situation has never happened before. Shareholding is a sign of involvement in the sovcorps’ government, there had never been a successful attempt to such acquisition before. The sudden proposal of Wang sure was an interesting sight to see.

“…王兄弟，以你地既見識，你地應該知道我地周國有規矩。主權企業既股票唔係一般股票，唔可以係市場到隨便買賣。既然今日你提得出，我大概可以估到你地係有備而來，但係我好心提醒你地，你地要做好談判失敗既心理准備。” The smile faded away on Chow’s wide face, he talked in a much more serious tone, reminding his Sinican counterparts that what they were proposing was, indeed, one that was daring and perhaps outright relentless.

“这是自然。不瞒您说，其实这次来访，我们是代表华夏人民共和国联邦政府前来的。” Wang stood up. “相信各位都知道，现在世道乱，碧翠海在闹，南欧菲尔在闹，太平洋也要闹，相信这也为各位的生意造成了一些困扰，但所谓乱世出英雄，只要运用在座各位的财力，智慧，大周的战略位置，再加上我国的强大实力作为后盾，我们就可以在这乱世中闯出一番天地。我们也知道历史上我们有过一些过节，而且强摘的葡萄不甜。所以今天，我们想和你们谈平等的合作。”

The Zhouese sovcorp CEOs whispered to each other, discussing Wang’s claim. Chow thought for a moment, then spoke.

“我已經估到你地既意圖……但説無妨，但係你地最好提供一個我地可以接受既方案，如果唔係，今日既會面就此結束。你地應該知道你地既建議既重量。“ Chow warned.

“自然，对于主权企业，股权就是主权，我方是不会轻看这次交易的重量的。” Wang said with confidence. “既然你们都知道了，那我们就开门见山的说吧。我国确实想通过收购的方式与贵国和平统一，但我们无意大幅改变周国的现状，华夏现行联邦制，容得下周地自治，更何况延续周国目前成功的经济模式于我们并没有害处。”

Wang cleared his throat.

“我国希望能透过民企和国企入股的形式让贵国加入我们华夏联邦。入股后，在联邦体制下，周地可以自成一个自治州，延续现行制度，各位的主权企业也可以继续在现有框架下自治。同时周人也可以进一步参与华夏的联邦事务。”

“咁軍隊呢？無左軍隊我地點保證你唔會違背承諾突然衝入黎？“ One of the Zhouese representatives questioned.

“当然，我国完全理解各位这方面的担忧，所以我们会允许各资质企业的军队以州份民兵和私人军事承包商的名义予以保留。在周地你们的军队可以如常运作，只需要在周地以外作战的时候听从共和军指挥即可。作为统一的交换，我们会完全开放华夏的庞大市场予周地企业，税务上周地企业按本地企业处理。我们只要求允许共和军进驻和通行以及周地在地缘政治和外交事务上与联邦政府保持一致，自然，你们也会相应地对等得到在国民代表院发言和参与决策的权力。驻军除非受到主权企业要求，否则我们的军队不会离开驻扎地介入本地事务，同时你们也不需要缴付驻军的军费。在战争时期，我们会为周地提供军事保护。”

Wang’s answer seemed to have proved appealing enough to some of the sovcorp CEOs.

“但係你地又從中得到d麽野，係麽野令你地值得出錢出力讓利咁多黎討好我地？就為左你地既統一？” Chow questioned again.

“透过入股的方式，只要周地经济繁荣，我们也能透过股东分红获得收益，再说了，我们的国家需要进入太平洋的通道。“ Wang answered with a smile.

“原來如此，咁一切就講得通啦。” Chow nodded, then turned to the other CEOs.

The group discussed for about 30 minutes. When they have finally finished discussing, Chow turned back to his Sinican counterparts.

“好！” Chow slapped his thigh. “呢個條件我地可以接受，不過呢一切需要時間，我地唔可能係三十分鐘就決定曬一切，加入聯邦既内部程序都需要時間，但係呢個Plan，我同你講，有得考慮！”

“没关系，我们可以等，只是希望假如奇奥国近日来商谈贸易事宜，贵方能够慎重考虑，毕竟我国目前和他们的对立，在座各位相信也是略有耳闻的。华夏的市场以及我们可以提供的利益和奇奥国相比，想必各位也是心里有数的。“

“當然。“ Chow nodded. “既然公事已經傾完，想必各位已經肚餓。黎，試下我地既手藝，上菜！”

As the door once again got pushed open, the prepared dishes were brought into the room by the waiters and waitresses, the group cheered as the lunch began after the conclusion of their business meeting.

"合作愉快。" Chow smiled, extending his glass of wine.

"合作愉快。" Wang also smiled, extending his, the two glasses clinked.

by **Forest State** » Wed Sep 11, 2019 4:29 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As international pressure steps up in the background and the threat of Akhmanar looms in the distance - particularly in the North Atlantic, the leaders of Kael and Hesperia meet once again to discuss breaking down international opposition while retaining full control in Velezia… A daring plan relying on smoke and mirrors and the support of superpowers. First, however, both nations must agree to the plan in theory before anything can be put into practice.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 20: “THE CLOSEST ALLIES”

Continentam, Continental Republic of Hesperia
March 1, 425

_______________________

It was a strange turn of events that had seen Kael and Hesperia become the closest of allies, perhaps anywhere. The two countries were different from each other, sure, with the Kaels having their tribalistic and decidedly non traditional society and the Hepserians leaning conservative on the social side of things, enough so that they were considered behind by plenty of the more progressive nations of the world. The pair had come together in the prelude to the war with Velezia, although strangely enough, it wasn’t the Velezian threat that had brought them together but the Florian one, with both nations believing that the Acasian arms in their southern neighbor could mean they intended to exploit the Velezia situation to make moves of their own against the Kaelics in revenge for the Five Nights War - and Florians for neighbors rather than the ethnically closer and more culturally understanding Kaelics wasn’t exactly something the Hesperians had wanted.

Still, they hadn’t been the closest nations even after that. They’d had free trade and they now controlled both sides of the strait that they shared, with the other side previously being owned by Floriana and now being owned by the Kaelic satellite state known as the Republic of West Floriana, but cultural differences meant they weren’t best friends either… Hesperia had joined the war with Velezia due to the treaty they’d signed, which again had ironically been directed at defense against the Florians but had rather been invoked due to the Velezia attack on Kael, but even in that situation they hadn’t taken the largest effort and had mainly been tasked with containing the northern front of the war with a few divisions of men in exchange for something of their own that they received when everything was said and done, territory in the divided Velezia which provided resources and workers to a Hesperian government that considered their relatively short involvement a decent trade for it.

With rising international pressure, however, the two countries could see that they didn’t have a ton other than each other and that sticking together at this time was better than being apart - the Hesperians had outlawed segregation years ago but many nations still said they didn’t take a strong enough stance on things such as private descrimination, and their conservative lawmaking wasn’t popular with everyone. The writing was on the wall for them… Kael was a more obvious example of a country receiving international pressure, but there was concern over which one would be next. They knew nations such as Angicalia had a problem with them. How long would it be before that problem translated into economic warfare directed towards them and not just their western neighbor? On the other hand, the Kaelics found Hesperia to be one of their best trade partners thanks to the fact that the nation was larger and their economy wasn’t languishing like that of some of the other allies in Kael’s sphere.

Edonia, Canguari, and the Ophiric Rouge all had their reasons for being Kaelic allies, but the fact of the matter was that the nation wasn’t exactly extracting a ton of wealth from them - sure, they generated profit in some areas, with Canguari taking on some of the manufacturing market that was moving away from Kael gradually with more of the nation turning to services, but Canguari was still war torn, the Ophiric Rouge was a communist nation that didn’t exactly participate too much on the international market, and Edonia had some potential in it but it happened to be an authoritarian mess of different ethnicities where a fair amount of the people were miserable. Miserable people in a poor country didn’t make for good customers, obviously, and so Edonia could be added to the list of countries that would take time and investment before they could be the same kind of partner that Hesperia was.

The Gonshawar Dynasty of Vajraya was, of course, an ally - they were willing to lend their trade in exchange for the political and military support that the Kaels were offering them, which not many other nations were willing to, but the alliance between them and Kael was separated by a long distance and was threatened by the whims of the inconsistent and often shifting People’s Republic of Sinica, a nation which had already underwent a large shift from being at least neutral to Kael to deciding to perform a full embargo and turn away Kaelic ships that ended up encountering their naval patrols.

Which again left Hesperia as the closest ally, the one that wasn’t threatened by the ever changing will of a far away power and the one that could engage in a proper give and take relationship rather than taking in exchange for something else - or because of future potential, perhaps as was the case with Edonia.

The closeness between the two nations was the reason why, before making any big decisions on the matter, Ceannasai-Empress Maura Tsaoir once again found herself in Continentam to discuss the very thing which was causing the sanctions in the first place - or the biggest aspect of it, anyway. Both Kael and Hesperia controlled territory in the former Velezia. Whatever decisions they made with it would be joint in nature - one state wasn’t just going to leave the other one in the dark about something major with the colony that they jointly governed, along with Regentor… Although in Regentor’s case, southern Velezia had always been a land in their sights. It wasn’t so much a case of colonization for them.

“The fact of the matter is that Akhmanar might have the slowest reaction time that I’ve ever seen for a country responding to the plea of their ally - at least as much as one could call Velezia their ally considering how everything played out - but they’re finally doing something. And their aggressive posture…” started Tsaoir, leaning back in her seat across from Hesperian President Reid Belmont-Walker. “Well, I’m not going to say it worries me necessarily, but I’m keeping an eye on it for sure. Seizing and sinking ships in the North Atlantic, blocking trade to other countries that haven’t set their own stances on the issue…”

“It seems like an act of war, does it not? I don’t believe any bullshit answer about how moves like this aren’t military - they’re essentially declaring war on us. They just know that for now, we can’t do much about the North Atlantic. The navy can’t really reach that far safely at the moment and even if it did… They have the numbers on us out there. Additionally, it looks like Akhmanar is going to come out as one of the winners of the Jade Sea conflict, a nation in a position to focus on overseas ambitions without worrying about the threats in the immediate sea next to them,” Tsaoir continued.

She drummed her fingers against the table for a couple of moments as silence filled the air, her Hesperian counterpart considering what she’d said. “I’m saying that if they wanted to invade, they wouldn’t have much in the way of threats closer to home to tie their military down. They’d be able to send in their carriers, land troops, whatever, since it looks like they outlasted Jade Sea threats… And with them keeping the Velezian government in exile there, I have reason to believe they intend to do something with it. Why would they house a number of Velezian politicians and generals in their country as they do currently if they don’t intend on aiding them with getting back into power? Or at the very least, they recognize their claim as the legitimate Velezia, so to speak.”

“They have no friendly nations in the area,” stated Reid, which was true. “The Atlantic side of South Ophir is opposed to them… Alvimia, ourselves, your autonomous territory, and Regentor. Obviously none of us on this part of the continent, and even others such as the Valdivians and the Cortina Roja, and I’m sure the Canguarians - wouldn’t like to see the Velezians back. Essentially, no one likes them…”

Reid paused, shrugging. “Which leads to the question of how Akhmanar would sustain an invasion of such an area. They would be opposed by most of the continent, yes? I doubt the two superpowers would be happy about their presence, also. It seems to be a death wish for their military…”

“How would they do it? Through brute force… Do you think the Akhmanaris are smart enough to try something else, despite their high technology? The concerning thing, though, is that their economy and population is sufficiently large enough that such a strategy would be a legitimate one. I’m not saying that we would go down without a fight. I’m saying that when the principal powers responsible for the administration of Velezia, my own nation as well as your nation, are located far away and neither of us has the navy that they do… A few hundred thousand Akhmanaris storming the beaches after their main competition in their own region has been eliminated from being competitive isn’t a situation that I’d like to be in. Yes, we could beef up the coastal defenses, but playing the range game and hoping we’re able to take them out before they make such a move is still risky. They’re playing the game with more lives than us, so to speak… More soldiers, higher quantities of the most dangerous weapons such as carriers, destroyers, and cruise missiles, and submarines… We may be able to win, based on the circumstances of the fight, but this isn’t a fight that we want per say. Not right now, anyway,” Tsaoir continued.

“Furthermore,” she said. “It doesn’t help our war effort that the PRS is attempting to choke our trade out in the Pacific. I can see ways around it, yes, alternate routes and the like… But that still depends on their whims. Which might as well change by the week. I don’t think that the Pacific is a safe place unless the PRS is somehow… I guess you could say appeased. I’m hesitant to have Kaelic companies do business in their borders ever again for what they did, because I know that they aren’t going to be reliable and that one change in policy can result in a bunch of our top companies losing assets, but the fact that they’re seizing our ships in the Pacific is a problem. Trade with Vajraya isn’t interrupted for now thanks to alternate routing, but I don’t know how long that will last, and sea trade with Zhou and Utsan might as well be impossible thanks to their patrol routes…”

“I don’t intend on pulling out of Velezia if that’s what you mean by appeasement. We already have settlers there that have set up their homes in the new territory, and we already have business ventures there… It’s too late to pull out of it barring something like an actual war. I don’t think that such a move should be made for appeasement,” countered Reid, not entirely happy with where the conversation was headed.

“Actually, I’m not suggesting in the slightest that we leave. I’m simply suggesting a more subtle form of subjugation that in the long run might have the same effect anyway, and the same economic benefits for us - perhaps you could say that it’s more of a scheme for economic domination than a cultural one. Strangely enough, the world doesn’t care as much about the former one… Even if the ‘Free Velezia’ in it would be, well, an illusion to to speak,” Tsaoir suggested, not quite explaining yet.

“What are you suggesting?”

She opened up the file that she had placed on the desk, showing a report which had been written by the KIB’s central office recommending a course of action for dealing with the current situation. “Reducing the international pressure and helping to weaken Akhmanar’s claim to Velezia by setting up a satellite state there that the FSE and FRNO will recognize - we might be able to get some of the sanctions off our ass because there’s no ‘genocide’ going on, while at he same time our corporations dig into the new government and exert more influence than what’s already there… All with the goal of ensuring that any nationalist movement doesn’t have the required assets to secede. I suppose you could call this a case of enforcing control through monopoly. Or at least, through majority. And if Akhmanar decides that they want to invade it or try to press their claims… Well, I’m sure the FSE would rather have a Velezia once again which is Euphemian friendly rather than the CNR, and their support would change the war and potentially act as a deterrent to prevent a war from happening in the first place…”

“Of course, even if we did ‘liberate’ Velezia, we would still have the same production contracts that we have now, the same pool of potential employees, and they would still be reliant on us… Maybe more so as we involve our corporations in getting involved with setting up the infrastructure and institutions for a new country. But the appearance of freedom, I think, would be worth something to strengthen our claims - and force some of the pressure off of us to let us continue building the strength of our alliance in the Pacific. And whatever military they have will be under our control, directly or indirectly. Because the Velezians are a dangerous people that can’t be trusted to manage their military for themselves without attacking their neighbors, right? That’s the angle, anyway. The public one,” Tsaoir said.

“All in all, I think this ‘genebitch’ state will be a net positive for us if we agree to create it and we find someone to govern it. Velezians haven’t earned democracy yet considering the people supported the CNR the last time they were an independent nation - again, the public angle. This is the KIB’s recommended course of action for the situation, and I think the minds there are good at this kind of thing - the KIB is one of the main reasons the Velezian nation went down in the first place, after all,” concluded Tsaoir. “I need your approval… And I can tell them to start working on getting ready to push something like this through.”

Reid sat back in his own seat for a moment to consider this, clasping his hands. “I suppose if you want to keep this under wraps for now and not give much advance warning of it happening… An executive order could handle the transfer of territory until the Senate votes on it. Can’t say I’ll make any promises for now. But I’ll think about it. Working with you has helped our nation so far. I suppose we can consider doing it one more time - perhaps on the condition that our settlers receive autonomy in this new nation, whatever it ends up being called.”

“I’m sure that can be worked out,” said Tsaoir, standing up. “Anyway, thanks for not dismissing things completely… I’ll await your call on your decision on the matter. Hesperia will, of course, retain the influence it has in its current territory in Velezia - and will continue to administer the Las Playas Exclusion Zone. But with this move, if we do end up making it… Perhaps our influence will be less threatened. Give it some thought. I believe the long term futures of both our nations have something to gain from this.”

by **Western Pacific Territories** » Thu Sep 12, 2019 10:55 pm

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Bétaille, Republique Hautcélé

March 4, 425 A.C.

The Republic of Hautcele is a small, medium-sized country in southwestern Ophir. Populated once by a fairly diverse grouping of Sinicans, Gallians, Victorians and Velikossi alike, the Hautcele of before the Calamity must have been, from what history is available to tell the story - rather lacking in southwestern Ophir, an economically prosperous, multicultural beacon of liberalism. Such is no longer the case. Emulating the Vrystaat's methods of controlling native Kirians with Sinicans, the now resoundingly majority-Gallian population wages war on the Cooperative Sphere of Edonia, motivated by religious extremism, placed under local and global political pressure.

Bétaille, capital of Hautcele. With an overall population of around six million, metropolitan zone included, the ancient and homely streets of the capital were always well-packed, throngs simply moving along with their daily lives. It was a sight that, although it could surely be rendered minuscule in comparison by a true mega-city like Torch City, or Datong, could still be something that a person could simply sit back to and observe all day. For Michel Oliver Jacques de Saulieu, President of Hautcele, that was a luxury that he couldn't afford himself at the moment. Gazing out the windows of the Palais du Guérin only briefly, he was quickly reminded of the task he currently had to attend to - a meeting regarding the war effort against Edonia to the south-east.

The Palais du Guérin, of course, was the President's residence. Named for the ancient, at this point almost mythical, founding father of the country: Jean-Benoît Guérin, of course, he left an ideal that the Hautcelais people looked up to - even if they had taken plenty of liberties in outright ignoring some of his ideals, sometimes. Accompanying the President, of course, was Hautcele's Prime Minister, Claire Diot-Escault de Mansiat. The newest generation of a powerful political dynasty from the city of Ménoire, Bétaille's main economic competitor, she was a figure of controversy. Gossip-level accusations aside about exactly how she'd gone from relative unknown to Prime Minister within a decade. That being said though, she did have some desirable traits to her...

"Moniseur Cabat's up there," The Prime Minister noted, walking up to President Saulieu with the thud of heels hitting solid marble floor echoing through the hall. With her free hand, the other taken up with holding a clipboard, she gestured towards the ornate staircase that led the building's occupants to the second floor. "It's about time we've had a chat, don't you think?"

Mansiat was, of course, relatively well-qualified for her role. An all-encompassing education focused around politics, negotiation, appealing to any person, and warping policy positions was something she specialized in. One could compare her upbringing to the stylish 'Biankist Upbringing' that was so popular in the post-Tangaliroan state of Zachod. When she wanted something, she would fight hard to get her way no matter how minor it was, though she could also be relateable, not just a dressed-up mannequin.

"Nicolas can give me an explanation for Kyznogorsk." Saulieu replied. He was referring, as most Hautcelais would know well, to a recent battle last month in the Edonian town of Kyznogorsk. Fighting there had gone disastrously for Hautcele, the best example being that of the better half of a company being wiped out in a day there. In a conflict where things were slowly starting to descend into low-intensity guerilla fighting and a war of ceasefires, truces and diplomatic talks, such a battle was big news, even if it maybe wouldn't have been so big five years ago. Saulieu only waited until now to speak of it since he'd been on vacation.

Prime Minister Claire Mansiat.

"So serious..." She quickly quipped, looking towards the staircase. Given that the President had been in office for a full decade longer than Mansiat, perhaps it was understandable that he was a serious man. Saulieu was well known for how politics had hardened him, really. Although the man was level-headed at all times, and rather brazen in his decision-making, he was also callous: Saulieu had trouble with making friends, really. He just was hard to like as a normal person.

"Yeah, funny. We've got Edonia on our plate, at this rate Jinshan's civil war is going to spill into our country. I'd like to know just what our military can still do." Walking off to the staircase with his partner, the conversation - about a contentious issue - continued on between them.

"I'm guessing you already know what to talk about. I've got my policy points..."

"On the clipboard? I don't see the point, you can just speak your mind..." Saulieu questioned.

"Improv speaking isn't my league. I'd rather keep to speeches," Mansiat remarked.

Continuing up the staircase, then on through corridors and hallways filled with the occasional staffer or politician, the two most powerful politicians in the country were able to smoothly make their way through to their meeting room. Entering in, to nods of acknowledgement from those present - mostly generals and advisers, along with Minister of National Defense Nicolas Cabat, the two quickly took their seats, Saulieu at the head of the table. "Ladies, gentlemen, I suppose we can get started?"

Receiving nods of affirmation, the President continued. "I may have been on vacation for most of the past month, combined with my surgery two weeks ago, but we're here to discuss the war in Edonia... and we've lost ground. Kyznogorsk, Megodonsk, Mopovets are all recent examples. The 1er Division Infanterie has lost the momentum it once had, and Hirsch is taking the initiative from us." Premier Viktor Hirsch was the leader of Edonia, an ethnic Teuton from the military who had won the bid of leadership of the country's Cooperation & Unity Party. Since then, he had worked to crush the ethnic separatism that plagued Edonia, whilst centralizing power for himself. Hirsch was a true autocrat, much like his more Zaratian-esque compatriots in South Ophir proper.

"Having been on the ground myself... I say our issue is that we aren't bringing enough planes into the fight." General Corentin Michon, a man similar to Saulieu in age obviously had an incredibly big say in how things were done. The fact that he was 1er Division Infanterie's commander aside, he had extensive political connections. His recommendations weren't just military advice to be taken, no, if he said he wanted more fighters, and this seemed to be popular given that Minister Cabat was nodding along, Saulieu's political party of Front National could make the gears spin, introduce some new jobs to the aerospace industry.

"Air support is what you want, then? Well, we can make it happen. Just order new batches... might take a couple months, but you can manage in the meantime." Receiving a few nods, Mansiat proceeded to share a piece of her mind about the military's state.

"Our problem isn't lack of planes... it's the planes we do have. And our tanks, guns, everything else. We're still using stuff made before I was born, by far and large. The world doesn't move as slowly as we do..." She complained, getting a few glances and some uncomfortable shifting around. The military's design bureaus, while they did do a great job at producing entirely indigenous vehicles that were easy to keep maintained, as per military doctrine, were widely known as 'benchseats'. The positions were, to say the least, extremely nepotistic with sons of wealthy bureau members guaranteed a comfy salary in exchange for giving their input on matters occasionally. Tackling this form of corruption was a major priority for Mansiat, who had come to find herself Prime Minister largely because she had championed the liberal causes of the worker's unions and the common people alike.

Saulieu, and older Front National politicians on the other hand, were more comfortable with the current state of things - more conservative in nature. "Maybe if Common Employment wasn't receiving all the excess revenue, we'd have some funds to continue research and development." Minister Cabat snidely commented. Even if Front National dominated things to an unofficial extent, they could fight amongst one another at times. To this, Mansiat gave a rather over-dramatic eye roll towards the Minister.

"A happy worker is a productive worker. We fund National Defense perfectly fine... just, paying for professionals from abroad and keeping all your current thinkers paid is a hard enough task on it's own." Mansiat referred of course to one of her more controversial decisions, that was to say, she was promoting the introduction of foreign designers and engineers, with various incentives offered, to improve the country's R&D. This was regarded as a bad move by the military, to which she'd needed to pull in a few favors to cover her own skin. People called her a temptress for some good reasons, as various people might have known.

President Michel Saulieu.

"General Michon will get his planes if he needs them." Saulieu commanded, diverting the talk back away from a debate over the research and development sector. Probably a good thing.

"Now, as for strategy..." Saulieu began. He had used his vacation time, only part of it of course, to work out a plan for Edonia and the war. The President had some very specific goals in mind, goals which most the room except for Mansiat hadn't been introduced to. "My friends, have you heard of the Order of the Rose?" Most of those present in the room nodded along, except Mansiat, she knew what her President was about to say. "The humanitarian group, right? Well, about it..."

"Not necessarily. As a religious order, their priorities of course lie in the spreading of our prophet Ouriel's word. As we are at war with Edonia, a place which hasn't exactly seen the light of God, they have introduced us to the proposition of using the military to... establish a place from which they can evangelize. Me and President Saulieu have ear-marked the Elfmann Islands. Populated mainly by Victorians, perhaps, but that won't be too problematic. Assuming we can occupy them, they will provide an invaluable strategic asset for waging war against Edonia, if needed."

"This is a long-term goal, Edonia will have to first be prepared for this loss by seeing the tides turned against them elsewhere. In what was once Awenyiddon, there remains of course nothing much except scavenger animals and rubble, if the former can even feed on anything there at this point. All of it's cities have been left to decay, the entire place is essentially a... black hole on the map. The sheer remoteness, and difficulty of maintaining supply lines in that hellscape has deterred most people from doing sustained... anything there. But I do not think it is impassible. The Euphemians, of course, have turned northern Awenyiddon into their personal pit mine. If they can maintain armies of laborers, equipment, everything you need to blast resources out of the earth, I think Hautcele can stage military forces in the wastes." The generals present seemed to have had their interests piqued.

"You mean... invasion?" General Michon asked.

"There's nothing for us to invade, not in Awenyiddon. I propose we bring the fight out of the center of our border and to northern Edonia instead. Build bases, lay down roads, begin asserting control of parts of the region as needed. We will build trails into Edonia, using those abandoned cities the natives left behind as central hubs. Attacking from there will give their military much more to worry about. After all, currently the war only harms the Velikossi... and the Velikossi hate Hirsch." Saulieu elaborated.

"Don't you think this sort of planning runs counter to our doctrines? We prioritize, of course, every Hautcelais soldier being able to remain as self-sufficent and independent of the supply line as much as he possibly can. Out in former Awenyiddon, they will rely on supply lines for everything and anything." The general did, indeed, pose a fairly good question for the President.

"We're currently losing ground in Edonia," Saulieu reminded Michon. "A change in thinking is needed. They want this war to go quiet, for the actual militaries to stop fighting. We'll set Edonia on fire instead. Thousands of Hautcelais soldiers have died in the course of this conflict, it won't be for nothing." Saulieu concluded, standing up from his chair, followed by Mansiat.

Stairs of the Palais du Guérin. Adorned by a statue.

"So, what do you think?" The President and Prime Minister had both stepped out, sufficiently satisfied with how things had gone. Saulieu's ideas, although they could have had the ability to turn things back towards a Hautcele victory rather than a stalemate, were almost radical. Unusual of him.

"I'm interested to see what the intent for the Elfmann Islands is, with the Order of the Rose and all. They do Ouriel's work." Mansiat commented. She wasn't exactly the most die-hard conservative religiously, she promoted Hautcele's official policy of secularism after all, but she could sympathize with their cause. Befriending them was good, though, as they were a powerful force. Saulieu, however, was a proper patron of the church.

"That's to be seen in the future. For now, we focus on the present."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

by **Turmenista** » Fri Sep 13, 2019 11:38 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________[/align]

S4E15
"Sweet Home Barechistan"

For much of its admittedly short existence, the State of Barechistan has never known peace. The tiny, landlocked Mederune nation only just recently underwent a violent coup d’etat which deposed the previous pro-Virshahr local government and established a new, independent Lunarist Republic...which half of the world still doesn't even know exists, and which some of its more belligerent and powerful neighbors refuse to recognize. While Barechistan’s eastern neighbor, the Virshahr gene-kingdom of Brechnazai, and powerful international corporations like Clancy Petrochemicals, view Barechistan as an opportunity to capitalize off its instability and bountiful reserves of rare resources like lithium, copper, natural gas, iron, and uranium, the region the state inhabits has also been historically dubbed "the graveyard of Empires" in the pre-Calamity times, due to its difficult terrain and stubborn people that have a knack for violently resisting oppression. It’s well-known that Barechistan is no place for any empire to go at any time, but will it even be stable enough for its own people in the future? The new strongman president, "Grandpa" Lashkar Jan Yazdani of the DPB party, seems to be the only person brave enough to take a stand during these troubling times, and the only one sane enough to try and set Barechistan on the right path for the future. That, or he’s just one insane mother fucker...

In the mountainous, unforgiving countryside of Barechistan, the world is marred by ethnic conflict, unexploded ordnance, opium, and death. The dominant Barechistu majority, the Farzana, are locked in a brutal battle royale-like ethnic war between the Teutons and Aryans in the north, the Brechnazai in the east, as well as the Lunarist Izat minority, which it is especially heinous to through the methodical cleansing of Izat villages and communities, often sponsored by the majority Farzana government. While Teutonic and Aryan mercenaries and warbands from the north keep their distance in the unstable state, the same cannot be said for the lunarist Aleisabat, battle-hardened Izat guerrilla fighters that have been making gains against the rather inept Barechistani Security Forces and various Farzana nationalist militias. Only time will tell if the foreign mercenary support the DPB is bringing in will be enough to help fend off the Aleisabat, let alone the various other tribal militias and gangs inside of Barechistan. For the time being, the State of Barechistan is in an unofficial state of anarchy, due to a lack of a formal legal system, defined state, and widespread instability. Out here in these parts, life is hard, but at least it isn’t impossible.

_{DATE: 0800 hrs. - February 20, A.C. 425 | INDIVIDUAL REPORT: Jimmy-John Ken IFHY Ashcorp, Luxor-Kempe Institute Senior Journalist | LOCATION: Skies above Kot | Barechistan}

Cabin Music

In all his years of studying global conflict and homeland security back in college in his homeland of Euphemie, and even after establishing the LKI and traveling throughout South Ophir, Kir, the Jade Sea, and Mederum, Ken IFHY Ashcorp never thought he’d find himself being ferried onboard a rinky-dinky Canten Aviation R34 Kestrel by two guys in clown face paint and flamboyant garb, over the skies of northern Virshahr, all to a country half the world didn’t even know existed. Not yet, they didn’t. It was an overwhelming feeling, yes, but interesting nonetheless. The two men were currently joking about something in the cockpit related to some immature genitals-related joke as one of them suddenly unbuckled his seat and clambered back over to the journalist, holding a rockstar hand sign as he motioned to his headset. “WE’RE ON APPROACH TO KOT INTL NOW!” The man comically shouted, even though his voice was perfectly intelligible through the journalist’s headset. “YOU SHOULD GET READY FOR LANDING! THESE AIRFIELDS ARE BOMBED OUT TO SHIT YOU KNOW, SO IT'S NOT GONNA BE A SMOOTH LANDING LIKE IN VIRSHAHR!”

Kenny and Bobby Burger, the Burger brothers.

“Thanks, Kenny Burger.” Ashcorp grumbled, wincing from the noise. The Burger Brothers, Inc. Risk Management LTD, as the two brothers called themselves, were a startup company out of Saintcorpse that dealt with private flights and security to the corners of the world that weren’t often covered on the news, particularly in the paficic and central Mederum. Founded out of an inheritance will of their father, Kenny and Bobby Burger, both college dropouts but ex-aviation students, bought their own small fleet of civilian aircraft and cheap, private airfields in various countries across the world, where they set up a still strong network of contacts and connections that could get them in to essentially anywhere, from private cottages and airstrips in Akhmanar that were invisible on satellite maps, to ranches in Kir owned by wealthy business magnates, to air bases in the pacific on islands bought by the richest 1% of the world. Money could buy you a lot of friends and keys to a lot of places, but what Kenny and Bobby soon realized was that they were gonna need a lot more than money to survive in some of the harder places...which was why they bought weapon hardpoints to put on their plane and slapped old Tangaliroan rocket pods on them, just in case they came into any ground-based trouble and wanted to make a quick buck off a search and destroy contract in Barechistan or Teutonia from companies like SOSEC or Clancy that often dished out these contracts to willing mercenaries.

Kenny made his way back over to the cockpit, hopping back into the seat beside his brother, the two giving each other a fist bump as they made the final preparations to approach Kot International Airport. The landing was going to be a simple VFR landing, but, unlike most airfields in northern Virshahr and Mederum that weren’t owned by the government, this one actually had an ATC tower.

FEDERAL ATOMICS uOS 19 v1.37
COMM TRANSCRIPT READER v7.8.4
CIV TRANSPONDER - FREQ 133.425
ZULU TIME 1200 HRS

/// [CIV] [BURGER BROTHERS, INC. RISK MGMT. LTD/ Canten Aviation R34 Kestrel #483BB | [PIC] Bobby Burger] /// "Kot approach: Kestrel four-eight-three bravo-bravo with request, tower." [CHUCKLING IN COCKPIT]

/// [BARFOR] [Kot International Airport/ Tower] /// "ما هي اللعنة؟ لدينا طائرة قادمة للهبوط OKAY wait please one." [PAUSE] “Ok. Say again?”

/// [CIV] [BURGER BROTHERS, INC. RISK MGMT. LTD/ Canten Aviation R34 Kestrel #483BB | [PiC] Bobby Burger] /// "_{Holy shit dude..} Kot approach, Kestrel four-eight-three-bravo-bravo with request, tower."

/// [BARFOR] [Kot International Airport/ Tower] /// “Kestrel 483 bravo bravo, uhhh, Kot Approach, say uhhh, request.”

/// [CIV] [BURGER BROTHERS, INC. RISK MGMT. LTD/ Canten Aviation R34 Kestrel #483BB | [PiC] Bobby Burger] /// “Kestrel 483 bravo-bravo, request [stifled laughter] COCK AND BALL TORTURE."

/// [BARFOR] [Kot International Airport/ Tower] /// “W-What?!”

/// [CIV] [BURGER BROTHERS, INC. RISK MGMT. LTD/ Canten Aviation R34 Kestrel #483BB | [PiC] Bobby Burger] /// “Request permission to land."

/// [BARFOR] [Kot International Airport/ Tower] /// “...Kestrel 483 bravo bravo Kot Approach… permission granted. Clear to land at runway 58L…”

©422-423 Federal Atomics Computing Division.
^{All Rights Reserved.}

The cockpit broke into an obnoxious burst of laughter and hysteria as the Burger Brothers made the final checks for landing, approaching the dusty airfield that was Kot international airport. It really was a nasty and dusty place, but at least the runway was paved and not bumpy...unlike what the Burger Brothers were expecting. Airport security was lackluster, as usual—Ashcorp’s own large bag of clothes and other belongings was practically glossed over as the two burger brothers reported on the cargo and passengers. Even the security on technicals around the place didn’t even bother questioning the Kestrel’s most glaring violation that the Federal Aerospace Bureau^[1] would throw a fit over—that violation being, of course, the rocket pods strapped onto the side of the plane, under each wing. Luckily for them, no such organization existed in Barechistan—and even if it did, it would be too bloated down by spotty funding, infighting, or bureaucracy to even care.

While Bobby taxied the plane to the terminal, Kenny made the necessary preparations to get ready, including reaching into a large case that took up the space two seats in the cabin once would’ve taken. Inside were a pair of Vrystaat-issue Battle Jackets that he put on, along with two SMG-M64B1s, one of which he handed to his brother, and the other he took himself, unfolding its stock and putting in a magazine. “You know about the gun culture here, reporter bro?” Kenny asked, to which Ashcorp unenthusiastically nodded. “It’s weird, isn’t it, Burger? Practically no gun laws here. No restrictions, nothing saying you can’t own this or can’t shoot that...and the people that make almost spotless copies of guns you’d find in Euphemie or Akhmanar and improvised ones, too. It’s amazing.”

“Yeh, and apparently, if you don’t own a gun, you aren’t considered a “man,” in their culture.” He seemed to be focusing on the LKI reporter’s lack of a firearm, but, in Kenny’s defense, he wasn’t here to start a fight. He reported on the parts of war that big media like the ANC and EBN News didn’t cover, the things people on BBS sites like Aurelianet and Siatka wanted to hear, talking to people big media could never have the chance to find. There were no corporate shills that tried to dictate what they could and could not cover. Whatever he couldn’t go to in person was found through OSINT, meaning LKI was truly independent, founded by independent people and funded by independent people.

It was niche reporting, but highly detailed, and readable for everyone, not just mil-spergs or journalism majors or mercs. The public wanted to hear about this strange and mystical land called “Barechistan” that they thought didn’t exist, so, he would provide them with that information. A big part about his reporting, then, was neutrality, and he personally felt bringing a gun with him would complicate things if he were to, say, go to the Aleisabat and interview a commander there.

They passed through airport security fairly easily, soon exiting out to ground transportation, free to roam about Barechistan as they pleased. Kenny Burger soon came out with a white rented-out Land Raider Sentinel, parts of the car covered in dust and dirt, but the whole thing was still operable, at least. The three were on their way without any other concerns, the mountainous terrain of Barechistan wrapping all around them as flat roads out of the compact city of Kot turned into winding, empty, and wide mountainous roads that often cut through the mountains in the form of dangerous highways. Every so often, an animal or farmer or kid would dart by to watch the truck drive, escaping into lush poppy or marijuana fields or fenced off areas marked as Barechistani government oil refineries, many of which were manned by Clancy Petrochemicals. The Barechistani government stayed afloat with its bountiful natural resources like oil, iron, copper, and uranium, but with attacks happening on a frequent, almost daily basis by the Aleisabat, getting the resources from point A to point B was a harder task actually accomplished than theorized.

After an hour of silently traversing the Barechistani wastes and mountains, they finally reached their first sign of civilization: the village of Karlani, wedged between some tight mountains. A roadblock ahead manned by two men in turbans confirmed that this was the place Ashcorp wanted to be—an Aleisabat-controlled village that would allow him to get close to the leader for a planned, once in a lifetime interview.

They approached the Land Raider as it came to a halt, the Burger Brothers gesturing to their SMGs as the men outside casually flaunted their automatic Varennikovs, the magazines taped together in a jungle fashion as attachments like flashlights, laser sights, and thermal scopes were visible attached to the homemade-looking firearms. “Hayil Alqamar!^[2] Ours are bigger, Euphemianoid!”

“I got a Kestrel with rockets that I can come drop by,” Bobby Burger teased, but the flick of a safety being turned off prompted both of them to shut up as the Aleisabat fighters looked into the car. “We’ve been expecting this man, Alqamar Yasha.^[3]” He is… a guest, according to our commander. Come and enter—it is the village governor’s former mansion.”

“Alright. We’ll be in and out.” Bobby said, driving past the barricade as they made their way inside the village, noting it was relatively intact. Before they approached the so-called “governor’s mansion,” little more than a larger, administrative-looking building, Bobby and Kenny turned to Ashcorp, both raising an eyebrow as Kenny began to talk. “So, uh, reporter, you gonna tell us who this, uh… guy you’re meetin’ is?”

“He’s important.” Ashcorp said.

“How important?”

The LKI reporter paused. “We’re meeting with Ahmed bin Hussein. He’s the leader of the Aleisabat, at least, for this region...and we’ll be accompanying him for a few interviews on my end, and a live look at one of his raids.”

Bobby turned back onto the road as he thought about that name for a long moment, finding it the oddest bit familiar, as if he’d heard it in a dream. “Ahmed bin Hussein, huh? Wonder what that guy’s like…”

CONTEXT NOTES

1 - Federal Aerospace Bureau - The Federal Aerospace Bureau is Euphemie’s primary air transportation and administration agency, analogous to the Akhmanari Civil Aerospace Supervisory Office, or CASO. The FAB differs from the CASO in that it also covers civil space travel, but, for the most part, its functions are similar. It manages air safety regulations, airplane registration, the civil airspace, and can take control of Euphemie’s civilian airspace during emergencies.

2 - Hayil Alqmar - Hayil Alqmar means “Praise the Moon” or “Hail the Moon,” a cry of great exclamation for Lunarists, analogous to “Oh my God” or “By Ouriel!” It is also used as a battle cry for radical Lunarist warriors.

3 - Alqamar Yasha - Literally translates to “if the moon wills it.”

by **Forest State** » Sun Sep 15, 2019 2:43 am

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A shifting business climate has left the Kaelic economy looking for allies - a situation that will bring a strange party of politicians and business figures out east, to deal with a nation that relations have been infrequent with in the past: Teutonenland.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2 – ACT 21: “FAR EAST BUSINESS TRIP”

Steinburg, Teutonenland
March 1, 425

_______________________

It was a peculiar group headed to Steinburg, Teutonenland - there was the big talking politician, Ruarc Carmody, who served as the Oireachtas Chieftain in Kael… Otherwise known as the Prime Minister, or at least the closest thing to a Prime Minister in a ruling system where power was split among multiple groups, including a tribal leader and a parliament. There was a smooth businesswoman, Mave Devine, the head of the Gnothas Mearn company, which was both one of the largest defense and IT companies in Kael, and was now one looking to expand overseas. And then there were Rorie and Shevon Faolain, members of one of Kael’s dynastic families and business owners themselves, attending the trip along with Gnothas Mearn’s CEO and likely hoping to hawk the brand that they were responsible for - the one that they were depending on having success with, to get their family to trust them for anything in the future.

It was safe to say that the conversation on the Riley-Shae RC-14 business jet had been rather interesting as the different types of people converged on one another for this trip, both the government and the private sector and the dynastic families of the country represented all in this little group which had been able to fit on what was decidedly a small plane, a jet which was used for the rich rather than for regular flights due to the small size - what it lacked in size, though, it made up for in luxury. They hadn’t been lacking anything on the way over following their layover in Ushmanapur, the plane equipped with the latest technologies in in-flight entertainment and the kitchen stocked with food from home as well as alcohol, all refrigerated of course.

The trip had been a blur, the conditions on the RC-14 jet better than the ones on the larger but more average KAC-560 which had taken the group from Daernel to Ushmanapur to set up the last leg of their flight, the one they were completing now - they’d made it to Steinburg, and now, the group of important figures was boarding a limousine which was set to take them to the place they’d meet the government. As luxurious as the plane had been, they weren’t taking a trip for fun… No, this was a trip where all of them had serious business, even if their interest in Teutonenland all came from different places. Either national interests, family interests, or plain and simple business interests. Still, at the end of the day, their interests all involved money in some way. And right now, all of their interests led them into Steinburg, a place foreign to the Ophiric visitors coming from the airport.

Steinburg was one of Tsion’s living historical cities - a revolt against modern designs. With not a single skyscraper on sight, the city was a collection of historical Teuton architecture perfectly blended with a bit of infrastructure necessary for the survival of any contemporary society. Perhaps the most noteworthy structure in the city was Steinburg Fortress, a renovated pre-calamity structure in which the city derived its name from, which overlooked the area from atop a rocky hill to the south of the city, giving some sort of a dominant aura even with the absence of any formal function aside from a place of occasional meetings. Despite the apparent visit of important Ophiric businessmen, it was business and work as usual in Steinburg - the average Teuton man simply didn’t have enough time to waste in sparing a bit of hospitality to esteemed guests.

The arrival at the fortress didn’t take long - and the party was soon left moving up the steps. It wasn’t the largest group, a couple of aides were there but for the most part the key figures had come by themselves… The entire trip was something of a detour from their business in Ushmanapur, but that didn’t mean the business here wasn’t important. There was a chance for a lot of cash to change hands soon based on the results of the meeting… As well as a chance for both sides to end up uplifted in different ways. Leading the way into the fortress, of course, was the ‘highest ranking’ one per say, Ruarc Carmody, who was the one who had suggested the visit in the first place. And it had been Carmody’s idea to not just make this a state visit but to bring along some figures from the corporate world, allowing for more flexibility when it came to making economic deals while they were here.

As the Kaelic entourage were slowly descending from the antiquated but luxurious wagon of the old steam train that the past nobility of Sonnschien built, they were greeted by an entourage of one of Teutonenland’s most important technocrats. Similarly, the ‘highest ranking’ counterpart of the Teutonian technocrats was the so-called, Andreas Blumenschein, the Corporate Executive Officer of the Blumenschein Bankengruppe and the first of the technocrat entourage to enthusiastically recommend accept the idea of a Kaelic goodwill visit. He positioned himself in front of Ruarc Carmody and extended his hand. “Welcome to Teutonia.”

“Thank you,” Carmody said, the first one to speak in the Kaelic group - made sense, too. Carmody was the one that did the most public speaking between them all, and played quite the role in domestic politics while speaking as the leader of the Heavenly Party. Compared to the hustle and bustle of politics back home, a diplomatic visit like this wasn’t all that hard. “I see that our reception here is… Corporate in nature. Teutonenland has business on the mind, perhaps?”

“Of course, Teutonenland and Kael are...let’s just say, on a similar wavelength when it comes to business.” Blumenschein replied as he shook Carmody’s hand. “However, it’s unfortunate that the hot weather is quite discomforting, perhaps we should enter the castle and get some refreshments for our esteemed guests here?” Blumeinschein added as he gazes at the Teutonian corporate guards, opting them to guide the rest of the Kaelic entourage inside the fortress with the exception of Carmody, of course - he will handle himself in order to have a bit of a chat with the supposed leader.

“Right,” said Carmody, the Faolain twins and Mave Devine going ahead while Carmody himself remained closer to Blumenschein, awaiting whatever was in store for them as they headed towards the interior of the large building ahead.

“While we’re at it, tell me more about the nature of your work.” Blumeinschein curiously asked as they walk through the decorated corridors of the castle.

“I believe the main duty right now for the leadership of the country is putting out fires abroad - dealing with unreliable and untrustworthy nations such as the PRS, looking to replace production for the economy as a result of international pressure, that type of thing,” said Carmody, shrugging. “If the rest of the world thinks that we’re simply going to give up, all because of a few sanctions at that, they’re wrong.”

“Grittiness is a good quality of a businessman, I see that endorsing you and your buddies for a fun and productive conversation was a right choice after all.” said Blumenschein with a smirk. “And you know, I don’t think that I’m a racist but don’t you just think that the Sinicans are a bit of a spineless bunch?”

“I think that Liang is spineless and that the Republic of Sinica is a bit too similar in mind to be a viable partner,” stated Carmody - an ironic statement considering the Republic of Sinica took an opposing approach to things, but perhaps what Carmody meant was that both Kael and the RoS cared very much about their profits. In the case of the RoS, their capitalism led to them adopting a firmly anti imperialist stance which seemed aimed at keeping the markets as they were… On the other hand, Kael had taken a completely different approach, but not necessarily for reasons which were entirely different.

“Is that so? An interesting insight then.” Blumenschein understood, or at least he thinks so, of how Camrody thinks with just a few questions. In his view, the man he’s dealing is quite of a hard-ass and someone who’s quite determined with upholding deals
, making a future betrayal seem like an unprofitable choice to make. However, as usual, he will adjust on how he deals with people accordingly. “I assure you that a successful Teutonenland and Kaelic cooperation will be a strong unbreakable bond that will benefit both sides in the long-term.”

“I believe certain enemies will do their best in the future to divide and conquer, but yes, we will do our best to avoid such a fate befalling the both of us,” Carmody stated plainly. It had been obvious, after all, that a rival diplomatic power had been involved in the cutting of ties between the PRS and Kael. “I would say that situation is part of why there’s an urgency in us being here, and in Vajraya, right now rather than later…”

“A word of advice - A single Vajrayan is more spineless and have no sense of direction compared to all of the Sinican race combined. That is all.” Blumenschein sarcastically replied. As they continue their walk, they finally arrived at the entrance of a rather luxurious room which was said to be a discussion room for nobility and knights alike “Perhaps we should continue our small talk sometime, now that it’s time to discuss matters more formally... and in a more boring way.” Blumenschein added as he looks at the entrance to the conference room.

“That is what we came here to do, after all,” said Carmody, stepping inside of the conference room where the others were set up, something of a contrast existing between the more well known Mave Devine and the younger Faolain siblings, who weren’t near as famous as some of the other members of their clan, and were here… Well, it was hard to say what they were here for. It seemed like their purpose had something to do with one of the many businesses owned directly or indirectly by the Faolains.

In the next minute or two, the group would settle down around the table fully, until they were ready to get started with the meeting itself. At the same time, the fortress’ servants were sent out to fetch wine for both the Technocrats and Kaelic businessmen.

“Now, as of the first order of business. Let us begin by having our.. friends from Kael have this meeting officially start by discussing their offers and terms in detail.”

“I believe that some of the terms offered by the Kaelic government are pending based on… International circumstances,” Carmody started, making sure to open with the fact that nothing was actually certain here. “However, the main offer that the government, and several of the other governments that we have discussed this matter with, would like to extend… Is membership in the Free States League economic zone. That is to say, free trade with our nations in exchange for free trade with your own nation. I understand, of course, that your nation is landlocked, but we have some other methods of getting around that, which may be useful to your businesses - if not through the sea, which is politically unstable, then via air. There are, of course, other offers on the table from the Kaelic government. But this is, so to speak, the cornerstone of future cooperation.”

“On the matters of free trade, what can Kael or any other member of the Free States League economic zone offer to Teutonenland.” Blumeinschein replied as he was ready to list important notes.

“Modern technology… Computing, mobile phones, all of the latest things in that area, potentially experimental AI programs that are being developed by certain firms within Kael such as the Riley-Shae Corporation or Gnothas Mearn. But I wouldn’t say that’s the only thing. Aircraft, finished goods, timber, these are all things that one can find within Kael proper - I would say there’s even a heavy machinery industry still, even if some of it is moving to other areas. Hesperia, our close ally and neighbor as well as a member of our pact, is a nation of both agriculture and industry, producing automotive goods and exporting their crops to other nations such as ours… While the Canguarians have the resources of the jungles, despite their nation being war torn, unlike our own,” Carmody said, having no problem listing off a number of things. “I would say our group of nations is in a great position to help your own.”

“That’s an interesting proposition...While the variety of goods would certainly uplift the current stagnance of Teuton society, we only have little to offer in return. If I were to list them, mostly things that relates to banking and finance, corporate partnerships, and maybe matters regarding the military. Do you think that the trade-off would be great for your side even with this considered?” Blumenschein raised his eyebrow.

“I believe that establishing corporate ties and building your nation up as a bastion in terms of defense would be an agreeable trade off - we have our reasons for doing what we’re doing, and the nation that lies to your east right now plays some role in it…” Carmody stated with a nod. “Your nation may not have as much as others, sure, but consider your strategic location - between west and east, that is. And perhaps importantly, your position may be landlocked but it is also a somewhat defensible one from certain rivals…”

“Very well, we will have this matter arranged as soon as possible.” At the same time, the servants finally arrived arrived and began pouring wine. “To a fruitful cooperation between Teutonenland and the Free States League.” Blumenschein declared, raising his wine glass.

“I believe that a rising state will also need a way to defend itself from the status quo,” Devine stated after the toast was returned by the Kaelic party. “My company, of course, or at least the defense division, specializes in that. Your country… Wouldn’t be in need of such goods, would it? Because back home, there have been talks of creating a Teuton variant of the F/A-20M.”

“Teutonenland does need a newer domestically produced fighter to protect its sovereignty from potential war-mongering from its dangerous neighbours. And of course, my company will be open to cooperate with Kael to assist us in a joint-development process.” Interjected Joaquin Köhler, the CEO of the Köhler Aktiengesellschaft, the dominant local aircraft manufacturing company in the country.

“The question is whether or not your country can support such a matter,” Devine said flatly, basically declaring her inconfidence in the idea of the Teutons being able to develop a competing fighter to the Specter with their existing industry. “Over the course of years you could make a good domestic fighter, sure… But my company’s products have already been combat tested and are much further along in their development.”

“Minor shitflinging aside, my company’s production facilities will be open towards cooperation and outsource manufactures with the development branch of your company.

“The F/A-20CA is produced in Sofia in cooperation with Kyta de Canguari… We can work out a similar deal assuming the government of Teutonland decides to go the route of buying Kaelic aircraft. And while it would be early to develop a new fighter altogether, the Specter program is still growing - if the military submits their list of needs and requirements, my company can shift things around to ensure those are met,” Devine replied with a shrug.

“I will soon have a productive conversation with the military regarding their needs and requirements for a so-called Teuton variant of the F/A-20CA. But of course, even with such a lucrative deal to produce a supposedly advanced foreign aircraft, the brass would probably need to see how the aircraft perform against locally produced aircraft. For example, a competition between the F/A-20CA and my company’s Kl-309F ” Köhler replied, sipping wine.

“I believe we can deliver something stronger in performance than the F/A-2CA… The F/A-20TEU, if you will. And I’m also confident in my company’s product being able to win in the skies - it’s already been combat proven, after all, in the skies over South Ophir,” stated Devine.

“The Kl-309F, or at least its preceding variants that my father oversaw production, is also combat tested. While our nation unfortunately honorably lost wars in the past usually due to limited manpower, resources, and logistics, the aircraft that my company produced brought terror to the weak Kammelsburg, The traitorous Kaissereich, and the Tangaliroan cockroaches.” Köhler smugly claimed.

“I’m aware of this aircraft, yes - older than the Specter but still able to play the part somewhat. I’m sure that if you partnered with Gnothas Mearn, we would be able to take a look at keeping this fighter in the skies going forward, and upgrading the design further… Although the similar airframe in Kaelic service, the F/A-06 Whirwind, belongs to the Riley-Shae Corporation rather than my own firm.”

“I got a bit emotional there for a bit...But yes, I’m quite interested in how both our aircraft fare against each other. Personally, I’d like to witness if my company’s work achieved perfection or severely needs improvements there and that.”

“This can be set up,” Devine said with a nod. “I’m sure my own company will also benefit from seeing our performance against a different school of design. I can also begin arrangements to set up a regional office in this country in preparation for domestic production and joint development… Assuming we do have the government’s interest in buying a new domestically produced Specter variant.”

“Of course, I have the..influence to make them interested in procuring such an aircraft.”

“Then I think we have a deal on our hands,” Devine said, somewhat satisfied for getting this deal completed within one meeting, rather than dragging the negotiations out over a longer period of time. “I’ll make my calls, we can get everything signed in a couple of days, and we’ll be doing business together soon enough… To the benefit of both our companies.”

“To the benefit of both our country and companies.” Köhler smiled, raising his wineglass as he took a sip. For an irrelevant landlocked country in the outskirts of both Medeuropa and the barbaric part of Mederum, Teutonenland began to take little steps in rising to relevance and greatness - at least the Teutons think it would as they individually signed their approval to Teutonenland’s entry to the Free League States treaty. Whether the cooperation with Kael will bring them to glory or ruin will depend on how they maneuver through more lucrative trade deals.

WFF Series 2: Mederune Sunrise [IC, CLOSED]

Who is online