OOC: I have a map of my location in my factbooks. Also, I'm sorry if my sig confused you. The Italian Factbook has nothing to do with Nova Capile, it is for an Alternate WW2 RP in which I'm playing as Italy. We're German. Also, any ethnicities in my factbooks or elsewhere are only for my home island, not including my colonies.
IC:
Herzogberg, Greater Ethiopia Fredrik Von Dorf, Colonial Governor-General of Capilean Ethiopia, sifted through the many telegrams and reports piled atop his desk. The entire colony was in a mess. The government had approved for troops to be sent to quell the rebellion, but how many and which units to send were still being debated; the Stoßschutz and Army would likely argue with each other and try to let the honors of victory go to their branches. Fredrik predicted he would not see troops in the ground for months. As such, he had about 80,000 military and riot police, and 118,000 volunteer "colonial defense" units at his disposal. About half of them were African, and their loyalty was questionable. It was looking to be a dismal situation.
The thing he had to do most of all was contain the rebellion. If it spread into the rest of East Africa, the Duchy could be fighting a massive, unwinnable war against its colonial population. The entire empire could be lost. He pushed such abysmal thoughts out of his mind, addressing telegrams from friendly Casselli. It was nice to know that some nations retained sense.
To: The Government of Casselli
From: The Colonial Government of Greater Ethiopia
Greetings friends! We are glad you have decided to help us win this war against the despicable, savage brutes which claim they fight for a "Free Ethiopia". We are also glad you so willingly deployed troops. So far, we only have access to unreliable colonial militia, but we are expecting more help from the government soon.
I am looking forward to collaborating with you in the future.
Sincerely,
-Fredrik Von Dorf, Governor General of Greater Ethiopia
Sighing as he sent the message off, he turned to the gruesome reports of riots in Northern and Western Ethiopia. Those parts were sparsely populated and heavily forested, which gave the rebels an advantage. Frederik had ordered a general retreat from those provinces to better defend the rich center of the country, and he had encouraged the Capilean civilians to leave with the military. Those who had remained apparently suffered a brutal fate. But that only instilled courage in Von Dorf. He and his brave soldiers, white and black, would win this war.
Jacobstown, Northern Ethiopia Warlord Alem Melech Mekdem smiled to himself as he observed his new capital city. It was small compared to the great cities in the city of the country, but it was his own little paradise. A grand mosque had been constructed in the city square, one of the few places where the road was paved with stone. Beside it stood the new state building, a modest Arabic-style three story building. The first floor was for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Management of the State(the latter combined a lot of different departments such as Health, Agriculture, and Transportation into one); it was rarely busy. The next was the Ministry of War, which was bustling. And finally, on the top floor, was his office and the offices of several other government ministers. Sentries with smuggled automatic rifles, wearing rugged, stolen military fatigues, stood by the entrance to both buildings, and the new flag of the Theocracy of Islamic Ethiopia flew proudly above the state building:
He grinned from ear to ear. This was his nation, a place where the Muslims of his country could drive out the white Christian invaders. He turned to the city's mud brick walls; on pikes, mounted on top of the walls, were the heads of white Capileans. They would pay for their ruthless colonization of his home. He entered the state building, saluting the sentries. After making his way to his office, he noticed a fresh telegram on his desk. It was addressed from over a week ago; he wondered that it had even made it there at all. He read the letter, and spat into a nearby waste bin. Dealing with Jews, his people's chief enemy, would not be easy. But what if was the only way his people could reconquer their lands. He finally wrote a reply in his native language:
To: The Government of Iodinae
From: The Theocracy of Islamic Ethiopia
Greetings. I am hesitant to turn to you, as our religions and peoples have long had feuds. However, I am willing to accept that my armies are not equipped for open warfare with the Imperialists. And so I will work with you to free my people. Know, however, that most of my soldiers and people will have a hard time accepting you as allies, but we must work towards a common goal of freedom. I would like to meet with a representative of your nation in my capital of Jacobstown, as we are now a sovereign nation(being recognized by the Republic of Congo, Pakistan, and several other African and Arab countries). I would also like to open an embassy in your capital and for you to open one in mine, so that better communication can be achieved.
I hope that our two peoples may get along.
Sincerely,
-Warlord Alem Melech Mekdem
After he finished and sent the telegram, he turned to military matters. He was himself Warlord, and thus commander of the army. It was meager, and divided. In the North, there were about 21,000 troops which had been trained somewhat by foreign drill sergeants and were equipped with semi-modern equipment. And there were also about 60,000 mobs of rebels which were armed with improvised melee weapons and sometimes looted weaponry. On the Western side, it was a completely different regime. Although under the same name and technically subordinate to Mekdem, General Bahta Teshome operated virtually independently of him and was rather untrustworthy. Mekdem suspected he had about 15,000 trained and 30,000 "militia" forces. Any way you put it, the army was in a dire state and Mekdem wished to change that.
Later that day, he met with top officials of the government and military to "ratify" their declaration of independence from the Capilean Empire. The Warlord, as soon as the document was signed, went out of the building to meet a crowd of hundreds of civilians and rebels. "Brave Muslims! I am pleased to announce, that we are independent of the racist, imperialist pigs which for so long forced us to remain in their empire! Today, under Allah, we are free!"