[Closed, Tiandi-Only] [IC] Red Oil

[Tosanchi]

Hello there! Please be advised that this thread is for a RP of the closed universe of Tiandi, and thus only members of that community can post here. Now, without further ado...

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Tandachar, Kingdom of Rodasia
1976

My name is Priyaranjan Chandratreya. I am from the poor classes of this country. My intelligence was enough to grant me a scholarship to whatever path I decided to follow. Whilst others would have chosen prestigious universities at home or abroad, I chose the Tandachar Military Academy.

I should explain. Rodasia is facing a military insurrection by the communists. In order to placate the populace and offer some façade of reform, the royalist regime implemented some superficial measures. This included the royal scholarships for the poor such as myself. I have calculated that, if I join the royalist forces and distinguish myself in fighting the communist revolt, I could get contacts with the elite and lift myself and my family out of this miserable state.

The insurgency is showing its efforts: there are a lot of young nobles here studying to become military officers. The noble houses are hoping to advance in the royal court by having their young defeat the communists. One such nobleman, my friend, summoned me to talk in the roof of the academy.

"Hello there, Priyaranjan"

"How are you?"

"I shall cut to the chase: I know what you are doing"

I was puzzled. What does he mean by this? Does he mean-

"You entered this academy to advance your standing, did you not?"

But of course.

"Of course not. You know that my loyalty lies with our monarchy"

"You are smarter than that. I know you. In case I am correct, you must be aware that you cannot do anything of the sort, even here"

"I do not dream of progressing beyond my designated station"

"Yes, yes, I am well-informed on your ability to speak softly. In any case, you must know that you shall never progress beyond a Captain. I know because my father is a Lieutenant General"

...I did not wish to accept it. I had held to the desperate hope that, if I could distinguish myself in battle, I could advance in the ranks of the military and society. I am now being told of reality.

"It needn't be so. Opportunity lies elsewhere. Few think so, but I believe the communists shall obtain victory in the end"

"What are you insinuating?"

"What must be. Let us see a new red sky together. You are an intelligent individual. If we join these communists and work together, we can achieve our objectives"

This is madness. Pure lunacy.

I love it.

"Show me the way, comrade"

[Tosanchi]

Tandachar, People's Republic of Rodasia/Kingdom of Rodasia
1981-1985

The fighting was drawing to a close. Priyaranjan Chandratreya, now a Colonel in the communist army, had chosen the correct faction indeed.

Over the last few years, Priyaranjan had fought with distinction, leading troops into battle. He was the Hero of Oriyeta, as he was the main commander of an offensive in the city, overruning the royalists and effectively shutting them off from the north of the country.

Tandachar, the capital of the royalist regime, was now under siege. The Tosānchinese population had already been evacuated, and tens of thousands of noble and anti-communist Rodasians had fled to Tosānchi, the neocolonial power that was offering sanctuary to them. It was all over.

"I told you this was the right choice, comrade"

My friend and I were watching the battle from afar. He was an idealist, like many in the party, but he knew from the beginning that I was a pragmatist above all else. I managed to fool the party and my friend by telling them that I really did end up believing in communism, but it was all a lie. I don't believe in anything, only in any method that will save my family from poverty.

We saw the royalist flag fall. They had surrendered.

I had made friends with a substantial amount of the party elite. Recommended by top officials and seeing my potential, the General Secretary was going to appoint me as a member of the high command. Perhaps he expected me to be grateful and loyal to him, as he bypassed other Generals of the revolution. Perhaps he was an idealist, and thus only saw a good resource for their new People's Republic to advance and bring communism to fruitition. Whatever it was, I never knew. After all, I killed him four years later.

Why? Why did I kill the man who gave me the power I sought? Very simple, actually. He was standing in my way.

Maybe he was indeed an idealist, or he was attempting to purge me. I had associated with the Commissar of Industry and Resources, hoping to gain access to the oil trade by putting my family in key positions. I wished to secure my family's position in the hierarchy, nothing more. Secretly, she had disagreed with the General Secretary and had joined other officials in a plot to oust him without my knowledge. Some of the plotters were idealists who felt that the General Secretary was betraying the revolution. Others, like the Commissar of Industry and Resources, were looking to improve their standing. I became a target of an impending purge, and I was told of this the day before it was due to occur.

I played my cards.

"Comrade General Secretary, are you alright?...Comrade General Secretary? Comrade! Respond!"

I poisoned the bastard. I was immediately thrown into suspicion, but the Commissar of Justice was secretly a part of the plot. Instead, he arrested one of the General Secretary's allies, the Commissar of Defense, fabricating the evidence to make it look as if he was the one leading the plot all along. He was immediately shot.

I became the Commissar of Defense, and my new wife appointed her new in-laws as I had wished, as well as purging her ministry to install her allies. Her position? Commissar of Industry and Resources.

I originally married her out of convenience, but I fell in love with her. I never knew if she loved me as well, but I always prefer to believe that her heart eventually reciprocated those feelings. Apart from my family, she was the only person I ever loved.

Why did I do it...? I regret it even today...