The Battle of Glass Tears [IC | SEMI-OPEN | PMT/MT]

[The Ice States]

Continued. Ooc thread.



The Prophet's Song. _{(Ooc: Parts of this post contributed by Mokastana, Holy Marsh and Gortenia.)}

Southport City, The Ice States.

The actions of the Golden Throne were, to put it simply, unacceptable. With various nations already contacted for a diplomatic response to the matter, there could be no delay in the Ice response to the matter. Given the GDRC legislation the nation was planning to propose, the nation would have to prepare militarily, both for any military attack by or on the Golden Throne.

The primary goal of any military action would be to recover those items the Golden Throne had stolen from the Ice States. Another goal would be to stop the Golden Throne from having a border near the Ice States, and thereby have a means to easily violate Ice sovereignty as they have already. However, engaging in such action ab initio would pose an unnecessary danger to the Ice States: the Golden Throne had many allies and was very powerful itself. It could, if it truly desired, take the Ice States as a mere colony. If the Golden Throne tried to escalate the conflict itself, then it would be proportionate and reasonable to directly attack Nicaro to claim it.

A diplomatic response, for now, was the best course of action. Which is why the Icers would have a meeting with the Marshites and Mokans regarding this urgent matter. With those contacted nations already agreeing to engage with the meeting, the Ice delegation promptly escorted the Marshite and Mokan delegations to the diplomatic negotiation room.

As usual for such meetings, Lyda Straub introduced the meeting as Minister of Foreign Affairs. "We have all come here to discuss what are unpleasant circumstances for us all. What was previously a respected and trusted nation in this region has decided to loot our nation after vowing to end an occupation of part of our sovereign territory. They have stolen culturally and economically significant items, including paintings such as "Piepowder's Moss-Weed Court" and "The Lizards of Eden". We have found buildings and museums emptied."

"We have called this mission to discuss a unified response to this matter. If the Golden Throne can get away with this act against the Ice States, what is there to say that they will not do this to the PUF, or even its closest allies such as...Holy Marsh? Nor can we continue trying to appease the Golden Throne, as we did to end the Green Zone occupation. What we propose is a statement signed by all our nations condemning the looting, and demanding the prompt return of all confiscated items. Having regional superpowers such as the PUF or Holy Marsh, including some of their closest allies, will undoubtedly at least cause significant consideration within the highest echelons of the Macabean government. In this meeting, we can draft a statement and, once a consensus statement is reached, sign it as being a multinational statement condemning the looting."

Ashala Illahee took a seat, the old Ambassadress returning again as the new Ambassadress. Despite the change of government, the uphill battle against fate was the same. Plus, she was tired. "It can get away with this for it is strong and does not fear your response. And you are in no position to offer it a true threat. This does not hold for other nations," she said glumly before shaking her head and taking off her glasses, cleaning them, and returning them to use.

"Do not take this bluntness as a lack of sympathy for your cause. We find it beneath the Throne that it would steal your artefacts over base concerns of debt relief, a claim we find as implausible as we do weak. We are more than willing to work with you to conduct a diplomatic program to recover these artefacts, through our dealings with the Throne as well as other means. We are willing to sign a statement calling for the return of these cultural artefacts," she ended positively, ready to sign her name to a statement concerning those matters.

There was however something larger at play. "Economically, our best advice for your position is to succeed. I know the urge to seek immediate relief is strong, but rash actions lead to rash endings. We will not engage against the Throne militarily on the behalf of the Communal Union- we are allies with them, and would be more likely to work with them if you were to attack. If you commit yourselves to becoming the best state you can be, succeeding ideologically and politically at home and abroad, you will find your station improved. The Throne mocks you for being communist, but it deals with many on a level of respect who hold many of the same ideals. Success at home will be your greatest victory."

Straub patiently listened to the Marshite representative speak. She was privy to far more than the Marshite was; although naturally could not disclose much of her knowledge here. Why would she disclose war plans against a nation to the representative of an ally of that nation? Once the Marshite finished her speech, Straub thought what she would say next for a few seconds, before speaking again.

"Rest assured that we will consider your statements regarding how to economically progress from this incident. In any case, it is precisely because of the standing of the Golden Throne that a statement publicising this incident and thereby condemning it to the international community is necessary. We appear to be on the same page in that regard. Regarding a statement itself, we have drafted a first version of a statement, although naturally it is relatively...unpolished as a draft." She pressed a few buttons below the desk before a text appeared on the screen at the centre of the desk.

The text read as follows,

Statement On Looting Of Ice Territory By The Golden Throne

To all ladies, gentlemen, foreigners, Icers, and all others around the region, we come to issue a statement regarding recent actions by the Golden Throne within our nation. We wish to emphasise that the actions of the Golden Throne occurred without our knowledge or consent, until we discovered it after it had already concluded. The acts are undoubtedly shocking, especially when done by a nation of such stature within the region.

The ending of the "Green Zone" occupation of Ice territories in Ormont by the Golden Throne is one which should relieve us all; yet, in capitalistic greed, the Golden Throne has elected to conduct its withdrawal in an ultimately bad-faith manner which violates the trust we afforded to it. Specifically, it turns out that Macabean forces had looted the territory they had occupied during their withdrawal from the Green Zone.

This looting took the form of confiscating culturally and economically significant items found within the occupied areas. Cultural artefacts we have lost to this act of capitalistic greed include renowned paintings such as "Piepowder's Moss-Weed Court" and "The Lizards of Eden", literary items such as the original copies of "Larks' Tongues in Aspic", and even one of the oldest known copies of the Holy Book of Klyprer. We have also noted that the Golden Throne effectively bribed businesses under Ice jurisdiction to relocate to the Golden Throne, although given that to our knowledge the businesses themselves decided to relocate this is not as heinous as the looting of Ice territory.

In the strongest possible terms, the nations of The Ice States, Holy Marsh, and the People's Unified Federation, hereby condemn this looting of Ice territories as shocking and a gross violation of trust placed in the Golden Throne by the Ice States. To that end, we demand that all items removed during this looting be unconditionally returned to Ice jurisdiction as promptly as possible.

Signed,

Illahee looked it over. "It is a fine statement. I understand your government's view on it, but the line about capitalistic greed would need to be changed for us to sign it. The ideological underpinnings of governments are near-meaningless, and we'd rather not be mired in the debate of 'communism vs capitalism' once more. We also think it invites those who may otherwise have sympathy for you on moral grounds to stand against you in the name of pointless ideology. No need to make your job harder than it will be."

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain listened to the Ice diplomat. As an avid socialist since secondary school, she understood the rage, but also, as a diplomat and student of history, had the wisdom of time.

"Before I was born, Mokastana was but a former colony trying to find its feet. We had many civil wars as different ideologies fought to prove they would be the best for our islands. During those civil wars we had foreign empires come to claim what they could from us… we did not have the ability to fight them off at the best of times, much less during a civil war. One such invader, Kroando, claimed Juventud Island and turned it into an island fortress and training ground. We were forced to recognize their claim, less they continue to bomb us into submission. Everyone who lived there was given two weeks to leave, or be forcibly removed by bayonet."

"For years we were forced to live with this foreign colony on our island, just a hundred kilometers from our shores. We worked hard to build up our military, fought in foreign wars to learn by blood. All with the intention of one day taking back our occupied island. My own Uncle spent his life turning our aging rusted fleet into a modern navy, capable of fighting off fleets three times its size. He died in battle, leading that very Navy in defense of another long forgotten nation."

"I was just five years old when Kroando finally left Juventud. Not by force, but by their own internal struggles back home. They abandoned it without a shot fired. The entire country celebrated as we retook the island, finally planting a Mokan Flag on its soil once again. Today it is the seat of military power for the Federation."

"I tell you this story so you know that my people know your pain of occupation and being looted. We've worked very hard to ensure we would never be put in that position again."

"That said, what is the plan for when they say no? We can join you in asking politely for your cultural artifacts, but what will you ask from us when TGT refuses your request? The PUF has no intention of war with TGT, and economic sanctions are also off the table, as they are one of our largest trade partners. The only other thing we can offer is paying whatever price TGT asks for, unless you have another idea."

The Ice diplomat turned to the Mokan representative and replied. "I believe it is best to cross that bridge until we come to it. For now, a measured diplomatic response is the best course of action. If it fails, any further action or response can be decided and organised. That said, there is no plan to buy the items from the Golden Throne at this time. Doing so would merely reward this capitalistic greed; we seek the items to be returned unconditionally, rather than for a price."

The Ice diplomat then turned to the Marshite. "We understand your concerns. Of course, we do strongly believe that capitalistic greed is the reason for this, although we can remove that line." Pressing another few buttons below the desk, the text changed, with the line "in capitalistic greed" removed. "Does the updated draft address the Marshite concerns?"

Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain listened to her Ice counterpart, and while she admired their optimism, it was borderline foolish. "With all due respect, when you are dealing with the Golden Throne, you need to think three steps ahead. Especially when you are planning on going against what they are asking for. Yes, The Golden Throne is looking to stamp out communism, they despise it. Robbing you and forcing you to buy back your cultural artifacts is "compromise" to them.

You seek the items back unconditionally, you will need to find a way to convince them that giving you the items back is either less painful, or more profitable, than selling them on the open market. I'll be honest, you cannot do either well and threats will likely end in your regime. They have you cornered. They have no reason to give in to a small nation, especially a communist one. It would look bad to them."

The Mokan certainly had a good point, although the plans of the Ice States still could not be disclosed. Straub waited for Franshaw-Serain to finish, before speaking to the representative. "We believe a public statement signed not only by the Ice States, but by multiple other notable powers in the region, will provide a very strong reputational incentive to return the items. If that is not the case, we can plan further action then. We note that we do plan on increasing our military defense near the Nicaroan border should the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie we border decide to engage in aggression against our nation. We may even elect to terminate the agreement to meet a quota of annual purchases, which per our calculations is even greater than the market value of the items removed, so as to provide a financial net disincentive to the Golden Throne for keeping the items. We assure you that take these arguments under consideration, should the time come. But for now we are here to draft a statement, and we want to make sure that such a statement can be issued promptly."

Elizabeth sighed, "We will sign a request to return the cultural artifacts in question, and agree with our Marshite comrades about removing any reference to economic systems. If you want the sympathy of the international community, do not make enemies of neutral capitalist nations. Unofficially, I find your lack of a planning ahead foolish, but the Communal Union is Sovereign, after all." Illahee herself did acknowledge that the draft by and large would pass Marshite approval. "This will be acceptable. We will sign."

An additional signature was received by the government of Gortenia, which had elected not to send diplomats participate in the meeting in-person, yet still sign on to the statement. It was thus issued as follows,

Statement On Looting Of Ice Territory By The Golden Throne

To all ladies, gentlemen, foreigners, Icers, and all others around the region, we come to issue a statement regarding recent actions by the Golden Throne within our nation. We wish to emphasise that the actions of the Golden Throne occurred without our knowledge or consent, until we discovered it after it had already concluded. The acts are undoubtedly shocking, especially when done by a nation of such stature within the region.

The ending of the "Green Zone" occupation of Ice territories in Ormont by the Golden Throne is one which should relieve us all; yet, in greed, the Golden Throne has elected to conduct its withdrawal in an ultimately bad-faith manner which violates the trust we afforded to it. Specifically, it turns out that Macabean forces had looted the territory they had occupied during their withdrawal from the Green Zone.

This looting took the form of confiscating culturally and economically significant items found within the occupied areas. Cultural artefacts we have lost to this act include renowned paintings such as "Piepowder's Moss-Weed Court" and "The Lizards of Eden", literary items such as the original copies of "Larks' Tongues in Aspic", and even one of the oldest known copies of the Holy Book of Klyprer. We have also noted that the Golden Throne effectively bribed businesses under Ice jurisdiction to relocate to the Golden Throne, although given that to our knowledge the businesses themselves decided to relocate this is not as heinous as the looting of Ice territory.

In the strongest possible terms, the nations of The Ice States, Holy Marsh, Gortenia, and the People's Unified Federation, hereby condemn this looting of Ice territories as shocking and a gross violation of trust placed in the Golden Throne by the Ice States. To that end, we demand that all items removed during this looting be unconditionally returned to Ice jurisdiction as promptly as possible.

Signed,
~Courtney Hazelbush,
Elected President,
The Communal Union of the Ice States

~Lyda Straub,
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
The Communal Union of the Ice States

~Ashala Illahee,
Ambassador to the Ice States,
Holy Marsh

~Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain,
Foreign Minister,
The People's United Federation

~Government of Gortenia

Despite the meeting, a military response was organised. The border with Nicaro, as well as the coast with the Sea of Ice, had a significant amount of military personnel and resources given, with supply chains being reinforced from Wingcaster, Deephedge and other nearby sites to the areas, through the rocky, low-lying terrains of Northwestern Ormont. Thousands of reserves were activated; now there were over 1 million active personnel throughout the Ice States. In Surisjardinar and Hinnaland, reserves were called up to train in case they needed to be activated. A quarter of the entire active military of the Ice States was now deployed around the Ormontian border, ready to stop any attempted attack from the Golden Throne.

If the Golden Throne attempted any military action, the Ice forces were there to stop them in their tracks. Macabean forces would have to get through a marine deployment in the coast of the Sea of Ice, and then a land deployment around the same coast, were they to attempt any invasion. Along the direct border with the Golden Throne, land forces also were stationed around the area. Finally, there were air forces patrolling the entire area, which would be regularly reloaded and refueled from Wingcaster and Deephedge; with automated systems being present to detect need for fuel and weaponry for each aircraft. Any Macabean attempt to invade the Ice States would face fire from both air and the surface. Air patrols were also reinforced throughout the rest of the Ice States, in case invasion was attempted from another part than the Sea of Ice and Nicaroan border.

The Gortenian government had sent a letter to the Ice government, promising monetary support to Ice war efforts,

To The Ice States.

Before stating what is being said, this must not seen by any one except that in the most high of the Ice States government.

We have sent 18.3 million Gortgens (which is worth 15 million guinea) to fund any military efforts due to the recent happenings with The Golden Throne.

From, the Gortenian government.

The monies indeed promptly reached the Ice States, although comparatively speaking, they were a relatively small amount, especially compared to what the war would cost. This was the start of a new period in Ice history; that of the Battle of Glass Tears...

[The Macabees]

FEDORIA, NICARO

A city once artillery-pummeled and battle-scarred was turning into the premier resort of the satrapy's elite. It was where Lara Surr, the imperial kríerlord who acted as an extension of His Will over Nicaro and its neighbors, found herself upon receiving new orders from the Imperial Palace in Fedala. She knew well what had happened at the GDRC chamber, between the Icer representative and Kríerlord Andro Kilomen, but she had tried to distance herself from it anyway in an attempt to take some genuine time off. All in vain, it seemed. The kríerlord sighed as she floated down the sparkling blue lazy river separated from the sun by a tropical foliage of palm trees. Taking another sip from her blue and red cocktail with a little umbrella titled over one of the glass' lips, she closed her eyes for a moment longer to squeeze just as much relaxation out of this short vacation as she possibly could. But thoughts of work flooded her mind and it was not long before she pulled herself out of the water, headed to her room, showered, dressed, and packed. Bodyguards followed her every movement from a safe distance. They took her to the nearby cüev, an aerial military base, later that day and she was on a plane to Quitiruzú not too long after the sun had come down.

As her gold and white government airliner flew over southern Nicaro, Lara could very clearly see the endless multitude of lights of a very active border region. Since the infusion of limikari, 50 million in totality, the insurgency in the south had been suppressed, and peaceful civilian life was now the norm. Stability in the south allowed for the expansion of critical infrastructure, including aqueducts, power lines, and the various other necessities that the people of the developed world took for granted but hadn't ever existed in these parts of Nicaro. While the jewel of southern Nicaro was the burgeoning city of Quitiruzú, civilization was spreading everywhere from the farthest corner of the Nicaroan-Motokatan Frontier to that of the Nicaroan-Icer Frontier. The satrapy's people were enjoying a standard of public governance that years ago seemed impossible. And beyond the limikari and the spread of urbanity that they promoted, there were some 10 million regulares deployed either directly along the frontier zones or in the various rear echelons that made up the Ejermacht's defense-in-depth of the satrapy. These troops, along with airmen and sailors, brought their pay to the local restaurants, storefronts, whorehouses, and dispensaries, injecting a poor society with newfound wealth. All of it made for quite the mesmerizing spectacle when seen in the air, especially at night. The cities and towns, of course, were bright flowers of multi-colored light, but even the highways and rivers could be seen from the plane thanks to seemingly infinite headlights.

When she landed in Quitiruzú, Lara didn't have much time to recover from the travel. She slept at the city's kasel, an official imperial residence that could be used by a visiting kríerlord for a few hours before leaving for the primary base area of Kríerstatón Quitiruzú. There, the top naval, army, and air force commanders in the satrapy were already waiting for her. Servants were skittering to and fro, filling glasses with water and bringing platters carrying appetizers to a long table with a white tabletop by the back wall.

"Kríerlord," they all said in succession, rising to stand at attention. The servant's disappeared as official business was about to be conducted.

She nodded. "Commanders. Sit, please."

They did so. And as soon as the noise of scooting chairs and clearing of throats had ended, Lara continued, "We meet today to review the past week of preparations for military conflict with the Ice States. Given their words at the GDRC and the evidence we have of an ongoing military buildup on their side of our shared frontier, it is increasingly obvious that war between our two states will renew in the short term. You were all issued orders to be fully prepared for such a conflict as soon as this week. I will call on some of you now to confirm that these orders have been carried through. Admiránt Jul Hewal, we'll start with you."

"With pride, Kríerlord," said the admiral, standing. "Assets of the recently formed Kríergrup 'Quitiruzú' have all been moved to ports further north in anticipation of the conflict. Icer land-based anti-shipping missiles should therefore be mostly useless, although one of the foci of our carrier aviation will be to neutralize these targets to allow our surface fleet to approach the northern Icer shoreline in anticipation of an amphibious landing to seize Deephedge. The fleet group will also be within range to engage any Icer surface combatant that attempts to cross the Sea of Ice, although I suspect that between our carrier aviation, the land-based Laerihans, and the diesel-electric submarines attached to our kríergrup their opportunities to execute such an action would be suicidal, at best." He sat back down.

"Good. Admiránt Kassinger," Lara moved on.

Admiral Petre Kassinger stood. "At His command, kríerlord. Kríergrup 'Nicaro' has moved into the southern sector of the Sea of Ordena. Our rear is covered by Kríergrup Macabea, allowing my fleet group to concentrate on providing our naval forces with a significant reserve."

The kríerlord nodded in approval. "Excellent. Admiránt Karl Sevoor."

The Frommian stood next. "At His service, kríerlord. Kríergrup 'Beda Fromm' is in a position to seal the eastern exit from the Sea of Faith as soon as orders to do so are received. I am also happy to report that we have inserted a number of nuclear attack and ballistic missile submarines into the Sea of Faith in preparation for combat action against the Icer surface fleet. We are confident in our ability to remove any and all Icer surface fleet combatants from action within the opening days, if not hours, of a war."

"That is good to hear, admiránt," said Lara. That leaves you, Admiránt Sorot."

Hernan Sorot stood. He was one of the few Guffingfordis who had risen to such a prestigious rank within the kríermada but his talent for naval warfare had long been recognized. "Kríerlord, Kríergrup 'Targul Frumos' has relocated to a position off of the Philotas Islands. Our allies there have confirmed our ability to use their naval bases as a point of resupply and refitting, as well as access to their sensory intelligence to better control naval traffic between the various islands that could protect any Icer merchant and military ships attempting to leave the Sea of Faith through the southern exit. I have no doubt that we will be able to completely enclose the Icers within the Sea of Faith. Our nuclear attack and ballistic missile submarines have also been moved into said sea, where they will be able to support 'Beda Fromm' in the destruction of the Icer surface fleet and the wrecking of their port infrastructure."

Admiránt Sorot accounted for the last naval commander present at the table. The four kríergrups allocated for the prosecution of the war represented a powerful military force — over 2,000 ships total to seal the blockade of the Ice States. The kríerlord moved on to the ground commanders. This war would make use of a much larger contingent of ground forces than the last. The two commanders present were Lasagos Varo Karan, Samu Jeral, and Karl Sein. They represented almost five million soldiers, about half of the ground force contingent in southern Nicaro. Lara started with Karan.

The field marshall of the 9th Ejergrup rose to speak. "At His command, kríerlord. My five armies are under full alert in anticipation of a possible cross-border invasion. Two of these armies have also been prepared for an immediate invasion of the Ice States should orders be received to do so. We could move out within 12 hours of being commanded to do so. The rest of my army group would be ready within thirty-six hours." The other two lasagos' updates were very similar.

Finally, it came to Laerishal Jorg Castelo, a Rezeghian by birth. He oversaw the entire air force contingent in Nicaro, which had grown to over 1,000 aircraft since the last war. "My command has been fully integrated with the Kríermada's in Nicaro," he said, "to allow for the fullest extent of coordination between air forces with the same objectives. With that being said, our focus will clearly be on the frontline, interdicting Icer combatants behind said lines, and carrying out the strategic bombing of the Ice States. For this latter task, I can confirm that Laerihans High Command in Arras has released 200 strategic bombing aircraft to my command, with bases on the western seaboard of the mainland provinces. Our plans remain consistent with whatever war scenario ultimately plays out, at least as it stands now." He sat back down.

"Excellent," replied Lara. "Withdrawing from the Green Zone was obviously a mistake. War with the communist government of the Ice States is, as I said before, almost assured. The question that remains, and is surely living in your heads', is whether we will give them the initiative or whether we will attack preemptively. My answer is 'it depends.' Specifically, it depends on whether their government offers us an opportunity to attack preemptively without looking like a baseless aggressor. That opportunity has a specific look. Should they end our trade agreement prior to the commencement of hostilities, the Imperial Bureaucracy will interpret that as a breaking of the agreement over our withdrawal and will seek to reimpose the 'Green Zone.' We aim to begin the war no more than 24 hours after the trade agreement is broken. What we expect to be in motion no more than 24 hours is the crossing of the Nicaroan-Icer Frontier, the full imposition of the blockade against the Ice States, and initial operations to destroy the Icer combat fleet. We seek a seamless reoccupation of the 'Green Zone' accompanied by the total destruction of the Icer military within the first month of the war. Is that understood?"

A chorus of 'aye' and 'yes, kríerlord' rang out across the room.

She followed up, "Good. Let's discuss the finer details now." They proceeded to go commander by commander again with the more excruciating details of their opening operations. Most of this information was available in top-secret war plans but Lara wanted to hear it from them. It made her confident that the armed forces in Nicaro were in a position to execute the war flawlessly. Nicaro's security was ultimately her responsibility. The Ice States had blatantly threatened that security. She sought to crush them on the field and facilitate the communist government's removal from power. Lara let a smile creep up. Success in this war would elevate her status within the kuncil. Perhaps it would even give her the leverage she needed to persecute a war of conquest.

[The Ice States]

Prince Rupert Awakes.

Deephedge, The Ice States.

And the escalation of Macabean military presence in the Northern Sea of Ice was rather obvious. Satellites in the area quickly detected the increased military presence there. What the Icers did not know, however, was that these were there for the purpose of the inevitable invasion of Ice territories by the Golden Throne. They may certainly have suspected the same; but the concern was what their general intent was. Would these ships merely be there to defend against an invasion of Nicaro, to blockade the Ice States, to invade the nation, or what else? Their intent was, as of yet, a mystery to the Icers.

What was not a mystery was the lack of Macabean cooperation with the multinational statement. In the Greater Dienstad Regional Council, the Macabean representative had, besides repeatedly insulting the Ice States, including calling it a "basketcase" and "wholly irresponsible", and instead of offering to unconditionally return the goods, offered to conditionally return them should the Ice States agree to purchase them at their market value. The Golden Throne made its position clear -- it was an increasingly corrupt superpower ruled by the bourgeoisie based on their capitalistic greed.

The General, Minister of Foreign Affairs and President of the Ice States all met in Deephedge, along with the Ice ambassador to the Golden Throne. It was very fast that they arrived at a consensus. Continuing to pay such a large sum of money to the Golden Throne every year was merely rewarding this capitalistic greed; which, in hindsight, is beyond any doubt what motivated the continued occupation of the Green Zone even after the imperial regime fell. After all, the imperial regime had militarily fought the Golden Throne to have the territories back; the Communal Union peacefully procured their withdrawal, but only by appeasing the invaders and even so only receiving a bad faith withdrawal involving what was effectively an act of war in looting the occupied territories.

There was a very important factor at play here, however. Terminating the trade agreement would antagonise the Golden Throne even further, even with what the statement and -- most significantly -- the GDRC proposals would have caused. It was likely that the Golden Throne would start a war. If that was not the case, the Ice States would start a war itself, with the goal of recovering any looted goods still in Nicaro. Macabeans starting the war would be preferable as it would allow the Ice States not to be viewed by foreign nations as the aggressor -- but recovering the items was undoubtedly a priority.

Were war to be initiated by the Golden Throne, the Ice States would prioritise its resources on self-defense. However, should self-defense be successful, the Ice States would attack Nicaro itself. Its goals would, at first, be solely to retreive the stolen items. However, further action was not closed off. The creation of a demilitarised zone or a buffer state in what is currently Nicaro to prevent further Macabean aggression was a serious consideration; and while not a current plan, was not ruled out either if the Golden Throne were to escalate its aggression.

A statement was issued, composed by the President, and signed by the others present in the meeting apart from the ambassador; although the ambassador also approved it. The statement condemned the Golden Throne for its lack of a response to the statement, and noted the increased military presence of the Golden Throne in the Sea of Ice. An excerpt of the statement read, "We fear that this increased military presence signals potential intent of the Golden Throne to commence hostilities upon the Ice States. However, we remain undeterred. We remain unable in good conscience to continue to provide massive amounts of funds to the Golden Throne, while the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie in power there treat the Ice States as a mere tool to promote its capitalistic agenda. To that end, we immediately terminate the agreement to purchase at least R,175 billion worth of items each year from the Golden Throne, as had been previously agreed shortly before the ending of the Green Zone occupation of Ormont."

Throughout the Ice States, the economic capacity of the nation was limited by the previous civil war, but apart from that and the increased military presence, including the activation of thousands of military reserves, businesses continued running, citizens received their regular state-supplied income, and overall all got about their daily lives. However, hundreds, if not thousands of Icers fled southward. If war were to commence, Ormont was the first place to be affected. Icers also fled to nearby nations including Devonia and Motokata out of fear for imminent war; the decaying state of the former notwithstanding.

The annual Arlegr-Isfobati soccer tournament traditionally taken place in Deephedge occured as normal, although it had to be delayed by a few weeks as a result of the occupation. Bets were placed, although now illegally, and the teams fought each other viciously almost as if it were war. And this became widely broadcast throughout the nation. Effectively all Icers knew what was happening in the tournament as it occured or just occured. But ultimately even the brutality of the Arlegr-Isfobati teams were nothing compared to what was coming now and would sweep the whole of the Ice States.

The main enemy of the Communal Union was no longer the theocratic, genocidal Empire -- even though it would be in a few years. It was the capitalistic, arrogant Golden Throne, whose colony bordered it in the North. The threat was larger -- no longer was there a decaying regime as the main enemy, but rather a powerful and influential monarchy.

[Mokastana]

Motokata City, Motokata


Foreign Minister Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain sat in The Executive Palace of State Holder Hoshi Oda. Tea was served hot for both of them as servants moved quickly and silently, bringing out tapas and other creature comforts for the political powers.

"Based on what you have said…" State Holder Oda began, "these communists do not believe Federal influence is the best route. They instead play their own game. Pity."

"It would seem so," Elizabeth was annoyed, this new Communal State was supposed to be a friendly government along the Motokatan border, and ideally keep The Golden Throne from gaining too much influence in Motokata. Yet the communists were going off in their own, suicidal, direction.

PUF advisors in The Communal Union had been training the new Icean Army for possible conflict with the United World Order, but they now reported there was a large mobilization in TIS, while The Golden Throne seemed to conveniently have ships near the openings of the Sea of Faith. It seemed both were preparing for war.

"Is it that they are hiding information from us, or are they truly ignorant?" Oda asked. Elizabeth sighed in frustration, "I honestly wonder. It's obvious they plan to threaten the TGT, and didn't bother telling us. So of course they are hiding things, but it's possible they truly believed they may win this one."

"Motokata has already shed blood to bring peace to our border, do you have a plan to avoid such a fate again?"

Elizabeth looked at State Holder Hoshi Oda, the problem with Motokatas was that they liked to speak in implications, and this one was basically Oda telling Elizabeth this was her mess to clean up. She was grateful that she rarely had to deal with Oda directly, but unfortunately, the current crisis was right here, and they were supposed to be working together to resolve it.

"At the moment, we should prepare for a possible conflict between the two. You are welcome to request back a few divisions from Wellovia and Aqua Anu, for border security, refugee camps, and possibly defensive actions. I will take a flight towards Fedoria tomorrow, hopefully Kríerlord Surr can be reasoned with…" Elizabeth remembered her words to the Iceans regarding negotiations with TGT.

"What do you hope to achieve with her?"

"Peace along the border at the very least. And perhaps a long term plan for the Ice States in case this does get hot. We both know the Golden Throne can steamroll the country, better to negotiate with them now to plan a future TIS we can both get along with, then wait for the occupation."

As Elizabeth spoke, another aid suddenly appeared at her side, this one from the Foreign Ministry, holding out a note. Elizabeth took it and skimmed the top

"We fear that this increased military presence….unable in good conscience to continue….immediately terminate the agreement to purchase at least…." Elizabeth looked up, showing the shock on her face, and quickly turned towards her secretary, "Philip, get me a direct flight to Fedoria today, as soon as you can. Contact the Federal Embassy in Fedoria as well and get me a meeting with Kríerlord Lara Surr tonight. The Iceans just broke their trade agreement with the Golden Throne."

State Holder Hoshi Oda just continued sipping his tea, "General, please prepare the border troops and our federal guests for the, unfortunately, expected events. Foriegn Minister Franshaw-Serain, it seems my concerns over the communists may, regretfully, be proven correct. I understand you must now catch a flight, as always, it was an honor."

State Holder Oda bowed slightly, a motion Elizabeth mimicked out of respect. On her way out, all she could think of was that it was Oda's way of saying:

"I fucking told you so"

[The Macabees]

...a cone of white moonlight revealed the gentle waves of an otherwise dark sea. In the distance sparkled the golden lights of Deephedge, like countless little stars in the night. A flying wing-like object hardly disturbed the serenity, it was hardly the first or the only one here. Little sensors on its body, invisible to the naked eye except up close, analyzed the water and land alike, sending data back to somewhere else.

Over a thousand kilometers away, that data was being read by a room full of analysts and intelligence officers. They weren't the only recipients or team analyzing it, but this room was unique because it received data from all concurrent harvesting programs. Set up years ago, its function was to monitor the composition of neighboring military forces. Of particular attention was the Nicaroan-Icer Frontier Zone (NIF-Z), which encompassed not just the physical border, the Sea of Ice, and northeastern Ormont, but the entirety of the Ice States' territory. All of it was of interest because the security of Nicaro required knowledge on the disposition of all Icer forces since this disposition defined the Ice States' ability to resupply, reinforce, and direct operations directly along the hypothetical frontline.

And while the infrastructure of surveillance had certainly been increased in recent weeks as a result of the heightened tensions between the two governments, it had in fact been built up over a long time as a result of efforts to, at the earliest moments, surveil Nicaroan insurgent movement along and between the NIF and, more recently, paint a more accurate picture of Icer deployments and capabilities during the first occupation of the 'Green Zone.' The Fuermak had been at this game of intelligence collection in the Ice States for a long while now and, aside from the vast arsenal of technology it counted on (including stealth drones, satellites, and cyber warfare), it supplemented technological sources of reconnaissance with HUMINT sources, many of which had been established during the previous occupation. A network of relationships it had made with Icers opposed to the communist regime, and who received pay from the Golden Throne, was used as just another instrument to know the enemy with the greatest possible detail. What was collected flowed to the individual intelligence headquarters of the various units across the NIF, including the Laerihans, and to the fleet, each one forming its own piece of the puzzle. All of the puzzle pieces were put together in that room a thousand kilometers away, outside of Fedoria.

As tensions between Fedala and Magecastle escalated, the various intelligence systems continued their routines. Along the terrestrial NIF drones probed over Icer lands and collected data on supply depots, missile defenses, airfields, and other military infrastructure. Supply lines were of special interest. In the Sea of Ice, drones and satellites monitored Icer ships, including resupply vessels out at sea. Even the eastern coastline was under the lens as the Kríermada took tabs on Icer forces and defenses, especially east of Magecastle, and around Valhaven and Stonegrad.

At intelligence headquarters across the various units and fleets, current and past data was used to select targets and update war plans. These were passed up the food chain and back down, constantly changing with new and improved information, so that at all levels the relevant people were kept informed of how exactly a war would unfold during its opening hours. And once the conflict began, this intelligence network could make the adjustments necessary to evolve as the Icer disposition became clearer and, itself, changed alongside the progress of the war...


Matagalpa, Prefecture of Firmador

Surr received word of the TIS government's decision to withdraw from the trade agreement with TGT. That was it, the communist state across the border was ending the treaty which had prompted the Golden Throne's withdrawal from the 'Green Zone.' The only option was to preoccupy the 'Green Zone.' This time, she mused, perhaps we will do so permanently. The thought of that made her smile. She'd be a conquering krierlord and conquerors were always influential, even when they were women.

She had her aides put in the word through the appropriate channels: the second invasion of the Ice States would commence in less than 24 hours.

The Mokans and Marshites were warned a couple of hours before military operations began, reducing the likelihood of a premature leak to the Icer government or military. A Mokan cable requesting a meeting with Lara was received hours ago and, as part of the message to the consulate of that nation in Nicaro, the kríerlord agreed to meet. She finished her business in the satrapical capital and readied herself for another flight to Fedoria while her commanders put in motion the gears of war.



OPERATION NORTHERN FREEZE II

Sea of Faith

Darkness still commanded the sky when, four hours before the land invasion of the Ice States began, a nuclear submarine that had moved into the Sea of Faith during the prior days rose from the depth of the sea just enough to twelve reconnaissance drones through its vertical launch tubes. Elsewhere, another SSN did the same. These stealth drones silently approached the Icer coastline, some of them keeping their distance and a few traveling inland. Additional UAVs were available to fill in gaps caused by any losses but the crucial moments of reconnaissance and targeting were now. The Fuermak had mapped out its targets on and behind the Icer coastline along the Sea of Faith weeks ago and had reconfirmed them days ago, and now these drones would help guide in the attack by giving the Fuermak on-the-spot sight of their targets.

Countless hours had been poured into choosing what to attack. These targets included military and commercial naval infrastructure, including ports, shipyards, and dry docks. They also included coastal anti-air and anti-ship missile defenses, radar sites, airfields, and other military bases. Aside from commercial shipping, other civilian targets included the governmental and administrative buildings in Southport, Valenpool, Emerstead, and Hoggrad. The routes to these targets were meticulously studied. Every detail was plotted: the contours and elevation of the terrain, the weather, and any other tiny detail that could determine the success of the missile strike.

One hour before the land invasion of the Ice States began, dozens of other SSNs distributed within the Sea of Faith decreased their depth, much like the two others had done three hours ago. Then, as if in unison, they unloaded their vertical launch tubes. 640 long-range cruise missiles broke out from under the surface of the sea and their boosters fired underneath them, hurtling them toward the Icer coastline at immense velocity. As these traveled toward their enemy, the submarines participating in the attack reloaded their torpedo tubes and within minutes collectively fired 160 additional cruise missiles, followed by another 160.

As soon as the last salvo was on its way, the SSNs again increased their depth to begin the journey out of the Sea of Faith. The SSKs that had entered the Sea of Faith behind them lay where they sat...quietly.

Military infrastructure took the brunt of the missile strike, with some 700 missiles total striking major and minor ports, garrisons, and supply depots. Another 140 missiles struck missile defenses and radars, while 120 were reserved for the political decapitation strike against the major cities of the south. Only Wintercourt was spared thanks to the mountain range that spread tangentially to its south. But aside from Wintercourt, the Icer military and government in the south was lit up by the strike.


Eastern Coast of TIS

Admiral Petre Kassinger hummed to himself as his fleet conducted its opening attack of the war. Kríergrup 'Nicaro,' like all imperial fleet groups, was designed as an offensive arm. It could defend a waterway but the best way of doing that was by seeking out the enemy and destroying him. That's exactly what Petre was determined to do today. And while he could not physically see the vast majority of 'Nicaro's' assets, he oversaw it from his command station on his flagship like a conductor and his orchestra.

Much like his fellow sailors in the Sea of Faith, Petre and his fleet had been planning this strike for weeks. There were always last-minute adjustments, of course. And 'last minute' could mean 'a few days ago,' very rarely was a change made literally in the last minute. So much went into the strike of a cruise missile strike. Every detail mattered. One errant specificity in the terrain could ruin a flight path. So the optimal flight paths to Valhaven, Stonegrad, Cruxhamptom, Redwell, and Magecastle were carved out. Government and administrative buildings, not just for national governance but for local governance as well, were targeted by 500 cruise missiles. But the attack did not end there. Again, like in the south, military installations took the brunt of the attack: port facilities, shipyards, ground and air bases, supply depots, radars, missile defenses, and various other targets. For these strikes, a total of 1,000 cruise missiles were launched from 'Nicaro's' surface ships in multiple waves. Like in the south, the point was to cripple the Icer navy, deal strong damage on air defenses, and hamstring the Icer's ability to resupply its forces on the land border with the Satrapy of Nicaro.

Kríergrup 'Nicaro' also had a formidable complement of carrier-borne attack aircraft. While the fleet group had a layered CAP determined by its many constituent fleets, none of the strike aircraft partook on the initial missile attack along the eastern Icer coastline. They sat ready to launch themselves into the air at a moment's notice but, apparently, that moment was yet to come. Surely, it would be here soon.


Sea of Ice

Simultaneous to the attacks along the southern and eastern Icer coast, a similar strike was launched across the Sea of Ice. The main targets here were military and civilian port infrastructure, missile defenses, radar sites, airfields, and supply depots. Also struck was Deephedge, where government and infrastructural buildings were hit in detail. The palace was targeted, but also the mayoral office, police stations, power stations, water treatment plants, and other political and basic infrastructure on which civil society relied. Every imperial strike on an Icer city had a similar objective but Deephedge also represented an early objective of the land invasion, so disrupting the city's ability to organize itself and resist was paramount. Thus why the decapitation strike was paired with a heavy bombardment of missile defenses, radar, and network sites, as well as supply depots, barracks, et cetera. The goal was to create a situation of chaos in the Icer rear.

Most of Kríergrup 'Quitiruzú' was moved north of the strait-like narrowing of the Sea of Ice out of concern that the Icers would have land-based anti-shipping missiles that could deal serious damage. As a result, unlike the bombardments in the south and east, this one was conducted primarily by carrier-based strike aircraft which flew into the southern area of the Sea of Ice and launched their cruise missiles from a range of 200–300 kilometers.

There was some concern that the Icers would attempt a strike of their own against Quitiruzú and other targets accessible to them through the same route. Some sort of surface-focused naval operation was not expected, partly because the Icer surface fleet was highly vulnerable since it had nowhere to "hide." Icer submarines may have more luck although the Kríermada was confident that it could destroy these submarines as soon as they were found, and the Kríermada had an extensive infrastructure of passive sound surveillance. Still, a good strike on Quitiruzú could do a lot of damage to critical, and new, port infrastructure in the city. The decision was made to litter the sea between Nicaro and the Ice States with encapsulated torpedo and other naval mines to restrict the Icers' ability to attack through this vector. This left the chance that the Icers would use the sea as a corridor for aerial attacks. To protect against this, Kríergrup 'Quitiruzú' formed its own multi-layered CAP for early warning and engagement, which included kríermada aircraft operating from airfields outside of Quitiruzú.

The Sea of Ice would surely play a role in the early days of the fighting, especially as the Ejermacht raced toward Deephedge, but it was the land border that would take the headlines in the morning news.


Land Frontier

As the rest of the Ice States underwent a heavy bombardment, the land frontier was eerily quiet. For an hour after the outbreak of hostilities hardly a movement could be seen along the NIF. Even the birds could be heard chirping as the sun's rays first started creeping over the distant horizon. But the startling sound of carburating engines broke the prevailing calmness and shattered the ear-piercing silence. A low rumbling pervaded the NIF as the Ejermacht poised itself for Operation NORTHERN FREEZE II, like a runner on the tippy toes of her feet anticipating the gunshot of the starting pistol.

Prior to the missile strikes in the south, east, and across the Sea of Ice, before it was even known that the war had begun, hundreds of drones crossed the NIF enshrouded by the silence of the night. They were of various sizes and makes, some operated at the army group level, others at the corps and division level, and many operated down to the platoon. The larger, longer-range stealth drones operated by higher levels of command penetrated deeper behind the NIF for additional reconnaissance of Icer dispositions. During the weeks prior, satellite, aerial, and other sources of intelligence had been studiously analyzed to better understand how the Ice States had evolved their defense of Ormont since the end of the "Green Zone" occupation. Missile defense batteries were sought, as were airfields, supply depots, barracks, and other assets that the Icers would lean on during a military operation against the Golden Throne. Drones operated at lower levels concentrated on reconnaissance missions relevant to their units, with smaller platoon-level UAVs focusing on tactical areas directly across the NIF that would soon become the frontline.

While the rest of the Ice States went up in flames as the various missile strikes found their targets, the NIF remained quiet. An hour passed. Then, with a suddenness to make the hair on the back of one's neck rise, the frontier erupted in earth-shattering violence. Like an orchestra of death, thousands of self-propelled artillery guns opened up across the multi-hundred-kilometer frontline, their cannons booming in unison. Hundreds of multiple launch rocket systems joined this concert of industrial murder, firing thousands of long-range rockets deep behind the frontier. Their targets were varied but comprehensive. Icer positions directly along the frontier were plastered with dual-purpose cluster munitions and white phosphorus rounds, saturating the zones that were about to be struck by advancing mechanized infantry forces. Further behind these lines, supply depots, military bases, air defense systems, and airfields were struck by longer-range munitions and rockets carrying submunitions, as the Ejermacht sought to incapacitate and devastate the numerous layers of Icer defenses. The time of peace was swept away by maximum destruction like an unstoppable tidal wave washing away everything in its path.

Operation NORTHERN FREEZE I, the occupation of the "Green Zone" during the Icer civil war, was intended as a largely peaceful operation. It was expected that the imperial government of Sotolo II would accept the occupation and eventually flee to the "Green Zone," where the Golden Throne could protect it and eventually foster its resurgence. Events did not go as planned. Sotolo II decided to resist. The same mistake would not be made again. This time, the Golden Throne would begin military operations in Ormont with the utmost intention of annihilating whatever military the Ice States had managed to reconstitute in the short time since the last war.

As the rolling artillery attack and missile strikes thundered on, four imperial armies crossed the NIF and pounced on the Icer military deployed along the border. Composed of almost 1.4 million personnel, these four armies advanced along the entire length of the NIF to engage enemy forces from the border of Motokata to the Sea of Ice. The brunt of the four armies attacked along a broad front, engaging and pinning down the enemy. Simultaneously, four mechanized corps — one from each army — punched like two fists against lesser Icer forces. Along a vector roughly corresponding with Wingcaster, two mechanized corps launched a concentrated attack against a narrow sector of frontage and, likewise, a group of two other mechanized corps did the same along a vector roughly corresponding with Deephedge. Armor-mounted infantrymen, backed by hundreds of Nakíl tanks, artillery cannons, drones, and hordes of other equipment followed behind scouting forces probing the Icer lines, finding the enemy, and directing the exact path of attack for the bulk of the firepower concentrated to break through the enemy frontline. A classic schwerpunkt. They intended to break into the enemy rear and allow the infiltration of imperial forces still being made battle-ready behind the Icer frontline, which was to be subsequently rolled up and liquidated. The two objectives for this initial phase of the invasion were, as the vectors of the breakthrough attacks suggested, Wingcaster and Deephedge.

Chaos reigned. Here and there, throughout the battlefield and recurringly, radio systems ceased to work and radars were blinded, only to come back online and then go down again, as jamming equipment buzzed, turned off, relocated, and buzzed again. The confusion was made tenfold by decoys launched by aircraft to simulate air attacks in one sector, only for the true strike to take place in another. Entire bomber fleets were simulated by means of decoys, as well as fighter squadrons, reconnaissance, and early warning aircraft. To draw off Icer air defenses and even reveal them, drones made themselves look like jets. And on the ground artillery batteries pummeled their targets with cluster munitions fired with different flight paths so that they could all land simultaneously, even if they had been fired over the space of one or two minutes. Then the battery adjusted its location and fired again, making it more difficult for the enemy to zero in on them during their counterfire.

Artillery fire was constant. Tens of thousands of munitions were consumed in the first few hours alone. The initial barrage and subsequent artillery support were not meant to incapacitate the enemy through sheer and overwhelming volume alone. Rather, accuracy, intensity, and flexibility were at a premium. They had specific targets and if a battery was called in for suppressing fire, it was a fire support mission guided by infantrymen on the ground seeking to use artillery as a means of keeping Icer defenders' heads down so that they could attack them themselves. Coordination and combined arms were the order of the day.

As the battle unfolded, the other ten armies belonging to the 9th and 17th Ejergrups were brought to full readiness. They would be fully prepared to join the war within 36 hours. It was from this reserve that any exploitation forces would be pulled if the breakthrough was accomplished. Otherwise, some of these forces would be used to reinforce breakthrough forces or launch new concentrated attacks along other sectors of the front. The bulk was to be held in reserve so that the two army group commanders had plenty of men and material on hand to adequately adjust in accordance with the Icer defense. In the meantime, their men were called up from leave, their equipment was moved into position, and logistical preparations were made to sustain long-term combat operations. All in all, over 4.7 million soldiers were earmarked for Operation NORTHERN FREEZE II.

When the sun climbed up to illuminate this part of the world, what it saw was a dense screen of smoke, dust, and debris sweeping from one side of the Ice States to the other like a dark curtain. From within the major cities of the country, at least those which were targeted by missile strikes, tall pillars of smoke were left as symbols of the opening attack. This was just the beginning and much worse was to come. The Ice States would be turned into a wasteland.

[Mokastana]

Fedoria, Prefecture of Firmador,
The Empire of The Golden Throne

Foreign Minister Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain sat in an imperial building waiting to meet with a Kierlord, Lara Surr. Although neither were the heads of state for their respective nations, they were both empowered to speak on their behalf.

After the announcement of the broken trade agreement, Motokatan and other Federal military assets were mobilizing near the border, as a precaution. Technically there was no declaration of war yet, but only a fool would believe war could be avoided at this hour.

Elizabeth had considered her position on the plane ride over. The situation in The Ice States was going to be war. While the bullets weren't flying yet. It was clear the Golden Throne, or perhaps simply Lara, had provoked a war to get rid of the communist nation. A communist nation the PUF propped up because the old slave state was hostile to the PUF. War was inevitable, as was the Golden Throne victory, but if TGT and PUF were going to share a border with TIS, it needed to be transformed into a nation that both could work with.

As of now, it was highly likely The Golden Throne had a stranglehold on TIS, blocking all its main waterways, the Sea of Faith had seen a build up of Imperial ships, no doubt they would close the Sea of Ice, leaving only the east coast of TIS to be blocked. However, there was still a long border with the PUF, who had no interest in cutting off trade with a friendly communist nation. Intercepting vessels on their way to the PUF would be considered an act of war by the PUF's own doctrine.

The PUF could, if it wanted, allow foreign contractors to arrive in Motokata, and simply stroll across the border with everything from food to missiles and soldiers. As long as the payments were good the highways could stay open. Therefore it was also in Lara's best interests to meet with Elizabeth. Sure, victory was inevitable, but the PUF could increase the cost of victory while making money. Plus every brick of gold or precious stone sent to Motokata, was one less in their spoils of victory.

Elizabeth assumed Lara wanted a quick and easy war, and Elizabeth wanted a peaceful nation on the Motokatan border. The goals were not mutually exclusive, but Elizabeth knew The Golden Throne did not operate on favors. She needed a position of power to negotiate from.

[The Ice States]

Larks' Tongues In Aspic, Part I

Yet only the prideful could fall to the prideful,
For the humble knows his weakness,
And the proud lack no weakness.

~Chapter 2, Larks' Tongues in Aspic

Deephedge, The Ice States.

Hours after the Mokans met to discuss the imminent war, they received a transmission to their embassy in the Ice States. The transmission was of the highest security and read as follows,

To: Mokan Embassy in the Ice States
From: The Communist Freedom Army

To whom it may concern,

The People's Unified Federation may be aware of an increased military buildup around the shared border between the Ice States and Nicaro, as well as throughout the Sea of Ice. We fear that signals potential intent on the part of the Golden Throne to commence a military attack upon the Ice States in Ormont. This matter is one which we believe is extremely concerning and dangerous.

We would like to schedule a meeting with your embassy to discuss this threat. Specifically, whether the PUF would be willing to deploy either PUF-sponsored or mercenary military advisors to Ormont to our defense efforts in case of a Macabean attack. We are willing to hold this meeting in the diplomatic offices at Southport City at any time between 06:00 and 22:00 within the next 72 hours, whenever works best for your representatives.

Signed,
~Courtney Hazelbush,
Elected President,
The Communal Union of the Ice States

~Lyda Straub,
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
The Communal Union of the Ice States

~Antony Black,
Lead General of the Communist Freedom Army,
The Communal Union of the Ice States

Notably, this was not sent earlier as there was a very serious risk to consider as to whether the PUF would merely report the planned self-defense efforts to the Golden Throne. It was ultimately decided that it would be worth discussing the matter with them, although if the PUF accepted the offer for a meeting, they would not be given access to the long-term self-defence plans other than the locations and scale of Ice defensive deployments. For now, little did the Icers know that the invasion was far more imminent than they had thought; and they would not know until the eleventh hour.

In Ormont itself, the defensive deployments were large. Two main "lines" had been formed by Ice military forces throughout Northern Ormont. The first was around the Nicaroan border and the Sea of Ice itself. The main focus of these forces was naval in the Sea of Ice, and around the land border in the Nicaroan frontier. However, they were both backed by a smaller air deployment, and some land forces around the coast of the Sea of Ice. If Macabean forces attacked, they would immediately be fired upon, primarily by long-range missiles from the sea. The main supply chain for the Sea of Ice deployment was from Deephedge and, more significantly, various unmanned structures South of the Deephedge mountain range; indeed, these military transports were now the only permitted transport in or out of Deephedge. There was a very major oversight in the Ice deployment in the Sea of Ice; if the Macabean forces managed to break their way through the deployment, they would meet a far weaker defense. This was, in part, recognised by the Icers, although it was expected that high damage could still be sustained upon the Macabean forces.

This was why a second line was formed. Not only were specialised Ice forces formed to surround Deephedge and enforce the effective lockdown, but many kilometres away from the border and coast, Ice forces were deployed, both overtly and covertly. The mountain range South of Deephedge would substantially obstruct Macabean forces from invading there; so while military forces were deployed there, the focus in the area was on Deephedge. However, if the Macabeans managed to make their way through the initial deployment -- by far the largest -- they would meet, for the moment, a small land-based and air-based deployment. However, various sheds had been erected throughout the area, each housing hundreds of Ice military personnel, and primarily originating from Deephedge and Wingcaster. Thus, if needed, the Ice forces could easily create a massive deployment along the area, stopping the invasion in its tracks.

The plan was for the existing air forces to stay largely put (excluding for refueling/material transport purposes), but with additional air forces deploying from Wingcaster, Logow and Deephedge which would be placed forward, closer to the Macabean frontier. Air would be the strongest defense front of the Icers, unlike the weakest in the first frontier. Land forces would also be deployed further from the frontier, but their location would be more concealed. Macabean forces would face long-range fire from thousands of aircraft, followed by short-range fire from thousands more aircraft -- all manned -- when they attempted to invade, while the airspace would remain firmly under Ice control. The Macabean forces would be weakened by the air attack, and the aircraft would cover a wide physical range. But then, the Macabean forces would be subject to a surprise attack from the land as they attempted to defend themselves against the air attack. This strong defense would prevent any attack successful in the initial confrontation from extending much further Southward.

Admittedly, there was little planning for what would happen after the second defense, in the event that it became necessary. In case it failed, there was a relatively small self-defense deployment around Wingcaster. Military resources from Oakmouth and Siopia would also be shipped to Logow and, if necessary, Wingcaster to replace those already spent. If the Icers won, they would seize the airspace in all occupied areas and then use this to provide air support for a ground reinvasion of the occupied territories. However, there was no time to fantasise; the threat from the Golden Throne was real, and had to be dealt with now, immediately.

Eventually, an affirmative response was received from the Mokans. With them having just returned from their meeting with the Golden Throne, there was a sudden movement of PUF forces along Motokata, The Ice States and Nicaro. Even Mokan military advisors in The Ice States were all recalled back to the PUF. This ominous, sudden movement proved to the Icers that the attack was imminent. It was within the last few hours of peace. The meeting was still promptly scheduled, as the Ice and Mokan diplomats met in Southport City to discuss the role of Mokan military advisors and the imminent war more generally.

But by then, the attack had already begun. War had just broken out. The Ice States was now entirely at war with what would prove to be a very, very large war with the most powerful nation of Greater Dienstad, and a war with extremely high stakes.....

---

Evil King won, for his enemies' pride,
Even Good lost, for its enemy's pride.

~Chapter 18, Larks' Tongues In Aspic

........and thus radar data was used to start feeding the missiles coordinates and other data for firing, as well as helping the missile defense systems organise. Far away, I could see the Macabean ships from KG Quitiruzu as missiles fired. The attacks on Ice military resources were shot down relatively quickly by the air defenses, although 63 still made it through. Five missed their targets, one wrecking a remote forest in Eastern Ormont and another a farm in Oldwitch. Others hit various military bases throughout the Ice States which quickly burnt as they were hit. These bases were primarily smaller bases in Ormont and Southport, of which eight were destroyed to the point of being unusable and nine were heavily damaged. The rest hit small military complexes throughout the rest of The Ice States. Thirteen missiles targeting missile defenses and radars made it through, all of which landed at their targets. The largest missile defense systems were deliberately the most well-shielded ones, so these went largely undamaged, although some mild damage was still inflicted on them. Other smaller systems were severely damaged, with four entirely rendered unusable.

Little ships burnt and burnt others. Once the first few Macabean missiles were fired, I could see waves and waves of Ice missiles immediately fired at the Macabean aircraft and ships. Waves of missiles were fired. There was a significant weakness in the Macabean deployment: they largely failed to actually use the ships they had stationed. Instead of having ships fire upon ships and aircraft fire upon aircraft -- although this did happen to a relatively small degree -- the focus was on aircraft primarily firing upon ships and ships primarily firing upon aircraft. The Macabeans had strength primarily in the air, while the Icers had strength primarily in the sea; so reversing the roles would bring this to the Icers' advantage, allowing them to destroy the Macabean sea presence. Aircraft also had a mobility advantage, making it easier for them to fire upon the Macabean invading ships, while less mobility was needed to fire upon Macabean aircraft.

And that was when we were commanded to fire. The missiles had been programmed with the relevant coordinates, so we simply had to fire them, in three, two, one. The Macabean ships would thus have to deal with a wave of hundreds, if not thousands -- too many for me to count -- of missiles on their aircraft. There was, of course, an inherent difficulty in the fact that the aircraft would likely try to move away -- so the missiles would have AI systems attached allowing them to self-guide towards the aircraft, which would be monitored both by the missiles themselves and ground-based radars.

And then the land invasion began. It felt immediate, as adrenalin rushed through my uniform. It was, of course, not where we were -- we were on the coast of the Sea of Ice. Instead, we were commanded to continue focusing on firing upon the Macabean threat at sea. So far, we were in fact going very well -- increasingly fewer of the Macabean attacks were successful, whilst we continued to fire in the name of freedom and the Communal Union.

Over time, as the Macabean forces continued their attacks, we had to shoot them down while also firing upon the Macabean aircraft. Simultaneous waves of missiles would be sent, one after another. After hours -- or likely far more than mere hours -- of fighting, a new set of missiles was delivered. We were ordered to continue firing as they arrived. When they did, this was a lengthy process; some missile systems had been reserved specifically to be used during the resupply process, however now we had a more limited set of missiles to use. Many of the systems being used previously were rendered unusable for several hours, and some even longer.

The Macabean bombings made the situation worse, such that it became harder to retrieve the new weaponry to deliver. Transports were called to commence several, and increasingly more hours before the weaponry would actually run out; primarily from Deephedge, and once the supplies there ran out, from the ad hoc depot structures set up South of the Deephedge mountain range before the attacks had begun. And yes, it was that quickly that we had used up all our weapons, given how unbelievably aggressive both the attack we were doing and the attack we were responding to were.

We continued bombing. It seemed hopeless, given how hard we had to work to defeat the enemy -- but somehow, it was not. We were increasingly getting through the enemy's defenses, while our defenses only strengthened. It was increasingly likely that we would win in this frontier, and our continued bombing was working; missiles after missiles, resupply after resupply.

After the next wave of missiles was fired, we were ordered to continue our intense fire on the Macabean aircraft. And yes, the sea battle was going well. But it was not the only part at all -- the war in the Nicaroan border was greater and far more vicious..........

---

Nicaroan Frontier, The Ice States.

War, war, war.
All that happened in the battle was war.
The Evil King ate Larks' Tongues in Aspic,
All else ate pain of death.

~Chapter 16, Larks' Tongues in Aspic

................The sound of gunfire devastated the place. The Ice ground soldiers were focused on one thing: saving themselves from the capitalists who ate Larks' Tongues in Aspic while pillaging and looting other nations and even genociding their own population as they had done earlier in Nicaro. Artillery fire was opened by the Macabeans, and what they received back from the Icers. But simply gunfire would not win the war here. While the Macabeans continued to attempt to bomb the Icers into submission, their missile attacks were largely in vain; they did not harm the Ice defenses enough to outweigh the knowledge regarding potential future targets, as well as giving locations for the Ice force in the Sea of Ice to fire upon. However, the Ice missile systems could barely be used, as they were focused on the vicious battle in the Sea of Ice. Some were, but primarily those stationed in the area.

That was, for reference, as 1.4 million personnel crossed the border. The sheer scale of this number cannot be understated. 1.4 million was not just far more than the deployment in the Sea of Ice; it was just under the size of the entire Ice military force. The Ice missile systems had to be used against the background of gunfire and blood. They kept firing, but there came a point where the Macabeans could do nothing but occupy unless something was done very quickly.

Back in the Sea of Ice, the Icers were at least doing reasonably well. It was the least of their concerns compared to the vicious battle ongoing on the Nicaroan frontier. So next to Nicaro, the Ice forces continued holding out. Artillery was fired, and missiles continued being fired at the Macabean deployments. War continued. Lots died, and lots were continuing to die.

There were no real tactics used in terms of the land battle; it was simply a question of firing with brute force. Frankly, there was no opportunity to do anything else in the moment. It would no longer be so soon, but at the moment, Ice forces simply had IFVs and tanks fire while simple firearms were used to repel attacks from closer range. To facilitate further defense efforts, the supply chains were reinforced, with more weaponry being promptly transported, secondarily to the Sea of Ice aircraft and land deployment, and primarily to the Nicaroan frontier.

If you were there, you could have heard nothing but gunfire. But for the same, you would have heard screams of pain as Icers -- and Macabeans to a lesser extent -- fell dead to the grass, with blood in such a quantity capable of forming a river. That is also what you would have seen. And it was clear: the Icers were not winning, let alone as well as they were in the Sea of Ice. The Icers, in the ground frontier, were losing. They frantically continued their war efforts, but based on this alone, they were not going to win at all. Some new action needed to be taken by the Communal Union to be safe from the Macabean threat.

Now, it would be worth mentioning the other fronts of the war. The attacks that had taken place in the Sea of Faith were responded to with aggression; submarines were sent to destroy the ships responsible for the attack. The goal was to have the ships bleed out to death as the Icers were now on the Nicaroan frontier, and for this to be done quickly before Holy Marsh would intervene. The attacks on the Eastern Coast of the Ice States were addressed in a similar fashion, although the Macabean aircraft were also promptly fired upon preemptively before they would actually be used to attack the Ice States. Three, two, one -- thousands of missiles were fired primarily from Cruxhampton and Stonegrad to destroy the Macabean aircraft in the area.

Several more waves of similar size were sent within the next hour; the strikes were carefully -- albeit quickly -- planned so that the bases used to fire the missiles could be resupplied relatively speedily. Each aircraft would have to deal with dozens of missiles. This was only a small taste of what would happen soon to the Macabean forces in Northwestern Ormont. Which, once again, was the frontier still going worst for the Icers...

At this point, it was clear that the Macabeans would win there. Despite the general lack of tactics, one strategy figured out earlier was put into place: limiting the damage caused by the invasion by limiting said invasion to the Northeastern area of the frontier. In the midst of the continued gunfire, Ice forces were ordered to largely move Eastward, although a smaller amount of the strongest still remained in the Southwestern area.

That was when the first missiles from Wingcaster started to be fired. These were fired at the Western section of the frontier, closest to Nicaro. Ice forces too close to the border were ordered to return to the primary location of the forces, further away from the border; then, when the missiles started to land, they would almost entirely devastate the Macabean forces. Now, the missile strikes would seemingly never end; and the strikes originating from Wingcaster were supplemented by additional long-range fire from Logow and other smaller bases in Ormont; Deephedge, for the sole reason that it still had to focus on the Sea of Ice battle, did not involve itself yet in the land battle. Yet.

The goal of these strikes was a strategic operation to make continued occupation of the Western section of the frontier untenable for the Macabean forces, which would continue to be bombed as they attempted to occupy the area. The reason that this area was chosen was that the unaffected area was closer to the Sea of Ice, in which the Icers had far more control. This would make it easier to engage in any future efforts to clear the Macabean occupation in the Northeast. It was increasingly unlikely that the Ice States would win the land battle, either strategically or tactically, so it would have to focus on making sure the battle was lost in a manner that least advantaged the Golden Throne.

To protect the missile launch systems, radar and satellite data was monitored constantly as it arrived to ensure that any missile attacks on the launch systems were shot down quickly. First, they would be shot down in-flight, while interceptions were prepared for the terminal phase if the in-flight intercept attempt failed. This would make it very difficult for the Macabeans to destroy the missile systems used against their invasion. They could try -- and almost certainly would. They would likely be able to inflict mild damage on the missile systems. However, any more than that would be an exercise in futility. Regardless of what they did, it would be effectively impossible for them to maintain a long-term hold on the territories.

Once this mission was successful, the occupation would hopefully be limited only to the most vulnerable areas to Ice defense; so the plan decided before to be put into motion in case the Icers lost this battle could be done -- doing an air attack before surprising the Macabean invaders with a land-based attack. Behind the barely audible sound of birds, the aforementioned sheds also had more resources taken, as well as more personnel; they were deliberately hidden to protect against any potential attack from the Macabeans. It was soon that they would have to all finally take the formation to defend Ormont, before the Macabeans reached Wingcaster.

---

Southport City, The Ice States.

In the midst of war,
Even the men in peace fought,
They fought not by war,
They fought not by death,
They fought not by land,
They fought on the land,
They fought on the safe land.

Shaking hands, speaking,
Through elephant talk,
And through peace,
They fought on the safe land.

~Chapter 21, Larks' Tongues in Aspic

And in the background of the war, diplomats shook hands in Southport City. The meeting was attended by Courtney Hazelbush, Antony Black, and Rayford McInture -- the Ice Ambassador to the People's United Federation, due to Lyda Straub's absence for meetings in Dragonborn Clan, outside of Greater Dienstad. On the PUF end, it was attended by Makis Canoy, the Mokan Ambassador to the Ice States; as well as Allen Cambridge, a representative of the Eastern Military Deployments corporation. Elizabeth Franshaw-Serain was unavailable, due to another meeting of the PUF with the Golden Throne. By now, it had been decided that the PUF would keep its military advisors outside of the Ice States; however, the PUF diplomats had provided a list of private military corporations which could be contacted by the Icers, obviously including Eastern Military Deployments.

And the peace here was calming and relieving. Yes, they were still there, working towards victory in battle, but at least the land was peaceful, with green grass and the sound of chirping birds in the background. Unlike the screams, death, gunfire, corpses and blood which defined the whole frontier near the Nicaroan border. They still had an objective, as the meeting was about to end. Peace was to be found in the place where diplomats shook hands and spoke to each other to win the war. Not that the PUF was their enemy -- in fact, it was likely their only hope in this war.

And the diplomatic talks had ended, of course, amicably. "Thank you for participating in this meeting with us," said the Ice Ambassador to the People's United Federation. "We will look through this list and hopefully contact them for military defense support in our calamity." After walking out the door of the diplomatic room and arriving at the usual relevant office in the government building, they did indeed do so.

And the list was very long. There were evidently lots of paramilitary corporations based in the various territories of the PUF -- not to mention Mokan businesses based in other nations. Some of the most prestigious private military corporations were on the list the Icers were given during the meeting. Now the decision was to select which one, or ones, of these would best work to defend the Icers against the aggression they faced from the Macabeans.

And the most prestigious organisation on the list was undoubtedly Montana Incorporated, a Mokan pharmaceutical corporation which expanded to provide, inter alia, paramilitary forces. Its efforts have been so prolific as to be explicitly mentioned in the commendation of the nation which the Communal Union authored in the World Assembly. However, at this point, its paramilitary efforts were a relic of the past, and they were certainly not the most active paramilitary corporation The Ice States could hire.

And the best one would be Eastern Military Deployments, a Mokan paramilitary corporation which was likely the largest one at this moment. Even a representative thereof had been present in the meeting, and Cambridge had indeed shown an interest in EMD deploying in the war. The corporation was based in the Golden Throne, but given the known nature of capitalist corporations, betraying the government they were under the jurisdiction of would be a lesser concern than jacking up their profits. The more concerning issue was that the Golden Throne would likely attempt to obstruct the EMD from deploying in the Ice States. Smuggling a relatively small number for immediate deployment would be possible, but any more would have to take far longer to deploy. A paramilitary battalion would cost only about 30 million NSD for a mission lasting less than a week, such as this one, so a reasonable although still realistic amount could be hired here.

There was a greater concern about long-term self-defense. Therefore, a reasonable number of long-term battalions for deployment in the Nicaroan frontier would be hired to remain there over a period of at least six months. There was less of a time limit in terms of urgency for such forces' arrival, as it would take longer for them to make it from their home jurisdiction of the Golden Throne.

A secured transmission was sent to Eastern Military Deployments. The fact was, they were fighting arguably the most powerful nation in Greater Dienstad -- albeit one which had invaded and looted Ice territory in the name of capitalistic greed. Support from a paramilitary group would be invaluable to the Ice self-defense efforts.

The transmission was of the highest security, and read as follows,

To: Eastern Military Deployments
From: Communist Freedom Army of The Ice States

To whom it may concern,

As you may be aware, the Ice States was today subject to a brutal attack by the Golden Throne, which had earlier elected to loot our territory after we had ostensibly negotiated for a fair and reasonable cessation of a Macabean occupation of our territory. While our self-defense efforts have been going well so far, we would appreciate reinforcements to help our defense against the Macabean invasion.

To that end, we would like to hire ten Ground Forces Paramilitary Battalions and ten more Interceptor Wings for an immediate mission. These forces should arrive promptly at the Wingcaster Military Base. We would also like to hire ten Interceptor Wings and eight Ground Forces Paramilitary Battalions for long-term deployment over six months; their deployment will likely be "Peaceful" at first, but may or may not become "Hazardous" should further invasion attempts by the Golden Throne occur. These should arrive at the Oakmouth Military Base within one month, or as soon as possible if one month is insufficient.

We look forward to hearing back soon.

Signed,
~Antony Black,
Lead General of the Communist Freedom Army,
The Communal Union of the Ice States.

~Albert Birgir,
Minister of Economic Affairs,
The Communal Union of the Ice States.

~Courtney Hazelbush,
Elected President,
The Communal Union of the Ice States.

The Icers would now merely have to wait for an affirmative response from Eastern Military Deployments. Hopefully, such a response would be received promptly. But that was all the Icers had in that regard -- hope. The war was still occurring, even if the Ice and Mokan diplomats were in a peaceful land, unlike the Nicaroan-Ice frontier, where battle continued.

It must be noted that the funds that Gortenia had provided had been used up now, despite how generous the intent of the Gortenian funds were. They were actually relatively small, especially compared to how costly the war would prove. The vast majority of the funds had already been spent before this, but the hiring of these PMCs used up the remaining funds.

Once EMD agreed to supply these forces, the goal was to have them delivered from the Wingcaster Military Base to their relevant deployments, which would likely be in the Eastern areas of the Nicaroan-Ice frontier, in the second defense operation to end the invasion. They would join the defense operation as usual, as if they were part of the Ice military. In fact, it was likely that they would be concentrated on the ground deployment, as there was where the Ice forces would need more support due to the sheer scale of the Macabean ground forces involved in the invasion.

But regardless of whatever planning would occur for the next battles which would inevitably occur, there was still a major concern regarding the ongoing battle.

---

Back in the Sea of Ice.

Not all was lost, not all was won,
Not all was given, not all was taken,
Not all was presumed, not all was true,
Not all was real.

~Chapter 22, Larks' Tongues in Aspic

Eventually, in the Sea of Ice, Ice forces were largely secure, so long as they stayed in their current positions. But then the final strike would happen. It was now or never that a great strike of Ice missiles simultaneously fired was able to destroy the Macabean forces right in their tracks. "Focus on self-defense, the attack is getting more vicious," said the Commander, as he discussed with the Generals the next strike. "About 1.4 million Macabean personnel are engaged in the attack. Invoke Mission Lizard." "That is approved," said a General through the radio. "But what about the Ice forces?" spoke another. "AC-32 arriving in-" spoke yet another. "The Golden Throne shall experience the full force that the Communal Union can engage in through Mission Lizard, even in the background of our successful efforts in the Sea of Ice or our less-successful efforts on land."

The missile systems in Wingcastle, Logow, and the rest of Ormont now started to withhold fire for circa ten minutes; although efforts continued to fire upon the Macabean missiles. The missiles in Deephedge were set up, ready to be fired at the land battle. Supply aircraft had arrived, ready to supply the Deephedge missiles to undo the loss of ammunition resulting from the attack over the hours following the now-imminent attacks. Literally all missile systems available in Deephedge, Wingcaster, Logow, and on the land area, excluding those used strictly for interception, were about to be fired. And then they were. Thousands of missiles from the Sea of Ice went up into the sky, ready to land at the Western end of the Nicaroan frontier. How this would work would be Part 2 of the battle. For now, countless events had occurred, and I think you would be overwhelmed by the sheer chaos which has occurred just a few hours into this one battle, reader...

And yes, thousands of casualties had already occurred on the Ice end. The grass in the border had quickly turned red, filled with blood and corpses, primarily Ice but also Macabean. The Sea of Ice was filled with Macabean shipwrecks, and the fire from burning missiles was clearly visible from space. Even more missiles -- thousands, or some quantity so great as to be far beyond counting before they would fall -- were about to hit the Macabean forces. What the prideful, arrogant capitalists would find would not be an easy invasion as they had hoped, but a target with a strong resistance against being looted and now invaded........................

[Azura]

"This world in arms is not spending money alone."

– Dwight D. Eisenhower

EOW World Headquarters, Mariënheem Prefecture, Republic of Wolvega

There was an eerie calm in the streets of Wolvega, given the gravity of the situation unfolding along the border between Nicaro and the Communal Union. After bloviating for some time about the offenses committed by the Golden Throne in its occupied territory, the Ice States had finally pushed the button once too often and committed itself to open warfare with the Macabeans. There was no telling how far the war would go, but it would assuredly be a matter of regional concern for the foreseeable future. The only question now was which side would break first, the forces loyal to the Golden Throne or the Ice States and their allies. Neither seemed particularly interesting in the moment, though where there was a will to make money, there was a way. And in the event of a regional war on their doorstep, Wolvega would be primed to make a bloody fortune off of the fighting if it hedged its bets and put money down on the winner, as it had in the past during the Krasnovan Wars. If only there were some meted interest in the human cost of the conflict and how destructive wars could be to the uninitiated on matters of international finance. Those unprepared for the carnage could see their portfolios wiped out in an instant. Now that was a tragedy!

Cornelis Beenhouwer slowly turned the small globe on his desk with his fingers, staring out of the window of the EOW’s presidential office. The smoothness of the globe, with its tiny ridges indicating mountain ranges dotting Greater Dienstad relaxed him somehow, though he could not possibly hope to explain why. All in all, the war between the Golden Throne and the Ice States would not have made much of a dent in his morning were it not for the invaluable opportunity to exploit the crisis and make money from it. The newswire had been going crazy all morning, updating people on the latest word from the conflict zone, and though the fog of war prevented journalists from getting an accurate picture of the situation on the ground, it was perceived to be a major insertion of military forces by the Macabeans. Beenhouwer could count on other regional powers possibly getting drug into the maelstrom before all was said and done, though he harbored little doubt that the infusion of capital and manpower from the Golden Throne would do the trick in the end. On a personal level, he was happy to see the filth being mopped up in the Communal Union; a communist state was difficult to manage in a portfolio, after all; their overthrow was for the best.

On a professional level, he held no personal animosity towards the Icers, despite their rather barbaric and outmoded system of governance. Business was business, after all; if their nation, on an even keel with the rest of the region wanted to transact with EOW, all the more power to them. But they were not on an even footing right now, not with the forces of the Golden Throne bearing down on them from Nicaro and all points inward. Beenhouwer’s prognostications on the outcome of the war and the eventual dividing of the spoils was going to play a heavy hand in regional politics, something he as the president of Wolvega’s largest financial institution could ill-afford to miss out on. Again, without intending disrespect to the Icers, they had walked themselves into a fine mess, one that they were ill-equipped to handle in real time. As such, it fell on Beenhouwer to make the most prudent financial decision possible for his institution and their shareholders, banking on the Golden Throne’s eventual victory over the Ice States. It was a topic that had raced through his mind during his morning commute to the office through the financial district that dominated Mariënheem Prefecture. All other thoughts were lost to him, lost to the ether as it were.

Right on time, a buzzer sounded from the speaker box on his desk. Cornelis pushed the receive button, clearing his throat: "Beenhouwer here, how can I assist?"

"Good morning, Mr. President!" The voice belonged to his secretary Ingrid, a doll of a woman. "Beg your pardon sir, but your 9 AM appointment has just arrived."

Beenhouwer instinctively straightened his tie, hoping to look at his most professional best for this all-important tête-à-tête. "Please, send Mr. Thyssen inside."

If there was to be any chance of a victory by the Icers, it would behoove Wolvega and her financial nexus to try and off-set those conditions by any means necessary short of open war, which the city-state was ill-equipped to do of its own volition. No, Wolvega’s place in the state of affairs was in the background, moving money around to the right powerbrokers, getting the inside lane on favorable deals for the post-war stratagem. The Ice States would presumably cease to exist as a free and sovereign nation after this conflict with the Golden Throne, though whether the Macabeans would outright-annex the territory or simply install a puppet government provisionally tied to them was to be determined. In either scenario however, there existed a golden carrot to be obtained by financiers going in and collecting the bounty left behind in the wake of the war. Indeed, it was a new horizon full of intriguing propositions, but for Wolvega to prosper truly, its own powerbrokers would need to act in lockstep with one another, for any deviation could lead to financial ruin and the death of Wolvega’s status as a center of international finance, if not its very independency. Hence, the meeting that Beenhouwer was preparing to take with one of his arch-rivals.

The marble doors to his executive office opened slowly, his secretary Ingrid appearing briefly to welcome his first and only morning appointment into the office. Soon thereafter, in stepped the one and only Daan Thyssen, the President of Nationale Handelsbank Financieel, or NHF for short – the second-largest financial institution in Wolvega, behind only his own prized EOW. Thyssen was a legendary financial wizard in the Wolvegan business community, having brought NHF up from nothing but a local prefecture bank into a towering monolith in its own right among the giants of Mariënheem, thanks to shrewd investing and a business acumen second to none. Thyssen had twice been named Financier of the Year by the Republic’s National Coalition of Economics and Finance, a feat Beenhouwer had managed just twice in his own right. Where his competitor had truly made his mark, however was in shorting the market, gambling correctly on the ebbs and flows of the stock indices. Despite owning the presidency of the city’s largest financial institution, Thyssen had a personal wealth three percent larger than Cornelis, a fact that was constantly thrown back in his face whenever he saw his helicopter taking off from his luxurious penthouse suite.

Thyssen was wearing the same suit he always seemed to be wearing, a three-piece crafted by Thijs Vries, one of Wolvega’s preeminent tailors. The navy-blue jacket was sporting a golden chain that ran down to the pockets on either side, with a charcoal gray silken vest and white button-up dress shirt lying beneath. His graying hair was thinning more noticeably than it had before, though Daan was not the kind of man to let male pattern baldness deter him from any noticeable sense of fashion, especially the wide-brimmed fedora that he had tucked under his left arm. Even the man’s teeth were unnaturally clean and polished, despite the obscene number of cigars he was known to enjoy from the comfort of his luxury villa uptown. That and a pretentious amount of Adrichem Single Malt Whiskey, of which he was both a patron and an investor. In short, he was the kind of old money tycoon that Beenhouwer had been placed upon the earth to gobble up and destroy. Make no mistake however, there was a deep, abiding professional courtesy and respect at play towards Thyssen. Though he personally disliked the man on a very fundamental level, he could not begrudge the man his success in the financial world, nor his impressive business acumen.

Daan quietly walked towards Cornelis’s desk, prompting the executive to stand from his seat to formally welcome his competitor to his office. “Welcome, Mr. Thyssen, and thank you for coming; I hope your trip into the office wasn’t unpleasant in any major respect?”

“No, no, nothing extraordinary this morning thankfully,” the elder Thyssen replied amicably, extending his hand to shake that of Cornelis’s, which was reciprocated in kind. “The trip in was rather benign, though it is nice to see this part of town every so often.”

Cornelis motioned towards his liquor cabinet, inquiring of his peer whether he would care for a drink. “I have a full cabinet stocked, dealer’s choice should you want something. I even have a vintage bottle of cognac I procured from Raevenna that might be to taste.”

“Oh, no thank you, nothing for me,” Thyssen answered before changing the subject. “I must say, your office is definitely nicer than mine, more modern as it were. The friezes on the wall and the marble, the beige carpeting and the ornate throw rug, it’s all very pleasing.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that, Mr. Thyssen,” Beenhouwer responded, looking around at the office with a contented smile. “We put a lot of work into modernizing her for the clients, of course. It may be a bit over the top for my tastes, but still aesthetically nice.”

Daan nodded distinctly as Beenhouwer preened over the look of his office, though it was clear in short order that the man’s time was as valuable as Cornelis’s was. “Then again, I suspect I wasn’t invited over to discuss your décor. So, what can I do for you, Mr. Beenhouwer?”

“Please,” the president responded, “call me Cornelis.”

“Ah, yes, Cornelis. Please call me Daan, if you will.”

Cornelis nodded; his professional admiration for the man was rising in stock, even if he still detested him on a personal level. “Yes, Daan, well, I don’t mean to take up too much of your time this morning. I just wanted to inquire about the potential to profiteer.”

“Excuse me, ‘Profiteer’?” Beenhouwer’s rival was a bit perplexed, uncertain of where Cornelis intended to take the conversation, and even less sure he liked it. “Profiteering is quite illicit, Mr. Beenhouwer, even in the best of scenarios. Whatever are you referring to?”

“I’m referring to the ability to make a collective profit so large it would double your portfolio, proverbially overnight,” Cornelis replied, finally sitting back down in his chair. “A profit obtained legally and with the full backing of one of the region’s superpowers.”

“A profit obtained legally with the full backing of a regional superpower? That sounds less like profiteering and more like a sound business investment,” Daan answered, cocking an eyebrow. It was clear that he was in the dark about what Cornelis was trying to propose here.

“It depends upon your scruples, really, and the ability to disregard human capital in the equation. If you can accept the expending of human lives in the marketplace, then you have a great amount of profit to be obtained, both legally and securely. You know now what I speak of?”

Thyssen thought for a second, taking a moment to ponder the enigmatic query. It only took a pittance for him to realize the point Cornelis was trying to make, and it brought him to lean forward in his chair towards him. “You mean to profit from the conflict.”

Cornelis grinned like a shark. “Precisely that, Daan, precisely that. If you can accept that some people are going to get a bloodied nose from this ordeal, we could both prosper quite handsomely off of this war should we play our cards in the proper order.”

Daan shook his head, sighing: “What you call a bloody nose is more likely to be torn off limbs and viscera spread all over the grounds. I doubt that your conscience is so hollow that you are immune to the expense of, how did you put it a second ago… human capital?”

The president let out a soft chuckle, spinning the globe around with his fingers. “War is war, Thyssen. Wolvega has no say in whether the Golden Throne goes to curb stomp the Ice States or not. All we can do is be there to pick up the pieces when the puzzle is upturned.”

“I believe I have heard enough, Mr. Beenhouwer; thank you for inviting me over,” Daan chided, the level of disgust in his voice palpable. “If you would, please express my gratitude toward your secretary for being so kind and welcoming. I do appreciate your hospitality here.”

"Fifty million guilders."

Daan froze in place, just as he was preparing to turn around and leave. His head cocked to one side as he turned back to fully face Cornelis, who was still sitting behind his desk with a relaxed posture, his hands clasped in front of him. “I beg your pardon? Fifty million?”

“Fifty million guilders – that is your door prize for participating, along with all the money you could ever hope to make,” Cornelis answered him. “All it requires is your cooperation and your silence, and the money can be wired over to your bank account this afternoon.”

“You think my soul is for sell for fifty million guilders?” Daan retorted, almost smirking at the man sitting in front of him. I wipe my ass in the morning with fifty million guilders and think none the less of it. I would almost laugh at the very concept of such a pittance.”

“Yeah, except you won’t, because you’re not stupid enough nor naïve enough to turn down free money,” Beenhouwer threw down the gauntlet at Thyssen’s feet, expecting to snag his proverbial catch with the prospect of making a boatload of money on top of door prizes.”

The gambit worked; Daan slowly eased his old, creaking bones back down into the seat across from Beenhouwer. “You know me too well, sir; I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage here; though I am interested in this proposition of yours, I fear I lack the vital details.”

“The gamble, as it were, is a safe one where the house wins big,” Cornelis replied. “All of Wolvega’s biggest financial brokers working in concert to form a cabal that places a bet on the Golden Throne winning the war against the Ice States. A surefire victory!”

Daan scratched at his chin, stroking his gray, neatly trimmed beard. “You want to bet on the odds-on favorite to win this little horse race going on, and you want help to do so? Color me surprised, yet also a bit dubious. Why would you bring others in on your scheme?”

Cornelis’s grin somehow managed to grow even wider. “There is strength in numbers, wouldn’t you agree? Think of it this way: we invest now in our horse to win, then we swoop in and reap the windfall when the opposing house goes bust. We all get richer and more powerful.”

As if on cue, Thyssen held up a finger as if to signify a revelation. “Reconstruction! You want to invest in the war effort of the Golden Throne now so that when the time comes to rebuild the Ice States, we get in on the ground floor of the action! But why the need of a cabal to do it?”

“There is a safety factor we need to consider here,” Cornelis responded. “The more money we throw at the Golden Throne, the more likely we are to curry their favor. Without the cabal in place, rogues that gamble on the Communal Union hurt all our bottom lines in the end.”

Thyssen nodded slowly, accepting the answer as the truth. “Makes sense, Wolvega enters the fray divided, it could haunt the entire city for years on end. So who all do you have lined up for this little gambit of yours? Surely you would have secured your flanks first.”

“Oh, that I did; I got everyone I needed except for you,” Cornelis laughed, leaning forward in his chair. “All twelve of the nationally registered banks on the index, plus a few smaller firms that I owe political favors to. Everyone is on board the train except you.”

Daan thought for a moment, shaking his head. “What’s in this for you, though? I mean, you stood to make a killing by shorting the proverbial market on the Ice States’ existence by your lonesome. Strength in numbers is one thing, but unless you expected to…”

As he trailed off, yet another, this time more potent revelation hit the old man sitting across from Beenhouwer; Cornelis shrugged, simply addressing the elephant in the room. “What can I say, except that I plan on making my own side bets when all is said and done.”

“Your cabal is less about us all standing united behind the Golden Throne and more about your personal ambition. These door prizes are not gifts, they’re investments. You’re trying to curry favor from us, and there’s only one reason that would be the case, right?”

He had him, dead to rights; as mild concern blossomed into a full-blown state of shock on Daan Thyssen’s face, he knew that he was a good as sold. Though the two men held an obvious personal distaste for one another, they both understood good business practices when they saw them, and there was no better move for business than Beenhouwer’s golden proposal. It was the culmination of months of scheming behind the scenes, buying up favors and making the right friends in the corridors of power to pull his machinations from fantasy into reality. There was almost a poetic beauty to the whole shitshow he had been forced to endure, groveling when necessary to clear the necessary hurdles. The financial sector in Wolvega held immense political power in the city, but it was not the end-all, be-all in the Republic. There was a plateau one grade higher that held the true authority to make magic happen, and it was high time that one of their own would ascend into godhood and bring down the entire house to its studs. The house of cards balancing atop the backs of Wolvega’s bread and butter institutions was due for a crash, and when the time came to pick up the pieces in their own backyard, no one was more qualified or ready to do so than him.

"Surely, Cornelis replied, "at the end of the day, having a financier run for the presidency of the Wolvegan Republic would be best for business, would it not?"

[The Macabees]

OPERATION NORTHERN FREEZE II


Sea of Ice

Thin, curving pillars of smoke trailed the countless Icer missiles fired from their ships along the Sea of Ice. Their source betrayed the position of the enemy navy. But their fate came second to the defense against the Icer counterstrike in the form of a missile attack on Kríergrup 'Quitiruzu.' The fleet group had of course organized several layers of combat air patrol and picket screens, but the odds were stacked in the kríergrup's favor by virtue of geography. It was in anticipation of exactly this response by the Icer navy that 'Quitiruzu' had deployed in the northern half of the sea, above the islands in imperial control that commanded the center of the sea.

Consider the radar installations and air defenses positioned along the eastern coastline of Nicaro, paired with those on the islands, and then the fleet's own defenses. Not to mention the airborne early warning screens put up by the Laerihans as it wrestled for air superiority over the battlefield. Alas, the Ice State's navy in the Sea of Ice had focused its attention exactly where the Fuermak wanted it to — the big shiny object acting as bait for the trap.

Not long after the first Icer missiles had been launched, well before any of them had made an impact, the Laerihans scrambled to launch a set-piece response. Several squadrons of Lu-45s used the noise caused by the missile strikes and interceptions to strike out from central Nicaro, firing anti-ship missiles at the enemy navy. The Icer navy was restricted to its ports, which had been pummeled in the opening strike and were still being continuously hit with new ordnance. Port infrastructure and Icer surface ships alike were being pummeled with heavy ordnance without pause. A thick, black cloud of smoke rising from the flames of butchered buildings obscured and darkened the sky over Deephedge. It would only get worse. Fedor had ordered the complete annihilation of the Icer military.

As the Icer ships fired their salvos, creating noise not just in the air but also in the waters around them, a number of imperial submarines ventured closer toward the northern Icer coastline. By obscuring the waters around them with the commotion of the launches, the Icer navy had severely handicapped its ability to detect the movement of the Kríermada's subs. Their quiet diesel-electric engines were already difficult enough to hear.

Sleek, black teardrop silhouettes slithered beneath the rippling seawater. From their hulls, they released their torpedoes.

Like darts, the torpedoes raced toward their targets with endless energy. That energy, that pent-up power, would explode like a pressure cooker beneath the hulls of the enemy ships, snapping their bows and then their hulls.

The Icer navy in the Sea of Ice now found itself under intense attack from both the air and the sea, while also needing to deal with the nonstop bombing of port infrastructure, and looked on as its missile strike against Kríergrup 'Quitiruzu' ran the long, long gauntlet of imperial air defenses. Almost as if from all directions and vectors, surface-to-air missiles roared from ground-based launchers, ships, and aircraft to decimate the Icer attack in flight. As the enemy munitions screamed across the southern half of the sea, they were met by anti-aircraft missiles launched from ground-based launchers along the Nicaroan coast and the central islands, as well as by the forward combat air patrol and naval picket. Enemy missiles that survived that atrocious box of mechanical death then had to penetrate several more layers of air patrols and naval picket lines, before even hoping to brave the capital ships' personal escort fleets. Suffice to say, the Golden Throne had been attacked where it was strongest.

Burning imperial ships among the forward pickets were emptied of sailors desperate to escape. Many aircraft were lost, too. But the Icer attack did not significantly disrupt the ongoing bombardment Icer port infrastructure along the Sea of Ice, nor did it significantly impede the equally as incessant bombardment of Icer radar sites, missile batteries, and other military infrastructure. Rather than impede or weaken the imperial aerial offensive, it had only served to distract the Icer navy from its defense in order to attack the most well-defended part of the imperial defensive system.



Land Frontier

A dense cloud of gray and black smoke hung over the entire breadth of the front. It rose from the burnt corpses and rubbled buildings that littered northern Ormont. Obscured, satellites high above would find it more difficult to track their targets.

Heavy jamming relented, only to pick up again. The intensity of signal jamming had picked up along the front as the enemy counterattacked with surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles. In places, electronic warfare subsided as short-range and medium-range air defense batteries attached to units as tactically as at the company level. Truck- and track-based medium- and long-range systems involved themselves, too. They engaged the Icer missiles as they came in, destroying a considerable number. Then the jamming would pick up again.

The chaos of war descended upon northern Ormont. Icer air defense batteries, which had revealed themselves to imperial aircraft by engaging them or the imperial missiles fired by these aircraft, were attacked by AEJ 36 stealth fighters. Of Arcaenian design, the AEJ 36 represented the pinnacle of stealth fighter technology in the Laerihans. They swept in as other fighter aircraft dueled each other above the frontline, and fired their cruise missiles at the Icer air defense systems that were already preoccupied engaging the initial Macabéan attack.

The Laerihans followed a certain general pattern in its attacks on Icer ground forces, military and political infrastructure, and its defense of the air space above the frontline. Imperial aircraft fired their munitions from medium- and oftentimes long-range, then turning around as quickly as possible to leave the envelope of the Icer surface-to-air missile. Different aircraft squadrons served different purposes. Aside from aircraft running bombing missions, there were both Lu-45 and AEJ 36 stealth fighters providing combat air patrol and screening duties. Apart from serving in an early warning capacity, in conjunction with several dedicated GLI-44 battlefield control and early warning aircraft, they were positioned to counterattack against the Icer fighter aircraft moving in to engage those fighters that had just made their bombing run. As the Icer fighters focused their efforts on one enemy, another Macabéan jet fired two beyond visual range air-to-air missiles, closed the gap as the targeted enemy fighter maneuvered to avoid the freshly launched BVR missiles, then fired two short-range missiles to finish the job. These then quickly banked and turned around to return to base, by which time another set of fighter squadrons had already taken off to cover their positions in the combat air patrol. They left Ormont behind them just as another wave of air strikes was launched against Icer command posts, radar sites, and missile launcher positions. Very little time was spent behind Icer lines, meaning Macabéan aircraft had imperial ground-based air defenses to count on to cover their six.

Amidst the bombing and the counter-bombing, the imperial ground offensive relentlessly continued. Covered by not just the Laerihans, but also by ground-based air defense systems at the army, division, brigade, battalion, and company levels, the Ejermacht shrugged off the losses caused by the scattered explosions of successful enemy impacts. Those who were wounded and able to make it to forward surgical stations were treated as best as possible by their comrades on the ground until they were taken by medivac and hooked up with a blood transfusion until a surgeon or nurse could see them. The bodies of the dead were taken too, trucked back to Nicaro, leaving Quitiruzú for Fedala, where they would be interred at the Imperial Cementary of Krisala.

Space left by the fallen was quickly occupied by reinforcements. The front as a whole moved forward. One height, village, town, and city at a time, Northern Ormont fell to the insatiable war machine that was the Ejermacht.

As for the two mechanized corps piercing the Icer line toward Deephedge, these left behind them Icer positions swept aside and holding their place. This enemy would be mopped up by the slower-moving forces advancing behind them. The two mechanized corps broke into the Icer rear between the pre-war NIF and the city of Deephedge, overrunning missile batteries, radar sites, and supply depots. Havoc was wreaked behind the enemy's frontlines. They simultaneously Icer forces off from resupply, but they also subdued the Icer air defense systems that were interfering with the bombing campaign.

Very much similarly, the two mechanized corps that had struck through a very narrow portion of the Icer frontlines on the initial day of the offensive also bent their attacks in opposite directions, as if forming two pincers. Like their counterparts heading toward Deephedge, these corps too fanned out to hunt down air defense systems, supply depots, and other enemy positions in the rear. As they committed their damage upon the enemy, the Laerihans supported them with air strikes conducted via stealth drones penetrating deep into Icer airspace.

To the utterly devastating soundtrack of missile strikes, explosions, and gunfire, the artillery added its chorus. On the edge of the front, mortars ranging from 80mm to 254mm in caliber rained steel hell upon Icer soldiers and vehicles fighting the broad imperial offensive into Northern Ormont. They were joined by 160mm and 240mm caliber self-propelled howitzers, firing from medium- to long-range on a fire-and-scoot pattern. Like with every other aspect of Operation NORTHERN FREEZE II, the artillery bombardments were fierce, uncompromising, and never-ending. The Ejermacht used its artillery very carefully, having it directed by forward observers embedded into all the frontline units at all levels. Icer defensive positions that attempted to hold out were pulverized. Icer counterattacks were suppressed. Macabéan forces on the offensive moved into areas that had already been shredded apart by their supporting artillery forces.

Curiously, if one observed the battle from the air, they would see the pale gray trail of SCAR.1.A, SCAR.1.B, and SCAR.1.C surface-to-surface missiles. The A variant struck hard targets, like bunkers, supply depots, and other bases. The B variant was fitted with anti-personnel submunitions and targeted Icer infantry forces. The C variant carried anti-vehicle submunitions and was used to silence air defense batteries and enemy armored columns. The RIT.76 vehicles, based on the Nakíl tank chassis, that fired them, quietly returned to base for resupply after completing their mission. They were replaced by fresh units before abandoning the area.



Eastern Coast of TIS

'Nicaro,' 'Macabea,' and 'Beda Fromm' tightened the noose around the eastern Icer seaboard. The three kríergrups acted conjointly to eliminate any and every Icer commercial, government, or military ship in open waters. Cargo ships were not ordered to stop. They were simply sunk. Total and complete economic warfare had been opened against the Ice States and, to the end of bringing the communists to their knees, the economic front of the war would be pursued as vigorously and ferociously as all of the others.

Carrier-born fighters that had launched the opening missile strike had fired their munitions from a long-distance standoff range, meaning they too were at the edge of the envelope for Icer air defenses. By the time the Icer missile had time to travel from launcher to target, the target was out of range and the missile harmlessly dropped into the ocean. But by firing, the Icer air defenses had exposed themselves. So they were struck by fresh squadrons of GLI-76s, as well as by ships positioned along the forward and secondary picket lines by Kríergrup 'Beda Fromm.' 'Beda Fromm' had been earmarked as the primary fleet group responsible for the prosecution of the war along the eastern seaboard sector. 'Macabea' and 'Nicaro' were there for screening, defense, and to reinforce if necessary.

As 'Macabea' forward-most picket lines drifted forward closer and closer to the enemy shore, the screening lines behind them adjusting appropriately, the length of the ocean under the cover of the surface fleet's air defense umbrella increased. This made it progressively safer for the fleet group's carrier aircraft to carry out missile strikes deeper and deeper inside the eastern Ice States. Attacks against Stonegrad and Valhaven, in particular, intensified. The surface and submarine fleets carried out their own missile strikes, hitting military infrastructure and enemy air defense systems.

Far, far to the east, in the provinces of Beda Fromm and Targul Frumos, thousands of engines growled to life. To what they belonged to, only time would reveal.



Sea of Faith

The Sea of Faith was empty of imperial surface ship combatants. Kríergrup 'Targul Frumos' sat on the other side of the islands guarding the southern strait into the sea. Its surface ships had not engaged in the attack, nor could they at the distance they sailed. Rather, their purpose was to destroy Icer commercial shipping outside of the Sea of Faith, and to prevent the entry and exit of Icer shits through that southern strait. In conjunction with naval forces off the eastern Icer coast, 'Targul Frumos' completed the water-tight blockade of the Ice States.

No food. No machinery for industry. No medical supplies. No crude oil. No refined oil. No raw materials. No computers. No technology. Nothing.

Nothing was allowed to get into the Ice States by sea. Blockades of this type tended to starve their opponents into submission if they went on long enough. As the Icer economy was savagely wrecked by the physical destruction of the war, it would be unable to make up for these losses by importing according to their needs from abroad.

Although there were no imperial surface ships in the Sea of Faith, both imperial SSNs and SSKs had been positioned inside for days ahead of the opening attack. They were using Marshite ports for refitting. In the initial attack, only the SSNs had participated in the opening missile strike against military and government targets in the southern Ice States. Then the nuclear submarines left. Behind them remained the SSKs, silently sitting in place, waiting for the Icer Navy to react.

The Icer Navy did react. It sent submarines in pursuit of the attackers. These submarines moved through the Sea of Faith, as silently and stealthily as any other. But they were moving. The imperial SSKs that had been left in the Sea of Faith, as of yet inactive in the war, were not. In position of ambush, they waited. Silently. As if holding their breath eternally, so as to not make even a squeak. They waited for the Icer submarines to lurk deeper and deeper into the Sea of Faith, in pursuit of the attackers. Only when the Icer submarines were fully inside the trap that had been laid for them did the silent, immobile SSKs suddenly come to life and launch an attack on the enemy subs from all sides...


...As the submarine ambush played out, 'Targul Frumos' sent four groups of thirty-six aircraft through the southern straits and into the Sea of Faith. These aircraft were refueled by unidentified tanker aircraft somewhere off the coast of Holy Marsh. They proceeded northeast toward Ice States, unloading all of their munitions from a long distance before turning around. The fighters were refueled again off the coast of Holy Marsh and then returned to their carriers. Behind them, the hundreds of missiles they launched struck military port facilities across the southern Icer coastline.

Inevitable that they'd be soon followed up by another wave of missile strikes. Then another. Then another. Until the Ice States submitted, or until it was demolished from one corner to the other.