The War Between Sun and Moon - A GD Civil War RP
The Union shatters
OOC: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=555992
The General Situation
The long peace which had given much life to the Solisian Union was shattered. A Republican coup took place in the capital, forcing Queen Reina to abdicate. Provoking anger from those loyal to her, as well as outrage from her family, tensions rose.
Sadly, war followed shortly after.
The Union now struggles against itself. All are forced to choose sides, regardless of their ties to their families, their homes, and their friends. Many are trapped in the growing violence between the ones still loyal to the monarchy and the ones who wish to bring back the Republic they knew or thought they knew.
Hundreds of thousands are either moving to Republican territories or to Monarchist areas. The rest who could flee have already fled, either to the neutral parts of the country or to the world beyond the borders of their country.
But there are also many who chose to stay and fight. Though not all are trained reservists or active members of the once united Solisian armed forces, the world knows that Solisian citizens can still take up arms. Yet, though they are greater in number, it is the regulars of both factions that would do most of the fighting and the killing and the dying.
It does not seem clear that either faction would quickly prevail. Everyone is still mobilizing. The economies of both factions have only just begun to make changes to themselves. Moving parts that once moved as a whole are now forced to function for one or the other. There is much confusion, regardless of whoever claims to know better.
Any chances for negotiation are gone. The only thing left is to fight. But it won't be so straightforward.
War is no easy affair, after all.
Right now, The Republicans are biting down on the tanks and men of General Vasques outside of the town of La Oreno. The Monarchists are mauling the uprisings started by trade unions, militias, and supporters of their enemies near Acosta. Countless skirmishes are happening everywhere else. From the great forests and rivers of Northern Solisia and Northern Azenia down to the fertile lands of the Rasur and the other peoples of the Union, the civil war makes its presence felt.
For the Republicans, though they claim La Victoria as their capital, Sanho is the only place where their new government practically can function. Yet, they could not allow the very center of the Union fall into the hands of their enemies. To lose it would mean to lose the very symbol of Solisia. They would sacrifice much for this as many did for the many different Republics of history.
For the Monarchists, it is not only the loss of La Victoria and the capture of their Queen and her household that they have to worry about. With Republican militias and supporters creating uprisings within what should have been secure territory, their own lines of communication and supply for their forces already facing the regular Republican forces would be in danger. They cannot afford to lose what military they have left to command. They also cannot afford to allow these little fires to grow more dangerous and powerful. If they can put down these threats near their center of power in Acosta, then Azenia would become a more stable base for executing their will in this war and win it.
Yet, so much of what they all plan to do will take time. No matter how quickly their leaders wish it, there can be no instantaneous movement of personnel nor of materiel. For now, they must do what they can for this summer.
This isn't the time for sophisticated battle plans. This isn't the time for more preparations. This isn't the time for trying anything else but dealing with the here and now.
No matter how much preparation was done, all officers fighting either for the Monarchy or the Republic know this:
No plan survives contact with reality, but no reality survives without some kind of planning to it.
The sun and moon burn. The stars are giving birth to a conflagration. The Solisian Civil War has begun.
The First Months of War
Republicans
The First Army - Field Marshal Ramziyya Artigas
So, it is war. After all of that, it is finally war.
It has come sooner than it should have. Some of our preparations are not yet complete. Many of our comrades in the south are trapped. They have been betrayed by their friends in the other armies. However, there is nothing we can do for them right now. There are more important things at stake where I am.
While the news writers love to claim Captain Torres was the leader of the coup, many of us in the army love to differ. He was only one of us, one among many who planned for this moment. He has done what he should have. Now it is up to the rest of us to continue with our cause.
I have work to do and people to lead. The First Army is waiting for me. The First Army is mine to use in this fight.
The First Army must not fail, regardless of my feelings about where better to fight the forces loyal to Prince Tobias. I have done my arguing already. There is no more room for it in the offices and conference rooms of Sanho. Our new military council has listened to me and they have agreed that my opinions were not the ones they needed. Fair enough. That leaves me to oversee the movement of the First Army.
My Army.
Fortunately for my command, my subordinates remain firm and confident in our present situation. We are afraid, yes, of all the consequences of failure that may come, but we are not so stubborn that we couldn't appreciate the opportunities waiting for us in battle. The North is full of them and we won't waste our chances.
General Vasques has committed herself to the battle. Foolish. While I have known her to be a good and competent officer, I also have known her to be too aggressive, too impatient sometimes that it makes her act too quickly. If she hasn't learned any better during those exercises and operations outside of the country, then I will make sure she will pay for it.
While I trust Generals Vidal and Larsson in La Victoria to keep resisting her tanks and her mechanized troops, I cannot afford to be so trusting. Trust alone wins nothing. General Vasques, after all, wasn't the commander of this corps of Marshal Olena's Second Army for nothing. Soon enough, she'll try going around them if they don't keep her forces in place. Fixing them at La Orena is one thing. Pinning them for good is another.
If we don't get reinforcements there in time, then the flanks will be exposed and used against us. That should not happen. To help us with this matter, the 3rd Army will join us. A good sign. If Field Marshal Íñigo Echeverría's men are this eager to spill the blood of the Monarchists, then I'm more than sure we'll do good.
I was also informed that his 3rd Army had sent detachments of mechanized infantry south to secure the northern flank. Two battalions, in fact. Helpful but not enough. Not that I can be so harsh with him for that. We both have to deal with Marshal Olena. Her officers are young but dangerous. We need to be careful with the timing of our actions when dealing with them all.
I believe I have timed things well. If things go well, then I would see Vasques remove herself and her corps as a threat to La Victoria. The southwest would be clear for us to move down and help our comrades. For this, I've given the job to one of my very own Assault battalions, one armored brigade, and the faster units belonging to Marshal Nada's Marine Army. I'll have to remember to thank him for the assistance next time. He's given me one of his divisions, the 6th, and assured me that they were one of his better assets.
I trust him. But we'll see if that is still true. What matters now is moving them all to La Oreno as soon as possible.
My First Army is already on the move, but they're not as fast as the Assault troops. Even their comrades in the 6th Naval Infantry Division have better transports. I'd try getting more men moving, but that's not necessary.
You can't push everything out so quickly without getting all the necessary arrangements done. I've pressed my Army as many times as I could, but continuing to do so would not help the situation. Some of the trains needed more tending to. Consequently, I've ordered my engineers to deal with that. The remaining trains that could take my Army are on their way southwest toward La Victoria, but they can only move more troops rather than their heavy equipment. That meant having to rely on the highways and moving them on trucks. Even that is taking time, much more than simply using trains.
I have considered using the river. This, too, will take time. Already, I've asked my engineers about it and they'll see what they can do with the cargo and heavy equipment.
Now there is nothing else I can do but wait and continue with the rest of my work. That means I'll have to get myself closer to the fighting. I'll take the first train out to Herramel. I will be seeing my subordinates there.
La Oreno - Private Florencio Yuki, 10th Infantry Brigade, 11th Republican Infantry Division
Textbook stuff. This was all supposed to be textbook stuff, but nothing happening in front of him, around him, and behind him was anything like what he knew during training.
Too much smoke from the burning vehicles mixed with too much dust from the sand on both sides of the highway, all of it carried by weak winds. He couldn't see the fighting over his trench, not even through the goggles he put on a minute before some brave little shits from the anti-tank company decided it was time to blow up the Monarchist tanks.
Was it even time to do that? The Monarchists were pulling back, weren't they? Did they really have to start this fight?
Questions like that had no use here. He picked up his grenades and grunted as he climbed out, got on his feet, and ran forwards. He had to look for the rest of his squad. They'd left him, the fuckers, and they didn't even say a word or grab his arm or knock on his helmet. He cursed himself for being so shocked at what happened.
Florencio was still running forwards, past the other trenches and past friendly tanks and vehicles in their dugouts. His ears rang hard. He heard the thut-thut-thut of their cannons and the rapid bursts of sound that only reminded him their machine guns were live. He slowed down and looked around only to be grabbed by someone and pulled into a trench.
The 19 year old soldier cried out, but he wasn't being stabbed or beaten or worse. He saw a face he knew. Ajira. Florencio made an embarrassed smile, but the female corporal dragged him up to his feet but kept his head down. The two were not alone. Three others from their squad were with them, shooting at an enemy they had a hard time seeing because of all the smoke and the dust going around.
"Flor! You stupid boy! What were you thinking running forwards and looking around?! You could have gotten your head shot," the corporal said, shaking her head at him. More firing. Spent casings were bouncing off their bodies and helmets, dropping to the ground. The corporal turned at her comrades and growled at them. They ignored her and she turned back to Florencio.
"I was looking for you! I got left behind."
"What? You got..." Ajira sighed, muttered something in Azenish, then found his rifle lying between his feet and picked it up. She shoved it into his arms and told him, "Fuck this. We need to keep fighting. Just do what we do, Flor." Without even warning him, she raised her rifle over his body and aimed down the sights before shooting two bursts over the trench.
Florencio hurried to get his weapon over their fighting position. He did as he was told, first firing too much and getting a kick in the ass from Ajira before he corrected himself, firing bursts in an arc, hoping he'd hit something.
Then the return fire came. Ajira grabbed his back and pulled him down with her as the others dropped behind the trench wall. They waited a while, listening to the cracks and zips of rounds flying over them. Ajira wished she had helped Flor adjust more to this kind of thing, but it was hard to do so when they're finally in the shit.
Behind them, the rest of La Oreno's defenders were not stopping. Republican tanks were still firing on their Monarchist rivals from prepared fighting pits in the sand or within the town. Others were firing on the move. They got on the highway or drove off from it, turning around the burning carcasses of their enemies. They were chasing after the ones retreating off the highway. Some simply advanced a little before they halted to take a better shot at a target. Following them, or even speeding past them, were IFVs with auto cannons and heavy machine guns. Infantry advanced too, ignoring Monarchist corpses and scattered body parts. But some, like Florencio's squad, were careful not just to go forwards.
A loud explosion. The squad looked over their trench. A friendly IFV had been hit across the side with a shell from a Monarchist tank. Screams. Surviving crew were on fire and running or dropping to the ground to extinguish the flames. A burst of machine gunfire cut many of them down.
Florencio felt his heart sink after seeing that. He felt his legs tremble. The young man turned to Ajira only to find a lieutenant standing by their trench.
The whole squad looked up at the officer, who was waving them out. "Get out! Get up and follow me. We need to move to the right flank. The Monarchists are trying to go around the town. We need to stop them."
Everyone got out, but Florencio was last. Ajira grabbed his arm and brought him with her, not letting go as they followed the lieutenant as she led them to a road leading northwest.
Monarchists
The Second Army - Field Marshal Carmen Olena
I was not born in Solisia, no matter what people may say about my family.
For all my life, I knew Azenia as my home. Unlike my counterpart, a reliable woman from a family of sanitation workers in New Azagi, I lived in Betanzos, a city belonging to Lupita Province.
It was in Azenia I became an officer of the Solisian army. It was in Azenia I celebrated the ascension of Queen Reina to the throne over our country. It was in Azenia I shaped the Second Army into a force that even Field Marshal Ramziyya recognized as better than any other in the northern military districts.
It was here I went, dissatisfied with the responses of our High Command when they couldn't punish the officers who launched their coup against the government and the Queen. It was here I answered the call of Prince Tobias, promising to him the loyalty of the Army entrusted to me. It was here I worked with little rest, preparing my officers for the inevitable, gathering as many weapons and materiel as I could before the country fractured, and solidifying the support of my home province for the sake of our cause. It was also here I decided to fight for what I believe is the rightful government for the country.
To any who know me, they will know I mean nothing less than this. Still, some would like to believe I am not truly as I am.
Some would like to believe that I am less dangerous because I am younger than half of my counterparts. Some would like to believe that I am less capable than Field Marshal Ramziyya. Some would like to believe that I am weaker in spirit because I am not a communist nor a socialist.
I would like to correct them.
The Second Army is, by no means, second to anyone. The First Army may enjoy their place, but it is we who know how to fight them. Many may idolize Field Marshal Ramziyya but they forget that I learned how to wage war because of her. This is an opportunity to demonstrate ourselves.
The Second Army is a weapon and it is mine to wield. It is an Army no good officer wishes to confront without being cautious. Although it is true that we are still mobilizing, so are our Republican enemies.
My subordinates are fierce and unyielding. They know defeat but they were never destroyed. It is in them I have the greatest confidence. Their youth, like mine, has taught them to treat defeats as challenges to learn from.
The objectives before us are clear. We will defend the North, end the harassment caused by small but dangerous pockets of Republican resistance within Azenia, and when we find any weakness, we attack.
We leave the rest of the war to our comrades. The Fifth Army will be moving south, helping our cause by dealing with the pockets that we could not reach and by securing the rest of Rasur. Two Republican Armies are trapped in the south and I pray that my friend, Field Marshal Sayeed Malnada, will be successful. But, for now, my attention must remain on what I can do.
There are skirmishes on the northern border. These will turn into battles. I must win them. I will win them. In the name of the Prince, in the name of the Queen, and in the name of my Second Army, I will win them.
Acosta - Journalist Caseya Duarte
Ten soldiers dead, seven Guardia Civil dead, four police officers dead, and at least 30 wounded. That was the final count after resistance had been eliminated in this sector. Their bodies lay on the back of trucks waiting for the permission to leave. At least it wasn't raining, Caseya thought.
A journalist for The Western Report, a generally well-known newspaper company, Caseya Duarte continued to write about what happened in her notebook while the wounded were getting attention from medical personnel just close by the apartment blocks that the Loyalists had finished clearing out. While making a few sketches to add to her notes, it was easy to think of how far things have come.
She had been with the Loyalist forces ever since they moved away from the Republican areas. When Prince Tobias, with the approval of many of the nobility, as well as the higher classes that chose not to become nobles for whatever reason, established himself in Acosta, she couldn't resist the call to work on another long-term story. It would be a project she hoped would gain the attention of the world and not just come to pass as yet another achievement recognized only by her country.
She had been lucky to have spoken to many once she got to the capital of Azenia. It seemed painful for many Azenians, especially those whose tribes or families were connected to the monarchy, to accept the fact that Queen Reina had been captured together with her guards, her servants, and who else was in the old capital. Although wondrous people like General Vasques and her forces were unwavering in their efforts to attempt a forceful rescue, such heroic deeds cannot win victories on their own.
The Loyalists, also called the Monarchists by outsiders, would have to grit their teeth and accept the challenge given them by these rebels.
She's seen what the Second Army was up to. Their regrouping efforts are still underway, but so far they seem to be doing fairly well. Such efforts were happening across all other territories still honoring their oaths to the government that formed in Queen Reina's name. Unfortunately, she couldn't be everywhere. If she got the time, she might go down to see how the Fifth Army were doing.
Yet, even within Azenia, the presence of the enemy was hard to ignore. That was why despite her requests, the Loyalists didn't want a journalist like Caseya to risk her life by going south. Nobody was sure if the Republicans fighting in the pockets would be so keen on respecting the rules of war. This rebellion seems to have convinced many that the days of the Queendom are numbered. Caseya frowned as she recalled the times that she's been shot at or harassed by people who had whatever reason to be unhappy with the Loyalists. Yet, was it not the same for those in the areas controlled by the Republicans? As much as she'd like to know about that too, it wasn't her priority. It was always the story she had that took first place.
While it might be true, as strange and perhaps horrid it is to think about, it appeared that the Queendom was not going to let its days be shortened without a fight to preserve its legitimacy.
She turned her attention back to what was going on around her when someone cleared their voice near her. A uniformed woman with a haircut rougher than any woman she's met or seen. She had the insignia of the Guardia Civil on her arms and her chest pockets. She was smiling at her. By her side, another member of the Guardia Civil. This one, however, had a mask on, and she seemed to prefer her hair short and darker than the smiling one.
"Phylessa! Orinda! You're both here!" Caseya before she hurried over and embraced the two.
They held one another for a moment before Caseya let go. Just before Caseya could say another word, the smiling woman put up a hand and said, "I see you're working on your story. Looks like you're still untouched."
"Yeah," the pony-tailed journalist said, "I'm all okay. I'm just making some sketches to help with my descriptions. How are the two of you doing?"
The short-haired one shrugged and said, "We're all right, Cas, but we're quite preoccupied."
"As if!" said the rough haired one, "Well, I'm not saying we aren't, but that's just putting it lightly. Phylessa here isn't too haps about the trouble happening in the city."
"Yes, that is correct." Phylessa shook her head and sighed. She and the other women looked at the covered bodies on the trucks. "If it weren't for the people we transferred from Rakshan, we might have had a tougher fight."
Orinda nodded with a frown on her face and said, "Yeah, and right now, we're here not just because we got some time off after we finished clearing the eastern districts. We're about to get north. You know Owariasahi, Cas?"
"The Triple Districts? Yeah, I know about it. Why?"
Phylessa turned away and nodded in the far distance. Beyond the Twin Bridges connecting the western and eastern districts and beyond the seemingly endless blocks of buildings and towers of the city, pillars of dark smoke rose up to the blue sky. The air seemed to occasionally thud with the sounds of distant cannons.
"We're being distracted, it seems." Phylessa fished out a paper from her right pocket and looked at it as she said, "The insurgents are trying to bring some of the people they freed from the city jails out. We think they're going to fly them out or drive out to the highway."
"Didn't the Prince order the city locked down until the situation was under control?"
"He did. Not all of our checkpoints are manned. Acosta's spreading us all thin. The regulars and some of the militia cannot help us deal with the escapees. They're trying to stop the rebels from entering the city through the west and the north. That is why we are here. We're gathering people to stop them from reaching their friends in the areas they're in control of."
"And you want me to come along with you?"
"That's not what I-"
"Sure. We want you to have this in your story," said Orinda, ignoring the glare that Phylessa was shooting at her. Orinda clapped her hands a few times and turned around, getting ready to walk out. "When we catch them, this will make the headlines!"
"Orin, you just want to have fun with this, don't you?" Phylessa said, raising a brow at her.
"Come on! It's exciting. We're going to get ourselves some prizes." Without waiting, she happily walked on.
Phylessa sighed, looked over at Caseya and waved her over. "Just keep close and be careful, Cas. It's going to be more dangerous."
"I'll take care, Phy. I'm not letting anyone stop my story."
"Nobody will stop your writing, Cas, but I don't want anyone hurting you at all. Now come on, we can't waste time."
Soon enough, the women left this part of the city, their minds turned to getting up to the north.
Developments in the General Situation
Fierce Republican resistance continues in La Oreno despite continued Monarchist attacks and attempts to go around their defenses. This has bought more time for the First Army of the Republican forces to continue their mobilization and to send more reinforcements to the southwest. The new government in Sanho is satisfied. Within the people who have gone over to the fight for restoring democracy, a great hope has grown.
Meanwhile in Acosta, the Monarchists have succeeded in clearing more of the city, destroying opposition and forcing many rebels to either flee or surrender. However, Monarchist security forces, with the Guardia Civil leading their efforts, are now working to stop the escape of freed politicians.
Although Azenia continues to deal with pockets of resistance and uprisings by those sympathetic to the rebels, the Monarchists are relieved to have a secure capital. Prince Tobias has gained greater support now from the higher classes of the country and the return of stability in central Azenia has made it easier for Monarchist commanders to reorganize their forces and prepare to properly fight this civil war.
However, south of Azenia and Solisia, the situation is more complicated. Pockets of Republican resistance are far more common in Rasur than in Azenia. Though the leaders of the Rasur State promised loyalty to the Monarchists, it would be ignorant to claim that the whole of Rasur agreed with them. Many farm laborers and the rest of the poorer classes in the state were unwilling to put up with their conditions and their bosses. They were later joined by an unlikely ally.
The Sayarians, long standing enemies of both the Mantagonians and the Rasur, have chosen to throw their hat in with the Republicans, their leaders swayed by promises from Sanho. Their desires seemed more in line with revenge and violence than in caring too much about restoring democracy. While they also mobilize and carry out skirmishes and raids, the rest of the country decided against joining any side.
Despite the damage these Republican forces are doing to Monarchist stability and the integrity of their lines of communication and supply, the reality for two Republican armies is not good. Trapped in the very center of the country and Western Rasur, these soldiers are forced to consider a fighting retreat that would bring them into the safety of fellow Republican forces and escape the Monarchist formations that betrayed them and wished to destroy them and weaken the Republican cause.
The Elizaran islands are burning with both Monarchists and Republicans fighting each other for control of the ports and naval bases there. The cities of the archipelago are either falling to the control of one side or the other. In the waters all around Solisia, the once united Navy of the country has split viciously. Fortunately for the Republicans, most sailors and officers pledged themselves and their ships to the cause. While many are leaving bases and ports seized by Monarchists or chased out by people who wanted nothing to do with the war, others are sailing with determination to raid and attack one another or the ports and coastal cities belonging to the opposing side.
For those who did not wish to join the civil war as it progressed and more fighting became widespread, a neutrality movement led by the United Kingdom of Mantagonia proclaimed that it would not join hands with any faction. Much of the wider south, inhabited by the Cadenians, the Sonu, and the Ersians, have all united with the Mantagonians, raising their own militias and joining ranks with elements of the former Solisian military that declared themselves protectors of their homelands first before any other.
Abroad, many Solisian citizens were forced to realize that they were stranded in foreign lands. It would not be safe for any of them to return home. Yet, many of them would contemplate returning as volunteers for the factions they support. The rest preferred to stay or to find another way of contributing to their favored cause.
The war has only just started. The only way out of it is through.