NationStates Jolt Archive

Katie del Polo, the Adejaani ambassador to Imitora smiled across the table at Amy Lee, Imitora's head of Foreign Relations. Ever since their meeting during First Speaker Fortier's inauguration, the two had gotten along rather well and thus chose these informal lunches to further strengthen relations.

"I'm glad that you finally apprehended Miss Chaffin." Katie smiled as she took a sip of wine. Nowadays, she turned on her hearing aid to better ease communications. While she still spoke with the slight slur common to deaf people, nobody could really tell she was any different. "Your counterpart and my boss in Foreign Relations was a little bit tied up by the bureaucracy, but it turned out alright, even if your agents were a bit... Zealous... In their mission."

"Hey," Amy said, taking a sip of water. "What can I say? We like to get the job done." She took a bite of steak, and finished with "unlike some other people." The last part was under her breath, forgetting that del Polo could read lips.

She glanced at a clock on the wall, then went back to drinking her water. "So when are you gonna come back to Imitora again?"

OOC: We cant stop here...its Bat Country-Johny Depp

"Probably in a day or two." Katie looked down at her slightly soggy lettuce which was dampened from sitting underneath the cucumber slices. "Everyone, you included, has a folder of information about them, sitting in a server somewhere and they want me to update it, check it over and put in my thoughts, as well as giving briefings about your government and how it affects mine. Boring stuff.

"Why the great interest in me returning, though?"

"I'm looking forward to it. After all, it is nice to think what other governments think about us, they probably wanna duplicate us. If you feel that your police and militayr forces are inadaquite, feel free to inform me of some open time, I'm sure we can work out a training scenario. And the monsoon season is comming. Good surf."

"That's actually an interesting idea you've got, Amy. We've got shiny toys and a lot of good technology, but we don't really have the foggiest clue how to use it. Well, we do know how to use it and we train the hell out of our troops, but we don't have any firm military strategy or higher thinking. You, you Imitorans are famous for it."

"Well, with so many piss ant threats around, it doesn't hurt to be a kicker of ass and a taker of names. And we've just finished fielding a new drop unit too. 50,000 strong combat wise, antoher 20,000 backing up with logistic work. Plus the 69th is finishing up its final pre combat testing before being deployed. And with the block II Angels rolling of the lines, we can more than hold our own against anyone."

Specially a bunch of piss ant Adejaanians, she didn't add. Fortier had all but given the go ahead for a full scale invasion, just to test the limits, and of course, over flights were a daily occurence in the vast space over the nation. It never hurt to know exactly how to take out your enemy.

"I'm sorry?" Katie blinked. "I'm a writer, not a military... Person. What are you suggesting? That we go up against each other. What do you call it? War Games?"

"I dont see why not. After all, it would be a fun expierience. Hell, it woudl be a good training situation for you. If you dont mind being embarassed to much. I'm sure our respective leaders could work out a scenario and numbers job, then let the fighting boys do teh fighting."

====== Two days later ======

"Welcome to Imitora, Starsky." Kate del Polo smiled and pushed the hair away from her place as she stood slightly lopsided against the wind. The 737 had landed neatly in a far corner of the main Imitora airport and its passengers were now deplaning using the old fashioned stairs.

"Always good to see you, Katie." General Samuel 'Starsky' Hutchinson, Chief of the Air Forces, hugged her and smiled in his own way: A twinkle of the eyes and a deadpan delivery in his gravelly voice. "Caroline misses having you around and Melinda's constantly jealous about how you got such a high profile position. And you know you're always welcome back when you're visiting."

Kate smiled. "Well, first things first, Starsky." At Barrings University, Kate and Melinda Hutchinson had shared a room and were basically neck and neck in their classes. During the long vacation periods, Kate became a de facto member of the Hutchinson family. Not that long ago, really.

"Yes. Where to now? I really could use with a freshen up before I meet whoever it is. And me and the staff could certainly look over the plans again." Hutchinson turned around and nodded at the three One Stars behind him, representing the Air, Sea and Land Forces who'd fill in the gaps, plus his aide, a Colonel.

"Fine. Let's go back to the Embassy, then I'll get in touch with my counterpart and we can start discussing." Kate stepped back slightly and smiled as she gestured to the transport provided for them.

OOC: You pick where they meet up.

Northampton. The cultural and diplomatic center of Imitora. Everything that defined Imitora was here. Shopping, sightseeing, water and theme parks durring the day, and clubs, fancy resteraunts, and street racing at night. The poorest person in the city made more then some of the richest in other nations. It was also where the meeting was to take place.

At the Northampton Center For Diplomatic Relations, First Speaker Fortier, FltAdm. Winslow, and ComGen. Diego sat across the table from the Adejaanis. A few legal pads sat on the table, a few glasses of water, and a cup of pens. Coffee was in the corner, and so were a few finger sandwiches.

After the introductions were made, Hutchinson put on some reading glasses. He stood, ignoring the shrapnel wounds he'd suffered in the leg from a conflict some years ago as his aide put a large map on the table.

"North Island." Hutchinson's pen went down as he gestured around the map. "We did a lot of work on it as part of the old APTO Defense Perimeter. Roughly circular, about a hundred kilometers, give or take, in diameter. It is, essentially, Midway Island from World War 2, or at least the same basic function. And this is, basically, how the wargames will happen. Essentially a recreation of the Battle of Midway. Your forces have to take the island rapidly after neutralising my forces within forty eight hours, because by that time, reinforcements will arrive from the mainland. North Island is a lot closer to the Adejaani mainland, of course, but this is just part of the exercise."

Hutchinson paused to take a sip of water before continuing. "For obvious reasons, I cannot give you the specifics, but there are two large anchorages, four large airstrips and five large bases, supporting two carrier battle groups, four fighter and two bomber squadrons (not including the two carrier air wings) and two Light Infantry, two Armored Divisions. And, of course, the various barracks, hospitals, command centres, communications, repair and maintenance facilities. Plus, of course, engineer and support units for all of the above, like MPs, SAM sites and AWACS aircraft, plus maybe a battalion of Special Forces.

"To aid in this exercise, I must warn you that there are obstacles and mines on the beach. We're in the process of digging out the mines, but the obstacles will remain and more suitable dummy mines. The only safe way onto the island is via the two naval anchorages, or airdropping onto the island, unless you want to come in under fire and breaching obstacles.

"And, of course, no live rounds fired at all and safeties on the whole time. Apart from that... It's basically anything goes. Questions? Comments?"

The looks on the faces of the men from Imitora showed no emotion. Robert simply let his eyes move over the map, already planning a carving, setting aside land for weapons testing, military yards, prisons...he had to remind himself that this was no real war, and just a game, so to say.

Winslow simply mused the fact that the Adejaanis wanted to go on the defensive. Imitora had never defended, always attacked, and recent localised testing had shown that weaknesses existed in the defensive structure of the nation.

Diego, on the same thought train as Fortier, had already imagined a victorious ICMC blasting its way across the island, securing it within 24 hours, and total destruction of Adejaani forces in 48. When reinforcements arrived, they would have to fight thier way through a large naval force, and those who landed would come under pressure from the traps their succesors had set.

And then their was the luck that the Deazeman operation plans still existed in solid form. The island, though shaped differently, was size wise the same as Deazeman, and had the general same set up as they had. In all, it would be the war that should have happened in Deazeman.

Fortier scribbled something on his legal pad, and handed it across to Diego, who handed it over to Winslow. Winslow nodded at Diego, and vice versa, before both nodding at Fortier. It wouldn't be to hard to take the island, and, in essence, it could feasibly be taken over, secured, and reinforcements taken out withing the time span of the week. Fortier then clicked his pen, and placed it down. "And what does the winner get?"

Hutchinson shrugged. "This is an exercise. As your Miss Lee said, this might be your chance to prove to us how inferior we are... If you can. Boasting rights, basically. It's a good training exercise, though, for both sides.

"One thing I should've mentioned." Hutchinson said after a moment's thought. "Don't dump any bilge water or waste within ten kilometers of North Island. Those environmentalists got the Supreme Court to rule a rare species of coral habitat fish in that area a protected species, so if you're going to dump, please do it outside that radius."

OOC: Kudos for the Fear and Loathing reference...I'll be gone now.

"If the enviromentalists have a problem with our operation, they can talk to me," Fortier said plainly. "But to make this intresting, I say we put a bit of cash down on this. Say, 1.8 billion, respectively?" Fortier puller out a check book. "Private funds, of course."

Diego simply over looked the map, and began writing down numbers on a pad. "When do we start?"

"I don't have that kind of money, sir." Hutchinson smiled thinly, though it was probably unnoticeable. It was also technically a lie, he was distantly descended from a line of merchants, one of the first great businesspeople in Adejaani. He didn't have that kind of money, though his relatives would. "But I have favors owed to me.

"As for when, I guess maybe about two more days or so. We're finishing the mine clearing and the installation of various monitoring and sensor apparatus to keep track of the exercise and fully briefing everyone involved.

"I can't stress again how important it is for safety to be exercised. No live ordnance and if any unit squawks the 'distress' code for a real reason, then we stop and let them clear out." He paused to push over a pad full of numbers: Universal and liaison frequencies, emergency radio protocols and callsigns.

"Very well," Fortier said, closing the check book. He signaled to Diego, who pressed a button unde the table, and three aides entered the room. He signaled them over, and whispered somethign to each of them. They nodded, and left the room.

"Well," Winslow spoke for the first time, "this looks like its going to be fun. I'm sure it will be a good expiereince for both of us. However, it seems that all that needs to be discussed has been, and I'll see you on teh battlefield." He stood and left. Diego just nodded and followed. Fortier was the last to leave.

He looked around teh table, and grabbed a few pens. "Never can have to many of these. Good luck." He then left. Aides showed the Adejaanis out of the building.

It took just under a half hour to finish reprogramming the recon sats, and ten minutes for them to place themselves over the island. Each satalite, armed with a high powered cammera, began snapping away. In less than two hours, over three hundred pictures had been taken of various points of the island, from various angles at various zoom degrees, and they were all compiled to create a composite image of the island. This image was then given to Diego and Winslow, and the planning began.

OOC: See attachment.

This is basically a brief outline of the island. I didn't bother with the "true geographical" bumps and beaches and outlines, but you get the idea.

Black are the runways; blue are the army barracks/depots; yellow are the two naval anchorages.

Reminder that apart from the two anchorages, the rest of the coastline is beach, which is mined.