NationStates Jolt Archive

Feelings in the Kingdom had long been lethargic with most of the populace not caring to much to get themselves into politics. However taxes which continued to rise and now the call for greater democratic reforms had several prominent military govenors begin to plot an overthrowing of the monarchy. Things were planned in silence as the govenors of Vermont, New Hamsphire, Pennsylvannia and Rhode Island met under the guise of offical meetings to organize their state military units and police forces to blitz the country in a rush to capture the capital while the King de los Santos was out of the country. The military govenors felt strongly that King de los Santos had lost his touch with the people and the higher taxes meant ultimately that he was slowly leaning toward socialism.

If anything the mismanagement of the taxes was due to lesser ministers however none of that mattered to the power hungry. Military units of the Colonial Guard, the main reserve forces were quietly called up and the news of the events kept out of the newspapers and press through bribes and intimidation. No one in the regular army or Royal Guard knew what was coming. Better armed than the Colonial Guard, the Colonial Army was smaller and expecting external attack and not a coup attempt.

A nation that is politically unstable generally means that just one shot and governments fall like flies. But everything in the kingdom was generally stable and on the exterior things were happy and placid. On the inside a bitter rage was fueled by the increasing taxes and what the government viewed as lack of caring for the average working folks who helped run the countries factories. Granted they were not the majority but they made up a sizeable enough minority that the govenors was confident to be able to draw from a wide base of support in their bid to overthrow the Monarchy.

A date was set and tanks were prepared. Local police cheifs loyal to the governors were contacted and given advanced warning of what was about to occur. Officers who were suspected to be loyal to the Monarchy were given other assignments or given days off at the expected day of the coup. The internal security wing of the OSS had known about the junta for months though. However the internal security wing was firmly in the pocket of the same men they were assigned to keep an eye on. Reports had the govenors pegged as of little threat and thus everyone would be caught unaware when the fighting was set to take place.

The sun had barely peaked over the eastern horizon as the first tanks crossed the Vermont-New York border border early Monday morning, light and agile they were designed for urban warfare. Their speed offered a chance to take key army bases before the loyal units could begin to moblize and the light tanks and armored cars offered such an opportunity. The would be dictators had gathered up in New Hampshire to plan things as events began to unfold. Troops from the New Hampshires Colonial Guard had already pressed deep into Massachusetts before anyone realized just what was going on. So far this was appearing to be a bloodless coup as many of the Colonial Regulars surrendered caught with their pants down.

However the kingdom was large, and news of such events traveled fast. The monarchy had its back to the wall and the nation was facing what appeared to be the Tank and Bullet Rule as the Monarchy was on the verge of dying...

It took hours before the civilian populace knew that they were in the midst of a civil war. The news agencies had yet to catch up with the story and few even knew where to begin the coverage. Field offices in Pennsylvannia showed protestors marching down the streets of the major cities chanting for the removal of the monarchy. The marches were stagged but the govenors wanted to stirr fear and get the psychological affect for the masses to see. The fighting was only getting worse as time progressed. The Colonial Army in Connetticut had obliterated the Colonial Guard uprisers in Rhode Island and had ensured the state was out of the fight for the rest of the civil war. However the Junta's power just wasnt solely regulated to the states they controlled.

Colonial Guard Units in the Monarchist States joined with the cause of the Junta who promised a better life. The city of Buffalo went from a quiet metropolis to a contested warzone as Police Units and the Colonial Army fought with the Colonial Guard units coming in from Vermont and several units which had turned on the Monarchy from within New York itself. Artillary in the distance sounded and all bets were off on protecting civilians as both sides grasped to whatever military advantages they could grasp onto. The police units even resorted to tear gasing Guard positions anything for an advantage causing the city to be covered in a choking white haze.

Few air units could climb into the sky long enough to be of any effectiveness. Both sides held considerable anti-air assests and neither side wished to risk anything so early on to leave them with a weakened force after the fighting was over. At sea, the monarchists held firm control of the navy and the marine corps. However a lot of ships had been deployed due to the coming rebellion by commanders loyal to the Junta and this left considerable forces away from home.

Nowhere in the country was safe from fighting. Everything was a one on one. Every unit that sided with the Junta, there was a unit still loyal to the monarchy and willing to fight to the end. In the streets of New York City, a unit loyal to the Junta attempted to storm the isle of Manhatten, supported by hundreds of officers of the local police department, they were stopped in what would be known as the battle of East Harlmen as the Royal Defense Force used every last soldier they could get their hands on to set up an ambush down the avenues on the east side of Manhattan isle. Anti-tank rockets shooting down from nearby high-rise apartment buildings took out the urban tanks sent in by the Guard units.

Across the entire North East of what was once part of the United States, the lights which burned bright enough to be visable from orbit were now an eerie dark.

In Massachusetts fighting was heavily focused around the city of Boston as units from nearby Connetticut streamed to the north and Army units held their ground finally getting onto their feet. The Army field a superior main battle tank, the M5A3 Thundercheif, it was more or less an upgraded M1A3 Abrams with the edition of an electromagnetic pulse weapon attached to it. Capable of knocking out the systems of another tank the Guard units were careful not to field any of their M1A1 tanks against it. They also knew that their M4A8 Sherman MBTs with 90mm cannons would stand no chance against a Thundercheif even at extreme close ranges. However what the Guard units did not know for the time being was that the Thundercheif tank crews did not have the chance to recharge the batteries for the EMP weapons or to even change them with new ones. This gave the Army for the time being a critical advantage in a time where it needed as many of them as it could get.

Things only got worse for the monarchists though, while most of the Federal Stellar Navy was heavily Monarchist, the 1st and 2nd Fleets were both over Mars. A full week away, and while the 3rd Fleet was within nine hours away at the Space City of Chimera, rioting had broken out between Monarchist and Anti-Monarchist forces. Not loyal to the Junta but taking up the cause anyway. The 3rd fleet was thus used in the quelling of Chimera and ensuring it did not fall to the Anti-Monarchists. The Charon Defense Fleet was out in the outer rim and ineffectual as it would take nearly a month before they arrived back at earth. This left the 4th Fleet. Newly formed, they were crewed with people loyal to the Junta. What made them more dangerous was that they were only two days away and heading back to Earth at full speed. They would be the deciding factor for the Junta.

In Pennsylvannia, Army units had managed to equip themselves and make a stand at multiple bases across the state. Holding their own for the time being radio reports flooded the capital building for requests of support. Most of which were denied as everyplace in the state was a battleground. Even civilains were picking up weapons and taking to the streets. Pro-monarchists and anti-monarchists forces clashed as law and order broke down in major areas of the nation. The Royal Defense Force had set machine gun nests and sandbag checkpoints around the capital building. The ministry itself was nothing but a rubber stamping agency but whoever controlled the capital could claim themselves as the legitament government.

Both sides failed to make a call to outside sources for help. The Junta afraid that bringing other nations into the fray would mean subsequental occupation by whatever power helped, and the monarchists refusing to acknowledge they had a full scale insurrection on multiple fronts within the nation that they were contending with. The government had yet to lose its nerve but those in charge while King Santos was away were finding themselves to be inadequte for rule of anything greater than a pre-school. This while the Junta found itself with greater leadership and a larger supply of equipment. All they needed to do was hold out for the 4th Fleet to arrive. Or even capture the capital before then and declare themselves the legit government of NYNJ.

It took several engagements before the Guard units realized that the vaunted Thundercheifs were not using the electronic knock out abiility afforded to their vehicles. Field commanders now began to commit vast units of armor to the engagements now and several areas which were deadlocked found Army units pulling back. Massachusetts was slowly falling to the human waves which the Guard put up against the Army units. Reports of this came as little surprise to military planners back in New York City who directed them to hold out for as long as possible until suitable reenforcements could be mustered. The truth however was that there was no help on the way. There wouldnt be any additional help for sometime as all loyal monarchist units were reporting being engaged or were still not ready for deploy and even then those units were immediately dispatched to other battle fronts and not the combat zones which could use them the most.

In New York City emergency plans were put into place and the island of Manhattan was turned into a variable fortress with bridges and tunnels closed. The subway tunnels were blocked with trains to make it hard for anyone to sneak through their and the road tunnels were blocked with trucks and other cars leaving the bridges as the only viable option into city. However no one expected the Junta to strike amphibiously. Blitzing from New Jersey over into Staten Island, the Guard unit captured several of the ferries based at Staten Island and took them across the harbor at full speed. None of the Royal Defense Force expected such an event and soon an entire Regiment of Guard troops was across the river.

Such luck though was not destined to last indefinately and soon a citizen loyal to the monarchy contacted the Royal Defense Force. Now pressed from both sides units were called from Northeast Manhattan and were sped down to Southern Manhattan to engage the regiment and attempt to hold for as long as possible unit added units could be gathered in the defense of the city. In nearby Pennsylvania Army units were halted just within the border before being stopped cold by well prepared Guard units. They were ready for a counter attack and this didnt compute to the field commanders who didnt foresee this event. However,it was slowly registering that this Junta was going on for far longer than what was initally thought. Infact many of the Monarchists believed this was a spur of the moment grapple for power. Now they were coming to grips with the full situation of what was occuring.

"What do we tell King de los Santos?"

"We dont tell him a god damn thing..not like we want to broadcast this thing to the world anyway..."

"What about foreign citizens in the country?"

"What about them? The airports arent risking launching any planes. And if they truely wish to leave they can board ships and leave..."

"Sir we owe it to those citizens to protect them as best as possible."

"You want to protect them? Get a gun and a helmet and go protect them. I for one will not spare a single soldier from crushing these upstarts..."

Frustration and internal discord marked the Monarchists as it was pondered just what steps should be taken to quell the uprising. It was a sign of serious trouble when the government was only now thinking of ways to quell the rebellion.

The SA-43 Hammerheads launched from the SCVN Kennedy were a welcomed sight to both sides. Neither side realized just who the fighters were going to support as they flew and skimmed over the stagnant battlefields of Northern New York. However the 4th Fleet which at the core consisted of the SCVN Kennedy and the SCVN Powell were firmly in the hands of the Junta. After about thirty minutes of circling the the group of five SA-43s straffed positions held by the Army and unleashed a few bombs before climbing skyward once more to head back to the Carriers. The fleet was still a day away and only sending out probes to try and grasp a feel of the situation. However they committed themselves to battle there would be no turning back for the 4th Fleet now.

This caused fear to spread in the military. Without the Federal Stellar Navy all hope was lost. The common soldier did not know how much of the orbital fleet had sided with the Junta but it was definately a morale defeater. In orbit at the Chimera Oribtal City preperations for the fleet to make underway were rushed as rioting within the city got worse. There was no heavy armor in the city but home made bombs went off within the city and gun fire was prevailant throughout the city. Marines from the fleet had been dispatched but reluctant naval commanders on the 3rd Fleet kept the Marines solely at the docking facilities to ensure that supplies were loaded onto the ships.

Back on Earth the Junta was already popping champaign and celebrating amongst themselves. Publically they were unified and a strong front. However behind the scenes they were anything but unified. Each attempted to position themselves for control of the government when the shooting eventually stopped. Some even wondered if it would be a bloody transition however they decided to themselves that such an event was not going to happen to ensure that someone had a smooth transition to power...however that promise wasnt likely to be kept and it was more than likely that murder and accidents would be prominent.

The Army began to crack, the deployment of extra units was hampered by the chaos and the speed of the Junta's Guard units as the uncertainty of where to deploy. Those units currently engaged in holding movements against the Junta found themselves falling back slowly. The town of Buffalo was given up to the Junta only after extensive fighting left half of the city burning. The Army units rushing down to the south they allowed the states capital Albany to be captured before they began to reform the line in a another attempt to hold the line.

The north wasnt the only crack which began to show, in Pennsylvania the Army was pushed back out into New Jersey before Guard Units rushed to expliot the center which was the weakest line. Cutting New Jersey down the middle the troops in the South found themselves being forced back toward Atlantic City and the Naval Port there. For most of the conflict the Royal Marines had been inactive as Junta Commanders kept their mostly Monarchist units out of the way. However as the civil war got worse Marine Corps units across naval bases in the country got into action on their own. Commanders who refused to give out orders to fight against the Junta were arrested in a break down of the chain of command which was deemed nessecary for the defense of the country. Some of the commanders were placed against a wall and executed by their own men for treason.

In Northern New Jersey Army troops were pushed back as far as Trenton before they managed to finally be able to dig in and put a defense. The 4th Fleet arrived in orbit and waited. The fleet commander wanted to see which side was going to come out on top before actually siding with anyone. Most of the commanders or XOs in the fleet had been picked by the Admiral and knew their loyalties rested with him and not the government or the Junta. While the Junta seemed in control of most parts of the country he didnt plan on jumping to any conclusions. Granted he'd sent a few fighters here and there to assist the Junta, he could easily just say they went rogue.

As the day wore on the Junta started up newspapers once more, of course it was select newspapers which could be controlled by them. All the headlines were anti-monarchist and called for the people to join the Guard and to help fight the monarchists and the army.

It was a tense situation in New York City, as reports of army units surrendering in Southern New Jersey were reported. It was a heavy blow to moral as numbers reached nearly 90,000 surrendering soldiers. Atlantic City had fallen to the Junta and with it the entire area of Southern New Jersey. Up nothern near Trenton fighting remained fierce not wanting to give up the bridges which led into New York. They were trying now to buy time for the government. However the Government had no idea just how much time they needed. The fleets above Mars were rushing back but they'd arrive late. The situation didnt appear as if it could hold out for an additional five days without a complete collapse of the government.

In the capital halls the capital a meeting of the Ministers and the military took place attempting to decide the fate of the country.

"We've got to evacuate the city and the government to New Huntington...we've got to have the Army give us more time."

"Why evacuate? Why not just have the Army units on Mars return to Earth.."

"Because most of the transports are sitting in orbit.the time it'd take for those transports to get to Mars, load up the troops and return we'd have completely lost..."

"What about the FSN? There are two fleets in reach of Earth within hours...."

"The 4th Fleet isnt responding, and the 3rd Fleet is attempting to quell Chimera station..but it doesnt look promising..they'll launch when they can.."

"We need to evacuate as many troops as possible, and as many people as possible..."

"What about the use of nuclear weapons?"

"Madness! Absolute madness! We can not use those weapons on our own soil."

"We need to buy ourselves time for the evacuation...it cant happen overnight..and god knows once we begin to evacuate Army units the lines will begin to collapse faster..we need a way to buy time.."

"Can we negotiate a cease fire?"

"Surrender the government?"

"Evacuate while we talk...abandon defensive positions while they arent looking.."

The plan kicked into motion and soon the guns fell silent in every corner of the country. The leaders of the Junta looking forward to demanding the complete and unconditional surrender of the government to the military so that 'elections' could be carried out in due course.

Meanwhile, somewhere deep in Lexington there is a meeting between President Alex Ortiz and the cabinet of The Gulf States.

"Well, I hear there's some pretty good news leaking out from the world today" says Ortiz.

Secretary of State Carlos Bernard replied: "Did we annex another insignificant South American country sir?"

"If we did, you would have known about that already."

"If I knew about your dealings Mr. Ortiz, I'd not say dumb things like that to hear myself talk. Seriously, what is it?"

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the government of New York and Jersey is being overthrown. There is a major anti-monarchial uprising called the Junta, that is causing a major problem to the N Y and J forces. They've taken over several states already, and almost the entire country."

"Please don't tell me we are in some way shape or form behind this coup."

Ortiz just smiles. But Bernard is still the only one in the room daring enough to reply back.

"So, what does that mean? Are we finally going to take the old Northeastern U.S. and for all?"

Ortiz still just smirks. Finally he replies back: "Solamente Dio sabe.*"

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OOC: I'm liking this thread so far. Instead of making a general tag or making some way to absoultely destroy whatever NY&J is going with (as I've done in the past) - I leave some open ended commentary by our nation on the situation. If NY&J wants to leave it his internal conflict, then so be it. If he wishes to include our nation as a guidance behind the Junta, then so be it.

* = (roughly - "only God knows")

Torometi Bavadra and Jay Reaven sat in a decidedly smoky room--as they had been for hours--discussing the situation in New York and Jersey. Orbital assets couldn't possibly have failed to notice the situation, and as such the DDIA had had its ear to the ground concerning NYNJ for some time, since the debacle on Mars. The Five Kingdoms had been collectively pondering the method for its revenge for its crimes against Minas Morion, and the senseless death of millions of Imperials on the Red Planet. They'd been searching for their angle for ages now.

Reaven and Bavadra were pretty sure they'd found it.

"Jesus, this all happened so fast.." notes Reaven, with a cursory glance down to the pertinent documents. "I admit, I wouldn't have thought something like this was possible."

Bavadra nods. "True. Suffice to say we've still yet to find out what exactly sparked all of this. As I said earlier, though, it might have had something to do with the growing tensions between the military caste and the government proper. By all accounts it was very carefully orchestrated..."

Reaven taps his forehead and grins, finishing the Intelligence Minister's sentance "...with someone with a head for tactics. Interesting ones, at that."

Bavadra nods. "Of course. I think we may have found our angle for establishing a presence in NYNJ. Their military..." he pauses. "They're not really very big into the whole 'Elven' thing. The monarchy they overthrew was largely responsible for this policy. This, coupled with the public's apparent apathy turned distaste is extremely conducive to our ideals."

Reaven nods. "I think we've discussed the situation enough. Thank you for bringing me up to speed. Now we must make contact with them. As a fledgling administration, I'm sure they're desperate for meaningful international contact. God knows Menelmacar will have something to say about this."

***
To The Military Govenors of Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania
From Five Kingdoms Foreign Minster Jay Reaven

Bravo. I must say I greatly admire your drive and ambition in having subdued the vast majority of the Old Monarchy's holdings of your region. I myself am quite interested to learn of this new state's motives and desired accomplishments. I can't help but imagine that you're quite hungry for international support at this point, as the New Regime clearly has it's work cut out for it. I can't pretend to understand your politics, however, but would be remiss in not expressing my desire to learn of them. If it interests you, I would be delighted to hear from you to this effect. Perhaps we can establish a working relationship?

Keep in touch. I'll be awaitng your response with unparalleled anticipation.

--Jay Reaven

President Ortiz and another meeting with the Cabinet. Once again, the only non-silent one in the room is Sec. of State Bernard.

Bernard - "Mr. President sir, I've just got off the phone with some intelligence officials. It appears the Melkor Unchained nation..."

Ortiz - "I don't even want to hear this shit."

Bernard - "But sir..."

Ortiz - "They're just bad news. If Melkor tries to get any sort of agenda in this region, this isn't good."

Bernard - "I was going to say that they are supporting the Junta yes. They are offering relations. Not sure what that means yet, but our guys are cracking on it."

Ortiz - "Alright. Keep an eye on it. I already have the Defense Department on standby at the Canadian border region to watch out for anything that may want to come across our borders. But well, things just get more interesting in the world - don't they?"

OOC:
TGS-No I want to keep this internal. Granted news of the fighting would probably reach news agencies in all countries that cared by now.

IC:

The message was recieved by each leader of the Junta seperately. It came right on the heels of a message from the Monarchists to discuss a ceasefire. Things were looking better for them by the minute. What they didnt know however is while the fighting stopped, what was left of the army began to abandon its positions. Retreating back to New York and boarding awaiting transports. They'd go to Puerto Rico where the Monarchists were in full control of the island. From there it was a small hop skip up into orbit to an awaiting Merchant Men and then the run to Mars. The 4th Fleet command allowed this to happen unsure if the transports carried troops or refugees. It didnt make much difference to the Admiral and yet no one thought of boarding the transports and inspecting them.

Preperations were made to meet with the monarchists in the frontline city of Trenton close enough to the capital city to make the meeting rather symbolic for the Junta. At least they hoped the people viewed it as such an afformation, public relations with the populace had been stepped up into full gear after the first shots went out. TV Stations in each of the four states were taken over and pre-taped commercials explaining the reasons for the civil war were broadcast over local TV. So far those in the populace who sided against the Monarchists had no real clue as what to think of the Junta as they were being refered to. It was in a sense a military take over and Junta was the right word for their clique. Overtime a new name would need to be fight, the Junta being slightly to the right of Atlia the Hun did not appreciate a name that sounded so Communist to their ears.

Already though one of the leaders of the Junta had volunteered himself out of the bid for ultimate power and decided that the new country needed someone to deal with foreign affairs. Thus Govenor General Lewis Lindsay McGowan was given the currently unoffical title of head of foreign affairs. To which he immediately shot off a quick and as detailed reponse to a man who knew only through intelligence breifings on.

To: Foreign Minister Jay Reaven
From: Military Govenor Lewis Lindsay McGowan, Vermont

We are surprised that a nation who we have had a rather turbulant relationship in the past would be the first to rush to give us a warm pat on the back in the present. We in the military knew once the monarchy was done away with new possibilites could come to fruition and soon our people will see this for a fact as well. While our decision to carry out this coup d'etat has been in planning for sometime we had to wait for the Monarchists most compotent general, the King himself to leave on matters of foreign affairs...most likely off with some elven whore. For fear of this message being monitored or intercepted by the Monarchists I can not go into full detail as what we plan on doing. The next several days plan on being very exciting for myself and my commrades..of course you'll excuse my lax nature in response.We must..clean house as it were, since once we come to power the first thing on the agenda is to ensure the..stability..of the coming regieme. As for a working relationship I believe that it would most definately be in our own best interest to accept this offer.

With Utter Respect for your nation-
Lewis Lindsay McGowan

With one MG out of the way the other three circled the position of head of government like vultures. However if one proved himself to be above the fighting and more concerned with stability then what was to say the other three werent as concerned? They were all military men and they all knew that the theory of divided we fall, united we stand held more true than false in situations of military coups. So it came as little surprise when the Govenor of New Hampshire requested to be put incharge of the internal affairs of the nation. One of the few female military govenors in NYNJ, Francisca Zimmerman was an oddity. In some respects she was more feared than many of her peers and thus was the natural choice for the internal affairs division. Her first task though was giving the terms of surrender to the Monarchist delegation at Trenton.

Reaven's reply was swift and terse:

"Very well. When circumstances are conducive to further discussion on the matter, please do not hestitate to contact us. I dont htink you're comfortable discussing such things with the possibility of a Monoarchist listener and neither am I. I'll be waiting."

Equipment was left in place by the Army to make things seem as if nothing was going on. Of course there would need to be sacrifices made by certain units of the Army who once the Junta knew of the ruse. The monarchists purposely stalled and balked at concessions and at the terms of surrender circling around the military officers loyal to the Junta diplomatically and showing them on repeat occassions that they were out classed. The talks which only had begun that day and carried on throughout the day seemed to go on for much longer. The Monarchists though only had to hold out for a handful of days before they could declare the talks over and rush back to New York. They'd be the last to evacuate if they could help it.

In orbit transports left carrying as many refugees as possible along the Earth-Mars trade routes. They'd flee to make new homes on New Huntington for the time being. Scientists, and economists, former influential people who felt threatened, and civilians. All crowded through the now nearly abandoned New York City seeking refuge amongst the stars. One of the prequistes for the talks was that the Junta removed its troops from the capital so that talks could take place peaceably. The Junta honored this request because they knew sooner or later the capital would fall anyway.

The nuclear weapons were controlled by the monarchists. The bases though atop were crawling with Guard loyal to the Junta..it was a precarious situation as once the country was at war, the missile bases were closed off from the outside world to ensure that invaders couldnt get to the nuclear weapons control rooms. While the Junta couldnt get in, no one could get out. This ensured that unless the monarchy ordered the use of nuclear weapons they would remain out of sight. However the threat of nuclear weapons usage was not out of the question..several times during the day when the Junta appeared to be ready to walk out on talks the Monarchists threatened to use neutron bombs, and high yield thermonuclear devices against key Junta targets. This was enough to bring them back to the table.

However the MGs werent pleased with this threat at all. They knew that unless the missile silos could be taken out that the threat would always remain on the tabe and unconditional surrender would never be achieved. A divided nation was also completely out of the question. The only state not showing any will to fight though was Ohio. They had been spared the brunt of any fighting as Guard units from that state ignored pleas from both sides and the MG pondered breaking away completely from both governments. At least until one side showed some dominance. Of course this meant the confiscation of army equipment on their soil, denying the government the use of bases in the war. When the government needed all the help it could get from the Army.

By 9pm that day the two sides emerged from chambers exhausted and no where near a solution to ended the short and bloody coup. However neither side made mention of continual fighting. The monarchists though wasted no time to carry out their evacuation plans ando those who could be moved were being moved with skill and ease under the noses of the Junta. The Junta more concerned with what was left of the Army to notice civilian freighters rushing out of the country. Soon though the Junta would make a statement to the world at large with or without the capital in their hands. They felt that enough of the country was under their control that it no longer mattered.

In each of six little holes dug in southeastern New York, here and there in the hillsides and woods that provide decent views of the surrounding countryside, two soldiers in nondescript fatigues lacking any sort of identifying markings putter about--checking wiretaps, making sure the live feed from the signals intelligence antennas gets through to the QE transmitters. Just another day in the life of the snake-crawler, really, running intelligence. Not the hardest mission, to be sure, but it requires being quiet.

Mygalomorphae Antrodiaetidae, or the more-pronouncable "Trapdoor Spiders" of the Scolopendran Mobile Infantry Special Operators, specalize in being quiet.

They'd joked back on the dropship about a cadet cruise--the lieutenant essentially acting as a tertiary member of the team, linked with the captain, while the still-new but at least officially field-tested sergeant took command of the second section. To this the lieutenant slyly remarked that his cadet days were cut short, so it was fair enough.

That was before groundfall. Now, Second Lieutenant Timofeyev Bondayehr looks down momentarily at the sleeping form of Captain Achille Lollobrigida, his new CO. Of course he was a captain--SMISO mission commanders always were, it seemed--and a decent enough man if understandably wary about the extremely young junior officer's skills. A good one to learn from, even if overly authoritarian for my tastes. Shifting in the cramped quarters of the cubbyhole, Bondayehr peeks out the vision slit in the sod to scan the terrain once again. SIGINT had been getting hot over the last few days, and no one wanted to deal with neutron weapons falling nearby soon. Still, the fact of the matter is that good old En-Why-En-Jay, while not an ally, was definitely closely aligned to Scolopendran interests and so this needed to be watched, recorded, and reported.

Another check on the intel feed; nice and clear carrier to the other five posts and mission command in orbit. Just another day at the front.

(OOC: Thanks to NYNJ for letting me add a little sideline.)

OOC: Forgive me for this poor post..but I'm incredibly tired and I owe this post to Scolo and to those keeping up with this thread since I've been rather busy as of late and stuff.

IC:
The ceasefire negotiations continued on for another day and yet stalled somewhere around 3pm. A lot of the military loyal to the monarchy had pulled back to another defensive position while waiting for the naval transports to recieve and accept them to take them out of the area. The Guard units on the otherside were none the wiser as they were doing exactly what things were expected. Consolidation of their own power base was essential to keeping guerillas or other unwelcomed surprised from popping up at the worst possible moments.

In states occupied, or in firm control of the Junta's forced units began to search the woods, and the hills for hidden caches of weapons, or troops. These were regular folks in the Guard. They traveled the woods they were accostomed to.The woods they lived in.Areas they grew up in and they knew of the spots where people would hide things. Or were folks would even hide themselves until things cooled off. The Guard wasnt a death squad, they were only out looking for things that should not be. This was in stark contrast though to what the leaders of the Junta felt. They were angry that the negotiations were carrying on into the third day and soon the were planning on showing the Monarchists just who was incharge and who was losing this war.

The Monarchists though were prepared for such an occassion. A low yield neutron weapon had been transported to one of the areas to the north near the city of Boston where the lines had stablized sometime ago, and only slight stresses had begun to develop in the defensive line. However now with most of the Army in the region having fled to the south the remaining units would make use of the General Grant Surface to Surface missile which carried the neutron weapon. A battlefield nuke it was designed with more of a fear factor than credible battle turning device. The monarchists were playing for time, and it was anyones guess as to when that time would finally run out.

The Trapdoor Spiders' burrows come from years of practice, both of their predecessors and their own. The 'door' is essentially a large, solid clump of topsoil a meter in diameter, carefully exised so as to make a hatch generally indistinguishable to the ground that surrounds it. Of course the grass on the edges tends to fare somewhat poorly, and there are always signs, but it tends to do well against cursory inspection. Under that is essentially a foxhole just large enough for two people and their gear, the latter thankfully miniaturized as far as possible. The dirt excavated from this usually ended scattered about as widely as possible to minimize the appearance of anything 'out of the ordinary.' Then a few little slits just under the lid, to provide some sense of situational awareness beyond passive seismic sensors and whatnot. The foxhole glows a bit brighter in the infrared than the surrounding terrain because of the warm bodies inside, but that can't be helped with a field-expedient burrow.

Success is, of course, variable. There were stories about how patrols had blithely walked over the little cubbyholes. There were also stories about how patrols had literally tripped over them.

Bondayehr doesn't like what he sees on the little screen hooked up to the seismic sensor and nudges the captain in the kidneys with the toe of his boot. "Sir, we have motion. Looks like Delta, Foxtrot, and we have company. Parties of indeterminate size inbound from the north and west."

Captain Lollobrigida carefully uncurls himself from the bottom of the hole, checks the screen proffered by the lieutenant, then peeks out the slits in the directions indicated, eyes squinting to hide the whites. "No number, you say?"

"Ground seems a bit soft to get a decent read around here, but we're picking up something." The lieutenant takes up his utterly nondescript third-party copy of a Menelmacari plasma rifle and checks the power reading while Achille taps his QE radio twice.

"All units, Alpha. We have movement. Reads?" Quick, quiet, and in command. The responses come in the usual low voices, transmitted through bone-conduction earbeads. -Alpha, Charlie. We see them, sir. Got a good half of us blocked off, it looks like. Contingencies?-

"Stay put. If compromised, those not surrounded pop up and cover us while we make our move to escape. Then we return the favor." Glancing with a tired expression at the lieutenant, the captain toggles frequencies. "Zulu, November Yankee Alpha. Mudfoots inbound--why didn't we get a topdown?"

-November Yankee Alpha, Zulu. Sky-eyes had to reorder--no visuals for the next fifteen or so. We'll keep you informed.-

"Just in case, stand by for extraction request if things get hot."

-Roger. Anything else?-

"Alpha out." Another wry glance at the lieutenant, who carefully holds his weapon at low-ready. "You may have outwitted the Dominion's excuse for specops, boy, but no heroics."

Timofeyev can't help but fail to stifle a wry snort. "You think I signed up for heroics, sir?" He looks out the vision slit on his side, carefully scanning the area. "For that matter, you think I signed up for this at all?"

"Hey Mike, suppose this war is gonna be over soon? I wanna head back home already.." The milita/guard moved slowly through the woods near Foxtrots cubbyhole. They carried a mix of weapons. From the nearly anicent M16A2, to the M18A3 OICW, to the M20 Devestator Assault Rifle, the current weapon of the regular army it was touted as being just as good without becoming an energy weapon. They looked more like hunters than an actual military unit in these backwoods however and acted more like hunters as well.

"No..I dont think they'll let us home no matter how long the war goes...the country needs to get back on its feet once the crown is dissolved." Came a response from down the line of nearly 18 milita men. With the scarcity of newer combat gear only the guy on point had any advance optics to search ahead for what they precieved would be above ground. Approaching the hole and its covering the lead spotter wasnt looking toward the ground, he knew the Army didnt have the time to create any tunnels to hide its equipment or men so it came as a complete surprise to him when his foot broke through the ground he stepped on and went down. "Shit!"

With one leg in the ground the entire line of militamen stopped and went down to single knee. The guy behind the spotter quickly moved up and looked the situation over before helping him remove his leg. "Woha..thats either some incredibly bad luck there or we just stumbled onto a tunnel enterance..." The spotter nodded his head quietly and pulled his foot back up..he hadnt kicked anyone in the foxhole to stunned to really move his leg from side to side but leaving a hole in the top of it wide enough for a leg but the canopy of the trees ensured little light entered the foxhole. The two spotters in Foxtrots cubbyhole were lucky for the moment but luck was fleeting.

"Toss a nade down there..then we'll explore the tunnel if the enterance is still open...contact the company CP..there might be others around.." A hand signal sent back down the line soon the radiomen was using the 90 year old piece of equipment to radio back a message to command. The spotter and pulled out a small fragmentation grenade and pulled the pin and waited for a few seconds before chucking the grenade down the open hole and moving back from the blast area. "Fire in the hole..." Moving back ears were covered and they awaited the inenivtable blast.

Although it may have been thought in Arabic, the concept is identical. Shit! The corporal and the private look at the leg rooting about in their foxhole, both scrunched down in the corners to avoid being seen. Damn it all to hell I told you stupid that the door was too thin--

Then a grenade. As the corporal immediately leaps for it, the private barely breathes into his throat mic. "Smegging Golf."

A few foxholes over, Bondayehr winces. "They've got grenades."

Given standard grenade etiquette, one has five seconds after pulling the pin so as to not be where the grenade is when it goes off. The corporal heard the pin being pulled, the usual three second wait, then the drop--he has under two seconds to get the grenade outside or else--lunging down, he snatches up the grenade with one hand and lobs it out the vision slit with an easy, practiced motion...

But all grenades are not equal. It explodes just at the rim of the tunnel, immediately vaporizing the man's hand as the concussion from the blast tears a new crater in the earth, sending the cap flying in soddy chunks and crushing the life of the two special operators inside. That which is not instantly carbonized is battered into an unrecognizable pulp that garlands the equally demolished plastic, composites, and metals of their equipment.

"Eyes on scene. Foxtrot's down." Bondayehr frowns. "Orders, sir?"

Captain Lollobrigida mutters an invective in Italian, glancing out at the rising smoke cloud. "Goddammit, they're calling for support on open radio. We're boned. Bravo, Charlie, and Echo, engage."

The response is instantaneous. No acknowledgement, just tops popping off of foxholes ranging from twenty to two hundred meters away from the squad of Guard, special operators laying low and using dirt for cover as they instantaneously take aim and open fire with their plasma rifles. They would prefer something with a bit less light involved so they could pretend to maintain their position, but one has to make do with what one has...

"Okay. Charlie, get ready to be on the bounce." Achille looks over at the lieutenant. "Ready, boy?"

Bondayehr nods firmly, rifle at the ready as he turns, ready to spring from the hole at a moment's notice. Achille leans back a little bit, bracing his back against the clay wall of the burrow. Might as well let the little hero out first. At least he can draw some fire with his antics and then I don't need to babysit another ninety-day wonder.

The Guard unit found itself in a difficult position, caught between Bravo and Charlie's Foxholes with Echo's foxhole directly behind the Guard unit some distance off. As soldiers from the Guard unit began to fall one by one the units Sargeant crawled over toward the radio operator who chest smoked from plasma burns and was sprawled out on the ground lifeless. Grabbing the phone radio he gave the backpack a good crank and called out into the radio "This is Guard Unit Zulu Zulu-Niner-Eight, we've been ambushed in Charlie sector..." Checking over his map to make sure it was an acurate account of the location he tried his best to concentrate on what was going on and make a choice.

His squad though wasnt exactly waiting for him to issue forth an order as gun shots let out in all directions. One of the soldiers carrying an M20 Devestator Assault Rifle, made sure to take careful aim before letting off a single 40mm grenade round toward the direction of one of the foxholes. Others were just trying their best to shoot or keep the guys in the foxhole pinned so that they wouldnt themselves be shot. Some 12 miles away at the Company CP, orders were given and another squad was loaded up into trucks. They'd be rushed to assist but that'd take at least half an hour.

In the meantime the soldiers of the unfortunate Guard unit had realized that their misery came from just three foxholes and they began to concentrate their fire on those holes. Using trees and whatever other cover they could in the forest it wasnt so much about killing the otherside as it was keeping themselves alive for re-enforcements to arrive. Helicopter support had been denied but a UAV was sent up. The ROA-20 Cougar was known as a remote operated aircraft,single jet(much like the Global Hawk UAV) capable of 120 miles per hour it even carried a single rocket pod of 19 2.75 inch Rockets. They were cheap ground support aircraft and while not exactly durable they had found themselves invaluable to squad sized engagements where a well placed rocket attack had swung the side in favor of one unit.

However the tree canopy made the ROAs operator unable to see through the standard sights and unfortunate the Cougar didnt have the sophistication of the Armys ROA-40 Hellcat with an IR sight mounted on a rotating ball in the nose. So it had to be a calculated guess as the ROAs operator reached Charlie sector and dove it down slightly letting loose a ripple of rockets in several clusters of 5 before the last of the rockets was loosened and soon the rocket pod itself jettisoned to the ground so that the ROA could return with whatever fuel it still had. It was highly doubtful any of the rockets would hit but it was still a powerful psychological affect.

Alpha burrow isn't too far off from the now fully-engaged Bravo foxhole, but it does lie essentially in the middle of the Guard's fire lines. The fourty-millimeter grenade arcs up, arcs down, exploding in the soft earth where two troopers were before they ducked back down into Bravo hole, but they don't get back up anytime soon after a barrage of rockets luckily impacts around the same place, increasing the volume of the hole in the ground by a good order of magnitude. Bravo team disassociates far more readily than the clay surrounding it.

The random-scatter airpower doesn't faze the elite special operators; the more-or-less aimed shots do successfully suppress. One can always react and make trouble no matter the situation, so Charlie offers indirect grenade fire via snoopers and tactical communications assistance.

-Echo here. Bravo down, Foxtrot down, Charlie fully 'gaged.-

"Right." The captain nods. "We need to help; Delta hole, open up and engage. Charlie, when the heat starts turning down, get out and rally with me at Delta. Echo, keep up support fire. Move, Lieutenant."

Bondayehr pops open the sodden lid with one arm just after Delta team does, readying a grenade with his free hand. Delta team takes advantage of the surprise, aiming and firing carefully, concentrating on those with underbarrel accessories.

-Charlie team. Trading golf back and forth. Heads down.-

Lieutenant Bondayehr looks up, and time slows down a little bit as he tracks a speck following a ballistic path--it's good to be chromed. "Grenade!" He moves from pure instinct, leaping from the hole with a twist to land on his back--

Achille looks up, then turns to clamber out of the foxhole, taking a few quick expert shots with his rifle first to clear the area. He gets one leg up, and then is assisted in his efforts by the contact-fuzed grenade detonating inside foxhole, picking him up most rudely and flinging him effortlessly out, atomizing the one leg still in the foxhole. The heat and shrapnel tear into his back, only a smoking charred wreck of a man remaining once he hits the ground in several indefinable pieces.

Timofeyev winces as he watches the conflagration, then primes the grenade in his hand and slings it back over the smoking remains of the foxhole, towards where some Guardsmen should be.

-Echo, Alpha. What's going--

The lieutenant doesn't bother replying, instead looking around quickly at the situation to assess before acting.

It was in a clear field the six flag drapped coffins rested for public viewing. Martyrs in the cause, the media machine of the Junta kicked up into gear. The story as it was "offically" being told immediately blamed the monarchists and even Menelmacar. Pictures of soldiers from the national guard holding plasma rifles and testing firing them were plastered literally everywhere. It wasnt long before a poster was visable on the walls of the major cities with an elf handing a plasma rifle to a soldier in league with the monarchy. The caption asking "Is it okay if some pointy eared overgrown lawn gnomes be the deaths of our children?" It wasnt the most serious of posters but it did its job well catering to a wide age range. The famously apathetic population of New York and New Jersey burned effegies of elves in the street under the watchful eye of national guard troops.

The deaths had marked a complete breakdown in talks. As the caskets lowered into the ground the fighting was renewed and with unprecedented swiftness National Guard troops had pushed the remaining army units and their defenses back miles closing in to within artillary range. The spires of the world trade center were visable as well as the statue of liberty. The fighting had died down after what appeared to be a failed detonation of a nuclear device was detected just north of New York City in the county of Yonkers. What the Junta did not know however was that behind the Guard lines to the west in the now completely fallen city of Trenton a nuclear device was set. A fourteen megaton thermonuclear device. It'd wipe out nearly the entire southern flank of the Guard military and leave devestation in miles around.

The monarchists were willing to use the weapon openly as they attempted to stall for more time. The Junta however had no intention of giving any the monarchists anymore time than it took for the national guard to secure the capital. It would be a difficult task though as the bridges from New Jersery into New York were blown. The Washington Bridge laying at the bottom of the Hudson river in several large sections. The Staten Island-Jersey Bridge heavily damaged and unable to carry tracked vehicles. However even though infantry could walk over the bridge the generals were worried about the bridge having undetonated explosives and thus be just one giant boobytrap.

As the new day dawned upon the nation a message was clear from Patrick Hurston, the now defacto leader of the Junta. "All embassy staffs of the following nations are deemed persona non grata and are being asked to leave immediately. Menelmacar. We expect this embassy to be withdrawn from our fair nation within the week. If not we can not garuntee the safety of your...people. To the people of our fair nation, do not fear the future, embrace it for what it is. We have taken control of a government that has become lax and friendly to elements who hold not the best interests of our nation at heart. Or even hold the best interests of the human race in their interests. Everyday our fellow humans in the former America struggle under the yolk of the elven arrogance for an empire. The monarchy constantly asked the elves to withdraw their people but they did not. If we humans are not careful we will be overrun with their ilk and they will attempt to control the world once more. This menance can not be tolerated and I promise you that our nation will be strong after this war. We will be prepared for the future together."

Apathy was a good friend to the monarchy and they were allowed to get away with many things.However all good things must come to an end and soon the people themselves began to murmur with discontent. The monarchy began to lose its grip on their home ground. They were more than lucky to have New Huntington as even Chimera Staryards fell to the anti-monarchist forces. The 3rd Fleet managing to escape they were ordered by Admiral Fletcher to move directly to Mars. The military govenor on New Huntington exercised his power of command over the military a power rarely used on the regular armed forces but this time it was deemed an emergency. Suspected Anti-Monarchists on Mars were quickly arrested and sent away into concealed areas.

Timofeyev feels the three 5.56 millimeter slugs slam into his chest to the right of his sternum, his eyes going wide momentarily while reality works in slow motion, everything becoming more real than real for an instant. There is no pain, only shock... quickly replaced by something else, something fierce.

Die Sonne scheint mir aus den Handen
kann verbrennen, kann euch blenden

One bullet deforms momentarily as it slaps against his Kevlar-derivative armor, then smacks through the composite ballistic plate behind that, deforming slightly while the other skips off between his torso and arm, the third slicing through the meat at the very top of his shoulder. The one that hits hard tumbles as it rips through his skin, pulverizing the portions of the third and fourth ribs it passes between as it deforms into a cruel scythe, tearing into the soft tissues of his lungs and finally lodging inbetween his fourth and fifth ribs in back. Blood mixes bone with jaggedly lacerated muscle, skin, and pulverized lung as the lieutenant is knocked onto his back.

wenn sie aus den Fausten bricht
legt sich heiss auf das Gesicht

He immediately reacts, letting himself be spun around by the force of the impact. Blood vessels clamp shut, and his right bronchia squeezes closed--can be more picky later. Coughing a mouthful of blood, he rolls onto his side. The centipede is a violent hunter that attacks anyone that touches it. Like a true scolopendra, Bondayehr raises his rifle and makes contact with the Guardsman whose M16A2 rifle still smokes from the burstfire.

sie wird heut Nacht nicht untergehen
und die Welt zahlt laut bis zehn

Gritting his teeth, face a mask of fury, Bondayehr lines up the rifle with his right hand tight on the grip, index finger clamping down as he growls in a wild, wounded cry.

Eins
Hier kommt die Sonne

The first pulse of superheated air strikes the Guardsman dead on in the neck, melting flesh and carbonizing bone instantaneously. He lacks the time to even gurgle.

Zwei
Hier kommt die Sonne

Nor the capability to gurgle, as the second plasma bolt eradicates the soldier's jaw and hindbrain in vaporizing heat.

Drei
Sie ist der hellste Stern von allen

Eyes finally registering fear are annihilated in the physical manifestation of wounded fury, and reality speeds up again. Flopping down on his stomach, the lieutenant fires center-of-mass on the next nearest target, dropping another Guardsman with new holes in his legs before hopping to his feet and then lunging for the behind the slope of the crest of the hill, balling up and rolling down to the bottom. Looking around and finding the area clear, Timofeyev bites down on the comm lines. "Bondy here. Lolly's fragged. Continue plan--Charlie, engage, meet with Delta. Echo, cover fire."

Vier
Hier kommt die Sonne

A chorus of "yes, sir"s and "actings" come through the lieutenant's headset as he clambers back to the edge of the hill and bobs his head over the ridge, getting an instant look. "New rules. I'm between Alpha and Bravo. Echo, put on the heat from distance; Delta, lay down smoke and move it. Charlie and I will be clear to move. Ridge to the west, we take that and start putting down fire, then Echo moves south. We ridge hop until we break contact." After another chorus of acknowledgement, the pattern of fire changes, Delta risking a low-run west behind an outcropping of rocks while Echo shifts to full autofire, laying down grenades now and then to suppress.

Funf
Hier kommt die Sonne

Bondayehr runs low beside the hill ridge, regularly popping his head up at carefully untimed intervals to watch the Guards coalesce into a defensive position as he double-times it for the rocks. Coming around, he finds Delta and Charlie standing by behind the rocks. Quick nods amongst the team members, with Fred and Tim adding extremely wry grins. "Privates, you two go over to that hill"--he points--"and coalesce with Echo. Corporal, Private, you're with me. We give Delta here fifteen seconds, then we start firing. Hooah?"

"Hooah!"

"On the bounce, then!" The two privates of Delta team run down the lee end of the hill, using the brush to cover their movement from the distracted Guard squad.

Sechs
Hier kommt die Sonne

"Now." Lieutenant Bondayehr swings out, using the rocks for cover, and makes sure his first shot counts, centering the shot on the Guardsman's shoulder insignia.

Sieben
Sie ist der hellste Stern von allen

The Guardsman goes down and Timofeyev switches to full fire, aiming to distract rather than hit. Delta and Echo teams coalesce, then move further south away from the Guardsmen and towards the broad border with Menelmacar. They get into position, open fire, and then Bondayehr and Charlie disengage, running for cover over the foothills of the Appalachian mountains. Pinned down, the Guardsmen don't pursue, and the skirmish ends as quickly as it begun.

Acht
Neun
Hier kommt die Sonne...

The overland running becomes a jog, then a forced march. Radio traffic from the still-active bugs is fierce, and the special operators make it a priority to get out as the lieutenant wheezes softly. "Right. Who's left?"

"Me," Corporal Friedlitz replies, "and Privates Atkinson, Sviatoslavich, Ubeke, Xi, and al-Dussai. Looks like you're in charge, boss."

"Great." Bondayehr winces at the constant twinging pain in his back. "Sergeant Li?"

"Foxtrot hole. We're not leaving anyone alive by my count."

"That's why we're here and not still there." Timofeyev coughs wetly, fist to mouth, quickly wiping away the sanguine phlegm that emerges. "Still, I don't wanna march into Menelmacar." Another bite on his comm. "Fleet, Lieutenant Bondayehr. We need immediate extraction and top-down."

-Lieutenant, what is your condition?-

Bondayehr looks down and murmurs softly so his troopers can't hear. "Shot in the chest." He raises his voice again. "We don't care if you need to send coffin-Ferrets. Get us off this rock now before you lose another seven troopers." He coughs again and holds up a hand to halt, wiping his chin before anyone can see, dropping his voice again. "Or at least one lieutenant whose chances of marching to Menelmacar with a sucking chest wound shut of his own force of will."

-Acknowledged. We'll keep you informed; soonest possible evac is in an hour-

"Good, good." Timofeyev leans back against a tree and winces, ignoring that it's getting hard to think, to concentrate on keeping naturally loose muscles and tissues tightened, to ignore the inevitable seepage into his chest cavity, to deal with having only half the lung capacity that he's used to... "You know where we are. Bondayehr out." Looking around, he grins wryly. "Sit tight, troopers. Make a perimeter around this depression,"--he indicates the shallow bowl they stand in with one arm--"and we'll just wait for an hour. I'll stand here and play sentry."

"Boss," Friedlitz walks up, then sees the hole in Timofeyev's armor, then notes the tiny fringe of red around it... and follows the red's inevitable path under the armor to where it stains the inside of the lieutenant's right leg. Looking around conspiratorially, he hisses softly. "You're hit. Sit down."

"Get your ass on the perimeter, Fred. I'll be fine," the lieutenant croaks.

OOC: Translation (http://www.grouchymedia.com/other_videos/tributation/lyrics.cfm) for the German bits. Ya, it's Rammstein, "Sonne." Thanks to NYNJ for an excuse to develop a character.

Time was up, the bomb in Trenton was discovered by a group of soldiers on patrol and even this was by accident. Falling down through a large crack into the street and into a utility tunnel beneath the main street the device was discovered and soon the entire area locked off as a Guard Engineering Unit was rushed up in an attempt to disarm the device. They didnt wear any of the heavy bomb disposal gear as this was after all a nuclear weapon, it wouldnt help in the slightest but they did wear nuclear protection suits as they worked diligently through the night. The discovery of a second device didnt take long before the top levels of the new government knew of it and gathered at the military support headquaters in Albany.

"We need to wipe them out....They've gone to far this time, that bomb was armed and waiting for a signal, it is without a doubt that they were waiting for us to make the final move on the capital."

"So the whole ceasefire?"

"A stall for time."

"Do we advance now and try to take the city?"

"If we try it'll have to be an amphibious assault across the Long Island Sound on the island. Even then we wont be able to take Manhatten directly."

"What about the tunnels? Are they still open?"

"Those things are death traps..we try to clear out the tunnels and they'll blast them while our guys are in there."

"We could always just seige the island..."

"That would take to long.."

"But we cant let them keep the city. If we want any sort of legitimacy then we must capture the capitol building."

"Here's my plan..."

The meeting carried on for several more hours before it was finally concluded and a date for the assault on the final parts of New York City was decided.

http://www.wirednewyork.com/skyscrapers/60wall/60wall_street_top_s.jpg

To say activity at the Menelmacari embassy at 60 Wall Street was intense, would be a supreme understatement. The tower had once been the headquarters of the JP Morgan Bank, but JP Morgan had long ago been bought by another financial institution, which had no need for the tower, being headquartered just up the street themselves. So they'd sold it, and Menelmacar had bought it, and for over three centuries it had been the embassy of the Eternal Noldorin Empire of Menelmacar to the Federal Kingdom of New York and Jersey.

Those days, it seemed, were now over.

For the entirety of the week allotted, the Menelmacari - and Elves in general - in the country busied themselves transferring accounts to banks abroad as thoroughly as could be expected under the circumstances. The embassy was a beehive of activity itself, as everything from computers to comms to furniture to ornamentation was dismantled and packed up, and there were thousands of boxes of files and documents. Hasty arrangements with air traffic control meant that for several hours on the last day, a small gravitic freighter hovered above the roof of the tower to permit goods and equipment to be easily transferred out. Most of the few Elves still in the country hitched a ride out on the same ship - it was a cramped and uncomfortable trip, but then it was a short one, only as far as Washington DC within the FMSA (Federated Menelmacari States of America).

Over the same time, the Elenpalantír orbital net was adjusted to intensify coverage over NYNJ, given the apparent shift in foreign policy. Military assets in the FMSA were moved steadily from the western border with C&A up into a defensive cordon passing through Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, and Michigan, in case the Junta got... ideas. Grand Cannons were put on alert - most of these were along the western frontier, but if it came to shooting down something in orbit, it wouldn't much matter, really. People throughout the FMSA, human and elf alike, were... not afraid, but definitely on edge.

As goes the ancient Chinese curse... these were indeed "interesting times."

Many more cars pass through the border nowadays. The lines extend for upto 5-10 at these crossings. Many refugees from the New York and New Jersey nation are fleeing northward into Ontario and Quebec. Border towns like St. Catherines, Fort Erie, and Peterboro in Ontario are feeling the pinch with many NY&NJ residents moving into town. Gas prices and hotel rates have nearly doubled. TGS Canadian officials have ordered that all those crossing the border as refugees spread out much further inland. Northern Quebec and Ontario, or even further west towards Manitoba and the plains provinces. For many, it's too far and too harsh of a drive.

The CBC was looking around the streets of Toronto for New Yorkers. And sure enough, there were plenty of people that have fled because of the war.

Scott and Michelle Pertone, originally from New Milford, Connecticut were just some of those interviewed by CBC reporters:

Scott: We just didn't feel it was safe being in New York anymore. This uprising is just too much for us. It's too close to home. I used to work in midtown Manhattan, I would commute via public transportation every day. And I'm not even sure what's going on. I left when this all started. I don't even know if my house is standing, whether or not I have a job back in the City if I ever return. For all I know, my town could be a staging point for this massive invasion of Manhattan I keep hearing about.

Michelle: We are now living in a warehouse converted into apartments up here in Toronto. It's a really nice city, and the area is very stable. The Gulf States government has been really supportive to all of us fleeing. They've allowed us to stay in the country for as long as we can, and helped find us housing and jobs - so we don't become worthless hassles to the nation and its economy. Sacrifices have to be made though. We are sharing an apartment with this nice couple from uh.... Pittsburgh?

Scott: Yeah, it's Pittsburgh.

Michelle: I can't complain about them though. We all have come up to Canada in the same boat. Getting used to everything that's different is rough. It's just a massive task to get up from one place you've been rooted in for so long and just leave on short notice because of a crisis, then come find new jobs and make a living hundreds of miles away in another nation.

Many of the refugees express similar senitments. They find it tough to leave their homes in New York and New Jersey, but they know this is for the best with the uncertainties to the south.

OOC:
This storyline has been retconned. I could give the full reasons for this retcon but I wont. If you actually want the reasons and I think you deserve one you'll get one. Suffice to say, several people and you know who you are can go to hell. You ruined what would have been a rather good SL to play out. But hey whatever. I'm done RPing with you folks(three of you, you know who are but I promised not to mention names.). I'm done RPing with the lot of you, from now on my SLs will be done by myself, with no outside interaction from anyone until such time I deem it to consider it. Enough of my ranting though. I'm done. The consequences have been explained and that is that.