NationStates Jolt Archive

"Enough!" Kenshin yelled rising. "This is NOT the place or time to discuss religion. We have a situation here that could soon involve the slaughter of innocents. Is it not wrong to kill innocnets in all religions? Yes it is. So therefore, check yours at the door. Maybe, once this situation is dissolved, we can all go get some tea and then chat about this. But for the time being, you WILL stop bickering!" He took a moment to calm down. "Now, you are both instigating each other. If we're to do anything, this has to stop now. Am I clear?"

Nicole curtsies to Kenshin. "Please forgive me." She then turned to Father Marco. "Forgive me for I did not intend for this discussion to get out of hand. Kenshin is right though that this is not the place for such talk. It is my hope sir that we can put this behind us so we can do what we can to help the poor people of Reichskamphen."

John Antonette jumped up, and snarled at Kenshin,
"Don't you ever talk to a priest like that. Ever! Especially Ridgian priests." Father Marco motioned for John to sit, and then said,
"John, calm down. Shogun, you are the only one who seems to be raising their voice." He the said to Nicole, "Of course I forgive you. It didn't really get out of hand, just in the wrong place. Now, let's discuss helping the Reichskamphen people, without getting into factional disputes." He adjusted his collar, and then waited for wehat the tohers had to say.

John Antonette jumped up, and snarled at Kenshin,
"Don't you ever talk to a priest like that. Ever! Especially Ridgian priests." Father Marco motioned for John to sit, and then said,
"John, calm down. Shogun, you are the only one who seems to be raising their voice." He the said to Nicole, "Of course I forgive you. It didn't really get out of hand, just in the wrong place. Now, let's discuss helping the Reichskamphen people, without getting into factional disputes." He adjusted his collar, and then waited for wehat the tohers had to say.

"For starters, we need to attend to the medical situation. We will have to deal with radiation poisoning. Not to mention diseases from decomposing bodies and from the collapse of sanitation. We will need to bring in food and water either by sea or air because I am guessing that the roads are impassible. We need to figure out a way to evac the critical to safety so that they can be treated properly."

Father Marco said,
"The roads are probably impassable by cars, but what about horses? We can use them to get the victims out of Reichsburg for evacuation."
John also said,
"I am guessing that all fuel is just about looted now in all of Reichskamphen."

Father Marco said,
"The roads are probably impassable by cars, but what about horses? We can use them to get the victims out of Reichsburg for evacuation."
John also said,
"I am guessing that all fuel is just about looted now in all of Reichskamphen."

"Horses are a possibility but you still have to worry about the radiation problem." Nicole stated. "How are you planning on protecting the horses? Using choppers, we can evac far more people to safety. Not to mention, we can use the choppers to bring in necessary medical supplies to those that can wait to be air lifted out. That way, the choppers can be used for a duel purpose and we won't lose a minute."

Xavier shook his head at the bickering, and didn't stop when the Shogun yelled. Anger. It was the only word he thought, but the only one he needed. His eyes flashed red, but it was gone in an instant, no one probably noticing.

"I was not referring to Catholics giving aid altogether, I was referring to Catholic groups attempting to convert the Protestants. Nothing more, nothing less." Xavier, unlike his father, did not sit back and let the debate unfold -- he immediately took control of it again.

"Helocoptor evacuation is definitely a good thing. Also, I'm sure there's APCs that can be used to evac people. At the moment, the Imperial Guard has already cut off the blast area very effectively, for the time being. However, there are already reports of civil unrest in some rural areas, although Imperial Guard has been deployed to put it down. Forcibly. Just as with all of you, the Crown will not tolerate any such dissent." Xavier had a very arrogant look in his face, with a small smirk forming, his voice slowing down when he put the emphasis on "any." Kynaz Xavier wanted to be very clear in the fact that he had an iron fist, even at seventeen, and any challenge to his father's athourity would be met with severe reprecussions.

"King Antonette," he said, turning in the swivel chair to look at him. "Open your old military bases and prepare for civilian drops. Have trained medical and military staff there. I want them checked out, and I don't want anyone leaving. Our old Labour Camps have been fixed up for this purpose, and we're working on some others. Nicole, you should do the same -- old military bases, or what-not.

"Marco," the Kynaz stated, deliberately dropping the "father" title, refusing to accept Catholic athourity. Unlike Alexei, who encouraged interChristian cooperation, Xavier was much like his Great-great-grandfather, Rekjyavich Ivan Andropov II, and was very reactionary when it came to Catholic-Protestant relationships. However, he was smart enough to not let it get in the way of actual administrative decisions such as these. "You are athourized to deploy your recourses into the refugee camps to offer desperately-needed spiritual help, and I have already alerted some of our Protestant militias who will be sending over people -- don't worry, they won't fight you. But I want to make myself clear, do not try and convert them. That is all I ask. If they believe that graven images are heretical, don't show them a crucifix. But if you find a Catholic, feel free to give them mass for all I care. You get my drift." He took a sip of water before continuing.

"I disabled the jamming on all external communications from inside RAMC. I suggest you use this time we have now to contact whoever you need to contact to start doing what I asked." At that time, Alexei came back out, whispering something in Xavier's ear, making a very menacing and demonic look come across the young Kynaz's face for a brief moment, and then it left once more, Alexei sitting down behind him.

John quickly pulled a phone from his pocket, and punched in two numbers.
"Proceed with the plan. Open the bases, and quaranteen the civilian arrivals until further notice." A voice came threw, and John said goodbye. he said to Marco, "You have permission, fromthe Cardinal, to start a relief program" Marco smiled. He then replied to Xaiver, responding in kind, with no title,
"Andropov, I have no intention of converting them. And its celebrating a mass, and giving them the Eucharist." He smirked, and it was obvious he was not intimidated by him. He then gave a nod, and dialed a number on his phone. He reserved a flight into Reichskamphen for whent he meeting was over.

Queen Mariah said as everyone else as acting like kids or idiots

"I am opening the Greater Prussian surplus fund to all Greater Prussian nations who are assisting the people of Reichskamphen if the Emperor approves of this. It was intended for this kind of unfortunate occasion. And please no more of this Catholic - Protestant infighting. We have enough problems with anarchists already."

Nicole got on the phone to command central where the Vice President was at and began to give orders.

"I want the entire 4th fleet deployed immediately as well as the three Comforter class hospital ships. We are going to need choppers to evac the critical and medical supplies for those who aren't critical. I need this done right away."

"Yes ma'am."

"Oh and make sure they are protected. I do not want to see our people suffering radiation poisoning. This is going to be the largest humanitarian effort that I can think of."

"Of course ma'am. Anything else?"

"Tell the hospitals here to prepare for wounded. We're going to airlift them here. We have the capacity to do that."

"Yes ma'am. We'll do our part here."

"Make sure that you do."

==========================================================

Lauren watched all of this unfold and began to think. She glanced over at her younger brother and walked over to him. "Xavier, you conducted yourself well in this meeting. Nice job of commanding attention."

Back in Cherry Ridge
The South Ridge section of the Burdundian National Military Base, named in honor of the former Kingdom, was opened. Scores of Ridgian Army Police covered the parimeter, and doctors, nurses, and medics, all arrived. They all were protected from radiation, and other diseases. A group of clergymen, one Catholic, one Lutheran, two Anglican, and 3 presbyterian, and one Jewish- some imported- also arrived, and would take care of "their" flock. Helicopters circled above, and jets were on constant patrol. The Nuclear Defense system was up, and if so much as a flock of birds that looked like a missile appeared, they would be attacked. Many miles away, a no flight zone was declared around Carmel, bar official Prussian and Church flights. The base was ready to take in thousands of victims from the Reichsburg Bombing.

OOC: I'll get a post up either later tonight or tomorrow.

The President, whom had been silent during this discussion, spoke up.

"The Allied Union 2nd Airborne Division can be on station within 24 hours, if my sources are correct. Pending your approval, they can land and set up a temporary air base and field hospital in a few standard days."

The Shogun sat relaxed. "I cannot commit any troops in this. These terrorist attacks have been violent enough to warrent lockdown of Honimishu. As we are already actively engaged in a war, I cannot in good faith send troops if they may be needed for defense of the homeland. No independed citizens may leave the country at the time, so that is also out of the question."

OOC: I know I lied. I've been bogged down with bullshit these past days.

Queen Mariah said to John Antonette "Jeruselem's Skynet satellites will be flying over Reichskamphen tonight. Ridgian assistance forces should get this information when it is on-line for your people to analyse so you have best information on hand when start the operation"

John nodded, "Thank you Mariah."

“Marco, I don’t give a damn what you call it.” Xavier was a littler perturbed that Marco tried to pull the intellectual superiority on him, as well as dropping his title. The audacity! “Just adhere to my guidelines.” Xavier, like Maria, was also monitoring the various levels of budgets and economy – but unlike the Queen, was also looking at the stock market and the companies he invested in. Of course, he was also doing so to relieve anger – after Nicole announced she was Catholic, his opinion of her dropped even more than it was which he didn’t believe possible. Xavier caught wind a week or so ago about a new radiation pill coming out, and had invested a decent bit of money into the company. With the nuclear assault on Reichsburg, as well as Xavier’s investments in various military and health care companies, he made nearly a quarter of a million Tsar Roubles in less than three hours.

“As Queen Mariah has probably noticed already, the Prussian treasury is going to take a serious blow with the upcoming events. The Prussian Treasury is going to need some extra funds in order to finance this. I suggest that most of you give about ten percent to fifty percent more than you currently give. Derscon will give more, of course.” Xavier didn’t mention, however, that even tripling their donation wouldn’t do too much against Derscon. Regardless of the fact they were one of the largest economies in the entire Empire (the largest on the continent itself), they contributed very little, proportionately, compared to the rest of the Empire.

“And one final point.” Xavier started walking a gold piece up and down his knuckles before he continued. “An Imperial Government is going to have to be re-established. I would like your thoughts and ideas first, however. I will inform you, though; my Father and an old friend of his have been currently thinking of some things. But I feel it would be good to acquire all of your opinions, as well.” He reclined on the chair a bit, continuing to walk the gold coin up and down his knuckles. Sometimes, the light would reflect off the coin and into his eyes, glimmering in Xavier’s piercing and cold dark blue eyes.

When Lauren came up to him, he simply looked up at her and smiled. Better than you could ever do, sister. He carefully shielded his thoughts, however, and thanked his big sister for the praise.

====================================

UNKNOWN LOCATION, REICHSKAMPHEN

“This does present a nice opportunity, yes.” The Reichskamphener walked over to the cliff’s edge in the forests, overlooking the sea. Another man came up behind him.

“Indeed. But of course, the enemy has already started to make the moves. You won’t be blamed.”

“I know, Darii, I know.” The Reicher turned his back on the cliff and looked at the other man. “But how would this work? I must save this nation, not tear it apart.” Darii came over and put his hand on the other man’s shoulder.

“Listen, the nation is going to be torn apart into factions – that is inevitable. What I can help you with is to gain as many of those factions, and then take the rest.” The Reicher looked up.

“How?” Darii smiled.

“Do you see my shoulder boards? Do you see this sash?” Darii pointed to both items, showing that he was a Marshal in the Dersconi Imperial Army, and thumbed what was known as the Tsar Sash, the highest possible award in the Dersconi Military: only the Tsar may award it, and the approval process is so strict and thorough that 99% of the time it doesn’t even get to the Tsar for approval. Darii’s “special connections,” though, sped up that process. “I can do anything with these two items and my friends. You well get your nation back, I promise.”

====================================

DERSCONI-REICHSKAMPHEN BORDER, PRUSSO-KIEV PROVINCE, DERSCON

On the surface, the border was fairly calm, the Reichskamphen and Dersconi border guards having conversations in each other’s territory. Technically, the Dersconi border had an extensive supertech minefield, as well as God knows how many bunkers, automated turrets, and what-not, but along the Reichskamphen border, all were either off or not used, due to the friendship of Derscon and Reichskamphen – which is why Border Patrol on the Reichskamphen-Dersconi border was offered as a good-service award, considering the guards sat down and had tea with each other, and played cards, etc. There really wasn’t much guarding going on.

However, under the ground in this particular branch of the National Military Grid – what amounted to a nationwide bunker complex of epic proportions – troops were readying for battle. The Second Imperial Army, nicknamed “The Blitzkreig Brigade,” led by none other than Kynaz General Tarakh Alexeitovich Andropov, youngest son of the Tsar of Derscon, was prepping for battle.

“Hurry up, you bastards!” was the command given by General Tarakh. “We’ve got a war to fight!” As the tanks lined up in the complex, preparing to surface, the infantry soldiers and helicopters began to mount up and go into formation. The ground infantrymen were singing an old Dersconi battle song, getting ready to shed blood once more.

Rally 'round the drum, boys, rally 'round the drum
We’ll need all your powder, we’ll need all your guns
Rally ‘round the drum, boys, rally round the drum
We’ll need all your courage, we’ll need all your sons

Hear the drummer’s anthem call across the land
It grows ever stronger through every boy and man
Kiss your wife and children, that’s what we’re fighting for
Then come and join the rest as we go marching off to war!

Hear the drumbeat growing as it echoes in your chest
As we all march forward feel pity for the rest
Like the wives and children they'll be safe and sound
But they’ll never know the glory of a hero’s renown

We’ll fight them in the valley, we’ll fight them on the plains
We’ll heed the drummer’s call till the last of them are slain
We’ll fight them in the mountains, we’ll fight them on the sea
We will not stop fighting till death or victory

Hear the drummer’s anthem call across the land
It grows ever stronger through every boy and man
Kiss your wife and children, that’s what we’re fighting for
Then come and join the rest as we go marching off to war!

Rally 'round the drum, boys, rally 'round the drum
We’ll need all your powder, we’ll need all your guns
Rally ‘round the drum, boys, rally round the drum
We’ll need all your courage, we’ll need all your sons

Queen Mariah added
"And everyone, please do not suddenly flood the Treasury all at once. While my Hebrew dominated Treasury work really hard to keep the treasury afloat, we will understaffed now for a while due to current financial crisis due to the current events. You can't just pull good Treasury staff from anywhere unless other nations want to send a few extra to Jeruselem. Any help is appreciated. And please be patient as we lost two one thousand CPU super-computers in REICHSKAMPHEN which managed all the treasury transfers. We are currently re-routing all traffic through some re-programmed nuclear simulation super-computers in Jeruselem. Our engineers are still working on re-routing network traffic to bypass REICHSKAMPHEN."

Jack smiled and nodded to Mariah. “I’m sure we could lend you quite a few of our own Treasury staff. I doubt we truly need as many as we have right now, but because the Vice Chairman has a thing for redundancy and accuracy, he hires plenty of people so that our funds are constantly checked, double checked and almost always triple checked. A bit overkill, I think.”

He slowly unbuttoned his jacket to be more comfortable and turned his head back to Xavier. “As for what you were saying, I was actually thinking about this while y'all were out fighting in the Grande Hall. Now, setting up camps and other stuff for the survivors and trying to restore order is all fine and dandy…on a smaller scale. Doing it that way would require enormous amounts of coordination and oversight. It would cost way too much money because of overlap. Now what I propose is that Reichskamphen be split up into….well…occupation zones. Bad word but it works. Each one would be administrated by one of the nations here but would still answer directly to the Emperor. The laws of all the zones would remain the same as what Reichskamphen had before this event and would not change unless directed by the Emperor himself. Eventually, once all of the zones have regained their vital infrastructure and their local governing bodies are set back into power, they all can be reintegrated to form Reichskamphen once again under a new Imperial government.”

----------------------------------------

OOC: I actually have something else to write her but unfortunately I have to go off to work right now til 10 pm so I’ll write it once I get back. It’s not any dialogue but merely Siri’s thoughts towards Xavier.

John nodded, "I will increase my donation by 12 percent." Father Marco's eyes locked with Xaviers when he spoke, and replied, "Well, Duke Andropov" I dont give a damn what its called, he thought to himself, "I already said I would adhere to your guidelines." King John shot him a thretening look, and Marco smirked, but an agreeing smirk, showing that he would stop. John sent a weak message to Xavier, weak because his swords energy was "resting" after the fight: Sorry about the priest. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again. His swords light dimmed even more.

ooc: The sword not "dying" but since it is not active, it his dimming.

ooc: To keep any truely religious debate to a minimum in this thread, kidnly direct yourselves here: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=10989555. Thank you.

Alexei spoke up at Queen Mariah's comment. "It shouldn't be too much of a problem. We have various computer networks here in Derscon that back up the computers in Reichskamphen in case something like this happened. It shouldn't be too much of a problem. THey're old, though -- Some of our outdated 13-N3W7/P Supercomputers. We replaced all of them with our molecular and quantum computers, so silicon is quite useless to us now, but they still work, so there wasn't any point in getting rid of them." Xavier retook the meeting at Jack's comment, however.

"I wasn't planning on camps for everyone, just for the survivors of Reichsburg. Yes, occupation zones is a dirty phrase, but on the whole I agree with you." He leaned back and continued his conversation with Marco, leaving his eyes locked with the Priest.

"It translates to Prince, thank you very much." There was quite a bit of snobbish arrogance in his voice, giving the subtle scream of How dare you snub me you dirty bastard!, but Xavier left what he thought unsaid. "But yes, I know you will adhere to them."

====================================
DERSCONI-REICHSKAMPHEN BORDER, PRUSSO-KIEV PROVINCE, DERSCON

"FORM UP!" General Tarakh shouted over the comm system of the Blitkreige Brigade. All across the center part of the Border, massive blast doors opened up, tanks and helicoptors swarming out of them, forming into battlegroups upon surfacing. The foot soldiers followed nearby.

From behind, various air bases were readying aircraft with wartime munitions, and in space, recon and war satellites were being positioned along the border, AAA guns online.

Tarakh was engaging in troop excersises ordered by Marshal Rasladanov, although they were with live munitions.

At first, the border patrol got a bit ansy at the large show of force, but the Dersconi border guards were told they were troop exersises, which is what they told their friends of the REichskamphen border guards. So everyone settled down and continued their tea and cards.

Jack smiled and nodded to Mariah. “I’m sure we could lend you quite a few of our own Treasury staff. I doubt we truly need as many as we have right now, but because the Vice Chairman has a thing for redundancy and accuracy, he hires plenty of people so that our funds are constantly checked, double checked and almost always triple checked. A bit overkill, I think.”


Mariah replied "Send them straight away, but please inform the Head of Treasury in Jeruselem they are coming so they have somewhere to live and computers to use when they get there. Oh, the Head of Treasury is related to me as well. Just make sure they don't go speak German when working, it upsets some of the staff."

“Understandable,” Jack replied to Mariah. “But German is something you don’t have to worry about with these folks. Most speak only English except for the few elves that are there who speak…umm…Quenya…I think.” He stumbled over the pronunciation but moved on. “Anyways, once we get out of here, I’ll call my Vice Chairman and your Head of Treasury to set everything up.”

While her husband continued to talk with the other heads of state, Siri relaxed more on the end of the couch and observed the people seated around the room, studying the body language of each one to understand more about them and how they typically acted. Queen Mariah and her husband were skipped over as she had already met them many times before and found them to be rather nice people, the same with President Server and his wife. Of course, the delegation from Formal Dances was deliberately ignored by her. Their behavior earlier had left a bad taste in her mouth. Hypocritical religious liberals was the only thought that came to her mind when she saw them now.

As her eyes roamed the room, they seemed to be drawn towards the Tsar’s son, Xavier. She found him to be a remarkable person for earlier he had proven himself to be quite capable in battle and even made an extraordinary leap to save his father’s life. And now he was sitting here before all the heads of state essentially leading the meeting at such a young age. Though what drew her interest more was his personality because it bared some similarities to her own, the arrogance, the anger, the ambition, the intelligence.

This was not enough for her so she attempted to examine his emotions in greater detail. But she did not seek to dive into his thoughts as he was the son of someone whom she respected and also did not want to reveal too much about her numerous abilities as well as her role in a much hated group of people. Darting her eyes back over to her husband in order to not draw attention to herself, her mind continued what it was doing and waited for the next time Xavier spoke. If all went well and he did have some capabilities, all he would notice was that someone was watching him quite closely.

Nicole looked at Mariah. "We'll be sending in half a trillion diamonds into the treasury. We are also still rebuilding from our Civil War so that is all we can afford at this moment."

==========================================================

The Formal Dancian Relief Force as they were called arrives in Reichsburg and began to assist in the evacuation effort of the survivors.

Nicole looked at Mariah. "We'll be sending in half a trillion diamonds into the treasury. We are also still rebuilding from our Civil War so that is all we can afford at this moment."


"Oh, I didn't expect that many diamonds from Formal Dances. Diamonds are still a girl's best friend to quote a famous blonde actress. They would be welcome, but now we just have find a nice safe place for them." she giggled in reply (Mariah liked her diamonds), thinking "ex-nuclear bunker" as an idea.

Mariah's phone rang, "This is Princess Penny!" she answered.

"Hi Mum, I've been a good boy. Really!" ... it was her son. Inquisitor Janus resumed the conversation "Arthur's lying. He behaves like you at a bachelor party but I didn't expect any different".

"So, has he learnt anything while you're babysitting him?" she asked. Janus replied "Lots of reading. He'll have a bigger brain when I'm finished with him". "Good, good. Tell him keep it up" and hung up.

Xavier watched the events unroll in this room as he got word from Tarakh that he'd be up for dinner. Xavier smiled to himself and sent his reply: "Glad to hear. Godspeed." He felt a strange feeling, however. Someone isn't playing fair. He glanced around the room briefly and caught the eye of Siri out of his Peripheral vision and smiled. Hello, there.

====================================================

REICHSKAMPHEN-DERSCONI BORDER, PRUSSO-KIEV PROVINCE

Along the border, the Reichskamphen Border Patrol all got the same message. "Joint excersizes. Pull out from border." It's happened before, so no one really bothered to question the order. They said goodbye to their Dersconi counterparts on the other side and in a few hours were just about all gone. None of them thought it through, though, that there was no central command to give those orders anymore.

At 1600 Hours, the automated turrets went online, the Dersconi border guards nowhere to be seen. Some of the Reichskamphen guards who stayed behind were very curious as to this new incident, as they haven't been activated since Allistaire was Emperor of Greater Prussia, but most of them weren't old enough to remember that.

A few Reichskamphen guards were too close to the border, however, and were mowed down by the automated turrets. The Reichskamphen sector commander tried to place a call to the Dersconi command, but for some reason, he couldn't be reached. Same thing that happened with Allistaire. Then it hit him.

Unfortunately, by the time he realized what was going on, two Daisy cutters were dropped on the building he was currently occupying, effectively obliterating any organized resistance, as there was no head to the body. This occured at 16:10.

At 16:12, 4th Armoured stormed across the border, air support above carpet bombing the buildings, assault helicoptors mowing down the surprised Reichskamphen border guards.

At 16:27, The Blitzkreig Brigade was entirely into Reichskamphen territory, leaving nothing but wreckage behind them. Once again, with Reichskamphen without a legitimate government, the armies of Derscon storm the border to restore order. Thankfully, MSS managed to cut off communications in this section of REichskamphen, and the Stratiegic Space Command put up an ODG to jam all the passing satellites, not allowing them to see the invasion.

But it will take more than that. Tarakh was looking at some of the intelligence reports from recon groups and MSS, pinpointing some heavy resistance spots. All around Anglican Churches and known underground Catholic meeting places.

Pax Maria.

Kenshin spoke up again, "I don't believe that there is any more money we can put into the Greater Prussian Treasury. However, I'll see if there is anything else we can spare." He turned to Alexi, "how long will it take to stop Pax Maria, assuming they're behind this?"

Alexei nodded to Xavier, telling him to answer the question.

"As far as we know, Shogun, the Pax Maria are in no way behind this assault. However, MSS reports that they have surfaced, taking advantage of the chaos the anarchists have caused. For now, though, I don't expect the Pax Maria to be any sort of problem. There are currently measures being taken to prevent such a Catholic takeover of any Reichskamphen lands."

"Is there any chance that this will spill over and out of Reichskamphen?"

Father Marco replied to the 'Catholic' takeover quip, "I remind you that the Pax maria are not Catholics. For one, they do not acknowledge the Pontiff, are supposed traditionalists, of the schismatic variety, they were excommunicated, and they also opposed my efforts at an underground chruch loyal to the magisterium. Someone might as well join the masons, because they would get excommunicated that way too, plus would get more benefits."

"It is a slim possibility, yes," Xavier responded. "However, we all currently have...well, governments. REichskamphen doesn't. It may involve some border clashes, but other than that, nothing."

======================

NORTHERN REICHSKAMPHEN

"We've begun." The Reichskamphener nodded.

"I know, Darii, I know. I just hope it's not taken the wrong way." Darii smiled.

"It won't be. I can have forces up here to aid you in a few days, if you'd like." The REichskamphener thought a moment, and nodded.

"Yes, that would be good, Darii."

===================================

SOUTHERN REICHSKAMPHEN, NEAR DERSCONI BORDER

General Tarakh was looking over the maps of Reichskamphen. "Good, thirty minutes to the first base of those bastard Catholics."

-----------

"How much popular support do we have?" Major Juergen Ulrich, commander of this section of the Pax Maria, questioned his staff in front of him.

"Surprisingly, a good bit. We've secured a decent radius around this town, and some of our comrades-in-arms in other cities are beginning to draw support and gain power. Of course, some places are...less than friendly, but the Protestant opposition is being put down effectively." Major Juergen nodded.

"Good." Just then, a leftenant ran into the room.

"Sir! Reports say there are Dersconi military personnel heading this way!" THe Major slammed his fist down on the table and shot up.

"What?!"

"YEs, sir, the crossed the border about fifteen minutes ago."

"Who's leading them?"

"A General Tarakh Andropov, sir." The Major collapsed in his chair.

"Shit."

Queen Mariah said "Pax Maria, again? I'll give them Pax Mariah if they keep get in my way. I'll send Major Janus of Pax Maria, better known as Inquisitor Janus, to assist the Greater Prussia forces in identifying any any of his former collegues. I don't he'll like it though, but he puts up with my insane royal commands and behaviour"

...

Over the nation of the devastated capital of GPE, Jeruselem SkyNet satellites were scanning remapping the nation as the old maps were now obselete. Greater Prussian commanders on the ground were being fed data to help pinpoint any areas of interest. Some satellites were overly large, but they were not just satellites because they were space to ground cannons. They didn't bother to map the former capital itself, as it was a just a large crater.

In the darkness of Siri’s conscious mind, a lone voice rang out among all the thoughts, plots, and plans that always seemed to be whirling around. She immediately knew from whence the voice came and was not surprised that it had occurred. I see you certainly do have some capabilities, young prince. So much the better. Her eyes scanned the room once more before meeting his. I know that you possess more than just telepathy. So I want to know, what are the rest?

OOC: Sorry about no post. I'll try and toss one up tomorrow.

*Irradiated Ruins of Reichsburg*

“The signal is getting stronger!” Cpt. Adam Jung shouted through the radio in his heavy duty radiation suit. “The beacon is this way!”

Quickly, several other men in radiation suits followed behind Cpt. Jung, guarded on the flanks by two specialized post-nuclear recovery vehicles which were stocked with 6 suited men each. Jung bounded from mound of rubble to mound of rubble. The devestation was immense. He could see off in the distance the great Imperial Tower that had been completely knocked to the ground, the head of the golden eagle statue peeking out at him from under limestone slabs.

When they had received the orders to march into Reichsburg, most of the soldiers in Jung’s Imperial Guard unit were incredulous at the exact contents of the orders. They were to delve into the web of catacombs beneath Reichsburg. There, they would find, thousands of feet under the ground, a large underground complex built to withstand a direct nuclear strike on the surface. Rumours of this underground fortress had been circulating even before the Empire had been founded. Most people dismissed this as the Greater Prussian Area 51. Now, however, all mouths are silenced by the revelation of truth.

“Here it is!” Jung once again called out over the radio. “Help me move this.” Three men moved up with military precision and assisted in the removal of three huge slabs of limestone.

“Cobble stones…” Jung sighed in disbelief. “Just cobble stones.”

“Get me something to pry this one up!” another suited man said, pointing to a particularly large stone.

“Yes sir, Colonel!”

Two soldiers soon prized up the large stone only to revel another layer of stones. “Get those too!” the Colonel shouted. After two more stones were pulled away, a glint of metal could be seen under the dust. “Found it!”

Plastic explosives were brought in and affixed the surrounding cobble stones. After the rocks were cleared, a large hatch was revealed. One soldier descended into the hatch only to report to the Colonel that another hatch with a keypad lay just beyond the entrance. “Listen up soldier,” the Colonel called out, “here is the code…18041815”

“All clear, Colonel!” the soldier reported, sliding down the now open hatch. “It’s a radiation cleanup room.”

“Jung,” the Colonel turned to the Captain. “Pick five men and go down there. You are in charge of the operation downstairs and I’ll take topside. It is doubtful that anyone of importance managed to get to the shelter in time, but just incase, be on the lookout. I am sending your suit’s computer a list of the most important items that need to be retrieved first.”

Jung scrolled the list on his helmets display panel:

1. The Crown Jewels
2. The Consular Decree of Imperial Foundation
3. The Imperial Treasury’s records and holdings (computerized)
4. Cryogenically preserved tissue samples of the Emperor Napoleon IV

“I thought the crown jewels were kept in the palace!?” Jung exclaimed.

“Replicas were on display there. The real ones are here.”

“Why are they so important right now,” Jung inquired, “isn’t the fact that Reichskamphen is being invaded a little more pressing?”

“Keep in mind, the Czar will need to be coronated as Emperor if we want to keep this pile of marble and horse s*** afloat. To coronate an Emperor we need the crown jewels. Also, there will be a black fire safe box kept with the jewels. You wont be able to open it, so don’t try. Just bring it up with you.”

Without further delay, Jung and his team slipped into the radiation cleanup room to prepare to enter the complex.

*Sunday, 11:30 am. Morning Service at the Imperial Cathedral; New Geneva, Reichskamphen*

As one approached New Geneva, the first thing they saw was the gigantic tower of the Imperial Cathedral that climbed higher than all of the skyscrapers in the new city. It was the heart of the walled in religious quarter of the city. There were other smaller churches and chapels around about it in addition to apartments and living areas. This was the Vatican City of the Protestant world, but built on a much grander scale. The Cathedral itself was one of the largest buildings of any type in the world, but the sanctuary alone was twice the size of St. Peter’s in Rome. However, this sanctuary and this religious quarter were markedly different. As a law, there were no depictions of Christ to be found anywhere in the entire area. The churches were lavishly decorated, but had no images of Saints either.

This Lord’s day, there was standing room only in the Cathedral. Attendance was estimated at over 25,000 people for that service alone. The gigantic organ in the cathedral, the largest ever built, resounded clearly and strongly as the last verse of “A Mighty Fortress echoed throughout the giant stone halls of the Church. As the room fell silent, a man appearing to be about 40, dressed in traditional robes approached the gigantic mahogany pulpit, complete with a monolithic trompette. Dr. Peter Graves assembled the few sermon notes he had on the lectern and looked out over the vast sea of people.

“Now Babylon has come in rememberance before God!” he cried out, his unamplified carrying even to the back pews. He leaned into the microphone, and spoke softly. “Your conversation and the conversation of this Empire in days past has been with the whore that sitteth on many waters, has been with the beast and the minions of the pit.” His eyes grew cold as steel as he once again cried out, “You one and all received the mark of the beast and rejoiced in your iniquity! You partook in the pleasures of this world, in the trade of Babylon the Great. All of you like sheep had gone astray! One man, one church cried out in the wilderness, one man lit the way of truth for all to follow...” he suddenly softened his voice to an almost mystic tone, “but none followed.” “Now, your government, your princes, your worldly authorities are gone, now anarchy reigns! Now you return to God! Ian Paisley showed the way of truth for this Empire but we forsook his vision and the call of Almighty God! Now we shall reap the fruits of our evil…for it is only when Dr. Paisley was murdered…MURDERED by the hounds of baelzebub that this nation heard his call!” Now, his voice warmed, and his eyes softened, “But fear not…ye people, rend your hearts, rend your hearts and not your garments! Through the word of God, I say to ye, forsake your idols, and return to God, for he is kind and merciful and gracious! Though you a thousand times turn your face from the light, the hand of God is outstretched to catch your foot should it slide! Return to God and believe in his Son, Christ Jesus, and your sins shall be forgiven! Christ died for our transgressions, that we should no longer suffer in darkness. I call on you Christians, Presbyterian, Baptist, Methodist, Anglican, whatever your denomination or name...I call on you in the name of him who hath called you out of darkness and into the light to stand tall and strong in our Orthodox faith and resist with the word as well as with arms and weapons the darkness that now descends on our land. I call on Christians all over the Empire to stand strong and gird themselves with the whole armour of God and make this Empire a land that Ian Paisley would have been proud to live in…an Empire that honours God and his Son! Ye people, break your chains and rise up against your oppressors!”

This message was carried all over the Empire on the GPNN and the television network of the Free Presbyterian Church of Greater Prussia. The face of Peter graves, the young disciple of Dr. Paisley who had gained fame as the previous head pastor of Reichsburg Cathedral, was soon to be seen on every television across the Empire. If the stability of an Imperial government lacked in Reichskamphen, the voice of God still called out from the mountain tops of that land to all the nations of the Empire, telling them to bow in rememberance before their saviour.

Cardinal De Vito weakly picked up his phone. He dialed the code that was linked to Father Marco's phone. Father Marco answered:
"Father Marco."
"Father Marco, this is Cardinal De Vito. Turn on your tv. The Paisleyites are preaching. New Geneva is still safe!"
"Thank you your eminence. Cardinal, you need rest. Try not too worry too much."
"Thank you Father. God Bless."
"Thank you."

Father Marco clicked his phone shut, and said to Alexei and Xavier, "Turn the TV on! Apparently New Geneva is safe."

ooc: Welcome Back, RK.

Well, Siri, I’m sure we’d all like to know the answer to that question. “Well, I don’t think it’s entirely Pax Maria at all.” Xavier kept eye contact with the Queen of Jeruselem and continued to speak with her, and simultaneously carried out the telepathic conversation with Siri. It could be that they just rose to grab the opportunity – they were not organized enough to pull something like what happened off.” Frankly, Siri, I don’t know what I can do, yet. I haven’t had the chance to really study it a whole lot. But I know you are more powerful than you let on. I can feel it.

“However, that is not to say the Pax Maria are not present in force. They are there, and gathering. As I have stated before, there are currently preventive measures being put in place so as to make sure they don’t get too large. The main forces I suppose would be potential anarchist forces, and regular separatist forces. I have every intention on squelching them as soon as possible.” A somewhat sly, knowledgeable and hateful look came across his eyes for a brief second, and went away. Damnit, I need to work on that.

"Now, again, to the topic at hand. We must reform a Prussian government, and we need it now. Emergency powers only work for so long, and I know my father is a capable man, and probably could handle running the Empire himself," Alexei smiled to himself at Xavier's comment, as Xavier smirked. "It would be much easier for him if there was a stable government to help him out a bit.

"Again, my father and a few others have worked certain things out already, however, your input is always welcome. So, any suggestions?"

=====================================

SOUTHERN REICHSKAMPHEN

“Five minutes, sir.” General Tarakh smiled.

“Excellent.” The command vehicle continued, in the main body of the “Blitzkrieg Brigade.” He clicked off the comm. with Fourth Armoured, the point of this spear. Looking at some of the displays of the TBS Consoles, he could see where all of his individual units were, using both sensors, cameras, and satellite imagery all linked up and sent straight to his command console. (He could turn any console to a command console, however, simply by putting his ID card, which is genetically encoded, into the slot). Three minutes.

________________________


Major Juergen was visibly uncomfortable. “Captain, when are the Dersconis expected to arrive?” He shrugged.

“With Tarakh? Any time.” The Major sighed and stood up.

“All right, then. They want a fight? Let’s give it to them! Man your stations!” A loud “Yes, Sir!” ran out in the room, and all of the officers ran out to rally their men to ward off the oncoming Dersconi forces.

________________________


“Sir, we’re approaching the town with the compound. It looks like there are armed civilians preparing fortifications.”

“Yes, I see.” General Tarakh was zoomed in on the TBS Console, overlooking the situation. (The Dersconi TBS Consoles run on signals specifically designed and unlike any other in order to evade jamming) He got back on the comm. link with the Fourth Armoured. “Do what is necessary to get to that compound. If they’re armed, they’re enemies.”

“Yessir.”

________________________


Outside the town, Pax Maria troops jumped into their machine gun nests and aimed them toward the path where the Dersconi forces were probably coming from. Pax Maria forces were also in and around the buildings, prepared to meet infantry strikes aimed at squelching the resistance.

Whoomwhoomwhoomwhoomwhoom...

“What the hell is that?” It was very faint at first. They looked back behind them to see some old, beat up tanks moving around, just in case.

Whoomwhoomwhoomwhoomwhoom...

It was much stronger this time. They looked back behind them, and became immediately frightened. Their tanks weren’t moving. Tanks also didn’t make a whooshing sound.

“BIRDS IN THE SKY!” Suddenly, over the tree-line, ten RoLu-17 Galician Attack Helicopters, grouped in fives, swarmed over and unleashed a volley of ATGM missiles at the old tanks, destroying them immediately. Unfortunately for bystanders, the turret rocketed off and landed on a few people.

The two wings of helicopters immediately destroyed the makeshift AAA batteries with their 80mm MRSCs and some more ATGMs. Once that mission was complete, they opened fire on the machine gun nests with more of the MRSCs and their 20mm AGLs, and cutting the militiamen down with 30mm cannon fire.

At that point, six GLI-34 Albatross Heavy Bombers shot out of the sky, passing over the town. The first three dropped a series of Daisy Cutters – old, but reliable. They diverged and the next three dropped a series of cluster bombs for an effective yet small-scale carpet bombing of the town, aided by the 155mm artillery fire that just opened up on them.

As fast as the helicopters and bombers came, they were gone again. The surviving citizens and Pax Maria began to regroup under the shelling, but were halted upon the storming of the town by Alpha Company of the Fourth Armoured. 1st and 2nd Platoons, each made up of four Arca. I Cougar Ausfva. A MBTs. Their first course of action was to blast away at the groups of people with their 140mm L/40 ETC cannons, spraying any potential survivors with their coax guns.

Behind them, Beta Company of the First Infantry began storming in, dressed in the Mac-designed BDU-64s, toting the new DIMA A/G-42 assault rifle, equipped with a zoom mechanism that allows you to aim your weapon through the view screen of the BDU-64, instead of having to limit your sight to the scope.

The tanks up ahead stopped just inside the down and aimed their cannons at the building which housed the Pax Maria and opened fire, collapsing one section of the building entirely, and blowing a hole in the other section for the troops to enter.

________________________


Major Juergen slammed his fist on the table. “What the hell is going on!?” His aide shook his head.

“Sir, the Dersconi forces completely overwhelmed us, and now there’s a gaping hole in this building that their troops are storming at this very moment.” Juergen, not one to jump into battles he can’t win, collapsed into his chair.

“Tell them we surrender. I’m not going to have all of us killed in vain.” I’m glad my commanding officer isn’t here anymore; I would have been shot for even thinking that.

________________________


Suddenly, the gunfire died down. The Captain at the front looked down from his tank and shot a glance at his comrade leading the foot troopers. “What the hell is going on?” The other Captain just shrugged.

“Hell if I know.” At that point, Major Juergen came out of the hole with his hands up, followed by his staff. After it was realized that they were surrendering, the rest of the Pax Maria – what was left, anyways – put down their weapons and headed to the square, as did the civilians who were forcibly thrown out of their homes by the raids from the Dersconi soldiers.

All of the “civilian combatants” and Pax Maria were lined up in the square into groups, guarded by the troops and the tanks aiming inward. Major Juergen was currently talking with the two captains.

“Look, my orders were to recruit, and recruit only. I had no idea this was going to happen!” The two Dersconi captains grunted.

“Like hell you didn’t! Why else would you put up a fight!?”

“Because if we didn’t, you’d slaughter us all!” The Major spat at their feet. “I am surrendering simply because my troops cannot stand up against yours, not because I want to.” The tank captain got on his radio as the infantry captain led him back to the group.

________________________


Back at the command vehicle, General Tarakh Andropov was looking at the displays in satisfaction. Only two soldiers hit, none seriously injured. Excellent. He then picked up the comm., seeing it was from the front. “What?”

“General, sir, the troops have surrendered. What should we do with them?” General Tarakh spat out his grave reply.

“I have no use for prisoners.”

________________________


“Yes, sir.” The tank Captain called the infantry one over to his tank. “The General says to get rid of them.” The infantry captain just nodded and told his troops his orders through the comm. system inside all of their BDU-64s.

At that command, all of the soldiers guarding the prisoners opened fire, and the tanks let off their rounds with their coax guns. After about five minutes, the guns fell silent, and nothing moved. No creature dared make a noise. After a long pause, the infantry captain shouted at his men.

“Well, don’t just stand there, organize this wreckage! There’s no point in leaving it here to rot, burn it!” Upon that command, the troops but their weapons behind their backs and began moving the corpses into the centre of the square, setting them on top of old furniture and some wood.

Once all of the burnable wreckage was collected, a white phosphorous container placed in the centre of the pile was unleashed, igniting the pile from the inside out, collecting oxygen from the tunnels the troops made. It then caught the kerosene that the troops soaked into the outer parts of the pile, allowing the fire to burn both from the inside and out.

As the town burned, the rest of the II Corps regrouped at the town. General Tarakh stepped out and took a quick look at the burning town, smiling.

“This is what is supposed to happen to traitors.”

"Our first priority is to show the governments of Greater Prussia can deal with troublemakers who caused the current problems in REICHSKAMPHEN. Now it is the time to destroy all those wish ill upon the GPE in REICHSKAMPHEN as the nation is without a leader or government. These people had shown their hand, and it is time we show our hand. While the nation is in crisis, GPE forces must go in and crush the troublemakers who have been hiding during peacetime. With this demonstation of force, then the GPE is ready to see the benefits of GPE government reform because they can see the need for it. As for the formulation of this new reform, we need to analyse the weaknesses exposed in the current problems in REICHSKAMPHEN in our current leadership and military structures. Our current problem is who is going to control the REICHSKAMPHEN when we restore order with no royal family or politicians left. The new leaders will need to respected locals who the people can trust." she replied.

“…and, hopefully, someone whom we can trust too. I believe that the last thing we all need is a psychotic dictator or dictators right in the middle of Greater Prussia,” Siri quickly added to Queen Mariah’s statement as she glanced around the room at every one of the leaders.

Though, as she spoke, the telepathic conversation with Xavier continued, much to her delight. She was becoming more and more interested in the young prince, and, because of this, in the portions of her mind that she blocked from any prying eyes, plans and ideas were slowly coming together. There are numerous opportunities to study that which you possess, but you must search for them. Open your mind to new things. Embrace new concepts of thought. She rose from her seat and moved towards the bar for a glass of wine. One thing that you must remember is that time itself is not all powerful and does not have control over your life. For the strong-minded, it is something that can be manipulated to fit your own will. It can be stopped and started, slowed down or sped up with just the wave of the hand.

Feeling it was time to provide some input, Jack decided to respond to Xavier’s question. “Honestly, aside from filling in the positions that are now vacant, which of course your father is quite capable of handling, I don’t think that anything really needs to be done to reform the overall structure of the Empire.” He shrugged slightly. “The fact that we’re all sitting here together in one piece and also that the rest of the Empire is in a relatively good condition, is an indicator that the current format works pretty damned good in these circumstances.”

John Antonette repleid to Siri, "Remember Siri, we can always take out unpopular leaders. Unpopular with us, that is."

Grasping the long smooth neck of the wine bottle, Siri began to slowly pour the contents into her crystal wine glass as she looked over to Antonette and grinned. “Of course, John. I believe that option should always be on the table.” She chuckled slightly as a thought ran through her mind. ‘Accidents’ can happen to anyone, even a head of state.

"Of course the option is on the table, Siri." John replied, "Afterall, who we put in, we can take out." He smiled at her, and continued, "After all, we wold ahve to provide some of their security."

"Hard to say who is going be the next leader in Reichskamphen as anyone who had power is dead. All we are left with are a few military men and maybe some budding politicians who were in exile for various reasons. That's unless we go find another relative of former Emperor Napolean from other part of Greater Prussia." Mariah said.

Suddenly, from a corner, a dark-clad figure spoke. “It’s not about power. It’s about blood. For the person to rule, he must have the blood of an Emperor. I believe we have the DNA in hand… clone the Emperor. When the child will be born, we’ll be able to groom him for power from day one, like a true royalty. And he’ll rule the Empire like Emperor’s did before, and will do after.

It is all I have to say.

God Bless the Empire.”


OOC: Telegram for Jeruselem.

John nodded at Father Marco. The priest ten said, "Cloning is immoral. We should not play God. As a Christian empire, though there are non-christians within, we have a duty to defend our faith from such evils. Leave creation to God, we should just help him along." John nodded, then added, "And the emperor does not have to be a blood relative of the last. Doctor Paisley was not by blood related to his predacessors."

John nodded at Father Marco. The priest ten said, "Cloning is immoral. We should not play God. As a Christian empire, though there are non-christians within, we have a duty to defend our faith from such evils. Leave creation to God, we should just help him along." John nodded, then added, "And the emperor does not have to be a blood relative of the last. Doctor Paisley was not by blood related to his predacessors."

"Saying that, continuity of blood lines is important nevertheless with the occasional severance along the way. Monarchies are still slave to keeping bloodlines as it is the only thing which truly defines a monarchy over any other system of government. Being half-Hebrew, family is everything to me. Having one's bloodline tracible back to the errant King David is important to me, even if it is a sort of curse." Mariah said.

"Father Marco, if God really didn't want us to do it, would he not have made it impossible? Cloning is not immoral, it is using the gift of knowledge that God gave us. We have dominion over the Earth, remember?" Kenshin said lightly. Next he turned to Alexi, "Czar. If you'd like the leaders of whoever's behind this taken out, I can have a small Black Knight squad sent into Reichskamphen to take them out."

"Why didn't he make murder impossible then? Or abortion? Why didn't he make every immoral activity impossible? Shogun, that is a pretty weak argument." Father Marco replied.

Nicole kept her mouth shut listening to the conversation.

"I just had a thought. Why not put Xavier incharge of them?"

"Quite simply because he intended them to be there. If there was no evil, where's the need for faith?" Kenshin said nonchalantly.

After a moment or two of listening, Jack finally spoke up with his opinion. “I think I have to agree with what Father Marco said. We really don’t have any business screwing around with something that should only be left to the Creator Himself.” He sighed slightly. “Besides, it’s not like we absolutely must have Emperor Napoleon’s bloodline in order to survive. Look at Imperial China, for an example, they went through over fifteen different dynasties in four thousand years. Basically when one became weak, they were simply overran by a stronger one and yet the empire continued on. So who says that now isn’t the time for a different bloodline or dynasty in Greater Prussia?”

"That does not mean we give in to the evils, Shogun, nor does them being here make them right." Father Marco replied.
King John replied to Jack, "I think the problem is not who will be emperor, as Alexei will be that. The problem is who will be the ruler of Reichskamphen, not the empire as a whole. Traditionally, they are two seperate positions."

OOC: I think Formal Dances made a suggestion.

Noting what King John had said, Jack replied, “Of course, but I think it still applies there too.”

When she finished pouring the wine into her glass, Siri shoved the cork back into the wine bottle and glanced over to Nicole, surprised. “Interesting idea, I must say. From what I have seen so far, he seems to be quite capable of handling running things around Derscon. I would say give him a chance at it.” She looked over to Xavier and grinned.

"I agree. I also think Thomas should go along too. Between the two of them, there is no doubt in my mind that the nation's security problems will end."

This brought a look from his wife but she remained silent.

John looked at Server and said, "Who the hell is Thomas?"

John looked at Server and said, "Who the hell is Thomas?"

Thomas stepped forward. "That would be me."

John turned to John and said "John, allow me to introduce you to my son Thomas. Jedi knight 2nd class and heir to the presidency of Corneliu. He has shown himself to be a wonderful leader and has settled many border disputes and ended a couple of insurrections before they could turn into another Civil War."

John said, "Hello Thomas. You would do nothing good at all in Reichskamphe. You are unknown here, the Reichskamphners will distrust you even more. I can care less whether you are a jedi or not. You ar eth eheir to a presidency, which smacks of a deception, and you come here, without introducing youself, and expect to be named co-ruler of Reichskamphen." John downed his drink, and got another glass of wine.

John said, "Hello Thomas. You would do nothing good at all in Reichskamphe. You are unknown here, the Reichskamphners will distrust you even more. I can care less whether you are a jedi or not. You ar eth eheir to a presidency, which smacks of a deception, and you come here, without introducing youself, and expect to be named co-ruler of Reichskamphen." John downed his drink, and got another glass of wine.

Thomas stared at John. "I maybe unknown sir but if anyone wants to make trouble against me will not survive the attempt. Also, your comments about a deception are false for I am the heir to the throne of Corneliu. If they want a demonstration of what I can do, I will be more than willing to show them all that I am capable of doing."

"Why not just come out and call it a monarchy then?" He rolled his eyes and said, "I believe I could survive any attempt you do on me." He laughed and said, "You didn't even lift a finger to help protect agaisnt those assailants., then dare to think you can even equal Xavier in skill?" He shot a smirk at Xavier, and nodded.

"Why not just come out and call it a monarchy then?" He rolled his eyes and said, "I believe I could survive any attempt you do on me." He laughed and said, "You didn't even lift a finger to help protect agaisnt those assailants., then dare to think you can even equal Xavier in skill?" He shot a smirk at Xavier, and nodded.

"Xavier can take care of himself as I'm sure you know. Besides, my power does not work here. However, I protected the Czarina and the Princess as well as the Formal Dancian Delegation. You think you can take me and I doubt you can however I will not fight you."

"You won't fight me because you are afraid." smirked John.

"You won't fight me because you are afraid." smirked John.

"I won't stop you from believing it but then, I don't have to answer to the false witness against thy neighbor"

Xavier shook his head at Queen Mariah. "I assure you, preparations have been made. While it is inevitable REichskamphen will fall into factions, there are plans currently in operation that are preventing an all-out civil war."

Well, Siri, I'm glad you are supportive of these activities. Many others are not. Sometime we must speak of it later. Now, however, is not the time. Xavier sipped his drink, and then set it down when they started talking about cloning.

"No, no cloning. At all. Frankly, for military purposes, it would make sense -- you're looking for physical attributes. Cloning Napoleon doesn't mean the clone is going to be just like Napoleon. It is a pointless waste of time, and it makes the Empire look bad, considering it would make it seem like Reichskamphen isn't good enough for another suitable heir. Again, plans are in the works to find one. We have a few people in mind, and we're looking for them." I think he's still alive...

Xavier smiled in amusement at Thomas and John bickering at each other. Thank you much, Antonette he said, shooting a telepathic message to the CR King. Alexei, however, was not amused.

"Both of you, enough. We've already had one fight because of the FD Delegation and CR, we don't need another one because of the Corneliuian delegation and CR." Alexei sighed and continued to speak.

"Now, as to the FD delegation of sending my son as a ruler, I can accept this, and have thought about it myself. However, it will obviously be temporary. As the Veliky Kynaz has stated, preparations are being made." However, Alexei then shot a question at Xavier, telepathically. WHAT preparations are you talking about? Xavier didn't answer, as the ramp was opened, and a Dersconi Imperial Marshal climbed up the ramp, walked up to the desk, and saluted the two Dersconi royals.

"Veliky Grozny Kynaz Xavier, I have important news." Xavier looked up to the crowd. "Excuse us." Xavier and the field marshal walked to what they thought was out of ear shot and began conversing.

"Darii, what the hell are you doing?" Field Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov, Commander of II Corps, put his hand on the prince's shoulders.

"Everything is going to plan. I found the two REichskampheners."

"Two?"

"Yes, Volkner and Oberhausen." Xavier recoiled.

"What? Oberhausen is dead!" Darii smiled and shook his head.

"No, he isn't. He missed the flight to the yacht, and was just outside REichsburg at the blast. Unfortunately, he was knocked down and slammed in a coma. Right now, he's in the medical facilities in the Kremlin." Xavier nodded.

"Okay. Thanks. What else?" Darii smirked.

"Your brother, General Tarakh, has crossed over into REichskamphen. My II Corps, under his command, has so far exterminated two villiages sheltering Pax Maria and instituted military rule by Derscon. I'm currently getting SS divisions up there to make the land gained and burned villiages more secured."

"Any...less-than-conventio--" Darri cut Xavier off.

"No. No evidence of anything." Xavier nodded.

"Excellent." Darii let out a very sinister and quiet laugh and nodded.

"I thought I'd tell you personally. I'm heading out to the front now to take over command, so General Tarakh can make further advances into known Pax Marian territory. Thank that Golovko character for providing the necessary intelligence." He saluted the prince and walked back down the ramp, it closing behind him. Xavier walked back to the desk from the corner that was out of earshot from everyone and sat down.

"I apologize for that. However, two REichskampheners have been found, although one is currently incapacitated. I will go along with my Father in saying that I will go along. The other Reichskamphener who is not incapacitated has other things to worry about at the moment, however."

Father Marco said,"I wouldn't take it to that extreme. He is not false witnessing, but expressing a viewpoint." He smirked, "After all, you were saying that you could defeat others. How do we know that isn't false witnessing?" He shook his head, then John said, "I respect the tsars decision to shut up. Let's end this discussion right here."

Father Marco said,"I wouldn't take it to that extreme. He is not false witnessing, but expressing a viewpoint." He smirked, "After all, you were saying that you could defeat others. How do we know that isn't false witnessing?" He shook his head, then John said, "I respect the tsars decision to shut up. Let's end this discussion right here."

"Well father...I have about 200,000 soldiers who can verify what I said for they have seen me fight and take on others and defeated them. I also have an entire population who knows it to. On top of that my lord, I have the medals to prove it."

He turns to Xavier. "My lord, it is an honor to meet you. I am Jedi knight 2nd Class Thomas Server of the Armed Galactic Republic of Corneliu."

John said, "And I have probably just as many soldiers who have seen me fight personally, a fleet of sailors, heads of state, and toher governmental leaaders, and millions of viewers all across the empire who watched me duel Emperor Francis on GPNN, plus the tapes from that." Marco shot him a look, and John stopped. He said to Thomas, "Now, let's respect the Tsars wishes."

Xavier nodded in return. Xavier didn't like Thomas, if only because he reminded him of the Formal Dancian delegation. Plus, he was very arrogant because he was a Jedi Knight. He and Server seem more like Sith to me, Xavier thought.

"I would introduce myself, Thomas, but you already know who I am," the prince said, smirking, his eyes flashing red briefly. Xavier's powers increased exponentially when he was in the presence of his father, whose powers were unmatched by any mortal, and most non-mortals, because of...past events. As they were of the same bloodline, Xavier shared a connection with his father that also dealt with the telekinetics they shared. He sensed the power Thomas had, as well as Servers. However, he knew that they were no match for his father and himself. Why am I thinking about this? Xavier knew why, though. Any time Corneliu or Formal Dances showed up, the shit tried to or did hit the fan, and it was always because they tried to spark a fight. He wasn't concerned about himself and his father -- the two Andropovs could take them easily, due to Alexei's...spiritual connections -- but the others in the room couldn't necessarily do that. Although without their force powers, they were weak as always. Silly Jedi Xavier thought, laughing to himself. Relying too much on the Force. Strip it from them, and they are as worthless as a cockroach.

As you wish, young prince. I understand completely. There is a time and a place for such things, but now we must focus on that which is more important. Siri once more settled down onto the couch next to her husband. Feel free to summon me any time. You will find that I am a very patient person.

Ending with that, she began to sip her wine and watch the argument continuing between John and Thomas. She chuckled a little at the boasting of the Jedi Knight. Medals do not mean anything. One must prove himself in combat to gain the respect he deserves. On the other hand, one must not be too overconfident in his self, that will lead to a horrible downfall, she thought.

If they only knew what I really am... She smirked at that last thought and noted to herself that if this had been her homeland, the only way to settle it would have been a duel to the death. But, she knew that neither one would do such a thing right now and would most likely continue this dick-waving contest of theirs.

"Well father...I have about 200,000 soldiers who can verify what I said for they have seen me fight and take on others and defeated them. I also have an entire population who knows it to. On top of that my lord, I have the medals to prove it."

He turns to Xavier. "My lord, it is an honor to meet you. I am Jedi knight 2nd Class Thomas Server of the Armed Galactic Republic of Corneliu."

Queen Mariah smiled "So, Thomas ... what would little girly moi be in the Jedi Order or am I a Sith?". She did have force powers but they leaned towards the dark side and rarely used them unless necessary. She didn't adhere to the codes of the Jedi or Sith either.

*Imperial Cathedral, New Geneva*

"Marechal Brune, how go the preparations?" Rev. Graves enquired of the Military Commander of the city.

"Reverend, they are all in order. We are ready to withstand anything the Dersconi's throw against us. The Emperor designed this city to withstand almost any kind of assault and I dare say it may be the most heavily fortified city in all of the Empire."

"You forget, Marechal," Graves interrupted, "right now, New Geneva is all that is left of the Empire. Reichskamphen is overrun with those who have betrayed the crown, and all nations are gathering around the Dersconi's. What's worse, we are an Empire without an Emperor."

"Indeed, Reverend, and this is what I am here to speak to you about." Marechal Brune nodded to the Imperial Guardsman at the door of Peter Graves' office and immediately, he allowed three men into the room. The former mayor of Reichsburg, the mayor of New Geneva, and the former Arch Duke of Kaiserstadt. "In truth, that is what we are all here to speak to you about."

The Arch Duke, clad in the traditional Baroque attire of the Reichskamphian noble class, steped toward the Reverend's desk. "Reverend. I will be the first to tell you that I hated Napoleon. I hated everything he stood for. That is why I fought him...and that is why I am alive. I have been imprisoned for the last three years in Magdeburg at the Capitol Prison...stripped of my title and land. I am perhaps the only noble left in all of Reichskamphen with anything close to a legitimate claim. But I cannot rule. As much as I hate Napoleon, I love the Empire more...and my opposition to his rule, and his removal of my title makes me ineligable. I urge you Reverend to found here, in New Geneva, a Protectorate...with yourself as High Lord Protector.”

The Reverend sat back quietly, taken aback quite entirely by this line of inquiry. “Marechal Brune, would you not be the most suitable choice. It is well known that the Emperor groomed you from the beginning of your career to one day exercise much greater power.”

“No, Reverend Graves. I am not able to take the mantel now. I am a General, not a King…and I have no claim by blood. You sir, are the conscience of the nation. It is your face and voice that echo into every home in Reichskamphen. You speak as one who has authority, and you are the only one that the nation will rally around to throw off the Dersconi yoke.”

The Reverend looked pleadingly at the two Mayors, but they nodded their head in a grim accord.

“I shall need time to think…” The Reverend nervously muttered.

“You have no time!” Brune shouted. “Within another day, the Dersconis will be at the gates. Without a central authority, our armies and our defenses will collapse. You were trained by Ian Paisley, perhaps the only greater Emperor than our Napoleon…you are the only one that can save us.”

The tension in the room was palpable. Marechal Brune fixed his gaze on Peter Graves. “Yes. I’ll do it…” the Reverend sighed with resignation. “But I need to know honestly, how long can New Geneva hold out against a full blown assault?”

“The Sola Fide Division of the Guard and elements of the l’Empereur Division are here in the city along with 75,000 Royal Army troops. In addition to the permanent fortifications, we have built lines of trenches outside the city for miles….and the air defense is air tight. This city…with a leader…will hold for atleast a month…a conservative estimate.”

“Very well…do what you must do…and I will do what I must.” Graves sighed.

*Let the Bible Speak Syndicated Broadcast, Live from the Imperial Cathedral, New Geneva*

The strains of “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” the National Anthem of Greater Prussia, played loudly on the Cathedral’s enormous Organ. The camera then zoomed in on the stone faced Peter Graves standing in the towering pulpit.

“Before I deliver my Sermon this Lord’s day…I believe it is only prudent to inform you, the Congregation and the Church at New Geneva…as well as the People of the Empire of what has taken place within the last few hours. If you do not already know, I have been approached by the commanders of New Geneva and the remaining authorities in the Kingdom. They have asked me to establish a Protectorate in New Geneva with myself as High Lord Protector. After much tribulation, I have assented to their wishes. One hour ago, I declared the Protectorate in a document that will be issued shortly. I ask for your prayers that God may grant me wisdom and strength to guide this city and to withstand whatever assault may come at its gates either from armies or from the works of Satan.”

Johns cell phone rang. He flipped it open, and a CRUNN report came on. He watched, holding in between himself an Marco. Marco gasped, "Reverand Graves named himself Lordprotector of New Geneva! He is also praying for protection of any assault on the city, or from the works on Satan! I hope he isn't another Cromwell." John Antonette looked at Alexei, "Tsar," he said, using his title in meetings like these, "What assaults is he talking about. Are they rebels, or someone else?" He looked him in the eye, and said, "Alexei, do you know anything about internal matters going on in Reichskamphen?"

Thomas looked over at them. "Ya know....they much do not like Dersconi personnel on their soil. I'm sure they are gathering armies to defeat not just Czar Andropov's forces but all of our forces."

He looked over at his father. "Sir, I request permission to be placed incharge of all Corneliuan forces in the region to guard against such a thing and to assist in bringing security to said nation."

Erica gasped and looked hesitantly at John. He looked at his son then placed a hand on his shoulder. "Very well my son. Permission granted. Because of this request, you will be given the proper ranked, General of the Army Server."

He turned to his mother and bowed before her. Erica curtsied to him and said. "Be well my son. Do your country and Great Prussia proud."

ooc: Right now, theres no way out of the office. Also, we do not know about the Dersconi invasion yet.

ooc: Right now, theres no way out of the office. Also, we do not know about the Dersconi invasion yet.

Doesn't matter. Standard Operating Procedures of anykind is to prepare for an invasion using whatever means you can muster. Any person who knows military tactics knows that.

ooc: You said they were mustering troops to repel the Tsars troops. I thoguht you meant that you knew of the Dersconi invasion already.

ooc: You said they were mustering troops to repel the Tsars troops. I thoguht you meant that you knew of the Dersconi invasion already.

"I'm sure they are gathering armies to defeat not just Czar Andropov's forces but all of our forces."

I didn't say that they were. I said I'm sure they were. There's a difference. Saying that they were means I know saying I'm sure they are means they probably are but not 100% sure.

ooc: "Thomas looked over at them. "Ya know....they much do not like Dersconi personnel on their soil. " Theres where the misconception came from.

ooc: "Thomas looked over at them. "Ya know....they much do not like Dersconi personnel on their soil. " Theres where the misconception came from.

Would you like foreign troops on your soil regardless if they are allies or not?

ooc: That is IT. You DO NOT KNOW about Dersconi forces yet.

ooc: That is IT. You DO NOT KNOW about Dersconi forces yet.

No I do not know but it would be COMMON SENSE that they will not like foreign troops on their soil. At least some of those elements won't. Use some Common Sense C.R.

"Alexi, Xavier. Our Black Knight soldiers are very experienced in the warfare this situation would require," Kenshin said. "If you could pinpoint any leaders, we could have them dead in hours, possibly minutes with forward deployment, and take them out from roughly two miles with one bullet. It would wreak havoc. Besides, it'll save precious lives."

OOC: Corneliu, CR, bitch in AIM, not my thread.

Also, Corneliu, CR is right in this case. Thomas has spoken as if he knew of Dersconi actions in Reichskamphen, which is impossible. It's not a matter of them liking it or not, it's a matter of you knowing that they're there in the first place for them to not like. I ask you edit that out. For now, I'll just look over it.

Xavier and Alexei watched the broadcast on one of the computer monitors on the desk. "Graves doesn't have the athourity to do such a thing. I, as Arch-Chancellor, have complete and unquestioned athourity in all Imperial matters. But why would he do such a thing?" Xavier shrugged.

"Well, another thing that Darii told me was that the Pax Maria slaughtered some border Reichskamphen towns. That's probably what they're defending against." Alexei nodded.

"Probably." When John asked him the question, Alexei shook his head, seemingly confused.

"No, unfortunately. You're just as much in the dark as I am. You eyed me suspiciously, though. Why?" Alexei let this question hang in the air to sink in. It carried the weight of someone not about to tolerate dissent. Xavier simply leaned back in the chair. Hmm. Xavier looked over at Shogun Kenshin.

"The problem, Shogun, is that we don't quite know who the leaders are to assassinate."

It is common sense Derscon. If ya don't like the fact that common sense was used...to damn bad.

OOC: All yall shut up! See...you made me pull an "all yall". I don't like having to do that more than once a day! I will post shortly.

*Outskirts of New Geneva*

It had been raining all day. Mud clogged a great number of the approaches to New Geneva. Of course, it was nothing any tracked vehicle couldn’t handle. If one listened above the noise of tank engines and loud conversation, one could hear the heavy rain beating on the tent city inside the series of walls, ditches, and trenches that had become known as Fort Paisley. Inside the wall, 2,000 soldiers from the lst Mechanized Brigade of the l’Empereur Division of the Imperial Guard were waiting for the onslaught. They sharpened their bayonets and told dirty stories while meticulously keeping the moisture out of their guns. It had only been a day ago that a SpecOps Recon unit from Sola Fide had returned from the border to report the fighting between the Pax Maria and the Dersconi troops that had made their way across the border. It was truly not known how fast they were approaching, but it was clear that they wished to assert authority over the Kingdom…this was something the troops inside New Geneva would have none of.

“Hey, Sarge, you hear about Graves?”

“Yea. Now watch the road.”

Two soldiers stood outside the semi paved approaches to Fort Paisley. There was no cover from the elements, so they wore large olive drab ponchos over their uniforms and stood guard to ensure the safety of the fort.

Pvt. Samuel Adler wiped the beads of rain intermingled with sweat from his face. He looked at his hand to find it covered in the red silt that was being washed from his face. ‘At least now I’ll get a shower’ he thought. All morning he had been mulling over the new politics of the Empire in his head. He was trained to fight for the Emperor, he was the best of the best selected for the Emperor’s own personal unit of the Guard…and now there was no Emperor…at least not in New Geneva.

Adler looked around to ensure that no one was within earshot, his lips trembled with a question that he knew he shouldn’t ask, but had to be voiced. “Sarge…Sargeant…Sir…may I ask a question?”

Sargeant Joseph De Lisle realized that his young private could not be silenced. “Speak.” De Lisle said gruffly.

“Well, Sir…If we are the Imperial Guard…why are we fighting for a Lord Protector? I mean, there is an Emperor in Derscon. Why aren’t we fighting for the Czar…restore unity?”

“Private. I’ve fought for Napoleon in three campaigns. I’ve followed him all over the world…and I would still follow him if he rose from the dead today. Napoleon is the Empire…no matter if he’s dead. The only true Emperor will be the one who picks up our Emperor’s banner now that he is fallen, and continues to march onward with it. The Czar is no Napoleon. I don’t want a Reichskamphen ruled by dark, paranoid, schizophrenic Kings. The Czar has shown us his true mettle by sending his forces across our borders. This would be an act of war in any other circumstance…and it is clear that the only thing he wants is his own advancement.

I, along with every other man in the Army was perfectly ready to serve the Czar as Napoleon’s successor, and we stood and fought here in New Geneva against the anarchy that had arisen in other places on the orders of the Czar and our Marechal. Marechal Brune saw it first, but then we all saw it…that our presence in New Geneva was not going to be one that ensured security, but one that provided leverage for the Czar to institute his own regime here and place his own relatives on the throne. The only protection this country has against the Czar now…is us…is Dr. Graves…is Marechal Brune. And until the rightful Emperor asserts himself, the only temporal authority I will follow will be that of our High Lord Protector”

*Jagerburg; (Medium Sized City) 45 mins North of New Geneva, 30 mins South of Dersconi front lines. *

The 4th and 5th Mechanized Brigades of the Sola Fide Division had been advancing steadily since their hastily ordered departure from New Geneva. They were now at the outskirts of Jagerburg, and could clearly see the columns of smoke that were rising up from the Eastern district of town where reports indicated there was heavy fighting between local militia and Pax Maria guerillas that had attempted to assert control over the city. At best estimate, one fourth of the city was under Pax Maria control and their grip was widening greatly as the numbers of the defending militia plummeted.

The Royal Army units that were accompanying the Mechanized Brigades had gotten delayed by the mud, but were to be arriving within the half hour. Nevertheless, the orders from Marechal Brune stood: Procede into the town as quickly as possible and eliminate all resistance as quickly as possible.

The order was given to advance and the tanks rolled forward along with the armoured troop carriers. This would be one hell of a fireworks display.

John Antonette said, "I'm sorry Alexei. I'm just used to you knowing what the hell's going on." He shot him his classic smirk, "I don't like these rebel's infringing on how we like things done. Alexei, as you know, most generals don't agree on anything. Because of that, I am sending the man who will skip over general completely and become a Burgundian marechal. I still give those out in honor of the former kingdom."
He nodded at the priest, who held one of John's envelopes, just one, in his briefcase. John opened it, and annoucned, "Colonel Charles Orleans of the Ridgian Army. Commander of the Royal Vendees, named in honor of the French counterrevolutionaries. A lot of experiance, great man. I'm sending the Royal Vendee when you order us to send troops in. I hope its soon." He then thought and said, "You should get that drunk," he stopped and corrected himself, suppressing a laugh, "ah, Prince John, to corronate you emperor in a private,t aped ceremony, to assert your authority over the rest of the empire, as a show of force. Then send the tapes to GPNN."

Alexei stepped up to the desk, towering over the group, leaning over on the ledge.

"To coronate myself in private would be a dis-service to the Empire. Wait, Kenshin, I do have a job for you." He looked over at the Shogun.

"Send your special ops teams into the cities, and find some things of the Napoleon dynasty. I don't know what, but find them. Actually..." Alexei's voice trailed off, the Tsar going off into deep thought.

Xavier, on the other hand, was looking at one of the monitors, which was a satellite display of The Reichskamphen border, and the location of II Corps. Damnit, they're mobilizing New Geneva. Who's in charge there...? He did a bit of searching in the databanks, and pulled up a few names. Excellent. He grabbed the names and contact points and started typing up a letter.

TO: Marechal Brune; Reverend Graves
FROM: Office of the Arch-Chancellor and Tsar, acting Emperor
Subj: Misconceptions

Dear Marechal and Reverend,

It seems there are some great misconceptions that seem to be occuring at this moment, which help no one, so I have written this letter to help clear things up.

Obviously, these defences you are preparing are because of Dersconi military forces crossing the border into Reichskamphen. Your paranoia is completely understood, as you were not warned earlier. This is the main reason I have contacted you.

These incursions are to help stabilize the southern portion of Reichskamphen before things fall apart. The Southern portion of Reichskamphen, as you know, is basically controlled by the Pax Maria, who are no friend to the Empire, as my grand-father and our late Emperor Napoleon were well aware of. I ordered these forces over the border to stop the Pax Maria and the renegade militant Romanists before they could start a full-scale civil war. We are fighting on the same side, against the Pax Maria, against the Anarchists. Please do not forget this. I apologize if our reasons may seem devious, but I assure you they are not. In fact, I invite you to the Kremlin to discuss these events with not only myself, but some other members of the Prussian leadership, as well as military forces of the Imperial Guard, and the Dersconi Imperial Military.

I also greatly encourage you to come to the Kremlin to discuss this with the Prussian members, as most of them see you as traitors and not the patriotic Prussians I know you are. My word is not good enough -- coming here and explaining your intentions and your misconceptions to them would be beneficial to all of us.

I hope you both accept my offer, so that we may fight against the Romanist and Anarchist threats together, instead of fighting amongst ourselves because of a few miscommunications.

I assure you Derscon means no harm.

Veliky Kynaz Xavier Tsarevich Andropov

Xavier looked at the letter, nodded, and sent it off electronically to the two New Genevian rebels. Xavier, in one show of mercy (never to be seen again), gave them the benefit of the doubt this one time. If they turn this down, Xavier thought. Then I will know their intentions are hostile.

Alexei broke his concentration and caught a glimpse of the monitor, skimming the letter -- not catching a lot of it -- but then seeing the satellite displays. He shrugged, thinking it was just the military exersizes Xavier was carrying out. Alexei wasn't familiar enough with that territory to know that the troops were deep into Reichskamphen territory.

Alexei looked at the people in front of him. "I encourage all of you to begin mobilizing special forces units to entre into the heart of Reichskamphen. I don't want any hot spots erupting in the middle of the country."

"What about those New Genevians?" Xavier asked his father. "They seem against your athourity. Almost...traitors." Alexei shot a glance at Xavier, curious at first, but then nodding, trusting his son's judgement.

"You may be right, but let's not jump to conclusions. Invading the Imperial capital, or Reichskamphen itself, is not a good idea. It may turn people against us." Xavier nodded, keeping his thoughts hidden.

"Of course."

"Of course. I shall order them to scoure every imperial property or other likely areas like banks. If it appears to be from Napoleon, they'll grab it," Kenshin said. "What is the importance of secrecy and stealth for this?"

"Okay," Alexei responded. "Just make sure people know you're acting on the Empire's behalf, not PsiPso's."

"The importance of stealth," Xavier said, answering this question. "Is the fact that some might not take too kindly to foreign troops intervening without an open announcment from the Emperor. Remember, Alexei has not come out and said anything yet. Doesn't matter that they are in a state of perpetual anarchy -- they wouldn't appreciate it. Actually, dad, if you don't mind me suggesting..." Xavier turned around in the chair to face the Tsar.

"I would suggest you go public with some of out intentions. Make it seem like it wasn't ordered yet, but go public. We don't want anyone thinking we're hostile, after all."

John Antonette flipped his phone open again, and speed dialed Orlean's number. He told him to get to the Kremlin.
---
Colonel Charles Orlean stepped on board a Royal Flight. He wore a pure white uniform. He carefully stepped on board the place. When it (cautiously) entered Dersconi airspace, they radioed in, Plane carrying Ridgian Colonel Charles orlean, requesting permission to land..

ooc: If its ok with you, we can assume he is already in the palce meeting with Darii. Just say he was escorted to Darii.

Count Papen, who was observing the entire thing, stood up. "Alexei, I can go make an address right now, if you'd like." Alexei nodded.

"Yes, Franz, please do." The Foreign Minister stood up and slowly walked toward the now opened ramp. I'm getting too old for this. As the ramp was closing, Xavier sent out a coded message to the Imperial Guard troops -- assured of their loyalty to the Arch-Chancellor -- in the remains of Reichsburg.

Have you obtained the items from the vaults
in Reichsburg? If so, bring them to the attached
coordinates. There will be a helicoptor to pick you up.

"Now," Alexei said, taking control from his son, who was pre-occupied with the computer at the moment. "What I have noticed in the past with Imperial Activity is that, well, there isn't any. Now, what I have been speaking with my good friend Kazansky, whom some of you may know, and he and I have decided that a reform of the Imperial government is called for. The purpose of this is to increase unity within the Empire, which is badly needed, as well as to get more nations active within the Empire itself. A stagnant Empire is what caused us to nearly collapse.

"Now, to calm all of your fears," Alexei said, smiling and looking mostly at Antonette. "I was not thinking of democracy in the sense that a democratic government would replace the existing structure.

"Now, with this in mind, does anyone have any suggestions? I would like your opinions also, to go along with what Kazansky and I have discussed.
_________________________________________
_________________________________________

Kremlin Square, RAMC

The vehicle carrying Colonel Orleans drove up to the Andropov Tower and let the colonel out, where he was met by a colonel in the Soli Deo Gloria Division of the Imperial Guard, a colonel who's uniform marked him as a member of Darii's staff, and two Honour Guards.

"Welcome to Derscon, Colonel," the staff member said in greeting. "Follow me." It was dark out, but if you were in the Star Office and looking down at the Square, you could see the group entre the Kremlin Palace, the massive doors slamming shut behind them.

Eventually, the Honour Guards led them into the lounge, where a man in full military dress was waiting for them. The guards then immediately left, and the officer turned around.

"Good evening. Please, sit down." As they did so, he had a staff officer bring them all drinks.

"In case you did not know, I am General Kynaz Tarakh Alexeitovich Andropov. Marshal Darii is currently on duty with his troops.

"We are here to discuss operations within Reichskamphen. Now, tell me, how are your troops?"

Queen Mariah rang up Inquisitor Janus
"Hey hot stuff, you know that Team Pete we created? It's time we used those guys. Reichskamphen needs special forces now, and I hope Team Pele are ready."

Janus "They've been on standby since that Nuke went off. They will be ready to deploy in 24 hours when we get the Team Pele reserves out of their assigned Imperial Guard duties"

She replied "Good, good. I want all them to be in Reichskamphen under the command of the Greater Prussian command under the Emperor's assigned commanders as soon as possible. In form the Minister of Defense of this too as he has vested interest in their success."

Janus said "No problems. All we have to do is get our heavy equipment ready to transport."

...

A swarm of Jeruselem's Apache Long Bow helicopters swarmed towards a desert area south of Jeruselem. A suspicious camp had been spotted and the army wanted to take no risks.

The camp occupants were completing packing up, they were local Nazis and Anarchists who banded to together for survival. They had to constantly move posing as local traders and the groups were small to stop arousing suspicion. They kept quiet and it was now they could strike but they had to stay undetected.

The small fleet of 4WDs started moving towards a small town when "locusts" turned up. The cars drove at full speed with men firing machine guns mounted on the top trying to shoot down the helicopters.

The battle was one-sided as the cars got hit by missiles and chain-gun fire leaving burning wrecks in the desert. Then these were chain-gunned again to leave no prospect of survivors.

John Antonette voiced his opinion, "I say keep the same general form, but instead of many different departments subordinate to the crown directy, set up different departments. For example, a section for Foriegn Affairs, a section for defence, and a section for internal affairs. Have all interna' departments under the director, who reports to the Emperor, instead of the dorector of every single department reporting to him, and the same for the rest of the groups."
--------
"Nice to meet you, General Andropov. A famous name." he smirked. "My forces would be the Ridgian element within Reichskamphen. The Vendee are simply well prepared and the best large group in the Ridgian army. So far, we have not lost a single battle since foundation, and usually completely overwhelm our enemies. They are ready to go at the moment. With permission, General, they would cross the Dersconi-Reichskamphen bored, and take the border towns that either north or south of where you will take. Then, they will move to the center, and eventually, if necessary, help wrench New Geneva from that hyper-Calvinist. They would be in Derscon no more than an hour at most, but probably even less."

Kenshin nodded. "The Black Knights will operate with the utmost effeciency and secrecy. They'll move at night and be completely unseen. If it's there, they'll grab it. They'll search the remains of all Imperial Buildings in the remains of the capitol, and fan out from there."
===========================================

In the silence of the night, five Pave Low 4 special operations helicopters flew swiftly out of the Shogunate and across to Reichskamphen. Within each helicopter was ten men, dressed from head to toe in solid black. Over each back, a small haversack, grappling hook, and rifle was slung, all black. The small swatch of exposed skin around the eyes was painted a non-reflective black. The exterior of the chopper's hull was also a non-reflective black. It bore no identification markings and no regalia. They flew together in a flying "V" formation, 150 feet over the ground, noise dampeners on their engines keeping noise way down.

Utilizing a radar detection system that displayed radar sweeps as bubbles on terrain maps, the choppers evaded all air radar systems, flying swiftly into the destroyed capitol. Each helicopter went into a hover above five different blown-out buildings around the center. Swiftly, each team dropped two ropes out the back loading ramps, and fast-roped into the ruins. A drop supervisor kicked out the ropes and shut the ramps. Each copter flew off toward preselected forests outside the destroyed city. Where they were hidden with meticulous care.

Team Alpha had been dropped into a blown-out house, landing on a fragile second floor, holes abounding. As the fastropes dropped hit the floor, part of it gave way, two of the soldiers dropping to the floor below with it. The remaining soldiers dropped silently through other holes and stood over their comrades, both relatively unhurt. Silently, they exited the house and leapfrogged through alleys to where the imperial palace once stood. Hiding in the shadows, the leader unslung his rifle, assembled the barrel, uncapped the scope, and gazed down it to asses the situation.

The other four teams did the same, each descending on a different target.

OOC: I'm really not motivated to post. I probably won't get one up tomorrow, either, as Finals are Tuesday and Wednesday, and I need to study (for once).

Study....riiiight....

*Irradiated Ruins of Reichsburg*

Two hours after the troops had descended into the underground vaults in Reichsburg, they had returned to the surface with only one of their several lead lined bags containing anything.

"Colonel," the commander of the expedition reported to his superior officer, "It's gone. Everything is gone. The Crown Jewels and the gold and the jewels...it's all gone."

"Did you bring the box?"

"We didn't find a box."

"Was there a pedestal on which the jewels would have sat?" the Colonel enquired.

"Yes sir, a big black one. It was relatively large, Sir."

"Good, then the jewels aren't gone." the Colonel sighed a great sigh of relief, "The Pedestal is the container. I need you to bring it up."

The commander looked at him quizzically. "Are you telling me that the Emperor would make two copies of the crown jewels....you know how much that would cost?"

"You see why he did it now too, don't you. If we can build spaceships...we can make little gold trinkets...now quit thinking and do what I tell you...get the box, seal the hatch, put the cobblestones back, and lets get out of here."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

*Jagerburg*

It had been 5 hours since New Genevan forces had deployed in Jagerburg, and already, there had been over 7,000 casualties, mostly Pax Maria. Whereas the Pax Maria had the crippled and isolated Royal Army units outgunned, they couldn't match the power of the Imperial Guard.

The Mechanized units of the Guard had arrived to find the Pax Maria busily fighting off a city wide counter attack from the Royalist forces...with some success it might be added. The bodies of Royal Army officers were piled upon the stone and steel barricades that had been hastily errected in the streets from the rubble of burned out buildings, and the baricades bristled with the machinegun nests and the bayonets of the infamous, black uniformed, Pax Maria militia. With the arrival of the Genevan troops, though, the tides turned heavily against the Pax Maria as they slowly began to lose every foothold they had.

Lucien Caullaincourt had seen many things during his years of service to the Empire, but never anything like this. Stray limbs were strewn about in abundance and in light of the whole carnage, were generally disregarded as one disregards a common leaf under one's foot. He strolled calmly down the streets of the now wrecked German Quarter taking note of the cascades of rubbled concrete that blocked the streets for miles. As the sun was beginning its downward arc in the sky, he could see the light glinting off of the plentiful shards of broken glass that covered everything. The crackle of gunfire was still audible in the distance, but this stretch of town was firmly secure. The smoldering remains of two Imperial Guard tanks lodged firmly into the piles of stone and concrete illustrated all too clearly the cost of recapturing this land.

"Captain Caullaincourt!"

The words snapped him out of his thoughts. "Yes, Sargeant."

"Two Privates from Charlie Company found something you may want to have a look at."

"Tell them I will be coming directly." Caullaincourt saluted the old soldier, whose graying hair was obscured by the profusity of dried blood and grit caked all over his face and head. The Sargeant jumped quickly and ran down what a bent sign on the corner referred to as "Kaiserstrasse". Caullaincourt followed along at his own pace, surveying further the carnage before him. As he walked, he recalled the words of Robert E. Lee from the field of Fredericksburg, "It is well that war is so terrible, else I fear I would love it too much."

Shortly, he came upon a group of soldiers standing in a very tight group, their gaze fixed to the ground. Captain Caullaincourt quickly moved a few men aside and stepped in to have a look for himself. Before him, he saw the body of Johannes Mengel, the butcher of Kamphstadt. During the reign of Andre Allistaire von Katrineburg, he was the man who directed the burning of several churches and the violent suppression of religion accross the country, most markedly in his base town of Kamphstadt where he reputedly slaughtered an entire congregation of Baptists on suspicion of resistance to Imperial rule. He was one of the original Pax Maria big wigs. Even his uniform appeared to be vintage, or atleast a copy of an original. On the thin arm band near his shoulder, in golden block lettering were the words, "Andre-Allistaire I, Emp. et Roi"

Finally, Caullaincourt looked up to see the jaws of his men still agape. "Soldiers!" he shouted. Immediately, their all came to attention. "I want you to decapitate the body, and mount his head on a pike on the battlements of the fort. Then, hang his body up by his feet and let the vultures pick at him!"

The men eyed the ancient walls of Fort Jager, preserved in the centre of the city, upon which they were to place the head of the criminal. Today justice would be done. Within two hours, it was expected that word would be sent back to New Geneva that the entirity of Jagerburg is secure. All that remained realistically were a few hold outs on the outskirts of the city, and one realtively strong pocket of resistance in the industrial quarter that had been completely surrounded by Imperial and Royal troops.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

*New Geneva; Imperial Cathedral*

"Marechal Brune!" a pink faced private burst into the office of Dr. Graves where he and the Marechal were in consultation. "Word from Jagerburg, the city will be ours before nightfall...and the body of Johannes Mengel was discovered by our troops as they advanced"

"Excellent!" the marechal cried out. "Keep me updated...and next time knock."

As the the now doubly pink faced private slinked out of the office, Brune turned to Graves once more. "This Czar...I don't know if we can trust him. He may make any claim he wants about his intentions, but his actions are clearly manifest and clearly illeagal."

"Are they any more illeagal than ours, Marechal Brune?" Graves asked in a very fatherly tone...quickly adjusting to his new role as High Lord Protector. "We just heard word from Jagerburg that our fight against the Pax Maria is going well. If the Czar is fighting the Pax Maria, then he is doing it in the best interests of the Empire, and as Emperor has the authority to do so."

"That Dersconi..." Brune stoped short of cursing, "...man is not MY Emperor. He is no Napoleon, and he has no right to my Emperor's throne!"

"Marechal. We have many resources on which to draw in New Geneva. He has the whole of the Empire...and every civilized government in Greater Prussia recognizes him as the Emperor." Graves sat back in his chair, noting well the anger that was almost pouring out of the Marechal's eyes. "I no more like him than you do." He added reassuringly, "But for the sake of peace...the Eagle must fly over this land, even if it is owned by a Dersconi. The best we can do is expand our grip on the land as much as we possibly can without the help of others, establish our New Genevan government as the national government of Reichskamphen. From this city we have access to all the services and utilities in Reichskamphen. We need to restore the infrastructure, and quell the unrest. If we send out a rallying call to every unit of the armed forces that is still operating, we may be able to coordinate the restoration of peace. But for now, we recognize the Czar...for Napoleon's sake we will let peace rule the day."
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To: The Illustrious Czar of Derscon, Emperor of Greater Prussia
From: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves, High Lord Protector of New Geneva and all outlieing lands.

Your Highness,

It is not the intention of the government at New Geneva to stand in opposition to Imperial rule. However, the troops in our garrison are being deployed presently to quell the unrest in the rest of this province and the provinces neighbouring us to the west and south. Part of the unrest in the province in the south is due to an incursion of Dersconi troops accross the border which has caused not only Pax Maria, but regular Reichskamphian citizens to fight against your troops and their would be brothers in arms.

I would respectfully and politely request that you either withdraw your troops across the boarder, or make their strategy and plan known and available to myself and Marechal Brune that we may better coordinate in the restoration of order to the Kingdom.

Your Humble Servant,

Peter Graves.

*30 miles South of Jagerburg, 11:53PM*

By 9:30PM Jagerburg had been secured by the Genevan forces. It was known that some of the Pax Maria had escaped into the countryside; retreated to their traditional holdouts in small hamlets and towns, there to ride out the storm which they hoped would pass them by. Therefore, at around 10:30, three of the four mechanized divisions that had arrived earlier in the day quickly reorganized themselves to the best of their ability and hurriedly made their way south. One division headed into the countryside along with 7,000 battle hardened Royal Army troops while the other two headed straight for the border, backed up by nearly the full compliment of Infantry. The Mechanized division left behind was sufficient to garrison Jagerburg, and every man was needed. When the foot infantry finally caught up with the Mechanized divisions, there would be upwards of 30,000 troops standing ready for battle.

Marechal Brune realized very early on that this Dersconi incursion was likely to grow rapidly no matter what assurances were had from the Czar. The only option was to capture as much of the territory infront of the Dersconis as he could. They surely wouldn’t attack his forces, and this would hopefully bottle up the incursion. With communications to all government institutions being restored bit by bit back in New Geneva, the tables were heavily turned in Brune’s favour. Police Stations all over the southern provinces were now reporting in as well as army bases. Naturally, some stations and bases did not answer, either because they were abandoned or destroyed, and a number of them were under siege…but now they knew they were not alone…and the Genevans knew exactly what moves to make.

As the New Genevan Armies proceded, they were greeted as conquering heros by the people of the towns they passed through. If there was resistance, it was usually in the form of a besieged police station or small pocket of Pax Maria. These forces were usually quickly dislodged and a couple platoons of infantry were left behind to mop up and facilitate the quick passage of the rest of the Army.

Within 30 minutes, the New Genevan Armies of the Protectorate would be face to face with the Imperial Armies of Derscon. The only thing that remained to be seen was who would blink first.

Elsewhere in Reichskamphen, as communications were restored, city after city turned to the New Genevan Protectorate for Protection against their numerous foes and as such recognized the Graves government as the legitimate governing force in Reichskamphen and the Czar of Derscon as the Emperor of Greater Prussia.

NORTHERN REICHSKAMPHEN

Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov was finally at the front of the stalled Dersconi II Corps, his staff out with him.

"Sir, since Tarakh left, we've made no progress, on your orders." Darii nodded.

"Good. What about the Genevans?"

"Sir, if you look at the display, they're closing in on us." Darii smiled.

"Planning to attack?" The chief of staff, a major general, shrugged.

"Looks like it." The Field Marshal simply grunted.

"Fine. Make it seem like we don't notice. It's a good thing the Tsar never shared with the Reichskampheners our Global Battlefield Superiority Array." He smirked at the display. "They'll never know what hit them." Darii began looking over the other displays of Dersconi troops and area covered.

"The land we occupy, what's it like?" The MSS agent present answered.

"Well, Marshal, some of the towns welcomed us, as they realized we were hear to liberate them from the Pax Maria. However, the towns that resisted were destroyed." Darii nodded.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, sir, some towns we entered, the entire populus fired against us. We pulled out, and then carpet bombed the towns, and went in and killed the rest of the traitors." Darii bit his lip, thinking about what he just said. That includes women and children. The Field Marshal let out a long sigh and turned to his generals.

"Continue to move forward. We will not let the Genevans cut us off!"

As such, Darii called back to the Rodina for secondary troops and supplies and in a few hours, Third Division, commanded by General Karaka Rakhamov, one of the fiercest in the Dersconi Army.
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________

Star Office

Xavier was looking over the response of Graves, and wrote up a letter as his father was speaking.

"This is close to what Kazansky and I have come up with. Any other suggestions?" Alexei was starting to worry about what his son was doing. He's deep in concentration, the Tsar thought.

To: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves
From: Office of the Emperor and Arch-Chancellor, Tsar of Derscon
Subj: Re: Re: Misconceptions

I am glad to hear that you are not mobilizing against Dersconi troops. While it is unfortunate that Reichskampheners are being killed, they should understand that we are not there to be imperailists, but to be liberators.

Dersconi troops are not currently in the position to withdraw, however. It is known to me that Marechal Brune is taking aggressive measures against our troops. It is advised that these actions stop. Instead, I propose that the Marechal send a message to Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov, the Dersconi field commander in Reichskamphen. That way, the two field commanders can coordinate their efforts and better remove the threat of the Pax Maria and the anarchists, than instead fighting amongst themselves. Also, it will cut down on civilian deaths.

Thank you for responding.

Veliky Kynaz Xavier Tsarevich Andropov

_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
ANDROPOV TOWER, RAMC

Deep within the catacombs of the tower, two cloaked beings walked up and down the isles, watching and guarding the bodies of the Tsars of Derscon, with at the end the body of Ivan the Great -- still in the condition it was upon death some three thousand years ago -- lieing in a glass coffin.

Eventually, they got to the more modern Tsars, overlooking the coffins of Rekjyavich Ivan Andropov II, and Rekjyavich Ivan Andropov III. The one stopped, curious, and called the other one over.

"What is it?"

"Look." THe other one looked around a bit, and stepped back.

"There's only one space left." They looked at the last empty space in the catacombs, and then at the tomb of Ivan the Great, and back again. They then glanced at each other.

"Soon, my friend, soon everything will be fullfilled and he will return. Come, we must inform the elders." With that, they left the catacombs, their cloaks fluttering behind them. If one looked closely as they left the tower and then the city, you could notice a faint outline of a dragon on their inner robes, remarkably like the dragons on Alexei's armour...

OOC: Derscon, TG

IC: To: The Czar of Derscon, Emperor of Greater Prussia.
From: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves, High Lord Protector of Reichskamphen and New Geneva

Your Highness,

The Illustrious Lord Marechal Brune has refused to comply with your requests without your governments reciprocation in kind. We agree that it is best to establish a line of contact...but until such time as you see fit to fully divulge your plans and aims within our country, we cannot in good conscience divulge ours. And until such time as we have this assurance of your aims and intentions, we can in no wise order our troops to stand down as our ultimate goal is to Protect New Geneva and Reichskamphen beyond anything else.

Furthermore, our compliance on any level cannot take place until atleast 1/2 of Dersconi forces are withdrawn across the border as a sign of good will. Until such times, the orders that we have given to our troops stand and will be carried out. We would certainly discourage you from attacking, destroying, occupying, or detaining any property or personell of the New Genevan and Reichskamphian Government. Such actions will be seen as an act of war.

-Rev. Dr. Peter Graves.
High Lord Protector of New Geneva and Reichskamphen
Head Pastor, Imperial Cathedral
Moderator, Free Presbyterian Church of Greater Prussia

-Alexandre Brune,
Chief Marechal de l'Empire
Supreme Commander, Armed Forces of New Geneva

OOC: Derscon, TG

IC: To: The Czar of Derscon, Emperor of Greater Prussia.
From: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves, High Lord Protector of Reichskamphen and New Geneva

Your Highness,

The Illustrious Lord Marechal Brune has refused to comply with your requests without your governments reciprocation in kind. We agree that it is best to establish a line of contact...but until such time as you see fit to fully divulge your plans and aims within our country, we cannot in good conscience divulge ours. And until such time as we have this assurance of your aims and intentions, we can in no wise order our troops to stand down as our ultimate goal is to Protect New Geneva and Reichskamphen beyond anything else.

Furthermore, our compliance on any level cannot take place until atleast 1/2 of Dersconi forces are withdrawn across the border as a sign of good will. Until such times, the orders that we have given to our troops stand and will be carried out. We would certainly discourage you from attacking, destroying, occupying, or detaining any property or personell of the New Genevan and Reichskamphian Government. Such actions will be seen as an act of war.

-Rev. Dr. Peter Graves.
High Lord Protector of New Geneva and Reichskamphen
Head Pastor, Imperial Cathedral
Moderator, Free Presbyterian Church of Greater Prussia

-Alexandre Brune,
Chief Marechal de l'Empire
Supreme Commander, Armed Forces of New Geneva

OOC: What telegramme?

*New Geneva; Parliamentary Palace*

The Governmental District of New Geneva, designed to be the hub of the entire Greater Prussian Empire...was little more than partially occupied. The Imperial Treasury building was essentially vacant, along with the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of the Interior. The Elaborate Greek Revival building that rivaled Solomon's temple in Grandure, designed to be the International Headquarters of the Imperial Guard and the Gendarmes only had a few occupants on its first floor. The only building more vacant was the even more grandiose Parliamentary Palace. The only structure Higher than the monolithic dome of the Palace was the Skyscraper-like Spire of the New Geneva Cathedral which was even taller than the old Imperial Tower was in Reichsburg...perhaps the tallest in all the Empire.

The Symbolism was very clear. The Church and Christ the King above all things in all lands...and then the Imperial Government...all branches of which were to be run out of the Parliamentary Palace with the Imperial Palace North of the City only serving as a Versailles-like Residence for the Emperor and his ever-expanding court.

Beneath the dome of the Parliamentary Palace, history was taking place. The Parliamentary Hall, which was basically a small stadium within the great building, was playing host to the reconvening of the Reichskamphian Parliament instead of the Imperial Senate and the Imperial Estates General which it was supposed to facilitate.

Only 32 men took their positions in the Senate Chambers, but they represented a good percentage of the 35% of Reichskamphen which had rallied to New Geneva...with the obvious exceptions of those cities who could not safely send Senators due to their distance from the City and the danger of travelling.

Finally, the systems in the government were coming back online.

Communications were being restored all over the Kingdom thanks to the nationalized Communications Company that ran most everything and the almost excessive command and control capabilities that were built into New Geneva at the Request of Emperor Napoleon. From this city, he would have had access to any and every facet of life in his Kingdom.

The Son of the Arch Duke of Kaiserstadt had returned from abroad after the assasination of the Imperial family and established himself in his Duchy. Second only to the New Genevan Government, he had made a great deal of progress in using his military forces to secure the area in and around the old ciy of Reichsburg, Kaiserstadt, and the Centre of Reichskamphen. Talks between the Arch Duke and Rev. Graves were underway which would bring another 20% of the Country secure and under the control of the Protectorate.

Father Marco asked Alexei, "Majesty, with all respect due, I am wodnering when I will be able to go into Reichskamphen."

OOC: I doubt that spire trumps the Andropov Tower. :)

HOLY SHIT I AM RETARDED!

Whenever it says Southern reichskamphen, it needs to read NORTHERN Reichskamphen. Derscon is north of Reichskamphen (as nothing is north of Derscon), so I'm invading from the south of Derscon into the north of Reichskamphen. Damnit.
=======================================

Alexei nodded. "You are correct. I believe we are done here. Any other final comments before we break this meeting?" Alexei scanned the crowd, but sent a telepathic message to Jack and King John. Stay After.

Xavier, however, continued speaking with the New Genevian Forces.

To: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves
From: Office of the Emperor and Arch-Chancellor, Tsar of Derscon
Subj: Re: Re: Re: Re: Misconceptions

Reverend Graves:

Your hesitation is perfectly understandable. However, I find it very suspicious that you would not trust the forces of your own Emperor.

I will have Marshal Razladanov contact Marechal Brune, and I expect his cooperation.

As of now, a troop reduction by one half is impossible, both stratiegically and logistically. Such reductions can occur over the long run, and that is our intention. We are there only to restore order, and will gladly turn over all governance to local athourities once things calm down.

I also find it disturbing that you are threatening war with the Divine Prussian Empire of Derscon, whose Tsar is your Emperor. However, I am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, to the extreme circumstances you are currently facing -- it's hard to trust anyone.

Veliky Kynaz Xavier Tsarevich Andropov

Xavier was beginning to get angry at the Reverend's assaults on his father. Traitor.
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
Kremlin Lounge

"Now, Colonel Orleans, I have devised a plan that would allow for the quick takeover of REichskamphen from those bastards." General Tarakh pressed a button on his couch and a screen came down in front of the wall, and a projector turned on, showing a map of Reichskamphen.

Reichskamphen was then divided up into different sectors.

"As you can see, the Northern portion is mostly controlled by New Genevan Forces. There's a section there controlled by the Archduke of Kaiserstadt. In the south," he stopped his voice when part of the north was coloured. "Lies area under the influence of a friend, whom you may have heard of. Volkner ring a bell? Anyways, that section is where CR borders. I want you to go through there and contact Volkner and give him support. I know he may not like the fact you're Catholic, but he'll live. Also, PsiPso Special Forces are currently hitting various hot spots and important locations in order to secure them. Any questions?"
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
NORTHERN REICHSKAMPHEN

"He wants me to do what?!" Darii was furious that he was being forced to cooperate with that traitor Brune. Damn him. He shrugged and turned to his aide.

"Fine. Tell him that our goal was to shoot through the Dersconi border to destroy Pax Maria pockets along North Reichskamphen, and then move forward to secure REichsburg, and in the process, open a door for more Dersconi forces to secure New Geneva. However, they popped up, so that plan was abandoned. Then request his manoevures."

"Yes, sir." The aide typed up the request and sent it off to Marechal Brune. "Sir?" Darii turned around.

"What?"

"What if they don't give us their plans?" Darii grunted.

"Then I will destroy them."

Orlean looked at Tarakh, "I'm a lapsed Catholic who only goes to chruch on Christmas and Easter." He answered to the Catholic comment. He then said, "No questions. Thank you, and I will see you in New Geneva for the Victory party." He smiled,, "Or before hand."He was taken back to Cherry Ridge.
----------
The Royal Vendee stormed across the border on Colonel Orlean's command. As they approached a small town, a group of Pax Maria formed behind a barricade. Suddenly, a soft rumbling was heard. Then a bright flash ahead. Two small bombs struck the makeshift barricade. The planes flew back, and armoured vehicles drove up, gunning down Pax Maria with machine guns. The army rolled through the streets. Orleans jeep was unmarked, so he would not become a target. As a kiss my ass, however, a Ridgian flag would be found flying on the towns flagpole come morning. The Army continued on, unphased by the small resistance. Similar thing occured throughout small border towns. The entire Vendee met up outside a large castle. Orleans jeep skidded to a stop at the gates. A tank came up, and blasted through. Follwoing the tank, a flying a huge Ridgian flag, and a smaller Imperial flag, the Vendee commander drove up the drive. When he found guards, he stopped. "I am Colonel Charles Orlean, Commander of the Royal Vendee of the Ridgian Army. I must speak with Mister Volkner."
The Vendee set up guard, and in some places, got into small battles with resistance.
-------
The Ridgian home guard formed a long line, following the border. They dug trenches, and kept watch of any hostiles who would cross the border.

Francis Marseille follwoed the army across the border. He was driving a civilian Jeep Liberty, fitted with sirens, and with armoured windows. Ont he seat next to him was a FAMAS assault rifle. He also had a Sig and Beretta pistol (9 MM) next to him. He had a radio, camera, grappling hook, a combat knife, various grenades, and a watch, with a laser pointer. He wore an Imperial Guard BDU, with the markings of the Ridgian donation, and of the doscontinued Burgundian guard, worn in rememberance. He had a Captains rank pinned on, and had a card stating he had the full authority of the King of Cherry Ridge behind him. However, when the army stopped, he kept going.

Many hours later, he arrived in Jagerburg. He sped into the city, and skidded to a stop. He drove around, until he found Imperial and Royal patrols. He put the weapons in a compartment under the seat, and shoved the cigarettes in the glove compartment, along with his lighter. With only his sig strapped to his side, he stepped out. In a light French accent, he said, "Pardon my tardiness." He blinked, and continued, "I am a Captain of the Imperial Guard donated buy Cherry Ridge. I do not trust that madman in Derscon. Where may I be of service?"
----
He was OSS- Office of Strategic Services. The people who knew of the operation sent a message to the Dersconi MSS director:
We have sent Francis Marseille of the OSS to infiltrate New Genevan forces. Be advised- he is a friendly agent.

OOC: I lost all of my post...Im just going to type the short version now. Too bad, because there was some good stuff in the previous one.

IC: The Ridgian official was escorted into the Chambers of Volckner by Uniformed Reichskamphian Royal Guard...the same troops who guarded the castle as a whole and pensively watched the foreign troops outside their walls.

Volckner approached the strange man as he was escorted in. "Gerhardt Volckner...President of the Reichskamphian Republic of New Braunau. And you might be?"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Elsewhere, the Armies of New Geneva had broken through the no-man's land inbetween the Arch Duchy of Kaiserstadt and the New Genevan Protectorate which had been occupied by a full army of Pax Maria and similar militia units. Their orders, combine with the Armed forces of the Arch Duke and procede to New Braunau where they would attack the Pax Maria beseigers from the rear and break through to link up with the Armies of Gerhardt Volckner who was already deeply involved in Negociations to join the New Genevan Protectorate, negociations which, in Kaiserstadt, ended with 50% of Reichskamphen in New Genevan hands, and the Arch Duke being granted the title of Vice Protector and Governor of Kaiserstadt. If Volckner did not join...then for the good of the Kingdom, the orders were to plow over his troops and take New Braunau by force.

In New Braunau, the communications of distress from the Presidential Palace had been recieved by every unit under Volckner's command. In his haste to strengthen the frontlines against the Pax Maria onslaught, he had left his rear almost completely devoid of any unit that was of sufficient strength to do anything more than keep the peace. Luckily, the 3rd and 4th Panzer Grenadiers were returning from the front to rest and refit in New Braunau. They would be at the Castle within the half hour.

"Colonel Charles Orlean, of the Ridgian Royal Vendee, a component of the Royal Army. I was told by a Dersconi General-Tarakh I believe- that I should offer you support. We have already secured some border towns. Where would you like me to place my troops?"

"Your support is most glady accepted." Volckner responded cheerfully. "Let us have a quick drink while we discuss the military situation and specific deployments."

Volckner picked up a cut crystal decanter from a nearby side table, and produced two elegant cut crystal tumblers from underneath the table. "I trust you like Scotch?"

The President of New Braunau settled himself deeply into a leather arm chair. "In this area there are two mountain passes that the Pax Maria have been occupying for weeks. My Palace is cut off from the New Braunau, the Capitol, and the Capitol from the rest of the Country. Just yesterday, a full scale counter attack by my 3rd Army was viciously repelled. We have just enough men to hold our position...but only just. There is a huge column of troops flying here from the front, and they should be here within 20 minutes. I have artillery and MLRS units blanketing the mountainsides, both the one this palace sits on, and the other mountain on the other side of the pass. I have yet to use them, because there are villages in the area of the pass that have been occupied by Pax Maria forces, and a whole sale destruction of the area could mean the deaths of those civilians either through a direct hit, or a subsequent avalanche. If your troops are able to get their quickly enough, a troop movement in the enemy lines has left only a very small number of Pax Maria troops guarding the left flank of their position. Within the next half hour, reinforcements will arrive and shore up their left, but if you can get their first and burst through, then you will meet my armed forces on the other side. We will fence them, and blow them to bits."
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To: Marechal Darii
From: Marechal Alexandre Brune,
Chief Marechal de l'Empire
Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of The High Lord Protector of Reichskamphen

I appreciate your cooperation.

The orders I have relayed to forces under my command are as follows:

*Army Group North*
Procede as quickly as possible to the border to relieve and or assist the Dersconi Armies and crush Pax Maria resistance.

Stand firm, no retreat, no surrender. Protect New Geneva at all costs and from all threats.

*Army Group South*
Procede as quickly as possible to Kamphstadt. Liberate and stablize the southern provinces by firmly expanding New Genevan territory and military protection into these areas and maintaining them. It is more important to take more land that get to Kamphstadt quickly.

Stand firm. No retreat, no surrender. Protect New Geneva at all costs and from all threats.

*Army Group Centre*

Procede as quickly as possible to the unsecured lands inbetween the Kaiserstadt Provinces and those currently under control of New Braunau. Take with you as many troops, weapons, and supplies as you can muster from the Kaiserstand Provinces, and use your new found power to break through the enemy lines and link up with the forces of President Volckner.

Stand firm. No retreat, no surrender. Protect New Geneva at all costs and from all threats.

---------------

I would humbly request that you refrain from making any further advances until such time as you have made contact with forces from New Geneva.

Sincerely,

Marechal Alexandre Brune
(writing to you by authority of the High Lord Protector)

ooc: Derscon asked me remind everyone he is away until July 1st.

ic:
Colonel orleans nodded, "Scotch is fine." He sipped it as he listened to Volkner. "They should be able to make it. We have air support as well that can help." He picked up his phone. Opening it, he said, "Proceed to attack the Pax Maria left flank." He shut the phone and said, "They should rendevous with your troops soon."

ooc: Sorry for crappy post.

*New Braunau*

A man in the black uniform of an Imperial Gendarme walked into Volckner's office unannounced. The only differance, hs arm band did not read "Napoleon IV"...but it read, "Gerhardt Volckner".

"Marechal, I appologize for disturbing," he announced to the guest, "but the President has an urgent incoming phonecall." He turned to Volckner, "Mr. President, I have patched it through in the next room."

Volckner nodded cordially to the Marechal. "I appologize, I shall return shortly. Feel free to help yourself to whatever you like in the way of refreshments." He straightened his suit jacket as he stood, and regally strode through the large mahogany double doors leading into the next room. He walked over to the large desk on which the phone sat. He picked up the reciever and opened the line. "Volckner speaking."

"This is Marechal Brune...is this line secure."

"Yes, doubly."

"Have you considered our offer?"

"Yes Marechal..."

"Well?"

"I accept...but I need your help now. I've got a Ridgian Marechal sitting in my office. He and his entire army are here and my soldiers can't fight them off if they wanted to!"

"Right...well, the Government of New Geneva will certainly assist the President of the Senate with whatever his needs may be..."

Colonel Orlean nodded, "Certainly. And thanks for the promotion."

*Captain's Quarters, ISS Napoleon Bonaparte; In Transit to Mercury*

"Computer..."

The ships computer gave two bleeps of recognition.

"Silence the room."

Another two beeps of acknowledgment.
"Room silenced." the computer's female voice rung out.

"Lock doors."

He heard the magnetic lock slide into place. Quickly, he taped a button on the display screen near his desk. "Captain Vraisfoi speaking." he said as the screen displayed an all too familiar face.

"Jean-Baptiste...it's wonderful to see you again."

"Thankyou, Marechal Brune."

"I hope you know it will be very difficult for me to help you this time, old Friend."

"I am aware..." the Marechal sighed.

"But I can assure you, my crew and I are 100% in support of the Geneva Government becoming a functioning part of the Empire."

"Others are not so supportive." the Marechal sneered. "Ridgian forces have advanced to the Presidential Palace at New Braunau. Volckner has just been Granted entrance to the Protectorate, and now we have to help him out of a Jam. We have determined that the Dersconi forces are on the brink of restarting their invasion. We can't keep them out of New Geneva without protection from you."

"I've got it under control....Vraisfoi out."

*Bridge, ISS Napoleon Bonaparte*

"Captain, we are now approaching Earth", Lieutenant Jeremy Yates announced.

"Good. Helm...engage orbital thrusters." Vraisfoi said calmly, perched in his Captain's chair.

"Orbital thrusters online, Captain." Yates replied. "We are in full orbit, 0% decay Captain."

"Perfect....now we just have to wait for the repair tugs to show up." the Captain slid down a bit in his chair.

"It's a shame we have to report in to headquarters after every little engine stutter." Yates lamented.

The Ex-O, Commander Robert Parker sighed agitatedly. "Mr. Yates, I wouldn't call a ship wide power failure "a little engine stutter".

"CAPTAIN!" a shout came from the Sensor Station. "We are detecting a rather large object, orbit decaying rapidly...it seems to be an orbital Nuclear Launch platform."

"On screen." Vraisfoi said forcefully.

Sure enough, it was an orbital launch platform. Painted Clearly on the side of the orbiting vehicle was the Pre-Napoleonic Tri-Sword Crest of the Greater Prussian Empire and the words "Viktor Leipzig I" in block letters written below that. "We aren't reading an EM signiture from it," the officer at the Sensor station chimed in, "but if that thing falls, it's liable to detonate from the friction of reentry...the fallout would be devestating."

"Why don't we clean up our trash." Vraisfoi muttered.

"Mr. Hawkes," he turned to the Sensor station, "get the command frequency for the ship and reactivate its orbital thrusters."

"I already have the frequency sir...reactiving now."

"Well, what is the problem?" Vraisfoi enquired hastily.

"Captain, it's not responding...the electronics seem to be fried."

"Weapons," the Captain turned to the Weapons panel, "torpedo bank one, detonate one shot approximately 500 meters away from the station, but between it and earth. I want to knock it out into space."

The torpedo sped away detonating at the proper distance, and as planned the station, minus a bit of debris, was sent spinning out into space.

'Can I really do this?' Vraisfoi thought to himself. 'I have no other choice...God forgive me.'

"Weapons, torpedo bank one. One shot burst. Destroy it."

The torpedo screamed out towards the station but suddenly veered sharply to the left, then to the right again, then, wobbling madly it headed striaght for earth.

"Disable that torpedo!" Vraisfoi screamed...it had to be convincing...but not fake.

"It's not responding Captain!" the Tactical officer screamed in desperation.

"Lock phasers, fire!" the Captains final seeming act of desperation.

Just then the lights and the control panels went dark, then after a moment relit.

"Son of a B****!!" the Tactical officer shouted.

"Of all the Sh*tty times to have a power failure! Sensors where is it now!?" The Captain pleaded.

"Im reading energy signitures consistant with the detonation of a torpedo in..." the colour drained from his face "...in Reichskamphen Sir...in New Braunau! We've ortilleried the forward position of Cherry Ridge's Armies in Reichskamphen!"

"Can we tell if there are casualties?"

"Not now sir...but there could be thousands."

*Presidential Palace, New Braunau*

The Ridgian General had long ago left to join his armies in their forward assault, and Gerhardt Volckner sat quietly in his office. A Prisoner in his own palace.

The Palace Guards and the Brigade of Royal Guardsmen assigned to the Palace kept any intruders out of the inner walls, but they were surrounded entirely by foreign personell. As of now, there had been no friction, no shots fired.

Volckner stared off into the distance. 'It is lost...' he thought to himself. He had complete faith in the military abilities of Marechal Brune...but beyond that...he couldn't see how Brune could magically dislodge the whole Ridgian Army.

Suddenly the view before him burst into a flash of light. The earth off in the distance was thrown into the air an entire valley was torn to bits.

After Volckner pulled himself out from under his desk, he glanced out of his now broken windows at the wasteland that lay before him. He quickly jotted off his orders to the Palatial defenders and then wired order modifications to the 3rd and 4th Panzer Grenadiers who would be approaching the valley where the reckage of the Ridgian Army may very well be.
-----------------------------------------------------------

To: Oberst Schmitz, PzGdr Bgd. 3-4
From: Pres. G. Volckner

Ridgian Expeditionary force may be badly mangled, artillery and MLRS systems have been ordered to engage. Make haste. Engage and defeat Ridgian Army in the valley. Capture and Kill Priority One: Priority Two: Drive remnants back.

- G.V.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

The MLRS systems that were still operational after the Ortillery strike immediately engaged the Ridgian forces. Hundreds of missiles were sent hurtling toward strategic targets identified by Spec Ops spotters on the ground and previous intelligence. The first priority was to hit command and control personell and all armoured and unarmoured vehicles. Second priority was to strike at any and all large massings of military assets both human and material.

With the Ridgian Army in the valley fighting the Pax Maria as they were ordered, they were sitting ducks for the MLRS systems which were strategically placed on the high ground and mountainsides on either side of the valley. As soon as the artillery, located much farther back, could target the location of the explosions, they locked on and sent salvo after salvo hurtling into the Ridgian forces. As for the Pax Maria...they were probably already dead from the initial ortillery strike...or to disjointed to present any real threat.

At the palace, the Brigade of Royal Guards made use of centuries old tunnel systems that went under the mote of the castle in four directions and opened up in the woods well beyond in each instance. The Palace guards manned the fortifications well in the Brigade's absence and kept their machineguns and artillery pieces trained on the shocked infantry below. With no clean connection to the chain of command, there was bound to be confusion until the Ridgians could put things back in order. Volckner knew the efficiency of the Ridgian Army and knew that he had but a small window to work in before order was more or less restored to whatever troops were left.

Encirclement was not an option...they had no assurance of a clean encirclement due to lack of intelligence. Their best option was a pincer attack. The brigade divided in fourths and came out at each end of the tunnel. They slowly worked their way back to the positions of the Ridgian troops at the castle. Then, without warning. The castle's defences opened up on the unwelcome guests. Machineguns cut down anything that moved while artillery sent plumes of dirt, rock, and human limbs flying high into the aire. Those who tried to run were cut down by the machine guns as they advaned on the doublequick towards the Castle. Men with flamethrowers mounted the paraphets of the Castle and cast down streams of burning liquid napalm. The best option for the Ridgian troops would be to cut and run, reunited with other forces to try an assault on the palace together...but Volckner knew the Ridgians...they fought to the death.

Meanwhile in the Valley, a group of Ridgian soldiers waved frantically at a large tank with Imperial markings on the side. They assumed it to be Volckner's troops come to help. They were half right. A machine gun cut the men down as several APCS surged forward through the fog along with a few other tanks. The battle was joined.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

OOC: I have one request. Please slow this RP down so I may catch up. A Month gone can do this to you.

OOC: Don't worry, nothing too much happened. Good to have you back. I didn't see anything in the news about a capitalist revolution in China, so I'll assume your trip went fine.

OOC: Some OOC reminders:

Reichskamphen, keep in mind, Marshal Darii is the one who helped Volckner. RPwise, I'm going to say they're pretty cordial. Also, remember, it's Xavier, not Alexei, who is the shadowy one.

And one more thing: Try to keep space stuff from hitting CR. CR doesn't like Space RP, I request that we honour his wishes not to be involved with FT roleplay and keep the FT stuff from involving CR.

And no, PP, no revolution yet. :)

To: Gerhardt Volckner
From: Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov

I have sent a represenative of Colonel Orleans to your office. He is cooperating with me in the suppression of Reichskamphen rebels and the restoration of stablity. He's a friend.

Also, if you could, please tell Marechal Brune to back down a bit. I know he's itching for a fight, but if the Marechal and I go neck and neck, then it could erupt into an Empire-wide Civil War. You and I -- hell, any monkey would know -- that a civil war is a very bad thing.

Currently, General Tarakh Andropov, whom I left in charge here while I was with you, is back at the Kremlin. I can send him and some Shock Troopers up your way if you want. He's a good general, though he admires Sherman a bit too much, if you catch my drift.

I would also like for our forces to link up somewhere in middle Reichskamphen. I don't trust the Kaiserstadt.

Keep me posted.

Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov
Commander of Greater Prussian Forces, Reichskamphen

******************************************
Star Office, Grand Kremlin Palace

Xavier was watching the screen showing Reichskamphen when he saw the torpedo hit the Ridgian Forces. "Jesus!" Alexei snapped his head over to his son.

"What?"

"The ISS Napoleon Bonaparte just Ortilleried the Ridgian Forces within Reichskamphen." Alexei simply nodded and turned to the world leaders.

"Well, then. As you know, Dersconi Forces crossed the Reichskamphen border a few days ago to quell the resistance forces and restore order. Since then, a Reverend Graves and Marechal Brune have arisen in New Geneva City and proclaimed themselves an independent state, and have amassed an army to take REichskamphen lands.

"Also, Gerhardt Volckner, a very prestigious Reichskamphen leader, has amassed troops in Reichskamphen, as has the Duke of Kaiserstadt." He flipped down a display and showed what Xavier was witnessing.

"At the moment, there are a total of six factions within Reichskamphen. The Pax Maria, The New Genevian, The Kaiserstadts, the Volckners, and the Ridgians. Reichskamphen is officially in a state of civil war. However, as you just witnessed, an Imperial vessal has just Ortilleried Ridgian troops within Reichskamphen. This will be dealt with. However, I would like to remind all of you," he said, turning back around to face the group.

"This event is at the breaking point. It would not be that difficult for this to turn into an Empire-wide Civil War.

"When this gets messy, I may need to take actions that may seem like I am overstepping my boundaries. I assure you I do not want anything to do with the governing of your nations. I simply ask that, for the sake of Imperial stability, that I may need to do things that might constitute a violation of national soveregnty. I ask that you cooperate, and that such actions are not hostile toward you at all, but are necessary to keep a Civil War from starting.

"So, I ask all of you," Alexei said, looking deep into each persons' eyes. "When this gets messy, will all of you support me?"




Meanawhile, Xavier disappeared to the back chambers, and got on a secure line with Reverend Graves.

"Graves, what in God's name was that!?" Xavier practically was screaming into the phone. "I just witnessed the Ortillerization of Ridgian Forces, who are on your side!" His voice went back to a normal volume, but the anger was still there. Unintentionally, he accidentally let slip that Dersconi Military Intelligence had the capability to witness every single event that occurs in Reichskamphen, but Xavier wasn't thinking of secrecy.

"You better have a damn good explaination for that."

********************************************

To: Captain Vraisfoi, IISNB
From: Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov, Tsar of Derscon, Emperor of Greater Prussia

Vraisfoi,

It was reported that your ship fired upon Ridgian forces working with Dersconi forces to restore order within Reichskamphen. Explain yourself.

Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov
Emperor of Greater Prussia

****************************************
Over Derscon

The newly arrived coreship HMSS Valefor, the newest production of the Dersconi Stellar Shipyards in Nova Prussia, and her escorts linked up with the Interstellar Tsarist Sentinels, the elite space corps assigned to the defence of the Rodina.

"What the hell...?" Admiral Zhiroslav Vodislavich Rackhamov, the commander of the Valefor, watched the torpedoes from the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte fly out and hit the earth. A few minutes later, he got orders from NMCC.

Valefor
Assess situation, surround ISSNB. Prepare to fire.

He sighed. Lord have mercy.

The Admiral gave the orders, and the ITS forces, commanded now by a genuine coreship and a true fleet of capital ships (mostly the small Autocracy class battleships, but there were a substantial number of the Drakontsar superdreadnaughts, too), rushed forward and surrounded the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte.

Meanawhile, the ODGs over Derscon were put on high alert, their MAC cannons activating, preparing their virtual shield over Derscon.

One of them, however, moved its way closer to Reichskamphen. STill technically over Derscon, it put itself in a nice position over New Geneva. There were no plans to use it, but Alexei was beginning not to trust those Genevians....

******************************************

Dersconi-Reichskamphen Border

The Field Marshal sighed as III-Corps travelled across the destroyed border barricades. Young Generals these days have no concept of honour. Field Marshal A. Marmont looked over his battle plans to renforce Marshal Darii in the North of Reichskamphen, as well as provide a buffer between Darii and Brune. He picked up his personal library, consisting of only four books -- Sun Tzu's The Art of War, Carl von Clauswitz's On War, Machiavelli's The Prince, and a King James Version of the Bible -- and watched on the TBS System his troops move into Reichskamphen.

These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

Darii,

We're coming up behind you and heading a bit West to cover your right flank. Brune shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Just don't act up.

Marmont

In the west, though, two SS groups were rendezvous-ing. "About Goddamn time!" The local SS commander shouted over to the SS General who just showed up. They embraced each other and took a swig of vodka.

"Sorry about that, some hold-ups in the administrative level." The two SS commanders, one a colonel, one a General, were brothers, and got along very well.

"So, I hear you're worried about the Genevians?"

"That's right," the colonel responded. "They're getting mighty frisky." The General nodded.

"That's fine. Following me is First Armoured, Waffenschutzstaffel, as well as First infantry, WSS. We'll set up camp here and keep them at bay." The Colonel nodded.

"Thanks."



OOC: Did I miss anything?

Kenshin sat in silence, stunned at what he had just heard. Taking a few moments, he regrouped himself and began thinking again. "Alexi, you'll have my full support. If you must, though, watch your step in the Sogunate. The military will naturally be cooperative. However, it is the civilians that may not." He sighed and continued, "despite everything and against our wishes, I must admit that most of our populace has been brainwashed into thinking that our government is three steps down from holy, and are fiercly patriotic." He shook his head, "we tried to avoid it, and we'll try to make them understand, but just be forewarned that they're insanely loyal to the Shogunate, just a little more than they are the Empire. I'll do my best to get their cooperation, and hopefully they'll listen."

"It also seems that despite my wishes, this situation also calls for the need of Psi-Pso military forces. Alexi, you will have the Pschycotian 1st Army and all of its associated components at your command. General Endoh Shun will remain as their commanding officer, however I'll make sure he understands that he will answer diretly to whoever you choose instead of me, as this situation will require commanders who are actively involved in the field, and who know what is occuring."
=============================================
Over Kanasagwa Province, Pschycotic Pschycos,
Libra I OAP....

Star General Hamano Takumi could not believe what the view screens on the Orbital Artillery Platform's bridge were showing. The ISS Napoleon Bonaparte had opened fire on Ridgian soldiers for no reason whatsoever. He rose from his chair and walked across the bridge to the side with the appropriate view screen on it and surveyed the situation. Currently, Dersconi starships were moving in to surround it. "Fire control, give me a defense-cannon lock on the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte, and then read out the status."

"Aye, sir." The fire control officer input a few commands into his terminal, General Hamano looking over him, as his consol was convinently under that view screen. "Sir, I'm currently showing a positive lock for 100 of this stations defensive turrets. Current electromagnetic radiation from the sun posses no threat, the target and ourselves are currently protected by earth's magnetic field."

"Thank you, fire control," Hamano said. "Helm, rotate negative 60 degrees on the verticle axis, negative 20 degrees on the horizontal axis."

"Sir, negative 60 verticle, negative 20 horizontal, aye."

Slowly, the station shifted orientation, the old metal groaning from the stress of the adjustment boosters. The only difference it made to the men on the bridge was a shift of the display on the view screens. When it stopped, the target was centered over the General's chair.

"Fire control, please renew status report," ordered the general.

"Sir, currently 300 turrets have a positive lock on the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte, Dersconi vessels are providing no targetting problems from this angle. There are no electromagnetic disturbances, however the targetting system is currently compensating for the earth's atmosphere, which would be breached at a shot from this angle."

"Fire control, standby for command to fire, the situation may escalate, and Derscon will appreciate the back up."

"Fire control, standby, aye."

Alexei nodded to Kenshin. "I understand, we were like that under the Rekjyavich-Andropov House. However, I don't forsee it being a problem. The PsiPsoians and the Dersconis have had a long history of cooperation. Plus, since you and I are close friends, I don't forsee a problem. And thank you for the forces." He looked at the map again, and a few more spots appeared on the map, but they were fuzzy.

"These are the planned drop points for your forces. It shouldn't be too difficult, although you have a lot of land to cover, considering you're on the opposite side of Derscon. Basically, I want your First Army to link up with my Waffenschutzstaffel divisions planted there for home defence, and then march forward on the other side of New Geneva. That way, Field Marshal Marmont can cut through the Genevian territory to the Kaiserstadts.

"At the moment, I trust the Kaiserstadts the least, simply because I have had no contact with them, and they don't have a track record, though I'm more worried about the Genevians, as they are the strongest Reichskamphen force." Marshal of the Eternal Empire Sir Athur Wellesley, commander-in-chief of the Dersconi IMperial Army, piped up.

"What about the Pax Maria? They were the main reason for going into Reichskamphen in the first place." Xavier grunted.

"They are of no consequence anymore. They have a small stronghold in the centre of the nation. This is going to change relatively quickly." Wellesley nodded.

"And the anarchists?" Alexei shook his head.

"They were the assassins, but since then, they dissappeared. It's odd." He sighed. "I don't think they had any quest for power. They haven't shown up on the map at all. I think they were being used as hitmen." Alexei looked up at the Marshal, and the rest of the group.

"I think this runs a lot deeper than we initially thought."

Xavier was back on the computer, monitoring the situation for his father. However, in the process, he shot a letter to Marshal Darii.

Darii:

Move further and link up with Volckner. We need a unified force, and we need it now.

Xavier

*****************************************
Reichskamphen

Further into Reichskamphen, though, Darii was taking his army further South to link up with Volckner's forces.

"Just don't act up?" the Field Marshal snorted at the letter and discarded it. Just because he's friends with Wellesley he thinks he can boss me around.

He looked over his TBS display to see III-Corps come across the border and head West a tad, linking up with Third Division, assigned to protect the Western flank. He shot the order for it to, when III-Corps meets them, withdraw to the main body to renforce him in case the Kaiserstadt forces try and pull something.

At that moment, he recieved the order from Xavier. The Marshal smirked. "A little late, eh?" He burned the printout when a private came up to him, out of breath. He stood up and saluted, but doubled over again.

"Sir!" he managed to get out in between gasps. "You may want to come see this!" He pointed ahead where some Dersconi medical officers and some other troops were located, a few kilometres out. He glanced over at his driver as he hopped in his personal vehicle.

"Drive that way." The colonel nodded and sped over to the group in a minute or two, the Field Marshal jumping off to look at what the rest of the officers were looking at.

"What is this?"

"Sir, these are gunned down Ridgian soldiers." The Marshal bent down and took a look at them. Some of them you could still see the suprise on their faces.

"They were gunned down by who they thought were friendlies." He looked at his computer inside his vehicle, pulling up the TBS display.

"We're getting close to New Braunau and Volck...damnit!" The officers looked at Darii strangely.

"Volckner stabbed the Ridgians in the back when the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte dropped those torpedoes." The colonel with him looked up.

"Then lets give him his just desserts." Darii shook his head.

"No. Not yet. This may still work out, but this is getting very bad. For God's sake, I gave Volckner his power back! I don't think he'd stab me in the back unless...." His voice trailed off a bit, and a flash of anger went across his face.

"Brune." He looked at his aide and driver.

"Send a message to Marshal Marmont. Tell him to prepare for an assault on New Geneva, and PsiPso's First Army will supply backup, as will ODG-4."

"Yessir!"

To: Gerhardt Volckner
From:Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov

Volckner,

My army will be in New Braunau shortly to renforce your position.

I advise against making any deals with Marechal Brune. I understand he is well respected, but I believe he's more concerned about his own power than helping Reichskamphen. Remember, you were the leader of Reichskamphen, and you deserve that. That's why I'm helping you, and I ordered Colonel Orleans to help you.

I don't trust the New Genevians one bit.

Marshal Darii Shchitkovetsovich Razladanov
Commander of Greater Prussian Forces, Reichskamphen

When Darii sent his message to Volckner, he called back to the NMCC for air support, and in a few minutes, the 666th Imperial Air Force, the best stealth bombers and fighters in Derscon, were in the air, invisible to all.

*****************************************
Star Office

Kynaz Xavier,

Volckner's forces fired upon and massacred some Ridgian forces. His loyalty is in question. I think Marechal Brune had something to do with it.

The situation is starting to disintegrate.

Marshal Darii

Xavier read the Marshal's message and looked at King Antonette. HE printed it out, folded it, and handed it to the Ridgian King, silently moving back to the desk. Damnit! However, there was another method.

********************************************

Island of Hope, South Prussian Sea

The Island of Hope, located in the South Prussian Sea, was Derscon's resort island, although it was larger than some countries.

It was also the location of the largest Dersconi naval presence, since the Northern Sea, Derscon's largest coastline, is frozen more than three quarters of the year.

Fleet Admiral Zimmerov, commander of the Dersconi Superfleet, was relaxing in his office when he got the orders from the Kremlin.

Mobilize the Beast. Move on Reichskamphen

The Admiral was perfectly aware of the situation, and issued the proper orders. He was also to take a division of Royal Marines. This is getting ugly fast.

In about three hours, Zimmerov was on board the HMS Appolyon, which was now a Seraphim class ultra-carrier (based off the Arkhangel, but souped up and modernized), and sailed out of the ports, and in about an hour, was completely grouped and sailing toward Reichskamphen, which really wasn't that far away.

Their movement was not only tracked by the transponder chips in each ship linked to the TBS system, but also by the SOSUS system of the ATLANTIS Programme. The SOSUS system wasn't concerned about the movements of the Dersconi ships as much as they were about the Reichskamphen Navy moving to counter them. However, not even Emperor Napoleon knew how extensive ATLANTIS was, nor its capabilities. If need be, ATLANTIS could completely annihilate the Reichskamphen Navy and its ports before the Superfleet even arrived.

Hopefully, though, there wouldn't be any problems. Admiral Zimmerov had cordial relationships with all of the Reichskamphen Admirals responsible for costal defence, inviting them to the base and his flat on the beach frequently for formal and informal receptions. And drinking parties.

**********************************************
In Space

Admiral Zhiroslav was looking at the display on the HMSS Valefor, noticing Libra activating. Good, we're getting some Pschycotic support. However, he also noticed some of the ODGs start moving away from Derscon and moving over to Reichskamphen instead. Uh-oh.

At that point, three Dersconi Orbital Defence Grids were hovering over Reichskamphen. One over New Geneva, one over the Pax Maria stronghold, and one over New Braunau. Even if they were detected, they were too massive and heavily armed to be taken down by other satellites (they were space stations, after all), and too many automated defence systems to be taken down by missiles from Earth. They could be taken down by space ships, but the new ODGs are designed to not only attack Earth, but more importantly, to defend against an extraterrestrial attack, which is why the massive MAC Cannon ran down the centre of the space station.

** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
Orbital Defence Grid 013

The ODG currently hovering over the Pax Maria stronghold was the only one at highest alert, as it was there to be used, not just as a safeguard.

"All systems online." The General nodded.

"Good."

"Targets locked. We are ready to fire." The General looked over at the display and inserted his key card. The Gun Master inserted his, and on three, they activated the firing programme.

"Thirty seconds." The General looked out of the bridge window and down at Earth, at the Pax Maria final stronghold.

And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.

"Fifteen Seconds." At that point, the firing sirens were all wailing.

And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.

"Ten Seconds."

And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.

"Five Seconds."

And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.

"Fire!" At that point, on the underside of the ODG, hundreds of compartments opened up, and a wave of R.O.G-II Needlers shot out, the kinetic weaponry raining down upon the Pax Maria stronghold. The first wave shot about three hundred, the second wave about four hundred, and the third wave about three hundred. They were shot in a spiral pattern, so that the centre of the compound was focused in concentrated fire, and then the rods spiraled out, increasing their destruction.

A fourth wave of about two hundred was then shot out, and the compartments closed once more to be re-loaded, even though the ODG had the capability to fire much more.

And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

The General looked at the zoomed display from one of the cameras, watching the hundreds and hundreds of Needlers drop on the stronghold, causing unimaginable destruction.

When the waves were completed, everything was burning, and there wasn't much left standing. It would have taken an act of God for anyone to survive it.

To: Veliky Kynaz Xavier Alexeitovich Tsarevich Andropov II
From: General Milovan Odolenovich Dedakov

Rev. 16:17-21 Pax Maria.
***********************************************
Star Office

Xavier saw the message from ODG013 and smiled. He looked up at his father.

"The Pax Maria are all but eliminated."

After Alexei had finished speaking, Jack and Siri turned towards one another as they thought about the request for support. It was rare that the Corporation would give its consent for one to violate their sovereignty, but on the other hand, the alternative was not any better. A civil war would quite possibly devastate the Empire for many decades to come. A minute or so passed before the two leaders leaned toward one another to discuss what their verdict was. During their little conversation they kept a fairly low volume as to not let anyone else hear in on them. It was essential that they both agree or the constant arguing would not help the Empire one bit.

A few nods of Jack’s head ended it along with a smile and gentle pat on his wife’s leg. Then, he spoke up. “Siri and I both agree. We will definitely support you, Alexei, in stopping this mess before it gets out of hand. And we are willing to offer you all our military resources for that goal. All you need to do is just ask.”

OOC: Meh…5 hours of sleep have killed me for the past two nights. This post would be longer and better but my brain is fried.

"Yes, I'm sorry for raising doubts. There should be no trouble at all," Kenshin said. "Now, my forces will be deploying shortly to link up with your own troops. I trust that there are landing strips in the area capable of handling large aircraft?"

"Also, I'll need to know if I can get live-feed video from your ODG platforms. In case you didn't know, nearly all our forces rely on satellite feed for targetting. If you can't provide it, it's no big deal as we can just move in our own targetting satellites, however we'd like to not waste fuel."
===================================================
Honimishu City,
Central City District,
Pschycotic Pschycos...

The city had already been under near martial law and lock-down for several days, so the move to mobilize the First Army, Pschycotic Pschycos's elite branch, was relatively simple. The bases spread throughout the district had easy on and off ramps connected to the elevated highway system. As the mobilization order was sent out, highway signs, displayed in neon lighting rather than old school board and type, switched to display "All Traffic Must Exit". To prevent new cars from entering, on ramps deployed automated gates, effectively sealing the highway system. Merely ten minutes after the order was announced, dozens of APCs took to the highways, streaming for the Honimishu, Central City International Airport where the military's transports were based. Following in the footsteps of the APCs were a small number of tanks. Most tanks were kept ready to deploy, however these tanks were kept on bases should they be...."needed". Soon, the area's 500 tanks were streaming into the airport to link up with the 100 artillery and 100 rocket units that were also associated with the First.
================================================
Honimishu, Central City Intl. Airport,
Honimishu City, Central City District....

Flight 412, you are cleared for taxi to gate A23 on Taxiway 3C, over.

Control, Flight 412, thank you. Taxi-ing to gate A23 via Taxiway
3C, over and out.

The control tower atop the sprawling terminal at the city's largest and main airport was a scene one would expect. Voices echoed back and forth as controllers issued orders to various flights, and the circular wall was bathed in green lights from a multitude of displays and radar screens. Suddenly, the elevator door in the central column snapped open and a score of soldiers, wearing full battle dress and carrying rifles, ran into the room, their boots clicking on the slip-proof metal floor. They secured the station in seconds, each of the traffic controllers putting their hands behind their heads. Slowly and ominously, another figure, wearing officer's colors, strode into the room. "This station is now under the control of the Imperial Military. I expect no resistance to this." He walked over to the chief controller's consol and picked up the radio headset.

All flights bound for Honimishu Central are hereby diverted to
Honimishu North Shore. All flights on taxiways 5E through 13M are to return
to their gates. All aircraft are to leave the airspace over Central City District.
This is now restricted airspace, all violators are subject to lethal force. This
order is enforced by Deployment Order 435. Over and out.

The chief controller walked up behind him. "You must be joking! You can't take control of the nation's largest airport just like that!" The commanding officer wheeled on him and advanced.
"I've been ordered to ensure the safe deployment of the First Army. I will do whatever the hell I please to ensure my mission is a success. Now you will sit at your station with your hands behind your head, adn you will not complain any longer. Have I made myself clear? And don't argue!" he barked out.
"That may be, but still-Argh!!" The controller began arguing, but was cut short by a shot from the CO's sidearm.
"Are there anymore arguements, complaints, or otherwise?" he challenged. He was met by heads shaking 'no' miserably. "Good."
----------------------------------------------------------
"Um, excuse me, but could you ask the pilot what the hold up is? I've got family in Cherry Ridge, and we're desperate to see them," a well-dressed lady asked to a passing stewardess.
"Oh, I'm so sorry Ma'am. The captain has asked not to bother him, and I won't know how long the delay will be," she replied. She began walking down the aisle again, but was stopped by the lady.
"Miss, I'm sorry, but my father is dying, and it is important that we see him before---, she stopped as a shadow fell across the sunny window behind her and her young daughter cut her off.
"Mommy, mommy! Look, a airpwane!" The mother turned to look out the window and was met with the sight of an enormous, armored engine, attached to an even larger plane. She sat stunned as the engine gave way to an expanse of metal hull, followed by another set of engines attached to a second set of wings, and finally daylight was restored as the tail section passed by. "yay!!!!"
"Oh....oh sweet kami......," the mother muttered. The view was again obstructed as more and more transports went past. Each of the Gow II transports was holding either 100 tanks, artillery, rockets, or APCs (filled with ten men). Each plane had not one, but two sets of wings. Each wing held two huge engines, and turned downward at the tips to create vortexes upon which it could ride to help with lift. "Well then, the delay's explained," she muttered as her own flight shook with the shock from the afterburners as scores of transports took off.
-----------------------------------------
General Endoh Shun sat behind the crew manning the cockpit of the first transport. He was an aged man, who was beginning to grow too accustomed to the politician's lifestyle. His face still held the cliff-sharp, rocky look from his younger days, but one could see the age eroding them. He kept a bushy, grey mustache under his nose, one large enough to make people wonder if it was the one visible on his war-mask. His voice was grainy, yet still demanding. "So now....what's the game plan?" he asked, adjusting his battle armor to fit almost microscopic fat rolls that were beginning to form.

"General-sama, we will be linking up with Dersconi forces in the Derscon homeland at five positions. Three are situated to put pressure on New Geneva, the other two are more reinforcement and fall-back positions," his aide answered. She flicked back hair that had fallen from under her helm. "Not very fitting for the best of the Shogunate."

"Calm down, my young flower," the general replied. It was long rumored that he harbored feelings for her, and this was the reason she had advanced in rank so far.....of course none had ever raised this as she had the tendency to make a man loose is "courage" very quickly. "He have a very important position. Look...we're in a position to intimidate New Geneva.....a million soldiers will do that! And we'll be covering Derscon if they need to withdraw...heaven forbid."

"Sir....I apologize."
"Do not, sit back and enjoy the ride. It'll be a long one," the general said, smiling and chuckling. He took of his helm, revealing a ring of grey hair around a bald head and sat back. Minutes later, the old man was asleep...dreaming about the subject of certain rumors.

Alexei nodded at Kenshin. "Doubts are fine. The last yes-man that entered the Kremlin was beheaded." He continued listening to Kenshin's requests, nodding to them.

"There are plenty of runways. There's an army base nearby, and an air force one a bit further. Worst comes to worst, though, I'll just order the highways out there to make room. twelve lanes across, total. It should work.

"And I don't usually give feed from my ODGs, but I suppose I can this time. No point in crowding the area. I can give you some transmitters, but only a few. The ODGs operate on an artificial frequency readable only by TBS systems. Your top commanders will be able to get the feed, but that's really it, sorry." He thought a bit and smirked.

"Come to think of it, you're probably safer using your own satellites."

**********************************************
Southern Derscon, Along the Reichskamphen Border

The sound of jetplanes filled the sky as the S.S. officers looked up.

"Well, here come the Pschycos now." The two S.S. Officers took their vehicle to the airstrips they were landing on and greeting the PsiPso forces. The S.S. General saluted.

"General Endoh Shun? I'm General Kleshna Rachevich Ladislavy, commander of First Army, Waffenschutzstaffel, and this is my younger brother, Colonel Vodoskii Daleborovich Ladislavy, the local S.S. commander." The Colonel saluted.

"Good evening, sir."

"We've been instructed to fall back and let you take point to put pressure on New Geneva," General Kleshna continued. "The Tsar figured that a top-notch military army would be better at it than what amounts to reserve forces. We'll simply be providing you with support and helping you guys out with supplies. Derscon's a big place, so there's no point in you wasting troops to get supplies."

*ISS Napoleon Bonaparte, Flagship Imperial Fleet: Bridge*

“Captain, we are reading weapons locks by a number of ships” the officer at the sensor station reported.

Captain Vraisfoi looked at his readout screen registering messages being sent by the captains of at least three ships, and one that had replaced those messages and taken up his entire viewing screen…a very short and curt message from the Emperor of Greater Prussia himself.

“Raising shields captain.” The tactical officer reported.

“No, cancel that.” Vraisfoi shouted agitatedly. “If we raise shields it will taken as a sign of aggression. We have done nothing wrong.”

“Mr. Namura,” the Captain turned to the Com. Officer. “Patch me through on all deck speakers…secure channel.”

The Comm officer nodded that it had been done.

“Soldiers and Sailors of the Napoleon Bonaparte…this is your captain. The rumours about a torpedo strike against earth being launched by this ship are regrettably true. The guidance system malfunctioned on our torpedo, and the very same power failures that necessitated our return to earth prevented us from safely detonating the munition before it entered the atmosphere. We are currently surrounded by two ships of the line. I am not raising shields in order to better convey our peaceful intentions. If my fellow commanders do not hear me out...I am prepared to save this ship and your lives at all costs as is my duty above all duties. When my voice dies, treat this as a red alert, and all hands report to your battlestations…and if the sirens flicker on…then you will know the worst has occurred.”

Vraisfoi closed the channel, and prepared a message explaining his situation in detail, bwhich he quickly sent to the Czar himself and Carbon Copied the commanders of the two ships. The message sent, he walked over to the Tactical Panel and leaned down to whisper in the Weapons officer’s ear. “I want you to use the sensor readouts to programme a torpedo spread pattern without actually locking the torpedos. If all goes badly, on my mark, I want you to initiate the programme…and it MUST launch immediately. I will enter in the coordinates.” He tapped a few buttons a number of times quickly on the control panel and left him with a final word. “And right after you launch this programme…activate the device.” The tactical officer looked at him with horror. “I know…but at this point, what will happen to this ship will be a great deal worse than them knowing we have it”

*Presidential Palace, New Braunau*

Gerhardt Volckner looked at the letter sent to him, and quickly tore it to bits. “Idiots…all of you…” he mumbled to himself. “Myself included.” He added with an air of finality.
Satelite information had informed Volckner just as much as it had informed Brune and Graves of the impending disaster…the tragedy that was about to play itself out across the country. “The arrogant Dersconi’s think they can just wipe through…their dead will choke the rivers and fill the fields...And we…I, rather…thought our position SO secure as to launch an attack against their men. When New Geneva falls…it will be a disaster beyond telling of it. Reichskamphen…the Empire may never recover.”

He could see the remnants of Marechal Marmont’s armies dragging through the forests and towns of Reichskamphen…tattered and damaged…but still fighting. And then the remnants of the New Genevan Army holding on desperately, striving to keep the invader outside the city gates. By this time, he knew that New Braunau would be in flames…the same with Kaiserstadt…what was left of their armies standing with their allies in New Geneva. And as it became clear that the resistance would not collapse without the commitment of yet another army, a blast from space wipes the city off the face of the map…or maybe the Imperial armies break through. Then the fight would go from street to street…the city may as well have been blasted from space. There had to be another way. Volckner felt he had to stop it. But if this tragedy was to play out…If he could not stop it…he would play his part.

"General, Colonel, it's a pleasure to be working with you," General Endoh said, bowing formally. "We're deploying three-fifths of our forces up here to put pressure on the New Genevians, while the other two-fifths are being deployed a little further back as a fall back position." General Endoh reached into the sash at his waist and produced a set of maps. "We've been studying these and digital displays of the same region, but I'm going to assume that you know the area better than these maps do. Tell me, given 600,000 men, 300 tanks, and 120 long-range units, where would you place them in this area to offer not only the greatest possible pressure, but also the greatest coverage for a fall-back?"
His aide stepped up, bowed, and spoke to him, "Sir, you've also got 180 attack helicopters coming. They've been delayed a day due to refueling."
"Ah yes, thank you. However, their placement is a non-issue as they can swiftly strike anywhere. Upon their arrival, we'll be at full capacity for a strike against Geneva, should it be called for." He bowed to his aide in thanks.
"Also, Sir, the remaining forces are being deployed in a basic linear fashion, with tanks creating a wall, backed up by long-range. They'll be used as a further fall back position. Also, Yamamoto is being deployed with the 8th Fleet to assist the Superfleet take control of waters near the problem area. Their cannons will be providing long-range assitance too."
The general grimaced, "damn fish. Never lets me do my job." He turned back to the two men, "so then, how about it? What's the area like, and how would you deploy?"
==============================================
South Pschycotian Sea,
25 nM out from Pschycotian Mine Fields,
ICS Kamikaze, 8th Fleet...

Despite her size, the massive ship shuddered down into a trough as the fleet battled through a massive storm. The helmsmen, manning their stations for the past 8 hours, now wore permenant faces of terror from their position overlooking the bow. Slowly, the self-proclaimed 'hyperdreadnaught' pulled her bow out from the next wave, water cascading back down her decks. Slowly, she climbed again, her fresh hull groaning under the strain. As her bow cleared the crest, a bolt of lightning struck her forward flag mast, scaring one of the helmsmen into unconscienceness. His body was quickly removed, and a replacement was brought in. Even seasoned veteran Grande Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto III was concerned, sitting in his raised chair with less confidence than usual, but not enough for the sailors to notice. A crewman risked the lurching desk to pass him a message. "Sir, we've received word from the maintnence crews aboard the Aegis cruisers. They're having a much worse time than we are, and are reporting an increase in heavy seas ahead of us."
"Elaborate, ensign," replied Yamamoto, very distraught at his fleet's predicament.
"Sir, at this speed, they've been driving under every other wave. It isn't long till we loose one of them."
"Damnit. Move, I must send out a message for Zimmerov." He shoved the ensign away and pulled out a keyboard and typed out a message.

TO: Fleet Admiral Zimmerov
FROM: Grande Admiral Yamamoto

Greetings commrade. We've been dispatched to assist in securing waters in
the area, and to provide long-range support for allied forces. However, we've
been slowed by a typhoon, and our defense cruisers are taking it up the
rear end. In light of the situation, do any oppossing forces possess weapons
that would make it neccessary to have our cruisers, or can we do with just
capitol ships?

Long live the Empire,

Isoruku Yamamoto III

As the message was sent, another shock raced through the ship, shattering the screen he had been typing on.
===============================================
Star Office...

"All right, then. Thank you Alexi," Kenshin said, not at all disappointed. "This way, at least, we'll be able to give direct feed to all of our troops on the ground. Just be aware that our satellites will be in the area, I don't want to loose them, or the troops on the ground will be in trouble."

HMSS Valefor

Admiral Zhiroslav looked at the message from Captain Vraisfoi and smashed his fist against the wall. "What moron keeps his ship in that sort of condition?!" The Tsar also recieved the same message, and sent an order to Zhiroslav, who then relayed it to Caption Vraisfoi.

Captain Vraisfoi,

It's unfortunate that such a disaster has occured. Looking at your logs, it seems you're here at Earth for repairs. I suggest docking at the station immediately for repairs, and deactivating your weapons systems so the incident does not reoccur.

As such, I apologize for ordering the weapons locks on your ship. You will have to understand times are not exactly the best, and precautions had to be taken.

Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov XIV
Holy Monarch of the Divine Prussian Empire of Derscon
Emperor of Greater Prussia

When Admiral Zhiroslav sent the message, he ordered his fleet to disengage the ISS Napoleon Bonaparte, but did not take his fleet off of High Alert.

*********************************************
North-Western Reichskamphen

Field Marshal Auguste Marmont was looking over his plans at the moment when he saw on the TBS that the PsiPsoians were pretty much in place. Excellent.

General Endoh,

Take your larger force up this way, kindly. You'll have to cross the border, but it's secure, don't worry.

I'll meet you here. You know my coordinates.

Field Marshal Auguste Marmont
III-Corps, Dersconi Imperial Army

********************************************
Southern Derscon

"Message for you sir." The SS Colonel delivered Marmont's letter to General Endoh after checking on his forces. General Kleshna also read the letter, and chuckled.

"Well, I suppose now you know where to deploy your troops.

*********************************************

Admiral Yamamoto! Good to see you again.

As for the crusiers, I have plenty of them, and I don't think I'll need them for much except for blasting some deep territory. You can probably do without them.

It's nice to know I've got a dragon covering my back.

--Admiral Zimmerov

The Admiral smiled as he shot off the message. Yamamoto and Zimmerov often double-team enemies together, and are nearly unstoppable when combined. Wonderful.

At that point, though, he recieved orders from the Kremlin. Kamphstadt? He shrugged. "Okay, then." Immediately after, he shot off the orders to change direction to the rest of his fleet, preparing for the assault on the last remaining major state of REichskamphen yet unpacified.

Captain Vraisfoi breathed a sigh of relief as the Czar's message came through and sensors demonstrated that weaponslock had ceased. He sent off a reply quickly in the affirmative and proceeded to the Prussian Space Station in orbit. The weapons were deactivated, but were set to be reactivated at a moments notice should something happen.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: Xavier Andropov
From: Gerhardt Volckner

Xavier,

I have been in touch with Marechal Brune and the High Lord Protector. I believe it is imperative to begin discussions as to the official recognition of the New Genevan Protectorate as the legitimate Imperial endorsed government of Reichskamphen. At this point it is better to work with and trust the protectorate than damn us all to Civil War.

-Gerhardt

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

General Endoh read over the message and laughed too. "So it would seem." He took out a laptop computer and flipped it open on one hand. He took a few minutes to type some keystrokes with one hand, and then flipped it shut. Within moments, the forces surrounding them and off loading from the planes began shifting toward Marmont's position. The general explained to officers, "we use a system that provides direct communication from command to soldiers. The troops' facemasks are not only for close-range intimidation, they also carry a display screen with a small map showing the surrounding area with allies and enemies labled, and will display command messages. Using this laptop and a password, I can type in any order, hit send, and be assured that all forces will see it and obey."
"It's improved mobility and effectiveness ten-fold since it was introduced. We're less involved now, becoming overseers. Like a real-times strategy game," cut in his aide. "We still get live feed from the officers through radio communication, but this just increases efficiency."
"Well, gentlemen. It's been a pleasure," said Endoh, anxious to move with his troops. "We'll follow our main forces, and our reinforcements will move up to take this position. If you can keep running supplies to us, we'll be most grateful." He bowed again, his aide following suit, and climbed onto his personal command-APC and took off following the other APCs and tanks.
===============================================
ICS Kamikaze,
8th Fleet Flagship...

Admiral Yamamoto looked over the message from Admiral Zimmerov (on a new screen) relieved. "Radio, contact all of our cruisers and order them to about face and retreat back to port."
Before Radio could reply, the officer manning the weather radar cut in, "sir, forgive my bad manners, but the Aegis cruisers will be swamped in these seas. However, we'll reach the eye of the typhoon in an hour. Perhaps they can make it to there where the seas will be calm enough for them to turn and follow it back to port?"
The admiral smiled. "Your manners are forgiven, though they were not bad. I appreciate the quick decision, and you have passed my little test. Yes, Radio, tell them to turn once we've reached the eye."
"Aye, sir. Contacting the Aegis system, telling them to about face in eye," the radioman said, briefly regurgitating the instructions. Outside, a brief bolt of lightning illuminated the immediate seas around them. Yamamoto caught sight of one of the big Island carriers and became lost in brief thought with the sillouette and the lights imbedded in his mind. Yes, a dragon backing up a bear. This should indeed be interesting. I only hope we'll be in place in time.

Volckner,

If you insist. I don't like the Genevans, but if you think it'll help, I'll talk my dad into it.

Kynaz Xavier Andropov

Xavier looked up at his father. "You know, look at the map of Reichskamphen again." Alexei pulled the map down, showing the divisions of Reichskamphen. "Most of the territory belongs to New Geneva. Also, Volckner looks like he's going to join the Genevan forces and merge his territory with theirs. To keep this from turning into a civil war, we should probably recognize the Genevans as the legit government." Tsar Alexei looked back at him curiously.

"Just a few minutes ago you were calling them traitors." Xavier shrugged.

"It seems I was wrong. And if they are, with things settled down, it'd be easier to arrest them anyways. Maybe you should call them all here?" Tsar Andropov thought about it a bit, and nodded.

"I agree. Send a message to all of them." Xavier nodded.

"Will do."

************************************************
Admiral,

Prepare your assault, but do not engage.

-- Tsar Andropov

Admiral Zimmerov raised an eyebrow. Odd. His ships were already in position, and the Admiral was about to give the order to launch. Cancel that, I suppose.

The Admiral sent the message to Admiral Yamamoto of PsiPso and sat back in his chair, ready to do nothing.

************************************************

To: Gerhardt Volckner, Reverend Graves, Marechal Brune, Duke of Kaiserstadt
From: The Office of the Emperor of Greater Prussia

On behalf of my father, Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov XIV, Holy Monarch of the Divine Prussian Empire of Derscon and Emperor of Greater Prussia, I call all of you to the Grande Kremlin Palace for a small summit on the current situation in Reichskamphen, as well as the future situation.

It is imperative that all of you attend.

Veliky Kynaz Xavier Alexeitovich Tsarevich Andropov I

On behalf of Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov XIV
Holy Monarch of the Divine Prussian Empire of Derscon
Emperor of Greater Prussia

OOC: Does this post suck? Yes, but I needed to put SOMETHING up.

John recieve the message of what happened a second before Alexei announced it. Fucking Bastards. John erupted, jumped up, "One of my best commanders and his whole aarmy was massacred, cowardly I may add, from space!" His eyes glew with anger. He picked up his phone, and barked, "Every single long range weapon is to be aimed at New Geneva.[/i]. He slammed the phone shut. He turned to Alexei, "I can't wait to have a word with that Brune character. Graves too." He sat back down and downed his drink.

Tsar Alexei sighed. "While the accident was unfortunate, it was just that -- an accident. The weaponry malfunctioned. You may aim your weapons -- after all," he said, smirking. "The Shogun and I have armies surrounding the city, and I have an ODG hovering over it. Just don't fire."

"Indeed," Xavier added. "Vent your anger here. While I also would like to string up Marechal Brune, he's one of the best generals in the Empire, he holds a lot of standing, and if we kill him, we'd end up with a Reichskamphen civil war."

"Besides," Alexei finished. "Graves wasn't involved in it. All of it was Volckner and the Marechal, along with the Duke of Kaiserstadt. The Reverend is not against us."

"Volkner. That man is a traitor. I should never have trusted that bigot." Marco nodded, "Indeed. Graves, a Free Presbyterian, althoguh hates our church, is probably the most moral man there. He seems the most concerned about Reichskamphen, and the least about power."
Antonette said, "I can't wait until those backstabbing bastards get here."

Jack remained perfectly quiet as he contemplated all that was going on before him. He wanted to make sure that he worded things carefully before he said anything, but, Siri, on the other hand, chose to express exactly how she felt. “Accident? Rather ironic that a torpedo could misfire during this little skirmish and out of all the places to strike it just so happens to land on the Ridgian army. That is surely an accident.” She rolled her eyes to the last statement.

Xavier nodded to Siri. "This is what I'm thinking. However, we have nothing to go on, and the Napoleon Bonaparte isn't going to be flying for quite some time. And if it does, it won't be flying for very long," he said, smirking. He sighed.

"But they will be coming. Try not to be too hard at the beginning, okay? Be polite. We'll build the pressure.

"It seems that the Marechal isn't too bad, either," Xavier continued. "But I still don't like him. I'm sure he would do worse, but Graves has him on a pretty effective leash."

To: King John Antonette
From: President Gerhardt Volckner

Your Highness,

I give you my heartfelt appology and my sincere condolences for the tragedy that befell your troops. I wish to assure you that it was not an order by myself or any other official of the New Genevan government.

I have tracked down the officer responsible for the order to attack your troops as they recovered from the blast. General Ouidinot and his staff will be executed over National television to set an example to future haters of peace.

-Gerhardt Volckner
Governor of New Braunau, President of the New Genevan Senate.


To: The Office of the Emperor of Greater Prussia
From: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves.

I will be travelling shortly, and with military escort. Arrange to allow my troops to pass. I appologize for the brevity of my response, but my time is short and matters are pressing. I will speak with your shortly and embrace you as a brother in Christ.

Yours in Christ Jesus,
Peter graves

John's phone beeped. A message from Volkner appeared. He read it, and showed Marco. Marco's face grew white, "Theres no need for the death penalty here." John nodded, although angry at the officer, yet not trusting Volkner completely, complied with Marco's wishes. He sent a message back:
President Volkner,
I reqest that no execution be made.
Signed,
His Majesty John Antonette, King of Cherry Ridge

A copy of Volkner's letter was sent to Alexei's computer.

Xavier recieved both messages on the computer, and Alexei looked over his shoulder. Alexei went to sit down. "I'll take this one."

TO: Rev. Dr. Peter Graves, New Geneva
FROM: Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov

Thank you for responding to my message. I entrust the Duke of Kaiserstadt and Gerhardt Volckner are also coming? THey have not returned my message.

While I would rather you not have a military escort, I will allow it, and we will provide our own escorts. However, your military personnel, other than your personal guard, will not be allowed to enter Rekjyavich-Andropov Military City. Foreign troops have never entered the city walls for any reason since its creation over two thousand years ago. I have no intention of allowing it to happen now.

I pray your journey is a safe one.

Tsar Alexei Alexandrovich Andropov XIV
Holy Monarch of the Divine Prussian Empire of Derscon
Emperor of Greater Prussia

Xavier looked over Volckner's letter and scoffed. "Bullshit."

Queen Mariah was talking to a Strategic Services Commander in Jeruselem on the phone

"I want The Eye of Ra pointed at New Geneva."
...

"Yes, I'm quite aware of what it does to civilian structures. But under current circumstances, we need to send a message to some people."
...

"Yes, full charge in the battery system when it fires."
...

"Make sure it's pointed accurately. We've had an accident with space weapon wiping a Ridgian army"
...

"Good, test fire the Eye of Ra on something first. Go create a new lake or something if you have to"
...

"Got the message, OK"
...

"You got images of what?"
...

"Oh, yes. I assume it's not pretty. Space weapons do that."

John noticed Alexei's scoff and sent him the reply he sent to Volkner. Also, when he overhear Mariahs conversation, he said, "Theat wouldn't be a good idea to fire. Theres Dersconi and Pschyotican troops around the city, and Reverand Graves is comming here for discussion." He smiled, "A more plausible target would be New Braunau." Father Marco said, "Yes, but I wouldn't do anything irrational, at least until the discussions are over."

John noticed Alexei's scoff and sent him the reply he sent to Volkner. Also, when he overhear Mariahs conversation, he said, "Theat wouldn't be a good idea to fire. Theres Dersconi and Pschyotican troops around the city, and Reverand Graves is comming here for discussion." He smiled, "A more plausible target would be New Braunau." Father Marco said, "Yes, but I wouldn't do anything irrational, at least until the discussions are over."

Queen Mariah said "I'm not to fire it. I'd only fire when Emperor requires. Anyway I need to test it on something else first. Anyway, the Eye of Ra can be toned down a bright light show."

"You're not going to test fire it over Prussia, either," Alexei ordered. "I will not tolerate anything that may jepoardize these talks. I would rather not have to fight in a Reichskamphen Civil War."

OOC: Nothing else to post, really. Gotta wait for Will...again.

It was 8 in the morning when Rev. Graves and Marechal Brune boarded what had been intended as the Emperor's personal aircraft, but was stranded in New Geneva when the unrest began. They took off with full clearance and proceeded cautiously with full fighter escort over the Dersconi territories and began making their way to the Airport at which the Czar had instructed them to land.

Gerhardt Volckner had set out over land 4 days ago with an armoured brigade of what used to be known as Sola Fide accompanying. They met up with the Duke of Kaiserstadt a couple days out and proceeded from there. They were currently 2 hours away from the point where the military escort would have to be left behind.

(More later.)

OOC: I'll put up a post later tonight bringing your guys into the Kremlin.

Southern Derscon

The Soli Fide Division was met on the Dersconi-REichskamphen border by an SUV and an SUV with the roof cut off, two of the extraterrestrial Honour Guards in their gold and red armour, and General Tarakh Andropov, Marshal Darii's second in command and youngest son of the Tsar of Derscon.

The Imperial Guard troops stopped before crossing the border, and Volckner and the Duke climbed out, walking up to the SUV. General Tarakh saluted both of them.

"Good evening. Hop in and I'll take you to my father." Volckner and the Duke looked at each other and walked to the SUV, but the General turned around. "Oh, and they'll have to stay," he said, nodding towards the tanks.

"And if they don't?" The Duke responded with more than a touch of arrogance in his voice. The General looked up.

"Then the Orbital Defence Grids floating above New Braunau, New Geneva, and right here unload. You saw what happened to the Pax Maria stronghold, the same will happen to all three targets. Now get in." the General practically shoved the two in the SUV, and hopped in shotgun, the Honour Guards getting in the cut off SUV. As the SUVs drove away, the Soli Fide troops turned around and went back to Reichskamphen under orders of General Tarakh, acting on behalf of his father, as well as the forced orders of Volckner and Kaiserstadt.

The two SUVs travelled down the road a bit before reaching a hanger-like structure, and entered. They pulled into the center, and the platform they were on moved downward about six stories, exposing a set of blast doors, which opened for them.

As the SUVs drove through the blast doors, the platform behind them went back up. In front of them was another set of blast doors, which didn't open until the other set was closed.

When those doors finally opened, they entered a room that was...well, quite large, as it was packed full of the Arca. I Cougar Ausfva. A MBTs, as well as a few helicoptors.

The SUVs stopped at the other side of the massive room, and they all got out. "This way." Tarakh put his eyes to the retinal scanner and the mini blast door opened, opening up a small room with a secretary and two armed soldiers in BDU-64 battle suits. When the door behind them closed, the secretary nodded to the General and pressed a button underneath her desk, the metalloid door in front of them sliding open, exposing a hallway littered with ceiling mounted automated turrets and many other doors just like the ones they walked through. The floor beneath them was actually an energy bridge not unlike the ones in the Kremlin Grande Hall, showing a very long drop and large pikes at the bottom, shooting out of an acid pit.

"What the hell is that?" Volckner cried after looking down. General Tarakh knew what he was talking about.

"That is a security system. When intruders enter this hallway, the floor you're walking on disappears and they fall a few stories under a shower of twenty millimetre rounds, and then become impaled on the pikes you see down there, their bodies sliding into the acid pit, which eats away at their corpse until there's nothing left. Saves the cleanup workers from having to go down there."

The door in front of them opened and they walked into the main lobby, which was a very large room with many automated turrets encased in half-domes on the ceiling with the cameras, soldiers walking about and standing on guard, and a large desk in the center, with the Dersconi Coat of Arms behind it.

They followed the Prince-General back aways and through a set of double-doors (not security doors, for once) and into another hallway, which was much more accomidating than the previous one, pictures of famous Generals and Marshals lining the walls in between the doors. The party turned a corner and walked down some stairs a bit, and walked through another set of security doors, finally reaching the terminal to the supersonic trains.

"We'll take this to RAMC. It should only be a few hours." The Honour Guards along the side saluted with their staves, and the soldiers saluted, opening the doors to the supersonic train, and shutting them behind the party, the train taking off to the capital of Derscon.

**************************************************

RAMC Airport

Simply by reading the name of the Capital city, you could easily determine that this Airport was really a modified (and morbidly large) Air Force base.

But that's beside the point.

The twenty Imperial Guard, Graves, and Brune were met by no dignitaries, only a Colonel of the Soli Deo Gloria division, four Honour Guards, and two Praesillei Dei.

"Good evening Reverend Graves, Marechal Brune," the colonel greeted, saluting. "Follow me, we want to get to RAMC before the sun sinks below the horizon, which is soon." The Imperial Guard troops were loaded onto APCs, Graves and Brune, along with the two Praesillei Dei troops, and two Imperial Guard troops were loaded into a stretch SUV, the colonel taking shotgun.

The road through the Macalania Forest surrounding RAMC, and about a half hour later, arrived at the clearing in front of the walls of the city.

The convoy stopped, and all of the Genevans got out. The colonel went ahead inside the city, and one of the Praesillei Dei soldiers walked up to Marechal Brune and Reverend Graves, and did not salute.

"You will have to leave your troops behind, save two per each dignitary. There is a small base they can stay at just a little West."

"What?" the Marechal cried. "I don't think so." The supersoldier simply glared at him, the genetically coded red eyes flaring.

"They are not to enter the city. Those are standing orders of the Tsars. This has not changed for over three THOUSAND years. It will not change now. Choose four guards, the rest stay outside."

"They are coming with u--" Marechal Brune was cut off by the ten Praesillei Dei supersoldiers raising their weapons at them, their THA-42 black Battle Armour absorbing the light around them, giving the affect that they were patrolling demons rather than genetically enhanced supersoldiers. The demon affect was enough, but the machine gun turrets were a definite addition to the intimidation, as were the hellfire turrets. Marechal Brune sighed. "Fine." THe turrets turned away from them and the soldiers lowered their weapons. The Marechal and the Reverend picked the four best soldiers and the rest were led to the small base outside the city.

They re-entered the stretch SUV as the first gate (which was actually a blast door) was opened, exposing the fact the walls were over one hundred feet thick. THe blast doors closed behind them, blocking out all natural lighting, leaving only the red emergency lights to emit an eerie shadow.

They finally reached the end of the tunnel, the blast doors on the other side opening to expose Rekjyavich-Andropov Military City, the heart of Derscon for over three thousand, two hundred years.

They drove past the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of State Security, one based of Versailles, the other based off of Wewelsburg.

They finally arrived at the walls of the Kremlin, driving through the gates. THe SUV parked in front of the Kremlin, and they got out.

"This way." The Prince-General led the party up through the Kremlin (to document it all would take much too long) and finally arrived at the Imperial Hall. Honour Guards lined the hall, in between the marble columns.

"The bodyguards have to stay here." The Marechal, realizing that this rule was uncompromising, nodded to them to stay, and continued on to the Star Office.

They arrived at the secretary's office, who opened up the ramp. Both of the Genevans looked at each other in curiousity at the strange things they just witnessed, and climed up the ramp to look out the window onto the Kremlin Square, seeing Andropov Tower. The ramp shut behind them and they turned around to see the various leaders of Greater Prussia sitting down but facing them, Kynaz Xavier sitting down at the computers at the desk, And Tsar Alexei standing up in the center, his cape flapping every once in awhile, as he was standing near the air conditioning vent (this was done deliberately as dramatic effect).

"Welcome to the Kremlin Palace Graves, Brune," Alexei said. "Please, sit down." He motioned to two empty chairs that just were brought out of the floor.

"Volckner has not arrived yet." At that time, the ramp opened up and Volckner was led in by Prince John, and the ramp shut behind them. Alexei smirked. "I lied."

"Welcome, Volckner. Sit down, please." Another easy chair flipped out from the floor, and Alexei motioned to it.

General Tarakh and Prince John sat in chairs on the other side of the desk, with the other Andropovs, and Alexei continued to stand.

"Anything to drink, to start off?"

"Could I have a sake, just for the hell of it??" Kenshin broke in, "I'm a little thirsty again."

John Antonette embraced Prince John and whispered, "We will have to meet again in less somber circumstances." When Volkner walked in, John pointed a finger at him, "You filthy liar!" He took a step towards him. Marco showed him back to his seat, "John, sit the hell down. Dont make a fool of yourself." He made it quiet enoguh so only Prince John, could here it. Not that Marco cared what people thought. After all, he was half Irish. He decided, however, he had a duty to represent the Catholic church well, if it was possible with some of these people.
Marco grinned however, his Irish side taking over, "Ah, Reverand Graves. So we meet. I was that annoying underground priest working in Reichskamphen." He smiled, "You may have heard of me." He also could not resist saying, "I insist, you must have a drink, the Tsar's drinks are excellent." He knew full well the conservative "Paisleyite" would not take it, and he also thught he was intelligent enoguh to realize the genial sarcasim."

Marechal Brune and Rev. Graves were both indeed quite shocked at the odd sights. Brune had travelled in space, but never seen some of the oddities the Czar seemed to have as a part of his everyday routine. As they walked in, both were taken aback at the Czar's obvious lack of respect for the both of them. He referred to them both by last name only, no mention of title, not even a Mister. "The Lord respects no man's person," Graves reminded himself, "neither should I, and neither should I scoff when men show no respect to such flimsy things as man given titles." Marechal Brune though, did not necessarily share the Reverends spiritual center and was more obviously offended.

As Volckner walked in he was shocked at the way he was addressed by the King of Cherry Ridge...but not overly so. He could certainly understand why. "I can sympathize with your anger." he said to Antonette. "As I said in my letter to your government...I do appologize. But, no appology of mine can ever bring those men back and no executions can ever do justice to their memories."

Graves looked at Volckner with the kind of Fatherly gaze that immediately quieted Volckner. Those who had known Ian Paisley would recognize that same sparkle in his eyes, that tone in his voice that men just instantly listened to. Afterall, he was Ian Paisley's apprentice.

"Your Highness, Czar Andropov...I assume we are meeting here on the assumption of New Geneva's official recognition as the government of Reichskamphen. That being the case, Marechal Brune and I would like to offer the Armies that are currently fighting under our command. We would wish them to be incorporated into the Imperial Guard and sent to fight in Syskeyia as we know how valuable their recent battle experiance would be."

Marechal Brune piped in, "Obviously other matters of less importance can be taken care of with time, but neither Reverend Graves, President Volckner, nor myself are willing to see this Empire perish because of any division among us."

Tsar Alexei could see the shock in their eyes at his only addressing them by his last name. To clear things up, he communicated with them telepathically, both to clear up some of the customs of high ranking Prussians meeting, and to give a very small glimpse into the Andropov family's power.

Brune, Graves, it seems you are not aware of how we deal with things in such meetings. This is expected, as you are new to this group of people. Here, we are not national leaders, we are friends and equals. All of us know each other quite well, and address each other as friends, not as ranked figureheads. Do not take this as an insult. You are equals with us in this room. Petty titles simply get in the way.

Of course, this wasn't entirely true -- with the Andropov's BEHIND the desk, facing them, they established their dominance over the room (Some of the Praetorian Guard half-circling around the back of the room helped in that dominance), and Alexei standing, his cape fluttering a a bit put forth the definite impression of "I am the boss."

Alexei smiled at Volckner's comments. "You are just like Napoleon. Always attempting to dominate the talks and forbid discussion." His smile left him, and his red eyes bore into Volckner. He turned to address Marechal Brune.

"I am aware of this, Brune. This is the very reason I authorized the troops to enter Reichskamphen, to prevent her from falling apart. I was afraid it would when you and Graves popped up, and then Volckner and the Duke of Kaiserstadt came into the picture."

"Correct," Xavier chimed in. "That's why I ordered the Orbital Defence Grid to annihilate the Pax Maria stronghold. I wanted them out of the picture to stabilize the country a little bit quicker." Alexei nodded.

"When the Duke joined New Geneva, and it was simply Geneva and Braunau, I figured a conference was in order. Now that it seems all of you are on the same page, I think we can work somehing out.

"With that said," Alexei's voice did not trail off, but he simply stopped. He turned to the rest of the group of national leaders. "Does anyone have a problem with the New Genevan government being the official, recognized government of Reichskamphen? If not, Graves, as leader of the Genevans, you will be appointed as temporary leader of Reichskamphen," Alexei deliberately did not mention a specific title. "And I'd withdraw my troops, unless you wanted a small amount left over to help out.

"So, any objections?" It was well known in Greater Prussia that Alexei had his ideas and instituted them, so it was a clear sign to Marechal Brune and Reverend Graves that the people in the room were considered his peers and friends, or he would not have put the question on the floor.

Antonette said, with a tone of bitterness, "What other optiondo we have? Who else are we to put in? The anarchists?" His eyes glowed with the anger of a man who had comrades and a friend die for nothing. He looked at Volkner and said, "Exactly right. No executions can bring them back. Then why do you wish to execute the men who allegedly killed my men?" Father Marco nodded at John, who said, "Under the good Father's advice, I have forgiven the killers. Doing this, will prevent even moire unnecessary deaths."
Father Marco sighed with relief, and then crossed himself, as a prayer for the repose of those who had died in the conflict. King John said, "However, I do request one thing. A memorial to the Ridgian soldiers who died in that spot."

"Ummmmmmmm......." Kenshin uttered as he looked up, then around the room, and scratched his head. Suddenly, his lost thought dawned on him, and he reached into his kimono and withdrew a vintage bottle of Mountain Dew, opened it and downed it. "Nope, no objections. However, I will say this: though Alexi has seen fit to trust you, and you are our equals in this room, I cannot say that my nation will see you as such. For the time being, I will have to revoke Reichkamphen citizens' rights to travel to the Shogunate, granted under our Greater Prussian Free Tourism Act. Until such time as I deem the situation fully under control in your nation, and there is no perceivable threat to our own citizens from the same people that cause this in the first place, no citizen of Reichskamphen will be allowed to travel within our borders for any circumstance save the immediate preservation of life and/or property. This includes all airline flights and merchant ships." He made quick notes on a palm-pilot. "However, I trust that you are men capable of their duties, so I don't see this measure lasting very long. But, let me remind you, as you may not have known, that no military traffic, land, air, or sea, is allowed at any time without my permission. This is carried out by lethal force, and I don't want any accidents on my watch, or the ancestors will have my ass." He looked around thinking again. "Do you have any questions on this matter?"

After thinking for a moment, Jack took a slug of his beer and shrugged slightly. “Eh, I really don’t have any problems with it. What about you, honey?” He turned to his wife sitting next to him.

Siri glanced over to her husband then back down to the crystal wine glass in her hand. She had been closely watching these three men as soon as they had entered the room, examining the way they dealt with the other leaders and listening to the way they spoke. In her mind, she had figured out who she liked and did not like and that heavily influenced her decision. “As of now, I have no objections to Graves temporarily leading the new Reichskamphen government.” She had placed special emphasis on “Graves” for he seemed like the best out of the three, and she wanted him and only him to lead. More would have been said but she was trying to the best of her ability to be polite as had been asked of her.

BUMP

waiting for Will...again

Southern Reichskamphen

"No!" The geurilla leader slapped the new recruit upside the head after he missed the target with the M16. "Again!"

All across this wide stretch of land, the terrorist group trained and amassed in preparation for their next strike. The nuclear weapon that was sold to them did tremendous damage, but unfortunately, didn't do its job in destabilizing the Empire.

Unfortunately for the terrorrists, they were being watched by a joint Gendarmes/MSS team, which were currently using laser designators to mark out certain locations....

The geurilla captain noticed a small disturbance near the horizon, but dismissed it as the wind. He was wrong.

The two stealth bombers approached their target and opened their bomb bays, releasing the guided munitions from their bays, and continued flying South to the Island of Hope.

The geurilla fighters looked up just in time to see a massive buldging metal case drop near them and explode, flattening most of the camp.

AT that point, the MSS and Gendarmes stormed the wreckage, taking out the guards that were caught off-guard by the sudden attack. They took the main building with ease and without casualty, and walked right into the main office.

The MSS captain smiled as he pointed his rifle at the terrorist leader. "Good morning, lad. You're under arrest." The anarchist just stood in bewilderment as he was shot with a stun dart, slumping over in his chair. The Gendarmes immediately went through the office, copied the harddrive of the computer there, and took some papers.

One of the Gendarmes pulled out a letter. "Christ, look at this!" Another one of the Imperial officers glanced at the letter and shot a glare at the MSS officers. The MSS officer knew what they were looking at.

"Sorry, I can't let you see that." The Gendarmes' looked up to see the barrels of the MSS rifles pointed at them, sending 6.67mm rounds into their skulls, killing all of the Imperial officers. The MSS agents took the harddrives and the papers, and set explosives around the building after incinerating the room with the bodies of the Gendarmes, detonating the explosives as the helicoptor extracted them from the ex-terrorist base.

Rekjyavich-Andropov Military City

In the dead of night, the helicoptor began approaching RAMC airspace. The radar arrays caught it, but the operators were ordered not to interfere with its approach, for reasons not given. So, for fear of being repremanded by their commanders, they let the helicoptor slide.

The whirl of the helicoptor was quieter than most, so it landed without much notice onto the helipad on top of MSS headquarters, where they were rushed inside by a few of the security agents.

Inside the Minister's Office, Yuri Golovko was looking over the streets of RAMC as the MSS agents were let in by his secretary. He did not turn around, and only spoke after the soundproof door was shut.

"Did you find them?"

"Yes, but the Gendarmes saw them first." The Minister of State Security turned around at this.

"What?" The chief agent smirked.

"Don't worry, they won't be telling anyone about it." Golovko nodded at the statement and extended his hand. The agent leading the group put the hard drive and the papers in his hand, saluted, and left the office to head to Mission Control to be debriefed. Golovko then shot a message off to Xavier, packed the letters and the drive into an attache case, and took his private elevator to the underground tunnel connecting MSS with the Kremlin.

************************************************

Star Office

"Oh, and don't worry, Marechal," Xavier commented. "Your division wouldn't break the Empire apart. We have a solidified base, and a lot of support. A Reichskamphen Civil War would not destabilize the Empire." Xavier looked down at the monitor to see that Golovko sent him a message, opened it, and smiled a bit as he read it. He secretly eyed the Duke of Kaiserstadt and looked back at his monitor. Excellent.

OOC: Sorry, Will, but I have to move things along.

Volckner was insulted at the snub Alexei made towards him, but figured that raising his objection in this particular forum, with a hostile Ridgian King across from him, the Praetorian behind him, and the very strange Andropovs in front of him, he kept his mouth shut.

The Marechal had the feeling that Xavier made a slight snub at him, but wasn't sure of it, so he didn't bring it up. These Dersconis are a very strange bunch. Arrogant, too.

Graves, it seemed, was the only one who had any respect for the Dersconis, but that was probably because he was the only one the Dersconis were showing respect to. "Well, it doesn't seem like there are any objections." Alexei nodded to Graves' statement.

"Indeed. As of now, the legitimate governing athourity of Reichskamphen lies soley in the hands of Reverend Graves. And that settles that problem. I would move on to restoring order in REichskamphen, but now that there's a legit government, that's not necessary." Xavier nodded.

"Indeed. As to Volckner's previous statement, yes, the Genevan Armies may immediately begin integrating into the Imperial Guard." Xavier then sent a telepathic message to the Duke of Kaiserstadt. When we all leave, wait outside in the secretary's office. There is something important to discuss.

Alexei sighed and leaned over on his desk. "So, now that that problem is mostly settled, how about we ajourn for today? If all of you stick around the Kremlin, the private suites in the Royal Hall for all of you are ready, if you so choose to use them, and dinner is being served in a few hours in the Tsar Valisky Hall. I hope all of you do choose to stay. It will be quite good." Alexei smiled and looked over at King and Prince John. "Oh, and do try not to get too drunk at dinner, please? That can wait for the Lounge afterwards, if you so wish." Alexei stood straight ocne more and clasped his hands together, looking much brighter.

"So! Off with ye. Get aquainted with your rooms, and I'll see you all in a few hours at the dinner table, barring any unfortunate incident." Alexei chuckled as the ramp opened behind them, the Praetorian Guards leaving the office into the Imperial Hallway as the Andropovs, minus Xavier, went into the Private Quarters.

All of the delegates went to their respective suites, and the ramp re-opened to let the Duke of Kaiserstadt back in the office, Xavier and Alexei sitting down in the couches. Alexei motioned to one of the couches, which the Duke sat down upon.

"Now, we called you here because of a specific plan we have for you," Alexei started. "I want you to become King of Reichskamphen." THe Duke was taken aback by the sudden comment by Alexei.

"What?" Alexei nodded.

"I would like a strong King ruling Reichskamphen, one that doesn't have such a close resemblance to Dr. Paisley." Xavier nodded.

"You see, Dr. Paisley never took too kindly to the Andropovs." Xavier stood up and started pacing around the two. "He thought we were some sort of daemons, he shoved us aside. That is why he is now dead." Both Alexei and the Duke turned their heads at this.

"Unfortunately, such rejection of culture often results in chaos," Xavier continued, moving towards the Duke. "And in such times, those power-hungry individuals try and gain more than they have.

"It's unfortunate, that when my father, who has betrayed Dersconi culture, offered the Duke the Kingdom of Reichskamphen, the duke grew arrogant and power-hungry." Both present grew wary of Xavier's tone of voice and actions. The Veliky Kynaz took the Duke's sword out of its scabbard and put it in the Reichskamphener's hand. "And out of this arrogance and hunger, grew hatred and violence. And so he took it out on the nearest target."

Xavier, at that moment, took the Duke of Kaiserstadt's hand with the blade in and thrusted it into Alexei's chest. The Tsar shot back in his chair in surprise, his eyes wide, questioning all that was happening. "Wha...?" Xavier grunted at his father.

"So it is with traitors." Tsar Alexei looked down at the ground and sighed, letting out his final breath before slumping over in the chair.

"However, the Tsar's faithful son was caught off-guard by the Duke, and saw the event happen. Rushing by his father's side, he avenged his father's death." The Duke snarled, defiant even while staring in the face of death.

"You will never get away with this." Xavier simply grunted and smirked.

"Of course I will." Xavier took his sword and decapitated the Duke of Kaiserstadt.

Suddenly, Alexei's body began to radiate, almost as if he was an angel. However, in his chest, a black vortex began to appear, out of it shooting a black dragon. Alexei's body spasmed, but somehow managed to rest peacefully on the couch, his expression as if he finally was at peace.

The Black Dragon circled around Xavier a bit, let out a roar that was too low to be heard, but was felt, opening a black vortex over Xavier's chest. Xavier began to feel a bit dizzy when it happened. What? He felt like he was being dragged down into the Abyss as the black vortex enveloped his entire torso. Eventually, the Black Dragon stared him straight in the eyes, and dived head first into the vortex, fusing with Xavier's soul.

As it happened, the room seemed to turn a dark purple and black, spinning around. Strange glyphs appeared out of nowhere, spinning around the room. A large glyph appeared above him, and spun at its axis as he layed on the ground, unable to move. A dark energy appeared at the edges of this glyph, spiraling into Xavier. When it all stopped, he knew what had happened.

The powers of the Great Daemon were not simply tapped and controlled, like Alexei could. No, it was more.

Xavier had become Damonagashi.



He stood up, brushing himself off, and looked around the room. Around him were the Four Elemental Swords, part of the Great Blades of YHWH. Odd. Xavier bent down to grab one, but it disappeared. He went to grab the others, and they disappeared, too. Suddenly, the one that was left, the Sword of Mercury, levitated, swung itself at Xavier and disappeared. What the hell?

Suddenly, the Star Office flashed a bright white, and when Xavier could see again, the entire room seemed to be a sort of holomap of some area. He saw at the points of the office there were the symbols of the swords. But at the forward point, there was a different symbol. It looked familiar, but he couldn't seem to place it...

And it then wrapped itself up into a floating ball. IT looked like you could put some sort of key in it, but it was out of reach -- the energy mass went up to the top of the office and simply floated there. Damn. He looked some more, and he saw his father's body. He did a double-take on it, seeing something that in his ninteen years of life he never saw on his father before. Xavier walked up to his father and moved aside his shirt, revealing a strange tatoo on his chest. Unfortunately, it was where the sword went through him, so he couldn't make it out. This is getting weird.

"The emphasis on too, eh, Alexei?" He laughed and said, "See you at dinner." He was wrong.
-----------------------------
John Antonette and Joseph Marco, in suites next to each other, put their luggage away. John Antonette changed into a blue uniform, with his sword hanging from his side. Marco now wore a regular clerical suit, with tab collar. They walked out, and met up with Prince John. However, before John could say anything, his swords light grew bright. Antonette fell down, a rare frightened look crept onto his face. "My leg!" He cried. Marco took to sword out of its scabbard, and kicked it away from John. John leaned on Marco as he stood up. "What was that? Thats the first time I felt its heat." He picked up the sword. It still glew, but no longer burned. "I need a drink." Marco poured a tall glass of Jameson's special reserve, and John finished it quickly. He sighed and said to Prince John, "What the fuck happened?"
Marco excused himself, and went back to his suite. He picked up his own sword, the Sword of the Holy Ghost. He changed into his cassock, and put the sword on his side. He also put on his ferraiolo, his non liturgical, black cape. It partially covered the sword. A black fascia (sash) was worn around his waist, and the sword was attached under that. Finally, he put on his black biretta, the square hat worn by clerics. He walked out, again, and looked around. He rejoined the Johns and said, "I have a bad feeling. better to be dressed like this, just in case something happens, I can look more formal." John simply nodded, his eye on the presbyter's sword.

ooc: Just for reference, Father Marco's sword, (except his is in better condition):
http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/5223/d4163l4so.jpg

Kenshin had been sitting quietly on the floor of his suite, meditating in his own sense of the word. This consisted of him sitting cross-legged, his sword un-sheathed in his lap, and him running a wetting stone down the blade, sharpening it beyond sharp. Soon, he had entered a trance, his mind, heart, and soul in rhythm with the stone as it went down the blade. John's scream reached him quietly, mixing with the stone's sound as it ran down the blade. He stopped and opened his eyes. Quietly, and with diliberate motions, he stood up, slipped the stone back into his kimono, and sheathed the sword. He took a moment to pull the top of the kimono back over his torso, the same one he had been wearing the whole time, and opened the door out into the hall. "What's going on out here?" he asked, aware that the behavior was not exactly normal, even for this lot.

King John sipped his drink, while Father Marco walked over to Kenshin, "John's sword lit up. It burned his leg. He's alright, but that only means one thing: something bad has happened. We don't know what yet, but it involves the swords or the sword. We are not sure yet." Marco then said quickly, "That is a wierd occurance. John seems slightly out of it, but not much. Sorry to disturb you though." The priest adjusted his collar, and the small book he had in his pocket, along with his rosary, and sighed.

"That is peculiar," Kenshin said. Suddenly, a graven, white image shimmered into being next to him. It stood without touching the floor, and was clad in white armor, and had an ashen, slightly sunken face framed by an elaborate helm. It saluted, and when it spoke, it's voice came in echos, as though spoken from far away. "Your Excellency, we have a small situation here..." it said.
"Yes, and that would be?"
"My lord, the sword atop the statue issued an explosion. The whole right half of the statue is destroyed, and the sword fell into the jungle on the second level..." it replied.
"Find it. Thank you very much, Ieyasu. You may take leave."
"Sir..." The image bowed, and faded from view. Kenshin turned back to Father Marco.
"His sword is not the only one acting up. Mine back in the Shogunate is too. Something bad is up."

When the scream was heard, four Honour Guards rushed in to the room to ensure that there wasn't an attack. When it was assured there wasn't one, they walked back outside the hallway, a medical team taking their place.

"What's the situation?" One of the members of the Kremlin Medical Guard knelt over King John, looking at the burn marks. Prince John looked over him.

"His sword acted up, and he got burnt. It should be okay." The medical staff member looked at it, and nodded.

"Yeah, it's barely even first degree. Here-" he pulled out a small container of aloe from a kit. "Just use this." The medical officer stood up and walked out. Prince John chuckled when he left.

"I am still amazed at how guards and other staff can pop out of nowhere in an instant. It's almost like magic." HE chuckled again and helped King John up. "I think you need a drink. You know, to ease the pain." He winked and smirked at the King and handed him a bottle of Irish Creme and a glass.

King John nodded, "I just had one, but another one is ok." He poured himself a wee drop (read as large glass) of the cream, and sipped it. He thanked the medical staff, and then said to the prince, "That was fucked up. The sword was white hot, and I only got that." He motioned at his leg. Father Marco drifted back over, and said, "Somethings apparently up with the Shogun's sword too." Marco strolled over to the mini bar, and returned with his own mug filled with Guiness. He sat down, and raised an eyebrow at Prince John, "The famed drunk of the Kremlin isn't drinking?" He grinned, and pushed the other glass in his hand to him: a mixed Vodka martini. He frowned, not knowing what the Prince wanted, "Is that drink ok? I only remembered how to make it from some magazine I was forced to read in a doctor's office."

John pushed the drink back. "No, thanks. Something doesn't feel right, I can't drink when I'm like this." He leaned back in the chair in King John's private suite, the Shogun and Marco sitting around as well. There wasn't much talk going on, except Prince John thinking aloud.

"Why would that sword do that? The only time it heats up is when something is fluxuating it's power...." his voice trailed off and instinctively went for the drink King Antonette poured for him, not even thinking that only thirty seconds ago he turned it down. Kynaz Ivan set it back down on the table and continued his thought process out loud, although softly. They all could still hear, however.

"Only two things -- no, three -- can fluxuate that power. Rachek is obviously not here, and the Dragon Sword is locked in the energy field in the Grand Hall...." his voice trailed off again as he took a sip of the drink, staring at the floor. Prince John set the drink back on the table, and suddenly shot upright, his eyes wide with fear.

"Alexei!" The Veliky Kynaz jumped out of his chair and bolted out of the room, making an all-out sprint for the hidden passage connecting the Imperial Hall with the Prussian Suites.

Shooting out of the winding staircase and out into the hall, some of the Honor Guards were caught off-guard, and almost attacked the Prince, but let him run by.

In the secretary's office, the secretary saw the paniced face of the Prince and immediately opened the ramp, which he jumped up on before it even touched down.

Prince John just stood there, staring at the floor, disbeliving what he saw. Xavier was holding Alexei's dead body, nearly crying. The Prince walked over to Xavier and clasped his shoulder, kneeling down beside him, not a sound coming from either of their mouths.

King John jumped up, and ran after him. He managed to stay right behind him. When they reached the office, John stopped stunned. His eyes fell to Alexei's corpse, and then, his sword glowed. He dropped to his knees, holding his head, putting pressure on the side and his eyes. A sharp pain had passed through it, that it caused him to kneel. His sword glew not white, but red. He fell to his side, and and tried to disattach the sword. He burned his hand. He tried to call for the Kynaz to turn around, but not sound came. An image of what happened swirled before his eyes, but was forgotten one second later, vanished, even from his subconscience. He sent up a plee that John would turn around. The thought caused his head to throb, and then he blacked out. The red around the sword grew darker.

"What happened?" Veliky Kynaz Ivan Rekjyavich spoke in a very low and solemn tone. Xavier shook his head.

"It was the Duke of Kaiserstadt. He said something about 'traitors' and 'more power' and went after Alexei. It caught me off-guard. He went after me, too, but I cut him down, since I was expecting it." Xavier stood up and turned around, seeing the fallen body of Antonette. Xavier rushed over to him, checking his pulse and breathing, and breathed a sigh of relief. Kynaz Ivan looked over and nodded.

"It's Antonette's connection with the swords. His sword flash-heated, I'm assuming when Alexei died." Xavier didn't respond. Instead, he walked down to the secretary's office.

"Becky, I need some medical staff up here." The secretary nodded.

"Okay, Xavier." THe secretary placed the call, and in about a minute, the medical personnel arrived.

"You called?" Xaiver nodded and took them up to the Star Office.

"Jesus!" The chief medical officer dropped his bag in shock, staring at the three bodies. Xavier nodded.

"The Duke is dead, as is the Tsar. Antonette passed out. I want them down in the medical bay."

"Right away, sir." The Chief Medical Officer called up three stretchers, placing Antonette, the Duke, and Alexei on them, and whisked them down the emergency grav lift in the Imperial Hall to the medical bay. Meanawhile, the rest of the staff were aiding in the cleanup of the office. The Prince looked at his watch.

"It'll be dinner soon. Will Antonette recover in time?" Xavier nodded.

"Probably. He just passed out, and he didn't have anything resembling a fall, so some smelling salts should be fine. I just wanted to make sure. Actually..." he turned and looked at the clock in the room. "Let's go check on him." The two Dersconi Princes, escorted by four Honor Guards, walked out of the office as the medical and janatorial staff were cleaning it, and down the grav lift to the medical bay.

OOC: Dinner will be posted later tonight.

OOC - Whoa!

Mariah's sword was feeling rather cold. She asked it "What the hell is going on?" and it replied "Long live the King, the King is dead.". She knew something funny had happened.

With his dark blue service coat laying on a nearby chair and his formal black dress shoes thrown about the floor, Jack’s head was leaned back in the bed while his mouth was open, snoring loudly. The events of the meeting had him tired out and all he could do was sleep now until dinner. On the other hand, Siri was sitting on the floor with her back resting against the footboard. She was resting like her husband was, but while doing that, she reviewed the events of the meeting minute-by-minute in her mind as if she was reliving it. The same sights, sounds, smells that had happened were all being replayed in precise detail. She was checking to see if she had missed anything that was said or seen. But the scream of King Antonette caught the attention of Siri’s constantly listening ears and her eyes immediately flew open.

She then jumped up from the floor and smacked Jack in the foot with her scabbard. “Wake up! I think something’s wrong.”

Snorting once, he arose from his deep sleep and replied groggily. “Wha? What’s goin’ on?”

“I do not know, but someone just screamed.” She smacked him in the foot once more. “Come on.”

“Alright, alright,” he replied swinging his legs down towards the floor where he slid his feet into the shoes. “Don’t get all worried. I’m sure there’s a perfectly good explanation.”

Jack then got up from the bed and quickly grabbed his coat, putting his arms through to look at least a little presentable. He brushed the wrinkles out of his pants and coat then the couple immediately stepped out of the door and into the hall. It was only a short walk for them to where Kenshin was standing. “What’s all the ruckus about?” Jack asked him.

John stirred uncomfortably on the bed. He sat up quickly and gagged. "Jesus... that smells like shit." He saw his sword on the table next to him, and his uniform kacet was off. He stood up, his white shirt impeccable. He saw the two Kynaz's comming, and noticed his sword glowing a blood red, though he had no more bad effects. He text messaged Marco telling him he was ok, and he didn't have to come down.
He said to the Prince's when they arrived, "I'm fine." He shivered and said, "Hows... Alexei."

Kenshin turned to Jack, "some of the spiritual swords have been acting up. I think that something pretty bad's happening." He was taken aback slightly as Prince John bolted, yet quickly followed, running to Alexi's office. He entered to the sight of Alexi's body, and did a double-take, appaled at the sight of Alexi, brutally murdered. He was briefly reassured by the sight of the Duke of Kaiserstadt, next to Alexi, but not receiving nearly the same amount of attention. However, all feelings of some reassurance melted away as Xavier looked up at him. It was incredible, and inconcievable at the same time. Kenshin could place the eyes anywhere, and his right hand flew to his hilt as his left thumb began pushing the sword past the friction point. Using every ounce of self-control, his reasonable side halted his movements. If I attack now, I'm dead. I'm the only one who recognizes who this is. Kenshin could recognize the eyes of the Daemonagashi anywhere. He alone was responsible for 75% of the scars on Kenshin's back when they had fought face to face. Helplessly, he glared at Xavier. I'll have to play along for now....I hate this.

As the skids carried the bodies away, Kenshin silently followed Xavier and Prince John, his hand resting uneasily on his scabbard with his thumb over the tsuba, prepared with the excuse that he was concerned about Antonette. However, he was interrupted by the white figure's apparition again, and was not aided by his theatrics.
"Your Excellency, we weren't able to recover the sword."
"What!?" Kenshin almost exploded. "What do you mean?" he asked quiter.
"Sir, we found it, but it was surrounded by a massive blue serpent, a dragon. It's body spun and coiled, and then melted back into the sea."
"No offense, but you're ghosts, you can't be harmed by it," Kenshin hissed through clenshed teeth.
"I know sir....all of us were taken by surprise by it....it's attacks affect us!," the apparation said, honesty on his face.
"Did it say anything?"
"Yes, that it was charged to stay there and protect the sword, and that it wouldn't move. That was it."
"Fine, thank you. Dismissed," Kenshin said, undecidedly between at ease and being troubled.
"Sir." The figure bowed and disappeared again. Kenshin stood there, staring into space a little, looking past the others thinking about the message.

ooc: Two mistakes, PP, Jack got there after Jonh took off, indeed, after they were in the office. Second, you said he followed Xaiver and Veliky. Veliky is part of Prince John's title, meaning "Grand".

Thanks, I'll let the first one go, just cause, and I'll fix the second one to say "Prince John".

When Xavier looked up at the Shogun, he knew that Kenshin saw what he had become. He could taste the shogun's fear and surprise. Hmph.

****************************************

Down in the medical bay, the two princes were looking down at Antonette. "We shipped you down here just in case. You passed out." When Antonette asked his second question, Prince John sighed. "Alexei is dead." The chief medical officer came up to the three leaders.

"Antonette's fine, nothing injured. He can go." Prince John lifted Antonette up off the bed and walked him back to the grav lift. "Come on, it's supper time."

(TIMEWARP!)

All of the leaders gathered in a smaller, more humble dining room than initially intended, as was the table. The dining table was medium-sized so it could fit everyone comfortably, and it was a perfect circle. If one did a count, they'd notice two chairs were missing....

Xavier sat at the head of the table, which only existed because of the large throne-like chair. Xavier observed all of the leaders from his chair. The Shogun sat across from him and to the Prince's right, Prince John sat to the right of the Shogun, across from Xavier and to the young prince's left. To Xavier's right hand, he invited Reverend Graves to sit, and to Xavier's left hand, he invited Siri to sit at his left. Jack sat to Siri's left, and Marechal Brune sat to Graves' right. Perpendicular to Xavier sat Marco and Count Richard, on the left and right, respectively. In between Kenshin and Richard sat Mariah of Jeruselem, and in between Prince John and Marco sat King Antonette. All around the dining room were Honor Guards posted, staves in hand, standing more as decorations that fight than any useful purpose, since the dining room was deep inside the Kremlin.

Xavier quieted them down and stood up, addressing the crowd. "As you now notice, two people are missing from our group. If I may, I will now explain why, but only briefly.

"My father and the Duke of Kaiserstadt were in a meeting together in the Star Office, alone. I was back in the Private Quarters. I heard their voices start to rise, and as I opened the door into the office, I saw the Duke of Kaiserstadt thrust his sword into my father's chest. To avenge my father, I cut down the Duke with my own sword. Now my father is dead at the hands of a traitor, and the traitor is dead at the hands of justice." As Xavier sat down, Prince John stood up.

"May we all bow our heads." All of the leaders did so, and John said a prayer in his his own personal style -- not flamboyant or elegant, but conversationally reverent.

"Lord,

We ask that You bless this food that we are about to recieve, and You bless its preparers, so that as the food gives us physical nourishment, You give us spiritual nourishment.

"We thank You for Your Holy and Guiding Presence during our trials and tribulations, on a personal, and national level. We thank You for your Holy Guidance during the conflicts and rebellions of the near past.

"We thank you for Your Holy Presence here with us now, as You continue to guide us on all levels to carry out your Holy Will, beyond comprehension by mortal man, and that You continue to use us for Your Holy Purposes.

"We ask that you guide our chancellor, our leader, our friend, and our brother, Alexei, towards Your Heavenly Kingdom, and that he is forgiven of the taint of the Great Daemon, which was unevictable from him. We ask that You grant our brother and friend peace, a feeling that he never experienced in his lifetime, and that You comfort and guide him in Your Holy Presence in Heaven.

"In all of these things we pray in Your Holy Name,

Amen."

The "Amen" was echoed by the other leaders as the Prince sat back down in his chair, and the appitizers -- shrimp with cocktail sauce (both regular and hot), as well as motzerella sticks for the less-refined -- were brought out on large platters. Xavier sighed and took one of the shrimp, dipping it in the hot cocktail sauce. He bit the shrimp, chewed, and swallowed, taking a very quick drink of the ice water currently on the table.

"Whew! That's hot." Prince John's head shot up, appalled that Xavier would comment on the shrimp sauce like that when his father was just murdered, but then it occured to him what Xavier was doing, and the Prince joined in.

"Really?" The Prince put away his sorrow for a later time and grabbed a shrimp, trying the sauce. He took a small drink and grunted. "No it isn't, wimp." By this time, it should have been obvious what they were doing -- putting away the sorrow and grief so as to not have a dreary dinner. In Derscon, it was the social equivialent of treason to bring your sorrows and grief to the dinner table, as dinner was always a happy occassion to get together with family and/or friends and share in joy.

"I should have never let my father dismiss those guards," Xavier muttered under his breath, although Siri and Graves could probably hear him.

John smiled weakly, as he realised what Xavier and John were doing. He tried the shrimp and sauce and said, "Almost as good as the fresh shrimp caught off the docks. Ridgian docks that is." He grinned, and tried another one. "Sauce is excellent."

The news came as a complete shock to Jack who was not expecting anything even close to this magnitude. His stunned face immediately paled to an almost white appearance upon hearing it, and a queasy feeling erupted in his stomach when he saw the food being laid out upon the table. Glancing at King John and the Andropovs who were eating and talking, he wondered how they could just sit there and do that at a time like this? But it hit him what was going on, so he grabbed himself one of the mozzarella sticks and forced himself to eat while making a comment, hoping that he did not vomit instead. “The mozzarella sticks are pretty good, too…same with the sauce.”

Seated to the right of him, Siri remained cold and emotionless as she munched on a few pieces of shrimp that she had gotten from the platter, each one dipped in the hot sauce. But unlike the others, she was not drinking water afterwards. The hotness really didn’t bother her, and neither did the news. She had seen the deaths of many in her life including her family and by now, she was used to it being ever present in her life…at least in most cases. It did irritate her to find that another leader had been brutally murdered, which she blamed on the inept security forces that these humans chose. To her the Dersconis and Reichskamphens were hardly capable of protecting their leaders and their families. Though, for once, she kept her mouth closed and said not a word about it as a sign of respect for the dead, someone that she knew for only a few hours but still respected.

Siri did pay attention to the rather forced conversation at the table and even caught Xavier’s mumbled words. Not even looking at him in order to not attract unnecessary attention, she spoke to him telepathically. Blaming yourself for dismissing those guards will not do you any good, young one. You cannot dwell in the past, thinking about what could have or should have happened. What’s done is done. She glanced over to him. What you can do is learn from your father’s mistakes and help guide this Empire out of these troubled times. I know that you can do it. I have faith in you.

Gazing at her husband and the other leaders, she shook her head at their inability to cover up their emotions and decided to jumpstart the conversation using a topic that she knew would get these people talking. “You know…the blessing for the dinner just reminded me of a question that I have been meaning to ask…ever since I have lived in Northrop-Grumman, I have read various translations of the Christian Bible in Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and other languages, but I don’t believe that I have stumbled across the right answer yet. What I am trying to understand is where do those who are not human, such as myself, fit in with the grand scheme of things?”

John Antonette for once kept his mouth shut. Father Marco, gave a quick answer, "My speciality is Canon Law, not theology, though, since I did take theology, I will try to give an answer. I do not advocate- nor does any true Catholic- the genocide of elves. I guess some would consider elves man as God's chosen creatures. Others, no offence, as merely animals- which is not true. The Catholic church has no opinon. Personally, I'd consider elves man." he shruged, "But I don't know."
Antonette grinned, and to lift his own mood slightly, said, "Wouldn't it be better for a certain elf not to fit into the scheme of things at all? Things would go much smoother." He chuckled, "I believe shes at this table too."

Count Richard nudged his wife "Like the shrimp, Mariah?" and she shrugged not too enthuiastically "Meh, you know I'm Jewish and not too keep on seafood. Well, half-Jewish." He enjoyed his seafood but he was a seafarer married to a land-lubber which meant two different chefs in the kitchen.

Mariah said to Siri
"Take solice in the words of Ephesians 2:18 to 20

For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone"

Phoren, ironically, was still there representing UA. He'd merely slinked off to a restroom to get away from the inane chit-chat earlier and... Take care of a few other things. However, the sheer boredom of attending such events had gotten to him and he had fallen asleep, then and there. By the time he'd woken up, not that he'd know it, an attack had been defeated, the Duke and Alexei had both been slain and now there was shrimp being served.

He eventually found himself just outside the considerably smaller room than before after a little help from the guards and many, many questions from the same guards. It hadn't been easy convincing them who he was, but in the end he'd managed to, and made his quiet, discrete entrance just as John finished his prayer, and closed the door again, thought for a few moments, opened it up once more, stepped through as quietly as possible and set himself down in an unoccupied seat, helping himself to some shrimp...

My, my, my... Falling asleep on the toilet, entering during the middle of a prayer for the dearly departed and then having the gall to just sit down and have some shrimp? Evidently Phoren should have sent an actual diplomat.

Siri rubbed her chin and thought about what was being said. “That could be a good explanation, Father. I mean, physically I am not all that different from my husband aside from the pointed ears and longer life but our bodies function almost the same way. We have the same organs, muscles, bones. So yes, elves could be considered as being like man.”

She then smiled at Antonette and joked. “Oh really, John? I wonder who that could be. I know it surely isn’t me.”

A small grin appeared on Jack’s face as he watched Siri and the others interact. She really was lightening things up in here. For that he was grateful, so he leaned over and quietly whispered in her ear as he patted her leg. “Good work, honey, and thanks.”

Marco thought for a second and said, "I suppose elves could be considered a different race, like caucasian, black, hispanic, asian, and all the other ones. They all have minor differences in the body, yet all are considered man."
Antonette rolled his eyes, and said sarcastically "Surely, not you."

Kenshin was never one to shy away from a meal of any sort, let alone dinner, but his appetite seemed to have slipped away from him today. With events happening as they were, he couldn't really summon the will to even eat. Luckily, the conversation was providing some distraction for him, which he eagerly joined in. "Well, I'm not too sure about Catholicism or other Protestant faiths, but I do know that Lutheranism believes that all animals have souls...so you could be a goldfish and not have to worry!" He smiled and laughed.

Hoping to keep the high going, he turned to Phoren, "well, you're here, and yet we know absolutely nothing about you or your nation. Why don't you fill us in?" While he waited, Kenshin talked to Xavier telepathically, You bastard. You've put me in a position where I can't act. Mark my words, I will expose you and strike you down

"I would agree with Marco here," Prince John commented. "We are all sentient beings here, such is enough." The Prince went for a mozzarella stick, dipped it in the sauce, and brought it over to him, but before he could take a bite, he dropped some of the sauce on his bright white shirt.

"Son of a biscuit!" He threw the stick down on his plate, taking his napkin and wiping it off before it could stain too badly. Unfortunately, there was some that had soaken in quickly. "Argh. Now I'll have to get this stupid thing out." He shook his head, taking the chalice of sauce and pouring some on his plate. From there, he cut the stick up and used a fork to dip it and eat. Unfortunately, his thought process didn't take him as far as to realize that when the stick was dipped, the sauce is still at the bottom of the piece, and due to his lack of foresight, dropped sauce on his shirt again.

"Oh, for the love of God..." He took in a deep breath and sighed, setting the fork down carefully and wiping the sauce off of his shirt again. "I give up."

Xavier did not respond to Siri's comments, instead focusing on the mozzarella sticks and the dipping sauce, tasting very good, regardless of the informality of a mozzy stick as an appetizer. Your father indeed made many mistakes. Xavier was startled by the voice that he suddenly heard, but did not show it. You have freed me from his bondage. Xavier tried to ignore the voice, continuing to munch on the food and listen in to the ongoing conversation. Why do you ignore me? I can grant you great power beyond your imagination. To think, to become more powerful than your father, to command legions of an undefeatable army. Xavier set the shrimp he was eating down and started staring into his plate, thinking about the voice that he was hearing.

To think, the Prince of Darkness, Lucifer himself, would be at your disposal because of the power I can grant you. You would be God's equal. Xavier's eyes narrowed at the prospect of Divine Power. To rule over all of Creation, to wage war against God and defeat him.

"That's impossible," the Prince quietly whispered. The voice let out a sinister laugh.

Of course you'd say that. You're a mortal, decieved by all of the talk around you. I can change this. I will make you immortal. I will make you a GOD. Xavier ate the shrimp on his plate and thought about this voice's offer.

Who are you? the Prince thought, conversing with this.

I am the source of your father's power. I am the Chancellor of the One Realm. Xavier's eyes went wide for a split second and returned to normal, and he whispered a name that most have never heard, a name that was erased from the history books of man and elf alike, of all sentient life in the universe, at the sheer fear and power that it carried.

"Daemonagashi."

Indeed. Xavier went for a mozzarella stick, and if one was paying close attention, you could see him shake ever so slightly. As he ate the appetizer, a small smile came across his face, barely noticable.

What do I have to do?

Nothing as of yet. It will all come in due course. I will be you, and you will be me. We, together, shall reclaim what is rightfully ours. Xavier nodded, smirking to himself. He went and grabbed another shrimp, dunking it in the hot cocktail sauce, and eating it without so much as blinking, even though it was about a 2:1 ratio of sauce to shrimp.

When all of the appetizers were gone, the waiters took the chalices of sauce and the trays of food away, bringing out large bowls of various sliced veggies, such as lettuce leaves, carrots, cabbage, etc, as well as a series of dressings and oils, some of which could not be found anywhere but Derscon. Xavier smiled when all of the bowls were placed and the waiters left.

"Do-it-yourself salad. Since most of us here do not share a similar culture when it comes to food, we figured that we'd accomodate all of you and provide a salad bar." A waiter came back with a small bowl of croutons, and for those who enjoyed it, warm, small pieces of chicken breast, and a tiny bowl of cubed ham.

Along with the salads, waiters appeared taking orders for drinks, giving the national leaders an extensive "Wine and it's Cousins" menu.

Cognac
Dirai V.S.
Dirai V.S.O.P.
Dirai X.O.
Russian Classic Moskvan X.O.
Chateau de Burgundy V.S.
Drakonsvyetla Vintage V.S.O.P.
Napoleon IV Coronation Vintage X.O.

Liqueurs
*Just about every flavour of Schnapps you can think of
l’Essence de Mead

Vodka
(Note: All vodkas come flavoured to your liking)
Schitszlovatich
Andropova
Moskva Classic
Tsar's Choice Triple Distilled Luxury Vodka

Red Wines
Chateau de Sanglant
Chateau de Sanglant “Reserve de l’Empereur”
Le Garde Burgundienne (1986)
Mer de la Sud (2000)

White Wines
Centreville Vinyards Chardonnay
Reichsburg Estates Riesling
Arch Duke Oberhausen Riesling

Champagne
As Champagne must be grown in the region of ‘Champagne, the following would be legally considered Sparkling Wines, but have the same high quality, if not better quality than those that come from France, and you are without the guilt for breaking your boycott on them.

Le Grand Chateau de le Marechalate (blanc de blancs)
Guillaume-Richarde (blanc de blancs)
1 Case Napoleon Premier (blan de blancs) rose also available

IMPERIAL CELLAR SPECIAL RESERVES

Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte’s Private Cognac Reserve, 1809
Chateau Lafite Rothschilde (Bordeaux Cabernet), 1896
Tsar Aleksandr VII Riesling Reserve
Emperor Liepzig I Chardonnay

Kenshin looked at the beverage list, disappointed, yet not surprised. He had had the foresight to place a couple of flasks of sake in his sleeve, along with another rare concoction he had picked up along his travels. "I've come across a specialty drink that's perfect for...well...a good time, we'll say. It's a blend between my native rice wine, sake, and the well know margarita, dubbed a 'sakerita'. Anyone brave enough to try some of it?"

Prince John chuckled.

"Don't worry, we didn't forget about you." A waiter came out with a menu full of specialty Far Eastern alchoholic beverages, and as all noticed, John Antonette didn't get a menu. Instead, a Bailey's Irish Creme graced with a shamrock was brought to the Irish king.

"As for that drink, send it over here."

Xavier perked up at the message from the Shogun. Do not take heed, Daemonagashi told him. He is harmless. You will be able to take him without even flexing a muscle soon. Watch him, but don't fear him. Xavier took the being's advice and ignored the message from the Shogun as he started eating his salad.

"Come on, now," Xavier said after swallowing a bit of salad. "These bowls aren't here for decoration. Well, they are, but they have food in them! Eat it!"

The half Irish king grinned, thoguh didn't drink until the others got their drinks. When it was time for salad, he put together the standard salad, plus chicken, and, debating over what to get for dressing, he decided to pour oil, vineger, and pepper on his salad. He sat back down, and leaned over to Prince John, and said, "I wanna buy some Tsar Aleksandr VII Riesling Reserve for my collection. I am aware it is extremly expensive, but, well, you know what I own."
He then said to Shogun, "I'll never shy from a free drink!"

Kenshin chuckled, delighted by the whole separate menu. "I thank you greatly!" He then passed over a flask of the new drink. "It is quite powerful, no?"

John replied, "Powerful, not the most powerful I've tried, though." He finished the flask, "not my type of drink." John thought to himself, Damn, Three drinks in a few hours, plus the oens I had at the meeting. And the one I'm drinking now. He smirked, Oh well.
He sipped his Bailey's and finished his salad.

Phoren raised an eyebrow at Kenshin as he asked thag question and finished off a shrimp before he answered "You mean to tell me you haven't heard of the Grand Empire? I find that just a little... Hard to swallow, really." He paused, took a sip of water then launched into a speech that could very well have come straight from a tourism guidebook.

"The Grand Empire is incredibly ancient, powerful and large. We have complete and utter dominance over a galaxy a considerable distance away, and nearly every world in that galaxy is used for mining, farming or as a population centre. Unfrtounately travel times between our home galaxy and this one are far too long for anything but sleeper ships or vessels crewed by Elves. And as such, only our far smaller, though still quite large, holdings in this galaxy are of any import.

Officially, we lay claim to perhaps a sixtieth of your galaxy, though rarely do we enforce such a claim and we are composed of only five billion citizens on technologically advanced worlds, with perhaps another billion of 'savages' from worlds like Nirn, such as Siri over there. The only reason those worlds have not been exploited is because I forbid it, and otherwise the Grand Empire would rapidly swell in size."

Count Richard got up to get his and his wife's salad. He ate much for salad than she did by default. He did his job and returned. Normally it was a wife's job to get the food but then his wife wasn't much of a cook so it was safer this way.

His wife ordered a Guillaume-Richarde (blanc de blancs) and a Le Garde Burgundienne (1986) from a nearby waiter in French as she always did. Ordering wine in Hebrew was impossible.

Mariah waved her hand over the salad for a few seconds and it heated to 50C for a short while. She distrusted cold-ish salads due bad experiences in the past as child.

Kenshin chuckled. "I'm sorry, Phoren, but I really hadn't. The Shogunate hasn't extended beyond earth orbit. Though we are researching it, and any help would be appreciated. Though, your empire does seem very impressive. We have 4 billion people, but they're concentrated into one nation, and we're going to find a large problem soon. But I hope you visit one day because our nation seems to have something for everyone's tastes, as it covers such a diverse range of geography here."

He then turned to John and laughed openly, "be careful, my friend. It might not seem powerful now, but mark my words, you're going to feel it when it enters your system." Kenshin then took a very small sip. "I believe it was created to be a diplomatic, formal drink as it is one you only take small sips of, but it acts like any other strong beverage."

"Should have warned me earlier." He picked up his Bailey's and took a long sip, before placing it down.

Getting a little bit hungrier, the couple rose from their seats and used the salad bar to create their very own salad. One could notice that Jack’s was the much lighter one which consisted of mainly lettuce, carrots, some cheese, cucumbers, bacon bits, and Italian dressing, while Siri opted for something heavier. It was similar to her husband’s but had the chicken breast and cubed ham piled all on top, masking the lettuce underneath and all that was covered with oil and vinegar. Now as for the drinks, Jack ordered Chateau de Burgundy V.S. while his wife ordered Tsar's Choice Triple Distilled Luxury Vodka.

Sitting down once again, Siri rolled her eyes at Phoren’s comment and replied sarcastically but not in any way angry. “Oh yes, I’m really the savage one around here. Who spends most of his time getting drunk? Who was drunk when Jack and I first met? Who was drunk at our wedding?”

Jack cleared his throat and glanced at Prince John and King John before pointing his fork at Siri. “Bad example.”

Of course, she kept on rambling. “And who keeps knocking my husband out with a club and kidnapping him? Who surgically inserts implants his head?” Siri looked around. “And that is only the icing on the cake.”

Putting his hand over his face, he could barely keep from laughing at her for making this little scene. None of what she said was as bad as it sounded, at least, not how he remembered it. But he decided to finish his salad and sit back to watch what his friend's reply to that would be.

John looked up at Siri and said, "John and I aren't savages, and we drink a little too much on occasion."
He did, however, smirk at Jack when she talked about him.

As the conversation was going on, the waiters brought out the soups and various breads -- mostly French bread with variations, such as melted cheeses, garlic, garlic and melted cheeses, breadsticks like you'd find at the Pizza Hut in any Dersconi city (with sauce) -- as well as brown and black bread. Various jams were placed on the table off to the side, with the salad bar and the soups and breads, as was butter (warmed slightly so as to not make the stick butter impossible to spread, a common difficulty). The waiters took the salad bowls when all of the leaders were done, but left a stack with the salad bar in case they wanted more. The small bread plates were already at the table, to the left of the forks, though, while the soup bowls were placed in front of all of the leaders. Most of the dining set was the china that Tsar Aleksandr I of the Russian Empire recieved from the first Napoleon. Thankfully, Napoleon IV was not here to see it, although he may have taken pleasure in the fact that Derscon conquored the Russian Empire.

The waiters came around taking orders for soup, since it was tricky to take the bowls back and forth without spilling. There was chicken noodle soup for the light-hearted, Italian wedding soup for the vivacious, borscht for the strong, and clam chowder for the elitists. Since one of the waiters was telepathic, he brought the soup table along with him, it bobbing comically behind him, the soup pouring itself.

While this was going on, Prince John took mock offence to Siri's comment. "We are not drunk all the time! Only half. Please, give us a little credit."

ooc: Yay! CR do good! CR make Derscon like Italian wedding soup!

ic:
Antonette looked from the clam chowder, to the Italian wedding. He chose the latter.
He also tried some breads, and exclaimed, "This is pretty good bread."

Phoren growled a little at Siri's response but waited a few moments before he spoke, calming himself down "Well... Um... I'm not drunk now, am I? And all those clubbings were purely for Jack's own safety... That and the sheer enj... I've said too much." He quickly turned to a waiter and ordered something he'd never tried before...

The dish known as 'chowder' to humans.

Count Richard looked at his chosen borscht, while as rather expect his wife got the Italian wedding soup. She was a "wedding" person after all. He looked at John Antonette and his choice, and was curious.

Richard said to John jokingly "I think those swords are affecting your choice in food. You and my wife are far too similar in some respects".

Mariah quite enjoyed the bread as the bread in Jeruselem usually goes rock-hard due to dry conditions. It was good not requiring a chopping knife to break-up her bread after forgetting to eat it for a few hours.

Mariah said to Siri "Interesting custom that it is. Taking men that way. I resort more subtle means, just ask my husband.". Richard replied "Depending the definition of subtle of course"

"Or could it be," John winked, "We both just like Italian wedding soup?" His eyes flickered with amusment.

Siri shook her head at Mariah’s comment. “That was not exactly what I was referring to at the time. I meant that Phoren over there chooses to knock my husband unconscious and drag him off to some life-or-death situation. It happens all the time.” She took a small sip of her vodka and continued on. “I will say that, the first time that Jack I met, I did ram a crossbow bolt into his face and beat him in the head with a blunt object. Although, at that time, he and Phoren was trespassing on my training grounds on Nirn so I used them for a bit of practice for my rangers. But unfortunately, when they were captured, they tried to escape and killed a few of my recruits. So to put it bluntly…I beat the crap out of him, knocked him unconscious.”

Sitting next to her, Jack munched on a piece of garlic French bread and listened to the conversation between his wife and Mariah. He seemed to be enjoying this little bit of reminiscing and even chuckled a little at the thought of that particular day. “But you didn’t leave me out for dead or anything…thankfully,” he interjected. “Although, waking up in your house was a little odd.” He intentionally left out where in the house he was as he felt that he really didn’t need to explain that to everyone and instead, ordered borscht for him and Siri from the waiter.

Siri was on the verge of replying to him when she heard Phoren speak again. “Of course! Safety!” she said mockingly. “Clubbing the man senseless every time you want to go gallivanting around the universe is certainly good for his health. Have you ever heard of asking?” Downing the rest of the glass of vodka, she shot back to his second reason. “You get a thrill out of doing it? ‘For his safety’ I can deal with, but that? Oh, you just wait…”

John chuckled when Siri said she beat the crap out of the two. He asked Jack, "I bet you enjoyed getting slapped around by her." He had an evil looking, and his sharo blye eyes flickered even more with amusement.

“Not then, of course…but now…” As he ended the sentence, Jack glanced up from his soup bowl with a wide grin across his face as he raised his eyebrows. The rest of what he was going to say, he left to John’s imagination. He knew that he didn’t need to elaborate as John would understand it no matter how vague it was.

Richard joked "That clears it up. I think he's also experienced Mariah's fall-over-by-accident landing on top the male trick during his dancing lessons with Mariah. I think Jack is a lucky man over there. Looks like he became a chic magnet after those dancing lessons."

Mariah said "I can't help it."

John laughed, "I think we all know what you mean."

"Now, is BDSM really an appropriate dinner conversation in a table full of national leaders?" Prince John had a look of (mock) concern on his face. "There are priests and reverends here, and a very distinguished Marechal who probably is crying inside because he thinks we are all insane. Which isn't true, mind you," the Prince said, pointing at Brune and staring him down. "Only some of us are. Unfortunately, Antonette, who is drunk half the time -- I'd know, I'm drinking with him -- is a King. Only the Lord knows how that happened." He rolled his eyes before taking a sip of Andre Allistaire Vodka, which was not on the menu do to the fact it would kill a normal human being in a pint. It was peach flavoured.

OOC: More later tonight. I don't think well in the afternoons.

Rev. Graves had an obvious amount of distaste for the conversation, but did his best to keep it to himself. After all, he was there to negociate for New Geneva...not necessarily to convert them all...though that would be a plus. As a convicted Free Presbyterian, and a disciple of Dr. Paisley, he refused any alcohol and asked only for a glass of iced tea. He was a humble man, not used to official dinners. He was impressed very much by the display the Dersconi's had put on and ate it carnivorously.

Marechal Brune on the other hand was used to the entire scene. He was far from jaded, but was quite familiar with the various characters who held power in the Empire. As Chief Marechal, he had many times shared the Emperor's table at formal and informal dinners. As a Marechal of the Empire, he had learned more than ever that a poker face was necessary at gatherings of dignitaries. No matter what he thought to himself, he kept a smile or other neutral look on his face. He was far from appalled by the topics of conversation. Infact, he was quite used to it. The Emperor had never partaken in it, but allowed it. 'Napoleon is probably spinning in his grave...' Brune thought to himself as he gazed on the Shrimp Cocktails and Mozarella sticks. 'Perhaps we ought to check the Imperial trailor park and see if they got our appetizers in an unfortunate switch. He was embarassed that a foreign dignitary had been recieved with what amounted to an upscale TV dinner. He couldn't blame them though. Flair like that wasn't the Dersconi's forte. They were men of action, not of great luxury. They were the men that had formed the backbone of the Empire when the head had fallen off. And Brune would gladly eat Shrimp Cocktail at every formal dinner if it meant the Empire continued strongly.

Then, the Drink list came out, after one look Brune could tell that atleast the Dersconis didnt skimp on the drinks. "I will have Cointreau in a bit of Champagne."

"Gentlemen," Marechal Brune chimed in. "I for one am anxiously awaiting dinner."

Father Marco, unlike many clerics, was not a prude. "As long as it helps your marriage, is consensual, and helps you to grow in love, and, ah, includes an attempt at procreation," he winked, "There's nothing I can see thats wrong with it." He looked at Graves, and asked, pulling him into the conversation, "Isn't that right, Your Reverance?" He had the same time of dance in his eyes as Antonette, except his was more playful and stronger.

Antonette replied to Prince John, "I wasn't even born into royalty, though I do have some royal blood, thus, a valid claim to the throne."

"As I recall correctly," The Marechal looked at Antonette, "your throne and position came from the same place mine did...the good graces of Emperor Napoleon."

Graves saw what the priest was trying to do. He was tempted to say, "Good Christians can have disagreements on various matters...but then again...you aren't Christian." But he suppressed that instinct. "Marco...I firmly believe that sex has its proper place within a marriage and is not sinful in that context...however...I believe certain things are most certainly perversions and unnecessary to the overall act. One of these things is this Masochist trend...it is unChristian...it is immoral. I dont see myself as a Prude...but I see myself as a Minister of God and a representative of the people as New Geneva. That means I hold myself to a high moral standard and have to abide by the moral standards set by Christ our lord. I swore to myself years ago that I would never do anything to bring shame to the name of Jesus Christ. If I do something like that, and a non Christian should see me. he would say...look at these christians and how they are hippocrites. If I lose a soul for christ in that manner...the lord help me."

Antonette glared at Brune, and snapped, "I'm talking about my national position, not imperial."

Marco replied, "I don't recall, Reverand, anywhere it stating that foreplay leading up to the sexual act, is immoral. In fact, I cannot see any reason why it is immoral. You care to enlighten us to your reasoning?" And to his last comment, about God helping him, Marco agreed, "We all need her help at times. All the time, in fact."

As she relaxed in her chair with her legs crossed, Siri gradually sipped her vodka and listened to the conversation between Father Marco and Reverend Graves. She had her own opinions of the topic, of course, and would never be one to neglect voicing them. “I agree with the Father on this one. I honestly don’t see a single problem with it. It’s consensual and a way for us to express our love to one another. Besides, it’s not like we’re swinging or anything of the sort.” She rolled her eyes and continued speaking to the Reverend. “And you're saying that it’s unChristian? Your point would be…? To me it makes no difference for I chose not to follow the teachings that you do.”

Phoren doesn't give much of a response to Siri's threats, although he did edge as far away as he could without being obvious... He wasn't in the mood to have a knife or a fork thrown across the table at his throat... Although he certainly seemed to be enjoying this 'chowder' now that it had been delivered to him, since almost half of it was gone in the first two minutes.

And a conversation about the morality of BDSM by a couple of priests? Is he really the only sane one here?

"Uhm... Father. Brother. There is one obvious conclusion... It leads to procreation, it brings them both pleasure, both of them consent to it and your religion is silly. As such, sit down, be quiet about the whole manner and give me your soup."

Xavier, listening into the conversations and thoughts of those around him, picked up on Marechal Brune's comments, and took great offence to it. Marechal Brune, Xavier shot to the Reichskamphener telepathically, his voice echoing inside the Marechal's head. How DARE you even THINK of comparing Derscon to a TRAILER PARK! Xavier's comments were sent to the Marechal in a way that when he telepathically shouted, a flash-headache would set in. Simply because we do not honor your typical aristocratic egopandering does not mean we are in any way SUBORDINATE or of LOWER CLASS than you. If anything, we are much more. Reichskamphen could never dream of claiming the things that Derscon can. The Kynaz's eyes flashed red quickly, that anyone paying attention would have noticed.

"Actually, Marechal, his throne of Cherry Ridge didn't come from Napoleon. His Burgundian throne came from Napoleon. And now his Bavarian throne came from my father." The Prince listened to Graves' schpiel, and nodded.

"I agree," Prince John replied. "For the most part, how its carried out is left to the people, but there is a certain line one shouldn't cross."

Prince John continued to listen in, and then chuckled at Phoren's comment. "Phoren, calling Christianity silly is not the smartest thing you have ever done. Especially considering the environment."

"As for your soup," Xavier said. "You can have some more without eating someone else's." Xavier made the soup container come up to Phoren and pour more chowder into Phoren's bowl. "Crackers?" Two saltines were materialized and placed on the breadplate of Phoren. "They're good with it. There's cracked pepper in the centre of the table."

Rev. Graves seemed quite perturbed by all of this. "If I had to choose between adultury and BDSM...there is no choice. However, we have to keep in mind that sin taints all things. I am not one to legislate the bedroom...but at the same time...I will tell you that while warming up a spouse is fine...if you do it by tying her down and beating her with a whip and then urinate on her back...that is something I cannot see supported by scriptural morality.

As it is said...the Christ Crucified is foolishness to the Greeks and a stumblingblock to the Jews. Those who believe not think they who believe to be fools. But, the foolish are made wise in Christ Jesus, and the men wise in the ways of the world but not wise in the ways of God are made fools when judgement comes."

Father Marco said to Phoren's, "I echoe prince John's statement."
He then said to graves, "Everything in moderation. And if one tells the tohe rto stop, because they do not like what is gonig on, then that means that it ceases to be consensual." He then said, "I believe the point of BDSM is a certain amount of pain. But don't ask me."
Antonette, usually talking, sat silent. he thanked the Prince for sticking up for his power, and then sat silently again. He, personally, did not find BDSM amusing, though not immoral. He thought if some people liked it, it wasn't his business, but he himself did not like to get hit, or hit those he loved, in any manner.

Xavier recoiled from Graves' comment a little, clearly disgusted. "I really don't think anyone here thinks urinating on their spouses back would be a sign of love and comapssion. At least, I hope not." Since everyone was done eating now, the waiters came and took all of the bowls away, and levitated the soup and salad bars out, but left breadbaskets on the table.

"Ah, dinner will be served soon."

*New Geneva, Reichskamphen*

(OOC: This is a separate event unto itself after the dinner has taken place)

It had only been a week since the last expeditionary team into Reichsburg had found the tomb of Emperor Napoleon IV. Cleanup teams had proceeded into the ruins of the elaborate structure in which he was interred. His vault was hermetically sealed after burial...so luckily the radiation damage had been minimal. Cleanup teams recovered the Emperor's body and transported it to New Geneva where it had been held in state in the Imperial Palace before it was processed by horse drawn carriage down the Nova Via Victoria...the main monumental street in new Geneva that led from the Imperial Palace all the way to the Religious quarter. It was a smaller ceremony than the first grand state funeral...due mainly to the low budget of the New Genevan Government and the lack of funds they were recieving from the Empire to help. Six Pall Bearers walked beside the Casket. Of the ones the Emperor Requested, two had died...the Emperor Alexei and the Arch Duke of Kaiserstadt. The only notable figures that marched alongside were Marechal Brune, King Antonette, and Xavier. Of the other three, one was his personal Mameluke Servant, and the other two were his personal body guards, Lucien von Karlsbade and Friederick Erdgeben.

It was a small procession in terms of Imperial Grandure. A few columns of Imperial Guardsmen, a couple tanks, then the body of the Emperor.

All were in attendance, and each of the Pallbearers was specially selected in the will of Napoleon to address the Empire at his funeral.

One could tell easily that Siri was growing tired of the conversation as she quickly downed the next glass of vodka that was given to her. She rolled her eyes at the Reverend and was beginning to think even less of him now the more he spoke. “You are wrong, Graves. Urinating or beating until blood appears do not happen in these acts at all, at least, not for us, and as for tying her down, it’s quite the opposite.” She gave off a cocky grin. “Remember, there are certain levels of BDSM. What you are speaking of are some of the more extreme cases. Those I do not participate in.”

She huffed and replied to the Reverend’s second part. “And also, I do not think that those who believe in Christ to be fools in any way…except for the fanatics. Everyone here is certainly allowed to believe whatever they chose and I respect that. But those who condemn me and want to force me to believe what they do, I abhor.”

Xavier let a sigh of relief out when dinner came -- he was tiring of this argument, and didn't want it to go any further. THe Formal Dances delegation dug themself a nice hole that they're still not out of, and he didn't want it to happen to any of these nations, as he respected all of the delegates here, especially Siri.

"Ah, dinner arrives!" The waiters came out with the hot plates of chicken parmesan with a side of linguini, and set the steaming plates down in front of the leaders, the fresh, boneless and breaded chicken breast (all natural!) with various herbs for flavor, melted parmesan over top, with a pile of linguini off to the side. There was no gravy/sauce over it, however. That, instead, came in bowls with ladels and placed on the table for the leaders to put the amount they want on, since people like varying degrees of it. There was a cajun gravy/sauce, a plain marinara, and even a seafood one.

Xavier smiled. "It's not the fanciest thing that any of you will ever have, but it sure tastes great, and frankly, that's all that matters. Enjoy."

John Antontette complimented the food, "Excellent. This is one of my favorite dishes." He put marinara sauce on it. "Except," he grinned, "The sauce should be under the cheese."

Mariah said "Bellissimo. Complementi al chef, Xavier" with a distinctly Italian accent sounding more like Sophia Lauren as she quite enjoyed natural chicken, using a bit of cajun gravy/sauce. She disliked eating factory breed chickens.

Count Richard also quite enjoyed the food but he wasn't a real sauce man.

"I hope I have not offended you Madam...but I am a simple man. I have no facets to my personality. I am one thing and one thing only...a minister of God. When I am at the dinner table...when I am at the head of state...I am always a minister of God. I say what I view to be necessary and proper and no more or less. But let us do our best and enjoy our dinner."

Rev. Graves buried himself eagerly in his food. He couldn't wait to leave this place. "This Empire has come a long way from the days of Emperor Paisley..." he thought to himself. "I dont want everyone to agree wtih me in every point...but I wish we could have a Christian Empire again..." he thought further.

Marechal Brune, however, was quite amused at all of this. Having worked with Rev. Graves for over a year now...he was quite aware that Graves was more like Ian Paisley than Ian Paisley. He hadnt been elevated to Marechal, though, during the Reign of Paisley. He had only known the upper eschelons of the Empire for those years. He could only imagine the conversations that had taken place at the table of the great Protestant Emperor...he gave an inward chuckle at the idea.

As the dinner was served the distinguished Marechal piped up. "Yes, our good High Lord Protector is a very simple man. The intricacies of diplomacy escape him. But that is why we need him so. In this time of uncertainty...he is a source of constancy and assurance to the people of Reichskamphen. He is a reminder of the happytimes that have flown away but may be soon to return. The Reverend and I have had our share of arguments and disagreements...but I must say that the only leader I admire more is our late departed Emperor. If it hadn't been for our Reverend...I shudder to think what would have become of the Imperial Capitol at New Geneva and Reichskamphen as a whole. Ladies and gentlemen..."

It was clear from the tone that he was beginning to take that he was about to go into a speech.

"We are all part of a great dream. We are all from differant backgrounds and differant beliefs. But it is the golden standard of the Empire that we gather beneath and it is the Empire which binds us together. This is the great dream of every Emperor who ever sat on the throne...that so many people who are so differant can come together and form something so much greater than they could have on their own. There is a place for Reverend Graves and Myself just as much as there is a place for Xavier..and you Siri. If I learned anything from Napoleon...it was that though we in the Empire may have disagreements...our ties that bind us together make us a family. Furthermore...no amount of pressure from the outside can bring us down. The only people that can destroy the Greater Prussian Empire...are Greater Prussians. It is our responsiblity to keep the standards aloft and the family together."

Phoren couldn't really speak because he was far too busy feasting on human food like there was no tomorrow, but by the time he'd nearly finished the chicken, which was disturbingly quickly, he'd managed to think up a suitable compliment that had a sting in its tail...

"By the Gods, you humans are truly complicated beasts. My dealings with Jack haven't prepared me for this level of prowess in the kitchen. But one has to wonder, how can you cook such delightful meals and still worship the wrong God?"

Once the delicious dinner was served and the topic of conversation was steered away from its rather aggravating course, Siri began to relax and partook in the food that was set before her. As she carefully listened to what the Reverend said, she nodded politely to him and waved kindly. “It’s quite alright, Reverend. You are quite like me in at least one aspect which is that you are straight to the point with your viewpoint. No ‘beating around the bush’ as they say. Certainly something that is rarely seen nowadays but definitely needed.”

Jack was keeping an eye on expressions of the other leaders. It seemed that every time Phoren opened his mouth he said something unintelligent that was probably offending everyone in here. “Oh for cryin’ out loud, Phoren,” he replied. “Knock it off, will ya? This really isn’t the best place to be talking like that.”

OOC: It's not my fault none of you understand Derscon. Well, maybe it is, since I don't understand Derscon some of the time. :)

I'll get a post up tonight, I hate writing in the afternoon.

"Ummmm...Phoren......." Kenshin started, trying to figure the right words for this situation. "We understand differences in religions here....but we try not to insult or put down the religions...well, except the occasional Protestand/Catholic split that comes up now and again...well, either way, you're not in the company of complete moderates here. Personally, I try to ignore many religion things to spare the fighting, but others don't. Am I making sense?"

Marco said, "If you are going to engage in religious debate, could you pelase do so in a repectful manner?" Antonette added, "Especially in a room where by far, the majority are Christians."

Xavier stopped eating and listened to Marechal Brune give his speech, which seemed slightly inappropriate. However, the Tsarevich couldn't fault him -- this was the Marechal's first exposure to Derscon. He was used to total formality, aristocratic everything, due to the nature of being in Napoleon's shadow. The Marechal probably had a hard time understanding why Derscon wasn't the same way. Well, that's his problem. Xavier chuckled to himself. It isn't my fault he lives in an inferior culture.

"I agree with you completely, Marechal." Xavier sat down his fork (although it aggrivated him, as he loved Chicken parmesan) and leaned back in the chair. "This is, in fact, what my father was attempting to do, and did quite effectively, I might add."

OOC: Ugh. I lost my will to write. More tomorrow, since I'll have the time now...

Count Richard nudged his wife "I'm glad they aren't talking about what you get up to. They'll be here for days ..."

Mariah nudged him back "Doesn't bother me" and she said more publicly "I agree with Marechal Brune about make Greater Prussia a family. OK, we'll have our disagreements and spats but we are all in this together. Family can be your best friend or worst enemy, so let's make the the Greater Prussian empire a real functional family."

Richard looked at his wife and thought "Her concept of a family is usually one a size of soccer team"

OOC: Okay, folks, here's the scoop: Derscon accidentally sliced up his left hand (he's left-handed) so he won't be posting for a bit. Don't worry. It's still there and he's alive.

As everyone finished with their main course, the waiters came back and took the dinnerware away, leaving only a fork and now a dessert plate. All of the drinks were taken away as well. However, not having drinks on a dinner table is second in "Dersconi Social Crimes" only to bringing a bad or depressing conversation to the dinner table. So the curent drinkless status didn't last long.

Port:
Klinghoffer Estate Vintage Porto 1997
Klinghoffer Estate Vintage Porto 2001
Klinghoffer Estate Tawny Porto

Sauternes
Chateau d’Yquem 2001
Chateau d’Yquem 1998
Chateau d’Yquem 1984
Chateau d’Yquem 1946

Muscat
Hoffman Estate Muscat 2001
Hoffman Estate Muscat 1997
Hoffman Estate Muscat 1989

Of course, the Shogun got a menu all to his own, as well as the regular, in case he felt like taking a more European/Dersconi path. The waiters all took the orders and the drinks were brought out and set in front of the guests, but the dessert plate was still empty. Since taunting guests with food is very rude, this very large problem was quickly remedied.

Through the doors to the kitchen came a massive Prussian Imperial Eagle on a rolling cart. It was a very dark brown, almost black. A lot of it seemed to glimmer from the reflection of the light. The eyes seemed to be red, and it had a crown of red...something.

On closer inspection, it was in fact a massive Black Forest cake, covered in fudge. The eyes were in fact cherries, as was the crown. Xavier smiled as it was wheeled to the spot behind Shogun Kenshin. The chef handed Xavier the large knife to cut the cake, Xavier taking it by the blade and flipping it around to catch the handle.

"Indeed. We are all one family." Xavier was standing beside the Imperial Eagle (black forest cake) as he spoke, leaning on the knife, which was in a small block on the cart. "Those present here form the core of this Empire. As long as we are together, nothing will take this Empire down. But if even one of us turns against the family, we will all come crashing down. So," he took the knife up from the block. "Let us all be thankful we are together in this union, so that we may never be a nation beheaded." Xavier took the knife and sliced the cake, cutting at the Eagle's neck. He removed the cut part and sliced that in half, putting it on the dessert plates of the two Reichskampheners.

"The head of the Eagle for the represenatives of the nation that has Founded and Maintained this Glourious Empire." He then took the plate of the Shogun and cut off the one talon and leg, placing it on his plate.

"The talon and claws of the Eagle, as Pschycotic Pschycos is often the blade of the Empire." Xavier then went and cut off the tail of the Eagle, split it in half, and put it on King John's and Father Marco's plate.

"The tail feathers, because while you're a pain in my ass, you help tremendously to keep this Eagle flying." Xavier then cut off most of the right wing of the Eagle, spliting it, and gave it to Siri and Jack.

"The Right arm of the eagle, as you have often aided my father during troubled times, acting as his voice and will." He then cut off some of the left wing, giving it to Mariah and Richard.

"The left wing for you, as in Dersconi custom, rich noblemen would keep their left hand in their pocket to protect their money they carried with them." Getting to Phoren, it was clear that he wasn't quite sure what to do, but then he cut part of the front of the eagle off and gave it to him.

"The newer feathers. While Underwater Asylum is yet a new addition to this Empire, I know it will do great things to aid our growing strength." When all of this was done, he cut off a slice for Prince John. "Now, eat." As they all did this, Xavier dug into the chest of the Eagle and cut out what would be its heart, and put that on his plate, taking it back to his seat and enjoying the yummy goodness that is Dersconi Black Forest Cake.

John grinned at the pain in the ass comment. He grinned in Xavier's direction and nodded, laughing to himself. He ate the cake, and sipped his drink. He sparkling blue eyes seemed to twinkle as he commented on the cake, "Excellent."

ooc: Sorry, but Im tired.

Though just slightly tense that Xavier now had a very large knife and was standing right behind him, Kenshin could not help but chuckle at the analogies, which were as funny as they were clever. "I appreciate the Shogunate being called the talons of the empire. It's good to see that someone noticed the exponential increase in our defense funding." He took a bite, and couldn't believe it. "This thing's as good as the analogies!"

The comments made by Xavier were well received by the Corporation’s leaders as they both smiled and even Siri’s expression seemed to brighten. Upon receiving the delectable cake, they nodded and said right after one another, “Thank you.”

Jack was the first to take a large forkful and replied, “Mmmm…damned good cake. Probably some of the best I’ve ever tasted.”

On the other hand, Siri sampled a small portion of it to see if she liked this unique human cake. She raised her eyebrows at its taste and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying it when she commented, “Send my compliments to whoever made it. It’s quite a fine dessert.”

As she was feating upon the delicious cake, she glanced around the table and made a comment, more sarcastic and playful than anything else. "When is there not alcohol served here? Do you all ever drink anything else?"

John answered Siri, "What better types of drinks are there? Though inC herry Ridge, coffee would be served now."

She shrugged a little. “Coffee is fairly good as are the various teas that are out there. But my problem with your human-made wines and beers is that they do very little to an elven body. I cannot get myself drunk through them or even get a ‘buzz’ as you all say.”

“Oh, don’t I know that,” Jack cut in. “Before I knew that useful fact, I challenged her to a drinking contest back when we first were dating. I’ll just say this…it didn’t end well for me.”

John's eyes twinkled, "I bet I can beat you Siri. Another time though." He smiled, "I am one of the few that a certain Dersconi vodka won't kill after a pint."

"It won't take many, though." Veliky Kynaz Ivan Rekjyavich chuckled a bit as he sipped his Chateau d’Yquem 1946. "And Siri, my girl," the Prince responded, leaning back in his chair, propping his elbow on the armrest and extending his hand out palm up, like a semi-arrogant mob boss might have done during the Romanov reign, when organized crime was rampant and as much a part of the Dersconi lifestyle as alchohol. "We do serve tea, also. Tea and alchohol are really all that is consumed here. Unfortunately for some of us as well, there are a few Dersconis who can drink and elf under the table. I'd know, I've seen them do it." Prince John was alluding to his younger brother, the now deceased Alexei, who was challenged by elves on his tour of the Northern Territories, where all sorts of fancy surprises await, and manage to stay almost entirely sober as three other elves -- champions of the small elvish community in Derscon -- lay sprawled on the floor, with Prince John in the corner laughing hysterically. The Prince chuckled at that memory, a small bit of the adventures in the Northern Territories that was never released to the press. Needless to say, when the word spread that the Tsar could outdrink the champions of the elvish community, the Tsar recieved a lot of respect from them throughout his reign.

"Well, anyways, Siri, we've got a little bit of Pica if you want it. Don't ask how, though." The Prince winked at her and downed the glass of Allistaire vodka that he had left for him before continuing with the cake.

Xavier scoffed at the mention of coffee. "Such a pathetic drink, and tastes bad, as well. Weak and disgusting. It is a sin to have it on the table. This cake however..." He dove into the black forest cake, letting the moistness of it soak in his mouth before chewing and finally swallowing.

John replied, "Weak? My friend, you have not tried all varieties of Ridgian coffee then." He smirked and said, "Even if you tried all known forms, you have never tried some made only in the palace."

Phoren evidently has troubles staying awake, given that he'd jerked awake again shortly before being offered the... Random piece of cake. But he explained his frequent nodding offs by the general lack of sleep he got in his own lands, and sampled the cake... Cue another one of his outbursts.

"...Again, I underestimate Human cuisine... This is worthy of the royal feasts of my Empire!"

And judging by how fast he was devouring it, they certainly weren't empty compliments. But the minute there was mention of Peca, that wonderful beverage of infinite bliss, his face went stony cold, he straightened up in his seat and cast a cold, direct glare at the Prince.

"You have Peca."

He then cut off some of the left wing, giving it to Mariah and Richard.

"The left wing for you, as in Dersconi custom, rich noblemen would keep their left hand in their pocket to protect their money they carried with them."

Mariah chuckled "Well, you learn something everyday. I thought I got left wing because I'm rather leftist."

OOC - It's odd you sliced your left hand, and I get the left wing.

OOC - It's odd you sliced your left hand, and I get the left wing.

OOC: The children are not so prosperous on their Easter Hunt in this thread, however...

Xavier grunted at the Ridgian king. "I've made a coffee straight from the liquified beans, where the precipitate of the coffee beans that were not dissolved due to the saturation, and it was pathetically weak. I felt a lasting affect for no more than a minute. It was only after reverse engineering the Peca we have and putting some of the various narcotics in that drink into the coffee that I actually managed to get some sort of a high."

Prince John simply smiled at Phoren. "Indeed. It is quite good, actually. Would you like some?" The Prince emphisized the quality of the drink, because technically, a human would die due to the various substances in the drink. However, the Prince wanted to prove to Phoren that he was no ordinary human. He continued looking at Phoren a little longer, though, noticing his rigid posture. "Is...something wrong?"

Xavier, however, shot a glare at the Queen when she mentioned her leftist stances. "Hmm. I'm sorry to hear that." He turned to look at the empty plates of those at the table. "Please, feel free to have some more." Xavier picked up the knife to cut the cake and threw it across the table, passing within a centimeter of Shogun Kenshin's head, and embedding itself into the chest of the Eagle. "Take as much as you want. I wouldn't want such a beautiful thing to die because of apathy."

Phoren growled, quite loudly, at the confirmation of someone smuggling peca. His hands balled into fists at his side, his ears gave a small twitch and he stood, leaning forward and resting his weight on the table.

"What by the nine Hells is wrong with you?!? It is forbidden to take peca out of the Empire! I signed the decree myself! Where did you get?"

Phoren growled, quite loudly, at the confirmation of someone smuggling peca. His hands balled into fists at his side, his ears gave a small twitch and he stood, leaning forward and resting his weight on the table.

"What by the nine Hells is wrong with you?!? It is forbidden to take peca out of the Empire! I signed the decree myself! Where did you get?"

Mariah looked was puzzled at all this "peca" talk. She checked her mobile and it was listed as an banned import (which probably suited UA). She hoped Underwater Asylum doesn't start a trade war over peca from this conversation. She wanted free and flowing trade between GP nations, not tit-for-tat trade bans.

Richard took more cake from himself and his wife while the others were diverted by the current topic of conversation.

ooc: It's Derscon that has Peca, not me.

ic:
John Antonette had a smug look on his face, "Prince John has his way, Phoren. No use trying to stop him, because its practically impossible."

Prince John looked puzzled. "Really? It's forbidden to take it out of UA?" The Prince shrugged. "Well, I wasn't aware of that, I just saw it at the shop where I normally get my personal stuff. I never saw it before so I got some. I looked into it and saw it was made in UA and fun for elves to drink." He took a sip of his dessert wine and glanced at Phoren.

"No need to get all worked up about it." The guards, however, were not quite as calm. The Praetorian Guard that was standing along the wall behind them put aside their shields a bit and went for their rifles, and moving their diamond swords out of the scabbards a bit. They moved a little forward, just in case. The Honour Guards, also, readied their staves and their plasma rifles, just in case something went wrong. They already had one royal die, two would be madness.

Xavier turned in his chair a little, staring at Phoren. "Yes, I do believe you need to calm down a little. I'm sure there is a logical, simple explanation. The Royal Families of Derscon do not go out of our way to enocurage crime in allied nations." Xavier was very careful to mention the allied nations part, as in the past, the Dersconi Royal Families often had connections with organized crime and illegal militias in foreign nations beeing in less-than-stellar relationships with Derscon.

When the majority of the cake was gone and it was clear that no one was going to be eating any more, Xavier stood up from his chair and looked at everyone at the table. "Well, I believe it is time to call it quits for the day. My father's funeral will be in a day or so, and I'm sure he would want most of you to be there, so you are welcome to stay here in the Kremlin for as long as you wish. Guards!" Upon the order, a column of Honour Guards came up and surrounded the table, but in a way that was as least-threatening as possible. "Please escort them to their rooms. The architecture is not designed to find your way around easily." With that, Xavier snapped around, his cape dancing behind him, and walked out the doors to the labyrinth of hallways and cooridors back up to the Star Office.

Father Marco, walking with Antonette, said, "I am going to celebrate a mass in my room. Would you want to alert the other Catholics, and non-Catholics who would like to attend?" Antoentte nodded, "Sure."
When they arrived in their rooms, Antonette phoned all the other members who were in attendence at dinner, Catholic or not.
In his room, Father Marco opened one of his suitcases. He opened a small fold out table that was inside, as he did not want to move the rooms furniture. He placed it in front of the wall in the sitting area of the suite, with room for him to walk behind. He then took out a plain white altar cloth, and draped it over the table. He placed a small crucifix on it, and two small candles on either side, unlit. He placed a roman missal on the altar, opened to the page of the current day. He placed the sacred instruments on the nearest night stand. Finally, he filled the cruets with altar wine he had broguht with him, and the other with water, and filled the paten with unconsecrated hosts, and one large unconsecrated host.
He then removed his cape, and placed the biretta in his bedroom area, produced an alb, and put it on, and tied a cincture around his waist. He noticed his roman collar still stuck out fromt he alb, and tied his amice around his neck. He kissed his (green) stole, and put it around his neck. He draped his matching chasuble over the chair, until mass was about to start.
He waited for the others to appear. John was the first, and he sat in the chair on the far right (there is only one row). The Priest waited at the door, which was opened, for the others to come.

“Hello, John, what can I do for you?...Yes?...We may attend. I’ll have to see…Could be a few minutes, if so…bye.”

As she gently rested the phone back into its cradle, she turned to her husband, Jack, who was resting in a chair nearby with his eyes closed and head titled back. He looked so peaceful just sitting there. Siri almost thought about not disturbing him but decided to go ahead anyway.

“Jack?” she asked softly.

“Ermm…what?” He grumbled a little and looked over towards her with his now-opened eyes.

“King John just called and invited us to Father Marco’s room to attend a mass. I think I’d like to go, what about you?”

Appearing aggravated, Jack answered, “No, no thank you. I’d rather stay here.”

“Why not? You can just observe…like I plan on doing.”

He raised his voice some and gripped the arms of the chair tighter. “I have my reasons…I just want to stay here. Ok?”

Siri walked over towards her husband and rested her hand on his shoulder. “No, it’s not ok. There used to be a time over half a century ago when you attended a church regularly but then…you stopped. What happened?” She gazed into his eyes, truly wondering what was going on in his mind, but what she saw...and felt…was anger, pain, and sadness rising within him. There was something truly bothering him about his past. Something that very possibly had to do with the death of his first son. Before he could say anything else, she put her index finger over his mouth for him to be quiet. “You don’t need to speak another word. I understand,” she replied, stepping away from him. “I think I’ll leave you alone…”

As she walked out of the guestroom, Siri glanced back through the small opening in the slowly closing door and saw Jack just sitting there staring at the floor. She sighed sadly and pulled the door shut behind her. The walk down to Father Marco’s room was seemingly short as her mind pondered about her husband. He still had many things that he kept from her. Things about his past. But then again, she realized, so did she.

Upon arriving at the room, Siri nodded to Marco politely. “Good evening, Father.” She didn’t say much more as she entered and sat down in one of the available chairs next to King John, examining all that was set out before her for this mass. She didn’t quite fully understand what everything was but that was the reason why she came, wasn’t it?

A smile crept onto Father Marco's face. "Hello Siri. To be honest, I wasn't expecting you. Thank you for proving me wrong." He decided to wait a few more minutes, thinking that Richard and Mariah would attend. He glanced down at his stole, which was a darkish green, with symbols of the eucharist in spots just below his shoulders. He walked back to the makeshift altar, and made sure everything was in order. He pulled over a chair and placed it at an angle facing towards the others. He placed a hymnal on it, and then waited for the Jeruselem couple.
While he was waiting, he asked Siri, "Couldn't convince Jack to come, huh?"

Hearing Marco’s question, Siri sighed heavily and looked down. “No, but I tried though with no success at all…he just seems to have a lot of things on his mind lately…more so than usual…the stresses of work, personal life, and now all that is going on with the Empire are just too much…”