NationStates Jolt Archive

In a shocking move, prominent Liberal Senator Artemis Dreygo, the head of the wealthy and influential Dreygo family, has broken away from the Liberals to form his own political party. Dreygo and the handful of independent and Liberal Senators who followed him announced their breakaway this evening and briefly outlined their hopes for their new party, which will go by the name of Unity. Early report indicate it will fall slightly to the right of the Conservative Party and place special significance on economic stability, which has been an issue recently under the Cuthbert administration.

Dreygo (the current Senator for Manhattan Central) attacked his former friend Cuthbert for being too soft on immigration to the Imperial Republic, of mismanaging the economy, of embarrassing the nation by his toadying attitude to allies Pacitalia and neglecting military and especially naval spending. "Manhattan Prime is isolated in a region recently torn apart by major war" the Senator explained, "and this Administration has done little to provide for the protection of our citizens." When questioned about the President's admirable commitment to civil rights, Dreygo responded that civil and political rights are all well and good, but that economic rights must come first, quoting that "All men have the right to eat at the Ritz, but few can actually afford to". He also attacked the connection to Pacitalia arguing that "a leader who commits himself to civil rights would do well not to link himself to any state capable of producing monsters like [ex-Pacitalian Prime minister] Sorantanali".

Analysts have suggested that the highly ambitious and popular Senator is
frustrated at being constantly overlooked for a cabinet position by
Cuthbert, who obviously feels that such an influential and wilful figure could prove disruptive. Critics are also quick to point out that Dreygo’s anti-Pacitalian rhetoric is surprising considering his eldest son Vykk Dreygo, an international football star, currently plies his trade in that country.

Supporters of Cuthbert can point to the recent purchases of top of the range MBT and tank destroyers from Lyran Arms and the Naval Expansion from Pacitalia, and emphasise the need for a special relationship with the Pacitalians on cultural, economic and defence levels. However with the economy just starting to recover from the recent slump, they will find charges of economic mismanagement hard to refute. For more on this story as it develops, stay with the MPNN.

From PNN.pc

http://tygerland.net/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/royal.jpg
Pacitalian prime minister Archetenia Nera (c) expressed
her disappointment at controversial comments made by
prominent Manhattanite senator Artemis Dreygo but
said "she would not further dignify" the remarks.

Nera tight-lipped after Dreygo's anti-Pacitalian comments
But advisors say she considers the Manhattanite senator "unelectable" as a president


Marco Bantafugra, Timiocato

Pacitalians are everything from shocked to concerned to outright up-in-arms over a Manhattanite senator's controversial comments about the republic. Certain figures in Timiocato moved to condemn the remarks of Senator Artemis Dreygo, but the prime minister noted that, while disappointed, she would not dignify the comments with any substantive response.

Sen. Dreygo, the upper house representative for Manhattan Central, broke away from the ruling Liberal Party on Monday to form "Unity", a new right-wing nationalist party that promises to be tougher on crime and immigration with stronger law and order legislation. Should he become president at some point, he says he also wants to re-evaluate Manhattan Prime's relations with other countries, even going so far as to attack the country's strong relationship with the Pacitalian Republic.

In what is being viewed as an unnecessarily offensive attack on recent developments in Pacitalian politics, Sen. Dreygo argued that current president Andrew Cuthbert hurts his own reputation and the reputation of Manhattan Prime by allying with Pacitalia, "a nation capable of producing monsters like [former prime minister] Constantino Sorantanali".

Nationalist or patriotic lobby groups joined with the right-of-centre Nationalist Conservatives in pressuring Pacitalia's prime minister, Archetenia Nera, to defend the country's honour in response to the thinly-veiled attacks against Atlantian Oceania's most liberal democracy. But Ms Nera refused, releasing only a short statement that expressed "disappointment" toward the "unfavourable comments" of Sen. Dreygo but adding that the government would not, after today, continue dignifying the senator's remarks with a response.

"If the senator was any more significant to the day-to-day affairs of the country in his current position, we might stop and listen," the prime minister said. "However, Sen. Dreygo, at present, does not enjoy such a position; therefore, this is the furthest this government will go in releasing an official response to the comments of an individual who appears to be concerned solely with stirring the pot."

Other political figures in Timiocato were less diplomatic or tight-lipped, expressing their concerns over the comments.

"In trying to diminish the importance of the relationship between Manhattan Prime and Pacitalia, he has made a grave mistake," Albinanda Serodini, Pacitalia's agustinate of international relations, said. "He has turned our strong bilateralism into a domestic campaign issue when it should be anything but. We cannot respect that sort of bullying and disrespect, especially when it's uncalled for."

Political scientists noted with interest that, on a standard political spectrum, Dreygo's new party falls to the right of even the Conservatives, indicating that the outspoken senator was out of place in the ruling centre-left party. Critics say it reveals his opportunism and portrays in a negative light his unbridled ambitions for the nation's highest office.

"From an outside perspective, with such a violent shift from the centre ground of Manhattanite politics, the senator appears ideologically reckless," says Domenico Megano, a senior analyst of Pacitalia's regional relations at Timiocato's Republican Institute (and a former colleague of the prime minister). "That recklessness does not tend to bode well with Manhattanites, who prefer their politicians to be consensus-seeking and moderate in their views."

An election has not yet been called but it is expected that Cuthbert will drop a writ soon to capitalise on his high popularity numbers.

Copyright © 2008 Pacitalian News Network, a division of the Pacitalian News Media Group SpA.

Manhattan Herald – 12th February 2008

As expected, Manhattanite President Andrew Cuthbert today dismissed the Senate in preparation for a General Election in the following weeks. The President and Senate are all up for reelection. Cuthbert took office in March 2005 and has served almost 3 years of his 4 year term. He would be up for election in March 2009, but has the right to call a General Election to win a new term at any time he chooses, so long as an election is held at least 4 years.

Parties standing

Liberal (Andrew Cuthbert) – The sitting President holds 57% support in the country, but that’s a drop from figures of 70% recorded in recent months. Cuthbert presided over many changes in Manhattan Prime after the transition to the Presidential system of government, including the creation of a unique flag for Manhattan Prime (MP had previously used a variation on the American flag), the changing of the country’s motto and of the nation’s official title from ‘Imperial Colony’ to ‘Imperial Republic’. Manhattan Prime also emerged for its long period of isolation into the International arena under his leadership, and President Cuthbert was instrumental in organising the nation’s joining of TAPRES in April 2005, the Woodstock Pact in September 2005, and of ASPIRE as a Founder Member in July 2006. He also presided over Manhattan Prime’s 1st manned space launch, on 2nd May 2005.

Policies

Economy - Mininal government interference, follows Laissez-faire model. Has suffered with a period of economic instability. Concentrated effort to encorage tourism in order to create jobs and bring in money.

Social issues

Abortion: Supports a woman's right to choose – Pro-choice
Death penalty: Opposes
Euthanasia: Neutral
Gay marriage: Strongly supports
Drugs – Cannibis use legalised in special ‘café’s’ only, strict punishments for harder drugs and dealers.

Welfare: Reserved for people who cannot help themselves

Education – One of Cuthbert’s main focuses. Supports free education for all and has abolished university tuition fees and set up a system of Government grants for university students.

Foreign policy

Diplomacy: Very important, War only as a last resort

Immigration: Only in cases of seeking genuine asylum from danger
Joining the United Nations: Opposes, wants to maintain Manhattanite sovereignty.

Religious beliefs: Pro separation of church and state. Is a Christian but runs a secular state, and believes in freedom to choose faith and freedom of worship.

Unity (Artemis Dreygo) – not much is known about this recently formed party, but they have so far promised a strong stance on law and order and immigration, and steady hands with the economy

Stances on issues

Economy - Dreygo is making the economy of the main election battlegrounds following a period of economic weakness under the Cuthbert Administration. He favours extremely mininal government interference, following the Laissez-faire model.

Social issues - Socially conservative and moralistic.

Abortion: Oppose
Death penalty: Support
Euthanasia: Neutral
Gay marriage: Strongly Oppose
Drugs – All forms illegal apart from 'social drugs' (coffee, alcohol, tobacco).
Welfare: Very limited, belive citizens should earn their way in life, and benefits discorage people from working.

Education – Support private schools and oppose grants for 'free-loading' students.

Foreign policy

Diplomacy: Want to reduce foriegn involvement, but say they are isolationist, not racist. An anti-Pacitalian bias may harm their campaign.

Immigration: Very restricted

Joining the United Nations: Opposes, want to maintain Manhattanite sovereignty.

Conservative (Alan Laver) – Manhattan Prime’s traditional 2nd party, but may be harmed by the congruence on policies with Unity, and lacks Dreygo’s magnetism and connections.

Stances on issues

Economy - Mininal government interference, follows Laissez-faire model.

Social issues

Abortion: Oppose
Death penalty: Support
Euthanasia: Neutral
Gay marriage: Strongly Oppose
Drugs – All forms illegal apart from 'social drugs' (coffee, alcohol, tobacco).
Welfare: Limited, belive citizens should earn their way in life.
Education – Support private schools and oppose grants for 'free-loading' students.

Foreign policy

Diplomacy: War only as a last resort
Immigration: Restricted
Joining the United Nations: Opposes, want to maintain Manhattanite sovereignty.
Religious beliefs: Pro separation of church and state.

Respect (Rasheed Singh) – a small minority party devoted to the interests of Manhattan Prime’s minorities. Tend to transfer their votes to the Liberals in the second round as they have traditionally been supportive of these issues.

Manhattan Communist Party (Kurt Dietrich) – Have been far behind the pack for many decades now, and are obviously very concerned about economic affairs. Dreygo’s call for economic rights may appeal to them.

From the Nephi Times

President Stinson publicly praises Andrew Cuthbert in MP Presidential elections

At a press conference held in the Lamonian Presidential Palace today, Lamonian President Andrew Stinson publicly praised Manhattan Prime sitting President Andrew Cuthbert in his bid to be re-elected.

"President Cuthbert has led Manhattan Prime ably, and though our nations are not allied, the Free Republic considers Manhattan Prime to be a friend. It is my personal hope that President Cuthbert will be re-elected, so that the friendship between our two nations can grow."

Polls of the Lamonian and MP populations at large suggest that the general citizenry of both nations are largely friendly towards each other; and that the friendship has grown after the largely positive reaction of Lamonian fans to Manhattan Prime's victory over the Lamoni Hawks in the finals of the last AOCAF.

Manhattan Herald - 14th February 2008
Election Guide

On the first day of the campaign the candidates are polling as follows:

Cuthbert (Liberal) - 57%
Dreygo (Unity) - 20%
Laver (Conservative) - 17%
Singh (Respect) - 5%
Dietrich (Communist) - 1%

Under the Manhattanite electoral systems all Senators are up for election every 4 years as well as the President. Voters are given two ballot forms to vote for one Senator in their local area, and one candidate for national President. They can of course vote for different parties eg: a Liberal Senator in their area but the Conservative Presidential candidate.

Presidential Voting works under the MAV system and two ballots are held with only the highest two polling candidates proceeding to the 2nd round. If any candidate receives a majority of 60% in the 1st round, they will win without the need for a 2nd round.

Voting for Senators is under the FPTP system, with the winner of each constituency becoming one of Manhattan Prime's 200 Senators.

All 5 candidates are to be present at Hustings in the next few days and all comers are welcome to ask questions, including domestic and foreign media.

Pacitalian polls

ABM/Capax, 21st February 2008
http://www.abm-capax.pc/

Presidential poll, all candidates
Sample size: 14 581 (Manhattan Prime = 100)
Collection dates: 17th—19th February 2008
Margin of error: ±2,1%, 19.015 per 20

Cuthbert, Andrew (Liberal) — 49.4 percent
Dreygo, Artemis (Unity) — 25.7 percent
Laver, Alan (Conservative) — 14.5 percent
Singh, Rasheed (Respect) — 3.7 percent
Dietrich, Kurt (Communist) — 1.5 percent

Undecided / apathetic — 5.2 percent



Presidential poll, 2CP (Two-candidate preferred)
Sample size: 16 473 (Manhattan Prime = 100)
Collection dates: 17th—19th February 2008
Margin of error: ±2,3%, 17.667 per 20

Cuthbert 64.5 v 35.5 Dreygo
Cuthbert 62.0 v 38.0 Laver
Dreygo 51.5 v 48.5 Laver



Party support poll
Sample size: 12 579 (Manhattan Prime = 100)
Collection dates: 17th—19th February 2008
Margin of error: ±2,0%, 18.859 per 20

Liberal — 29.1 percent
Unity — 25.2 percent
Conservative — 21.5 percent
Respect — 12.3 percent
Communist — 6.3 percent

Undecided / apathetic — 5.6 percent



Assertion comprehension
Sample size: 11 603 (Manhattan Prime = 100)
Collection dates: 17th—19th February 2008
Margin of error: ±3,4%, 19.258 per 20

"Manhattan Prime's incumbent president, Andrew Cuthbert, has done a good job of running the country."

I strongly agree with this statement — 17.7 percent
I agree with this statement — 31.3 percent

I neither agree nor disagree with this statement — 10.2 percent

I disagree with this statement — 22.5 percent
I strongly disagree with this statement — 18.3 percent

"The Cuthbert administration ably handled the recession."

I strongly agree with this statement — 16.7 percent
I agree with this statement — 36.6 percent

I neither agree nor disagree with this statement — 1.9 percent

I disagree with this statement — 14.6 percent
I strongly disagree with this statement — 30.2 percent

"Generally, Manhattan Prime is a better place to live and work than it was in 2005."

I strongly agree with this statement — 15.2 percent
I agree with this statement — 18.9 percent

I neither agree nor disagree with this statement — 15.6 percent

I disagree with this statement — 25.3 percent
I strongly disagree with this statement — 25.0 percent

"Mr Cuthbert is right to claim that civil liberties and individual rights have increased since he took office."

I strongly agree with this statement — 26.8 percent
I agree with this statement — 24.4 percent

I neither agree nor disagree with this statement — 8.6 percent

I disagree with this statement — 20.7 percent
I strongly disagree with this statement — 19.5 percent

"I feel our relationship with Pacitalia is beneficial to both countries and that ill sentiment only serves to divide our two countries unnecessarily."

I strongly agree with this statement — 16.1 percent
I agree with this statement — 47.6 percent

I neither agree nor disagree with this statement — 18.2 percent

I disagree with this statement — 11.7 percent
I strongly disagree with this statement — 6.4 percent

21st February 2008

Sarah Finch: Welcome back to the MPNN election hour, where our political analysts will be examining the day’s headlines. We’re pleased to welcome Professor Andrew Linklater, senior lecturer in political science at Manhattan University and Senator Hugh Jones, the Conservative member for Boston North. Welcome to the both of you.

Sen. Jones – Thanks Sarah

Prof Linklater – Thank you, it’s good to be here.

Finch – Moving to the front pages, let’s start with the Manhattan Herald, amongst the most respected of the left-wing press, who are running with “Singh defends govt record on civil liberties”, the story that the head of Respect, Rasheed Singh has openly applauded President Cuthbert’s work for minorities and said he will gladly throw his support behind Cuthbert if his party doesn’t proceed to the 2nd round of voting. Professor, what’s your take on this?

Prof. Linklater – Well Sarah, as you know the Herald is traditionally firmly on the side of the Liberal Party, and has been amongst President Cuthbert’s staunchest supporters. It’s obvious with the recent polling information from ABM/Capax and others that Cuthbert has some work to do convincing the public that he has in fact done a lot for civil liberties. Recent polls show 51% agree, 40% disagree and 9% aren’t sure – that’s bad news for a President with such a strong Liberal record and he’s sure to want to target and highlight his work on civil liberties for minorities in the next few days.

Sen. Jones – I have to agree here on some points. I agree that civil liberties will prove to be an important issue in the upcoming election, but I disagree on Cuthbert’s so called record. The constitution ensures that discrimination on race, gender, religion or sexuality is illegal, so our country’s laws were liberal and tolerant in nature since it’s inception in 2005. I don’t think Cuthbert can claim credit for that – he hasn’t had to do anything to create it. Although Cuthbert was the Chairman of the Constitution Commission, he only had a marginal impact in writing it. All he’s done is focus heavily on ethnic minorities in Manhattan Prime, I feel to the point where he’s starting to ignore other groups. I also disagree with some of his limited affirmative action policies, for they are merely discrimination against a different group of people.

Finch – Powerful words Senator. Moving on to the Daily Telegraph, a respectable right leaning paper, who are focusing on another key election issue – the economy. They take a more negative view of the Cuthbert Administration and the Liberal Party in general with the headline “Cuthbert’s Approval Plummets as Economic Mismanagement Comes Home to Roost”. This is the story that President Cuthbert’s approval rating has fallen from 57% to 49% in recent weeks, according to the Telegraph due to his mismanagement of the economy, and the robust challenge from Senator Dreygo of Unity. Polls suggest that 55% support the assertion that the Cuthbert Administration ably handled the recession, and 45% currently disagreed. Senator, what’s your view?

Sen. Jones – I feel that Senator Dreygo is quite rightly asking Manhattanites whether Cuthbert can be trusted with the economy anymore. After an initial boom, mainly due to our emergence from international isolationism, our economy suffered a serious slump and humiliatingly was reliant on Pacitalia to bail us out. In my constituency, which consists not just of Boston but the towns in the surrounding area, I’ve seen businesses closed down and had constituents loose their savings from an economic slump that Cuthbert did nothing to prevent, and was slow to deal with once it had begun.

Prof. Linklater - I feel President Cuthbert has shown that he took the economic slump very seriously. Although citizens can rightly criticize him for not elevating the economy's importance in day-to-day affairs in MP, the elevation of the secretariat to a full ministry almost immediately I think really helped him. I don't think it’s fair to entirely blame him for it not being a full ministry to start, since he as you pointed out earlier Senator, Cuthbert’s influence in the writing of the constitution was minimal.

Finch – Finally we’re looking at the Daily Mail, a rather extremist far right paper, but that has some interesting points about the third key electoral issue, that of immigration. Their main story today is “Illegal Immigrants Cost Manhattan Prime over c5 billion a Year” – Unity’s call from a crack down on benefit fraud and tougher penalties for immigrants illegally claiming benefits was applauded. The Mail claims that “the average Manhattanite agrees that the Cuthbert Administration has made this nation a soft touch for spongers and the work shy.”

The substantial Pacitalian population in Manhattan Prime, centered around Manhattan and New Sydney has also come under fire – one columnist argues that “This country is fed up with Pacitalian arrogance – if they’ve got it so good in their country, then why don’t they all go home?” and several published letters refer to Pacitalian immigrants (with apologies to our viewers) as ‘wops and packies’. Gentlemen, your views?

Sen. Jones – Whilst I obviously disagree with the Mail’s method of expressing itself, I do agree that immigration, both illegal, and the sheer volume of legal, is an issue the government needs to be examining more closely. The stronger policies on immigration put forward by the Conservatives and Unity may gain them significant support here.

Prof. Linklater – I believe the government will treat this article with the contempt it deserves. Under its new editor the once mildly respectable newspaper has become little more than a hate rag. To be blunt, the government would be well within its rights to press charges of inciting racial hatred, and it’s only their commitment to free speech that will stop them from acting. Let’s be honest here, if this kind of scaremongering continues the Mail will seize to have any credibility outside the far right whatsoever.

Turning to the issue of immigration, I agree illegal immigration perhaps needs examining. However I think it is often forgotten that immigrants provide a key service to the Manhattanite economy, which my friend refers to frequently. You can’t attack the government for a weak economy and then shut down immigration, leaving the economy in a far worse state. I for one hope that Manhattan Prime continues to attract the world’s finest minds, and feel Unity needs to distance itself from those elements of the press that can only hurt their cause.

Finch – A somewhat surprise element in this election is the importance of our relationship with Pacitalia. Senator Dreygo has strongly attacked our reliance and President Cuthbert’s subservience to Pacitalia. Is our special relationship a fruitful and necessary alliance? Or are you tired of being the UK to Pacitalia’s USA? Phone in or text and give us your views.

Manhattan Herald - 25th Febuary 2008

"Cuthbert, Dreygo progress to 2nd Round"

Cuthbert (Liberal) - 46%
Dreygo (Unity) - 38%
Laver (Conservative) - 10.5% (Eliminated)
Singh (Respect) - 5% (Eliminated)
Dietrich (Communist) - 0.5% (Eliminated)

With a very high turnout of 86% of those eligable to vote, this election has clearly captured the public's imagination. The results show that Unity's Artemis Dreygo's popularity continues to rise, with him now taking 38% of the vote.

Cuthbert still maintains the advantage, and with the additional 5% of the vote Respect commands being pledged for him, Dreygo still has a lot of work to do to dent the President's lead. Singh has already indicated that that the left wing parties will stick together - the main issue for Unity now if whether the right wing will do the same. Unity and the Conservatives together would make a formidable team, but Dreygo is by no means certain of their support yet. Tory leader Alan Laver is reportly furious at Dreygo for splitting the right wing vote in the 1st round and allowing the Liberals such a lead, and will surely not be happy playing second fiddle to a far newer party.

From PNN.pc

http://www.fantasy.fr/news/upload/actu/20070111LuciusMalfoy.jpg
Manhattan Prime presidential candidate Artemis Dreygo
captured a decisive chunk of "last minute" voters, as he and
rival incumbent Andrew Cuthbert won passage to the second
round of the country's presidential election. Cuthbert won the
first round with 46 percent of the votes, compared to Dreygo,
who earned 38 percent of votes in the first round.

Cuthbert, Dreygo advance; second round matchup set
President's team worried about close results


26 February 2008

Undecided voters that made up their mind in the last three days of the campaign and conservatives relieved to have a viable right-of-centre opposition to the Liberal administration helped a firebrand senator and presidential candidate in his bid to unseat Andrew Cuthbert as Manhattan Prime's president.

Mr Cuthbert and his main challenger, Unity's Sen Artemis Dreygo, advanced to the second round of the country's presidential elections, together capturing the two largest shares of support in Monday's vote. The president took 46 percent of first-round votes, while Sen Dreygo captured 38 percent to come in a close second.

The election was marked by high turnout (86 percent) but also by the fact that much of the undecided electorate — that was still sitting on the fence as late as three days ago — mostly voted for Dreygo, as an indication of an increase in support for a conservative alternative to Cuthbert. Moreover, Sen Dreygo's appeal among actual members of the Conservative Party has grown in the last week.

Dreygo's capitalising on those two groups – undecideds and disaffected conservatives – allowed him to narrow the race with Cuthbert. The gap between Cuthbert and Sen Dreygo was 37 percent when the election writ was issued. It decreased to 25 percent one week before the poll, with 5 percent unsure how they would vote. In Monday's election (a week later), the difference in votes was only eight points.

Despite the excellent news for the popular senator, Mr Cuthbert's re-election, barring any major political catastrophe, still seems set in stone. The president's 46 percent support in the first round put him close to a coveted majority of support among the electorate. Rasheed Singh, the social-democratic Respect Party's eliminated candidate, came fourth in the first round and urged his supporters to back Mr Cuthbert in the second round. Liberal and Respect votes together, he would have 51 percent, enough to carry the presidency into a second term.

Sen Dreygo will theoretically receive the remaining 49 percent, but that is only if he can convince conservatives who chose Alan Laver in the first round that he is a better choice than Mr Cuthbert to lead the country. Many in the Conservative camp are upset at Sen Dreygo's usurping and splitting of the right-wing vote, saying it has eliminated any chance for Manhattan Prime to get rid of Mr Cuthbert after one term many voters feel was unacceptably average. Numerous high-ranking Conservative officials have indicated they would prefer the party's membership to swing to the incumbent but Mr Laver does not want conservatives to "seek revenge" on the senator in the second round by voting for Mr Cuthbert, or not voting at all. Mr Laver reportedly feels it will kill off his party for good.

Last updated 1628 AOTC+3

Daily Telegraph – 11th March 2008

Presidential hopeful Artemis Dreygo has continued his strident campaign against Pacitalian influence in Manhattan Prime in a speech to voters in Munich today. Dreygo lambasted the ‘Timiocato Lobby’ and slammed President Andre Cuthbert as a sycophantic poodle and appeaser.

If elected President, Dreygo said he would look to reduce all foreign influence in the country, and avoid entangling alliances by removing Manhattan Prime from the New Sydney Agreement. Signed by President Cuthbert and Pacitalian Prime Minister Chiovitti in January 2007, the Agreement provides for mutual defence and free trade, but Dreygo would look to remove the military portion, arguing that Manhattan Prime’s small military cannot afford to rush to Pacitalia’s defence whenever she may be attacked. Indeed, Manhattan Prime seems to be echoing Pacitalian policy so closely (Dreygo argues) that our armed forces are already an extension of the Pacitalian military.

Dreygo also made reference to several pro-Laisse faire economic policies, and restrictions on immigration that are sure to please Conservative voters. Indeed, polls indicate that Dreygo is thus far proving very successful at wooing the Conservative, and is eating into Cuthbert’s lead.

The 2nd round of voting will take place on the 17th March – the same day President Cuthbert took office in 2005.

Manhattan Herald - 17th March 2008

Cuthbert Reelected by Narrow Margin!

News from the ballots suggests that President Andrew Cuthbert has won a 2nd term, defeating the Unity Challenger Artemis Dreygo in the 2nd round of voting today.

Final results are not yet in, but the latest polls indicated a Cuthbert victory with 53% of the vote, to Dreygo's 47%. This would seem to show that Liberal and Respect Voters were loyal to Cuthbert, and he also picked up a percentage of floating voters, possibly from the Conservative party. There seem to be few suprises in the Senatorial elections, with all the current Cabinet retaining their seats for another term.

Manhattan Herald – 19th March 2008

Havok in Manhattan! Cuthbert Assassinated!

Breaking news from the Capital today as President Andrew Cuthbert was the victim of an assassination attempt at his re-inauguration today outside the Senate building. Seconds after Cuthbert delivered his oath, a small band of mercenaries delivered a devastating attack on the podium. A sniper concealed on a nearby building fired, hitting the President in the shoulder, as his compatriots opened up on the Security detail with submachine guns and pistols. We regret to inform out readership that 5 Secret Service men were killed in the assault, along with the Vice President Loren Hunter, who attempted to shield the President from further fire with her own body. Crowds of Manhattanites fled in panic, although luckily no civilian casualties have been reported. The body of the fallen President was dragged away by Secret Service agents, and he must be considered missing, presumed dead.

At the same time bombs were set off at the Pacitalian embassy in Manhattan – reports indicate that the Ambassador is severely injured, and several staff were killed.
It is unclear whether further embassies will be targeted, but the plotters seem extremely aggressive to what they see as undue foreign influence in Manhattan Prime. Foreign Ministry staff urged all embassy staff and foreign nations to leave Manhattan Prime for the time being, before presumably going underground themselves.

The Manhattan Police Department is struggling to cope with the situation, and is engaged in firefights with coup plotters and elements of a Manhattanite Infantry Division, which seems to have joined the coup attempt, and add their voices to calls that the election was a fix and Senator Artemis Dreygo is the rightful President. If the Senator is truly behind this than all those who love democracy must say ‘How could you sir? Have you no shame at all?’A coup is against everything Manhattan Prime stands for, and this paper urges its readers to help friends and neighbours in trouble, to keep their heads down, and if possible without undue risk, to help the government and law enforcement agencies in whatever way possible. May God be with you all.

**

Most Secret
To: Timothy Ell, Archetenia Nera

Tim,

The situation is dire. A terrorist group unknown to me have seized the exits out of Manhattan and are seem to be well dug in. I presume they hope to block the mobilisation of the several infantry divisions we have stationed in Manhattan state.

I’m not badly hurt, though I’ve lost a lot of blood. I only wish Loren and my loyal bodyguards were as lucky, but I fear they are dead because of me, and I will carry their deaths on my conscience for the rest of my life. I’ve gone underground with the remnants of my Cabinet, and have been unable to contact any of my ground commanders – people seem to think me dead, and that may work to our advantage. You have my sincere regrets for the loss of your embassy staff – I knew most of them on a day to day basis.

Don’t even think of suggesting evac: I won’t leave Manhattan to these bastards. We could however use whatever rapid response forces you can spare – we need to stabilise the situation before we start to see civilian casualties. The radio stations broadcast demands that the rightful winner of the election be appointed, and I can only fear that Dreygo is behind this. I didn’t think he’d ever be capable of a coup…the MPNN, Telegraph and Herald seem to be defiant today, and it can’t be long before their arrests are called for. We need to act quickly my friend.

Andy

Secret IC


Attention: Red Fox

$ It is a relief to know you're still alive. We need the designated
$ next-in-command to authorise our entry and provide us with
$ sufficient intelligence to justify a rapid response from our
$ special forces.

$ You need to find someone you trust to do this if you are not
£ completely sure you can trust the next-in-command. If this
£ happens expediently, Pacitalian forces can be across the border
$ in the next few hours to restore order and right the situation.

$ We have advised Pacitalian media to refrain from reporting any
$ further on the situation until we are ready to make a statement
$ and clarify some things. All have obliged, expecting updates soon.

/ Godspeed.

Blue Fox over/out

IC:

My Acting Vice President will be my Secretary of Defence, Fleet Admiral David Ross. I can trust him implicitly and have authorised him to allow your forces to cross the border.

We’re continuing to lay low in the concealed attic conversation of an old barn, owned by a pro-government farming family. We’re several miles outside the city, having fled the capital immediately following the assassination attempt. We’re relying on the fact that what passes for government in Manhattan believe the cabinet to be decimated. When your forces are near the area, we can activate a GPS tracking dot broadcasting my call sign in Hex, and thus rendezvous with your men – we daren’t do this for more of a couple of seconds.

Myself and 10 other members of my cabinet made it here – the VP is dead, and I have no contact with the Secretary of Research, the Attorney General or the Joint Chiefs. Luckily none of them should have been in the capital at the time. If transport could be provided I would be extremely grateful – some ministers may want to leave the area for the time being and I’m not going to insist more people stay and die for me.

Red Fox


Authorisation codes for Pacitalian peacekeepers are being transmitted. We’ve established contact with one of our border posts near New Toronto - they have been told to admit Pacitalian military personnel. They have been informed that Manhattan is in a state of crisis, but know little beyond that. Your approach is from the South-East – avoiding the highways may be an idea as traffic may be backed up awaiting entry. The plotters will be forced to start allowing civilian traffic into the city soon, though probably not without extensive checks. The grasslands and plains are mainly agricultural along that stretch of Manhattan State, and should be suitable for armoured forces.

Good luck Sir,
Fleet Admiral David Ross

OOC: The situation in Manhattan, Day 3 of the Crisis

The Manhattan Police Department is bowing under the weight of heavy engagements throughout the city with small but heavily armed Pro-Dreygo gangs. Arms range from handguns to submachine guns and some RPGs. Our police usually do not carry firearms, and so are relying on small stores of Riot and SWAT gear. The situation is, in a word, confused – military and civilian officials are struggling to contact anyone within the city.

The city’s airport is in the hands of the plotters, and all the exits out of town are held by mechanised infantry and heavy armour. Entry will be necessary by crossing the land border from Pacitalia, or landing troops outside the city by air. The city is landlocked in the interior of the country.

Senator Dreygo had no knowledge in the planning or execution of a coup, although widely blamed. However his ambition knows an opportunity when its sees one and he aims to seize control of the government shortly, to restore order as a caretaker President with Cuthbert presumed dead. He can then portray the elections results as false, and call new elections with himself in a strong position. The Senate building will soon be fortified by army deserters, and raids have been made on local barracks and armouries to arm the plotters.

Your forces will be confronted with heavily armed bands of coup plotters, numbering in the low hundreds. In addition the 14th Manhattan Armoured Division and the 2nd Manhattan Infantry Division, stationed near the capital, have gone over to the Coup plotters.

Their readouts:

A Standard Mechanised Infantry Division:

20,000 Infantrymen, with Praetonian L63's
150 LY4 Wolfhound tanks
300 M2 Bradley IFVs
75 M109A6 Paladin Howitzer+ 75 Paladin resupply vehicles
75 Apache attack helicopters
75 UH-60 Blackhawk Utility helicopters
1500 HMMWV Jeep
1500 5-ton trucks

A Standard Armored Division:

20,000 Infantrymen, with Praetonian L63's
300 LY4 Wolfhound tanks
150 M2 Bradley IFVs
75 M109A6 Paladin Howitzer+ 75 Paladin resupply vehicles
75 Apache attack helicopters
75 UH-60 Blackhawk Utility helicopters
1500 HMMWV Jeep
1500 5-ton trucks

Loyalists troops are beginning to mobilise and may support your forces, but they knew little of the emergency other than a media blackout of the capital and no body entering or leaving in the last few days. The Airforce will be reluctant to bomb its own capital unless your forces can find legitimate targets for them.

Average citizens are staying in their homes wherever possible. As of yet the plotter’s wrath had been directed towards the government, police and foreign embassies. Many larger corporations have hired private security firms to protect their staff and offices. Political outrage from the populous is sure to build once the situation becomes clearer to the average citizen. Since the first day, there have been precious few written or televised reports from the capital, and radio and television studios have been closed down. The localised telephone net has been disabled, and an internet and email blackout exists in the city.

Have got a basic map if anyone needs.

http://s35.photobucket.com/albums/d197/Pacitalia/coatofarms_Pacitalia.jpg
Republican Legislative Archives
http://www.rla-aldr.gov.pc/

Special Resolution 94 S8, 3/2008
Unicameral resolution (Constazione Ampoliticato only), passed 21st March 2008



Emergency Act to Mobilise Fiduciary Restitution and Restoration of Form and Order Through Means of Force Pursuant To:
Good Neighbour Policy Clarifications Act, 2000 (2561 K16 B125 11/2000)
Mutual Defence Standard Protocol Guidelines Act, 1979, rv. 1990, 1999, 2003 (1161 D4 M1 12/2003)
Emerging Nations Aid Act, 2004 (6727 H7 L46 5/2004)
Manhattan Prime Act, 2005 (3550 P15 G797.4 4/2005)
New Sydney Agreement, 2007 (7130 A50 A11 2/2007)
New Sydney Agreement Protocol Amendments Act, 2007 (7130 A50 A11.a 7/2007)


Motion to propose
D. Camparelli (FPD) / R. Ambardoza (FPD)
Motion carried


Act literature
WHEREAS the recent and imminent events within the Imperial Republic are of grave concern to the government and people of the Pacitalian Republic as allies and friends;

WHEREAS the democratic institutions of the Imperial Republic are under great strain and in danger of permanent collapse;

and WHEREAS our concern extends to a need and desire, specific and explicit, to resolve the situation expediently and through any means necessary herein and wherewithal;

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the prime minister ask the Archonate to activate the protocols necessary to mobilise a determinable and appropriate dispatch of Pacitalian forces in course and purpose to restore order and stabilise the Imperial Republic of Manhattan Prime, in concert and cooperation, to whatever extent possible, with military operations in that country;

and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Archonate assent to financial and humanitarian aid to be provided to the citizens and government of the Imperial Republic at the earliest opportunity.


Motion to debate
M. Marconelli (Greens) /
No seconder, motion failed


Motion to call the question and commence voting
C. Tramonta (NC) / M. Quirinamo (NC) / S. Sigurimasso (FPD)
Motion carried

Vote
In favour: 916 of 1,175 (77,95%)
Opposed: 127 of 1,175 (10,81%)
Abstentions: 132 of 1,175 (11,23%)

Not present: 14
Total LCAs: 1,189 (100,00%)

Resolution passed

Bazalonia had not been inactive despite it's apparent lack of interest, previous whenever any Bazalonian official, government minister, shadow minister or otherwise a member of the Bazalonian bicameral parliament, responded with words to the response to the like of.

"It is not our business to discuss politics of any nation, particularily ones of our friends. We hope to continue building a strong bi-partisan relationship with whomever takes office."

As with many nations sometimes you just need people on the ground to know what is happening. It was their foreign policy "Isolationist" but with the added "not racist". Which first caught the attention of BSIS, 2 relatively young agents where sent, after being accepted into a university in the nation. They entered the university politics scene. What better way than to understand a party than at the ground level, and in a hotbed of politics. Granted, a university is generally the home of more idealogues, but that was exactly what they wanted. They needed to know about the Unity party and what it meant.

It was a pure fact finding mission, that was until all hell broke loose and these 2 agents were stuck in the nation trying to figure out what the heck was going on.

OOC: Check regional board MP

The United Solaris Federation had long considered itself one of the great bastions of progressivism and scientific advancement- indeed, this character was considered essential to the Tiburonese spirit. A large part of this commitment was expressed through Tiburon's support of similar states, primarily through its membership in the Triumvirate of Yut and its leading role in the Alliance of Progressive Nations.

At the same time, Tiburon extended economic and military support to other nations, and one country that Tiburon had extended allied relations to recently was the state of Manhattan Prime. A small state compared to Tiburon, Manhattan Prime was nevertheless a rather progressive state, and the Tiburonese government had seen support of Manhattan Prime as just a logical continuation of its support to progressive nations. Tiburonese-Manhattanite cooperation, incidentally, had been agreed to by none other than President Cuthbert, and Tiburon had quietly been rather favorable to his reelection.

Of course, recent events significantly complicated matters. Noninterference in elections was one thing- standing idly by when an ally falls apart is another thing entirely.

http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y123/United_Solaris_Federation/NewYorkTimesweb.jpg

The New York Times- All the News That's Fit to Print
March 23, 12408 HE

President Kennedy Announces Plans for Troop Deployment to Stabilize Manhattan Prime

NEW NEW YORK- President Anthony P. Kennedy announced a commitment of 4,000 Kshatriyas yesterday as part of an ongoing Tiburonese effort to restore order and democracy to Manhattan Prime. Speaking to a joing session of the National Legislative Congress, President Kennedy asked Congress and the Manhattanite government for an indefinite deployment of forces to Manhattan Prime in order to restore democracy and the rule of law to the country in response to an ongoing coup.

The coup, which began five days ago in the Manhattanite capital, Manhattan, left the Manhattanite Vice President, Loren Hunter, dead, and the Manhattanite President missing (presumably dead). The ongoing coup followed a recent election in Manhattan Prime in which Cuthbert narrowly won re-election against the conservative and nationalist candidate Artemis Dreygo. Groups proclaiming their loyalty to Dreygo opened fire on Cuthbert during his second inauguration, and quickly managed to prove a challenge to city police and armed forces. The current situation in Manhattan is considered to be quite chaotic, as elements of the armed forces are known to have joined pro-Dreygo forces, and government forces continue to battle pro-Dreygo forces for control of the capital.

Tiburonese forces will be preparing for deployment as peacekeepers pending approval from the remnants of the Manhattanite government. The President remarked that he considered a deployment part of ongoing support between Tiburon and Manhattan Prime, which have recently grown to encompass military and economic relations. These relations had begun by the establishment of the Tiburonese-Manhattanite Bilateral Treaty of Support, signed by President Sakura Akanimara of Tiburon and President Cuthbert.

Article: President Kennedy Announces Troop Deployment Plans in Manhattan Prime>>

Of course, authorization for such a plan was also necessary. Messages were sent to what was left of the Manhattanite government- some of which, hopefully, would have reached Fleet Admiral David Ross through channels loyal to the government. Whether or not they actually did, of course, would be impossible to tell- and Tiburonese intervention without such an approval would be of highly questionable legality. As for the ultimate success of the plans? Well, that could only be considered once some sort of reply from the government- and hopefully from those close to Cuthbert himself- was received.

OOC: Hope you don't mind- if you do, I'll delete this post immediately. The Kshatriyas mentioned are what members of the Tiburon Lightning Strike Force (TLSF; Tiburon's analogue to a Marine Corps) are called.

Foreign Ministry of the Free Republic of Lamoni

To: Fleet Admiral David Ross, Manhattan Prime

{encrypted}

We are mobilizing the 1st - 6th Mechanized Infantry Divisions for duty in Manhattan Prime if called upon. We will also be sending aid workers with our forces in order to help your nation rebuild afterwards. If you have recommendations as to where our forces can land to maximum effect, we would be pleased to note them. We shall send you the breakdown of a Lamonian Mechanized Infantry Division at the conclusion of this message. We would also need to know about any other friendly forces in that theater of operations.

Mechanised Infantry Division

6 Mechanised Infantry battalions
4 Armoured battalions
4 Artillery battalions (mixed)
4 Aviation battalions (attack helicopters)
4 Support battalions
1 Engineer battalions
1 Intelligence battalion
1 Signal battalion
1 Divisional support battalion

Armor: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=13416164#post13416164

APC/IFV: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=533583&postcount=1

Artillery: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=533583&postcount=1 (mortar variant)
http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=535946&postcount=1 (In divisional reserve)

Helicopters: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=534616

Signed,

Tanya Ley
Foreign Minister
Free Republic of Lamoni

---

Back in the Free Republic, the six Mechanized Infantry Divisions involved were being made ready for movement to Manhattan Prime. The transport ships (really, car carriers) were going to be escorted by the Lamonian Navy's three Battleships that had been purchased from Monavia for cheap. They were older ships, but Lamoni had been able to retrofit them with radar, Tomahawk Anti-ship cruise missiles, and other technological goodies. These ships would be able to escort the troops and their equipment safely to Manhattan Prime once word came in that they could land forces there from the legitimate government.

Yes, indeed.

From PNN.pc

http://skull20.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/swat.jpg
SAFD commandoes breached the border with Manhattan
Prime overnight Sunday and headed for the country's capital
attempting to help the Imperial Republic's armed forces
and law enforcement restore order after the assassination
of president Andrew Cuthbert.

Massive deployment begins to restore order to Manhattan Prime
LFC: "Up to 25,000" spec-ops headed to Imperial Republic's capital in "first wave"


MANHATTAN

Ten units of Pacitalia's renowned Special Attack Force Delta (SAFD) have crossed the border with Manhattan Prime and are headed for the capital and surrounding area, Land Forces Command (Region 3) announced in a statement released Saturday evening.

The rapid response forces intend to restore order in a region that threatens to boil over after the shock assassination of president Andrew Cuthbert, who was re-elected on 17th March by a six-point margin over his rival, Sen Artemis Dreygo. Mr Dreygo reportedly now intends to form a caretaker government in the interim until new elections can be held. The wily senator denies involvement in the assassination plot despite widespread suspicion.

Land Forces Command says approximately 25,000 commandoes entered Manhattan Prime "over a period of several hours" overnight Sunday, "with the full cooperation of the Imperial Republic's military forces, who are still loyal to the state and not to any other faction or entity", and are headed straight for the capital region. The LFC's statement also said the initial response of 25,000 troops was "the first wave" and that new deployments would be forthcoming as needed.

Manhattan has seen numerous episodes of violence since the assassination, including the bombing of the Pacitalian embassy shortly after the shooting of the president.

PNN has since learned that Pacitalia's ambassador to Manhattan Prime, Paolmarco Castronevi, has died from his injuries. The ambassador was seriously injured in the bombing but was not initially killed. The embassy's charge d'affaires, 16 other staff members and three security guards were also killed in the blast. Six others remain in hospital after being airlifted to Bergamo.

"We must stand with our brothers and allies, and we must defend liberty at all costs, especially when great tragedies like these occur," Pacitalian archonate Dr Timothy Ell said in a statement. "Manhattan Prime's very institutions, its trust in democracy, are in grave danger. We must help them restore that trust, being mindful and respectful of the situation, without being heavy-handed, and we must come in as friends, not occupiers, to help them make things right. We are obligated... it is our duty, when we share in the grief and shock of our neighbours, to help them restore their trust in democracy."

The archonate also announced a "Contingency and Solvency Fund" to backstop Manhattan Prime's economy during the crisis. Dr Ell says the initial funds total just shy of Đ 70 billion (NSD 231,8 billion). The money can be used to prop up businesses that are forced to stop production, have property lost or damaged, or close during the onset of conflict in the region. The funding will also be reportedly tapped into as a backup humanitarian fund to the additional Đ 32,5 billion (NSD 107,6 billion) Dr Ell earmarked as an aid reserve fund.

Pacitalia's head of state enacted the funding and authorised the troop deployment after the Constazione Ampoliticato passed an emergency resolution 916 to 127 urging him to do so. The resolution, introduced by Federation of Progressive Democrats LCA Domenico Camparelli, called for "a need and desire, specific and explicit, to resolve the situation expediently and through any means necessary".

Regional neighbours Lamoni and Bazalonia have also offered to provide aid or troops to help stabilise Manhattan Prime, but approval for that lies with the Imperial Republic's military forces. It is not known when or whether Lamonian and Bazalonian forces may enter the country.

Tiburon - Most Secret:

Sirs,

We have always welcomed the close co-operation between Manhattan Prime and the Tiburonese people, and so would welcome any military assistance you can render. The situation is dire and we fear if not stabilised shortly by outside forces the fight may spread beyond Manhattan into a country-wide civil war that would cause unimaginable damage to our country.

Authorisation is hereby sent for your forces to enter the country, I suggest the you land forces by air to the south of the city of Manhattan. I am authorised to inform you that this authorisation comes from ‘higher up’ and that Pacitalian and Lamonian forces will soon be moving to assist you.

Ross

**

Lamoni – Most Secret:

You have our utmost gratitude for any help you can render, and any post-war assistance will be eagerly received. Your forces are authorised to land, with our blessing. If you’re forces are arriving by sea from the West, it would be best to land between Kobe and Seto and drive inland from there, though the choice is of course yours.

Our forces are without much in the way of central leadership, several divisions are being mobilised in Manhattan state are about ready to go. We have no way of contacting them from our present location, but if informed of the direness of the situation, they will be willing to assist you. I am authorised to inform you that this authorisation comes from ‘higher up’ and that Pacitalian and Tiburonese forces will soon be moving to assist you.

Ross

**

University of Manhattan:

Mike Jones groaned softly and pulled his pillows tighter over his head. The knocking continued impatiently, and his flatmate Tom yelled through the door:

“Get up dude, we’ve got AO Politics in 10 minutes, in Interpol Main!”

“’s too damn early”

“Morrison will be pissed if we turn up late again”

“He can go play with his beloved slideshows” Mike grumbled, but conceded the point and began rummaging around his room for his keys.

A few minutes later the two flatmates met up with Mike’s girlfriend Laura outside her flat, and the three raced to their lecture. The campus was enclosed tightly and recently the entrances were guarded by private security contractors. U of M was located in the suburbs, little affected by the crisis – students could sometimes see black smoke billowing on the horizon, or police sirens screaming past, and the general attitude was a mixture of anger and trepidation. Still, life had to go on. Crowds of students milled around inside the building, chatting about everything from sports results to politics, and taking shelter from the bitter winds that had failed to discourage some from wearing sandals. Today their efforts were in vain though – the lecture hall was locked and a sign proclaimed that all classes were cancelled for reasons of security until the crisis abated. It had obviously been judged too dangerous for the more vocal anti-coup lecturers to teach, and yet the students could not leave the city and would just have to entertain themselves for a while. Tom started grumbling immediately, and Mike saw his point: not only were they being denied the education they were paying through the nose for, but they couldn’t even go to a bar in the evening in a city under siege. They were effectively confined to campus, and only freshers went to the tiny campus bars. At least the societies would still be able to meet.

The three friends had joined the Unity party and it’s youth society several weeks ago, and had following the elections eagerly. The Liberal Party usually dominated universities, but Unity had picked up a significant following here – to start with the main campus was within Senator Dreygo’s constituency, and he was seen as a popular and dynamic figure. A few had been put off by the recent coup attempts and tougher stance on immigrants, but many supporters were eager for Dreygo to be the strong leader Manhattan Prime needed to repair the economy and punish those criminals and terrorists who would dare to murder the President of Manhattan Prime. They may not have voted for Cuthbert, but that was far from wanting him killed – since he was dead though, another leader would have to restore order, and who better than one with such a large popular support gained in the latest elections? However the party always needed new supporters. Spying two of the newer students he’d met at a party a few nights ago, Mike wandered over.

“Alright Matt, Jase? Bloody good night huh? Hey what do you guys think about this stupid cancellation?” The Bazalonian agents gave a long-suffering shrug and made non-committal noises of disgust.

“You guys up to much tonight?” Mike continued.

“Nah, probably just the Union. Can’t leave the campus can we?”

“Oh, come on, the Union sucks. I’ve got a better idea – I’m going along to a meeting of the Unity Party tonight, we just talk politics, have a speaker talk to us, get seriously wasted. You two should totally join man. At least come along to the meeting tonight yeah? See what you think?”

OOC:

In summary, without trying we’ve got a good blend of theatres – a deployment of agents, and one by land, sea and air.

Pac, you’re entering at the border post and driving in land from there, the choice of route is yours. You’re unlikely to encounter much resistance outside the capital city.

Tiburon, your troops should airlift in anywhere from Manhattan to Pittsburgh.

Lamoni, as you’re arriving by sea I would land somewhere between Kobe and Seto, but any coastline would be fine.

Map - http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/VykkDreygo/ManhattanPrimeMap-New.jpg

The ships carrying the Lamonian forces had reached the designated landing zone in Manhattan Prime after a few days of travel. With the assistance of local Manhattanite military officials, the Lamonian ships were able to land and unload in both civilian and naval ports.

Special attention was paid to getting the TRA-92 Eiko helicopters up and running for recon purposes. While the port areas might be secure; the distribution of enemy forces in the rest of the country was not yet known. In the meantime, the rest of the equipment belonging to the six Lamonian divisions began to offload. When Division sized formations were assembled, they were sent off towards Manhattan State with local guides to show them the fastest route. The LY4A1 Wolfhound MBT's were leading each division, with the rest of the division following. The Lamonian Manticore's would remain in the rear area as a reserve, the thinking being that cruise missiles and rockets wouldn't be greatly needed for this campaign.

Manhattan Herald underground circular – 26th March 2008

News from the besieged capital Manhattan indicates that Unity leader Artemis Dreygo has declared himself caretaker President in an attempt to control serious rioting and terrorist activity in the capital. Dreygo spoke of his sorrow for Cuthbert’s loss, but that the country needed to move on, and to punish transgressors and foreign interference together. Dreygo maintains that the current instability is strictly an internal affair and Manhattanite forces will be responsible for bringing it under control. He thanked foreign well-wishers for their offers of aid but warned that unauthorised incursions into Manhattan Prime will be viewed as an act of war.

He claims that the Senate building had been fortified by the army to protect it from further terrorist attacks although the Herald can reveal that a substantial walkout was planned by Liberal and Conservative Senators, who are now held under house arrest in the building.

More news as it develops – keep safe, and keep the faith

OOC:

Confused about the situation and Manhattan and bound by their loyalty to the office of President, Dreygo has brought the majority of the army into his fold, although they will take some time to mobilise and entire divisions are going rogue and pledging themselves to the Cuthbert Administration. The Manhattan Navy has put to sea in protest and left harbour at New Sydney for the open waters to escape Dreygo’s influence.

The army has been ordered to contain the Lamonian invasion and aim to intercept the incursion in Japan Province, and to hold the cities of Kyoto and Sapporo. The more northern city is currently held by 1 unprepared infantry division (the 13th) and 1 armoured division (the 6th). Readouts are as normal, though you may find them in an unprepared state. Their air support is limited to attack and transport helicopters until they can contact their airforce units, who are resisting Dreygo’s attempts to bring them in line. Sapporo is held by 2 infantry divisions (the 16th and 17th) and 1 armoured (the 4th).

All forces are relatively green and untested in battle, but are convinced they are defending their homeland from invasion. Colonel Mendez of the 13th might be the least suspicious to the real situation, and will probably just defend as ordered and wait to see what you do instead of charging blindly in. Artillery is positioned on nearby hills, troops are digging in as best as they can and vehicles are kept in a mobile reserve.

The Pacitalians in the south face 2 infantry and 2 armoured divisions dug in along the Victoria-Calgary line. Units have not yet been ID'ed, but their situation is much the same as those in the West.

http://s35.photobucket.com/albums/d197/Pacitalia/coatofarms_Pacitalia.jpg
Sanctioned Positional Release, Directorate of the Republican Archonate
Second Pacitalian Republic

CONCORDIA ET FEROCITAS · AB NOMINE IMP·CAESAR·DIVI·F·AVGVSTVS·LXIII·XIV


On both a personal level, and as head of state of the Pacitalian Republic, I am extremely troubled and worried by recent developments in Manhattan Prime. Our response has been to mobilise humanitarian and military aid into the region. The latest indications from the Imperial Republic indicate our presence will no longer be welcome, as Sen Artemis Dreygo has reportedly set up a caretaker government and has considered Lamonian, Bazalonian, Tiburonese and Pacitalian incursions to be an act of war.

I must impress once more that Pacitalian foreign policy protocol mandates the national government not recognise "claims to power or authority within a democratic, sovereign state that endanger or nullify the institutions, constitutional predisposition and due popular process of that country, and in which the claims to power or authority are not justified through the legitimate democratic election of that entity".

As such, the Pacitalian government refuses to recognise the caretaker government of Sen Artemis Dreygo. We do not recognise his claim to power or authority as per protocol as well as under these specific circumstances. A man who did not win the majority of votes, regardless of where he placed, or how well he did, in a democratic vote, is not eligible to lead a country without once again consulting the electorate for a justified mandate. Mr Dreygo has failed to do this and thus will not be recognised at any time, under any circumstance.

Let it be known that I have advised both my government and the public that our current policy on the crisis stands. We will continue to act in the best interests of both the Pacitalian Republic and the Imperial Republic to right the situation, restore order and direct the institutions and people of Manhattan Prime back onto a course of democracy that follows their rule of law and is legitimately mandated and elected. We will not hesitate to disable any entity or group that stands in the way of that goal. That, in no way, will stand.

I wish to personally extend an offer to the legitimately elected remainder of the government to set up a government-in-exile in Bergamo. We have also moved to restrict the ability of officials in the "caretaker government" to leave Manhattan Prime, including a ban on their entry to Pacitalia.

Let it be also known that we intend to launch our second wave of incursions into Manhattan Prime within the next 24 hours, on a much larger scale and with a much greater breadth of deployment. I have already authorised the second wave of deployment. Now that we are apparently no longer welcome, we must defend the safety and security of our first wave of troops by diversifying our offensive operations accordingly.

The people of Manhattan Prime have spoken, and a majority of them did not want Sen Dreygo to be their president. We will defend that voice and decision as has been sworn unto us to defend.


Sincera in domina bene,

Dr Timothy Ell, CC, A.Rp, PR
Archonatus imperiator res publica
Archonate of the Pacitalian Republic

Government Announces a Sweeping Aid Package!
Also Delivers Condemnation

The People of Manhattan Prime have gone from bad to worse in recent weeks, with their newly re-elected president Andrew Cuthbert, allegations of vote rigging, by his main opponent, a successful assasination and now, instead of under-going another series of votes to elect the President, Senator Dreygo has staged a coup against the administration of the country.

With this internal strife Lamonian, Tiburonese and Pacitalian incursions into the area to maintain peace. This conflict can only seem to get worse, however it seems that Bazalonia will not send any "troops" however it will mobilise a force to set up aid distribution centres around the nation with a number of military personnel that will defend each one. The centres will start in Lamonian and Pacitalian secured areas with negotiations underway to set up aid centres in Tibutonese areas and areas under the control of Dreygo.

However, let this not be seen as an acknowledgement of the Dreygo Administration with negotiators delivering a strongly worded letter denouncing his handling of the situation in a very undemocratic manner, and the Bazalonian government will refuse to recognise the Dreygo Administration or any other Administration until proper democratic processes are held.

~~~


Davis Johnson - Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Public Release

There seems to be some mis-speculation from foreign sources about involvement of our troops. There will be no involvement of any Bazalonian military except those required to maintain security for the Aid Distribution Centres that will be set up. These are to be not an incursion in any sense of the word and will be set up according to negotiations with those holding power. Bazalonian Troops guarding these facilities designed to relieve the Hardship of the Manhattanite people as a result of the blatant dis-regard for the democratic process.

~~~

Matt shruged, "It's not like we've got anything better to do..." This was it, their chance to gain access into the Party itself.

Jase just shrugged, non-commital as always, which meant he would just generally go with whatever those around him were doing.

"Alright, we'll be there."

Once again Jase just shrugged, he didn't do much talking, he never seemed to speak at all. Well he could make various noises, perhaps he was just one of those guys that always kept quiet and suddenly when he spoke had a profound insight. That or he could just be full of shit.

OOC: MP, i'm going to let you take the first shot at my troops.

IC: The Lamonian forces were continuing towards Manhattan State. Both their maps and their guides were telling them that they were going to have to pass through Japan Province; going through the cities of Kyoto and Sapporo.

The helicopters had seen nothing during the march so far, but they were just now getting into range of the two cities.

---

In the meantime, President Stinson had decided that it might be time for the forces deployed to assist Manhattan Prime to be co-ordinated. Accordingly, he sent a message to the other nations involved with military operations in Manhattan Prime.

Office of the President of the Free Republic of Lamoni

To: The Governments of Pacitalia and Tiburon Jolted

{ENCRYPTED}

It has come to my attention that while the military contributions of each of our nations have started to take effect in Manhattan Prime; our three nations have yet to come up with a co-ordinated strategy. Therefore, I would like to invite all interested parties to the Lamonian Capitol of Nephi in order to co-ordinate our joint military forces; or at the least, to share plans and intelligence on the situation. Government AFB has been made ready to receive your representatives should you decide to send them.

Signed,

Andrew Stinson
President
Free Republic of Lamoni

Highly secret
To: Office of the President of Lamoni
CC: Tiburon Jolted

Mr President,

I have already had Land Forces Command R3 set up a temporary operations and command centre in the city of Bergamo, for Pacitalian forces, which includes secure meeting and conference rooms. Since Bergamo is only 90km from the border with Manhattan Prime, I think it is a more logical place for officials from our governments to meet and co-ordinate strategy. We have also set up Manhattan Prime's government-in-exile in a secure location near the city.

You are most welcome to come to Bergamo as quickly as you can, if this is more convenient for you.

Dr Timothy Ell
Archonate of the Pacitalian Republic

In a statement today, the Free Republic stated it's intention to NOT recognize the Manhattan Prime caretaker government headed by Senator Dreygo.

The Foreign Ministry spokesperson reiterated that only the Cuthbert government of Manhattan Prime was to be recognized, due to it's being elected by the people of Manhattan Prime. The government of the Free Republic also garunteed the safety of any Manhattan Prime citizens in Lamonian territory, citing that it's quarrel was not with the citizenry of Manhattan Prime, but only with the international criminal known as Senator Dreygo.

Now that the Lamonian Expeditionary Force has moved inland into Manhattan Prime, Lamonian aid workers and supplies were being sent to the beleaguered country in order to assist those who need it.

In other news, President Andrew Stinson left the Free Republic for Pacitalia today, taking Major General Ryan with him. The government has officially denied any connection between the trip and the fighting in Manhattan Prime, but the timing is too good to be a coincidence.

---

Office of the President of the Free Republic

To: Dr Timothy Ell

I will be flying to Bergamo, and will be taking Major General David Ryan with me as military adviser. Hopefully, we can resolve the situation with few losses, but I suspect that Senator Dreygo will do whatever he can to remain in power.

Signed,

Andrew Stinson
President
Free Republic of Lamoni

*snip*
To: The Governments of Pacitalia and Tiburon Jolted
*snip*


OOC: It's just Tiburon for him, apparently when NS moved to Jolt Tiburon got"Jolted" .. analogous to the "[NS]" that you see occasionally.

27th March 2008, Bergamo, Pacitalia

The Manhattan Prime government in exile condemns the despicable coup attempt undertaken by Senator Dreygo that serves as a devastating blow against the values of Manhattanite democracy. We refuse to recognise the new administration and urge Manhattanites to give foreign peacekeepers all possible assistance. We applaud the example of the citizens of Japan Province who have lined the streets to cheer disembarking local troops, showering them with garlands of flowers

We urge military forces to lay down arms and to remember that their oath is to their country, and to the office of the President, not the man. If the office is unjustly filled, they are not to be held to obeying its orders. Lastly we thank our allies for their help at this difficult time and maintain that far from being an invasion, these forces have been given permission to enter Manhattan Prime by senior members of the cabinet, who survived the coup attempt.

***

Sapporo, Japan

Lt Colonel Freddy Kizumo of the 16th Manhattan Infantry Division surveyed the scene through his binoculars, and signalled to his ADC in the makeshift command post. Orders from above bade him hold these hills for as long as he could. The size of the invading forces terrified the untested commander, but his thoughts drifted to his wife and baby son at home in Sapporo and Kizumo knew he had to try, though he knew the reputation of the Lamonian army well.

"If their armour shows up, we'll be in real trouble. We've seen what Lyran kit can do, and they have so much more than we" he thought out loud. "Order the howitzers to open up, try to funnel their main bulk into the minefields. Commence skirmishing operations, let's keep their heads down" he ordered, knowing his team would pass them on.

Opening the channel to his counterpart commanding the 4th Armoured Division, he ordered them to prepare to move, but stay in reserve for now until the artillery had seised fire. "Do duty by your country! Let's teach these Lamonian bastards not to go invading whoever they feel like!" he finished, sounding more confident than he felt.

Artillery located on the hills behind Kizumo's position suddenly began to open up on the Lamonian troops. Dotted around the hills, numerous partisans and snipers picked their targets and fired, aiming for any officers they could find.

OOC: Bit crap, I know, not had much time today :(

The wheels had been set in motion. Now with a physical letter of support from what remained of Manhattan's legitimate government, it was a quick matter to get Legislative approval for a commitment of military forces to restore democracy to Manhattan Prime.

One of the focal points of Tiburonese forces is the Aerospace Force, the bearer of Tiburonese force projection across space. The backbone of Tiburon's ability to defend allied interests across multiple systems, some of thousands of Numbered Aerospace Forces were now called on to protect Tiburonese forces landing in the heart of Manhattan Prime.

Already slightly behind the Pacitalian and Lamoni deployments, Tiburonese forces begin landings of troops- infantry, support vehicles, material support, backed by spaceborne aircraft carriers and battleships. Establishing an airhead is a relatively easy feat due to the Manhattan Air Force's resistance to integration into Dreygo's government. As always, news organizations have reporters embedded with ground and air forces in order to provide breaking news directly from the scene of action. Tiburonese media sources also manage to get a hold of underground independent publications inside Manhattan- and the developing situation continues to drive the Tiburonese public in support of the military's operations.

Establishing an airhead also requires establishing a temporary operating base from which forces can resupply and recharge. Originally, of course, this can only be done properly by landing a full spaceborne aircraft carrier- in this case, the TSS Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman. At the same time, plans are made to erect a temporary air facility in the Manhattanite countryside- a stationary place for Tiburonese ground and air forces to be based. Supplies, meanwhile, are quickly loaded and shipped again and again, headed for Manhattan Prime- military forces, yes, but also significant quantities of humanitarian aid. The bulk of the mission, after all, would probably take place after the main fighting had ceased.

[Sent via D-Net]
[To: {Dr Timothy Ell, Archonate, Second Pacitalian Republic}; {Andrew Stinson, President, Free Republic of Lamoni}
[From: {Dr. Anthony P. Kennedy, President, United Solaris Federation of Tiburon}]
[Subject: Re: Coordination of Forces]
[Classification: Classified, Level 6]

I'm in complete agreement- and use of existing facilites at Bergamo sounds like an excellent idea. The current center of command for the operation is the TSS Shinichiro Tomonaga- if it's fine with you, we'd prefer to have the carrier itself moved to Bergamo, since the Tomonaga already has the capability to command the mission. (Indeed, it could reasonably be used to coordinate the multinational effort.)

Sincerely,
Dr. Anthony P. Kennedy,
President,
The United Solaris Federation of Tiburon

http://s4.photobucket.com/albums/y123/United_Solaris_Federation/USFAlternateLogo.jpg

Open Letter to the International Community from the President of the United Solaris Federation, 12608 March 27
Regarding the Developing Humanitarian Crisis in Manhattan Prime

To my fellow Tiburonese, to the people of Pacitalia, Lamoni, and Bazalonia, to the people of Manhattan Prime and its legitimate government:

First and foremost, I would like to thank our Legislative Congress for moving with swift action to pass the Manhattanite Assistance Act, and our airmen and soldiers on the ground in Manhattan Prime at this very moment. Our Legislators have recognized our country's pressing duty to protect and promote progressivism, freedom, and democracy at home and abroad- as well as our duty to uphold the letter of our agreements with the Manhattanite republic. It is our duty not only to our ideals, but to our agreements with the people of Manhattan Prime that requires our commitment to alleviate the humanitarian crisis.

This act is notable not only because it gives the authorization to deploy forces in Manhattan Prime- forces that the legitimate government have requested themselves- but also for its significant aid package, which will be crucial to helping rebuild the Manhattanite state. We have pledged not only 4,000 Kshatriyas that have already begun their operations in Manhattan, not only 15,000 more Army forces, not only the might of the battleships and carriers of the Tiburonese Aerospace Force, but also the desperately needed food, medicine, shelter, water that the situation forced on the people of Manhattan now lack.

We, the Tiburonese people, have made their sworn commitment to our values known, and it is in support of the values we share with the people of Manhattan and our duty to assist our friends and allies in their hour of need that calls us to this noble cause. Artemis Dreygo should make no mistake: the United Solaris Federation takes care of its friends and allies. And Artemis Dreygo should make no mistake: we will hold his illegitimate government responsible for attacking his country's institutions of democracy, attacking his countrymen, attacking the ideals of his countrymen.

I also wish to address our airmen, soldiers, and sailors- in Manhattan Prime and elsewhere. Since its inception, the United Solaris Federation has asked much of you- to defend not only our homes, our people, our lives, but also to defend our ideals and our allies, to provide aid to the needy, to provide comfort and to provide freedom from want, freedom from fear, freedom of speech. We have asked all this of you, and time and time again you have answered the call of duty with unwavering conviction, with unsurpassed strength, and with unparalleled ability. And we ask this of you again- to provide comfort and peace to the citizens of- our friends in- Manhattan Prime, to give them the freedom from want and freedom from fear all sentient beings most richly deserve. The main part of your duties involve not bullets, missiles, or particle weapons, but rather food, building supplies, educators- to secure Manhattan, but also to rebuild it. And as you have always done, you shall answer this noble cause once again.

I wish to speak now to the people of Manhattan Prime. Our people- we, the Tiburonese, and you, the Manhattanites, have had a recent yet fruitful friendship. Borne not out of necessity but rather out of common vision, our people have had much in the way of cooperation. And in your hour of need, we must perform our duty as friends and allies, to assist you in recovering the quality of life and democratic institutions you had before the coup. This is why you have requested our presence in Manhattan Prime, and this is why our forces have arrived. I ask you now to continue the spirit of cooperation that has made our previous ventures so successful. My request is not without precedent- the Manhattanite Air Force, Navy, and elements of the Army have refused to bow down to Dreygo's illegal government, Senators who refuse to accept these violations on everything the Manhattanites hold dear are at this very moment being held under threat of violence, and the citizens of Japan Province have welcomed others following our same mission with open arms. We urge the people of Manhattan Prime- citizens and soldiers alike- to follow your countrymen, to help us bring stability, order, peace, democracy back to Manhattan Prime.

Nor are we- the Tiburonese or the Manhattanites- alone in our effort. The international response that Dreygo has received is a testament to the way by which he has violated all sensibilities and reason. Pacitalians, Lamonians, and Bazalonians have been united in this effort to restore legitimate, progressive government to the people of Manhattan Prime, and the international effort continues to restore peace to the streets of the cities of Manhattan. I would like to thank the people of these great nations personally for their continuing efforts. Together, I am sure that our efforts to restore the fruits of democracy and progressivism to the people of Manhattan Prime shall prove successful.

I'd now like to address all people, in every nation of the international community. The effort is not restricted to government actions alone- every person, in every nation, can contact NGOs like the Red Cross or MSF, and donate. I urge everyone to do so in their capacity- the people of Manhattan need support, now.

Finally, I'd like to address Artemis Dreygo himself. Your attempts to have us recognize your government- after the assassination of the Vice President, the attacks on the legitimately elected government of Manhattan Prime, the forced detainment of the elected legislature- are rather absurd. Your actions to illegitimately grab power in your country have resulted in nothing but temporary ruin for your country- for its democratic institutions, for its spirit of progressivism, for the peace and security of its citizens, for their freedom from want and freedom from fear. We promise you that progressivism and democracy will be restored to Manhattan Prime. You can choose to surrender to the international effort and make the transition painless, or make the process drawn out and ultimately more damning for you and your loyalists. The choice, Mr. Dreygo, is yours.

Sincerely,
Dr. Anthony P. Kennedy,
President,
The United Solaris Federation of Tiburon

OOC: Main points:
-My military's landed 19,000 troops overall with support vehicles and an aerospace carrier in a small region between Manhattan and Pittsburgh, relatively far away from major forces. Said forces have continuing aerospace cover, and the landings were rather helped by (as previously noted) the Manhattan Air Force's resistance to integration with Dreygo. Although their primary focus at the moment is neutralizing enemy forces, they also have humanitarian relief packages in order to rebuild the area. The rebuilding effort will be the bulk of the military's presence in the area after military operations are successful.

-Tiburon has agreed to have the government-in-exile and the coordination command based in Bergamo. Because the TSS Shinichiro Tomonaga is already basing the command of the overall mission for Tiburonese forces, we've offered to use it as the base of command for the combined forces.

-Tiburon has rejected the legitimacy of Dreygo's government.

Also OOC, I do have to point out that my forces are future tech (FT), which from what it appears is significantly more advanced than other forces currently being deployed. If ignored, this provides me with a huge advantage vis-a-vis opposition forces, essentially providing me with unlimited freedom of movement and technological dominance. I'm wondering what sort of problems, if any, the rest of you have, and how to resolve such an issue (if, indeed, it is one).

OOC: It should not be a "walk-over" for anyone. I think that your troops should face a problem that will be approximately upto their level, as to what that problem would be, could be that Manhattan Prime has some sort of secret tech or I dunno, something that nullifies your major landings.

As to what, however, I'll leave it up to MP to decide.

Sapporo, Japan

Lt Colonel Freddy Kizumo of the 16th Manhattan Infantry Division surveyed the scene through his binoculars, and signalled to his ADC in the makeshift command post. Orders from above bade him hold these hills for as long as he could. The size of the invading forces terrified the untested commander, but his thoughts drifted to his wife and baby son at home in Sapporo and Kizumo knew he had to try, though he knew the reputation of the Lamonian army well.

"If their armour shows up, we'll be in real trouble. We've seen what Lyran kit can do, and they have so much more than we" he thought out loud. "Order the howitzers to open up, try to funnel their main bulk into the minefields. Commence skirmishing operations, let's keep their heads down" he ordered, knowing his team would pass them on.

Opening the channel to his counterpart commanding the 4th Armoured Division, he ordered them to prepare to move, but stay in reserve for now until the artillery had ceased fire. "Do duty by your country! Let's teach these Lamonian bastards not to go invading whoever they feel like!" he finished, sounding more confident than he felt.

Artillery located on the hills behind Kizumo's position suddenly began to open up on the Lamonian troops. Dotted around the hills, numerous partisans and snipers picked their targets and fired, aiming for any officers they could find.

With Lamonian helicopters and armor in the lead, the first small arms fire had little to no effect. The helicopters reported the muzzle flashes of the enemy artillery guns, leading to the Lamonian Manticore artillery units firing BGM-109 Tomahawk Cruise Missiles fitted with TLAM-C warheads filled with PBXN-107 explosive. These cruise missiles were targeted on the reported co-ordinates of the enemy artillery guns. With 216 Manticore "guns" in the combined 6 Mechanized Infantry division force (and 14 cruise missiles per "gun", even though calling the Manticore a gun is too simplistic), that amounted to 3,024 cruise missiles being available before any reloading need be accomplished.

In the meantime, the Lamonian LY4A1 MBT's were firing their 120mm ETC main guns at the enemy forces from behind whatever cover that they could find. They would be saving their BVR ATGM's for when there was a need.

OOC: Just so I clarify this now and not later, in an attempt to minimise the annoyance, I'm strictly MT (i.e. it's currently 4.24am on March 28, 2008 in Timiocato), so I won't allow any space carriers to land on Pacitalian soil. If you can just have your delegation transfer onto some form of MT transportation, that will work just fine.

Sapporo

As ordered the division’s 75 Paladin howitzers shifted position after their opening volley, being towed to their second position on the hind behind, where they began firing again. Lt Sam Thorn’s launcher was slower off the mark than the others and he watched in silent terror as Lamonian missiles tore the hillsides to shreds. The ammunition for his gun exploded, throwing an unknown comrade into the dirt, his whole body aflame. Thorn crawled painfully away from the hillside and found himself beside the newest member of his battery. The kid was quivering uncontrollably, moaning low in his throat – his arm lay several feet away and the left side of his shirt was covered in blood. Thorn yelled at him to move, but the young private didn’t even seem to hear him. Grabbing the boy’s good arm, he began to grab him away from the burning hillside, now thick with the acrid smoke of burning trees, scorched grass, tortured metal and the salty tang of burning flesh. It was about all Thorn could do to ignore the screaming and the calls for medics that wouldn’t come, long enough to drag his charge to a safe distance. He never did see the piece of shrapnel from a twisted cannon that ended his life, mere feet from his own lines…

<6 Paladin Howitzers destroyed, 38 troops killed or wounded>

Squad leaders yelled to their forces to find cover as the enemy armour opened up. The division’s 20,000 infantrymen took cover in their three bands of well-prepared trenches, though many suffered broken bones or were rendered temporarily deaf and shocked by the nearby blasts. The more green of the recruits simply huddled in their trenches, too stunned to move, whilst the more prepared began firing back with bazookas and light mortars. Machine gunners on the flanks began to bark into life while the division’s own 150 Wolfhounds returned fire from their dug in positions, and called for back-up.

<69 more casualties>

OOC:
MP is also strictly a MT nation and I’m concerned that FT might make this a very short contest. However your speech blew me away and I certainly don’t want to stifle good RPing. If your forces fight in a conventional way, then I’ve got no problem with their unconventional way of arriving.

Baz – Update for you coming very soon!
Pac – feel free to move in when ready
Tiburon – if your boys want to march on the capital, then be my guests – or you can link up with nearby loyalist forces first.

An open reply to the butchers of Manhattan Prime:

How you can continue to grasp for the moral high ground whilst invading our country is beyond me. As I speak your forces continue to forge a burning path in the south and west of Manhattan Prime, they are killing our fathers, brothers, sons and friends, they bathe our cities in flames and rape our countryside.

President Stinson - Your favouritism for my predecessor has already been noted by the international community at large when they witnessed your blatant and open support for Andrew Cuthbert prior to our elections even beginning. Thus it does not surprise me now to hear you continue to triumph the cause of one who would sell us out to foreign nations, to back a dead man over his rightful successor.

And you call me a criminal? Who is invading whom Mr President? It is all very well to say you will protect our brothers in Lamoni, but who will protect Manhattanites in Manhattan Prime from the wrath of your armies? Your quarrel may not be with our people, but it is they who will suffer for it, and by your hand.

Timothy Ell - Long have you concerned yourself with meddling in the affairs of our nation, and frequency *are* ‘concerned’ by developments in our country. Why am I not surprised to see you amongst the first to charge blindly in, to re-establish the Shah, so to speak. You are not welcome in Manhattan Prime now, and never will be in the future. Too long have our people laboured within your sphere of influence, but no more! Whether you like or it or not Mr Ell, we ARE an independent and sovereign nation, free to make our own decisions and to appoint our own leaders without your influence. It is obvious to me that you wish to keep Cuthbert’s men in charge because they always were so willing to bend the knee to you. What you call aid is merely a smokescreen to restore your puppets back into Manhattan, to protect your own selfish interests in our country. You flood our country with illegal immigrants, you undercut and undermine Manhattanite industries, and you persuaded your puppet Cuthbert into pledging our armed forces to supporting your every imperialist adventure.

I still dispute that the election results were fair, and feel that an impartial investigation will bear me out. However I have every intention of restoring democracy to Manhattan Prime as soon as I am able. As you have acknowledged, my government is just that, caretaker, and I fully intend to hold elections, and to step aside gracefully if defeated. The current crisis prohibits the holding of elections, and it is not currently possible for me to seek a mandate from our people – and the crisis is only being made worse by your unsanctioned military invasion. The temporary rioting and violence in Manhattan is an internal problem, and will be solved by our police forces and army alone. The simple fact is that the President-elect and the Vice President are both dead, and my country still needs a leader in this tough time. Am I so arrogant to assume I can fill that role for a time, especially as I am the surviving candidate with the most popular votes? You tell me Mr Ell, since you seem to enjoy telling Manhattanites how to run their country – who do you think should take over sir? Who has the strength required to endure this crisis, and to bring Manhattan safely through it?

Withhold your ‘recognition’ as you will, for this country does not need your approval.
If you want to comment on the leaders of this nation, be so kind as to do so where none of us have to listen to you.

President Kennedy – my government cares little for the recognition or not of a nation of uncivilised imperialists. Your attempts to blame me, and members of my government for the assassination of the President and Vice President is, to use your words sir, ‘rather absurd’. It should be obvious to any observer with more than two firing neurones that terrorist and militia groups are responsible for that despicable carnage, and under my direction the military has been brought into Manhattan to bring these criminals to justice. That I would hold the honourable Senators of this great nation hostage is also a scurrilous lie. The simple fact is that military forces now guard the Senate building for their own protection – they are perfectly free to go, but wisely see that it is not yet safe for them to do so.

I fully embrace our proud tenants of democracy, and ardently regret the circumstances that call for me to take extreme measure. I pledge myself fully to free and open elections as soon as the present crisis is over. You offer me a choice: to order my country to surrender to foreign oppressors, or to fight on and damn the odds. How many leaders have had to face a choice between is right and what is easy? I will not yield my homeland to you so easily. Let me offer you a choice in return – withdraw your illegal forces from our country or face a bloodbath such as your troops have never known. Tread carefully sir, lest you meet the same fate as your more illustrious namesake.

Artemis Dreygo
President of the Imperial Republic of Manhattan Prime

President Stinson - Your favoritism for my predecessor has already been noted by the international community at large when they witnessed your blatant and open support for Andrew Cuthbert prior to our elections even beginning. Thus it does not surprise me now to hear you continue to triumph the cause of one who would sell us out to foreign nations, to back a dead man over his rightful successor.

And you call me a criminal? Who is invading whom Mr President? It is all very well to say you will protect our brothers in Lamoni, but who will protect Manhattanites in Manhattan Prime from the wrath of your armies? Your quarrel may not be with our people, but it is they who will suffer for it, and by your hand.

This message generated more than a few belly laughs amongst the Lamonian cabinet. Thus, it triggered a response that was less than diplomatic.

---

Office of the President of the Free Republic of Lamoni

To: Senator Artemis Dreygo, Manhattan Prime

We are only attacking those who attack us first. We were invited onto Manhattanite soil by the recognized government in exile, who was rightfully elected in the first place. You have lost the election, Senator; and do not have the legal standing to run Manhattan Prime.

We are not invading Manhattan Prime; as previously stated, we are on Manhattanite soil at the request of the legitimate government in exile. They have asked us to remove you from the political power that you were never elected to have; and we will do so, supported by our allies in Pacitalia, and Tiburon.

Yes, I did publically support President Cuthbert. What you fail to understand is that I did so because he was a man that fully supported the tenets of democracy, and did not need to either launch a coup or assassinate the Vice-President in order to attain his position.

Signed,

Andrew Stinson
President
Free Republic of Lamoni

---

With the Manticore units having their psychological effect, the Stormdrake mortars started to add their weight into the battle with HE rounds that were called in by both the helicopters, and Lamonian Armor.

After that, the Eiko helicopters fired rockets and cannon rounds at the Manhattanite artillery; ripping it to shreads, and pinning it down for more cruise missiles that had been fired from the Manticore units.

The remaining Lamonian tanks aimed their main guns at the enemy Wolfhounds, and opened fire. First with their main guns, and then with their Helios anti-tank missiles. In addition, the first rank of Ironheart APC's were unloading those troops with Javelin III ATGM's, and these troops were seeking cover while the enemy forces were engaging the Lamonian tanks. Now that they were starting to take the measure of the enemy, they would use maximum psychological effect to scare them from the battlefield.

<80 Tanks destroyed>

---

In Pacitalia, LAF 1 was preparing to land in Timiocato. This would be the first time that a Lamonian President had been to the country, and he wished that his business there was more pleasant than to help prosecute a police action.

OOC: Where's my update :(

That evening a group of Unity supporters gathered in the Uni’s amphitheatre, where it would rumoured the new President himself would be addressing. Excitement was high, as Artemis Dreygo remained a hero to many that did not know the full extent of his deeds, and his defiant letter to their foreign invaders was roundly congratulated by many. Security was very high, with guards openly wielding assault rifles, and armoured vehicles in the courtyard outside, ready to protect their President from any external threats. Tom, Mike, Laura, Matt and Jase were standing towards the front of the rally – Tom was looking a little uneasy; all the open weapons reminded him more of a militia mob than the Secret Service. Gone were the clean shaven, impeccably dressed bodyguards, replaced with rugged, dangerous-looking men in combats. Mike however was looking in his element, and it was due to him that the group had got such good places, leading the Bazalonians to suspect he was higher up in the Unity Party than he was letting on.

President Dreygo took the stage to riotous applause, and his tone remained as defiant as before, sweeping the crowd along in his zeal and love for his country.

“I won’t lie to you! The situation has gone downhill rapidly since we made our stand for Manhattan Prime’s hopes and dreams in the elections. A good man is slain at the hands of terrorists and brazen gangs of militia, and with the government paralysed and powerless to respond, our proud country was left without a leader in these dark times. So it was that I was forced to step into the breach – I wished I did not have to become Commander in Chief in this way, but we cannot be without a figurehead to hold our country together, a man ready to stand up and say – you cannot murder our leaders with impunity, you cannot attack our citizens! We won’t let you! *I* won’t let you! This country will not fade quietly into the pages of history, nor will we bow before the forces marshalled against us. You will have heard by now that the armies of Pacitalia, Lamoni and Tiburon, those that called us allies not so long ago, have violated our sovereignty, are attacking our troops and are determined to demolish this government! We must resist this outrage to our last drops of blood, to the last breath in our bodies. Our country is being invaded as we speak! Who now will stand with me!? I can’t stay with you much longer friends, so I’ll leave you with this thought. We all must be prepared in the coming weeks to do whatever is needed to serve this country. Our military forces are strong and will soon crush the gangs that dare to control our streets, and those who would take advantage of our weakness at this time will be driven back if we all pull together. So be strong, don’t lose hope, help each other, and I swear to you, this darkness shall pass!”

Amidst the cheering as the President left the stage, a grinning Mike turned to Matt and Jase, his enthusiasm obvious. “How great is Dreygo huh? I bet if you cut him open, a Manhattanite flag would come out. What did you guys think? It’s about time we had a political party that actually listened to what people want to happen. He’s the man we need to get us through this crisis”

The agents could see that it was only a small core of the Unity members that were openly xenophobic, and most were just nationalists, ordinary moderate Manhattanites patriots who were scared, had perhaps been wary of Dreygo’s actions before, but now that their country was plunged into chaos, they were eager to rally around their leader, no matter what his identity.

Mike was almost hopping with zeal and energy to make a difference. Tom and Laura looked equally inspired. As the students wandered back to their halls, Mike’s mind was racing – he had a lot to take in. He’d known many people from Pacitalia, from Bazalonia, from the other countries no arrayed against his home, and they seemed normal enough. Why now were their countries betraying Manhattan, turning on their friends when the slightest weakness was shown? Cuthbert had certainly sucked up to larger nations, but he’d done a lot of good do, and he would never have wanted him killed. Confused and tired, he crawled into bed, and later sent messages to his closest friends, including the two agents, telling them he was planning to sneak out of the campus the following day and protest with signs outside the embassy complex and make their voices heard, no matter what the risk. He invited them to join him, and make a stand for their beleaguered country.

OOC: Sorry for the wait Baz!

Business was business, they had to gain the initial information of the party, but still they had to keep their cover, they both seemed to absorb the energy and get enthused. They seemed to be swept up with all the emotion of Dreygo, his zeal, his passion. It looked like it became their zeal and their passion.

"He's won me over!" exclaimed Matt
"yeah!" pitched in Jase.

As for after the meeting, Matt could see that Mike was thinking about something quite deep, however he was still playing the "caught up in the emotion of it all." and so he shouldn't notice. He whooped for a moment before Mike's suggestion... "I'm going to be in... Those and tell those foreigners that stabbed us in the back just what we think of them."

OOC: Am heading back to Uni this weekend so things will be a bit hectic I'm afriad. Weill get my replies written as soon as I can!

OOC: Let me know when you do... I have a propaganda campaign semi-planned that I want to go over with you.

OOC: I'm up and running, why not send your ideas in a telegram and we can give them a look?

OOC: sent

Sapporo

Chased and pinned down by highly mobile Lamonian helicopters, the inexperienced Manhattan artillery crews didn’t stand a chance. The majority of them abandoned their guns to seek cover, and a brave few returned fire sporadically with rocket launchers, and even their assault rifles in a gesture of useless defiance. Unable to leave cover, they were rapidly picked off by the oncoming second wave of cruise missiles.

<Total casualties – all 75 Paladin Howitzers destroyed, 230 troops killed or wounded>

Meanwhile heavy mortar fire began to fall on the Manhattanite lines, and Lamonian armour continued to prowl. Despite cover, the Bradley APCs were easily picked off by the Lamonian tanks, though the Manhattanite MBTs were making a showing of themselves. Seeing waves of Lamonian infantry unloaded, the forward elements of Manhattanite infantry began to fall back towards the town of Sapporo, taking advantage of the fact that their own armour continued to keep the Lamonians busy, and cover the retreat. Suddenly their own artillery fell silent, and seeing waves of heavily armed troops charging intimidated the Manhattanite infantry, that had never seen actual combat before. They continued to fall back, with only skilled leadership from their NCOs preventing a fighting withdrawal from becoming an open retreat. With the 16th badly bloodied, Colonel Kizumo hoped to rendezvous with the 17th Infantry Division, and the 4th Armoured nearer the town.

<100 Wolfhounds destroyed, 260 M2 Bradleys destroyed, 2280 troops killed or wounded>

OOC: Feel free to put your plan into action whilst you move to take the town, as it’ll take a while to mount a rescue mission and get the man to a transmitter!

With the enemy artillery destroyed, the helicopters turned their attention to the retreating Manhattanite infantry. Rather than use their weapons, they flew high enough for assault rifle rounds to be next to useless, but close enough to "shepherd" the Manhattanites away from the rest of the Lamonian Units.

Lamonian an Manhattan armor continued to trade shots, but the combination of the upgraded Lamonian tanks and the Lamonian top attack anti-armor missiles combined to overwhelm the LY4's older anti-missile systems; which couldn't do anything about missiles hitting them from above anyway. The Lamonian LY4A1 MBT's had the Goalkeeper anti-missile system. The Goalkeeper could even protect the Lamonian tanks from top attacking missiles, giving the enemy no such advantage as the Lamonians enjoyed.

Some the helicopters were recalled in order to refuel and rearm, while two of them were tasked with observing what the retreating Manhattanite units were doing.

---

In the meantime, a group of four Lamonian Special Forces troops had been flown into Manhattan Prime for the specific purpose of first locating, and then rescuing President Cuthbert. The reasoning for the operation is that the appearance of President Cuthbert, alive, would help to convince the enemy ground forces to stand down. In addition, it would considerably weaken the position of Senator Dreygo; casting off what little legitimacy that his coup had. If the Manhattanite people didn't get rid of him, then their military would.

Using sympathetic Manhattan Prime government officials, the four were given Manhattanite identification, which should be good enough to get them through to Manhattan State. Or so it was hoped as the four marched out of the battle zone, and hotwired a car.

They headed off towards Manhattan, with concealed P220 handguns, and AR-44 Assault rifles (also concealed).

OOC: As Cuthbert revealed his location to the Pacitalians briefly (see earlier posts), it might be worth liasing with them over the rescue. Perhaps even a joint mission, to showcase the SF of both sides?

OOC: Skipping ahead as far as the location of my special ops team is concerned. Hope that no one minds.

IC: Foreign Ministry of the Free Republic of Lamoni

{ENCRYPTED}

To: Dr Timothy Ell

We have a four man squad of Special Operations troops in the Manhattanite city of Colorado. They are undercover, and are being held in reserve in order to rescue President Cuthbert. It has been our calculation that such a mission would be better served as joint operation. If you are willing to partake in a joint special forces operation to rescue President Cuthbert, our troops will be needing a rendezvous location to meet with your contingent of the operation.

Signed,

Tanya Ley
Foreign Minister
Free Republic of Lamoni

---

In the meantime, the four Lamonians were waiting at the hostel that they had managed to spend the night at. This particular hostel had an old fashioned book register, so it was unlikely that any attention would be paid to the four men by Manhattanite security forces.

Embassy District, Manhattan

Constable Thomas Wirtz was nervous – that was pretty much a standard day’s work for a policeman in Manhattan nowadays. Most days involved pitched battles with machine gun toting thugs, and the Manhattan Police Department that long since stopped coping. Officers casualties were in the hundreds already, Wirtz heard, and the Police were unable to respond to anywhere near the number of calls of insurgent activity they received daily. Instead they prioritised the protection of certain areas – hospitals, schools, universities, foreign embassies, leading to his shift today, along with several other officers, being to guard the especially high risk embassies, those of the nation’s that were sending peacekeepers to Manhattan. The stocky, powerfully built officer scanned the horizon, idly fingering the sub machine gun and riot shield he’d been issued from dwindling SWAT stocks, a weapon Manhattanite police never usually carried and that he hadn’t been properly trained to use. Like so many of his hapless colleagues, he’d had to learn on the job.

The streets outside the embassy fence were bare – everyone knew the embassies were at risk, and avoiding going near them if they could help it. Wirtz wasn’t fooled though, demonstrations were common here, and so long as they didn’t get too violent, the shift could go fairly quietly. It was when they did kick off, that was the problem. Wirtz heard the group approaching before he saw, a group of students yelling slogans and bearing placards and posters with the usual anti-invader signs. Was unusual to see protestors so young though, usually it was just rock-throwing skinheads and racist thugs, mixed in with those who’d been deceived into viewing the foreign interventions as an invasion, and more calmly protested what they saw as unjust. As for the thugs, they were mostly pissed and just wanted to break things. Knowing it would do no good, Wirtz warned the teens that this area was unsafe and ordered them to disperse. Matt and his group refused and chanted loudly for the invaders to come out and explain themselves. The police were already signalling backup.

OOC: Your call now Baz, you can storm the embassy and keep your cover or try to talk the Unity lot out of it, since they seem intent on some payback.

In the Lamonian embassy, the Marine guards all had their new AR-44 assault rifles out, and ready for any possible action.

They were able to see the protest coming down the street, and the embassy wasn't going to be attacked on their watch.

Matt and Jase had been "swept up" into the Unity Party, eagily participating but careful not to be any sort of leaders, of whatever might happen they couldn't have it on their concious.

The "protest" at the Lamonian Embassy was their first major outing and things at first seemed to go well. Jase and Matt were still "being caught in the fervor" of the anti-Lamonian protests, happily following on as the lambs they pretended to be. This was it the point where they would find out for sure what the Unity party was made of.

The protest was ready and started to move onto their destination, it was quiet, apart from the noise they themselves were making. Both Jase and Matt where themselves adding to the clamour shouting slogans, though they had to wonder, why the embassy, why the protest the Lamonians surely wouldn't listen to a bunch of kids, especially since what they knew.... but surely this was all playing into Drevgo's hand. Which was the main reason Bazalonia didn't actually properly enter the war, and why Jase and Matt were there.

For now as they approached... they knew something was coming, something that unless they did something to stop it would result in the deaths of innocent people... They wracked their brains sharing the occasional look which told the other that they both indeed were worried. Finally Jase spoke up... "Man, they've got some big guns there..." He hoped it was just enough to raise the issue of what could happen to them and ask the question are they really willing to die for the man that basically tore Manhattan Prime apart. Though still keep their cover in-tact.

They had no idea how the others around would react and in a situation like this... it could be deadly...

OOC: Waiting for Pacitalia to respond before going to rescue Cuthbert, but I might go it alone in enough time if he doesn't respond.

The embassy guards will first try to use beanbag rounds to get the protesters off of the embassy grounds, but will use deadly force if needed. They are all in well-fortified positions armed with their Lyran made AR-44 assault rifles.

IC: The guards inside the embassy were well trained, but you could still cut the tension with a knife. If the protesters stayed off of the embassy grounds, the guards would be happy enough to leave them alone. If they tried to break in... well, they'd use beanbag rounds at first, but they were authorized to use deadly force if that didn't work. On the roof of the embassy, an LIA officer was using a video camera to record the events. Hooked up to a satellite transmitter, everything that happened would be seen. If the protesters broke onto embassy grounds, then the tape could be used to further lower international opinion of the unrecognized false government of Senator Dreygo. Indeed, the tape could even be made to look like Dreygo had ordered them to assault a sovereign embassy; which would be a bit of a shock even inside Manhattan Prime itself, it was thought.

"Man, they've got some big guns there..."

“I know man!” Tom said, wide-eyed, but emboldened by the thought that he wasn’t the only one who was worried. Turning to his flatmate Mike, he nervously whispered “We’re making our point Mike, we want them out, but let’s not antagonise these guys further?”

Mike still glared defiantly and whispered under his breath “We’ve got to do this”

“Jase’s right, do you wanna get killed?”

“Kids younger than us are killed by Lamonian troops right now, do you think they wanted to get killed!? They’re defending our nation, are we just gonna piss ourselves and let them take us over? Huh?!”

Mike stooped and picked up a sizable rock – Tom just had enough time to shriek “What the hell are you doing dude?!” before he’d thrown it in the general direction of the Lamonian Guards, flipped them the bird and yelled “That’s for Sapporo, you murdering bastards!”

OOC: Waiting for Pacitalia to respond before going to rescue Cuthbert, but I might go it alone in enough time if he doesn't respond.

OOC: I have exams and papers before the 18th, so if you can't wait, you might as well go for it.

OOC: I have exams and papers before the 18th, so if you can't wait, you might as well go for it.

OOC: I can easily wait that long.

IC: Mike stooped and picked up a sizable rock – Tom just had enough time to shriek “What the hell are you doing dude?!” before he’d thrown it in the general direction of the Lamonian Guards, flipped them the bird and yelled “That’s for Sapporo, you murdering bastards!"

There was no visible reaction from the embassy guards to the rock landing just inside the gates. They knew their orders, and they were too professional to disobey them because some child had thrown a rock and yelled at them.

---

In the meantime, the Lamonian Mechanized Infantry Divisions were continuing on their advance. They paused about ten miles to the front of where they had seen the remnants of the unit that they had defeated join up with other units. Sensing an opportunity, one of the divisional commanders had one of the Cuthbert loyalists take his personal plane over the enemy lines, and drop leaflets decrying the illegality of the Dreygo regime, and urging the Manhattanite units to leave the field of battle rather than obey the orders of a man who was suspected in an assassination attempt on the rightfully elected president.

OOC: Your military can do what they will with the leaflets, MP.

Sapporo

The remnants of the defeated Manhattanite division were joined by a second Infantry division and an armoured division just outside Sapporo. Seeing the Lamonian troops pursuing, and feeling they would be unable to defeat them in the field the Manhattanite forces retreated into the town of Sapporo itself, and began fortifying itself amongst strategic building and setting up snipers and AT teams. Loudspeakers urged those citizens that had not already fled from the sounds of nearby battle, to do so before the enemy arrived. Groups of able civilians volunteered to set up barricades and perform other tasks in making the town defensible. Meanwhile the heavy armour circled around the town to serve as a reserve, knowing it would be much less effective in the confines of the town, but could move to support positions that were failing, and might stop the Lamonians from merely surrounding the town. It was hoped to draw the Lamonians into brutal urban warfare if they wanted to take Sapporo.

During the night, propaganda leaflets had been dropped on the division, and were fast being shared in secret by loyalists or traded as popular souvenirs by Dreygo supporters. The reaction was mixed - many of the tired and scared troops, or Cuthbert supporters were quick to believe the arguments, or doubted Dreygo's story and weren't overly keen on dieing for him. They would have little chance for desertion though as the NCOs remained loyal to their oath to serve the President, whether they agreed or not, and would need more proof of Dreygo's wrongdoing to abandon their posts. A few handfuls of deserters may have succeeded in reaching Lamonian lines.

He had hoped the Lamonians wouldn't respond to the, and he was glad they didn't they were proffessionals and for now the group wasn't a real threat... but that could change any moment.

"So, what are you going to do now Mike, throw another rock? and then another? and then keep going to the finally fire at us? Are you insane?! I thought you wanted to make this better but your just making it worse... You're just as bad as you are saying the Lamonians are... I'm leaving and anyone with any sense should leave too. Matt... Come on"

"What's going on Jase you never used to be like this..."

"Stay then, I don't care and die like the lambs you are."

Jase started to make his way through the crowd hoping at least some would follow him, He knew why Matt stayed, hopefully he had also given Matt's 'loyalty' a boost too.

OOC: I'll be wanting to either MSN or TG you about RP possibilities regarding those deserters, MP.

IC: In the Lamonian field HQ, the staff were gathered around an electronic map of the area. Helicopter recon indicated that Dreygo's forces were digging into the town of Sapporo. Enemy forces were estimated to be about 2.5 divisions strong, and Dreygo's armor was circling the city.

Thus, the decision was made to bypass Sapporo, and continue on their way during the night. Lamonian Manticore units would be firing BGM-109's in order to distract the enemy while the move was commencing. These missiles would be detonating at a height of one hundred fifty feet above ground, where the 1,000 pound bull pup warheads would still knock people to the ground without killing them. Windows would shatter as a matter of course, but the health risk to the Manhattanite forces in the town was judged to be slight.

Thus the plan was to be put in motion at nightfall.

"Fine, we don't need your crappy kinda help, coward!" Mike yelled, whilst Tom and Laura looked dumbstruck at the passion in their friend. He flashed a grateful smile at Matt though - it was good to know who your friends were in a time like this.

"Alright that didn't work. But we need to make a big enough impact on these guys to force them to...what the hell's that?" Mike spat, frustrated as an oncoming rumble forced him to shout to be heard.

3 pick-up trucks, driving fairly erratically and filled with shouting men in combats drove past the embassy. The Manhattanite police immediately took cover, knowing what this was. One of the Dreygoist gangs, on their regular drive-by of the embassy complex. They liked to get wasted in the evenings, and shooting foreigners was these scum's idea of a good night.

As the militamen opened up on the complex with handguns, Uzi’s and assault rifles as they drove past, Mike saw suddenly how pathetic his small band of students were, and how unlikely to make an impact. With bullets soaring around him, glass shattering and the drunks not caring who they hit, the enormity of what being in a civil war meant finally hit him, and he was struck with a sudden fear. Without thinking, he dove at Laura, knocking her to the ground and shielding her with his body, whilst yelling for his friends to get down.

With a clear and present danger presented; the Lamonian guards fired back at the Dreygoist gangsters, taking special care to avoid hitting the group of protesters who had only thrown a rock at them.

When the gang was gone, one of the Lamonian guards slung his rifle, and walked over to the wall. Addressing the protesters, he said, "If any of your group is injured, we can provide first aid and call for medical attention. If not, then I would suggest that you leave this area in case the gang returns. Our fight is not with the normal people of Manhattan Prime, it is with the man who has illegally taken power in Manhattan."

With that, the Marine waited for some sort of response.

"Argh!!" Jase dived for cover as soon as he saw the Dreygoists, and so did Matt. After the Dreygoists had past, Jase got up and was about to say a few angry words, his face very annoyed soon turned a pasty white.

"Matt... Are you all-right?" Matt was just too slow he had been hit by a stray bullet... Most likely from the dreygoists but no one could be really certain. He hand his hand on his right shoulder and grimaced in pain as the blood oozed out from the bullet wound.

"Just get me to a hospital and I'll be right." Matt once grimaced and took in a tight breath through clenched teeth. He was hurting bad... the problem was how they would give Matt the treatment he needed. It wasn't like now they could just get a Taxi to the nearest Hospital.

"Dude, don't be silly. I'll get the Lamonians to fix you up. They offered, after all. And you don't have much choice."

Jase yelled back to the guard... "Yeah, a friend of mine got hit. He needs help."

It was obvious to everyone that they had little option but to let Matt get treated for the wound now, by the Lamonians or risk major complications later on. Jase didn't seem to like the Lamonians doing it but he seemed to understand that he didn't have much of a choice.

As the terrifying whine of bullets subsided, Mike bared to raise his head. All clear. "You all right?" he murmered to Laura, and she nodded, looking just as scared as he felt. He got up, pulling her to her feet, then heard a yell.

Running over, he saw his classmate bleeding, bleeding for him. Mike's head spun and he felt another thrill of fear.

"Oh my God! Matt are you alright? I'm so sorry man! This is all my fault!" he cried, suddenly realising it. He couldn't bear to look at Jase, to have to process the guilt from getting his friend hurt. This was one lesson nothing could have prepared him to learn - that it was one thing to be brave and tough at Uni, but actually being shot at was something quite different, something he'd never factored into his thinking.

Mike grabbed the embassy guard by the arm, pleading with him earnestly.
"You've got to help him Lamonian! I know I've been a complete dick, and I don't deserve your help, but my mate's been hurt because of me. He didn't do anything, I brought him here. It's all my fault...". Not trusting himself, Mike bowed his head, staring very intently at his shoes.

OOC: Just wondering, seeing as I'm not technically waging war. Have or would Pacitalian/Lamonian inteligence agencies share with mine that Cuthbert is still alive?

I can imagine they would have done -guys?

OOC: You can assume that LIA would have done so.

IC: Mike grabbed the embassy guard by the arm, pleading with him earnestly.
"You've got to help him Lamonian! I know I've been a complete dick, and I don't deserve your help, but my mate's been hurt because of me. He didn't do anything, I brought him here. It's all my fault...". Not trusting himself, Mike bowed his head, staring very intently at his shoes.

A medic was sent to where Matt lay injured, and he began to look at the wound. Exam done, the medic spoke. "It looks like the bullet entered from the front of your shoulder, and went out the back, passing through muscle. If their aim had been better, the bullet would have gone through a lung." Rummaging through his first aid kit, the medic, used an anti-bacterial sealing foam to temporarily patch the wound up. That done, he then used gauze bandages and rubber tubing to create a tourniquet, which would slow the internal bleeding. "Be very careful to use this arm as little as possible before you see a doctor. This should hold for about 24 hours, but see a doctor." The medic pulled Matt up using Matt's good arm, and waited for someone to take Matt with them.

"Always be prepared" that's the scouts motto and for spy's it works just as much. An opportunity comes and then passes in a moment, if you are not ready yo seize the moment when it comes it is lost forever.

That is why both Jase and Matt had prepared a note. Getting beside the medic, next to the medic's bag he droped the note inside the bag, using his body as a short of shield to prevent Mike, Laura or Tom seeing it.

It read "BSIS/LIA meet 1930 local behind 523 Hill Street" Hill street being the name of a street near the university and specifically behind 523 there was a small courtyard for the owner of a store who had long went to ground. It offered privacy and the path they picked out had some opportunities to double check they weren't being followed without looking as if they were "being cautious" in terms of that.

Matt took his friend Jase under the arm supporting him by his shoulder and purposely tried to not meet Mike's eyes for now, he needed to let Mike process the information abit more. He'd go and see Mike just before he and Jase headed off to the proposed meet with the Lamonian Intelligence Agency.

For now he would just take his friend back see what happens next.

OOC: Just wondering, seeing as I'm not technically waging war. Have or would Pacitalian/Lamonian inteligence agencies share with mine that Cuthbert is still alive?

OOC: I wouldn't. PCIC and PSAT's policy is not to share intelligence data with countries that are not active, allied combatants in a conflict (except under special circumstances, for example something that would directly threaten Bazalonian national security).

Back to posting tonight! Exams done today =)

Feeling drained, Mike drew himself up, offering his thanks. After a moment's hesitation, he shook the Lamonian by the hand in a silent gesture of new-found respect. Without a word he turned to leave, walking briskly back towards his dorm room with Laura and Tom in tow. Both looked equally exhausted, and Mike especially had a lot to think about on the walk home.

Both Matt and Jase avoided his gaze as they passed - knowing he'd thoroughly deserved that, Mike just shrugged and muttered that they should get the campus doctor to take a look at Matt's arm, and that they'd probably see them later. He felt guilty talking to them, as well as embarrassed.

Seeing her boyfriend leaving the two Australians behind (OOC: From your accents they'd probably guess you were from Manhattan Prime's Australian province), Laura raised an eyebrow in askance. Looking again at his feet Mike muttered, "He looks fine - I'm going to give them a bit of space, doubt they really want to talk to me right now. If they forgive me, they know where we'll be later on."

After everyone left, the Lamonian medic walked back inside of the embassy. He had noticed the note as he was putting his instruments back into his bag, and left it in the bag until he reached the area inside the embassy given to the sterilization of medical instruments.

When he opened up the note, he saw that it read:

"BSIS/LIA meet 1930 local behind 523 Hill Street"

Not knowing precisely what to do with the note, he gave it to the Colonel in charge of all military personell inside the embassy. The Colonel knew who the LIA station chief was, and gave the note to the man after going to his highly secured office.

---

1900 local

A two man team of LIA agents dressed in civilian clothing walked past the site of the proposed meet; checking to be sure that the area was not under some kind of hostile surveillance. In the chaos that was Manhattan Prime these days, one person walking down the streets by themselves might look suspicious, but two people would break that up nicely.

They saw no sign of hostiles near the meeting site, and they returned fifteen minutes later to check again. When the time for the meeting came, the older of the pair made it to the meeting site alone, while his younger partner was hidden where he could observe the meeting, and see if anything untoward happened. Both LIA agents were carrying false identification papers, and the man at the meeting had papers that identified him as a college professor. Those papers gave his name as Marcos Ramilles.

---

The Lamonian expeditionary force had decided to bypass Sapporo, and blow up bridges behind them to slow down any potential reaction from Dreygo's forces. The only thing standing in their way was Manhattanite armor that was ringing Sapporo, but a plan had been created to deal with that.

And it was put into motion. Coming in low and fast, Lamonian Eikos helicopters fired anti-tank rockets at the Manhattanite armor. At the same time, Lamonian BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles fitted with TLAM-C 1,000 pound bull-pup warheads started to detonate high enough above Sapporo to knock troops off of their feet while attempting to avoid major damage to the city itself.

If Dreygo's forces thought that this constituted the opening salvos of an attack on Sapporo itself, they would be gravely mistaken. Lamonian forces were already giving Sapporo a pass while the distractions were in effect, and blowing up bridges behind them in order to keep the forces in and near Sapporo from chasing after them all that effectively. The more distance that the Lamonian forces could put between themselves in Sapporo before sunrise, the happier that the force commander would be.

Jase and Matt made their way over to Mike's dorm about 6 o'clock, a full hour before the planned meet with Lamonian Intelliegence. They knocked on the door.. *knock* *knock* *knock*

Finally as Mike opened the door Matt started to talk "Hey, Mike, I'm sorry for the way I treated you before. It wasn't your fault and I shouldn't of reacted as if it was, if anything it's ours."

Jase looked fairly well despite being wrapped up in thick layers of clothing with bandages underneath placing pressure and strapping everything together they stood at the door not entering. "It isn't your fault, don't think it is... So.. uh, meet up tomorrow morning?"


"Well, okay, we better be heading back... We'll see you when we see you then."

However instead of heading back to their dorm they headed off to meet the Lamonians. They quickly started their walk together and did a bit of recon themselves attempted to see if anyone was following them, using Jason's "injuries" as an excuse. Not seeing anyone they entered into the court-yard to find the older Lamonian agent. "So gramps, I think you need some new dentures." they waited to see how the unknown people, presumable lamonians would respond.

Manhattan

Mike hadn't be back in his room very long - he'd walked home slowly to give himself time to think, and had said very little to his mates on the journey. He still felt confused - it was obviously a completely different thing to love your country, even be prepared to die for it, and to get a friend hurt for you. Then again, Dreygo was his President, and right or wrong, wasn't it the duty of every nationalist to support their leader. Wasn't Dreygo doing what he thought was best for Manhattan Prime, even if Mike's ideas about 'what was right' were starting to diverge?

His reverie was disturbed abruptly by a knock on his bedroom door. He felt so on edge, and in so much turmoil that he half considered pretending to whomever it was that that nobody was in. He was glad he didn't though, as he opened the door to find two people he hadn't seriously expected to talk to him again - Matt and Jase.

What was even more surprising was that they didn't look like giving him a piece of their mind, or even that angry that one of them had gotten shot, because he'd led them on a fool's errand, and then tried to provoke armed guards into doing he didn't know what. In fact, Matt apologised to *him* for blanking him earlier, something Mike had thought perfectly justified. Although god smacked, he was very grateful they were still speaking to him. Jase had obviously been to the Doctor, and looked a little more comfortable.

Stunned, Mike replied to their attempts to take blame onto themselves - "You can't say that Matt. You may have chosen to come with me today, but I organised it, I thought of it, and I should in no way have taken you guys anywhere that wasn't safe. This situation is just really getting to me, and we've tried to do something about it, but we can't stop it. All we proved was that these countries invading us aren't going to listen to students. So we can't do anything - I just feel so helpless these last few weeks, I know people's parents and children are dying to protect this country, and it was like we're doing nothing, y'know. I swear though man, no more dumb stuff ok? I was an idiot, let's leave it at that."

Having made peace (he hoped), Mike made it clear he'd welcome a chance to talk the whole civil war out later.

Sapporo

As the bombardment began, the Manhattanite troops and those civilians that remained took shelter in the buildings they'd identified as most defensible. Although terrifying, few were wounded by the decoy attack and they continued to remain on the alert, convinced this was a preclude to an attack, an attempt to soften the defenders up first or otherwise phych them out.

Outside the town, the armour ring was spread fairly thinly, which whilst leaving most positions fairly weak meant that the town was completely surrounded and alert to any Lamonian advance. Manhattanite scout hidden around the town radioed back that the Lamonians were on the move, and lightly armoured APC soon reported visual contact. The enemy force broke through the outer curtain easily, which knowing they were took weak to stop the armoured columns drew back to join up into a main group after only a short engagement, notifying other outlying units to report in. If they were going to stop the Lamonian assault, it would have to be in force.

The Manhattanites didn't have long to prepare themselves, as the Lamonians attacked from the air with deadly precision. With their own Apaches obeying the air force dictat not to engage, the armour was almost naked.

The M2 Bradleys returned fire with their TOW missile launcher, and tried to blind the helicopters somewhat by firing smoke grenades in the general area. The LY4 tanks also responded with smoke, to hide themselves visually, and chaff grenades to inhibit the attacker's radar lock and hopefully throw a few of the missiles off.

The Bradleys had little protection, and were destroyed in numbers, whilst the MBT made use of the Lyran WATCHKEEPER system, which fire multi-projectile, shotgun-like blasts to destroy attacking rockets and missiles. Still, when attacked en masse a few rockets would always get through, and since their cannons and machine guns could not easily traverse to fire at airborne targets, the Manhattanites were focusing more on evading or destroying oncoming missile, rather than fighting back.

<60 M2 Bradleys damaged and destroyed, along with 24 LY4 MBT - a complete guess accuracy wise, how many choppers are attacking Lamoni?>

Those that survived the initial bombardment drove upriver, with the choppers in hot persuit of course, but at least a moving target was harder to hit. They hoped to cross the river higher up and flank the Lamonians somewhere between Sapporo and New Tokyo, if they could find an intact bridge that is.

"So gramps, I think you need some new dentures."

"You youngsters and your pet Bazalopes. Don't you know what's what?" In a much quieter voice, he said, "You can call me Mark Jones. You wanted the meeting, so you get to speak first."

---

Twenty helicopters had been involved in the attack on the Manhattanite positions, and five of them had been shot down. They were the first Lamonian helicopter casualties of the police action. In reply, they had claimed more than three times their armor. If Dreygo's forces thought that this would be an attack on Sapporo, they would be mistaken. The Lamonian ground forces crossed on the nearest bridge, with more helicopters and tanks protecting them until the last units crossed the river, at which point the last units crossed under the protection of the helicopters.

With the last units across, the bridge was destroyed by anti-tank rockets fired from the helicopters. Then two helicopters flew up one side of the river, and down the other (about 50 miles either way); destroying all the bridges that they came across. It was hoped that this would delay the Manhattanite forces that were chasing after them, making it faster for Lamonian forces to reach the Manhattanite Capitol. With a roar, the Lamonian forces were on their way to the capitol at full speed.

"You youngsters and your pet Bazalopes. Don't you know what's what?" In a much quieter voice, he said, "You can call me Mark Jones. You wanted the meeting, so you get to speak first."


"Well, not really much to say, instead here take this. Just a little work of fiction you might enjoy." Matt handed over what looked like a folded letter. Inside was the bit of information they've gleaned about Dreygo and his followers. Which was actually far less than he makes it to be, information about their current status in regards to the unity party. As well as a detailed plan, apparently these Bazalonians knew that Andrew Cuthburt, the detailed plan, well as detailed as could be without a known time, day and location looked at how to arrest Dreygo for committing his treasonous crimes. The plan seemingly directly involved some sort appearance of Manhanttanite PM.

"Well, Seeing as I don't have anything more to say, we better be off. And you better to." It was only short meet they wanted to get the information to them and get back to the campus. They should have got Mike to stop thinking about doing anything stupid. Hopefully now he would focus his energies actually inside the unity party. Which meant that Matt and Jase could get dragged along as well.

Either way the two bazalonians returned to the campus and went to their rooms ready for a new day.

The LIA agents took the information, and wandered around town; looking for any sign of a tail. Finding none, they then proceeded to one of the purchased safe houses in town.

Beyond being an LIA safehouse, the two men actually lived there, furthering their cover of being ordinary working class Manahattanite citizens. They voted, and even paid their taxes on time. They both worked at an import-export firm that did a lot of business with Lamoni, and made the perfect front organization for an intelligence agency. Since the war started, the firm had had to do more business with other countries, but they were still turning a nice profit. The nice thing about a global economy was that people were constantly trying to get things from one nation to another.

Twenty-five minutes after midnight
21 April 2008
near Vancouver, Manhattan Prime, at the River Salazar


Field Report 21/4/2008 0024
To: LFC3, AFHQ

Dreygoist forces gaining strength on left bank. We hold right bank and surrounding towns and are shoring up on southern approach to Vancouver in preparation for imminent light combat. Expecting unsophisticated technological assault as we are unsure of the opponent's potential firepower... due to conflict of command within the MP army, spec. availability of resources. Please confirm your receipt of my message and make recommendations on our firepower response based on sat evidence. Sending six squadrons from 176th L-Inf. on recon and offensive duties at 0400 prior to main theatre.

Reply ASAP.

D

Soldier's Quarters

"Man, that fucking light shining in my face, I can't sleep a goddamn minute," Cpl. Petrus Alfonsini moaned as he threw his small pillow over his face.

The blazing spotlights above the makeshift tents, serving as SQs for the 3,700 soldiers that had split off to capture the frontage of the River Salazar and the cities of Ottawa and Vancouver, were symbolic of the general unease around base camp. No one was sure exactly when the Dreygoist forces, who were being referred to by military brass as "nationalist" forces, compared to pro-Cuthbert "republicans", would attack Vancouver in a southeastern offensive. Everyone was sleeping with one eye open, and not sure why the LFC in Potenza wasn't allocating more than simply two light infantry divisions and two armoured divisions to such a critical barrier in the southeast. There were no special forces and no airmen in the immediate vicinity, which left the 3,700 soldiers very vulnerable on the ground.

With Manhattan only 150km from Vancouver, it was important that all resources were there for an attack on the landlocked capital from the relatively undefended southeast. The soldier in charge, Lt. Col. Pieragosto Decumani, certainly let it be known he was not happy with the underwhelming presentation of troops to this flank of Manhattan Prime.

The silence was only broken by the constant whirring and chirping of crickets and the occasional shout by an officer in command to a soldier caught awake during inspections. But, then, in the distance, a droning sound grew louder, noisier to the point where it was obvious there were planes off in the distance, coming closer to the temporary base camp. Vibrations in the ground seemed to hint at tanks drawing nearer.

"Hey, maybe that's finally the mechanised division and the planes Decumani asked for," Alfonsini mumbled through his pillow. His thoughts were cut short by yells and shouts from a distance, punctured by the general alarm, a red siren filling the tents with eerie light. The six men in the tent jumped up and ran outside.

"What the hell is going on, sir?" Alfonsini asked his commander.

"Grab some fucking weaponry and get to a pill box as quickly as your legs will take you," was the reply.

"Yes, sir!" The six raided the artillery shed for rifles, machine gun ammo, grenades, RPG/tankbuster launchers, handguns, and strings and boxes of more bullets. They all sprinted to an empty pill box, climbed inside and waited with bated breath. What the hell was happening? The alarm was still going off but there was no sign of anything unusual. Was it just a drill?

That question was answered not a millisecond later as a laser-guided ASM walloped the ground and sent a shockwave running through the immediate area. Tents nearby collapsed and small ammunition stocks exploded from the heat and energy and the six men were knocked down against the back wall. A few men cried out, obviously hurt.

Struggling back to his feet and slightly dazed, Alfonsini grabbed the night-vision binoculars from their casing and looked up. He focused on a fighter jet racing by at spectacular speed, the plane remaining level enough for him to catch the markings on the wings of the jet. Dreygo's forces were here. The battle was beginning now.

Several more ASMs hit the ground around the base camp, knocking trees clean out of the earth, toppling them down around the knoll. Anti-aircraft guns were unsheathed and 116mm ammo was sent raining up at the sky in response. In the enveloping black sky, just over the city, a tiny explosion signalled a successful hit, but that was only one. That eerie rush the soldiers heard was followed by loads of makeshift bombs coming down like the apocalypse, tearing up the ground in a terrifying carpet bombing. Nothing was spared, and within thirty seconds the only guns still firing were in the AA batteries.

The base camp was decimated, the scary silence telling the story that many were dead from the carpet bombing. A final plane swarmed by Alfonsini's pill box, the six men huddled in fear as leaflets rained down. One of them flittered through the tiny slit just above ground level and the man to Alfonsini's right clutched it and held it up to the light.

"You are not welcome. Intruders, invaders, terrorists, be warned, this is only the beginning. Dreygo will be the saviour of all mankind, of all Manhattan Prime. Soon, you will fall into step."

They stood staring at it, in total disbelief at the crushing ambush just put on by the nationalist forces of Sen. Dreygo. They were mesmerised by the hate and ignorance packed into the leaflet that they did not notice the tanks pull up on the knoll, soldiers piling out and surrounding the camp.

A flashlight shone bright halogen luminescence into the pill box.

"You six. Get the fuck out of there or we will shoot."

Pacitalian casualties
474 dead
1,873 injured (inc. Lt. Col. Decumani)
(1,353 spared/POW?)
Base camp destroyed

Japan Province

With all the bridges for 50 miles up river, the Manhattanite armour was forced to go far out of its way in order to cross the river, as they lacked the luxury of the time to fashion a replacement. However this detour wasted precious hours, and they knew they would not now be able to catch the Lamonians before they reached New Tokyo. They would have to hope that the local forces would be able to halt the Lamonian advance.

The Pacitalian forces had advanced steadily after a slow start, breaking the Victoria-Calgary line, and taking the towns of Quebec and Ottawa. They had acquitted themselves well against the 20th and 21st Manhattan Infantry Divisions, and elements of the 10th and 11th Armoured, managing to push the Manhattanite forces out of Vancouver in recent days. They had not yet bridged the Salazar though, and the Manhattanite forces in Canada Province were rapidly regrouping.

The Manhattanites had gained an ace in the hole though now, that would halt the Pacitalian advance in its tracks – from their fierce skirmishes with the Pacitalians, the Manhattanites had realised that their enemies ground forces lacked heavy armour, or air support. Nationalist forces had linked up with air support, and convinced the F-22 fighters at MAF McGregor base in Lincoln to become the first units of the Manhattan Air Force to enter the fray.

Colonel Keith Smith, the CO of the 20th Infantry was in overall command – he’d been ordered to hold Canada to the last, with the 80,000 men and 4 divisions under his command. On the evening of the 21st April he launched a counter-attack from the north west to retake Vancouver and the surrounding eastern bank of the Salazar, led by a carpet-bombing attack on the main Pacitalian base, home to 3700 troops.

**

Lt Stirling was delighted to be in the sky again, to feel the exhilaration that piloting always brought him. With the rest of his squadron following him in, he was eager to strike a blow against their former friends, who had betrayed them in their hour of weakness. Switching his radio to the Squadron channel, he opened the comm.

“This is Halo 1, I have the target locked on. Divide by pairs, aim for the command buildings and make those shots count. Let’s send the Packies to the hot place boys!”

To the sound of whooping from his wingman, Stirling released his first salvo of precision-guided missiles, watching them roar with satisfaction into a pillbox and a communications tower. He could already see fireworks starting as ammunition dumps began to go up, and ground fire was beginning to lessen as the enemy troops took cover. Signalling control that the attack was underway, Stirling acquired another target…

<3 aircraft destroyed or damaged>

**

Following a heavy air assault from the ground-attack fighters, B52 bombers dropped propaganda leaflets on the survivors of the base, noting that the entire compound seemed aflame from the air. Following that, two entire divisions (an armoured and a mechanised infantry) began to stream across the river and mop up the Pacitalian resistance on the eastern bank. The Pacitalian forces found them grossly outnumbered, and without much in the way of reply to Manhattanite heavy armour, nor the sheer numbers of the Manhattanites – 20,000 troops assaulting a base guarded by under 4000. The invaders were being made to pay heavily for trying to lead a purely infantry assault, and for getting separated from their own armour.

2nd Lt ‘Nobby’ Styles had a great vantage point, riding with his 4 man fireteam atop a LY4 main battle tank – with 20,000 in the armoured division and only 300 tanks, some foot infantry remained, with helped to provide a effective mix of forces. After all, ground troops could spot small concealed targets that would remain hidden to tanks, especially those pesky AT gunners. Styles let rip with his assault rifle at a AT man advancing at a crawl towards his ride, then ducked behind the tank’s turret in time to hear the machine gun fire that came in response bounce uselessly off the hull. The tank’s turret traversed and fired, and Styles cheered at the sight of a pillbox going up in flames. The tank ground to a halt, drawing another pillbox’s fire with it’s machine gun.

Lt Styles leapt from the tank, yelling to his men that it was time to go to work. With attention concentrating on the tank, it was easy for his squad to split up and advance, storming the pillbox from the rear as their tank stopped firing. Perfect timing. Styles pointed his assault rifle at one of the occupant’s back, his flashlight sending shadows dancing in the compact space.

"You six.” He called matter of factly, “Get the fuck out of there or we will shoot."

Matt and Jase went to bed, Matt doing basic field tending to Jase' wounds. As long as Matt kept looking aftering and changing the bandages every so often it should be fine.

Jase had abit of trouble sleeping that night with his fresh wound but did so and Matt slept soundly.

Everything was going right, they talked Mike out of doing something stupid and hopefully now they would be able to focuss his energies more into the Party. For their plan to work they needed to know when Dreygo was coming and when he wasn't to these Unity Party meetings.

OOC: Anyone waiting for a reply from me?

Japan Province

With all the bridges for 50 miles up river, the Manhattanite armour was forced to go far out of its way in order to cross the river, as they lacked the luxury of the time to fashion a replacement. However this detour wasted precious hours, and they knew they would not now be able to catch the Lamonians before they reached New Tokyo. They would have to hope that the local forces would be able to halt the Lamonian advance.

OOC: Where exactly are your forces in/near New Tokyo?

IC: The Lamonian advance continued, with the tanks up front, and the rest behind. Air drops of diesel and rations would allow the advance to proceed unhindered, especially since few tank rounds had been expended so far per tank. There were still plenty of cruise missiles for the Manticore units, and even the helicopter weapon stocks were still nominal.

The next morning they awoke, did all their normal morning routine and then headed over to mike's. As they said they would.

Manhattan

Mike opened the door, his hair tousled and his eyes bleary. It was obvious he hadn't slept much the previous night. He greeted his friends warmly, but nervously, and showed them into his room. Taking a seat on the bed and motioning the others to do the same, Mike asked "So what did you guys want to talk to me about?"

OOC: The 29th/30th Manhattan Infantry Divisions are camped a few miles outside the city. Probably won't hold you up for long unless they can russle up some air support. This'll also inhibit them from interdicting your air drops.

IC:

The two divisions holding New Tokyo began to dig in, having been notified by the forces from Kyoto/Sapporo that the Lamonian forces would soon reach the city. They were ordered to hold their ground long enough for Kyoto/Sapporo to catch up and reinforce them.

OOC: I'm likely to try and bypass them if possible, i'm not interested in mass Dreygoist casualties.

IC: Satelite intelligence indicated the possibility of two infantry divisions in the New Tokyo area, and preparations were made to bypass them. The Lamonians were not interested in killing deluded followers of an illegal head of state; they were more interested in removing said illegal head of state from power.

"Well, what are we going to do now?" Matt speaking quite bluntly about the failed raid.

"The raid was a complete failure but we still want to do something... any ideas?"

OOC: Sorry guys, had a bit of essay drama. Will try to get my replies up in the next few days.

Manhattan:

Mike sighed. "I don't know if there's anything we can do mate. We haven't got the power to resist this invasion, and I won't put my friends in danger again. I've been thinking about enlisting to be honest, I don't know what else to do".

Japan:

OOC: There's a loyalist air force base you can make contact with outside Nagoya, MAF Colville. You made a clean getaway from the New Tokyo forces who are ordered to hold position anyway.

The Lamonian forces had bypassed New Tokyo, and were on their way towards the capitol. When they eventually reached Nagoya, they sent a message to the nearby air base; which LIA had confirmed as being called MAF Colville.

To: Commander, MAF Colville
From: Commander, Lamonian Expeditionary Force, Manhattan Prime

Despite what you might have heard, we do not wish harm upon the Manhattanite people. Our only objective is to remove Senator Dreygo from the power that he has illegally seized. If you wish to support us in this endeavor, we can send representatives to your office. Let us know if you wish to listen to our representatives.

OOC: What's happening with Cuthbert's Rescue?

IC:

"You want to join the Armed Forces?" Matt was taken abit back by this

"I was lucky before that they got me in the shoulder and managed to bypass bone. And anyway, have you heard the Lamonian propoganda? It's all 'We're saving this nation from a mad-man.'"

"Jase, you listen to their propoganda?"

"Only to laugh at it."

"Oh," Matt chuckled "So any ideas about what we could do to acheive that?"

To: Commander, Lamonian Expeditionary Force, Manhattan Prime
From: Commander, MAF Colville

We will meet with your representatives and can guarantee their safety under flag of truce, but whilst our nations remain at war we don’t know how much we can do for you. President Dreygo is not an…ideal leader, but we would need evidence of actual wrongdoing and proof that Dreygo has violated his oath as President if we’re going to betray our oath to that office.

Manhattan:

Mike sighed again “I don’t want to die, and I don’t especially want to go and shoot people. But when we’re being invaded I just don’t know what to do”.

Glancing at Jase, Mike said he was glad that the wound was healing well, but he didn’t really want to bring that topic up too much. He laughed at Jase’s mocking of the Lamonian propaganda, but it was a bitter, humourless sound.

“I know man!” he laughed, “it’s war and leaders sometimes have to do terrible things in war. You can’t hold states to the same morals as people; states have to do things that citizens can’t in order to survive. The President clearly isn’t mad though and seems to know exactly what’s wrong with this country. Could one man really trick the whole country like that? Surely not.

Lately I’ve just been doubting…everything, y’know? Why would our closest allies suddenly attack us? Do they know something about the President that we don’t, some secret intelligence or something? Did Dreygo really have the right to become President because Cuthbert and Hunter were killed? I know he’s just a caretaker until the situation improves, but it just keep getting worse, and why would someone give up that kind of power? I’ve met him a few times and he’s very ambitious – I’m ashamed to admit sometimes I even wonder if Dreygo didn’t have Cuthbert killed once he lost the election, just so he could be leader. But I’m just being stupid. What do you guys think? Am I just talking crazy or what?”

OOC: As Tim is still travelling Europe, perhaps you two should plan a rescue in the next week or so?

The two Lamonian representatives were taken to the MAF base aboard an Ironheart APC that had a large white sheet tied to it's antenna where it would be visible. The gun barrel was placed in a non-threatening way. It stopped just outside of the gates, and the representatives walked the rest of the way to where they would surely be challenged by the gaurds.

"Look, man, there's always something we can do. If you really think there is something fishy about this then let's investigate. If the Lamonians and Pacitalians know something we don't then surely we need to know. We owe it to ourselves and everyone that has died to at least try and find out." Matt really opened up and showed emotion

"Even know there is no one I'd rather have as a friend as you, and I will be here for you in whatever way I can, just both you and Matt were there for me when I got shot."

"... anyway... It's win-win, we either find out that this all has been a lie and Dreygo isn't our proper president or find out that the Lamonians and the Pacitalians aren't really our nations friends."

OOC: Well, the only available assets I have in MP are these two agents. Unless they suddenly disappear (which would be inappropriate) then I have nothing here that I can immediately contribute to Cuthbert's rescue.

MAF Colville:

Having been told to expect the Lamonian delegation, the airbase's guards didn't hold them up much longer than it took to verify their identities, before escorting the pair to the Commander's office. The Commander, a powerfully built black man in his late 40s, dressed in a formal dress uniform, rose and shook hands. He introduced himself, before motioning the guards to

"Good afternoon gentlemen, I'm Colonel Freedman, this is my second in command Lt Colonel Waltzer. I hear you have a message for me from the Lamonian forces?”

Manhattan:

Mike nodded, realising his friend’s argument made a lot of sense – he couldn’t agree more that Manhattan Prime’s dead deserved something, even if it was only finding out why exactly they were fighting. Hearing Jase’s gratitude for looking after him, even after Mike led him in danger, Mike punched him on the shoulder lightly in an awkward expression of affection.

“Yeah, it would be nice to know the truth, one way or the other. I know the President is speaking again tomorrow, we could always go? I have no idea how we’d even get close to him though, guess we’ll just have to wing it”

MAF Colville:

Having been told to expect the Lamonian delegation, the airbase's guards didn't hold them up much longer than it took to verify their identities, before escorting the pair to the Commander's office. The Commander, a powerfully built black man in his late 40s, dressed in a formal dress uniform, rose and shook hands. He introduced himself, before motioning the guards to

"Good afternoon gentlemen, I'm Colonel Freedman, this is my second in command Lt Colonel Waltzer. I hear you have a message for me from the Lamonian forces?”

"Greetings Colonel Freedman, Lt Colonel Waltzer. I am Colonel Xavier, and my assistant here is Major Frampton. Our message is really quite simple; if I may come to the point. If your forces do not participate in the fighting, you will remain on the good side of whomever stays on top. This might seem obvious, but everyone comes out intact. We would regret having to use our SAMs upon your aircraft. We could also call up our own air units if needed. However, I trust that we shall not have to do so?"

MAF Colville:

"I would certainly be loath to engage Lamonian aircraft, and the airforce has remained neutral in this war to a great extent. However you must know sir that we are bound by our oath to the office of President, and cannot directly oppose Manhattan's head of state unless he ceases to be so. We've all heard the rumours about Dreygo Colonel, but can Lamoni prove anything?"

Colonel Xavier smiled. "We know that President Cuthbert is still alive. As we all know, as long as Cuthbert is alive, Dreygo's claim to power has no legal status. However, Cuthbert's location is classified. If Senator Dreygo finds out where PRESIDENT Cuthbert is, then you can be sure that President Cuthbert won't live long enough to be rescued."

Manhattan:

Mike nodded, realising his friend’s argument made a lot of sense – he couldn’t agree more that Manhattan Prime’s dead deserved something, even if it was only finding out why exactly they were fighting. Hearing Jase’s gratitude for looking after him, even after Mike led him in danger, Mike punched him on the shoulder lightly in an awkward expression of affection.

“Yeah, it would be nice to know the truth, one way or the other. I know the President is speaking again tomorrow, we could always go? I have no idea how we’d even get close to him though, guess we’ll just have to wing it”

"That would have to be our best bet, have you done any acting before? Me and Jase have been in a number of small time productions back home." Matt spoke basically agreeing with the Manhattanite and setting up a bit of back story as to explain how easy it would be for them to change persona.

"Matt remember when we did that play but lost the scripts the night before? We had to basically improvise the whole thing. It was so funny." Jase started chuckling and Matt joined in as if they were jointly remembering something.

"Ah, good times." Matt said as he started to settle down. "So what do we know already? and how can we use that for what we want to do?"

MAF Colville:

Freedman looked a little stunned for a second; although he'd heard mutters that Dreygo may have been behind the hit, he had never expected Cuthbert to still be alive. Composing himself, he replied "If that's true, than the whole situation could change, and we're free to ignore our orders. If it's not, than we're in just as much danger for helping you. I like you Colonel, and I think you can get the job done - I'm gonna take a risk on you, and turn this base over to your forces for use in any rescue attempt. I just hope you know that more than my career is on the line if I'm discovered disobeying Dreygo's orders. Your forces are safe from the aircraft stationed here, and our heavy lift helicopters are under your command if you need them"

Manhattan:

Mike was intrigued by his friend's plan. "No, I've never done any acting dude, I'm an Art major. If you guys are good at making crap up on the spot, that'll might this a tiny bit easy. Not saying it'll be anything like easy though."

He had to think hard to come up with anything information that would allow him to get near Manhattan Prime's President. "Dreygo's giving another talk tomorrow, in the Uni's main hall. After that the most likely exit is the side one, by the physics building, sometimes he stops to talk to the audience when it's all Unity supporters. There are usually at least 12 Secret Service dudes, in teams of two, but a lot tend to spread out to cover threats and only a few will actually be around the President. Once, he's allowed the student newspaper to have a short interview with him. I think our best bet is to pose as some of their journalists, and if he talks to the audience, try to arrange another interview. Course, we'll only get a few minutes, and we won't be alone with him, and he's hardly likely to just confess to a bunch of kids, but if we play it right, we might get a slot to talk to him".

MAF Colville:

Freedman looked a little stunned for a second; although he'd heard mutters that Dreygo may have been behind the hit, he had never expected Cuthbert to still be alive. Composing himself, he replied "If that's true, than the whole situation could change, and we're free to ignore our orders. If it's not, than we're in just as much danger for helping you. I like you Colonel, and I think you can get the job done - I'm gonna take a risk on you, and turn this base over to your forces for use in any rescue attempt. I just hope you know that more than my career is on the line if I'm discovered disobeying Dreygo's orders. Your forces are safe from the aircraft stationed here, and our heavy lift helicopters are under your command if you need them"

"Would you mind if I left Major Frampton here as a liaison, Colonel? He will not get in the way, and he can relay messages from our forces to you. We fully understand that more than just your career would be on the line if we don't get to President Cuthbert before Dreygo's forces do. Lamonian forces would not be in Manhattan Prime if we did not already know that President Cuthbert is still alive. We are not in the business of invading and conquering people, Colonel."

By all means Colonel, the Major would be more than welcome. Now if there's nothing else, all I can do is wish you the very best of luck"

"Thank you very much, Colonel Freedman. I shall take my leave now, and you'll find that Major Frampton is fully prepared for his temporary duty here." Colonel Xavier shook the hands of the Manhattanites, and took his leave. His Ironheart APC would have to catch up with the rest of the Lamonian forces, but it was doable.

Manhattan:

Mike was intrigued by his friend's plan. "No, I've never done any acting dude, I'm an Art major. If you guys are good at making crap up on the spot, that'll might this a tiny bit easy. Not saying it'll be anything like easy though."

He had to think hard to come up with anything information that would allow him to get near Manhattan Prime's President. "Dreygo's giving another talk tomorrow, in the Uni's main hall. After that the most likely exit is the side one, by the physics building, sometimes he stops to talk to the audience when it's all Unity supporters. There are usually at least 12 Secret Service dudes, in teams of two, but a lot tend to spread out to cover threats and only a few will actually be around the President. Once, he's allowed the student newspaper to have a short interview with him. I think our best bet is to pose as some of their journalists, and if he talks to the audience, try to arrange another interview. Course, we'll only get a few minutes, and we won't be alone with him, and he's hardly likely to just confess to a bunch of kids, but if we play it right, we might get a slot to talk to him".

"How many of their journalists were there last time they managed to get an interview?"

Planing was important and they were not going to let something as small as too few or too many journalists to ruin this. They were going to make all this exactly as Dreygo and his Secret Service goons would expect.

Manhattan:

"There were only two that I could see - the Courier is a student paper, so it's full of amateurs who merely think they're top journalists. Don't know about the regular press, they haven't been able to move around so easily lately, and Dreygo keeps his Uni talks fairly secret, that's why there aren't that many guards, not many people know he's here, and the ones that do, support him."

"Alright, Me and Jase will be Journalists from the Courier and you just do whatever you usuallly do, make an appearance, talk to people, and other things like that. You reckon you could act as if like nothing has changed?"

Matt paused and looked at Jase he already had an idea of what to do next, though he waited for a response from Mike first.

"Yeah, I think I can do that man. What's our next move?"

OOC: Lamoni/Pac - give me a shout if you need any info for the Cuthbert rescue

OOC: Information on the general area around where Cuthbert is would be insanely helpful in the planning stage of the rescue attempt.

OOC: Will get that to ya very shortly

OOC: Will be much obliged

University of Manhattan

The excitement was palpable for the President's address to the University the following day - groups of Unity supporters lined the approaches to the main hall, as Secret Service goons kept the crowd in order. Mike wandered down the lines, handing out flyers detailed the day's program of events, and feeling excited for a completely different reason; the excitement that merges with fear when attempting anything incredible risky.

The tension built as the Presidential limo pulled up, with more guards around it. The men already there, stiffened, moving to a state of full alertness. Amongst the hubbub of cheers and applause, Mike motioned to Matt and Jase to approach the President with a few other gathering photographers, who were eagerly taking pictures. He only hoped that the ID's he'd forged would be good enough for them to pass as naive journalists for the student paper. If they were going to secure an interview, their best bet was before the President's talk.

Behind the front line of Lamonian forces, special forces troops were preparing to rescue President Cuthbert. They had a plan, but would need to talk to the base commander at MAF Colville in order to pull it off; as it would require the use of Manhattanite helicopters that would be a lot less likely to be shot at. If they could get President Cuthbert from his hiding place to a television studio in order to make a televised broadcast, then it was hoped that support for the Dreygo regime would lessen to the point where Dreygo would not be able to present a credible military threat to the allied forces.

OOC: Will post when I can.

Major Frampton was soon able to report from MAF Colville that 3 heavy-lift helicopters could be made ready for Lamonian forces at short notice. Likewise Colonel Freedman was eager to discuss any operation that could prove that the President was still alive.

University of Manhattan

The excitement was palpable for the President's address to the University the following day - groups of Unity supporters lined the approaches to the main hall, as Secret Service goons kept the crowd in order. Mike wandered down the lines, handing out flyers detailed the day's program of events, and feeling excited for a completely different reason; the excitement that merges with fear when attempting anything incredible risky.

The tension built as the Presidential limo pulled up, with more guards around it. The men already there, stiffened, moving to a state of full alertness. Amongst the hubbub of cheers and applause, Mike motioned to Matt and Jase to approach the President with a few other gathering photographers, who were eagerly taking pictures. He only hoped that the ID's he'd forged would be good enough for them to pass as naive journalists for the student paper. If they were going to secure an interview, their best bet was before the President's talk.

And there it was, the signal from Mike. The fake ID's weren't bad but they weren't magnificent either, but they'd have to do. They approached Dreygo. "Mr President, Mr. President, Peter Jackson from The Courier, can we have a few words. Mr President." Jase spoke he had taken on the persona of an eager and arrogant reporter, yet naive and without experience. His performance was almost as if he had watched too many TV shows and didn't know how real reporters did act. Matt held a camera and took a few shots, the flash was on. 'Accidently' getting anyone if they started to look too closely at their IDs. Matt also was trigger-happy and showed none of the flair of seasoned reporters.

The self-styled President Artemis Dreygo halted his procession to the podium, smoothly covering the irritation he felt at these students constantly shoving cameras in his face. Still, they had their uses, and their enthusiasm for the cause for surely to be commended. Dreygo had always been good at turning unlikely opportunities to his benefit, and perhaps this minor distraction could present another chance to put himself across to the younger section of Unity's fanbase - make the little people feel like he understood them, see him as a 'just like them', all the tiresome minutae of democracy.

Raising a hand slightly in regal fashion to halt the advance of his bodyguards, Dreygo regarded the two would-be journalists. "I might be able to spare you a few minutes afterwards boys" he smoosed, keeping it vague. "Now if you'll excuse me?" - without waiting for an reply, Manhattan Prime's President was gone. It would be a tedious waste of his time to be sure, but at the very least they would be unlikely to ask him any difficult questions. Indeed, Dreygo smirked inwardly, if his previous interview for a student newspaper was any indication, this would prove to be the easiest 'interview' a politician could ever hope to face.

Major Frampton was soon able to report from MAF Colville that 3 heavy-lift helicopters could be made ready for Lamonian forces at short notice. Likewise Colonel Freedman was eager to discuss any operation that could prove that the President was still alive.

OOC: Will post when I can

MP: Need to talk to you on MSN,

"Thank you!" they happily exclaimed before moving off to the side as to not hinder the President's progress. They made a glancing look towards Mike and smiled, indicating that they had an interview afterwards. They found two seats off the side, not directly next to or in the immediate vicinity but not to far either.

They wondered as they moved how astute the secret guards where had they noticed the smile, or even Mike's signal to them earlier? They tried to work that out inconspiciously as Dreygo took the podium for his address.

Dreygo marched on, his shoes making stacatto strides on the polished wooden floor of the auditorium. A secret service agent kept pace with him for the final approach, and taking out a sheath of speech notes, the President shot him a wry grin and suggested that their young friends had been watching rather too many bad spy films.

The man responsible for his security was somewhat less overconfident - "It could easily be a trap Sir" he cautioned, but Dreygo merely chuckled under his breath. What could two kids really do afterall? To allay his staff's fears, Dreygo agreed to have a few guards at the interview after the talk, though he felt boredom would be the only thing threatening him at such a meeting.

The speech itself was not very memorable for him; it was yet another of those 'we can overcome' speeches to strengthen the people's resolve against the threat posed by Lamoni and Pacitalia, their larger southern neighbours. Dreygo felt it was effective, although he hadn't needed to turn on the charm much to get through to those who were already resented foreign influence, who were shocked at the foreign invasion, were already his supporters.

And so it was that he decended the podium to cheers and chanting from the crowd, and to the flash of cameras going off, and left the building via the back entrance. Dropping his charismatic smile, Dreygo motioned to a staffer to find him a quiet, out of the way room, and to have the two idealistic students brought to him. He certainly wasn't going to waste any more of his valuable time on it than he strictly needed to.

Manhattan
21st July, 9.25pm

The faint, alkaline tinge of diesel fuel and gasoline exhaust hung low in the air over Burnaby Street, a main artery in the capital. The sky was afire with streaks of rose and peach, and Manhattan's skyscrapers, half their windows glowing from the lights in the offices, were cloaked in a thick, choking midsummer haze.

At street level, the cars jostled for position in both directions, racing each other down the asphalt, horns blaring, engines on high-performance cars revving. Traffic police were nowhere in sight. Pedestrians passed each other on the wide sidewalks, heads down, avoiding eye contact. The avoidance of acknowledgement was normal behaviour in a country known for its excruciating, professional politeness... but exacerbated because, thanks to the political crisis, Manhattanites had learned not to trust anyone they didn't know, not anyone but themselves.

A stretch limo with a recently redone pearl-coat charcoal paintjob pulled out of the right lane on Burnaby Street and parked curbside in front of an ultra-modern condominium of about thirty storeys. Its glass-and-steel exterior reflected the fiery sky to the west as well as the silhouettes of other buildings in the vast central business district.

Emerging first from the ajar rear left and rear right doors, two bodyguards with coil earpieces and expensive suits rapidly scanned the perimeter and radioed the all-clear to the remaining occupants of the vehicle. One more bodyguard exited the limousine, followed by a man in a designer cactus-grey tweed suit of Pacitalian manufacture. He was a typical-looking bureaucrat — balding, with what hair he had left dyed an unnatural shade of jet-black and slicked back over the crown of the skull. An unusual trademark, his pince-nez were clipped to his lapel instead of a pin or a flower. His gaunt, bony face revealed late middle age. The designer suit hung unimpressively on his slight, stout body as though it were draped over him. His china-bone white dress shirt was baggy, his green paisley tie fraying slightly, making him look more like an easy chair than sharply dressed. The only thing remarkable about the man's physical appearance were his shoes, shined raw thanks to an obsessed, neurotic perfectionism with cleanliness.

The final bodyguard exited the limousine and slammed the doors shut. It immediately pulled back out onto the street and drove away. In a classic four-square formation, they surrounded the bureaucrat as he approached the towering complex. He entered his four-digit security code on the keypad and the door buzzed faintly, signalling its assent. The lead bodyguard closest to the glass portal pushed it open and the five men entered the condominium lobby. Expensive-looking paintings and false plants lined the inoffensive cream-coloured walls. A bank of postboxes was sheltered in the corner past the elevators. The man scanned his peripherals wildly, nervously, as though he were waiting at any second to be swallowed up by some force greater than himself. He called an elevator and stepped inside — two bodyguards joined him, the other two remained downstairs in the lobby — breathing out in relief as the double doors closed with a thump, the elevator beginning its ascent all the way to the top.

Homefree, he thought to himself.

The elevator doors parted, revealing the spacious antechamber of the bureaucrat's penthouse apartment. A glass statue called "Manhattan's Liberty" dominated the floorspace, next to a coat rack, umbrella stand and mahogany table. It featured a man pointing skyward with a small dog and child at his feet, looking up in admiration. The bureaucrat liked to pretend he was the subject of the statue, but after a visit to the penthouse from Manhattan Prime's new president, it was, of course, Artemis Dreygo that the statue resembled. President Dreygo had richly rewarded this ugly, shameless opportunist with a new cabinet posting after the bungled election. Besides, wasn't it about crossing political lines and cooperating for the good of the country? The man smiled to himself as he entered another security code and continued through to the main part of the condo. He lay his suit jacket on the leather sofa and strode to the kitchen to grab a drink, thinking of nothing more than relaxing on the patio with an icy cold beer and either a book or his thoughts as company. Reaching for the fridge, he pulled open the door of the side-by-side unit and heard a slight snapping sound.

A great, forceful bang and rumble that shook the foundations of the whole building was the first and last thing the man heard after opening the refrigerator door. It was followed by a massive fireball as eight circuited, tension-manipulated C4 charges in the dishwasher behind him erupted with fury. The kitchen was nearly obliterated in a single, indescribable blast and the man was rocketed forward into the refrigerator, shrapnel lodged in his back, arms and legs. He slammed into the shelving of the fridge and impaled his skull on a broken jar of mayonnaise. The glass windows shattered and toppled over the patio down to the street below, the rumbling fireball visible from nearly fifty kilometres away, the sound and shaking felt all over the downtown core.

Slumping to the ground, half-dead, he struggled to regain his orientation and escape the apartment. He faintly remembered his bodyguards were nowhere to be seen. Surely they would have heard something?

The bureaucrat grasped at the slippery, frictionless hardwood floor, finding nothing but broken pieces of metal, fragments of plates and utensils from the exploded dishwasher and strewn food and liquids on the floor. He had no strength to get on his feet again and was feebly, futilely attempting to crawl out of the kitchen. It wasn't enough.

A second explosion emanated this time from the freezer unit, knocking out all the light fixtures and toppling cabinetry. It tore the fridge apart and the force threw the bureaucrat all the way across the kitchen, slamming him against a wall. Lodged in the wall, upside down, the stunned, disoriented man slowly, agonisingly bled to death, two limbs torn off, an eye missing and most of his teeth swallowed. His mangled corpse dropped onto the floor in an undignified heap ten minutes later, just before the authorities burst in on the gruesome scene. The lead officer didn't notice the crushing sound under his jackboot as he stepped on the dead man's pince-nez.

Halfway across the country, a shadowed, pensive man with salt-and-pepper hair and a rugged face watched, with three others, the live feed from a camera they had had placed across the street facing the building. Seeing the succession of timed detonations, they smiled as, following the second explosion, the nearly lifeless body could be seen flying helplessly across the kitchen. The shadowed man shut the feed off, closed his notebook computer and walked out to get a cigarette.

Breaking news from PNN.pc

http://towleroad.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/penthouse.jpg
At least two bombs were detonated inside Manhattanite home
secretary Peter Bond's luxury penthouse apartment, shown here in a
2006 file photo. City police have found a body, believed to be Mr Bond.

Manhattanite home secretary assassinated
Peter Bond killed by double explosion in luxury penthouse apartment


Clive James, Manhattan

In another shocking, frightening twist to the election saga gripping Manhattan Prime in recent months, police have reported that a double explosion has killed the country's home secretary.

According to witnesses, two bombs detonated within thirty seconds of each other inside Peter Bond's top-floor penthouse apartment in Manhattan's central business district. The 54-year-old, who was appointed home secretary in Artemis Dreygo's "caretaker" government, was seen as a key ally of Mr Dreygo's in recent months.

The self-titled "president" – who lost the general election to Liberal incumbent Andrew Cuthbert but claimed the office upon the latter's untimely assassination – used Mr Bond's appointment, across party lines, to attempt to fend off criticism of his illegitimate seizing of power in the country, and to show Manhattanites that he was willing to work with anyone who had the country's best interests in mind. But detractors blast Mr Bond as nothing more than an opportunist who, in the words of one anonymous source high in government, "will do anything for a paycheque". The international community continues to pressure Mr Dreygo to hold a new election to confirm whether or not he has a mandate.

Broken glass lines the street below the penthouse; thankfully, no bystanders were injured by the powerful blasts, and a preliminary building inspection indicates the building is still safe to inhabit.

More details are forthcoming.

"Thank you, Mr President.. you ready?" Matt asked 'President' Dreygo

"Yep, I'm ready." piped up Jase holding a tape recorder, and he pressed the record button.

Matt glared at Jase for a moment, before continuing.. "Anyway... Mr. President.
What are your plans for the future of the nation? and how is the conflict going against foreign intervention?"

Artemis Dreygo looked around the room with a complacent smile - his chief of staff had done well. The room the man had found for the President's impromptu interview turned out to be the office of the Student Union's President, and so not only was it spacious and airy, but contained a fine desk, it's wood polished to a gleaming lustre. Dreygo took a seat behind it, and so when the students arrived they would immediately be put at a disadvantage. Having himself behind the desk and them before it would encourage them to see the situation as akin to bothering a teacher or other authority figure, and so perhaps give him an edge. That is of course if the two armed guards flanking him from behind, and another two standing sentinel outside the office door were not enough to intimidate. Their weapons were holstered, but noticeable. Finally, the desk by chance had a triangular silver plaque on it, reading 'President', which Dreygo smiled at, thinking it a nice touch.

As the two young men were ushered in, Dreygo shot them a patience smile, hi s fingers steepled, his posture leaning back slightly to give the impression of a casual atmosphere. Nothing like mixed messages to get someone on their toes. He motioned the young reporters into the two chairs that had been provided (much less austere than his own of course), and the interview began.

The student seated on the left-hand side started with a standard enough question about the ongoing domestic situation. Dreygo noted that he seemed to be the 'leader' of the two and filed that for later. Although the President appeared calm and charming, his mind was racing.

Dreygo gave a thoughtful pause to consider, and replied: "That's a very pertinent question son. I'll be honest with you and say that conditions in our country concern me a great deal. After the assassination of President Cuthbert, the nation looked about to fall into civil war over the leadership, and we were clearly in need of a strong leader to defend Manhattan until the situation has been stabilised.

The streets of our proud capital were at risk of being taken over by brutal mobs , but over the past weeks I have been instructing the police to take harsh action against gang violence and it is clear that street violence and attacks on embassies and other key buildings have decreased. For the same reason I have ordered the Senate chambers to be constantly protected by units of the regular army, as well as SWAT police. If this had been allowed to remain an internal affair, then the conflict would be all but over now. However several of our so called regional allies took it upon themselves to take advantage of our moment of weakness and invaded, the Lamonians from the West and Pacitalia, who has long sought to annex Manhattan Prime more firmly under her sphere, have struck from the South. The fighting continues to be fierce, but our troops are holding the enemy, and striking back on the Southern front. I am negotiating with those members of the air force command who remain loyal to their country to persuade them to join the fight, and it is my most ardent belief that we will be successful in defending ourselves from this most unjust of attacks.

As to the time after this conflict ends, which I expect to be soon, I have many plans to restore Manhattan Prime. Obviously my first move will be to restore democracy to our shattered nation by holding elections. I have only considered my Presidency as a temporary one until the immediate crisis has ended, although it is my intention to restand for President. If I am chosen, then I hope to rebuild faith in our struggling economy, to reduce our reliance on other nations, to rebuild our infrastructure and move to distance ourselves from those nations who have betrayed us, by joining an alliance of protection if we must."

"Ah, great foreign involvement, just where we want to go, Do you see that as a personal attack on you, or perhaps simply an excuse for annexing territory?"

"Ah, great foreign involvement, just where we want to go, Do you see that as a personal attack on you, or perhaps simply an excuse for annexing territory?"

Dreygo chuckled gently "I'm certainly not egotistical enough to believe this invasion is anything to do with me personally, it's merely that with the President killed our nation became the most vulnerable it has been in recent history. As I said earlier, it is my firm belief that our southern neighbours have long coveted our land and resources and have worked tirelessly to gain influence over our economy and government. With this recent crisis, they merely took that a step further by attempting to annex full control of our country. As to Lamoni, I feel that was more a oportunistic strike than a long-term plan, but it is certainly in keeping with their record of numerous 'humanitarian interventions'."

(OOC: MP, catch me on MSN sometime.)

MAF Colville

The plans had been drawn up, and the teams were ready to go. These teams were composed of Lamonian Special Forces, with volunteers from the various base personell that the base commander would spare. Boarding the base's helicopters, they waited until all was in readiness. The helicopter pilots would form up south of the base, and in the interests of security; only THEN would the pilots get the GPS co-ordinates that they were to head for.

The Lamonians checked their AR-44 assault rifles, and settled in for what would likely be a long flight in, a short and exciting firefight, an extraction, and another long flight back.

Unknown Location, Manhattan State – 6th August 2008

“I, Andrew Mark Cuthbert, do swear to protect, serve and honour Manhattan Prime in what...”

The President of Manhattan Prime paused in his proud recitation of the oath of office at his inauguration, the start of his second term. The air soured, security men were scrambling and something was obviously wrong. Time seemed to slow as Cuthbert felt a crushing blow pierce his shoulder and knock him to the ground. The report of the rifle cracked like a clap of thunder in the crowded piazza, and suddenly the air was full of automatic fire, smoke and screaming. People ran, hands pulled him under the podium’s cover. A fresh young agent (Cuthbert had never learned his name) was hit in the face by his side and fell with a cry as if pole-axed, his blood splattering onto Cuthbert’s forehead. Through slitted eyes he saw his VP, Loren dive towards him, only to be knocked aside almost casually by an automatic blast. She had shielded him from harm with her own body, and Cuthbert felt tears well in his eyes from the senseless sacrifice. He closed his eyes and played dead – he didn’t think he could have moved if he’d wanted to from the combination of fear, pain and confusion, and besides, he had no idea in which direction to run. He took the only action left open to him – “Help me Lord, please help me”

***

Korin Duval looked warily at his boss tossing and turning, murmuring with fever. The President was obviously dreaming again, and not of pleasant times. It hurt to see his friend like this – Duval and Cuthbert went back a long way, as far back as being roommates at the University of Manhattan. Himself, the President and 9 Cabinet members had been laying low in a concealed attic conversation of an old barn, owned by a pro-government farming family, since the 21st March – nearly 5 months, and a long and tedious time to be trapped. Cuthbert had been wounded in the shoulder by the sniper’s bullet and had lost a lot of blood - with no way to treat him past water and bandages, his condition had steadily deteriorated. With half-remembered medic training, Fleet Admiral Ross had removed the bullet and roughly stitched the wound, but it had quickly become infected, and the weakened Cuthbert had been bed-ridden and feverish for the past few days.

Food (provided by their kind hosts) was tight, but enough to get by, and had Cuthbert been well they could have remained here until help arrived. However it was clear that the President would need proper medical attention soon, and so the communication he had just received brought hope to his heart for the first time in as long as he could remember. Duval turned to Fleet Admiral Ross, the Acting Vice President with Loren dead and Andy incapacitated. “I’ve received word from Colville – a rescue mission is on the way, in our helicopters. They had to find a way to break through Dreygo’s lines.”

Ross nodded, relieved, “Thank God for that, we couldn’t have lasted much longer here with the President so ill. We’d have had to risk moving him in a few more days anyway.” Seeing the Chief of Staff hesitating Ross demanded “Well, what are you waiting for Korin, activate our beacon”

The President had ordered when they had first taken shelter here that they aim to keep their location a secret for as long as possible, even from friendly forces who might reveal that Cuthbert was still alive. He had been in contact with the Pacitalian and Lamonian governments, who were organising a rescue attempt and fighting their way through Dreygo’s forces to reach him. When friendly forces were in close proximity, the plan was to activate a GPS tracking dot broadcasting Cuthbert’s call sign (‘Red Fox’) in Hex for exactly three seconds. They’d hoped that so short a time would reduce the risk of their location falling into the wrong hands, but Duval still stood resolute. Only the President could order such a move, and he said so flatly.

Ross was furious, pointing out that Cuthbert was in no state to disturbed and that it was pretty obvious he’d want to be rescued if given a choice. Still, Duval would not give in until he had gently wakened the President and explained the situation.

Cuthbert forced a smile, which was more a grimace from the effort of raising his head upright. “Do it” was all he said before laying his head down and almost instantly returning to fevered sleep

***
‘A’ Company HQ, Manhattan State

Captain Harry Hughes was irritated by the interruption – a small, wiry, harassed looking officer, he was tasked with leading his Company of 200 or so men in the defence of the nation from his Company HQ in Manhattan State. His men had not yet completed training, and so they were not on the frontlines, and were instead holding a position outside the capital.

The cause of Captain Hughes’s annoyance was the fresh-faced young officer before him, who had come to report a radar glitch in the near vicinity, eminating from an abandoned farm. A signal had been picked up, but it was only of brief duration.

“Dispatch the 3rd platoon to scout the area and investigate the readings” Hughes ordered, in a distracted fashion. He did after all have a war to fight, and Lt Hersh’s boys were his greenest, and thus most useless, platoon. There was a chance it might be a distress signal, and if not it would give them some additional field experience.

“Should I relay this up to Division Captain?” the earnest young officer asked.

Hughes was dismissive, “Not until we know it’s something to be worried about. The Colonel has somewhat more pressing matters to attend to than wasting his time with radar ghosts. As do I, Lieutenant.” He said pointedly, dismissing the subordinate.

"Do you think, Mr President that Pacitalians might be the ones responsible for causing this crisis to begin with?"

The notes were being taken comments that would perhaps form the foundation of their supposed article. This was going to be the last proper journalistic question until they were going to try and get inside. They just hoped that he would take him up on it.

"Do you think, Mr President that Pacitalians might be the ones responsible for causing this crisis to begin with?"

"I would not have thought even the Pacitalians to be capable of such bald-faced and unprovoked aggression as to assassinate an allied head of state, but the true masters behind the gang attack have yet to be discovered. Rest assured that when the crisis has abated I intend to order the most through investigation into possible Pacitalian involvement. It is however my belief that Ell is merely benefiting from the success of others here, and grabbing what he can from the ensuing chaos. So in other words boys; you may think that, but I couldn't possibly comment". Dreygo allowed himself a satisfied smirk.

OOC: MP, feel free to RP the rescue, if you want.

"Thank you so much sir, that's all we need for now but, uhm... my uh, colleague has a question about a different matter." Matt asked as he faked being entirely nervous about asking the question and 'tagged' Jase with a sort of shoulder nudge.

"We were wondering Mr President, um.. you don't have a media representative with you right? Well, we wanted to know if you would like one... us. To bring you closer to the people."

Will post when I can guys

The helicopters were challenged many times by the Manhattanite Command, but they managed to answer the challenges, and the rescue team was able to get to their destination.

(OOC: How much armed resistance is there in the area?)

No sooner had the helicopters landed when the first special forces operatives leapt to the ground, their helmets protecting them from the billowing dust thrown up by the rotor blades. A 4 man squad proceeded to the barn and up to the attic as the others spread out to secure the perimeter. The partially concealed trapdoor to the attic was kicked in by a boot and the Lamonian agents found the 11 members of Manhattan Prime's cabinet, looking variously bewildered or frightened.

Those who could walk were escorted downstairs to the helicopter, and then Cuthbert's Chief of Staff started hauling the President's stretcher downstairs, with help from one of the SF commandoes. As they exited the building into the daylight, painfully bright after their long confinement, Fleet Admiral Ross, the Secretary of Defence spotted movement on the horizon. The poorly trained 'A' company scouting party (a platoon of 12) were making a poor attempt at concealing themselves, but cannot have failed to notice several helicopters landing, and had fallen to the ground, advancing at a crawl to make use of the wooded cover. Taking cover himself around the side of the barn and drawing his service firearm, Ross screamed for the Chief of Staff to get the President to safety whilst he and the Lamonians held off Dreygo's troops....

**

"We were wondering Mr President, um.. you don't have a media representative with you right? Well, we wanted to know if you would like one... us. To bring you closer to the people."

Dreygo smiled at the sheer audacity pof the young lads, but it was an approving smile. He saw in them a determination to prove themselves, and a burning ambition to reach the top that reminded him very much of himself. He started to reply, but stopped sharp when one of his bodyguards suddenly stiffened, talked urgently but quietly into a walkie-talkie, and then sidled close to the President and whispered that Peter Bond had just been assassinated at his house in the city.

Dreygo paled briefly, but recovered his composure. He was struck with a sudden sense of vulnerability, and felt the need to quickly leave the poorly defended University campus for his fortress like base of operations.

He shot the reporters what he hoped was a winning smile, I'm afraid we don't have time to discuss this further boys. Urgent business means I must return to the capital immediately. I like the sound of your idea though - take a seat with the guards in the end car, and we'll discuss this later"

The Lamonian troops immediately started to scatter to defensive positions, and opened fire. On a signal from the raid commander, grenades were thrown into the forest. They didn't have to kill the enemy to the last man in order to win this fight, they just had to keep enemy heads down for long enough for at least Cuthbert to get to safety.

With this in mind, the Lamonians used the automatic mode of their AR-44 assault rifles.

Lt Hersh's platoon had the advantage of plenty of cover in the woods surrounding one side of the barn approach, and so although the whine of bullets and chunks of bark flying around unnerved the Manhattanite infantrymen, only one man was injured, shot in a unwisely raised arm whilst gesturing his buddies forward. The Manhattanites proved less fortunate against grenades - in their inexperience they had not left adequate spacing between each man and so the first salvo of grenades killed one soldier outright, and severely injured two more nearby.

The remnants of the platoon returned fire sporadically with their assault rifles and the platoon heavy machine gun as they paused in their advance. Meanwhile the platoon Lt was frantically calling up reinforcements from the rear on his radio set.

Seeing the troopers crawling forwards, Admiral Ross whirled from cover and fired three shots above the head of the nearest man. He froze and hugged the ground, but was unharmed - the Secretary of Defence had no desire to kill his own countrymen. He reloaded his pistol from behind the wall and emerged again in a brash fashion - not only was a senior command officer and unused to close-in firefights, but he was a naval officer, and not used to considering cover whilst firing. It to be his undoing. As the President's stretcher was hauled into the waiting helicopter, a hurried assault rifle burst spat hotly against Ross's chest. He watched the blood blossom on his shirt in a bemused way before slumping to his knees.

"We were wondering Mr President, um.. you don't have a media representative with you right? Well, we wanted to know if you would like one... us. To bring you closer to the people."

Dreygo smiled at the sheer audacity pof the young lads, but it was an approving smile. He saw in them a determination to prove themselves, and a burning ambition to reach the top that reminded him very much of himself. He started to reply, but stopped sharp when one of his bodyguards suddenly stiffened, talked urgently but quietly into a walkie-talkie, and then sidled close to the President and whispered that Peter Bond had just been assassinated at his house in the city.

Dreygo paled briefly, but recovered his composure. He was struck with a sudden sense of vulnerability, and felt the need to quickly leave the poorly defended University campus for his fortress like base of operations.

He shot the reporters what he hoped was a winning smile, I'm afraid we don't have time to discuss this further boys. Urgent business means I must return to the capital immediately. I like the sound of your idea though - take a seat with the guards in the end car, and we'll discuss this later"

This was the point of no-return, there was obviously some news that trouble Dreygo but it couldn't of been about them... could it? This was where you either lost your nerve and have to high-tail it out knowing thatyour cover had been broken acheiving nothing, or keep with the programing, knowing that it may be a trap but you still should be able to achieve your goal.

All this went through both their heads in a split second, there was no point running away now and so Jase pumped his fist. "YES!" ... "Thanks, you won't regret it." Both of them gave each other smiles as wide as they celebrated their 'success'.

They exited the room and were very excited as they left, doing another, yet smaller arm pump in celebration, yet big enough that Mike could see it, to mark a successful interview.

With the President's stretcher now onboard the helicopter, the Lamonians that had been escorting it were now silently crawling towards the woods in an effort to flank the Manhattanites.

When they had come to the first decent cover inside the woods, they started firing barrages of grenades and bullets upon the Dreygoist forces.

Province of Manhattan State

With their sole advantage of cover removed, the remaining green Manhattanite troops were no match for elite special forces. Two more were killed outright by the onslaught, and the remainder seized firing as the platoon commander threw his assault rifle to the ground and emerged from the trees with arms raised above his head. Through his binoculars, Lt Hersh had recognised his Commander in Chief being whisked away, and he ordered his men to stand down rather than give their lives for a traitor when the elected President still lived.

***

Downtown Manhattan

Fire engines and police cars still roared around the capital as the three cars of the Presidential motorcade hurried back to Dreygo's downtown HQ. From the window in the middle car, Dreygo saw instantly that Burnaby Street had been closed off by the emergency services, and smoked billowed ominously from an apartment building. He quickly ordered his driver to take an alternative (although more indirect route); Bond had obviously been a direct message to him, something along the unsubtle lines of 'if we can strike here, we can strike anywhere', and the ex-Home Secretary was now no more use to Artemis Dreygo than in the warning he provided.

Security personnel and staffers filled the first car, whilst the end car contained the two young reporters he had taken a chance on, and more of his security detail. Despite Dreygo's fears, the drive back to the much more defensible Official Residence of the President was completed without event. Parking in a underground parking lot behind security doors, Dreygo took the elevator down to the emergency bomb shelter he had been using as a situation room. Jones, one of his security men asked him what should be down with the two hangers on they had recently acquired. Dreygo thought quickly.

"Have all the most sensitive papers been destroyed yet?"

"Er, yes sir" Jones replied with a sudden sinking feeling, remembering that he'd yet to burn the folder marked MOST SECRET in the rush to organise security for the President's talk at the University of Manhattan.

"Then put them in the Presidential Office for now until I'll ready for them. They can't get up to much mischief there, and besides (Dreygo smirked) it might remind them the duty they owe to the holder of that office."

Motioning to the reporters to follow him, Jones led the way up to Manhattan Prime's most prestigious office, more than happy to baby-sit for a while if it gave him a chance to complete his task and rectify his mistake before the President found out about it.

OOC: Feel free to have a rummage around the filing cabinets Baz, and I'll post some of the spicy things that are lying around awaiting destruction. You'll have to think of some creative way for opening them though, and the guard isn’t just going to leave you alone. Knock him out, or kill him or whatever it is you Intelligence fellows do ;-)

With President Cuthbert, the Cabinet, and the Lamonians aboard, the choppers lifted off for MAF Colville.

Before that, the Lamonians had helped the green Manhattanite unit come up with a convincing cover story for when other Dreygoist units reached the farm house. They would also dispose of any bodies. Once the heat was off of them, the unit was to spread the knowledge that Cuthbert was still alive.

The Lamonian special forces medics were doing everything that they could to stabilize Cuthbert's condition during the helicopter ride back to MAF Colville.

They needed a plan, one that would take their "guard" out of the picture long enough to properly search the room, yet one they could pretend that something else happened. They were both thinking diversion but what next.

Jason had an idea "Go on, you always wanted the the President's office and here we are." he nudged Matt. "This is just Awesome... To think I'm in the President's Office" Matt obligingly replied before starting to make a bit of a nuisance. Sort of looking sort of not, more like as if he was pretending what it would be like to actually be President.

Jason meanwhile stayed back further away, surely Matt's antics would of drawn the attention of their baby-sitter.

Agent Jones was dumbfounded - he'd expected his young guests to show some interest in the Presidential Office, but no sooner had they got there than one had the sheer audacity to sit in the President's chair practising regal expressions, and then actually began to spin the swivel chair in circles, looking delighted.

Jones understood their enthusiasm, but the office still needed to be respected. What if the press managed to photograph some student in the chair? What if he broke something - Dreygo would be furious.

With a forced expression of patience, he went over - "Sir, you can't sit there. Please get up"

7th August 2008, MAF Colville

President Cuthbert rested in bed in the airbase's hospital wing for a day or so after his rescue. The helicopters had returned to the base without incident, and if the infantrymen's cover story held, the enemy was obvious to the fact the Cuthbert still lived. He had been given plasma and blood transfusions, antibiotics for the infection of the entry wound, and military surgeons had removed the sniper's bullet from his shoulder. The President felt weary, and weak, but could already feel himself regaining his former health.

Ross was dead, killed in the firefight, although a quick thinking soldier had managed to drag his body aboard a helicopter for evacuation. They'd had a brief service for the Secretary of Defence and the Manhattanite soldiers also killed in their duties, and the body was being interned to await proper burial in Manhattan Prime's National Cemetery, reserved for notable figures. Vice President Hunter would be buried there when the crisis was over - Cuthbert tried not to think about them too much, as the dull ache in his chest became too much to bear. He himself had a job to do, to address the Manhattanite troops still resisting foreign intervention, and order them to lay down their arms and co-operate in removing Artemis from power. Once he had eaten and was feeling strong enough, Cuthbert sent word that he was ready to send his broadcast.

"Sorry," he turned his face slightly red, easy if you know how... "I just... wow... When do you get a chance to sit behind the President's desk?" He sheepishly got up as he saw Jason quietly walk up behind the guard.

"Just imagine being the President... It'd be awesome!"

Jason made a precise movement attacking the guard jabbing a pressure point to knock him unconcious. They had made their move, hopefully this would all go through.

Once he had eaten and was feeling strong enough, Cuthbert sent word that he was ready to send his broadcast.

When Cuthbert signaled that he was ready for an interview, the Lamonians brought in a television camera, as well as a copy of today's newspaper. The latter item would be a form of evidence that the televised interview had taken place that day, instead of some other time.

"Mr. President," the helpful Lamonian military anchorperson who would interview President Cuthbert said. "You are on in five... four... three... two..." The anchor then pointed at President Cuthbert two seconds later, indicating that he should start speaking, the newspaper having already been placed in view, and the date upon it noted.

Manhattan:

Caught completely by surprise, Jones fell to the floor unconscious. The Bazalonian agents prudently took his firearm, and made a quick search of the room. In a locked filing cabinet which yielded quickly to blows from Jones’s rifle butt, they found the documents he had been tasked to destroy. A series of memos were gathered into one folder marked – ‘FOR DESRTRUCTION – under no circumstances let this information fall into enemy hands. Burn if invaders approach Manhattan’

The first was a memo to Peter Bond:

“Peter,

The situation looks dire. In the event of enemy troops attacking Manhattan, we may have to face the possibility that our country will cease to exist, except as a subjugated vassal of the Pacitalian Empire. As a patriot, I cannot allow this to happen, and our only hope may be to take as many of them down with us as we possibly can. Therefore I have authorised Operation CLOVERFIELD – if enemy troops look like taking the city, ten we must deny it to them in any way possible. For this end I have acquired a 10kt nuclear device – if the situation becomes dire enough we must lure a large invading force into the city limits and then level the capital entirely with the weapon.

This will cause them such devastating casualties that they will be compelled to withdraw. This is an absolute last resort, but we must be prepared to utilise it. I swear that I would rather destroy Manhattan than see it fall to a foreign power.

It is absolutely imperative that you keep this information secret. Arrange ways for key personnel to egress the city. However for the deception to work it will not be possible to warn the citizens of Manhattan, nor allow them time to evacuate lest enemy forces be alerted. They must be prepared to make their sacrifice for our nation’s sake. Such a tragic loss.

Dreygo”

Another was Manhattanite intelligence’s report on Dreygo:

“Artemis Alexander Dreygo – CMI File

Head of the influential Dreygo family, Artemis Dreygo is the current Senator for Manhattan Central, and is highly respected within Manhattanite politics. His only son Vykk is a professional footballer, currently playing in Pacitalia.

Family:

Edward Dreygo (1890-1958) – died aged 68, had Alex at age of 39
Alexander Dreygo (1929-2000) – died aged 71, had 2 brothers
Artemis Dreygo (1960-Present) – Aged 48, is an only child
Victor ‘Vykk’ Dreygo (1988-Present) – Aged 20, is an only child, 4th generation of Dreygo family in Manhattan Prime

Personal History:

3rd April 1960 – Artemis Dreygo born in Manhattan.
1965-1971 – Year 1-7 at Joyce Street Primary School, Manhattan (aged 5-11)
1971-1978 – Year 8-13 at Great Falls High School, Manhattan (aged 11-18)
1978-1981 – 3 years at the University of New Sydney, graduating with a first in Politics (aged 18-21)
1982 – Town Councillor in Buffalo, Manhattan State (aged 22)
1983-1985 – Chief Councillor for Buffalo (aged 23-25)
1985 – Marries Marie Lucas (aged 25)
1988 – Son Victor (Vykk) born, wife dies in childbirth (aged 28)
1985-1990 – Mayor of the city of Manhattan (aged 25-30)
1991-2001 – highly successful governor of Manhattan Colony (aged 31-41)

1st January 2005 – Represents Manhattan at drafting of Constitution as one of 12 delegates. A powerful voice for civil rights (aged 45)
March 2005 – President Cuthbert takes office. Dreygo elected Liberal Senator for Manhattan Central.
March 2008 – Founds Unity Party, Splits from Liberals (aged 48)

Psychological Analysis:

Artemis Dreygo was born into a wealthy Manhattanite family for whom connections and lineage are central. His father was cold and distant towards him - as a boy his every material need was met, although he seems to have been an unloved child.

An intelligent and charismatic boy, Artemis excelled at school, and at University, and developed a reputation as a charmer, who was always in with the right crowd. His political career was likewise founded on connections and knowing the right people, although his oratory skill, and ambition to improve Manhattan Prime soon took over.

In stark contrast to his later bitterness, Dreygo was once liberal and progressive, and became highly popular in the city of Manhattan. When Manhattan Prime was unified, he became a popular and influential Senator for Manhattan Central (one of the country’s richest constituencies) and his positive work for that city is beyond doubt.

Dreygo married in 1985, but seemingly for society purposes rather than love. There was little affection in his sadly short marriage.

Whilst a gifted politician, Artemis Dreygo is as distant a father to his son Victor as his father was to him. Dreygo has been ostracised from his son for several years, due to his disapproval of his son’s career as a professional footballer (which Artemis considers undignified and unworthy of a Dreygo) and especially of Victor’s life in Pacitalia, a country for which Artemis holds great animosity. The twenty year old Victor has grown up rebellious and has even changed his name to Vykk (pronounced Vic), his high school nickname in defiance of his father.

He remains aghast at what he sees as excessive foreign influence over Manhattan Prime, and harbours a special distaste for Pacitalia. This is perhaps due to the fact that he sees Manhattan Prime as being overshadowed by its larger neighbour, just as he was overshadowed by his famous father, and later by the much younger Andrew Cuthbert in the nation’s government. Dreygo clearly felt that he had the experience to become the nation’s first President, and to be denied even a cabinet post was a bitter pill for him to swallow.

Dreygo has become bitter and resentful as being denied what his experience and talent deserves because President Cuthbert feared he was too popular and powerful to control, and overshadow his attempts to guide the young nation. A decent man, Dreygo has become corrupted by ambition and intense patriotism turned against other nations.

Recommendations:
<this section has been neatly ripped off>”

Finally, at the bottom of the folder were several yellowed newspaper clippings, with small holes in the corners as if they had once been pinned to an office wall. They were from Dreygo’s time as Governor of Manhattan Colony and were universally complimentary with headlines like:

“Artemis does it again”

“In Dreygo we trust”

“Governor Dreygo dedicates new hospital”

The cuttings had been labelled ‘childish nonsense’ by Dreygo’s own hand. The Bazalonians now had the evidence they needed to expose Dreygo – they now faced the dangerous task of escaping with it from the more securely guarded building in Manhattan Prime.

As the cameras blinked into life, Cuthbert hauled himself to his feet leaning on a walking stick for support. The blood stain from his recently stitched up shoulder was clearly visible to his audience, speaking volumes about what he'd endured for his country. The President looked worn and tired and much older than his 30 years, but although he trembled slightly with the effort of standing upright, he seemed fired by some internal strength that would not let him rest until his duty was done.

"Citizens of Manhattan Prime, my brothers and sisters. As you have just seen, today is the 7th August 2008. I know it will come as a great surprise to many of you to learn that I still live, and you have no doubt been fed many implausible stories during this time of crisis, so let me spell out the truth about the last few months for you.

The events of the 19th March weigh heavily on my mind, and my conscience. Many good men and women died that day in defence of this office, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten by me. As you probably know, militia gangs attacked the Inauguration Parade, killing the Vice President and disrupting the proceedings. What you have not been told is that I survived the attack, although seriously wounded by a sniper’s bullet. God reached out to me in that moment, I feel, and gave me the strength to carry on. I and my cabinet escaped undercover of darkness to a hidden location outside Manhattan where we have evaded capture until last night, when a daring rescue attempt by our Lamonian allies brought me safely to loyalist lines.

Straight afterwards my former friend and ally Artemis Dreygo illegally seized control of the Presidency, and it is my belief that he was behind the attempt on my life following his defeat in the recent general election. You have likewise been told that the presence of foreign troops on our soil constitutes an invasion designed to exploit our moment of weakness. This is a lie. The forces of Lamoni and Pacitalia are here to keep the peace with my knowledge and blessing, and were allowed to enter the country on my authority. The time has come to resist this usurper and fight alongside the forces of our allies to restore democracy to Manhattan Prime.

To our allies who fight on to preserve our best interests even when you are persecuted and attacked; you are the best sort of friends, those who are not afraid to tell you when you are wrong. I thank you for all you have done for my country and ask you to forgive our troops who acted out of a misplaced distrust of foreigners or belief they were protecting their nation. Your help is much appreciated.

To the brave servicemen and women of Manhattan Prime; you have been as lions led by donkeys and fulfilled your duties with dedication and courage, and it detracts nothing from your achievements that you have been manipulated into fighting your friends in an unjust cause. However now is the time to lay down your arms – by the power vested in me as Commander in Chief I hereby order all Manhattanite military and security personnel to cease fighting the forces of our allies. Do not think of this as a shameful surrender, but merely a truce in a war never authorised by the Senate nor formally declared by this government. You are no longer bound by your oaths to President Dreygo as he never held that office, therefore you are free to disobey his orders without guilt or shame. If you feel your lives may be in danger by refusing to obey orders, then I would urge you to make your way to Loyalist lines and join the struggle from there, but on no accounts endanger yourselves for my sake.

To the self-styled President Dreygo; Artemis, it doesn’t need to come to this. You are better than this. I know I am far from blameless in this affair and that my treatment of you was ungrateful and disrespectful of your achievements. I admit freely that I denied you the Cabinet post your experience and expertise deserved because I was proud, and feared that you were more popular and influential than I, and would overshadow my acts as President of this nation. I felt that you would be too powerful to control, and admit I was wrong to deny your due. But you too are guilty of pride Artemis – the people of this great nation have not chosen you to lead them, and you have no right to impose yourself upon them. You used to believe in democracy as I did – for all I have done for you Artemis I would urge you most ardently to turn yourself in, although I fear I know you too well to think you will do so.”

Cuthbert sat down heavily, and turned to his interviewer to respond to any questions the people might have about his sudden and unexpected reappearance.

"Hello, I am Lt. Colonel Hanson of the Lamonian Army's journalism division. I would like to personally confirm that our forces were invited into Manhattan Prime with President Cuthbert's permission, and that our forces have rescued the President from possible capture by forces loyal to Artemis Dreygo, who illegally took power from the lawfully elected Manhattanite government. Both myself and President Cuthbert are open for questions, but please be respectful of the fact that President Cuthbert is still recovering from his injuries."

Breaking news from PNN.pc

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/160/348943811_893d6a16ef.jpg
An underground hiding place about 70km southeast of Manhattan is now part of history after
Lamonian special forces completed a daring combat rescue of Manhattan Prime president-elect
Andrew Cuthbert. Acting on civilian tips, the commandoes raided the hole and took Mr Cuthbert
into protective custody, where he appeared on television to address his shocked country.


Cuthbert alive
Lamonian special forces track down MP's re-elected president in daring rescue

____________________________________________________________
Story highlights
Archonate calls off next wave of Pacitalian incursion as Cuthbert asks MP forces to stand down
Pacitalia's 315,000 troops and 1,100 commandoes in MP switch to full peacekeeping mode
Joyful scenes in the streets as troops bail arms, embrace Pacitalian and Lamonian soldiers
PMO issues statement on the news, prime minister ecstatic to hear Cuthbert "alive and ready to lead"
____________________________________________________________


Pittsburgh, Manhattan Prime (APR) — Andrew Cuthbert, Manhattan Prime's re-elected president, shocked both his country and the world by appearing live on television to address his people following a brazen rescue by Lamoni's vaunted special forces.

Cuthbert, 31, was rescued in a daring nighttime raid on a compound about 70km southeast of the country's capital, Manhattan. He was placed in protective custody where he addressed the world on live television.

Lamonian special forces acted on a credible set of tips from civilians as well as the combined intelligence gathering of Lamonian and Pacitalian agencies. They found the president and several cabinet members from the previous administration in the cave-like hiding place, still suffering from injuries sustained in the bombing of the March inauguration parade.

More to come. Check back to this page for more updates as they arrive.

OOC: With Cuthbert's announcement all my military forces have now stood down and will support the Loyalists in their final assault on Manhattan. The only exceptions to this are Dreygo's security service, a few handfuls of heavily armed coup plotters and the two Manhattanite divisions that are actually stationed in the capital (the 14th Manhattan Armoured Division and the 2nd Manhattan Infantry Division). They are too scared to defect, and were amongst those most strongly convinced by Dreygo as their men are mainly drawn from the constituency for which he is Senator.

All that remains is to capture Dreygo, take control of the city of Manhattan and free the Senate building, which is still fortified by the army keeping opposition Senators under house arrest.

If anyone wants to ask him any questions, then please jump in, if not I'll script some from worried Manhattanites.

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r56/kelchek/media/kbc-icon.gif

Transcript of broadcast WORLDSERVICE-EN on September 6, 2008 00:00:12 UTC
Generated by AutoTranscripter 4.06

Audio file available: http://media.switchpod.com/users/kelssek/kbcworldservice06sep2008.mp3


The president of Manhattan Prime Andrew Cuthbert, thought to have been killed by an assasination in March, has been found alive and has concluded an address to his nation calling for soldiers to cease hostilities against Lamonian and Pacitalian troops. Kevin Giles reports from Manhattan.

It was possibly the most stunning address of the year. Andrew Cuthbert, thought to have been killed 6 months ago by a sniper's bullet, on live television. The young president was still nursing the wounds he sustained with a bandaged shoulder visible. He spoke of months in hiding and thanked Lamonian forces, long believed to have been nothing more than an invading force, for rescuing him. He denounced Artemis Dreygo, calling his assumption of the post of president illegal and accused Mr. Dreygo of being behind the assasination attempt. He said that the Lamoni and Pacitalian forces had intervened at his request and called for Manhattanite soldiers to lay down their arms, saying that Mr. Dreygo's orders are illegitimate and that they should be free to disobey their orders without shame. Reaction to the speech is still hard to gauge at this point but many questions still surround this dramatic turn of events. Kevin Giles, KBC News, Manhattan

They grabbed the appropriate paperwork for evidence later on down the track, having folded it up neatly they took Matt's right shoe off and placed it in there.
If they left they knew they would be detained no one knew them and they didn't have any identification cards. Which meant if they wanted out of here alive they must pretend as nothing happened.

They dragged their guard over to a chair, getting some water they splashed it on his face. "Hey man, are you alright?" "Can you hear me?" "Can you get up?" He was bombarded with some questions as he started to stir from his induced state of unconciousness.

"What happened?"he asked grogily

"I dunno you just suddenly collapsed man."

Agent Jones got up groggily - he hadn't remembered feeling woozy, but one minute he was talking to their harmless guests and the next he was on the floor being woken up. It didn't appear he had been out for long though, just a few minutes. He pulled himself up, noting that the kids had stopped fooling around in the office.

"I think I'm alright, must have been the heat or something...hey wait a sec, where my gun?"

"What? uh, Don't know."Jason nor Matt knew where it was they didn't pick it up and so they started to look around. They didn't notice it before but it was on the ground lying almost halfway between where they were and the desk. It must of fallen out as they dragged him there.

"Oh, it's over there... Do you want us to get it for you?"

"I'll get it" the security man demanded, suspicious now. He bent to retrieve the firearm, but kept it in his hand with the safety on rather than replacing it in it's holster. As he took up his position of guard again his communication device sqwarked. Motioning to the two Bazalonians, Jones led the way to the office door - "the President is ready for you know. It's this way".

Near the Pacitalia—Manhattan Prime border
7.15pm

Reduced to a tinny crackling over the comms system, the deep, rich baritone of the commanding officer in the Pacitalian Aeronautical Guard sounded in the ears of the six hundred men and women leading what hopefully would be the final aerospace incursion into la Repubblica's northwestern neighbour.

"All planes, gunners one and two, bombardiers left and right, report - positions check, systems check."

"Lead left double-zero A, gunner one, ammo set, locked and targeting."

"Lead left double-zero A, gunner two, muns locked in slot and ready to party. Holding for further instructions, over."

And on and on it went for a good ten minutes, as the forty-eight AeroNexus G-class mid-range bombers prepared themselves for the strategic bombings of the Manhattanite capital. The mission was not to kill, though death was unavoidable. Instead, it was to disable and disrupt so much so that even the most qualified of political leaders would struggle to rebuild and repair the damage. To that end, the mission's subsequent intent was to allow the government-in-exile in Bergamo — as well as Timiocato, Nephi and Fauxhan — to frame the events as an inability on the part of Dreygo and his caretaker administration to run the country. In the end, if the manoeuver was successful, it would greatly subtract from Dreygo's political capital. That is, if the allied forces didn't find him first.

Just as the last jet relayed its status to the CO aboard the lead bomber, and, in turn, the CO relayed the mission status to Aeronautical Forces Command in Bergamo, the fleet sped over the frontier line forty thousand feet below.


Manhattan, five minutes later

"You cheated! That was out of bounds!"

"Was not!"

It was a common scene in the inner-city districts of Manhattan, the capital of the Imperial Republic — kids playing football or baseball in the street, or in a sandlot, or, if they were lucky, a park. It wasn't an impoverished city by any stretch, but, to compare, the suburban children definitely lived better, more materialistic and privileged lives. Money didn't matter much in this part of the city, just working to live, to put food on the table, to appreciate the love for one's family and the friendships one made with their neighbours.

A distant voice sounded from a few floors up on one of the housing blocks. These square, gray behemoths betrayed the lower-class standing of the neighbourhood but the residents did their best to brighten the buildings up with colourful murals, lots of flowers and greenery. The field where the kids were playing lay in the middle of four bland, towering buildings, and the residents helped tend the community garden they had established. Right next to the impromptu football pitch fruits and vegetables matured and ripened.

"Sam, David, Trudy, time for supper! Come inside, please!"

A chorus of groans. "Aww, mum, just five more minutes?"

"No, it's on the table, com..."

But the tail-end of the mother's rebuttal was drowned out by a ghoulish, deafening, shrill noise that made the children cover their ears in agony. It was the air raid civil defence system. Not a minute later, the front doors of the apartment buildings burst forth, one thrown open hard enough that the glass shattered, as anxious parents sprinted out and collected their young from the field.

Among the medley of cries, shouts and yells, people running in every direction, some voices were clearer, broadcasting around the quadrangle. "Get inside! Come on, let's go!" Mumbling bubbled to the surface: was this just a drill?

"What's happening, dad? What's going on?"

"It's just a practice drill, son. They're just practising. Let's get back inside."

Footballs, baseball bats, a pair of sunglasses were left behind as the frantic crowds ran back into their housing for any semblance of shelter. Suddenly, shouts emanated from the megaphones attached to wood pilings, voicing over the shrill siren.

"Attention! Attention! Your attention, please! This is not a drill! I repeat, this is not a drill! Please evacuate the area and proceed to your nearest air-raid shelter, immediately. Do not wait, do not remain outside! Evacuate immediately. I repeat, this is not a drill, this is not a test! I repeat..."

Most people weren't heeding the order. They were going to tough it out in their apartments, or go into the basements, rather than risk the ten-block jog to the shelter. That was the price one paid in the poorer parts of town. Safety was further away than it should be.

As the mother of Sam, David and Trudy reached the shattered front door of the apartment building, the three of them in tow, she cast one anxious and helpless look skyward, and swore she could hear the faint drone of a fleet of bombers.

God protect us.

"We were worried about you." Josh commented

"We finally get to officially meet the president, I'm sure this will be noted down somewhere. and we'll have proof that we've talked to the greatest man in all of Manhattan Prime." Matt was obviously excited...

They both followed whatever directions they were given. This was going to be tremendous.

The two Bazalonians were led down a lift to the underground hanger bay they had entered the building in, and then even further down in a second lift, operating on a separate shaft and accessible only with a key card. As the lift shuddered into life and began it's descent to the building's bomb shelter, the lift shook violently. Its three occupants were thrown into the lift walls by the blast - even this far below the Earth the Pacitalian bombardment could be felt.

When they emerged they found the President and several guards and aides huddled around the situation room desk. The usually cool Dreygo was near catatonic with fury as he railed at his staff.

"They're already here! Those wop b*astards actually *dare* to invade the capital of Manhattan Prime itself." Noticing Jones had arrived with their guests he shouted "get yourself under some cover boys! You, Davies, bring me the Cloverfield detonator, I'm gonna blow those cretins to kingdom come!"

As advisors ducked under the tables, Dreygo grabbed at the detonator offered him and pressed it savagely. If his staff were panicked, it was only because of the air raid; they had no idea that a tactical nuclear weapon large enough to destroy the capital and its foreign invaders too had just ticked into life. If Artemis Dreygo was going down, then he'd take a few invaders with him. Such a patriot was he that he would destroy Manhattan before seeing it fall into foreign hands...

The Lamonian forces had had advance warning of the Pacitalian air raid, so they stayed well back of the Manhattanite capitol. After the air raid, the Lamonians would be using cruise missiles from their Manticore launchers to distribute copies of President Cuthbert's speech to the people of Manhattan Prime's capitol. The missiles would then head out to sea, where they would safely destroy themselves.

In the meantime, Lamonian forces would encircle the Manhattanite Capitol, intending to be sure that Dreygo could not escape allied justice. Several Manhattanite units had also been invited to join in on the Dragnet, and these units would be the first to enter Manhattan itself. With Cuthbert known to be alive, these units would have plenty of motivation to find and arrest Artemis Dreygo.

OOC: Will be an update soon guys!

Things suddenly turned to shite as the chaos of the underground bunker hit them hard.

"What's going on? and what is the hell is the Cloverfield detonator?" their voices panicked as the droped and huddled under the table they looked at Dreygo for a moment and Jones. Something indeed wasn't right, they didn't know anything about the codename Cloverfield and it was obvious that a man like Dreygo when trapped could have a nasty bite.

The days serving as both acting president of Sarzonia and as the senior vice president and external affairs officer were a drain, to say the least. But for Grant Haffner, the worst foreign crisis of his caretaker role as acting president took place while an extended national malaise gripped Sarzonia.

Parliament was opposed to sending even a token diplomatic force anywhere. Tensions with Luslyvania were enough to sour the growing faction of Sarzonians opposed to its interventionist foreign policy. Thus, Sarzonia getting entangled in military or diplomatic drama was not in the cards.

However, this wasn't just any tinpot dictatorship. This was Manhattan Prime, one of Sarzonia's remaining friends prior to cancer cells metastasizing in President Mike Sarzo, leading to his death on 1 December at age 47. Unlike his previous battle with testicular cancer, Sarzo did not step down from his post and died in bed. First partner Jay Tyler left the Gray House and lieutenant president Nicole Lewis refused to move from The Manor to occupy the physical Gray House.

Even though it generally wasn't in Lewis's nature to pass up an opportunity to involve herself in international affairs while Sarzo tended to other issues, she spent the majority of her days as acting president focused on trying to help Sarzonia through its grieving process. That act exhausted Lewis, and after a few months in that healing role, Lewis finally could deal with it no longer. She announced her resignation as acting president, leaving the reins to Haffner.

For his part, Haffner moved from the the mansion that served as the senior vice president and external affairs officer's quarters ... to The Manor, the official residence of the lieutnant president. He also refused to move into the Gray House, saying only one man deserved to live there, and it wasn't him.

All of that as background, Haffner spent a majority of his days involved quite heavily in trying to keep the domestic ship in order. He spent precious little time on his so-called day job as the nation's equivalent of a foreign minister. His deputy resigned and he had a nearly impossible mission to fill the vacancy.

Finally, though, he began to make headway. He noted the transmission of condolence from Austar Union and began to sift through messages of condolence from foreign leaders. Finally, though he came upon a report.

He read its contents carefully, realising that this was a crisis Sarzonia could no longer turn a blind eye toward. Haffner decided to pursue his prerogative as acting president and he picked up the Bat Phone.

He looked at the phone list taped on the wall behind the Bat Phone, searching up and down for a phone number. Finally, he found it.

He heard the phone ring three times before a familiar voice picked up the phone. He began to feel a swirl of emotion. It was the voice of a man who had come to diplomatic blows with him in years past. Haffner knew he was far from the most popular man in the capital. However, he couldn't go any higher up the ladder. This would be up to him.

"Uh, Dr. Ell?"

During the days of Sarzonia's Great Isolation, Admiral Eric Vincent spent most of his days with preparedness reports, inventory, meetings and other sundry issues that can take up the day of a shipyard's commanding officer. He resented the Military Command Centre for sending him to Portland for what amounted to a desk job.

He preferred to remain as commanding officer of the Fifth Fleet, plying the seas and proactively dealing with Sarzonia's potential enemies. He felt his talents going to waste sitting behind a desk for a mind-numbing 12 hours a day. He wanted to spend time on his ship's bridge, barking out orders, contacting foreign naval officers and doing the sorts of things he felt he was meant to do.

Another maddeningly routine day awaited him with reports from his subordinates due, meetings to schedule and a teleconference to establish with the MCC. He figured he could take off a little early and go home in time to help his son Colin with studying for A levels.

All of a sudden, the phone broke his reverie. He knew Lydia, the secretary he'd begun working with since he first got assigned to this hellhole wouldn't transfer a call in unless it was important. He wondered which of the top brass in Saugerties were going to rip him a new one now.

"Vincent."

"Admiral?"

"This is Admiral Eric Vincent, yes," he replied impatiently.

His eyes grew wider when he realised who it was. Now he had a reason to be there for other than the routine. He knew as soon as he got off the phone, it would be time to get the shipyard ready for a massive re-supply effort.

"Of course, we'll be more than honoured to help you in that effort," he said.

As soon as hung up the phone, it was go time.

MNS Timothy Ell, Lexington Class Aircraft Carrier
A few miles outside Sarzonian waters
7th August 2008

Admiral Heinze gave this morning's status reports only a cursory glance. By now, he knew what they would say, that same thing they had been saying for a week or more; that the Manhattan Navy was in urgent need of resupply.

Manhattan Prime was far from a maritime nation, and maintained only a small navy. Still it had succeeded in supporting itself since March, when the entirety of the navy had fled its homeport of New Sydney and put to sea, to prevent itself from being seized by the rebel forces of Artemis Dreygo in the vicious Civil War that had been sweeping their beloved homeland for the past several months. It had been assumed that order would be restored in a matter of week, and as Manhattanite vessels (especially those fitted with nuclear reactors) could survive several months at seas if not required to do battle, no supply problems were foreseen. However the widespread military support given to Dreygo had ensured that the Civil War raged on for much longer than expected, and as a result the fleet was dangerously low on food, fuel, medicines and other necessary supplies.

Heinze had been putting out a few diplomatic feelers for ports where his fleet could resupply, but with Manhattan Prime's current bad reputation and the fleet's status as unrecognised and in direct conflict with the Dreygo Administration made such work difficult. Most nations that had been contacted either did not have the facilities to supply an entire fleet at once, or had been deterred by President Dreygo's threats against any nation that would dare to take them in. What they needed what a country with a massive naval infrastructure, and the might to not fear giving recognition to the navy in rebellion. Pacitalia had been briefly considered, but would mean sailing dangerously close to Manhattanite waters - risking either attack or capture. It was not until several days that Heinze was desperate enough to call the Sarzonians - a powerful nation with great naval expertise (indeed they had manufactured the Holland and Mahan Classes that the MN used), but one that had remained closed to outsiders for quite a while. Lacking any other options, Admiral Heinze made the call...

Fleet Roster:

Frigate MNS Leafanistan Skate Class
Frigate MNS Skate Skate Class

Destroyer MNS Talon Holland Class
Destroyer MNS Wasp Holland Class
Destroyer MNS Hornet Holland Class
Destroyer MNS Serenity Holland Class
Destroyer MNS Firefly Holland Class

Destroyer Leader MNS Sarzonia Mahan Class

Destroyer MNS Ares Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Apollo Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Hurricane Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Nimitz Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Viper Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Solidarity Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Oregon Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Prometheus Ares Class
Destroyer MNS California Ares Class
Destroyer MNS Galaxy Ares Class

Cruiser MNS Valiant Valiant Class
Cruiser MNS Equinox Valiant Class
Cruiser MNS Phoenix Valiant Class
Cruiser MNS Endeavor Valiant Class
Cruiser MNS Victory Valiant Class

Heavy Cruiser MNS Pacitalia Manhattan Class

Aircraft Carrier MNS Timothy Ell Lexington Class

Raised voices and shrill screaming punctuated the room at the Military Command Centre. An angry House Speaker Charles Hunter (Moderate-New Isselmere) was extremely displeased with Vincent.

"He could have rushed our people into a quagmire," Hunter bellowed. "Our people do not want to be part of the world stage right now."

James Melvin looked at Hunter impassively. He wasn't known for anything resembling Haffner's bluster. Around External Affairs, he was known as the voice of reason, a calming influence. He would need every bit of that to satisfy a seething Hunter.

"I'm going to call for a parliamentary inquiry into Vincent's actions," Hunter said. Turning to vice president for Naval Operations Kathy Bunhall, he said, "I demand you court martial him."

Bunhall wasn't a fan of being ordered around, not even by her immediate boss, senior vice president for defence John Newman. But hearing from someone in Parliament, especially someone who was not her boss was enough to get her to snap.

"You don't order me around," Bunhall exploded. "The only person who has that right is Haffner. And even then, he doesn't talk like that."

Melvin stood up deliberately and raised his hand. Hunter and Bunhall saw the gesture and turned slowly toward him.

"Madame vice president, Mr. Speaker," he said evenly. "What we need right now is a rational discussion of what's happened."

Hunter cut him off.

"There's nothing irrational about discussing the potential for getting embroiled in a fucking war when that's the last thing our people want or need."

Vice president for the home guard Bill Lighton spoke up now.

"Mr. Speaker, I don't know where you learned your manners, but you don't cut people off when they're talking. Or did you forget Robert's Rules Of Order?" Other military and civilian personnel quickly chimed in with "yeah" and "he's right," and it forced Hunter to give pause.

"All right," Hunter said finally, trying to suppress his anger with a heavy sigh. "Sorry, Jim."

Melvin looked at Hunter with an annoyed glance, then continued.

"Admiral Vincent may not have followed proper procedure by approving the Manhattanite navy's re-supply efforts," Melvin said. "However, the situation was quite dire. That fleet was in desperate need of re-supply. People's lives were at stake. You're aware of how long the bureaucracy can take at the MCC. Vincent probably felt he had no choice but to act immediately."

"I see," Hunter said after drawing in his breath and exhaling slowly. "With that said, what do we do about Dreygo's threat?"

"What threat?" Newman asked. People didn't see him walk in.

"Artemis Dreygo threatened any nation that would accept the Manhattanite fleet in its ports," Hunter said. Newman looked at Hunter with a bemused expression on his face.

"Him and whose army," Newman said, drawing a nervous chuckle from the people in the room. "I've assessed the potential threat posed by Dreygo loyalists. They're much too busy embroiled in fighting their own battles to pose much of a threat to the Sarzonian mainland.

"And even if they were," Bunhall interjected, "without a navy of his own, there isn't that much they can do. We can divert the Second Fleet to monitor the situation."

Everyone in the room knew what Bunhall meant. If the situation were dire enough, the Second Fleet could form a blockade. An invasion would not be the preferred course of action, of course. However, Sarzonia could tell the world in no uncertain terms what it thought of the legitimacy of Dreygo's administration.

"The Home Guard also stands ready," Lighton said. "I'm sure the Air Force can suppress a potential rebel Manhattanite threat. That only leaves the army." With that, heads throughout the room turned to look at General Antonius Santius. Even with the army's vastly improved performance against Pantera, it was still considered Sarzonia's weak link.

That wounded Santius. He came in from Sanctaphrax and made every effort to change the culture of the Incorporated Sarzonian Army. However, he ran into parliamentary roadblocks every time he sought to institute reforms. That changed as soon as the disaster in Inkana, but Sarzonia still lacked confidence in its army.

"We will be ready," Santius said, "if we are called upon."

"So what does Haffner do?"

"I've approved the Manhattanite resupply efforts," Haffner said. "And I've sent a warning to Dreygo that if he wants to make good on his thread, he can try us and he'll have his arse handed to him."

Haffner also had some choice words for Hunter.

"Chuck, I seriously suggest you check yourself at the door," Haffner began. Hunter opened his mouth, ready to cuss Haffner out, but Haffner wasn't having it.

"Listen to me," Haffner said. "I'm the acting president here, and you'd do well to remember that. It's my decision about whether to allow the Manhattanite navy to resupply in Portland. As commander in chief, it's my prerogative, not the House's.

"Perhaps you ought to read the Constitution a bit more."

Fully reproached, Hunter's expression turned to one of embarrassment. All of a sudden, he felt like Alexander Haig might have felt when he told the world he was in charge when he wasn't.

"I'm sorry."

"I'll notify Admiral Heinze personally," Haffner said. "If Dreygo wants to come at a Sarzonian, let him try to have a go at me."

<Historian's note - the naval resupply situation took place a few days before the Bazalonian agents infiltration of Dreygo's HQ and the Pacitalian bombing of Manhattan. Therefore Dreygo has not completely flipped just yet!>

The Dreygo Administration has announced today that it is blocking all trade with the nation of Sarzonia and freezing all assets owned by Sarzonian companies in Manhattan Prime in response to that nation's illegal recognition and proposal of aid to rebel elements of the Manhattan Navy. As you are aware, the MN is no longer regarded as a legitimate part of the Manhattanite Armed Forces and is to be considered a rogue element in direct opposition to this government's very legitimacy. President Dreygo has declared himself very disappointed at the Sarzonian government's decision to aid known insurgents and rebels working to destabilise the government and has advised Sarzonia not to interfere in internal Manhattanite issues.

The Sarzonian Ambassador Colin Johnson and his staff have been declared persona non grata and required to leave the country. Manhattan Prime is closing its embassy in Woodstock and is considering withdrawing from the Woodstock Pact. Sarzonian nationals are assured that they will not be judged by the actions of their government and they remain welcome in the Imperial Republic.

***

As the call was put through, Heinze picked up the phone. "Thank you for agreeing to hear my request Mr President. As you can imagine it's not been easy for us to find safe haven, and I'm afriad I cannot underestimate the seriousness of our supply situation.

OOC: Lamoni, Baz - we'll be bringing this together soon, sorry for the wait!

Archonacy Complex, Timiocato

From the door, the scene was one of eight silhouettes, dressed in suits, leaning over a large elliptical table. Their voices echoed off the high concrete walls; a damp, greenish light filtered down from the ceiling. The meeting, in the bunker, as was standard procedure, had dragged on for several hours already and frustration was eminent, and normally calm Pacitalian officials were just shy of screaming at each other.

The night before, the Pacitalian Aeronautical Guard infiltrated Manhattan Prime's airspace and launched a wide-scale air attack on the capital, a move not only meant to disrupt communication and supply lines in the hub of the country, but also intended to shake the neighbour's confidence in Dreygo's leadership.

The Conclave for Defence of the Republic, Pacitalia's equivalent of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was assembled here in the high-security conference chambers of the new Archonacy Complex. The brand-new, postmodern, eight-storey building on Corso Repubblica resembled a turtle shell above surface level — but as the offices of the Pacitalian head of state, its facilities naturally extended well underground.

Brig-Gen. Socrateo Lombardano, the ranking officer at Aeronautical Forces Command, Region E, had flown straight from Bergamo on a few hours' sleep to brief the Conclave. He was a wily character but straight-edge military, with close-cropped hair, and a clean-shaven face. His uniform was perfectly starched and ironed, the epaulets and decoration impeccably and carefully arranged on the breasts and shoulders of the uniform's jacket.

He stood at the podium and briefed the eight members of the CDR — the archonate, the chiefs of staff of the armed forces, the navy, the air force and special operations, the directors of the Pacitalian Central Intelligence Commission and the Pacitalian Satellite Monitoring Agency, and the Agustinate of National Defence. They listened in a tense silence but several of them looked ready to burst into a tirade at any moment.

General consensus indicated that the incursion into Manhattan Prime the previous evening had been a significant success, with radar and air defences bombed out and the distinct likelihood that they would not be repaired and re-established in the immediate future. Television and radio transmission towers were felled like trees and numerous military installations had been destroyed or disabled by the two-hour raid.

However the operation had been perceived by the CDR, the tension lay in a disagreement over how to go about the next step. While his four defence chiefs bickered amongst themselves and made their usual power-plays, Ell sat in his trademark calm silence, his fingers tented as usual below his nose. The wedding ring on his left hand flickered a glint in the dim mossy-coloured light of the room.

"So, what, General... you're saying we just walk in there like Napoleon and grab him?" Adm. Rodrigo Moreno-Cruz, the naval standard-bearer, said skeptically. He scoffed with impatience. "It's going to be a lot more complicated than that. We're talking about a very paranoid man here; he trusts no one. I'm just surprised those Bazalonian kids got themselves planted close to him. That just doesn't read with me at all."

"Thank you for your impeccable display of intellect and candour on the issue at hand, Admiral, but we'll let you know when the conflict gets within one hundred kilometres of a body of water," the army chief, Gen. Ando Prussiano Petruscialo, shot back. The sarcastic jab gained a tenuous bar of laughter from the other men, except Ell, who frowned slightly, that expression the only thing betraying his exasperation with the whole process.

The long-serving, well-respected PCIC director, Nicolae Teodor Costica, turned his attention toward Lombardano. "What's your view on rendition for Dreygo? Is it something we need to consider given the current political environment in Manhattan Prime?"

Still fuming over de la Cruz's ignorance, Petruscialo instantly fired a retort. "What the fuck is wrong with you and your boys, Costica? It's just about torture for you spooks, isn't it?"

But Ell interceded this time. "Gentlemen, why don't we all take a little recess? I could use a toilet break myself."

He rose from the table, and following protocol, the four defence chiefs rose instantly and saluted him. Exiting the conference room, the large, thick door clicked shut, followed by a hydraulic hiss. The four exchanged awkward glances given the exchange of the last several hours; then, they, too, left the room to use the toilet and grab a coffee.

Costica and his counterpart at the PSAT, Roc Andreu Berdaguer, exchanged disappointed glances and had clearly seen and had enough of the whole charade. They gathered their binders and papers, shook hands with Lombardano, and exited the room to return to Teakwood, the Timiocato hub of the Republic's secret intelligence activities.

Ell returned only seconds later and approached Lombardano.

"The situation in Manhattan is clearly grim, and you've made your case for the next phase of our operations there," Ell said. "Tell me what you need from me and I will provide it. The defence chiefs are running around like chickens with their heads cut off just when we need to be decisive. It is extremely disappointing."

"I understand your frustration, archonum emeritus," Lombardano replied with a knowing half-smile. "I appreciate that you understand the urgency of the situation. I feel, that it is more obvious than ever, the longer we wait to commence the second wave of our operations, the greater the opportunity for Dreygo to deal with what we have thrown at him, and the greater the opportunity for Dreygo to continue to consolidate his authority. We need to strike decisively. We need to apprehend Dreygo himself."

Ell looked at the large screen, taking in once more the audio-visual element of Lombardano's briefing.

"All right, I will authorise a black-ops incursion to detain Dreygo. You will have seventy-two hours to complete the mission once I sign and swear my approval. When you are back in Bergamo later this evening, contact me and we will continue to work out the details."

Ell firmly shook his hand and excused himself from the room.

Lombardano finally took the liberty of letting free an exasperated, fatigued sigh, and gathered his papers and effects.

Archonate's quarters, the Complex
Three hours later

It was a room familiar to many, the design a direct overlay from the prime minister's office before 2006. The office above the famous Bullpen at the New Prado was once a cavernous room of wide windows looking over Timiocato and over the Bullpen. It also employed polished black granite flooring and dark green quartz walls, modern light fixtures, masterpiece paintings and brushed aluminum furniture, with a giant, movable silver and pewter globe in the middle of the room. When Sorantanali came to power in 2006 he had had the prime minister's office completely gutted and renovated in a more traditional style, with thick patterned wallpaper, honey marble flooring, a leather-bound globe, ornate chandeliers and cherry wood furniture.

So upon the construction of the brand-new Archonacy Complex in Timiocato, Ell made sure the architectural intricacies of the office during his tenure would be replicated within the new Archonate's office, a chamber he hoped to occupy for the maximum twelve years.

He loved the openness of the old prime minister's office during his ten years there, because it allowed him to freely pace the room when he needed to analyse and disseminate information or intelligence reports.

And in true style, this time in the Archonate's quarters, he paced a familiar setting, his finely polished black shoes tapping on the ebony flooring, the sound echoing off the quartz on the walls.

He was deliberating how to proceed with the executive order to Lombardano, in deep thought, his charge d'affaires, Michelangelo Setrussamo, present to bounce ideas back.

Suddenly, the phone rang, the double-split style ring tone indicating the call was coming from an external source that had been routed through his secretary's switchboard.

Ell strode to the telephone, and on the third ring, picked up the receiver.

"Yes?"

He paused, and as the person on the other end revealed his identity, he gave Setrussamo a bemused look. The charge d'affaires silently picked up the other receiver and listened in intently, his eyes widening as he recognised the voice on the other end. The voice was coming from a country that had voluntarily shut itself out of world affairs for nearly a year, thus the sheer fact the man on the line was making the call in the first place, apart from his political battles with the Pacitalian archonate, was remarkable.

"Mr Haffner, this is definitely a surprise," he said, a little more gruffly than he intended. "What can we do for you?"

Signals Intelligence and Interception Department (SIGINT)
Pacitalian Central Intelligence Commission headquarters - "Teakwood"
Timiocato

Three rows of six people each sat at workstations, sifting through new signals analysis and radio and telecommunications intercepts. At the far end of the large room, at a big ring-shaped desk, sat the assignments director, a portly man of middle age, and the department head, a blonde woman with an impeccably polished appearance and an intuitive facial expression. Together they supervised the day-shift operations of the Pacitalian republic's main SIGINT department.

One of the analysts rose from his workstation and strode to the supervisor.

"I've got something interesting here," he said. The analyst passed the woman a seven-page printout with information on what appeared to be an unsecured nuclear device with no standard identification.

The woman's eyes widened as she continued to read the supplementary intelligence the analyst had gathered. The "caretaker president" of Manhattan Prime, a man increasingly reviled within his country and outside of it, apparently had gotten hold of a nuclear bomb and likely intended to use it as a last resort if the liberating forces were to come too close to victory.

"So you're sure this... Cloverfield... is in fact an impromptu nuclear device that could be detonated?" she said, incredulous.

"Yes, signora, and it appears that only one man has the detonation codes to the device. Whatever signature we are getting from the thing, it appears that it is a wireless radio-frequency remote detonation device, and capable of doing a fair bit of damage. The signature readout might be completely wrong but from what we have been gathering it appears to have at least a yield of 10 to 15 kilotons — significant enough to level a large part of, or the entire city of, Manhattan, just to give one example."

"Cavola," the supervisor cursed in surprise. This was urgent SIGINT pull.

"Thank you, this is excellent work," she said, dismissing the analyst. She picked up the phone and dialed Costica's secretary. She was immediately transferred through to his cell phone, as he was on his way back to PCIC's headquarters at Teakwood at that very moment. The distant background noise of Timiocato traffic backed up the agency director's voice.

"Sir, I have priority one information regarding a potential atomic instrument," the supervisor said. "Our analysts pulled some data with credible sourcing, thus it appears that the Manhattanite president has personal control of an unsecured nuclear device with no standard signature. We will be able to establish a GPS and signal link with the device as it is a wirelessly-controlled radio-frequency instrument, but I am calling to request approval to disable the device remotely."

"Can you uplink that to my screen?" Costica replied. "This is unbelievable. What is Dreygo doing?"

"I don't know, sir, but this is a major development. Who knows when he will use it? We've got to disable this device immediately."

Costica paused for a few seconds while he skimmed the data uplink. "All right," he said. "I'm assigning you clearance to disable the device remotely. But if you can establish a direct link with the device and figure out where it is in the capital, I want you to send an infiltration team in there right away to clean up the mess and make sure the remote disabling went through. We can't afford any mistakes on this."

"Yes, sir," the supervisor deftly replied. She replaced the receiver, then picked it up again and began making the requisite phone calls. Then she walked briskly out of the room, headed for the Counter-Espionage and Electronic Salvage department, where the remote disabling of the device would actually take place.

Dreygo's response was certainly not a surprise to Haffner. He was prepared for Sarzonia's diplomatic personnel being considered persona non grata.

What did surprise him mildly was the fact that the illegitimate government of Manhattan Prime didn't choose to make good on military threats. He read the reports, but figured his now-rare provocation would meet with girding for further action.

Haffner walked over to the press room in the Gray House. He walked in and faced the cameras with a little bit of nerves, but not nearly as many as he would face in Flagstaff. He smiled at the cameraman as he looked at Press Secretary Heather Lloyd.

"And you're on."

"My fellow Sarzonians," Haffner began. That three-word phrase was one so frequently uttered by Sarzo. Hearing it come from his own mouth was still something he'd have to get used to.

"The Incorporated Sarzonian Government does not recognise the illegitimate Dreygo administration as the rightful voice of the Manhattanite people," Haffner said. "We consider the democratically elected Andrew Cuthbert the president of Manhattan Prime.

"We are placing Manhattan Prime on diplomatic probation," Haffner continued. "The Manhattanite embassy will not be closed. However, its activities shall be suspended until such time as the political situation in Manhattan Prime sorts itself out. Any Manhattanite citizens currently in Sarzonia are not required to leave.

"The people of Sarzonia stand in strong solidarity with her friends in Manhattan Prime during their hour of need. We shall do everything within our power to ensure that the will of the people of Manhattan Prime is respected."

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

Haffner paused a beat. He knew he and Ell were far from close during his time as deputy senior vice president and external affairs officer and Ell's tenure as Pacitalian prime minister. However, he also knew matters were pressing enough that awkward pleasantries would have to be reserved for another time.

Still, he silently took in a breath before speaking.

"Actually, I was calling to make you an offer," Haffner said. "Owing to Pacitalia's previously special relationship with the Incorporated States of Sarzonia, we are prepared to do two things we normally would consider serious breaches of our military policy."

Before Ell could react, Haffner spoke up.

"We would like to take this opportunity to offer you a small force of Blue Cobras in the effort to capture Dreygo. The force picked is composed of the most elite company of our special forces. In addition, the lieutenant in command of the company has agreed to follow direct orders from Pacitalian special operations forces."

"I admit 100 Blue Cobras does not compare with 200,000 Special Attack Force Delta operatives under the late president's control," Haffner said, but these 100 are the very best of the best.

"In addition," Haffner said, "regardless of whether I am elected president or first partner Jay Tyler wins the presidency, I wish to explore fully normalising relations between our countries. I speak for the people of Sarzonia when I express the desire to see our nations fully return to being as close as they have been in the best of days."

Haffner waited for Ell's response with a mixture of nerves. He certainly put a lot on the table for the former prime minister and current Pacitalian head of state. But he knew what Sarzo would have wanted: Not just normalised relations, but a close friendship with the Pacitalian nation. He just hoped Ell felt the same.

Archonate's quarters

Ell listened intently, the acting president of Sarzonia listing the reasons for why he had called. He exchanged another bemused glance with Setrussamo — they were both drawing the same conclusions from the phone conversation. Haffner was swallowing a fair bit of personal and national pride in even making the call, and considering the Sarzonian's reputation for bluster and stubbornness, this was an intriguing development. Ell could be irritatingly stubborn in his own right, but that was another story.

Ell mentally noted the drastic changes in the tone of Haffner's voice. He spoke with confidence and vigour at first, as he explained his position as one that would breach the Incorporated States' military protocol. But his tone suddenly changed to one of humility when he broached the subject of the Blue Cobras joining the Dreygo raid. And, then, almost instantly, Haffner's voice sounded pained but hopeful as he finished speaking.

The Pacitalian archonate remained silent for a few moments as he contemplated what he had just been told. There was no doubt Haffner's offer was extremely significant and completely unexpected.

Finally he spoke.

"I am very, very pleased to hear that we are on the same page when it comes to restoring our relations. I think it is morally and culturally imperative that we end what has been three years running the gamut from bilateral stagnation to outright loathing. Considering that the last time our relations were at all decent was probably the fall of 2005, this is one idea that both I, and the government, continue to explore. I can also tell you, with great confidence, that Pacitalians are just as committed to the restoration of our once great friendship as Sarzonians are - to know that your people back this goal fully is extremely motivating."

He took a breath and continued.

"All that considered, I do appreciate your offer to send the best group of your special operations forces. Based on our strategy and the intelligence we have been gathering, I anticipate we will not need any other assistance in capturing Dreygo. On the other hand, I don't want to play games with you or your government, and accept your offer just to underutilise those commandoes for the sake of it. I just don't think there is any point in putting your men in harm's way when it's not necessary. Our men have been in position for nearly a week awaiting authorisation to proceed with the rendition operations.

"We have not sent SAFD commandoes for this mission," Ell said, "instead, we have entrusted the success of this mission to the Elite Special Operations Force's renowned White Squad as well as to individual PCIC agents. We would, however, appreciate a fresh perspective on how to close out the combat portion of this conflict."

Ell stopped and reconsidered Haffner's words... "regardless of who wins"... and continued speaking.

"To be frank, I am glad you called, and I'm impressed by the strength of the reconstructionist movement in Sarzonia. We must, all of us, work together to rebuild that relationship. It can return to a mutual position as one of our most vital trading, cultural and diplomatic friendships. But we have to work together, so if Woodstock is on board, so, too, is Timiocato.

"I just get the feeling it's what Mike would have wanted."

[OOC: Durn it! I was sort of hoping to try my hand at RPing a capture. Oh well. Worth a shot. :P]

Haffner didn't hide his disappointment at Ell's decline of his offer of special forces troops.

"Regarding your decision regarding using Blue Cobras, well, I certainly understand your position," Haffner said. "I believe it would be the most emphatic statement of our wish to resume bilateral cooperation possible.

"I appreciate your consideration of putting Sarzonians in harms way. With that said, you have certainly put Pacitalians in harms way to help our nation. We would not consider a sacrifice of Sarzonian lives a waste. Either way," Haffner said, "we would also welcome a post-combat role in restoring the legitimately elected government of Manhattan Prime."

Haffner brightened considerably when he addressed Ell's enthusiasm for restoring relations.

"I also believe in the moral responsibility of our governments to end three years of diplomatic tensions," Haffner said. "And personally, I apologise for allowing my sense of personal and national pride to get in the way of my appreciation and admiration for the Pacitalian state.

"Regardless of who becomes president, I would be honoured to meet with you in Woodstock or Timiocato to discuss the matter further. If I am elected president, you would be most welcome to visit the Gray House. If Mr. Tyler becomes president, I would suggest to him that he make his first state visit as president be to Timiocato.

"And, finally," Haffner said. "As a further demonstration of our strong desire to restore relations to their rightful place, I have signed an executive order restoring all previous honours awarded to you and to other Pacitalian citizens. Of particular interest, we have approved the Portland Stock Exchange's request to name their building the Timotaio Ell Building. We have also restored to you the award of the Presidential Gold Medal.

"Rest assured, Dr. Ell, Woodstock is on board with restoring relations." Pausing for a second, he smiled at the mention of the late president. "And, yes, I believe Mike would definitely want this."

Haffner remained on the phone, waiting for Ell's reaction.

"Thank you," Ell said. "I appreciate all of this. I do note that we restored Sarzo's Capostication upon his passing, and, in return, I will ensure that all other Sarzonian honours are restored. But I think we can discuss all the intricacies of the process some other time. I would be glad to visit Sarzonia once again; it has certainly been a long time."

He paused again for just a second, before continuing.

"Grant, thank you for calling. And I will make a note to pass along new contact information for you and your staff so that we can keep you in the loop with the MP conflict. Plus there hasn't been much communication of any kind between Woodstock and Timiocato since before we proclaimed a new republic and before you went into isolation... there is quite a bit of catching up to do on both our parts."

"My pleasure, Dr. Ell," Haffner said, clearly feeling better for having broached the subject of restoring the close bilateral friendship between Sarzonia and Pacitalia. If he were to become president, he would point to that as his signature accomplishment as senior vice president and external affairs officer. If, as he suspected, he would simply return to his old job in the event of a Tyler victory, he would still consider that his crowning achievement.

"And, I would also like to personally visit Timiocato and see its wonders first hand.

"More to the pressing matters at hand, we definitely must catch up on where our respective nations are since your proclamation of the Second Republic and since our Great Isolation*. I look forward to it. Thank you, Dr. Ell."

*[OOC: Paci, I was wondering if you and I could work on a Wiki about the Great Isolation?]

"Call me Tim, I insist. We're just people; let's dispense with the formalities. I'd like to return to first-name terms with the Sarzonian president anyway. Take care."

[OOC: Sure thing. I'd love to.]

From PNN.pc

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d197/Pacitalia/Daniel-Craig-1.jpg
Pacitalian archonate Dr Timothy Ell, and his wife, Sen. Giovanna
Cazunobari Ell, arrive at the Bright Green Ideas environmental leadership
dinner gala in Timiocato, Friday, 17th October, 2008. (PPA-APR)

Archonate: Remember recent lessons from history
Ell encourages non-violent civil disobedience, "uprising" against "tyrant" Dreygo


Niccolo Mantegusa and Stella Patsis, Timiocato

With much of the combat now over in the war for democracy in Manhattan Prime, the Pacitalian archonate is urging Manhattanites to "use their voices" and "be heard", and argues non-violent civil disobedience is the best way to support the drive for change and to oust the caretaker president, Artemis Dreygo.

Earlier this week, the Pacitalian Aeronautical Guard launched an offensive into the Imperial Republic, bombing strategic points in the capital and its surroundings. It was the latest major offensive in a series of large-scale combat operations on the part of the "freedom coalition". The efforts knocked out much of the country's telecommunications and radio infrastructure, and has rendered a significant portion of the country's military installations, in the vicinity of the capital, indefinitely useless.

As well, the late-evening air attacks targeted railway lines, major roads and power supply to the capital. Almost a third of Manhattan city remains without power three days after the bombings, which appear to have avoided any loss of civilian life.

Ell wanted Manhattanites to remember "recent history", pointing to Pacitalia's own democratic uprising just two years ago. A months-long, unrelenting popular movement ousted the incompetent and increasingly autocratic prime minister Constantino Sorantanali. Ell also pointed to the ousting of prime minister Giorgio Cassata in the late 1980s as proof that positive change can come from popular uprising.

"The Palm Revolution in 2006 ushered in an unprecedented era of renewed confidence and stability in Timiocato," he noted. "Popular, non-violent civil disobedience was the catalyst for great social and political change in our country, change that has been profoundly for the better. And we are at a point now where we can say, with confidence, that this is the strongest the Pacitalian republic has ever been."

The archonate stopped short of any diplomatic niceties, arguing that Dreygo's "unparalleled and unwarranted vitriol" toward Pacitalians and Pacitalian ideals and culture warranted such waspish rhetoric.

"Dreygo is yet another tyrant blackening the face of our region," Ell told reporters in a press briefing Monday at the Archonacy Complex. "Given the recent history of this region, we must remember that the only way to effect change is to become it. The only way to be free of the tyrant Dreygo is to break through the chains that bind you to him, to rise against him, and, with your voices and the strength of your numbers, shout to the skies that enough is enough."

The archonate moved to assure the regional community in Atlantian Oceania that Pacitalia, and allies Lamoni and Bazalonia, were continuing to better coordinate their efforts to bring about a quicker end to the combat operations, and, thus, minimise loss of life.

"We are working together," the archonate insisted, "building a strong coalition to help Manhattanites enfranchise themselves, as is their right under their very own Bill of Rights, to rid themselves of the corruption and disastrous policy of Dreygo's illegitimate caretaker government."

In atypical style, Ell expressed more informal and personal hopes for the crisis in Manhattan Prime.

"Every day Manhattanites reside in my prayers," he said. "I, and Pacitalians alike, want a swift, peaceful end to the crisis. These are our neighbours, our brothers, our friends. I just want to impress upon the people of the Imperial Republic that there are three countries, with twenty-five billion voices, backing them up... and billions more beyond that. And Artemis Dreygo, however terrifying the prospect, is just one man."

Ell then left the press room without taking questions. Press secretary Michelangelo Setrussamo said the archonate was headed back to his offices to chair a teleconference with Lamonian president Andrew Stinson and Bazalonian prime minister David Hawdon.

Setrussamo said the archonate and his two counterparts have been "in constant contact", especially through videoconferencing, to establish common strategy and streamline their operations. He noted the three leaders have met face-to-face several times over the course of the seven-month conflict.

The coalition is now moving to wrap up its combat operations in the Imperial Republic, capped with a manhunt for Mr Dreygo and re-establishment of democratically elected president Andrew Cuthbert's authority. Meanwhile, Mr Cuthbert continues to convalesce at an undisclosed private clinic in Pacitalia.

The 31-year-old is recovering from what doctors say were "unconscionably severe wounds" inflicted during the failed assassination attempt at his inauguration ceremony in March.

Current opinion polls suggest nearly three in four Pacitalians approve of the way Timiocato has handled the crisis in Manhattan Prime.

Woodstock Daily Mail

Haffner provides moderate response to Manhattanite bluster

by Lisa Bentley
Daily Mail Staff Writer

WOODSTOCK -- After Manhattan Prime's so-called caretaker president Artemis Dreygo declared Sarzonia's embassy personnel in Manhattan Prime personae non grata, most observers expected Woodstock to retaliate in kind by severing trade and diplomatic relations.

Acting president Grant Haffner, also the senior vice president and external affairs officer, certainly responded to Dreygo's decision. However, it was hardly the response people expected from a man formerly known as late president Mike Sarzo's bulldog. He borrowed a page from Sarzo's playbook, but did little else.

"The Incorporated Sarzonian Government does not recognise the illegitimate Dreygo administration as the rightful voice of the Manhattanite people," Haffner said in a statement at the Gray House. He added that Sarzonia recognised elected president Andrew Cuthbert as the Manhattanite chief executive.

The biggest news out of the Gray House, however, was that Manhattan Prime was placed on diplomatic probation and its embassy was suspended. In addition, Haffner refused to bar Manhattanites from Sarzonia. Gray House insiders say the moves were deliberate.

"He explicitly wanted to leave the door open for any Manhattanites who wish to seek asylum in Sarzonia," said External Affairs Chief of Staff James Melvin. "He also wanted to make it emphatically clear that our quarrel is with the illegitimate government of Manhattan Prime, not with Cuthbert or the people of Manhattan Prime."

Still, the moves come as a surprise considering Haffner's prior reputation for stubborn behaviour and bluster. However, another source familiar with the caretaker Sarzonian government said Haffner's subdued response was also deliberate.

"He is trying to project calm," said one source, who asked to remain anonymous because of her position in the government. "He's also felt the heavy weight of responsibility of serving as acting president. This experience has definitely changed him."

Haffner did not answer questions at the press conference, but he reiterated his and Sarzonia's support for the people of Manhattan Prime.

"The people of Sarzonia stand in strong solidarity with her friends in Manhattan Prime during their hour of need. We shall do everything within our power to ensure that the will of the people of Manhattan Prime is respected."

One political analyst said Haffner's response was directly related to his presidential campaign.

"Haffner has an eye on the Gray House," said Carrie Bankhead, executive director of the Government Research Coalition, a loose collection of political think tanks in Saugerties. "He's doing everything in his power to prove he belongs in the president's office."

Haffner's response seemed to work. According to the latest Daily Mail polls, he's now in a virtual dead heat with former first partner Jay Tyler, drawing 37 percent of likely voters to Tyler's 39 percent. Former Sen. Brian Delgado (Conservative-Cooke) came in third with 22 percent of the vote. The poll has a 3 percent margin of error.

Senate Chambers, Manhattan

The Manhattanite Senate had not met for several months – the 150 members of the country’s elected parliament were still holed up in the Senate Building, forbidden to leave by armed military guards ‘for their own safety’ whilst the national emergency went on. Though well treated, they had been forbidden to meet and debate unless they allowed a hated Dreygoist officer to chair the proceedings, and armed guards to observe the emergency session.

The Senators had for months refused to agree to these terms, arguing that if their right to debate openly would be so constrained, then it was no better than being forbidden to speak at all. It was only with the revelation that Cuthbert was alive, and therefore Dreygo was no longer President that provoked them to change their minds, and accept any conditions in return for being able to vote on a single motion.

Senator Rasheed Singh (Respect/Perth West) was very nervous as his took his place at the podium to introduce his motion. This might just prove to be the most significant thing he’d done in politics so far – or it could just get him killed. To calm himself he did a quick headcount of empty seats in the chamber – only 5 Senators were missing from the proceedings. Nothing like being under house arrest to improve turnout, Singh thought to himself wryly. Those members of Cuthbert’s cabinet that had been rescued alongside him had been allowed to take their seats, and a lot of them looked tired and haggard from their ordeal.

Swallowing his nerves, the Senator stood up and began to read, voice shaking slightly. “Honourable members, the motion is thus – that this house condemns the actions of Senator Artemis Dreygo in illegally seizing this land’s highest office, and call for a vote of no-confidence in his leadership. We further demand that a referendum of the Manhattanite people be held to decide whether or not President Dreygo should step aside”

Shocked gasps filled the chamber at the audacity of the motion, and Singh could see hostile looks amongst the soldiers. Things only got more tense as the only Senator found to speak against the motion argued that it did go far enough in condemning a man who had ordered the assassination of a sitting President. Singh’s pulse was racing as he regarded his voting keypad, and firmed pressed the ‘Aye’ key.

As was customary before a vote, the Chair gave the Senate details of which members had not been present to vote:

“145 members are present, two seats are currently vacant, those of:

Vice President Loren Hunter (Liberal/Manhattan Old Quarter)
Senator Peter Bond (Liberal/ Pittsburgh)

The Senate sat in stony silence as the names of its killed members were read out and noted down. Then came the absentees:

Senator Artemis Dreygo (Unity/Manhattan Central)
Senator Korin Duval (Liberal/Darwin)
President Andrew Cuthbert (Liberal/New Cambridge)

The officer chairing the procedure was forced to bang on the desk with his gavel for order, as Dreygo’s name was met with a chorus of boos and shouts of derision. When he finally had silence, the final names were read out, of the critically injured President and the Chief of Staff who would not leave his side. Finally the results were revealed - showing uncharactistic courage in a room full of armed men, the Senate had approved the motion by 137-8 and the room suddenly exploded into cheering and anti-Dreygo chants. From the vote margins, even some of Dreygo’s own Unity Senators must have supported it, perhaps realising that he was not the charismatic politician they had thought he was. The applause continued, ignoring the gavel until the Chair fired an automatic burst into the ceiling for silence. Stunned, the room was quiet as officers yelled “this facade is over, back to your rooms, NOW!”
**
Manhattan

Tensions were also high in the streets of the capital – Manhattanites were frustrated with the war and the recent powercuts and communications blackouts. The people were outragaged at the audacity with which their treasured democracy had been perverted and the clinical and clean nature of Pacitalian strikes (in which 10 were slightly injured and none killed) meant that they provoked little anger – if anything the people and Pacitalia had a common goal now in deposing Dreygo. Despite the blackouts, news of Timothy Ell’s call to arms had got through. Ell urged them to make their voices heard and put pressure on the government with non-violent civil disobedience – effectively to use the same kind of tactics against Dreygo, that were successful in ousting Pacitalian Prime Minister Sorantanali, a man who Dreygo said was ‘a monster’ and a reason not to limit our associations with our southern neighbour.

The Pacitalian community of Manhattan, both those who had taken Manhattanite citizenship and those who had not, were out in force. As foreigners and nationals of a country Dreygo had claimed was invading Manhattan Prime, they had suffered badly from curfews, insults and militia attacks on their shops and homes.

Many were wearing Pacitalian football shirts, for the lack of any other way to show their identity. They knew now was the time to stand up. Insulting banners were everywhere, mostly along the theme of pictures of Dreygo and Sorantanali with an equals sign between them, and slogans saying something to the extent of ‘same crap, different asshole’. Many of the more recent arrivals had even participated in demonstrations against Sorantanali in their home country.

All in all, a crowd of around 100,000 of all backgrounds and ages were demonstrating in the streets, chanting and waving banners. They were clearly angry, but were unarmed. Liberal Party members sang Cuthbert’s name, and when a large police detachment arrived the crowd began chanting ‘Hail to the Thief’ and ‘Down with Dreygo’.

Officers watched horrified from a patrol helicopter as searchlights swept the crowd and the protestors were decried as collaborators in a time of war and urged to support their nation against it’s agressors. The call went out for the crowd to disperse or else police officers would open fire, but as the front ranks of protestors wavered, the police almost to a man refused to fire on civilians, and throwing down their weapons they actually joined the crowd, outraged at being given such an order. Military forces from the two Dreygoist divisions still holding the capital were brought up to take their place and the order to retreat was called out again by a panicked government. The troops proved to be less squeamish about their orders as their opened fire into the crowd with assault rifle fire. Onlookers covered their eyes as a mass panic overtook the crowd and many were crushed to death in the struggle to escape the killing zone.

<96 killed, hundreds wounded>

With the revelations of Cuthbert surviving the assassination attack, and new evidence that Dreygo stole the election and had some involvement in the assassination attempt itself, public anger against the so-called ‘invading’ peacekeepers has shifted against the Caretaker President himself and major demonstrations took place today in the 6 Provincial Capitals of Manhattan, New London, New Sydney, New Tokyo, New Berlin and Vancouver, demanding that he relinquish power back to the true President.

Woodstock Daily Mail

Haffner calls for Dreygo's resignation

by Lisa Bentley
Daily Mail Staff Writer

WOODSTOCK (21 October 2008) -- Acting President Grant Haffner became the latest national leader to weigh in on the illegitimate leadership of Manhattan Prime's Artemis Dreygo, calling for the Manhattanite senator to resign and return the presidency to Andrew Cuthbert.

"In the wake of the vote by the Manhattanite Senate, the Incorporated States of Sarzonia calls upon Artemis Dreygo to rescind his claim to the presidency of Manhattan Prime," Haffner said. "We call upon Dreygo to respect the democratic process that resulted in Andrew Cuthbert becoming the elected president of Manhattan Prime."

Haffner's statement was the most direct challenge issued by a Sarzonian to a foreign head of state since the Great Isolation (http://nswiki.net/index.php?title=Sarzonian_Great_Isolation) began over a year ago. Insider analysts point to the Manhattanite Senate's vote of no confidence as being the event that pushed Haffner to act.

"He felt he had no choice," said James Melvin, Haffner's chief of staff at External Affairs. "The Senate vote removed whatever legitimacy Dreygo claimed."

In addition, Haffner announced Sarzonia's formal withdraw of its recognition of Dreygo as president of Manhattan Prime. Previously, the Incorporated Sarzonian Government unofficially referred to Cuthbert as president. Now, however, it did so as a matter of official notice.

"Effective immediately, the Incorporated States of Sarzonia and the Incorporated Sarzonian Government declares Andrew Cuthbert the legitimate head of state in Manhattan Prime," Haffner said. "We shall consider any actions imposed by Dreygo null and void."

Political analysts in Sarzonia said Haffner's decision was analogous to Sarzo's decision to withdraw its recognition of former Pacitalian prime minister Constantino Sorantanali and declare Pacitalia to be a leaderless country.

Haffner declined to answer questions about the possibility of military intervention in Manhattan, citing confidence in the currently involved nations. However, he hinted at the possibility of Sarzonia becoming involved in a postwar reconstruction of Manhattan Prime.

"We would welcome the opportunity to sit at the table and help our Manhattanite brothers and sisters with the reconstruction of their buildings and their national psyche," Haffner said. "Beyond that, the Incorporated States does not foresee direct military intervention unless we are provoked into it."

Gray House insiders would not confirm published reports that Haffner contacted Pacitalian Archonate Timotaio Ell about normalising relations with Pacitalia. He did say he hoped Sarzonia would "follow the lead of her people" and work toward repairing the damage wrought two years ago.

Breaking news from PNN.pc

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Pacitalian archonate Dr Timothy Ell leaves an
emergency cabinet meeting at Vestibulo Conagresso
Ladovesta, Tuesday, 21st October, 2008. (PPA-APR)

Protestors massacred in MP capital
96 killed, hundreds wounded as troops open fire on peaceful demonstration
Archonate condemns "genocide", says Dreygo is "in desperation mode"


Marco Bantafugra, Timiocato

The mood is grim in the Pacitalian capital following an emergency cabinet meeting called to discuss the Republican response to a blatant massacre of peaceful demonstrators in Manhattan city.

Thousands packed the streets on the advice of Pacitalian archonate Dr Timothy Ell, who called for non-violent civil disobedience to help chip away at "caretaker president" Artemis Dreygo's hold on power.

But the protests ended violently and will go down as one of the darkest days in the history of the Imperial Republic. Ninety-six people died either as a result of gunshot wounds or from the ensuing panic and stampede. Hundreds more sustained various injuries.

After the cabinet meeting — which was called so hastily that it had to be held, not at the New Prado, but at a congress hall in Timiocato's west end — the archonate spoke to an impromptu press scrum assembled out front.

"Today, Mr Dreygo crossed a line and can no longer reverse course," Ell said. "We have seen clear proof that his hatred is not just of foreigners, it is of humanity, of all people, equally and generally. He will kill his own compatriots just to remain at the helm. Today's events form a despicable stain on Manhattan Prime's history... and these crimes against humanity will not stand."

"Today," the archonate added, "we witnessed premeditated mass murder."

A joint statement was issued on behalf of the two houses of parliament, led by the prime minister, Archetenia Nera, and her cabinet. It condemned in the strongest possible terms the violent acts and resolved further action to limit Dreygo's authority both inside and outside Manhattan Prime. For example, the prime minister said her government will look "for any means possible" to freeze the president's financial assets.

The archonate said, despite the tragedy, he could "feel the current of hope electrifying the Manhattanite people" and urged them to continue with peaceful demonstration.

"I still believe that it is right to rise up," he said. "I believe the more people continue to fear him, the better he can justify his hold on power."

The prime minister concurred, noting it was "a very good sign" that police laid down their arms and joined the protests rather than obey their orders to contain the crowds.

"I think that is a very encouraging and heartening thing," Ms Nera said over the phone from the Prado. "It impresses the fact that there is increasing discomfort with the scope and continuation of Dreygo's corrupt rule... that there is no longer any real endorsement or defence of this man."

"It is now clearer than ever that Artemis Dreygo is not a leader," she noted. "He is a murderer."

Hawdon Rails Against Dreygo

In a public announcement today made by the Prime Minister, David Hawdon, he railed against the sham democratic front of an Authoritarian Manhattanite government. In this 20 minute address the Prime Minister accused the would-be President of suppressing the democratic rights of his people, encouraging anarchic biker gangs and being unwilling to look after the needs of his people.

Bazalonia was shocked that President Cuthbert who was thought to be dead was revealed to be alive in a public broadcast from somewhere in Manhattan Prime, from that point on there has been an increasing amount of pressure for the government to intervene in the situation.

The Chief of Army, General Steven Jones, announced that there would be no Bazalonian Military deployed. "Pacitalia and Lamoni have done a great job and there is no need to deploy Bazalonian forces when it's all over bar the shouting." In the last portion of the Prime Minister's address he called on the President to see reason. "Dreygo you have lost, come out on hiding if you ever really were a president you should save yourself this last little bit of humiliation."

There are rumours of a mission to capture Dreygo alive but the Bazalonian government has denied any involvement of the Bazalonian SAS Special Forces, or any military involvement what so ever. Even with publc calls for involvement and pressure from within his own government David Hawdon has refused to involve Bazalonia in military operations and has replied "I am working with our Allies from Lamoni, Pacitalia and Sarzonia to ensure this comes to a quick resolution."

Just how and what Bazalonia might contribute is unknown, yet high-level interaction between Lamoni, Pacitalia, Sarzonia and Bazalonia have been confirmed by Pacitalian sources. The nation waits to see what happens inside Manhattan Prime, both in Dreygo's response and the average citizen's response.

Senator Dreygo accused of war crimes

In a press conference held in Nephi today, President Stinson made his views on Artemis Dreygo, and the situation in Manhattan Prime known. Speaking via teleconference from LAF1, the Lamonian President issued a Writ of War Crimes against Senator Artemis Dreygo of Manhattan Prime. The charges noted on the Writ include, Attempted Assassination of the democratically elected President Cuthbert, illegally taking power in Manhattan Prime, Pre-meditated murder of peaceful protesters in Manhattan, as well as Conspiracy to comitt Murder.

The issuance of said Writ enables Lamonian forces to arrest Senator Dreygo, and hold him for the legitamate government of Manhattan Prime; who would be expected to put Senator Dreygo on trial. If for some reason the legitamate government of Manhattan Prime is unable to try Senator Dreygo inside their borders, the Writ also allows them to try him on Lamonian soil, under Lamonian military protection, in a Lamonian courtroom. It is thought that Lamonian allies Pacitalia and Bazalonia might latch on to the Writ as well, giving all parties involved a joint standing on the disposition of Senator Artemis Dreygo if he is captured by allied forces.

Elements of the Lamonian Army are already surrounding Manhattan, permitting people to leave after a check to make sure that they are not Senator Dreygo, or a Dreygo supporter. All those who need medical attention are freely given it if they can make it to the Lamonian lines, which consist of an encirclement of Manhattan, anywhere from twenty to ten km from the outskirts of the city. In order to protect our forces, we cannot be more precise than that.

Given the Lamonian encirclement of the city, it is believed that Senator Dreygo remains inside Manhattan; but his location inside of the city is thus far unknown.

---

OOC: MP, i'm thinking of a special forces raid into Manhattan in order to rescue the Manhattanite Senate. Let me know what you think of that.

OOC: MP, i'm thinking of a special forces raid into Manhattan in order to rescue the Manhattanite Senate. Let me know what you think of that.

OOC: Don't forget I have 16,000 SAFD commandoes, a division of my White Squad and 43 PCIC agents in the capital. You've got me surrounded too. :p

I've got a contingent of commandoes holed up in secret a few blocks from the Senate building waiting for word to strike. And my capture of Dreygo is imminent, though the national parliament will endorse a war crimes document. Let's talk with MP about the final theatre before we post anything.

Aboard the ISS Manhattan, 500 km outside Manhattanite waters

"Captain, what do you make of this?"

Captain Chris Ridge walked to a position closer to the television in the officers' mess. His communications officer, Lieutenant Mark Anderson was watching SNN's report of the shooting of protesters.

"Unbelieveable," Ridge muttered. "Unfuckingbelieveable."

"What do we do, captain?"

Ridge lowered his head slightly and cast his eyes downward, trying hard to hide his frustration. If he diverted the Manhattan, it would be a direct violation of ISN orders. Even though the Manhattan was a Randolph class heavy cruiser, having a warship, particularly one from the Sarzonian navy, in the offing would probably be seen as a military provocation.

"Captain?"

"There's not much we can do," Ridge said. Then, the screen showed Haffner.

"My fellow Sarzonians," Haffner began. "Today, you saw the senseless murder of 96 Manhattanite citizens and the violent injury to hundreds more. These were people whose only crime was taking advantage of their inherent rights to assemble peacefully to protest their government. They were brutally murdered by a man who is nothing short of a megalomaniac and a despot.

"The Incorporated Sarzonian Government declares Artemis Dreygo an Enemy of Democracy. In addition, we declare him an Enemy of Peace. He shall be considered a war criminal and if we apprehend him, we shall put him on trial for crimes against humanity.

"Make no mistake Artemis Dreygo, your days are numbered. A government that seeks to force the people to serve it instead of serving the people is a government that can not stand long. I implore you to learn the lessons of history.

"Once upon a time, you called former Pacitalian prime minister Constantino Sorantanali a 'monster'. Well, now you have become a Sorantanaliesque monster. It is time for you to stop being a hypocrite and start Manhattan Prime on the road to healing."

Moments later, Anderson raced toward a station in the officers' mess and came back with a sheet of paper. He handed it to Ridge, who spent a minute to read it. He then looked up quickly and walked over to grab a phone.

"Bridge. Commander Stewart."

"Staci, set course for Manhattanite waters. Full speed."

"Captain?"

"We've just received orders from vice president Bunhall. We've been ordered to observe the situation and protect a relief convoy headed there."

"Acknowledged."

Guess I'd better head back to the bridge, Ridge thought. So much for lunch. He knew Chef would be annoyed, but he also knew why he kept a microwave in his quarters. That would likely come in handy once this situation settled down.

[OOC: The Randolph class is a heavy cruiser whose main armament is eight-inch guns. The convoy includes ships designed to carry food, blankets, emergency supplies and whatnot and includes a Pasteur class hospital ship ISNS Mercy. Its current escort consists of three frigates and two destroyers for anti-aircraft and anti-submarine action.]

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Pressure grows on Dreygo as troops shoot protestors
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2008 | WORLD | by Natalia Kazumi


At least 96 people are confirmed dead after Manhattanite troops opened fire on protestors in the capital of Manhattan Prime, provoking a firestorm of international criticism and renewed pressure on the government of Artemis Dreygo.

The incident came on the same day that the Manhattanite Senate approved a motion of no confidence in Dreygo's government and called for a referendum to be held on his continued leadership. Reports indicate that the senators are being held by troops loyal to Dreygo.

It is widely believed that remarks by Archonate of Pacitalia Timothy Ell calling on Manhattanites to "rise against" the Dreygo government played a major role in inciting the protest. Ell was also among the first to condemn the incident, calling it "premeditated mass murder" and a crime against humanity.

Kelssek's Prime Minister Pierre Gautain, on a tour of the East Pacific, added his voice to the chorus of worldwide criticism, telling reporters at Tricorne airport, where he was preparing to depart Really Nice Hats, that Artemis Dreygo had lost all legitimacy.

"The world believed, while the facts remained hidden, that Mr. Dreygo was a stabilising force with the support of the Manhattanite people. Now we can see the truth and this latest incident demonstrates that he has no legitimacy to continue holding power in that country."

"These unconscionable acts are those of a desperate, dictatorial regime which is doomed to fall."

It is widely expected that military action against the Dreygo government could intensify as a result of the latest events.

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Snefaldia shocked by reports of massacre
Thursday, October 23, 2008 | English-language Edition | WORLD NEWS


SARGEDAIN- The Chancellery expressed shock today at reports of atrocities in Manhattan Prime, reports of which have been filtering into the country through foreign news sources.

"Although Snefaldia lacks formal relations with Manhattan Prime, every citizen is shocked by the horrendous atrocities perpetrated by the Dreygo junta." said outgoing Lord Chancellor Anzapahhadu Mugallu. "As a nation wracked by political crisis and on the verge of chaos not one month ago, every citizen of Snefaldia understands the feeling in Manhattan Prime, and join with the rest of the world in decrying such wanton displays of tyranny."

Chancellor Mugallu ruled out any military action on behalf of the Snefaldian government, despite his administration's involvement with such efforts in the Altan Steppes and Yelda, citing "public opposition to such expeditions and lack of close relations" to Manhattan Prime.

Former Deputy and Chancellery candidate Márkës Vinsëłmø-Ŕymè, speaking to a crown in the Port City, decried the actions of the Dreygo government as "inhumane, antidemocratic, and unconscionable.," saying the universal condemnation of the acts as "a proud moment of the international community uniting against injustice." Mr. Vinsëłmø-Ŕymè, whose candidacy for the Chancellery will be voted on tomorrow, promised that if elected he would support military action against oppressive regimes and seek to strengthen diplomatic ties with like-minded nations.


Grand Librarian Andrew Holbrook, spokesperson for the religion of Aatem Nal, called on the faithful to offer their prayers to those killed in the action, and "remember for all time those killed in defense of democracy and freedom."

From PNN.pc

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Nearly two million people crammed Bergamo's Plaça Liberació
da Catalunya as part of a national day of action against oppression
and dictatorship in Manhattan Prime, Thursday, 23rd October, 2008.
Participation levels in the protest reached nearly four billion, more than
ten times the size of the NDA in 2006. Below left: Three million assemble
in Piazza Alessandro Rex, Nortopalazzo. Below right: Pacitalian prime
minister Archetenia Nera speaks to demonstrators at Stadio Regionale
Gulfera in Amita. (All photos: PPA-APR)

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National day of action, mass strikes shut down Pacitalia
Members of Pacitalia's five largest unions spill into the streets to join protest against Dreygo



Miguel Porsatillo; Bergamo, Empordia Bassa

The Pacitalian message is no longer restricted to the halls of government in Timiocato.

Pacitalians north and south, east and west, made it abundantly clear today they want Manhattanite "caretaker president" Artemis Dreygo ousted, in a national rallying cry that spread across the country, shut down public transportation networks and roads, closed most stock, forex and commodities exchanges, and clogged streets with millions upon millions of pedestrians.

Pacitalia's four largest labour unions — the Conagresso Generale del Lavoro (CGL), the Sindicato degl'Impiegatori Servizio Pacitaliana (SISP), the Trades and Technology Union (TTU-STCD) and the National Federation of Educators (NFE-FRE) — plus the Pacitalian Federation of Students (PFS-FPA) issued non-binding strike notice, sending nearly a fifth of Pacitalia's workforce and sixty percent of tertiary students onto the streets to join the nearly one billion already assembling in squares, marketplaces and stadiums across the country.

All participants considered, the CGL and the national government both estimate just shy of four billion demonstrated for the ousting of the increasingly despotic and dictatorial Artemis Dreygo.

The national day of action, which follows one held two years ago in August, was hastily but admirably organised, with Pacitalian musicians performing in some venues free of charge and politicians and community leaders from across the country joining in to speak and rally the masses. Organisers said the NDA was spurred by "the murder of ninety-six innocents exercising a constitutionally enshrined right in Manhattan Prime to engage in peaceful demonstration".

The most notable protest was in Bergamo, the closest Pacitalian major city to the border with Manhattan Prime and the home of the government-in-exile. Here, two million jammed Plaça Liberació da Catalunya despite cool, cloudy conditions. The protestors waved cobalt blue banners in homage to the dominant colour of the Manhattanite flag, and many of the assembled also dressed in the colour. The Heroes' Column, the centrepiece of the square, was partially cloaked in a light blue veil, and adjacent buildings were bathed in the illumination from icy blue searchlights.

Pacitalian archonate Dr Timothy Ell appeared at the main protest in Timiocato and spoke for about fifteen minutes. Meanwhile, Pacitalia's prime minister, Archetenia Nera, joined the crowd of 179,000 at Stadio Regionale Gulfera, making a surprise appearance there to speak to the crowds.

"Artemis Dreygo, this is democracy in action," Ell said in Pacitalian to a deafening roar. "This is the apex of freedom; the reality of the world! Open your eyes!"

The national day of action, which morphed into a de facto one-day strike, shut down many non-essential public services and institutions from the national to the local level. Most universities chose to cancel classes from around 10.00am Thursday instead of teaching the fraction of students that attended.

Public transport services (run by unionised employees) were down to a minimum in most major cities, but most people appeared content with walking to and from demonstrations.

Law enforcement noted that all protests were peaceful across the country and only a few arrests were made for damage to private property.

The national government says all public services will return to normal operation Friday.

Nephi Times
Miguelito Tobias
Lamonian Unions and Students show support for the people of Manhattan Prime

In a show of support to the people of Manhattan Prime that are suffering under the dictatorial yoke of the Manhattanite War Criminal Artemis Dreygo, union members and university students staged massive ad hoc strikes to attend rallies aimed at showing the power of free people who rally to a cause.

Such rallies have broken out in all of the major Lamonian cities, and a previously recorded video statement by President Stinson was played at each of the rallies, stating the President's support of the people of Manhattan Prime; as well as his support for the allied troops who struggled to restore democratic freedom to the people of Manhattan Prime.

Indeed Lamonian home front support for the allied police action in Manhattan Prime currently stands at 95%, up from 80% before the killing of the peaceful protesters by forces loyal to the Manhattanite War Criminal. All three branches of the Lamonian military have reported that their recruitment goals have easily been exceeded since the police action started, and public support of Lamonian military personell is also the highest that it has ever been during peacetime.

Lamonian forces currently surround Manhattan, awaiting the opportune time to liberate Manhattan from the remaining Dreygoist forces that still impose Dreygo's dictatorial regime in that city. Lamonian relief supplies are starting to make their way to Manhattan Prime, and Lamonian Military Engineers are also being dispatched in order to rebuild public infrastructure and house that may have been lost during the fighting.

Pacitalian students and unions have also joined the protests against Artemis Dreygo today, and it has been suggested that the Lamonian government was tipped off in advance about the protest day in Pacitalia. The Lamonian government refuses to confirm or deny this, however.

Aboard the ISS Hornet, en route to New Sydney

"General quarters! All hands to general quarters!"

The sound of the klaxon interrupted sleep for many people aboard the Swiftsure class Trimaran light carrier. Dazed sailors and officers quickly rushed from beds to their battle stations.

Meanwhile, Commodore Devin Perriman was shaking his head in disapproval. He looked down at his watch and looked at the disheveled lieutenant at the comm station.

"Three minutes," Perriman said with a scowl. "That's unacceptable."

"Understood, sir," the nervous lieutenant offered.

"We need to get it under two minutes at all times," Perriman said. "Granted, night watch will be a bit trickier, but we need to be ready fast no matter what time it is."

"I agree with you, sir," the lieutenant said.

"All right," Perriman said. "Drill's over. Tell everyone to stand down from general quarters."

"Aye, sir."

Perriman looked and saw commander Marcius Ferragamo walk onto the bridge.

"Commander, may I have a word with you?"

"Aye, sir."

"Commander Collins, you have the bridge."

"Aye, sir."

Perriman stood up from his captain's chair and walked into his office with Ferragamo. The son of Pacitalian and Praetonian immigrants had only served with Perriman for a few months, but they already developed a strong working relationship.

"Marsh, what's your read on lieutenant Bateman?"

"Lieutenant Bateman is a capable officer, sir," Ferragamo said. "He graduated top of his class from Naval University."

"I know that Marsh. Let's drop ranks for a moment. I'm concerned about his performance."

"Devin, he earned an acceptable grade on the drill we just had," Ferragamo said. "And that's with the tighter standards sent down by Naval Command."

"That's not what I'm getting at."

"Then what are you getting at, Devin?"

"Bateman seems like too much of a yes man for my liking."

"Permission to speak candidly, sir?"

Perriman raised an eyebrow.

"That's why you're here. Permission granted."

"Devin, you act as though you expect people to read your mind. You say you don't want a yes man, but you haven't given Bateman much of a chance to say what's on his mind."

"That may very well be," Perriman said. "Having said that, I made it clear when he came on board that he could come into my office any time with concerns. He hasn't done that yet. Could you talk to him about that?"

"Sure will."

"Meanwhile, what's the latest on the Manhattan Prime situation?"

"The pro-Cuthbert forces have control of New Sydney. That's why we're headed there to provide air cover for the convoy. I doubt the Dreygo forces will have much in the way of weaponry, but you can never be too cautious."

"Where's the Second Fleet?"

"Four hours away at flanking speed."

"How soon will we get to the convoy."

"At our current speed, we should be there within the hour."

"Thanks, Marsh. Say, wanna have lunch before we arrive at the rendezvous coordinates?"

"Sure."

Within the hour, the Hornet arrived and met up with Manhattan and the other ships in the convoy and prepared to land relief supplies.

OOC: Having internet problems in my hall, will try to get an update up soon guys

Aboard the ISS Shiloh, 200 nautical miles away from New Sydney

Unlike Perriman, Captain Lynda Morgan had no complaints about her crew. She and her executive officer, Praetonian immigrant Decius Collingsworth, both whipped the crew into tremendous fighting trim.

However, in her opinion Shiloh herself left something to be desired. Rather than one of the coveted Adamant class Trimaran battleships, she was an aging Antietam class battleship originally thought to be out of favour with the Incorporated Sarzonian Navy. Hers was one of the hulls that was ready for immediate deployment, however, so she was assigned to monitor the situation in Manhattan Prime.

"Commander, may I have a word with you?" Morgan asked.

"Yes, Captain," Collingsworth said.

"Mr. Jamison, you have the bridge," Morgan said. "Set a course for the rendezvous coordinates. Ahead 30 knots.

"Aye, sir."

Once in the captain's ready room, Morgan turned to her exec.

"What's your read on the Manhattanite situation?"

"Not much has changed since our orders from Naval Command."

Morgan turned slightly to her right, almost as if she wanted to hide her disappointment. She pursed her lips and shook her head slightly.

"I was afraid of that."

"Come again?"

"Have you heard the old saying 'no news is good news'?"

"I have."

"Not in this case," Morgan said, allowing her voice to trail off. "Something about this whole situation makes me rather nervous."

Collingsworth walked toward her in an effort to get her to look directly at him. He tried to reassure Morgan about the Shiloh.

"This ship is more than ready," Collingsworth said. "We've passed the last five drills with what you Sarzonians call flying colours. This ship is a joint design by two of what I'd consider the three best naval ship design companies in the world. The Shiloh is a most logical choice for this mission."

"I'm aware of the accolades this ship class has gotten and continues to get," Morgan said. "Doesn't mean I'm that confident."

Now it was Collingsworth's turn to shake his head. He was one of the few people of Praetonian descent who favoured the monohull over the Trimaran hull construction that Sarzonians began preferring. He also knew the survivability of the Antietam class was right up there with some of the best ships in the world. Whatever confidence Morgan lacked in the class he more than made up for.

"There aren't that many ship designs out there that could easily send an Antietam class battleship to the bottom," Collingsworth said. "And this crew, and dare I say her captain, are both rather skilled. Otherwise, they wouldn't be in the Incorporated Sarzonian Navy."

Morgan sighed. She looked into Collingsworth's eyes not entirely convinced, but for the sake of peace, she would try to swallow her doubts. She then heard the intercom beep.

"Engineering to Captain Morgan."

"Go ahead."

"Captain, these engines can't take the strain of 30 knots longer than 12 hours."

"Acknowledged, Mr. Harlan," Morgan said. "However, we shouldn't need them much longer than six hours." She heard chief engineer Sam Harlan mutter something under his breath as he turned off the intercom. She was used to his manner, even if Collingsworth found it unsettling.

Morgan and Collingsworth both returned to the bridge, where Morgan walked to the captain's chair in the centre of the room.

"Contact the Hornet," Morgan said. "Inform them we're five and a half hours away from the rendezvous point."

"Aye, sir."

Morgan knew the five and a half hours weren't that much in the grand scheme of a world used to operating in days, weeks and months. But she also knew that period of time would seem like an eternity.

OOC: Need to talk to ya on MSN Sarz

Counter–Espionage and Electronic Salvage Department
Pacitalian Central Intelligence Commission, Timiocato

The CEES team furiously worked their keyboards, hashing out provisional code for a PCIC circuitry-inhibitor project, codenamed Red Scarf, that was a couple of months behind schedule. Word had come straight from the top a few days ago that Costica and the PCIC executive directors were insistent upon a rapid completion of Red Scarf, at least preliminarily; thus, the CEES department had set to work basically that very morning working on the program architecture.

The surveillance program would give the PCIC so-called "intractable electronic capability" to remotely disable radio-frequency incendiary devices and telecommunications infrastructure, and anything else with a wireless signal repeater and receiver that posed a threat to Pacitalian national security. The program would operate under one-way split-channel cloaking, meaning the code's architecture would be dynamic enough to avoid counterattack and stealth enough to avoid any detection.

In simpler terms, the code would act in two stages. The first part of the code would figure out how and where to implant itself within a bomb's circuitry. The second, and more complex, part would do the actual dirty work, like a virus, attacking the chip circuitry by causing rapid overheating, or "quenching", in the chipset. It would simultaneously override cooling functions in the chip's own coding and then force the chip to short-circuit as it would have no mechanical ability to cool itself down. The cooling fans would not run fast enough to stop the overheating and the chip would be instructed to raise the overall temperature in the chipset housing. The chipset would then either melt or burst, without any risk of triggering the detonator. The whole process would also happen discreetly — even standing right next to the bomb a person would have no idea that the main circuitry had just shorted out.

What the CEES team didn't know was that in just a few minutes they'd be running not a live simulation drill to test the code for weaknesses... no, the first test of Red Scarf would be a live project in green-light.

The magnetic card-controlled bulletproof glass receded into the wall with a subdued swish. The blonde-haired SIGINT department supervisor, Loredana Valentinescu, entered the room and strode to the CEES assignment desk. Conversing in low tones with her counterpart, Vas Apontelimon, Valentinescu appeared to be quite pensive... then, suddenly, spoke up.

"Ladies, gentlemen, this is a priority one national security situation and you will give us," gesturing to herself and to Apontelimon, "your full cooperation. About fifteen minutes ago we received numerous, repeated hits about an unsecured non-standard radio-frequency nuclear device with a moderate yield, large enough that it poses a direct threat to this country. The device lacks a signature but it does maintain an older 600G or 700G international standard series chipset so it is easily traceable. It is not in the possession of a legitimate government or holding authority and thus must be disabled.

"You are now going to drop everything you've been working on unless it is to do with Red Scarf," Valentinescu barked. "This entire room is going to dedicate itself to remotely disabling that device."

"I want numbers and details up on the main screen as you get them," Apontelimon continued. "Let's keep track of what we're doing and how well Red Scarf is performing. Progress and status reports to me at the desk, in person, and keep the small talk to comms and AEGIS. Let's find out where this bomb is, verify how much damage it can do and disable the damn thing ASAP."

Ten minutes later
The wall-to-wall plasma screen was split into several partitions. The main section, front and centre on the wall, listed key developments and results in this particular execution of the Red Scarf program.

Apontelimon and Valentinescu paced the room waiting for results. Not a second later, a brown-haired lady with aquiline features reported over comms. "Device tracing nearly complete, small-scale triangulation in process."

A few seconds later, a balding, portly man with olive skin spoke up. "Firewall's got a hole in it! Acquiring chipset architecture and base device signature."

Apontelimon pounced. "How much longer?"

"Five minutes."

"That's too long, speed that up!"

The analyst, abashed, put his head down and got back to work, his fingers flying over the keyboard even quicker than before.

"Trace complete," the woman announced. "Locking into a location in Manhattan city, logarithmic coordinates 1-6-0, 1-3-2, 8-3, sector D. FTA coordinates 9-1-2-2-7-8."

The live satellite feed showed the camera zooming in to match the position readout of the coordinates. Even though Valentinescu already knew the bomb was in Dreygo's hands, she gasped when she saw exactly where it was located.

"It's right in the middle of the city!" she said.

"He'll kill millions," Apontelimon concurred.

Suddenly the portly man spoke up. "Red Scarf is latched onto the chipset and analysing its architecture. Phase two, quenching, commences in ninety seconds."

"Good work, team," Apontelimon encouraged. "Keep it going; we're almost there!"

"Cavola," the woman analyst said. "The device is armed and ready. It's not on a countdown, it's live on standby."

Despite their attempts at motivation, Valentinescu and Apontelimon couldn't hide the anxiety on their faces.

Dreygo's headquarters, Manhattan

Two guards sat idly twiddling their thumbs in hard plastic chairs. Next to them was the Cloverfield device. Being low-level henchmen, they had no idea exactly what they were guarding but they figured orders were orders and Dreygo knew best.

The device had been armed for several days. Dreygo had activated the detonator and primed the sequence the night of the Pacitalian air raid. It was knife-edge stuff — Dreygo could press the button at any moment, and before the two guards knew it, they and a couple million others would be vaporised. The guards did know it was a bomb, of course. Anyone with half a brain would know that a big metal box with a digital readout, a hasty-looking wiring job and blinking red and green lights was probably going to blow up at some point. In a way, they were nervous about the idea of being the first to die, but at this point, with the country falling to pieces around them, they didn't very much care.

Their sidearms were holstered with safeties off. They grumbled, remembering that Dreygo wouldn't even allow them to fill out the damn crossword from that day's newspaper to pass the time. That was partly, specifically, because it was Pacitalian — the only newspapers getting through to the Imperial Republic during the crisis other than the Daily Herald — but mostly because it was an unnecessary distraction for the guards at a crucial time in Dreygo's presidency. Dreygo needed his guards' full attention if they were going to get through the Pacitalian insurrection.

The only indication of the remote tampering at that very moment was the blinking of the red light speeding up and the cooling fans slowing down. The virus supplanted itself in the device's execution code, manipulating the temperature guidance controls to force the chip to heat up. As promised, seconds later, it made not a sound as the silicone rapidly overheated and melted into goo, the wire connection between the detonator and the chipset severed. Back in Timiocato, computer readouts indicated total, irreversible malfunction as the bomb's hardware essentially disintegrated in seconds.

The device was now useless in its current form and only a physical inspection would indicate any tampering. The guards would be the first suspects and would be shot on principle. But the hard part wasn't over by any stretch. Now the PCIC had to deal with whatever radioactive substance was inside.

Even so, back at CEES, the team silently congratulated each other on Red Scarf's first major operations success and breathed a major sigh of relief.

"Copy the log of this and send it to Operations Nerve Centre right away," Valentinescu advised Apontelimon. She turned to the analysts. "Well done, folks."

The two Bazalonians found themselves taken and imprisoned in the cell.

"Hey, I thought you wanted us here?"
"Can we at least call our parents?"

The pleas were met with deaf ears as the two guards outside their cell ignored them. They hadn't been made that was clear. Dreygo just paranoid and wanted them kept away from in a nice comfortable little cell so that they don't have to be worried about.

"Jase, you got your pills?"

"Oh, uhh, no..."

"Damnit Jase, you know what happens."

"I didn't think it'd be THIS long."

"So how long you got?"

"Half an hour ... maybe."

Despite his assessment Jase acted as if the effects were starting now... He started to convulse fell to the floor his head hit the hard floor fairly hard.

"Jase? CRAP! SOMEONE WE NEED HELP!! GET SOMEONE IN HERE NOW!!!!"

Off the coast of New Sydney...

Alarms blared aboard the Sarzonian task force assigned to escort aid ships to Manhattan Prime. 200 F22 jet fighters, comprising the vast majority of the Manhattanite Air Force that remained loyal to President Dreygo was fast approaching the task force, formed up in squadrons of twelve. The strike team would be in range in a few minutes, and the ship's sensitive radar quickly picked up the flight leaving its bases in Manhattan Prime.

One of the lead fighters began transmitting a message over an open radio frequency:

"This is Lt Colonel Murray of the MAF to the Sarzonian fleet. Our government has refused permission for your ships to enter Manhattanite ports whilst this country is in a state of war. Our peoples have long been friends, but your actions in supporting renegades against our government are extremely worrying. Please turn around, and sail for home -I'm authorised to resist any attempts to penetrate our waters with all necessary force." The pilot gave a weary sigh, that of a man either contemplating an attack upon a trusted ally, or concerned about his odds should violence ensue. "You have 10 minutes to comply" he finished as the channel clicked shut.

Perriman heard the call and once again sounded general quarters. Unlike the previous drill, this time, his personnel were ready. In less than two minutes, the Sarzonian fleet stood at attention.

Two squadrons of Sarzonia's top fighter, the F-37 Archer, took off whilst the anti-aircraft destroyers steamed into position. The Shiloh's anti-aircraft guns also prepared for action. So was Perriman himself.

"Lt. Col. Murray, this is Commodore Perriman of the Incorporated Sarzonian Navy. We do not recognise Artemis Dreygo as the legitimate leader of your nation. Not when the man authorised the assassination of nearly 100 citizens for exercising their right to protest their government. Now, do you want to follow a man who willfully killed nearly 100 people and destroyed the lives of hundreds of others?

"Any action against this convoy of emergency supplies and medical personnel would be considered an act of war against the Incorporated States of Sarzonia and will be responded to accordingly. The Second Fleet is available within a moment's notice and can send your entire air force to the ground.

"This is your final warning: Turn your forces back, now."

However, Perriman was taking no chances. He sent a heavily encrypted communication to Admiral Ben Newman, commanding officer of the Second Fleet.

Admiral Newman,

Send aircraft to battle Manhattanite threat. They've launched 200 F-22 fighter aircraft against our convoy. Prepare for full-scale blockade if needed.

Meanwhile, three squadrons of F-37s quickly took to the air, while four X-41 Paladin UAVs also streaked into the skies. Perriman walked over to the tactical station and saw Newman complied with his request. Five squadrons of F-37s were streaking toward the Sarzonian squadron, while he also saw the ships making up the leading edge of the Second Fleet begin to appear on the display.

"Lieutenant, can you double check to make sure those are our buddies?"

"Aye, sir." The lieutenant worked a couple of controls, then looked up and smiled.

"Confirmed. Those ships are Sarzonian. The Second Fleet's hauling ass to get here."

Perriman looked out toward the front of the bridge. He knew if the Manhattanite aircraft tried to attack the convoy, it would escalate matters into a full-scale conflict. He didn't want one, but he knew his squadron would be ready for it if it had to be.

He punched a button near his captain's chair.

"All units, commence evasive maneuvers. I don't want us to be stationary targets. All aircraft, make yourselves difficult targets. I want to see all of you back on board."

Perriman folded his arms and began to pace for three seconds before realising he would have cut an overly anxious figure. He walked over to his command chair and sat down, setting his arms on the armrest. He still instinctively grabbed the edge of the armrests with his hands as if to brace himself.

“With respect Sir, I do not concern myself with politics, but with following my orders. Regardless of the actions of my government and my views on them, I am sworn to protect the integrity of this nation. Act of war or not, your forces are entering our territorial waters without permission, not the other way around and we have a right to resist when a significant number of warships attempt to threaten our country. Cease your approach and come no closer, this is your last warning. You are no longer welcome in Manhattan Prime”

An AMRAAM missile suddenly streaked out from Murray’s wingman, exploding harmlessly but pointedly in front of the lead ship’s bows.

Dreygo headquarters

The nine members of the Pacitalian Elite Special Operations Force's vaunted "White Squad" crawled silently, noiselessly, through the ventilation ducts of Artemis Dreygo's self-styled impregnable fortress in downtown Manhattan. It was Dreygo's own Führerbunker, but it was not impregnable.

All nine men proceeded prone and single file through the ducts, slinking along, their movements masked by the low hum of the air conditioning pumping fresh room-temperature air into the bunker complex. The lead commando reached a vent and pulled out a high-intensity, handheld lasering tool. He aimed the tool at the locking mechanism and engaged the laser, watching as, in near-silence, it cut through the padlock effortlessly.

He had chosen the lasering tool over lock picks specifically because of the noise factor. Their insertion authorisation orders were explicit: get in silently, acquire the target, then get out.

The lead commando, a battle-hardened man with grisly features and close-cropped salt-and-pepper hair, lowered himself quietly and swiftly onto the honey coloured baccherette floor. Giacomo Olivetti was no stranger to these types of missions, his most notable accomplishment the capture of Terrence Wilson during the Sarzonian presidential insurrection in 2005. Exactly one year ago he had been selected to lead the new Elite Special Operations Force's "White Squad", which handled light-combat missions with political undertones — they left the hostile insertions, assassinations, rendition and torture of dissidents to the Black Squad and to PCIC agents.

The eight behind him followed just as quietly, and they stood huddled at the end of a long hallway. Olivetti pulled out his PDA and tapped the screen twice to open a blueprints file. The microfiche of the blueprints had been smuggled out of the Manhattanite public works ministry by a Cuthbert loyalist and handed over to the PCIC in Timiocato and the Special Forces Command in Bergamo. Working quickly from the blueprints they'd been given, they installed six plastique charges around the edges of a big metal door indicated on the prints as being the room where Dreygo would mount his final stand.

Olivetti and Penastre, the incendiaries specialist, performed a final inspection of the wiring job, making sure the bolt pincers were dug into the plastique far enough to properly blow all six charges. Then, in the lead plastique charge, Penastre cautiously inserted a wireless detonator that was no bigger than a dime. He calibrated the signal on the detonator to his own PDA and armed it.

"Charges primed, armed and ready," Penastre reported.

"Ready on my count to blow the charges," Olivetti intoned quietly. "Remember we have two friendlies inside there... two younger males, in their early twenties. They will recite the predetermined code phrases to identify themselves. They are not to be harmed."

"Affirmative," the team responded.

"Waiting for authorisation to detonate," Penastre said. "Proceed?"

"Affirmative. Proceed on 5... 4... 3... 2... 1."

Penastre flicked the lever on the detonator and retreated behind the corner wall to join the rest of the squad. Three seconds later, shrapnel exploded outward and bright light flashed as the supposedly bomb-proof door, and the poorly constructed wall, caved in, becoming a pathetic-looking pile of rubble.

It was utter chaos, shouts, coughs and wheezing emanating from the bombed out room. Faintly, the men could hear one of the men ordering the others around. Patiently waiting up to this point to move in at the right time, Olivetti finally gave a hand signal and pushed his way into the room, assault rifle at the ready.

"Vuoi! Andália!" Olivetti yelled commandingly to the eight men at his back. "Go! Move!"

The team of nine commandoes filtered swiftly into the dank, smoky chamber, the smell of cordite raw on the nasal passages, dust hanging low in the air.

"Tutto, altrate l'aschati! Sai alore!" Olivetti bellowed in the imperative. "Put your hands up! Do it now!"

"Hands up!" echoed the rest of the squad.

Instantly, the others, outgunned and outmanned, surrendered. The decorated former SAFD — and now ESOF — veteran strode quickly to the one holdout: a dour-looking, defiant, taller man with long silver hair. The comandante roughly grabbed him, forced the man's hands behind his back and shoved him to the ground, facedown. The other commandoes lined the wall, their PB R-470 "BlackSky" assault rifles aimed at the six other men in the room.

One of the men suddenly spoke out of turn, giving Olivetti a pointed look... but his accent was a dead giveaway. These were no Manhattanites, they appeared to be Bazalonians. He still wasn't sure why they were here; the Special Forces Command wouldn't tell him.

"My mum said I shouldn't be a journalist," the first one said.

A second man, right next to him, responded, a slight shake in his voice. "And mine said I shouldn't be a policeman... it's too dangerous."

"Animals," the older, silver-haired man, shouted, squirming and thrashing like a caged animal. "Let me go, you manhandling wop bastards!"

"Senator Artemis Dreygo," Olivetti recited in front of the assembled. "I hereby declare that you are under arrest for treason, conspiracy, subversion, subjugation, embezzlement, illicit possession of an incendiary device and ninety-six counts of murder in the first degree, under the laws and criminal code of the Imperial Republic of Manhattan Prime.

"Your right to speak freely remains uninhibited, but you are advised that anything you say from this point is legitimately admissible in a court of law."

Dreygo's eyes met Olivetti's, and for a split second, the comandante painfully, regretfully registered the expression of vitriolic hatred and contempt. How could anyone reserve so much hate for a country, a people, an ideal? But it was for no longer than that, as the ESOF commando registered a new expression in the eyes of the acting president — fear and terror. The man knew his time was up.

Olivetti quickly regained his composure and hauled the senator up onto his feet. The other men secured him along with the others and Olivetti pulled out his PDA and dialed a number.

"The payload is secure. Phase two may proceed."

Only seconds later, the men assembled in the room could hear muffled shouts through the walls of the complex as SAFD commandoes filtered into Dreygo's headquarters and secured the rest of the complex, forcing Dreygo's guards to surrender and lay their weapons down. All in all, the operation ended without a single shot fired.

* * *

By the time Olivetti hauled a shamed Dreygo out the main entrance of the bunker complex and into an SAFD armoured transport van, the press were assembled outside, madly taking photos, the reporters shouting demanding answers from the commandoes. Camera flashes were constantly going off, so bright that it almost didn't seem like an hour past midnight. They moved through the throng of press unphased and unhindered, and eventually Manhattan city police put some distance between the commandoes and the media.

It had been initially hoped that the Dreygo loyalists in the Senate building down the street might lay down their arms of their own accord upon hearing that their leader was in custody, but there was still no word on whether that had happened. Just in case, the SAFD commandoes were gearing up for an immediate assault on the Senate chambers, hoping to God that the death count would stay at zero.

If anyone was still awake, watching live on television, they would likely be sighing deeply with relief, because the message was clear, if only, for now, a psychological one.

Yes... it was finally over.

"...what we can see now is some soldiers and police standing around, the action pretty much over now. Mr. Dreygo was bundled into a military transport and taken to an unknown location. The local police did seem to know about it, they escorted the vehicle away and that just leads to more and more speculation of course, as to who is involved and the role Andew Cuthbert and local authorities might have played. But at this stage it's still much too early for any details to be confirmed."

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r56/kelchek/dreygocaptured.jpg

"Thank you Kevin, we'll get back to you in a minute. For those just joining us on KBC Newsworld, our breaking news story from Manhattan is that Pacitalian special forces have apprehended and detained Artemis Dreygo, breaking into his so-called fortress in the centre of the city and he has been taken away in a military van to an unknown location. We will be rejoining our correspondent Kevin Giles in Manhattan in just a few moments for more on this breaking news story but first, a quick look now at some of the other headlines around the globe..."

Perriman held his right index finger over the button that would have automatically encrypted his next signal, but he decided not to press the button. He wanted Murray to hear the full consequences of his order, and for firing at the bows of a Sarzonian ship.

"All units, activate target acquisition software for firing solutions on Manhattanite aircraft," Perriman said. "All aircraft, commence attack pattern delta."

"Aye, sir," came the responses from several ships and aircraft.

"Commodore! Incoming message from the Second Fleet. Their aircraft are nearly in range. The fleet should be here in a matter of minutes."

"Acknowledged."

"Sir! I'm getting reports that Dreygo's been arrested!"

"What?!"

"According to the reports, a Pacitalian special ops unit stormed in and arrested Dreygo. They're charging him with several counts ... including murder."

Perriman turned back to the channel and re-opened communications with Murray. His tone of voice took on a more defiant one.

"Your so-called president has just been arrested according to a Kelssek media outlet," Perriman said. "He's being charged with murder. Now, do you want to take orders from a murderer and start a war you clearly can't win and thus become an accomplice to murder, or will you do the right thing and allow our convoy to land needed food and medicine for your people?

"The choice, Lieutenant Colonel, is yours." Perriman turned to the communications officer and made a slashing motion with his right hand slicing the air parallel to his throat.

Aboard a F-37 Archer, Lt. Jack Bates saw the F-22 which fired the AMRAAM missile that exploded in front of the lead Sarzonian ship.

Payback's a bitch, motherfucker, he thought for a second, before briefly reconsidering. He then decided to carry out a modified version of his original intent. He fired a missile he calculated to explode harmlessly in front of the aircraft. He allowed for the relative speed of his aircraft and the Manhattanite aircraft.

The missile launched and exploded mere metres in front of the nose of the Manhattanite jet. Bates figured he'd gotten his point across, hopefully without having to risk the lives of Manhattanites or Sarzonians.

OOC: I may have lost track mate, but wasn't this taking place a few days before Dreygo's capture? If I'm wrong, then I've got a decent plan of how to respond.

OOC: I've confired with MP about this and I have his permission.

IC:

"Alright, Hang on." One of the guards fumbled with the keys opening up Jase's cell as the apparently unconcious man lay still on the floor.

"He's still breathing, and his pulse is fairly strong." one of them commented after checking his vitals.

Matt breathed a sigh of relief, though he was abit apprehensive about how these guards would react. "We'll take him to the infirmary. The Doc should be able to look after him while he recovers."

The other one nodded in consent before taking up positions at his head and feet, picking the body up they started to slowly walk out of the cell slowly struggling slightly with the body. Matt remained locked in his cell as he saw his friend being taken away they were about 40 meters from the door of the cell and just about to turn a corner before there was the unmistakable rumbling of an explosition. An expletive came out of their mouths almost similiatneous and stood their for a second while they tried to work out what to do next. They dropped the body and ran unaware that their keys 'got caught' in Jase's hands.

After the guards were gone jase got up and rubbed his head, "that hurt" he whispered as he unlocked his friend from his cell. They both finally were out as the door swung open.

They made their way slowly out the way the guards came to only be burst upon by the Pacitalians for now there were still Manhattanites around so they spoke the code phrase and the Pacitalians forced them too the ground at least until any manhattanites. Had been removed from the area and any surveilance cameras that might be there had been dealt with.

"There's documents in my shoe, take them..." Matt whispered, still being cautious though it looked like. "Cloverfield has been activated."

Need to see ya on msn Sarz

MPNN – 10th December 2008

President Andrew Cuthbert returned to Manhattan this morning following the arrest of Artemis Dreygo, who had been usurping the presidency for several months after the attempted assassination of Cuthbert. Leaning on a cane for support, Cuthbert was cheered by grateful Manhattanites as he toured the worst hit areas of the still smoking capital city, and met with various dignitaries, before addressing the Senate on a bill to prevent further coup plots from succeeding in Manhattan Prime.

Cuthbert has immediately convened the Senate to debate and vote on a measure he submitted named the Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill, which wits have nicknamed the ‘Mother of all Bills’. Amongst the wide ranging measures included in the bill are:

•Renaming Manhattan International Airport to Loren Hunter International Airport.
•State funerals for Vice President Loren Hunter and Fleet Admiral David Ross, both killing during the conflict.
•Establishing the city of Manhattan and its urban area as a distinct Capital Province to bring the total to 7 Provinces.
•Declaring ‘7 Nation Army’ to be the national anthem of Manhattan Prime, as well as the marching song of her militaries.
•From now on all police officers in Manhattan Prime will be equipped with handguns and shotguns and will receive compulsory training with both.
•Numerous changes to the electoral system, designed to prevent a coup crisis from reoccurring. For example, Cuthbert’s 2nd term will begin in January 2009 and from that point forward the President, Vice President and Senators will serve set 4 years terms. The President looses the power to call an election before their term is up in order to win a new mandate, but neither can they be removed from office (outside impeachment) until the 4 years are up.
•Cuthbert’s 2nd term will therefore be Jan 2009-Jan 2012. Inaugurations will from now on be in January instead of March.
•However there are still to be no limits on the number of terms a President may serve, and as before, only the leaders of political parties may run for President.
•Several name changes in order to move the country further from its old world roots, and to add to the sense of post-war Manhattanite renaissance

Provinces (Old Name – New Name):

Capital Province (new)
Manhattan State - Unchanged
Albion - Unchanged
Germany - Bayern
Japan - Nippon
Canada - Lewis
Australia – Bondi

Cities (Old Name – New Name):

New London - Hamilton
Birmingham - Nelson
Manhattan - Unchanged
New LA – Langley
New San Francisco - Brownsville
New Sydney - Bryson
New Berlin - Brandenburg
Vancouver - Unchanged
New Tokyo - Unchanged

President Cuthbert has also announced that the c22 billion fortune of Artemis Dreygo has been seized, and will be used to give c10,000 to the families of Lamonian and Pacitialian troops killed in the recent hostilities, with smaller amounts being awarded to wounded personnel. Manhattanite soldiers will likewise be compensated. More on this story as it develops.

"Jase" and "Matt" disappeared from Manhattan Prime, after being able disable the Cloverfield device they seemed to Vanish into thin air. The Bazalonian Secret Intelligence Service requested that all records of contact with Bazalonian agents inside Manhattan Prime and requested that Lamonians request of the Pacitalians that the existence of 'friendly' agents inside the Dreygo bunker be removed from all records.

Jase and Matt never returned from their 'interview' with Dreygo, but neither could their bodies be accounted for. The existence of the cloverfield device was known to the appropriate intelligence agencies but whether it's existence was made public would be up to the Manhattanites. Never the less, through the Lamonians received a request that they put forward Mike for a civilian bravery award.

A few days after the arrest of Dreygo a mysterious note appeared on Mike's desk in his room.

"Mike, Thank you for all your help,

We couldn't say goodbye as we're suddenly heading home. All the best with your future and hopefully one day you'll be a great politician.

All the Best wishes, Your friends."

Meanwhile "Matt" and "Jase" we're in-line at the to be newly re-named Loren Hunter International Airport they were entering planes which would take them to Starblaydia, and then on a round about route back home to Bazalonia. The involvement of Bazalonia inside Manhattan Prime never happened, records of Matt and Jase's enrolment in the University were expunged, it was as if they never existed, which in truth they never really did.

Senate Chambers, Manhattan

Senator George Wallace was nervous as his led his small group of Unity Senators to the offices reserved for the Senator from New Cambridge, which President Cuthbert using as a base whilst the Presidential Mansion was rebuilt. Wallace couldn’t shake the impression of being the ringleader of a schoolboy gang, being summoned to the headmaster for a dressing down, and as a private schoolboy, he’d known some impressive dressings down in his day. Cuthbert met them at the door personally, still leaning lightly on a cane for support, before gesturing the Senators to seats and taking his own behind the desk. The President looked tired and harried, and thus was to the point:

“I’ll make this simple for you – the recent crisis has nearly torn this country apart, and you, all of you, are largely to blame. Now you can either back those measures that this government has determined will prevent such a coup ever happening in Manhattan Prime again, or I’ll call a snap election this week. I understand I’m rather popular at the moment – there’s something about being nearly killed and then trapped in a barn for several months that provokes pathos, whilst your party is responsible for destroying democracy in this country as well as our infrastructure, economy, stability and global reputation.”

Wallace glared; his heckles raised, “It sounds awfully like your trying to threaten me Mr President...”

Cuthbert met his glare evenly, “I am threatening you. Your party is out of favour Senator, and Artemis is just too unpopular for anyone connected with him to get re-elected no matter how distant. Your party tried to launch a coup for heaven’s sake! You can either fall into line, and back this bill as a group, or you can all lose your seats right now”

“We’ll...consider it Mr President”

***

MPNN – 12th December 2008

The Senate today past the Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill, which contained President Cuthbert’s strong and sweeping measures in response to the recent Civil War, by 136 members to 11, with 3 Senators deemed absent, as by-elections have not yet been held for the seats of those killed in the war. The bill now passes to the Council of Lords for approval, where the measures strengthening law and order are likely to prove popular. A source within the President’s staff has indicated today that he does not any serious objections being raised in the upper house.

Perhaps most surprisingly however, the disgraced members of Artemis Dreygo’s Unity Party seemed to have voted en masse in support of the bill. Whether that will be sufficient in making up for their role in the recent coup remains to be seen, as whilst some can claim to have been deceived by a charismatic politician who was initially not that radical, others occupied cabinet roles in his government and are rumoured to have been closer to Dreygo.

From PNN.pc

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/125/414582095_cdb7320c0b.jpg
Manhattan Prime president Andrew Cuthbert (at right) is all smiles as backbench Unity
Sen James Clarke looks on. Cuthbert continues to push legislation with the express
purpose of forbidding tragic events like those of 2008 in the Imperial Republic.

Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill passes MP Senate
President also announces Đ 3,5 bln payout for families of fallen Pacitalian, Lamonian soldiers


Lloyd Hunter, Manhattan

The Manhattanite Senate overwhelmingly passed the Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill, backed by president Andrew Cuthbert, which redefines the role of the president and the process by which he or she can be elected to or removed from power.

The bill also provides avenues for better training for the country's law enforcement, which appeared hamstrung to quell riots and civil discord during the height of combat in the summer.

The new bill also keeps Mr Cuthbert in power until at least January 2013, with his new term set to begin at the start of the new year. It also sets fixed four-year terms on the presidency, meaning the president loses the power to call an election prematurely (for example, when the polls indicate public opinion in favour of the incumbent).

There are still no term limits under the new legislation.

Interim Unity party leader Sen George Wallace told PNN his caucus met with the president early Friday before taking their places in the Senate to aid the passage of the legislation.

"We enjoyed a short but positive meeting with the president," Wallace said. "The Unity senators and I, as well as the president, agreed that we should put aside our differences and work together for the good of the country."

There have been lingering questions over Unity's legitimacy in the Senate following Artemis Dreygo's tyrannical seven-month rule. Mr Dreygo formed the Unity party at the beginning of this year, as he and several other Liberal and Conservative senators broke away to form the new right-wing party. Unity came second in the senate elections and Mr Dreygo, Unity's candidate, was the runner-up in the presidential election. Mr Dreygo assumed power unlawfully shortly after Mr Cuthbert appeared to have been assassinated and subsequently went missing.

Mr Cuthbert had reportedly threatened to call snap Senate elections if Unity did not support his legislation. The snap elections would have surely eliminated any Unity presence on the Senate floor; the party is on a dismal 4.7 percent support according to the latest ABM/Capax straw poll.

Remuneration for soldiers' families

Early Wednesday Mr Cuthbert appeared at a press conference to announce that Mr Dreygo's personal fortune of cr22-billion — about 3,5 billion doura — had been seized. He pledged it would be divided up evenly and paid out to the families of fallen Pacitalian and Lamonian soldiers as "a personal reparation" for the actions of his country's army during the war.

It wasn't the only money being tossed around. On Thursday, PSC legislators in the Constazione were debating introducing a private member's bill with a proposed economic stimulus package for Manhattan Prime of about Đ 4,5 trillion (NS $15.44—trillion). But government lawmakers cautioned the PSC against such a bill, saying Pacitalia's northern neighbour still had not met solvency criteria in new comprehensive analysis reports from three major Pacitalian banks.

"We have deep concerns about the production levels in certain industries in Manhattan Prime," Dragomir Dobrogeanu, Pacitalia's Agustinate of Trade, Industry and Commerce, said Friday. "A significant portion of the country's manufacturing sector has still not restarted production after the end of the hostilities and we are not comfortable that a pure stimulus package would help any of these industries continue operating."

Sambuca's CBdS Financial Group, one of the three banks monitoring the Imperial Republic's solvency indicators, also downgraded Manhattan's national credit rating one point, from A, the third highest possible rating, to B, over concerns both the government and major industries would not be able to sustain cash flow over the next twelve months.

Meanwhile, Banco di Mandragora released a report saying that Manhattan Prime has been in a recession since the beginning of the second half of this fiscal year (FY2008-09). The country's gross domestic product has already contracted 1.2 percent in the last six weeks. The economy grew only 0.3 percent from 1st May to 31st July and was stagnant, with a contraction of 0.2 percent, during the third fiscal quarter from 1st August to 31st October.

The BM report also stressed an expectation that income growth among the Manhattanite workforce had already stagnated over the last year. They expected household income would decrease this fiscal year. BM predicted the average gross income of a full-time salaried employee in Manhattan Prime would be Đ 6,275 for FY2008-09, ending 31st January. AGI for Manhattanites in FY2007-08 was Đ 7,000, adjusted for December 2008 inflation and currency fluctuation.

MPNN – 13th Dec 2008
President Andrew Cuthbert today announced his reshuffled Cabinet for the start of his 2009-2012 Second Term. Cuthbert seems to be sticking largely with the team he knew from his 1st term, with a few very significant differences. After the tragic deaths of Vice President Hunter and Secretary of Defence Ross during the Civil War, changes were inevitable, but heads also rolled in other departments, including the Treasury.

31 year old Australian-Manhattanite Korin Duval (Lib/Darwin) keeps his place as Cuthbert’s Chief of Staff, whilst 46 year old David Farthing (Lib/St Ives) remains Home Secretary and 34 year old Dr Carl Owens (Lib/Vancouver South) keeps his place as Foreign Secretary. Dr Elizabeth Calvert (Education), Dr Bruce Johnson (Health), Vanessa Rossi (Transport), Dr Alberto Ramirez (Environment), Kentaro Shinoda (Agriculture) and Prof Nicholas Hastings (Research) also keep their Cabinet positions.

The Province of Lewis also strengthened its position in the Cabinet with the dismissal of inexperienced and shaky Harvey Lawrence (26) as Secretary of the Treasury as blame for the economic recession moves through the government. Cuthbert’s chosen replacement is the Senator for Vancouver North, Stuart McCauley (53) one of the 12 signers of the Constitution, and renowned as a firm hand on economic matters. Cuthbert is clearly trying to shore up confidence in the government’s ability to aid the economy here.

In the 2nd of three big changes to the Cabinet, the position of Secretary of Defence has gone to Gregory Freedman, the 50 year old mayor of the capital Manhattan from 2003-2008, and the first black Manhattanite to become mayor of a provincial capital. This would seem to continue the trend of the Mayoralty of Manhattan serving as a jumping point to high national office. Of Mr. Freedman’s predecessors, Artemis Dreygo (Manhattan mayor 1985-1990) became a highly influential Senator, David Farthing (1990-1995) became Home Secretary and Loren Hunter (1995-2000) became Vice President.

Another suprise is the news that the minority Respect Party, commanding 5% of the vote, will be completely subsumed into the Liberal Party, with Respect leader Rasheed Singh (Lib/Perth West) being rewarded for his support of Cuthbert during the election and Senate vote calling for Dreygo’s resignation, with the position of Vice President. A native son of the city of Perth in Bondi Province, Singh (49) looks to bring some essential experience to temper Cuthbert’s youth and vigour. With the Left joining forces completely, Cuthbert seems to be making a further attempt to solidify his power after a brutal Civil War. With three experiences picks joining the Cabinet, this will be an older and wiser committee to lead the country.

Manhattan Herald Editorial, 14th Dec 2008
“Will Manhattan Prime be no more?”

In an historic move, President Cuthbert has proposed that Manhattan Prime change its name as a nation, as the current name is unrepresentative of the whole nation. Recognising that Manhattan Prime is increasingly controlled and dominated by the capital Manhattan, and noting the disgruntlement among the other five former colonies that Manhattan colony's name spread to the whole country upon its founding, the decision was taken to rename the country to something more inclusive that greater reflects the history of the country. The Cabinet settled on the proposed name, ‘the Imperial Republic of Fidelia’, and will be submitting the proposal to the nation-wide referendum for approval in the next few days. In his speech to the nation, President Cuthbert noted, “The name Fidelia comes from the Latin for ‘loyalty’ or ‘pride’, and that is exactly what we as Manhattanites should stand for. Over the difficult past few months, I’ve learned that despite the conflict and differences that exist, it is possible for this country to be unified, and that it is our differences that make us all the same. I feel that both the new name and flag exemplify these ideals, this sense of unity. A wise man once said that understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery. Whilst our nation has a long way to go before trust can be restored, I believe without hesitation that this nation can come together.”

More dramatic changes then from Cuthbert, who seems to have been greatly affected by the Civil War. The once young and inexperienced leader, accused of being subservient to our southern neighbours, a ‘nice guy’ and relying too much on rhetoric now seems to have taken on a much tougher and no-nonsense persona, with the impression that he will no longer be taking any prisoners. I have observed much discontentment in the capital with Cuthbert’s decision to split them off from the Province of Manhattan State into a separate Capital Province, especially without a referendum, and it is likely the Council of Lords will strike this measure from the Bill in return for Manhattanite support for this new move. Concessions will indeed to be needed for residents of the Capital to be comfortable with the dropping of their city’s name as that of the country. However such is Cuthbert’s current popularity and hero image, that he may have the political capital to ensure this historic name change passes. He is sure to gain points with the electorate for submitting it to their approval instead of enforced a decision unilaterally.

In a move some have called vindictive and bitter, Cuthbert has also announced a planned Artemis Dreygo ‘Presidential’ Library (apostrophises part of licensed name) to hold documentation gathered for Dreygo’s trial and to ensure that the full extent of his crimes is known to the people. The exhibit will hold new evidence uncovered anonymously linking Dreygo to the assassination attempt on the life of his former friend President Cuthbert, and an attempt to destroy the city of Manhattan with a stolen nuclear weapon during the Civil War in a barbarous scorched earth policy to prevent the city falling into foreign hands. Vindictive or not, it is worth noting that Dreygo’s own son Vykk has declined to condemn the move.

18th December 2008 – MPNN

Long Live the Imperial Republic of Fidelia!

Results of the National Referendum on the renaming of the country from Manhattan Prime to Fidelia were announced by the Cuthbert Administration today. The country’s voting electorate were asked the single question, “Should the Imperial Republic of Manhattan Prime be renamed the Imperial Republic of Fidelia in order to better represent the entire country?”

Yes – 57%
No – 43%

As expected ‘No’ votes polled highest in the Province of Manhattan State, and especially in the capital Manhattan, where it has always been seen as a rightful recognition of the city’s preeminent position that the country take its name from what is by far the largest urban area.

‘Yes’ votes were high in the other five provinces of Manhattan Prime, especially in rural areas and outside the largest cities

It is thought that the transition period will be relatively brief for most citizens. The country has only gone by the name ‘Manhattan Prime’ since unification in 2005, so the vast majority will have grown up during the days in which the 6 provinces were independent colonies.
Manhattan Airways and the Bank of Manhattan will not be changing their names, having argued that said names could easily refer to the capital as well as the country. The Manhattan Prime News Network will likewise be maintaining its present name for the foreseeable future.

As expected, the Council of Lords have passed the Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill today without major opposition, and after the President’s signature it will become law. The only measure struck from the Bill was that to split Manhattan off from the Province of Manhattan State into a separate Capital Province, which has met with considerable resistance in the capital. Whilst Cuthbert’s current popularity was enough to push through both the Bill and name change, he was wise to listen to the electorate of Manhattan in not pushing them too far too quickly.

Our Constitution has been edited into a new version, with the references to Manhattan Prime changed and the electoral changes from the Securing Manhattanite Democracy Bill incorporated. Cuthbert thus has set his anti-coup measures in stone that not even a new law can alter. The new constitution was signed today by the original 12 signers (two from each province) in 2005, minus only Artemis Dreygo, the deputy from the city of Manhattan. The city’s current mayor, Gregory Freedman, signed in his stead so that our national constitution need not bear the name of one who is a disgrace to our country.

Both the country’s new name and the official start of the Cuthbert Administration’s 2nd Term has been set for the 1st January 2009.