NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC:The following pertains to http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=453192, if you don't have land claimed there, don't even bother posting.

IC:

Proconsul's Palace, Arretium Nova, Doomanum Nova

Arretium Nova, the city that was to be the capital of this new Imperial province, was far from complete. The walls of the city, massive, 30-foot high, steel-reinforced concrete walls, were under construction, along with the permenant housing. Bunkers, barracks, and other military installations had been the priority, and as such were the first to be finished.

However, the proconsul of Doomanum Nova, Proconsul Marcus Flaminius Scipio, was a rich man. Rich enough so that he had fifty thousand slaves imported from home to commence construction on his magnificent palace. It was only several months since they arrived, and already the west wing of the structure had been completed, his office furnished.

He was dressed casualy, by Doomingslandian standards, a suit and tie, his ceremonial armor hanging on the wood paneled wall behind him. On the walls were portraits of the Emperor and the royal family, his collection of swords, and suveniers from his various campaigns.

He was the former Proconsul of Jararium, and therefore had excersised his military prowess on numerous occasions. While he had refined tastes, he was also a fine commander. Under his command were six army divisions, twelve Imperial Gaurd static divisions gaurding the cities, and three legions.

He had placed the army units along the borders, the legions being kept in reserve. On his order, twelve full engineering brigades had been shipped over from Doomingsland. It was these units that his aid, who stepped through the massive oaken doors of his office unannounced, had come to report on.

"Your lordship, I have come as requested," began the prefect, clad in meticulously polished armor, his helm tucked under his arm.

"I've been expecting you, Gaius. Please, sit down," motioned Scipio to a chair in front of his desk.

The prefect bowed his head gratiously and took his seat,

"I've word on the progess of our engineers, m'lord,"

"I'd certainly hope so, prefect. Continue,"

"Construction is proceeding as planned," said Gaius with a smile, "The distraction bunkers are fully completed, the first line of defense should be completed by the end of the week. They're already starting on the second and third lines. The assembly area is completed, as are most of the tunnels. Those need only to be hardened and reinforced."

Scipio nodded soberly, "Well, I doubt we can expect an invasion any time within the next two months. The others still need to consolidate their holds, as we are doing. How secure are we, exactly?"

Gaius chose his words carefully, "At the moment, we can crush any invasion. The first line is fully manned for what we have for it, and the divisions are on full alert. There's not much anyone can do to us at the moment, thankfully."

Scipio nodded.

"Very well. I would like you to go oversee the construction. You have some engineering experience, do you not?"

Gaius nodded.

"Good. I want you on the next flight down there. Dismissed."

OOC:Some detail on what's been constructed so far:

5 miles from the border- A series of pillboxes dug into the ground. These are manned by Imperial Gaurdsmen, and serve mainly to distract. They are lightly armored and visible to satelites. If anyone were to be looking down at the construction, this would be pretty much the only thing they saw.

10 miles from the border- Line of bunkers and tunnels, all interconnected, the tunnels going back to the assembly area. Bunkers are constructed of steel-reinforced concrete. Most of the construction involves the ground being dug out from within to prevent aerial and satelite recon to see what's going on. More detail on the actual line when someone attacks.

15 miles back- Same as the 1st line (10 miles back), only 1/3 done

20 miles back- See above, only 1/4 done

30 miles back- Battalion assembly areas, consists of barracks, depots, command and control bunkers, ect.

100 miles back- Legionary assembly areas

Mine fields and barbed wire litter the areas in between the defensive lines, concealed surface-to-air missile batteries are already in place at all the lines and assembly areas. The defenses are built on a 5 degree downward slope, meaning while its barely noticable, it allows the lines to have clear lines of fire over one another.

*TAG* IC post to come later.

New Veritas, Grand Republican Colony, Veritas City

The acquisition of New Veritas as a colony had been surprisingly painless, unlike every other imperialistic expansion by the Grand Republic. With the disasters of Nerotika and Hitlerreich still in the minds of many political and military leaders, the creation of a new colony was a controversial decision, and one that had only been passed with a narrow margin of success in Parliament; reassurances of no hostile natives or costly military invasions had managed to swing enough MPs onto the pro-acquisition side.

Within days of the negotiation and taking of the new territory, the first C-130s and Galaxy Cargolifters had landed on the dirt airstrip constructed by Republican engineers airlifted in the previous day. More than a dozen of the massive aircraft landed at the airfield every hour, and this total was expected to rise expotentially as the airfield was concreted and proper equipment brought in. First came the military units to secure the borders of New Veritas and ensure the safety of the settlers; more than eighty thousand Combat Units, Engineers, Military Police and Supply Corp Units landed and secured the borders, coordinating with their neighbouring nations militaries to ensure that no regrettable accidents occured.

Outposts and pre-fabricated military bases began springing up, temporary articles until the materials for permanant buildings could be airlifted in. More than a dozen of the bases sprang up, and nearly eighty small outposts were built, most of the temporary until they could be integrated and merged together. Minefields and bunkers began to be planted and built; Radar/Ladar posts were set up and began monitoring the airspace around the colony, and Command Posts were dug in and began the long process of coordinating defensive and offensive military tasks. Barracks for the multitude of troops were erected, hundreds of the massive facilities, and all the while the hard-worked engineers improved the airstrips and created a rudimentary airport facility.

Within a few days the initial military work had been completed; basic defensive positions had been completed and reinforced, and preparatory work had begun on improving and creating more of the defensive lines. Armoured and Mechanised Units began patrolling the borders and explored the interior of the landmass they were now in command of; F/A 18s and Phantoms guarded the skies against unwanted visitors. In a Command Post in Veritas City, Major-General Winchester, late of the Nerotikan Occupation Force, looked over his latest command. He hoped that it would not end in the near-disaster that the Nerotikan situation had; he still had occasional nightmares about that.
He looked up, distracted, as a soldier wearing the bars of a Major walked up and saluted. He handed Winchester a flimsy slip of paper. "General, the Doomingsland military appear to be constructing a defensive line throughout their colony. Our satellites passing over the region have photographed bunkers and possible trench-lines by their border." Winchester grunted, scanning the paper before handing it back and dismissing the man. He turned back to the newly-created map of the colony; there was nothing worrying in that report. The Doomingslanders were merely replicating what his troops were doing, albeit in a faster process. There was no trouble there, so he noted it down for further discussion, and turned to a new Situation Report on the map table. The first settlers would be on the next C-130 into Airstrip One, and the first buildings had yet to be prepared for them; they would also need security details, being civilians and totally inadequate in protecting themselves. He sighed; it was a tough job, but at least there was no need to constantly look over his shoulder for fear of attack, and none of his troops were dying needlessly. Things could be worse, he mused. Much worse...

Outpost Bravo Three, Doomingsland-Skinnyan Border

Gaurdsman First Class Herius Decimus stared through the bunkers slit down towards the border. He had the unfortunate job of manning one of the picket bunkers. In the event of an invasion, he would be among the first to die. Not that anyone ever bothered telling him or any of his squad members. Eleven other Imperial Gaurdsmen manned the bunker with him.

It was small and cozy, but quite conjested. After all, there were twelve men stuck in a room 20x20 feet. There were bunks for all of them, allowing for the men not on shift to rest. That was what they spent most of their time doing.

The bunker's slit maintained steel shutters to allow for greater protection from shrapnel during an artillery barrage, and to prevent grenades from entering. This was currently opened.

It was night, and Herius was on watch. The bunker maintained a single D/AEOS-2G electronic infrared scope. He had spent the last hour or so sipping coffee and staring down this scope, watching the Skinnyan soldiers work on the other side. The scope maintained a 250x zoom, so seeing that far wasn't much of a problem.

He could see plenty of heat signatures, showing up as bright white against a grey landscape. He had been looking long enough so that he could tell generators, vehicles, and infantry from one another.

He and the other two men sharing his shift, gaurdsmen Frecus and Gnaeus, were relaxed at the moment. Fecus was responsable for manning the bunker's DMG-250 7.8mm medium machinegun on this shift, set up on a bipod, while Gnaeus carried an old DR-78 battle rifle, its wooden furniture showing age, the reciever begining to rust.

How they ended up here of all places was beyond them.

A doorway at the back of the bunker lead to a tunnel which lead back to the first line of defense. In the event of an enemy assault, they would quickly abandon their position, head back through the tunnel, and collapse the entrance with a satchel charge. They sure as hell hoped it wouldn't come to that.

However, if it came to a fight, there was a locker full of anti-tank rockets and ammunition against the wall next to the entrance. These men were better equiped then Imperial Gaurdsmen stationed in the cities. While they had the same green fagiutes and boots as the others, they actualy had body armor, although the supply weenies had failed to issue them ceramic inserts for their vests.

Echo Platoon Bunker, New Veritas/Doomanum Nova Border

It was too damn hot in the Bunker, PFC Xavier Blake had quickly found. Not just the usual uncomfortable heat that would quickly become an uncomfortable cold within moments seemingly at random, as was the lot of all soldiers in the battlefield. No, this heat was something special. It seemed to hate only him, as his other nine squadmates seemed almost cosy in the small, uncomfortable Bunker.

He squirmed again, and decided that although taking his vest off might alleviate much of the problem, it would cause him far too much grief from his platoon sergeant to gain any benefits. So he sighed briefly and shouldred his way to the front of the two-room area and picked up the Digi-Binoculars that had been issued to the squad. Apparently they were better than ordinary bincoualrs - something to do with the zooming abilities - but to Blake they didn't seem any different than the old versions. He shrugged mentally; the army had been ripped off again by some arms manufacturer, probabaly a friend of the President or some such elitist rubbish.

Peering into the distance, he focused on what seemed to be another bunker a few hundred metres away, and suddenly grinned, despite the uncomfortable heat. Looking straight back at him was a Doomingsland soldier, using a similar-looking pair of bincoulars. Looking around quickly to check no-one was looking, he gave the poor grunt a quick wave; it was more an acknowledgement of their shared suffering than anything else, but it cheered Blake up no end to realise that whatever the situation, the other guys grunts were probably no better off than he was.

He surrendered the binoculars to another Private, and went back to the back of the Bunker to check his M-16. Somehow, the heat didn't seem quite so bad now...

Outpost Bravo Three, Doomanum Nova-New Veritas Border

Herius smiled as the Skinnyan waved at him, and promptly waved back. He chuckled to himself. The men on the otherside were ordinary grunts, just like him. It'd be a pity if he had to kill them, not that he'd hesitate. After all, he was bored out of his wits.

He reached into his pocket and produced a box of cigarettes. He took one out and lit it. Unlike the Skinnyan, Herius was quite cold. The temperate climate of Doomanum Nova was a far cry from his small village in Crematoria, where the temperature could exceed one hundred-forty degrees farenheight in the summer.

The cigarette helped him with the cold, but not much. Well, it was better than nothing. He took a drag and peered through the scope, watching as Blake handed the binoculars to another soldier. Then he remembered something: his shift was over.

He tapped the man next to him on the shoulder, and he suddenly remembered the same thing. He'd probably spend the next hour or so writing a letter home or playing cards. Not much else to do in a shithole like outpost bravo three.

bump

[Northern Sea, North of The Macabee's Colonies]

The sea was calm and quaint, the sun peeked through the light cover of clouds and seagulls rested on the light rolling waves, it was the like the planes of The Silver Sky, excepted with water, and blue, and wet....well, that's beside the point.

All of a sudden the seagulls rustled their feathers and took off from the surface of the waves, a few miliseconds later a small bouy, surfaced, it looked like a old rusty lost fisherman's bouy, but it was anything but, it was the newest technology for submarine communication, a bouy that contained the all the nessecary equipment for satellit communication, it was connected to the Navarre-Class SSN that sat silently below the waves, a line was quickly opened to Doomingsland Command...

SIC:
{**Searching for Uplink**}
{**Encrypting, Encryption Code Alpha**}
{**Uplink Established**}
{**Begin Transmission**}

Type of Communiqué: Military

Admiral Anderson and General Vera wish to meet to discuss our plan for your neighbor.

Please respond ASAP.

{**End Transmission**}
{**Terminating Uplink**}
{**Uplink Uplink Terminated**}
{**Have a nice day!**}

The bouy remained on the surface waiting for a return transmission.

Within seconds of recieving it, an automated response was delivered courtesy of the BattleNet,


Establishing Uplink to BattleNet...
Uplink Established
Opening Communications Channel...
Channel Open
Formulating Response...
Stand By...
Response Formulated
Encryting...
Encrypted
Sending...
Official Imperial Communique

Your response has been recieved and processed. General Vera and Admiral Anderson are to be transported to the enclosed coordinates. Talks shall commence upon arrival. We look forward to working with them.

Closing Channel...
Stand By...
Channel Closed...
Terminating Uplink to BattleNet...
Stand By...
Uplink Terminated...

Rear Admiral Travis Moraine was watching from his position on the bridge of the ISS Hogsweat as Acastia City was undergoing construction. With Moraine's lack of expertise at construction, he was not enjoying what had been very routine so far. He was busy trying to keep his men and women sharp, but he was beginning to run out of ideas.

Finally, Brigadier General Harvey Mendelson walked up to him with a report.

"Admiral, you may want to look at these satellite pictures."

"Thank you General," he said. He studied the pictures and noticed the Colonial Defense Line under construction. He also noticed the colonial forces of the Skinnians lining up to observe and show the flag of their Grand Republic.

"Looks like that situation's going to develop," Moraine said.

"Agreed."

Moraine's brow furrowed in concentration as he became thoughtful for a moment. He looked at Mendelson and decided now was a good time to ask.

"Are you ready to mobilise to 'show the flag' as it were?"

"Sir?"

"Let the Doomies know we're watching them."

"We've barely got enough boots on the ground right now to watch ourselves take a crap," he said. "And you mean to tell me you want us to grab a pair of binoculars and snoop on the neighbours when they're taking a shower?"

"We've got Naval Infantry who can cover you until you finish the base," Moraine said. "Take a battalion over to that vicinity, get some UAVs upand do some scouting. Maybe some microsats."

"You're serious!"

"Our sworn enemies are building a defence line and we're just going to sit there and pick our noses, General? Sorry, but that's not my bag."

Moraine called the army units and ordered them to begin a reconnaissance pattern just five kilometres from the border. All of a sudden, the communications officer frantically ran up to Moraine.

"Sir! I'm picking up communicaitons!"

"Can you make them out?"

"Negative, sir. The encryption's too good at the moment."

"Get on it."

"Aye sir."

Moraine sighed heavily. Maybe it would have been better if things had been routine...

Outpost Delta Seven-Two, Voltaru Border

Lieutenant Lucius Varenus was bored. Very bored, indeed. He had somehow snagged gaurd duty along the picket line with the Voltarum colony, arguably the most dangerous spot a regular could be stationed in in Doomanum Nova. What he had done to be stationed there escaped him at the moment.

Upon his arrival, he had made his men dig fall back positions in case their initial bunker and trench complex fell. He knew if an attack were to occur, he and his men would most likely be killed to the last man. With that in mind, he wanted to take as many of the bastards with him as humanly possible.

His platoon was forward deployed from his company, which resided fifteen miles back, camped out. The rest of the company consisted of mechanized infantry, capable of joining battle within five or so minutes. He feared that may not be enough in the event of an invasion.

However, he seriously doubted anyone would launch an attack this early on. After all, everyone was still consolidating their holds. They wouldn't be able to plan an invasion for months. Or so he thought.

His men were well equiped, armed with DR-78A1 battle rifles and decent body armor. The A1 version of the DR-78 was mostly the same as the original version carried by the Imperial Gaurd, but featured polymer furniture, rails for the mounting of a scope, a muzzle break, and a folding bayonet. His men had affixed 4x magnification scopes to their rifles, allowing for greater accuracy at range.

Their armor was brand new, being constructed using SPECTRA fiber interwoven with artificial spider silk, liquid armor, and ceramic scail mail with segmented shoulders. The armor, along with their Mk. III Gallic Helms, made them resemble Roman Legionaries. Anti-tank weapons were plentiful, with each soldier carrying a DAT-36 SRKEM in addition to his rifle and grenades. The platoon also maintained two DAT-54 kinetic energy missile launcher teams along with two DMG-250 medium machineguns. All in all, they were quite well armed for a unit their size.

In mines had been scattered out in front of the trench line, razor wire being strung out right in front.

Machineguns were positioned to allow for them to have interlocking fields of fire, creating multiple kill zones.

To make matters worse for an attacker, the platoons four DM-38 Testudo II Infantry Fighting Vehicles were dug in just behind the trench line. These would be able to suppress enemies with their 30mm electro-thermal chemical automatic cannons, their anti-tank missiles, and their mortars.

If needed, an FIM-96C Aquila man-portable surface-to-air missile launcher was in a locker in the fall back trench line along with six spare missiles.

For a Doomie platoon, these men were pretty well armed. And when General Mendelson's battalion arrived, their skills and competence as warriors would be put to the test.

SIC: As soon as the response was gotten the bouy was pulled back under and the sub silently slipped back towards the Pacific Colony. The wheels of war were being set in motion, one single push at a time.

The message was quickly delivered to to Admiral Justin Anderson of the 4th Fleet, and Lieutenant General Francisco Vera.

Within a few hours they boarded a C-115 converted to a VIP transport.

"So Admiral, do you think this is worth the risk? We could be eaten alive by our allies for this." Says General Vera

"That is true, and remember it's up to the government to decide what we do, not us, we are ordered and we do, and besides, we get what we want, a safer area for our allies, and the doomies get what they want, total control of the northern sea for them and their allies."

"That's a good point Admiral, and from what I here from HQ we might be able to improve Doomie relations with our allies, doubtful, but a hope none the less."

"All we can do is hope, hope and fight until we can hope and fight no more." Says Admiral Anderson as the C-115 lifts off of the runway.

"But stop worrying so much General, just think what Doomie woman might look like." says Admiral Anderson. "Shut up old man." Laughs General Vera.

Outside the plane several F-133s and F/A-3s flew escort, the planes would fly out and around the north western part of the continent before squeezing between The Macabee's air space.

(I'll let Doom RP their arrival)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Major General Hank Bowden poured over recon pictures, most pictures were of empty land of claimed but still uninhabited colonies, only a few were really important, he was stuck with the rest, they were relatively new, a few hours old.

After looking at several unimportant pics of Doomie defences, which he knew were there he reached some of Sarzonia and Voltarum colonies, he squinted at a few picks of Sarzonia forces conducting operations and movements, "Damn, they better not fuck it up, I swear if they fuck this up we're screwed, not to metion Voltarums Colonies."

Imperium Airforce Base, Arretium Nova, Capital of Doomanum Nova

As the C-115 touched down, a full Century of Legionaries, clad in full ceremonial armor, formed rank on either side of the red carpet that the aircraft was to taxi to.

The sun was just begining to show it self, a cloudless day. Solar rays illuminated the men, their polished black armor glistening amidst the sunlight, the golden skulls that decorated the center of their helms and the crosses that adorned their brestplates shinning brightly. Their hardened, scarred faces were frozen like statues.

As the aircraft taxied up, the men automatically presented arms, their centurion precisely directing their every movement with the wave of his gladius. The men wielded DR-31 assault rifles, compact yet quite mean looking, their red-glowing scopes matching the red crests that adorned their helms.

The stairs were rolled up to the door of the transport, which opened just as the stairs made contact. The two Skyan officers, looking quite tired yet most dignified, stepped off the aircraft and headed down the steps. Awaiting them down towards the end of the red carpet that lead towards an awaiting limo stood Proconsul Scipio in full armor, black with gold trimming, his gladius slung to his right side.

He approached them in a broad, soldierly swagger, a big grin on his face, trailed by an entourage of servants (including, to the delight of Admiral Anderson, numerous beautiful Doomie women), all clad in black robes.

"Salve, friends. Welcome to Arretium Nova," said Scipio pleasently in accented English.

Admiral Anderson and General Vera grinned back at Proconsul Scipio, "Thank you for your hospitality, we're happy to be here." says Admiral Anderson as he and General Vera shake Scipio's hands.

General Vera looks at the Doomingslandi Legionaries, "They sure live up to their name, I feel sorry for who ever has to face them, you guys do a great job with training." He complements Scipio.

ooc: tag... ic post soon...!!

Bantil Jerat paced back and forth on the slowly degrading, red, plush carpet. His hair, once a vibrant black, was both graying and receeding - a testament, he decided of what he had gone through the last few months.

"I do wish you would stop pacing, its getting on my nerves."

Jerat stopped, turned, and brought up his squinting eyes to face the Admiral. "Getting on your nerves? I do apologize, I am afraid I have lost the senesititivy you seem to have, sir." Depite the sarcastic tone, the naval commander sitting across from Jerat smiled and shook it off. He stood up from his old fashioned, maple desk and looked down at some of the reports the two had been discussing.

"Look, Ban, this is not as bad as it seems. Once we found out who our new neighbors were, we knew this would happen quicker than your spit freezes back home."

"Our new neighbors... I love the sentiment. You and I both know that staking this claim was the worst thing The Order could have done...

"In hindsight, you might think that my friend. The rumours of Doomingsland claim was thought to be more east. We had no idea that we would share a border..."

Jerat finally sat down, drawing a sigh of relief from Admiral Halior V'lasidy. The governor of the new Voltarum colony stared at the floor for a while before looking up, and replying: "Hal, you and I both know we can't wait here. Our safety will never be ensured without a proper defense barrier on the border... we need to do this quick...."

"And we need to do it right," broke in the Admiral. "I promise you, our border will be safe before Doomingsland can mount any kind of offensive assault. I have General Kanut's promise on that. Numerous air defensive bases are almost done... standard defensive lines are already in place, with plans on at least matching the equipement and manpower the Doomies will have..."

Ban just nodded, and sat back. The two sat in silence for a few moments until the Admiral's page went off.

"Admiral, sir, deembarkation is complete. We are set to leave dry dock in an hour.

"Thank you." He turned to Bantil. "You best be leaving, Ban. Go back to the new capital and oversee you new house being completed. It will make you feel better..."

Bantil walked out of the Admiral's office and out to the deck of the Xerxes. Below him, planes were landing and taking off from her mighty flight deck, and the carrier glistened in the sun. The warmth still shocked him... it was a far cry from the unrelenting Antarctican winds. To his right, he saw remnants of what was left of the colony fleet that arrived a few months ago, escorted by the 3rd Fleet of the Voltaru Navy. The last materials were done unloading... he had never seen so many of the Voltaru Army and their equipment before in his life. By now, they were just miles from the northern border, ensuring their new "neighbors" were goign to play nice.

Bantil took a deep breath, and turned his head to gaze at the shore of the new colony... his colony. He had helped pick the name - Aoristos - the closest English translation was "morning's grace."

He could see the spires of the typical Voltaru architecture in the port city of Laidir, and he again told himself that no matter how hard the near future woudl be, this truly felt like his home.

He turned, as the blades of his helicopter started up. The new colony's capital, Síochán, was waiting for him.

The Great Hall, Ohm, The Voltarum

"I repeat my objection! The Order cannot allow this!"

"Xanaphia, there is now other way. Would you like to invite war? Wait until they attack?"

"This solution does not solve anything, either, Avlos. Doomingland will attack if they want, when they want. To show weakness..."

"This is not showing weakness! This is an effort to avoid conflict...."

The argument when back and forth, as Xerco watched the Order dividing into two lines. To the right was Xanaphia Jassan, backed by 5 Chancellors who thought the curent proprosal on the floor was worthless. To the left, Avlos Selkirk and the other 5 of the Order, fully backing the proposal. It was clear to Xerco that this would not be a good day....

He hit a small switch on his chair. A loud pulse vibrated throughout the hall. The 12 turned their attention to him.

"It is clear to me now that this issue will not be resolved with debate. I am putting this proposal to vote."

The 12 sat down in their seats, as the lights dimmed, eventualy making the room pitch black. After ten seconds, 12 spheres rose in the air above the chairs. As Xerco predicted - 6 were red, 6 were green. Despite the darkness, Xerco felt the gazes of the 12 in front him, waiting for his tie breaking vote. Xanaphia will never let me hear the end of this...

----
To: Doomingsland Command

As has always been the case with our dealings, I will dispense with the pleasantries and get right to the point of this communication. Enclosed are the proposed borders between our two colonies along the two lakes that we share. If they are not acceptable, please advise and so we can come to some sort of agreement.

Now, on to a more pressing issue. The Order of the Voltarum wishes to propose something to your government to insure violence between our two peoples wil be kept at a mimimum. As you know from our prior dealings, we have no imperialistic tendencies, and have no wishes to take over your territory. Still, to ensure a cooperative relationship in the future, we propose the following: a demilitarized zone between our land borders, spanning a distance of 10 miles inward from each of our borders. All military equipment would be prohibited inside these propsosed 20 mile wide zones.

Again, The Voltarum wants nothing more than a peaceful realationship with you, our new neighbors. We await your response on this matter.

With Respect,
Premier Xerco Longbottom
(signed, all members of High Order)

OOC: map in signature

OOC: The Voltarum, you have a TG. :)

Admiral Anderson and General Vera grinned back at Proconsul Scipio, "Thank you for your hospitality, we're happy to be here." says Admiral Anderson as he and General Vera shake Scipio's hands.

General Vera looks at the Doomingslandi Legionaries, "They sure live up to their name, I feel sorry for who ever has to face them, you guys do a great job with training." He complements Scipio.
Scipio glanced at the soldiers arrayed before him and smiled,

"Indeed, I shall relay your complements to my son. He is a tribune in the Twenty-sixth Legion, currently keeping the borders of this very colony safe. He shall be pleased to here that his foreign counterparts recognize the superb training of he and his comrades," he said pleasantly.

He turned and motioned for his guests to follow him to the awaiting limo, which was parked just twenty feet away at the end of the red carpet.

The Skyans noted that their destination seemed to a large cliff overlooking the city. Dark clouds were forming over it, giving the citadel a truly sinister and intimidating appearance indeed.

After a short five minute drive through the newly constructed city, the vehicle arrived at the gates of Scipio's palace. It was surrounded by high stone and cement walls, guards patrolling along the top. The limo came to a stop at the guard house, and was quickly allowed through without a word being said.

The palace was massive, with a style of architecture that would no doubt seem strange and somewhat sinister to a foreigner; a mix of Roman and Gothic architecture, high spires along with columns and domes, all quite dark from the stone, which was a strangely obsidian-like color found only in the darker depths of Doomingsland, used in construction. Gargoyles stood like ominous sentinels along the tops of the walls, while statues of saints and martyrs greeted visitors near the entrance.

A carpet was thrown out from the entrance of the palace to the limo's door. As the door was opened, the general and admiral would be greeted by the sight of even more Legionaries, arrayed in formation on either side of the carpet, once more standing on either side of the carpet.

The Skyans were led up the stairs, and through the two massive oaken doors, and into the massive hallway. It was a huge, darkened yet very ornate room of marble, countless pillars rising up to an immeasurably high ceiling, the expansive chamber stretching, seemingly, to the four corners of the world itself.

Arrayed about the hall were countless formations of Imperial soldiers, tightly packed formations of men moving with admirable if not unnatural precision into their positions, the very definition of discipline. Trumpets sounded in a fanfare as drums beat, war horns were droning on to welcome the envoys. The soldiers’ boots all clacked at once as the entire formation snapped to crisp, well-rehearsed attention. Their standards, if not mounted on poles being held by signifiers then hung from the wall, were made of a fine black cloth with genuine gold trimming bore the numbers of the units in Roman numerals. They were adorned with eagles, skulls, and crosses, showing all too clearly the resolve, skill, and determination these troops would show in combat.

Their meticulously polished black armor glistened eerily in the low light, threatening to drain even that sparse illumination from the room.

These were the men of the Eleventh Legion, all veterans of Inkana. They had come to this land in anticipation of a fresh new war against their hated foe, the Sarzonians. It would immediately dawn on the admiral and general that the fortress was occupied by nothing less than a brigade-sized force. 5,500 men situated on top of a fortified hill.

”Welcome to my humble abode,” Scipio said with a child-like smile.


Scipio was forced to excuse himself for a few minutes as one of his commanders pulled him aside, handing a manila envelope bearing the Imperial Seal. Impatiently opening it (as the good proconsul did not want to appear inhospitable to his guests), he scanned through until he got to the bottom, in which the members of the Voltaru high council had signed.

This compelled him to actually read through the message, for it wasn’t often that the Empire was in correspondence with such people. The last time the Emperor and the High Council had exchanged correspondence, it consisted of death threats for one another. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.

”Analysis,” said Scipio without taking his eyes off of the paper,

”Well, my lord, we have no reason to doubt their intentions, but frankly I don’t trust them,” replied Prefect Gaius smartly,

”Nor do I, but they really can’t do anything to us. If anything, they, as a Sarzonian would say, are shaking in their collective boots,” he said with a sardonic smile, ”Send a reply, mess around with the terms as you see fit. This can only benefit both parties. “ he said authoritatively, handing Gaius the envelope back while pocketing the letter for future reference.

Official Imperial Response

The Empire of Doomingsland finds these terms adequate-for once; this in regards to the borders concerning the lakes.

In regards to your proposed Demilitarized Zone along the land, however, we must make an altercation to your offer. Due to the present existence of Imperial fortifications, we wish to alter the range of said DMZ to five miles within the borders instead of ten.

Furthermore, both parties should be allowed to place static defenses, this including barbed wire and land mines, within the previously stated defense. However, no personnel or offensive weaponry will be present, as we both know how an event of that nature will end. We hope you find these terms acceptable.

Signed,

Proconsul Marcus Flamminius Scipio

bump

Admiral Anderson and General Vera looked around in awe at the vast palace as they walked in. "Humble would be far from the word." Says Anderson with a smile, Vera just nods his head in agreement while looking at the many Gargoyles along the walls.

They continue to look around as Proconsul Scipio was occupied by one of his aids, as the aid left Anderson asked, "Who was the message from, or is it none of our buisiness?"

OOC: sorry for the rushed post

Bantil Jerat gazed out of the top story of the capitol building. The spires of the city below glistened in the sunlight, the traditional red and orange roofs of Voltaru construction absorbing the heat of the afternoon. It was a scene not many Voltaru saw in his lifetime, and the view almost made him forget about the communication he had been waiting on.

Minutes past before a slight tone sounded on his desk. Moments later he was staring at the Premier of the High Order.

"The Order has decided to accept the counter offer, Ban. Most of the Chancellors believe anything but a flat refusal or yet another death threat is a victory."

"I agree, Premier."

"In any case, how are our defensive measures going?"

"Excellent. General Trelane reports full integration of the defensive net. Almost all military equipment is in position, and all but one of the main ground unit bases are at full operation. In addition, the passive defensive measures are ready to be placed within the DMZ."

"Good. I want to reassure you of THe Order's attention to the safety of the colony. Of course, the one thing we can't match of our new neighbors is their experience. How is the training going?"

"As best as can be expected, Premier. Luckily, our military training with some of our Pact allies has helped. I am sure you have seen Trelane's report..."

"Yes, I have. In any case, I am due back in chambers soon. I'll communictae to you if we hear anything else from Doomingsland..."

"Thank you Premier."

---------
To: Proconsul Marcus Flamminius Scipio

The High Order agrees with your terms.

Signed,
Premier Xerco Longbottom
Governor Bantil Jerat

Admiral Anderson and General Vera looked around in awe at the vast palace as they walked in. "Humble would be far from the word." Says Anderson with a smile, Vera just nods his head in agreement while looking at the many Gargoyles along the walls.

They continue to look around as Proconsul Scipio was occupied by one of his aids, as the aid left Anderson asked, "Who was the message from, or is it none of our buisiness?"
"It was from the Voltaru government," Scipio replied, suddenly dropping the smile he'd been maintaining since Anderson and Vera arrived, "They wish to establish a demilitarized zone along our borders. We agreed," he said soberly.

His smile soon returned, "Now, it is almost time for diner. Come," he said, motioning towards a massive set of oaken doors that lay across the vast hall.

The group proceded towards the dining room. Upon stepping through the doors, one could see one's own reflection on the perfectly polished marble floor. A long table occupied by seemingly hundreds of well-dressed guests stretched across the vast chamber.

Scipio proceded towards the head of the table. Before sitting down, he was greeted by two beautiful women,

"My wife, Julia," he said motioning to one of the women, obviously older than the other, but quite attractive, nonetheless. Julia extended her hand for the general and admiral to kiss,

"My daughter, Lucretia,"

The girl, looking to be roughly sixteen, did as her mother, and extended her pretty little hand for the men to kiss.

"I regret the absense of my son, Gaius, but as I mentioned before, he is currently gaurding our borders with the legions. However, you will most likely tour his unit while on your visit in Doomanum Nova..."

The people then took their seats, Scipio's wife and daughter sitting to his immediate right and left, with Anderson and Vera sitting next to them. Feasting would continue for the next four hours, and they'd all be stuffed. As they ate, they would conduct the night's buisiness.

Construction on the newly christened Scipio Line was proceeding as planned. The most lightly defended area was the Maccabean border, as the Golden Throne was a most respected ally of the Empire. The only true defensive measures there were to stop smugglers. The Skinnyan border's defenses were complete, with two full divisions occupying the line, all three segments fully constructed, all mine fields layed out, barbed wire strung.

The Voltaru border was as heavily defended as the Skinnyan border at the moment. However, the line along the newly established DMZ was undergoing heavy reinforcement. That wouldn't be totaly finished for at least another week.

The Otagian border, however, was being tuned more to an offensive posture, minefields being less expansive, the bunkers (all carefully concealed) mainly designed for the housing of armored vehicles and personel rather than defensive equipment. Why this was so would become apparent soon enough...

Admiral Anderson and General Vera kissed the women's hands and took a seat.

The food was better then they imagined, better then anything they had within the last few weeks. 'Damn, he lives in still' thought Vera as he took a bite of some meat.

They both exercised the most polite of their table manners to project a good image of themselves and The Silver Sky.

Anderson swallowed a piece of meat before beginning, "So, should we start conducting business now or wait until we're more done, because I'm ready to get down to business." finished Anderson, in a light friendly tone.

Scipio nodded as he took a bite of meat. After swallowing and wiping his mouth, he spoke,

"We may begin when you wish. The men assembled before you are the commanders that are to be taking place in the upcoming campaign," he motioned towards the guests arrayed about the table,

"Speaking in front of them is far from inappropriate."

Anderson nodded and took anothe bite of meat, chewed and swallowed it, Vera, taking note of the conversation took a final drink before stopping to listen.

"I see, well," Anderson gathered his thoughts, "Let's start with the inital contact, would you rather gain air superiority, go head long into a combined blitzkrieg type attack, or smash their cities from the sea?"

"I figure we'd better just outline the plan now before finalizing any large attacks." Finished Anderson as he took a drink.

"While our forces excell in a blitzkreig-type attack, I believe air superiority should be our top priority. A naval bombardment isn't a bad idea, either. I believe we should simply pound them into submission before rolling in and cleaning up what's left of their colony," replied Scipio quite soberly, taking a sip from his wine glass.

"Ok, so, immediate air campaign with large amounts of saturation bombing, with airfields, bases, SAMs, and naval defences as targets. Shore bombardment, of all of the previously stated targets, with our new Mark 71 naval guns we can plant shells at least 1000 miles inland, depending on the caliber and length of the gun barrel. And followed by a blitz style ground attack." The admiral stopped to take a bite of the fine bread.

"Now, how do we deal with those arcologies? They're over 500m tall and have thousands of CIWS, RAM(Rolling Airframe missiles), and dozens of SAMs, not to metion armored with over 4 meters of reinforced concrete." Asked Vera before he took a drink.

"I suggest just blasting the damn things, it'd be suicide to send troops into their consider one can house over 900,000 people, we could just plant dozens of 24 inch shells into them and their and surround defences and then just plant a few well place "Super Novas" into them, what do you say?" Finished Anderson.

The Otagian border, however, was being tuned more to an offensive posture, minefields being less expansive, the bunkers (all carefully concealed) mainly designed for the housing of armored vehicles and personel rather than defensive equipment. Why this was so would become apparent soon enough...

ooc: how apparent would this be from recon pictures? Also, the Otagian border? Is that the border with "phaethos" or with "dweldafia prime". Sorry to be lazy and ask, but easier than to sort throguh 13 pages of colony claims.

From: Major-General Winchester, Commander-In-Chief New Veritas Occupation Forces (CINCNVOF)
To: Dommingsland Authorities, Proconsul's Palace, Arretium Nova, Doomanum Nova
RE: Treaty of Neutrality

Greetings,

Our two colonies share an extensive border with each other, one that stretches for hundreds of miles, if not further. I am sure you have seen the defenses constructed by the personnel under my command, and we have seen your equally sturdy defenses. Forgive me, but I shall be blunt here; neither myself or my government desires a state of warfare to exist between our two colonies, and by extension our nations.

To avoid any unneccessary bloodshed, I propose that a De-Militarized Zone no shorter than five miles and no longer than ten miles be created, encompassing the borders between our two colonies for as far as our borders physically connect. Said DMZ would be allowed to contain passive defensive measures, such as minefields and barbed wire, but no offensive weaponry, as well as no physical military presence, ie military personnel.

Hopefully this DMZ will afford our two nations greater security, and decrease the risk of an accidental contact being sparked between our troops.

General Winchester

"Ok, so, immediate air campaign with large amounts of saturation bombing, with airfields, bases, SAMs, and naval defences as targets. Shore bombardment, of all of the previously stated targets, with our new Mark 71 naval guns we can plant shells at least 1000 miles inland, depending on the caliber and length of the gun barrel. And followed by a blitz style ground attack." The admiral stopped to take a bite of the fine bread.

"Now, how do we deal with those arcologies? They're over 500m tall and have thousands of CIWS, RAM(Rolling Airframe missiles), and dozens of SAMs, not to metion armored with over 4 meters of reinforced concrete." Asked Vera before he took a drink.

"I suggest just blasting the damn things, it'd be suicide to send troops into their consider one can house over 900,000 people, we could just plant dozens of 24 inch shells into them and their and surround defences and then just plant a few well place "Super Novas" into them, what do you say?" Finished Anderson.
Scipio nodded his head, "Your new Super Novas would no doubt work quite well against such structures. However, the sheer amount of defenses would make planting such a weapon quite difficult, indeed. Off shore and landbased Mk. 71 fire from large caliber guns would most likely be our best option,"

That last statement had just tipped Scipio's hand, intentionaly so. The Empire now had its own Mk. 71-carrying dreadnaughts and cruisers.

"We should first deny them of their land-based tracking systems, RADAR, infrared, et cetera, before going in with bombers. However, I believe we can leave the majority of bombing to artillery. Leave any survivors to aircraft," he said, taking another bite of meat.

OOC:Volt-

It'd be hard as hell to see with satelites. You may be able to spot and infantry moving into the tunnels, but they do this in between satelite passes. You'd either need an aircraft up there watching me or you'd need a satelite in geo-sync orbit. Even then the bunkers are too well concealed for you to be able to figure out where I've hidden them. Phaethos is Otagia's colony. Yeah, took me awhile to figure that out, too...

IC:

Official Imperial Response

We find your terms acceptable. A five mile-deep DMZ shall be established immediately on our part. We expect the same from you. We look forward to working together peacefully in the immediate future.

"Report, General."

General Ramji Trelane lifted his massive frame from the plush seat, and walked over to the wall. With a few pushes of a button, a map of the surrounding area came into view. The high resolution focused in on the Voltaru-Doomingslandian border.

Bantil Jeret and the Aoristosian congress sat around the conference room table on the top floor of the capitol building. They looked up.. way up... to the seven foot General in charge of the border security.

"The DMZ is now fully established. As you can see - here and here - our ground forces have reinforced the 5 mile line from the Doomie border. Recon pictures have also seen similar reinforcement on their side. All our equipment and men are now fully mobilized and ready to defend the border. Passive defensive means - mines and the like - have been established in the DMZ. Training exercises and infantry rotation is being employed for the next few months to keep the men on their toes..."

A congresswoman from Laidir interrupted. "What is the analysis of the Doomingslandian force?"

"By what we can tell, and that is severly limited due to Doomingsland's secretive nature, their forces along our border are at least comparable, if not exceeding ours. But to rest your mind, congresswomen, there is no movement to signify any sort of invasion. In addition, several satellites are being diverted to increase our intelligence in this region. We should know more in the coming weeks."

A brief lull. Bantil spoke up. "Go on, General."

Trelane padded a directional arrow and the map swiveled northeast. "Recon photos have also just verified what our intel had told us a few days ago - Skinny87, who borders Doomingsland to the North, has seem to take our lead and request the established of a DMZ on their border. Movements suggest that this is in the process of being established."

A congressman from Mishnock broke in: "Peace for the region means peace for us all. This is indeed good news."

Trelane merely smiled and nodded back.

"If that is all, General?" asked Bantil.

"Yes sir."

Bantil stood. "Very well, this session of congress is adjourned. Until next week..." He chimed a bell on his desk, signaling the regional delegates to leave.

Trelane remained until the room was empty.

"General, the others might not have seen your uneasiness, but I certainly did. What aren't you telling us?"

Trelane sat and strecthed his long legs. "Nothing concrete, Mr. Governor. But all I can think of is the fact that Doomingsland has 4 major borders. Two, ourselves and now Skinny87, have DMZs. The third is with an close ally. What does that leave?"

Bantil frowned. "The fourth border... are they planning to invade?"

Trelane smiled. "Doomingsland will not sit idely by and enjoy their present situation. Imperialism is in their blood. But to answer your question, I don't know. Their 4th border, with a colony of Otagia, has shown no obvious signs of offensive movement, but that can mean nothing. The Doomies are very good at hiding their true intentions, and with limited satelite information coming in, its been hard to say."

Bantil slumped in his chair. "Is it wrong to be relieved to at least know it won't be us?"

The General again smiled, as he got up. "I've seen their planes in action, Governor. I am relieved every day. But it doesn't mean we aren't on their list."

With the growing threat posed by the Doomingslandi colony just two colony slots away, Colonial Governor Brad Vogel knew that the opportunity for Doomingsland to strike Acastia was only buffered by the presence of a colony of Sarzonian ally The Voltarum. Acastia's development as a colony had been steady in the several months since it was established. The port city of Casumel was a bustling community and the Portland Iron Works was looking to establish it as yet another shipyard for the construction of its mammoth superdreadnoughts.

But Vogel was more concerned about the threat that lay to the north. The construction of Fort Vogel was of small comfort to him. A handful of SZ-23 'Aurora' scout fighters were ready for immediate flight and they still hadn't gotten the new SZ-21 'Coronet' air superiority fighters. The SZ-20 'Valkyrie' fighters were almost ready to take to the skies, but they were strike aircraft. Vogel didn't know a whole heck of a lot about aircraft, but he knew one thing. Using equipment that wasn't intended for a particular role wasn't the best allocation of resources.

In any event, he talked to colonial Adjutant General Red Brantley, a Major General in the Incorporated Sarzonian Army. Brantley showed a command of all three branches of the military that would be making their presence felt in the Sarzonian colony. He knew how to coordinate three very disparate branch cultures and the leaders of the air force detachment respected him. Even more incredible for a navy-obsessed nation, the ISN's deployment respected Brantley.

"We've got a bunch of Doomies building a Colonial Defense Line to the north. How about we go and, um, make our feelings known about the line?"

"And touch off a war with the Doomies? Are you sure that's what you want," Brantley asked. "Besides that, if we want to go and 'make our feelings known' about that Colonial Defense Line, we're going to have to secure permission from the Voltarum since we'd be sending military units into their colony."

"Red, that shouldn't be all that hard. The Voltarum is a Woodstock Pact ally and I seriously doubt they want anything to do with the Doomies being up their crack," Vogel countered. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind seeing us shoot at them anyway."

"Brad, that's the kind of thinking that's touched off wars. We don't need a war just yet. We haven't even finished the training of all our troops yet. I could only send a brigade up to face the Doomies and all I've got ready to defend the colony is a battalion."

"You'd better ratchet up the training General," Vogel said. He looked down at a piece of paper and looked back up with a devious-looking smile on his face.

"I just received word that the ISA is sending two full divisions to Acastia. They should be here within the next 72 hours. And they're all army regulars."

Brantley rolled his eyes slightly. Obviously, Vogel was spoiling for a fight and he wasn't going to back down until he got it.

"Have it your way Governor," he said. "But if this touches off a war and Parliament finds out you ordered me up there, they'll have your fucking head on a silver platter."

"I doubt Parliament would mind antagonising the Doomies," Vogel said. "I think any military planner worth his salt knows that if either of us tries to attack the other's homeland, they'll get a rude awakening."

"You're forgetting Inkana," Brantley said.

"You're forgetting Pantera."

"Whatever. We're still going to be the ones on the attack in foreign ground. Even if we have to go through Voltaru territory to get there."

Brantley gave Vogel a final scowl before he turned around and opened the door to Vogel's office, closing the door with somewhat excessive force. Vogel walked slowly toward the window in his office overlooking the rest of Casumel. The game was afoot, but who knew how it would play out?

A communications was sent to all sides interested in the Doomingslang defense line.


Attention prospective interests. We have opened our ports to inter-colonial trade relations.

What can we offer? This desolate meager island does not look much, but it has a substantial mineral reserve under it's frozen crust. There is literally billions of tons of minerals, of all kinds waiting to be mined. We will not say that it is all availible to us, but we are able to produce enough for outsourcing.

Care to help our meager colony? With small loans, or gifts, you can help us expand our mining capabilities. The more machines we have, the more minerals we can produce. The more minerals we can produce, the more we can trade away. The more we can trade away, the more you are able to recieve. We can garantee that all money loaned to us will be repaid in full, and much much more due to either money made by trading, or the minerals themselves.

For an additional fee, we can smelt the minerals into the proper metals. Steel, titanium, and even some plastic-metal mixes can be created by us. If you wish to learn more information, please contact our Forign relations minister.

For an even greater fee, we can create the exact parts you need. With enough funding and resources, we can build an entire navy, given enough time.

Please consider this for your future interests. We are but a small colony, of a little over five million civilians, on a desolate rock. We may be small, but we can provide the metals you need for your day to day life.

-The Imperial Colony of Azaha Foreign Relations office.

"How much longer will we get away with intruding on people's business and just interjecting our ads?"

"AS long as it takes."

Staging Area XVIII, Fifty Meters Underground, Scipio Line, Otagian Border,

The sharp clacking of boots in unison reverberated about the newly constructed corridor as various units went about their daily drills, awaiting the call that they all knew would come soon enough. The call to get out of these shitholes that they'd been living in the past few weeks and go kill things.

The bunkers were shared by both regulars and legionaries, creating an atmosphere that was odd to say the least. While there was some resentment between the two services, they knew they'd be going to battle together. They might as well make the best of it.

This particular bunker was occupied by II Century, I Cohort, Legio XXVI, a mechanized unit. It was nothing less than a self-suffecient city, drawing on an underground water supply that had been found and piped into all of the bunkers along the line, maintaining enough food to last several years, and enough ammunition to last twice that.

The unit's vehicles, eight DM-38A1 Testudo II infantry fighting vehicles and two DM-41A2 Caesar main battle tanks, were all neatly parked in the area closest the the border, right in front of the ramp that lead to the concealed door that lead to the surface, just two miles from the border.

It was a cozy little fortress, with barracks for the men, a rec-room small enough to keep the men off duty occupied, a small firing range, and enough winding, interconnecting corridor going around in circles to keep the men occupied with running and drilling for hours upon hours. And that was what they did- they ran and they drilled. Constantly.

It was nothing new for these men, who had known nothing else their entire lives. Well, they did know one other thing. Actual combat. This was just one of the many units that had been arrayed along the Otagian border in identical bunkers. Watching. Waiting.

They wouldn't need to wait much longer, for the reinforcements they'd been waiting for had been dispatched from their homeland. Three more legions, three more divisions, and a few more fleets. They would be arriving soon.

The pieces were all falling into place...

"Have you read the report, Viceroy?"

"Yes Premier."

"Your thoughts?"

"General Trelane is a smart man. That is precisely the reason I appointed him to be in charge of the ground defenses over there. His work has been flawless so far, and the defenses seem to be where we want them."

"And the other matter?"

Viceory Hedjtep Kanut sighed wearily. "You know my feelings on the Doomies, Premier, and I have no doubt they are planning something, but without concrete evidence, I see no reason to jump to conclusions."

There was a loud grunt behind him.

"Something to add, Admiral."

Viceroy of the Navy, Admiral Ja'rod Kathon stepped forward. "With all due respect to the General, he is being too cautious. This is the Doomies, after all. Even given their apparent pacifism toward us by agreeing to that DMZ, they will not, as Trelane wrote, sit by and enjoy what they have."

Kanut broke in. "What do you suppose we do, Ja'rod? Warn Otagia? Attack Doomingsland? Unlike the Navy, the Voltaru army is not wll enough trained or equipped for an offensive ground war against Doomingsland, unless we have help... and I sincerly doubt any of our allies would like to get tangled in that mess."

"I am not talking about any of that." Kathon turned, edging closer to the antique mahogany desk of the Premier. "Sir, Otagia would be the first step. If the Doomies expand their influence our colony will never be safe...."

The Premier rose his hand. "What do you propose, Viceroy."

"For one, we more closely monitor Doomingslandi convoys." He swiveled the display on the Premier's desk. "Unfortunately we can't get near their coastline because of The Macabees, but we can send some ships to neutral waters to monitor what is going on."

The Premier nodded. "Go on."

"Second, I think it is imperative that we know all we can know about this. We have 4 Pact allies, plus Czardas in the area. We need to find out if they know anything we don't."

"While I agree contact with our allies is a good idea, I seriously suggest we do not send any ships near the north, " Kanut counters. "If they are discovered, the consequences would be disasterous."

"They won't be discovered, General. And even if they are, they will not be within territorial waters."

The Premier stood. "Gentlemen, thank you. You have given me much to think about. Admiral, I will take your recommendation before the Order. Form your squadron and have them leave immediately for the colonies. Once we have clearance, I will authorize final approached toward the northern bay. In the meantime, I will contact our allies in the area. Goodnight, gentlemen.

----

Hours later, 3 Navarre class submarines, the Vega, the Beutelgeuse and the Arcturus departed off the North Sector Naval Base on a heading taking them towards Aoristos.

At about the same time, the following message was sent out via private, secure channel to the leaders of Sarzonia, The Silver Sky, Isselmere, and Izistan. It did not include mention of the three subs.


Dearest friends -

We are all aware of the present situation in the Colonies. Given
our northern neighbor, our history together, and her tendencies for
agression, you will forgive us if we seem paranoid. We request an
open dialogue about any information you have or will receive about
our neighbor's capabilites, movements, or motives regarding our
surrounding lands. Attached you will find our intel about the current
situation. While out conclusion lacks any real data, we hope one of
you might spread some validity onto these ideas.

Long live the pact.
With Respect,
X.L.

Western Command Post, New Veritas

Rain hammered down from the skies, soaking everything, penetrating even the thickest of uniforms until it, and the skin it protected, was sodden with moisture. The sky was grey, thickly pregnant with rain-bearing clouds, all of which promised a long haul for the weather. Fortunately, even the rain could not penetrate seven feet of reinforced concrete, for which Major-General Winchester was profoundly greatful. Whilst the lives of the men and women under his command were undoubtedly being made miserable by the weather, that was all they were troubled by. They could, and did, ignore political ramifications and social factors, economical problems.

Winchester, however, did not have such luxury. Instead of the rain, he was being showered with possibly the worst news possible. He read the message flimsy again, hoping that the message it contained might somehow change, despite it being physically impossible. When, despite being aided by a tumbler of whisky, it did not magically change, he swore lightly. The message was brief, and to the point.

From: Grey House, Oval Office
To: Commander, Occupation Forces New Veritas
Re: New Orders

Parliament rebelled against legitimate authority of central government. Traitors arrested and soon to be executed. Several National Guards units rebelling against central authority. Thus, New Veritas forces required to put down rebellion centering in New Kaylee. Immediate withdrawal to mainland therefore essential. Non-prosecution of orders will be seen as treachery and result in immediate arrest

Winchester frowned. He had suspected the President of being mentally unstable for quite some time, especially since the withdrawal from Nerotika and Hitlerreich. However, this was beyond anything he had suspected would happen. The man had gone insane, and was apparently now a dictator in the Grand Republic. The orders called for him to go home and 'put down a rebellion', which seemed to translate to him to something far less savoury. He had no intention of following these orders; he served for the people, and the people only. He screwed up the flimsy and threw it in the fire. It crackled as it burned, quickly turning into ash.

He moved from his desk and opened the door to his office. Turning to the guard stationed there, he called for his command staff to assemble in his office immediately. The man nodded, saluted, and moved off down the corridor. Less than five minutes later, the ten men and women that comprised his staff were assembled in his office. Winchester sat down at his desk and faced them. They had presumably heard of the coup in the Republic, and now it was his job to reassure them - and by doing so, break the oath he had taken more than two decades ago to serve the Presidents explicit orders.

"Ladies, gentlemen. You will have no doubt have heard of the coup in the Republic, and the installment of President Martin as 'Life President', as well as the dissolution of Parliament."

They nodded, and several looked apprehensive, but not a word was spoken; the seemed to be awaiting whatever it was he had to say. He sighed for a moment, then continued on. "I took an oath, many years ago, to serve this country and her President. But more importantly, her people. The coup that has taken place is not only illegal, it is immoral, and is not in the wishes of the people. And I will play no part in it - until such time as the forces under General Crombie, heading the resistance to President Martin, has retaken the country - I will not obey any orders sent from President Martin or his lackeys. Some of you may have a problem with this, and if you do, I wish you to raise your hand now. There will be no repercussions."

As he uttered these last words, Winchester waited with baited breath. If there were any supporters of Martin amongst his staff, or even anyone who simply disagreed with breaking their oath to him, then he would be in trouble; the entire colony would be in peril. Fortunately, not a single had was raised, or even attempted to be raised. Inwardly he sighed deeply, and his heartrate began to return to normal. Outwardly, he kept the same, grim persona. "Very well then. I thank each of you for your confidence in my command. Now, to business. We will not be sending one soldier back to the Republic, and by doing so we shall be aiding the resistance hugely by denying the enemy desperately needed troops.

We shall also be moving several of the armoured divisions to the DMZ border with Doomingsland. We are not attacking, but intelligence, as several of you will know, thinks they may be preparing an attack to their south. We do not have the forces to sustain any offensive action at the moment. However, I want the Doomingslanders to be on the edge, and deploy more forces to our border - every division they deploy there, is one less they can deploy against our Woodstock allies. Do you understand?"

Slowly, there came nods from the small group, and they departed to begin the preparations. Winchester nodded as well. It would be a tough time, what with the coup at hime and the probable attack on their allies. But, they would survive, he reflected. They had to...

"Well, 23,000lbs of high explosives would work well against any structure, but that's be side the point, and yes, they would most likely be deployed once enemy defences are almost gone."

Anderson took a quick drink, 'quite good' he thought as it flowed down his throat.

"You have Mk. 71's now? We just finished re-arming the last of our destroyers and frigates with them, anyway, yes they would be the best possible weapon to use in the opening days, we've just finished converting our rail-way guns from ETC to Mk. 71."

"Of course, go for the enemies' eyes and ears first. With our missile arsenal this should be no problem. The only thing I wish we had was better intelligence about the enemy's defences."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Governer Johnson met with his military advisors, they had just received a message from The Voltarum, "How are we gonna respond to this, if we tell them we could come underfire from the Pact, if we don't and they find out or attack Doom's colony we could get in big shit." said the governer.

"Easy, we don't tell them, that's it, it's better off if they don't know."

A response was sent:

Dear X.L.,
While we're aware of the current situation with you
and your, more agressive neighbor. We're more concerned with our situation
and have no data beyond your own, we're sorry.

Your friend,
Governer Johnson

Dear X.L.,
While we're aware of the current situation with you
and your, more agressive neighbor. We're more concerned with our situation
and have no data beyond your own, we're sorry.

Your friend,
Governer Johnson


OOC: Hrm, that message was more for the leaders of your nation, not the colony, but ok =)

"Yes, it will most likely turn out to be a nuisance when confronted with the task of hunting down every last one of their defensive positions, but I feel that once their air defenses air down, we can simply saturate every area we THINK contains defenses. Problem solved," he said with a grin.

That, of course, was the typical Doomingslandian response to such a problem. Can't find the bad guys? Kill everything in the general area you think they're in. It was quite destructive and often resulted in unnessessary deaths, but it certainly worked just fine.

As he took another sip of wine, a uniformed Legionary approached him and saluted, seemingly staring off into oblivion as he snapped that Roman-esque stiff-arm salute to his superior. He handed him a rolled up paper and stood at attention as Scipio read.

It was an intellegence report from Legate Magnus of the Eighteenth Legion, gaurding the Skinnyan border. The Skinnyans were mobilizing and he requested orders.

Scipio raised his brow as he read through the report. Could they be so foolish as to attack us in the midst of a rebellion on their own soil?

The High Command had sent him a telegram detailing the Skinnyan situation just an hour before, and now he got this. Quite unusual. A ploy, no doubt. Even if it is not, they aren't going to break our defenses with so few troops.

He looked up to his guests, and smiled, speaking softly, "It seems our Skinnyan neighbors are mobilizing. Several armored divisions appear to be en route to our border," he handed the paper back to the soldier, who saluted once more and left. "I've decided to refrain from reinforcing that border, however. The forces we have in place are more than adequete to deal with them. Now, where were we?"

"We figured that was pretty much how you ran things," Says Anderson in a friendly voice, Vera lets out a light chuckle. Anderson was about to continue when a Doomingslandie soldier began to talk with Scipio.

Anderson listened to what Scipio said and sighed, "They better just be bluffing, I don't want anymore distractions for our goals."

"I believe we just finished discussing most of the major points, but what should we do if another nation decides to jump in, I don't believe any of the Woodstock Pact nations would jump against us, but most wouldn't hesitate to fight your nation, and then their is the new Peligrosos, but I doubt them to be any threat."

"We figured that was pretty much how you ran things," Says Anderson in a friendly voice, Vera lets out a light chuckle. Anderson was about to continue when a Doomingslandie soldier began to talk with Scipio.

Anderson listened to what Scipio said and sighed, "They better just be bluffing, I don't want anymore distractions for our goals."

"I believe we just finished discussing most of the major points, but what should we do if another nation decides to jump in, I don't believe any of the Woodstock Pact nations would jump against us, but most wouldn't hesitate to fight your nation, and then their is the new Peligrosos, but I doubt them to be any threat."
"I agree," replied Scipio soberly. Taking another slug of wine, he smiled and spoke, "I believe we have accomplished what little planning we could for tonight. You shall be my guests in my home for the remainder of your stay in Doomanum Nova. Tonight we hold games in your honor, and you shall get a taste of true sport," he said with a smirk.

Of course he meant gladiatorial combat, for Doomingslanders found that sport to be by far the most entertaining, chariot racing coming in second. They ate, drank, and spoke of more pleasent topics for the remainder of the meal. Tommorow they would decend into the depths of the palace into the command bunker, where they would begin planning in detail.

In the mean time, the first of two fleets crossed through the Maccabean straights into the northern bay. The legions would come ashore within the next day, and march off towards their assigned assembly areas. The invasion would come soon. Sooner than anyone expected...

Meanwhile, the Imperial 31st Fleet lagged behind the 25th, which was nearing its destination. They would arrive in port just two days later, but that gave the Voltaru submarines time...

To: Cpt. J. Kirklin, V.B.S. Vega

The Order has been cleared. Proceed immediately to the
Maccabean straights, and initiate Project Iota. Stay in neutral
waters. Avoid detection at all costs. Communication codes enclosed.

"Yes, that's probably all we could finish." Anderson took a swig of wine.

"We again thank you for your hospitality, and I'm sure we will enjoy these 'games' you have planned." Anderson and Vera already had an idea of what these games would be, they had done a little research on it. Anderson had commented before they left the colony on their plane that it was a 'Waste of good men.'

Bridge of the DIS Marcus Aurelius, Imperial 31st Fleet

It was dark aboard the bridge of the massive command dreadnaught, the only illumination coming from the hundreds of screens displaying various bits of information regarding the local situation, the operation of the ship, sensor systems, et cetera. Admiral Decius Junius was inexplicably restless. While he was but a days' voyage from the Maccabean Straights, where he knew he was in the clear, he couldn't help but look over his shoulder.

His anti-submarine picket extended one hundred miles out, allowing for him to catch anyone trying to sneak up on him, yet he doubted this would suffice. According to intellegence, eveyone else's fleets were busy guarding the shores of their colonies. But he couldn't help himself.

He knew all too well the Voltarum's desire for vengeance against his people, and did not ignore the fact that their colony bordered that of his own people. With the cargo his fleet was escorting, it was only natural that he be weary of treachery by his southern neighbors.

"Sir," said an ensign behind the admiral, suddenly making himself known.

Junius turned to the young man and took a manila envelope from him, "Orders from the High Command, sir."

"Thank you, ensign. That is all," replied Junius without taking his eyes off of the Imperial Seal that decorated the envelope.

He waited for the ensign to leave before opening the folder. Inside was an update from the High Command. The other fleet had completed unloading operations, and the land forces it had been guarding were on their way to their designated staging areas. All was going according to plan. So far.

OOC: Sorry to clutter with OOC but since i am a IADF member and i have a colony, i have to help TSS when the shooting starts so i am going to post a bit of intro now is that OK?

OOC: Sorry to clutter with OOC but since i am a IADF member and i have a colony, i have to help TSS when the shooting starts so i am going to post a bit of intro now is that OK?
OOC:Yeah, sure, knock yourself out.

OOC: Sorry to clutter with OOC but since i am a IADF member and i have a colony, i have to help TSS when the shooting starts so i am going to post a bit of intro now is that OK?
OOC: You don't have to help me, consider this is an offensive action, I'm not being attacked, and no offense but I'd prefer if you (and the rest of the IADF) would keep out of the action, me and doom have this all planed out.

EDIT: Well, you can if you want too.

OOC: Well il post a bit of intro and be ready to come to your assistance but wont do anything unless something unexpected happens or if i just get very bored :P

The Office of Governor Cleraine was clean, well ofcourse it would be, it had just been cleaned by the wonderful young native janitress, who happened to be one of his mistress' and was drawing a salary atleast five times what it ought to be, but well that was what life was like in the colonies.
The view over the Atlantis Bay that border the great metropolis was startling, blue countering the massive buildings that went to all other horisons and filled much of the skies,
Cleraine was sitting at his desk when he was inteupted during his early morning breakfast by a young intelligence officer, since it was atleast three hours before his daily intel briefing something was clearly up, he spared one last look at the two Zealous Superdreadnaughts in the bay, at the slip under construction for the third of trio superdreadnaughts to be ordered specifically for the massive colonial garrison, atleast 20% of the Confederacies, no he corrected himself the Confederate States military power would be here when it was all finished, he would be the most powerful man except for the president and vice president, he would have to think about that.

He turned his attention to the intel officer, "Well what is it?"
"Sir we have jsut recieved these satelite photos from SpaceTach command, they show that one of the two domingsland fleets have docked in port and the other is moving at high speed to join them, i think something's up"
"I agree captain, put the fleet on alert, cancel all shore leave longer than 48 hours, load the naval mobility capable divisions onto the transports"
"Yes Sir!" he saluted and left

[1st Naval Armada, Pacifica]

The massive fleet, over 550 vessels if you included all of the logistical vessels plowed through the inland sea, they were headed south towards Atlantia, they would circle around the Hogsweatian island.

[50km south of Hogsweatian Gibaralt]

The massive fleet stayed on course, last minute preperations were finished, so far the plan had gone flawlessly, no one expected who their true target was, as the fleet rounded the island and headed north towards the staging point they began to conduct maneuvers, the purpose was to hide the true destination of the fleet, with the ships zig zaging at flank it ould be almost immpossible to guess where they were going.

[Between Isselmere's Colonies, 100km North-Northeast]

The fleet finally stopped for the day, air patrols began to land while others took off, the stage was set, only the curtain needed to be raised.

The Flames of War finally licked the heel's of the colonies, just waiting for a chance to erupt into a beautifully dangerous spectical.

"It has to be a coincidence, Avlos."

Xerco Longbottom stared long and hard at his Minister of Defense, trying to see another possible explanation in his eyes. He didn't find one.

Avlos spoke up. "Coincidence is like a rubber band, my Premier, stretch it too far and it will snap."

Xerco looked again at the satelitte infomation Avlos had just given him. The Doomingslandi convoys, the DMZs they had agreed to, their imperialistic history, all pointed to the inevitable attack. But so soon? And with help from... it couldn't be.

"Are the subs in place?"

"They have made contact. As usual, the Doomies have taken precautions, keeping our subs on the fringe of their detection ring, so it hasn't been much help. But they are there... and waiting on any orders you see fit, at least until they enter the straits... following them further is rather risky."

"And here I thought you were turning into a Pacifist, Avlos. 3 subs won't do much of anythign against the convoy."

"A sting, Premier. Even if the bee dies, the one stung is sure to be reminded of its presence."

"Unfortunately, we do not want to start a war. Maybe before all this.. before Aoristos, but not now. Have them await orders."

"And, about this other.. problem?" Avlos pointed to the last set of satelite pictures and the brief filed by several Voltaru naval strategists.

"You and Kathon are sure about this?"

Avlos nodded. "A fleet that size has no business that far into the bay. Despite our Pact bonds, we don't know too much about their naval procedures, but Ja'rod agreed that their recent movements are suspicious."

Xerco closed his eyes, and rubbed the bridge of his hawkish nose. Believing what his Viceroy of the Navy and Minister of Defense were hinting at was almost insane. Doomingsland was an enemy of almost every member of the Pact. Yet he couldn't dismiss it as coincidence. What had one Voltaru scholar said? 'Coincidence, if traced far enough back, becomes inevitable.'

He turned to Avlos. "Very well. I need to send some messages. Until later, my friend. In the meantime, advise General Trelane of our situation. Order the warning level for the colony to its maximum for now. Have the Fleet seal off the coast, and the marines the borders. I don't want to take any risks."

OOC: Tss, do you have an ambassador in my country? I know its never been officially declared, but I am just wondering =) If so, kindly provide his/her name.

OOC: No, just send a message to Kara Maddox, Secretary of State in my Capital, or if you want I can just come up with a person.

OOC: Nah, thats fine.


To: Kara Maddox, Secretary of State, The Silver Sky
CC: Sarzonian Department of State

Ms. Maddox -

As members of the Woodstock Pact, I feel confident in knowing an ally
such as your nation is standing beside us in our new colonial home.
Keeping this friendship in mind, it is difficult to ask a question such as
this. The Voltaru are not known for beating around the bush, so i will
be blunt: Can you please explain the current purpose of your large fleet
that is currently in the bay between Isselmere's colonies.

As you are a newer member to this Pact, you may not be aware of the
history between Doomingsland and The Voltarum. Suffice to say, it has
led most Voltaru to believe the Doomingslandi as one of the most evil
people in the world, bent on imperialist atttitudes and other misguided
principles. I am afraid to admit a slight paranoia has developed in
subsequent dealings with the nation, and the close proximity of our
colonies has only heightened this feeling.

Knowing Doomingsland like we do, it is our belief that they will not refrain
from expanding their territory, through any means necessary. Given the
recently established DMZ zones, and a close inspection of the map, the
target for this inevitable attack is quite clear. I hope you see our
point. The relative positioning of your ships, coupled with the rather
large convoys recently and soon to be arriving in Doomingsland, has
rattled our paranoid nerves, and has caused me to code this message.

Many members of our beloved Pact would agree, involvement with
Doomingsland, in any sense of the word should be avoided at all
costs, as the consequences could be most severe. Therefore, an
explanation of your ship deployments would be most reassuring.
A exchange of all relevant information is hereby requested, and
correspondence is expected within 24 hours.

With Respect,
Premier Xerco Q. Longbottom

OOC: I hate you guys :p j/k

IC:

{**Searching for Uplink**}
{**Encrypting, Encryption Code Alpha**}
{**Uplink Established**}
{**Begin Transmission**}

Type of Communiqué: Diplomatic
To: To: Premier Xerco Q. Longbottom, The Voltarum
CC: Sarzonian Department of State
From: Kara Maddox, Secretary of State
Subject: Re: Matters of Diplomacy

While we've tried to keep this under wraps for a while I guess it is time to let the cat out of the bag, or however they say it. The Silver Sky 1st Naval Armada currently stationed off Isselmere's colonies, as you suspected, aren't
their for sight seeing.

This may shock or anger you, but we have cut a deal with the Doomingslandies, as you can tell from any map our colonies are divided into two camps,those west of the Otagian colony and those west, this could prove to be a major obstacle, seeing as the Otagians are involved in actions with the Kraven Corporation and AMF, we believe it is better if they are eliminated from the theater.

As for the deal it is relatively simple, Doomingsland invades the Otagian Colony from the north under heavy naval(hence the large fleets) and land based bombardments, in conjunction with a Blitz-type land assualt. Our role is similar, we pound the enemy forces using out fleet, hence the close proximity to the shore, and attack from the air before landing a large force, and possibly invading from land. Afterwards we divide the land, we have already discussed this with them and a border has already been drawn up.

We are aware of your less then pleasant history with the Doomingslandies, we assure you that the Doomies won't be undertaking any offensive actions against other colonies for the time being, you see this joint assualt has another reason, to give you time, to prepare and train forces to man your own borders, to let you get infastructure up and running, because every minute the Doomies fight another enemy they allow you to prepare.

This attack should placate(sp?) the Doomies for a while, it gives them what they want at the moment, control of the northern sea with their allies, and it gives us (The Woodstock Pact) total control of over half of the southern land area and sea on the continet. Although we know this won't last, and as you said the Doomies will feel the need to expand again, but by then you will have hopefully prepared yourself.

But, neither of us can accurately predict the action of the Doomies, they may never invade you, they may invade in tomorrow, next year, in 10 years, but you can be sure that the Doomies are thinking the same thing about us.

With Respect,
Kara Maddox

{**End Transmission**}
{**Terminating Uplink**}
{**Uplink Uplink Terminated**}
{**Have a nice day!**}

With much relief, the Imperial 31st Fleet arrived in the port of Herium without incedent, almost surprised at the lack of incedent. Forces began to unload rapidly, formations of men marching down the city streets in plain sight of the satelites. The Empire wasn't hiding anything anymore, other than the location of the staging areas.

That was the one thing that everyone wanted to know, of course. They knew Doomingsland was mobilizing, they knew who they were going to hit, yet they didn't know when or where. It was this that would undoubtedly shroud the soon-to-be invasion in infamy. That, and the attrocities that were to occur.

By now, two legions and an armored division had disappeared into the tunnels near the Otagian border, bolstering the legion and two divisions already stationed there. The 31st had been escorting a convoy carrying two more divisions and another legions.

At the rate they were going, the entire army would be assembled within three days. For the Otagians, time was of the essense.

OOC: if you guys create a separate thread for the invasion, please post =) Happy Turkey Day. =)

OOC: if you guys create a separate thread for the invasion, please post =) Happy Turkey Day. =)
OOC:Will do. You too :), although for me its exactly one hour and thirty-one minutes to Turkey Day...

You to Volty :) , and I still have 2 and 1/2 hours to go. :D

The Great Hall was seldom a loud place, as 13 voices had to really work to fill such a large room. Today, however, Xerco was sure the Order was breaking some kind of noise pollution laws.

As usual, Xanaphia Jassan was leading the shouting match. Her brown hair, traced with accents of silver, waved madly in the air above her robes. She held in her hand a copy of the transmission recently recieved from the Silver Sky's government, pointing at it so hard it was a wonder that her finger didn't go right through.

"Premier, this is intolerable. A member of the Woodstock Pact invading sovereign territory for no reason, and to make it worse, with our most hated enemy?"

Chancellor Oryn Silverback, one of the quietest members of the Order, broke in. "Xanaphia, its not as if they are attacking a friendly country... Otagia has ties to several hostile countries, including The Krave-"

"That is inconsequential, Oryn. It's the idea of the assault that is unacceptable. First Praetonia's political meltdown, then Skinny87's suspension, now The Silver Sky blatently acting in such a way that is contrary to the Pact's beliefs..."

"I wouldn't go that far," the Premier boomed.

Xanaphia lowered her voice a bit. "In any case my Premier, the Pact has had more issues in a month than in years. What has Sarzo said about this? What of the others in the Pact?"

The Premier sighed. "As of yet, I believe only Sarzonia and us know about this.... and we are waiting on a reaction from their government."

"Waiting? Sir, by that time, the invasion might have already gone forward! I emplore you, sir, to message the Pact and ask for them to warn The Silver Sky to halt their actions, otherwise face the consequence of a suspension just like Skinny87!"

The Minister of Defense broke in. "Xanaphia, please. Comparing the actions of Skinny87 and The Silver Sky is just misguided. The Woodstock Pact is not a platform for the larger countries such as ourselves to influence the governmental policies of the other members. The Silver Sky believes they are doing this for the greater good of the colonies - and correct me if I am wrong, but I don't think their propsed actions violate any part of the Charter."

Xanaphia was about to speak, when the Premier rang the tone for silence.

"Chancellor Jassan, my heart agrees with you. I find the actions of the The Silver Sky contrary to all my political beliefs of right and wrong. The idea of helping Doomingsland to achieve her goals is reprehensible. However, we are not the judge and jury here. I will speak my concerns to the other members of the Pact, and ask for their guidance and recommendations. I am afraid, however, that this attack will happen, and we will have to adjust to the likely outcome of an expanded Doomingslandi colony. In the meatime, though it will most likely be worthless, I will send another telegram to The Silver Sky and inform them of our objection."

He stood up, his long red and black robes flowing down to the ground. "If there is nothing else?..... Then I adjourn this special meeting of the High Order. Go with peace."

----


To: Kara Maddox, Secretary of State

We find your reasoning for this cooperation with Doomingsland faulty.
While this may delay Doomingsland from attacking a Pact country, it
also increases their power in the region, something we find unacceptable.
In addition, this propagation of Imperialistic attitudes, and the act of freely
allying yourslef with Doomingsland in such an operation is reprehensible to
our Order.

We ask that you cease and desist this operation and call off the invasion
of the sovereign territory of Otagia. If you continue on with this misguided
attack, we regret to inform you that we will be issuing a formal
complaint to the members of the Woodstock Pact, and likely ask for a
suspension of your membership upon review of your actions.

Signed,
Premier Xerco Longbottom
(12 other High Chancellors)

{**Searching for Uplink**}
{**Encrypting, Encryption Code Alpha**}
{**Uplink Established**}
{**Begin Transmission**}

Type of Communiqué: Diplomatic
To: To: Premier Xerco Q. Longbottom, The Voltarum
From: Kara Maddox, Secretary of State

We find your reasoning faulty as well, please say how this would increase Doomingslandie power? Sure they may be getting more territory, but that amounts to more borders, which means they will have to move troops from existing borders, and even if they bring more troops they still have another large border to guard. And if they do attack then we have another front from which more Pact nations can help from. Also, if you haven't realised that many of the nations in the Pact are becoming Imperialistic, the Sarzonian's have their own colonies, anyone with a colony, including you, have practiced imperialism, just because the expansion was without bloodshed doesn't mean anything.

Also, we have information that suggest the Doomingslandies would have attack the Otagian colony wheter or not they had out help, this is reinforced by how fast they jumped at the offer. Think of the consecunces

To desist in the operation would be unthinkable! It would allow the Doomingslandies to sweep through the whole of the colony, thus becoming even more of a threat. We regret that you must complain of our actions to the Pact, but do as you must. Preperations for the invasion have been completed on our part, it is only a matter of time.

{**End Transmission**}
{**Terminating Uplink**}
{**Uplink Uplink Terminated**}
{**Have a nice day!**}[/QUOTE]

OOC: Dammit, how in hell did I miss this? I blame society. Start a new thread, we can start the conflict soon. I'll write up a list of forces involved and mark the map appropriately ASAP.

[Secret IC:

To: Kara Maddox
Secretary of State, The Silver Sky
From: Grant Haffner
Deputy Senior Vice President and External Affairs Officer
Subject: Support of Doomingsland

The Incorporated Sarzonian Government is outraged over the blatant betrayal of the Woodstock Pact by the government of The Silver Sky undertaken by your government. Launching an invasion in support of Doomingsland is a blatant repudiation of the Pact as a whole and the Incorporated States of Sarzonia in particular.

We have placed your continued membership under administrative review pending a final decision by the Pact. However, at the very least, you're going to have a hell of a lot of explaining to do. ]

Mendelson looked at the reports of the continuing skirmishes involving Doomingsland's forces combined with the traitorous Skyians, resisting the rage-induced urge to crumple the paper and throw it into the fireplace that stood approximately one metre from where he stood in the Governor's Mansion.

Acastia City's construction had gone well, with surpringly few incidents considering the instability that reigned surpreme elsewhere in the Hogsweatia colonies.

"What's the status of colonial militia," Mendelson asked. "The feds have kept me somewhat out of the loop about their training regimen even though I'm supposed to be taking over as Adjutant General in a fortnight." He finished the last statement with a roll of his eyes that made his displeasure readily apparent.

"Don't worry about it General, we've just had Colonel Whitney do an audit and they passed with flying colours," Colonial governor Brad Vogel said. "You can begin your operation tomorrow morning assuming the Voltarum agrees to our proposal."

"That's the first piece of good news I've heard in a while," Mendelson growled. "First the Doomies wipe out Otagia's air force and the suits at the MCC refuse to tell me what the hell's up with militia training. Wait a minute," he said, suddenly looking for all the world like someone who was confused by the term Doomies. "You make it seem as though you can read Longbottom's mind. It's dangerous to assume anything political, you know that. Remember The Silver Sky went behind our backs and sidled up with the Doomies. I wouldn't be surprised if we had to run over some Skyians on the way to Doomanum Nova."

"You're right General," Vogel said. "But knowing the history of Voltaru relations with Doomingsland, I think they'll be grateful someone's willing to go there and take their best shots at the Doomies. I'll send a request to Longbottom to secure their permission then hopefully it's all systems go."

"Keep me abreast of that," Mendelson said. "The last thing I need is to get the Voltaru pissed off at us too."

"Count on it," Vogel said. He turned to his laptop and finished writing the message. He was taking somewhat of a chance not clearing his actions through the Sarzonian Parliament or President Mike Sarzo, but he figured that fighting Doomies would be considered worth the risk.

High Chancellor Xerco Longbottom
Premier of the High Order
The Voltarum

Greetings High Chancellor,

As the colonial governor of the Sarzonian colony of Acastia, I have noticed with growing concern the presence of Doomanum Nova considering its status as a colony of our archenemies, Doomingsland. We have a strategy that we believe would weaken the Doomies significantly, but we would need your help to make that strategy work.

Since Acastia does not share a border with Doomanum Nova, we would be required to move our military forces through your colony's territory to engage Doomie forces at their Colonial Defense Line. We would like to ask your government's permission to conduct these operations. If we are spotted and asked about our movements, I'd suggest we can tell foreign governments that we are conducting joint exercises or constructing a military base in the colony of one of our Woodstock Pact allies.

I must admit that time is of the essence for this operation, so I apologise for asking you to make a decision more quickly than you normally would be expected to. But if we can conduct a lightning strike of the Colonial Defense Line, we believe we can strike a blow for greater stability in the region.

Public Communiqué to All Parties
The bay area, now officially recognized by the Empire as the aptly titled Bay of Medórea, ancién goddess of entrances and exists, has been declared closed to all military and most commercial traffic. The only states exempt are those of the IADF and the triumverate. Hellenic traffic will be told to redirect itself to the northern ports of the colony, as will all other maritime traffic from any other state; any failures to comply will result in lost shipping, and the Empire will not claim responsibility for the fault of another captain. The blockade will be maintaned by four fast attack battlegroups, reinforced by a single heavy assault battle group; all of this very likely to be reinforced by a single carrier battle group in the coming months. All ships have been given orders to fire at will on hostile martial marine vessels at a range of two hundred nautical miles, and we once again warn that we will not hesitate to start a war to uphold Imperial law over our own bay.

At this time the Empire also wishes to reiterate its unwavering support of Doomingsland's claim over Phaethos, and should war come between Doomingsland and The Voltarum we will not hesitate to throw our lot behind them. To this effect, the three divisions currently positioned in Austernauht have been fully prepared for deployment within Doomingsland, as have the the seven divisions in Calathur.

In a third party response to Sarzonia's insult on our allies, the Silver Sky, we urge you to reappraise the situation and t ake note that should you dare push the Voltarum to war in order to further your own interest in the colonies, and thereby give yourself a reason to propagate your own influence abroad, you will be met by the full force of the Empire. You are not battling cowards. Take the lessons you learned in the Inkanan Civil War to heart.

Regardless, in short, the Bay of Medórea will be closed and our warships put on full alert.

Emperor of the Golden Throne Fedor I, King of Kings
http://www.nationmaster.com/wikimir/images/upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f5/180px-Emperor_charles_v.png

[OOC: Mac, my comments about The Silver Sky were either 1) directed to him in response to his actions as a then-member of the Woodstock Pact or 2) in private communications between MY characters, and not subject to your characters knowing jack shit about them.

I strongly suggest you take your metagaming elsewhere.]

[OOC: Mac, my comments about The Silver Sky were either 1) directed to him in response to his actions as a then-member of the Woodstock Pact or 2) in private communications between MY characters, and not subject to your characters knowing jack shit about them.

I strongly suggest you take your metagaming elsewhere.]

[OOC: Eh? The 'insults' have nothing to do with your character role play with TSS; his resignation from the WP is well known - or at least, the rumour that he resigned -, and Fedor, ICly, can only assume that it was through somesort of quarrel which basically devolves into an exchange of insult. The communiqué in general has nothing to do with TSS, and is more in reference to my decision to back up Doomingsland, which I have promised him both ICly and OOCly, as we are very strong military allies. So, no, I think I'll stay put.]

[OOC: Eh? The 'insults' have nothing to do with your character role play with TSS; his resignation from the WP is well known - or at least, the rumour that he resigned -, and Fedor, ICly, can only assume that it was through somesort of quarrel which basically devolves into an exchange of insult. The communiqué in general has nothing to do with TSS, and is more in reference to my decision to back up Doomingsland, which I have promised him both ICly and OOCly, as we are very strong military allies. So, no, I think I'll stay put.][OOC: Doom and I have been planning a skirmish for a long time now, leading up to a war which will be a closed RP and one that we've been planning for a long time now.]

[OOC: Doom and I have been planning a skirmish for a long time now, leading up to a war which will be a closed RP and one that we've been planning for a long time now.]
OOC:I think Mac means that if the WP invades my colony he'll intervene. I think if we have a colonial theatre in our war, that should be open, as there aren't that many people who can actualy get involved in the first place.

OOC:I think Mac means that if the WP invades my colony he'll intervene. I think if we have a colonial theatre in our war, that should be open, as there aren't that many people who can actualy get involved in the first place.[OOC: I hate open RP's with a passion, so if there's a colonial theatre, I'd move to limit the participation to people we both can agree upon.]

[OOC: I hate open RP's with a passion, so if there's a colonial theatre, I'd move to limit the participation to people we both can agree upon.]
OOC:I agree. How about we limit it to WP members and CAD/Triumvirate members?

OOC:I agree. How about we limit it to WP members and CAD/Triumvirate members?OOC: If it spills over into a full-on invasion of your colony, yes. I was thinking that this would just be the lead in to our separate war, which would be closed to you vs. me (and possibly Prae vs. GE).

BTW, I TG'd you one reason I hate open RPs.

OOC: If it spills over into a full-on invasion of your colony, yes. I was thinking that this would just be the lead in to our separate war, which would be closed to you vs. me (and possibly Prae vs. GE).

BTW, I TG'd you one reason I hate open RPs.
OOC:It would be unrealistic to think that warfare would be restricted just to my mainland when my colonies border WP colonies. In all likelihood, there will probably be a colonial theatre. Who goes on the offensive in that theatre is a different matter entirely. But yes, the main front (my mainland) should definately be closed.

[OOC: Well Sarz, I talked to Doom and I understand your reasoning. So, I think we can all agree that Doom and you should have a closed role play with a ground war, and I guess Prae and GE; but, I'm taking joint control of the Macabee Colonial Fleet and the Doomingslandi Colonial Fleet; so, understandably, any naval role play would entail me, not Doom. Just as well, the rest of the WP will most likely want to get in as well and I would like to be part of this war, since I do have a very strong IC reason to be part of it - the triumverate. So, I didn't mean to sound openly hostile in my OOC - the IC, well, that's just the cocky attitude Fedor has, obviously propelled by the fact that he's in the middle of a war to keep his throne and is in a pretty bad mood. So yea..]

OOC: yeah fun. Hrm, I would have to tell you though Sarz, that if this blows into a full blown invasion, it would be hard for me NOT to become involved heh, considering my oh-so-lucky geography. ;-)

IC:
The Great Hall, Ohm, The Voltarum

For the first time in a very long while, a discussion about Doomingsland had brought silence to the 12 Chancellors inside the great hall. The communique from Sarzonia had caught them all off guard, and after an initial burst of a mixture of emotions, the reality of the situation had taken hold, as the group collectively paused.

Avlos Selkirk, Minister of Defense, was the first to break the silence. He rose from his chair to the right of the Premier, gently pushing aside his robes. Though the others in the room were well informed of the current situation in their colony of Aoristos, Selkirk was the one who knew the Doomies best. "My Premier, fellow chancellors... through our differences, I think we can all agree that our situation in the colonies is less than perfect. We all were taken aback when we learned of Doomingsland's claim to the territory to our north. And..." - he paused, looking down toward the ground - ".. I think we all knew that this situation could only lead to something that some of us felt was inevitable - another conflict between the Voltaru and the Doominglandi.

"There has much discussion about what accepting this proposal would mean, but let it be clear - should we allow this to happen, we will be brought into the conflict. We will be inevitably be in violation of our demilitarized zone agreement with that cursed country. We will have a full blown ground conflict on our borders, the first this nation has seen since before our isolationist period. I ask you, as we vote on this decision, to take these rather cold facts to heart. Are we ready for what this could bring? IS our hatred of Doomingsland worth the lives that would be lost in the inevitable conflict?"

"So you propose, Avlos, that we say no to Sarzonia? That we turn away what could be a blow to our mortal enemy?" Xanaphia Jassan, Minister of Commerce, was now standing, red robes blazing against the dark room. "I realize that this is not what this colony was founded for, but to sit back and do nothing? To continue having a false sense of security due to these spectacular neutral zones?" She turned to the rest of the Chancellors. "Avlos and I agree on one thing - this is not merely a decision on whether to allow Sarzonia to do this - this is a decision on whether to go to war. A war that we all know will happen. I tell you this, my Chancellors, that we should dictate when and how this happens."

Avlos sat back down, searching for something to say. The Order again fell silent, as even Xanaphia felt the need to think about the vote that was to come.

Xerco stood. "Very well. I think we are all aware what could be at stake with this vote. As our allies have stressed the timing of this decision, I fear that we cannot give the traditional time before our vote. Therefore, I now proclaim Proposition 4218-2205, topic censured for national security, up for vote. He sat, raised the Hammer of the Order, and rung it twice on his chair. The lights dimmed, eventually leaving the 13 Chancellors in darkness. Usually, votes were cast in a few seconds, never taking the allotted time. But as Xerco waited, the votes came more slowly than he had even seen. Nearing the five minute limit, there were 11 orbs in the air, 6 red and 5 green. Eventually, the final vote came in, as the 12th white orb rose in the air. A collective exhale was heard when it turned green.

Xerco cursed himself. He had suspected a tie, but he had refused to think about it. He now had 2 minutes to cast his tie breaking vote...

...Across the room, Avlos sat his chair, his right hand outlining the crest of his province on the armrest. His left hand, cradled in his lap, was gently flexing in an effort to relieve the pressure the last 5 minutes had produced. That last vote... a red orb would have been so much less... troublesome. During the next two minutes, Avlos weighed how he thought the Premier would vote. He knew Xerco hated the Doomies as much as anyone... but also knew that he did not want a war, not in his supposed last term in a legendary career.

The clang announcing the decision woke him from his daydream. The large cube rose in the air, glistening white and dwarfing the still hanging orbs. As it began to turn a color, Avlos's head sank.

Secret IC:

To: Governor Mendelson, Sarzonian Colony

It is the decision of the High Order of the Voltarum to allow these operations to take place in our colony of Aoristos.

We grant this permission with great concern, as we have no doubt that we will eventually become involved in this conflict. We remind you that a demilitarized zone exists on our border with Doomingsland, and such movement near that zone will cause immediate reaction from our neighbor. Our defensive front is well established, yet, already, reinforment troops and other ground units are being sent from our homeland. We will be ready should this escalate into a full blown situation.

We only ask that the information exchange between out contries remains open and flowing, and that should you need us to provide a more active role, you advise us as soon as possible.

While I and the Order will be involved in this process, I direct you to our Director of Colonial Defense General Ramji Trelane, our Colonial Defense Fleet Commander Admiral Halior V'lasidy, and our Governor of Aoristos, the Honorable Bantil Jerat.

With Respect,
High Chancellor Xerco Longbottom, Premier of the High Order
(12 Other Chancellors)

Damn! If you guys go to war, I'll go to war against Doom but then I'll have to go to war against Mac, but he's an ally of mine. Why did this always happen to me? I really need to learn to not ally myself with opposing blocs :rolleyes:

What would Yoda do?......... kick Doom's ass. heheheheh :p J/K. I'm not sure though if I would even get involved.

OOC: A war between Space Union and TSS with Mac would quickly spread and would probably tear the IADF apart at the seems,
Also it would also drag in Me and any other colonial IADF members if Sarzonia attacks Mac and Doomie, as Mac hasnt actually commited an AoA at this point, i really dont want to fight Sarz. one hopeless war at a time is enough for me :p

[Meh, thread tools doesn't want to work. Just a notification, I'm watching this thread now that I have a vested interest in the region.]

OOC: Hey, if you guys start a new thread for this, please post a link here if you would be so kind.

IC:

The Ohm Centennial

Submitted by Garan Cardici, Staff Writer

23, December 2005

The Great Hall, Ohm. The High Order announced today of the recent purchase of a second landmass overseas to act as an occupied territory of The Voltarum. The territory, much smaller than the original colony of Aoristos, will also serve a much different purpose - instead of a civilian establishment, this colony will eventually become a multipurpose military base and operations center. Its location, several hundred miles south of Aoristos, on a separate island, maintains the notion that Aoristos is strickly a civilian colony.

Speaking today, Premier Xerco Longbottom told the nation that the initial building stages are already in the process of being completed, and when done in the coming year, the base will serve as a major port, home to the Colonial Navy, and a major aerial staging area. The base will be home to thousands of air force, marine, and naval units that could theoretically strike at an enemy, or defend Aoristos.

The Premier summed up its importance with his closing line today - "With the continually rising tone of hostility in our colonial world, The Voltarum felt it necessary to take these steps to further insure the protection of our citizens and our territory. This new colony, which shall be named Iratus, will serve as just another layer of this protection."

This news comes on the heels of the rumour that was broken yesterday by the Likli Times, of the former Woodstock Pact member and close ally The Silver Sky officially joining the nation of Doomingsland in their evil and unlawful CAD organization. While the government has not acknowledged these rumours, many pundits believe the announcement of this new base overseas is all the confirmation the public needs. A local official commented anonymously to the Centennial: "Not only do we have this new base, but there have also been increases in military equipment shipped overseas to Aoristos. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that hostilities with someone are coming in the near future."

The Premier, however, has hinted at none of this, and the rest of the High Chancellors are just as mum on the topic. They continue to emphasize that this base is just another step in the time old Voltaru tradition of a defensive minded military.

EDIT/OOC: Map of new land in sig, full map in colony thread (its on the continent southwest of the main one... depending on how long it takes you to start this war, all of those "bases" might not be established yet. =)