NationStates Jolt Archive

Port Royal, Royclandia

"... And then the stripper says, 'Hey, that's not a spoon!'"

His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I threw his head back and laughed with the others in the room at the hilarious and extremely off-colour joke that had just been regaled to everyone by Governor-General Philip J. Fry.

Blue cigar smoke rose lazily to the ceiling the Imperial Conference room, and the smell of quality liquors was in the air as the laughter slowly subsidied and many of the people present wiped a tear from their eye.

"That's just too funny!" exclaimed His Majesty, before finally settling back into his chair, indicating that they really should get down to business.

"Gentlemen, it has been an excellent year for the Roycelandian Empire in the traditional growth areas of cash crops, minerals, adult entertainment, tourism, alcohol, Motion Pictures, and Entertainment Software."

The big Map Of The World on the screen behind His Majesty turned into a big Pie Chart, breaking down the Empire's non-tax based income.

"However, Imperial Armamaments have not had quite such a good year. Jack?"

Commander Jack Sword (Ret.), head of Imperial Armaments, rose. "Thank you, Your Majesty. Gentlemen, I shall be blunt. We are having a lot of trouble selling our merchandise to other countries. They see our designs as being somewhat old-fashioned, and doubt its effectiveness or application on the modern battlefield."

There was a murmur of assent around the table.

"Even at 'Mate's Rates' pricing, the going rate on an SMLE is $100 with bayonet, and a Bren Gun is about $300- even if chambered for 7.62 NATO or 5.56mm. The problem is that no-one is using bolt-action rifles any more. The Imperial Guard are now entirely equipped with Self-Loading Lee-Enfield rifles, the Colonial Guard are also similarly equipped, and the various Colonial Police Services have enough SMLEs to last until the end of time. In fact, our own analysts estimate that Imperial Armaments alone have produced something in the region of 15,500,000 SMLE bolt-action rifles since 1905.

Add to that the further 5,000,000 produced by the British, Indians, and Australians in the period 1905-1950, and the SMLE is in the top five of the most common longarms on the planet, ranking only behind the AK-47 and the M-16. In short, gents, everyone who wants an SMLE has one. And a spare. And one hanging on the wall. And one for parts."

Another murmur.

"Imperial Armaments lost $18,000,000 this Financial Year. Granted, that's not a huge sum of money, but the point is we should be making a profit, and realising our goal of ensuring every soldier in the world is either armed with an Imperial Armaments weapon or being shot at by someone who is."

Some light laughter, it was an excellent line, and would make excellent copy if any members of the media had been present.

"Handgun sales are up, because we have the civilian market, as well as some lucrative contracts with the Colonial Police Service and Police Forces overseas, and the new Webley revolvers in .357 Magnum have been extremely popular indeed."

"That's where the good news ends, unfortunately. SMG sales are at an all time low, simply because the designs appear to be antiquated and out of place in modern warfare. No-one wants Howitzers, and our Missile Technology is still classified and not available for export."

More slides.

"In short, it's restructuring time. However, we're not going to fire anyone, but there will be some changes.
Firstly, we are discontinuing production of the SMLE Mk III rifle, effective January 1st, 2006. We have something like 2,000,000 SMLEs in our warehouses, so to move them, we will be selling them for $50 each with bayonet. Orders of 10,000 or more will be $40 each, and anyone ordering 50,000 or more can have them for $25 each."

A gasp. The SMLE rifle was part of Roycelandian history! They couldn't discontinue it... could they?

"However, to ensure continued profitability from Roycelandia's most famous rifle, we will be doing a limited production run each year of 1,000 SMLE rifles, in a commemmorative themed package. One year might be a WWI theme, the next year might be Africa, the year after might be Indochina... you get the idea. The knick-nacks in the package will cost very little, and we can sell the rifles for a premium, thus keeping the SMLE in production, to an extent, and bringing in some cash. Naturally, these SMLEs will be sold at collector's prices.
Secondly, we're going to undertake massive market research to find out what sort of military hardware people want and how we can provide it.
It won't be cheap, but it will revitalise us and give us a better idea what direction to take.
Thirdly, we need to offload our existing inventory of stock. There are no major wars anywhere to supply, so we have a bit of a problem there."

"Oh, no problem there" said His Majesty. "Those Filipinos have been dragging their feet about the whole Commonwealth thing, and I'm tired of propping up their crappy little toilet of a country while we wait. We're going to force them to buy our guns and ammo, we’re going to force them to do as we say, and we’re going to cut off their finances and aid until they agree to join us. Otherwise, they’re going to have a nasty Guerrilla war on their hands. In fact, they’re going to have one either way, because the Commies won’t let them join our Glorious Empire. So it’s lose-lose for the Filipinos, and we can supply the Government with arms to fight the Guerrillas, sending in more and more troops to “assist” and “advise” until we’ve effectively annexed the country, at which point we’ll force them to join as a Commonwealth. At the very least, the troops get some training and we can find out what the Bedgellens are up to in that part of the world…”

There was a stunned silence. No-one knew what to say.

“Unless someone has a better idea? No? Well then, Meeting adjourned, and we’ll see you all next month for a progress report.”

Unfortunately (depending on how you look at it), Roycelandia and Beth Gellert aren't the only nations who have taken an interest in the Phillippines as of late. While almost completely unmilitary in nature, the Philippines recieves a considerable quantity of Hindustani aid, consisting of a medical and economic advisor corps nearly a hundred strong, regular shipments of generic medications, and favorable trade terms with Mumbai.

Its foreign policy not being tied to Imperial Armament's profit margins (but rather those of Hindustan Aeronautics :)), if Roycelandia stops supporting the Fillipino government Hindustan will find something to support and keep it alive with injections of money and advisors as best as possible. Needless to say, though, if a civil war erupts Hindustan's Phillippines policy is in for a rough ride.

Parliament House, Mumbai

"Let it hereby be resolved that this Parliament will do all in its power to create a stable, fair, and peaceful political climate in the Phillippines and mediate greivances between the seated Fillippino government and rebellious factions."
"Hear, hear."

Later, in one of Parliament House's luxurious sitting rooms, Chief Minister of Parliament Ishmael Hussayn (MP of Nawabshah), Minister of Foreign Affairs-Southeast Asia Pardip Devi (MP of Jagdalpur), Squadron Leader Simon Llewellyn-Vishakhapatnam (of No.44 squadron), and several other Parliamentarians discuss the matter of Hindustan's involvement in the Phillippines.

"I'm sure," starts Hussayn, "that everyone here has been kept up-to-date on developments in Eritrea? There's an example of what we can do correctly if I've ever seen one. Now about this Phillippines issue, my first question is how much can we afford to do? I mean, nobody's about to pretend that Eritrea is cheap, and with Lusaka presenting the usual register of problems..."

"Eh, well, according to the figures I've come to, what we're already doing in the Phillippines is just about it, provided our other international commitments, particularly Bangladesh, continue as they have been."

"Bangladesh...well, we've got Llewellyn and Sopworth to thank for that mess...oh, not you Squadron Leader. Heh."

"...And then there's all this civil war nonesense. I might suggest paying a visit to our Igovian friends and asking them just what they are up to. If we have a full-on proxy war to deal with, that's curtains for the whole affair."

"But you've got to admit, what the Bedgellens are doing isn't so terribly bad. The Fillippino government, or at least what I've seen of it, is a more unsavory bundle of men than many smuggling syndicates. If we're going to do anything, I doubt that continuing to support the present government is going to get us anywhere..."

"You've got a point, Squadron Leader, but where do we start? It isn't as though we can smash the government like we did in Eritrea. We've got to work around the problem, and leave the solving for later, when funds and intelligence are in more bountiful supply."

"Well, lets all hope that things don't get out of hand, but you never know with old Royce. I'll tell you, nobody knows what kind of crazy schemes that man concocts..."

"Or what else he concocts in the meantime..."

"Indeed."

Igovian involvement in the Philippines was almost as sordid as that of the Roiks. In fact it was probably becoming more so, and distinctly un-Igovian, a fortaste of what was brewing in India.

The Commonwealth's Philippines Liberation Soviet (PLS) under the command of Soviet Lieutenant in the Philippines Liberation Struggle Alexi Rhys-Petrov -first bearer of a long-winded title of the sort descending rapidly upon Beddgelens at home- had been up to no good from... well, probably from day two, give or take.

Government officials, police, foreign businessmen and their employees, soldiers and so on had all continued to be blown-up, abducted, and shot at as normal, but leaders of the NPA (the people's army) and CPP (the communist party) had newly started to turn up dead, riddled usually with 7.62x25mm, 9x19mm, and lately sometimes 9.3x21mm ammunition, or else actually quite headless. To anyone in the know these were initially those of Maoist, Marxist-Leninist, and other authoritarian pursasion or clearly wrong ideology, but now were sometimes including more left-socialist and anarchist leaning individuals and, more often, anyone of shaken faith or inclination to compromise... social-democrats and that sort.

It was also true that the PLS's single WIG vehicle was no longer running many humanitarian supplies, nor even many industrial tools. It was all guns, munitions, and explosives. A disproportionate weight of explosives, actually, and rocket weapons. Things that were being employed to attack infrastructure and industry.

These changes might not have been noticed without very close observation, but the roughly 20,000 strong NPA and its few score Soviet helpers had now begun to turn their attention against foreign aid and trade initiatives. The idea of Roycelandia squeezing Manila was quite exciting to Rhys-Petrov and his ilk in India, since this was exactly what the CPP and NPA needed to recover their numbers towards those enjoyed by the old Huk Rebellion and the communist organisations that followed in the late '60s.

Substantial Hindustani aid could really mess that up.

In India, a certain lobby was rising up to encourage the western half of the sub-continent to look west, to Africa and the Balkans, while the Commonwealth considered its traditional ties and obligations to East Asia. Go and help to over-throw Mugabe (he said you guys look like dorks!), they'll say, we will protect the Philippines, and we'll even try to recover our contacts to the troubled Drapoel, they will add.

The possibility of the PLS even refiting their Dwrgi-T to act more like a Dwrgi-P to conduct piracy against commerce and aid was being seriously discussed by agents in the field (though not in the senates).


[Sorry, bit choppy, eh? I'm on my way for fish and chips or I'd re-write it. Meh!]

The Emperor keeps an eye on this.

Manila, The Philippines

"... And so, Senor Presidente, you can see we have considerable intelligence to the fact that the Guerrillas are gearing up for something in these areas."

The nice man from the Imperial Intelligence Service, although he was ostensibly from the Imperial Foreign Office, showed the Filipino President various spots on a map, miles from anywhere.

"The solution is simple. More guns, and more soldiers. Now, your good friends in Roycelandia are prepared to help on both those counts..."

The Filipino President was more worried by the threats of rebel activity than the blatantly obvious attempt to sell guns to him., and muttered approving noises.

The IIS man smiled. Maybe this wouldn't be so hard after all...

Even a lowly policy analyst for Xinhua could smell the foreigners battling it out in the Phillipines. The Chinese Intelligence Service, for long incapable of operating effectively outside Chinese borders had recently gotten it's act together after reunification meant that resources no longer needed to be spent on espionage efforts against the "Communist Chinese", the "Rogue Province", or the "Right Wing extremists".

Enter the Patriot and millionaire Wing Lee, a brash and outgoing person who had recently been appointed as a Trade Advisor to the Minister of Finance after making his fortune in the cardboard box industry. But he was smart enough to know that media pictures of smiling presidents and spokesmen were mostly illusions. Yes, the real deals were brokered behind the scenes and underneath tables, beneath veiled threats, blackmail, and dishonesty.

Emperor Jonathan shook hands with Wing Lee.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Wing. I know your are a true patriot, and as such, China needs someone with your charm and your skills. You will be rewarded with a ministerial position."

"I am willing to die for the state Emperor. Whatever it is it shall be done."
Wing replied.

"Our neighbours the Filipinos need some help against foreigners. We cannot allow violent Maoism to spread across South-East Asia, nor can we allow a major power a foothold on our doorsteps."

A day later, Wing Lee had arrived in Manila and arranged a meeting with the leader of the Opposition party.

Meanwhile, more Imperial Guard had arrived in the Philippines, ostensibly to "Train" and "Assist" the Guardia Nacionale De Philippines...

Wing Lee walked up to the opposition leader and shook his hand.

"Your reputation precedes you Sir. My name is Wing Lee and I am on behalf of the Chinese government to offer your country assistance against a...foreign threat." Wing said, pausing as he reached into his briefcase, taking out a bunch of papers.

"Before I begin discussing our proposal, I wish give your cause a special aid package. A two million dollar donation."

A securities certificate was placed on the desk and the opposition leader looked Wing in the eye. He chuckled.

"Mr Wing, I have campaigned long and hard against corruption."

The opposition leader took the certificate off the desk and into his pockets.

"I am not accepting this, I am just uncomfortable with the presence of it on the table. Now, what is this proposal?"

Wing Lee smiled.

OCC: Royce, would it be correct or incorrect to assume that Hindustan has established a small peacekeeping mission in the Phillippines, or deployed some number of troops as support for humanitarian missions?

OOC: I'd say that a formal peacekeeping presence would be unlikely, but a number of "Private Security Contractors" would not be unreasonable.

Of course, the Philippines are a big place and Roycelandian personnel can't be everywhere, if you see what I mean...

OCC: Ok. I suppose BG will handle this one, then.

Over the next few days, a series of newspaper articles extremely critical of the Roycelandian presence and their intentions were printed in several newspapers in support of the opposition. Most of the articles were criticising the arms deals with Roycelandia which Manilla had been strong-armed into when there were much cheaper arms available in a recent Chinese offer. A few of them questioned their intentions.

The president came under intense grilling in parliament.

Naturally, some of the more influential newspapers find themselves running editorials indicating that the future of the Philippines lies with Roycelandia, and the peace and prosperity that comes with becoming a Commonwealth of the Empire.

Anyone who bothers to look closely will discover that The Manila Times and the Luzon Telegraph, as well as the Bataan Herald and the Philippines Daily newspapers are owned by the Roycelandian concern "News, Inc."

Naturally, these articles will also point out that the equipment purchased by the Philippines is of the highest quality, with a cast-iron guarantee (Including photos of smiling Filipino Troops on the rifle range with their new Self-Loading Lee-Enfield rifles, driving around in Roycelandian LandRovers, and deploying from Roycelandian Iroquois Helicopters).

More humanitarian aid is flowing into the country from Roycelandia, and the Imperial Propaganda Machine is basically going all out with the "Roycelandia = Good" message...

The efforts of the Philippines Liberation Soviet continue in the same fashion as ever, following a pattern of fairly sustained degrees of blowing things up and, from time to time, cutting off heads to, variously, hamper Roycelandian efforts directly, thwart attempts to portray the nation as better-off since the Roiks arrived, and relieve tension amongst the politically riled Igovians.

Comrade Rhys-Petrov and his fellows keep at the task for no other reason than that it was the purpose for which their organisation was originally founded, and await progress back home, while arguing themselves about how much they might achieve in the political struggle by their influential position abroad.

Their moderate propaganda efforts now include some straight-forward attempts to cast doubt over the vailidity of Roycelandian propaganda, such as a few brief census details. The Roycelandians have around this many people in their empire, the Philippines has around this many, how significant do you think their aid is really going to be, given that your per capita GDP is already above the levels where simply rubbing two sticks together and roasting a chicken will have a significant effect? What are they planning to do: have every Roycelandian family adopt two Filipinos? No, comrades, if you want to grow something new, you have to take out the roots of the old. If you want help, you have to get with the programme and help yourselves. Support the NPA, don't let the imperialists back in again!

With tens of thousands of active fighters or potential recruits and hundreds of thousands of productive supporters, the NPA was being told merely to slog on in anticipation of material aid enough to take Port Royal if it were to become necessary, once the comrades they called from abroad have steadied themselves.

The situation in the Phillipines had not been a comfortable one for the Strainist Party... the islands being located as they were between the twin heartlands of Party power in Sujava and Lyong. Increasing Roycelandian influence there was, in the Strainist view, an imperialist attempt to establish a foothold which might directly threaten both eastern and southeast Asia, and as such vocal opposition had been levelled against it... but little more. The Strainists had been occupied by the day-to-day difficulties of establishing administrations and economies after the collapse of the Bonstockian Federal Republic, and no resources had been spared to back the desire to prod matters along a different course.

Now, however, things were different. Russian electoral politics grew increasingly tainted with pro-Tsarist sentiments, while diplomats in Beijing worried that the Middle Kingdom, even without its hated General Liu, was walking a much softer line against the Holy League than had the Xiannese. Meanwhile, Sujavan units of the Revolutionary Army practiced maneuvers with eyes turned northward towards the Islamic Republic of Indonesia, fearful of the danger posed within and without by the fundamentalist regime there.
Now, imperialism in the Phillipines was not a minor threat but the second part of a pincer movement that would see Lyong surrounded on all sides, while a favourable regime in Manila would help envelop Indonesia in turn. Such was a cause to which the Party felt the need to commit.

Secretive efforts were made to establish connections with the NPA and Igovian operations in the Phillipines, in the name of 'world revolution' and 'the struggle of all peoples against the forces of imperialism'. The Strainists offered little manpower, at least at present, preferring to propose assistance with the production of propaganda. They also had ready something which might better serve to fire the hearts of revolutionaries engaged in struggle: guns.

The Federal Republic of Bonstock, upon its collapse, had left behind massive stockpiles of small arms. The Strainists who had assumed power in Sujava had funded portions of reconstruction through the sale of these arms, usually to the friendly regimes of Burma and the former Marimaia, but still many remained in depos across the Sujavan republic. These were mainly hand grenades and the modern 5.56mm rifles of the FRB's volunteer forces, rather than the older Russian calibre rifles which now served as armament for Sujavan militias. These had been set aside by the SRA, viewing the integration of 5.56mm ammunition into a force already supporting its own Russian rounds and domestic 6.5mm ammunition as a logistical nightmare... but the FRB had produced millions of rounds for their guns, as well as the arms themselves, that now sat unused and ready to serve a revolutionary purpose.

Of course, such arms would bring their logistics problems along with them, assuming a method could be found to move them from Sujava to the Phillipines while the SRA remained unwilling to risk direct confrontation with Manila's current regime: while ammunition might be plentiful now, no nations who might wish to assist the revolutionaries make use of the 5.56mm round. Once the current stock is depleted, the PLS and NPA would be on their own to find a solution.

OOC: Spyr, just to make clear---Russian politics is not tainted by Tsarist sentiment---it is awash in it. The Tsar has been named Russian head of state, check out the thread I posted on the AMW message board. Of course you may already know all this and I may be just rambling pointlessly---in that case, I'm terribly sorry.

[OOC: Yeah, 'tainted by Tsarist sentiment' sounded better than 'engaged in joyous orgies of Wingert love'. We're already looking to the Drapoel for fallout-tunnel advice, let us live with our illusion that the world might not have gone to hell ;) ]

With Beth Gellert's involvement in the Phillippines growing, Hindustanis increasingly try to persuade Igovians to promote "peaceful means of expressing political discontent." After all, a war over the Phillippines should, in the opinion of most Hindustanis, be avoided.

The Igovians, says Parliament, while commendable in their goal of teaching Fillipinos to both gain soveriegnty over their own country and run it in a stable, democratic manner, should not be going about it so forcefully. Provoking the Roycelandians into a full-fledged war with the guerrilla forces will only lead to destruction of large portions of the civillian population in inevitable reprisals, they say, and that will set the cause of progress back quite a while.

Rebel forces should be engaging the Roycelandian-sponsored administration in negotiation, not warfare and terrorism. Says Parliament, the world has already seen its fair share of disastrous proxy wars.

Roycelandia is also nagged constantly by Parliament to make sure that the Phillippines are given a high level of autonomy, or at the very least that the nation isn't absorbed into the empire without at first a plebiscite. Hindustanis also call on Roycelandia to use restraint and forgiveness when dealing with rebels.

Of course, Mumbai still has little to no idea that Spyr is involved more than diplomatically...

(OOC: I'm assuming knowledge of Beth Gellert smuggling is fairly widespread by now, with Hindustani parliament debating it.)

In the first public statement on the Filipino situation by Beijing, China has condemned Igovian military aid to the NPA. There were also calls for a multi-national peacekeeping force to be deployed to the Phillipines. China has also pledged monetary aid to Manilla, totalling to around $100m a year and active military support if a multi-national peacekeeping force is deployed.

"Igovian support of terrorists which killed and injure civilians is unacceptable and must be stopped immediately. China will take substantial political action to ensure this will happen. We also call on the freedom-loving countries of the world to contribute to a multi-national peacekeeping force."

The Roycelandian Assistance Commission in Manila has politely but firmly pointed out that Progressive Guerrillas shooting and blowing up civillians and towns is hardly convincing the local populace that Progression is better than being a Commonwealth of the Roycelandian Empire.

It's also pointed out that being a Commonwealth basically means adopting the Roycelandian Emperor as Head of State, and training the Filipino defence forces with the Colonial Guard- a proposition which will only result in better training, better equipment, and peace and stability for the country. Oh yeah, and free trade etc between the Roycelandian Empire and the Philippines.

The subtext given to the Parliament in Manila is straightforward: The Philippines is a 3rd world toilet. Sign on the dotted line and your people's lives will improve, and you personally stand to become rich in ways you cannot begin to imagine.

Reject Roycelandia, however, and your country will become an anarchic sinkhole of Civil War, insurrection, pestilence, famine, poverty, and death. And that's before we start destroying your infrastructure just to prove the point.

Meanwhile, Bombay is contacted and told that Roycelandia has every intention of holding a plebiscite in the Philippines, but is concerned that "Guerrilla Elements" would tarnish the democratic process through terrorism and intimidation...

Meanwhile, with more than twenty-thousand communist partisans across the island chain, villages and towns seeing heavy involvement from the Igovian PLS and clearly no-go areas for government forces are increasingly organised with co-operative industries and, for now, zero unemployment. What relatively little time is being given in the troubled Commonwealth to the Filipino matter is largely concentrated on securing stable import and export industries with these areas so that employment can remain full and moral high.

Whether or not everyone in the Philippines wants to adopt Igovian or other radical left thought in practice, the Beddgelens have gone months without finding a single person who sees any reason to become part of the Roycelandian Empire.

Aid continues via the PLS's sole active WIG machine, and Igovian input is unlikely to change radically until the domestic situation is settled, which may happen next year or tomorrow morning...

(More later, haven't really had enough time to myself of late, and family coming up from London today, so I'm not sure when exactly. I'll have to get back into reading about the recent history of the situation in reality so I can remember where I was putting all our efforts, and maybe we can work out communist strong-holds since the PLS got involved.)

OOC-OK, maybe I missed it, but who is speaking for the Phillipine people and government while all of this is going on?

I am getting two different movements, both starting to claim popular support. What is going on? Though, I know that BG has a habit of just doing that wherever he goes.

IC-Due to the talks in AMW between Quinntonia, AMW China and Japan, the Quinntonian government is asking for information tpo be given to it regarding the position of the situation here.
Its diplomats begint to contact Roycelandia, LRR, Spyr and BG asking for an explanation of their positions here.

WWJD
Amen.

OOC: AFAIK, no-one is actually RPing the Filipino Government, although it might be a good idea, since Roycelandia will insist that everyone supports them, and the Bedgellens insist everyone supports them...

OOC: "AMW" is not a term used IC in AMW, Quin...

Royce, I have said in the very latest of my posts that the Igovians may not have widespread support.

BG's figures are based on real life where the Filipino communists asked for foreign support and received roughly... none. I have not added a single fighter to their numbers since BG got involved. I am helping the opposing side by my under-estimations. You do know that I'm an Englishman, right?

As for the nation being 3rd world, well, that is a term that applied to the non-aligned movement during the cold war, and okay, it has something to do with the Philippines, but only if we're allying them to Yugoslavia... and India! That aside, the Philippines has a GDP about twelve times higher than the poorest nations on earth, and it is certainly not in a desperate shape as the Roycelandian Empire might like to say. Sorry, it's just not, it has an economy worth many thousands of dollars per head, not a couple of hundred as it is possible to operate with, and as most of Africa has. I have seen nothing to give me even a hint that the Philippines would think of bowing to Roycelandian pressure, and so I am playing it as such. I am fairly confident that the Philippines would repulse a concerted Roycelandian invasion, let alone a friendly request. I don't see why I should play it any different.

Still, if a fight does start, as I say, we will have to work out where everyone is, first.

OOC-But this argument is exactly why I think we need a third party to play the Phillipines for the term of this thread, because I have been reading this, and Royce seems to think he has some major support from the people and government and really sees no reason why that should not be, and BG stated things like "hasn't met anyone supporting Roycelandia in months." Well, that is not a direct quote, but I am too lazy to look it up. I think you also started to talk about unemployment being zero and so on, but I am having a tough time remembering that.
The thing is, they can both be partially right, but I think we need a third party to come in and make a ruling, do we have any takers? I would offer but somehow I doubt that I would be considered impartial.


Tsar Wingert the Great.

OOC: Well, seeing as how I have no official nation now...I could do it. Although I had plans of bringing the Phillippines under Apostle control...Anyhow, I'll RP the indigenous Phillipine people, but I'll need a source to indicate what Phillippine political leanings might be. Poll numbers perhaps?

OOC: Well, as I say, it's not me who's bringing the bias into this. Nor is it me who's trying to drag it out of character and make a debate of it. I'm only responding based on RL-drawn fact to IC action, and I seem to be under OOC fire based on IC "fact [coughcough]". Things are going fine if only people will pay attention, actually.

OOC: I would support AC playing the Filipino government, he seems to be able to commit time to this. As for Filipino foreign leanings, I imagine a large proportion would simply be seeking a what appears to be a peaceful end i.e Roycelandian or Chinese aid.

OOC: Mind you, I don't have enough time to give this one my usual epic treatment---although as a neutral party, I don't even really think there is a need for it.

*TAG*, since subscribe still isn't working

(Just a note of apology incase my posts last night were received as overly aggressive or rude, it was late and after eight beers and more time than I'd usually care to spend with my family!

Anyway, I am generally hesitant about the need for much in the way of official moderation because I am unconvinced that it should be treated as though the Philippines may voluntarily annex itself to the Roycelandian Empire (or be annexed by anyone through any means).
China, Korea, Japan, Indonesia are all accounted for and mainland S/E Asia has a lot of baggage, and the involved parties already have over a hundred million people each and a lot of land. I suppose I'm just thinking that though I'm quite happy to keep up this RP in the very long term, seeing such a large and relatively independent/wealthy nation annexed by any player who already has a primary base would set the tone... and BG would start to annex Bangladesh by Tuesday (actually I have been thinking about a border war with them, but that's a different matter).

I don't really see any problem with carrying on more or less as-is, since I trust myself to base everything on what I can find of the real situation and on what other players do, and since I just don't see the situation changing much in respect of Port Royal's chances of subjugating Manila and am inclined to treat the attempts as symbolic of increasing ties between the nations, obviously favouring the elite in both.)

OOC: Alright, BG is being his usual ambiguous self...Should I take over as the Phillipinos or not?

OOC: Alright, BG is being his usual ambiguous self...Should I take over as the Phillipinos or not?


I still think it would be beneficial, I am not saying that the player who takes them even has to support one or the other sides, they could even play both sides against the middle or something. Or they could call upon other foriegn groups to protect them from both, or consider it all as some invasion against their soveriegnty. And knowing AC, it will be some awesomje combination thereof.

WWJD
Amen.

An official statement by the German government indicated heavy and strong support in creating a multi-national peace-keeping force in the Phillipines. In order to keep the Phillipines Independent, and democratic, Germany has pledged individual military support in case a multi-national task force is out of the question.

The Roycelandian Government has sent a polite but strongly worded communique to the Germans basically telling them to stay out the Philippines and to mind their own business, pointing out that the last thing the world needed was another major war and if Germany got involved in the Philippines, that would involve fighting the Roycelandians, which would drag the Holy League into it, which would just get messy.

Meanwhile, the Filipino News Service has shown TV footage of Filipino soldiers fighting a skirmish with Progressive Guerrillas. The end result involved two injured Filipino Army troops, one dead, and at least three dead Guerrillas, with more wounded. In short, says the FNS, the Roycelandian training is helping things, with better equipment and tactics...

OOC: I'm all in favour of AC RPing the Philippines... it doesn't have to be epic, just involved enough so we can all get a bit of intrigue going...

A force of a few hundred won't crush Roycelandia will it?


:eek: :sniper:

No, it won't, but it's the attitude... Roycelandia regards the Philippines as their turf, and doesn't want the Germans attempting to muscle in on it, so to speak.

OCC: I think its fair to say that only a select few governments in the most dire of straits are willing to relinquish their soveriegnty in exchange for anything besides the most astronomically high amount of civil and military aid and six-figure salaries.

One could cite Malaya as an example of a country giving up its soveriegnty for aid but you've got to remember that when I RP'd Malaya it had been destroyed, at first by the Bonstockian invasion and then by the Chinese 'liberation.' It was totally and completely wrecked and even then didn't sign away much self-governance when it became a dominion of TBF again.

So personally I'm 100% fine with the Phillippines becoming a Roycelandian puppet state, but a full-blown colony is another thing entirely. Like BG said, the Phillippines is not a 'failed' state like, say, Madagascar, and makes a ton of cheap knicknacks for selling in probably Quinntonia and perhaps Lyong. Unless we want to go back in time and change the history of the place so its significantly worse-off than in RL, I think we might have to live with the fact that Manilla isn't going to become a vassal state just because of a Communist insurgency.

That said, the insurrectionists aren't apt to have it all or even mostly their own way, especially if the government forces exploit air power to the degree that they should. In RL, the Philippines has 24 OV-10s and perhaps a dozen SIAI S.211 combat-capable jet trainers, as well as a veritable swarm of MD.500s. This makes for a formidable COIN force (although a large number of SA-16s or something like that would make it very dangerous for the Philippine Air Force). The whole Philippine military is not the most efficient or upstanding governmental organization, but with some Roycelandian propping-up it could be moulded into a major threat to rebel groups.

And I can't imagine that even a handful of BN-2 AEW variants could go without detecting a WIG craft for terribly long. A CAP of F-5s could do that thing in rather quickly.

So the point is, Royce, would you be happy with the Philippines in the palm of your hand in everything but name, like the USA and South Vietnam in RL or RENAMO and the Rhodesians, or do you want the name too?

I think this has the makings of an excellent RP, and, after all, nobody has to win in the end, do they?

I support AC's playing of the Philippines, although not Apostle involvement, for what that counts.

OOC: You make some good points, LRR... Blast you and your reasoned, well-constructed "Logic"! :-P

I'd be happy with the Philippines as a Roycelandian Puppet State, much like South Vietnam was (but without the NVA, of course!). Turning it into a full Colony was never on the cards (The best we could hope for was Commonwealth), but a Puppet State works too... as long as it gives us a presence in the Pacific and South-East Asia, basically.

As Chinese military aid began arriving in Manila with a small contingent of approximately 120 PLA counter-insurgency experts, the Chinese ambassador in the Phillipines Wing Lee has reiterated a call for a multi-national force to be deployed to the Phillipines and defended his German counterpart.

"My German friends are on the right track. A multi-nation force can better serve the needs of the Phillipines."

Wing Lee has also informed Germany that Beijing would be highly receptive to any joint Sino-German effort.

Back in Beijing, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hu Jin Tao has questioned Roycelandia on why a German aid offer to assist Manila and the Filipino people was met with derision.

Anneliese Ebersbacher has been assigned to a unit of 200 CIOU(Counter Imperialism Operatives Units). They will be in the Phillipines and will work with their Chinese counterparts to secure aid to the Phillipines. The larger German group is there to save transportation costs. The government will see that if other units are needed, it will be provided under the direction of the Chinese.

OOC: Just a note, since I've not time just now (may come back later, may not have time until next year :) ), but even the presentation of Manila's limited case for considering vasselage of some sort is pretty generous... the mentioned communist insurrection isn't new or anything! They've been fighting it and its predecessor since the Japanese left! If they were going to call in the receivers it'd have been generations ago.

The Roycelandian Government has informed Berlin that unless they IMMEDIATELY abandon the plans to send Counter-Imperialist forces to the Philippines, Roycelandia will have a Trade Embargo placed upon them sufficient to cripple their already fragile economy.

Futhermore, Roycelandian Troops already in the Philippines have been told to refuse all assistance to the Germans, and the Roycelandian Navy will be intercepting any German ships entering Filipino Waters.

Meanwhile, the Roycelandian Ambassador the Philippines has been to see the President, "suggesting" that all these foreign interlopers are only going to cause problems for the Philippines- especially as Roycelandia and the Philippines have been so close for a number of years now, and suddenly out of nowhere a country that's developed some disturbing almost quasi-Weimar Republic tendencies wants to jump in and "Help"...

OOC: The Roycelandia/Filipino thing has been going on for MONTHS in RL time, so it's probably safe to say at least a year or two of NS Time. In short, there's no real reason for Germany to get involved. China, on the other hand, I can understand, since the Philippines are in their backyard, so to speak...

The German parliament has approved several economic plans proposed by the German Economics Bureau. Btw, there's only 200 Germans, they won't be going on a ship.


The German government requests the 200+ CIOU be allowed in China for a plane trip to the Phillipines. The CIOU, with funding from German charities is planning to establish a school for the poor.

Fight Imperialism. Phillipines will remain independent.


However, fearing a trade embargo, with the Holy League following with Roycelandia, Germany will not be sending anyone out just yet. The plans to send the 200 person contingent has been delayed.

The Roycelandian Government has congratulated the Germans on their reasonable stance on the Filipino situation. Naturally, the building of schools is to be encouraged... which is why Roycelandian engineers have constructed so many for the Filipinos.

The termn "Counter-Imperialist", however, still causes some disharmony. After all, Germany once had a fairly sizeable Empire too...

"...some for all, and all for none." So said a jolly Geletian named Vestobigli as he handed down another crate of Igla-1 missiles, having already explained that these were the last Beth Gellert had to offer the NPA, since others had been sold-off to obtain some rare African goods. Of course there'd be more aid, it was just that, if another source could not be found, the Igla-1 MANPADS would be useless once these stocks were expended. The NPA, CPP, and PLS personnel on hand didn't seem worried, having already been satisfied by the earlier unloading of 84mm Imp mortars and laser aiming equipment.

The people ashore had almost completely vanished into the trees by the time the Dwrgi-T WIG had pulled away from the beach, but the big machine was soon cruising at almost two hundred knots and men ashore watching the sky with Iglas ready lowered their guard and vanished with the rest.

"Went well, no false alarms this time, eh?" "Indeed, I didn't need that again. Thought we were going to have to get a Defender along." Vestobigli replied, referencing experimental air defence configurations of the Dwrgi. He was interrupted by the radar operator working with information relayed from a distant Morrigan AEW UAV that enabled the low-flying WIG to see before being seen. "All right, we've time, we've time." Said Vestobigli, pulling the machine gently to port as he reassured his comrades that the highly unagile machine could make a sufficient course correction to avoid what appeared to be a military vessel ahead.

"Number three's showing the fluctuation, again." "That's all right, we'll work it through, again." "Nose is dipping, are we starting to roll, a bit?" Asked the observant radar man, aware that they hadn't needed to balance the current problem while trying to manoeuvre, inviting Vestobigli's co-pilot to check his instruments. "It's all right, it's gone..." The pilot insisted, nodding at the briefly changed engine read-out. "...I'll" and then the WIG was gone. The nose dipped just a little during the gentle, sliding turn by the craft's yaw control, and suddenly the aerodynamics were shot, twisting the body of the Dwrgi as its high tail-mounted turboprops came thundering over the top. The cabin smashed into the waves from an altitude of hardly seven metres at a speed of two hundred and ten knots and the machine broke in half, the tail crashing down almost as quickly and shattering just as completely.

Most of the PLS's WIG along with the remains of its three crewmembers sunk into oblivion, a few small pieces of wreckage floating on the Celebes Sea.

El Presidente Jose Marie Aznar was a man in a bind. Elected during a time of relative peace and prosperity, he had simply run on a campaign of “more of the same.” Sure, life wasn’t great, he had said, but it’s not bad either, is it? And things are getting better, aren’t they? And so he had hoped for four (and if he was lucky, eight) years of relative peace, possibly handling a scandal or two, but nothing more. Oh yes, he had thought, it’s nothing but pool parties, hot women, and those coconut cocktails with the little umbrellas in them for me now! It seemed to get even better when the Roiks had come in, offering not only to get rid of those pesky communists but to bring in oodles of aid (including boatloads of cheap weaponry) too! It had been almost a vacation-Presidency, until one day Aznar had woken up to find a Roycelandian Emperor
muscling in onto his territory, Bedgellen supported Communists blowing sh*t up, Chinese spies paying off the opposition, and for-only-God-knows-what-reason, Germans trying to send in troops! He immediately fired his Prime Minister, who had apparently let all these foreign powers run amuck while he had been out to lunch, and immediately decided to take action. Aznar was a lazy man, yes, but he did truly care about his people, and so he had decided to do something.

Problem was, he hadn’t figured out what that “something” was.

He secretly supported Roycelandian annexation, because although he cared about his people, he could care less for his nation. Aznar was a pragmatist at heart, and to him the loss of nationality was a small (practically insignificant) loss compared to the financial benefits that would come from becoming part of a first world nation. (In addition, although he would never admit this, he relished the wealth and power that would come from being a Roycelandian Imperial Governor) However, there were several factors that made such a move impossible.

The first, and perhaps the most overlooked issue, was that of religion. While nowhere nearly as religious as their Pacific neighbors, the Quinntonians, the citizens of the Philippines were still extremely devout. The island chain was populated by faithful Catholics who didn’t relish the idea of being ruled, even if only in name, by a man who outright rejected not only Lord Jesus Christ but any faith in any God at all! Not to mention Royce’s tendency to “befriend” such a vast amount of young female “companions”…Of course, this religiosity also lead many who might have been sympathetic to the Communist cause to reject it for fear of infesting their homeland with Bedgellen “hedonism, secularism, and immorality!”

Another factor that pushed the Phillipinos away from Roik control was out-right and blatant nationalism. The Phillipino people had paid a dear price to be rid of Spanish and Yanqui oppressors; they felt they had earned their right to be a free and sovereign nation with their own blood, sweat, and tears, and they would be damned if they let the Head Honcho of Imperialists himself, Royce, just stride on in like he owned the place.
However, this didn’t necessarily translate into support for the Communists; they were seen as little more than Bedgellen puppets by the majority of the populace.

Overall, both sides were rejected by the majority of the Philippino populace largely because they offered the one thing that no one really wanted: change. The Philippine people had faced foreign radicals ever since Spanish sailors had set foot upon the island chain’s sandy shores, and frankly, they were exhausted. The people wanted little more than to carry on with their daily lives and gradual progress, and these uppity foreigners who came in, seducing their youth and demanding great and dramatic change (either in an economic sense <Bedgellens> or a political one <Roycelandians and Bedgellens>) elicited little more than groans and cries of “Not again!”

And so, with his people furious and various outside powers pressuring him, Aznar, ever the practical little mustachioed fellow, devised a clever and pragmatic plan. He knew that outright rejecting both sides would be not only foolish (foreign aid was always nice) but impossible at this point. (If he rejected the Roiks, the Bedgellen supplied insurgency would easily quash his weak army, and if he rejected the Bedgellen-supporters, well, that would only retain the mini-Cold War that had been created on the islands) And so Aznar took an unexpected path---he told the Germans and the Chinese that he would be quite receptive to a multinational peacekeeping force, but that the Phillipo people would need to see a little…proof of their good intentions…(In other words, aid money, and lots of it). In the meantime he kept diplomatic channels open to the Roycelandians, telling them they would have to sweeten the deal if they wanted a puppet regime, and secretly attempted to open communication links with the Communist insurgency…

(I'll come back later, but I feel it worth noting that while the PLS has begun to meddle internally with the leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines and the New People's Army in an effort to root-out self-serving corruption, the movement is a good deal older than Igovian thought or administration, the NPA having been formed as a Maoist movement in the late '60s, I believe, though following on from earlier groups in a similar style. Around the time of the over-throw of Sopworth Igo and the rise of the new Commonwealth (and collapse of the USSR), the NPA dropped its policy of total independence and asked for foreign aid for the first time, which is what the Igovians are providing. While I'm not saying that the people all want the CPP/NPA's revolution, the CPP/NPA are not Igovian, do want Igovian aid, and are unlikely to be perceived by anyone but slightly arrogant foreigners as Igovian puppets. Although slightly arrogant foreigners are free to believe that, since major powers in reality quite frequently make such basic misjudgements, it just doesn't mean that the people involved are going to feel the same way or behave like it's true.)

(OOC: Ah, sorry, I thought that because you were controlling them they were effectively Igovian puppets. Well, I'll just excuse that as overblown rhetoric, then!)

(Ah, okay, I was worried that maybe I was coming over as flogging a dead horse, there.
I think that until now I've really only been controlling the PLS -the Philippines Liberation Soviet, a tiny almost rogue group of Beddgelens- and a few of their awed young Filipino admirers. I suppose it has come across as me as the big communist force of the world sticking my oar in to a new near-ish theatre. Perhaps I should take sort of independent control of the NPA? Not as a fully Igovian thing... it'll be primarily Maoist with some Igovian fringes since the Commonwealth got involved. Ideally we'd get a couple of new players, one to be the Philippines and maybe one to be the communist element. I suppose that's wishful thinking, I'll stop rambling, now, and think about what to do next. Maybe I'll try with my own modest understanding to explain what the rebels are actually doing. "Blowing stuff up" is a bit vague, they're not really *all* that bad.)

Even if Parliament had resolved to leave the Philippines to Roycelandian, Chinese, or Igovian resolution, such a descision doesn't stop Mumbai from being curious. After all, who knows what kind of underhanded nonsense the Roycelandians or Igovians could be up to?

Therefore, the patrol vessel Chhattisgarh, name-ship of Hindustan's patrol class, slips its moorings at Jeju-Do island and motors south. Officially, its mission is one of maritime security and anti-piracy, but such a justification had been used by Parliament before for a thinly-veiled intelligence gathering assignment.

OOC: There's a lightning storm coming, so I'll have to reply later, but rest assured I will!

OOC:After some heavy rains, finally, sunny California! BTW, people of the Phillipines are called Filipinos..

The German government has pledged 37 million and will provide German engineers the the people of the Phillipines. The Germans will dicuss this with other nations before attempting to poke at evil commie loving militants in the Phillipines. Germany would be more than happy to round em all up and deport them to India, but it would be Anzar's choice. Germany is willing equipt the Filipino army with German weapons and proper army gear.

A detailed replica of a Gestapo unit's uniforms and gear was sent to China as a gift for any WWII museum. Of course, if Liu was still here, he would simply wear it and scream like a hippy, or not.

Manila, Philippines

The Roycelandian Ambassador to the Philippines was glad for the chance for an informal meeting with the Filipino President regarding the Assistance Programme.

Naturally, teachers, computers, and textbooks were being provided for schools at no cost (and unusually, the textbooks were completely factual, with no Pro-Roycelandian spin), roads were being built, phone and power lines were being established, and Agricultural machinery was being made available to farmers at cost, with no-interest loans. Roycelandian medical staff were working at hospitals, and the Church Of The Sacred Towel had been "persuaded" not to send Hitch-Hikers to the Philippines, on the grounds that it was a Catholic country and the last thing His Majesty needed was a bunch of psuedo-religious types stirring up the Catholics.

Indeed, it was made very clear to Senor Presidente that whilst it would be nice to have the Philippines as a Roycelandian Colony (with Senor Presidente as Governor-General, naturally), the Filipino people were unlikely to like that very much. More realistically, Roycelandia was aiming for Commonwealth (ie, His Majesty becomes nominal head of State, but the Philippines remains independent- more or less- (like RL Australia after Federation), with Roycelandia sharing the responsibility for Defence, trade benefits, social welfare, and so on.

Even Treaty of Co-Operation (making the Philippines a Roycelandian Puppet State, a la South Vietnam before the whole 1975 NVA invasion thing) would be acceptable, and any of the options would naturally result in sizeable Consultancy Fees being paid to Senor Presidente for his time and expertise...

In the interests of neighbourly cooperation, the Japanese government sends a message to the Filipino President; the communique states that Japan would like to help her southern neighbour in any way possible.

Japan also contacts Germany and China regarding the possibility of joining (or funding in some way) any proposed multinational peacekeeping force.

China is receptive to Japanese assistance to the multi-national, and offers assistance with infrastructure and logistical matters.

Beijing is quick with the checkbook, but on the matter of Roycelandian commonwealth, tells Manila that while China would be happy to work alongside Roycelandia in the areas of social welfare, trade, and health, any Roycelandian military presence in the Phillipines that remain after a substantial defeat of the insurgency may cause resentment amongst the population and in a very thinly veiled threat, "become a thorn in Sino-Fillipino relations".

The New People's Army, having spent years in armed opposition to Quinntonian bases before their closure, was not reacting happily to the sudden upsurge of foreign activity in the Philippines. Unsubstantiated Filipino press reports indicated that the NPA would attack Roycelandian, and possibly Chinese and German troops and embassy personnel.

However, in the interim, the NPA's primary targets continued to be Filipinos, specifically corrupt politicians and drug traffickers, who were frequently swept upon by so-called sparrow squads that delivered the crime-stopping that police could or would not. Most commonly it was the Philippine security forces that came under attack, but one often had the impression that these were only targetted in areas and at times that presented neither of the first two types of enemy, or where they stood to interfere with attacks on such.

The New People's Army's thousands of regular fighters were most widely found in rural Luzon and the Visayan Islands, as well as parts of Mindanao (where Igovian aid had been most substantial, and the force's 'good deeds' against corruption and crime were most upstanding, though still labeled as vigilantism by many), but it maintained cells in Manila and other urban areas, where traditionally it collected (or extorted, depending on whom you asked) revolutionary taxes (or protection money) from businesses, both those willing to back the revolution and others deemed to be profiteering or to be under-taxed by inept, corrupt, or unequal government.

This week, while the NPA themselves (with PLS help) smuggled in another delivery of ammunition and received several hundred thousand dollars of aid money from Indian Phalansteries that had chosen to, essentially, organise a whip-around, a drug baron of fairly significant stature involved in the transshipment of crystal methamphetamine and in the newly rising domestic production of same, was captured after a brief fire-fight with more than two dozen NPA fighters weilding Indian AKM rifles and underslung grenade launchers. Also, two policemen were killed in a drive-by shooting in General Santos, a poster earlier having appeared to accuse the local force of a specific count of corruption which it insisted must be addressed by the authorities: since it was not, the involved officers were delt with by the NPA itself. Finally, in rural Luzon, a small army convoy was targetted by a roadside bomb and brief long-range sniper fire.

The Roycelandian soldiers helping the Filipinos were interested to note the new manufacture 7.62x39 cases being found at the scenes of some of the Assassinations (Roycelandian rifles being chambered for .303, if there was anyone who'd been living on a desert island somewhere and didn't know that).

Talks were held with the Filipino Government about actually Listening to their citizens, but meanwhile, Search & Destroy missions were being undertaken in some of the more "active" areas of Rebel Unrest...

OOC: Guys, this is a busy week for me...I promise to get some stuff in Friday, a'ight? (And BG, stop being an ass. -_-; )

Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

Whilst United Elias had little intention of involving itself in the domestic unrest in the Phillipines when it came to the conflciting Roycelandian and communist influences, Baghdad still had major concerns over the Phillipines that the recent developments had not really affected; radical Islamists. Brunei's own Sabre Regiment of Special Forces had a long, ruthless history of operating in the Sulu archipelago and Mindanao against recalcitrant Islamic fundamentalist guerillas using the sprawling islands as a safe haven, which were once seen as the largest threat to Brunei's government. Taking this into account, a small action group was deployed, not unusually, to patrol the Southern Filipino islands, which would consist of the 8,000 ton Amphibious Landing Ship Bolkiah one of three such vessels in the Royal Brunei Navy, carrying two squadrons of special forces. The taskforce would be escorted by a pair of Elias Navy Corvettes, also based in Bandar, as well as a single diesel-electric submarine. Its mission was twofold, firstly stop Islamist guerillas from using internal unrest as an oppurtunity to cross into Borneo, and also to conduct operations against them. The strategy used by the Sabre Regiment for two decades would be employed, landing small teams of men to conduct recon operations of a few days each, focusing on snatching prisoners, then using helicopter raids and air strikes to destroy insurgent camps. Any contact with guerillas from the NPA or indeed government forces would attempt to be avoided.

As per usual, Manila was not informed of these operations, given that their government could not be trusted not to let this information fall into the hands of the guerillas. The Roycelandian mission however was briefed albeit in the vaguest terms. Broadly speaking, the prospect of Roycelandia exerting more influence in the region was favourable but not favourable enough that UE would risk becoming involved in what was fast becoming a quagmire.

Keen observers or residents near the Kaohsiung military airbase in Taiwan would have noted an increase in the frequency of flights from the city. The base was used as a launching point for reconassiance aircraft such as UAVs to keep an eye on NPA activities in the Phillipines.

Igovian activities relating to the NPA were under special surveilance. It remained unclear as to whether Emperor Zhang would risk open confrontation with the Soviets.

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

Back in Manilla, ambassador Wing Lee asks to meet with his Roycelandian counterpart to discuss recent issues.

The Jungles of the Philippines were not usually the best places to fight Guerrillas on foot, but the Filipinos and the Roycelandians did it anyway.

Then someone, somewhere in Port Royal had an idea. A great idea. The sort of idea that would indeed earn them the C. Montgomery Burns Award for Outstanding Acheivement in the Field of Excellence.

Roycelandia still had several squadrons of Spitfire turboprop fighter/bombers on active service- mostly in places like The Sudan, Roycelandian Algeria, and Roycelandian Polynesia. They were slowly being replaced with the Jetfire, but rather than simply decommission some of the squadrons, it was decided to send them to the Philippines as the 42nd Attack Squadron (Counter-Insurgency).

Someone else decided on the idea of painting shark mouths on the engine cowlings, and before long the 42nd Squadron was known as "The Flying Tigers".

The Spitfire aircraft being sent to the Philippines had their underbellies reinforced with the latest in lightweight but effective armour, which increased their resistance to AA fire, but did suffer a loss in speed as a result. More ECM and ECCM systems were added, and the armament was upgraded to 4x 20mm Cannon, firing HE shells, along with the ever-present underwing racks of Napalm Rockets.

And it was decided that the Filipino unrest would be the ideal baptism of fire for the AH-4 "Zulu" Combat Helicopter, and the CH-42 "Bedouin" transport/gunship.

Additionally, the AG-1 "Wasp" Autogyro is also being deployed to the area to act as an observation aircraft, and there are reports that the Carrier Airship IRAS Bird of Prey may be in the area, too.

The Dreadnoughts IRNS Auric Goldfinger and IRNS Bill Tanner are currently patrolling the seas to the north of the Philippines, with the IRNS Felix Leiter berthed in Manila at present, giving the crew some much needed shore leave...

Meanwhile, the Roycelandian Government has put two and two together and has agreed to look the other way regarding Elian involvement, as their reasons are more than legitimate.

Germany has decided to launch off plans to join the multi-national task force in the Phillipines. The German Task force will be under the command of the Chinese. More than 170 German task force agents, journalists, engineers, and teachers will fly in from Taiwan.

The Japanese government sends a communique to the Chinese, stating that Japan would be willing to send active personnel to the Philippines as part of the multinational peacekeepers. The communique also hints that the Japanese may be able to bring the Quinntonians onboard, assuming that China and Germany would accept such assistance.

Puerto Princesa, Palawan, Philippines

Dawn was just breaking on Palawan, bathing the elongated islands eastern capital in morning light.

A French convoy, two weeks out of Noumea, made site of the Islands capital city. The convoy consisted of seven ships. Three were large cargo liners, merchantmen, and they had an escort of four warships. The warships were the Cherbourg class battleship* Louis XIV, the Marseilles class light cruiser Relentless, and the twain Brest class frigates Lightning and Darter. Royal Navy Nantes class submarines RN-8 and RN-14 swept under Palawan’s east shoreline, securing the fleet. The transports carried two Regiments of the Eighth Division Gardes Francaises, and one crack Battalion of the Royal Army Turkish 2nd Division.

As the ships set up landing positions outside the harbor, nations of the region would receive a memorandum from Monsieur le Merechal de la Tour du Pin, First Admiral of the French Pacific Fleet, New Caledonia. His Most Christian Majesty Louis-Auguste, in attempting to succor his brother Royce I, had dispatched a expeditionary force to secure the strategic island of Palawan in the Philippines’ western region to secure the west flank of the Roycelandian effort. It would only be a temporary occupation, until such time as the native lands could be declared an unabashed OK…although that might be years, decades, away.

Roycelandian advisors, in pith helmets, stood side by side with the sword wearing French officers as the landing barges prepared to go ashore, and the fleet set up a static position off Puerto Princesa. The French ships had their weapons prepared for landing support, but ODSL, Roik, and Filipino Intel negated the possibility of any sort of resistance. Feathered tricorner’s flapped in the breeze as dozens of Roik Huey’s, now French Huey’s, took off from the transports bearing the elite first wave. The heavy beat of their rotors woke the city early, and a stunned populace raced to see the helicopters descend on their metropolis like raucous birds of prey. Alarms rang and bells whistled on the ships as le Merechal de la Tour du Pin himself, all ablaze with military opulence, stood looking with his binoculars on the landing effort. His compatriot, a Roycelandian Colonel, remarked on the co-ordination of the Royal Naval operation. The French noble would remind the good Roik His Majesty’s men had been on their feet ever since the reds took a potshot New Caledonia.

Borne in the helicopters were the shock troopers of the Royal Army Turkish Battalion, grim and strong in their stiff red and green uniforms, overlaid with body armor, and completed with a Kevlar plated tricorner hats. A trademark of the 2nd Royal Turkish Division, to a man they wore heavy moustaches, waxed and full. The helicopters would not even touch the ground as they jumped out by the hundreds, securing the cities key points of communication and signaling they had done so by igniting huge flares overhead. They moved so quick, were so professional, and were so outwardly daunting that they captured their objectives as a canny housewife would check the grocery list.

That was the signal for the landing craft to go. Dozens leapt away from the transports in a run, huge rooster tails sending foam dozens of feet high. In seconds another wave had departed, and in minutes the first Grades Francaises troops were setting off the flares and radio signals which confirmed a successful landing. In a few hours, the whole two Regiments had landed, and linked up with the advanced Turkish mercenary troopers. By evening, the large city was nominally secured, and the French transports were able to slide into dock and begin divulging their copious supplies crate by crate. The warships, of course, stayed off shore in opens waters. A military curfew was quickly imposed, and working with local legal authorities, which the French kindly explained would be helping Their Majesties Royce and Louis-Auguste now, French troops soon secured the cities weapons and had tabs on Puerto Princesa's composition.

With the airport captured it was not long before 21 Mirage-2000’s of the 10th Wing of the ‘Vengeful Angels” Squadrons Ordu du Saint-Esprit had landed, followed by no doubt the first of many French transport craft. Le Merechal de la Tour du Pin maintained his HQ on the Louis XIV, to better monitor all aspects of the situation. The ground commander, General Marc de Montfort, was quick at work turning three concrete four story abutting hotels into a Operational HQ, by the morning of the second day inviting natives to assist in the quickrete and sandbagging work, as well as the barbed wire fencing, of the stronghold. The site would become an excellent citadel, a great redoubt with a command of the city and harbor, it was naturally poised to become the Islands new administrative hub. In several days, once the French had entrenched their position firmly within the capital and set about building a durable fortress, they would organize roving companies and begin to clear the jungle of any anti-Roycelandian activity.

((*Note on the Cherbourg- Now, I know there was a lot of trouble with this before. I want to make a point this is a new ship, different name. Its not 120,000 tons, its 40,000 tons. It doesn’t have a bunch of guns, just four 12” in the fore and the missile and AA arsenal of an American Ticonderoga cruiser. It has CIWIS, but nothing godmodish. The Cherbourg looks like a smaller, sleeker, more modern Yamato with less guns and a smaller superstructure. It is a modern battleship, but not a superbattleship. It has 10” reinforced blue steel armor, but will take damage unlike the Tunisia fiasco. I apologized for that, just wanted to let yall know. No moding on battleships anymore on my part, although for the love of God I hope no one tries to hurt these things, theyre so damned hard to replace. Lets all relax huh guys, don’t get riled up about the Roiks just wanting to help their Filipino allies OK?))

OOC: He, but it's more fun when trouble stirs up. Oh, to somehow tie this into the African War...*rubs hands greedily* Ahem. Anyhow, I was going to have a simple post up, but the arrival of the French complicates things. Expect El Presidente to have...a unique plan...

While the French was the enemy of China's enemy and therefore one of their friends, there was a slight reaction at the amount of firepower they had sent to the region. Most analysts were of the opinion that it was another show of grandeur. By contrast, the Chinese intervention forces have deployed low cost UAVs and older unsellable, falling-to-pieces J-10s with less than 1000 flight hours for COIN missions.

After some deliberation, it was decided that the Chinese would openly engage against any Beddgellern support as long as it was in Filipino waters and avoid a diplomatic backlash.

Tsar Wingert puts the Roycelandian and French commanders in touch with Lord Admiral Vladimir Bushkopf, commander of the Pacific Fleet, and asks if Tsarist peacekeepers would be needed, while offering full naval support to protect the interests of peace and stability in the region.

Tsar Wingert the Great.

To say that the presence of significant French naval forces in the Phillippines causes the Indian Commonwealth great worry would be an understatement. A holy league-affiliated Phillippines would be in perfect position to block the vital route from India to the Lyong Peninsula, and could easily threaten the Dutch East Indies and Sujava in particular.

Therefore, Mumbai spouts more letters and petitions than usual with regards to the Phillippines crisis, calling, like normal, for all sides to, "bow to reason and humanity and engage in multilateral negotiations with the aim of ending violence between government and rebel factions." The Commonwealth Parliament re-affirms its belief that the Phillippines, like any national group, should be soveriegn, self-governing, and free to choose its own international alignment which best suits the needs of the Filippinos themselves, and hopes that the issue doesn't blow up into a massive war like what Zimbabwe looks set to become.

Mumbai offers, of course, to ship out some of its significant cereal crop surplus and medical supplies should the needs of Filippinos internally displaced become a strain on Manilla's means, and No.44 squadron remains on standby to make emergency deliveries.

With France now a par tof this, it's a growing concern for Germany. France, a part-time rival of Germany has staged itself in the Phillipines.


However, Germans just can't get their hands off of em French bread, so we'll let them go for now.

Jilleseponia, Palawan, Phillipines

The Cherbourg class battleship Louis XIV withdrew from the Island back to New Caledonia, seeing the French forces land securely, and turned the French fleet over to Monsieur le Vicomte de Ardennes, Third Admiral of the Pacific Fleet. The Marseilles class cruiser Relentless now became the flagship of the new Second Pacific Fleet, stationed in Puerto Princesa. Command of the Island itself was turned over to Monsieur le Duc de Montfort, officially proclaimed Governor-General of Palawan in a dispatch from Versailles. This was done under the legal pretense that French authorities were needed to protect Catholic Filipinos against Muslim/Communist reprisals, which indeed was true in the current scheme of Filipino civil unrest.

In Puerto Princesa, renamed Jillesponia in the honor of the French Queen, French land forces had secured the city, and begun heavy fortification efforts. Overhead satellite observation would reveal the construction of a French fortress a la Ft. St. Martin in New Caledonia and Ft. St. Joan in the Kingdom of Algeria. It would be named Ft. St. Paul, and a skeleton level completion was scheduled by one year of work. Already the outline of vast antenna rays, no doubt to serve a listening apparatus against the Progressive Bloc, also took form amid the square blockhouses and concrete barriers of the Fort in the dead center of Puerto Princesa, now Jilleseponia. The Harbor was being moved to a military level, and the Roycelandians were informed that soon Allied (Franco-Roycelandian) vessels would be able to put in as they pleased. In addition to the French men-at-arms, it was estimated that an additional 9,000 French civilian contractors had been flown in to assist in the various constructions.

Seven French freighters had arrived from Noumea, and the raising of a massive citadel complex in the heart of Jilleseponia was evident. The effort would take a while to complete, but the intent was clear: the French were digging in seriously on Palawan. One Regiment of Gardes Francaises and the 5th Battalion Royal Army Turkish Grenadiers set a firm watch over the superb harbor of Jilleseponia constructing pillboxes, trenchworks around the city, and redoubts in the metropolis proper. The airport was under ODSE Authority, and Mirage-2000’s flew off on patrol as lumbering French transports landed delivering munitions and victuals. One Brigade of Royal Air Cavalry, 80 Huey’s and 400 doughty storm troopers from Algeria had taken up residence in Jilleseponia as well.

One full Regiment of Gardes Francaises had struck out from Jilleseponia, and moved on a forced patrol north towards the vital locale of El Nido. They would crush any resistance they found en route, and set up fortifications as they went along.

The Chinese were especially thanked for their understanding, and invited to send a delegation to Jilleseponia to speak with Governor-General de Montfort. It was also hinted that Franco-Sino trade was a possibility too long not utilized, and that this alliance in the east was the perfect opportunity to introduce Chinese goods into Europe vis-à-vis His Most Christian Majesty Louis-Auguste. The Germans were thanked for their co-operation, and were referred to speak with Tsar Wingert if they had any more complaints.

And in regards to Tsar Wingert, that august sovereign would receive an urgent communiqué from his son-in-law King Louis-Auguste. The French planned to turn the Southern Island of Palawan, Balabac, over the Russian’s in order to provide an opportunity for the Tsar to have a base in the area as well as to further Holy League allaince in the region. Admiral Bushkoph was advised to send an expeditionary force as he pleased.

Most importantly, the French wasted no time in gearing up their support for their Roycelandian allies in the eastern Phillipines. Emperor Royce I was given full access to the growing French bases on Palawan, and French surface and submersible vessels began to halt any suspicious ‘rebel’ vessels that were suspected to support any and all anti-Roycelandian and anti-Aznar movements.

The declaration of Palawan as governate of a Frenchman under French authority, landing of troops, re-shaping and fortification of Filipino territory, and renaming of a city were the best recruitment aids that the CPP and NPA had received in half a century. Numbers in the army were rising faster than the Filipinos and Beddgelens could provide arms (especially since the loss of the PLS's WIG), and the party was growing even faster. The city that the French had secured was in a large part communist or communist sympathetic, mostly since the French arrival.

Across the Phlippines, the Manila government was losing backers at an alarming rate for allowing this outrage, and revolutionary tax revenues in many areas were now racing ahead of state takings. Countless communities were disassociating themselves from Manila and declaring themselves Filipino and not members of the Republika ng Pilipinas.

Responding properly, and in light of on-going political shifts in Beth Gellert, Ortiagon Class submarines, amongst the world's stealthiest (they were few and far between in the new Oceanic Guard), were running irregular missions to deliver arms and supplies, often to off-shore fishing vessels, in order to support Filipino outrage in action.

The Commonwealth itself remained uncommitted in personnel beyond the tiny Philippines Liberation Soviet, outnumbered by even German deployment prospects. Whatever the various enemies of the Filipino people wished to believe, the fact was that the communist insurrection in the Philippines was twice as old as the Igovian revolution, and this was no clash between the Commonwealth and its petty state opponents, and it would continue with or without Igovian aid.

(OOC: Just a quick question here before I respond - Is the communist controlled Phillipines simply "The People's Republic of the Fillipines" or something else?)

(It is nothing, so far as I know. There's the Communist Party of the Philippines, and the associated New People's Army, but these are nationwide, not independent officially. All I've done has been jumped-off from the real-life history. It's an insurrection started arguably in the second world war with the anti-Japanese Huk and taken-over by the Communists, most of whom are Maoist or similar to that. Now many villages and other communities are starting to declare open loyalty to the revolution and rejection of Manila as regarded as an overt imperialist puppet authority, but there's no rival state as yet. It's the people of the existing Republic that are dissenting, not a separate force.)

Germany will send an additional 400 National Servicemen to the Phillipines. A German base will be set up in the outskirts of the city as Base Große Hoffnung, Base of Great Hope. The National Servicemen is the Army branch of Germany. it is different from the Anti-Imperialist Task force. The task force is armed with the latest weaponry and equitpment. The National Servicemen are the freshies, new full time recruits who have been assigned to the Phillippines.

Cebu, Phillippines third largest city is located in the center of the Filipino Islands. However, ferries are able to transport hundreds back and forth the islands. The Armed forces of Germany has requested a Chinese naval presence in the Mindanao Sea.

German teachers, medical teams and engineers are arriving in the Phillipines and have taken residence at the German and Danish consulates.





Deutschland schickt dem Phillipines zusätzliche 400 nationale Soldaten. Eine deutsche Unterseite wird in das Randgebiet der Stadt als niedriges Grosse Hoffnung aufgestellt, Unterseite der großen Hoffnung. Die nationalen Soldaten ist die Armeeniederlassung von Deutschland. es ist zu der gegen Imperialismus, spezielle Arbeitertruppen unterschiedlich. Die spezielle Arbeitertruppen wird mit den neuesten Kampfmittel und dem equitpment bewaffnet. Die nationalen Soldaten sind die freshies, neue ganztägige Rekruten, die dem Phillippines zugewiesen worden sind.
Cebu, Phillippines drittgrößte Stadt ist in der Mitte der Filipino Inseln. Jedoch FährenSIND in der Lage, Hunderte hin und her zu transportieren die Inseln. Die bewaffneten Kräfte von Deutschland hat um eine chinesische Marineanwesenheit im Mindanao Meer gebeten.
Deutsche Lehrer, medizinische Mannschaften und Ingenieure kommen im Phillipines an und haben Wohnsitz an den deutschen und dänischen Konsulaten genommen.

The Roycelandian forces had a number of victories over Rebel villages in areas, but displayed an astonishing amount of mercy and restraint. Captured Guerrillas were not tortured, but treated as POWs. Food and medicine were sent to villages, and a serious "Hearts and Minds" campaign was being waged.

Unlike the US in Vietnam, however, the Roycelandians tended to remain in the area once it had been "Pacified", just in case any Guerillas decided to come back.

Meanwhile, remote islands were being used as POW camps, and the increased Roycelandian military presence in the Philippines was doing wonders for the economy (both legal and black market!)

However, the German troops being deployed to the Philippines were likely to find themselves lacking anywhere to land, with the Roycelandian Navy patrolling the waters (although they can't be everywhere). Even if they arrive by air it's a safe bet that Roycelandian Imperial Guard (or Foreign Legionnaires) will be along eventually to have a frank little chat about the state of affairs in the Philippines and how the Roycelandians can't be held responsible for any "accidents" that might befall the German contingent...

More than 1,000 more German troops are expected to fly into Phillippines. Roycelandia officials can have a chat individually with each trooper.


The almost two thousand manned group will establish a permanent Multi-National base 11 miles away from Cebu, and 7 miles away from Fort Great Hope.

That the Roycelandians were attempting to occupy villages was yet another bit of good news to the Filipino Communists, as the enemy continued to do most of the work for the Igovian PLS and the local CPP.

The occupations were largely unpopular and intrusive, and, perhaps as importantly, they saw Roycelandian troops spread over a nation of three hundred thousand square kilometres and seven thousand islands. Picking-off Roycelandian troops became easier by the day as the NPA drew the foreigners into more and more occupations in more and more difficult positions before descending upon them.

Recent foreign policies were an absolute miracle to the long-time medicore revolutionary forces, now rising to the fore across the nation. The Philippines had never been more communistic.

Several matters of importance including, communist activities, and a possible Multi-National comittee in dealing with the current government.

Germany wishes to rid of Imperialism in this country, but COmmunism doesn;t work either.

(So, does Germany actually have any interests, here, or are you just trying to impress your own recent change of misunderstanding on to an unrelated IC situation?)

Just ranting here and there. Falling asleep on the keyboard.


We'll see.

OOC: BG, the Roycelandian operations aren't as wide-reaching as that. Most of our efforts are focused on the cities and the main Islands, and there are massive Farm Subsidy programmes (Free Tractors! Free Pumps! Free Education on how to get the most from your crops!), educational programmes (new schools etc), and a general boost in the economy.

If a handful of remote villages are inconvenienced by Roycelandian troops securing the area, then tough- they shouldn't be Communists, according to Port Royal.

OOC: Germany, I really don't see ANY reason for you to be involved in this at all, and quite frankly I'm getting a tad frustrated with your inability to take a hint. So, I'm going to try one more time: Please, stay out of this RP, OK? The sort of stuff you're proposing to do is not realistic or feasible (even by the stretch we usually work with in AMW ;) ), and the fact you seem to have no idea what's really going on doesn't help either...

Azar stubbed his cigar out hastily as he barked into the phone.

"Royce, you old sonuvabitch!" he shouted at the Roycelandian Emperor. A more coolheaded man wouldn't have sworn at his primary benefactor, or even demanded to speak directly to the Emperor of Roycelandia, but Azar was a fiery bastard once you got him riled up.

And he was, to be blunt, pissed off.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? I told you, the Filipino people are very nationalistic and proud. A puppet government, I can give you---although I intend to retain much control over local affairs---but you invite the French!?! And they're planning to bring along their Tsarist buddies! Have you gone loco, senor? You've tossed several thousand neutrals into the Communist camp! Just having them here is bad, but the way they're going around claiming that "Louis and Royce" are in charge and changing the city's name and taking over the government---" he cut off to take a breath, and renewed his rant, "---it's just too blatant. Your French friends need to get out...If they'd taken a more low key approach at first it'd be fine, but they just came in like they owned the place, amigo. I'm sorry, I appreciate their good intentions, but they're only helping the Communists."

The Filipino government would officially request that the French forces withdraw, and sent communiques that patently refused any Russian presence on the islands.

As for the Germans and the Chinese, Azar saw that they could prove to be of some use. (By flatly rejecting the Roycelandians stance towards German forces, he also subtly indicated to the Roiks that they didn't "own his balls" entirely) By painting the anti-Communist effort as a "multinational" effort, the Roycelandian takeover could be covered up more effectively, and gradually eased into public view until the people got used to it. In addition, Azar requested that Filipino troops be mixed into Roycelandian units, for both PR and military training purposes.

Finally, the short, nervous little man began preparing the Filipino army for a massive joint operation with the Chinese, German, and Roycelandian forces, purpotedly to "wipe out the Communist rebels once and for all" but more as a measure to rally public support and boost his flagging popularity.
____________________________________________________________

While Azar had taken the Communist rejection of negotiations as a personal insult, and had written them off entirely, a sidelined Parliament increasingly viewed them sympathetically. While only a minority of Parliamentarians subscribed to the radical ideology of the NPA, many began to see them as a way to regain some semblance of power. Ironically it was they who had allowed the Roycelandians to come in the first place, while Azar had been on vacation, but since then the twitchy mustachioed fellow had unofficially asserted tremendous amounts of power. He had done this by becoming the main conduit for Roycelandian-Filipino relations, and as the power of the Roiks grew, so did his.

Furious, certain extreme left wing elements in Parliament attempted to open discreet, backdoor diplomatic channels with the insurgents...
__________________________________________________________

Socially, the foreign occupation of the Phillipines had a tremendous effect on the native populace. While the islands were largely used to Chinese tourists, Roycelandians and (to a lesser extent, due to their number) Germans proved quite a sensation in the islands. The Roiks had a notorious reputation of vacationing only within the Empire (OOC: basing this off of your statements that most trade and such is internal)---unless they were invading somoene, of couse---and as such their playboy manners completely took the island by storm. A Roycelandian soldier would find that the local women were all too willing to "welcome them into their homes", and a statistician would note that the rate of female bisexuality had strangely skyrocketed. The production of alcohol also boomed, although this was less a result of the Roiks drinking than it was of the legions of men left companionless sulking.

The Roycelandian "social invasion" triggered two responses within society. One group sought to imitate the Roiks as much as possible, so as to profit from the new members of society and woo back the women the Roycelandians had seduced. It had become especially evident amongst the young, who now donned pith helmets and loud shirts and watched episodes of My Neighbor Is A Darkie in increasing numbers.

However, there was also a significant segment of society that was outraged by the way the Roiks had simply "marched in." Horrified by the seeming encroachment upon their culture, they forebade their sons and daughters from associating at all with anything vaguely Roycelandian. They turned fiercely nationalistic, and some even took the step of joining the rebellion...

The Germans were too few to really cause anything more than curiosity, although if they were willing to open up some stores of their infamous Oktober fest brews they would find a very friendly reception...

OOC- Royce, right on.

Le Chateau de Fontainebleau

Every News Agency from the RNN, BBC, QNN, Tsarist Media, NHK (Japan I think, as well as the Chinese as other Asian networks, at least networks in ‘free Asia’, gathered at Her Serene Majesty Jillesepone’s Palace for a briefing on the Filipino situation. His Most Christian Majesty wished to use his wife, a very Madame Jiang Kai-shek figure, to drive the point home for the world as to Franco pretensions in South-East Asia. Her pedigree was immaculate, with near a full line of Grozny blood, tempered by a half decade in the halls of Versailles: first as Dauphine, and now as Queen. She sat on a throne of velvet and silver gilt, with the Fleur-de-lys in Bas-relief behind her. The point of using her own Palace, and not Versailles, was a testimony of His Most Christian Majesty showing the world the faith, and power, he placed in his charismatic wife’s hands. Her Majesty, seen signing laws into effect with King Louis-Auguste here (http://www.freinet.org/creactif/moulin/EXPOSES/HISTOIRE/REVOLTE/IMREVOLT/revolt49.JPG), now assumed a rich voice, tinged with a bit of sadness, as she spoke to the world. Her language was English, highlighted by French, but she possessed the emotional pitch of a full blooded Estenlandian.

“Good evening. In the past few days, the nations of our communal home have been a witness to the greatest plots and machinations subjected to the Free World in decades, and the greatest examples of bravery to secure peace and religious freedom in centuries.”

Already many would realize she had gravitas, and her charisma was a European twin of Madame Jiang Kai-shek.

“The lawfully elected government of Senor Aznar has for many years now borne the heavy burden of financial bankruptcy, social depression, and societal destabilization alone. Already the tendrils of a corrosive and subversive influence, which is to say the Communist powers, had begun to wear away at the very fabric of righteous, Christian Filipino society. Then, with all honor and benevolence, His Imperial Highness Royce I intervened, using Roycelandian prowess to begin the process of righting the Philippines many wrongs. When it became clear that the Communist powers would force naïve Filipino’s, and those already disposed to an evil weal by virtue of the red menace, to attempt insurrection Royce I stood firm, and maintained the dignity of that desperate nation.”

She paused for only a moment, before picking up with a sense of urgency, and a more powerful voice.

“When it became clear, however, that the machinations of the Communist powers, shamefully masquerading as the Progressive Bloc, would lead to nothing less than the wholesale massacre of Catholic Filipino’s and the bloody collectivization of Filipino youth, my mighty husband, in his role as Defender of the Faith, was obliged to intervene. The Kingdom of France, and the Empire of Roycelandia, and the whole of Christian civilization will not allow the liquidation of a righteous people, we will stop it and we will deliver the state of the Philippines from its chaos. With the Aznar Government leading the way Roycelandia, and France will guide it to the still waters of Christian Faith, Western Government(s), and a culture of human dignity.”

“Do not be fooled, the revolutionaries attempting to ignite the Philippines are the very same revolutionaries committing war crimes in Africa. Britain, in a gesture of awesome benevolence, has descended to succor the nationals of Africa from their pit of despair, where they were thrown by the vile and perverted likes of Private Igomo and his rapacious hordes. Quinntonia, without complaint and with valor, has for too long battled the foul Dra-poel menace without compatriots to engage in similar local efforts. But now, by the Grace of Almighty God, across all the lands of the world, nations are rising up to stop evil, rising up to stop communism in its many wicked disguises.”

“And so on behalf of the Allies---the Kingdom of France, the Empire of Roycelandia, and the Government of Senor Aznar, I declare unity and a shared vision of peace and multi-national responsibility to halt the violence in the Philippines, and restore it to a new, better status in the eyes of God and Man. In this effort I wish to appeal to all nations to support this effort with your prayers and kind regard. To China and Japan, monoliths of the Orient, in appeasement to you I invite you to consider the danger of social revolutionism which bubbles out of the subcontinent into South East Asia, and encourage you to maintain you attitude of vigilance and friendship to the Allied Powers.”

“This task will take decades, but there is every assurance of victory and prosperity at the end of this quest we all must undertake. On behalf of His Most Christian Majesty, my husband, I bid you all a good night. May God continue to defend the right.”

Jilleseponia

While French forces dug in and moved out in force to secure the North, efforts similar to the Roycelandian MO began. Schools were built, French schools that would teach bi-lingually, and Catholic Churches were raised at the most prolific rate, well, close to the fastest rate of raising Catholic Churches ever. Posters went up inviting the Filipino’s to consider Louis-Auguste their adoptive stepfather, and to take heart at French support. Needless to say, a statue of Louis-Auguste would soon go up in Jilleseponia. The whole Island was being up-graded, and not cheaply either, along the lines of Louis-Auguste’s wishes and the French camaraderie with the Allies.

Meanwhile, playing along with the theme of an ‘Allied’ effort, Monsieur le Duc de Montfort, Governor-General of Palawan, got in touch with his Roycelandian counter-part and suggested the creation of a Grand Allied Headquarters in Manila, to co-ordinate Franco-Roik-Filipino interdiction and anti-rebel activities. One full company of Royal Army Air Cavalry, forty Huey helicopters with some 200 crack storm troops, was made available from St. Genevieve’s Aerodrome in Jilleseponia.

And Royal Navy ships in the area, including the two Nantes class attack subs, began sweeping patrols of the seas surround Palawan and the western entrance to the Philippines, aided by French anti-sub helicopters and search planes from Palawan. After all, the rebels had to be getting their supplies from somewhere.

Of course, His Most Christian Majesty would tell Royce I on one of their friendly phone chats, it would go so much better if they could get a united Allied effort underway.

Aznar would too get a call from Louis-Auguste himself, at about 4 a.m. his time.

"Now, mon ami, get with the program. Your country is about to fall apart, you can either save it or help destroy it. What we dont need is you sputing off to the world about tickety-boo, you understand? Now, if you play your cards right, you'll be just fine...hey, maybe even one of your squealing little children will become President some day."

"Royce is here to help you, dont you ever bandy his name about like that again, are you listening to me? Hes an Emperor, oh Im flushed monsieur. By God, you'll never say that about me. You call yourself a Catholic? You call yourself a Catholic when your country is being torn apart by Communist subversives? You call yourself a politician when the most liberal, benevolent Empire in the world takes time out of its day to give your nation a hand? You think you can cut deals with the Communists? If you play with the devil you have to stay after school senor. Comprende? Get with the program Azar. In the scheme of the world, we all are Gods tools."

"He doesnt need rusty ones."

"You heard my sweet wife a few hours ago Aznar. Now go lets organize this Allied Command, lets get you an epaulet or two, and get you over here to Versailles so I can meet this man that acknowledges reason and his place before God."

Click.

His Majesty was surprisingly used to people shouting at him. Whether it was one of his Scientists explaining that you couldn't invent a Holodeck using a microwave oven, a length of wood, some Duct Tape, and some copper wire, or whether it was Wiggles telling His Majesty that the entire population of the Roycelandian Empire was NOT going to partake in a Conga Line just to win some bet with the Tsar.

Patiently, His Majesty put his arm around Azar as he led him to the Big Video Wall in his office.

"My friend, it is important to realise any situation can be controlled with the right amount of PR. Now, take the French arrival on Palawan. All this talk of building fortresses and invasions and annexations is clearly silly.

It's obvious that some excitable locals have mistaken a regional improvement programme- including building a weather station, a satellite monitoring station, a new airfield, and the rebuilding of the Island's infrastructure for some sort of 'Invasion'. It's easy to see how they could make that mistake, but I think they'll all feel a lot different when they have running water, satellite TV, broadband internet, agricultural machinery, and decent coffee and book stores. And anyone who doesn't want to stay on the Island is welcome to leave. See how this works? After all, anyone who objects to free satellite TV or Broadband is clearly some kind of Communist..."

Naturally, says His Majesty, the Filipino units and the Roycelandian Units can be integrated completely... this is clearly an excellent idea, and further proves El Presidente Azar's necessity of remaining in power. El Presidente's foresight will naturally only lead to better things for the Philippines, especially once he is installed as Port Royal's right hand man in the area.

Whilst Roycelandians had a reputation for largely holidaying within the Empire (which did cover a quite impressive amount of land), they were also fond of Adventure... no matter how remote the place, no matter how inaccessible, chances are there will be a Roycelandian there, probably wearing a Pith Helmet, and probably trying to sell guns or shiny things to the Natives.

The Roycelandian Broadcasting Corporation was enjoying the upswing in interest in Roycelandian TV shows, and was hard at work translating shows like Little Roycelandia, My Neighbour Is A Darkie, The Barons of Hazzard, When Shit Happens, Strangers With Lollies, Winston Taipan's Flying Circus and Reginald Hawkman, Barrister At Law into Tagalog, Spanish, and other Filipino dialects.

The thing with Roycelandian Culture is, much like RL British Humour, you either get it or you don't. If you do get it, it's witty, funny, enlightened, civilised, and generally A Very Good Thing, and if you don't, you find yourself shaking your head sadly and wondering what the hell that was all about...

Beijing has fallen into a strange political silence over the Filipino situation, as words such as "quagmire" began to creep into common media usage. Public support for peacekeepers in China remained high however, buoyed on by favourable foreign diplomacy. Besides, as soon as the media turned against the peacekeepers, they would soon find themselves facing bills for "unpaid taxes".

There was also substantially increased military activity reported in Taiwan and Fujian, the logistical bases for the multinational force, as well as in Chinese naval bases. An aircraft carrier is reportedly preparing in Beijing.

In the Phillipines, efforts to stop the flow of Beddgellert arms continued, with attention and UAV surveilance now turning to fishing boats that seemed to be carry more than fish.

Beijing has asked Paris through Foreign affairs minister Hu Jin Tao, to respect the culture of the Filipinos by teaching a purely Filipino cirriculum at the newly opened schools.

The Quinntonian South Pacific Fleet Commander, William Hutt sends orders to his brother, Commandore Douglas Hutt so that his Carrier Battel Group can be prepared for deployment in the Phillipines region shoudl that become necessary.
He then sends an urgent missive to Commander in Chief of Quinntonian Dra-pol Central Command, General Lee Gemby, and requests that they get in touch with whoever is in charge back home and get them permisssion to get in position should something go down.
He gets back a signed order sheet that bears the signatures of both General Gemby and Governor-Bishop Gerald Westgaard, with a note that they will be requesting government help from Prime Minister Vanessa Moerike.
With that, the Carrier Battle Group Matthew begins its trek into favourable position near the Phillipines;

Matthew:
2 Nimitz Class Aircraft Carriers (85 aircraft aech F/A-18 Hornets)
4 Ticonderoga AEGIS Cruisers
6 Arliegh Burke Class-guided missile destroyers
4 Oliver Hazard Perry Class
8 Las Angeles Class Attack Submarines
3 Sacramento Class Supply Ships (1 Outfitted as Hospital)

Commadore Hutt braodcasts the positions of all of his ships, minus the subs the whole way, declaring their peaceful intentions every ten minutes in multiple local and affiliated languages on multiple channels, and is keeping on the Eastern side of the Phillipines, not deployed, just ready.

WWJD
Amen.

OCC: Well, as we already discussed, even puppet-statedom isn't bound to go down very smoothly for the population at large, and what can only be described as a unilateral colonial annexation is bound to go down even worse.

No matter what you call it, when one nation establishes its own administration over the territory of another nation without being invited by that nation, it does qualify as an invasion. So nobody should really be surprised if Communist ranks are bolstered by people upset about being involuntarily robbed of their soveriegnty by France.

IC:

In Mumbai, Parliament continues to watch the situation in the Philippines closely. What at first was interpreted as a French military intervention on behalf of Roycelandian efforts now appears, to many, as the start of a full-blown occupation of the Philippines, not at all dissimilar to what happened in Nigeria and more recently Russia at large. And if the Tord fiasco was bad enough, no one in the Ministry of Defense doubts that France will try at some more rather underhanded deeds in the region, now being furnished with a closer base of operations.

Many in India who used to regard France with something approaching indifferance, Louis-Auguste as a petty monarch who England could snuff out with a mere flick of the wrist, now begin to see the House of Bourbon as possibly the greatest threat since the USSR. Indians, or at least those in the Indian Commonwealth, had spent decades actively fighting madmen and tyrants, and largely succeeded against Llewellyn and Sopworth. They certainly aren't going to stop any time soon.

As the Philippines situation seems to lurch out of the expectations of Japan's political analysts, the government sends communiques to Quinntonian Dra-pol and Quinntonia proper in an attempt to establish a joint position with Japan's closest allies.

With the election campaign coming to a close, Akira Shigi tries to make some political capital; he decries the foul European occupation of Asian territories, and demands to know if Japan is ready to defend itself should the Europeans try to carve up Asia as they did not too long ago.

OOC- Okay, Ill respond more in depth later, but heres a few things for now:

1- France never declared Palawan a French possession, all work and upgrades being conducted are ostensibly for the benefit of Aznars Government...whether he believes it or not.

2- No French authorities have been given grand control of Palawan...a Governor-General has been appointed, in order to assist the civilian government under duress...its all in the Queens speech.

I must say Im flattered. Royce goes at the Philippines for months, Imperialsm or Benevolence depends on the eye of the beholder I suppose, but I step in for but a moment and everybody is thrown into the fan. I just play France guys, not the Star Wars Empire. Is light-color wearing Louis-Auguste really Darth Vader? I think not. And Im building churches, schools, and hospitals on no doubt destitute Palawan. For Pete's sake, I send in three ships and a regiment or two and the Quinntonnians' dispatch a massive armada, about 1/2 the strength of the entire Royal Navy, to no doubt purge the French when the reds and Filipinos get uppety? I am complimented that France has come so far in the eyes of the world again. Even Jacques Chirac, were he to follow these RPs, would squeal with a secret delight!

Please keep in mind with a devoutly Catholic population, the Palawanese would no doubt be glad to have a government of like mind helping them out. The French are there helping Roycelandia, one of their two closest allies, in a show of mutual 'goodness'. I just wanted to get that out before this is taken as a invasion of Indonesia...please. I learned from Tunisia, arent I allowed to RP too?

OCC: Fair enough. Keep in mind, though, Royce is rather friendly towards the Indian Commonwealth and therefore Mumbai is inclined to be friendly back, being nice to an empire that it considers not an entirely disastrous thing to be absorbed by, if generally disagreeable. France, on the other hand, is detested for historical and ideological reasons (Algeria and Tord being foremost among them).

Just saying that. Well, it appears as though my assumptions were incorrect. Carry on.

OOC- meant no offence LRR, you burgeoning historian. Just wanted to put a few points out there. Of course, I am flattered about your synopsis of Louis-Auguste's rise in Mumbai's status. Didnt mean to bitch ::looks at the ground and scuffles feet, makes long eyes::

However, that doesnt mean Im going to back out of helping Royce. And of course, Louis-Auguste has an agenda in assisting Royce in the Filipino theatre, Im not disputing that. I simply meant to say that French Occupation of Palawan will not result in WWIII on France's part.

Ahh, Ill put some IC stuff in later. Oh and hey, shameless plug, check out the French national anthem on the Invision boards. Au revoir!

OOC: NG, it's not so much what you do but how you do it. It's just so blatant. The Roiks have been subtly adding their presence for a long time---the French just marched in, renamed the city, and said that "Louis and Royce" were now in charge. The last two things may seem minor, but Azar has been very careful not to let it become blatant. Everyone knows the Phillipines are getting taken over---but the Filipinos don't want to get it rubbed in their face.

No offense of course, but I have to be realistic here. You know very well that I'm no Commie sympathizer NG, so don't worry about bias here. Just trying to be fair.

Hmmm...the French never actually said that Louis and Royce are in charge. I saw several posts earlier than this showing death and armed conflict. Not one soul has been harmed in Palawan at all. Renaming a city? What about Camp Freedom in the heart of Baghdad, come on now AC, dont read sooo much into things.

Who rubbed it into the Filipinos faces, anything for that matter? Im afraid this is not being seen for what it is. I suggest you read what I posted, not conclude from Frances prior actions her future conduct. Why, even in Louis' talks with Aznar, by far the harshest communication in the last post, nothing was said above forming a working alliance.

A military curfew was quickly imposed, and working with local legal authorities, which the French kindly explained would be helping Their Majesties Royce and Louis-Auguste now, French troops soon secured the cities weapons and had tabs on Puerto Princesa's composition.

That's the part I was referring to. Azar doesn't like having his authority undermined, and he's not exactly the most rational or collected of men, so...And the US didn't go in and rename Baghdad "Bushville" did it? You're free to name your camp what you want, but you've got to keep the approach low key. The Phillipines aren't a conquered province, and treating them as such isn't going to get public support. As my grandfather used to say, "you annex a nation like you romance a woman...softly, gently, and so slowly that she doesn't even notice until she wakes up with a 50 year old Polish man next to her." *

*Okeh, so maybe he never actually said that, but...

OOC- thumbs up on that quote

Tsar Wingert has given Lord Admiral Vladimir Bushkopf the Imperial OK to safegaurd the French flottilla should they request it.
Though relations have been OK with Quinntonia to this piont, Tsar Wingert decides to make his debut on the international stage with the order that a Fleet of Russian Craft will be moving from the North Pacific south towards the dangerous region. The Fleet is now being prepped for launch at the base in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

The fleet will consist of:
The Baku Imperial Carrier Battle Group
1 Kiev Class (The Baku) Carrier-with full air compliement (the only active one in the Pacific)
3 Project 956 Sarych Sovremenny Class Guided Missile Destroyers
2 Orlan Kirov Class Guided Missile Cruisers (Heavy Battle Cruisers)
1 Atlant Krasina/Slava Class Guided Missile Cruiser (Command Ship)
2 Grozny Kynda Class Guided Missile Cruiser
4 Scorpion Missile Boats
4 Steregushchy Corvettes
2 Sivuch Dergach / Bora Class Guided Missile Corvette
2 Albatros Grisha Class
and 1 Tanker and 1 Supply Ship
Coming along will also be a Transport, with a full compliment of troops to be placed at the command of our allies the French.




The ships will be prepped, supplied and sent within a week.



Tsar Wingert the Great.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/russia/ship.htm

This is, of course, assuming that Putin didn't spend much on his navy, at least not with regards to building any new ship classes. Also, both the Kirovs and perhaps some other frigate vessels were sunk off Spyr, leaving (again assuming that the tsarist Russian Navy remains largely similar to that of the USSR) only three Slava-class cruisers in the fleet.

OOC- Finally! The big brother of the Holy League arrives. Ahhh, it makes Versailles feel so much better to have the 900lb gorilla that is Tsarist Russia make a debut.

Louis XX never made a better choice than to bankroll the Tsar in his early years.

Honestly, guys, admit that AMW France has more than atoned for the many French defeats in RL. Only in fantasy...hey, who bloody well said that!?!?!

Ill have something up later hopefully.

IIRC the russian fleet had been upped to include 6 kirovs at least.

Carrier airavtion was still a problem as IIRC there hadn't been any real facilities biult to repalce those lost during the Estenlandian uprising (of course the russian empire now has its full blakc sea area back to play with).

IIRC the russian fleet had been upped to include 6 kirovs at least.

Carrier airavtion was still a problem as IIRC there hadn't been any real facilities biult to repalce those lost during the Estenlandian uprising (of course the russian empire now has its full blakc sea area back to play with).


OOC-I am just going to assume that with the massive military build-up that Putin did, and remmebering various posts about rebuilding and restoring Soviet class ships, that there woudl be higher amounts than now, though not anything that would make me a major sea power on par with say BG or China or Quinntonia, and I will play things close to the chest. I am assuming taht this is a quite major show of force on Tsar Wingert's part, and though he wants nothing in repsect to conflict, he feels it is time to show that he is now a glabal player.

Tsar Wingert teh Great.

Mumbai's calls for peace in the Philippines reach a fever pitch once news of the Russian fleet's departure from Petropavlovsk becomes public. True, many Indians are motivated by pragmatism and geopolitical concerns, it being deeply detrimental to have a Holy League outpost plopped down right in the middle of the direct route between the Indian Subcontinent and the Lyong Peninsula. But at the same time, as has always, more or less, been the case, a great many Indians are also motivated by a genuine concern for the plight of Filippinos. There are few who don't want to see a stable, soveriegn, democratic and prosperous Philippines, and it is the opinion of most people that the escalation of military operations is not necessarily a good way to bring as much about.

In fact, for the first time in the crisis, Parliament is able to draft a statement saying something to the effect that all foreign powers should withdraw in full from the Philippines, pointing out (in relatively polite terms, because neither Beth Gellert or Roycelandia are considered exactly malignant in the crisis) that infusions of weaponry and defense money have only served to intensify what was already a relatively brutal conflict. Parliament's letter, circulated via the BBC as usual, asks that all "concerned parties," defined in its lengthy appendix as France, Roycelandia, Russia, Beth Gellert, and Spyr, agree to at the very least some manner of summit on the issue, for the sake of the islands' continued survival.

Palawan

Cameras flashed as the chubby Filipino Administrator of the Island gave her news conference. Senora Entetez explained that the Government of Palawan was still completely under the control of Aznars Administration. Governor-General Montfort was simply there to manage the French presence on the Island, not the Island itself. She smiled a lot, and once or twice gave a knowing direction of Monsieur le Duc, who was a suave gentleman indeed. Her smiles, which took up the majority of her news time, matched with her chubby dimpled cheeks, simply oozed relaxation. The renaming of Puerto Princesa was only to show the French Crown the Filipino citizens’ immense gratitude in regards to French benevolence. Both were in daily touch with President Aznar, informing him about the continuing efforts.

The Virgin del Carmini Hospital was soon to be completed in the heart of Jilleseponia, and a whole series of new schools were on the drawing board. In a gesture of unfathomable generosity, His Most Christian Majesty Louis-Auguste personally paid for the transport and lodging of 5,000 of the Islands youths to study in France. Jilleseponia, under the hands of nine-thousand French engineers, assisted by labor gangs from the Kingdom of Algeria, moved the city forward. The power grid was first world after thousands of Louis d’or being spent, and Jilleseponia would even be getting a sports stadium on the cities outskirts. The highlight would be a massive gothic cathedral looking high over the city, adjacent to the French garrison.

The Islands security had been established. All major towns and cities had been secured, as well as the main roads and byways. French work on radar-satellite/weather stations was well underway, being surrounded by the building of a French fort to guarantee to the Islands security.

The battleship Louis XIV, in light of the extreme tension building in the Philippines, had its orders to sail to Noumea cancelled. Instead, the Cherbourg class warship turned north again, and would link up with the French Squadron to make sure Palawan was not blockaded.

The Tsarist aircraft carrier would get the arrival of a delegation of the French Admiralty, Pacific Fleet, who would act as attaches in order to keep the Russians abreast of French movements. The meeting of the French Pacific commander le Merechal de la Tour du Pin (who just wanted to greet the Russian's and would soon be returning to Ft. St. Martin in New Caledonia) was much photographed embracing Wingert's sailor on the magnificent vessel.

Versailles

The call for a conference was heard in France, which still aired the BBC, although a censored version, and one that played at awkward times as opposed to Louis-Auguste’s personal RNN.

The French Prime Minister himself, le Comte de Maurepas, made a address from his ornate office in Versailles.

Prime Ministre of France M. de Maurepas (standing) discussing the Filipino issue with King Louis-Auguste (sitting) (http://www.freinet.org/creactif/moulin/EXPOSES/HISTOIRE/REVOLTE/IMREVOLT/revolt42.JPG)

“His Most Christian Majesty agrees to the Hindustani suggestion: a summit must be held in regards to the Filipino situation. It is my pleasure to offer Paris, the city which has signed so many treaties, as the location for this summit. Let us gather to discuss how best to solve the Filipino situation, and attempt their healing.”

Paris, since the Restoration (like the rest of France), had grown considerably. Despite bad press in some countries, it was still one of the top tourist destinations in the world, made only more charming with the Restoration glitter. French fashion was in again among the rich all over the world, and Paris remained the capital of fashion. It was thought that the summit being held in France would be a wonderful, kind gesture.

OOC: Thank God, Finals are over! (Sweet Jesus, I got a 99 on my APUS final! O_O) Anyhow, onto business...Putin's massive military upgrade mainly glossed over the navy (in exchange for obtaining some of the world's best armies and air forces), but what remains is in fairly good shape. Basically, a significant chunk of old Soviet hardware was liquidated (sold off mainly) to cut costs and allow the navy to focus on a smaller fleet of more high tech ships. I think we had roughly one or two Aircraft carriers (The DRES Freedom and DRES Black Star), and a small fleet of high tech ships. Okeh, I'll have a good IC post later, but a certain attractive asian female is online...;)

Lord Admiral Vladimir Bushkopf is very happy to greet the French contingent and while they are there, he takes them on a tour of the Transport Ship, which holds a very scary person and his personal command, the newly knighted Sir Kiba Morgan, one of teh most powerful and successful Lavragerian nomadic fighters who has since come to work for the Tsar, who loves this opprotunity to get them as far away from Ukraine and Lavrageria as possible. He explains that at this piont that teh Tsar does not wish to deploy even in the island that was offered, but is sending this as a message that France was not to be treated lightly, as the Great Tsar owes much to the father of the French monarch, Louis XX.
And the Tsar tends to be... "overprotective"... of his family, especially his son-in-law, father of his grandchildren. And in true Royalist monarchist fashion all of France's activities are seen as "family business."


The embassy in Versialles, under Count Falkenstien, the famous Estenlandian diplomat that signed the Lavragerian treaty in Washington D.C., makes the announcement that they would be happy to attend a Summit about the situation in Paris.


OOC-I am going to assume three carriers, with the names changed a little and the other two would be currently sailing out of St. Petersburg. One will probably end up in teh Black Sea soon, but that will be a post for another thread.

Tsar Wingert teh Great.

bump

Well...is this still going?

bump, any news from here lately?

Lord Admiral Vladimir Bushkopf is very happy to greet the French contingent and while they are there, he takes them on a tour of the Transport Ship, which holds a very scary person and his personal command, the newly knighted Sir Kiba Morgan, one of teh most powerful and successful Lavragerian nomadic fighters who has since come to work for the Tsar, who loves this opprotunity to get them as far away from Ukraine and Lavrageria as possible. He explains that at this piont that teh Tsar does not wish to deploy even in the island that was offered, but is sending this as a message that France was not to be treated lightly, as the Great Tsar owes much to the father of the French monarch, Louis XX.
And the Tsar tends to be... "overprotective"... of his family, especially his son-in-law, father of his grandchildren. And in true Royalist monarchist fashion all of France's activities are seen as "family business."


The embassy in Versialles, under Count Falkenstien, the famous Estenlandian diplomat that signed the Lavragerian treaty in Washington D.C., makes the announcement that they would be happy to attend a Summit about the situation in Paris.


OOC-I am going to assume three carriers, with the names changed a little and the other two would be currently sailing out of St. Petersburg. One will probably end up in teh Black Sea soon, but that will be a post for another thread.

Tsar Wingert teh Great.


I was wondering much the same, is this still on?
Tsar Wingert teh Great.

OOC: Yes, I've been waiting for AC to post, since there's not much I can do without some input from the Filipino Government! Well, that and I've been in NZ since Thursday... don't you people read the Invision boards? :-P

As the situation in the Philippines continues to escalate, Sithin attempts to get in contact with Manila and Beijing, inquiring about possible assistance with peacekeeping and humanitarian efforts.

Meanwhile, news of Tsarist mobilizations at Petropavlovsk and French deployments in the Philippines triggers large-scale deployment of Strainist naval assets, including the dissapearance of submarines from their pens in southern Lyong and Taminbar.

OOC: Okeh...finally back in action. Sorry for the long delay...First order of business: BG, I've had elements of the government offer cooperation with the rebels three times now, in the name of fairness. Have you not noticed, are you rejecting the deals, or are you ignoring me due to some personal issue you have with me that I'm unaware of?

IC:

-Manila-

With his seemingly off the cuff tantrum (I say seemingly because it was all a cynical manipulation) having worked to achieve the goal of re-asserting Azar's rapidly diminishing importance in face of the growing foreign deluge, the infamously mustachioed Filipino President became assured enough to begin a higher degree of cooperation with the Roycelandian coalition. Backslapping Royce as if they were old friends and as if he hadn't just screamed at him for several minutes, Azar proposed the launching of "a final joint assault" to "wipe out" the insurgency. A spectacular campaign will rally the support of the Filipino people and will break the back of the insurgency, or so it is hoped. As for the proposed conference, Jose Marie Azar stated that he would be open to such a thing ocurring in Manila itself, but he didn't mind the use of Paris, as long as his non-attendance wasn't viewed as offensive. (He was far too busy dealing with local matters to extricate himself from the Phillippines) Also, he re-iterated that his government "would not negotiate with terrorists" and that he would not tolerate any rebel presence at such a conference.

-Mindanao-

"I can't take this anymore! This Christian infidel dogs have kept our people down for so long, but now they are no longer satisfied with simply oppressing our Islamic peoples by themselves! No! They bring in the Great Satan, that blasted Un-Holy League of Papist dogs, to corrupt our youth, spit upon our traditions, seduce our women, and defile our faith!"

A small, but incredibly diverse, crowd, composed of everything from well groomed old men in business suits to scar ridden young warriors in battle fatigues, looked upon the eyepatch donning man in the center of the small hut. Abu Musab Al-Kazakhstani was a battle scarred veteran of various rebel movements, from the Al Khali "Allah's Spear" group to the short lived Kazakhstani revolt to the Baltic insurgency, and now he had come to unite the Islamist factions of the Philippine Insurgency. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group, along with various other much smaller independant cells, had kept up the anti-government campaign for decades now, but with a massive Catholic and agnostic/atheist foreign presence on the islands, they could ill afford their squabbling. Seemingly out of the blue, this bald, Arab man in black had come to "unite the tribes" under the glare of his menacing eyepatch. Speaking before a conference of various terrorist leaders, he had managed to unify their efforts under his command, relying mainly on his credentials as leader of so many rebel movements and on his bulging bank accounts. With a roar, the crowd of battle hardened terrorists proclaimed Al-Kazakhstani their new leader, and immediately began to plot new and more ambitious attacks...

Over the next several weeks, a series of car bombings, suicide attacks, and kidnappings erupted all across the island chain. Foreigners especially were targeted, with dozens of Roycelandian and French tourists finding themselves in the clutches of Islamic rebels, and even one Roycelandian soldier getting his throat slit on videotape.

Al-Kazakhstani smiled slightly. It had begun.

His Majesty was very pleased to hear Azar's plans to crush the rebels once and for all.

However, cautioned His Majesty, it was important not to alienate local support by simply levelling entire Islands. Nonetheless, plans were to be drawn up involving the Filipino Army, the Imperial Guard, and the Filipino Air Force.

Further, His Majesty has suggested the Cape Verde Islands as a possible place for the Conference.

Finally, His Majesty has also come up with the ultimate Hearts & Minds Plan:
The Imperial Roycelandian Government will pay for all adult male Muslims in the Philippines to undertake the Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca).

Since many of the farmers, fishermen, and labourers in the fields could never hope to undertake the Hajj, this is a once in a lifetime oppurtunity, and hopefully one that will be well received.

For the people responsible for kidnapping and killing Roycelandian or French Citizens, however... well, the rumours were that a form of Medieval Siege Etiquette would be in play. Anyone involved who came forward and surrendered would be treated humanely, given a fair trial, and could look forward to an eventual release from prison.

Those who did not surrender would die.

A small, unihabited island in the Leyte Guld was taken over by the Special Operations Command for use as a Prison Island, whilst construction on the necessary facilities began in earnest...

Initially, the Roycelandian announcement is met with much cheer, and the island of Mindanao instantly became a stronghold of pro-Roycelandian sentiment. The aged farmers who feared they would never see the Mecca in their lifetimes now gained that chance, and the celebration and jubilation on the islands was tremendous. There was even talk of raising statues of Royce!

But there were, of course, a few hardline fundamentalists who decried this "unholy bribery". Al-Kazakhstani remained set dead against the Roiks, and soon a corpse bearing a note with his signature appeared in the streets, and it was only the first of many. Roycelandians offering trips to Mecca would soon be met with shut doors, fearful glancings, and scared whisperings about "the man from Kazakhstan" who held the entire in line with intimidation and fear.

Even more worryingly, the Roycelandian embassy in Manila is slammed with a tremendous car bomb, with the driver shouting at the top of his lungs (moments before his death) "The Philippines shall be Allah's again! Long live Al-Kazakhstani!"

For a non-Religious Empire, the Roycelandians had a lot of people who were extensively read in major religious texts- notably The Bible, The Koran, The Talmud, major Buddhist texts, and the various Indian holy texts.

Indeed, no sooner had the hard-line fundamentalists decried the Hajj offer as "Unholy Bribery", than the Roycelandian Government responded with a very well reasoned argument that one of the Five Pillars of Islam involved the Giving Of Alms (Zakat), and surely the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Unto Him) would agree that the offer to underwrite the costs of the Hajj (another Pillar of Islam) could only be seen as Zakat on a grand scale- and were not those who undertook the Hajj blessed in the eyes of Allah?

In an effort not to seem biased, the Roycelandian Government is also offering Pilgrimages to The Vatican or, subject to approval by France, Lourdes. This offer is not being as loudly publicised as the offer of a paid-for Hajj, however, but it is available to devout Catholics who enquire at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The car bomb at the Roycelandian Embassy is big news. 12 dead, 16 injured, and most of the building completely levelled. The Port Royal Times has a photograph on the front page of an Imperial Guardsman, rifle over his shoulder, Pith Helmet in one hand, standing by the smouldering wreckage of the Embassy.

The reaction in Roycelandia is naturally outrage, but also a realisation that it's not "Ordinary" Muslims doing it- just fanatics, but they are still horrified nonetheless.

Contractors start demanding more money to work in the Philippines, and the Tourism industy suffers a downturn as a result.

On a slightly more ominous note, Commander Blackadder has gone on record as saying that the "animals" responsible for these "outrages" (the kidnappings, killings, and carbombings) will "get what's coming to them", with the addendum: "They'll never see Paradise, even if I have to make sure of that myself."

Officials at the Elias Embassy in Manila lodge a formal but discreet protest with the Roycelandians. Angered by the fact that they were not consulted before Roycelandia decided to sponsor the travel of potentially thousands of people to United Elias, many of whom could be fundamenalists, they make threats that muslims from the Phillipines could be denied entry visas and sent back en masse. On the other hand all could be forgiven, if certain concessions could be made, namely that Islamic extremists arrested by the authorities in the Philippines could be handed over to Elias intelligence agents and interrogated. Furthermore they demand that any Muslims recieving Hajj sponsorship were vetted to prevent the inflitration of terrorists into Elias.

(OOC: Three pages/months ago, AC, you wrote of Anzar's feelings at having no success in getting the rebels to negotiate with him (and of increasing sympathies in the government, and a planned campaign against the rebels, so I can't see as he'd be surprised), and since then I don't see any new approaches. I must be missing something.)

Soviet aid to the CPP and NPA had not recovered since the WIG disaster, delayed by the birth of the Third Commonwealth that had also distracted Beddgelens from events in the northwest and in Africa.

This mattered little, in truth, since the Filipino communists had survived without Soviet aid for decades, and that wasn't about to change.

Offensives, government or foreign, were not generally resisted by the NPA which either retreated into jungle or dispersed into supportive villages and urban communities.

The rise of Islamist extremism was worrying to the Maoists and the weaker anarchists and left-socialists (who were suffering declines since the fall in Soviet involvement and weakening of the PLS), but generally it was hoped that the Islamists might take the brunt of military operations in light of such high foreign interest in, or fear of their movement.

Much of the Party was settling into lengthy consideration of the situation and the implication of religious extremism on the rise. Was there a danger of it sapping CPP/NPA support? Probably not, though it might mean an end to recent rapid growth- political victories might be again forced out of mind and traditional operations would remain the most viable. More interesting was the potential impact of response to Islamic extremism. Greater repression, obstacles to economic growth, violence and counter attack.

It would certainly put NPA operations in perspective: at the moment, communist forces were being chased for killing drug lords, corrupt politicians, abusive security forces, and foreign occupation forces; radicals blowing-up Christians and innocents would perhaps remind people of the difference.

There was also some relatively light-hearted suggestion that the Party should encourage people to visit Mecca at Roycelandia's expense, since it would cost countless millions of dollars and the Roycelandian public would have to pay for the religious indulgence and be invited to question their nation's role in the Philippines.

While the party and political sections debated, some NPA fighters continued to operate as ever, gunning down a gangmaster in one town, known to have been involved in illegal drugs, sex, poaching, extortion, and various other activities. A police-station was firebombed near-by, and, later, posters appeared claiming to be from the NPA and stating that the people had acted where corrupt officials would not, stopping the degenerate activities of the criminal, named in the text, and sending the strongest sort of warning to the police who accepted his bribes. Hundreds of miles away, a foreign 'sex tourist' from a yet unnamed western country, accused of abusing local children, was arrested by the NPA and given a public trial in a village where one of his alleged crimes was committed. Found guilty by an ad hoc jury of local citizens and sentenced by a local Communist Party official, he too was ultimately shot, this time by an NPA firing squad (itself including a fifteen year old child soldier).

Even the NPA was surprised at the scale of Islamist attacks, and officials warey of forcing fringe supporters with even nominal Muslim leanings to choose between political and religious revolution argued about whether or not the party and army should condemn relatively indiscriminate violence and counter-revolutionary fundamentalism or wait to see if the wave passed.

...and secretly attempted to open communication links with the Communist insurgency…
Furious, certain extreme left wing elements in Parliament attempted to open discreet, backdoor diplomatic channels with the insurgents...

^Speaks for itself.

Anyhow...more postings later...this new Islamic insurgency has certainly made things more interesting...

The leftist insurgency is more focused on vigilante justice than overthrowing the current government, is that correct? Focused on "hearts and minds" efforts?

And I don't think shipping bucketloads of Muslims to mecca is that expensive, if the Roiks are clever about it. Just rent out some cheap, large transport boats...

The Roycelandian Government had discreetly explained to the Elians that of course any persons seeking Hajj sponsorship will be discreetly "vetted" and anyone suspicious will be passed onto Elian officials for a discreet chat- same for Fundamentalist Muslims arrested in the Philippines...

(OOC: Yeah, but that doesn't change what I said, really.

Anyway, the NPA, operating since the late '60s and receiving Indian and potentially other aid only during the second half of its life this far, does aim, ultimately, to over-throw the government through long-term guerrilla activity.

It's not realistically thinking, after nearly forty years, to topple the government next Tuesday, but the official if not quite effective position remains the same.

It was weakening from a strength of tens of thousands down to less than ten thousand after Marcos went, but sudden foreign presence and failure to do away with inequality and corruption over recent years has caused a significant recovery, along with Indian support and the success of radical movements in Indonesia.

In reality the NPA extorts revolutionary taxes from businesses, but claims that it is international classification as a terrorist organisation that forces it to do this, because, as a result of that, it can't get legitimate support. In AMW, Indian donations -since the Commonwealth does not recognise the terrorist classification- lessen the need for such activities, and, in doing so, make it look a lot less like a bunch of terrorists.

Meanwhile, yes, the NPA mostly bumps-off alleged criminals and corrupt police or politicians who refuse to crack down on them -seeing themselves as more than vigilantes, because they don't just get the criminals but the government that takes taxes and then doesn't use them to stop such criminals- and also the army -which they see as legit because it's not a civilian target- and politicians and judges who go after the NPA/CPP, including even congressmen.

They will sometimes go after infrastructure, though the Philippines Liberation Soviet tends to discourage this except where it's a direct part of a more ambitious operation against the authorities. Sometimes it's done, anyway, to make people realise that the government is useless, or, where infrastructure is foreign sourced, to turn it from something that looks like help into a general gesture of defiance to the invading influences before people get used to the easy life.

They go after other rebel or terror groups as well, and it remains to be seen if their units on Mindanao will come into conflict with the Islamists.

NPA is strongest in rural Luzon and northern/middle islands, and parts but not all of Mindanao, though it has cells and sends hit squads (sparrow squads) into cities.

In reality, a lot of their political leadership is (or was?) in self-imposed exile in the Netherlands, but in AMW I'm tempted to say that maybe they'd be living in Indian communes? Possibly some would be in Sujava?

I'm a bit hesitant to say exactly how strong or well equipped the NPA is just now, and how great the CPP's support, because while there's a lot of players on the other side, I seem to be representing more or less alone and don't know how far to go. Obviously the largely Maoist communists aren't directly answerable to the Igovian communists, but, more to the point, I just don't know, in reality, how easy it is to get hold of arms in the Philippines, or exactly how they do it. I'm not a gun-runner! Hm, maybe I'll try RPing one major success and one major failure for aid to the organisation, while assuming that a lot of armament comes on a lower level/smaller scale, plus the workshops that PLS helped to establish. Okay, maybe something to do with that stuff next IC post.)

Jilleseponia, Palawan, Philippines

With the sound of a hundred shining trumpets, rolling kettle drum salutes, and even a full Te Deum overture courtesy of the Catholic Mission and Island youth, Ft. St. Paul was declared well and truly open. His Most Christian Majesty’s third youngest brother, Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie, strode down troops lined up in formation in some fantastic piece of military attire. As of one hour ago, by declaration of His Most Christian King Louis-Auguste, the Prince of the Blood had been made Supreme Commander of the newly organized FEHC (French Eastern High Command). He arrived with a fleet, and with a freshly trained army, an entire army, in charge of all French military power in the Eastern Hemisphere, which as will be soon had been building up continuously since the Second Battle of the Coral Sea.

St. Paul had spread the word; Fort. St. Paul would serve as a bastion of righteousness in the Asian theatre, and together with the uber-completed Ft. St. Martin (they were sister forts, together with Ft. St. Joan in Algeria, based on Vauban’s technique enhanced with modern technology and weaponry) would serve as two mighty citadels of Bourbon power in the Pacific, able to house and supply and military effort for at least six months (at least once the fort was totally completed).

The fort could house 100,000 troops, although in its early-completed stage it was only able to accommodate some 40,000. It resembled a massive star overlooking Jilleseponia’s vastly improved harbor, which was given royal priority for construction and maintenance second only to the Admiralty in Cherbourg itself. It commanded the entire city’s view, from St. Genevieve’s Aerodrome to the formerly mentioned harbor with radar arrays, missile embankments, supply depots, underground trench works, emplacements upon emplacements of heavy and light artillery positions. Overlooking the entire city was a massive, massive white flag, bearing ht coat of arms of the House of Bourbon, and the Pillars of Hercules, Monseigneur le Duc’s personal emblem.

Arriving with Monseigneur le Duc was the following military force, which now constitutes Bourbon power on Palawan, and its ability to reach out and about. The core of the force, freshly trained and very eager, was the Royal Vanguard Legion, a corps of picked troops who were ruggedly trained in the jungles of New Provence. Equipped with kevlar battle suits, their famous FAMAS assault weapons, and blue armbands with a single gold fleur-de-lys all in a snappy camouflage uniforms, they were cheered on, all one hundred thousand of them, as they marched from the docks through parade routs to find lodging: some in the fort, some in ‘available’ housing in Jilleseponia. There were intimidating troops, all shock troops, with no supply units….this was a force of picked men: there were 100,000 of them. Then came three Battalions of Order of the Golden Fleece Mechanized Armor, some two hundred LeClerc battle-tanks with APC and vehicle support. Four regular divisions of Gardes Francaises marched in as well, two being mainly constituted by support troops, some 42,000 men. Two Divisions of Royal Algerian Infantry were even shipped in to join the army, as Louis I was always eager to demonstrate his vassalage to his Bourbon master, a total of 23,000 troops. An awesome sight, in their black and yellow dress uniforms and armored tricorner hats was the 4th Royal Army Korean Heavy Infantry Division. The Royal Army was a super-picked force, made entirely of mercenaries who took an oath of allegiance only to the King, and not to France. The solid Koreans were the heart of this FEHC, 12,000 strong, and arguably some of the finest troops in the world. Additionally, there were 47,000 members of the Royal Auxiliary based in Jillesepoina, they were the engineers, technicians, medical teams, etc. Also, thousand of Catholic Clergy, sponsored by the Crown, descended on Palawan, with only one policy: convert all. They were personally protected by French troops, and soon began a vigorous campaign to make Catholicism absolute in Jilleseponia, if not Palawan totally yet.

Landing at St. Genevieve Aerodrome were no less than five full wings of Ordu du Saint-Esprit “Sky Knights”: one wing, the Silver Spurs, was an elite unit of Dassault-Rafale C’s, the only such elite unit (for they were so precious as their pilots were the sons of the highest aristocracy) ever deployed to Asia. Two Wings, La Reine and Moonlighters were stand Mirage-2000 designs. One Wing, Desert Crown was part of the RAF, the Royal Air Force of Algeria. And last but not least, huge and imposing, was the first fully staffed and operation French Heavy Bomber Wing, made of Roycelandian made Lancaster II bombers, the Cherubim wing. Each wing has 75 aircraft, and together with some eighty support craft was the FEHC’s aerial umbrella.

The Royal Navy had made intense efforts to prepare maritime forces to support this force, and after buying several vessels from the Roycelandian Empire the FEHC had a solid naval element. Two French Cherbourg class battleships, the heart of the Royal Fleet, sat comfortably in Jilleseponia’s harbor. They were 50,000 tons a piece, and were modern fast attack battleships. They had only six 12” guns, three in the fore and three in the aft, but their low and sleek superstructure allowed for huge AA systems and offensive missilery, their names were Roi de Soleil and the Louis IX. They had nuclear reactors….they were escorted by six Marseilles class light cruisers, 11 Brest class attack-frigates, seven Nantes class attack subs, and protected a French merchant marine operating in the Pacific of some thirty vessels. This flotilla was further supported by two Roycelandian bought Dreadnaughts, renamed the Courage and the Bon Homme Royce, the former was still in Noumea being re-fitted. As well, the Roiks had sold the Royal Navy three medium cruisers and two destroyers, both which now sat alongside His Most Christian King’s FEHC flotilla. And one last ship sailed in, having left Noumea late for impact: the Charles de Gaulle, the Royal Navies only aircraft carrier. True, two sister ships were being built in Cherbourg presently, but they were not expected to be completed for months.

The last travelers to arrive were the most curious of all, some 76,000 Vietnamese exiles under the guidance of Emperor Bao Dai IV, 30,000 of which had been organized into the Imperial Army, and had been supplied by Louis-Auguste with guns, ammo, and butter. It wasn’t long before Bao Dai began spouting about democracy in Indochine, and the need to liberate his people. He wore a mix, some would say comical, of French Aristocratic fashion and Vietnamese Imperial garb, with some military flair too. None doubted he would soon give more informative speeches, and the worlds Secret Intelligence services would know of many flights between Saigon and Jilleseponia, on unmarked aircraft and somehow able to slip by the Vietnamese military observers.

All these forces together, together with supplying and equipping such a horde, constituted now one whole third of the French Military budget, and contained a little less than one third of His Most Christian Majesty’s entire military.

The Filipino President had received a quieter visit before the Duc spoke, by several ODSL agents who had posed as servants in his staff. He was gently but forcibly taken to a linen closet, and told that God sent Louis-Auguste to make Aznar a great man, and a champion of freedom. Royce in fact protected Aznar, something which meant the French had left him be completely alone, until this point. The French wanted nothing more than a gratefully donated Palawan (even though it was by now completely secure under French power) and an Aznar regime, as His Most Christian Majesty had need of friends to commence on a great work soon. Come to Versailles, they said, learn things that will make you invincible. It was not unconceivable, however, that if Aznar railed against the French position continually as he had been thus causing Louis-Auguste to loose face and bear a tenuous position, more than linen closet chats would happen. Pictures were shown of Aznars family, as well as detailed itineraries and locations of all family holdings and staff dispositions.

Monseigneur le Duc, now Supreme Commander of the FEHC, Xavier-Stanislaus-Louis Normandie de Bourbon, Prince of the Blood, formally gave a conference in his ornate office in Ft. St. Paul the day after the Royal might arrived. He was the exact image of his brother Louis-Auguste, save that he wore a coronet as opposed to a crown, and could not bear the King’s regalia. He was several years younger, at 26, and his air was martial but flamboyant. One could tell he was giddy at the sheer amount of military hardware he now commanded. It must be confessed he was very handsome (a trait of the Bourbon’s) in his powdered face and plumed tricorner hat.

“His Most Christian Majesty, in considering the welfare of the world, and in harmony with His Brother Tsar Wingert I and His Master Our Lord God, in concord with El Presidente Primo Aznar (a man of righteous mind) shall prevent Asia from catastrophe. Hindustan is currently trying to ferment a world war, and His Most Christian Majesty will now draw his sword in challenge. I will say again, and actions shall support my words: to the Government of Hindustan, cease your illegal aggression at once, I am now issuing a twenty-four hour deadline for the invasion of Rajasthan to cease, and for Hindustan to agree to an Internal Summit on the issue. Filipino rebels, together with Fifth Column support, now present a threat to the very Asian trade network. His Most Christian Majesty has the power to now affect these evil rebels who threaten so much, now let them take heed and beware. Human rights abuses in Indochine must be looked into: I was told not a few moment ago that the Parliament of Cambodia, after consulting with Prime Minister M. de Maurepas, has consented for a Royal Delegation to be dispatched to help and succor our former Cambodian children, to feed them milk and honey after years of skulls and bayonets. I say that France will never forget her orphan children, and we love you still with all our hearts.”

“And so, for all these reasons and more, I declare Ft. St. Paul well and truly operational, and I give thanks to God for a hill-top city, in a land where there is no light.”

Subsequently, several events happened. Firstly, the Royal Vanguard Legion mobilized in force and swept the Island with heavy air support, hunting out and securing any sign of rebel activity. With so much power concentrated on an already basically secured zone, it was expected to be a two day affair, and good extra-training to boot.

Royce I was given a former hotel in Jilleseponia, reinforced by the French, to use for housing Roycelandian nationals and whatever else he might want. Roycelandia was also given free use of St. Genevieve Aerodrome and Jilleseponia Harbor.

Secondly, the Tsar was called by Louis-Auguste personally, and cordially invited to station his fleet in Jilleseponia for rest and victualing, as well as enjoying camaraderie with their fellow monarchists. A vast hall was already being built in Jilleseponia, designed like a fortress/cathedral, and a huge brass plaque was already being mounted, decorated with double headed eagles and fleur-de-lys:

Holy League Consular Office for the East

Well, now there was full-blown revolution. Since foreign forces began returning to the Philippines, and while the grace period of post-Marcos governments' opportunity to tackle corruption and inequality had far expired, the NPA was equivalent to its historical high of, by most estimates, a little more than twenty thousand full-time fighters, boosted by unknown numbers of helpers and part-time members and with the support of equally unknown hundreds of thousands of citizens. The imperialists and the complicit social order in the Philippines had turned a society with a gradual calming in the Maoist-lead rebel movement into one at breaking point, and now, tens of billions in dollars of French pressure had caused a mighty SNAP to ring out through the land.

Samar, Visayan Islands, Philippines

Trucks and other vehicles associated with the 8th Infantry Division were leaving for the Pan-Philippines Highway, en route to Leyte, also in the divisions area of responsibility and so the event was considered nothing special. The detonation at the head of the column of an improvised landmine made the mission one of those, but still was something that had happened before. The rush of a rocket propelled grenade from the hillside behind the vehicles really made it a day for the diary, worsened by the crack of sniper fire from the same side. A fire-fight was immediately joined, and troops from the small nearby base responded quickly... but neither they nor the pinned survivors in the convoy were expecting the weight and ferocity of the charge that followed the ambush. It was on a quite unusual scale, not two men with an RPG, a rifle, and a roadside bomb, but a large company of NPA guerrillas weilding AKMs, many sporting underslung grenade launchers of Indian Soviet origin, and an array of squad automatic weapons, submachine-guns, and grenades. When infantry from the base attempted to approach the ambush site from a different direction they found hastily wire-rigged hand-grenade boobytraps and multiple snipers prepared to delay and damage them.

Minutes later, the convoy with burned-out hulks at either end and bullet-riddled, bloody-stained trucks trapped inbetween, sat lifeless, the highest ranking officer involved relieved of not only his hat but also his head, and troops from the base found -along with a few more grenade-based boobytraps- that while they'd lost several men, and the convoy every member, no fallen attackers could be found.

Dispersing back into the rugged hills, NPA soldiers melted into jungle or back into civilian life, a couple telling families that loved ones had been shot by the police who, they said, were calling the victims Islamic terrorists, which everyone knew to be absurd! A few bodies were buried in unmarked graves around the forest, carried there by two-metre giants, and young men swore revenge.

Elsewhere across the Visayas several more such sudden and intense attacks were carried out, and CPP/NPA posters appeared declaring resistance to the new occupations and the inarguable end of governmental legitimacy in the Phlippines. In few places at this early stage were government forces prepared for all-out assaults by dozens, even hundreds of fighters making heavy use of grenade-launchers to cause havoc, though in several places, the most notable incidence being on Mindanao, rebel attacks were broken-up with success, though almost never without casualties for government forces.

Vietnam

For the second half of the Second Commonwealth, Soviet relations with Vietnam had taken on a new face, which the Third Commonwealth was keen to maintain. Where Sopworth's Commonwealth had viewed the old guard in Hanoi as allies and done much to support them during the 1980s, the modern Commonwealths embraced moves to reform already brewing in the Socialist Republic. Efforts at workplace democratisation had been presented diplomatically as a means to ensure public support in the face of opposition movements and foreign threats while stimulating the economy along with more mutually beneficial co-operation with India.

No doubt the presence, in the Gulf of Tonkin, of Indian submarines and warships was of concern to China, but, thus far, rumblings from the north were stated as all the more reason for Soviet presence, and UAVs continued to fly from Vietnam on a regular basis. Haiphong, currently, was hosting the big armoured gunboat B-01 CS Petropavlovsk, a veteran of the Nouméa Bombardment on a sort of farewell tour before decommissioning, and its escort, the Gauntlet Class Fleet-Defence Frigate FD-002 CS Petrichenko, along with a yet uncommissioned corvette brought for inspection by the People's Navy Command with a view to a possible Vietnamese version of the Joint Indian Corvette, which, the Soviets said, might become a possibility if socialist reforms continued. The underwater presence of NA-03 CSS Aurora was not advertised, while the Petropavlovsk and the corvette received much fanfare amidst excited orration on gigantic French imperial presence in the region, which was going to make it hard for Hanoi to explain why not to acquire Indian warships, except that they could not afford to, in which case the reformers only had a greater case to press home.

While the tour and these discussions were going well, several old friends of the First Commonwealth were sounding a note of dischord over a decade of increasing Soviet agitation in the cities and villages of Vietnam, which saw elements of the public increasingly supportive of the younger generation in the Party, that which was embracing, well, socialism.

While the Second Commonwealth was very much hands-off in respect of these bubbling power-struggles, the newly proclaimed Indian Soviet Commonwealth was dared by French and other imperialist provocations across southern Asia to address such issues more directly, and the crews of the Commonwealth Oceanic Guard vessels in Tonkin, like consuls and military base staff ashore, were turning increasingly to discussion of CPV conflict and popular sentiment, and some soldier-sailors were even proposing resolutions for vote on radical action. Several Indian bloggers were talking about revolution, or a coup by the left against the out-dated authoritarians.

The Indian Soviet Commonwealth

Though busy with internal reform and the task of preparing new trade links around the world, the Soviets finally found time to begin issuing statements urging the Filipino people to revolution, and a number of petitions were dispatched pledging solidarity with popular movements to democratic self-control. Along with the usual political and economic encouragement and information, the Soviets sent their firmest assurances that many of the imperialist forces arrayed against the Filipino masses were not sufficient to intimidate committed revolutionaries and that they were not of superior quality as fighting men, many being far from home and over-committed and not wealthy super-soldiers to be feared.

To reinforce this, severed heads of army commanders killed across the nation and of French soldiers felled in large numbers at New Caledonia, appeared pictured on websites and pamphlets viewable at discretion, the skulls often incorporated into altars and arches erected by the PLS wherever they were invited to base operations. Any footage or photography of Indian and Filippino fighters alike was made widely available. Amongst it included images of exploding French Mirage over the Coral Sea, the sinking of a Roycelandian dreadnought there, the wreckage of a Spitfire on the beach, the burning of government trucks and armoured vehicles within miles of Manila, knocked-out Quinntonian-built tanks in French colours on the Lavragerian marsh and surrounded by poor nomads, and even old images of African victories over Roycelandia in the Lusakan independence war with partisans swarming over checkpoints, and scenes apparently depicting Dien Bien Phu were brought out for inspiration.

Individually, communes continued to increase their financial donations to the CPP and NPA, and to smaller and more left-wing opposition and resistance groups.

Mumbai, growing increasingly unhappy about French actions, doesn't take long to complain to Roycelandia. Could you please, asks Parliament, make sure that the French don't use their bases in the Philippines to attack our shipping?

It really is remarkable that Parliament has held off for so long on a declaration of war. The Igovians nearly conquered New Caledonia after the French sunk a Tordian fishing boat. Mumbai had lost a grand total of seven merchant ships and is still set on diplomacy. While not an impressive response from a military point of view, it is hoped that London and Washington will take full stock of its implications and the belligerance of Versailles.

Louis-Auguste is accused of nothing short of naked hipocracy. The French violently conquer Algeria, subjugate Palawan, and size up Vietnam, and London and Washington don't say a word. The INU tries to recapture Rajasthan, a territory ruled by a brutal and criminal madman, who essentially took the reins of a Bedgellen occupational authority, and promised it by treaty, and Versailles stops just short of declaring war. If London and Washington don't respond, well, war it will be.

But more immediately, in response to the sinking of a Union freighter off Palawan, a pair of Leander frigates are dispatched to the region, with permission to take violent action if prompted to do so. No matter how shady Versailles might be, it will be difficult to keep Mumbai from protecting its own ships and difficult to make the Holy League's new NATO bedfellows agree to what is essentially a campaign of piracy against what used to be a fairly agreeable INU.

Its so good to be back. BG, you and I must play chess someday! AC, Wingert, et al....I have returned ::Smokes corn cobb pipe::

Welcome.

Uhm, I'm wondering, at this juncture, this morning, and maybe it's just because I haven't slept, but would AMW benefit from a bit more balance/competition?

Since NATO, the HL, UE, China, Japan, and so on -with the odd one-off dispute along the way- are increasingly aligned in most ways that count, Europe and Russia, North America, the Middle East, and the traditional Asian giants are devoid of counterweight. Sure, the ANP stands out, but it's not certain they can defend themselves, let alone influence anything else, and Yugoslavia, bless 'em, try hard, but aren't going to dispatch a grand fleet to the east Pacific any time soon. Meanwhile the INU tries to please, to no effect.

Basically, since BG's been down-graded in influence, and having influence only by passing reference to ties, well, I worry seeing the Philippines steamrolled after Gabon, Nigeria, Algeria that I've got it all wrong, and should be meddling a lot more.

So this is just a heads-up, because maybe I'm still a little edgy about changing NPC countries, that, well, we're going to do it anyway, heh. To make the Indian Soviet Commonwealth sustainable as a power that can actually go out and challenge authoritarian-capitalist/theist doings a sphere of influence is going to be required in opposition to that giant list of powers and vassals, and, I suppose, I'll have to speak for a large part of the popular backlash to sweeping domination and inequality in AMW.

Right, that's my disclaimer done, let's see if I remember my intentions after I've had a nap and endured a friend's twenty-fi..si..f..sixth?

Note: If this manifests before next week as an invasion of Tibet, disregard and attribute to alcohol and/or other controlled substances.

((Pardon the redundancy, I posted on two threads idem, but I decided that it was in fact a propos. I agree completely BG, do your thing, do what you gotta do...please lets keep this RP going though, its the most fun Ive had yet...WE MIGHT ACTUALLY HAVE A WAR, and we need to to chnge the balance of power, winners and loosers etc...CIAO))

Versailles

Everyone knew something was afoot when His Most Christian Majesty informed M. Lebel, the King’s valet, that he would not take his usual morning hunt in the symmetrical forests abutting the palace proper.

Instead, an Emergency Secret State Council, the third time one had been called since the Restoration itself and the first under Louis-Auguste was convened. The Prime Minister, the Ministers of War and State, the Tsar’s emissary Count Falkenstein, the Queen, and the Princes of the Blood were all in attendance. At its conclusion, a news conference was called and set for noon. All major networks would no doubt set up shop in the Hall of Mirrors, where a Throne had been erected so the King could address the masses.

And so he did, dressed in cloth of gold and wearing the state crown.

It began with the major domo rapping his staff upon the marble floor. As one, the King’s elite Garde Suisse snapped to attention, and a lone trumpet rang the call.

“Oyez! Oyez! Messieurs et Mesdames, His Most Christian Majesty Louis-Auguste, King of France, Defender of the Faith!

The curtains were then pulled back, and the King spoke.

“We have been accused of piracy in attempting to quell an illegal invasion, We therefore disregard any such accusations and invite states wishing Our apologies to instead consider their own reasoning. The Indian Union has been given warnings, and We have demonstrated Our ability to affect her merchant-marine; yet this is proving insufficient. Unless the Indian Union halts its illegal invasion within twenty-four hours, from this moment, a state of war shall exist between Us and the Indian Union until such time as they abandon their illegal invasion. We have dispatched Our Brother, Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie, with force of arms to Asia, to now solidly establish resistance against unchecked progressive machinations. Think not that this is New Caledonia…We are mightily prepared, and have dispatched Our arms with thoughts of confidence and victory.”

“We shall aid no African nation now, and British accusations only hamper Our earnest desire to see amity between Our Two Kingdoms….however, slander and alliance with aggressive powers can only serve to hurt what necessarily should be a natural friendship. Let Elizabeth, who has been suffocated by her own ill-advice, now attempt Her African Mission in solitude, with assurances that both We and His Imperial Highness the Tsar, Our Closest Brother, will offer no succor.”

“We heartily congratulate President Aznar and His Imperial Excellency Royce I, Our Dear Friend, on standing up against ferocious, demonic, and barbaric resistance in the Philippines, and offer them now direct and compelling aid to secure Roycelandian hopes and Filipino desires.”

“And Our Brother, Emperor Bao Dai IV, is to be congratulated: We have just been informed that the Parliament of Cambodia, in accordance with the wishes of its native peoples, have invited Bao Dai IV and his government-in-exile to reside in that most excellent of countries. We say proudly now: France has abandoned her children for far too long, and We, with the strength of the Restoration to back Us, shall now return to aid Indochine and uplift her most excellent people from the despair they have suffered for half a century now.”

Palawan

Rebel troubles disturbing the other Filipino islands were absent on Palawan for mainly one reason: the fact that a massive and potent French army occupied it, and had swept it from top to bottom.

At Ft. St. Paul Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie, Supreme Commander of the French Eastern High Command, dug in and organized. With such a massive military force in a state of readiness, speculation could only be rife…

The only thing that was known is that numerous Roycelandian and Tsarist delegates had now set up shop in the increasingly Francophone Jilleseponia.

Rajasthan

News that His Most Christian Majesty had drawn a sword sharply inspired the Rajasthani defenders, as did the fact that a massive, literally gargantuan, French army had been located to the Asian theatre, and was both vicious and well supplied.

In Sirohi, the defenders fight like the dickens. With their French advisor and a Major who is a loyalist and as charismatic as a Rajasthani soldier can be, the 3rd Irregulars dug in and turned the town into a battlefield, making the Indian Union pay for every inch, thus was the plan revealed: with hope of Holy League aid now, the Sultan would fight for every inch, in hopes of forestalling the INU advance while turning the Leaguer round Jaipur into a real fortress.

Bikaner also was a garrisoned town, although the troops there were neither the stalwart regulars under General Singh or the confused paramilitaries fighting in Sirohi. They were the Third Peoples Army: ten thousand strong, armed with obsolete weapons, but they were the first group of true believers in the Little White Book, so the Sultan would allow them the privilege to be the first to display their courage. For this purpose, he even gave them a few howitzers and anti-tank weapons that had otherwise been strictly reserved for the defence of the Iron Leaguer of Jaipur.

South East Asia

And so the stage was set round the lands of the Orient: Roycelandian troops hacking it out in the Phillipines trying to uphold an increasingly desperate Aznar Government, the Progressive Bloc openly conducting a general war on smaller Indian neighbors, and now with the might of Most Christian King entering the fray…

Giap Endurance Soviet Comradeship-Defence Post, Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Sovietists staffing UAV bases in Vietnam often found themselves with a lot of time in which to name and re-name their stations and operations.

Often, under normal conditions, but not lately.

South China Sea

Palawan seemed to most Sovietists a thing too strange to be what it seemed. It was such a ridiculously huge deployment, so incredibly remote from the French homeland. The effort of building, supplying, sustaining it all, and without crippling the island, and, well... if the French were going to commit piracy, engage in the cutthroat game, it seemed odd that they'd stick out their own neck so far.

Ten miles up, several hundred miles out from Palawan where French air defence vessels sat protecting their battleships, a product of the March Alaric Aviation Plant cruised under control of the Giap Endurance Soviet's Vietnam-bound operators. Much observation had been carried out in preceeding miles as the French freight vessel made its way to Palawan, the Soviet taking time to confirm and double-check the identity of the large ship they'd been in no rush to select from those coming and going to support the gigantic occupation effort. They'd then waited for word from GSIC and their intranet databases at home before deciding inch-perfect points of attack.

So far as the crew -probably luckless colonial peasants, it wouldn't surprise- would have been concerned they may as well have hit a mine or been sabotaged by a bomb on board. Two guided 225kg bombs would rip without warning through the skin of their target before exploding within, one attacking the ship's propulsion and the other intending to rip her open, if not break her back entirely.

The UAV would make away at three hundred knots before cruising casually back to Vietnam, arriving from a mission that apparently took it over Tonkin and round to Cambodian waters on patrol against more mundane pirates than those of the French authority. The Vietnamese-based Soviet and GSIC intended to say nothing of the real matter.

Indian Soviet Commonwealth

The Soviet Commune and the Final Senate were in join session, the issue of the day was French piracy, and a scornful reaction to ridiculous claims that the Indian National Union's invasion of Rajasthan was somehow illegal. The French were challenged to cite grounds for the claim, while citizens dragged the Soviets behind them in the charge to intervention.

Soviet aircraft and submarines, they said, should support the large corvette flotilla in making the Indian Ocean's sealanes once more impassable to French shipping. The threat was that the French should have to cross the Atlantic, maintain Quinntonian favour at the canal, and then cross the entire Pacific in order to remain in direct maritime contact with Palawan. The Roycelandians should, the Senate delegates shouted, be shaken and made to wake, and decide whether they really wanted to be involved with the French in Asia, or whether they actually preferred to keep Goa.

While no official decision were yet made, and the Militia and Oceanic Guard Expert Corps did nothing more than to slightly increase their state of alarm, many citizens enrolled in the Militia Auxiliary -an organisation bigger than Russia and fashioned loosely after the Parisian national guard of 1871- did not seem prepared to wait. Goa's border guards would once again be invited to stand-to as mobs gathered at various potential crossings from Karnataka, blasting war trumpets and loosing automatic fire into the air. Wootz sabres flashed in the sun for miles around, and the barrels of AKM rifles and Vickers-Berthier light machineguns winked back where the rays penetrated the crowd and struck their metal.

Association with the French had become enough to reignite Southern Indian passions in opposition to the continued colonial presence, and any Commonwealthers in Goa were soon receiving calls and E-mails informing them of the mood at home and urging them to embolden mutiny.

As was not unusual, the Southern Indians were taking no small share of offence, partly on behalf of their neighbours to the northwest, and also of comrades abroad.

(OOC: Very well, yes, I think that I shall stop half-arsing it and recognise that there's been no USSR for a decade and a half, and the Indian Soviet Commonwealth really does have to take ideological charge. It's only what would realistically follow, I think.
Alas, I must break from this, for I am in need of sleep ahead of festivities, and while I may check back in the morning, I am not sure whether I'll be back that night, or not at all for a day or two. Let's just hope that I do not, at the celebrations, start to drunkenly ramble about the Philippines Crisis over my seventh pint or something ;) )

The Colonial Guard in Goa were again manning the ramparts, so to speak. In fact, the front page of the Havana Telegraph was a photograph taken over the shoulder of some Colonial Guardsmen, showing the Angry Mob(tm) protesting at the border, with the headline "Don't These People Have Jobs?"

Meanwhile, the left-wing Socialist Review (yes, there are left-wing and socialist newspapers in Roycelandia!) has a rather amusing photoshopped image of Louis-August with an eyepatch, Captain's hat, and a parrot on his shoulder, with the caption "Arrrr!". Royce I was apparently rather amused by the image, which was forwarded onto Versailles as a matter of course...

Festivities, ahh, c'est bon. What kind? Why wasnt I invited? Pffhhh. Ahh well, so it goes. I agree with you completely BG. Take charge, dont dance around, be a man! j/k.

And just also please realize that Palawan has massive supply dumps, as I said enough for a sixth month campaign of any substance involving land air and sea elements. However, that was a rather dastardly stroke, but at least things are moving now.

Royce, Tsar, help me!!!!!!

The Imperial War Room, Port Royal, Roycelandia

"Well, Gentlemen?" asked His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I.

The Imperial Defence Council sat in the underground everything-proof bunker, with the ceiling obscured by cigar smoke, a pretty secretary taking notes, and ice cubes clinking in glasses. In an unprecedented show of respect and friendship, a senior French Military Commander was also present, permitted into the innermost sanctum of Roycelandian Military Planning.

"The problem we have" explained Commander Edmund Blackadder, "is that we're always going to be the Bad Guy in the fight against Communism. They do have effective PR, and whilst the latest opinion polls show support for Roycelandian assistance, that's going to vanish if we start Napalming entire Islands simply because some crazy has got it into his head that Allah is commanding him to kill the infidel." Commander Blackadder stubbed out his cigar in the ashtray and shuffled some papers. "I have some ideas, but I'd prefer to hear out some of our esteemed colleagues before I voice them."

"This scene reallycame up well in post-production" Wiggles said to no-one in particular. "We were initially worried that the lighting guys would have trouble with all the cigar smoke in the room, but as it turned out they were able to use some of the stage lights to enhance the atmosphere, which I think our camera crew really capitalised on."

The Minister For Internal Affairs (obligatory joke: "So, how do we have an affair with an Intern?" rimshot "Thank you, here's here all week- try the Veal!" :-P) addresses the table. "The good news is that Roycelandia's Muslim population have denounced the acts of the Filipino Muslims as being inappropriate. Imams at all the major mosques have agreed to alert us to anyone preaching hate or violence against Roycelandians or anyone else, and the major Christian churches have agreed not to try and label this a Crusade or put a religious spin on it."

His Majesty nodded, taking a puff of his cigar.

"Interestingly, that's a real cigar His Majesty is smoking. I know there's a lot of brouhaha about tobacco being bad for you these days, but to his credit, His Majesty said 'Look, despite what the tree huggers think, most Important People smoke cigars and that needs to be reflected on film'. For the record, that's a Padron Churchill that His Majesty is smoking." continued Wiggles

Air Commander James Bigglesworth put down his Scotch and opened a Dossier. "The thing is, air supremacy is vital, and that's something we have over the Communists. There are still something like twelve squadrons of Spitfires still on active duty throughout the Empire, and several hundred Spitfire aircraft in mothballs. They're perfect for use in the Philippines, operating from Jungle Airstrips. We can train Filipino crews in addition to Roycelandian ones, helping President Elzar-"

"James ad-libbed this line, and I think it was brilliantly funny... he's managed to convey a general disdain for the puppet government the Roycelandians are propping up, AND get in a Futurama reference at the same time. We hadn't intended to make a political point, but it just came out and we said 'You know, that's really good, let's leave it in'" noted Wiggles.

"- and the Filipino Populace themselves. We control the skies, gentlemen, and we can rain either Manna in the form of food, medicines, and other useful things, or Fiery, Burning, Painful Death. The choice is theirs."

Prime Minister Sir James Brosnan began to speak. "I don't think the Filipinos are likely to see that in a very good light..."

"Sir James wasn't initially going to be in this scene, but His Majesty pointed out that he is the elected Prime Minister so he does need to know what's going on, especially since he's got to answer for it during Question Time. Funny story, when we tried calling Sir James at his country estate, the Maid answered the phone and..."

"Wiggles, what the hell are you doing?" asked His Majesty.

"I'm pretending that my life is a DVD Movie, and I'm providing the Director's Commentary."

"Why?"

"It's something to do. Usually I just sit in the background at these sort of things, so it's my way of pretending I'm involved in Important Events."

"Fair enough. Sorry, Sir James, you were saying?"

"As I was saying", continued Sir James, "I don't think the Carrot/Stick approach will work with the Philippines. It's like hitting a wasp's nest with a big stick- it doesn't kill the wasps, and makes them all very angry."

"A really good analogy, one I think the viewers can relate to, or at least draw a parallel from".

"Napalm kills wasps nicely", interjected AC Bigglesworth.

"This might seem like stating the obvious, but it becomes a bit clearer later on... I don't want to give anything away, but what is it about Jungles that brings out people's desire to drop Napalm on them at every oppurtunity?" Wiggles mused.

"Gentlemen, it's late, so here's what I think... Let's play a game of Philippines: Total War" announced His Majesty.

"A great line, which manages to encapsulate His Majesty's attitude towards Imperialism- 'The Great Game'- as well as warfare in general. The fact there's a computer gaming nerd reference in there is an added bonus, and it works on several levels- even people who aren't computer gamers would understand what His Majesty is proposing. It's a smart reference, but I think the fans have come to expect that from us."

"It's very simple... if the Communists and the Towelheads want to wage an Ideological or Holy War against us, we'll fight back with our own Ideologies and... well, we can't really have a Holy War since we're not religious, but... actually, Wiggles, can you find out what the Atheistic equivalent of The Crusades is?"

"More humour from His Majesty. He makes a good point, and deftly counterpoints the surrealism of the underlying metaphor through the use of absurdism. It also lightens the mood of this scene, which is important since it was getting rather serious and too much Drama can actually have adverse effects on an otherwise serious moment."

"Someone get on the phone to El Presidente in the Philippines and ask what he thinks should be done to crush this insurrection. In the meantime, I should also like to invite our esteemed guest from France to share his thoughts with us, as this will be a joint operation..."

"There was a lot of debate as to whether to bring the French delegate in earlier, or keep him till last, but eventually we thought 'We know our viewers are intelligent people- they know he's there, and by keeping the French delegate until later in the proceedings, it'll heighten the sense of mystery.' Looking at it now, I'm not sure if that was the right thing to do, but that's how we did it and it's important to stand by that."

More drinks were served, and the discussion continued...

OOC: I have State Qualifications for speech on saturday, and I'll be back home in the evening, so expect a post then.

China announces emergency pull-out of Filipino troops

In light of recent tensions between France and Hindustan, Beijing has announced plans to pullout troops from the Phillipines unless a more politically secure environment can be guaranteed.

"Our aid is to be spent on the Filipino people, not picking up casualties of war" Foreign Minister Hu Jin Tao announced today.

(Secret IC: Despite the pullout, efforts to build a large intelligience network there continues at increasing pace.)

Taiwan
High ranking defence personel with access to submarine pens have noticed a once-in-a-lifetime sight : The complete emptying of the base.

((Delightful Royce! And an OOC note, the smoky room RP is secret, its just for you all to know OOCly, just FYI…))

The Smoky Room

The French attaché was none other than the Scarlet Pimpernel Himself, Sir Perceval Blakeny, Grand Master of the Chevaliers de Saint-Louis and the Kingdom’s most brilliant mind. The Scarlet Pimpernel had just been introduced to Emperor Royce I, one of the few figures to ever see the man free of a disguise, the variety of which he was an adept of. Of course, for the purposes of Wiggles’ movie, his face would have to be fuzzied out.

He smoked a cigar as well, and gave a little presentation of his own. He pointed to the map, and began.

“Messieurs, Your Majesty, I have just gained recent communication with my master the Most Christian King.”

On a teleprompter, troop stationings and deployments began to scroll down.

“The Kingdom of France has moved an entire army onto Palawan in the greatest Franconic mobilization in centuries. I am at liberty to tell you now that, within the month and taking Asia by surprise, the Cambodian Parliament will elect to invite Emperor Bao Dai IV to return and set up both a Indochinese General Constitutional Monarchy and subsequently, immediately, a Restored Cambodian Constitutional Monarchy. This is an ideal theatre as the Khmer Rouge actually left a desperate desire for a return to monarchic government, but we shall make it more appealing by making it constitutional. We shall deploy our armies to secure him, at least the majority of the FEHC (which will be moved to Phnom Penh from Ft. St. Paul). In less than a year, we judge, Indochine shall be again established, providing Restoration France will the ability to engage in the mercantile economy needed for her continued survival, it will provide France with nothing less than the complete and unabashed victory of the Restoration. Naturally the INU situation will make this trickier, but nevertheless they have a major war to fight courtesy of our friend the Sultan of Rajasthan, who has provided the Most Christian King with the opportunity needed for the master stroke! Oh, what fools the Progressives are! As if we would actually deign to extend effort to save a backwater of India, but they believe we will and so cannot fully invest themselves in the Southeast. I may also tell you that we need not fear this conflict in any matter spiraling out of control, as there is always the Tsar right above the Progressive Bloc. ”

The Scarlet Pimpernel stood up then and moved around the room languidly, continuing to smoke his cigar and make points.

“However, for us at this moment, that is academic. Right now, right now, all that matters is the Philippines…because if my liege looses our supply network here, then all our plans for Indochine become academic as well. My King thus sees two mechanisms needed for a quick and simple Roycelandian movement to secure a favorable Manillan regime and thus gain what Your Majesty wishes in this regard: an ultra-friendly Filipino leader, who plays ball Caribbean style, and a quick and fell military operation to secure this leader in his power.”

He grinned and puffed, and his cultured English accent was strangely familiar in that smoky room.

“Your Majesty has now everything at his disposal, and I believe Your Majesty’s Minister’s advice to be very sound. But before we play this game, before we gain for ourselves an entire chapter in the history of the world, similarly two questions must be asked: Does Aznar play ball, and do we have what we need for a swift and devastating assault on these intransigent rebel targets?

“Increasingly I say no to the former, and I am certain of the validity of the latter. Aznar works with you well, Your Majesty, its is true. But he has rebuffed all my masters efforts at friendship, adding only more discomfort to the situation. I beseech you to make Aznar listen to reason, and allow us to secure him for his benefit (as well as ours). If he does not, we must not waste time in finding a suitable general or political figure to replace him, who will be able to galvanize the Filipino people and raise a proper army, supported by us of course, to secure his power. We are aided in Filipino public opinion by my masters actions in one key way: Catholicism. We bring the Cross to an already shaken but devoutly Catholic people, and dear Roycelandia brings its tempered aid and democracy. A winning combination.”

“Versailles has also decided, and again I am at liberty to tell you this, that the Asian campaign will proceed. Africa, and what little value it possesses in terms of states and peoples, ought now be completely discarded in favor of the unimaginable wealth we now find ourselves perched upon in the Orient.”

“Never get involved in a land war in Asia, they say. Messieurs, this is not a land war, this will be a blitzkrieg.”

“When Your Majesty is able to completely count of Manila, completely, then His Most Christian Majesty has five whole wings of ODSE aircraft, even a wing of Your Majesty’s Lancaster II bombers, ready to instantly grind away any and all threats. We have a flotilla of over two score ships of war, and air cavalry. Indeed, such a splendid little war will give our pilots and troops just the practice we need should any trouble in Indochine be encountered.”

“As to China and Japan. We must keep these reclusive powers at ease. I do believe that with some effort, and no little diplomacy, they can be made to seen that such an enjoyable new order would raise the entire level of the worlds economy. Above all, these two must be courted or at least kept at bay. The British are absolutely tied up in Africa, and the Quinntonnians know that any major moves would only invite my masters father-in-law the Tsar to step in and help himself to things he likes, anywhere he likes them.”

“So, do we give Elzar a football?”

“Wiggles, did you get that?”

Several hundred miles off Palawan

The vessel, which exploded with all hands due to the accuracy of the strike, was not a freighter…it was a transport.

By some wicked stroke of fate, RMN-913 (Royal Merchant Navy) carried one hundred and sixty three Palawanese youth returning from an educational outing in France at the King’s expense in an attempt to spruce up the Bourbon image. Only fifteen sailors, who were not even French but Algerians, were killed. The French don’t even launch a rescue mission, on the grounds that it would be too vulnerable to another strike.

Versailles wasted no time publishing news of the event, unbiased. After all, it would look bad if they claimed piracy on this one. Nevertheless, it is made know that not one Frenchman was lost, and the Progressives would have to admit to themselves that they were far more alike to the Holy League, meaning two extreme ideologies, than they’d like to admit.

It s of course curious that all French material and supply ships travel in protected convoys….almost like King Louis-Auguste planted all those souls at risk simply to get blood on peoples hands in a move that would outwit a fox.

But, according to the Indians, Louis-Auguste wasn’t that smart, was he?

OOC: Jolt ate my finely crafted and humourous post! BASTARDS! Anyway, the edited highlights are that Roycelandia will secure the Philippines so France can grab Indochina, and any of the Muslims who rise up will be on the receiving end of pig-fat lubricated .303 bullets.

Oh, and Wiggles isn't actually making a movie- he's just making up an audio commentary as if he were making a movie (hence the reference to technical aspects of film-making, such as the lighting etc) since, despite the fact he's the Emperor's Aide, Butler, And Mixer Of Alcoholic Drinks, he doesn't actually have anything to do at these Big Important Meetings, even though he has to go along anyway.

It also says a lot about Roycelandians that no-one thinks that's particularly odd... ;-)

(OOC: Cambodia was formerly part of Marimaia, and I don't think that the Khmer Rouge ever had power... although I suppose that we should set them up, this time with political educations and support received in Soviet India instead of Maoist China. Perhaps I'll do a post somewhere with a work-up of the parties, movements, armies, and whatever else, around the world, that are supported by the Commonwealth, so we can all agree what conditions exist here and there.)

News of a French transport exploding with Filipino passengers and not a single French casualty is released by various Indian news sources, and, in the Philippines, talk of French death-ships is circulated, especially outside Palawan, with people saying that the French are sending communists, Muslims, and Filipino patriots out to sea on unwanted or commandeered ships and scuttling them, so that killing fields will not be discovered and the imperialists can attempt to keep secret their slaughter.

Across the islands, NPA numbers are climbing into the tens of thousands, and attacks on corrupt politicians -which now includes those seen as complicit in the presence of French and Roycelandian forces-, criminals trying to profit from the increasingly bad situation, security forces, and any Franco-Roycelandian officials, forces, or business people, though most elements are not yet making civilians outside of government employment a target.

With the scale of NPA upsizing, many fighters are armed with workshop weapons, notably a Beddgelen-designed Sten-derivative, along with single-shot and other primitive handguns, rifles, and shotguns. Some smuggling is still being carried out by the Indian Soviets, such as by dropping over the jungle from light aircraft on commercial trips from Vietnam and -possibly soon- from Sujava if the Soviets can get local agreement in secret, though most imported weapons come by the CPP's own means and contacts as existed for years before Soviet involvement in the country.

Mindanao



As the situation in the Philippines worsens, a new "Rogue" nation emerges from the conflict in Mindanao. Calling themselves "Anak Pawis" and led by a patriotic and charismatic leader named Benjamin Tan, the Rogue nation seeks to reunify Mindanao into a single democratic entity.

"How long shall we pretend," Benjamin Tan speaks over the megaphone at a large crowd in Davao City, "that the Philippines is not being invaded by foreigners, who seek to use us unmercifully to their own benifeits? That our current government is corrupt and no longer serves the masses, and that the so-called "New Peoples Army" is a not an arm of communism who proclaims to fight for the people but in actual terms, fights for a self-righteous dictatorship? How long shall we watch and do nothing as our beloved mother, the Philippines is torned apart by these warring factions?!

I say to you now as I say to every christian and muslim in Mindanao. Stand up and fight for yourself! Fight for your children! Fight for your love ones! Fight for your homes! Fight for a future! Fight for a place of our people in Mindanao! Fight! Lest we be consumed by the fire of this war, and the greatness of our people be exstinguished. Fight and join us in our cause.

For in unity lies strength, already many of the different factions, both muslim and christian filipinos have joined us. Out of the many, we shall create a nation free of tyranny but based on the righteousness, and of the morals for this people. And from this strength, that we shall ultimately triumph over our enemies and regain Mindanao from this invaders.

I have no doubts or worries that our cause is most righteous and that, be it Allah or God, wills it and blesses us in our great crusade to regain our motherland. Mabuhay ang bagong Mindanao!"


As a testiment to this, already many cities, from Davao City in Davao Del Norte to Butuan City in Agusan Del Sur to General Santos City in South Cotobato have pledged their alleigance and joined the self-proclaimed nation of Anak Pawis whose capital city is Davao.

The resulting factors enables Anak Pawis the defection of the entire Philippine Army in those three states and several Muslim armed groups. Most of these included the notorious MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) whose current group half defected to Anak Pawis's cause.

OOC: Are you a puppet of an existing AMW player, or someone new who's decided to join in?

If the former, no worries (but do tell us who you are first!), and if the latter, AMW is a closed RP group... you can't just barge in. There is a membership thread here if you're interested: http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=376859

Daman

The Indian Navy's main anchorage is abuzz with activity in the wake of the confirmed French air attack off Palawan, and the first two ships to head out are the Type 12M frigates INS Islamabad and Jaipur. They are both veteran ships with experienced crews, but of course in the IN, where a vessel is young if it dates from the 1980s, it is difficult for captains and officers not to have seen some action. They are also capable vessels, with the new PAADS-1 VLS system aboard along with the Dhruv ASW variant. The two frigates make for Jakarta, Sujava, to refuel and take-on extra provisions, before heading to their station in the South China Sea.

Two elderly frigates probably don't mean much to the French Navy, whose seemingly bottomless budget frustrates the IN, but one thing that the Unioners can boast is significantly more experience. And the South China Sea task group is soon to be joined by the bulk of the IN's seagoing strength. Two of the three Type 42 destroyers, three of the four Type 22 frigates, the remaining six Type 12s, and the oiler INS Jyoti all prepare to leave Daman anchorage behind INS Dadra & Nagar Haveli and INS Blake. For the first time since the Malacca War, an Indian Navy battlegroup can actually boast a fixed-wing component. And while fifteen Harrier FRS.51s, slated for replacement by the newer FA.2s, themselves RN surplus by this time, isn't very much, they are far and away superior to anything that the French fly at close range. This battlegroup, the largest assembled since the Malacca War, will most likely be sent into the Java Sea to wait for a final word on whether to make for Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh City

For the first time ever, an IAF airplane, in this case a Tu-154 configured as a fast emergency transport, lands in Vietnam on what might be described as friendly business. In decades past, unified Vietnam had been held in contempt, as a lapdog of the Soviet Union and the Sopworth Commonwealth and as an oppressive dictatorship. With the ascendancy of reformist elements, many in the INU see a chance to nudge Vietnam towards a healthier form of government once and for all with friendly overtures, in accordance with Igovian efforts towards the same.

In short, Mumbai endorses Vietnam's purchase of JIC vessels and even indicates its willingness to partially subsidize the purchase, a rare treat usually reserved for the Strathdonians, Lusakans, and Saharawi. But one thing is made quite clear: any military aid from the INU is conditional on the Vietnamese communist party completing democratic reforms and ending certain abuses highlighted in a lengthy communique delivered by the IAF. It is, the communique stresses, the only way to secure popular support and continued national survival in this new age of imperialism.

((French death ships…now that is a sardonic twist eh? I do love British humour, it may be your greatest national asset. As for Cambodia, yes, lets do a history of what happened to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia before we move any RPs to that theatre. I am very interested in this…as it may leave room for a favorable opinion of the French in Cambodia: e.g.- if the French hadn’t left, the Khmer Rouge would never have existed, and after the fall of the Khmer Rouge the monarchy did return…maybe we can also say that during the Indochine period instead of several monarchs for each nation, the Dai’s ruled from Hue over all three, perhaps with more success in some parts than others. Laos would be more anti-French I think, with Vietnam no doubt split. But yes, lets do figure this out, perhaps we should all chip in on some thread, a new one, on the invision forums? I wont say anything more about Indochine until we resolve this, and I would appreciate the same from y’all. Oh, and Ill get to that Rajasthan thread ASAP, by tomorrow at latest I swear.))

Palawan

Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie, Supreme Commander of the French Eastern High Command, sat comfortably in his massive office in the rapidly expanding Ft. St. Paul, drinking iced champagne and smoking fine cigarettes. Indeed, the temperature of the Blood Prince’s champagne was about all that did concern him.

F.E.H.C. had been set up, supplies were being brought in by the metric ton for use and storage. On Palawan, as opposed to the other Filipino Islands, there had been not one incident of rebel activities. Simply put, this was due to overwhelming French pressure stationed there…enough pressure to subdue an entire nation-state if need be, let alone an idyllic Island.

Jilleseponia itself was a booming city. What had once been Puerto Princesa, a sleepy provincial port, was now the Queen of France’s namesake, and looked rather like a burgeoning mini-Marseilles: with its rising Cathedral, St. Paul’s, and the massive fortress overshadowing the modern harbor and St. Genève’s Aerodrome.

The INU would find a surprise at close range if they continued on their course when they ran into a full wing of uber-elite Dassault-Rafale C’s, that’s a flight of 72 aircraft. The Harriers would be in for a treat, no doubt.

Versailles was so tempted to launch a strike against the dithering INU vessels, but direct orders from His Most Christian Majesty forbid it at the time. The French were not eager to declare open war on Hindustan, and if they did, they would wait until they had the Indians squarely and comfortably in their line of sight.

So it was that le Duc took a drag of his cigarette, picked up his phone, and placed a call by satellite to the Sultan of Rajasthan…

In the sky four hundred kms above the Pacific Ocean, several military reconassiance satellites realign themselves, moving onto an orbital path that would take them over the Phillipines.

Hi resolution cameras would begin photo shoots of French military assets in Palawan.

(OOC: So what do I see Nova Gaul?)

OOC- Well, you would see:

St. Paul had spread the word; Fort. St. Paul would serve as a bastion of righteousness in the Asian theatre, and together with the uber-completed Ft. St. Martin (they were sister forts, together with Ft. St. Joan in Algeria, based on Vauban’s technique enhanced with modern technology and weaponry) would serve as two mighty citadels of Bourbon power in the Pacific, able to house and supply and military effort for at least six months (at least once the fort was totally completed).

The fort could house 100,000 troops, although in its early-completed stage it was only able to accommodate some 40,000. It resembled a massive star overlooking Jilleseponia’s vastly improved harbor, which was given royal priority for construction and maintenance second only to the Admiralty in Cherbourg itself. It commanded the entire city’s view, from St. Genevieve’s Aerodrome to the formerly mentioned harbor with radar arrays, missile embankments, supply depots, underground trench works, emplacements upon emplacements of heavy and light artillery positions. Overlooking the entire city was a massive, massive white flag, bearing ht coat of arms of the House of Bourbon, and the Pillars of Hercules, Monseigneur le Duc’s personal emblem.

Arriving with Monseigneur le Duc was the following military force, which now constitutes Bourbon power on Palawan, and its ability to reach out and about. The core of the force, freshly trained and very eager, was the Royal Vanguard Legion, a corps of picked troops who were ruggedly trained in the jungles of New Provence. Equipped with kevlar battle suits, their famous FAMAS assault weapons, and blue armbands with a single gold fleur-de-lys all in a snappy camouflage uniforms, they were cheered on, all one hundred thousand of them, as they marched from the docks through parade routs to find lodging: some in the fort, some in ‘available’ housing in Jilleseponia. There were intimidating troops, all shock troops, with no supply units….this was a force of picked men: there were 100,000 of them. Then came three Battalions of Order of the Golden Fleece Mechanized Armor, some two hundred LeClerc battle-tanks with APC and vehicle support. Four regular divisions of Gardes Francaises marched in as well, two being mainly constituted by support troops, some 42,000 men. Two Divisions of Royal Algerian Infantry were even shipped in to join the army, as Louis I was always eager to demonstrate his vassalage to his Bourbon master, a total of 23,000 troops. An awesome sight, in their black and yellow dress uniforms and armored tricorner hats was the 4th Royal Army Korean Heavy Infantry Division. The Royal Army was a super-picked force, made entirely of mercenaries who took an oath of allegiance only to the King, and not to France. The solid Koreans were the heart of this FEHC, 12,000 strong, and arguably some of the finest troops in the world. Additionally, there were 47,000 members of the Royal Auxiliary based in Jillesepoina, they were the engineers, technicians, medical teams, etc. Also, thousand of Catholic Clergy, sponsored by the Crown, descended on Palawan, with only one policy: convert all. They were personally protected by French troops, and soon began a vigorous campaign to make Catholicism absolute in Jilleseponia, if not Palawan totally yet.

Landing at St. Genevieve Aerodrome were no less than five full wings of Ordu du Saint-Esprit “Sky Knights”: one wing, the Silver Spurs, was an elite unit of Dassault-Rafale C’s, the only such elite unit (for they were so precious as their pilots were the sons of the highest aristocracy) ever deployed to Asia. Two Wings, La Reine and Moonlighters were stand Mirage-2000 designs. One Wing, Desert Crown was part of the RAF, the Royal Air Force of Algeria. And last but not least, huge and imposing, was the first fully staffed and operation French Heavy Bomber Wing, made of Roycelandian made Lancaster II bombers, the Cherubim wing. Each wing has 75 aircraft, and together with some eighty support craft was the FEHC’s aerial umbrella.

The Royal Navy had made intense efforts to prepare maritime forces to support this force, and after buying several vessels from the Roycelandian Empire the FEHC had a solid naval element. Two French Cherbourg class battleships, the heart of the Royal Fleet, sat comfortably in Jilleseponia’s harbor. They were 50,000 tons a piece, and were modern fast attack battleships. They had only six 12” guns, three in the fore and three in the aft, but their low and sleek superstructure allowed for huge AA systems and offensive missilery, their names were Roi de Soleil and the Louis IX. They had nuclear reactors….they were escorted by six Marseilles class light cruisers, 11 Brest class attack-frigates, seven Nantes class attack subs, and protected a French merchant marine operating in the Pacific of some thirty vessels. This flotilla was further supported by two Roycelandian bought Dreadnaughts, renamed the Courage and the Bon Homme Royce, the former was still in Noumea being re-fitted. As well, the Roiks had sold the Royal Navy three medium cruisers and two destroyers, both which now sat alongside His Most Christian King’s FEHC flotilla. And one last ship sailed in, having left Noumea late for impact: the Charles de Gaulle, the Royal Navies only aircraft carrier. True, two sister ships were being built in Cherbourg presently, but they were not expected to be completed for months.

The last travelers to arrive were the most curious of all, some 76,000 Vietnamese exiles under the guidance of Emperor Bao Dai IV, 30,000 of which had been organized into the Imperial Army, and had been supplied by Louis-Auguste with guns, ammo, and butter. It wasn’t long before Bao Dai began spouting about democracy in Indochine, and the need to liberate his people. He wore a mix, some would say comical, of French Aristocratic fashion and Vietnamese Imperial garb, with some military flair too. None doubted he would soon give more informative speeches, and the worlds Secret Intelligence services would know of many flights between Saigon and Jilleseponia, on unmarked aircraft and somehow able to slip by the Vietnamese military observers.

All these forces together, together with supplying and equipping such a horde, constituted now one whole third of the French Military budget, and contained a little less than one third of His Most Christian Majesty’s entire military.

Now, at this point youd notice heat blooms in the French Battleships' and Carriers reactors, and massive troops activity. Please keep your eyes posted, I will be launching the Indochine thread soon, which is end to French Filipino involvement means...

The New Fort St. Paul would soon be graced by a visit from one of Roycelandia's massive Carrier Airships, the IRAS Bird Of Prey.

Roycelandian Military Doctrine was built less on massive forts (although some of the Roycelandian Outposts wouldn't have looked out of place in an H.G. Wells novel or a Rudyard Kipling adventure), but about maintaining a visible presence- ie, being in as many places as possible, and being as friendly as possible.

Members of the Imperial Police Service (much like the RL Royal Canadian Kilted Yaksm... er, Mounted Police) had arrived in the Philippines to help with general law and order issues. Their motto- "Like Rust, We Never Sleep"- proved to be very true, as investigations into counter-government individuals was stepped up...

(A carrier airship? Eh?)

Notable counter-government individuals of interest to the Chinese include some fairly high ranked intelligience officials and the leader of the opposition party in Parliament, all of which have recieved kickbacks from China in the past.

Approximately 300 Chinese agents are in the Phillipines currently, with many of them indigenous filipinos who believe the country would be better off aligning with China instead of the HL. 180 of them are working for the Chinese intelligence office, and have conducted low key eavesdropping operations. A couple are newspaper editors, relentlessly critical of both the Roycelandian and NPA efforts in the country.

Renewed possibility of French piracy in the Pacific is hardly a surprise to the Strainist republics, where anger at piracy against Tordian shipping in earlier years can hardly be said to have subsided. As happened just before the Battle of the Coral Sea, French actions in the Phillipines are decried to Sujava's southeast Asian neighbours as proof of their intent to reclaim their colonial posessions in Indochina and make additional conquests in the region.

On a tactical level, preparations are made by the SRA for 'counter-piracy operations' in the Southern Theatre. Sukhoi-derivative fighters out of Sujava begin to extend patrol flights from adgacent water bodies further out into the Indian Ocean, as well as northward into the Andaman and South China seas. Yangon and Hanoi are contacted about the possibility of joint basing, so that patrol range could be increased through straight-line rather than returning flights.

OOC: I've made extensive references in the past to Roycelandia's two Carrier Airships, the IRAS Terrordactyl and the IRAS Bird Of Prey

They work on the same theory as the RL USS Akron and USS Macon(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Akron_%28ZRS-4%29), but with modern upgrades etc.

The Roycelandian Carrier Airships carry IAe Spitfire IIA turboprop fighters and IAe Harrier Jump Jet IIA jetfighters.

We also have a couple of conventional Aircraft Carriers... the IRNS Pax Roycelandia, the IRNS Eagle, the IRNS Ballista, and the IRNS Imperial Hawk...

And so Indochine begins...

The Walrus and the Carpenter (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?p=10657789#post10657789)

Off the northeastern coast of Luzon, six weeks after French landings on Palawan

The I-411 slid through the midnight waters of the Philippine Sea, its bulky form moving beneath the waves in eerie silence. Somewhere ahead, its smaller escort led the way, keeping close watch for the unexpected, leaving I-411 to concentrate on the task at hand.

A whispered report in Lyongese noted passage through the final boundary, and the submarine’s progress slowed to a crawl over the final few kilometres, while crews set about ensuring all was ready for the transfer.

Twenty-three kilometres off the northwestern coast of Luzon, just beyond the outer edge of Filipino territorial waters, the SRA submarine broke the surface and began to disgorge its cargo: floated crates of small arms and explosives which still bore the lion-head sigil of the Federal Republic that had spawned them. The crates, deprived enough flotation to break the surface themselves, were tied in strings to pink and orange fishing buoys, looking from above no different than the ‘purse siene’ tuna nets so common in the area. Once its task was complete and hatches sealed, the I-411 slipped once more beneath the sea, its course now leading southward towards Sujava.

Almost before the submarine had disappeared, the first fishing boat arrived upon the scene. It, like its fellows already setting out from port, was crewed by members of the New People’s Army Fortunato Camus command, informed of the coming transfer by contacts in the former PKB. The equipment was not much... no battle tanks or attack helicopters to be sure... but rifles, RPG-7s, and the occasional MANPAD would certainly make a difference in the escalating battle against imperialism.

Six weeks after french landings, four weeks after the Chinese pullout

With the 30,000 Chinese troops formerly in the Phillipines now back in Taiwan, the election drawing nearer, and a dramatic souring of relations with Roycelandia in the past month, the PLA's rearming begins to pick up a frantic pace.

Initially, the troops were sent to keep Roycelandia honest and to send a message that long-term stationing of military forces on the Phillipines would not be acceptable to the Chinese. From the Zhang administration's perspective, allowing the French such a massive military buildup was a betrayal of this mutual unspoken understanding.

Diplomacy and co-operation with the Progressive Bloc had reached new heights, and the PLA had set an achievable target of a modern four million man army within 10 months - more than possible given that almost all of the recruits that had joined the PLA after their new recruitment drive had come from the remnants of Sino's 5 million man army or Xiaguo's 7 million.

His Majesty, noting the Chinese sending troops of their own, has ordered an increase in the number of Imperial Guard currently on Deployment to the Philippines.

He has also had a quiet word with El Presidente, basically telling him that the entire country is going to end up under four-power occupation, unless, of course, El Presidente officially announces that the Philippines is becoming a Commonwealth of the Roycelandian Empire- at which time, of course, El Presidente will become the richest person in the country by a very wide margin...

Dark clouds gathered above the Philippines, tossing and struggling ferociously, as if the very sky itself was convulsing in spasms of excruciating pain. Lightning tore across the land with the fury of an avenging angel, as black boots stomped through the rain soaked, mud splattered streets. The rattle of gunfire accompanied the crash of thunder, pools of blood rolled lazily through the streets, and the curved blades of the enraged mobs glistened under the pale moonlight. It seemed that the very fabric of society, no, of reality itself, was being torn apart by the jagged lightning of ideology, as Imperialist, Leftist, and Islamist forces all brutally vied for control.

Azar gazed out of a the rain splattered bullet proof window. It had all been his fault, truly. Not just for letting the imperialists come in and stir trouble; oh no, the trouble had started much earlier than that. The democratic government of the Philippines had always had a rickety foundation, mired with corruption and inefficiency, and Azar had simply adopted the same, grinning, cigar smoking, stand pat attitude, as had all of his predecessors. Sure, he had thought, there is a lot of graft, some poor people here and there, and those obnoxious Red Book waving bastards in the jungle, but hey, the economy’s going great and Cuban cigars keep flowing…Life is good, there’s nothing to worry about. Only now did he see how wrong he had been; the endemic corruption of nearly every local institution had led to outrageous scandals (such as the notorious incident where a small town mayor had sold literally his entire town to a Russian brothel) which, individually, didn’t seem to be major, but over time piled up to create such fierce resentment amongst the people that the ranks of the NPA and the Abu Sayyaf inevitably swelled. Sure, the economy had done well over the years, but much of this had been skimmed off by the elite (through business) and the poor (through welfare), while the middle class had been shut out. The sunny Pacific republic had in essence been little more than one of yellow fruit, a pathetic sham of a democracy. Azar and his predecessors had maintained a delicately stacked, but flimsy house of cards.

And now that house had fallen, with the cards fluttering in the wind.

Azar’s sweaty palms caressed a map with rough sketches of the political situation on the islands.
http://http://www.lonelyplanet.com/mapimages/south_east_asia/philippines/philippines.gif

Manila had collapsed into total anarchy, with mobs of all ideological stripes running rampant as the Roycelandians and the Filipino Army struggled to impose order. The French deployment into Cambodia had left Palawan vulnerable, and full assaults were being carried out there by well organized units of both the NPA and Al-Kazakhstani’s Islamofascist brigades, who had formed somewhat of an uneasy truce as they poured barrages of suicide bombers, RPGs, and lead onto the well fortified French positions. The island of Mindanao was on the brink of falling to Islamic fundamentalists, and many of the other islands leaned ever more closely towards Communism.

Azar stared down, his eyes widening in hopeless resignation. It was over, all over. He had tried to play a game for too long, with trickery, manipulation, and outright lies, but his bluff had been called, and he had no cards left to play. The islands were in a state of complete chaos, blood flowed in the streets, and mad fanatics waving Red Books and Holy ones ruled the nation with an iron fist and blood stained blade. Instinctively, El Presidente began considering various escape hatches, remembering that he still had that private jet stashed away and that Swiss bank account…His trembling hands reached for the phone, and he dialed the number of the airport, and waited as the phone rang.

Riiing!

“I have to do this. I have no way out, I must preserve myself.”

Riiing!

“There’s nothing more I can do here, dammit!”

Riiing!

“It’s my fault…I KNOW IT’S MY FAULT! But…”

Riiing!

“BUT THERE’S NOTHING I CAN DO!”

Riiing!

“A captain always goes down with his ship…”

Riiing!

“But that’s a stupid saying anyway. I must be pragmatic, realistic.”

Riiii---CRASH!

Azar jumped back as an explosion tore through the street next to him, shaking with fear as it tore through the concrete and shook the foundations underneath him. He glanced out of the window nervously, not out of any morbid sense of curiosity but rather some odd tugging of purpose, as if some higher power wanted him to stare at the carnage outside and yell “See what you have done?!?” Through the whirling, red tinged smoke of blast emerged a pair of bright, shining eyes. They were full of the worst kind of madness, the horrible form that takes delight in itself, that thrives on the perpetuation of chaos and anarchy, the kind that creates a spark of rational terror within the madman’s eyes, a spark horrified as the madman’s body commits atrocities that it cannot prevent. A blood stained black shawl draped the man’s shoulders, and an amazing array of patches, rags, and shreds of cloth adorned his emaciated frame. As the wind swept the smoke away, the cause of the explosion became abundantly clear: the madman held a Rocket Propelled Grenade launcher in his arms with a care that would have been described as loving affection if it was for a child and not a tool of death. Realizing he had run out of ammunition, the shawl adorned creature tossed aside the weapon, and to Azar’s horror, slowly withdrew a long, wicked looking blade that bore Igovian markings. The madman’s eyes were slowly filled with an almost demonic delight, as he advanced toward some unseen target. The blade slowly whirled through the air, dancing hypnotically as the pale moonlight gave it a ghostly shine. Azar didn’t want to look, no, he didn’t want to see---but he had to, for reasons he could not fathom, and so his eyes shifted in the direction of the creature’s target.

Oh God, no.

Her black, long, flowing locks brushed against the ground as she bent over to pick up her plush black teddy bear. Poor Beazly, she thought, so dirty with all these red stains. Suddenly, a crunching noise made Anne’s blue, hopeful eyes rise up and peer across the rubble strewn street to see a strange man clad in rags and bearing a curved blade. She smiled sweetly, glad to finally have some company after being separated from her mother for hours.

“Hey mister!”
“Hello…” the blade bearer replied, his eyes smiling madly.
“NO!” cried Azar, slamming his fists against the glass, “RUN! RUN!”

The pavement crunched as the blade bearer’s bare feet advanced ever so slowly, and his depraved joy seemed to radiate in dark waves around him. He seemed to twist the very fabric of reality around him, giving the rubble strewn streets, smashed cars, and twisting flames an even more sinister air. The closer his bleeding feet came, the more chaos emerged around him, as gunfire rattled with an almost panicky air, explosions howled in terror, and the sound of tearing flesh grew ever louder. El Presidente was in tears as he slammed his fists against the bullet proof glass, trying to warn the little girl who refused to move.

“Forget it. There’s nothing more you can do here. Leave, run away. It’s not your problem anymore.” he told himself.

The blade rose into the air, a dark silhouette on the full moon.

“But…but…it’s my fault…All my fault…”

The little girl raised her teddy bear towards the beast, smiling.

“I can’t do anything. I can’t. I have to save myself, even if…even if I don’t deserve to be saved…”

The blade cut down, and shreds of fake black fur and plush material were tossed up into the night sky. Azar closed his eyes, trembling.

CRASH!

Azar slowly opened his eyes, hopeful and apprehensive at the same time.

“My God…”

The creature lay on the ground, frantically struggling as an elderly Filipino woman pummeled him with her frying pan. The blade lay next to him, and he tried to reach for it, but his efforts were to no avail, as the woman unleashed the primal ferocity that only a mother protecting its child could. It was incredible; her arms were thin, rough, and bony, but they poured such hellfire upon the hardened beast that he could do little more than cry in horrific agony. Again and again the pan crunched against his bones, again and again she hammered him with a fierce dignity, again and again he roared in pain and hatred.

The scream was something terrible and inhuman, but it contained a hint of glory in it, too. The full evil of the murderer echoed throughout the streets, but within that evil was a pinch of joy, of triumph, for if such a beast was screaming in his death throes, then there was perhaps some good left in this world, some element of hope to cling onto while awash in the storms of drenching despair.

“YAAAGHHHH!”

He unleashed one, last, tremendous roar from his emaciated frame, and the beast was no more. All that remained was a frail, empty shell, a normal human corpse, with no hint of the demonic madness that had once possessed it.

Then, as if nothing had occurred, as if they had just been playing an imaginary game with the demon standing in as today’s “scary monster under the bed”, the old woman clutched Anna’s hand, and they walked off into the rubble strewn streets.

Riiiing!

The phone line’s power had somehow been restored, and Azar found his hands slowly reaching towards it. They trembled as the receiver came near his ear.

“Hello? Mr. President? Your plane is ready.”

A bolt of lightning slashed against the night sky, illuminating a weak, cowardly, selfish, and oblivious Azar who had his way through life with a smile, a handshake, and a stab in the back.

The world plunged into darkness for what was only a second but seemed like eons.

The lightning returned, to illuminate the world once more, but the world that had been there only moments ago was no more. The frail and weak flesh had been molded into steel, the selfish heart had been set aflame with empathy, the wavering mind had become a honed blade, and Jose Marie Aznar was no more.

“Mr. President…?”
“Forget the plane. Order my top command, the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate, and the highest ranked Roycelandian to my office, immediately.”
“Mr. President, I don’t have that authority…”
“You do now.”

Now they would call him Espada.

The sword.

______________________________________________________________________

They were certainly a sorry looking bunch, he mused. His “top command” of generals consisted mainly of old, fat, and confused looking mustachioed men who had spent most of their military careers barking orders that no one obeyed and polishing their meaningless medals. Oh sure, there were a few hardened faces there, those who had somehow survived the game of bureaucracy and corruption that the upper echelons of the Filipino military demanded, and retained their honesty. But they were few and far between. The leaders of the Parliament were not much better; their eyes were those of a shifty back alley salesman, ready to offer you a smile, a handshake, and a stab in the back. Standing a bit to the side was the Roycelandian Commander, who was perhaps one of the few men there who understood the gravity of the situation, and was gravely smoking a cigar.

Azar’s mustachioed face surveyed the crowd, and the steel in his eyes was enough to silence their restless chatter.

“Gentlemen, we all know the situation on the ground. To make a long story short, we’re f*cked. Unless…unless we act. The time has come for an end to weakness, the time has come for an end to corruption. The era of the joyous cigar is over,” he said, referencing his party’s unofficial logo, “and the era of the espada has begun. For too long, we have allowed the problem of corruption, graft, and bribery to go unchallenged, as our nation festered, our people starved, and our wallets grew fatter. No more. I hereby fire all of my regional governors and dissolve their legislatures; all power shall be temporarily handed over to a handpicked group of men that I can trust, and free, honest elections shall be held once this crisis is resolved. This applies to the Parliament as well, which shall be dissolved.”

The crowd stared, their emotions a mix of horror and disbelief. This is what they had feared for so long, this was what their corrupt little minds had held locked in the back, always present and lurking, but they had never thought that it would actually happen! They had worked so hard, crafted so many plots, done absolutely everything in their power to prevent what was occurring before their very eyes: the seizing of the reigns of power by an honest and strong leader.

“No!” cried the leader of a socialist party in the Parliament, “You cannot do this! This is dictatorship! You have no authority to dissolve Parliament!”
“The Parliament has attempted to negotiate with the NPA and has thus branded itself as treasonous. Traitors are not smiled upon, amigo.”
“TRAITOR!??! You’re the one selling us down the river to the Imperialists! You have no constitutional authority to do this! NONE!”
“F*ck the Constitution.”

A gasp erupted around the room.

“What did you say…?”
“I said, f*ck the Constitution. I serve the people of the Philippines, and not some obscure piece of parchment.”

The aging MP pulled a revolver out of his thick, flowing white hair and angrily brandished it at Azar.

“In the name of the Filip---AUGHHH!” he cried, as he slumped to the floor in agony. A hail of bullets had rained down upon the senile socialist, who had been reduced to nothing more than a bloody pulp. The crowd trembled as it looked at who had fired the guns: the Roycelandian’s guards. The Commander nodded at Azar, with the faint trace of a smile curling around his lips.

“As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted…The Republican Guard, in close cooperation with Roycelandian and French secret services, has already begun rounding up all suspected traitors in Parliament, and the institution itself has been dissolved until this crisis can be resolved. The Guard is also working closely with the KGB and the Kargat to root out corruption at the very basic and local level; expect to find a lot of corrupt bureaucrats lying in ditches soon. Additionally, I order that most state owned enterprises, such as medical services and electrical utilities, be sold off, with Roycelandians gaining priority over all other foreign investors. Finally, we move onto
the most burning issue of the day: the military.”

The short, mustachioed man brushed off his suit, smiled, and dramatically lit up his cigar, as the crowd hung onto his every word.

“Every general who is not on this list is hereby dishonorably discharged. I’m tired of your corruption, laziness, and incompetence. We need men who will serve our country, and not their own fat asses. Please exit into the next room, and…”

The tired and beaten down looking crowd pored over the list, and soon began to shuffle out of the room, lighting up cigarettes and muttering under their breath.

“…have a nice day. Have a f*cking nice day.”

Out of the nearly hundred top generals, only ten or so remained in the room with Azar. Only ten percent had matched the basic level of competency the mustachioed man desired. The other ninety percent…well…

“AYIIIEEE!”

The generals winced as they heard gunshots and howls of pain emerge from the other room. No one said anything, but it had become quite obvious as to what was occurring: those who hadn’t made the cut…were being liquidated.

Acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, Azar continued, “My friends, you are now granted the one thing you have desired for so long: the ability and power to transform our incompetently managed shamble of a force into a well trained and professional army. I know our men can do it; they have the spirit and strength that is inherent in the Filipino character. They just need the proper leadership, and I demand you provide that for them, for the situation at hand demands it as well. Now, we must launch a full scale assault to reclaim the island of Mindanao, to restore order to Manila, and finally, to break the back of the insurgency, once and for all. These anti-corruption measures and the anarchy caused by the rebels will turn public opinion back in our favor; restore order and they shall love us. Have no mercy, and be like an avenging sword upon our foes.”

“Senor Presidente, our military is too broken and shattered to undertake this alone! The Chinese and Germans refuse to go beyond a peacekeeping role, the French are too committed to Cambodia, and the Roycelandians are stretched too thin!”

“That’s why my friend Royce has graciously authorized a significant troop increase.”
“Won’t that make it seem like they’re establishing their own authority on the islands?”
“Who ever said they weren’t?”
“Wait…what?”
“I guess I forgot to tell you, amigo. Why do you think I’ve called for the Chinese and Germans to withdraw their forces? And declared martial law? The Republic of the Philippines is no more; we are now a member of the Roycelandian Commonwealth.”

The lightning crashed down once more, filling the room with a tremendous burst of light and noise.

And then, all was silent.

Mumbai

Parliament, formerly happy to ignore the Philippines and its troubles entirely and avoid the inconvenience of crossing either Roycelandia or Beth Gellert, has come onto a new line of thinking as of late. While success in Rajasthan isn't about to fool anybody, the INA never being an organization to gloat in the dismemberment of a terribly unequal military, attacks on Union shipping cause tolerance for foreign presence in the islands, never high to begin with, to hit rock bottom. The French occupation of Palawan, now seen as a grave strategic threat, is already a cause for war in and of itself, and many think that the least the INU could to is give the Filippinos some guns and bombs. But there is still no agreement on what Mumbai's stance towards Roycelandia should be. Some see it as as much of a threat as France, and Port Royal's association with Versailles is disturbing to all, but at the same time many people fear the reprecussions of such sour relations with a NATO power.

Few people feel like it is an entirely good descision, but Parliament, in order to show not complete apathy towards the plight of Filippino rebels and some support for their cause, decides to ship them a few thousand Stens. At least they'd blend in with what the Bedgellens have shipped-in. The whole effort is conducted with a level of secrecy that has become rather common, between the submarines sent to attack the Russians in the Mozambique Channel to arms shipments into Western Sahara.

South China Sea

With Fort St. Paul a mere stone's throw away, the IN's "show of force" is something of a joke. A pair of Leander frigates putters about within radar range of Palawan, tracking shipping and aircraft. The French fort, close to two months old by now, shows definate signs of major activity, civilian shipping headed towards the island certainly on the increase, and the MoD, based on the frigates' reports, comes to the opinion that it is all in preparation for an invasion of either the Islamic Republic of Indonesia, which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, Sujava, or Vietnam. So while the Frigates can't really expect much more than a glorious death if it comes to blows, they are ordered to remain on station and keep a close watch on the French fort. If anything comes out, the MoD wants to be the first to know.

Daman

With the MoD expecting a major French operation "somewhere in Southeast Asia, any day now," the IN's Surface Action Group recieves its marching orders at long last. It doesn't take long to arm and provision the ships, being few in number, and the Blake, followed by the destroyers Diu and Pondicherry, steams out of Daman anchorage by the end of the day, to meet up with the IN's only carrier and the frigate compliment in Mumbai.

The International News Services were abuzz with this amazing development, and His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I was personally flying out to Manila to install Azar as the Premier of the Commonweatlh Of The Philippines.

Celebration throughout the Empire, of course, and a pledge from His Majesty to bring the Philippines up to the same standard of living as Roycelandia, along with a pledge to democracy, and, effective immediately. Universal Healthcare and Education for all.

A new Constitution would be drawn up, guaranteeing the Filipinos the same rights as Roycelandian citizens, and the army would be rearmed and retrained by the Imperial Guard.

Already, Roycelandian Companies were clamouring to help rebuild the Philippines, using Filipinos were possible, and His Majesty Louis-Auguste has been invited to an Imperial Dinner to be held in Manila (under tight security), to celebrate.

Viva Imperialism! :D

(OOC: Royce, what are the Roiks doing to deal with the immediate anarchy on the ground? I know my posts are long and my writing is crap, but I listed several important hotspots there...)

(OOC: Royce, I think you misinterpreted my post. PLA troops left a week after the French arrived.)

In Beijing there was shock at the rapid deterioration of the situation in Manila - the military was counting their blessings at avoiding a "quagmire", but had pondered whether the move to withdraw had actually emboldened the Holy League and associates.

The Chinese fillipino channel based in Taiwan has continually lambasted the foreign handling of the phillipines situation since the Chinese pullout - the failure of the Roycelandians to keep the French under control, the heavy French presence boosting NPA numbers considerably, the French using the Phillipines as an assault base on Asia, etc.

In mainland China, the PLA continues to re-arm at a quick rate, with some reports suggesting 140,000 re-enlistments of former Sinoese and Xiannese military personel over the last 10 days. Equipment that was due to be prematurely retired has been kept in service, with most branches of the military nearing full mobilisation.

Officially, a statement is issued, denouncing Roycelandia for not taking the issue to a referendum before declaring Manila a commonwealth.

Secret IC Intelligience news : A large armada of naval vessels, consisting of two carriers and numerous smaller ships has left Beijing, currently heading south.

(OOC: Royce, what are the Roiks doing to deal with the immediate anarchy on the ground? I know my posts are long and my writing is crap, but I listed several important hotspots there...)

Sorry, I wrote that as I had to rush out the door to work (did I mention I've got a new, horribly time-consuming job?)

You can take it as read that the Imperial Guard are on the scene in Manila "Dealing with the situation", which may involve shooting people "resisting arrest".

The Airport and the Docks have been secured (the docks by a party of Imperial Marines), and Colonel Stewart Griffin has been on TV calling for calm.

Meanwhile, Paratroops are en route from Vanuatu, along with medical teams, food supplies, and so on...

(I'll try and put something better up tomorrow evening... it's ANZAC day here, BTW! Spare a thought for all the soldiers who've fought in all the wars Australia and NZ managed to get themselves involved in over the last century or so...)

The Philippines

Tens of thousands strong and smuggling weapons that now included man-portable surface-to-air missiles along with the usual rifles, grenades, and such, the NPA was already more confident. While thieves in high places talked about the drain of welfare, the NPA attacked urban police stations in which officers were guilty of shooting totally neglected street children on an almost daily basis as they ventured out to pick through the refuse left by that poor neglected middle class. Alexi Rhys-Petrov, of the Philippines Liberation Soviet, had just raised the red flag over Sorsogon on Luzon, after being shot by a local commander and then, seemingly unphased, advancing to cut him down with a blade of swirling wootz.

Probably ten thousand villages across the Philippines were considered to be under Communist influence, visited frequently by elements of a force now possibly bigger than the Australian army, but since most of the government and military command had vanished over-night, the CPP, through its legitimate political wing and the NPA, was moving-in on the cities like never before. Southeastern Luzon, southern and eastern Mindanao, the Visayas, with Soviet aid and influence the communists moved to secure urban areas, airstrips, port facilities, and openly flew their banner, inviting attack by the Roiks and their cohorts and puppets.

...Low-signature NT4C Hobgoblin air superiority fighters began flying out of Vietnam, nursed by Marathon air-refuelling tankers, on to the fringes of Filipino airspace, often configured for reconnaissance and, from time to time, violating the nation's airspace to escort Morrigan drones. Unescorted French vessels were still authorised targets of opportunity for those units carrying guided bombs, and now Roycelandian vessels were just a step short of the same treatment.

Bay of Bengal

The Soviet fleet, assembled over recent days and weeks at Victoria Salvadoria, put out to the east. Submarines, as ever, were already ahead in the Andaman, South China, and other surrounding seas, muggers lurking on sealanes that Franco-Roycelandian vessels might dare to wander on hearing of the fleet's departure. SSGNs Andhra Pradesh, Aurora, Anhrugarog, Archer and Abrwysgl were, unusually, all at sea, as were several Ortiagon Class SSK.

CS India, the Drapoel-origin aircraft carrier, was at the heart of her first active deployment, sixty aircraft on deck and in her hanger. Nibiru Class carrier assault ships CS New Caledonia and Ngetal sailed too, with CS Degeyter joining them -the third in their intended class of six- newly out of trials, with another sixty aircraft between them. The armoured gunboat Ood was relaunched after months of half-arsed repair work to eliminate damage suffered during the Coral Sea Incident, and her sister Petropavlovsk waited in Vietnam. The massive LPD Hyena was also under steam, not to mention Brompton Class oilers, Benefactor Class munitions vessels, Verix and one Palaemon Class stores and support ships, and the Restoration Class submarine tenders were independently at sea. And there went too several Rapier Class mine countermeasures vessels.

With this assortment of support and assault vessels went the most powerful escort ever assembled by an Indian battle fleet. Twenty Gujarat Class multi-role corvettes, a dozen Bodkin Class general warfare frigates, and sixteen Gauntlet Class fleet defence frigates complete a force of some merit. A force matched by the deployment through aircraft and civil vessels of a multi-divisional force to Vietnam, which was made easier to take by the fact that it came with tens of millions of dollars worth of military hardware for the People's Army there.

The main fleet advanced across the Bay of Bengal, with a cursory note to Liberation indicating a disinterest in the affairs of the Andamans and a promise to pass by peacefully provided that no aid was rendered to [list of belligerent parties], headed for the Strait of Malacca with advance warning sent to the Sujavanese authorities.

Karnataka, Indian Soviet Commonwealth

The crowds that gathered daily on the Goan border, and those actually camped-out demanding an end to Roycelandian occupation of India, all Asia, or all the world, depending on which individual you asked, were finally seeing some results. The CPCS documented the deployment of forward bases approaching the border and the assembly of war materials, and Auxiliary forces in Karnataka were activated to increase air defences over assembling Commonwealth Guard units.

[OOC: You can be as sarcastic as you'd like BG, but you've got to remember that these are my Phillippines, and for the purposes of my story, they have a very generous welfare system. Second, don't go declaring what areas you do or do not control; you can mention attacks and such, but just outright claiming victory isn't going to work. Third, the majority of the military command didn't dissappear overnight; only the higher echelons were "purged" of their corrupt elements, and the Filipino Army is commanded by the fellows who did the real work anyway, as well as the Roycelandian officer corps.]

Mumbai

News of the Filippino President's rather violent usurpation of his country's fragile republic recieves nothing but condemnation from Parliament, especially as more and more Unioners are convinced that a foreign-occupied Philippines is not only a bad thing in a moral sense, but also in a physical sense. Roycelandia is a paragon of democratic achievement compared to France, but when French forces, in the Philippines through Roycelandian invitation, sortie out to bomb Union civilian shipping, it is no longer a situation that Mumbai can ignore. That said, the INU, wary of its British connections, is really only out for France, and could live with a Roycelandian Philippines as long as Versailles is out of the picture. And with Roycelandian Algeria still on the table as a possible sanctuary for Western Saharan refugees, it will take some significant prodding to convince Mumbai that direct offensive action against Roycelandia is something worth doing. Indirect support for anti-Roycelandian efforts is seen as fair game, though, as the Roycelandians did furnish the hated French with bombers, and a handful of Stens is hardly a drop in the bucket compared to such a hefty transfer of technology.

Therefore, a number of Unioners show-up at various locales across the border, asking if the INU could piggyback its own arms shipments on those from Beth Gellert, since Mumbai has next to no way of getting such things to where they are needed by itself. The usual "find rickety old boats and sail them in at night" scheme, used with some success in Western Sahara, seems rather apt to fail given the absence of contact with the rebel group in need.

With the last of the Sea Harriers and Sea Kings aboard, the IN's Dadra & Nagar Haveli, the only carrier in service, pulls away from its berth in Mumbai harbour along with no fewer than eight frigates. It is almost an embarrassing turnout, given the veritable monstrosity motoring across the Bay of Bengal, fielded by a navy that used to be tossed around like a ragdoll by the IN, but it is something none the less, given a slight theoretical advantage with BrahMos ASMs considered. After forming themselves into a neat line ahead with the Dadra & Nagar Haveli at the front, perhaps foolish with French submarines known to be on the prowl, the force heads south to Cape Comorin, off of which the Blake, Pondicherry, and Diu are waiting, having sailed from Daman the previous day.

Indian Ocean

Bedgellen corvettes and submarines aren't the only ones at sea in force. The IN's sizable patrol contingent, held up by the Bengal-class corvette, scours the Arabian Sea as far west as the horn of Africa for threats to shipping making use of the Suez Canal, and well south of the Maldives. A pair of IN submarines (although nobody, save the Strathdonians and Bedgellens, knows it) keep watch over the Mozambique Channel and stand ready to engage Holy League ships coming around the Cape. It is hardly a force capable of standing toe-to-toe with a French battlegroup, even put together, but then again it is really considered more of a picket than anything else.

OOC: "You can be as sarcastic as you'd like BG..."
Well then why bother to bring it up?

"you've got to remember that these are my Phillippines, and for the purposes of my story, they have a very generous welfare system"
Wait, we said that you could just completely change the Philippines after everyone else already got involved? The PLS has been deployed there for months in real time and years IC to support the RL-origin CPP-NPA-NDF, working with/against broadly what existed. NPA strongholds are referenced based on real-life... NPA strongholds. Some of those in reality have declined, of late, but since Soviet involvement in AMW pre-dates such declines in reality, they haven't happened the same. And there's nothing that can stop the PLS raising a flag. Someone can come along afterwards and try to take it down, but that's when the NPA mauling of whoever-tries is RPd.

You can't just change the Philippines now, to hurt the communist movement. I'm confused, and continuing as I have from the start.

OOC: I'm not changing the situation you mentioned BG, all I'm stating is that the government was more left leaning in terms of welfare than in RL, so in this version of reality, Azar's claim that the system exploited the middle class to benefit the poor and the rich is legitimate.

As for the flags...Heh, sorry, I overinterpreted it. ^_^;;; When you said the flag was raised I assumed you were using figurative language to mean you had assumed control. Carry on then.

Ah, as a side note for everyone...I'm going to try to balance things out as much as possible to make things as interesting as possible (for example, the Islamists are an unstable wild card, and although you're right that over all they're a small minority, they have significant power on Mindanao). Right now the Progressives have the clear advantage, so I'm going to lean on the HLers for a bit, but as things change I may shuffle the deck a bit.

OOC- Wont be long in OOC here, just a few points...

1- French fleet and army, as per OOC Board discussions on Invision, is still technically on Palawan...

2- Cambodia thread is nessicarily on hiatus until then...look for my next post to be here, tonight.

Ciao.

OOC: Ah, the difficulties of text-based non-real-time communication, eh.

Ft. St. Paul, Jilleseponia, Palawan

With so many hostile naval squadrons (as well as several squadrons nearly hostile) fast converging on Southeast Asia, the planned French expedition to Cambodia was now deemed impossible, and postponed until a later date. Bao Dai was given a large villa in Jilleseponia, poured a glass of champagne and given a very nice pastry and told to wait a bit, and not to worry: it’d be worth it.

However, despite this dark news, Versailles was greatly gladdened at the news coming from Manila: El Presidente Aznar had decided to play ball after all, and had apparently cleaned up’ his cabinet. His Most Christian majesty Louis-Auguste quickly dispatched his felicitous wishes to Aznar, and heartfelt congratulations to Emperor Royce I. Only hours after the news, Monsieur le Comte de Vergennes, the Foreign Minister, was packed off to Port Royal on a supersonic jet, a courier for some grand plan of the Lily Throne no doubt.

The ODSL, French Secret Service, at the request of the Espada Regime, inserted several teams totaling 200 some agents into Manila, and they worked in sync with the Roycelandian and Filipino authorities to arrest subversives; something they had become exceedingly good at. Versailles was committed to the Aznar Regime, and so the Cambodian hiatus became an indefinite goal: the French would remain in the Philippines, and bolster their allies. A full division of Royal Algerian Army troops were soon packed off on an armed convoy, and dispatched in Manila to aid their allies in maintaining order. They would be under the command of a Filipino designee, but would take their orders from Ft. St. Paul.

Itaque, and so, the traumatic Orient had a situation change again. Now the F.E.H.C. and Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie were instructed, on command of the King and the advice of his best generals, to remain on Palawan, and forthwith begin building defenses in depth all over the island, centering of course of Ft. St. Paul. If the Progressive Bloc thought the French would oblige them on ground, or sea, of their choosing, they were wrong. The French fleet repaired in Jilleseponia’s harbor, on ten minute notice. Several destroyers and frigates were running interdiction missions in the Filipino Sea, yet other than them only submarine and air forces patrolled outside the excellent defensive radius about Palawan. Ft. St. Paul was now at near full capacity, with banks of ASM and AA missiles, and concrete walls and bunkers that were surely the finest in the world.

So the troubles in the Philippines did not greatly affect Palawan, the French presence was simply too overwhelming. The French would not be caught off guard as in the New Caledonia fiasco. Incidentally, two divisions of troops with a small naval detachment were dispatched from Palawan to reinforce Ft. St. Martin in New Caledonia, in case the Progressives tried a flanking maneuver. The island would be turned into one giant fortress. Beaches were bedecked with concrete traps to smash landing craft. Burms were raised, and lodged with cannon. Mines were spread thickly at key landing site, so that a turtle mating would set off several tons of ammunition. Of course, being gourmands, the French made good use of turtle in their soup, with some garlic I should think, and thusly avoided two problems at once. The ODSE, French Royal Air Force, began thick patrols in a two hundred mile radius around Palawan, beginning the grueling practice runs for the seemingly inevitable war to come. Needless to say, the population of Palawan was now completely serving the French effort, either by supplying them with victuals and material or working alongside French engineers in constructing this massive movement.

Yes, thought Louis-Auguste, let the Progressive’s send their foul fleets straight in front of our entrenched cannon, and I will give them more than a wiff of grapeshot! My fleet is defensible vis-à-vis Palawan, Palawan shall be my rock and the fleet my viper.

French Eastern High Command is abuzz with communications to Roycelandian and Filipino officials. Entire battalions of Air Cavalry, crack Algerians in Huey Helicopters, were ready to be dispatched to aid the allied efforts against the rebels. Aznar had but to ask, and his French allies would be happy to oblige. And yes, King Louis-Auguste and Queen Jillesepone would be attending the gala.

In other news…

His Most Christian Majesty Louis-Auguste has convened, as per his right in the Grand Charter of the Holy League, a Grand Congress of that selfsame body.

The purpose, as the proclamation declared, was to create a closer bond between the Wingert and Bourbons, now related by blood but always, as a family, to busy for quality time; and to bring the Spanish Kingdom into the fold. The Spaniards, linked by blood to the French ruling house as well had valiantly embraced their heritage, but it was felt the Holy League had ignored them…

No longer.

The Congress was to be held in Rome, two weeks after the declaration. Invited were the Tsar and His Court and Parliament, King Juan Carlos II and His Court and Parliament, and surprisingly enough Depzekia, with its ruler and parliament.

As yet feeling relatively little urgency with the French bottled-up in their cellars, the Indian Soviet Commonwealth made little effort to engage diplomatically with the imperialist bloc. Portmeirion awaited further consultation with Beijing on issues such as when to toss the grenade through the cellar door.

Increasing relations with Sujava seemed more important as Indian vessels idled along the Sumatran coast en route to Vietnam, where, in usually remote bases of Hanoi's choosing, Soviet forces built-up manpower and stockpiles. The Soviets were keen to support Sujavan maritime security and to deny the Straits of Malacca -around which loitered attack submarines and aircraft- to Holy League and Roycelandian traffic. On behalf of Soviet submariners, Sithin was also contacted on the issue of a theoretical need to put-in at Lyong should Soviet vessels, nuclear or other, end-up venturing north to escape pursuit or engage specific targets moving to or from Russian waters/ports.

With the French engaged in massive building and supply projects on Palawan and New Caledonia, thousands of miles from home, requiring untold millions of tonnes of materials and support for howmany thousands of personnel, the Soviet Commune contented itself with engaging in the early stages of a major commerce-raiding campaign. A handful of French ships daring to venture out from their fleet's bases, and a couple of loitering submarines, these things were serious far from worrying when moving to snap a neck with so many vertebrae as the required supply shipping entailed. Morrigan long-range UAVs continued to fly, from Vietnam and elsewhere, bearing guided bombs and missiles to attack ships thousands of kilometres from the French bases and attendant fleets, and submarines too waited some way outside of shipping lanes, only moving-in when confident that the closest French frigate was hundreds of kilometres distant.

Day by day, the intensity of the commerce-raiding increased. The Soviets watched with UAVs, Marathon AEW planes, and satellites such as those being newly carried into orbit by aboard the Burans, and struck with bombs, torpedoes, and anti-ship missiles (depending on the size, position, and behaviour of the target) against the many ships needed to make a defence on a scale anything like close enough to concern powers such as India and China.

From time to time, a supply vessel of some sort would be boarded by a gift from above, a gliding or parachuted item dropped from UAV or Marathon some way off, and invited to enjoy the mocking gaze of the Jolly Roger painted on a mock bomb (referencing turnaround since the start of French piracy in the east), or a leaflet advertising the Soviet Merchant Marine- a service no bombs were invited, and under-which stalked no torpedoes (referencing the likelihood of impending death for those in service to French enterprises in the Pacific).

For now, if the French fleets sortied out in force to chase Soviet submarines on the open ocean, the standing plan was to break-off operation and/or to continue it only by UAV and far out from the enemy until such time as the fleets returned to base. It was early pestering work, for now, as the Soviet Commune tried to figure-out how the French planned to build-up and sustain forts, forces, and co-operative populations requiring millions of tonnes of supply to come across thousands of kilometres of ocean crawling with hundreds of Soviet attack vectors.

The Soviet fleet by now was advancing well on its way to Vietnamese waters, and its elected commanders half-seriously considered a Khmer-Rouge-friendly invasion of the Cambodian/Kampuchean coast while they were in the neighbourhood.

Back in the Commonwealth, many comrades told stories and jokes and sang songs inspired by the turkey-shoot-in-prospect as they relaxed with ales between shifts, and loudly invited Union, Strainist, Chinese, and everyone else to arm their warheads while the Imperialist nations still had seaworthy hulls to explode. Nobody was very much concerned when close comrades volunteered to head-off to Vietnam or Sujava or some other such place, as word had it that the French and Roycelandians would have surrendered Indian and Pacific holdings before any two soldiers faced eye to eye in battle, and it wasn't likely that there'd be time to get over to eastern Russia before the Chinese, Spyrians, and Japanese had captured the few targets of value offered by that place.


(Sorry that didn't contain more specifics on fringe issues and official diplomacy, I'm falling asleep in my seat.)

OOC- Okay BG let me clarify a few things...

1- FEHC gets about 80% of its good from Roycelandian dealers, and now has access to many goods vis-a-vis the friendly government (Aznar), subsequently very little is shipped from France, ergo...

2- ...what mercantile activity there would be is going SE through friendly waters and all in convoy. Unless you launch a massive effort, not a limited campaign, these routes are still not accessable to you, i.e. you will have to fight your way, or go ridiculously out of your way, (either case with a conspicuous force) to get to them.

And watch out throwing that grenade, Royce and I set up a heavy duty machine gun guarding the approach to it, and are quite comfortable inside exploiting the aborigines with shiny gold and crucifxes while the neighbors scurry about in a dither.

Au revoir!

[OOC: ...err, nevermind, probably best not to blather on too much out of character here, onward and upward as they say].

Jakarta, People's Republic of Sujava

News of Azar's decision is naturally not so well recieved in Strainist circles as it might be in the gilded halls of Versailles or Port Royal... there is general consensus that the man has been bought off by the imperialists and thus no longer represents any sort of legitimate authority. Accompanying this thinking is a conviction that nationalist and perhaps even muslim forces will find common cause with the already-strong New People's Army, a guarantee that no matter the final future course of the archipelago, it shall not long remain a colony.

Clandestine supply efforts for the NPA continue at an increasing pace, with cargoes amended to include NDL-40 70mm rocket launchers captured from the FRB in Sujava in the hope that saturation artillery might allow the siezure of facilities vital should Beijing or Sithin feel the need to intercede directly in the future... proposals for immediate deployment of marine armour companies are turned down, at least until a better handle can be had on the evolving situation.

Though no formal directives vis-a-vis Franco-Roycelandian shipping have issued to the SRA in the manner of their Igovian counterparts, tension runs ever-higher on the part of Strainist air patrols, and a lone gun-armed vessel flying an imperial flag is as likely as not to face a pair of 3M80 ASMs.

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http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/2828/iriflag5ow.jpg

Somewhere on the slopes of Gunung Mekongga, Islamic Republic of Indonesia

From the spartan facility of caves and concrete bunkers known simply as 'Three', Mohammed Kalla reviewed reports on affairs in the region that would one day be the beating heart of the Caliphate restored. He was surrounded by potential enemies, but such was hardly new to him: one did not grow up a Sulawesi Muslim in a Christian-dominated township without learning to survive friendless. He would survive and crawl up ever higher, as he always had.

Kalla could not help but grin as he reviewed his maps... he might hate imperial Catholics and socialist athiests in equal measure, and they might meet that emotion with the same in return, but the mass of military power now flowing past his Republic was hardly cause for concern. Neither side could afford the diversion with the other standing so close by. Perhaps he would be blessed to see the Reds and the heretics tear each other apart, leaving him in the wings to pick up the pieces.

Still, Kalla was not a stupid man... he had access to some modern air and ground defences left to him by the misguided efforts of Hudecia and the USQ following the fall of Bonstock, as well as the myriad armaments left in the country by that much-loathed state, but he knew his ability to face a direct confrontation was limited. The flooding of the South China Sea by Indian ships trapped his prized tank division on distant Aceh, and the Islamic navy could muster little more than two old RN Tribal frigates for a sea confrontation, at least until parts and fuel were allocated to the cruiser stranded at Kotabaru. It would be best to avoid undue confrontation.

"Inform the raiders that they will cease operations immediately. If examples are needed, see to it."

There would be some dissatisfaction amongst the coastal peoples at such an order, in essence a retraction of the universal 'letters of marque' issued by the IRI to bands that roved the Java, Celebes, and Sulu seas. With few foreign trade partners, the cargos and ransom payments gathered in such operations were eagerly welcomed by Indonesians, and the piracy industry had grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years. Still, the bitterness raised by a ban could be directed outward, and with armed convoys now appearing in place of lone tankers the pirates would understand the futility of pursuing their vocation in motor launches against French or Strainist frigates.

There still remained the matter of expansion... the Roycelandians might revel in their godless blasphemy, but their close tow of the French Catholic line would place them firmly in a light that would further aggravate extremist tendencies amongst Filipino Muslims, and Kalla could hardly let opportunity slip through his fingers. Even before the fall of the FRB, the Jemaah Islamiyah had operated cells and contacts in Mindanao, and the birth of the Islamic Republic had only strengthened interest in the area a mere stone's throw north from the Land of the Faithful. Perhaps here would be a new use for the now-taskless pirates... ships and crews to speed out through the Celebes Sea bearing arms and encouragement for those who dreamed of an Islamic state in the Philippines.

"What of Kalimantan and Sumatra, Commander of the Faithful?"

The question roused Kalla from his plotting... but old issues often needed proper address before new plans could begin. Small arms fire was often exchanged between the IRI and the Strainists around Aceh, and the Malayans and Bruneians on Borneo... would it be best to show restraint there as well?

"There is no need for change towards Malaya... continue there as with Irian, be ready for open maneuvers once these recent storms have calmed. As for Aceh..." Kalla smiled, "...they have yet to find the nerve to move firmly there. Why grant the heathen unneccesary respite? Continue to leave them trembling in their bunks at the thought of our blessed bullets."

China

Silently, the Chinese continue their rearming. The number of PLA re-enlistments had been growing, projected to reach 3 million within a month.

Satellite photos near Beijing would have shown the laying of seven new hulls, approximately cruiser sized. The stockmarket also reflected the climate, with oil companies nearing record highs after analysts suggested the government had been increasing international oil purchases and stockpiling.

There has been an increased aircraft presence in the south china sea.

Military exercises have been taking place in Tibet, Inner Mongolia, and Heilongjiang.

(I haven't any time right now but, assuming that we're Depzekia ;) this is just to keep my eye on things and check that somebody give me a heads-up when the proposed conference is due, as Tchokareff is surprised and excited by his invitation. Also, terrified.)

Manila

The clouds had refused to part. It was strange, really. One would think that after such a devastating rainstorm the tears of the sky would be spent.

But no, the heavens would have much more crying to do before this was all over. The clouds of war hung with a mournful sorrow above the city, and the riots calmed as the city girded itself for the titanic struggle to come. This was where the Holy League would take its stand, where once and for all the legitimacy of this feudal revival would be determined. Was this monarchical movement simply a short lived fad, a nostalgic throwback to days of old that would soon wither under the flaming banner of the Revolution? Or was this truly something new, born from the elegance and ritual of age old tradition, but defined by a new breed of ruler, who would use the most advanced technology and sophisticated propaganda techniques to spread his ideology?

This was the time and this was the hour.

___________________________________________________________
Philippines, Overall
Much calm had been restored to the islands with imposition of martial law; overwhelming force had restored a shaky peace to most locations. Mindanao remained on the verge of collapse, as Al-Kazakhstani's Islamofascists retreated to lick their wounds while sharpening their knives and contacting Indonesian agents...NPA forces continued their raids on police stations, but the overall riots that had erupted in their support now began to quell, as Roycelandian, French, and newly re-trained Filipino forcees began to move into the streets en masse.

Aznar's forces had also begun to unleash a brutal and public anti-corruption campaign. As if racing with the Communists, they move as quickly as possible to wipe out as many corrupt officials as possible, and in a bold move, the government sends out a thinly veiled request for information on possible corruptio to the NPA. Doubtful that they'll cooperate, the government instead intends to use the measure as a propaganda boost, to point out that the Communists are not truly interested in fighting corruption, but simply advancing their political agenda.

Economic reforms as well, begin to take place, although these are only in their infant stages.

Overall, the nation was plunged into a shaky, uneasy form of peace, with the hint of violence lurking just out of sight. Most were unhappy with their handover of sovereignty to the Roiks, to say the least, but their Catholicism and moderate conservatism made wary of the massing Beddgellen fleet. They were truly stuck between a rock and a hard place, and at this point, public opinion remained despondent and confused.
_____________________________________________
Washington Dominium of Christ,

The Filipino envoy to the United States presented a simple letter to the Quinntonian government. Essentially, as the Philippines were now a Commonwealth of the Roycelandian Empire, they were qualified for membership in NATO as well. Under NATO's charter, they argued, the United States and all other alliance members were bound to defend any member from unprovoked aggression, and the massing Soviet invasion fleet was certainly a clear example of that. The Igovian government had no right to invade simply because they don't like the Filipino government; Aznar was after all, elected, and has not suspended or rigged any electoral processes. "In the name of freedom, democracy, and the Messiah", the Filipino diplomats desperately pleaded for the Quinntonians to once more take up the banner they had hoisted in the 1890s during the Spanish-American War, and defend their Filipino brothers from oppressive foreign powers

(Needless to say, the fact that the USQ had then refused to grant the Filipinos independance until 1946 and that many Filipinos saw the Roycelandians and French as better stand ins for the Spanish than the Beddgellens was not mentioned.)

Incensed by what is viewed as typical European arrogance and imperialism, Aikoku Toko begins a series of protests and rallies to try to inflame Japanese popular opinion behind a potential 'war of liberation'. References to the Islamic and Communist factions in the Philippines are made, with Akira Shigi stating that it may be better to support anyone rather than the cowardly 'Vichy Aznar'.

However, the JRP government takes a different approach. Prime Minister Minase states publicly that Japan has no intention of supporting any particular faction in the Filipino situation, calling for the press to refrain from any language that may be construed as 'inflammatory'. Minase does take the opportunity to condemn arbitrary imperialism, however, and asks that the French and the Roycelandians do what is best for their nations and halt their expansionism before it backfires. He also adds that Japan in no way recognises the Roycelandian control over the Philippines.

In addition, the Japanese ambassador in Washington appeals to the Quinntonian government to not recognise the Philippines as a Roycelandian holding. To do so would be tantamount to endorsing the kind of rampant imperialism that will endanger the brittle peace that exists in the world; endorsing Roycelandian control of the Philippines would only embolden the likes of France in potential future conquests.

The official Roycelandian response to Japan is the diplomatic equivalent of "Your point is duly noted an ignored"

Interestingly, instead of a blanket arming of the Filipinos with .303 calibre guns, the reserve units are armed with SMLE Mk III bolt action rifles and SLLE self-loaders in .303, whilst the standard army units are being armed with two new production rifles: The CSA 2A1 7.62NATO Bolt Action (a RL firearm... the Ishapore 2A1 is a 7.62NATO version of the SMLE Mk III*), and the CSA SLLE Mk II (a 7.62NATO version of the .303 calibre SLLE rifle).

Indeed, there are rumours that the Imperial Guard may eventually switch from .303 to 7.62NATO, to standardise ammunition across the NATO alliance.

The Colonial Guard, however, have stated they wish to keep the .303 calibre.

A Roycelandian Carrier Airship (and several Airships) are also in the area, keeping an eye on suspicious shipping...

In similar fashion to her Japanese counterpart, the Strainist ambassador to Washington makes the Union's opinions on the matter known... it is hoped that the USQ will recognize both the local and international implications of Roycelandian expansion attempts in the Philippines.

An attempt is made to circulate a letter of protest amongst the diplomats of like-minded powers (China, Japan, Hindustan, etc), to be signed and submitted directly to Emperor Royce, as well as the Quinntonian prime minister and the chair of the NATO security council.

[OOC: Royce, do you have any details on those airships?]

OOC: The Carrier Airships carry 12 aircraft in Parasite Fighter configuration (6 IAe Spitfire turboprop Fighters, 6 CAF Harrier Jump Jet II Fighters), and have a full complement of Anti-Air defence measures, just in case anyone gets any ideas involving long-range missiles or SAMs. (They're not invulnerable, though!)

The other Airships range from about the size of the Goodyear Blimp up to the size of the Hindenberg, in various configurations from Observation to Gunship to Passenger Liner.

Roycelandians like their Airships... :D

Mumbai

Parliament, preoccupuied with the pressing issue of the administration of newly-recaptured Rajasthan and a mountain of other problems, prominent among them steadily building tensions with North Hindustan, finally gets around to commissioning a letter to Quinntonia. It takes an unusually angry tone, accusing Roycelandia of collaboration with land-hungry and belligerent France, and asks Quinntonia for its diplomatic support in convincing the Roycelandians to dump Versailles.

The Union ambassador in Sithin gladly signs the Strainists' letter of protest as well, hoping that Royce will take into account the somewhat warm relationship between Port Royal and Mumbai before deciding to completely accomodate the French.

Off Belitung

The IN's East Asian Fleet, still in neat line-ahead formation with the Dadra & Nagar Haveli at the front, finally arrives near its destination after six days spent traversing the Bay of Bengal and the Java Sea. Before they head for the Sujavan naval base on Belitung, a Sea King lifts off the Blake and makes for the island's airfield with the cruiser's captain, Rashid Samara, on board.

Daman

As the IN's main force arrives at Belitung, the first detachment of marines, embarked on INS Bandavgarh and INS Karaikai, the only amphibious assault vessels in service, leave the Navy anchorage . Eight hundred marines, about a battalion's worth all told, are aboard the two ships, along with OT-62 APCs and other mechanized equipment and artillery. It certainly isn't a force to be afraid of, but it is a start, the first of 20,000 troops that the MoD plans to deploy to the region. Another Type 12M Frigate, INS Gwadar, and the IN's own aging Type 81, INS Mohawk, leave Daman as well to escort the two LPDs. Fortunately for the marines aboard, the two frigates aren't the only escort vessels, and INS Goa, a Type 42 destroyer, leaves Mumbai at about the same time, headed north to meet-up with the LPDs and their current escort.

Nagpur

Of all the problems faced by the MoD, lack of force projection capability is the most glaring. With the two LPDs already in use, it makes sense to take advantage of No.44 squadron, the IAF's only long-range transport unit. The six Short Belfasts of No.44 squadron, rarely all together in the same place, converge on Nagpur airbase to pick up just over half of the 1st Parachute Brigade for movement to Sujava. Equipped with only personal kit and service rifles, the thousand or so troops with their few light vehicles won't be able to move very fast or far and don't carry much in the way of firepower, but it is hoped that the Spyrians, Sujavans, and Bedgellens will have enough of all that to tide the Paras over until their own equipment arrives in quantity.

Also departing from Nagpur is part of the IAF's contribution; the Jaguars of No.5 squadron, recently returned from Rajasthan, and No.340 squadron's attack-configured Hawk Mk.60s. They take off from Nagpur, bound for Dhaka, then Rangoon, and from there Sumatra. The combined Springer-Tornado anti-shipping squadrons, based on the coast, are flown out of Pune to Salvador, and plan to fly across the Bay of Bengal to Sumatra as well.

(OCC: Sorry if I'm dumping all these forces on you, Spyr, at possibly short notice. If anybody has any objections about all this, just say so.)

Belitung

Belitung has come a long way from its beginnings as headquarters for Bonstockian patrol squadrons, growing in the time since the Sujavan Revolution to fill the hole left by the absence of the grand Port Yuko facilities at Singapore. Yet, for all its long piers and ordnance warehouses, the SRA's centre for Southwestern operations has been left rather empty in recent months. With the majority of squadrons deployed to escort merchant convoys, it seems that there will be ample room to house Hindustani vessels in need of a regional base.

After an uncomfortably close flyby by SRA Gripens, the Sea King is directed to the heliport at Tanjungpandan, where Samara is taken to meet Anera Wahidin, admiral in command of the SRA's Southwestern Theatre Fleet.

Bengkulu, Sumatra

After some discussion, the decision is made to have incoming Hindustani paras and air assets quartered near Bengkulu, rather than the closer facilities at Medan, to keep the Hindustanis safely away from the sometimes-tumultuous border with Aceh. In what may either be an odd quirk or an incomprehensible Strainist joke, the Indians are stationed at Fort Marlborough, a relic of the British East India Company transformed into a barracks under the FRB. Then again, the presence of a fortified subway tunnel linking the fort to nearby air facilities gives it a practical purpose, even if the plumbing leaves much to be desired.

Manila

The Parliament house rocked under the onslaught of camera flashes and boom mikes, all attention was focused on the central rostrum. At the rostrum stood Premier of the Filipino Commonwealth Senor Azar, center, with Sir Neville Clyde the Roycelandian Chief of Affairs at his right and Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie to his left.

Applause enhanced the jubilant environment, a major announcement had just been given:

The Empire of Roycelandia, in concord with its Commonwealth member the Philippines and the Kingdom of France signed a mutual defense treaty. The treaty states that if any segment of the Philippines were attacked, all the signed allies would respond simultaneously and in full force. Subsequently it became known, obviously enough, as the Treaty of Manila.

The Treaty of Manila guaranteed the Filipino population the freedom to worship, a particular insistence of Catholic Louis-Auguste, who saw a valuable resource in the devotion of Filipino souls. It guaranteed a functioning democracy, chaperoned by Emperor Royce I and Premier Azar. It guaranteed Filipino cultural sovereignty, so longed threatened by subversive machinations. And the key point, upon which Versailles, Port Royal, and Manila strongly agreed was that the Allies, as the signatories were known, would give surety that all opposition, foreign and domestic, to Azars glorious new order would be dealt with swiftly and efficiently. At the height of the ceremony, Premier Azar was given the cordon bleu of the Ordu du Saint-Louis, the highest peerage able to be bestowed in France.

Le Monde’s headline the next day read: “Azar commits to reform and moral progress, Roycelandia secures the burgeoning Commonwealth, and His Most Christian Majesty will, as always, defend the Faith while ensuring Roycelandia’s egalitarian mission.”

And so the Allied Command was created, and Headquartered in Manila. First on the list of suggestions for further planning, submitted by Monseigneur le Duc was to use Roycelandian troops and arms to re-fortify Corrigedor, that vital island that controlled the entrance into Manila’s harbor.

Ft. St. Paul, Jilleseponia, Palawan

The massive citadel was now at 90% capacity, and her vast underground depots and tanks had been sunk, sealed, and filled. Training exercise were routine at this point, with Jilleseponia loosing power at night so French gunners could light up the night with SAM missiles and dizzying flak fire, say conducted at random night times once per week.

A new deployment dispatched one division of the Royal vanguard Legion, along with missile equipment and substantial engineering teams, to the island of Jolo, a critical link between Palawan and New Caledonia.

Meanwhile, a patrol in force was being prepared. A squadron of Brest class frigates, led by a Marseilles class light cruiser and supported by several attack submarines and covered by air from Ft. St. Paul would do a heavy reconnaissance sweep along the western coastal zones of Palawan.

A Squadron of Brest Class frigates, led by a Marseilles class light cruiser, prepare to embark. (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/French_Navy1.jpg)

As they prepared their small but potentially potent sortie, the Charles de Gaulle, soon to be joined by a sister ship being constructed in Cherbourg, stood gleaming in a fresh coat of paint in the center of the Jilleseponia harbor, majestic after the amount of capital the Royal Navy had spent to bring it up to par.

HMCMS Charles de Gaulle, completed overhauled and innovated, anchored in Jilleseponia harbor. (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0d/Gaule96.jpg)

And the French breathed well, knowing the mettle of the Igovians they had fought before, and the confused nature of the INU gave them no cause for worry. Petula Clark, on any secluded there non-mined, could be heard crooning out C’est si bon.

Besides, they know had world opinion shift to their favor. Along with the Roycelandian Empire, and its subsequent Commonwealth of the Philippines, they were defending a nation against extermination.

Louis thought that perhaps abandpning the Cambodian excursion was not a bad idea. After all, as of now, things were going splendidly.

OOC: No time for long post (AP US exam on Friday), but assume that the Filipino military is mobilizing in a frenzy, and that includes what little naval assets they have.

The Imperial Navy is being mobilised in a way not seen since the last time His Majesty wanted to see all the ships sailing around the Caribbean (Last Friday, in other words), and already eight Dreadnoughts have been despatched to the Phillippines.

Interestingly, two of the Dreadnoughts are gifts for the new Commonwealth- and Quezon City, Manila, and Palawan Air Harbours are full of Sunderland Flying Boats, ferrying troops and supplies into and around the Philippines.

There is a raging debate in the Imperial Parliament about whether or not to deploy the IRNS Red Dwarf (the World's Largest And Most Heavily Armed Battleship) to the area, but this is eventually vetoed by His Majesty, who points out that although it is the World's Largest And Most Heavily Armed Battleship, it's also the World's Largest And Most Heavily Armed Target For Every Torpedo, Guided Missile, Rocket, And Limpet Mine In South-East Asia.

However, several Lancaster II Heavy Bombers are deployed, along with some of the Imperial Navy's Silencer-class Submarines, and most notably, three squadrons of AH-1 Zulu Attack Helicopters, and two squadrons of CH-42 Bedouin transport gunships.

The AG-1 Wasp Autogyro is also being extensively used in the Philippines, and a lot of people are beginning to notice that the Roycelandian Armed Forces are actually quite formidible when they get themselves organised...

The Federate Anarcho-syndicalist communes of Neo-Anarchos condemns Roycelandian armament of the Philippines in the strongest possible terms, and in keeping with rising anti-Roycelandian sentiment, the military communes vote in favor of increasing navy patrols and F(J).4 / Kfir formations are once again seen in the skies above Venezuela and The Anarchan commune of Guyana. It is also rumoured that a military training operation was undertaken recently somewhere in Ecuador, featuring the People's Army and People's Marine Corps, as well as the Grupo de Comandos Amfibios and Comando Negro De la Estrella special forces.

Diplomatic collectives send their ouvertoures to Port Royal, and although none are particularly optimistic about their chances, they request initation of negotiations to halt NATO militarization of the Philippines. In return is offered, among other things, benefecial trade agreements, free shipments of molasses and/or coffee, and of course brotherhood and good will.

Apart from condemning Roycelandian armament of the region, the Neo-Anarchan communes have yet to form a unanimous opinion on the Philippines situation, and will investigate the matter closer( mainly through their ties to Philippino anarchist groups) before commenting.

Belitung

The IN's East Asian fleet motors towards their new anchorage as neatly as ever, now adorned with flags and with marine bands belting out to no degree of synchronization what might just be the theme from Guns of Navarone. It should be quite clear that the Blake is the centerpiece of the whole display, appropriate as a reminder of the days when the IN was arguably the most powerful naval force in all Asia. Union sailors are only too eager to spout details about the ships' automatic 6in main guns to their Sujavan and Spyrian colleagues, sometimes adding, "can the Lyong-ti do that?" in a totally ridiculous effort to make the old cruiser seem superior to Spyr's super-battleship.

In addition to the ships and their crews, some captains present gifts of sugarcane and dates to their hosts as a show of goodwill.

Captain Samara's Sea King also arrives at the heliport, depositing the captain and an aide. They are of course eager to meet with the Spyrian admiral, in order to discuss the strategic outlook, something that the MoD doesn't have much of a grasp on as of yet. There is also a desire to offload the Dadra & Nagar Haveli's Sea Harriers and most of its Sea Kings, so the ship can be used to ferry the IAF's helicopter commitment to the region.

Bengkulu

The Union Paras are pleased with their new accomodations, and of course heartily approve of the tunnel. After getting beds and storage sorted-out, they get to making themselves busy with improvements to the old Fort, especially with regards to plumbing. It is rarely a good idea to try and serve two thousand people with a handful of backed-up or leaky toilets, or with clogged showers.

IAF combat aircraft arrive with the Belfasts as well, including two combined Tornado-Springer anti-shipping squadrons, assembled around the BrahMos but currently armed with nothing besides internal cannon. That situation will hopefully change in the very near future, but crew chiefs are eager to find out what Spyrian munitions the IAF's planes can handle, since nobody has faith in No.44 squadron's ability to deliver enough munitions to sustain combat operations, with its six airplanes.

Bay of Bengal

INS Bandavgarh and INS Karaikai make a stately 12 knots across the Bay of Bengal, its escort in tow and watched from above by IAF Shackletons. Travelling at that rate, they should reach the coast of Aceh in a little over two days, and Bengkulu another two days after that.

Mumbai

Parliament of course applauds Neo-Anarchan support for Filippino democracy, and is at the same time careful not to exhibit too belligerent a position towards Roycelandia. The Treaty of Manila is decried as unfair and underhanded, a kick in the face for the Filipino people, and swears that it will not even consider the document's legitimacy until the French military leaves Asia. Mabye Versailles thinks it has a right to the whole world, but in the INU, and no doubt across the continent, those who now have to deal with French guns pointing in their front windows think otherwise. As the Rajasthan War should have shown, when Unioners feel something important is threatened, they can and will resort to violence, and contrary to popular belief they've proven themselves exemplary warriors more than once.

Roycelandia escapes specific mention yet again, a product in part of Mumbai's perhaps misguided belief that Roycelandian imperialism is something that can be tolerated in the short time, but mostly due to a desire to avoid conflict with NATO and England in particular.

It is also, thinks Mumbai, a good time to state what exactly it is that the INU wants out of the Philippines affair. What it absolutely does not want, for better or for worse, is a Philippines forcibly aligned with either the Progressive Bloc or the Holy League, and this is made somewhat clear in a communique:

"...The Indian National Union wishes nothing more than for the Filipino people to be free from extra-national teathers, to be able to excersize their natural democratic rights..."

While, like anything Parliament puts out, it is simply heaped in the INC's vision of democracy and the Union's historical sympathy for "the oppressed," Mumbai is very much looking inward and is not so much concerned with extending its sphere of influence into that part of Asia as it is recovering its 1947 territorial extent.

The MoD is quick in marshalling its deployable assets, the Paras and Marines, at airfields and ports and begins to look for suitable transport vessels, since it has become clear as day that the Bandavgarh and Karaikai do not even come close to fulfilling the INA's logistical requirements.

South China Sea

The IN's two-frigate sentry force off Palawan is ordered to put more distance between itself and the island after suspicion of a French sortie rises, eventually leaving their station altogether and making port at Ho Chi Minh City. Two frigates aren't much use when faced with a cruiser, and it is thought that the Bedgellens and Spyrians have enough in the way of early warning assets in the region to know if anything serious is about to go down.

Hmm, I think a bump is in order?

Azar?

Or shall I continue? Meh, just got back from la provence, the countryside...Im about ready to leave the city mes amis, and setle on a warm farmstead in central california.

au revoir!

Jilleseponia, Palawan

Shortly after the sortie in force was dispatched, with huge amounts of air cover, to clean up Palawan’s western coast, a joint conference was given at Ft. St. Paul…in attendance were Premier Azar and Sir Neville Clyde, the Roycelandian authority. Speaking was Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie, F.E.H.C.’s Supreme Commander.

“The Treaty of Manila has been signed, and all signatories shall adhere to its agenda. Any attack on the Allied forces (French, Roycelandian, Filipino) will be taken as a join declaration of war against all three powers.”

Subsequently, the Roycelandian and Filipino figures gave their remarks.

While the Philippines girded themselves for action, the French, in sync with the Filipino Catholics, began a major campaign. Leaflets were distributed by the thousands proclaiming Premier Azar as a defender of the Faith, and Emperor Royce I as a protector of democracy. An excerpt:

“People of the Philippines, prepare yourselves for the struggle to come. Know that with the Holy League guaranteeing your freedom to be Catholic, unabashedly, and the Roycelandian Empire securing your civil rights, no force in the world can challenge this awesome conglomeration. If the Progressive demons look for war on your sacred Islands, war they shall find. And we shall not only drive them into the depths of the hellish abyss, but God willing, strike a blow for all that is good and wholesome in the world below.”

At this point some several thousand French priests had been scattered about the archipelago, under guard from Filipino police forces, and were successfully creating a very dogmatic Filipino Catholic population.

One thing was clear, the Philippines would be a key contention in the future of world politics. It was a hushed atmosphere now, as the world watched to see if the Holy League Congress in Rome would mean more unilateral and sweeping actions against evil in the world.

The Roycelandians are more than happy to leave Matters Of Faith to the Franco-Filipino Catholic Church, as it frees up resources for the Roycelandian introduction of Universal Healthcare and Education (instruction in Filipino, English, French, and Spanish), and a massive agricultural reform campaign, providing farmers with no-interest loans and subsidised machinery, to help them boost their crops, and accordingly, the economy.

An Apprenticeship programme is also being trialled in Quezon City, in which school leavers can gain a diploma in certain fields through "on the job training", and the Roycelandian Film Industy has announced that they'll be shooting the next Kenya Johnson adventure film in the Philippines as well...

((Wow, is this thread dead now, again? Anyways, some IC actions that really dont need a full post: several French divisions and ships are being recalled back to Europe in spite of the new British Administration...as well, with the Cambodian Operation on hiatus, both the Marshalry and Admiralty judged Palawan to have a uselessly large garrison. I am working on a huge update thread for France to go on the home thread, all deployment info will be held there. Oh, and just for the record, but with little time to post, assume that France sponsors major Catholic missionary operations on New Guinea.))

(I'm more or less waiting for a response from Aznar.)

Another thing NG, can you advise on the status of Cambodia? How far did you get before you pulled back?

OOC- Id say nothing at all happened, no invasion whatsoever.

((OOC: I don't know what you want me to respond to, China. And I'm just waiting for the Bedgellens to come; weren't they going to invade?))

OOC: I'm not really sure what's happening, now. France and Roycelandia continue to sink resources into distant islands, every penny buying a new communist insurgent, while the fact of tens of thousands of armed rebels surely negates any serious regeneration plans. China and the Soviets think about removing the westerners, but can't really agree about what should happen afterwards. The Commonwealth waits while the insurgency gains strength and the Franco-Roycelandian co-operation passes more days with forces deployed for no clear result. At the moment, we're okay to wait it out until the imperialists run themselves into the ground and the communists take-over from a discredited government. If China moves to achieve a more favourable end from their point of view, we'll presumably go, too, since the alternative would pit the NPA against the Chinese.

Soviet fleets have mustered and forces built-up, of course, but we're pottering around, in and out of our own ports, Vietnam's, and Sujava's. Low-level commerce raiding continued on a target-of-opportunity basis, but no major sorties have come just yet. Perhaps I could send a fleet to attack a convoy just for the sake of the story, though it's maybe not what we'd really do. I dunno, we'll do something radical if nobody else does, I suppose. Just not right now, because I'm tipsy and tired. A lot changed for us when the Cambodia thing dropped. By staying in the Philippines, the French made it a less urgent thing to defeat them, but they haven't exactly gained sustainability or victory by doing nothing instead of something reckless :)

I still wonder what will happen on the Sino-Russian frontier if France/India/China/Roycelandia get into it.

OOC: Ah heck, the forum ate my post. Will be typing up a mammoth post to state China's position soon. As for China, the military build-up continues to frightening levels.

AC, could you update us more on the domestic reaction to the whole thing?

Bengkulu

INS Bandavgarh and INS Karaikai finally enter the Sujavan port and naval base of Bengkulu after taking about a week to travel the distance from Mumbai. The two LPDs moor in the harbor, along with the four-ship escort detachment, and deposit their 800 embarked marines. With the distance between Mumbai and Bengkulu quite long, the MoD has scrapped its plans to use the ships as troop ferries, and instead they will remain more or less attached to their formerly embarked force of marines for however long is deemed necessary.

Le Petit Trianon, Versailles

The time before His Most Christian Majesty departed for the all-important Holy League Congress in Rome he spent at the Petit Trianon, a delightful pleasure palace tucked away behind the symmetrical forests and canals which surrounded Le Grand Chateau itself.

He spoke with the Prime Minister le Comte de Maurepas alone, the Queen was in the next room being dressed for a stroll in the gardens and collations afterward. His Most Christian Majesty, alone with his wife and immediate family (his first two children, now the Tsar’s heirs, were visiting from the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, and were delighted with their new younger brother, the Dauphin of France) and hence hidden from the all pervasive court, dressed in a white silk leisure suit, the coat of which had been shed, revealing a smart cream vest decorated in fleur-de-lys, enhanced by the cordon bleu of Le Ordu de St. Louis as he sat in a fine winged chair. M. de Maurepas was attired still in full court rigueur, having been called from the Chateau only moments ago at His Majesty’s leisure.

The King’s personal valet Thierry entered, bowed, and served the men espresso while placing a dish of canole on the lacquered oaken table which separated King and Prime Minister. They savored the sweetmeats and coffee for a moment while discussing a rather successful hunt Louis-Auguste had that morning, and then His Most Christian Majesty stood (which sent Maurepas promptly up as well) and lit a cigarette while gazing oak the huge window, admiring a waterfall.

“I don’t think this Asian policy suits me anymore, Maurepas,” said the Most Christian King, eyes distant.

“As a matter of fact, I want a policy change. My father always had success, look at Algeria! No, a policy change will happen this very night, before I go to Rome. I think we should re-orient our forces, somewhere more…vigorous?” he paced to another window, and opened it, letting in the smell of jasmine in the late spring evening.

“Sire, what is your wish in this matter?” asked Maurepas, who well knew his post consisted only of enhancing and passing on the King’s wishes to the subordinate ministers.

“Well, I certainly do not want to loose what we already have in Asia, that would be foolish. But I want a bit of something more to sink my teeth into, as it were. Our old holdings in Equatorial Africa perhaps?” the cigarette was put out and Louis-Auguste turned to directly face le Comte the moment the question passed his lips.

“The Congress of Berlin does set a legal precedent, sire. Signed 1885, I believe. Not to mention using the excuse of a humanitarian mission of sorts. Your father-in-law the Tsar even has holdings in Nigeria, right next to the former colonies. The time it takes us to prepare will give us adequate time to keep our allies fully involved as well…”

“…it would be possible to garrison our Pacific possessions and move the majority of our forces so dispatched to the Orient back to Europe to prepare for this, if I may suggest this if it pleases Your Majesty,” followed by a bow only a refined courtier could execute.

“Yes, that sounds fine. Just fine. Well then, ma cher!” yelled the King, using the pet name he gave Her Serene Highness Jillesepone.

“Ready dear! your brothers have already taken the ladies-in-waiting and children to the fountains,” as the reply came, the French doors were thrown open, and two magnificently attired Gardes Suisses brought their rifles to salute and slammed a boot in unison onto the hardwood flooring.

“One more thing, Maurepas,” said His Most Christian Majesty as Thierry returned and placed the Royal Coat upon the King’s shoulders “I want someone with more zest and courage in the War Ministry, I think old Saint-Germain has gotten too complacent, I think he’s gotten too set in his plodding ways. And you know that little brat of his is an anglophile? I once, years ago now, stumbled on the bitch using their vile tongue with her own maid, imitating a Cockney accent no-less! Freshen yer drink govna indeed!” at this both men shared a hearty laugh, the King’s thickly accented English making the statement he translated absurd.

When they recovered Louis-Auguste went on “…at any rate, I want someone tough, willing to take risks and accomplish what I wish done! Someone from the high aristocracy too, from the devots, throw my ultra’s a bone for blind devotion, increasingly we have time for nothing less!”

“Yes, delightful, these ‘shake-ups’ will also show the world we mean business. Maurepas, I’m thinking of le Duc de Broglie,” the King nodded, the Prime Minister bowed.

He watched the King join his wife in the garden, take the leash of the Royal Dogs (a trio of pugs), and trot merrily off through the gardens down a row of gaily playing fountains.

A breeze blew the sound of a jazz band, secreted away somewhere in this garden where gods-on-the-earth dwelled, and a lush feminine torch singer undulating C’est si Bon through the open window, His Most Christian Majesty’s favorite tune.

He too lit a cigarette then, and as he proceeded to call for his carriage back to the Chateau, grabbed another canole.

In the wee hours of the morning, shortly before the vast convoy of carriages would take His Most Christian Majesty and entourage to Paris for a public Mass from thence to the airport and Rome, the former War Minister le Comte de Saint-Germain, a veteran soldier with a liberal philosophy and septuagenarian experience heard on knock on the doors of his apartments in Le Grand Chateau. Highly unusual, as only scratches were considered polite. When he opened the door, he was startled to see Monsieur le Baron de Besenval, Colonel of the Garde Suisse, standing in full uniform and flanked by two bulky Switzers. Mouth agape, sand in his eyes, he accepted the Colonel’s proffered dispatch, the type of which even in the morning hours was bold enough with few enough words to read.

Monsieur, His Majesty no longer requires your services. You are free to leave at once to your country estates in la Dombe. Do not leave there. His Most Christian Majesty wishes me to relay his thanks for your kind duty under him, and commends you into God’s keeping. Le Comte de Maurepas(below Louis-Auguste hand signed) bon.

Le Duc de Broglie was a childhood friend of the King (he was moreover boyhood chums with all four Bourbon brothers) , and served under Louis-Auguste (then Dauphin) in the Lavragerian War. He was just turned thirty (two years older then the King), ruddy of countenance, lithe and fit of frame, toothsome, and had thick blond hair and pitch black eyes. His presence was a fixture at the intimate fetes thrown by the Royal Family’s inner circle.

Born from the fourth finest family in France, he was a simple-minded reactionary politically, a beyond faithful Catholic spiritually, and militarily his philosophy was “massive attack, massive victory.” He was no fan of forts, though he admired the ones built under Saint-Germain’s reign in the War Ministry, but believed rather in panzer movements, carpet bombing, napalm raids ad nauseam, followed by a healthy round of machine gun fire and rapid close action combat. He loved Russians and was in awe of the Tsar, was partly Spanish with close ties to several devot families in Philip VII’s Court, knew of Depkezia and secretly vacationed there for a few weeks, was delighted with Roycelandians and their monarch’s taste, distrusted Arabs but admired the Elian Dictatorship, thought of Orientals as rather slow with hilarious languages, loathed anything Protestant or English (which he considered one in the same, with only lighter views reserved for Quintonnia), and wanted to do nothing more than stick every subversive red sub-continent dweller on a stake and ignite the straw himself…after of course obliterating their foul culture from the very face of the earth. But he never liked strong opponents, and if faced with a choice would always enjoy pummeling weaker entities. In that light since they were boys, he had always ranted to Louis-Auguste about easy pickings in Africa, and the opportunity to win massive French victories there for: state gains in wealth and morale, God, and most importantly crown prestige. Indeed, his half-sister was secretly la Madame du Berri, Louis XX’s mistress, and many in the know at court credited this connection with the success in Algeria.

With credentials such as these, and a proximity to the Royal Family, it was only a matter of time before he became one of the most powerful men in France. And now, as a scratch at the door indicated, he had become one.

Ft. St. Paul, Jilleseponia, Palawan

Ft. St. Paul was at last completed, all systems were now online. No sooner had the last radar array been installed than the order came through from Versailles directly on the King’s behalf and from the new War Ministry, and was dispatched forthwith to Monseigneur le Duc de Normandie.

With a dispatch beginning It is the King’s pleasure to… that the offensive force was recalled back to Marseilles in its entirety, leaving only land and air forces enough to defend Ft. St. Paul and Ft. St. Martin and naval forces to patrol the routes betwixt them. Additionally of course to carry on anti-rebel activities with the Filipino Commonwealth and to secure French and pan-Catholic missionary activities in the Pacific.

With the Treaty of Manila signed, this would be a secure move. Around 30,000 French Gardes Francaises and 20,000 Royal Algerian Regulars would remain at Ft. St. Paul, leaving room for 30,000 Filipino trainees to come to the French base and receive training.

Ft. St. Martin would keep its garrison of two divisions of Gardes Francaises to maintain New Caledonia. The Royal Navy would dwindle in the Pacific to a squadron of Marseilles class light cruisers and Brest class frigates, as well as several Nantes class attack submarines. The core of the Pacific fleet would be the two Roycelandian bought French Dreadnaughts and the three heavy cruisers.

Only Royce I, Premier Azar and Holy League allies were necessarily informed of this change of plans, and the departure would be as inconspicuous as possible.

Mumbai

"Order! Order! The Speaker recognizes Minister Suleiman Abelaziz."

"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Unioners, what has become of the world? How is it that the whipping boy of Europe comes to dominate the world stage? And how is it that we let him subjugate not just his own people, but free men and women the world over? What happened, Unioners, to the Asia that threw Bonstock's inbred monsters out on their rear ends? Nothing happened to that Asia, Unioners! The righteous spirit that cut down Bonstock's perverted notion of government still sleeps in Sithin, in Tokyo, in Beijing, Ho Chi Minh City, Rangoon, Jakarta, Raipur, and Mumbai! The free peoples of Asia, Unioners, when they stand united against a common enemy, are unbeatable! It is high time that we stop dallying about and reform that same kind of alliance that destroyed Bonstock, and use it to free Asia once and for all from the shackles of tyranny!

"We look to the Philippines and what do we see? Exploitation! Subversion! Dictatorship! The Roycelandians...it is not enough for them to secure the Philippines' mineral and industrial resources. For the Filippino people to be masters of their own destiny, that is too much for them to bear! They go ahead and install President Azar as King! It isn't theft if Port Royal is offered-up the country by its maniac ruler, now is it? But that isn't the end of it! Royce invites his chum Louis-Auguste to a share of his stolen booty, the island of Palawan. What does Louis-Auguste intend to do with this island? He intends to use it as a springboard, from which to dominate all of free Asia!

"It is disgusting that only now, after the invaders have been given ample time to dig-in, is Free Asia ready to take action! Wake up, free peoples of the world! Barbarians have set fire to your house! How long are you going to wait before you douse the flames? There is nothing right about right of conquest or rule by force of arms, and there is nothing divine about divine right! The most shameless and unrepentant thieves the world has ever seen currently sit in Port Royal and Versailles, their thugs ready to snatch the hard-won labours of honest people for pasty-faced, childish monarchs!

"Not satisfied after their rape of the Philippines, these monarchs set their sights on Africa. They think Africa and its people helpless and backward, easy pickings for a new colonial empire eager to once again rape and pillage! But they do not consider the African National Pact, which stands strong and ready to smash the hideous visage of neo-colonialism, or the West African Union. These two organizations alone have the tenacity and resources to make the wars of independence that came to a head in the 1970s look like playground scuffle. And I am sure that this Union would not sit idly by if a fresh crop of Leopoldian beasts arrives on Africa' shores.

"These dictators thrive on ignorance, and seek to foster it wherever possible. Like the fountains surrounding his ill-begotten palace, Louis-Auguste spouts lies! He claims to be defending freedom...whose freedom, one might ask? It seems to me that he is only interested in defending the ability of the well-born European to do what he pleases with the rest of the world, the consequences be damned! Louis-Auguste and Royce come to our doorstep with loaded shotgun and demand what's rightfully ours, even after their own treasuries are full to the brim with wealth that most nations can't even dream of.

"Nations belong to the people who live in them, and not to anybody else! No King or Emperor in his marble shed has the right to assert control over those who did not ask for it! This perversion of the human condition must be killed by a thousand shots to the head and it must be killed as soon as possible! We must raise the alarm: Thieves in town! Gather your weapons, be vigilant! Do not let these beasts catch you unawares! Asia must unite and do the right thing: expel these hyenas in human skin and make it so they can never come back!"

Belitung, Sujava

Proponents of the Blake will be pleased to find their boasts meet with little to counter them... while everyone on Belitung can spout the textbook praises of the Lyong-ti as 'a marvel of naval engineering', 'a triumph of productivity and the people's will', 'capable of delivering 40 tonnes of shells per minute', and most will go so far as to comment that 'their' main guns are over 300% the calibre of the Hindustanis, almost no one believes that the battleship will ever be risked in the field unless the Russians sail into the Strait of Japan. The Blake, for all its age and faults, gets points simply for having the pluck to show up at all.

---

In terms of overall strategy, the Strainists seem little better prepared than the Hindustanis; the walls of the Belitung headquarters still bear charts and reports more relevant to Indonesia or Papua than operations in the Philippines. Anera Wahidin, admiral overseeng the SRA's Southeastern naval Theatre, seems to think the best thing would be to plan a 'limited war', with Progressive elements restricting their attacks to League forces and freeing the Philippines to resolve matters internally without the Roycelandians there to prop up their puppet Aznar.

After a few drinks in a local pub, however, the Party line slips away and the admiral reveals a dream of seeing SRA troops 'flatten Palawan and march on to New Caledonia, to hell with NATO and the Maoists!'

---

Newly arrived Hindustani marines are given berths scattered across Belitung island, many being asked to supplement defensive positons along the coast.

Sithin, PRS

In Sithin, and throughout the Union of Strainist People's Republics, Abelaziz' speech is soon found plastered across the front pages of newspapers and magazines. In Lyong it pounds another nail into the coffin of the bureaucracy, already being sidelined by an increasingly activist Revolutionary Army. Student groups swell in the streets outside Party buildings, demanding action be taken, while the Central Committee is flooded with memorial essays arguing that assuring freedom in Asia is a Strainist duty. In Sujava, the reaction is perhaps more personal... there, the populace still remembers the horrors of their own oppression, and the joys of liberation, and the continuation of the fight which freed them from Singapore's chains is not a duty to be demanded but a debt which must be repaid.

Baghdad, United Elias

The Strainist embassy in Baghdad had been busy over the past several weeks, involved in more than the usual oversight of petroleum and commercial shipping purchases. A number of new contracts had been drawn up, comissioning Elian corporations to undertake transport of all fuels purchased by the Strainists from sources in the Middle East.

In Sumatra and Lyong, small crowds gathered in protest of the decision... the staff and families who had made up the shipping collectives who had formerly sailed oil across the Indian Ocean to Strainist markets. Their livelihood had been cut off by the need for 'energy security', and while their collective committees might endeavour to find openings in other enterprises, or use their now-liquified assets to attempt new endeavours, there would be hardships ahead. Blame, of course, was heaped upon the French, but they did not bear it alone: however much the ideal of 'liberation' might be worth to some, it bore great cost... a cost that, though it had not yet come due in full, would have to be paid in tears, and likely blood as well.

Spring Winds Palace, outside Sithin

The rich scents of sandalwood and cinnamon wafted through the empty halls of the place that had been summer home to Lyong's imperial family for untold centuries. Though robed courtiers and scale-clad guardsmen had been long replaced by uniformed revolutionaries, the weight of history still lay heavy here at the heart of Lyong.

At the heart of the palace, an elderly man knelt before an alcove shrine, marking a strip of purple silk with measured strokes of gold-flecked paint. Once, in his youth, he would have laughed aloud at this act of backwardness, a superstitious trapping of the feudal past, but now the habit was treated with a reverence learned in childhood decades ago.

His prayer strip finished, Spyrti-no-shiwen-daisu cast it into the brazier lit before him, watching the thin curl of smoke as it rose to the ceiling, carrying its message on to Heaven. Somewhere, he knew, his ancestors grew impatient as they awaited his ascension into the Celestial ministries, but an apology would have to suffice for now. His vision had forged a new future for the Land-United-under-Heaven, had fulfilled his duty to his most honoured of ancestors, but his dreams were greater than even those of Lyong-ti himself. He would not rest until he changed the world.

While apparently unconcerned, with major media outlets talking of on-going space launches with the Commonwealth's Buran vehicles and the increasing coverage and success of the very Soviet secret (so secret that it has no name but features -with footage of launches and interviews with involved scientists- in daily news media) of an Indian GPS network, consuls are without ceremony visiting Sujava and Vietnam in large numbers.

In Sithin consuls talk on Strainist-Soviet co-operation in orbit, waving model rockets and wearing T-shirts that read, "I'm a Buran Guy/Girl" peering at every opportunity at the latest electronic gizzmo in the shiny sky-high cities that simply don't exist in the Commonwealth. At the same time, those in Sujava -in discussions to which they are always keen to drag a near-by Hindustani diplomat, if such can be found- declare that the Soviets should very much like to place in Sujava the army of Dejotarus.

One consul -it is entirely possible to meet with the Soviets ten times in one day, on the same issue, without ever seeing the same consul twice, so a practice of learning difficult Indo-Celtic names may be worse than useless- is the first to lay-out the basic Soviet plan.

"We wish" he said, sounding like an Englishman trying to make fun of a Welshman's accent only to be asked, 'excuse me, are you by any chance Hindustani?', "to prepare for a liberation struggle in the Philippines by force, co-operation, and deception. Soviet ships already are at anchor in Vietnam, and more arrive each week, and it is from there that we launch reconnaissance flights, and there that we muster troops in moderate strength.

"We have every intention of appearing prepared for an assault on Palawan or on the Luzon plains north of Manila, where NPA strength is high. The first would be an obvious way to force a decisive showdown and break the French in Asia entirely, while the latter option allows for the encirclement of the Philippines capital, given that much NPA strength also lies in the southeast of Luzon.

"In truth, we would rather start at Davao City, on Mindanao. There the strong NPA gets more trouble from half a dozen Islamists than from the imperialists and their lapdogs.

"If at all possible, the Soviet Commune should like to establish temporary facilities in Sujava, ostensibly gathering supplies and forces en route to Vietnam, indeed some would continue on to the SRV. We would like to discuss with Hanoi the possibility of enabling Strainist and Hindustani warships to use Vietnamese facilities -supplied by the Soviets- to help in police missions against shipping used to supply Franco-Roycelandian occupation forces.

"We intend, soon enough, to co-ordinate a PLS-aided NPA operation in strength across Davao to cripple local military forces, and to launch ships and aircraft from Java for a full-scale invasion of Mindanao. Concurrent NPA operations on Luzon and a sortie from Vietnam into the South China Sea may concurrently be made in co-operation with Spyrian and Chinese forces, if they be prepared to join us."

(Urgh, sorry for how messy that is, I'm on my way out before it starts hammering down, again. It was all better in my head!)

OOC: Am swamped with work at the moment, so can't do that long IC post I've promised.

Lately, Chinese forces have been taking up positions on the Russian border near Siberia.

Two carrier battlegroups have arrived in Taiwan.

Beijing tells France and Roycelandia that they will make an enemy of China if they do not withdraw from the Phillipines in short order, and a blockade of the Phillipines, Goa, and various French colonies in the Pacific has been threatened

(Aw, man, we're going to end up at war with Roycelandia, again, aren't we? Quick, who's got the monitor's keys?! Did somebody lock them inside, again?

Loosely related note: I think we can consider the West African Union a failure, no? It didn't do a single thing, so far as I can remember, so I don't think it's justified in staying different from RL like Kanendru/Nepal did after that player left. I say this even though it'd help the UAR's pan-Africanist cause for West Africa to be strong and united.)

The Roycelandian Government has expressed regret that they cannot be more co-operative on the "South-East Asian Issue", but points out that as the Philippines are a Roycelandian Commonwealth (NOT a Roycelandian Colony), it would not be appropriate for Roycelandia to "withdraw" from the Philippines any more than it would be appropriate for China to "withdraw" from Tibet, Hong Kong, or Macau.

However, in the interests of NOT being single-handedly responsible for starting World War III, His Majesty has agreed to limit the number of Roycelandian troops in the Philippines, as well as a series of Trade Concessions with China.

OOC: I have to agree with Lusaka on the WAU- whilst it would be helpful if there was a (vaguely) unified entity there, the reality is the player basically didn't do anything with it then vanished.

For what it's worth though, most of what would make up the WAU falls into the French sphere of influence, as opposed to the Roycelandian one... ;)

Out of the blue so far as the rest of the world is concerned -if not exactly the Chinese or Soviets themselves- Portmeirion responds to Roycelandia's, "ridiculous defence of its precarious position in the Philippines" by stating that, "...this is Asia, and Asia recognises Tibet -the sovereignty of Chinese rule in Macau and Hong Kong being beyond question- as part of China, as has generally been the case in vasselage or direct administration for centuries save for the interruption of war and imperialism much as brought again today from outside Asia, and, besides, Chinese territorial integrity is not at issue in the Philippines."

All the while, Soviet shipping continues on to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, stockpiling supplies in port, dispatching advisors and professionals to Laos, and delivering aid to Khmer Rouge guerrillas in northern Cambodia, or Kampuchea as the Commonwealth now calls it.

But it is in India that the more dramatic happenings are under way.

Karnataka

The Commonwealth Guard Expert Corps may be just three hundred thousand strong -perhaps not even half the size one would expect were this peacetime Europe, let alone troubled Asia- but the Auxiliary force enrolled -as its proponents were fond of saying- more people than lived in Russia. Though the Commonwealth Guard's bulk was not up to any over-seas deployment and good generally for, well, guarding the Commonwealth, there was one target in range, and the residents there of well knew so.

"Look round, the Frenchman loves its blaze" a familiar tune carried from Kolkata, Galle, Raipur, and from Pondicherry, out of which came ex-patriated Frenchmen and women volunteers, "The sturdy German chants its praise, In Moscow's vaults its hymns are sung, Chicago swells the surging throng"

Goa's border with the Commonwealth had been picketed for months by thousands of locals who pitched tents and erected prefabricated structures, threw stones and slogans, and went home to vote on resultions against the Holy League and the Roycelandian Empire. Now a citzens army was marching, in Karnataka its columns converged from north, east, and south to move on Goa, which would be well advised if it could to raise anchor and put out to sea in short order.

"It waved above our infant might, When all ahead seemed dark as night, It witnessed many a deed and vow, We must not change its colour now!"

Tamil Nadu's string instruments and Geletia's giant carnyx warhorns joined the din of an estimated quarter million half-drunk singers (twenty or thirty amongst whom were, being more than half drunk, singing instead the Internationale) and the fall of half a million feet on the dusty approaches to Goa as the spontaneous (well, Soviet intranet-enabled) activation of the Commonwealth Guard Auxiliary crossed a wide-gauge railway line that represented the last major landmark before the end of Commonwealth and the start of Empire.

"With heads uncovered swear we all, To bear it onward till we fall, Come dungeons dark or gallows grim, This song shall be our parting hymn!"

The disorderly vanguard soon faced borderguards who no doubt were alerted to something unusual by the earlier departure of the residents of the shanty town erected in shouting distance by the now vanished protestors. A wide and wobbling front rank began to draw-up, thousands of persons wide, mostly comprised of young men but notable for having at least so many Bengali and Tamil faces as Geletian, which was not a usual sight for opponents of Commonwealth Guard Experts to behold.

The number of bladed weapons from which the sun bounced back against the Roycelandians might put one or two in mind of their national cinema's colonial epics. But though the Auxiliaries had not more than a few of the new Ishapore-INSAS weapons (and stamped rather than milled examples at that) they had plenty of AKM and Lee-Enfield rifles to go around, not to mention petrol bombs, bows, slings, grenades, RPGs, Vickers-Berthier and Mark 1 machineguns, Tokalert pistols, and Sterling submachine-guns. Horses could be seen, and a few Landrovers and agricultural or industrial vehicles were on hand, but not very far away -though yet invisible- trucks towing 100mm guns and 122mm rocket-launchers, 30mm AAA pieces, MT-1 Gainda and MT-2 Cobra battle tanks, and CICV-2 and 3 armoured vehicles moved with difficulty under command of inexperienced or out-of-practice crews.

The first thousands assembled seemed almost to be out of ideas or deflated once their march was over and they actually faced Goa. There was a delay, nothing happened, though more people arrived to join in the standing about. Some of the protestors had run home only to return with wootz sabres or firearms.

But, presently, a few comrades who had been talking amongst themselves suddenly reached agreement, and one of their number, a small Indian man in loose white trousers and vest, was hoisted up on to a horse of impressive breeding. He rode forward most of the way to the border before dismounting and leaving his horse to drink at a small pool of water. The figure ran forward, apparently unarmed, head down at full sprint until a short distance from Roycelandian guards, where upon he straightened up and slowed to a very springy jog.

Backed by thousands of his comrades a couple of hundred yards away, the young man stopped dead a few inches short of a uniformed Roik on the border. He stared for a moment, and then in a swift movement pinned something to the guard's helmet, patted said headpiece twice, and turned to sprint back for the horse.

The Roycelandian was left with a large envelope pinned loosely to him. On it read the word Condemned, and folded inside was a replica Roycelandian flag similar to any that could be seen over Goa.

The youngster was making to ride back and join his comrades, who had started up once more:

"Then raise the scarlet standard high, Within its shade we'll live and die, Though cowards flinch and traitors sneer, We'll keep the red flag flying here!"

OOC: It's 3am in the morning here (don't ask why I'm still up!), but I should mention that Goa is the home of the Roycelandian Indian Fleet, as well as the South-East Asian HQ for the Imperial Air Force and the Colonial Guard.

In short, if the Igovians attack, they'll pay dearly for every millimetre- and you can bet the Roycelandians will be breaking out the Napalm, the air support, and generally machine-gunning anyone silly enough to try and get through the border without permission.

Otherwise, the border guards are being surprisingly pleasant about the whole thing...

OOC: Eh, it doesn't much matter: the Roycelandians can surrender unconditionally before the first shot is fired, or every last one of them can lose his/her head before nightfall. We'll see! [Too drunk to do anything about it, now. Can't believe I wasted pennies voting on the Eurovision semi-finals if they're just going to let that Irish nonsense through instead. Bah!]

(OCC: Quite right, Lusaka. Thanks for taking me to task on that bit.)

IC:

Belitung

Perhaps to Admiral Wahidin's surprise, the Union captain isn't nearly as modest in his strategic goals as the size of his squadron would suggest. In fact, he begins to outline one of Mumbai's naval plans, aimed precisely at flattening Palawan and taking-out a good portion of the French navy. But first things first, he suggests. The approaches to Palawan will need to be closed before any major operations get underway, he says, and it might not be a bad idea to put a few holes in a French warship to show that we mean business.

Bedgellens encountered in Sujava are, perhaps surprisingly, given entheusiastic support by Unioners. "Liberation struggle in the Philippines, you say? Well, we've got just the thing for you!" one diplomat says, referring to still highly secretive Plan 22. Even more surprisingly, where Mumbai was once reluctant even to contribute outdated arms, it seems more than ready to participate in a full-fledged campaign.

With NATO now more or less out of the picture, and Britain dead-set against the French and to a lesser degree Roycelandia, the diplomatic consequences that might have made a New Caledonia-esque operation risky earlier no longer exist. Samara, and indeed most Union commanders, feel like the time is right to push the French, and if necessary their Roycelandian allies, out of Asia altogether.

Mumbai

Parliament is, of course, delighted by the reception afforded to Abelaziz's speech, even if it doesn't discuss many specific points. Subaryman Bose, a Parliamentarian from southern Madhya Pradesh, stands up to deliver Parliament's next speech on the state of affairs in Asia.

"We have never before been offered such a favorable set of conditions with regards to the removal of the Imperialist powers from Asia. France has built herself a formidable redoubt on Palawan, a major obstacle to be sure, but she has built it at the very doorstep of unfriendly powers. With Strainist naval forces based to the north and south of Fort St. Martin, and Bedgellen hulls a stone's throw away in Vietnam, keeping the French garrison supplied with ordnance and other specialist equipment, not to mention fuel, will necessarily present a problem. Should China decide to assert itself, the fate of Palawan's French garrison is decided.

"We cannot allow ourselves to fall into complacency, though. As we've seen in New Caledonia, the French military is a fanatical enemy, able to make up for a deficiency in numbers, firepower, and quite often skilled leadership with single-minded commitment at all levels in the chain of command. We can safely assume that the French have stockpiled more than enough ordnance, fuel, and food for a long seige at their Fort. This, coupled with their local air superiority, makes an assault risky at the present time. But what of the larger picture? France has precious few secure sources of oil, and while the Elians are hardly in our pocket, they aren't about to give Versailles a break either. Moreover, with a Whig Britain across the channel, committed to rearmament, how much of their vaunted navy can they dispatch on lengthy voyages to bring men and material to outposts halfway around the world? We can assume that the Suez Canal is shut to them, as is the passage around the Cape of Good Hope, and as is the Tartar Strait. That leaves only the long route around Cape Horn. The logistical advantage, at this stage, is with the Progressive nations.

"But success in the long run requires more than the usual contribution from our Union. We can no longer sit idly by while European Feudalists stock up on advanced fighter jets and modern warships. I commend this Parliament for its decision to expand our Indian Navy through the purchase of no fewer than eight Type 42 destroyers, four Type 22 frigates, and another Invincible class aircraft carrier, and we must continue to foster our long and prosperous relationship with the United Kingdom while at the same time developing our own talents. It remains, though, that our defense forces are outnumbered in terms of high-quality equipment and hampered by a lack of strategic mobility as clear as day. If we want to avoid our present mobility dilemma in the future, we must take decisive and immediate steps to remedy the IN's lack of Landing Platform Docks and other vital amphibious warfare assets. We must, at the same time, continue to make progress against the arms trade and the trade in narcotics. Through industrialization and a program of nationwide infrastructure improvement, we can finally win the battle against unemployment. Success in the international realm is tied to success in the domestic realm, and we cannot afford to slacken our performance in either arena.

"On the subject of Roycelandia...of all the Imperial powers, I must concede that Roycelandia is among the least disagreeable, better than Versailles by no small degree. But Roycelandia has thrown in its lot with France and is now a party to French plans for the destruction of our natural rights. Perhaps Royce himself does not intend to oppress, and does not intend to steal, but when the Frenchmen that he invited to the Philippines mount attacks on civilian shipping, and threaten our soveriegnty, Roycelandia is, for practical purposes, no different from France. I therefore propose the following ultimatum: Unless Emperor Royce secures the removal of all French military personnel from the Philippines within the week, the Indian National Union will have no choice but to consider Goa Bedgellen territory and assist in returning it to its rightful owner. Unioners do not take kindly to the kind of criminality practiced by Monarchist France on the high seas, and we are not at all happy about Port Royal's failure to restrain its ally and keep it from dishonourable acts.

"These are interesting times we live in, and it is up to us to make the best of it. Autocratic imperialism must be done away with for keeps."

INU-Goa Border

In sharp contrast to the casual attitude taken towards Roycelandia's only possession on the Indian Subcontinent only a few months earlier, for the first time in over two decades regular INA formations can be seen manning hastily-prepared defensive positions on their side of the border. Cross-border roads, usually on the busy side, are closed and blocked-off with concrete slabs, and forward guard houses are abandoned for slit trenches and bunkers some distance away. And instead of the harmless-looking Do-28, armed Gazelles fly patrol, occasionally reinforced by a flight of FT(J).10 trainers from nearby Pune.

The commander of the INA regiment dispatched to watch the border, now wholly convinced that a Bedgellen invasion is not only probable but imminent, arrives at one of the border crossings with a request to speak to a Roycelandian officer. While Colonel Rajpuna might consider the Roycelandian troops probable enemies, he is not about to let antimosity get the better of him.

Roycelandian Goa

Colonel Underwood was a worried man, although he was doing an excellent job of not showing it.

He had already authorised the civillian evacuation of Goa, but had also activated the Stalingrad Protocol, to the effect that the remaining population of Goa have been armed with rifles and ammunition.

So when Col. Rajpuna arrives at the border, he is greeted friendily by the Roycelandians, and Colonel Underwood is summoned forthwith.

The view behind the border is of tank-traps, roadblocks, bunkers, sandbags, anti-tank guns, machine guns, and there are Ack-Ack guns and SAM missiles on the roofs of nearly ever major building.

"Colonel Underwood, at your service" greets the Colonel as he climbs out of his Land Rover...

Meanwhile, His Majesty has publicly spoken out against "Alleged Acts of French Piracy", to the effect that Roycelandia did not ask France to help stabilise the Philippines so they could fly the Jolly Roger outside the 12-mile limit, so to speak, and that he would be meeting with Louis-Auguste to request- nay, demand that the French, having bought stability to the area, withdraw and allow the Filipinos to take over on Palawan and elsewhere.

Pressured by the need to harmonize the Holy League ((major developments there you all should look at on the Congress thread)) and plans in Africa, HMCM Louis-Auguste talked with Royce on the phone and agreed to his plan, France would turn Ft. St. Paul over to the Commonwealth of the Philippines, and remove its holdings simply back to New Caledonia as they were before.

Of course, there remained the massive expenditure that the French engaged in, and for their withdrawel at Royce's request, they will be expecting cash and/or territorial compensation...

...something in Africa would be nice!

OOC: I know I'm joining a little late, but since Australasia has its capitol in Australia, only a short distance to the south of the Phillipines, I think it makes sense to participate.

IC:
Prime Minister Sir Andrew Strathairn was inside a room he rarely visited. It was a bunker, deep in the ground below the governmental complex in Raleigh, Australasia. A large digital map of the south pacific covered a wall, depicting the force dispositions of Roycelandia, France, the INU and others. Two small Australasian battlegroups, hovering around in international waters, were depicted as green ships.

Grouped around the display were, in addition to the Prime Minister, Lord Creighton, the War Minister, Admiral Daniel Argyle and Vice-Admiral Hugo Damascus.

"Mister Prime Minister," Lord Creighton began. "I asked you here to inform you of certain important developments in the Philippines Situation. As of a few days ago, Louis-Auguste has moved a portion of his forces out of the area. We don't know exactly how much, but we know that the bulk of his fleet, and an undetermined amount of troop strength has been redistributed." Admiral Argyle jumped in, indicating a group of ships leaving the map area.

"This is the naval force that left the Philippines. It contains, as far as we are able to determine, the aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, and the battleships Roi de Soleil and Louis IX were among that group. Unfortunately, the two dreadnaughts remain on station, and air cover is provided by land-based squadrons off Palawan." He indicated a long, thin island, one end of which was dominated by the French naval base.

"That's all very well and good," replied the Prime Minister. "But I fail to see how this makes the French forces more vulnurable. You said, just a second ago, that the French fleet is still stronger than anything we can field on short notice, and its air forces is sufficient to not require the presence of a carrier." Argyle nodded, before gesturing to Vice-Admiral Damascus.

"That's why I'm here, Mr. Prime Minister," the junior admiral said. "I am, as you know, the commander of the Atlantic Fleet. The flotilla is sailing around Cape Horn, which falls in my jurisdiction. I have a carrier group at sea now, and if war is declared, they'll be able to intercept the French flotilla. In addition, fleet will probably be in a position to mess around with French shipping in the event of a war."

"Of course," Strathairn replied, a bit overwhelmed by the three military men. "If that's all I need to confer with the education minister in," he checked his watch. "Twelve minutes. Thank you, gentlemen."

International Waters, Molucca Sea
The improbably named Rear Admiral Alexander Alexander of the Blue paced the flag-bridge of the Pellew class Fast Attack Cruiser Indefatigable. The atmosphere was rather tense, and the ship was cleared for action. From the wraparound windows of the bridge, he could see a pair of Hermiod Missile Destroyers, beating their way through the unusually heavy seas. In his head, Alexandar imagined the rest of his command, a pair of attack submarines, another destroyer and three corvettes arrayed in line ahead formation behind the Indefatigable. It was a small force, but its purpose was to patrol, not engage. Brute force wasn't needed, speed and responsiveness were.

The last few days had seen an alarming flurry of activity from the French base on Palawan Island. Aircraft and ships had departed over the course of a few days. The groups had never been terribly large, but Alexandar knew a piecemeal withdrawl when he saw one. Unsure of the situation, he'd set condition one throughout the fleet and dispatched the cutters on close-scouting missions. It remained to be seen what they'd dredge up.

OOC2: sorry for the horribly written post, it's been done over the space of several hours, so it's pretty choppy.

Mindanao

The New People's Army was joined on the southern island by elements of the Philippines Liberation Soviet that previously had been more active elsewhere. Davao City, long-time CPP stronghold, now saw the NPA out in strength on the streets. Criminals and corrupt officials and police, and those sympathetic to the collaborating authorities were arrested and put before public courts. Many were executed as the communists dared the authorities to meet them, making ready with anti-tank mines and rockets, machineguns, and man-portable surface-to-air missiles.

Many fighters carried AK-like rifles with heavy receivers and furniture visibly similar to that of the weapons used by United Elias, and the communists flew not only red flags and revolutionary slogans but also more general nationalist pro-independence banners as they also sought-out members of extreme Islamist groups.

Sujava and Vietnam

Rumours of another French retreat were as yet insufficient to prevent the arrival of more Soviet forces, bringing war materials to Sujavan ports before ships and aircraft continued on to Vietnam, where ideological differences were less notable than between the Soviets and Strainists in Sujava.

Commonwealthers meanwhile enjoy their tradition of story-telling and big-talk, reminding Indian neighbours that French troops in fact out-numbered Soviet Marines at New Caledonia by five to one, and that casualty rates were to a similar ratio before the withdrawal that was the last act of the Second Commonwealth attempting to avert world war. This time, the force ratios will be reversed, say the Soviets, who have no intention of seeing a decline in their kills to losses ratios.

Frigates like Petrichenko, Dacoit, Delescluze, Onion, Daffodil, and Blanqui, light carriers Concorde, Kronstadt and Degeyter, and various submarines and support vessels had fought the French and Roycelandians before, and included amongst them crewmembers who took part in the sinking of Roycelandian dreadnought Elliot Carver.

Karnataka

Though a huge part of the Commonwealth's regular military was strung-out between home, Sujava, and Vietnam, the Auxiliaries -lacking much of the training and some of the experience of the Expert Corps, but little of the armament and none of the revolutionary zeal- had Goa's defenders similarly outnumbered. A militia -partly mechanised- equivalent to 20% of the population of Goa was mustering across the border, and ships or aircraft come to start the evacuation were shadowed by Soviet submarines, corvettes, and fighters.

After some hours following the vanguard's arrival, Soviet consuls began to talk with the Roycelandians, emphasising that the militia's rising was a public affair, not one voted upon by the Soviet Commune (military command). However, senates across the Commonwealth were calling referenda of support for the action, and it was becoming clear that the mobilisation had democratic authority.

It was suggested to the Roycelandians that the Auxiliaries were perfectly likely to attack after a haistily called vote amongst themselves, and that the taking of heads for glory was likely to lead to the complete slaughter of the garrison and possibly of administrators and citizens remaining in the city. This sort of thing would typically not run out of control were the operation carried out by the Expert Corps, but nothing certain could be said for quarter of a million irregulars.

Soviet Consuls swore that Expert Corps fleet and air assets would not interrupt evacuation of the city, but that Auxiliary vessels and aircraft may be expected to intercept attempts to bring more soldiers or arms into the city- to prevent outright attacks, the Commonwealth Oceanic Guard would begin to board and search vessels bound for Goa to confirm that they were empty going in (to pick-up citizens). It was advised that aircraft should probably not be used inbound, since they could not be searched in the air and may be attacked by Air Guard Auxiliary Viggen and Golkonda jets if militia fighters begin to suspect the import of further defence equipment or personnel.

A note to Aznar, written by ambassador to the Phillipines Wing Lee (now recalled to China), probably not endorsed officially

For many years the people of the Phillipines have fought a brave war to maintain their culture, their self-rule, and their sovereignty, firstly against the Japanese, and now against the empires of Roycelandia and France. But there are some parasites from within, those who seek their own monetary gain at the expense of their people. Those who co-operate with foreign invaders, ignoring the blood spilt of their children, their constituents, their brothers, their sisters, their parents, their friends.

You have dealt the Phillipino the worst wound possible. You have betrayed your own kind for loose change handed to you by the French and the Roycelandians, while they milk your nation's blood for profits and cheap labour.

Enjoy your money while you can Aznar, may it rot in hell with you. Count your days Aznar, because you will die a gruesome death by the end of the year. Your death will be sudden, unexpected, and public. Nations will cheer at your death, and your flesh will be eaten by wild cats and dogs.

Wing Lee
Chinese ambassador to the Phillipines

(A note: Wing Lee has officially been recalled to China, but in fact remains secretly in the Phillipines working with paramililitary groups and pro-democracy activists)

Goa

The Roycelandians are still surprisingly courteous to the Soviet consuls, and say that whilst they understand the mob on the other side of the border are not acting in an official capacity, it must be remembered that Goa is sovereign Roycelandian territory, and that without saying anything that wasn't already public knowledge, the eventuality that an angry mob with pitchforks and burning torches might try and storm the ramparts had been foreseen by the Imperial Defence Bureau.

Roycelandian Merchant Marine vessels were waving to the Soviets who were "following" them, especially once they got within the 12-mile limit and could be escorted by the Roycelandian Indian Fleet...

OOC: Hopefully it won't come to shooting, but it's only fair to mention that the defences at Goa are built around exactly this sort of scenario, and the entire city is surrounded by a very big medieval-style wall, complete with watchtowers and all sorts of other stuff- not to mention something in the region of 40,000 armed forces personnel (not all of them combat troops, obviously!)

News cartels would deliver a monumental speech given by M. le Comte de Vergennes, Foreign Minister to Louis-Auguste, at the Holy League Congress in response to the detiorating situation in the Eastern half of the world. The speech came after several monumental sub-movements in the Holy League, which is now united and strong.

“Friends in Christ, My Lieges. Turning now from prognostications about our glorious future, we necessarily must focus on our current duties.”

“Despite a full French withdrawal from the Philippines, the Progressives still clamor for war, much as rabid dogs cannot help but pestiferously attack. Now even Chinamen, perhaps corrupted by their proximity to the sub-continent, join this list. I am therefore forced to disagree with my honorable colleague the Tsar’s Prime Minister: no peace will ever be possible while such perversion, such evil, crawls upon the firmament and slithers across the deep.”

“Even now, this very minute, Chinese troops are poised to invade Siberia!”

He paused for a moment, hoping now to channel the energies of the Congress much as the previous speakers had.

“They are poised to invade, c’est vrai, and what do they do? Send a pathetic message to our splendid monarch Philip VII! As if he would even deign to answer the curs!”

“Too much, I say, too much. No longer can we afford to ignore China, while she prepares vicious war against us. Now, China is a seemingly new enemy, we must have courage to accept this. But the progressives? The foul pit dwellers of the Indian Union and Beth Gellert, as well as their drooling, stupid, and weak…but pliable… Lyongese lackeys; we know them well, we know they must be defeated, and we know bullets are their cure, not diplomacy. Diplomacy, as Roycelandia has demonstrated, only whets these perverted mongrels.”

“And beware, beware I tell you all! Take heed, lest we find a Walsingtonian progressive ally amongst our very homelands! I say a resolution be past at once! Give Spain back Gibraltar, and give it back now if you are not wholly craven and prepared for war, for if it is not given we shall take it at our leisure. And after sending the Union Jack to Mumbai, before we brake that city in half too, how high will the Spanish Bourbon colors subset by the Holy League pennant look flying from The Rock? If Godfrey III is free from his parliamentary prison and his gruel of democratic prattle then let him prostrate himself before us forthwith! Or will we come to his wretched little palace, drag him out, and beat him with oaken clubs? Or go further, and take Whitehall to make it a Cathedral and so cleanse it from the foul presence that inhabits it now?”

His voice now reached a fever pitch, and he slammed his fists in righteous indignation. The cameras would not show Louis-Auguste nodding emphatically in agreement.

“Damn them, damn them all to hell, the foul lot of our enemies! We know you now, we know your insidious plans for our world, but you do not know us! You do not find us unawares. If war is what they want, we will give them war! War as has never been seen before. Simultaneously we will fight them from Siberia to Bristol, the whole foul lot of them. Using every weapon we possess, we will burn the earth itself, we will tear down mountains if we must, for nothing shall stop our hunt if the enemies of Christ continue on unabated!”

“To China, back down now, remove your troops from the Siberian border, or be vanquished by our wrath. Do not make us put your sad foolish country through the humiliation of your partition again. Must needs we place placards on the Tsars border, as we did in our cheap and lucrative Shanghai concessions: No dogs, no Chinese? Pray no, go back to your Middle Realm, or find yourself in one considerably lower. To the “Progressive Bloc”, if they can still hear human voice and not animal call then they know if one finger, one eyebrow, is raised against Depkazia then we will make the entire world suffer for your mistake, and deploy to all corners of the globe to fight you, never ceasing until mighty vengeful angels and finally Christ himself joins us, and forces you directly into Hell. Nations who have only heard of you we will take and purge of your filth, and then keep for our own! If you invade the Philippines you prove your own hypocrisy, using only the limp excuse of a minor French presence to broker your Marxist warmongering, and the devout Catholic Filipino population will turn your round so fast your hydra like form will crack apart. If you invade Goa, I say, beware. By necessity, you will force our brother monarch Royce I, who has been comfortable, for some reason, to not stand among us, squarely into our ranks; and so loose what little sympathy and understanding the western world has for you.”

“To Britain, you who are so close to us, you will cease at once your sad threats. Cease your military buildup or immediately proclaim yourself an open foe: if neither happens rest assured you will suffer a fate worse than the latter. You most likely for your rabble rousing have already forfeit Gibraltar. If you continue, you forfeit Ireland, which you illegally rape and occupy as it is, exterminating devout Catholics while propping up a viper like Protestant form of totalitarianism. Do you think we will wait in this matter either? You are very close, aren’t you? So close, so close. Do you not feel us breathing on your neck, making your hairs stand on end, ready to snatch you up and subject you to terror unabashed? If so then you are wise beyond what I believed, and I shall be glad for it. If not, then alas for what little of worth your island possesses, for like Judgment Day the Holy League shall come upon you united as a thief in the night, and lo you will be powerless to resist!”

“And on a different note, I wish to speak to Emperor Royce I. Great Emperor, will you not come stand with those who will defend you? You've shown your mettle, and have detonated the largest weapon ever crafted! As things stand, unless we are threatened ourselves, we cannot but extend limited support of your enterprises. Please beware, O Sovereign Royce, the net that the Progressives weave about you, and see their fangs dripping with venom. Stand with us, and be counted among God’s elect!”

”Action is needed, at once. My Lords, Kings from West to uttermost East, we must now gird ourselves for war, don the armor of God, and like St. George slay the dragon!”

The land seemed to tense itself; the very soil gathered in bunches, much like the storm clouds which hung tensely above the islands but refused to release their load. The people went about their daily business with an invisible burden on their backs: the unbearable weight we call fear. They had somehow yet again become pawns in the hands of much greater forces, tools in the hands of far away giants. Still, the Filipinos were a hardy, determined people, and rather than cower in the face of the tremendous danger they faced, they instead pondered their consciences and took up arms, siding with whatever force that their heart and mind commanded them to join. Surprisingly, this force was increasingly that of the Imperialists.

Aznar had managed to wash off the stain of corruption due to the strange nature of Filipino politics. Before the infamous Night of the Sword, he had widely been viewed as corrupt, because, well, he was. Most Filipino politicians had their hand in one cookie jar or another. The hand over to the Roycelandians hadn't come as a surprise, and hadn't been viewed as out of character for Aznar, so his "corruption rating" had not significantly changed in the eyes of the people. The months following his seizing of the reigns of government had then allowed the corrupt label upon him to slowly slide off, as a dramatic and marked change had seemingly occured not only within the nation, but the man himself. No longer a jovial, cigar smoking cardboard cut out of a man, his intense gaze and fervently renewed Catholicism convinced the people of the Philippines that his brutal and vigorous anti-corruption campaign was not just the dying gasp of a man at the end of his rope, but a genuine change within the heart of the man who now ruled the Filipinos as a de facto dictator. More and more, the NPA would launch raids upon corrupt city officials only to find their bodies already hung on lamp poles with the phrase "With Blackjack, and Hookers!" taped to them. The government engaged with what was almost a race with the Leftists, as it purged itself more fiercely than a bulimic would.

(More soon, but I'm just...dyin' here, and I can't write much--blargh...)

Prime Minister Strathairn had been up with a legal pad and coffee for most of the night, bouncing speech ideas off of his wife, his aides and his betta fish. His wife, Mary, counseled caution. The French were too great an enemy, she said. Better to leave it to the Bedgellians with their knack for lost causes. The aides nodded sagely in response to whatever he wrote, and said suprememly unhelpful things. In the end it was the betta, Wellington, who provided the most meaningful advice, when it puffed up its gills and started snapping at Strathairn's finger through the glass. An hour later, looking tired in the morning sunlight, he addressed a television camera from every major news organization in the world on the front lawn.

"Several hours ago," he began calmly, "King Louis-Auguste of France addressed the Holy League, and the world, from Rome. He called the Holy League to war, seemingly with the entire world. He damned us all to Hell. He made direct threat to the nations of Walmington, of China and the Indian National Union. He called for a grand crusade, to cleanse the world of those who believe, as we do, that some things are more important than God.

"But this is not the first that we have seen of Louis-Auguste's ambitions. Several months ago, the French government stormed the Filipino island of Palawan, at the time sovereign territory. He did so uninvited by the Filipino government or the occupying Roycelandian forces. The Sun King then proceeded to put in place the largest garrison of Holy League forces, bar none, in this part of the world. He re-named the island of Palawan after his queen, and began flying constant air patrols over territory that rightfully belonged to the Filipino people.

"For some time, the people and government of Australasia have been content to allow this to occur, not least because the forces arrayed on Palawan were equal to the entire Home Fleet. But in Louis-Auguste's own words, it is now too much. He has declared holy war upon the free world, he has called for nothing less than the extermination of all governments who refuse to bow to Christian fascism." The prime minister's tone hardened.

"And so we say to you, Louis-Auguste of France, Tetrarch of the Holy League, cease your warmongering. Cease your threats. Cease your base and immature insults of the free nations of this world. You claim that you serve God, but I say that you serve none but yourself. Neither the Christian God nor Jesus Christ, in his love, would desire the coming slaughter. Christ preached love, acceptance and forgiveness. You preach nothing but destruction and decay.

"If it is destruction that you wish, then destruction you may have. Australasian forces may not be numerous, but we are determined. We stand for everything that you do not. We stand for citizen rule, for freedom to worship whomever you choose. We stand for the rights of the human being, rather than the right of the tryannical despot. And so we say to you, King Louis-Auguste of France, no further. Wherever you go you will find us, ready to defend the world as best we can. We do not wish war upon you, but if you force our hand we will fight for our freedom, and for the freedom of Humanity. Your forces of oppression and subjugation are never safe, so long as you continue to advocate the creation of a world empire.

(OOC: if WWII didn't happen in the AMW, discount this part, it's not important)

"We are not a great empire," Strathairn said, softening his voice again. "We do not have the ships, the manpower or the money to equal France. But all of you remember, in 1939, when another nation, with all of Europe arrayed against it, fought a losing battle simply because it was the right thing to do. One little island state, a faded Empire, who drew the line at the cliffs of Dover and held back the fascist tide.

"The spirit of Britannia lives on in us, their distant sons and daughters. We do not wish a war. But if war is unavoidable, then, in the spirit of Britain before us we will stand.

(You can stop discounting now)

"To the other nations of the world, we ask you to stand with us. We ask that you do not content yourselves with the defense of South East Asia, but with the defense of the world. We ask that you do not allow King Louis-Auguste to bathe the world in fire for a third time. We ask that you do not allow the light of democracy, of reason and of freedom to be buried forever under the weight of a pseudo-Christian Fascist empire.

"And so, Louise-Auguste, the choice is in the end, yours. Cast this world into the fire, or be humbled before the Lord, and befor the world, and admit that you have enough."

OOC- Now, first of all, oh, I cut out that part...d'oh. That wasnt Louis-Auguste speaking, but the French Foreign Minister. Important distinction.
Second of all the French are withdrawing in toto from Palawan, in toto people! Please do not just gloss that over.

Also, no war is being prepared against the whole world. China has an army poised to invade Siberia, the PRogressives are poised to take the Pacific en masse, and the British are trying to have an arms race. Do not say the Holy League started this, or if it did, y'all were willing participants. I.E. this declaration certainly dd not come from thin air.

Au over and out.

RBC 5, Quezon City

"... And this just in, the French Withdrawl from Palawan hasn't come a moment too soon, as the National Health Authority has closed off the former base, citing potential biohazard concerns. The former base and it's surrounds have been declared a No Go area, and a containment and deconstruction team has been sent in to stabilise the area and ensure no environmental damage is caused. And in other news, Wiggles was seen at a Quezon City nightspot last night with an unknown woman, sparking interest that the Emperor's aide may actually not be as boring as previously thought..."

The Chinese media is set alight by de Vergennes fiery speech, and almost immediately, Zhang counters with one of his own, to China and the world.

"Yesterday, the French government called for war.

They called for a worldwide crusade from Bristol to Siberia. The annexation of the British territory of Gibraltar. The continued occupation of Goa, Beth Gellert territory. The Holy League continues her threats, firstly in Europe, then Africa, and now Asia. They have even threatened us with partition.

The Republic of China will not waver. The Republic of China is not afraid, and we will stand firm as foreigners - French, Roycelandians, Spanish, gaze intently upon Asia, saliviating over the beauty of her prosperity, liberty, and freedom.

We say to little France, you grossly underestimate our resolve at your own expense. The continued foreign occupation of Goa by Roycelandia and other pacific colonies will result in the end of the Holy League's ability to maintain any seaworthy navy in Asia and Africa. Your back will be broken in the Pacific.

To the Soviets in India - We wish you luck in your efforts to correct a 400-year long occupation by imperialists, your effort to free Goa from their clutches. Your effort to bring peace and democract will be fully recognised and supported by Beijing."

Church bells rang throughout the islands, as Sunday came and all the little Filipino children dressed up in their Sunday finest, scurrying off to Church. Fervent prayers tore through the island chain, and preachers slammed pulpits with their fists as they painted horrific canvasses of fire and brimstone.

It was funny, really. The fact that the secret weapon of the Imperialists lay in these small, wooden shacks adorned with crosses provided no end to the amusement of President Aznar. But whether it was strange or not bore relevance; the fact of the matter was that it was true.

The Progressives were slowly losing ground in the hearts and minds of the Filipino people, for their one main cause of anti-corruption was being dragged out from under their feat, and the choas and uncertainty of war only pulled the Filipino deeper into the sea of Catholicism. The nation had been deemed stable enough to hold free elections once again, and the now restored Parliament reflected the reborn Christian spirit of the Philippines: a conservative coalition now held a strong majority in both Houses of the Legislature.
_______________________________________________________________

The Chinese and the Australasians were reminded that the Philippines were still a democracy, as the recently held Parliamentary elections indicated, and their rhetoric accusing Aznar of "selling out" was little more than hot air and an excuse to seize territory.

"If Mr. Lee is so eager to promote the democratic process of the Philippine Comonwealth, perhaps he should take part in elections rather than sit at home and write nasty letters..." declared the Filipino Foreign Minister.
_______________________________________________________________

Al-Kazakhstani, the unofficial leader of the loose coalition of Islamic extremists on Mindanao, responded to the NPA's attempts to woo his members with an offer of his own.

"Let us govern Mindanao, and the rest of the Philippines can be yours. Together we can crush this pathetic Imperialist puppet regime, and then we can go our seperate ways."
_____________________________________________________________

Mobilization continued at a frantic pace, as the Army, the Air Force, and the pathetic collection of gunboats some called "the Navy" continued to prepare for what seemed to be an inevitable conflict. The Army had improved dramatically ever since it had begun training with the Roycelandians, and now fully integrated Roycelandian-Filipino units rained hell upon the Leftist forces of the NPA. Neither side seemed to be able to make much progress, and bodies continued to pile up as the brutal staredown continue...

(OOC: All right. Just pretend that wherever I said 'Louis-Auguste', I mean 'French government'. The distinction is, in my opinion, a tad immaterial.)

Deputy Prime Minister Cobar Jangala issued a statement late in the afternoon, in response to that of China. He was a small man of native descent; the highest ranked native official in the Australasian government, and first aboriginal deputy prime minister. It gave him a certain amount of clout with the media, which he fully intended to capitalise on.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending," he smiled softly into the cameras. "We wish to call for calm, in response to the statement issued by the People's Republic of China earlier today. This morning, Prime Minister Strathairn stated that Australasia would fight the French, but only if they took offensive action. We do not intend to invade their sovereign territory, nor to wage war upon their people.

"The situation in the Philippines is, of necessity, heavily charged with emotion. But it must always be remembered that President Aznar, right or wrong, gave the Philippines to Roycelandia of his own free will. We may abhor his methods, but we cannot say that they were illegitimate.

"We call upon the people of China, and upon the Bedgellans, to remember this: Roycelandia, for all her imperial ambitions, did not take offensive action without the consent of President Aznar. Nor do they seek to conquer vast tracts of the planet. We call upon Emperor Royce I of Roycelandia to act with integrity and moderation in this issue, that we may avoid another world war.

"And we reiterate to France, your statements speak for themselves. I quote now directly from the speech by Minister de Vergennes:

"'No peace will ever be possible while such perversion, such evil, crawls upon the firmament and slithers across the deep.'
'We [will] break [Mumbai] in half too, how high will the Spanish Bourbon colors subset by the Holy League pennant look flying from The Rock?'
'For what little of worth your island possesses, like Judgment Day the Holy League shall come upon you united as a thief in the night, and lo you will be powerless to resist!'

"To those who claim that it is we, not you, who clamour for war, I throw your own words in your face. And so I tell you, point not the fingers of condemnation at us, but at yourselves. People of France, seek not in us the aggressors, but in your own king and his ministers.

"King Louis-Auguste does not speak to God, he twists God's words to his own ends. If God still speaks to us today, it is not through the despotic kings of the Holy League that He does so, but through those who counsel peace, love and acceptance of your fellow man.

"To the people of the Philippines, Christian and Muslim, I ask you for calm. Nothing is to be gained by outright violence but death. To the communist revolutionaries; there are better ways to achieve change than at the point of a sword. To the Muslim forces of Al-Kazakhstani, you will serve your people, the great faith of Islam, and your homeland better by agreeing to be equal parties in its future, rather than terrorists who seek to plunge it into chaos.

"Please, for the sake of our children, and our children's children, do not allow your actions to be ruled by nationalistic desires, hatred of others or fear of your fellow man. Do not seek to expel those with whom you disagree from the land, in the name of freedom. Instead, allow yourselves to be ruled by reason, by justice and by forethought. Thank you, good night."

Sithin, PRS

Many in the Strainist media consider the possibility of vacations... simply printing the speeches and tirades bursting out across the world sometimes seems the best way to present the ongoing collapse towards conflict.

Still, there is more than speeches to cover. The Philippine election recieves quite a critique... snap-held without consideration of international observers despite the climate of contention, with the Roiks and Aznar's troops shooting the 'corrupt' in the streets and many former parliamentarians still unaccounted for, and widespread NPA and Islamist activity rendering portions of the country far from 'stable' for the voting process. With Aznar shouting out about freeing the middle class from the shackles of social programs for the poor from the same podiums used by the Roiks to announce their plans for universal free education and health care, there is also some confusion as to just what the new ‘government’ really stands for, and how any voter could have been expected to figure it all out. Finally, France is accused of manipulating the faith of a devout people towards un-Christian ends, and the supposed withdrawal of French troops from Palawan is questioned as well.

Off Luzon and Mindanao

The latest submarine drops left for the NPA contains much more than the usual anti-tank weapons and FRB-stamped firearms: these are joined by crates of cameras and equipment, and several wide-eyed young Strainists glad to be breathing air without using a tube. Though they have some basic weapons training, they aren’t soldiers but media technicians, sent to assist the NPA in propaganda efforts. They are rather quick to set about teaching their hosts how to build wooden broadcast towers, and buoy antennae on candle-heated paper balloons, while preparing briefs in Tagalog and recording anything inspirational (such as agricultural assistance and the like). In hopes of avoiding scandal should their bodies be discovered, none of the technicians are Lyongean.

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2513/npanews0lr.gif

Requests are also issued to the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, for one or two of its clergy membership to make an attempt to reach Strainist fishing vessels moving in international waters off Luzon, so they might assist with a broadcast campaign delivering the proper message to those bombarded by the vitrolous perversions of the French.

Sujava

Indians in Sujava will find themselves increasingly patted on the back and wished ‘good luck in Goa,’ while officers discuss the possibility of further Southeast Asian operations with some trepidation... though it meets with nervousness at first, the violent outburst by Vergennes tips the scales and sees the SRA fall fully behind Plan 22.

Goa-Union Border

Colonel Rajpuna salutes Underwood, a very uncommon gesture for a Union officer to make, and approaches the border crossing.

"The Border Council for Goa has asked me to tell you," says Rajpuna, "that you can evacuate noncombatants across our border. I can't say that we approve of you being in Goa, colonel, but we don't want this to turn into a bloody massacre. Show some civility, you know? They're also willing to let military personnel come across, so long as they give their weapons up. If you're interested in sending people across, it is imperative that you tell us as soon as possible."

Within sight of the border fence, a gaggle of Border Councilors works on setting-up tents on a patch of cleared ground, a few more than a thousand tents in all, brought up by rail. While it is hardly enough to accomodate Goa's total population, nudging 1.5 million, it is considered ample for white Roycelandians, the likely targets of Bedgellen aggression should it be practiced towards noncombatants.

Mumbai

News of the French withdrawl comes as a major shock to many Unioners, although given the position that France's forces in the area have found themselves in, who could blame them? While support for the eviction of Versailles was almost unanimous, there is some dispute over just how to proceed. Roycelandia is almost infinitely more agreeable than France, and many Unioners want to scrap invasion plans entirely, arguing that the Philippines are now as democratic as they will ever be. Others, suspecting Holy League moves against Africa and Portugal, want to free-up as much of the INA's deployable strength as possible and don't see intervention closer to home as much of a way to accomplish anything. Still others think that something has to be done, and kicking-out the Roycelandian puppet Aznar is one of the more immediate possibilities. Eventually, a compromise is struck, where the MoD is authorized to continue military preparations as long as it keeps a deployable reserve ready in case trouble flares-up elsewhere. There is hardly widespread entheusiasm for the compromise, but it is something rather than nothing, and the majority of Unioners vote to work off it.

Criticism of the Filippino elections is, as should be expected, widespread, and many Unioners echo Spyrian and Walmingtonian points about Aznar's and Royce's ideas for the Philippines being at odds. But with Plan 22 on the verge (well, relatively) of execution, most of that is irrelevant. Franco-Spanish threats against Gibraltar are met with Union promises to come to the aid of Gibraltar, and Portugal as well, should they be attacked by the Holy League. Threats made against the Union are laughed at, Unioners pointing out that the INU by itself is has more people in it than the entire Holy League combined, and then some, and a ground army to match.

But despite all the bluster and rhetoric, Mumbai absolutely does not want a third world war. The French foreign minister's speech, which seems to suggest that a nuclear first-strike by the Holy League is not an impossibility, only serves to raise the stakes. The MoD is very much in favor of a limited conflict, not one to destroy the Holy League per se, but rather to force it to stop taking things that don't belong to it.

The response to Prime Minister Strathairn's speech is generally positive, with Unioners largely viewing it as supportive of their own majority views on world imperialism and the Holy League. Strathairn's calls for peace in the Philippines attract the support of no few Unioners as well, who renew calls for a diplomatic solution to the Philippines issue.

Sujava

Encouraged by Strainist support, Union commanders in Sujava continue to prepare for Plan 22, although by themselves they are very far from ready. No.44 squadron continues to fly Union paras and marines into Sujava, about 1,000 at a time, but with 5,000 troops already in Bengkulu with not much more than personal weapons and webbing kit, there is serious talk of stopping this and allocating more flights to equipment delivery.

Unioners also begin to discuss alternate targets, should Parliament eventually vote to cancel Plan 22 or modify its objectives. There is also talk of starting joint amphibious excersizes, perhaps on Belitung or Bangka, since the MoD's operational plan calls for Sujavan and Union troops to conduct landings together. With the French now no longer present in the region, Plan 22 looks much more likely to succeed, but ever-cautious the MoD isn't about to take chances, nor is it about to rely on brute force alone to do its bidding.

In a very surprising move, Parliament elects Davlat Wickramsinghe, the Sinhalese commander of the Union Irregular Corps' Canal Column during the Rajasthan Campaign, as the commander of Union forces in Southeast Asia. In spite of the fact that he hasn't actually commanded an amphibious operation ever, Wickramsinghe is more experienced than most and did what most consider a good job at Bikaner.

Daman

The IN's anchorage in tiny Daman, formerly a Portuguese colony, had been enjoying a slackening work schedule brought on by the movement of much of the IN to Sujava. Daman's much-needed period of respite is ended abruptly by the sight of no fewer than 13 warships approaching from the west, one of them an aircraft carrier and eight of them destroyers. They are the newest additions to the Indian Navy; one Invincible Class carrier, eight Type 42 destroyers, and four Type 22 frigates, all of them badly in need of a refit, and as they are pulled into drydock, work on them begins. Ex-HMS Ark Royal, now INS Ibrahim Haidari, will be left more or less as it is, and once RN markings are scraped off work on her will be done.

INS Jaisalmer, Zhob, Sadiqabad, Rahimyar Khan, Moro, Chagai, Balotra, and Ahmadpur East, the IN's new Type 42s, have in store for them the most lengthy round of modifications, which will see the Sea Dart system replaced by a 32-cell PAADS-2 SAM launcher and a phased-array radar installed, among other things. Once they are fit for service, the IN will have in its employ a major air defense capability.

Mindanao

"From my heart and from my hands, why don't people understand? My intention... It's my creation, is it real? It's my creation... Weird Science!"

Flying Officer Hollis was happily singing along to the MP3 player in his IAe Spitfire when the dashboard lit up, indicating a heat signature somewhere off to starboard.

The night was dark, but as he swung the Spitfire's nose towards the heading given on the instrument panel, he craned to see what it was. Campfire? Muzzle flash? No, it seemed to be some kind of balloon... holding a wire?

The turboprop fighter was configured for reconaissance and self-defence, not ground attack, and so Hollis logged the position and sent a message back to Special Operations Command.

He made another pass over the area, and then turned for home, the MP3 player randomly selecting a new song... Fatboy Slim's Weapon of Choice, as it rather appropriately turned out to be.

London has joined crticism of elections in the Philippines for reasons similar to those voiced by Spyrian media sources, with one Whig back bencher standing to speak unspecifically of, "sources" in the country suggesting that political executions were being carried out by what he called the, "collaborationist Anzar junta" and that they made the whole affair inarguably and entirely illegitimate and a gross insult to democratic ideals.

The French withdrawal is lampooned as another famous retreat, this time prior even to coming under fire of any significant sort, and commentators joke that if perhaps the Channel Islands were garrisoned, everybody in France would huddle timidly on the south coast.

A notable increase in diplomatic postings to the old ally, Portugal, has followed the latest round of threats-to-Gibraltar and the perceived increase in closeness of Spain to the Holy League, and aside from increased Home Guard recruitment campaigns in Gibraltar and parts of England, little else is actually done at this point.

The government's position on Goa is relatively unclear, but Sir Henry Wayne has offered to send one of his cruiseliners to take Goans out. It is thought that Wayne's motivation is primarily the pursuit of good publicity and hopes that his business interests in Roycelandia's emprie will not fail with the worsening of Ango-Roycelandian relations, since he is not exactly known to be supportive of Soviet aims.

(OOC: Are there, you know, other threads going right now about Africa/Portugal? I did a search of the forums, but I couldn't find any. That being said, I missed this thread for almost a month, despite looking for it in the search function.)

International waters, off the coast of Goa
The Quimble class transport Posey was a large, ugly tub of outdated systems and flaking paint. It served no purpose in the Australasian navy except the ability to move large numbers of people from one place to another at a leisurely pace. Posey was the last of her class still in active service, and her captain was an old, scruffy ex-merchant marine master with a bad eye. All in all, the ship was not, perhaps, the most reassuring evacuation vehicle ever.

Captain Erasmus P. Doyle stood hunched over the wheel of his ship, noting rust stains and broken switches. It was his last cruise before the ship was to be sold to a breaker's yard, and none too soon.

"Send a message to th' Roycelandian HQ," he grumbled at the nearest crew member. "Tell 'em that we can take 'em where they wanna go, so long as it belongs to their government. An' say that if there's anyone in Goa who wants ta get out, this's their best chance, even if they ain't whites." The midshipman on the recieving end of these orders began working on a politically acceptable translation of the order, before wiring the edited version to the Goa.

NBS Broadcast, The News, 22:00, Raleigh
...withdrawl by the French forces in the Philippines was congratulated today by Prime Minister Strathairn in a radio address. In other news, the Navy has dispatched a transport to aid in the evacuation of Roycelandian forces from the Goa. This move has sparked controversy among those who see Australasian occupation of the Goa as another force of imperialism...

-Filipino Fox News-

"...if it wasn't for my horse I would've never gone to college...and in international news, the Catholic Party/Capitalist League ruling coalition has issued a statement in response to Lyongian and British criticism of the recent Parliamentary elections. 'The rank hypocrisy of this international criticism is abhorrent. We do not have ideal conditions for holding an election, yes. But if we had not held this election than we would have been damned as undemocratic; we are damned if we do and damned if we don't. And perhaps if certain nations would stop supporting disruptive terrorist elements, and encourage those elements to take part in the democratic process, things could go more smoothly. As for international observers...perhaps Germans (OOC: They never technically left...), Roycelandians, and Russians don't count? If you wish for more confirmation, we openly invite anyone to poll our citizens. I realize that what we don't have perfection, but we're doing the best we can." In entertainment news, Roycelandian actor Rowan Atkinson was recently spotted with President Aznar's second ex-wife at a trendy cafe in Manila..."

OOC: Is it dead? *pokes thread*

Bengkulu

Much to the relief of the 1st Marine Regiment, by now fully present in Sujava, when No.44 Squadron's six Belfasts land at Bengkulu again, they bring important and much-needed equipment rather than more troops. Mahindra 407 and Mahindra 160 trucks, loaded with radio equipment, rucksacks, and wet weather clothing, roll out of the six transports and into the protection of Fort Marlborough. Davlat Wickramsinghe and his staff arrive as well, with no more equipment than the troops who preceeded them. Wickramsinghe, newly promoted to General, heads straight to meet with the local Strainist commander, leaving his deputy, Colonel Lee Sheldon, in command of the Union marines in the fort for the time being.

The new Union commander brings much more detailed versions of Plan 22, and is quite eager to get the operation going. Before anything else, though, Wickramsinghe wants to land liasons with the NPA on Mindanao, Palawan, and Luzon. One thing he does not intend to do is charge headlong into Plan 22 without detailed and up-to-date knowledge of weather conditions, the local geography, and force dispositions. Colonel Sheldon, strangely enough, is the General's first choice for liason, and he proposes that both he and a handful of Marine Pathfinders be landed on Mindanao under cover of darkness in order to link-up with the NPA. Spyrian submarines and Strainist contacts within the NPA would be extremely useful in that particular side of the operation.

Belitung

Two of the IN's Broadsword Class frigates, INS Lothai and INS Solapur, sortie out from the Strainist naval base at Tangjungpandan and make for the entrance to the Makassar Strait. While they don't intend to force the Strait, at least not yet, they do mean to test the IRI's reaction to the presence of two IN frigates so near home waters. With the MoD increasingly skittish about having to move a very large force through the Molucca Sea, with IRI soveriegn territory very much in the way, naval planners are quite keen to find out just what kind of fuss Mohammed Kalla is about to put up when the IN and Spyrian Navy try to cut across his nation. There are many in the IN and MoD who think that the best way to go is to destroy Kalla's navy and air force, but the majority opinion is that Tanimbar, not Belitung, should be used as the staging point for operations related to Plan 22. It is, after all, a safe distance away from Sulawesi and Kalimantan, and the associated aircraft and ship concentrations.

Spyrian admirals, namely Wahidin on Belitung and Haizu on Tanimbar, are finally told what Plan 22 requires from them; as close to the entirety of their fleets as is possible. The MoD isn't about to take any chances in the event that Roycelandian or French guns and armor show up, and wants plenty of Moskits on its side. And in the event that a naval threat doesn't materialize, such a large battlegroup will let Wickramsinghe or whoever else is appointed to command the Strainist-Unioner ground contingent conduct coastal operations practically at will.

Beijing

The response to the Filipino elections by Beijing is similar to the statements offered by Spyr and the other Progressives.

"Many opposition parlimentarians have disappeared into thin air. Roycelandia has sponsored a dictatorship that consumed a democracy. It is up to the Filipinos to fight for their right to choose their own leader before it is too late for them."

Hong Kong

After being officially reprimanded for his letter, Wing Lee returns to Hong Kong, wherre he meets with General Chang to discuss the latest affairs.

His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I has been privately observed making several racially and culturally insensitive remarks towards the Chinese.

More publicly, he's said "I'm sure the only acceptable outcome of the Filipino Elections for the Chinese and the Igovians would have been the Philippines deciding to suddenly become part of the Progressive world. One can't help but wonder what better use the money they're spending on sabre-rattling could be put to at home."

It is again pointed out to the international community that all Filipino towns and cities now have clean running water, electricity, and medical facilities, the inter-city transport networks are running at something approaching normality (intermittent guerilla attacks besides).

"I don't know how these elections could have been made any more transparent. It's important to remember that The Philippines are culturally very different to China and India, and that under Premier Aznar, the Philippines will continue to grow and prosper. And to ensure the security of the Philippines from Progressive interference, we are pleased to announce to establishment of a new, Roycelandian-Filipino Naval and Air Base on the Island of Marinduque..."

Raleigh, Australasia
A report landed in front of Prime Minister Strathairn in the summit meeting, hastily run inside by an aide. It was in a manilla envelope, marked with large red URGENT: MOST SECRET letters. He looked around the table apologetically and excused himself. Strathairn jogged down the corridor, up a flight of stairs and into his office, locking the door behind him. He plunked down in his chair and began to read.

Australasian O-19 spyplanes had observed a large buildup of INU and Spyrian forces on Sujava, and recon flights of AR-12s had shown that the Spyrian fleet was preparing to put to sea. There was only one possible target: the Roycelandian Philippines.

Strathairn cursed. After all these words of conciliation, after the French pull-out from Palawan, the Progressive Bloc was still going to make a fight of it. And if they did that, Roycelandia and the Holy League would crush them. They needed more time; time to plan and to build.

He picked up the phone on his desk and called his war minister's office.

"Yes, Anna? I need to speak with Lord Creighton ... I'm sure that it is, but this is urgent ... It concerns the national security of this country ... No, I'm not asking. I'm telling. Put Lord Creighton through, now." There was a pause as the secretary went to find her boss, during which time Strathairn looked around his office, and reflected that what he was about to do might seriously piss off the citizens of Australasia.

"Hello, Lord Creighton? Yes, I'm fine. I need you to deliver this order to the Lords Admiral. Yes, do write it down." Strathairn paused, and gulped. His hands were suddenly sweaty.

"The Alert Squadron needs to be in the Selat Karimata in a few hours. Then I want the Home Fleet, the Reserve Fleet and the Islands Fleet to be put on full alert. Have the Atlantic Fleet put on high alert, and consolidate the recon squadrons into Temporary Squadron One. I want them patrolling the Banda Sea in force. That will be all, Lord Creighton, thank you." He hung up before calling his secretary.

"Jane? Get me a plane to Mumbai, and have Ms. Lloyd briefed on the information on my desk. Have DP Jangala fly to the Spyrian capitol (where is it?) to discuss the situation with them."

Two hours later, the Australasian government issued this statement, addressed to the INU, Spyr and Roycelandia:
As you may have noticed, the Australasian navies have gone to full alert, and are patrolling international waters off of the coastline of Sujava, and the Banda Sea. Our squadrons are not for the purposes of offense, but seek to keep the peace between nations in Southeast Asia.

These squadrons will not attack vessels of any navy unless fired upon.
The war resulting from agression by one party against another would be devastating for all involved. We find ourselves unable to stand by and allow this to take place. A peaceful solution is still possible, provided that all nations involved commit themselves to this goal.

Hong Kong

After being officially reprimanded for his letter, Wing Lee returns to Hong Kong, where he meets with General Chang to discuss the latest affairs.

Hong Kong criminal circles soon find a one million dollar bounty placed on Mr. Lee's head...

(I'm too drunk to post IC, but... hey, Australasia wouldn't worry about the HL crushing the Progressives: the HL hasn't a cat in hell's chance against the Progs!

BG alone will fairly easily obliterate the entire League if we decide to make the sacrifice. China isn't a Prog. nation but is against the HL and will wipe them out without breaking a sweat. If India and China fight combined, well, the HL is more easily stepped-over than a crack in the pavement. Australasia would know that if war starts in SE Asia, the China-Prog alliance will win almost over night, Royce and the HL will be crippled, and the next struggle will be China vs. Progs.)

(Inevitabley so, the current HL deployments in Asia are a whole generation behind the oldest equipment in the PLAAF)

"If you wish for more confirmation, we openly invite anyone to poll our citizens. I realize that what we don't have perfection, but we're doing the best we can."

Beijing will take the opportunity to call upon a multinational taskforce to launch a full inquiry into the disappearances of opposition parlimentarians.

Meanwhile, having seemingly brushed aside Zhang's call for Roycelandian withdrawal from the Phillipines, three carrier battlegroups leaves port, preparing to enforce the blockade.

OOC: How's the militia doing outside Goa?

OOC: The Roycelandian aircraft are outdated, sure. (Why, I wonder?) But Monarchist France and Roycelandia are both, as far as I'm aware, major world powers. Not to say that China and BG aren't but it would be pretty bad all around, yes?

Edit: In addition, Australasia has its own reasons for opposing war. Its government sees Communism as a threat (albiet a smaller one than France). Since Communism's stated goals include taking over the world, Australasia sees the Progressive Bloc as a possible threat as well.

Note: Australasian forces deployed are not large as of yet, the Home Fleet is still being readied for sea. Forces at sea are something on the order of seven destroyers, three cruisers and perhaps a carrier, with submarine support.

(Oh, no doubt war between the HL and anyone able to fight back will be a serious affair, and I suppose that it's the conduct of such a war that would worry most people, I'm just saying that, horrors aside, most planners -if thinking that far ahead- would be working on assumption of an anti-League victory.

I wouldn't dispute the likelihood of Australasia seeing the Soviets and the Strainists as threats, though. Perhaps like Russia to the western allies in WWII.

As to the Goa situation, some quarter of a million men and women are under arms, and starting to move in tanks and artillery (retro-1st Commonwealth/Principality), which is taking a long time for an amature army to organise, and cooler heads are working to convince others that losses will be massive if they just charge in with inexperienced infantry alone. Soviet ships -mostly corvettes whose crews have voted to do so (probably mutiny in any other navy)- are shadowing shipping coming in and out of Goa as the Roiks evacuate people, and they keep threatening to board vessels to search for soldiers or arms coming in, but nobody's quite taken the initiative as yet. France's retreat from the Philippines has been enough to convince some hopeful sorts that things are going the right way, but if Roycelandia is more stubborn...)

[OOC: I would dispute the claim that the HL doesn't stand a chance against the Progressives. Against Progressives and China alone, yes, we'll be snuffed like a candle, but for BG to spend such a huge amount on its militias means that its professional military has to suffer. The only place that represents a threat to us is in Goa. The Hindustanis are behind in terms of technology, and the Lyongians are reasonable enough to compromise if things don't go well.

And is China claiming a technology level comparable to the HL? Haven't we gone over that before?]

(OOC: Well, if we had, I think we'd have concluded that Russia's transformation is more amazing than China's.
BG's army is 300,000 strong. If our force ratio were the same as those of the RL UK in time of peace, it'd be more like 700,000. Needless to say, man for man, the CGEC (army) is markedly superior to French or Estenlandic forces. And the militia, well, they have a few dozen dollars worth of kit per person, plus the surplus heavy equipment from the past generation in the [formerly larger] regular forces... plus dual-purpose civilian vehicles for mechanisation, wait, why am I saying this, here? Never mind [stops]. In short, in Asia, Roycelandia and the HL are vastly out of their depth. If/when the focus switches to Africa and/or Europe, however, it may be a more interesting contest.

Where do we stand on the Philippines and what everyone's doing about it, now? Are the Chinese looking to enforce any kind of embargo? Things have become very fractured and jumbled over the weeks, hey? It's hard to keep up with things.)

OOC: Getting things back on track here...
Mumbai
Prime Minister Strathairn stepped off of Australasia One, an RA-900 jumbojet painted red on white and adorned with the Ministerial Seal of Australasia. It was hot here, and humid. The tarmac was baking his suit already, and he could feel himself beginning to sweat. Strathairn rubbed his hands against his pants, trying to get the sweat off. Wouldn't do to have sweaty hands when he was meeting and greeting members of the INU government.

Ashmore Naval Base, Carter, Australasia
There was something about the CIC of an Adamantine class Battle Carrier that made for a good place from which to command a fleet. It didn't have all the bells and whistles of a command cruiser, and it lacked the huge radar/radio complex that made the carrier pitch and roll in the sea like a mad thing. There was a martial glory to the CIC, only apparent to a trained eye. The dark lighting, the metal grating that clanked when you walked on it. The enormous situation board that dominated the rear wall, and cast a green glow over everything in the room.

If this was wartime command, Vice Admiral Peter Denning loved it. The carrier Quenfis was preparing to leave port. The last of the AS-12s had been loaded aboard two days ago, and the final supplies were being lowered from a crane outside as Denning waited.

"Lieutenant," he said to a young man at the ops board. "Have the fleet report readiness, and get me some coffee."

"Aye, sir."

OOC2: I shouldn't post when I'm this tired.

OOC: My military equipment specs were posted months ago in the AMW defence thread (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=458867). Anyway, we have the offsite forums for this banter.

Three carrier battlegroups (not counting the 10 or so SSGNs) have taken up positions around the Phillipines. One in the South China sea, one just south of Taiwan, and one to the east of the Phillipines in the Pacific. The deployment represents half the carrier force of the Chinese Navy.

The compositions of the fleets are as follows :

One carrier (70 aircraft)
Four multi-role cruisers
Three destroyers
Twelve frigates

Timor Sea, Carrier Quenfis

Lieutenant Colonel Sarah White ran a gloved hand over the smooth lines of the AS-12 Air Superiority Fighter. It still smelled like industrial lubricant and metal shavings, straight off the assembly lines at Fort Adelaide. She vaulted into the cockpit, a somewhat needlessly macho move seeing as there was a stepladder on the other side of the fighter.

The interior was deceptively simple, four screens, a throttle and a stick. Sarah craned her neck to see if the fighter was plugged into the carrier's power supply before turning on the cockpit electronics with the flick of a switch. They hummed to life, and Sarah began paging through the touch screen systems readout. The thing was fast, she realized. Ever so slightly faster than the Quinntionian F/A-22. It was lighter, smaller and had a bit less range, but for a carrier aircraft that wasn't too big a deal. She'd seen all of this in the sims, but she hadn't believed it until now. Those guys at Aeromarine were clever bastards, she'd give them that. Weapons readout ...

"How's she look, Colonel?" Major Paul Davis was crouched on the wing, his head poking just inside the cockpit. Predictably enough, he was standing on a red square of paint that read: NO STEP in large block letters.

"Sweet," Sarah replied with a grin. "I'm almost hoping that the Unioners make a fight of it, just so I can give this thing a spin." Davis nodded in agreement, before hopping off the wing and rolling underneith the fuselage.

"You want to pop the weapons bays, ma'am?" His voice sounded muffled down there. "I'm curious to see what they stuffed in here." Sarah flipped the cover off of the bay door release and hit the button. There was a humming noise and a muffled curse.

"All right down there, Davis?" There was a low whistle. Guess so.

"They stuffed four ACAAMs in here. I didn't believe it when I read the book. Thought they'd be too heavy for sure. Looks like there's a mount for one of those bombs too, what do they call 'em?"

"IDAMs. The ones that aim themselves."

"Yeah, right. Them."

(Yes, that was a blatant LOOK AT MY FIGHTER post)
Bridge, Battlecruiser Collingwood, Sulu Sea.
Rear Admiral Thaddeus Wilberforce Jr. had found himself in command of Temporary Squadron One a few days ago with orders to, of all things, protect the Roycelandian Philippines. To that end, he was steaming north at full speed, pushing the Collingwood's engines to get between the carrier groups and the Northern Philippines. The rest of the fleet was spread out in front of him, six destroyers, four cruisers, three cutters, four attack subs and a light aircraft carrier. It wasn't much, considering the forces that they were going up against, but it was the best that the government could do on short notice.

"Admiral," that was Lieutenant Christopher Eldritch, a round, cheerful man with a large nose who served as Wilberforce's chief of staff. "Scout patrols reporting in, the carrier groups are spreading out to blockade the Philippines." Wilberforce sighed and leaned against the railing in front of him.

"Have one of the submarines trail each battlegroup at the edge of its sonar range. Make it clear to the captains that I don't want them found." He stared pensively out of the bridge window at the two main turrets. "And meet me in the wardroom with a map, will you?"

Mumbai

Strathairn is met by a small delegation of Parliamentarians at Sahar International Airport, visibly annoyed with the Australasian Prime Minister and his unannounced visit. A Hindustan Ambassador, the only type of car ever built in the INU, comes to an unnecessarily quick stop in front of the RA-900's nose gear strut, but is clearly not large enough to transport the entire entourage and they end up being carried towards Parliament House on the back of a Mahindra Type 160 6x6 truck. Much to the relief of Strathairn's Unioner attendants, they are not obliged to bring him in front of Parliament at large, but the few who he is about to see aren't inclined to be nice to him. The Australasian Prime Minister is finally led through a boring and unassuming series of corridors until he finally finds himself and his entourage in a mini-auditorium, about fifty Parliamentarians in the seats.

"Prime Minister Strathairn," begins one, "we would all like to welcome you to the Indian National Union, and we hope you find our nation to your liking. But are we correct in our assumption that this is rather more than a friendly hello?"

"Please state your business here, Prime Minister," says another Parliamentarian, quite bluntly.

Parliament as a whole, and the MoD especially, is very, very upset about the presence of Australasian warships in the Sulu Sea and Timor Sea, especially with Plan 22 a relatively short time away from execution. Their questionable intentions are especially worrying, and the MoD is not about to see its operation derailed by some Australasian battlegroup rampaging through the landing forces. It confuses Parliament to no end that a nation supposedly against the Holy League and for democracy is about to stand up for a dictatorial regime, especially one that is backed by one of the Holy League's closest allies. Raleigh's gloomy forecast finds few believers in Mumbai, who point to the fact that the INU alone has more people in it than does most of the Holy League put together, and more industrial potential to boot. Perhaps the Union hasn't put every penny it has come across into defense, but it could if it wanted to, and if it wanted to...well, France best watch out.

Anyone attempting to Blockade the Philippines will find themselves being shadwed by Sunderland Flying Boats, and, in extreme cases, Roycelandian Submarines (which are rarely seen)...

Port Royal, Roycelandia

Soviet Consuls were not a common sight in the Caribbean, but never the less, here one stood: Chivo, former mouthpiece for the Second Commonwealth before his relatively laissez faire approach to world revolution and international relations in general became obsolete with the rise of a more ambitious Third Commonwealth.

He wasn't quite the striking and fearsome shape that the world had come to expect of a Sovietists sent to issue threats of wholesale slaughter to counter-revolutionaries, being over half a foot shorter than the likes of Adiatorix, and having nothing of that man's giant moustache or flowing hair, and being prepared to wear a fairly smart-casual black suit with a distinctive white trim, indicating that he couldn't possibly have come from anywhere but the island of Portmeirion.

He wanted an audience with the big man, "The biggest one you've got" as he put it.

He was here to get hold of the Emperor's wandering attention and show him some boring charts and tables.

The Philippines are here. These red dots are areas controlled by the New People's Army He would say, showing Davao City a crimson blotch, much like the whole southeastern part of Luzon while its central plains were spattered and looking like a shotgun wound on the island, the capital almost surrounded by thousands if not tens of thousands of Soviet armed and trained fighters. The Visayas and the rest of Mindanao appeared to have the measles.

Here is China, here Vietnam, Laos, Sujava, Lyong, the Indian National Union, the Indian Soviet Commonwealth, Australasia. The picture clearly one of desperate isolation for the Roycelandians, already largely abandoned by their French associates. Let's not forget the Wendselybury Islands he said, pointing just past Australasia in reference to Walmington's dismissal of the election sham in the Philippines.

Do you think that the world is going to back down from such an enviable position of tactical and strategic superiority? So, shooting must start? And when it does, you can not reinforce or resupply, and you can not run north, east, south, or west. You remember Vietnam and Lusaka, I'm sure, but do you really think that this has prepared you for an inability to even retreat, such as will face you when China, India, Australasia, and the people of the Philippines have your expedition in a corner?

The Commonwealth was simply baffled by Roycelandia's unwillingness to cut its losses and run for all the empire was worth. Chivo was trying to impress that war would be joined in the Philippines if the Roycelandians did not leave, and that no quarter would be given (his Marathon diplomatic transport plane notably flying the red flag almost as if to emphasise this idea): it wouldn't be like making a tactical withdrawal in East Africa, or retreating from Vietnam, the Roycelandians would all be killed or captured, as would their cronies in the Philippines, and all of their ships and aircraft would be destroyed or shared between the victors.

Not only this, but war between Roycelandia and India would mean the loss of Goa- no matter how hard the defenders might fight, it was one city against several nations that each are larger than the entire Roycelandian Empire.

And do you think it would stop there? Have you ever riled the Celts to battle? Having lost your forces in the Philippines and Goa, having lost Polynesia, do you think that you can by magic protect East Africa with what remains? Can you see Igomo passing-up a chance to enjoy Soviet air support as he marches on to pan-African liberation, or Kinshasa shrugging and deciding not to take revenge in Gabon?

Others were worrying about Europe, but the Indian Soviets were gnashing their teeth in prospect of the total collapse of five centuries of Roycelandian imperialism beyond the Caribbean.

Failing to resist at every temptation to gorge your imperial fettish, Roycelandia is a historical microsecond away from being made to spew its guts. You must totally disengage from the Philippines, and, I fear, this may not be enough- with Chinese support for it, you must abandon Goa to India.

Then, if you are fortunate, Roycelandian East Africa, Socotra, and perhaps even Gabon, Nigeria, and Algeria will not face the combined might of two or three billion Asian and Australasian people. If you make us fight you for the freedom of the Philippines, we will fight you also for the freedom of Africa.

Meanwhile, Soviet agents were sent secretly to pressure the African National Pact to make menacing sounds against Gabon and East Africa, so that Portmeirion could later promise Roycelandia that they would discourage the Africans.

(OOC: Whatever else happens, if you'd rather not end this without a desperate fight, I can still have the Auxiliaries attack Goa even if Roycelandia realises that it is totally screwed in the Philippines and decides to pull-out timidly. I'm not fussed either way.)

Mumbai

Strathairn looks around the auditorium, into the visibly unsmiling faces of the Unioners present. Damn, which staffer forgot to send word of his visit to the visited? He took a sip from the provided water, threw caution to the winds and began to speak.

"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice. I understand the uncomfortable position that this visit may have put you in, and I apologise for it." Nobody was throwing things, this was a good sign. "Australasian recon aircraft have detected a force buildup of joint Spyrian and INU forces on the island of Sujava, as well as naval reconnisance in the Makassar strait. This is of great concern to my government, and precipitated both the increased naval patrols and the visit here.

"I do not presume to dictate the international policy of your nation, that is clearly your matter. But I would request you to give negotiations with Roycelandia a chance. We have been in contact with his government over both the Philippine situation and the Franco-Roycelandian alliance. These talks are proceeding. As a result, I believe Royce I to be a reasonable, honourable man, who takes many things into consideration when planning for the future of his nation.

"I know that the people and government of the Indian National Union are as well honourable and reasonable. You proved this by beginning the evacuation of the Goa, something of which I admit my government did not think. I know that Unioners are good people who place human life above disagreements with another nation. And so I would humbly request that the INU attempt peace talks with the Roycelandian government before taking military action."

It wasn't his best speech ever; not even close. He'd probably pissed them off a bit, but nothing to do now except wait.

Raleigh, Australasia

Christina Lloyd, the highest officer of government in Australasia, found herself rather beset by angry members of Parliament. They all seemed to want to know why, exactly, Prime Minister Strathairn had seen it as a good idea to dispatch the fleet and then skip town for Mumbai. And then they wanted to bring the fleet back, or maybe throw in on the Progressive side, or sometimes on the Roycelandian side. Or maybe just impeach Strathairn. That might be good.

In all of that, Christina eventually locked the door and informed everyone that any discussions could take place over the phone. After unplugging said phone, she got around to business.

Either she or Strathairn would have to say something to the people. He was away, but it might be better to have him here, face of the government and all that. But if nothing was said for a few days, then the people might grow suspicious. Hm...

Best write a speech. Even if she didn't give it, the thing's existance would give Christina something to fall back on in case Strathairn was some time coming.

Mumbai

"By collaborating with France, Prime Minister, Roycelandia has committed an irreversible act of treachery against the Free Peoples of this planet. We aren't about to look the other way this time. The Imperialists have had their way with Asia for the past two hundred years, and it is about time they turn it back over to who it belongs to. No, if we are going to negotiate with Roycelandia, it will be on our own terms. That is the long and short of it."

A very uncharacteristic point of view from a Union parliamentarian, as Strathairn might very well realize as he is led out of the door so as not to be present once the assembled Parliamentarians start to discuss things amongst themselves. But the 50-strong committee in the auditorium is hardly the only body of Parliamentarians interested in seeing Strathairn, and instead of being brought outside of Parliament House he is led down a seemingly endless flight of stairs, finally ending-up outside the Naval Planning Office.

"Ah yes, Prime Minister Strathairn...please do come in," says a lanky man in the uniform of a navy commander, who opens the thick oak door leading to the office.

Inside, the Australasian Prime Minister is greeted by a group of perhaps three dozen naval officers, all of them thin and in dire need of sleep. They rather timidly show Strathairn towards a room covered with maps.

"You see, Prime Minister...eh, we don't necessarily agree that Plan 22 is just the right thing for our, er, strategic objectives, these days, you know? We made it, sure, but with the Spaniards and Franks deploying along the Portuguese Frontier and the border with Gibraltar...all our projections point to those places as the focus of Holy League offensive operations. We think, eh, that we've, putting it simply, been duped by Palawan. We should've hit them earlier if we were going to, and now it might be too late to do anything about it, you know? Mali, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Benin...western Africa we think is on the chopping block and our deployable assets are really stretched thin, so we've got to do something if the League does something itself, or else we'd be giving them something for nothing...what I mean to say is, well, would you help us get them in West Africa?"

Strathairn shouldn't feel bad if he finds himself confused by the planning officer, a victim of far too much time spent at work and far too much time spent worrying about this and that. He is, despite his best efforts, trying to tell the Prime Minister that the planning office, creator of Plan 22, now thinks that it isn't such a great idea (a sentiment echoed by much of Parliament), but it can't do much else at present, and that an Australasian promise of help should France indeed invade West Africa would go a very long way towards convincing Parliament that a diplomatic solution rather than a military one should be tried in the Philippines.

With an extremely real threat looming over Portugal and Gibraltar, it is probably only a matter of time before most Unioners begin to recognize that the Filippino situation is not all that important compared to what is going on to the west. Some have already taken steps to discuss joint operations against French Guyana with the Neo-Anarchans, or a new assault on New Caledonia with the Bedgellens. Should the Russians become involved, there is still some interest in seizing Sakhalin and the Kuril islands and robbing the Tsar of his Pacific Coast. The British might have to largely fend for themselves in actual battle, but if many Unioners have their way the Holy League will have more to worry about than the success of advances on Lisbon or the capture of Gibraltar.

OOC- Now now LRR, as you yourself said, no actions whatsoever involving ANY NPC nations until we get it sorted out.

That means no INU aid to West Africa as well.

Mumbai

Strathairn stood awkwardly for a moment, his mind chewing up the words of the officer and spitting them back out in recognizable form. He looked around the room once again, noting the force depositions on the maps. Not a small force, and one that would give the much smaller, but more technologically advanced Australasian Navy a good run for its money. Perhaps too good.

"Ah, if I understand you correctly, then we are in agreement. As I see it, and these are my personal views rather than those of the Austalasian government, you see the difference?" The prime minister was much less verbally adroit without a teleprompter, as were most.

"Anyway, as I see it, Roycelandia is a sideshow. They're a major power, but they won't be expanding in this direction-- it's just not prudent. Going to war with them would just be messy and take a long time; and it's exactly what Louis-Auguste wants us to do." He strode over to a map, his hands thrust in his pockets. Strathairn was walking with an odd, straight legged and rolling gait that he used when he was thinking in depth about something.

"I'm sure you can understand, I can't guarantee Australasian co-operation, but I can give you my personal support. Now then, this map. Let's see... yes." His index finger stabbed the city of Buenos Aires. "That's where the Atlantic Fleet is now, and they have been put on full alert. It's a large fleet by our standards, two carriers, three battleships, et cetera et cetera. It can be off the African coast pretty quickly, say a week and a bit. Meantime, there's probalby a patrol force in the Mediterranean, not too big. It might be able to evacuate Gibraltar, or shell something. Otherwise, no help." He started pacing again, staring at the floor pensively.

"Well, there's this last bit. Australasia doesn't have a large navy, but it's technologically advanced. We've got all the cutting edge materials and designs, including a fighter that just outperforms the F/A-22 and is stealthier than that both it and the Chinese fighter. And not to seem condescending, but we hear you've been having problems with your new ... whatsit. Uh, the F(J) .9?

"Well, I know that you're not the one to ask, but do you think your government would be interested in a bit of quid pro quo? Sharing of certain technologies for, oh, laying off the Philippines situation?"

OOC: Since Spyr isn't exactly... here right now, DPM Jangala was diverted/pretend he always was going to China. Specifically, to have a chat about the Philippines.

Edge of Chinese Airspace, South China Sea

" ... bearing a diplomatic envoy from the Colonial Republic of Australasia," the pilot drawled into the pickup. "Repeating, this is Cherubim flight to tower, requesting permission to enter Chinese airspace and land at Beijing bearing an envoy from Australasia, please respond." Cobar Jangala sat, crammed in with a few staffers and some hapless engineers in the back of Cherubim One, a large cargo aircraft that he had commandeered to get from Raleigh to Beijing.

He hated flying. It wasn't something that Jangala had ever really gotten used to, despite the fact that his job kind of required it. He hoped that they'd call soon. Really soon. Where were those barf bags?

The Chinese are receptive to Jangala's aircraft, and after landing at Beijing he soon finds himself whisked to Foreign affairs minister Hu Jin Tao's office.

Mr Hu offers him a cup of tea.

"So what brings you here on such short notice? I'm hoping it's not bad news."

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

Meanwhile, gathering media outside General Chang's office, having camped out for days expecting an official announcement of the beginnings of a blockade were beginning to lose their patience.

It seemed the government were either behind schedule with the press statements or planning something else, with the media preferring to latch onto the second option in the hope of getting more newspapers off the stands. One headline even read "Nuclear war imminent" although the Presidential palace was quick to refute this.

They were right about something in the works. Known only to Chang himself and a few trusted others, a fleet of 20 odd submarines, both SSGNs and SSNs were heading into the Indian ocean, heading past Sri Lanka, and loitered a few hundred km East of Africa. Similarly, an already formidable submarine presence in the Sea of Japan was being further bolstered.

[OOC: Trying to compile a reply of sorts, a bit delayed... two quick queries though.
First, Gurguvungunit, on naval force deployments in the Sulu sea, what course did Australasian vessels take to get there, and how close to Sulawesi/Borneo/etc would they have come? RL Indonesian archipelagic waters can be considered territorial, split between FRB successor-states, though depending on origin port the Australasians may have risked a violation to avoid having to circle around the outside of Papua, in hopes that given the current climate the Indonesians and Strainists wouldn't respond militarily.

Second, China, the presence of Lyong in what is the RL Japan Sea splits the body into two channels: the Japan Strait between Lyong and Japan, and an internal Lyong-Korean sea whose name changes depending on your politics.
http://img92.imageshack.us/img92/2748/eastasia1zw.th.jpg (http://img92.imageshack.us/my.php?image=eastasia1zw.jpg)

I assume deployments are to the Strait, which is already crawling with Strainist ships and likely Japanese as well... would China have informed either government of submarine deployments there, to avoid accidents of mistaken identity?]

OOC: I suppose they could have come through the Banda, Flores and Java seas to reach the Selat Karimata if any other course would have provoked the Strainists, but I had planned to have them go through the Selat Lombok.

"Thank you, Mr. Hu," replied Jangala, accepting the tea. He took a sip, letting the warm taste slide down his throat. Mmm ... tea ... "I came to speak with you about the deployment of Chinese naval vessels in and around the Philippines. As you can understand, it's something of a concern to us." He looked out the window, admiring the view of Beijing.

"The Roycelandians are, you have to agree, pretty tame occupationalists. They've improved living conditions a fair bit, at the cost of helping Aznar keep the peace and remain in power. While some opposition leaders have indeed disappeared, it is not eminently clear to me that this needs to provoke military action." Jangala sipped at his tea again, and stared at the little Chinese flag on Mr. Hu's desk.

"I think, and this is of course just my opinion, that more ways of resolving the situation exist than the use of carrier groups. For example, negotiations with Roycelandia have, as far as I'm aware, not been entered into. Now, from my experience, Royce I is a reasonable person. I think that the both of you could come to some kind of agreement.

"Now, I don't want to tell you how to run your country, that's your decision. But I'm cautioning you, military action would not be viewed favourably by the government of Australasia. Furthermore, tying naval forces up here would be a bad idea. A tussle with the Roycelandians over the Philippines is not something that you want to be embroiled in when France comes knocking.

"And remember, Mr. Hu, it was the French who threatened your country. Not the Roycelandians. I'd say that you have more to fear from Louis-Auguste." Jangala took another sip of his tea. "I certainly apologise if what I just said came across as a lecture; I'd prefer to consider it advice, government official to government official."

Mumbai

Strathairn stood awkwardly for a moment, his mind chewing up the words of the officer and spitting them back out in recognizable form. He looked around the room once again, noting the force depositions on the maps. Not a small force, and one that would give the much smaller, but more technologically advanced Australasian Navy a good run for its money. Perhaps too good.

"Ah, if I understand you correctly, then we are in agreement. As I see it, and these are my personal views rather than those of the Austalasian government, you see the difference?" The prime minister was much less verbally adroit without a teleprompter, as were most.

"Anyway, as I see it, Roycelandia is a sideshow. They're a major power, but they won't be expanding in this direction-- it's just not prudent. Going to war with them would just be messy and take a long time; and it's exactly what Louis-Auguste wants us to do." He strode over to a map, his hands thrust in his pockets. Strathairn was walking with an odd, straight legged and rolling gait that he used when he was thinking in depth about something.

"I'm sure you can understand, I can't guarantee Australasian co-operation, but I can give you my personal support. Now then, this map. Let's see... yes." His index finger stabbed the city of Buenos Aires. "That's where the Atlantic Fleet is now, and they have been put on full alert. It's a large fleet by our standards, two carriers, three battleships, et cetera et cetera. It can be off the African coast pretty quickly, say a week and a bit. Meantime, there's probalby a patrol force in the Mediterranean, not too big. It might be able to evacuate Gibraltar, or shell something. Otherwise, no help." He started pacing again, staring at the floor pensively.

"Well, there's this last bit. Australasia doesn't have a large navy, but it's technologically advanced. We've got all the cutting edge materials and designs, including a fighter that just outperforms the F/A-22 and is stealthier than that both it and the Chinese fighter. And not to seem condescending, but we hear you've been having problems with your new ... whatsit. Uh, the F(J) .9?

"Well, I know that you're not the one to ask, but do you think your government would be interested in a bit of quid pro quo? Sharing of certain technologies for, oh, laying off the Philippines situation?"

Mumbai

"We'll, um, be sure to bring it up, Prime Minister. I can't say myself, then, but it looks like an offer worth taking. You plus the Walmingtonians might just be enough to give France something else to think about when it goes for new territory, you know?"

After that, Strathairn is made to realize that his visit to Mumbai is over, as his attendants open the office door and lead him outside. Clearly, Unioners don't have much of a handle on the world situation, and with nearly all moveable military assets concentrated in Sujava, Mumbai is pretty much unable to conduct operations elsewhere. If Strathairn is able to go home with anything of promise, it is that the INU would very much like a peaceful settlement with regards to the Philippines, and is more open to such than it would appear on the outside. Besides that, it also serves to demonstrate the scatterbrained and haphazard nature of Parliament, and indeed much of the Union at large, and shows that decisiveness simply does not play a role in the conduct of Parliamentary affairs.

Technology transfers, not surprisingly, don't really interest Unioners, who point to misunderstandings and outdated specifications as the cause of the F(J).9 project's failure. It wasn't so much a bad aircraft as it was an unneecessary expenditure, and HAL is well on its way to developing a true 5th generation combat aircraft in the F(J).11. Not to mention, Mumbai is somewhat less than willing to take Australasian expertise when it still maintains excellent relations with Walmington and Beth Gellert.

But the whole Philippines issue is far from the Union's finest hour, and more Unioners realise this every day. Mumbai hadn't even tried diplomacy beforehand, ignoring the French and Roycelandians until it was too late, and then preparing for a shattering blow against France's navy and army only to see the target, and indeed the justification for Plan 22, disappear. It is a screwed-up situation, and one that isn't about to be quickly remedied.

OOC to Spyr : I had meant to say "Somewhere around the Sakhalins". They will probably head the long way around Japan.

OOC: I suppose they could have come through the Banda, Flores and Java seas to reach the Selat Karimata if any other course would have provoked the Strainists, but I had planned to have them go through the Selat Lombok.

"Thank you, Mr. Hu," replied Jangala, accepting the tea. He took a sip, letting the warm taste slide down his throat. Mmm ... tea ... "I came to speak with you about the deployment of Chinese naval vessels in and around the Philippines. As you can understand, it's something of a concern to us." He looked out the window, admiring the view of Beijing.

"The Roycelandians are, you have to agree, pretty tame occupationalists. They've improved living conditions a fair bit, at the cost of helping Aznar keep the peace and remain in power. While some opposition leaders have indeed disappeared, it is not eminently clear to me that this needs to provoke military action." Jangala sipped at his tea again, and stared at the little Chinese flag on Mr. Hu's desk.

"I think, and this is of course just my opinion, that more ways of resolving the situation exist than the use of carrier groups. For example, negotiations with Roycelandia have, as far as I'm aware, not been entered into. Now, from my experience, Royce I is a reasonable person. I think that the both of you could come to some kind of agreement.

"Now, I don't want to tell you how to run your country, that's your decision. But I'm cautioning you, military action would not be viewed favourably by the government of Australasia. Furthermore, tying naval forces up here would be a bad idea. A tussle with the Roycelandians over the Philippines is not something that you want to be embroiled in when France comes knocking.

"And remember, Mr. Hu, it was the French who threatened your country. Not the Roycelandians. I'd say that you have more to fear from Louis-Auguste." Jangala took another sip of his tea. "I certainly apologise if what I just said came across as a lecture; I'd prefer to consider it advice, government official to government official."

"For all purposes and intents, we consider France and Roycelandia one and the same at the end of the day. Oil and natural resources from Roycelandia Africa or the Phillipines will power the Holy League armour into Gibraltar. French and Spanish ships will rely on Roycelandian naval ports for support. I needn't remind you of King Royce himself allowing the French to build the world's largest fortification on Palawan. Who knows what would have happened had the Progressive Bloc and ourselves not threatened military action.

The French and the British raised no objections to Hitler's takeover of Austria in the second world war. Just months later, the appeasors had a world war on their hands and France was subjugated. This is the same situation as 60 years ago, when the evils of fascism threatened the free world.

Our hardline approach will be proved right in the future when French and other Holy League battleships return to the Phillipines, this time bolder, more aggressive, and more encouraged by our percieved complacency. Allowing the Roycelandians to stay on the Phillipines is a victory for the Holy League, a victory for imperialism, and a victory for Christian fascism."

Beijing

Jangala placed the tea on the table after draining the small cup. He sat down uninvited in the chair on the other side of Mr. Hu's desk and smiled unmenacingly, but without any trace of warmth. If anything, he looked more tired than irritated.

"Mr. Hu," he said. "The French pull-out from Palawan began before, rather than after, the actions of the French were condemned by the international community. By the time L'comte de Vergennes' speech was broadcast, activity had been observed on Palawan consistent with an orderly withdrawl of troops. It also coincided with the instatement of the new French war minister, de Broglie." Jangala poured himself and the Chinese foreign minister more tea from the pot.

"I'd say, in light of that, it seems fairly clear to me and to my government that the French don't care what we do here, because it isn't their problem anymore. They seem to have changed their minds." He took a sip of the tea. "Where, then, are they sending their military? Certainly not anywhere in Asia, China, Beth Gellert and the INU would drop the heavy end of the hammer on land, and China and ourselves would make any sea travel most uncomfortable.

"So where did all the military forces go? The current focus seems to be Gibraltar, and the next logical move is Africa and Walmington. So to be clear, the French do not want Asia for the time being, and Roycelandia is in no position to expand.

"Furthermore, and most importantly, the government of Roycelandia is avowedly atheistic, something that would be a bone of contention if France were to attempt to create a Holy World Empire or somesuch. It's not in Roycelandia's best interests to let France become too powerful, and I think that Royce is smart enough to know that.

"So it sounds like you're Franco-Roycelandia alliance wouldn't last too long past the first stages of world domination. Eventually, the two powers would come into conflict. And I think that in that case, Roycelandia would come down on our side so long as we don't declare war on her.

"Roycelandia is not a Christian Fascist nation," Jangala said, enunciating every word clearly. "She is a result of the Walmingtonian Empire, the same as we. For the Chinese, it would be difficult to understand the hold that this idea has among white Australasians even today. I do not understand it either, but I think that Royce will choose blood over temporary alliances in the end."