NationStates Jolt Archive

The Empire of Layarteb cordially invites all foreign nations of the world to visit our capital city, Layarteb City, in honor of Fleet Week 2006. On display will be the finest Layartebian battle ships, civilian ships, sailing ships, and demonstrator ships. Spots are available for up to sixty-five other displays, all reserved for foreign participants. Festivities will continue for seven days, morning, noon, afternoon, evening, and night. Various gallas and events are planned throughout Layarteb City, the "City that Never Sleeps."

All visitors are subject to Layartebian rules and laws but as they have never hindered foreign visitors before we do not anticipate them to again. Celebrate with us on this monumental week of fun, information, and peace.

Thank You

Yomato and Seismic will come to your city with reps from all corners of its Kingdom including the new galactic tour ship which is capable of holding over 15,000 people who will all be eager to enjoy the sites of your capital.

OOC: This is E2 dude.

TAG
I'll post some stuff tomorrow. Ships will come from Western Ireland, it'll be one Ronald Reagan Class CVN, one Missouri Class BB and some of my newer designs.

ooc: You'll be lucky Hirgy... I wasn't allowed Superdreads last time. Apparently they don't fit in the harbour.


ic:

Encoded Contact:
To:The Empire of Layarteb
From:The Neuvo Rican Empire

Friends,

We would be interested in sending several units of the Marinha Neuvo Ricano, as well as several naval aviation squadrons to the fleet week this year. The recent failure of our allies to react to a fellow alliance member - TLS - being attacked has lead us to concern for our own security, and it will be interesting to see what other nations would be willing to place on the market.

To Hirgizstan

The Empire will accept your ships into our ports, please provide basic specifications for them (dimensions and displacement) and we will further allow them.

Thank You.


To Neuvo Rica

The Empire will accept your ships into our ports as well as your aviation squadron. We do request some basic specifications on your ships (displacement and dimensions) so that we may further accomodate them.

Thank You.




Attention. All nations bringing ships into port must have their offensive systems turned off. Passive searching systems are fully allowed but offensive systems being on could cause a host array of problems.

Official Communique

"The Realm of Cotland naturally wishes to participate in this event. We will send elements of the Royal Cottish Navy to this event. The full list of vessels will be forwarded to the Imperial Ministry of State as soon as we have determined which ships to send.

"Furthermore, there is a possibilty of His Majesty attending this event. In such a case, His Majesty will be travelling in the Royal Yacht 'HMS Cotland' which is currently at Barbados.

"In closing, we are curious whether there will be an air segment in this year's Fleet Week. Either way, we thank the Insurmountable Empire of Layarteb for hosting such a joyous event, and look forward to a week of naval admiration and celebration."

[signed]
Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs / Royal Ministry of Defense
The Realm of Cotland

To Layarteb

Information for ships at Fleet Week 2006:

Ronald Reagan Class CVN:

Type: Aircraft Carrier (Nuclear)
Number in Class: 12
Displacement: 150,000 tons light, 192,000 tons fully loaded
Dimensions: length-1350ft, beam- 600ft, draught- 62ft
Powerplant: 6 HDAC-4 Nuclear Reactors, 8 HGEC Steam Turbines
Power Output: 420,000shp
Endurance: 40 Years without refuelling, limited to 300 days on supplies
Aircraft: Up to 220 Aircraft and 20 Helicopters (Various sorts)
Main Gun: 4 Mk. 20 25mm ETC Cannons, front, rear and sides.
Secondary Weapon: 18 VLS Mounts, 144 Missiles.
(50 RIM-67A SM-3ER)
(20 RIM-68A SM-5)
(50 RIM-66A SM-2ER)
(44 ESSM RIM-7PTC)
Other Missiles: 14 RGM-84 Harpoon Launchers
CIWS: 16 Phalanx CIWS Guns, 12 RIM-116 Mounts
Torpedos: 4 Launch Tubes, front and rear, below waterline, 8 in total.
Compliment: 12,500


Wolf Class Air Defense Frigate:

Displacement (Full): 5,700 tons
Length: 469.2ft
Beam: 57.1ft
Draught: 14.4ft
Top Speed: 35 Knots
Range: 4000NM
Endurance: 40 Days
Propulsion: HGEC-AGT N5000 Gas Turbine (23,500KW) + two HMC-NDE20 Diesel Engines at 8000KW each.
Shafts: 2
Generators: 4x1000KW HGEC 1500 Naval Series
Weaponry: 2 Mk. 20 25mm ETC Cannons located forward and aft.
1 HDAC 2000 Series 155mm Naval Howitzer located on forward deck.
4 Phalanx CIWS located Forward, Aft, Starboard and Port.
4 RIM-116 Launchers
VLS System: 1 Mk.41 VLS System with 32 forward and 32 rear cells
32 RIM-7PTC
32 RIM-7M
Torpedoes: 6 Tubes under water line, forward.
Helicopters: 2 SH-60R Sized Aircraft
Crew: 251

Missouri Class Battleship:

Displacement (Full): 85,500 tons fully loaded
Length: 902.1ft
Beam: 110.2ft
Draught: 48.5ft
Top Speed: 33 Knots
Range: 5500NM
Endurance: 60 Days
Propulsion: 4 Shafts: HGEC-AGT N10000 Gas Turbines (23,500KW) + four HMC-NDE100B Diesel Engines.
Shafts: 4
Generators: 10x1000KW HGEC 1500 Naval Series
Weaponry: 2x25inch Cannons in Four turrets
20x 10inch Cannons in Ten turrets
12x CIWS Phalanx
4x Mk.20 25mm ETC Cannon's
10x RIM-116 Mounts
VLS: 1x Mk.41 V-Cell (64 Cells aft)
130xCruise Missile (BGM-109/Imsdal)
42x RIM-7PTC
42x RIM-7M
Torpedoes: 6Tubes under water line, four forward, two aft.
Secondary ASW Weapon: 2x HDAC Seeker Depth Charge Launcher's (Ship carries 200 Depth Charges.
Armor: Tungsten/Titanium woven honeycomb. (Max Thickness- 100cm)
Helicopters: 2 SH-60R Sized Aircraft
Crew: 2345


Full Aerial Compliment's will arrive on all ships, One Airwing (Ronald Reagan Class size) total.
We realise that you may not want a ship the size of the Ronald Reagan in your harbor and it could be stationed close to the harbour, it's size alone would make it immensely visible and it would be sure to draw the crowds even if it isn't docked in harbour.

A number of Civilian Ships and Company Representatives will follow the military units to the port to show off new ships, luxury yachts, pleasure cruisers etc. None of the ships will be as large as the military ones, except maybe the Wolf Class which is quite small anyway.


If possible we would also like to put on display a Marine Combat Assault Landing, showing off the Advanced Armoured Amphibious Vehicle, LCAC's, GLCAC's, Assault Ships, Armor and Aircraft. Perhaps a joint operation or something of the sort could be organised for the spectators?

COH

To: Empire of Layerteb
From: Panthean Defense Department

The Panthean Confederation's top military generals would be honored to visit Layerteb during fleet week. We would especially be interested in small patrol boats(for use in rivers), and seacraft capable of making a amphibious assaults.

From: Jack higger, Prime Minister of Defence
Subject: Fleet Week

Dear, Empirer

The Nation of NeoUNSC gracusly accepts your invition to fleet week.
The President and myself will be attending on the yacht Order.
for sercuity purposes i cannot disclose the specs of the ship.
we will also be bringing along a honor guard of 6.
again thank you and we cannot wait to meet in person.


Yours Truly.
Jack Higger, Prime Minister of Defence

OOC: This is the second time in as many minutes I've had to say this to someone.
NeoUNSC, this is Earth II.

We wish to send the John C. Handstand CVN, and the destroyer Liberty and cruiser Foxtrot.

To:EOL

From: Holy Republic of Hawdawg

Re: Fleet Week Participation

We are excited at the prospect of again participating in the grand event known as Fleet Week. We have decided to bring forth our crowning accomplishment for the year The Mexia Class Battlecruiser for prominent display. We may elect to add a few more designs, pending clearance from the necessary departments.

Rear Admiral Joseph Hines
Holy Republic of Hawdawg, DoD

Official Communique to Cotland

The Empire would be pleased to have the Cottish Realm attend this years' events. There is an air segment planned, just like last year, and will involve mock dogfights, aerobatics, and other demonstrations. Most of these will be done in or around Ellis Island and Liberty Island.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs

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

Official Communique to Hirgizstan

We are pleased to announce that all ships will be allowed passage into New York Harbor and they will be berthed on the western edges of the harbor. An aerial segment will be present if you wish to attend/participate in it. In so far as your Marine assault is concerned, it is more than acceptible and we shall make arrangements for that to happen, perhaps against a coastline in Staten Island where we can be sure of no civilians.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs

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

Official Communique to The Confederation of Pantheaa

The Empire will be more than pleased to have your attendance at our Fleet Week.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs

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

Official Communique to The Liberal Democratic Republic of Brydog

We would be honored to have you in attendance and we would just like to get some basic specifications on your ships (dimensions and displacement) to ensure that they are recieved and placed properly.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs

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

Official Communique to Hawdawg

As always the Holy Republic of Hawdawg is more than welcomed into the waters of the Empire. We look forward to seeing you there.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs

General International Press Release

For her first Fleet Week attendance, the Cymrean Navy will be sending her flagship, ICS Leviathan, a Valiant-class trimaran supercarrier.

In addition to the hourly tours of the flagship, Screaming Lizard Squadron, from among Leviathan's compliment of 188 F-63K Tengriys, will also be granting civilian ride-along flights to those attendees who apply for and pass Cymrean security checks.

With no need to include the weapons officers at Fleet Week, qualified civilians can sit in tandem with some of the finest Cymrean pilots and experience the gut-churning exhilaration of flying in one of the most advanced naval fighters in the world. For free!


Ever in service,

Gareth Rhys,
Consul Legatus of Cymrea
25 Maius MMVI

To Layarteb

Information for Fleet Week:



The ships that will be taking part in the fleet week festivities have already set sail from Ireland and are named as follows:

HNS Ronald Reagan (Ronald Reagan Class Supercarrier)

HNS Hirgizstan (Missouri Class Battleship)

HNS Philip H. Sheridan (Wolf Class Air Defense Frigate)


Ships of the CHMC will also be participating in the Fleet Week as you know. The 1st Regiment, 3rd Marine Division will take part in its entireity. Below is the enclosed outline of the entire Regiment which will travel via ship to the point from where it will begin the staged beach assault. The single Torrent Class Arsenal Ship will dock with the naval ships outlined above, and one of the Wasp Class ships will also do the same once the staged assault has been completed. It would be excellent if an assault could be staged with an EOL Marine Regiment of another TOA nation's, to provide a real spectacle for the crowds watching.

1st Regiment, 3rd Marine Division:

8000 Regular Marines
20 M1A5
10 LAAV-25
250 AAAV
50 HMMWV
50 5T Truck (HEMMTT)
100 C-380
5 ST-29K2
5 ST-39K1H
50 MV-87KG
10 LAV-AG
50 GLCAC
50 LCAC

COH

[OOC: I'm assuming it's OK if I RP the arrival]

The Lord class amphibious assault vessel HMS 'Varanger' sailed gently towards Layarteb City, escorted by the Morrigan class guided missile cruiser HMS 'Bergen', the Wallace class destroyer HMS 'Petter Tordenskjold', the County class air defense destroyer HMS 'Olav Simonsen' and the two Bullfinch class frigates HMS 'Senja' and HMS 'Sveio'. Fifty nautical miles behind the first group, the Coronation class battleship HMS 'Harald Haarfagre' and its escort, the Princess class battlecruiser HMS 'Eidsvoll' sailed. The crews aboard mighty Cottish ships were busy scrubbing the decks, polishing the guns and making sure everything was as if it was new. Fresh coats of paint were being applied where necessary, the uniforms of the sailors and officers were being cleaned and checked, and the colors were being prepared.

Fifty nautical miles off Layarteb City, the first group slowed and started circling while they waited for the other two ships. They intended to sail into Layarteb City as one group, displaying the best of the Royal Cottish Navy. Two hours after the first ships arrived, the two last vessels arrived and the group could start moving towards Layarteb City.

Due to the close bonds with Layarteb, the Cottish ships were allowed passage almost instantly. As they moved past the twenty-four nautical mile territorial waters border, all offensive systems aboard the ships were deactivated. All the ships had on that emitted anything was the navigational radars, sonars and the normal systems. With the crews preparing for shoreleave in the capital of one of the largest nations in the world, morale was high.

At eight thirty in the morning, the vessels steamed into Layarteb City port in a leisurly five knots, guided in by coastal pilots and tugboats to help move the massive ships around inside the harbor. As the ships were about to pass the castle on Governors Island, the orders went over the intercoms for the crews to man the railings and flight-deck. Within seconds, sailors dressed in navy blue uniforms appeared along the starboard side of the ships while the flag in the masts were lowered to half post as a salute to Layarteb City. Though invisible to the naked eye of people standing on land, the crew saluted the castle and its inhabitant as they passed by.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/USS_Iwo_Jima%3B10080709.jpg
HMS 'Varanger' entering Layarteb City harbor. A CH-53N Super Stallion II is visible on flight deck.

With the passing of the castle over and done with, the eight Cottish vessels proceeded to their designated piers and moored themselves. All the ships were moored by half past nine. Pleased, the commanding officer of the HMS 'Harald Haarfagre' disembarked his ship and walked towards the Layartebian official waiting at the pier. The viseadmiral [Vice Admiral] was dressed in a Class A uniform, with a white officers cap with a lot of golden leaves on the brim of the cap while the navy blue officers jacket had one very wide golden stripe at the bottom of the sleeve and two smaller golden stripes directly above the large stripe. The top stripe was topped with a noose, displaying his rank. [OOC: Go here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=11023331&postcount=8) and scroll down to Norway to see how it looks like]. On the left side of his chest, five rows of medals, the so-called medal salad sat, displaying his decorations. He had among others a War Cross (the highest medal one can achieve in the Royal Cottish Military) and Silver Star, medals he had gained over his thirty-six years in the Navy. Now, the sixty-year old admiral saluted the Layartebian official.

"Request permission to dock?" he asked in accented English while eyeing the person.

[OOC: Link to ship specs (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=484448)]

To: Empire of Layarteb
From: Squornshelan Naval Department

We will be happy to once again participate in Fleet Week. While our fleet is mostly busy with errands at home and abroad, we will be able to send what we hope will be a very impressive vessel. The newly completed SSN-641, the first of its class, is scheduled to depart for its maiden voyage and shakedown cruise. We would love to have it stop in at Fleet Week to show the world our newest submarine.

http://www.btinternet.com/~warship/Today/fasm2.JPG
SSN-641 Petropavlovsk
length-425 ft
beam-40 ft
power plant-RN-15 Nuclear reactor, three 50,000 hpw SMV-13 diesel engines, single screw
"silent" speed-23 knots
max speed-40 knots
max operating depth-1600 ft
crush depth-1750 ft
sonar-bow mounted passive/active sonar dome
-lateral hydrophones (navigation)
-passive/active towed array
armament-8 tubes forward and 2 tubes aft for Spearfish torpedo or Harpoon Anti-ship missile
-10 vertical tubes for cruise missiles
crew-135 (13 officers 122 enlisted)

To Neuvo Rica

The Empire will accept your ships into our ports as well as your aviation squadron. We do request some basic specifications on your ships (displacement and dimensions) so that we may further accomodate them.

Thank You.



Contact:
To:The Empire of Layarteb
From:The Neuvo Rican Empire

The Neuvo Rican war office is in the process of drawing up a list of naval units to attend the fleet week. We will be sure to contact you in the very near future with further details.

Contact:
To:Layarteb

We have drawn up plans for the units attending this momentous occasion. We plan to send the following - which have already been put to sea.

1) MNRS Belem
Ship Type: Assault Cruiser

http://sig.megapass.net/club/home1/archives/ALBUM/180_photo.gif

Aviation: Two MH-53E Special Forces Support Helicopters
Size: 187 metres long, 18 metres wide, 6.7 metres draft.
Displacement (tons):13,000 full load.

2) MNRS Constellation
Ship Type: Amphibious Carrier

http://www.hazegray.org/features/cole/tarawa01.jpg

Aviation:4 Harrier GR.9NR, 8 CH-46, 4 MH-53E, 2 Mi-28MNR
Size: 254 metres long, 40 metres wide, 7.8 metres draft
Displacement (tons): 40,000 full load.


As requested, all weapons systems shall be disabled.

OOC: BRYDOG: How can you send any Navy ships when your Government spends nothing at all on Defense? (An thus by definition, you can't have an armed forces?)

I will post my ships arrival today or tomorrow.

OOC- i kind of wonder if any of the Hirg units are combat veterns of the Panthean Campagin. If so it would be interesting seeing Panthean officers close up with Hirgizstan forces.

OOC: I didn't deploy any Naval/Marine forces in Pantheaa. There are a couple of Army units on board the Marine ships to show off some new weaponry. They could be Vet's, what would happen though?

Nothing is going to happen i was just wondering.

Super-power will be sending one of its new state-of-the-art Reinforce (http://www.mahq.net/Mecha/gundam/v/reinforcejr.jpg)-Junior dualpurpose naval/orbital mobile suit carriers. With it, we will be sending a small compliment of Z Plus A1 (http://www.animegalleries.net/albums/userpics/52645/MSZ-006A1.jpg) transformable aerial fighters.

Did you ever stop and think what the words [Earth II] stood for?

OOC: Delete the above as well please.

I will be RPing my ships entering the port when Lay gets back.

OOC: Approval to all ships and requests.

I'll have something more in a few days.

New York Harbor, Insurmountable Empire of Layarteb.


The three Hirgizstanian had been travelling across the Atlantic for a few days, finally arriving past the Statue of Liberty just after noon on the fourth day. The COH flags were fluttering proudly from every mast on every ship and every gangway was packed full of crisp white clad sailors standing rigidly to attention as their ships entered the port.

There were already a multitude of other Naval ships from several other countries and there were already throngs of people turned out for Fleet Week. Now they got to see the two biggest ships of the week, the HNS Ronald Reagan and the HNS Hirgizstan. All the combat systems on the ships had been turned off before they had entered territorial waters, but the crowds didn't care.

The ships trailed into port at a steady pace of around 5 Knots. A gaggle of coastal pilots and giant tugboats helped the ships to slide into their moorings. The pilot of the Ronald Reagan Class Carrier expertly helped the gigantic ship into dock, each pilot of these mighty ships was either a pilot from an Improved Nimitz Class or an OTT Class Transport, they were experts.

It took around an hour for the three ships to dock up. The crews now disembarked to stand in front of their vessels. A veritable army of sailors, over 12,000 stood in front of the Ronald Reagan, the crowds gazing in stunned wonder behind barriers. They would be allowed aboard in the next few days, they would gaze in wonder along the flight deck, gaze out from the truly immense ship, dwarfing the next largest ships in dock. Or they would board the Hirgizstan, the Missouri Class Battleship, and marvel at the sheer size of the 25 inch guns. And the people might well finish on the Philip H. Sheridan to see the technology of the future. Fleet Week would be one helluva good time.

Fleet Week 2006 Comes to Layarteb City
Janice Cooleride
Senior Editor

(Layarteb City) - Fleet Week 2006 has arrived! With the shadow of the amazing success of last years' Fleet Week, 2006 promises to be even better, with much more to see and do.

The traditional Fleet Week, for Layarteb City, has been going for 19 years now and it is probably one of the best week-long events in the city all summer. It starts on a Monday and continues until Sunday. Days are characterized by tourists, tourists, sailors, tourists, and sailors. Exhibits from around the world are put on show for the whole world to see. Destroyers, cruisers, submarines, frigates, and aircraft carriers line New York Harbor from as far south as Brooklyn to as far north as the Bronx. Ships from all over the world are given entry for this monumentous week of fun. Leaders of the world meet and greet on the warships of their allies and adversaries. Then, at night, when the sun goes down, the parties begin. Benefits, fundraisers, and excluse guest-list parties spill throughout the city, fireworks and alcohol galore.

This year will feature, from the Imperial Layartebian Navy, the premier cruisers, destroyers, and frigats of our fleets, the mighty Enterprise CVN aircraft carrier, Earthquake battleship, Heretic, Indefatigable, and Unforgiven escorts, and so much more. Aerial displays will fill the harbors with mock dogfights and aerobatics. Marines will put on landing demonstrations on Staten Island and everything will be photographed by over a million people, some amateurs, some professionals.

Currently affirmed to attend this coming Monday are the countries of Hirgizstan, Neuvo Rica, Cotland, Pantheaa, Hawdawg, Cymrea, and Squornshelous. The Minister of Foreign Affairs expects that list to triple by the time Monday comes around. Many ships are already on their way from various points around the world and this year promises to be nothing short of spectacular! Come out and enjoy the fun and remember, ladies, sailors.

You could but then again you wouldn't be able to. [check thread title]

ooc: Some people just don't learn...


ic:

The two Neuvo Rican ships attending the event had their weapon systems switched off. Ammunition for the guns was left with a supply ship in international waters to the south, whilst on the deck of the Constellation the Harriers were fitted with dummy missiles, solely for visual effect.

First into the harbour was the MNRS Belem, an assault cruiser something fairly new to naval warfare. Designed to offload marines whilst providing fleet air defense, the vessel would normally be armed to the teeth. The small marine contingent onboard would be used for drill displays later on in the week, and for any other activities they were needed in.

Then came the MNRS Constellation, an amphibious assault carrier. Capable of deploying VSTOL fighters and also a significant number of helicopters. The large ship one of 28 such carriers in service with the Marinha Neuvo Ricano.

OOC: Seriously, are people getting worse? It says 'Earth II' in big black letters before the title of the damm thread. I mean WTF?

IC:

As the three Naval ships for display were docking in their places, out at sea the ships of the seven ships of the 1st Regiment, 3rd Marine Division were cruising steadily out at sea, nearing New York harbor. They were to prepare for an assault on Staten Island with the Imperial Layartebian Marines.

The seven ships were waiting on their marching orders from the EOL.

OOC:Is it too late for me to get involved?

OOC:Is it too late for me to get involved?

No.

OOC:Should I RP my stuff arriving or should I have my guys ask? (I'm only sending two ships)

As the Battlecruiser HMS Mainstay pulled into Layarteb City Harbor the usual customs for docking in a friendly foreign sea port took place. All of the powerful fire control systems were brought down and only the radar associated with navigation was left on. As the tugs slowly nudged the HMS Mainstay towards the docks crews further prepared for visitors along the docks by sealing all classified areas by locking hold doors and preparing the necessary seamen for tours. After what seemed like an hour the Mainstay was properly berthed next to her TOA allies. Capt. Sobel addressed the men before they were assigned to there respective duties on the tour.

Capt. Sobel: "Men we are here as guests of the EOL. Maintain behavior fitting of a Hawdawg Seaman. Do not disappoint me. Your goal this week is to proudly display the HMS Mainstay as the newest Battlecruiser design in our Fleet. You are all skilled in the techinical workings of this vessel. Any questions asked about armament, powerplants, communication may be answered. Questions specific to our fire control and advanced threat capabilities are off limits. Just respond with "I am not allowed to say". Our small detachment of marines have been posted at our sensitive areas. They will spell each other on duties. All men will wear parade uniforms throughout the week. Keep this vessel clean at all times. We will have work detail one hour after the tours close to maintain the upmost cleanliness of this vessel. Is this understood?"

All Sailors and Marines: "Sir, yes sir!"

Capt. Sobel: "Very well. Dismissed."


Men scurried to assigned positions as the longshoremen attached the boarding steps the HMS Mainstay. Soon the public would be pouring on board and the vessel was ready to accept these guests wholeheartedly. A two man Marine guard stood at the steps to welcome guests and direct anyone to a specific area of request.

To: The Empire of Layarteb
From: United Federation of Eurasia

The Eurasian Government request to partake, in the Fleet Week actives in your nation capital. We ask permission to send the pride of Eurasian Sub Fleet, E.S.S Istanbul (Shark Class SSBN) to your capital.

OOC: sorry, im late. Here's the stats for the Calcome, the John C. Handstand's stats I can't locate, but it's a lenghting Nimiz class CVN.

Calcome-class CGN
Power Plant: Two N5C Stevens & Halifax nuclear reactors,
two shafts, 60,000 shp
Length Overall Length: 596 ft
Waterline Length: 570 ft
Beam Extreme Beam: 61 ft
Waterline Beam: 60 ft
Draft Maximum Navigational Draft: 32 ft
Draft Limit: 23 ft
Displacement Light Displacement: 10373 tons
Full Displacement: 11320 tons
Speed: 45 plus knots
Aircraft: UH-60U Sea Defender
Armament: AIM-56G Surface Launched Anti-Aircraft Missile(SLAAM)
ASROC
8 - Harpoon (from two Mk141 quad launchers)
4 - MK 75 torpedoes (from fixed single tubes)
2 - Mk45 5-inch/54 caliber lightweight gun
2 - 20mm Phalanx CIWS
Combat Systems: ASR-40 Air Search Radar
ASR-48 3D Air Search Radar
SSR-67 Surface Search Radar

SSS-26 Sonar [bow mounted]

Weapon Systems
1 Mk14 Weapon Direction System
2 Mk74 Missile Fire Control System
1 Mk86 Gun Fire Control System
1 Mk114 ASW Fire Control System
4 FCS-51 Radars

Crew: 40 Officers, 544 Enlisted

OOC: Brydog, you spend £0 on defense, how can you have any naval vessels?

Government Surplus is my military funding.

OOC: Seems a bit strange.

[OOC: OK, just so I have it written up somewhere.]

[Cottish Personell]
Naval Personell: 5,201
Marines: 2,316
Civilian officials: 289
[Ships]
Lord class LHD: 1 [HMS 'Varanger' [L 75]]
Coronation class BBGN: 1 [HMS 'Harald Haarfagre' [B 14]]
Princess class CBN: 1 [HMS 'Eidsvoll' [C 32]]
Morrigan class CGN: 1 [HMS 'Bergen' [C 194]]
Wallace class DDG: 1 [HMS 'Petter Tordenskjold' [D 124]]
County class DDG: 1 [HMS 'Olav Simonsen' [D 210]]
Bullfinch class FFH: 2 [HMS 'Senja' [F 316]; HMS 'Sveio' [F 384]]
Trimere class Royal Yacht: (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=481749) 1 [HMS 'Cotland' [Z 02]]
[Aircraft]
AH-92B Stalker: 8
Boeing 747-400ER (Layarteb Int'l Airport): 1
F-43A Wasp: 6
H-53N Super Stallion II: 2
H-86A Merlin: 12
H-86B Merlin: 10
UH-95A Huey II: 2

The interiors of the HMS 'Varanger' were rather hectic at the moment. Sailors dressed in their navy blue Class-A uniforms and Marines dressed in their black Class-A uniforms milled around the ship while the junior officers and senior non-commissioned officers made sure that everything was set for visitors. Signs with "Restricted Area" written in both Cottish and English were placed at doors and corridors where the visitors weren't to be allowed access, which was actually quite a bit of the ship. Still, more than sixty percent of the ship could be open for the crowds to watch and marvel at. The last of the cleaning of the corridors and such was being completed, mostly by the youngest enlisted while the NCOs supervised (read: stood nearby and talked with eachother, occationally giving the enlisted a "hurry up").

While the washing was being completed, things were happening on the flightdeck. A few F-43A Wasp tactical fighters were being rolled out and placed on display along with several helicopters of all kinds. Merlins, Stalkers, Huey IIs and Super Stallion IIs were placed around the deck with members of their aircrews nearby, ready to explain the role and missions of the particular type of aircraft.

On the middle section of the flightdeck next to the fore part of the superstructure of the vessel, roughly thirty sailors and officers were placing out tables and chairs, making a café for the visitors to be able to purchase coffee, tea, soft drinks, ice cream and hotdogs for a cheap price and relax while watching the many things to see there. They had a stunning view to boot as well. The café would be run by personell from the many galleys of the vessel. The Cots had literally thousands of cans of soft drinks and hundreds of litres of good Colombian coffee ready to be made. Hotdogs were on the barbecue, and the ice cream was in the portable freezers. Everyting was set.

At the entrypoint for the tourists on the pier, information boards had been established at the gangways of all the Cottish ships, giving basic information on the ships. Their name, registry, dimensions, aircraft, crew. That sort of thing. Two sailors manned each gangway, welcoming people aboard with a smile. The Cots weren't sure how the other nations participating did it, but they weren't going to charge anything for admission, the guided tours, etc. All the visitors would have to pay for would be the beverages or snacks they could purchase at the café on the flightdeck/helideck. All the Cottish ships had established cafés on the ships. The destroyers and frigates had them on the helideck, the LHD on the flightdeck, and the battleship and battlecruiser on the aft gundeck. By 10:00, the gangways were opened for the public, and Marines took up strategic positions, guarding the vital areas.

While the people were allowed on the bridge, CIC, hangar- and flightdecks, et cetra on guided tours, Marines were going to be watching every step they made. If anyone strayed into a restricted (and thus CCTV-covered) area, a pair of Marines armed with pistols would be there within a minute to politely inform the person in question that they had entered a restricted area and escort them back to the guided tour-group. If it was a child found to be roaming the ship alone, it would be taken care of (most likely given free ice cream and soda and stuff at the café) until the parents could be located. In short, the Cots were going to act as they always did: politely and friendly. The first foreign visitors were expected any second now...

50 feet under the North Atlantic Ocean, a long black shape slid through the water, making its way southward. The Petropavlovsk had just completed one week of shakedown exercises in and aroudn Hudson Bay, after being launched from the shipyards at Anchorage, Alaska. After a quick check in at a small base in Squornshelan Canada, she had proceeded through the Hudson Strait and around the tip Newfoundland, over the Grand Banks. From there, she had proceeded down the coast toward Layarteb City.

As the ship neared the approach to the harbor, her commander began to issue orders.
"Sonar give me one ping to ensure we have clear water around us, Diving Officer, prepare to surface the ship."
"Sir, closest contact is a merchie about 20 miles south-southwest, we have clear water."
"Good, secure active sonar, Diving Officer, take us up."
"Ten degrees up on the planes."

The submarine emerged out of the waves, water breaking over her bow and rolling back along the deck toward the sail, the number 641 was painted in white on the each side. As the ship cut through the water, continuing on its course for the channel into New York Harbor, the commander handed off the conn to his XO and went up to the bridge with a few other officers and enlisted.

Vasili Korolev, the most enviable man in the Squornshelan navy, was probably also its most proud. Not only had he been given command of the first of Imperium's newest attack submarine class, something reserved for its most successful captain, he was being given the chance to show it off to the world.

A phone attatched underneath a waterproof covering rang and blinked its little rad light. Korolev picked it up and spoke,
"Yes?"
"We have contacted the Layartebian Port Authority, and we are cleared to enter the harbor, they will send out a harbor pilot to bring us in."
"Very well, continue."

Shortly later, after the harbor pilot, directing the ship from the bridge, brought the Petropavlovsk safely past the hidden shoals and shallows, the submarine drifted to a stop in her designated berth, and tied up to the dock.

Fleet Week Event Roster

Foreign Participants
Commonwealth of Hirgizstan

HNS Hirgizstan (Missouri Class Battleship)
HNS Philip H. Sheridan (Wolf Class Air Defense Frigate)
HNS Ronald Reagan (Ronald Reagan Class Supercarrier)


Dominion of Cymrea

ICS Leviathan (Valiant Class CVN)


Holy Republic of Hawdawg

HMS Mainstay (Mexia Class BC)


Islamic Unionist Federated states of Khailfah Al Muslimeen

E.S.S Istanbul (Shark Class SSBN)


The Confederation of Pantheaa

Small Patrol Craft


The Holy Empire of Doomingsland

The Imperium of Squornshelous

SSN-641 Petropavlovsk (SSN)


The Liberal Democratic Republic of Brydog

Foxtrot (Calcome Class CGN)
John C. Handstand (CVN)
Liberty (DDG)


The Neuvo Rican Empire

MNRS Belem (Assault Cruiser)
MNRS Constellation (Amphibious Carrier)


The Realm of Cotland

HMS Bergen (Morrigan Class CG)
HMS Eidsvoll (Princess Class CBN)
HMS Harald Haarfagre (Coronation Class BBGN)
HMS Olav Simonsen (County Class DDG)
HMS Petter Tordenskjold (Wallace Class DD)
HMS Senja (Bullfinch Class FFH)
HMS Sveio (Bullfinch Class FFH)
HMS Varanger (Lord Class LHD)


Fleet Week was about to begin and everything was set. The Hirgizstani element had one of the main piers on the western part of Manhattan Island. Next to them was Cymrea, Hawdawg, and Khailfah Al Muslimeen. On other side of the island was Pantheaa and Squornshelous. Doomingsland, Brydog, the Neuvo Rican Empire, and Cotland would all occupy the southern portions. Though a North Germanian contingent was expected, they had not arrived yet though they would get the western portion as well.

The Layartebians would be putting on the biggest show. They would be displaying the Dnalkrad Class FFGN, Heretic Class FFGN, Indefatigable Class DDGN, Unforgiven Class CGN, and Verrazano Class DDKN all around the same area, on the southwestern portion of the island. On the southeastern portion would be the Falcon City LHDN, Mexia Class BCGN, and Ynoga Class CVLN. Marines from both the ILN and the Hirgizstani navy would be putting on a demonstration on Staten Island. Helicopters would be putting on displays in the harbor. In addition, F-16G Super Falcons, F-22A Raptors, and F-39A Tengriys would be all putting on aerobatics shows and mock dogfights. Lastly, the biggest show would be the Earthquake Class BBGN parked on the eastern side of the island with the Enterprise Class CVN.

All of the displays would be open Monday through Saturday. Fireworks would be Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday nights and the largest of parties would be Thursday night at the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel, the Emperor's favorite hotel in the city. The ceremony would kick off with the Emperor giving a speech on the deck of the Falcon City LHDN to a large crowd of sailors. He would give several other speeches throughout the course of the week, one to civilians, one to leaders of other states, and various others. Fleet Week was a time for the Imperial Layartebian Navy to not only outshine the entire world but also to enjoy much needed R & R.

The sun was already beating down on the vast city as the first people arrived in the early morning, probably just after having breakfast somewhere nearby. As the morning turned into afternoon the crowds swelled, until there were hundreds, probably thousands of people thronging the ports and displays. There would be a week of this, it was only Monday.

The three Hirgizstanian Naval ships sat along behind each other on a long stretch of the vast harbor. On the HNS Philip H. Sheridan a lone SH-60F helicopter sat on the rear deck, and makeshift chairs and tables were being set out around it as a sort of Cafe and rest area. Sailors milled about, working to get the ship ready for visitors, marking off restricted areas and organising sailors for tour guides. The crews on the other two ships were doing basically the same thing. On the Ronald Reagan a number of cafe areas were being set up and the main dining hall was being plastered with posters and memorabalia stalls, as well as being decked out for people to have a meal. Panes were being brough up from their hangars, a couple of F-78's, five versions of the F-18's, and various other planes as well as a few helicopters.

The gun turrets on the Hirgizstan were being moved around, some turned out toward the buildings on the other side of the port, others lowered so kids and adults could look right up the barrel.

The first people began to arrive around 10am and were greeted by Hirgizstanian Sailors on the gangways, a curt nod and a smile to each person, and they were handed leaflet's with information on each ship. Some people just stopped and gaped in awe at the Ronald Reagan, standing in its vast shadow, trying in vain to capture it all in a photograph.

In the shadow of the Ronald Reagan a platoon of Marines from the 1st Regt/3rd Mar Div. were setting up a number of stalls around a pair of AAAV's. Information would be presented on weapons, equipment and rides in the AAAV's for kids would be given. The Marines would also give out information on when and where the Marine Assault would take place. (OOC: Probably the second last day.)

As the sun got hotter the crowds got larger, Fleet Week would be one helluva good time.

[OOC: Does the heading [Earth II] mean that this RP is for Earth II members only? Yes, it does. Are you an Earth II member? No, you aren't. Does that mean that you can participate? No, it means that you cannot participate in this RP since you're not an Earth II member. Learn to read, stop cluttering it and go away. Please. Thank you.]

Standing on the narrow deck in front of the bridge, high upon the island, Commodore Tawny Geminus Spain inhaled deeply, tasting the warm morning air. Her strawberry-blond hair was tightly woven into a short braid and her eyes - jade, with flecks of gold - surveyed the steel and glass horizon. Off to starboard, the Statue of Liberty raised her eternal flame. It seemed to Spain that the great lady was saluting. The commodore saluted her back.

All around her sprawled the vast flight deck of her ship, ICS Leviathan, as much a shining and fearsome monster as her namesake. Spain had been one of the best naval pilots in the country for nearly two decades, and when Leviathan was commissioned, no one had questioned her promotion to the flagship of the Cymrean navy and command of the Primus Fleet.

The trimaran supercarrier had raced down the Pacific Ocean from Port Azuria, rounded the tip of South America, and raced back up the Atlantic to the Layartebian capital - Leviathan was much too large for the Panama Canal. Now, she sailed serenely into the harbour at Layarteb City, the proud representative of the Imperial Roman Dominion of Cymrea.

On the broad deck stood a number of CF-63B Scimitars (http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f18/Chancellor_Rune/Nationstates/F-63k.jpg), a slight gleam coaxed from their dull grey camouflage paint. At the prow, every off-duty crewman she could safely fit were standing at attention in their blue dress uniforms (http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f18/Chancellor_Rune/Nationstates/CymreanDressUniform.jpg), saluting with white gloves every sixty seconds. Spain had wanted to have a trio of Scimitars lead her in with black, white, and blue smoke trails - the colours of Cymrea's flag - but she the Ministry of Defence had dragged their asses and it was probably too late, now. An idea did occur to her, though.

"Commodore?"

At the sound of the familiar deep voice, Spain turned to find Leviathan's commanding officer, Captain Rhys-Quintus.

"Yes, Captain?"

"We've received our berthing instructions and tugs are coming alongside now." Rhys-Quintus smiled. "We're positioned between Hirgizstan and Hawdawg."

Spain brightened at that. "That's good news. Have Ensign Povius send an invitation to all the captains and first mates of their ships to dine at my table this evening, and have him start putting together a schedule that includes invitations to all the other captains and any invitations we receive."

"Aye, sir." Rhys-Quintus turned back toward the bridge.

"Oh, and Captain?"

"Yes, Commodore?"

"Send a communique to Layartebian authorities about the possibility of fly-overs this week. Make all the proper agreements about no ordnance over civilian areas, etcetera."

"Aye, sir."

The Imperial Navy, with the possibility of several wars in the Pacific proping up, was somewhat hesistant to spare any ships for Fleet Week. Of course, after the Carthaginian War, they could use all of the positive PR they could. Especialy since they alone were responsable for some ten or so million deaths in Neo-Babylon.

They had decided to spare but one vessel for Fleet Week. However, it was none the less an impressive craft. A newly commisioned Imperator-class CVBN, or, as many preferred to call this particular breed of warship, Battle Carrier.

It was essentialy an old Legionnaire-class trimaran command dreadnaught that recieved a refit, doing away with a large portion of its secondary armament for space for runway and hangar space. It was a highly survivable and lethal craft, sporting two tripple mounts of twenty-inch electro-thermal chemical cannons along with an assortment of smaller weapons, in addition to its complement of ninety or so aircraft.

The DIS Imperator was the vessel coming to Fleet Week, the first of her class. Marines and sailors were arrayed about the deck in perfect formation, all meticulously clad in their black uniforms with golden trimmings. The Marines had their rifles shouldered and stood like statues while the sailors stood at perfect attention.

Information was still being exchanged with the Layartebians in terms of when flyovers would be allowed and what would be allowed in terms of display of ground equipment. The Marines had brought with them a complement of vehicles to be displayed for the public, including the new Caesar IV main battle tank, and their small arms and other equipment would also be proudly shown to the public along with data on the specifications and use of the weapons and firsthand accounts of their use in combat by the Marines.

The Aquila Air Superiority Fighter would also make a show of itself during Fleet Week as it had during the Carthaginian War, in which it successfully annihilated the enemy airforce without a single loss in the initial conflict.

If permitted by the Layatebians, the Marines would make a mock surgical strike with their Banshee II transport VTOLs to demonstrate the tactics of this elite fighting force. And of course, tours of the Imperator would be given out to the public.

Fleet Week was sure to be fun for both the public and the navy.

Commodore Spain resumed her reverie as the captain returned to the bridge to execute her orders. Her eyes fell down to the flight deck, where the parade-resting sailors, soldiers, and pilots were saluting again. They all wore the same imperial blue dress uniforms, with white belts and shining silver buckles, black trousers, gleaming black shoes, and white gloves. Regardless of branch or occupation, all Cymrean military personnel wore the same dress uniform. The Cymrean Armed Forces were unified force. They were all one, and all for the Emperor. Cymrea - the new Sparta of the Roman Empire.

Spain took one last lusty breath of fresh air, then headed back onto the bridge. As she stepped inside, she noted with satisfaction just how little had actually changed in preparation for Fleet Week. Leviathan was ready for public viewing, to be sure, but the flagship rarely required much extra effort to stay in peak condition. On Commodore Spain's boat, every week was Fleet Week.

A tall young lieutenant stopped in front of her. "Commodore?"

"Yes lef-tenant, what is it?"

"We just received word that the dominion of Doomingsland has sent a delegation as well."

Spain nodded. "I thought they might. Inform Ensign Povius to include our imperial brothers and sisters on the dining schedule for this evening."

"Aye, sir."

As the lieutenant left the bridge, Spain turned her attention to the helm, and the slender officer at the wheel. "How are the tugs managing, Commander?" Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Fey was her best helmsman.

"Very well, Commodore. The Layartebian pilots certainly know how to push boats around their harbour."

"I expected nothing less. By all accounts this event is truly world-class," Spain replied with a small smile. "I'm going to check on the aircraft. Captain Rhys-Quintus, you have the Con."

The twelve Cottish pilots were ready for their first flight abroad in the new fighters. The twelve F-16G Super Falcon multi-role tactical fighters sitting on the tarmac outside the small building were specially painted and ready for this mission. The planes were armed with two AMRAAMs on the wingtips for stability and coolness as well as a 1,400-litre fueltank underneath the fusilage for sufficient fuel to make it to Layarteb City and beyond. The oberstløytnant in command of the newly formed Squadron 330 (RCAF) looked at his men one last time before nodding to them. A major got up and called out "Giiiv akt!" [Aten-hut!], making the other ten officers, all of them holding the rank of either kaptein or løytnant getting up and assuming the basic position in respect of their commanding officer. After having his men standing in that position for about ten seconds, the oberstløytnant nodded and said "Tre av. Bemann flyene deres." [Dismissed. Man your planes.], spurring the officers to get out and walk up to their individual F-16s.

After a quick walk-around where they made sure that there were no things on the planes that shouldn't be there or any such thing, the pilots climbed into the planes and started preparing them for departure. Fifteen minutes later, the first of the twelve F-16s cranked up its afterburner and took off from the 3,600-meter runway at Gros Islet flybase and climbed to twenty thousand feet before entering a holding pattern until they were all assembled. While the fighters waited, they topped their fueltanks from a waiting KC-10D Extender over the Atlantic Ocean. As soon as everything was set, they climbed to fourty-five thousand and started flying towards Layarteb City nearly two thousand kilometers away. At 500 knots, it would take them more than two hours to reach Layarteb City. Still, when they did, they were scheduled for a flyover at the docks and naval vessels, showing off their new paint job. The tourists and naval personell were guaranteed to love it! Hopefully, the Emperor of Layarteb would too.

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/9720/f165kb.jpg
An F-16G Super Falcon from Squadron 330 (RCAF)

OOC: Cot, not that you mean anything by it, I'm certain, but are you sure Lay would allow foreign military aircraft to fly over his civilians with ordnance? I suppose the question is also indirectly aimed at Lay, as well. I've been to a ton of airshows and none of the aircraft have ever been armed, just as a security precaution.

Thoughts?

[OOC: Already got the go-ahead on AIM to send the fighters. The two AMRAAMs are for self-defense and stability only. I have no intention of using them.

Are anyone going to send people aboard my ships yet? I'm dying to give the tour!]

bump!

OOC: Just want to see what Dooms is sending and if NG wants to go.

ooc: Hmm, I wonder if i can pull my sub out of the harbor fast enough to hit Doom's ships in international waters, or have they already arrived? How far do your territorial waters extend Lay?
Either way, im going to have to withdraw my sub from Fleet Week for the war.


ic:
The Petropavlovsk reeled when the news hit. Squornshelous was at war with Doomingsland in Siberia. She immediately sent a message to the Layartebian authorities and slipped quickly out of her berth. She slipped out of the harbor, submerged and followed the shipping lane out into international waters as quickly as possible. Her orders were to intercept any Doomani ships heading for Fleet Week if possible, and then to proceed with all speed to Malta to rearm and recieve further orders.

ooc: Hmm, I wonder if i can pull my sub out of the harbor fast enough to hit Doom's ships in international waters, or have they already arrived? How far do your territorial waters extend Lay?
Either way, im going to have to withdraw my sub from Fleet Week for the war.

24 nautical miles.

The sun burned high in the sky over Layarteb City. Another beautiful day, perfect for flying. Commodore Spain could not have asked for better weather. The flight deck was a cacophonous maelstrom of steam-powered catapults and roaring jet engines, zinging arresting wires and the controlled crashes of landing aircraft. It was an orchestra of naval aviation, and music to the ears of the fleet commander.

The instrument most prominent in today's symphony was the CF-63B Scimitar, known abroad as the F-63K Tengriy. The Leviathan was making good on her promise to take security-cleared civilians on joyrides in one of the world's most advanced fighters. What had surprised Spain was the sheer number of civilians that applied for clearance...and the smaller, though still significant number who were cleared. The vast majority were Layartebians, which made a kind of sense given their culture. But some were also from Hawdawg, Cotland, Brink, and even insular Bjornoya.

High up in Pri-Fly, the Leviathan's air boss was conducting the orchestra of a dozen aircraft with the unerring skill of a master. While things were running so smoothly, Spain took the opportunity to head down to the hangar. The cavernous area below the flight deck smelled heavily of jet fuel and equipment. Aft of the hangar, the aircraft intermediate maintenance division was hard at work repairing and testing equipment, keeping Leviathan's flight squadrons in impeccable condition. Spain moved forward, inspecting crews and craft at a leisurely pace - more for her own enjoyment than anything.

Forward, an immense elevator was lowering, bearing a Scimitar down into the hangar. Spain's brows furrowed and she chewed her lip a moment before heading to the elevator. This wasn't scheduled, and could only mean that an aircraft had been scratched from the currently active roster, leaving only eleven fighters ferrying civvies. Determined to get instantly to the bottom of this little issue, Spain marched with purpose.

The pilot of the Scimitar in question - Jenkins, she thought - rode the elevator down with his fighter. Spain locked onto him and closed the distance quickly. "Why is this exquisite ambassador of Cymrea being pulled off my flight deck, Centurion?"

Jenkins snapped to attention and saluted before responding. "The second seat is covered, Commodore."

"Covered in what?"

"Um, corn flakes, I think. Sir."

Given the high-performance capabilities of the aircraft and the inexperienced civilians, combined with the irresistable hot-dogging of pilots the world over, this was bound to have happened at some point. Spain made her way up the ladder to the cockpit.

"What about the air-sick bags?" she demanded halfway up.

"I'd say he missed, Commodore," Jenkins replied with a grin.

Spain turned. "Does this amuse you, Centurion? A multi-million aurius aircraft soaked in..." She looked into the cockpit. "...son of a bitch, I think it is corn flakes!"

Centurion Jenkins just could not seem to wipe the grin from his face. Giving up, he asked, "Honestly, sir?"

Whatever diplomatic gains were made flying foreign nationals over the Layartebian capital, there was an understandable reservation pilots had about being vastly overpriced taxis. Spain sighed. "Never mind, Jenkins. Dismissed."

Jenkins hurried off with a thank you that barely covered his mirth. Spain headed back to the bridge. Along the way, she was met by an ensign who informed her that someone had just arrived to see her and was waiting in her office.

"Thank you, Ensign," she said, and made her way to her office.

Captain Rhys-Quintus was already there, proffering a cup of coffee to a bespectacled officer in a naval uniform whose pallid face had a distinctly greenish tinge. The officer held up a tremulous hand and shook his head slightly. Very slightly.

As Spain entered, Rhys-Quintus made introductions. "Commodore, this is Lieutenant Commander James Commodus Finch. Commander Finch, this is Commodore Tawny Geminus Spain."

Finch offered a brave salute given his apparent condition.

"Please, have a seat, Commander. If I may say so, you look less than well. May I offer the services of our sickbay?"

"Mm. No. Thank you, Commodore. I will be fine, I assure you. I made the unfortunate decision to indulge in a flight with one of your pilots before meeting with you." Finch extracted a small chamois from a pocket and began cleaning his glasses.

Spain's lips twitched in a tiny smile. "You had corn flakes this morning, yes?"

Finch looked up and squinted at Spain. "Yes. How did you...oh."

Spain flashed a grin at Rhys-Quintus while Finch replaced his glasses to their normal perch. Not even a civilian, she thought.

"I do apologize most sincerely, Commodore."

"Don't concern yourself with it further, Commander," she waved a hand dismissively. "It happens to the best of us. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

Finch straightened up and cleared his throat. "Ah, yes. I come with a delivery, Commodore. From HQ in Port Azuria." He reached into his coat and pulled out a manila envelope. As he made an effort to stand without swaying, Rhys-Quintus silently offered to take the envelope and pass it to Spain. Finch pulled it closer to him and stood on his own, determined to hand deliver his package.

With a flourish, he presented the envelope to Spain. It was sealed. She took it and, with her miniature-claymore letter opener, made a tidy incision along the top. Inside, there appeared to be some papers and, down at the bottom, something more rigid. She tipped it over and into her hand tumbled two black epaulets bearing a golden laurel wreath and two gold stripes, the rank insignia of a rear admiral. Spain's mouth fell open a little and she looked up at Finch. The Lieutenant Commander was smiling proudly.

"A promotion?" she asked.

Finch nodded. "The Primus Fleet is being expanded somewhat. Its commander should rate better than a mere commodore, so HQ thinks. Congratulations, Admiral." This time, Finch's salute was much crisper. Spain heard a sharp clicking of heels and noticed Rhys-Quintus saluting as well.

A welling of emotion surged in her chest and was expressed with an ear-splitting grin and happy laughter. "Well, thank you, Commander Finch. Thank you very much. I will contact HQ and express my gratitude right away."

"The honour is mine, Admiral."

Rhys-Quintus spoke up. "Won't you join us for lunch, Commander?"

Finch paled discernibly at the mention of food. "No, thank you, Captain. I think I'll take you up on your initial offer of some rest, though, before I head back to Port Azuria."

"Certainly. Let's find you a bunk, shall we?" Rhys-Quintus led the way to the hatch.

"Don't forget we have a dinner scheduled tonight, Captain," Spain called after him.

"Aye, sir."

Spain was left alone for the moment, running her thumb over the new epaulets. Her dinner hosts were expecting a commodore. Tonight, however, they would be dining with Rear Admiral Tawny Geminus Spain.

As morning turned to afternoon the sun only got hotter in the ports. At midday visitors were ushered off the HNS Ronald Reagan. Most stood looking at the mighty ship from the dockside. There was going to be a demonstration of the F-78B and a number of other planes and helicopters would also be shown off during the bright, sunny afternoon.

Two F-78B's were rolled into their TO positions and within seconds the two planes had been catapulted into the sky, and were roaring up into the big blue. They flew low over the city, gaining speed away from the harbor. Then the two planes turned and descended as the harbor came into view, flying low over the water. As they came up on the carrier again, the crowds of people dockside looking in awe, the planes were nearly touching wingtips. They flew out beyond the harbor and split off into the sky.

A few minutes later the roar of the jet engines got louder again as the planes came roaring back into the harbor, flying low. This time one plane was upside down over the top of the other, the cockpits barely an arms length away from each other. The crowds whooped and cheered as the pilots hot-dogged and showed off. Throughout the afternoon F-18's and various helicopters were also shown off, much to the enjoyment of the crowds who, days earlier, had been standing around or sitting inside the aircraft they now saw flying.

OOC-This thread looks really interesting, it's a shame I can't get involved due to my current situation
Huahin regretfully informs the Empire of Layarteb, that due to the war in the Pacific, it is highly unlikely that any Huahinian vessels will be able to attend.

OOC:

Imperator-class CVBN (Battle Carrier)

The Imperator-class Trimaran Battle Carrier is a powerful force that brings an excellent command ship and devastating 20 inch gunfire along with powerful air superiority fighters and medium bombers. In addition, the Imperator is a very powerful coastal bombardment tool in its own right.

Length: 353 m; Beam: 78 m; Draft: 12.9 m

Displacement: 286,712 tons fully loaded

Armament: 8 x 20" inch ETC guns in three triple turrets (A,B, and X positions); 4 x 8 inch naval railguns in single turrets port and starboard; 6 x 6.1 inch ETC guns in single turrets port and starboard; 2 x 48 cell Vertical Launching System; 14 x 37 mm Scutum CIWS

Protection: 21 inches to 26 inches of advanced armor composite (amorphous steel, titanium, aluminum), double-bottomed, reinforced keel with void spaces. Hardened crossbeams installed across bulkheads.

Aircraft: 105 aircraft on two runways (port and starboard). Space available for up to six medium ASW/cargo helicopters/VTOLs. Elevators located in between runways, allowing for greater hangar protection.

Crew: 2,400 plus 250 aircrew

Electronics:

-JERICHO II Fleet Air Defense System
-NRS-5 MFR and NRS-109 navigational radars
-PS-1T passive towed array and DMS-5 dual-mode mounted digital sonar array
-A/P Mounted Sonar: AS-94 active/passive, preformed beam, digital sonar providing panoramic echo ranging and panoramic (DIMUS) passive surveillance
-Praetorium II Theatre Command System

Price: $30 billion

IC:

The Imperial Navy had planned ahead in the event the Squornshelousians tried anything. For one, they knew about the attack on Squornshelous before it even took place. This allowed for them to have the Imperator get into Layartebian waters before the war even broke out. By the time the Petropavlovsk slipped out of the harbor, it was too late.

The Imperator was already well within safe waters and on its way in.

If the Squornshelousians wanted to try something now, they would undoubtedly anger the Layartebians, who were, of course, allies of the Empire. Of course, if they did try something, they would catch the Imperator completely off-guard.

The carrier's air element was mostly arrayed on the twin flight decks, although a few pairs of ACI-73E Aquila air superiority fighters flew mere hundreds of feet above sea level, making supersonic passes along the ship, created a deafening roar. Other than the external racket, there was an eerie silence about the vessel as it slipped into the harbor. There was not a single noise made by the men aboard.

Standing in perfect formation along the sides of the vessel were hundreds of sailors and Marines in dress uniform. It was a solid wall of black, gold, and the shimmering silver glow of the hundreds of bayonets pointed skyward with their rifles. It was an impressive display, indeed. Their faces were like stone; there was not a single smile among them. Their cold eyes stared into the distance towards the land they would soon be docking in.

This would be the last friendly harbor they would see for a very long time. Once fleet week was over, these men would be going off to war.

Standing at the bridge was the vessel's commander, Admiral Decius Curtius, along with his command staff. These men also stood like statues, although no one on shore would have been able to observe them. It simply seemed right to these men, men of discipline.

All of the men on the bridge not currently at work stood at perfect attention as the tub boats took over.

Curtius sighed quietly. He hated these public displays. He was a warrior, not a politician.

He was a solidly-built man of fifty-seven years standing at five-foot ten. His once dark hair had greyed rather early; such was the result of being a sailor in the Imperial Navy. Not much comfort was afforded to that life in comparison to foreign navies. It was arguably one of the most disciplined navies in the world.

His face was scarred, as was the rest of his body. The most noticable of them was a particularly ugly one going from the corner of his right eye all the way across to his nose. He'd earned that one. His uniform was absolutely perfect, not a single wrinkle or piece of dust. His many medals and ribbons made his chest seem as if it glowed. It completely contrasted the rest of his black uniform.

To his right stood his XO, Commander Gnaeus Cassius. This man seemed as if he were a younger version of the admiral. He was slightly taller at six-foot two. Tall for a Doomingslander. This man still had his youth, and was a bit bulkier than his CO. It was often noted that he seemed to act as Curtius' bodyguard, never leaving his side unless it was absolutely nescessary. There was a reason behind it all, however.

The only noise in the room was the soft humming of the electronic equipment and the occasional chattering of a keyboard. A member of a foreign navy coming to visit the bridge in this state would most likely be baffled. It was a cultural thing.

Breaking the silence were footsteps coming from behind the admiral.

"Admiral, we have recieved a message from our Cymrean brothers," a young ensign spoke up from behind his commander.

Curtius turned and Ensign Junius saluted his superior in the typical Imperial stiff-arm salute, which was promptly returned by Curtius. Junius handed a manila envelope to Curtius and immediately snapped to attention.

Curtius didn't hesitate to tear it open and read the contents: An invitation to dinner. When he was finished with it, he looked up and made eye contact with Ensign Junius.

"Send a reply to the good Commodore," he replied neutrally, "My command staff and myself would be delighted to attend," he handed the envelope back to Junius to dispose of. Salutes were exchangned and the ensign promptly walked off to the com room.

With that buisiness over, the bridge returned to its previous state: silence. The festivities would commence soon, and so the silence wasn't going to last much longer.

Edited post.

The Petropavlovsk waited silently out in the North Atlantic for a foe that was not coming. Captain Korolev ordered the ship to antenna depth and had the ELF antenna extended. He transmitted a brief message to Squornshelan submarine command:


Doomani vessel remaining in harbor. Request further orders.


Within minutes, a response came:


Proceed to Malta for rearming. Do not engage enemy vessel within Layartebian waters. Repeat. Do not engage enemy vessel within Layartebian waters. Advise return at completion of Fleet Week to intercept Doomani vessel.


Korolev was not surprised in the least. It would be an enormous blunder to attempt to destroy the Imperator withing the harbor. While it was probably physically possible to do so, the Petropavlovsk would almost certainly be destroyed, and Squornshelous would have probably made an enemy of one of the most powerful nations on earth. The submarine turned East and began the long crossing of the Atlantic. She sould be back in the area in a week to meet the Imperator upon departure.

OOC: Okay everything is approved and set so now I'm going to start this.

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The Emperor stood on the deck of the Falcon City LHDN. In attendance, seated, were no less than 5,000 sailors and Marines. They were flooded around the deck and the tower. Dispersed throughout the crowd were his bodyguards, Force Falcon Team One, led by Brigadier General Delaney. Other cabinet members were sitting behind him along with several of the Joint Chiefs. With video cameras, network microphones, radio microphones, and the attention of the entire Empire upon him, he raised his hands. "Ladies and gentlemen. Sailors. Marines. Soldiers. Citizens!" The crowd roared with applause. "Thank you. Thank you. Today is a great day for the Empire. Today is the day I stand before you and can announce that our Empire is 'COMPLETE!'" The crowd roared again and the Emperor smiled. "Dedication. Sacrifice. Fortitude. Truth. Honor. Integrity. All of these are just a few words I can use. The Imperial Layartebian Military, spearheaded by the Navy and the Marines, have created an Empire so vast it stretches from one side of the North Atlantic to the other and into the Pacific. The Caribbean is our backyard. We are phenomenal. All of you have helped make us a world power of such great proportions that the world trembles at the sound of our name. We are the Empire!" The crowd roared again, nearly standing. "Without the sacrifices of our fighting men, all of you here, this would not be possible. We have more than five and a half billion citizens, nearly five million square miles, and we are the EMPIRE!" The standing ovation was instant this time. "This is Fleet Week. Take this as R & R. You've all deserved it. I've invited world leaders, world ships, and world citizens to our great city for this festive occassion. I will speak to leaders. I will speak to our citizens. I will speak to our guests. There will be one thing that will be taken away from every dialogue. We are insurmountable. Enjoy yourselves ladies and gentlemen. Now is a time for celebration and a celebration we shall have!" The roaring ovation deafened the carrier deck. Not even helicopters and V/STOVL aircraft could be that loud as Fleet Week 2006 commenced.

Throughout the weekend, various naval ships entered the harbor of Layarteb City. Many passed by the Statue of Liberty, errected by the former Republic in the year 1886. It had stood to date and now stood as the same statue with the same meaning. Sailors from the Empire that passed by were required to salute the mighty green beauty and they all did.

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Near New York and Staten Island

The Emperor's speech had been the main spectacle of the day, but now there was another one. The CHMC and Layartebian Marines were scheduled to put on a beach-head assault on the coast of Staten Island.

Hundreds, even thousands of people had gathered along the bridge at Fort Wadsworth and outside Miller Field on newly erected stands. The Assault would take place between Miller Field and the Bridge. The people gathered and peered out into the Lower New York Bay, screwing up their eyes in the sunlight to see the HNS Hastings (Wasp Class LHD), the HNS Mason Lowery (Torrent Class) and the five Giant Class Oil Tanker Transports. The EOL ships, Falcon City Class and Jackal Class Assault ships, stood near to them, at a safe distance to avoid any collisions.

Outside Miller Field a CHMC General was standing on a podium, two giant TitanTron screens behind him, focused on two angles of the Landing Area. On the bridge another two TitanTron Screens had been erected and speakers positioned around it, so the crowd gathered there could see and hear the assault and the General's commentary.

The General first gave a short speech on the history, fighting past and mission of the CHMC. Then a Layartebian Marine Officer took the podium and gave a short speech about their history and operations. He then continued to stand next to the CHMC General as things were about to get under way. The Assault began. At first, seemingly nothing was happening, the crowd talked amongst themselves, speculating as to what was going to happen.

Then, like ghosts from the deep, ten black clad men appeared out of the surf, SCAR's held tight, running quickly up the edges of the beech, four teams of two. 'Bunkers' had been erected on the beach and the soldiers expertly passed them by, stealthily. The General commented, "The men you are seeing are Marine Force Recon, the Corp's own Special Forces. Usually such an assault would be carried out at night. Their mission is to clear the beach of any traps and to infiltrate the beach-head, to destroy any SAM sites or Anti-Aircraft facilities, as you shall see."

Around sixty seconds later four explosions were seen on the top of a number of buildings, right across the beach-head. "That just cleared the way for the Marine Air Units." The General happily commented. A few seconds later the beach was overflown by four JSF-35 aircraft and four AV-8C Harrier III's flying low and fast. As they flew over the beach the eight bunker's stretched along the beach exploded spectacularly. The crowd cheering loudly and whooping as the aircraft turned back toward their ships, shaking their wings at the crowd as they went. The General continued his commentary. "Now that the fly boys have taken out the beach's main defenses, its time for the Force Recon Marines of the 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment. These are the forward element's of the entire Regiment, not to be confused with Marine Force Recon. Today they will be joined by Layartebian Recon Force special forces."

A gigantic CH-53G helicopter swooped in over the Bay and swept down from the Bridge, dropping Marines from the open rear door as it flew the length of the beach, breaking off over the crowd at Miller Field. As thee CH-53G pulled off a Layartebian UH-95A Huey II came in low, dropping six men from the skids. The 32 men the helicopters had dropped were bobbing rythmically up and down in the surf, inching slowly towards the beach. As they neared shallow water the men suddenly leapt from the water and ran up the beach in a line, firing their weapons as they went. The crowd again cheered and hollered. The General continued. "These recon Marine's mission is to clear the beach-head of any small enemy prescene and to work their way in behind the beach-head, causing havoc in the rear and disrupting any counter-attacks. Most of the time the Force Recon Marines would be used on small beach-heads that are not the focus of a major attack. They would scout out the area and report to the main assault units who would attack on another beach head further away." The Layartebian Officer then spoke at the podium, "The Layartebian Recon Force carry out a similar mission to the COH Marine Force Recon soldiers, by going behind enemy lines and causing havoc among the enemy in the rear."

The CHMC General then took the podium again, "And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, Girls and Boys, what you've all been waiting for...The Main Assault!" The crowd broke into another frenzy as the 31 men on the beach dodged in and out of makeshift buildings set behind the beach, clearing them out as they went, one large screen showing that action, the other looking out to sea where the Marine Ships could be seen.

From out in the Bay all the crowd could see was a number of flat shapes just above the water, and smoke obscuring nearly everything, seemingly eminating from the small flat shapes. The crowd watched in wonder as the small shapes became bigger and taller until 75 Advanced Armoured Amphibious Vehicles broke out of the surf and roared up onto the beach and stopped, disgorging shouting troops who ran to and fro, securing the 'bunker's' and advancing up the beach with the other AAAV's, their heavy Machine Guns firing away. As the crowd watched this, enthralled, 10 CH-53N Helicopters roared in over the beech, Layartebian Marines fast-roping down onto buildings, the streets and some running down the ramps as the big helicopters landed. The crowd cheered.

A few minutes behind the AAAV's came the Landing Craft Air Cushioned (LCAC) and the Giant LCAC's.
The first 30 LCAC's and GLCAC's from the EOL made it up onto the beech behind the CHMC Marines and AAAV's. They disgorged 10 Wolf LBT's, 10 Dingo and 10 Bushmaster APC's, as well as 10 Marauder AT's and 20 Cobra APC's. Some trucks also rolled off the Landing Craft.

Some minutes later 15 LCAC's and 15 GLCAC's from the COH made it up onto the beach, and disgorged 10 M1A5's, 10 LAV-25's, 20 Humm-Vees, 20 HEMMTT 5T Trucks, 5 ST-29K2, 5 ST-39K1H and 10 brand new LAV-AG's. The beach was now swarmed with soldiers, tanks, vehicles and equipment. The tanks from the EOL and COH forged ahead and wooden 'drone targets' were guided out into their path, and the 150mm Cannon's of the M1A5's and ETC cannon's of the Wolf LBT's, Marauder AT's and other tanks opened up, the audience yelling their approval over the din of the guns.

But the Assault wasn't quite over. The people on the bridge and at Miller Field were in for a surprise. Two MV-87KG's which had been expertly lifted onto two GLCAC's took off out in the bay, one heading for Miller Field, the other for where the POW-MIA Highway met the bridge at Fort Wadsworth.
The two VTOL were followed by two EOL Super Stallions. The aircraft descended near the crowds and disgorged their Marines each. The Aircraft then shut off their engines and the Marines stood to attention near the crowds. They were there to guide the crowds around the units on the beach-head, to show off equipment and especially to show off the mean looking MV-87KG Dragon's and Super Stallions.

The General sparked up again. "Thats if for the Assault Ladies and Gentlemen, the Commonwealth of Hirgizstan Marine Corps and the Layartebian Marine Corps hopes you have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and we now invite you to walk around the beach head, see the vehicles, the equipment and the Marines up close and ask questions. The Marines will be here for the rest of the day. Thanks to the City, the Empire of Layarteb and the Emperor for allowing this great event to happen. The CHMC and Layartebiab Marine Corps wishes you all a good day, and hopes you enjoy the rest of Fleet Week."

The South Side of Manhattan Island, Neuvo Rican displays...

The Neuvo Rican display wasn't quite as spectacular as some of the others. The CH-53E off of the MNRS Belem had been landed on an open area of dockside adjacent to the ship. Kids and military nuts alike were now taking it in turns to sit in the cockpit. On board the boat, tours were being given, and in one room films about the Neuvo Rican military were being shown. The large helipad at the rear of the boat had temporarily been turned into a parade ground, where some of the 120 odd marines based on the boat placed drill displays. Later on, the captain of the ship placed the boat in a false state of red alert to scare visitors. Red lights began flashing, Marines began running to weapons stations, whilst others ran down the corridors shouting in Neuvo Rican waving unloaded assault rifles. Overhead, three harriers from the constellation roared, whilst on deck, several small ships from the same boat manned with civilian clothed crewmembers made a mock attack on the boat, soon being "massacred" by gunfire from the marines. The smoke cannisters on the small boats mocking fire gave it away, by which point quite a lot of people left the boat, some annoyed, others laughing.

Meanwhile, over on the Constellation a large area of the flight deck had been cordoned off, and customers were being allowed to try out the latest Neuvo Rican pistols on a range. The exhibit, carefully arranged so that the guns could not be turned on others, was proving a tremendous success. Also on the main deck the Harriers were cause for much attention. The MNR had been slow making the switch to the F-35, but these old aircraft were still deadly fighting machines.

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Down in the rear bay, groups of customers were being taken on sightseeing tours in the LCACs, one venturing dangerously close to the exclusion zone set up by the CHMC for the storming of Staten Island. No false alarms were being raised on the Constellation, but in the large hangar on the second deck, people were watching a re-enactment of the battle of Swakopmund - fought against the United States of Brink, a long time ago. Some marines, dressed as civilians were fighting against the marines. The use of smoke grenades in a confined space like that, must have been breaching some health and safety regulations, but, in true Neuvo Rican style - someone had forgot to check.

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The Hirgizstani and Layartebian Marines put on a glorious show on Staten Island, to a crowd of nearly 250,000 watching immediately whilst many other watched on television throughout the Empire and on monitors throughout the piers around the immediate area. Fleet Week 2006 was going off without a hitch and everyone was in high spirits. Sailors toured the city, going into bars, enjoying the crowds, and enjoying the city. Everything was poised for gloriousness.

When actor Hugh Jackman and actress Halle Berry showed up to visit and hang out with sailors, say hello to the crowds, and to sign autographs, spirits elevated even more. Fleet Week was all about ego, for the most part, various countries trying desparately to upstage the Empire and whilst every year they failed, they tried their best this year though failure would they see.

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Even during the opening events more ships were coming into port, sailors lining the edges of the decks, saluting the State of Liberty and the Layartebian flags along the way. Pride and honor was a naval tradition for the Empire and it went back to the earliest days of the Republic, when sailors were some of the most respected individuals in the military. When the seas were far more trecherous there was little for sailors to do but drown if their ship was sunk without friendly vessels in the area. There were no radios, no GPS becons, no helicopters, none of that. Things were tough ages ago and the tradition held supreme. The captain never went down with the ship but he was also never the first to get off a sinking vessel.

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The next demonstration, before the scheduled aerobatics shows was a naval demonstration out in the harbor. A Heretic FFGN was sitting comfortably in the water just outside of the docks. The airspace was cleared and a remotely piloted drone came into the area. It was an F-15 Eagle, flying on a predetermined course. Spectators watched as the Eagle, empty and clean, pulled +8Gs around the harbor as the ships sat quietly. Then, with a roar and a burst of fire and smoke, the forward deck of the Heretic became illuminated and hidden. From one of its many VLS tubes came out an RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, moving at Mach 4.0. The missile streaked upwards, curving ever so slightly, and moved to engage the Eagle over the harbor. It was a dangerous move, the wreckage could go anywhere but it was predicted to be harmless and it would be, especially for the ships in the harbor. As the missile streaked upwards, the Eagle drastically turned and jinked, trying to avoid the missile but it was no use. In a glorious fireball of brilliance, the Eagle turned into peppered, fried, scrap metal, crashing down into the water, to the cheers and applause of millions.

OOC: Lay, did you want to do a joint-beach invasion thing? You didn't mention anything since the first page so I assumed it was me alone. I could go back and edit it, to include EOL Marines?

To Layarteb

Information for ships at Fleet Week 2006:

Ronald Reagan Class CVN:

Type: Aircraft Carrier (Nuclear)
Number in Class: 12
Displacement: 150,000 tons light, 192,000 tons fully loaded
Dimensions: length-1350ft, beam- 600ft, draught- 62ft
Powerplant: 6 HDAC-4 Nuclear Reactors, 8 HGEC Steam Turbines
Power Output: 420,000shp
Endurance: 40 Years without refuelling, limited to 300 days on supplies
Aircraft: Up to 220 Aircraft and 20 Helicopters (Various sorts)
Main Gun: 4 Mk. 20 25mm ETC Cannons, front, rear and sides.
Secondary Weapon: 18 VLS Mounts, 144 Missiles.
(50 RIM-67A SM-3ER)
(20 RIM-68A SM-5)
(50 RIM-66A SM-2ER)
(44 ESSM RIM-7PTC)
Other Missiles: 14 RGM-84 Harpoon Launchers
CIWS: 16 Phalanx CIWS Guns, 12 RIM-116 Mounts
Torpedos: 4 Launch Tubes, front and rear, below waterline, 8 in total.
Compliment: 12,500


Wolf Class Air Defense Frigate:

Displacement (Full): 5,700 tons
Length: 469.2ft
Beam: 57.1ft
Draught: 14.4ft
Top Speed: 35 Knots
Range: 4000NM
Endurance: 40 Days
Propulsion: HGEC-AGT N5000 Gas Turbine (23,500KW) + two HMC-NDE20 Diesel Engines at 8000KW each.
Shafts: 2
Generators: 4x1000KW HGEC 1500 Naval Series
Weaponry: 2 Mk. 20 25mm ETC Cannons located forward and aft.
1 HDAC 2000 Series 155mm Naval Howitzer located on forward deck.
4 Phalanx CIWS located Forward, Aft, Starboard and Port.
4 RIM-116 Launchers
VLS System: 1 Mk.41 VLS System with 32 forward and 32 rear cells
32 RIM-7PTC
32 RIM-7M
Torpedoes: 6 Tubes under water line, forward.
Helicopters: 2 SH-60R Sized Aircraft
Crew: 251

Missouri Class Battleship:

Displacement (Full): 85,500 tons fully loaded
Length: 902.1ft
Beam: 110.2ft
Draught: 48.5ft
Top Speed: 33 Knots
Range: 5500NM
Endurance: 60 Days
Propulsion: 4 Shafts: HGEC-AGT N10000 Gas Turbines (23,500KW) + four HMC-NDE100B Diesel Engines.
Shafts: 4
Generators: 10x1000KW HGEC 1500 Naval Series
Weaponry: 2x25inch Cannons in Four turrets
20x 10inch Cannons in Ten turrets
12x CIWS Phalanx
4x Mk.20 25mm ETC Cannon's
10x RIM-116 Mounts
VLS: 1x Mk.41 V-Cell (64 Cells aft)
130xCruise Missile (BGM-109/Imsdal)
42x RIM-7PTC
42x RIM-7M
Torpedoes: 6Tubes under water line, four forward, two aft.
Secondary ASW Weapon: 2x HDAC Seeker Depth Charge Launcher's (Ship carries 200 Depth Charges.
Armor: Tungsten/Titanium woven honeycomb. (Max Thickness- 100cm)
Helicopters: 2 SH-60R Sized Aircraft
Crew: 2345


Full Aerial Compliment's will arrive on all ships, One Airwing (Ronald Reagan Class size) total.
We realise that you may not want a ship the size of the Ronald Reagan in your harbor and it could be stationed close to the harbour, it's size alone would make it immensely visible and it would be sure to draw the crowds even if it isn't docked in harbour.

A number of Civilian Ships and Company Representatives will follow the military units to the port to show off new ships, luxury yachts, pleasure cruisers etc. None of the ships will be as large as the military ones, except maybe the Wolf Class which is quite small anyway.


If possible we would also like to put on display a Marine Combat Assault Landing, showing off the Advanced Armoured Amphibious Vehicle, LCAC's, GLCAC's, Assault Ships, Armor and Aircraft. Perhaps a joint operation or something of the sort could be organised for the spectators?

COH

Wasn't it?

Miles off of Layartebian Waters, somewhere West of Panama

The Admiral took a drink of his Vodka, rubbing his temples. His ship had to follow a fog all the way from the Pacific, and it seemed that they were finally making it. The 'Fleet Week' had already begun, and the men onboard had been staying greatly in-tune with the several televisions with screening a Japanese play-back broadcast being bounced off of Layarteb's Hawaiian Island. The ship would have to broadcast it's request for permission into the Canal. They were close enough to atleast warn the Layartebian Navy of their soon to be arrival, and so they decided it was safe enough to give off it's position finally. The Admiral ran the orders through a Fax, and the message began printing elsewhere in a more secure room. An Operator got to it immediatly, sending a non-encrypted message to the Layartebians. The ship continued forward, awaiting a response.

Deep with-in the ship

The lady in her fair red Kimono was greeted by another care-taker, wondering if she were to be interested in anything to drink. She smiled, saying no, and the care-taker turned away. She sighed, and looked into the mirror. She would have to begin touching up on her make-up, for the arrival of their 'guests'. She was to be amongst several others dressed like her, to be a part of a show later during the event. But, her own assignment was unknown to the Admiral himself. She was a Ninja, and her job was to gather what intelligence that she could get and to bring all that she had gathered to her superiors back in Tokyo.

Picture of the Ship

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The IJNS Aisuke

The Empire has granted your vessel passage through the canal. Please observe all necessary cautions and limits. Your fee will be waived in advance of Fleet Week 2006 because that is your final destination. We appreciate your attendance and hope you have safe steaming all the way to Layarteb City.

The IJSN Aisuke moved into Layartebian Territorial Waters, with a smaller vessel having left after their inspections. The carrier slowly entered the Canal, and began the slow process of traversing through the several watergates.

The exhibits were countless. When a hospital ship pulled into the harbor it made the entire mood change. Mutters went through the crowd as they found out that they would be able to board the mammoth vessel the very next day, which was definitely going to make many, many, many come back.

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Crowds peaked 5,000,000 by 14:00 hours and they were only expected to climb as the day progressed, possibly topping 10,000,000 by the end of the night. The city was expecting well over 35,000,000 visitors to the area within the week, including residents.

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As the hours progressed throughout the first day even more ships began to arrive from all over the world and from within the Empire. The ILN had the largest presence but rightfully so, this was their territory and it was up to the other nations to upstage them, though it had never happened once in the 19 years of Fleet Week history.

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ICS Leviathan

Valiant-class trimaran super carrier CVCN

Length: 502 m; Beam: 178 m; Draught: 18 m
Displacement: 374,000 tons light; 402,000 tons full
Aircraft: Space for 185 fighters or 140 fighter/bombers and 10 helicopters.
Complement: 13,090 including air crew
Armament: 4 x 96 cell VLS; 12 x 35 mm Millennium Gun CIWS; 8 x ‘Yellow Jacket’ mini-SAMs.
Protection: 254-305 mm advanced steel composite featuring aluminum, titanium, ballistic ceramics, and kevlar. Double bottomed hull and reinforced keel along with void spaces to provide additional protection against submerged threats. Hardened crossbeams installed across bulkheads. Additional protection over key systems provided by outriggers.
Propulsion: Eight Pebblebead nuclear reactors; four shafts; waterjet propulsion system.
Speed: 32 knots normal maximum; 36 knots short range all out sprint; 29 knots cruise
Range: Limited only by nuclear fuel and consumables. Able to carry up to nine months of supplies and stores for sea and air crews.
Countermeasures: Six towed arrays; four anti-missile and six ASW decoys. Anti-jamming measures designed to anticipate attempts to jam communications and prevent attempts. Command center allows the Valiant to serve as a fleet flagship for up to 100 ships.


Now operating in international waters off Layarteb, from Cymrean Quintus Fleet (Atlantic Ocean)

ICS Grim Reminder
ICS Dark Forbearance

Steadfast-class SSBN/SSGN

Length: 155 m; Beam: 16 m
Displacement: 23,140 tonnes full load
Armament: 16 ballistic missile tubes; can also fire GWS.41.2 'Loon' ASW missile
Propulsion: Pressurised water reactor (70,000 shp) with two turbines and one shaft; one 400 hp auxiliary prop motor. MHDs provide silent running capability at 12-14 knots. Propulsors with acoustically dampened housings provide 20-22 knots submerged speed.
Protection: Built with two pressure hulls with absorbant foam between them. Outer hull made from amorpheous steel coated with anaerobic tiles to reduce noise emissions from the boat and noise returned by active sonar. Inner hull made of titanium composite (titanium, vadium and aluminum).
Complement: 140 officers and men.
*The Steadfast-class SSBN/SSGN is designed for operations that include covert operations in an enemy's waters. The amorpheous steel in the outer hull is stronger than most steel composites in use in modern submarines. The inner hull is made of a powerful titanium composite that makes this one of the most survivable submarines in the world. Stealth operations are optimised at the 12-14 knot speeds allowed for by the MHDs. The Steadfast is capable of up to 22 knots submerged speed, though it must sacrifice some of its stealth to travel at those speeds.

General International Press Release

It has come to our attention that the hostilities between Squornshelous and Doomingsland - our sister dominion within the Roman Empire - bear the rising potential to mar the peace and fraternity of Fleet Week. While Cymrea is certain that Squornshelous would never consider violating the Layartebian truce, it is an undeniable probability that advantage may be taken.

With this in mind, the Cymrean Quintus Fleet has assigned two Stalwart-class submarines to the international waters off the coast of Layarteb's capital. Our intent is not, I say again, not, to escalate this situation. It is hoped that this assignment will in fact act as a deterrent against open violence.

Cymrea and Squornshelous have maintained cordial relations since the founding of our dominion. We desire most strongly the continuation of that relationship.

We ask Doomingsland and Squornshelous to attempt a diplomatic solution. We ask the international community to support a diplomatic endeavour. We ask that Fleet Week not be the tragic harbinger of another war.


Ever in service,

Meredith Aurelia Rhys-Jones,
Praetor Extraterritorialis of Cymrea
4 Iunius MMVI

The Emperor was already back at his castle when news of the Cymrean deployment came across his desk. He was nothing short of angered. "Here we have a peaceful celebration and they're anchoring ships off our waters. This will NOT stand." He roared as he looked at the doisser of deployed submarines and ships in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In attendance were the Joint Chiefs and they had tons of recommendations but the best one was the one he was about to implement. "Alright. Here is what I want done. In the Atlantic, move these two Hunter SSNs to the relative area where we believe the submarines are. According to the Cymrean announcement they are attack submarines but our SOSUS data concludes that they are not the class they say they are, though we have no positive identification and their current location is unknown. In addition, deploy two Verrazano DDKNs, an Unforgiven CGN, and these two Heretic FFGNs to the area as well to conduct surface scans with thier helicopters and SONAR equipment. I want those submarines found. Now, for the Pacific. We have one Centurion Flight III squadron on patrol within 200 nautical miles of Azuria. As quietly as possible, utilizing full stealth, get the two submarines and its escorts, a Hunter and Scythe Flight II to within 50 nautical miles of the capital. Remain in international waters and do not, at any time, go above 10 knots. We do not need detection. I want this situation ready for a full return if we have to. Now, as for their surface ships, have our coast guard and patrol aircraft keep a close eye on them but allow our nearest SLASM site to arm and set their targets. If necessary we'll sink those ships so fast they won't feel a thing. I want Dementors and other aircraft on the ready to engage and destroy. Defenders closest to the ships will have to be split between air to air loadouts and air to ground loadouts, do not deviate from stealth, internal payloads only."

"Yes sir." The Chairman said as he rushed to implement the plans, which, more or less, saw the moving of the ships in preparation for inevitable war. "May I suggest sir. Upgrading REDCON?"

"Yes but do so quietly. I want us at REDCON 3 but to the outside world we must remain at 4."

"Yes sir." The Emperor, as usual, began to prepare a statement to the world concerning the latest rise in tensions outside of his waters, particularly close to the capital.

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

Message to the World
Re: Cymrean Naval Deployment & Situation in Pacific

The Emperor is most displeased with the deployment of Cymrean submarines and surface vessels so close to our waters. The deployment, in response to developments in the Pacific War, in itself escalates an already fragile and overboiled situation. The war in the Pacific is just that, a war in the Pacific, and, should not, under any circumstances, be brought into the North Atlantic Ocean. Any belligerent parties currently attending Fleet Week will want to make it in their best interest not to bring said war into the North Atlantic. The Empire does not appreciate the fact that this war has been brought to our capital and to our festivities. Fleet Week in Layarteb City is a tradition of military display and military fortitude, amongst others, but in a setting where sailors from various countries, citizens from various countries, and leaders from various countries can mix and enjoy each others' company without fear of conflict.

If conflict is what the Pacific nations desire then they will soon find it if this situation further expands. However, the Empire will not make any discrimination against those who bring war to our seas and those who are a target of war. All parties will be considered guilty, by the Empire, of not only compromising the national security of our Empire but also our citizens and we will respond with due and just resolve.

To the Cymrean naval command, though your attempt and your words say you do not desire to escalate the situation, your actions speak differently. The presence of submarines off our waters, inadvertantly draws us into a conflict we have no business being involved with and no desire to participate in, regardless of past histories and alliances. The Pacific Ocean is a world not our own and we have little desire in anything in the Pacific Ocean, barring aside our Pacific Republic, which is so small and inconsequential that its presence alone warrants little attention.

We will be carefully monitoring the developments and should our waters, our seas, and our territories, both near and afar, be affected by savage and unsavory acts of war in places where they doth not belong, our response will be quick, punishing, and traumatic to those subject to it. Long will the memory be of the response of the Empire should it be necessary.

The Emperor

The Caribbean

The IJNS Aisuke was pulling past Cuba already, and the crew had long been noticing the sudden change in temperature. It was a lot like the Pacific, but more calm and relaxed. They would be arriving in New York Harbor tonight, and intelligence said that a Doomani ship had already arrived. News has been past on, but as a rumour, that several nations have deployed several ships other than for a show off. Perhaps the Pacific war was not going to be retained with-in Pacific Waters.

Then entire Marine Contigent, counted up to be 1,200, was put on high alert. 800 of them would station their selves amongst the ship, alongside armed Sailors. All for security, and 400 would be stationed amongst the 'rented' grounds. Isako would be making it off the ship before the first tour had arrived, and the rest of the girls would be doing their performances. Isako had a Hissatsu Knife (http://images.military.com/pics/SoldierTech_Hissatsu4.jpg), and nothing else. She was the true display to be sent by Japan, although several would never notice.

OOC

http://www.military.com/soldiertech/0,14632,Soldiertech_Hissatsu,,00.html

Explains the knife, actually...it is excellent for this.

OOC: Lay, the Marine Assault has been amended to include your forces. If I gate anything wrong then just shout and I'll fix it up.

Communique to Layarteb

It is indeed for peace and its preservation that we act to deter further hostilities to our imperial sister dominion. To hear that Layarteb will be monitoring both their own waters and those international, Cymrea rests assured and satisfied. We do not believe that the Empire of Layarteb would allow a participant nation to be ambushed leaving her sovereign waters.

While we take Layarteb's threats seriously, we are not greatly concerned, for our intention was not to instigate violence, but to prevent it. Never was Cymrea in any danger of acting in a manner befitting repudiation and requital.

What does concern us is that a call for diplomacy was answered by mobilization. With such disregard for endeavours of peace, we cannot truly feel contrite in acting to defend our imperial sibling.

Cymrea gladly withdraws her submarines back into nominal patrols. Your words give us confidence that Squornshelous will not be able to take advantage in this situation without facing reprisals such as those we are now threatened with.


Ever in service,

Meredith Aurelia Rhys-Jones,
Praetor Extraterritorialis of Cymrea
4 Iunius MMVI

As the Imperator finished up docking proceedures, Marines prepared to disembark and set up their displays. For purposes of both security demonstation to the public, the Marines were clad in full combat apparel,
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v383/Doomingsland/doomishlegionarycamo2.png

Among the displays were be two DM.LIX.AIV Caesar IV Main Battle Tanks along with their crews from the XXVI Marine Legion. Other vehicles included a brand new Testudo III Infantry Fighting Vehicle, upon which rides were being given. Other displays included a both where civilians would be able to try on one of the Marine's combat masks, allowing them to view the world in thermal, night, and magnified vision. Aboard the ship itself, a shooting range with a variaty of small arms, including the DR-83 tactical rifle and DAC-97 sub machinegun, would be operating for the public's own shooting pleasure.

Aerial acrobatics would be performed by the Imperator's own VII Squadron.

Demonstrations of Imperial body armor would also take place, showcasing their uncanny ability to stop rounds ranging from .45 caliber to 7.62x51mm armor piercing and 6.8mm SPC.

Tours of the ship were rather restrictive, however. In order to actualy get aboard, one needed to posses security clearence, and such things weren't exactly liberally distributed. However, only citizens of Pacificnesia nations were actualy barred from security clearence. Layartebians, Germanians, Hirgizstanis, Cymreans, and Romans alike generally recieved security clearence without much of a hastle.

Other ship-board displays included an Acredula medium bomber, and Aquila air superiority fighter, a Banshee transport VTOL, and a Corvus attack helicopter, all with the cockpits open. No cameras would be allowed to be brought onto the aircraft, but if you had clearence, this would be a great display to check out.

One of the Imperator's twenty-inch quadruple turrets was also open to the public, allowing civilians to view one of the world's biggest naval weapons up close and personal.

Later in the day, the Marines would perform a simulated tacitcal insertion, complete with fastroping with their ACI-68E Banshees, and a display similar to the one the Layartebians had performed with the Eagle shoot-down would go on with the Imperator's new 37mm cannons.

None the less, security was extremely tight. No outside weapons would be allowed aboard and bomb-sniffing dogs were plentiful. In fact, security was taken so seriously, that it was seen that even the Marines wouldn't be enough. The XIII Centuria Arcanus had been deployed aboard the Imperator to handle security; roughly the equivelent of using US Navy SEALs or British SAS to secure a ship.

A new addition to the ship were thirty-six 15.7x131mm machineguns fitted with thermal scopes mounted in fore, aft, stardboard, and port positions all along the ship. These weren't open to the public, and for good reason. With the Pacific War, the threat of terrorism was all the higher. If someone was crazy enough to try to drive a speed boat loaded with explosives into the ship, they would first have to get through the Layartebian Coast Guard and then the Imperator's machineguns.

The last of the vessels to arrive was the Cottish Royal Yacht HMS 'Cotland', carrying the King of Cotland and several members of the cabinet. The yacht was escorted by two Murmansk class nuclear-powered submarines (which were as detectable as the Layartebian Hunter class SSN), but those two subs had stopped and moved off when the 'Cotland' had entered Layartebian waters. Though the yacht was armed with a number of VLS cells and an even greater number of RIM-162E ESSMs, a number of heavy machine guns and a hundred and twenty-nine armed sailors, all offensive systems were turned offline when they entered Layartebian waters.

Seven hours later, the 'Cotland' steamed into Layarteb City, saluting the Statue of Liberty, the castle at Governors Island and the various ships in port as she passed by. The master of the vessel, a distinguished naval officer skillfully manouvered the yacht into position besides the 'Varanger' and the 'Bergen'. The 117.3 meter long yacht was painted in a dark red finish along the hull, while the superstructure was white as snow. The rows of dark-tinted windows along the superstructure and the golden letters and numbers which identified the vessel made her seem even more majestic. The Cottish naval ensign and the Royal Flag flying from her mast was like the dot over the i, showing that the vessel was indeed Cottish, and that the King himself was aboard.

The King stood on the quarterdeck, dressed in his dark blue naval uniform complete with a white officers cap and an officers saber in a black leather belt. Along side him were three members of the cabinet, more accurately Defense Minister Alvheim, Commerce Minister Foss and Foreign Minister Jensen.

Also present were ten Birkebeiners, eight of them the personal bodyguards to the King and two carrying silver briefcases containing the Cottish nuclear launch authorizaton codes chained to their arms. All of them were dressed in civilian suits, and carrying powerful small-arms underneath their jackets. P33A1s, P33A2s, P98A1s and P99A2s were abundant, while the sailors manning the vessel were armed with among others AG4A2 assault carbines, AG11A1 assault rifles, MG49A2 SAWs, M74A1 shotguns and MP6A1 P90 submachine guns. In short, the Royal Yacht was well protected. Also, due to the proximity, litteraly hundreds of Marines could be at the Yacht, ready to help protect the King within a few minutes.

With a smile, the King looked at the hundreds of Cottish sailors and Marines from all the Cottish ships who stood at the pier in front of the 'Cotland' when she docked. Thousands of tourists looked, filmed and took pictures of the event. When the King disembarked the yacht, a single order was heard throughout the dock.

"Giv akt!" [Attention!]

Immediately, the many Cottish sailors and Marines came to a perfect attention. The Marines presented their AG11 assault rifles while the sailors saluted their supreme commander. The senior officers stood in a few collums near the entryway along with the flags. The Cottish flag, the naval ensign and the Marine Corps ensign all were lowered to show the respect for the King, who was the sovereign ruler of Cotland. As the King walked off the entryway, he saluted the senior officers and the flags before he turned to the sailors and Marines. Moving along the lines of navy blue-clad sailors, the King saw with pride the finest of Cotlands youth showing their respect for his person. It made him humble to the task he had of ruling one of the most powerful nations in the world. Moving down the lines, he inspected the sailors, occationally stopping to talk with a sailor or Marine.

After about twenty minutes, the inspection was complete. The King was in a limo on his way to the Cotttish embassy for a visit with the ambassador. With that, the order was given for the sailors and Marines to stand down. The rifles that the Marines had were collected and transported back to the 'Varanger' along with the flags. The sailors and Marines were dismissed and returned to their various schedules. Some returned to their ships to stand guard or guide tours while the rest went to explore the various ships in port or the Layartebian capital. Fleet week was a nice thing.

Communique to Cymrea

The Empire is not concerned with diplomacy nor has it asked for it. We have only asked that nations not bring this war to the Atlantic and to our waters. Should that be done, the Empire will respond against all parties. Our deployment is not in hypocrisy because our only desire is to keep this war far away from our territory. If it does breech our territory then we will respond with due force and due resolve.

The Empire would take kindly to the return of Cymrean naval vessels to a regular patrol and rest assured that any party who makes war in an area where war doth not belong will be made to suffer.

The Emperor

Communique to Layarteb

IC:
The Cymrean submarines have indeed returned to nominal patrol waters, as may be verified by your own sources, we have no doubt. We are also not completely unaware of Layartebian assets near our own sovereign waters, and implicitly trust that our standing-down will be reciprocated.

We do hope that Cymrea's participation in Fleet Week may continue unabated.


OOC: I couldn't ask for a better outcome! If you're willing to crush anyone fighting in the Atlantic peripheral to Fleet Week, or any other time as it seems you're saying, then I have no need to deploy defenders. I am more than happy to let you do it. :)

OOC - Cymrea, what reason do you have to protect Doomingsland?

The Fog was clearing up pretty quickly, signs that the IJNS Aisuke was finally reaching the Harbor. It relayed it's position, letting it known that they were not trying to conceal theirselves. They broadcasted a message to the closest Layartebian asset, requesting entrance into the Harbor for Fleet Week 2006. They were perhaps 20 or so minutes until their exact designated location.

OOC: You'll definitely be cleared inbound just go ahead and dock.

General International Press Release

It has come to our attention that the hostilities between Squornshelous and Doomingsland - our sister dominion within the Roman Empire - bear the rising potential to mar the peace and fraternity of Fleet Week. While Cymrea is certain that Squornshelous would never consider violating the Layartebian truce, it is an undeniable probability that advantage may be taken.

With this in mind, the Cymrean Quintus Fleet has assigned two Stalwart-class submarines to the international waters off the coast of Layarteb's capital. Our intent is not, I say again, not, to escalate this situation. It is hoped that this assignment will in fact act as a deterrent against open violence.

Cymrea and Squornshelous have maintained cordial relations since the founding of our dominion. We desire most strongly the continuation of that relationship.

We ask Doomingsland and Squornshelous to attempt a diplomatic solution. We ask the international community to support a diplomatic endeavour. We ask that Fleet Week not be the tragic harbinger of another war.


Ever in service,

Meredith Aurelia Rhys-Jones,
Praetor Extraterritorialis of Cymrea
4 Iunius MMVI

Squornshelan Government Statement:
We resent the actions of Cymrea and their reflection upon Cymrea's attitude toward Squornshelous. Our only action was to withdraw our single entry from Fleet Week, as its resources and firepower are needed elsewhere due to our war with Doomingsland, a war, may we remind you, that began with an unprovoked assault on Squornshelous by Doomani forces. Squornshelous attempted to seek a diplomatic solution to the war in the South Pacific, and were attacked because of it. We have no intention of breaking off our friendly relations with Cymrea, but we kindly ask that they mind their own affairs in the future.
ooc:
please note, my resentment is IC only

The Empire is apalled that the petty differences of foreign nations have been brought to our harbors, our waters, and our celebration. Not only do we not look favorably upon this development but we also do not desire to have this continue any further. Any interruptions to our Fleet Week celebrations will be dealt with immediately and with force and fervor.

OOC: I believe I can answer Huahin and Squorn at the same time, here. The reason Cymrea moves to protect Doomingsland is because he and I and Rome are working toward becoming a Roman union of three main dominions. While I wasn't sure how our ongoing unification plans were going to affect our current RPing, Doomy presented as a Roman dominion; since Doomy is part of Rome, Cymrea feels obligated to close ranks and defend.

This decision is partly due to TLS's strenuous public complaint about how the Roman Confederacy turned their backs - for whatever reasons, which at this point are moot. It's also influenced by the possible withdrawal of another nation from the RC. I personally want to show that Rome will defend her allies, and especially her dominions. Nearly getting my ass cleansed from Earth II by Lay shows my willingness to step out on that ledge for friends.

Included in that is the idea that Cymrea is the new Sparta of the Roman Empire, and while I do well at diplomacy, I also feel compelled now and again to exhibit characteristics of being the tip of the spear, as it were.

Squorn & Huahin: No worries, I completely get that your resentment is IC. Mine, too. It'd be great for our historical relations to be a factor in negotiating a peace agreement and end the war - with Doomingsland, at least. I'd have to consult with the "Senate" about Tyrandis.

To be honest, I don't recall how Doomy got into a war or how - especially since he just friggin' got here (!), but I noticed Squorn's post, and acted on behalf of a fellow Roman dominion.

Finally, Cymrea will not be making any more IC statements concerning the situation until after Fleet Week. I'm sorry to have had to interrupt it in the first place, and I have no desire to do it again.

OOC: So your submarine is not in my harbor anymore?

OOC: So your submarine is not in my harbor anymore?

OOC: mine?

mine is long gone and halfway across the atlantic by now.

OOC: So your submarine is not in my harbor anymore?

If you're asking me, my subs were never in your harbour. I had them sitting in international waters off your coast, near Layarteb City, poised to jump to the aid of Doomanum (Doomingsland) should he be waylaid by Squorn.

Come on, man. I wouldn't violate your sovereignty like that. :)

If you're asking me, my subs were never in your harbour. I had them sitting in international waters off your coast, near Layarteb City, poised to jump to the aid of Doomanum (Doomingsland) should he be waylaid by Squorn.

Come on, man. I wouldn't violate your sovereignty like that. :)

OOC: That was to Squorn.

OOC: mine?

mine is long gone and halfway across the atlantic by now.

I must have missed that somewhere.

To be honest, I don't recall how Doomy got into a war or how - especially since he just friggin' got here (!),

He invaded Squorn.

Well, then hopefully we can get him to uninvade and make some apologies and maybe reparations....

Well, then hopefully we can get him to uninvade and make some apologies and maybe reparations....
Pfft, I find that unlikely :)

Or even more unlikely, he might post some losses to my attack.

Or even more unlikely, he might post some losses to my attack.

You mean the attack where you dropped five hundred cruise missiles into the Pacific Ocean? :rolleyes:

Let's not having a pissing match about that war in this thread. An appropriate OOC thread was created so you need to focus you ravings there.

Bermuda Command Base, SOSUS Control

"Sir, the Cymrean submarines are moving again. They're honoring their committment and backing off." One panel operator said to the CIC commander.

"Good. Good. Inform the Joint Chiefs."

"Understood sir. There's a problem though."

"Report?"

"Sir. They're not Stalwart class submarines. The reactor plant signature, nothing matches the Stalwart."

"That must be a mistake."

"No sir. The computer doesn't lie. It's a 6% chance that it is a Stalwart-class."

"Could they have a new flight?"

"No sir. Nothing matches really."

"Keep scanning then. I want a list of possibilities and I want them five minutes ago."

"Yes sir." The panel operator went to work on the classification, which wasn't easy at all. Their sample data was tiny considering that the submarines were extremely stealthy and moving very slowly. Still, the super sensitive listening devices placed throughout the Northern Atlantic for the SOSUS network of the Layartebian defense net picked up the faintest of noises and it had picked up the leaving submarines, faintly and barely audible. Amplifying the sound had definitely made some minor distortion and that was throwing off the classification but what they were sure is that it wasn't a Stalwart class attack submarine at all. It would take well over a half-hour to get a classification with a reliability level of 83%, which was the highest they could get. It wasn't the desired 90% or more but it was enough to be rather certain. Anything above 80% was a certainty whereas anything over 90% was a definite. In the 70s, it was hit-or-miss. "Got it sir. We've got it as a Steadfast class."

"What class is that?"

"It's an SSBN/SSGN."

"Get on the horn right now. I want the Emperor and the Joint Chiefs online!"

"Roger that sir." The call went as expected and pretty soon, the enraged Emperor was beginning to write up a communique back to Cymrea.

Encrypted Maximum to Cymrea

The Empire is pleased that you have seen fit to withdraw your submarines from a direct-action profile to a regular patrol and for that we are grateful. However, there is a pressing matter of urgent importance. Originally you reported that the submarines were Stalwart class attack submarines. Investigating destroyers and aircraft have classified the submarines as Steadfast class submarines, which are certainly not attack submarines but rather missile boats. We are rather confused and deeply upset that we have been lied to as to the nature of these submarines. We hope you can shed light on this situation.

The Emperor

OOC: Oops, damn, fuck, and crap! I have them from Sarzonia's Portland Iron Works. Grim Reminder and Dark Forbearance are indeed Steadfasts. Stalwarts are the ones listed right underneath...I must have read it and misspoke...or mistyped, rather. No wonder you freaked out!

Encrypted Communique to Layarteb

We offer our gratitude in bringing our misinformation to light. In our original communiques, we intended to state that the submarines were of the Steadfast class, not the Stalwart. It is completely understandable that Layarteb would respond most vigourously, and it is only by the grace of the gods that a diplomatic and international disaster was averted - a disaster caused by a seemingly innocuous error in nomenclature.

Cymrea can only offer her most sincere expression of regret and apology, and an assurance that future communiques will be proof-read more vigilantly.

Fleet Week was continuing to go off without a hitch. Layartebian citizens enjoyed the crowds of millions, many of them foreigners who had been allowed into the city, many staying in some of the more lavish hotels throughout the city. The immigration quotas had been expanded for this week long even and everyone was taking advantage of it in some way, shape, or form.

Security personnel included the LCPD, CJA, NSA, and even SOF and BOF groups throughout the city. Elements of Force Spectre, Force Falcon, Force Victor, Force Tornado, and Force Storm were interspersed throughout the city with groups from the Delta Force, SEALs, and Rangers, who were all operating within the city alongside the LCPD, CJA, and NSA. There may have been over ten million people inside the city but there were at least 100,000 law enforcement and military personnel amongst them.

http://www.theforsakenoutlaw.com/Graphics/Nation-States/Role-Playing/Fleet%20Week%202006/FleetWeek-14.jpg

When the aerobatics displays began over the harbor, everyone looked up, in awe of the maneuvers done by the various military and civilian jets. Smoke was trailed from nearly every one of them, making colorful lines throughout the skies.

http://www.theforsakenoutlaw.com/Graphics/Nation-States/Role-Playing/Fleet%20Week%202006/FleetWeek-24.jpg

http://www.theforsakenoutlaw.com/Graphics/Nation-States/Role-Playing/Fleet%20Week%202006/FleetWeek-36.jpg

It wouldn't be long before the Japanese carrier arrived and as it neared the ports, it was more than a sight. The Japanese military had been something that was very reclusive and them being in the port of Layarteb City was something that wasn't to be expected but they they were there.

http://www.theforsakenoutlaw.com/Graphics/Nation-States/Role-Playing/Fleet%20Week%202006/FleetWeek-35.jpg

http://www.theforsakenoutlaw.com/Graphics/Nation-States/Role-Playing/Fleet%20Week%202006/FleetWeek-42.jpg

Fleet Week was everywhere in Layarteb City, from the ports to Times Square to Harlem to everywhere. Fever gripped the city and it had only begun.

The navy-clad sailor at the entryway smiled at the approaching tourists as he checked their ID. On his left, a small notice-board had some information about the HMS 'Harald Haarfagre'. It listed the amount of cannons, the length, width, height, aviation and crew complement of the battleship which could be seen towering above the tourists. As soon as the ID had been checked out, the sailor spoke again with a smile.

"The ID is in order sir, welcome aboard the HMS 'Harald Haarfagre'."

The tourists were allowed to walk up the entryway to the deck of the large battleship, where they were met by another few sailors and Marines.

"Welcome aboard. If you'll wait here for a moment, the tour will begin shortly." one of them, an officer judging from the uniform said. While they waited, the tourists could see the 130mm secondary guns and various equipment lining the sides of the superstructure of the mighty battleship. After a few minutes, enough tourists had gathered for the tour to start.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome aboard the HMS 'Harald Haarfagre', the pride of the Royal Cottish Navy, and welcome to this guided tour. Today, we are going to show you the ship from bow to stern, and I thought that we'd start with showing you the brain of the ship, the command bridge! If you'd follow me please."

The officer motioned for the people to follow him as he walked up to an open door and entered. After having the relatively large tour group of roughly thirty tourists, foreign sailors and foreign officials walk through a few sets of corridors. All of the bulkheads were painted in a white color tone and the deck coated in a thin rubber coat which served both as a relatively comfortable flooring as well as silencing the walking. Quite a few corridors were sealed off with a thin red rope and a sign hanging on it.

KUN FOR AUTORISERT PERSONELL

AUTHORIZED PERSONELL ONLY

There were also roaming patrols of Marines in the corridors and areas that were sealed off, walking in pairs and armed with P33A2 USP .40 pistols. They were there to ensure that no unauthorized personell strayed from the cleared routes.

After a few minutes and a number of stairs later, the officer opened a wooden door and exposed the command bridge of the 'Harald Haarfagre'. Because the ship was in port, it was manned by a skeleton crew consisting of an officer, two NCOs and three enlisted. The bridge was rather large, consisting of multitudes of monitors and consoles, all of them encased in blue wooden and/or metal panels which looked good when matched with the white bulkheads. A lot of buttons and displays were on the consoles, and a lot of electronics were mounted on the bulkheads facing away from the large windows. Walking up to the center console, the guide turned and faced the group.

"Here we are on the command bridge. This is where the ship is being controlled. On this console here," he said, pointing to the center console, "we have the helm control and engine displays. On the display on the right there we have the radar, sonar and other electronic displays as well as a number of controls for some classified systems, and on the one on the left we have miscellanious controls. Does anyone have any questions at this point?"

[OOC: Feel free to have someone from your nation in on the tour and ask questions (if you have any).]

bump

The IJNS Aisuke came into port and began to dock at it's designated location. A rather large crowd had built up along the pathways to look at the massive carrier pull into Layarteb City Harbor. The crew sort of wondered why, but were too excited to care. Atleast they were going to get a lot of tours. Isako was preparing to leave the ship as soon as possible, with a group of sailors who were going to go around the city. The Marines were dressed in their Combat Uniforms and such, carrying mostly unloaded rifles and sidearms to showcase to the tourists on the ship. A shooting range had been sat up deep with-in the ship for tourists to get a feel of the Japanese weaponry, even a few expiremental models being evaluated by the Japanese Military and Government whether or not to be adopted into the Armed Forces.

The Japanese ship was still awaiting clearance to use Layartebian air space, mostly to take paying tourists on a nice flight around the city or perhaps along the coast. Stalls with food had been prepared, all with authentic Japanese food and some food that had been known to have been eaten quite a lot here in the West. This 'Fleet Week' was beginning to show as a good thing for the Japanese.

The Japanese air tours would be a large crowd drawer for the festivities. This would supplement the helicopter tours being run by the Layartebians and another flight, which was a small, scenic tours flight. The Japanese flights would definitely prove to be enjoyable. As the carrier had docked, the crowds swelled around it, only to see the "new" arrival.

Still, there was one last arrival, a Layartebian destroyer and cruiser that had been out at sea investigating a possible submarine contact when they were called in. The submarine contact turned out to be bogus so they were relieved upon identification of it and then moved inbound, towards the port.

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Throughout the course of the days, sailors mixed with civilians, with entertainers, with their friends from other ships, and so on and so fourth. The millions of people within the city all looked for fun and for excitement and they all found just that throughout the city, excitement and fun.

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:: bumpy ::

The special pier where the HMS 'Cotland' was moored was closed to the public, protected by both Cottish sailors and Layartebian police. This was due to the ship housing the King of Cotland, the head of state of one of the most influencial nations in the world. This afternoon, it was even more closed down if that was possible due to the guests the Royal Yacht was to recieve momentarily. A honor guard was being assembled on the pier directly next to the walkway to the 'Cotland', consisting of about four officers and twenty sailors dressed in their dark Class A uniforms. The sailors had M14A2 rifles, ready to present arms when their guests arrived. In addition, a number of Birkebeiners dressed in civilian suits were stationed near the King, complementing the 129-strong Navy crew of the Cotland. The 117-meter ship was normally clean, crisp and looking as if she just arrived from the yards, but now she was even cleaner, crisper and nicer. The naval ensign of the Realm flied from the mast with a smaller Layartebian flag underneath as a sign of respect for the host nation. The leader of that nation was to arrive shortly.

In the large main salon, the King paced as he waited. He wasn't especially large, standing at one meter, eighty, but he suited the uniform he carried well. The black hair and slim beard suited him, being a slim person. However, the icy blue eyes showed that he wasn't someone to mess with. He had taken control during the riots in Oslo and played a crucial part in restoring order as quickly as the Cots had. He was loved by the people, but he had seen first-hand that such love wasn't a thing a head of state automatically got. He respected his people and their opinions, and he had sworn a sacred oath to do what he could to protect his people. It was that oath he was going to maintain during today's meeting with the Emperor of Layarteb.

The Emperor and his security detail moved towards the yacht. Team One of Force Falcon was interwoven throughout the crowd, strategically placed around the yacht in various crowds, taking pictures, melding in, as guests. Two bore foreign IDs. With the Emperor was Team Two, disguised as bodyguards, all of whom were doing far more. The Emperor was to meet with the King of Cotland about several things, the friendship of the Realm and the Empire, for starters.

Dressed sharply in his best suit, the Emperor strode up to the yacht and smiled at the guards. "Good afternoon gentlemen. I trust that I have an appointment with the King?" His bodyguards stood firm, their hands crossed in front of them, in front of their waists, just in case. Sharpshooters were everywhere around the piers and they were also staring down at the yacht. The protection of the Emperor was paramount to all else and should anything happen, not only could they and the two Force Falcon teams react in a moment's notice, but so could the 100s of other guards and soldiers within.

: bumpy :

As soon as they saw the Emperor, the highest-ranking officer, an orlogskaptein with three stripes on his sleeves issued a quick series of orders, making the sailors move quickly to attention and presenting arms. The twenty sailors stood in two rows of ten each, with each man holding an M14. This wasn't the A3 version with carbonfiber-stock, light barrel and so on and so forth, but the good old version with polished wooden stocks and shining barrels, bayonets and empty magazines. The sailors on the pier conducted a perfect present arms while the officers saluted. On the 'Cotland', a number of sailors and officers manned the deck where the gangway was. The small bell there was rung four times while a voice came over the ships intercom.

"Den Layartebiske keiseren ankommer." [The Emperor of Layarteb, arriving]

This was the que to the King in the grand salon, who checked once more that everything was in order. At the gangway, the captain of the vessel, kommandørkaptein Martin Jansen stood, waiting. He was dressed in his finest Class A uniform, a navy blue naval uniform over a white shirt and black tie, the white cover and black leather gloves. The three and a half stripes of "salad" on his chest showed that he was decorated. Among others, he had Stridsfortjenestekorset, Forsvarets Medalje for Edel Dåd and Forsvarets Medalje for Sårede i Strid, showing that he was an experienced sailor who had seen combat and excelled in it. It was commonly expected for him to be given command of an aircraft carrier in a year or two, but serving as the captain of the Royal Yacht was a great honor, showing that the Navy had utmost trust in him. Now, he was to meet the Emperor of Layarteb, arguably one of the most powerful men in the world. He stood with the fourteen officers and NCOs at the gangway, waiting for the Emperor to arrive aboard. A photographer was also there, taking pictures of the event. The photographer was a military man, but the pictures would be offered to the newspapers after a few hours. When the Emperor arrived on deck, it was Jansen who answered while he saluted.

"Yes sir. I am Captain Jansen, the commanding officer. Welcome aboard the HMS 'Cotland' sir. If you'd follow me please?" Jansen said in a moderately accented voice while saluting. When the Emperor was ready, Jansen turned and escorted the Emperor and his entourage aft to the grand salon of the 'Cotland', explaining a bit about the history of the vessel and giving some information about her as they went along. He said nothing about the combat systems or other classified equipment aboard her though. Before long, they stood outside a pair of iced glass doors with the Royal Crown outlined in clear glass. Outside, two men dressed in civilian suits stood. However, their open jackets, wires to the ears and aware eyes showed that they were part of the security staff. Unbeknownst to the Layartebians, these two were members of the elite and highly secret Birkebeiner Corps, a unit which consisted of less than four hundred men in total, and only a small portion of the inner security perimeter. They had powerful pistols within a few milliseconds reach, and even more powerful weapons only a few meters away. The security of the King was definately not lax!

Kommandørkaptein Jansen nodded to the two men, who nodded back and opened the doors to the grand salon, allowing the Emperor and his entourage to enter. Inside, the King waited. Inside the large salon, which was tastefully painted in comfortable bright colors and decorated with comfortable leather chairs and sofas around tables in glass and ash wood, with various decorative items and a large plasma TV on one of the walls, clearly made for relaxation and recooperation, the King walked over to the Emperor and greeted them. He spoke very good English, having spent several years abroad when he was younger.

"Your Majesty, welcome aboard."

The Emperor stood straight and looked at his bodyguards, giving them a signal to be at ease. They would wait outside whilst the Emperor conducted his business within. The yacht was secure, he knew, and he could rest assured that his men knew too. "It is an honor to be aboard such a beautiful vessel your Majesty. I am glad that we could find time to meet during such a busy event." The Emperor took the cue from the King and sat down in one of the most comfortable chairs he had ever sat in, this side of the Atlantic Ocean. The doors would close and behind them would be his bodyguards and his small entourage, intermingling with the Cottish one. He relaxed a little and straightened his suit jacket, his pistol underneath concealed well.

The King smiled as he sat down in a chair opposite the Emperor. "Yes, I am quite pleased with her," he said, refering to the Emperors praise of his yacht. "I am also very grateful for you taking your time to visit my humble home away from home. We have much to discuss." Before he could continue, a sailor came over and wondered if they wanted any refreshments. The King ordered a cup of coffee, the finest Colombian blend, and looked for the Emperor to order.

"I think that I would like to have the same. I do love Colombian coffee. Some people have accussed me of annexing the state just for the coffee. I can't disagree sometimes. I've brought you a gift though." He called for one of his aides, who promptly came in carrying a wooden box, small in size. He handed it to the Emperor and the Emperor handed it to the King. "It is a gift from me to you. I have had my associates hand select the fifty-seven best Cuban cigars available from one of our most famous factories. Included inside is also a personal cigar cutter that I was given by a Cuban diplomat shortly after we annexed the island. He gave it to me with the words, 'This has brought my family luck for years. I give it to you to give to others in the world as a gift of the hospitality of the Empire and of the luck that it brings.' I can think of no finer individual than yourself to bestow that honor. I only ask that if you meet someone along the way you pass it along. I am told that I was the 300th individual to have the cutter. Perhaps one day we shall know it reaches 1,000."

The sailor nodded and walked out of the room, leaving the two heads of state alone to discuss the important matters at hand. The King accepted the gift and looked at the cutter.

"Thank you sir. I assure you that I shall honor your request." The King placed the wooden case on the table next to the chairs. At the same time, the sailor returned, holding a silver tray with two cups made out of the finest white china with a golden stripe along the top rim of the cup, a silver coffee-pot and a few smaller pieces of white and golden china with milk and sugar if either of the two heads of state wished to have it for the coffee. The sailor placed out the two cups on the table and poured the coffee for the two men. He also placed a plate of chocolate-chip biscuts on the table before he bowed for the two men and stepped away. The King nodded to the sailor, who silently and quickly walked over to a cabinet and took something out. It was a rather large wooden box, made of the finest pine and polished 'til it shone. The sailor handed it to the King, who smiled and nodded to the sailor who bowed again and left the salon quickly and silently.

"Your Majesty, our two countries have been close friends for countless years. We have faced enemies together, and we have shared of our cultures. You have been a close and important friend to the Realm, and we have done so little to show our appreciation of having you and your glorious nation as a friend. Therefore, I ask that you accept this humble sign of our appreciation."

The King opened the box and presented it to the Emperor. It was nothing less than the badge of the Grand Cross of the Royal Cottish Order of St. Olav, the highest decoration awarded to foreigners and the third highest order awarded to Cots, being outranked only by the War Cross and the Medal for Outstanding Citizenship. St. Olav was a very rare medal, having been offered to only around 5,000 people in total since it was instituted in 1847, of which only about ninety had been offered the Grand Cross. Being offered a St. Olav was a rare honor, even if you were Cottish. Being offered to a foreigner was an extremely rare honor. The Cots were very selective with their orders, so it was a sign that they thought highly of the man sitting opposite the King in the grand salon of the HMS 'Cotland'.

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Badge, Grand Cross of St. Olav

OOC: The Emperor's title is just 'Emperor.' Your Majesty is more for a king.

The Emperor humbly accepted the award. He knew its history within the Cottish Realm and he knew how much it meant to be recieving the award. He was near speechless and was more than honored. "I cannot begin to express my gratitude, I thank you Your Majesty. This can only mean that our friendship not only as nations but as leaders can go indefinitely. The Empire wishes to keep the Cottish Realm, at minimum, as what it is already. Growth and producement is what we strive for."

The King smiled, pleased with the Emperor accepting the honor the Cots had decided to bestow upon him. He took out the badge which was in the end of a red, white and blue ribbon arranged in the Cottish colors, and hung it around the neck of the Emperor. He then handed the Emperor the medal which was to be placed on uniforms and smokings, and the massive silver and golden chain that was to go on only at the grandest of occations, such as to the galla-uniform. Both of these two pieces of regalia were in polished pine boxes, which were handed to the Emperor.

"I am glad that you accept our humble honor. Hopefully our countries will have gotten even closer by the end of this meeting," he said, signalling that it was time for getting down to business. "As I said earlier, we have much to discuss. Shall we begin with the issue about coffee? As far as I understand from the Minister of Commerce's notes, the Realm is currently importing nearly ninety-five thousand tons of coffee from Colombia each year, with a cost of $1,850 per ton. We would like to increase that import, but with more favorable prices. We were thinking along the lines of increasing the import to one hundred and twenty thousand tons with a new price of $1,700 per ton. The cost is naturally negotionable. Why else are we here?" he said, smiling as he took a sip of the coffee. It was time to haggle!

OOC He could use 'Your Imperial Majesty'.

The Emperor put a single cube of sugar into his coffee and added just enough milk to turn it from jet black to a muddy brown. He took a sip and thought for a quick moment. "Coffee is a desirable export. It seems that nearly everyone today wants to trade our cigars and coffee, and thankfully, it is making the market turn higher and higher. Current trading shows that $1.85 per tonne is rather lucrative to us. With the current trade we're bringing in $175.75 million. What you are proposing will net, for us, $204 million, a small increase of $28.25 million. We'll still be losing $18 million. This is a small number, I understand, but it isn't generating enough for us at all. A net instease of 27,000 tonnes is a good amount but it isn't a lot. For $1,700 per tonne we would have to provide no less than 175,000 tonnes of it. For 120,000 tonnes I can't see my finance minister going for anything under $1,800 per tonne."

The King listened to the Emperor and the Layartebian view on the situation. It was clear that it would take some comprimises, but the King hadn't expected to get the initial offer accepted.

"Emperor, we're planning to invest tens of millions of dollars extra in this deal. The contract is worth between nearly two hundred and five and two hundred and sixteen million dollars in total. A stiff price." He let that hang in the air for a second before he continued. "However, it is a premium product. I think that we may be able to go up to $1,750 per ton of coffee."

.: bumpy :.

The Emperor was happy. He was getting the King up but they were at a slight dilemma. "I understand the value that you are proposing here and I cannot argue that either. My only concern is that our output won't be sufficient for the price, that we will be losing too much. The government will, naturally, have to cover the cost to the factories and to our suppliers. We cannot ask them to produce it for less and with the same quality. My main concern is that it will add stress to our budget, which has, thus far, been exemplary. What do you say we up it to 125,000 tonnes and leave the price at $1,775 per tonne? That would be sufficient I would think and draw in enough revenue where it would be beneficial to have such a reduced price."

The King frowned slightly at the Layartebian offer. Time to use the secret weapon.

"Emperor, as I'm sure you know, the Cottish economy took a plunge downwards as a result of the attempted communist coup last year. While it is recovering, we aren't as strong economically as we once were yet. The highest I can possibly go at this point in time is $1,765 per ton. If we increase the order to one hundred, twenty-five thousand tons, it comes to more than two hundred and twenty million dollars to your coffers. Any further and we'll have too little funds available for the coffee. The finance minister has to defend all the expenses in Stortinget, you know."

The Emperor pondered a moment and shook his head. "I believe that is agreeable. I believe we have an accord."

"Excellent," the King smiled. "That's one more to cross off the to-do list. Shall we move on? I believe that the next point on the agenda is defense procurement. As I'm sure you know, we've hinted that we're intending to buy a large amount of helicopters and other items. Our own designs, mainly the H-80 Halo and the H-99 Lynx II weren't great successes, so we need foreign designs to replace them." The King paused, keeping the Emperor in a state of suspense for a few seconds before continuing. "Therefore, I would like to order a total of one thousand, one hundred and fourty-two of your 'Super Stallion II' design, and two thousand, six hundred and sixty-nine of your 'Huey II' design. I believe that comes to the round sum of eighty billion dollars. I also have been told by defense minister Alvheim that we need conventionally powered submarines. Would the Empire of Layarteb be willing to sell us thirty-six submarines of the Shield class?"

The King took a sip of the coffee while he listened to the Layartebian response. It was a very good blend indeed.

The Emperor smiled for a moment. "You know the Empire never has had qualms about selling the Cottish military arms nor shall we at this moment either. We shall accomodate your three orders with the fullest sincerity. With that in mind, thirty-six Shields cost 75.6 billion. In light of the coffee deal and the helicopters shall we just assort it to be an even 65 billion?"

"That's very gracious of you sir. I accept on the behalf of the Realm." The King offered his hand to confirm the deal.