NationStates Jolt Archive

Undershi City, Undershi

Thunderer fighter-bombers flew low overhead, while a collumn of Drake MBTs and Viper IFVs rolled through the main avenue of the city, past the burned-out remains of The Winter Palace. Thousands of Undershi soldiers in their field greys marched in lock-step behind the tanks, making a moving spectacle.
Civilians, norms and True Undershis who had not been selected for service during the war, watched the parade go by.
Children threw confetti, and waved the red Undershi flag, while the even the norms seemed to brighten up a bit as a few hundred Janissary Combat Engineers marched by.
All in all, it had been a good war, as wars go - the Undershi Empire had expanded massively, and had managed to fight off a group of determined attackers with many times their populace. It had been a good, honorable, fight, and the people were happy.
Near the end of the parade came a less joyous crowd - the POW camps had been emptied out, their inmates issued new uniforms from enemy states such as No_State_At_All, then were sent marching through the city. A few children threw stones, but mostly the people just watched. A few of the norms looked at them with open sympathy - here was another batch of normal humans who had been defeated by the True Undershis who ran the Empire.
Of course, the POWs would be going home eventually - as soon as NSAA came to its senses and agreed to return the Undershi POWs that had been taken. Since that didn't seem likely, for the foreseeable future, the POWs would be kept in the camps.
Still, the war was over, and that was good... even if there was already another war on the way in Danteri.

Undershi City Undershi

The parade had ended a while ago, as the sun set and the "fireworks" display began. No expense had been spared - as thousands of rockets exploded in the air, sending off multi-colored sparks in huge showers, a squadron of Lightning fighters flew overhead, swerving and rolling in simulated attack runs.
The light from hundreds of thousands of torches and bonfires and search lights filled the night with as much light as there would be at dawn, and the streets were filled with cheering, dancing, crowds. The war was over - it wasn't a total victory, but it wasn't a defeat by any stretch of the imagination.

The High Command's Bunker - Undershi City, Undershi

In an out-of-the-way little supply room, three men in the black uniforms of the IIS stood around a pile of crates, grim looks upon their faces as they looked at one another. Finally, one spoke:
"We need to move up the schedual for our plans. The IIS is in power, as it should be, but we need to ensure that things go as... our little faction wishes them to go. As such, I recomend... that certain steps be taken, including the assassination of Lord General Mark O'Brien." the other two nodded in agreement, and that marked the end of their discussion.