NationStates Jolt Archive

Late at night, General Patrick Ryan, ASDF Marine Corps, crept silently through the darkened hallways of a top-secret military bunker that lay under New Hague, the capital city of Falcaunia. Known to nobody outside the Allied States Defense Forces’ top brass, this was the perfect location for a coup d’etat to be planned out. Ryan hadn’t been sure about this, but his own commanding officer had ordered him there, and if there was anything that Patrick Ryan knew about the Commandant of the Marine Corps, it was that he was an honorable man. At last, he reached the door that he was looking for. He knocked on it five times, two quick, one slow, then two more quick.

The door swung open to reveal a surprising set of the Falcaunian military’s premier and most legendary top officers. Among those seated at the sturdy, oaken conference table General Ryan recognized the Director of Naval Intelligence, the Chief of Staff of the Navy, and his own leader, who had summoned Ryan to the meeting, the Commandant of the Marines.

As Ryan shut the door behind him and took the last seat at the conference table, the Director of Naval Intelligence stood up and began to speak. “Gentlemen, now that we are all assembled, let’s begin. You all know the nature of our meeting; we intend to remove Secretary-General Chen from power. I realize that some of you may have doubts,” the short and chubby, yet somehow commanding man peered at Ryan, “but as you will find in the next few moments, this is entirely necessary. A conspiracy, so thick that it threatens our very way of life, will unfold before your eyes.” With that, the Director sat back down, picked up a remote from the conference table, and pressed one of its buttons, as a holograph appeared in the center of the table.

2:30 AM, Underground Military Bunker, New Hage, Falcaunia

As he walked out of the conference room in which he had just spent three hours discovering a plot by Falcaunia’s political leaders which would inevitably lead to the destruction of Falcaunia, General Patrick Ryan was confident in what had to be done, and confident in exactly how it had to be done. He knew that nobody in the civilian arm of the government could be trusted; they were almost all under the spell of the rhetoric of Secretary-General Chen and his minions.

He also knew that the law prevented persons in such high positions of the government as Secretary-General, from being prosecuted for crimes committed under the veil of that office, and that this was not just a crime against the codes and laws of New Hague’s bureaucrats, but against humanity itself. He knew that a military takeover was the only way, but it would have to be almost bloodless. Almost. Only one life could, and would have to be taken to gain the upper hand.

From his vantage point on the top of New Hague's famous Halcroft Building, Sergeant Jason Keefe lay down as he peered at Capitol Street through the scope of his S2 AM sniper rifle, toggling back and forth between different modes of zoom. Hearing sirens, he realized that the motorcade would be on its way. As a series of motorbikes and and patrol cars of the New Hague Security Department passed, lights flashing and sirens wailing, Keefe waited silently, atop the building.

Soon thereafter, a limousine pulled up and a member of the Secretary-General's personal guard, clad in a black suit and sunglasses opened the front passenger door of the limo, got out, and walked towards the back seats of the car. As the guardsman opened the door, Keefe looked back into his rifle's scope. A head popped out of the car, followed by the body of a short, old, and bespectacled Chinese man. Keefe took aim, zooming in between the two eyes, and fired. Within seconds, the Secretary-General's body had collapsed on the floor, guardsmen had run towards him, and New Hague Security personnel had pushed the crowds back.

Jason Keefe stood up and turned, whirling his head backwards once to survey the pandemonium, he reached into a pocket and produced a radio. "Command, this is Highlander. Little Panda has been terminated, repeat Little Panda has been terminated," Sergeant Keefe said, using Secretary-General Chen's codename. "Copy, Highlander. Proceed to extraction point immediately," came General Ryan's voice on the other end. "Copy that," Keefe replied, as he began to walk towards the ladder which lead to the inside of the Halcroft Building.

Colonel Baxter, commander of the ASDF Marine Corps' 107th Armored Battalion, recieved his orders and read them in shock.

Colonel R. Baxter,
You are to mobilize your battalion and relocate to the capital city, New Hague, where you will assume the duties of the New Hague Security Department and the civilian local government. Although no curfews will be imposed, the city of New Hague is placed, from this point on, under martial law.

Joseph Chamberlain,
Secretary of the Navy

No further instructions, no explanation given, Colonel Baxter stood in his office, staring at the paper he had received for several minutes before he ordered "Alright troops, let's move out."

In military bases all over the planet, battalion commanders received and carried out similar orders.

Official Communique - Department of the Navy
Secretary of the Navy

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/81/SA_Navy_Badge.png

Fellow citizens and foreigners alike, I regret to inform you of the assassination of the late Secretary-General, Chen Da Lu. As this tragedy has left most branches of the government incapacitated, the Security Council has voted to temporarily suspend the General Assembly. During this period of change and possible turbulence, all affairs of state will be carried out through the Department of the Navy.

Sincerely,
Joseph Chamberlain,
Secretary of the Navy