NationStates Jolt Archive

"Right, sir. The expedition party will set out tomorrow morning. Is there anything else you wish?"

"Nothing else. Just bring our boys home. Mazel Tov."

The battleship the Alexandria set out from a naval base in Egypt in the early morning of 14 January, accompanied by a destroyer, Vampire. On board were the 200 soldier from the elite 1st Imperial Marine Light Infantry Division led by Colonel Binyamin Heber.

The two ships sailed north, heading for the Isle of Crete. "All right, listen up men." Colonel Heber adressed his officers as the Alexandria turned west for the city of Iraklion. "Once we are near the city of Iraklion, board the landing crafts. We will make our landfall one mile east of the city." He picked up a pencil and circled an area beside the city. "Your order is to wait until the negotiation is done. It is less likely that the Cretan will attack, we have the ships' guns. But if they do, fall back to the ship immediately. If they agree, move into the city."

At noon, the first squads of Israelite Marines boarded the landing crafts. Once they were ashore, the landing crafts went back to pick up more men. Within an hour, all Marines were ashore.

The negotiation went fruitlessly on the first day. The Israelites camped outside the city of Iraklion for the night. The negotiation for Crete continued on the following day. The marines watched from their camp as Colonel Heber came to an agreement with the Cretan leader.

The treaty of Iraklion was signed on the third day after the arrival of the Israelites. The treaty of Iraklion regcognised that Crete was then an Israelite colony, the Cretans' rights as equal as any other Israelites, allowed the Cretans to participate in elections and granted the Cretan 'leader' an amount of money annually.