NationStates Jolt Archive

12 Imperial Square

"Damnit... I never thought I'd be elected into such a shitfest..."
"Welcome to the world of international politics. Now you have to deal with shit thrown at you from other nations as well as politicians on the home front."

Primary Director Elizabeth Anagrams picked at her braided blonde hair, rubbing at her eyelids after the twentieth consecutive hour without sleep. She had been sworn in not two days ago, and already she was facing an internation; and domestic crisis. Across the desk from her sat Deputy Prime Director David Koslin, former Director of the GASN, also on his twentieth consecutive hour without sleep. Before him was a half-emptied coffee cup, and a cigarette which hung low from his lips, drooping just ever so slightly as the bags became ever-more prevalent under his eyes.

The two were pouring over pages and pages of intelligence and foreign reports. NATO nations mobilizing, Northford strengthening its forces, Gholgoth uniting under one banner, Zukariaa declaring unending support for the Questarian crown... It was almost too much to take in for the two of them.

"Not to mention there's a rally scheduled tomorrow in the square...", Koslin remarked gruffly. "Questarian Jacks will be all over the damn place."
"And they'll all be shouting at this window.", Anagrams replied while pointing to the large, reinforced windows which sat behind her desk. "Luckily I'll probably be over at the Palace all day tomorrow discussing what to do with the Emperor and the Cabinet, so I should be spared from that mess. At least temporarily."
"Yes, well..."

The two returned to their work, Koslin gulping down yet another cup of coffee.

"You know... It's funny, because despite losing the election, I guarantee Vince is laughing at us right now."
"Oh, no doubt.", Anagrams replied with a laugh. "That twat would take great joy in knowing how much we're suffering right now. Mostly because of his shit foreign policy."
"Precisely.", Koslin replied, with as wide a smile as he could muster at this hour.

Several hours later, the two had finally reviewed every single tiny shred of information which had passed on to Anagrams's desk, and had compiled it into neat summaries and reports for the Emperor the following day. Finally, Elizabeth was able to close her eyes and relax, however she had only a short time to do so. She would be able to catch approximately four hours of sleep before she had to be up and ready to meet with the Emperor, and those four hours would mean everything to her.

"You going home to sleep?", Koslin inquired as he poured himself another coffee.
"No...", Anagrams replied while pouncing on to the leather couch which lay in the corner of her office. "I'll be dozing right here. There's no time to fight the late night and early morning traffic in this city to get home."
"Hmph, you can say that again. Traffic in this city is horrendous at all hours. I'll be out in the lobby, there's a nice recliner out there with my name on it."
"Knock yourself out."

Darkness and silence beset the building, an eerie calm for the storm which was to occur the next morning.

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

Imperial Square
09:00

In a matter of hours, Imperial Square transitioned from a tranquil scene to one of chaos as hundreds crowded the square itself, while thousands upon thousands lined the nearby streets in protest of the recent events unfolding around the Questarian Imperium. A sea of white, red, and blue Questarian flags was visible throughout the square, supplemented by the teal and green of the Cravanian jack. The noise overtook the surrounding area, as as if one massive creature sat in the square shouting out messages of political dissent.

"WHAT DO WE WANT?", would come the leaders.
"PRO-QUESTARIAN GOVERNMENT!", came the response.
"WHEN DO WE WANT IT?"
"NOW!"

It was an endless wave of noise reverberating throughout. Cravanian police kept out a watchful eye on the demonstration, while news helicopters high above captured every minute of the action. It was recorded as being the largest demonstration in Cravan since 1978.

And it would probably be as violent as that same demonstration.

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

"This is bad...", Emperor Robert declared to himself as he watched the television screen in disbelief. "This is really bad..."
"Maybe it's not as bad as it seems, sir?", came Director Anagrams. "Although they want pro-Questarian foreign policy, perhaps they'll still remain true to the homeland?"
"Not these ones.", the Emperor replied. "These people... They want blood. And right damn now. Freekish blood."
"Well that's obviously not going to happen.", Anagrims replied. Anagrims, although decidedly not pro-Automagfreek in her policies, was extremely pro-Illior and pro-Aequatio, and thus she had taken on a pro-Gholgoth attitude during her tenure as a Senator. "I'm not about to let anyone change our foreign policy completely and drive this Empire into the ground."
"And I wouldn't let it happen.", Robert replied, breaking his gaze from the wall-mounted plasma screen. "And it won't. But hell, there's probably going to be a lot of people tried for treason if anything comes of this."

Suddenly the scene on the television turned from organized chaos to complete anarchy, as demonstrators ran in every direction in a frenzy. Police were not too far behind. As reported, a demonstrator had taken the first potshot at a police officer, and the entire situation spiraled downhill from that point.

The people of the Empire were fracturing apart. Although it was but a small minority, even the smallest of voices could make a difference.

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

Territorial Government Building
Millingston, Carpanthium
Haven

The door to The Right Honorable Sir Roger Yeoman's office burst open without warning, a man in a well-decorated Cravanian military uniform entering. In his hand was a folder lined with red tape, marking it as confidential information.

"What is it, General?", Governor Yeoman asked confused. Without words, the officer laid the folder down on the Governor's desk and walked to the door. He paused in the open doorway, resting his hand upon the frame.
"I'll be in my office, Governor. When you're finished reading the reports there and looking over the recon photos, contact me and we'll get the ball rolling. We haven't much time."
"Haven't much time...?", Yeoman asked, his Carpanthian accent contrasting greatly with the mainland Cravanian accent the officer spoke with. "Time for what, exactly?"
"It's best if you read. I'll be in contact when you need me."

The door closed gently, and Yeoman promptly broke the seal on the envelope and began reading through the reports. Not four words into the first page his eyes were wider than an owl's. He immediately set the paper down, allowing the shock to set in for a moment. He cautiously picked up the receiver to the phone sitting next to him on the desk, then thinking replaced it and opened his drawer where a red phone sat. Lifting it, he did not even have to dial for he was instantly connected to Cravna via encrypted satellite transmission.

"May I please speak with the Emperor or with the Primary Director? It's... A bit of an important call."

While waiting to be patched through, Yeoman looked down at the satellite recon photographs, showing Northfordian troop movements.

"Yes.", he said as Primary Director Anagrams came on the line. "I wish to confirm this situation with yourself, ma'am.... Oh? Really? Well... I say... Yes, thank you. Alright. Yes. Good day to you, too, ma'am. Goodbye."

Setting the phone back down, Yeoman rose from his desk.

"Fifty thousand Imperial marines, and seventy-five thousand Imperial Army personnel. And not one God-damned fortification on the entire border."

Yeoman drew the shade as dusk approached Carpanthium. Dark times were ahead.



((OOC: Forgive for grammar/sentences that just plain don't make sense. It's late, I'm tired, I'm kinda thirsty, and I was planning on being asleep about an hour ago. But meh. Post diplomatic responses/news stories away, assuming there's even a way to edge yourself in.))

Bump >.> <.<

((OOC: Erm... Thanks? o.O Can we keep this to IC only, please and thanks?))

EDIT- Directed at post below... Fuck Jolt time warp. >____>

The next day, the Questarian papers were full of praise for the dissenters in Cravan - such headlines as "A voice of justice in Cravan once again" and "Cravanians see sense and justice" were the standard pattern most newspapers followed. In London the Cravanian flagburning momentarily stopped as a sign of respect to those in Cravan who supported the Questarian cause.

World Shocked As Pro-Questerian Protestors Turn To Violence…Not
Borman Imperial News
http://johnbatchelorshow.com/admin/allsource/exampleimages/Uzbek%20protestors.jpg

Yesterday, in the nation of Cravan, communist swine gathered in the Imperial Square to renounce the politically stable path their government had been treading, in favor of casting their freedoms away to ally with the oppressive Questerian government. Less than two hours into the protest the Satanists erupted into violence as one of their numbers randomly launched himself at a police officer, taking a swing while trying to wrestle the officer’s weapon from him. The police naturally responded by subduing the man, while struggling to avoid inflicting undue harm, and arresting him. The rebel's friends, however, had other plans, and quickly followed his course of action as they too began to engage in assaulting police officers who had been merely overseeing the rally to prevent a violent outbreak. Within seconds chaos erupted as innocent police officers and civilians were assaulted and maimed by the demonic hordes screeching for Questerian allegiance as they worked to slaughter their fellow countrymen. The loyal Cravanian police officers were fortunately vigilant and prepared enough to stem the flow of traitorous scum attempting to violently overwhelm them. The day ended in a bath of blood, once more an onslaught of slaughter motivated purely by Questerian forces, another tribute to the true demonic nature of the Satanic Imperialist nation of Questers.

The nation of Cravan, led by Emperor Robert, has been decidedly marching a pro-Gholgoth path; not necessarily because of pro-Automagfreek sentiment, since that is largely lacking, but pro Aequatio and Illior sentiment. While striding upon this path the nation has received unprecedented growth in terms of infrastructure, economy, and international respect as well as national stability. Cravan’s commitment to their friends in Illior and Aequatio has led them to march alongside Gholgoth, something which has continued to be beneficial to their nation. Unfortunately, not all people within Cravan enjoy peace, progress, and standing in the right. Questers’ recent declaration of intent to engage in an imperialist, aggressive, and unwarranted war upon the nation of Automagfreek has cause the bandwagon swine within Cravan to come out waving the flags of Satan’s spawn so as to try and force their nation to betray their friends and God and ally with the evil nation that is Questers. As of now, though, Cravan has managed to let level-headedness and common sense prevail, thus resulting in their continued allegiance to the Gholgoth forces, recently put on the defense from Questers unwarranted intention to rage war.

The New Vantanian press has had a field day, covering possibilities of revolution in Cravan, assassination of the top levels of government by rebels, and Cravanian terrorists targetting pro-Gholgoth institutions. The government has refused to comment on the media's speculations.

"Liz, check this out.", Koslin said while tossing the Primary Director a newspaper. "It's worth a laugh."

Anagrams read the headline, the newspaper being from Vantanas, and noted that the entire front page was filled with reports of revolution and civil war in the Empire.

"Are these people fucking serious?", Anagrams said annoyed at the prospect. "It was a demonstration for Christ's sake, nothing out of the ordinary for a free nation."
"They're tabloids.", replied Koslin. "Vultures. I had to deal with the bastards all throughout my time with GASN. They're unmerciful."
"Perhaps they'll try and incite something?", Director of Intelligence Jennifer Halsey speculated. "You never know."
"If they do I can guarantee the response will be swift and just.", Anagrims replied. "Imperial Guardsmen have been known to operate without ethics in the past."
"On rare occasions..."
"This is a rare enough occurance.", she replied, her anger beginning to show through. "When they suggest I may be assassinated I take it rather personally. I mean hell, there's barely a single 'terrorist' cell active in Cravan today!"
"The only one I can actually think of are the crime bosses and families from Sapin... And the government sometimes works with them behind the curtain. Cravan has always had a very complacent population, to be honest."
"So will we make an official response?"
"No. We won't. We'll only be feeding the bastards more to use against us."

Without warning the door to the office opened, and in stepped one of the higher-ranking aides who worked at the Directorate.

"Madame Director, the press conference on the day's events is in ten minutes."
"Thank you, Jim.", Anagrams replied.
"Of course, Ma'am."

Director Anagrams turned to her associates. "I'm sure you two can sift over this while I'm gone. It will only be a quick conference, nothing major."
"Sure thing, Liz. Good luck. Don't get assassinated.", Koslin said with a laugh.
"Don't worry about that."

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

"My fellow Cravanians, I come before you today to say that, despite our differences, we Cravanians must stand united in the coming days and weeks. Although we may not see eye to eye entirely, we cannot allow our nation to fracture apart, and I am sure it never would. Pro-Questarian or Pro-NATO and Gholgoth, no matter your stance you are still one thing and one thing alone: Cravanian. Our nation is among the greatest in the world, and is one of the few where you can speak your mind and harbor your own beliefs. And that is what makes our nation great.

"Many say actions speak louder than words. However: In a society such as our own, I must disagree. Your voice can be heard no matter your economic or ethnic background, your opinion made clear. Citizens play an active role in our government, and may petition us or debate anything they wish in an open political forum. Which is why I must ask, why the violence today? Admittedly it was merely a bottle of water thrown at a police officer from a disgruntled protester, but had it been something more our nation could have likely fractured. And I thank the heavens it wasn't anything more than a bottle of water. The perpetrator was immediately apprehended, and the demonstration was allowed to continue peacefully. And that shows that a large majority of Cravanians, even dissenters, know that their point will be made that much clearer with peaceful protest than with the taking up of arms.

"Our nation stood united in the days following the loss of Richtor, where ten million Cravanians died in a nuclear hellfire. We were no longer Conservatives or Libertarians. CravEcos or Labor Members. We were all one nationality once again. And that is how we must face the future, no matter our beliefs and ideals. A house divided cannot stand. The same concept does indeed apply to our Empire."

It was at this point that Elizabeth broke her original intentions, and replied to the propoganda being spread abroad.

"As for the reports from Vantanas, I can assure the international community that things are quite calm and peaceful here in the Libertarian Empire. Your concerns over terrorist attacks and assassination attempts are duly noted, yet I must say with confidence these events will likely not take place. I thank you for worrying for my safety, though.", she said with a wry smirk.

Her eyes darting around the room of journalists, Anagrams finally finished her short briefing.

"If there are any questions from the media present, please ask immediately. I've important work piling up on my desk, and I'm afraid I can't stay much longer."

"Excuse me ma'am, Bob Illyanovich, Borman Imperial News. The world seems to be polarizing with this world war brewing on the horizon. Questers is, as you may or may not known, revving up to begin an unwarranted and agressive campaign of imperialist against Automagfreek. May I ask where you see Cravan falling in the coming conflict?"

"Oh, I'm quite aware of the situation, Mr. Illyanovich.", Anagrams replied. "And I must say that, as a member of the New Alliance Treaty Organization, Cravan will honor her pacts with her allies. Now, I'm not too famous for being pro-Automagfreek, however I hold our Illiorian and Aequatian allies in the highest possible regard. I do, however, believe that if possible diplomacy should be used at all times in the coming weeks. The Libertarian Empire has been very friendly with Questers for many, many years, and Northford is one of our closest allies. I pray that conflict may be averted, however if absolutely necessary Cravan will take up arms. It will, however, take much coercing to stir us to action other than defensive maneuvers."

Barlmoor House, Residence of the Prime Minister

"It's probably nothing major."

Foreign Minister Wenyuan Sun picked up a small manila folder and tossed it across the desk. "So far, I've given the entire Cravan situation a low marking in the intelligence bureau. Cravan's country file is a bit sparse. We haven't had much interaction with them before they joined NATO, and so far the government hasn't done much except assure the average citizen. We'll be keeping an eye out for anything more serious; I've a task force assigned to the job, but other than that, I don't see this as needing any more attention."

The Prime Minster deftly caught the file and propped it open on one knee as he thumbed through its content. "Still, several hundred thousand protesters mean that the movement's got enough support so that it won't go away on its own. Keep me informed. There's too much happening with Gholgoth and Quester's Commonwealth for these protests to not have the potential to develop further."

"Should I send a communiqué to the Cravans?"

"Nah, at least right now. We don't want to appear more worried than their government is. If something happens, they'll let us know."

"Oh, I'm quite aware of the situation, Mr. Illyanovich.", Anagrams replied. "And I must say that, as a member of the New Alliance Treaty Organization, Cravan will honor her pacts with her allies. Now, I'm not too famous for being pro-Automagfreek, however I hold our Illiorian and Aequatian allies in the highest possible regard. I do, however, believe that if possible diplomacy should be used at all times in the coming weeks. The Libertarian Empire has been very friendly with Questers for many, many years, and Northford is one of our closest allies. I pray that conflict may be averted, however if absolutely necessary Cravan will take up arms. It will, however, take much coercing to stir us to action other than defensive maneuvers."

"I see, and now, what about the recent protest in your nation? Has anything come of it and do you see more protests coming?"

"Well, to be honest, Mr. Illyanovich, I do see further protests occuring. I see them, however, as civilized and peaceful political rallies, rather than violence spreading through the streets. The Pro-Questarians are still patriots, as could be seen by the seas of teal and green along with Questarian Jacks today. The limited 'violence' if you may even call it that was quickly suppressed, and the perpetrator was soon afterwards released and is currently with his family. No harm was done to any officers, and the only injuries to the demonstrators were a few who suffered minor bumps and scrapes in the commotion to apprehend the perpetrator. Otherwise the rally went down fairly uneventfully. They've made their point, after all, and have influenced some members of the Senate to change their stance slightly. I do not, however, see it as a threat to Cravan's foreign policy and our allegiances with NATO as a whole. It has had an effect on our internal political situation, however I highly doubt it will affect our stance on the international spectrum of things."

"Well, to be honest, Mr. Illyanovich, I do see further protests occuring. I see them, however, as civilized and peaceful political rallies, rather than violence spreading through the streets. The Pro-Questarians are still patriots, as could be seen by the seas of teal and green along with Questarian Jacks today. The limited 'violence' if you may even call it that was quickly suppressed, and the perpetrator was soon afterwards released and is currently with his family. No harm was done to any officers, and the only injuries to the demonstrators were a few who suffered minor bumps and scrapes in the commotion to apprehend the perpetrator. Otherwise the rally went down fairly uneventfully. They've made their point, after all, and have influenced some members of the Senate to change their stance slightly. I do not, however, see it as a threat to Cravan's foreign policy and our allegiances with NATO as a whole. It has had an effect on our internal political situation, however I highly doubt it will affect our stance on the international spectrum of things."

"But, let us not forget your most recent speech today. You seemed very shaken from the protest and seemed to be preaching and begging that the nation stand united. In this context, it seems your way under-exaggerating the influence of the protest. If I may ask, which way is it? Fear of fracture, or no fear?"

"I may have overemphasized the use of 'fracture' in my short address, and I would like to reiterate that I have no fear whatsoever of a fracture here in the Empire. The beauty of Cravan is all in its people's ability to form opinions of their own, and peacefully express that opinion. I have all the confidence in the world that further demonstrations will remain peaceful, no matter how dissatisfied with the government they may become. The freedom of speech is something we hold quite dearly here, Mr. Illyanovich, and as we consider Cravan a bastion of liberty on the world stage we continue to show the world that liberty always allows peace to reign."

"Well, Well well" mused Admiral James Tricker to the Prime Minister over their weekly meeting, "Seems the Cravanians have made their position clear."

The Prime Minister flipped through a copy of the speach. "Well, nice of them to...tell us. Hows the Jetlag, anyway?"

Crunching a shortbread, he rubbbed his head.

"Been better... that bloody jetfighter you made me nip back on is what did me in...I swear the dammed pilot gave me whiplash just for the hell of it"

Taking out a highlighter, the Prime Minister was circling sentances.

"Well, not much to be done now, just drink that tea, and tell me what the fuck we're supposed to do."

Laughing slightly, the Head of the Foreign Office stood up, walking up to the wall map of Haven that adorned the wall in the Prime Ministers office.

"Well, if you ask me, we're clusterfucked. Royally, too. There's not much that we can do now, other than giving it our all," He started, ignoring the raised eyebrows of the Prime Minister. "We pull our necks back in, we royally fuck off the Questarians -who by any account are doing this with or without us- and if we keep the slow build up, we'll probably miss the boat when it arrives."

"We've got three issues. Firstly, we've not got enough battle hardened regiments to meet our goals in a reasonable time period..."

"-we have goals?", cut in the Prime Minister quickly, before himself being cut across of.

"...We do. If we just sit and wait for Questarian battle plans, we'll be behind everything, what with implimentation. Our best bet is to do it off our own back, and bloody well make sure we do it from the moment the first shot is fired. Anyway, as I was saying:

Second, we need to prepare... to do things that a lot of people might not see as... savoury. I recon we can have Carpawhatsit with 5 Divisions if we're smart about it. We'll have to be smart, too, since once things start, no body will be wearing their gloves. That means combined arms, Air, Land, and Sea.

I suggest sleeper cells inside the dammed place, and, and I strongly suggest we shift the 27th Home Flotilla's* patrols 20 Nauticals' East, as well as actively deploying the 46th Home Flotilla along The Wash*. That'll give us the ability to cut off their main trade lane out of the place, as well as switch back to take out anything we can't do from Land."

"You've just thought this up off the fly?" Asked the PM, who was quite shocked at the detail he was going through.

"You try sitting in a fucking boat for 2 weeks. There was a reason I left the Navy full time and went to politics, and this is it: Boredom. Anyway, give me that highlighter."

Taking the pen off his superior, and removing the lid, he started drawing lines.

"Roll with me", he started, "We can put Flotilla's here, here, and here," drawing three big circles on the map, "On top of our Normal Deployments along the coast and in the Strob. Those extra fleets'll give us an extra five hundred, and on top of what we've already got deployed on patrols there, that'll be One Thousand Two Hundred Vessals we'll have either at Sea, or part of an active flotilla that is. That's about a third of our Navy."

"On top of that", he continued, " I want us to reform the first Fleet, and have it ready to deploy out of Ripon. It'll be useful depending on how the Cravanians react, and, in any event, will be useful for our other targets."

"Thats madness. We don't operate anything beyond light carrier based Flotilla's.... and our capital reserves are deployed oversea's, at the Colonies. When I did a raincheck last, I thought the plan was to use our Escort-Based fleet to close down the straits, and get the bloody Questarians to do the hard work?"

Looking at the Prime Minister, Admiral Tricker paused for a second. He knew he had to reply to this one carefully: It was him that secured capital ships for the Northfordian Navy, much to the resentment of the rest of the Cabnet. If he decided to push for more... heavy expenditure... he wasn't sure when the foot would be put down.

"Yes. That is the plan... but... well, I think it sucks." 'To the point', at least, he thought to himself.

Carrying on "The Questarians will be involved. Regardless. That said, there are other issues. By operating the policy we are, we're buggered if we fail to destroy everything above a cruiser from land. Three Light Carriers and a dozen destroyers don't have the firepower to knock out a Battlecruiser, let alone a Battleship, or a full fledged Superdread. It's all well and good planning to use land based Bombers and stuff, but we can't mull over it forever."

"So what do you suggest?" asked the Prime Minister, knowing full we that despite the Admiral had a point.

"Well, for a start, we're already procuring those Heavy Battlecruises from the Praetonians...the latest ones", he thought for a second, "Victorious's?I think? Now, the plan was to cart them off to re-enforce the colonies."

"Huh?" Asked the PM, "...That was the plan."

"Well, knock that one on it's head. I suggest we get 10 of those dammed Battleships back here, and only let half of those Battlecruises leave Northfordian Home Waters. Out of those Battlecruisers, use half again to re-enforce the Home Flotilla's. Whats the status of those arms deals you spoke to me on the phone about?", enquired the Foreign Minister.

Enjoying the fact he finally had a chance to speak, "Very well, in fact. The Praetonians... in particular... have been very accomodating. They've given us rights to produce every design they have in our own shipyards, and, for that matter anywhere else in the Commnwealth.", clearing his throat for a second, he continued, "As it stands, we're finishing negotiations with the Aunesians, as well the Kreig's to allow us to build out of their shipyards. If all goes well, they'll be churning all sorts out for us. Estimates say recon they'll be able to knock out anything up to 50 Cruisers by the end of the year."

Fucking wonderful...thank fucking god for the Praetonians "You kept that little gem quiet... no disrespect sir, but you could have used those old **** flaps of yours and told me this earlier... saved me some stress..."

"Nah, I like seeing you sweat, Tricker", said the Prime Minister, laughing.

"Well... that makes things a bit easier. What's happening bout the Azahans in all of this?" he asked

"At this moment we've got engineers heading there, making makeshift shipyards and docking facilities on his Northern and Southern Coast. Up North they're going to be rolling out hopefully a few dozen frigates by the years end, and down south we're going to have them make corvettes and generally prepare their coasts for launching an invasion fleet: Coastal Guns, Sub Pens, Anti-Sub nets.... all the usual sorta things. Heck, we're even helping them put up an missile defence net down there."

"Ah." responded the Foreign Minister. "See you're not completely useless then..."

"You shut ya gob and get back to your job" said the prime Minister, fumbling around with the teapot, "You want a refill?"

"Yes, please."

"Two sugars?"

Nodding, the Foreign Minister continued:

"Ach, I could spend all day going through this with you. Regardless, though, we need to invite that old Emperor down... the Cravanian one who lives 'with' us. You and him need to have a chat, and see what you can do about it. And, barring that, you need to make it extremely clear to him that if they decide to turn it into a fricken fortress, they're going to upset us."

"I Understand", started the Prime Minister, "...I'm not happy about this, by any stretch, but, you know how it works. I'll invite him down, have a chat, and next time the Cabnet convenes we'll hammer out something concrete."

"Sounds greasiojn" uttered the Admiral, his mouth half full of Ginger-nut

===

To: Matt_Cravan@Havenmail.net
From: Brookes@Ripon.gov.nd

Greetings, long time, no speak.

I'm not going to beat around the bush... but we should talk. You and I and both know there's stuff going on, and I want the air to be clear.

Usual time/Place?

Regards,

Brookes.

m'wah ttyl babez xxx

*Home Flotilla: Small Groups of ships that patrol around the Strob Strait, consisting of three light carriers, 8 Destroyers, and around a dozen frigates.

**The Wash: The area of the Sea that is beyond Crave's waters. I cba to explain tidal flows, but thats where it comes from

"Calliope One-Five-Niner requesting permission to land on Runway Three-Five." Nathaniel Greene looked down and watched the view on his helment-mounted display slowly change, showing shifting vectors and various ground-based and sea-based radar sets. Greene was piloting an RAF cargo aircraft, onboard nearly two hundred members of the Portshire Fusiliers, the vanguard of the United Kingdom's first deployment to Haven.

Their ultimate destination lay below them and to their south and west, Cravanian overseas territory. Behind Greene flew a dozen more Atlas strategic airlifters each with their share of the regiment, whose infantry fighting vehicles would be air-lifted in the next wave of flights. By week's end, twenty-four/seven flights from aerodromes in the United Kingdom would deposit the better part of two infantry divisions in the small piece of fortified Cravanian territory. Reinforcements by Royal Artillery regiments and an armoured division would begin to arrive at week's end by a heavily-defended convoy.

Ministry of Defence
Georgetown, United Kingdom

"Mr. Secretary, I have spoken with Colonel Shields and the Portshire Fusiliers are en route and deployment is proceeding according to schedule; however, the remainder of the Fourth and Sixth Divisions report delays, a de-railment on the R12 west of Lanark has put back plans by approximately twelve hours."

Quentin Sterling let one of his eyebrows rise, "a derailment," he quietly queried, the underlying question unasked.

The Defence Secretary's assistant shook his head. "Transport has completed a preliminary investigation, faulty set of points--nothing serious, sir. Regardless, local units from the Territorial Army are securing the remainder of the line."

"Very good. Any word from the Admiralty about progress with the naval detachment?"

"No, Mr. Secretary. I have talked to the First Lord's principal private secretary; and according to him, the Royal Navy is finalising the task force set to escort the transports. In two week's time, however, the majority of the pieces shall be in motion. But primarily for now we are utilising RAF airlifts to ship in the infantry and their light equipment." Sterling's assistant shuffled his hands until they lay at rest behind his back.

Sterling looked at the maps laid out upon his desk. "So long as the Cravanians can offer us facilities or the resources to build our own, then let the buildup of Oceanian forces continue. But also make sure that prying eyes on the other side of the border know that we are flooding into Carpathia."

"Carpanthium, sir."

The Defence Secretary threw his assistant a smirking glance. "I care less about what we call it, James, more that we hold it so that the Northfordians cannot call it something else."

"And our soldiers will do just that, sir."

HMS King George
At Sea, Somewhere in the Pacific

"First we sell them ships, and then we are tasked with ensuring that the whole lot of them rust and rot on the seabed?"

"If ordered to do so," a silver-haired man answered non-committally, his shoulders bearing the rank of an admiral, "do keep in mind, James, that it is not yet inevitable and I hold every hope that the Foreign Office can sort out these affairs to a satisfactory conclusion concluded without resorting to armed conflict."

Fleet Admiral Sir Wesley Osborne commanded the Oceanian Expeditionary Fleet, and had received orders to prepare the fleet for transit to the Cravanian territory of Carpanthium. While there, given the growing tensions between NATO and the Questarian Commonwealth, Oceanian forces could potentially come toe-to-toe with the Northford, with whom the UK had formerly maintained cordial relations. The relationship going so far as the export of patrol ships to the Northfordian authorities, that fact the kernel of the thought uttered by the ship's commanding officer.

"Regardless of the circumstances, James," Osborne eventually continued, after reviewing the morning report from the 2nd Cruiser Squadron, "until we set sail and arrive in theatre, I want the crew of this ship running drills for combat, for DC, for aerial operations."

"Hope for the best and prepare for the worst, sir?"

"Indeed."

Somewhere in the Carpanthian Mountains
Missile Complex 41-B

"EASY, EASY... THAT'LL DO! KEEP IT COMING!", the foreman shouted over the roar of machinery as he eased in the crane, his platoon of Imperial Army engineers working tirelessly to keep the newly constructed facility running smoothly. The crane slowly lowered a Khan superheavy anti-shipping missile into the reinforced silo, which upon completion would be entirely hidden in the mountainside with another six hundred silos spread around the moutainside, all of them hidden under the thickest of forest and camoflauge the Empire could use. Their construction was even masked to appear as if it were RADAR towers and complexes being constructed across the face of the moutain range, which was not completely untrue as numerous RADAR posts accompanied the hardened missile bunkers. In addition, numerous missile sites sporting smaller payloads began popping up around the countryside, concealed and camoflaged by the surrounding environment. Minor anti-air and anti-sea emplacements dotted the territory, however it would take much searching to actually pinpoint their locations. They were there. It would just take looking if one wanted to find them.

In the higher elevations, near the center of the formation of Khan missile silos, lay Marcinton Imperial Air Force Base, a structure which had been there almost since the territory was developed. The facility was literally built into the mountainside, hardened air shelters and hangars underneath layers of dirt and rock protected the aircraft while the runway sat on an area that had been flattened and terraformed enough to allow high-end jet aircraft to operate out of the base. It was here that four squadrons of Sariels had congregated. It was here that the first squadrons of the next generation of Illiorian fighter craft were deployed. And it was here that some Oceanian aircraft would operate out of, as the United Kingdom expanded its assets in Carpanthium.

It was no secret the territory was being fortified further. It was just too hard for prying eyes to determine exactly where and how much it was being reinforced. Oceanian forces landing at Millingston International were greeted by Imperial Forces with a cordial and friendly atmosphere, contrasting the possibly dismal times ahead. Forces from the United Kingdom were given access to most all of the Empire's bases which still had room to spare, despite its own forces and Midlonian deployments, and were also given the option of digging in in both the countryside and the mountains. Cravanian leaders in the territory had already made arrangements to meet with Oceanian higher-ups upon arrival, as coordination would be the key to success should an invasion of Carpanthium occur.

Coordination and time was all that was truly needed. Sadly, the latter was something that was outside of their control.

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


Territorial Government Building
Millingston, Carpanthium
Haven

"Sir, Oceanian forces continue to pour in. Everything's according to schedule thusfar, save for a slight delay in the United Kingdom, but it's nothing to set us behind by much."
"Good.", Governor Yeoman responded. "The faster we can get their forward elements situated the easier it will be to draw up initial plans."

Yeoman walked to the center of the makeshift war room, turned into such from what was originally a meeting room for Carpanthium's Council of Lords. In the center now was a large table, and on it sprawled several maps of the surrounding area within eight hundred kilometers of Millingston. Meanwhile, the far wall of the room which lay opposite the table, and what would have been the Council's meeting table, was a massive projector screen, upon which was a projection of the immediate theatre of operations within nine thousand kilometers of Carpanthium. All known friendly and enemy movements were marked in near real-time upon the great display, amounting to a sea of greens, reds, blues, yellows, and other various colors. Known fortifications were also marked, as were strategic holding points as determined by Imperial High Command. Two men sat at a computer operating the projection, manually inputting some data to keep the display more accurate.

Yeoman squinted to see details on the projection while his military attaché, a Brigadier General Peter Tellwood, continued to work on the maps sprawled upon the table, his pen in hand as he manually marked down points of interest. The dim light of the room forced Governor Yeoman to move closer to the projection.

"Are you able to zoom out to encompass more of Haven?", he asked.
"Aye, sir, we can.", came the self-satisfied response of one of the technicians as the image suddenly expanded. The map which lay before Yeoman now was almost a rainbow of color, as the territories of all involved nations were highlighted in their respective faction's color.

"And to think we're in the middle of just a small part of this.", a technician said while staring towards the display.
"Yes.", came Yeoman's reply. "And to think that it feels like we're at the center of the conflict when there's really so much more going on."

The image returned to its tactical viewpoint of the immediate theatre, and Yeoman returned to the charts. There was further work to be done.

Millingston International Airport
Millingston, Carpanthium, Empire of Cravan

With pallet after pallet rolling out of the belly of an Atlas C1, Major-General Malcolm Gallagher watched the deployment of the 4th Infantry Division behind his polarised lenses. As commanding officer, he had been in the first 'wave' of aircraft along with his senior staff. They had gone off elsewhere on the grounds of Millingston International setting up a temporary command post to which Oceanians would report upon disembarking from their transports.

Given the limited space in the military bases of his hosts, Gallagher had already looked at establishing bases and command posts elsewhere, hopefully outside the limits of the Millingston that could expect heavy bombardment in the opening hours. Royal Artillery regiments attached to his division would begin arriving near week's end, and they would be shipped off almost immediately upon arrival to sites in the mountains, which is what Gallagher wanted most heavily fortified.

He turned his head at the familiar purring of a diesel engine, and watched an up-armoured utility vehicle roll to a gentle stop, the driver rolling down his window, "General Gallagher, whenever you are ready, sir."

Gallagher opened the door himself and threw himself into the uncomfortable front passenger seat. "And you where you are going, private?"

"I got directions from a helpful Cravanian, sir--but I think they drive on the wrong side of the road here."

"Then just do your best to not let your commanding officer die before combat even begins."

"Very well, sir."

A few minutes later, the vehicle rolled to a stop outside the government building, the driver shutting off the engine and hurriedly exiting the vehicle to open the door for Gallagher. The private offered a quick salute that Gallagher returned promptly, and then the private shut the door and walked over to nearby Cravanian to inquire as to where he should permanently park the vehicle.

Gallagher pulled on his dress jacket a few quick times and straightened out his uniform. As he entered the building, led by a Cravanian guard, he tucked his cap underneath his arm and placed his sunglasses in his pocket. They finally arrived outside a closed-door, and the Oceanian then just waited until his hosts were ready to meet with him.

International Waters
150 km West of Strobovia Strait

"That makes three in the last hour, sir."

"Continue to track and update weapons plots as needed, they might well be modern-day Q ships for all we know." Felix Aurelia let his fingertips drum against his armrest in a quiet, yet slow and even rhythm. The HMS Spectre was the first Oceanian warship in Haven, the first warship in theatre at all--and she was technically not even a ship, instead sailing at a quiet twelve knots near one-hundred fifty metres below the surface.

While the Spectre held a 'silent speed' of twenty knots, Aurelia knew full well that what had been tested in a carefully created test session was likely not the true reality of the situation. And so the submarine made even less progress than the Admiralty wanted--but at least Aurelia knew that few would know about his presence until he surfaced outside Carpanthium waters.

She was due to put in at Millingston in three day's time, after first performing some hydrographic research for the Royal Navy on the depths and currents of the strait and indexing the various shipping channels used by civilian and military ships. Aurelia had been given explicit instructions that come what may, neutral ships were to be avoided at all costs save destruction of the Spectre. The surface fleet and the rest of the submarine force would arrive in a few weeks--until then Aurelia and the small frigate flotilla due in three days were to be the major components of the Royal Navy's presence in Haven.

"Sir, the Oceanian commander is here to see you. Shall I send him in?"
"Please, Jen, thank you.", Yeoman replied to his secretary while glancing over his shoulder. As he heard the door creak open, he turned around fully to greet General Gallagher.

"Greetings, General.", Governor Yeoman said with as much of a smile as he could muster. "It's a pleasure. I wish we could be meeting under better circumstances, but I'm afraid at this point in time things aren't completely looking up."

Yeoman turned, gesturing to his highest-ranking military officer.

"This is my military attaché, Brigadier-General Peter Tellwood.", Yeoman declared while gesturing towards his associate who replied with a curt nod of acknowledgement while staring at a point on the map below, obviously contemplating an idea which was forming in the back of his mind. "Pleasure to meet you, General.", Tellwood said as if he weren't completely there.

"In any case, I'm thankful the United Kingdom has realised our situation and sent support. I know that, should diplomacy fail and our forces be sent to action, we can succeed with the correct strategy and amount of coordination."

"Thank you, Governor, these are of course desperate times; regretfully, I think all of us in this room know that diplomacy failed a long time ago in this conflict. We have been preparing for a conflict such as this for some time now in the United Kingdom--admittedly not of this scale, but of this nature nonetheless." Gallagher took a moment and threw a quick glance at the map of Carpanthium paying heed of the multi-colour rainbow splayed out upon shades of elevation.

"If I may, Governor, I think that thus far, if defence preparations continue apace, your colony shall remain in Cravanian hands." He then reached his hand inside his jacket, and pulled from an interior pocket a sealed envelope. He stepped over towards the occupied military attaché and laid it upon the table, next to the map in question.

"I hope I have your grace to make errors or slips when it comes to your toponymy here in Carpanthium; indeed, I know only the name of this urban centre, none of the various little outlying settlements. But, as my soldiers begin to land, I would like to seek permission to take my two infantry divisions and place one of them here," Gallagher reached down, using his finger to point to a settlement in the western half of the colony, "at the juncture of these two motorways. The second," he added, pulling himself up, to make it easier to point, "I would like to deploy here," he paused to point to a settlement on the eastern slopes of the central mountains, to the south and east of the river bi-secting the colony. "Until we decided to take the offensive, I should like to keep the bulk of my armour division and my Cougar battle tanks here," he pointed this time to another roadway junction just south of Millingston. "If the motorways survive, I can dispatch heavy armour units to reinforce either position, depending upon the gravity of the assault. I realise that this leaves the northwestern portion of your territory without significant UK infantry units; but, in a few more weeks I shall have another two infantry divisions under my command here and that shall be rectified. Until then I trust our allies can secure that portion of the border."

Gallagher pushed the envelope closer towards Tellwood. "Inside that envelope, General Tellwood, are the envisioned requirements in terms of steel and concrete that would be required for the next two weeks to begin fortifying my proposed positions. After two weeks, the main contingent of Oceanian supplies are expected in theatre aboard transports and cargo ships and I will have less to ask of you. Now, General," Gallagher said, changing his tone from one of respectful distance to one of collegial kinship if not friendship, "I would like your take on my proposals and to hear of your ideas, as you are, after all, far better acquainted with this land and the enemy."

"I would have to agree with your initial troop placements, particularly with your deployment to the hamlet on the eastern moutainside. It's a small village known as Copper's Grove, and is one of our larger outer settlements with a population numbering about two-thousand. Mostly due to the nearby Sapinian Arms workshop. Although not a full-scale production facility, I have no doubt this would be a likely objective of the Northfordians.

"I'd also have to agree with keeping your armor back, for unless on the offensive armor would not be entirely useful. The mountains effectively divide the corridors from which enemy troops can enter, leaving two passageways in that can be traversed by armor. Both passageways can likely be covered by what limited forward deployed armored units I have, while the rest of Cravanian armor lies back here around the city."

Tellwood grasped a pen, marking down the positions outlined by his Oceanian counterpart and labelling them accordingly on the charts. Capping the pen, he took the envelope and tucked it into his uniform jacket pocket.

"I will forward this to my divisional engineers immediately, under orders that they are to give you anything you require to build fortifications and the like. We'll be getting another shipment of goods from Northland, our joint colony with Illior, within the week, so supplies are not a problem by any means."

Tellwood again began looking towards the spot on the map he had been concentrating on, and finally after a few moments his face lit up with an idea. He once again took up his pen, and began scribbling wildly on positions along the coastline and in the mountains. He then, fairly sloppily, drew a direct line between Carpanthium and the shoreline of the land opposite, which happened to belong to NATO ally Allanea. Turning towards Governor Yeoman with a wide smile, he capped the pen.

"Governor, I suggest getting in contact with the Allaneans opposite our shore. I've just had an idea that could completely seal this channel off from Commonwealth naval vessels."
"Why, what is it you suggest?"
"It's too much to explain right now, and I still have to file my thoughts into an organized pattern, but at the moment I feel Carpanthium just became a whole lot more important to NATO."

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

TOP SECRET - ENCRYPTED TRANSMISSION TO ALLANEA
CLASSIFIED LEVEL 6 AS AUTHORIZED BY IMPERIAL DEPARTMENT OF INTELLIGENCE

Attention Allanean allies: your colony on the Strob. straight is in a strategic position, which will be of great use to both ourselves and NATO as a whole in the coming weeks. We request conference with Allanean military officials from the colony as soon as possible, to discuss our plans in full and in person, ensuring project security. Please respond as appropriate.

-Governor Roger Yeoman, elected executive official of the Cravanian Overseas Territory Carpanthium