NationStates Jolt Archive

Garembicum, Achaea, Achae-Ottonian Empire

Sir Oppius Engrisius called the group of high-born Achaeans to order, and the plotting began. They were quite unhappy with the new emperor, Heinrich II, who had just ascended to the throne at the tender age of 19.
"The boy's insolence knows no bounds. Just today he entered into an alliance with a foreign country without the consent of us noblemen, the cream of the citizens of Achaea!"
“And he is being frivolous, going to parties held by foreigners and such for no particular reason!”
"And he has deployed the Legions to aid a foreign country without our permission!"
They stopped briefly at this point, as they were all realizing that they were on shaky ground. It had been only the 28th Legion, and to protect a protectorate nation from the rival Tallan Empire. And there was no actual provision in the Constitution that said that the Emperor had to allow the House of Nobles to vote on anything. It was that though, if anything, that was pushing them over the edge.
"What have we got to remove the insolent whelp?"
"Our loyal forces that number around 150,000."
"Regulus will have our heads on plates if he has so much as 10,000 against us though!"
"That's why I've made sure that Regulus got called off on some official business for the next few weeks. He won't be around to interfere."
“He could come back,” one of the conspirators noted.
“We’ll probably have Field Marshal Varus on our side by that point anyway. You know the man is a spineless, moral-less git.”
The "Regulus" to whom they were referring was none other than Field Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus, generally considered one of the most brilliant tactical and strategic geniuses in all of Achaean or Ottonian history. The noblemen were well aware that they were as good as dead if Field Marshal Regulus was around to stop them.
"Wait a minute here!" interjected a figure across the table from the rest of the conspirators, who had been listening with increasing disgust. "I'm all for a plan that will help Savonica get its independence from the Empire, but killing a 19 year old boy who hasn't had a chance to learn the ropes yet? That's disgusting, and I want no part of it!"
They all turned to look at the objector. They all recognized him. He was one of the critical parts of his plan. They couldn't succeed without his cooperation.
"Now Baden..." began Lord Xavier Crisstos "We have never said we were going to kill the whelp! We were only planning on putting him in exile."
Count Nerva Imporrison continued "Besides, you don't have a choice unless you're going to let your people rebel anyway without your help. They'll be as good as dead then."
Baden Khamar grudgingly agreed. He wasn't in this for personal gain. He was in it to help the Savonican people who had long been part of the Achaean Empire, now the joint Achae-Ottonian Empire. And they really did need him, much as he hated to admit that the creatures talking to him could be right, the ones destabilizing their nation for the sake of what would effectively be their personal gain as well. If Regulus made it back, he was the only one who could match his old friend in military skill. "Alright, but we'll have to act soon," he stated.
"Say, next week?" asked Sir Engrisius
They all agreed, shook hands (Baden only did so grudgingly) and parted.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Imperia, Province of Central Achaea, Achae-Ottonian Empire, 1 Week later...

Emperor Heinrich II was taking a walk around the city, like he did everyday, to get out and talk to people. After all, with his job, he got very lonely, even with the companionship of his Octavius, his cousin and aide, and a few of his friends from school (Heinrich was unusual among royalty in that he had actually been sent to public school) at the palace. He had started bonding with some of the people of the neighborhoods were he walked every morning.
"Hello Mr. Richardson. How are you?"
"Hello Heinrich (the Emperor had insisted that his aquaintences treat him as they would anyone else. He needed to feel like a normal person). I'm quite well, thank you. You?"
"Quite well, thank you."
"Another day of monotonous legislation?"
"When isn't it?"
"Too true, sir."
"Well, I'd better be off. Have a good day."
"Thank you. You too."
He continued on his way. He had felt uneasy for the past two weeks, as Field Marshal Regulus had been away. Nothing made you feel safer than knowing that "Old Invictus" or "Ol' Reliable Regulus" was watching over the order of the city. But today felt even worse than the last several days. He had the uneasy feeling something was about to occur, something that he was not going to like. He just couldn't put his finger on it. His gut instinct told him to stop his walk and to go to a secure area, although, again, he really couldn't say why if someone asked him.
He would be thankful that he listened to his gut.
30 minutes later, a large number of supporters of the nobles, armed with serious weaponry, entered the city and ordered the emperor to step down. He had 48 hours to do so before they entered the palace and retrieved him.
500 miles away, the Republic of Savonica was proclaimed in the ancient city of Reme. General Baden P. Khamar and the Army of Savonica declared their desertion from the Achae-Ottonian Empire. Within 45 minutes of recieving the news, the Emperor sent this message to Field Marshal Regulus:

To: Field Marshal Marcus T. Regulus
The Empire is in peril. We need you. You are hereby recalled to Imperia to put down this coup. Hurry.
From: Emperor Heinrich II

He also sent out this message to other nations with a general request for help:
To the Nations of the World
The Empire of Achae-Ottonia is under attack from internal forces. Please send help to put down the revolts.
From: Emperor Heinrich II
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Space over Regium, 30 miles from Imperia, 6 hours after the issuing of the ultimatum

Field Marshal Regulus kept reading the note as the F-31 Cougar double-seater fighter plane flew him back to the airstrip a day's march from Imperia, where the Army of Aspathia was waiting for him. He had already ordered Field Marshal Honorius Varus to rush the Army of Tiberia to stop the advance of the rebels in Savonica. He couldn't let himself believe the lie that Baden Khamar would actually defect, but at the moment communication with the Army of Savonica was defunct, and Baden was too skilled to be defeated by rebels, so he didn't have a choice but to send Honorius to deal with it. From what he had gathered from a report handed to him on what was taking place in Imperia, it was those damned nobles causing trouble again. He remembered what had happened when the previous Achaean Emperor, Trajanicus Marius had had to put down a rebellion by the nobles. He had been forced to have 3 of the most prominent members of the House of Lords shot to put the damned revolt down. That had been back when Regulus had only been an infantry captain. He remembered the street fighting like it was yesterday, remembered seeing Legate Ulysses Maxentius get shot by a rebel, and himself taking charge of a panicked 22nd Legion. It seemed like a lifetime ago, but over the last 17 years, apart from the emperor he served, his age, and the title put in front of his name, Marcus had changed little. He was only 41, but already his beard showed prominent grey flecks in it, his eyes showed a man as old as war itself, and frownlines and worry creases were appearing on his face. He wore a grey-green (Achae-Ottonian standard military-color) great/trench coat, and his officer's cap. He kept a .45 Camillus Arms Co. 1916revolver. When he finally spoke to the pilot to give instructions on which strip he needed to land at, he spoke in a deep, gravelly voice, with a nearly unnoticable (but still present) Aspathian (not unlike northern Spanish/Asturian) accent, even when speaking a second language (despite the fact that he had spoken Achaean (basically Latin with a few minor variations) since he was nine-years-old. (for the sake of time, this is all translated from Achaean into English
"Raymus, you're going to need to land at strip 3. That's the only open one."
"Aye, sir. We'll land in about five minutes then."
"That'll do."
They came in to land, and Regulus disembarked, thanking the pilot. He looked out at the assembled ranks of the 200,000 strong Army of Aspathia and smiled. He had his boys back.
"Alright men, lets get marching and see if we can put the revolutionary dirtbags where they belong!"
He was responded by cheers, some of the men shouting "We got ol' Reliable back!"
They began marching towards Imperia. Onward to victory!

OOC: This RP will be in WWII-style tech (no nukes or atomic bombs).

Inside the Senate building's large courtyard/parade field, Emperor Heinrich II looked at the assembled ranks of 31st Legion (Imperia's garrison legion) and winced internally. Good as these men were, he sincerely doubted that 5,000 men could defeat the easily 150,000 rebels marching through the streets. This would take serious manpower to solve. Of course, because of his situation, events taking place further from the capital escaped his notice temporarily...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Baden Khamar was advancing on the capital, to have the Republic of Savonica recognized as a legitimate government by the presumably new government in Imperia. Of course, he didn't trust his co-conspirators much, so he advanced with the 300,000 men of the Army of Savonica behind him to make sure that the noblemen's end of the deal was upheld. Of course, the one thing no one had counted on, was the loyalty of Honorius Varus, who transmitted a telegram to him when he tried to advance past the formerly provincial border, and demanded the Army of Macia stand down, said, "Over my dead body, Baden. Signed, Honorius."

Many miles away, Emperor Henry IV recieved news of the uprising in Achae-Ottonia and had read Emperor Heinrich II letter for help. He contacted the Lord High Constable of the empire and the Army chief of staff to discuss which units should be sent to help a fellow royalist in trouble. He was advised to send the 12th Battalion (Light Infantry) and the 7/9th Battalion (Mechanized Infantry) of the 3rd Regiment. With that he dispatched a letter to Emperor Heinrich II

Urgent Message: Encrypted
To: Emperor Heinrich II
We have recieved your request to help you and your loyal forces against your internal threat. I have authorised two battalions which are specially trained for urban warfare to be sent to your position post-haste. Our force will be under the command of Lt. Col. Baron Johnathon Huddlon and consists of 2200 men.
From: Emperor Henry IV Emperor of the Blouman Empire Prince of Truingren (etc.)

Baden Khamar looked at the encrypted note that his officers had intercepted. He looked at it again, and turned to the officer next to him.
"Thank you for this piece of paper, Cristo. Unfortunately, it means absolute shit to me when it's not decoded. Do you mind decoding this thing first, and then showing it to me?" he said, trying to keep himself from yelling at the unfortunate officer who the Buzzers(comm officers) had sent with the note. He handed the note back to the poor man, and sent him on his way. It was then that he say a few men coming up the hill with a flag of truce.
"Honorius!" Field Marshal Khamar exclaimed.
"Baden, what the hell do you think you're doing!"
"Securing Savonican independence. Let us by, and we won't have to fight you guys over this."
"Marcus told me otherwise."
"I thought Marcus was away on official business."
"He was recalled by the Emperor himself, who apparently is barricaded inside Capital Square with the men of the 31st Legion. Marcus said he was "going to sort those madrus-coptusis out himself. And that means with the Army of Aspathia. I honestly wouldn't wish that on anyone."
"Just let me by and we can have this sorted out nice and easy."
"Like hell I will!" shouted Field Marshal Varus. "My orders are to do what I do best, which I'm pretty sure is code for 'be a right pain in the ass!'"
Khamar rolled his eyes. "You don't have to be so theatrical, Honorius. I understood loud and clear. All the same, I'd really rather not have to settle this at the cost of men's lives. Let me by."
"You can wait a few days, then."
"No, I really can't."
"You certainly will."
"It's war then."
"Say what you want, rebel scum."
"Good bye. Good riddance."
"Likewise." And with that, Field Marshal Honorius Varus stormed away to rejoin the Army of Macia.
"Getting past him is going to be a bitch," Field Marshal Khamar remarked.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Consul Sulla sent the rebels another note, repeating what he had told them the last 6 times over the last 6 hours: The Emperor is not here! Bother someone else!
Of course, the nobles obviously didn't get the point, because they kept standing there, with occasionally one of their loyal officers getting picked off by counterfire from Imperial Legionaires. At that point, though, two things happened:
A) He saw the Emperor's plane coming in to land at Imperial International Airport. He swore. There was no way to warn the Emperor not to land there.
B) Something boosted his confidence a lot more. On the edge of a hill in the distance, definitely within artillary range of the rebel's barricades at the edge of the city, was Ol' Reliable Regulus' Army of Aspathia. God help the rebels. They would need it just to keep any of them alive through the coming battle.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Acting-Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus looked through his binoculars, trained on the enemy army, and swore.
"Holy shit there's a lot of the bastards!"
"Where'd they all come from?" asked Acting-Marshal Wilhelm Von Dredicburg, who's Army of the Westfall was catching up to Regulus' army.
"Support, would be my guess. Oh well. Nothing the 22nd Legion and these allied soldiers can't handle," he said, turning to Lt. Col. Baron Johnathon Huddlon. "Where'd you say you guy's came from again?"
And at that point, a voice none of them expected to hear came from behind them.
"So, what'd I miss?" asked Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II.

Approximately seven hours later: Imperia, South Q Street.
Marcus ducked as a gunshot almost gave him a third nostril, and he prepared his Steyr M5 bolt-action rifle to fire. He returned fire at the rubble heap that had attempted to end his life, and he heard a shout of pain. He got back up on his feet, straightening the standard legion-pattern helmet on his head. He noticed a bunch of sandbags with enemy soldiers preparing to kill any of his men that came too close. He did the only thing he could do.
"Lucius, Ulyssees, come with me. Get a few grenades behind those sandbags. I'll cover you."
"Yes commander," Lucius replied, and he fired a rifle grenade over the sandbags. They didn't stick around. They advanced closer to the building they knew the enemy headquarters was located in. He spied Heinrich, rifle in hand, leading a squad of infantry, who were obviously ignorant of the fact that the man leading them was their national leader. They had just finished securing a building that had been threatening their rear. They rounded the corner to see a sight that Marcus and Heinrich had been expecting: the leaders of the conspiracy having bayonets at their backs with their hands in the air. The two Achaea-Ottonian leaders turned to their men.
"Gents, I think this is another victory for the Army of Aspathia."
"The city is ours," added the Emperor.
If only things had been going so well on the front of the Regus River.
------------------------------------------------------------
"Sir, we're steadily running out of ammunition for our artillery pieces."
"Dammit! That's not what I wanted to hear!" shouted Field Marshal Honorius Varus, the ol' Iron Line. "If we can't keep up that bombardment, they'll go right through us!"
"There's always the tanks, sir..."
"What in Salvdeus' name are you talking about?"
"We could use them as moblie light artillery..."
Honorius paused. "Theages, you're a genius. Commander Davies!"
"Sir?" replied Commander Davies.
"Get Commander Milvian--- both of the the Milvians and tell them to get their heavy tanks to the artillery positions, and to use their heavy guns as artillery."
"Yessir!"
He looked down at a map of the Regus River valley, where he had set up strong defensive positions to stall Baden Khamar's Army of Savonica. He was generally considered one of the best defenders in the world. But he knew that even he couldn't hold Field Marshal Khamar for too long. Khamar was easily the only person who could match Marcus T. Regulus in seer strategic and tactical brilliance and resourcefulness. He knew his defense would fold under Baden's onslaught within a week or two at best, a day or two at worst. He groaned. Marcus, where are you? he thought.

Imperia, 2 days later.
"And why can I not go with you to deal with the Savonican rebels? They're as much my problem as they are yours!" exclaimed Heinrich angrily to Marcus.
"Because I'm the Marshal with 300,000 men behind him, and you aren't. And if you even think about objecting or disregarding my order--yes, I said order--than you can consider this a temporary military coup. Your job is to rule the Empire, it's mine to defend it. Besides, with the emotional roller coaster you've experienced over the last 36 hours, I doubt you could stay focused enough to keep you alive."
"I was firmly rejected, Theodosius.* You don't need to worry about my thoughts wandering to the Neo-Ixanian Empress."
"I can't take the risk that you're either lying or might be wrong. I'm putting my foot down on this. Marshal Von Dredicburg will be around to help. Until we meet again, good luck."
"Very well. Good luck, friend."
And with that, Marcus T. Regulus walked out the door, to rush to another old friend's aid.
------------------------------------------
"That's it. I'm not letting this army get annihilated fighting a battle it can't win. We're pulling back."
"Yes strategos."
"And notify Marcus of that. I heard he's on his way."
"Aye, magister militum."
"God, this is going to be a nasty war. Marcus Theodosius Regulus vs. Baden Jacus Khamar? That's going to bitter, ugly, and bloody."
"Couldn't agree more, sir."


*It's not an uncommon practice in Achae-Ottonia for people in familial or nearly-familial relationships (i.e, close friends, as in this case) to call each other by their middle name.

A day later...

Honorius Varus caught sight of Acting-Marshal Regulus preparing the assembled armies for battle. Seeing him in what was clearly his element, it was obvious that Marcus Theodosius Regulus was one of those men who was born to fight and command. His deep, gravelly voice boomed out as he gave orders.
"Oppius*! Fetch me those maps of the Quirenius River Valley! We gotta plan this out carefully. If anyone will be able to take advantage of me screwing something up, it will be Baden."
"Right, sir!"
"Corporal Saunders!"
"Sir?"
"Fetch me Commanders Artus and Augustus Milvian."
"Yessir."
He looked over at Varus, a look of admiration on his face. "You did better than just about anyone. This report says you managed to inflict 2,340 some combat casualties on the enemy at the loss of 230 dead and 359 wounded. Couldn't have done better m'self, Impermablus. Glad I'm going to have you here at my side now, then," he noted. He continued. "It also says that you...used your tanks as artillery pieces? Is that right?"
"Yeah, Marcus. We were running low on artillery shells before the battle, and we were nearly out after the first full day of out bombardment. So I had the armoured units fill in as artillery, at Theages' suggestion, of course. Can't take all the credit myself."
"Well, lets start making a plan. I know Baden will stop to reorganize and reinforce before advancing, so we have a little bit of time."
----------------------------------------------------------
Imperia, Province of Achaea, Achae-Ottonian Empire

Emperor Heinrich sat at his desk in the Imperial Palace, looking over proposed legislation presented by the Senate and the Council. He didn't worry much about the safety of the Empire; good as he was, Baden Khamar was no match for both Marcus Regulus and Honorius Varus. And Field Marshal Von Dredicburg was watching over the province with his army, temporarily transferred from its base in Westphallia. He was free to do his important work.
Good gravy, he thought. These are some wierd ones. A bill proposing the banning of the sale of rotten cheese. Who on Gaterranea would care about something like that? Wait, here's one I will have to have the Field Marshals take a look at, seeing as it concerns them more: a proposal to establish a modest arms repository in each city with a population of 75,000 or more. He kept that up for a few hours, but he couldn't keep his mind from wandering. He realized just how tired he was: he hadn't gotten more than 3 hours of sleep over the last 3 days. He got up and walked sluggishly into his modest bedroom. He layed down on his bed and fell asleep. He didn't know how long he'd slept, when he finally awoke, (he found out later close to 7 hours), it was night. A clear, crisp night with a beautiful full moon, tinted blue by mist and dust in the air. It was seasonably cold, it being early winter in Achaea. The cool night stirred the recent memory of the Neo-Ixanian Empress's gala, something he was trying to keep his mind off of. He didn't want any reason to think about Empress Anastasia; he felt it had been made painfully obvious to him that she didn't feel the same way about him, and that thoughts like that would get in the way. It had only been three days, but it felt like an eternity ago, dancing with the beautiful Empress in that ballroom, his lips against hers...NO! Stop thinking about it! he mentally kicked himself. But he started following that train of thought again...in the last three days, he had been enraged, had his worst fears come very close to being realized, had seen the horrors of combat first hand, had even shot a weapon to kill. And now here he was, thinking about things he knew he shouldn't think about, aching to do his part to put down the rebellion that had nearly caused his worst fear to be realized, and still realizing that his part was to stay right here and run things as normal. At that point, while standing on the balcony over looking the lit up city, he gave a small, surprised jump as a messanger came in.
"Your Excellency?"
He must be new, Heinrich thought. Everyone else calls me by my name. "Yes?"
"The leaders of the revolt have escaped and assembled an army, sir. And another Savonican army has been spotted by Field Marshal Von Dredicburg. He's ordered you to stay at the palace."
He started, then realized that panicking would do him no good. He started thinking of questions to ask that might be useful.
"How big is the non-Savonican army?"
"30,000 strong is what I heard," the courrier responded.
"Please send Field Marshal Von Dredicburg that I am disinclined to aquiest his command."
"He said to stay put--"
This guy is definitely new, he thought. "Like hell I'm staying put!" he responded. As he said this, he was changing out of the plain shirt he was wearing, and was putting on a more utilitarian garb, like a military field uniform, and he grabbed a hat as he put his boots on. "Rouse the 31st, the 45th, the 7th, and the 14th Legions," he said.
"But...but..."
"No buts. Do it," he ordered. He then realized this man probably had every intention of obeying his original instructions. The Emperor sighed. He needed practice at this anyway, but it would be tough without the royal regalia. He drew himself up into full Emperor mode, and spoke in as commanding a voice as he could muster. "I am your Emperor, and you will follow that order. Is that clear?
"Yessir," the courrier said, cowed.
"Do it then, and also, fetch Consul Sulla," and he walked off to start preparing a pack. After that, he realized something important. Marshal Regulus was right, his emotions would distract him over the course of events he was about to pursue, if he did not put himself at ease. He walked over to his desk, placed the fedora on it, and started scrawling on a paper:
A personal note to Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire,
I am going off to fight the rebels myself tonight, and I want to sort a few things out now in case I don't come back from it.
1. I love you. I have since the moment I saw you.
2. I'm sorry about any embarassment I ever caused you.
3. Make sure, if I don't survive, that you convey the message to Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus, that I said specifically that I want him to run the Empire (he can't trust anyone inside the Empire, I'm afraid. Show him this note to prove I actually said it.)
4. Good luck, and Te Deus Sacrum (God Bless You).
With love,
Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II,
just Heinrich to you though.
He took the note, folded it in half, placed in an envelope and sealed it, and wrote on the back: Personal for Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire. He walked over to Octavius, who was sitting in the parlor of the palace.
"Octavius, do I have your word that you will deliver this to whom it is specified on the back of this envelope?"
"Aye, cousin. But whom do I send it to? I can't read Aeglis, you know that."
"Who we were visiting two nights ago. You know who that is, correct?"
"Absolutely."
"Make sure it gets there."
"Why though?"
"I'm heading off in an hour or so to finish off the rebels who ordered me to step down. Wilhelm can't deal with them, so I must. Does this make sense?"
"Yes." And with that, the two cousins, who had known each other for 17 years, hugged and bid farewell.
--------------------------------------------------------

*It is a common practice in the Achae-Ottonian military for senior officers to know many soldiers of different ranks personally. It is also acceptable for servicemen to call one another by first name, provided they have one another's permission.

Official Londim Communique

To Emperor Heinrich,

We will not let your Empire fall. Help is on the way.

The Three of Londim.

SIC:

"Do we intend to save this empire?" asked Klallam.

"Yes", replied Sts'Ailes, " It is better to have this Empire on our side than againts it. They are considerably smaller so we do not have to worry about them turning on us lest they wish their empire to crumble. Heinrich is young, a true peoples emperor. We shall not have one like that become poisoned by the virus of politics."

A day later...

Honorius Varus caught sight of Acting-Marshal Regulus preparing the assembled armies for battle. Seeing him in what was clearly his element, it was obvious that Marcus Theodosius Regulus was one of those men who was born to fight and command. His deep, gravelly voice boomed out as he gave orders.
"Oppius*! Fetch me those maps of the Quirenius River Valley! We gotta plan this out carefully. If anyone will be able to take advantage of me screwing something up, it will be Baden."
"Right, sir!"
"Corporal Saunders!"
"Sir?"
"Fetch me Commanders Artus and Augustus Milvian."
"Yessir."
He looked over at Varus, a look of admiration on his face. "You did better than just about anyone. This report says you managed to inflict 2,340 some combat casualties on the enemy at the loss of 230 dead and 359 wounded. Couldn't have done better m'self, Impermablus. Glad I'm going to have you here at my side now, then," he noted. He continued. "It also says that you...used your tanks as artillery pieces? Is that right?"
"Yeah, Marcus. We were running low on artillery shells before the battle, and we were nearly out after the first full day of out bombardment. So I had the armoured units fill in as artillery, at Theages' suggestion, of course. Can't take all the credit myself."
"Well, lets start making a plan. I know Baden will stop to reorganize and reinforce before advancing, so we have a little bit of time."
----------------------------------------------------------
Imperia, Province of Achaea, Achae-Ottonian Empire

Emperor Heinrich sat at his desk in the Imperial Palace, looking over proposed legislation presented by the Senate and the Council. He didn't worry much about the safety of the Empire; good as he was, Baden Khamar was no match for both Marcus Regulus and Honorius Varus. And Field Marshal Von Dredicburg was watching over the province with his army, temporarily transferred from its base in Westphallia. He was free to do his important work.
Good gravy, he thought. These are some wierd ones. A bill proposing the banning of the sale of rotten cheese. Who on Gaterranea would care about something like that? Wait, here's one I will have to have the Field Marshals take a look at, seeing as it concerns them more: a proposal to establish a modest arms repository in each city with a population of 75,000 or more. He kept that up for a few hours, but he couldn't keep his mind from wandering. He realized just how tired he was: he hadn't gotten more than 3 hours of sleep over the last 3 days. He got up and walked sluggishly into his modest bedroom. He layed down on his bed and fell asleep. He didn't know how long he'd slept, when he finally awoke, (he found out later close to 7 hours), it was night. A clear, crisp night with a beautiful full moon, tinted blue by mist and dust in the air. It was seasonably cold, it being early winter in Achaea. The cool night stirred the recent memory of the Neo-Ixanian Empress's gala, something he was trying to keep his mind off of. He didn't want any reason to think about Empress Anastasia; he felt it had been made painfully obvious to him that she didn't feel the same way about him, and that thoughts like that would get in the way. It had only been three days, but it felt like an eternity ago, dancing with the beautiful Empress in that ballroom, his lips against hers...NO! Stop thinking about it! he mentally kicked himself. But he started following that train of thought again...in the last three days, he had been enraged, had his worst fears come very close to being realized, had seen the horrors of combat first hand, had even shot a weapon to kill. And now here he was, thinking about things he knew he shouldn't think about, aching to do his part to put down the rebellion that had nearly caused his worst fear to be realized, and still realizing that his part was to stay right here and run things as normal. At that point, while standing on the balcony over looking the lit up city, he gave a small, surprised jump as a messanger came in.
"Your Excellency?"
He must be new, Heinrich thought. Everyone else calls me by my name. "Yes?"
"The leaders of the revolt have escaped and assembled an army, sir. And another Savonican army has been spotted by Field Marshal Von Dredicburg. He's ordered you to stay at the palace."
He started, then realized that panicking would do him no good. He started thinking of questions to ask that might be useful.
"How big is the non-Savonican army?"
"30,000 strong is what I heard," the courrier responded.
"Please send Field Marshal Von Dredicburg that I am disinclined to aquiest his command."
"He said to stay put--"
This guy is definitely new, he thought. "Like hell I'm staying put!" he responded. As he said this, he was changing out of the plain shirt he was wearing, and was putting on a more utilitarian garb, like a military field uniform, and he grabbed a hat as he put his boots on. "Rouse the 31st, the 45th, the 7th, and the 14th Legions," he said.
"But...but..."
"No buts. Do it," he ordered. He then realized this man probably had every intention of obeying his original instructions. The Emperor sighed. He needed practice at this anyway, but it would be tough without the royal regalia. He drew himself up into full Emperor mode, and spoke in as commanding a voice as he could muster. "I am your Emperor, and you will follow that order. Is that clear?
"Yessir," the courrier said, cowed.
"Do it then, and also, fetch Consul Sulla," and he walked off to start preparing a pack. After that, he realized something important. Marshal Regulus was right, his emotions would distract him over the course of events he was about to pursue, if he did not put himself at ease. He walked over to his desk, placed the fedora on it, and started scrawling on a paper:
A personal note to Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire,
I am going off to fight the rebels myself tonight, and I want to sort a few things out now in case I don't come back from it.
1. I love you. I have since the moment I saw you.
2. I'm sorry about any embarassment I ever caused you.
3. Make sure, if I don't survive, that you convey the message to Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus, that I said specifically that I want him to run the Empire (he can't trust anyone inside the Empire, I'm afraid. Show him this note to prove I actually said it.)
4. Good luck, and Te Deus Sacrum (God Bless You).
With love,
Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II,
just Heinrich to you though.
He took the note, folded it in half, placed in an envelope and sealed it, and wrote on the back: Personal for Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire. He walked over to Octavius, who was sitting in the parlor of the palace.
"Octavius, do I have your word that you will deliver this to whom it is specified on the back of this envelope?"
"Aye, cousin. But whom do I send it to? I can't read Aeglis, you know that."
"Who we were visiting two nights ago. You know who that is, correct?"
"Absolutely."
"Make sure it gets there."
"Why though?"
"I'm heading off in an hour or so to finish off the rebels who ordered me to step down. Wilhelm can't deal with them, so I must. Does this make sense?"
"Yes." And with that, the two cousins, who had known each other for 17 years, hugged and bid farewell.
--------------------------------------------------------

*It is a common practice in the Achae-Ottonian military for senior officers to know many soldiers of different ranks personally. It is also acceptable for servicemen to call one another by first name, provided they have one another's permission.

To whom it may concern in the Achae-Ottonian Empire:
You have the Republic of Grimmeberg's total support against this insurrection. We will be sending 12,000 regular citizen infantrymen, under the command of Major William Gaither to aid in putting down this revolt. Please inform us of the location you desire them to land at.
Your Ally,
Arthur Thompson, Chancellor of the Republic of Grimmeberg, Head of the Conservative Republican Party

Official Note from the Hand of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II:

Thank you for your generous offer of help in putting down the insurrection. It is much appreciated. I will be departing for Trajium tonight, and should reach it by tomarrow morning with 20,000 men to confront an enemy army there. Please have 3,000 men or so move to meet me, if possible. Again, many thanks.
Your Greatful Ally,
Heinrich II

To Emperor Heinrich,

We can supply 3,000 men but why stop there? We can send many more and if the enemy sees a large army it will surrender avoiding needless bloodshed. Londim can provide up to 20000 soldiers easily. It is better to overestimate and not need the numbers than underestimate and fall.

The Three

To Emperor Heinrich,

We can supply 3,000 men but why stop there? We can send many more and if the enemy sees a large army it will surrender avoiding needless bloodshed. Londim can provide up to 20000 soldiers easily. It is better to overestimate and not need the numbers than underestimate and fall.

The Three

OOC: Sorry, my friend was on for a few minutes and forgot to log off before we switched off again. We fixed the thing up. That thing you quoted was what I tried to enter, but he changed his post. Sorry for any confusion that may have caused.

The Emperor scribbled the reply note quickly in the HQ in Trajium, feeling more and more confident with every word he wrote:

Thank you for the generous offer of more help. However, it does not look like they will all be needed here. There is another battlefront where one of the Field Marshals is fighting a superior force, and seeing as it is not my place to order your men around, I would like to request that the majority of your forces go to aid Field Marshal Von Dredicburg and his army. I should need only 5,000 men here in Trajium. Thank you again.
Heinrich II

OOC: Sorry, my friend was on for a few minutes and forgot to log off before we switched off again. We fixed the thing up. That thing you quoted was what I tried to enter, but he changed his post. Sorry for any confusion that may have caused.

The Emperor scribbled the reply note quickly in the HQ in Trajium, feeling more and more confident with every word he wrote:

Thank you for the generous offer of more help. However, it does not look like they will all be needed here. There is another battlefront where one of the Field Marshals is fighting a superior force, and seeing as it is not my place to order your men around, I would like to request that the majority of your forces go to aid Field Marshal Von Dredicburg and his army. I should need only 5,000 men here in Trajium. Thank you again.
Heinrich II

To Emperor Heinrich,

It shall be done. Our transports have already been prepped and the first transports are already on the way. Victory shall be ours.

The Three

A day later...
A personal note to Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire,
I am going off to fight the rebels myself tonight, and I want to sort a few things out now in case I don't come back from it.
1. I love you. I have since the moment I saw you.
2. I'm sorry about any embarassment I ever caused you.
3. Make sure, if I don't survive, that you convey the message to Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus, that I said specifically that I want him to run the Empire (he can't trust anyone inside the Empire, I'm afraid. Show him this note to prove I actually said it.)
4. Good luck, and Te Deus Sacrum (God Bless You).
With love,
Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II,
just Heinrich to you though.
He took the note, folded it in half, placed in an envelope and sealed it, and wrote on the back: Personal for Empress Anastasia of the Neo-Ixanian Empire.


Vladimir, the Empress' personal assistant had told the Empress of Neo-Ixania that a man named Octavius had a letter from Heinrich that was to be brought to Anastasia. Anastasia recieved the letter and read it in silence, learning about Heinrich and how he was going to fight against rebels in his nation. When she had finished reading the letter, she asked Vladimir to keep the letter in a safe place and that it be sent to Marshal Marcus if the Emperor of Achae-Ottonia was killed. While she watched her assistant walk away, Anastasia thought about Heinrich.

Lord Sir Oppius Engrisius smiled. His plan to remove the Emperor and have himself made emperor was going as planned. He watched from a hill as his men advanced on Trajium, where the Emperor and his forces had gone to confront him. Poor, pathetic boy. The total balance of forces was in the nobleman's favor.
"I do believe it is time to begin the attack."
"As you wish, my liege," replied one of his loyal supporters. The Battle of Trajium had begun.
----------------------------------------
Roughly a week later:
An artillery shell slammed into the ground showering a group of somber Imperial Legionaires from the 14th Legion with mud. They marched through the mud and the puddles and shell craters that were knee deep in some cases. It had been raining for the last six days, and it showed no signs of letting up. They came to a stop at a ring of rubble that made perfect benches.
"We should probably be getting up to the perimeter of the city soon," stated the one who seemed to be the leader that the men were used to, as he reloaded his Steyr M5 rifle.
Another lit up a cigarette. "Doubt it, Sargeant Cassius. Not if we've been advancing at a few meters an hour like we've been doing for the past goddamn week, anyways."
"Put that damn thing out, Gaius, it smells like a shit heap," replied Sargeant Cassius.
"He's right Gaius. That, and the thing screams 'shoot me' to any of the madrcopti that happen to be around," added the third of the foursome.
"Stuff it, Hadrius," Gaius snapped back. Nevertheless, he put the cigarette out.
"'Ey, Cassius, why do we have this other guy with us?" asked Hadrius.
"That other guy as you call him, is the Emperor, dumbshit."
"Oh..." it was easy enough to tell what he would have said after "oh," had the cause not been present. "Sorry for our coarse language your Excellency---"
"Damn it Cassius, you weren't supposed to tell them!" snapped Heinrich Hansburg II.
"I apologize for this in advance, your Highness, but you really shouldn't be out here with us in the first place."
"It's as much my fight as it is yours. Quite easily more my fight than yours."
"Sorry sir."
"Just call me by my real name."
"Sorry, can't sir. Wouldn't feel right, sir."
Heinrich rolled his eyes. "Let's just try and get farther, okay?"
"Works for me, Heinrich," said Cassius, wincing a little as he used the Emperor's first name.
"Thank you. Now, let's get moving."
"Got it, chief," responded Private Gaius, who slid into talking to the Emperor informally much easier than the other two did. "Oh, um, where are the other two? Nero and Licinius?"
"They're catching up. That's why we were waiting here, remember?"
"Ah, right. Well, might as well reload now then," Gaius stated.
"Shhh! What was that?" They all froze and listened, listened for noise other than the constant, persistent rain. Nothing, then...click.
"SHIT! DUCK YOU IF YOU IDIOTS WANT TO LIVE!" yelled Hadrius, and they had barely enough time to drop to the ground as machine gun fire erupted into the area that they had occupied two seconds previously.
Gaius dropped fraction of a second too late though, and three bullets tore through his shoulder, sending a spray of blood everywhere. He gave a yelp and fell to the ground, groaning in pain.
"HADRIUS, STOP THE BLEEDING! HEINRICH, THROW A GRENADE TOWARDS THAT" Cassius gestured towards the source of the gunfire that had hit Gaius "ONE! I'LL GET THE OTHER ONE!" he shouted over the roar of gunfire. Heinrich swallowed down the uncomfortable feeling in his throat, armed the grenade, and threw it towards the machine gunner. One...two...BAM! The machine gun fire from that direction ceased, and Heinrich felt a queesy feeling in his gut at the realization he had just killed someone. Another bang, this time from Cassius' grenade, and the machine gun fire ceased alltogether. However, rifle fire continued to seek them. War was hell.
"That fire seems to be coming from there," Cassius gestured to Heinrich's left "and there!" he finished, gesturing to Heinrich's rear. "Just take aim with the sight--"
"I KNOW BLOODY WELL HOW TO AIM A RIFLE!"
"--and watch for movement in the shadows. Don't hesitate, just fire and prepare your next shot. Clear?"
"Transparently." As Gaius' bleeding started to die down a bit, Heinrich and Cassius leaned against the rubble, their rifles trained on the ubiquitous shadows.
------------------------------------------

The Londim soldiers marched to join the young Emperors men. There had been reports that Heinrich and his men were pinned down. This would soon change. Scouts had been tracking the forces that were going for Heinrich and this had allowed the rest of the 5,000 that had been sent to this battle to follow without being noticed. Stealth was a key part of the Londim military.

General Husaf was leading these men and he was one of the most celebrated Generals in Londim history. At age 18 he had led his squadmates to safety after their Commander had been KIA. The attack was to go as follows. A message was to be sent to Heinrich's men to coordinate a pincer attack. Surrounding the enemy would be the most effective way of getting them to surrender or kill them where they stood. The message was sent.



To Emperor Heinrich and forces,

We know you are pinned down but this shall soon change. We are advancing behind the enemy and with their attention focused on you we have not been noticed. At 0800 hours we will launch a flare to give the signal to attack. When you see this flare advance forward and we shall charge from behind. This attack will mean the enemy have very little chance of escaping and should they try they will be cut down. Into battle I will be sending 4900 men while further back I have set up sniper positions to stop any that try to escape.

Have faith Heinrich. Judgment Day is about to begin.

General Husaf
Londim Army

To Emperor Heinrich and forces,

We know you are pinned down but this shall soon change. We are advancing behind the enemy and with their attention focused on you we have not been noticed. At 0800 hours we will launch a flare to give the signal to attack. When you see this flare advance forward and we shall charge from behind. This attack will mean the enemy have very little chance of escaping and should they try they will be cut down. Into battle I will be sending 4900 men while further back I have set up sniper positions to stop any that try to escape.

Have faith Heinrich. Judgment Day is about to begin.

General Husaf
Londim Army

Heinrich looked at the note again, horrified. Was this man totally nuts? Heinrich knew Lord Engrisius well enough by reputation to know the man was calculating, cautious, and relentless, if not necessarily the brightest of men. He was certainly cautious enough to protect the rear of his army with trenches of machinegunners. General Husaf's forces were about to walk into enemy machinegun fire! There was no way they would survive that. He hurried over to the communications officer at the field hospital where Gaius was having his arm treated more thoroughly, as Sergeant Cassius, Corporal Hadrius, Private Oppidius, and Private Narsos watched their friend. He leaned towards the communications officer.
"I need you to transmit this warning to General Husaf and his men: They are going to end up charging straight into machinegun trenches if they decide to charge the enemy. This is urban warfare, there's no place for mass charges. He needs to try and think of something else; I don't want his men to die in a futile attack, when fewer of them could die in an assault with much higher odds of success. Got all that?"
"Yessir."
"Good." He turned away. He was glad that the queesy feeling in his stomach had deadened a bit; he had felt awful knowing that he was responsible for three deaths. Enemy deaths, but human deaths all the same. He knew it had been in self defense, but it didn't make him feel any better about it.
He was relieved when his thoughts about Empress Anastasia of Neo-Ixania
started to enter his head again...Stop doing that! he reminded himself. You're going to get yourself killed thinking about her all the time! Empty your mind for later! Of course, he wouldn't empty his mind of all thoughts of her. He enjoyed those thoughts and memories far too much. And he had a feeling he would need any kind of solace he could get in the days ahead.

--------------------------------------------
Approximately 30 hours later...

After sleeping uneasily for four hours or so, the squad set out again, this time to meet up with the rest of their company in a concerted attack against enemy forces in the city. They walked in silence, anticipating the days of fighting still left. After about an hours walk, they reached where roughly 45 other men had met up. They were back with a large part of Alpha Company, 31st Legion. Heinrich spied enemy barricades and trenches in the distance, and groaned. This was going to be hell. After about an hour and a half of preparation, the soldiers moved into position. At 20 minutes after all had taken their positions, mortar fire rained on the enemy positions, and the enemy began slowly pulling back in anticipation of the attack. The Legionaires fired continuously, ducking behind cover and picking their shots. The fight was loud, dusty, and bloody. Twice, Heinrich saw a man get shot next to him, and go down with a groan. Eventually, they charged from about 50 meters away, and the enemy kept firing. Luckily, they weren't very well trained or very good shots so most of the company made it to the enemy line as the enemy pulled back, and brutal close-quarter bayonet fighting broke out. Heinrich fought tooth and nail, firing at and sticking enemy soldiers, and the enemy broke and ran. As the Legionaires were cheering, but continuing their advance, a handful of enemy troops turned on them. 6 Legionaires went down to enemy gunfire, and as the distance between the Imperialists and the rebels disapeared, close quarters fighting broke out again, and a bayonet caught Heinrich in the face just to the right of his right eye. It wasn't a deep or fatal wound, but combined with a light blow to the back of the head, it was enough to take him down, looking to all the world as if he were dead. Of course, he didn't realize any of this until later, when he woke up. What he realized at the time was that something hurt like hell near his eye, and then that the ground was rushing up to meet him.

Official Communique to The Nations of the World:
Emperor Heinrich II, of the Achae-Ottonian Empire, is now in the hospital in critical condition, being treated for injuries sustained in battle. He has been concussed and bayonetted. Estimated odds of survival 1 in 2.

Official Communique to The Nations of the World:
Emperor Heinrich II, of the Achae-Ottonian Empire, is now in the hospital in critical condition, being treated for injuries sustained in battle. He has been concussed and bayonetted. Estimated odds of survival 1 in 2.

Anastasia II had heard about Heinrich being in hospital in critical condition for the injuries he recieved in battle. She decided she would write a letter to send to Achae-Ottonia. Sitting at the desk she had in her bedroom, Anastasia began to compose a letter that she hoped would find itself at its intended destination. While she composed her letter, she thought about Heinrich and pictured him in his hospital bed.

"It has come to my attention that Emperor Heinrich is in the hospital in critical condition after sustaining injuries in battle. The hearts and prayers of Neo-Ixania and my best wishes are sent to the people of Achae-Ottonia and to the Emperor. We hope that the Emperor shall recover and become the healthy young man he once was.

Signed,
Anastasia II.
Empress of Neo-Ixania"

The letter was given the Imperial Seal before it was sent to Achae-Ottonia. Anastasia only thought about Heinrich and hoped the young man who she had seen at the gala and who expressed his love for her would recover from his injuries.

"General. We have received word of trenches with machine guns up ahead. Also Heinrich is in hospital."

Husaf went over the new information he had received and recalculated an attack.

"Fine. As Heinrich is in hospital send this new message to whoever is in charge."



As there are trenches ahead we will wait. I can call in an air strike to destroy as many of the trenches as possible or even over the main enemy forces. From our position we can bring in mortars and bombard the enemy trenches.

Husaf

"General. We have received word of trenches with machine guns up ahead. Also Heinrich is in hospital."

Husaf went over the new information he had received and recalculated an attack.

"Fine. As Heinrich is in hospital send this new message to whoever is in charge."

Five hours later...

"Sir, His Majesty can see you now," said a volunteer nurse in one of Trajium's hospitals to Marshal Wilhelm Von Dredicburg.
"Thank you. I will see myself in." He strolled into the room, looking, quite rightly, extremely annoyed with the Emperor. "That was stupid!" he shouted to the Emperor, who was sitting up in bed with a bandage next to his right eye. "Marshal Regulus gave you specific orders not to leave the capital. And what do you do the minute he and I are out of sight? You put together a goddamn army and you go off to fight the rebels, like we specifically told you not to! Leave that sort of thing to us! You almost got yourself killed! That's what the bastard wants!" having said that, Wilhelm calmed down a bit. "However, I am very happy that you're still alive, and you've shown great bravery and skill in defending the city. I understand what went through your head - doing something like this is what actually got me promoted - but you should have thought a bit more first. That said, you've shown as much skill and intelligence in command as a much younger and much less experienced Marcus Triarius Regulus," this was a great complement - Proconsul Marcus Triarius Regulus was generally considered to be second only to his grandson, Marcus Theodosius Regulus, in tactical and strategic brilliance. Even comparing someone to him was a complement.
Heinrich looked at the note on the bedside table from General Husaf, detailing the new plan, upon reading the time recorded for when it was recieved, Heinrich looked scared.
"Oh no, I haven't replied to that yet..."
"Don't worry, I responded for you. I fought off the Savonican army and came back here. The battle here is now roughly 325,000 vs. 18,000 men, the 325,000 being us and General Husaf's forces. Here is the response I sent him, incase you want to read it," said Wilhelm as he handed another note to Heinrich. It read:

To General Husaf and the Londimian Forces,
From Marshal Wilhelm Von Dredicburg, Commander of the Army of the Westfall

I have arrived with an additional 300,000 men to take charge of the Achae-Ottonian forces. I have managed to break through the trench in one area, and though they may have reestablished fortifications there, I believe the weakpoint may still remain on the northwest edge of the enemy trenches. We have set up our own artillery, and have pushed the enemy back to outside the city. I believe your plan is sound and will work quite well for the situation. Proceed.

"Very good, Wilhelm."
"Also, it looks like there's another note for you. I thought it might have been personal, so I didn't open it..."
Heinrich opened the letter from Neo-Ixania. He read it over, turned slightly red with embarassment, but smiling reassuredly the whole time.
"Wasn't terribly personal. Warm sentiment, best wishes for recovery. Wouldn't have minded much if you had opened it and read it."
"Weren't you quite taken with Her Majesty...?"
"I still am, but I can't say that I exactly kept it a secret from any of you. I wouldn't have been terribly embarassed if you had read it. I trust you guys not to repeat anything too embarassing," he said with a grin. That same grin he had always had. He was definitely recovering all right.

Husaf looked at the note and uttered four words:

"Commence Operation Foxhole Fire."

Once these words were uttered every soldier started preparing, messages were sent and weapons were primed. General Husaf radioed back to Londim Headquarters.

"Send in the Birds. I repeat, send in the Birds."

Back in Londim B12 Bombers left the ground en route to the target accompanied by Tornadoes to take out any defences. Once the bombs hit, mortar rounds would start being fired towards the trenches so the enemy were completely confused with what was going on.

OOC: Sorry, I don't have enough time to post. I'm going to be out most, if not all, weekend, so just keep bumping the thread. Thanks.

Bump.

At roughly the same time, on the banks of the Quirenius River...

A flag of truce had been run up, and Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus and Marshal Baden Jacus Khamar where walking towards each other, with different expressions on their faces. A look of sheer frustration, anger, and dissapointment showed on Regulus' careworn, but still somewhat youthful, face. Khamar had a blank look, devoid of emotion.
"Baden! What the [censored] do you think you're doing?!" shouted Marcus, completely enraged.
Field Marshal Khamar kept his expression neutral. "I'm helping my people get what they have wanted back for 4,000 years. Independence. Recognize our government, and I'll back off."
"Like hell I'm recognizing a rebel government! If you and the other rebels do not back down and allow themselves to be reincorporated into the empire, then I will make you do it." Regulus replied.
"Then let's get back to our lines, old friend. This has settled absolutely nothing."
"Hope you see reason soon, fratus militus." They walked away. The fighting began again within a few hours.
--------------------------------------------------
Roughly three weeks later on the Quirenius River...
"It's come to pass, Honorius," noted Marshal Regulus to Field Marshal Varus, stating that the Army of Savonica was retreating back in the direction of the capital of Savonica, Reme.
"Let's catch the buggers on their own soil."
"Take it to the capital?"
"Yup."
"You do realize there are two major Savonican armies now, right?"
"Yes. Leave Pierre Lesouiles to me. I can keep him out of the picture. You can handle Baden, right?"
"Not if he can keep dragging things out like he did here."
"You got the message from Wilhelm, right?"
"Yes. Can't believe Heinrich did that. I specifically told him to stay put. All the same, I heard he did very well on his own. Almost like me, is what Wilhelm said. Looks like bothering Trajanicus to let me teach the boy did some good."
"Looks like."
"Let's go and smash this rebel scum now, then."
"Just like old times, eh?"
"Just like when Creaky* was in charge."
They poured themselves a little bit of wine. They held up their glasses in the Achaean tradition for wishing luck to friends embarking on journeys.
"Good luck and Godspeed!" they said simultaneously, toasting and draining their glasses, and departing.

Marcus Theodosius Regulus took a last look at the note he was sending the Emperor. He was pretty sure he covered everything he needed to.
To: Emperor Heinrich Theodoric Hansburg II
There's a lot I need to put in here, so bear with me.
A.) WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?! YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN YOURSELF KILLED! IT'S NOT LIKE YOU HAVE ANYONE TO REPLACE YOU ANYWAY! THAT BAYONET WOUND EASILY COULD HAVE BEEN LETHAL!!! DO NOT EVER DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT AGAIN WITHOUT FIRST CONSULTING ONE OF THE FIELD MARSHALS!
B.) On another note, good job with the defense of Trajium. I hear Wilhelm is in charge of the forces now. Keep it that way. He knows what he's doing.
C.) Following that, I hereby order you to go back to Imperia, or Neo-Ixania, or someplace SAFE! You're recovering from injuries, don't go near the battlefield until you recover, is that clear?
D.) Honorius and I are moving towards Reme. We may well be able to squash the rebellion flat soon.
Good luck, happy recovering, and congratulations,
Marcus

OOC: I forgot to add this with the last posting.

*"Creaky" was the common nickname of the previous Achaean Emperor, Trajanicus Marius XVI, who had come to the throne later in life than normal, at 53. Most came to the Achaean throne at around 20 or 30.

Since no one is posting on this, I'll just wrap it up now.

8 months later:

Marshal Marcus Theodosius Regulus stood in the ruined office of Baden Khamar. Eight Imperial Shocktroopers flanked him, as he confronted his old friend. Khamar looked at him.
"Go ahead. Arrest me. I knew that this is what would happen if we lost. Don't worry about it. It's your job."
"I know. It is my job. So here it is, plain and simple: Baden Khamar, you are under arrest in the name of the Emperor on charges of High Treason. Take him away."
The Shocktroopers escorted the fallen general and the head of state of Savonica out of the room. Time to begin the healing process. And to make sure this never happened again.