NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: For those of you who have been reading the new News thread I started for my country, you already know about the naming of a temporary co-ruler of the empire. For those who do not know, I will put the article in, followed by the first post.

Regarding by people other than myself, please TG me first, and tell me what you are going to bring up. It can be an issue for the new co-ruler, international dialogue, character dialogue (for those of you who have embassies with me), etc. Just please check with me first. Thanks!

IC:


Royal Gender Barrier Snapped, Trampled, and Spit On!
June 23rd, 648 AS (2008 AD); Ottonia, Davarica

Emperor Heinrich II, a figure noted by political pundits throughout the Empire for his progressivism, has struck again.

Citing the most ancient law of the emperors (traditionally) that any Imperial decree that overrules the Diet (or, in this case, Parliament) (decrees like this are allowed only once every eight years, and they cannot be used to give the emperor an unlimited number of them) must be obeyed, and may not be contradicted by the nobles, has been used against traditionalists, in opening up the possibility of an Achae-Ottonian Empress.

The Emperor has often pointed out that he is worn out by the stresses of ruling two empires, and extremely annoyed that a woman cannot be ruler of Ottonia (thereby blocking, by extension, the possibility of an Achae-Ottonian Empress) by using his Overriding Decree to make his cousin Marie de Esla co-ruler of the Empire until further notice.

Traditionalist nobles were livid as the 22-year-old Emperor read the decree to an assembled Parliament.

"He's trying to destroy the very fabric of this great nation!" sputtered Richard Becker, Duke of Untersitzen, a leader of the Traditionalist movement, which generally tries to put all power back in royal hands by citing ancient, inalienable laws laid down by Emperor Otto I "the Unconquerable" who founded the Empire.

Senator Spurius Camillus of South Octaea, however, applauded the action.

"I think that this is a major step foward," Camillus said happily when asked about his feelings on the decree. "Women have always been able to assume the position of Empress in Achaea. Admittedly, there haven't been many of them, but still, the important thing is that there is a genuine possability present."

The Emperor's choice of co-Ruler is rather unsurprising, ignoring the circumstances. Marie de Esla is one of Heinrich's cousins, and is very close to the Emperor. The fact that she has studied government and politics extensively only helped her get the appointment. For the most part, according the plan released by Imperial aides, she will probably defer to her more senior cousin on foreign policy decisions and the like, but will have a good deal of say over domestic affairs in Ottonia, with guidance from supporters in Parliament and from Marshal Wilhelm von Dredicburg, as well as her cousin. It is assumed that she will not need most of this guidance as she adjusts to the job.

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Marie de Esla was not the slightest bit surprised about her cousin's decision. Well, she was when he first informed her of his plan to snap that gender barrier, thereby increasing the number of successors to the throne (so that it would not be nearly as important for him to produce an heir). But she had gone along with it, well aware that she was the best educated of Heinrich's nearly-immediate female relatives in terms of politcal science, foreign relations, economics, etc. However, she had a similar problem to what Heinrich had when first ascending the throne.

No one would take the 20-year-old girl seriously.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. Supporters of the plan certainly did. Those that knew her personally, Heinrich included, certainly did. But the traditionalists and skeptics sure didn't. And there was frustratingly large number of them.

Which is why, now that she was nervously anticipating giving a speech to the whole of the Ottonian Parliament detailing a government reform plan to reduce corruption in the eastern provinces of Nurphallia and Stavvka, she was worrying that she might have to have Marshal von Dredicburg follow up on his offer: to use the Ottonian armies to enforce compliance to show that the new lady on top meant business.

This is ridiculous, she thought. You're now officially a ruler, appointed by the Emperor himself! And these stiff nobles and cynical politicians have you trembling like a girl in an elementary school play! Go out there and show them! Her tomboyish side egged her on like this a lot. It was another reason Heinrich had appointed her specifically: if anyone felt like getting into an angry shouting contest with her, she'd probably win, both argument-wise, volume-wise, and persistance-wise. So she bucked up, and on hearing her que, walked up to the platform from the seat she had taken amongst her supporters.

She heard a sharp intake of breath behind her: she was also, among other things, extremely beautiful, and there was practically no young noble on the planet (that had seen her) that didn't dream of having her as a bride. Her brown-blond hair went to her chin, she had deep brown eyes, and had a healthy build. She stood about 5' 3", and was moderately athletic.

She cleared her throat, and began to speak, her melodic voice permeating the room.

"It has come to my attention that many public officers in the Eastern provinces are not only failing to live up to their promises and failing to even attempt to complete their publicly announced goals, but are actually abusing their position of power for personal gain. This must end; people should be able to chose their leaders, and should be able to trust those leaders, and look to them for guidance. Instead, many fear these people that they elected, hoping for improvement. Many have nothing but disgust and contempt for these men who claimed that they would make life better for people. This is no way for an elected official to behave!" Her speech had begun strongly. Her nervousness was nowhere near obvious.

A raucous applause erupted. She waited for it to subside before continuing.

"Your Emperor appointed me co-ruler, regent of Ottonia, for this reason: he does not have the time an energy to deal with this problem himself. However, though I am not him, the same power is invested in me, and I hereby call on the following officials to step down:

Gov. Reginald Geyer of East Nurphallia
Gov. Lorseon Immers of Jemberia..."

The list went on and on, naming guilty governors, calling on them to step down. When Empress Marie had finished, Marshal von Dredicburg, who had been listening intently until now, stood up in the audience.

"Any who feel like ignoring Her Highness's orders can take it up with me or any of the other Field Marshals. I'm sure Field Marshal Hallestatd would be only to happy to argue with you, good sirs." There were a few nervous laughs. Everyone knew Field Marshal Hallestatd had a nasty temper.

To Marie's surprise, many began to clap for the rest of her speech. Even cynics and opponents were clapping. Had she made the point? It would only be clear in the next few days.

As it turned out, some of those governors took a little "convincing."

Field Marshal Hallestatd's nasty temper was, in fact, surfacing. He was now being forced to send units from his Army of Umberphallia around the eastern provinces of Ottonia, evicting noncompliant officials and, occasionally, having to preform riot control. In a few of the nastier places, reinforcements had to be called in because political gangs or a corrupt police force felt like obstructing justice, as it were.

He sat in his field HQ outside of Edz, a town that had played a critical role in the Unification War. It was in a secure zone, so he could direct things securely from here.

An aide-de-camp walked in.

"Yes? What is it?" Frederick asked irritably.

"The police are working WITH a gang in Waare, sir. The 21st Regiment is having a little bit of trouble." The aide seemed nervous.

"Shit!" Hallestatd exclaimed. "I can't pull more infantry out of my ass! All we've got left is armour!"

"We were thinking of asking Field Marshal Raumesse or Field Marshal Paullus for reinforcements."

"No, we will not!" For some reason, Hallestatd was particularly angry at this suggestion. "Its a show of weakness if we have to pull troops from elsewhere to deal with gangs and renegade police and politicians! Especially when we still have infantry in quiet towns!"

"Sir, those towns may be flashpoints."

"Stick an armoured unit into one of them; most people don't know how bad tanks are in cities. We can pull some of the infantry out of those cities. If these morons start organizing, well, that will be something else entirely. But while we're dealing with rabble, that's not even a general revolt, we can deal."

"Yessir."

As the aide left the building, Frederick sighed. Who knew that a few corrupt governors could be this annoying?

Field Marshal Hallestatd did not realize how wrong he was: The trouble-makers were quite well organized. The organization that had bankrolled the corrupt politicians and were currently resisting said eviction was generally known as The Den, a gang that existed throughout Ottonia, parts of Achaea, but with the strongest presence in the eastern provinces.

And at the moment, they blamed Marie de Esla for the army that had entered their turf.

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Marie was packing up after another day examining the road work being done in Cordenburg. She had taken to the role of co-ruler of the Empire quite well; watching to make sure parliament didn't try to pass anything too objectionable, avoiding angering the neighboring nations of Rossio and Aglaland, and generally keeping things running like clockwork. She had no idea just how much danger she was in.

It was an old tradition amongst Ottonian Emperors to walk around carrying some type of defensive armament, but generally without bodyguards. At least any that would be too conspicuous. As it was, Marie was dressed inconspicuously (protection in of itself) in jeans, a plain white t-shirt, a well-worn pair of workboots and, as per construction site safety regulations, a hardhat. A small, three-shot pistol was discreetly tucked away in a holster that was obscured by her shirt.

A block away, a man stood in an under-construction building that was not currently being worked on. He was looking out the window while preparing a bolt-action sniper rifle (an old FM-4 military rifle). After loading it, he aimed it briefly with the 16x magnification scope, fired, and hit his mark.

Or he would have, if he hadn't received a rifle butt in the back of the head as he pulled the trigger. As it was, he blew lovely hole in the sidewalk, with a loud bang, causing Marie and other passers-by to dive for cover.

A scuffle ensued, with the assailant wrestling with the Ottonian soldier, struggling to escape. He broke the tangle, and ran for the door. It was the worst mistake he could have made.

The soldier raised his assault rifle, aimed for only a moment, and gave a warning shot.

He needn't have bothered. Three other soldiers jumped the man as he attempted to descend the stairs. The assailant was quickly handcuffed, and led off to prison, all the while, Marshal von Dredicburg arrived with an armoured limosine to pick up the slightly-shaken Empress.

The aging Marshal stepped out, running towards the startled young woman. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"

"I'm fine, sir. A little scared, but I appear to be fine."

"Good, get in." Marie didn't argue. There were some situations where you just didn't. "In case you didn't realize this yourself, someone just tried to kill you." Wilhelm stated.

"I understood that."

"Good. Obviously, this crime thing is a bigger problem then we had originally thought. Only someone in the government would have known where you were supposed to be today."

"What should I do about it?"

"Talk to Heinrich about it."

"He's off in la-la land at the moment though!"

"I can't think of anything else. I'm not a politician; I'm just a soldier."

Marie muttered. "Lucky you."

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The next morning, it was obvious the press had been quite busy that night.

Empress Marie Narrowly Escapes Harrowing Assasination Attempt
Organized Crime Groups Blamed for Attempt on Ruler's Life


The article went on to detail the known details of the plot (not many) and the known events of the day.

Emperor Quaeus unfolded the newspaper from his lap on his balcony as he set a glass of wine down on the table before him. He flipped to the Foreign Occurences section which mostly included stories provided through foriegn newspapers. The first story caught his interest. "Organized Crime, huh?" He set down his paper and slid out of his seat. He approached his desk and picked up the phone. "Yes, get me the head of the Carabinieri, if you would.", he asked the operator on the other end. A few moments later he got a response. "Yes hello. Quaeus here and I need to know if our ROS unit is busy." As the voice on the other end answered he replied, "Excellent. I have a job I think they'd be suited for."

Hail and fondest greetings to you, friends of the The Empire of Achae-Ottonia. We, the Senatus de Roma V, have heard of your problems involving organized crime. Our Carabinieri currently operate a unit of officers trained to deal with organized crime groups such as the mafias that infest Roma V's underground. If you would like, we can send the Raggruppamento Operativo Speciale (ROS) to Achae-Ottonia to help your law enforcement officials deal with the virus that is organized crime. If you are interested, please let us know.

Strength and Honor,
The Senatus de Roma V

Tironus, High King of Delkor, stood on the airfield watching the pilots assemble. The sound of footsteps behind him caught his attention, and he turned to face the newcomers.
"Are you ready to go?"
"Yes," replied Prince Theodin. "My jet is fueled and ready to go."
"Remember," Tironus said, "this is your first official negotiation. If we can gain another strong monarchy as an ally, it will serve to benefit us well."
"As well as safeguard our naval base," Theodin replied.
"Perhaps. I'll leave the details to you. Good Luck." He reached out his hand.
"I won't let you down, brother!" Theodin grasped the hand and held firm. Then, releasing his grip, he turned and headed for his fighter. Tironus watched as the ground crew assisted Theodin into the cockpit of his F5D Preybird (http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h52/nx9100/Aircraft/F5D.jpg), handed him his helmit, and closed the canopy. The fighter began to taxi accross the tarmac and headed out to the runway. With a roar, it lifted up into the sky, moving to join the other fighters already airborn...

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To: Heinrich II, Emperor of Achae-Ottonia
From: Tironus, High King of Delkor
Subject: Royal Audience
Message:
Good day Emperor. I would like to inform you that my brother, Prince Theodin, is on route to your nation for an inspection tour of the shipyard we have built there. Please do not be alarmed by the appearence of his fighter group. Also, I have been watching the current political climate in your kingdom with great concern. As I value your continued friendship, I would like to offer my brother to be an advisor of sorts to both you and your co-ruler. We understand the situation that you find yourselves in, as I am High King, yet only 22 years of age, while Theodin is 19. Even our 15 year old sister has a large role in our government. Please look to Theodin for valuble advise in these troubled times.

Emperor Quaeus unfolded the newspaper from his lap on his balcony as he set a glass of wine down on the table before him. He flipped to the Foreign Occurences section which mostly included stories provided through foriegn newspapers. The first story caught his interest. "Organized Crime, huh?" He set down his paper and slid out of his seat. He approached his desk and picked up the phone. "Yes, get me the head of the Carabinieri, if you would.", he asked the operator on the other end. A few moments later he got a response. "Yes hello. Quaeus here and I need to know if our ROS unit is busy." As the voice on the other end answered he replied, "Excellent. I have a job I think they'd be suited for."

Hail and fondest greetings to you, friends of the The Empire of Achae-Ottonia. We, the Senatus de Roma V, have heard of your problems involving organized crime. Our Carabinieri currently operate a unit of officers trained to deal with organized crime groups such as the mafias that infest Roma V's underground. If you would like, we can send the Raggruppamento Operativo Speciale (ROS) to Achae-Ottonia to help your law enforcement officials deal with the virus that is organized crime. If you are interested, please let us know.

Strength and Honor,
The Senatus de Roma V

To The Roman Senate (I apologize if I got that wrong),

I thank you for your offer of help in the form of the ROS, and the help of this elite organized-crime-fighting unit would be much appreciated: If I'm not mistaken, Field Marshal Hallestadt's offensive is not going well. Any help that can be sent, even if it turns out that the ROS is not available, would be much appreciated. Many thanks.

Yours sincerely,

Empress Marie de Esla, Ottonian Empire

To: Heinrich II, Emperor of Achae-Ottonia
From: Tironus, High King of Delkor
Subject: Royal Audience
Message:
Good day Emperor. I would like to inform you that my brother, Prince Theodin, is on route to your nation for an inspection tour of the shipyard we have built there. Please do not be alarmed by the appearence of his fighter group. Also, I have been watching the current political climate in your kingdom with great concern. As I value your continued friendship, I would like to offer my brother to be an advisor of sorts to both you and your co-ruler. We understand the situation that you find yourselves in, as I am High King, yet only 22 years of age, while Theodin is 19. Even our 15 year old sister has a large role in our government. Please look to Theodin for valuble advise in these troubled times.

To: High King Tironus of Delkor
From: Marshal Marcus T. Regulus, Acting-Regent of Achaea
Re: Royal Audience

We appreciate the advance warning of your visit to inspect your shipyard facilities and for your offer of your brother's services to help advise us. As the Emperor himself is currently not available, he may meet with either myself, Marshal Marcus Regulus, as Heinrich has left me in charge of Achaea in his absence, or with Empress Marie, Heinrich's cousin and co-ruler. Again, thank you.

We, the Senatus de Roma V, are most elated you have accepted our offer. We will have two units of the ROS sent to Achae-Ottonia immediately to help train your soldiers as well as assist in your operations. Their commanding officer, Maggiore (Major) Leonardo Deapriazu will maintain strict control over the two units however he will be open to requests made by your Marshals. Their plane should arrive in Achae-Ottonian airspace in roughly two and a half days. Until then, we hope no further harm comes to your officials.

Respectfully,
The Senatus de Roma V

We, the Senatus de Roma V, are most elated you have accepted our offer. We will have two units of the ROS sent to Achae-Ottonia immediately to help train your soldiers as well as assist in your operations. Their commanding officer, Maggiore (Major) Leonardo Deapriazu will maintain strict control over the two units however he will be open to requests made by your Marshals. Their plane should arrive in Achae-Ottonian airspace in roughly two and a half days. Until then, we hope no further harm comes to your officials.

Respectfully,
The Senatus de Roma V

Excellent. Empress Marie will be pleased to hear of Maj. Deapriazu's arrival with his men, as I'm sure Field Marshal Hallestatd will be as well (he could rather use the help). Thank you for the help. We will remember this; that the people of Roma can be viewed as friends of our people. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Marcus T. Regulus, Marshal of Achaea, Imperial Legionary Army, Acting Regent of Achaea

P.S. From this point onward, I shall be leaving matters between the ROS's and the Ottonian government to Empress Marie. Please address any messages regarding developments and the like to her.

The Alenia C-27J Spartan hummed loudly as it entered Achae-Ottonian airspace. Knowing they were no doubt detected by their radars, a pilot picked up the radio and set his frequency so that he could contact one of the nearby airfields.

"This is Alenia C-27J Spartan "Imperial Majesty" of The People's Republic of Roma V carrying troops of the ROS. Looking for an open runway to drop them package off, over."

As a response buzzed back over the radio the plane steered toward the direction of the designated airfield and after recieving confirmation from the control tower slowly descended onto the runway. As the tires burned against the floor of the runway and the plane slowly skidded to a halt the back ramp slowly lowered and Maggiore Deapriazu watched his two units consisting of 16 each file out he soon followed. Behind them a LY219 Ironheart Armoured IFV (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=533583&postcount=1)carefully rolled down the ramp and pulled off to the side.

After that the workers unloaded crates weapons, ammo, equipment, and other supplies off the plane. Maggiore Deapriazu paitently awaited the arrival of the Achae-Ottonian officer who would brief him on the situation. In the mean time he had his units assembled in straight, orderly lines. They all wore a casual uniform (http://www.operations.mod.uk/telic/images/misc/carabinieri_hr.jpg).

That had better be one good translator Commander Kyle Ruchs thought as he walked evenly to the part of the runway where Maggiore Deapriazu had his men assembled. He was rightly more than a little concerned: Ruchs only spoke Umbero-Ottonian, which sounded a lot like Norwegian, a language he had his doubts that the Roman officers could understand properly. So, he was relying on a translator to relay his words to them in Italian.

He approached the Maggiore, relatively at ease. This was his job, after all. Not greeting foreign help, but in general doing what Marshal von Dredicburg needed.

"Hello. I'm Commander Kyle Ruchs, and I've been assigned to debrief you and your men," he said confidently. The translator translated.

Maggiore Deapriazu snapped to attention and saluted Commander Kyle Ruchs as he approached and greeted him. Noticing the Commander making use of a translator, he said "I speak English too if it helps, Commander Ruchs, sir."

Commander Ruchs shook his head.

"My English is not well. Easier for him translate," Ruchs responded in extremely broken English.

"Please, follow me," he said, more at ease in his native language. He led the Roman officers to a large bus. "I'm afraid this is what we could get for all of you. When we all go onto active duty, we'll obviously be in proper military vehicles. However, at the moment, all those attached to the 33rd Division, which is the unit I command, are in use at the front."

Maggiore Deapriazu nodded his head in understanding as Commander Ruchs was kind enough to personally explain the use of a translator. He motioned his troops to follow as Commander Ruchs led them toward a nearby bus. As the translator explained Commander Ruch's apologies for the transportation, Maggiore Deapriazu waved his hand dismissively, adding "It's no trouble at all. I didn't bring my men here expecting to be pampered. Dealing with the underground is dirty business after all.

The troops filed onto the bus and sat down. Maggiore Deapriazu sat up front with Commander Ruchs and his translator as the driver began to shuttle them to where the debriefing room was located.

Marie was pacing in the palace in Ottonia, waiting for Marshal von Dredicburg to get out of the meeting with the other Ottonian military leaders. She was also waiting for Marshal Regulus to arrive from Achaea: the two acting-leaders were to have a meeting, as Heinrich was not currently available. Despite having narrowly escaped an assasination attempt, Marie did not seem terribly happy: she knew it was sheer dumb luck that had saved her. That, and the bravery and skill of the Imperial soldiers. Concern radiated from every part of her: she was worried that the Ottonian half of the Empire was spinning out of control with the increased gang activity and constant opposition of the traditionalists in the Diet.

At this point, Von Dredicburg walked calmly out of the meeting room. "Hello, Ma'am. Waiting patiently for us, I see?" the aging Marshal inquired.

"Yes," Marie replied simply.

"Well, here's part of the verdict: we're placing a guard on you."

"What?" Marie was slightly horrified. An Army guard would make her functioning in regular duties considerably more difficult.

"We are placing a guard on you. 10 soldiers from the Army of Davarica will be assigned to guard you, under the command of Captain Michael Warner."

"Why can't the palace guard do it?"

"There aren't enough of them to guard the palace adequetely and you at the same time. Keep in mind that if the palace isn't properly guarded, someone could plant a bomb, or poison your food, or something of the sort, and that would sort of defeat the point of guarding you, wouldn't it?"

Marie nodded, sensing that this was one of those things you didn't argue about.

"Besides," Wilhelm continued, "The guards are all drawn off of the 4th Guard Infantry Regiment. I seem to recall from my history classes that the purpose of the Guard Regiments were, in fact, to guard the royal family, leadership, and nobility."

"Can they stay inconspicuous, though?"

"Probably not. It will be a visible guard. Not to worry though; the soldier are instructed to be polite to civilians. Most of them are even without being told. I doubt they'll restrict your mobility. And this measure will only last as long as the current crisis persists."

"Fine." Marie practically pouted. She didn't like having to completely give in like this.

A worker entered the room at this point. "Excuse me Madame? Sir? Marshal Regulus has arrived. He seems a tad impatient."

"That's Marcus alright," Von Dredicburg said dryly.

Maggiore Deapriazu nodded his head in understanding as Commander Ruchs was kind enough to personally explain the use of a translator. He motioned his troops to follow as Commander Ruchs led them toward a nearby bus. As the translator explained Commander Ruch's apologies for the transportation, Maggiore Deapriazu waved his hand dismissively, adding "It's no trouble at all. I didn't bring my men here expecting to be pampered. Dealing with the underground is dirty business after all.

The troops filed onto the bus and sat down. Maggiore Deapriazu sat up front with Commander Ruchs and his translator as the driver began to shuttle them to where the debriefing room was located.

Ruchs turned to Deapriazu and began to speak: "Out of idle curiosity, what kinds of criminals do you all deal with in Roma?" he inquired.

He also decided to explain exactly what the meeting would entail. "I'm going to debrief you all as a group when we get there, and then I'm going to have to make way for Empress Marie and Marshal Von Dredicburg. They're going to do the usual leaderly stuff: formally thank you guys for coming to help us, etc, etc."

"Well my unit is part of the Carabinieri. They act as the Military and Police Force for Roma V. However they deal with keeping the peace and minor crimes. My unit was founded back in 1990 when we were needed to combat the growing presence of La Cosa Nostra in Roma V. While we have mostly been used to combat the mafia, we are also used in cases of drug trafficking and kidnapping."

Ruchs looked slightly confused. "Sorry for my ignorance, but what's the Mafia?"

Deapriazu blinked a few times. He was somewhat surprised he had never heard of the mafia. But he was willing to explain it. "Well, the mafia means different things in many nations. In Roma it refers to the organized crime groups run by 'families' who deal in different illegal fields. When Italian emigration was wide spread many Italians who were part of the mafia, or mafioso as they're called, immigrated to countries such as the United States and Australia where they began their jobs once again in newer territory. They've become something of a popular culture theme in movies, especially in American cinema, and adaptations in other cultures can be seen such as the Japanese Yakuza, the Russian Mafia, and the various African American and Latin American 'gangs' that populate the United States."

"Oh. We just call 'em scum around here. We lump them all together. There's one biggie, but most of the organized crime is local: the bigger ones of those cover provinces. The vast majority are city-by-city, though." He paused. "I apologize for my ignorance; most of us have never left our country or continent; I, for one, had never heard of America until a few months ago. We've been out of contact for a while."

"Ah I see. The mafia tends to operate differently depending on the the current boss and the location of their business." As Ruchs apologized, Deapriazu smiled and waved his hand dismissively. "It's fine, really. Can't know everything about everybody and everywhere, can you?", he said with a chuckle.

OOC: Should I send my delegate, etc later or now?

OOC: Sorry I haven't posted in a couple days.

BTW, Ixania, its all clear to send your delegate. The excuse is up to you.

OOC: Sorry I haven't posted in a couple days.

BTW, Ixania, its all clear to send your delegate. The excuse is up to you.

OOC: I have a good excuse. :p

Svetlana Sturmer was hastily sent by her superiors in the Foreign Ministry of the Ixanian Empire to meet with Empress Marie in order to secure better relations between her and the Ixanian Empire as was done with Heinrich when he reigned alone. While Svetlana was busy contemplating the upcoming meeting with Marie, one of the Princes of the Ixanian Empire was accompanying her not for the diplomatic meeting but to court the Ottonian beauty. Prince Alexander had been romantically interested in Marie ever since he saw a picture of her and he was able to get to accompany Svetlana by beseeching relatives and the Foreign Minister to permit his plans of courtship.

Svetlana and Alexander were on the private jet heading towards the Achae-Ottonian capital. When it reached Imperial airspace, the pilots of the private jet sent a message.

"This is an Ixanian Diplomatic Jet requesting permission to land...this is an Ixanian Diplomatic Jet requesting permission to land...please respond."

OOC: For clarity purposes, since there are two Achae-Ottonian capitals, any references to cities or locations as "Achae-Ottonian" will be treated as "Ottonian," as that is the region this RP is affecting. Achaea is not being affected.

IC:

The control tower at Ottonia International Airport quickly responded: "Ixanian Diplomat, you are cleared to land on runway three, B Terminal."

Wilhelm von Dredicburg, the Marshal who was effectively Empress Marie's right-hand man, waited somewhat impatiently: Marie was unable to meet the Ixanian delegation personally, as she was currently in a meeting with regent-Marshal Marcus Regulus of Achaea, but diplomacy was not Wilhelm's strong-point: he was a general, not a politician.

OOC: I am going to be away saturday and sunday this weekend, and will probably be back by midday (East Coast Time) Monday. Please respond normally, and bump until I get back. Thanks!

OOC: For clarity purposes, since there are two Achae-Ottonian capitals, any references to cities or locations as "Achae-Ottonian" will be treated as "Ottonian," as that is the region this RP is affecting. Achaea is not being affected.

IC:

The control tower at Ottonia International Airport quickly responded: "Ixanian Diplomat, you are cleared to land on runway three, B Terminal."

Wilhelm von Dredicburg, the Marshal who was effectively Empress Marie's right-hand man, waited somewhat impatiently: Marie was unable to meet the Ixanian delegation personally, as she was currently in a meeting with regent-Marshal Marcus Regulus of Achaea, but diplomacy was not Wilhelm's strong-point: he was a general, not a politician.

Svetlana and the Ixanian Prince decided to wait at the Ottonian airport until they would be found and greeted by Achae-Ottonian envoys, etc. As they waited, they looked at all the people walking to and fro in the airport and thought about the upcoming meeting.

OOC: Sorry for the crappy short post.