SDNWorld Redux: Story Thread the Third

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Constantinople Times

Byzantine Police Chief slams the recent unfavorable review of the Byzantine police force by Eric Matsukawa.

"Completely biased and whitewashes the failure of Zorian Police ability to suppress the local Yakuza gangsters and even colluding with the Yakuza at times. We have always emphasized on high standards of training and ensured that our men perform their duties well. Not to mention, they are paid well and not lowly paid indentured servants," says the Police chief. On the topic of closed circuit television cameras, he said, "Complete waste of resources, which will be better spent else where. How do you expect a person to simultaneously watch 16 damn cameras at once? 4 cameras is the most you could do, and that means you have to employ thousands to watch the hundreds of thousands of the cameras across the Empire? The nitwit is better off focusing on the smallness of his nation, rather than slamming other police forces. Better to emphasize on constant vigilance of the people rather than using cameras."

Byzantine Trade & Industry Ministry opens tender to build massive convention complex in Arabiapolis

The Byzantine Trade & Industry Ministry has opened a tender to companies to build a massive convention complex in Arabiapolis. All companies across the world are favoured, though local involvement is encouraged.

[Zor]

Byzantine Trade & Industry Ministry opens tender to build massive convention complex in Arabiapolis

The Byzantine Trade & Industry Ministry has opened a tender to companies to build a massive convention complex in Arabiapolis. All companies across the world are favoured, though local involvement is encouraged.

Union Press

Dawkins & Wallice Building puts forward it's bid for Arabiapolis contracts

Dawkins and Wallice Headquarters, Victorium-Today, the Dawkins & Wallice construction firm has put forth a bid for Byzantine Contracts in the Arabiapolis convention center. The firm has experience in construction from the creation of the New Atlantis Buy'n Large Megadome to the now world renound classical Zorian Japanese structures of Yorushima Park.

[Coiler]

Coilerburg News

Recent arms purchases draw criticism

Coilerburg has just agreed to an initial purchase of thirty AA-1 Archer artillery helicopters from Miratia. This move has surprisingly drawn criticism from both sides. Those in favor of peace believe that this purchase, alongside the nation's gigantic naval order, is unnecessary and is diverting funds from more important civil needs. The more warlike of Coilerburg's people believe that the Archer is a poorly designed, overly expensive piece of junk.

Coilerburg naval base expanding

Navalopolis Station is being expanded, to accommodate the new ships under construction in Byzantine yards....

[K. A. Pital]

RED ONE: Wilkonia covertly occupies the Caymans

The nation of Wilkonia has brutally occupied the Cayman islands and installed a puppet regime. All communications with the island have ceased, and it's unclear what is going on; however, it seems that there's a new corporate junta at the helm, which has responded to the unrest by rounding up even more opposition supporters.

We remind you that the unrest in the Caymans after the elections culminated in several high-profile hits - on the eve of the election, the Electoral Commitee Head was murdered, and on the verge of New Year, a terrorist strike at the Cayman International Airport led to the deaths of several high-profile elected officials of the Caymans.

COMMUNE-2. Crimson Star Republic.


The conference room was hidden deep inside the underground closed city. The core of the Crimson Star military planning facilities was here; and this is why President Stanislav appeared here whenever there was unrest brewing anywhere in the Crimson Star Republic's attention sphere... which was "everywhere" period.

- What is the situation with our allies? - Stanislav oversaw the large map.

- The AFSR managed to contain the infection. So far their public health system is still on alert, but there's a very small chance of another outbreak. Hyperlethality means the agent will not spread even if a breakout will happen several years after. However, they request economic assistance... - Dmitri, a young PCIA analyst, laid out the last economic reports from the AFSR. - They would need a few billion roubles in assistance. Initially they asked for a dozen billion, but "scaled down" somewhat after their situation stabilized.

- After all they did, help them? I suppose we could give some support... hold them afloat as a sort of military reservation. But not much more, - Stanislav shrugged. - The problem with Frequesquean nations is that they rarely concern themselves with making their citizens' lives better, more with fighting each other and "blowing shit up", as some leaders say.

- And the Supreme Soviet?

- It has approved no more than 3 billion of aid for this year, so we can't throw money around. And what of these political movements in the Caymans? - Stanislav murmured. - "Third Way", eh?

- They have been making overt pleas to our agents since Wilkonia started the crackdown, a crackdown apparently well-agreed to with the IRT if our intelligence is not lacking. However, we are withholding any aid and of course shipping no weapons to them... essentially there's just a huge police operation to suppress what is yet not a fully-fledged armed rebellion.

- Good. Let the IRT and Wilkonia drown those islands in violence. We'll show the sour grapes of Wilkonian "diplomacy" to others and remind them that the CSR is ready to help the opressed and poor, in exchange for some meager privileges, - Stanislav smiled.

[Steve]

Seattle Post-Intelligencer


Zorian Embassy site of protests as relations with island kingdom deteriorate


ADAMS, CAPITOL DISTRICT - Several groups have begun protesting at the Zorian Embassy these past weeks due to recent press releases and reports from the security-centered island nations. A branch of the International Freedoms Coalition protested the large-scale Zorian surveillance state and the practice of forcing all Zorians to provide the government with DNA and fingerprint information, citing this as evidence of a "state of police state mentality" in Zoria. These Zorian practices have been brought to the limelight by a recent book from a Zorian police expert who insists on the superiority of his nation's law-keeping capabilities and criticizes as "weaknesses" various aspects of other countries' police forces, including Cascadia's, for their failure to implement policies including widespread CCTV, national databases of DNA and fingerprints from all citizens, and other procedural elements that exist under Cascadian law to protect citizens from police misconduct.

Although some have said that the author had only the best of intentions, others see it as part of a pattern of Zorian propaganda attacks on Cascadia particularly due to protests against Zorian military operations against aboriginals in eastern Veleria as well as the behavior of Zorian missionaries, who have been exposed by investigative journalists in various countries as engaging in questionable practices in their efforts to gain converts.

In one case a Zorian news outlet accused the Cascadian Census Bureau of intentionally understating the numbers of Norse and Zorian Shinto adherents in Cascadia due to links to "right wing Christian political movements", which Director Samuel Bennet finds preposterous. A practicing Christian himself, Bennet told reporters that, "The idea that we're underreporting the convert numbers because of religion, never mind politics, is absurd." He went on to say that there was an apparent error in the initial reports from Cascadian journalists, reporting as the number of total converts in Cascadia the change in converts between the 2000 and 2010 Census. "By our estimate there are probably about ten thousand and eleven thousand of each of these Zorian missionary religions in Cascadia apiece. That's about 21,000 overall, or less than one out of every one thousand Cascadians," Bennet's clarification notice stated. "Our records do not bear out the full extent of claimed Norse and Shinto gains in Cascadia, but their active expansion does seem to be giving them the ability to keep up with people who go back to majority religions after a time."

One particular sticking point of the last several months has been the active Zorian campaign against tribal aborigines in Eastern Veleria, particularly those dwelling in the Dragonsnake River Basin. This lush tropical basin is the sight of an ambitious expansion project by Zoria that is displacing natives and the local Malip and Egsa natives have been suffering repeated attacks and acts of deforestation by Zorians clearing the tropical forest. An estimated 50,000 people combined from the two ethnic groups have streamed into refugee camps in Le Kanh Province, Rangatara, creating an immense humanitarian and political crisis for the shaky Rangataran coalition government that is still recovering from a brief civil war. Some groups have accused the Zorians of perverse displays of slain natives who have resisted Zorian military activities. The International Organization for Religious Tolerance has gone as far as to claim the Zorian military is intentionally targeting the Malip especially because they are adherents to a slightly-heterodox branch of Islam.

Acting on concerns from humanitarian groups and the Rangataran and Hadhramari governments, the Cascadian State Department has issued several letters to Zoria asking for a halt to the deforestation campaign and for negotiations with tribal authorities for delineating "protective zones" for the animist Egsa and Islamic Malip to be permitted to live in under international protection. Sources state that the process of diplomacy is slow and also deny that Cascadian participation in the upcoming Second Pan-Pacific Conference in Wuhan will be threatened by the issue.



Political turmoil in Caymans prompts travel warnings.


CAYMAN CITY, GREATER CAYMAN - Further clashes between Wilkonian and Caymanian troops and police forces and left-wing demonstrators have led the Cascadian State Department to increase the intensity of the travel warning to the Caymans, insisting that Cascadian citizens remain away from political gatherings and leave the islands unless their livelihoods absolutely require they remain. The decision comes as polls suggest that with the exception of Andrews Island, the most conservative and pro-Wilkonian of the five main Cayman Islands, the majority of the nation's people want a new election to be held. The newly-elected Nationalist government was nearly wiped out by a terrorist attack that claimed the President-elect Horton and other senior Cabinent members and legislators. It was widely accused of electoral fraud and corruption by international oversight groups and local political parties, who now want to hold new elections. The Nationalist Party's President Frederick Truong, who has remained in office due to his successor's assassination, has wavered according to some sources, considering calling elections despite his party leadership's insistance that the election results were valid and that they will not accept any "redos".

The newly formed Popular Front, led by a committee of the major Leftist parties of the Caymans with Socialist Labor Front Chairman Gary Ngo Diem acting as their leader, insists that the fraudulent elections have robbed the Nationalist Party of any international legitimacy and that new and completely fair elections must be held. Ngo Diem's publicized list of acceptable election supervisors does not include Wilkonia and Tonkin, but is headed by Wilkonia's allies of Canissia and Byzantium, as well as Cascadia, Alaska, the Crimson Star Republic, and PeZookia. Ngo Diem's public speeches and press releases insist that the Popular Front is committed to "peaceful, legal change" and is not seeking to overthrow the government, as some right-wing groups and prominent Nationalists have charged.

So far, however, no new election date has been set, and Wilkonia has confirmed it will keep its troops on site to "guarrantee law and order and secure Wilkonian interests".

[Siege]

AIP General Lashes Out At Zorian Publication
Armed Interdiction Police commander William Sturmond has lashed out at a recently published Zorian book on international police forces. "[This book] is a-factual rubbish void of any and all merit, unmitigated nonsense of the highest order, and if this Zorian crackpot thinks I will stand idly by whilst he tarnishes the record of the finest law officers in the world, he’s got another thing coming", General Sturmond commented.

In his book titled Lawkeepers of the World: an international evaluation of police forces, Zorian author Eric W. Matsukawa reflects less than favourably on the AIP, accusing it of -amongst other things- frequent use of excessive force. "[Matsukawa] does not know the slightest thing about San Dorado, its populace, and its police force, so much is obvious", said Sturmond. "He complains about the high number of perpetrators gunned down by the AIP, when statistics show that as much as 80 percent of our populace is armed, and the AIP is only called in when violence has already broken out. In other words, we go in to clear up gun battles and violent protests where every man and his dog are packing heat. We get shot at on a daily basis- what does he think we'll do in return, shower these perps in hugs and kisses? No! We shoot the bastards! It's the only sensible thing to do, and this fraud of an author chastises us for it. Well, let me tell Mr. Matsukawa that he will want to steer clear of San Dorado if he values his skin intact, because I sure know a great many officers who would love to have a word with him right now, if you know what I mean."

The Board of Directors meanwhile has refused to comment on Lawkeepers of the World. "What Mr. Matsukawa writes is his own business. He is a private person, and can publish whatever he likes", said a spokeswoman for executive director Daphne Sinclair of the General Directorate for Education, Law Enforcement and Justice. According to a source in the Presidential Palace who spoke on the condition of anonimity President Hank is "less than impressed" with the Zorian book. "I know the President's read it, I saw it on his desk, but knowing him a little I don't think he gives a wooden nickle about what some guy from the other side of the planet thinks of his police officers."

[Siege]

Zombie Fever



Tower of Commerce, downtown San Dorado

“So, what do we have here?” President Hank frowned at the sight of four dead bodies shown on the big plasma screens mounted on the wall of the boardroom. “What is it about these four that warrants my attention?”

“They were killed four days ago by an AIP inspector patrolling the Ozone Hill neighbourhood. He reported ‘extreme aggression’ on their part, which still doesn’t warrant much attention if not for the fact that the forensic pathologist processing the bodies noticed certain, ah, abnormalities in their bloodstream”, explained Daphne Sinclair, whose directorate ran San Dorado’s police forces.

“Abnormalities”, the President repeated, tapping his fingers on the table. “What kind of abnormalities?”

“A foreign contaminant in their blood he failed to identify. He thought it was some new drug, which is why he sent his findings upriver. CBI Narcotics got involved but couldn’t figure out what they were dealing with either, someone passed the report along to the MIC hoping they might know something they didn’t – long story short, MIC just confirmed, it’s what Shroomanians have been telling us about, the EAS virus that is ravaging the Astarian interior.”

The President scratched his chin. “Are you sure?”

“One hundred percent.”

“How come we didn’t notice before that this thing was loose in our cities?”

Daphne shrugged. “There’s always plenty of aggression in the bad neighbourhoods. Plenty of guns too. CBI postulates that might be difficult for the syndrome to spread when its carriers frequently end up getting shot like rabid dogs – no-one’s keeping any real tally of how many people are killed in the Sprawl, it takes a significant upsurge of violence before anyone takes an interest… For all we know the virus has been loose for weeks.”

Sidney Hank massaged his temples. “Great, that’s just great. I assume we’re tracking down the source of infection?”

“Yes, AIP is clamping down on Ozone Hill where they first encountered it. I have CBI screening the harbours – our best bet is that it somehow got in on a ship that breached the Astarian quarantine, we’re trying to find which one it was. Meanwhile all police and PRISEC units have been informed, as soon as they encounter any aggression-”

“Any unusual aggression, you mean”, the President interrupted wryly.

“Yeah, and that’s kind of the problem. Lady knows there’s plenty of meth-heads and other whackos out there that go postal every day, distinguishing between our ordinary crazies and the infected ones is going to be a bitch and a half.”

“And considering the nature of the Sprawl…”

“Precisely. Its inhabitants are distrustful of anything that smells like the Law. If we go in by force, chances are we’ll face a backlash from the populace. In that case violence we spark might well be worse than the virus could manage by itself.”

“Daphne, I know we have some mean streets, but I’m not about to let this god-damn virus run loose in a city of over 10 million in the hope that it’ll burn itself out. I’m all for self-correcting chaos, but that’s pushing things too far.”

“So, what do you propose?”

“If I read the Shroomanian reports right, the infection tends to spread like oil patches, so what we have to do is contain it. We look for any sign of exceptional violence in the Sprawl. If there is, send in the AIP. They cordon off the neighbourhood and go door to door to root out whatever clusters of infection they might encounter.”

“That’ll cause a real ruckus.”

“So, we’ll keep Citidef on standby to help out in case AIP becomes stretched. I want this problem solved, and I want it solved quickly. The last thing I need is thousands of mindless, frenzied psychopaths running around in my capital city.”

“You mean, apart from the AIP officers themselves?”

“Ha-ha, very funny…”

Result: Astarian zombie-fever is loose in the city, and no-one noticed in-between the regular violence . AIP is gearing up to contain and eradicate the infection.

[CmdrWilkens]

Military Mission to the Caymans announces timetable for elections

Today the Caymans Incident Resposne Force Commander, Sir Geoffrey Baner, announced that a timetable has been announced for the holding of elections to secure a firm government for the islands. Details have been slow to come out as the plan was only finalized this morning however early indications are that the previously banned communist party will not be allowed to register (as the law banning it is still on the books) however the "Populare Front," being a legal political party will be allowed to canvass for its membership.

Other provisions have been slow however a few thins are certian at this point. The first is that the elctoral comission, composed of four senior judges and the Secretary of Congress, is all still alive and will be the direct administrator of the election. CIRF has already stated that they will not post troops inside of the designated electioneering radius and that troops will be used priumarily to assist local police units with crowd control. The other notable point that has come out is a judgement CIRF asked of the remaining members of the Cayman Supreme Court, only six remain alive after the terrorist attacks of last month, in regards to presence on the island of other nationalities. The court, in a 5-1 ruling, indicated that while embassy staff's were obviously exempt within the limits of those treatis establishing the embassy size and composition that the death of the Secretary of State means the Caymans are without an official who can accredit any foreign delegation. As such any foreign personnel traveling to the Caymans cannot be granted diplomatic immunity until a new government is re-constituted.



Result: Caymans are gonna hold an election but since the terrorists killed the only person who can grant diplomatic immunity any election judges from other countries travel at their own risk and any new additions to embassy staffs are likewise not covered unless previously designated and now returning.

[PeZook]

Orena Evening News

Investigation continues into Soyuz-1 catastrophe

With recovery of the flight data recorder, FASTA experts began reconstructing the final moments of the ill-fated Soyuz-1 capsule, the latest in a string of four failed Soyuz test flights. Initial materials analysis of recovered wreckage revealed no conclusive data so far - and every day the investigation continues, FASTA moon program is further delayed.

"It's frustrating, of course - however, we need to examine the situation closely. FASTA cannot afford another payload loss.", says Damian Kaklamanis, FASTA Director Of Operations, "Especially since we are talking about a spacecraft which will fly with a human crew at some point in the future."

Experts confirm that further delays may jeopardize the entire moon program.

Royal Office 'neutral' in Lawkeepers Of The World controversy

The Royal Office released a press statement, in which it claimed King Paul and the Government of PeZookia will not take any stances in the recently erupted controversy over the book Lawkeepers Of The World and its scathing criticism of most of the world's police forces, despite popular outrage at the book's advocacy of heavy surveillance and tight control of citizenry as best means towards ensuring public order.

============================================================

Tri-Cities Metropolitan Area

"Your example of Kulinsky and his deja vu is what I'm thinking, here. Now as far as I can remember, he was never around for any 'fireplace chats' we may have had. So his feeling of deja vu probably wasn't a direct memory, but more the result of seeing Rufus Shinra and King Paul together, which he did see in the Old World. So is this reaction on the part of Kamila the result of some memories telling her we were together, or just a vauge sense that we should be together in her mind? I think that would probably determine the best way to proceed."

Paul nodded, slowly stirring his tea.

"That's certainly the best way to approach this. I will have a talk with her in the evening and try to figure this out. In the meantime, there's plenty of places to see in the Tri-Cities, and I believe we have a photo-op planned for later today, so we should get going."

Paul got up, seemingly lost in thought.

"You know, the Tri-Cities look real similar to my home town. Between this and the goddamned deja vus, Q's a real asshole."

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Constantinople Times

Air Force undertakes delivery of 32 A380AEW&CSI aircraft, Army takes delivery of 20 A330AEW&CSI-Phalcon

The Air Force and Army have taken delivery of their respective AWACs aircraft. It is believed that the Air Force is studying alternative airframes to mount their radar systems, particularly a wide bodied A350 aircraft that is now undergoing testing.

Army places order for 40 new An-22PM gunships

The Army has placed an order for new An-22PM gunships. Equipped with 155mm lightweight autocannon, and 2 40mm guns, they offer more firepower than their predecessors. The order will be delivered over the next few years.

BAM rolls out A350 for testing

BAM has finally rolled out the A350XWB aircraft. The aircraft promises greater fuel efficiency than previous aircraft.

Imperial Navy announces intention to acquire Strategos and Praetor class destroyers

The Imperial Navy has announced its intention to acquire the Strategos and Praetor class destroyers equipped with the STAR combat system. The specs of the ships are currently unknown at the moment, but construction of the ships have begun.

[Siege]

Straight from the Radio Tower this is WorldWide One: Global news and entertainment from the heart of San Dorado!

Universal Construction Fishes For Lucrative Byzantine Contract
Universal Construction today announced that it has bid on a lucrative contract to construct a convention complex in the Byzantine city of Arabiapolis. According to a press release the San Doradan construction company, also heavily involved in the construction of the Burj Arabia skyscraper in the same city, has filed its bid with the Byzantine Trade & Industry Ministry earlier today.

“We are famous for building big, and building beautiful”, a spokesman for Universal Construction boasted. “We built the Tower of Commerce; we built the Radio Tower; we’re currently building the world’s tallest skyscraper. We’re already involved in Arabiapolis, and we can guarantee the Byzantine government that we’ll work with local crews, ensuring ample work for local workers and companies. What’s not to like about us? We’re confident that we’re the best choice here.”

Shares of Universal Construction parent company Universal Motors went up 15 percent following the announcement of the bid.


Monkeylord Busts Pirates


A pirate vessel ignites in flames after being raked with cannon-fire.

The CNFN carrier taskforce lead by the CNS Monkeylord destroyed three pirate ‘mother ships’ today off the coast of Sabika. The carrier, operating as part of an FTO anti-piracy taskforce off the North Frequesuan coast, dispatched a number of attack craft following an SOS transmitted by the bulk freighter Western Wind. Attack helicopters drove off the motor boats with which the pirates tried to board the freighter, and subsequently tracked the small boats to their mother ships. Those ships were then taken out by Rafale-M fighter-bombers.


Second San Doradan To Fly Into Space
Flight Lt. Jeff Tracy will be the next San Doradan to enter space on the second Silver Streak flight, which will launch early next week. He follows in the footsteps of Flight major Nadine Sadler, the first San Doradan and first woman in space. The second Silver Streak mission will focus on deployment of orbital assets and orbiter manoeuvre.

Progress of the Silver Streak program is slow but steady after recent problems plaguing the FASTA space program has spurred the Rocket Authority to double-check the safety of its own rockets. All the same, the military expects the first of several military orbiters to become fully operational this year.


CFR: Revolutionary Front Collapsing?
As FTO troops continue their battle against the Revolutionary Front, more and more reports are emerging from the CFR that the rebel group may be collapsing in on itself. Troops from the Eastern-Occidental Free State, aided by San Doradan advisors, have reported infighting and mass defections among the rebels, formerly one of the most powerful of the militant factions in the Central Frequesuan Republic. The Front is believed to be collapsing in part due to recent FTO airstrikes aimed at taking out its higher echelons. According to sources in the SDA, top ranking members of the Front are believed to be either dead or in hiding, significantly weakening the ability of the rebels to form a coherent defensive against coalition troops, who are pushing deeper and deeper into territory formerly held by the Front.

[Master_Baerne]

Baernish News Service
File BNS-12-22

Military Management Manages More Metal
The BDN's recent request for fifteen new patrol ships was been approved by the Ministry of Procurement late last Monday. The ships will likely be purchased from the Duchy of Langley and the Commonwealth of the Vineyards, according to a Ministry spokesperson.

In Other News
Baernish National Police Commissioner Gordon is reported to have "completely ignored" Lawkeepers of the World when it was published, only taking the time to read it after the controversy began. His only comment on the subject was that the book was "utterly impractical and ridiculous."

[RogueIce]

"You know, the Tri-Cities look real similar to my home town. Between this and the goddamned deja vus, Q's a real asshole."

"Yes he is," agreed Rufus. "Did you know I was born in Midgar, and have apparently never lived in the Shinra Republic province of Florida in this world?" He shook his head. Why Q thought it would be amusing to transplant the North American continent - a heavily modified version to be sure - he had no idea.

((OOC: Ok, I guess I'll let PeZook go with his talking to Kamila and pick it up from there? If you want to RP in my comments during a tour of the Tri-Cities area go ahead.))

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Byzantine Military Journal

24 static heavy Air Defence divisions enter service.

After 3 years of training and acquisitions, 24 static heavy Air Defence Divisions have entered service. This brings the total number of S-400 batteries to over 240. It is believed that the S-500 which is undergoing testing at the moment, and will bring greater network integration and better situational awareness than before, will eventually replace all S-400 batteries. There are also proposals to upgrade the civilian radar network to boost situational awareness. Joint work on the STAR ground based air defence system continues with MESS allies will also replace the static land based Aegis systems and the few mobile Aegis systems as well.

2 OTH-B radar systems and 2 X-Band AESA radar systems completed

After 3 years of construction, 2 OTH-B radar and 2 X-Band AESA radar systems have been completed and are undergoing testing. These systems, worth billions each, will reinforce the existing radar systems and will greatly enhance the empire's defences.

Byzantine Aeronautics begins low rate licensed production of CH-47K helicopters.

Byzantine Aeronautics began low rate licensed production of the CH-47K helicopter. The helicopters will be customised for Imperial Navy use.

[PeZook]

FASTA bulletin

Handling errors discovered as cause for loss of Soyuz-1

FASTA directorate has released to the public a comprehensive report on Soyuz-1 post-mortem and investigation, which cites an egrerious string of capsule handling errors as cause for the "accident that shouldn't have happened" - loss of the unmanned Soyuz-1 capsule on re-entry.

The errors occured during spacecraft assembly, and began at payload installation: a technician taking part in securing the capsule to the booster rocket had left one of his tools exposed inside the protective payload shroud, causing damage to the heat shield when the capsule was mated with the booster.

His supervisor did not inspect the mating port for debris, as demanded by procedure, thus letting the problem go unnotice. Recovered third stage debris confirm this story, showing clear damage marks on the cover of the upper oxidizer tanks.

The error was not caught during roll-out and prelaunch inspections, since by fluke, it was caused in an area not covered by diagnostic sensors.

"Complacency and routine - enemies of all undertakings - were the underlying cause of this accident. Fortunately, there were no humans aboard the capsule, and most of the mission goals were accomplished. FASTA managers had already taken corrective measures to ensure procedures are followed to the letter, and thus I have made the decision to continue the Soyuz program."

The next capsule in the program is Soyuz-2, which will accomplish further systems tests (including life support, by carrying an adult dog to orbit), evaluate the performance of the Orbital Module and test ground landing capabilities of the capsule.

LRO-1 mission continues

Designed to end after 40 days, the LRO-1 orbiter is still operational and orbiting Selene. The probe has enough station-keeping fuel for another 15 days.

Despite the mission's limited scope, the vast amount of hi-definition photographic and infrared pictures will serve to complete the most comprehensive and detailed map of the moon to date. LRO-1 has also confirmed radiation measurements taken by an earlier Old Dominion probe, and its gravimeter experiment allowed scientists to discover that Selene's mass is not uniformly distributed, forming several areas dubbed mascons by scientists analyzing the data. Current hypothesis is that these areas are rich in heavy metals and minerals, thus being prime spots for future mining surveys.

FASTA denies spaceplane program

In response to inquiries of various spaceflight and aerospace journalists, FASTA management released a statement in which the organization denies running a covert military spaceplane program.

"FASTA is strictly a civilian agency. We do not, and never will, operate or develop military hardware for any nation involved in the organization. Of course, we cannot deny the use of technology developed for civilian purposed from being used by various militaries to create weapon systems, but such devices are not funded through FASTA.", we can read in the statement.

This announcement follows close behind a leak first announced by Shroomanian Aerospace Weekly, indicating that test flights of a spaceplane vehicle (similar in to the Old Dominion's X-20 or San Dorado's Silver Streak) are being conducted in the CSR. This leak quickly led to establishment of a legend that FASTA is helping run military space programs.

Lucrelance IIB variant survives first test flight

The FASTA-run Lucrelance Upgrade Project had finished the second iteration of the Lucrelance II rocket - the IIB variant. Sporting a restartable upper stage modified from the 11K59 missile, the IIB variant differs from the preceding IIA by way of significantly improved first-stage engines, and redesigned solid fuelled boosters, allowing it to theoretically loft 12 tonnes to low earth orbit.

The prototype had already made its maiden flight from Comona Island, and despite problems plaguing the design, FASTA design teams are confident they can solve most of them before end of the year.

[Siege]

Drop Test



Fortuna Belli Proving Ground, South Velarian Sea

The Tonkin-manufactured B-52 flew high and slow over the Proving Grounds, surprisingly agile for such a large aircraft, scattering the invisible radiation of the dozen radars that monitored its every move as it went.

“Ladies and Gentlemen”, the pilot announced dryly, “we are now beginning our descent into our destination. Please make sure that your seat is in the upright position, your tray table is stowed away, and that your experimental ramjet drones are ready for launch.”

“Aerospike”, Gerald Hastly murmured excitedly in the seat behind him. “It’s not a ramjet, it’s a aerospike.” The department head of OCD Experimental Sciences could barely contain his enthusiasm. A month earlier, the Board had told him in no uncertain terms that his laser satellite project was going to be axed. ‘Too expensive’, they’d said. He’d been miserable for weeks, but that was all forgotten now: he was about to test a very large, very dangerous, and very noisy piece of equipment. And nothing on this green earth could turn on Gerald Hastly more than that.

“Papa Romeo to Charlie Zero, give us a SITREP, over”, the radio crackled with the voice of the controller in the Flight Test Complex bunker below. “

“Papa Romeo, we are two clicks out from the launch point. Over”, the pilot replied stoically.

“Copy that Charlie Zero. Go active on the array and stand by for launch.”

Both the pilot and Hastly began throwing switches in unison, activating flight recorders, active radar, and the data-link that would –if all went according to plan- allow the Experimental Sciences crew stuffed in the belly of the aircraft to control the drone after launch.

“We’re approaching the drop site, doctor. Be ready to launch this puppy.”

“Roger, roger” grinned Hastly.

“Ten seconds… Five… Three, two, one, launch!”

Doctor Hastly eagerly pressed the prominent red button on his console, a leering grin on his face. He felt the thud through his flight seat as the drone prototype detached from the wing pylon. Two seconds later the booster rocket mounted on its back ignited and the drone rocketed away from the B-52 mothership, rapidly accelerating its quarry to supersonic velocity.

Hastly keyed in another command, and the now-distant drone reacted by igniting its supersonic engine. Promptly the craft careened off its arrow-straight flight path and entered a spiralling dive that sent it down toward the ground at high Mach speed. Seconds later, the drone crashed into the ground, its remaining fuel detonating in a spectacular ball of fire.



“Huh”, muttered the pilot, and frowned. “I guess that’s what you call a failure, right doc?”

“Are you kidding me?” Gerald Hastly was keyed up like a kid on Christmas morning. “That was awesome! Did you see that explosion? Holy shit!” The doctor had forgotten about his cancelled satellites, and all about the actual purpose of the test. He’d pushed a button and made something blow up spectacularly – what more could a mad scientist possibly hope for?

Result: The first test launch of an OCD-developed aerospike prototype is a spectacular failure, although Doctor Hastly begs to differ .

[Lonestar]

Dominion Defense

Ronaldus Magnus gets underway for propulsion trials
The PCU Ronaldus Magnus has departed Newport News for propulsion trials. The Ronaldus Magnus is the first non-crrier nuclear powered surface ship in the ODN, and due to the extensive modifications from the Wilkonian class form which it is derived, has a fair bit of trials to go through...[More]

MSA prepares for asteroid mission
The Mess Space Agency will be launching it's probe to the near Earth asteroid Ganon this week. The probe will orbit Ganon, an asteroid of dimensions of approximately 13 x 13 x 33km in size, for several months before attempting a landing...[More]

[PeZook]

"Yes he is," agreed Rufus. "Did you know I was born in Midgar, and have apparently never lived in the Shinra Republic province of Florida in this world?" He shook his head. Why Q thought it would be amusing to transplant the North American continent - a heavily modified version to be sure - he had no idea.

Paul sighed, "I feel so goddamned old..."

But the hatch was opened then,and he had to start wearing a smile again.

=================================================================



Tri-Cities, Old Town

The delegation was taken on a grand tour of the most representative of all PeZookian metropolies: the Tri-Cities were actually three different metropolitan areas once, but eventually became so interconnected that nobody bothered with their individual names now.

The Long Street was one of the most spectacular sights in this giant urban jungle: housing more than 2000 original XVII century homes, churches and places of business, it attracted tourists and historical enthusiasts alike, and housed dozens of various places of interest.

Walking on foot, followed by a gaggle of reporters,staffers and security, the trio of VIPs - Agatha, Paul and Rufus Shinra - took a stroll through the old town, with the PeZookian sovereign describing the more interesting places in detail. While appearing casual, the trip was in fact well choreographed and on a schedule - it was just that it included most vacation spots ordinary tourists found attractive as well.

When away from cameras and microphones, the conversation was nevertheless quite pleasant, and the warm sun combined with a delicate salty breeze to make it an actually relaxing walk.

"You seem to know this place inside and out", Rufus commented at one point.

"Yeah, well...I did mention it looks awfully like the town I grew up in. The minor details are easily fixed by the, um...other memories.", Paul looked around and decided to change the topic, just in case some enterpreneuring journalist was listening in with hi-tech gear.

"What do you think of the city?"

"It feels...old. In a good way, the kind of feeling you get when looking at an impressive monument. It puts some thing in perspective, reminds me how far we had to go to get to this point in history.", Rufus mused, looking at a humongous church the delegation was approaching.



"This place, for example. It was built by hand, over decades, when pulleys were top-of-the-line construction technology. And it's seen history unfold over centuries - all the way 'till today, when it can see satellites pass overhead. Kinda sobering."

Paul remained silent, marvelling at the huge brick structure.

"Yeah...doesn't it weight on your shoulders, sometimes? The countless generations who came before us, scraping their way towards some undefined future? I sometimes feel we owe a lot to them.", he finally said.

"Right...you should remember that plenty of those guys were assholes, though."

"Heh...right."

A protocol assistant approached the group after they were done touring the church to brief them on their next stop. An arts school dormitory, no less.

"Well, it seems we've seen enough of the past by now.", Paul commented jokingly, "It's time we met some of this nation's future."

Result: Paul and Rufus tour the Tri-Cities, muse randomly on the enormity of human progress, talk to a bunch of hippi...erm, arts students.

[TimothyC]

Op-Ed, Anchorage Daily News:

Will President Cizadlo run for a second term?

As every Alaskan schoolchild knows, the President of Alaska can be elected to two consecutive terms, and President Cizadlo was elected in 2008, which means that he can run for reelection in 2014, but where has he been for the past year? Other than some generic photo-ops, and a single short press conference, everything has been run through Vice President Rice. Dr. Rice is a popular figure in her own right, and is a much more powerful VP than Palin (generally regarded as an olive branch to the outgoing Stevens administration) ever was.

So again where is the President? unconfirmed reports have put him as going into seclusion after the Pathogen War broke out, and being treated for mental illnesses, ranging from Manic-Depression to Paranoia, to severe delusions ranging from having been born in Shinran State of Ohio, to “All of his has happened before, and all of this will happen again...” What the real truth is is unknown to the public. All we know is that something is going on.


[ooc]Ok, here is what happened.

1. Rice Replaces Palin
2. Cizadlo (me) starts a mental breakdown
3. Pathogen Wars start
4. I Break down, and my true nature is exposed to Rice, who, not wanting the top spot {still a lot of systemic corruption in the Federal Departments, keeps it hidden
5. Pathogen Wars End
6. I meet Miriam (a composite of various people I know/have known in real life, but here it stands a chance of working) {NOTE: Same Person as popped up in the last World}[Note 2: she knows something is up because of a similar situation to Kamila]
7. Rumors from Event #4, Last World, and @ get into the papers, distorted, but there is a nugget of truth to each of them, and thus they are dangerous

Planned events

• Real nature revealed to Miriam
• Depression and Miriam revealed to Public
• PROFIT! Erm, I run for reelection and win against McNamara

.

Wilkens - I’d like to buy about 8-12 F-100s from you.[/ooc]

[CmdrWilkens]

Ministry of Defense clears Foreign Military Sales agreement with Alaska

With the FFG(X) program as part of the "New Horizons" proejct slated to start bringing new hulls online within the next year or two Ministry of Defense officials have already begun shopping the current fleet off to potential customers. While many are in agreement that the hull age and annual operating cost for a Keira Knightley-class vessel would likely mark such as outside the range of most buyers there are still sales to be made. Notably MoD officials have indicated that they woudl seek to sell as many hulls as possible of the Kristen Bell and Mila Kunis-class vessles as possible.[ooc Burke and F-100 /ooc]

Already preliminary discussions are underway with the nation of Alaska to transfer ownership of up to a dozen Mila Munis-class guided missile frigates. "These truly are modern and highly versatile warships," Lady Margaret Winston head of Foreign Military Sales at the Ministry is quoted as saying. "The only reason they aren't continuing life with the WIN is the lower available power for things like SPY-3C and the STAR combat management system. In every other respect they represent the highest possible performance within the space provided by the smaller hull form."

Exact details are still somewhat sketchy as this agreement was merely the preliminary hurdle allowing the Ministry to sell the items and spelling out which restricted technology items coudl remain onbaord after the transfer. The total package cost and accoutrements will have to wait to the actual retirements begin and the new frigtaes begin entering service.

[Zor]

Union Press

Negotiations with Enga Tribals begins

Port Adria, Zorian Veleria-Today, at the newly completed central authority building, Zorian officials have met with several local Enga tribes for a ceasefire. This action was announced after the recent firebombing campaigns to neutralize the threat of hostile tribal forces responcible for the sack of the Former Japanistani colony in Eastern Veleria drew harsh criticism from the international community. The intended effort is to find a solution to continue safe exploration and study of the region underway and still allow for the tribals to maintain their way of life with continued development and study allowed. So far official sources have stted negotiations have been going fairly smoothly. The native leaders desire to see an end to the attacks and deforestation. Attempts to communicate and negotiate with the Malip peoples have so far proven dificult, several groups refraining to stand down against the attacks. At the moment, bombing has been haulted although the Carrier HMZS King Michael-I and her escort fleet remains off the coast as a precautionary measure.

Eric Matsukawa responds to criticism

In recent days, the controversy over the Zorian Police expert Eric W. Matsukawa's book has drawn attention of various foreign police officials over negative responces to his book Lawkeepers of the World, never the less he stands by his statement. In a recent interveiw, he re-affirmed his statements on the quality of worldwide police forces, including offering his praise of PeZookia's, Tian Xia's and Shroomania's Police forces.

Among some criticisms he received involved attacks against the degree of survielence that the Zorian Government has put into use, including the scale of Closed Circiut Television Cameras and mandatory DNA and Fingerprint databasing, policies which have seen both decreases in crime on a multitude of levels and increased catch rates since their implementation, although a few have argued that these policies are ultimately distructive to the concept of personnal freedoms. His repsonce to these claims was that "the idea is just conterproductive paranoia with no historical basis, three centuries years ago even the most pogressive nations would come across as tyrannical and brutal to anyone from a modern developed nation and had no police forces let alone anything approaching modern surveilence or forensics equipment. What our survelience methods and forensic databanks allows the law to do is swiftly and silently remove criminal elements with a minimal effect on Crime Rates."

He also brought up the importance of oversight, including the now mandatory Zorian pratice of having police carry MP3 Equiped recording devices onhand to monitor the affairs of police officers in the field. The lack of said oversight that when combined with their low standards of training, non implemtation of Mandatory DNA and Fingerprint Indexing and a underfunded and under-equiped forensics department resulted in his harshly critical evaluation of those of San Dorado's police force. "I recently read AIP commander Sturmond's responce, and it really only convinces those that read it that major reform to that nation's broken down law enforcement forces is nessisary and does not cast his men as anything other than brutish thugs. The fact that they have such a heavilly armed populace only increases the need to make up for deficiencies in surveilence."

During the interveiw, he also stressed the importance of Forensics, Armaments, Training and Public image in law enforcement. He also once again did not write the book to be nationalistic, but rather to be an informative work for those interested in Police forces of the world, having no assistance in the book's creation by the Zorian Government. He also said that any criticism was intended to be taken positively as to hopefully bring about improvements "The biggest thing is to know your weaknesses and shortcommings so they can be corrected. I did not get to be the cheif of the NAPD nor see the reduction of violent crime by some 30% by simply maintaining the Status Quo"

Edit-Minor Retcon

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

EDIT: Since Zor canceled out that bit, this post is now considered null and void.

Among other areas he drew criticism for was his praise of police armament, criticising Byzantium's police forces in praticular for their lack of armament which have the standard beat constable equiped with only a trunchon "The main purpose of the police, like it or not, is to use physical force to keep the Law and maintain order. Giving the average constable just a baton is criminally underequiping them."

Constantinople Times

Police angrily rebut and dispute fabrications of Eric Matsukawa

"Since when do our policemen walk around without a gun?"
"What is pathetic moron smoking?"
"This nation is one of the few with a high percentage of men and females who serve national service and former members of the service are part of the militia who are allowed to carry fire arms."
"Ridiculous!"

The Byzantine Home Affairs ministry angrily rebutted Eric Matsukawa's fabrications, even going as far as saying that they will press charges of slander in the Zorian court. "This is patently ridiculous. We will have meet this men in court on charges of slander and lies," says a Ministry official. The said lawsuit has been filed in Zorian court.

[PeZook]

Famous cultural studies professor comments on Lawkeepers of the world controversy

Edward Stanislawski, a professor of cultural studies at the Tri-Cities University, had recently written an article about the controversial book Lawkeepers Of The World by Eric Matsukawa. We have been granted permission to reprint excerpts from the article:

"Mr. Matsukawa presents his book as the ultimate resource on the world's police forces. You should note, however, that in addition to grevious factual errors, like the ridiculous claim about Byzantine police, the good author commits a far more egrerious error throughout the book: he firmly believes in 'one size fits all' solutions.

Discounting cultural differences that influence organization, available skills and most effective procedures is a common mistake made by authors throughout the world. IRT philosophers, for example, believe the entire world would be better off with economic deregulation and small government: such an approach may work for the IRT, but other countries enjoy different environments and social dynamics. It's the same with police forces: where in Zoria, massive surveillance and mandatory DNA databasing is acceptable, there are countries where citizens would oppose, sometimes violently, any such initiative. The standard of disciplined, obedient Zorian population simply does not apply everywhere nor to the same degree.

Obviously, some matters are universal: I think we can all agree police officers should be paid decently, modernly equipped and treated with respect by the state. But all other considerations will nevertheless massively influence the shape of various police forces. By failing to recognize and take into account cultural differences in his book, Mr. Matsukawa fails in his stated goal of constructive criticism, and descends into natonalistic chest-beating the sort of which brought us four centuries of rampant Shroomanian imperialism in the past."

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Byzantine Military Journal

Navy said to have begun testing a new slew of missiles derived from the 3M-54 Klub

The navy is said to be testing a new slew of missiles derived from the 3M-54 Klub. The missiles are said to be stealthier and have reduced heat signature. Further, they have slightly different set of available warheads, which include a different torpedo type. The missiles are optimised for land attack or maritime attack and can be launched from naval vessels as well as fighters. They are said to have active radar homing in the terminal stage, as well as terminal guidance. The flight path is can be updated real time via datalink. Other details are classified. The missiles were said to be developed by Byzantine and CSR missile design bureaus.

Directive issued to renovate many bases to harden them against heavy aerial bombing and ballistic missile attack

A directive was issued to renovate many bases to harden them against heavy aerial bombing and ballistic missile attack. Many military bases are already hardened against aerial attack, but advances in deep bunker munitions have prompted the military to take steps to enhance the defences of the bases, including hardened airfields and runways.

[PeZook]

FASTA bulletin

Soyuz-2 flight ends with total succes

After two full days in orbit, the Soyuz-2 test capsule re-entered the atmosphere safely and landed on the Anatolian plains in Byzantium.

The spacecraft launched amidst controversy spurring from the failure of Soyuz-1, which was to be the first orbital test flight. A procedural error caused the ship to disintegrate in the upper atmosphere.

Soyuz 2's passenger, a female dog named Laika by her CSR handlers, returned to earth healthy and in good condition, validating the operational condition of the capsule's life support system. The orbital module - a specially designed 'living capsule' - also performed well, and its systems provided no problems during the flight.

The follow-up mission will launch in three weeks.