SDNWorld Redux: Story Thread the First.

[RogueIce]

Personal Communique

FROM: Stephen Garrett, POTRC
TO: Rufus Shinra, POTSR


I have been given confirmation from the Canissian Embassy that Canissia has possibly brokered an arrangement to split al-Akharabat into a north and south segmented region, with the Caravo tribal territories becoming what I suspect will be a Japanistani client state while Katangwa land will be under Canissian protection.

If this agreement proves to stick, I will accept it and order Cascadian units out of el-Kalim. The future of the Cascadian position in al-Akharabat can be negotiated with you and King Arik, though the strain on our resources has me considering it better if Cascadia focuses on expanding our hold in Van Halstoff and using influence to ensure the northern Velerian states are shored up enough to resist Japanistani expansionism. Van Halstoff will, in such a case, continue to provide support as needed for the international efforts in Katangwaland, and I will have Intrepid COG remain off the northern coast of al-Akharabat to assist in any remaining mine-clearing operations required (particularly if the Japanistani try anything cute like leaving errand mines behind). Defiant COG will, however, need to begin steaming home. They are already overdue for R&R cycle.

I would have preferred a more permanent and acceptable solution than simply splitting that country up, but it is the best that can be achieved at this moment, clearly. I only fear that the Japanistani will be emboldened if they believe the rest of us folded easily.


On a lighter note, I am considering taking up your offer for a visit to Midgar soon. At the very least, a state visit will give me some experience for when I finally let the State Department talk me into further state visits on other continents.


Signed,
Stephen T. Garrett Jr.
President of the Republic of Cascadia

Personal Communique

FROM: Rufus Shinra, POTSR
TO: Stephen Garrett, POTRC

We will of course support you in every way possible. We will assist with air- and sea-lift to redeploy to Van Halstoff for all personnel and equipment. Regardless of whether Japanistan accepts the agreement, which I personally doubt they will, it would be better to consolidate our positions, rather than leave two seperated units for them to attack at their liesure.

I appreciate the efforts your nation has put into this endeavor. I will also inform you that Battlegroup 3 of my Navy will shortly be on station to reinforce the presence I already have in the region. Should you need any further logistical or other assistance, do not hesitate to ask and I will personally see to it my government gives all possible aid.

As to your intention to visit Midgar, I would be overjoyed to show you my hospitality. There are also certain matters that I would like to discuss that I feel are best done face-to-face, so feel free to visit at your earliest convenience.

Signed,

Rufus Shinra
President of the Shinra Republic

[Master_Baerne]

Baernish Ministry of Foregin Affairs
Private Communique
FROM: Her Excellency Countess Domizia, Minister for Foreign Affairs, in consultation with His Excellency Count Spinello, Tribune for Finance, Economics, and Industry.
TO: The Kingdom of the Vineyards and the Corporate Republic of San Dorado.

As the only nations to take action regarding the Untamed Wilderness Region, I feel that we have a responsibility to ensure that borders a clearly drawn across this portion of Frequesque. Therefore, I present a map.



OOC: Let's face it, I don't think any of us can control more extra territory than that, at least immediately. Of course, if I'm wrong...:OOC

[Raj Ahten]

With great fanfare today The AEGIS equipped destroyer Death Before Dishoner and the Sachsen class frigate Foxhound were taken into Indhopal's fleet. The crews will begin their shakedown cruise soon. Indhopal has announced no new plans to build any surface ships.

In other news several private firms from Indhopal, with official government backing, have approached San Dorado about joining their efforts in the untamed wilderness zone in the north of Frequesue.

[Karmic Knight]

Baernish Ministry of Foregin Affairs
Private Communique
FROM: Her Excellency Countess Domizia, Minister for Foreign Affairs, in consultation with His Excellency Count Spinello, Tribune for Finance, Economics, and Industry.
TO: The Kingdom of the Vineyards and the Corporate Republic of San Dorado.

As the only nations to take action regarding the Untamed Wilderness Region, I feel that we have a responsibility to ensure that borders a clearly drawn across this portion of Frequesque. Therefore, I present a map.



OOC: Let's face it, I don't think any of us can control more extra territory than that, at least immediately. Of course, if I'm wrong...:OOC

The Kingdom of Vineyards approves of these provincial borders.

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Official Communique to The Most Serene Republic of Ninhursag

To the leader of The Most Serene Republic of Ninhursag, we are intrigued by your request and agree to meet at an appointed time to discuss the matter.

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

Imperial Chronicles

"So Konto Munitions is saying that the job is too large for them, and they might need outside help," says one Air Force General.

"I thought they got fat on our contracts, especially when their expertise is good enough to do a fair bit of radar and Command and Control development," asked the Army General.

"Yes, but not in the time frame given. The Emperor suggested going to Cannissia to talk to them about integrating our air defences."

"Oh well, especially when the Emperor wanted it done within a year."

[Master_Baerne]

Baernish Ministry of Foregin Affairs
Private Communique
FROM: Her Excellency Countess Domizia, Minister for Foreign Affairs, in consultation with His Excellency Count Spinello, Tribune for Finance, Economics, and Industry.
TO: The Kingdom of the Vineyards and the Corporate Republic of San Dorado.

Delightful. In that case, we shall proceed with the establishment of our first city, namely Mereen. Basic construction is expected to finish in approximately a year, with inhabitants moving in throughout the next eighteen months.

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Constantinople Times

First P-800 Yakhont missile brigades deployed

Operating 48 launchers each, with up to 2 reloads per launcher, the first four P-800 Yakhont missile brigades were deployed Jerusalem, Arabia, Crete and Antiochia. These brigades will defend our shores against any attack. It is believed that another 8 or so are currently under training. The missiles were procured from CSR and also built locally in Byzantium.

(OOC: The production is extended over 2 years. This is a fast build to deploy as many brigades as possible. Extra EDIT)

Limitanei Exercises

Word came in today, that the Limitanei divisions have upped the frequency of their training schedules, so much so that 3 divisions called up their men and began exercise maneuvers off Antioch.

[MKSheppard]

Somewhere over Japanistan

The JF-21ZhS hung snugly in the bomb bay of the the JB-89 White Chrysanthemum, the pilot having gotten into it before launch. Today, Japanistan (with some help from Shepistan) was going to send the first man into space.

As research had been done into the concept of a rocket-boosted JF-21 in the form of the JF-21Zh, someone had asked: "What if you replaced the turbojet with a rocket engine, and gave the plane droppable conformal fuel tanks, along with eliminating the conventional landing gear?"

The engineers had gone away and calculated the results on their Mitsubombi slide rules and then come back with a "Yeah, that would be awesome. Lets do it."

So it was now that Shosa (Major) Sakai Saburō sat snugly in his cockpit, wearing a full body pressure suit, having been there for the last three hours. Now, it was finally time.

The warning light on the bottom of the slightly modified JB-89 began to flash, and Sakai prepared himself. The light turned green, and with a wump, the JF-21ZhS dropped away from the JB-89 at 43,000 feet. Once he judged clearance between his aircraft and the bomber to be enough; he hit the big red button in front of him that activicated the 25,000 lbf liquid fuelled rocket that resided in the space formerly occupied by the JF-21's turbojet.

As the force of the acceleration pushed him back in his seat; Sakai watched as the sky slowly turned a darker blue, then faded away to black. His altimeter quickly reached 33,500 meters, then 60,900 meters; and as the thrust from the rocket began to fade several minutes later, an astonishing 106,680 meters!

Japanistan had it's first astronaut! Now came the hard part of getting back. The engineers had said that while they could get the JF-21ZhS up that high, they weren't quite optimistic about getting it back in one piece, unless a major structural redesign was undertaken, essentially resulting in an all-new aircraft.

However, Mitsubombi had come up with an ingenious method to get around that limitation. An inflatable re-entry vehicle. So as his JF-21ZhS reached its apogee; Sakai pulled the ejection handles and rocketed out of it. He not only had set the world's altitude record, but also a record for the highest ejection...

Several minutes passed as Sakai plummeted down to earth inside the inflatable re-entry vehicle which at the precisely calculated 33,000 meters broke apart; leaving him falling to earth in nothing but his pressure suit, of which, the right hand glove was malfunctioning; causing his right hand to swell up to twice it's normal size, causing him no end of discomfort and pain. But a true samurai always triumphed over pain...

Four and a half minutes later, he deployed his parachute drogue at 5,500 meters. Six more minutes later; and he was on the ground, being greeted with wild cries of Banzai!

Results
Japanistan (with shepistani assistance) sets the following world records:
-Highest Altitude reached in manned flight
-Highest Altitude Ejection
-Longest Freefall

[Grand Moff Yenchin]

Serenity Sentinel

Greens Agree Continuation of Lending Ketagaran AFB

Mr. Shikun Yeou, head of the Green Party said today that the Green Party will cease from questioning the lending of the Ketagaran Air Force Base to Cascadian forces.

After weeks of debate and discussion in the Legislative Hall, "We have been convinced, for now, that there is no violation of neither national security nor the MESSamerica Bill." said Mr. Yeou.

Legislative Dennis King, who was the most vocal voice of the Greens in opposing the policy, said that "There are some ambiguities in the [MESSamerica] Bill that still need to be clarified. But currently I can't find any point that makes the Cascadian usage illegal."

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Moderatorial Post:

All throughout the world today, breaking news on all of the networks and all of the twenty-four hour cable news is completely consumed by endless repeats of the success of Japanistan putting a man into space and bringing him safely back, and their expansion and fighting in Velaria has been completely forgotten by the fickle media, which was previously vigorously criticizing them, and now can't get enough of them.

Shepistan's assistance has also quieted many of the complaints and fears over Shepistani's recent international actions in the broad public, meaning that for the moment the two countries are riding a huge propaganda wave in their favour, and pretty much all the third-world NPCs on the planet are now looking with interest in their direction as they seem as great and very successful nations. Numerous groups in many nations have already made requests for Major Sakai Saburō to appear in parades and to give public speeches in their countries.

[phongn]

Tonkin Intercorporate Advisory Committee for Aerospace Development

"How the hell have we been beaten out?" the Director of TIACAD demanded. "First the MESS gets their first test satellite launched. Then the Japanistanis and Shepistanis get their own goddamn man in space! And we've lost the launch site contract!"

He throws down the carefully worded, official diplomatic rejection from FASTA. " We thought we had it in the bag, a perfect launch site, technical assistance, offers to build the damned thing for everyone! And we LOST, with only consolation of contractor and subcontractor work! They're going to launch in fucking Jerusalem!"

"No, we are the richest, most advanced country on the planet. Not the damned Japanistanis, not those idiot Shepistanis, not anyone else. WE should have been first! A clapped-out MiG with a rocket? We have the best rocket technology in the world, which we happily downgrade and sell to anyone with a dollar as a missile. "

A pause.

" Gentleman, failure is not an option. We've got work already on clustering the DF-25. We have I want a man in space, in orbit. None of this pussyfooting around. I want our weather satellite designs up and broadcasting pictures on every news network in the world. I don't want to be second to third-world shitholes, bleeding-heart liberals, communists and imperialists!"

[Sea Skimmer]

Japanistan National Command Bunker No.2
150km outside of Super Mega New Tokyo

“The JF-21ZhS has proved an unexpected boon,” gloated Special Field Marshal Suchiidetsu as he headed yet another partial meeting of the National Sunshine Council. “the world barbarian crap spreading news networks have fallen in love with our project, and the entire thing was just a disposable demonstrator aircraft for a rocket interceptor! I want the pilot, Major Sakai to be put on a world tour after his promotion to Lieutenant Colonel, I want him in front of TV cameras tonight. We need to build on this, the entire space program will be given higher priority, especially the air launched booster rocket, and tell Mitsubombi we need another rocket plane, with a second stage to boost it even higher and faster, a JC-124 Flying Island transport (An-124) will be made available to serve as launch platform.

[K. A. Pital]

CSR Navy leaves Livorno; follows on with the tour around the world

Crimson Star Battlegroup has left the PRSF port of Livorno and went out of the battle zone between Tian Xia Navy and PRSF Navy. The PRSF Navy has returned to port, suffering casualties after the recent engagement.

A CSR Tu-142 heavy maritime patrol bomber is following the battlegroup.

[PeZook]

FASTA bulletin

SPECIAL REPORT: test launch of R-7 rocket succesful

(OOC: I assume we get a New Year's on the 15th)

In preparation for months, the brainchild of brilliant engineers of the Comrade Stanislav Missile Factory - an enlarged "Sputnik rocket", bearing the cryptic technical code of 8K72K or R-7, and a more poetic official FASTA name of Atlas-Sputnik, has been rolled out to the rocket testing range on a warm summer morning of July 12th.

Once the beast was fuelled and ready to go, launch controllers and official observers retreated into a command bunker nearby. On 07:10:02, the launch signal was sent to the rocket. All engines ignited correctly - to jubilant cries of the assembled engineers - and the rocket began its climb exactly as predicted.



Guidance systems also worked correctly, executing a roll and pitch which put the R-7 on a proper trajectory for the test. After booster and stage separation, the remnants of the rocket impacted 200 kilometers downrange.

The test was hailed as a great success by factory personell, who are now planning a second, even larger version of the rocket for support of the planned Soyuz series of manned missions.

Additional test launches are planned next month, with the rocket carrying a test payload to an unstable low orbit. Should these tests be succesful, a mission carrying the first FASTA weather/photographic reconeissance satellite will take place near Christmas.

Launch pad location chosen: Jerusalem to serve as a stepping stone to Selene!

A great celebration took place on streets of Jerusalem today, as FASTA announced the city will host the heavy launch facilities necessary to support large Moon rockets.


Thousands of people took to the streets in celebration of the FASTA decision

"There are several reasons we chose Jerusalem rather than Comona Island, which were the last two contenders", said the FASTA Director of Operations during a press conference, "First, accessibility: Jerusalem is easily accessible by rail, which means rocket components can be moved cheaply and quickly from their assembly plants in the CSR. Second, safety: Comona Island borders an area with large amounts of civilian shipping traffic, while Jerusalem only has swathes of desert to the East, making launches from a facilitiy located there vastly safer. There were other minor considerations, but that's the gist of it."

When questioned about the fact that, apparently, Byzantium is starting to become a major player in the space program, the Director had this to say:

"The idea was from the start to inject as little politics into FASTA operations as possible. The organization has great autonomy on running the Moon program, and Jerusalem is just a damn good launch site."

Various critics have harshly attacked FASTA's decision to forgo a launch site in the IRT, as well as apparent lack of progress with the manned program: Japanistan,on a fraction of the budget, has managed to launch a man into space, while generously funded FASTA is only barely finishing tests of their first space rocket. FASTA officials, on the other hand, assure the public that the Japanistani achievement was a "Political stunt, with no real value as far as a manned Moon program is concerned- and very dangerous to the pilot, to the point of callousness."

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Constantinople Times

Jerusalem selected for FASTA Launch Pad

Jerusalem, a holy city for Judaism, Christianity and Islam and for many hundreds of years a city in the hands of the Turks and Arabs, has evolved into a vibrant city, which like Antioch, was a confluence of many cultures. It's no wonder that the city has since evolved into a high tech center for electronics and software, and is a fierce rival to Athens and Constantinople.

Today, the city received a huge boost when it was selected to house the FASTA Launch Facility. Citizens, be they Muslim, Orthodox Catholic, Catholic, Jew, came out and celebrated the great event. "We are all very excited," said Ahkim, a software engineer. It means more business opportunities for our city, and boost our competitiveness." He dryly added, that the citizens of Constantinople and Athens who have long boasted of their intellectual and technology achievements, were probably now stunned by the rise of Jerusalem.

If there were security issues, the Strategos of the Legio VII Syria and Legio V Jerusalem are based just beyond the city, told reporters that they are ready to respond to any attack. Jerusalem has a fairly large police force to protect the millions of pilgrims that come here every year. Safety has always been a paramount issue, and the police are well equipped to deal with any potential trouble.

Byzantine Heavy Industries contracted to produce the launch pad and relevant facilities for the FASTA space launch facilities

Byzantine Heavy Industries was contracted by the Government to build the launch pad and the relevant facilities, and to extend the rail lines required.

Production of Anti-ship missiles, cruise missiles upped

The production of cruise missiles, such as the Tomahawk, Kh-101/102/555, Kh-90 and anti-ship missiles such as the Kh-15, Kh-22, Yakhont were upped. All munitions that the Tu-160 and Tu-142 were produced at a far greated undisclosed rate. It is reported that a license to produce the P-1000 Vulkan was also procured, with the intention of retrofitting a naval vessel with the weapon. The Navy is said to be studying the idea of Carrier kill teams intended for securing the Mediterranean against foreign invaders.

(OOC: edited for added clarity)

[PeZook]

Orena Evening News

King Arik of Canissia arrives at Orena International Airport

With great pomp and fanfare, king Arik Coyotus I, sovereign of Canissia, was greeted at the military terminal of the Orena International Airport.

The PeZookian delegation included the Royal Pair themselves, the Foreign Minister, a representative company of the PeZookian Armed Forces. The Army Representative Orchestra performed the Canissian National Anthem as King Arik was welcomed on PeZookian soil. After a courtesy visit to the National Museum and Orena Children's Hospital, the Canissian delegation moved to the Royal Palace for informal discussion concerning several important matters of state.

Fate of kidnapped students still unknown, says police

Despite an unprecedented mobilization of police assets throughout PeZookia, the fate of the 35 university students kidnapped two weeks ago is still unknown. Police press representatives claim the investigation is ongoing, but refuse to disclose further details "for the good of the case".

Various experts contacted by OEN have all expressed the opinion, that the students have most likely been kidnapped for ransom, and the perpetrators will issue their demands shortly. Both police and national experts on organized crime say there is no risk of the students being smuggled across the border ; According to Jason Holme, a premier expert on human trafficking, the transfer of sex slaves actually flows the other way around: nobody outside the First World has a use for expensive and educated slaves.

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

Fabowice, PeZookia

The phone rang - again. Sebastian grabbed it immediately.

"Yeah?"

"Sebastian, this is Tomek. We've got the car. Forensics identified it as a 2004 Shroomswagen Transporter, and a monitoring camera caught it a few blocks down. We've got the license plate, and I've pulled up the owner information right now."

"Okay, hold on"

Sebastian rubbed the sleep from his eyes and fumbled inside the glove compartment for a pen and notepad.

"Give me the adress. And call the prosecutor...we'll need a search warrant."

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

Half an hour later, Zaspa District

The Zaspa district was populated by large apartment blocks, most built more than twenty years ago. It housed the poor and low-middle class families, providing affordable yet comfortable accomodation.

Most were well-maintained by government-susidized companies, however the very fact those apartments were cheap made for a high concentration of various criminals and low-lifes, creating a very persistent problem for the police.

Right now, in a display not particularly rare in the area, two squad cars and an unmarked police sedan came racing down one of the streets. They stopped by the entrance to one of the blocks, and six officers raced inside.

Apartment 38...that's the third floor..., Sebastian thought as he ran inside inside. He told one patrol officer to stay and watch the elevator, while he scaled the stairs, taking two or three at a time.

The third floor was dark, lit only by dimmed fluorescent lights. It was quiet, too - most of the inhabitants were sleeping. Sebastian found door numbered 38 rather quickly. With patrol officers covering him on both sides, he pressed the doorbell. He had to do it twice untill he heard a harsh male voice on the other side.

"Who the hell is this?!"

"Police! Open up!"

There was a brief pause. Hint of a whisper, and barely audible footsteps from the other side.

"We have a search warrant! Open up!", Sebastian called again. He could already tell something was up.

"Just a minute!", answered the same man. The foosteps and concerned whispers intensified. Sebastian drew his gun.

"This is the last warning! Open up immediately!"

Finally, the locks were turned, and the door creaked open slightly.

"What is this about?", the man on the other side was old, and spoke with a thick accent.

"We are looking for Basil Haravan. He is wanted for questioning concerning the kidnapping of a police officer."

"May I see your badge, please?", the man asked. Inside the apartment, a toilet flushed, and a young woman ran past the door, barely visible through the crack.

"Here's the badge, and the search warrant. Now open the door!"

"I want to see them closely!", the man barked in response. The same young woman ran past the door in the opposite direction than last time, and the toilet flushed again.

This was enough. Sebastian leaned back and kicked the door open, breaking the protective chain and throwing the man against the wall. He grabbed him and threw him down on the floor, while patrol officers charged inside, commanding everybody to get down.

It only took a few seconds,though the bathroom door had to be busted open. Inside, the young woman Sebastian saw before was trying to flush parts of a smashed cell phone, and pages ripped off small notepad. With much screaming, protests from her mother and even attempts at kneeing an officer in the groin, the entire family was handcuffed, patted down and led downstairs to the waiting squad cars.

The evidence was secured soon. A brief search of the apartment revealed several packets of hard currency stuffed under a matress, a small quantitify of opium and a lot of pirated CDs. However, the most important pieces were the partially destroyed adress notebook, the smashed cell phone and a completely intact laptop, all of which apparently belonged to the owner of the white van which carried Amanda after her kidnapping. After a brief serch of the surrounding area, patrol officers have also uncovered a Skorpion submachine gun, apparently thrown from the balcony after the officers knocked rang the doorbell for the first time.

Sebastian loaded all the important pieces of evidence into his sedan, ordered the apartment secured for forensics teams, and raced back towards the Voyvodship Police Command building, where electronics experts would try and gather information from the captured laptop and cell phone.

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

Orena 24 - the all-day news channel!

We interrupt our regular programming for a special report. Apparently, a police comissar was abducted today in Fabowice, while performing her official duties. In the course of her investigation into the Student Kidnapping, she attempted to chase down a fleeing suspect when she was assaulted and abducted by unknown assailants.

Reports from Fabowice indicate a large-scale search operation is currently underway, including helicopters, road checkpoints and a rapid investigation. Despite this huge investment of resources, unofficial sources inside the police department have claimed that there is little chance of finding comissar Kulinska, and that in all likelihood, she is already dead.

[Siege]

Field Trip (III)

Skies over the West Frequesuan Sea, Approaching San Dorado



The mood aboard the presidential aircraft Pride One could almost be described as jubilant. The war – the Uranium War, as it was now called by news stations – was over, and San Dorado’s ships and aircraft had all survived to fight another day. Sure, their presence had been mostly overridden by the presence of greater powers, but the point remained: for a budding alliance of small nations, the Frequesuan Treaty Organization had given a pretty damned good showing.

And now they were on their way home, to return as heroes. Station One would make sure of that. All things considered, President Hank thought the outcome of the crisis could’ve been decidedly worse.

“Cheers to that”, he muttered and lifted the glass of cognac to his lips. In-between the conference calls and crisis meets an aide had been able to slip out and buy him a new cache of booze. This made the solution of the crisis all the more acceptable to the president.

Still, there was business to attend to. As much as its resolution for San Dorado had been a good one, the crisis had also shown a series of problems with the city-states’ military machine. Among which, a lack of a proper power projection platform, a lack of manpower, a lack of heavy lift capability.

The president was about to rectify some of those problems. Among the papers he had just signed was an executive order, co-signed by director Ralson, for the formation of a second light airborne brigade, as well as to launch an inquiry with the IRT if they’d be willing to sell one of their light carriers to San Dorado.


Blast Off (II)

Camp Kittyhawk Rocketfields, Outskirts of San Dorado



“This one had better work, doctor,” director Sam Ralson warned.

“I assure you sir, we’ve worked out the flaw with the stage separation, it was quite glaring really… The M-15b should make it into orbit just fine”, Doctor Jensen sounded almost indignant.

“If you say so, doctor,” shrugged the director, settling back in his chair to watch the launch.

With a roar reminiscent of the first, failed attempt, the M-15b Simoleon rocket ignited its primary engines. In a 110 second burn the rocket lifted itself high into the skies before disconnecting the first stage. Second stage ignited, and then finally the third. Shortly thereafter the Simoleon released its payload, a 60 kg satellite that went on to settle in an orbit roughly 900 km above the surface of the planet.

At a cue from the ground station, the satellite activated and began broadcasting the San Dorado national anthem, On the Sunny Side of the Street.

Euphoria reigned in the control center. Cheers went up, usually reserved engineers hugged one another, and even the usually perpetually scowling director Ralson couldn’t keep a smile off his face. Sure, it didn't hold up against launching a man into space and 60 kg wasn’t much, the satellite was little better than a stunt in fact, its battery would run out in little less than a week and its orbit would deteriorate until it burned up re-entering the atmosphere… But they had proof of concept.

And, the director filed in a separate part of his memory; of course they also now had a pretty spiffy MRBM to sell. That should be worth quite a bit of money on the international arms market.

[Raj Ahten]

Joint FTO naval and air commands to be formed

Indhopal announced that it would contribute 2 destroyers and 3 frigates and a submarine to the new joint FTO naval command. The need for a joint command was demonstrated in the Uranium war. Insider sources say that there was chaos in the navies of the FTO as joint operating procedures had to be thought up on the fly.


The IS Pelenconas, one of Indhopal’s ships being pledged to the joint force.

Indhopal Pledges Money to FTO space effort

Parliament passed the space funding bill today, which gives $4 billion a year to the joint FTO space program. The bill passed with great support, despite protests by some groups that the FTO space program would be used for military purposes.

Indhopal proposes CFR stabilization plan

Indhopal unveiled a comprehensive plan to stabilize the CFR with its partners in the FTO. The first phase of the plan is to send an FTO force into the nation to provide stability. Roving militias and bandit gangs plague the land. The plan calls for disarming these groups, through either incentives or force if necessary. Then trust will be built with local communities through humanitarian and reconstruction efforts, and work will begin on an interim government. Indhopal has pledged the 2nd and 3rd divisions for this mission.


President Raj Ahten's approval rating lowest ever.

The Independence Party led the way in condemning President Raj Ahten's handling of the Uranium war crisis. They claim he opened the door for the imperialists with a weak response. A large number of voters agree, as the president has only a 32% job approval rating. Protests calling for his resignation continued through the capital today.


Demonstrators clash with police in the capital of Fenraven

Refugee camps grow up around Indhopal's Observer mission in Velaria

With increased clashes between militias in the border area of al-Akharabat, thousands of civilians have started seeking shelter near Smedman Field, Indhopal's observation mission HQ. Indhopal's mission numbers only around a company from the 7th. Royal Marine Regiment. The commander of the mission, Col. Transky said,

'We are doing all we can for these people. They literally have no where else to go. Two-hundred refugees just arrived last night after their village was attacked. We are still investigating that incident."

Critics of the observation mission usually say either it is a foolish endeavor that only threatens the lives of Indhopal's men for no good purpose or that they don't do enough to combat the violence that wracks the region.


The Camp outside of Smedman Field

Construction Continues on Particle Accelerator project

Despite all the problems erupting in Frequesque, The construction of the Joint Particle Accelerator Project (JPAP) is on schedule and on budget.


A tunnel entrance at JPAP

[Beowulf]

People's Representative Council Building
Livorno
People's Republic of Southern Fresquesque
1 week after the coup

"So you wish to sue for peace," stated the Tian Xia envoy, Tim Brown, flatly.

"We're not suing for peace, we're declaring it," General Graziano.

Brown replied, "War can be declared unilaterally. Peace must be negotiated. Our terms are the following: You will not operate armed ships with a full displacement greater the five thousand tons. You will not operate any submarine vessel of any kind. Any vessels you currently operate the do not meet those stipulations will be surrendered to Tian Xia. Weapons you exclusively employed aboard those vessels, you must surrender as well, and are barred from owning any more, or any weapons which fulfil a similar role. You are barred from owning any surface to air missiles that are not man portable. You will maintain a maximum of 100 aircraft in your armed services. This applies to any aircraft operated by your military. You may choose which aircraft to keep. The remainder will be surrendered to Tian Xia. There will exist a 10 mile wide demilitarized zone extending from the Tian Jiao border, west. Your army will be limited in size, to an amount to be determined by the signing of the peace treaty. You will pay reparations to the Special Autonomous Region of Tian Jiao, for an amount to be determined at the same time, denominated in ROBs. If you agree to those provisions, then I am authorized to declare an armistice in effect. And don't try any legal tricks about circumventing the restrictions."

"Why should we agree to those terms, you imperialist dogs" asked Admiral Di Paola.

Brown's phone buzzed. "Ten seconds ago, a TXAF Bone dropped twenty cluster bombs on your retreating forces. The casualties are likely in the hundreds." Brown's phone buzzed again. "That was a F-15 strike. Scratch another platoon off." Brown's phone buzzed a third time. "That was a drop of 81 500lb bombs. You lost this war, as evidenced by the fact that you are suing for peace, and to the victor goes the spoils. Every minute you delay means more of your men die."

[PeZook]

Somewhere near the eastern PeZookian border

They barely managed to get out of the city before the police established blockades on every single outbound road ; No more than ten minutes after they left the city limits and gunned it for the border, they heard on the radio about the giant search efforts underway in Fabowice and the immediate area.

"See what you've done, you fools? If you just left her there with a bump on her head, they wouldn't have pulled every single cop into this." - Milan scolded Kosta - the man who got him into this trouble in the first place.

They were going as fast as they could through the night, heading east. Kosta was driving, and didn't say a thing - he was scared now, instinctively flinching every time he saw what he thought was a patrol car.

"Don't speed, you idiot! The last thing we want is to get pulled over!"

Kosta just nodded, and grabbed the steering wheel even more tightly. They had the cop in the trunk - if all went well, they'd be at the meeting point in two or three hours, hand her over, and then her fate would be none of their concern. There was something, though - something that bugged Milan, like a persistent fly that just wouldn't go away.

"Are you cretins sure you got rid of your cell phones?"

All three of his subordinates nodded. They weren't strangers to this game - all of them had trouble with the police at one point or another - and they knew better than that.

Milan pulled out his cell phone and started going through his incoming calls. He had a lot of them in the device's memory.

Something was bothering him, even though intellectually, he felt reasonably certain there was no way the police could catch them before they got rid of their troublesome cargo.

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

Fabowice Voyvodship Police Command

A tech stuck out his head from one of the rooms lining the absurdly long corridor and looked around. Upon spotting Sebastian standing by the coffee machine, he waved and shouted:

"Sebastian! We've got something!"

The comissar grabbed his coffee and came over quickly. The room had only a number, but it was nevertheless very important. Four electronics tech resided here, cracking cell phones, computers, PDAs, encrypted files, intercepted e-mails...they were just one out of dozens such teams working in the building, but widely regarded as the best.

This didn't make them neat, though. The inside of that room was a mess, with various electronic devices stacking every available space, and empty cans of Shroomian Dew littered the floor, residing next to discarded pizza boxes.

"What did you dig up?", Sebastian asked, making himself some room on one of the chairs.

"Well, our boy here had quite a lot of things to be ashamed of...and was quite an idiot, too. See, he's been conducting, ah, 'business' partially via e-mail and chat, and while he encrypted it all and deleted most of them, that's not exactly a problem for the cracker when you store your private key in a text file on the desktop."

"Okay, so he was a bad man. Anything concrete?"

"Yeah.", he handed him a slip of paper, "Three phone numbers. The idiot sent text messages to them through the net. Two are dead, but one is active."

Sebastian grabbed the slip.

"You sent it downstairs?"

"Yeah. You'll be getting a trace soon."

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Eastern PeZookian border

"How much longer does he want us to wait?", the truck driver said, annoyed at the delay. His accent was thick, but his PeZookian was good enough.

"Jesus, you want to talk to him yourself? He has a package with him, and he told me to tell you to wait here for him. That's all there is, for fuck's sake!", Kowalski was nervous. He's called in five minutes ago, reporting suspicious activity in a sector five kilometers from here - hopefully diverting the attention of the UAVs. How long this would work, however, he had no idea - hence, he turned off the engine of his SUV and hid it under trees.

"We'll get arrested!", the truck driver was obviously contemplating abandoning his employer and getting the hell out of there.

"I'll take care of that. You stay here, or I'll fucking arrest you myself!"

Kowalski looked at his watch. God, what's taking them so long?, he thought. If it took any longer, they were bound to stumble upon a patrol by sheer accident. The truck driver did have a point.

"Okay, listen. We give them thirty more minutes, and then we scram. Understood?"

He nodded. The young Sjenskan liked this option very, very much.

Near Fabowice

"Attention all units. Attention all units. Primary suspect is on the move, driving on Road 304 towards the border. All units, be on the lookout for a vehicle containig two, three or four men, speaking with a foreign accent, driving east. All vehicles matching this characteristic are to be stopped and searched.", the dispatch came out rapidly, repeated on all police frequencies. All across the Voyvodship, police patrols began pulling over and searching vehicles driven by more than one man.

However, this was just an attempt to delay the suspects. Another call was made to the Border Guard, and they were given the location and heading of the target vehicle. AT operatives boarded helicopters in Fabowice and took off, heading east, while Border Guard commanders redirected their UAVs to monitor access roads which could be used to approach the border. Any vehicle spotted on them would automatically become suspect.

The noose was tightening.

[The Duchess of Zeon]

Moderatorial posting:

The PRSF accepts the Tianxia terms, but most of its intact aircraft take off and fly to Indopahl and other FTO states in an effort to preserve themselves for use against the Imperialist aggressors of Tianxia, WITHOUT permission from the new central government, which is largely being run by the Army and not the Air Force or the Navy.

The Navy also sorties, heading with every single one of its operational ships deployed protecting the carrier, and makes an immediate dash for the closest FTO port, to defend its honour against the attempted annexation, and deny the ships to Tianxia while providing them at least to anti-Imperialists.

I will handle the escaping PRSF aviation and naval units should they come under attack.

[PeZook]

FASTA officials approach Japanistan for flyover permission

Top FASTA officials send official requests today to the Japanistani government, asking for permission to overfly Japanistani airspace during the upcoming rocket test, which will put a mock satellite on an unstable low orbit.

"We are thinking we could let Japanistani officials inspect the payload, which is really just a large lead weight, and observe the launch, so that they can make we bear no ill intent.", said the FASTA Director Of Operations.

[MKSheppard]

Shepistan announces support for PRSF 'anti-imperialists'

The Shepistani Foreign Ministry in a statement, announced that all PRSF vessels fleeing the 'imperialist war mongerers' of Tian Xia would be welcome at Shepistani ports; and urged the other nations of the world to do so, to show Tian Xia's 'naked agression' for what it is...

[Siege]

Diplomatic Communique, Priority Two

FROM: Director Sam Ralson, General Directorate for Corporate Defence
TO: PRSF Armed Forces

As a gesture of good will San Dorado has opened its airfields and ports to fleeing PRSF aircraft and vessels seeking to avoid surrender to Tian Xia. Upon arrival, airmen and seamen will be granted right of asylum.


Diplomatic Communique, Priority One

FROM: Director Helena Skye, General Directorate for Entertainment and Public, International and Corporate Relations
TO: ALL FTO MEMBER NATIONS

San Dorado is opening its ports and airfields to fleeting elements of the PRSF military apparatus. We suggest our allies do the same. Whilst we are not overly sympathetic to the PRSF warmongers, any result is better than to let their vessels and aircraft fall into the hands of Tian Xia.

[DarthShady]

Shady News

Emperor Mareks trial begins today

The trial of the former Emperor of the Zagor Empire begins today in Sarajevo. Marek the Cruel has been charged with mass murder and ethnic cleansing of the Sargonian People. This trial is the first of many because in a few days other high ranking officials of the former Zagor Empire will also face trial for the same crimes.

Peacekeeping mission to begin

In the aftermath of the recent war between the Zagor Empire and the Republic of Sargonia the USSR has declared that the region will, for the time being remain under SNC military control. Peacekeepers from all SNC members are expected to participate in the operation. The Republic of Sargonia has suffered extensive damage in the war and President E.Valjevcic has asked the USSR for assistance in the rebuilding effort and protection from possible further attacks, such as the Republic of Sjenska whose forces are currently amassing on the borders. The USSR has issued a warning to the Sjenska Republic than any attack against the former Zagor Empire or the Republic of Sargonia will be considered an act of war against the USSR and therefore against the SNC.