2014 STGOD Story Thread I

[Steve]

Smith-Hall Defense Quarterly
January Edition

Air Force book blasts procurement policies of last ten years for "waste"

Retired Air Force General Carlos de Galiza's new book "Heads in the Clouds" has made waves since its publication in the last quarter of 2013. The former Commander of Air Force Combat Command spared no words in lambasting the government's air policies of the 90s and 00s, referring to them as "unpardonable waste". Among many things the book brings an insider's view of the on and off commitment to purchase SB-2 Sheppard stealth bombers, the decision to procure the new "Silent Eagle" F-14Is after spending billions on a fleet of advanced F-14Es in the early 00s, and cost overruns in the MF-21 Sparrowhawk design process. The book is very critical of every administration the country has seen since 1988.

In an interview, General de Galiza went further. "For much of those twenty years, the Air Force did not know what it wanted to do. Détente with Klavostan removed the need for the large combat element of the Air Force and the politicians of the Defense Staff were too busy pursuing projects for the sake of projects to create a coherent, consistent vision of our national air strategy. The result is billions spent and wasted."

"The only good things to come out of procurement policy in the last ten years were the commitments to the new fighters and the decision to return to the old standard of fighter squadron organization," the General concluded.


Navy pushes for budget commitments to Amphibious Fleet Plan

Admiral Henry Maran, Chief of Naval Operations, is due to testify this coming quarter before the Joint Armed Services Committee of the House and Senate on the Navy's requests for the 2015 Fiscal Year budget. Senator Tom Vinson (W-Olympia) and Representative Allen Tallman (W-Tlingit Rep.) requested the appearance of the head of the Navy due to the expected budget request to order the expanded amphibious fleet first proposed in 2008FY. So far, only four ships of the new Cascadia-class LHDs have been funded, with two in service and the third, USS Constellation, currently undergoing sea trials and shakedowns in preparation for an official commissioning in 2015. The Navy is requesting an accelerated construction schedule to get the fourth vessel, Concordia, laid next year and put into commission before 2020 and to have two more ordered and to be completed by 2025. With associated orders of other amphibious vessels it would add over $10 billion to the Navy's budget over the next decade.

The Navy has pushed for the expansion to allow "normal deployment" of its amphibious vessels, granting superior flexibility and readiness compared to the current use of the amphibious fleet. "Adding more AOGs to the fleet would give us faster response times to emergency situations requiring amphibious operational support," Rear Admiral George MacIntyre said in a press release from the Procurement Office. "Carriers may provide a lot of airpower very quickly, but Marine helicopters and boots are better suited for some missions, like assistance to Champa or similar operations."

Analysts are skeptical of whether the Navy will succeed, citing the Penton Administration's commitments to controlling defense spending and focusing on fleet upgrades over fleet expansion. "Cascadia's need for an expanded amphibious capability has not been adequately proven," Charles Lawrence of the Pacific Defense Institute stated. "Funding an expansion anyway would seem to be an aggressive move that would undoubtedly result in other countries reciprocating."



Army seeks funding to expand testing of ETC technology

The office of the Secretary of the Army confirmed that the Army is requesting another $1.3 billion over the next three years to continue "promising research" into electrothermal-chemical technology for its tank and artillery guns. "We believe that by 2017 we can begin equipping our tank force with this powerful new gun technology," the office statement announced.

ETC technology is believed to already have partial limited implementation in the 120mm tank guns on the new M3 Patton Main Battle Tank being produced. But a full ETC model is still being tested.

Stalwart Party representatives have vowed to push for the requested funding.

[Beowulf]

Katai Daily
5 Lichun

TGHJ announces RFP for seaplane tender replacement

The Tianguo Navy (TGHJ) has announced it is looking for proposals to replace the existing and over-age seaplane tenders currently in use. Proposals may recieve additional funding for further study/development, but selection for further study does not obligate the Tianguo Navy to buy or further fund any competitor. Proposals must be submitted by 1 Lixia. 4 ships are being sought.

• Waterline dimensions no greater than 900 chi by 130 chi by 35 chi
• 18100 li range at 20kts or greater.
• Sonar installation
• Aviation complement of no less than 6 Z-8 helicopters
• Stern ramp for bringing H-6 aircraft from the water for maintenance
• Port and starboard aircraft servicing booms
• 4.2 million liters jet fuel storage
• 1000 tons ordnance storage
• limited area defense capability
• non-steam propulsion

----

2 Dead in drug raid

Two suspects were killed in an early morning raid on a drug dealer this morning. Police found an arsenal of edged and blunt weaponry, along with several hundred yuan in cash. A dog was destroyed during the raid as it attacked police.

----

Zhang Mingli sues film company

Cold snap plunges temps in Shenyang

[Steve]

Seattle Post-Intelligencer
9 February 2014 Edition

Evergreen Party pushes for ban on nuclear power

SEATTLE, OLYMPIA - Evergreen Party Chairman Allen Vogel has announced that the official plank of the Evergreen Party in this year's elections will include a ban on constructing new nuclear reactors in light of the Champas meltdown at the beginning of the year. "This incident is conclusive proof that nuclear power is dangerous to the environment and to Human life," Vogel stated. "It is imperative that we act to halt the reckless expansion of this kind of energy source."

When asked how that might effect power costs and availability, he replied, "It may be wiser in the long run for our people to learn conservation of their power use. We haven't cut back nearly enough due to nuclear energy being cheap when, in fact, it levies its cost in other, worse ways than mere money."

The Party faithful have adopted Vogel's plank widely, but there are some dissenters. "Standing against nuclear power is, despite the Champas disaster, a dangerous route to take," explained Professor Henry Angelos of the University of Seattle. "It could backfire for Evergreen at the polls in November."


Liberal Party vows to fight for restoration of tax cuts

PORTLAND FEDERAL DISTRICT - The Liberal Party caucus, under Senate Liberal Party Leader Joshua Carter (Lib.-Oregon), has announced its intention to restore the Kerrel Administration tax cuts that were allowed to expire by the Whigs following their election victories in 2010 and 2012. "Tax and spend policies only serve to drag down economic recovery by reducing business confidence and investor contributions," Senator Allen Ricker (Lib.-Colorado) declared to reporters in a joint press conference with Senator Carter. "The Whigs have allowed too much influence from Democratic tax-and-spenders to come into this Administration's policies. Reckless expansion of the government's spending habits must be halted."

Senator Carter struck a more conciliatory tone. "Tax cuts don't just benefit the wealthy of this nation, they benefit all Cascadians. This is not a plan to gut the social services of this nation but to control wild expansion that would undermine the independence of every Cascadian. No one should be forced to rely on government handouts to survive."

The Liberal Party hopes to end the Whig majority in the Senate and the Whig-led majority of the House this coming year. Experts believe they have a strong chance of doing so if economic recovery does not pick up speed.

[madd0ct0r]

With the reported radiation levels dropping rapidly, Prime Minister Nakmara visited the site. His aides went with him, some being under instructions to mingle. Bipajjanaka Bhr̥tya was such a one, and feeling slightly uncomfortable in the heavy boots they'd been issued. They might keep dust on site, but they were much less efficient for sneaking...



The first layer of the concrete had been cast. The largest concrete boom in the country had been sacrificed, and truck after truck's worth of the material had been poured into the base. People had been running in shifts, with Belkan and Champan soliders working side by side for some time. Umerian and Rhenian and other international engineers he didn't recognise were in deep consultation over the sea bay isolation filter.

He drifted over to them, interested in their discussion.
A Rhenian engineer was speaking, "Ya, I understand, we seal ze bay and let ze sun evaporate only ze water. But I do not think this can be correct - what if there is a big wave or a lot of water from ze mountains? It might fill again. It might even fill over ze top!. No, I think we need to look at a proper pumped filtration system. Activated carbon, reverse osmosis, and even zen I fear some iodine vill get out."

An Umerian dressed in dirty fatigues snorted. "Reverse Osmosis Dr Inder-Drink?? The country barely has enough power to limp along. Where are they going to find another reactor's worth of watts? A Rhenish coal power plant? That'd spew almost as many nuclides as just letting this water leak out after a decade."

The volume of discussion dropped noticeably as Bhr̥tya moved closer. Smiling, he approached and shook both of them by the hand, peering at the Umerian's name tag. "Dr Inder-Drink, Dr Ursine-Rural-Sanitation, I could not but help overhear you. I assure you Champa is doing all it can to provide the resources, be they stone, cement, men or power, that you feel is needed to resolve the situation. It is a point of pride for us, gentlemen, to be prepared for disaster and to understand risks, and sometimes, where we must, to tolerate them."

He smiled thinly and gestured at the slowly developing bay. The Prime Minister was out there on a boat, watching the sinking of the first huge block of the new seawall. When complete, the bay would add several square miles of land to Champa. Flooded, salty and radioactive land, but the idea seemed to be picking up online, if not yet in the papers.

http://blog.usa.skanska.com/wp-content/ ... g-dock.jpg

====

Champa Ministry of Finance and Debt.

Memo: Top level staff only.
Following renewed pressure from Acheron and stalled negotiations with the insurers (AxumFinans, another San Dorado based group), we propose, in lieu of direct payments, to offer Acheron subsidiaries appropriate contracts for works or materials needed to the value of seven times the contested damages. The subsidiaries will compete amongst themselves for these contracts, so don't be afraid to haggle. As an initial gesture of good will, we have awarded a supply contract to the quarry affected. Through Archeron diplomatic efforts, Hakistan has agreed to allow cross border trade again, and large diameter stone and gravel is being prepared for shipping to Loki to help build the seawall there. It is estimated Archeron employs nearly a million expatriate Champans across the world, so it is to be hoped at least some of the money will find it's way back home.
It is requested to re-evaluate the 1998 study of Cross-Rail - the southern Champa rail link between Hakistan and Umeria.

[Beowulf]

Shenyang
Northern Tianguo

It was unseasonably cold. Given that it was winter, that was saying something. It was the Blue party's national convention. The city was well prepared, with blue bunting, special (higher) hotel rates, extra prostitutes, and of course, police. It was the last that concerned XI Xiaoling. She was out protesting. Multiple slogans could be heard from the group of a hundred or so protestors.

"Real elections now!"

"Lords out of Commons!"

"We are the 99%!"

Unfortunately, the protest march had been blocked from the venue. And the surrounding 8 block radius. It was in fact, confined to a currently sleepy commercial district out of sight of the convention center. The police were in riot gear. Not because they feared a riot, but because it was intimidating. Per standard operating procedure, the police wore no personally identifying information. No ranks, no badge numbers, certainly no names. All that could be seen was the word "警察" - Police. Gas masks were worn, not because the police expected the protesters to use gas, but because the police expected they might, and to help dehumanize themselves.

The police had the protest well under control. Every street leading from where the protest was, was blocked by a solid wall of police officers. There was no way in, or more importantly, out. Some of the protesters, resigned to their fate of being stopped well short of their goal, had 55 gallon drums brought. In them, they tossed wood, and attempted to build fires. This wasn't successful. Not due to the protester's inexperience, but rather due to the water cannons the police had brought with, dousing the drums, and the protesters nearby.

A couple times after the fires were doused, protesters attempted to break through police lines. These attempts failed as police fought the protesters back with batons, shields, and water cannon. One protester had the brilliant idea to bring a Molotov cocktail. His folly was revealed as sharpshooters shot him. The glass bottle broke when he hit the ground, immolating him, and several of his fellow protesters.

The cold day got colder as day turned to night. The protesters remained corralled. Impotent. And slowly freezing. Those who had previously gotten tagged by the water cannons suffered from hypothermia overnight, if they hadn't brought a change of clothes. There was no place to warm up... no fires could be lit. The best that could be done was to huddle together.

It wasn't until morning that the police began letting protesters go. Go, but not free. They were broken into groups and shepherded into vans. Driven to various police stations throughout the city. Tossed into jail cells. Then they were questioned. It was only several days later than many of them got their freedom.

----

The news was on in the diner. The anchor could be heard: "reporting on the anti-democracy protest that turned violent yesterday in Shenyang."

The man grumbled to the waitress. "Damn kids. You know what decent people are doing? Working! Not protesting. Not rioting."

[Simon_Jester]

Aboard one of the battlegroup's escorts, in the heavy polar seas

Atomic Rocket Cruiser USS Guard-the-West
On Detachment for Systems Testing
58° S, 102°35' E
February 10, 2014

Senior Field Officer Victory Bowman checked his watch. It was about the right time; he turned to the his signals ensign. "What's the status on targeting?"

"Southern Cross reports that the reconnaissance fighters have refueled and are nearly into position- about three hundred klicks from the target area."

Good. That gives us five minutes. The Air Force’s reconnaissance Comets and AWACS aircraft were handling their side of the operation properly, then. He turned to the intercom. "All hands, this is the captain. We will begin the missile test now, anticipate first launch in the next five to ten minutes. Stand by."

The captain frowned, thinking how best to steer his ship for the test. He had a good view out the bridge window of the heavy seas his ship was cutting her way through... and of the launch tubes for her Vindicator missiles on the forward deck. While the escorting frigates and destroyers occasionally struggled with the heavy waves that Guard-the-West's nuclear-driven bulk could power through, he was seriously worried about the wind.

Down here, the massive vortex of winds whipping 'round the pole formed an eternal belt of wind at the borders of the Antarctic. Guard-the-West stood at the cusp between the 'Furious Fifties' and 'Shrieking Sixties,' and that could be a real problem if a missile malfunctioned on its way out the launcher. A vision flashed before Bowman's eyes- of his last sight being a ten-meter ballistic missile spinning through the air into the bridge, its engine having failed to light after the ram threw it out the launcher.

Better to be upwind of the missile cells.

"Helm, come about to heading 285, Tactical, ready the port launchers." As Guard-the-West's tactical officer ran through the lengthy checklist for ballistic missile launch release, the forty thousand tonne missile cruiser twisted, turning east-by-northeast, bringing her bow around and away from the vicious winds and waves of the southern ocean. The great ship rolled as a wave struck her broadside-on, and then she was coming around, running with the waves, the apparent speed of the wind slacking off to nearly nothing as her speed picked back up toward fifty kilometers an hour.

---

Comet-R Reconnaissance Fighter
24 Kilometers Above Antarctica

Field Officer Iris Cottage pulled her aircraft into a continuous bank. She’d clocked enough hours in Comets to be used to the way the scenery flowed past, even at this altitude- and the great distances it took for the beloved, twin-turbojet dart to make even a gentle maneuver. Half again her body weight pressed her into her seat as the black needle-nosed craft angled into the turn, slicing through the stratosphere, its cranked delta wings tilted more than forty-five degrees from the vertical.

The frozen continent spread out below her in an astronaut’s-eye view, the icy terrain of high latitude giving it an unbelievable purity few astronauts ever got to see. Majestic. Brilliant. Sparkling white below, then the lower air’s sky-blue shading to night-black above, as she began taking her plane around a 160-kilometer circle centered on the tiny glinting dots of the missile targets. With her hand braced firmly on the stick to maintain the turn, Iris took another breath of oxygen from her space suit, then spoke softly into her helmet mic to her partner manning the radar intercept station:

“Clarity, do you have the target field in sight?”

“Bright and clear on the sideways radar, ma’am. The computer’s sorting out target coordinates from background clutter- I’ll have it in a minute or two...”

“Take your time. We just tanked up, we’ve got almost an hour worth of fuel left, so we can keep up this circle as long as we need to.”

USS Guard-the-West
1327 Hours Eastport Standard Time

“We have the first target coordinates!”

"Firing sequence as previously discussed, Field Officer, you are cleared to launch one round."

"Yes, sir. Fire one."

The timbre of the great engines that labored to drive his ship along with the waves was interrupted by a slight shivering thump. Bowman watched the eight-ton missile jolt upward out of its launch cell on the port bow, then ignite in a blinding flash of engine flame. Steadily the missile burned up and out away from the ship, angling over and blasting up into the southern sky until it was lost in the haze and upper clouds.

"Tactical, do you have tracking?"

"Yes, sir, telemetry confirms the radar picture. All missile systems operating nominally.”

[Siege]

Halcyon Rhapsody | Solamish Bay
Omnia, 980 km north-east of San Dorado

Rainer Kovacs wore a white shirt and pantalon and lounged on the deck of the giant yacht like he owned the place which, Drax estimated, he probably didn’t. “Visitors!” he beckoned, a colourful drink with a parasol in it in his hand. “Welcome! You have permission to come aboard!”

The Halcyon Rhapsody was, in a single word, enormous. Drax guessed the vessel had to be at least 150 meters long. She dwarfed even the Southern Valkyrie floating beside her, which was no mean feat by any stretch. She was clearly designed and built for someone extravagantly wealthy, although her wave piercing bow, slanted surfaces and the large number of radar domes and electronics masts made Drax suspect she was slightly more than just a luxury yacht.

Still, stepping onto the immaculately polished wooden aft deck in a t-shirt, cutoff jeans and combat boots made her feel out of place so badly the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Aurora Drax had been a lot of places, but she’d never been in a place like this. The grandiose staircase to the main deck was made of natural stone and looked like it belonged in a temple. Ascending it to where Kovacs was sitting felt like the final stage of a pilgrimage. Personnel in ivory uniforms ghosted through the periphery of her vision. The sun on the frosted white of the hull was literally blinding.

This was holy ground. The Halcyon Rhapsody could only be owned by one of the greater gods of San Dorado, people with ten or more zeroes to their name, people of pervasive privilege, power and ambition, people who had long ago gotten so far ahead that their simple existence bent the fabric of San Dorado so that all the wealth and power was funneled to them. That wasn’t the kind of person she was accustomed to dealing with, because they simply didn’t deal with someone like her. That was unheard of. Not even the people who worked for their people would deal with someone like her. They had entire companies to do whatever it was they needed done, they had no use for misfits from East Ward. Right?

So what was she doing here?

Kovacs looked down on her as she trudged up the stairs. His unbearably cocksure grin made her suspect he knew what she was thinking, which in turn filled her with chagrin. “How’s life?” he asked, and sipped from his pina colada.

“Underdressed,” Drax disgruntledly replied. “When you said you’d meet us here I was expecting a freighter or maybe a seaplane. You could have told me you were driving a floating palace.”

Kovacs laughed. “But then I wouldn’t have seen that expression on your face,” he said, confirming her suspicions. He waved aimlessly. “Relax, it’s all in good fun. The ship’s not mine, in case you were wondering. Want a drink?”

“I wasn’t wondering.” She looked to the man behind the bar, who did a fantastic job blending in with the scenery given he looked like he might have been a soldier once. She wondered if he’d been one of the goons Kovacs had rolled into her life with. His face didn’t look familiar, but then nothing in this place did. “Do you know how to make a Colditz Car Bomb?”

“Ah, you Britonians,” Kovacs smiled as the barman nodded and started throwing coffee liquor and whiskey together. “So bitter. And so proud of your little victories. I like that about you, it’s charming.”

“I’ll show you charming right up your ass,” Drax grumbled and sipped her cocktail. It tasted extremely good, which surprised her more than it probably should have. “Well. Your bar guy knows what he’s doing. That makes one of you at least. Now, considering I just nearly got shot to death for my trouble, do you want to tell me what this was all about?”

“Do you perhaps want to produce Miss Savage first?”

“Money first, Kovacs. You know how it goes.”

“Fine.” Kovacs rolled his eyes and shifted his feet from his deck chair. He reached under the chair and Drax’ hand almost flinched to the side-arm strapped to the small of her back, but then Kovacs with some effort pulled out a heavy metal suitcase. “Be like that,” he said and clicked the lid open, revealing a pile of gold coins that glinted in the sunlight. He looked at her over the rim of his sunglasses. “Half a million in Sankaran Rand, as agreed, and I threw in three hundred grand extra because I’m such a nice guy. That should cover your expenses, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Drax nodded slowly. “That should do it.” She stuck up her thumb in the direction of the Southern Valkyrie. Samantha Savage appeared in the doorway of the ground effect vehicle and stepped onto the lower deck of the yacht, looking none the worse for wear despite the last few hours. “You surprise me, Kovacs, I was convinced you were the type that would try and screw us over.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Kovacs said, his voice perfectly serious for once. He gave Savage a lazy salute as she came up the stairs. “Hi boss. You look a little unkempt, but suitably in one piece.”

Drax nearly did a doubletake. “Wait, hold on a minute,” she said and looked from Kovacs to Savage. “You’re his boss?”

Savage gave her an inscrutable look, kicked the suitcase shut and sat down in one smooth motion. “Someone has to be.” The barman sidled over and put a fizzy drink in her hand. She stretched her legs and glanced at Kovacs. “Where’d you dig up these people?”

“Seaside bar in East,” Kovacs sipped the pina colada and pointed at Drax with the glass in his hand. “Her anyway. Quaint place. Terrible drinks. A little violent, but I sorta dig that. They came highly recommended. And they were cheap too.”

“We’re not cheap,” Drax injected venomously.

“They did it for a million plus expenses,” Kovacs finished his drink and whirled his finger in the air for another round. The bartender materialized as if he’d read his mind and replaced his empty glass with a full one.

“That is a bargain,” Savage agreed. She flashed Drax a grin. “Sorry captain, but I’m afraid you’re a cheap date. That thing with the helicopter was inspired. A big outfit would charge double for that. And they probably wouldn’t move as fast as your people.”

“Whatever,” Drax replied, her voice irritable. “Look, this is a nice boat and all, but I still don’t know who you people are and you sure as hell aren’t paying me enough to stand around and get insulted. So if it’s all the same to you and there’s nothing else then I’ll just take my gold now and leave. ”

Savage sipped from her drink. “You didn’t tell them who we were?”

Kovacs shrugged. “Disclosure isn’t in my job description.”

“Okay.” Savage tilted her head in thought. Drax noted that somehow the blond woman managed to make her torn and tattered shirt look glamorous. Savage sold the idea that she belonged on the deck of a billionaire’s yacht with gusto. “Okay,” she nodded, and motioned to the third remaining deck chair. “Please, have a seat captain. Ribbing aside you did save my life, and you got shot at in the process, so you’re owed some explanation at least.” Drax considered that for a moment, then sat down and crossed her arms. Savage nodded. “We’re called Star Chamber. We do upper end private intelligence. You may have heard about bored bosses using PI outfits to spy on their secretaries? Yeah? Well that’s not us. Our organization works higher stakes. The highest, in fact. We handle rogue macro-economics, terrorist threats, nonstandard contingencies, religious cults, that sort of thing. And we do it for the richest and most powerful people in San Dorado, whenever they feel that for some reason they cannot trust or rely on their own people. ”

Drax frowned. “And you two run this organization?”

“We are the organization. There’s nobody else. You see, captain, our work is quite sensitive and… let’s say, prone to infiltration. So we’re it. The heart and brains,” she gave an edgewise glance at Kovacs who smiled fondly, “although it remains to be seen who is which. We contract discrete third parties as necessary.”

“Third parties such as yourself,” Kovacs lazily added.

“So what were you doing in Shan Assam?”

“It’s a long story,” Savage said as she kicked off her shoes. “In essence, our current employer was robbed. We’re retrieving his property. This may not sound deeply important, but what happened at the prison may clue you into just how valuable this particular object is to some people. I was in Argatala to chase down a lead that turned out to be a tripwire- a trigger to see if anyone’s giving chase.”

Kovacs nodded. “A trigger that set off a Reaper team.” He looked at Savage. “Considering the circumstances I think we want to make use of the good captain’s services a little longer, don’t you think so?”

Savage looked at Drax. “If you’re up for it?”

Drax absent-mindedly thumbed her tattoo as she surveyed the stupendously luxurious yacht. She had a sinking feeling she was about to get in way over her head. This was a far cry from the brushfire conflicts in Sankara or La Vela the Dukes were used to. It sounded like some heavy Downtown conspiracy shit. Everyone knew that average folk should stay the hell away from the table when the golden dice rolled, because terrible things were bound to happen. Then she looked at the rampant lion on her arm. and she thought of the same tattoo that her father had on his. ‘Who dares wins’, it used to say on Alistair Drax’ arm. Aurora had always thought that ironic and she never copied the motto. Now, though, she figured she understood at least a little where the old commando was coming from. She looked at the two private spooks. “You know what? Fuck it, I’ve got nothing better to do anyway. What is it you’re proposing?”

“The Argatala lead washed out,” Kovacs replied. “But over the weekend word has come over the grapevine of a very similar theft overseas. Same kind of artefact, same kind of break-in, so it’s probably the same person or group of persons responsible for the stealing. I put out some feelers and our, ah… colleagues, let’s just put it that way, are open to cooperating with us on this one. So if you agree we’d leave this fine ship behind and take your flying whatchamacallit over there to see what we can see.”

“Okay. We can do that.” Drax gave him a suspicious look. “That sounds too easy though. Who are these people we’re going to liaise with? Don’t tell me they’re in Rheinland.”

“Oh no, not at all,” Kovacs laughed out loud. “Captain, you’re going to love this one.”

[Steve]

Portland Gazette

Activists protest at Tianguo Embassy over Shenyang suppression

PORTLAND FEDERAL DISTRICT - Protestors led by the Cascadian Students For A Better Tomorrow surrounded the Tianguo Embassy yesterday to protest the treatment of student protestors in Shenyang, in response to growing reports on the internet that the Shenyang protestors were corralled and hosed down with water cannons despite the cold winter temperatures. "The corrupt government of Tianguo cannot continue to think people will accept their atrocious behavior to their own poeple," Anne Palmerston of the Student Democratic League stated to on-site reporters. "We stand in solidarity with the democracy advocates of Tianguo against their oppressors."

Attending the protest, Democratic Congressman Max Lehler of Klamath has stated he will reintroduce provisions aimed at economic connections with Tianguo in response to this "brutal behavior", and intends to make it a plank in the coming election. "For years we have allowed anti-Communist paranoia to blind us to Tianguo's blatantly undemocratic nature," Congressman Lehler told the crowd "The time has come for the Cascadian people to re-examine our ties to Tianguo and its oligarchic elite. Our voices will be heard."

At the request of the Tianguo Embassy staff, District Police did maintain an "egress" opening in the protest crowd to prevent Embassy business from being impeded, but refused requests to force the protestors to leave the area.

The Shenyang police and media have reported that the Shenyang disturbance was a riot by Communist and anti-democracy protestors intending to disrupt the Blue Party Convention and that all measures taken were necessary to suppress the riot.

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Rewritten by Siege, with credits
Novaya Prospekt | Petrovko Most 771B
Yezhovo-Cherkessk, UOCSR

Outside the apartment, two scared militsiya cops chattered in hushed tones about the killing. Quietly, Major Kir Fomin closed the door and surveyed the scene. It was surprising bloodless: the bullets were of a small caliber, but they had been aimed accurately and aimed to kill. Whoever fired those rounds had most certainly been a professional. The neighbours hadn’t heard anything. Perhaps he’d used a silencer. Olyena lived alone in one of the many nondescript apartments that housed most of the population in the UOCSR. Clearly, whoever stole the artifact regarded her as a loose end that needed tying up.

Kir Formin and his men had arrived at the apartment and found the door unlocked. That was rarely a good sign. Entering the apartment, they’d found the lifeless body and called for the local cops to secure the site. Now that the formalities were done he had time to take a closer look. The handful of men in his retinue were spread out across the apartment, looking for prints or DNA. He doubted they would find much. If the killer was the same person as the one that had broken into the museum, he would almost certainly have taken care to cover his tracks.

He kneeled down and looked at the bullet riddled body. Whoever did this obviously used a gun at close range, judging by the signs of gunpowder dust on the body. She obviously knew her attacker, thought Formin. She retained her look of surprise and she clearly did not expect this sudden betrayal.

"Comrade major! Check this out. Her diary seems to mention a 'Armaan Amorcito'. Sounds foreign," he showed the diary to Formin. “Reads like he was her ‘special someone’.”

Formin flipped through the book. "Well, this is a start. Keep searching!"

“Found anything?” Sacha Dragunov stepped into the apartment and spotted the body on the floor. The commissar raised an eyebrow. “Well, that explains why she didn’t show up for work.”

“We found her diary. Seems like she was fraternizing with some foreigner. Could be something.”

“Run the name through our database,” Dragunov looked around the room, careful not to touch anything. “Do you think this was a fly trap?”

“It could be.” He flipped through the pages, which included vivid descriptions of young Olyena’s sexual exploits with Mr. Amorcito. “The man most certainly wormed himself deeply into her heart very quickly… He must have been a charmer. And very good in bed, apparently.”

“Good to know,” Dragunov said dryly. She frowned. “Does anything seem wrong to you about this room?”

Fomin shrugged, clearly nonplussed. “I don’t follow, comrade?”

Dragunov rubbed her chin. “The body for one. Why is it in the middle of the room?”

“That’s where we found it.”

“Yes, clearly, but why? The killer shot her, maybe because she’d outlived her usefulness, but why here? Why in the middle of this room?” She bent over the body. Olyena’s lay face-down on the floor. “These are exit wounds on her back. He shot her in the front. If you had to tie up a loose end would you do it that way?”

“No.” Now Fomin frowned too. “If I had a choice I’d shoot her in the back,” he admitted.

“So maybe he didn’t have a choice. Maybe…” Dragunov lifted up one of Olyena’s hands. The red paint on her fingernails was scratched. “Maybe she surprised him. Didn’t leave him any other option. But then...” She stood up, looked around the room. Its furnishing was spartan like most apartments. Cheap carpet covered the floor. The building’s central air conditioning buzzed as it pushed air into the room. There were a few bookshelves, a table, a cupboard, a small desk with an old-fashioned computer. Then, in a flash, it came to her what was wrong in the room. “Fomin. These marks,” she pointed at a round indentation in the gray carpet, then at a similar mark a meter away. “What do you make of them?”

The major crouched beside her. “Looks like there was a table here.”

Dragunov nodded slowly. “And now it is… Over there, against the wall.” The commissar got up and checked her sight lines. There could be only one place. “Please let me be right about this,” she murmured as she walked up to the high vent that was circulating air into the room. She reached up. Her heart pumped. The aluminum grating came off easily, revealing the wireless webcam pointing into the middle of the room. A tiny red light on it was blinking. Dragunov looked from it to the dead body. “Clever girl.”

It didn’t take the ODC team long to find the hidden drive that contained the camera’s footage. Olyena Lefortova had preserved the last fifteen minutes of her life. The audio was thin and static-y, but still understandable. Fomin and Dragunov watched as the two people on the tape fought, first with words and then physically, until the man pulled out a pistol and shot the woman. Three times at first, brief flashes of light rendered in grainy yellows and oranges as they erupted from the tiny handgun. She fell. He stood over her, and shot her twice more in the head. Then he disappeared from view.

“So he talked in his sleep,” Fomin scratched his beard. “And she finally realized why he was really so interested in her.”

Dragunov nodded and skipped through the footage to a moment where ‘Armaan Amorcito’ was looking in the direction of the camera. “Print this. Get his name and picture to the Ministry of the Interior, to State Security and all the other agencies. Also, the Special Economic Reconstruction Directorate, just in case he was a foreigner under legitimate cover.” She jabbed a finger at the man frozen on the screen. “I want this man found, and I want him found right now.”

[Siege]

Club Perdition | The Sanhedrin
Lesser Kadesh, Downtown San Dorado

Gold. Velvet. Stained glass windows and hand-crafted mahogany. There was opulent luxury, and there was Club Perdition. The most exclusive cabaret in the world, membership was limited to San Dorado’s most singularly rich and powerful. Club Perdition existed as an official establishment since 1705, but it was already infamous as early as the mid-17th century as a notoriously decadent underground club that admitted men and women as equals and practiced blasphemous dark arts during meetings. Like so much of San Dorado its history was shrouded in mystery and legend, but undeniable fact was that for centuries now the club had been the nucleus of authority in the city. On the three floors of Club Perdition San Dorado’s greatest powerbrokers wined, dined, socialized and made deals that shaped the city and the world. More than anythinbg else it was membership of Club Perdition that meant you’d made it in San Dorado.

The heart of Perdition was the exclusive central salon on the third floor, limited strictly to the one percent of the one percent and those they vouched for. Here, the domed ceiling featured elaborate Machine Age decoration of waves of chrome and terracotta lightning bolts emanating from a great brass and crystal chandelier in the shape of an artificial sun, symbolizing the power and authority of industry at its most exuberant. Paintings from old and new masters hung on the walls. Red velvet curtains framed bulletproof stained glass. Exquisite hand-woven carpets from Hakistan covered a floor of Makrana marble. Chesterfield chairs were clustered around ornately carved tables, all traditionally positioned in such a way that no person would ever have their back turned to the glass and sunburst aluminum doors.

Currently two people were sitting in those vaulting leather chairs. The first, with his slicked-back hair and sleek blue suit, would be instantly recognized by most people in San Dorado. As CEO of Acheron Amalgamated Arsene Danzig probably the most well-known of all the city’s power brokers. “We are considering running a new fast rail line from Hakistan to Champa,” he divulged, swirling his red wine. Danzig spoke with a peculiar, halting and vaguely disquieting inflection, something to do with the way he simultaneously punctuated words with a period and a question mark. “Due to the fallout real estate is at an all time low. So is labour. But we predict a population boom on the subcontinent and continued economic growth in Umeria, which means a growing market for cross-border movement of people and goods in the mid to long term. Aki and her people are already on board. If we connect to Sehore and the Blue Assam Line we can corner the market for fast rail in Eastern Astrafica.”

The man he was talking to wasn’t so much old as ancient. According to some rumors Malachy De La Warr was well over a century old, and he certainly looked the part. He was an emaciated, skeletal figure in an exceptionally tailored but old-fashioned black waistcoat, with skin like parchment paper and thinning steel gray hair cropped close to his skull. Twin breathing tubes fed oxygen to his nose and his gaunt body was supported by a high-tech exoskeleton furbished in elaborate Art Deco styling. Inside their sockets however his green eyes were lively and sparkling. “The Champans would like that, I’m confident.” De La Warr’s voice was a rough and blistered rasp. If sharks could speak, they would have voices like his. “Their government bonds aren't doing well, interest is up and their currency keeps falling against our dollar. According to my models rising cleanup costs are threatening to push them into recession. I can keep them on the brink for a while... If you like."

Danzig slowly acknowledged, and shifted an ivory bishop across the chessboard between them. "I would be much obliged."

"They could use your offer regardless," the AxumFinans CEO continued. "I wager their government must be desperate for a spot of good news just about now. They might just thank you whilst you monopolize their borders.” His hand moved in a whir of robotic controllers, the web of gilded actuators strapped to his atrophied hand allowing him to precisely pinch and move an ebony rook. “Checkmate.”

Danzig leaned forward a little and steepled his fingers, faint surprise on his face. “Interesting. I did not see that coming.”

“You never do.” De La Warr laughed hoarsely. "The light of the oncoming train focuses the mind."

The Acheron CEO brushed a speck of imaginary dust off his lapel and gave the skeletal man opposite him a slow, fish-eyed stare. "Do you see a train coming towards you?"

"Don't you?” Green eyes fixed themselves intently on Danzig. “How old are you again?"

Danzig’s expression was absolutely unreadable. "Fifty-two."

“Oh.” De La Warr smiled crookedly. “You don't see it yet. But it's coming. Eventually it comes for all of us.” Electric motors whirred as he held out his mechanically supported hands in mock blessing. “The only question is… How long can you keep ahead of it?”

“That’s a matter best discussed with Sinclair, not me.” Danzig smiled, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. He finished his wine. “One more game? This time I’m black.”

[Siege]

Pyxis Worldwide Satellite News
Champa Stimulus Package Unveiled By San Dorado Corps

Good news for the flagging economy of disaster-struck Champa today, as San Dorado multinationals SANDEX and Acheron Amalgamated revealed strategic investment plans based around a proposed new railway link between the Champan and Hakistani capitals.

If the Champan government agrees to the proposals, the fast electric railway the two corporations plan to construct would have the capacity to handle a heavy volume of traffic, linking cities and industries across the two nations. This new fast connection would significantly reduce travel time overland between the Vedic peninsula and Champa, and potentially to Umeria beyond...

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Credits with Siege.

UOCSR Voyennyy Zhurnal

Collaboration between San Dorado and UOCSR announced on 6th generation interceptor

The UOCSR has announced that it will collaborate with industry and tech giants from San Dorado on a future 6th Generation Interceptor. "The new interceptor will eventually replace the MiG-41 and the MiG-31 family. The MiG-31 family is due for retirement, where its duties will be fully taken upon by the MiG-41," says Air Marshal Sergey Solev.

UOCSR Design Bureau Mikoyan-Gurevich and NPO Saturn will collaborate with San Dorado’s Helix Industries and Coldstream Delta for the aircraft and its associated weapon systems. The new interceptor builds upon UOCSR design experience with the MiG-31 and MiG-41 as well as Helix’ involvement with its proprietary Vixen fighter-interceptor. Technological giant Coldstream Delta is expected to supply integrated avionics and digital support. A prototype is expected to fly within the next four years and is rumored to aim for speeds up to MACH 4.

“Our unique and long-lasting synergetic relationship with the UOCSR proves that honest progress is possible as long as we break with the political and ideological divides of the past, to instead earnestly strive forward together,” read a joint press release by Helix Industries and Coldstream Delta. “Science and technology are an important part of the identity of the UOCSR and a national priority. Likewise technological betterment is a core part of who we are at Helix Industries. Together, we have achieved great things, and we will continue to do so in the future.”

[Eternal_Freedom]

TO: Rheinland Schiffbau Board of Directors
FROM: The Admiralty, Royal Orion Navy
3rd March 2014

Sirs,

Their Excellencies of the Admiralty have asked me to extend their thanks for your proposals and our appreciation for the additional design studies you have conducted on our behalf. Your detailed analysis has convinced us that the age of the big-gun dreadnought has passed, and that missile-armed vessels are the future. As such, Their Excellencies have, with the full approval and backing of the Crown and the State, elected to purchase from your good selves five of your standard Derfflinger-class battlecruisers, to be delivered on a schedule to be agreed upon at a later date. You may consider this letter an intention to purchase said vessels.

Regards,
Rear-Admiral Malcolm Warren, Chief of Naval Construction

------

TO: Vulkanwerft Board of Directors
FROM: The Admiralty, Royal Orion Navy
20th February 2014

Sirs,
We have received your design in response to our RFP and whilst we consider it an exceptional design that would likely be nigh-invulnerable in combat, the costs of such a design, both financially and materially, are prohibitive. We thank you for your efforts all the same.

Regards,
Commodore Richard Steele, Deputy Chief of Naval Construction


-----

Results:

-Orion intends to purchase five of Thanas' Derfflinger class battlecruisers
-We politely turn down Vulkanwerft's 70kton monster design. No matter how awesome it is, $56 billion for two ships is just too much.

[Simon_Jester]

Danger: Point away from face!

Umerian Antarctic Territorial Claim
Small Bunker Near 70° S, 93° E.
Sheltering the Construction Crew
February 10, 2014; 1333 Hours EST*

*Eastport Standard Time.

Farm-no-More Palmtree rubbed his hands in the comparative warmth of the shelter, peering out the almost-transparent window. The launch had been like ten minutes ago, what was happening? He was waiting for the other sandal to drop.

Industriousness leaned over, their parkas cushioning the bump as Farm-no-More got shoved half aside. He pointed. "Look-"

“Whoa!”

He could see a tiny burning meteor to the northeast… and it didn’t seem to be moving much.

Quietly, Farm-no-More thought to himself, if that thing hits us, we are SO toast. He began trying to remember the traditional formulas his mother had taught him in their little tenement, the ones you were supposed to say when you met the Celestial Bureaucracy in order to be reincarnated without being sent back to the end of the line to refill your paperwork, . Probably best to be thinking about those if…

Wait! The speck of fire in the sky was moving a bit after all! It wasn’t headed straight for him!

What happened next was too fast for the human eye to parse. The Vindicator’s reentry vehicle, a seemed to twist in midair as it dove down out of the northern sky coming in from outer space. Exactly like a meteor the warhead fell, covering the last dozen kilometers in the space of four or five seconds, leaving a curving streak on the retina that glowed forge-hot from the impactor’s passage through the upper heavens. Palmtree didn’t know how, but by some stroke of luck or aim, the missile managed to hit the tent his platoon had spent so much time setting up.

The metallized plastic tent wouldn’t have stopped a thrown rock, let alone two-thirds of a ton of one of the densest, hardest, most refractory alloys known to man. The impactor punched unimpeded into the Antarctic ice below, shattering and vaporizing the ground in a brief, furious, manmade blizzard, gouging a crater no shell and few bombs could match. Mylar fabric billowed outward; the scaffold collapsed, riddled with ice-shrapnel, leaving a massive, jagged crater and a towering plume of steam to mark the site. A shower of snow condensing from the plume caught the light of the long polar day as the rumble of impact rolled across the ice.

Even knowing this was the whole reason they were out there, Farm-no-More felt a certain dragging sense of futility. They’d spent a very, very long day putting up that tent yesterday. And now it was just… gone. Exploded. Fragments, bits of pipe scattered across the icecap, fabric tossing in the breeze like cast-off garbage bags.

Atomic Rocket Cruiser USS Guard-the-West
On Detachment for Systems Testing
58° S, 102°41' E
1335 Hours

"Southern Cross says the recon fighter has observed first fall of shot. Getting the second set of coordinates now..."

“Tactical, you are clear to fire one from port middle, one from port rear, then prepare to launch a five-missile broadside from all tubes, excepting starboard forward.”

“Copy that, sir. Launching one, then one.”

Again the thump! of a launch and the dazzling flash of the Vindicator’s solid-fuel rocket motor lighting off, this time a little further back along the length of the port side. Starting out slanted and angling upward to the north, the missile flipped to aim directly skyward- then arced over and began dwindling to the south. And… twelve seconds later, the computer decided the ship’s roll angle was right for the next shot. Thump! A third missile climbed into the deep blue southern heavens, aimed at invisible targets on the polar icecap so far away.

“Tactical, are we green on reloads?”

“Yes, sir. All three port racks have reloaded smoothly.”

“Very well, then. Launch salvo as discussed.”

“Copy that, sir. Launching five.”

It looked like a volcano erupting above his ship- five of the ten-meter missiles simultaneously. The missiles launched from the starboard side didn’t have to make a flip before going on their way.

Good. That tests the launchers in every way but one…

“Tactical, good job, tell your people I’m pleased with how smoothly everything’s going so far. We’ll be beginning the last phase of the test in seven minutes.”

FIRE ZE MISSILES!

Umerian Antarctic Territorial Claim
Small Bunker Near 70° S, 93° E.
Target Practice for a Meteor Shower

“Oh gods one of those is gonna hit us I KNOW it!”

“Shut up! None of the last three missiles hit us! We’ll be fine if the Navy didn’t screw up the coordinates...”

“WE’RE ALL GONNA DIEEE!”

“Wait, they’re turning!”

“That one’s headed over the whole site, what the hell… bending DOWN...”

“Is it coming for us?”

“I don’t think-”

The speaker fell silent as a great flash erupted where the first missile smashed into the ice, blowing down a tent it had missed by about two hundred meters. A heartbeat later, two more struck right in the middle of another of the great metal-film targets. Then a fourth, a kilometer further south and two to the east- and the fifth and last carved a razor-sharp line of lightning across the sky, not half a kilometer over their bunker, and crashed into the sharp ridge of forbidding rock behind them. The cliffs shivered, boulders tumbling loose from the shockwave.

*BLAAAM*

The sonic boom of the fifth missile rolled over them, interrupted by thunderous crashes from the impacts on the target range.

“Uh… are we dead yet?”

“Please tell me they’re done…”

USS Guard-the-West

“Confirm impacts. At least one significant miss, possibly more.”

“Very well. Tactical, empty the forward starboard rack. Eight rounds, fire as you bear.”

“I copy, sir. Launching eight.”

Guard-the-West now opened fire with her remaining untried missile tube. This was to be a test of the reloading systems, chains and hydraulics struggling to keep up the highest possible rate of fire, rotating new missile canisters into place under the launch tube like cylinders in a revolver. The heavy missiles thumped out the tube, ten and twelve seconds apart, inclinometer working flawlessly.

A minute passed, and eight more ballistic missiles were flying downrange, Tactical and Signals confirming the telemetry being relayed to them by airborne and satellite platforms. Senior Field Officer Bowman turned to the intercom.

“All hands, this is the captain. Thank you for your respective roles in this test. All our machinery has performed as well as it would under ideal conditions, and the People and State owe you for your dedication and industriousness..” He clicked the microphone off. “Signals, keep an eye on the missiles; Helm, when we have the data, take us to heading 345 and we’ll head for home.”

[Siege]

Pyxis Worldwide Satellite News
SANDEX in port construction talks with Kingdom of Orion

SANDEX is in talks with the Kingdom of Orion to build a major new harbor in the kingdom, people with knowledge of the situation said to Pyxis News. Rumors of a major infrastructure project emerged yesterday in the wake of a SANDEX board of directors briefing at Cold Rivet Point, causing share prices to jump and boosting the SDSE by 67.16 points.

If the Kingdom accepts current plans SANDEX aims to invest $3 billion in construction of a new port and supporting infrastructure on reclaimed land adjoining Port Rigel. 20 square kilometers will be reclaimed behind an 11 kilometer seawall. The tentatively named 'Orion World Gateway' takes advantage of existing transport links at Port Rigel and will accommodate the latest generation of Ultra Large Container Vessels.

The shipping giant estimates the project will create 6.000 jobs in the Kingdom. In keeping with CEO Aki Cortlandt's push for 'green' technology, SANDEX intends to construct 48 80 MW wind turbines on the seawall, reducing CO2 emissions by 240 kilotons per year.

Talks with the Kingdom are ongoing and the details of the project may change, said one of the people involved in negotiations, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.

"With a capacity of 17 million intermodal containers this new port would represent a major increase in SANDEX activities in the Pacific region," Ceana Almaraz, president of Payne & Fears Securities, said in a phone interview. She "would not be surprised" if the company is looking to establish more control over Pacific cargo trade. "Perhaps also because of the announced Ostrheinland referendum." SANDEX is mostly exempt from protectionist Rhenish shipping laws.

Serena Sakurai, a spokeswoman for SANDEX, declined to comment.

[The Romulan Republic]

A message was sent from the Ministry of the Armed Forces to the naval attache at The Shinra Republic's embassy.

On behalf of the government of the Kingdom of Corona, I would like to arrange a meeting with you regarding the proposed naval exercises.

Sincerely,

Minister of the Navy Trisha Kirk.

[Beowulf]

[pulled from the time stream]

[Steve]

Portland Gazette

New Britonia Crown-Loyalist Party responds to Rheinland Chancellor's remarks

WINDSOR, NEW BRITONIA - Crown-Loyalist leader Charles Shaw-Cross is "pleased" over Chancellor Fischer's speech to the Rheinland legislature that, among other matters, proposed an eventual plebiscite in West Rheinland - once Britonia - for independence. "The Chancellor's gesture can easily become the first steps on the road to reconciliation between the Rhenish and Britonian nations," Shaw-Cross informed the press. "We can only hope the next steps are taken and a plebiscite is held."

When asked what effect he thought Chancellor Fischer's words would have on the upcoming election, Shaw-Cross expressed optimism. "Those afraid of Rhenish opposition may feel secure that Chancellor Fischer's policies will mean they can vote freely. I believe this has strenghtened our chances."

"Independence for Britonia has long been the dream of the Britonian people living across the world. That dream may now become reality, but I think I speak for all reasonable men and women of my nation when I say that such a dream can only be accomplished if it is done with the support of the Rhenish people, not against their will. Anything else is nost just foolhardy but unrealistic. The plebiscite in Nippon will provide us a glimpse at how we may yet accomplish this."


Whig and Democratic leadership to oppose Naval fleet increase

PORTLAND FEDERAL DISTRICT - The leadership of the Whig and Democratic parties will not vote for a 2015 military budget that expands the Navy's combat forces, said a joint statement signed by House Speaker Allen Graysmith (Wh.-Sioux) and Senator Jack Rutledge (Dem.-Washington).

The two men point to the state of the Cascadian economy and its recovery as their primary motivation. "It would be irresponsible for us to drive up miltiary spending even as we try to reduce the national debt and restore confidence in the fiscal affairs of the government," the statement read. "Cascadia already has one of the world's leading navies in technology and combat capability. Expanding this capacity would signal to other nations that we are intending to commence a naval arms race."

"Replacement of old units for new is still an acceptable, even necessary, expenditure, but that will be expense enough."

Analysts believe that the statement is meant to rally support for voters who are put off by projections of increasing governmen debt, in the fear that they may vote Liberal in the coming midterms.

While Naval officials have not responded to this, one source inside the Navy Department has criticized the statement as "naive". "The Daedalans and the Orion are expanding their navies; it is ridiculous to think we can get away with not expanding ours to meet potential threats to Cascadian security."

Economists report hope for floundering economy in Cape Republic

CHARLESTON, CAPE REPUBLIC - Economists from the University of Charleston and the South American Institute of Trade and Finance are predicting a three percent increase in the economy of the Cape Republic for 2014. Professor Karen Layapa, Dean of the UoC College of Economics, went on record to predict a growth rate of "three to four percent" in the coming year, believing that the recession in the Cape Republic is at an end. "Consumer confidence is going up, austerity measures have brought control to government spending, and investments are increasing and creating more jobs," Professor Layapa stated.

The Cape Republic has been in hard times since the late aughts, when Cascadian aid paymetns went down after the Cascadian economy was struck by recession as well. Attempts to control the debt led to controversial austerity measures implemented by the governing Conservative Party, which won a narrow re-election in 2012 after the Conservative Party attacked the opposition of Liberal-Democrats as "weak against aggression" following the June 2012 incident of Orion carrier aircraft flying into the the country's air defense zone.

Opposition Liberal Democrats charge that the Conservatives slashed social services and support measures instead of targeting the "unnecessary waste" of the country's large miliary. Despite widespread popular support for their efforts, the party failed to block the procurement of forty F-14 Silent Eagle aircraft from Boeing in last year's fierce debates over the defense budget and look to be facing an uphill struggle to block an even costlier replacement program to replace the F-12 force with 5th Generation Cascadian F-20s. "So long as the Conservatives continue to buy weapons, the poor of this counry will suffer," stated Liberal Democratic Senator John Kasing.

The Cape Republic currently spends $127 billion Cascadian on its military, in a nation of less than forty million people with an estimated GDP of $1.4 trillion, one of the highest rates of defense spending by percentage of GDP in the world.


Note: E_F, I figure the note about Orion fighters entering their airspace was an accident, as happens at times, and the airspace violation was over water, not land; just faulty navigation without blatant ignoring of details. But it does show how frightened the Cape Republic is over the Orion Kingdom.

[madd0ct0r]

“30000km of embankment. Ten times that of cabling, 480,000 culverts and 30 major shipping rivers crossed.”

It was a mantra his daddy repeated as they drove south, bumping and bouncing in his digger. Morshi Sat on the toolbox as they drove and helped stretch out the hammocks each night where they stopped. He liked watching the countryside roll past from his high perch. It was better then before in the refugee center. It'd been crowded, and babies cried all night and the village children had called him a mutant and ran away from him, pretending to be scared. Now it was just him and his daddy, unless they stopped with someone for the night. One time a priest with a polished bone necklace had given them a 'whale' – a package of food that lasted days. Another time, a rich farmer gave them a barrel of fuel for digging a new fishpond. Daddy's digger, nicknamed Chunda, roared back and forth, scraping the wide pond deep into the earth. Daddy said that Chunda could do the work of ten men, ten times as fast, but drank at the same rate. That was ok. On the bad night Chunda had carried them far away until Daddy said it was safe. Chunda was very big but Morshi thought that maybe he got scared too, especially at night. Morshi would pat the machine's big teeth and stoke his warm head and whisper to him that Chunda was a good digger, not a mutant and they were going where there was lots of work.

“30000km of embankment. Ten times that of cabling, 480,000 culverts and 30 major shipping rivers crossed.”

[Eternal_Freedom]

Admiralty House, Paradise City
February 18th, 2014

Admiral McKenna was looking over the sprawl of papers on his desk. Their RFP for a new battleship design had yielded some interesting results, but none of them could feasible be called “dreadnoughts” in the conventional sense. At least, none could be called that without breaking the Navy’s budget.
He was so intent on studying the impressive design study from Vulkanwerft that he barely noticed the door open and someone enter. He heard them stop in front of his desk so he glanced up briefly, enough to see the three gold stripes on the uniform sleeve. He looked up sharply, about to rebuke the Commander for entering his office without permission, when he saw that the Commander was in fact, King Alexander, wearing his old uniform from his time in the Navy before he ascended the throne.

“Your Majesty, I…” The Admiral began to stand, but the King waved him back down.

“As you were James. So, how do the various designs look?”

“Frankly Sire, they put our in-house design to shame. And they also convince me that buying any of these would be a colossal waste for the Navy.”

“Oh?”

“They all meet the specifications, or close to it. But the requirement to mount heavy guns puts such a dent in their missile compliments that it’s hardly worth it. I mean, look at this Rheinland study for a gun-armed Derfflinger.” He handed over a sheaf of papers. “We’d lose so much capability for something that is, sadly, irrelevant now. Plus that fact that as custom designs they would cost an arm and a leg in extra R&D costs. The one truly “serious” battleship design we had was this monster from Vulkanwerft. It’s an impressive design, but at $32 billion for the first ship and $24 billion for any others it’s appallingly expensive.”

“Damn. So, it’s really time to abandon big guns?”

“I’m afraid so Sire.”

“Ok then. Issue a message to the companies officially ending the RFP. What do you suggest we do then?”

“Well Sire, we could issue another RFP for a large surface combatant, but I think that would be unnecessary. Rheinland Schiffbau sent us designs studies on their Derfflinger-class battlecruisers, and they look to be highly capable ships.”

“Why did they send us that? It doesn’t match our RFP, the displacement is half what we asked for.”

“They used the design as a basis for a custom ship to meet our specs. They even drew up an impressive design for a 70 thousand tonne Derfflinger. In full-on SAM mode it would have something like 2500 SAM’s aboard. All that for just $12 billion.”

“So we’d get one ship for the cost of two, but with less than the combined firepower of two?”

“Yes Sire. I have to say that my best recommendation would be to purchase the standard Derfflingers. They are fast, powerful and stealthy. They fulfill all our needs for a heavy surface warship. They have the advantage of being an existing design, so there is no extra R&D cost.”

“Very persuasive. Anything else?”

“Yes Sire. These ships would not only be more capable on a smaller hull than our proposed Guardians, but they are a good $3 billion cheaper per hull as well. Replacing the Rigel’s one for one with Rheinland’s design will cost us $30 billion, saving us a full $15 billion. That’s enough for a fourth CVN and a full airwing, plus a good chunk of her battlegroup.”

“Now that is a persuasive argument Admiral. You should lead with that next time. Very well, you have my permission to go ahead with the ordering of the Derfflingers. Oh, and very quietly look at moving Reapers keel-laying up and possibly adding a fourth carrier.”

“As you will Sire.”

Results:
-Original RFP withdrawn. Orion intends to purchase five Derfflingers.
-Additionally, with the money saved using Thanas’ design, we plan to begin construction on a fourth CVN

[Steve]

Crown-Loyalist National Conference
Windsor, New Britonia
19 February 2014

"This is disgraceful! A complete abrogation of our party's spirit and our pride!"

Alvin Harris' voice boomed through the chamber, drawing mutters of agreement and disagreement, while he faced Charles Shaw-Cross across the central table. "What you propose is a complete surrender to the butchers of our homeland," Harris continued. "It is a false independence, a sham, which can only exist so long as the Kagars permit it. It means slavery for the Britonian people."

"Alvin, geography itself is against you," Shaw-Cross retorted. "Our island nation is just off the coast of Rheinland. The freedom of Britonia relies upon the good will of Rheinland, and that is something you cannot dispute."

"Rheinland will not last forever!", Harris thundered. "It will grow too ambitious and provoke opposition, and it is that opposition we will turn to in order to secure our rights instead of begging for them as table scraps to be doled out by the Emperor of Rheinland!" He looked ou over the assembled. "Where is your pride? Your independence? Are we to accept subjugation because it has a velvet glove over the iron fist? You talk about going before the Kagars as supplicants, begging their favor for the restoration of what is ours by right! No! Never! Better to have West Rheinland for a hundred more years than to accept being their puppets!"

"You have allowed your hatred of Rheinland to rob you of your wits," Shaw-Cross lamented. He held up his gavel. "We shall take the vote on the censure motion against the Chair by the Gentleman Mister Harris."

The votes came in. A quarter of the delegates were fired up by Harris, and others voted agains Shaw-Cross for personal reasons. But in the end, he held three-fifths of the vote. The censure motion was defeated. The second vote, on whether to adopt the proposed plank of encouraging reconciliation with Rheinland to support eventual independence for Britonia proper, passed by a slightly narrower margin, roughly 58-42.

Seeing he was outmaneuvered, Harris stood and straightened his suit. "This party has voted for surrender. I will never surrender. Therefore, I am no longer a part of this party. May God judge you harshly for your treason against the wishes of our people." This prompted a tumult from the assembled, jeering and some cheering answering Harris as he walked away from the central table and went to the exit. One by one, others who supported him stood and did the same.

The following day, further resignations rippled through the Party; even as it seemed on the cusp of success, now it had been broken by the fight over the issue of dealings with Rheinland.


Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Crown-Loyalist Party splits in response to support for Rhenish reconciliation

WINDSOR, NEW BRITONIA - The aftershocks of yesterday's political earthquake are continuing to be felt in New Britonia as the Crown-Loyalist Party, once considered close to a posisble majority in the New Britonian House, is now reeling from the secession of Alvin Harris and his anti-Rhenish supporters. Roughly a quarter of the Party's leading members stormed out of a conference that adopted the reconciliation plank. In a statement to the press, Mister Harris declared that a Party of Britonian Independence will be formed to run on the plank of "restoration not just of the monarchy, but of the values that made Britonia strong. This party will not bend before the tyrants of Rhenaia in depending the restoration of our rights, ordained from Heaven itself."

Political analysts believe this shift will throw the next election in chaos and may result in a hung legislature.

[Siege]

Hayk-Aram Staging Grounds | Paradise City
Kingdom of Orion

The rotors of the helicopters rang through the air, bounding and reflecting off the grassy hills outside the Orion capital until Doppler shift smeared the sound out into a single ominous hum. The Manticores came in fast and low, racing through the depressions between the bluffs, missing the tops of occasional evergreens with mere feet to spare. A big Basilisk transport was at the heart of the formation, a bulging quad-rotored ladybug with a belly full of veteran mercenaries. In loose escort around it roared the lean black crocodile shapes of heavily armed King Lightning attack helicopters.

The Par-Sec craft came in low and fast, missiles flashing away at bunkers and prepared positions that exploded in gouts of orange flame and shrapnel. The heavy Basilisk shuddered as the pilot flared its rotors, draining off momentum and settling the quad-rotor craft in a surface glide that looked like a stone drop. Mercenaries drew back the compartment doors as the heavy gunship slammed into the ground, landing gear absorbing most of the shock. Twenty soldiers were out of the compartment in under three seconds.

Then the Manticores were down as well, disgorging even more soldiers as the attack helicopters banked around, pumping fire into the defensive lines with their 30mm autocannons. The first Ocelot AFV was off the Basilisk's ramp, and a second was emerging already. Squads of heavily armed mercenaries rushed toward the first series of structures.

On the next hill over, great flatscreens showed the action in exacting detail, transmitted live from the Helix drones flying overhead. The observation deck was comfortably airconditioned, so as not to unduly burden the VIPs observing the demonstration. "As you can see, Highness, our equipment lends itself well to manoeuvre warfare." Charlie Saint wore an elegant black business suit. A pair of expensive sunglasses was set at a jaunty angle in her blond hair. Outside, the mercenaries lifted off again just as C4 charges rippled through the remaining bunkers.

Saint turned from the spectacle to King Alexander and his son, who looked suitably impressed. "There's a few ways we can proceed from here. We can demonstrate our electronic warfare systems, though that requires you turn off any personal electronics you may have on you. I wouldn't want to accidentally fry the royal cellphone. Or," she pointed at the back wall of the observation deck, which was artfully lit by spotlights and completely covered in a dazzling variety of guns ranging from small automatic pistols to submachine guns, assault and marksman's rifles all the way up to machine guns, "we could skip right to the part where you get to try out our latest and greatest. The choice is yours. But personally I find all this carnage makes me thirsty, so..." She punched a button, and the tabletop slid away revealing a big mechanized cooler that held several bottles of expensive booze on ice. "Pick your poison, gentlemen. We throw one of these in with every purchase of a hundred million or more, compliments of Mr. Mortimer."

Result: Helix starts its tech demo in the Kingdom of Orion.

[Eternal_Freedom]

"I think a drink is in order Madam, and then we shall see this electronic warfare wizardry you speak of." As the King said this, hewas moving with purpose to the impressively-stocked drinks cabinet. Unconsciously, he reached into his pocket and switched off his mobile.

"I think I shall try this fine-looking single malt. Samuel?"

"I'll join you in that Father." THe King turned to Ms Saint, and on hearing her answer, proceeded to pour drinks.

"Well, here's to the success of your weaponry Ms. Saint!"

The three drank and then looked back to proving grounds for the next demonstration.

[Steve]

Portland Gazette

New Britonian Election results in, "hung parliament" likely experts say

WINDSOR, NEW BRITONIA - With 99% of voting precincts checking in, the New Britonian elections have wound down to what may be he most deadlocked result in half a century of republican rule. The current election results show the highest number of votes going to the Labour Party, at roughly 34% of the House and now holding twenty seats in the Senate. The Crown-Loyalists, reeling from Alvin Harris' secession from the party and establishment of the Britonian Independence Party, are in second with an electoral result of 25% of the House and ten Senate seats. The Liberal Party of President Alice Hastings suffered a major decline, winning only 20% of the House and now holding 14 senate seats due to having fewer seats up for election, leaving 18% of the electorate and four of the last six senate seats to Alvin Harris' Britonian Independence Party. Independent candidates and the Native Rights Party won the margin, giving the later two senate seats and 2% of the House.

With no one party holding a majority in either chamber or even a workable plurality, experts believe the election is likely to result in a hung parliament. "This will have major repercussions for efforts to recover from the recession," stated economic analyst Thomas Djamala of King's College of Lapama in western New Britonia. "Investment will go down in an environment of uncertainty about economic policies. Hopefully a majority coalition can be assembled again."

Liberal Party spokesmen have blamed the collapse on the prior coalition on Labour and its "anti-business" ideology, stating its refusal to support necessary subsidies to support fishermen in Prince George's Bay is proof that "Labour does no care for the needs of the working class Britonian".

Labour, which rejected the subsidies on the grounds that they mostly benefit large fishing conglomerates that were overfishing the Bay, has released a statement that they consider the election result to show that many Britonians feel otherwise. "The rise of monarchism as a political force is what prevented us from gaining a natural majority," one anonymous Labour Party official stated.

Experts who believed that it was the Crown-Loyalist Party's election to win consider Alvin Harris' splintering of the party to blame. "Not only did it divide the party vote, but it caused some exiles to go back to other issues and vote Labour or Liberal," stated political scientist Gabrielle Martin of East Anglia University. "It remains to be seen if the monarchist vote can regain the momentum they were showing in February."

The New Britonian electorate must now wait to see if any workable coalition can be assembled by the various parties.


President Penton signs Banking Reform Bill

PORTLAND FEDERAL DISTRICT - President Penton has signed into law the Banking Reform Bill of 2014 as promised, bringing to a conclusion three years of poliical wrangling between Liberal and Whig Party legislators. The law, passed by the House in November of last year and finally approved by the Senate a week ago after a two week filibuster by Liberal Party senators, introduces new regulations on the financial sector to prevent a repeat of the bad mortgage practices that promoted the 2007 recession. "It is vital to our national economy to ensure the mistakes of the banking community cannot be repeated," President Penton stated at the signing. "This is not meant as a punishment but as a guarantee."

Senator Joshua Carter (Lib.-Oregon) criticized several elements of the law in a statement after the signing. "It had been my hope that the President would insist on tthe bill's refinement and the elmination of the clauses allowing increased government control over our national economy. It is my regret that he did not, but I will not cease from my efforts to protect the Cascadian people from government intrusion into their lives." Senator Carter in particular spoke against the restoration of the 1930s ban on standard commercial banks against investment banking, repealed in 1999 by a Liberal-dominated Congress, and new regulations requiring government oversight on how banks sell off debts and implement collection procedures on private homes.

Senator Lewis Call (Dem.-Carolina) of Vancouver has also emerged as a critic of the bill's final form, believing that the provisions for government support of remaining "bad loans" were inappropriate "rewards" for the "rapacious behavior" of the banks. The Senator has undergone criticism from his Democrat colleagues when he abstained from voting for the bill in the final vote in the Senate.

Analysts are uncertain as to how the bill may affect the ongoing drama of whether Barnett Bank, once the nation's fourth-largest but now falling behind, will be bought by AxumFinans. The bill includes new regulations on supervisiion of bank buyouts and changing of customer accounts, leading Barnett officials fearful that Axum may cancel the purchase. "It would be a disaster for Barnett," one official said on condition of anonymity. "We need this buyout to regain shares on the global market through Axum's network."

[Siege]

Axum Obelisk | 1301-1399 SW 4th Ave
Portland, Cascadia

Pyxis Worldwide Satellite News
Cascadian economy reels as Axum contemplates pull-out

Trading on the Portland stock exchange came to a screeching halt today after AxumFinans announced it was considering pulling its investment banking arm out of Cascadia. A press release by the financial conglomerate states that as a result of the Banking Reform Bill it may have to significantly reduce or in a worst case scenario even completely eliminate its activities in Cascadia.

AxumFinans' main presence in Cascadia is Deacon Santeria Capital LLC. A Cascadian company, Axum bought Deacon Santeria in 1987 and grew it from a small investment management company into a multi-facted institute that combines commercial banking, investment banking and insurance activities. According to its 2013 annual report the investment arm of Deacon Santeria controlled $312,5 billion Cascadian worth of assets across the continent and turned a modest $193 million profit that year.

"We respect the government's authority to regulate the financial sector," says spokesman Thorne Van Heijst. "But the way the Banking Bill seeks to separate commercial banks from investment banks effectively outlaws our company. When this bill goes into effect we will be unable to do business in Cascadia."

Like all Cascadian investment banks Deacon Santeria took a hit in the 2007 recession, but its conservative portfolio and ties to the worldwide Axum conglomerate allowed it to weather the storm better than many of its competitors. It has made no use of federal "bailout" programs. Van Heijst: "The government punishes us for the misbehaviour of our peers. President Penton speaks of guarantees - what about the nine thousand Cascadian citizens employed by Deacon Santeria whose jobs are now at risk? What guarantees does he offer them? Our investments are a flywheel for innovation and employment throughout Cascadia - what about that? I'm not asking for a medal, I'm asking for consideration."

Meanwhile financial markets are rife with speculations about the timing of the Cascadian bill. "Many here believe Penton's signing of the bill just as Axum is about to acquire Barnett Bank is a signal, a warning shot if you will, telling San Dorado enterprises to stay out of Cascadia," explains Ceana Almaraz of San Dorado-based Payne & Fears Securities. "I won't lie, most of my colleagues see this bill not as protection from predatory banking, but as protectionism, by a government scared of globalism, scared of free trade, and scared of having to admit that their imperial heydays are over."

When Pyxis asked AxumFinans to respond to these allegations their spokeswoman declined to comment. "We do not make statements of opinion on ongoing acquisitions processes. Suffice it to say we are disheartened by the Cascadian government's decision to ignore our proposals to accomodate some of their concerns, to instead implement the bill in a fashion that violates open market ideals. And we stand by our statement that pending certain clarifications from the Cascadian government AxumFinans may unfortunately be compelled to withdraw its business from Cascadia."

Initial forecasts of the economic consequences should Axum pull all its business suggest an immediate economic downturn as capital markets dry up and the trade of derivatives, equity securities and FICC services in Cascadia falters. Almaraz calls this "unlikely": "I don't expect AxumFinans wants to completely abandon Cascadia. And I doubt Penton wants that either. But there's a lot of uncertainty over the interpretation of the Banking Bill and if it requires Axum to split itself or just its subsidiaries. AxumFinans is fundamentally conjoined, it cannot separate its commercial banking, insurance and investment arms without dismantling itself. Even if it could, no San Dorado company would give care to such demands anyway. But if the law applies just to its subsidiaries then Axum has the option of dismantling Deacon Santeria, offshoring its investments and calling it a day. That means the consequences for Cascadia are only moderately bad, instead of catastrophically awful."

Spokesman Thorne Van Heijst hopes that a break up of Deacon Santeria can still be avoided. "At least three thousand of our employees are taking a day off tomorrow. We're going down to the federal district to protest. I'll be there too. I know financial services don't have much of a reputation these days, but not all of us are wanker bankers. I've been with this company for ten years. We've helped a lot of people and helped build a lot of businesses in that time. It's insane to me that the government would throw all that away. I hope they just didn't quite think it through. I hope we can still save this company."

A spokesperson for the Cascadian federal government did not return Pyxis' request for comment in time for this publication.