SD.Net Kingdoms Story Thread

[PeZook]

"Your Majesty, i have one final request for you on behalf of Tsar Mikhail. He would desire the establishment of an Pogorian Embassy in Moscow." He presented a folder to a servent "A building has already been prepared to high standards befitting such a diplomatic staff." The folder was presented to the king, reveiling a set of photographs of the Embasy. The building itself was a fair sized house in one of the elite districts of Moscow, it was not Pogorian style, but had an elegant garden in it's front and back and it's inside had a few articles of furnature and a minimum of decoration. "What say you, Honorable king of Pogoria?"

"Your offer is just, and we were going to propose such an arrangement ourselves", the King spoke, not giving away his curiosity. The photographs fascinated him, "Tell your Tsar that Pogoria accepts the offer, and will send a diplomatic party to take residence in the embassy."

Constantinopole

Gromislaw gazed upon the ship which would take them home - a huge galley, rented with Royal gold. His King provided them with enough funds to secure passage to Denmark, where they would get just in time for the royal wedding. From there, a mighty Danish airship would take the entire party home.

And they brought a mighty boon indeed - a master gunsmith, loaned to Pogoria by the Byzantines, and two lesser ones, recruited from amongst the city's craftsmen. They agreed to come to Pogoria upon being promised a relief from taxes for as long as they produced guns for the army. Here, they were but two craftsmen amongst many - in Pogoria, they would quickly become rich men.

Gromislaw thanked Wit quietly for the success of his mission. A hero's welcome would await him and his party at home.

Results:

- Pogorians agree to the Tsardom's proposal of establishing an embassy
- Gromislaw returns home, bearing gunsmiths and trade agreements
- Kind Radoslaw accepts the Danish proposal, and wedding preparations begin.

[Akhlut]

Zeusborn returned to Chersonesos and told the Basileus of Pogoria's full agreement.

"Excellent, Papa Zeusborn, now tell Papa Paul Manuel to assemble his priests and whatever else he needs to build the embassy."

And so the priest Paul Manuel went to the Surtites and assembled fifty of them plus their baggage train to bring the necessary materials for the embassy. A hundred stone masons and a hundred dwarves would accompany as well. As the Basileus nor the Pogorian king did not say what the embassy could be, Paul Manuel decided to create a monastery/mission in Krakow, and, if he could help it, it would be the largest and most beautiful structure in the city.

[Karmic Knight]

Le Havre, the Empire of the Seine

The small flotilla of ships carrying the Gurren-Britannian envoys to the Empire of the Seine were greeted by a bombastic display of magical might, courtesy of Lord Patrick La Fortunate and the other members of the Imperial Order of Priests. To the leader of the Gurren-Britannian delegation, Lady Tiffania Westwood, the display reminded her of her final exams before she was inducted as a Null Mage. "Most impressive," she said to herself right before the ship she was on docked at the pier reserved for it.

Once Lady Westwood and the rest of her party disembarked from their respective ships, they convened and moved as one to meet with Lord Patrick. "Greetings and good day to you, milord," Lady Westwood greeted as she bowed to her Imperial counterpart. "I am Lady Tiffania Westwood of the Holy Empire of Gurren-Britannia. Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress Arturia, sends her regards.”

“Thank you, the same to you, Lady Westwood. I suggest we head toward shelter, as I am unsure of the weather patterns currently in play,” as the two dignitaries walked toward the grandiose Le Havre Port Office Lord Patrick asked, “Now, what can the Empire of the Seine do for vous?”

En Route to Pogoria, Europe

The horseless carriage sped at breakneck pace toward Pogoria, a place that in one reality would become Poland or maybe Pezookia, or something. The horseless carriage was a marvel of magic, requiring only a mage with a rudimentary knowledge of wind based magic to operate; it could reach speeds exceeding that of horse based movement.

The passengers of the craft were two diplomats from the Empire, whose intent was to gauge Pogorian responses to the deals the Supreme Commander ordered them to request.

En Route to the Starfall Dominion, Europe

The Horseless carriage of Martin Le Barve sped along the old road at a much slow pace than was the norm, the reason being that the path to the Starfall Dominion was covered in vegetation, and relatively unused compared to the road to Pogoria. He trudged on though, confident that he would get to the Dominion before winter.

En Route to the Danish Kingdom, Europe

Knight-Brother Jean de Cambrai, Knight of the Eternal King, Monk of His Imperial Order of Priests, and diplomat of the Empire, flew along the seaside toward the Danish Kingdom in a horseless carriage.

Result:
Diplomatic Barrage and Terrible Writing!

[Darkevilme]

Mountain, starfall dominion
“And heave...heave! Heave!” With a final strain the workers succeed in dragging the stone chunk forth from its fellows, another tug sending it down between the gangs and tumbling out into space for the long drop down. “Okay, good job boys. Break for a breather.” the overseer says and looks up at the rest of the peak, backlit by the sun its gloom is almost oppressive...and expectant, his thoughts drifting to the dream...a beating beneath the stone, steady, slow and vast....he shakes his head, vowing to indulge in drink more heavily to banish such phantasmagoria...”Back to work boys!”

Newly conquered territories, starfall dominion
“Garrisons are to be reduced by half to reform two armies for further conquest come spring. Sounds feasible sir.”
“Yes, but who is to command the northern army?”
“You are sir.”
Gaetan leans against the wooden throneback, ah well duty calls. And he was just getting used to this provincial administrator role as well. Still with any luck he'll have a chance to see a proper battle this campaign, he gets up...if he's to lead then there are preparations to make and supplies to requisition.

Production for year 1/turn 1:
fourth army for the glory of the Starfall Dominion.
1820 points
400 50 golems
120 20 Adepts
200 500 horsemen
400 1000 footmen(two cohorts)
300 1000 archers (two cohorts)
400 500 Wolfguard (a whole cohort)

fifth army for the glory of the starfall dominion.
120 20 Adepts
200 500 horsemen
400 1000 footmen(two cohorts)
300 1000 archers (two cohorts)
400 500 Wolfguard (a whole cohort)
140 200 knights
500 The great unearthing(multiyear project)
36 7 adepts

Reform first and second army for the glory of the starfall dominion
1000 footmen
1000 archers
100 wolfguard
500 horsemen
200 knights
50 Golems
in each

Form third army for the glory of the starfall dominion
1000 archers
1000 footmen
300 Wolfguard
500 horsemen
200 knights
7 adepts
100 serpentriders

[Akhlut]

"How fared the basilica in Kiev?" the Basileus asked, his voice concerned.

"The siege itself did not harm it, however, the feudal lords of Kiev neglected it dreadfully. Apparently, they were using their money on themselves and to appease something else. As you know, the Tsar and the other top feudal lords were executed, or in the case of the Tsar, sent to Muscovy. So, we don't know what they were spending their money on, but certainly not the upkeep of the basilica."

"Then we shall build a new one. Send Surtite builders to Kiev at once, as well as our best architects. We shall build a new basilica in the honor of St. Constantine."

"What of the expense, Basileus?"

"We can afford it. We only need militiamen to hold what we've captured, and we can conquer new provinces and increase the size of the Republic. To that end, begin training militia and legionaries and convince the Iorikids to raise more of their soldiers for the Republic."

"Of course, Basileus. What of the Senatorial election this year?"

"Hopefully our friends are elected. But, it is only a third of the Senate, so, even if things fare poorly, we'll barely hold our majority there. Hopefully we can find a policy for integrating Kiev and Sochi into the Republic with ease. A second term would be nice, and I think they'd be grateful to be brought into the Republic, especially after the construction of the basilica."


Results: We're building a church! We're hiring more soldiers! We're going to continue to add to the Republic! Campaign slogans are being thought up this very moment!

[Zor]

"Your Majesty, i have one final request for you on behalf of Tsar Mikhail. He would desire the establishment of an Pogorian Embassy in Moscow." He presented a folder to a servent "A building has already been prepared to high standards befitting such a diplomatic staff." The folder was presented to the king, reveiling a set of photographs of the Embasy. The building itself was a fair sized house in one of the elite districts of Moscow, it was not Pogorian style, but had an elegant garden in it's front and back and it's inside had a few articles of furnature and a minimum of decoration. "What say you, Honorable king of Pogoria?"

"Your offer is just, and we were going to propose such an arrangement ourselves", the King spoke, not giving away his curiosity. The photographs fascinated him, "Tell your Tsar that Pogoria accepts the offer, and will send a diplomatic party to take residence in the embassy."

"A welcome turn of events and my Tsar will be glad to here of this, King of Pogoria." Larvov took a bow and left. There was still a few hours his airship would return to the Tsardom, in which he planned on having a well deserved and fairly sizable lunch.

Principality of Novgorod

The freshly re-enforced Red Imperial Army forces had only begun marching over Novgorod's Boarders three hours ago before the Markov Airship overhead spotted the oncomming forces from the North, relaying the message via sephaphore. It was a massive army, at least twenty thousand men strong. Things in particular became a concern to the staff when they reported they had spotted a considerable number of Novgorodian Bats hovering over the oncoming army. Several of these creatures had scouted around the encampment, occasionally having their mounts screech to keep the Tsar's soldiers from getting a good night's sleep as well as tossing a few bombs.

However, it was clear that it was time to prepare for the onslaught. Quickly, the supply wagons were assembled into a defensive triangular formation pointing into the oncomming force while the cannons, rocket carts and the Skycleaner guns were made ready and the horses were tied up. The officers laid out the plan while NCOs made it happen, barking orders. Meanwhile the Alchemists assisted. A Perimeter of Meter long Hardened spikes pointing away from the growing fortifications was transmuted out of the soil to hold off cavalry charges, these were made all the more dangerous by a newly deployed type of field fortification that the Ministry of War had introduced, apparently getting the design from cattle ranches, metal wire with barbs on it, which heavy gloved Streltsi quickly attached three lines of which to the spikes while transmuting temporary shelters for the power supplies from the soil. The Markov ascended as fast as it could and flew away at top speed. Not being a made for the engagement which was inevitably to follow.

When it got within 4 kilometers, the Novgorodian ground forces split into three groups, two groups composed primarally of infantry along with the artillery moved to the sides. The third group of mounted forces waited a few minutes before moving, with the Horse based cavalry advanced slowly towards the lines, while the Bat Cavalry made the first move of the Battle. The creatures had been circling above their formations and with the signal of their prince made an all out charge against the lines, unleashing their screams as they flew towards the Tsar's armies. The Streltsi readied their guns against the oncomming force. The officers looked quietly, measuring distance on the quickly closing bat riders. Tensions were high, but eventually, they crossed the first mark of 500 meters. With that Skycleaner guns, massive long range weapons fired as fast as they could against the oncomming hordes of bats and one by one they began falling from the sky.

Then they crossed the 250 meter line and a sudden order was shoulded "FIRE!" With that, the cracks of thousands of human and ursiod rifle filled the air in defense, with clear devistation, some a large number of thuds was heard shortly afterwards while the soldiers reloaded as quickly as possible and the surviving bats broke into smaller groups as they made their final approach. The Remaining Bats came in flying overhead at all angles throwing spherical cast iron bombs and firing their pistols. The Result was disorder and chaos, mixed with a few casualties, although rifle, shotgun and pistol fire as well as Alchemcial Fire and a breif windstorm by Sergei Gagarin continued to bring them down. After a few seconds circiling the creatures began making swooping attacks, snatching up men in their claws, biting, clawing and tossing men aside fanatically in an attempt to break the army, however their numbers were sugnifigantly depelted at this point and before the surviving bat could do too much damage the last of them were dispatched either by gunfire or by claw, lance sabre and bayonet. A few Riderless bats survived and were allowed to fly off or (if they were outside the wagon fort) walk away, but a few riders were dislodged in the carnage of battle and they were given no such compassion.

As the Riflemen regrouped and recovered and the sisters tended to the wounded, they noticed that most of the Novgorodian horse based Cavalry had begun to rapidly advance, breaking into two groups, presumably to move around fortress and take it from the rear. As such, the Streltsi took defensive positions order and the Cavaliers and Ursiods prepared to make their move. The Novgorodian Cavalry moved in, facing rifle as they advanced as well as several bursts of Grapeshot from the cannon while a few others fell into alchemicallycreated sinkholes, although had spaced out sugnifigantly to avoid too many losses. The charging force moved around, firing their pistols against the Wagon fort, mostly supressively, although a few Streltsi were lost as they wheeled around, hoping to get to the fort's backside. There, however, from a break in the lines came out a terrifying foe, as over a thousand cavaliers and Ursiods moved out and the air resonated with their mighty Roars and the Battlecry "For Tsar and Tsardom!" as they met the oncomming horde of noblemen as the two forces crashed. The Remaining Noble Cavalrymen charged against the Cavaliers, despite taking losses from revolver, shotgun and Ursiod Gun fire during th managed to inflict a somewhat decent amount of losses before falling back to the to the designated. Despite being outnumbered, they were better in Melee than the Cavaliers, having better armor and swords, being better trained for close quarters and engaging in it more due to the single shot nature of their pistols, however they could not match the shear numbers of the Tsardom's Cavalrymen nor best the raw strength of Ursiod Warriors after they lost the momentum of the charge. Of the original 900 charging, less than 150 survived the battle.

Meanwhile, the flanking forces of Noble Led infantry continued their advance, each ten thousand men strong. The first salvo fired against these closing ranks by the Tsar's forces a massive volly of rockets into the eastern formation. Though they were hardly the most accurate weapons, their targets were large enough so that most of them landed somewhere in the Ranks of the Novgorodians. On impact the rocket's warheads detonated, spaying shards of cast iron and (with every fifth rocket) arsenic into the fairly tightly packed novgorodian ranks. Although this only killed a fairly small amout of Novogorodians, it did disrupt them enough to slow down the formations it effected, praticularly the Levy infantry. After forcing the Novgorodian Cavalry to fall back, most of the Imperial Cavalry forces turned towards these flanking groups, moving to take it on the weaker sides of their lines.

The Novgorodian forces on either side had assembled their levies in the front of their formations and as they closed, gave the order to them to charge. The approaching army of levies was well motivated. Novgorodians gave each soldier a split of the booty in victory with their share one received being based on position with simple peasant Levies being on the bottom of the food chain. This battle was the exception as Prince Igor had made a promise to the levied soldiers that they would get the same share equal to that which the Druzhina received, the prince knowing that would not matter too much considering the causalty rate he expected them to receive. The fact that they had been given a considerable amount of Beer just before battle did not hurt things either. As they closed in armed with their motley assortment of weaponry they were met by cannonball, although their rather loose formations prevented too much damage from being done, the same applied to the rockets salvos the Red Imperial army kept firing into their formations. As they closed in they faced Salvo after salvo of rifle fire as well as volleys of grapeshot, although they kept up their charge. Meanwhile, the artillery drawn as quickly as possible by horses began to move to the sides of the formation and brought their cannons to bear on the wagon fort, setting up positions near the sides as their crews quickly the weapons to bear upon the Wagon Fort, Each firing off a single pre-loaded ball as fastly as they could into the wagon fort, causing some damage and destroying several of the walls. The Crews quickly began the process of Reloading, however as this was happening the first elements of Imperial Cavaliers descended upon them with lance and Saber, moving as quickly as they could to illiminate their artillery before pressing onwards against those on the other side of the formations while Druzhina formations, Corsairs and the Few remaining Noble Cavalrymen closed attempting to intercept them, using hastilly reloaded revolvers and shotguns to keep them off their back, during which Prince Igor was shot. The Novgorodian Cannons on the other side managed to get off another Salvo before they to were hit by the Imperial Cavaliers which again ripped into them as quickly as possible, as well as being bombarded by several shots fired by the Imperial Gunners

Meanwhile, The levies continued their charge, egged on by the damage done by the Artillery they pressed forward despite the damage done by the continous rifle fire, even if a few men had broken off. As they got closer, they began to let off their own counter fire with their miscelanious firearms and other ranged weapons. Through Shear volume they pressed towards the Imperial Lines. However as they got this close, they were met by well orginized groups of Ursiods which moved in from the Formation's rear and began to rip into the Levies, as did Cavalrymen from their rear. Quickly, the charging Bears and Cavalrymen breaking into the Diminished and loose lines of levies caused a massive change in the morale of the levies as many of them began to break and flee while others dropped their weapons and put their hands into the air. A Few did manage to get to the lines, only to be overwhelmed and stopped. Within a few short minutes the Levy Force, shattered and disorginized was no longer part of the battle.

After that, all that remained were the Druzhina and Cosair formations, well behind the ranks of the formations, they simply had not the power to press onwards began to make an orderly retreat as best they could, only to be eventually flanked by the Cavalry and forced, one by one to lay down their arms in surrender. Soon the prisonners would be sent over to be properly processed and be put to work. The day had been won, and soon the seige of the city

Six Kilometers Above Novgorod

Novgorod was by most standards a fairly well fortified city, it had a decend set of walls re-enforced by earth ramparts, an idea which they had gotten from foreigners on how to defend against cannonade. However, it did not offer protection from threats which came from above.

The Imperial Airfleet loomed over the City, despite the attempts of a few Novgorodian Bat Cavalrymen to repell them they were bested by Imperial Skycleaner Guns of the Markovs while onboard the Kirovs, bombadiers looked down upon Novgorod's streets, found suitable target and as they flew over suitable targets, pulled the levers and watched as one by one, the bombs fell.

Parade Grounds, Moscow Police Academy

The newly minted cadets stood at attention as the Tsar inspected them. They looked green, but never the less competant enough. Soon many of them along with more seasoned officers, would move out to the newly conquered territories and take the place of the Streltsi Garrisons in keeping the peace.

Results
-The Army of Novgorod is defeated, although with the loss of some 523 Streltsi, 121 Crimson Guardsmen, 299 Imperial Cavaliers, 42 Ursiods, 33 Artillerists, 52 Sisters and one Warrior Alchemist. Several Peices of Novgorodian Artillery is also captured.
-Kirov Airship raid of Novgorod
-Some 2,500 new policemen have been trained and will be sent out to hold the new territories.

[PeZook]

Copehagen, Denmark

The temple was truly magnificient, a testament to strong faith of the Danish people. The old religions returned to this land after the Fall, and the locals built temples to the old gods, dissatisfied with how Christianity failed them in those troubling times.

And while their gods were harsh, and their religion savage, the drums and bells announced to the citizens of Copenhagen that this would be a day to remember! Braziers burned in the streets, amongst the first signs of snow, and crowds gathered despite the cold to observe this great happening.

For a royal wedding was not something observed every day.

The Pogorian king arrived not a week ago, and it was said he brought gifts beyond imagination from this strange land. His bride was kept away from him, per ancient tradition, and it was only now that a carriage ferried her to the temple of Odin, father of the gods, through cheering crowds and blaring trumpets. The princess disembarked in the steps of the temple, and her consorts led her inside, her face covered by a veil.

Her old father waited inside, and led his daughter to the priest. Old rituals were performed, and vows spoken before the old gods, before Odin and Wit. The young couple was joined together, and promised themselves to love and cherish each other until death do them part.

And thus, the trumpets blared a glorious hymn, and herolds announced far and wide the union of King Radoslaw of Pogoria and Queen Marta of Denmark, to be cherished as a national holiday from this day on.

For the first time in decades, there was peace between the two kingdoms. Peace blessed by the Gods, no doubt.


All hail the Royal Couple!

Wawel Castle, Krakow, Pogoria



While the king was away, matters of state fell to duke Chociebior, and it was him who received the Imperial delegation next to the empty throne. Pleasantries were exchanged,and gifts granted by the delegates, while crowds gathered outside to gaze at their carriage - a cunning application of magical lore, Chociebor had to admit.

"I welcome you to our land, and offer Pogorian hospitality for you to enjoy. I am Chociebor, the King's most trusted advisor and chancellor. Forgive us that the King is not available, for he would have surely granted you an audience - however, our sovereign has left Pogoria to enter a marriage with princess Marta of Denmark. Thus, I shall speak in his stead.

What can I help you with, then?"

[Darkevilme]

Newly occupied territories, Northern Dominion

Fear stalked the night and the hall was filled with lamentation. For Hercule lord of Avonterx's only son had been found, torn open, yet another victim of the Stalker's hideous appetite for human hearts. The guards at the door rise fearfully at the sound close at hand of heavy scuffing in the dark beyond the doors of the hall. Hercule rises from the casket and wipes his eyes, his coming words emphasized by the slithering sound of his sword being unsheathed “Make ready men and do not meet its gaze, the beast comes to kill the kin of the slain.” For none would be abroad at this hour but for the prowling Stalker in its unceasing hunger. There's an expectant pause, the women and elderly backing away towards the rear of the hall as that scuffing gets closer. Then there was a striking blow against the door, and another and a third and finally the wood splinters as a broad tipped spear is thrust through the gap and shatters the locking bar in twain. A fourth kick sends the door crashing open and the man behind steps through into the light and surprised gaze of the onlookers.
“Are you beast or man clad in the manner of beasts stranger.” Hercule demands of the fur caped figure. Who simply spits upon the ground and drops his spear with a snort of derision “I am not your beast, rodent.” he says, a face split equally between beard and scar twists into a smile as he tosses a blood soaked sack down before the Lord of Avonterx “That was your beast.”

“Rodent?! Charlatan you will not insult me so, my best men lay below ground for facing the Stalker and my only son is dead by its hand.”
“And you cowered here behind your doors letting it pick you off one by one as you strayed from your burrow. See for yourself, my name is Ghost and you owe your thanks to the Dominion.” says the wolf caped man as he picks up his spear and then strides out into the darkness with complete disregard for the weapons of the guards prepared to run him through at a nod from their lord. In his absence Hercule looks at the sack for a long moment, then prods it open with his sword and steps back staring at what he sees, the sightless eyes of the Stalker's head stare back at him....

Castle Hrun, Starfall Dominion

The courtyard fills with the clack and thump of staves as Footmen are taught their art enmass, beyond the walls the streets are filled with the ring of hammers and the yelling of haulers and teamsters as they fight to be heard over the creak of wagons. All long inured to the shrieks and hissings of the serpents above in flight and their tower top roosts. The sound thankfully deadened by the thick stone of the keep in the chamber that Martin Le barve now finds himself ushered into Lord Yannic smiles “Well now, it's been quite a while since we have received an emissary from the Empire to the north. Would you care for some wine? I'm told the lands beyond our borders remain quite treacherous and you are no doubt weary from your trip. What business has brought you here?”

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Black and White, and then Grey

(OOC: Both Shady and I wrote this)

Far up north, 2 inquisitors were scouting in the north and keeping watch on the daemon army that was getting too close to the Despotate's territories. They were far apart, but they could communicate via psychic powers. "Seems the Daemon lord is on the move," said one.

"Too damn close to our territories. The Despot wants Sofia for his own, as a bulwark against the North."

"Indeed. Perhaps it is time to notify the Despot move to deal with this threat."

"Do you think there are enough forces?"

"A single Chilliarchy of Comitatus is enough to send even an army of ten thousand trembling in fear. There are 2 Chilliarchy at Thessaloniki right now, along with 2 Battle Barges. Even with one and a half Chilliarchy, the Comitatenses should be able to deal with a daemon army more than 5 times the size."

"True. Relay the message to the Lord Despot then."

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

"So, the Shadow Lord is encroaching on my lands," said the Despot, who read the message relayed by the psyker relay corps. It was long time anticipated, and that the Despot and his Military commanders have been planning for such a contingency. After the subjugation of the lands around Thessaloniki, the army was resupplied and ready to march towards their next objectives. Nicopolis will have to wait. The army must march to Sedica to check the daemonic menance.

"Sire, we must respond quickly," said Macharius.

"Indeed we should. But we can't bring all 2000 Comitatenses with us. We have to leave a couple hundred behind to guard the area around Thessaloniki while we are raising our Thematic troops to control the area."

"I agree sire. We could bring some Naval vessels to support us. A Battle Barge, cruiser and frigate should be enough?"

"Should be. Bring along some artillery and anti-air artillery and some dragons just so to deal with any potential threats. We ride with 50 Grey Knights for escort."

"It will be done."

With that, the Despot and the Warmaster Macharius headed to the army to rouse them for war.


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

The Dark Army made camp at the foothill of a mountain, resting and preparing. The Dark Lord stood, in his human form, next to a magically created fire. He was deep in thought and the two vampire commanders, standing behind him, did not dare disturb him, so they waited. Suddenly the fire flickered and the shadows around it seemed to form into some kind of creature. With a short flash of magical energy a Nightshade appeared.

"What news do you bring me?", The Dark Lord asked.

"The Humans know of our arrival, an army marches to meet us. The one who calls himself God Emperor leads it.", The nightshade hissed with a creepy voice.

"Good.", The Dark Lord smiled, "Perhaps he will pose more of a challenge, than these pathetic Barbarians and Warp spawn."

He motioned with his hand and the Nightshade disappeared.

"Assemble my forces. We move immediately.", he said to the two commanders.

Turning back to the fire, he smiled, and with a thought he summoned a group of Horrors to his side.

"We come to serve you, Master.", the creatures spoke.

"Go forth and meet the Byzantine Army, show them the meaning of fear.", The Shadow Lord said, "And choose the strongest one among you, to strike at the Emperor himself. I wish to know the limits of his power."

"Yes, Master.", the creatures answered and vanished.

"So, it begins.", The Dark Lord said and marched out to take command of his army. Soon the Dark Hordes would descend upon the Humans and their Emperor.


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

The Army rode on horseback from Thessaloniki with the 3 warships flanking them in the air, and acting as spotters. The spotters in question were high up on the bridge of the warships with telescopes in hand. Flanking the Despot were his Grey Knight Varangian Guards, who kept a close watch for any possible dangers.

When the army finally left the safety of the watch towers that were erected on the Despotate's new borders, the army increased its speed, if only to get to Sedica faster and just so to shake off any pursuers. With the army on high alert, it will take serious sorcery to ambush it, not least the psykers that were using their powers to sense any trouble.

And trouble did come. "Halt," the Despot raised his hand. "It seems we have company of sorts." The Chapter Master of the Grey Knights agreed, "Some sorcery that reeks." Suddenly, one of the comitatenses raised his rifle and aimed at the Despot. The Chapter Master noticed the Comitatus and yelled, "He's been possessed! Seize him!" Giving a shriek, the possessed Comitatus struggled against his captors. The Horror that possessed the Comitatus, realizing it was futile, fled the body at once. The Comitatus fainted.

"This isn't over, there are more of them. Invisible to the eye, but they can possess more of our men," said the Despot. Trouble did come, and then the Despot soon found 20 guns aimed at him and a fierce struggle to disarm the possessed ones ensued. Furious that his men should be taken by these daemons, the Despot strode forward drawing on his psyker powers and moving to annihilate the horrors by destroying what was left of their corrupted souls. Then one of the Horrors, their leader, materialised right in front of him and a battle of wills ensued. The ground crackled with power as the Despot drew on his vast reserves of power and unleashed his full strength on the Horror. The Horror was stunned by the sheer intensity of the Despot's pychic powers and succumbed. Seizing him with a proverbial psychic force, the Despot told the minion, "Tell your master to meet me on the field of battle, instead of sending these pathetic vermin here. The next time I see you here with your sorry arse, I will use my power and simply annihiliate you where you stand." The Despot hurled the Horror away, and the other horrors, seeing their leader vanquished, immediately fled the field.

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

The armies if darkness marched in formation, the eternal night followed. At the head of the army the Dark Lord walked. The battle to come would be fierce and he prepared himself. With a small gesture of his hand he stopped the armies advance, focusing on something in the distance. Suddenly the Horrors appeared, cowering before the Lord of Shadows. They had failed their mission and were now begging for mercy. The Shadow Lord smiled and gestured for the leader of the horrors to come before him.

"Master, we have failed you.", the Horror said, "The Power of the human was too great, we could not defeat him."

The Dark Lord said nothing, but instead focused his energies and invaded the horrors magical mind, taking from it the memory of the recent battle and of the God Emperor of Man.

"You have not failed me.", the dark one finally spoke, "Your mission was a success."

"But...how master?", the horror asked.

"Simple. I wanted to test his power.", The Dark Lord said, "And I am not disappointed, he is truly a worthy foe."

"Master...what if he is strong enough to...", the horror stopped itself a few moments too late.

"Strong enough to...defeat me.", the Shadow Lord roared and with a strong gaze disintegrated the horror before him, "Nobody can defeat me."

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

Part of the army went on foot as they approarch Sedica. The city was largely inhabited by daemons, but it appeared that the Shadow Lord had beaten them to the prize. No matter, the army would use all its firepower to dislodge their foes and maul them to the ground.

"What do the spotters say?" asked the Despot.

"The enemy daemonic army has arrayed themselves before Sedica and clearly awaits our arrival," said Macharius.

"So the enemy awaits eagerly for our arrival? A standard set piece battle? I'm okay with that. Order our army into the usual formations."

"Yes Sire."

With their battle standards arrayed, the army marched proudly before the daemonic army. The army was small in size, but it was clear to the daemonic army that their foes before them were not ordinary men; they were Comitatenses. Enhanced humans, the Comitatenses were the strongest and fastest humans around. They may lack psyker or alchemical powers, excepting the Librarians of each Chiliarchy, but they made ordinary men look small and weak. Their horses were not ordinary horses either. The Adeptus Alchemi created alchemically enhanced horses which were stronger and had tougher skins and could attack their foes with their strong jaws with sharp teeth.

When the battle array was ready, the daemonic army unleashed their sorcery; day became night. The daemons craved the darkness, for it filled them with strength. To the Comitatenses, their eyes were enhanced such that they could see well in the dark, even with their helmets on.

The Despot then rode out with the Chapter Master of the Grey Knights and the Warmaster Macharius by his side. The Shadow Lord strode forward to meet the Despot. The air was filled with power as both leaders glared at each other. "So we finally meet," said the Despot.

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

"I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS", spoke the Shadow Lord, his voice thundered across the battlefield, "IT WILL BE A PLEASURE TO KILL YOU."

"You are welcome to try, but I assure you that I am not easily killed.", replied the Despot.

Their eyes met and as they glared at each other, pure evil burning in the Demon Lords eyes, and determination in the eyes of the God Emperor. The air filled with tension, and it seemed that time itself was stopped. Nobody moved.

Then suddenly, the Dark Lord raised his sword and roared with his might voice, "CHARGE!" In response the Daemonic army rushed with great speed at the Comitatenses army arrayed before them. Arrows took to the night sky, and great balls of fire lifted from behind the dark army. The Despot did not stand idle, he gave the order and his mighty Comitatenses Legions charged at the Daemonic Army. The Two armies clashed with untold force, sending soldier and demon alike to their deaths.

The battle had begun.

Powerful magics unleashed by both sides, caused great destruction across the Battlefield. Golems ripped men to pieces, only to be brought down by the more powerful servants of the despot. Horrors possessed men and forced them to attack their own brethren, leaving them no choice but to kill their brothers or be killed. Psykers used their powers to destroy and drive away the horrors. Vampire soldiers killed and then proceeded to feed upon the blood of their victims, only to be killed in turn by other Comitatenses. Shadow Dragons descended from the skies, unleashing their powerful flames on the Despots armies and the mighty aerial navy of the despot unleashed a volley of death upon the Demon Army.

The fight, it seemed, would last for hours.

The Dark Lord himself cut a bloody path of destruction through the Human army, rushing to fight the God Emperor. He found him already in a fight with several Tana'ri Daemons, the Despot was surrounded. As the Demons charged him, the Despot unleashed his potent magics obliterating them in an instant. "Truly, a worthy adversary.", Thought the Shadow Lord as he fought his way to the despot. The Demon Lords path was blocked by a squad of Grey Knights, who summoned their powers and attacked. Unscathed by their attack, the Shadow Lord charged them, striking with his might sword he cut one down in half and with the second blow he beheaded two of them. Focusing his dark Power he desintergrated the remaining knights.

Spreading his wings he took to the air and scanned the area, looking for the despot. He found him and rushed through the air with great speed, striking from above with his sword he attacked the despot ferociously. The Despot managed to block his attack and now they were standing face to face, weapons poised to attack each other.

"This can only end in one way.", The Dark Lord said.

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

The Comitatenses did what they were trained to do. When the daemon army rushed at them, they raised their guns and the first 3 rows of men arranged themselves in line formation and fired volleys of bullets. When the daemons finally reached the 2 meter mark, their fellow men behind charged forward with spears and kept the enemy at bay while the men continued firing at will. At this, the golems rushed forward to break up the formation, kill and injure a few, only to be attacked with spear and sword and gun. The fighting was as fierce as it could get. Many a daemon and men perished in the fight. In the skies, the 3 warships and their dragon escorts engaged the enemy dragons with flak guns, fire and claw, while the artillery and warships unleashed torrents of death.

The Despot and the Shadow Lord engaged in fierce personal combat. The Despot used alchemy to hurl rain of sharp bullets, forcing the Shadow Lord to back off and shield himself with his wings. The Shadow Lord bellowed and breathed fire on the Despot, who then raised an psychic shield to shield himself. Sword and mace clashed again, and it was a battle of wills as both leaders used powers of the warp against each other, sending cracks into the ground and tearing boulders apart.

Both armies, seeing the cataclysm enveloping the area decided that it was a better idea to back off and retreat a distance. It was clear that their leaders were using all their powers on each other, and the armies feared getting caught in the wirlwind of power. Dragging off their injured, they rushed a great distance away. The fight between the two great powers went unabated.

"Indeed you are a worthy foe as I so desired," the Shadow Lord gave a savage grin. "It's been a long time since I encountered one, what with most of the other leaders either too weak or too reliant on their "Gods" for power."

"God granted this strength to me, so that I can be his emissary and his sword to strike down blasphemies such as yourself. I will tear you apart where you stand, and utterly destroy you and your daemonic soul," the Despot raised his sword and fire ran through the sword and the Despot's eyes flashed with crimson power.

Laughing savagely, "I would like to see you try, human! I can see you have "God's" grace upon you, what with you having lived for the last few hundred years, far longer than any human has. But this is your day of reckoning!"

And they were fighting again. Both sides sought to gain an upper hand, or to deny the other the chance of doing so. The Shadow Lord hurled warp energies rivaling any mere daemon prince which carved up the landscape. The Despot, the God Emperor of Man, responded in kind, and used both psyker and alchemy to attack and defend. The fight lasted day and night, and the landscape around them changed forever.

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

Days had passed since the fight between the Shadow Lord and the God Emperor began, and yet they were still going at it, as hard as they did when the fight first began. The two armies had long ago separated, leaving the middle ground free for the two fierce opponents. The damage done was immense, craters and cracks littered the earth, scorch marks and dead grass. This was clearly a battlefield of the gods.

"Come human, come to your death.", The Shadow Lord thundered as he charged the Despot once again. A lightning quick move of his sword and the despot had barely enough time to block the attack, as a result he was sent flying through the air. The Despot landed with a painful thud, some twenty meters away. Slowly he began to rise, but the Shadow Lord was already on top of him, poised to strike.

The Despot blocked the attack with his sword and then counterattacked with such ferocity that the surprised the Shadow Lord had no time to respond, he took a blow directly to the chest and was sent flying through the air, he slammed down on top of a dead Golem.

"Damn you human.", the Dark Lord shouted as he got up, "It's time to end this." Suddenly the night became darker as the Shadow Lord began chanting ancient demonic words, the earth shook and split, and the glow in his eyes intensified.

Realizing what was about to happen, the Despot began to summon his own powers. Soon the entire area was shaking and the skies filled with thunder, lightning struck down randomly across the Battlefield. As the Earth cracked, massive amounts of dust took to the air, blocking the sight of the two combatants.

Nearly a kilometer away on one side of the Battlefield, the Despots soldiers watched with awe and a terror at the unfolding scene.

"My Lord, we must help the Despot.", one of the soldiers said with an almost panicked voice.

"There is nothing we can do.", answered Warmaster Macharius, "When the Gods fight, the Mortals hide.

Meanwhile on the other side of the Battlefield the Vampire Commanders of the Shadow Lord discussed their options.

"And what happens if our master is defeated.", shouted one of the Commanders.

"Our master will not be defeated.", Shouted back Victor a General of the army, "You are a traitor for even thinking of that outcome."

Victor drew his sword and pointed it at the cowardly commander, "And you know how we deal with traitors."

"No.", was the only thing the commander managed to say before Victor ran him through with his sword. And as his dead body fell, the remaining officers returned to watching the great battle just in time to see a massive release of magical energies, both good and evil. A shock wave of tremendous power spread out across the Battlefield. The fight it seemed had ended, but the winner could not be seen.

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

The psykers and alchemists shuddered as the Despot used one of the most powerful forbidden alchemical seals which no alchemist is allowed to use, except under the authorisation of the Despot himself. The Despot had used the Alchemical seal of destruction and creation that was only typically used to create the philosopher stone. The seal can be used in battle as well, to destroy the enemy, but often it was a suicidal move; the seal had the potential to destroy the alchemist and the target together if the alchemist wasn't strong enough. The Despot however was not an ordinary alchemist, and he was using both his powers of the warp and alchemy to obliterate the Shadow Lord. On the Shadow Lord's part, he was using powerful runes to draw on the powers of the Warp even more strongly, far more strongly than even the strongest of daemon princes. A warp vortex materialised and was threatening to rip apart the local fabric of space and time. "This is it! Die!" yelled the Shadow Lord.

"Not if I can help it!" yelled the Despot.

The two opposing powers clashed, with devastating consequences. The resulting explosion reduced everything in the path of the shockwave, levelling even hills and making new hills. Both armies shuddered and trembled at utter fear at the terrible powers unleashed. This was a day that would be forever remembered in song and in word. When the dust cleared, all eyes looked into the center of the conflagration and feared what they might see.

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

The Warp

Both Gods woke in a place filled with strange energies that twirled around. There were strange voices in the air. Some were pleading, some were full of joy, some full of hate. It was a song of madness, and lesser beings would do well not to listen. The two leaders looked around in wonder.

"What the hell is this place?" grumbled the Shadow Lord.

"You opened up a rift in the physical world into the Warp, and you ask me this?" grumbled the Despot. "What happened I guess, is that the energies we unleashed were so great that you and I destablised the warp gate and sent us flying into it in the midst of the shockwave."

"It's your bloody fault!"

"Oh calm down, there might be a way out of this."

"How!?"

"Ironically, I think it will require both our powers to get out of here...."

"Are you bloody serious? Why, I don't mind if we get on fighting here for all bloody eternity for all I care."

"That certainly befits perhaps a Daemon avatar of Khorne."

"Daemon avatar of Khorne?!? I am the embodiment of Khorne himself!"

"Yes yes, hence I used 'avatar'. Let's not get into a fight over semantics and syntax shall we? We still have to figure out how to get out of here."

"I thought you said you had a plan!?"

"It was a theory but it isn't tested. Can you try opening a warp vortex back to the physical realm?"

Muttering lots of curses, the Shadow Lord tried to activate a warp vortex, but the spells failed to work. "Well that screws things a little. Why don't your powers work?" asked the Despot.

"Why don't you try?"

"I already did mentally. Somehow, where ever we are is blocking our powers. I have no idea what is really going on. I had thought a creature of the Warp such as yourself was better attuned to such an environment."

"Apparently I am not," the Shadow Lord glowered sullenly. "Again it is your bloody fault! IF you had allowed me to destroy you, this wouldn't have happened."

"Oh be quiet. I could say the same of you as well!"

"Perhaps we should decide that right now!"

Both of them drew their weapons and clashed, albeit with less effect now that their powers were somehow blocked. After clashing aimlessly, suddenly, a loud cacophony of voices yelled "STOP!"

"What?!" they said as they looked around for the source of the voices. Suddenly, the four Great Gods of Chaos, the God Yahweh himself appeared. Stunned by the appearance of all God himself, they prostrated before them in fear.

"Oh get up. You two have fought enough like children as it is," commanded Yahweh. "You see, between me and the powers of Chaos, we concocted a plan, to either bend all humanity and daemons to our will, or to destroy them. You two were to be our instruments of our will."

The two of them could not quite comprehend what they were just told and looked totally dumbstruck. Khorne, the Blood God, spoke, "After the arising of David, who wrecked havoc using all manners of powers, using the powers of the Warp in such a destructive why that Yahweh took action and warned us to either bring balance, or he would destroy the world as it stood. Because of that, we actually aided the remaining nations in the Europe to stop David, and here we are. The idea now is to bring balance and not ... to let too much of the status quo get disrupted."

"You meaning us to work together..." said the Shadow Lord in disbelief.

"Yes, my blood thirsty friend," said Khorne.

The Despot blinked and looked at Yahweh. "Yes, my dear God Emperor, you are to bring balance with the Shadow Lord, and not fight. Since what is done, is done, we can only hope to return the world to some kind of balance between daemon and human. Either do that, or we will, well trap you two here till you two decide to do what we tell you to do."

Both leaders looked at each other, and sighed. They shook hands... though neither of them was clear on what this "plan" was. Then both of them faded from the realm and returned to the physical world.

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

"What I need is daemon slaves just so that I can sacrifice them to create philosopher stones. These stones require sacrifice. While daemon souls aren't good raw material for these stones, but they would do. Just sacrifice more to get the same effect. Plus, I want powerful daemons to entrap them in homunculi, alchemically engineered humans, so that these daemonhosts can wreck havoc on my enemies. Homunculi are better vessels for these daemons, since they can be created with the control wards imprinted throughout the body rather than just grafted on," said the Despot. The two of them were sharing a drink in the deserted city of Sedica.

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

"You shall have as many demons as you need, I'll even throw in some human slaves if you want.", The Dark Lord said and downed his cup in a single gulp, "This new...alliance will take some time to adjust to, but we have no choice in the matter. Anything you need, I will provide. I of course expect the same from you." The Shadow Lord poured himself another cup and raised it in the air. "We drink to our new alliance, for it shall be a glorious one.", he said, "And as for our fight, I want you to know that I plan on finishing it once our task is complete."

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

"If you so wish, we can trade. Provide us the raw material, and we will give you some philosopher stones in exchange. The stones are one of the main foundations of our technology. Without it, we won't even have flying warships. Our alchemy allows us to match anyone's technology and magic. With the philosopher stone, we can achieve just about anything."

"Alright then. To our task!"

Both drank up their wines, in what was certainly going to be... a fascinating partnership.

(Note: about 200-500 points of damage on both sides. We will figure it out later. Most were injuries which should be patched up at the start of the next turn.)

[DarthShady]

The woods of Pogoria
Deep within the forest
Small Lake

This small lake was like so many others, a place where animals and people alike came to seek out the life giving substance. It was night and the animals came to drink, hiding in the dark from the predators of the day. Suddenly as if sensing something that no human could they began to flee. Near the shore shadows began to intensify and soon formed into a cloaked human figure, but this creature was anything but human. The cloaked figure approached the shore and leaned over the water, pulling a small bottle from it's pockets.

It began to pour the contents of the bottle into the lake, the water swirled and instantly changed its color to green and then after a few seconds the water changed back to normal. The cloaked figure looked around and then placed something on the ground near the lake. The object was a fingernail that belonged to a Demon Lord whose lands bordered Pogoria. If anybody investigated using magical or any other means they would think the Demon responsible.

The cloaked creature rose from the ground and then vanished in a shimmer of light and darkness.

The Following morning

The Peasants were getting up, and getting ready for another hard day of work. The moved about the village, preparing their tools and talking to each other. Suddenly there was a scream, and then another one, and another one. And soon the village was swarming with wild animals which attacked the humans, but these were no ordinary animals, they were the undead. The poison that was unleashed upon the lake was a plague made of pure evil, a plague that turned its victims into zombies. These Zombie animals soon killed all the humans, turning them into more zombies.

These undead animals and humans had but one instinct, and that was to feed upon flesh. They swarmed through the forests of Pogoria, infecting both man and animal alike. Spreading the plague.

Result: Zombie infestation of Pogoria

[Akhlut]

"So the Shadow Lord and Iustinius went to war? What was the outcome?"

"We're not sure, elected lord, what has come back from Constantinople has been hard to decipher, to say the least."

"Send the senior envoy. Find out what happened and send our finest wine to either congratulate the emperor on his victory or in remembrance of his fall in combat. And report back to me as soon as possible. Even if that means contacting a Deep One to report it to me personally."

---------

The Basilica of St. Constantine was being built as swiftly as possible. Large foundations were sunk and the great building was already halfway built. That was the advantage of Surtite workers: they could assemble large buildings much quicker than any human. However, that was not all that was being done: the walls were already being expanded and thickened and the gates rebuilt to make sure the vital trade city would remain in Republican hands.

--------

Paul Manuel had arrived in Krakow with his fire giant workers and they set about building the diplomatic mission in Pogoria. They had been here for two months, and already the holy building was almost complete. It was to be an embassy, a hospital, a church, and a monastery, all in one. And it was going to be great at all its functions, as Paul Manuel was no ordinary priest, he was one of the high priests, with magical powers given by Zeus All-Mighty and Christ All-Mighty. He would heal the sick to show them the mercy of Christ, he would preach the majesty of Zeus the Father, and he was no slouch in diplomacy, either.

Now, the main thing needed to be done in the Church of Christ Pantokrator was to finish the interior. The giants couldn't do all of that, as some rooms had to be crafted for humans, not Surtites, but, the building's majesty was plain to see from the exterior.

[Zor]

Outside Novgorod

The lines were well dug in while the sound of cannonshot after cannonshot and rockets ranged through the air. A nonstop salvo of shot and shell. It had been four days since the Novgorodian Army had been defeated and two and a half since the seige had begun. Several of the battlements were hit during the bombing raid, preventing too much counterfire. Most of the Cavaliers were escorting the prisonners to points where they could be moved to more secure locals. Several longships had begun a hasty evacuation along the Volkhov River, although a few field guns and conmandiers Novogordian Cannons on the coastline north of the City had ended that attempted exodus. When the Seige began, the cadaver of the former prince was dropped from a Markov airship with a parachute, along with a note tied to his chest simply stating that their army had been obliterated and now the people of Novgorod could either surrender or face the wrath of the Red Tsardom's military. Their had been no responce so far beyond some cannon fire.

That changed as the sight of the long whalelike silouettes of airships became visiable and approached. The people of Novgorod had faced the simple destructive power which a force of Kirov Airships could deliver. The result was panic among the streets and within a few minutes, the sixteen year old Igor-V, already faced with conisderable devistation on the capital without hope of sufficient re-enforcements to overcome the beseiging army, finally gave the order to the forces and as such, Novgorod was forced to surrender.

Imperial Proving grounds, Outside Moscow

Tsar Mikhail exited his personnal transport at the testing range as it's operator opened the door for him. The vehicle was a gift built for him by the Imperial Academy of Engineering and Science as a coronation gift, a steam powered horseless carriage. As he left the car, he saw was met by the cheif engineer on the project, Pavel Kalinnikov.

"Greatings your majesty!" he said eagerly, he had been working on this project for some time now "We have managed to get some very promising results from the test firing so far, as well as displaying it's firepower to some senior generals. If i may say, you should be impressed."

"I have read the reports and they seem impressive my good engineer," he said calmy and cooly "we will see."

He quickly walked over to inspect the newly completed article. It was a massive piece, 250mm caliber with a rifled barrel like a seige gun, although longer, as well as being breech loading. It required a specialized carriage and apperntly worked using a firing pin system. The entire affair was quite impressive sight as is. After about a minute, he turned to a bunker to observe the weapon in action.

He sat back and and watched as the collosal piece was loaded and fired, first a line of sight shot, then ballistically. Afterwards, he and the engineer were given pair of horses and rode to see the damage it inflicted on a target house assembled for firing purposes. On the way, he read off a set of plans. It seemed quick firing and accurate weapon, exactly what the proposed prides of the new navy needed although it would take some time to build more of these monsters.

The Tsar smiled "Well, i am impressed, definately the sort of firepower we need to deal with the threats that have come to present themselves. Tell Iosep-I that production will begin shortly."

"It is an honor that my work has earned your praise, your majesty."

"And earned it you have," he said "this will allow us defense against some of the more powerful threats the world has to offer, such as those floating Spheres of that army of Darkness. Now i have another demonstration." With that the two road back. After a short while, he dismounted and walked to the firing range where Pyotr Dmitrivich of the ledgendary design team Dmitrivich/Alexandrov.

"Pyotr Dmitrivich." He said as he extended his hand.

"Your Majesty, a pleasure to see you again." He said as he took the hand of his monarch. "Once again, we have something for you, it may not be as impessive as that cannon, but it should help us maintain our advantage in firearms technology." With that he opened a box, reveiling the newly made prototype rifle, it was a breach loader of some sort. "This is the production version of those rifles which your Angels of Death were made, using a spring loaded needle to set off an internal precussion cap. It lacks the runic, alchemically re-enforced barrel but it still perfectly servicable." Pyotr quickly ran it's operation over to the Tsar. Within a minutes time, he loaded, shouldered the gun and fired, then reloaded, sholdered and fired again.

"With proper drilling, a soldier can get off ten shots off a minute with one of these rifles with the same range as either a Model 89 or 99 and can be easilly reloade and fired from horseback. With these newer rifles, we could be able to give a collosal advantage to our soldiers that our foes could not match."

"Why, would they be unable to reproduce them? I have read reports tha Pogoria has managed to aquire foreign gunsmiths."

Pyoter grinned "I don't think that reproducing the firearms would be beyond them." He picked up one of the Rifles brass Cartidges "The ammunition is another thing altogether, my Tsar. It requires substantial mechanization to produce in bulk."

"Alright, give me a full report on the matter, and deliver some 50 of these rifles to the Army for trials."

"We shall arrange it immediately your Majesty." He said.

Imperial Palace, Moscow, a few hours latter

Tsar Mikhail-I sat down at the office, sipping a warm cup of tea as he finished signing the letter. When he was done, he handed it to Natasha to be sent out via airship to Pogoria which would carry their diplomatic staff to the Tsardom. The Craft was to deliver the message to the King of Pogoria, it simply was a friendly congradulations to the King, along with a small chest containing a few small gifts, among them being a bottle of Absinthe along with a cast brone Ursiod Warrior and gold plated compass and sextant.

Results-Novgorod Falls
-Tsar Mikhail evaluates Naval Artillery and a new type of Rifle
-Tsar Mikhail Sends his best wishes to the the Pogorian King

[Master_Baerne]

Fortress Baerne
Duke James' Chambers
Sovereign Duchy of Baerne

"So you see, Your Grace, the demons and the Byzantines have abandoned all pretense of civility and joined together, that they may more easily destroy us all!" Lord James of Lannister, the Lord Commander of the Ducal Guard, nearly spat the words. His duty was to protect the duke, and the forces no allied against all that he held dear would not make that task any easier.

"Peace, Lord James. Master Illmarinen, what do the Black Jewels have to say?" The duke was unusually serene for a man who had just witnessed, albeit by crystal, the corruption of an emperor.

"You Grace, the Bright Shadow has yet to cast it's light upon the subject. Mistress Alouette is even now conferring with it."

"Very well. Send emissaries to the Empires of the Seine and Gurren-Britannia, as well as the Starfall Dominion. Let them know what's happened, and that we intend to stand against the tide of darkness. We invite them to do the same."

"Yes, Your Grace."

Results: Gurren-Brittania, the Empire of the Seine, and the Starfall Dominion receive invitations to the Grand Alliance, the stated goal of which is the annihilation of all things demonic and, by extension, Byzantine.

[PeZook]

Krakow, Pogoria

Radoslaw gazed upon the city from the ramparts of Wawel Castle, having freshly returned from Copenhagen. The festivities lasted for six days, and the sheer splendor was a sight as marvellous as any work of engineering. But anything that's good has to come to an end, and thus Radoslaw boarded a Danish airship along with his wife and departed Copenhagen for Krakow. Along with them came the delegation to Byzantium, which travelled by ship around the entire continent of Europe, bringing with them three gunsmiths to work in the capital

Back home, matters of state have piled up for the King to handle. A strange plague has broken out in the southern mountains, with tales of undead walking and poisoned water. Dobrogost left the castle to investigate the matter.

The Tsardom was on the march, and Novgorod has fallen to their armies, as the news would have it. This was a troubling development, but the newly forged marriage alliance with Denmark has significantly improved Pogoria's situation when dealing with the Tsar - and he seemed friendly, so far. At least production of seed drills and other mechanized contraptions was proceeding smoothly.

Radoslaw turned around and walked inside. These were troubling times indeed...

Tatry mountains

Dobrogost extended his palm and let go a mighty shout in a secret tongue, known only to the few. The undead bear staggered and fell to the ground, its skull smashed in by tremendous force borne out of the wind itself.

The Druid Speaker and his small party of casters and warriors looked closely at the still-twitching beast. It was a horrible creature, retching of decay and disease.

"No use staring. We should get to work."

The druids dismounted, while woodsmen warriors clad in enchanted armor formed a perimeter around the area. The casters drew ancient symbols on trees and placed two small amber stones in the eyes of the falen bear. Then they began to chant.

The sound carried far, as if the trees themselves passed it on, whispering to each other in languages long forgotten. It a deep, low chant, in tune with the Motherwood. Even the mountains towering above the ancient forests knew the words, and echoes seemed to repeat them.

The bear's spirit was still trapped within the empty husk by vile poisons, and the chant released it. The essence of the mighty animal rose from the ground and communed with the druids, explaining to them what happened.

The chants stopped soon thereafter, and the party mounted their horses.

"Did the beast tell you anything, master druid?", asked the woodsmen leader.

"Yes...a foul creature has infected a water sprout nearby. We should make haste towards it - I fear several settlements have fallen prey to the disease already."

"What kind of creature?"

"A daemon, most likely...a troubling development indeed."

Krakow, Pogoria

"You shall be granted this estate to do with as you please. I have been instructed to aid you in any way I can.", said the Pogorian. The Byzantine master gunsmith looked at the building he was granted - a large house and smithy in the center of town, sturdily built and equipped with basic tools. He nodded to himself...it would take work, but tales he was told about these wild lands were vastly exaggerated.

"First, bring me paper, ink and wine. I have to make some drawings for your craftsmen."

His Pogorian assistant bowed and walked out of the smithy. The Byzantine gunsmith looked at the small amber necklace he used for translation and sighed...he'd have to learn the local language. Those things were giving him a horrible headache.

Results:

- The plague is being dealt with, you fucking assholes
- Pogoria is getting ready for sowing the fields next year by using seed drills
- The spring will also see Pogorian troops armed with firearms

[Zor]

Prison Camp, outside Novgorod

"Alright, in you go!" Seargent Lodygin said as he escorted the captives into the boat. Things were preceeding quite fast as prisonners were transfered to the Neva Development project. In two weeks some eight thousand people (many of which being Novgorodian as well as various other conquered delinquents) had been loaded onto ships running between Novgorod the Neva Base to develop the foundations for the Naval Base at the Neva River's mouth. The ships were manned by Novgorodian Sailors, either for pay or prison labourers under supervision of Streltsi. The private watched as the last person was loaded aboard the Longboat as the lot of them were shackled in, and looked at the number whom remained and watched as more cartloads arrived. A few details of these had been put to work loading supplies, building temporary housing, moving things about, cleaning and cooking while several of the more skilled captive worked in a set of makeshift forges and labour sights making tools such as shovels and wheelbarrows out of wood and captured weapons and working on assembling a couple of steamers under tight supervision of overseers. Never the less, most of them were simply staying idile, having nothing to to do, However, as soon as they arrived at their destination, that would change.

Outside Mikhail Fortress

The some 300 Streltsi, sisters and labourers stationed at Mikhail Fortress had prepared as best they could for the eventual influx of prison laborers, building docks to let them in and building holding pens and makeshift shelters, as well as engaging in a large amount of fishing, smoking and picking to provide additional food for them on their arrival. Never the less, within only a single day said pen was stuffed filled with various convicts, POWs and rebels and more were comming in every day. Just as many of them were being used to set up the accomidations for the comming workforce as were engaged in building up the swampland of the island into something which would be a city. Some 750 additional soldiers (as well as 50 additional sisters) had been deployed to keep the laborers in line as well as to engage in some minor work themselves, although progress was still slow. A team of Warrior Alchemists led By Sergei Gagarin himself had also arrived with a large keg of Alchemite yesterday, using the whole affair to convert a streach of coastline and swamp (along with a load of clay) into what would soon be a trio of drydocks, complete with a waterproof lining and accomidations for the planned equipment, all that needed to be done was to dig out the unwanted material and move it to areas where it actually would be useful. Water was doing Part of the Job already, but the bulk of the work still had to be done by hand. At the same time, the sound of pile drivers hammering in logs constantly filled the air day and night. There were a few runaways, but the sight of a couple of them being either captured and tied up outside without food or drink for a couple of days or shot, along with a few slideshows on disease and offhand rumours about vengeful spirits which caused horrible, maddening nightmares to those who fell asleep outside the vicinity of the Runestone kept the majority of them in line. Things as they stood were badly orginized, but slowly getting into a more ordery state of affairs as the swampland was slowly being remade into the city of Mikhailsgrad.

Novgorodian Stables

For the first few days the creatures was quite angry, shreaking and lashing out at the the Streltsi as they devilered them daily loaves of bread and butter, along with the odd Fish, Apple or Rat as treat. A couple of men got some nasty scars doing it, but recently they had become more calm and accustumed to their new owners, although according to the keepers, it would take some time before the Bats would be willing to take them on a ride.

Moscow

Moscow was a large city, with some 450,000 people (Ursiods included) calling her home. There were the Elite of the Civil Services and Industrialists living in elegant neighbourhoods, the tenements of the working men and women which kept the city fuctioning and everything in between, as well as parks, schools, temples of one sort or another, various structures and so forth. On many of these were various posters, some promoting naitonalistic sentiment, fitness and education, others decrying alcoholism, poor hygine and other such problems, others served as advertisements, some for brands of soap or plays, others for more nationalistic affairs like police or military service. However, today many posters were new, they displayed men in newly designed white uniforms, they displayed the ocean and spoke of adventure and heroism, patriotism on the high seas in the newly created services known as the "Navy" and "Marines". People were becoming interested.

Results-Mikhailsgrad begins to rise from the Swampland of the Neva River Delta
-The Tsardom aquires some giant Novgorodian Bats, although it will be some time before it can use them.
-The Tsardom begins Naval Recruitment

[Siege]

Temple of Ra, Memphis

High priest Imhotep entered the Inner Sanctum pressing a silken handkerchief to his nose. Blood slowly trickled from it. Holding another hand to his throbbing head, he gazed at the Pharaoh. "Did you feel that?"

Pharaoh Atum-Ra did not immediately answer. The great king sat meditating on the bare stones in the midst of the sanctum. Sparse wall-mounted torches threw flickers of light and shadow over his face. Something was strangely off about the sanctum. Light didn't move quite the way it should, and the room seemed to somehow contain more dimensions than it ought to.

Most of this massive, sprawling temple complex in the midst of the capital city was dedicated to Aten-Ra, the sun disk aspect of the god that was most commonly worshipped. But this Sanctum, which lay at the very heart of the temple, was instead dedicated to Amun-Ra, the supreme deity as the hidden one, who was on the hidden paths. This room was coiled up, stretched out between strange dimensions. Here, the Pharaoh and the greatest priests of the Egyptian Cult came to meditate upon the true nature of the cosmos and all the Gods.

"Yes", the Pharaoh finally answered. "A disturbance in the fabric of reality. It... tickled."

"Tickled?" the high priest sounded vaguely indignant. "I'm going to have a headache for days. Three of my far-scryers have suffered fatal haemorragings."

The Great King of Egypt shrugged lightly. "The leaders of Byzantium and the shadowrealm of Eastern Europe fought, and buckled the skein of actuality. It would appear they have now formed a pact, between their nations and the gods of a far reality they call the warp. This I have been told by the great god Ra, the mover of ways."

Imhotep frowned. "Should this pact concern us?"

"No. But it should concern the nations of Europe."

Result: Egypt follows with interest the developments in Europe. Also, interdimensional magics!

[Karmic Knight]

To Duke James Baerne of Baerne.

Good Duke, your intentions are noble, and your goal is true. The Empire is willing to support your endeavours. Our pact of mutual defence necessities this, for if you are to call a Holy Crusade, it is imperative that you not endanger your allies unwillingly.

I feel though, that your statements are counter productive of our goal, remember the tides, the one of righteousness may fall when we need it most. Thusly, I believe a union of this sorts should follow more, secular arrangements.

Signed,

Lord Partik La Fortunate, Follower of the Eternal King, His Majesty’s Voice, His Majesty’s Eyes, His Majesty’s Will, His Majesty’s Divine Messenger, Supreme Commander of His Majesty’s Forces in Combat and in Peacetime.

[Darkevilme]

The chamber of lights

A dazzling chamber, not a place for a shadow to hide from the hundred lights that bleach the stone white with their radiance.
“In the Darkest hour of the darkest day we gather.”
“We gather.”
“The council of stars is hereby convened.”
“Our beneficiaries have been informed that the eastern Shadow is no longer constrained by conflict and is free to turn its eye towards us.”
“This is a complication, our schedule did not make allowances for this. The awakening is not yet complete.”
“Indeed, however the north seems willing to stand with our beneficiaries against the Shadow. They to see the danger. This will buy us time to complete the awakening.”
“Let us hope it does not perturb them unduly.”
“Indeed. They have not built up a degree of trust in our ways. Nevertheless the plan must come to pass.”
“What of our Beneficiaries expansion? If they must hold forces in reserve to battle this Shadow then the schedule of their expansion cannot be met.”
“Reduce the schedule, this being of Shadow has accelerated our plans. Nonetheless when the awakening is complete he will be dealt with.”
“Can we not coax our Beneficiaries into accelerating the awakening?”
“Unfortunately not, their skepticism prevents it. Their efforts can be funneled into opposing the Shadow most readily however.”
“Send articles of cooperation to Baerne. What plans do we have to oppose the Shadow?”
“With Baernish aid a new airship design may become most useful in this endeavour. The proposal calls for a much enlargened and ensorcelled gasbag and strengthened gondola in order to support dragon and serpentforces.”
“Design will be fast tracked, initial vessel construction will commence. Any other proposals?”
“A forward fortress built at the tip of this years expansion in order to provide an amassing point for allied forces.”
“Useful but a dilution of focus, for now we will focus on the strengthening of mobile forces.”
“A reduced expansion schedule would reserve two of the armies for opposing the shadow and allow for the claiming of twelve territories nonetheless.”
“Then we are prepared?”
“What of Corwin?”
“He is outmatched by this being, nonetheless prepare him for battle. His presence will solidify morale for our beneficiaries.”
“Indeed, then our course is set. We will prepare, we will ally, we will overcome.”
“The council of stars is concluded.”
And the lights slowly went out.

Castle Kagnay
The foundation of a massive scaffold forms, a vast frame that when complete will dwarf those used previously in the construction of airships. A forest of new work sheds forming up at its feet, adept enchanters, ironworkers, carpenters and artisans all needing a roof over their heads as they prepare for the grandest project yet.

Message to Baerne
Noble Duke James of Baerne
The Dominion, laying as it does under direct threat from this dark alliance of the lord of Shadows and the Despotate, pledges its support to your campaign for its undoing. Immediate commitment to such on the Dominion's part is the sending north of a half of our airship fleet to aid in logistical activities, it should arrive a short time after this message.

Signed, Lord Yannic of Hrun, Lord Eric of Kagnay, Lord Gautier of Olrik.

Results:
Two armies reassigned
Massive dragon carrier airship construction preparations commence
Diplomacy
5 airfrigates and six airships sent to Baerne. Can carry 1100 infantry.

[Oseng]

The northern border of the Kingdom of Dolgan

General Becher waited patiently as three huge birds, with beautiful silver and while plumage, flew over his camp before swooping down to a landing in front of his command tent.

The trio of Great Birds seemed to shimmer and blur for a moment like an illusion, hiding them from sight for a moment, before three humans with wings the same color as the Great Bird's feathers stood in their place.

"General!" The lead Wyndian soldier said, snapping to attention and bringing his fist to his chest in salute. "I have a dispatch for you from the Twin Thrones in Scande."

The Wyndian soldier, whose surcoat bore the insignia of a captain in the messenger division, stepped forward and handed a scroll to the general. Though small the scroll was carved with runes of warding and protection, and it's wax seal bore a potent rune of sealing.

"Very well." The General of Dolgan's northern army said, returning the messenger Captain's salute. "You are dismissed."

The lead Wyndian soldier nodded and then he gestured to the others, leading the way towards the eastern part of the General's fortified camp where the messengers billets were.

General Becher sighed and shook his head for a moment before turning and heading back into his headquarters tent. He carefully checked that the runestone sat to one side of the tent, engraved with runes to prevent magical spying among other things, was intact with no signs of tampering before taking a seat at a small camp table.

Pricking his finger he let a few drops of his blood fall onto the rune pressed into the wax of the seal, which glowed for a few seconds with a hazy blue light before the wax seal simply vanished.

The general picked the scroll up and unrolling it he began to read what the Twin Thrones wished for him to do.

After a few moments Becher sighed and rolled the scroll back up, tossing it into a braizer and watching it to ensure it burned to ashes. It appeared that the King and Queen of Dolgan were finally ready to expand their realm.

RESULTS
-Northern Army (Half of my land forces) moves northward, gathering on the border and preparing for an invasion of the nearby provinces.

[Zor]

Neva River Delta

Many of the inmates had taken a look at the odd craft as it moved about doing its job since it arrived yesterday, as it was simply like nothing they saw before. It was a barge of some sort, about 20 meters long and manned by about twenty men. Unlike so many other craft, was not powered by the wind or oars, rather it used a pair of turning metal fans, like those on a windmill according to a few of the guards, to propell, powered somehow using a wood fire which a good deal of the island's recently felled trees were used to supply. However, the oddest thing about it was it's digging buckets, it used a sort of framework with a chain of buckets on it powered by the same mechanism to scoop up the floor of the river and deliver the material to the shore, either when it docked or loaded onto smaller craft to be unloaded onto rafts while it worked, and be packed in.

Crimea

Nicolai Gudzenko had recently finished a considerable amount of paperwork when he summoned a pair of Dwarfish artisans to his office and was happy for the change of pace. It was not that he was a lazy man, but rather that he prefered doing actual engineering work than filling out requests and forms. After a few quick greetings, he pulled out a Cylinder and from it pulled out a set of blueprints for a special catagory of explosive ordinace. Other things have taken priority, but now it was time to give the Crimean Republic a solid advantage at sea.

"Gentlemen, This type of bomb is specificially designed for underwater demolition, specifically demolition of enemy ships and has been tested in the Tsardom in the Moscow River. With training, deep ones could quickly attach these devices to the hull of a craft and detonate it, rupturing the hall and sending the ship to the Abyss. I sugjest we begin working on this project as soon as possible."

Results-Dredging!
-Naval Demolition explosives for Crimea!

[DarthShady]

Somewhere in Pogoria

The forest trees seemed to bend with the wind, and almost touch upon the surface of the small lake. A truly beautiful place, were it not for the evil poison that lurked in the lake. Suddenly beneath one of the great trees the shadows began to swirl and a cloaked figure appeared. It looked around with its red demonic eyes, and then proceeded to move towards the lake. The figure pulled out a small bottle of blue liquid from one of it's pockets and poured it into the lake. The lake reacted quickly and flashed with a bright blue light. At the same time, every single creature that had been infected fell dead, the dark energies were gone. The evil zombie plague had been removed.

The creature then vanished as quickly as it appeared.

Result: The Pogorian Zombie Plague is over.

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

Imperial Chronicles

To his Majesties the Tsar of Red Tsardom, the King of Pogoria, Basileus of the Crimean Republic, Shadow Lord of the Shadow Empire

The Despot of the Despotate of Byzantium sends his greetings and blessings. It has come to our attention that we all share common needs and threats and I believe the Crimean Republic will be an excellent choice to site a meeting to discuss the strategic situation and to come to a common understanding as to how best to approach the situation.

I hope you will look upon this proposal favourably and we can all meet in the Crimean Republic as soon as possible.

The Despot

[Zor]

Imperial Chronicles

To his Majesties the Tsar of Red Tsardom, the King of Pogoria, Basileus of the Crimean Republic, Shadow Lord of the Shadow Empire

The Despot of the Despotate of Byzantium sends his greetings and blessings. It has come to our attention that we all share common needs and threats and I believe the Crimean Republic will be an excellent choice to site a meeting to discuss the strategic situation and to come to a common understanding as to how best to approach the situation.

I hope you will look upon this proposal favourably and we can all meet in the Crimean Republic as soon as possible.

The Despot

Imperial Palace, Moscow

Natasha Vladimirova entered the Tsar's office after having been requested "Yes sire?"

"Have a Markov Airship readied for departure as soon as possible for my personnal use, arrange for my personnal bodyguard to be ready have your luggage packed. I have an important meeting to attend in Crimea."

"Your attending yourself?" She said cautiously

"Of course, i still have my promice to Lavrov and this will be a meeting of sovereign rulars. It is only befitting that the Red Tsar himself will attend to represent Moscow and the Crimson Enlightenment on such a Grand Embassy."

Results-Tsar Mikhail-I is on his way to Crimea

[Akhlut]

Imperial Chronicles

To his Majesties the Tsar of Red Tsardom, the King of Pogoria, Basileus of the Crimean Republic, Shadow Lord of the Shadow Empire

The Despot of the Despotate of Byzantium sends his greetings and blessings. It has come to our attention that we all share common needs and threats and I believe the Crimean Republic will be an excellent choice to site a meeting to discuss the strategic situation and to come to a common understanding as to how best to approach the situation.

I hope you will look upon this proposal favourably and we can all meet in the Crimean Republic as soon as possible.

The Despot

To his Majesties the Tsar of Red Tsardom, the King of Pogoria, Despot of Byzantium, Shadow Lord of the Shadow Empire

The Republic gladly accepts the honor to host a conference to all those mentioned. The meeting shall be in Chersonesos, and we request that all the lords attending bring only an honor guard beyond our borders, as the Republic will attend to your safety once inside the borders. We shall have our meeting in the Grand Republican Square, so Chieftain Hral and Dagon of the Deep Ones shall be able to attend as well. Come as soon as you can; I, Iason Constantine, Basileus of the Republic of Crimea, the Most Glorious Republic herself, and Chersonesos and her people shall extend our hospitality to you, our valued and honored guests.

Yours in Christ All-Mighty,
the Elected Basileus Iason Constantine

[Karmic Knight]

Pogoria, Europe

“Sir, I must speak with the Pogorian King about a non-aggression pact between our nations,” one of the diplomats said in vain to the guard outside the palace.

”I’m afraid not, the King is away.”

“Tough luck, friend, I recommend we return to, ahem, scouting the populace,” said the other diplomat.

Letter Time:

Letter to Leaders of The Duchy of Baerne, Gurren-Britannia, and the Starfall Dominion

I, Lord Patrik La Fortunate, (OOC: just assume I put Lord Patrik’s titles here, I don’t want to have to look them up), invite you leaders, or your chosen representatives, to Paris to discuss possible ways to negate the advantages the East has taken currently in an attempt to destroy our civilized society.

Lord Patrik La Fortunate, (Titles)
__________________
Letter to the Kingdom of Southern Italia

I would like to invite a representative from the Kingdom to come to Paris for a meeting of statesmen for the cause of mutual defence against this alliance of proportions the Bible would gawk at.

Lord Patrik La Fortunate, (Titles)
__________________________
Letter to the Mysidian Electorate

I would like to extend my invitations to a member of your state to come to Paris to discuss an agreement of mutual defence against the pan-eastern threat represented by a collection of states currently to remain nameless.

Lord Patrik La Fortunate, (Titles)
_______________________
Letter to the The Kingdom of Dolgan

I extend the Empire’s invitations to a representative of your state to discuss mutual defence against the Eastern Powers.

Lord Patrik La Fortunate, (Titles)
________________________________

(OOC: With the bookkeeping done, now to creating a monster, Muahahahaha)