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Union Press

Zorian Norse and Shinto priests leave Muslim World

Today, after a conference with King Leighton-I in regards to the political scenario unfolding in the islamic world and in regards to the risk posed by violent Jihadi sympathetic forces to Zorian Citizens and the Holy men and women of Zorian Norse and Shinto Beleifs, the Association of Shinto Shrines and the Assembly of Norse Priests have ordered a recall of their attempts to gain converts in the Muslim Majority countries. Some 241 Priests, Priestesses and employees are to either return to Zoria or move to other non Muslim countries over the next few weeks.

Foreign Ministry speaks in Regard to the Hadhramaran Civil War

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Port Victory-Today Foreign Minister Sawako Makisumi has at a press conference in regards to the civil war unfolding in Hadhramara. He has decried the actions of Davin Muballi in the newly started civil war as being "The acts of a savage barbarian, driven by a lust for power with no value placed on the status of Human Life and willing to use sadistic and cruel tactics against civilian and combatant alike" and discribed the accusations of Collaboration with Muballi and his Army by the Zorian Government as "Slanderous and untrue propaganda". Per the request of the foreign ministry, fleet of twelve Z-130 Cargo plains has been dispatched to do fly overs to several areas in central Hadhramara outside the combat zone. In said areas are makeshift refugee camps in central Veleria of people displaced by the conflict to airdrop supplies of food and medicine, the Zorian government has also given notification that it would be willing to co-operate with military action against the warlord if it receives approval from the international community to do so.

Malika, Rangatara

After going out to rein in the Steve Shroomwin and its renegade captain, the HMZS Indefatigable settled back into its designated patrol route east of Rangatara, continuing on as ordered until it had to pull into Malika Harbor for refueling and some brief shore leave for its crew. While the Zorians' heavy-handed tactics regarding arms smuggling further soured relations between them and the Rangatarans, most regular Rangatarans still had to put up with the their presence and do their jobs. Of course, with the jihad still going on, there were those who wanted the Zorians gone by any means necessary, and they were perfectly willing to sacrifice their lives for the cause.

For every arms shipment stopped by Zorian strongarm tactics, at least one more managed to slip through while the Zorians were busy beating on the poor saps who got themselves caught. One such consignment that managed to reach the jihadis consisted of Semtex, some detonators, and a few PK and DShK machine guns, AGS-17 grenade launchers, SPG-9 recoilless rifles, 2B9 Vasilek mortars, and RPG-7s; with the knowledge that there would be a Zorian warship coming in to Malika for refueling, a few determined jihadis and dock workers decided to take matters into their own hands. Their plan was to requisition a few boats, loading some of them with their explosives for use as bombs and stashing the rest of their ordinance on the others so they could mount sustained attacks on the Zorian destroyer; with the help of a few well-placed bribes, they were able to load up a garbage service boat with some of the plastic explosives (along with large quantities of ANFO for good measure) and hide the rest of the explosives (and a bit more ANFO) and their RPGs, machine guns, grenade launchers, recoilless rifles, and mortars in two tugs and half a dozen runabouts.

By Velerian standards, Malika was a busy and prosperous place, with decent amounts of merchant and military traffic going in and out of the harbor on a daily basis. As cargo ships, tenders, and tugs plied the waters, the Indefatigable pulled into port, guided by the two tugs turned boghammars; the garbage bomb would soon be on its way, while the runabouts and their crews patiently waited for the signal to attack. Once the Indefatigable finished mooring, the tugs disengaged, while the garbage tender made its way to its final destination, ostensibly to take on the destroyer's trash. With the port authority officers on duty currently indisposed in some way, either off inspecting incoming cargo ships or bribed by the jihadis to look the other way for the time being, now was the perfect time to strike.

One of the Zorian watchmen spotted the garbage tender chugging along to its final destiny but paid it no heed, as he assumed it was just coming along to carry out its regular operations. As the tender made its final approach towards the Indefatigable's port side, its crew members greeted the Zorian sailors on deck in an attempt to look friendly. "Salaam 'Alaykum!" one of the tender's crew called out.

"'Alaykum Salaam," one of the Zorian sailors who knew Arabic replied.

"Yeah, that's right, Zorian dogs," the tender pilot murmured as he guided his boat into position and made a hand signal towards his companion, the man who had just greeted the Zorian sailors. "May the peace of death be upon you. Allahu Ackbar, motherfuckers."

He activated the detonator, setting off the Semtex and then the ANFO that had been packed into the boat and punching a gaping hole into the Indefatigable's hull. The sound of the explosion caught the attention of the other terrorists in waiting, who hastily uncovered their weapons before speeding towards the Zorian destroyer, ululating loudly and uttering war cries as they unloaded their ordinance. The two tugs remained at a relatively safe distance as they aimed and fired their mortars and recoilless rifles at the bridge; the runabout crews had to get in closer to use their RPGs, machine guns, and grenade launchers, putting them at risk from Zorian counterattack as the sailors got out rifles and general-purpose machine guns and started manning the deck guns.

The explosion and resulting firefight also caught the attention of the port authority, which was definitely not pleased. Officers were pulled from their inspections and ordered to investigate as a force of cutters and other patrol craft made their way to the scene. The jihadis paid no heed to the local security forces, focusing instead on inflicting as much damage to the Zorian Satan's ship as possible. Once they were out of ammo, which occured only a few minutes into the attack, the tugboat and runabout crews attempted to crash their boats into the Indefatigable amidst heavy fire from both the destroyer and the Rangataran port authority boats. Most of the runabouts effectively disintegrated amidst the onslaught, but one lucky boat actually managed to brave the gauntlet and sail right through the hole formed by the initial explosion before detonating itself, causing further damage inside the ship. One of the tugs was ripped to shreds by a Rangataran cutter operating in concert with the Indefatigable, but the other managed to survive right until the very end, going out in a blaze of glory as it tore another gash into the Zorian destroyer's hull. Those Zorians who had fallen were more than worth the sacrifice the jihadis had given today.

RESULTS

The Zorian destroyer HMZS Indefatigable sustains severe damage in a terrorist bombing, with 54 sailors killed and an additional 70 wounded. All jihadis participating in the attack were killed, either by their own design or by Zorian and Rangataran gunfire.

Formula Blammo

La Palma Deathring F1 circuit, La Palma, City-state of San Dorado



“Hello, hello and welcome to the La Palma Deathring for today’s F1 race! You’re watching Worldwide One, my name is Ken Gait and here with me today is Jonathan Rustle. Welcome John.”

“Thanks Ken, it’s great to be here today.”

“Indeed it is, because it looks like it’s going to be an excellent race - the monsoon torrents have let up a bit and although the tracks aren’t quite dry yet, for the moment it’s sunny skies all round here in La Palma.”

“Yes Ken, but don’t forget that the qualifiers had to be driven in the pouring rain, and that really shows. Byzantine driver Mikhail Schumacherios, last year’s F1 champion and overall favorite is starting in third place, with pole position going to Donald Wawrzyniak of the FSO Orena team.”

“I guess it rains more often in PeZookia than it does in Byzantium! Let’s have a look at the starting line- what can you tell me John?”



“As you can see FSO has the pole, a Legion Motors car in second position there, that would be Zoria’s finest, Takeo Tanimizu… Third and fourth place are for Ferraroi, then comes the next FSO car, and the first Universal Motors car sits at sixth place-”

“That’s the best qualifier for Universal Motors ever, isn’t it?”

“Well yes Ken, but then again as a former Destruction Derby driver Lance Adrians is no stranger to the Deathring!”

“Indeed he is not! Well, it looks like the referee is just about ready to give the starting signal… Yes, here we go… And they’re off! That’s a frighteningly quick start there by Schumacherios, who’s passed Tanimizu already in the first few seconds and is now in second place!”

“Yeah, it sure looks like Ferraroi are trying to get some payback in for those sloppy qualifiers.”

“Into the first corner now… Wow, what’s happening there?”



“A Shadow Autowerks car has lost control and is spinning across the track! Looks like Anatoly Barsov was trying for a run around Lewis Button but the UM driver wouldn’t have any of that!”

“Yeah, Barsov’s on the grass… It looks like he’ll be able to rejoin the race but that sure lost him a lot of time!”

“He’s in last place now!”

“Alright folks, we’ll be back with more live coverage of today’s F1 race, after these commercial messages!”

***
COMMERCIAL BREAK
***

“Welcome back to La Palma ladies and gentlemen, where the second Byzantine driver Graigos Stevapapoulos has just overtaken Zoria’s Takeo Tanimizu…”

“But the Zorian’s right on the Stevapapoulos’ tail. And I mean right on his tail- that man’s literally inches away from his opponent’s rear bumper.”

“Think there’s more than a friendly rivalry going on there?”

“With Zorians there always is…”

“Into hammerhead now, this is always a tricky corner because it looks so deceptively easy to round… Oh yeah, and here we go!”



“John, I have no idea what’s happening there…”

“It looks like one of the CSR’s ZiL-drivers made a mistake there and now half the race is in disarray, I see cars careening off the track, there’s somebody driving backwards there…”

“Will you look at that! Holy Moly that was close!”

“Yeah the PeZookian driver just slid past Takuma Sato but that doesn’t leave the Zorian car a whole lot of space there-”



“Whoa crap, that’s gotta hurt!”

“Yeah John, that’s what I call a crash- the second Zorian car is completely totaled, just like the ZiL it slammed into…”

“And are my eyes deceiving me or was that Wilkonian car airborne for a while?”

“He sure was John, but amazingly enough Miguel Costilla’s Mastretta is still going!”

“Hot damn they build some sturdy cars in Messica!”

“It sure would appear so… Right, Worldwide One will be back, after these messages!”

***
COMMERCIAL BREAK
***

“Welcome back folks, we’re now a fair bit into the race and Rick Schlong is preparing to exit the pit straight, the Shroomanian was experiencing some mechanical difficulties, he’s now nearly a full round behind the lead car but his pink Mercedes Schromz should be okay now… Hold a second…”

“…I don’t think Schlong sees those cars approaching Ken…”



“Sweet Lady Fortune, that Byzantine car just slammed straight through Schlong’s car!”

“His car was in the air for seconds…”

“Well that’s it for Schlong, but hold on, that Byzantine car doesn’t look like it’s doing well either.”

“No, that sure means a pitstop for Stevapapoulos if he can make another round, but-”

“Let me interrupt you for a moment there Ken, because it looks like- yeah, I think Mastretta is about to try something. They’ve been holding back so far…”

“But you can never trust those Wilkonian fellows to stay back, can you John?”

“No, they sure are shifty, and they’re definitely making a move, they’re onto the straight and here they go!”

“They’re opening up with all they’ve got! They’re already past Pirogov’s Shadow Motorwerks car and now they’re attempting to pass that CSR ZiL ZIS-1112... But shit, what’s that commie bastard doing? Get out of the way you-”



“Uh, that’s one Mastretta car out of action.”

“But hold on, here comes Button and I don’t think he’s seen the wrecka-”



“That means one Universal Motors car is out of the race! This is hectic!”

“It sure is! I did a quick count and of the 22 cars that started only 12 are left now.”

“And the only teams with all cars left on the track so far are Ferrarios and FSO Orena… You gotta hand it to those socialists, the PeZookians are driving by the seat of their pants today!”

“They’re holding up excellently against the Byzantine onslaught.”

“We’ll see if they can keep it up… Right after these messages!”

***
COMMERCIAL BREAK
***

“And welcome back to La Palma people, where the F1 is still going on… It looks like the good weather has passed, doesn’t it John?”

“Yes Ken, dark clouds are packing above the track and it’s slowly starting to drizzle again… That could be dangerous because few of these drivers have wet weather tires mounted.”

“But both FSO Orena drivers just came out of the pits and I doubt they’ll want to go back in again.”

“Yeah they wasted some time there, this could be to the advantage of Ferrarios.”

“So it’s one and two to Ferrarios right now, in third is Zoria’s Tanimizu who’s miraculously survived every catastrophe so far, then comes Lance Adrians of San Dorado, Miguel Costilla in the last surviving Mastretta, Dick Perkins in the Mercedes Schromz and the two PeZookian cars…”

“Perkins is making a move!”

“It looks like he is! And he is just rocketing past the Wilkonian car, I can’t believe how fast he’s accelerating… Wait, are those flames coming out his tailpipe?”

“I think so…”

“Anyway he’s just rocketing- and I mean rocketing… Did Perkins change his tires?”

“I don’t think he did-”

“He’s alongside Tanimizu and Stevapapoulos now! Here comes the left-hand turn, Perkins has the inside but he will have to brake… He will have to break… Holy shit he isn’t braking!”

“That car just ain’t responding! That Shroomanian is out of control! And at those speeds I don’t think the others can react-”



“Holy shit! Cars are crashing into the fences, cars are flying, cars are slamming into each other! I’ve never seen anything like this ladies and gentlemen- it is mayhem, absolute mayhem down here on the Deathring! It’s difficult to see in the rain but at least five drivers are out… No, six…”

“Schumacherios is out! Tanimizu is out! Adrians is out! Stevapapoulos is out!”

“It’s a complete wipe-out of all the lead cars! What a mess! It’s just total devastation!”

“Only five cars are left… Only a CSR ZiL, Pirogov in the Shadow Autowerks, the two PeZookians and a lone Wilkonian car remain on the track!”

“But correct me if I’m wrong John but doesn’t the devastation of more than three quarters of the cars mean that the race is stopped?”

“It sure does Ken, and that means that although this might be a symbolic victory for the teams from the Old Continent, today’s La Palma race will not have a winner, a first in Formula One history… Yes, here comes the safety car… It’s a clear shut case, this race is over!”

“But what a spectacle it was! What a scene! So folks, there you have it: total ruination today down here on the Deathring, the greatest chaos I’ve ever seen in Formula One. And as the rain pours down here on the wrecks of totaled cars we are signing off… Live from La Palma we were Ken Glait and Jonathan Rustle for Worldwide Motorsports. Join us again in two weeks for another race!”

Results: Formula One in San Dorado ends in utter carnage; the Deathring lives up to its name!

Shroomston, The Commonwealth

"It's a gimmick."

"What is?"

"This convert thing, it is an attempt to implicate the Jihadis as evil. The people of the world rally against the evil Muslims, and Zoria gets its colony."

"Will it work?"

"We'll see."

Veleria


The KT-15s had taken off first in the pre-dawn hours, leaving el-Yasuj for their assigned loiter points off the Hadhramaran coast and over the dry, arid Velerian interior where no human life was sustainable. As they left the pilots and RIOs of the various Cascadian air commands were being given their assignments in briefing rooms in el-Yasuj, Welles Island, and Ying AFBs. Photos taken from the recon-modified aircraft were being used to reveal their targets for the day's strike package.
To the east, in the early dawn light, similar briefings were being held by the Defiant CAG for his pilots for their planned missions.
Dawn on the East Coast of Veleria brought zero hour. Across Veleria Cascadian ASF-10C and SF-10D Condors - as well as the ASF-18s and ASF-9s of the "Green Aces" 4th Fighter Squadron - taxied along their runways and flew off into the predawn sky, laden for war. Further north another insurgency attack would claim four Zorian soldiers, an Egsa scout, and ten Malips and foreign Jihadis. But that skirmish would be overshadowed by what was soon to happen.

Operation: Avenging Sword was underway. It's intention was simple; to show Davin Muballi and anyone like him on the wartorn continent that what the shield of Law, Civility, and Cascadian citizenship did not defend, the sword of the Cascadian Republic would avenge.


Shadowveil Valley, Northern Hadhramara


Ibrahim was having another terrible day. The ten year old Luda boy was one of the children seized from a village near the seashore by Muballi's troops to be "re-educated". Practices taken from the CSR, USSR, Japanistan, and old Shepistan were being implemented by the megalomaniacal Muballi in his effort to make a "new" Hadhramara modeled mostly after Bissauru; Ibrahim and his friends were beaten when they failed to show sufficient energy in Muballi's service, when they failed to salute his picture and flag, or whenever they did any offense deemed worthy of the beating.
As in Japanistan, re-education was combined with labor, in their case moving smaller boxes in a warehouse near one of the primitive factories Muballi used to produce ammunition. Ibrahim was being forced now to clean up a broken open box of ammunition for an assault rifle, having dropped it on accident due to the fatigue in his mal-nourished body. A knout came down upon his bare back, joining the many bruises and scars he already had, and an overseer screamed abuse in his ear while threatening to forbid him his lunch ration if he didn't work harder.

The workers had increased recently, and the overseers made more brutal; Muballi was becoming frustrated with his inability to break out of the interior and march on Dareem as well as being enraged with the Tonkinese and Svalbardians for thwarting his attempt to take the coast. He had promised to execute any Tonkinese he came across in one particular address, though odds were he was just blustering after his setbacks had become public knowledge despite his claim's of "unceasing victory".

Ibrahim, too weak to stand, braced himself himself for another strike to his bloody and bruised back. But it never came. A roar was coming from outside that sent his overseers running in terror. Seeing this, two of the older boys in the warehouse pulled Ibrahim to his feet and carried him out of the warehouse as a series of rapid, loud gunshots came from above. A powerful wave of heat struck him in the back moments after a thunderous boom hurt his ears. The ammunition warehouse's own stores had destroyed it, needing only the ignition provided by the guns of one of the Cascadian jets overhead. An unguided bomb released by the same jet hit the primitive structure that provided the ammunition, annihialting the building in the resulting explosion and leaving a cloud of black smoke to rise overhead, the skeletal remains of the ammunition factory burning hotly while secondary explosions from cooking-off ammo finished the building remnants off.


Nearby another bomb claimed the primitive warehouse. Across the heartland of Muballi's growing empire his carefully-cultivated industry was crushed by the overwhelming surgical strike of the Cascadian Air Force and Naval Aviation. The rampage concentrated on identified industrial targets, eliminating the means by which Muballi sustained his army independently of arms importation, with the leftover munitions being expended upon concentrations of Muballi's army. The bombing offensive was one many of his soldiers, particularly his volunteers, never faced before, and the morale they'd enjoyed from their victories evaporated as they helplessly endured the pounding.
A second wave of aircraft arrived an hour after the first headed back to base. Finding few missed industrial targets they focused their fury upon Muballi's troops and logistics. Bombs killed many and destroyed the forward supply depots critical to his army holding their conquests. Already on alert, this time the Cascadian air forces took fire from below. Machine gun fire aimed in the air was harmless and the RPGs used were a waste of ammo, unable to lock onto and hit the swift-moving jets. A handful of old MANPADs proved the most deadly, forcing several aircraft to break off attack runs. One ASF-10C suffered a partial hit and would later make a crash-landing at el-Yasuj, an NSF-11 would meanwhile make it to the ocean and the ejected crew be picked up by Defiant's S&R helicopters.
As this attack occurred, the positions of Muballi's forces near the coast endured the fury of the Cascadian Navy. Most of the Navy air-strike focused itself upon this region, while more damage was caused by the missile bombardment of the Cascadian missile cruiser Yukon and guided missile destroyers Nathan Mackensen, John Q. Adams, and John Hunt. Several dozen missiles in all would strike the supporting supply depots, larger bridges and old rail lines, and Muballi's troops besieging the port towns held open by the prior attack of the Svalbardian ships. Yukon even got close enough to the coast to bombard a couple of coastal watchposts held by Muballi with her eight-inch gun and thus force their abandonment.
On top of all the attacks, one flight of ASF-18 Sparrowhawks was given a special assignment. Given a zone over Muballi's "capital", they leveled his personal palace and wiped out his collection of vehicles and the two helicopters and propeller aircraft he used for air transport, the fuel tanks for them, and also dropped a bomb on top of his GHQ building.

Across the Shadowveil valley the skies were turning dark with burning smoke. Coal stores had been hit to deprive Muballi of their use as fuel or for gathering revenue, identified factories were leveled, supply depots wiped out, and his positions near the coast battered. His army's advanced positions had become precarious and the troops rattled by the sudden onslaught.
Davin Muballi had, through the actions of his troops, murdered Cascadian citizens. Now he had paid a harsh price.



The Seattle Post-Intelligencer



President confirms reports: Cascadian military launches reprisal airstrikes on Hadhramaran warlord for murder of Red Crescent workers.

ADAMS CAPITAL DISTRICT - President Garrett's spokeswoman has confirmed reports from Veleria that the Cascadian Air Force and Navy has conducted air strikes against targets in the portion of Hadhramara held by Davin Muballi, the ambitious warlord who's brutal retaliation policies against the anti-Zorian Jihad have been blamed for the murder of Red Crescent workers, including Cascadian citizens. "The President is determined that Cascadian citizens, especially those engaged in humanitarian work to help the impoverished of Veleria, be protected from abuse and murder committed by warlords or their forces," Spokeswoman Galvariz said. "His exact words are, 'We must make Davin Muballi and all those like him understand that to wantonly murder a Cascadian citizen will bring the wrath of the Republic upon them.' The President calls upon all Cascadians regardless of political affiliation to support our armed forces in avenging the Cascadians of the Red Crescent murdered by Muballi's forces." When asked about the action being taken with an election just a couple months away, she replied, "I don't think the President considers that important. He regarded this operation as a duty to perform regardless of whether or not this is an election year. Given his words about Muballi's actions I believe he would have launched this attack even if assured it would cause his defeat in the elections."

The attacks come on the heel of an announcement by the Zorian Foreign Ministry denouncing Muballi and denying ties to him, an announcement that some believe to be an attempt to head off growing charges of collusion due to the benefit Muballi's own war has provided Zoria in its struggle for control of the Dragonsnake River Basin. Spokeswoman Galvariz denied that the Zorian announcement played a part in planning or authorizing the strike. "This was going to happen, regardless of what Zoria said or did." On being asked about the charges of Zorian support for Muballi, Galvariz answered, "The Cascadian Government does not currently consider those charges true, it would take some pretty direct evidence for us to feel otherwise."

Upon being asked on the reaction if such evidence surfaced, Galvariz gave a small smile and answered, "Then the President would handle the issue with Zoria in a proper fashion."



Results:
Due to the attack Muballi's personal industrial capacity has been sharply reduced to levels sorely inefficient to support his already-extended forces. The destruction of warehouses and supply depots will cause immediate shortages of guns, ammunition, and other necessary supplies to frontline forces. Attacks on a few key bridges and on the existing rail-line, as well as the loss of critical rolling stock, has impacted the logistics network of Muballi's forces for the supplies that they have not lost. The overwhelming aerial assault has also dented the morale of Muballi's army, which has never been subjected to such an airstrike. Their will to fight is thus diminished and will continue to decline as the shortage of ammunition and new weapons ripples through the troops.
Davin Muballi will be sleeping on an unfamiliar bed due to the complete loss of his personal palace.

The Cascadian Air Force's after-action report will note that the second wave was in some cases wasted; though they finished off targets that the first wave missed, they also needlessly duplicated the efforts of the first wave. Navy AWACs from the Defiant, though patched into the Air Force, were unready to manage a sustained aerial operation of that size and did not completely succeed in ensuring no duplication of effort, though the system of pre-arranged division of "sectors" for individual squadrons and flights prevented blue-on-blue incidents.

A not-insignificant amount of fuel was wasted due to some mistakes made during refueling operations, though no aircraft were lost due to errors.

Operation: Avenging Sword has a preliminary outcome of complete success. Lack of effective enemy anti-air assets considered decisive factor in minimal loss incurred. Post-attack reconnassiance will be used to judge exact effects on Muballi's logistics.




Attack was conducted by the following forces:


3rd Fighter Wing

4th Fighter Squadron "The Green Aces"
ASF-10C Condor x 20

8th Fighter Squadron
ASF-18 Sparrowhawk x 8
ASF-9 Falcon x 12

3rd Tactical Squadron
SF-10D Strike Condor x 20



1st Tactical Wing

2nd Fighter Squadron
ASF-10C Condor x 20

2nd Tactical Squadron
SF-10D Strike Condor x 20

Plus aerial refuelers



Defiant Combined Operations Group (only listing vessels that directly engaged, check second OrBat post for full vessel complement
Home Port: Port Weir Naval Station, Port Weir, Columbia Province
CO: RADM Carl Jacobs

Defiant-class Carrier
CRS Defiant
Air Wing:
MSF-15N Lightning x 12
NAF-10C Condor x 12
NSF-11 Sea Shrike x 12
ECF-2 Skyeye x 4
SH-6 Seahawk x 7


Columbia-class missile cruiser
CRS Yukon


Jiang Kai-sheng-class destroyers
CRS Nathan Mackensen

John Q. Adams-class destroyer
CRS John Q. Adams
CRS John Hunt


Losses:
1 ASF-10C damaged
1 NSF-11 lost

FTO begins fast-attack submarine development

The FTO has begun development of a new class of nuclear powered attack submarine, based off of technology and operational experience gained by the Vigilant class SSGNs. Details on the class are still sketchy at the moment....

Design room

President Farve had given the designers from Coilerburg and San Dorado a list of what he wanted in the new submarine. Above all was the statement "TOP SPEED: 37 KNOTS AT A MINIMUM, IDEALLY MAXIMUM PRACTICAL SPEED"

PIRATES OF VELARIA
Mad Men's Pact

They had to ditch their longboat.

The trip inland was a harsh one. Mosquitoes the size of cats harvested the precious bodily fluids of Deacon Saito's men. It was only he and a paltry dozen left, including his right hand man Costner, but if they did not reach their destination in time, then they would falter. They would be lost.

Consumed in the jungle's heart of darkness.

The all-encompassing green of inner Velaria. The horrors within it...



If it were not for the fact that Deacon could not gaze upon the horrors they had seen with both his eyes, for one had been replaced with a piece of glass, then he would've gone mad.

Villages of Mohammedians ravaged. Their men, women and children ritually sacrificed - skinned alive and left to hang on trees. Blood-rites like what Norse-Shintoists did to livestock, to appeal the All-Father, but only done to human beings.

They were close now. The map Costner had with him showed that X marked the spot. But it was not just that, the smell of death was also fresh. There were spools of human intestine, just spilled from fresh cadavers, evidence of a sacrifice that was in progress before their interruption

Deacon Saito gazed upon the half-finished handiwork of the inhuman beings with whom he would make consort with today, in their struggle against Jihad.



"We have come to bear witness to your bloody spectacle," Deacon Shinto declared. "To behold your sacrifice of these sorry Saracen souls in the name of your heathen gods!"

"We wish to partake in your foul rituals, to honor our own All-Father together as you honor your dreaded Kali!"

As Deacon's prostrations echoed in the darkness of the jungle, a lone figure emerged from the trees. Not a lone figure, but one who was before many others - who stood back in the shadows, seemingly blending with them.

The man spoke.

"I am Ganesha Gobinda. So you say we shall join in shedding the blood of the innocent?"

"Aye!"



"Then so shall it be."

Tower Hyperion, Blue Sun HQ

"Sol Azzurro? Sol Azzurro? Is Sol Azzurro here?" Helios Bleu called out with a calm sound.

Everyone in the conference room looked at the empty seat of the Akori Branch director.

It has been the 3rd time in a row Azzurro has failed to attend an important meeting. Despite the good numbers of the Akori Branch, this has become intolerable. Not to mention that there has been a lot of abnormal activity going on in the Akori Branch.

It started with the Akori Government beginning to request the Blue Sun to look into manufacturing some products for local needs. Some of these products were not of the Blue Sun's field but with the cooperation of some local factories and companies, added with the standards of the 'Sun, cheap, high quality products began to show up in Akori. And then quite a few Veleria nations.

And then, with all the foreign activity in Veleria, these products began to be known to some nations working in Veleria. Orders to the Akori Branch began to show up from all over the world. They were making money fast, and big.

Ties between the Government and the Akori Branch were getting closer, a lot of big deals, good and bad, occurred without Azzurro notifying Blue Sun HQ, and he also began to ignore calls from the hotline. Personnel were sent to understand "the Akori situation", they either died mysteriously, disappeared, or returned reporting nothing abnormal, only to resign later on.

Azzurro still attended meetings at least one year ago. When warned of his unauthorized operations he always came up with a "But sir, look how much we made with this..." and irrefutable big numbers of earnings. Bleu was notorious for firing people, and he cut a lot of slack for Azzurro.

Eight months ago Azzurro failed to attend the annual meeting, only filing a detailed report of last year's numbers of the Akori branch. Four months ago, when an emergency meeting was called due to East Velerian activity, he failed to attend again, only sending a fax reading "We're safe, don't worry."

Apollo Blaw, director of the Biomedical Department, activated his mike, "Sir, I'm afraid we need to seriously look into the Akori Situation."

"Speak."

"Last month the Shenong Ga Facility requested a batch of reagents from the Akori Branch, and while we received the stuff, we noticed there was something wrong with the packaging. Instead of our company logo, they were marked with this..."

Blaw took out a photo of a small vial, labelled with its contents and...


"We called the Akori Branch immediately, they replied that the shipping company made a mistake, confusing the same reagents of different companies. This immediately occurred to me as something wrong. The reagent we ordered was a rare, regulated kind, and we specifically requested a high purity. It was unlikely another company would coincidentally be manufacturing what we wanted."

Helios Bleu looked at the vial, "This reagent.....for 'Project Dawn'?"

Blaw nodded, "The next day we received a call from the shipping company, admitting a mistake, and they came to retrieve the reagents. I substituted one with a used vial from our labs, relabelled of course, mentioning that our lab techs have already used it."

"Quite a risky move, but I guess whoever's behind this had already admitted some level of leakage once the wrong stuff showed up by that time," commented Bleu.

Blaw continued, "We analyzed the reagent, it fulfilled the requirements of Project Dawn. Eventually we received the correctly labelled batch from Akori, with no more further questions from them."

Bleu crossed his arms and sat back in his chair. "Opinions."

"Defection?"

"Of course it is defection. I'm more curious on what he's thinking. With his current resources he really can go independent if not joining some other company. What is he waiting for?"

Apollo Blaw hesitated and then carefully chose his words, "The election perhaps. Biggest factor coming up. After that there are also post-election policies coming from the Halls and especially the Palace."

Bleu looked at the vial again. "Send in a survelliance team. Find out what he's doing and then we fire him and sue him to death."

FTO fast attack-submarine design think-tank

Coiler wrote:President Farve had given the designers from Coilerburg and San Dorado a list of what he wanted in the new submarine. Above all was the statement "TOP SPEED: 37 KNOTS AT A MINIMUM, IDEALLY MAXIMUM PRACTICAL SPEED"

"Thirty-seven knots?" a Blues Brothers engineer exclaimed incredulously. "That's completely impossible. Not even the MESS' Seawolf submarines reach those kinds of speeds. And any sub we build that travels at speeds even approaching those won't be silent- we're not the goddamn commies, we don't have three generations of quieting technology under our belts. And a noisy SSN is worse than useless."

"We'll be lucky if we squeeze 27 knots out of our pumpjets", another engineer argued. "Now, what our government wants in this boat is a multi-role SSN that can conduct anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, land attack and intelligence gathering missions, as well as crisis management and special operations. And 27 knots is quite sufficient for that."

SiegeTank wrote: "Thirty-seven knots?" a Blues Brothers engineer exclaimed incredulously. "That's completely impossible. Not even the MESS' Seawolf submarines reach those kinds of speeds. And any sub we build that travels at speeds even approaching those won't be silent- we're not the goddamn commies, we don't have three generations of quieting technology under our belts. And a noisy SSN is worse than useless."

"We'll be lucky if we squeeze 27 knots out of our pumpjets", another engineer argued. "Now, what our government wants in this boat is a multi-role SSN that can conduct anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, land attack and intelligence gathering missions, as well as crisis management and special operations. And 27 knots is quite sufficient for that."

A Coilerburg engineer responded. "I agree with you that Farve's 37 knots is a pipe dream and impractical. However, his initial point about a slow submarine being unable to reliably follow and intercept foreign carrier groups is a valid one. Could you try to have it make 30 knots, or is 27 an absolute maximum?"

Coiler wrote:A Coilerburg engineer responded. "I agree with you that Farve's 37 knots is a pipe dream and impractical. However, his initial point about a slow submarine being unable to reliably follow and intercept foreign carrier groups is a valid one. Could you try to have it make 30 knots, or is 27 an absolute maximum?"

Blues Bros' lead engineer shrugged. "We can try for a 30 knots 'dash-speed'. No guarantees though."

"How many submarines", a DIFEI-accountant spoke as he looked up from his spreadsheets, "does Mr. Farve think to acquire?"

SiegeTank wrote:Blues Bros' lead engineer shrugged. "We can try for a 30 knots 'dash-speed'. No guarantees though."

"How many submarines", a DIFEI-accountant spoke as he looked up from his spreadsheets, "does Mr. Farve think to acquire?"

"President Farve wants two of these submarines, and is considering swapping this years proposed order of Swarms and other various accquisitions for a third."

Constantinople Times

Sultan Saladin IV praises President Garrett.

Praising President Garrett's actions against the reviled warlord Mubali, Sultan Saladin IV said, "Praise Allah and may he shower blessings upon President Garrett. May the infidel and the Zorian Satan burn in hell for their actions. While the Zorian Satan feigns ignorance, and pretends it doesn't have a hand in the mess in Veleria, President Garrett's righteous action is a herald for further action against the enemies of the servants of Islam." With regard to what next for the Jihad, the Sultan merely said, "We will bide our time."

Fort Garou Military Base, Canissia
2030 Hours


Colonal Johan S'vimbi had arrived, carried to Canissia by a Royal Air Force chartered transport plane, for a "technically secret" meeting.



"I am so glad you could see me, your Majesty," the Colonel said. "I see that you take very seriously my concerns."

"I do, indeed," said King Coyotus, "I think it is only a matter of time before the jihadist activity spreads to other places in Veleria, and we need to be ready."


The King was in informal clothes for the meeting. He did not want to insult Colonel S'Vimbi, but at the same time he didn't want to call attention to the meeting, either, with a lot of pomp and ceremony. He'd traveled to the military base in a single up-armored sport-utility vehicle, with Chief Karl Tigh and a couple other SPS operatives as his only security escort. Tigh didn't like it, but he went along with the King agreed to have a pair of helicopted gunships orbiting nearby, on call.

Colonel S'Vimbi was also there discreetly, having flown in on a regularly scheduled cargo plane run from Katangwa to Canissia. Officially speaking, Canissia was lessening its footprint in Katawangaland, drawing back from it's high of three divisions to two, with more pullbacks to follow. Eventually, there would be one full-time airborne division there, using the KFS as a forward staging area and to train the Katangwan Army, while the rest of the Canissian prescence there would be made up of Reserve units rotating through on yearly training.

In the media, the troop reduction was seen as both a easing of budget demands, and as a step back from "imperialist" policies. The truth was, the Katangwan military was going to be getting a lot of new equipment to fill the gaps in security on their own, and the money saved would be spent by the frequent Reserve rotations. But the Army was happy to be getting more to do following the last few lean years, so for the most part everyone was happy.

"It is long past time we addressed these issues," the Colonel agreed, "My people are grateful for th ehelp, but they are also worried-- do we have to pay a master, and if we do, will that master really be there if things get too hot?"

"I appreciate your domestic concerns," King Arik said, "I want you to know that the people of Katangwa always have a friend in me. We were ready to stand with you against the Caravo, even if that meant war with Japanistan at the time. We are fortunate it did not come to that."
"Fortunate indeed," the Colonel said, "That also means untested. What sort of equipment are we to receive?"

"Well, Colonel, I'm going to send more of the airplanes, the OV-10 Broncos and the AT-314 Little Hawks," the King assured, "We're also going to train your men in the finest counter-insurgency aircraft ever: the helicopter." He gestured towards a row of UH-1 helicopters on a nearby tarmac, being prepped for transport.



"Those helicopters right there are going to be sent to you, and pilots will be selected for training from among your best. We're also going to start building up a navy for you-- a minesweeper, three corvettes, and a few coastal-patrol speedboats to start with."

"Excellent!" S'Vimbi beamed. He felt like the King took his tiny nation seriously, and was not patronizing his people. "I notice that your navy has already lessened its profile in our waters."
"Yes, indeed," the King said, "We've pulled three of our five nuclear subs back, and the Task Force that was off the coast has returned to Canissian waters. Tensions with Japanistan have eased considerably, so we don't want to provoke anything by maintaining a massive force there."

"While also lessening the accusations that Katangwa is a pupper of Canissia," the Colonel said, "How soon can you pull more troops out.. and bring in more of a civilian prescence?"
"Once we get your people trained on the aircraft and ships, we'll pull out the 1st Infantry Division and just leave the 5th Airborne there. The Air Force will continue to operate a base as well, partially to train your people, but we'll eventually seek to lessen their prescence as well to maybe a couple squadrons instead of a full wing."

"Very good," S'Vimbi said, "I thank you, KIng Coyotus. You show my small nation respect."
"We each get more of what we want with cooperation, rather than bullying. By the way," the King said, "How has Canexxia been dealing with you?"

"Fairly, so far," the Colonel said, "At least 50% of the workforce on the oil rigs is Katangwan, but I have to say my people are under-represented in mangement levels. Now, this is not your fault, given that my people don't have the access to higher education you enjoy here. Most Katangwans are educated for physical labor at best... but a vocational college or a university would be very welcome in Katangwaland."

"Colonel, I see what you mean. I will have a talk with some of the university presidents here in Canissia and see what can be done to open up a branch campus in Khalid."
"This has been a most productive meeting, King Coyotus..."



Results:
Canissian force withdrawals underway in Katangwaland.
Katangwan forces being given even more, better equipment.
Leaders of both nations agree to increase vigilence for jihadis, and share more civilian programs.

Coiler wrote:"President Farve wants two of these submarines, and is considering swapping this years proposed order of Swarms and other various accquisitions for a third."

"Hmm", the accountant pursed his lips in concentration, his face a mask of emotionless impartiality. "The Combined Navy was thinking of buying four. That works out to..." The man blinked briefly. Internal accountants working for the Directorate for Finance, Economics and Industry had a reputation as stony-eyed human computers to uphold- to the point where other white collar employees working in the Tower of Commerce simply referred to them as 'mentats', supposedly a term drawn from some half-forgotten sci-fi novel.

"Roughly 2.1 billion dollars per submarine, excluding weapons and training. We could conceivably bring that down to 1.6 billion if Indhopal and Baerne decide to participate."

One of the CNFN captains scratched his chin. "I think it's a fair bet they'll be interested."

"So it can only make thirty knots at most? You sure that it's not just economical? Oh, I see. Well, a thirty-knot dash will do for now. Good to hear it."

His duties of ruling Coilerburg finally done for the day, Farve could finally take a bit of time to relax. He told his wife that he would take a walk in the presidential palace garden, and then left. Of course, Mary Farve knew very well what he really meant by "walks in the garden", but she was surprisingly tolerant of it.

An armored though otherwise plain car awaited Farve. Entering it, he traveled down the streets of Shaneville on his way. The driver asked nochalantly "Who are you seeing tonight, Ollie?"

"Sofia. I've already contacted her."

Mary was a good woman, but she was just a little-old. Sometimes Farve wanted to spend time with someone younger....

Results

Farve grudgingly approves the speed of the submarine.

Farve's love life is revealed.

SUCCESS!

The eject, launch, and re-entry simulation of the Eagle Command Module has been a success, and Canissian Aerospace Agency scientists are ecstatic with the results of the experiment.



The Eagle capsule being retrieved from the sea off the coast of Katangwa.

"This is a wonderful day for the Canissian space program," said chief engineer Mel Tarkon, leader of the EGL, or Exo-Gravity Lander, project. "We're going to be ready to really live in and move in space once the MSA or FASTA get the boosters done. They're leading the charge getting off planet, but we'll have the means to really use the new frontier."

The next test for the Eagle project will be a manned flight with the command module. Astronaut Wolf Phideaux will be the test subject for the manned phase of the test.

"We figure we'll be ready by the end of the year, at best," said Tarkon.

"I sure hope I don't die," said astronaut Wolf Phideaux. "Sure would suck, being a big field pizza and leaving behind a hot wife and all."



Astronaut Wolf Phideaux, who has a hot wife.

Ducal Engineering Corp.
Directorate for Naval Applications
To: FTO SSN Design Commission

We'll help with the creation of these new submarines, and we'll want three of them.

Submitted to the governments of Baerne, Indhopal, Coilerburg and San Dorado (OOC: This all based on France's future Barracuda SSN, which I find fitting considering the Vigilant is based on the Triomphant):

Design Report
Baerne Ducal Shipyards / Blues Brothers Shipping / Coilerburg Iron Works

Barracuda class Nuclear Attack Submarine
A Sovereign Dutchy of Baerne / Corporate Republic of San Dorado / Coilerburg Joint Venture

Displacement: 4,910 tons (surfaced)
5,850 tons (submerged)
Length: 100m
Beam: 9m
Propulsion: K15 nuclear reactor (150 MW), 2 turboreductors groups, 2 emergency electric engines, two pump jets
Speed: Over 27 knots

Armament:
4x 533 mm tubes
20 Missiles / Torpedoes

Design Notes:

* In support of special operations missions, Barracudas may also accommodate up to 12 commandos, while carrying their equipment in a mobile pod attached aft of the sail
* Vessel will be fitted with torpedo-tube-launch cruise missiles for long-range strikes against land targets.

At 12 submarines ordered so far the cost per boat is $1.6 billion.

(OOC: I'm assuming Indhopal buys two, and since we're running the place in Raj's absence, who's going to argue ?)

...

Pratt and Whitney Rocketry-Tian Xia finishes testing RL-60

The RL-60 is designed to be a drop in replacement for the RL-10 engine, providing twice the thrust. Its other performance characteristics remain similar to the RL-10. Planned variants include a version powered by Liquid Oxygen and Methylacetylene. This combination of fuels is space storable, providing enhanced performance over hydrazine based fuels.

Durations, durations

Comona Island Astronaut Training Facility

"Whoa", the Shroomanian technician looked at the clock, "Twelve hours?"

"Yup. No movement at all. One slight grunt at 2:03 and another at 11:23."

The small room housed monitoring equipment for Flotation Tank 2, a facility used to run sensory deprivation trials on future astronauts. Both Soyuz 6 crews were training in those in preparation for their 14-day duration flight - no.2 was currently occupied by Svetlana, who seemed intent on breaking some sort of record.

Both technicians stared in awe at the camera screens, before breaking into casual conversation.

"Hey, you know that Alan Shroompard and her are...you know?"

"I know? I don't think I know. Do you?"

"I know, but it seems you don't know. You should know what it means, you know. I don't know how anyone can not know."

There was a moment of confused silence.

"He's boinking her", said their supervisor, entering the control room, "And your innuendos suck."

She checked all the controls and reviewed the log, before signing at the bottom. The technicians stared at her, wounded expressions on their faces.

"Okay, she's past the safe limit. Time to finish this excercise.", she said, and was met with silence.

"What?"

"Uh, nothing. I'll go and let her know.", one of the techs said and left the room.

"...and my innuendos are awesome.", he muttered under his breath.

Tachibana Titan, Tachibana Heavy Industries HQ

Miho Tachibana double checked the progress of recent projects. The next test launch was coming soon and the Amateratsu was going well. Military orders were coming in as usual, and despite Blue Sun dominating Akori THI was still able to secure a few contracts.

She had been working late a lot these days. Even some documents which had nothing to do with her department were sent to her desk to be reviewed.

Which really wasn't a good thing. Obviously her brother Kenji, the current leader of THI, was beginning to lose reputation. However, the high staff and a significant portion of people still supported him and his conservative policies. If a few people started to put the burden of decision making on her, it would begin to cause confusion in the company, leading to strife.

She finished the last document and picked up her phone, "Shiina chan, get ready, I'm leaving."

"Hai, Miho sama."



A few minutes later, Miho entered her SUV.

"To the mansion?" Asked Shiina.

"No, I have an appointment with and old friend, take me to Genkai's."

Despite the Fusang name, Genkai's was well known for its multi-ethnicity hybrid cuisine. It also had a nice view over the Tachibana Bay.

Miho arrived at the door. A man was waiting for her.



"Konbanwa, Miho San."

"Konbanwa. It's been a long time, Ying-Jeou. What have you been doing these years?"

"Let me show you, for starters, here's my name card."

Eastside Neveh Tikveh
"Innuendo" Bar




Technically, there were no "gay bars" in Canissia-- there were only "Shroomanian Bars" and the most famous one of all was the "Innuendo" bar near the dockyards on Neve Tikveh's East Side. It was in the seedier section of town, where the beatnik art district gave way to the dock worker's area, and in this case, the dock workers in question were the big, burly he-men (and a few she-men) that liked to get all hot, sticky, and sweaty working the Canissian docks.

Tonight, the bar was rocking to a emo-rock version of "YMCA", with dozens of muscular, shaved-chest bruisers line dancing, forming the Y-M-C-A arm movements in almost perfect synchronization. But the two men in the dark corner (actually, the clever architechts had managed to make pretty much every booth in the Innuendo bar a "dark corner") weren't watching the line dancing, they were intent instead on their whispered conversation. But in a bar like "Innuendo", there were so many men having whispered conversations in the dark, no one paid them any heed-- which was precisely why they were there.

"I appreciate the funding," the HIgh Priest said, "Even if we do have to meet in a place like this."
"It completely throws off suspicion," said the government liason, "No one notices us talking; and between your religious views and my own anti-foreigner views, no one would suspect either of us of being here. Now," the liason said, "Remember not to spend this all at once. Dole it out, small purchases, small hires if needed. If the Qalqayyid movement suddenly spent a half-million ROBs all at once, questions will be raised about where it came from."

"We have explanations in place," the hIgh Priest assured him.
"Bake sales and Bingo games can only explain away so much," the government man said, "They won't suspect me... the first thought will be that it is drug or prostitution money. And trust me, if the church is investigated, my people can see to it that things point in that direction."

"I understand," the High Priest said, "Don't worry. You and I both have a vested interest in keeping foreign influences in Canissia to a minimum." They glared at the dancing men, most of them now glistening with a fine sheen of manly sweat.
"Foreign poisons," the government man said with a frown, "I wish we could go back to the good old days of purely Canissian gay bars, instead of these Shroomanian Bars. We've managed to keep that hideous Japanistan Karaoke nonsense out of our country; why not this stuff?"

"Because Japanistan is a threatening place," the High Priest explained sadly, "It is easy to convince people that Karaoke is a threat to national security. But Shroomania? They seem such harmless people, so it is difficult to convince the youth to stay away from their seductive poisons."
"Well, at least we're keeping up the good fight against those Odinists," the government man said. "Let's get out of here. The musk from the dance floor is tickling my nose."

The two men got up and left the bar together-- again, not even eliciting a second look. The cover was perfect: two men talk, an envelope was exchanged, and then they left together. Any other place it might have aroused suspicion, but at Innuendo Bar? The dancing men saw them leave and merely smiled. At least someone was getting lucky that night for sure.

Least Cayman Island
Near Puerto Los Santos




The town was small and ramshackle; it had grown in fits and starts over the years as different periods of boom-and-bust had inflated and deflated the population at whim.

"Ripe for some foreign direct investment, I'd say," said the pilot of the C-17 as they flew overhead. The cameras that had ben hastily mounte don the plane whirred and buzzed, taking in the lay of the land. It wasn't a secret that Canissian aircraft overflew the island, frequently on the way to pick up or deliver MESS materiels in coordination with Wikonia, but the recent interest in the island had so far not registered on anyone.

That would soon change.

"Let's get this spool to the Foreign Ministry and see what they want to do about it," the navigator said. Their flight crew had been told what to do, and why. The Canissian government was interested in a space tracking center in the ocean, and the Caymans looked like a good spot for it. A small naval base would also be there to augment the station, and perhaps the Cayman government would be willing to negotiate.

"I'm sure they'll see an envoy stop by before too long," the pilot said, "Place looks like it could use some income, and a small base would help..."




Results:
Canissians interested in Puerto Los Santos.