The Debt All Men Pay

[Tarusa]

Empire of Tarusa

Many across the nation had read the Queens twat and tuned in to watch the broadcast of Konstantin. Foreign news was limited in the Empire to assist in keeping subversion and the narrative of those in power as the leading source, but Csengian and other allied media was largely uncensored. Many families watched the broadcast, until there was none. The transmission was cut off, white noise. The younger generation quickly turned to web, looking for trending tags of the heir apparent speech hoping to at least learn of what transpired before the government had shut them down. It was not long before twatter itself had been blocked by the government, the curtain had been dropped and the outside world was once more choked off from the masses. Those that knew, knew, and those who didn't could only speculate.

Kispest, Kingdom of Csengia

Konstantin walked off to the side, standing there in his new uniform was Marshall Makarov. He had been granted the new higher title by Konstantin for his continued services to The Empire even as he was a hunted man, branded a traitor, now here he was once more in his glory as the Minister of War for the pretender to the throne. They walked across the palace talking softly towards each other, clearly speaking of their first moves but not wishing for others to hear the matters that would soon unfold. He had already called for his wifes army to fight this war, but it would not be very successful if he could not get his own army of Tarusansto fight as well.

The conflict could even be short lived if those in Westmark and scattered across the Kingdom did not choose to fight on his side but instead continued taking orders from Kremlyov. By morning Konstantin could be in a pool of his own blood on the palace grounds that were turned to rubble.

It was not long after the broadcast that phonelines began to ring across the Imperial bases in the Kingdom and WestMark. These were the closest areas to the Kingdom and the hardest for Kremlyov to cut off. By morning, those in command had pledged their loyalty to the pretender, their new Emperor, Konstantin. This family feud had all the makings to be a bloody conflict, the future of the empire and the family laid in the balance.

 

[Tarusa]

Kremlyov, Gothic Sea Naval Headquarters

It was his throne that his brother wanted, and a war he was preparing to fight. Ivan would squash his brother and the Kingdom for their treason. The Ministry of Defense would mobilize the nation for war, it was not the war that it had spent years preparing to fight, but it was prepared to fight. Orders would be sent immediately to the commander of the Imperial Naval forces, ordering the Gothic Sea Fleet. The phones rang in the major naval installations of Kremlyov and Piramida. The Gothic Sea Fleet was to dispatch a large taskforce to the Bonaventura Bay to effectively blockade the Kingdom of Csengia while a strike force was assembled to once more fight in the former Pannonian state.

The commandants at the naval bases had taken the calls, but nothing was done in preparation for sending any ships out of port or the Gothic. Instead they had issued their own orders and made calls on private lines to the other smaller naval bases of the fleet. They would lock down the installations as eventually the loyalists would realize what was happening and come to arrest those who were in charge and all those conspiring with them, how long it would take and what would occur was yet to be seen. They however would be as prepared as they could be, the Gothic Fleet had taken the side of Konstantin.

 

[Tarusa]

Days had gone by with no ships having left port, suspicion had finally been aroused enough that calls were made and some calls went unanswered. Activity at the navy yards in the Gothic Sea had not decreased to say the least, the full appearance of going to a war footing was obvious. Another call was made to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and before long motorized forces of the Rapid Operational Division of the National Guard were enroute to the entrances of the Kremlyov Naval Station.

When the guardsmen of ROD arrived at the various gates of the naval yard they were not welcomed, they were stopped cold and refused entrance as demanded. The Tsars personal lapdogs could not gain entry and enforce Ivans will and arrest the base commanders. At the main entrance, not only was base security at the gate but they had been reinforced by some of the marines on base, including two tanks that were flanking the entrance as an intimidation factor. The outmatched guardsmen would not carry out the suicide mission, as the orders called for them to take the officers of the base by force if necessary. The light arms and vehicles they had arrived in would not be as effective as the fortified and armed naval base was they were to take. The Ministry had underestimated the mutiny that had spread. For now a parameter would be established as neither side truly wished to unleash the bloodshed onto those whom were innocent.

Things however were not the same further north or to the south as more aggressive rapid response forces were paying a visit the the two remaining mainland naval bases. North of Kremlyov laid a smaller naval base that was often times ice locked in the winter and primarily served as a submarine base. The Guards Spetsnaz unit that arrived on site did not take as kindly to being denied access to the facilities, or perhaps it was a lesser militarized presence that led to the belief they could seize the initiative and take those in charge into custody. After a harsh exchange of words between base guards and the NG Spetsnaz a firefight ensued at the main gates before each side pulled back and disengaged. The naval base remained in the hands of the conspirators and the loyalists withdrew to a distance licking their wounds, relaying back of yet another failure unbeknownst to them.

To the South and West of Bruckenthal resided the third naval base on the mainland, home to two squadrons of corvettes. As at the other bases another assault was launched once more by another unit of the NG Spetsnaz. The young commander of this unit was more ambitious, looking to make a name for himself and prove his loyalty to the Tsar. Upon arrival at the gate his forces were already ready to make a show of force, when denied entry it turned into a shooting match. Base guards attempted to maintain some dignified response to repel the attack, but once they were in it turned to a bloodbath as the rebels attempted to defend too many locations and the Loyalists were here to dismantly the command and pacify the opposition.

Rebellious forces defended the arsenal, the commanders offices, and the base housing and barracks. It did not take long for the gunfire to raise the alarm and crews scrambled to their vessels. Those that were capable of getting underway began so with haste, taking on whatever crews from the ships that could not leave port under their own power. They would make their way for Piramida, it was the safest place for the rebellious navy to take refuge.

As the corvettes attempted to make way, one corvettes crew and commanding officer decided this attack and its success foreshadowed the eventual victory of Emperor Ivan. Turning their 57mm gun on the few ships they manage to target they began firing.

When it was all over, the commander of the base was in custody, and small firefights on the base still raged, and two corvettes burned just outside the harbor having been disabled by the opposing corvettes gun.

The first official shots of the civil war had been shot.

 

[Tarusa]

Word had begun to spread like wildfire of the rebellion of the largest of the Imperial Fleets to Konstantin. The race was on to clamp down on the rumors and also attempt to find and remove any possible dissident military officers and non commissioned officers who would attempt to bring their armies to bear against the Tsar. While this search at home was on-going the fear was no lesser in the colonies of the Empire.

The Noks Free State was a lesser worry for Ivan based on the isolation that the country had always been under and the fact it was essentially one giant corporation that was tied to the empire for all its import and exports with no foreign vessels allowed nor foreigners whom were not Tarusan. Maghreb did not suffer the same constraints as its neighboring Tarusan colony but the military forces in the country were amongst some of the most brutal of the empire in their suppression of the low level insurgency that had continued even since the conquest had been completed. It was viewed as the most vulnerable and vital by Ivan and his ministers as it would be able to serve a critical role in the Kingdom and Konstantins aspirations of overthrowing him by providing a source of fuels for a prolonged campaign as the wells had been cut-off after the public declaration by his traitorous brother.

Operation Black Rain:

In the event of loss of territory or incursion where the appearance of a prolonged loss of facilities appears to be imminent by enemies of the empire both foreign and domestic; not excluding rebellious forces in the Maghreb, garrison units of Maghreb are hereby authorized to take pre-emptive action.

Plan for and prepare oil wells with large quantities of demolitions; pipelines with tactical demolition or disablement; refineries and port equipment for distribution of oil and fuels for complete destruction.

Sankt Katherina had been determined to be a lost cause for Ivan as the Islands governor and military were outside of his reach with the Gothic Fleet having turned against him, this had left him with a significant smaller fleet with its facilities between the Noks and Maghreb. Risking the potential weakening of his defenses for the colonies or his ability to strike at the Kingdom to re-take Sankt Katherina from the Konstantinists was just viewed as a poor usage of the naval assets he still had control over.

 

[Tarusa]

The stalemate that had developed around Kremlyov with the naval bases and the national guard needed to be broken, the spirit of those resisting crushed, and securing the Capital from the forces of Konstantin. Ivan had gradually added additional regular army forces withdrawing national guard forces from defensive positions. The replacements were none other than the 150th Motor Rifle Division and the 20th Motor Rifle Division, each would strike a heavy blow to the rebels.

Weeks had passed with neither side attempting to instigate the other from the initial confrontation, content to hold their positions and hope for a solution to appear. A solution would not come as they had hoped, instead of preventing more bloodshed, orders had been passed down to do the opposite.

The moon was full, the sound of tank tracks could be heard rumbling and squeaking across the pavement outside the base. Then the silence, under the moonlight and some street lights the outline of a handful of tanks could be seen. The rustling of equipment as men were moving about in a hurry would occasionally break the silence. The perimeter had largely been held only by soldiers on foot and light trucks, the arrival of the heavy equipment to the gates of the base brought an unease to those defending, it was inevitable that an assault would come soon. The night dragged on, with both sides waking soldiers and taking up positions, with only one knowing when the time would come.

Shortly after 4am the first shots broke the silence from the North as the blasts from the barrels of two tanks could be heard and the exchange of small arms fire erupted. The distance was too far to see the flashes, but the sounds easily were carried. It did not take long for the western approaches to the main gate to come to life in similar fashion. By late afternoon the outside perimeter of the main Kremlyov naval base was lost by the defenders having been pushed back to the inward grounds and facilities inside the base, the end of the next night the defenders were left with a foothold. They had lost a majority of the open ground, housing, and administration areas. The defenders had fallen back/been pushed back to a line defending the docks, warehouses, munitions, and fuel islands with miscellaneous buildings. Tsesarevitch, one of the two carriers in port, was hastily placed as the combat command for the defense of the base, communications from the bridge began a desperate plea for relief from Piramida, which was unofficially the rebellion headquarters from within the Empires borders.

100km North-West of Kremlyov a similar engagement between the 23rd Marine Brigade and the 20th Motor Rifle Division ensued, with similar results. As the engagements were reported and the failings on the mainland began to come in word was passed from Piramida to Kispest. The halls of Defense Ministry of the Kingdom were harrowing these days as Csengians and Tarusans crowded it, with the Imperial assault on the naval bases on the mainland it was even worse. As the battles raged in the North, a visible strong hand was ordered to hit south.

Fighters and Navy Patrol aircraft left two airfields in Sankt Viet and WestMark to deliver a counter-punch and hurt the blockade effort of Ivan in the bay. Overwhelming success was the news of the day, at least thats how it would be portrayed. Eight aircraft had left the airfields, and only four returned. Broken into 4 groups of two with each patrol craft being escorted by a multi-role fighter. Two pickets of Ivan blockade were targeted, escorts for the heavily armed battlecruiser. The success had come with one frigate sinking, meanwhile the other, an air defense destroyer fending off the attack with a close call.

128 km South-West of Scharmbeck Rheinbund the Vernost exploded and broke apart, all hands lost.

 

[Tarusa]

The front lines of the battlefield on the naval bases around Kremlyov did not change much as lines had stabilized between the forces fighting. The only slight change came from brazen counter-attack launched by the 88th guards division against the 150th motor rifle division. A desperate push to regain the defensible positions around the base and keep a foothold on the mainland within easy striking distance of the capital. The sounds of the intense fighting that had resumed could be heard in the depths of Kremlyov from the naval bases location as a suburb of the city. There would be no way the regime could hide this from the residents. Hours of fighting exhausted both sides once more, with each side remaining in control of roughly half of the 30 sq kilometer base before each retired and began setting new defensive positions. Farther north neither side opted for another attack, instead maintaining their positions and further entrenching themselves.

The evacuation of the majority of the ships from each of the two remaining naval bases was decidedly the best option, they would retreat to the military installations and even begin displacing ships in the civilian harbors where they could to setup temporary quarters. Remaining in the harbors was viewed as too dangerous for if the Ivanists did begin losing ground the vessels would be vulnerable to artillery strikes, and if they instead made sweeping gains once again with fresh troops, the capture of many gothic fleet ships would give Ivan once more control of his fleet to threaten the Konstanists across the globe.

Pavlovo, central Tarusa

The determination of those fighting for Konstantin against overwhelming odds in the Kremlyov region did not go unnoticed by those in charge in the Central Military District. Some of the officers were already rebellious and had decided before the commencement of hostilities to support Konstantin, othershad been swayed by their comrades, and some were just going to follow the orders of their superiors. The command had followed along with mobilization orders from Ivan, they had toed the line, keeping intentions hidden to buy the time necessary. No more.

Pavlovo was to be yet another headquarters of the rebellious Konstantinist forces. The military command made sure to secure the government buildings and institute martial law across the small cities and villages of their district to the best of their abilities. It was the largest military district in the nation, and would essentially cut the country in half, but it would not be easy to maintain full martial control over it all. The conflict was about to grow.

Bonaventura Bay

With the loss of the Vernost and the bay detachment of Ivan from the meridian fleet withdrawing further from the reach of the rebel air arm and potentially pursuing Csengian and rebel naval units a decision was made to narrow the approaches into the bay to further keep control of the bay. They would begin to mine the bay in face of their retreat and force shipping into avenues controlled by them or into the neutral territorial waters around. The mining would be small scale in the face of their retreat to deeper waters, the true mining operation would begin with the arrival of an auxiliary to lay a series of minefields to control the flow of traffic in the bay and force the rebels into engaging on the loyalists terms.

 

[Tarusa]

By Decree of the Ministry of Defense
Emperor Ivan
​

The Active Reserve is to be fully activated requiring all reservists to report.

The mobilization of the human reserve to commence training to increase the field strength of the Imperial Army during this time of crisis. The goal of mobilization of the human reserve is to increase the strength of the Imperial army by 2-3 divisions in the first call-up.

Following the increased activity by the CETO member Istavania of its land armies, indicating a mobilization of its armed forces the conclusion must be reached of impending boots on the ground in the aid of the rebellious elements of the Empire.

 

[Tarusa]

Gothic Sea

The dark evening sky carried the rumble of the turboprop patrol aircraft. Leaving their base in the north to make a long trip deep into the Gothic Sea for a mission that would be three-fold. The small scale mining of the Bonaventura Bay would appear exactly as it was, a small scale operation compared to this operation. Every means was provided to support this with an escort being provided along the dangerous route where interception from the Rikord Archipelago could be carried out.

It was fortunately a quiet night as the squadron made itself into the open seas of the Gothic and continued west. Nobody could tell if it was luck, or the provided support that had made for an easy first leg of the journey, the crews would take it however. Each of the twelve patrol craft were carrying a mixed array of mines for deployment, with some carrying a greater amount of explosive weight and others a smaller amount, some of the more modern bottom mines would be mixed into the field to increase the likelihood of successfully carrying out the area denial.

The operation would see 350 of the various mines dropped into the waters of the Gothic Sea between the Austwegians of Jysken and the Germanic State of Salen. The goal was not only to attempt and trop the Gothic Sea Fleet of Konstantin in the Gothic Sea to prevent it from aiding in the Meridian theatre, but to also push commercial traffic into dangerous waters as they would face either the minefield or the Gutnish pirates and to deny greater access into and out of the Gothic Sea for those who were threatening Ivans grip on the waters.

When the sun broke across the waters the mining was underway as the aircraft flew low and the bays were opened and mines were dropping into the sea.

The return trip was expected to be more difficult but once again either luck, or skill and preparedness had left the patrol craft and the escort that met them once more from the mainland intact and undisturbed. The conflict was still only beginning to escalate as the sides were each playing their hands carefully and laying out the preparations for each side to make their moves.

Kremlyov

The only fighting to really occur between the two sides was still occurring only around the capital. The small pocket of resistance by the rebellious elements at the major naval bases on the mainland still standing. North-West of the capital neither side seemed interested in making a major push against the other and the exchanges continued with little change as they each probed the other content to keep the status quo and attempt to just wear the other side down.

Within the area of the Kremlyov Naval Station the 88th guards division of the navy once more struck back in an offensive operation to retake the base. In a wildly successful counter-attack after feigning for weeks that they were beginning to be exhausted by limiting the exchanges with the 150th. The counter-attack had successfully pushed the 150th back to the perimeter of the base bringing it back under control of the rebels. The attack itself was only blunted by the assistance of the national guard units by the Ministry of Internal Affairs National Guard units.

A foothold still remained to potentially take the capital and end Ivan rapidly if it could be exploited.

 

[Tarusa]

Kremlyov

Major General Alexey Fatulayev had been leading the defense of the Kremlyov Naval Station with his troops of the 88th Guards Division. The division had fought hard, even when things had looked desperate and as if the base would fall to Ivans forces they held and launched daring counter-attacks. Having retaken the base and put his enemy on the defensive he had put in requests for the forces in Piramida to send relief and reinforcements, but his requests were rebuffed as the commanders fighting for Konstantin were more focused upon fortifying their current positions before going on the offensive. This was the most irritating part of his fight, he knew the Kremlin was within mere kilometers of his position, but he was not being given the resources to take the fight to within the city and the walls of the Kremlin.

Some good news did come as the air campaign would begin after the rebellious forces had dropped the ball and allowed the mining of the Gothic, completely being incapable of preventing it from occurring even tho they held the islands that choked off the mainland from the gothic.

The 88th again pushed against the enemy attempting to take the fight away from the base and push towards the city, only to be repulsed by the overwhelming numbers of the enemy between the regular army and the national guard of the Interior Ministry. The two forces would continue to bleed each other dry while no progress could be made by either side.

As the fighting raged on the ground and the air campaign began the flight of 35s came in low across the sea, as they made their approach on Kremlyov they popped up hoping to draw the attention of the air defenses. As they were illuminated by the enemy each let loose the light payload of anti-radiation missiles from their pylons before once more hitting the deck and scurrying back towards the archipelago. From the east came another attack.

The coordinated attack was aimed at killing Ivan, or at the very least scaring him. While the first attack was successful in damaging some anti-air defenses, the simultaneous attack from the east was met with a crushing defeat. The attack aircraft were met far from their destination and were easily outmatched by the interceptors. The twelve pilots who had been ordered to carry out the attempted assassination of Ivan never came close enough to see the outskirts of the city, and Ivan never broke a sweat nor seemed concerned. The Air-Defense umbrella of the city held strong. His forces would continue to hold and plan their own moves while just buying time waiting to let his enemy come to him.

 

[Tarusa]

Al-Gharb/Himyar Meridian Command

Ivans paranoia and constant speeches of the CETO base in Valetta being the staging ground for the inevitable operation against the Crown Colony of Maghreb appeared to be true. Satellite imagery from the port showed the missing assault force of the enemy, the carriers, a centerpiece of Western Naval doctrine was gone when comparing the imagery from the previous 24 hours. It was no coincidence of this occurrence while a simultaneous meeting in Valls was underway of all of the Empires enemies and others who would simply like to carve out a piece for themselves.

MoD
Himyar/Meridian Command

Deploy submarine pickets in the shallows, nuke boats to deep waters, missile boats to sea to prepare counter-strike immediately. Threat is not Konstantinist, Carrier groups missing from Valetta. Surface Fleet shall make ready.

The Himyar command had lacked long range dedicated patrol craft, but would utilize its fighters. Two formations of fighters would each fly out from Al-Gharb at high altitude. One would head directly north from Al-Gharb, the other would fly north-east. Two fighters per formation, they would attempt and locate the CETO forces if they were truly coming towards the Crown Colony. Those who had thought the Tsar was paranoid now questioned the paranoia as more insightful, but they still viewed the CETO nations as cowardly.

 

[The Federation]

Gothic Sea

The Federation assault carriers arrived on the scene of the area that had been mined. The

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Viklund and Rygaard were escorted by ten frigates and six destroyers and somewhere nearby three attack submarines sailed ahead of the group providing advanced cover should Gutnish pirate ships wish to come out and play. Originally the group had been deployed to train with the white seals of the Thaumantic Order whose ships were not far behind. The Viklund had carried a complement of twenty F/A-21B Phantoms and four heavy lift capable CH-63 Sea Horses and the Rygaard had been set up to carry mostly helicopters in a standard complement of six V/TOL fighers, four attack helicopters, twelve tiltrotor support helicopters, four heavy lift helicopters and 3 small utility helicopters.

Unfortunately for the Federation group the minesweeping ships were still a few days behind them, and so therefore mine sweeping duties would need to be undertaken primarily by helicopter until their arrival. The destroyers were equipped with two helicopters of a multirole nature and only one mine search ROV brining the total minesweeping capabilities to eight heavy lift helicopters, capable of towing minesweeping rigs and six helicopters that could deploy ROV's to search for mines with a laser detection system.

The helicopters deployed to begin anti-mine duties while the other assault carrier deployed air cover for the helicopters and the ship groups. With the weather cooperating the mine defusal was going well until there was an explosion and a plume of water near one of the helicopters. The line towing the mine clearing sled snapped and the large helicopter lurched forward and almost entered into a spin but for the expert control of the pilot. A mine clearing rig was lost near the end of the day.

Rear Admiral Anson Munroe met the helicopter that had suffered the loss of it's mine clearing sled on the flight deck. The pilot saluted him and he returned the salute. As they walked into the island he reassured the pilot and thanked him for his hard work. Admiral Munroe signaled back to fleet command back in the Federation that they would need a new mine clearing sled to replace the one that was lost. At the end of the day the report showed that ninety mines had been cleared before nightfall and the night watch would begin as the helicopters returned to their host ships.

 

[Rheinbund]

Bonaventura Bay

Korvettenkapitän Gunthard Rudel stood at the bridge of his new mine sweeper, the Thorsringen. It was a new design by Rheinmund Schiffbau, and the first one in its class, the Thorsringen Class. The ship classes of the Rheinian Navy were always named after one of the Rheinbund's memberstates. Then the first vessel in the class got the name of the memberstate, and all other vessels in the class the names of cities and towns in that memberstate.
As a result of a very pacifist stance among the Rheinians, the equipment of the Rheinian armed forces did not undergo many renewals. The Rheinian arms industry produced very good to sometimes magnificent designs, but the Rheinian armed forces were not a very big customer. Especially the Navy had been considered expensive and not needed to be renewed. As a result, 70% of the ships were from the 1970s or older, and only a few ships were less than 10 years old. Rheinmund Schiffbau survived, but mainly because it received subsidies to preserve jobs.
The more or less pacifist Sociodemocrats dominated the Rheinbund's politics during the 1990s and 2000s, the period in which new purchases for the armed forces were reduced to a minimum, only to keep the arms industries afloat. Strange enough, the Rheinian arms industries survived the pacifism of the Sociodemocrats, together with conscription.
Then in 2010, for the first time in decades, the Christiandemocrats became the biggest force in Parliament, and obtained a majority with the Market Liberals. That government change did not lead to a big increase in defence spending, but the four Cabinets Von-Seydewitz did do much to improve the Rheinians' stance towards their armed forces, and the defence budgets did increase. Furthermore, the Cabinets-Von-Seydewitz did a lot to improve the Rheinians' stance towards the armed forces. Last year's sharp increase of the defence budget would not have been possible without Von Seydewitz's forework.
The Navy was still on the back seat, but Korvettenkapitän Rudel understood the choices made: First the army and the airforce, then the Navy. New ships had been ordered though, among which even an aircraft carrier to replace the old one.

Meanwhile the Tsar had earned himself a nickname in the Rheinbund: Iwan der Psycho. More badly, the Tarusans were called the Iwans. Also the Csengians, by the way. In this war, the Rheinians considered them in the same camp as the Tarusans: The camp of the troublemakers. Although they were aware of the fact that the Iwans were fighting each other as well.

But now Korvettenkapitän Rudel had to concentrate on something else: Mine sweeping. Today the Rheinians were very successful with that. There were always four ships in the theatre. The remaining ships were either traveling to the Theatre, or sailing back to shore, or bunkering and being maintained. The ships managed to defuse 20 mines each, a total of 80 mines.

 

[The Federation]

Gothic Sea

The combat information center aboard the FNS Rygaard was a flurry of activity as the call for man overboard had come out over the net.

"This is Specter Nine, we are declaring an emergency, we got a man in the water!" roared out over the radio launching everyone into focus. Even with the summer season, temperatures in the Gothic were low enough to cause hypothermia within 15 minutes. If he was not secured soon her could be dead within the hour.

The previous days mine handling had been fraught with issues of a mechanical nature. The loss of a mine defusal sled meant that the entire process had been slowed and a new one would not be available before the War Department's deadline to breakthrough into the Gothic. On day two of the mission a helicopter had lost gyro navigation and weather did not make recovering the helicopter and it's crew any easier. They only managed to defuse fifty four mines on day two because of these issues. The third day was only slightly better, with another helicopter losing radio communications it had to return and make repairs. With only sixty one mines having been defused on third day.

The operation was on pace to defuse fifty nine mines today even with the man overboard. luckily a frigate had been nearby and was able to put out a rigid hull inflatable boat to rescue him.

With a total of 264 mines defused over several days, the question of the more dangerous mines was now upon them. The mine countermeasures craft would be available soon as they were close to completing their cruise from the Federation territory of Midway. The rocket mines had been discovered by ROV mid mission and caused a slight dip in moral when it became clear that this was no normal mine clearing mission. They lie on the ocean floor and could not be defused without a team of divers, involving dive teams would slow the mission and the War Department was not happy to hear about it. Nonetheless the mission needed to continue on if they were to break through into the gothic and make contact with the pirates and reopen the sea to commerce.

 

[Rheinbund]

Fehrbellin, Rheinbund

Bastian Holzbrenner sat behind his desk at the computer and internet department of the Rheinischer Nachrichtendienst (RND). He had already been recruited for this job during his study, to be precise after he hacked an important government department and notified that department about the leak. His task was to find weaknesses in both Rheinian and foreign systems. But that was not his only task at the moment. He also had to check for cyber attacks and prepare for them. The attack on the NIS was a clear sign that a cyber attack could be expected. What to do in that case? The answer would be counterattacking and mitigating. The counterattacking would be Bastian's task.
His boyfriend Christoph von Weizenburg worked for Rathenau Kraftwerke, the division of the Rathenau Gruppe building power plants and power grids. He was doing overtime producing spare parts of all kinds for the case that power plants or major power switches would be attacked. Luckily, the Rheinian power grid was robust. It had an overcapacity and was finely branched. Only a really big bombing attack could physically knock it out, and the protection against cyber attacks was in a good shape. But better safe than sorry. The Iwans were crazy enough for a big bombing attack.

 

[Thaumantica]

Gothic Sea

Nieveland's Revolutionary Navy of the Thaumantic Communal Order arrived in the region days after their Federal counterparts with reticence from the flotilla's leadership. News of the mishaps and damages to their circumstantial allies were kept a guarded secret from common sailors and officers, though it was only a matter of time before radio chatter scuttled from radio monitors to the bunks and boards of such vessels as minesweeper Revolutionary Vessel (R.V.) MacAlpin and its two brothers the MacCaites and Pengwyth. Commissars of the Communal Order were already warning that Federal folk "exaggerated pain" and that the Rheinbunders were "over protective of precious technological loss". These caricatures of the other powers at work here would suffice at least until Nievish blood warmed and froze over in the water.

A morning prayer led by the priest aboard R.V. MacAlpin to all Nievish vessels in the vicinity amounted to a curse for the MacAlpin which faltered and failed to deploy and merely managed to disarm 3 mines on their first outing. The MacCaits and Pengwyth were more robust and achieved their mission goal of twenty a piece before retiring and aiding the MacAlpin in repairs. After reporting their boon to Federal allies the officer in charge of the Nievish battlegroup sent a cipher home to Caitekurke, to which a code informed back to hold wait for the other powers to attempt further operations the next day while claiming mechanical issues amongst the Nievish party.

 

[Tarusa]

Kremlyov
radio broadcast

Citizens and soldiers of the Empire. Our enemy has shown their hands, and it is not as they claim. They talk of peace, how they want to "bring about a resolution to this conflict", the only resolution they wish to see to this conflict is the dismantling of our great nation. Those who support the Konstantinist camp both overtly, and covertly, now is your chance to be forgiven for your transgressions. This offer will not last forever, those who may be sympathetic to Konstantin, or the west, I forgive you for being fooled into thinking things could go back to the way they were in years past. It is not by our own doing, but that of our enemies that has continued to push things to this point.

They were given a chance to meet with me directly in Zahorie so long as they ceased military action and movements that are the build-up for a military action against our nation. They blatantly chose to continue these movements, that is how they plan to bring resolution to this conflict is by brute force. It is with our brute force we will beat them back into the holes they have all decided to crawl out of should they continue on this path demanding blood.

The message was loud and clear, while some Konstantinists had already risen up in arms against Ivan, there were still many units and their officers that had been clandestinely awaiting an opportunity to move forward and rise up in Konstantins name. Things did not continue as they had been for the weeks prior, communication with some units in the Germania district simply stopped having contact with their handlers from the Hanseatic consular offices, others flat out reported they would no longer be supporting Konstantin but needed to support the Empire and Ivan as he had been correct with his rhetoric. The same occurred in the Southern Command where nearly half of the units that had been prepared to raise up in Konstantins name now waivered. Twenty percent, twenty percent was the cost to Konstantins potential armed forces. A critical blow in parts of the Empire where he was crucially counting on the support to keep Ivans loyalists from moving towards Kremlyov.

 

[Tarusa]

Rheinian Border

There had been a further announcement of more "White Helms" being deployed to yet another border of the Kingdom. Coincidently, it followed the pattern of being either CETO or the new Valls Pact who used the European Forums White Helms as an excuse to continue a build-up of military forces on the Kingdoms borders. The democratic world seemed to hold some belief that just because they had voted forth on some resolutions it made it legal across the globe, it was nothing more than a self-fulfilling justification to their peoples to make them feel better about themselves. One would have thought they would realize that for every escalation, there was a reciprocal action from the Kingdom who needed to defend itself from multiple enemies obviously.

Major General Karl Utassy was the field commander of the 4th Infantry Division which had begun positioning itself along the border. When the message had come down that there would yet be more potential enemies facing him down the reply was an immediate request for further reinforcement by a Pojazerna Motor Rifle Brigade.

Defensive fortifications were in the works, the level of trust Konstantin and Queen Elisabeth had in the Valls pact continued to plummet. The words they spoke were significantly different than the actions they took. What should have been a bastion for his rebellion had quickly turned into what appeared to be besieged country from all sides on land and sea.

 

[The Federation]

Gothic Sea

The Deck of the FNS Rygaard was quiet as the men stood in silence, the prayers were said, the hymns sung. Three caskets draped in the flag of the Federation were carried up to the edge of the deck, the casket bearers wore a black band on their left arms. Admiral Munroe spoke about the honorable nature and bravery the three divers had displayed in risking themselves to clear the seas of the dangerous rocket mines that had stood in their way to clearing the Gothic Sea of the danger.

Three men had died and news had followed that a diver of the North Istavanian Navy had also died in his attempt to defuse the mines. No navy sailor had been killed by enemy action since the Polytopikan Emergency in 1978. The worst part about it was that the divers would have to go out again tomorrow for six still remained. The shots of the 21 guns salute rang out, the flags removed and folded to be sent to the families of the dead divers and the caskets were committed to the deep, their watch now at an end.

Bonaventure Bay

The FNS Hornet departed the port at Valls and joined up with the rest of her battlegroup, they had been ordered to the Gothic where they would join with the battlegroup clearing the mines. The nations residing on the Bonaventure were more than capable of protecting their bay and more important business now lay up north. Troop ships bound for Metsaama would be leaving port in Baldwin-Whitehall to be stationed in Metsaama as part of the Federation's agreement with the Hanseatic League. The combined fleets would join the Metsaaman navy in their battle against the Guatrikian pirates.

Somewhere Near the North Pole

When thirty fighters had left the air force base in Skagway, CR, it had been daylight and it would be daylight for the entire trip as four flights of five fighters made their way over the artic region to the north of Metsaama where they would be stationed at a Federation base that had been built the year before under secret contract with the Metsaamans. Tankers had been set out ahead and as they linked up to refuel, the boom operator made idle chitchat and instructed the pilots to look for the North Pole. All that could be seen was ice and the churning waters of the sea. Their equipment and weapons would come in behind them on the day after, escorted by the last of the fighters, two flights of five, so as not to crowd the skies with aircraft and arouse suspicion.

@Hanseatic Republics

 

[Tarusa]

Kremlyov

The front-lines had been stagnant for weeks. Neither side really cared to push and bleed themselves dry, sporadic firefights had erupted but that was about the main action that had occurred. It was the same to the North at the main submarine base of the Gothic Fleet where the 23rd marines had been holding a thin defensive position barely holding on.

Relief however was finally arriving, units from the 2nd Marine Division finally arrived at the piers of both naval bases. They would rotate in and take the over on the lines of contact with the enemy at the Gothic Hq, and would reinforce the positions allowing some smaller unit rest at the submarine base. The sight was one that had brought great relief to the men whom had held what was considered the most vital positions in the entire campaign against Ivan. The trickle in from the transports would continue to bring in a Brigade each to the two positions, while the new men on the line wanted to carry on the battle and attempt to push into the suburbs of Kremlyov, it would not be so as those who they were relieving were not yet ready to carry out another offensive after having fought a bloody battle to hold onto what precious little they had.

Himyar/Meridian

The submersible fleet had scattered to the wind when it had been determined the CETO battlegroup had left Valetta while the surface fleet made ready in both the Free State and Maghreb. The air patrols had picked up the movement of the large fleet easier than had been anticipated when their course had been essentially traveling a path similar to the fighters send to attempt and locate it on the open seas. The enemy fleet however had not taken any aggressive actions, a daily patrol to the area had found them carrying out activities staying at roughly distances of 115km to 130km from the Maghreb shore, but not taking an aggressive course of action, however their presence was enough to validate the Tsars claims to the men. It was just a matter of time until war came to Himyar, and it would be the enemy they had always been warned about, but not the one they were currently believing they would have had to fight.

The enemy had played their hands, the element of surprise was gone. The surface fleet was prepared to leave the sally from the port immediately if the need arose. For now another visible picket force was to be the visible presence shadowing the enemy, and harass them a little bit. Three Tigr class corvettes would travel the coastal waters of the Empire roughly 50 km from the shoreline, they would use one of the Helix helicopters to carry out a daily harassment of the battlegroup.

 

[The Federation]

Gothic Sea

The Federation strike force that had arrived to demine the Gothic Sea was successful and now the ships began to stream in and set a patrol near Gutarike as they waited for the rest of the strike force and the troop and equipment ships bound for Metsaama to arrive. In Metsaama the fighters and their accompanying transports arrived without incident and now transports began to stream in over the arctic polar region with fighter escort making sure the flights over the north were uninterrupted.

Rear Admiral Anson Munroe ordered the creation of an exclusion zone around the fleet staging area and combat Air Patrol kept vigilance in skies as they awaited the rest of the strike force. Orders came in from the War Department not to engage pirate ships or possible Tarusan vessels if they were spotted unless they posed a threat to the fleet, the ships of an allied nation, or if another mine laying mission appeared to be going on.