The calls of the sea birds broke through the lazy afternoon sky, a few wisps of an afternoon sea breeze floated across the sea, bringing with it a coolness to temper the heat of day. The peaceful wind betrayed the situation which had occurred a few hours; whereas the bay seemed peaceful, lazy and content now the two nation’s ships hanging loosely off anchor in the bay it had been the exact opposite earlier. The air had been filled with the acrid scent of gunpowder and the smoke of burning ships. Where all one could hear was the shrieks of dying men and thunderous belch of cannons all that remained now was the relaxing, occasional calls of a kaleidoscope of sea birds. To say it was tragedy would be an understatement; even in this new world the violence of the old has already tainted it.

In truth no side could be confident in who had started the conflict albeit this was a useful fact because no side could claim grievance. Peace had been easier to seek because despite the temptation of blaming the other in hope of being correct, neither side had seemed to tempted to take that path. All Commodore Thame knew was that in only the first day of their colonisation endeavour, they’d lost nearly one hundred souls to the cold grasps of hell and a sloop, the Warden had been lost to the depths along with all the souls on-board. Whilst it would be tempting to say it’d been sunk by a well-places shot the fact was they’d been unlucky; a cannon ball had hit their powder kegs, blowing the ship apart.

It’d been a violent and unnecessary battle; someone’s nerve had faltered during negotiations and now they were her, paying the price with their grief and regret. His position as Governor of the colony and the naval forces would now come under question in the council hall; he expected a demotion and possible retirement to result from the conflict. Commodore Thames had been a career soldier, serving in the Arbassian navy for some 40 years and he knew his tenure was near and end yet he feared a life with little purpose. He’d pushed for the opportunity to retire into a relatively easy life of colonial governing but now his plans stood in jeopardy; a lifetime’s work could vanish in a second. His plans to dedicate the new colony to Councillor de Happself were in tatters, he now felt compelled to dedicate it to the lost souls. He’d proclaimed their colony should be call Wardenfall, in honour of the sunken sloop and extended the question to the kingdom of Republi’s colonial rulers to propose naming the strait between the two colonies as Remembrance Strait.

He shook such deep and mellow thoughts out of his mind; there was little point in trying to think about what he could have changed should he be able to traverse time, instead turning to thoughts of the expansion and establishment of the new town of Wardenfall. They’d managed to stake out a sizeable plot of land yet now they had little more than a rudimentary palisade and a city of tents staked out. Construction of proper facilities would have to begin soon; a dock was the priority for their colony. That would ease the transport of goods, materials and settlers into the new colony quite significantly with ships being able to moor up rather than offloading onto landing dinghies. He signed an official order to begin construction on the bay and had it sent to his foreman on the beach before writing a second letter detailing the items he’d require to be sent over from Stendmark and sent that off once he finished. It’d be delivered by their fastest ship the Lightning, a sloop which had been designed to run as a messenger ship and as such was lightly armed and light manned but capable of outrunning just about any ship in known existence.

---

The report about the conflict had cause a ruckus in the council chambers; there’d been uproar calling for a host of hostile actions from embargoes to war; the answer did not lie in hostile action however tempting it may be. In their new world they could not afford to get caught up in a war and as such Marcus had done the unthinkable; befriended his enemy and even sent an offer to join what was soon to become the newly-established Commerce League. So far it had 3 foundation members; The Councilate, The United People of Valm and the Sofon Dominion who’d announced their acceptance of the Councilate’s offer. Preparation of the Dominion’s docks and warehouses had already been completed and awaited the arrival of their agents in order to commence their operations.

There’d been a number of endeavours undertaken already; the Councilate had ruled to not only send what was requested by Commodore-Governor Thames but also a second expedition, aiming to increase the workforce of the existing colony by a large amount. This journey would carry a naval escort of 2 Ships of the Line and 3 schooners which would escort them halfway across the ocean whereupon the colonial navy would escort them into the colony and hopefully the newly constructed port. The expedition would also carry a number of experts including prospectors, engineers, architects and agricultural scientists in order to plan the infrastructure and industry of their colony. The voyage cost would be negligible due to the colonial fervour of various benefactors who wanted to expand their businesses overseas. The only cost would be in soldiers to guard their land explorations yet the soldiers would simply be pulled from the regulars sent over to guard the colony, there was an abundance of cannon at their landing and the ships could easily provide close range support.

Despite the colonial setback it was looking like a positive start to the month for the councilate; they had an established colony, new friends and were ready to proclaim the Commerce League to the world. Marcus had ordered up an announcement to be sent to the various nations of the world that read as such:


“Nations of Edoniras,

The Councilate of Arbasses is pleased to announce the formation of a new co-operative organisation in the land, the Commerce League. The Commerce League is a new initiative spearheaded by the Councilate of Arbasses and it focuses on creating a trading bloc in order to coalesce the market power of its individual members into one. This is aimed to allow the members to exert pressure on the markets to raise prices and profits while selling their stock and obtaining lower prices due to bulk demand. Two things are required in order to achieve this goals; monopoly (or close to) on the supply of goods and effective control of major trading routes. A major feature of the Commerce League will be internal trading wherein lower prices will be offered to fellow members in order to strengthen the entirety of the League.

The League will not be operated or owned by any one nation and as such a co-operative leadership will be required with voting power relative to the benefits brought by nations into the league. A secondary feature of the Commerce League will be a signatory defence pact wherein members of the league will pledge to assist the other signatory members of the trade league in any defensive law. This is to dissuade any attempts at foreign hostility towards the members of the Commerce League. Internal conflicts should be avoided at all costs however in the event of a war breaking out between two league members the defence pact inapplicable and any outside alliances stand as. Internal conflict should be avoided and the path of diplomacy should be heavily stressed, other members can act as intermediaries if required.

All in all, the Commerce League stands as a chance to diplomatically create a trading powerhouse in order to control the wealth of the world. We invite the nations of the world to consider this proposal and send their requests to join if it so fancies them. The decision to become a signatory to the defence treaty is completely in your own hands so make your decision as you see fit.

Marcus de Happself”


He couldn’t help but have a grin intrude upon his usually stoic face; it was a good day to be Arbassian.

Verun did not appear anywhere the following day. Most aggressors on the ship died in the conflict, while he cringed at his inability to prevent such things to happen. A fool, an old, drunken fool, he thought. He knew he would be demoted to a captain of a mere sloop rather than a flotilla of strong ships, and he was frightened. A long line of palisade was built along the coastline, many has set tents on the hillside while those who didn't hesitate to sleep without a roof began a strong construction of buildings. A couple of boats were sent back to Nuesma to notify the Kamm of such happening.

Kamm angrily clutched the closest thing to him. Verun was a good, skilled man, but he felt that Verun was aging and became too slow to be capable of controlling his men. An immediate demotion was sent back, along with the new flotilla captain and governor, Thanat Shamash. Shamash was a small, serious man with a low voice and a strange habit of observing ants. A man of an iron word to be kept strong, he was in his middle thirties, energetic, quick, with great reflexes, and great ambitions at that. He commanded his crews with an iron fist, many having a big disdain for him. As he arrived, a shock of bewilderment spread across the ranks, yet as he presented the document of Kamm, they stopped. Verun went inside the cabin of a small sloop he was given, first it was named "Dignity", but he felt the sloop was worthy of a name opposite.

It had been two weeks since the ambassador from the northern kingdom left and the message was sent to the President of Dont about the aid the alliance was sending to his crumbling country. A message came back a week later after the ambassador left, a message from the king of Azvanor himself and another message from President Von Kliebb of Dont. The messages arrived to Grudden directly, arriving as fast as the currents that carried the ships and as fast as the horses that carried them. Duke Kollin II, being the acting leader of the Corleonn-Warrus-Grudden-Nollin alliance saw, opened the letters and read them. Whatever those letters held inside, it worried the Duke so much that he had to summon another meeting of his colleagues. The Dukes and heads of parliament of the other duchies came within a week. There was no welcoming ceremony, not even the simplest one. Time was of the essence and a meeting was held immediately. As soon as the members were seated and they were served refreshments, Duke Kollin II and Arssius Peckler entered the room with the letters in the Duke's hands.

"What is the meaning of this Ferras?" Duke Hemmlar V immediately asked after the Duke and Peckler took their seats.

"Read this." Duke Kollin II answered as he placed the letters on top of a table in front of the men. The men other noticed that the seals that held the letters closed were opened. One by one they read the letter and they all saw the gravity of the situation. The first letter to be discussed was from the Dont president. This matter held frustration for the majority of the alliance members.

"5,000,000,000 Dont Dollars? Is this man insane?!" Ranted Von Mannchier. "Is our armies not enough for him? How will he gamble this money this time? We surely aren't going to give him this, am I correct?"

"We are." Answered Duke Kollin II. "In fact this has only furthered our plans."

"How!?" A frustrated and clearly angry Duke Kavlar answered.

"Because we are going to use this money as an incentive." Duke Hemmlar V answered. He quickly picked up on Kollin II's plan as soon as the Duke of Grudden spoke. "Before, both of Dont and the duchies would tax the mine owners that used employed the Dont miners. Our payment to his country would serve as a loan that he would have to repay somehow. He would repay it by letting us tax the mine owners exclusively, until his debt is paid by the labor of the foreign miners in our duchies."

"Exactly Sir Hemmlar. We would put an interest on this loan of 10 percent I think. This would allow as to tax the mine owners solely for even longer. It's brilliant." Duke Kollin II remarked.

The other members of the alliance saw the genius in this plan. They then moved on to the next letter. This matter concerned most them a lot. The letter was from Azvanor, from King Philip Duloire himself. The King has stated that any militaristic actions taken on Dont would be seen as an act of war against Azvanor herself. This is not what the alliance had in mind. A war with her closest ally to the north would be bad enough but it might also start a revolution in Dont that might take aggressive actions against the alliance. All eyes turned to Duke Kollin II for answers.

"I know what you are all thinking, an envoy must be sent to Azvanor to clarify our intentions with the king." Duke Kollin II stated.

"But who would you send?" Sir Koplar asked.

"I will go there personally. I've already written and sent a letter to King Duloire himself of my visit to Azvanor. I will leave tommorow. But I need somebody to negotiate with Von Kliebb himself."

All eyes turned to Duke Hemmlar V. The old man let out a heavy sigh as he knew what he's job would be.

"Excellent. Then Sir Hemmlar, you would travel to Dont and negotiate with Von Kliebb. Gentlemen, I could only hope for all our sake that this venture of ours works." Duke Kollin II said and the meeting was adjourned. The next day, Duke Kollin II headed for the port town of Jesper to sail for Azvanor. Duke Hemmlar V met with the Supreme Commander Lipeche III, who had 10, 500 soldiers ready to march for Dont. They would depart the following day after that. With them, they carried gold bars equal to 5,000,000,000 Dont Dollars. The rest of the alliance members wait for the news of their companions progress.
*****

TL;DR:
*Duke Ferras Kollin II of Grudden and Head of the Alliance of the Four Duchies heads for Azvanor to seek a council with King Philip Duloire and try to defend their actions of sending 10, 500 men into the Republic of Dont.
*Duke Hemmlar V of Corleonn is heading towards Dont along with Supreme Commander Lipeche III and 10, 500 under the dictator's command. Along with them, they carry gold bars equal to 5,000,000,000 Dont Dollars. Duke Hemmlar V would try to negotiate a deal with Present Otto Von Kliebb on how to repay the amount lent to his county.

The City-State of Bennipolis
Bennipolis
The 10th Eponymous Year of Lysander
*Note: The sound "V" has dropped out of the Bennipolitan language, so if there are missing v's in names, these are not typos, but rather being in character.

---

The Aznavori ambassadors anxiously waited at the quarters, which had been provided to them, while the Ekklesia debated on several matters, including the Aznavori proposal for trade agreements and a defensive alliance. The Ekklesia debated for hours over the terms, scrutinizing every detail to the letter. Finally, once the Bennipolitans had come to a conclusion concerning the Aznavori treatise, they immediately sent out messengers to the ambassadors of Aznavor so that they might become privy to their decision.

“Men of Aznauor*”, one of the messengers began to say, “the Demos (the people) of Bennipolis had taken due diligence in examining the terms of your treatise, namely the following. That Aznauor shall provide precious metals for our industrial sector in exchange for both coinage and Bennipolitan weapons, that our two nations shall form a defensive alliance in which one partner can call for aid from the other against hostile invasion, that our two nations shall share map information about Auentia, and that no sanctions shall be inforced on Aznaor for supplying Tereridon with modern weaponry, as long as they are not Bennipolitan arms. After long a long debate, we have decided that the Demos of Bennipolis shall accept these terms. Now you may return to your land and inform your Basileus about what has just happened.”

---

Lysander pondered about the proposition made by the Councilate of Arbasses. Lysander was full aware that the Commerce League that the Councilate of Arbasses was attempting to form could become quite troublesome for those left out of the League. Lysander considered bringing the Commerce League up during the latest Ekklesia meeting, but he knew that it was not the time for such actions. For at the moment, Bennipolis had nothing to fear from the League, or at least on the seas, since only the Councilate of Arbasses possessed a fleet amongst the League members.

However, Lysander had heard rumors from merchants, who had reached the Arbassian shores, that the Arbassians had recently constructed more ships. How many they made was a mystery to Lysander. He only knew that the Arbassians had more ships now. Lysander would have also proposed the expansion of their naval fleet; however, Lysander thought it would be better if they would wait until they could harvest any lumber from the “New World”. Therefore, Lysander wrote two letters, one to each of Bennipolis’ trading partners, so that he might learn their opinions about the League. Furthermore, he also wrote a letter to Emperor Walhart III of The United Imperium of Valm concerning their zealous conduct in arming Terheridon.

“Servant!” Lysander called to one of his messengers, “Have our swiftest ship take this important letter and intercept the Aznauori ship that had just sailed away from our ports.” Lysander did the same for the other two letters, having them sent to their intended recipient as quickly as possible.

Каmm Кuтuк barely slept, for each time he would receive a letter, and each time he would have to write back. When he found it was from Bennipolis, with fierce ferosity he began to scribble on the paper, the guards flinched. He stopped for a moment, sighed, and then continued. He sometimes used the Bennipolitan dictionary to write out some words and formulate the sentences, he hastily put up the seal of Kamalao and gave it to the messenger, who then sat in a carriage protected by twenty or more elitely trained soldiers, heading to Bennipolis.

Newport, Aventia
No news had reached the colonists of Aventia since they set foot on the continent, the skirmish between the Republi and the conciliate was unknown to them as was the escalation of the situation in Dont. It was simultaneously worrying and relatively peaceful. Palisades had gone up and homes had been built but apart from immediate freshwater and food supplies nothing had been explored. The colonists were too few in number to spare the manpower and too afraid of the possible dangers of the interior to explore it. After seeing to their supply and to their security, rudimentary port facilities were constructed to better reception future colonists. With this done the citizens of Newport could finally look to exploration and expansion but as soon as the explorers had readied steadied their nerves and loaded their mules, sails appeared on the horizon including one huge ship with black sails bearing a red star. The colour of the Church of Altaiya and the star of the inquisition. Some of even the bravest colonists paled, whilst the wiser ones thought of returning to their homes to refresh themselves on the texts of Altaiya and the oaths of piety. Back in Aznavor it was a relatively simple affair to avoid the church if you so wished as the country was large and roads existed aplenty yet the citizens of Newport imagined that in the new world the Inquisitor that was on board would be very hard to avoid. With this in mind the explorers elected to set off into the unknown rather than face the scrutiny of the inquisition for their inefficiency. If there was one sin Altaiya despised and Nogaret fed off it was inefficiency and the inquisition would make it their work to root out those who were not set to their task during the hours that Altaiya blessed the earth with its Light. When the ships docked in Newport several hours later Master Klaus disembarked escorted by a dozen the knights of the flame an old order of holy warriors who were knights only in name as they bore the most modern weapons the Church could afford them.
Klaus placed one foot atop the town well’s stone ring and addressed the nervous crowd.
“The Church has learned that some of you sought passage to this new world in order to abandon nthe faith, to return to the pagan ways of the past, to relapse into sin and anarch. But let me tell you now, this will not happen! Altaiya has seen that the sun rises in these lands and as such you will be ever closer to its gaze therefore his Holiness Patriarch Karl has dispatched me to oversee the construction of a High Temple here in Newport as well as to ensure the diligence and zeal of its people. I do not wish to be the man to bring Altaiya’s purifying flames to the New World but let me tell you that I have been granted the authority to do so and to root out heresy by any means possible. Now return to your tasks and serve Altaiya through your faith and your labour and rest well tonight for tomorrow you begin work on the High Temple. I will now seek out your governor and place myself at his disposition as a loyal servant of the King’s authority”.
As the inquisitor sharply turned and left the citizens of Newport understood that the governor was likely as worried as they were and the last few words of Master Klaus were meaningless as he would command almost as much authority here as the governor of Newport. In the coming weeks many and more would follow the first batch of explorers to serve as settlers further west to escape the clutches of the Church.
Oceanrock King Council-a week later
The tension was gone, since Master Klaus had left for the new world weeks ago the nobles of the Kings council felt freer to laugh, be jovial and honest between one another. Even the King recently returned from Ironfort felt happier. There were still many tasks to be done but now they could be done without the menace of a prince of the Church among them.

“Philip” began a count Permitting himself to address the King by his first name without a title, an informality which the king chuckled at but would not have been permitted had Klaus still been sitting among the council. “Let us raise a toast to the new world and our brave colonists. May they bring wealth to Aznavor and may they take from us more priests.“

“John you rogue, surely you don’t wish the inquisition on anyone” there was a noticeable silence in the room. It had been decades since the last inquisition but men thought of the stories of past inquisitions their by the bodies that had been fed to Altaiya’s will. “But I agree it’s a good trade-off cash for clerics. Maybe we can proceed with business now though. First on the agenda is a reply from Duke Kollin of the southern Alliance about the situation in Dont. From what my agents tell me of Martins travels, they sound like a people who will be glad that our priests are heading to Aventia.” The whole court chuckled at Martin’s expense like a group of young boys who had seen one of their classmates corrected by their tutor as Martin of Misthall turned brighter than a beet. “Duke Kollin” King Philip continued “is one of Aznavor’s closest allies and I would see him welcomed as royalty. Vincent and Matthieu I expect you to make the necessary arrangements for security and ceremony. No one here is to treat him with any less courtesy than you treat me with. That goes double for you John. ”

“With or without an inquisitor around Your Majesty?” said John Sailcloth making an overly elaborate bow to his knees as he stressed the last two word.
“As you would were Patriarch Karl in the room himself you oaf” replied the King grinning. “I want music in the streets and a pretty girl In his sheets come nightfall” unless my nephew should find out from his servants that the Duke Kollin has other tastes”.

“As for the talks themselves, we take our time, he will no doubt wish to explain his motivations for propping up the government of Dont which we all know oppress our kinsmen to the east. Let him know that appreicate his efforts to bring stability to Dont and hope that it will suffice to protect our people. We will be courteous but we must express our concern that their oppression even without death is not something Aznavor can tolerate in the long term. We must not try to change his mind as he represents a sovereign state with their own interests and have already invested large amounts of manpower and wealth into the cause but we must make him see that if their intervention is not sufficient to stabilize the country quickly and to bring prosperity to Dont we shall have no qualms about declaring President Otto an Enemy of Aznavor though I imagine the Alliance would view Otto similarly if the president handles money as he always has and fails to repay the Alliance in a timely fashion.”

“Now to another case of diplomacy, we have not heard back from our envoy to the Kamalao Republi so we must assume that his ship is still en route. The City state of Bennipolis, however, has got back to us and has offered us a very interesting deal which I mean to accept with your consent. In exchange for us delivering rare metals and minerals to his nation which sadly has over exerted itself in the past their leader would offer us both wealth and state of the art weaponry from their renowned industries. I remember my father would take great pride in his saber Bennipolis–made saber stating that there were no finer sword-smiths nor weapon makers in the Edoniras. This capital and these weapons would give us a competitive advantage in the new world and would allow us to expand faster than the other powers. I now submit this trade deal to you should you have any quibbles with it.”

“My liege” spoke Barlow “what of our own minerals? Whilst I have no reason to believe our mines should exhaust soon the fact remains that a constant exploitation of our mineral wealth would eventually result in this.”

“I have considered this, my friend, and am reassured by a latter from our dear friend Klaus the inquisitor in the new world who tells us of a mountain range near our settlement of Newport that the governor has decided to exploit. Mines are being built as we speak and we should be able to expect shipments of minerals from the new world in a couple of months ”.
Reassured by this the trade deal with Bennipolis was accepted when passed to the vote.

“As the last item on our agenda, we have received a letter from the Demos of Bennipolis. King Phillip read it out loud and dictated the the following reply after conferring with his council.

With Joonia and his top "employees" gaining more and more money each day from the hard working labor done by the poor, the payment difference between the rich and the poor deepening. This has caused nearly many tensions within the nation.
"We must attempt, no we must succeed at preventing the uprising caused by this difference between the poor and the wealthy." says emperor Konzia
"But sir, The wealthy have gained too much power here." says his advisor
"WHAT MUST WE DO THEN!?!?!?!?" yells Emperor Konzia as he slams his big fist on the desk, causing the lamp light to flicker
"There is one option...." mumbles the advisor."
"WHAT IS IT!?!?!?!" Emperor Konzia yells at the advisor as he picks him up by the shirt.
"We could send the poor to Aventia, many of them already want to go but they got enough money to spend on the trip then we do ships under our control. which is few."
"Can't we buy some from Konzia Inc? My family has ran that business for decades until my father sold it."
"Sir, the wealthy don't want the poor to become richer. the price for a single ship would make us broke."
"What other option do we have then?!" says Emperor Konzia as he slams his fist again
"There is one option to obtain ships. We could join the commerce league."
"Send a messenger to them at once!"
This was the end of the conversation as the advisor quickly left to send a messenger.

Meanwhile, current projects were put in place. Emperor Konzia had sent more aid to the western provinces even through it wouldn't help much. The huge stockpiles of weapons left over by the constant fighting has finally been admitted to be able to be handed out to the poor to protect themselves. although only a small amount of it is being handed out, it's a risky move. It will either decrease the violence or increase it. Only a small amount is being handed out as much of it is going through a improvement procress so the weapons can be used again for battles. The violence in the country is currently too much for much action to be taken that isnt directed towards leaving the nation or towards fighting

Oceanrock, Azvanor

Duke Ferras Kollin II and his wife, Duchess Alanna Kollin, were on board their family's royal ship, the Rodenhiemer, as they approached the docks of the city of Oceanrock. Already from a far, Ferras could see the towering stone walls that protected the city. He was reminded of the fortress city of Hevish, the capital of the Corleonn duchy. Hevish was sat atop the peak of a mountain and overlooked two important mining towns on the plains below. Any invading army could be spotted as soon as they arrived and the thick forest that surrounded the fortress almost made it impossible for any army to lay siege to it. Ferras could remember his visits to the stone city, the early morning fog made it impossible for anybody to spot the city from below the mountain. Ferras's thoughts were interrupted as his wife called his name.

"Ferr, dear, the captain tells us we should be there any hour now. You might want to make yourself ready for departure." She said as she made her way towards him.

"I'll prepare my things soon. Tell me Lana, thus those stone walls remind you of anything?" Ferras asked.

"Hevish? Well I haven't been there for ages now. In fact if my father never visited Norfolkke, I might never see him at all." She answered. "Where is the old man anyways?"

"In Dont, negotiating with his old friend." Ferras answered.

"You mean Otto? You've sent that man to talk to Otto? Are you trying to negotiate with the man or try to have him killed?"

"Sir Hemmlar is the only man who knows the Dont president personally. They may have hated each other over this past recent years but they were once friends. Besides, when the opportunity to make profit is great, I'm sure this men would lay down their personal grievances."

"Probably so."

Ferras took his wife's hand and led her back towards their chambers. "We still have a few more hours still we dock yes? Perhaps we could take a few minutes to ourselves before arrive."

A Year in Summary!

It has been a long year in Edoniras and many things have happened. Here are some highlights.

-Henry De Stonee having been treated as a political criminal is his own country fled east into Konzia where he was taken to safety by the United Imperium of Valm, where he is now perfecting his method of cultivating crops. Currently it looks promising and Henry is requesting that he be allowed to spread his methods to the fields of the nation.

-A new land known as Aventia was discovered, currently the only nations too attempt to colonise this is the Kingdom of Aznavor, Kamalao Republi and the Councilate of Arbasses. During the colonisation the Councilate and the Republi came to blows resulting in the loss of men whilst the Aznavorians landed hassle free however they were there more for exploration purposes and so their colony ended being smaller. As a result of this The three nations mentioned earlier have lost 3,000,000,000 ($) in the process of this, as well as this due to the loss of colonists in the skirmish the Republi also lost a further 500,000,000 ($)

-The Sofon Dominion have begun their first ventures into water through the ports of the Councilate of Arbasses, the deal struck means that the Dominion will soon begin sending colonists into the new world whilst the Councilate has made some profit out of the deal. The Councilate gains 250,000,000 ($).

-The formation of the Commerce League has resulted in mixed views from the other nations in Edoniras, The Democratic People’s Republic of Konzia and the United Imperium of Valm is as of yet the only countries to publically declare their support for the League.

-In the People’s Republic of Dont, President Otto Von Klebb has received a party from the The Corleonn-Warrus-Grudden-Nollin Alliance, made up of 10,500 men as well as 5,000,000,000 ($) dollars in gold. The aim is for the president to rebuild the failing nation and establish close relations with a powerful ally so as to secure its future from threat.

-The country of Terheridon has opened their borders for the first time in history and have begun the mass in port of weapons from foreign powers. Their wealth seems to be endless as they snatch up all that they can take. The United Imperium of Valm and the Kingdom of Aznavor are the two countries to accept this offer. Because of the increase in arms production the United Imperium of Valm has lost 1,000,000,000 ($) however trade has only just begun and so should bring in a large profit over the next year. Whilst the Kingdom of Avnavor have brought in a profit of 500,000,000 ($) from the trade.

-The Councilate of Arbasses begun construction of a number of new ships at the beginning of the year and it is finally beginning to fruit. 1 Ship of line, 1 Frigate, 2 Schooners and a Sloop have been finished.

- The City-State of Bennipolis finally landed colonists on Aventia, they have established a small colony and have made a loss of 1,000,000,000 ($) because of this.

-The Kingdom of Avnavor's scouts have returned with knowledge of a native culture already existing in Aventia. Welcome to the stage the Empire of the Khan.

-This year has been a fairly stable one, there is no universal change for any nations in their GDP.

The City-State of Bennipolis
Bennipolis
The 14th Eponymous Year of Athenakles

Athenakles took his seat before the Ekklesia, a role he had not played for two whole years. But now he was ready to wield the powers of the Basileus Eponymous. The Bennidae were an ancient family, venerated for their ties with the guardian goddess of Bennipolis. Since Athenakles was born into the Bennidae family, he too enjoys the increased respect he gains from the people. Athenakles would have to say something very out of whack in order to lose the trust he had created with the people of Bennipolis, like attempting to create an alliance with Terheridon.

“Our first order of business is our new colony in Auentia, which has been dubbed Neapolis. Preliminary reports show that the lands, in which we have created Neapolis, bear a resemblance to our own in respect to the climate. Therefore, I propose that we send over two more colonial expeditions over to Auentia. Once colony should be founded closer to that of the Kamalao Republi so that we might be able to uphold our agreement with this nation if hostile forces attack their colony. The second colony should be founded on the southeastern most corner of the same peninsula on which our first colony, Neapolis, has been founded. This will be a preliminary step toward creating a colonial trade system that will connect our colonies with those of Aznauor. What do you say, Demos of Bennipolis?”

An outbreak of clapping arose amongst the members of the Ekklesia, the people of Bennipolis. Therefore, since this decision had received anonymous approval, they gathered up both resources and ships. They summoned upon the Bennipolitans to answer the call for becoming settlers in a new homeland. Finally, Lysander, who was now the Basileus Hierateumatikos scheduled the rites for safe passage at Chelon.

“Our next order of business deals with the United Imperium of Alm. Their ignorant king, Alhart III, has refused even to send us a reply to our request that they reduce their zeal in supplying Tereridon with weapons. No more pleads shall be sent to those barbarians. Instead, we shall complain to their paymasters, the Arbassians. If the Arbassians cannot talk any sense into the Almians, by Zeus, no one can! And this shall be the message that will be sent to their council.”



This response was also well received by the Bennipolitans. For not responding to diplomatic responses were one of the most shamefully acts to commit, or at least in the eyes of the Bennipolitans. Therefore, the letter was sealed with the sign of Bennipolis, the Bennipolitan turtle, the most sacred animal to Bennis. Immediately afterwards, messengers rushed to Chelon and swiftly flew through the seas towards Stendmark, the capital of the The Councilate of Arbasses.

---

Neapolis

The establishment of Neapolis was quite successful. Unlike greedy men who mine for gold before they even create any means of survival, the Neapolitans knew that this would now be their new home. Rather than immediately harvesting resources for their mother state, the Neapolitans built a suitable colonial port and cultivated enough of the land in order to provide a comfortable means of living. Finally, but not least important of all, the Neapolitans erected a temple to Bennis. While meager in comparison to the temples in their motherland, this temple still would honor the goddess.

Within the temple dwelled a wooden statue of Bennis, created by one of the Neapolitans who was skilled in woodworking. While any Bennipolitan would know that the statue represented Bennis, those who were not privy with the culture of Bennipolis would not know this. Instead, they would ask “Why do you have a statue of Aphrodite bearing a hoplon, doru, and a Corinthian Helmet?”

The Bennipolitans would be flabbergasted at this statement. They would rebuke whoever said such a thing about their goddess, that Bennis was not a whore like Aphrodite. Aphrodite was the goddess who causes adulteries and all types of illicit sexual indecencies. The only time they would ever pray to that goddess would be to keep her at bay so that their people might not be overrun with adulterous activates.

On the other hand, Bennis, beyond her functions as a water deity and a patron of warfare, promotes the activities of lawful unions and the procreation of legitimate children. Even romantic love, if it is restrained to the proper chastity of those involved, is promoted by Bennis. As the mother of Bennipolis, she promotes the well-being of her people.

And that temple housed the wooden statue of Bennis. Therefore, the Neapolitans hoped that Bennis would provide her protection to this new colony, too.

Once the Neapolitans had founded their new city, the colony of Bennipolis, and had created the proper components to a successful city, namely a port, a grain supply, and a temple to house their goddess, they set their eyes towards the mainland of the peninsula. By the casing of lots, the Neapolitans assembled an exploration party in order to discover whether or not they were alone on this peninsula, or if some other culture, unknown to them, were now their neighbors.

It had been a year since the alliance struck a deal with President Von Kliebb of the Dont Republic. Dont citizens who are unemployed were now flocking into the alliance's lands, looking for new opportunities. Most became mine workers, working in the mining towns across the alliance's lands. Traveling was not easy for this people, as the winding roads that lead up and down mountains and the thick forests could easily mislead the most well-versed travelers of the area. Each duke of each duchy had assigned special divisions of their armies, known as the North Pine Guards, to direct this people, protect them and keep the peace and the routes from bandits and other sorts of unsavory characters that disrupts the order of the alliance. Of course if any of the Dont citizens were caught breaking the alliance laws themselves, they too would face the consequences of their actions. This punishments range from being thrown back to Dont without their belongings (if they even have any to start with) to being hanged, which was reserved for only the most heinous of crimes such as murder. Those who found jobs were paid fairly, enough to feed themselves and the families that they brought with them. Their children would grow up with the children of the alliances. They are slowly being emerged in the alliances culture. This young generation may prove useful to the alliance, as when they grow older and return to Dont, they would form a large number of the Dont society who would be loyal to the alliance. As of now though, the nobles and the aristocratic parliaments of the alliance are content with the riches they would soon gain from the mines. This still wasn't enough to quench their thirst for more although and their greed would lead them across the open ocean.

Recently there are rumors spreading that on the far off continent of Aventia, there is a society that has been untouched by Edorinians. This kingdom, or empire, or barbaric tribes may have goods that the alliance may be interested of. Of course, virtually nothing is known this people and to successfully trade with people, you must know quite a bit about them. Relationships, even small ones, such as sending envoys to exchange cultures, was vital. That is why the alliance has decided to send a small expeditionary force to explore the lands of Aventia, confirm the existence of this mysterious people and to determine whether Aventia is suitable for colonization of the duchies. The man leading this expedition is Sir Fredrick Von Gartnerr, the descendant of the Phillip der Eroberer who almost conquered the four duchies under the Nollish banner. The alliance has also commissioned 10,000,000,000 Alliance Marks worth of supplies for them to accomplish their mission. Sir Von Gartnerr, 25 scribes, 25 explorers, a small number of priest and a small fleet have been sent from the port town Jesper to explorer the new world and determine whether it is profitable enough for the alliance to invest in it.

*****
TL;DR

The alliance has commissioned an expeditionary force including nobleman Sir Von Gartnerr, 25 scribes, 25 explorers, a small number of priest and a small fleet to explore Aventia. The Alliance has spent 10,000,000,000 Alliance Marks for their supplies. Their goal is to make contact with the rumored people of Aventia, finding any profitable resource on the continent, explore the lands in general and determine whether the lands is suitable for colonization of the alliance colonist.

The year hadn’t been that profitable on a whole for the Councilate of Arbasses; they’d spent heavily on expanding their naval forces, establishing colonies overseas and attempting to create a trading co-operative which hadn’t been as successful as they’d hoped. In fact in had brought them nothing more than trouble as they now faced the issue of attempting to resolve the tension between Bennipolis and Commerce League member Valm. It was all over arms trade; a crude and uncivilised trade at best yet it was proving grossly profitable for Valm and they’d commit a significant investment towards escalating arms production.

It was a tough situation, supporting either party would bring about damaging consequences so the value of each party had to be evaluated. Bennipolis was a naval threat to the Councilate yet there were unknowns; the Valm were friendly, commanded significant land forces and wholeheartedly supported the League. He decided a little bit of diplomacy wouldn’t go astray for now, if nothing it’d delay any consequence for now until they had grown stronger. The letter he’d received was crass and rude in nature, most likely sent by someone who was attached to the old ways. The apparent distaste for the Commerce League was apparent for all to see yet this nation who seemingly proclaimed diplomacy as a virtue saw fit to include disrespect. It was a funny old world yet it was the one they lived in. A reply was drafted and sent back to the City-State of Bennipolis containing their nations thoughts on the matter.



Turning his thoughts to the new world, Marcus approved the decision to send another colonial expedition overseas another $1B, 2000 Recruits and 4000 Regulars would be spent on their colonial ambitions, intending on expanding the borders of their colonial presence further northward along the coast. Half their colonial navy had travelled back in order to escort the ships over to the new colony site where they’d be moored in order to protect their new colony. The experts would be escorted from Wardenfall to the new colony in order to judge it’s worth before establishing anything too permanent. They were after valuable trade goods now and any unnecessary expenditure would simply be a waste.

A more pressing issue was how slowly the shipyards were working to produce their new fleet; despite boasting arguably the largest and finest dock in the world, work was progressing at a snail’s pace. $2B was to be committed in order vastly improve their production facilities and infrastructure, hopefully increasing the rate at which they could pump out ships.

---

TL;DR
-$2B spent on shipyards and ship building technology in order to improve both quality and quantity of output.
-$1B spent on establishing another colony, along with 4000 Regulars and 2000 Recruits being sent over.

The City-State of Bennipolis
Bennipolis
The 14th Eponymous Year of Athenakles
Athenakles was about ready to head for bed when a messenger bearing the response from the Arbassians. Athenakles swiftly broke the seal on the letter and digested the content written on it. Athenakles was at least satisfied that the Arbassians had made contact with Valm. Furthermore, he did not expect the Arbassians to pick actual sides on this matter because they were in between Scylla and Charybdis: if they had sided with one side, the other side would have retaliated by means either of their military (Valm) or their navy (Bennipolis). Since the Ekklesia would not meet again until the next week, Athenakles decided to personally write a response to the Arbassians.



After Athenakles finished the message, he ordered the messenger to have a ship ready by the next morning so that the ship might launch in the morning and deliver his response to the Arbassians.

The winter that the whole continent of Edoniras was experiencing was particularly harsh in Lascaux, rivers froze up and forest animals became scarce making hunting and fishing difficult. Stories of providers dying of cold and of hunger were not uncommon but Argantan was no longer concerned, Aznavor had received his message and had promised help. Not freely of course, it was known that nothing ever came Aznavor for free,not even the hot wine Argantan was enjoying as he observed new recruits clear snow out of the training courtyard.

Aznavor had offered instant food aid and some agricultural experts train the providers for the spring months. In exchange however they had required help in the one field where Lascaux reigned supreme the military. A few weeks ago Argantan dispatched two dozen of his sergeants to Lascaux and had accepted the dispatch of Church officials to Morito. It was rumored that this last condition had been imposed not by the Aznavorian King but by his high priest who wanted to spread his faith. Argantan did not like, the way Aznavor conducted its diplomacy but since Henry de Stonee had fled like a coward he would need economic assistance to help conserve his rule. All these concessions would not have been necessary had the man accepted his place and remained loyal like any true man would.

Argantan was not going to going to become an Aznavorian vassal by relying entirely upon his new 'friends'. He would also write to his southern neighbour the conciliate who had mentioned the possibility of improved future relations with Lascaux. Argantan had decided Lascaux would join this new commerce league for it needed economic security and the promise of cheaper priced goods and preferential treatment in trade deals would help Lascaux rise from the mire it was in now. He was sure that the Aznavorian King would undoutedly be distracted by the events going on in the new world and in the Republic of Dont to notice Lascaux gradually turn away from its vice like grip.

---

TLDR
Argantan feels exploited when Lascaux is entered into a military experts for economic experts trade with Aznavor. (Winston's PMs felt a little condescending)
Lascaux accepts the offer to join the Commerce League
Ooc: (How long until I my investments in my economy begin to pay off? I don't think Lascaux got mentioned in the new years post)

The emperor Fu surveyed his capital from a palace balcony. A beautiful woman slept in the elaborately framed bed behind him, wearing only earrings made from the purest green jade, a gift from her Emperor, loyal servants slept in the next door and watchful guards stood watch outside his own room. He had everything any man could want love, loyalty, wealth and security but Emperor Fu was not any man. His priests and counselors had told him that as long as he could remember, he was the son of the heavenly Emperor just as his father had been before him. When he was young his mother had told him that each of the stars was the soul of a royal ancestor, the greater the man, the brighter the star. He could tell she had meant to reassure him to scare away the fear of death, to let him know that his ancestors would always be watching over him yet somehow twenty years later Emperor Fu felt the opposite effect when he looked into the night sky. He constantly felt watched as if his ancestors expected something from him. He could not see what but his councilors had reassured hi mthat all was being done as his father would have willed it. The years harvest had been bountiful, disease had claimed few lives and the kingdom was at peace , just as it had always been. Yet for some reason his ancestors kept him awake at night these past few weeks and despite the best efforts of his concubines he could not be coaxed to sleep for more than four hours a night. During the day he would feel the strain of fatigue but once the moon replaced the sun his insomnia would return. There must be something he and his councilors had overlooked. Something would need to be done before his ancestors would let him sleep.
Turning away from the balcony he went back into his room and poured himself a glass of strong rice-wine. He had been drinking more of it than he had used to but an old man had ocne told him that drinking helped you sleep and sometimes he preferred the counsel of the old man than those of his overly pious priests and his overly cautious eunuchs.

The next day

Emperor Si Fu was practicing a chess-like game with one of his female courtiers, letting her win, of course, he had learned from a young age that if a man can be generous in the short run women could be generous later. Especially to an emperor. As Lady Wei tentatively moved her chariot a messenger ran into the room, panting.
“A thousand apologies for the interruption your imperial majesty. But minister Yao sends me with word, Foreign people have been sighted near our borders. Parties patrolling, beyond our borders, chasing bandits have found two peoples to the west whilst others have come from the east of our land. Minister Yao wishes to know what is to be done. ”
Emperor Fu thought for a second. ”Have letters authorizing the sending of envoys to these foreign settlements and summon three large escorts for the messengers before returning to me. I shall give the messengers my blessing and press my imperial seal upon the letter. Be quick I want the messengers gone before midday. Also summon my councilors, we must meet within two hours!” The messenger kowtowed and scuttled off. With that the emperor returned to his game, although he was no longer able to concentrate. Was this the task his ancestors had for him? Was this why they kept him up at night?
Before he knew it Lady Wei had won the game. He smiled at her,complimented her on her victory and excused himself. As he left he looked back at the game board; his city was burnt and his army was defeated. He could only hope that this was not an omen of things to come…
The council meeting lasted well into the night. The armies would be called up and the fleet would be made ready. Cities that had not seen their walls besieged in years were to have their walls reinforced and moats would be re-dug. Emperor Fu did not know what the foreigners wanted here but he knew two things, he would find out soon and when he did he would be ready to defend his empire if necessary.


Summary:
The Foreign settlements are discovered and messengers are sent to them.
Zhou Far is sent to the Kamalao Republic
Hong Jie is sent to the Councilate of Arbasses
Ga Yao is sent to the Kingdom of Aznavor
Emperor Si Fu meets with his council to discuss the event
City defenses are ordered to be reinforced
The Imperial Army and Navy are mobilized

Emperor Walhart III sat in his chambers, silence resonating through the well furnished and lit study. The imposing man leaned back in his comfortable chair. Grey eyes scanned the variety of maps and letters on his desk. So much to do. His advisers had weeded out only the most important of inquiries, letters from foreign powers, reports on people and things which specifically interested the emperor and the odd suggestion from the well intentioned staff of his council. First and foremost was a letter from their newly established allies in the Councilate. With the trade league meeting resistance among the continent, it was likely a request to help expand the league. But instead it was a plea of response..? It seemed a letter from one of the continent's many nations had come to the palace late. Late enough that the senders, the ruling party of Bennoplis, had written another letter to Valm's allies to try and strong arm him into whatever it was they wanted? A bad taste in his mouth already from this rather childish display, the emperor organized the variety of documents on his desk until he found the offending letter.

He couldn't help but chuckle as he read it.

So, they wanted Valm to cease producing the weapons that Walhart had spent so much coinage on creating. To waste a golden opportunity to forge an alliance with a wealthy nation and line Valmese coffers with gold and silver. Did they fear Terheridon so fiercely that they had to beg the Councilate to intervene when a response was not immediately sent? He had half a mind to ignore the letter, but it wouldn't do any good for him. It would likely just lead to the cowardly Bennipolians sending out more desperate cries for help like a child ignored by its mother. He could only assume they would react similarly when he delivered his response, but it was more polite to tell somebody 'no' direct and watch them tantrum then to ignore them and subject others to their whining. Finding a fresh sheet of parchment and his quill, the mighty Walhart began to scribe away.



Sweet and to the point, the emperor folded the letter and prepared it to be sent away by one of his aides. The next order of business was that of a Mr. Stonee. The emperor was pleased by the creator's progress. Still, it would be foolish to allow a system still in a prototype phase to be fully integrated into his nation's fields. As such, he made arrangements for the inventor to receive a finite patch of land to implement the early system to test its successes and work on its flaws.

A few more hours of toiling at his desk and the rest of the meaningless paperwork was finished. Now all he needed to do was address the situation with his country's expansion to the new world. Breaking his people of their fear of the seas would take a while. A campaign would need to be launched across the major cities at the very least. Something to glorify the seas, appeal to the Valmese need for expansionism that led them to becoming the thriving empire they were today. He would also need to have ships constructed among the Councilate's harbors. Enough to house the prospective colonists, their supplies, as well as the soldiers sent to protect them in the potentially hostile new world. He would also need escorts to protect them from the prying navies of the other colonially interested nations. Perhaps Arbasses would assist in their arrival to the new world. Valm was a key to the trade league, so Walhart estimated they would do whatever it took to keep the Imperium buttered up and willing to commit to the cause. He began to draft a letter to his eastern neighbors.



With another boringly formal letter down and ready to be shipped off via horseback, the emperor prepared several decrees to put into motion his plan for expansion. Printers would need to produce fliers, men would have to be sent out on recruitment efforts and a discussion of seafaring had to be started among the capital and work its way out to the reaches of the empire. The supplies for the ships would need to be gathered from the markets and prepared for transport and the finer bureaucratic of the situation needed to be set up so the process went smoothly. Thankfully, as a king he had people to do this for him and enough coinage to cover the costs. To cover the loss of soldiers that the empire would face expanding to the new world, the emperor also decreed recruitment drives for the Imperial Military begin. Since the cost of recruitment was more tangible and common place for his fine government, the emperor was able to dedicate a predetermined amount to the effort in the form of five billion dollars of Imperium tender.

After a evening of working and writing in his study, the emperor called upon his assistance to handle the distribution of his letters and decrees and retired to his chambers for a warm night with the empress. If only politics were as pleasant.

TLDR;
Valm refuses Bennioplis' request to cease production of arms.
The emperor affords Henry de Stonee a patch of land to begin testing his system but keeps it from the nation's full fields for now.
Valm begins a movement of naval glorification within the capital, hoping to sway the opinions of her peoples on the open seas and the new world to a more favorable one. Preparations for a fleet to be constructed begin.
Valm launches a massive recruitment drive for its military, hoping to boost the size of its forces. The empire spends 5,000,000,000$ on the endeavor.

The City-State of Bennipolis
Bennipolis
The 14th Eponymous Year of Athenakles
Athenakles was once again awoken from his sleep because a messenger had arrived with a letter from a foreign country. He broke the seal of the letter and began to read the message.

“A message from the Imperium of Alm. Better late than never, even if it took them eight months to give us a response, while our messengers went and came back from their land even before our messengers, who were sent to the Kamalao Republi, returned to our blessed city.

Tyrannos Alart said

Bennipolis [+]

'The Imperium has heard your plea, but must regretfully inform you that the 'problem' at hand is nary something the emperor can help. Valm's lands are vast, as are its industrial districts. The 'zeal' in which we produce our goods is simply a result of a strong and well built country. To demand my people stop their work and fester in poverty because of a foreign plea is simply something I cannot do as their trusted ruler. If you truly wish Terheridon to cease the gain of not only Valm's weaponry but the weaponry of other countries, I suggest you address Terheridon directly and not bring unreasonable requests of economic stagnation to those she chooses to trade with.

- Emperor Walhart III of the Imperium of Valm'

Athenakles was a little disappointed that the Emperor Walhart III obviously did not understand the Bennipolitan plea, but he was not surprised, since the Imperium of Valm was not a Greek people, but rather a Barbarian one. Athenakles wondered if he should have sent the message in Koine Greek so that the Imperium of Valm could better understand the message, as it was clear that normal Greek was too difficult for them to grasp.

“Those silly Almians, we never asked them to cease all production in their industrial complexes, but only restrict how many weapons they sell to the Tereridonians. If their country would return to a state before they started to supply the Tereridonians with weapons and if that would result in their country ‘fester in poverty”, then it is the Almians own fault for placing all their eggs in one basket as an arms dealer. But if they thought this request was ‘unreasonable’, I wonder what they will say to this next decree.”

He wrote out another letter and handed it to the messenger. He then ordered him to have it copied and sent to all the nations of Edorinas. Also, he told the messenger to send two unique letters to the Kamalao Republi and Aznavor.

Winter has Come

As the cold winds arrive in Edoniras the nations across the continent have suffered.

-The cold has arrived and people are starting to use stockpiles of food that are available. Countries had better hope that they have enough, or at least their economy is strong enough to import what they don’t grow. Many countries may suffer at the end of winter.

-The Alliance expeditionary forces landed in Aventia and have made contact with the Empire of the Khan, creating a small camp on the outskirts of the Empire’s lands for ease in diplomatic matters. The large amount of money put into the expedition has meant that they are well supplied and equipped for a long time to come. Furthermore they have discovered a new resource known as Stirge, it is a small plant that grows much like a weed however when it is boiled down it releases a fluid that, when burnt, created a smoke that can cause a man to feel very good, however it is highly addictive and any health problems are as of yet unknown. Finally the land has turned out to be very easy to colonise and would be a profitable venture.

-Lascaux’s recent investment into their economy has paid off as businesses and the country make a record profit for the first quarter. Lascaux gain 2,000,000,000 ($)

-Henry De Stonee has begun his field testing and it is looking promising however it is winter now and so you will not be able to have true results until the cold months are over.

-Finally, though certainly not least important, a recession has struck! As the The City-State of Bennipolis declared sovereignty over the currently unclaimed lands in Aventia people begun to sell shares of their own countries companies and mass buy of Bennipolis shares in an attempt to find some riches in the resources of the new world. However in doing so other countries businesses have gone under taking away certain products that Bennipolis bought to maintain their own economy. This caused many businesses in Bennipolis to go under and as their shares became worthless those who had recently invested all of their money became bankrupt almost overnight. All those with the Free Market trait lose 20,000,000,000 ($), those without Free Market and don’t have State Controlled lose 15,000,000,000 ($) and those with State Controlled lose 5,000,000,000 ($).

The cold blizzard storms were now appearing on the alliance skies. The dark clouds, unforgiving, cold winds and the thick coat of snow that was laid on the ground meant that the alliance may be facing one of the worst winters it has seen for a long time. The winter of 1445, also known as the winter of the wicked, killed off more than 10,000 people during the old days. This one may be worst, as the said winter was not accompanied by a sharp recession. The alliance can only hope that it's farms and storehouses have enough food to last them through. But the four duchies are known for their resilience. If the Sofon dominion hadn't broken them before during their uprising, a little snow wouldn't either. Most prayed to Altaiya for safety and food during this trying times. The nobles however, could hardly care about the outside world as they continue to delight themselves inside their homes. The heads of the alliance however, had much to worry. Not only do they have worry about the terrible winter that has arrived, they also have the current issue with Bennipolis. The current reports from the expedition force are very promising, even reports of a new substance that induces a feeling of extreme pleasure when smoked. The nobles needed it and the merchants demanded it. The new decree from one of the one of Bennipolian royal families or the sorts. Thus the alliance men sent a message to Bennipolis herself.

In addition to this, the alliance is now spending five million Alliance Marks in the hiring of privateers, pirates under the contract of the alliance, to disrupt the trade of supplies between Bennipolis and her colony. This privateers are free to act on their own but are ordered to stay clear of Alliance and Azvanorian ships. The loot they collect from their ventures are to be sold back to the alliance.

The City-State of Bennipolis
Bennipolis
The 14th Eponymous Year of Athenakles

Bennipolis had a Mediterranean climate, providing them with hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, although the interior, especially the more mountainous regions, could experience harsher weather. However, this year’s winter happened to be colder than usual. The Bennipolitans saw snow a few times so far, but not enough to cause any real havoc.

The economic crash in Edoniras had different effects on the stratified populace of Bennipolis. The aristocracy, whose major claim to wealth included land ownership, was relatively unaffected. While they had to go without several luxuries, the aristocracy still lived pretty comfortably. Also, the “common man”, who made up the majority of the Bennipolitan population, only suffered from any trickledown effect since for the most part their livelihood revolved more around whatever they produced themselves rather than the goods that could be imported from elsewhere. Only those whose work dealt with foreign goods were devastated. The lower class’ economy was arranged like this because the Bennipolitans believed that if one would work for another person, then they would become a slave in every fashion but in name.

However, the merchant class did not fare as well as these other two groups. When the whole market in Edoniras crashed, the merchants could neither sell their own products nor purchase those from abroad. It was going to be an extremely long road for the merchants to climb back from this disaster. The only merchants who were not devastated by this were those who happened to say afloat during the economic crash, therefore giving them a kind of monopoly in whatever market was left, if there was even one.

Ever since Athenakles sent out his infamous decree and ever since the economies of the nations of Edoniras had crashed, the Boule of Bennipolis revoked Athenakles’ privilege for reading and responding to international messages. The Boule had been scrambling around, like chickens with their head severed, so that they might be able to extinguish any and all the fires that Athenakles’ ‘decree’ ignited. Once the members of the Boule saw yet another letter from a nation embittered over Athenakles’ ‘decree’, they just wanted to slap Athenakles across the face so hard that his head would roll off his head and into the sea, just as Orpheus’ head did until it reached the shores of Lesbos. They quickly drafted a letter to attempt to quash the hostilities that Athenakles might have created with the other nations of Edoniras.