On October 12th reports came in that Osladian forces disembarked along the western coasts of zellonia and besieged Nervington. While the armies of zellonia had prepared for an attack from the south no forces were left in the west. The osladian force continues to push east unmatched but from a source at the Zellonian war department says the brave Zellonian Royal Army is preparing a counteroffensive and prove how great and grand the nation of Zellonia is.




The first few snows of the Zellonia winter began to fall in the last few weeks and everyone's is going nuts. With such a nice summer and production going well, specialist believe this mighty winter will cause some problems especially for those who’ve not updated with the times.


The government of zellonia has been held up in the war office for months now and while we believe that we can win this war. But many think we should begin negotiations with neighboring and foreign powers for aide. Specifically memoital and the marnish kingdom to the north. For many believe this war will rage on for time to come.

Gregory had forgotten the last time the snow had stopped. For days now it seemed to just mindlessly fall, careless in the chill wind while all around it the world tore itself asunder. In 30 days 19 thousand men had died, 600 every day, yet the world remained virtually unchanged in the absence of those lives. It didn't matter, every soldier that met his end in these god-forsaken Zellonian fields died in the name of the Tsar and his nation; and truly was there a better fate than that?

"General, sir!"

Before he could ponder any further, a young voice pierced his thoughts and brought Gregory back to reality. The flap to his tent had been opened and snow fell idly onto the hard ground. A soldier had entered, his red and sweating face made him look almost like a child, and held a telegraph note in his hands.

"Orders from Field Marshal Bogolov himself, sir." The boy ejected, anxiously holding out the note for his commanding officer.

Gregory took hold of the parchment and began reading. He was unsure what was so urgent, as the orders he had been given prior remained unchanged. March east, take Vorl, win the war. Of course, the old bastard Bogolov had no idea the conditions of Zellonian winter and the underestimated fighting spirit of a poverty-stricken nation facing defeat. Even Gregory himself had underestimated the Zellonians, for even after he allowed the razing of Nervinton the populace remained insubordinate and troublesome. Truly, if there was ever a culture built around stubbornness, it was that of the Zellonians.

"Yes, thank you soldier. Dismissed." Gregory said off handedly, at first forgetting the young soldier had been there at all. However, before the boy could escape back into the camp, Gregory quickly stopped him. "Inform the men preparing for deployment to the front that I will be speaking before their departure."

The boy-soldier nodded quickly and departed, Gregory couldn't help but feel pity for the runners in these winter conditions. He had already seen some collapse from the strain, others falling over unseen obstacles in the snow; it was truly a hellish task. Gregory sighed, rubbing his forehead with one hand while he tucked the note away into his jacket with the other. Rising to his feet he departed from his tent and began the trek across the snowy headquarters of the Army Group; for as far as the eye could see smoke clouds grew in the distance as hundreds of campfires and cooking stations were alight, the General couldn't help but wonder how many of the lives in these tents would be lost by this time next year. Of the faces he saw passing, how many would not return to the shores of the Empire? Never before had he had thoughts such as these, hell he'd never seen real war before now, and couldn't help but feel the stress of his position beginning to weight upon him.

---

"So, anyone back at home waiting on you Nikolai?" Pytor asked, smiling wide as he tucked away the note his fiance had sent him into his winter coat.

"Of course, my mother and sister are at home. In all honestly, I worry about them a lot. Mother is sickly, and poor Lada tries her best but with school and all... I worry." Nikolai replied, his own smile fading as he stared absent minded down the dirt road ahead.

His regiment, the 4th Oslograd Guard, had not yet seen deployment to the front. Now, after a month of seeing the frontliners coming back in smaller and smaller numbers, it was his turn for the fire. Nikolai would be lying if he didn't feel a black pit boiling in his stomach like the coals that lit the campfires at night. Even worse, the General would be making a speech to the regiment before they departed. Had he signed their death warrants already? The thought disturbed him.

"Look alive! General Yakovich is coming this way!" Borislav yelled, grabbing his rifle and pushing himself off the ground as the men quickly scrambled to assemble and look orderly for the General.

Nikolai had never seen Yakovich in person, though he had heard that the General was surprisingly young for his position. It was uncommon in the Osladian army for generals to be younger than 50, and Yakovich was barely 40 himself. How he had attained this position no one could say, though some theorized his family must have ties to the Tsar or, if the army was lucky, Yakovich was some sort of genius tactician. The General was indeed young, and walked with an air of confidence as he turned the tent line and began his approach to the assembled men. A small black stubble and a short army permissed haircut, the young General hardly looked any different from the rest of them.

Stopping at the center of the line, the General turned to face the assembly and the soldiers immediately straightened themselves. Yakovich smiled and began to speak.

"At ease. Soldiers of the 4th Oslograd, today you are being dispatched to the front lines to face our long hated enemy. The Zellonian menace, and her lapdop Memoital volunteers, are the bane of our Empire's existence. Remember, it was the Zellonians who brought aggression to our doorstep, and it was their mad King that refused offers of surrender when we came to their shores. Their King has watched his soldiers die without even a weapon in their hands and he still believes he can win this war. Gentlemen, let us prove the Zellonian madman wrong. This war has long been in our favor, and it will continue to be in our favor as we fly the flag of our holy and righteous Tsar and Empire over the ruins of Nervinton, Vorl, and Zeel. I want you all to remember, our empire was not forged by only the Tsar and God; but by the will of the Osladian soldier and his divine right to victory and glory. Your forefathers stood where you stood, on the soil of a foreign and hostile land, and made it their own. Zellonia will fall, much like the Karumi before them and the Boletarian kings before that. For it is the right of our people and our righteous god to smite our enemies. Never forget your ancestors and your birthright. Hail Oslad, and God save the Tsar! Dismissed gentlemen."

December 1st-7th
Battle of Kreogen (1899)
The greatest enemy of the Zello-Osladian War was neither the man standing across the front nor the rifle in his arms, but the frigid frost and blithering snowfall that picked up. By the end of November, a total of five and a half inches of snow now snaked it's way across the Zellonian flat lands. The entire front line, stretching through the city of Kreogen, held by the infamous Memoital I Corps. The front quickly stretched to the entire of Zellonia's length, running to the Marnish Mountains in the North to the half frozen waters of the Zeelian Sea to the South.



On December 1st, the soldiers of Voskreya Army Group North received their orders. "On the 5th Day of the December, you will be tasked with destroying entrenched Zellonian positions and achieving a breakthrough." That day however, would have to wait. As at 0900 hours, the Zellonians--in the very same front--the 8th Army under General Hawthorne, began their offensive. 40 Zellonian field guns opened up, a destructive rain of fire that was quickly answered by a superior amount of Osladian field guns.

Private Merrick Daniels of the 2nd Jovington Division remembers the day, in an interview in 1903 from his memoir Through the Blood and Snow: "There were whistles. Hundreds of whistles from the commanding sergeants. Most of us didn't even have guns. They told us. 'Across the field. Engage in hand to hand. Find a weapon. Take it from the enemy, if you have to.' It was madness. Absolute madness. I lost, I lost a lot of friends that day. Sent to their death without much of a chance. Sent to their death without a rifle."

The Zellonian Offensive takes the Osladians by storm, who don't quite anticipate an attack by the Zellonians in the harsh weather. Two entire infantry divisions are sent forward: the 2nd Jovington and the 2nd Arrington divisions. 20,000 men, only 6,000 of them are carrying rifles. Still, unprepared Osladian positions are ransacked, but by 1215 hours they begin to offer resistance as they find their feet. General Hawthorne was out for blood. The Osladian breastworks allowed direct enfilade fire, and Hawthorne ordered the offensive continue well into the 6th and 7th day. His orders from Zellonian General Command in Zeel were the following: "If possible push through the southern flank and acquire new rifles as needed. Do not commit yourself to any single battle we can’t let the Osladians gain more land." [PM from LordZell]

The Osladians were back on their heels. They resisted, but even static rifle fire had it's limitations. With orders not to commit to any single battle (offensive), General Hawthorne called off the offensive after pushing only 19 kilometers. At the end of the 7th day, over 13,000 Zellonians had been killed. Most of them died without ever a chance to find a rifle and return fire. By nightfall, their corpses would freeze in the very position they died in. General Hawthorne was a glory seeker, and he had sent men to die looking for it. Whether or not stopping an Osladian offensive he didn't know was coming was among that repertoire, only history would tell.



December 8th
While transporting a pair of merchant freighters to Xerotith to Voskreya--a measly 24 kilometers--the armored cruiser ZRN Gathering Storm and two light cruisers happen upon Osladian freighters and their three destroyer escort. The Battle of the Coast lasts a sobering two and a half hours. The ZRN Gathering Storm sinking the Osladian destroyer OIN Zhutkiy in a single barrage, while the Zellonian light cruisers cut off and sank the OIN Gromkiy. The OIN Maleev turned and fled, the captain giving a much different account of the action when he made port in Voskreya.


[Event: Osladian Army -1% Morale, -1% Supply & Logistics]

December 12th
In the Empire of Tara, G.L.T. Industries opens it's doors. A private company with expertise in railways, the owner--George Lyricelle-Taunton--takes on the head role, expressing the promise of a railway through every city in the near future for Tara.
- [Event: Empire of Tara gains G.L.T. Industries [1] (Rail) [Privatized]]

December 13th
In Veletian Settumu, the trial of Governor Droulez is finished and he is removed from power, instead put into a civilian role. The trial, which garnered front page news back in Confluence, is lauded as a giant success by the monarch and her civilian administration. Morale--and trust--in "The Heads Back Home," in far away colonies such as Cotê d'Or, as well as in Veletian Settumu, where the military hierarchy there was fiercely loyal, is shaken. With conditions often questionable at best, local garrisons feel as though the monarchy could have turned it's head. Not only was Droulez fondly remembered abroad, but a seething editorial in Le Patriote characterizes him as almost a father like figure to hundreds of cadets who had been placed under his command. "The allegations of a sex trafficking ring," the editorial writes, "are undoubtedly the doing of an administration that has lost faith in it's most able bodied commanders."
[Event: Veletian Gendarmerie loses 6% Morale.].

December 14th
An additional 14,400 Z.88 rifles are finished by Guntherson & Co. in Vorl. They're sent to the front lines immediately.

December 15th
The Empire of Tara sends out a request for a new field cannon. Vulcan Foundries promises a prototype within 10 months, while the Imperial Dockyards & Arsenal promises a prototype within 6 months.

December 16th
The 3rd Colonial Rifles dispatch to Jardin, Counties Palatine on garrison duty. The people there are scared, proud and full of courage. Brigadier Sir Thomas de Lacy, CGM, RAM and Double Bar, in command, he's notified early on the morning of the 16th of an incoming Mauwanti scouting force. Dutifully, he wards off a runner to Harkins at White Haven.

What comes next is again the masterful deception of the Mauwanti. A few dozen riders meander around, with members of the 3rd Colonial Rifles well entrenched. For a second time Sir Thomas de Lacy refuses an inquiry as to whether to send a runner, grumbling: "The boy Harkins has enough to deal with from the Navy and Her Majesty, I'm sure." At 1125 hours, a second Mauwanti raiding party is seen but retreats after fire from 4th Company's entrenchment to the Northeast.



At 1340 hours the Mauwanti return, in force. 6,600 raiders in all--mostly on foot with some mounted in an attempted flanking maneuver. At 1346 the first field battery opened up, and Brigadier de Lacy gave a "fire at will" order. The Mauwanti charged, with no apparent concern for their own safety. They closed to twenty yards before the withering fire from the assembled riflemen clouded the battlefield in so much smoke from the discharge of their rifles that it was impossible to see which direction to run.

By 1450, 3,800 Mauwanti and 290 Colonials had been killed. 1 Field Gun, fired until the barrel burned red, was considered "beyond use."

December 16th
The Mauwanti approach White Haven with a shaman. He's nearly killed by a rifleman on duty, then taken before Harkins in the city proper. After much discussion, the shaman, named Na'atami, requests that peace come between the two nations. Harkins and three guards are escorted to a nearby Mauwanti camp--so well hidden that it officially lay in Palatine land--where Na'atami discusses the peace. There, over 100 Mauwanti warriors are present, though they do not attempt to disarm Harkins or his men.



The Mauwanti wish to continue to govern their lands and cite "tribal raiders" started the conflict, of which the Mauwanti later believed to have been coaxed into attacking by trespassing Tarans. The Mauwanti wish to see a White Peace, with promises of stricter control on their border people.

December 17th
The Survian Republic colony of Madasta along the Northern Serranthian coast has revolted. It's former leader, Sultan Neffa, has risen up with 3,000 of his followers. The Survian's--in a crisis of succession on The Continent--have little time to reinforce the 800 man garrison there. Minister of the Navy Wolfgang von Kestenbaum of the Tyro-Redanian Empire immediately calls for a council with the Emperor, citing a possible maneuver to send an Expeditionary Force to take control of the Survian colony--now claiming it's own independence as the Heffan Caliphate and take it's first step into colonialism. This will bring great prestige to the Wolfram Dynasty and an influx of possible resources as the colonies infrastructure is largely in place. It may however upset either the Veletians or the Tarans, who have colonies nearby.
[Event: The Minister of the Navy Wolfgang von Kestenbaum of the Tyro-Redanian Empire seeks permission to send an Expeditionary Force to claim the Survian colony of Madasta in Northern Serranthia. This requires an IC Response in depth.]

December 26th
In the Madasta Affair, the Tyro-Redanian Empire agrees to send an Expeditionary Force. The ships arrive near the end of the month and after a very short, but intense shore bombardment, the Heffan's there surrender. That night, the Tyro-Redanian flag flies over the capitol building and messages that a third party has joined the race to Serranthia arrive in Confluence and Rigour.
- [Event: gains Madasta (Serranthia), +$240,000/Turn, +2 Grain, -2 Relations with Veletian Empire, -2 Relations with Empire of Tara.]

December 31st
Brigadier General Bernhard Ewald Larenz of the Kalpian Republic was a daring man. In fact, he was so daring; he intended to end the Zello-Osladian War with one fell swoop. That swoop was Operation Hanzmich.

The landing craft hit the beach at 0310 hours. An entire brigade dispersed in forty-four different landing craft, the Light 63rd moved in and by 0338 had entered the palisades, moved in through the Royal Garden, taking out a dozen guards using close quarters combat and knives. 1st Platoon entered the building, the most ornate building in all of Zellonia. Brigadier General Larenz himself was among the troops, his K.87 revolver holstered at his side. Troops moved up to the pair of Radenan oak doors, Larenz off to one side. He gave the signal and the soldiers yanked in the door.

A brief firefight ensued, the three men dead on the deck were Zellonian Royal Guardsmen. The last man alive--now standing--was the most important figure in all of Zellonia. "What is the meaning of this?" He shouted, then stumbled back when Larenz brought the revolver to the man's face.

"Uhm, excuse me, your majesty. I am here to end this war."

October 1st, 1899, Senryu, Hiron

Hashi Takami, the Director of the Emperor's Hidden Arm, sat quietly with the Dragon Emperor and the ministers of the realm. Having just finished presenting the results of Operation Sa-To that the Emperor had ordered, the man was now being forced to await Ryugo Shuu's judgement. What seemed like an eon passed in a few minutes, until the young Emperor looked up and smiled, "I'm surprised how well you and the Hidden Arm performed."

Takami bowed his head deeply to the tatami mat, "I am incredibly proud of the organization, my Lord, to the point where I can say with almost absolute certainty that every man in it is capable at his job."

Ryugo quietly put the folder labeled Operation Sa-To onto a small table, leaned forward with his head on his interlocked hands, and looked carefully at the ministers for a moment, and then at Takami, "Takami-san, the ministers and I have been discussing the future at great length, and we think this is an interesting operation..." Ryguo slid another folder over to Takami, this one entitled, Operation Jiyuu.

The Director of the Hidden Arm picked up the folder and leafed through it for a few pages, skimming. His eyebrows raised considerably as he took a few moments to think before the man announced to the ministers, "The Hidden Arm should be able to take care of this. It's an interesting plan."

"The first of many, we hope. We have significant faith in the Hidden Arm, but we'll want you to start work on this Operation in a few months time," replied the Emperor before dismissing Takami. With the excellence of the Hidden Arm, Hiron was beginning to give serious thought to covert operations, possibly globally, though of course centered mainly in Settumu.

October 15th, 1899, Senryu, Hiron

A small crowd had assembled in front of the Imperial Palace for the delivery of a speech by the Emperor. The young man stood quietly among for a moment before lifting his hand and silencing their once boisterous speech before he began, "The Imperium of Hiron has decided to declare that it stands in solidarity with the Serene Empire of Tara against the Wauwanti Raider Savages that become like a plague in one of its colonies, pillaging, raping, and destroying wherever it goes. Although the Imperium and Tara have not always gotten perfectly along, and will undoubtedly always never see eye-to-eye on some issues, there is one thing we are both clear on: savagery will not be tolerated in any colonies of Tara, or any that Hiron may lay claim to. Tarans and Hironese alike come to new lands to spread prosperity, civilization, and technology. Not to be forced to execute abominable humans.

"At the same time, I must also declare that the Imperium of Hiron supports the Tsardom of Karum in its aspiration to take back its lands, its peoples, and to right the injustices done to it and its peoples in the past. They are a truly civilized nation deserving of respect.

"However, we must declare that the Kingdom of Zellonia are truly fools ruled by a Mad King, one who thinks that taking waters that are clearly not his and illegally taxing ships in what is clearly an act of piracy is a fantastic idea that could not possibly lead to retaliation by the Great Powers. Their nation is an example of how not to deal with the Continentals and foreign bodies, and the Imperium of Hiron looks down at them greatly. Thank you for your time. To the Imperium!"

A mix of shouts began to ring out in the crowds such as, "Mad King," "Wauwanti Savages," and "Karum Fights For Freedom!"

October 31st, 1899, Furuu, Hiron

The Dragon Emperor himself had come to the laying of the keel of the TES Asai, a Taizen-1894 Class Pre-dreadnought, standing in front of a small crowd mixed with commoners and elite, as he began a simple speech, "Today, I stand before you as the Imperium of Hiron enters the next stage of its future! Behind me, work begins on yet another Pre-Dreadnought, a symbol of the Might of the Imperial Navy, to which all other nations in Settumu and the Continent shall soon pay heed! In the coming years, our ships shall soon eclipse the likes of the Serene Empire of Tara, blotting out the Sun itself with their rain of hot lead! The Seven Seas will become the home of all Hironese, and we shall sail them in full confidence of our absolute power! Let us march onward then, to the future, to the Imperium!"

The small crowd shouted in unison together, "To the Imperium!" as a number of monks began praying at the front for the success of the Imperium and of the Asai.

November 3rd, Senryu, Hiron

Once again, the Dragon Emperor came before a crowd of reporters, commoners, and elites, to give a speech bordering on the line between sarcasm and praise, "My brothers and sisters, I come before you toward to lend considerable praise to the imbeciles in the Grand Kingdom of Meung. Yesterday, they dragged their own Chief Foreign Financial Minister, Mao Huyuan, and their Minister of Taxation, Cui Hong, kicking and screaming out of their own homes as their families watched them be executed in broad daylight in front of their shocked families without a proper trial! Truly, Crown Prince Hu Shihuang knows best how to be a ruthless, tyrannical warlord, and set an example for the Imperium of Hiron to take note of! And believe me, the Imperium takes careful note of the Kingdom of Meung and the Crown Prince's actions... To the Imperium!"

A chorus of snickering mixed with laughter and shouts of approval rang out of the crowd as reporters furiously wrote down the Emperor's words. It was just another in the long line of jabs Hiron had taken at Meung.

November 7th, Aetoria, Tyro-Redania

Hiri Ishiki fell onto his hands and knees as he disembarked from TES Kazemono, kissing the ground. Three weeks of hell had passed before him, multiple storms threatening to sink the ship. It was if God himself had attempted to reach out and strike the diplomat down. But he made it nonetheless, thanks entirely to the determination of the crew of TES Kazemono. Unfortunately, his rest was not to be long, as Hiri had little choice but to push onwards to the meeting with the Tyro-Redanians.

A few hours later, the diplomat was once more cursing his luck and trying to untighten the sweat-soaked collar around his neck. The inspection of the weapons hadn't gone well, with the loss of a few dozen machineguns, and the Tyro-Redanians, combined with Ishiki's exhaustion, managed to pull more money from Hiron. Thankfully though, the man would soon be returning with the new machines, of which the Tyro-Redanians had given him a full demonstration of, utterly annihilating a regiment of fake soldiers with a few sweeping passes of the weapon. Truly, it was a machine of thus far unparalleled destruction... Once again, the diplomat found himself wondering what poor soldiers would be subjected to it in Settumu.

November 8th, 1899, Senryu, Hiron

The Dragon Emperor once more stood in front of a crowd of people, this one much larger than before. News of the guilty verdict of Commander Droulez had reached Hiron, which was met with much happiness among the people. Droulez had been trafficking Hironese women, a fact that Hiron was likely to not stand for had he been acquitted, but the Dragon Emperor could now make a public statement, "Today, a terrible man has been found guilty of heinous crimes. Trafficking innocent Kikitomi and Hironese women. An absolutely unacceptable crime, for which the death penalty is always incurred in Hiron. We hope greatly that swift justice is brought to Commander Droulez and that his head will roll. Thank you, and to the Imperium!"

---

---

The Madasta Affair

Somewhere within the Imperial Palace a Tyrian Count moved at pace, a sweat breaking across his brow from his journey here from the Admiralty. A stack of papers and charts held within the crook of his arm, Wolfgang walked swiftly with a purpose as he passed along the hallways of the Palace towards his ultimate destination. Flanked by two House Guards in ceremonial dress of a dark red and black, their polished breastplates catching the light just as well as the finely finished rifles they kept at their sides. The Minister stared longingly at the door they guarded before taking a moment to gather himself and his fleeting breath until at-last he was ready to speak.

"I have urgent news for the Emperor. It requires his immediate attention." For a few seconds Wolfgang wondered if his words had been heard by the silent sentinels as they regarded him coldly. Another second and finally they offered him a nod that he might proceed and moved to part the great doors of Radenan oak painted to a white and embellished with metal workings of gold as they allowed the Minister entrance into the Emperor's own study.

The Emperor-King's desk lay stacked with sheets of ledgers, documents, charts and papers. Wolfgang himself entered with his own documents and there he waited before the Emperor's desk for the monarch to officially greet him. His Majesty appeared to be writing as Wolfgang spent a moment taking in the room around him. Bookshelves and paneled walls of a rich mahogany stared back at him as light flew into the room through a great window at his Majesty's back. The Emperor looked up from his writings to a correspondence and offered a smile to his Minister.

"Wolfgang. What is the matter?" Questioned his Majesty, surprised by his minsters unexpected and sudden arrival but not visibly perturbed, if anything he appeared curious.

"Your Majesty." Wolfgang said formally as he set his pile of documents before the Emperor. "Apologies my Emperor but this is a matter which requires your attention... it has become known to us that the Survian colony of Madasta on the North Serranthian coast has fallen to a revolt." The Minister spoke as he drew a map from his documents showing the aforementioned colony and placed it upon the desk. "The Survians have failed to quell this revolt and reports indicate are unable to do so, with the rebels declaring themselves the independent Heffan Caliphate." Wolfgang found himself pausing as he considered how he might broach his next words.

"Go on." The Emperor encouraged, seeing that his Minister of the Navy had more to say.

"Your Majesty. I believe, that should we act swiftly we might seize these lands for our own, for a colony of our own. I believe we might take advantage of this moment and I have had the Admiralty begin drawing up invasion plans and have reached out to the Army." Wolfgang spoke passionately as he set the necessary papers before the Emperor. "With your seal, my Emperor, we might begin the seizure of Madasta."

A second passed before judgement fell with the imperial seal as it pressed upon the page, leaving behind the Emperor's personal sigil. The order was given, judgement had been made on the fate of Madasta and soon the Empire's flag would fly over a piece of Serranthia.

The smell of sea was something that the men of the 62th weren't used to or expected to , they had all their lives grown use to the idea that Kalpian Republic was a nation that was focused on protecting their own from the monarchies that could be found all around the continent, to protect their right to vote and the rights and responsabilities that came with it. Yet, they were here on route to a foreign nation that they knew little and had less than a year ago, didn't even have to care about.

Most of the 62th was composed by soldiers from the north of Kalpia, most from Liubeth proper that had joined the army as young and had stayed for the pay, a pay that less than a year ago , they didn't see very often. Yet, they were all loyal to the republic and their knew that they could beat any other army in the world if it came to it, what they didn't knew was that what would defeat them wasn't an army or the enemy soldiers, but rather the cold and hunger that they weren't used to, but that was still weeks from happening.

The soldiers would write and speak, some of them were enthusiastic to finally see war and serve their country in the profession that they had choosen, smiles and jokes were common in the transport ships that would transport most of them to their deaths. This was as small as it was would give the chance for some to rise in the ranks, something that so far required connections and money, something that many didn't have , between those who wanted to rise in the ranks was the brigadier general Kazimierz Bernhard Freund , very well known by his soldiers as someone who's leadership and charisma covered many of his faults as a man or officer.

Whatever would happen next would be the moment of Kazimierz, it had to be...



The Grunewalde submarine, named after one of the ancient gods of Kalpian mythology had a crew full of young men, most of them who had just joined the Navy as an easy way to get money with easy discipline and without the risk of being sent to war, although, that last part wouldn't come true. War was here and they would be sent to do their job in the inner sea, they would protect Kalpia from the madness of the Zellonian King! or that was what the President said to them at his speech in Liubeth. Some of them really felt that they were doing something for the nation...for a couple of hours.

Then some of them started to worry, it was war, a sea war, one of the weakest navies of the Great Powers against a navy bigger and more powerful than them, there was no chance for them to win or at least that's what mosts of them thought about their chances to live in such a war.

The next day the crew of the Grunewalde prepared for their first real mission, their debriefing was short and simple, they would hit any Zellonian ship they found in the inner sea and they would do so. They really hoped that the Zellonians wouldn't find them because if that happened it was end game.

The volunteers marched, only pausing at brief intervals of a few hours when night came around, towards the land they were going to fight tooth and nail to protect. To the Seronan lands where the Karumi War of Aggression raged, protecting the balance of power in the region by aiding the Seronan people. As the volunteer army marched the came upon many refugees going to Itheraen cities to avoid the war on their home, the people whose homes were destroyed. All twenty-eight-thousand of them all racing against the clock to get to the foreign lands that they would fight for, for freedom and against such aggressions as displayed by Karum. It was their duty to fight, their duty to save lives, their duty to show strength in the face of evil.

They sang Itheraen warsongs all along the way, keeping their spirits high, believing themselves to be a force to change the tide of the war. The Volunteer Corp already knew what their first job was going to be, to retake Wietr and thus a chant arose from their gut, a chant of promise to retake all Seronan land.Their voices reached the heavens, their columns moving as one to the promised land, no longer considering this some little war, it was a crusade. A crusade to destroy the evil produced by this kind of aggression, to destroy the evils of one man who forced his men into a needless combat, the Tsar Michel. Their bayonets were fixed to his home, to his heart, the Itheraen propaganda filling them with a nationalistic spirit, the spirit of strength which would cause the Karumi army to shatter. An army under equipped and in poor condition, an army suitable not even for even the ancient times.

One chant was the most popular however, often booming through the air. “Karum will fall.”

January 1st
In the Kalpian Republic, the Metropolitan Heavy Industries company finishes a 180 kilometer stretch of rail through several towns from Tarist to Leikarp, connecting and finishing the entirety of the nation's circular rail network. It is now possible, were one so inclined, to get on a passenger locomotive in Arsech, and ride it all the way to the North to Liubeth, then South through Tarist, Leikap and back to Arsech. Much of the rural countryside remains unconnected.
[Event: Kalpian Republic gains +4% Infrastructure, +$20,000/Year]

January 2nd-3rd
The 63rd Light Brigade under Brigadier General Larenz had held the capital of Zeel, and it's monarch--King James Conrad--for 36 hours now. During the early hours of January 2nd, an additional 12 landing craft pulled up to the quiet shores of Zeel and began unloading field guns. Passing Zellian soldiers noticed. Two opened fire while another ran for the alarm. By 1140 the entire 3rd "Zeel" Infantry Division had been alerted and within hours began converging on the city. The 63rd Light Brigade began deploying defensive measures in the Majora District and fighting began on January 2nd late in the evening.

The Zellonians were at a lose-lose situation. The 3rd "Zeel" Infantry Division. The 3rd Zeel was the most well equipped of the entire Zellonian Army, with nearly 1 out of 2 men equipped with a rifle. There was no escalation, the 63rd Light Brigade put up a spirited defense from the first shots, and the Zellonians ruthlessly cut them off, took possession of the lightly guarded field guns deposited on the beach and cut the already short supplied Kalpians off in the city proper.



By the end of the 2nd, Kalpians were down the majority of their ammunition. KR.99 rifles lay discarded and close quarters fighting was at a premium. Brigadier General Larenz thought briefly of executing King James, but understood the political ramifications of assassinating a head of state. By the morning of the third of January, Kalpians were surrendering in the dozens. On the morning of the third, Brigadier General Larenz himself was taken captive.

The Zellians had a choice. They could inter the Kalpians for the remainder of the war, execute them as commandos attempting to potentially assassinate their head of state, or return them to the Kalpians in exchange for political leniency perhaps.
- [Event: The remnants of the 63rd Light Brigade are taken captive. Their fate is in the hands of the Kingdom of Zellonia. This requires an IC Response.]]

January 4th-11th
An interesting point of the Zello-Osladian War is often the very strange tactics used by both sides. The Zellonians, in superior defensive positions did not seek to outmaneuver the Osladians. The Osladians however, seemed content in continually butting their hands against the Zellonian defensive fortifications over and over and over. On the morning of the 4th, half a hundred Osladian field guns opened up for a thirty-six minute barrage.

The Osladian offensive begins. 22,000 men go up over constructed snow, mud and dirt embankments against the Zellonian 8th Army. Men of the 2nd Voskreya Division sustain a breakthrough between two Zellonian infantry divisions on the 7th of January. Casualties mount at 4,200 men. Fighting intensifies.



On the 9th of January, soldiers of the 2nd Voskreya reach the Zellonian rear guard, finding field kitchens and first aid stations. The Zellonians fail to put up fierce resistance due to a lack of rifles for their soldiers. On the 10th and 11th, heavy night fighting occur where unarmed Zellonians scour the frozen battlefield, picking up Otto.89 rifles and equipping themselves. A game of cat and mouse occurs where Osladians fire at targets moving in the darkness. 127 friendly fire casualties are reported between the 9th and 18th of January.

January 12th-18th
On the 12th of January, the Zellonian Army sends the 2nd "Jovington" Division into combat as a minor offensive at the behest of General Hawthorne Kenway, a gloryhound who believed he could drive a wedge between the Osladian salient and Army Group North.

The 13th and 14th of January earned the name the Black Weekend, as 6,123 men of the 7,000 strong 2nd "Jovington" Division are are wounded or killed in the Zellonian Counteroffensive. The southern front is now threatening to fall a part.



January 19th
Shipyards in the Imperium of Hiron examine, test and finalize the possibility of larger scout craft for future destroyer designs. A slighter wider beam, along with a reinforced keel allows for a similarly stronger, but not necessarily slower base for future warships.
- [Event: Imperium of Hiron gains 700 Ton Destroyer Technology (May Sell).]

January 20th
The Imperium of Hiron, in their foreign embassy in Confluence, Veletia, immediately demand the extradition of General Droulez to Shenryu to stand trial there. The diplomatic pressure for Veletia is marginal, but present--as public opinion of the Kikitomi has turned dour with local garrisons reportedly turning their ire on the locals. Not handing him over to the Hironese could lead to a sour political situation there, while handing him over could anger the Gendarmerie even further.
- [Event: Empire of Violette event. This requires an IC Response.]

January 24th
Fighting continues in the city of Jovington by the Kalpian 62nd Brigade, now down to half strength. Attempts to resupply them are irritated further when off the coast of Jovington the Kalpian 4th Fleet (3 CL, 7 DD) escorts five freighters toward Jovington. They are spotted and attacked by the Zellonian 4th Light Fleet (1 CA, 4 CL, 1 DD).

The ZRN Gathering Storm enacts dutiful revenge on the Kalpian defenders. It's 4-10" guns sinking the Kalpian KRN Kronprinz after only six volleys. The Gathering Storm wreaks havoc on the Kalpian formation, sinking two of the three freighters before suddenly being hit by a torpedo. She listed heavily to port side and was assisted by the light cruiser ZRN Staggering Bull, while fire control teams assessed the damage. The fighting continued, with two Kalpian destroyers trading shot for shot with a Zellonian cruiser and destroyer, sinking the ZRN The Avenger before fleeing.
- [Event: Battle of Jovington Ends: Kalpian Republic: -3% Supply & Logistics (Army), -2 DD. Kingdom of Zellonia: ZRN Gathering Storm [CA] [Heavily Damaged], -1 DD]



January 28th
The Tsardom of Radena denounces the wanton bloodshed of the Osladian Empire, the Tsar Pyotr II giving a speech in the nation's capital. "So enamored with blood and imperialism are the Slads of the West that they know not apparently the difference between a woman, a child and Zellonian soldier. These brave men defending their homeland do not deserve to have their loved ones butchered and burned and raped, and this Tsardom will not stand for it."
- [Event: The Tsardom of Radena has -1 Relations with Osladian Empire.]

January 30th
In the Republic of Itherae, construction companies get to work on a road connecting Phliespontos and Thespomnos, an endeavor that should only take a few months.

Empire of Violette

---

Mr. Droulez was a popular man in the city of his birth. Everyone here loved him, from the simple to the fancy; plain, dirtied worker's caps and noble ladies' elegant headdresses alike were taken off to him each time he walked down the city's streets, a national hero in the flesh, the man that saved the empire from the Victorian Mutiny. The so-called 'Droulez Affair' may have soiled then both Governor and Commander Droulez's reputation back in Sandao, but here, he was revered—all the more, even, ever since the Empress had controversially plucked him from power. The white stone pillars of the offices and embassies lining the International Circle were as gorgeously white as Droulez's esteem among the Confluenceen: pristine as all could be. The shining morning sun lit all of the masterfully crafted diplomatic mansions beautifully, but most prettily of all did it illuminate the Embassy of the Imperium of Hiron. Rising over the back of the Hironese ambassador's quarters, the sun framed the double-doors to the elegant residence as though they were the gates of heaven. Tempted as he was, though, Mr. Droulez—dressed in high-class civilian attire and proudly wearing a gleeful grin—did not enter. Instead, the seasoned war veteran turned his gaze left, to the three men of the Gendarmerie exiting a neighboring police building, two of them helping each other carry a table, and the third lugging behind him two wooden chairs. It was a beautiful day, and Mr. Droulez supposed his business with the Hironese might as well take place outside.

With the table placed directly along the border of the Hironese Embassy's front lawn, Droulez took his seat on the Veletian side, waiting in his chair for the two uniformed soldiers to bring back refreshments from inside their compound. The third, meanwhile, calmly walked up to the front door of the Hironese embassy and gave a stern knock. Standing away from the door afterwards to shout into the open window on the embassy's second floor, the officer called out, "Mr. Droulez has arrived for his trial!" in a distinctly high-class dialect of Veletian. Already, a small crowd of passersby had gathered, observing Droulez sipping his tea on an awkwardly placed table and an army officer making a commotion on the front steps of the embassy. This had the potential to be interesting.

January 21st, 1900, The Hironese Embassy, Cercle Internationale, Confluence, Violette

Ambassador to the Veletian Empire Kaminari Saito was an unusually young up-and-coming man who had managed to blow his way through the diplomatic circles of the Imperium until eventually obtaining an assignment to his post at the Hironese-style Hironese Embassy in Violette. Just one more step along the way to possibly becoming foreign minister in his mind, the man was sitting quietly at his small desk reading a newspaper when a secretary knocked quietly and slid open the door. Bowing her head to the ground, the woman spoke quietly, "Sir, there is a small ruckus developing outside. General Droulez has come, apparently for his 'trial'."

Saito peered over his newspaper absentmindedly at the secretary for a few moments, contemplating the situation. If this wasn't one of the most foolish and arrogant moves of the Veletians, Saito didn't know what was, "Seriously? They think we're going to have some mock charade of a trial in front of the Embassy? Tell them this..."

A few minutes later, the secretary exited the Embassy and came to stand in front of Droulez, ignoring the man and announcing to the public, "The Dragon Imperium of Hiron and the Dragon Emperor were very clear that Mr. Droulez was to stand trial in our capitol of Senryu. This man is known to have peddled our women, Kikitomi women, and Meungese women for profit and sex. The Imperium and the Emperor shall not rest until he sees the light of justice, and not simply being stripped of his rank and title. The Imperium will not partake in this silly charade of a 'trial' that Mr. Droulez has offered, and we are heavily offended by this show of immense arrogance on the part of a man who forced countless Hironese women to be used as sex slaves. That is all." The secretary returned to the Embassy, having not once looked Droulez in the eye.

A war-time election was the last thing Selidov had expected only a year before the new century. With soldiers marching off to the front and returning in pine boxes, a sense of melancholy hung over the entire season. Selidov began immediately with the path he had used in the past, going through the industrialized cities of Oslograd, Dukovsta, and Toboskoy preaching freedom of trade, speech, religion, and now a quick end to the war. Needless to say, Selidov had become unpopular even among his fellow city-dwellers, and the consistent military failures under his administration in handling Zellonia brought many angry widows to his events. In one incident, a group of grieving women brought banners bearing the names of the men they had lost in the war, holding it high above their heads while Selidov could only look on and continue speaking.

Within the Liberal-Democratic party, rumors began to spread about a replacement for Selidov before the election began in earnest. Among the candidates, the most likely to succeed Seldiov as party leader would be Pavel Kryukov, a fellow senior statesman. Born in Oslad Proper into a middle-class family, Kryukov attended university in Boletaria a decade after her addition into the Empire in 1865. During the Karumi War, Kryukov served in the 22nd Oslograd Musketeers and attained the rank of Podpraporshchik, or 'Sergeant First Class' in common Continental, and permanently injured his left leg after taking a Karumi bullet in his left thigh, snapping the bone. After the war he finished his education in political theory and economics and joined the Liberal Democrats in his home city. Kryukov gained his seat in 1882 and has held it ever since, only coming close to a defeat against Union party leader Leonard Palkowski in 1888.



While the Liberal-Democrats bickered. The Union sprang into action and began a fierce campaign. Competing in the cities, especially Boletaria, was Boletarian national Leonard Palkowski. The moderate-Unionist ran a strong campaign of "no peace without reparations" and denounced the actions committed by the Osladian army as "the negligence of the Liberal-Democrats not keeping the dog on the leash". His more anti-war rhetoric led to Palkowski being decried by the Yegorov-camp of his own party, calling Palkowski 'Selidov in a mask' and further stating that Yegorov was the only true Unionist candidate. The results showed otherwise, however, and Palkowski's general denouncement of military atrocities and goal to bring a 'strong yet firm peace' with Zellonia and warming relations with the Radenians did win the moderate much support among the more liberally minded citizens of Oslograd and Dukovsta.

On the fringe of the Union, the Count of Black rallied his supporters and held marches in Volovichi. Black-shirted Unionists carrying portraits of the Count and marching in military goosestep paraded through the streets, calling Yegorov the man who would save the holy Empire and crush the 'degenerate Zellonians'. Yegorov called the war a holy crusade and stated the "the northern lands of winter are plagued with the ranting of a possessed mad king". Though popular, Yegorov's war rhetoric won him little favors in the populated cities and towns where so many had already lost loved ones; however, he did win the military's support and promised stronger support for the armed forces in "liberating Zellonia from savagery".

---

While at home politicians continued to campaign, the northern skies filled with the lights of artillery fire. After 2 months of failed attempts to break through the Zellonian lines, the inexperienced 'grim reaper' Gregory Yakovich had done what he had set out to. Early in January Osladian soldiers finally stormed the Zellonian trenches and, without proper armaments, slaughtered or captured the Zellonian enemy. Raiding the abandoned Zellonian field hospitals and kitchens for any worthwhile supplies, spirits were high that the war was finally turning in their favor.

However celebration was short lived however. Shortly after the breakthrough had been made, the Zellonian armed forces began an immediate counter attack in the hopes of repulsing the Osladians. Fortunately, the better armed and prepared Osladian forces held their ground and thousands of unarmed Zellonian soldiers would die of their injuries in the frozen fields of Zellonia in a incident forever remembered as the 'Black Weekend'. At home, the incident was cheered by Yegorov and the military high command as an astounding success, with the road to Vorl and victory now opened wide for the Osladian army. Seeing success, the Osladian high command permitted more soldiers to be deployed north to the strait and then cross over into Zellonia proper. It seemed that among the soldiery, victory meant only more death and killing to come.

Despite these victories a new problem had risen. Yes, a breakthrough had been made and initial attempts to dislodge the Osladians had failed. While the Zellonian army was not exactly intimidating to the Osladian military elite, there was one group of men that brought them nothing but headaches. The Memoital volunteer corp, a band of comrades from the small island nation of Memoital fighting alongside their northman brethern to repulse 'the Sladic threat'. The volunteer corp had grown to be a pain in the side of the Osladian army; armed and trained, the Memoitals were miles ahead of their Zellonian counterparts and whenever encountered would always cause immense casualties among the Osladian side. Yakovich, in a general report back to Oslograd in early December, wrote the following of the Memoitals.

"If the Zellonians are a culture of stubborn fools then the Memoitals are a culture of warriors. Never in my years as both a soldier and a general have I seen men such as these hardened northmen. With the rage of Tangary horse riders and the speed of the damn horses themselves this 'volunteer corp' is tearing through my men. I fear thousands more will fall before we can eradicate this nuisance holding us from Kreogen."

The question became, if the Memoitals moved south to attempt their own assault on the breakthrough, could it be held in earnest by the Osladians? And if so, how?

The council debated, this act was supposed to be public months ago but disagreement always arose at some time even during the finalization process. It was a bill that no one could quite agree on, threatening Itheraen industry in order to stave off debt. Sure, the government had sold land they could not colonize, but that money would not last forever, especially with the deficit the country had. Thus, ideas had arisen to the ‘Company Tax’ which allowed the government to tax businesses small or large on a portion of their profits. It was a controversial act, big businesses wanted nothing to do with it and neither would small businesses who barely made enough money to get by themselves. The act also faced cancellation when thoughts of it violating Itheraen rights came into the stand, forcing Alexi and his cabinet to amend it for the twenty-fifth time in a month.

However, the storm seemed to calm as the politicians seemed to have the same enthusiasm over the bill as the president, simply done with the arguments on what the papers say. Agreement came over them, a rare occurrence for such a bill that has caused such strife within the Itheraen government. Thusly, the bill eventually became finalized and released, incorporated into the Itheraen law and with an effective administration to back it. The finalization was a relief to all, life able to continue without much of a hitch, granted arguments over future acts would be inevitable for that was just how democracy worked, everyone had an opinion. Yet, the fledgling republic would continue to grow, with or without the consent of the bills the government passed.

The capital of zeel was attacked, our king nearly taken hostage or worse killed. Luckily our brave men guarding the capital were able to make quick work against the kalpian threat. Their men ended up surrendering as well as the capture of Brigadier General Bernhard Ewald Larenz. All men will be held as prisoners of war and General Larenz will be interrogated for information. In other news the city of Jovington was finally reclaimed by our forces pushing the kalpians off our land.


In order to raise money and morale for the war effort, Minister Norington plans to visit Jovington and Kenlth before returning to zeel. If you have some extra food, money or other services you can provide to the troops bring them down to the war rallies. You can do your part and save zellonian lives.


In darker news, an osladian offensive caused the death of over 6,000 zellonians and nearly broke past the lines and got into zellonia proper. Luckily our brave men were able to push them back and hold the line but some people doubt it’ll be for long.

It was just recently that the Tsar had heard of the atrocities committed by the Osladians in the lands of Zellonia. An act so deplorable, he struggled to even acknowledge their shared ancestry and culture. The crowd stared up upon his grand balcony, to which had been perfectly set up to give clear and precise speeches to the people below. A large crowd of around two thousand had gathered to hear the word of the Tsar, in a week likely well over twenty million would have heard, by the end of the month the entirety of the Tsardom itself. He audibly began to clear his throat to the public, before beginning to speak.

“It has become clear to me, that our Eastern brothers have become misguided and mislead into committing unbelievable and deplorable atrocities within the Kingdom of Zellonia. Such acts that go beyond the agreed upon rules of warfare, that the civilized nations of the world follow without question. Unfortunately, so enamored with blood and imperialism are the Slads of the West that they know not apparently the difference between a woman, a child and Zellonian soldier. These brave men defending their homeland do not deserve to have their loved ones butchered and burned and raped, and this Tsardom will not stand for it.

If our brothers to the East can not conduct war in the manner of a country from the Continent, then they shall be treated no better than the uncivilized tribes of Serranthia and the inward looking dynasties of Settumu. They relinquish the rights given upon the nations of the Continent through these vile acts and are no better than the uncivilized peoples slowly counting away the days until they finally experience the enlightenment brought to the Continent.”

”The infernal bombardment kept going and going, only having been there a day we had to entrench ourselves or die, a cruel reality we accepted in the face of danger. However, we held hope that we could make a breakthrough within the Karumi line, I heard talks of the preparations and the briefings. At least we would not have to wait long for orders, I know I want to end this as soon as possible, a war that was not our own. Maybe that will be the day I earn glory in the eyes of the republic, or the day I lie dead when we attempt to lift the siege. I pray that this plan goes off without a hitch, I don't think I can stomach watching a child get ripped to shreds by a field cannon round.

I knew what I was getting into when I signed up for this expedition, but to see innocence being taken before you is not a pleasant sight and to think that the Karumi may be shelling their own in here as well. At least I know one thing is for sure, we cannot allow another meter of land to fall to the Karumi menace or else we shall face the consequences of it all. Perhaps once the war is over I can see my wife and kids another, but I doubt I will see them for I signed up for a death wish, a consequence of allowing the Karumi menace to get so far into the Seronan lands. This makes me wish we had gotten here sooner, so that I did not need to see kids die in front of me as we got into the city! At least it instills a hate in my heart, a rage to destroy Karum.”

-Serlov Orion, 1900

It was not long after the first attempts at conducting a “hit and run tactic” along the southern Zellonian Line that General Leventy Gerasimov, a veteren of the Radenan-Kalpian war and experienced commander realized that such strategies would not work on so small of a front. It was then that he wrote back to Martyushev Borislav Andreevich, Appointed General of the Army he commented on a revised strategy alongside the I Memoital Corps.

Dear General Andreevich,

I am well aware of the effectiveness of hit-and-run tactics against Radenan enemies such as the Kalpians during times where troops are often times outnumbered or outmatched. However, it can not be stressed enough the necessity of such tactics to be implemented in regions or areas where the vastness of the land before the invading army is to much for them to properly or effectively protect. The battleground in Zellonia, calls for a different kind of warfare. One such battleground where every offensive counts, and that men can not flee so easily as they would in Radena.

As such, I’ve decided to use my own sense of intuition to begin a strong offensive against the Osladian troops alongside the I Memoital Corps. Men who have challenged the Osladian army for some time now. Trusting that the offensive will either break the Oslad line or cause a great deal of casualties.

Regards,
General Gerasimov of the Radenan Volunteer Army

The whole of Veletian Settumu was a flurry of military activity, the entire National Garrison and Flotilla redeploying across the whole of the colony, changing their patrol routes and redistributing their numbers. Every city street from Sund to Sandao was filled with armed men marching, but Sund seemed to be the centre of it all; a nexus of increased armed forces activity that any civilian could readily recognize. Something had happened, was happening, was about to happen, for there could be no other excuse for the organized chaos of continental soldiers hurrying to and fro, storming with authority through the crowds of the curious Kikitomi. Not one man of the National Garrison had the same job in the same place as he'd had the day before, the entire structure of Veletian Settumu's defenses altered unrecognizably. A fortified building in southern Sund that had once been an ammunition depot was now an officer's quarters, the regular deliveries of shells and bullets replaced with lighter cargo of old men in army suits; a seaside dock in St. Fereaux whose fishing boats had once used to ferry soldiers between islands was sold off to a local fisherman, boats and all—an under-performing tourism company ten kilometres away now serving those same formations. Any information that any foreign power had gleaned about anything in Veletian Settumu was now completely and utterly worthless, as if outdated by years.

Those who had the worst of the changes were the new arrivals: men of the legions of Violette proper who'd never been deployed outside the homeland found themselves in the colonies for the first time, swapping places with veterans of the National Garrison, who now found themselves back in Violette. Any soldier deemed to carry undo prejudice against the locals was no longer in the colony. For their replacements, the deathly humidity was almost as bad as not being able to understand a word a local had to say: though many Kikitomi of course spoke Veletian, and any sign on the street had to (at least) display a Veletian version of the same message, of equal size. The most frustrating part of the deployment shifts, though, more so than the hectic clamor of it all or the men being reassigned from one continent to another, was the complete lack of explanation given for the changes. There were rumors in some officer circles of a Kikitomi insurrection brewing that might have spurred the new assignments, but nothing confirmed. Not even high-ranking officers had been offered a reason for the changes, only told to ensure that not a single of their men was doing the same job in the same place as he had previously. It all created an atmosphere of quiet tension: everyone was sure something would start, but no one wanted to start anything.

Unbeknownst to locals and Gendarmerie alike were the purges going on against Veletian Settumu's miniscule Hironese minority. Young men from Hiron living on their own in rural areas or near military installations—especially new arrivals—were being killed in their homes by well-paid Kikitomi in plain clothes, anything that could possibly be coded intelligence on their persons destroyed, and their bodies taken outside to be feasted upon by local wildlife. Hironese families in the cities were relocated from one island to another, their personal belongings inspected first, looking for anything at all remotely suspicious. The only Hironese-language newspaper in all of Veletian Settumu, a local weekly in Sund, had been the victim of a tragic and officially accidental fire. Diplomatically, Violette's officials remained solely focused on the Hironese demands for Mr. Droulez's extradition. No mention at all was made in correspondence of Veletian Settumu, or the events that had transpired on February 14th. None would be, either, for the good of both countries. Violette understood itself to have averted a conflict, and hoped the Hironese would not try to incite another.

The 23th was at the front, they had been sent as to finally put up some stable support to the Osladian troops in the front, they were also expected to be last division to be sent to the war, as the people in the republic no longer showed enthusiasm for the war, as many families asked when their sons and brothers would return. Yet, no answer was given to them.

It was the job of the 23th to restore the enthusiasm and trust in the military of forces of Kalpia, not only for the Kalpian people but also to the rest of nations in the continent, general Gotthard's division was the best for this kind of job, because it the 23th was a division known for its high competitiveness greatly encouraged and sometimes enforced by Gotthard, who put to use the freedom of command that he enjoyed under the Kalpian military system.

If someone could restore the pride of the army it had to be Gotthard. They traveled the land of Oslad without much incident and never giving any reasons to think that the Kalpians were as lowly and weak as they thought they were. The Kalpians would maintain their discipline at all times like the soldiers they were.

The sole objective of Gotthard's division was to help the Osladian forces in the front. How he would achieve that it was up to him and he knew that reinforcements were limited to this endeavor, so he had thought and thought well about what his division would do.

A primary target for Gotthard was the Memoirals division, known as the sole division to achieve anything of note in the front during the time of the conflict. Basically, they were the pillar of the Zellonian army, if they have defeated it the rest of the Zellonian would start to crumble.

Also if they 23th managed to destroy them, they would have shown the Osladians that the Kalpians were still their superiors in the front. Knowing, that even if Memoials were the best of the Zellonian army, they were below still way below the standard of Kalpia. And as such, they were an easy target.

February 15th
Half way through the month, nearly 20,000 Osladians lie dead. The city of Kreogen is a mess of wrecked stone, concrete and ash. With orders to halt the offensive if casualties surpass 24,000, General Gregory Yakovich of Voskreyra Army Group North needed to decide whether to make the final push, or to halt and sit on the gains his army had made. The February Offensive had ground to a halt just outside of Kreogen, where the Zellonians entrenched positions had become especially problematic. In the South, 16,500 men--none of them Zellonians--had started a deliberate offensive of their own. Additionally, General Yakovich received orders from several of his field commanders that many of the men were near the breaking point. Kreogen was less than two and a half kilometers away.





February 16th

• The Tsardom of Radena successfully purchases fuel and ammunition from foreign markets for it's beleaguered navy. Shells and coal are sent to the Northern Coasts so that it's navy, mostly defunct and ramshackle, can at least be functional.
  - [Event: Tsardom of Radena receives +12% Navy Supply & Logistics.]

February 17th-20th

• In the south, the 10,000 Radenans and 6,500 men of the I Memoital Corp begin their offensive. Less than actual training of these soldiers and more the fact that each one of them has a rifle and is properly trained, the Osladians are slightly off put. The Radenans and Memoitals work autonomously, but their goals are the same. They race through the Kreogen forest, emerging from the belt line of trees and laying down heavy covering fire while advancing at break neck speed. A trio of M1899 Prager machine guns set up and manned by Osladians slows the advance, cutting men down like stalks of wheat. One Osladian gunner, so distraught by the carnage is pulled from his machine gun nest (a neat burrow of dirt with the gun nestled along the husk of a felled tree) and replaced by one of his comrades. By the morning of the 18th, the thinly defended Southern Line was on the verge of breaking. Memoital and Radenan soldiers lie dead en masse, but the cost to the Osladians--many of whom had been transferred North for the February Offensive-- was equally as costly.
• A platoon of Osladians along a neat lip of earth were caught unawares by an entire regiment of Radenans. They took no prisoners, slaughtering the half dozing Osladians in their very foxholes. "They're breaking through," a man shouted over and over. But it was on the road they saw the pristine uniforms of the Kalpians, their rifles clean of soot and dust. With a hole nearly a hundred yards across empty of man or machine gun, the Kalpians fell into line at their place at the front. This was not a purely defensive maneuver. Where the Kalpians won, they pushed. Where they lost, they relented, regrouped and attacked again.
  
  The Kalpian Republican Army here was at it's apex. While the Radenans were a rag tag bunch of improvisational soldiers at home in the cold and the Memoitals well trained but inexplicably outgunned and outnumbered, the average Kalpian performed heroically. Small maneuvers at the squad level left Radenans bewildered. Shootouts in the Krepina Forest left the Memoitals reeling, and falling back just after dusk.
  
  
  
  Kalpian Republican Army, 23rd Infantry Division. Photo taken in Xerotith, February 12th, 1900
  
  
  The Kalpian 23rd did not relinquish in the cold black of the night. While the Memoital's regrouped and the Radenans sang songs and ate, the Kalpian 1st and 2nd Brigade advanced in a sinister pinnacle movement. Muzzle flashes snapped to life. Kalpian soldiers moved in unison, paused, threw a grenade into a dugout and moved on. By the morning, 1,100 Memoitals had surrendered. 650 Radenans were dead. 24 Kalpians had died, 2 by friendly fire.
  
  
  Casualties [+]

  - I Memoital Corps: 3,100. 1,100 Captured.
  - Radenan Volunteer Corps: 4,750.
  - Kalpian Republic: 1,275.
  
  
  
  
  The Kalpian 23rd Arrives at the Front, 1900

February 21st

• Back in the Kalpian Republic, fearful that civil liberties may be increasing dissidence, strike two important civil rights acts from the parliament. This angers the Garmans as well as Parsians, the latter of whom rise up in Tarist in a day long riot, broken up only by the Department of Military Police.
  - [Event: Kalpian Republic loses -1 Relations with Garmans and -2 Relations Parsians.]

February 22nd

• The Dragon Emperor in the Imperium of Hiron delivers a speech to a crowd of 5,500 in Senryu, Hiron. ""My people, I come before you today to decry the foolhardy actions of the Veletian Empire! When before, I thought they would bring true justice to the Governor of Veletian Settumu, Droulez, they merely stripped him of his rank and assigned him to a civilian position! This is not true justice! This man oversaw the peddling our women, of Kikitomi women, and despite the Imperium's issues with the Kingdom of Meung, Meungese women, against their will! None of his subordinates received True Justice either! All of these men should've hung for their crimes against the Hironese People! This is an affront to all of us in Settumu, and I shall not stand for it! They think themselves to be so mighty that the persecution and denigration of our women is not a crime that requires the death penalty!? Well, today, I send word to the Veletian Empire: Allow Droulez and his accomplices to be tried and judged under Hironese law, or face severe repercussions! I give you my word as the Dragon Emperor, that will we have these sons of bitches brought to heel! To the Imperium!"
  - [Event: Imperium of Hiron and Empire of Violette suffer -1 Relations. The Imperium of Hiron receives +1 Stability.]