4 January, 1901
José Luciano Franco
Minister of Foreign Affairs

To President Reimund Braun,

I hope this telegram finds you well. It has come to this administration's attention that in the disparaging after effects of the Tyro-Itheraen War that future neutrality in the political sphere cannot be guaranteed. The Crowned Survian Republic has long maintained her neutrality and hopes that that continued neutrality can abide. It would in the interest of this administration and every one thereafter to pursue thus a Pact of Non-Aggression to exist between our nations from January of this year until January of 1906. In accordance with this, this political stipulation, if agreed upon, will extend also to our colonies in the Tendo Sea. May the One bless you and Kalpia both. Understandably, this agreement will come with it the singular acknowledgment of the sovereignty and ownership of both Kalpian West Maran and Survian South Maran within their respective levels of government.

Signed,

Itherae surrenders!

With the withdrawal of the lackluster Veletian support, the Congressional Committee has voted to surrender to the nation to the Tyrian power. As such, President Alexei Georgas had requested that peace negotiations got underway as soon as possible between the two warring factions. However, not much else was released to the public and nor would the congress release the president’s whereabouts for many hours before confirming that after the peace talks Alexei will sentence himself to a hanging, as per Itherae traditions where if a war is lost then the leader would normally commit suicide. He would say goodbye to his family, his children, his advisors, and his people before departing from Itherae to Tannersburg by train.

Additionally all soldiers along the border were recalled back to the homeland, with the demobilization of the military, this assured Itheraen surrender. They all knew that without Veletian support, the war was doomed to fail. What's worse is that all the lives of those Itheraen soldiers were all for naught, tails between legs and pride squandered. Now granted, the soldiers were all happy to be returning home to see their families, simply wanting to mourn for the loss of their brothers in arms.

As the new year came, the president with the rest of his ministers was drafting the new budget for the year 1901. Spending for that year up, after all, there were many things that were changed from the past's year budget. Here is an overall change of why spending changed for the different sections of the budget.

Infrastructure:

While Kalpia was one of the nations with the largest infrastructure there was still room for improvement. There were still plenty places in Kalpia without a connection to the railway system that considered "the veins of Kalpia" because of they were the major points of economic and industrial activity in the country. Thus the budget for infrastructure increased to allow for a small room of expansion for the year to come. This was because the maintenance of the such a large railroad network was quite high, but nothing that Kalpia couldn't cover with its budget.

Education:

It had been one of the promises of Reimund Braun to expand and improve the Kalpian Education system, because it was needed and because people felt that the school system was underfunded. After all, the children were the future of Kalpia and it was wise to invest in them, so later they could be productive members of society and pay taxes. Unlike the other countries which focus lied on keeping the poor ignorant so they could not rebel. Thus it was decided to double the budget for primary education and triple it in the case of secondary education. This was expected to produce great men in the next generations.

Army Research

Kalpia was and still is the mightiest military power in the world. But that position seemed to linger in the face of new military inventions, such as the Tyrian machine gun. The General Staff had also quite reminded the government that extra funding would be needed if they wanted to keep up with the developments both in military inventions and in on the strategical & tactical level. This was considered by Reimund Braun and his cabinet, and they agreed to increase the army budget for this purpose.

Security and the Department of Military Police

Security while walking on the street was something of a worry for the common rich man, who wanted to take walks without being molested or bothered by the inferior poor man and they had noticed that there a bit too few police men in the cities and villages, where they traveled to in their vacations or in their daily lives, and like the rich men they were they put political pressure by raising the issue to both the congress and the president. Who in turn decided to increase the budget of the police and in the meanwhile, also create a separate funding for the Department of Military Police. Who now had specific tasks they had to fulfill.







6 January, 1901
Reimund Braun
President of the Republic of Kalpia

To José Luciano Franco,

I hope this telegram finds you well. It has come to this administration's attention that in the disparaging after effects of the Tyro-Itheraen War that future neutrality in the political sphere cannot be guaranteed. The Crowned Survian Republic has long maintained her neutrality and hopes that that continued neutrality can abide. It would in the interest of this administration and every one thereafter to pursue thus a Pact of Non-Aggression to exist between our nations from January of this year until January of 1906. In accordance with this, this political stipulation, if agreed upon, will extend also to our colonies in the Tendo Sea. May the One bless you and Kalpia both. Understandably, this agreement will come with it the singular acknowledgment of the sovereignty and ownership of both Kalpian West Maran and Survian South Maran within their respective levels of government.

I can only share the sentiment that the Tyro-Itheraen war have brought certain unbalance to the political situation in the continent, but we admire that even the Survian nation seeks for neutrality. In matters of our colonies to the East, I have to agree that recognizing both of our administration will only help to maintain peace and prosperity for both our nations. Thus I happily sign this document that you sent me.

[X] Signed, Reimund Braun , President of the Republic of Kalpia

The morning hours had been long, cruel, and gruesome. Frightening temperatures had persisted throughout the month, catching most within the small town by surprise. Rations and blankets spread thin and outside aid from the capital had arrived two weeks too late. Most whom were susceptible to the fearsome blizzards that Dachne had faced, had long since perished nearly a week ago.

One of whom was Yegor’s mother, an elderly woman in her late seventies. She had lived through both him and his brother marching off into separate wars, her only daughter Katenka dying six months into childhood, and her only husband Leontiy collapsing dead three streets over near a small bar called the Chernyy Almaz, the doctors believing it to be a rare heart disease. Now it was her turn to be put to rest, a tired soul who only wished to be free of her memories. She had gone peacefully in her sleep just three days ago, and only now had the storm letup enough for her to receive a proper burial.

“For now we lay these unfortunate souls to rest, may they forever be with the ones whom they loved dearly in the afterlife. Now and always will we remember them for the things they had done, the people who they cared for, and the cherished memories that they bring. Let us all gather in silence.” All who had gathered begun to respectfully mourn. Soft whimpers could be heard throughout the crowd. Twelve people had perished this long and drawn out winter, many praying to god for it to soon be over. That his merciful and loving light grace the town of Dachne once more.

Yegor sat quietly. He had no wife, no child, no family to speak of. The winter putting to rest the last person whom he cared deeply for. Laid to rest in a hurriedly made grave, the tombstone marking nothing but her name. “Anya Stanislavovna” it read, the text already faded from the shoddy craftsmanship. His eyes sank into what had for the time being felt to be a pit of despair. The cruel reality had placed him lonelier than ever before.

Started in 1899, the Multi-Continental Railroad was the token dream of Tsar Pyotr II. Expected to traverse nearly 13,000 miles in total--from Glavnya to Tougata, the MCR was an engineering feat alleged to be one of the greatest in modern history. With nearly three years under its belt, the rail now stretched over 700 miles from the capital of Glavnya to Sloslia, and from there on to the sister city of Sloboda. Passing through the Dachne Marshes, another 280 miles of track would take it to the industrial hub of Dachne, and from there it was rough terrain. The Multi-Continental Railroad employed over 30,000 workers and 1,100 engineers in total.


Continental engineers in Kalpia and Oslad were uncertain if the track could be completed in any reasonable amount of time, given that the continued rising costs of the locomotive would make it's long time use tentative at best. The workers toiled on however, as on January 15th, 1901 the Glavnya Rail Company (GRC) purchased a charter for the rail line from Sloboda to Dachne, priming it for the laying off track beginning in February.


On January 7th, 1901, the Taran Author Janoris Lovewell published his book, The Center of the World, an analytic look at the Serene Empire and her place on the global stage. Copies sold into the thousands the first week. A pro-Taran perspective, it dealt alternatively with the growth and subtraction of what Lovewell referred to as the Center of the World, the Spotlight of Tara, and the space by which all other nations surrounded. With a Global Domestic Product of $84,000,000,000, the Serene Empire of Tara was the singular most formidable nation on the planet. She, argued Lovwell, came first. All others, second. The final chapters of the book detailed the Great Powers, of which he placed Tara at the fore. The other Great Powers: Violette, Radena, Tyria-Redania and Kalpia were measly, but owed an explanation for their subservience.

With the beginning of the Veletian Civil War, the Five Great Powers temporarily became the four, but not before Lovewell's book was published. In it, he had this to say:

• The Five Great Powers
  
  • The Serene Empire of Tara: The greatest nation in the world, without equal. With the largest navy, a vast colonial empire and financial investments in sixteen countries, Empress Liliana (The One Bless Her) had led Tara into an age of prosperity never before seen.
  • The Empire of Violette: Called the Le Petit Frére, the Little Brother. Violette has, since her defeat in 1791 in the Taro-Veletian Trade War, been condemned to playing second fiddle to the Taran Empire. While competitive, Violette has been marred by an inability to do what is absolutely necessary, having to compete with both Tara abroad and the Continental powers.
  • Radenan Tsardom: The newcomer to the bunch. The Tsardom benefits from an immense surplus of human bodies and resources, but it was the opinion of Lovewell that Radena would not long last as a Great Power.
  • Kalpian Republic: The largest potential enemy of the Taran Empire and the most industrious nation in the world. Kalpia's great Continental Army is held back by it's "idiotic leadership in the Heinstag."
  • Tyro-Redanian Empire: The decadent power. "One need only kick in the front door," Lovewell wrote "and the whole thing will come crashing down."

Knock, knock.

The eye shutter slid open just long enough for the beady eyes behind them to recognize who knocked. The door swung open and the two men entered, the door closing quietly behind them. This door in question was the third door on the left of the Persuant Avenue off Crown Plaza. The light drizzling rain kept only the most stubborn citizens on the street, and few wandering eyes remained aloof at such a dark hour. Inside was the back room to a small time café, the patrons long gone from the calming music and drinks. A lantern sat on the edge of the bar top, the shutter on it's kerosone lamp half pulled for fear of too much light seeping past the drawn curtains. The two men shed their heavy black jackets and hats then turned to the table where two other men--one in a thin button down and the other in a buttoned grey military jacket.

"Did anyone see you?"

"'Course not," one of the two men standing. "Hazel here rounded the building three times. There ain't no one out here. Hasn't been since the occupation." He wasn't wrong. The streets since the occupation had been less than full. There was no military curfew, there was no military presence at all, but things had changed. The sun burned a little less bright, it seemed.

"So Hazel, you and yer frien'--"

"Jack. Just Jack."

"So, you and Jack--your contacts good?"



"Radenan," Jack spat, pulling a chair from the table and plopping into the seat. Hazel dropped into the seat nexdt to him an fished a scroll from his pocket. Unfurling it, it was a map of the Norran States, albeit a bit dated. "He's out of Polnov."

"Military?" The man in the grey military jacket asked. The symbol on the side was ZRA--the Zellonian Royal Army, but his features made no mistake, he was Memoital.

Hazel shrugged. "Looks it, but the Radenan government has no official stance on Zellonia's annexation of the Commonwealth. If he is military, he'd never admit it. He's facilitating the exchange."

"How much?" The military man asked, leaning forward, shoulders hunched.

Hazel and Jack eyed one another. "Can't say."

"Can't say, or won't say?" The soldier asked, but Hazel and Jack just shrugged in unison.

"Gah'dammit," the man said, slamming a fist against the table. "We're on the same side!"

"Three thousand. It's three thousand per shipment."

"Up it to five thousand," the man said. For the first time Jack realized the emblem on the side of the man's jacket was not that of an enlisted man, he was an officer. "The Memoital Army may no longer exist, but it's soldiers do. We're moving up the time table of the operation. There are no Zellonian soldiers stationed on this island. The time to act is soon."


Thirteen days before the Republican Revolution in the Empire of Violette, the official proclamation of the founding of Cape Emeraude in Masilia was received in Confluence. With a population of only 51,000, the island colony seemed more of a Utopian getaway than an economic benefit to the Veletian Empire. It's governor, former captain of the Marine Nationale, Gerard Munot was a sadist and pragmatist. His family was settled in a massive mansion on the island's Northern coast while plantations were established. When the Republican Revolution arrived, Cape Emeraude would pledge allegiance to Empress Tsirine.




Nearly four hundred kilometers of rail in the Kalpian Republic finished, called the Tarist Hub. Out of Tarist, four different rails were established. The most industrialized nation in the country, Kalpia itself maintained a high standard of understanding the necessity of being able to move goods around the country at a moment's notice. The inclusion of local rail networks however forced a static decline in the demand for automobiles, which was already at a record low due to government interference in the blossoming automobile market.

Lacking a technological base at first, the Kalpians imported their engineering and hardware from Tara, but quickly learned the skills needed to operate and expand the railways. In many cities, the new railway shops were the centres of technological awareness and training, so that by 1850, Kalpia was self-sufficient in meeting the demands of railroad construction, and the railways were a major impetus for the growth of the new steel industry. However, Kalpian unification in 1856 stimulated consolidation, nationalization into state-owned companies, and further rapid growth. Unlike the situation in Violette, the goal was support of industrialization, and so heavy lines crisscrossed the Voreni Lowlands and other industrial districts, and provided good connections to the major ports of Karp and Liubeth. By 1890, Kalpia had 9,400 locomotives pulling 43,000 passengers and 30,000 tons of freight, and forged ahead of Oslad. The total length of Kalpia railroad tracks expanded from 21,000 kilometers in 1871 to 45,000 kilometres by 1900, establishing the largest rail network in the world, and effectively surpassing the 32,000 kilometers of rail that connected Oslad in the same year.


Industrialisation progressed dynamically in Kalpia and Kalpian manufacturers began to capture domestic markets from Taran imports, and also to compete with Taran industry abroad, particularly in Violette. The Kalpian textile and metal industries had by 1890 surpassed those of Tara in organisation and technical efficiency and superseded Tara manufacturers in the domestic market. Kalpia became the dominant economic power on the continent and was the second largest exporting nation after Tara.

Technological progress during Kalpian industrialization occurred in three waves: the railway wave (1877–86), the dye wave (1887–96) and the chemical wave (1897–1900). Since Kalpia industrialized later than Tara, it was able to model its factories after those of Tara, thus making more efficient use of its capital and avoiding legacy methods in its leap to the envelope of technology. Kalpia invested more heavily than the Tara in research, especially in chemistry, motors and electricity. Kalpia's dominance in physics and chemistry was such that one-third of all Marnish Science Prizes went to Kalpian inventors and researchers.

The Kalpian trade system (known as Monzerne), being significantly concentrated, was able to make more efficient use of capital. Kalpia was not weighted down with an expensive worldwide empire that needed defense. By 1900, the Kalpian chemical industry dominated the world market for synthetic dyes. The three major firms TASF, Malchern and Heinstedt produced several hundred different dyes, along with the five smaller firms. In 1901, these eight firms produced almost 90% of the world supply of dyestuffs and sold about 80% of their production abroad. The three major firms had also integrated upstream into the production of essential raw materials and they began to expand into other areas of chemistry such as pharmaceuticals, photographic film, agricultural chemicals and electrochemicals. Top-level decision-making was in the hands of professional salaried managers; leading Chandler to call the Kalpia dye companies "the world's first truly managerial industrial enterprises". There were many spinoffs from research—such as the pharmaceutical industry, which emerged from chemical research.


Without any combat experience or engineering breakthroughs, improving the Taizen-class seemed optimistically impossible. The design of the Sakura class was a marginally modified and improved version of the Majestic-class battleship of the Zellonian Royal Navy. They had the same armament and similar machinery as the Taizen class which was intended to allow them to work together as a homogeneous group. The Sakura-class ship had an overall length of 412 feet, a beam of 75.5–76.75 feet, and a normal draught of 26.25–26.5 feet. It would displace 17,100–17,500 long tons (15,090–15,240 t) at normal load. The hull had a double bottom and was subdivided into 261 watertight compartments. The crew numbered about 741 officers and enlisted men.

The ships were powered by two Taran built G.L.T. vertical triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one propeller, using steam generated by 25 Morris boilers. The engines were rated at 14,500 indicated horsepower, using forced draught, and designed to reach a top speed of 12 knots. The Sakura-class could ideally reach a top speed of 16.027 knots (35.238 km/h; 21.896 mph) using 14,667 indicated horsepower (10,937 kW). The ships carried a maximum of 2,000 tonnes of coal which allowed them to steam for 5,650 nautical miles at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

The main battery of the Sakura class consisted of the same four Taran built LT-1 40-calibre eleven-inch guns as used in the Taran Leviathan-class. They were mounted in twin-gun barbettes fore and aft of the superstructure that had armoured hoods to protect the guns and were usually called gun turrets. The hydraulically powered mountings could be loaded at all angles of traverse while the guns were loaded at a fixed angle of +13.5°. They fired 850-pound (386 kg) projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 2,300 ft/s.


Secondary armament of the Sakura class consisted of twenty 40-calibre Type 41 six-inch quick-firing guns mounted in casemates. Eight of these guns were positioned on the main deck on the side of the ship's hull and the other six guns were placed in the superstructure. They fired 100-pound (45 kg) shells at a muzzle velocity of 2,300 ft/s. Protection against torpedo boat attacks was provided by twenty HG 12-pounder guns. The 12-pounders fired 3-inch, 12.5-pound projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 2,359 ft/s.

The waterline main belt of the Sakura-class vessels consisted of Tsirine armour 8 feet high, 3 feet 7 inches of which was above the waterline at normal load, and had a maximum thickness of 9 inches (229 mm) for the middle 220 feet (67 m) of the ship. It was only 4 inches (102 mm) inches thick at the ends of the ship and was surmounted by a six-inch strake of armor that ran between the barbettes for 220 feet. The barbettes were 14 inches (356 mm) thick, but reduced to 10 inches (254 mm) at the level of the lower deck. The armour of the barbette hoods had a maximum thickness of 10 inches (254 mm) while their roofs were three inches thick. Diagonal bulkheads 12–14 inches (305–356 mm) thick connected the barbettes to the side armor, but the bulkheads were only six inches thick at the lower deck level. The casemates protecting the secondary armament were also six inches thick. The flat portion of the deck armor was 2.5 inches (64 mm) thick and four inches thick where it sloped down to the bottom of the armor belt. This significantly improved the ships' protection as any shell that penetrated their vertical armor also had to penetrate the sloping deck before it could reach the machinery compartments or magazines. Outside the central armored citadel, the sloped deck had a thickness of 2 inches (51 mm). The forward conning tower was protected by 14 inches of armour, but the aft conning tower only had three inches of armor.


In 1855 J.C. Godeffroy & Sohn expanded its trading business into the Settumu following negotiations by August Hansherr, Godeffroy’s agent in Tarist. He sailed out to the Maran Islands, which were then known as the Felinn Islands. During the second half of the 19th century Kalpia influence in Mara expanded with large scale plantation operations being introduced for coconut, cacao and hevea rubber cultivation, especially on the island of Nuro where Kalpian firms monopolized copra and cocoa bean processing.

The trading operations of J.C. Godeffroy & Sohn extended to other islands in the Maran Chain. In 1865 a trading captain acting on behalf of J.C. Godeffroy & Sohn obtained a 25-year lease to the eastern islet of Niuoku of Setku Atoll. J. C. Godeffroy und Sohn was in 1879 taken over by Handels-und Plantagen-Gesellschaft der Südsee-Inseln zu Hamburg (DHPG). Competition in the trading operations in the West Marans came from Ruge, Hedemann & Co, established in 1875, which was succeeded by H. M. Ruge and Company until that firm failed in about 1887.

Tensions caused in part by the conflicting interests of the Kalpian traders and plantation owners and Taran business enterprises and Hironese business interests led to the first Maran Civil War. The war was fought roughly between 1889 and 1891, primarily between Marans though the Kalpians military intervened on several occasions. The Veletians and the Tara opposed the Kalpia activity which led to a confrontation in Mareneik Harbor in 1897.


During the colonial years new companies were formed to greatly expand agricultural activities which in turn increased tax revenues for public works that further stimulated economic growth; “... over all, the period of Kalpian rule was the most progressive, economically, that the country has experienced.” J. C. Godeffroy, as the leading trading and plantation company in the Marans, maintained communications among its various subdivisions and branches and the home base at Tarist with its own fleet of ships.

In 1900, the remainder of the West Marans were claimed although only the coastal regions were event remotely habitable. The completion of the island chain was finished with the Kalpo-Survian Non-Aggression Pact, with each government recognizing the sovereignty of it's own respective colonial islands.


At the end of January, the construction of four basic line factories began in Senryu, Furuu, Tomamae and Yoichi began. The mass industrialization of the Home Islands would hopefully bring new prosperity, jobs and inventions to the Settumese power. These factories would be unavailable until the summer of 1901 and their presence would be the first towering structures in the sleepy fishing village of Tomamae and Yoichi.


Many industries in Hiron were performed by skilled craftsmen (and women) who would soon see their jobs overtaken by simple Continental machines. Those centuries old crafts people turned their noses up at the idea of working in a factory, but local mayors and governors reiterated that the factory was the future, and that avoiding it's coming would be spitting in the face of the Emperor himself. These four factories, completed in June, would reduce unemployment by nearly two percent as well as increasing wages of the poor by a considerable amount.




The fate of Suno Izirio and Takana Takano was revealed on January 31st, 1901 when the Xiang warlords released to the factional press in Du Nam that "enemies of the state abroad had been destroyed." The Xiang, still riding a wave of victory after defeating the Grand Kingdom of Meung and sending them reeling back into Meung, took a page out of their predecessors book by lining the soldiers up in a field--dressed as peasants--and cutting their heads clean off.




On January 29th, on a rainy day in Maneira, the Maneira Grand Prix started. While Parnand was a successful automotive manufacturer, only Wincenty Co was in the market for a sporting car, the Yenson 31 HP. Fourteen drivers from as far west as Violette and as fast east as Dachne, Radena took to a three and a half mile long course for a ten lap race. The Maneira Grand Prix was a rowdy event even in the drizzling rain. It was the Itheraen Driver Grecias Corintas who won a hard won victory, just barely beating the Osladian driver and engineer Gregory Yorkan.



- [Itheraen Kingdom gains +2% Demand to Automobiles.]


While Eisenstadt had been heavily damaged during it's invasion only months only, a Redanian inventor named Pásztor Mihály--a soldier of the 44th Imperial Landswehr at the battle--had finished his prototype Mihály Device. A number of wireless electrical signaling schemes based on the (sometimes erroneous) idea that electric currents could be conducted long range through water, ground, and air were investigated for telegraphy before practical radio systems became available, but it was Mihály who perfected it.

The original telegraph used two wires between two stations to form a complete electrical circuit or "loop." In 1854, however, Carl August von Durritch of Tarich, Kalpia, found that by connecting one leg of the apparatus at each station to metal plates buried in the ground, he could eliminate one wire and use a single wire for telegraphic communication. This led to speculation that it might be possible to eliminate both wires and therefore transmit telegraph signals through the ground without any wires connecting the stations. Other attempts were made to send the electric current through bodies of water, in order to span rivers, for example.

Taran Henry Williams (1871) and Donovan Morris (1872) developed an electrical conduction systems based on the erroneous belief that there was an electrified atmospheric stratum accessible at low altitude. They thought atmosphere current, connected with a return path using "Earth currents"' would allow for wireless telegraphy as well as supply power for the telegraph, doing away with artificial batteries. A more practical demonstration of wireless transmission via conduction came in Janos Fehrich's 1879 magneto electric telephone that used ground conduction to transmit over a distance of a quarter of a mile.



- [Tyro-Redanian Empire receives Wireless Telegraphy Technology. See Dossier for use.]

Mihály, who had tested the design several times in the previous year with merchant ships whom he had installed his transistor device, finalized his success by sending and receiving a signal nearly eight kilometers north along the Veletian coast to the SS Wanzer.


The small island of New Zellonia in the Mahjab Sea had been given a promising subsidy of nearly $10,000,000. This facilitated the basic operation of and expansion of an administration building, a port and working harbor as well as a half dozen basic services on the island. The money however, facilitated by governor Albert Cooling, quickly ran out. On January 16th, Cooling sent a letter to King James Conrad, considering the Kingdom of Zellonia did not (for whatever reason) possess a colonial or foreign office. It said the following: "We shan't last the year. The expenses in running and administering nearly 30,000 unruly and wholly ruinous natives has run our allotment dry. If by the summer we receive no additional funding, I believe New Zellonia will no longer exist."


The implementation of a curfew seemed to successfully curtail further retribution between Radenan and Meung citizens. The increased funding of the local constabularies allowed for them to temporarily expand their force and cover larger areas. With the streets emptied when the sun went down, local law enforcement found themselves much more at ease. The situation it seemed, at least for now, had quieted considerably.



Electric trams were first experimentally installed in Sloboda, Radena, invented and tested by Carl Garovich as early as 1880. These trams, like virtually all others, used either a trolley pole or a pantograph, to feed power from electric wires strung above the tram route. Nevertheless, there were early experiments with battery-powered trams but these appear to have all been unsuccessful. The KR-01 tram, invented by Kalpian design Kirth Lantoway in 1899 was finally granted his 1900 patent and exclusive rights to begin operations in Liubeth, Kalpia.



On January 25th, the Lantoway Tram Corporation began operations in Liubeth with nearly thirty electric trams. These were a viable alternative to the trains--which could hop town to town, or horse based carriages which were modestly expensive by comparison. The tram was an invention that skimmed just below the radar but would prove to be wildly successful. With the ease of getting around, the Lantoway Tram Corporation (LTC) proved in the first month that people--now about to move around the city with less difficulty--were, if nothing else, a tad bit happier.

- [Liubeth, Kalpia receives Tram Network (+1% Approval, -1% Unemployment).]


With the Republican Revolution in the now fractured Empire of Violette, the Tyro-Itheraen War turned entirely to the Itheraen Front.

The Veletian Republic

Alexis Dubois(born the 5th of May 1865) He was a son of a middle class government bureaucrat in the port city of Labelle. He father mostly handled import duties down at the port ensuring the nations coffers had a continued stream of income from the steady flow of goods coming to and fro in Labelle. Dubois father was by no means a very rich man but he was able to send his son to school and eventually to higher education. Alexis Dubois was accepted into the University of Labelle in 1885 it was there that his interest in the history of Violette and it's previous flirtation with Republicanism peaked his interest. Those formative years at the University of Labelle lead him to devote his life to getting a seat in the People's Assembly. As he would say, "The People's Assembly was the last line of defense against tyranny in Violette without a healthy assembly there is nothing to stop despotism in the Empire." He got his wish in 1894 but not without a fight. He was called all sorts of pejoratives for being a detractor of the monarchy unpatriotic, traitor, and terrorist to name a few. The controversy was enough to nearly cost him his seat in the People's Assembly. Republicanism was turning into dirty word to the Monarchy as conservative forces began to eat away at the People's Assembly's powers.

Dubois had his seat until August 10th 1899 when Queen Victoria chose to betray Liberty and decree that Republican politicians would not be welcome any longer in the People's Assembly. Republicanism was being branded as unpatriotic and antithetical to being a Veletian. Dubois however knew better he knew that Liberty was the heart of Violette the monarchy would soon have to know that as well. This was the Catalyst to Dubois's actions the return of creeping despotism with Empress Victoria effectively turning the People's Assembly into her personal rubber stamp she betrayed the spirit of Violette.

"The People's Assembly was never intended to be free from controversy and above all it was never intended to be free of opposition to the Head of State. The Empress's actions are not only unpatriotic as she has branded our opposition but they are also a betrayal of the Veletian people who deep down I know yearn for freedom."-Alexis Dubois on his expulsion from the People's Assembly Aug. 10th 1899

Ten days later on August 20th 1899 Empress Victoria died the turn of events made Dubois hopeful that her successor Empress Tsirine would follow previous administrations and choose to allow the political rights of the People's Assembly to continue. In practice however Tsirine did not revert the declaration of Empress Victoria and Alexis Dubois was not going to wait for someone else to show the Empress the error of her ways.

Mouvement républicain et citoyen:Alexis didn't dally after being expelled from the People's Assembly he was quick to form the Mouvement républicain et citoyen(Citizens and Republican Movement). His initial wish was the have the People's Assembly be restored to it's former state before the 1899 removal of Republican politicians but each passing day showed him that the Monarchy now headed by Empress Tsirine was unwilling to support a role back of it’s reactionary reforms. Not only this but they would less than a year later mobilize the nation for war on August 14th 1900. The Mouvement républicain et citoyen soon created Voix de la Révolution(Voice of the Revolution) a small Newspaper so far illegally distributed to voice opposition to the Monarchy in Violette. The main leader of the paper was Gerard Calliou another former Republican Assembly member and colleague of Alexis he had experience in political News Papers before the ban on Republican Movements but it would be a whole new ball game to run an underground printing company.

January 1901: Gerard Calliou has begun printing a record number copies of Voix de la Révolution and distributing them throughout his base of operations in Labelle. He is working on having a network of distribution by the end of the week that will get contraband papers to major cities to distribute in hopes of generating more public awareness of their fight for Democratic rights in Violette and the end of the despotic monarchy.

"The People's Assembly must be free and openly elected by the Veletian people. No compromise should be made the Monarchs have shown they are willing to trample on the rights of the people so I ask you, Are you willing to just accept such a fate or will you rally to take back our nation? We are strong for we the people make up the nation nothing can stop us except our own self doubt and fear which is what the despots thrive upon. Do not let them bully you into accepting their superiority the Empress is but a women no different than your fellow man nothing but society gives her power. If we can rally the people we can create a free Veletian Republic that will prosper for all future generations to see." Alexis Dubois January 5th 1901 meeting of the Mouvement républicain et citoyen

Alexis Dubois, Gerard Callio, and many others are taking up the fight to support Democratic and Republican idea's in Violette it maybe a long battle but they are ready to fight until they can no longer to rekindle the flame of liberty in Violette. The fight for Liberty is on.

It had been a very abnormal day, a few weeks ago, with the Tyrian-Itheraen war stalling for winter and the Veletian dogs retreating with their tails between their legs. Yet, that was not what made that day strange, the fourth day of the new year, it was when members of the esteemed Emperor-King’s court had knocked on the door of her father’s estate, ordering the summons of an “Athena Koilla,” her name. All of it had been so mind boggling that she could hardly remember having tea with them, yet she did for when they had told her that she was to be crowned queen of Itherae.

Apparently she was the last nobility of the old Itheraen monarchies after the unification wars, all the other families having disappeared from losing it all while her family simply watched as their lands were inherited by the Tyro-Redanian Empire. Even stranger, that the men who had come to fetch her included the son of the King-Emperor himself, Magnus von Wolfram, who she was immediately betrothed to as to ensure Tyrian support for her new throne. Funnily, there was no choice in the matter but to go along with it all, rejecting an offer to be a queen would be ridiculous, so ridiculous her father might have fallen dead in his chair from grief. Unfortunately, she was never a fan of the formal garments that she would be put in on her way from the estate to Markenburg, a short hour ride by carriage.

Athena herself got to meet Adalar von Wolfram as well as Alexei Georgas president of the former Itheraen Republic. There they explained the situation of the peace treaty, Itherae having to pay for the destruction as well as adhere to the Ultimatum that had been sent to the Georgas Administration months ago. Immediately, she had looked over the rest of the terms, calculating as well as to know what in the blood-soaked hell she was going to be signing. Granted, she had the option to simply not sign the parchment, but that would run the risk of the war continuing and more people simply dying over a war that meant nothing in the grand scope of the world. However, she did sign it, and so began her life as queen of Itherae and no longer a noble girl who would sit at home and await to be married off to some suitor who came came knocking at the door.

The ride to Itherae however was dreadful, having to ride to Dio and see the war torn land that was the border, finding droves of corpses that were slowly being loaded up and seeing Tyrian troops riding from Ficardo. Luckily that was only the terrible part of the trip, confiding within her fiancé a few short times, asking what might be expected from her as a queen since she had little experience in administration. Yet, she couldn't help but feel an excitement rising within her gut, such a sudden change within her life was certain to be a cause of it. What awaited her for when she arrived? What would she do? What did the future hold? None of those questions, she could answer.

It was already the next day when she had reached the capital, the sun rising and the early hustle and bustle of getting to work engulfed the city. However, a large number of people had also gathered at the train station, not to travel, but to catch a glimpse at their new ruler, the person that Wolfram had installed. With a hiss, the train the stopped after rumbling into the station. The door opened and the first person out was Alexei Georgas, stopping only to give a solemn look to the crowd before walking through it. The people allowed the man to pass through, silence following him all the way until he had left the building. Then, she walked out, Athena Koilla with six guards coming to flank her sides.

She watched as the crowd conversed with itself, then she was ushered forward, officials not wanting to waste any time on getting the new queen situated. Then she heard a shout from the audience, “What of our freedom of the vote!” One statement causing a tide of differing views to argue amongst one another, luckily she was out before she could see whatever came next. A carriage riding her to the capitol building where the Itheraen Congressional Committee, or rather to be renamed to the ‘Majesty’s Royal Council’ within the following month, awaited her arrival, and when she did, they investigated her, asked her trivial questions and wrote things down. Furthermore, it was announced to the public on January 20th, 1900 that the people would be able to vote to elect candidates into the Majesty's Royal Council every four years and that the first election would take place on June 2nd.

Soon they produced a paper, a paper that proved her legality as an Itheraen citizen and thus permitting her to rule over Itherae. While it did not seem to matter to her, it would be useful for the public if they questioned her legitimacy as a true citizen of the nation. The rest of the month would her being taught proper ethics in Itherae, all of which she caught onto quickly due to being raised as an Itheraen by her father, as well as the laws, which seemed to favor the rich with no laws on worker safety being addressed nor any laws to stop companies from paying off council members to turn a blind eye to the neglect they showed their workers.



Thus, come February 2nd, Queen Athena passed a her first law, the Worker Safety Regulation Law. This law was designed with the obvious intent to keep the workers in safe working conditions and to have the utmost precaution when it came to workplace injuries. Such it went as follows; “should a worker be injured at his or her workplace due to environmental hazards that could have been avoided, said company will pay any medical bill for that worker. Additionally, a monthly regulation check will be sent to ensure that the workplace environment is safe for workers. This law shall primarily affect factories and manufacturers. Failure to follow protocol and factories are deemed hazardous and unfit for working operations, the government has every legal right to order the closing of the factory until it is within compliance of the law.”

While the law is going through the legislation to be made official, factory owners were given a 30-day period where the safety regulations were detailed and outlined. Furthermore the date of which inspection would be given at the top the notice, in red ink.

A Grave Offense

Emperor Ryugo Shuu violently threw the sheet of paper informing him of the deaths of the Hironese diplomats onto the table in front of him. Fumes could practically be seen coming from his mouth, the Imperial Ministers audibly gulping. Rarely was the Emperor ever truly angered beyond theatrics meant to sway public opinion, but this time was different as the man growled, "Those goddamned savage pieces of shit. They killed some of our best men. Those men served the Imperium for years, and now they're dead because I sent them there. I should've known better than to think the Xiang could understand anything other than force. If force is what they want, force is what they will get. Scribe, I have some orders for the Hidden Arm." Ryugo glared at the scribe, whom furiously began to write down every word the Emperor spoke.

A day later, after the Arm had begun to move into action, the Emperor came before the people to give an announcement to those assembled in front of the Palace, "Yesterday, my people, we received word that the primitive and savage Xiang, particularly the warlord of Du Nam, executed a series of Imperial diplomats and their escorts. I'm sure the news has already reached you by now of this incredibly grave offense. This grave offense, however, will be remembered in the future as the beginning of the end of Du Nam in particular. This grave offense is in actuality, a grave mistake!

"The Imperium will not sit lightly while the treacherous Du Nam sit upon their throne of corpses, adding the bodies of our own people to them. They may be across the sea, but the Imperium makes no mistake in asserting that we will sail across the sea and bring them to heel soon enough. The warlords shall be captured, tortured, drug through the streets behind Imperial horses, subject to beatings by anyone interested in doing so, and then summarily fed, alive, to ravenous hounds.

"Why will the Imperium do this, you may ask? It is because the warlords understand nothing but force and killing. If they wish to kill our diplomats, the Imperium shall inflict upon them pain far greater than anything the Du Namese can begin to do to the Imperium. They shall be made to pay dearly for their grave mistake. The Imperium will, in the coming months, exact an amount of unrelenting force upon these beastmen the likes of which the world has never seen before. Thank you. And may our lost brothers be swiftly resurrected back into the Imperium to rejoin us. For the Imperium!"

Clandestine Agitation

It was an oft-overlooked fact that the press of the Imperium was controlled almost entirely by the government, either directly or indirectly, as it was in most other nations of the world. It was this very press that had placed a speaker in the town of Furuu, one who held up the newest publication relating the deaths of the Imperial diplomats in Du Nam and the Emperor's rousing speech. That speaker yelled to the assembled group of mostly poor civilians, "The Xiang have killed our peaceful diplomats that sought only to help them against the Meung Menace, the Imperium learned on January 21st. They were solemnly beheaded as they knelt in a field, giving their lives for the Imperium despite having never expected to shed blood."

The speaker then recited the words of the Emperor's speech, yet when he finished, the crowd was mostly unaffected despite the sense of tension in the air. It was clear that war was approaching, a war in response to the offenses of Du Nam and likely the rest of the Warlords as well. But no one seemed to want to take that first step into accepting it.

Until a man thrust his closed fist into the air, shouting something. He repeated the motion two more times, but soon, five men had joined him. Then twenty. Fifty. A hundred. Women and children along with the men were now shouting it, "Blood for Blood." No one noticed the man who started the chant was just passing through town.

A Quiet Night at Sea

A rickety old wooden fishing boat rolled to and fro on the gentle waves of the night, approaching the city of Mui Ne. While the warlords were vicious, they were far from observant and lacked the incredible depth of skill that the Hidden Arm had, a fact that would be their undoing as an operative clothed in fisherman's garb chewed some herbal leaves. Joining him on the ship were a series of Xiang fishermen, the people oppressed by the warlords being no friend to those in power.

The boat had made the fairly short journey offshore to the infiltration site, plucking the operative off the top of a surfaced submarine that quietly descended once more and headed back towards the Imperial Islands. The fishermen took care not to look the operative directly in the eye, nor to comment on the healed bullet wound in his leg, a wound they had no idea was sustained in Veletian Settumu.

Hours later, the boat docked a few miles south of Mui Ne, the operative stepping off, cracking his neck, and disappearing into the night before muttering to himself, "Let's not fuck this one up. More careful this time..."

Preparations for War

Matsuo Shirobi assembled with the his group of trainee Marines around their drill instructor, the future Marines sitting on the grass while the instructor spoke to them, "Men, your training finishes next month. I am incredibly proud of how far all of you have come, and how far you will go as Marines. As the first batch of Marines to finish training, I have some very important news to tell you.

"You will also, almost certainly, be the first Marines to hit the beaches of a foreign enemy as well." At this sentence, there was great series of laughter and cheers, the soon-to-be Marines aching to get out and tear apart the enemy. The instructor ignored this, "Perhaps you've already heard whispers of growing discontent within the Imperium and particularly from the Emperor about the heinous murders of our diplomats. Well, the Imperium will not stand by and let this offense pass. The military will shortly be used to bring vengeance to those savage pieces of shit. The Marines, the Army, and the Navy shall strike our enemies like lightning bolts. They shall know retribution unlike any other they've faced before, and the Warlords will learn to fear the Imperium as they should.

"I expect all of you to train twice as hard in this coming month! We're going to be having a special emphasis on fighting in the Xiang terrains as well, as well as amphibious landings and further marksmanship practice! Now get off your lazy asses and get back in formation!" When the instructor finished shouting, the men burst to their feet and lined up in their elements, listening carefully to the marching orders belted out by their leader.

Matsuo Shirobi's face showed no emotion whatsoever on it as he marched, but deep down inside, he was smiling like a mad lion ready to pounce.

Factory Matters

Ishikari #1 received orders from the Imperium to alter production from Field Guns to Rifle Ammunition, yet another sign that the Imperium was gearing up to enter war.

It was a rain soaked day that Prince Fredrick was crowned Emperor. The sudden death of Empress Lillana, even as Fredrick arrived nearly three weeks later had left its imprint. A newspaperman would later say in an editoral that even the skies wept for the passing of the Empire's great Queen. Yet for Emperor Fredrick, moreso than the rain, it remained the most nerve racking day of his life.
Two squadrons of cavalry in all their shining heraldry marched down through the streets. Behind them came the car carrying the Prince and soon to be Emperor. He was followed by hundreds of soldiers, sailors, and marines. A band played and despite the atmosphere the people had come out in their thousands to if not cheer then stare curiously at their new ruler. To the populace, Fredrick was mostly an unknown figure. His exile to Settumu had ensured that he had been kept well out of the public eye.

The Cathedral of Saint John towered above him. Angels and gargoyles acting as their own sort of grotesque honor guard stared down at him with hard marble eyes. For a moment, the stairs to the cathedral might have been a mountain, impossible to climb. The robes of state suddenly felt heavy and his chest seized. Gritting his teeth, the Prince mounted the stairs. An Imperial Guardsman flanked him at every step, the great doors of the cathedral swinging open to reveal a packed hall. Some of them old friends, some enemies, and all in love with the sheer spectacle that the crown represented. The Abbot waited, in his hands, the Crown of Tara....and on the dais... the throne that Fredrick would occupy as one of the world's most powerful monarchs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
P.M. Riddick Pushes for Military Reforms:
Concerned by the crisis unfolding on the continent and the political turmoil in Violette, Prime Minister Riddick is expected to propose a budget increase of the army of four million pounds. The increased budget is expected to cover the costs of expanding Tara's pool of reservists from 137,000 to 200,000 men. With the active military expected to be expanded by an additional 50,000 soldiers. The bill is expected to be debated before Parliament and would be paid out of existing budget surpluses. The Prime Minister has stated his aims to keep the tax rate the same for 1901 for all brackets of income.

Rigour Conference:
In an effort to set aside mounting tensions over the political realities of the colonization of Serranthia, Emperor Fredrick has called for an international conference. The Great Powers of the Continent are expected to be invited to the event and it will serve as the Emperor's first major foreign policy initiative. The Conference was spearheaded by Prime Minister Riddick and has received support from the Conservative base in Parliament.

With the invitation from the Empire of Tara, King James was pleased and while he had wish to have gone, due to the current political climate at home he choose to remain here and help rebuild the country. Yet in a send off for the Foreign Minister Charles Alexzander the king gave a speech.

“My fellow Norrans, it has come to my attention there are those within parliament that wish to see the balance in this country destroyed. For years, the power in Zellonia has always resided within the monarchy and to attest to this, I present the following claims in only 2 years we annexed our fellow Norrans in memoital and opened them with open arms giving many of them seats in my new found advisory board. Furthermore, we have been sent an invitation to meet with other great powers to discuss our colonies in Settemau. Finally I will make this pledge to you all, those damned Olsadians that butchered our cities will not be forgotten, there will come a time for our sweet, sweet revenge yet until that time we must wait. Now join me in wishing Charles Alexzander a safe trip to Tara.” The applauds around him soared yet he knew there was much happening in the background. That would have to be solved.

February 8th

• In Glavnya, the Radenan Foreign Ministry received the Meung ambassador and was given the Peyung Request. The Meung ambassador, at the behest of Grand Prinze Yezhuan, requests that any Meung citizens in Radenan Far Eastern territories be given the opportunity to move back into Meung if they so please. This accounted for nearly 5,000,000 Radenan citizens. Given the recent sale of Wenshou to Radena, the Meung ambassador made this as a "move of good faith for Meung-Radenan relations." In exchange, the Grand Kingdom of Meung would sign a Non-Aggression Pact lasting 5 years.
  
  
  Peyung Request [+]

  - Accept the Peyung Request: Given that the Meung wish to see former citizens of theirs returned, we see nothing wrong with those who wish to return to their homeland to return. It is, after all, their right.
  * Non-Aggression Pact between Radenan Tsardom and Grand Kingdom of Meung lasting to 1906.
  * Radena loses between 850,000 and 5,000,000 population to Meung.
  
  - Refuse the Peyung Request: Meung will not steal rightful citizens of the Tsardom.
  * Relations between the Grand Kingdom of Meung and Radenan Tsardom become Tense.

February 9th

• The Hironese battleship Aiyuu finishes its construction, which had summarily been delayed a month. The Aiyuu is the sixth ship of the Taizen-class battleships. With the completion of the Aiyuu, the Imperium now has the second largest navy in the world.

February 10th

• Invitations to the Rigour Conference are received and expected to begin on February 15th in earnest. Zellonia, as a special guest, hopes to prove it's worth on the international stage less than a year after the end of the Zello-Osladian War.

February 11th

• Excavating the ruins of the Machaemenid Empire acropolis, at the city of the ancient city of Salum in Madasta, Tyrian archaeologist Georges Machtzen discovered a tomb that had been unopened for 2200 years. The skeleton inside was "strewn about the head and neck" with "a mass of finely-wrought and artistic gems and jewels". Most of these would later end up in the Aetorian Museum, and while there were no clues to identify the person in the tomb, coins inside the bronze sarcophagus dated from as late as 332 BC, shortly before the end of the Machaemenid era.
  - [Tyro-Redanian Empire gains +2 Prestige.]

February 12th

• The census of Itherae was completed and the population was officially certified as 12,230,148 people.
• In the Crowned Survian Republic, 6,800 soldiers of the Survian Estada (Survian Army) board the merchant ship Estrella de Bissao in Almeida. The Estrella will set sail on February 13th for the Survian West Marans, a trip that will take nearly fifteen weeks. The Estrella will be escorted by the destroyer Algouda, an Alfonso Costa-class destroyer laid down and built in 1899 in the Tsardom of Radena.
  
  
  
  Soldiers of the Survian Estada boarding Estrella de Bissao, February, 1901

February 13th

• The Rigour Conference is slated to begin on February 15th and the first foreign diplomats begin to arrive in Rigour, Tara in expectation of what become one of the most important political conferences in history.

February 14th

• In an important meeting of the Zellonian Advisory Parliament, members of Parliament Connor Fair of the Conservative Party and Harry Matmuth of the Nationalist Party begin a Vote of No Confidence in the Parliament. The Vote of No Confidence, after an hour of tense votes came out to be 23 For, 7 Against, with all Memoital Members of Parliament subsequently voting in favor. In his speech, MAP Connor Fair said the following: "It has come to the attention of this Parliament and every Zellonian everywhere, that Zellonia cannot heed it's current course. A vote of no confidence has been cast, and it is now in the hands of the Monarch to do what is necessary; to step down and let a new government form, lest the mistakes of yesterday and today follow us into tomorrow."
  
  
  Vote of No Confidence [+]

  - King James Steps Down: The people have spoken. It is time to relinquish legislative powers to the Zellonian Parliament
  * Kingdom of Zellonia moves from Absolute Monarchy to Constitutional Monarchy.
  * An Election will be held on March 5th, 1901.
  * -12% Chance of Memoital Revolt.
  
  - I am The State: Zellonia's ancient laws will be honored. There will be no change.
  * May choose to Dismiss Traitorous MAPs (-5% Approval) or Arrest Traitorous MAPs (-12% Approval, +5 Military Loyalty)
  * Zellonia has +1 on all Characters played at Rigour Conference.
  * +5% Chance of Memoital Revolt
  * +5 Prestige

The Life and Times of Hélder Roque
Hélder Roque was born in 1880, in Almeida, Survia. Son to a tailor and a seamstress, Roque did poorly in primary school and at age thirteen began working alongside his father and mother in their homely shop that was run out of the backroom of their small home. In 1897, at the age of seventeen, Roque was given permission from his father to join the Corpo de Voluntários de Almeida, a youth infantry unit out of Almeida. From 1897 to 1898 he was trained and drilled as a volunteer rifleman. The Survians, who used the KR.91 rifle, were not well equipped. The Corpo de Voluntários de Almeida (CVA) were given twenty rounds of ammunition a week, and their KR.91 rifles were all hand me down's.

On October 16th, 1899 Roque and the rest of the CVA, approximately 800 men were given brand new Kalpian KR.99 rifles. They trained for two weeks before on November 3rd, were shipped off to Survian Madasta off the Northern coast of Serranthia. Stationed at Fort Almeida, they were told to be on "high alert" for possible dissent in the colony. On December 17th, the natives of Madasta, named Heffans, attacked the fort and nearly overran the soldiers there.


On December 26th, the Tyro-Redanian navy showed up and forced the Heffans to surrender after a short bombardment. Roque was one of one hundred and fifty survvors. Given the new flag flying over the capital, Roque was interned for three weeks and then promptly allowed to return to Survia or to enlist in the Tyrian-Nordserranthia Korps, a landswehr unit reserved for colonials. Roque denied the offer and was given the Aetorian Cross after several eyewitnesses corroborated his heroic actions during the Siege of Fort Almeida and on December 29th, was on a ship back to Almeida.

On January 1st, 1900, Roque was promoted to Segundo-cabo and made executive of 10th Squadito, 1st Regimento de Almeida nº 1, a reserve unit stationed in Almeida. For twelve months, Roque marched and trained and lived life under the sweating Almeidan sun. On November 14th, 1900, Roque--for nearly a year without reprieve or absence--was promoted to Cabo-adjunto and given command of 10th Squadito, 1st Regimento de Almeida nº 1. 10th Squadito was not the best, nor was it the worst, but rather decidedly average.


Roque was similarly not an exceptional commander, nor a particular drag. While he had been lauded for winning the second highest medal of valour in the "Empire," several of his men openly asked Roque's loyalties, as they assumed he won the cross fighting for the Empire. Not much of a showboater, Roque simply pulled the Aetorian Cross from his locker and stashed it away.

As the King sat in his office overlooking his map of the world he thought about the vote that had just come in. He could stand down and let his family’s nation crumble into the ground and let the people reign. Instead he called in Field Marshal Conrad Felding and General Leo Heydra to his office. Leo Heydra, had been a mere Lieutenant in the Zello-Oslad war but after losing his family to the Osladian in the assault on Nervington he blamed the old and incompetent high command. After the war he set about gathering information on his superiors and exposing them which earned him the eye of the King himself.

The King would grant Leo the new found position of Grand Inquisitor, head of the Kingdom’s Security Service or KSS. He would be granted full authority on external threats such as infiltration of Oslad or other enemies, as well as enforcing loyalty and discipline within the state.

The Field Marshal Conrad Felding had been a captain and learned from the mistakes of the past and believed if a more united country under the control of the military or military minded men, they would rule the world. Both men believed in the state, and would remain loyal to the king as well as their forces.

The 2 men were called forth to put together a list of enemies of the state that are traitors and conspirators against the king and state. It would just so happen a great many of these people were members of the advisory parliament who had voted for the king to step down. As evidence would show a great many of them believed in the power of Prince Bernard who was another name on the list yet out of the country and in asylum in Radena, the people on the 20th of February would be rounded up by members of the military and the new found inquisitors and arrested.


With the Rigour Conference underway and the traitors of the state being rounded up internally the king began to once again look outward. The first of these acts was the creation of a Colonial Home Office headed by Reginald Travis and would deal with the current and future colonial states. Amongst that an additional 5 million would be sent to New Zellonia in hopes of delaying the collapse until the new year when additional resources could be sent. Furthermore 10,000 soldiers were already on their way to keep the natives in line and to further progress into the wild areas if need be.

In addition the new KSS would be given orders to begin infiltrating specific countries in order to undermine them as well as retrieve intelligence of forces and active duties.

Grasping Hands

For millennia, the Imperium had sat behind its great blue oceanic walls, and save for an apparently failed expedition to the Malik Islands some time in the past, it had never intentionally sent its people outwards to claim land for itself that was not part of the Home Islands. That began to change first with the Emperor's Proclamation that the four island chains to the south and southeast of the Home Islands were now Imperium soil, and with the apparent reticence of the people to naturally move there on their own, it was decided that more decisive action needed to be taken. Opting to not bother to wait for the expeditions to the islands to return, assuming that perhaps they never would considering the apparent mishandling of the issue by a lesser bureaucratic body, the Imperium of Hiron and the Dragon Emperor founded the Ministry of Colonial Affairs, headed by Minister Sato Erobi.

The Ministry of Colonial Affairs was created primarily because the Imperium recognized the prestige of having colonies, as well as the wealth of resources that would be available including spreading the range of the Navy to strike down enemies of the state. Its goal was simple: manage, expand, and oversee the settling of the colonies of the Imperium. The Ministry was thus given the following sums to settle the first four colonies of the Imperium:

• Setu Island: $5,000,000
• Kyio Island: $10,000,000
• Calipher Island: $10,000,000
• Mado Island: $10,000,000

Setu Island, Kyio Island, and Calipher Island were designed as regular colonies whose primary objective was simply resource acquisition of whatever was available. In contrast, Mado Island was designated as the site of a future Naval Port that would expand the range of the Imperium to encompass much of the lands south of the Maran Islands. Should the Ministry of Colonial Affairs require any more resources, it was welcome to request them from the greater Imperium as necessary. The colonization of such small islands was not expected to be too monetarily intensive, however. The names of the colonies shall match that of the islands they are built on.

The Ministry of Colonial Affairs shortly got to work by finding construction companies to build the necessary buildings on the islands, in particular Mado Island, as well as shipping companies to transport the resources. Troops and naval escorts were not immediately requested due in large part to looming tensions with the Xiang Warlords, but it was extremely unlikely the tribals would reach out so far over the ocean to touch Imperial vessels. There were also undoubtedly few to no natives on the islands in question. Abundant food, medical supplies, and temporary shelters were sent with the construction companies as well.

Surveyors were sent slightly ahead of the construction companies by a few days to mark out land and building sites, whilst back home, ads went up across the Home Islands for people willing to move to the new islands for significant pay. All kinds of people were needed: fishermen, farmers, prospectors, carpenters, etc. The Imperium had every intention of making these "colonies" just as much of a part of the Home Islands as Senryu was a part of the Imperium.

To mark the occasion, the Emperor gave a fairly straightforward speech to the press, "Today marks the day that the Imperium finally steps beyond its borders. You may think I am speaking of Wenshou Island or the coast of Du Nam, but no, I am speaking of the islands of Setu, Kyio, Mado, and Calipher! For too long, no one has laid claim to these islands. Whilst they are de jure Imperial soil, I have decided it is necessary to send true Hironese men and women to them to make them de facto part of our glorious Imperium. From here on out, the Imperium shall march even faster into the future! Colonial possessions, factories, increased modernization! The world will truly come to recognize us as Great Power! Thank you, and for the Imperium!"

A Wolf Among Sheep

"What you're telling me, is that the Hidden Arm has reason to believe foreign actors are actually affecting internal politics within the Imperium? I'm surprised that they can affect such a homogeneous population, although the Arm does essentially manage the same thing in foreign countries," recalled Emperor Ryugo as he sat at a table sipping tea.

Takami Hashi, the director of the Hidden Arm, had joined the Emperor on the other side of the small table, partaking as well of tea, "Yes, my Emperor. That is what the agents on the ground believe to be true. It is surprising to me as well, but I'd like to know how you want us to attempt to deal with the issue."

The Emperor shrugged, placing his cup of tea upon the table as an attendant poured more, "It's up to you. Don't make a big fuss about it though. Just figure out who sent them and make the agents disappear into the bowels of the Imperium somewhere quietly. If you can turn these foreign actors into double agents, even better, I suppose. The Hidden Arm's yearly budget for counter-intelligence operations will be updated in response. Let me know how things go, Takami, I'm always interested to see what the Arm can accomplish. I'd also like a report on Du Nam whenever it arrives."

"Of course, my Emperor. The Hidden Arm shall get right on it immediately, and I don't expect the Du Namese report to take much longer," Takami bowed and quickly made his exit from the room, returning to his quiet office elsewhere in Senryu.

(double post by accident)

In the wake of the Tyro-Itheraen War, with the installation of Queen Athena as absolute ruler over the nation, many predicted that there would be much unrest over the subject of being reverted back to a monarchy. However, no riots came, the people had begrudgingly accepted this and went on with their lives as, in the end, it was but a minor change for them. Yet, a majority of Itherae approved at the prospect of having Queen Athena rule over the nation, a strange fact to both the Queen and, no doubt, the Tyro-Redanian administrators that had arrived to Itherae to collect the first payment of $5,000,000 in war debt that had been thrust onto the nation. With promises of more payment in the following year, the Tyrians left without much of another word, a pleasant experience to the ears of the lady Wolfram.

However, the payment was the least important thing to happen in the month of February, a new decree was given to the entire nation, on February 18th, from the former capital building in Itherae. “After much discussion with the Senate, it has been decided that the city of Diopolis has been selected to be the new capital of Itherae. This is for the reasons of culture, with a great ancient empire having been founded in the area many centuries ago, in the early years of the bronze era. As many historians might now, this empire, the Aliban Empire. It lasted for dozens of centuries before its ultimate collapse from famine and war. Additionally, the city of Itherae shall be renamed to before the founding of the Republic, the city of Hermara.”

With that, the public knew that Diopolis was then the capital of the Itheraen kingdom, a much needed move to prove that Athena was to mold the kingdom away from some of the ideals that the Republic had. Yet there was a problem, Diopolis had no railways to speak of, and while the Republic had attempted to connect the city to the railway network, their interventionist views had stopped them from getting it done. Though, they were smart enough to put aside funds for an Itherae-Diopolis rail line, though they were not smart enough to see the potential to of connecting all the cities to the capital by rail. Athena saw this as a chance for the locomotive industry to boom and ordered for the railways to be constructed from Diopolis.

Furthermore, the lady saw another need from another nation, Survia and their lack of industry. Though, there was a great advantage to getting on the good side of such a power, with their powerful navy and ability to aid Itherae at a moments notice given their short relative distance for the Kingdom. Being the proactive lady that she was, sent a telegram addressed specifically to the king of the nation on February 26th, 1901.

Foreign Office of the Itheraen Kingdom

February 20th, 1901
Foreign Embassy,
Almeida, Survia

To the Crowned King Alfonso Joan VII, it comes with great delight that the Kingdom of Itherae finds much potential in the blooming industry of Survia. While currently Survian Industry may not yield much, Itherae is prepared to offer $5,000,000 in investment towards the Survian industry. It is also a symbol of good faith from the Kingdom to Crowned Republic of Survia itself, a hope to foster good relations between our two nations.

Queen Athena Wolfram of the Itheraen Kingdom