Jeddaven

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

Alcântara Space Center, Maranhão, Brazil

"VLMP-5, you are go for launch."

To late to turn back now, Chikako thought, turning her head from one side to the other, glancing at her fellow astronauts. She was about to head into orbit for her first time, aboard one of the most top-of-the-line space stations in orbit... And she was nervous. Not about the launch itself, of course - she'd always wanted the chance to be in space, after all - but about the reason she was being sent up.

"VLMP-5, we're go for launch." Major Guimarães, the mission commander, replied.

"T-minus thirty seconds."

That reason, of course, was the cargo. Several thousand pounds of containment, all to protect one single, tiny little alien artifact that she hadn't even had the chance to look at yet. She was set to be the first person to see it - but what if something did go wrong? What if looking at it killed her?

"T-minus fifteen."

It was an opportunity she couldn't afford to give up, though.

"Ten."

"Nine."

"Eight."

"Seven."

"Six."

The rocket began to rumble and shake beneath her, engines abruptly igniting. For the next six seconds, it continued to shake - not violently, but certainly enough to discombobulate Chikako, scrambling her thoughts. It was her first launch, after all, and she felt her hands reflexively tighten around her seat, muscles tensing.

"Five."

"Four."

"Three."

"Two."

"One."

A great force thudded into her back as the solid boosters fired, like the sensation of being violently kicked at the center of her spine. Suddenly, they were rocketing upward into the sky - and not dying, she realized!

"We have liftoff!"

Whatever the artifact was, the violence of being launched into the air hadn't activated it and killed them all, though the shaking didn't stop until they'd shot well past most of the atmosphere, light blues and clear skies giving way to darkness, and, eventually, the twinkling of stars and the emptiness of space as the boosters decoupled.

---

Chikako watched, transfixed, as a sextuplet of robotic arms locked into the six red locks on an unassuming, matte grey box with a dull *clunk*, servos gently whirring as they lifted away the lid with perfect precision. That was a relief, at least - despite being virtually weightless, Chikako felt as if she were wearing a suit of lead armour. She'd been handed the enormous responsibility of overseeing the testing and analysis of one of, if not the most valuable things in the world, with full knowledge that Artifact EVGD-1 could just decide to kill her and everyone else on the Stella Maris at any moment. She didn't understand it, the government didn't understand it, and the universities didn't understand it all that well either. It was all guesswork, but, thankfully, removing the lids on containment wasn't. The first was gently secured in a second series of locks as it was set aside - and then the arms slid right back in, unclasping the second set of locks. Chikako watched with bated breath, reflexively clenching her teeth, and then...

Nothing.

She wasn't going to be shot into space or crumpled into a thin, red paste by a mysterious alien artifact. Not yet, anyways.

It wasn't even the first time she'd exposed the thing, or even tested it, but it was still an enigma. Today was another battery of extensive tests, designed by Kawaguchi and that fancy new AI, all occuring in a fancy new tungsten-lined testing chamber, designed specially for NLC artifacts too dangerous to be kept on Earth. This was one such artifact.

Still, watching the camera feeds of the testing chamber, some nagging part of her mind couldn't help but feel as if it was staring back at her. It was a small, unassuming little... triangle-shaped thing, indescribable script etched into various spots along its surface (serial numbers, perhaps?), what looked like a large display taking up most of one face.

"Computer, please expose the langium sample." She said, again reflexively clenching her teet, expecting to die violently.h in anticipation of a violent death. She couldn't close her eyes, however, even if some part of her desperately wanted her. There was a point to placing her at the controls of the testing chamber, a mere handful of feet away, even if other station personnel were themselves watching from even more distant camera systems, ready to evacuate the moment things went horrifically wrong, unlikely as that was.

Slowly but surely, a small blue rock was revealed from behind a tungsten panel, secured tightly in place with a dozen tiny graspers, and a socket fitted exactly to its shape. Chikako turned her eyes to the laser interferometer console, waiting for something to happen...

And, surely enough, it did. Almost instantly, it returned a signal, indicating that the lasers had arrived a fraction of a fraction of a second too late.

“I have been ordered to inform you that this is sufficient confirmation of the artifact’s ability to manipulate gravity.” Intoned O7’s artificially chipper voice through her headset. Automatically, the tungsten panel slid shut once more, and the interferometer display went dark once again, just as expected.

That’s that, then. Chikako thought to herself, another sigh of relief escaping her lips, gently pushing her back against the hard chair she was strapped into. She finally allowed her eyes to close, just for a moment, long enough to suck in a deep breath and-

“However, I have detected further irregularities.”

Goddamnit.

“What’re the irregularities, Oh-Seven?” She said, audibly groaning, though her frustration failed to entirely suppress the excited hitch in her breath.

"My visual sensors are detecting a fine layer of NCL-AG on the surface of the device. During the test, I noticed that it was not repulsed from the surface, and remained on the devious with no noticeable motion."

Chikako blinked, shaking her head. She instinctively reached up to rub at her eyes, only to stop her hand mere inches in front of her face.

"And you didn't- I-"

"I didn't tell you because it seemed that you needed time to process the results of the test."

"...Right." She replied, releasing another labored exhale. "...That's interesting, to say the least. We'll need to sequester the particulate matter before we continue further - Oh-Seven, is everything else in the testing chamber secure?"

"Yes."

"Please evacuate the material from the chamber."

Just as well, Chikako thought - it'd take time to remove the material, since the testing chamber was already in vacuum, but she needed a few moments to rest regardless.

---

"I've finished sequestering the antigravity particulate as requested.”

Chikako jumped - or she would have, if not for having been strapped securely into her seat to stop herself from simply floating toward the ceiling.

“...Right. Repeat the last test, please.”

...And again, the Langium was exposed, and... Nothing. Absolutely nothing happened.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Over and over, a whole lot of nothing happened for the next hour.

“Well, that’s... Interesting.” Chikako hummed, narrowing her eyes as she stared at the display before her, showing little more than a strange little object and a fairly blank testing chamber.

“Oh-Seven, reintroduce the anti-gravity compound, please.”

Slowly but surely, a small, glassy tube lowered into the chamber, practically invisible crystals flitting about inside - and the interferometer instantly lit back up.

And again.

And again.

And again, Chikako watched the tube cyclically retracting back into the ceiling before being pushed back down again, the interferometer lighting up each time, without fail - but only when the Langium was also present. If either were absent... Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

She'd spent hours whittling away at the mystery of the device, staring, typing, recording and relaying results, listening...

One more thing to try.

"Oh-Seven, remove the Langium from the testing environment. Give me an X-ray of the artifact - minimum dose."

"One moment."

Once again, Chikako's eyes were drawn to the interferometer display as the X-ray emitter warmed up, moving into position around the artifact. Servos whirred and gears turned as it moved, and the display remained dark.

"Initiating dose. Point zero zero eight millisieverts."

Suddenly, the display flashed.

Precipice Of War: The Reboot of a Reboot

“With all due respect, Representative Starosta, I understand what the people want and what the General Assembly want us to do, but it simply isn’t possible for us to start a war with Turkey right now.” General Brózda sighed, gently creasing the wrinkles on her gently tanned face. Her tan uniform jacket hung halfway open, partway between a dress outfit and a simple footsoldier’s uniform, studded with a small handful of medals nonetheless. The Romanian Navy is small to reliably protect our troops, and at our current pace, we won’t have a hold on the Crimean peninsula for another month or two, at least. Maybe only one, if we are lucky.”

Katarzyna sighed in response, crossing her arms over her chest. “I understand that, Ludmila, but it’s not my decision to make. You’re free to meet with the Assembly yourself, or give me a message to deliver to them, but there’s a reason I’m just ‘Representative’. Despite what Blaskowitz might think, I don’t make the decisions around here.” She said, pursing her lips.

“I don’t exactly have time to wait for a meeting with the General Assembly. That could take days, and we’re already staring down the barrel of a major war in the Americas. Between assisting the Indonesians after Surabaya and that...” Ludmila groaned, running her hand through her hair with a shake of her head.

One of the two men on either side of her - the older of the two, with a couple more signs of wear on his face - straightened his tie, clearing his throat. “She’s right.” He said. I know Mr. Szymon,” he began, gesturing to the young, greyish blue-uniformed officer, “is eager to put the Turkish Navy at the bottom of the sea, but we have a bigger issue on our hands, as I’m sure you all know by now.”

Instantly, silence fell over the room. Everyone did, it seemed, know exactly what he was talking about - having a spy in the White House bore plenty of fruit, and on this occasion, it bore a particularly sour one. Nobody wanted to break the silence, it seemed, until Szymon finally did mere moments later. “We’re ready for it. You said the Americans haven’t caught on to the Curacao agreement, yes? When the Mexicans make their move, we’ll be ready. Progress is going well on the airstrips -”

“Airbases or not, we still need the Kriegsmarine. A single carrier group, a bundle of escorts, and a load of submarines isn’t going to sink the corporatist boats, not with coverage that doesn’t go further than Texas or Florida. And with the Mexicans poking the British...”

“...We might be going up against the Royal Navy, too, Vasilijus. Jezus Chrystus, we might be staring down the barrel of a three-way war.” Starosta sighed, her shoulder going slack. Finally, she understood exactly why an invasion of Turkey wasn’t possible. Russian objections aside, if they were about to go up against two, perhaps three of the largest navies in the world, with a whole ocean to cross to get to one of them...

That didn’t leave the PUL or Germany with the time or troops to seriously contest a Turkish invasion of the Caucasus.

“...I understand, but the Assembly is going to want options, since we can’t just go around telling everyone we magically know that the Americans are gearing up to invade Mexico. That information stats here, and with the *appropriate* allies. The point is, I need something to tell them, or they get suspicious, and we do too.”

“It doesn’t have to be that complicated. I’ve spoken with Mr Rudnicki - Foreign Affairs. He’s already prepared an official statement. The conflict between Britain and Mexico is worrying us, and, on top of that, the Turks are providing us with the perfect excuse to mobilize, as they’re threatening our allies in the Caucasus - or sovereign Russian territory, depending on who you’re talking to.” Vasilijus Narutowicz snorted derisively, knowing full well that not a single person in the room gave a solitary shit about the territorial integrity of the Tsardom. “That wouldn’t even be a lie, either. We do need to *show* the Turks that we are not weak nor unwilling to act, so that’s what I suggest we do. This looming war might not happen, but if it does, we need to be ready. We’ve already begun training and doing what we can to arm the Transcaucasus with the weapons they need, and in the meantime, our military is getting ready, whether that’s to fight the Turks...”

“...Or everyone else,” Ludmila added. “Our assets in America, anyway - are they ready?”

“Ready as they will be.” Narutowicz replied. “With the military mobilizing, we have less we can spare for them, but we’re sufficiently entrenched to cause substantial chaos. It may come down to them, frankly. The American worker, I mean - I don’t think we can win this without them. Not easily, anyways, and the good thing is that the American worker is very angry.” He nodded - and so did everyone else in the room. “If they don’t do the work they need to do to free their own country, we can’t do much except hope that we can manage to sink the US Navy, or at least hope that the Japanese can do it for us.”

Suddenly, the mood in the room dropped like a stone yet again. The Japanese were an enemy, a terrible one, but...

Finally, the last man in the room clad in crisp dark blue dress, cleared his throat.
“The Japanese Navy is large, yes, and they can probably give the Americans a bloody nose, but they can’t absorb losses as well. It’s in our best interests for them to sink as much of the Pacific fleet as they can, because it means destroying their own ships, too - ships they’ll struggle to rebuild, which means leaving them even less able to protect their quote-unquote colonial possessions. When the Japanese engage the US Navy, they’ll be getting themselves ready to be virtually unable to do a single damned thing about Indonesia, and they certainly won’t be able to keep a hold on the American coast, if that’s what they are planning. The point is, either way, I doubt they're coming out of it stronger than before."

Katarzyna sighed, slowly nodding her head, leaning down onto the mahogany table between them, her palms spread wide. "We're staring down the barrel of the Second Great War, aren't we?" She said, her words so laden with uncertainty that she could almost feel weight leaving her as she spoke them. War, she'd been prepared for - she'd fought in a few, even - but if everything that was being said was true, or even some of it, they weren't looking at any old war. They weren't looking anything like they'd ever seen before, she'd gathered. The Great War, the one her father fought in, that killed millions, but it'd been thirty years.
Thirty years for the art of killing men and women to advance. She felt her heart drop into her stomach as she realized the untold millions that, in all likelihood, were about to die.

Everyone else, it seemed, was realizing the same thing, silent as Starosta pushed herself back to her full height.

"I'll speak to the assembly and tell them as much as I can. I hope you're wrong, Narutowicz - for all our sakes."

Our World in Turmoil: Revamped

Hey, I'd like to nab the EU if Page gives it up

From Sick Man to Savior - An 1847 Nation RP

The Great Qing

Name: Great Qing
Flag/Badge:

By u/DonGatoCOL on r/vexillology
Head of State: Emperor
Head of Government: Same as Head of State
However, note that there are several important ministries in the Empire that hold serious informal policy-making power, such as the Grand Council, headed by Prince Gong, which operates as an effective privy council.
Ideology: Absolute Monarchy

Military

Army Numbers: 200,000 Bannermen, 600,000 Green Standard Troops

Navy Numbers:
63 gunboats
1 Steam Ship

Army Equipment: Under the watchful eye of the Prince Gong the Great Qing as rapidly modernized its military, at a pace comparable to Japanese thanks to the aid of the United States. The sheer size of its army, however, means that it has yet to fully equip its army with fully modern rifles, and large portions still utilize older European-style rifles and cannon purchased from surplus. In particular, large stocks of older American and captured Mexican weapons populate the Green Standard armies. Of particular note is the intensification of coastal and riverine fortifications, esp. larger and longer range gun batteries.

Naval Ship Types: The Chinese Navy, despite its moderate size, is mostly composed of gunboats built for riverine and coastal defense, along with a single steam ship purchased from the Dutch for study. Most of the Navy was obliterated in the First Opium War, and the Empire is still modernizing and rebuilding its fleets.

History, Expansion, and Economics

History: In 1840, embroiled in the Opium War, the Daoguang Emperor was temporarily incapacitated after a bad fall, leaving the Prince Gong as his temporary regent. The Regent made a determination that, although unpopular, would eventually change China's fortunes for the better - he negotiated a treaty with the United Kingdom, offering amnesty for the opium merchants and return of their cargo along with the treaty port of Hong Kong in exchange for immediate cessation of the war. His calculation was simple - the humiliation could, with some effort, be used to demonize and humiliate Britain, and thrust China into the modern age whether it wished to or not. For nearly two years afterward, Prince Gong ruled China in his comatose father's stead, and a momentous two years it was, for the perfect opportunity quickly presented itself. Britain was suddenly occupied by an American invasion of Canada, and Prince Gong struck.

Declaring Opium once again illegal, Prince Gong confiscated large amounts of the drug, returned it to the merchants selling it, and promptly ousted foreigners caught selling opium from the country - permanently. Praise was given to the Americans, from popular biographies of George Washington to special permission for American missionaries, all to ingratiate the people to the idea of asking for American aid. They too struggled against the English barbarians, and Prince Gong was happy to purchase large quantities of surplus British-Canadian arms from the Americans as they conquered the country. Tariffs and restrictions placed further on English merchants exacerbated the unprofitability of Hong Kong, and soon enough it was sold off to the Dutch, who Prince Gong welcomed with open arms, taking advantage of both Dutch and American merchants to bring modern goods into China and begin a process of rapid industrialization as he modernized the country, filling the court with competent ministers, and, of course, neatly assigning much of the credit to his (unbeknownst to most of the population) father. By the time the Daoguang Emperor awoke, he woke to a China that was rapidly advancing, fortifying its coasts, and slowly coming to par with the Europeans that humiliated it, all thanks to a handful of allies. He, of course, was now happy to continue the process, leaving Prince Gong with much of the unofficial policymaking power, all the while a Christian man by the name of Hong Huoxiu found new purpose as a missionary with one of many American parties.

In 1844, with news of revolution in Japan reaching the Imperial Court, the country was thrown into a panic - but once again, Prince Gong saw an opportunity. With a few whispers into his father's ear, he was able to convince his father to further intensify modernization, displacing merchant houses with new arrivals to further diversify and expand the Qing economy. The influx of Dutch and American trade - and missionaries - brought an even greater wealth of technical expertise to Qing, allowing industrialization to proceed in earnest. Growing increasingly bold, and confident in the new technologies gained from America and the Dutch, the Emperor emphasized that the Great Qing would tolerate no threat to Joseon Korea, including Japanese Imperialism. Following Korea's example, also, a delegation was dispatched to Oregon to join their compatriots, and establish a formal embassy.

Once again, an American victory, this time over Mexico, allowed Qing to purchase greater quantities of somewhat old European arms. Today, the Great Qing stands at the head of a rapidly modernizing Empire, and is eager to prove that it can remain relevant even in a world increasingly dominated by hostile interests.

Territory: The territory of the Qing Empire at the time OTL, barring all treaty ports except for Hong Kong.

Economic Description: Although still primarily an agricultural economy, the Daoguang Emperor, encouraged by Prince Yixi has made great strides in industrializing China's economy, the first measure of which has been to reintroduce paper currency. China also produces large amounts of mineral resources such as salt, iron, and, especially as of late with the Daoguang Emperor's industrialization policies, coal.

Historical Claims: Though presently content with controlling the territory it possesses, the Daoguang Emperor has made clear his stance that any Japanese territorial ambitions on China, Korea, or Taiwan will not be tolerated, and that an attack on Korea will be considered an attack on China itself.

From Sick Man to Savior - An 1847 Nation RP

The Great Qing

Name: Great Qing
Flag/Badge:

By u/DonGatoCOL on r/vexillology
Head of State: Emperor
Head of Government: Same as Head of State
However, note that there are several important ministries in the Empire that hold serious informal policy-making power, such as the Grand Council, headed by Prince Gong, which operates as an effective privy council.
Ideology: Absolute Monarchy

Military

Army Numbers: 200,000 Bannermen, 600,000 Green Standard Troops

Navy Numbers:
63 gunboats
1 Steam Ship

Army Equipment: Under the watchful eye of the Prince Gong the Great Qing as rapidly modernized its military, at a pace comparable to Japanese thanks to the aid of the United States. The sheer size of its army, however, means that it has yet to fully equip its army with fully modern rifles, and large portions still utilize older European-style rifles and cannon purchased from surplus. In particular, large stocks of older American and captured Mexican weapons populate the Green Standard armies. Of particular note is the intensification of coastal and riverine fortifications, esp. larger and longer range gun batteries.

Naval Ship Types: The Chinese Navy, despite its moderate size, is mostly composed of gunboats built for riverine and coastal defense, along with a single steam ship purchased from the Dutch for study. Most of the Navy was obliterated in the First Opium War, and the Empire is still modernizing and rebuilding its fleets.

History, Expansion, and Economics

History: In 1840, embroiled in the Opium War, the Daoguang Emperor was temporarily incapacitated after a bad fall, leaving the Prince Gong as his temporary regent. The Regent made a determination that, although unpopular, would eventually change China's fortunes for the better - he negotiated a treaty with the United Kingdom, offering amnesty for the opium merchants and return of their cargo along with the treaty port of Hong Kong in exchange for immediate cessation of the war. His calculation was simple - the humiliation could, with some effort, be used to demonize and humiliate Britain, and thrust China into the modern age whether it wished to or not. For nearly two years afterward, Prince Gong ruled China in his comatose father's stead, and a momentous two years it was, for the perfect opportunity quickly presented itself. Britain was suddenly occupied by an American invasion of Canada, and Prince Gong struck.

Declaring Opium once again illegal, Prince Gong confiscated large amounts of the drug, returned it to the merchants selling it, and promptly ousted foreigners caught selling opium from the country - permanently. Praise was given to the Americans, from popular biographies of George Washington to special permission for American missionaries, all to ingratiate the people to the idea of asking for American aid. They too struggled against the English barbarians, and Prince Gong was happy to purchase large quantities of surplus British-Canadian arms from the Americans as they conquered the country. Tariffs and restrictions placed further on English merchants exacerbated the unprofitability of Hong Kong, and soon enough it was sold off to the Dutch, who Prince Gong welcomed with open arms, taking advantage of both Dutch and American merchants to bring modern goods into China and begin a process of rapid industrialization as he modernized the country, filling the court with competent ministers, and, of course, neatly assigning much of the credit to his (unbeknownst to most of the population) father. By the time the Daoguang Emperor awoke, he woke to a China that was rapidly advancing, fortifying its coasts, and slowly coming to par with the Europeans that humiliated it, all thanks to a handful of allies. He, of course, was now happy to continue the process, leaving Prince Gong with much of the unofficial policymaking power, all the while a Christian man by the name of Hong Huoxiu found new purpose as a missionary with one of many American parties.

In 1844, with news of revolution in Japan reaching the Imperial Court, the country was thrown into a panic - but once again, Prince Gong saw an opportunity. With a few whispers into his father's ear, he was able to convince his father to further intensify modernization, displacing merchant houses with new arrivals to further diversify and expand the Qing economy. The influx of Dutch and American trade - and missionaries - brought an even greater wealth of technical expertise to Qing, allowing industrialization to proceed in earnest. Growing increasingly bold, and confident in the new technologies gained from America and the Dutch, the Emperor emphasized that the Great Qing would tolerate no threat to Joseon Korea, including Japanese Imperialism. Following Korea's example, also, a delegation was dispatched to Oregon to join their compatriots, and establish a formal embassy.

Once again, an American victory, this time over Mexico, allowed Qing to purchase greater quantities of somewhat old European arms. Today, the Great Qing stands at the head of a rapidly modernizing Empire, and is eager to prove that it can remain relevant even in a world increasingly dominated by hostile interests.

Territory: The territory of the Qing Empire at the time OTL, barring all treaty ports except for Hong Kong.

Economic Description: Although still primarily an agricultural economy, the Daoguang Emperor, encouraged by Prince Yixi has made great strides in industrializing China's economy, the first measure of which has been to reintroduce paper currency. China also produces large amounts of mineral resources such as salt, iron, and, especially as of late with the Daoguang Emperor's industrialization policies, coal.

Historical Claims: Though presently content with controlling the territory it possesses, the Daoguang Emperor has made clear his stance that any Japanese territorial ambitions on China, Korea, or Taiwan will not be tolerated, and that an attack on Korea will be considered an attack on China itself.

From Sick Man to Savior - An 1847 Nation Roleplay

The Second French Republic

Government

Name: The Second French Republic
Flag/Badge:
Head of State: The National Revolutionary Council, consistent of prominent leftist thinkers in France
Head of Government: See Above
Ideology: Socialist/proto-Communist

Military
Army Numbers: Approximately 70,000 regular troops within France, and 10,000 in possessions outside of France.

Notably, while not the largest army in the world, the French Army employs a number of advanced technologies such as the Minie Rifle.

Navy Numbers:
- 35 Ships of the Line
- 56 Frigates
- 110 Corvettes
- 38 Gun-Brigs

Naval Ship Types: Although smaller than the Royal Navy, the French Navy is notably for its (comparatively) widespread adoption of shell guns.

History, Expansion, and Economics

History: Mute from birth and now without a brother, Anthony Marco Fieschi, brother of the famous narrowly failed Corsican assassin Giuseppe Marco Fieschi, was left without much of anything - a way to reliably provide for himself, a way to reliably communicate with people, and, worst of all, his brother. He understood why his brother did what he'd done, however - Louis Philippe gloated over his brother's death, parading his death around like a spectacle. He, like many others, suffered immensely because of his disability, barely able to survive the incompetent monarch's regime.

It took him years to come to a decision, but, eventually, he finally did - he was going to finish what his brother started. Contacting socialist secret societies in Paris, Anthony, much like his brother, was quickly able to gather together the funds to build yet another Infernal Machine. Thankfully for Anthony, Louis had learned little - and so, much like Giuseppe, he decided to deliver poetic justice, renting out another apartment along the route the King was expected to take during the 1841 annual review of the Paris National Guard, along with much of his staff. Having spent much more time perfecting his machine than Giuseppe, Anthony was sure it would succeed, completing its assembly in the apartment a week before the review.

When the day came, Anthony watched and waited, until the King finally passed into his sights.

He opened fire.

In an instant, the King and dozens of his staff were killed on the spot, the monarch himself killed by a ball of shot through his forehead.

Finally, Anthony had done what his brother nearly succeeded in doing. He turned himself in, satisfied, knowing that he'd done what was right.

In an instant, a single, vengeful man had annihilated the July monarchy.

What remained of Louis's regime scrambled to maintain control, immediately mobilizing the Paris National Guard and shutting down local factories. The panicked response by the remaining inexperienced bureaucrats only backfired, however - workers became agitated, fearing further oppression and the inability to feed themselves. Anthony was executed by guillotine shortly afterwards, sparking numerous riots, led by Socialists and Republicans, across Paris. A massacre on the Île Seguin against leatherworkers resulted in outright revolution, and within a month, the remnants of the July Government had collapsed entirely, replaced by victorious Socialists, who quickly set about re-opening workshops, eliminating foes within France (especially claimants to the empty throne) and preparing the French army for what they assumed would be immediate retaliation.

Retaliation never came, however, and the French Army was de-mobilized, returning large numbers of workers to the workforce, and maintaining a powerful current of revolutionary fervor. After all, revolutionary France held ambitions for many of its immediate neighbors, yet the tumult in Europe and elsewhere across the world allowed it to remain intact as its Army and Navy modernized, and French weapons found their way to rebels, from the Emerald Isle to the Sikh Empire.

Today, France stands as the vanguard of a socialism, a specter that haunts the monarchs of Europe, watching and waiting for its time to strike.

Territory: France's territory is contiguous with its territory OTL.

Economic Description: Like many nations of the period, France is still somewhat reliant on agriculture for its industrial output. The recent Socialist revolution, however, has led to an increased emphasis on the industrial worker, especially in the steel and textile industries, and glassworking to a lesser extent. Notably, French industry also produces a large amount of arms, much of the surplus of which is supplied to rebels elsewhere in Europe, like Ireland. Of additional note is the total outlawing of slavery in the overseas territories and womens' suffrage, moves which have allowed the Socialist government to rapidly swell its base of support.

Historical Claims: France presently wishes to purchase Quebec from the United States, and claims sovereignty over Saarland, along with French-speaking regions of Belgium and Switzerland. France does not claim Ireland, but actively agitates against Britain on its behalf.

Throwing my hat in the ring for France. Let's spice shit up a little. I'll join the discord after my nap.

War Never Changes III: Annals of the East

@MagusTheRed still around?

TES: The Second Great War

Vehk's left tit, Tylmaesa thought to themself, watching with grim fascination as they pushed toward the front of the formation, silently cursing the most favored of their long-gone living gods. They briefly cast a glance skyward to eye the sun-blotting arrows above, but their focus was quickly drawn to bolts of magicka streaking across the battlefield - an accursed pox in this situation, rendering the neat, armored lines of the Imperial Legion into little more than human cooking pots. Instantly, years of battlefield experience willed them to advance, somewhere, anywhere, weapons lingering at their hips to give the appearance of minimal threat.

Not today, prissy n'wah. Not today. They thought, quietly wishing the entirety of Alinor an existence blighted by agony. The sound of pained gurgling drew their eyes to a fallen Legionnaire, an arrow punched straight through his throat - as good as dead, unfortunately, and they had no desire to waste time trying to save a dead man andend up dead themselves. Worse, than the arrows and spells, perhaps, was the swirling cacaphony of conflicting orders. Most of which they assumed came from cowardly and confused officers, but a number of which, they surmised, were cleverly crafted illusions designed to sow further discord.

"Move, you worthless bastards! Stay bottle up and they'll cook you alive! We fight our way free, or we die like sick dogs!" They shouted, the Dunmer's low, bellowing voice cutting through some of the noise.

Some, they hoped - their squad's, perhaps - but Tylmaesa had little hope that a single cry would change the course of the battle. Still, their words certainly carried enough volume to be worth a try, even if far more important matters were at hand.

Wandering eyes eventually fell upon the advancing Legate, the warrior's own shouts dashing whole swathes of Altmer wretch upon the ground. Brief pangs of jealousy washed over them, and they even contemplated attempting to flee, rushing through the Altmer lines and burning out their legs in a fevered escape or attempt to surrender, but they were quickly reassured by the calming wisdom of divinity, a favored passage.

Sermon Sixteen, passages seven through eight.

"Nerevar said, 'I am afraid to become slipshod in my thinking.'

Vivec said, 'Reach heaven by violence then.'"

Its message was simple, and always true - to choose the path of weakness and complacency was to refuse divinity. To choose the raw violence of emotion, to choose to act - this was divine. This always was, and always would be, so wrote Saint Vehk, Warrior-Poet.

And so, a path was chosen. Flowing alongside all those who had the same though, Tylmaesa chose their twin blades as Nerevar chose his axe, for they knew that to stay still was to invite death, for they did not need steel armour and would not suffer its protection nor its weighty burden. They would fight as the Saint did - forging their own path ahead, moving with such violence as to approach the divine, perhaps some centuries in the future.

In the here and now, that meant advancing behind the Legate, weapons drawn. It meant dodging past wayward arrows, keeping an eye out for the filth that so deftly wore a false veneer of truth and nobility. She hated everything they represented - their clever duplicity, their assumed supremacy, their smug tyranny... But most of all, she hated that she could not simply obliterate them. At least, then, they carried the unexpected element of the claw-dance.

Once more, their eyes were drawn from the legate, and to the wild storm of soldiers engaged in melee about him. They joined the loose ranks of Imperial soldiery, but not to hold in formation, no - instead, they were drawn to a low-ranking Altmer officer, engaged with one of their Imperial comrades in a duel. An opportunity, and a deadly one, but an opportunity nonetheless. They watched, transfixed and moving, as the Imperial Sergeant unwittingly exposed himself, receiving a slash to his leg in turn. They watched, still moving, as the Altmer raised their blade, ready to deliver the killing blow... And thanked the She-Who-Erases as the officer turned toward the towering Dunmer barelling toward her.

Sparks flew as her blade collided with Tylmaesa's, scraping away at the surface of the metal - not glass, she noted, but certainly moonstone. Lighter than theur steel, and hard enough to severely damage their blade given a few good strikes. Pulling backwards and to the side of a thrusting strike that narrowly sailed past their torso, they realized what a problem that was. A second jab immediately followed, and once again, they narrowly managed to move out of the way. Again, and again, the Altmer insisted on forcing the giant on the backfoot, and for all Tylmaesa's size, she was succeeding, as much as Tylmaesa attempted to meet her.

For long enough, Tylmaesa thought. Perhaps she thought they were a mage, trying to keep them on the backfoot to prebent the casting of spells - after all, what Dunmer would practice the Khajiiti arts?

Finally, the officer brought down her blade in an attempt to slash open Tylmaesa's gut, and once again, she nearly succeeded. This time, though, Tylmaesa was prepared - a wild slash toward her face in preemptive retaliation fell short, but just as was intended. As it cut through the air, Tylmaesa thought back to their lessons of fire, of channelling aggressive movements into the most openly aggressive of elements. Their anger flowed into the weapon, washing the officer's open eyes with flame, instantly searing her beautiful eyes, her flawless Altmeri countenance. Tylmaesa was a mericful foe, however, and in the officer's screaming, howling confusion, a steel blade hacking at her neck quickly ended her life. One, two - Tylmaesa watched with satisfaction as the creature's head rolled to the side, limply toppling to the floor along with her body. Tylmaesa snatched the moonstone blade from her hand as she fell, shoving it into their belt... And continued to move, advancing with their comrades into the tide of Altmer filth.

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

Brasilia, Brazil

For the first time in a long, long while, Apolônia was having simple, pleasant dreams - dreams of a triumphant Brazil. She saw hundreds of thousands of people in the streets burning American flags, celebrating the fall of a fascist-capitalist Empire - Mexico City, Bogota, São Paulo, Brasilia, Toronto, Moscow (especially Moscow) - everywhere. She saw herself giving a speech at the Monumental Axis to thousands upon thousands more of cheering supporters, her wickedly clawed hand gripping the podium in front of her. She heard so many of them calling her name, cheering her on...

"Conceição! Conceição! President Conceição!"

She felt a hand grip her shoulder from behind, jostling her body back and forth.

"President Conceição, wake up!"

...And as she turned around, the dream melted away, and she found herself staring her panicked aide in the face. Rubbing her eyes as she swung her legs around and off the side of her bed, she let out a loud yawn, struggling to force herself awake. What time was it?

"What is it?" She asked, glancing at her alarm clock. 2:00AM. Two hours of sleep. This was going to be a long day, to be certain...

"I-it's the convoy." The boy sputtered. Her eyes widened in shock, but befor she even had the chance to speak, to express her confusion, he continued.

"Kawaguchi was right. 07 noticed a minor containment breach, and-"

"Have my scientific staff been informed?" She cut him off, jumping to her feet as she made for the door. The boy rushed to keep ahead of Conceição all the while, panting from exertion.

"Y-yes! I... We... They're waiting in the Cabinet Room." He replied as they made their way down the halls, promptly joined by a pair of submachinegun-armed secret service agents that'd been standing guard just inside the door.

"Does anyone else know?"

He shook his head.

"Not as far as we know. To anyone who saw it, it would've just looked like the truck hit a large bump in the road. It's hard to explain, I... Oh-Seven can explain it better."

She didn't doubt that. It was quite likely, in fact, judging by the way Angelo was acting, so panicked she was worried his heart might explode out of his chest. It couldn’t have been too bad, at least - after all, there weren’t soldiers rushing through the halls, the Palace didn’t appear to have locked down, and there weren’t sirens blaring outside, so... The question was, what did the artifact do?

Something important, no doubt.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long for the truth to be revealed to the President.

She was quickly ushered into the meeting room ahead of a veritable swarm oh guards, sitting her down at the head of a table that swarmed with the country’s foremost scientific experts - and a general or two, too. Her gaze immediately turned to Kawaguchi, the party in the middle of a vigorous debate... Yet none of them seemed to notice, until the sharp voice of oh-Seven cut through the noise over the room’s speaker system.

“Excuse me.” It curtly intoned. “The President has arrived.”

All at once they turned toward her, heads moving in perfect unison. She’s cot them in the middle of something important, she reasoned, so...

“Oh-Seven, please explain what happened to the convoy.” She said, fully prepared for an overly-detailed explanation.

“During the device’s transport, the containment unit’s lid became slightly dislodged for unknown reasons, likely due to the relatively poor quality and design of the Kuomintang’s and Consortium’s containment unit. I detected this disturbance and approximately one-point-six milliseconds afterwards noticed an abnormal distortion in the shape of the truck’s hull at various points, including the sudden cessation of contact between the wheels and the road surface.

“The back end levitated.” Kawaguchi interjected, and Oh-Seven proceeded without skipping a beat.

“I was then able to direct the convoy’s protection to close and re-secure the locking mechanisms built into the lid, after which the Anomalous Langium Event immediately ceased. We have, thus, been able to deduce that it is likely that something penetrated the opened container and either powered the artifact or caused it to activate. We are uncertain as to the definite cause; however, we have arrived at the determination that it is unsafe to store the artifact anywhere where Langium is present.”

Apolonia nodded, bringing her gnarled, clawed hands to her chin in contemplation. Shooting the artifact into the sun (or simply destroying it) wasn’t an option - after all, there was no telling what destroying it could do... But, presumably, the radius it could affect or be activated by langium within was limited, else it’d have carved a hole through the planet by now. Still, there was wisdom in putting it somewhere where very few people were, and where it could easily be made to not be a problem. They couldn’t afford to let anyone else know while it was still in a vulnerable position, so... That left only one option.

She nodded.

“When is the next cargo shipment to the Stella Maris departing?” She asked

Kawaguchi glanced at her, then at the Agência Espacial Brasileira (AEB)’s Administrator; a middle-aged man who promptly tensed up in anxiety. “In... Two weeks. We may be able to fit the object and its new containment unit onto the rocket, but-”

Good Apolonia thought. They took the initiative.

She held up her hand, gesturing for him to stop speaking. “If you are fully confident you can do it safely, then do it. If you can’t, then you can’t - I’d rather do it another time than risk killing astronauts and sending the artifact god-knows-where. Until then, I want the artifact watched constantly by a contingent of the Cacadores. More security than this building. All of you, do what you have to do to keep it safe.” She said, scanning over the Generals.

The Administrator immediately breathed a sigh of relief, nodding.

“There’s another matter, Madam President.” Kawaguchi interjected.

"The Langium exhibited a marked response to what we believe was the artifact being exposed. The fairly regular patterns of X-ray emission that most Langium emits suddenly became highly erratic. We're still studying the patterns to discern what significance they might have, but the way the Langium responded to the artifact at present, leads us to believe something beyond the Langium simply powering the artifact was occurring. Beyond that, the X-rays the sample emitted shouldn't have been enough to power such a serious gravitational distortion, so..."

"Either our understanding of what's needed to distort gravity on a significant level is inadequate, or the artifact was drawing power from something else." The President interjected, bringing her hands down against the table with a sigh.

"Whatever resources you need to figure out what the hell is going on, you'll have them. For all we know, this thing could be a doomsday device. The sooner we know what it does and how it works, the safer we all are." She said, shaking her head in a convincing show of mock-frustration.

Perhaps it was a mere pipe dream, but...

This artifact could be the key to it all. It could spell the difference between illegal alien dumping, a grave accident, or some sort of twisted experiment.

Groaning, Conceição pushed herself to her feet, and made for the door.

It could even be the key to humanity's survival, should the bastards return.

"Ah, and one last thing - I'd like you to utilize Oh-Seven on this, please."

alpine republic

<Snipped quote by Yam I Am>

@USSR

Idk seems like you do

The Obama Prism is presently approaching Moscow at the speed of 666mph.