Wilted Rose

Precipice of War - We Write Under The Sign Of The Goat

------------ Milan, Italy. ------------

Slowly, gradually, the darkness gave way to swirls of golden light, followed by dancing orbs of green, and then a multitude of other colours as he slowly opened his eyes. It would be a moment still for his vision to focus away from the vague shapes of blurred colours, and another moment for His Majesty, Florenstano of Savoy, to realize that this assortment of shapes and colours were the suburban outlines of Milan - his destination, as it would be currently.

"Father, how much longer till we arrive? The train is stuffy, especially with all these men here." Croaked his daughter, as she leaned closer to her mother. He did not blame her, having the Guardia Reale with them constantly wherever they went would put any child on edge. Not that anyone really planned to try anything against his family, he hoped. He was mostly well liked, at least by the majority. The minorities of immigrants, such as the Chinese and Turkish populations in the south, did not approve of his government's policies.

The Parliment was mostly made of people Spain had put into charge after the Ballista Regime was finally put down, so many Spanish policies were adopted and put into effect. Persecution of minorities went unchecked, especially in the industries around Naples, where many Turkish workers are payed several lire less then their Italian co-workers.

He cared little in the end though, he was in the northern part of the Kingdom, to the heart of Milan to give a speach to his people. He had been touring his country with his family for a few months now, speaking to the people about his plans for the future. Though in the end, it was mostly to try and show the people that he isn't as sick as they all thought he was. Despite the efforts of the best doctors in Rome, his condition has gotten much worse over the past year.

He awoked from his thoughts when his wife, Isabella, put her hand on his shoulder. "We're here, my love, are you coming?" She looked down at him, worry easily visable on her face. He hadn't realised he had been sitting at the station for over three miniutes, staring down at his lap. He nodded slowly, pushing himself up and grabbing his cane, which was resting against his seat. The symbol of Italy, the golden eagle, resting as the head.

"Are your legs feeling any better? The doctors said the therapy-" Isabella was cut off with a wave of his hand. "Have some faith, tesoro. I'll recover from this." He nodded sharply, before making his way down to the exit, his hands constantly reaching out to grab a seat for support as he passed. The only other people being his family and the Guardia Reale that escorted him.

"In the end, visiting Milan will be good for me. I have not been here since I was a child. The air here is nice, while maybe not as wonderful as the field near Naples or the smell of the sea outside of Venice... Milan has it's own flavor to it." He said to no one in particular, and no one responded, except his daughter. "Father, how long will be here?" She asked, a normal question she asked everytime they arrived at a new city on their tour. The answer was always the same; "Two days, my girl, only two days then we return to Rome."

------------ Naples, Italy ------------

The sound of the door opening roused Tiberio from his daydream, raising his head from the counter, yawning grogilly. "Keep face off the counter, people eat on that!" Said the man who had just walked in, his Italian was not the best, and his Chinese accent did little to help.

"I thought you had a business trip in Volgograd, and that you were to stay there for a few years?" Said Tiberio, running a hand through his hair, while Kein simply sighed in response, anger contorting his features. "Would've! Country not in good shape, returned home to see me go through three security checks in airport, and get pulled over twice on road. What has happened? Much worse then before!"

"The Parlamento along with our Majesty have done little to stop prejudice down south here, just thank god you are not Turkish. The few groups that settled in Sicily and Naples, have gone through the worst."

Kein scoffed, moving over to the counter and sitting down on one of the stools. "You keep good care of my resturant? I'm going to reopen it, show Naples China good at food, no need for prejudice!"

Tiberio simply nodded in return, as he folded his arms on the counter to comfortable lean forward, supporting his weight on it. "Kein, I think it may be best to just return to China, no offense. I don't think the racism will end becasue of some grand reopening - It'll probably just get worse."

Kein glared, slamming his fist against the table. "I will not leave! I have been here for ten years, learned your language and open resturant which was successful! I will do it all again, just you see. Now go make some fliars, you're going to be my assistant again." He would get off the stool, setting it back into place before moving to the door, opening it. "And wipe that counter, filthy."

Precipice of War - We Write Under The Sign Of The Goat

Oh good, I shall get to work soon then.

Precipice of War - We Write Under The Sign Of The Goat

Pepperm1nts said
I'll throw in my two cents too.Italy was ruled with an iron fist under Batista's regime, for years. I find it a little strange that the people would go from having just liberated themselves from his brutal, totalitarian rule, to suddenly wanting to be ruled by a king. I would think maybe they would be wary of kings, since as far as power goes they aren't much different from dictators. Unless it's constitutional, in which case is a bit more believable, but still a little weird.In Germany/Prussia, the monarchy was revived after years of corruption under a democratic government that kept dun goofin'. So it makes some sense. But you haven't really given a good reason why the people of Italy want a king, after having just been liberated from a dictator.I don't know, I just think it's weird. But I don't know much about this stuff, so eh.

I was planning on the King's power to be limited to that of a constitution, yes, maybe not a full constitution like that of the United Kingdom. I had also figured that Spain would've maybe rigged the vote so that they could get someone in charge who'll stay Spain's best friend for a very long time. Florenstano is so deep in the pocket of Spain that, that I was planning on he might even put a statue to Stoletto(something like that).

Precipice of War - We Write Under The Sign Of The Goat

Nation: Kingdom of Italy
Leader: King Florenstano of Savoy
History:
Following the fall of the Batista regime, rebel forces in italy took over, the Rebel leadership was forced to call a referendum to decide whether Italy should beomce a monarchy or become a republic. Following a nation wide vote, 64% of the nation voted for a monarchy. The majority of the votes coming from the southern half. Duke Florenstano of the House of Savoy was crowned the new King of Italy, and his wife Isabella of the House of Alliata was crowned Queen.

Recently, the king of italy has fallen ill, and despite the best efforts from medical experts in Rome, many believe he has very little time left to live. With only an underage daughter for a child, many in the nation are claiming the Queen will take charge, despite how much she denies this.

Italy, however, has endured great hardship under the rule of King Florenstano. He travelled the country by train and car, working to help get the Italian economy reviatalised while inspiring patriotism within his disheartened people. While the Italian economy has not grown much over the years, many people are looking to the future with their heads high, knowing Italy will soon be a stable and prosperous nation.

Precipice of War - We Write Under The Sign Of The Goat

May I reserve the Italians until I find time to finish a sheet for it?