"Admiral, we’ve received a message from the Cygnus.
Abramov raised an eyebrow curiously. “Kindly relay it.”
The comms officer cleared his throat. “‘Were we expecting Axdelian ships?’”
Abramov stroked his slightly graying beard. “I was not informed of any,” he said, almost to himself, “but Cantaz might have been.” He looked at his comms officer. “Relay that to the good captain.”
“Copy that, sir.”
— Begin quote from ____
I was not informed of any, but Cantaz might have been.
— End quote
“Admiral, we’ve reached the Firing Line. Friendly ships in sight” reported a petty officer.
“Noted, contact the allied flotilla and the JSA, tell them that the 3rd Expedition force has arrived to assist in enforcing embargoes” Admiral Lewis Wright took a sip of his coffee mug and set it back down. The SDFS Newport lifted three F/A-18s onto the deck which stood on standby for immediate launch. The SDFS Falzla trailed behind the Newport with the rest of the 5th fleet as escort.
The more the merrier, I suppose.
A Lieutenant called out from her station. “Captain, we’ve got the SFDS Fleets here, we’re ready to move up now.”
December 7th
Trimola Eknol was swerving through the crowds of military personnel, trying to catch up with the CiC (Commander-In-Chief).
“Mrs. Petrovavich! Mrs. Petrovavich! Wait! I have a message from the SEPCF!”
Everyone’s eyes began to follow her as she ran to Alyona Petrovavich, who had stopped after hearing “SEPCF”
“Eknol, this had better be something important. I have too much work to worry about to worry about a false alarm”
“Trust me, this is plenty important.”
Eknol handed the printed out message to the CiC.
It read:
[spoiler]"To whom it may concern,
I represent the Southern East Pacific Coalition, and respectfully request your integration into our organization to prevent the Fire Pact from their sinister intentions. We expect a response by seven days.
Best Regards,
Anatoly Baryshnikov
Minister of Defense of The Most Serene Republic of Stratarin"]The Message[/spoiler]
‘Not another war…’ Thought Petrovavich. She had been a leader in the Kostuvastan Civil War, and knew just how many people died on her watch. She did NOT want any more bloodshed of her people. She wanted to keep these tyrants in the Fire Pact from hindering other nations’ freedom, however, and spent many hours pondering on what she, as Commander in Chief, should decide.
Mrs. Petrovavich sent a message to Baryshnikov, and had agreed to join the SEPCF. She had only one condition: No Tuvalt blood can be spilled should war fall upon them.
The Press caught wind of Tuvaltastan joining SEPCF, and while in a conference, Petrovavich was confronted by TBN news. They had asked a flood of predominantly unintelligible questions, and to silence the press said, “The Tuvalt Government, although part of the SEPCF, will not allow any Tuvalt be harmed in this conflict. As such, the Navy, Aero Force, the Army, as well as the Subterran Forces, have unanimously agreed to retreat from any positions should any threat to the lives of Tuvaltis exist.”
That, however, did not subside the questioning. Petrovavich ordered the press to leave, and continued the meeting.
Present day
“Mrs. Petrovavich, ma’am, the Fire Pact has declared war on the SEPCF,” said Trimola Eknol after entering the CiC’s office. She was in a discussion with the Kostrom Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
“Why are you telling me? I already told the world what we’re going to do in the case of war. We’re going to keep our people out of the line of fire. Now please get out. I’m in a meeting, if you couldn’t tell.”
Eknol left, feeling a bit dumb for interrupting Petrovavich.
‘Why would the Fire Pact risk their citizens over an embargo?’ Eknol thought to herself.
She continued with her meeting, and spent that night in the command center in Novosibirsk.
Cantaz Joint Ops. Command, 1400 Hours
General Lapidus walked purposefully into the command center, tossing a file onto the table in the middle of the room.
“Good afternoon,” he addressed the people at the table. “I’ve heard a series of unconfirmed reports from different sources in the last few days that the Oan Isles are expanding into Gondwana. Stratarin is currently allied with them, but it’s something to be wary of, all the same.”
He eased into his chair. "What do you all think?
“Lapidus, you got a map or any predictions where they’re expanding?” the newly promoted Lieutenant General Wilhelm would ask his Strataric counterpart and now friend, getting to bond with him over the timespan of their time working together.
Lapidus nodded, then opened the file. “All our intelligence points to them starting here, on these islands,” he gestured to an image in the file, “to gradually end up…” his finger traced along the paper, than stopped, “here.”
Addressing the room, Lapidus commented, “As I said, Stratarin and the Oan Isles have various diplomatic agreements. And we’re certainly not averse to expansion.” He coughed. “All the same, the way they’re expanding looks like they’re trying to establish a foothold in Gondwana. And I don’t like the sound of that.”
“If they hold the islands, they have a strategic point to mount and launch an attack on our coastline. It will also give them control over some trade routes and crucial territory needed for our navies to move around…” Wilhelm would lean in and look over the isthmus.
“The Isthmus claim could possibly choke some of our air operations in Gondwana, ferrying shit from the mainland to Cantaz and back is already hard enough.”
“Well, there are several basic options we have, as I see it. We could bargain for safe passage, we could take the routes we need by force, or we try to avoid their territory. Now,” Lapidus straightened his uniform, “I have seen enough of war and it’s http://forum.theeastpacific.com/topic/7004258/ recently, so I recommend against option two. Option three would cause logistical nightmares for our shipping and movement of fleets, not to mention it would at times be impossible. My recommendation is option one.”
He looked around the table to see if anyone else had an opinion.
-DELETED-
Cantaz, 0800 hours, 07.09.17
As the morning dawned, the site of a Strataric warship pulling away from the coast was prominent against the orange sky and calm, gold-tinted waters. Several specks in the distant sky, to the observant viewer, were revealed to be ON-76 transports, loaded with Strataric troops who were homeward bound.
Not a man, woman, or any military item originating from Stratarin were left in the base.
That is, other than one letter, addressed to Lieutenant General Wilhelm.
To my former friend Wilhelm,
Yet again, powers far above me have dictated my course of action. I am a military man. I’ve made my peace with this long ago.
I wanted to state that it was a pleasure working with an officer as efficient and capable as yourself. Perhaps one day we shall work side by side again.
But today shall not be that day. Nor likely shall that day be tomorrow.
I refer to you as a former friend not as a gesture of ill will, but simply as reality. Friendships between officers of different international powers can only be fleeting, at best, especially due to the geopolitical state between Stratarin and Setzna.
Finally, I give you a warning: if I return within my lifetime, I doubt it will be in peace. Know that I will not hesitate to do what is necessary for my nation, as I’d expect you to do likewise for yours.
-Lapidus