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Topics - Libby

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1
Diplomacy and Events / Art and Diplomacy (Lodja and NU + maybe others)
« on: September 03, 2023, 10:42:52 PM »
The Civil War in Lodja had taken its toll on the Isle of the Goddess in ways other than the obvious. While the royal wing had been swiftly repaired there were still teams of restorers finding the odd bullet hole along the corridors every now and again. It wasn't uncommon that you could walk down the corridor and find a couple of workman painstakingly filling a hole with plaster and then doing their best to make it look like the ancient stone that the palace was made from. In some cases it had been actually easier to chisel out the old stone and then carefully shape a new one to take its place. Those in the know, including Isidora, could spot the patch jobs and this morning as she made her way to the art storeroom deep in the cavernous underbelly of the palace she spotted a new one.

Her job in the Palace was two-fold. First and maybe most importantly to appear at certain special occasions on the arm of her husband Besarian. It had not been a match made for love like many girls who attend the recently concluded balls had, instead it had been one arranged because Besarian was way to old to be a Bachelor and her step-fathers considered the Ivanov's polo buddies. Their marriage was though a happy one, they supported each others endeavours and she actually rather liked him and of course it helped that he was rather handsome. Her second job in the palace was her passion, art. She had long worked in the Palace as an artist even before marrying the former Lord of the Conclave. She had spent afternoons with other artists sat in the various gardens sketching, painting and even at one point learning to sew tapestries. She'd amassed for her family quiet a collection of art works and that had landed her this job. Cataloguing the royal collection. It had taken her team several months and now all that was left was the collection of art works gifted to the Royals by other nations. Isidora had the official list and as they checked each of the crates in which they were stored between displays she examined their condition, noted any that needed restoration or cleaning and then had them sealed again. Often they were brought out for special exhibitions or more often when someone from that nation was visiting. She ticked off a few from East Moreland given by King David, then there were various portraits painted by Emperor Orion himself of Neu Urburzis for the coronation of Queen Klara. They showed the new Queen and her Ladies and as Isidora checked them off she stopped, glanced down at the paper and flicked it over back and forth several times checking and rechecking the list. She put an asterisk next to one of the codes and then carried on. Three hours later they had done with everything but that one accounted for. It would be rather embarrassing if next summer during the balls their Emperor came as they suspected her would and they couldn't find a painting done by his own hand. There was though one bit of hope, they could avoid making a public announcement and perhaps there was a chance of getting it back.

Isidora scratched her head and then remembered. Makar her brother in law had been rather well connected with their Princess Adelheid and so that would be there route to make some kind of contact.

Makar made the phone call and after various chit chat broached the subject. "Adelheid you remember those portraits Orion painted. Well we have a problem, my sister-in-law is curating the palace art works and well, one is missing. Isidora thinks it likely stolen for some reason during the civil war. You can't think of anyone who would want that particular picture or if there is like a black market for your cousins art?" 

2

Motto:- "To love beauty is to see light"
National Anthem :- In Your Name
Spoiler: National Anthem Lyrics • show

The song is to the tune of Katyusha and in English the lyrics are
The Lodjain people gathered,
To worship their goddess Sessifet.
They prayed for her guidance,
And for her protection.

Chorus

Sessifet, Sessifet,
Your light is our guide.
We will build a nation
In your name.

Verse 2

They worked together,
To build a city on the coast.
They called it Gaia,
And it was a symbol of their hope.

Chorus

Sessifet, Sessifet,
Your light is our guide.
We will build a nation
In your name.

Bridge

The city grew,
And the Lodjain people prospered.
They were a peaceful people,
But they were also strong and resilient.

Chorus

Sessifet, Sessifet,
Your light is our guide.
We will build a nation
In your name.

Outro

We are the Lodjain people,
And we will never be defeated.
We will build a nation
That will last for all time.


The Divine Queendom of Lodja is a non-heriditary monarchy. Its earliest origin can be found in the 10th Century when the city of Gaia was claimed by raiders from the "Rus" originating Lodjain tribe. These people had mirgated steadily south from Aranye over the proceeding centuries and claimed various islands in the Alucard which brought them into clashes with people from Paracambi, the Alanders and what were to become the Bakkermayans. The original Lodjain tribe were persecuted in the Rus homeland for worshipping the Goddess Sessifet and under the guidance of the Priestesses sought out where Sessifet had first begun to inhabit a human host in the form of Miriam. It was believed here the people could have a home. Evidence suggests it was Queen Rosanna, who was one of multiple Lodjain Queens who inhabited the islands and claimed to be High Queen of Sessifet, who launched a raid on the mainland of Albion. There her Priestesses, while inspecting for slaves, discovered a cave on a tidal island and "evidence" of this being the location of Sessifet and Miriam's joining. Rather than leave the mainland as had happened in other raids the Lodjains remained, fortified the island and then began claiming the land. This finally saw all Lodjains declare loyalty to Rosanna and thus the modern day version of the nation was born.

The Divine Queendom remained largely unchanged until the 1600's when Duke Vitali Eramenko used his influence to effectively pick three Queens, one being his daughter and two his nieces. This gave him effective control of the Queendom and while the nation remained one devoted to the worship of Sessifet and venerating the Queen as a living guardian of the Goddess the power balance began to shift. As the nation remained on paper a matriachy Duke Vitali effectively ensured that in terms of military power and control of the Conclave the nation was all but ruled by men. While the Queen has had the power to rule practically unopposed the Conclave selecting the Queen at the previous ones passing have ensured that the Dukes have remained largely in control. It was only in the reign of Queen Sonya  which began in 1916 that this balance began to reshift. Under the subsequent Queens, first Viktoriya, then Klara, this power shift continued but political uphevel at these changes caused change to be slow and many believe lead to their deaths. Viktoriya via assassination by the then High Priestess for effectively marginalising the Priesthood, and then Klara who died during the "Civil War" which began after King Leopold believed he could seize power. 

Government Type:- Theocratic Monarchy
Population:-:- 164million
Capital City:- Gaia (2million)
Demonym:- Lodjain

ECONOMY

Currency:- The Geld
GDP per Capita:- $26,000
Unemployment Rate:- 2.7%
Main Industries:- Natural Gas/Oil, Precious Metals, Textiles, jewellery, ores.

PEOPLE


Ethnicity:- 90% Lodjain (RL.Russian)/ 10% Other
Languages:- Lodjain
Religions:- Nation is based on Sessifet teachings
Average Life Expectancy:- 78 years of age

GOVERNMENT

Head of State:- Queen Natalya Guardian of Sessifet
Head of Government:- Lord  Lubos Kubik
Name of Legislative Body:- The Conclave

3
Vignettes / A Very Lodjain Switch of Policy
« on: July 02, 2023, 11:07:37 AM »
Natalya had been Queen for just over a year now and to the average Lodjain nothing much had changed. The chaos of the "civil war" was over and much had been done to bring those responsible to justice, Natalya had rebuilt a government after some were dead, a few missing and question marks hung over the head of several now former ministers. With the train back on the tracks Natalya had been spending a fair bit of time with the Priestess Arina Maksimov. Natalya had always followed Sessifet but was never what could be described as deeply religious, now though she was the Guardian of Sessifet and the goddess, so it was claimed, lived inside her. As such Natalya was determined to make sure she became a fitting Guardian as her people would demand. She was a fast learner and as she learned more of the theology of her native faith she also came to understand a great deal of her nations past and it was clear that they had become distinctively un-Sessifet, at least to her. This therefore would lead to today.

Her morning started when her alarm went off at 6am she had a rather torrid evening of sleep tossing and turning as she wondered what Hahona Mere, her Maori lover, would say. Last night they had dined together and Natalya had informed him of her first plan. It was expected that the Queen would mother several children, hopefully female,  who would aid the Queendom, either entering the Priesthood or as many of Queen Sonya's offspring had done as diplomats. The issue had been though that in subsequent reigns of Viktoriya and Klara there had been a lack of children. Natalya was hopeful of a long reign and while the Lodjians were far from racist the idea of Maori man fathering the off-spring of Sessifet was probably going to be a tough pill to take. Natalya had discussed their future, she loved Hahona but knew one day he would lead an Iwi of the Maori and therefore their futures would likely mean time apart. She though wanted him in her life and so had discovered an aspect of Lodjains darker past that could have put a path forward. In the 1500's the Lodjains had banned slavery but before then it had been custom for the Queen to take as gifts slaves for her bed chamber, when one found a special place in her heart he was named "Holy Consort" and as such was treated well and more importantly for Natalya was permitted to be seen in public with the Queen as her partner. Natalya had asked Arina if such an arrangement was possible without slavery and was thankfully informed it was however there had been none since the ending of that practice. With this explained to Hahona he had not exactly taken it well especially with the connections to slavery and his nations own past. He had been invited to the 8am Conclave meeting and there Natalya hoped he may have an answer. Now all she could do was shower and wait for her Ladies in Waiting to arrive to help her dress.

The Queens suites were at the terminus of a dead end corridor. Eight smaller suites stood before hers, traditionally those doors on the left as your approached the Queens chamber were for the four Ladies in Waiting, those on the right had two furthest away from the Queens door reserved for honoured guests, the two closest for her Lord of the Conclave and Head of Security. The corridor was guarded by two men at all times and these were from a very selective group of soldiers, they knew many of the coming and goings of the powerful and discretion was important and gossip was largely the fuel of the Lodjain Court. The door of Lady Jasmina opened. She was the most senior of the Ladies in Waiting and therefore closest to the Queen. The two guards were not surprised that it was actually the Morelander Peter Kade, cousin of King David, who backed out as though quietly trying to leave unnoticed, rather ironic with the guards at the far end. "Stay" a sweet female voice whispered as Jasmina grabbed his tie.

"I can't" the Morelander said his face turning red as one of the guards turned and gave a respectful "Good Morning Sir" type nod. "I've got that meeting the Queen called at 8 and I have to speak with Northfort first." He explained as Jasmina grabbed his tie and pulled him towards her planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Ten minutes" she pressed against him in her fluffy white robe. "Its not like the Queens going to turn up without me helping her first. Ten minutes" she pleaded but Peter, his face now feeling like it was burning gently removed her hand, kissed her cheek and then apologising to her left. As he passed the guards he heard her door close and he said to the guards, "Just arranging things for the Festival of Sail." he said by way of explaining his presence in the room despite their affair being only the second worst kept secret in the Palace after the Queen's own love-life.

"Of course Sir, enjoy your day Sir" one of the guards, a Sergeant in the newly formed Queen's Honour Guard Regiment said trying top keep his face straight as the Morelander headed off to his own chamber within the Palace, likely to change into a new white shirt that didn't have lipstick on the collar.

As Jasmina headed back into her room there was a knock on her internal door, each of the Ladies Rooms had internal doors meaning they could move between their neighbours without exiting into the main corridor and also Jasmina could enter directly into the Queens. Jasmina opened the door to Tonya her 2nd in command of the Queens Ladies. Tonya was already dressed for the day. "10 minutes? Thats all you wanted?" She teased.

"I think thats all he could handle." Jasmina joked as she headed for her bathroom. "He's a gentleman but not exactly red hot lover material" she confessed. "He's useful though, the favourite cousin of King David, can't hurt to keep him happy. I mean he's not an Emperor." She laughed as she looked at Tonya.

"Just doing my bit for the Queendom" Tonya waited for her boss to get herself a shower and dressed in the plain blue dress that was uniform for the Ladies. As first Zhenya and then Svetlana joined them they quickly ate breakfast and then knocked on the Queens door which opened pretty quickly. As always Natalya was practically ready, she had grown up without the trappings of servants that many rich Lodjain nobles had the advantage of having grown up in the Commonwealth of the Iwi. She needed help with the pale blue and gold dress that much like the Ladies in Waiting formed her own uniform. It had a sewn in scarf, elaborate cuffs and then of course there was her hair. By 7:30am she was ready and Svetlana, the least senior Lady in Waiting, informed the guards they were ready. Two more guards appeared and having saluted the Queen the Ladies formed a kind of protective square around the Queen while the guards then formed a diamond around them. They headed off towards the Grand Council Chamber, a room close to the entrance of the palace which despite its name could seat only 50 or so people, governments of Lodja being rather streamlined compared to many. Natalya was nervous as she walked, what she was about to tell the assembled people would have a big impact on the Queendom.

"Make way for the Queen" the Sergeant of the guard periodically yelled as the morning hustle and bustle of the Palace's corridors potentially blocked the way. Several people made their way to the sides of the corridor and bowed to the Queen as she passed wishing her a good day, several asked for a moment of time, often with envelopes in their hand but the Queen ignored these as the Ladies in Waiting, going in reverse order of seniority, would hurry and collect them before trying to gracefully run back into position. Most of these letters were from nobles asking for blessings for daughters to marry, a tradition that meant the Ladies in Waiting essentially sent a standard response letter, a few were from foreign ambassadors asking for meetings which Jasmina would schedule and then arrange. A few people the Queen did stop and speak to so that by 8am she stood at the door. Inside where her current Conclave, people holding royal titles thanks to connections to Queen Sonya and Queen Viktoriya, a few hand picked ambassadors and the leading Priestesses.

"Ready Your Divine Majesty?" Jasmina asked as she reached towards the door handle.

"Yes....no.....lets go" Natalya said and Jasmina did her best to give her a reassuring smile before pushing the door open. The sound of seats moving as people stood knowing what was about to happen filled the corridor. Jasmina waited for the sound to stop. "Her Divine Majesty, Guardian of Sessifet, Queen Natalya of Lodja has arrived" Jasmina announced, stepped aside to allow her four soldier escort in and then the Queen followed with her remaining Ladies behind. She looked around the room checking that everyone she needed was here and satisfied that they were she took her seat trying to gauge the look on the face of Hahona who was sat in the second row among several other ambassadors. Realising she needed to begin she gave a small cough, "Thank you for coming, I am bringing you good and bad news. Good news is that I am introducing reforms to make Lodja a stronger nation, the bad news is for some of you......you will not like what I am to say but you will accept it." 

4
Diplomacy and Events / The Emperor's Visit to a Ball
« on: August 23, 2022, 11:16:58 PM »
Iskar was the Lodjain island closest to the mainland and the ancesteral home of the Peligaya family. The Peligayas were so entrenched in the life of the island that its second town was named after them and the family held both noble titles associated with the island, Sheriff of Iskar and Duke of Peligaya. One day Stasya would inherit both these titles. Every summer the island became a favourite holiday destination for the Lodjain elite as they would moor their yachts in Iskar and enjoy the fine sandy beaches that ran the length of the islands east coast. When the Summer Ball season began there was a clamour to try and get on the guest list for the Peligaya families one, even more so since Stasya had become Queen of East Moreland. Even though she was now the Queen of East Moreland she had no intention of missing the ball season. It was a time when the elite of society mingled, young noble men and women were formally introduced to society and a whole host of marriages arranged. While the young men wore black tie the girls in their first summer season were expected to wear white dresses, it was the only colour those attending for any reason other than their first year couldn't wear.

When word had broken that the Emperor of Abertone and the Queen of Lodja were going to be attending in addition to the Peligaya's demand for tickets had increased several times over and all of a sudden every distant cousin of the family crawled out of the woodwork. On the night itself security was tight as members of all three monarchs security details had been involved. Members of the Lodjain military were sat out of view in the forest that surrounded the Peligaya's luxurious beach front estate. It was also possibly the first time any ball had seen an amphibious assault ship parked just off the coast as extra security.

The arrivals began to arrive. Some via boat having been stopped by the Lodjain Marines 1km off the beach, others arrived by the main gate having been thoroughly checked first. Naturally the Emperor of Abertone was given a much easier entry to the estate having been flown in via the families private helicopter from the main land before any guests had been permitted to enter the estate. He was taken to meet with Queen Stasya who was awaiting the arrival of Queen Nataliya at any moment from her private suite in the Pelagiya's house. While the Lodjain Queen was prepared it gave Stasya time to introduce Emperor Marco to his plus one for the evening. Tonya Bogdanovic one of the Lodjain Ladies in Waiting. She was also a distant cousin of the Pelagiyas and her father Sheriff of the town of Luzhny on the mainland. It was also customary for visiting state guests to be accompanied by a Lady in Waiting to ensure they enjoyed their stay. The two Lodjains approached the Emperor as he was shown to the terrace. "Your Imperial Majesty" Stasya kissed the Emperor on both cheeks and then stepped back. "May I introduce Lady in Waiting to the Queen Lady Tonya. The young aide to Natalya stepped forward and offered a dainty hand to Marco.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." She gave a small bobbed curtsey as best you could in a shoulderless red ball gown. "Her Majesty shall be down just as the ball begins but she is looking forward to meeting you. In the mean time if there is anything I can help with I'll do my best."

5
Vignettes / Lodjain Coronation 2022
« on: May 08, 2022, 09:56:38 PM »
OOC - A joint Nottingham post



The buzz of excitement around Gaia was huge. This was a once in a lifetime event, normally people would have said that about the coronation of young monarch anyway but in the last few years Lodja's crown seemed to carry a curse and for most Lodjains this would be the third coronation they would have witnessed but for each of them it would be the first time they actually could have seen it with their own eyes. The central square of Gaia had a huge statue to the Goddess of Sessifet hoisted high on a pedestal but today around the bottom a stage had been constructed and it was here that the coronation would take place, not in some cave under the Isle of the Goddess. The three large buildings that hosted the civil service and other organs of government flanked three sides of the square while the forth was left open with a large sloping park now filling up with a huge number of people. In anticipation of this large video screens had been erected and speakers attached to lamp-posts. The prospect of driving a car along the streets was impossible and only the road that lead to the Isle of the Goddess was devoid of crowds as members of the Police and military kept it open. Out of the eyes of the general public marksman lined to top of the government buildings and covert members mingled with the crowds.

Over on the island itself the new High Priestess, Maria Shvets, was putting the finishing touches to her preparations. She would today potentially be starting new traditions and what she wrote could last thousands of years. It was a pressure she was only too aware of and butterflies were doing barrel rolls in her stomach. Next door the future Queen was equally nervous. Unconstrained by tradition she had opted for a change from the blue dress with gold embroidery and instead had the colours reversed. The dress hugged her figure but was designed to float onto the floor in such a way that if the Queen took small enough steps it could give the impression she was gliding. Two of the Ladies in Waiting attended on her while the third was busily arranging some flowers that the Queen would carry. There was a knock on the door as Jasmina left her flower duty to answer. "I beg your pardon Miss." A tall Maori man dressed in olive green dress uniform, a cap tucked under his arm and a small box in his right hand. "My name is Lieutenant Hahona   Mere I was wondering if I could speak with Her Majesty."

Jasmina was about to turn this junior officer away as they were busy but Natalya had heard the voice. "Come in Hona" she yelled and removed herself from the attentions of the other two Ladies in Waiting in order to give the Maori officer a hug. The much taller Hahona leaned forward and the two pressed noses against each other. He was the heir to the Chiefdom of the Ngāti Paoa which had adopted the Kozel family several years ago. The two had become good friends and as soon as Natalya had been announced as Queen their militia had been part of her security contingent. The Queen stepped out of the hug and looked him up and down. "You look great" she'd never seen him in his uniform before and it did make him look rather handsome.

"It should be me saying that to you.....Your Majesty" It would take some getting used to having to address her formally. "You look beautiful. I'm sure you're Queendom will be very proud of their new Queen." He understood the vanity of the Lodjains and although he hoped Natalya wasn't going to be like them he wasn't saying it as a form of flattery. "It would mean a lot to our Iwi if you allowed us to be the first to present you with a gift." He handed over the box and flipped the lid open. It was a turtle shell bracelet with a solid silver clasp. The turtle was the Iwi's emblem and the silver clasp bore the date.

"Of course" Natalya took the gift and held it up to Hahona to make a show of inspecting it, a tradition among the Maori. She slipped it on and closed the clasp, "What do you think?" she asked her Ladies in Waiting who smiled approvingly. "I love it, please thank the Iwi" she added. Hahona held the box expecting her to take it off and replace it in the box. "Oh, I'm not taking it off." Natalya instructed him, "I was hoping to somehow show my connection to the people of the Commonwealth but wasn't sure how. You've saved my bacon so to speak." she kissed him on the cheek. "I'm sorry but I need to finish getting ready." She went back to the mirror and Hahona bid her goodbye as he headed out to find the rest of his Regiment down at the foot of the Isle where they would be part of the ceremony. By the time he got down there four columns of soldiers were putting the finishing touches to themselves. The Maori twelve were keen to hear of the Queen, each of them were members of the Royal Forest Scouts but also members of the Ngāti Paoa. Next to them was the green and red kilted members of the Cenneg based Highland Fusiliers each man carrying a ceremonial claymore that were recieving appreciative glances from the Royal Marines from East Moreland. A contingent of Lodjian Air Men completed what would be the escort for the Queen who was now making her way down the road from the Palace. Groups of staff from the Palace lined the road as the Queen's car passed. Once at the bottom of the hill the Queen was helped from the car by Lord Besarian Ivanov who escorted her to where a large open top boat was waiting. Carefully it was loaded, the Lodjains and Morelander escort in the front, the Queen, her Ladies and High Priestess in the centre while the Cenneg and Maori brought up the rear. Shvets had considered having rowers take them the kilometer or so across the bay to Gaia itself but instead had found a boat with a small engine that soon had them at the other side.

On the other side of the bay the King's of the CNN nations waited, no doubt the three of them Piripi, Finley and David had been chatting about the up coming rugby world cup before they were told the Queen was arriving meanwhile the Queens were probably complaining about the rugby. In a large square the escorts formed up, two nations in front and two behind. This was to be a symbol of the Queens closest friends being supportive of her coronation, something that would in the eyes of many Lodjains be important. The Queen came over and greeted each of the monarchs, David and Finley with friendly kisses on the cheek and Piripi with the touching of foreheads. She had a horse carriage for each of them which followed her own as they made their short journey from the quayside to the square where the ceremony would take place. The crowd was now huge. A lottery had taken place to give members of the public entrance into the square itself, something that had annoyed the nobility who had expected to be front and centre. On the stage several Priestesses stood all dressed in black. A large throne had been placed in the centre and a small table held a crown and several other objects. As the convoy reached the square the crowd began applauding. The CNN monarchs were given front row seats of course while their military contingent formed a circle around the stage.

Maria Shvets took centre stage now, her long red robe marking her as a person of significance today she gave a quick cough to clear her throat and check the microphone attached to her dress was working and then began. "We gather here today in a manner unusual for our nation. Today marks the beginning of a new era in Lodjain history and therefore it is perhaps fitting our coronation is done in such a way as we have never seen before. I would call on each of us to take a moment of silence to remember Queen Klara before we begin." The square fell silent and heads looked skywards as people offered prayers to Sessifet. After a suitable time Shvets began again. " The Goddess Sessifet sacrificed her physical form, the perfection of beauty, in order to save mankind. As an act of love and devotion to the supreme Goddess the young maiden Mariam offered her own body as a replacement willing to have her soul leave to allow the Goddess to remain. The Goddess though would not see such a beautiful soul lost and so the pair shared the physical vessel and Mariam ruled as Queen with the Goddess guiding her every step. From that day forward as one vessel completes it service a new is found. A vessel of great beauty, spirituality, intelligence and youth is required and so the Priesthood is tasked with such an endeavour. Today we name that person as Natalya Kozel." a ripple of applause went through the crowd. "Usually part of Sessifet's soul is trapped within the vessel and released with fire to be consumed by the new Queen. In this case the soul of Sessifet has already been released and so will have taken to nature in order to preserve her soul. We now welcome her back to our world." Shvets motioned for Natalya to come onto the stage and took from her the flowers she had been carrying. "The white rose has always been the flower of the Goddess." The High Priestess plucked the petals from the flower one by one while praying and placed it in a small container of boiling water. "Through flame and water we release the Goddesses spirit. We ask that she return to us and accept the physical vessel that we have provided for her. We ask that the two of them become one and guide our lands on the path that Sessifet has set before us." A large silver ladal appeared and Shvets scooped some of the rose petal infused water into a golden goblet. She then carefully picked up the container and poured it onto the ground. "Natalya Kozel. The Priesthood have consulted the scriptures, we have looked for omens, we have considered your heritage and your beauty. We believe Sessifet will be happy to accept you as her vessel. To serve her as Queen and act as a conduit between the Goddess and her children. You would be the mother of us all. Do you allow Sessifet to share you physical form for the rest of your worldly life?"

Natalya paused for a second, "I gladly share myself with Sessifet for as long as the Goddess needs me." Shvets handed her the golden cup and unable to help herself Natalya found herself blowing on the liquid incase it was hot. It was a little as she sipped and already she could feel the roof of her mouth forming a slight blister. She did her best not to react after all the Goddess was now joining with her. She wondered how long that process would take as she took further sips until the strangely sweet liquid had gone. As Shvets had instructed she held the cup upside down showing the crowd that she had drained it.

"We recognise you now as Queen Natalya, Guardian of Sessifet. Please take your throne." Natalya did as instructed and Shvets moved in front of her. A teenage girl with blonde hair in a white dress walked onto the stage. "The Patricians of Lodja present you with this crown." Shevts handed it the girl, the daughter of a randomly selected noble. The girl nervously guided it towards Natalya's head, "May it act as a symbol of your status as Queen." The girl completed her task of placing the crown, bowed and then stood to one side. A second girl of a similar age came on, she too was wearing a white dress and had fiery red hair. "The Plebleians of Lodja present you with this staff." A long golden appearing spear shaft with a four pronged top was handed over. "May it act as a symbol of your duty to protect the people."  Natalya held it upright as Lord Lubos Kubik approached. "On behalf of your people the Lord of the Conclave will take an oath of loyalty to you."

Kubik was a giant compared to Shvets and the High Priestess suspected that he could probably have done this without even needing the microphone. "I swear to the Goddess that I will serve the vessel appointed as Queen of Lodja as a humble servant. I am hers to command and shall to the best of my abilities serve her to achieve the will of the Goddess. My Queen Natalya-Sessifet have a long and joyful reign." He knelt and only now seemed a similar size to Natalya, she offered her hand and he kissed it before standing behind the throne.

Shvets pronounced her the new Queen and invited her to address the crowd. Natalya handed her new regalia to the Ladies in Waiting and then stood to face the people on the sweeping hillside. "We have been fortunate to have been part of the lives of three incredible people over the last ten years. First we were with Queen Sonya, a lady who gave nearly 90 years of dedicated service to our people. A woman who even now has family trying to serve us. Then we were Queen Viktoriya, a woman driven to help author some of the key documents of our time. Finally we were Queen Klara, a young lady driven to change Lodja but denied the time. Klara was our hope for a Lodja that made up for time. While Sonya was loving, kind and devoted she was nervous of change. Klara was not. She was intent on making Lodja a land of beauty, not just physically but morally. We shall continue her work. We shall complete her work. Each of you will be required to be open to change, to support it and embrace it. We have strong friends with us to help us on our path. King David of East Moreland has been a steadfast supporter of our nation and just as he has guided us in the past we hope we can still count on his friendship and patience as we walk our road. King Finley of Ui Cenneslaig has supported our efforts to make the Alucard a better place and between the two of us I....we are...committed to making the Alucard the safesty and most harmonious ocean in the world. Now to our beloved Maori brothers and sister. For five years you permitted us to reside within your borders, you helped us learn, helped us become the vessel that was selected to host Sessifet. We can not thank you enough and we say to you "Ka mau tonu tetahi wahi o toku ngakau ki aua whenua." Now though our work must begin to make us a nation that was worthy of the sacrifice of Miriam. That work begins tomorrow for tonight we celebrate. Thank you for your love." The crowd cheered and the Queen descended the steps. She presented each of the CNN monarchs wives with a white rose and each of the men with a smaller version of the goblet she had used. There was a pause before she spoke, as though she was thinking of how to word things. "I hope you will all join me for a private drink later tonight. There is much I'd like to speak to you all about. First though we need to get back to the Isle." The Queen mounted her carriage and was taking a roundabout route back to the Isle whereas the monarchs and various other guests were taken via a direct route, this time in cars.

The Isle was now in full party mode, and the Lodjains knew those matters better than most on Mundus. This time the tide had gone out and they could all drive across the causeway and up to the Palace itself. The quiant little inn at the bottom of the hill was already filling up with those staff not needed for the event and their family. At the top of the road stewards of the royal household had drinks waiting and the ball room of the Palace was hung with Gold and Blue drapes as a band began to play classical style music. Around the Palace various other small halls featured other musical artists and there was no shortage of booze flowing. The Queen arrived around 90 minutes after everyone else and now devoid of her crown she entered. "Honoured Guests" the Palace Chamberlain interupted the music. "Please be upstanding for Her Majesty Queen Natalya." the room parted as the Queen entered and for the first time today she felt a little self conscience. She scanned the room unsure how to proceed, if she favoured one guest over another than she would perhaps knock someones nose out of joint but then she spotted the towering Maori soldiers and among them Hahona, she made her way over.

"Hona they're going to expect me to dance and if I pick the wrong Lodjain its a mess so your it." She grabbed his arm and he followed, there were a few puzzled looks around the room as several well connected Lodjains questioned who the officer was. As the Queen nodded for the music to begin she motioned to the other CNN monarchs to join her. Queen Stasya didn't need to be asked twice, being back home she'd seen many admiring glances and she was enjoying the attention. She dragged David onto the dance floor and placed her hands around his neck after positioning his hands on her hips. Finley dressed in his kilt didn't need asking twice, he would have preffered something a bit more rowdy but after slipping the band a few whiskey's he'd hope that would come later. Queen Riona smiled as her husband tossed the tiny dagger from his sock to his brother Lennox before grabbing her to begin dancing. Piripi though was no dancer, he was perhaps the least elegant looking man here and refusing to take off his giant feather cloak made dancing difficult. Queen Maata was teasing him that at least one Maori could dance as she watched Hona and Natalya lead the dancing. The party would continue until around 6am the next morning although with business to get down to the next day the Queen headed out at about 2am after a brief nightcap with the other monarchs.

Piripi felt as though he should begin the toasts when alone, he felt Natalya in some ways was one of his people, she'd embraced Maori culture and he counted her father as a friend. "Natalya as you know we think the world of you back in the Commonwealth. As of late we've been pretty bad CNN friends with everyone, that will change and you will be the conduit. I am glad to be back among friends." He raised his glass.

David had a package under his seat and after he'd enjoyed a quick sip of the Cenneg whiskey Finley had brought David presented a book from under the fabric. "Its become somewhat of a tradition that when I attend a coronation I bring a gift of a book. The knowledge of books is something that helps guide us all. This one though is a little different." He handed over a book that was a little thinner than perhaps Natalya had expected it was made of leather but still had a lingering smell of newness about it. "Inside are all the communications between the monarchs of East Moreland and Lodja. You'll notice there are many pages left that I hope we will fill and that the book need never get passed on for a very long time." He drained his glass, "Now if Finley will top this up we'll hear what he has to say."

The Morelander and Cenneg King had gone through a great deal of the bottle and as he handed David the bottle Finley stood unlike the others. "I'm not a man for pretty words." David and Piripi laughed, "But us Cenneg like a toast, or six, so Natalya" Finley closed his eyes as he tried to ensure he got the words right. "May good luck be with you wherever you go, and your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow. May your days be many and your troubles be few, May all the God's.." He paused for a moment, "May all the Gods, Helus, Sessifets, Rangi and Papa's blessings descend upon you, May peace be within you, May your heart be strong, May you find what you're seeking wherever you roam and not matter how far and whatever the miles let your feet always find your way home." He opened his eyes satisfied that he had got things right. "Long live the Queen."

"Long live the Queen" the other two added. The three Kings looked at each other and remembered the good times they'd shared, usually over a rugby game, now though there was a new member to their inner circle and only time would tell if she would be a good fit.


OOC- Assume that you were invited if you want. If anyone would like to take the opportunity that the tradition is the Queen meets petitioners the next afternoon and foreign guests get first go then feel free to.

6
Diplomacy and Events / Doctor on Call - Birth of a New Chapterhouse Vol.1
« on: November 08, 2021, 09:31:53 PM »

To:- Doctor Olivia Robertsson, Thane of Jokkmokk

You will of course be aware that the Theocracy of Kaitaine, under the stewardship of the Bene Gesserit sisterhood, is establishing much of the needed infastructure, management and know how to ensure the smooth running of a nation. Two of the pillars of that are education and health care. We have seen with much admiration how you have helped several nations including your own with health care issues and would value your insight. In addition we believe that you are exactly the kind of young woman that we hope our students at Chapterhouse wish to emulate. With that said we are currently exploring the opening of the sixth Chapterhouse and as such would value having you visit during the opening to engage with our first intake of students as well as meet with our Health Ministers to discuss ways we can improve our own provision.

Best Regards

Reverend Mother Erin McGregor





7
Diplomacy and Events / A Cross Border Talk
« on: August 19, 2021, 10:04:30 PM »

To:- His Majesty King Kārlis IV of Chistopol

Since the foundation of our Theocracy we have had a significant number of people from Chistopol heading to our nation. We also have had a significant number of tourists coming to visit our Holy sites. As such we believe that some arrangement between our two nations to support cross border movement would be beneficial. As such we would like to visit your nation with an official delegation to put in place better formal relations between us.

May Shai Halud Watch Over You

Reverend Mother Erin McGregor


8
Non Fiction / The Musings of the Missionara Protectiva
« on: May 29, 2021, 08:38:56 PM »

Founded by the Missionara Protectiva, the scholars of the Bene Gesserit faith in May 2021 the "Musings" is an attempt to give the Sisterhood a more active voice across Mundus. It has no set topic and permits articles on any subject matter so long as it shows elements of "rigouorous scholarship". It is hoped that it will act as a foundation for boosting the annual Chapterhouse Lectures which the Sisterhood's flagship schools have hosted.

OOC - If anyone wants to contribute an article feel free.

PAST ARTICLES

9
Factbooks and Maps / The Free Theocracy of Kaitaine
« on: April 17, 2021, 10:26:54 PM »

National Anthem:-Child of Erin (Unofficial)
Motto:- I will face my fear.


HISTORY

At some point, thought to be in the early 2nd Century AD, a group of Celts arrived on the shores of what is present day Kataine. They were guided by a female religious leader who believed that all religions had misunderstood God/Gods and that a new path, known as the Golden Path, had to be searched for. Her small band of followers established a religious outpost that over the centuries grew as more and more people flocked to join them. The Bene Gesserit faith believes that the true nature of God/Gods is hidden from human consciousness and only through education and discipline can we hope to rediscover it. As such the Bene Gesserit created an all female Sisterhood to undertake this work, it came to dominate Kaitaine culture and in 1267 a popular rebellion against a ruling King, lead by the Bene Gesserits military arm known as the Truthsayers was successful. They imposed a theocracy upon the nation which was willingly accepted, as in truth all that changed was a religious representative was in charge rather than an heriditory King, who was actually controlled by the Bene Gesserit anyway.

The Bene Gesserit faith also believes that because much of mankinds knowledge of God/Gods is unknown we must prepare for some unrevealed future tragedy, as such it is believed a supreme being known as the Kwisatz Haderach. This man shall lead the whole of humanity against a threat that would wipe out all life in the world, once successful he would reveal a new set of laws to humanity to lead them into a paradise upon Mundus and ensure each person a place in the afterlife.

The Bene Gesserit faith believes that four families have been granted special insight into the Gods powers, these families are known as the Four Holy Houses and are the Atreides, Harkonnen, Corrino and Fremen families. The Bene Gesserit faith seeks to help these families realise their potential and bring about the creation of the Kwisatz Haderach. To do this the Bene Gesserit leadership has controlled the bloodlines of these families through inter-marriage in an attempt to breed a more godlike individual.

In the 1800's however this Theocratic nation was invaded by the Communists of the now long disappeared USR. They successfully took over the nation however the Sisterhood smuggled many key indivdiuals out to Ui Cenneslaig and Cantabria because of their Celtic culture, others went to nearby Achkaerin while some were taken to obscurity in Aosta. The faith worked to ensure these families were successful in order to ensure the faith could continue in secret across much of Mundus. In 2017 a young girl fulfilled several propehcies and was named the faith's Reverend Mother and soon after a rebellion in Kaitaine began. In April 2021 the rebels had secured much of Western Kaitaine and a series of talks known as the "Tartu Accords" effectively gave the Bene Gesserit a homeland once again.



Government Type:- Constitutional Theocracy
Population:- Currently around 8 million in the Theocracy.
Capital City:- Seitch (population 200,000)
Currency:- Melange
GDP per Capita:- $9,000
Unemployment Rate:- $10,000

Main Industries:- TBD, economy will be heavily reliant on arrangements with those members of the dispora essentially funding the nations economy.

Ethnicity:- 80% Celt, 20% Other

Languages:- Gaelic is the official language however Russian is also heavily spoken as are Aostan and Achkaerin.

Religions:- Bene Gesserit is the official faith however as that essentially believes all religions are simply "misunderstandings" of the Bene Gesserit faith and that all faiths contain "Truths" no faith is outlawed.

Average Life Expectancy Men -67 years / Women - 71 years

Head of State:- Reverend Mother Erin McGregor
Name of Legislative Body:- The Council of the Riders.


10
Diplomacy and Events / Return to the Sands (Feel free to join in)
« on: April 17, 2021, 09:45:05 PM »
It was a day that many of them had long waited for. At just after 6am Reverend Mother Erin McGregor, the leader of the Bene Gesserit faith, had arrived at the border between Chistopol and West Kaitaine, or what she would forever call the Free Theocracy of Kaitaine. She was dressed in the traditional black robes of her Sisterhood with the hood of her robe pulled up. It was clear who she was though with the four Truthsayers sticking close to her side and the gold trappings of her robes. As her vehicle stopped at the border and she got out the large assembled crowd, mostly made up of people trying to cross the border themselves, moved forward as many were keen to gain a glimpse at the head of their faith. Unlike Christianity when one Reverend Mother died another was not automatically selected, it was needed for the four senior Mothers to all agree on the new appointee based on various prophecies and traditions and before Erin there had not been a Reverend Mother for nearly two decades. Erin assessed the scene and realised there was chaos here at the border. It couldn't be allowed to continue and so she clambered awkwardly onto the bonnet of the car. One of her Truthsayers had acquired a loud hailer from the Chistopolian border team. "Hello" the loudhailer cracked and squeaked before Erin tried again, "Hello everyone" she saw the crowd gradually fall silent. "I know you are all desperate to head further South. I know you all want to live in a land where the Bene Gesserit faith is alive and well but currently that dream has to be paused. The duty of any nation is to look after and care for the people, if we tried that now we would fail, badly. The situation in Free Kaitaine would be a humanitarian crisis of our own creating if we permitted every member of the faith to come home. Here in Chistopol you are all safe, you are all secure. The government here have assured me you can practice your faith openly and happily and so I urge you to stay put. Let me and my team head South and ensure we can make the Theocracy a safe place and then when the time is right come and join. For now please....Go home." There were some small calls of protest, some pleading for her to let them come with her but there was nothing left to say. She was helped down off the car and felt slightly guilty that her slight frame had left two dents in the metal but figured there was little that she could do.

The border with Chistopol was on the Northern side a mixture of large concrete blocks, metal tank traps, barbed wire and various other obstacles running in each direction. It had been designed to prevent any Communist thrust to retake Chistopol from progressing quickly and now it was stopped the exodus South. The opposite side of the border saw a waiting trio of armoured vehicles and a neatly arranged group wearing Truthsayer uniform. Erin thanked the Chistopolians for their help as they removed the wheel bottomed chain link barrier to allow the car to cross. The car made its way over and drove around a hundred meters to where the Truthsayers were waiting. As Erin stepped out the car to take her first official steps in the Theocracy the lone voice of a Truthsayer could be heard breaking into a song and soon more and more joined in including Erin herself. She moved round greeting each of the the girls with a warm-embrace. She came face to face with Sarah McPherson the girls had been friends through the Chapterhouse systems and as they hugged Erin felt herself crying. She had packed Sarah off to war as a 18 year old girl fresh out of the Chapterhouse and in truth had never expected to come face to face with her again thinking in all honesty she was sending all of those to their death. While she knew many had not survived the wars she saw more and more familiar faces and each one reassured her that she had made the right decision. Sarah was wearing sergeant stripes now and as the crowd gathered around as the song came to an end she had enough room to step back salute her friend. "Your Holiness, Sergeant McPherson of the 1st Seitch Truthsayers requesting permission to escort you home." Those words snapped everyone back to the formalities, a small TV media crew covering the journey taking in every image.

"Sergeant you may escort me home." Erin said wiping tears from her cheek as the Truthsayers mounted up on the vehicles and assmbled within the convoy. It would be a good two hour drive through a rocky landscape. Small narrow vallies gave green flashes and held small farms and homesteads, evidence of farming and then as they made their way through the hills the expanse of the desert came into view. "I am a desert creature" Erin found herself saying to no one in particular as they began the drive across the long straight road that took them to Seitch. It started as a fient white blob in the heat haze until as they got closer it got more in focus. The white upper floors and the sandstone lower down with the wall around it and poking through from the centre of the narrow streets was the fient glimpse of the Red Palace, the Corrino home that was so sacred to many of the faith. Another crowd had gathered and as Erin exited her car she saw literally every space on top of the wall had been taken over by someone, on the rooftops even more people. The green of the Truthsayers, many still carrying their rifle, the blue tunics of the Missionara, a gaggle of black robed Mothers and the bright red of the Honored Matres. Erin had previously only ever seen those uniforms worn by the young in such numbers but here the often threadbare uniforms were worn with pride by people of all ages, Erin even spotted a woman, easily in her 80's proudly wearing the Blue of the Missionara her grey hair scrapped back into a bun. Erin walked over to her and wrapped her arms around her. "Thank you" Erin said to her. Here was a woman who had served her entire life in Kaitaine, in constant danger of being discovered but had kept her vows to serve. "Thank you all" she said loudly taking the woman by the hand. "What's your name?" Erin asked as she walked towards the gates of the "Holy City."

"Margaret Campain" the old woman said as they walked.

"Margaret I'm so happy to meet you." Erin said with a smile. As they reached the gates of the city a force of around 100 Truthsayers stood blocking the path. Erin recognised from video calls Joanne McNeill. Erin stopped in front of her as McNeill called her soldiers to attention. Each of the girls had been one of the defenders of Seitch in the original siege.

"Your Holiness." Joanne saluted, "1340 days ago I gave the order to defend the city. Today I request permission to transfer command to yourself." she took from the pouch of her jacket a heavy iron key. Her uniform was patched and had clearly seen better days. Like many of the Truthsayers from Kaitaine they had never been issued a proper uniform. Many of the girls wore KDF uniform with patches cut off and new ones sewn on. Some wore mismatched camoflague but all had the sand coloured beret proudly perched on their head. The Jeboah emblem affixed on the front forged within the city in whatever metals could be found and melted down.

"Denied" Erin said much to the surprise of Joanne. "As a Truthsayer you all took an oath to defend the faith for as long as was required. You have done more than was ever thought possible but while you still have strength in your bodies I know you will carry on defending the faith and not just this city." Erin reached into her belts pouch and removed a pair of silver rank insignia, crossed rifles with a wreath around them. "Marshall McNeill I am placing you in charge of all Truthsayers and I ask permission to enter your city." she pinned them onto the now commander of the Bene Gesserit military.

"Our city" McNeill replied as she and Erin walked towards the gate which they symbolically unlocked and entered. She had been once before to Seitch. As a 15 year old she had run away and sneaked into Kaitaine and spent a week here before some Truthsayer, whose name she couldn't even remember now, had took her back to Chistopol. Erin had even spent a night hidden on the Chapterhouse island and it had been this little adventure that had made her deceased mentor, Hannah McKay, determined that Erin was destined to be a Reverend Mother. The streets of Seitch were a maze, they seemed narrower than she remembered but McNeill escorted her through the winding maze that had helped them ensure the city remained safe. Some of the buildings still bore the scars of conflict but soon the narroness opened out into a large square market place with on one side the imposing Red Palace often called the Corrino Palace.

The Corrino's were one of four Holy Families, and by the fact they were deemed the most likely bloodline to produce the Kwizach Hadrach, the saviour of humanity, they had a special place in the eyes of the faithful. It was Nathanial Corrino who stood at the foot of the steps ready to welcome the Reverend Mother. He was flanked by Jamie Atreides who had been given permission to cross the border an hour earlier to be part of this ceremony along with a representative of each of the other Holy Houses. Byrce Harkkonen stood on the other side and he was keen to speak with Erin but knew the Corrino boy should be given the first chance, his families status and the fact he'd fought to free the city gave him that right. Achilles Fremen completed the line up. Nathanial stepped forward and as was tradition among meeting high status individuals from those outside the Sisterhood spat on the ground between them. It was a habit that may disgust many but it was a sign of respect among the desert people, a sign you are willing to give up precious water just because you had meet them. Erin smiled at the gesture and spat herself before greeting each of the four representatives. Above the Palace the empty flag-pole saw a lone piper underneath and the flag of the Theocracy was raised.

"We've a government to make." Erin said to the four noble children. "But first I suppose we had better take some pictures and I want to meet some of the people." The crowd had gathered as Erin, Nathanial, Jamie, Bryce and Achilles posed for photos before the crowd mingled. Already some Truthsayers had moved away and the make shift bars had begun to fill as Spiced Beer, Whiskey and music began to flow. 

11




MCNEILL LEADS HONOURS LIST

Today the head of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood as released a list of names of individuals who are to be honoured for their role in what the spiritual leader has called "the liberation of not just a people but a faith." The first name on the list is one that will come as no surprise to members of the Bene Gesserit faith inside the Theocracy of Kaitaine however will perhaps need some introduction to those unfamiliar with the faith.

Joanna McNeill was the self titled, "General" of the Truthsayers in Seitch and masterminded the forces fighting in Kaitaine on behalf of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood. This however has created a rather strange scenario as with McNeill having been born in Seitch and having never attended a Chapterhouse school she officially does not hold the title of a Truthsayer despite having been involved with the movement since 1993. The situation was explained by Chief Instructor of Truthsayers, Krystina Garner, "By the letter of the law and tradition a Truthsayer is someone who recieved their Jeboah beret from a Chapterhouse Head Mistress. That means the Truthsayers have always been seen as those graduating from Ui Cenneslaig, Achkaerin, Cantabria and Aosta, but while those like me who had a Chapterhouse education are I suppose baptised in ink Joanna and those like her have been baptised in blood and fire and for me are more worthy of the title Truthsayer than people such as me. I would gladly give my own beret to her than hold the name Truthsayer while she does not." It is estimated that around 2,500 women are in a similar position to McNeill with some experts putting the number ten times higher. It was therefore no surprise that McNeill was the first person to be honoured by the Reverend Mother who issued the following citation to McNeill

Quote from: Citation
Be it known that Joanna McNeill is a Truthsayer of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood. I further confer upon her the rank of Marshall of Truthsayers making her the first among the Truthsayers numbers. Under her skilled and determined leadership the Truthsayers from around the world united into an effective unit and alongside their male comrades, the Pangolins, carried the Theocracy into the world. Furthermore it will be forever the case that annually the top graduating Truthsayer will be awarded the McNeill Trophy ensuring her legacy continues for all time.

It was also announced that the Reverend Mother that upon arriving in the Theocracy McNeill would be the first to be presented to her. The 46 year old said she was "excited to welcome the Reverened Mother and Holy Houses into my home city where they belong."

The next person to be awarded was 25 year old Kirstin Skeates. The 25 year old once represented Soviet Kaitaine in the Mundus Games while living undercover as a Truthsayer under similar circumstances as McNeill. The former competition archer was responsible for several solo trips across the desert near Seitch as a courier. It was confirmed that it was Skeates who first brought word of the Seige of Seitch as well as guiding forces back across the desert. At present she is assigned to a unit in Geidi where she is said to be looking forward for a chance to represent her "real Homeland" in the Mundus Games. Her citation is as follows.

Quote from: Skeates Citiation
Be it known that Kirstin Skeates is a Truthsayer of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood. I also confer upon her the rank of Captain in the Truthsayers with all the rights and responsibilities associated with the rank. From this day forward Captain Skeates is to carry the title "Guide of the Sands" and is allocated an annual allocation of Melange sufficent to her rank.

Perhaps however one of the most controversial names on the list is that of the third person to be honoured by the Reverened Mother, Nathanial Corrino. "The Missing Corrino" vanished from public gaze in 2003 at the age of 17 with the wealthy Cenneg family then going by the name O'Hogan. The family always stated that he had "wished to be a private individual". It has however been confirmed that using a false identity he attended University in East Moreland with the sole purpose of gaining military experience somewhere he would not be recognised. Taking the names James Gillespie he became an officer in the East Moreland Royal Engineers and in 2014 entering the elite unit known as Red Legion where he served in several operations across the globe including wars in Meche, Marseille and Seaforth. He was honoured for bravery on two occasions but fled following the attempt to capture nuclear waste in 2018. It had been confirmed he did not play a role in the attempted theft but potentially may have allowed some members of the Bene Gesserit to escape. Nathanial Corrino lead the incursion by the Truthsayers into Kaitaine and is said to have been a mastermind behind many campaigns.

Quote from: Nathanial Corrino Citation

Be it known that Nathanial Corrino is to be counted among the Fedaykin[1]. Furthermore from this day forward he is to carry the title Duke of Blades which shall pass through his line for all time. His family shall be allocated an annual allocation of Melange in accordance with their rank and titles
 1. historic title granted to men who have served the faith in war bravely

Despite Nathanial Corrino being accused of several crimes from East Moreland, including desertion for which they have the death penalty, the Reverend Mother stated, "The Corrino line has always been important to our people, Duke Nathanial has furthered its glory and will be a central part of our people moving forward. His duty to the Theocracy is far from over." It is unknown what position he will take within the new nation or how this may impact situations with others across Mundus.

12
Diplomacy and Events / Kaitaine Ceasefire OOC
« on: April 09, 2021, 10:13:42 PM »
In an effort to bring this to an end as its kind of run out of steam and been neglected I intend to have had this happen since the last post.

The post as it stands now has the approval of the following nations. The plan is that I'd like to post the announcement of the ceasefire being signed on Monday evening UK time. However I also would like to give nations a chance to weave themselves in so I'm happy to push that back. If you would somehow like your nation involved please let me know. Naturally I'm reserving the right to ignore your request if I think it would screw things up. Any problems please let me know.

[bgcolor=#FF9900]ROkkenjima [/bgcolor]
[bgcolor=#E06666]East Moreland[/bgcolor]
[bgcolor=#3D85C6]Chistopol[/bgcolor]
[bgcolor=#38761D]Tamora[/bgcolor]
[bgcolor=#0000FF]Ui Cenneslaig[/bgcolor]
Current situation is that the nation as of July 2019 was split as follows



To the West the "Free Theoracy of Kaitaine" existed however it was unrecognised by many nations in the world except [bgcolor=#45818E]Chistopol [/bgcolor]and [bgcolor=#6AA84F]Tamora[/bgcolor]. To the East is the Soviet of Kaitaine who controlled the majority of the nation. The vast majority of the Theocracy was desert with several towns of around 50,000 people. The military power of the Soviet on paper should have lead to an easy victory however the geography of the area around Seitch saw a huge coal field that experts had warned had the area caught fire a subterranian blaze could have gone on for centuries and lead to potentially two environmental disaster, one being explosions of pockets of coal dust while the other was infections of ground water that much of the nation relied upon. As a result the Soviet had to rely on conventional ground attacks. The narrow belt of mountains that ringed the desert though played into the hands of the Theocracy and the Truthsayers who lead the fight.
tamor
There was some foreign involvement. [bgcolor=#93C47D]Tamora[/bgcolor] had become the first nation to recognise the Theocracy and even symbolically had an embassy building in Seitch. Meanwhile following previous attempts by rogue Truthsayers to steal nuclear waste in East Moreland the Morelanders had been providing intelligence sharing against the Theoracy including the use of satellites and recon UAV's to support their operations. [bgcolor=#E69138]Rokkenjima [/bgcolor]meanwhile had been making significant payments to the Soviet in order to support the actions against the Theocracy. In May 2019 the East Moreland ambassador to the Soviets and her security detail where ambushed and the security agents killed while the Ambassador was taken hostage. This was blamed on the Theocracy as a list of demands were issued. In retaliation the Morelanders infiltrated a team of Red Legionnaires to try and covertly find the Ambassador and if possible extract a high value target from the Theocracy as well as assassinating the former Red Legionairre James Gillespie, real name Nathanial Corrino, who had masterminded the Theoracy rebellion. The team managed to acquire his partner Holly Cathcart and extract her from Kaitaine. It transpired however that the Soviets had comitted a false flag operation in ambushing the Ambassador in hopes of having East Moreland directly get involved in the conflict.

Timeline since July 2019

END OF JULY 2019 - Truthsayers discover the Ambassador is being held on a KDF base and launch a rescue attempt which is successful. They sneak the ambassador into the Theocracy.

AUGUST 2019 - The KDF are faced with a series of small scale assaults carried out by members of the Bene Gesserit in cities across the Soviet. The attacks are largely unsuccessful and around 100 members of the Bene Gesserit faith are captured and sentenced to death.

A Truthsayer team attempts a rescue on one prison and is successful in releasing around 500 prisoners, some of which are ordinary criminals guilty of some bad stuff. They do however rescue 30 or so Truthsayers. The rescue team and freed Truthsayers disappear and a few weeks later infiltrate Chapterhouse Island and raise the Theocracy flag. Knowing this was unlikely to be able to be held the team take several images of the flag above the ruins of the original Chapterhouse School, perform a meditation and run.

SEPTEMBER 2019 - The Truthsayers get information to Niklaus Corrino in Ui Cenneslaig that they have the East Moreland ambassador and can prove she was held by the Soviets. Niklaus Corrino begins making attempts to get this evidence to King Finley of Ui Cenneslaig and then begins work on trying to get Holly Cathcart released. Meanwhile the Morelanders have moved Cathcart to Ostlake where she is imprisoned pending a military tribunal to determine her fate. This is kept secret and Cathcart is simply listed as "Missing" by the Bene Gesserit suspected to be held by the Soviets.

OCTOBER 2019 - The Soviets begin a winter campaign in the mountains around the desert, this however sees back and forth battles but the superior guerilla skills of the Truthsayers and the fact that much of the KDF front line is conscripts leads to no overall victor. This back and forth continues to January 2020.

JANUARY 2020- THE LEIGHTON INCIDENT - The Kaitaine Naval Vessel Leighton is making its way into Arrakken naval yards for its refit. A Torpedo had been sabtotaged by a clandestine member of the Bene Gesserit and exploded as the sub entered the docks. As the sub was being evacuated it was expected that it could be towed however it transpired one of the senior officers was another Bene Gesserit who as the crew evacuated scuttled the sub in the middle of the entry to the port. This would render the yards useless for the next three months. It also began a investigation into the background of many senior offices and began to cause distrust between several units.

FEB 2020 - An assassination attempt is made by Red Legion of East Moreland on the "Red Palace" in Seitch where Nathanial Corrino resides it fails following the failure of the bomb to explode.

MARCH 2020 - Realising that it may become neccesary to launch large scale air-strikes against towns and cities in the Theoracy to bring the matters to a close. He however is still unsure because of the treat of environmental disaster so scientists befan creating a secret drill site in the North East to assess the connected pockets of coal that run through the nation.  It becomes clear that the coal is connected to a reasonably large methane gas field too. As the site is drilled a member of the Bene Gesserit Missionara Protectiva makes a decision that the fields are not connected and persuades Truthsayer Commander Joanna McNeill to ignite a fire there. A team is sent in and is successful which leads to a fire that begins to burn out of control in the crater despite fire fighting efforts. The crater is named by the Bene Gesserit "The Gates of Hell" experts now think it is likely to burn for decades. The reason for the fire is never discovered and many blame the Communist government this is supported by the Missionara Protectiva who infiltrate the towns and cities of the Soviet to spread rumours.

APRIL 2020 - WIth the "Gates of Hell" now on fire there is damage caused to several areas of the Soviet as it causes landslides and sink holes. This leads McPherson to have to mobilise large parts of the military to deal with natural disasters. At this time King Finley of Ui Cenneslaig has been able to acquire information proving that the East Moreland ambassador had been taken by the Soviets. This is presented to Northfort who suspend their intelligence sharing. East Moreland also inform [bgcolor=#E69138]Rokkenjima[/bgcolor] who withdraw their financial funding of the situaion. East Moreland and [bgcolor=#E69138]Rokkenjima [/bgcolor]at this time do not release a statement on the situation as East Moreland feel they need to first try and secure the release of the ambassador. Using Ui Cenneslaig as a go-between the Morelanders begin contemplating a swap of Cathcart for the ambassador.

MAY2020 - With an agreement reached for an exchange it will see the East Moreland ambassador returned in exchange for Cathcart and details of those Truthsayers who had tried to steal the nuclear waste. They are currently in the Soviet. As a result the East Moreland Red Legion team that had been chasing Nathanial Corrino are given a new target and in a co-ordinated bomb attack kill the two agents.

JUNE 2020 - The Reverened Mother Erin is sneaked into the Theocracy to celebrate the Spice Harvest. Footage of this event goes online and is a huge propaganda boost for the Theocracy. In the aftermath of visiting the Theocracy she visits [bgcolor=#6FA8DC]Chistopol [/bgcolor]on her way back to Ui Cenneslaig and after making an arrangement with the government of [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]an agreement for the Bene Gesserit to build a library in [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]is reached. The government of [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]agree to work with the Bene Gesserit but go short of recognising the Theocracy as a sovreign nation.

JULY 2020 - With the natural disasters from the "Gates of Hell" now subsiding an attempted "Pincer Invasion" is tried with forces from Rodinha attempting to try and cross the desert the Truthsayers find themselves gradually pushed back to with 50km of Seitch and plans are put in place to evacuate the city. This however is in the end not needed as a series of sandstorms halt the advance and utilising their superior desert warfare skills the Bene Gesserit push the Rodinha forces back. In the East the mountain pass offensive becomes another stalemate.

AUGUST 2020 - Interior Minister Jacob McRobert is discovered to be a Bene Gesserit mole and has been feeding information back to the Truthsayers for the entirity of the war. He manages to flee before being captured. In response a paranoid President McPherson carries out what can best be described as a purge of his Ministers resulting in himself and Vice-President Vadik Pasternak largely becoming the entirity of the government.

SEPTEMBER 2020 - With the Soviet government in chaos an assault is made by the Truthsayers towards Silia. Initially this is successful and see's the Truthsayers take the first settlement outside the mountain passes that have seperated the Soviet and Theocracy.  With Silia now under Truthsayer control it becomes clear that the Kaitaine Guards Buereau (KGB) have begun doing what the Bene Gesserit have throughout the war, namely sneaking forces into the opposition military. A group of Soviets who had infiltrated the male fighters of the Bene Gesserit, known as Pangolins, insitgate a "Decapitation Strike" attempt on Joanna McNeill, this fails however it does kill several key members of the Truthsayer leadership in Kaitaine. The following confusion see's the Truthsayers forced out of Silia.

OCTOBER 2020 - The Truthsayers are now back to the East of the mountains and the Soviets begin construction of large physical barriers along the whole of the de-facto border of the Soviet and the Theocracy. Within the Soviet large scale searches of suspected Bene Gesserit homes are carried out without warning with around 60,000 members of the military and Police going into action. Anyone with any remote connection to the Truthsayers is arrested and imprisoned pending trial and possible execution. With over 2,500 individuals imprisoned it sparks the Bene Gesserit into talks with other nations.

NOVEMBER 2020 - Reverned Mother Erin makes her way to [bgcolor=#45818E]Chistopol [/bgcolor]again and asks outright for the nations support against the Soviet. First Minister Laine refuses to publicly support the Theocracy but does give the go ahead for [bgcolor=#45818E]Chistopol[/bgcolor]'s border forces to "make no attempt to stop people heading South" This see's for the first time an easily viable route possible for the Bene Gesserit to get into the Theocracy.

DECEMBER 2020 - With it now easy to get into the Theocracy the [bgcolor=#93C47D]Tamorans[/bgcolor] send their first ambassador in person to Seitch. This is well publicised and see's the Ambassador given offices inside the Red Palace and made an honourary member of the Missionara Protectiva.

JANUARY 2021 - With some of the trials of those arrest in October beginning it becomes clear the Soviets are using the trials to rid themselves of a large number of descenters. With the "Gates of Hell" fire now causing new landslides along the coast and a series of Bene Gesserit operations in the cities of the East to free prisoners it becomes clear that the situation can not be brought under control. With the West now "full of evil" according to McPherson and in his mind the region being "Unable to sustain itself as a nation" he makes the decision to fully wall it in and the previously constructed barriers are extended to run the full length of what is now effectively a border.

FEB 2021 - With the Theocracy clearly unable to sustain any assault beyond the new border walls and the Soviet keen to draw a line under the debacle Reverned Mother Erin presents a ceasefire arrangement for the world to see. The key points are

1. Neither nation will cross the border fence.

2.The various roadways through the border fence will be policed by Rodinhan soldiers on the Eastern side and either [bgcolor=#93C47D]Tamora[/bgcolor]n, [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]or Cenneg soldiers on the west.

3. The Soviets will not oppose border crossings by land or air between [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]and the Theocracy.

4. The Isle of Chapterhouse is to be declared neutral and put under the protection of CETO.

5. Any member of the Bene Gesserit in the east of Kaiatine is to be permitted to enter the west.

The document is rejected by McPherson immediately.

MARCH 2021 - King Finley of Ui Cenneslaig and  Emperor Abbas of [bgcolor=#6AA84F]Tamora[/bgcolor] state publically that they would support the document followed days later by [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol[/bgcolor]. McPherson agrees to a meeting between the sides in Tartu, [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]with the following conditions. There would be a delegation of the Soviet, one of the Bene Gesserit. They would not meet face to face however the Soviets would appoint a three man delegation from Rodinha as an intermediary and the Bene Gesserit would appoint one person from each of[bgcolor=#76A5AF] Chistopol[/bgcolor], [bgcolor=#6AA84F]Tamora[/bgcolor] and Ui Cenneslaig. The initial talks fail however McPherson agrees to a rewording of the key points "in theory"

1. Neither faction will cross the border fence - thus not permitting the Theocracy to be called a nation.

2. Removed [bgcolor=#45818E]Chistopol [/bgcolor]soldiers from the equation.

3. The Soviets would permit the creation of an air corridor between [bgcolor=#76A5AF]Chistopol [/bgcolor]and the Theocracy however any aircraft outside of this would be considered hostile and shot down.

4. Chapterhouse to remain Soviet controlled with CETO monitoring.

5. A deadline for moving to be put at three months from the agreement being reached.

The Reverned Mother agreed to this series of amendments.

2nd APRIL 2021 - THE TARTU ACCORD is signed. It puts into place the five key points (several smaller issues but nothing to worry about RP wise) and is signed by McPherson, Reverned Mother Erin, Emperor Abbas, King Finley and someone from [bgcolor=#45818E]Chistopol[/bgcolor].

THE END

13
Diplomacy and Events / The Birth of the Monarchy -Open RP
« on: March 27, 2021, 10:39:19 PM »
OOC - Agreed between me, Dave and Kris

Prince Lennox hated the Conclave. He regretted having ever agreed to Klara's request and even more so seeing as she had all but removed herself from from an active role in government and that meant the Conclave meetings descended into an endless round of trying to predict what she would want and then debating it. Even Crown Princess Roksana was getting bored of the lengthy meetings that seemed to achieve very little. With some luck that would change today as Queen Klara was flying in with Prince Isaak from her self imposed exile of the Isle of Iskor. Everyone hoped the Queen would be back in Conclave soon and break the deadlocks that had been forming over the last few weeks. Prince Lennox was twirling his pen not really too concerned with the discussion about the quality of school meals for students. In his role as Minister of Defence he didn't really think his input was too vital. It was the sound of a loud boom that jolted him back to reality. A few seconds later a second came almost syncronised with a black uniformed Warrior of Gaia entering the room.

"Everyone stand and follow me." He issued his order calmly and with the expectation of immediate complience.Everyone slid their chairs back and did as instructed following the Sergeant out into the corridor. A trio of other members of the security force were waiting and formed a protective square around the various Ministers. Every one of the Ministers knew the drill, they'd be escorted to the part of the Palace where their private suites were located at which point each Minister would find a detachment of the Warriors of Gaia waiting for them. They never made it that far though as from the open side of the Palace corridor two well placed gunshots dropped one of the Warriors of Gaia. Lennox instiinctively picked up the rifle of the fallen man as the others tried to rush the group of around ten Ministers away. There was a knee high wall tha seperated the corridor from the garden outside and Lennox took cover behind it scanning the garden. Behind him he heard the sound of running footsteps and fearing an opposing force arriving to his rear he spun to see three Warriors hurtle round the corner, one was taken down by gunfire from the garden and Lennox blindly slammed rounds towards the greenary more in the hopes of getting whoever it was to duck and give his backup time to find cover.

"Your Highness you should go." A Liutenant from the Warriors told the Cenneg Prince.

"With respect Liutenant I'm more experienced than you." Lennox had served most of his life as a member of the Royal Kerns Commando unit and had spent probably months worth of time in the urban warfare set up. They scanned the area and gave several testing bursts. "What's going on?" Lennox asked.

"There has been an attack on the Queen's boat coming to the island, someone fired on it from the Isle and we've no idea who or where. The Queen's currently stuck near the Marina." Lennox removed his mobile phone from his trouser pocket and hit the number of Sir James Fitzroy the East Moreland ambassdor on the island. The pair had meet a few weeks back to discuss security concerns relating to the Queen and now it seemed the Morelander had been correct.

"Hello" Fitzroy answered his phone. He was in Gaia itself visiting a friend at a beach front restaurant but the sound of the explosion had attracted his attention.

"Operation Black Citadel. Make it happen. Queen in the marina."

"Roger that. Good luck" Fitzroy hung up knowing the message meant he was the man to set everything in motion. Taking out his 2nd mobile phone Fitzroy began a frantic round of message sending as he made his way towards the office of East Moreland's embassy within the city. The security officer there forwarded concerns to the Cenneg and then both embassies began hitting up their assets.

Some twenty miles outside of Gaia a team of four Red Legionnaires had been busy training with some of the Lodjain military. They'd been teaching marksmanship but now the embassies helicopter had swung by. The embassy had been issued a Lifter Helicopterit had been advertised for trips out to the various islands if needed however it was always about this kind of operation. Tristian Rowe was the officer in charge of the four man team and as the helicopter touched down they scrambled aboard. They each had "go bags" ready with equipment and sorted themselves out quickly. Rowe knew his men had been told of the operation and its objective, grab Queen Klara and get out of dodge. The two embassies were the initial safehouse but beyond that they'd ear-marked several other bolt holes. Lennox had been embroiled in a gunfight but had managed to get some information out and Rowe passed it on, "The Queen is by the marina and is being assaulted by a force of about ten men. They are in civilian attire and concealed. Prince Isaak has been seperated and is hiding with a security detail in the pub at the foot of the hill."

The foot of the road up to the Palace of the Goddess was in chaos. Klara's boat had been about twenty meters off-shore when a gun-shot from an anti-material rifle had hit. The round had been fired from the battlemeants of the Palace and was of sufficent calibre to rock the boat almost plunging Klara overboard. Almost instantly a second one rang out, this time hitting the engines all but rendering the small boat uncontrollable as it slammed into the quayside. Klara banged her head and the stroller in which Prince Isaak was strapped was pitched forward leaving the baby hanging upside down in tears. Several soldiers on guard at the Isle's marina headed forward to render assistance unsure exactly what was happening but determined to get the Queen off the boat. They didn't get far as from the cliff train station gun-fire came from a group of people that had checked onto the island as a tour group backed by the Duke of Razan. The gunfire allowed them to move forward and the Queen's bodyguard knew staying on the boat made them sitting ducks. As such the Queen was unceremoniously thrown onto the stone quayside by two of her men as they followed keeping themselves between the gunmen and the monarch. The Queen yelled for her son and a third bodyguard was cutting at the webbing straps of Prince Isaak's stroller to free the bellowing infant. Two naval officers had been loading a small patrol boat and hearing the gunfire approached with only their pistols. The semi-automatic fire of the gunmen though meant they soon had to take their own cover but they had helped in giving the bodyguard enough time to free Isaak and now that man was scrambling ashore. The approach though had forced him to head to the opposite side of the quay-road and now the force was split. More soldiers were running down the track from the Palace now and a third explosion filled the air as a road-side bomb went off sending their numbers flying in a pink mist.

The sound of helicopter blades filled the air as the Morelander helicopter swung low over the island. The Warriors of Gaia had picked up the repeated radio call of them coming to offer aid but the pilots still had to find somewhere to put the men down. Realising there was no such place Rowe made the decision to fast-rope down. He hit the cobbled street hard and shook his leg to try and free it up. All four of them headed towards the pub at the bottom of the hill. They saw the bodyguard throw himself through the door with Isaak tucked safely with him. Then to the surprise of many the sound of gunshots came from the upper windows of the pub heading towards the attacking gun-men. It appeared the local innkeeper wasn't about to let his Queen or Prince be gunned down outside his premise. This gave the Reds enough time to skirt over a few garden walls and meet up with those protecting the Queen. Rowe was known by the monarch and she seemed thankful to see him. "Your Majesty" Rowe even gave a little bow, "King David sends his compliments, we're here to get you to a safe zone." The two Warriors of Gaia seemed like they were about to protest and then thought better off it.

"We need to get my son." Klara pleaded.

"First thing is to keep you secure." the helicopter was happy now with its approach to getting people out and the loadmaster was strapped up ready to go. "In about thirty seconds you'll be attacted to a rope and going in the helicopter." Klara protested that she wasn't about to go without her son but even as she still was begging them to get him Rowe tied her onto the winchman. The three other Red's moved forward to ensure targets kept their heads down as the Queen was pulled kicking and screaming into the helicopter. Which now went into a high overhead pattern. "Queen's airborne" Rowe informed command as they looked at how to get into the pub.

Things up at the Palace were taking a turn for the worse. Lennox and his duo of Warriors were now being out-flanked by another force who were also wearing Warrior uniform but unlike those men had different rifles. As the trio fought a retreating action along the corridors they had been joined by a string of reinforcements, the only problem was as these men came round the corner they were made easy targets. Now as Lennox reached it he was able to stop others walking into the ambush. The problem though was several Minister's suites were now in the ground between Lennox and the advancing intruders. Doors were smashed in and Ministers dragged out and taken away. At least three members of the Conclave had been removed before Lennox had enough men to mount a counter attack. At least now they were holding their own.

Down at the quayside three gunmen had managed to get into the pub through a rear window there were several gunshots and soon the body of the bodyguard protecting Isaak was dumped out of the front door. Rowe and his men quickly exchanged words with the two bodyguards who had been with Queen Klara and they began an assault towards the pub. It was impossible, no sooner had they broke cover than from the old stone cottages came a burst of machine gun fire sending them all diving towards cover, some into gardens, others behind the monument to Sessifet in the square. It was the upper floor of the Pubs inaccurate and sporadic gunfire though that helped Rowe and a Red Legionnaire Corporal make it to the door. They stepped over the prone body riddled with gunshots and entered the pub, there was the obvious scene of a gunfight but no sign of anyone. "Back room" Rowe motioned and headed towards where he knew there was a small games room with a pool table in the back. He had just removed a flashbang from his webbing to throw in when over the radio came a message from the helicopter.

"They've a fast boat on the West side of the island. Five men, looks like the baby too. I can see about five or six others around the island."

"Bollocks" Rowe slid into the room without the flashbang searching for targets. The building was empty but it was clear someone had just climbed out the window. He peered through and could see the men loading a boat. There was no way he could fire without risking hitting Isaak and so he got on the radio to the helicopter. "Follow the boat, wait for the locals to get assets and then get to the embassy."

"Roger that" the helicopter headed towards that side of the island and watched as the boat shot off out of the small bay it was in. The helicopter kept up with it as it merged with several other boats carrying the gunmen away from the scene. A few gunshots whizzed up at the helicopter but they weren't a risk and so the pilot kept on until he peered at the horizon as an alarm went off in his cockpit. "Shit" he cursed as he headed the helicopter towards its ceiling as fast as he could. There around the headland of Gaia was the Cyborg Class Drone Carrier the Morelander, it was rather ironic that the ship was painting the Red Legion Helicopter with a surface to air missile. "Lodjain Ship Morelander this is Red Legion Helicopter One, we are pursuing suspected terrorists who have attacked the Queen and have kidnapped Prince Isaak. Please intercept" The pilot hoped it was all a case of mistaken identity. "We have the Queen onboard." the last statement was not perhaps the defence as unknown to the Red's the crew of the Morelander had been hand picked during the Queen's mental abscence by the orchestrater of this attempted coup, King Leopold.

The King of Lodja was on the bridge of the Morelander which was mde up of his hand picked loyalists. "If they come any closer then open fire."

"Yes sir" the captain flicked a switch opening one of the VLS tubes and having spotted the gesture the helicopter backed away but repeated the message. Leopold stood in consideration and then leaned across and pressed the button sending a missile flying. The helicoper went into a series of evasive moves and launched flares as it hoped to avoid the incoming shot. The missile narrowly missed and now having dropped to a point where the wheels were almost touching the sea the helicopter broke for the embassy.

"Release the message and head for home." The captain nodded and even as his crew helped the various snatch squads aboard the vessel they set sail.


Quote from: Posted on various websites, emailed to global news networks and many other outlets

To the citizens of Lodja

You will be hearing in the coming hours tales of how vicious terrorists have attacked the Isle of the Goddess and taken Prince Isaak hostage, of how there has been an attempt on the life of Queen Klara. Both these things are false. A father can not kidnap his own son. What has happened is those Lodjains who are tired of living in a two tier world have taken the only steps open to them to bring about a fairer and freer society. We live in a nation stuck in the past. A Queen picked by a corrupt panel of nobles from the children of nobles. Given unlimited power under the myth of being some kind of divine being. A feudalistic system making a good 2/3 of Lodjains relaint on the good graces of those fortunate enough to be born into a noble family. I know these things as I was until recently part of this corrupt system. I was happy to go along with it as I was blind to the reality so many of my fellow countrymen and women live in. A society that grants women special privledges and makes men reliant on them for advancement should not exist in 2021. A society that forces people to be Plebleians unless jumping through a series of hoops is backwards. Today I am calling on all those who share our views to support us. Our voices will never be heard and seizing control of the system is our only way.

Today I have brought under my protection 6 members of the 10 member Conclave, the effective government of the Queendom. I also have returned to my side my son whom I had been denied my rights as a father. I call upon the people of Lodja to join with us and call for the greatest reform of Lodjain history. Should we carry this day through I promise a broad sweeping system of reforms under what we shall now be, the Monarchy of Lodja. Under my guidance and within six months we shall impliment the following.

1. All Plebleian families to be recognised as Patricians with immediate effect.

2. All current Plebleians to be able to remove themselves from any contract relating to a Plebleian and Patrician relationship without penalty so long as it is done within the next six months.

3. Queen Klara to be removed from the throne.

4. A Provisional government to be made with the six members of the Conclave, six members named by myself, the Tribune of the Plebs and myself.
 
5. The Provisional Government shall put in place a system of government designed to balance the traditions of Lodja and give a voice to all citizens.

6. Prince Isaak shall assume the throne of the Monarchy of Lodja on his 21st birthday assuming there is no impedement to him taking the role.  Should Prince Isaak be uncapable of taking the throne his closest relative by blood shall inherit the throne with age taking precident.

7. Lodja shall seek to maintain friendly relations with our friends within the CNN who we hope to support us in making Lodjain society a fairer and freer one.

The names of my Provisional Government shall be released within the next 48 hours.

Signed

His Majesty King Leopold of the Monarchy of Lodja.

14
Press Offices / The Queen Klara Press Conference - Saturday 29th Aug
« on: August 26, 2020, 11:05:24 PM »
OOC - As many of you will be aware there has been a huge release of documents and various files relating to the goings on in Lodja. On Saturday Queen Klara will address the nation and take questions from journalists, both Lodjain and international. If you have a question you'd like to ask her about the issue please post it here with who is asking it please.

The release of files summary is here https://independentorder.net/index.php?topic=2047.msg18059#msg18059

The Lodja news article on it is here https://independentorder.net/index.php?topic=108.msg18064;topicseen#msg18064

Should any of the others mentioned in the dump or article post things before the date feel free to include questions on that too.


15
Diplomacy and Events / Final Justice
« on: August 22, 2020, 09:01:53 PM »
OOC - A joint Dave and Libby post

It was the final day of Operation Tartan Green, the multi-national exercise taking place in the Alucard. Oboard the Swevoo various briefings were taking place despite the fact that it was 3:30am. Today would be the final part of the exercise and involved the ship and its crew landing on a beach on the south of the Isle of Tar currently occupied by a group of Cenneg infantry. It would be one of a series of similar simlauted landings around the islands lower half and in some places interested locals had even planned to set up BBQ's to watch the activity meaning the Islands local police had been forced to set up a series of roadblocks to ensure the parts of the island ear-marked for the days activities were safe.

Once the briefings were over their was time for breakfast. 28 year old Vladimir Silimov was looking forward to today's event. He had newly made part a recon section of the Lodjain Marines and today he'd be the reserve helicopter for if anything happened to the more experienced crews going in. It may not have sounded the most glamourous of assignments but it showed that he was raising through the units hierachy. He finished his breakfast and meet up with his 20 Marines and the aircrew he'd be commanding today. As the team headed up towards the deck of the ship.

"Captain I want a quick word with you and your men please." It was the captain of the vessel, Captain Vasili Selezneva, and he motioned for the group to step into the mess. He stepped aside and waited for the last Marine to enter and then followed them in shutting the hatch behind him. The two other entrances had officers stood at them and were likewise closed.

"What's this?" Vladimir asked rather surprised at what was going on. Before anyone else could answer from the kitchen a large figure stepped out wearing a suit with several Marines behind him. Vladimir recognised the man instantly. "Duke Lubos" It was the nations Minister of Defence, a rather unexpected visitor especially on a day like today.

"Captain Silimov" The Duke was a family friend of Vladimir's father and this was part of the reason why this meeting was taking place. "I have some good news and some bad news." The Duke motioned for everyone to take a seat and with the exception of himself and the Marines who had entered the room with the Minister everyone did as they were told. "The good news is you were selected for a special operation. It was determined that out of all the members of the Marines you would be the least likely to be what would be best described as corrupted. The bad news is that it means you won't be taking part in todays exercise. I need each of you to stay here for the next...." he looked at his watch "Hour and 20 minutes." There were protests as the men were looking forward to the exercise and testing themselves against what many believed were the better trained Cenneg but it seemed now they would be denied that chance. "I'm sorry." Lubos held his hand up, "There are a number of factors in play and once we reach a certain point I can explain that to you." The Minister turned to the Marines behind "Operation Forefitor is a go."

"OK Gentleman lets go." The Marine wearing Captain slides said in Morelandish. The operation had been planned a week ago on the island and had purposely included as few Lodjains as possible, the Queen, Lubos Kubik, the ships captain and only two others knew of the plan and now one of its planners Lt.Tristian Rowe of Red Legion instructed his men who left and made their way up to the deck. Only a few of the team spoke Lodjain and the non-speakers sat in the middle of the group as it made its way across the flight deck to the rear helicopter.

Olly Thomas was one of the Lodjian speakers, of course that meant he could order drinks in a bar and tell people to "Get in their seats and check positions." but beyond that his Lodjain was not great. Rowe ensured all ground crews were sent on their way before boarding himself and once the doors were shut reverted to Morelandish along with everyone else. Sgt.Thomas handed out photos. "That as we all know is General Ignat Kozlov formerly of the Lodjain Army and one corrupt arsehole." A few years back the review into Lodja's military had revealed massive corruption and all three heads of the armed forces had been implicated, the heads of the Air Force and Navy had already been brought to justice but somehow Kozlov had avoided justice however he had now been discovered living in a isolated private estate on the North of the Isle of Tar essentially becoming a recluse in a luxurious isolation. That however would end today. "His security is light, the team on the ground are confident its no more than a four person team at anyone time, in total no more than 20 guards." This was all information the team knew. "We take off and towards the island our chauffer calls in we're having mechanical problems and that we're diverting to the old gas facilities airfield. We'll fast rope down and assault the compound. Capture preferable but if not possible kill."

Up front their pilot for today was Alice Graham one of a handful of Air Force helicopter pilots trained alongside Red Legion. She lifted them off and headed off in formation with the other helicopters she'd been taught enough Lodjain to be able to cope and had a week or so to practice with this type of helicopter. As they crossed the Alucard she checked their position and having reached the appointed spot made the call for the divert. In the rear of the aircraft Lt.Rowe began counting down their timings.

At the estate where Ignat Kozlov was hiding out the sound of helicopters was not unusual. The old gas works airfield was used quiet often for tourists going out on sight seeing tours across the island and so the sound didn't alert any attention. It was only when the thud of shots from Sgt.Bark's team on the ground that had been watching the compound were heard any alarm began. By this time the helicopter carried Legionnaires were roping down and already scouring the compound. There were not many shots fired. It seemed most of those paid by the corrupt officer had no stomach for a fight and the Red's were more than happy to see them go. As they penetrated the house itself they moved from room to room and staff in the kitchen got the fright of their life as a flashbang blinded them and had their heads ringing. They stayed on the floor as Legionnaires plasti-cuffed them. In an up stairs office the team found Kozlov hiding in a cupboard. He was swifly dragged out and a bag put over his head and his hands cuffed. "Team making their way to extraction." Rowe radioed in as they headed towards the driveway where several vehicles had been ear-marked for use during extraction. Three large cars were now being hot wired and Kozlov was bundled into one sandwiched tight on the back seat between two Red's. In the front Sgt.Thomas jumped behind the steering wheel, more for the reason he wanted to drive the luxury car than anything else. They weren't expecting any problems but there was nowhere practical to land the helicopter and winching into a strange design wasn't something anyone was fond of. Half the team would extract the target while the rest would clear up and then walk the 5km to the airfield. A crunching of the gear box made the car shudder as Olly began to pull off and soon they had moved off the gravel driveway and onto the smooth open road that wound through the woods. As they passed a junction in the road Thomas pipped the horn a few times as a grinning but dirty Thomas Barks spun round and mooned them as they passed. In the rear view mirror Thomas could we Lt.Rowe roll his eyes in disbelief.

As they arrived at the airfield the helicopter was waiting for them and alongside it another waiting for the prisoner. Duke Lubos Kubik was there waiting and upon the arrival and hand over he shared warm handshakes with the Morelanders. "Thank you for this." He said pleased to have a chance to bring the man to justice. "I shall ensure he gets back to Gaia and put on trial. Sadly Lt.Rowe your part in this must remain secret but be assured you have mine and the Queen's thanks." Kozlov was still protesting they had the wrong man as he was loaded aboard another helicopter and taken off to await his fate. The whole thing would hopefully bring to an end the shadow of corruption that hung over the Lodjain military however at the back of his mind Kubik couldn't help but feel they must still fear the reach of the old system otherwise they'd have never asked the Morelanders to do it. He felt sorry for Silimov who would now be being allowed out of the mess hall onboard the ship only to be spirited away before his colleagues from the exercise returned.



16
Vignettes / The Inn at the Bottom of the Hill
« on: August 04, 2020, 09:32:17 PM »

Life on the Isle of the Goddess was something of a blessing and a curse for those who called the rocky island their home. On the upside you were living on the most sacred spot on Mundus, the place where the beautiful Goddess Sessifet ensured that humans were permitted to continue by sacrificing her perfect physical form and at that moment the first Queen of Lodja had in turn sacrificed her independence to share her body with the Goddess. It meant anyone living on the Isle was as close to the Goddess as you could get and that carried with it a serenity that always seemed to envelope the island. The downside though was two fold. The first was the island spent a good deal of time cut off from the outside world as the roadway linking it with the mainland city of Gaia was only usable for a few hours everyday before the Alucard swallowed it up. The second problem was that if you were like Ariadna Matveev it reinforced everday the great gap in society. Everyday since being a little girl she would look out of the upstairs window of the Inn that her family owned, the only inn on the isle. She'd watch guests to the island dressed in finery make their way up the steep hill to the Palace at the top which stood perched overlooking Sessifet's domain. On some nights you'd even hear the music and laughter coming from the Palace as they hosted some function and then she'd sneak peeks out the window when in the early hours expensive cars would shuttle the guests down to the nearby quay where motor launches took them back to the mainland. Despite having lived on the Isle all of her 24 years Ariadna had only ascended up to the Palace once and then that had been accompanying her father when he had gone to deliver some ale casks for an event there.

The Isle though had presented Ariadna with some of her fondest memories she remembered having days with her big sister Yuliaand her little brother Rolan playing by the rock pools that edged the whole island often being sent out with metallic buckets to comb the small beaches between them for razorclams which their mother would "Buy" off them and cook up for the customers in the inn. The inn guests were a strange mix, one week you'd get lots and lots of civil servant types who were on the island for big ministerial meetings but deemed not important enough to be given rooms within the Palace, then the next week there would be some interesting people from another nation. The inn provided them clean, comfortable and actually very luxuorious rooms and Ariadna's mother was proud of having a chance to look after what she called "the guests of Sessifet." It was no surprise then that the pride the family had in their inn had seen Yulia, Ariadna and Rolan pushed towards working in the business from an early age. Ariadna could still remember being 10 years old and getting home from school, dumping her old brown leather sacthel in her room and donning the freshly laundried apron her mother had left on the bed. She'd hurry downstairs and begin collacting glasses and finished plates carrying them into the kitchen for big sister to load into the dishwasher. From the age of 13 she was pouring pints and serving vodka, even to the off duty guardsman from the Palace who also functioned as the Isle's police force, not that the island needed any Police other than for the odd late night drunk in the inn, but then Ariadna's father was a huge man who by the time the Guardsman arrived had either calmed things down or subdued any problems. The problem was Ariadna wanted more from life than cooking, cleaning and serving booze and luckily for her she had a brain.

It had been a hard discussion but with three children Ariadna's parents knew Yulia and Rolan would be more than enough to carry on the family business. At that parents evening when she'd been 14 her teacher had said Ariadna should go to University and a deal had been struck. If Ariadna would work evenings and weekends in the inn then her parents would help fund her education. Ariadna then felt a different pressure. This pressure wasn't the one of serving someone their soup without pouring it in their lap it was the pressure of making her families commitment worth it and when she'd been offered a place at University they couldn't have been prouder. She was the first of the family to have even been considered clever enough for University and the family had again said they'd support her if she worked still in the inn. That had been a struggle. Everyday she's get up extra early to make sure she caught either the bus or boat to the mainland in order to make sure she could do her lab work before the day's classes began, then as soon as lectures had finished she'd hit the books before getting back to the Isle. It still made her smile, she'd come in, drop her text books and lab coat only to see the fresh white apron waiting for her. Now as she was in her final year of her Masters she knew it would be unfair to keep asking her parents to pay for her education and so with the exams just a few weeks away she consigned herself to one of two fates. The first would be the inn at the bottom of the hill. A life spent toiling in the family business until some Guardsman or cook or servant from the Palace wooed her and then she'd become another one of the "Isle Wives". The alternative was to leave the island all together. She'd have a Master's degree in Chemistry and surely that would make her a hot commodity in the world of employment, add to that the fact she was a Plebleian and any company could brag about giving oppurtunities to the Plebs by employing her. She was all but resigned to leaving the island until a sunny summers evening in the bar.

The sound of the ball from the Palace was weaving its way down the hill and the inn was full of various drivers and other members of the toffs up the hills households. The door opened and a man walked in looking very out of place. It was a moment that would likely change her life.

17
Convention Centre / CHapterhouse Lecture Hall 2020
« on: August 01, 2020, 10:35:56 PM »
Aosta had been selected as the venue for this years lecture series and the school grounds were already becoming a bustlin hive of activity. All the school classrooms were open for people to go around and view, several of the classes had exhibitions of the various senior students work on display and some of the more gifted members of the future Missionara Protectiva stood happily explaining their projects to visitors from the other Chapterhouses or even various other academic bodies across Mundus.

The large green lawn had largely been taken over by a huge network of white marquees where refreshments were being served as girls gave demonstrations of traditional Bene Gesserit dancers accompanied by musicians. Music had always been seen as a great way of keeping various tales of the faith and its history alive and the dances utilised movements to connect to them and as such they were both a way of entertaining and informing the public of the Bene Gesserit faith. Currently on a little stage with a guitar was Lilias MacIomhair a 16 year old prospective Missionara and gifted musician. She was playing a rather slow lament telling the story of the downfall of humanity before the first incarnation of the Kwizach Hadrach emerged to save mankind, effectively resetting humanity. She was wearing the trademark blue overlapping double breasted jacket and matching trousers, it had the appearence of a military uniform minus any headwear, her epuletts had red tags on indicating that she was a senior student and the Harp on them linked her to the Cenneg Chapterhouse. Around her guests including those invited from outside the Sisterhood were having snacks and drinks waiting for the lectures to begin in the grand hall which was just to one side of the lawn.

A feint hum of motor vehicles could be heard alongside the music and several of the girls who had been in the tents stood and headed quiet excitedly for the door. The white trimmed black robes of the Mothers mingled with the blue uniform of the Missionara with a fient smattering of khaki clad Truthsayers in their military style dress uniform all were keen to get out and caused a slight bottleneck at the tents open door. A very small number of red clad Honored Matres were also making their way outside but hardly any of these had been invited unless they had siblings in the Missionara or their parents were well connected in some way. The noise outside was the arrival of the Reverend Mother who had come for the lectures. Her motorcade had stopped once it had turned off the Aostan highway and begun its journey down the schools private drive, the driver had fixed to each wing a flag, the left the flag of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood and the right the flag of the Theocracy of Kaitaine. The car came to a stop and from the schools entrance and beneath the orange and black flag of the Theocracy of Kaitaine came a stern looking woman, her hair scrapped hard back. Olimpia Vico  had taken over the school in Aosta two years ago and was keen to make a good impression. She turned and barked in Gaelic and four girls in Truthsayer uniform hurried to make a guard of honour at the cars door. Olimpia herself opened it and then bowed her head as Erin McGregor the head of the Sisterhood, the Reverend Mother, emerged. She was wearing a plain black robe with a gold chain indicating her rank, the hood of the robe obscurred her face but as she turned to face Vico she pushed it back revealing a pretty 21 year old with a smooth bald head. "Olimpia" she placed a hand on the Missionara's head giving a blessing. "Thank you for inviting me to your school" once Olimpia had looked up Erin hugged her warmly. "Its my first visit here. I'm keen to have the tour." She glanced up at the school clock-tower, "However that will wait for tomorrow I believe we are already behind schedule"

"Where your holiness is concerned the schedule can change." Olimpia said preparing to push proceedings back for a while.

"No...no." Erin smiled as she began offering blessings to the gaggle of students and their guests who were now gathering. "I'm here for a few days. I've plenty of time. Beside I'd like to get to know some of your students." She recognised Lilias who was holding her guitar, the singer was a student at the Cenneg Chapterhouse were Erin made her HQ. "Lilias I hope we can speak later as I may have a job for you." Erin was making her way towards the Hall's door as members of her Truthsayer detachment made a path for her.

"As you command" Lilias replied nervously.

As Erin reached the Hall it was already filling up with the cream of the guests. As she entered she spotted familiar faces, members of the four Holy Houses greeted her from their seats on the floor of the hall with respectful nods. She recognised a few of the girls from her graduating class who had gone on to become Missionara based here in Aosta and of course despite not worrying too much about the world of Academia she did recognise a few of the speakers. Walking side by side with Olimpia she ascended to the stage at the front of the hall and the room began to hush. Erin took a seat on a type of ornate chair placed in the centre of the stage as various Missionara, Truthsayers, Mothers and Honored Matres, the heads of each branch from each Chapterhouse fanned out either side of her. Olimpia though went and stood by the lecturn. "Please Honoured Guests, be upstanding for the national anthem of Kaitaine, the home of our sacred faith." From the gallery at the back of the hall the wrap of snare drums began soon to be joined by pipes. The hall stood and the Bene Gesserit among them began to sing[1]. While many around the world did not recognise the Theocracy as a nation here on the school grounds Olimpia had her students sing the song every morning as the Theocracies flag was raised. For some of the non-Aostian based Bene Gesserit in the hall it was a rather emotional time as many had never sung the ancient song surrounded by so many of the faithful. Once the pipes had faded and the song had ended Olimpia began to speak. "542 days ago the words we have just sung echoed for the first time through the streets of Seitch. On that day a young Truthsayer stated that the Land of our Mothers spoken about in the song would be " a land dedicated to bettering ourselves and mankind". In order for us to live out that hope for that warrior still fighting today we need to ensure that every one of us continues the work of our ancient Sisters, the work of preparing the world for the time when the 2nd Kwizach Hadrach is needed. We prepare for that moment by gaining knowledge and that is why we are all assembled in this hall, the gain knowledge, to learn more about the world around us and to equip ourselves for the times ahead. I am honoured to host this years Chapterhouse and I welcome the Revererned Mother to Aosta." Olimpia stood aside as Erin stood and made her way forward.

"We are desert creatures" Erin said loudly, "It seems strange then that we are here in Aosta, a land blessed with lush valley's and wonderous vineyards. It seems far from a desert but in many ways it is not. Like the rest of Mundus outside the Theocracy there is another type of desert. Once upon a time explorers would have looked at the desert and wondered what was on the otherside, what secrets, what riches lay on the otherside of the sand ocean. Our ancestors studied the creatures of the desert and became one, they mastered the sands and they learnt the ways of Shai Halud. Now those deserts are conqured by us. The desert that has not been conquered though is knowledge. We live in an age where we think we know so much. Turn on google and everything is at our finger tips. We however stand like Selim Wormrider, gazing at the vast sands before him unsure what exactly is out there. Selim left behind the safety of the grasslands near the coast of Kaitaine and took the steps forward into the unknown. That is now what I want for us in the Sisterhood, we need to branch our exploration of knowledge into new fields. We need Missionara now studying the latest technology, not only confining themselves to the past. We need Missionara to become the cutting edge developers of AI, we need the Missionara to be those leading the fight against Cancer. These and things like them are now our deserts. In much the same way Selim conquered the desert sands and taught us its ways we too shall conquer these 21st Century deserts and we shall do so by embracing those willing to give us knowledge. Today and over the next few days we shall have come before you guests from the Sisterhood, from the Bene Gesserit community and from those outside our faith but who share our love of knowledge. To the Missionara sat in each talk it is your sacred mission to absord all you can. While the Truthsayers have valiantly lead us back to the sands of Seicth it will be the Missionara now who shall lead us forward to become stronger and become wiser. I thank every single one of you who will speak over the next few days for giving up your time and supporting a cause that I know many across Mundus may find controversial. May Shai Halud guide and bless you." She turned and yielded the stage back to Olimpia.

"I am proud to declare our first Aostan Chapterhouse Lectures open and I am very excited to hear our first speaker."



OOC - There is no running order. Whoever it is who goes first just have Olimpia give an introduction, give your speech. I'll try and have some Missionara's ask questions after, then the next person jump in.

GO!!!
 1. Land of my Mothers
we will always be Faithful and loyal to our own country.
In times of danger we will set you free,
Lead you to glory and to victory.

 (Gone is the past let us start anew,
Let this hope of peace always remain
Spirit of Seitch, be strong and true,
 Then your children will smile again.

Hail, Arrakeen to our ancient pray’r,
In this desert Cathedral,
 let our standards bear,
Joining together with on dream to share,

Hope bless the people of this land so fair.
Rise, Kaitaine let your voices ring In this desert Cathedral of our wandering
Who joy and liberty to all will bring,
Come, let your heart with love and courage sing.

18
Convention Centre / Chapterhouse Lectures 2020
« on: July 04, 2020, 12:02:01 AM »
CHAPTERHOUSE - AOSTA

To:- Esteemed Academics of all Disciplines.

Every year the Chapterhouse schools spread across Mundus gather together for a series of high profile lectures on a range of subjects ranging from global economics, history and science. These lectures mark the end of the schools academic year and are a chance for our best and brightest students of the Missionara Protectiva to learn from the best and brightest on Mundus. We value all knowledge and therefore giving our young girls a chance to hear a wide variety of views and opinions on a wide range of subjects is vital. In previous years we have seen lectures including the impact of genetic engineering on long term biodiversity, we have seen lectures on various aspects of different religions and even on economic balances across the world.

This year we have been permitted to host the event at the Chapterhouse Lifeboat in Aosta and thanks to the government of the Empire of Aosta have been given permission for all scholars intrested in speaking to attend. We shall make accomodation at the school avaliable to any speaker. We furthermore welcome guests not of the Bene Gesserit faith to come and listen to the talks by prior arrangement as space inside the lecture halls are limited. Each lecture will be followed by a question and answer session to give our students a chance to seek even further knowledge.

Any individual wishing to either attend the lectures as a guest or give a lecture are requested to contact the Lead Missionara Protectiva Scholar.[1] We look forward to a thought provoking series of lectures.

Olimpia Vico
Lead Missionara Protectiva Scholar for Aosta
 1. This is open to everyone and any topic. I just ask for people to either by DM or posting here to let me know what's being planned as to try and avoid for example two people doing the same talk although I doubt that would ever happen.

19
Diplomacy and Events / Council of Albion - Admission of Aschlon
« on: June 05, 2020, 05:15:28 PM »
Following prodecures the government of Tytor have raised objections to the admission of Aschlon as a member of the organisation.

If Tytor wish to outline their concerns then the council can vote on a way forward. The reason given in Tytor's official request is "the systemic persecution of religious people within their borders."

It is understood that the nation has taken very little action against lynchings of members of the  Aschlon Holy Church and has furthermore closed religious newspapers. Does the representative of Tytor wish to add information to this before voting is carried out.

20
Diplomacy and Events / Council of Albion - Message to Merina
« on: May 15, 2020, 09:25:58 PM »

Following a recent meeting between the membership of the Council of Albion it was determined that action should be taken to try and bring about a peaceful end to the ongoing civil war in Merina. The Council understands that this long running conflict is complex and features many factions however it is the innocent people of Merina who are suffering. In order to therefore attempt to support the various factions in bringing about a lasting and sustainable peace the Council would like to invite all factions to the Council's HQ to begin talks to end the civil war.

With this aim in mind with immediate notice the members of the Council shall not supply any military material to any party engaged in the current conflict. Additionally no member of the Council of Albion will purchase goods and services from any party engaged in the civil war.

Member nations now await the response of the parties involved in the civil war however we are determined to not allow this war to continue. As a result should no response be heard from a faction within 72 hours[1] further action has been sanctioned by the Council up to and including the prospect of the use of military assets.

We hope that all factions will accept our invitation.

THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE COUNCIL OF ALBION
 1. Not OOC 72hours

21
Vignettes / Stories of the Bene Gesserit Sisters
« on: April 24, 2020, 10:20:04 PM »
24th April 2020

Lydia came up from below the deck of her small single person sailboat. She turned on the campstove to boil some fresh water to make her morning porridge while enjoying the sunrise over the Kyne. It had taken her well over a week to reach this little bay and in a few hours she'd be entering a port in southern Tamora. She mixed the last of her honey into the thick oaty porridge and radioed into HQ where exactly she was. Her small simple breakfast done she tidied up the deck, lifted the anchor and checked her GPS to make sure she was on course. She kept close to the shore line for most of the morning until the Tamoran port town came into view. She sent her final message from the boat and prepared to come into the port, no sooner had she moored up the tiny boat she was heading off in search of her next mode of transport the hefty backpack strapped to her back.

It was a bit of a struggle, she didn't speak Parthian and her stuttered use of the phrase book meant it took longer than you would expect to get the hire care, she was just pleased it would allow her to play her music as she headed North. Her legs were still wobbly as she got settled for what would be a longish drive. Lydia enjoyed the travelling she was doing, it was perhaps similar to the reason she enjoyed long distance running because you could just get lost in your own little world. The air-conditioned car was certainly a great way to see this new country and she was in some way a little disappointed that she couldn't pull off the road here and there and do some exploring, maybe on the way back if she had the time. By early afternoon the skyscape of Djerb came into view, various minarets, spires and domes visible. Thankfully the strange city was pretty easy to navigate around thanks to the GPS and she found Verspassian Atreides, the ambassador to Tamora. Lydia may be a Truthsayer officer, but she was also one of the children of the Four Holy Houses and that meant in some very distant roundabout way that made the Fremen and Atreides family. Verspasian hugged her as she got out of the car and had one of the embassy security detachment grab her bag from the boot of the car. "Did you bring it?" Verspasian asked eagerly.

"Of course not, I've just sailed half way round Aranye without the stuff" she shook her head surprised at the question in some ways. "I tell you though it was a fantastic voyage, if we still need the job doing next year then sign me up." she added. The pair walked inside the embassy and Verspasian watched as Lydia unpacked the ruck sack, she'd left nearly everything on the boat and having carefully taken out a vaccum packed bag containing her Truthsayer uniform she began pulling out taped pack after taped pack of powder handing each carefully to Verspasian. It must have been a good 3/4 of the rucksack which contained the packets and once each had been handed over she unwrapped her uniform. "I'm going to need an iron." she said as she held up the heavily creased trousers, jacket and shirt.

"We'll have someone sort it for you." Verspasian replied as he motioned for a Truthsayer Corporal to take the items and ensure they were taken care of. "You have a nap, have a shower, get yourself settled. If you want some food just pick up the phone, dial 1 and speak to the kitchen." Confident that his guest in the embassy was settled he went back downstairs. A whole production line was being set up, each of the taped packets was carefully being unwrapped onto clean white table clothes were two Truthsayers wearing surgical style masks. They passed the powder through seives ensuring no lumps or chunks existed. Once the finely sifted powder was one the cloth a series of small wooden boxes were brought out and using digital scales a set amount of the powder was weighed. Only when exactly perfect measurements of the precious powder were set was it carefully placed into the silk cloth lined box. It was at this point a third Truthsayer carefully folded the silk over and tied the dark blue ribbon around it tightly. The box was then placed in a black velvet bag and a member of the Missionara Protectiva who was overseeing the whole process wrote a tag attached to the bag and then ticked it off on a clipboard pinned list. It took the best part of the day to complete the task and by the end hundreds of the boxes had been prepared.

Lydia had time to have a nap on something that wasn't pitching and rolling before having a shower. By the time she emerged from the giant bathroom her uniform was hanging ready. "You going to be OK doing this?" Verspassian asked her as she made her way downstairs to see the tables and boxes being tidied up.

"Of course" Lydia laughed, "walking through Arakkeen with a rucksack full of this compared to a stroll through Djerb, easy choice" she picked up one of the boxes and placed it carefully into the ammunition box that sat on the hip of her black leather belt. Normally she'd have had a service pistol on her other hip and her crystknife on the back of her belt, all ceremonial emblemns of a Truthsayer officer but Verspassian figured having an armed woman wandering around Djerb wouldn't be desireable. She checked her directions, donned her beret and headed out the embassy. It was a pleasant stroll through the streets of Djerb, she watched how some of the locals watched her passing curiously and having stopped to ask directions a few times just to double check where she was going she found herself explaining who she was several times. Eventually she reached the Palace and made her way up to the gate security. "Good evening" the sun was just about to begin its descent towards the horizon. "My name is Liutenant Fremen, I'm a Truthsayer officer sent by His Excellency Ambassador Verspasian Atreides." She reached into her pouch and retrieved the small box. "I have been dispatched with delivering this, its a token of esteem from the the Ambassador." She handed it over. "It contains a Truthsayers ration of the spice melange freshly harvested from Seitch. The Ambassador has sent it as a gift to the Empress." While every other box had been ear-marked for members of the faith spread across Mundus the Ambassador had thought it fitting to present his host with the gift. "Thank you" she smiled as she handed the box over, "Have a pleasant evening" she nodded respectfully to the guards, about turned and headed back towards the embassy via a small cafe she'd spotted on her way to the Palace.

Attached to the box was a creamy white envelope containing a message from the Ambassador

Quote from: Letter

To Her Imperial Majesty

Every year the Truthsayers of the Bene Gesserit faith harvest the sandworms of Seitch and make the spice Melange. Our faith teaches us that women of great spiritual power, good standing and blessed with great gifts can harness it as a means of connecting with God/Gods. Others believe that it is an excellent addition to cake. Each year the spice is distributed and traditionally Truthsayers, those charged with defending the faith, are the only ones guaranteed a portion. As the matriach of a nation that has allowed us to live safely in your nation it in my view means you have done as much to defend the Bene Gesserit faith as a Truthsayer. It is therefore my honour to present you with a Truthsayers portion of this years spice harvest.

With thanks on behalf of the Bene Gesserit

Verspassian Atreides

22
Diplomacy and Events / Council of Albion - The Merinan Situation
« on: April 13, 2020, 09:39:20 PM »
Princess Anfisa Naumov waited for everyone to be seated before she began, "As the Council may be aware the current situation in  Merina has been raging for some time now and shows no sign of being halted any time soon. As such representatives from Lodja have been assured by the Free Merinan Association of a desire within that nation by various factions to bring the conflict to a peaceful end. With this in mind and following discussions with various nations and the Free Merinan Association the Queendom of Lodja would like to present the following proposal to the membership of the Council of Albion"

Quote
1) The Council of Albion shall make an immediate call for a ceasefire to be put in place
1A) IF accepted - international monitoring commission established by the membership of this Council to ensure terms are respected
1B) IF NOT accepted - A Council of Albion lead coalition will establish a  limited international intervention including but not limited to no-fly zone, anti-blockade measures and humanitarian assistance.

2) The Council of Albion shall appoint a team of mediators who shall push for a negotiated settlement to include multilateral disengagement and gradual demobilization
2A) IF accepted - combatant forces to withdraw from combat areas as marked by Council of Albion established monitoring commission this must be followed by a  gradual reduction of all forces to peacetime establishment
2B) IF NOT accepted - The Council of Albion to establish an international peacekeeping force to establish 'safe zones' within Merinan territory

3A) IF hostilities at an end, Constitutional Convention to take place to determine shape of future Merinan State. This shall be chaired by representatives from the Council of Albion. They shall formulate a series of key questions which will be answered by Plebiscite
3B) IF hostilities NOT at and end, 'disengagement zones' to be established, with international forces lead by the Council of Albion mandated to engage combatant forces advancing beyond their allotted zones.

4A) Constitution to be completed and signed based upon outcomes of Constitutional Convention and Plebiscite; interim transitional government to serve for no more than two years before elections take place which shall be observed by the Council of Albion.
4B) Where combatants have been forcefully disengaged, unilateral disarmament to be requested, with a reasonable period allowed for this. General amnesty to be offered to combatant soldiers upon desertion or surrender.

5B) Where factions do not permit citizens, or their representatives, from engaging in either the Constitutional Convention or the Plebiscite, international forces to be mandated to facilitate this.
5B1) When in the process of facilitating either Constitutional Convention or Plebiscite, international forces to be mandated to engage and destroy any forces as is necessary to allow citizens to partake in these processes in a safe and inclusive manner.

6B) As (4A), interim government to administer disarmament for a period of no more than two years. This to be monitored by the Council of Albion.
6B1) Any such armed factions or groups so remaining to be given reasonable period to surrender their arms and return to civilian life, or take service under interim government under such terms as are offered
6B2) Any such groups declining to disarm or take service are to be neutralized with such alternative means as are required to do so, including force once all other options are exhausted

7A/B) International forces begin graduated withdrawal once no longer required.

8A/B) Elections to take place within two years of constitutional ratification

As copies of the document in the various langauges were handed out Princess Anfisa concluded saying, "We invite those present to discuss what is on the table. We are seeking a scenario where this region takes ownership of ensuring peace within its own continent and truly believe that this Council is capable of helping bring stability back to Merina. "


23
War and Conflict / A Red Rag
« on: October 25, 2019, 09:37:05 PM »
OOC - Dave/Libby Productions

25th October 2019, Arrakeen, Soviet Republic of Kaitaine 8:45am (Aranye East Time)

The capital of Kaitaine was a strange place in parts it was a sprawling mass of white concrete buildings, a mosaic of identical squat residential block with the odd store or industrial unit dotted around. On the edges though houses clung to steep sided hills and these homes had gardens, yards and allotments, they harked back to a time before the Soviet had formed and today tended to be the residencies of Ministers or military figures.

Sarah Francis was the East Moreland ambassador to the Soviet. She assumed that in a past life she must have really upset someone to get this posting. It lacked the freedoms associated with other postings and her homelands relationship with the Soviet was a kind of marriage of convenience, it enabled the Morelanders to gather information while for Kaitaine it showed they had at least some support.  It was time for the weekly briefing with the Soviet Vice President and so Sarah was joined by her usual duo of Red Legionnaires and the four KDF outriders. She actually enjoyed her meetings with Vadik Pasternak, he was an intelligent man and efficent clearly the product of his military career. He had a dry sense of humour and she could see why the Kaitaine military liked him. There was however an edge to him something that made Sarah think that despite the charm and kindness he showed in the meetings there was a granite like edge to him.

Sarah was taking in the sight of the sun glinting off the calm blue sea as they headed from the cliff sides into the city itself. The city was quiet, it always was in terms of car traffic, the regular buses and trams took care of the neccesity for a daily traffic jam. It was as they turned into a lane between two residential blocks that Sarah saw the first of the KDF outriders go down. The Red Legionnaire driving the embassy car swerved and pressed his foot flat to the floor as the one on the back with Sarah pushed her to the floor taking out his pistol as the sound of bullets bouncing of metal. The other KDF outrider to their front fell as gun fire from windows above struck home. A truck pulled across the end of the lane and the driver reacted quicker than the outriders behind him and one of them slammed into the rear of the vehicle. The other was off and on foot, his rifle firing up towards one of the windows. The driver bounced the car over the fallen motorcycle it modified suspension making light work of the task. The shooting outrider crumpled against the wall as he was taken out. The way they'd come in closed up as a van backed into them, the two vehicles boots smashing together. As the driver tried to force the van out the way four black clad figures burst into the alley before them while four more appeared from over the top of the van. The Red in the rear was now unlocking the boot safe and dragging out rifles. The vehicle was armoured and would hopefully buy them time but they had nowhere to go. It was then they noticed that one of the figures had crawled alongside the vehicle and placed a shape charge on the door. The boom from it caused the three inside the vehicles to feel their ear drums burst followed by a metallic buzz. Hands reached in and while disorientated the Reds did their best to get shots off but it was a hopeless situation. Soon they were dragged out the car and following a flurry of boots and fists a black bag placed over their heads and thrown into the back of the van which sped off. Their ringing in their ears subsided just enough by then to hear the sirens of incoming KDF vehicles as they bounced around in the back of the fleeing vehicle.



25th October 2019, Northfort Palace, East Moreland 9:30am (Aranye East Time)

It hadn't been to long since King David had gone to bed. He'd been up working late on some details of a new health care policy with some of his Ministers. His bedside phone went and David picked it up. "Hello" the King replied trying to focus on the digital clock next to the phone.

"Your Majesty, sorry to wake you but there has been a kidnapping in Kaitaine. Ambassador Francis and her security detachment. We've already called a General Staff meeting." It was Quinn Germaine no doubt only awoken a few minutes earlier.

"I'll see them in the briefing room in ten minutes." The King hung up the phone, slipped out of bed and quickly washed his face in cold water hoping to wake himself up. He slipped into a shirt and trousers and hurried down to the basement of the Palace. General Katie Yacobs was already there, she was dressed in a tracksuit while next to her sat her daughter Grace, a member of the Intelligence Agency who the King had assigned to have special interest in Kaitaine. David had expected Redfern to be there but he wasn't but Brigadier Kelly was on a video screen, various ministers and aides finished the gathering to whom Quinn was already pouring very strong coffee for.  "Who is kicking us off?" David asked.

"That'll be me." Brigadier Kelly's voice came from the speakers. "We got a call from Sergeant Hadfield about an hour ago now. He was in the car with the ambassador. The recording has him narrate what was going on outside and essentially we're talking a highly organised, highly efficent hit. I'd be proud of it. They took out the four KDF motorbike escort then blew their way into the car and took the three of them. Seems they wanted our guys alive." Kelly played the call and David shifted uneasily at every explosion and gunshot. "We're working on the idea that this was a Bene Gesserit squad of some sort. I suspect from how it was carried out and the fact they knew our vehicles capabilities so well that bastard Gillespie, Corrino, whatever he's calling himself planned it."

"Where do we stand finding him?" David asked.

"We know he is in and around Seitch." Grace Yacobs spoke. " We've a four man team there on the look out and orders to neutralise or capture if they can." The King nodded.

The various people around the table gave their assessments and opinions for the next hour or so before it came time to act. "Assume its the Bene Gesserit" David began, "I want us to have the most senior person we have over there make contact with McPherson. I want a green light to send in a team to get our people back if a chance comes up. I also want measures in place to carry out strikes on targets in this territory controlled by the Theocracy."

"Yes Your Majesty" everyone got to their feet as the King stood indicating they had better be about their business. Just as the King was about to leave Quinn returned.

"Your Majesty you may want to see this." She used a remote control to flick the monitors to a new channel. A paused YouTube video was on.



YOUTUBE VIDEO

A trio of hooded figures filled the camera lense which pulled back to reveal four clearly female figures wearing masks and  carrying rifles stood behind and beside them. A figure at the front, a masked woman appeared.

"We are the Truthsayers of the Theocracy of Kaitaine." it began, "We have captured three Morelanders tresspassing on our territory waging war against us. As such we demand the complete ceasation of hositilies against us by East Moreland, we demand they cease their intelligence sharing arrangement and we demand they recognise our nation as the true and sovreign rulers of Kaitaine. We have shown we are capable of striking in both East Moreland and now in our own lands. This shall be the first and final warning we give to King David and his followers. We shall be in touch."

The screen showed the three hooded prisoners being unmasked to show their faces before the camera went off.



25th October 2019, Seitch, Kaitaine 10:30am (Aranye East Time)

Stacey Bradshaw burst into the Palace at Seitch her tablet grasped in her hand. She hurtled into the old throne room which served as a kind of mess hall for the Truthsayer officers. "Corporal slow down." A Liutenenant yelled at the youngster whose eyes darted about the room. Spotting her target she ran over. "Sir" she panted as she put the laptop down. "I've been getting loads of messages on social media about this." She stepped back and hit play allowing the video to run for Nathanial Corrino

"Ah shit" The man formerly known as James Gillespie, a respected Red Legionairre muttered. "You shown McNeill?" Nathanial drained his coffee and picked up the device.

"No" Bradshaw was the Truthsayers poster girl, a social media "influencer" althought Nathanial had no idea what that actually meant. She did however have a knack of finding things they could often use out there on the web but this video was worrying. They found Joanne McNeill in a side room drawing on a map updating it with details from reports. The pair showed her the video.

"Ah shit" she muttered. "Either one of the Arrakeen commanders has gone rouge or.....well I don't know. Its bad enough Corrino here having his own personal fanclub out there in the desert somewhere but those Badgers are gonna go apeshit over this. We need to find them before anything bad happens. The Morelanders already think we tried stealing nuclear waste and now we're apparently entering the kidnapping business."

"I'll see what I can do" Nathanial turned and headed out making his way to his office. He reached into his top draw and pulled out a mobile phone. He looked at the time, it was still early but he figured that meant they'd at least be in. He scanned down the contact list until he found the right number and hesitatingly set it ringing. It seemed an age until a groggy voice came from the other end.

"If this isn't Rollo MacAllister trying to seduce me then you can piss off" the voice came back.

"Alice" Nathanial said hesitatingly.

"Holy Fucking Helus" Alice Goodwin said as she sat up in bed. "Traitorous bastard." She was about to hang up.

"Alice I need you to give me five minutes." He waited half expecting the phone to go dead.

"Time starts now." Alice had got to know the then James when she'd flown helicopters for Red Legion and had been out for beers with Redfern and his team a number of times. She had fancied the bloke but he'd never shown any real interest and she was now thankful they'd never been anything other than drinking buddies.

"When you turn on the news you'll see your ambassador to Kaitaine has been kidnapped. They're blaming us. Its not us. I might be a traitor in your eyes but those two guys are my brothers in my eyes. I'd not let any action against the Red's be taken unless I had a choice. Hell they've been trying to kill me for weeks and I've done nothing. I know what I did and I deserve their scorn, but I still carry my sword, I still say the words before going into battle. Believe me when I say it wasn't us. I need a favour."

"You've about a minute left." Alice said.

"Get a message to Redfern for me. Tell him I'll find the guys and I'll get him whatever information I can. Those people are not Truthsayers."

"OK" Alice believed him. Gillespie had been a good Legionnaire and was devouted to his friends, or at least it had felt that way. He could have killed Redfern when the Major confronted him but he hadn't, he could have assassinated the King he'd had enough chances. Surely if he had an anti-Moreland agenda something would have happened long before now but the man was decorated war hero. The phone went dead and Alice jotted down the number before getting herself out of bed, showering and heading into the barracks which was a five minute walk from her little Aldfield Cottage.

The Barracks were a buzz of activity already, clearly word had reached of the kidnapping. A few of the guys were even chatting away in Celt, a clear sign they were polishing up on their language skills expecting a deployment. Alice was a common site around the base being what they called her, "a taxi driver" she headed towards the admin corridor. "Alex" she knocked on the door.

"They called you in?" Redfern was busy scribbling on a notepad as Alice dropped into the sofa behind the door.

"No. I've had a rather strange phone call." She spent the next few minutes talking Alex through what had been said and then answering his questions. "I think he's being honest" She concluded.

"Hmmm" Alex wasn't so sure. "I'm being asked to work with the intelligence agency on this, I'm on standby to head to Arrakeen, you're now on that bus. Head home pack a bag for a week and get back here. I've a feeling things are gonna get weird."

24
Diplomacy and Events / Council of Crowns
« on: August 10, 2019, 07:57:43 PM »

To:- Members of the Network of Crowns.

In 2016 my predeccessor forumulated the Network of Crowns, an organisation designed to bring about a way that those of us in rather unique poitions can support and help each other. With this in mind and with realisation that the Council of Crowns meeting is long overdue. With that in mind I extend an invite for monarchs or their representatives to attend the Council, and following festival, in order to fulfil the terms of the charter. The meeting will take place on the Isle of the Queens[1] and the town of Zhary. I look forward to welcoming you in person.

Sessifets Blessings

Queen Klara II of Lodja.




Zhary City Library

It was rather an odd choice for the Council of Crowns, for such a small island it was odd that its "Capital" sat around 10km away from the coast on a hillside that on a clear day did give a lovely view of the greenery and then the Alucard. It was the seat of the Danialov family and as such Lady in Waiting Jasmina found large crowds welcoming her home as well as keen to see their Queen. It was the first visit of Queen Klara to the island despite its name as the Isle of Queens and large groups had come out to catch a glimpse of their monarch. She was naturally accompanied by a rather large entourage, four Ladies in Waiting, her conclave and rather less expected King David of East Moreland. He and his partner Baronetess Stasya had travelled over two days prior and had been enjoying some time on the Isle of the Goddess before joining the Lodjains on their short trip for the Conference. Princess Rhiannon had joined the East Moreland delegation which was practically inverse to the size of the Lodjain one, King David, Princess Rhiannon, David's Chief of Household Quinn Germaine and the new Youth Minister Edward Holmes who was on his first official duty as a newly elected member of the Representative Council.

The vehicles arrived in their convoy at the library and Klara went on a bit of a walkabout along with her husband King Leopold and her wife CrownPrincess Roksana. King David meanwhile headed inside while he left Princess Rhiannon in the care of Quinn, the pair were going to head to the beach and make a sandcastle. As David and Stasya stood hand in hand watching the Princess depart they looked quickly at the schedule, a brief spot of breakfast, talks about the future of the Network and then head to the town square where events were taking place celebrating the Network. With Klara still speaking to her subjects King Leopold was dispatched inside to help greet anyone.
 1. This isn't the one where the royal palace is

25
Economics and Industry / A Black Deal
« on: July 26, 2019, 09:16:32 PM »
Rebecca Cameron wasn't entirely happy about this arrangement. She'd arrived in Lodja a few days ago as a tourist, just intent on enjoying a few weeks on the beaches soaking up some sun, doing some surfing and kayaking. She'd meet her contact Albanus Ares in a beachfront bar, the Bakkermayan businessman having arrived that evening. He'd handed over some co-ordinates to Rebecca who the following morning meet up with her partner in crime Sarah Duggan. The pair had rented a couple of kayaks and paddled down the coast to a cove given on the list of co-ordinates. There it had taken them a few minutes to find the exact spot and there in the crystal blue waters sat a couple of weighted down waterproof bags. Sarah swung herself out her boat and into the water unweighting the bags, they floated to the top and Sarah dragged them to shore while Rebecca kept look out. Sarah checked the contents, a couple of assault rifles that were standard Lodjain issue, a couple of RPG's and a host of other small arms, probably enough to arm 30 or so people. "Lets get them strapped up." Sarah donned a snorkel and proceeded to position the bags on the straps they'd put around the kayaks. It upset the balance of the boats at first but by adjusting their seats they soon rectified the situation.

It was a good 10km of paddling, five hours or so and by the time they reached the tiny island their arms were getting tired. They bobbed around at the point where the GPS said they should be and then noticed a green laser pointer casting onto their kayaks. The signal they'd expected. Sarah and Rebecca set off towars the laser pointers operator on the shoreline ready to make the exchange.

26
Convention Centre / Pride 2019 OOC
« on: June 18, 2019, 10:29:00 PM »
Every year during Pride Month the region has held an IC festival called.....surprisingly......Pride.

We missed last year however its time for a comeback.

If anyone is interested in hosting it do an application letter etc, I believe its part of an organised thing promoted by the Sunbrek Foundation or something in Nya Aland. So maybe do a letter stating which city, what you'll do for the festival and why you should be picked.

We'll say 23rd June 2019 for the cut off. If no one applies I'll have Leublin in Lodja host it, if someone else applies we'll have a vote type thingy.


27
TV Shows / The Bene Gesserit AMA
« on: April 21, 2019, 10:55:09 PM »
A weekly[1] interactive web chat with leading members of the Bene Gesserit faith both from Seitch and around the world.

This week we have three Bene Gesserit sisters answering questions for our viewers. First up we have Stacey Bradshaw, a corporal in the Truthsayers she was educated in the Lifeboat Chapterhouse in Achkaerin and was among the first of the non-Kaitaine born Truthsayers to enter the Holy City of Seitch. Since then she's become a bit of a star on social media earning hundreds of thousands of followers and posting regular stories on instagram giving insights into daily life in the Holy City of Seitch.


Joining her on this weeks panel is 17 year old Football star, Captain of the Theocracy of Kaitaine's womens football team. Daisy Collins lead the team to a 3-0 defeat in their first ever international played against Tamora. When not representing her nation on the sporting field she is a student at the Lifeboat Chapterhouse in Cantabria and is hoping in the future to join the Truthsayers and says her dream is to captian the Theocracy for a game in Arrakken.


Finally we have Abigail Atredies joining us from Tamora. The wife of of Verspasian Atreides, heir to the Atreides Dukedom and first ever ambassador appointed by the Reverned Mother. She is 25 years old, a graduate of the Achkaerin Lifeboat Chapterhouse school and graduated as a Holy Mother before being married to the future Duke. She is currently residing at the new embassy in Tamora and plans of building a Missionara library there.




We welcome questions from news sources around the world, government officials or just interested members of the public. I know open the floor.....or should I say the web chat to anyone who has a question.
 1. or whenever I can be bothered to run one

28
My nation of Kaitaine has a native religion called the Bene Gesserit. Its a strange religion in that it has no fixed doctrine except that women are connected to God/Gods and that there is an upcoming catastrophe of unknown type that humanity must prepare for by gaining knowledge and creating a superhuman being called the Kwizach Hadrach, something that can be achieved by selective breeding.

The religion was chased out of Kaitaine in the mid 19th Century and established itself in secret across Mundus so as to hide. It established four girls Boarding Schools to help keep the faith alive and these have been highly successful building a reputation for academic excellence.

The true nature of the faith was discovered around 18months- 2 years ago and naturally because the Bene Gesserit faith has got itself in a bit of pickle (some "rouge" members tried stealing nuclear waste from East Moreland. It's also trying to take over Kaitaine by armed struggle and may/may not be using child soldiers who would have been trained at the schools.

The school looks something like below and would need to be rather isolated to retain its secretive nature.



If your interested in hosting it then please let me know.

What would it mean for you as an RPer

1. You'd have to accept the fact that a rather large Bene Gesserit following diaspora emerged in your nation but kept their true faith secret until recently.

2. You'd have to be willing to let me write about the goings on at the school, i.e visits by members of the faith etc. Don't worry I'll ask before setting off any bombs or anything.

3. You'd be expected to probably take stances on the going ons in Kaitaine. I can brief you about that if your not familiar.

4. Potentially could be in trouble with Rokkenjima and East Moreland who have come out as anti-Bene Gesserit but have yet so far to take measures against the nations hosting the schools.

If anyone is interested, wants to know more or has any suggestions, comments etc then please let me know. I have this one school that needs a home somewhere active please.

29
International Organisations / Network of Republics
« on: March 08, 2019, 09:21:59 AM »
Spoiler: CHARTER • show
Recognising the independence of Republics.

Understanding the need for international co-operation amongst citizens is vital for international harmony

Committed to celebrating the uniqueness of nations.

Hopeful that Republics can co-operate in a range of areas

The nations signing this document hereby agree to the following conditions.

1. That Republics will act towards each other with friendship and kindness. That any disputes shall be settled by peaceful means whenever possible using various international organisations to bring about mutually acceptable solutions.

2. That Republics will host Ambassadors of other member nations within their capital. These Ambassadors are to present themselves to the Head of State/Government within 24 hours of being summoned in writing.

3. That every two years a Festival of Nations shall take place[3]. This shall be a Cultural Festival to be hosted in a member nation choosen by a panel made up of one representative per nation. Each representative may nominate one city as host and may cast one vote, this however may not be for their nation. A nation may not host two consecutive Festivals.

4. That every two years[4], to be staggered with the Festival of Republics, a Tournament of Nations shall take place. This shall be a sporting event similar to the Mundus Games but on a smaller scale with each member nation choosing two Sports. The host shall be choosen by a panel made up of one representative per nation. Each representative may nominate one city as host and may cast one vote, this however may not be for their nation. A nation may not host two consecutive Tournaments.

5. The Network of Republics shall share information on criminal activity and organisations branded terrorists by any member, that may effect other nations. 

An organisation for the purpose of this article will be defined as any group the following criteria can apply to.

a) Is not a sovereign government
b) Is not a recognised faith.
c) Has been proved beyond reasonable doubt to have acted outside the requesting nations laws.
6. Members of the Network of Republics agree that they shall ensure any Tariffs in existence are no higher for members than for the lowest tariffed non-republic nation which does not hold a Trade Agreement.[5]

7. Member nations agree that should a natural disaster/act of God befall a fellow member they shall take whatever action is within their power to offer support.

8. Member nations agree to an annual Council of Ministers. This shall take place in a rotation basis determined on the order by which this Treaty is signed. This Council shall be attended by either the Head of Government or their appointed person and shall discuss matters of international importance as well as co-operation between members.

9. This Treaty shall be open to any nation that has the governmental form of a republic, which shall be defined as one with an elected non hereditary leader, with a time limited term of office whom is not coronated so far as they ratify this Treaty.

10. A nation may leave this Treaty at any time by giving 30 days written notice.

11. This Treaty shall come into force from the ____________________________

Signed________________At Empire Bay D.C, Empire Bay, Bretonnian Republic
 3.  Or annually for RP purpose
 4.  Or annually for RP purpose
 5.  May need reworking, but essentially Bretonnia would, for example, not be able to charge Heyra a 10% Tariff on Steel, if they charged ES (monarchy) 7% and ES had the lowest steel Tariff of any non-agreement nation. HELP!!!!



MEMBERS

Kaitaine
Atheroje
Artyomov
Sirinisi
Biseam
Lakhzovia

30

Day 66, 21244 SD[1]

It's been several months since the great sandstone city of Seitch came back under its rightful custodians. In that time the evil wankers of the KDF have thrown attack after attack at us, beseiging us, probing us and then realising desert power is unbeatable and sodding off. Since then we've tried returning things to normal, children are beginning to go to school, old folks are getting a pension, and last night I went and had a pedicure. It just doesn't feel like a warzone. We've started to become soft, yes occasionally we wander on a patrol into the foothills, or down the mountain passes making sure the commies stay out of our beautiful fledgling nation but otherwise we try and be free. That sense of freedom, that sense of perceived safety today was brought to a crashing halt thanks to a chemical attack. Yes that's right, a chemical attack. The use of weapons outlawed by most right thinking nations and dropped on our beautiful home.

The sirens began and we thought the air would soon be full of jets. I grabbed my rifle and pack and ran to the basement thats my appointed position, twenty people, six children among them huddled in the darkness waiting for the world that is their home to explode around them. It never came, we heard the boom, braced for the shudder that would bring death but it never came. Slowly a few at a time we emerged back into the hot sunlight of Seitch and then we felt it, a wetness in the air, like a fine mist falling and then we hurried back inside. Over the next few minutes this mist settled, its on everything a fine wetness soaking the stone, the sand and everything and anyone out in the open. I ventured out when given the OK and we gathered in the old market place discussing what to do and already just moments exposed to this mystery mist we felt it, an itching, an irritation and then your eyes began to run. That was just minutes and we got back inside, we carefully cleaned ourselves off fearful of the unknown substance. The rest of the day has been spent inside, wondering what the long term horror of that brief excursion outside will do to us, will my hair fall out? Will my flesh bear the scar for years to come? Will I develop cancer? These are now the questions every young woman risking her life for freedom here now faces. The answers will be unknown for days to come, but rest assured should the need come to defend the city, our homeland and our people every Thruthsayer would gladly rip out their own hair, bloody their own flesh with their own crystknife and take whatever manner of death awaits be it a KDF bullet or the torture of chemically induced cancer, but in the end Seitch shall not fall. They can throw chemicals at us, bombs, bullets and gas we shall take them in our stride and we shall win. The world needs to know, they need to know the torment we face as we wait to see how the little children will react, and the world needs to take their precious Uppsala Convention and ram it down the throats of McPherson and his butcherous air force.
 1. Since Devastation (the Bene Gesserit calender is based on the belief that a great disaster occured of unknown means which nearly destroyed humanity and much of its knowledge

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