Phytoon

OOC: That's funny, a regular old color photo. IC: The BRA wishes the best of luck for these brave explorers.

OOC: Exactly. IC: Today is a momentous occasion for the nations of ISAF, for our tunnel has reached its full length of 4000 miles, connecting all of our nations together! This has been a long project, but the BRA is definitely appreciative of everyone's hard work and support. OOC: Also, I've received word from Apollo11 that he's about half-way done with boot camp. Hopefully I'll be able to go to his graduation, but he wanted me to tell everyone that he's doing well and anticipates some serious RPing upon his return.

(OOC) Yes, it's going to be 4000 miles. We now have a length of 3400 miles. *edit* OOC: Also, this isn't just a straight tunnel. It'll be branching to provide a super-low-way (lol, not highway) connecting the nations of ISAF.

Another 400 miles complete. Total length is 3300 miles.

OOC: This actually slipped my mind for a while... IC: Another 800 miles have been completed, bringing the tunnel to 2900 miles. Almost 3/4 of the target length.

Another 350 miles have been completed in the tunnel, bringing the total distance to 2100 miles. (OOC: Whoa, we're halfway there, Whoa~OA Livin' on a prayer!)

Not to worry, these tunnels will serve as a highway of sorts, linking the nations of ISAF by their major cities. Whatever you may be building, it doesn't matter, because if you want a tunnel to new development, you can dig one on your own time. Thanks for the heads-up, though. We shall avoid the Queen Maud mountains as much as possible. 350 miles have been added to the tunnel, bringing it to 1850 miles long. (OOC: Blast, I missed the even hundred by one day!)

With another 100 miles added, the tunnel is 1500 miles in length.

We have dug another 200 miles, bringing the tunnel to 1400 miles.

OOC: I'm updating today so I can have this on an even hundred cuz of my OCD. IC: The tunnel has now reached a length of 1200 miles in length.

The tunnel has stretched another 200 miles, bringing us to a total length of 1150 miles.

We've dug another 150 miles, bringing us to a total of 950 miles. By tomorrow, we'll have reached a quarter of our goal.

OOC: Well, since Apollo has left me in charge of the shipyards and navy, I'm going to be constructing the ships that he had started. So, if you had contracted with URPR to have some ships built, please let me know (Via PM preferably) and I'll get those RP'd so we won't have to hear about magic ships being summoned out of ether! lol Now, I believe we were getting up to some landing ships. IC: Ms. Agrias walked into the Shipyard Manager's office in URPR. As the liaison to BRA, her job would be to facilitate the transition to BRA control of the shipyard. "Here are the papers for you to sign, ma'am." A tanned man in a suit handed her a stack of legal documents bound by a large paperclip. "Right, I'll have these back to you by the close of business today. I trust there's been no problem with the crews?" "No, ma'am. It's been business as usual here. They just finished the carriers, so they're ready to start on the next project." "Good, because we've got to get to work on these landing ships that President Claudio has ordered to continue the ISAF arming project."

OOC: We didn't really use our full force in the war, so let's just assume the construction went uninhibited. IC: Since my last announcement, our crews have dug an additional 400 miles of tunnel, bringing us to a total of 800 miles. Because of URPR's extensive construction project, we will circumvent their nation temporarily to connect the tunnel to the Republic of Antarctica and the Republic of Dranagg, going through Paraganea, and sending a seperate branch of the tunnel system to the former USB. We expect this to be a total distance of 4000 miles of tunnel, and we should be done by the end of next year (OOC: March, possibly April).

"Not just that," Dr. Li cautioned. "We're going to have to refit the cannons on the existing ships so that there will be room for tanks of H2. Sure, the ships will be able to synthesize it at sea, but to get enough for this kind of pressure, you'd need a storage unit. But, for the weapon design itself, I'd say we're done here." "Great, let's go get some drinks!" Dr. Hoffman offered to pay for a round for everyone. "I'll even make my special tonic. You'll swear you're seeing ghosts!"

For the next test, the team uses a depleted uranium shell with a tungsten core as the bullet in the CLGG. The depleted uranium is dense enough that its form is not altered by the incredibly high heat and pressure it undergoes in the barrel, and the tungsten is strong enough to not shred off upon impact. "So how's it look?" Dr. Hoffman asks Dr. Salvador with a walkie-talkie from the other end of the testing range--a ten mile stretch of land cleared solely for the purpose of testing this gun. "Target hit!" Replied Dr. Salvador on his end, the signal shaky because he was jumping up and down excitedly. "We're going in to check on the projectile now!"

After making the modifications to have buckytube reinforcement on the barrel, the team tested the CLGG once more. With no problems in gas delivery, containment, combustion, or projection, it would seem that the team had a working model. "At last, success!" Cheered Dr. Hoffman. "Now we need to replicate this design to make sure it's not a fluke!" "Wait a minute, what happened to the bullet?" Dr. Braun was crouching next to the projectile with a stern look on his face. "It missed the target and looks fractured." Apparently, while the firing was successful, the CLGG inadvertently destroyed the projectile. Further experimentation must be done to adjust the pressure of combustion to an ideal threshold to avoid warping the projectile and altering its trajectory. "Well damn. At least it'll kill if the enemy's standing right in front of it." Dr. Li joked sadistically.

On the next test, the CLGG had sufficient containment for the intake of H2 gas, but upon firing, created too powerful of a pressure wave, resulting the warping in the barrel. "Blast! I thought we had it that time! At least we know now that compression isn't the problem." Dr. Hoffman lamented. "Well, think of it this way," Dr. Li proposed. "At least we have enough power to send a narwhal through a glacier!" After a short bout of laughter, the staff returned to their business of strengthening the gun's barrel.

OOC: That's not that important. And yeah, I wouldn't mind allowing colonization if nobody else objects to it. Though if it means everyone responds to my private phone conversations... lol

OOC: Are we able to expand suddenly by taking out enemies like that? If so, I have the perfect idea for its allocation. IC: President Claudio called President Cabrera with an important proposition. "Good evening. This is about the recently vacated land from the USB. Perhaps we could requisition about 20 square miles of that land for the ISAF military training grounds? I'm sure Saboria wouldn't mind if we also gave them the remainder of the land."

"Perhaps it was the feeding pump..." proposed Dr. Braun. "It may not have had high enough compression." "No, that can't be it," Dr. Li interjected. "The problem was in the rear O-ring. Look, it's completely sheared. It seems there was a small leak which allowed the hydrogen to ignite prematurely, completely destroying the rear end of the cannon." "Ahah! That must be it, Li! Perhaps if we implemented a larger one we would be able to contain it properly." "Maybe. But it could also be due to the temperature causing it to shrivel and become brittle. We should make the O-ring out of nylon rather than rubber." "Or perhaps an integrated shaft?" Dr. Hoffman had been listening to their conversation and decided to speak up. "You know the old adage about the fewest moving parts. It would apply even to seals. With less parts seperate from the device, the less likely it is to fall apart like that."

The BRA is willing to accept any refugees seeking asylum. Because of the recent construction on the Ice Worm Rail, we have been planning to expand our already spacious city sectors. Seeing as some of the destruction of USB can be blamed on the BRA, we feel it is our obligation to help in any way possible.

--Infiltration-- The following had been transmitted to King by General Orlandu, as well as Kai Wullf's final broadcast. "King... you've gotta get outta there before the MOAB gets there! Do you copy?" "Yes, general... I'm sorry. We weren't fast enough." King looked at Adelie, who was clearly upset about their loss. "We're heading out now. Adelie, let's go home." "I'll have a transport waiting to return you home. It'll be a mile and a half to the east. You ought to have enough time to get out of there before the bomb falls. Now get moving!" --Invasion-- "Fall back! Fall back! Do not approach the Reichtag!" Screamed Commander Gafgarion as his troops' advance came to a screeching hault. The tanks were decimating the remaining troops from USB, while the infantrymen had dug into the wreckage for cover. The USB troops continued to fight viciously, despite the demise of their leader. While the BRA had better technology, they were still impressed at the voraciousness of their foes, who had advantageous positions. They had been unable to advance for a while, but now that the order had come to pull back, they felt more compelled to rout the USB soldiers. Nevertheless, the BRA troops managed to retreat beyond the specified safety range, and held back the USB forces inside the range of the MOAB.

--Border-- As the three hours have passed (OOC: N Reeki's post counts as fast-forward, right?), Gafgarion's troops have begun marching on the Reichtag. They should be upon it in 2 hours at the swiftest. The air support launched from BRA has also arrived, and the F-22s are patrolling the skies and engaging in air-superiority sorties wherever necessary, while the Tu-160s are keeping their distance at high altitude until the battle begins in earnest. --Infiltration-- Adelie and King managed to reach the back entrance of the Reichtag undetected by crawling underneath and holding onto the undercarriage of the USB tanks. They were resting momentarily behind some large crates nearby when King had received word of the main attack force's approach. "King, you've got less than two hours to capture Kai Wullf, or else he may commit suicide. We are fairly certain that the invasion will go off without a hitch, so we're leaving him up to you two. Bring him back alive so we can make him pay for his crimes!" "Yes sir, General Orlandu." King looked at Adelie, who appeared to be ready for anything at this point. They had a five grenades between the two of them, as well as enough ammo to take out a good fifty soldiers before having to grab new weapons. The challenge they faced now was locating and capturing Kai before he became aware of their presence and had the time to kill himself as he had threatened to do in his latest broadcast. "King, let's go. I'm ready." "Alright, let's get even with this guy."

--Border-- With their new reinforcements, the BRA forces numbered 2300 men and 400 tanks. Aircraft were being launched from BRA as well, 30 F-22s and 50 Tu-160s to compliment the squadrons currently in the skies. "Alright, men! Let's show these fascists what we're made of! The first time was just to test their mettle, but this time..." Gafgarion pauses to look at his soldiers' morale. They were beaming at him. Even outnumbered, their efforts, combined with the Saborians and the air attacks from URPR, would soon overcome the desperate USB. Gafgarion knew they would need to stay on top of their game, though, so his speech's impact would be crucial. "This time, we are not merely a dog at the end of its chain, barking at shadows! This time, we will strike against the fascist usurpers of USB and redeem this once proud nation! This time, we will not turn and run because our priorities are not to fight! This time, WE'RE OUT FOR BLOOD!!!" Amidst the cheering and applause that followed, Commander Gafgarion had little doubt that this war would be over in no time. The ISAF forces began marching to Hojiden, where their enemies awaited them with bated breath, and where the coup de gras would finally take place. --Hojiden Infiltration-- Adelie and King had finally located the capitol building, the Reichtag. However, getting in would be no small task. It was clear that the USB was in its last throes, because all of its remaining forces (OOC: You had all of them at Reichtag, right? Correct me if I'm wrong.) were stationed there, patrolling and defending this building which had become nothing short of a fortress. "How are we gonna get in there, King?" Adelie asked, glancing nervously around at all the tanks holding the perimeter. "It's not gonna be simple... or fun." King had an idea, that much was certain, but what it could be was anyone's guess. He was pondering the tanks as they were rolling around the courtyard, slowly surveying every inch of the surrounding area, reminding anyone close-by that their doom was one careless step away. "Adelie, we're going to hitch a ride on those tanks... but we'll have to be fast about it. Think you're up to it?" "O-Of course! What would make you think I wasn't?" "I've seen you get shaken up. You're wondering who's gonna be next, right? First Rock, then Snares. But I'm telling you right now, their deaths were flukes. The enemy got lucky, and those two were unfortunate enough to be their targets. I'm not gonna let them get either of us. We have a mission to finish. Not just for us, but for them as well." "You're right, King! Now how do we get to those tanks without getting crushed or shot?" King explained how one of the tanks kept passing by a building with a small wall next to it, and was pushing up snow to create an embankment. They were going to dig through that embankment and crawl under the tank when it passed by next to grab onto its undercarriage. Then they were going to ride the tank back to the rear entrance and infiltrate the Reichtag from there. The next part would have to be played by ear, because they had no way of knowing what awaited them inside. "You ready? Let's go!"