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Operation: Rolling Thunder


Mara Lithaen

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Lady General Jane Whitelighter stood shivering a bit in the brisk air of the Alaskan morning outside of Illarion International, which doubled as the IAF's main airbase for the region. All about her, the base/airport was a hive of activity as the Second Line division (Tundra/Desert/Marine) formed up into orderly ranks, gear and armor all well-maintained and ready for the upcoming assault. Twenty CZ-7777 City Mover cargo blimps were lined up in the field next to the runway, the base itself surrounded on all sides by wind-cutting man made hills. A little over a thousand men and women loaded into each transport blimp, and a company of M1A3 TUSK Abrams tanks filed in to the remaining space. In another field, a further ten blimps carried the materiel of war - ammunition, clothing, food... to name a few, along with CV-9040 IFVs and APCs, as well as MLRS. No strategic air defense platforms were loaded, as their target was well well well within range of the very airbase they were leaving from.

It took nearly eight hours to fully load, and the Lady General was the last one to board the big blimp, and all of them took off almost in unison, destination (for now) unknown.

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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Lady General Whitelighter opened up her sealed orders.

[quote]FROM: MARA I
TO: L/GEN JANE WHITELIGHTER

CLASSIFICATION: TOP SECRET

ORDERS:

Commence Operation Rolling Thunder.
Invade the Procinctian Nation.
Claim the Island Chain in the name of the Empire.
Eliminate all hostile opposition.

Air support will be available from all land-based squadrons currently in the Imperium proper.
Naval support will be available in the form of coastal missile boats and converted VLS-toting freighters.
Land support will be available as requested.

Godspeed,
The Empress, Mara I[/quote]

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Arriving twelve hours later, the division's transports split evenly, ten blimps carrying a near-even amount and type of materiels and near-even amount of troops going to each of their indicated islands, setting down without opposition and quickly establishing presences, riding out openly into the coastal and inland towns on each of the islands blaring triumphant conquest music due to lack of a standing Procinctian army, though it remains to be seen whether "Back In Black" is really appropriate... yes, yes it is.

OOC: I'm going by General's script on this. :P

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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As the dirigibles made landfall ProcinctiaÂ’s local populace locked themselves into their homes and promptly began to ignore the occupying army. Maybe the invaders would eventually become disinterested by a lack of general recognition and go away on their own accord?

Edited by Generalissimo
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Ten of the country’s most important islands wasn’t nearly Procinctia’s entire territory – but enough for the nation’s government to take decisive action.
Identifying these invaders was extraordinarily straightforward as the Imperium conducted their operation with exceedingly obvious zeppelins.

[i]Operation Polite Objection[/i] was immediately implemented. . .

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[right]-[i]Operation Polite Objection[/i]-
Open International Communication, Open Diplomatic Channels[/right]
Concerning Northern Imperium’s recent military maneuvers.
It has come to our attention that the Northern Imperium’s armed forces are currently occupying significant portions of Procinctia.
Procinctia continues to respect the Northern Imperium’s Bering interests but we respectfully contest this deployment.
While this wouldn’t ordinarily be an issue we have reason to suspect the Northern Imperium’s actions constitute an outright surprise invasion.
We would rather not be taken over because of this minor disagreement and would like an opportunity to politely voice our concerns.

[font="Courier New"][center][img]http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x251/CyberNationsStuff/Tropico2.gif[/img][/center][center]Procinctia’s Legislature, Government of Procinctia[/center][/font]

Edited by Generalissimo
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Procinitia's half of Bering Island, Western Half of Bering Island, Bering Island

The [i]Savoonga Municipal School Sarah Tintagyl Fanclub[/i] is one of two groups in Procinitia that has the arms and organization to mobilize an initial response to this type of invasion.
The school club, cult of personality, and former country of [i]Savoonga Municipal School Sarah Tintagyl Fanclub[/i] already had invasion contingency (successfully tested against the last set of mysterious invaders) in place. As the airship was visible over horizon the S.M.S.S.T.F. quietly migrated to the eastern half of the island escaping out of Procinitian territory without before a single soldier made landfall.
With an open border retreat was easy enough and if everything went according to plan they only had to wait out the storm. . . like a vacation in Slavorussia.

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As the Northern Imperium forces flew over Tianxia air space SAM missiles fired up towards them to bring them to the ground. Such violations were completely unacceptable.































Except when rolling the Procinctian Menace. As they ascended up to the air ships they exploded in fireworks spelling out, best of luck.

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Quickly establishing control over the island chain, and pleased with the lack of a fight, Imperial forces grow accustomed to the vanished natives and begin moving in Alaska's (and Bethel's in particular) excess population, establishing the new city of Beachhead on the largest island, a boomtown of 45,000 people looking forward to being verti-farmers, fisherfolk, and merchants to feed and strengthen the Imperium.

Having "freed" the islands from Procinctian... "oppression", the Second Line makes itself at home near Beachhead at the (under construction) Fort Victory.

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Occupying ten island’s wasn’t nearly ‘establishing control over the island chain’ – perhaps Imperium leadership was complacent at lack of (armed) opposition?
Procinctia’s largest island is Saint Paul; [i]Generalissimo’s Saint Paul City Wasteland Survival Guide[/i] made clear this territory was an uninhabited wasteland. . . [quote][center][b]Generalissimo’s Saint Paul City Wasteland Survival Guide[/b]
By Generalissimo
[img]http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x251/CyberNationsStuff/Rubble.jpg[/img][/center]

From Generalissimo of the Procinctia Broadcasting Corporation hit radio show [i]Saint Paul City Wasteland Guide[/i] comes the definitive (and only) guide to the Saint Paul City Wasteland, this indispensable guidebook contains everything that a survivor in the Saint Paul City Wasteland could need to know. Having survived years alone in the contaminated wasteland of Saint Paul City Generalissimo was the world’s foremost urban wasteland survival expert.

Learn how to survive extended periods in areas of moderate contamination, forge for food in a destroyed urban landscape, disarm a landmine without equipment, battle an automated gun turret while unarmed, and build an emergency signal transmitter out of random scrap metal.

Includes illustrated tours of Saint Paul City’s seven remaining freestanding structures, thorough guides to scavenging and jury rigging, and comprehensive maps of the Saint Paul City Wasteland.[/quote] [i]Generalissimo’s Saint Paul City Wasteland Survival Guide[/i] is somewhat archaistic in depicting Saint Paul City which, after significant international reclamation efforts, is no longer a hellish wasteland.
Perhaps someone in the invader’s intelligence apparatus forgot to buy an updated Atlas. . .
Alaskan homesteaders trying to establishing the new city of Beachhead would encounter a significant obstacle – there’s already a city there.
Establishing a city within a city –Northern Imperium’s ambition had few limits. . .

Edited by Generalissimo
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Construction crews worked around the clock to clear the rubble, namely by blasting it into ever-tinier bits and then using the rubble to fill in the holes, covering them in dirt brought in by barge from the mainland. Humming such tunes as "I've been working on the railroad" and "She'll be comin' around the mountain when she comes", the workers rapidly clear the rubble over the course of several days, using thousands of pounds of explosives and some very, very, VERY large bulldozers and front-end loaders, using some of the larger, more intact rubble to begin the construction of a port while new structures sprang up in cleared areas to house the new population.

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With most of the Island occupied by Procinctian dwellings the Northern Imperium lacked a surplus of space to work – they quickly adapted and promptly made the most of it.
Fortunately there was a moderate remnant of the old Saint Paul City wasteland preserved as a historic site; perfectly preserved rubble.
Fifteen acres didnÂ’t seem like a lot to work with, until the workers blasted downward.

Saint Paul Island was rather compact to build a proper city, Generalissimo compensated by building up.
Every bit of rubble was once part of skyscraper.
Continuously digging down hundreds of feet down the workers would find more than enough rubble to build an expansive port facility.

Over the course of several days the Alaskans cleared ten acres completely.
Beachhead city was built, but without building up there wasnÂ’t enough room to house 45,000 settlers comfortably.
Additional living space might required, but other peoples already occupied the island. . .

Edited by Generalissimo
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"We could build a city-tower." Jane said to herself." But that would take years. I mean, we'll do it anyway, and all..." she said, then thought for a while. "We could also force the Procinctians out. Or bomb them. Both? But eh. Wait..." she said, slowly, and then her face lit up. "I've got it."

Lashing blown-out tires together and connecting them with wooden decking, the construction crews and the new inhabitants over the space of two weeks made a floating dock-city out on the waves, pitching well-sealed tents against the night and morning chill, a temporary solution but a necessary one, while work got underway on the above(and below)ground areas that would become Beachhead.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Having held the islands of Procinctia for several months now, without any sign of native military forces, the Imperium's city of Beachhead was well underway, and the dock-city had been upgraded into true concrete docks, while ever-more-elaborate housing was beginning to spring up throughout the city, mostly in the form of mostly-finished highrise apartments.

However, the forces of the Imperium were still watchful, guarding against any return of soldiers or grassroots guerrilla movement.

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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With compulsory armament theoretically anyone could take up arms against the occupiers
No one wanted to be the first to outright oppose the invaders, “the tallest tree often gets chopped down first”
Imperium construction continued unopposed and succeeded in an unprecedented feat of engineering - building a city around a city
Alaskans now had a firm foothold, with an unshakable armed presence featuring an especially prepared military
With locals continuing to keep a low profile it appeared the Northern ImperiumÂ’s victory was complete
Not all rebellion is armed resistance – there is an art to fighting without fighting
By outright ignoring the Alaskans an entirety of local candidly opposed Imperium authority
How an entire population hold out for so long? [quote name='Generalissimo' timestamp='1316149434' post='2801374']It wasnÂ’t anything dramatic like a mass panic.
Everyone in the country began buying guns like firearms were going out of fashion, before dayÂ’s end the countryÂ’s gunshops were completely depleted.
Households began storing a yearÂ’s supply of food and water.
Six-month reserve septic tanks were being installed in every home.
Buildings, both public and private, were slowly being boarded-up and often fortified with sand bags.
When families were finished fortifying they simply stopped leaving their houses.
It was obvious to any outside observer that something was going on, but ProcinctiaÂ’s government pretended there wasnÂ’t a problem.[/quote] [quote name='Generalissimo' timestamp='1316322109' post='2802854']Another day passes and people actually go outside. . . to barricade their lawns.
Yards are marred by haphazard mish-mashed variations of barbed wire, chain-link fences, Czech hedgehogs, earthworks palisades, and trenches– ambitious projects all unfinished by nightfall. On Saint Lawrence Island several civil war-era reproduction cannons were seen deployed on various front yards.

Despite stores remaining vacant Provincial Armament, once again, still managed to make a sizeable profit by outright exploitation.
Apparently selling gasmasks, sold at more than quadruple retail value, from repurposed ice-cream trucks was incredibly lucrative.
Protective facial wear was undisputedly the Aleutian season fashion.[/quote]Every home was still fortified and stocked from the last round of panic
While months passed for the Alaskensbecause of citizen-based temporal relativity it was barely two weeks for the locals.
Maybe the invaders would eventually become disinterested by a lack of general recognition and go away on their own accord?
Alternatively maybe it was possible to outright outive the opposition; holding out for a year Generalissimo-scale real-time bunked down while YEARS progressed outside.

Edited by Generalissimo
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No population could maintain such a bunker mentality forever. . .
Someone finally stuck their head out, and one could quickly become many.
Could militaristic Imperium win a battle for hearts and minds?

Fist to step out was Rob’n Von’Customers who promptly reopened his hardware store intending to do business with the newcomers.

With allen wrenches, gerbil feeders, toilet seats, electric heaters
Trash compactors, juice extractors, shower rods and water heaters
Walkie-talkies, copper wires, safety goggles, radial tires
BB pellets, rubber mallets, fans and dehumidifiers
Picture hangers, paper cutters, waffle irons, window shutters
Paint removers, window louvers, masking tape and plastic gutters
Kitchen faucets, folding tables, weather stripping, jumper cables
Hooks and tackle, grout and spackle, power foggers, spoons and ladles
Pesticides for fumigation, high-performance lubrication
Metal roofing, water proofing, multi-purpose insulation
Air compressors, brass connectors, wrecking chisels, smoke detectors
Tire gauges, hamster cages, thermostats and bug deflectors
Trailer hitch demagnetizers, automatic circumcisers
Tennis rackets, angle brackets, Duracells and Energizers
Soffit panels, circuit brakers, vacuum cleaners, coffee makers
Calculators, generators, matching salt and pepper shakers
Rob’n Von’Customers’ hardware store had anything a good-for-nothing dirty-land-grubbing Alaskan settler could need to exploit Procinctians!

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Since years had apparently passed, the Alaskans were firmly entrenched, and had long since made vacant the area surrounding Beachhead by virtue of simply beginning to blow up vacant buildings left and right, and even the Procinctians got the memo that anything within a mile of the city was scheduled for demolition shortly thereafter. M-563 Hammer APCs and IV9040 IFVs patrolled without fail, and Imperial commandoes slipped in at night to quietly and unobtrusively make useless many of the traps that were becoming alarmingly common in former Procinctia, now part of the Duchy of Bethel.

In response to the growing, quiet resistance's armament, a battalion of MLRS and two battalions of Abrams were quietly brought on scene, the MLRS possessing sufficient range to cover the entire island chain with normal missiles, much less cruise missiles. Orders were passed that should any patrol take any fire whatsoever from Procinctians, they were to level the surrounding area to the ground through artillery and air strikes.

A second city, Tirith, was under construction on the southernmost isle, with a promising port facility rising up.

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