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Mara Lithaen

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Vice President Anna Kennedy stalked into the President's office without much in the way of preamble, warning or invitation. His secretary trailed her by a footstep, trying to get her attention, but Anna simply ignored the woman. Pushing the door open to the President's office, she saw that he was talking to a few businessmen and women representing some industrial group or another. They were beneath her notice, however, and she slapped a newspaper down onto the President's desk.

 

Texas Secedes!

The headline declared. The text was facing President Reece, and he caught it at a glance. "Excuse me, gentlefolk, but it seems something's upset the Texans." he said, and read, unfolding to the story continuation. When he finished, he looked up at Anna, and raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't we see this coming sooner than this?"

 

Anna shook her head. "I don't know, Mr. President. This came out of the blue, but all my sources confirmed it before I got to your office - and I'm surprised you didn't know before I did. John, " she said, using his first name, a fairly rare occurrence for her. " what are we going to do?" she asked.

 

The President looked down at the headline, and back through the story. "Well, with this level of treason, there's only one thing to be done, I suppose. Call General di Santos, Admiral Wright and Sky Marshal Weatherby in; we've planning to do." he said, and looked at his former guests."I apologize, ladies and gentlemen, but it seems all our lives just got a whole lot more interesting.

 

---

 

Federation Declares War!

 

---

 

Four hundred thousand troops surged towards the Texan border from New Mexico, Louisiana and Oklahoma. In Louisiana, First Fleet steamed out of port, with Second steaming towards the Texan shoreline from the Caribbean. Every squadron of fighters and bombers in the country made their way south, with twelve squadrons of fighters almost over the border into Texas on strike missions before the National Guard even woke up to the new war.

 

The fighters and bombers were targeted at Texas's anti air installations and airbases, seeking to gain immediate aerial superiority. The Declaration of War would be sent - to an undersecretary of an undersecretary of State in the Texan government, of course - at a time perfectly coinciding with those aircraft passing over the Texan border.

 

The ground troops, of course, would make their best speeds to Lubbock, Amarillo, Dallas, Austin and Houston, while the naval assets would seek to pound the Houston Harbor with Tomahawks and strikes from carrier-based fighters.

 

---

 

30 minutes prior to the strike commencing...

 

President Reece called Governor Sparks in Texas. When he finally got through to the man, he began without preamble. "This is President Reece. It wasn't a wise decision for you to leave the Federation. It goes rather violently against the Constitution, Governor, and you'll find that I react rather... badly... to people breaking the law of the land. So here's how this is going to go: Either you renounce your secession and come back into the Federal fold, or the declaration of war I just signed, hot from Congress, goes into full effect. It's your choice. I'm waiting."

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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Diplomatic Note from Nordisk Rike

 

The Rike Condemns the attacks by the Plains Federation on the very sovereign and independent soil of the Republic of Texas. This is nothing more than blatant expansionism in light of the Republics intervention in other nations expansionism. The heart of the Krigsherre goes out to all the Texans that will lose their life in light of this recent attack, and hope for a speedy end to conflict in which the aggressors see the error in their ways.

 

-Nordisk Rike Diplomatic Corp

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"The Soviet Government condemns in the severest terms the unprovoked, aggressive attack on the Texan Republic and its workers by the imperialists of the Plain Federation. We express our support for the workers who must now fight to defend their homeland from the fat capitalist overlords, and for their families who are now being embroiled in a capitalist war."

 

- People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs

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TO PLAINS:

"For a while now Texas has showed their utter stupidity, And it the cause of riots and chaos across the nation. California shows it's support to the Plains Federation, but for right now will not join the conflict unless Plains requests so."

 

TO TEXAS:

A short message would be sent to Texas "California says good luck."

Edited by Peter Ilyich
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Vice President Anna Kennedy stalked into the President's office without much in the way of preamble, warning or invitation. His secretary trailed her by a footstep, trying to get her attention, but Anna simply ignored the woman. Pushing the door open to the President's office, she saw that he was talking to a few businessmen and women representing some industrial group or another. They were beneath her notice, however, and she slapped a newspaper down onto the President's desk.

 

Texas Secedes!

The headline declared. The text was facing President Reece, and he caught it at a glance. "Excuse me, gentlefolk, but it seems something's upset the Texans." he said, and read, unfolding to the story continuation. When he finished, he looked up at Anna, and raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't we see this coming sooner than this?"

 

Anna shook her head. "I don't know, Mr. President. This came out of the blue, but all my sources confirmed it before I got to your office - and I'm surprised you didn't know before I did. John, " she said, using his first name, a fairly rare occurrence for her. " what are we going to do?" she asked.

 

The President looked down at the headline, and back through the story. "Well, with this level of treason, there's only one thing to be done, I suppose. Call General di Santos, Admiral Wright and Sky Marshal Weatherby in; we've planning to do." he said, and looked at his former guests."I apologize, ladies and gentlemen, but it seems all our lives just got a whole lot more interesting.

 

---

 

Federation Declares War!

 

---

 

Four hundred thousand troops surged towards the Texan border from New Mexico, Louisiana and Oklahoma. In Louisiana, First Fleet steamed out of port, with Second steaming towards the Texan shoreline from the Caribbean. Every squadron of fighters and bombers in the country made their way south, with twelve squadrons of fighters almost over the border into Texas on strike missions before the National Guard even woke up to the new war.

 

The fighters and bombers were targeted at Texas's anti air installations and airbases, seeking to gain immediate aerial superiority. The Declaration of War would be sent - to an undersecretary of an undersecretary of State in the Texan government, of course - at a time perfectly coinciding with those aircraft passing over the Texan border.

 

The ground troops, of course, would make their best speeds to Lubbock, Amarillo, Dallas, Austin and Houston, while the naval assets would seek to pound the Houston Harbor with Tomahawks and strikes from carrier-based fighters.

 

---

 

30 minutes prior to the strike commencing...

 

President Reece called Governor Sparks in Texas. When he finally got through to the man, he began without preamble. "This is President Reece. It wasn't a wise decision for you to leave the Federation. It goes rather violently against the Constitution, Governor, and you'll find that I react rather... badly... to people breaking the law of the land. So here's how this is going to go: Either you renounce your secession and come back into the Federal fold, or the declaration of war I just signed, hot from Congress, goes into full effect. It's your choice. I'm waiting."

 

OOC: The first spoiler is OOC logs between Mara and I in regards to some of her logistics. Just for the GMs really. The second post is for everyone else regarding the OOC/IC line crossing.

 

[spoiler]OOC:Just wanted to say we cleared some logistics up.

16:41 Alessariel Yo.
16:41 PresidentDavid Howdy.
16:41 Alessariel How's it going?
16:41 PresidentDavid It's going alright. Listening to the stuff about what happened in France but now I'm just listening to some music and talking to some of y'all.
16:41 PresidentDavid What about you?
16:43 Alessariel About the same. Enjoying an early day off.
16:43 Alessariel Did you see the thread I made?
16:43 PresidentDavid Yeah I was linked to it a bit ago. I don't think I'll be able to reply to it right now because I'm going to a bonfire with some friends at 6:00, but I'll probably get to it tonight.
16:43 Alessariel Alright, cool.
16:45 PresidentDavid There are two things I'd like you to clarify though in the forums. 1) What number of troops are leaving what locations, where are they crossing the border, and what major city are they headed to. And then for the naval stuff what ships you are using.
16:46 Alessariel I've already IDd their targets.
16:46 PresidentDavid "Four hundred thousand troops surged towards the Texan border from New Mexico, Louisiana and Oklahoma."
16:46 Alessariel There's 120,000 coming down from OK, 120,000 coming across near Amarillo from NM
16:47 PresidentDavid For all I know 399,999 are leaving from Louisiana and one is leaving from Oklahoma.
16:47 Alessariel and 160k from Louisiana headed for Houston.
16:47 Alessariel the 120 from OK are going to be inside of Dallas in about two hours
16:47 Alessariel and the 120 from NM are going to be in Amarillo/Lubbock in roughly the same timeframe.
16:51 PresidentDavid And the ships?
16:53 PresidentDavid alessariel?
16:53 Alessariel heading towards Houston, Corpus Christi, etc., from Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico.
16:53 Alessariel 2 carriers plus escorts.
16:53 PresidentDavid What are the escorts?
16:54 Alessariel I have to do a little math on that
16:54 Alessariel multipliers
16:54 Alessariel but destroyers and cruisers.
16:54 Alessariel and subs
16:54 PresidentDavid If you don't mind doing the math now I'd be much obliged.
16:55 Alessariel I already was
16:55 PresidentDavid
16:56  *** PresidentDavid is now known as PD[Shower]

16:57 Alessariel 2 carriers, 15 destroyers, 2 cruisers, 15 diesel subs, 15 frigates.[/spoiler]

 

[spoiler]OOC: So a lot has happened in the bast seventy-two hours. I understand there's been a bit of controversy involved with Mara's casus belli. It is extremely weak and faulty casus belli. If you look back since CNRPA was founded, she has only made on CNRPA post other than this one and that was during the Alaskan crisis. Note that her nation had been on the map since the game was founded. There are two ways you can interpret this: A) Her nation should have been cleared off the map for inactivity because she was everything but active or B) She is just starting to RP her nation now. Either way, there is a severe IC problem.

 

If her nation has existed all of this time, then it doesn't make sense that her nation is attacking me for not being part of the Plains Federation, especially when her characters are surprised of it ICly. In the "B" scenario, her nation was founded now, which is a long time after the founding of the Republic of Texas. My characters and my nation existed for weeks without any knowledge of what the Plains Federation was or what it meant and my Texas never belonged to it. Either way, my Texas didn't belong to the Plains Federation. I have a right to RP that, of course, because it is my story. Though, on the other side of the coin, I don't think she has the right to claim that Texas was part of her nation in this new game because she would have to somehow alter my own RP when my RP in this game has existed longer than hers. I know that her characters can say whatever they want, but her characters actually believing that my nation belonged to hers at one point simply cannot be canon. It just isn't compatible with the current and past events that we have all went through so far.  

 

On top of that there is clear OOC vindictive motive. But I'm sure if this would be ruled as OOC/IC line crossing then Mara would just come up with another reason, so I'll roll with it. Mara and I worked together well when we ran a nation, so I'm hoping that we can run a war together well too. I ask the GMs to bare with us, but I know you have to do your job. I'm going to try not to do any falshbacks and keep this RP linear so that y'all can follow along easily. Anyway, here is my post below.  Mara if you don't like the way I found your troops, I'll see them no matter what. You were very vague in the way you deployed your soldiers so I just took a guess at what you were doing. Either way, I would hope that any nation from Nigeria to the United Kingdom would notice hundreds of thousands of troops and vehicles, aircraft, and other craft coming together or coming to a higher state of alert. So, what I'm saying is that I'm going to know something is wrong before your President calls me is what I'm saying.

 

Also one other thing, my nation is not a carry over from CNRP2. Just thought I'd mention that since someone was confused about that. 

 

IC:[/spoiler]

 

REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

THE WATCHERS

0700 HOURS

 

 

"Hey, you know those guys at NASA that look out for asteroids heading to Earth? Do you think they're actually doing a good job? I read an article that said there's only something like a room of guys working around the clock. The article said that eighty-percent of the asteroids in some type of orbit around Earth or that pass by Earth haven't been tagged. I mean, don't you think we should dedicate some more guys to that? That's bigger than nuclear war, that could actually be mankind's extinction event. Do you think those guys do a good job? An asteroid hasn't hit the Earth in a long time, for all we know they're just all playing beer pong while one guy actually takes the job seriously and is like 'You guys, we are suppose to be looking out for mankind!' and the other guys are like 'Jim, why are yo-'" Stew's rant was cut off by the older soldier next to him, Thomas. He was the rough type that didn't talk much. He was close to retirement but still came to work religiously and took his work seriously. "I swear to God Stew, you really need to give this a rest. You're so fascinated with that space stuff then go work for NASA! I don't see how you don't find this exciting, we are literally the guys that spy on other nations and watch out for unusual activity. Can you give it a rest?" Stew sat back in his chair and readjusted his headset. The others in the room smirked that the old man just drilled Stew a new one but he deserved it to some degree. The guy just wouldn't shut up. It wouldn't be as bad if it wasn't so early. 

 

"Stew," the old man said. Stew looked over and sighed, "I'm sorry Thomas I'll try to contain myself. Can we just get back to work?" Thomas knocked on his glass monitor with his index finger. "I'm seeing something in Oklahoma but I want you to verify. It's grid eighteen. Check out the city and surrounded area and compare it to the observation from two days ago." Stew followed the directions and compared the two images. He checked what they called "open hot spots" which were likely locations to amass troops in defensive positions. The tactic was originally made so that troops could be amassed in a central roundevu point and then launch an invasion together as a troop mass, but with modern technology it became more of a useless tactic because it would inform the enemy in advance that an attack was being planned. Today the tactic could be used for the defense of a city, but using it to launch an invasion would be an interesting choice of military tactics to say the least. 

 

"I see troop buildups in hot spots around the city. I thought Oklahoma was being governed on the county level?" Thomas observed his monitor carefully as he took a sip of his coffee. "Intelligence told us that a semi-sovereign nation of some sorts called the 'Plains Federation' comprises of Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, and a few other States. We haven't heard anything from them and the rest of North America hasn't heard anything from them that we know of. The only thing intelligence could tell us with the military history of the nation was that during the Alaskan Crisis they came to a heightened state of alert. We didn't know at the time that there was even a central government there, I mean hell we flew nearly four-hundred thousand troops over the border to Alaska. You'd think they would have given us a quick notice that we were invading their airspace. It's... It's strange to say the least." This was the most that anyone had heard Thomas spoke in a month. The other Watchers turned to Oklahoma City where they too saw the hot spots light up with activity. 

 

Thomas was the group leader for their row of Watchers. He only needed to speak up if a lot of looking needed to go on at once. "Row Bravo be advised that I've detected troop build up at hot spots around Oklahoma City. This is in a nation called 'The Plains Federation', go ahead and take pull up a visual of their borders. This is probably just a test but let's go ahead and check out major military installations in Oklahoma and Louisiana. Let me know if you see anything similar to what we have in Oklahoma." The row came to life with the chatter of keys being typed. The other rows took notice and looked over. Within a few minutes some of the other Watchers started to raise their voices, "Affirmative group leader. They gearing up for something in the First Look locations in Louisiana. Has anyone checked out New Mexico?" Stew cracked his fingers, "I got it." It was the same thing. "Everyone good work, keeping getting us some intel. I'm going talk to the colonel." 

 

Thomas got up from his station and walked to the back of the room. Newly sworn in Colonel Sanders was in his private office with his feet up on his desk, watching a college game when Thomas lightly knocked. "Come in!" the Colonel grudged. Thomas opened the door, stepped in, and then saluted. Sanders liked Thomas compared to many of the others techies because, well, he was old too so they could reminisce a bit about the old days or enjoy a drink on Friday nights. The had a decent bond, as far as those go for older military men. "What can I do for you Lieutenant?" Thomas closed the door behind him. "I saw troop build ups at hot spots in Oklahoma and another Watcher confirmed. There are similar build ups in New Mexico and Louisiana sir that my row has found sir." Sanders uncapped a small bottle of brandy from under his desk and poured himself a small glass. "How many, ten-thousand in each?" Thomas nearly chuckled, "No sir. Just from first glance we are estimating 150,000 to 200,000 in all three of the areas." Sanders fell out of his chair and on to the ground, "What?!" 

 

REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

GOVERNOR'S MANSION

0730 HOURS

 

"Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away! If you can use some exotic boose there's a bar in far Bombay. Come fly with me let's fly let's fly away. Come fly with me let's float down to Peru..." The Governor raised his hands and his eyebrows like he was expecting an answer. "Sinatra has to work. I have an entire playlist on my phone that just started. Good?" Olivia, the Governor's personal secretary, nodded in submission. "I guess I can teach you to this. It'd be a sin for my to say no to Franky." Anthony smiled and took hold of her hip and her left hand. "Just remember, move with the music sir. You're dancing, let it flow like an ab lib speech." Anthony was doing alright but he still looked mechanical at times. "And I don't have to be so close to you, we're suppose to have eye contact and spark a conversation. It's classy slow dancing Governor, it's all about the person you're with." He stepped on her toe once and she yelped. "Sorry! Ah! I didn't mean to!" He stepped back fearfully like he'd just knocked over a vase in some foreign leader's house. Olivia put her hand over her mouth to cover her smile. "I'm alright you just stepped on my toe. We'll keep practicing until the correspondence dinner, but if this happens then don't jump back. It's not the end of the world." She smiled and they resumed. 

 

"You know Dave said it'd be awkward if I asked you to help me with this but I think you're doing a good job." Anthony dared to twirl her once. Ah, success! "The Chief of Staff knows a lot Governor, but I doubt he knows as much as I do about dancing." He nodded and gave her another twirl, "That is something Dave couldn't do to save his life. He and I have that in common." Olivia maintained her smile and listened to Anthony talk. He liked to talk and she liked the time they had alone, so she would listen to about anything. Frank Sinatra singing about getting away to somewhere far away was a nice tone in the background. She came in closer and leaned her head on his chest. They maintained motion, but it was much closer warmer. "Do you think any of the other Governor's ever danced in the Governor's Office like this? I like to think we're the first ones to do it in the two-hundred year history of this mansion." He patted her head and almost took her into a hug until someone in the Governor's staff knocked and walked into the office. The two dancers quickly regained their personal space. 

 

"Sir, you're needed in the Situation Room. I was told to tell you that the Air National Guard has issued a Red Alert. Please come with me." Olivia briefly frowned and stopped the soundtrack. "Get to work sir, I'll be at my desk when you get back." Anthony buttoned his jacket and headed out with the staffer, "Sorry Olivia we'll finish this later!" The staffer closed the door behind him. "Damn it I told y'all I didn't want to be disturbed for twenty minutes. Is that so much to ask for?" The moment he looked down at his staffer's face he knew something was terribly wrong. "Sir," he said as they swept into another hallway, "The Air Guard thinks we're about to fall under attack. I can't tell you anymore, get in there." The Maritime Guardsmen at the door of the Situation Room opened it. The Joint Chiefs were already assembled inside along with the Chief of Staff and a few other military analysts. 

 

Everyone stood until Anthony took his seat. "What we got gentlemen?" The Chief of Staff, Dave Snow, spoke up first. "We've been issued a Red Alert by the Air National Guard who believes that an invasion-style attack is eminent. Here, here, and here are three groups of soldiers and various vehicles mobilizing in Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. We've been monitoring their movements for the past few days but in the past few hours they've been rushing together for something." Anthony squinted his eyes at the provided map. "'Plains Federation', what is the Plains Federation?" Dave switched to another slide that showed some logistics and recommended actions, "They are believed to be a nation or sub-sovereign entity taking up the States you just saw. No one has heard from them and we still haven't. The only time we ever saw activity up there was when there was during the Alaskan Crisis, other than that we don't really have much intel on them." 

 

"Sir we're looking at a combined total of at least 400,000 soldiers. The chiefs and I were talking before you got here and if they are planning an invasion of Texas, they are doing it in a pretty odd way." Dave let his words sink in for the Governor who was still perplexed by the ghost nation to the north. "Options?" The Chief of the Air National Guard handed the Governor a few papers. "Through Louisiana and Oklahoma they are going to have to cross the Sabine and Red rivers which aren't exactly small streams. Border traffic was only a bout a few hundred a day in any direction and we closed the bridged about fifteen minutes ago. That list you're looking at are all registered bridges on either river. We can take out the bridges with our air assets or through our surface missiles. With so many troops they're going to bottle neck one way or another." Anthony looked over the list and nodded, "If we confirm it's an attack then you have the go ahead to take them out." 

 

An aide walked up to the Chief of the Maritime National Guard and handed him paper with a picture attached to it. "Governor," the Chief handed him the paper. "An armada of what we assume to be Plains Federation ships have been spotted off the coast of Louisiana. They aren't moving towards us but they're getting into a battle formation. Our naval assets have reported no sightings near our waters." Anthony checked his watch, "Alright that's enough for me. What's our DEFCON status?" The Director of Public Safety raised his finger, "DEFCON 3, but the Air Guard is at DEFCON 2. Order sir?" 

"Bring the Air Guard down to DEFCON 1 and bring Texas Military Forces down to DEFCON 2. Someone talk to Civil Defense and activate the EAS here in Austin. It'll spirderweb to the rest of the Republic in a few minutes." 

 

 

Anthony and the Joint Chiefs continued to draw up plans until the call came through. "Sir, it's someone claiming to be the President of The Plains Federation. We traced the call and it's coming from Oklahoma City. We think it's credible." The Chief of Staff handed the Governor the phone. "Good afternoon, to whom am I speaking?" He didn't know what to say for a moment. The allegations and tone of the man's voice on the other end of the line were serious in tone but none of what he was saying didn't make sense. "Mister President, it's nice to make your acquaintance but we have never met sir. I'm sorry but I don't know who you are Mister President. You've been here for at least a month and your people never even sent us a diplomatic cable." Anthony listened to the man talk about seceding from the union among other things. "Mister President, I don't know who has been giving you this information but I'd really like to talk this out in person. Four months ago the United States of America fell into what the Texas government believes was an attempted coup de etat in our nation's capitol. Over a third of the State government's were incapacitated along with a large part of the military command structure. We've been operating here in Texas on our own and trying to make contact with Washington to no avail. Again, I have no idea what you're talking about but I'd be happy for you to come down her to Texas or for us both to send representatives somewhere, but I'm going to need a better idea of what's going on here, alright?" 

Edited by PresidentDavid
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President Reece was eminently tired of the lies already from this man he'd known for years at this point. "Governor Sparks, I don't know where you're getting "a month" since the United States fell. It's been more than a decade. For the last six years you were a member state of the Plains Federation. Now maybe this is a case of mass amnesia on your part, in which case admitting to it is your best option, otherwise I'll be forced to assume you're intentionally lying to me. Lying to me is a bad, bad idea." Air Marshal Weatherby tapped him on the shoulder. "One moment, Governor." he said, and covered up the phone's mouthpiece, looking at the head of the Air Force. "Yes?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

 

"Mister President, the lead elements of our strike are about to fly over the Red River. They're reporting that the bridges have been closed across the River; our AWACS are standing by to begin jamming, and I've got fighter pilots ready to blow the border stations to hell and gone, Sir. Just give the word." the elderly Air Marshal told him.

 

General di Santos was at his side. "And in the event that they blow the bridges, I've got bridging units ready to make crossings for us. The river is low this year; we won't have to go very far out of our way to get across even if they knock out the big bridges." he said, and Admiral Wright cleared her throat.

 

"My boys and girls are already slinging Hornets off the decks of the Federation and Defiance. They'll be in Galveston and Houston within the hour."

 

"Thank you, lady, gentlemen. Give me a moment." the President declared, before taking his hand off the mouthpiece. "So, Governor, you've got two choices; come clean and either A. admit to mass amnesia on the part of the population of Texas - which is absurd, by the way - or B. Admit that you're lying, stand down your forces and wait for my troops to secure the state. Or, you can persist in your lies and I crack your state open like a pecan under a train wheel. Which'll it be?"

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Mara Lithaen, on 14 Jan 2015 - 12:03 AM, said:

President Reece was eminently tired of the lies already from this man he'd known for years at this point. "Governor Sparks, I don't know where you're getting "a month" since the United States fell. It's been more than a decade. For the last six years you were a member state of the Plains Federation. Now maybe this is a case of mass amnesia on your part, in which case admitting to it is your best option, otherwise I'll be forced to assume you're intentionally lying to me. Lying to me is a bad, bad idea." Air Marshal Weatherby tapped him on the shoulder. "One moment, Governor." he said, and covered up the phone's mouthpiece, looking at the head of the Air Force. "Yes?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

 

"Mister President, the lead elements of our strike are about to fly over the Red River. They're reporting that the bridges have been closed across the River; our AWACS are standing by to begin jamming, and I've got fighter pilots ready to blow the border stations to hell and gone, Sir. Just give the word." the elderly Air Marshal told him.

 

General di Santos was at his side. "And in the event that they blow the bridges, I've got bridging units ready to make crossings for us. The river is low this year; we won't have to go very far out of our way to get across even if they knock out the big bridges." he said, and Admiral Wright cleared her throat.

 

"My boys and girls are already slinging Hornets off the decks of the Federation and Defiance. They'll be in Galveston and Houston within the hour."

 

"Thank you, lady, gentlemen. Give me a moment." the President declared, before taking his hand off the mouthpiece. "So, Governor, you've got two choices; come clean and either A. admit to mass amnesia on the part of the population of Texas - which is absurd, by the way - or B. Admit that you're lying, stand down your forces and wait for my troops to secure the state. Or, you can persist in your lies and I crack your state open like a pecan under a train wheel. Which'll it be?"

 

 

"I hope you don't kill too many people, Mister President." Anthony hung up his side of the call and looked up to the silent eyes of chiefs, generals, and his Chief of Staff, Dave Snow. "Director," he said in a professional tone. "Take us down to DEFCON one. I am ordering that we now switch from a defensive role, specifically on the seas and in the air. Dave, call Richard and let him know I'm making my way over and make sure the news outlets are told they're going to want to listen in about fifteen minutes. Watchmaker, I'm granting you full operation authority until I'm done at the capitol, but stick to Operation Full Scale. Understood?" The room echoed with a dozen "Yes Governor"s. He grabbed his jacket and started to leave the room, "Oh, I almost forgot, call in the reserves." He stepped out and left his staff to do what they were chosen for. By the time he made it outside the motorcade was waiting and ready to go. It was only a short drive, maybe a few minutes, but it was the most agonizing drive he'd ever had in a limousine before. Racing through his head were how they were going to launch a defense, how many people this semi-sovereign entity known at the "Plains Federation" were going to kill, and what he was going to say in front of congress and the entire nation with only ten minutes to prepare. It was starting to look like it was going to be a rough day.

 

Within minutes he saw the pinkish-brown dome of the capitol rotunda come into full view. Even after all of these months of being on his own, it was still very humbling to see the Texas flag flying alone over the legislature's home. Outside was waiting a detachment of soldiers. As they got closer Anthony saw who they were and was filled with deep solidarity and fortitude. Olivia was the only staffer that went with the Governor to the capitol. She eagerly cancelled appointments and readied different topics for the Governor to mention in his speech, but the soldiers caught her eye too. "Governor, are those National Guardsmen?" He pulled up his tie and buttoned his collar button, "No Olivia, those are the Texas Minutemen. They're the deadliest weapons in our arsenal." Because of the heightened state of alert over the past week, the soldiers were in their battle gear and not ceremonial dress. As the Governor stepped out of the limousine they stood at attention and saluted. He returned the salute and they followed he and Olivia up the steps and into the capitol building. The Lieutenant Governor's Chief of Staff was waiting at the door and shook the Governor's hand. "Sir, the Lieutenant Governor has both houses convened. CNN and NBC just set up and we told them three minutes. What's going on?"

 

Anthony checked his watch and stepped up to the wooden doors of the House chamber. "We're under attack from Oklahoma, Louisiana, and New Mexico. I need to let the nation know that we're going to take these cowards out." The Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives saluted the Governor. "How can I help you sir?" Anthony handed him an invitation from the Speaker of The House, "I am here to address congress. Please let the Speaker and the President of the Senate know that I'm here." The man stepped in and raised his voice, "Mister Speaker, the Governor of the Republic of Texas!" Only a few other times had the Texas House and Senate convened together which was just one of the many things that made the situation so unique. Congressmen and women stood up and began a massive, albeit curious, applause. He stepped past representatives and senators, Republic and Democrat alike, and took his place. The Lieutenant Governor, Richard Adams, patted his shoulder and kept a smile on his face. "I hope this is important sir," the Speaker ever so slightly leaned in to listen to the Governor's reply, "Both of you call a recess after my speech." He cleared his throat and raised his hands, signalling for the congressmen to take their seats. As the room became silent the black microphone protruding from the podium stood as the only reminder that the entire world was listening.

 

REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
NEAR AMARILLO
0830 HOURS

 

An old man sat comfortably in his recliner. After a long day of trying to repair his tractor he felt he deserved to splurge with a little relaxation. "Wilma! John Wayne is on the television!" A slightly younger, but still old by most peoples's standards came in with two bowls of ice cream. "Oh it's the one about the Alamo!" she said with glee. "Turn it up louder!" Just as they both sat back NBC's logo flashed onto the screen for a few seconds of silence. "We interrupt this broadcast to bring you a special news bulletin. We take you now, to Austin. Please stand by for the Governor of Texas." The screen switched to a feed from inside the House Chamber. The camera angle slowly zoomed from a wide angle, capturing the entire House, down to a tight angle that only showed the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, and the Speaker. "Samuel, it's Anthony!" The old man waved his hands and squinted, "I can see wife! Stop talking I want to hear!" Their television flickered with the occasional static as their son adjusted the microphone and looked out to the audience of legislatures assembled before him. He checked his watch one last time and then began.

 

"Lieutenant Governor, Mister Speaker, Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives. I have come here today to bring you news that is still in development and will be ongoing for the foreseeable future. The Plains Federation, a sub-sovereign political entity which has taken control of the States of Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico among others has launched an unprovoked and unjustified attack on the Republic of Texas. It is clear that this attack, with such a large magnitude, had been in planning several weeks if not months in advance while the Texas forces were defending North American independence and our ally on the West Coast.

 

During that time, and since the fall of the United States of America several months ago, we have worked without rest to bring aid and assistance to neighboring regions and try to get word of any organized government remaining in the lower forty-eight States. It seems now that our search is over for such government, but instead of finding a strong, true American government to unite this continent, we have found a wolf that has been hiding in the woods. The government of the Plains Federation openly deceived Texas and other American nations by keeping their existence secret and not even attempting to make diplomatic communications. These deceitful tactics were undertaken purely out of malice intent.... Because of this unprovoked attack and the dangerous tactics by this entity, I am asking that this Congress declare a state of war between the Republic of Texas and the Plains Federation. This request comes at a time when our resolve has been questioned by others.

 

We have been told by foreign representatives that we are 'trigger-happy', that our military forces will march in parades and train with powerful weapons but that they could never defend our borders. We have been told that we are weak, that we can not stand against even the most unorganized and nonstrategic military attacks... Let them say that to the soldiers defending our cities, to the airmen defending our skies as we speak; let them say that to our mariners in the deep sea! We shall not cower or hide. We shall stand tall and face our attacker. We will caramelize them at our borders, we will strike them in their homeland, we will fight at the Red River, we will fight in the Great Plains of America, we will fight on the beaches and in the air, in cities and in the streets! We shall hold our Republic, no matter the cost! There will not come a day when we lay down our arms, we will not go quietly into the night - We shall never surrender!"

 

The joint session unanimously stood up and cheered for the Governor. He stood at the podium respectfully and nodded to a few of his friends. The clapping went on for several minutes, but the feed was cut off after about thirty seconds of it. Samuel looked over to Wilma who was about to ask him what was going on when they both flinched at a loud knocking at their door. Samuel got out of his recliner and put on his leather jacket and his cowboy hat. "Try calling Anthony Wilma, I'm going check who's outside." The old man walked onto his porch and saw a soldier in full combat uniform at the door. A helicopter buzzed overheard and landed about one-hundred feet from their home. Samuel opened the screen door, "Can I help you young man!" he shouted over the helicopter's engines. Two F-22s bolted past the farm and had at least broken mach one. In this distance the old man could see National Guardsmen guiding anti-air defense vehicles into place in the middle of corn fields. The soldier handed Samuel a piece of paper with the seal of the Governor on it. "Mister Sparks, I am Captain Ford of the Texas Minutemen Special Forces! I am under orders from the Governor to take you and your wife to Austin! We have ten minutes to pack your belongings and then we need to go wheels up! Do you understand sir?"
"Yes son, come help us pack."

 

REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
AUSTIN, 11TH STREET
0835 HOURS

 

The Governor's motorcade was now being escorted by National Guard humvees armed with .50 caliber machine guns and several Guardsmen. The two minute ride from the capitol back to the Governor's Mansion didn't take long but Anthony could feel the Texas Military Forces come to life. Austin was deep in the heart of Texas and wasn't under threat yet, but he feared for cities like Dallas or Amarillo that were much closer to Oklahoma. Regardless, the entire city was on lock down as soldiers patrolled the streets and constant air patrols kept the skies blisteringly loud. "The Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker say the declaration of war is going to pass the House and Senate in a few minutes. Their holding the vote now. By the time you get to the situation room he said that the resolution will be on its way for you to sign it," Olivia said as she scrolled through emails and messages on her iPad. The Governor's limousine made a hard left term  onto Colorado Street and came to a rough halt in front of the mansion. Three Texas Rangers ran alongside the Governor into the mansion and escorted him to the Situation Room.

 

The Joint Chiefs, the Director of Public Safety, and Dave all stood when Anthony entered the room. "You gave a good speech sir," Dave said. Anthony took his seat and the others followed. "Thanks Dave, now does anyone have news for me?" The Chief of the Texas Air National Guard spoke up and started a short presentation on one of the screens in the room. "Yes sir. Bogies are heading towards the border at the Red River. Intel says that they might have AWACs in the air and that-" Anthony paused. "AWACs? So they're trying to jam us?" The chief shook his head, "No sir... I know you're a Navy man so I understand the confusion. AWACs, or Airborne Warning and Control System, is an aircraft used for issuing orders to troops and sometimes providing a wider range of radar. It has about as many offensive capabilities as a refueling aircraft." Anthony nodded, "Thanks for the clarification, please continue." The chief looked through a few reports and handed two of them to the Governor. "It look's like their tacticians are from Berlin. This entire invasion just screams blitzkrieg but they forgot to give themselves the element of surprise. Let's go over what will be going on in the next few hours sir, we've already begun our attack while you were alerting the Republic."

 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
OPERATION FULL SCALE
CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

Out of the entire Federation attack on Texas, the movements made by their Navy out of Louisiana were among the most obvious. The first, second, third, and fourth fleets of the Texas Maritime National Guard were deployed in the Gulf of Mexico while the fifth fleet stayed further west towards Brownsville. All four of the fleets made a total of one-hundred Gotland-class diesel submarines. They were given the last known location of the Federation naval vessels and their estimated destinations. After that last transmission, the submarines would go deep and maintain radio silence. The submarines would surround the foreign fleet from a far distance and stealthily move in closer to get within range of the Federation ships. 

 

The submarines avoided clumping themselves together and purposely came at the Federation navy at different depths and differences so that they wouldn't be as easy to notice. Other submarines and the aircraft carriers would be the first intended targets of the submarines. The submarines would engage the Federation fleet in the Gulf of Mexico before they could be in striking range of Houston. After the submarine attack began the Texas Maritime Guard and Texas Air Guard would maintain their air assets off the coast of Texas. The Hornets launched from the Federation air craft carriers would be intercept by the primary fighting aircraft of the Texas armed forces and varying altitudes, hopefully before they would launch and missiles at Houston or Galveston, though if the Hornets would continue flying towards Galveston and Houston they would be met by the Texas air forces around 75-100 miles off the Texas coast line.

 

Meanwhile on the Texas and Louisiana borders, the order had been given by the Direct of Public Safety to take out the bridges crossing over the Sabine and Red rivers. Air assets were already on the border in many places and so didn't have the problem of taking out the big seven interstate and highway bridges but the smaller, State highway bridges would come prey to BGM-109 block two cruise missiles launched from mobile troops who were either heading to the borders or taking defensive positions. Literally within thirty minutes or less the cruise missiles were striking their targets with incredible accuracy. For the first time since the Spanish ruled over Texas lands, there were virtually no major bridges linking Texas to Oklahoma or Louisiana. There would of course the occasional exception for small structures that weren't seen as vital or necessary, but all major roads and State highways would quickly see them lose their link to either Louisiana or Oklahoma. 

 

With the Air Force having been at DEFCON one for a few days and being at DEFCON 2 for weeks, the Texas Air National Guard was capable of getting its entire fighting force into air within fifteen minutes. The Texas fighters were given orders not to go far into enemy air space and to try to stay within the Texas border unless circumstances in a dogfight made it necessary. While the Plains Federation had no major border assets on the Texas border, if they did the Air Guard would have gone on the offensive to neutralize them. The Air Guard would make defensive flight patterns already having the knowledge that the Plains Federation was sending everything they had at them. They knew that their job, at least for the beginning of this fight, would be to focus on the sky.

 

Holloman Air Force Base would be the first targets of many for the Air Guard in the area. The twenty-four hangers at the base would be the target of over two dozen BGM-109 missiles. Having been sent before any air assets, even stealth ones, or troops, the missiles would be flying at sub-sonic speeds and flying close to the ground. This first strike would happen less than fifteen minutes. Area 51, while smaller than Holloman and less of a threat, would also receive several BGM-109 missiles at its hangers and its barracks. Then, the following would quickly move into action.

 

The 39,000 troops coming from Mexico would quickly be redirected from El Paso up north into New Mexico. The major Air Guard installation there would assist in pushing forward into New Mexico as quickly as possible. Most of the soldiers returning home were coming by air and thus could quickly turn in route to New Mexico. The Air Guard would escort and provide protection for the the transporting troops heading into enemy territory. Because the Federation forces were not focusing on West Texas or sending major assets into the area, it was seen as a perfect time to strike. If there were any military assets in the area, Air Guard would take them on with a combination of long-range air strikes and short to medium range cruise missile launches. The short twenty miles from El Paso to Las Cruces would make it an easy target to take. Long-range air strikes would be taken when necessary on military targets around the city while soldiers moved in. About two-thousand paratroopers would be dropped over the city with the mission of taking out enemy defenses after the Air Guard crippled many of their defensive capabilities. Artillery and the rest of the army would continue to push forward either by ground or paratrooped from a safer distance. The Air Guard would be sure to maintain air superiority and would maintain unusual flight patterns to confuse the enemy. If any of the Federation's aircraft were diverted from the mass heading into the major cities of Texas, the Air Guard would respond appropriately in the area. Mobile radar arrays were being deployed and set up as quickly as possible as troops would move into the city.

 

​Meanwhile, the 12 squadrons of Federation aircraft would quickly find out that flying in large numbers, together, was an awful idea even with the most sophisticated aircraft. By the time they were approaching the horizon from the Texas border, about fourteen miles away give or take depending on elevation, some air units would be aware of their position because of them flying in such large numbers together with bombers and other aircraft. Every precaution from the Patriot MDS all the way down to javelin SMRs were being utilized by the massive force coming in all at once. Before they had even crossed the border, miles in advance, the aircraft would be the targets of a barrage of anti-aircraft weaponry. Bombers and other large air craft would of course be the easiest targets to take down but even down to fast moving and stealth air craft would also be at a higher risk than usual because they were flying in such large numbers together. The occasional story in the news of an advanced aircraft being shot down by conventional technology would suddenly become a normal happenstance because of the large amount of anti-aircraft weaponry focused on the incoming aircraft. The Air Guard would maintain a distance just outside of range of their own weapons, but once credible information was given for incoming fleets of aircraft they would move in at a high altitude to strike either fleets of bombers or the enemy fighters. 

 

Out of the entire Federation military forces moving into Texas, however, the ground troops would suffer the worst fate. Like the Federation Air Force, the Federation's ground forces biggest disadvantage at that moment was that they were moving in such a large mass. Hellfire would rain down upon them from far off mobile launchers and a few strategic aircraft who were far off from the fighting but would readily launch the smart AGM-86 and the AGM-158B would target the tight points of the forces heading to the Texas border and specifically heavy armor and troop transport vehicles. The BGM-109 submunitions would see see its greatest use yet on all three fronts as the other missiles. Except their targets weren't just specifically vehicles or tanks, they would even be used to make contact with large numbers of ground troops trying to make it on foot. Troop transporting vehicles would be the easiest to hit, though. This was all happening before the Federation troops were even able to cross the border into Texas. More specifically, it would be happening once the Governor and the Federation President had hung up with each other by orders of the DoPS. The thousands of Federation soldiers would see slaughter coming among their ranks as they began their several hour long journies from Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico into the Texas mainland. This first wave would have indefinitely come as a surprise to them because of the spacitiy and quick speed of the missiles. Though the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and possibly even seventh waves may have been more expected, the troops would have to choose between the futile task of stopping their massive convoys and shooting down a few missiles out of dozens or moving on and each individual soldier hoping their vehicle wasn't destroyed. 

Edited by PresidentDavid
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DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

OPERATION FULL SCALE
CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

Out of the entire Federation attack on Texas, the movements made by their Navy out of Louisiana were among the most obvious. The first, second, third, and fourth fleets of the Texas Maritime National Guard were deployed in the Gulf of Mexico while the fifth fleet stayed further west towards Brownsville. All four of the fleets made a total of one-hundred Gotland-class diesel submarines. They were given the last known location of the Federation naval vessels and their estimated destinations. After that last transmission, the submarines would go deep and maintain radio silence. The submarines would surround the foreign fleet from a far distance and stealthily move in closer to get within range of the Federation ships. 

The submarines avoided clumping themselves together and purposely came at the Federation navy at different depths and differences so that they wouldn't be as easy to notice. Other submarines and the aircraft carriers would be the first intended targets of the submarines. The submarines would engage the Federation fleet in the Gulf of Mexico before they could be in striking range of Houston.

 

 

After the submarine attack began the Texas Maritime Guard and Texas Air Guard would maintain their air assets off the coast of Texas. The Hornets launched from the Federation air craft carriers would be intercept by the primary fighting aircraft of the Texas armed forces and varying altitudes, hopefully before they would launch and missiles at Houston or Galveston, though if the Hornets would continue flying towards Galveston and Houston they would be met by the Texas air forces around 75-100 miles off the Texas coast line.

The Texan fleet would find it nigh-impossible to "surround" the First and Second fleets, being that they lay most of four hundred nautical miles away from Texas's shoreline, and not close enough to be reached in any time less than a day's travel. The Federal aircraft were on orders specifically not to return to their motherships; instead, after making their strike, they would land in Louisiana while another strike group from a shore installation took its place on the carrier. In this way, the carriers acted as shuttles, merely floating staging grounds for Naval Super Hornets using drop tanks to get to their targets. The first strike group was pure shock and awe - not at all armed to attack ground targets, but rather armed to destroy enemy air support. The F-18Es would have a field day with anything less than an F-22, and even then the odds were even between the craft.

 

Meanwhile on the Texas and Louisiana borders, the order had been given by the Direct of Public Safety to take out the bridges crossing over the Sabine and Red rivers. Air assets were already on the border in many places and so didn't have the problem of taking out the big seven interstate and highway bridges but the smaller, State highway bridges would come prey to BGM-109 block two cruise missiles launched from mobile troops who were either heading to the borders or taking defensive positions. Literally within thirty minutes or less the cruise missiles were striking their targets with incredible accuracy. For the first time since the Spanish ruled over Texas lands, there were virtually no major bridges linking Texas to Oklahoma or Louisiana. There would of course the occasional exception for small structures that weren't seen as vital or necessary, but all major roads and State highways would quickly see them lose their link to either Louisiana or Oklahoma. 

 

With the Air Force having been at DEFCON one for a few days and being at DEFCON 2 for weeks, the Texas Air National Guard was capable of getting its entire fighting force into air within fifteen minutes. The Texas fighters were given orders not to go far into enemy air space and to try to stay within the Texas border unless circumstances in a dogfight made it necessary. While the Plains Federation had no major border assets on the Texas border, if they did the Air Guard would have gone on the offensive to neutralize them. The Air Guard would make defensive flight patterns already having the knowledge that the Plains Federation was sending everything they had at them. They knew that their job, at least for the beginning of this fight, would be to focus on the sky.

 

Those "unnecessary" and "non-vital" bridges would become the backbone of the now-spread Federal assault. Bradleys and Strikers blazed over the bridges ahead of Abrams and Pantsirs, none of the tracked vehicles giving a singular solitary damn for the carnage they were wreaking on the roadway. When the surfaces started to wear out, they would be supplemented by bridging equipment if necessary and if not ignored until it was. The Federation would bring its anti-air assets along just behind the first wave of its assault, extending battlefield anti-air as far as they could. They didn't need to worry about ever having too few anti-air units in place, for the saying had been in place since the Second World War: "He who controls the skies controls the battlefield." And the Federation aimed to control the skies, so it brought along plentiful amounts of SAM-armed vehicles and the radar directors to make them hit.

 

 


Holloman Air Force Base would be the first targets of many for the Air Guard in the area. The twenty-four hangers at the base would be the target of over two dozen BGM-109 missiles. Having been sent before any air assets, even stealth ones, or troops, the missiles would be flying at sub-sonic speeds and flying close to the ground. This first strike would happen less than fifteen minutes. Area 51, while smaller than Holloman and less of a threat, would also receive several BGM-109 missiles at its hangers and its barracks. Then, the following would quickly move into action.

Neither of these targets were active military bases, and thus the $500,000 dollar Tomahawks were wasted on paper tigers.

The 39,000 troops coming from Mexico would quickly be redirected from El Paso up north into New Mexico. The major Air Guard installation there would assist in pushing forward into New Mexico as quickly as possible. Most of the soldiers returning home were coming by air and thus could quickly turn in route to New Mexico. The Air Guard would escort and provide protection for the the transporting troops heading into enemy territory. Because the Federation forces were not focusing on West Texas or sending major assets into the area, it was seen as a perfect time to strike. If there were any military assets in the area, Air Guard would take them on with a combination of long-range air strikes and short to medium range cruise missile launches. The short twenty miles from El Paso to Las Cruces would make it an easy target to take. Long-range air strikes would be taken when necessary on military targets around the city while soldiers moved in. About two-thousand paratroopers would be dropped over the city with the mission of taking out enemy defenses after the Air Guard crippled many of their defensive capabilities. Artillery and the rest of the army would continue to push forward either by ground or paratrooped from a safer distance. The Air Guard would be sure to maintain air superiority and would maintain unusual flight patterns to confuse the enemy. If any of the Federation's aircraft were diverted from the mass heading into the major cities of Texas, the Air Guard would respond appropriately in the area. Mobile radar arrays were being deployed and set up as quickly as possible as troops would move into the city.

The 60,000 strong contingent of the VII Corps continued its press towards Amarillo seemingly un-opposed, taking the city within an hour from its launching point in Eastern New Mexico; meanwhile, the secondary attack force in Southern New Mexico came under attack. The V Corps there under the command of General Marshall would dig in hard, M777s and M109s responding to the enemy artillery with fury and flame. The infantry would dig in in Las Cruces with the rest of their forces, Abrams trading fire with enemy armored vehicles while Javelin-toting infantry backed them up with top-attack munitions. F-15Es moved from an airbase further north, rushing to close to grips with the enemy air superiority fighters and annihilate them, while Pantsirs and S-300s guided by the V Corps mobile array supported them from below. Counterbattery radar would let the Federal artillery positions slam their Texan counterparts as soon as they began to speak.

 

​ Meanwhile, the 12 squadrons of Federation aircraft would quickly find out that flying in large numbers, together, was an awful idea even with the most sophisticated aircraft. By the time they were approaching the horizon from the Texas border, about fourteen miles away give or take depending on elevation, some air units would be aware of their position because of them flying in such large numbers together with bombers and other aircraft. Every precaution from the Patriot MDS all the way down to javelin SMRs were being utilized by the massive force coming in all at once. Before they had even crossed the border, miles in advance, the aircraft would be the targets of a barrage of anti-aircraft weaponry. Bombers and other large air craft would of course be the easiest targets to take down but even down to fast moving and stealth air craft would also be at a higher risk than usual because they were flying in such large numbers together. The occasional story in the news of an advanced aircraft being shot down by conventional technology would suddenly become a normal happenstance because of the large amount of anti-aircraft weaponry focused on the incoming aircraft. The Air Guard would maintain a distance just outside of range of their own weapons, but once credible information was given for incoming fleets of aircraft they would move in at a high altitude to strike either fleets of bombers or the enemy fighters. 

(Note: Nowhere in my posts did I say they were flying as a mass. I did, however, say they were almost at the border before you even had anything in the air.)

 

Bomber is a relative word. Generally, when one says "bomber", you think of a lumbering, ungainly craft capable of delivering massive loads of bombs once it gets where it's going - and, as a general rule, you'd be right. However, the B-1B Lancer was anything but ungainly. Two squadrons of the supersonic aircraft streaked into enemy airspace just above treetop level, coming over the Arbuckles and using the fallen mountains as radar-scatter cover, a roller-coaster ride for the pilots for sure. Their sensors were up and listening, and they found enemy anti-air installations relatively quickly near the border. Boosting into their full speed, the bombers swept their wings back and roared in for the kill, slowing down to subsonic just long enough to drop a rain of cluster munitions on the installations they found, ensuring total and complete destruction wherever they hit.

 

The fighters in the first attack wave were armed with a mix of SEAD and air-to-air equipment; the F-15Es were the most accomplished aerial killers of the modern era, and their pilots flew them knowing this full well. The SEAD armed fighters dropped to ground level, shielded by their more numerous and lethal air-to-air armed counterparts, and began to do the same job that the bombers had started, clearing out enemy anti-air positions with AGM-88 HARM missiles and home-on-jam missiles. They would exact a harrowing toll on any target they found.

 

Out of the entire Federation military forces moving into Texas, however, the ground troops would suffer the worst fate. Like the Federation Air Force, the Federation's ground forces biggest disadvantage at that moment was that they were moving in such a large mass. Hellfire would rain down upon them from far off mobile launchers and a few strategic aircraft who were far off from the fighting but would readily launch the smart AGM-86 and the AGM-158B would target the tight points of the forces heading to the Texas border and specifically heavy armor and troop transport vehicles. The BGM-109 submunitions would see see its greatest use yet on all three fronts as the other missiles. Except their targets weren't just specifically vehicles or tanks, they would even be used to make contact with large numbers of ground troops trying to make it on foot. Troop transporting vehicles would be the easiest to hit, though. This was all happening before the Federation troops were even able to cross the border into Texas. More specifically, it would be happening once the Governor and the Federation President had hung up with each other by orders of the DoPS. The thousands of Federation soldiers would see slaughter coming among their ranks as they began their several hour long journies from Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico into the Texas mainland. This first wave would have indefinitely come as a surprise to them because of the spacitiy and quick speed of the missiles. Though the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and possibly even seventh waves may have been more expected, the troops would have to choose between the futile task of stopping their massive convoys and shooting down a few missiles out of dozens or moving on and each individual soldier hoping their vehicle wasn't destroyed.

 

The Texan forces, it seems, did not assume competence among their adversaries. That was their first mistake. Their second mistake was trying to launch strategic aircraft while tactical air superiority aircraft were still capable of dropping out of the sky and ruining their days - which did happen. Repeatedly. Followed by Federal Tomahawk launches, aimed at destroying every Air Guard runway within three hundred miles of the front. Mobile CIWS platforms, known as Centurions, were fully capable of firing on the move - and did. The 20mm radar-guided guns, selfish machines that they were, perked up when they began to see the signatures of enemy missiles on their horizons. If the weapons had faces, they would have grinned.They slewed and elevated, tracking, tracking, tracking, speaking among themselves over the ADA battlenet, their multiple-weapons-coordination components talking to each other, marking their respective territories as clearly as a pride of lions. They claimed their targets - then, at their maximum engagement range (which varied, depending on the Naval Fire Controlman assigned to the platform, but generally all at about two miles) they began to speak the language of fire.

 

Tongues of flame spouted from their muzzles, sending white-hot streams of tungsten penetrators out to stab the slow-moving 'Hawks from the sky. Against such relatively slow targets, the automated guns could kill as many as ten missiles apiece before needing to be reloaded by the team attached to each mobile unit. Dozens of guns silenced incoming cruise missiles, preventing them from reaching their targets. Some would be missed; nearly a thousand Federal troops would die over the course of the next few hours due to either misses or empty guns unable to protect them. However, their greatest defense was simply to keep moving: in the jamming-heavy environment established by EW planes, the cruise missiles could not receive the live course corrections needed to deal with the rapidly dispersing Federal assault contingent.

 

The contingent, despite its losses, kept pressing forward, aiming to take the northern Texan cities and their military installations as quickly as possible. The mechanized/armored combined offensive had air support in the form of F-15Es, AH-64s and AH-1Zs, all descending on any target that could be found to cut it to ribbons. The artillery would perform a similar role, slamming their counterparts down and then taking out targets called by the advancing troops, never staying in one position for more than a couple of shots.

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The Texan fleet would find it nigh-impossible to "surround" the First and Second fleets, being that they lay most of four hundred nautical miles away from Texas's shoreline, and not close enough to be reached in any time less than a day's travel. The Federal aircraft were on orders specifically not to return to their motherships; instead, after making their strike, they would land in Louisiana while another strike group from a shore installation took its place on the carrier. In this way, the carriers acted as shuttles, merely floating staging grounds for Naval Super Hornets using drop tanks to get to their targets. The first strike group was pure shock and awe - not at all armed to attack ground targets, but rather armed to destroy enemy air support. The F-18Es would have a field day with anything less than an F-22, and even then the odds were even between the craft.

 

Those "unnecessary" and "non-vital" bridges would become the backbone of the now-spread Federal assault. Bradleys and Strikers blazed over the bridges ahead of Abrams and Pantsirs, none of the tracked vehicles giving a singular solitary damn for the carnage they were wreaking on the roadway. When the surfaces started to wear out, they would be supplemented by bridging equipment if necessary and if not ignored until it was. The Federation would bring its anti-air assets along just behind the first wave of its assault, extending battlefield anti-air as far as they could. They didn't need to worry about ever having too few anti-air units in place, for the saying had been in place since the Second World War: "He who controls the skies controls the battlefield." And the Federation aimed to control the skies, so it brought along plentiful amounts of SAM-armed vehicles and the radar directors to make them hit.

 

Neither of these targets were active military bases, and thus the $500,000 dollar Tomahawks were wasted on paper tigers.

The 60,000 strong contingent of the VII Corps continued its press towards Amarillo seemingly un-opposed, taking the city within an hour from its launching point in Eastern New Mexico; meanwhile, the secondary attack force in Southern New Mexico came under attack. The V Corps there under the command of General Marshall would dig in hard, M777s and M109s responding to the enemy artillery with fury and flame. The infantry would dig in in Las Cruces with the rest of their forces, Abrams trading fire with enemy armored vehicles while Javelin-toting infantry backed them up with top-attack munitions. F-15Es moved from an airbase further north, rushing to close to grips with the enemy air superiority fighters and annihilate them, while Pantsirs and S-300s guided by the V Corps mobile array supported them from below. Counterbattery radar would let the Federal artillery positions slam their Texan counterparts as soon as they began to speak.

(Note: Nowhere in my posts did I say they were flying as a mass. I did, however, say they were almost at the border before you even had anything in the air.)

 

Bomber is a relative word. Generally, when one says "bomber", you think of a lumbering, ungainly craft capable of delivering massive loads of bombs once it gets where it's going - and, as a general rule, you'd be right. However, the B-1B Lancer was anything but ungainly. Two squadrons of the supersonic aircraft streaked into enemy airspace just above treetop level, coming over the Arbuckles and using the fallen mountains as radar-scatter cover, a roller-coaster ride for the pilots for sure. Their sensors were up and listening, and they found enemy anti-air installations relatively quickly near the border. Boosting into their full speed, the bombers swept their wings back and roared in for the kill, slowing down to subsonic just long enough to drop a rain of cluster munitions on the installations they found, ensuring total and complete destruction wherever they hit.

 

The fighters in the first attack wave were armed with a mix of SEAD and air-to-air equipment; the F-15Es were the most accomplished aerial killers of the modern era, and their pilots flew them knowing this full well. The SEAD armed fighters dropped to ground level, shielded by their more numerous and lethal air-to-air armed counterparts, and began to do the same job that the bombers had started, clearing out enemy anti-air positions with AGM-88 HARM missiles and home-on-jam missiles. They would exact a harrowing toll on any target they found.

The Texan forces, it seems, did not assume competence among their adversaries. That was their first mistake. Their second mistake was trying to launch strategic aircraft while tactical air superiority aircraft were still capable of dropping out of the sky and ruining their days - which did happen. Repeatedly. Followed by Federal Tomahawk launches, aimed at destroying every Air Guard runway within three hundred miles of the front. Mobile CIWS platforms, known as Centurions, were fully capable of firing on the move - and did. The 20mm radar-guided guns, selfish machines that they were, perked up when they began to see the signatures of enemy missiles on their horizons. If the weapons had faces, they would have grinned.They slewed and elevated, tracking, tracking, tracking, speaking among themselves over the ADA battlenet, their multiple-weapons-coordination components talking to each other, marking their respective territories as clearly as a pride of lions. They claimed their targets - then, at their maximum engagement range (which varied, depending on the Naval Fire Controlman assigned to the platform, but generally all at about two miles) they began to speak the language of fire.

 

Tongues of flame spouted from their muzzles, sending white-hot streams of tungsten penetrators out to stab the slow-moving 'Hawks from the sky. Against such relatively slow targets, the automated guns could kill as many as ten missiles apiece before needing to be reloaded by the team attached to each mobile unit. Dozens of guns silenced incoming cruise missiles, preventing them from reaching their targets. Some would be missed; nearly a thousand Federal troops would die over the course of the next few hours due to either misses or empty guns unable to protect them. However, their greatest defense was simply to keep moving: in the jamming-heavy environment established by EW planes, the cruise missiles could not receive the live course corrections needed to deal with the rapidly dispersing Federal assault contingent.

 

The contingent, despite its losses, kept pressing forward, aiming to take the northern Texan cities and their military installations as quickly as possible. The mechanized/armored combined offensive had air support in the form of F-15Es, AH-64s and AH-1Zs, all descending on any target that could be found to cut it to ribbons. The artillery would perform a similar role, slamming their counterparts down and then taking out targets called by the advancing troops, never staying in one position for more than a couple of shots.

 

REPUBLIC OF TEXAS
THE SITUATION ROOM
0840 HOURS

 

Anthony, The Joint Chiefs of Staff, Anthony's Chief of Staff, and the general on a secure video conference all sat quietly in the Situation Room. No one moved, no one said a word - the only thing that could be heard was their light breathing while they waited. "Sir, we can confirm the Tomahawks hit their targets. Intelligence shows scorched Earth where the impacts occurred and our GPS data confirms they weren't prematurely destroyed. Among the targets were military leadership, troop transports, and heavy armor. All three groups are a confirmed hit. Casualties aren't massive, but we were expecting that. The idea is to break up their organization and fracture their command structure. Estimates for those killed for each of the three groups are between 1,000-1,500 soldiers each. Our strike was a success." A few of the Chiefs patted the Air Guard Chief on the back while Dave and Anthony sat back in their chairs. "So you're telling me the Plains Federation wasn't able to shoot them down General? Did they even try?" The Chief of Texas Air National Guard regained his composure and handed the Governor a few documents marked UNCONFIRMED. "Well sir, on the surface it looks like they didn't try to stop the missiles but intelligence is speculating that they were using a CIWS system." Anthony raised his eyebrows, "They had land-mounted CIWS? The CIWS means 'Close-in Weapons System', I remember seeing a lot of them when I was stationed at Pearl Harbor on the Navy ships. How are they using that on land, I thought it was just for short-range anti-ship missiles?"

 

The Chief of The Army National Guard swiped through a few images on his iPad and put them on a bigger screen for the rest of the room to see. "This isn't what they were using sir, because they specified they were using the CIWS, but this is about as close as you can get since they said it was land-mounted and mobile. As I'm sure you know, this thing weighs about 13,700 pounds on a navy vessel, so it has to be weakened and dumed down a bit to be on land. This mobile land unit was designed and built to take out mortar fire, so it isn't a missile system. It's basically an overly sophisticated gatling gun. This is where it gets interesting, the CIWS system on naval ships is not the primary defense against cruise missiles. There are electronic countermeasures, missile-defense systems on board, and not to mention jets in the case of aircraft carriers. The CIWS is the last line of defense. You are just slugging bullets at a missile, not very high tech."

 

"I understand what you're trying to say general, but I still don't understand how they couldn't even shoot one of our missiles down. I mean, we shot several hundred at them." The general took a sip of his water and sat back in his chair, "Well sir, if you want to get into the specifics I'll tell you. Its effective, flat-trajectory range is 11,800 feet on a navy ship. If it's a mobile unit and the vehicle it was on was traveling at the same time, it would most likely be even less. Also, our Tomahawks were traveling at 550 miles per hour and we had given no indication that they were coming. Our missiles were literally travelling at 806 feet and eight inches per second. So, if we fire a cruise missile at the enemy and they are using this CIWS system as their defense against our cruise missiles, then their weapons will have a maximum of 14.6 seconds to intercept our missiles and destroy them - and I mind you that is the best case conditions, that the vehicle the CIWS was on wasn't moving, that the skies were clear, that the unit could even engage at 11,800 feet since it wasn't a ship mounted unit, and that the CIWS system was even activated.

 

A plus that this system has is that it can shoot 4,500 round per minute, but the downside is that its ammunition storage is only 1,550 rounds. Also sir, this system is designed with the mindset that it is defending itself. The projectile, be it mortar shell or anti-ship missile, is coming at it's general vicinity, trying to hit a missile that is striking a target 3,000 feet away with this system is futile. Also there have been numerous occasions where a missile was successfully hit by this system, but the missile still hit its target and did significant damage. I know you are a rifleman sir, so I can put it into those terms. It would be like trying to shoot a truck one mile away while it's going 100 miles an hour; except in reality the thing is over two miles away, it's traveling five and a half times faster than the truck, you didn't know it was coming, and it's in the sky."

 

A Maritime Guardsmen rain into the Situation Room and handed a piece of paper to the Chief of Staff who handed it over to the Governor. "They're launching an attack from their Caribbean fleet Governor. We know they have two carriers and numerous support craft, our best guess for their aircraft are the F-18E since they are Americans." Anthony checked his watch and looked over to the Director of Public Safety, "Do y'all think they're going to Houston?" Most in the room nodded, "Jesus, Watchmaker call the Director of Civil Defense. I'm thinking Port of Houston and all I can think of is industry, residential areas, and Kemah Board Walk. Someone please tell me there's a military target that they're after?" The Chief of the Air Guard shook his head, "Sir, the only military target in that area is Ellington Field. The United States Air Force maintained it until after World War Two which is when it was handed over to the National Guard. The F-22s based there are already in the air since we're at DEFCON 1. If they're risking that many aircraft, sir, it's because they want to prove a point. They want to hurt our morale. Bombing the fourth biggest port in America would be like crashing the New York Stock Exchange in a matter of hours. We'll retaliate against their ships. They might be 800 miles away at the edge of the Caribbean, but they're about to get a rude awakening." Anthony shook his head, "General I don't think you understand. Texas City, Seabrook, La Porte, and Deer Park are powder kegs. We're the largest refiner of oil in the world."

 

GULF OF MEXICO
150 MILES OFF THE TEXAS COAST
0855 Hours

 

Buzz kept his flight pattern with two wingmen at his side. They had been patrolling the seas off and on with other shifts but so far, no action. Clear skies, calm waters, and the occasional dolphin were all the pilots had to look forward to. "Ellington to Burner-22?" Crisp thickets of sunlight jumped through the sea as the jet cut through the air. "Roger Ellington this is Burner-22. Go ahead." Buzz could hear the flipping of papers and a light commotion on the other side, "Burner-22 be advised that the Plains Federation has just launched a massive air campaign against the Republic. Their launch points are from carriers between the Yucatan and Cuba. Command believes they're coming to Galveston and Houston. We want you to fall back to the mainland. If Coastal Defense doesn't wipe them out then you and the rest of the Third Wing that is in the area will intercept them and take them out. Over and out." 

 

The enemy F-18Es would interestingly find themselves not under attack during their journey through the Gulf of Mexico. But once the aircraft were about 40 miles from Galveston island the hunters would become the intended prey. Sparely across the empty beaches and more in the city itself were MIM-104B (PAC-1) Patriot launchers. The F-18Es were the target of hundreds of patriot missiles as they launched from the beaches, from within the city in Galveston island, and as the aircraft came closer they would also find additional anti-aircraft weaponry opening fire from place like Ellington Field, the Port of Houston, and areas surrounding Texas City. Mobile units were still being deployed and set up around the metropolitan area, but the important strategic areas had of course already been under protection. The F-22s would stay at a safe distance, considering that they could detect the F-18Es up to 250 miles away with their RWR system. If the strong Coastal Defenses didn't do the job of taking out the oddly large number of aircraft, they would feel the wrath of the Third Wing of the Texas Air National Guard.

 

Meanwhile in Corpus Christi, the Maritime National Guard brought out its premier weapon. From what Intelligence understood, the aircraft carriers coming from the Caribbean into the Gulf of Mexico were defenseless. They had no air support since a massive attack had been launched on the Texas mainland. Before the fighting commenced at Galveston, mobile launchers armed with the DF-21D ASM corrected their positions and took aim towards the Plains Federation fleet. This long-range (900 miles), hyper-sonic anti-ship missile was capable of traveling at mach 10 which translates to a speed of 2.11 miles per second. In order to make sure the missile would find it's target, four were targeted at both of the aircraft carriers. The Second Plains Federation Fleet "steaming out of New Orleans" would find a similar attack originating from Freeport. 

 

(OOC: Kinda like this but none of the mach 10 missiles are shot :v https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY7v21Zy1yE )

 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

OPERATION FULL SCALE

CLASSIFIED MATERIALS 

 

Texas servicemen and women couldn't contain themselves from laughing as they either observed in person, from the skies, or from satellite as the Plains Federation heavy armor attempted using wooden bridges that were over one-hundred years old, small metal bridges made for pedestrians, and other "unnecessary" and "non-vital" "small structures" that they tried to use. The multi-million dollar pieces of equipment just clunking into the Red River and Sabine River. It was like a really expensive scene out of the movie Saw. However once the Plains Federation military learned that such structures were left alone for a reason, Texas forces would take note that the Plains Federation were then trying to use AVLBs (those are that really cool bridge thing you see used in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in the opening mission where you're in the Middle East and you have to cross some bridge. This AVLB comes up and lowers itself and you can cross. It was pretty cool!) The problem for the Plains Federation was that the Red River had the second largest river basin in the southern Great Plains and had an outflow of 57,000 cubic feet of water per second. The conventional AVLB would have certainly have trouble crossing the rivers in most locations because of its width. When the Federation would attempt to put these bridges up in places where the rivers weren't so wide, they'd find themselves under fire by the tomahwaks or short-range cruise missiles. They would also be the prey of the Texas Air National Guard.

 

The enemy aircraft swarming into Texas would find themselves falling to a similar fate as their brothers attacking the Texas Coast. Patriot missiles constantly screamed into the sky to specifically hit strategic bombers and the other invading aircraft. Once the aircraft crossed into the Texas border, and this is after very heavy fire from the surface-to-air missiles defending the skies, they would come under attack by the First tactical Wing, all of which were tactical, of the Texas Air National Guard in the north. The Wing was separated into their squads and were not flying in tight groups in order to avoid radar detection. They would engage the enemy aircraft dozens of miles away with their AMRAAMs. The second Wing would do the same from the panhandle border with Oklahoma and the fourth Wing would be doing the same around Orange and the border there. The fifth Wing would launch a short offensive from Wichita Falls and Paris (having been split in half) and would strike any enemies at the border. They both were escorting a B-2 bomber who were armed with fifty 500 pound Mark 82 bombs. They would go up I-35 and begin striking the numerous targets on I-35, disrupting supply lines and stopping the flow of units, and the B-2s of course would carpet bomb the interstate as troops advanced forward (OOC: Don't say you are not using I-35 to move troops just to avoid this attack. I have satellites so I should know where a few hundred-thousand troops are going) The roads would be heavily damaged, they the smoking vehicles were more of a problem. Half of the sixth Wing would fly from Beaumont, to the beach, and then up the Sabine River and fire upon advancing enemy units while the other wing fought air to air.

 

(OOC: Nice try but your 120,000 soldiers are heading to Amarillo. And even if the 120,000 were split up into two groups, 60,000 wouldn't be in Las Cruces heading towards Amarillo "Within two hours"... So I'm just going to disregard that. I'm sure you have defenses, but I'd be highly skeptical of 60,000 soldier defenses when they should be two hours marching distance from Amarillo. Plus for some reason you abandoned the two bases that you could have used to defend this city, so again I'd be skeptical of it having any defense.

16:47 Alessariel the 120 from OK are going to be inside of Dallas in about two hours

16:47 Alessariel and the 120 from NM are going to be in Amarillo/Lubbock in roughly the same timeframe. IC:) 

 

The 39,000 soldiers would move into Las Cruces after the Air Guard mad its passes to clear the area of AA and local defenses. Any combatants within the city would be quickly overwhelmed as thousands of troops poured into the city. Government buildings were quickly taken over while AA and AMs were set up around the city. These 39,000 troops were part of the 1st Division and Second Division of the Texas Army National Guard. The rest of the 2nd Division, 21,000 troops along with armor, would make their way to Las Cruces. From that point, the troops in Las Cruces would begin advancing to Albuquerque. The 10th Wing, which was not flying in formation but split into its squads and smaller units in order to avoid radar detection, would provide air support from a distance. Mobile AA units and Patriot defense systems were brought along as the troops made their way forward to New Mexico's capitol. Three squads in the 11th Wing would sweep around the far outskirts of Albuquerque and take out any visible defenses or any defenses given to them by satellite. They would switch to infrared in the event that there were hidden defenses. 

 

(OOC: This next bit is where you said "Nowhere in my posts did I say they were flying as a mass. I did, however, say they were almost at the border before you even had anything in the air." That's great except like I said before I've been at DEFCON 3 for a long time, however the Air Guard was at DEFCON 2. Once you called the Governor, we were brought down to DEFCON 1. Rest assured, those big hunks of metal were getting in the air once the military noticed you were massing hundreds of thousands of troops and putting hundreds of aircraft in the air :V) 

 

The non-stealth B-1s would come under fire from the same Patriot missiles that were dropping the F-18Es on the Gulf coast. From forty miles away the bombers would already be under fire after they came from the fallen mountains. The Air Guard would quickly take note of their presence and would intercept them once they showed no signs of turning around and were within ten miles of the border.

 

The border at I-35 was not stuffed with men like it was at Oklahoma where hundreds of thousands of troops were trying to illegally cross into Texas. However, there were local defenses, border guards, AA, and other units trying to protect the other side of the river where they knew troops would eventually get if the Plains Federation military could find out not to use the flimsy bridges still remaining on the border. Hundreds of patriot missiles and anti-air defense missiles scrambled into the air at the incoming fighters. Undoubtedly, dozens would be shot down - that was unequivocal. However there were over 1,500 Texas casualties on the border, especially from the Federation SEAD weaponry. 

 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

OPERATION HOMETOWN

CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

The troops heading towards Amarillo (OOC: I am going to RP it as 120,000 because you clearly said they were two hours from Amarillo. If you are going to make a mess about this then talk to me about it on IRC or wherever. IC:) would make it to the settlement of Adrian before they met heavy resistance. The half of the 12th Wing would launch an offensive on the ground troops. Enemy aircraft would of course be the first target of the Wing but Patriot defenses in Amarillo would begin lobbing dozens of their missiles at the enemy who were crossing into the Texas panhandle from New Mexico. From Vega, 30 M777 howitzer artillery units were being used to bomb the enemy outside of Adrian and as they continued to move forward. The Air Guard would provide cover while the enemy moved forward. 

 

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

OPERATION SAN JACINTO 

CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

From Sheppard Air Force base, 10 Divisions of the Texas Army National Guard would push forward into Oklahoma. The 13th Air Wing would provide defense when necessary, but because there was already such a strong air presence in the area they would remain on standby and be used as reinforcements. The mission of the advancement was to take Lawton. Calculated air strikes would be taken on defenses as the troops moved forward with heavy armor, patriot defense, and artillery. Another push forward of another 50,000 soldiers would take place with the goal of taking McAlester, Oklahoma. One-thousand five-hundred M1-Abrams tanks would company them. The 13th Wing of the Air Guard would also protect these five Divisions pushing forward and would make airstrikes where necessary on local defenses, however the sparsely populated areas weren't expected to be heavily fortified unless satellite imagery proved otherwise. The soldiers would move forward with the aforementioned AA and artillery. 

 

CASCADIAN EMPIRE

CAPITOL CITY

EMPEROR'S RESIDENCE

 

A Hercules C-130 quieted down at a Cascadian Air Force Base after being clearance to land. It was a Texas Air Guard craft with thirteen Texas Minutemen on board. Once outside, they would show a letter from Governor Sparks to the Emperor and demand to be brought to him at once. Once inside the Emperor's residence they would surrender their weapons but remain in their battle gear and wait for the Emperor to greet them. They soldiers respectfully stood at attention when the Emperor came in, and Sergeant Sheppard immediately stepped forward. "Sir, Governor Sparks ordered us to get this to the Emperor of Cascadia, I'll surrender it to you now. He said for you to read it." Sheppard handed over the box which had inside it a piece of yellowish paper slabbed between two pieces of glass. It was inside a controlled environment within the glass, but would need to be secured somewhere safe. A post-it note was attached to it that read I want this back!!! The old piece of parchment read the following: 

 

Commandancy of the Alamo------

 

Bejar Fby. 24th 1836

 

To the People of Texas & 

all Americans in the world------

 

Fellow citizens & compatriots------

 

I am besieged, by a thousand
or more of the Mexicans under
Santa Anna ----- I have sustained
a continual Bombardment &
cannonade for 24 hours & have
not lost a man ----- The enemy
has demanded a Surrender at
discretion, otherwise, the garrison
are to be put to the sword, if
the fort is taken ----- I have answered
the demand with a cannon
shot, & our flag still waves
proudly from the wall ----- I
shall never Surrender or retreat

 

Then, I can on you in the
name of Liberty, of patriotism &
every thing dear to the American
character, to come to our aid,

 

with an dispatch ----- The enemy is
receiving reinforcements daily &
will no doubt increase to three or
four thousand in four or five days.
If this can is neglected, I am deter
mined to sustain myself as long as
possible & die like a soldier
who never forgets what is due to
his own honor & that of his
country ----- Victory or Death

 

 

William Barret Travis
Lt. Col. Comdt

 

P. S. The lord is on our side-
When the enemy appeared in sight
we had not three bushels of corn---
We have since found in deserted
houses 80 or 90 bushels & got into
the walls 20 or 30 head of Beeves---

 

Travis

Edited by PresidentDavid
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snip crocks upon crocks of !@#$%^&*

OOC: Understand, PD, that I am a CIWS operator. The Centurion, or C-RAM, weapons system is a thing. Understand, again, that I am 110% more likely to know EXACTLY how this operates than you are. Your "strikes" were ineffective. I RP'd losses; you do not get to tell me how many I took or what they were. The C-RAM is in effect a Block 1A CIWS with almost every package needed to make it into a 1B Baseline 2. The only fucking difference is that it doesn't have a PTI attached, so it's not meant to engage surface targets. In every other fucking way, it is the same goddamn CIWS I work on, which, and I assure you, is more than capable of blowing the everloving fuck out of a slow-assed cruise missile like the Tomahawk.

 

You have angered me. You did not ask me in IRC today when you had the chance. You said nothing, you mentioned nothing.

 

As of now, I go from a war of conquest to one of scorched earth. Expect a response reflecting that tomorrow when I have the spare neurons to devote to you.

 

Also, at Triyun, since I know you are helping him - let him fight his own !@#$@#$ war.

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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I'm uninvolved, just reading this thread because I expect some hilarity to ensue...

OOC: Understand, PD, that I am a CIWS operator. The Centurion, or C-RAM, weapons system is a thing. Understand, again, that I am 110% more likely to know EXACTLY how this operates than you are. Your "strikes" were ineffective. I RP'd losses; you do not get to tell me how many I took or what they were. The C-RAM is in effect a Block 1A CIWS with almost every package needed to make it into a 1B Baseline 2. The only !@#$@#$ difference is that it doesn't have a PTI attached, so it's not meant to engage surface targets. In every other !@#$@#$ way, it is the same goddamn CIWS I work on, which, and I assure you, is more than capable of blowing the everloving $%&@ out of a slow-assed cruise missile like the Tomahawk.

 

You have angered me. You did not ask me in IRC today when you had the chance. You said nothing, you mentioned nothing.

 

As of now, I go from a war of conquest to one of scorched earth. Expect a response reflecting that tomorrow when I have the spare neurons to devote to you.

 

Also, at Triyun, since I know you are helping him - let him fight his own !@#$@#$ war.

And I'm manufacturing the damn system, so I know that it can't do that. Well, ok, I don't. But you'd not know and we're not going to work on the presumption I do. your personal statement is not an authorative source and shouldn't be counted as one really. Not say C-RAM doesn't exist, but proving your point should be done the proper way with third-party accounts.

 

And I for my part think Triyun isn't involved, else you'd be screwed already by now. Give PD some credit for using his own brain and knowledge.

 

OOC: I'm not going to partake in the debate, but Iron Dome and MANTIS are both fully operational, the former with a very good kill rate.

Both of which are stationary, thus not usable in the manner specified.

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(OOC: Gentlemen. Ladies. Keep at least an ounce of civility while dealing with each other. Anything else merely perpetuates the persistent issues inherent in the CNRPx community. If this continues to be an issue I'll be forced to arbitrate something [with the assistance of my fellow elected dictators] that no one will be happy with, since if there were something that would leave you both happy you'd have found it already, seeing as this community is driven by collaboration and communication. Fix yo'selves foo.)

Edited by Shave N Haircut
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OOC: Understand, PD, that I am a CIWS operator. The Centurion, or C-RAM, weapons system is a thing. Understand, again, that I am 110% more likely to know EXACTLY how this operates than you are. Your "strikes" were ineffective. I RP'd losses; you do not get to tell me how many I took or what they were. The C-RAM is in effect a Block 1A CIWS with almost every package needed to make it into a 1B Baseline 2. The only !@#$@#$ difference is that it doesn't have a PTI attached, so it's not meant to engage surface targets. In every other !@#$@#$ way, it is the same goddamn CIWS I work on, which, and I assure you, is more than capable of blowing the everloving $%&@ out of a slow-assed cruise missile like the Tomahawk.

 

You have angered me. You did not ask me in IRC today when you had the chance. You said nothing, you mentioned nothing.

 

As of now, I go from a war of conquest to one of scorched earth. Expect a response reflecting that tomorrow when I have the spare neurons to devote to you.

 

Also, at Triyun, since I know you are helping him - let him fight his own !@#$@#$ war.

 

OOC: I'll have you know that I spent seven hours of my own time writing that last night. Once I got back from class I started working on it at 5:00 and didn't finish until about 12:50 AM last night. Everything I posted about the CIWS I read and researched myself. Also if you would know anything about the CIWS you would have said C-RAM in the first place because there is no such thing as a CIWS on land, it's just called the C-RAM. Secondly why on Earth would you use that when you could have used something literally almost any other modern AA to take down this missiles is beyond me, but to each his own? Thirdly you aren't shooting at one "slowed-ass" cruise missile. You're shooting at hundreds of them. 

 

Again, I'm extreemly offended that you think this is all the work of Triyun. I've asked him for advice on how some of your technology works and he's given me some baseline advice like "Don't use 150 fighters to fight Mara's 180 fighters" or "Yes I agree, using the CIWS is stupid when she could have used a real anti-missile system". But other than that, the research I have done for this to see through a lot of the odd things you are doing has been very time consuming. Do not assert that someone just wrote this for me, I have been painstakingly working on this post for a long time :V If you have big problems with it, then we can work them out like you said (that's why they have the edit button after all); but I am very confident in what I've written. Now go take a chill-pill.

Edited by PresidentDavid
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Private Letter to Texas:

Dear Governor Sparks,

 

Sir; It is rained upon the Californians that we would one day bring justice; that the California Republic would uphold exactly that: Justice. My intentions may not be clear, but let assurance rain as the California Republic, blessed by the one God, is to send, at full dispatch, men to the aid of the Independent Republic of Texas, one state to another, I call in the name of victory, and shall sing the words "Glory, Glory, Halleluiah" until I lie dead. Forty-five thousand men will be sent, with reinforcements rising to five-thousand, to the region of New Mexico in the hopes of liberation and long-lasting prosperity for all. In these fortunate events, men will not arise an inch east of the city of Santa Fe, and I leave you my oath that these men may never surrender or retreat, in the name of the California Republic as well as Texas. And, most importantly, please, Remember the Alamo!

 

Sincerely,

Daniel Marxon

President of the California Republic

 

Post Script: Through my blood runs the history of the mission known as The Alamo, through the man known as James Bonham. I will be sure to avenge the Texans to this very day as I feel the Texian heart inside my own chest.

 

Classified:

Daniel Marxon would then appoint his best soldier, James McCarthy, as Commander-in-chief of all forces. At age 17, McCarthy is also the ad-interim Vice President of California. McCarthy would quickly march 45,000 soldiers and 1,500 M1A2 Tanks on there way towards the border, however would halt once almost in range. McCarthy would grab a slip of paper and scribble a note to the Plains Federation:

 

Dear Plains Federation,

 

I don't know where you got all the military capabilities while not even a recognized nation, much less why you think you have authority of Texas, but I do have something to tell you: You can't be King if there is nobody to rule over. Attacking the people and killing them will make your occupation worthless. Face the facts that Texans will never surrender. They are stubborn and want their way; Possibly this is a weakness of theirs, or possibly it is another strength.

Oh, why so rude! I clearly forgot to introduce myself. I am James McCarthy, the man who is going to be kicking your backside all of the way to Saint Petersburg. Nice to finally come in contact,

 

James McCarthy

Commander of the Californian Forces

 

A Cailfornian riding a horse would ride over to the Plains side to deliver the note. The horse was a tip to the old way William Travis would deliver messages out of the Alamo. Only this time, the end may go differently. McCarthy and his troops would then prepare.

Edited by Peter Ilyich
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Operation Mile High

 

With Texas now official requesting assistance from the Cascadian Empire it would be time for them to act. 48,000 troops from first army would be sent from Wyoming in to Colorado with the main objective to capture Denver, which was less than 100 miles from the border. These troops would be fast moving as they would need to punch down the state, to help with this they would split into their Battalions and use CTVs and LAV-25s to move quickly. Troops would very regularly send out smaller UAVs to search out enemy tanks and artillery that would then be engaged by Cascadian Marksman Artillery Systems or Leopard 2A7s. Battalions were ordered to not travel close together to help strain any enemy artillery that was not engaged in time. Another 2,000 troops would be airdropped south of Denver, LAV-25s and B1 Centuaro Tank Destroyers. These troops would quickly push forward into southern Denver.

 

Operation Wicked

 

The bulk of Cascadian Forces that would be engaging The Plains Federation would be entering Kansas from Nebraska. 100,000 troops would push down from the border. Largely carrying out the same attack that was being played out in Colorado, troops would move in smaller units, usually battalions, equipped with CTVs and LAV-25s. They would be escorted by Leopard 2A7s and B1 Centauros that would engage enemy tanks. UAVs would constantly be conducting patrols seeking out SAMs, Artillery, and tanks, that would later be engaged by Cascadian Armour. They would keep pushing into the state until they reached Wichita.

 

Operation Lincoln

 

This attack would probably be the quickest out of the three. 50,000 Cascadian men would move through Wisconsin and attack Illinois with the intention of capturing Chicago. This attack would be almost identical in terms of the beginning invasion fast moving infantry would push through the first few towns until they were 24 miles outside of Chicago, there M777 howitzers would take station and begin firing at military targets discovered by UAVs. The troops advance would be covered by Apache Attack Helicopters, which would destroy enemy tanks. The CNS Eva would make her way into Lake Michigan alongside her escorts of three destroyers, seven frigates, and fifteen corvettes. The Eva would launch her Marine Assault Force at Chicago and would begin to siege the city from the coast.

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Anthony, The Joint Chiefs of Staff, Anthony's Chief of Staff, and the general on a secure video conference all sat quietly in the Situation Room. No one moved, no one said a word - the only thing that could be heard was their light breathing while they waited. "Sir, we can confirm the Tomahawks hit their targets. Intelligence shows scorched Earth where the impacts occurred and our GPS data confirms they weren't prematurely destroyed. Among the targets were military leadership, troop transports, and heavy armor. All three groups are a confirmed hit. Casualties aren't massive, but we were expecting that. The idea is to break up their organization and fracture their command structure. Estimates for those killed for each of the three groups are between 1,000-1,500 soldiers each. Our strike was a success." A few of the Chiefs patted the Air Guard Chief on the back while Dave and Anthony sat back in their chairs. "So you're telling me the Plains Federation wasn't able to shoot them down General? Did they even try?" The Chief of Texas Air National Guard regained his composure and handed the Governor a few documents marked UNCONFIRMED. "Well sir, on the surface it looks like they didn't try to stop the missiles but intelligence is speculating that they were using a CIWS system." Anthony raised his eyebrows, "They had land-mounted CIWS? The CIWS means 'Close-in Weapons System', I remember seeing a lot of them when I was stationed at Pearl Harbor on the Navy ships. How are they using that on land, I thought it was just for short-range anti-ship missiles?"

 

    The Chief of The Army National Guard swiped through a few images on his iPad and put them on a bigger screen for the rest of the room to see. "This isn't what they were using sir, because they specified they were using the CIWS, but this is about as close as you can get since they said it was land-mounted and mobile. As I'm sure you know, this thing weighs about 13,700 pounds on a navy vessel, so it has to be weakened and dumed down a bit to be on land. This mobile land unit was designed and built to take out mortar fire, so it isn't a missile system. It's basically an overly sophisticated gatling gun. This is where it gets interesting, the CIWS system on naval ships is not the primary defense against cruise missiles. There are electronic countermeasures, missile-defense systems on board, and not to mention jets in the case of aircraft carriers. The CIWS is the last line of defense. You are just slugging bullets at a missile, not very high tech."

 

    "I understand what you're trying to say general, but I still don't understand how they couldn't even shoot one of our missiles down. I mean, we shot several hundred at them." The general took a sip of his water and sat back in his chair, "Well sir, if you want to get into the specifics I'll tell you. Its effective, flat-trajectory range is 11,800 feet on a navy ship. If it's a mobile unit and the vehicle it was on was traveling at the same time, it would most likely be even less. Also, our Tomahawks were traveling at 550 miles per hour and we had given no indication that they were coming. Our missiles were literally travelling at 806 feet and eight inches per second. So, if we fire a cruise missile at the enemy and they are using this CIWS system as their defense against our cruise missiles, then their weapons will have a maximum of 14.6 seconds to intercept our missiles and destroy them - and I mind you that is the best case conditions, that the vehicle the CIWS was on wasn't moving, that the skies were clear, that the unit could even engage at 11,800 feet since it wasn't a ship mounted unit, and that the CIWS system was even activated.

 

    A plus that this system has is that it can shoot 4,500 round per minute, but the downside is that its ammunition storage is only 1,550 rounds. Also sir, this system is designed with the mindset that it is defending itself. The projectile, be it mortar shell or anti-ship missile, is coming at it's general vicinity, trying to hit a missile that is striking a target 3,000 feet away with this system is futile. Also there have been numerous occasions where a missile was successfully hit by this system, but the missile still hit its target and did significant damage. I know you are a rifleman sir, so I can put it into those terms. It would be like trying to shoot a truck one mile away while it's going 100 miles an hour; except in reality the thing is over two miles away, it's traveling five and a half times faster than the truck, you didn't know it was coming, and it's in the sky."

 

---

Major James Dahmer watched the Navy techs reloading the CIWS that had just saved his command truck - for the third time. Pieces of Tomahawks littered the ground around for two miles plus out in front of his unit. A petty officer in tricolor camouflage and a helmet jogged up to him, the perched eagle spraypainted onto his helmet serving as identification. "Another minute and we'll be back up and ready, Sir."

 

The Major grinned back at the enlisted man, extending his hand to shake. "That's some fine work you sailor boys are doin'. You sure you don't belong in the Army?"

 

The FC2 chuckled, shaking his own head even as he took the Major's hand, pumping it twice. "I'm good where I am sir. I have to say, those Texan $%&@ers -" he said the word, pausing to spit, "sure as hell seem to be trying to gut our leadership. They're not having a hell of a lot of luck, based on the chatter I'm receiving. We crossed into hostile territory with the search radar active - and, I gotta say, if they were trying to fly nape of the earth with these birds, they were off by a few hundred feet, and they ain't exactly what you might call stealthy." the Navy man said with a guffaw. "Good ol' Connie here -" he said, patting the side of the trailer which held the mount, "picked them up immediately and started spamming the RECOMMEND FIRE indicator. All we had to do was stop, switch it to AAW AUTO and let it rip. The CIWS platform this is based on is designed to take down Mach 4 targets - subsonics don't really give her much of a workout. They may call it a Counter-Rocket Artillery Mortar platform, and she's had some hardware/software tweaks to make her think she's bigger than she is so she'll shoot at things coming down further away, but she's a CIWS at heart - and what is a missile but a guided rocket?"

 

The Major nodded, lopsided grin still on his face. "Keep up the good work, FC2. I don't want to eat a Tomahawk." he said.

 

"Me either, sir."

 

The Major ducked away, hopping back into his command vehicle, where radio chatter greeted him as soon as he opened the armored door.

 

"We've got two mission-killed Abrams and a couple of Strykers here, but the bridging unit is still intact. ETA two hours on Abrams repairs. Four C-RAM units in effective operation - two more on reload right now. Can confirm passage of two-one-zero friendly vehicles including armor and AA. Engineers and SAM battalion report they've got the S-300s up and running and- wait - two S-400ss launched from Altus AFB at inbound hostiles. Two hits, no confirmed kills as of yet..."

   

  GULF OF MEXICO

    150 MILES OFF THE TEXAS COAST

    0855 Hours

 

    Buzz kept his flight pattern with two wingmen at his side. They had been patrolling the seas off and on with other shifts but so far, no action. Clear skies, calm waters, and the occasional dolphin were all the pilots had to look forward to. "Ellington to Burner-22?" Crisp thickets of sunlight jumped through the sea as the jet cut through the air. "Roger Ellington this is Burner-22. Go ahead." Buzz could hear the flipping of papers and a light commotion on the other side, "Burner-22 be advised that the Plains Federation has just launched a massive air campaign against the Republic. Their launch points are from carriers between the Yucatan and Cuba. Command believes they're coming to Galveston and Houston. We want you to fall back to the mainland. If Coastal Defense doesn't wipe them out then you and the rest of the Third Wing that is in the area will intercept them and take them out. Over and out."

 

    The enemy F-18Es would interestingly find themselves not under attack during their journey through the Gulf of Mexico. But once the aircraft were about 40 miles from Galveston island the hunters would become the intended prey. Sparely across the empty beaches and more in the city itself were MIM-104B (PAC-1) Patriot launchers. The F-18Es were the target of hundreds of patriot missiles as they launched from the beaches, from within the city in Galveston island, and as the aircraft came closer they would also find additional anti-aircraft weaponry opening fire from place like Ellington Field, the Port of Houston, and areas surrounding Texas City. Mobile units were still being deployed and set up around the metropolitan area, but the important strategic areas had of course already been under protection. The F-22s would stay at a safe distance, considering that they could detect the F-18Es up to 250 miles away with their RWR system. If the strong Coastal Defenses didn't do the job of taking out the oddly large number of aircraft, they would feel the wrath of the Third Wing of the Texas Air National Guard.

 

    Meanwhile in Corpus Christi, the Maritime National Guard brought out its premier weapon. From what Intelligence understood, the aircraft carriers coming from the Caribbean into the Gulf of Mexico were defenseless. They had no air support since a massive attack had been launched on the Texas mainland. Before the fighting commenced at Galveston, mobile launchers armed with the DF-21D ASM corrected their positions and took aim towards the Plains Federation fleet. This long-range (900 miles), hyper-sonic anti-ship missile was capable of traveling at mach 10 which translates to a speed of 2.11 miles per second. In order to make sure the missile would find it's target, four were targeted at both of the aircraft carriers. The Second Plains Federation Fleet "steaming out of New Orleans" would find a similar attack originating from Freeport.

 

    (OOC: Kinda like this but none of the mach 10 missiles are shot :v https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY7v21Zy1yE )

 

---

One problem with launching anti-ship missiles at that sort of a range is that you have to know where the enemy is coming from to even take the rudimentary measure of backtracking their course - which is defeatable by simple doglegs in between source and endpoint. The Texans had neither that luxury nor the luxury of spysats to try to find something as relatively small as an aircraft carrier in the vast expanse of the ocean - so those DF-21s, for all their sophistication and unproven capability (because, after all, the Chinese had never reported testing the weapons on anything other than a stationary target in the Gobi desert), were utterly useless in the face of having no information upon which they could track their targets. So flying away they went, to a point some 800 miles from their launchers... when the fleet that was harassing the Texan coast was only 400 nautical miles away. Every launched DF-21... missed.

 

The MIM-104Bs, on the other hand...

 

"Black Knights, this is Black Knight actual. I'm getting tracking radar hits out the wazoo - looks like the locals are on to us. Charlie Flight, Delta Flight, drop to the deck and take out those SAMs. Everyone, light up your ECM rigs - jam hell out of them. Everyone who isn't Charlie or Delta Flight, give them air cover. Hostiles inbound from zero-six-zero relative - consider yourselves to be weapons free. There's two hundred of us and God knows how many Huns. Good luck and good hunting."

 

"Hooyah!"

 

The Black Knights - the combined air groups of the two carriers - roared in, two flights detaching to go hunting for anti-air, the rest tearing ass past on an intercept course for the enemy air fleet- just as just short of two hundred S-400s launched from Lake Charles NAS in Louisiana, the stealth-hunting SAMs with more than 400km range hurtling in at high Mach. They would reach the enemy air fleet less than twenty seconds before the F-18Es would. Losses were expected.

 

They were deemed acceptable. As soon as the F-18Es sensitive radar equipment, with assistance from ground-based AESA, could track a target, that target received a pair of AMRAAMs. No Federal aircraft would go home with missiles on its wings.

 

Meanwhile back at the fleet, the former Kirov-class battlecruiser PFS Wrath launched an octet of seaskimming P-700 Granit cruise missiles at the fuel reserves and refineries in Galveston. The missiles were, perhaps, meant for anti-ship duty - but they had the range and the speed and the payload that the Federal fleet needed to accomplish that particular mission.

 

The Second fleet, far out of range of Texan radar and never having been acquired by Texan satellites due to being a relatively small target in a lot of Gulf, received a similar fate for the missiles tasked to them by the Texans - that is, the complete missing of their fleet elements.

 

Texas servicemen and women couldn't contain themselves from laughing as they either observed in person, from the skies, or from satellite as the Plains Federation heavy armor attempted using wooden bridges that were over one-hundred years old, small metal bridges made for pedestrians, and other "unnecessary" and "non-vital" "small structures" that they tried to use. The multi-million dollar pieces of equipment just clunking into the Red River and Sabine River. It was like a really expensive scene out of the movie Saw. However once the Plains Federation military learned that such structures were left alone for a reason, Texas forces would take note that the Plains Federation were then trying to use AVLBs (those are that really cool bridge thing you see used in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in the opening mission where you're in the Middle East and you have to cross some bridge. This AVLB comes up and lowers itself and you can cross. It was pretty cool!) The problem for the Plains Federation was that the Red River had the second largest river basin in the southern Great Plains and had an outflow of 57,000 cubic feet of water per second. The conventional AVLB would have certainly have trouble crossing the rivers in most locations because of its width. When the Federation would attempt to put these bridges up in places where the rivers weren't so wide, they'd find themselves under fire by the tomahwaks or short-range cruise missiles. They would also be the prey of the Texas Air National Guard.

---

"Sure is nice that they're not shooting at us!" shouted a dreadfully perky Corporal. She and the rest of her battalion were taking their turns running over a footbridge while the bridging unit laid itself out so that the heavy equipment could cross at this low point. Similar scenes played out at many different foot bridges across the border, as infantry, completely unopposed, crossed the aging structures, careful to adhere to personnel limits set by on-site combat engineers so they wouldn't break some of them. Of course, in some cases, older is better, and the craftsmanship of the bridges showed as endless streams of Federal troops advanced under the watchful eyes of C-RAM mounts and Pantsirs, along with S-300V4 mobile units set up as fast as they could be by the SAM battalions. There was no location on the Oklahoman border with Texas that wasn't in range of at least one S-400 installation, and more often anything flying above would be in range of not one but several at once, all driven by multiple AESA arrays.

 

"At least the tankers aren't having to deal with this !@#$. They're all just patiently waiting for the Wolverines to lower their bridges, sitting around with their thumbs up their asses."

 

"Some of them are dumb enough to drive right into the water. Thank god there's more than one of them in the tank so they should all have the braincells to not do that..."

 

"Key word: Should."

 

Behind them, a Pantsir opened up with cannon and missile - and a streak of flaming, screaming steel plummeted from the sky, an Air National Guardsman who had flown too close to the sun and gotten burned.

 

The Corporal shivered. "Jesus," she said, crossing herself. "Hell of a way to go." she continued, crossing herself awkwardly with her rifle in her hands, as a heavy-lift helo chanced the cover afforded to them by the might of the Federal Air Force and the Army's AA emplacements to start hooking up and hauling Strykers and IFVs over the river to meet up with the troops who were already across. Beside her, a Specialist nervously hefted his Stinger-F, on the alert for any enemy aircraft - fixed wing or rotating - that might try to come ruin his day. There were dozens, hundreds, thousands just like him strewn across the borders, some armed with Igla-S and some with Stinger-F, on the alert for trouble - and often finding it. Often, killing it. After all, the TANG had put more than enough nasty hostiles in the sky for them to shoot at. Between them, Starstreak-armed Avenger systems, Pantsirs, and the S-300V4/400 missiles... life was very, very bad in the skies above the Oklahoma-Texan border for anyone flying the Texan flag.

  

The enemy aircraft swarming into Texas would find themselves falling to a similar fate as their brothers attacking the Texas Coast. Patriot missiles constantly screamed into the sky to specifically hit strategic bombers and the other invading aircraft. Once the aircraft crossed into the Texas border, and this is after very heavy fire from the surface-to-air missiles defending the skies, they would come under attack by the First tactical Wing, all of which were tactical, of the Texas Air National Guard in the north. The Wing was separated into their squads and were not flying in tight groups in order to avoid radar detection. They would engage the enemy aircraft dozens of miles away with their AMRAAMs. The second Wing would do the same from the panhandle border with Oklahoma and the fourth Wing would be doing the same around Orange and the border there. The fifth Wing would launch a short offensive from Wichita Falls and Paris (having been split in half) and would strike any enemies at the border. They both were escorting a B-2 bomber who were armed with fifty 500 pound Mark 82 bombs. They would go up I-35 and begin striking the numerous targets on I-35, disrupting supply lines and stopping the flow of units, and the B-2s of course would carpet bomb the interstate as troops advanced forward (OOC: Don't say you are not using I-35 to move troops just to avoid this attack. I have satellites so I should know where a few hundred-thousand troops are going) The roads would be heavily damaged, they the smoking vehicles were more of a problem. Half of the sixth Wing would fly from Beaumont, to the beach, and then up the Sabine River and fire upon advancing enemy units while the other wing fought air to air.

 

    (OOC: This next bit is where you said "Nowhere in my posts did I say they were flying as a mass. I did, however, say they were almost at the border before you even had anything in the air." That's great except like I said before I've been at DEFCON 3 for a long time, however the Air Guard was at DEFCON 2. Once you called the Governor, we were brought down to DEFCON 1. Rest assured, those big hunks of metal were getting in the air once the military noticed you were massing hundreds of thousands of troops and putting hundreds of aircraft in the air :V)

 

    The non-stealth B-1s would come under fire from the same Patriot missiles that were dropping the F-18Es on the Gulf coast. From forty miles away the bombers would already be under fire after they came from the fallen mountains. The Air Guard would quickly take note of their presence and would intercept them once they showed no signs of turning around and were within ten miles of the border.

 

---

The B-1B Lancers had hit their targets, flying below the Patriots' engagement horizon - usually killing the Patriots themselves, that being their intended targets - turned around, and gone home long since, flying at nearly Mach 2 as they were, barely slowing down to subsonic in time to engage their targets before dropping their payloads, by the time the First Tactical Wing arrived. Forty miles, when one's target is going two miles a second, and at just above treetop level at that, is not a hell of a lot of engagement time. Two or three bombers were lost, though the third one wasn't clear as to whether it was enemy action or a freak mechanical malfunction that caused it to plow into its secondary target, exploding on impact.

 

Dozens of tactical aircraft - all of which were indeed and certifiably tactical, as witnessed by an infantryman who reported, "I swear to God, Captain! The goddamn thing was painted black and it had Picatinny rails all over it!" - began to engage the F-15Es striking from Oklahoma. Backed up by S-300V4/400 rockets, the swift fighters returned the favor with gusto, AWACS letting them backtrace the missile launches and fire their AIM-120Ds - and then bail. The AIM-120 AMRAAM's biggest drawback is that its seeker head is of necessarily limited size and power. To maintain a lock, one must continue to fly at the enemy... unless, of course, one could use another aircraft with significantly better tracking ability to do the pre-terminal guidance for you. The F-15Es also carried jammer pods; should they be required to keep their own lock, they did, and held it as long as they could while blasting jamming at the enemy.

 

Meanwhile, the surviving Patriots, having lit up their locations by firing, would find themselves set upon by tree-skimming F-15Es in SEAD mode, streaking in just under the speed of sound to drop JDAMs on the launchers and/or fire HARM missiles at the radars that drove the missile units.

 

Once the B-2 bomber appeared on the horizon - in the middle of the day, in full blown view of everyone and their dog - the giant, distinctive, batwinged black aircraft was promptly destroyed by no less than two dozen Stingers, Iglas and Starstreak missiles, while Pantsir fire chewed on the remains with 30mm cannon. The escorting units then received the full brunt of the defensive anti-aircraft fire which spiderwebbed the sky in a morass of sizzling tracers, shrieking missiles, and hunting radar.

   

(OOC: Nice try but your 120,000 soldiers are heading to Amarillo. And even if the 120,000 were split up into two groups, 60,000 wouldn't be in Las Cruces heading towards Amarillo "Within two hours"... So I'm just going to disregard that. I'm sure you have defenses, but I'd be highly skeptical of 60,000 soldier defenses when they should be two hours marching distance from Amarillo. Plus for some reason you abandoned the two bases that you could have used to defend this city, so again I'd be skeptical of it having any defense.

 

    16:47 Alessariel the 120 from OK are going to be inside of Dallas in about two hours

 

    16:47 Alessariel and the 120 from NM are going to be in Amarillo/Lubbock in roughly the same timeframe. IC:)

 

    The 39,000 soldiers would move into Las Cruces after the Air Guard mad its passes to clear the area of AA and local defenses. Any combatants within the city would be quickly overwhelmed as thousands of troops poured into the city. Government buildings were quickly taken over while AA and AMs were set up around the city. These 39,000 troops were part of the 1st Division and Second Division of the Texas Army National Guard. The rest of the 2nd Division, 21,000 troops along with armor, would make their way to Las Cruces. From that point, the troops in Las Cruces would begin advancing to Albuquerque. The 10th Wing, which was not flying in formation but split into its squads and smaller units in order to avoid radar detection, would provide air support from a distance. Mobile AA units and Patriot defense systems were brought along as the troops made their way forward to New Mexico's capitol. Three squads in the 11th Wing would sweep around the far outskirts of Albuquerque and take out any visible defenses or any defenses given to them by satellite. They would switch to infrared in the event that there were hidden defenses.

---

OOC: Yeah, don't roleplay my guys.

 

The VIIth Corps, having been held up at the last minute, finally set off for Lubbock, while the VIIIth charged on to Amarillo.

 

The Vth Corps, having been stationed in the city of Las Cruces, dug in, outnumbering their attackers, and swung back with everything they had - which was a considerable, and huge amount of firepower. The Air Guard found itself torn to shreds, having obviously not been expecting to meet the kind of resistance six divisions of troops, armor, and vehicles could throw their way. The Texans, bogged down as they were in Las Cruces, never got the chance to move on Albuquerque. With the full might of a Corps in front of them, a Wing of Federal fighters above them, and drones harrying their flanks and supply lines, the Texans would find that it would be more than they could handle just to not be driven from the city's periphery in a total route. AESA from mobile emplacements could, would, and did detect the aircraft comprising the 10th and 11th wing squads, and they would be dealt with by pouncing F-15Es and S-300V4/400 emplacements, not necessarily in that order.

 

    PresidentDavid, on 28 Jan 2015 - 10:51 PM, said:

 

    DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

 

    OPERATION HOMETOWN

 

    CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

    The troops heading towards Amarillo (OOC: I am going to RP it as 120,000 because you clearly said they were two hours from Amarillo. If you are going to make a mess about this then talk to me about it on IRC or wherever. IC:) would make it to the settlement of Adrian before they met heavy resistance. The half of the 12th Wing would launch an offensive on the ground troops. Enemy aircraft would of course be the first target of the Wing but Patriot defenses in Amarillo would begin lobbing dozens of their missiles at the enemy who were crossing into the Texas panhandle from New Mexico. From Vega, 30 M777 howitzer artillery units were being used to bomb the enemy outside of Adrian and as they continued to move forward. The Air Guard would provide cover while the enemy moved forward.

---

Finding the enemy, the 31st Wing would engage the 12th, being entirely outfitted for anti-air duty, and the troops themselves returned fire; Pantsirs, Avengers and plain old MANPADs wreaked their toll upon the presumptuous enemy, while the infantry, backed up by IFVs and tanks, moved on Adrian en-masse, the M777s falling victim of counterbattery fire courtesy of M109 Paladin units and drone strikes. The full might of one-hundred-twenty-thousand troops, tanks, and materiel fell on the settlement, and crushed it utterly.

 

    DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY OF THE REPUBLIC OF TEXAS

 

    OPERATION SAN JACINTO

 

    CLASSIFIED MATERIALS

 

    From Sheppard Air Force base, 10 Divisions of the Texas Army National Guard would push forward into Oklahoma. The 13th Air Wing would provide defense when necessary, but because there was already such a strong air presence in the area they would remain on standby and be used as reinforcements. The mission of the advancement was to take Lawton. Calculated air strikes would be taken on defenses as the troops moved forward with heavy armor, patriot defense, and artillery. Another push forward of another 50,000 soldiers would take place with the goal of taking McAlester, Oklahoma. One-thousand five-hundred M1-Abrams tanks would company them. The 13th Wing of the Air Guard would also protect these five Divisions pushing forward and would make airstrikes where necessary on local defenses, however the sparsely populated areas weren't expected to be heavily fortified unless satellite imagery proved otherwise. The soldiers would move forward with the aforementioned AA and artillery.

---

The 10 Divisions of the TANG smacked right into the II Corps,  60,000 men strong and directly in their path towards Lawton. Eight hundred M1A2s exchanged fire with their more numerous counterparts, backed up by AH-64s, M-777s, M-109 Paladins, M270s and HIMARS units as they were available, while a wing of Federal fighters clashed with the 13th wing. Once they got in range, the infantry joined in the tank brawl from the best cover they could find, using Javelin anti-tank missiles to engage the enemy's M1s. All this happened under the umbrella of both fighters and the typical heavy local AA and S-300V4/400 coverage.

 

Meanwhile...

 

"They blew up all the bridges, right?"

 

"Yeah. What about it?"

 

"Those $%&@ers are trying to swim the Red now. There's an Abrams drowning trying to cross."

 

"Oh Lord. Billy-Jean, sweetheart, grab Pappy's Remington outta the closet would ya?"

 

"Yes Pap."

 

"Play til a hundred then bug the $%&@ out?"

 

"Deal. Thanks, Billy. Get your brothers and sisters together and take 'em towards Aunt Sam up in McAllister. Give the sheriff a call and let him know the damn Texans are trying to force a crossing here and they forgot they blew the bridges.

 

"Yes Pap."

 

"Hold on Jim, lemme get my Red Man outta my truck and the M40 outta the rack."

 

"Yeap."

 

...

 

"Got it."

 

"Good, let's go hunting."

 

...

 

"Plinked that one's helmet."

 

"I got this !@#$%^& in the balls."

 

"Twenty three."

 

"Twenty seven."

 

"How the hell-?"

 

"The one who fell over squeezing the trigger and offed four of his buddies when I shot him."

 

"That doesn't count!"

 

--- Dillon ---

Dillon said:

 

Operation Mile High

 

With Texas now official requesting assistance from the Cascadian Empire it would be time for them to act. 48,000 troops from first army would be sent from Wyoming in to Colorado with the main objective to capture Denver, which was less than 100 miles from the border. These troops would be fast moving as they would need to punch down the state, to help with this they would split into their Battalions and use CTVs and LAV-25s to move quickly. Troops would very regularly send out smaller UAVs to search out enemy tanks and artillery that would then be engaged by Cascadian Marksman Artillery Systems or Leopard 2A7s. Battalions were ordered to not travel close together to help strain any enemy artillery that was not engaged in time. Another 2,000 troops would be airdropped south of Denver, LAV-25s and B1 Centuaro Tank Destroyers. These troops would quickly push forward into southern Denver.

 

--- /Dillon ---

 

 

The border post started picking up something strange, and the bored Specialist manning the UAV console jerked in alarm, seeing a massive dust cloud on his TV screen which materialized into a massive armored column barreling towards the Cascadia-Plains Federation border in Colorado.

 

"Oh for Christ's sakes!" the man yowled, hammering a large red button placed next to his console, clicking over to the outpost's command frequency on his radio. "Someone let High Command know we've got a whole bunch of jerkasses pointed straight at us coming out of Wyoming. Seeing a whole bunch of armor but not a trace of air." the man said, and listened to the response. "Yes Sarge. We're packing up now. Be outta here in five minute tops - the drone picked 'em up about thirty miles away so we've got a mite of time."

 

With that, the border post piled into the armored Humvees that composed their vehicle pool and fast tracked it the hell out of Dodge.

 

Meanwhile, that Sergeant, working from a satphone in the back of one of said Humvees, informed the Air Force in Buckley AFB in Denver and Schriever in CO Springs. Buckley and Schriever put squadrons in the air almost immediately... two squadrons of F-15s covering a squadron of A-10s. Each.

 

The tankbusters roared forward, the ones from Denver reaching the enemy first, the F-15s going in and busting up the AH64s (because the enemy had not put up air support) and any local AA they might have had (the outpost indicated there were only normal LAV-25s, not the reasonably deadly LAV-AD version. The A-10s swooped in, their wings loaded for bear with CBU-105 cluster munitions and Maverick missile. The cluster bombs were dropped on troops and troop-carrying vehicles to lethal effect. The A-10Cs' massive 30mm guns lit up the artillery and tanks, turning the once-proud warmachines into blazing carcasses.

 

Meanwhile, the attempted airdrop was intercepted by not only radar-driven SAMs but F-15Es from, again, Buckley, which were launching to support the A-10s, and the unescorted transports were chewed to pieces before they could even disgorge their payload; It was a total slaughter.

 

Warren AFB in Wyoming would also find itself under attack, as 30 Tomahawks armed with cluster munitions, thermobarics and conventional warheads came in, destroying everything they could in the old Strategic Missile base.

 

--- Dillon ---

Operation Wicked

 

The bulk of Cascadian Forces that would be engaging The Plains Federation would be entering Kansas from Nebraska. 100,000 troops would push down from the border. Largely carrying out the same attack that was being played out in Colorado, troops would move in smaller units, usually battalions, equipped with CTVs and LAV-25s. They would be escorted by Leopard 2A7s and B1 Centauros that would engage enemy tanks. UAVs would constantly be conducting patrols seeking out SAMs, Artillery, and tanks, that would later be engaged by Cascadian Armour. They would keep pushing into the state until they reached Wichita.

 

--- /Dillon ---

 

 

The UAVs that crossed first into Kansas, barreling towards Wichita, were first picked up by the AESA radar attached to the SAM battalion at Fort Riley. The targets were localized, even as the warning klaxon shook the six divisions of the IX Corps into life, mustering them in their defensive posts outside of Salina; they dug in outside the junction town, throwing up artillery and SAM positions almost immediately, putting up mobile AESA installations, knowing that any armed force that hoped to make any sort of time would have to come through the area if they hoped to hit Wichita, which was, really, the only target of importance in the state. UAVs swept out from McConnell AFB south of Wichita, and four squadrons of F-15Es and four A-10 squadrons along with them. When the enemy was found, they would engage them with their guns and missiles and cluster bombs... without any air support, the situation looked grim for the forces of Cascadia, who would lay their bones down in a land far from home due to bad planning on their leaders parts.

 

--- Dillon ---

Operation Lincoln

 

This attack would probably be the quickest out of the three. 50,000 Cascadian men would move through Wisconsin and attack Illinois with the intention of capturing Chicago. This attack would be almost identical in terms of the beginning invasion fast moving infantry would push through the first few towns until they were 24 miles outside of Chicago, there M777 howitzers would take station and begin firing at military targets discovered by UAVs. The troops advance would be covered by Apache Attack Helicopters, which would destroy enemy tanks. The CNS Eva would make her way into Lake Michigan alongside her escorts of three destroyers, seven frigates, and fifteen corvettes. The Eva would launch her Marine Assault Force at Chicago and would begin to siege the city from the coast.

--- /Dillon ---

 

 

The second the Cascadians crossed the border, busting through border posts, alarm klaxons wailed all over the state. Even before the troops inside the state could muster, the civilians of the long-held Federal state were fighting the invaders, taking potshots from roofs with rifles, throwing molotovs into engine decks and Humvee turrets, generally making life absolute hell for the invaders. Then, the real troops were ready. F-18s from the MCAS in North Chicago tore into the AH-64s, assisting the five divisions of National Guardsmen who were there to protect their homes, armed with Stinger-Bs and Iglas, not to mention Avenger anti-air and Pantsir units, all ready and tearing to burn the invaders out of the sky even as A-10s from Scott AFB in St. Clair tore into the enemy armor from the sides and rear, their cluster munitions, Maverick missiles and 30mm main guns harassing and destroying the enemy infantry and armored units while the M1A2s of the National Guard and the Guardsmen's Javelins wreaked their own toll upon the enemy. AH-64s joined in on the fun, pounding enemy artillery positions with impunity, their chainguns tearing into light armor and APCs.

 

Once that was completed, the A-10s and F-15Es would return, reload, and go out again, though this time the F-15Es would load up BrahMos anti-ship missiles and go attack the naval force which had mysteriously appeared in the Great Lakes near Chicago. There were twenty-four aircraft, carrying two missiles apiece. Forty-eight missiles streaked out towards the target painted by the radars of dozens of different commercial vessels and harbor patrol craft, and twenty-five of them were targeted on the Eva. The other twenty-four missiles were aimed as follows: three to each destroyer, two to each frigate. The A-10s, once they were reloaded, would go back out to support the National Guard fighting off the large fighting force barreling towards Chicago. The F-15Es would reload with Harpoons, and go hunt down the corvettes that remained in the area.

 

Classified:

Daniel Marxon would then appoint his best soldier, James McCarthy, as Commander-in-chief of all forces. At age 17, McCarthy is also the ad-interim Vice President of California. McCarthy would quickly march 45,000 soldiers and 1,500 M1A2 Tanks on there way towards the border, however would halt once almost in range. McCarthy would grab a slip of paper and scribble a note to the Plains Federation:

 

Dear Plains Federation,

 

I don't know where you got all the military capabilities while not even a recognized nation, much less why you think you have authority of Texas, but I do have something to tell you: You can't be King if there is nobody to rule over. Attacking the people and killing them will make your occupation worthless. Face the facts that Texans will never surrender. They are stubborn and want their way; Possibly this is a weakness of theirs, or possibly it is another strength.

Oh, why so rude! I clearly forgot to introduce myself. I am James McCarthy, the man who is going to be kicking your backside all of the way to Saint Petersburg. Nice to finally come in contact,

 

James McCarthy

Commander of the Californian Forces

 

A Cailfornian riding a horse would ride over to the Plains side to deliver the note. The horse was a tip to the old way William Travis would deliver messages out of the Alamo. Only this time, the end may go differently. McCarthy and his troops would then prepare.

 

General James MacArthur looked at the man who'd, absurdity on top of absurdity, ridden a horse all the way across the border to deliver a message of war from the Californians. "Well..." the General drawled, an Arkansas drawl thick as molasses. "I'd shoot you if you were armed, but no. That'd be un-gentlemanly of me." the general said, and the man seemed to relax. "Strip him down to his skivvies and tie him to the horse." the General ordered, and the protesting man was forced back onto his horse, now sans everything but his boxers, and the General taped a reply to his back with duct tape.

 

To the ass whom it may concern,

Fancy words are the province of victors; you haven't proven your worth yet.

General James MacArthur, X Corps

 

With a slap on the horse's buttock, he send the man back over the border. Turning to his adjutant, he asked. "Are we ready, Oliver?"

 

The colonel nodded back to him. "All positions are reporting one hundred percent readiness."

 

"Good. We might not be fighting Texans today, but some Californians are sure going to regret their interference."

 

Thus it was that the 60,000 men of the X Corps dug in, radar strobing, SAMs ready, UAVs in the air, artillery sighted in and well hidden, helicopters waiting, tanks snorting behind well-hidden sandberms, fighters on the horn... and waited. The UAVs MacArthur had dispatched had given him information, leading him to believe he would attack Santa Fe. Thus X Corps was deployed outside of Gallup, which was the quickest route the enemy could take in that direction. However, in the event they tried the northern route, MacArthur's XI corps was also deployed near Shiprock, another 60,000 strong force in equal disposition. UAVs swept the areas in between them, looking for any sign that the enemy decided to take the most direct - yet slowest- route by going overland.

Edited by Mara Lithaen
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