09-02-2023, 03:15 AM
(Joint Post with Xiomera)
"That bitch is going to pay for this, one way or another."
Chancellor Stendē's expression, usually diplomatic and cordial, showed not one bit of friendliness. Her icy stare was amplified by her sleek black and navy blue mourning Halar. Those two colors were being worn by politicians and celebrities all across Eiria in solidarity with their Huenyan allies. Even some of Stendē's political opponents had jumped on the trend, eager to show their support for the family of the late Tiacihitli.
However, this touching show of support did little to soothe Stendē's cold anger. She was sick of being forced to remain actionless out of fear of violating an agreement that other parties were violating. She wanted action, and she wanted it now. As such, she had organized a virtual meeting of the most important figures within the UCS in order to determine a new approach to Caxcana's tenuous political situation.
Stendē took a deep breath, then opened her laptop, navigating to the secure call application. The call took a while to load (presumably due to all of the safety measures put in place by the Ministry of Intelligence), but eventually, it let her through, and she opened the digital conference room.
The first to arrive on the call was President Matōchmizalo of Milintica. "Good morning, madam Chancellor. I wish we weren't meeting under such circumstances," he said soberly.
Not long after that, the sound indicating that someone had joined the call echoed again. It was Great Speaker Texōccoatl. His haggard appearance, so different from his usual dapper style, spoke to the ordeal he had recently suffered. So did the background of the hospital room he was in. But his eyes, though bearing the signs of exhaustion, burned with an unmistakable fire. "Madam Chancellor, thank you for calling this meeting. And thank you for attending, Mister President."
"Of course. My sincerest condolences for your situation, Great Speaker. You should know that everyone in Eiria is wishing you a speedy recovery." Stendē adjusted her glasses as two more pings announced the arrival of Vice Chancellor Lynn Morrin and Aurian Queen Katherina, the latter of whom had her Queen Dowager mother was sitting behind her. The Chancellor nodded to the two arrivals. "Welcome, everyone. I'm glad that you all could be here on such short notice.
"I am glad as well, and wish to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your strong support of Huenya. This is something we need most dearly right now. Even in our worst nightmares we did not imagine Calhualyana would go so far," Texōccoatl said.
"So is it confirmed then? Is that devil behind these incidents?" Matōchmizalo asked.
"We have not found the smoking gun yet, so to speak. But who else could it be?" Texōccoatl replied. Matōchmizalo nodded, a grimace on his face. "If so, then we must punish Calhualyana severely for this outrage," the Milintican said.
"Agreed. Which is why I called you all here today, to discuss how exactly we can properly sabotage the Empress." The Chancellor picked up a folder from her desk and examined its contents. "As I'm sure you all are aware, the situation in Auria has taken an unexpected turn for the better. And although I'm not sure how long that will last, for now, we seem to have a clear opening to retake Lumiere. As such, many of our forces may be available for reassignment, now that it seems like Berenstein's regime has collapsed."
"However, military action may not be the best option to start with. We need to work together to get LIDUN on our side first, before the Xiomerans try to use it against us. Along that line, Great Speaker, our intelligence forces will be working alongside you to try to find the proverbial 'smoking gun.' Once we have the evidence that we need, we can finally isolate Xiomera from certain... 'republics' that are quick to jump to Xiomera's defense." Stendē did not state the name of the nation, but her tone made which leaders she was talking about abundantly clear.
"That sounds like a good plan. We do need to isolate Calhualyana's regime both diplomatically and economically before moving forward," Texōccoatl replied.
"I would also suggest that we need to amp up our efforts to disrupt the Xiomeran regime from within," Matōchmizalo said. "I know that Huenya has been doing some excellent work in that regard and we need to build on that with intelligence operations to build resistance to the regime within Xiomera."
"I agree wholeheartedly. Given the recent attacks on both Eirian and Huenyan citizens, our Ministry of Intelligence case officers have been practically chomping at the bit to settle the score." Stendē's lips curved upwards in a slight smile. "Along that line, in order to build resistance against the Empire, we need to shatter the illusion of 'righteous control.' Attacks, security breaches, data leaks. Anything that can humiliate Calhualyana."
"Huenya can certainly assist with that," Texōccoatl said. "We are already conducting intelligence operations against the Imperial government within Xiomera itself. We can coordinate with your intelligence agencies on that."
"Attacks are more our style," Matōchmizalo grinned. "We can insert agents and guerrillas into Xiomera to give Calhualyana and her lackeys quite a lot to do. Every attack will chip away at the whole 'Fortress Xiomera' image that she is trying to project."
"I should be up-front, though. Huenya tends to go more on the offensive in regards to what Calhualyana is doing against us. The more passive approach we have adopted in the past has only encouraged her to take more and more action against us. Huenya needs to stand up to her. And it will." Texōccoatl had an expression on his face of determination tinged with anger.
"That is completely understandable. We feel similarly, and we will be glad to assist you with any operations that you wish to undertake." After Stendē had said that, Morrin raised an eyebrow, causing the Chancellor to amend her statement. "Provided every measure is taken to prevent civilian casualties, of course. Did you have a particular target in mind?"
"Every district that is under attack has to be a target. If we don't rip this insurgency out by the roots soon, it will only continue to grow. Our plan is to order evacuations of each district prior to launching any attacks in order to prevent civilian casualties as much as possible." Texōccoatl brought up a map of Huenya showing the districts that were currently under siege. "Our plan is to start with the districts closest to major cities such as Chuaztlapoc and work outward from there."
Vice Chancellor Morrin examined the map. "Fu ut aud*, there are a lot of besieged districts. We may need to dip into the reserves stationed in Eiria in order to help you handle this. I don't think we'd be able to get enough troops from Auria without potentially compromising all of the progress that we have made there."
Queen Katherina, who had been silent up to this point, unmuted her mic. "And that is something that we cannot risk. Regardless of what happened to the regime of that traitorous parliamentarian Berenstein, we still have hostile factions to our north that we are holding the line against. Without both military and logistical support, we could lose a lot of the ground that we've regained."
Texōccoatl nodded. "We don't want to jeopardize the progress made in Auria at all. It may not be necessary to commit large numbers of troops. We believe that precision airstrikes and missile strikes on insurgent strongholds should weaken them enough for our own forces to eliminate them."
"That works well, then, given that as our forces approach Lumiere, airstrikes will become more dangerous. Our top air force and naval aviation officers will reach out to properly coordinate our actions." Stendē donned a slight smile. "Although, I should warn you, from what I heard from my former sailor husband, there's a bit of an infamous rivalry between our air force pilots and naval aviators. They'll serve you well, don't get me wrong. But don't be surprised if striking insurgent strongholds becomes somewhat of a competition."
"I welcome the competition, if it helps us eliminate these terrorists all the faster." Texōccoatl did not smile. He was clearly deadly serious. "Huenyan aviators may well join you in your competition." With that statement, he finally allowed a ghost of a smile to cross his face. He quickly grew serious again though. "I am glad we are in agreement on a plan of action. It is essential that the UCS be seen to act quickly and decisively here. Calhualyana is undoubtedly touting our supposed 'weakness' to anyone who will listen. I can't wait to disappoint her."
"Indeed. We must show her the true strength of our union." Stendē trailed off, considering her next words. " Calhualyana's actions, while vile and reprehensible, certainly have brought the world together against her. We're seeing record levels of enlisting in the armed forces, and a spike in applicants for both EICA and the Guard of the Republic. We should exploit this fervor." The Chancellor turned her attention back to the Huenyan Great Speaker. "How is public opinion in Huenya, given the recent attacks and insurgent activity?"
"From what we are hearing, public opinion is mixed. People are scared, and nervous. They are worried about the future of Huenya and whether or not it can survive." Texōccoatl shook his head. "But people are also angry, because they want Huenya to survive. The dream of a free and independent Huenyan state isn't something they are prepared to give up on. This gives us quite a bit of support. We are also seeing an increase in recruitment. And the latest polls seem to indicate that the public is ready for us to take the gloves off and deal with these insurgents already."
"If we want to use that passion to our advantage, we must act quickly and precisely." Morrin took the opportunity to speak up. "While our military forces assist yours in stopping insurgents, I'm sure that some sort of intelligence operation could be undertaken in order to stop Xiomeran resources from potentially reaching Golden Blade hotspots. Any suggestions on targets to sabotage? Do we know how the Golden Blade is getting resources in general?"
"We believe that they have been transporting supplies across the Gulf of Epeloc into Xonacatlán, and then transferring them from there into Huenya. Intercepting the supply runs at the border of Xonacatlán should shut the terrorists down," Texōccoatl replied. "As for targets to sabotage, supply depots on the western half of Xiomera proper and in Xonacatlán would be a good place to start. Perhaps airfields and port facilities as well."
"Noted. We'll be sure to pass that along to the proper intelligence officials so we may begin to plan out those strikes." The Chancellor said. "Is there anything else that you need from Eiria, Great Speaker?"
"I think that is a very good place to start. We will keep you posted if things on the ground change. We thank you once again for the help." Texōccoatl nodded firmly.
"Milintica will also begin preparing forces to assist both in intercepting the terrorists' supply lines and in sabotaging Xiomeran assets," Matōchmizalo added.
"Perfect. Thank you for your time, Your Excellencies. Eiria will be at your service if you need anything more." Stendē's face had returned to a stoic, diplomatic expression. "And, Great Speaker, on behalf of the Eirian Repubic and all of it's citizens, we wish you a speedy recovery."
"I thank you for the well wishes. I have a bit of a road ahead of me, but I am already on the mend. And soon enough, I be back to normal." Texōccoatl gave a slight smile. "Thank you both for your time as well."
As the rest of the UCS leaders left the call, Stendē glanced up towards the door, mentally taking stock of the situation (and all of the people whom she would need to meet with as soon as possible.) With one resounding sigh, she stood up from her chair, leaving the study to talk to her Chief of Staff. Let's get to work.
----
*Meaning "Fire and Water," "Fu ut aud!" is an Eirian expression of surprise at the size, scope, or difficulty of a task. It is the shortening of the phrase "Sana nejam fu ut aud pōr cis," literally "We're gonna need fire and water for this."
"That bitch is going to pay for this, one way or another."
Chancellor Stendē's expression, usually diplomatic and cordial, showed not one bit of friendliness. Her icy stare was amplified by her sleek black and navy blue mourning Halar. Those two colors were being worn by politicians and celebrities all across Eiria in solidarity with their Huenyan allies. Even some of Stendē's political opponents had jumped on the trend, eager to show their support for the family of the late Tiacihitli.
However, this touching show of support did little to soothe Stendē's cold anger. She was sick of being forced to remain actionless out of fear of violating an agreement that other parties were violating. She wanted action, and she wanted it now. As such, she had organized a virtual meeting of the most important figures within the UCS in order to determine a new approach to Caxcana's tenuous political situation.
Stendē took a deep breath, then opened her laptop, navigating to the secure call application. The call took a while to load (presumably due to all of the safety measures put in place by the Ministry of Intelligence), but eventually, it let her through, and she opened the digital conference room.
The first to arrive on the call was President Matōchmizalo of Milintica. "Good morning, madam Chancellor. I wish we weren't meeting under such circumstances," he said soberly.
Not long after that, the sound indicating that someone had joined the call echoed again. It was Great Speaker Texōccoatl. His haggard appearance, so different from his usual dapper style, spoke to the ordeal he had recently suffered. So did the background of the hospital room he was in. But his eyes, though bearing the signs of exhaustion, burned with an unmistakable fire. "Madam Chancellor, thank you for calling this meeting. And thank you for attending, Mister President."
"Of course. My sincerest condolences for your situation, Great Speaker. You should know that everyone in Eiria is wishing you a speedy recovery." Stendē adjusted her glasses as two more pings announced the arrival of Vice Chancellor Lynn Morrin and Aurian Queen Katherina, the latter of whom had her Queen Dowager mother was sitting behind her. The Chancellor nodded to the two arrivals. "Welcome, everyone. I'm glad that you all could be here on such short notice.
"I am glad as well, and wish to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your strong support of Huenya. This is something we need most dearly right now. Even in our worst nightmares we did not imagine Calhualyana would go so far," Texōccoatl said.
"So is it confirmed then? Is that devil behind these incidents?" Matōchmizalo asked.
"We have not found the smoking gun yet, so to speak. But who else could it be?" Texōccoatl replied. Matōchmizalo nodded, a grimace on his face. "If so, then we must punish Calhualyana severely for this outrage," the Milintican said.
"Agreed. Which is why I called you all here today, to discuss how exactly we can properly sabotage the Empress." The Chancellor picked up a folder from her desk and examined its contents. "As I'm sure you all are aware, the situation in Auria has taken an unexpected turn for the better. And although I'm not sure how long that will last, for now, we seem to have a clear opening to retake Lumiere. As such, many of our forces may be available for reassignment, now that it seems like Berenstein's regime has collapsed."
"However, military action may not be the best option to start with. We need to work together to get LIDUN on our side first, before the Xiomerans try to use it against us. Along that line, Great Speaker, our intelligence forces will be working alongside you to try to find the proverbial 'smoking gun.' Once we have the evidence that we need, we can finally isolate Xiomera from certain... 'republics' that are quick to jump to Xiomera's defense." Stendē did not state the name of the nation, but her tone made which leaders she was talking about abundantly clear.
"That sounds like a good plan. We do need to isolate Calhualyana's regime both diplomatically and economically before moving forward," Texōccoatl replied.
"I would also suggest that we need to amp up our efforts to disrupt the Xiomeran regime from within," Matōchmizalo said. "I know that Huenya has been doing some excellent work in that regard and we need to build on that with intelligence operations to build resistance to the regime within Xiomera."
"I agree wholeheartedly. Given the recent attacks on both Eirian and Huenyan citizens, our Ministry of Intelligence case officers have been practically chomping at the bit to settle the score." Stendē's lips curved upwards in a slight smile. "Along that line, in order to build resistance against the Empire, we need to shatter the illusion of 'righteous control.' Attacks, security breaches, data leaks. Anything that can humiliate Calhualyana."
"Huenya can certainly assist with that," Texōccoatl said. "We are already conducting intelligence operations against the Imperial government within Xiomera itself. We can coordinate with your intelligence agencies on that."
"Attacks are more our style," Matōchmizalo grinned. "We can insert agents and guerrillas into Xiomera to give Calhualyana and her lackeys quite a lot to do. Every attack will chip away at the whole 'Fortress Xiomera' image that she is trying to project."
"I should be up-front, though. Huenya tends to go more on the offensive in regards to what Calhualyana is doing against us. The more passive approach we have adopted in the past has only encouraged her to take more and more action against us. Huenya needs to stand up to her. And it will." Texōccoatl had an expression on his face of determination tinged with anger.
"That is completely understandable. We feel similarly, and we will be glad to assist you with any operations that you wish to undertake." After Stendē had said that, Morrin raised an eyebrow, causing the Chancellor to amend her statement. "Provided every measure is taken to prevent civilian casualties, of course. Did you have a particular target in mind?"
"Every district that is under attack has to be a target. If we don't rip this insurgency out by the roots soon, it will only continue to grow. Our plan is to order evacuations of each district prior to launching any attacks in order to prevent civilian casualties as much as possible." Texōccoatl brought up a map of Huenya showing the districts that were currently under siege. "Our plan is to start with the districts closest to major cities such as Chuaztlapoc and work outward from there."
Vice Chancellor Morrin examined the map. "Fu ut aud*, there are a lot of besieged districts. We may need to dip into the reserves stationed in Eiria in order to help you handle this. I don't think we'd be able to get enough troops from Auria without potentially compromising all of the progress that we have made there."
Queen Katherina, who had been silent up to this point, unmuted her mic. "And that is something that we cannot risk. Regardless of what happened to the regime of that traitorous parliamentarian Berenstein, we still have hostile factions to our north that we are holding the line against. Without both military and logistical support, we could lose a lot of the ground that we've regained."
Texōccoatl nodded. "We don't want to jeopardize the progress made in Auria at all. It may not be necessary to commit large numbers of troops. We believe that precision airstrikes and missile strikes on insurgent strongholds should weaken them enough for our own forces to eliminate them."
"That works well, then, given that as our forces approach Lumiere, airstrikes will become more dangerous. Our top air force and naval aviation officers will reach out to properly coordinate our actions." Stendē donned a slight smile. "Although, I should warn you, from what I heard from my former sailor husband, there's a bit of an infamous rivalry between our air force pilots and naval aviators. They'll serve you well, don't get me wrong. But don't be surprised if striking insurgent strongholds becomes somewhat of a competition."
"I welcome the competition, if it helps us eliminate these terrorists all the faster." Texōccoatl did not smile. He was clearly deadly serious. "Huenyan aviators may well join you in your competition." With that statement, he finally allowed a ghost of a smile to cross his face. He quickly grew serious again though. "I am glad we are in agreement on a plan of action. It is essential that the UCS be seen to act quickly and decisively here. Calhualyana is undoubtedly touting our supposed 'weakness' to anyone who will listen. I can't wait to disappoint her."
"Indeed. We must show her the true strength of our union." Stendē trailed off, considering her next words. " Calhualyana's actions, while vile and reprehensible, certainly have brought the world together against her. We're seeing record levels of enlisting in the armed forces, and a spike in applicants for both EICA and the Guard of the Republic. We should exploit this fervor." The Chancellor turned her attention back to the Huenyan Great Speaker. "How is public opinion in Huenya, given the recent attacks and insurgent activity?"
"From what we are hearing, public opinion is mixed. People are scared, and nervous. They are worried about the future of Huenya and whether or not it can survive." Texōccoatl shook his head. "But people are also angry, because they want Huenya to survive. The dream of a free and independent Huenyan state isn't something they are prepared to give up on. This gives us quite a bit of support. We are also seeing an increase in recruitment. And the latest polls seem to indicate that the public is ready for us to take the gloves off and deal with these insurgents already."
"If we want to use that passion to our advantage, we must act quickly and precisely." Morrin took the opportunity to speak up. "While our military forces assist yours in stopping insurgents, I'm sure that some sort of intelligence operation could be undertaken in order to stop Xiomeran resources from potentially reaching Golden Blade hotspots. Any suggestions on targets to sabotage? Do we know how the Golden Blade is getting resources in general?"
"We believe that they have been transporting supplies across the Gulf of Epeloc into Xonacatlán, and then transferring them from there into Huenya. Intercepting the supply runs at the border of Xonacatlán should shut the terrorists down," Texōccoatl replied. "As for targets to sabotage, supply depots on the western half of Xiomera proper and in Xonacatlán would be a good place to start. Perhaps airfields and port facilities as well."
"Noted. We'll be sure to pass that along to the proper intelligence officials so we may begin to plan out those strikes." The Chancellor said. "Is there anything else that you need from Eiria, Great Speaker?"
"I think that is a very good place to start. We will keep you posted if things on the ground change. We thank you once again for the help." Texōccoatl nodded firmly.
"Milintica will also begin preparing forces to assist both in intercepting the terrorists' supply lines and in sabotaging Xiomeran assets," Matōchmizalo added.
"Perfect. Thank you for your time, Your Excellencies. Eiria will be at your service if you need anything more." Stendē's face had returned to a stoic, diplomatic expression. "And, Great Speaker, on behalf of the Eirian Repubic and all of it's citizens, we wish you a speedy recovery."
"I thank you for the well wishes. I have a bit of a road ahead of me, but I am already on the mend. And soon enough, I be back to normal." Texōccoatl gave a slight smile. "Thank you both for your time as well."
As the rest of the UCS leaders left the call, Stendē glanced up towards the door, mentally taking stock of the situation (and all of the people whom she would need to meet with as soon as possible.) With one resounding sigh, she stood up from her chair, leaving the study to talk to her Chief of Staff. Let's get to work.
----
*Meaning "Fire and Water," "Fu ut aud!" is an Eirian expression of surprise at the size, scope, or difficulty of a task. It is the shortening of the phrase "Sana nejam fu ut aud pōr cis," literally "We're gonna need fire and water for this."
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