On this day, nearly eighty years ago, the largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom, but about the very idea of individualism itself ~ Ozpin
The century leading up to the War, there was high tension between the four kingdoms, mostly caused by Mistral, which had allied itself with Mantle. Eventually, Mistral and Vale both set their sights on settling the islands and peninsulas on the east coast ofSanus. Despite what his citizens wanted, the king of Vale chose to share the land with the settlers from Mistral.
However, the immensely high tensions ultimately resulted in a riot between the two bands of settlers. It is unknown who attacked first, but it began the first battle of the Great War. Mantle quickly came to Mistral's aid, and battles were fought on both Sanus and Anima soil.
For a time, Vacuo remained neutral, due to Mantle and Mistral having established a presence in their territory in the years prior. When the two began pressuring Vacuo to ally with them, the citizens of Vacuo realized that if Vale fell, there would be no one left to stop Mistral and Mantle from conquering them. Vacuo rallied against Mantle and Mistral and pushed them out of the Vacuoan territory and allied themselves with Vale.
(The Great War)
'Where dead men lies I'm paralyzed, my brothers' eyes are gone
And he shall be buried here, nameless marks his grave
Mother home, get a telegram and shed a tear of grief
Mud and blood, in foreign land, trying to understand'
Forces of Vale and Vacuo march through lands until they finally caught up with the Mantle and Mistral forces.
'Where is this greatness I've been told?
This is the lies that we been sold
Is this a worthy sacrifice?'
Two sides forces charged at each other. Swords, Spears, Shields, Firearms and even forms of magic were used in this bloody conflict.
'Great war
And I cannot take more
Great tour
I keep on marching on
I play the great score
There will be no encore
Great War
The war to end all wars'
Vale and Vacuo troops dug trenches and open fire at the advancing Mistral Infantry.
'I'm standing here, I'm full of fear, with bodies at my feet
Over there in the other trench, bullets wear my name
Lead ahead, as the captain said and show them no remorse
Who am I to understand what have I become?'
A Vale soldier and a Mantle soldier point their weapons at each other only to lower them and leave the battlefield.
'I do my duties, pay the price
I'lll do the worthy sacrifice
I know my deeds are not in vain'
The Commander of Mistral's calvary unit orders a charge into the enemy's exposed flank.
'Great war
And I cannot take more
Great tour
I keep on marching on
I play the great score
There will be no encore
Great War
The war to end all wars'
Swords clash, Rifles crack and Cannons go off.
'And feet by feet
We pay the price of a mile here
Though men are falling, we see Heroes rise
We face the heat
As we are fighting until the dawn
So follow me and we will write our own history'
Mantle soldier grabs his fallen comrade and desperately drags him back into the trench.
'Great war
And I cannot take more
Great tour
I keep on marching on
I play the great score
There will be no encore
Great War
The war to end all wars'
Later in the war, Mantle and Mistral along with other allies planned an invasion of Vacuo by going through Nomad Bay however this would be a failed attempt that cost the lives of many young soldiers.
(Cliffs of Gallipoli)
'Hear them whisper,
Voices from the other side
Hear them calling
Former foes now friends are resting side by side'
Mantle and Mistral marines run out of their boats and charge up the beaches of Nomad Bay only to met with heavy enemy resistance.
'They will never leave our hearts or fade away
Live forever
They were far to you to die in such a way'
Blood began to stain the sand of the bay.
'How many wasted lives
How many dreams did fade away
Broken promises
They won't be coming home
Oh mothers wipe your tears
Your sons will rest a million years
Found their peace at last
As foe turned to friend
And forgive
And they knew they'd die'
Vacuo continue to lay down heavy fire onto the invading troops.
'Gallipoli
Left their letters in the sand
Such waste of life
Gallipoli
Dreams of freedom turned to dust'
Eventually Mistral and Mantle manage to take engage the enemy in close range combat and sometimes hand to hand.
'Hell is waiting where the ocean meets the sand
Cliffs of burden
Where the soldiers rushed into a certain death
At the shoreline
Blood of heroes stains the land
Light a candle
One for each of them who fought and died in vain
There is no enemy
There is no victory
Only boys who lost their lives in the sand
Young men were sacrificed
Their names are carved in stone and kept alive
And forever we will honour the memory of them
And they knew they would die'
A temporary ceasefire was held so they may bury their dead.
'Gallipoli
Left their letters in the sand
Such waste of life
Gallipoli
Dreams of freedom turned to dust
how many wasted lives
How many dreams did fade away
Broken promises
They won't be coming home
Oh mothers wipe your tears
Your sons will rest a million years
Found their peace at last
As foe turned to friend
And forgive
And they knew they would die
Gallipoli
Left their letters in the sand
Such waste of life
Gallipoli
Dreams of freedom turned to dust'
The Invasion of Vacuo was a failure and it cost the lives of manh brave soldiers who died on the bay shores.
Durning the Vale Theater, Mistral began their assault on Fort Jola and this was later known in history as the attack of the dead men.
(Last Dying Breath)
'War begun, the kaiser has come
Day or night, the shells keep falling
Overrun, but never outdone
Street to street, denying defeat
Soldiers of the serbian army
keep your heads held high
Overrun, you fall one by one
For Belgrade and the Fatherland'
Mistral fired a strange chemical into fort.
'Soldiers, heroes, die for your land
Your lives are gone, erased by your command
Until your last dying breath
until your last dying breath'
The troops inside of the fort react to the chemicals and try to avoid it.
'Overrun, you're under the gun
Day or night, the shells kept falling
Sound the drum, the great war has come
Show no fear, the ending is near
A final charge, to face the fire
falling one by one
Major calls, the white city falls
Belgrade's streets are stained by blood'
Vale troops grab their cloth and wrap it around their mouths to stop them from breathing anymore of the chemicals.
'Soldiers, heroes, die for your land
Your lives are gone, erased by your command
Until your last dying breath
until your last dying breath'
The doors open as the Vale troops rush out and charge at Mistral troops who began an retreat.
'In haste, our lives are erased
Forward to glory for king and country
Until your last dying breath'
Mistral troops were drove back.
'Defend the honour of Belgrade
Forward to glory, to face your fate at last'
