A/N: Double chapter today, I hope you enjoy!
Nobody Here: Good ideas all around. Definitely going to put these to use!
Super Comrade: At this point, international relations are going to be more private and economics related than Governments wanting to interact with Paradis.
Sugoijack9: Damn bro, but who asked?
Music:
1. The Warriors (Levi & the Scouts vs Jaw Titan Theme)
2. Ashes on the Fire
Petropigi, April 28th
Stella smacked a newspaper down in front of a freshly awakened Stella. "Have you seen the news?"
"I just got up…" Evangelica complained, but she picked up the newspaper anyway and immediately paled.
"Is it true?" Stella asked, "The army has no idea what to think. I don't know what to think."
"..." Evangelica fell silent, catatonic, when she first told her father about the memories, he had implored her not to tell anyone about what had occurred. Evangelica sighed,
"Yes." She answered
"So the Tyburs essentially lied to everybody about Paradis, do you know how that looks for Marley?" Stella asks, "How it looks for you?"
"Morning," Pieck waved, "Is it a bad time?"
"No, it's perfect." Stella said, "Other than the fact that modern history has essentially gone out the window, Marley is now going to face a civil crisis, Hizuru has essentially told Marley and the Intercontenentia to go fuck themselves without actually saying anything, oh and Paradis has just dropped the biggest bombshell on the world ever."
"I just caught it on the news." Zeke entered the room, "An official alliance between Hizuru and Paradis is worrying for sure."
Evangelica whirled around rapidly in a what-the-fuck-is-going-on-I-just-woke-up-please-help-me.
"They mentioned you alot as well, Warchief. Apparently, your reported your own parents to the PSA which got you a straight ticket to warrior-hood."
"Warchief…is that true?" Pieck asked solemnly,
Zeke poured himself some coffee, "Yes, it is."
"How can you say that like it isn't a big deal?!" Evangelica asked, "I can't believe you hid something like that!"
"I wasn't hiding it. It's just that no one asked, so I wasn't inclined to mention it. And I never saw it as relevant to our operations." Zeke shrugged, "My father and mother were Restorationists leaders who were hellbent on restoring an Empire that undoubtedly would've made things worse for the world, continuing an endless cycle of hatred and bloodshed." He took a sip of his coffee
'Still, I'm more worried about the alliance between Hizuru and Paradis. In fact, since Paradis came into contact with them, they haven't gotten in contact with me once. Have they decided to cut out the middleman?' Zeke answered his own question,
"This is a public disaster, Chancellor!" One member of the party roared, "Marley is in chaos! And now we have a hostile nation on our borders."
"Well…" William Heimdall rubbed his hands together, he was desperately trying to come up with something to say. The truth be told, he was just as lost as the rest of them. Marley's entire history of being the nation of heroes that defeated the Eldian Empire had just been revealed as a massive sham.
The only semi-good thing about it was that while Marley may have been alienated from the world, they weren't as eager to approach Paradis either. After all, you didn't solve one hundred years of hatred in a day.
"We should institute a news blackout on the Internment Zones." A more levelheaded party councilman suggested. "We can still mitigate the damage internally."
"That should be our first course of action." A blond haired councilman stood,
"Lord Tybur! You owe us an explanation!" One councilman stood, much to the agreement of his peers.
"It is exactly as you heard. The Tybur Family hid this secret to maintain world peace. No more, no less. There is nothing to explain that hasn't already been told." Wilhelm Tybur told them all, his confidence and commanding presence made the unruly crowd of nobles fall silent.
"Secondly, we have underestimated Paradis for far too long. Another five ships have disappeared, and that has not been mentioned in this council once."
"More importantly, we have overestimated our own capabilities. Marley is years behind the rest of the world, yet Paradis is leaping forward by leaps and bounds. When we first received intelligence on the Island, we received word that their society was technologically equivalent to a century ago, now they're nearly on par with most modern superpowers."
The councilmen gasped, "Impossible! They'd have to be building infrastructure overnight!"
"And that's what they are doing. Analysts believe they've been using the powers of the Founding Titan to construct their nations infrastructure. This means a factory can be built in barely a week, roads can be paved in days." Wilhelm paused, allowing the reality of their situation to sink in.
"At this rate, Paradis is in a position to not only rival-"
- but surpass Marley." Gröer sat down, concluding his report.
"Is this all the PSA can obtain on the Island?" Calvi asked,
"Their operatives are well trained. I've lost three men already." Gröer explained, "And we haven't even gotten close to discovering their military capabilities."
"It's likely their army is still small. No more than fifty thousand men at most." Magath explained,
"What about our internal situation?" Hermann asked,
"Thankfully, the information has not been disseminated through the Internment Zones, otherwise we would not be here right now, and Marley would likely be in civil war. Nonetheless, I heard the Marleyan Council is considering my plan for an information blackout." Gröer told the gathering.
Calvi nodded, "We need to clean up this mess in the Mid-East, and quickly."
"Warchief handled that…a little too casually for my liking." Stella mentioned to Evangelica,
"Yeah, there's a lot more to that story that the Paradisians didn't mention." Evangelica said,
"Speaking of not mentioning, why? Why keep such a thing a secret all these years?" Stella asked,
Evangelica sighed, "When I first received my Titan, I considered telling you guys. But I went to my father first, who had already heard the story from his father, and his father before him, and he told me that in order to protect the peace of the world…" Evangelica sighed, "Sometimes I think it might've been better to tell people. Maybe we wouldn't be in this mess then."
"Oh…" Stella fell silent, and Evangelica stared off, with a distant look in her eyes.
"Ambros…" Evangelica whispered,
Western Union Capital,
"Marley is imploding at this news, sir." A Union senator explained to his president.
"Good, let's add some pressure." President Dorian said, "As of now, we are launching an embargo on Marley."
"Sir?"
"Paradis has given us a delightful opportunity. By opening their ports, we can circumvent Marley's hold on shipping, which prevented us from ever taking any direct action."
"But sir…they're Eldians." The senator insisted,
"So? We've been dealing with the Marleyan Empire for years, we trade out one evil for a lesser evil." Dorian explained,
"Will they even consider opening their ports for us?" The senator asked the second question on his mind,
"They will have no choice, even Paradis must be aware of our economic value, they won't ignore it over such a trifling issue. After all, Ikalha still trades with us despite their people being actively involved in Internments here."
Internments, the official name for their slave trade, the slaves were offically refered to as 'Interns' or 'Interners', a gross misuse of the word.
"Speaking of - have you heard? Paradis is encouraging the deportation of Eldians to their island." The senator told him.
Dorian paused, "Seriously?"
The senator nodded, "They approached the Britannians about it first, and it didn't take long for word to disseminate throughout the international community. The Britannians - of course - are more than happy to accept the offer. And many of the Northern nations such as the Argenians and Portazil are planning to do the same."
"I wish we could do the same, but if we do that then we'll lose a good portion of our workforce. And the North won't be happy about that." Dorian sighed, now he knew how his predecessors felt balancing the dangerous balance between North and South.
Kavalan, June 1st
As with all things, news slowly died down, and eventually Marley refocused on the war at hand.
With their crushing defeat at Petropigi, the Mid-East Alliance was now on the defensive, especially in Ecarht, where their advances were made.
With more and more Marleyan Infantry arriving by the day, a new army had been formed, the 11th Assault Army whose objective was to drive into the Olturka Sultanate and knock them out of the war.
From Kavalan, the Western Fleet was finally preparing to set sail in the first decisive naval battle of the war. Led by the Gray Ogre Admiral John Snell, the entire fleet would assault the fortified Island of Buran, which served as both a key naval and air base for the Mid-East Allied Forces and a major obstacle for Marleyan supply lines.
"Listen up Warriors." Magath explained, "Once the navy has cleared out the Island fortifications, the Air Corps will drop you on their fortifications, we can't go in until those heavy guns have been cleared out."
"Jawohl, Warchief!" The Warrior Unit saluted.
Off the Coast of Buran - M.N.S Brecher
"Sir, the Vanguard Battlegroup has located the enemy. They're camped out around the island, where they can be supported by their coastal guns. As expected." A lieutenant came up to the gray haired man.
If one was to be honest, John Snell fit more the appearance of a librarian than a soldier. A long gray beard turning white, and a cane in his right hand, he was nonetheless a commanding presence.
"They expect us to charge head on, we won't give them that satisfaction." Snell said, "Spread out along the East and West, they expect a frontal assault around Lamaca, we will flank them and take out the coastal guns from behind the fleet."
Above them, a single Mid-East SA.46 flew above their fleet.
"(Marleyan Fleet spotted, they appear to be splitting off. Coordinates, 34, 33.)"
"(Good work, Ustegmen. Return to base.)"
"(Copy that.)"
Mid-East Battleship - O.R.S. Istanbul
A young man in Admiral's regalia sat on his chair, deep in thought. "(Why would the Marleyan Fleet attempt to break off, Or-Admiral Haselin?)" One adjutant asked.
"(Good question. They're not.)" He told the man, "(We're fighting against the Gray Ogre here. He's trying to encircle our fleet and take out the coastal guns from behind.)"
"(But that would put them right in the path of our air forces!)" The lieutenant noted,
"(Never interrupt your enemy while they're making a mistake. Their poor intelligence will be their downfall.)" The man grinned, at a mere twenty four years old, and Haselin Hazel was already an Or-Admiral in the Olturka Navy, and for good reason.
You see, for all the intelligence in his plan, John Snell - or rather, the Marleyan Military as a whole - made a crucial mistake. For all the 'reconnaissance' that had occurred in the past weeks, they had little information on the Olturka air forces in the region, and to add salt to the wound, the Navy outright disregarded their importance, choosing to go ahead with the operation.
This would prove fatal, and Haselin knew it.
1. "(Prepare to launch!)" A flight officer shouted, various mechanics scrambled around, loading torpedoes into TBU-849s.
"(We've spotted the Marleyan Fleet at coordinates 34.66, 33.75!)" An officer shouted, "(Intercept and destroy! Target their battleships!)"
The group of TBU.45s and AVU.51s slowly pulled off from the airfield, and in a singular coordinated maneuver banked simultaneously and headed out for sea.
Admiral Snell couldn't help the bad feeling he had about this entire set up. Everything felt…too quiet right now.
'I suppose they haven't caught on to us yet…' Snell shrugged 'All the more beneficial for-'
"Enemy spotted…aircraft sir!" A soldier shouted,
"What?!" Snell whirled around and ran to the window, sure enough, on the horizon several dozen aircraft were headed straight for them.
"S-shoot them! Shoot them!" Snell shouted, visibly panicked now.
1- The Marleyan navy could only watch as doom came from above. Several grabbed carbines and tried to score a few hits, only to be retaliated against with torpedoes, bombs, and machine guns.
A TBU lowered itself to torpedo-dropping altitude, and released it's torpedo before pulling off. It directly impacted the Brecher, causing the ship to rock.
Another TBU dropped a 112-pound bomb down the smoke stack of the Z09, causing explosions to ripple through its hull and tear it apart from the inside.
An AVU fighter strafed the deck of a Marleyan heavy cruiser, cutting apart the unlucky crewmembers who happened to be on it.
"(One destroyer destroyed, a cruiser damaged, and a battleship damaged.)" A pilot noted,
"(Not nearly enough! Press the attack! Assault in groups and destroy the Marleyans!)" Their flight leader shouted, diving down on the Marleyan Krischer battleship, he scored a direct hit on it's bridge with a trio of 30-pound bombs, the ship began to list wildly with no one at the helm before it crashed into the damaged heavy cruiser, the two ships went up in a brilliant explosion as their ammo storages exploded.
A destroyer stood no chance as a bomb landed directly on its loaded torpedo tubes, essentially snapping the ship in two. While the first destroyer eventually succumbed to it's damages and began to sink.
2. "(The air group reports a decisive victory!)" The radioman cheered
Haselin stood, "(Full speed ahead, destroy the Marleyan fleet!)"
"(Yes sir!)"
"(All guns loaded!)" An Olturka crewman shouted, the crew of the Istanbul rushed around in an orderly chaos.
"(Enemy distance - twelve miles!)" A gunner shouted
"(Firing angle - 14° degrees!)"
"(Raise by 2° degrees!)" Their gunnery officer ordered
"(Yes sir!)"
"(Open fire!)"
All at once, all the battleships of the Olturka Navy opened fire.
2- Without warning, shells began raining down on the Marleyan fleet. The vanguard battlegroup - already battered from earlier assaults - was the first to take the blow. Two shells directly impacted the hull of its only battleship before an explosion broke the ship in two.
The lead battlegroup with the Krischer and Western Fleet flagship Brecher was assaulted as well. Another heavy cruiser was ripped apart by shells from none other than Istanbul itself.
Meanwhile, the portion of the fleet to the flank from the east of Buran were hit by fast-moving Olturka destroyers, who unleashed a salvo of torpedoes before darting away, taking down several destroyers and cruisers.
All the while, TBUs darted between the fleets, striking swiftly at the Marleyans before darting back to their bases to refuel and rearm. It was not long before John Snell - the reputed Gray Ogre of Marley - was forced to call the retreat.
Excerpt from c.915 textbook "Embers in the Ashes - the forgotten pre-war of 850 to 854"
The first battle of Buran was a disaster for the Marleyans, which would set a trend for the Marleyan navy throughout the war. The power of the Mid-East aerial forces was proven once again as ship after ship was destroyed. However, the Mid-East victory would be short lived, as the Warrior Unit would swiftly retaliate against the exhausted Mid-East air forces, catching their air units off guard and destroying them while landed.
First Battle of Buran
Combatants: The Marleyan Empire
Marleyan Western Fleet
7 Battleships
14 Heavy Cruisers
21 Light Cruisers
28 Destroyers
Combatants: The Mid-East Alliance
Olturka Royal Navy
5 Battleships
5 Heavy Cruisers
10 Light Cruisers
15 destroyers
Olturka Air Force:
40 TBU-849 Torpedo Bombers
40 AVU.51 Fighters
Leaders:
Leaders: Marleyan Empire
Admiral John Snell
Leaders: The Mid-East Alliance
Or-Admiral Haselin Hazel
Casualties:
Casualties: Marleyan Empire
2 Battleships destroyed
4 Battleship damaged
3 Heavy Cruisers destroyed
4 Heavy Cruisers damaged
4 Light Cruisers Damaged
5 Destroyers destroyed
6 Destroyers damaged
Casualties: Mid-East Alliance
2 Destroyers damaged
2 AVU.51 Fighters damaged
1 TBU-854 destroyed
June 3rd, 854
'No…way…' Gabi clutched the newspaper.
MARLEY FORCED TO RETREAT AT BURAN
On June 1st, 854 the Marleyan Navy, despite inflicting heavy casualties, was forced to retreat at the island of Buran…
"I can't believe it." Falco said, "Our navy…"
"Are a bunch of incompetent bastards." Fine snarled, "Of course we lost, I heard that Mid-East ships outrange ours by three miles."
"No way! That big of a difference?" Falco said incredulously,
"My dad states Marley relies too much on the Warrior Unit, and that the other nations are beginning to surpass us in military technology."
Johanna sighed, so much seemed to be changing. From her life in Pokolova, to her joining the Warrior Unit.
"It doesn't matter." Gabi called at them, and Fine turned to her, "We'll beat the Mid-Easterners, and show them why Marley is the best. I'm sure of it."
"Yeah. Maybe, but at what cost?" Fine muttered, and Johanna couldn't help but agree with her. One thing she'd noticed about the Warrior candidates were that they were horribly naive of the way Eldians really lived. Liberio was in a class all of its own when it came to Eldian living standards. Particularly because it was the home of Marley's Warrior Unit.
Vienza
"The Western Union has officially declared an embargo after the Battle of Buran. All shipping and trade has been banned. Hizuru has similarly banned manufactured good exports to our nation." The Marleyan economics minister reported.
"They're committing economic suicide. This will raise shipping costs by hundreds to thousands of dollars." One councilman insisted but the Minister shook his head.
"This is a calculated move, we believe…they will be using Paradisian ports to keep the costs low." The minister reluctantly admitted,
"...So Paradis has poached them from us?" Heimdall asked,
"I believe this is more on the W.U's part than that of Paradis's." Wilhelm interjected, "Paradis has officially opened their ports to world trade as long as the nations abide by Eldian laws. The WU is just capitalizing on that."
"We should invade that damn island and force them to trade with us again!" One councilman shouted,
"And risk the Founder's wrath?!" Another countered,
"For now-" Wilhelm stood, and the room fell silent to listen, "We should watch, and focus on the enemy ahead of us, the Mid-East Alliance. More funding should go to modernizing our army, rather than increasing their pay."
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