“Fourteen Lieplatzan Junta officials were reportedly executed by firing squad by the Military Government of East Lieplatz. General Oswald Kluge has yet to make statements on the matter, but it is assumed that the Federal Army and the new West Lieplatzan Administration are ‘liquidating’ any link of the former Lieplatzan Junta to the Federal Republic in an effort to clean the name from their former ally’s atrocities.”

- ROCN News

+++

United Confederation of Pez

Brewich

Amelie sighed. The High Commissioner of the Mandate of Nations, Hase Chiyu, had just finished her opening speech. Many leaders of the ‘Civilized World’ already left the Conference yesterday, after the increasing threat of a CFN attack. However, Amelie and most of the leaders of important nations remained firm inside Pez. Quite frankly, to flee would be a great stain on their international confidence.

“I reiterate that the Mandate of Nations stands together, regardless of the threat that these rogue states present to us!” The High Commissioner declared over the microphones. “Already, multiple nations have signed the brewing resolution for this. A resolution to finally formalize the response of the civilized world against the barbarity of this so-called ‘revolution’. I hope then that today will be a productive one, and that all of us will see reason and see the right path to trek in these troubling times. Thank you all for being here.”

Claps from the many delegates roared through the chamber as the High Commissioner left the podium. It seemed that contrary to the last time that Amelie visited Pez and the MN General Assembly, now, the situation between the remaining members had significantly improved.

I suppose that’s what happens when you’re all threatened. As she expected, petty bickering would take a backseat for a while when the blue menace, now the unofficial umbrella term for the revolutionary republics due to the blue banner of the Coalition of Free Nations, was truly right in front of them. Unity only happens when there is a common threat.

However, the Mandate of Nations General Assembly had a special guest today. He was one of those representatives from the Coalition of Free Nations. Out of request, they were finally allowed inside the chambers of the General Assembly to let them speak. If for nothing else, this was supposed to be a PR stunt for the Mandate of Nations to officially show the world the barbarity of these men.

This time, however, it was simply Mr. Pascual Koch who marched up the podium, as it seemed that the other CFN representatives were not invited to speak themselves. The announcer named him as a special guest, and that he had around ten minutes to make their case in front of the Mandate of Nations. Amelie imagined that the MN leadership organized this to intimidate these men, especially him, but she held herself from making any comments as she watched.

He didn’t seem scared. Quite frankly, these people came to Pez with not a single security team, nor a single weapon on them. Of course, she seriously doubted that there were no secret agents meandering around to escort them, but…these men really had quite the guts. To come into the enemy’s lair itself, unarmed, and with the intention to speak ill with them…

It was as if these four, especially Mr. Koch were dancing with death itself.

At the very least, it’s nice that nothing happened to them. Again, if this was a PR stunt for the CFN to make it look as if they were open to talks and that they had the balls to pull out something as risky as this for peace, it was also a PR stunt for her and the MN to show the world that they were willing to listen. And most importantly, they would not immediately resort to barbaric violence, as the “benevolent” matriarchs that they were.

Of course, that lasted about as long until the CFN delegate reached for the microphones, and the sounds of disapproval from the Mandate of Nations boomed through the chamber.

“This is shameful,” Amelie said.

“Can’t do anything about it. I expected it, to be honest.”

“Well, you all can boo me all you want,” Mr. Koch said on the podium. “I shall speak regardless. I am the Head of External Affairs of the Coalition of Free Nations, Pascual Koch. You can remember my name if you would like, or not. Not that it truly matters. I stand here not expecting respect, nor do I stand here to speak eloquently as I sing praises to all of you, as all of you high folks would like. For I am not a man born of high standing. Nor have I tasted quite a life such as that. I am of the common man, of the generation you all damned. Representing them up here for once. Why? Because you are all shocked by our actions. You are all here, panicking, and scared, yet making threats. Making preparations. Talking. Talking about how you would deal with us, all while hiding that fear behind your eyes.”

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

The chamber fell silent. Amelie supposed the man had a point in his words. Truthfully, all the officials she had talked to were here because of one thing. Fear. Fear of the Coalition of Free Nations. The name may be quite ridiculous for a group of some extremely flawed revolutionary “democracies”, juntas, and dictatorial republics, but it still represented a threat so credibly, that no woman of today would be able to deny that a disaster was upon them.

The clock had already been ticking since the shots fired during the great economic crisis of 2024. Then, the first rumbles of tank threads during the first coups. Then, the brief but still decisive war between Orland and Larissa, leading to the violent collapse of the two global superpowers (even if Amelie’s Orland was still technically clinging to her status regardless of the war in her home), and now…the great standoff between the new rogue states produced by the 2024 revolutionary wave and the rest of the world.

Now, all of these rogue states, nominally isolated, unrecognized, and treated with searing hostility by the “legitimate” member states of the Mandate of Nations, had united into one alliance. A power block that they could not simply choose not to recognize. Well, Amelie and her fellow peers would never truly officially recognize them…that would set a bad precedent…

But they now had to acknowledge their threat.

Beyond acknowledgment, she was fighting them already. Almost all of the seven great powers, Orland, Gallia, Lorathia, Larissa, and Hebei, were fighting a CFN member state already, with only the Asanai Empire remaining out of it, and Asturia itself already fully devoured by the revolution. The world was at war, the Great Powers were at war. Many of the second-rate powers such as Lombardia, Lieplatz, and Poznek had already been dragged into it, and more soon would follow.

What more of the petty Kingdoms and independent Principalities now stared at the CFN war machine without anything to defend themselves with? They were now all staring at a bloody mess that was coming for them, whether they were knee-deep in the conflict or sitting on the sidelines. Indeed he was right.

They were all here because they were afraid of them.

“And while I would like to gloat at the fact that we…oh, your lowly drones, have somehow managed to strike terror into your pristine hearts after three centuries, ultimately, I am not here to make the case for men. Quite frankly, it bores me to lament all day about our circumstances. Quite frankly, hostility against women is not something any of us wants, as shown by President Rimpler’s valiant intervention against Lieplatz. No, I am not here for that. I am here to speak to those still uninvolved in this conflict. What? Would you all fall for the lies of the Great Powers? That you have to step up and fight for the global order that kept you down? I ask you? Do you want to send another generation of your cheap workforce to an unprofitable venture? Oh, yes, while it is indeed quite the scathing term for my kind, well, I’ll use it anyway, for it is the truth. Thus I ask you again, do you want to send them into a pointless war?”

“Shut up!” Someone shouted from the chambers. She was a representative from the Kingdom of Constania, one of the Order Pact countries in West Vaeyox fighting against the Confederacy’s ‘revolutionary liberations’. “You pigs are invading my homeland! And you’re an Orlishman! Who are you to speak about peace? Everyone knows what you people are! Merchants of death!”

Amelie sighed. Ah, that stereotype of the classic Orlishmen for people outside of Orland’s sphere. Orland’s defense megacorporations, being the premier producers of high to low-tech weapons, and a constant innovator of every terrifying sight on the battlefield, of course, would craft that reputation. Especially when it was mostly Orlishmen manning these entities. And it was they who also used what they produced in Orland’s wars. Thus, to an average Order Pact citizen, if Orlishwomen were overly pampered vampires drinking the sweet juice of Orland’s global hegemony, Orlishmen were their orcish blacksmiths, soldiers, and minions that they would sweetly whisper to in order to ruin some small country who dared cross Orland’s interests.

It seemed however that Mr. Koch chose to ignore the raving Constanian representative.

“Now if the answer to that is yes, then I am here to warn you, that the Coalition of Free Nations stands for the collective defense of the interests, sovereignty, and rights of the new free nations born out of the ashes of our revolutions. I want you to know that while you may laugh at us, or choose to not trade nor recognize us, all while treating us with derision, we have teeth. And we will use those teeth to bite back. Strike us down, and we will strike back, united. As one. We have lit the torch of a new era for this world, and we will defend that torch to the bitter end. Even if we are against the rest of the world. Even if the heavens itself struck us down. Thus, I am here, speaking as both hawk and dove. Choose war, and I have stated what we will do. Choose peace, and you have nothing but our thanks. Regardless, the Coalition of Free Nations will stand tall. Defeat or triumph. Death or life. War or peace. We are here, and we won’t be gone until all is ashes.”

The man gave a brief nod as he stepped off the podium, all as the sounds of people speaking to each other boomed throughout the chamber. Letting him speak his side might not be quite the brightest of ideas, as that…yeah, that was broadcasted on international news, judging by the flashing cameras everywhere, but, at the very least, the world heard what the CFN was like. The fact that he threatened everyone upstage should not paint the brightest of pictures for the majority of the world that already disliked the CFN.

Still…Amelie imagined that for the CFN supporters, his speech would be another rallying cry. Another propaganda piece for these rogue states to capitalize on.

Amelie looked at Minister Adelaide. Strangely, she had been silent since the man left.

“Hey, Adelaide,” Amelie tried, and Adelaide turned to her. “What’s the matter?”

“He said it himself,” the Foreign Minister muttered. “We won’t go until all is ashes….”

“Last stand,” Amelie said. “They’d die burning down everything that wronged them is burned with them. Just like Lieplatz.”

“Then why…at this point…I feel as if we’re walking on a path that may be the end of humanity,” she shook her head. “What if his words were true? Escalate further…and—”

“It’ll happen regardless of our actions here,” Amelie said. “We already considered that. What we can do now is to drag them down before they drag us into ashes with them. And a united effort is the first step to that.”