The North PacificBoard

Dark clouds had gathered over the Capital City of St.Constantine, its people went about their daily lives as they did any other, yet today they were dressed differently. It's people walked around dressed in black, their expressions a mixture of sadness and anger as they went about, weather to work, to the shops or to meet a friend, today these people were different. This was a City in mourning, a city that would not be the same for some time. Flowers lined the sides of the streets, their bright colours contrasting against the sea of black, a reminder of the loss the city had suffered.

High above, at the Imperial Palace on the hill overlooking the City of St.Constantine an emergency meeting had been called by the Emperor. The flag of the Empire was flown halfway down on all the flag poles around the Palace and its estate. Security had been increased in response to the terror attack in the market to ensure the protection of the Emperor. Within the Palace itself life went on as normal, the cleaners cleaned, the chefs cooked and the guards stood watch. Deep inside the Palace was a spacious room, its pale walls were decorated by paintings and sculptures and paintings of monarchs and events from long ago. These surrounded the large Mahogany table positioned in the centre of the room. Around the table sat leaders from all branches of the armed forces, the prime minister and at the head of the table sat Emperor Maximus Britannia.

Maximus was lent forward over the table, his metallic hands were crossed with one another as he rested his chin upon them, his mind deep in thought. The others around the table kept the focus of their attention upon the Emperor as they waited for him to begin the meeting. After a few minutes Maximus sat up in his chair "You all know why your here" he slowly began "we have experienced a dreadful terror attack that has claimed the lives of over 100 of our people. Whats more.. this attack has been endorsed by the Government of United confederate states and from what i see is a direct attack upon our nation" Maximus explained to them, each word fighting through his lips and becoming more aggressive than the last "I have called you all here to give me council on how we should progress in light what we now know."

Prime Minister Cromwell quickly stood up once Maximus had finished talking "My Lord. I am angry just like all of you, but we should look to heal from this tragedy, not blame another nation. Peace will bring us prosperity, prosperity will make us stronger than ever before and war would mean we would have to face the entire cold alliance, a long and tiring process"
*Bang*Bang*
The Generals of the Armed forces banged their fists down on the table, silencing the Prime minister.
"My Emperor, with all respect to the Prime minister, this was an attack upon our nation by a foreign government. IT WAS AN ACT OF WAR! and so we should treat it as such. Give us one week and a suitable amount of reserve will be ready soon for military action and a naval invasion could be almost ready.."

The Prime minister and the Generals argued back and forth for hours on end, all the while the Emperor listened and contemplated his options. Peace garenteed the future whilst War meant Brittania could grow stronger than it could if at peace. Eventually when both parties were virtually at each others throats the Emperor rose from his seat.

"I have decided, Generals you shall have 2 weeks to prepare, keep our preparations as much a secret as you can, not a word of this leaves this room you understand." The Generals nodded before swiftly leaving the room to make preparations for war. Maximus then turned to Cromwell "You have served me faithfully for many years, i trust you will do so again. When war begins you will rally the people and before then you shall remain silent......"

Across Brittania reservists were being called up, as was usual every year for them to have an extended period of retraining for in the event of a conflict they would be ready. The Brittanian naval presence around all its territories was also increased with ships previously planned to be scrapped instead being used to patrol. The Airforce had been prepared to go into a state of full alert the second that war would break out.

After the 2 week preparation time limit was up, dozens of submarines were patrolling the oceans, looking for any sign of possible enemies. Aswell there were several naval forces which had set out from the Brittanian mainland with the plan to meet up at sea to launch an invasion in South Osea, protecting a large invasion force. In the skies above over a thousand fighters and bombers had set off from airfields to assist in the attack. When the force had reached the planned position that would allow a quick invasion, the Emperor issued the declaration of war.

Upon the hearing of the British declaration of war, the Sultan announced the beginning of “a great conflict that will be ended before autumn.” He was sure that no single nation could stand again the alliance, but nonetheless decided to play his cards conservatively. The Guided missile frigate Gjarpër lead a task force of seven other ships into the Itallitopian Strait, with intention of intercepting any British ships that try to enter. However, the Air Force was stretched thin, due to the ongoing war with Yugobatania. Entering another war was also viewed by some in the Sultanate as advantageous because it gave rise to new opportunities for independence, especially the Lacoy tribe of the northern regions, who have been growing restless over the last two decades... Meanwhile, the army was still focused primarily on the Yugobatanian front, but new recruits were sent to operate shore batteries in case of naval invasion.

The sea was gripping the ship and rocking it ever so slightly left to right. The ship was the Pride of the Fleet, and the flagship of the taskforce, HHS Sanctus Victoria. Captain Vincent Tomas was the captain of the boat, the lighting was distorted as rain pattered on the windows of the bridge. "Radar reports from HHS Implacable suggest that potential hostile forces are currently not in the sky. ETA is roughly 6 hours, fuel and supplies will be given to us as we pass the Caldrac Sector. That is all captain" the officer reported, returning to the radio to continue contact with the other ships. Vincent knew that Naval High Command was slightly stretched, however, the taskforce would suffice. Thunder could be heard from the bridge, flashes of lightning could be seen from a distance. However, he was not scared, why should he? He was inside the bridge of a dreadnought. However, the silence apart from a few ships was concerning. They were too busy doing other things he presumed. "Send an officer to me if we receive news, either from the homeland or the remainder of the fleet. I'm retiring to my quarters" Vincent declared, shattering the silence that none of the officers were willing to break except with the the clicking of buttons or pings of radar and sonar. He walked to his quarters, along the wet deck of the ship. The odd sailor or officer passed, but apart from that, the outside of the ship was empty. He grabbed his key and unlocked the door, looking out of the window. He could see the distinctive shapes of cruisers and a battleship, and the outline of a carrier. He pulled the curtains over the window, switched off the light and turned in for the night. Tomorrow would be a restless day for a mostly peaceful mission, however, it could easily change...