"A nation is great not by its size alone. It is the will, the cohesion, the stamina, the discipline of its people and the quality of their leaders which ensure it an honourable place in history."
-Lee Kuan Yew
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Antonio Luna Base, Qua-Toyne Principality
February 18, 1640
"Very well, shall we begin?"
Remille and the Parpaldia delegation began by opening the pamphlets that were neatly arranged on the table in front of them as Prime Minister Sue Hui began speaking. She began telling the story of what had transpired before, during, and after the transfer and the subsequent war with Louria.
The expressions from the delegation ranged from amusement to seriousness. Some were so close to either bursting into laughter or exploding into anger at what they perceive was a joke meant to humiliate the Empire. But Remille glared at anyone she felt was about go out of line, her face of intimidation instils fear in those who have worked with her in the past.
...
One by one, members of the Parpaldia delegation were closing the pamphlets that were given to them. The pamphlets were a brief history of USEA, as well as general knowledge such as population and military size. Remille cleared her throat before speaking after Sue Hui finished.
"That is a very...interesting tale Prime Minister, but one I am inclined to believe after what I have seen. I will have to relay what you have said back to the emperor in Esthirant, but I believe that our two nations can work together to ensure lasting peace in this part of the world. After all, we have both defeated a reprehensible enemy that was Louria. Surely we can find more common ground."
As Prime Minister Sue Hui nodded in agreement, an army officer from the Parpaldia Empire, part of the diplomatic delegation, spoke to bring up an issue that was relayed from Supreme Commander Arde before they made the journey to Rodenius. After a nod of approval from Remille, he began speaking.
"And what is USEA's plan for the continent of Rodenius. Based on the size and scale of this base it seems you plan to make your presence heard here."
Prime Minister Sue Hui turned to her Minister of Defence, Arief, and motioned him to begin his explanation. Arief, with a dignified voice began laying out the long-term plans USEA had planned for the continent.
"During the war against Louria, there was a fear that they might one day rebuild their armies and begin a second invasion. As a result, the Prime Minister of Qua-Toyne, Kanata, had approached our government to request for a defence treaty. This treaty was further expanded when we met with King Quila. The treaty stipulates that an attack on either one of our three countries would be considered an attack on all, and all signatories are obliged to provide support. That is why we have started to permanently station troops in Qua-Toyne and Quila, it not only serves as a symbol of our commitment to the defence of our newfound allies but also one of deterrence. But of course, these plans were drawn up when Louria could still be considered a threat in the future, with them gone and the Parpaldia Empire occupying the former Lourian nation, anything is on the table really."
Which is a lie. The only reason why USEA agreed to this defence treaty in the first place was because the Lourian prisoners squealed and talked about how Parpaldia was the one that trained and armed them years ago to invade Qua-Toyne and Quila. This treaty is meant to deter Parpaldia, not Louria.
The Parpaldia Army Officer nodded, satisfied with the answer given to him. Sue Hui again smiled to Remille before speaking.
"I believe we can form a productive relationship between our two nations. We had always prided ourselves of being a nation most people can trade with, regardless of ideological and cultural differences."
Remille looked back at the Prime Minister with optimism in her eyes, believing this was the outcome she had longed for two years ago. The outcome where she could avert disaster not only for herself but for Parpaldia as a whole.
With a sincere smile that was inconceivable two years ago, along with a stoic voice, she agreed to formally open relations between USEA and Parpaldia on behalf of the latter.
....
Esthirant, Parpaldia Empire
February 19, 1640
The afternoon sun hangs above the beating heart of the Parpaldia Empire. Within a grandiose palace that sat in the upper quarters of the city, a man in his late 20s with silver hair, dressed in his red royal garments meant to represent the Empire, was standing at his balcony, gazing at the palace's garden that was full of colourful flowers.
After taking a whiff of fresh air, he turns around and proceeds to the dining hall. As he took a seat, he picks up a cup of tea that was prepared for him and takes a sip. As he places the cup down on the table, he sees the doors across from him open. Coming through the doorway was a man in his mid-30s with hair that barely reached his shoulders. This man gave a bow of respect before the seated man spoke.
"Inos, I am assuming this is an update from Madame Remille, yes?"
The long-haired man, now identified as Inos, who was the Director of the Southern Strategy Office of the Civil Strategy Department of the National Strategy Bureau lifted his head to respond.
"Yes, your majesty. Madame Remille's delegation had informed us that their meeting with this nation called 'USEA' occurred yesterday. They mentioned that USEA is far from a barbarian country and that they are quite receptive to wanting to forge strong commercial ties with ours."
Inos stopped speaking, but the man that was seated, Emperor Ludius, stared directly into Inos' eyes, suspecting that what he said was only part of the story. Under the gaze of suspicion from the Emperor, Inos reluctantly continued.
"Madame Remille has also emphasized that this USEA, is I quote, 'just as she expected'. Their military so far based on her observations, comprise of repeating muskets, iron elephants with explosive magic and steel wyverns capable of flying at incredible speeds. In short, they not only outmatch us, but also the Holy Milishial Empire."
Ludius takes another sip from his cup of tea. He ponders for a few minutes as he kept eye contact with Inos.
"Noted. Anyways, what are their current plans? USEA and Remille that is."
"USEA has made it clear that they would permanently house troops on Rodenius as they have a defence treaty with the Qua-Toyne principality and the Kingdom of Quila. As for Madame Remille, Madame Remille says she and the delegation were invited for a tour in the USEAN capital called Singapore for 3 days and 2 nights. She has requested for your blessings to proceed with the tour."
Ludius looks to the glass table in front of him. Although his heart felt like something was wrong about the state visit, he couldn't help but shake the feeling that the danger isn't really towards Remille but rather to the Parpaldia Empire as a whole. He felt as though there were daggers pointed towards his back and it was not the USEANs who will plunge it. He made a difficult decision with his inner thoughts.
"I will allow it. She and the rest of the delegation have my blessings to conduct this state tour. But do inform them to gather as much information as possible for our own use. Also be sure to inform them that diplomats from Mu and the Holy Milishial Empire are expected to arrive in 2- and 3-weeks' time."
"As you command, your majesty."
The greenlight was given for the Parpaldia delegation to depart Rodenius for Singapore for a 3 day long tour. At the same time, USEA was made aware of more delegations coming from Mu and the Holy Milishial Empire scheduled to arrive in USEAN territory in 2 and 3 weeks respectively.
....
Singapore, USEA
February 20, 1640
Remille has been to many places in her life. From the industrial city of Duro of the Empire to the bustling capital of Mu, Otaheit. However, this was a familiar yet vastly different experience for her. She was familiar with the iron carriages that were a result of mechanical science from her visits to Mu, but the vehicles on the busy roads of Singapore looked less bulky and sleeker in comparison.
Remille and Kaios, as they were the heads of their respective offices with the former being a member of the Imperial Family, were sitting in a stretched Proton Perdana which was a vehicle frequently used to transport high profile diplomats and ambassadors around USEA. The cool air from the air conditioning and soft leather cushioned seats allowed the two passengers to sit in comfort.
Remille, who was seated on the right side of the diplomatic motorcade, constantly looked out the window, admiring the city where towers of glass stretched up high to the blue afternoon sky. The rays of sunlight reflected off the glass panels, as though acting as a mirror for the sun. Despite the impressive sight, her mind was fixed with a single thought.
'We...no I, will not make those mistakes. Not again...never again.'
Kaios had a more composed expression. Although he marvelled at the sight as the motorcade made its way to the Ritz-Carlton hotel where they both will be staying for the duration of their trip, he was extremely worried on what USEA could do with this much national power. He concluded that Parpaldia should treat this nation in a cordial manner and do whatever it takes to not draw its ire.
...
The two were now at the hotel lobby as staff from the USEAN Foreign Ministry were sorting out the accommodations at the counter. Soon, the two were brought to the hotel's luxurious dining hall where they would enjoy several USEAN delicacies for lunch.
...
Remille closed her eyes in bliss as bright orange liquid enters her mouth from the spoon she was holding. The spicy and sour taste of fish prepared in soup gave her tastebuds a sensation she has never felt in her life. The slight taste of spiciness further released serotonin into her bloodstream, causing her to feel more euphoric and care less about the fact she was on a state tour. After she swallowed a tablespoon of Tom Yum fish soup of Thai origin prepared by the hotel's head chef, a big smile emerged from her face as she began speaking.
"This is so good!"
Kaios had a slight smile on his face as he saw Remille being genuinely happy. Despite their disagreements from time to time, he can at least appreciate the raw emotions of a person when they are in a good mood.
He looks to his right and could see Raita, an aide of his from his department, sitting next to him. On her plate what looks to be rice served with a dish from the Philippines called 'Chicken Adobo'. Raita picks up a spoonful of rice and chicken and proceeds to feed it into her mouth. Kaios could see that Raita's eyes widened as she started tasting the sweet and savoury glazed chicken. He can safely assume Raita enjoyed the dish served to her.
Kaios looks back to his own plate and observes the dish that was served to him. Rice cooked in coconut milk and what the USEAN waiters called 'Pandan leaf'. He slightly inhales the smell originating from the rice, taking in the aroma as he prepares his utensils to begin eating. He takes half a tablespoon of rice with the other half of the spoon taken up by a chili paste the locals call 'sambal', peanuts, anchovies, and a bit of egg yolk from the boiled egg.
He proceeds to place the contents of the spoon into his mouth and is greeted by the soft and fluffy rice followed by the sambal that gave it a very noticeable spike in spiciness to it. He begins to chew through the mixture, taking his time to take in all the elements from the rice cooked in coconut and pandan leaves and the red spicy sambal. After adequate chewing, he swallowed. Having thoroughly enjoyed his first taste of USEAN food, he washes it down with a drink the locals refer to as 'teh tarik'.
This 'teh tarik', was tea that was poured from one glass mug into another several times back and forth. This pulling motion, hence, 'tarik' in the name, increased the richness of its flavour as it promotes the mixing of the tea with condensed milk. The Parpaldia Empire delegation enjoyed their lunch meal without incident.
After lunch, their next stop was the National Museum of USEA located on Stamford Road. The Proton Perdana carrying Remille and Kaios and a bus carrying the rest of the delegation would leave the Ritz-Carlton and head towards the museum.
...
"...and that concludes the tour." Said USEAN diplomat Farrah as the Parpaldia delegation finished touring the museum. Many of the delegates had taken notes throughout the tour like students in a cram school, while others proceeded to purchase various books from the bookstore located within the museum itself. The books were paid for entirely by the USEAN Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Soon, members of the delegation began asking Farrah and the other USEAN diplomats more about their country while Remille looked to her surroundings. Suddenly, she stopped gazing around and her eyes were now focused on a man, presumably waiting for transportation near a taxi drop off point.
The man had average length black hair and was dressed in a black suit with square rimmed glasses. Without thinking, Remille walked towards the man near the taxi drop off point. Remille herself did not understand why she was walking towards him, but something about him felt familiar. As she got closer to him, she suddenly felt a chilling sensation crept up her spine. She wanted to stop, but she needed answers, and so she pressed forward.
Now behind the man in glasses, she clears her throat to speak, in doing so she gains the man's attention who turned around to face her. She could see that the man was at least in his late 30s, on the man's black suit was a single flag pin, one depicting a flag with a white background and red circle. She could again hear a voice at the back of her head as the man looks straight into her eyes.
"Like I thought... from where I am standing, the only uncivilized barbarian I see is you."
Remille felt as though an eternity had passed as the man stared directly into her eyes. Her heart started beating faster as fear started taking a hold of her. Fear of repeating the same mistakes. Before either the man or Remille could speak, a voice came from behind her. It was diplomat Farrah
"Madame Remille! Are you alright? My apologies, but please do refrain from walking somewhere without our guidance, it can be very easy to get lost in the city."
Remille looked back to Farrah with a poker face expression before the man in glasses started speaking.
"Ah Farrah what a pleasant surprise to see you here."
"Likewise, Mr Asada. Now where are my manners. This is Madame Remille, member of the Parpaldia Imperial Family and leader of the diplomatic delegation from the Parpaldia Empire."
That name caused another barrage of visions to cloud Remille's thoughts. She quickly regained her composure as the man named Asada looked towards her and continued.
"I see, well it is a pleasure to meet you Madame Remille. Although my counterpart Farrah here had already mentioned it, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Asada Taiji, diplomat working for the Japanese government, but also now working for the Japanese Embassy to ensure the welfare of Japanese people stranded in USEA is taken care of."
Again, a voice that was strikingly like Asada echoed at the back of Remille's mind.
"Personally, I hope I never have to deal with you barbarians ever again."
Remille however composed herself yet again and spoke with a tone of respect towards Asada.
"The pleasure is all mine Mr Asada. I must apologise for disturbing you, it was just that you seemed like someone I knew. An... old acquaintance, you might say."
"I see. Well, I too apologise for misleading you. However, I must say it is an honour to meet a dignitary from a nation considered a superpower in this part of the world. I may not be a local, but may I ask how you find USEA so far?"
"It is an... eye-opening experience I must say. There is so much which is similar to the other superpowers and yet it is so distinct thanks to the disparity in technology. Is your country the same as well?"
Asada pondered for a moment before seeing Farrah smile and nod her head.
"Well yes, but I do have to admit my nation is on average slightly more advanced than USEA when it comes to technology. Nonetheless, Japan has always enjoyed warm relations with USEA. Technology transfer is quite common between our two nations, and we routinely carry out joint military exercises to enhance our defence cooperation against a common adversary. But now our countries are cut off from each other. I wonder how my homeland is faring back on Earth."
Asada takes a short pause by looking to the evening sky which were now covered with clouds.
"Sometimes I ponder, what if Japan was transferred to this world instead of USEA. Completely cut off from our traditional allies and forced to start anew. The war with Louria gave the impression that this world is cruel and hostile. A world where Japan would need to adapt quickly and forge friendly ties with other nations to survive."
Farrah interjects Asada.
"But not all is bad with this world. Not all countries so far appear to be belligerent or supremacist as Louria was. Madame Remille here had expressed profusely to establish strong and friendly ties between the Parpaldia Empire and USEA. Surely if Japan were the one transferred instead of us, the results would be the same."
Asada smiled as he turned to look back at Remille.
"I supposed it would be the same."
A blue colour taxicab stopped next to Asada, and after a short farewell, Remille re-joined the delegation and headed back towards the hotel. Throughout the trip in the Proton Perdana, Remille remained mostly silent as the first drops of rain came down on the city. Kaios, not wanting to pry, remained quiet as well.
...
Fortress City Ejei, Qua-Toyne Principality
February 20, 1640
The cracks of gunfire reverberated around the newly rebuilt Fortress City of Ejei as the evening sun was beginning to slip beneath the horizon. Each gunshot launched a 5.56×45mm NATO round downrange, destroying bits and pieces of target Armor that were commonly worn by Lourian soldiers during the war.
"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Yelled the instructor as the sounds of gunfire died down.
The instructor proceeded to examine each of the targets downrange with a pair of binoculars while the young recruits from the newly reorganised Qua-Toyne army began switching on the safeties on the newly issued M16A1-E rifles and removing the attached box magazine.
The M16A1-E rifle, E to denote export, was the new standard issue rifle for the reorganised Qua-Toyne Army. One of the major modifications to the rifle was the removal of the ability to fire in full auto or three round bursts. Instead, the rifles could only fire in the semi-automatic mode, therefore, great emphasis was placed on training Qua-Toyne soldiers to aim carefully before pulling the trigger.
The introduction of the M16A1-E rifle came from problems that arose during the USEAN-Lourian war where the now disbanded Free Rodenius Forces used weapons with varying calibres and parts, complicating logistics.
To rectify this issue, the USEAN government agreed to start selling the M16A1-E rifles to Qua-Toyne along with ammunition and spare parts as they were still under production back in USEA, albeit on a very small scale when compared to the standard issue ST-21.
...
Overlooking this training session from one of the windows of the Ejei castle was General Nou. Long gone was his old metal and leather armour. Now replaced with a plain green army battle dress uniform with only emblems depicting two golden stars sewn on the collars of his uniform.
Although he silently did not like the idea of wearing clothing like that of the common soldier, he was in no position to complain as the Qua-Toyne government accepted USEA's offer to remodel and restructure the Qua-Toyne army to be an effective and modern fighting force. He however did understand the need to go with green as it serves the purpose of camouflage.
As the recruits begin forming up into neat lines and started marching back to where the mess hall is located, he can't help but feel proud of what the Qua-Toyne Army has turned into. A new, modern, and trained fighting force capable of defending the Qua-Toyne nation as it begins to rebuild from the scars of war.
As the evening sun slipped beneath the horizon, he turned and looked towards the western hills that were now under the night sky, thinking about the situation on the western portion of Rodenius now that Parpaldia occupied the former territories of Louria.
As he began to think about the prospects of the future, he gave an exhausted sigh before mumbling to himself.
"There is going to be another war...isn't there...?"
....
International Airspace
February 20, 1640
As night reigned over the First Civilization Area, a single plane carrying a diplomatic delegation was on a mission to establish contact with yet another transferred nation far to the east.
As the humming sound of the aircraft's engine bled into the passenger cabin, diplomat Neukaul closed a book that he was reading. He peers out the small window to his right as the night sky was littered with an uncountable number of stars. It was peaceful, a stark contrast as to what was occurring in his home country.
...
The war had come to a stalemate since the introduction of biological weapons that were the direct result of collaboration between Holy Milishial Empire and Mu researchers. Through joint research, the two nations were able to recreate a weapon once thought to be of use by the Ancient Sorcerous Empire. A giant wolf like beast only known as the 'Gaulus'.
However, due to the lack of understanding from data left behind by the Ancient Sorcerous Empire, the researchers were not able to recreate a one-to-one copy of these beasts. The HME-Mu copies were extremely fragile where a few shots from Mu standard issue pistols were enough to bring one of them down.
This is where Mu came in. Ever since encountering the dreaded armoured vehicles called tanks from the GVE, the nation of Mu accelerated research into producing its own armoured forces. Parts of this research effort was directed to the Gaulus project.
These beasts soon found themselves covered with sheets of metal capable of protecting parts of the fragile flesh from rifle calibres commonly used by GVE infantry. Despite the success of the experimental unit, many who were aware of the success were now worried what the Gra Valkas Empire would do to counter them.
....
Singapore, USEA
February 20, 1640
Raindrops streaked down the windows of Remille's hotel suite as she gazed out towards the Singapore skyline. In the distance, she sees a structure comprised of three towers supporting some kind of short building at the top. She admired the lights that made up the city. It dwarfed that of Esthirant and she hopes one day her own capital city would have a similar glow.
As she slowly walked back to her bed and laid down on the plain white bedsheets, she took a moment to think as she stared at the ceiling.
'Am I doing this right? What happened won't happen again...right?'
She takes a deep breath before running through what she saw up to this point about USEA. It boasts not only a large military but an advanced one that clearly rivals that of the Holy Milishial Empire. It has the national power to enact some form of colonialism but seems to be holding back, instead opting to support friendly governments such as those in Qua-Toyne and Quila with economic investments and military protection. It is a nation that prides itself of being able to trade with any nation regardless of ideological beliefs and values. But it is also a nation that would not hesitate to take matters into its own hands if its national interests were in danger.
Remille then turned on to her right side and proceeded to grab and hug a pillow as she wanted to go to sleep. Before she shut her eyes, one last thought went through her mind.
'Never again.'
And with that thought, Remille strengthen her resolve to ensure that war would not occur between her beloved Empire and USEA. She would do everything it takes to prevent any form of conflict from manifesting between the two nations.
For if the fires of war were to engulf Parpaldia, her beloved empire she worked so hard to hold together, would fall under the might of the transferred country known as USEA.