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N O R U D O

_{19 April 1949}

NO — NORUDO COMMONWEALTH;
_{The Dubyeol Peace Conference}


_{“Having found the bomb we have used it. We have used it against those who attacked us without warning at Red Bay, against those who have starved and beaten and executed Norudo prisoners of war, against those who have abandoned all pretense of obeying international laws of warfare. We have used it in order to shorten the agony of war, in order to save the lives of thousands and thousands of young Norudo. We shall continue to use it until we completely destroy Venertia's power to make war. Only a Venertian surrender will stop us.”
— Empress Mitsuki, 29 September 1947}

DUBYEOL PEACE CONFERENCE
_{RCN Mutsu (BB-56), Dubyeol, Venertia — NOON}

_{Approaching a year and a half since the end of the Poppy Fields War, the Dubyeol Peace Conference has been fraught with arguments and rigorous negotiations between the world powers. However, coming to an agreement on the 19th of April, 1949, the Blue Entente and her associates have finally signed a treaty with the renewed Venertian Republic. On the Norudo Battleship Mutsu (BB-56) at approximately 1215 local time, the Dubyeol Peace Conference had finally ended and the following treaty was signed and presented to the world;}

ARCHIVE | Treaty of Peace between the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and the Republic of Venertia; Treaty of Dubyeol (1949)

by The Commonwealth of Norrs

PUBLIC ARCHIVE Treaty of Peace between the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and the Republic of Venertia. Supreme Allied Commander Estria (SACEST), Red Bay, Kyoshi 19 April 1949

Between 2 October 1947 and 19 April 1949, the Dubyeol Peace Conference was held. Delegates from the Norudo Commonwealth (Norrs), Kingdom of Brythennica (Brythennica), the Dominions of Norvalis, Auristenia, South Eureka, Darnellia, the Union of Euralian Socialist Republics (Hrafsneyr), and the People's Republic of Dōngfāng Húli (Gregorreich) represented the Blue Entente (including absentee members). The Venertian Empire (Venertia) is the sole Axis signatory of the treaty. The treaty was written and ratified by its signatories on the Norudo battleship Mutsu and concerned the reparations and concessions to be made by Venertia as a result of its Instrument for Surrender. Also present were observing delegations from the Holy Republic of the Three Cities (The Holy Cities of Rhufan). During the month-long conference, representatives argued regarding the extent of reparations and concessions to be made by Venertian Empire until a consensus was reached on the matter. The final agreement was codified into the Treaty of Peace between the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and the Venertian Empire, or the Treaty of Dubyeol. PREAMBLE Bearing in mind that the Government of Venertia had agreed to the unconditional terms of the Entente Terms of Surrender on October 2, 1947 in order to write a Treaty of Peace, and the Blue Entente and Associated Powers being weary of continued warfare, however successive, war shall be replaced with a firm, just, and durable peace. For this purpose, the CONTRACTING PARTIES are to be represented as follows; Her Holy Imperial Majesty the Empress of the Norudo Commonwealth, by: The Honorable Nao YAMAGUCHI, Minister of State; The Honorable Kimiko SHIRAI, Former Ambassador to Venertia; General Akira MOTO, Supreme Allied Commander Estria; His Majesty the King of Brythennica and of the Brythennican Dominions Beyond the Seas, by: Her Royal Highness the Princess Alexandra; The Most Honorable Algernon, Marquess of Casterleigh, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; Field Marshal Sir Horace BEAUMONTAC DSO, Chief of the Imperial Defence Staff; for the Dominion of Norvalis, by; His Excellency the Right Honorable Thomas WYCLIFFE, Governor-General of Norvalis; The Right Honorable Richard LANGFORD, Secretary of State of External Affairs; General Sir Douglas PEMBROKEKCB DSO; for the Dominion of Auristenia, by; His Excellency the Right Honorable Sir Geoffrey ADDINGTON, Governor-General of Auristenia; The Honorable Malcolm DRAYTON, Minister for Foreign Affairs; General Sir Wallace KINGSBURYGC DSO; for the Dominion of South Eureka, by; TBA; TBA; TBA; for the Dominion of Darnellia, by; His Excellency the Most Honorable Henry DARNELL, 2nd Marquess of Ravenscroft, Governor-General of Darnellia; The Honorable Julius THORNE, Minister of External Relations; General Lionel THORPEDSO; The General Secretary of the Union of Euralian Socialist Republics, by; The Honorable Eydís ÅRUD, Chairwoman of the Forsætisnefnd of the Supreme Radi; The Honorable Sif INGASDOTTIR, Ambassador to Enkyo; General Freyja RÚNASDOTTIR, Commander of the Euralian Forces in Estria; The General Secretary of the People's Republic of Dōngfāng Húli, by; The Honorable Chang ZEMIN, General Secretary of the People's Republic of Dōngfāng Húli, acting in his own name and by his own proper authority; The Honorable Shi LIUXIAN, Premier of the People's Republic of Dōngfāng Húli; The Honorable Tao YUHAN, Former Ambassador to Venertia; The Honorable Shi LINGXIN, People's Minister of External Affairs; General Xiong MENG, Chief of Staff of the Dōngfāng Húli People's Army; General Tao CHUN, Commander of the 2nd Army Group; The Lord Protector of the Holy Republic of the Three Cities, by; His Emminence Cardinal Luigi de CARAFA, Bishop of Tirvelle, apostolic-nuncio of the Saintly Church to the Far East; His Reverence Monsignor Georgio BROGLIA, pro-nuncio of the Saintly Church to Dōngfāng Húli; His Reverence Monsignor Andrezj WÓJCIK, pro-nuncio of the Saintly Church to Norudo; Signor Capitano-General Arturo CONTARINI, commander of the Ducal Guard; Venertia, by; The Honorable PYON Yong-Gi, Prime Minister of the Republic of Venertia; Admiral Tōgō MIKASA, Commander of the Integrated Venertian Fleet; His Majesty Deokusu SUNJONG, heir to the former Imperial Throne; Who, having communicated their full powers found in good and due form, have agreed as follows; From the coming into force of the present Treaty, the State of War between the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and the Republic of Venertia will terminate. From that moment, and subject to the provisions of this Treaty, official relations with Venertia will be resumed by the Blue Entente and Associated Powers. SECTION I - PEACE ARTICLE I. 1. The state of war between Venertia and the Blue Entente and Associated Powers is terminated as from the date on which the present Treaty comes into force between Venertia and the Blue Entente and Associated Powers concerned as provided for in Article XXIII. 2. The Blue Entente and Associated Powers recognize the full sovereignty of the Venertian people over Venertia and its territorial waters. SECTION II - TERRITORIAL LIMITATIONS OF VENERTIA. ARTICLE II. 1. Venertia, recognizing the independence of Đấtlâuđài, renounces all right, title, and claim to Đấtlâuđài, including the islands of ISLAND1, ISLAND2, and ISLAND3. 2. Venertia renounces all right, title, and claim to Hoshidō and the Marble Islands. 3. Venertia renounces all right, title, and claim to the Kyoshi and Pearl Islands. 4. Venertia renounces all claim to any right or title to or interest in connection with any part of the Antarctic area, whether deriving from the activities of Venertian nationals or otherwise. ARTICLE III. 1. Venertia will concur in any proposal of the Norudo Commonwealth to the League of Nations to place under its trusteeship system, with the Norudo Commonwealth as the sole administering authority, the Oegug east of Đấtlâuđài (including the Eolhana Islands) and the Oegug south of the 15° south latitude (including the Joyonbada Islands). Pending the making of such a proposal and affirmative action thereon, the Norudo Commonwealth will have the right to exercise all and any powers of administration, legislation, and jurisdiction over the territory and inhabitants of these islands, including their territorial waters. ARTICLE IV. 1. Subject to the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article, the disposition of the property of Venertia and its nationals in the areas referred to in Article II, and their claims, including debts, against the authorities presently administering such areas and the resident (including juridical persons) thereof, and the disposition in Venertia of property of such authorities and residents, and of claims, including debts, of such authorities and rsidents against Venertia and its nationals, shall be the subject of special arrangements between Venertia and such authorities. The property of any of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers or its nationals in the areas referred to in Article 2 shall, insofar as this has not already been done, be returned by the administering authority in the condition in which it now exists. The term nationals whenever used in the present Treaty includes juridical persons. 2. Venertia recognizes the validity of dispositions of property of Venertia and Venertian nationals made by or pursuant to directives of the Norudo Commonwealth Forces Government in any of the areas referred to in Articles 2 and 3. 3. Venertian owned submarine cables connecting Venertia with territory removed from Venertian control pursuant to the present Treaty shall be equally divided, Venertia retaining the Venertian terminal and adjoining half of the cable, and the detached territory the remainder of the cable and connecting terminal facilities. SECTION III - SECURITY AND MILITARY OF VENERTIA. ARTICLE V. 1. Venertia accepts the obligations set forth in Article II of the Charter of the League of Nations, and in particular the obligations; (a) to settle its international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered; (b) to refrain in its international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State or in any other manner inconsistent with the purpose of the League of Nations; (c) to give the League of Nations every assistance in any action it takes in accordance with the Charter and to refrain from giving assistance to any State against which the League of Nations may take preventive or enforcement action. 2. The Blue Entente and Associated Powers confirm that they will be guided by the principle of Article II of the Charter of the League of Nations in their relations with Venertia. 3. The Blue Entente and Associated Powers for their part recognize that Venertia as a sovereign nation possesses the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense referred to in Article LI of the Charter of the League of Nations and that Venertia may voluntarily enter into collective security arrangements. 4. Venertia forever renounces war as a sovereign right and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes. 5. Pursuant to Clause 4 of this Article, Venertia renounces the sovereign right to maintain land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential. ARTICLE VI. 1. All occupation forces of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers shall be withdrawn from Venertia as soon as possible after the coming into force of the present Treaty, and in any case not later than 90 days thereafter. Nothing in this provision shall, however, prevent the stationing or retention of foreign armed forces in Venertian territory under or in consequence of any bilateral or multilateral agreements which have been or may be made between one or more of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, on one hand, and Venertia on the other. 2. The Provisions of Article 9 of the Poel Conference of August 28, 1947, dealing with the return of Venertian military forces to their homes, to the extent not already completed, will be carried out. 3. All Venertian property for which compensation has not already been paid, which was supplied for use of the occupation forces and which remains in the possession of those forces at the time of the coming into force of the present Treaty, shall be returned to the Venertian government within the same 90 days unless other arrangements are made by mutual agreement. SECTION IV - POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC CLAUSES. ARTICLE VII. 1. Each of the members of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, within one year after the present Treaty has come into force between it and Venertia, will notify Venertia which of its prewar bilateral treaties or conventions with Venertia it wishes to continue in force or revive, and any treaties or conventions so notified shall continue in force or by revived subject only to such amendments as may be necessary to ensure conformity with the present Treaty. The treaties and conventions so notified shall be considered as having been continued in force or revived three months after the date of notification and shall be registers with the Secretariat of the League of Nations. All such treaties and conventions as to which Venertia is not so notified shall be regarded as abrogated. 2. Any notification made under Clause 1 of this Article may except from the operation or revival of a treaty or convention any territory for the international relations of which the notifying Power is responsible, until three months after the date on which notice is given to Venertia that such exception shall cease to apply. ARTICLE VIII. 1. Venertia will recognize the full force of all treaties now or hereafter concluded by the Blue Entente and Associated Powers for terminating the state of war initiated on August 13, 1937, as well as any other arrangements by the Blue Entente and Associated Powers for or in connection with the restoration of peace. Venertia also accepts the arrangements made for terminating the former League of Sincerity and Provisional Court for International Justice. 2. Venertia renounces all such rights and interests as it may derive from being a signatory power of the [INSERT BOREAL WAR TREATY] of 1919. 3. Venertia renounces all rights, title, and interests acquired under, and is discharged from all obligations resulting from, the Agreement between Carnolia and the Creditor Powers of January 20, 1930, and its annexes, including the Trust Agreement, dated May 17, 1930, the Convention of January 20, 1930, respecting the Bank for International Settlements; and the Statutes of the Bank for International Settlements. Venertia will notify to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Alderminster within six months of the first coming into force of the present Treaty its renunciation of the rights, title, and interests referred to in this Clause. ARTICLE IX. 1. Venertia will enter promptly into negotiations with the Blue Entente and Associated Powers so desiring for the conclusion of bilateral and multilateral agreements providing for the regulation or limitation of fishing and the conservation and development of fisheries on the high seas. ARTICLE X. 1. Venertia renounces all special rights and interests in Dōngfāng Húli, including all benefits and privileges resulting from the provisions of the final Charter signed at Samhung on August 13, 1878, and all annexes, notes and documents supplementary thereto, and agrees to the abrogation in respect to Venertia of the said charter, annexes, notes, and documents. ARTICLE XI. 1. Venertia accepts the judgements of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East and of other Blue Entente War Crimes Courts both within and outside Venertia, and will carry out the sentences imposed thereby upon the Venertian nationals imprisoned in Venertia. The power to grant clemency, to reduce sentences, and to parole with respect to such prisoners may not be exercised except on the decision of the Government or Governments which imposed the sentence in each instance, and on recommendation of Venertia. In the case of person sentenced by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, such power may not be exercised except on the decision of a majority of the Governments represented on the Tribunal, and on the recommendation of Venertia. ARTICLE XII. 1. Venertia declares its readiness to promptly enter into negotiations for the conclusion with each of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers of treaties or agreements to place their trading, maritime, and other commercial relations on a stable and friendly basis. 2. Pending the conclusion of the relevant treaty or agreement, Venertia will, during a period of four years from the first coming into force of the present Treaty; a. accord to each of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, its nationals products and vessels; i. most-favored-nation treatment with respect to customs duties, charges, restrictions, and other regulations on or in connection with the importation and exportation of goods; ii. national treatment with respect to shipping, navigation and imported goods, and with respect to natural and juridcal persons and their interests—such treatment to include all matters pertaining to the levying and collection of taxes, access to the courts, the making and performance of contracts, right to property (tangible and intangible), participating in juridical entities constituted under Venertian law, and generally the conduct of all kinds of business and professional activities; b. ensure that external purchases and sales of Venertian state trading enterprises shall be based solely on commercial considerations. 3. In respect to any matter, however, Venertia shall be obliged to accord to a Blue Entente or Associated Power national treatment, or most-favored-nation treatment, only to the extent that the Blue Entente or Associated Power concerned accords Venertia national treatment or most-favored-nation treatment, as the case may be, in respect of the same matter. The reciprocity envisaged in the foregoing sentence shall be determined, in the case of products, vessels and juridical entities of, and persons domiciled in, any non-metropolitan territory of a Blue Entente or Associated Power, and in the case of juridical entities of, and persons domiciled in, any state or province of a Blue Entente or Associated Power having a federal government, by reference to the treatment accorded to Venertia in such territory, state, province. 4. In the application of this Article, a discriminatory measure shall not be considered to derogate from the grant of national or most-favored-nation treatment, as the case may be, if such measure is based on an exception customarily provided for in the commercial treaties of the party applying it, or on the need to safeguard that party's external financial position or balance of payments (except in respect to shipping and navigation), or on the need to maintain its essential security interests, and provided such measure is proportionate to the circumstances and not applied in an arbitrary or unreasonable matter. 5. Venertia's obligations under this Article shall not be affected by the exercise of any Blue Entente or Associated Power's rights under Article XIV of the present Treaty; nor shall the provisions of this Article be understood as limiting the undertakings assumed by Venertia by virtue of Article XV of the Treaty. ARTICLE XIII. 1. Venertia will enter into negotiations with any of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers, promptly upon the request of such Power or Powers, for the conclusion of bilateral or multilateral agreements relating to international civil air transport. 2. Pending the conclusion of such agreement or agreements, Venertia will, during a period of four years from the first coming into force of the present Treaty, extend to such Power treatment not less favorable with respect to air-traffic rights and privileges than those exercised by any such Powers at the date of such coming into force, and will accord complete equality of opportunity in respect to the operation and development of air services. 3. Pending its becoming a party to the Convention on International Civil Aviation in accordance with Article 93 thereof, Venertia will give effect to the provisions of that Convention applicable to the international navigation of aircraft, and will give to the standards, practices, and procedures adopted as annexes to the Convention in accordance with the terms of the Convention. SECTION V - CLAIMS AND PROPERTY. ARTICLE XIV. 1. It is recognized that Venertia should pay reparations to the Blue Entente and Associated Powers for the damage and suffering caused by it during the war. Nevertheless, it is also recognized that Venertia does not possess sufficient resources, if it is to maintain a viable economy, to make complete reparation for all such damage and suffering and at the same time meet its other obligations. 2. Therefore, Venertia shall; a. promptly enter into negotiations with Blue Entente or Associated Powers so desiring, whose present territories were occupied by Venertian forces and damaged by Venertia, with a view to assisting to compensate those countries for the cost of repairing the damage done, by making available the services of the Venertian people in production, salvaging, and other work for the Blue Entente or Associated Powers in question. Such arrangements shall avoid the imposition of additional liabilities on other Blue Entente or Associated Powers, and, where the manufacturing of raw materials is called for, they shall be supplied by the Blue Entente or Associated Power in question, so as not to throw any foreign exchange burden upon Venertia. b. Subject to provisions of Clause 1(c) if this Article, each of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers shall have the right to seize, retain, liquidate, or otherwise dispose of all property, rights, and interests of; i. Venertia and Venertian nationals, ii. persons acting for or on behalf of Venertia or Venertian nationals, and iii. entities owned or controlled by Venertia or Venertian nationals, which on the first coming into force of the present Treaty were subject to its jurisdiction. The property, rights, and interests specified in this subparagraph shall include those now blocked, vest, or in the possession or under the control of enemy property authorities of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, which belong to, or were held or managed on behalf of, any of the persons or entities mentioned in (i), (ii), or (iii) above at the time such assets came under the controls of such authorities. c. The following shall be excepted from the right specified in subparagraph (b) above; i. property of Venertian natural persons who during the war resided with the permission of the Government concerned in the territory of one of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers, other than territory occupied by Venertia, except property subjected to restrictions during the war and not released from such restrictions as of the date of the first coming into force of the present Treaty, ii. all real property, furniture, or fixtures owned by the Government of Venertia and used for diplomatic or consular purposes, and all personal furniture and furnishings and other private property not of an investment nature which was normally necessary for the carrying out of diplomatic and consular functions, owned by Venertian diplomatic and consular personnel, iii. property belonging to religious bodies or private charitable institutions and used exclusively for religious or charitable purposes, iv. property, rights, and interests which have come within its jurisdiction in consequence of the resumption of trade and financial relations subsequent to 2 October, 1947 between the country concerned and Venertia, except such as have resulted from transactions contrary to the laws of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers concerned, v. obligations of Venertia or Venertian nationals, any right, title, or interest in tangible property located in Venertia, interests in enterprises organized under the laws of Venertia, or any paper evidence thereof; provided that this exception shall only apply to obligations of Venertia and its nationals expressed in Venertian currency. d. Property referred to in exceptions (i) through (v) of subparagraph (c) above shall be returned subject to reasonable expenses for its preservation and administration. If any such property has been liquidated the proceeds shall be returned instead. e. The right to seize, retain, liquidate, or otherwise dispose of property as provided in subparagraph (b) above shall be exercised in accordance with the laws of the Blue Entente or Associated Power concerned, and the owner shall have only such rights as may be given them by those laws. f. The Blue Entente and Associated Powers agree to deal with Venertian trademarks and literary and artistic property rights on a basis as favorable to Venertia as circumstances ruling in each country will permit. 3. Except as otherwise provided in the present Treaty, the Blue Entente and Associated Powers waive all reparation claims of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, other claims of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and their nationals arising out of any actions taken by Venertia and its nationals in the course of the prosecution of the war, and claims of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers for direct military costs of occupation. ARTICLE XV. 1. Upon application made within nine months coming into force of the present Treaty between Venertia and the Blue Entente or the Associated Power concerned, Venertia will, within six months of the date of such application, return the property, tangible and intangible, and all rights or interests of any kind in Venertia to each Blue Entente and Associated Power and its nationals which was within Venertia at any time between December 25, 1942, and October 2, 1947, unless the owner has freely disposed thereof without duress or fraud. Such property shall be returned free of all encumbrances and charges to which it may have become subject because of the war, and without any charges for its return. Property whose return is not applied for by or on behalf of the owner or by his Government within the prescribed period may be disposed of by the Venertian Government as it may determine. In cases where such property was within Venertia on December 25, 1942, and cannot be returned or has suffered injury or damage as result of the war, compensation will be made on terms not less favorable than the terms provided in the draft Entente Property Compensation law approved by the Venertian Government on November 6, 1948. 2. Venertia acknowledges that the literary and artistic property rights which existed in Venertia on December 25, 1942, in respect to the published and unpublished works of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and their nationals have continued in force since that date, and recognizes those rights which have arisen, or but for the war would have arisen, in Venertia since that date, by the operation of any conventions and agreements to which Venertia was a party on that date, irrespective of whether or not such conventions or agreements were abrogated or suspended upon or since the outbreak of the war by the domestic law of Venertia or of the Blue Entente or Associated Power concerned. 3. Without the need for application by the proprietor of the right and without the payment of any fee or compliance with any other formality, the period from December 25, 1942, until the coming into force of the present Treaty between Venertia and the Blue Entente or Associated Power concerned shall be excluded from the running of the normal term of such rights; and such period, with an additional period of six months, shall be excluded from the time within which a literary work must be translated into Venertian in order to obtain translating rights in Venertia. ARTICLE XVI. 1. As an expression of its desire to indemnify those members of the collective armed forces of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers who suffered undue hardships while prisoners of war of Venertia, Venertia will transfer its assets and those of its nationals in countries which were neutral during the war, or which were at war with any of the Blue Entente or Associated Power, or, at its option, the equivalent of such assets, to the International Committee of the Red Diamond which shall liquidate such assets and distribute the resultant fund to appropriate national agencies, for the benefit of former prisoners of war and their families on such basis as it may be determined to be equitable. The categories of assets described in Article XIV(2)(c)(ii) through (v) of the present Treaty shall be excepted from transfer, as well as assets of Venertian natural persons not residents of Venertia on the first coming into force of the Treaty. It is equally understood that the transfer provision of this Article has no application to the shares in the Bank of International Settlements presently owned by Venertian financial institutions. ARTICLE XVII. 1. Upon the request of any of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, the Venertian Government shall review and revise in conformity with international law any decision or order of the Venertian Courts in cases involving ownership rights of nationals of that Blue Entente or Associated Power and shall supply copies of all documents comprising the records of these cases, including the decisions taken and orders issued. In any case in which such review or revision shows that restoration is due, the provisions or Article XV shall apply to the property concerned. 2. The Venertian Government shall take the necessary measures to enable nationals of any of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers at any time within one year from the coming into force of the present Treaty between Venertia and the Blue Entente or Associated Power concerned to submit to the appropriate Venertian authorities for review any judgement given by a Venertian court between December 25, 1942, and such coming into force, in any proceedings in which any such national was unable to make adequate presentation of their case either as plaintiff or defendant. The Venertian Government shall provide that, where the national has suffered injury by reason of any such judgement, they shall be restored in the position in which they were before the judgement was given or shall be afforded such relief as may be just and equitable in the circumstances. ARTICLE XVIII. 1. It is recognized that the intervention of the state of war has not affected the obligation to pay pecuniary debts arising out of obligations and contracts (including those in respect of bonds) which existed rights which were acquired before the existence of a state of war, and which are due by the Government or nationals of Venertia to the Government or nationals of one of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers, or are due by the Government or nationals of one of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers to the Government or nationals of Venertia. The intervention of a state of war shall equally not be regarded as affecting the obligation to consider on their merits claims for loss or damage to property or for personal injury or death which arose before the existence of a state of war, and which may be presented or re-presented by the Government of one of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers to the Government of Venertia , or by the Government of Venertia to any of the Governments of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers. The provisions of this paragraph are without prejudice to the rights conferred by Article XIV. 2. Venertia affirms its liability for prewar external debt of the Venertian State and for debts of corporate bodies subsequently declared to be liabilities of the Venertian State, and expresses its intention to enter into negotiations at an early date with its creditors with respect to the resumption of payments on those debts; to encourage negotiations in respect to other prewar claims and obligations; and to facilitate the transfer of sums accordingly. ARTICLE XIX. 1. Venertia waives all claims of Venertia and its nationals against the Blue Entente and Associated Powers and their nationals arising out of the war or out of actions taken because of the existence of a state of war or out of actions taken because of the existence of a state of war, and waives all claims arising from the presence, operations or actions of force or authorities of any of the Blue Entente or Associated Powers in Venertian territory prior to the coming into force of the present Treaty. 2. The foregoing waiver includes any claims arising out of actions taken by any of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers with respect to Venertian ships between August 31, 1937, and the coming into force of the present Treaty, as well as any claims and debts arising in respect to Venertian prisoners of wars and civilian internees in the hands of the Blue Entente and Associated Powers, but does not include Venertian claims specifically recognized in the laws of any Blue Entente or Associated Power enacted since October 2, 1949. 3. Subject to reciprocal renunciation, the Venertian Government also renounces all claims (including debts) against Carnolia and Carnolian nationals on behalf of the Venertian Government and Venertian nationals, including intergovernmental claims and claims for loss or damage sustained during the war but excepting; a. claims in respect off contracts entered into and rights acquired before August 13, 1937 and, b. claims arising out of trade and financial relations between Venertia and Carnolia after October 2, 1949. Such renunciation shall not prejudice actions taken in accordance with Articles XVI and XX of the present Treaty. 4. Venertia recognizes the validity of all acts and omissions done during the period of occupation under or in consequence of directives of the occupation authorities or authorized by Venertian law at that time, and will take no action subjecting Blue Entente and Associated nationals to civil or criminal liability arising out of such acts or omissions. ARTICLE XX. 1. Venertia will take all necessary measures to ensure such disposition of Carnolian assets in Venertia as has been or may be determined by those powers entitled under the Protocol of the proceedings of the Poel Conference of 1947 to dispose of those assets, and pending the final disposition of such assets will be responsible for the conservation and administration thereof. ARTICLE XXI. 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article XXV of the present Treaty, Dōngfāng Húli shall be entitled to the benefits of Articles X and XIV(2)(a); and Đấtlâuđài to the benefits of Articles II, IV, IX, and XII of the present Treaty. SECTION VI - SETTLEMENT DISPUTES. ARTICLE XXII. 1. If in the opinion of any Party to the present Treaty there has arisen a dispute concerning the interpretation or execution of the Treaty, which is not settled by reference to a special claims tribunal or by other agreed means, the dispute shall, at the request of any party thereto, be referred for decision to the International Court of Justice. Venertia and those Blue Entente and Associated Powers which are not already parties to the Statute of the International Court of Justice will deposit with the Registrar of the Court, at the time of their respective ratifications of the present Treaty, and in conformity with the resolution of the League of Nations Security Council a general declaration accepting the jurisdiction, without special agreement, of the Court generally in respect to all disputes of the character referred to in this Article. SECTION VII - FINAL CLAUSES. ARTICLE XXIII. 1. The present Treaty shall be ratified by the States which sign it, including Venertia, and will come into force for all States which have then ratified it, when instruments of ratification have been deposited by Venertia and by a majority, including the Norudo Commonwealth as the principal occupying Power, of the following states, namely Auristenia, Norvalis, South Mirael, Darnellia, [NATION3], the Kingdom of Brythennica, and the Norudo Commonwealth. The present Treaty shall come into force of each State which subsequently ratifies it, on the date of the deposit of its instrument of ratification. 2. If the Treaty has not come into force within nine months after the date of the deposit of Venertia's ratification, any State which has ratified it may bring the Treaty into force between itself and Venertia by a notification to that effect given to the Governments of Venertia and the Norudo Commonwealth not later than three years after the date of deposit of Venertia's ratification. ARTICLE XXIV. 1. All instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Government of the Norudo Commonwealth which will notify all the signatory States of each such deposit, of the date of the coming into force of the Treaty under paragraph 1 of Article XXIII, and of any notifications made under paragraph 2 of Article XXIII. ARTICLE XXV. 1. For the purposes of the present Treaty, the Blue Entente and Associated Powers shall be the States at war with Venertia, or any State which had previously formed a part of the territory of a State named in Article XXIII, provided that in each case the State concerned has signed and ratified the Treaty. Subject to the provisions of Article XXI, the present Treaty shall not confer any rights, titles, or benefits on any State which is not a Blue Entente or Associated Power as herein defined; nor shall any right, title, or interest of Venertia be deemed to be diminished or prejudiced by any provision of the Treaty in favor of a State which is not an Blue Entente or Associated Power as so defined. ARTICLE XXVI. 1. Venertia will be prepared to conclude with any State which signed or adhered to the League of Nations Declaration of January 1, 1942, and which is at war with Venertia, or with any State which previously formed a part of the territory of a State named in Article XXIII, which is not a signatory of the present Treaty, a bilateral Treaty of Peace on the same or substantially the same terms as are provided for in the present Treaty, but this obligation on the part of Venertia will expire three years after the first coming into force of the present Treaty. Should Venertia make a peace settlement or war claims settlement with any State granting that State greater advantages than those provided by the present Treaty, those same advantages shall be extended to the parties in the present Treaty. ARTICLE XXVII. The present Treaty shall be deposited in the archives of the Government of the Norudo Commonwealth which shall furnish each signatory State with a certified copy thereof. IN FAITH WHEREOF the undersigned Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Treaty. DONE at the city Dubyeol on the Commonwealth Battleship MUTSU this nineteenth day of April 1949 in the Brythennican, French, and Norudo languages, all being equally authentic, and in the Venertian language [Signatures omitted.]







Read dispatch

A Navy of Hibakusya

^{In Takure Bay, two rusted corpses of a dead empire sat quiet. Their hulls gently coated in rust, with spots of green and gray peaking out towards the beating sun. One had once been among the finest dreadnoughts to ever serve the Imperial Navy, the other, a mighty carrier that had struck deep against the Norudo threat. Neither had sailed since the end of the war. The carrier, IVN Jangyong, sat on her side, a copper red belly exposed to the sky above that had caused her to capsize in the first place. The other, IVN Sibjalo, lay drowned to her freeboard deck in the bay’s salty waters. Her superstructure sagged in a faux mechanical misery, hull cracked and warped with scars from the blast that had felled her.}

^{Jangyong was sunk in early 1946 by a Norudo bomber raid. Initially, it seemed that the carrier had just sustained some concerning damage to her lower hull, but otherwise was still seaworthy. That was until a dislodged I-beam crumpled one of the central bulkheads, leading to the ship rapidly flooding below the waterline. With what little steam had been idling in her system, the crew had desperately attempted to beach her, but it was far too little and far too late. She ended up capsized at a 35 degree tilt, her side resting on the shoal she was meant to have run aground on. The days of Venertian carrier warfare were over though, and so, the navy never bothered with spending the resources needed to refloat and repair her.}

^{A year and some later, still stuck in the gentle sands of Takure Bay, she laid witness to the destruction of the other ship that remained half sunk beside her. Sibjalo. She had arrived from a coastal patrol early in the morning, her hull gently gleaming in the morning light. Even in spite of the increasingly hopeless nature of the war, Sibjalo still served with pride. She was the finest ship still afloat in the Imperial Navy, and every sailor who served aboard knew it.}

^{She’d been heading for Dry Dock No. 2 when the lone roar of a Norudo bomber echoed out in the heavens above. There was nothing to be done, no fighters available nor capable of giving chase, and any anti-aircraft fire completely ineffective by virtue of the aircraft’s altitude. It didn’t bring the dreadnought’s crew any immediate sense of worry. Norudo bombing raids had become the standard, and chances were the war wasn’t going to go on much longer, no matter how much the militarists wanted it to.}

^{It was only once its bomb bays opened and a singular object fell out that any worry began stewing. Evidently, it seemed to be some type of anti-infrastructure bomb, and the pressing concern for the Sibjalo was that it’d strike the dry dock. So, the Captain ordered her to dead slow ahead and ordered that the crew prepare to go ashore to aid in extracting any injured individuals where the bomb happened to strike. They never got the chance. Within seconds, the blastwave traveled out from its epicenter, slamming into the seafaring titan. Her superstructure sagged as it melted from the heat, her turrets turning into temporary ovens and hull cracking from the sheer force and proximity of the detonation. Half of the crew died during the immediate impact, the remainder slowly fading on as the radiation finally caught up with their bodies. There’d been 1,734 sailors who had served aboard her. Just 13 were still alive.}

^{Jangyong, though exposed, was lucky enough to have been partially shielded by the dreadnought’s silhouette when the detonation occurred. Her exposed hull took the brunt of whatever slipped by the Sibjalo, crumpling inwards in a fashion akin to a ball of paper. Debris rolled over her side, rocks and chunks of concrete piercing like bullets through her. A particularly large chunk smashed into her funnel, ripping it cleanly off from the sheer force of its impact. Wooden decking shed like dandruff, exposing the armor layer underneath as it peeled away.}

^{By the time the dust settled, and the waters calmed, Sibjalo had sunk all the way to her freeboard line, the damage too great for her hull to remain buoyant. There would be no recovering her. The war ended six days later.}

^{However, post-war Venertia was a strange beast. The Norudo had given orders to the government to refloat any sunk vessels for immediate scrapping, or in the case of any sunken submarines, mined and destroyed in situ. It was a less than pleasurable arrangement in Admiral Mikasa’s taste. Venertia, one of the world’s finest naval powers, would be reduced to fishing trawlers and minesweepers. Frankly, he understood the sentiment. Norudo could never again suffer a naval incursion from the nation. Still, the idea of lacking one entirely was untenable.}

^{The Euralian Union had turned its influence eastwards, a series of cancerous tendrils, their slick red surface reaching outwards and grabbing nearby nations, poisoning them with the disease that was [whatever communism is here]. To prevent a Red Tide, the nation would need a navy, it would need an army, an air force. It would be permitted none. He couldn’t live with that.}

^{Traveling by train to Dubyeol, he swiftly made his way to the Geulinpaelliseu. Though he lacked any official authority, his reputation alone was enough to motivate the guards to step aside, allowing him to briskly march to the Prime Minister’s office.}

^{Pushing through the door with no knock, the Admiral swiftly huffed out an attempt at a greeting. “Prime Minister.”}

^{Looking up with tired eyes, cheeks permanently creased with smile lines, Yong-gi stared back at the exasperated Admiral. “Admiral Mikasa, what brings you here in such a fervor?”}

^{“It’s regarding our remaining ships.”}

^{“You know as well as I do those are to be scrapped. The only reason those damned destroyers are still afloat is because none of the Entente was kind enough to claim them.”}

^{“Sink them.”}

^{A look of wild bewilderment leaked over Yong-gi’s face, unsure if the man before him had gone crazy or not. “Why in god’s name would we do that?”}

^{“Sibjalo and Jangyong. Both are in violation of Norudo terms. Venertia cannot possess a carrier, and we most certainly cannot possess a capital ship, yet, they’ve been there since war's end awaiting refloating and scrapping.”}

^{“What are you getting at Admiral?”}

^{“If you sink a vessel, and refloat it, it falls under Norudo scrapping orders. If a ship falls under Norudo scrap orders, we can relocate it to a drydock and then continuously suffer delays. If we get lucky, the Norudo realize the westward threat, and we recomission them.”}

^{“You realize that if they even think for a moment we’re up to something they’ll have our heads yes?”}

^{“I do, and that’s a price I can forfeit to contain the Red Tide.”}

^{A solemn quiet falls between the two men, Mikasa standing at an uncomfortable parade rest as contemplation wrinkled his civilian counterpart's face.}

^{“Do it. Have the men sabotage the hulls of the unclaimed ships we have in Sinhag, and order the refloating of Sibjalo and Jangyong pushed up. Store those two in Dry Dock No.2 and Dry Dock No.5 until we can examine the risk of radiation to any scrappers or potential future crew. As far as the destroyers go, do tell your men to exercise discretion in their sabotage. Don’t go sinking them all at the same time, space it for Gyepi’s sake. I don’t need Mitsuki giving us a fourth sunrise.”}

^{A small smirk befell the tired Admiral’s face. “With pleasure Sir.”}

Norrs

-/ JANUARY 21ST, 1950 \-

INTRODUCTION TO HASANISTAN [PART 1]

— Royal City of Shakar, The Shahdom of Hasanistan —

Shakar, the ancient royal city of the Shah, is distinguished by its castle, which stands as a prominent feature of the city's skyline. The city has long served as a testament to the enduring influence of the Shah and her Kingdom, situated amidst the lush jungles and majestic mountains.

In 1823, the Jazizir dynasty had assumed control of the Emirate of Hasanistan, establishing the Shahdom of Hasanistan and designating the city of Shakar as the royal capital and the Shah's city. The city has experienced many challenges since that time, and it is only recently that it has come to the attention of the international community.

During the Boreal War, Hasanistan had the opportunity to gain valuable insights into the capabilities of distant continents. However, the most significant knowledge they acquired was in the realm of modern warfare. They had acquired equipment from a neighboring foreign power that had long since ceased to exist on their borders, which enabled the formation of the Royal Shah's Armed Forces in 1921. Following the Boreal War, another significant global conflict emerged, one that held particular relevance for Hasanistan. The Poppy Fields War was seen as a continuation of the issues raised in the Boreal War. While Hasanistan maintained neutrality, it provided the impetus for them to finally engage with the wider world.

In 1950, the Shah of Hasanistan delivered a public address in Shakar. She pledged that Hasanistan would gradually become more open to the wider world and seek to play a role in the evolving geopolitical landscape of the 1950s. Hasanistan would prepare itself for this new era, with the hope that it would be an age of knowledge and divine blessing.
(Second post later today, just pushed this out quickly because I could split the post into two.)

Hello Up There

^{Doctor Myo Seung-Heon hated the rain. It held up his efforts horrifically, and the war certainly hadn’t helped him either. For months he’d been scouring the land between Samgye and Tanhae. He just needed to find a few parts. He could manufacture most of everything else required for his grand project. He just needed some engines with intact injectors and turbopumps alongside at least one AKSM Bieup computing unit.}

^{Couldn’t be that hard to find some sitting around in an abandoned shed somewhere.}

^{Except it was. Searching fields for complex wartime equipment under the assumption the Blue Entente hadn’t already found any related components and taken them back home to pick them apart was a fool’s exercise. Perhaps even more foolish was the fact that possessing the parts, much less constructing what he had in mind, was likely a harsh violation of the Dubyeol Treaty. Yet, passion still fuelled him onwards. He just needed a few parts, he could manage it. And so he wandered. Day after day melted from sunrise to sunset in his vain search, and day after day, he came up completely empty.}

^{His students finally intervened at the dawn of the second month of his doing this. Their professor was running themself ragged chasing a daydream, and they weren’t going to see him completely explode when his body's demand for rest finally caught up to him. A few parts for a vain fantasy weren’t worth his health. Still though, a sense of undeniable pity hung in the auditorium as they awaited his arrival. They couldn’t leave him to dry, but at the same time, they couldn’t keep letting him push himself to breaking. He’d end up with pneumonia at this rate.}

^{So, as two of their older classmates, both sturdy pol-eojineun players, held the professor down against the floor before he could escape to his evening wandering session, the rest of them gaggled around his desk. One grabbed their typewriter, gingerly opening its case atop the birch desk. Loading a sheet of paper, the students began throwing out ideas for how to open their solution to Dr. Seung-Hyeon’s problems: A letter and a fake agency to send it.}

TO THE ESTEEMED DIGNITARIES OF BRYTHENNICA,

ON BEHALF OF THE VENERTIAN INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY,

We, the members of the Venertian Interplanetary Society, kindly request upon the Brythennican Government the allocation of several Type RM.1 engines, with their respective systems, alongside one ASKM Bieup computing module, for uses in the development of our nation's future.

It is the interest of the VIS to see the establishment of life beyond the atmosphere of our planet. We cannot achieve this in the current austerity conditions facing the Venertian nation, not without the assistance of those powers greater than us. Our ability to manufacture the equipment and components therein aforementioned is null. However, it remains our strong belief that with proper access to just the two pieces requested, we can successfully begin working towards that lofty goal.

Additionally, the VIS has been given the discretion over the management of a strip of land between Samgye and Tanhae, a stretch which was used by the former Imperial forces to test the type L2 ISR. It is our belief that it features the optimal qualities for the construction of a launching site for scientific endeavors, and subsequently we wish to extend an offer in return for the stated equipment. Brythennica would retain rights to use any launchpad created by the VIS for development of their own systems, scientific or military, at any time. Oversight, maintenance, and funding for the site would be handled entirely by the VIS, with no strain on Brythennican interests.

The VIS can handle the manufacture of all other components void the Type RM.1 and the ASKM. With Brythennica’s assistance, life can begin its journey beyond our humble atmosphere. Subsequently, we extend our lofty requests with the highest hopes and best of intentions between our nations.

With All Respects Due,

The Workers of the Venertian Interplanetary Society

February 4th, 1950

^{As one of his students runs the letter to the campus post office, Seung-Hyeon finally finds some sense of relief, if only from his students' forcing. After all, it’s merely a waiting game now.}

_{Mentions - Brythennica}

_{It’s an Honorable Field}

^{Hyong Huinpangsa was many things. A former soldier of the Boreal War, engineer responsible for the creation of the Venertian Empire’s largest automotive manufacturing firm, and the deaths of untold thousands. He hadn’t set out to do the latter of those three, but, such was the inevitability that came with war. Armies needed trucks and Air Forces needed bearings and airframe components. Was hardly his fault he happened to have existing manufacturing plants that could easily be converted for military operation.}

^{It wasn’t his fault that when B-Nari flew over the cities of his homeland and struck his factories that men decided to stay at their posts. He couldn’t be blamed for those who burned next to unfinished engine blocks and drums of mill lubricant. After all, not like he could refuse the junta’s orders to assure every man knew it was their job to assure the survival of the empire. Including if it meant trying to fight napalm fires with broken spigots and dried up wells to save a factory. Assuredly, no blame could come his way. Another industrialist held at gunpoint to produce war materials, nothing more, nothing less.}

^{The years following the war were the only times he wondered if Gochujang was punishing him. For the sins he denied, the ones he hid beneath lies. The ones he tried so desperately to distance himself lest the VEA decide they missed him during the trials. Under no circumstances was he keen on swinging from his neck to receiving a bullet against a cold wall of one of his former factories. If the worst of it was his company doing poorly, perhaps there was such a thing as mercy even for a man as red-handed as he.}

^{Most of the trouble boiled down to the lack of aluminum within the country. A majority of the vehicles produced by Huinpangsa required it for their body work, as the engines produced by the company lacked the power output necessary for heavier steel construction. But, with an utter lack of aluminum void whatever was pulled off scrapped aircraft, they’d struggled to produce much of anything. However, those very same aircraft had begun giving him an idea. Over the course of the war, thousands of aviation motors had been constructed at his plants. Vital knowledge on large displacement engines had been gained by his engineers. He didn’t have to continue ordering production on tiny 600cc engines. Suddenly, the idea of inline-sixes and V8’s outputting ridiculous levels of power were on the table.}

^{He’d offhandedly mentioned the idea to his chief engineer over tea. A few weeks later, what had been disguised as a tangential daydream had a blueprint. It stared up at him from the surface of his desk, chalky white lines providing exactly what he needed. A 4L I-6 automobile with steel bodywork capable of reaching speeds in excess of 70 miles an hour. The only thing it lacked was a name, an honor he had the privilege of on every car he’d ever produced. It didn’t take much thought to come up with one. After all, at this point, there was only one major source of steel in the country, and it wasn’t factory fresh. It came in destroyed, warped chunks, pulled from the very undead warriors that he had helped produce. Battleships, destroyers, submarines, any ship that had been made in the years of the war. All were majority steel, and now they sat in scrapyards, melted down into their base materials.}

^{There was only one appropriate name for such an origin.}

^{The Huinpangsa Admiral.}

_{Google the 1950 Studebaker Commander for the IRL equivalent. V8 comes next year.}

Have Asperline, Will Travel

^{The line between Soranuo and Yamarano had always been a particularly quiet stretch of the Venertian National Railway. A forty-five minute long trip pulled along by an aging yet ever reliable Type C57, it wasn’t by any means the most popular line, yet, it still had enough demand that the relatively minute cost of operating the line could be excused. Not like the country was necessarily in a state that it could really pick or choose. Without the rail connection, the commute for anyone traveling to work at any of the numerous manufacturing plants in Yamarano’s outskirts would be more to the length of two or three hours, an unacceptable loss of productive time.}

^{Rail Lieutenant Kam Tae-Yeon had been the engineer for the line since 1945. When he’d turned eighteen, with the war still raging, his father had intentionally allowed himself to be injured by a failed regulator valve. The burns were sufficient to send him to hospital, but at the same time, it also permitted Tae-Yeon to move from engineer apprentice to a full-time locomotive engineer. Blistered skin and irritated red was the one thing that saved him from being shipped off. There was a substantial chance he would’ve ended up dead. He’d heard all about the Nogsaeg Atoll campaign. There’d been no mercy for those soldiers. So, he was perfectly content still operating C57126 along the relatively small strip of rail. His father had long since recovered, finding work in the railway’s personnel department. So, there was little guilt in his mind, much at his father’s endless insistence. Plus, of all the jobs one could have in the Empire, being a little warm and covered with coal grime wasn’t such a bad fate.}

^{September 18th, 1947 was proving to be a similarly routine day. He rose at 5:00 AM, about twenty minutes earlier than usual. Though he only lived a short way away from the stockyard in Soranuo, he was intent on not skipping out on his morning breakfast ration. It wasn’t brilliant, just some black bread and rice, but it was better than trying to hope a local would give him something (though it wasn’t uncommon, he always felt bad. These people had little, what did he deserve of their property?). He sat quietly at the table. His family would not wake for another few hours still, so he ate as silently as possible. They deserved every modicum of rest they could get.}

^{Leaving his home by 6:15, fully dressed and ready for the day, he arrived at the Soranuo stockyard fifteen minutes before the start of his shift, long enough to steal some tea and begin warming the locomotive. His firemen arrived not much later. Sun Ujin was a wide, bulking man, who’d nearly been forced by his local recruiter to the front, but avoided it via his aforementioned imposing figure. He’d spooked the recruiter from his doorstep before he even had a chance to mention Imperial service to him. So, he remained a faithful employee of the VNR, stoking fires and shoveling coal, happy as could ever be.}

^{The two had quietly sat inside the cab of locomotive C57126 as her fire gently began to grow. It was another half-an-hour until she was steaming, but, by 6:45, she’d been moved from the engine sheds and retrieved her coaches from the yard at the end of the line. At no more than 15 miles an hour, she gently shuffled her way into Soranuo’s central station, pistons gently coating the concrete platform like a low-hanging fog. Tae-Yeon left Ujin behind temporarily, exiting the cab to make his way to the station’s guard room. His usual guard, Im Ki-Nam, was running behind. He’d catch the train en route at the midway station of Hengsan. With this knowledge, Tae-Yeon said nothing. It wasn’t the first time they’d run without a guard, but he trusted the conductor was well enough trained in case of any emergency arising. So, he silently exited the room, returning to the cab of his locomotive as passengers began flooding onto her caramel brown carriages. It was only a few moments later that the conductor, Song Ji-Hu, leaned his head out the window of the rear carriage, whistle hanging loosely in his mouth as its shrill sound ripped across the length of the station’s platform and up to Tae-Yeon’s ears. He needed no further instruction, and thus opened up the regulator. With a great huff of steam, and a groaning of her driving wheels, the old locomotive gently began pulling away from the station’s enclosure.}

^{Around fifteen minutes later, at 7:00, he gently closed the regulator again, ever so slightly applying the brakes to the main drivers as the locomotive gently glided along the rails. Though it was always part of the branchline, Hengsan was perhaps the most disused of the three stations the spider web of silvery rail supported. The only reason Tae-Yeon even bothered stopping was that he was mandated (to the endless displeasure of those in the carriage just behind his locomotive’s tender), and because Ki-Nam was a drunk who insisted the whiskey tasted better in the tiny village. It wasn’t the first time he’d been picked up at the decrepit station, and it most certainly would not be the last.}

^{He watched silently as Ki-Nam approached the cab, staring gently at his fellow coworkers.}

^{“So, was it soju or more of that swill you call a drink this time?” Tae-yeon gently teased.}

^{“The finest Four Society blend of whiskey, and don’t you call it anything else.” The scruffy conductor grumbled. “Now, do you have an asperline or not?”}

^{Not wishing to miss the fun, Ujin leaned on his shovel, a sh*t-eating grin stretching across his face. “No dice. Hopefully some old lady has some you can have. Again.”}

^{Ki-Nam says nothing intelligible, likely a string of obscenities meant for the man’s being a smart*ss. He quickly turns away from the cab, walking down the length of the train to assure everything is ship-shape before relieving the conductor of any additional duties his absence had burned the poor old man with. Tae-Yeon has half a mind to tell Ujin to not stir the sh*t pot, but he was equally if not more guilty. Admittedly, it was far too fun messing with the older man. With no additional delay, he checked that no one had only now attempted to exit his train. Seeing none, he threw the regulator to three-quarters open, the engine grunting and wheezing before smoothly beginning to roll along the tracks that snaked along in front of it.}

^{Not long after, they’d arrived in Yamarano. It was no later than 7:30 AM. For as much as the Carnolians used to brag, it was always the Venertians who knew how to make a train run on time. The station was built not long after the Hyomin Restoration, its design more western and modern then most other stations than could be found in the country’s major cities. A glass ceiling allowed sunlight to gently beam down onto the enclosed platforms, and long milky gray platforms stretched out to hug the rails. It was more akin to a grand exhibition hall than a rail station, but that made it all the more beautiful to anyone making the journey.}

^{It was this exact cycle that the three railmen followed for the remainder of the day. Pick up passengers in Soranou, make a pit stop at Hengsan, then steam with the regulator at full open to Yamarano. It didn’t make for a terribly exciting 12 hour day, but it was certainly better than getting chewed up in the Norudo war-machine. Or being shot by the junta militias.}

^{By 3:45, they’d already made six runs to the bustling city, and had freshly arrived in Soranou to pick up yet another bustle of shoppers, beggars, and workers for the defense plants 47 miles to their south. It was only then that a lone B-nari flew overhead. It was strange. Soranou had never been a likely target, at least in the minds of the Imperial Army. It’s why the air defenses were operated only by the local Civil Defense Union, and even still, they were old leftovers from the Boreal War. They couldn’t reach the altitudes at which B-nari glided across the sky. Even beyond that, no interceptors ever were designated to the airspace. It effectively left the city defenseless. But then again, it wasn’t a major city, it lacked any actual substantial industry. Unless the Norudo were so cocky as to firebomb with a city with a single bomber, Tae-Yeon doubted it was anything more than a stray. To his great frustration though, the stationmaster still ordered a three minute delay. There was no certainty in warfare, and he made it clear that irregardless of it being one bomber versus 100, there would be no approval until it left the airspace.}

^{Even when the train was finally cleared, Tae-Yeon knew there’d be no making up for the lost time. Regardless of how fast he pushed the locomotive down the rails, they’d be three minutes late. While it seemed a small amount of time, that was time he’d inevitably have to explain the loss of to the stationmaster at Yamarano. When he pointed at the Soranou stationmaster, he’d inevitably deny it and the whole nightmare would continue. The only small relief was that Yamarano was still 45 minutes away. For the time being, he didn’t have to explain jacksh*t.}

_{Part one of two. It is 44 minutes to midnight.}

03 DECEMBER 1950

제삼성
V E N E R T I A

ACHIM ALLIM | THE MORNING ROOSTER




VENERTIAN OIL TANKER ATTACKED BY UNKNOWN VESSEL

The VR Cheos-jinghu was raided by unknown forces late last night.

_{WRITTEN BY POK SEONG-JIN
LOCAL CORRESPONDENT | WONJU}
_{At 11:40 PM last night, the merchant oiler VR Cheos-jinghu was halted by an unknown surface vessel and was forced to supply its assailant with a portion of the heavy fuel oil she was carrying to nearby Kusong. The oiler received light damage from an unknown weapon affixed to the attacking ship, but the shrapnel pattern has yet to be identified as belonging to any foreign navy. A total of 770 tons of oil was requisitioned by the vessel before it swiftly departed into the night.}

_{“It was like it just disappeared,” said seaman Sa Seong, “it came out of nowhere, shot at us, ordered we supply it or be sunk, and then just disappeared again like nothing.”}

_{An investigation into the incident has been opened by order of Admiral Mikasa, but findings remain scarce. The most vital revelation thus far has been that the vessel was able to accept the standardized Type 6 valve connector, likely meaning the ship was of Venertian origin. Additionally, testimony from the crew of the Cheos-jinghu has made clear that the crew of the vessel was also fluent in Venertian, with no signs of an accent or other trip-ups in the language. Whether or not the vessel was under control of Imperial remnants remains unclear, however the investigative committee has not ruled out the possibility.}

_{“Hundreds of miscellaneous vessels remain unaccounted for, with most presumed sunk,” said Vice Admiral Kyo Jong-Yul, “it is not impossible for this to be a stray ship that we had previously considered lost. Irregardless, it remains our highest priority to locate and neutralize this vessel. Our nation cannot continue suffering economic losses because some rogues cannot accept defeat.”}

_{More as it comes from Achim Allim, Wonju’s #1 Newspaper}

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