The History of the World V . . . .

[Robert]

Chandragupta,

When the missionary started it's trip to England there were no troubles with jewish missionaries. Remember that Russia once was a jewish nation itself.
America and Russia had open borders.

I assume that by keeping silence about my requests of confirmation, you confirm them by not rejecting them, which would be a normal reaction in war time if the are facts are wrong.

[The Capo]

Salamanca...

El Cid watched the sun fall over the mountain, as tears ran from his eyes; the Guru Santo was no help.

I don't care if the world is full of suffering, I don't care about meditation...

The Guru had told him to hold fast, and understand that suffering is a given in this world, the man who is able to achieve enlightenment would be the one who can understand this.

My life is over without her, without my son...

The Guru knew, however, that this was a powerful and disturbed man. He had seen death, he had caused death, and now he had to deal with a type of death that he had never felt before, even for his advanced years.

I would give my entire Kingdom to have them back...

The Guru tried to tell him that he was a powerful man, with a responsability towards peace. He told him the world looked up to him to bring peace to this world, to this terrible war. He was the leader of men, he could not afford to fall because of the tragedy.

Perhaps I will have to give my Kingdom... it is a small price to pay...

The Guru tried to convince Rodrigo that it was his place in the world to stop this religious war, it had gone completely out of hand. But he didn't listen. He was a proud man after all, and it was hard to tell El Cid otherwise when he had his mind set on something.

Yes, that is what I must do, I have to see Elena again...

And this was no different. El Cid slowly pulled his sword from its sheath... and fell upon it...

......

[Robert]

How have the great fallen.....
Why do the good die young?
How can we honor those who could bring light in the darkness?
While darkness took them.....

Song for El Cid
written by Rho'd Berth LXVII while he couldn't sleep for he feared the end of the world now El Cid has left it.

[OzzyKP]

Indian Progress in Science

India is in an age of giants. The great king Chandragupta and his skilled advisor Chanakya are well known the world over. However many individuals of Terra may have overlooked the great lives of Aryabhata and Brahmagupta. All the more easier to overlook in this time of national crisis and war.

The two of them grew up in Delhi and have been charged for some time with the maintenance of the great Stonehenge. Like Yajnavalkya many generations before, these two intellectual giants devoted themselves to the study of the stars. However not only did Aryabhata and Brahmagupta make incredible breakthroughs in astronomy, they have also contributed greatly to mathematics.

Publishing their findings in several books, the two men have collectively accomplished the following monumental advances in science:

* Accurately computed pi
* Explained and computed solar eclipses and lunar eclipses
* Expounded a heliocentric model of the solar system
* Accurately computed the length of earth's revolution around the sun.
* Invented the concept and application of zero

The two men were also intensely proud and took to naming things after themselves such as the Brahmagupta matrix, the Aryabhata algorithm, Brahmagupta's formula, the Aryabhata cipher, and Brahmagupta's theorem.

In addition to publishing their findings, the men joined together to found an Academy in Delhi. As a center of learning the Delhi Academy has no equal. With their great work and the Delhi Academy, India remains without equal in the field of scientific advancement, despite years of war and destruction caused by the Jewish invaders.

[The Capo]

Seville...

Alfonso finally got word of El Cid's passing, the old man cracked a devilish smile, "Rigoberto!" he said, summoning his servant.

"Yes my lord?"

"Go forth to Madrid, send this message to the house of Castilla, to Isidor de Castilla. Make sure nobody but him sees the letter, and that it is promptly destroyed once he reads it..."

Madrid, the Buddhist Temple...

The Guru Santo looked over the body of King Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar, he couldn't help himself but think he could have done better. A monk approached him "Guru Santo, please, we must meditate."

"Yes, let us go. Have you sent word to Prince Sancho?" the Guru asked.

"Yes, a response is coming. I was a bit disturbed, things don't seem well at the citadel. The minister, Bartolo Calderon, he seems to be in a bad condition. I believe you should speak with him, he knew El Cid well." the monk replied as the two entered the meditation chamber.

"I shall, at my first chance, visit the minister personally." the Guru knelt down to meditate.

"The war Guru, what of the war? Now that El Cid is gone, it will be difficult to get the belligerents to agree to peace, they would never follow a Prince."

"Well," the Guru began, "He is no longer a prince..."

The Citadel...

Bartolo Calderon of Cordoba stormed into the Prince's chamber, word of El Cid's death hit the Prince hard and he had been locked away in private meetings with General Mendoza and the settler from Salamanca, who turned out to be an Andalusian named Tariq ibn-Zayid; supposedly Tariq drove the cart that El Cid hitched a ride on when he snuck away from Madrid, but there was no proof. Simply hearing about the end of El Cid's life was comfort to Sancho who looked upon El Cid as a father figure, ever since his father Carlos Dodabella left his family to join forces with Bainor.

"Prince Sancho!" Bartolo said "This message you have sent to Queen Elizabeth is alarming, its tone is quite-"

"King Sancho," the Prince- err King replied "Have you met Tariq?" Sancho asked Bartolo.

"No, pleasure to make your acquaintence sir." Bartolo said, with a polite bow.

"The pleasure is all mine" Tariq replied "The great foreign minister of the peaceful, and might I add tolerant, Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar!"

"Oh you know of me?" Bartolo replied.

"Of course, any learned man worth his salt would know your name, its in the Monitor every week." Tariq said, Bartolo was a little uneasy about him.

"Well it seems you are well educated, very well educated for a wagon operator." Bartolo replied.

"Bartolo please!" replied the King "He is a wise and well-traveled man, he has an amazing knowlege of foreign lands, he could be useful to us."

"In what capacity sir?"

"Well, for one he will be replacing you." the King said, as he motioned for his guards to approach.

"I don't understand sire, what is going on?" Bartolo said as the guards approached him.

"They will not hurt you Bartolo, we just can't be sure exactly what happened to the King." General Mendoza said "It is a precaution, that is all."

"You can't be serious Mendoza!" Bartolo said as the guards grabbed him "This is insane, Sancho!"

Sancho turned his head away from Bartolo "I am sorry, it must be done, we must find out what happened to El Cid!"

Days Later, at the Castilla Estate...

Rigoberto watched as Isidor, drunkenly, opened the message from Alfonso, he looked it over for a moment and looked back up at Rodrigo "What is this supposed to mean?"

"I don't know what is in the letter my lord." the servant replied.

The letter contained a message telling Isidor that El Cid was dead, and the time was right to seize power from Sancho, Isidor didn't know what to do, so he let his passions take over... again, and drew his sword. "YOU! Come with me now!"

"What has come over you my lord?" the servant asked, he was frightened.

"I am drunk, and you just wrote my daughter's meal ticket!" Isidor said, as he poked the man in the chest with his sword "Come now, come along."

On the way out they passed Isabella, who still harbored ill feelings towards her father "What is going on?" she said when she saw the situation.

"Nothing, don't worry, you stay here. I will send for you, prepare yourself to meet Prince Sancho..."

[The Capo]

His Majesty Sancho Diaz de Barcelona, Duke of Barcelona, King of Aragon, King of Leon, and King of Spain.

TO: Open Letter to All Nations
FROM: Acting Foreign Minister General Cadrez de Cordoba.

As acting foreign minister I would like to inform all of your foreign offices that King Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar was found stabbed in the stomach in the forests outside of Salamanca. His own sword was used, and as it is highly unlikely that a man of El Cid's strength and honor would kill himself we have taken precautionary measures to sieze anyone who may be involved.

If you know of anyone who could have possibly been at fault for this, or hear anything about someone talking about El Cid, or joking about killing El Cid please inform the Spanish authorities as soon as possible.

Prince Sancho Diaz de Barcelona has now become King, and has officially decreed that the territories of Andalucia, and Aragon shall be officially added to the royal dominions, giving Sancho direct control over all of Spain's Kingdoms. He will honor every treaty and agreement of the late King Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar.

Thank you for your time,

General Cadrez de Cordoba.

[The Capo]

Somewhere in Russia...

General Francisco Pizarro surveyed the area, nothing but jungles. He couldn't understand the logic of sending him to the war in the south; regardless of what was going on. "Alright men, we'll make camp here, in this clearing." he said to his troops, he commanded a unit of Swordsmen from Seville that were supposed to head towards the Indian-American border in order to report on what was going on.

"General, we're going to need to stop somewhere and replenish our supplies, we are already half-way through our rations, and hardly half-way through our trip" Colonel Hernan Cortez told him.

"Alright, well, where are we?"

"I think we're in Russia, close to the border with India sir."

"Alright, we'll have to ask the Russians for food, send a courier to find the nearest city and request rations, send him with a purse in case the Russians demand money." Pizarro ordered, he was disgruntled; he had been sent on a pointless mission simply because of peace talks. Why peace talks? What does Spain care about the war anyway?

It was at this point that a group of soldiers approached he and the Colonel "Sir, I have been sent by King Sancho of Barcelona to inform you that your mission is over."

"You mean PRINCE Sancho." Pizarro replied.

"No sir, here, read this letter, it will tell you everything." the soldier handed Pizarro the letter, it did have the King's ensign upon it.

"What has happened to the King?" the General asked as he broke the seal.

"Everything you need to know is in that letter, King Sancho says he will still try and hold the peace summit, so he wants all of the standing army in Madrid for a parade." the soldier explained.

"That is quite ridiculous, a parade?" Pizarro asked, "For what?"

"I don't ask questions sir, I simply follow orders, ready your men for the morning, they shall get to return to Spain..."

The Citadel, Madrid...

"Get out of my way this instant!" Isidor barked at the man blocking his way into the King's chamber, the man's name was Tarik ibn-Zayid, he had recently befriended the new King after telling him about El Cid's whereabouts (among other things). The new King had taken a liking to him, mainly because all of his current advisors were friends of El Cid who seemed to harbor a bit of disrespect for Sancho.

"Anything that goes to the King goes through me first, I am his new Royal Advisor, and I insist I read your message, and who is this?" Tarik asked.

Isidor had a sword held at a man's throat, he was Rigoberto; the servant of Alfonso. "He is a friend of mine, its none of your business, I am Isidor Bainor de Castilla, and I demand an audience with Sancho."

"I thought you were not to leave your estate." Tarik said.

"How would you know something like that?" Isidor asked, "Get out of my way, you aren't even Spanish!"

"I am Andalusian, just as Spanish as you are!" Tarik replied, he was insulted.

"If you say so, get out of my way you half-breed!" Isidor yelled, pushing Rigoberto to the floor and drawing the sword at Tarik, the door opened.

"What is going on out here?" King Sancho said, a young woman was then escorted from his chamber followed by two guards "Tarik, who is this?"

"He says he is Isidor Bainor de Castilla, and that he has an urgent message for your ears only." Tarik explained.

"Anything you say to me, you say to Tarik." Sancho explained, "come on in Isidor."

A few minutes later...

"This is quite interesting indeed, and you are sure this hasn't been falsified?" Sancho replied after reading the letter Isidor had. It told of the entire plot to kill El Cid, and now the plot to take over the government from Sancho. It described exactly what to do to install a new King, one married to Isabella, Isidor's daughter, who would carry on the Castillian dominance of Spain.

"No, not at all sire, I can show you exactly where he lives as well." Isidor explained.

"Why didn't you come to us sooner?" Tarik asked.

"I assure you, I came directly. Ask him." Isidor said pointing towards Rigoberto, who was bound and gagged.

"I believe you, he wouldn't lie to me Tarik, my father Carlos Dodabella fought alongside his... something about this letter though, your daughter, Isabella." Sancho thought to himself for a moment, "She was the one El Cid was to marry to the Chinese, no?"

"Yes, my lord, before his passing he told me to prepare her to be married. She didn't want to though, she is a very well educated girl, being stu-" Isidor was interrupted.

"And how is that going?" Sancho asked "Our relations with China have been sour over the past few years. I'm going to send General Cadrez with you, you will go to China and get this marriage finalized, I want things to get done under my reign!"

Tarik looked at Sancho and raised his eyebrows, Sancho understood this look from Tarik by now; he wanted to say something in private.

"Well sire I was actually thinking that maybe she could come down here and-" Sancho again interrupted Isidor.

"I don't care what you were thinking, you will go with Cadrez, return to your home and we will send for you, that is all." Sancho said to him, Isidor bowed and left, his plans were ruined...

"Sire, this marriage to China, how important is it?" Tarik asked.

"Quite, they are a bordering nation, El Cid had always tried to get them to be more friendly with us, we must break their isolation, and this may be the only way to do it." Sancho explained.

"I'm simply saying sir, he is the son of Bainor, you are the son of Dodabella. They ruled Spain with an iron fist, and the Spain you rule now is stronger, better. By the way, if Alfonso was brother of Bainor, and was a conspirator against El Cid, does it not stand to reason that the house of Castilla still holds a grudge against your line?"

"And what does this have to do with China?" Sancho asked.

"Think about it my lord; we have no idea how deep this conspiracy runs, or if it is even over with, Isidor seems to be pretty loyal to you, or at least he wants to remove himself from the legacy of Bainor, and now this man Alfonso, his uncle. You stand to control the future of Bainor's line." Tarik explained.

"Yes, I will marry it off to China."

"You think that is a good idea? Giving them a foreign country to influence, a foreign army to influence? Sancho, think about it, if you marry Isabella to China the house of Castilla could use her to get Chinese support against you, IF this conspiracy is real. This could all be a ruse by Isidor." Tarik explained.

"So what do you suggest Tarik?"

"Well sire, you should marry Isabella. You would re-establish the old alliance of Dodabella and Bainor, however you are not hated as Bainor was, and nobody knows who Isabella is. It would unite the nobility, and would destroy this conspiracy once and for all. Not to mention you now would directly control Bainor's line, making it more difficult for this Alfonso to get support, besides you need an heir. Your offspring with Isabella would have complete royal legitimacy." Tarik explained.

Sancho thought for a moment, "Tarik, I knew I liked you, go, get Isidor bring him back here. No, no, better yet, send for them tomorrow, I will prepare a feast..."

[The Capo]

His Royal Majesty Sancho Diaz de Barcelona, Duke of Barcelona, King of Aragon, King of Leon, and King of Spain.

TO: The Incan Empire, Russia, England.
FROM: Special Advisor to the King, Tarik ibn-Zayid.

His Royal Highness Sancho Diaz de Barcelona has decided it would be in the best interest of the safety of the Spanish people if all OPEN BORDER TREATIES with nations currently engaged in war be rescinded by Spain.

We understand that to some nations this decision may be seen as inappropriate, or even misguided, but I can only assure you that King Sancho has made His decision with every consideration in mind. There are simple reasons for this decision, and we hope the nations of Russia, England, and the Incan Empire (which we have Open Border Treaty with).

(1) Spain understands that the nations of the world see her as a viable ally, we have been approached by nations on both sides of the conflict and have told both of them that we do not wish to enter the war; simply stated we don't want one of these nations to hold us in contempt for such a denial, so we do not want their troops to enter our territory.

(2) Our rejection of both sides reasons for the war lead us to reject helping both sides in any way shape or form.

(3) Finally, our territory sits between both Incan and Russian territory, we do not wish for the war to come to our territory, thus we will deny both armies from reaching the cities of Huamanga and St. Petersburg respectively. In the interest of peace, and the safety of both cities, which have been friendly neighbors of Toledo for centuries.

We will maintain our Open Borders Treaty with the Chinese Empire. They are neutral as we are, and share in our peaceful religious convictions. We hope that the three nations effected by the King's decision do not hold our people, our Kingdom, or our King in contempt.

Peace be with you,

Tarik ibn-Zayid.

[The Capo]

Quasi-OOC: While I was talking to a few of you, it was apparent that my country's family tree is a little confusing, so I went through the trouble of making one for everyone to see so they can tell just who I am talking about.



Alright, this may still be confusing so let me tell you what's going on:

-The question marks are unkowns, that history was old, previous to Spain becoming Spain so there is no written documentation, any documentation as destroyed by Bainor.

-Bainor de Castilla, Evita Contreras de Cadrez, Maria Teresa de Hapsburg, Evita de Castilla, Carlos Dodabella, Elena of Aragon and El Cid are all dead;

Bainor died of a disease.

Evita Contreras de Cadrez died in childbirth (ancient birthing practices were not very safe).

Maria Teresa de Hapsburg died of a plague.

Evita de Castilla was killed along with Carlos Dodabella during the civil war's battle of Madrid.

Elena of Aragon (along with her child) died in childbirth.

El Cid killed himself.

-Another interesting thing to note is that General Contreras de Cadrez (simply called General Cadrez by his contemporaries) is the uncle of Bainor de Castilla, and the great uncle of Isabella de Castilla.

-The little crown logo represents those who have been, or currently are King.

[OzzyKP]

Originally posted by The Capo

El Cid killed himself.

Or so we are led to believe....

[The Capo]

Somewhere in the outskirts of Seville...

General Cadrez was getting quite old, and in his mind way to old for this mission Sancho had sent him on. Duties were duties, however, and he enjoyed the opportunity he had to get more acquainted with his nephew Isidor. The time was not good however, because they had to bring Alfonso to Sancho, but before that they had to prove Isidor's case, and validate the letter.

"I don't think you quite understand the situation Alfonso, we go way back, I know what you know, so you can't lie to me." General Eduardo Contreras de Cadrez said to Alfonso, who was bound to a chair.

"Come on Eduardo, you know I won't tell you a thing. Don't play stupid for Isidor here, the idiot, there's no point. He wouldn't know what to do with good information if it bit him on the-"

"Shut up, you old bastard, shut the hell up!" General Cadrez said, over the dead body of Rigoberto, the servant of Alfonso.

"General Cadrez, take it easy." Isidor said, he couldn't stand to see Alfonso in pain, knowing that he was his uncle. "He's an old man, he's feeble, he isn't a threat to Sancho."

"He's a threat to everyone, the peace El Cid has worked for, just for this!" the General said as he punched the old man in the face.

"C'mon!" Isidor said, as he grabbed the General and pulled him back "Not like this, bring him before Sancho."

Alfonso collected himself "Please Eduardo, tell the young boy what is going on here, tell him where we come from."

"Alfonso, you're trying your luck now!" the General motioned for one of his guards to hand him a sword, the guard obviously obliged him. He quickly pointed the sword point directly between Alfonso's eyes.

"Listen you old vulture, there's a reason we exiled you, there's a reason we destroyed the records of our past, and there's a reason I'll run you through right now unless you tell me who else is involved." the General was not playing.

"Alright, alright." Alfonso said, he was almost out of breath, "But I need water, I am going to fall ill if I don't get any water, I can barely speak."

"Cadrez, put this old man on a cart, and send him to Madrid, he's of no use to us here." Isidor argued.

"No, Isidor, he could die at any moment," General Cadrez replied "he's older than I am. No, he's going to tell us who's behind this now.."

Madrid...

The feast was prepared with all the elegance available to Sancho, he wanted nothing more than to impress upon Isabella that he was a strong King. Tarik, for his part, had gone through great trouble ensuring that Isidor, Isabella's father, and General Cadrez, Isabella's great uncle, were nowhere to be seen; they wanted nothing getting in their way tonight.

Isabella, for her part, was overwhelmed. She hadn't left the Castilla estate for nearly her entire life. Even when she did leave it was under strict cover so nobody knew the line of Bainor was still alive. El Cid had made great strides preventing a civil war from breaking out again among the supporters of Bainor and his enemies. She was very happy she got to leave the house, but was obviously nervous to be surrounded by so many people of such high stature.

"My lady, I am sorry to put you in such a situation." Sancho whispered to Isabella, "I promise you, we will have a wonderful time this evening together."

The young woman smiled at him "thank you my lord."

"You are out of your mind!" Gaspar Guzman de Olivares said to Hector Emilio Sepulveda, duke of Cordoba. "If you sincerely believe the English and Inca have a case for this war you are out of your mind."

"It is you who are foolish, to believe this Indian and Russian drivel. Anything foul the Russians don't like are sent our way, look at Toledo, that place is a hell-hole!" he said, mimicking insects crawling around with his hands "The Jews are powerless dogs, they are mere barbarians, and the Russians would have you believe they were a powerful demonic horde. Please! Spare me!"

"But what would Spain do when we're accused of being a powerful nation, once the Indians and Russians are overwhelmed by these barbarians?" Olivares replied.

"Exactly what we are doing now! Nothing, we even left the Empire to a boy!" the guests went silent, as all eyes turned to King Sancho.

"I'm sorry, Hector, Emilio, Sepulveda... could you please repeat that." the King said, staring dead into the duke's eyes.

"I'm simply saying, you are quite, y-young to be King, that is all sire, I didn't mean anything about your credentials."

Everyone couldn't believe what was happening, Isabella was a bit scared by what the King might do. He started blankly into the duke's eyes and cracked a smile.

"Yes, quite true, I am but a boy. And you are an old man. I am King, and you are but a duke. Better to be young and King, than old and a mere duke." the King said, smiling, "Let us not speak of this foreign war, it bores me. Let these Jewish filth try and rid themselves of their yoke, Spain will keep out of it. It is as El Cid wanted."

Everyone nodded in compliance, it was their only choice. Sancho turned towards Isabella. "So, my dear Isabella, regail us with your knowlege of foreign customs. I hear Isabella is quite well-read when it comes to foreign matters."

She was a little embarassed "Well, I um, in the palace I could only read, my family was supposed to be executed, but my father got El Cid to agree to an exile."

"I'm sorry to hear that, El Cid was a very merciful man though, such men are hard to come by these days." Sancho said as he placed his hand on Isabella's leg "But you don't have to go over that, tell us about India and China."

"I hear the Chinese want nothing to do with us, it has been so for centuries!" Olivares remarked.

"Well yes, but that is due to their fear of us." Isabella replied "You see, years ago when the Aragonese and Celts came, the Chinese saw what Castille did to them, they saw the war between Andalusia and Castille and they assumed we would extend it into China, ever since they've been isolated from us. You know, even the Guru Santo had trouble gaining an audience with their Emperor, and he is a Buddhist!" she couldn't believe she actually said that much, to this many people that she didn't know. It made her nervous again.

"That can't be why!" Olivares responded "They are planning something."

"No, they are a quite peaceful and tolerant people, moreso than we are truthfully." Isabella continued, "And India, that is the birthplace of civilization, did you know the Andalusians are ancient ancestors of the Indians?"

"How interesting!" King Sancho said "My advisor, Tarik, he is Andalusian, he could pass for Indian I suppose. The Andalusians are a bit taller though, and less hairy!" the King replied as the guests began to laugh.

"Yes, see Sancho is a spitting image of El Cid; they both try to include all of Spain's provinces, no matter how barbaric some of them are." Hector Emilio Sepulveda replied.

"What is that to mean?" Isabella asked.

"You know what it means," Hector said, laughing.

"I mean, certain provinces are better than others, its the way things have been." Hector explained "Everyone knows the order, Castille, Leon, Aragon, then the Andalusians.

"Well, I believe I must leave, I completely forgot that Isidor was coming to I could give he and Isabella a tour of the Citadel." the King explained.

"No, father will not be returning tonight, he had to leave with uncle Eduardo, they were going to Seville." Isabella explained.

"Hmm, I expected him to come, that is quite unfortunate. Well, I feel terrible, but I've given my driver the night off, I figured Isidor would come and take you from me." please, I shall give you the tour and we will make arrangements. He rose and turned to his guests. "Well, ladies, noblemen, we shall see you on another day, enjoy the rest of the meal, and the minstrels, please take some parting gifts with you as you leave as well." The two made their exit.

"The old I gave my driver the night off trick." Hector Emilio Sepulveda said to Olivares.

"Works every time..."

Months Later...

Isabella and Sancho were married, and had three children; Ferdinand, Isabella II, and Carlos V. Spain's two lines, the house of Aragon and the house of Castille had finally been united. The information given by Alfonso was priceless; there was a plot hatched by members of the house of the house of Aragon (Queen Yolanda de Aragon) Castille (the exiled Alfonso de Castilla), and a foreign power (who he claimed until his horrible death he didn't know the identity of) that had conspired to kill El Cid upon his return to Madrid. Yolanda and Alfonso were both resentful of El Cid's (a commoner) rise to the Monarchy. Unfortunately Bainor's extended nobility plot to control the Kingdom prevented this from happening, as they wanted a neutral party such as El Cid to take control of the Kingdom. The goal was to get El Cid out of the way so Sancho could come to power, and marry Isabella creating a powerful Aragon/Castille line with, and more importantly Alfonso and Yolanda behind the scenes. The only problem is they didn't expect Isidor to blow Alfonso's cover, and they also didn't expect El Cid to commit suicide. The timing was horrible, Alfonso named Yolanda de Aragon as his co-conspirator, and Sancho had no choice but to have her executed for regicide (he was still convinced that Yolanda and Alfonso had El Cid murdered). With these final issues tied up Sancho was in full control of Spain, and prepared to create his own policies with power firmly in his grasp.

His next order of business was to call his generals in from exploration; his men needed no intelligence on the war, it didn't matter, and it was none of Spain's business after all. The biggest military threat to Spain were the barbarians that lived in the nothern tundras. These pesky bastards had literally been a thorn in Spain's side; namely their frontier. Their camp had taken too much from Spain over the years, and they felt that the only way to ensure safe expansion was to take these barbarians out once and for all.

General Francisco Pizarro was called from India to command the troops; his mission was to brave the harsh tundras, find, and destroy all barbarians that served as a threat to the frontier settlements of Salamanca and Toledo.

But that was a different story...

[The Capo]

Toledo...

King Sancho and Queen Isabella arrived in Toledo with little to no fanfare; the arrival was kept secret, they didn't want a crowd of any type marking their arrival in Toledo. General Mendoza greeted them just outside of the city on horseback "Hola!" he said as he approached the royal couple "I see you have arrived with little difficulty."

"Clearly" King Sancho said "Have the soldiers arrived yet?"

"Sire, they are still far in the south, I have recieved a letter by courier though, and Pizarro says he shall be here soon. It is difficult to move so many men through the dense Raina Jungles." Mendoza replied.

"No matter, we must plan this assault. Did you recieve a response from Sapa Inca Huascar?"

"Yes sire, he tells us that there is no barbarian camp directly north of Huamanga, but didn't mention whether or not they would send their forces, so I assume they aren't." Mendoza said.

"Ugh, that isn't good. Well if the Inca don't send their troops out, do we have enough men?" Sancho said, he was disappointed.

"Sire, our swordsmen are the greatest in the world, we will easily win the battle." Mendoza said confidently.

"You can't be certain about that General." the Queen replied "With all due respect our forces are untested, and the terrain is harsh, making such a statement is gross arrogance at best."

"My lady, I assure you our men will not fail." the General said, he was a little uneasy speaking to a woman this way, but he had no choice "The scum will be destroyed quite quickly."

"Very well," the King said "Let us see what this town has to offer."

A few hours later...

Isabella and Sancho dressed as peasants so they can survey their frontier settlement, it was a lively town as workers were busy building roads, and farmlands. There was construction in the town as well, and Sancho wanted to oversee it, but in a covert manner. General Mendoza accompanied them, and Sancho was a little angry about the fact that while he and his Queen took efforts to look like normal Spanish citizens, the General wore his full military dress.

"Wearing your uniform defeats the purpose of our clothing, no?" Sancho asked the General.

"You never know when there will be an attack, I can assure the soldiers will respect me in this attire, that is why I wear it." the General replied, he was growing a bit tired of Sancho's attitude.

"Wow," Isabella said "That building, is that a Christian church?"

"Yes, these Russians come here and they set this church up, its temporary, apparently they are going to begin construction on a nicer one. Its a waste of time if you ask me." The General replied.

"The church or Christianity?" the King asked.

"Both really, but I did mean the church. They're lucky your Majesty allows them to bring their religion here, in Russia they'd be killed for sure for such brazen disregard for the Monarch." the General explained.

"It doesn't bother me." Sancho replied "As long as they pay their taxes they are fine with me."

"Let's go inside!" Isabella said, she had a love of history, and foreign cultures "I want to see what goes on in there!"

"My lady, they are Russian filth!" the General replied "Even their own country would not have them, that is why they are here, it is no place for a woman of your status."

"I don't think where I go is your concern." the Queen replied sharply.

"Then we will go." The King said "It's okay Mendoza, they are our people now, we will go see what they do, think of it as a learning experience."

"Yes, its the day their lord, this Jesus, supposedly rose from his tomb." the General explained as they approached the church.

"Rose from his tomb? He came back to life?" the Queen asked.

"Well, I'm not exactly sure what they believe, but apparently he is the son of their God, Jesus is, and he arose from his tomb back to their God's dominion. It's strange." Mendoza said.

"Indeed" the King said "Well, let's go in, I'd like to make this quick Isabella, I am starving."

"Alright, let's go, it won't take me long, I don't want to stay for the entire sermon..."

[OzzyKP]

SEVENTH SESSION 580 AD

India(Gandhi) - OzzyKP
America(Washington) - CyberShy
Germany(Bismark) - LzPrst
France(Louis XIV) - Levi
China(Qin Shi Huang) - condor223
Russia(Catherine) - Dangime
Spain(Isabella) - TheCapo
England(Elizabeth) - Deity
Mongolia(Genghis) - AI
Inca(Huayna Capac) - NicodaMax

[Frank Johnson]

Merc General Lord Dangime Wages Years of War on Behalf of the Russian Throne

Rising from obsurity in the Spainish Russian hinterlands, Dangime came to prominance when the Russian council of nobility appointed the young mercinary Lord General of the Army of the Czar. He was intrusted with war time powers, and rarely did any members of the royal family leave the protective confines of the royal fortress in Moscow. For the duration of the War, Lord Dangime was the effective ruler of the Russian people.

The Early War
The first task thrust upon the young general was the defense of Novgorod from the armies of the English and Incans, who out numbered the embattled defenders by a wide margin. The city was already surrounded by the time the council granted Lord Dangime his war time authority. Before reiforcements from the capital could be rallied the city fell under the sword of the vile English, who fought neither for lands, nor gold, nor Gods, but trampled the lands of other nations for sport and cared little for their gains.

With this the council was in an up roar. When Lord Dangime redirected the relief force for Novgorod, for the defense of the motherland, the talk within the capital hit a fevered pitch. Lord Dangime knew that the relief force was not enough in the face of two fierce enemies in the Inca and English, who had already brought their thrist for blood to the Holy City of Madras. With a mommentary pause in the fighting, Lord Dangime executed a risky attack strategy in the Northern Hinterlands, where an Incan village had been established. These people were easily overcome, and months later they were paraded in the streets of Moscow in chains to build public support for the war, which had already taken a great toll on the Russian people. High from his pedestal, Dangime raised his axe, "We will take the fight to the lands of our enemies. They shall know no rest while our army prowls their lands." To this great cheers arose from the crowd.


The Great Siege
The Russian army was now a respectable force and was moved to the Northern Vodka region. The positioning of the sizeable force in the area forced all the enemy troops out of Russian possessions and into a defense of the city of the Incans. The English finally came to the Aid of the Incans, and the three armies equalized each other on opposite sides of the Vodka river. Alas, for decades none of the armies would budge from their hardened positions. The Russian troops had to take pride in that the army's of two nations were held prisioner within their own lands by the might of the Russian Army.

Battle of Copperfield
During the Great Siege, out of enemy occupied Novgorod came an Incan Army. Loosed, or perhaps ignored by the English Army, they marched alone toward the Russian Capital. Compared to the army of the Siege, the Russian capital guards were ill prepared for the coming battle. A group of horsemen from the Russian hinterland entered the capital at that same momment. When they heard of the impending threat, they setout alone to meet the enemy. Only after hearing of this bravery was Dangime able to convince the Garrison of Moscow to follow them to meet the enemy at Copperfield. Led by the frontier horsemen, the Russians came to a swift victory over the Incans. Never gain would enemy forces set foot in the Russian Motherland.

End of the Great Siege and the Coming of Peace
After years of work, the Russian Army had constructed amazing devices of Indian design intended to breech the high walls of the Incan Fortress of Vodka. The army pounded the fortress for months, biding their time until their position could overcome that of their combined enemies.

Meanwhile in the South, the Russian relief force arrived in Madras, the Holy City, and witnessed the final destruction of the Jewish hordes. A cheer arose at once from the crowd at the temple. "Onward to Novgorod!"

However, the enemies of Russia had lost their taste of war after only a few encounters with the Merc King Dangime. By agreeing to end the long seige, English and Incan forces left the city and the Russian Army marched into the town in victory. Lord Dangime set out to turn the devestated town of Novgorod into an amazing fortress, the likes of which had never been seen before. With the war over, Dangime stayed with the Army of Novgorod, knowing all was not well, he saw to the next conflict, but that is a story for another day.

[OzzyKP]

Since the score chart doens't always tell the whole picture, I'm gonna start making lists of everyone's city counts. So here is the city count for everyone after the change up this session:

Session 6 Number of Cities:

Spain - 7
Russia - 6
India - 5
China - 6
America - 5
Mongols - 1

Session 7 Number of Cities:

Spain - 8 (+1)
Russia - 6
India - 6 (+1)
China - 6
England - 6
Germany - 6
Inca - 4
America - 4 (-1)
France - 4
Mongols - 1

Just so y'all know, I get the info by opening the save and bringing up the diplomacy screen with each of the AI powers. I don't make any deals, but it lists all the cities available for trade on the left. So I count them and add one for the capitol to get the city count. For session 6 I don't have info for the several powers that won't speak to me since we are at war. So if one of the "Star Alliance" folks want to let me know I can update my list.


And in the spirit of peace and reconciliation, India chooses to release classified information about our production capacity, troop levels, and other important information to the world: