Beyond the Pit [Pitboss Diplomacy Game] [Story Thread] . PART 4 (November)

[Pitboss Vikings]

now to sneak through wyandot territory !!!

[Pitboss Korea]

The Piercian Coast...



After many long months of travel, from Seoul around the Great Eastern Mountains and the Gobi Desert, north past the Mayan jungles and the Sugar-Cane islands, beyond the Island of Cozumel and through the waters of the Estherian pirates, and beyond the Roman coastline the crew of the K.S.S. Sinjeong (along with their new pick-ups at Mutal) had arrived upon the Piercian shores! Much had changed in the world during their voyage, and they had no information since they embarked from Mutal. Shut off to the world the entire crew had no idea that war had broken out amongst the Romans and Russians, that an alliance of western states (Greece, Oldonia and Japan) had formed to combat the Roman war-machine, and that Sparta and Korea had fallen into a terrible impasse, resulting in the end of relations between these ancient friends. This of course was not their main concern...

Kim Jong-seo walked upon the coast, with no armor gripping his sword handle, "Are we sure this is Piercia?" he asked, the land was desolate and there was no sign of civilization, "Its only rock and sand!"

General Han Gong looked at a map, he was joined by Hae Mosu the imperial foreign minister, "Anything is better than my treatment in Tikal!" the minister said, still complaining months later.

"Still bellowing about that?" Han Gong said, looking at the maps provided by the Piercians in Mutal, "Looks like the right spot, we are far past Satricum, in a desert, this looks right, south of here should be a peninsula, and to the northwest we should find Piercian territory."

"Well General, how far would you say the journey will be, to the city that is?" Kim Jong-seo asked.

"Quite a distance, we should break camp here, where the land is flat, and soft. According to my orders General Jumong should be in Pierced Hill, and we should travel there first, just to let him know we have arrived. If I follow this map correctly the ship can travel beyond the peninsula to Mi'Ting, it will take longer to travel than we will, but there's no way to carry this ship all the way accross this desert." Han Gong said.

"Before we go to Pierced Hill we have to visit Horse Valley." Hae Mosu said, everyone looked strangely at him.

"Horse Valley?" General Han Gong said, looking back at his map, "What the hell is in Horse Valley?"

"General, with all due respect I have my orders directly from the Emperor!" Hae Mosu lied, "Its on the way, we must travel to Horse Valley!"

Western Wyandot Territory...

Harald stared blankly into the horizon, he was quite confused about his role now. His country had effectively declared war on Rome, and had thrown their lot into this conflict between the Romans and Russians. They had done so at the behest of the Spartan Greeks under Perdiccas II. This meant that relations with Korea were also closed, and Harald felt awkward travelling with his Korean entourage. He had no choice though, Jumong had indeed saved his life, and had saved him from the boredom of Gateway, he had also managed to get him an officer's position in the Oldonian army. He owed a great debt to Jumong, and to leave him now would be foolish. Besides that, Harald had his own reservations about Oldonia's role in the conflict....

"What are you doing?" Bak Moon asked Harald, who was deep in thought.

"Oh, um, nothing" Harald said shaking his head, "I've just got a lot on my mind you know."

"Yeah, I understand" Bak Moon replied, "Better not let the General see you doing that, he already doesn't trust you now that your countrymen have closed their deals with us."

"It wasn't me who did that!" Harald exclaimed.

"Well, with all due respect the General did save your life, and we did help put Kevin upon the throne. And the thanks for that? Closing his deals with us! That isn't very fair is it?" Bak replied.

"I never said I agreed with it, just because I'm Oldonian doesn't mean I agree with that Moon!" Harald said, "But what about Rome? Invading Russia!"

"We Koreans don't know much about the Russians and Romans, but as far as I know Russia has invaded Rome before, and they pillaged and sacked the city of Mediolanum. The Romans say they never received their payback for that, and now they took it into their own hands." Bak Moon replied.

"Roman lies!" Harald said, angrily, "The Romans did the same to Portugal, there is no difference. They lied to the Spartans as well, and you Koreans trust them?"

"I never said we trusted them Harald" Bak Moon retorted, "We don't know them well, but as far as I can tell Russia is just as guilty as Rome in this situation, we should let them fight it out and not effect our own relations. Korea, Maya and the Greek cities have always been friendly, and now that we are dragged into these stupid NORTHERN powerplays we have been blacklisted!"

"For supporting the Roman Imperialists!" Harald barked, he took a deep breath "Look, I understand you are not intending to help, but if your ports trade with Rome you indirectly support their army, King Kevin is right about this, and you know it."

Bak Moon shook his head "Korea does not trade with Rome, our ports are much too far for it to be reasonable, Greece yes, Piercia yes, Oldonia yes, but not Rome (this is true BTW) its a simple fact. You simply want to drag Korea into a fight that is not our own!"

"But you do not agree that we, as smaller countries, must stand up for those of our ilk? Of those being bullied around by larger ones?" Harald said, "Russia is small and weak, and Rome is strong and imposing!"

"Well, I don't know much about that. We have no contact with the Russians, and we hardly know the Romans. But as I've said, it isn't our fight Harald-"

"What are you ladies talking about?" Jumong asked, riding up to them quickly, "We're soldiers! We aren't dainty little diplomats, it isn't our job to figure out what is wrong and what is right. Now shut the hell up, we're heading in Wyandot territory now."

The Korean envoy had finally passed through Oldonia, and were now entering the Wyandot lands. While they did get what appeared to be a right of passage with the Wyandots they knew that Chief Tarhe had released a proclamation; any foreign armies marching towards war would be attacked if they numbered a certain size. In this case the Korean envoy was the exact number they said they'd allow, and Jumong was unsure whether or not they would be allowed through.

"We don't want them attacking us now, do we?" General Jumong said, "I'm not a f*cking Nip, I'm not here looking for a fight!" he said.

"General, up ahead!" Bak Moon said, he pointed to a rocky hilltop where a lone Wyandot warrior stood, he was called a dog-soldier. They got the name because in battle they would steak themselves to the ground, like a dog, and guard that one spot with their lives. They were known for their ferocity, but also for their nimbleness; they knew the terrain of their homeland well.

"Don't make any sudden moves!" the General said, as they continued forward, "Don't look directly at him."

"Sudden moves?" Bak Moon asked, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Shut up!" the General said, "Don't do anything stupid, we do not want to disrespect these people." he shot a look at Harald, "Because of that idiot Kevin, that WE put on the throne, we are losing all of our friends!"

"Don't blame me-" Harald began, Bak Moon grabbed his arm and told him to be quiet...

NEXT: The Birth of Gojong, Hae Mosu goes to Horse Valley...

[Pitboss Persia]

On the path of enlightenment

She has been in Korea for months now, meeting the Emperor and other interresting people. But noone got in touch with her the way the boudhist monks did. Their words and teachings, strange at first, were now constantly in her mind. Of course, she had many occasions to talk about other things, like the successes of the Shas'O in the Aztecan jungles, but in the end the quest for wisdom was her main concern.

It was a misty morning, and the shallow waters of the Han river were silently reflecting the pale moonlight. Dressed with a white silk tunic, she sat down in the slow stream and closed her eyes. Never had she used her gifts in Korea, but time had come to get a perfect moment. Her thoughts spread on the waters surface, bouncing on the tiny waves casted by the currents.

As she calmed her emotions and emptied her mind, the waves weakened, until the whole surface became perfectly flat. The currents were still there, beneath the surface, but the noise they made the surface make was chased away... silence, tranquillity... harmony.

But was it only the surounding scene that allowed her to breathe that beatitude ? Haven't the words of the Boudha inspired her this deeper feeling of her existance getting a new meaning ? Now she realized how far she had to travel and how long she had to live to find her path after having been searching for a destination instead for centuries.

She knew the jewish teachings to be based on fabulations. She knew what, yet to say who, was "up there". She also knew that only the other Aun'El was aware of that besides her. Finally she knew that in the end, she would have to face her. She who has been like a sister to her, and murdered the one who had been like a mother to her.

Yet she had to find a way to deal with her knowledge, a way to deal with the ignorance of others, a way to deal with the pain the disclosure of the truth will bring upon Asiz and a way to deal with the chamanhood and the jewish priesthood in Piercia.

This journey to Korea would soon come to an end, and she would go back to Pierced Hill. She would embrace her destiny as she embraced boudhism. She would live up to her inner potential.

But wait... what's that ? The surface lost it's perfect flatness as someone stepped towards her in the shallow water. She opened her eyes, and a now well known and appreciated face smiled at her. She smiled back, and the surface returned to it's normal state.

" Have you been observing my meditating ? "

[Pitboss Vikings]

The army continued eastward... it truly was a long march.

Spies in roman lands reported huge build up of troops in the border cities.

The loss of many Spartan lives was reported too.

Things were not going well.

But the Oldonians marched on. King Kev was a man of his word. he said he would goto Russia to aid them and so he would.

His son back in Oldonia was still encouraging the merchants to work harder to raise more gold. The scientists were eagerly working on their next breakthru.

But still this was not a war that many oldonians would be coming home from.

King Kev sent a messenger to the rus

Dear brothers in arms.

We are marching Eastward our arrival time is unknown. But till you call us off we will fight till the last mant.

[Pitboss Persia]

To : King Marco of Portugal, Tribune Hieronymus and the Senate of Rome

I hail both of you, neighbours.


I gladly accept the Portuguese mediation in the matter. And in order to get a worthy beginning of those emergency negociations that lie ahead, I will now state what I would like to achieve.

- As many lives as possible shall be spared. There already have been losses in that war, and they are more then enough.
- My vassal is to be returned the city of Pitrograd, which is very important for his already weak overall economy. They would like to recieve additional reparations for the damage done, but this is to be discussed, since Rome never got revenge for Old Mediolanum either.
- Rome shall understand that I do not want it to be harmed, and that I am truely working on a compromise here.

So, the first compromise I would be ready to agree to would be the following :

- The city of Pitrograd shall be returned to russian control immediatly.
- Trade with Rome shall resume.
- My vassal shall be allowed to sign commercial deals with any other civilization, without any pressure from Rome or Sparta.
- Eventual agressive behaviour on either side, should it be Rome or my vassal, shall be punished by piercian military intervention.
- I shall still consider all remaining debts of Rome towards my Empire to be void. This would be a small sign of good will, and an apology for me coming back on my given word to Rome.
- I shall be allowed to deal with the missbehaviour of my vassal towards me on my own. Rome is to stay out of this affair. My vassal pledged an oath and it is my own and only my duty to make him understand that this was the best thing for him to do.

I hope we can reach an agreement quickly. My ultimatum is still valid.


Emperor Aun'O Asiz Asizia of the Piercian Empire

[Pitboss Maya]

The Diary of Oxocwa the Mayan


Discovered in 1836 AD within the archives of the Maya Sophia was a book simply known as "Oxocwa's Diary". It is broken into three chapters called "Journey to Meeting", "Journey to the New World", and "Journey to the other side of Terra". The text is considered historically significant as it documents the Mayan age of discovery through the eyes of Maya's greatest explorer, Tuma Oxocwa.

Oxocwa in many respects may have had more influence over the fate of the Mayan Empire then any single leader. The maps he brought back to Pacal II, Mel Gibson, and Pacal Voltan (aka Pacal III), helped dictate much of early Mayan foreign policy as well as feed a hunger in these leaders for expansion. His writings and the diary in particular provided entertainment to the Mayan upper class, and shaped the way common Mayans viewed other races.

The following is an excerpt from the beginning of chapter II, Journey to the New World...


Day 10.12.14.6.4
It has been over 60 days now since our boat the Mayan Ship Braveheart sailed out of Mutal in search for what the Portuguese call "New Portugal" and Mayans have been instructed to only call "The New World". Mel Gibson is obsessed with this new land! He deeply fears that the Portuguese will claim all the good city sites before Maya can develop a boat capable of transporting settlers. Personally, I don't understand why he is so bent on settling this land. Rumors about the new landmass report massive jungles. Don't we have enough jungle back home? Who am I to question a god however. I just do my job making maps and documenting the fascinating civilizations I come across.

Day 10.12.14.6.6
The sea is endless and our supplies run low. Our captain, Unaxima had a slip of the tongue yesterday and admitted that he did not know exactly where the New World was, only that it was east of Maya. He assures us it shouldn't be much longer now, although really he has no other option but to say those things. Moral on board has hit an all time low. I think the sun and salt is getting to me. Curse my love of exploration, it always gets me into bad situations.

Day 10.12.14.6.10
LAND!!! Today our lookout reported land sighted through his optics tube. The crew is overjoyed as we have been living off half rations of food and water for the past several days. There is strong reason to belive this land is the New World as a Portuguese transport ship has also been sighted south of us. Another ship of an unknown flag has also been sighted. Unaxima has ordered the crew to ready their weapons, as a precaution he assures us. Apparently Mel Gibson and Marco of Portugal do not see eye to eye concerning this new land. My fear however is not that the Portuguese will attack us, but that Unaxima may have been given secret orders from Mel Gibson about what to do if Portuguese ships are spotted.

[Pitboss Persia]

To: Chief Tarhe of the Wyandot Nation

Greetings Chief,

It is the first time in my reign that I adress you directly, and I know that the Empress Iris always spoke highly of your wisdom. I would like to read what your opinion about the current situation is.

I have recieved your announcement stating that you won't allow western troops to pass on your lands in order to join the war. I respect your attitude and offer my assistance in case any western civilization should try to force passage through your lands.

Consider this as a reward for your quick assistance during the reign of Empress Iris. You can count on me.

I would understand if you choosed to answer to this letter in private.



Emperor Aun'O Asiz Asizia of the Piercian Empire

[Pitboss Vikings]

ok war is off this jsut stinks..

just when game had a chance of getting interesting.

Guys look for a Replacement for me. i will continue to play till a sub is found.

[Pitboss Maya]

The Death of Mel Gibson

"Come quickly!" stifled a Sophia Servant to the High Priests. His hushed voice and fearful eyes indicated to the Taoist leaders that something was dreadfully wrong.

Upon entering the bed chamber of Mel Gibson their fears were confirmed. Mel Gibson lay dead. The large purple wound on his neck was a tell tale sign of a Silk Spider bite.

Unlike worm silk found in other parts of Terra, Mayan silk was collected from extremely poisonous spiders. The keepers of these spiders were well versed in the proper techniques of harvest and were seldom bitten. Silk Spiders however could also be found in the wild, and occasionally in the bedrooms of the unlucky.

The High Priests looked at each other with dread. The lack of Mel Gibson's leadership was not what they feared, in fact most of the Mayan elites felt Gibson was an awful chief. What they feared was that the spell would now be broken. Mel Gibson translated into "The Creator", and he was widely regarded as a living god. Gods are not suppose to die however, especially from the bite of their own creations.

For several weeks the High Priests kept the death of Mel Gibson a secret, but as with all good secrets it was leaked. A mob formed outside the Maya Sophia and demanded to see Mel Gibson. The priests, reluctant to try and pass the rotting corpse off as the living chief did nothing, and the gates were eventually stormed.

Mel's body was found, the priests killed, and word of the living god's death spread rapidly through Maya. Taoism now seemed like a grand hoax to many. Those old enough to remember Pacal II felt a great guilt at having forsaken their true leader for this barbarian impostor.

The following year was one of chaos within Maya. Without an official leader, and with faith in religious leadership at an all time low, the Mayan cities reverted into independent kingdoms ran by local chiefs. While this did much to restore order, eventually they began to distrust each other. In addition, Maya as a whole stagnated due to the lack of one common vision.

All the citizens, and most of the chiefs wished Pacal was with them again.

[Pitboss Korea]

The River Han, Midnight...

"Have you been observing my meditating?" Sal'Ly said as she looked up at Emperor Sejong, he was alone, and not in his normal ceremonial dress. In fact he was dressed almost like a commoner.

"You call that meditating?" he said solemnly, "That doesn't happen when I meditate." he walked towards the bank of the river Han and sat down on a large rock, "That water trick was quite interesting."

"It isn't a trick, its something that just happens..." Sal'Ly said, "You seem to be troubled Emperor, and you aren't wearing your normal bright clothing, that is something I'll miss about Korea, the colors."

"Well, ruling an Empire, even an insignificant one like Korea is troublesome. And I haven't had the most normal of lives you know," Sejong said, kicking a nearby pebble into the river, "You know I prayed in this river too, it changed my mentality, my outlook. But now, the shadows have fallen upon me again."

Sal'Ly slowly waded towards the Emperor, "You have a lovely Kingdom Sejong, and while your religion is strange, or at least your monks are, they are wise and its a great philosophy they have, very fluid, like this river."

"You don't understand Sal'Ly, my greatest friend has shunned me, half of the world has shunned me, and without this powerful friend Korea can not defend herself. And it goes on before that" Sal'Ly was both impressed and shocked that a leader of a nation was sitting upon a rock in civilian clothing, pouring out his thoughts, "All my life, all of it, was preplanned. I had no father, no mother, just ministers and nobles telling me what to do. I lose my friendship with the Maya, when Mel took over, to a degree, but a high degree. Then this conflict up north arises, and now my friends the Spartan Greeks shun me as well because I refuse to involve myself." Sejong sighed, "All of my ministers are away, up north, and who knows if they will return safely."

"Sejong, you worry far too much." Sal'Ly said, as she walked out of the river, "I was like that myself, but Subo has taught me-"

"Hah" Sejong laughed "Subo is a good man."

"He is a wise man, you should take counsel with him, I too have witnessed murder Sejong, it was horrible. And I must soon return to Piercia to avenge it. But there are many paths to any end Sejong. You must realize this, and of course it is always darkest before the light, things will turn around." Sal'Ly said, she took his hand, "Stand up Sejong.

Sejong stood up and Sal'Ly embraced him, he felt awkward at first, this was not right, he was a married man, and then a calm overtook him. Like nothing he had ever experienced before, he almost felt numb. She let him go and smiled at him.

"What was that?" he asked.

"Go home Sejong" Sal'Ly said, "In the morning I shall leave with the Shas'O, speak to Subo, tell him what you have told me."

Sal'Ly began to walk away, "Good night Sejong, and good luck..."


Meanwhile at the Imperial Palace...

"Emperor!" General Shin Sung said, walking briskly through the palace, it was dark and the Emperor was still away at the Han river. "Emperor! Word from the Maya!" He walked into the study, and found Pacal Voltan in there, the General was startled.

"General Shin Sung." Pacal said, quickly looking up from his work; he was studying advanced mathematics, "What are you doing here?"

"I am looking for your uncle, the Emperor. What are you doing? Its late!" the General said.

"Oh, just working on my studies, I can't sleep, this particular problem is really getting to me, it involves the stars and their-"

"Well, that is good I suppose" the General said, interrupting the boy, "Have you seen Sejong anywhere, I have just received word from the Maya."

"The Maya?" Pacal said, he stood up from his chair, "What is it?"

The General knew the boy would be interested, he wished he had never told him, "You shouldn't concern yourself with such matters Pacal, its sensative information."

"That is my homeland General!" the boy said staunchly.

General Shin Sung knew the boy was right, and in fact this technically would give Pacal Voltan a claim to the Mayan throne, but most of all he knew the boy was smart, smarter than he was in fact. And he realized he wouldn't take this information lightly, "Well I shouldn't tell you this, and you can't tell your uncle I have told you, but its about Mel... you see, he died..."

Gojong of Goguryeo.

It was mere days after his meeting with Sal'Ly at the river Han that the medicine men reported Soheon's pregnancy. The priests foretold it would be a boy. Sejong named him Gojong. He listened to Sal'Ly and went to Subo, who gave him good advice; follow your own path, not the one provided to you. Sejong thought about this and realized what these words meant. He could not rely on the Greeks for everything. They had always been good to him, but perhaps their impasse showed him that reliance is not good, especially for a nation. With a new heir he had greater confidence, he would establish a dynasty that would rule Korea for centuries to come. While Sejong may have cleared his head of his troubles, this did not change Korea's position in world affairs; the Mayans were still ignoring much of Korea's missives, many of Korea's top officials were far away in Piercia (their ship was lost to pirates as well, thus trapping them accross the sea), and among their old friends the Greeks and Oldonians had still considered them to be enemies in their struggle against Rome. None of this mattered, and Sejong was now focused on leaving his son with a better Empire than he had when he came to power.

For Sal'Ly's part; she would return that very morning after talking with Sejong back to Piercia. The road would be long, be she had a newfound confidence. Rather than concern herself with the length and difficulty of her journey to Piercia she consumed herself with her surroundings. The sights, the sounds, even the smells of the various villiages and cities she passed through along the way gave her a greater appreciation of the world and her role in it. Although she would never again see Subo or Ji Gong, she would also never forget their words of wisdom. Or those of the Buddha. The monks had given her a small golden statue of the Buddha that she kept with her at all times, she would do this until her last days on the Earth... what she didn't know is just how long in the future that would be.

[Robert]

Originally posted by Pitboss Vikings
ok war is off this jsut stinks..

just when game had a chance of getting interesting.

Guys look for a Replacement for me. i will continue to play till a sub is found.

????
What stinks?

[Pitboss Rome]

Wise King Marco,

We are pleased to work with you in attaining peace in our lands. Your comments on the second Russian-Roman war have always been balanced and fair, though your neutrality was clear. You understand the lands and peoples of the north east of our fair continent well.

Our position is as follows:

1. Any agreement needs to lead to a secure peace. Of course this means peace with the Piercians. But of more concern is peace with the Rus. Currently the Rus are vassals of the Piercians but this will not last long. We have to look past that point. Thus for any agreement made now to be credible the Rus need to sign up for it, and the other guarentors of such an agreement (yourself, the Piercians etc.) need to make clear how they would enforce such an agreement, in practice, after the Rus throw off Piercian lordship. It is not reasonable to ask us to give to a nation which will immediately use that to built troops to attack us with.

2. Land. This has been at the centre of this conflict. In the first Russian-Roman war the Rus seized the land of Mediolaneum from us. In the second war we have reversed this. Mediolaneum itself is one of the richest sites in the world with copper, iron, stone and silver. New Mediolaneum is a poorer site, having only corn. You yourself commented publicly on this: “I see nothing wrong into asking for your property back, and that is what they want. They want Old Mediolaneum back … I trust fully that the Romans will return all taken in exchange for Mediolaneum”. Indeed we will. And we are happy to accept the poorer land of New Mediolaneum instead of Mediolaneum. But stolen land, a stone-throw from the heart of the Roman nation, is at the heart of this conflict.

3. There are other grievances we have:

– rape and pillage – in both the first and second Russian-Roman war the Russian chariots have spread across our land pillaging. Roman forces despite superiority in the second war have never pillaged, even though for a time we held all the rich mines surrounding the southern Rus city.

– the Russians never delivered on an exchange where they promised workers in return for Roman settlers.

– the expansion of Rus dominion west of the border of the Ren, which has meant their taking possession of cows, silver and copper.

We seek long-lasting peace and compromise, and we trust that others do too. We have tried to express our concerns clearly, but we are certainly happy to negotiate, though the basic principles in 1 and 2 - secure peace and land - are fundamental to us.

Let us work for peace; though sadly in the mean time we live under the threat of invasion.

The Senate of Rome.

[Pitboss Rome]

At dawn messengers in strange eastern costume arrive in Rome. Trumpets blowing they approach the Senate house and request entrance "We come from King Kev of the Oldonians bringing treaties of vassalage".

Shock and intrigue fills all who hear, people crowd into the chamber. What can this mean. These reknown warriors of the east, come here speaking of vassalage, these are strange times.

The chief envoy approaches the bench and hands over the scroll to Tribune Hieronymus "a treaty of vassalage" he states. The tribune opens and reads, his brow furrowed with concentration, until he bursts out laughing "but brave warrior, this is a treaty for Rome to become vassals of Oldonia". "I bring what great King Kev has sent" he replies.

"Sadly my friend, we cannot accept this generous offer of your lordship" replies the Tribune, but I can offer you some excellent Portuguese wine for your labours. Come.

As they walk out the Tribune confides to his secretary "I damn well nearly signed it! Its a good job I read the small print."

[OzzyKP]

psst, Vikings are west of you.

[Robert]

West is only an extention of east!