Destiny of Empires II [Story Thread]

[Black Knight 427]

End of Edo Area Japan

The shogunate had become a weak governing body and the current shogun desired to give power back to
the emperor of Japan. So in the spring of 1020 Yoshinobu Tokugawa 15th shogun of the Edo area gave
control back to the emperor. The majority of Tokugawa’s retainers joined with the Emperor and by the end
of the summer the rest of Tokugawa’s army was defeated. With this victory the Edo area was done and the
Meiji period began.

With Japan now fully under his control Emperor Meiji sent out an address to all known and unknown nations of
the world:

The Emperor of Japan announces to the sovereigns of all foreign countries and to their subjects that
permission has been granted to the Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu to return the governing power in
accordance with his own request. We shall henceforward exercise supreme authority in all the internal and
external affairs of the country. Consequently the title of Emperor must be substituted for that of Taikun, in
which the treaties have been made. Officers are being appointed by us to the conduct of foreign affairs. It
is desirable that the representatives of the treaty powers recognize this announcement.

—January 3, 1030

Mutsuhito Meiji, Emperor of Japan

[Kenshin2]

Soon after he issued the orders for an attack on Tunis Ferdinand felt the political backlash of his actions. The nobles wanted respite from the fighting so they could take inventory of their lands and of their men, and the peasants didn’t want to support a war taking place in a far off land. Little did they know that the north of Africa was closer than the Holy Roman Empire.

“It must be because the word Africa has a kind of exotic mystic to it. In any case they will be happy when we start winning,” he said to his advisors as he unfurled a large map over the table.

“Yes sire, but who’s to say we will win. If the heretics were so entrenched here in Ibe- Spain, “ he corrected, the king had a strict policy about the use of the word Iberia, claiming that calling the peninsula ‘Spain’ would inspire a sense of unity among the populace, “ than their strongholds in Africa must be unbreakable.”

“You over estimate them Alfredo, their cities will fall just as Cordoba. And what’s more, sending him south will get Romiro out of my hair, and leave Aragon open to my influence,” he smiled.

“What are your plans for Aragon,” the older Advisor to Ferdinand’s left said with a frown, his bushy eye brows coming together to form one long caterpillar across his brow.



“Romiro has been a thorn in my side since before the Reconquista. I plan to dislodge him and install a vassal of mine. With Aragon the Spainish mainland will be complete. Bordered to the north by France we should be safe from any European threat.” With that he convened the council. Ferdinand couldn’t sit through anything longer than a half-an-hour. Smiling, he remembered his father’s councils. They would sit for hours deliberating over everything from taxes to war. Still he could hardly accept his father’s death. He knew that at any moment the man would walk through the door with his confident gait, muss his hair, and say, “You’ve done good son.” He was always encouraging like that.



“Sire!” A page burst into the room and fell on one knee before quickly continuing, “News from the south! Tunis has fallen!”
Ferdinand could hardly contain his joy, but managed to keep a dignified tone as he said, “Good, that will be all. Summon Alfredo, I need him to send a message for me. ” As the boy left Ferdinand afforded another smile. ”That should quell any doubts about the war.”

Alfredo soon emerged through the stone doorway. “Yes sire?”

“Send a message south to Ramiro I want every detail of the assault!” A few months later he received Ramiro’s answer:

Ferdinand of Spain,

I have taken not only Tunis, but also Tripolli. We hold all the major cities in North Africa. The siege of Tunis was especially bloody. We assaulted the city from the sea, and on our approach we met a Muslim Galley. It battered the fleet, but we made it through. Landing on the beach just outside the city we were assaulted with arrows from the city walls. By the time we got all the men and equipment on shore we had lost about half our force from the shower of arrows coming down on us. Once on land we took the city quickly with few casualties. After a week of organizing the city I sent my scouts out. They found that there was only a small force of Muslims left in Tripolli. Quickly I mustered my forces and I headed east to besiege the city. They surrendered before the first week was out. Once in the city I ordered my men to cut the heads from the city militia and stick them on stakes outside the keep. I figured that would keep them in line long enough for me to establish myself here.

Now that we must hold two cities my forces are spread thin and I’d like to request reinforcements from Spain. I have already sent letters to my lords in Aragon, and I hoped to get an army or two from your own men.

When Ferdinand read the letter he was irate.“Not only had the man gone and conquered another city without his permission, he had slaughtered surrendered men. No more.” He immediately arranged for the public to gather in the square in front of the Cathedral. An hour later he stood before his audience and said, “The King of Aragon, if he can be called such, has committed crimes of war, and has cast aside any and all chivalry. He has slaughtered surrendered, and helpless, citizens, and he has been making decisions without the permission from the Crowned King of Spain, myself. I hereby lay claim to his lands and revoke his right to rule. How can we Spanish allow such a tyrant to govern over our brothers in faith and in culture? No more. I am going to personally ride East and inspect and redistribute his holdings to the Lords of Spain. I ask any and all Lords, Dukes, and Kings who hear word of this to refuse to trade and/or fraternize with this devil of a man.” After his last words the crowd before him erupted into applause and cheers. ”There, that should remove my little problem.”

[MNGoldenEagle]

Victory was narrow as the Mongolian keshiks withdrew the remnants of their tattered forces from Pyongyang. Taejo resisted the urge to wipe his brow; he dare not show weakness in front of his generals. A tactical miscalculation had cost them a strong regiment of archers, a calculation he could not afford to repeat.

"Reinforce the perimeter," he ordered, and one of his generals withdrew with a nod. Time was not on his side; everything was taking far too long to get into motion, and the Mongols would return soon enough. He briefly considered contacting one of the neighboring nations, but he would be hard-pressed to convince Zhengsong to send aid when he had little to offer in return, and while he could probably make an arrangement with the new emperor of Japan, transporting them would be another matter.

A movement in the corner of his eye. He turned his head downward just slightly and looked at the reflection off of a highly-polished bronze statue of Buddha that his predecessor had left behind, thankfully not formed in his own likeness. It had been placed such that, from his vantage point, he could see virtually all angles behind him. In addition to being useful for security, it helped promote rumors of his omniscience. This time it was simply a messenger, a young boy barely old enough for conscription. He paused for a few moments to see if the boy would burst in with his news. The younger ones always thought that the hallmark of a good messenger was bringing news immediately and loudly; older, more experienced ones learned that respect and discretion were far more valuable.

The boy had either learned his lesson too well already or was simply shy, as he simply stood there unannounced, looking uncertain what to do. Taejo inwardly sighed. Someone will have to break him of that, but it wasn't going to be him. His eyes focused on the expanse of trees outside the city, and as soon as he felt the peace fill him, he murmured aloud, "Do you bring news, child, or are you here for the view as well?"

He chuckled lightly as the boy jumped, startled by his voice, then awkwardly fumbled into a pose that Taejo assumed was supposed to be at attention, but looked more like he was trying to wave someone down at swordpoint. "I bring a message from the scouts to the northeast. They have spotted a Mongolian encampment that looks to be forming into a village. They await further instructions, sir."

This was serious. If Genghis Khan was pressing closer to Korean territory, there was little doubt that they wouldn't be able to hold out against a major assault. It looked like he had little choice now but to entreat the assistance of the other nations, but failing that...

"Tell them to push closer and get a proper vantage of their settlement. I want to know how strongly protected it is; if we can take it out, then I want to move quickly, before Khan can move in his reinforcements. And boy, send for two runners as well. I have more messages to send." With a wave of his hand, he dismissed the boy and continued his observations of the turning of the leaves.

[DNK]

Ary glanced over her shoulder one last time, catching the glint of the rice fields as they were slowly erased by her moving perspective. The next time she looked back, there would be only grass and shrubs there, so what was the point? Her home was gone now, as was her community, her village, and her king.

Events had progressed rapidly in her generation. What was only a figment of the imaginations of the more paranoid among her people had blossomed into the total destruction of her world, and had done so in under 10 years.

After Funan had fallen in the South, the foreigners from the coast had paused little before carrying on to Lovek and capturing the old hub of the past empire. In the wake of this defeat many had fled towards the lake and floodplains, others into the many mountains to the west, and others still up the great river to the north, into Sambor and Vat Phu, though they were hardly welcomed there.

The small Tonle Alliance had collapsed as soon as Lovek fell, and with that the kingdom of Roluos -her home- was now directly facing down the oncoming menace. The collection of independent cities in the plains between the rivers also collapsed as panic swept through and a mass migration began. Though the villages of these lands still remained, few were left to watch their fields.

By this time, regular raiding parties were invading deep into Kompong Thong, Sambor, and Roluos' southern half. Due to their long-standing fueds with Beng Mealea, Roluos was affected less than Kompong Thom, which had little experience with armed conflict, and was weak. The invaders sensed this, and the entire kindom of Kompong fell apart within 6 months of Lovek's fall.

Desperation filled the eyes of everyone Ary saw then. They realized, communally, that their time remaining was short. Whether through flight or combat, their lives were to be ruined, set to fire, and the ashes dispersed along the great winds within months. Though, that final assault was postponed, it seemed, so that the far stronger and more important kingdom of Sambor, with its great river city, could be captured.

As her family and neighbors waited anxiously, a clearer picture of the invaders filtered in through passing migrants. Though most migrants were treated with open hostility by her village, so long as they moved through within one day they were unmolested, and generally their stories were highly valued. As such, and given that the village could hardly carry all of its stores of rice with them when their time came, great feasts were put on regularly for the migrants. It was a show of respect and humanity for those whose fates the village itself would soon enough be sharing. Best to share their good fortune now as well.

[Calanthian]

Mongolian girl rejoices as she gets the news that she can once again meet her able Chinese lover.

[Black Knight 427]

As per the request of King Taejo of Goryeo, Japan is sending Samurai to help in the defense of Korea.

[Carthage (DoF)]

.....

[DNK]

"...once acquired, the power long sought turns invariably into harsh control, as the insecurity of the newly enthroned demands strict compliance with the Will. As a child with a toy, the ruler seeks to enjoy that which he has dreamed of for so long, forgetting that much in dreams is either uncontrolled or controlled only by the very recesses of the mind. This strict imposition of one man's order create conflicts within the realm, which in time come to occupy his focus and efforts rather than those original dreams..."

[LzPrst]

The Dream of Reunification of the Roman Empire
an account by the Count de Treauxchet

These words are words of a dream. A future of what could be if only men desire to shape the circumstances so.


The unexpected death of the German King Toni causes the throne to fall to his only and sickly son, Bernhardt, whom few German nobles wish to follow. The Italian nobles, long wishing to free themselves of German rule, rebel and seek support at the hands of the ill and dying King Louis VII of France who welcome them as a part of France. King Bernhardt of Bremen leads his armies south, but the devious Count Freiboldt of Salzburg who is next in line for the German throne lures the imbecilic young king into an ambush. Unfortunately both the King and the Count perish in the battle, and the Salzburgian nobles naively seek support against Bremen with the King of France. Louis the 7th agrees to support Salzburg against Bremen on the condition that they swear fealty to the French crown. The nobles take the offer, and the next month, French Knights smash into Bremen to ensure that the nobles there choose Louis' son related through his mother to the previous German King, as the new King of Germany.

Shortly after, Louis VII dies of dysentery and various venerial diseases and his son Louis is crowned the 8th of his name, ruler of both France and Germany, reuniting at last the lands of his ancestor, Charlemagne. With all of continental Europe in the hands of a legitimate ruler of both health and wisdom, the future of Europe is bright.

Louis the 8th is then crowned Holy Roman Emperor and thus solidifies his rule on all his holdings, making him in effect, the new Emperor of the Restored Western Roman Empire. Glory to Rome!

This is of course only one way towards unification, but I believe that such a lofty goal should be the aim of all Monarchs of Europe.

Count de Treauxchet

[LzPrst]

Celebrations in Paris as a vast Library is opened with the task of collecting as many manuscripts and books from the ancient Roman and Greek civilizations as possible. According to a declamation by Louis VII, "It is the right and duty of every priest, monk, scribe and noble who seek wisdom, to study the Classics."

Currently, any traveller to Paris must declare to local customs officials any books he is carrying, which if not in the library, will be copied. So far the books and manuscripts number in the thousands and continue to grow in number every day. The library itself was built with the Library in Alexandria as a model and as such can potentially in the future hold millions of books.

[Black Knight 427]

A messenger bird arrived to the imperial palace. The message read:

“Emperor,

All samurai have safely landed on Korean soil. We have all gathered at rally point. Mongolians approached and
we declared war on them. Moving to take Mongolian city will report after.

Kenshi Takeda, Commander.”

After hearing this report Emperor Meiji made the declaration of war official. He ordered his other generals to
gather there forces and move across the sea to join the Takeda Forces.

[DNK]

They called themselves the Viet, of Dai Viet. They were Chinese, or something close to it. The Khmer had only limited contact with the outside world, especially in that insular and secluded land of Roluos, so there was little context for them to use to form a full understanding. They certainly looked and spoke and acted Chinese, much like the few merchants from that distant land that inhabited the major cities. Yet, there were some distinctions, though Ary could not quite grasp their importance. Regardless, these were a primarily coastal people, though they also were highly adept farmers, who carried with them advanced cultivation techniques that put the Khmer at a decided disadvantage.

Their arms were superior, as was their leadership and overall technical ability. There seemed to be a reason multiple Khmer armies had fallen to them, why the Mongols avoided them, and as to why they now passed through Khmer lands as though there were no resistance at all.

Where they met local Khmer, they had a general approach of dispossessing and killing those deemed high in rank, mostly as such men and families would own large estates the Viet usurpers had no intentions of passing up. For village elders and city statesmen, execution was generally reserved for the more rebellious; the few who managed to be complacent -as much as was possible- were allowed to retain their status, if not to improve it drastically as all the ranks were thinned.

Many villages were simply ignored. So long as they posed no direct resistance, they were passed by if they -as they usually were- were of no significance. Larger villages and those on major land routes and rivers were not so fortunate, and they were brutally pacified, if one can call near-total annihilation such.

It seemed the lands around Prey Nokor had produced an inexhaustible supply of ethnic Viet to fill in the large gaps now existing in habitation, though certainly much of the countryside would remain nearly vacant for a long time. Ary did not understand the source of this human fount, how any place in her lands could create such a flow of bodies.

The major cities, especially, saw heavy immigration of Viet, while thin groups and families came to rule over smaller towns and villages, and much of the land remained fully Khmer.

Rebellions and guerilla operations were carried out in the central plateau throughout this process, but this met will little success. Forestalling, frustration, small casualties, it was not the thing of legend, but rather of a crushing reality: The Khmer were no longer a force to be reckoned with. In fact, large foreign losses and long campaigns, mixed with decades of internal strife and conflict, and the loss of central authority and all the benefits it gave the people in terms of security and prosperity had turned the once unstoppable empire into a rural backwater, readily overcome and enslaved.

Yes, the slaves... The Viet were not Hindu, nor Buddhist. They seemed to have no religion at all, save a collection of Chinese superstitions intermixed with Confucianism. None of this prevented them from enslaving entire villages. Of course, the distinctions between legal slavery and tribute forced at the point of a sword are perhaps minor, yet there was a new level of degradation and loss of freedom that came with the creation of local courts and "human property" cases. The Viet seemed eager to punish all and any offenses, and many non-offenses, with indenture to the local family or leadership.

But many, feeling a total loss and the depression and apathy that comes with it, the full loss of self-respect that comes with such complete conquest and humiliation, put up little resistance. Slavery seemed omitted from the more important cities, as well, such that it was the countryside and small towns that suffered from it. For those working with the Viet in Lovek, Funan, and Sambor, slavery was not an issue, and as such the resentment it brooded did not exist in the true centers of remaining Khmer life. There, only poorly paid service work was the analogue. The Viet, through brutal punishment, heavy bribery, and strong integration, controlled those cities fully by the time the dust settled. And the smaller towns they controlled through slavery and through the cities, their armed garrisons, and the influx of lawyers and bought-off Khmer notables that came with them.

[Black Knight 427]

After months of travel the Takeda army reached the first Mongolian city. Night had already fallen as the
Takeda forces set camp on top of a hill overlooking the city. The city was small but well defended so Kenshin sent spies in to set the city on fire before the attack. Morning came and as the sun rose the spies began their job setting the city a fire. Takeda’s me formed lines around Kenshin.



He stood up signaling his commanders.



His men then ran into the city. They cut through the Mongolian defenders as if they were paper.


Kenshin was under strict order to eliminate the city and all its inhabitance so he gathered the survivors into the only building not on fire. He then turned away as his men set the building on fire burning the survivors alive.

[MNGoldenEagle]

"Our men send word that the Japanese samurai have eliminated the Mongolian city to the northeast. It will only be a matter of time before the rest falls to their hands," announced the messenger. Taejo nodded and dismissed the man with a wave of a hand, turning back to the window overlooking the ocean. Despite the captivating view, his attention was entirely on this recent bit of news. He was thoroughly pleased that the Mongolian threat was as good as finished, which meant he could focus his attention elsewhere where it was more desperately required. In fact, this was the best thing he could have asked for.

Those samurai... they frightened Taejo, though he never admitted as much. He could see the same thoughts reflected on his generals' faces, however, and knew they too could see just how easily the samurai could turn against them. They were in the Japanese emperor's good graces for now, and that was important. The Japanese had use for the Goryeo, and Taejo intended to make sure that they maintained a strong relationship with them. Of course, a general lack of resources meant that everything took far too long, and he wasn't sure how patient his allies would be.

Then there were the Chinese. Huge, prosperous, virtually bursting at its seams in gluttony. Also very likely well-armed, and after the Mongolians were dispatched of, Taejo was uncertain what Zhengsong would do next. Everything the monks and merchants told him suggested that having the Chinese as enemies was undesirable, and it seemed likely that if left alone, they would not take action against the Goryeo, as their land was small and not nearly as fertile, and the land to the north only grew more hostile. There were few tactical advantages Taejo could think of, but then again, he knew of many battles fought for lesser reasons. He could only hope such battles would not happen in his near future.

[Calanthian]

Mongolian leaders have pledged elaborate oaths to the Chinese banners.



Because we have conquered Karakorum, they were convinced that that was the wise thing to do.

The Chinese elite troops were able to secure the city at minimal losses, while even attacking across the mighty river.