Mr. President's Travel Log

[Mr. President]

Between Two Worlds

I stand between two worlds. South at my back the jungles of Apolytonia stand like an army of titans. Under their shadow the people of the Banana were born, and there lies their eternal home. There is everything familiar and comfortable.

Looking north, I can see for miles into the land of the Americans. The men of the jungle become agoraphobic on the plains; the men of the plains suffocate in the jungle. Yet here lies the future of Apolyton.

For now, it is a matter not of if but when.

The fruit pickers and market stallers are leaving, hustled out of the danger zone by national guardsmen. The clouds of war are gathering, a war that will decide the future of Apolytonia.

Such is the nature of civilization. There must always be a winner and a loser, a conqueror and a vassal. If we win we will be vindicated. If we lose we will be forgotten.

The soldiers are waving me away now. As I hurry back towards the comforting leaves of the Apolytonian jungle, I steal one last glance at the plains. A storm is blowing south from the mountains, and the lands under its shadow are dark and silent as they wait for another storm, a storm of men and steel that will soon sweep in from the opposite direction.

[Mr. President]

This is what I was proposing in the "Idea For Flavor" thread. Comments? Questions? Death threats?

[notyoueither]

Bravo. Have fun.

[Decimus]

Very clever!!

[Kuciwalker]

I just did my own.

[Robber Baron]

Great texture, excellent stuff! I love it!

[Spiffor]

I wil kill you
No, seriously, it's excellent !

[Robber Baron]

This is nothing more than a * bump *
-- sorry, but I can't bear to think of this languishing on the second page. Our consitutional issues are pressing and grave, our political debate is lively and public-spirited, our strategizing is cunning ....
but this image is the essence of where we are at this point in the game. Do you feel it? We are perched on the edge of an expanse of open land. We are poised, for either glorious expansion or crippling defeat.
Okay, you can go back to work now.

[Edrix]

Great peice of work, there!
And I love how liberal use of the word 'Banana' to represent religion/deity has caused it to be commonly accepted without anyone even thinking it's a joke

[Mr. President]

Washington

Instinct tells me that I am too close to the war zone. Curiosity tells me that I am not close enough to the interesting events.

But I suppose the city itself is interesting. Aside from Lincoln's palace district, torched from the inside as American guards fell back before the advancing Apolytonian troops, there is almost no damage. It looks much as it did before the invasion.

Not that there are no signs of war. A chicken scurries across the cobbled path in front of me, hopping over a discarded helmet; the strut holding up a shop awning has three black-shafted arrows jutting out of it; a broken spear shaft lies expressively in the gutter.

And the inhabitants are clearly affected. They look . . . afraid. And in shock. The speed with which the garrison was swept aside meant that the citizens of Washington had no time to adjust to war. They went from their earlier lives to occupation almost overnight. The marketplace is subdued, people speaking in whispers like mourners at a funeral. Pedestrians walk fast and stare at the ground.

Life goes on, though. Though they cast glances of hatred at anyone who may be even remotely related to Apolytonia, they are also finding that our young soldiers are not monsters. Servicemen purchase vegetables and souvenirs, and drink the same ale as Americans. I doubt the bordello even noticed the change in government.

A beam from the setting sun is projected through the gutted window of Lincoln's palace several streets away, falling as if by design on an Apolytonian guard post, and the burnished armor of the soldiers shines like a star of destiny. For the land of the Banana, this evening is but the beginning of a long and bright day.

[rendelnep]

damn thats good stuff!!