Partly because I was bored and partly for the interest of the TNPer public, I have taken the liberty of listing every major thread related to the Great War Saga in IC chronological order, as well as my summary of the events in the saga. While some threads started earlier than ones before them, the thread list is based upon its relation to the Great War Saga and how its events played out into it. As the Saga continues, this thread will be updated.
We'll start with the Nebulan invasion of Syrixia. This was how Nebula came onto the international scale. Socialist partisans in Syrixia began to riot as they wanted the separation of Parliament from a unified assembly into an assembly of political parties. Eventually these socialists hatched a deal with Nebula, an expansionist (and socialist) nation in the northeast of TNP, to launch a joint attack agianst Syrixia and create a socialist Nebulan puppet state there. Eventually Syrixia agreed to split Parliament into political parties and the socialists subsequently signed a treaty with the Syrixian government, turning on Nebula. Nebula and Syrixia, from that day forth, were sworn enemies.
However, the conflict did not stop there. It reignited in Rhuvanland, a small nation near Trinster. Rhuvanland was under incompetent leadership which put the country in economic Hell. Syrixia offered to give it economic assistance in exchange for it becoming a protectorate. Rhuvanland accepted however groups of conservatives in the western parts of the country did not, and the country was split into the Free Republic of West Rhuvanland and the Protectorate of East Rhuvanland. While East Rhuvanland prospered, West Rhuvanland was mired in a war as Nebula, always looking to expand, tried to install a socialist puppet state there. Eventually East Rhuvanland and Syrixia, as well as West Rhuvish forces, helped to repel the Nebulans, and the Nebulans then focused on another area; the small, governmentless strip of land Nebula dubbed "Galacta".
Some Galactans, however, were not content, and after Galacta was fully integrated and annexed into Nebulan territory, these people founded the Galactan Liberation Front and began to rebel for the cause of creating an independent Galactan state. The Nebulan government declared the GLF a terrorist group. Meanwhile, in Rhuvanland, the East had finally reached its economic quota for reunification, and with the promise of helping the West continue its recovery by the East in mind, Rhuvanland was reunified after a conference between Syrixia and Kannex, the latter of whom helped West Rhuvanland, though did not make it a protectorate as Syrixia did the East, which also received more economic aid due to their protectorate status. The newly unified Federal Republic of Rhuvanland condemned Nebula for its repeated fits of expansionism and imperialism, and began financing the GLF.
In response, the Nebulans condemned Rhuvanland for funding what they called a terrorist group, and threw up a blockade on Rhuvanland's coasts. During this time, there was a brief period of peace in Rhuvanland as all eyes were once again on Syrixia. The leader of the Church of Syrixia had been murdered and there was also a failed attempt on the life of the Prime Minister, Alfred Nursson. This was done by an extremist organization called the Order of the Loyal, that refused to accept the united Rhuvanland and wanted total separation of the conservatives from the liberals, which included a lack of relations. Eventually, troops from Syrixia and its ally Ceretis infiltrated the Order's HQ and disbanded it, but not before the Order kidnapped and killed the Cronaal Minister of Foreign Affairs, Eden Hall.
To make matters worse, Rhuvanland eventually issued an ultimatum saying that they would mobilize if the blockade was not removed and Nebula worked towards peace. Nebula did not want to work towards peace and did not remove the blockade, and after the murdering by blockade ships of the crew of an innocent Rhuvish trading boat that did not care for the blockade, Rhuvanland mobilized. Nebula, soon after, declared war. As Rhuvanland was a member of the Helmebaine Alliance, fellow members Trinster and Kannex declared war. Syrixia also entered the war, but indirectly, only supplying arms and vehicles among other things, as it was the occupier of NPTO's Deputy Chair, and did not want to set the image of a warring nation in a peace organization.
Meanwhile, in Cronaal, uprisings killed many as people were discontent with the murder of Eden Hall by the Order in Syrixian territory, and that Syrixia should have responded quicker. Syrixia apologized and eventually passed an act upping the ante on Syrixian security, but it wasn't enough. While the Cronaal government first sided with Syrixia, it eventually turned on Syrixia, albeit indirectly. The Queen of Cronaal, Diana II, grew insane and even tortured the Syrixian ambassador to Cronaal. She then declared war on both Nebula and Rhuvanland, and sent a fleet to Rhuvanland to wreak havoc and kill, with no other aims than that.
Kannexan and Rhuvish forces forced the Nebulans out of Rhuvanland and they moved to the Kannexan protectorate of Pelhafor, which was already mired in civil unrest and was on the brink of revolution. However by the time Cronaal's forces arrived at Rhuvanland they were surrounded and Nebulan forces were no longer present, as mentioned before. As Diana II grew more and more insane, Wolfish/Syrixian/Nebulan/Rhuvish forces pushed into Cronaal's interior. Syrixia had the Cronaal capital, Smithworks, surrounded, so Diana went kamikaze and detonated a nuclear warhead in a bunker under the city. Nothing and no one survived except the Syrixian soldiers outside the city and a few citizens.
After the tragedy peace was immediately declared, and Cronaal was temporarily split into occupation zones. Other than that, it was a white peace. However, tension between Nebula and Syrixia continued to rise, and Cronaal was partially unified into a socialist/communist northern Nebulan puppet state and a democratic/capitalist southern free state. This tension would only continue thanks to the Ryccian Civil War. The governing party of the nation of Ryccia, the Conservative National Party, had become more tyrannical and had recently banned all other parties besides themselves, turning Ryccia into a dictatorship. Two groups rose and rebelled against the CNP; the Nebulan-backed Workers' Army, and the Syrixian-backed Progressive Front.
Nebula was directly helping the WA, however Syrixia refused to directly help the PF, as they were concerned about the prospect of the conflict boiling over into another war, this time a nuclear one, as both Syrixia and Nebula had nuclear arsenals. Syrixia's was much bigger, however they refused to test theirs during the peacetime that preceded the Great War Era. Syrixia began testing nuclear bombs and most of them worked as planned. Nebula tested its first nuclear bomb as well, meaning both Syrixia and Nebula were now openly nuclear powers. Thus, Syrixia did not send troops to Ryccia, and instead gave the Progressive Front significant backing in nearly every other way except the direct way. Arms, vehicles, strategy advice, you name it.
This worked tremendously. The PF was able to take the Ryccian capital city of Daonlanthas and apprehend the CNP at the city of Castiana. More people sympathized with the democratic motives of the PF and many towns declared allegiance to the PF. The PF proclaimed itself the Republic of Ryccia and began a push towards the WA headquarters in the city of Kylosteia. Republic forces plowed their way to Kylosteia using a scorched earth policy, while other squads captured the remaining WA territory outside of Kylosteia. The WA forces fell back to their home city as it was surrounded by Republic forces. Both sides built fortifications and after a two-day stalemate, the Republic managed to break WA fortifications and poured in from all sides. Nebula, in response, began firebombing Republic troops in Kylosteia along with WA air forces, severely damaging the city.
Eventually, Republic troops got to the WA headquarters building and took its leaders into custody. The city was cleared of WA troops, however Nebulan firebombing was still underway and fighting was still ongoing outside of Kylosteia, where many WA soldiers tried to get past Republic lines by digging. Finally, though, the city was totally captured and the WA destroyed. The Nebulans retreated, instead opting to directly threaten Syrixia itself by setting up a missile launch center on a small unclaimed island, known as Shei Ren, just outside Syrixian maritime boundaries. Syrixia responded by setting up its own missile site in the city of Andromedazite, a Xentheridan exclave on the Nebulan home island. The world, at this point, came very close to nuclear war, however an agreement between Syrixia and Nebula ended the crisis.
Meanwhile, in Cronaal, troops from the previously neutral nation of Merconitonitopia, citing the South Cronaal government as weak and unstable, began to invade to create a Merconian protectorate in the region so as to strengthen the South Cronaal government. Syrixia was the first to respond as it had previously learned its lesson from Rhuvanland. Syrixia gathered the Helmebaine Powers together and many, such as Kalti, Ceretis and Syrixia herself, criticized the Merconian invasion. However, Merconitonitopia still continued. Merconian Chairman Tom Per asked Chester Kray, now the South Cronaal Prime Minister to allow South Cronaal to become a Merconian Protectorate. Kray said no. Things then began to rapidly escalate into a small war. Merconitonitopia, at this point, was well into attacking the city of Oakshire, in the southeast of South Cronaal.
The Helmebaine Powers, seeing the continuing of the invasion, threatened Merconitonitopia, whom then stood down and called a poll. Outnumbered and outgunned at the hands of the Merconians, South Cronaal voted "yes" to become a Merconian protectorate. Meanwhile, many of the other Helmebaine Powers as well as some other nations voted "no", and South Cronaal's independence was retained. However, this was not the end of tensions, as over the past couple months, tensions had been rising in Rhuvanland between a coalition of both the liberal Rhuvish government and the conservative opposition against various Rhuvish socialist factions. The Rhuvish government had been trying diplomacy for weeks, but it did not prevent a full-scale, violent rebellion from unfolding in the northeastern parts of Rhuvanland.
The Rhuvish government put the country on high alert, and the Rhuvish Parliament, or Bundestag, authorized mobilization of the Rhuvish military. The Rhuvish Ambassador to Syrixia, Hans Marenheim, reported the incident to the Syrixian Parliament soon after the declaration of high alert was released by Alzenstadt, as did Rhuvish ambassadors and diplomatic missions in other countries. Following the report, the Syrixian Prime Minister released an order of cease-and-desist to the rebels. However, the rebels remained all but silent following the order's release, and eventually, Syrixia declared war on the rebels. A Syrixian force of 5,000 was deployed in Rhuvanland following the declaration of war.
Meanwhile, in Rhuvanland, as Alzenstadt was now half-surrounded, The 5,000-man Syrixian force, which had doubled into 10,000 via reinforcements, came in to help push the socialists back. The force once again split and attacked each part of land around Alzenstadt, widening the ring around the city controlled by Rhuvanland. Meanwhile, most of the Rhuvish forces were called away to deal with a socialist uprising in Bürheim, which had already gripped most of the more populated areas of the province under socialist rule. As the Syrixian forces, who stayed behind, continue to attempt to push the socialists away from Alzenstadt, the Syrixian Navy moved in near the northeast to blockade the coastal areas of Rhuvanland under socialist control, preparing for an amphibious attack on socialist territory.
Plans for a counterattack were cut short, however, when socialist forces managed to connect their exclaves in Monamien and Bürheim to the main swath of socialist territory, as well as pushing back the western part of the Syrixo-Rhuvish-made Alzenstadt Ring and once again looming closer to the Rhuvish capital. Then, socialist uprisings began to occur in Dunorien, the state where Dunorion was. In fact, this new part of the socialists' territory was very close to Dunorion itself. Socialist forces seized this opportunity and began to march towards Dunorion. The former capital of Rhuvanland was still Rhuvanland's financial capital, and Dunorion was also the undisputed titan in Rhuvish trade and commerce, dwarfing Bürheim City, the second largest city in Rhuvanland, via its sheer size. Dunorion was also the state capital of the state of Dunorien, meaning the entire state would easily fall into socialist hands if her capital were to be taken.
However, the Rhuvish forces there, along with Kannexan troops that were patrolling the coast, took a stand. Syrixia was out of the picture, as it was busy with other garrisons defending Alzenstadt. Thus, Rhuvanland and what Kannexan troops were in Dunorion were visibly in danger. Socialists continued to advance through the city, killing every government official they could find and shutting suburbial civilians in their houses for so-called "safety". Rhuvish troops continued to pound the socialists with gunfire from sniper points on the rooves of buildings, however these points were being taken over systematically, one by one. Rhuvanland was obviously on the defensive and possibly on the losing side of the war. The Bundestag dispersed, all going to Kolenenburg, a small town far west of Bürheim City on the west coast of Rhuvanland. Crossing dangerously through socialist territory, the Bundestag, including the Chancellor, boarded a large boat supplied by Syrixia. This boat was en route to Balamb, where the Syrixian Prime Minister had invited the Rhuvish leaders to for safety.
The rebels were advancing further into Dunorion. Government buildings were in flames. The rebels seemed unstoppable. Meanwhile, rebels in commandeered boats patrolled the oceans. Hastily added guns swept back and forth, searching for trouble. Meanwhile, the Kannexan Rhuvanland Task Force, consisting of a carrier battle group and a squadron of defensive surface ships, continued to patrol the seas in conjunction with the Rhuvish forces. They bombarded rebel coastal positions and blockaded the coast. Rebel naval forces were no match. A single missile downed a rebel boat; the hard part was finding rebel forces on the sea. Still, the Kannexans and Rhuvish held naval supremacy.
In the Dunorion sky, steel birds swooped above steel towers with supersonic speed to deliver explosive power to the battlefield. Smart bombs trained on rebel tanks and positions, engulfing men and vehicles in flames before they could even see the planes. Further back in rebel territory, as the rebels had come out of the guerrilla strategy and were now actively holding and administering land, the Kannexans now had clear targets to bomb. Rebel headquarters found themselves under attack every single day. Airfields were rendered useless as waves of anti-radiation bombs followed by smart bombs disabled rebel radar, wrecked rebel runways, and destroyed command towers. The rebel advance was slowed.
The gray sea waves rocked the fishing boats tied to the piers as the Bürheim winds howled. The sky was white and featureless and scarcely anything could be seen in them, not even the wing of two hundred metal raptors that raced high above the Rhuvish coast at supersonic speeds. Closer and closer they advanced into rebel territory. Bombers flew nearer to the ground, while fighters watched from above. When they reached their targets -- rebel airfields, gunner positions, barracks, tanks, any of the few naval vessels the rebels had -- they struck. Hatches opened in the hulls of the great metal birds and huge pill-like bombs fell from the sky like candy. The first bombs hit the ground. Flames and smoke arose, engulfing the rebel positions. Wave after wave over a hundred miles of coastline, targets were located and destroyed.
Then came the helicopters. The buzz of chopper wings filled the air as a swarm of Kannexan Navy helicopters approached, blaring Wagnerian music on stereos to frighten the poor rebel bastards. Then the attack really began. Machine guns rang out, shooting hundreds of rounds per minute. Rebel troops ran out with their AK-47s but their bodies were torn apart by lead. Autocannons and rockets exploded rebel positions and tanks. Soon the burning corpses of tanks and men could be seen in the streets of Bürheim State's coastal towns. At last the helicopters touched ground, crushing buildings in the process, and the men of the 1st Marine Division of the Imperial Navy landed and began spraying enemies with fire. They took government centers, communication centers, armories, and railway stations.
Kannexan Marines secured the beachhead at Bürheim and began pushing inland. Another 4,000 troops of the 1st Marine Division landed following the first day of the amphibious assault. Now the count was 14,000 Marines on the ground, swiftly striking into the Bürheim heartland. Mechanized infantry on tanks and armored personnel carriers struck, bashing rebel defenses. The few vehicles possessed by the rebels were no match for advanced Kannexan machinery. The Marines advanced north, cutting off the supply route to rebel forces attacking Dunorion from the west. The Imperial Navy now struck naval bases held by the rebels and scuttled ships before they could be taken. However, in some cases, the rebels were hit with something else. A hundred men in black uniforms popped their heads out of the water and threw grenades onto the decks of ships. They climbed aboard and blasted their way through the vessels. Helicopters landed in shipyards and seized back naval yards and ships from the rebels. The Imperial Army 5th Infantry Division, 14,000 men, landed in Dunorion. The rebel troops' advanced pushed at the pace of a snail hammered by tank guns, mortars, and machine gun fire.
Meanwhile, two 5,000-man boats were en route to Rhuvanland to provide reinforcements to the Alzenstadt Circle, however now surrounded, the Syrixians there prayed the Kannexans and the Syrixian reinforcements would be able to get to them from Bürheim soon. Alzenstadt was in danger, and once that town was taken, Rhuvanland would be lost. Meanwhile in Dunorion, the socialists had the Dunorion Governmental Palace surrounded. This was the former home of the East Rhuvish Federal Council, and was now the home of Dunorien's state government and Dunorion's city council. If that building, the Alzenstadt of the city, was taken, Dunorion would be lost too. Soldiers in the Alzenstadt Circle and Dunorion fought for their lives and for the life of their country, but more and more people either got shot down or deserted. Back in Bürheim, Guslant and Ceretian troops entered the scene. This day also saw Xentherida proclaim its neutrality.
As the Guslants were in Bürheim securing the area, Rhuvish soldiers secured the coasts, and the Syrixians pushed towards the capital district. The Alzenstadt Circle was finally broken by the rebels thanks to both attrition and death on the Syrixian side, and the rebels were now poised for an attack on Alzenstadt. Eventually, the rebels began to charge into Alzenstadt, with the Syrixians not far behind. Forcing quickly through the outer city, the rebels took over most of the Alzenstadter suburbs, taking a few offices and shops here and there. The Syrixians, meanwhile, had pushed their way in a line through the Federal State to Alzenstadt, and were just outside the city. Meanwhile, in Dunorion, the rebels became surrounded by Syrixo-Rhuvish troops. A massive rebel retreat began. Rebels began pushing out of the city in a coordinated retreat. Saboteurs remained in the city, along with explosive charges, ready to make the government victory pyrrhic. Back in Alzenstadt, the rebels set up a defensive line in preparation for the Syrixian attack. Meanwhile, tanks began to push deeper into the city from all sides. The Nebulan commanders never bothered with a pronged assault when an attack from all around would do.
The Guslants, seizing such an opportunity, developed a new strategy. Guslant General Akerman would force her way west toward the Rhuvish border. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General John Delford would head south toward the shore. Finally, General Grace Scottsfield would head north to try to regain lost land by the Allied powers. This sudden and brutal three-pronged strategy would aid the Allies well. However, time was running out. The rebels continued to work their way through the streets of Alzenstadt, reaching the Bundesregierungspalast, the government palace of Rhuvanland, surrounding it, as well as taking over more of the outer city and a few mid-city streets. However, in the south of Rhuvanland, the attack had started and the Allied powers were gaining ground. Each side now had around 50% of all Rhuvish land, and the Syrixians had just reached the city boundaries of Alzenstadt.
Rebel tanks didn't hesitate. Clouds of smoke and dust soon surrounded the palace. Occasionally gunfire would ring out as an exposed Rhuvish soldier within the palace would try to take as many rebels out as possible, then be gunned down. Meanwhile, snipers and rebels with RPGs began firing on the flanks of the Syrixian advance. Fighting was chaotic in the Federal State. Syrixian forces poured into Alzenstadt, plowing their way to the inner city and the Bundesregierungspalast, which was surrounded by rebel forces. The Federal Guard was trapped inside, but ready to defend the building to the last. However, unless the Syrixians broke the defensive circle and reached the building, the Guard could not successfully defend it. Meanwhile, outside the Federal State, both the rebels and the anti-rebel coalition used pronged attacks to plow through the other's territory.
Pro-rebel uprisings also occurred in the far southwest of Rhuvanland, further adding to rebel territory. However, while the rebels pronged their way through southwest Rhuvanland, reaching the coast west of Bürheim City, the anti-rebel coalition's pronged attack was carried out near the middle of Rhuvanland, cutting the rebel territory in half. The rebels, desperate, began bribing pilots and subsidizing jetliners to get troops across the gap. The flight was dangerous, however, and detours over empty land were brought into use to minimize risk. Meanwhile, the outer walls of the palace were reduced to rubble. While the main force struggled to keep back the Syrixians, the rebels began to storm the palace and the Rhuvish troops stuck inside.
Since the Bürheim amphibious invasion, the Kannexans had allowed the Guslants to take the larger role in securing the state. Kannexan involvement in Rhuvanland numbered about 40,000. A fourth of this number served on sea and in the air as part of the Rhuvanland Naval Task Force. The rest were divided evenly among the 1st Marine Division and the 5th Army Infantry Division. The 1st Marine struck northern Bürheim in coordination with Guslant forces, cutting off what had been known as the Red Bürheim Corridor. Standard Marine tactics guided their movements. Ground-attack helicopters bombarded rebel positions in forests and burned-out cities as panzers rolled into the streets and blasted away communist opposition. Patrol boats raced up and down Bürheim rivers, establishing control of the basin.
Near Alzenstadt, the 5th Infantry saw heavy combat in the hills west of the capital city. Kannexan troops managed to establish a foothold in the northern bank of the river that cut through the city northeast to west. Large howitzers pointed at the hills and fired unceasingly like rolling thunder. Metal rounds struck unseen targets over the ridges, making smoke and fire. In a three-pronged attack the Kannexan mechanized infantry cut into rebel positions. Tanks and armored infantry carriers advanced. Bombers zoomed past and dark exploding smoke and fire erupted from rebel positions like blooming flowers. Helicopters were close by, pouring machine gun fire into rebel positions. Once the hilly towns west of Alzenstadt were captured, the flanks of the rebels would be threatened.
Rebels with machine guns and tanks, made by Nebula, retreated slowly and stubbornly. Every advance by the Allies was hard-fought. North Cronaal had begun shipping more advanced weaponry in as well, getting aircraft across the border to the rebels. Nebula had also put Shei Ren under rebel administration, and missile strikes from there were becoming common. The war was escalating. As the fighting continued in Alzenstadt, the international coalition gained land in Monamien and far eastern Rhuvanland. The Syrixians in Alzenstadt pushed towards the Palace again and again, finally reaching it after four bloody attacks. This, combined with the recent anti-rebel gains made the soldiers' morale skyrocket, however it was not to last. By the time they got inside the palace, they were in stunned awe. The walls were covered in blood, the bodies of the Guardsmen scattered across the floors. Rebels suddenly appeared out of every entrance one could think of. With the help of grenades, some were even literally coming out of the walls.
As the Bundesregierungspalast was now in rebel hands, the rebel leaders, assembled at the Belfruger city of Kälenburg, de facto headquarters of the socialist rebellion, proclaimed the Socialist Federal Republic of Rhuvanland. Formerly rebel, now-government soldiers, in a wave of destruction, pushed through Rhuvanland, once again gaining land. Surrounding the Kannexan regiment near Alzenstadt, the government soldiers leaped upon their adversaries, dealing huge damage to their garrisons. Seizing many Rhuvish naval ships as well as large groups of Rhuvish soldiers formerly working for the FR Rhuvanland, the SFR Rhuvanland's army slowly became larger than the FR's. Taking back lands on the far eastern coast and in Monamien, as well as a swath of land surrounding Alzenstadt, the government once more began to push towards Dunorion and Bürheim, inching closer to victory. However, resistance from the international coalition and the loyal remainder of the FR Rhuvanland's armed forces was staunch, and victories and defeats were won all over Rhuvanland by both sides. However, the push to Dunorion and Bürheim continued.
However, Kannexan leaders had an idea. On the island of Shei Ren, all missile launch sites found themselves under attack. First, anti-radiation missiles wrecked Shei Ren airbase radars and jamming systems. Then JDAMs guided themselves into airbase main towers and defenses. The second wave of bombers came and sprinkled cluster bombs on airbase runways, missile silos, and flight-lines. The third wave cleaned up anything that was left over. In response, North Cronaal declared war on Kannex. The full force of the North Cronaal navy began its counterattack on Shei Ren. Ten squadrons of fighters began their attack on the Kannexian fighters while the fleet began to draw in closer. Having destroyed their targets, Kannexan aerial forces withdrew from Shei Ren before the North Cronaalians could reach them. As there was much time between the attack on Shei Ren and the North Cronaalian counterattack, the Rhuvanland Naval Task Force was able to realign their formation in response to the new hostile elements. The majority of Kannexan ships remained undetected in the Syrixian Strait.
As the North Cronaal forces drew nearer, Kannexan nuclear submarines laid traps and attacked Nebulan surface ships and submarines. The submarines especially aimed for aircraft carriers. They struck with vengeful force before sinking in the depths of the ocean. As the presence of a submarine necessitated lengthy anti-submarine measures, the Nebulan fleet was delayed as the Kannexan fleet realigned themselves and prepared for the counterattack. At the fringes of the Kannexan naval formation, Kannexan corvettes and destroyers had began attacking their Nebulan counterparts. Newly-elected Chancellor Torsten Kesler declared it a necessity to "combat international communism and the red powers that dare disrupt the world order. It is our duty to defend peace-loving free nations against the scourge of communism." Nearly unanimously, Congress voted to declare war on North Cronaal. Chancellor Kesler called upon Kannex's allies to do the same.
Eventually, after fierce fighting, Kannex and Nebula signed a deal. North Cronaal would withdraw from Shei Ren, as would Kannex. Shei Ren would return to its former status as a Nebulan protectorate, and Nebula would not use it to launch missile attacks on Rhuvanland, on pain of starting a nuclear war. Meanwhile, SFR Rhuvish forces continued to push towards Dunorion. Taking the city easily, they then moved on to Bürheim, ready to wipe out the last remnants of the Federal Republic. However, little did they know that the Allies had something planned for their supply lines. As SFR Rhuvish forces captured the small surrounded area to the east of Bürheim, they prepared to converge on the main part of FR Rhuvish territory. Suddenly, however, an Allied attack on SFR Rhuvish supply lines occurred. However, airdrops as well as new supply lines continued supply exportation to the front. This did not mean the Allies were going to give up, though. Attacks continued as the SFR Rhuvish continued to switch their supply lines and get supplies to the front. It was a wild goose chase, but the SFR Rhuvish were still advancing.
Eventually, cornerning the remainder of FR Rhuvish troops in Bürheim City, the SFR Rhuvish launched a final attack. Syrixian and FR Rhuvish soldiers fell back to the city to make a last stand, successfully creating a sort-of hemisphere around it. They moved into rings of defensive formations along the border of the hemisphere, creating a hard defensive "wall" that the communists would be hard pressed to fight against. The communists, however, would not be so unlucky, as the soldiers did not have anti-aircraft missiles with them, and with the capture of Alzenstadt came the former FR Rhuvish air force. Syrixian air forces currently had air supremacy, however, so if the communists were to attack from the air as planned in order to make a path for their land soldiers, they would have opposition. This opposition did show itself, but it was quickly crushed.
Both Rhuvish citizens and soldiers, as well as Syrixian soldiers, were all evacuating the remainder of Bürheim. The Guslant soldiers fighting as well as the Ceretian medics also made a run for it. As he awaited a response, the remainder of the Syrixian soldiers got on their ships, followed by tons of boats of FR Rhuvish soldiers and FR Rhuvish citizens. Bürheim had been near totally evacuated. Kannexan soldiers were now all who remained against the communists. However, eventually even the Kannexans evacuated, leaving the FR Rhuvish and the SFR Rhuvish standing toe to toe alone. Communist troops triumphantly marched into Bürheim City, winning the final decisive skirmish and marking the end of the Rhuvish War. The same day, the Rhuvish government-in-exile was declared by Chancellor Agnes Liesel, which was to be headquartered in Balamb.
However, the communist victory did not sit well with the North Cronaal civilians, who were tired of their near-slavelike labor and worried that a communist victory in Rhuvanland would only expand Nebulan domination. They, along with Rhuvish civilians with similar worries, began to plot a grand revolution...
However, the conflict did not stop there. It reignited in Rhuvanland, a small nation near Trinster. Rhuvanland was under incompetent leadership which put the country in economic Hell. Syrixia offered to give it economic assistance in exchange for it becoming a protectorate. Rhuvanland accepted however groups of conservatives in the western parts of the country did not, and the country was split into the Free Republic of West Rhuvanland and the Protectorate of East Rhuvanland. While East Rhuvanland prospered, West Rhuvanland was mired in a war as Nebula, always looking to expand, tried to install a socialist puppet state there. Eventually East Rhuvanland and Syrixia, as well as West Rhuvish forces, helped to repel the Nebulans, and the Nebulans then focused on another area; the small, governmentless strip of land Nebula dubbed "Galacta".
Some Galactans, however, were not content, and after Galacta was fully integrated and annexed into Nebulan territory, these people founded the Galactan Liberation Front and began to rebel for the cause of creating an independent Galactan state. The Nebulan government declared the GLF a terrorist group. Meanwhile, in Rhuvanland, the East had finally reached its economic quota for reunification, and with the promise of helping the West continue its recovery by the East in mind, Rhuvanland was reunified after a conference between Syrixia and Kannex, the latter of whom helped West Rhuvanland, though did not make it a protectorate as Syrixia did the East, which also received more economic aid due to their protectorate status. The newly unified Federal Republic of Rhuvanland condemned Nebula for its repeated fits of expansionism and imperialism, and began financing the GLF.
In response, the Nebulans condemned Rhuvanland for funding what they called a terrorist group, and threw up a blockade on Rhuvanland's coasts. During this time, there was a brief period of peace in Rhuvanland as all eyes were once again on Syrixia. The leader of the Church of Syrixia had been murdered and there was also a failed attempt on the life of the Prime Minister, Alfred Nursson. This was done by an extremist organization called the Order of the Loyal, that refused to accept the united Rhuvanland and wanted total separation of the conservatives from the liberals, which included a lack of relations. Eventually, troops from Syrixia and its ally Ceretis infiltrated the Order's HQ and disbanded it, but not before the Order kidnapped and killed the Cronaal Minister of Foreign Affairs, Eden Hall.
To make matters worse, Rhuvanland eventually issued an ultimatum saying that they would mobilize if the blockade was not removed and Nebula worked towards peace. Nebula did not want to work towards peace and did not remove the blockade, and after the murdering by blockade ships of the crew of an innocent Rhuvish trading boat that did not care for the blockade, Rhuvanland mobilized. Nebula, soon after, declared war. As Rhuvanland was a member of the Helmebaine Alliance, fellow members Trinster and Kannex declared war. Syrixia also entered the war, but indirectly, only supplying arms and vehicles among other things, as it was the occupier of NPTO's Deputy Chair, and did not want to set the image of a warring nation in a peace organization.
Meanwhile, in Cronaal, uprisings killed many as people were discontent with the murder of Eden Hall by the Order in Syrixian territory, and that Syrixia should have responded quicker. Syrixia apologized and eventually passed an act upping the ante on Syrixian security, but it wasn't enough. While the Cronaal government first sided with Syrixia, it eventually turned on Syrixia, albeit indirectly. The Queen of Cronaal, Diana II, grew insane and even tortured the Syrixian ambassador to Cronaal. She then declared war on both Nebula and Rhuvanland, and sent a fleet to Rhuvanland to wreak havoc and kill, with no other aims than that.
Kannexan and Rhuvish forces forced the Nebulans out of Rhuvanland and they moved to the Kannexan protectorate of Pelhafor, which was already mired in civil unrest and was on the brink of revolution. However by the time Cronaal's forces arrived at Rhuvanland they were surrounded and Nebulan forces were no longer present, as mentioned before. As Diana II grew more and more insane, Wolfish/Syrixian/Nebulan/Rhuvish forces pushed into Cronaal's interior. Syrixia had the Cronaal capital, Smithworks, surrounded, so Diana went kamikaze and detonated a nuclear warhead in a bunker under the city. Nothing and no one survived except the Syrixian soldiers outside the city and a few citizens.
After the tragedy peace was immediately declared, and Cronaal was temporarily split into occupation zones. Other than that, it was a white peace. However, tension between Nebula and Syrixia continued to rise, and Cronaal was partially unified into a socialist/communist northern Nebulan puppet state and a democratic/capitalist southern free state. This tension would only continue thanks to the Ryccian Civil War. The governing party of the nation of Ryccia, the Conservative National Party, had become more tyrannical and had recently banned all other parties besides themselves, turning Ryccia into a dictatorship. Two groups rose and rebelled against the CNP; the Nebulan-backed Workers' Army, and the Syrixian-backed Progressive Front.
Nebula was directly helping the WA, however Syrixia refused to directly help the PF, as they were concerned about the prospect of the conflict boiling over into another war, this time a nuclear one, as both Syrixia and Nebula had nuclear arsenals. Syrixia's was much bigger, however they refused to test theirs during the peacetime that preceded the Great War Era. Syrixia began testing nuclear bombs and most of them worked as planned. Nebula tested its first nuclear bomb as well, meaning both Syrixia and Nebula were now openly nuclear powers. Thus, Syrixia did not send troops to Ryccia, and instead gave the Progressive Front significant backing in nearly every other way except the direct way. Arms, vehicles, strategy advice, you name it.
This worked tremendously. The PF was able to take the Ryccian capital city of Daonlanthas and apprehend the CNP at the city of Castiana. More people sympathized with the democratic motives of the PF and many towns declared allegiance to the PF. The PF proclaimed itself the Republic of Ryccia and began a push towards the WA headquarters in the city of Kylosteia. Republic forces plowed their way to Kylosteia using a scorched earth policy, while other squads captured the remaining WA territory outside of Kylosteia. The WA forces fell back to their home city as it was surrounded by Republic forces. Both sides built fortifications and after a two-day stalemate, the Republic managed to break WA fortifications and poured in from all sides. Nebula, in response, began firebombing Republic troops in Kylosteia along with WA air forces, severely damaging the city.
Eventually, Republic troops got to the WA headquarters building and took its leaders into custody. The city was cleared of WA troops, however Nebulan firebombing was still underway and fighting was still ongoing outside of Kylosteia, where many WA soldiers tried to get past Republic lines by digging. Finally, though, the city was totally captured and the WA destroyed. The Nebulans retreated, instead opting to directly threaten Syrixia itself by setting up a missile launch center on a small unclaimed island, known as Shei Ren, just outside Syrixian maritime boundaries. Syrixia responded by setting up its own missile site in the city of Andromedazite, a Xentheridan exclave on the Nebulan home island. The world, at this point, came very close to nuclear war, however an agreement between Syrixia and Nebula ended the crisis.
Meanwhile, in Cronaal, troops from the previously neutral nation of Merconitonitopia, citing the South Cronaal government as weak and unstable, began to invade to create a Merconian protectorate in the region so as to strengthen the South Cronaal government. Syrixia was the first to respond as it had previously learned its lesson from Rhuvanland. Syrixia gathered the Helmebaine Powers together and many, such as Kalti, Ceretis and Syrixia herself, criticized the Merconian invasion. However, Merconitonitopia still continued. Merconian Chairman Tom Per asked Chester Kray, now the South Cronaal Prime Minister to allow South Cronaal to become a Merconian Protectorate. Kray said no. Things then began to rapidly escalate into a small war. Merconitonitopia, at this point, was well into attacking the city of Oakshire, in the southeast of South Cronaal.
The Helmebaine Powers, seeing the continuing of the invasion, threatened Merconitonitopia, whom then stood down and called a poll. Outnumbered and outgunned at the hands of the Merconians, South Cronaal voted "yes" to become a Merconian protectorate. Meanwhile, many of the other Helmebaine Powers as well as some other nations voted "no", and South Cronaal's independence was retained. However, this was not the end of tensions, as over the past couple months, tensions had been rising in Rhuvanland between a coalition of both the liberal Rhuvish government and the conservative opposition against various Rhuvish socialist factions. The Rhuvish government had been trying diplomacy for weeks, but it did not prevent a full-scale, violent rebellion from unfolding in the northeastern parts of Rhuvanland.
The Rhuvish government put the country on high alert, and the Rhuvish Parliament, or Bundestag, authorized mobilization of the Rhuvish military. The Rhuvish Ambassador to Syrixia, Hans Marenheim, reported the incident to the Syrixian Parliament soon after the declaration of high alert was released by Alzenstadt, as did Rhuvish ambassadors and diplomatic missions in other countries. Following the report, the Syrixian Prime Minister released an order of cease-and-desist to the rebels. However, the rebels remained all but silent following the order's release, and eventually, Syrixia declared war on the rebels. A Syrixian force of 5,000 was deployed in Rhuvanland following the declaration of war.
Meanwhile, in Rhuvanland, as Alzenstadt was now half-surrounded, The 5,000-man Syrixian force, which had doubled into 10,000 via reinforcements, came in to help push the socialists back. The force once again split and attacked each part of land around Alzenstadt, widening the ring around the city controlled by Rhuvanland. Meanwhile, most of the Rhuvish forces were called away to deal with a socialist uprising in Bürheim, which had already gripped most of the more populated areas of the province under socialist rule. As the Syrixian forces, who stayed behind, continue to attempt to push the socialists away from Alzenstadt, the Syrixian Navy moved in near the northeast to blockade the coastal areas of Rhuvanland under socialist control, preparing for an amphibious attack on socialist territory.
Plans for a counterattack were cut short, however, when socialist forces managed to connect their exclaves in Monamien and Bürheim to the main swath of socialist territory, as well as pushing back the western part of the Syrixo-Rhuvish-made Alzenstadt Ring and once again looming closer to the Rhuvish capital. Then, socialist uprisings began to occur in Dunorien, the state where Dunorion was. In fact, this new part of the socialists' territory was very close to Dunorion itself. Socialist forces seized this opportunity and began to march towards Dunorion. The former capital of Rhuvanland was still Rhuvanland's financial capital, and Dunorion was also the undisputed titan in Rhuvish trade and commerce, dwarfing Bürheim City, the second largest city in Rhuvanland, via its sheer size. Dunorion was also the state capital of the state of Dunorien, meaning the entire state would easily fall into socialist hands if her capital were to be taken.
However, the Rhuvish forces there, along with Kannexan troops that were patrolling the coast, took a stand. Syrixia was out of the picture, as it was busy with other garrisons defending Alzenstadt. Thus, Rhuvanland and what Kannexan troops were in Dunorion were visibly in danger. Socialists continued to advance through the city, killing every government official they could find and shutting suburbial civilians in their houses for so-called "safety". Rhuvish troops continued to pound the socialists with gunfire from sniper points on the rooves of buildings, however these points were being taken over systematically, one by one. Rhuvanland was obviously on the defensive and possibly on the losing side of the war. The Bundestag dispersed, all going to Kolenenburg, a small town far west of Bürheim City on the west coast of Rhuvanland. Crossing dangerously through socialist territory, the Bundestag, including the Chancellor, boarded a large boat supplied by Syrixia. This boat was en route to Balamb, where the Syrixian Prime Minister had invited the Rhuvish leaders to for safety.
The rebels were advancing further into Dunorion. Government buildings were in flames. The rebels seemed unstoppable. Meanwhile, rebels in commandeered boats patrolled the oceans. Hastily added guns swept back and forth, searching for trouble. Meanwhile, the Kannexan Rhuvanland Task Force, consisting of a carrier battle group and a squadron of defensive surface ships, continued to patrol the seas in conjunction with the Rhuvish forces. They bombarded rebel coastal positions and blockaded the coast. Rebel naval forces were no match. A single missile downed a rebel boat; the hard part was finding rebel forces on the sea. Still, the Kannexans and Rhuvish held naval supremacy.
In the Dunorion sky, steel birds swooped above steel towers with supersonic speed to deliver explosive power to the battlefield. Smart bombs trained on rebel tanks and positions, engulfing men and vehicles in flames before they could even see the planes. Further back in rebel territory, as the rebels had come out of the guerrilla strategy and were now actively holding and administering land, the Kannexans now had clear targets to bomb. Rebel headquarters found themselves under attack every single day. Airfields were rendered useless as waves of anti-radiation bombs followed by smart bombs disabled rebel radar, wrecked rebel runways, and destroyed command towers. The rebel advance was slowed.
The gray sea waves rocked the fishing boats tied to the piers as the Bürheim winds howled. The sky was white and featureless and scarcely anything could be seen in them, not even the wing of two hundred metal raptors that raced high above the Rhuvish coast at supersonic speeds. Closer and closer they advanced into rebel territory. Bombers flew nearer to the ground, while fighters watched from above. When they reached their targets -- rebel airfields, gunner positions, barracks, tanks, any of the few naval vessels the rebels had -- they struck. Hatches opened in the hulls of the great metal birds and huge pill-like bombs fell from the sky like candy. The first bombs hit the ground. Flames and smoke arose, engulfing the rebel positions. Wave after wave over a hundred miles of coastline, targets were located and destroyed.
Then came the helicopters. The buzz of chopper wings filled the air as a swarm of Kannexan Navy helicopters approached, blaring Wagnerian music on stereos to frighten the poor rebel bastards. Then the attack really began. Machine guns rang out, shooting hundreds of rounds per minute. Rebel troops ran out with their AK-47s but their bodies were torn apart by lead. Autocannons and rockets exploded rebel positions and tanks. Soon the burning corpses of tanks and men could be seen in the streets of Bürheim State's coastal towns. At last the helicopters touched ground, crushing buildings in the process, and the men of the 1st Marine Division of the Imperial Navy landed and began spraying enemies with fire. They took government centers, communication centers, armories, and railway stations.
Kannexan Marines secured the beachhead at Bürheim and began pushing inland. Another 4,000 troops of the 1st Marine Division landed following the first day of the amphibious assault. Now the count was 14,000 Marines on the ground, swiftly striking into the Bürheim heartland. Mechanized infantry on tanks and armored personnel carriers struck, bashing rebel defenses. The few vehicles possessed by the rebels were no match for advanced Kannexan machinery. The Marines advanced north, cutting off the supply route to rebel forces attacking Dunorion from the west. The Imperial Navy now struck naval bases held by the rebels and scuttled ships before they could be taken. However, in some cases, the rebels were hit with something else. A hundred men in black uniforms popped their heads out of the water and threw grenades onto the decks of ships. They climbed aboard and blasted their way through the vessels. Helicopters landed in shipyards and seized back naval yards and ships from the rebels. The Imperial Army 5th Infantry Division, 14,000 men, landed in Dunorion. The rebel troops' advanced pushed at the pace of a snail hammered by tank guns, mortars, and machine gun fire.
Meanwhile, two 5,000-man boats were en route to Rhuvanland to provide reinforcements to the Alzenstadt Circle, however now surrounded, the Syrixians there prayed the Kannexans and the Syrixian reinforcements would be able to get to them from Bürheim soon. Alzenstadt was in danger, and once that town was taken, Rhuvanland would be lost. Meanwhile in Dunorion, the socialists had the Dunorion Governmental Palace surrounded. This was the former home of the East Rhuvish Federal Council, and was now the home of Dunorien's state government and Dunorion's city council. If that building, the Alzenstadt of the city, was taken, Dunorion would be lost too. Soldiers in the Alzenstadt Circle and Dunorion fought for their lives and for the life of their country, but more and more people either got shot down or deserted. Back in Bürheim, Guslant and Ceretian troops entered the scene. This day also saw Xentherida proclaim its neutrality.
As the Guslants were in Bürheim securing the area, Rhuvish soldiers secured the coasts, and the Syrixians pushed towards the capital district. The Alzenstadt Circle was finally broken by the rebels thanks to both attrition and death on the Syrixian side, and the rebels were now poised for an attack on Alzenstadt. Eventually, the rebels began to charge into Alzenstadt, with the Syrixians not far behind. Forcing quickly through the outer city, the rebels took over most of the Alzenstadter suburbs, taking a few offices and shops here and there. The Syrixians, meanwhile, had pushed their way in a line through the Federal State to Alzenstadt, and were just outside the city. Meanwhile, in Dunorion, the rebels became surrounded by Syrixo-Rhuvish troops. A massive rebel retreat began. Rebels began pushing out of the city in a coordinated retreat. Saboteurs remained in the city, along with explosive charges, ready to make the government victory pyrrhic. Back in Alzenstadt, the rebels set up a defensive line in preparation for the Syrixian attack. Meanwhile, tanks began to push deeper into the city from all sides. The Nebulan commanders never bothered with a pronged assault when an attack from all around would do.
The Guslants, seizing such an opportunity, developed a new strategy. Guslant General Akerman would force her way west toward the Rhuvish border. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General John Delford would head south toward the shore. Finally, General Grace Scottsfield would head north to try to regain lost land by the Allied powers. This sudden and brutal three-pronged strategy would aid the Allies well. However, time was running out. The rebels continued to work their way through the streets of Alzenstadt, reaching the Bundesregierungspalast, the government palace of Rhuvanland, surrounding it, as well as taking over more of the outer city and a few mid-city streets. However, in the south of Rhuvanland, the attack had started and the Allied powers were gaining ground. Each side now had around 50% of all Rhuvish land, and the Syrixians had just reached the city boundaries of Alzenstadt.
Rebel tanks didn't hesitate. Clouds of smoke and dust soon surrounded the palace. Occasionally gunfire would ring out as an exposed Rhuvish soldier within the palace would try to take as many rebels out as possible, then be gunned down. Meanwhile, snipers and rebels with RPGs began firing on the flanks of the Syrixian advance. Fighting was chaotic in the Federal State. Syrixian forces poured into Alzenstadt, plowing their way to the inner city and the Bundesregierungspalast, which was surrounded by rebel forces. The Federal Guard was trapped inside, but ready to defend the building to the last. However, unless the Syrixians broke the defensive circle and reached the building, the Guard could not successfully defend it. Meanwhile, outside the Federal State, both the rebels and the anti-rebel coalition used pronged attacks to plow through the other's territory.
Pro-rebel uprisings also occurred in the far southwest of Rhuvanland, further adding to rebel territory. However, while the rebels pronged their way through southwest Rhuvanland, reaching the coast west of Bürheim City, the anti-rebel coalition's pronged attack was carried out near the middle of Rhuvanland, cutting the rebel territory in half. The rebels, desperate, began bribing pilots and subsidizing jetliners to get troops across the gap. The flight was dangerous, however, and detours over empty land were brought into use to minimize risk. Meanwhile, the outer walls of the palace were reduced to rubble. While the main force struggled to keep back the Syrixians, the rebels began to storm the palace and the Rhuvish troops stuck inside.
Since the Bürheim amphibious invasion, the Kannexans had allowed the Guslants to take the larger role in securing the state. Kannexan involvement in Rhuvanland numbered about 40,000. A fourth of this number served on sea and in the air as part of the Rhuvanland Naval Task Force. The rest were divided evenly among the 1st Marine Division and the 5th Army Infantry Division. The 1st Marine struck northern Bürheim in coordination with Guslant forces, cutting off what had been known as the Red Bürheim Corridor. Standard Marine tactics guided their movements. Ground-attack helicopters bombarded rebel positions in forests and burned-out cities as panzers rolled into the streets and blasted away communist opposition. Patrol boats raced up and down Bürheim rivers, establishing control of the basin.
Near Alzenstadt, the 5th Infantry saw heavy combat in the hills west of the capital city. Kannexan troops managed to establish a foothold in the northern bank of the river that cut through the city northeast to west. Large howitzers pointed at the hills and fired unceasingly like rolling thunder. Metal rounds struck unseen targets over the ridges, making smoke and fire. In a three-pronged attack the Kannexan mechanized infantry cut into rebel positions. Tanks and armored infantry carriers advanced. Bombers zoomed past and dark exploding smoke and fire erupted from rebel positions like blooming flowers. Helicopters were close by, pouring machine gun fire into rebel positions. Once the hilly towns west of Alzenstadt were captured, the flanks of the rebels would be threatened.
Rebels with machine guns and tanks, made by Nebula, retreated slowly and stubbornly. Every advance by the Allies was hard-fought. North Cronaal had begun shipping more advanced weaponry in as well, getting aircraft across the border to the rebels. Nebula had also put Shei Ren under rebel administration, and missile strikes from there were becoming common. The war was escalating. As the fighting continued in Alzenstadt, the international coalition gained land in Monamien and far eastern Rhuvanland. The Syrixians in Alzenstadt pushed towards the Palace again and again, finally reaching it after four bloody attacks. This, combined with the recent anti-rebel gains made the soldiers' morale skyrocket, however it was not to last. By the time they got inside the palace, they were in stunned awe. The walls were covered in blood, the bodies of the Guardsmen scattered across the floors. Rebels suddenly appeared out of every entrance one could think of. With the help of grenades, some were even literally coming out of the walls.
As the Bundesregierungspalast was now in rebel hands, the rebel leaders, assembled at the Belfruger city of Kälenburg, de facto headquarters of the socialist rebellion, proclaimed the Socialist Federal Republic of Rhuvanland. Formerly rebel, now-government soldiers, in a wave of destruction, pushed through Rhuvanland, once again gaining land. Surrounding the Kannexan regiment near Alzenstadt, the government soldiers leaped upon their adversaries, dealing huge damage to their garrisons. Seizing many Rhuvish naval ships as well as large groups of Rhuvish soldiers formerly working for the FR Rhuvanland, the SFR Rhuvanland's army slowly became larger than the FR's. Taking back lands on the far eastern coast and in Monamien, as well as a swath of land surrounding Alzenstadt, the government once more began to push towards Dunorion and Bürheim, inching closer to victory. However, resistance from the international coalition and the loyal remainder of the FR Rhuvanland's armed forces was staunch, and victories and defeats were won all over Rhuvanland by both sides. However, the push to Dunorion and Bürheim continued.
However, Kannexan leaders had an idea. On the island of Shei Ren, all missile launch sites found themselves under attack. First, anti-radiation missiles wrecked Shei Ren airbase radars and jamming systems. Then JDAMs guided themselves into airbase main towers and defenses. The second wave of bombers came and sprinkled cluster bombs on airbase runways, missile silos, and flight-lines. The third wave cleaned up anything that was left over. In response, North Cronaal declared war on Kannex. The full force of the North Cronaal navy began its counterattack on Shei Ren. Ten squadrons of fighters began their attack on the Kannexian fighters while the fleet began to draw in closer. Having destroyed their targets, Kannexan aerial forces withdrew from Shei Ren before the North Cronaalians could reach them. As there was much time between the attack on Shei Ren and the North Cronaalian counterattack, the Rhuvanland Naval Task Force was able to realign their formation in response to the new hostile elements. The majority of Kannexan ships remained undetected in the Syrixian Strait.
As the North Cronaal forces drew nearer, Kannexan nuclear submarines laid traps and attacked Nebulan surface ships and submarines. The submarines especially aimed for aircraft carriers. They struck with vengeful force before sinking in the depths of the ocean. As the presence of a submarine necessitated lengthy anti-submarine measures, the Nebulan fleet was delayed as the Kannexan fleet realigned themselves and prepared for the counterattack. At the fringes of the Kannexan naval formation, Kannexan corvettes and destroyers had began attacking their Nebulan counterparts. Newly-elected Chancellor Torsten Kesler declared it a necessity to "combat international communism and the red powers that dare disrupt the world order. It is our duty to defend peace-loving free nations against the scourge of communism." Nearly unanimously, Congress voted to declare war on North Cronaal. Chancellor Kesler called upon Kannex's allies to do the same.
Eventually, after fierce fighting, Kannex and Nebula signed a deal. North Cronaal would withdraw from Shei Ren, as would Kannex. Shei Ren would return to its former status as a Nebulan protectorate, and Nebula would not use it to launch missile attacks on Rhuvanland, on pain of starting a nuclear war. Meanwhile, SFR Rhuvish forces continued to push towards Dunorion. Taking the city easily, they then moved on to Bürheim, ready to wipe out the last remnants of the Federal Republic. However, little did they know that the Allies had something planned for their supply lines. As SFR Rhuvish forces captured the small surrounded area to the east of Bürheim, they prepared to converge on the main part of FR Rhuvish territory. Suddenly, however, an Allied attack on SFR Rhuvish supply lines occurred. However, airdrops as well as new supply lines continued supply exportation to the front. This did not mean the Allies were going to give up, though. Attacks continued as the SFR Rhuvish continued to switch their supply lines and get supplies to the front. It was a wild goose chase, but the SFR Rhuvish were still advancing.
Eventually, cornerning the remainder of FR Rhuvish troops in Bürheim City, the SFR Rhuvish launched a final attack. Syrixian and FR Rhuvish soldiers fell back to the city to make a last stand, successfully creating a sort-of hemisphere around it. They moved into rings of defensive formations along the border of the hemisphere, creating a hard defensive "wall" that the communists would be hard pressed to fight against. The communists, however, would not be so unlucky, as the soldiers did not have anti-aircraft missiles with them, and with the capture of Alzenstadt came the former FR Rhuvish air force. Syrixian air forces currently had air supremacy, however, so if the communists were to attack from the air as planned in order to make a path for their land soldiers, they would have opposition. This opposition did show itself, but it was quickly crushed.
Both Rhuvish citizens and soldiers, as well as Syrixian soldiers, were all evacuating the remainder of Bürheim. The Guslant soldiers fighting as well as the Ceretian medics also made a run for it. As he awaited a response, the remainder of the Syrixian soldiers got on their ships, followed by tons of boats of FR Rhuvish soldiers and FR Rhuvish citizens. Bürheim had been near totally evacuated. Kannexan soldiers were now all who remained against the communists. However, eventually even the Kannexans evacuated, leaving the FR Rhuvish and the SFR Rhuvish standing toe to toe alone. Communist troops triumphantly marched into Bürheim City, winning the final decisive skirmish and marking the end of the Rhuvish War. The same day, the Rhuvish government-in-exile was declared by Chancellor Agnes Liesel, which was to be headquartered in Balamb.
However, the communist victory did not sit well with the North Cronaal civilians, who were tired of their near-slavelike labor and worried that a communist victory in Rhuvanland would only expand Nebulan domination. They, along with Rhuvish civilians with similar worries, began to plot a grand revolution...
I wouldn't be too sure about Nebula, I think we all know the recurring theme here pertaining to his nation's actions. 
