New Respite-Sadalen Great War Megathread

Five-hundred men swung into position, five-hundred men readied for the battle. Having successfully made an unopposed landing where none should have been, having avoided blockade or ship, and having been met with the warm welcomes of those that they were reinforcing, a truly massive force was now on the march. Due to the flatter nature of the country they were now moving through, the roads were more plentiful and much better in quality than the ones they had trained on, and as such the men made quick work with their new Sheenish automobiles and boots of marching from their fortified position on the coast to the nearby city of Hashgachahen.

While no one was quite certain of how to pronounce the name, they still made their fair share of attempts before settling on 'Hasijchahlaw' as the improvised name. The men expecting some sort of resistance from the inside and knowing the possibility of an outside intervention was still high, set about building walls and trenches. As per the doctrines of the army, they were not to attempt storming a city that contained more people than them and an unknown quantity of soldiers, instead they were to circumvallate and then offer them chances to surrender and evacuate before bombardment commenced.

After three days, the first line of defences had been more or less completed and the circumvallation was completed as well. The odd man could be see coming from the city and looking, but no attacks had been forthcoming. With the artillery now being given its proper place and readied for a most thorough usage against the targets before them, a last courtesy was now being extended to the defenders. 

A messenger was sent forth and issued this warning:

'If the enemy surrenders, we will not bombard the city. If the enemy chooses to fight, we will give twenty-four hours for an evacuation of the city to begin and three days hence for it to complete. If they do not evacuate, we will then begin a full artillery bombardment and consider anyone within the city to be our foeman.'

This ultimatum was met with stony silence at first, but after a few hours, a reply did come. Though addressed incorrectly, their offer was that a conditional surrender and it pleased the attackers most excellently to avoid further waste of ammunition and men.

'We want you to promise not to damage the buildings within the city without reason, allow the army to regroup elsewhere and for the evacuation period to be extended slightly so the civilians may collect their belongs and for transports to be brought over.'

These terms were naturally almost completely acceptable. The two sides met between the city's walls and the walls of the attackers and there then discussed things. An agreement was reached, whereby the army of New Respite would be allowed to surrender but would not be allowed to take up arms evermore, with their officers being handed over the Tholishmen for caretaking.

At the final sight of the agreed upon terms, the commanding officer of the Harjis af Niujis Respijt looked over the paper and is reported to have said 'Jup, that works for me.', before stamping it with his seal and thumb print.

After the final hand over of weapons and transfer of prisoners was made, the Harjis af Niujis Respijt then marched north and began the same process on the capital of New Respite itself. Again seeking to avoid unnecessary conflict, the leaders of the army issued yet another ultimatum and it read as follows:

'To the residents and leaders of the city.

If surrender is given by the whole nation, it will be remanded to the custodial care of W.T.C. and allowed to become a neutral power and be left out of the war until such a time as a peace treaty can be signed. If surrender is only given by the city, we will promise no harm to it so long as it remains peaceful in turn.

We call upon you to see reason, as this war is lost. Your armies have been defeated and the longer this conflict goes on, the more destroyed your country shall become.'

They in turn were answered, once again improperly addressed, with a slight adjustment of the terms:

'As much of our army has already surrendered to you in the city of Hashgachahen we agree to remain non-combative during the remainder of this war, and for this non-combative state to be held in place by Tholen, however we would like to request to still remain self governing in terms of our civilians and cities for the remainder of the war and that said cities may remain neutral to both sides of the war, allowing both sides within their walls as long as neither side uses this privilege to harm others while inside. Soldiers staying inside our cities shall not be fed and due to our lack of a monetary economy, they will not be able to purchase food either, however, if lodging is available they may use it if allowed by the local administration. Do these terms sound agreeable?'

Find thing these totally agreeable, the full surrender of the realm of New Respite was taken and a warning issued about the consequences of perfidy. And so the month of December ended and the men of the Raikh were allowed a few days of rest and celebration, for they had conquered this terrible land which had started the war now engulfing the world in flames.

While the celebrations took place, a letter was sent to the forces Magdali situated a ways to the west, offering a cease fire and safe passage should they wish to evacuate.