I am Guang Yao, Guildmaster of the Independent Miners Guild.
I imagine at this point, almost everyone will have heard that we are at war with the Kingdom of Bretonia. With a lot of the preliminary discussions out of the way, we felt it appropriate to issue a public statement on the matter.
The Independent Miners Guild is currently engaged in a war with the Kingdom of Bretonia, over the attempted Bretonian Conquest of Aland Shipyard.
This is the result of an ultimatum issued to us, which was essentially a demand to hand over or "lease" the shipyard to the Kingdom of Bretonia to assist in their war effort against the Kingdom of Gallia.
Of course, the seizure of the shipyard, whether with our cooperation or without, will not help the Kingdom of Bretonia in their war situation. Aland is a civilian shipyard, it is not staffed, crewed, or supplied to construct IMG warships, much less Bretonian ones.
However, given the Kingdom of Bretonia's dire situation, they saw the opportunity to seize a shipyard from a neutral power that didn't have major house backing, even if it offered low chances of success in prolonging their war against the Kingdom of Gallia.
We were issued a demand, to hand over control of Aland Shipyard, or face forceful seizure of all our assets in Bretonia, as well as the shipyard itself.
We refused.
I'm happy to say we have received support from many sides, some expected, some not, and we intend to hold fast and defend Aland and our other Bretonian holdings against the aggression of the Bretonian Crown.
We had always attempted to maintain a neutral stance between the houses, as an Independent Miners Guild that is not tied to one of the great houses. Until the Bretonian demand, it seemed like all five of them respected our neutrality, now this number has been reduced to four. We have seen the aggression of the Bretonian Crown against the independent populace of Gran Canaria, and perhaps acted too slowly in their support. We have watched many independent organizations rise and fall, some of which perhaps could have survived with greater support from the Guild.
Now we find ourselves a victim of our balancing act, targeted by the aggression of a house. But we will not submit to them, and we have backing of some of our allies and friends we have made over the years. We will continue to resist the Bretonian aggression, and pledge ourselves to greater support of the independence movements in the Omegas and elsewhere.
We remain open to reasonable talks about the situation, until then, we will find our supporters where we can, and will accept any help against the Bretonian onslaught.
To my fellow Guildswomen and Guildsmen;
For the Guildsmembers in the Taus and in Coronado:
I urge cessation of all non-essential patrols, no cardamine interceptions, no Outcast skirmishes unless in immediate defense of the bases. Any excess manpower is to be transferred to the Bretonian front, if South Shields isn't a safe passage, the long way around Kusari is to be used.
Keep your eyes open, do not let your internal security be compromised, and most certainly do not give any kind of clearance to the "Crayterian Republic". Any operations related to them shall continue as planned, and end as planned. All contracts with them should be allowed to expire, and not be renewed. Their Republic is to be treated as an unreliable partner at best, and an enemy at worst.
To our guildsmembers in the Omegas, Bretonia and Rheinland, you've likely already been the target of this war.
I urge you to remain strong, find your friends where you can, and treat your enemies as such. The current instructions are to engage all members of Bretonia law enforcement and intelligence to with extreme prejudice.
But we will not yet target the Crown corporations, we will not attempt to make a bad situation worse, even though they are not giving us anywhere near the same considerations.
One instruction I can give to all guildmembers regardless of position or occupation: The Crayterian traitors are to be exterminated with unlimited prejudice. There should be nothing left of their bodies after they encounter us.
What will winning your war buy you? Nothing but what you have now. What does billions of Bretonians have to lose from your victory? Their lives, their homes, their freedoms. You would sacrifice legions of others to protect a handful of your own diamonds.
Bretonia held a compromise out to you; a short term investment for long term gain. You did not argue for a middle ground but sought to damn the torpedoes. Then you will be damned by the torpedoes, IMG.
Bretonia is fighting to defend their homes. This is the light in which they see this skirmish. This is the last sally beyond the walls. War is not a boardroom, mister Yao. It is seeing those you love and cherish blasted apart, stunned at their own demise, terrified, shattered. Trusting that you'll help them when you can do nothing.
Move on, Mister Yao. You have alienated your closest friends in the Crayterian Republic. Over what? Money? Money will not buy you time. It won't buy you lives. And it won't help you move on from here.
THE SYNDIC LEAGUES
(A co-operative of Rheinland's Shipping Unions, retired from a life of piracy.)
Date:12.03.826 AS 06:35 SST. To:IMG Guildmaster Guang Yao. From:Tanya von Degurechaff. Origin:ERROR Encryption:Unbreakable.
Hello, Guildmaster.
Until recently, i have stood idle, observing the Bretonian intrusion into the Omegas in their desperate attempts to last another day against a dire onslaught on their homeland.
They were supposed to take reasonable decisions. Instead - they behave like a child with a knife, running around their borders, stabbing different entities with it.
We did not interfere when Bretonia took over the Gran Canaria.
Now, however, we could not afford a luxury of treading unhindered, with the consideration what's put on stake.
The Njord will stand by your side.
~Tanya von Degurechaff.
Attachments:None.
FÜR RHEINLAND!
Peace, being the distant dream it is, comes inevitably, and goes hand in hand with justice.
Cursed be the war. Heroes never die! @Vitoniz30
Incoming Transmission...
Comm ID: Alicia Young; Ministry of Foreign Relations of the Crayter Republic
Location: Coronado
Dear Guildmaster Yao,
let me thank you for your eye-opening transmission and let us hope that the majority of the guild members, just as us, is more capable of differentiating between the actions of a few and the the action of a whole organization. We certainly hope that you do not speak for the Guild as a whole and are only a minor eyesore in the Guilds history, one they and we will forget rather sooner than later, because someone decided to remove it for the greater good of the Guild.
Describing a nation that has helped you in countless fights in the whole Sirius sector as unreliable, as treacherous or even outright as enemy hopefully does hopefully not reflect the mindset of the whole guild, but is only a part of you own, very narrow and certainly blurred worldview.
The Crayter Republic and in that regard, even more so all of its people, has spilled blood for the Guild and has ensured the survival of the Guild by military means. Our people have spilled their blood it in the Taus in years long struggles against pirates, slavers and the Maltese, they have spilled blood in Omicron Delta, to protect your Iridium operations, they have spilled it in the Omegas, against the entire Rheinland fleet, when the Guild was in a serious conflict with the mining corporations... I think I do not have to go any further, to make this point clear, even to someone as dull as you.
The Republic has fought your battles in countless times and would have done so in this case, which is why we offered to assist you in the protection of Aland, an offer that the Guild chose to ignore. We furthermore offered to mediate between you and the Bretonians, an offer you and your predecessor neglected.
And now you dare to blame a whole nation, for one persons actions? Actions that, in hindsight, have been provoked not by the Guild, but by the incompetence of its leadership. I for my part, and be assured that this goes for pretty much every citizen of our nation, still have hope that the Miners remove you from their leadership before you do more damage to the Guild, by forcing us to act against you.
Take this as your one and only warning, we hold no ill will towards the Guild and its members, people that have been a close ally to the Crayter Republic for so many years, but we will act, should you continue to wander a path that goes directly against our own interessts and endangers our own existance. You already took a first step, do not go further.
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