Having any money or property of your own in the Rhineland nation is a rare privilege. The Haus of Ripplinger was so privileged, though only to the point where most would call them upper middle class. Still, this family enjoyed having all their needs met as well as several amenities. They had some small business ownerships and employed servants in their house. And those who were under their employ were treated well. This, in and of itself, set the Haus of Ripplinger apart from most other Rhineland Houses.
The patriarch of this family, Sigfried Ripplinger, was affectionately referred to by all his family and even his employees as Vater Ripplinger. He held a seat in the Rhineland citizens' caucus, where he vocally expressed his opinion on the oppression of the Rhineland lower class by large corporations, such as Daumann and Kruger. During one session Vater Ripplinger created quite a stir when he labeled the Rhineland government as patsies to these corporations. The man had a valiant heart, but was too bold. Shortly after the Rhineland Police arrested him on trumped up charges of conspiracy against the government. All holdings and possessions of the Haus of Ripplinger were seized and the family was driven from New Berlin. Sigfried died in a prison, supposedly due to a heart condition.
Sigfried's son, Janos, never believed that story. When he and his brothers were driven from New Berlin it did not take them long to find the Bundschuh in Frankfurt. The Ripplinger family had never before endorsed illegal activities of any kind. But when they saw just how corrupted the Rhineland government had become, when they saw that their father had been murdered because he sought legal paths for change, they were no longer any naive delusions that violence would not be necessary.
And so, Janos, or simply Herr Ripplinger as most call him, became the new head of the Haus of Ripplinger. He led his family to the Bundschuh, where they found shelter from Rhineland persecution. Herr Ripplinger and his brothers opted to join the Bundschuh in their cause. They all fought to prove their dedication and worth. Still, they were simply regarded as newcomers.
The Bundschuh never turned away a good pilot, but their leadership council has remained somewhat of an exclusive club. Herr Ripplinger believes in their cause but is continually frustrated by their lack of action and their conservative policies. "Perhaps one day things will change," he thinks. "But I know in my heart that I am meant to bring that change."
"I know what I'm doing, Janos." Tomas wasn't in the mood for his brother's skittishness right now. "The Bundschuh Council doesn't care, and if they did they couldn't do anything about it." He had just obtained a bomber from the Red Hessians. Since then attacks on Rheinland gunboats, and sometimes even cruisers, have been a regular outing. "Besides, aren't you always the one complaining that the Council doesn't do anything. Aren't you the one that says we should negotiate to get better ships from Hessians and Outcasts. Back me up, here, Pietr."
Pietr Ripplinger looked on with a timid brow. He opened his mouth to say something, but then decided not to. Controversy was never his strong suit.
"Look, Tomas. I'm not saying I don't think you should have that ship. I'm not saying I don't think we should be attacking bigger military targets. I am saying that if you keep this up, you are going to be killed. We cannot afford for this to be a one man war. We cannot even afford for this to be a war waged by our Haus alone. We need the Bundschuh, and probably the Hessians and Unioners, to back us up."
"I am sick and tired of waiting for the old men of the Council to come around," Tomas yells. "I would rather go out there by myself and risk my life and feel like I am doing something than wait for the cowards of the Council to come around."
"We're making more headway than you think," Janos responded. "Look, we are still new here. You cannot expect them to just fall behind us the minute we set our foot in the door." A deep sigh and a hand scrubbing his hair, and Janos sits down. "You know, they think I am a radical. What do you think they say about you?"
"I don't care what those stupid..."
"Maybe we should take things into our hands a little." This rare interdiction by Pietr earned sudden turning of heads. Janos and Tomas now sat quietly looking at their youngest brother. "I don't mean galavanting off on our own to take down the Rheinland fleet."
After a brief pause Janos says "Go on."
"Well, I have been listening to a lot of others here at Bruschal. Even though we are new, there are a lot of others that are new. And even some of those who have been here longer than us aren't satisfied with things."
"What are you suggesting, Pietr," asked Tomas.
"We get a petition and..."
"Oh, come on, Pietr." Tomas wore a disgusted look on his face. "You don't expect some petition to sway the aging minds of the Council, do you?"
Pietr advances out of his corner directly at Tomas. Trembling, he sticks his finger into Tomas' chest and says "You just let me finish!" Tomas falls into his chair, rather than sits. This outburst drew outright shock. "I am not an idiot. I know how stubborn the Council can be. The petition would include a list of demands for action. Tomas, Janos is right. If we really want to bring change to Rheinland, we need to act as a people. But Janos, I do not believe we can afford to wait for minds to be changed. The time has come for us to force that change, if necessary."
After this impassioned speech Pietr seemed to regain consciousness of himself, and sulked back into his corner. Tomas remained sitting in his chair with a stunned look on his face. Janos let a quiet smile appear in the corner of his mouth. He had always known that Pietr had more heart than people gave him credit for. He was proud of his brother. He was really proud of both of them. He let his gaze drift back to Tomas and said, "Well, Tomas. Shall I write a draft of this petition?"