Rumor Mill - Turn 4:
Britannia: Of greatest news this year is the revelation that a wide-ranging scheme within the noble house of Stadtfeld, the Duchy of Westhaven. Apparently driven by the revelation that Duke Isacc Stadtfeld's primary heir had been designated as his half-Japanese daughter, one Kallen Kozuki-Stadtfeld. This revelation, having been signaled sometime two years previous evidently set into motion an attempt by a large portion of the Duke's relatives to kill both him and his daughter. The Duke himself, aided by the forces under the flag of Lelouch vi Britannia, the eleventh prince, uncovered the conspiracy and turned over all involved in it directly to the Office of Secret Intelligence for an impartial review of their culpability. In the wake of the crisis, Lelouch vi Britannia has come to national attention and favor in the court. Kallen Kozuki-Stadtfeld has been rewarded by her father for serving as the go-between of their forces with a now-vacant seat of the family's wealth, being created a Countess near the end of the year.
On the larger stage, the Britannian homeland has a steadily productive year across most sectors. Of particular note is the high-level talks which have been occurring between the Chinese Federation's governing body of Eunuchs and representatives of the Empire. While the exact matters are unknown, experts have pointed towards a possible loan of expertise or a mutual technological development agreement given the year's previous poor harvests in the CF. Within the broader empire, there is good news as well. A section of the tragically anarchic Area 5 has been brought firmly under Britannian control as imperial forces encircle and destroy a large group of armed insurgents, occupying the southeastern range of the territory in question.
North Africa League: The days of the North Africa League appear to be well and truly numbered at this point. Cornelia li Britannia's forces, landing early in the year in force on the Duchy of Aden opened what has been a low-intensity front between the Duke's personal forces and the Eritrean Home Guard into a major hole in the NAL's lines. Widely derided by the EU as a near-breach of the Red Sea Disarmament Pact, of which Britannia is a signatory, Imperial representatives have pointed out that at no point did any armed warships make their way their way past the Gate of Tears and into the Red Sea proper. Regardless, the fact that a number of cargo ships accompanied Cornelia's land-based forces northward to serve as resupply and mobile armament storage made EU and MEF politicians loudly decry the move. In the wake of her invasion, the Second Princess allowed Duke Joseph Ullman's forces to occupy Eritrea as she drove further north and smashed through southern Egypt.
Within three months of her landing troops, her forces had occupied the NAL's capital Cairo. Within six, another army group's worth of men and material from the standard imperial army had traded occupation duties in Egypt and, with all major harbors in the NAL in the hands of Britannia, the imperial fleet was able to take full advantage and destroy the NAL's remaining naval assets in the Mediterranean, even accounting for the limitations agreed to with the EU. Cornelia's final push near the end of the year has left the rear lines of the NAL collapsing, forcing the front lines back to compensate. Should nothing change, the NAL should crumble within the start of next year.
Middle Eastern Federation: Whether fortune or folly, the alarm generated by Cornelia li Britannia's 'March to the Sea' over the course of the early part of the year has raised such alarm within the Middle Eastern Federation that they have moved to a wartime footing. Citing reasons of common cultural heritage, trade ties, and a common self-interest in fighting the invading power, the MEF was shocked by the fall of Cairo so rapidly, cementing their final vote to declare war on the Holy Empire of Britannia. Making good on their promise to come to the aide of their beleaguered comrade, MEF troops pushed across the Egyptian border and retook the city of Cairo in a surprise attack only hours after a formal state of war was announced.
Due to the unexpected speed with which they had to prepare, though, MEF forces could not make gains far outside of the industrialized heart of Egypt. The sole saving grace of the dramatic turn of the war, for the empire at least, is the Britannian navy's destruction of both of the MEF's Mediterranean fleets almost to a vessel, allowing them to evacuate nearly all infantry personnel from the MEF-occupied territory in good order. At this point, with Britannian naval dominance in the Mediterranean Sea, it is unknown whether the MEF will move their Indian Ocean assets around the horn of Britannian-controlled Africa or if they will chance breaking the Red Sea Disarmament Pact and move capital ships through the channel, opening Britannia and Ethiopia to do the same.
Ethiopian Empire: A divisive decision by the Ethiopian Empress to accept NAL refugees has led to a great amount of concern among her people, which has largely proven itself to be unfounded this year. A small economic and cultural boom occurs within the Empire as a new workforce is put to labor and artists and celebrities contribute to the stage of Ethiopia's development. Of particular interest to the international community is the decision, late in the year, as the MEF moves to liberate NAL territories in Egypt. After troops were committed, the Empress moved to declare a war of aggression on the territory of Yemen across the Gulf of Aden. Initial fighting has been bloody and brutal, but Ethiopian forces have made landfall in the formerly-neutral nation. The MEF has denounced the move as an unabashed power grab, but it is uncertain if the super-state will be able to successfully divide its forces and attention to vouchsafe one of their major trading partners.
Europa United: The EU military premiered their new, domestically-produced Knightmare Frame this year, dubbing the device a 'mobile melee artillery battery' given the notable lack of slash harkens and the larger-bore shoulder-mounted armaments. Widely panned and protested by the populace of Europe as a move aimed to cater to Britannian-style warfare, and a sub-par one at that, the Panzer-Hummel is only the start of the super-state's woes this year. Partway through protests, what is later determined to be a gas explosion destroys much the Marie Curie Institute for Radiological Science, spreading a sickening cloud of hazardous substances and chemicals over much of the city of Paris. In the wake of the disaster, clean up efforts and and the political repercussions have lead the EU to institute a series of bans and harsh restrictions on all radiological research going forward to ensure such a tragedy does not occur again. In general, this year has seen wide-scale backlash against many forms of scientific development.
Rus Republic: The Republic, too, has suffered a grievous year of political demonstrations against the newly-elected president. Demonstrations in many cases turned violent and angry as protesters clashed with police. The entire affair was set into motion by the president's declaration to follow through with his campaign promises of formally breaking with the EU. The Rus Republic spends most of the year in political turmoil as it attempts to sort out the direction it will follow through.
Euro-Britannia: The sub-empire of Euro-Britannia spends the year stumbling backwards through a military buildup as it attempts to replace losses from the previous years. A staunch refusal to accept the loan of any army groups or air support from Britannia itself sees the entire process slow and cumbersome, though. Made worse by an overdraw of their economy and further refusal for Britannian financial support, this is a year of stagnation for Euro-Britannia.
Indonesian Confederation: With the increased shipping of valuable Sakuradite and other materials, pirate activity is on the upswing in and around the islands. Several large cargo vessels are seized and their contents sold on the black market over the year. Cries for the Chinese Federation to take action apparently fall on deaf ears even as Britannia increases escort duties to compensate it's own naval trade. The ultimate response to the pirate threat has been undecided at this point.
Chinese Federation: The lack of response to their southern client state finds it's answer in surprising decision announced towards the end of the year that the Federation will begin a decade-long initiative to modernize agriculture to prevent the devastating famine which occurred the previous year. The uncharacteristically forward-thinking move has brought compliments from both Britannian and European authorities on the subject, should it succeed. Although detractors in India have called the plan a heavy-handed attempt to institute more invasive government within the subcontinent. Other member-states of the Federation have voiced their support, though, and the measure will move forward.
Japan: In the wake of Europa United's declaration of their new Knightmare Frame, Japanese military contractors have announced a plan to develop a new KMF design themselves. Although not expected to be ready for some time, potentially years, the announcement has been met with wide acclaim from the Japanese populace, seeing it as a technological feat instead of a martial one, that will allow them to stand more equally on the world stage with the other superpowers.
African Unions: In final news, the super-states of the African continent have met with representatives from many neutral nations on the continent to hammer out the details of a larger free-trade agreement. Given that the neutral states' refusal to sign any sort of compact in the past has been a major economic stumbling block for the various other nations, this could prove a massive boon for them.
"gas explosions"
