((Pepperm1nts gave me his permission to mention that I had the Hub's support))

[b][i]Shady Sands[/i][/b]

Klamath Representative Marie Strider smiled as she walked out of the cafe; where she had been meeting two of the Hub Senators. Of course, it was a risk to have herself be outnumbered and perhaps outbrained, but in encounters involving individuals and brains, sometimes facing multiple opponents meant that said multiple opponents would clash with each other as well as herself, and that was what she counted on, and what she got, as the two Senators did clash with each other...or pretended to, she wouldn't know. Nevertheless, she got what she wanted; official support and recognition of Klamath's Northern Expansion Plan. All she had to pay in exchange was priority to Hub workers and companies in any areas that would be newly annexed.

Which was all right, she guessed, the influence of Hub Corporations in the annexed zones would increase the Hub's power over the state, but the Hub [i]immigrants[/i], once given free land, would slowly shift their loyalties away from the Hub to Klamath, or at least, that's what she hoped. One of the reasons the Hub supported the expansion measure was because of their growing population and the pressure it was causing, with Klamath's offer of new land functioning as an outlet and a safety valve for it and the other states. And, in exchange, Klamath gets more support for its policies, more freedom, and a larger power and tax base, increasing their clout overall. A win-win situation, or at least, that's what would happen if things go on as planned...

[b][i]Klamath Marsh[/i][/b]

Things were not going on as planned.

"We don't want no NCR here! We is independent!" Two weeks after the killing of the Yao Guai, the Klamath Milita were now encountering their first 'civilized' opposition; a federation of small towns, led by Fort Klamath, which was not to be confused with Klamath Falls, the capital of the state. Fort Klamath had been trading with the NCR for decades now, but had persistently refused annexation, instead using said trade, especially in arms and technology, to put smaller towns under its protection, and hoarding its own guns, as well as, of course, refurbishing the titular Fort, which had been a museum before the war. While even said fort had no chance in hell of averting a full NCR assault, it could, however, cause a lot of pain against Klamath Milita...

...Or at least, that was the plan. They, however, had never counted on the NCR's educational system, which included descriptions on how Medieval Armies besieged old castles. This, in turn, gave Jessica Rodgers, now called back from Wimena Forest, the idea of just blockading the fort, surrounding it with trenches that were further protected with wooden spikes. This simple tactic stymed the Fort's defenders, and they found themselves using up their supplies in short order.

"We need this Fort to fall faster," spoke Andrew. "Every day we waste here is a day that we cannot secure Winema and the Marshlands." A stream of settlers were now entering the now-secure Winema Forest, cutting down trees, building homes, and sowing crops. Many of those settlers were armed, but most came expecting formal miltia protection, which was in short supply due to the siege of the fort.

"I know how you feel," Jessica replied, before taking a swig out of her canteen. "Thankfully, High School didn't just give me the idea of blockading the fort - though it is effective - it also taught me other things."

"Don't tell me that you have a battering ram stored somewhere," chuckled Andrew, "or that your Yao Guai are full-grown in such a short time." 

"No, no," was Jessica's response, before the woman smiled. "I'm just having the men dig under the walls, then put some homemade explosives with a timer on them. They should be complete in...a few hours. Wanna play cards while waiting?"

[B][I]Klamath Marsh, Several Hours Later[/i][/b]

The explosives failed in undermining the walls. What they succeeded in, however, was getting the men and women of Fort Klamath terrified. So, the same criers who shouted to the besieging troops that they 'didn't want the NCR there' were singing a different tune now.

Fort Klamath, after some negotiations, was now NCR territorry, opening the way to Crater Lake...