Letter Bee

Innocence Lost: An RP of Child Soldiers and Science Fantasy

GM Collab Post - Letter Bee and Pathfinder

Present Day - Relevant to Karrsh

John saw it as his duty as a captain to give a substantial reply, saying to Karrsh once his contact had left: "I chose this because I didn't want what happened to me to happen to anyone else again. I wanted closure, to confront the people who can be so cruel. I see what was done to you, to us, and I want to make it harder for anyone to do it to others once more." A pause. "Karrsh, there are some things that should never be done; some actions that should not exist. It is over-idealistic for me to think such, but that is what I want."

A smile, and he'd say, "Look, I can play videogames with you, if you want; they make nigh-indestructable controllers these days. We have a day or so until transit. Terry can join in; right, Terry?" He asked over the comms. "In fact, we can have a game night before we go, and a party."

---

Terry had to make a concious effort to bite his tongue as soon as he heard common chatter over the comms, reminding himself that they were no longer in the military. So, instead of chastising the group, Terry began to pack up, stuffing the various wires back within the computer and preparing the Caduceus Glove for travel. By the time everything was in order the meeting was finished and Terry was halfway through the door before his thought processes were interupted by John's voice.

The words put a bitter taste at the back of his throat as his thoughts turned to their resident cyborg. It wasn't that he disliked Karrsh, far from it, but he couldn't help the feelings of guilt that creeped up whenever the subject was brought up. Terry might be one of the best medics in the galaxy but Karrsh's cybernetics were so insidiously and intimately wired into his being that Terry might as well be back to the first day of medical school trying to piece him together. It was discouraging to say the least and not something he wants to dwell on... not yet.

Pinching the frown away from his face, Terry responded in his usual dry, ragged whisper, "Going to have to call a rain check on that one boss, I have some data I need to pour over back home." Before making his way back to the rendezvous point with an added hustle to his step.

---

A nod from John as he made his return as well; he planned to do videogames with the others if Karrsh refused.

Precipice of War - The Big Leagues of NRP (Only generous tippers need apply)

((Collab Post between BingTheWing and Letter Bee))

The delegation would land in Hanoi's airport without incident; the local Worker's Co-operative would greet the Thai delegation with flowers - mostly orchids - before escorting the Delegation to Hanoi's government building, an old French structure repurposed for the needs of the 'Workers' Councils' that ran the city. This was a bit rushed, but it was about to rain, so it was forgivable.

In Hanoi's government building, there was a neat and clean room that had been stripped of all superflous finery and sported a spartan table and chairs. On the other side of the round table stood a short young woman in military fatigues, surrounded by aides as well as heavily armed male and female bodyguards. This was Lady Le, Lady Trung's second in command. With a rough face and a scar on her right cheekbone, Lady Le didn't have Lady Trung's physical beauty, but was rumored to make up for it with a quick mind.

Lady Le would get up and give a short bow, before saying as thunder rumbled outside, "Greetings. Sorry for the unseemly haste."

At the other end of the table, Foreign Minister Choryan Lektaruthok put his palms together and waied deeply. "Good evening, Lady. Everlasting peace from the People's Republic. And do not worry about the venue; I quite like the aged charm, in fact."

Choryan was a short, balding man just shy of sixty-three years of age and a fondness for patterned ties. The contrast between his five foot five frame and the massive heft of the Revolutionary Army bodyguards visibly armed with hi-capacity submachine guns was almost comical, to say the least. Choryan eyed the Lady and her entourage with a quiet, yet burning, light. These were the faces of a desperate nation, ready not just to die for the greater good of socialism but also for fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters taken from this world in various unpleasant ways by the enemy. Choryan was old, but he was sharp. His entire professional life had been spent knee-deep in the chaotic intrigue that was the political machinery of the People's Republic of Thailand. He had seen his country at the beck and call of imperial overlords, he had seen his country execute hundreds for the sake of revolution, and he had seen his country undergo the military success and political disaster that was Cambodia, but now, at the very least, he hoped, he would see his country through this. Choryan disagreed with the Premier in that Thailand was a tired nation. Thailand was a raring power in Asia, eager for blood and quite capable of annexing the entire Southeast Asian peninsula if need be. But what Choryan did agree on with Premier Radchawat was there needed to be a stopping point. If this belligerency continued, Thailand as a nation would not die, it would get itself killed.

For now, Choryan reduced his inner dialogue to a soft sigh. He proceeded to remember his objectives. Get Thailand resource concessions, no matter the cost.

Lady Le was matter-of-fact, "You are here for Iron, right? That and Chromium from our allies. Well, our Miners' Unions are more than willing to provide the needed resources at below-market prices in exchange for immeidiate help. As an added bonus, you get the services of Sulu Pirates against those of your enemies who have a coast and shipping. Would that not be seemly?"

A pause. "Note that by 'immidiate help', we do not require the use of the Thai Army, as it is still bound by 'occupation duties' in Cambodia. Rather, we want to tighten the blockade around the reactionary forces in French Indochina and Central Vietnam; Diem's so-called Republic of Vietnam. Thus, we want the aid of your navy in enforcing the blockade around the enemy, as well as the use of Thai ports as bases for the Sulu Pirates; they will pay handsomely for the privilege."

Choryan smiled and nodded. This was a godsend - Thailand did not have to get as actively involved as he predicted.

"The iron and chromium deals are deeply welcomed - I will leave it to our economic officers to work out the finer details. However, our country's pride and joy is really the army, and we are yet to improve our air and naval technology as of now. Some help in that matter would be greatly appreciated. However, I am not sure of allowing possible outlaws into Thai ports. Can you guarantee that these Sulu pirates will behave accordingly? Do they have any histories of disobedience?"

Lady Le smiled, "Sulu Pirates are just sailors; rowdy, raunchy, and easily led by alcohol and wenches. If they disobey, that is because they have not been given enough whores and forbidden intoxicants. But if you wish, you can have the Sulu Pirates dock in different parts of the port than used by regular shipping or your military. As for naval technology...you've come to the right place; we have a strong naval tradition."

A pause. "Right now, most of our naval strength are converted fishing and merchant ships fitted with machine guns. However, we have a French Submarine or two we can 'donate' to the Thai cause, if you need it."

Choryan suddenly remembered himself. Did Thailand really need the help? All it would do would be to further 'encourage' his bosses. But at the same time, Choryan knew Thanee would rip into him if he knew that he had passed up an opportunity to acquire a new submarine, a French one at that.

"The French submarines would be excellent, Lady." He stood up to conclude the discussion, lest his superiors be unwittingly given more toys to fight the war. "Together we will wipe out those cursed imperialists." He extended his hand. "Glory to socialism."

Lady Le took the hand. "Glory to the Unified Left."

Precipice of War - The Big Leagues of NRP (Only generous tippers need apply)

@BingTheWing, PM me with your Discord Details once you have time to do a collab post.

Precipice of War - The Big Leagues of NRP (Only generous tippers need apply)

@BingTheWing, Doesn't Thailand have a plane or two? I think it should have one by now...

Innocence Lost: An RP of Child Soldiers and Science Fantasy

Can everyone list their characters favorite foods here. Need it for reference.

@TheHangedMan

John loves Chicken Tocino.

Persona - The True Self

Samuru Amakusa

Samuru ate his sandwich in peace, before musing as to whether he was useful at all to the group. He had terrified Kanna, had a fun yet ultimately fruitless water gun duel with Rui, and shown no skills that others cannot fill. The group would never accept him; they were a closed circle -

Wait, was Kotori offering additional lunches? Best to make one more try at socialization, then. He would approach the young bespectacled girl, saying, "I brought my own lunch as well, but it would be rude not to accept what you are offering the group. Let's make a party of it; I'll get my food and we can all share each other's meals."

And with that, Samuru went off to get his packed lunch, before coming back with his bento box, which contained some simple sushi and pork cutlets as well as rice. He would then go to where Kotori was setting up a joint meal (if the others agreed to eat with her), and help the young bookworm with the setup. Then, the young man - easily one of the oldest people here - would look over the others, somewhat struck by sadness. They were all happy for now, but how long will this last? It appeared as though this was merely the eye of the storm.

It was then that Samuru felt shame at complaining to himself and Kanna about how the group seemed to be closed to him. Why wouldn't they be closed, when they've lost so many, not to death, but to unknown causes? That, and they might yet die soon, in this 'Mirror World'.

Before they settled down to eat, Samuru prayed early, saying the regular prayer said before the meals. Thank you, God, for the food and the peace, were his thoughts. Once he was done with his prayer, he would then quietly eat his meals.

------

Once they were done eating, he would approach Rui and say, "A moment of your time, Rui-sama? I want to chat with you in private."

The honorific was deliberate, a sign of how much Samuru looked up to him and his skills. Once he and Rui had gone off to somewhere relatively secluded, Samuru would say: "I know I only have stories and isolated plot elements to go on, but...things will be more difficult following this. So, I would like to talk about the upcoming conflict." A pause for effect, before he would say, "There has been a large slew of disappearances in our group, such that we can rely on only five or six people out of twenty-one Arcana - yes, I counted the number of seats in The Velvet Room."

"Those five people are: You, Mako, Sato, Ryan, and Kotori; Kanna is yet untested." Hopefully, Kanna was not conveniently eavesdropping, or this caution might be mistaken as lack of faith. "Of those five, Sato is the strongest, if what I saw with my own eyes in battle or what I see in his' and Mako's eyes is the truth. Mako and Ryan are the second-strongest, and I am just below them; I hope this isn't taken as prideful. Now, Kotori...she has the best healer in our group, although her options for counterattack are more limited than mine. As for Kanna...as, I said, he is untested."

Samuru pursed his lips. "So, once we've relaxed and fully rested, I want to be Kanna's trainer, assuming the latter accepts it. I will escort him to various dungeons or provide help during Velvet Room Challenges, and in doing so, make him stronger. Is that possible, Rui?"

@Sho Minazuki@Tenma Tendo@Takaru@Floodtalon@Sen

Innocence Lost: An RP of Child Soldiers and Science Fantasy

@TheHangedMan, Accepted. Post on the CS tab.

Precipice of War - The Big Leagues of NRP (Only generous tippers need apply)

@Katabasis, you are welcome.

Precipice of War - The Big Leagues of NRP (Only generous tippers need apply)

@Chapatrap, you know, you might actually get the Greek Orthodox Church and conservative Greeks supporting the Ottomans if you play your cards right...

Letter Bee's Character Sheets

1254 AD: Purgatory of Europe

It has been fifty years after the Fourth Crusade, where the armies of the West turned against the greatest Christian City in the world, Constantinople, committing acts of bloodshed, rape, looting, and indiscriminate murder that were appalling even in such a brutal era. With the heart of Eastern Christendom ripped out, the legal heirs of the Imperium of Rome were driven out of their capital, onto Western Anatolia, where, holding back Turks and Westerners, they managed to build a stable, prosperous state.

In the West, the Seventh Crusade against Egypt has failed, and King Louis IX of France has taken revenge by expelling all that country's Jews, while Henry III of England is unwillingly forced to let elected representatives from shires and parliaments sit on the King's Council. In Portugal, similar things happen, with Alfonso III of that country holding the first session of the Portugese Cortes, an assembly of Nobles, Merchants, and more elected representatives.

And in the hallowed halls of the Vatican, the Papacy has clarified and named the doctrine of Purgatory, a state between Heaven and Hell in which sinners are purged of their sins before being allowed to Paradise. And Purgatory is what Europe is going through.

For death, fire, swords and blood are the laws of that time, the laws of the world. While people dream of a better world, they can do little to bring it about, and few even try that little. But there is always hope even in the darkness of the time...one just has to grab it.

------

So there you have it, a Historical NRP based on the Middle Ages. I know, I know, people are generally uninterested in the era, but I hope to make it accessible for non-history nerds, as well as give people a great time while fighting/politicking/looting. Anyway...

Wikipedia

I'll add an Etherpad Link if necessary.

------

Rules and Guidelines (Partly Copied from Gilded Throne with Gowi's Permission)

I. The most important thing is to respect and follow the rules of our host site, which is no question. If there’s sexual content there is always “fade to black”, if it is a particularly dark and questionable scene it can be referenced or hinted at instead of shown. Basically, nudity is fine, but no 'horizontal tango'!

II. Respect fellow role-players. This is a collaborative project in nature so we shan’t dismiss or patronize those we should be working together with—lighthearted humor is fine but remember not to insult outright or start flame-wars; generally you know the drill so don’t be a dick and things should be kosher.

III. No meta-gaming—in Game of Thrones Robb Stark wasn’t prepared for the Red Wedding, so by good logic you shouldn’t be as well. The characters can’t know things outside of their timeframe, knowledge, and so on.

IV. This is important—Your Nation must always be next to another Player Nation. And by that, I mean that during nation creation, you should not start at far-flung geographic regions; one nation in Scandinavia and another in North Africa.

V. Characters can and will die in this role-play. Battles can and will be lost. This means if five armed swords surround an unarmed individual there will be certainly a terrible end. Although, this is not to say GM’s or other players can kill others outright and without consultation—you have a say in plot progression but do remember this is a game of collaboration.

VI. Post length should fit the scene progression.

VII. Also a major rule...HAVE FUN!!! (or else...:p)

VIII. In the case of players who drop, grow completely inactive, and other situations that hold up the RP the GM's will take exclusive control of these nations so the RP can continue to progress.

IX. If you have any questions, comments, concerns or need to contact a GM for any reason, we ask that you add all three to your pm or we will rewrite your pm to fit this format. To reiterate, all pm threads to the gms for gm reasons MUST include me or anyone I list as Co-GM in the thread. This will normally include late additions to the lore, or concerns involving other players.

X. No Magic! 'Miraculous Cures' are permitted if they're obviously the placebo effect, though, and you can develop new technology if you can convince me that it'd be viable through PM.

-----

Nation:
Location:
Total Military Numbers (between 5000 - 50,000 for most countries, while big empires such as the Golden Horde and Ilkhanate can have 100,000):
Icon:
History (You are allowed to use Wikipedia for now):