Homelands: Tales of the Anglo-Prussians

Vesimir said:

I live to serve. BTW, what is Constantinople in Prussian?

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Kunstántenágrád


Also, I am close to releasing Alpha One of PEIOU, just making a few more nitpicks.

Homelands
Chapter Twenty Six: Darkest Before Dusk
Part 4

Prelude:
In 1258 the Duchy of Connacht, under the O'Briens, finished the reconquest of much of Ireland. It represented a major turning point for much of Europe. In 1260 the Caliph would officially withdraw from Ireland, leaving small city-states to fend for themselves. It also marked the end of Muslim expansion in the British Isles as well as the end of cooperation between the Three British Sisters, Ireland, Scotland and England. The war between the County Sligo and the Caliph had lasted almost twenty years, but with the surrender of the Caliph many other groups within the Isles and Europe as a whole had been emboldened. However, the failure in Ireland was not as much a force issue as a logistical one. The Caliph was more worried about holding onto gains in Germany, the Lowlands and Italy to care about the Isles. In the East smoldering issues between Rome and Prussia almost boiled over after a skirmish between several merchants in Constantinople. In the winter of 1257 the Romans ended Prussian access to the Mediterranean Sea. This led to five Prussian merchant ships being stalked at eventually boarded by Roman sailors. When the merchants returned to Morcárgrád King Karnak was outraged and immediately sent diplomats, including his son, to Constantinople. The threat of war forced Rome to back down, though they tried to impose a heavy tariff on Prussian goods and fees for going through the straits.


June 17th, 1258

Kiten had not spent a long time in mourning before marrying his choice of bride. Cecile had died of pneumonia during the winter while Kiten was in Constantinople. He played his part in the whole affair, but quickly married Rasa in spring. For a change he was with his father in Memelgrád. Karnak had become very intense about the issues with the Roman Empire, a rivalry of blood and history. When Kiten entered his father's room his friends Andres and Jakob were forced to wait outside. Klaudijs was already in the room, standing at attention by the door. His job had been to fill Karnak in with the minor details so that Kiten could get straight to telling him the consequences.

"Ah! Kiten, I've been so worried about all of this. First the merchants, then Cecile, then the embargos... please tell me something good has happened!" Karnak said.

"Well, the embargos are over, and I think we've managed to keep their new tariffs rather low. One thing that is for sure is the Romans do not seem to want to fight us. Our Saxon friends are not very good rulers. I have a feeling that if we wanted to end the tariffs we could simply strike at Constantinople and be done with it."

Karnak twisted his face in shock, "Wha? Are you suggesting we attack the Roman Emprie? What foolishness is that coming from you?!"

"Father, it is imperative that we stop just threatening our enemies. After a while they will begin to doubt our threats hold any water and they will go about hurting us anyways. If we strike now, hard and fast, we can capture the glory that we deserve, end these damned tariffs and show Europe our words are not just empty threats!" Kiten said, his anger near to boiling over. "Beornwulf is a weak ruler. We would break him... stick someone who supports us on the throne!"

"You are speaking foolishness, Kiten, foolishness! Regicide is not the best course right now! There has to be some better way to achieve all of those things."

"What? Attack a little side nation? We'd win, but we'd be a laughing stock."

"Hmm... what about Sweden? We could push our claims to Skane in the name of the Danish."

Kiten sighed and took a deep breath, it wasn't as good, but it would have to do for now, "How do you want to go about it?"

"Well, I see it this way, we push the claim, they won't back down, Skane is too important to them and they won't want us in complete control over trade into the Baltic. We demand Skane, they refuse, we invade. It is pretty straight forward. It is not like Sweden has allies or anything, Norway hates them and Germany is too busy to do anything to help them!"

"I don't know, father, it might convince Europe that you are crazy... to pull a reversal like that. Threaten one nation invade another. Let us strike for Constantinople, father! Let us stop being second best to those Romans! We could reunite the Church under our rule, our ideals, our language! Think about it father! We could even move Sigeric back to Memelgrád for his true burial!"

Karnak waved the idea away with his hand, "Absolutely not, Kiten!"

"You are failing this country, father! You're being weak! Invade the Romans! End it now!" Kiten shouted. "Karnak the Gallant, too afraid to kick a sick dog so he goes after a sleeping cat. What a brave man."

Karnak's face turned into a deep scowl, "What would you know of bravery? You hide behind words, my boy. You have never led a host into battle or been threaten at knife's point! Don't point at me and accuse me of cowardice!"

"And you think all those places you send me are safe? Are you crazy?! I fear the assassin's blade and the witch's poison every minute I spend outside of Prussia. Are you seriously stupid enough to think that these people are going to warmly accept me after we raid their lands, pillage their homes and burn their cities?! You send me out to do your dirty work while you sit in this damned room and do what? Design flags and pretend to be your great-grandfather? Remember: I go into battle unarmed."

The room descended into silence. The damage had been done and both men just glared at one another. It was Karnak that spoke first, "Well, I am King, so regardless... I don't care for your ideas or your thoughts on our position or my status as a man, so you are dismissed."

Kiten left wordlessly. He didn't care. His father was an idiot, and an aging idiot at that. Outside Rasa had joined Andres and Jakob in waiting for him to leave the room, "What was that?" she asked.

"My father killing this country. Bastard," Kiten spat. The others looked at one another and then tried to hurry Kiten away from the King's room before he could do any more damage. Outside in the courtyard they all sat in a small gazebo and were brought cool drinks and food to enjoy their day. Kiten's nerve was returning, but the others were still wary of provoking him.

"How about we go to the palace in Vilnish?" Andres suggested, "It isn't that far of a journey and we should be the only one's there! Your father isn't going to leave Memelgrád if he is planning a war."

Kiten nodded, "I agree, we should all go to Vilnish, but we should wait for Klaudijs to finish so he may join us. At least we'll be away from the Sea."

Vesimir said:

Man Prussia needs a warmongerer. The king just sits and builds roads. He could at least write a book or something.

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Yeah, at least we get a war in Skane, right?

czam2007 said:

Brian Boru defeated the Vikings and now his decendents defeat the Muslims
Clann Uí Bhriain Abú!! Saviours of Éirinn

Can't wait for the 2 Eastern Superpowers to meet on the battlefield,
It's going to be Biblical

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And to start off with Sligo and nothing else to trump the one of the most powerful states on the map. I like the set up, Ireland and England sit on almost equal terms. Should be fun in the next book.

gigau said:

Karnak has really lost my favor... Kiten (sounds so much like "kitten", i enjoy seeing his will for an epic was against Constatinople :rofl: ) should raise against his father, call in good ol' Serlo, and lead Prussia to glory

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Karnak was a long King to play as, for those not keeping count its been over 30 years already, little happened and I mostly just counted down the years until he croaked. I also noticed the Kiten/Kitten thing, "Kiten" is pronounced /kɪtin/ or for those who cannot read IPA "Kit-een".

Hannibal X said:

How did the O'Briens move from Munster to Connacht? They always lived in Cork before. I do like the O'Briens running things; can't wait for King Conan!

And furthermore, Karnak delenda est.

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At one point all of Ireland had been conquered by the Caliph, but eventually a province revolted and the randomly generated nobles was an O'Brien, then they probably played a game of hopscotch with provinces. That or I just recorded the wrong province.

Enewald said:

I strongly suggest a diplomatic insult against the Romans, then go and steal Hagia Sofia.
Move every stone to Memelgrad.
Sounds hard, but possible.

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I'll look into it.

Issac Wolfe said:

Rebelliousness in the House of Hwicce seems to be a common theme in the father-son relationship.

How old is Karnak at this time? Good update, Mr. C.

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52 IIRC. I did the calculation as I wrote it to see if Karnak deserved an "Old Man" moniker. I don't remember why I didn't include it...

Homelands
Chapter Twenty Six: Darkest Before Dusk
Part 5

Prelude:
Sweden and Norway had become a forgotten part of Europe by the middle of the XIII Century. Isolated physically, religiously and politically the two nations did little more than bicker between themselves and routinely unite to crusade against the pagan Sami people. The balance of power, however, shifted from Norway to Sweden sometime during the XII Century and was cemented when Norway lost its territories in the British Isles and Iceland. When Prussia pulled the claims on Skåne, Sweden was quick to try to work out a peace. Her King did not want to deal with an invasion and would rather just lose the one province. But Karnak was not satisfied with simply being given it with a few conditions. He wanted it without conditions, as a part of his own empire. His son, Kiten, did not partake in the diplomacy. Instead; he, his wife and a close guard left Prussia and toured the Holy Land instead. On paper the reason was to secure relations with the different powers in the region, but in reality Kiten longed to travel away from his father. Along the way he visited the Holy City of Jerusalem, saw the impressive fortress of Damascus, was entertained in Baghdad by the Emir of Mosul and was granted audience with the Grand Sultan of Sultans, Süleyman the Magnificent, Sultan of Perisa.


August 22nd, 1262

The heat of Isfahan kept everyone indoors enjoying lavish meals and cool drinks. The Sultan lay on his side on a massive couch covered in fine, red silk. Around him were numerous guards and translators. Today he entertained guests from countless places, many didn't speak Turkish or Persian. Kiten was enjoying the hospitality as well as the chance to speak with peoples he had never seen before. One such man was Liang Wĕi, an admiral and commander of a trade mission from the Yuan, a Kingdom far beyond the understanding of Kiten. With the use of several translators, he told Kiten of a great wave of nomadic soldiers who had dismantled his old Kingdom and set up a new Kingdom, which then continued to conquer eventually settling on the borders of the Great Sultanate and converting to a local religion. As a member of the ruling class, Wĕi was forced to convert along with the Emperor of the Yuan.

"They had massive armies and came from the north when my father was younger," the translator started, "They were all on horseback and my people's armies were scattered like flower pedals in the wind. The destruction was terrible, but in time things were rebuilt. Soon, I and my friends were being called up to march against the people of India. It is strange how quickly your enemy can became your leader and you will trust him to lead you to victory."

"No, it is not all that strange. It happened in Prussia too," Kiten said. His goblet was filled with crystal clear water, the cleanest he had ever had. He drank as he waited for a reply. Wĕi seemed excited and begged for the story.

"Well, you see... long ago my people didn't exist, we were two separated peoples, divided by ocean and land. One day a third group invaded our homelands, driving us into the sea. They expected us to drown, but instead my ancestor lead our peoples east in a fleet of shallow boats. Finally one day they found a land bathed in a divine light, a safe harbor. And there we settled. In time we conquered and in time those we conquered became our brethren too. We tilled fields side-by-side, we fought side-by-side and we died side-by-side. Today we are indistinguishable. I cannot speak the tongue of my ancestors and they cannot speak the tongue of theirs."

Kiten reflected on the years and years that Prussia had been around. She was so much younger than her neighbors, especially when compared to the Roman Empire. A fire. That is what Prussia was, a fire to purge the old from Europe. Kiten took a deep breath of air and looked up at Wĕi. He seemed to understand and nod as the story was translated. Rasa sat next to him, placing her head on his shoulder. Suddenly the call to return home flooded his veins. Prussia called to him. Tomorrow he would head home for the first time in more than three years. He might not like his father, but he loved his people, the language, the culture, the food, the dances, the faces, the roads and the inns along Sviendorog's roads.

Isfahan would be as far as he went. At dawn Kiten and his entourage were loaded onto a caravan and drove back west toward Baghdad and eventually the port at Adana. From there he would sail back to Morcárgrád and atone for having run from his land. Persia was an expansive and impressive realm, though shrinking. Once it stretched from Prussia in the north to the Persian Sea in the south and from the Mediterranean in the West to the Indus in the East. Now with the loss of the Indus, to local tribes; Syria, to a pretender; Georgia, to Sunnis; and Armenia to Georgia the Turks were down to their core territories in Persia.

Rasa had with her parting gifts of different merchants and royals. From one merchant she had an idol of a many-handed goddess. From Wĕi she had a silk scarf. Andres and Jakob spoke at length of the impressiveness of the journey, and the size of the world. Before the journey Europe to them started at Berlin and ended at the Volga. Everything else was fiction, a mythical lands from the minds of drunken Greeks. Now, in a carriage being pulled by a team of long-necked camels, they truly felt that the world could be infinite for all they knew. Kiten, however, remained silent. Klaudijs eventually called his attention and the Prince seemed to snap awake from some waking dream.

"My lord, you have hardly said more than three words since we left Isfahan, are you ill?" Klaudijs asked in his concerned fatherly voice.

Kiten shoot his head, "Yes, Klaudijs, I am ill for my home. Listening to prophets and merchants tell grand tails of their homes and their peoples made me miss my own, so we are returning." Kiten left it at that, his point had gotten across. Everyone seemed to have a contented look on their face, like those sitting at a dinner table after a feast. They all longed for the places they called home.

Many days later they were on the sea, sailing from Constantinople to Mocágrád. The waves tossed the ship around and water spilled down from the decks into the hold. Kiten stood on the deck and watched the light in the distance, it was the port. The salt stung his eyes, but the water was cool and inviting. The storm could not daunt Kiten's spirit. His veins surged with the urge to jump off and begin swimming to shore. He could not wait any longer. His smile crossed his entire face, threatening to cleave it in two. He shouted with excitement when the first Prussian warship was spotted. Its massive white, gold and black banner was that of his father's doing. A black eagle clutched the cross and carried it across its chest. Prussia was the master of its fate and faith, Prussia was the master and Kiten was its servant. The warship came up alongside the Roman ship he was on, and ropes were flung over to tie the two together.

"What is aboard your ship?" a voice called in a tell-tale southern dialect of Prussian.

"The son of his royal majesty, Karnak of Prussia!" Kiten shouted.

"We'll send security over to confirm that! Then we'll lead you into safe port. The storm is getting nasty!"

It was nearly over, Kiten was almost back home. The next morning, with the storm all but dissipated. The small Roman merchant ship sailed into a calm harbor with the guard of a warship. There were no parades, no cheering. Just a sigh of relief from Kiten's mouth when he once again stood on his native soil. He looked around him a saw a worn down and messy city, fresh out of the strongest storm in eight years. He didn't see a rundown city, he saw a hardy city, one that took whatever nature threw at it. He saw a hardy people rebuilding without tears or sweat. It was his home, his motherland, his duty was to it and it alone. Kiten rejoined Rasa and following the guards' lead, sat down in a carriage to be taken across the breadth of Prussia back to Memelgrád where they would tell stories of exotic spices, women who dances with serpents, and goddesses who held the key to life and death. Of short men with slanted eyes, of Kingdoms populated by dragons, and of conquerors who never left their horses. But he too would have to listen to the stories of those who stayed. Of wars with Scandinavia, and of building, a new age was just around the corner and its foundation was being laid literally in stone.

Vesimir said:

Vidisjura is prussian for Mediterranean, yes?

Kiten should reconquer Egypt and crown himself Pharaoh. He seems like a chap that would find it amusing. And it would be unbeliavbly cool.

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Yes, actually it is a typo as the "v" is capitalized and there are no capitalizations in Prussian.

Enewald said:

Haven´t the mongols yet reached lands of Europe?

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The Mongols [in game] reached Europe in 1218 and were conquered by 1220. The Ilkhanat appeared in 1227 and was also gone a few years later. It seems that one of two things happened: Either I forgot to undo a self mod preventing them from appearing, or the unified Turks and Mordvins held them back like a damn against a river. I don't think it was a mod that did it, as I they appeared and reappeared and got reinforcements.

Something similar is probably also the cause for why there is no plague either. o Though I can just stick that into the EUIII section. Can someone check the global disease event, is the MTTH supposed to be "years = 1666" or did I just hit "66" after a 16 or something?

What probably happened, especially with the plague, that seems a tad unreasonable, is that I modded it for a multi-player game (so that we didn't have to deal with the plague), and since Homelands was started in the middle of that multiplayer game the plague mod came with it. Since I inevitably forgot about the change, it was left. Damned.

I'll add a plague into the connecting years between Homelands and Oceans because the plagued populations persist in EUIII and require explanation.

Vesimir said:

I think Europe that was never touched by the Black Death would make the world even more unique. And unique is good.

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I agree, I am just putting that idea out there.

gigau said:

Your writing skills continue to provide a great story.

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Thank you very much.