Europe, Autumn 1905
Italy and Austria-Hungary at war. Again!
Vienna/Rome - A hundred years ago, in an unexpected turn of events, Austro-Hungarian forces launched a full scale invasion of Italian heartlands, completely razing the city of Venice with their M1A1 Abrams tank divisions while their ambitious collection of torpedo boats plundered the city of Naples.
Still, in spite of such an overt display of animosity by Austria-Hungary, Italian troops in Armenia willingly put themselves under constant German bombardment to help their pan-adriatic brothers form a front line at Sevastopol.
Meanwhile in Italy, the Austrians were approaching Rome from two different directions, leaving behind a grim trail of death and devastation. The Italian capitol found itself engulfed in chaos as the buerocrats were trampling women, children and the elderly in an effort to save themselves from the clutches of Hapsburg buccaneers. During this sad exodus, hundreds of thousands of secret state documents were left lying around in abandoned government buildings.
One such document is a letter from a highly positioned Italian government official to the Armenian garrison commander, written just after the pillage of Naples:
"Otavio, you insufferable imbecile, I see you and the Austrians are getting along nicely. If we weren't related I would have had you shot 20 years ago! Listen to me carefuly -
Stop helping the Hapsburgs!
I've sent you to the farthest pissass province I could find, Otavio, you fat dilettante, thinking you wouldn't be able to cause much damage there, but now, because of you, they have me completely surrounded! I swear, if I get out of this, I'm coming down to Armenia to take a shit over your smoldering corpse!
~VE3"
[Italian troops coming to Austrian aid at Sevastopol. Artist's impression.]
The return of the French President?
Paris - Unconfirmed reports claim that a hooded figure resembling the former French president was spotted peeping through the Elysian Palace windows shortly before being chased off by dobermans.
As a reminder, the French president was impeached back in Spring 1905 after a country-wide uprising that was instigated by a costly war with over 15 milion French casualties. The President's attempts to protect Europe from the Anglo-Saxon menace resulted in a grueling tug of war with shifting allegiances in which the French got attacked and betrayed (at one point or another) by every other nation still existing in Europe. Needless to say, French voters weren't impressed so they took to the streets calling for immediate cessation of hostilites, urging the soldiers to lay down their arms and return to their homes. The President's last public appearance was before the National Assembly just as he was about to get taken into custody for treason. As the guards dragged him out of the building, he uttered his famous words that still echo through the halls of French Parliament:
"You impeach ME? I impeach YOU! I hope you all die without me you ungrateful bastards!"
His sympathisers helped him escape before he was put on trial, and his current whereabouts are unknown.
[French president's military strategy took to the extreme when ammunition shortage struck in the third battle for Brest]
The Shire will prevail!
London - "Victory is at grasp! We will drive the foul-smelling orcs back to the fungoid rocks under which they've crawled from! The Shire will prevail!" - exclaimed the mentally unstable King of England in his address to the newly formed London infantry division. He was, of course, referring to the French invaders currently trespassing on English soil.
Sources close to the King say that, although initially suspicous, everyone has grown accustomed to calling the French Orcs, England Shire, Russia Mordor and so on. In fact, the King has never been more popular. Euphoria sweeps across the British Isles ever since England managed to snatch itself back from the jaws of oblivion. Grown Englishmen have started to refer to themselves as Hobbits and see the King as their saviour and a misunderstood visionary who can only lead them to greater greatness.
[Jubilant crowd applauding King of England's interpretation of European politics]
Hyperinflation threatens Germany
Berlin - Streets of Berlin are still clogged with an assortment of naval spare parts, while the Kaiser is attempting to locate everyone involved in implementing German's fleet expansion agenda. With the Austro-Hungarians threatening to invade Berlin any day now, Kaiser's patience with German captains picking their noses in the frozen wastelands of Scandinavia is running extremly thin. To make matters worse, navy maintnance exepenses have shot through the roof and this has delayed the deployment of vitally needed 6th Infantry Division to the front lines, yet again.
Economists agree that recent simulations of fleet operations performed in the straits of Skagerrak might just be the final drop that will drive Germany into hyperinflation.
"The exercises in Scandinavia are neccessary. We must be ready in case the Anglo-French forces decide to take advantage of the situation", claims German Admiralty as the Reichsbank initiates it's forty-second QE program to pay for all the diesel spent on fleet maneuvers in Skagerrak.