Krolestopol

Following the
collapse of Pteroslavia the city of Krolestopol began a short slide
into unprofitablity and a much longer, much slower slide into ruin.
Originally conceived as THE naval base in northern Pteroslavia, the
town had been built around the docks, which had formed around the
three water features in the area. Pishchana bukhta, or Pisok (The
Sandy Bay), Lazurni Vody (Azure Waters), and Donnets Taz (The estuary
of the Donnets river). Naturally Donnets Taz hosted the docks, Pisok
the small shipworks and Lazurni the larger shipworks. Also naturally
there was overlap.

The area surrounding
the three facilities was rapidly deforested, both for building the
town of Krolestopol and the various ships, including three Ships of
the Line (SJCM Malzonka-Cesarzowej Maryna Nadolny, SJCM Cesarzowa
Cecylia Kulesza-Piest, SJCM Kapitan-Pulkownik Ludomir Kochanski)
Prospecting teams were sent out, but no metal was immediately found,
only worthless coal. Only decades later, as explorers broached the
hostile interior of Vol-Tar-Vo would metal and precious gems be
found. By that point Pteroslavia had exploded, leaving the
development largely to the natives, and the settlers of Krolestopol
who had become little different from natives themselves.

A fire in the early
1800s devastated the town, seeing civilisation pushed back to the
immediate surroundings of Donnets Taz and abandoning Pisok entirely.
Efforts were made to rebuild using stone, but what little stone that
could be scavenged was used to build the palace. It must be noted
that during this time the main income was piracy. Militant anarchy
reigned, and while there were fair and just pirate kings, their
efforts at reform were hamstrung by a lack of plunder and food.

Finally, in 1848,
Krolestopol was invaded by surrounding villages and towns, bound
under the banner of the Tarniw People's Republic and the charismatic
leader Richka, or the River. Real name Artur Didyk. The Republic
represented a loose confederacy of city/village states focused in the
south of modern day Tarniw, and laying claim far beyond its modern
day borders. However Krolestopol played little role in all this,
having been left to ruin once the pirate kings had been executed or
exiled. It was only following the massacre at Kvasy, and the retreat
from Volhynia in 1871 that Krolestopol became important to the
Republic.

It became
increasingly obvious to Richka, son of Richka, educated in Azan, that
the Vol-Tar-Vo region was too large and too sparsely populated for
any collection of villages and city states to effectively hold onto.
This he ascribed to the arable lifestyle, requiring all wars to be
fought after sowing and prior to harvest – a problem Azan did not
suffer from, with its thriving theocratic class. To this end he
envisaged the hiring of slaves and mercenaries, trading land for
their services, to which he needed naval access.

For five years
Tarniw eschewed warfare as Volhynia and Volodymer tore strips out of
each other, instead its armies laboured in Krolestopol, studied in
Azan, and sailed the oceans blue. Slaves were found in the pirate
diaspora, dispensations were granted – they could return, be given
land, food and work, as long as they pledged themselves, and their
chattel, to Richka, and the Republic. Mercenaries proved more
difficult, the Tarniw ships lacked the range, both in victuals and in
design, forcing them to remain within sight of the coast. In 1881
Lazurni was re-inhabited and the sunk wreck of a fifth rate ship,
dating from the 1600s. Badly water damaged, it nonetheless gave
Tarniw a leg up in the design of long ranged ships. At the turn of
1890 the first, and last, 'Ship of the Line' was launched under the
Tarniw colours, sailing north, stocked with the entirety of the
excess harvest of Tarniw, as well as treasures from the days of
empire. Amongst these were a compass, a tapestry deriving the lineage
of the Pteroslavian Emperors, a gentleman's sword cane, and a
collection of silver and iron coins. Richka, son of Richka, captained
the ship, leaving Tarniw in the hands of the Viche (a council of city
state leaders). His arrival in Bonnhaven, though foreshadowed by
stops along the coast, was met with delight and derision in equal
measure. An old timey sailing ship, the likes of which hadn't been
seen in half a century, not counting the windjammers, bringing
'gifts' from the old world. Indeed far greater attention was paid to
the 32 tradionally built 6 pounder guns, of old Pteroslavian design,
than to a broken compass and nubs of iron and silver.

The sale of the
Hordist Tarniw, complete with fittings, earned enough for three
paddle steamers (in the event both sides thought they were getting a
bargain as the paddle steamers were destined for scrappage), laden
with machinery, muskets (crates packed in the 1840s) and passengers
eager to see the old way of life.

Back in Tarniw
things did not go well however. Growing dissatisfaction with the
'Builder King' had been steadily growing over the years. His peaceful
approach, his surrendering of vast tracts of (admittedly worthless)
land to the other republics, to pirates, to slaves, and now he sails
away with all their food. The Viche voted to replace him, choosing a
predictably weak individual known as Borys Tokar. By Richka's, son of
Richka, return in autumn 1892 Tarniw had become embroiled in another
war for the interior of the Vol-Tar-Vo region. The initial plan to
have soldiers in wait at Krolestopol had been abandoned as the first
harvest approached; all agreed he was probably dead, and so much the
better for it. Krolestopol itself had been the subject of a revolt as
the intellectuals had their books burned, the carpenters given Oslops
and told to stop their cowardice, and the metallurgists...Well they
left those alone, keep up the cannon production boys. Armed with
powder charges, pipe muskets and an array of traps, the city had held
out until just 6 weeks before Richka's return. “The foundries still
glowed a faint red as we left the ships. I didn't know what to make
of it, my family should be here, and yet the city was one step above
ruin. As I turned to Doctor Monteuuar, my fast companion of the
voyage, my face must had told him all he needed to know, for he put
his hand on my shoulder and softly said 'I am sorry'”.

Declarations and
summonses were made. Runners from friendly villages returned first
and the gates were closed and fortified before the siege army,
having departed mere days earlier, could reoccupy the city. A week
into the renewed siege a parley was sent. The siege army had to
return home for the harvest, would Richka agree to a truce over the
winter? Already a paddle steamer had departed for Laurentin, orders
to hire all mercenaries they could muster. He agreed.

The summer of 1893
was bloody. Richka was appalled at the wanton destruction his
mercenary army had wrought. From a casualty rate of maybe 1 in 20,
now came grapeshot and rifles that killed men in their dozens.
Attempts to constrain them failed utterly. The mercenary hoard
ravaged the countryside, paying scant attention to Richka. To any
protest their captains merely pointed them to the paymaster general,
who in turn pointed to the contracts. “[The mercenaries] would
derive their pay from the land.” To Richka this had meant settling
after the war. To them it meant pillage and plunder. Pleas for mercy
fell on deaf ears, or were met with mocking retort that he should pay
their wages.

Their pound of flesh
was paid in full in 1895. Richka, son of Richka, had long committed
suicide. Volodymer and Volhynia had devastation delivered upon them
was in scant proportion to Tarniw, but the devastation wrought
contrition from them. In 1895 the Grand Viche had met, their hoarded
treasures from the past 300 years piled in front of the paymaster
general and deemed not enough. Village elders stripped, their rings
first, then crowns, then necklaces, clasps, broaches and ear rings.
Books from the 1600s, including an original of 'The Imperator', were
taken from the libraries of towns. It was not enough. Machinery,
pickaxes, axes, anvils, swage and die sets came from the towns. The
ceramic plates from foundries, moulds and casting trays came next.
The glint in the paymaster's eye finally was sated. The people of
Vol-Tar-Vo having come within inches of selling themselves into
slavery if it would stop the plunder, now breathed a sigh of relief,
followed by a gasp of regret as the pile was hauled away, taking
their history, their industry, their dignity with them. Over a
thousand died in 1896 as famines rocked the country, society
floundering without hoes, without plough or oxen – perhaps to our
way of thinking that is not enough, that a famine must see a million
die, at least a hundred thousand. Had that happened there would be no
Vol-Tar-Vo, everyone would be dead. Everyone.

And so it was, for a
while there was no Volynia, no Volodymer, no Tarniw, they were united
in their poverty. 1897 saw the emergence of the Rada Semy, a council
of seven towns that had passed, through fair means or foul, through
the fire of the rape of Vol-Tar-Vo and still held a semblance of
industry or agriculture. They met in Bragaraoult. They argued. They
went away again. 98 saw the same. 99 again. Only when the sky turned
black, the land froze and burned in turns did they see fit to agree
who should be part of the council.

Krolestopol had come
through the fire the best, of any of them and now held
disproportionate power. Traders from Laurentin – the mercenaries
may be cursed until the lion sleeps with the lamb, but in the numb
horror that followed charity and trade were all that kept the town
going – had set up shop, the settlers had finally come. The lands
surrounding Krolestopol were cleared, farms built, cattle grazed. For
the most part, with the exception of the hardest hearted, the traders
felt shame at what their countrymen had done. They understood it was
business, that Tarniw had signed a contract, but still, their empathy
swelled...after the mercenaries had left. When it was safe to extend
tendrils of business without fear of reprisal. On paper much of the
land was leased for 99 years and the tentents had equivilent rights
to any citizen in Laurentin. In practice there was no police force,
nor court to enforce any provision granted, with any citizen at the
mercy of the landowner. This was a sore point for the Rada Semy. They
felt Krolestopol could not reasonably hold sway on the council whist
they could not hold sway in their own town. Indeed it may be giving a
seat to Laurentin and the barbarians who did all this. Nuances
counted for naught against this. They were not the same people, there
wasn't a conspiracy and it was just business. Outrage flared to hear
their countrymen use the same excuses the mercenaries had.
Krolestopol stood alone in its experience during the rape, while the
rest of the Tarniw was issued with receipts for whatever crime was
perpetrated against them – all acts were legal if accompanied by a
receipt – Krolestopol had the King's peace extended to it. Beyond
the border, of course, there were no receipts. It was war. Another
sore spot for the Rada Semy.

Polemics aside, by
1908 the Rada Semy had organised sufficiently to be recognised as the
sovereign, or at least dominate, power over the Vol-Tar-Vo, at least
by the precursor-GCK, Azan and Pteroslavia. The prevailing opinion, 4
to 3, in the Rada Semy held that they were reliant on both the
charity and the trade of the three powers. Azan was always the first
choice, but it looked inwards at every turn. Pteroslavia should have
been the second choice, but their diplomats and traders more fully
encapsulated the mercenary mindset than the soon to be GCK. Yet this
mindset also demanded they were the second choice, simply to stave
off a repeat of the rape. Thus the precursor powers of the GCK were
relegated to the lowest priority, everywhere but Krolestopol which,
by pre-existing arrangements, must deal first with Laurentin.

Investment slowly
agglomerated as the Rada Semy began auctioning new leases for the
interior mines. These would last 10 years, but could then be
renegotiated. They heavily favoured the investor, allowing them to
retain full ownership of any materials they brought into the country,
pay no taxes and keep all they dug from the ground. The only real
concessions demanded were VTV citizens must be employed – it was
written in crystal clear language, all work must be done by VTV
citizens, only the most high level jobs could be occupied by
foreigners. Every job below the inspectors and decision makers must
be a VTV citizen, from day to day management down to scullery maids.
The other concession was aimed squarely at Pteroslavia and demanded
all trade pass through Krolestopol. This, by necessity, caused
Laurentin to become involved, acting as a check on Pteroslavian
'invasion'. Likewise Pteroslavia served as a check on Laurentin
'invasion', as any occupation would see Pteroslavia cut off from the
interior.

1909 saw the first
handprints of Alaric Ravenshauu, the Laurentin businessman who's
investment both strengthened and weakened the Laurentin guarantee. On
the one hand it vastly improved trade routes, bringing Krolestopol to
a trading hub far earlier than was originally planned. On the other
he monopolised the port, leaving Laurentin with a single merchant
house exposed. Moreover he was staunchly anti-war, with powerful
political enemies. This expanded in 1910 as he fled Laurentin
following an attempt on his life, seeing the opening of the
Ravenshauu Marina und Harbour Company, growing to a cargo tonnage
capacity of 1,300,000 tonnes at the outbreak of war in 1920. It
should be noted this included his cargo ships from Laurentin prior to
1910, and well as Isniaca's fleet after 1914. They were not all built
in Krolestopol.

Whilst he was
prohibited from owning land in the interior, he owned land in the
interior. Roads were built, infrastructure laid, all leading to
Krolestopol. At the same time Pisok and Lazurni were expanded,
machinery imported and Ravenshauu Island sunk, granting the city, for
it became a city, another suitable shipworks. Coal mines were built
over the early farmlands in 1913, having been forgotten or hidden up
to that point. These were owned by a series of holding companies,
registered in Isniaca, Laurentin, Zatoka and Arkadijya, ultimately
owned by Ravenshauu.

Krolestopol Opera
House opened in 1914, along with the Ballet, Central Library and
Philanthropic Centre, feeding a surge in population, which fed the
growing workforce as it paved the roads of Krolestopol and rebuilt
the wooden city in the Art Deco style, stone and iron, concrete and
glass being the tools that shaped the city. The Aerodrome, first
proposed in 1908 and finally built in 1918 having been beset by
endless shortages stood out, having been built in the traditional
Gothic architecture style of Pteroslavia. It might be supposed this
drove growing discontent in the Rada Semy, but it must be underlined
that VTV culture had been utterly destroyed, and the development of
Krolestopol, and the free trips to Krolestopol were written into
contracts between Ravenshauu and the Rada Semy. Set within the
greater context, it was accepted the VTV would have to fight
Pteroslavia or Laurentia at some point, and would probably lose.
However, if that did not happen they would need to join the
brotherhood of nations, and that could not happen if they remained
tribal city states. Dissenting voices, most vocal the three on the
council were shouted down at first, before being silenced in 1918.

As the Endurance,
and Endurance II took shape off the coast of Krolestopol, the
industrialised city grew at a pace. New Regenerative Furnaces were
built over the old foundries, whilst the Kelly process was introduced
and scaled up, leaving great black clouds drifting out into
Miedzygorami. Hot rolling mills sprung up, ostensibly for a tram
system that was never designed, much less built, fed by the furnaces,
whilst the largest crucibles in the world sailed through the air to
pouring rooms purpose built for handling them. Accumulator towers
spread skywards as the demand for power blossomed with the
manufactures that exported trinkets across the three nations. The
sheer scale of the effort lead many to dismiss the entire endeavour,
while others grew envious of Ravenshauu's pocket empire 'I could do
that if I had 50,000 captive workers'. The attitude that drove up
VTV's land contracts on the one hand, but fed Pteroslavia's hunger
for war all the same.

Production notably
declined in the latter half of 1919, hidden behind record growth in
the first three quarters, with production falling off a cliff in
August. As much of the machinery as could be looted was loaded onto
steam clippers and the Endurance II in the last four months of the
year. At the same time large quantities of explosives were stored
near the Accumulators, and the more immovable machinery. The Rada
Semy worked together with Ravenshauu to some extent; the idea being
Krolestopol would become the prime target for invasion, and would
either need to be held (which optimally it would), or destroyed, but
it seems clear from the historical record Ravenshauu was acting
beyond expectations. He didn't go as far as to actively sabotage the
VTV, but nor did he pay consideration their needs in the coming war.

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