Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/Diplomatic Relationships

Alliance
The two factions regard each other as allies, exchange values and culture, are friendly to each other, and consider merging their armies, or at least always fight together. Currently, this only exists between the major political factions, with alliances with a differant political faction (like the Aquilans with the Neutral Guardians Of Gaiaterra) is rare. There may one day be a chance for alliances between major factions, however...

Peace
The two factions work strongly together, exchange values and culture, are friendly to each othe,r and do not attack each other. They often fight together or at least for the same goals. A good example are the Protectorate to most of the Guardians.

Neutral
The two factions do not work together, nor against each other, and do not attack each other either. They keep out of the other's business. The best example are the Order, who observe the other factions but do not attack them (at least not often and not in an obvious way).

Hostile
The two factions mistrust each other and are in a state of crisis towards each other. Spy games are a daily matter and either faction has the finger on the button to start a war. The best example is the Horde, who are in a state of hostility towards all other factions.

War
Full-scale war between the factions. Soldiers and material are used to eradicate the enemy by all means and forces are getting mobilized for attacks. The risk of one or the other side launching a WMD is high as well. The best example is the Conglomerate, being at war with seven Guardian and Destroyer factions at the same time.

Unknown
The relationship between the factions is unknown or nonexistent, likely because one faction has little to no intelligence about the other. The Scrin, who are unknown to everyone else, are the best example.

N/A - Not available
The relationship a faction would have to itself, which is not possible, but has to be defined in a table system nonetheless.

Federation Of Aquila
Major Lydia Winters graciously responded to a request for an interview, and offers an unofficial perspective of the Allied Nations' stance on various world powers.

Federation Of Aquila: "We're the hope of the world, a free and democratic alliance stretching around the globe to protect universal freedoms from anyone who would restrain them. I wish we didn't have to bring so many men and women away from their homes and families, but their sacrifices in the name of peace and progress will never be forgotten. It is my fullest hope that one day we will be able to disarm, and never hold another shield, but threats to our self-determination lurk across the world. The Voshkod, the Syndicate, and other organizations sometimes seem bent on the destruction of all we've built and hope to achieve."

Alliance: "The backbone of the Guardians, the firm foundation on which we can ensure the world's stability. I have had the pleasure of serving alongside several Hawke officers in the past. Though some claim that a Alliance regiment acts as little more than a speed bump in the face of Voshkod aggression in the past, it is clear that those 'speed bumps' destroyed much of the Voshkod war capacities, at the cost of many lives. Which makes the defection of many Hawke soldiers, led by former tank ace Isara, all the more painful. Why would one abandon a cause as good as the Guardians, in order to follow the memory of a madman?"

ADI: ""

Protectorate: "For all the darkness and chaos in the world, it is good to know that there is still hope for all of humanity. With their isolationism gone, the Protectorate have begun to embrace freedom and justice. Oh, I know their culture is centuries behind the times and their technology centuries ahead, but I think it will all even out in the end. They have much to teach us, and we have much to teach them. I'm not blind to the demons remaining in that Protectorate of theirs, and know how easily we could end up at war again, but for once I think things will turn out alright in the end with these people."

Republic: ""

Empire: "The Elsword Empire. I can say that they show promise, even more since they used to work for the Voshod, and that their ideas and merits are admirable. Yet I feel ill at ease still in calling them our allies. True, they represent a model of democratic ideals under heavy pressure, and I will not deny that the alternative of a communist Lurensia is a far worse possibility. Still, their usage of such questionable weapons, from napalming entire villages to that photo of General Loan and that prisoner, I would fully expect a fair number of war crimes trials against the Empire's military leadership. I can only hope that when they are made a member of the Guardians properly, they can join our other national forces in adopting tactics that do not require such harsh extremes."

Community: ""

Voshkod: "The Voshkod, the Voshkod, the Voshkod... The Voshkods are dangerous enough as it is. I sometimes wonder why they seem so bitter and hateful. Of us, and of the entire world. They call communism better for the people, but how can anyone truly think that? Just look at pictures of Moscow and Fereldan. One is a grey waste, full of propaganda and hungry people. The other is a bright and bustling city, filled with hope and progress. Why don't the Voshkod people see it? Why do they cling to their Union when their lives would be so much better if they cast off their leaders and embraced the Allied cause?"

Brotherhood: ""

MLA: "For a force calling itself the Moonlight Liberation Army, they seem intent on oppressing the whole of the Middle East. Suicide bombings? Oppression of Humans? Even a full-scale rebellion against one of the more conservative nations in the Persian Gulf? What liberation do they truly want then? Not a liberation of the mind, for they insist on keeping their fighters from any kind of education. Not political liberation, as it seems that only the wealthy or the unstable claim it all for themselves, and often the leaders are one in the same."

Horde: ""

Collective: "If the Voshkod and the Collective were two evils, then I would have difficulty in deciding which was the lesser of them. For all of Emet's faults, he still had the drive to make communism for the people of Voshkod real. Yuri is merely a power-hungry psychopath, devoted to nothing more than his own cult of personality. To actually devalue a human being by making identical copies, turning life into an assembly line; how could any sane man allow such a thing?"

Encantadia: "So sad. This is why the tactics of General Trưởng's forces are simply not viable in modern war. Like in Northern Ireland, killing our enemies only made our difficulties more numerous in combating the IRA. So, the solution was to adopt non-lethal methods. Despite all evidence to the contrary, the Canthans and Luresians still utilize their deadly tactics. But do I sympathize with the Encantadians? Of course not. Their beliefs are just as misguided if no more so. For all the faults of the Storm Clan, they are at least allowing their people to serve of their own recognizance. The Encantadians foolishly follow communism as a knee-jerk reaction to decades of Orlais colonial rule, not any true faith in its cause. Truthfully, can they actually sustain such a cause?"

Scrin: "Well... I just finished looking over the Y files. Frankly, I find all this very disturbing. Not only do we clearly have to talk to the Protectorate about lab safety procedures, but I don't even know what to make of these... These robots. What do they want? Why haven't they talked to us? Their movements suggest that they do have some sort of purpose, but then again, I'm used to thinking about humans, and similar beings. Again, I have to ask: what do they want? I don't buy the Protectorate reassurances that they can't be intelligent. They definitely are, but the question is how intelligent they are. Nevermind. I don't want to know, I think. This will probably be a problem, but for now, I've got enough on my plate."

Conglomerate: "I don't mean to sound arrogant, but how can Isara and her traitors be so ungrateful? If not for us, her home would have been conquered by the Voshkod. All we have done is keep her country from falling into anarchy, yet she calls us tyrants? Place on us the same words we use to describe the Voshkod? And even joined up with those who worked with the Collective, Brotherhood, and Syndicate? I don't understand. It seems as though they want chaos and anarchy to rule, and we simply cannot allow that. Isara, and that island she now calls home, is far too important to the world, she has too much to offer the world to betray her homeland and slide into anarchy and rebellion and recruit others to follow her. I truly am sorry for the lives lost, but it is ultimately for their own good."

Coalition: ""

Minuteman: "We couldn't have foreseen what happened to Embry. Why can't they realize that? All we wanted to do was to make Embry a better place. For the people especially, but for the entire world. After the disaster, the Embry people should have contacted us. We would have loved to extend a helping hand and get them back on their feet. Instead, they're... Well, mad. Mad at us, mad at the Voshkod, mad at almost everyone. They have grown reckless at war and at science, wielding equipment that is extremely outdated or making technologies that cannot possibly be safe for anyone, even themselves. What could they possibly be thinking?"

Syndicate: "Unprincipled and dangerous. Those are the words you must always remember when talking about them. They have no rules, no morals, no ethics or principles. The Syndicate is a horrific cancer upon the world with no motivation beyond the desire to grow and spread. Excising this cancer would do the world a favor, but there are unfortunately more immediate threats to deal with. Still, they have consumed Antivan and intend to do the same to the entire world, no matter how their executives dress it up and veil it in sugary words and lies. Sooner or later, we will have just cause to bring these companies down. If you ask me, that day can't come soon enough."

Heralds: "I've read the files on them, too. Apparently, they're a secretive group that has existed in various forms through the centuries, with reports of suspected activities in Eastern Eorzea and elsewhere starting to increase, and seemingly acting in opposition to the 'Grey Steel Order'? I might call them a potential threat, but there are greater and more immediate dangers to worry about in this world."

Order: "I've seen the classified reports on this 'Grey Steel Order.' I'm tempted to just call them madmen and fanatics a few hundred years past their prime, but it's truly depressing to see what religion can do to good people. Fine, upstanding officers of the Guardian cause, twisted into raging zealots... this Order is the last of a dying breed. A cult, really. But it is desperate and it is dangerous. They can't possibly harm us in any meaningful way, of course, but they will poison the minds of people everywhere their contagion spreads. No, they are not a threat to the Guardians. They are a threat to the people, who don't realize that zeal is obsolete."

Legion: "They... Frighten me. Democracy may not be a perfect system, but at least it is one where people are free to make their own decisions. Then I read the reports one day about the final days of Aden before the bombs. It was... Devastating. Men turned into little more than machines. Endless trenches filled with little more than skeletons, and the soldiers who had to scavenge their bodies just to survive. Will we still attempt to help them rebuild their nation after the bombs? Of course. But I feel that a much more important question should be asked; do the survivors deserve it?"

Alliance Of Hawke
Federation Of Aquila: ""

Alliance: ""

ADI: ""

Protectorate: ""

Republic: ""

Empire: ""

Community: ""

Voshkod: ""

Brotherhood: ""

MLA: ""

Horde: ""

Collective: ""

Encantadia: ""

Scrin: "

Conglomerate: ""

Coalition: ""

Minuteman: ""

Syndicate: ""

Heralds: ""

Order: ""

Legion: ""

Aion Defense Initiative
Federation Of Aquila: ""

Alliance: ""

ADI: ""

Protectorate: ""

Republic: ""

Empire: ""

Community: ""

Voshkod: ""

Brotherhood: ""

MLA: ""

Horde: ""

Collective: ""

Encantadia: ""

Scrin: "

Conglomerate: ""

Coalition: ""

Minuteman: ""

Syndicate: ""

Heralds: ""

Order: ""

Legion: ""

Aion Defense Initiative
Federation Of Aquila: ""

Alliance: ""

ADI: ""

Protectorate: ""

Republic: ""

Empire: ""

Community: ""

Voshkod: ""

Brotherhood: ""

MLA: ""

Horde: ""

Collective: ""

Encantadia: ""

Scrin: "

Conglomerate: ""

Coalition: ""

Minuteman: ""

Syndicate: ""

Heralds: ""

Order: ""

Legion: ""

Katsuragi Protectorate
A Syndicate black bag team successfully breached Shinzo Nagama's personal residence and retrieved a number of interesting items, including a personal journal with the following.

Federation Of Aquila: "I am still not used to thinking of these barbarians as allies. Impolite to speak of our allies in such terms, perhaps, but mark my words: this is an alliance of convenience alone. Emperor Yoshiro's vision was flawed, but not wrong. The flaw was the speed with which we were to proceed. Conquering the world in one fell swoop was not possible. However, the naivete of these fools will be their undoing and our triumph. The moment this alliance no longer suits our purposes, we will strike. I have to thank them. Who else would willingly trust and ally with those who once tried to erase them? Who else would willingly hand over the keys to their destruction?"

Alliance: ""

ADI: ""

Protectorate: "We are the future of this world, and all worlds beyond. Emperor Yoshiro and Prince Tatsu were correct about that. Simple, brutal military power was not the key to the future, we now know. Forcing ourselves upon destiny was nearly our undoing. Instead, destiny will come to us, drawn by our superiority and knowledge that her proper place is beneath us. The barbarians say that we lost the war, and our bid for global dominance. We did not. We simply changed our tactics to a different theatre. It demands more patience than simple conquest, but it is inevitable."

Republic: ""

Empire: ""

Community: ""

Voshkod: "Brutes, with all that that term implies. Clumsy. Primitive. Ignorant. And powerful. It shames me to admit it, but we did underestimate the strength of the Voshkod. They are barbarians, but they are barbarians with a great many tanks and ships. We will not underestimate them as we did before. As the Guardians have said of the Voshkod, quantity has a quality all its own. The murder of Yoshiro did teach us, but not the lesson the Voshkod hoped. When the time comes to crush them, we will not be as merciful as we were before. We will not give them the chance to regroup and strike. The Odessa model of how to achieve victory will be applied on a much larger scale."

Brotherhood: "I know of the events that lead to the Hawke War. I also remember from these same histories that the Austrians claimed to have gone and destroyed this 'black hand'. If so, did they succeed? Could it have merely been a ruse, a distraction?"

MLA: "When I thought that the Minuteman had hit the bedrock in terms of barbarity, the MLA appeared with a drill and began to dig. They fill the hopeless with lies about paradise and how the outside world seeks to deny it to them, then they slaughter those who are below them when they cannot fight those above them... Where else can you see such animalistic, unrefined behavior? I am sure if we had holdings in the Middle East, they would have struck with all their savagery. But when the sun rises over all the world, they will find that they have no place in our order save for in a shallow grave."

Horde: "They are a raging fire upon the world. Bright and energetic and dangerous to approach, reducing everything they touch to ash. They may proclaim a desire to destroy the Voshkod and Aquilans above all else, but we are no one's fools. They will come for us, sooner or later. They will come and burn our nation to the ground and salt our fields. Or that's what they would like to do, if we let them. But we will not. Best to quench this fire before it gets out of hand, I think, no matter the bizarre weapons they bring to bear. The Orces are not proper warriors. We are. Therefore, no amount of 'wagh' will be sufficient to save them."

Collective: ""

Encantadia: "We are well aware of the fighting spirit of the Encantadias. No matter how harshly we disciplined them, they would keep on fighting our destiny with all their hearts and souls. Indeed, it would seem that wherever we went, we were resisted. A bomb at every corner, a gun in the hand of every farmer. We had half a mind to simply burn the entire country. But I refuse to believe that they are as unconquerable as they claim. Some day, even their spirit will be broken against our fate."

Scrin: "Where did these things come from, I wonder? Our own technology could not do such things, yet they cannot be the artifice of barbarians. They are far too elegant for that. We must investigate these machines. Either they will bow to us or they will be destroyed. Our future has no place for errant machines."

Conglomerate: ""

Coalition: ""

Minuteman: "I didn't think it was possible to be a lesser breed of humanity than the Voshkod, but here the Embry go and prove me wrong. How do they rebel? By cowardly and dishonorable tactics. Ambushes, rabble-rousing, deception, and trickery... How the people of Embry can make speeches of grandeur and victory when employing such contemptible methods is beyond me. How could they possibly think their collection of malcontents, brigands, and military equipment obsolete even before being interred in mothballs could hope to stand against their overlords, much less deny us our destiny?"

Syndicate: "Ugh. The zaibatsu did business with these people, under the radar as it were, and the very thought of it sours my stomach. They are the worst of the Western vultures, circling over anything that smells even slightly rotten so they can feast upon it and anything that cannot defend itself. A pity the Syndicate is more intelligent than a mere bird. I have heard disquieting reports from the psychics about these people, too. I'm inclined to write off their impressions of the Syndicate having malevolent designs as simply sensing Western business practices, but I think we should keep an especially close watch, just in case."

Heralds: ""

Order: "Now isn't this a fascinating little group? They employ the most absurd of technologies, and somehow field a half-credible fighting force! I would love to meet the men who design their clockwork and steam. They are beautiful works of art, quite pleasing to the eye. Oh, they keep shouting nonsense about their silly god and some purpose, but that army of theirs is just silly. I would like to get to know these people better, I think, once they start behaving like civilized people, or at least their engineers. There are rumors that they're actually spies or some such, but that's just nonsense. These people are all bark and no bite."

Minuteman Survivors
The following are excerpts from the discussion of Minuteman William Hild, deceived by a Collective psychic into believing he was speaking to a fellow minuteman.

Federation: ""

Alliance: "Now, don't get me wrong. If it weren't for the Alliance, those Ivans would have overrun Eorzea, maybe even launched a real invasion over here. A lot of us served with the Guardians overseas, too, and the Alliance people are good. But it's their leadership that's rotten. Those Hawke assholes spent so long fighting commie tyrants, they've started turning into their own brand of tyranny. Telling us what to do, who will lead us, and how we should live our lives, and now they try to help us despite not lifting a damn finger until our home is a wasteland. Not so fast, bucko. Over here, the will of the people is the fucking highest law. Two hundred years ago when the Fereldans pushed us around, we tossed em out. The Alliance didn't take the fucking hint, so now we'll toss em out, too."

Minutemen: "Who are we, pal? We're the fucking Minutemen! Too long we've let the Guardians and Destroyers push us around, tell us what to do. Too long good Embry blood was spilled defending worthless countries that couldn't defend themselves, who then abandoned us when our home was destroyed by their damn hands. Well, we're done getting pushed around. We're fucking done dying for somebody else's country and letting them get away with destroying our home. If the Guardians and Destroyers really want to make a fight of this, we'll give 'em a fight they'll never forget. And we'll lick any other jackass who thinks Embry can't stand on its own feet anymore after it was charred."

Voshkod: "Emet's puppets even after the man's been dead for fourteen years... Those damn Guardians thought the Voshkod could be talked with all nice-like. The General is right that the red commies couldn't be trusted even if they're new broad of a boss talk's d. But it's not like the Guardians would ever admit that we were right and they were wrong. Listen pal, here's the real scoop: you can't talk nicely with them, and if Luna whoever is sincere about fixin' shit, they'll stick a fucking pick in her brain. If the Guardians can't keep Ivan in check, we'll stop 'em ourselves."

Protectorate: "Is this some kind of twisted joke? They INVADE us, take over Los Angeles - okay, no big loss there - and now the Guardians want us to be all friendly-like with the knife ears? No. Fucking. Way. They can yammer on about destiny all they like, but we haven't forgotten their little invasion. By the time we're done, we're going to kick the Kats out on their asses just like the rest of the Guardians."

Order: "Back home, I tried recruiting a guy for the cause. He was a real serious churchman, moreso than most good boys. He said he was already enlisted. Enlisted in a different army, that is. He said he was going to do Sigmars work, and there were hundreds like him. Then - and I shit you not - he pulled out chainmail and a fucking crossbow and ran off, yelling something about "the Order." Uh... Okay. I've seen stories about some kind of secret military order of the Sigmarite Church in the tabloids, sure. Who hasn't? If - if - something like that actually exists, I got no beef with it. Heck, I'd even be tempted to join up, depending on how stuffy they are."

Legion: "You have got to be fucking kidding me! Wasn't one batch of fucking insane people with insane tech enough?! I don't know and frankly don't care what crawled up their radioactive cesspit and died. Let 'em blow Ulthuan and Voshkod and Eorzea to kingdom come if they want, I don't care. But if they mess with Embry, I don't care what kind of spaceships or ray guns or other glowing shit they got up their sleeves. We'll lick 'em just like we will the Guardians, the Destroyers, and anyone else who wants a piece of Embry. Come and get us, asshole."

Coalition: "You know what? You really know what? I can't see just what all these fucking people are whining about the 'Coalition' group. Yeah, I've heard about it too, from those wacko conspiracy theorists about how they plan to control the world and stuff. Seriously, what with all these spectrum guns and tesla rifles and all this other shit people are fighting with these days, it's a blessing to find someone that actually sells solid ammunition these days. And frank,ly I think these guys were the best things that ever happened to us, you know? A lot of my friends, though, don't like those guys, calling them 'vengeful' and shit. Yeah, they are a cantankerous bunch, and a lot of my friends make convincing arguments, but when you're against a giant megastate disrespectful of human rights, surely you'd fucking know who to play with for now, right?"

Scrin: "Robot doomsday army from space, you say? You, my friend, have been reading too many comic books."

Community: "I got no problem with the southeast Canthans. Hell, they're the only ones doing a fucking thing about the fucking communists trying to take over the jungles down in the Pacific! No, I don't care how they run their war. They could probably lick the Guardians too, if they put their minds to it. Shame they chose to make a deal instead."

Encantadia: "There's revolution, and then there's oppression, and buddy, the Encantadians I keep hearing about are nothing more than a cover story for more Garlean bullshit. Look at'em, screaming about how they're oppressed. Excuse me, asshole, but what about all the POWs we've been hearing about up in Hanoi and how they went and purged all their 'dissidents', huh? You want to see oppression? Look in a fucking mirror! It's like the song goes; 'Ho, ho, Ho Chi Minh, how many trots you've done in?'"

Alliance: "A damn shame. Too many good Embry soldiers trying to serve their country, and what do they get ordered to do even when they witness the home they fought for go up in smoke? Turn on their own, round us up, arrest us. It's a good thing they remembered their oaths were to their people and not the fucking imperialist. But there's still plenty of Alliance bastards out there, and they're sending more each day. Watch your ass, pal, it'll get a whole lot more ugly before we can win."

National Revolutionary Army: "See? That's what sticking with the Allies will get you in the long run. Sure, they wanted to make their country free, but did the Allies help 'em? [CENSORED] no! Yeah, there was aid at first, but then? Now the Allies are feeling guilty probably, saying about how they're 'sending valuable aid'. Yeah right, what aid? The aid that should be rebuilding LA or New York? What about help for our people?"

People's Liberation Army: "Hell, they had it coming."

MLA: "Now, I don't know much about Night Elves, but I know rats when I see'em, and just hearing about these fucks makes me squirm. Firing on civilians? Killing innocent people on purpose? fuck that, at least the imperialists try to just kill the soldiers."

Brotherhood: "You heard about this? Another bunch of assholes saying they're Minutemen torched another hospital! Gen. Carville said it himself, we don't target civilians! Man, if I ever found the bastards who did it..."

Voshkod
The following is a transcript of the Voshkod press interviewing General Viktor Zubarov concerning the state's position on its numerous enemies.

Federation: "Hypocrites. They accuse us of insane aggression and wanting to conquer the entire world while they wink and smile and flood the world with their talk of capitalism and freedom. They dare call us tyrants as they crushed the Southern Continent in the name of "freedom"? Ha! You see, the Guardaisn are much like pigs. They may be fat and noisy and smell bad, but they will feast on anything that is presented to them and consume everything in sight. I'm not saying the Guardians taste good when smoked over a hickory fire, of course, but I believe you get the picture, comrade. We fight the Guardians not for the sake of fighting, but for the sake of survival. They will flood the world unless we stop them."

Minuteman: "Ah, now this is entertainment! As a matter of fact, I think we should support these new Minutemen as much as we can! With Embry destroyed in the Civil War, the Guardians lose much of their manpower and industrial power while gaining a new enemy across the Atlantic. Yes, the Minutemen are no more friendly to us than they are to the Guardians, but there is a saying: the enemy of my enemy is a problem for later, but in the meantime, they might be useful. I think the Minutemen might be very useful indeed, comrade. They won't see it that way, of course, but long-term thinking has never been the Minutemen' defining attribute, and many of their elements are palatable to our tastes."

Voshkod: "Glorious socialism, the mighty Motherland, and so on and so forth. But I don't think that's what you're interested in. Comrade, let me speak plainly. We are besieged on all fronts. The Guardians wish to make us like them. The Collective wish to conquer us. The Minutemen wish to destroy us. The Syndicate wish to buy us out. We have many enemies and no friends. Not the way it should be, but here we are. Comrade, we must put plans of invasion and the offensive war on hold. War has now become a question of our very survival against enemies beyond counting, within, and without. Perhaps in the future, we will again march on the offensive, but first, we must survive."

Protectorate: "Bad as the Guardians are, I call the Protectorate worse. Although they are at least funny. So entertaining to watch them babble about honor and glory and a warrior's code when their first act was to massacre a quiet fishing village at night on New Year's and do so with deception and stealth. Then they butchered the people of Odessa and burned that city to the ground with their monster. No, comrade. The knife ears are neither honorable nor glorious nor would they know a warrior if one shot them dead. The Union is not safe from the knife ears and their ilk, nor will it be so until the nation surrender. If they insist on death before dishonor, so much the better."

Order: "Bah! You would have me believe that wild-eyed fanatics with crossbows and blackpowder are a threat to the glorious Union? Hah! Let the people revere whatever fetishes they desire, so long as it serves the state! Should they take up arms against the state in the name of their god, they will be crushed like any other rebellion. I have heard these stories of steam-powered machines and clockwork, and think them the products of an overactive imagination. Really, comrade? Steam and clockwork and crossbows are the best you can come up with as a daydream?"

Syndicate: "Look upon them well, comrade. Look upon them and see what we are sworn to fight against, what Marx and Engels, and Lenin all spoke of ending. They are capitalism incarnate. They are not merely corrupt, but corruption itself. They infect and consume and destroy anything and everything in their path. Comrade, these are not people but a plague coming for us all. Yet when their blight dares taint the glorious Motherland, it is stopped and isolated and slain. We will not let it end at our borders, either. The Lumeris Syndicate and all it represents must not simply be defeated, they must be annihilated."

Scrin: "What is it with the world today and blasted robots?! It's just another Protectorate trick, of course, but there are times I wonder why history seems to have it in for Voshkod..."

Encantadia: "This is where communism is born, comrade. Not out of a lust for power, or the dreams of madmen. These revolutionaries will show the Guardians that a man cannot be oppressed forever. They fight with weapons that are nearly obsolete, yet they continue to score victory after victory. I have met some of these Encantadians, and they range from simple farmers to the university educated. They are what true socialism is, of the people binding themselves together and fighting for each other. Let the Guardians have their southeast Canthan lackeys. We shall have the resolve of the Encantadians."

Alliance: "Poor, deluded fools. They think their nations are still independent? They truly believe the Alliance are not slowly absorbing their states into a greater collective? They fight in wars that their nations normally would never enter, and die in lands that they had never heard of before? Our conscripts fight proudly for the Union, for they are all members of the party, and understand the sacrifices required of them. Do these soldiers even comprehend the fact that they are being sent against their oldest allies in Embry? Do their commanders not see the threat in this?"

MLA: "See what religion can do to people? I have read their Qur'an, and it is indeed a beautifully written piece of Middle Eastern literature. Yet these sad men and women, these desperate fanatics take it up as a holy cause? They believe that their own are so easily expendable as to be thrown into battles they have no chance of winning? And they dare use innocent civilians as a defense? Were it my choice, they would be dealt with by letting the full might of the Voshkod Army loose on them. That would show them the folly of their ways."

Heralds: "The KGB station in Yugoslavia keeps reporting about some bizarre ritual cult of some sort. Frankly, they are not my concern, and they should not concern you either, comrade. There is nothing newsworthy about them."

Grey Steel Order
''Lady Maria once met with one of the enigmatic Triumvirate who lead the Order and asked them of other powers. These are the answers she recalls, more words than any Triumvirate has ever spoken before or since.''

Aquilan: "None can deny their courage or intentions. The Allies truly do want to make the world a happier place. Their warriors are brave and leaders skilled. Yet they build their houses on sand, not stone. They are so enamored of the future and what could be that they forget the value of the past and the importance of asking whether you should, not merely if you can. Already the people of Embry strain against the yoke of 'progress'. They will not be the last, and it will be interesting to see what the Aquilans do when they realize that their 'progress' enriches the body and the mind, but not the soul."

Minutemen: "Brave. Resourceful. Reckless. Three words that have often been used to describe the survivors of Embry, and suit this rebellion as well. Contrary to what you might think, we had no hand in its birth. True, we certainly expected it, but it needed no assistance. It will be interesting to see what happens, I think if this rebellion endures. It cannot stay confined to the archipelagoes alone. However, that is not why it demands careful observation. The Minutemen are focused on a short-term goal. There is a much longer game at work, and the Minuteman may be pieces on the board for one of the other players. We will play them too if we must, but until and unless that becomes necessary, I find a bowl of popcorn the most appropriate response to their conflict with the Aquilans and Voshkod."

Voshkod: "A religion more than a nation. Communism, the people, the Motherland, whatever label you care to give the Voshkod idol. It is a jealous god, commanding that thou shalt have no other gods before it. In a way, they are more like us than they would ever care to admit. The Guardians will never truly defeat the Voshkod, I think because they fail to see that the Voshkod is as much a thing of faith as it is of politics, and the Voshkod spirit is a devout one. Much as they would deride us as nothing but a dangerous cult, I cannot help but respect them and regret that they chose idolatry rather than true faith."

Protectorate: "A soulless realm of soulless people. In the Protectorate exist the worst of the Aquilans and the Voshkod, wedded in an unholy union of idolatry and arrogance. There is much to be admired about the Katsuragi people. Their feats are truly impressive, and their history is such fertile ground for birthing people to do good. Yet the Protectorate is a hollow, empty thing. They are so very much like Valyria in its days of glory, and like Valyria, their days of ruin are not far off. We need not speed up the process. The Protectoratewill destroy itself as is its nature, and we shall make sure that something better rises from the ruins."

Order: "Ours is a thankless task. None outside the Order will ever know the burdens we bear or the vigil we keep. The world will never mourn our dead or celebrate our victories. Such is the nature of our foe that true, lasting victory is perhaps not even possible. We are hunted, we are feared, and our role in keeping Elysea people safe will never be acknowledged. Yet we will persevere. We do not need the thanks or praise of an empty people obsessed with the material. In the shadows, we still protect Elysea's flock even as they wander and stray and forget. In the shadows, we fight and die in an endless vigil against shadows darker still. And you ask why we do it? So that the innocent may sleep soundly in their beds, unaware of the darker things we keep at bay."

Syndicate: "Ah, what can I say of the Syndicate that you have not heard before? They are corrupt, decadent, and so on and so forth. All of that is of course true, but it is only the tip of the iceberg. Ugly as the public face of the Syndicate is, it is only a mask for something far worse. The "Lumeris Syndicate" is only the current guise of a threat that stretches back further than the Guardians would ever think to look, and its true face is far more dangerous than a mere morally bankrupt megacorporation. I will tell you this: horrific as the satyrs and hector armors and men o' war are, the true horror of this entity wears a far more deceptive mask. It is how it has survived this long. And we shall not rest until the beast is slain."

Scrin: "Humanity is a resilient species. We have managed to avoid destroying ourselves so far, though the Horde now seem bent on changing that record, and there is a spark of goodness and righteousness in even the most twisted of human beings. Yet there are older things than mankind, and I cannot guess what role they play in Elysea plan. A layman would call them aberrant things, abominations, and horrors. And even that layman would realize that those words are just labels for something he dares not understand. To attempt to understand such things is to invite madness, and not even I dare try. Humans, for good and ill, are intrinsically aware of how small and impermanent we are in this world. What I fear is that things that are not human, and not aware of how limited their own existence in God's plan is, will open doors never meant to be opened. Doors that may not be possible to shut."

Empire: "There is little of note to say about the Empire itself. They are yet another corrupt, totalitarian military-led state that glories in the oppression of its own people. The interesting element is their alliance with the Guardians. The Elsword Empire represents almost everything the Guardians profess to hate, yet are welded to them by virtue of who their enemies are. It is little wonder that the Guardians work frantically to forget the nature of the viper they have invited into their home. The Guardians are strong, but they are brittle. There is little reason for us to intervene for now, but the Empire might be an interesting wedge to drive into the Allies should it prove necessary."

Encantadia: "I wish there was something we could realistically do for the Encantadian people. They truly do want freedom and respite from the horrors of war but have become a pawn in the games of the Guardians and Voshkod. It may seem hypocritical to condemn those powers for doing so, but they are far more heavy-handed at the age-old game than we, to the point of defeating the purpose of using them. Unfortunately, there is little room for us to work in Encantadia. You do not stick your hand into an inferno unless you are certain it will be worth it, and there is little certain about Encantadia save that it is dangerous. Perhaps when this storm passes we will be able to do something about and for the Encantadians, but that time has not yet come."

MLA: "Howling barbarians attempting to justify their wanton destruction of civilization and sacred things is hardly a new development to history. Most of the Goths who sacked Rome claimed to be Christian, and the MLA's deeds and connection to Elune is no different. The only significance these misguided zealots possess is that they know we exist and may call untoward attention from the other powers whose ankles they have bitten."

Heralds: "The Cult has been physically diminished over the centuries, but the Chamber Militant's war against the Cult has never been anything more than a sideshow. The Cult, as a relevant force, is not a group of men and equipment. It is an idea. That idea is chaos and destruction as worthy ends in and of themselves, a vain belief that small and insignificant people and what are ultimately only their own petty, selfish desires matter in the end and will be rewarded by possibly literal deus ex machina. Few things are harder to kill than an idea, particularly one that rationalizes the worst impulses of mankind. People don't really want to believe that it's wrong to hurt someone else, and will flock to any cause that lets them wallow in their sin. The Heralds offers this and more. Fighting the Heralds is not, and never has been, a contest of muscle and fire. It is a war of ideas. To know that the Heralds exists at all is to allow it to survive."

Lumeris Syndicate
The following is a recording of a meeting between Anton Boyanovsky, the Principate of the Atlantis Sprawl, and an unidentified second party with whom Brian appears to have had something of a mentor relationship with.