A Different Campaign
Volume VII
Capital Punishment
”There are decades in which nothing happens, and weeks in which decades happen”
Sitting in her office in downtown Stelburg, the morning after the parliamentary election, Chancellor Lara Hauser rolled this quote over and over in her head. Originally attributed to Siovanijan revolutionary Anton Dialikov, who reportedly said it after the end of the Siovanijan Revolution in 1808, it had been a favourite quote of Josef Wimmer’s. Lara remembered him reciting it to her the evening of the Sankt Konrad War, and probably a thousand other times over the course of their friendship.
And the last two weeks had felt like a decade at least.
First, there was the funeral. The media afterwards had declared it “a grand event in which echoed Stelburg’s golden era,” and it was certainly true that the decorum was above and beyond what would be expected. From the Stelburger Stadtpalast on the banks of the Drai, where visitation had been held, the procession was given a full military escort down the Kaiser-Ferdinand-Strasse as crowds gathered alongside the route, tossing edelweiss flowers and occasionally singing patriotic songs.
Soon, the procession reached the Cathedral of Sankt Georg, the largest church in the country. An incredible example of Gothic architecture that took over 250 years to complete, there were 24 Teus Kaisers buried in its crypt, and from the year 1532 onwards it had been home to every royal wedding, baptism or funeral in the Empire - and since 1896, used for all state funerals of those baptized as Teus Catholics. It was a symbol of the city - and today it was filled to the brim with guests from all spheres of public life.
There was, of course, the significant government presence - every member of the government coalition was inside the Church, and many members of the opposition, too. Ruslan Karamov and the Republicans declined an invitation for obvious reasons, but sent a massive bouquet of flowers which had promptly been placed as far out of sight as possible. Entertainers, actors - Thorsten Kramer, Siovanija & Teusland’s all-time greatest footballer, was here, too. Colleagues from Lara and Josef’s university days - the University of Stelburg had just renamed its foreign affairs department the Josef Wimmer School of International Relations the day prior.
And the guests from abroad. There were of course delegations from all of the major allies of Siovanija & Teusland present here, from Arrosian friends like Banija and Baker Park amongst many others. There was a delegation from Tumbra as well, with that country’s foreign minister Sandra Campbell present. And of course, the League of 10, or the Kolonialvereinigung. Almost every member of the union had sent somebody to this event, including Sankt Konrad. The new Prime Minister, Silvu Otto, had come quite a long way to honour the man who had been integral to restoring democracy to the little island country. The Foreign Ministry, temporarily being headed by long-time Wimmer lieutenant Sylvia von Luttow-Vognitz, was working around the clock organizing events and accommodation for all of the visitors in what was probably the largest diplomatic event the city had seen since the Stelburg Conference at the time of the separation of Anaia from Atlantian Oceania. If there wasn’t enough pomp and circumstance already, the service itself was presided over by Pope Lorenz II, the leader of the Teus Catholic Church.
Outside the Church, and all along the routes to both the Stadtpalast and the Zentralfriedhof cemetery, there was a massive police and military presence. On television they noted that the number of troops involved in the organization of the funeral was actually greater than the number that had deployed to Sankt Konrad during the war. There was a message here - a show of force against anyone who might have thoughts of disrupting the event, and that any repeat of such political violence was completely out of the question.
What Lara remembered most of the funeral, however, was the faces of Josef’s family. Magdalena his wife, and Lara’s long time best friend - she was making it through ok, somehow. Elsa, Josef’s daughter, had tears in her eyes. And Jonas, his son, had a strength in his eyes that reminded Lara of his father.
That was only day 1 of the last week.
The following days were a blur. The election campaign was, for all intents and purposes, over. There was a foregone conclusion to the election even before Wimmer’s assassination, with the NDU expected to take a massive majority - and the outcry of support for the government following his death, especially in Teusland, only made that more of a sure-thing. Everybody - especially the Republicans - wanted to get this over with and go back to government business. Thus, the last week of the campaign was not the hectic one planned for Chancellor Hauser. She spoke at a few events, and appeared at a ceremony in which the city of Stelburg renamed one of its squares as the Josef-Wimmer-Platz.
Then, on Wednesday, just days before the election, a bombshell dropped. When the police had found the body of the assassin on that terrible night, the official statement had been that the assassin had committed suicide. In the hours that followed, more details came out - his name was Davor Skala, aged 23, from Vlaikograd. There was little trace of him anywhere online, beyond an application for deferral from military service on his 18th birthday on the grounds of health issues. In his wallet, the only thing found on his person besides the murder weapon, he carried a driver’s license, T15 in cash, and a Siovanijan Communist Party membership card. Those were the facts so far.
Yet Wednesday morning, Borograd’s Chief of Police Vaclav Vasek gave a press conference that changed everything. An autopsy report concluded that the death could not be from suicide, given the positioning of the gun, and furthermore, the bullet used could not be from the same gun he had used to kill Wimmer. Vasek then added that the suicide rumours had been leaked to the media by officers not even involved with the case, who had now been suspended indefinitely from the Borograd Police. Finally, Vasek noted that the Communist Party card was almost certainly a forgery and did not bear a name or photo - just a membership number, which the party confirmed was not registered in their database. Everything that had been known about Skala had been false. Worse, there was now another murderer in Borograd.
The botched investigation had stirred up even more anger in Teusland, where crowds gathered in the Josef-Wimmer-Platz daily to demand the investigation be taken over by the Military Police, with many believing that the Borograd Police were covering up to avoid a national crisis. They demanded for Ruslan Karamov to be put on trial for inciting the assassination.
It was a sentiment shared by many, Lara Hauser amongst them. The death of Davor Skala meant that there would be no justice for the death of Josef Wimmer. But, Lara thought, if Ruslan Karamov could finally be taken down over this, there would be some level of justice available.
Lara glanced up at the television in her office, which was still covering the election from the night before.
”...a very expected result as the government coalition comes away with a massive majority…” “...226 seats it is, in the end, for the NDU, Christian Union, List Freies Teusland and the Vaterland List, a gain of 15 compared to last election and bigger than when they swept into power at the end of isolation…” “...there was a complete collapse of support for left-wing establishment parties in Teusland and Siovanija alike, and Ruslan Karamov’s left-wing populist Republicans remain the largest non-government party and, thus, the official opposition with 81 seats, every single one coming from Siovanija…” “...the NDU are the victors, yes, but the real winners last night were the Teus nationalist parties. List Freies Teusland and the Vaterland List both saw gains, while far-right extremists Teusland Erwache also rose in the polls in what political analysts are calling a big reactionary response to recent events…” “...Lara Hauser, then, is Chancellor for a 3rd term, with Viktor Weiss of the Christian Union expected to remain Vice Chancellor. Hauser has important decisions to make in the next few weeks as government resumes…”
Hauser looked down at her desk, with two pieces of paper before her. The first was a provisional cabinet. Everything was largely as it had been prior to the election - List Freies Teusland and the Christian Union swapped a few ministries, based on retiring members here and there. The Foreign Ministry would indeed go to Sylvia von Luttow-Vognitz, who replaced Wimmer on the NDU’s candidates’ list in Stelburg. Rudolf Pesek would remain the Minister of Infrastructure, as well as the role of ‘Siovanijan lieutenant’ for a largely Teus party hierarchy, while Johan Thiel kept the Defence Ministry. There was only one change of note. Zdeno Starek, a rising star in the Siovanijan wing of the party, would move from the Ministry of Justice to the Ministry of Tourism, replacing a retiring NDU member. Moving up to the Ministry of Justice & Attorney General role would be Hans-Jorg Waldvogel. Another young star in the party, Waldvogel was someone known for being a relentless political fighter, willing to go to whatever lengths necessary to get a job done. He was also someone Hauser viewed as a possible successor, with the right guidance. She’d be meeting with him later on today, in fact, to go over ‘the plan.’ That plan being, of course, how to take down Ruslan Karamov.
With a pen stroke that had become second nature after 8 years of power, that document was signed, revealing the second. Hauser hesitated briefly, glancing at the text on the page.
“In accordance with Article 44 section II of the Constitution, provisions for the national capital in a time of crisis, the legislative branch of the United Republics’ government hereby moves to the city of Stelburg indefinitely.”
Article 44 was the section that had declared Borograd the national capital, while section II enabled any of the 3 branches to move to ‘a sufficiently suitable location’ in a time of crisis or war. Officially, the reason was safety and security for members of the government following Wimmer’s assassination and the subsequent failures of the Borograd Police. There would certainly be backlash - this was the only time in the country’s history that Article 44 section II had been used - but that was a price Hauser would pay.
There was an unofficial reason, too. Further in the constitution, Article 67 states that ‘a trial involving members of the Chancellery will be tried in the jurisdiction where the legislative body is currently present.’ It was a little-known clause that even those who wrote the document likely never imagined would matter - why would the legislative body ever not meet in Borograd? What it now meant was that if Ruslan Karamov or any other Republican was brought to trial, it would be in Stelburg - far away from their power base in Borograd, where they had a great deal of influence and political power. All part of ‘the plan.’
Lara Hauser signed the document. In doing so, she had declared war on Ruslan Karamov.
The country with two names now had two capitals.
Kelssek 4-1 Siovanija & TeuslandXI: Holz; Schwefel, Steinhausl, Rodl, Reichenbach (Mesko 50'); Porsche, Prekmurje (Burger 75'), Le Meji; Korlikov (Weber 75'), A. Kosch-Kovarik, Hackl
Goals: Einar Hackl 61'
Man of the Match: Einar Hackl
In Brief: One to forget. Away to the number one team in the group and number three team in the world, the Goldhorns were always going to be in tough - and just like when the sides faced each other in Borograd earlier in the campaign, they found themselves down early on. Kelssek made full use of their home advantage and took a 2-0 lead into the halftime break. The first 20 minutes of the second half were quite tentative from both sides, before Einar Hackl made something from nothing and knocked one back for the Goldhorns to make it 2-1. With little to lose, the Goldhorns played with great attacking intent - after all, they'd made a two-goal comeback possible on Kelssek in Borograd. Alas, Kirkenes is not Borograd, and Kelssek had learned well from that one. They punished the Goldhorns on the counter to make it 3-1, and then again in the final moments to make it a deserved 4-1 win for the home side. The worst loss for the Goldhorns since the 5-2 defeat against Audioslavia on matchday 1 of qualifiers in World Cup 97, and certainly not one to remember.Siovanija & Teusland 8-2 Jeckland
XI: Kranz; Wimmer, Sanner, Apel, Mesko; Gruber, Winter (J. Kosch-Kovarik 46'), Rosberg (Le Meji 46'); Weber, Zschokke, Seidl (Burger 90')
Goals: Uwe Seidl 14', 24', 30'; Hans Gruber 28', 60'; Josef Weber 38'; Reto Zschokke 47'; Xorge Le Meji 81'
Man of the Match: Uwe Seidl
In Brief: The Goldhorns wanted a big response after the defeat in Kelssek - and did they ever get it against Jeckland. The fans at Mollin Park were treated to the most goals the Goldhorns have ever scored in a game, pre or post-isolation, as they knocked 8 past the visiting team. Uwe Seidl got things going with a brilliant shot that powered past the keeper in the 14th minute, and it would be exactly 10 minutes later that he added his second of the game. From there, there was a 14-minute festival of goals: Hans Gruber made it 3-0, Seidl got his hat-trick 67 seconds later, and Josef Weber would add his second international goal to make it a 5-0 advantage. Things were out of hand by this point, and although Jeckland would grab one back before half-time, this one was done and dusted. In the second half, Reto Zschokke scored very soon after the restart to make it 6 for the Goldhorns, before Hans Gruber grabbed his second of the game. Jeckland would make it 7-2 with a penalty in the 75th minute after a foul from Arnold Apel, but Xorge Le Meji had the 8th goal on his boot just minutes later, a great chip-in after getting a one on one with the keeper. A totally dominant win for the Goldhorns and exactly what they needed after the Kelssek loss.
Siovanija & Teusland 25 man squad for international window 7
at Lisander; vs United Hawkland (Nationalstadion, StelburgGoalkeepers: Holz, Bodeker, Kranz
Defenders: Schwefel, Wimmer, Reichenbach, Mesko, Steinhausl, Rodl, Sanner, Apel
Midfield: Porsche, Gruber, Prekmurje, Winter, Rosberg, Le Meji, J. Kosch-Kovarik
Wingers: Korlikov, Vadimic, A. Kosch-Kovarik, Zschokke
Forwards: Hackl, Burger, SeidlExpected XI vs Lisander: Holz; Schwefel, Steinhausl, Rodl, Reichenbach; Porsche, Prekmurje, Le Meji; Korlikov, A. Kosch-Kovarik, Hackl
Expected XI vs United Hawkland: Holz; Schwefel, Steinhausl, Rodl, Reichenbach; Porsche, Prekmurje, Le Meji; Korlikov, A. Kosch-Kovarik, Hackl**if the Goldhorns achieve qualification against Lisander, expect a different lineup configuration
Preview: So, the stage is set for the final round and things are very clear for the Goldhorns - win and you are in. Even a single draw from these final two games would likely be enough, barring something historic, to see the Goldhorns into the World Cup without needing a playoff. Still, Dominik Weismann will not take any chances and has indicated that it will be the expected starting XI going in the away match against Lisander and also at the Nationalstadion for the final match of qualifying against United Hawkland. There is good reason to take nothing for granted - Lisander and United Hawkland are both teams that have been playing their best football in the second half of qualifiers. Lisander's 2-0 victory over Damukuni was their 4th of the campaign, and the away victory proved that this is a solid side that the Goldhorns will have to work hard to beat. The reverse fixture in Marzig ended in a 3-1 victory for the Goldhorns, who would do very well to repeat such fortunes on the road. On the final day against United Hawkland, the Goldhorns will be facing a side that just defeated pot 3 Drawkland, also in an away fixture, and have held both Kelssek and Siovanija & Teusland (a 0-0 match that, hopefully, you've already forgotten) to draws. There are no easy matches in World Cup Qualifying, and the Goldhorns will need to be fully focused for all 180 minutes of these matches to ensure a place in the final field for World Cup 98. The Goldhorns will qualify automatically for the World Cup with a win from either one of these games, a draw from either one of these games if the Busoga Islands cannot overturn a 14 goal differential swing, or if the Busoga Islands drop any points from their final two games. Dominik Weismann won't be saying that to his team, however: the aim is always to win. It all comes down to this in World Cup Qualifying, and just two more good performances are needed for the Goldhorns to be on their way to the Xandrian Sea.