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[Theophilos]

Orange Tension and the Transitional Era

After GWIII, IRON entered a period of policy transition. However, this was also a period of high tension between IRON and other Orange Sphere alliances. This tension had two public manifestations. One such cause was the Maccers Incident, during which a long time IRON member known as Maccers the Great left the alliance under duress and in direct conflict with members of the IRON Council. As the situation evolved, several logs were released to the IRON Council revealing that confidential information was leaked.

The reaction from the IRON Council and membership was furious. Maccers had dispersed confidential information even after having signed and agreeing to not divulge classified information. This was considered a treasonous act by IRON’s classified information agreement and Maccers was placed on the IRON ZI List for his actions. Unfortunately, he had already applied to and was accepted into the ODN. IRON diplomats and Councilors notified the ODN leadership of the incident, but due process was required.

It is noteworthy and relevant to mention that the ODN at this time was not a protectorate of GOONS as a result of being a part of Aegis. The ODN was demilitarized and made to pay reparations to GOONS, being made a de facto protectorate. However, GOONS only provided an official protectorate after IRON's action. IRON considered these factors in addition to their long-standing friendship with the ODN and decided to permit due process for a time.

Maccers was given fair warning that the destruction of his nation was likely imminent. Hence, he began purchasing nuclear weapons as fast as he could in an effort to deter any possible attack. Even though IRON initially decided to respect ODN’s due process and trial system, IRON quickly realized the threat a nuclear-armed target would be and an attack on him was ordered soon thereafter. The attacks were made in conjunction with an infamous announcement on the CN, which resulted in ODN’s “surrender” several hours later.

This was somewhat of a diplomatic blunder on the part of IRON, with one of their closest and long-time friends perpetually surrendering to them. This would be the first and the last time in Planet Bob history that IRON had broken a treaty or agreement. However, a dialogue was soon opened and it was acknowledged that a new agreement was needed regarding the Orange Senate. Ultimately, IRON and ODN came out of the incident with a better understanding of one another and with a closer, more conversant relationship than in many months.

However, this was not the only instance of Orange Sphere tension. Around the same time as the Maccers Incident with the ODN, another incident occurred regarding the Orange Senate. Essentially, IRON was able to crowd TOP out of the third Senate seat, giving IRON two seats and ODN one seat on the Orange Senate. TOP did not react well to this and vehemently objected to the action. The result, however, was constructive and positive: IRON, ODN, and TOP all agreed to the Orange Senate Treaty, which in the words of Heft, was a way of “reaffirming [IRON’s] dedication and commitment to the Orange Team, our Orange neighbors, and general diplomatic good will and good faith.” The Orange Senate Treaty has stood to this day and is still utilized as the method of selecting the Orange Team Senate.