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- 5 September, 1945: After the end of World War Two, The strategic island of Sakhalin, officially a part of the Japanese Empire under Emperor Hirohito, is captured by the advancing Russian Red Army. After a fierce territorial dispute, the island's sovereignty under the Empire is renounced in 1951, during the historic Treaty of San Fransisco. The government of Japan will dispute this claim for years to come.

-13 July, 1985: After 40 years of Soviet rule, and partially in thanks to a weakening Soviet political structure under Glasnost, control of the island is finally restored to the native Japanese, who soon re-inhabit the island, restoring its traditional name, "Karafuto". The capital city of Toyohara is soon restored. The Russian populace of the island, many long-lived residents, object heavily to this, even resorting to violence, going so far as an attempt on the Mayor of Toyohara's life. The plot backfires, and, under a quick UN response, the island's populace calms.

-7 August, 1991: Following the official collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian state faces a devastating economic and political crisis, one so severe, a group of the country's top statesmen calling themselves the "State Emergency Committee" pull off a Coup De'tat, removing Mikhail Gorbachev from power, and quickly working to "stabilize" the country, violently put down the post-communist system. After only two days, the country goes silent to the world.

-11 March 1992: JSDF forces stationed on the northern coast of Karafuto abruptly end radio reports to headquarters at Toyohara. A platoon sent to investigate soon disappear, as well, and two F-16's conducting reconnaissance in the Sea of Okhotsk are lost to SAM fire from just off the coast. A last transmission from the lead aircraft merely repeats "Invasion! My god, they're invading!". The message is clear; the SEC wants Karafuto back.

-17 March, 1992: Fierce fighting between the Russians and Japanese breaks out throughout the countryside surrounding the island. Later records would indicate that units of the Red Army's VDV paratroopers were dropped inland early in the conflict, and units of the secretive Spetsgruppa V, or "Vympel" (Pennant) , Russian Special Forces, had secured many vital radar and supply installations within hours of first contact. In under three weeks, Toyohara will fall. Casualties on the Japanese side, both military and civilian, number in the thousands, as "revenge killings" by the Russian Army are a common occurrence. Tied up in the political hell and brutal speed of the attack, the UN is unable to act decisively.

-1 April, 1992: Then, just as suddenly as it began, the conflict is over. The SEC, unable to keep a lid on the partisan movement within their own country, soon collapses under an unrelenting tide of democratic revolution. Russian forces are ordered to surrender. Many are suspected of war crimes, but, as evidence is scarce, most end up freely returning to civilian life.

-9 February, 1998: Six years after then end of the conflict, former "Vympel" operative Aleksander "Mosin" Likho writes the bestselling nonfiction autobiography, "The Phoenix Pyre: A Perspective on the Karafuto War", which details the horrific methods of warfare employed by Russian forces during the war, including mass-murders and lootings, which Likho himself admits to taking part in. Though providing valuable insight into the mainly shady and one-sided conflict, Likho himself is never reached for interviews, and disappears out of the public eye without a trace.