Turn 2405.8, The NethernoS Empire.
It was not even dawn when the meeting started in the Council Hall. One by one, the Ministers entered, tall beings quite similar nevertheless to mankind. But on this peculiar day, their features, usually so composed, were marked with weariness and anxiety. Extraordinary meetings were seldom called, especially at such an hour, and so they could not help pondering on the reasons of their presence here. The Hall itself would have been described as being barely functional by someone not belonging to the Nethernos, but according to their standards, it was luxurious as there were a few decorations and even tapestries hanged on the bare walls.
The answer would come too soon for their taste. When all the Ministers sat down, a slightly shorter Nethernos spoke in a hoarse voice:
“Greetings Ministers and Representatives. You have been summoned at my orders, as a situation is developing in our remote systems.”
The man who talked was Chancelor Narzlon R'ah Tresna, a rather different Nethernos. Unlike the majority, he had little taste to battle, but was even more encline to plot and much more wary. Above all, he believed battles were not the only way of dealing with unexpected problems. As a result, he was not too popular among the Council, which usually preferred more traditionalist individuals.
We are here to discuss about the line of conduct to adopt about such matters and...
- Would you mind to deal with internal politics in the first place, Chancelor?” [/i] One of the Ministers broke in angrily, his voice revealing bluntly his feelings.
-
“Really Arknalor Pt'ah Nirtur? Are you trying to raise once again your petty quarrel when our very lives are threatened? I should have expected nothing more from you.” Chancelor Narzlon replied in the same tone and did not even granted the Minister a glance.
“Don't you know that unfortunately our beloved Emperor is no longer able to rule our Empire, and has appointed us to act while he is unavailable? How dare you question his wisdom?” His voice was suddenly becoming sweeter as he challenged his opponent.
-
“Who do you expect to deceive? Acting is the proper word, we are pretending to be part of the power when you are seizing it for yourself. We all know the Emperor is nothing but a puppet, begging for having his pleasures.” He gave a snort of disdain before resuming:
“You lie, lie, lie, as usual, I warned them but...”
- “ That's enough.” Narzlon spoke very calmly, but his voice was cooler than the arctic winds. He nodded at one of the guards , and the bodyguard fired at Arknalor mechanically. His target fell to the floor without even realizing what occurred.
“He is merely stunned for a few hours, the strength of the discharge was not enough to kill him.” The voice of the soldier was emotionless, as if he was talking about a casual subject like the weather.
-
“I will never let anyone here criticize or worse, dishonour, the Emperor. Now we can resume our conversation without being disturbed this time.” Narzlon indulged in a sly smile as the other Ministers were staring at him, startled, not realizing what had just happened.
“So. We had just received reports warning us of the presence of several light cruisers near our systems. We believe they could launch an offensive against our homeworld in less than five months. I suppose I don't have to explain why such news are quite troublesome?
If the Council has been baffled by the cold treatment inflicted on their fellow, they were now astonished by such news. Warships threatening to destroy their worlds! That was unheard in the Nethernos history. It took a minute to the Ministers to recover from their shock, and only one of them managed to speak aloud, albeit stammering:
-
“But what are we waiting for to send our own ships to prevent them from attacking? We always used this strategy, and now...”
-
“And now it is no longer working. But perhaps you would like to attack their cruisers with stones, as our fleet is not ready to war? Above all, we do not have enough firepower to challenge our potential enemies, and our people is not prepared to fight. Narzlon was speaking slowly as if he was explaining something obvious to a child.
-
“But we cannot remain hidden, shivering at the sight of warships!” another Minister broke in.
“Do you expect us to remain in our systems, waiting for our doom? Never! Our ancestors did not wage wars to give us the few systems we are holding simply to see us abandoning these territories!” He looked shocked and his cheeks were turning red with anger.
-
“Then we will give you a frigate for you to defeat single-handedly all their cruisers. Does that sound agreeable to you?” The Chancelor gave a bitter laugh before resuming his speech, as if he has not been interrupted.
“ We are having trade treaties with our neighbours, and some of these other Empires have even promised to help us if a war was to be started. However, we are reluctant to trust such allies, as they are likely to betray us at the first occasion.”
Most of the Council suddenly spoke at the same time, arguing about the proper conduct to adopt.
“You can't even evoke such a thing, trading or depending on someone else protection!” one Minister was saying, bewildered.
“We are surrendering without even fighting, what is becoming our once proud nation?” said another, chiming in. But amidst the overwhelming noise, High Trader Sarsila was trying to get the attention of the audience.
- [i] “Please listen to me! Listen!” she shouted in her most bass voice. When they were listening listlessly to her, she exclaimed:
“Do you realize we are fighting each other when we should remain united against such threads? How do you expect to win against foreigners if we cannot even decide of a common attitude? Although I hate to have to resort to such measures, necessity is a harsh mistress. The times did change since the time of our glorious ancestors, and only fools keep on using the same tactics when the circumstances are no longer comparable.” She gasped for a little while, but when one of the representative wanted to say something, she did not let him do so.
- “ I don't know how you are feeling, but I, for one, would rather be living on my homeworld, after having negotiated with strangers rather than being dead, ashamed of the destruction of our home because of our unwarranted pride! And finally, please set aside your differences as such times are not requiring plotting and schemes!” It was a long speech to make, but it has been effective given the looks on the faces of her audience.
-
“Now that you heard to the words of foresight and sagacity, you might want to reflect for a night or so. You are dismissed.” Chancelor Narzlon wanted to regain the control of the situation, though the intervention of Sarsila was more than welcome. He had not expect such help from her, or from anyone in the Council for that matter.
As the Ministers were leaving, whispering to each other excitingly, Narzlon asked for the High Trader to remain in the Council Hall for a moment. He told her matter-of-factly:
“I will have to present other matters to the Trade Assembly. Would you mind to summon them? The Assembly is due to gather in no more than two hours. No, not know, he said as he saw her already leaving.
Before that, I also need to ask you to keep an eye on my Ministers. You saw how stubborn they are, and how difficult it is to sway them to adhere to the good sense. If one of them was thinking of turning traitor... Well, I would like to know about such a case. I wished our society was not that focused on plotting, it would be so much easier. They would see I am acting for their best interests”
Wisely she did not point out that the Chancelor came to power thanks to the aforementioned plots, but instead she said:
“Very well, it shall be done. We will be waiting for you in the Trade Chamber as soon as possible. I have to admit I am quite interested in examining these trade proposals from our neighbours, and I am sure the Traders will be more conciliatory than the Council.”
OOC: It is my first attempt at an in-game story, so you are more than welcome to send your criticisms, accusations, or other comments, and if you spot a mistake or a typo, please point it out, preferably via an email so as to not encumber this thread. Thanks in advance.
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