***
--- Knappnai Moutain Range, Knappnai City ---
January 8th, 2026
Kagash places her hand on her witch hat so it does not blow away from the sudden strong wind. She underestimated how windy this region is, experiencing how the city got its reputation as the 'windy city'.
She looks around and sees the city is alive, unspoiled by the recent war to the south. Everyone still going on with their daily lives. She notices that all the buildings are made from clay unlike stone back in Darlko.
Darlko, also knowns as the Rondel of the east, an insulting reference to her and the magic users at Darlko. Both cities have had a rivalry for centuries as they compete for influence. Rondel believes they are the true followers of Ral and Elange and think they are superior when it comes to the realm of magic. They have always been angry at the fact that Darlko has been trying to get equal representation in the Magic Guild. Rondel has always wanted a monopoly on the knowledge and education of magic.
While she and her husband have never been to Rondel, she does not like how they censorship types of magic and scrolls. In Darlko, all types of magic are allowed, even forbid types by the guild.
"Mommy, do you see that?" Fagrish asked as he pulls on her dress.
She looks down at her twelve-year-old son and giggles. She looks at the direction he is pointing. Over by the market booth, she sees many shiny objects. Jewelry, crystals, amulets and more. "I see my sweet. Knappnai is a major trading post between the Empire and The Ticaret Conglomerate. The stories say that these mountains are rich with many minerals, many are used in magic."
Fagrish looks up at her. "I was pointing to the girl's mom."
She then looks and sees these two attractive girls walking to people, helping their parents at the shops. She then giggles and rubs her son's head. "Silly boy."
She then hears her husband speak in his ancient dead language. Her husband saved her when they were kids from her parents. They tried to sacrifice her because they believed she was cursed. In the process of recusing her and defeat the Alpha Werewolf that came to consume her. He gave his soul to Hardy and became a Warlock to fight the Werewolf. In the process of saving her, he was cursed and now can only speak in the ancient dead language which she had to learn to speak and understand.
She turns around and sees her husband Galrik walks forward. She then looks away to where he is talking about. The city palace where the Count is, Count Assuhhrasha. While loyal to the Empire, it is rumored that he is a very brutal Count, however, the city lays in a brutal region.
"Yes, that is the palace, my love," She said. "High above all the other buildings in the city, built into the mountain. That surely said a lot about their leader."
"Mommy, why are there so many different people here?" Fagrish asked as he sees an Elf and a Cat-Man walking.
"This is a brutal land my sweet," She said. "Most people who come here and make roots usually have nowhere else to go. A last-ditch effort to find wealth and status. And besides, this city one of the few that is older than the Empire. It is once believed another power Empire thousands of years ago built this place. We do not know what race though."
As she said that she looks down this one street and see a large slave auction happening. This short man yelling as he takes people bets, telling a story about each man and woman standing there. The current story he is talking about is these two Warrior Bunnies, who were defeated in battle and enslaved by the Empire. It was a statement of the might of the Empire. The Warrior Bunnies are known to be vicious warriors who spare no one. But even they could not stop the Empire might.
This city has a large slave population, to help maintain order the punishment for the crime is to be tossed into slavery. The length changes on what crime is committed but the length rarely matters as the quality of treatment is brutal. With all food and much water needed to be imported, strict rules must be placed to maintain order.
"Sweet, please stay close. As long as we are here, I want you to stay by my side or in our room. No exploring," she spoke.
"But dad said I could go see the gladiators fight at the arena," Fagrish said.
She hears Galrik speak and she smiles from what he said. "Your father said listen to your mother." She said in a sweet voice.
Galrik can't go anywhere without her because he needs her to translate to people what he said. While he can understand what they say, he can't talk back. It has been hard, but they have learned to grow around it, which has made their relationship strong.
"But you promise," Fagrish said disappointed. "It is going to be so boring here."
She looks down at her disappointed son. He so desperately wanted to see the gladiators. Knappnai is known in creating strong gladiators, many ended up in the Sadera Colosseum. In the east, the Gladiator Association does not have a large presence so Fagrish only gets to watch the practice arena in Darlko.
"If you don't act like your father and stay good and if there is time, maybe we can go watch a match before we leave," She said. "Just remember we are here as Emissaries for Lord Valker. The Empire has requested our presence for this submit and Valker wants to know what the new Emperor has to offer before committed Darlko into the war."
She then looks at the auction and then to Galrik. "However, getting someone to play with would make this trip easier. It is mostly going to be talk and politics... I hate politics..."
She hears Galrik speak and she nods her head at what he said. "I know I am soft on him, but I am his mother. I don't have it in me to be mean, he is a part of us."
She then hears him say that she needs to learn to detach. She just glares at him. "Then you can spend the next few days with him while I go do all the work, alone."
Saying 'alone' got his attention. While their son is starting to understand the language his father speaks, he still cannot translate it properly. And while Galrik loves his son, he struggles to show affection to him because him being a cursed Warlock.
She smiles and hugs Galrik after he agrees with her proposal. "If it doesn't work out, we can always sell the slave. Or I can use it during my experiments." That got her excited thinking about all her projects back home. "But assuming we go to war, we will have to move to Rondel or Sadera. O'well."
She then looks to Fagrish with a big smile. "Let's go pick out a new friend."
Fagrish gets excited and rushes off to the slave market. She just crosses her arms and shakes her head. "Boys… so much energy."
She grabs her husband's arm and starts pulling him to the market. She has never understood why he hates shopping, always having to tug him along. She can see their son looking around at them all. "My Sweet, do not get an expensive one or an adult. You need to be smart about this. You never want to buy one that could harm you or you can't control."
"Ok mom," Fagrish said as he goes cag to cag. After checking out a few, he finally stops at one and points. "I want her."
She stops and looks down. She sees this brown hair young Warrior Bunny, probably taken from her home after the war. "Are you sure? Bunnies can be a handful."
"Yes," Fagrish said. "We can play hiding games and chasing games. And she is pretty."
She looks back at the young warrior bunny. She is hesitant to agree, Warrior Bunnies are extremely difficult to tame but her magic should be able to treat that. She then looks up at Galrik and smiles. "Pay up my love."
As Galrik pays the Pooka, the cag opens and the Pooka hands Fagrish the leash.
"You want to hold onto this until she remembers who her new master is," The Pooka said. "If they get loose, they are hard to catch."
"Thank you," Fagrish said and looks to her.
She sees him talking to the cute Warrior Bunny and giggles at the sight.
She takes a breath and grabs her son's hand. "Alright, the submit is starting soon. Let's go."
***
--- Knappnai Moutain Range, Knappnai City, Palace Chamber Room ---
January 8th, 2026
Falson Altin walks away from the food table and walks to his Human shaped assistant, Keyra. "What do you think of the situation?"
Keyra is his female assistant in a twelve-year-old body. He created her using Machina crystal with illusion magic.
Machina is a rare crystal that if you stick to a metal surface, it takes control of it. An example is if you attach it to a knight armor, it will be able to control. It can move the arms and leg pieces so he can walk and pick-up objects. While rare and hard to master, he learned how to do it at the Fire Mage College and created his own personal assistant and bodyguard.
"It is very interesting indeed Master Altin," Keyra said in a somewhat emotionless voice. Never technically being alive, he has been teaching her how to be more human emotion, which has been a during effort.
"Yes, it is," he replied. "If it wasn't for Nara Tozuko we couldn't be here."
Keyra looks to him. "If I recall she wanted to balance out the delegation. The council sent two of the four delegations that most likely would side with the Empire without much thought. Only Boldus Keswich would question the wisdom of siding with the Empire, but even he would push the Ticaret to war if it would benefit his Union."
He nods and thinks about that beautiful Kitsune. There are only a few of her kind in the Ticaret but they have established a position of power. They started weak and poor like most others but were able to climb up and started a highly successful brother called the High-Moon. Now she is the head of her family and has one of the wealthiest individuals, stretching their enterprises all over the Western Desert. He helped her set up a bank to expand both of their enterprises and from that, they built a corporative relationship between their families. She told him that she prefers no war however, in the end, her business would be fine regardless of what happens.
"True," He said as he thinks about what she said. Boldus is the head of Tecim Union, an immensely powerful wealth and trade guild within The Ticaret Conglomerate. He representative of the Mercantile Guild in the region. While known to be a humble man with the populist, he was a major help to finish off the Edras Kingdom to the southwest from being a regional power.
So far, he has remained a hard neutral stance on current events, not wanting to risk his position within the Tecim, he knows the art of war regardless of which side he chooses. He sees it as his responsibility to remain stubbornly neutral until all possible information can be discovered, so whatever side the Ticaret decides to support, they do it with the best of information.
"Keyra, what do you think of Mortimer Gumus?" He asked.
She looks to him and looks to the large Human. "Head of the Gumus family, born in wealth and power. He has five wives and those are the nonslaves. No one knows how many slave wives he owns. While he is an example of the rich and powerful within The Ticaret Conglomerate, he is not stupid like many within the Empire. He understands having a sharp mind is good for business and power. If relations normalize with the Empire, he is most to benefit from it."
She then looks back at him. "He usually has others go out and do his dirty work. He uses emissaries to represent him. However, when Emperor Zorzal requests a delegation, he was the first to volunteer."
"That surprised me too, but he has been trying to make inroads into the Empire for years," He adds. "If he expands his enterprise in the Imperial market, he would be the most powerful in The Ticaret Conglomerate, upsetting the balance."
"That is why Nara wanted you here. To prevent any backdoor deals," Keyra said. "However, master, I was shocked that Gagnog Sand Shield was sent."
"I was too," He responds and looks over to that Dwarf. He leads the most powerful Dwarf clan within the Ticaret. Out of everyone, he has been the most pro-war against these Other Worlders. While he hates the Empire, he sees these Other Worlders as an assault against all Falmart. Their values, weapons, beliefs and powerful he finds insulting, assuming the rumors are true.
"I know he lobbied hard to get on the delegation so he can't just accept whatever the Empire offers for himself," He said. "Assuming we go to war against these Other Worlders he probably would lead the war council with Boldus and Saskax Fury Skin."
However, some wish to side with the Other Worlders and go to war against the Empire. He has a feeling Nara is one, Boldus could switch sides and fight the Empire as long as it benefits him and his people. The Draconian Saskax would want to go to war with the Empire to claim the easter part of the desert for his own. But none of them act together so their position has become weak.
"That is assuming the Empire offer something worth fighting for," Keyra said.
"Correct," He said and looks around. "The only reason we even came is that we didn't want Mortime monopolizing relations with the Empire and the number of independent vassals and factions that have been summoned. The message heavily implied good trade concessions if we joined."
"So, the council believed it was worth the attempt master?" Keyra asked.
"Nothing wrong in seeing what Emperor Zorzal has to say," He said. "A new Emperor, good chance to size up the new ruler of Falmart and see if there is a threat. The number one problem we have right now is everything we know is rumors from passing travelers."
He looks around the room and sees the other groups who arrived. This submit is a gamble for The Ticaret Conglomerate. They and the Empire have had many wars against each other. Centuries ago, the Empire invaded and was defeated but they were able to take the eastern side of the Western Desert.
But the Ticaret has been defeated when they invaded the Empire. This has happened many times, each side unable to conquer territory from each other. It got to the point where a frozen conflict was formed until a peace treaty was signed a hundred and twenty years ago. While we were at peace with the Empire, that does not mean we were friends.
"Master, what kind of Elves are they? They look different," Keyra asked.
He looks over and sees these snow-white skin Elves. He has never seen them before but has heard stories. "They are Moon Elves. They are form the only remaining elvish kingdom left on Falamrt, far to the northeast. They are master assassins and bandits. If you can pay them, their target is dead."
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He went up to them, wanting to make a good impression however they ignore them. It is rumored that they hate all other Elves, especially Half-Elves like himself. They believe that they are superior because of their Shade magic and how extreme their lifestyle is.
"Interesting," Keyra said. "Who do they worship?"
He thinks of that question and looks at her. "No one knows. Rumors say that they are assassins and bandits and uses their powers to raid towns. But the story is that they don't raid like bandits for survival but because they can, to practice their skills. But they are not just some rag group of bandits, they are skilled killers. Almost no one lives after one of their attacks. Out of everyone here, I am shocked to see them."
He then looks over and sees the delegation from Rondel and Darlko arguing. This woman in this genuinely nice witch outfit is arguing with a Rondel mage. Both of those cities host the top two Magic Academies in Falmart however the Empire has always favored Rondel over Darlko. People simplify the difference is that Rondel is the city of light while Darlko is the city of the dark. It is only a matter of time before both mages will start a magic dual.
He sees the delegation of the High Elves from the Forest of High Elves. The Kingdoms of the Hisen-Horn and the Virintin, both regional powers in the southeast, close to the Empire island colonies. Then the Northern Kingdom of Icisgos. There are a few other smaller Kingdoms and powerful tribes here that were offered.
Keyra then points to this other man talking with Gagnog. "Who is that?"
He looks over and sees the son of King Duran. He can tell by the Elbe flag symbol with some resistance symbols on it. "That is Prince Astile, King Duren's firstborn son. I am shocked to see him here. From what I heard Elbe was destroyed or forced to ally with these Other Worlders. It is a wasteland that has become impoverished. A once regional power now at the bottom of the barrel. It looks like there is still active resistance within the Other Worlders borders."
He then sees this empty chair, all but one of the delegations have seemed to arrive.
He hears the Imperial horns, singling the Emperor is about to walk in. He and Keyra take their seats like everyone, preparing to hear what Zorzal has to say.
The large doors open and Emperor Zorzal El Caesar walks through it, fully in his Imperial armor, the crown and the rob. He walks in pure confidence and defiance, his manner showing everyone that he is committed to his resolve.
Besides him is General Marquis Calasta, General Woody, Oprichnina leader Svenhard Lupus Moon, Senator Adaulis and Senator Oras.
As he watches them all walk into the large room, he is impressed by the size of the Empire delegation. Whatever the rumors about the new Emperor are, it is clear that he means business.
"Master, were you expecting this?" Keyra asked softly.
He looks around the other delegation and mostly sees the same reaction as his. He looks back at his assistant. "I wasn't expecting this size of the delegation. I honestly wasn't even expecting the Emperor to show up. Maybe one of his top officials but him himself."
Zorzal walks to his throne, which everyone is staring at. He stops and turns around to save everyone. "Good afternoon all. I see almost everyone has arrived."
"Do not make us wait for one," Boldus said. "I have urgent business back home so let's get going."
Zorzal looks to Boldus and then to the rest. "Do not take this the wrong way my friend however the last guest is the most important of all."
Then this servant rushes up to Zorzal and speaks something into his hears. Zorzal smirks and looks back at everyone. "It seems we do not have to wait any longer. My final guest has arrived and then we can move on with this submit."
He has a small grown, not enjoying the sloppiness of this submit. While he can see that Zorzal and his aids project a level of strength that he would expect from the Empire, he is starting to see the lack of statesmanship.
Before he said anything to Keyra, he sees the other doors open wide. His eyes grow large as he sees who walks into the room.
He sees many of the delegations stand up in shock and protest. He remains in his seat, scared to anything. "Has he gone mad?"
"It is just a Succubus master," Keyra said, confused on why everyone is freaking out.
He looks to Keyra and then looks back to the Succubus. She has pure white skin with purple marking all around her. Her eyes are black with blueish iris eyes. Her hair is brown and black with a black gold crown. Most Succubi are shorter than the average human, but she is tall like most Humanoids.
"She is the most dangerous woman in Falmart," He said to Keyra. "The Queen of the Dark Races. Queen Famulis. She is extremely powerful and is considered the enemy of common life. She is enormously powerful in the arts of dark magic. No one knows how she has lived this long."
Common life referencing to Humans, Elves, Dwarves, many of the animal hybrids and others like them. They are the current dominant races of Falmart while her Dark Races, like Orcs, Goblins, Vampires, Draconian, Bats, and others like them are discriminated against.
He watches her walk pass everyone as starts to protest her presence. Then this large roar can be heard, silencing the room.
This tall Humanoid Orc walks past everyone and following her. It is an Uruk-hai or a green Orc, a more evolved form of an Orc. Faster, stronger, smarter, and more organized than the average than the brown Orc. The Imperial Army's strength is its good equipment and organized Legions. The rumors say the Uruk-hai is her version of the Legions.
Zorzal steps forward, holding his hands out to calm everyone down. "Everyone listens to me!"
---
Queen Altoria Famulis sits down in her seat and places her head on her hand as she listens to the new Emperor. The only reason why she answered the invitation was that whoever this boy is, he killed one of her most hated enemies, Molt. She cares little about the people outside her borders, only her people. And her people are judged unfairly throughout the world.
She has been trying to stay informed on what is going on with the Empire and this new war. However, being from the far east, information has been slow and problematic. This is her other objective here is to figure out what is going on in Falmart. The message said her kingdom was in danger and it is a threat she decided to take seriously. And at the bottom of the note, a gift to show how serious Emperor Zorzal is to this alliance, the promise of Molt Sol Augustus himself. Besides, she saw an opportunity to advance her agenda for this world.
She can feel the glares and hatred of many of the delegations here, which she cares little of their opinion. If anyone tries anything, her Uruk-hai General, Uorik will slay them.
When Zorzal got everyone's attention, he starts looking around and smiles, enjoying the attention. "I summoned you all here because our world is in great danger. I believe Queen Famulis presence states how serious I am taking this new threat to our world."
"You are kidding me?" Boldus said. "She is a monster! I have seen what you have done."
"And I know what you have done to the Edras people in your raids," Calasta comments, shutting up Boldus.
"I understand your feelings," Zorzal said. "My father battled her people for a generation but right now is not the time for this. Everyone here has the biggest stake in the outcome of this war. The new threat is bigger than all of us. If we do not win this war, everyone in the room will lose, regardless if you join our coalition or not."
"Speak plainly Emperor," Mortimer asked. "You wish for us to join you in this war?"
Zorzal snaps his fingers and this Human and Elf slave walks in, bring in a painted map of central Falmart, mainly where the war has been happening.
"Let me show you the situation," Zorzal said. "We are looking at a second Dark Age. These Other Worlders are led by people called Americans. They have no honor nor respect for the natural order. In one year, they have sized what is now the Alnus Region. They have conquered Elies and forced into submission Italica and Elbe."
"Emperor, with all due respect, why should any of us care about the war?" Falson asked. "This war hasn't approached our borders and if the rumors are true, they are solely focused on you. Why should we risk putting ourselves in the same situation as Elbe and Italica did?"
"I hate to agree with Falson here, but all this looks like is a lover quarrel between you and these other Worlders," Boldus said.
"That is because we have been holding them back," Calasta said. "While your lands stay safe, we have been bleeding for Falmart."
"My General is correct," Zorzal said. "Let me be clear what is at stake. This isn't just a conflict with the Empire anymore if we lose everyone will lose. These people are coming here to change everything. They believe that the weak and peasants should be the rules of the lands and all of you locked should be locked away in a dungeon."
"Right now in Elies, their economy has fallen. Property is being taken away and the people there are being oppressed. Their values and cultures are being stripped away. Their way of life is being erased."
Zorzal then points the Italica. "Look what has happened in Italica. A once rich and respected city, now its economy is suffering. Its people are on the verge of anarchy. Their leader forced to surrender to these Other Worlders. Another example is what is happening to Elbe. Their King surrendered and is now their puppet."
"Words," One of the delegates said.
Zorzal looks to the Northern delegation and smiles. "Words yes but you fail to see the meaning within them. In Elies, Italica, Elbe, and Alguna, these Other Worlders have banned slavery. Has stripped them of their independence. They are stripping their culture, traditions, institutions and their history away until they become shells."
She hears many of the delegations laugh at the idea of abolishing slavery. It makes no sense economically. While she does not laugh with them, even to her that sounds funny. It has been an ancient practice as old as time itself. Slavery has been the backbone of civilization in economics and warfare. Slaves do the dirty work of the people, working on the fields to feed the citizens, work in the mines, do the daily tasked of their masters. They are important for the economy of Falmart, without them the whole system will collapse. There will be no one to farm the food, to build buildings, to conduct the labor that is needed.
Besides, what is the alternative she wonders? If you do not enslave a conquered people, you would just murder them to make room for colonization. They should be grateful that they were not murdered. It is their fault for being weak in the first place. The powerful and strong should always rule otherwise it is anarchy.
That is when she sees Prince Astile stands up and walks forward.
"It is all true," Astile said, shocking everyone. "My father surrendered to these people. The only reason he is in power now is that he became their puppet. Everything the Emperor is saying is happening. Slavery has been abolished in Elbe. The economy has been in free fall since. We are forced to feed Alnus with our food while we are unable to feed ourselves. As part of our surrender, we are forced to pay our slaves for their labor, driving up inflation and cost. Many of you understand business and understand how devastating this would be. The throne has lost all power in the Kingdom."
Astile looks around. "And did you hear what happened to the Kingdom of Alguna who dared to define this blasphemy alone?"
She frowns as she thinks about what happened in Alguna. She personally hated that Kingdom because they figured out how to tame her people. They used them as war machines and breed them for their own needs. However, the rumors she heard must be true, that these Other Worlders slaughtered their army within days and took over the city, disposing the ruler and replacing it with a puppet state. The breeding factories and all her people were slaughtered and destroyed. Slavery was abolished and anyone who conducted the act was imprisoned.
If these Other Worlders can slaughter her people so easily, if these people ever come to her boarder, there will be nothing she could do to stop them.
"My queen," Astile said.
She looks up to the Prince.
"I see you know what I am talking about," Astile said. "They will come for your kind and slaughter them all. They have no respect for life and civilization. I have seen it with my own eyes, and I vow to stop my father and bring back honor to my family kingdom."
Senator Adaulis walks forward. "As you all know, the Other Worlders raided our mighty city Sadera. They came to save a few slaves and killed my daughter. Thousands of people died to save five slaves. They do not understand the Laws of Nature, where the strong shall rule or the value of life. She was murdered because those bastards wanted to save her pet girl that I got her for her(1). She was a good girl with a lot of promise. She was planning on taking over the family business, but her life was cut short."
Adaulis looks around. "I never wanted to go into politics. I have worked with many of you in business before." He looks to Mortimer, showing they have a history already. "I was even against this war in the beginning, thinking that is was a missed opportunity for business. They killed my daughter for a damn slave. They have no honor or respect for law and order. They are where willing to do that to my child, what will they do to you?"
Zorzal walks forward to form his throne. "This is why we are here. We all have a history of conflict. Always fighting each other for many reasons. But we all have one thing in common, we all belong to this world. As you ask Lord Falson, why should you get involved, let me explain."
"Look what they have done to the people in their occupied territory. They have murdered hundreds of thousands of our soldiers without mercy or care. They have done it to all races equally. They do not care who you are, what are you believe, and gods are. You are all the leaders of your spheres and they will come for you and remove you."
"You can't negotiate with them," Zorzal adds. "Before their attack on our city, we tried to form a peace treaty with them. When they arrived, they shed our royal throne with blood and after rejecting our attempt to a peace treaty, they took two of my slaves with them. They never intended for peace; they were trying to humiliate us."
"They will take your power, your wealth, your history and culture away. Thousands of rebuilding after the Dark Ages will be lost forever and we all will be ruled by people who are not even from this world." Zorzal said.
She thinks about what they all just said. She must admit that she didn't see the seriousness of the situation. Just like everyone else, she has only heard rumors of what has been going on. Hearsay from traders and merchants, their words can only be trusted so far.
She has heard that these people are merciful and honorable to bad demons who slaughters thousands at every sight. They say they free people but then enslave people to work for them, as Astile was stating.
She looks up at the map and sees the occupied territory by these other Worlders.
"What are you thinking my Queen?" Uorik asked.
"The future," She responds.
"Do you believe what he is saying?" Uorik asked.
"Mostly no," She said. "The Empire are master propagandists. You know what they want you to know." She stops and thinks. "However, look at the map. These people have conquered a lot of territory in a short period. The Imperial Army is many things however they are not incompetent."
She thinks back to all the wars she has fought against the Empire. They have been bloody, but she never been able to expand out of their borders. While she has no respect for the rulers, the generals and soldiers are another matter. There is a reason why the Empire is on top.
If she could not bring the Imperial Army to its knees but these Other Worlder have been able to do that so easily, that is something she needs to take seriously.
"I notice that too," Uorik said. "See that, Legrath has fallen."
She grunts at that name. Her western arm allies have been trying to take that fortress for generations and failed. These people took it in a day. "I have. I personally would like to ally with these people but Zorzal is right. They do not see us any different than the Empire and they probably wouldn't help me with my agenda. I need the Empire to continue with my plans. This war works well with my agenda the more I think about it."
She then looks to Zorzal as he continues to speak. He has been talking more about the current events. How these Other Worlders will force their people to serve them by false promises of freedom and equality but will turn them back into slaves, just with new owners. That all their power and wealth will disappear if the Empire loses this war.
"What is in it for us?" She asked. When she spoke the room goes quiet, some wondering what she has to say while others scared of her.
Zorzal looks to her and smiles. "I was wondering when that question would arise. Baron, you may."
Senator Baron Clayton walks forward. "We do not expect you to fight for free. This is a threat they are beyond our past. We need to set aside our differences in this dark hour, otherwise, we all will suffer."
Then Baron points to the large map. "We will be happy to negotiate further in the days ahead, but there is an exmaple of what we are prepared to offer. We are willing to concede the eastern part of the Western Desert to The Ticaret Conglomerate."
She listens very carefully to what the Senator has to say. She was shocked by that concession. Both of those Empires have fought for generations for that territory.
Then-Senator Oras walks forward. "I was a prisoner in the Other Worlders world. While their weapons are strong, their people are weak. When we first invaded their world, we slaughtered thousands of them with ease. The fled like children. If we can beat their war machine, their world is ours."
Oras looks around and holds out his arms. "I saw their world and there are many riches there. There is enough pressure for all of us to last for generations. Payment will be given on how much tribute you give to the Coalition. But their world will be shared."
She listens to what the Empire is willing to do with the other Kingdoms and vassals in the room, basically money and territory. She noticed that he left out a detail offered for both Rondel and Darlko. Most likely they will talk behind closed doors since they hate each other.
But she also noticed Svenhard glancing over to the Rondel delegation. His eyes look like he is planning on something. It seems someone else has their own agenda in this submits.
She then smirks as she finalizes her plan in her head. She must admit, Zorzal put up a great front. She did not even notice how desperate these people are up until now. Everyone knows the war is not going well for the Empire. The fact that he invaded her here should have proved it. For her plans to work she needs to act fast.
If it were Emperor Molt standing there she would be here and would rather let the Empire burn then help, even if it resulted in her country burning too. But Zorzal is not his father and seems to be trying to form his own legacy. Most likely for his own ego but still, she can use that.
"My Queen, what do you plan on doing?" Uorik asked.
She smiles as she collects her thoughts. "A golden opportunity has arrived. I have no intention of passing it up. Zorzal is no Emperor, he can only see up to his nose. That can work well for us. The fact that he is willing to put past tensions away for a greater good, even though it is for all the wrong reasons, it is still impressive to me."
She then thinks and nods. "Out of everyone here he needs me the most. Otherwise, he would not risk alienating everyone else with my presence. He understands how massive the threat is, again for all the wrong reasons. But all my plans turn into dust if the Empire falls to this new enemy."
She then stands up. She sees everyone stops and all eyes look up at her. "Very impressive my Emperor. Very impressive indeed. My fellow delegates, whatever issues we have had in the past, the Empire here made a great point. This is our world, not these American Other Worlders."
"Assuming if the rumors are true, we all gain nothing if the Empire falls and this new threat takes over." She continues. "With our collective might, we might be able to turn the tide. Even the strongest beast can fall from numbers."
She stops and looks to Emperor Zorzal. "I still have questions; however, I do lend my support to the Emperor call for a Grand Coalition."
She hears people talking about what she said, debating the meaning of her support. She doesn't care, she expects most of them to fall in line. If the Empire wins the war, everyone who betrayed them will probably be massed murdered out of revenge. As the saying goes, stick with the evil you know.
She sits down and looks forward as the Empire delegation begins walking about the benefits of this Coalition.
Her general leans forward with this confused look on his face. "My Queen, what are you planning? This isn't what we talked about."
She smiles and she crosses her legs. "I need to have a private meeting with the Emperor. He promised his father to me, so I need to collect it. But he wants my army there is one thing he needs to do for me."
"That is?" Uorik asked.
She smirks as she thinks about her next move. "To make me Empress."