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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cerebral Paladin" data-source="post: 2983750" data-attributes="member: 3448">Thanks to Ladybird for all the great storyhour writing.  It's been fun to be a reader in this thread for a while. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />  But now you'll all have to put up with my writing again.  On the upside, I have so much storyhour written up and not posted that I'm going to go back to a daily schedule (not just weekdays) AND increase the length of the posts.  Without further ado...Session 6:Shortly after Kit's return, Alistair and his friends and confidants gathered in his meeting room.  Of course, in light of his grandmother's passing, the meeting was formally a security briefing for the Archduke.Dame Brionna began. "Your grace, we have several issues that we should discuss.  We need to make a variety of security preparations for the coronation and the continuing internal threats that could try to disrupt it. We also need to discuss how we plan on dealing with some of the potential external threats.""Let's begin with discussing the envoys we expect to receive.  Some of them create additional concerns, and they're our best way to start dealing with the external threats."Dame Brionna nodded.  "Yes, your grace.  All of the major human kingdoms in Southern Drucien are sending important emissaries.  Queen Thyastis of Hanal is sending the Hiercov of Magdad." Seeing a vaguely confused look on Alistair's face, she clarified.  "'Hiercov' is a noble title, about equivalent to a duke.  The Hiercov has a relatively good reputation.  I'm certain that he's loyal to Queen Thyastis, but he's primarily known as a decorated war hero.  In light of Dame Katherine's reports about the Queen's potential heirs, I should note that we do not know who he would support in a succession."The 'Goddess-Empress' of Masque is sending Count Gerring Holt of the Order of the Ocelot.  As you know, all of the nobles of Masque and most of the free people are members of an Order.  Nobles have the right to reclaim fallen or unused orders as their own, which Count Holt did with the Order of the Ocelot.  As a result, he is the only member of the Order.  Masque has a plethora of nobles, so Hanal and others may view it as something of a snub that they're sending a mere count, but I do not believe that you should take it that way, your grace.  Count Holt is a favorite of the Empress-- I do not know whether that extends to a special private relationship, so I wouldn't recommend trying to use the possibility of a royal marriage as a tool to build ties to Masque.  He is also a noted alchemist and an accomplished psionicist, despite not being a member of their Order of the Serpent, which includes most of their most powerful mages and psions.""I assume that if we are interested in hiring the Order of the Falcon as mercenaries, we should discuss the matter with the representative of the Empress of Masque first?""I think so, your grace.  For whatever reason, that Order typically does not accept contracts from the government of Masque itself, but I wouldn't want the Empress to draw the incorrect conclusion."Kit frowned.  "I still don't think we should be dealing with them.  Their Grand Constable ate someone's arm!  Surely, m'lord, they aren't the only option for mercenaries if we have to expand our military resources.""I'm not sure there are any better options," said Alistair.  "There are too many possible military threats.  If the Duchy of Brightspan's army is part of a coordinated attack on the Forest of Singing Leaves by Hanal, Brightspan, and the Noldar, we could quickly find ourselves in the midst of a major war with Hanal, and that's assuming that a civil war doesn't break out.  Add to that the threats to the refugees in the Sunken Lands, Hanal's continual expansionist ambitions, Brightspan's disloyalty, the skaven, the orcs, and the human barbarians, and we just need more military capacity.  We can't ready seasoned regular armies fast enough, and Dame Brionna says that the Order of the Falcon is the only one of their orders that is both large and effective enough to fill our needs.""From all that we know, Count Sheringar of the Order of the Falcon is very loyal to his employers, so I don't think we need to worry that he would betray us," Dame Brionna continued, although Kit's expression made it clear that she was still not persuaded.  "To continue, the less powerful human kingdoms, such as Tang and the Cities of the Gates, will of course also be sending ambassadors, but they are less of a priority."The most notable non-human delegations we expect are from the elves, including both Eldar and Noldar.  The Forest of Singing Leaves is sending Lord Everglowing Silverleaves.  Lord Silverleaves is a bard of unparalleled skill; he may in fact be the most talented bard on Aphonion, as many of the handful of more powerful Eldar bards have gone West.  He is an Eldar himself, of course, and will be representing the Queen of Leaves."Setilina of House Curini'rim intends to represent the Noldar.  She is a Firstcomer.""What does that mean?" asked Stythus."It means that she was one of the elves that the Creator made personally, when they were the only people in Aphonion," explained Alistair.  "All of the other Eldar and Noldar, and of course the other elves, are the descendants of the Firstcomers.  She chose her side in the war between the Creator and Morgrath and predates the first humans.  That also implies tremendous personal power, in addition to her political ties.""Indeed, your grace.  She is a powerful psionicist, as well as having both clerical and arcane magical abilities.  She specializes in clockwork automata-- House Curini'rim are the artificers of the Noldar and among the least virulently evil of the Houses.  Politically, she has close ties to Region 9 of the Zorplona-Aragoni, which is the region covering Northern Drucien.  Her cousin is in charge there.  As your grace may recall, Region 9 has stopped engaging in the slave trade and has begun an emphasis on regular trade."</blockquote>

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