[b]The Elven Nation of Manas
Meely Plantation[/b]

Maim Lucille Meely looked out the window of her wealthy plantation with casual interest. The Yard workers were busy at work again, like every day and every day before that. They worked endlessly on the Yetch Fields that grew crops that could be selled at the local market. 

As an estate holder, it was her duty to provide food to the nation by using her land to generate crops. But... she was much more than that. As the heir to the queenage of Manas, she was also next in line to the elven throne of Manas -- a virtual princess, although such a word hadn't been used in generations.

But a far more pressing problem was that she was still single and it was her duty, as long as she remained young, to generate future heirs to the throne after she had taken it. But in order to create children, she needed a husband, and she had none of that... yet.

Sitting down on a chair, she pondered about all the people alround her. All of intricacies that made her farm into a productive piece of land -- wouldn't be possible without the men and women who tended it.

She thought about Old Mr. Fabey, the butler who had attended her family for years. Dresed in black and constantly harassing the family dog, Old Mr. Fabey was the ideal worksman of her plantation. His bald hair and green eyes and long bony ears made him look like the ideal elf to represent her old old plantation during ceremonial times. But he was too old to be a husband. Besides, he was married to that Cerenad Woman who lived in the wooden appendage next to her house. No, as much as she liked Mr. Fabey, he wouldn't do.

The next person Lucille thought about was the Plantation Manager and headsman, Hamon Cox, a bright middleaged brown-nosed elf who worked the fields day in and day out like some madman who was possessed. She liked him a lot, mostly because he made the farm incredibly profitable, but he was too stern, too singleminded about his job and business that being with him made her think of a dull afternoon doing nothing but taking a nap. No, that was not what she wanted to do with her life. Mr. Cox was big and strong, and was diligent about his work, but he lacked something that Lucille couldn't quite put a word on it. But she loved the man, because he was so damn productive, and it made her ponder why she couldn't also be as hard working. Mr. Hamon Cox... certainly someone who was integral to her plantation, and an orderly member of her crew, but not an ideal husband. He was... too poor.

Then there was her nephew, Stannis Meely, a bright young lad, far too young for her, and wasn't he always chasing that maid who worked the kitchen? He was obsessed with that girl... his attention constantly possessed in that romantic interest he found in the maid. Lucille giggled at the thought of what the lad and her nephew would do the young girl if he ever won her affection. Stannis Meely was a boy like all boys, completely obssessed with young women to even know where his head will be next. Lucille's giggle turned into a laugh, and she moved to the next person to occupy her thoughts.

The next person that came up was the boy's father, and Lucille's brother, Lenon Meely, a tall compassionate gentleman who... she hadn't seen in months. As she could recall, the last time he had seen her brother was during the Estate Winter Holiday Party of last year. Her brother had been slightly ill throughout that party, but otherwise completely strong and kind. At 42 winters, her brother had become an semi-elderly elf. Years ago, he had married and created three lovely children, all of which she saw daily. But even though he was older and a male, he couldn't be a heir to the throne of Manas. Manas throne was matriachal, with every queen chosen from the female heirs of the previous queen.

But she loved her brother! She thought of him everyday, even though he hadn't been back in months. As a seasman, it was his duty to captain a vessel in the nation's navy, especially during the war with the Cecillian Pirates. She tried to imagine what his life was like, to see endless horizons of vast blue ocean each day. It must be glorious, and stunningly fearsome for the uninitiated. Yes, the war with the Cecillian Pirates was in its third year, and only the Gods knew when her brother would be back in her arms.

It was sad, sad, but it was all for the best, because her brother loved the sea and had been dreaming of sailing boats since he had been small. His room was filled with boats and more boats, which was his main love, besides his wife.

And then there was Lucille's father, the late Baron of Westcheck. Mikay Meely had been a stern rigid commander of the nation's military during his younger days, but life like all blessings had taken away his youth, leaving Lucille's last memories of her father as a feeble elf always sitting in the family mansion in Westcheck. Lucille loved her father, because he had taught her so many things in life, like how to play Booly Ball when she was a young elf maiden, and how to watch the stars in the constellations.

Her mother never remarried after her father died, mostly because her mother, too, loved her father, and the man had given given her mother the queen many heirs, including Lucille herself. Her mother... a woman who was always calm. Her mother sat on the elven throne for over thirty years, and had maintained the nation's state for as long as Lucille remembered. Her mother was called the Alke the Great, because she had reformed the nation's military system as well as expanded the nation's naval assets to fight the Cicillian Pirates. Yes, she was truly a capable stateswoman, but -- Lucille winced -- she had been a poor mother. Her mother, Alke the Great, never had time for her children and always gave priority to national issues over the wellbeing of her family. Lucille thought it was perhaps all for the best... maybe that was what elven queens were supposed to do, but still... she wished she had had her mother's love during her childhood.

A clicking interuptted her thoughts. Lucille Meely, next in line to the elven throne, answered the door. "Yes?"

"Main Meely?" said the Butler, Old Mr. Fabey. "Ten elven men are here to meet with you."

"Ten elven men? From where?" asked Lucille.

"From Hanartha, maim! They have a message from the Grand Princeo of Hanartha."

My gods! A message from the Grand Prince of... Hanartha?? On my doorstep? This was something that better fitted her mother -- it was her mother's job to maintain the nation's state. But perhaps it was her job, too, since her mother was five days away in the elven Capital of Su'rahs. "I'll see them, Mr. Fabey. Tell them to wait while I get dressed!"

"Yes, maim," answered Mr. Fabey, who quickly closed the door and headed downstairs to send the message to the ten men from Hanartha.

In the next ten minutes, Lucille Meely, properly addressed as Maim, hastly put on her make up and perfume. She gazed at herself in the mirror. She looked splendid. Her long red hair curved down to her shoulders, supplementing her ample red lips (with lipstick of course), giving her a vibrant color. 

A woman had to look pretty, of course. There were many bachelors out there waiting for her, and men from wealthy Hanartha! What could be better? She couldn't pretend that she wasn't interested. 

She put on one last tint of perfume and smiled in delight at her appearance. Then, she hurried downstairs to greet the men.

When she hit the bottom floor, she heard the men from Hanartha all in her reception room. It was a massive room, with giant candles on large metal chandeliers. Paintings of her mother decorated the walls, as well of that of her brother, father, and even her nephew.

"What can I do for you, Men of Hanartha?" she smiled her most prompt and elegant smile. She couldn't hide her excitement at the news. Men from Wealthy Hanartha! -- The rich elven nation that bordered Manas to the north! She gazed at them in her room. 

Suddenly, all expectations of handsome elven men in well dressed clothe disappeared. The men before her were rugged looking, and they smelled. She could only wonder how terrible the trip to her plantation must have been for these travelers. She wanted to help them get the dirt off, and even give them a bathe. They must be tired from their long journey, she thought, and giving them a location to sleep and rest was the next thing on her mind. 

What had these men traveled to get here? Their armor was filled with stink, and the room suddenly smelled. "You all must be tired," said Lucille, addressing the elven messengers of Hanartha before her. "If you'd like, my servants can help clean you and feed you from a hard week's travel. It can be done quickly, I think. we can provide you with a clean warm dinner from our kitchen."