[center][h2][color=red]The Sanguine Empire[/color][/h2][/center] [youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mEbABPtTv8[/youtube] [img]http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/95/59/80/955980f4f56bbdc7ec6ddfc86ddff14a.jpg[/img] The envoy of Sinesia's royal court was a learned man on the cusp of his third decade in life. Tall, handsome, well-educated, and possessed of moderate wealth on account of his family's estate outside Amberport, Felin Dovan was an enviable man, with the opportunity to travel that so few, even of his station, could find. The weather here felt like early autumn to him, and yet the Sinesians at court complained of the bitter cold. [i]If this is cold to them, I could get used to living here,[/i] he thought. But time was one privilege he did not have. His job could vaguely be summarized as 'schmoozing', and yet he never had a more difficult time with such a vague and seemingly easy task. King Quinn was a suspicious man, and Felin could not rely on his charms to sway him. Above all else, he had learned the king to be suspicious, cautious, and coldly logical. Facts and probabilities were his currency, and those coins were always weighed by his cynicism. Nevertheless, Felin had managed to do well here. An air of tension permeated this court, for fear of foreign powers. Dalatrum, Skeptoni, Zellon, Nehelian, Tangarian, it seemed any one of those powers could become Sinesia's enemy overnight. A reassurance of safety and security was desperately needed in this climate. This made it all the easier to convince them that they needed a friend on the geopolitical stage that could be relied on, a bulwark they could fall back on to aid them should things get dark. These thoughts whipped through Dovan's mind, aided by the buzz from half a glass of Sinesian Red. Come Spring, or perhaps the end of Spring, he was to propose the treaty. He had some months yet, but he needed to work quickly if he was to remove all doubt. The Imperial Court punished as generously as it rewarded. "Mr. Dovan," came a woman's voice. She spoke to him in Sinesian, that sultry, sing-songy dialect. She was a girl of minor nobility, staying at the castle with her family. She leaned against their doorway, her breasts pushing against its frame, as if she were too tired to be bothered with standing upright. "Please, [i]Felin[/i]." "[i]Felin[/i]. Will you join us for supper?" she said with a coy smile, undoing a braid in her hair, letting her raven-coloured locks spill back. "Only if there's desert," he said, reciprocating the gaze. [center]~ * ~[/center] [center][h3]The Sino-Sanguine Mutual Defence Treaty of 1836[/h3][/center] Understanding safety and security to be a nation's top priority, The Imperial Authority of the Sanguine Empire proposes to the sovereign of the Kingdom of Sinesia a pact of mutual defence, to entail these conditions: * If one nation is attacked, the other shall declare war on its attacker, and do everything in its power to aid the defender. * During times of conflict, the two nations will allow military access to each other's territories and facilities, until such a time that the conflict is resolved. * The two nations will not negotiate a peace within the conflict separate from the other. Conditions of victory must be agreed upon by both nations. Conditions of surrender are exempt from this. [X] Emperor Damian Gregory Amoury [ ] King Quinn 'The Guard' of Sinesia [center]~ * ~[/center] "He doesn't command the same [i]respect[/i] as if father," said General Iletsky. Captain Bancaster nodded. The General had a bad habit of involving himself in politics and court gossip. "Damian," the General continued, as the Captain poured over papers in the office, "well, half of court thinks he's a charming rogue, and the other thinks he's an womanly dandy, a distrustful snake, a foolish cad. But his father, it didn't matter what you thought of his father. You obeyed him, or there would be consequences." "Are all of these documents in order? You wish to begin these steps?" said Bancaster, holding up several papers. "Hm? Oh, yes, do get to those. The details are unimportant, but our forces must be able to replenish themselves quickly, and a proper drafting system is needed to accomplish this. There was little quarrel with the nobility over this. A true shocker. Even my family members had little to say, and I'm sure you're aware of my Aunt's little spat with the Harebane's. That old, dingy hag, she's still going at her age, and living without help from anyone. Last I'd heard, she was having a trist with the Palace stable boy over. . ." The General droned on, while Bancaster feigned interest with nods. The care he put into the workings of the military was the only concern that made sense to him. Its operation, and the safety of those that composed it, mattered more than anything. He never quite learned the appeal behind stories of centennial doddards eloping with lowborn lads. ( ( Summary: * Improving relations with the Kingdom of Sinesia * Proposing the Sino-Sanguine Mutual Defence Treaty of 1836 * Adopting the Forced Conscription military policy ) )