[center][h3]Collab Between [@Raylah] and [@Tortoise][/h3][/center]

Kelsie sighed as she read the message from Abadi. It was not unexpected, but it still hurt coming from her. Of course, just like Kelsie, Abadi most likely had no say in the matter, simply relaying the statements of her government. Even so, it would feel much beter if those words came from that incompetent weirdo Tanaka. But no, he had to get himself shot, heroically saving the Xandalian envoy. Kelsie had to say that she would never expect the kid to do something so brave and selfless. Perhaps she was wrong about him. 

The Undefeated were still officially considered allies of the ECU despite the latest diplomatic rift, so Kelsie could enter their embassy without any trouble. The holographic butler escorted her to Abadi’s office and Kelsie knocked hesitantly. “It’s me. Can I come in?” She wasn’t really sure what she was going to say, but wanted to make it right. If not on a diplomatic level, at least on the personal one. That is why she brought a bottle of the best Ellarian whiskey along. It was probably crap compared to whatever the ECU was making, the Undefeated weren’t exactly experts on distillation, but as a token of good will it should work.

The door slid open, revealing Abadi behind a pretty bland, wooden desk. Fortunately, it was the only thing in the room that lifeless: what had originally been a borrowed little office had become an almost permanent habitation for her, and it was finally starting to show. An electric guitar sat in the corner, posters in English, Spanish and Arabic script were hung on the walls, and a little bobblehead of a rockstar was nodding along, perpetually, to a rhythm only he heard. It looked like a bureaucrat's office was invaded by teenage rock fans.

It also perhaps revealed that, despite her position, Abadi was still very young.

“Guardian Kelsie Blackwood,” the holographic butler announced, unnecessarily. The Acting Liaison stood from behind her desk, almost smiled, and then (remembering the current diplomatic situation) caught herself and decided to gaze evenly instead. “How can I help you?” she asked.

Kelsie entered the room, waiting for the butler to disappear. Even though he was just a hologram, it felt weird having someone staring at her all the time, especially with the strange blank expression the holograms had. Even when they were programmed to smile or frown, still there was something missing in their eyes, making shivers run down Kelsie’s spine. And she certainly did not need to feel any more uncomfortable than she already was.

“Liaison Abadi,” she nodded respectfully. “I would congratulate you on the promotion, but given the circumstances…” Kelsie shrugged. “How is Liaison Tanaka? Unfortunately we do not have any medical personnel stationed here, but I could ask the high command to send someone, if you require our assistance. And as for me being here… Well, I got your message and thought it would be better to settle things in person.”

Abadi didn’t say anything, waiting.

Kelsie sighed. “I know that our withdrawal from the Zetan system was a bit sudden and we haven’t discussed it with the ECU. But let’s be honest. The Xandalians were deadly serious about their war threat and neither of us can afford to be at war with both the Zetans and them. Plus the invasion was getting nowhere, getting to the point it was just a huge waste of lives and resources. That was the reason my government decided to withdraw from the conflict and issue such a statement.” 

She lowered her eyes, too ashamed to look directly at Abadi. No matter how she sugarcoated it, it still felt like the Undefeated betrayed the ECU and dumped all the blame on them. Kelsie was ashamed she had to justify something like that to her friend. “We are our nations’ representatives, we communicate the official statements of our governments.” She paused and sighed. “No matter our personal opinions,” she added quietly.

Abadi sat back down, not really knowing how to respond. Hollywood Oligarchs never went in for apologies; they threw money and gifts at each other, or quoted ancient literature. And it was just expected the other party understood.

The alcohol was a familiar sight, though.

“I understand,” Abadi said at last, and realizing that was probably too formal, tacked on: “I mean, I get it. You had your job to do. So did I.” She looked out of her window, where Earth was currently visible. She never liked looking at the real Earth, because it reminds you that all the holo-suite fantasies are fake, but it was easier than looking back at Kelsie right now. “I know my message was a little… harsh.” She cleared her throat.

There. That should be enough. Now she looks back at Kelsie, and determined to put it all behind them, bravely changes the subject: “Tanaka is- fine, I guess. To tell you the truth, he’s with the Zetans.” [i]Yes,[/i] Abadi thought, [i]you heard that right.[/i] “I know, I know how that sounds. But they’re the only ones with the tech to fix him. Option B was just to let him die.”

Kelsie smiled, knowing it was probably hard for Abadi to say such a thing. It seemed that keeping up appearances was the cornerstone of the ECU society, at least between the Oligarchs, and apologizing certainly made dents in a hard-build image. Not from Kelsie’s perspective though, she preferred a direct approach. As she said from the start, she was not the best diplomat.

“The Zetans?” she couldn’t hide her surprise, both from the fact that they offered to help and that the help was accepted. “I don’t blame him. People will do crazy things to survive.” She had seen that many times before in combat. “Are you sure he is in good hands though? Like… won’t they use him against the ECU? Or turn him into something…,” an image of heavily augmented Zetans that paraded around the Meeting Place came to her mind, “... change him too much?” She shrugged. It was really none of her business. “Sorry, I’m just surprised, that’s all. Of course it is up to Liason Tanaka. Please tell him we wish him all the best and hope for his complete recovery. Actually,” she pulled out the bottle she brought, “if you wouldn’t mind, we could make a toast to his health?”

Abadi looked at the bottle with an appraising expression. “Kind, culture and era?” she asked, before realizing the question probably didn’t make sense to anyone outside of the ECU. “I mean, of course.”

So they toasted to the health of Tanaka, currently under foreign care- and as they talked about these things, the conversation naturally turned towards the war.

A few minutes into the talk, Abadi took another sip of the Ellarian whiskey- strong stuff, shouldn’t drink too much- and says “I don’t know, it’s just that when I think about the war and all the fighting… we caused it, didn’t we? Not just our countries.” She was talking about the day her and Kelsie first met each other, and Sigma-Devi, as representatives of their nations. The three-way argument about the nature of humanity, that laid the groundwork for every interaction their peoples have had since. “You and me started this, in a way. Didn’t we?”

Kelsie took a sip and closed her eyes, enjoying the burning sensation and the sudden warmth sliding into her stomach. After her last experience with a hangover, she was really careful not to drink too much. Her eyes still firmly shut, she nodded. This was her recurring nightmare, a thought that hunted her ever since the war started. No matter how hard she pushed it away, it always came back. And it seemed like she wasn’t the only one in such a situation. “In a way. But… It's not like we declared war right back then, six months ago. We were just having a normal conversation, one you would expect to have with distant relatives you haven’t seen for 300 years. The things that happened after… We can hardly blame ourselves for it.” All those deaths and destruction. That was a bit too much weight to carry on their shoulders.

“Maybe it was inevitable. The clash of cultures, diametrically opposite beliefs. It seems humankind hasn’t evolved much since we left Earth, still settling all conflicts with war.” Kelsie smirked, thinking that the ECU should probably be proud of continuing the traditions of Old Earthers. But it was not a remark one would make in a casual conversation. “I try not to think about it too much.” A glass rose to her lips again. “Hopefully it forced both our nations to advance and change enough not to repeat that mistake again. I know the Undefeated changed more than I would ever expect.” Kelsie’s eyebrows went up as she remembered last General’s speech and all the changes that were currently going on back home. She still couldn’t wrap her head around it.

Abadi cocked an eyebrow at this. The Undefeated are changing? It sounds like something the Liaison of the ECU should ask about, but she decides to just leave it be. Right now, she doesn’t want to carry that title. She only has it at all because Tanaka went and got himself shot.

“Yeah,” she says instead, “things are definitely changing on New Hollywood. People are protesting, and talking about getting rid of the protectors. There’s this old religion coming back out of the woodwork,” she laughed, “one of them gave me a [i]pamphlet.[/i]” She lifted it out of a drawer, a piece of folded paper filled with talk about searching for the Truth and some pretty poorly-veiled jabs at holo-suites.

Kelsie’s eyes skimmed the paper and she raised her eyebrow. “I’m not really an expert on religions, but fanatic believers can cause problems. And it doesn’t really matter what they believe in. Back when the colony on Ellara was established, some people were so adamantly pacifistic they refused to fight even when Screecher spears punched holes through their guts.” Kelsie chuckled at such absurd ideas. “Religions were never a thing with the Undefeated and I hope they will not make a return now. I am sorry about the protests, I can officially offer you our support, even though I think it would be best if our armed forces stayed out of it.” 

After reading Harding’s report on protector training methods the ECU used, Kelsie wasn’t really surprised that people wanted to get rid of them. No one could survive such torture and remain a sane and composed person. Kelsie squinted at Abadi, who was playing with her drink, staring at its swirling surface, lost in thoughts. Did she know? Like really knew about everything that happened in their precious holosuites? Even though she just read a report of someone who had only observed the events, she was deeply disturbed by that. She couldn’t even imagine subjecting their own people to such horrors and have the audacity to call it training. Yes, the problematic people on Ellara were locked up, sent off to labor camps, even executed at times, but never tortured. At least as far as she knew.

“So,” she asked carefully, “do you think your government will hear the protestors’ requests, at least partially? The protector numbers have to be quite low after all the fighting. How are they planning to keep the peace?” She realized that her questions were probably a bit too intrusive. “Sorry, that’s just my military brain always thinking in numbers and strategies. I can’t really turn that off.”

Abadi laughed a little, knowing how militant the Ellaryians are. "It's alright. Yeah, it’s best your armed forces stay out of this issue. It’s a New Hollywood problem, and we’ve been dealing with the same kind of issues from year zero. There’s no way the government will listen to them. No way. It’ll blow over.” She herself hoped that wasn’t wishful thinking. She only knew vaguely about what happened to the protectors: in the Academy she attended, meant only for future Oligarchs, protector indoctrination was only touched on as a sort of necessary evil. For the preservation of society and Old Earth Culture, and all that usual stuff.

“The protectors really aren’t so bad,” Abadi said, remembering those classes. “They’re just- trained, I guess. Like attack dogs.” She smiled, a little sorrowfully. “Did you know, I never really thought about it before I came here? Never considered if it was good or bad. When the Gateways reopened, it’s like we all came out of our bubbles. Bubbles that we’d been in for 300 years. And somehow, we were all expecting to find others just like us. I wonder what Old Earth would think of us all.” She gazed out of the window again, where Earth was still just as dead as last time she looked, and added in a quieter voice: “I wonder if it matters.”

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. “You said any fanatic belief could be dangerous. What about our respect for Earth?” She looked over at Kelsie, not sure how she’ll react to this question. “ ...What about your own people’s military culture? It seems like you’re all soldiers. Is all of it dangerous if it goes too far?”

“Hmm,” Kelsie scratched her forehead. “You are right. I also never really thought about how we have lived until now. I guess seeing other nations being so different puts things in perspective. For us, the military culture wasn’t a choice, at least not at the beginning. If we had continued the ‘old ways’ with democracy and everything back when the colony ship landed, there wouldn’t be any humans left on Ellara. How we live, it’s… just the way it has always been, it never occured to me to question it. But things are changing now,” she sighed and looked at the glass in her hands. “Who will we be if not soldiers?” she added quietly, realizing that while this was a topic she could debate with a close friend, it was not something to discuss with a representative of another nation.

Her datapad beeped. “Excuse me,” she mumbled and read the message that popped up. Her eyes widened as she read it again. “Oh, crap.” There were some much juicier curses on her tongue, but she needed to keep up at least some appearances. “Have you seen this?” It was broadcasted station-wide, Abadi must have gotten the same message. “Paintings?! Poetry readings?!” Kelsie groaned. She only had a vague idea who Shakespeare was, it certainly wasn’t a topic thoroughly discussed at the military academy. This thing sounded like a perfect hell for any of the Undefeated. And it was obvious she had to go there. When did her life turn into a constant strain of torture?

“Uhh, Abadi? You know all about these fancy things, right?” Kelsie closed her eyes for a second, gathering mental strength for what she was about to say. “You think you could… eh… lend me some dress or something?” There it was. Not in her wildest nightmares would Kelsie think about saying that sentence.

The Hollywoodite, on the other hand, was pretty excited.

“Hah, this reminds me of home!” Abadi declared, when she had skimmed over the message herself. “I studied Shakespeare for a year. ‘A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.’” But then she seemed to suddenly remember something, and her smile dropped into a frown. “I hope they stay away from his sonnets, though. Have you ever read the Fair Youth sequence? The way he talks about women-”

And then, at last, she fully registered what her friend asked.

“Oh! Oh, yeah, you can borrow something. I own more than I could ever really wear. That’s expected.” She thought for a moment. “For an event like this, with Shakespeare and poetry, I’d say we should go with something neoclassical British, maybe aiming between the 17th and 20th centuries…” Already thinking of Victorian dresses, Abadi then remembers the reactions most other nations have had to that ECU ‘flair,’ and decides to dial it back some. “Well, I’m sure I have something simple and dignified for you.”

A rose? Kelsie knew it was a flower, a totally useless one. Some were grown around the war memorials, but it would never occur to her to smell them. What would be the point of that? She remembered the saying ‘it’s like you were born on a different planet’. Well, Abadi was technically born on a different planet, so she ought to be a bit different. But now it seemed like she was even speaking a different language. Perhaps this was a bad idea.

Kelsie gasped for air when she saw Abadi’s wardrobe. Or the room that was used as a wardrobe to be precise. Why would someone need so many clothes? Useless ones, on top of that. There was a furry brown thing in the corner that looked like a bear costume. Why would anyone own that? As Abadi browsed through the racks, Kelsie had to fight the urge to run away. Those things weren’t dresses! They were huge fluffy balls that looked like wrapped candy. You could make tents for an entire squad from all the fabric used on one dress. 

“Simple and dignified sounds better. I can’t really imagine wearing [i]that[/i].” Kelsie moved to a different part of the room, where the clothes at least didn’t have dozens of layers. Skipping all the brightly colored things, she pulled out a short black dress to have a closer look at it. Too late noticing that the fabric was almost completely transparent. “Uhh. Nope.” She didn’t have to be an experienced party-goer to know that you shouldn’t wear that to an official diplomatic event. You shouldn’t wear that anywhere with people present, unless you were a stripper jumping out of a cake or something like that.

Being way more careful with her selection, it took a while before she took out another one. [url=https://i.pinimg.com/564x/63/69/b4/6369b43491e3d7a144bea9da52131600.jpg]The dress[/url] was black and long, very simple, yet elegant. At least Kelsie thought it was elegant, but she wasn’t really an expert on the matter. With long sleeves and a short collar it actually looked a bit like her uniform, even though the embroidery was different. The split on the side went a bit too high for her liking, but she could live with that. “What about this one?” She waved the dress to get Abadi’s attention.

“You don’t have to wave it,” she laughed, “I can see. Korean, I’m not sure about the Era. I think it’s called an ao… ow something?” One culture Abadi never delved into. “You know, I’m not even completely sure that’s mine. This is kind of a shared place between most of the Oligarchs in the Meeting Place; it’s cramped here, and there’s only like three of us, but no New Hollywoodite could go without a wardrobe twice the size of their office space.” She thought for half a second. “I’m sure nobody will care if you use it, though. Sometimes I wonder how much of this even gets worn.”

Kelsie wasn't really sure about wearing clothes of some other Oligarch she didn't even know, but (to her own surprise) she actually really liked the dress, so she decided to just go with it. It was true that there were more clothes than three people could wear in a lifetime, so hopefully nobody will miss this particular piece for a day. "We are the same way with weapons and armories," she chuckled. (Somehow, this did not surprise Abadi)

"Thank you so much," Kelsie said on her way out, hugging a big bag with the dress. "I should go get ready. I assume I will see you there?" At least one familiar face that won't be frowning at her.

“And probably in something twice as fluffy,” Abadi smiled. Whatever happened between arguing governments, she was glad it hadn’t broken their friendship.