The Second International Dystan Banquet (IC)

[Dyste]

(OoC: Signups/OoC here)

The Draconid Monarchy of Dyste had for many years been a solitary nation. Founded by Tyroth Blackfang in the early 15th century, the nation was meant to be a safe haven for the Draconid species, and later kobolds as well. While they had some contact with the rest of the world, it was limited to specific nations for much of its existence.

However, a mere three years ago, things began to change in the island nation. A formation of a Parliament in Dyste helped to change the nation from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional one. Prime Minister Zihark Jemson encouraged immigration, helping to diversify the nation to a degree. Kobolds began to trust ‘nonbold’ species some more. The trading of technology helped Dyste’s progress immensely. And a banquet held in the castle helped establish further international relations.

After three years, Tyroth had felt it time to hold an international banquet once more; they had come into contact with many nations since those days, and advancements and immigration meant there were many things and people not seen the previous time. Tyroth’s wife, Queen Sarisa, sent out invitations to various nations, with the offer of visiting Dyste, where they could meet the king and his family, enjoy a banquet in the castle, and if they so chose, to talk business or take a vacation there.

The guests were expected to arrive at either the docks in Undellah, or the recently made airport in the same city made for planes. For the Ambassadors already in Dyste, they could either stay in Valitora, the capital, and meet up with the other guests when the airship transport arrived, go to Undellah to meet up with the other guests earlier on, or go directly to Castle Dyste and wait for the others there.

---

Undellah, the City of Rest

Undellah was a port city that doubled as a beach resort, the fishing and hotels run by the wealthy Aquelios family. The patriarch of the family, Lord Hydrux, was a noted supporter of immigration and tourism, values he had passed to his children, many of whom served as ambassadors overseas.

His eldest son Vylon, the current head of their fishing business, was to be one of the hosts, as well as arranging transport of the overseas guests to the castle (especially seeing as the queen did NOT want her daughter repeating the same method as last time…) The royal-blue scaled Water Draconid had a muscular frame, making many mistake him at first for a soldier or warrior, while in reality the only thing close to a weapon he had ever used was a fishing harpoon.

Vylon was taking a swim near the docks when another Draconid came to visit him; this one was shorter and slighter, with lime-green scales, his eyes seemingly constantly closed. Despite being rather small for a Draconid, this individual held great influence in Dyste.

“So, our Prime Minister himself is coming to greet the guests?” Vylon jumped out of the water, the droplets of water seemingly absorbed into his scales. “That is a nice gesture, Zihark, but I think I can handle things here. Kamoto will be coming over soon.”

“Ah, your wife… I saw her taking a few laps around your hotel,” Zihark replied, “Well, I suppose saw is not the correct choice of words in this case, but you know what I mean. Regardless, I am going over to Undellah Skyways for those who are coming by air.” Vylon looked about to say something when the Prime Minister held up a hand, “And yes, I am aware of the amusing nature of a Wind Draconid being the one who is helping the sky travellers arrive while you, of water, are going to attend to those coming by sea. You need not point it out.”

Vylon grinned, “It is just a coincidence, I suppose. Regardless, you have an airship ready to take our guests to the castle, right?” Castle Dyste had a spot for airship docking, but not for most other aircraft.

“Indeed,” Zihark had a particular one already chosen for this task, “When we are ready we shall come and collect the guests here as well. I shall see you then,” afterwards teleporting away in the blink of an eye.

Vylon laid down on the beach nearby the docks; the sand was rather soft here, and even if it wasn’t, a Draconid scaly hides would not be bothered by it. He hoped his wife arrived soon, as she loved meeting foreigners, perhaps due to being an immigrant herself. At least he wouldn’t fall asleep like Axi-aru did last time… hopefully.

[Stormwrath]

The SXCV Rosario suddenly appeared in the void of space, just 67,000 kilometers from the Dystan planet below. The starship was the Kenspeckle's sister ship, and looked exactly like it. The Rosario entered its orbit and set a course to geosynchronize with Dyste's territory below. IIDs were quite useful for such long distances, although heading to another galaxy would be always troublesome for Stormwrathians, especially for the colonists in Luce, one of a few planets under Stormwrath's governance. But we aren't going to focus on them, but on High Overseer Fairs, who is currently grooming her mint colored hair. A guard comes knocking on her door and says, "High Overseer, it's time to move to the landing shuttle."

"Alright, will be finished in a few moments", she replied.

After applying lipstick, she took one last look at the dress that she is wearing for the banquet. She looked quite stunning, and still as young as she was 20 years ago. After all, she is 48, and Zeronian humans don't show any signs of age until they are 80 years of age. She smiled at the mirror, and opened the door to head to the landing shuttle, with the guard escorting her. On the shuttle were Fairs and three guards: two of which are sentient androids. The shuttle disengaged from the Rosario and plotted a course for the Dystan city of Undellah.

Once the shuttle entered the atmosphere at a few thousand feet, the passengers could see the ocean below. It continued to fly for several minutes until it reached Undellah. It was indeed beautiful, with its beach resorts and hotels dotting its coastline. However, the lack of a space port became apparent, and so it was forced to land at the new airport that was finished in the city, if they can allow space planes to land on their tarmac. They did land, and the High Overseer and her entourage stepped out of the shuttle.

[Ruskarkand]

"You are leaving?"

A graven, synthetic voice with a male aesthetic rung out from the doorway of the chamber - a 'small' room as far as the interpretation of a Chromatic Dragon goes.The room itself bore little as far as decoration was concerned. Simple stone walls which had torch sconces burning their bright white flames to illuminate the area. The only thing of note was a large, peculiar circle in the floor of the room - and on top of that, a large quadrupedal Red Dragon remained sat with her back turned towards the voice. She didn't neglect to take notice however - she turned her head to the side as a gesture that she was focusing on the other individual, even though they weren't quite in her peripheral vision. She recognized it as the voice of the AI which constantly trailed her however, a constructed consciousness implemented into an artificial quadrupedal body that was akin to a wingless Dragon. No bigger than a large car. She meant a lot to the construct, and the same was to be said of the construct to her - a small, inseparable family.

"I fret that I have to now. I couldn't really change my decision, even if I wanted to do so." The Dragoness spoke back, before a curt sigh came from her. "I apologize if that offends you, but this is an opportunity that I do not want to pass up on."

She pulled her head back around to stare at the large parchment located just before her. She had been scribbling small patterns down on it with one of the claws of her forepaw in order to complete the required incantation. Just as she started to get her focus back on track, the voice of the construct chimed up once more. "Apologize? That won't be necessary." it spoke, before opting to continue as Valyrnov pulled their head around once more to actually focus on the construct this time. "Whilst I will miss you during your leave, I will not hold any ill-will of you or your choices. I shall monitor these premises in your absence."
Without much more of a word from either party, the machine picked itself up and backpedaled through the adjacent doorway, closing it in its wake to leave the Dragoness of the Pantheon alone.

A concerned hum rung from Valyrnov, but she trusted the AI to look after itself - this one instance, she could forget about her responsibilities and simply depart to somewhere new. She turned back to focus on the would-be scroll as she lifted her claw to create the last few marks required to complete it. However, it was not magical in the slightest - it was simply just that, a note. Something to focus upon as she spoke a number of odd-sounding words. The process was nigh-instantaneous, the room turned a blinding white as a large flash engulfed it - and when it cleared, the Dragoness was no longer present. All that remained was a gentle breeze and the disturbed dust from the corners of the room whisking through the air.

---

In the blink of an eye, all that surrounded Valyrnov was the sky. Her feet reached out to touch no solid ground, and before she could even get a grasp on where she was, she was already falling at a pretty fast rate. Her form tumbled in the sky, constantly failing to adjust her wings so as to achieve a glide or even an iota of control over the descent. Despite all efforts though, she made no progress whatsoever - it had largely been in vein. She managed to force out an obnoxious curse, before regaining herself to speak a single utterance, one more spell. Almost instantaneously, she felt a forceful shunt as her descent violently slowed down to a crawl despite how she was back-first. A sigh of relief followed, although she would not be able to enter any form of flight from her current altitude - her fall had put her quite low to the ocean below her. All she could really do was quietly wait to make contact with the water.

It wouldn't take long, but she was first able to get a glimpse of the surrounding area. A harbor wasn't too distant from where she'd land in fact. Her view turned to the ocean once more before she took a breath - the invocation had slowed her descent, but she was still going fast enough to create a sizable impact. She crashed through the surface of the ocean, slowing down quite a fair bit more, although she didn't sink. Quite the contrary infact, she was able to right herself shortly afterwards and bring her head above the water. She was far from keen on the idea of swimming despite the fact that she was capable. Valyrnov was a Red Dragon, centric on the use of fire - water was just uncomfortable. Slowly, she began to swim over towards the adjacent landmass with the harbor - it'd take a fair deal of time. She merely hoped that nobody had witnessed the display of her falling from the sky inelegantly.

She kept her head above the water as she gradually drew closer and closer to the beach - the ridge of her spine surfacing and submerging every now and then. It didn't even take too long for her to finally touch down her feet on the sand underneath the water as it grew more shallow. The Dragoness waded forward alongside the tide, gradually surfacing more and more until they were clear of the water and on solid land - only to quietly commend their own endurance as they seated themselves. A small break was in order before they actually tried to get their barings on where they were, somehow. Be it through locals or otherwise, but first came the idea of drying themselves out. Water still clung to their dull, red scales - giving off a rather glossy look as opposed to their otherwise matte finish. The idea of burning it away presented itself, but she didn't know if that was an apt idea. Instead, she remained in place, taking a moment to rest whilst her focus set on things other than her surroundings.

[Olwe]

A craft appeared on the water near enough to Valyrnov's location that the Olweans aboard sighted her. The small vessel -- a pleasure yacht of some sort, it appeared -- seemed to have teleported into the ocean within sight of Undellah's harbor. "Thoink she's here for the banquet?" Jake Wansor asked as he watched the dragon wade up out of the water and onto the beach.

"That'd be my guess," Emperor Jason Frost said. "Looks like a Ruskarkand dragon... never met one in person before."

"An Elf could hear you from this distance, you know," Empress Trasta Greenleaf chided them. "If that's true of dragons as well, then you're probably making a bad first impression."

"On the contrary," the Olweans' bodyguard, Florica Dracul, put in, "offering her assistance would've made the worst possible first impression."

The other Olweans had to nod in agreement... most sentient dragons were very, very proud, and offering them assistance was therefore something of an affront.

The yacht pulled up to a dock where Jake and Jason -- both experienced sailors -- tied it off with very secure knots. They were so good at tying them, they didn't even have to reinforce them with magic. The Olwean Ambassador to Dyste, Ovor Luth, was striding down the pier toward them, ready to take them to Castle Dyste. "There's your costar," Jason said, nudging his wife playfully. The reference to Trasta's long porn career -- exceeded only by the length of Ovor's own career -- was not lost on the other Olweans, and was made all the more humorous because it was ridiculous how many times the two Elf women had actually appeared alongside each other in their films.

"One of my favorites," Trasta shot back, even though she knew there wasn't a fireball's chance in Hell (which was actually below zero and covered with several feet of snow most of the time, contrary to popular belief) of making her husband jealous... the jealousy ship had sailed out of Olwe entirely many centuries ago. As if for emphasis, she greeted Ovor with a particularly enthusiastic Olwean Kiss (the traditional greeting in the Empire was a passionate, open-mouthed kiss).

"Excessive physical contact less than 15 minutes in," Florica observed. Trasta's hands had no business being where they were if it was just a normal Olwean Kiss. "You both owe me 20 greenleafs." Trasta's popularity had led to the universal currency of The Pentagram Bloc being named after her.

"Can I pay you in gold instead?" Jake asked.

"You can shove your trick gold up your ass," Florica told him. The last time Jake had given her gold it had been Leprechaun's Gold, which disappeared after half an hour.

"All right," Jason said, "everyone stop clowning around. We're getting funny looks." He waved cheerfully to Vylon, who was on the beach watching them.

"Right," Florica said. "Business first... then business."

The quintet stepped off the pier and headed down the beach toward Vylon. "I take it you're here for the banquet?" Jason asked him.

[Dyste]

Undellah Skyways

The newly-designed airport with its glass walls was a sharp contrast to the stone buildings in Dyste; while Valitora, Calberona, Auram and Castle Dyste had airship docks, Undellah Skyways was built to also service other types of aircraft. Several kobolds were kobolds were loading up airships, with one in particular having the Dystan Royal Coat of Arms emblazoned on the side in gold. A tattooed dark-skinned elf (also known as a 'drow') wearing a suit of black leather could be seen aiding the kobolds with the items onto said airship.

The Stormwrathian delegation was met by the Prime Minister, whose tone of voice belied his unexpressive face, his eyes still closed, "Welcome, people of Stormwrath! I am Zihark Jemson, Prime Minister of Dyste. I thank you for coming on this fine day. As Parliament is closed for this week, the ministry are able to attend, and I felt like greeting our guests; after all, I too am one of the leaders of our fine nation. His Majesty's ship is right over there," he gestured to the aforementioned airship, easily spotted amongst the others. "If you desire, you can accompany him to the castle, though there are faster ways if you desire to reach the castle quicker and speak with our queen instead. Regardless of what you desire, I do hope your stay here is enjoyable."

Undellah Docks

Despite Valyrnov's wishes to not be seen falling into the water, Vylon did in fact notice, but chose to not bring that up to not run the risk of attract her ire. When the Dragoness reached the docks, he put his arm across his chest and bowed his head; the traditional Dystan greeting. "Welcome to Dyste, honoured guest! I am Lord Vylon Aquelios, and I will be your host for the time being... you are from Ruskarkand, I presume? I am glad you could arrive; Dyste has desired stronger ties with your people for a while now..." He noticed that Valyrnov was getting annoyed at being wet, "Oh, if you wish to dry off, two talented mages are arriving soon; they likely know of some good spells for that." Being a Water Draconid, he himself had no desire to learn of spells to dry himself off.

Vylon then encountered the Olwean delegation, "Ah, you are from... Olwe, is it?" Despite Jason, Trasta, and Jake being longtime friends of Tyroth and Sarisa, Vylon had not gotten the chance to meet them beforehand, "I am Lord Vylon Aquelios, and I am in charge of making sure all the guests coming by sea make it to I am just waiting for my wife to arrive... ah, there she is now!"

Vylon's wife came running down the beach; those expected him to be married to another Draocnid would be in for a surprise. Kamoto Aquelios was a Squirrel Beastling, famous for their large, bushy tails. Having dark brown fur, she merely wore a green bikini, though this did mean who wore more than most Draconids! She was followed closely by a handful of kobolds, A sharply dressed elf with silver hair and a shirtless long-haired elf with horns. Most would not believe that they were actually cousins. The kobolds looked in awe of the Dragoness, saying 'Bold!' in unison.

Kamoto had been running laps for the last few hours, yet she did not seem to be worn out at all; indeed, she seemed more cheerful and chipper than ever. "Hiya, everyone! I'm Kamoto, tour guide and immigration officer! Vylon and I are gonna deal with your transportation to the castle; we've got a few options there! We can use magic to teleport, take the airship waiting for us at the airport, or take the family limo!"

"For what it is worth," Vylon had to add, "If you wish to see His Majesty as soon as possible, he is actually going to be on the airship; he was away on a trip recently, so he had offered the use of his airship to guests."

The silver haired elf recognized a familiar face in the Olwean delegation, "Ah, Jake! I thought that was you. Remember me? I'm Reglay Thaumsmith, Jarl's half-brother. Been a while since I've seen you." Reglay was one of the few non-Draconid Sages living in Dyste, and despite his fancy dress was actually a member of the Royal Guard. "Cori seemed really excited about this whole meeting, so I felt I should some along as well."

[Stormwrath]

Cassandra saw the figure of Mn. Em. Jeffrey Musahiro on the tarmac. The ocelot anthro had been waiting for the High Overseer's arrival for almost an hour by now, and he was delighted concerning her arrival. He walked up to her and bowed a little to show her respect. He said with a cheery tone, "Welcome to Dyste, your Eminence!"

"Ah it's good to see you, Ambassador Musahiro", the human replied. "Archemperor Percival will be arriving here soon, and he may be arriving some time later within the day." The wind was blowing gently through the High Overseer's wavy hair.

"Isn't that what we are technically doing right now?", asked Jeffrey.

Cassandra seemed a little off. "Yes. Shall we be going now?"

"Of course, High Overseer."

The two then proceeded to the airship that was to take them to the castle, which was the venue for the banquet. Although, it may take a while for the Archemperor to arrive soon, as he was wrapping up a visit to another planet. The Stormwrathian guests were met by the Prime Minister of Dyste, Zihark Jemson. Fairs didn't mind that he showed up to welcome them, and she appreciated what he has said, although he could've expressed his face more.

After he was done speaking, she replied, "Thank you very much for the warm welcome, the pleasure is ours. Personally I have always wanted to travel to Dyste, but figured that my duties may not give me much time. And finally here I am. I wouldn't mind accompanying his Majesty in person."

She was very eager to meet the King of Dyste in person, for she had heard many things from Percival. The High Overseer saw this as an opportunity to converse with the host of this grand banquet, and to eventually meet with Queen Sarisa and the rest of the royal family. Cassandra was fond of taking pictures, partly to show her travels to her colleagues and close friends, but mostly to affirm that she had indeed went to that place. She was in fact taking pictures of herself with her holoslate. Musahiro just simply rolled his eyes.

The Stormwrathian entourage entered the ship, and as they made their way to find a seat, however it seems that Tyroth wasn't present there. She was told by one of the kobolds that he was taking a rest in one of the cabins after his trip. She thanked him for the information and proceeded to find a place.

She was dumbstruck when she turned her head and saw the Archemperor himself sitting across from Tyfis' seat. At the moment he was having a lively conversation with the Dystan princess. Filled with surprise, Cassandra exclaimed, "Y-y-y-your Majesty!" she took a few seconds to calm herself down, cleared her throat and then said, "I mean, I wasn't expecting you here. When exactly have you arrived here in Dyste, Archemperor?"

Percival, who was scratching his scalp, replied with a sheepish tone, "Oh yeah, about that..."

---

An hour and seventeen minutes earlier...

Percival still had time to kill before going on another state visit. He has indeed enjoyed his trip, and being a guest of the banquet King Tyroth was hosting, he was excited to take part in. He hoped to himself that he can survive the legendary appetite of the Drakon of Dyste, an appetite he got to witness first hand from the MSU Summit and the MSU Banquet. His secretary, the stoic Matilda Terwilleger, wasn't planning on attending the banquet, so he just went into the landing spaceplane, accompanied by two floating orbs. The landing shuttle departed from the SXCV Kenspeckle and plotted its course for Undellah Skyways.

Percival took his time to read a digital novel from his data pad while the shuttle was slowly descending. The stability of the spacecraft allowed him to read comfortably and drink from his glass of champagne that the shuttle bots were serving on board. Having nothing to do, the first orb said to his companion, "I'm surprised personally that his Majesty has some time for himself to attend."

"So am I", replied the second orb. "Meanwhile we at the metaverse have it easy, don't we?"

"I don't think so. After all, I wasn't sitting around in the Ministry of Tourism or anything."

"At least it was a tad less stressful than at your assigned place."

"Oh come on, the Ministry of Education isn't all that bad, now is it?"

"Ummm, from what I can see in the MinEd's recent round of complaints from the temporary metaverse mainframe shutdown a few days earlier, I wouldn't label that as an indication of it doing fine."

"Look, I'm sure the students were smart enough to download the digital books and store them in their data pads and or metaverse eyes."

While the two were arguing over work in their respective ministries, the Archemperor just took the time to look out the window and indulge his eyes in the beauty of the planet below. Maybe one day he might be taking his family to Dyste for a vacation.

The spaceplane had arrived at the airport safely and on time. Once the spacecraft stopped, the door opened outwards, and Percival stepped down through the solid holographic stairs that generated themselves through the plane. The orbs simply flew down and hovered nearby. Once they were out, the autonomous spaceplane taxied itself to a place where it can be parked and activated its cloaking device. The Archemperor took a gasp of air and then said to himself, "So this is the place."

He was welcomed by another Draconid,and was directed to King Tyroth's airship, which was sitting there among other airships. As Percival and his orbs entered the ship, he was welcomed by Princess Tyfis, and was warmly received. The two have been talking for much of the time since then, with the orbs occasionally chiming in.

---

Present time...

"Your Majesty, you could've informed me that you were already here in the country", said Cassandra.

"I have done that when I have arrived", replied Percival. "Didn't you receive my message?"

"Message?", questioned Fairs. She checked her holoslate and found out that the message that he sent her was that his landing shuttle has arrived much later than expected. Somehow her mind has interpreted this as later in the day. Cassandra blushed seriously upon realizing.

[The High Tatras]

"I am just fine! I am just fine! This happens every time I land! I can fix it so it will fly again! Why is everyone staring at me?" said Kazimierz to a crowd of curious onlookers while climbing out of the shattered remains of his ornithopter.

"MEOW!!!!!" said Amber.

Kazimierz glanced at his surroundings and noticed the wreckage of an aerial screw in a towering oak tree, which had somehow been set ablaze.

"ANJA!!!!! ANJA!!!!!" screamed Kazimierz as he shoved his way through the crowd and ran towards the flaming oak tree.

"Kazimierz, did you crash your ornithopter again?" said Anja as she stepped out of the crowd by the flaming oak tree to speak to Kazimierz.

"W... W... What happened to your aerial screw?" said Kazimierz to Anja.

"The aeolipile... The radial steam turbine... The pressure built up in the boiler a little more than I thought it would and it kind of sort of blew up... but I jumped out and as it turns out hoop skirts and petticoats make surprisingly effective parachutes when you are only about ten meters off the ground. I only have a few small cuts and bruises and I already cleaned and dressed them." said Anja to Kazimierz.

"It is so sad the aerial screw had to end that way, after you put so much work into it. Well at least you are okay. Where are we supposed to be right now?" said Kazimierz to Anja.

"There should be someone here to receive us. You know the usual formalities, or unusual formalities in this case." said Anja to Kazimierz.

[Ruskarkand]

The Dragoness pulled her constant surveillance of the area surrounding her, it was evident that she was pretty safe for the time-being. That short moment of respite allowed her whatever wasted energy she used back, and she was intent on using it - not to laze around on a beach, but to make some form of progress at the very least. However, she had to give a slight moment's notice to the fact that she had no idea where to start still. That was always the thing about foreign lands, the vast temples in the homeland contained very few documents on that which was not affiliated, in some manner of speaking, to the Dragonlands. Then again, she'd be able to fix that on the occasion where she would return, but that was for a while yet. A long while infact, she hoped. Already, metaphorically tasting unfamiliar air and swimming in unfamiliar waters seemed to provide an eccentric feeling of adventure, breaking the monotonous feeling of what was once a laborious routine schedule - even though to her, it was no different at all.

Valyrnov's focus shifted from point to point as the strode along the beach, yet remaining a tad overbearing on how vigilant she was. Or, that was the case up until she managed to catch sight of Vylon. She stopped herself in place, looking to them as they introduced themselves. She couldn't honestly chalk it up as to say that it was what she expected to be greeted by. She thought that she'd atleast get some ways into the territory before finally meeting an official. Despite that however, she did bow her head a little in response, perhaps the most that a Chromatic Dragon could do without sacrificing one of their walking extremities. "The honour is mine, Lord Vylon. I am Valyrnov 'O Shashaska, indeed from Ruskarkand's Pantheon. Might I say that the coasts here are stunning?" she exclaimed in response, pausing part way through her statement to stabilize herself so she could lift up her front right 'paw'. Her fingers flexed and drifted through the air, as though she were drawing a small pattern - under her breath, she murmured a quiet incantation, although quiet for her was still rather audible. What was being said however was nothing more than an indecipherable mantra of incoherent phrases.

The process barely took but a moment, and she soon found herself with her paw in the sand once more. The once glossy look to her coat had now become nothing more than their atypical dull matte finish, giving way to how most were faded and scratched. The sheen of water which once clung to her simply evaporated, merely becoming wisps of steam. "I do not normally swim. It's seldom where I get the chance, but it's never an ocean or normal waters when I do get the chance." she opted to continue, forming a slight connection in her mind, she stifled a bemused huff. "Red Dragons abide by Magma, or Boiling Springs. Ocean water isn't too bad, but it doesn't go away on its own - not without the right somatic gesture and phrase."

With that, she simply let the Water Draconid attend to the others. She couldn't help but form a tiny 'smile' on her face, about as much as a Dragon probably could smile, in response to the whole charade despite how it was so early into the occasion. Valyrnov felt a pang of excitement - just so much as speaking to another individual from somewhere other than home instilled that feeling. It had been years since she had last done something worthwhile out of the vast reaches of the Temples back where er home was. She was inspired to make the most out of all of it. Her idle thoughts came back to focus on the new arrivals, notably focusing on the Kobolds before switching over to look over the features of the Elves. Then there was Kamoto, whom completely took the Dragoness by surprise. The amount of diversity was astonishing to her. At first, she predicted that they were perhaps guests, but that'd come to be proven wrong - or that'd atleast be so for the beastling. She couldn't know about anything else just yet.

Then came a slight predicament, or rather a choice. The Limo was no doubt out of the question for her, there was no doubt about that. That left both the options of both the Airship at the airport and the option of magic, despite not being keen on such an idea after her arrival. The Dragoness personally wanted to meet the King, and the earliest convenience would no doubt prove to be the best option. However, she'd no idea if an airship would exactly be made to accommodate a quadrupedal Dragon. Were it not so, the idea of partaking in slow flight alongside it presented itself to her. Valyrnov consolidated her options for but a moment more, before she spoke up her response. "I would personally use the Airship. I've longed to meet your King, and to meet him on the airship would be magnificent. although I'm not sure if such a means of transport'd be made to accommodate something such as myself." she said. "I could likely glide alongside it if permitted, but if neither option is available. I would settle for magic."

[Romandeos]

Undellah, the Draconid Monarchy


I.F.S.S. László Katona

Being a member of the Lockeheart family meant a lot of things, especially if you happened to be counted among the leading members of that bloodline. It meant access to power, wealth, insane levels of privilege and special treatment if you wanted it, sometimes if you didn't. It also meant a crushing weight of expectations and responsibilities heaped on you since childhood, a kind of life looked at with envy only by those who have not lived it.

It also meant being protected by one of the most insanely paranoid family matriarchs in history. The current Empress had lost most of her family to a hideous plague which had ravaged the Romani homeland years ago now, leaving tens of millions afflicted. As a result, she was fiercely protective of what family she had left, and had gained since.

This was perhaps why, when her eldest son Robert had suggested answering an invitation from the Dystan government, she had only agreed after he consented to some reasonable security to keep him safe during, and after, the journey.

Her definition of "reasonable" often differed from his, of course, which was why he had made the majority of the trip aboard a James Lawrence-class fleet carrier, easily one of the largest, most incredibly powerful combat platforms in the Fleets, and the accompanying escorts of Battle Group 179.

Mother was nothing if she was not thorough, the Prince mused as he sat in the back of the LA-214 helicopter which was taking him on the final leg of his journey. The warships kept well away to hold down the chances of an incident, well beyond the ten miles from the coast regarded as national waters.

As the helicopter raced swiftly inland, the Prince took a look around the closed transport compartment and thanked Marsh he was not alone. With him as a fellow guest of the Dystans was religious leader (and personal friend) Devon Farrow, senior Cardinal of the Romani Marshites. Though in his fifties, the Shift had left the Cardinal physically much younger than his actual age, as well as the intense physical changes wrought by the event.

In addition to the Cardinal himself, the Church had sent Sister-Captain Keshia Hester, a Battle Mage and commando of the Order of the Sacred Chapel, the religious militants charged with keeping both the Cardinal himself and his home at Talon Cathedral in Vesta safe.

His own safety at the banquet was to be assured by his third travel companion. Major Salzwedel was of the Imperial Household Guards, the elite Army unit charged with security in regards to both his mother and the Imperial Family at large, as well as anybody else the Empress chose to place in their care.

In addition to Salzwedel, the Household Guards had sent along a squad of eight fully equipped soldiers, handpicked by the Major before they left. They sat in the compartment now, heavily armed in order to defend their Prince if it became necessary. If not, they would return to the warships waiting at sea.

A dozen people seated in a compartment built to house twenty fully-armed soldiers. There was plenty of room.

As the helicopter swept over the docks where some of the other guests were arriving, flying high enough to avoid collisions but low enough to be safe, the Sister-Captain allowed her arcane senses high enough energy for a passive scan of the area, but there was otherwise no sign of anything unusual from the helo as it made a beeline for the airport.

Minutes later, they were touching down on the tarmac, the blades coming to a halt before the doors slid open. Major Salzwedel was out first, followed by Hester, and only when both were satisfied by how things looked did they signal their principles.

Because their was no expected dress code, Prince Robert had opted for the "semi-formal" approach. He wore a simple, black women's suit with pants, white blouse, and low heels. Like many males in Romani society post-Shift, he wore just a touch of makeup, but nothing flashy or extravagant.

Cardinal Farrow was dressed in his best daily Church attire, and the two bodyguards wore clean but functional dress uniforms.

[Olwe]

"He's doing a bang-up job so far," Florica muttered under her breath about Vylon's assertion that he was there to make sure guests arriving by sea got in all right. As if for emphasis, she glanced over at Valyrnov whose arrival had been anything but all right.

"For fork's sake, Florica," Jason growled in an equally low tone. "Can you turn off your sarcasm switch for just a few hours?" He turned back to Vylon and said, "Honored to meet you. And your lovely wife." He respectfully inclined his head toward Kamoto as she arrived, thinking privately that such a bundle of energy might give his own wife a run for her money... he hoped the two of them got some time to interact during these proceedings, that might be fun to watch. Turning back to Vylon yet again, he made introductions for everyone in the Olwean party... he assumed that Vylon had already met Ovor at some point, but the others were all new to him, and it'd be rude not to give him names to go with the new faces.

Meanwhile, Jake smiled at the unexpected sight of Reglay. "Of course I remember you, old friend," Jake said. "And Cori, too." He had forgotten just how many friends he had in Dyste... he wondered who else might put in an appearance. "How's things?" he asked Reglay, who he hadn't seen in a much longer time.

Jason, while all this was going on, was still speaking with Vylon and Kamoto. "I suppose the airship's the most popular option, but if it can accommodate us too then we'd love to see Tyroth as soon as possible," he said. "He is, after all, a very dear friend. As I hope you and Kamoto will be, eventually."

At this point, Trasta -- uncharacteristically quiet up till now -- tugged at Jason's sleeve. When he glanced curiously at her she said, "Someone's tapping mana on that helicopter that just passed over us. I figured you'd want to know."

Jason glanced up in time to catch a glimpse of the helo's markings. "Romandeos," he said. "Not surprising, in and of itself... they've got some very skilled mages there, and there are any number of reasons magic might be needed during air travel. Maybe to stabilize the craft, for example." He himself had had to indulge in a little aeromancy while riding in helicopters to smooth out the ride every once in a while.

[Polkopia]

"Tri. Dra. On." A voice on the loudspeaker counted down in Polkopian as the aircraft launched from the outskirts of Peeto, the capital city of Polkopia, and was bound for the Dystan planet. It was the very first time any members of the Polkopian delegation had been sent to another planet for diplomatic means, or any reason for that matter. The Baba Yaga was the very first high-speed spacecraft constructed in Polkopia. Though it had never been formally used before this occasion, it had been tested multiple times in the past to ensure its safety.

In a matter of seconds, the spacecraft left Earth and descended into space. Inside, the main room was large and comfortable with plenty of seats and tables. It was rather obvious that the spacecraft was built with the intention of carrying a large amount of people, not just three people, but the two Polkopian ambassadors and one bodyguard did their best to make themselves at home. At the front of the spacecraft, an enormous window stood, connecting the passengers with the interstellar world around them. Anna Demonova, one of the Polkopian ambassadors walked up from her seat so that she stood just inches away from the glass.

"Wow..." Anna sighed. "This is amazing. And to think, we're the first Polkopians to ever visit a foreign planet!"

Mikhail Sheov, the other Polkopian ambassador, lounged on a long, white couch. "Yep. Pretty exciting." He said with his eyes closed.

Anna ignored his lack of enthusiasm and continued looking outside, whipping her head back and forth as she saw various celestial objects fly past her. She looked above her, craning her neck to see what the estimated time of arrival was. Large, green numbers counted down on a projection screen. On it read '32:33', meaning that in a little over thirty two minutes, they would be arrive in Undellah.

---

As the spacecraft neared the planet, Anna paced around the floor with a notebook in hand. On it read several notes that she had jotted down so that she didn't seem like a total fool upon arriving. She had just finished her internship with Viktor Illinov overseas in MInroz. She hadn't had any experience on her own yet, and she wanted to make a good first impression. She read through her notes and read each part out loud. "Try to befriend the Olwean delegates. Do not offer to help a Ruskarkand dragon. Remember always-"

"Oh, stop worrying. Everything's going to be fine! Just relax!" Mikhail said, smirking, having just woke up from his nap.

Anna rolled her eyes and ripped the page from her notebook, shoving it into her purse. She looked over at the timer just as it was nearing the one minute marker. Anna and Mikhail walked up to the window, staring at the skyline of Undellah as the spacecraft landed at the Undellah Skyways. Anna took a deep breath and adjusted her long, black hair so that it didn't cover her face. She wore a pearl necklace and a nice, formal purple dress. She looked at Mikhail to make sure he looked presentable. His gray suit was nice enough - no wrinkles, and his maroon tie was in place. His hair though seemed a bit messy. Anna frowned, licking the lips of her fingers before running them through Mikhail's dark blonde hair, fixing it. Mikhail grabbed her arms. "That's enough." He said firmly, though his stern expression was soon replaced with a smile.

The spacecraft landed with a loud thud, and they heard the door to the spacecraft slide open. A booming voice echoed throughout the ship. "Let's go." The voice belonged to Anton Marovich, their bodyguard, who's job was to guarantee their safety. Anna had almost forgotten he was here; he seemed to disappear for the entire trip. Anna and Mikhail looked at each other and shrugged, before heading outside the ship, passing Anton, and into the airport.

[Dyste]

Undellah Skyways

Zihark was sitting in a meditative pose when the Romani helicopter set down on the airstrip. Sitting up, the Wind Draconid's eyes remained closed. "Greetings, travelers. I am Zihark Jemson, Sage of Truth and Prime Minister of Dyste. I presume you are our guests from Romandeos?"

The Prime Minister's aide looked over the Romani, "Er, Sage Jemson, there appears to be a mistake. The letter we received from them said that a prince was to be among the guests. I am no expert on humans, but I do not see any..."

"What do you mean?" The Prime Minister opened his eyes slightly, revealing crystal-blue irises; contrary to what some people believe, he was not blind. "Oh, I see... some sort of magic alteration? Yes, I was getting an odd aura off of you. Regardless of what you may look like on the outside, what matters is what is within..."

The conversation was cut short by the arrival of the Polkopians. Zihark's aide, who was also a Wind Draconid, made sure to grab their attention, "Hello there! Astram Ventus, at your service. If you would come this way, our Prime Minister is speaking to some of our other guests."

Zihark noticed Mikhail and Anna joinn them, allowing him to give them their options, "As far as transportation goes, I can teleport you directly to the castle, get you a limo, or you can take a ride with His Majesty in his airship, that black-and-gold one you must have most likely seen when landing. The choice is yours."

---
Some distance outside of the airport, a small merchant caravan had come across the crashed ornithopter. An Earth Draconid, Ice Draconid, and a handful of kobolds had managed to notice the crashed ship as they were delivering goods from a farming community to Undellah.

"What are the odds that this happened to us again, Lykah?" The bronze Earth Draconid said to his silver partner. They had come across the wreckage of a ship before, though this one was smaller and fortunately less damage. He looking over Kazimierz and Anja, "Are you two okay? I figure you're here for that banquet His Majesty's throwing? Seems like that poor tree got the worst of it..."

Lykah observed the burning wreckage "Do not worry, Muston, I can stop the fire..." She breathed an icy breath over the area, which put out the fire. "If you are hurt, I minored in Healing in my magic training..." Lykah was a licensed Mage; while all Draconids were capable of magic, she was one of those who chose the art as a profession.

Undellah Docks

Vylon admired the scaly hide of Valyrnov while she dried herself off, noticing that after the water had gone, they had gone through some wear and tear; most Draconids made sure their scales retained their vibrant colours, and with one notable exception he knew of, his kind made sure to heal any damage done to them. "I see you noticed our diversity," Vylon remarked, noticing the Dragoness' surprise. "Draconids and Kobolds are the two majority species, yes, but we have taken efforts to diversify over the last few years. Undellah in particular has taken efforts to appeal to tourists and immigrants. We have quite a few of our representatives for the trip be more diverse for the sake of our guests; we do find humans can sometimes be a bit weary of us at first, but we are taking all efforts to make people more at ease with us. Oh, and as far as the kobolds go, if you wish for a scale polish or anything else, feel free to ask them; they seem really eager to help you out!" Kobolds were known for their loyalty to their fellow '-Bolds', or dragons.

He tried to recall the king's airship's dimensions; he had only been on it twice before. "Hmm... I would imagine you could fit in the lobby, provided you curled up a bit. And the hot tub would fit you, and we can make it more suited to your temperature needs; we Draconids can take high temperatures as well, aside from the Ice variety... and if all else fails, or you simply desire to later, you can fly alongside the airship."

"I'm doing just fine, Jake," Reglay responded, "I'm balancing my time between military work and research at the Jarlsberg Institute." He and Cori were the closest living relatives to the legendary mage Jarl Thaumsmith, who was the king's adventuring partner and best friend. "I figured that aside from helping my country, I could have some fun away from research and just have a good time today."

"I figure there are quite a few people here who know how to have a good time," the other elf present, Coriolis, added, putting his arm around Ovor and kissing her on the cheek; despite his casual dress code and attitude, he was one of Dyste's Lords, and was familiar with many ambassadors, with the Olwean one remaining his favourite for... fairly obvious reasons.

Cori and Reglay drew a magic circle around the guests, teleporting them to the airship. Vylon and Kamoto stayed behind in case any other ships arrived, and would join the others afterwards.

The Royal Airship Gungnir

The Gungnir, despite its warlike name, was actually a luxury cruiser, as well as Dyste's one and only Invincible-class airship so far. As King Tyroth's personal airship, it had been funded out of the king's own wealth for comfortable trips and a potential meeting place for foreign dignitaries. The lounge was the largest room, with reinforced wooden walls and a soft carpet, with several cushions that looked like formless blobs at first, but took a shape comfortable to the person sitting in it when sat upon. Books lined two of the walls, evidently put there by Tyroth's wife. The pilot's room was to the bow, the engine room to the stern, with cabins for guests staying overnight lining the hallway to the hot tub room, big enough to even fit Valyrnov if need be. An orange-haired human wearing goggles and a brown coat was arguing with a kobold wearing a black cap, while a scarred red-scaled Draconid was eyeing the people who had just arrived by teleportation.

The airship had just taken a few trips to obtain some of the members of the Royal Family who lived outside of the island. For one, Princess Tyfis, the king's oldest granddaughter, who was the Dystan representative for the Multi Species Union. She and her assistant Cisara had to take a space shuttle to a nearby nation, and were picked up by the airship afterwards. She was talking to Archemperor Percival of Stormwrath for the last few hours; she was very curious about Stormwrathian technology and culture. "Ah, this must be the High Overseer you mentioned," Tyfis had a smile on her face, in a better mood than she was for much of her time at the Union; not that she did not like it there, but there was no place like home, "Welcome to our lands. These orbs sure do like to chat, do they not? I am still getting used to this technology... but I digress, I am happy to be home for a while. Aunt Kasah even managed to make it back for this!"

Princess Kasah, Tyroth's third daughter, was actually only about a year older than Tyfis, meaning the pair grew up together. As an ambassador overseas, the two of them were among the forerunners of promoting relations with foreign nations. As Tyroth was not on deck at the moment, she was the current host. When the other guests either teleported in or boarded, it was her job to greet them.

"Greetings to all of our foreign guests! I am Kasah, Princess of Dyste. It is my honour to welcome you all aboard the Gungnir. We shall be taking off shortly in order to take you all to Castle Dyste. My father is currently taking a rest in his cabin... come to think of it, he should've gotten up by now... perhaps someone can go and wake him?"

"Good luck with that," The leather-clad drow who was aiding the kobolds earlier was sitting on one of the cushions; "I know Tyroth enough that he sleeps like a log. Then again, maybe one of our guests can do it? The Olweans have a long history with the king, and I also would imagine seeing this massive dragon would be enough of a shock..."

"I guess that could work, Sigrin," Kasah was all-too familiar with the drow, the older sister of Mishera Val-Shorath and former enemy of the Black Fangs. "I am certain several of you would like to meet him, or see him again for those of you familiar with him already..."

"I reckon at least one person here's familiar with our king," Cori remarked, though he didn't clarify who exactly he was referring to.

[Stormwrath]

"Yes, that's right", Percival replied, and then began to introduce her. "Princess Tyfis, this is Munisca Cassandra Fairs, our nation's High Overseer. Cassandra, this is Princess Tyfis Blackfang of Dyste. She was one of the representatives at the MSU Summit in Tidal City."

One of the two orbs then said, "She may look like she's a hottie in her 20s, but she's 48!"

"Hey, watch your mouth", rebuked the other orb. He then turned to the others on the ship and said, "Sorry about that. That is what I meant by how Zeronian humans age slower when they hit adulthood."

Cassandra sat down on the cushions and then said, "It is an honor to meet you, your Highness." Turning to the ocelot anthro, she continued, "I believe you have met Ambassador Musahiro."

"A pleasure to meet you all here", Jeffrey bowed. "You may refer to me as Jeffrey."

"Percival, what exactly did you tell the princess?", Cassandra asked. She was one of the few people in the Audience of Worlds who calls Percival by name, although secretly he wants more people within his circle of friends to less frequently address him as your Majesty. Nathan Frost, the chief editor of the Tidal City Enquirer, being a clear example.

"She was asking questions on our culture and technology, such as the metaverse and sapient AI orbs with personality cores."

"Ah, I see. Where's Matilda?"

"She decided not to–"

Apparently one of the orbs had an built-in Finite Improbability Generator and decided to use it on Cassandra's undergarments. Much to the High Overseer's chagrin, they reappeared on Percival's shoulder. Apparently the engineer commissioned by the Archemperor to custom build that orb was a prankster. Cassandra turned red and then quietly said to him, "Hey, give it back!"

"Why am I the one to blame for this?", he replied. It was the MSU Banquet all over again, when Wesley used a FIG on the Archempress. Sure, the FIG can be useful in breaking the ice, but in Stormwrath it has turned into a prank tool in recent years. Turning to the orbs he then said, "I know one of you did it. Put it back."

For a few seconds the orbs denied having to do anything with the FIG, until the first orb sighed and reactivated the FIG, teleporting the undergarments back to where they were. Percival, now feeling embarrassed (since Tyfis was in front of them the whole time), apologized to her by saying, "I'm sorry about that, I forgot to tell you a part of our culture where we use a Finite Improbability Generator to teleport the undergarments of a woman one step to the side. It has turned into a very common prank tool. Even high officials in government use it, including myself. However I only use it if someone wants me to break the ice at banquets and parties. You must have seen one being used at the MSU Banquet on Archempress Celeste, right? However, that wasn't me, it was Muniscus Small, who was there at the time."

[The High Tatras]

Undellah Skyways

Zihark was sitting in a meditative pose when the Romani helicopter set down on the airstrip. Sitting up, the Wind Draconid's eyes remained closed. "Greetings, travelers. I am Zihark Jemson, Sage of Truth and Prime Minister of Dyste. I presume you are our guests from Romandeos?"

The Prime Minister's aide looked over the Romani, "Er, Sage Jemson, there appears to be a mistake. The letter we received from them said that a prince was to be among the guests. I am no expert on humans, but I do not see any..."

"What do you mean?" The Prime Minister opened his eyes slightly, revealing crystal-blue irises; contrary to what some people believe, he was not blind. "Oh, I see... some sort of magic alteration? Yes, I was getting an odd aura off of you. Regardless of what you may look like on the outside, what matters is what is within..."

The conversation was cut short by the arrival of the Polkopians. Zihark's aide, who was also a Wind Draconid, made sure to grab their attention, "Hello there! Astram Ventus, at your service. If you would come this way, our Prime Minister is speaking to some of our other guests."

Zihark noticed Mikhail and Anna joinn them, allowing him to give them their options, "As far as transportation goes, I can teleport you directly to the castle, get you a limo, or you can take a ride with His Majesty in his airship, that black-and-gold one you must have most likely seen when landing. The choice is yours."

---
Some distance outside of the airport, a small merchant caravan had come across the crashed ornithopter. An Earth Draconid, Ice Draconid, and a handful of kobolds had managed to notice the crashed ship as they were delivering goods from a farming community to Undellah.

"What are the odds that this happened to us again, Lykah?" The bronze Earth Draconid said to his silver partner. They had come across the wreckage of a ship before, though this one was smaller and fortunately less damage. He looking over Kazimierz and Anja, "Are you two okay? I figure you're here for that banquet His Majesty's throwing? Seems like that poor tree got the worst of it..."

Lykah observed the burning wreckage "Do not worry, Muston, I can stop the fire..." She breathed an icy breath over the area, which put out the fire. "If you are hurt, I minored in Healing in my magic training..." Lykah was a licensed Mage; while all Draconids were capable of magic, she was one of those who chose the art as a profession.

Undellah Docks

Vylon admired the scaly hide of Valyrnov while she dried herself off, noticing that after the water had gone, they had gone through some wear and tear; most Draconids made sure their scales retained their vibrant colours, and with one notable exception he knew of, his kind made sure to heal any damage done to them. "I see you noticed our diversity," Vylon remarked, noticing the Dragoness' surprise. "Draconids and Kobolds are the two majority species, yes, but we have taken efforts to diversify over the last few years. Undellah in particular has taken efforts to appeal to tourists and immigrants. We have quite a few of our representatives for the trip be more diverse for the sake of our guests; we do find humans can sometimes be a bit weary of us at first, but we are taking all efforts to make people more at ease with us. Oh, and as far as the kobolds go, if you wish for a scale polish or anything else, feel free to ask them; they seem really eager to help you out!" Kobolds were known for their loyalty to their fellow '-Bolds', or dragons.

He tried to recall the king's airship's dimensions; he had only been on it twice before. "Hmm... I would imagine you could fit in the lobby, provided you curled up a bit. And the hot tub would fit you, and we can make it more suited to your temperature needs; we Draconids can take high temperatures as well, aside from the Ice variety... and if all else fails, or you simply desire to later, you can fly alongside the airship."

"I'm doing just fine, Jake," Reglay responded, "I'm balancing my time between military work and research at the Jarlsberg Institute." He and Cori were the closest living relatives to the legendary mage Jarl Thaumsmith, who was the king's adventuring partner and best friend. "I figured that aside from helping my country, I could have some fun away from research and just have a good time today."

"I figure there are quite a few people here who know how to have a good time," the other elf present, Coriolis, added, putting his arm around Ovor and kissing her on the cheek; despite his casual dress code and attitude, he was one of Dyste's Lords, and was familiar with many ambassadors, with the Olwean one remaining his favourite for... fairly obvious reasons.

Cori and Reglay drew a magic circle around the guests, teleporting them to the airship. Vylon and Kamoto stayed behind in case any other ships arrived, and would join the others afterwards.

The Royal Airship Gungnir

The Gungnir, despite its warlike name, was actually a luxury cruiser, as well as Dyste's one and only Invincible-class airship so far. As King Tyroth's personal airship, it had been funded out of the king's own wealth for comfortable trips and a potential meeting place for foreign dignitaries. The lounge was the largest room, with reinforced wooden walls and a soft carpet, with several cushions that looked like formless blobs at first, but took a shape comfortable to the person sitting in it when sat upon. Books lined two of the walls, evidently put there by Tyroth's wife. The pilot's room was to the bow, the engine room to the stern, with cabins for guests staying overnight lining the hallway to the hot tub room, big enough to even fit Valyrnov if need be. An orange-haired human wearing goggles and a brown coat was arguing with a kobold wearing a black cap, while a scarred red-scaled Draconid was eyeing the people who had just arrived by teleportation.

The airship had just taken a few trips to obtain some of the members of the Royal Family who lived outside of the island. For one, Princess Tyfis, the king's oldest granddaughter, who was the Dystan representative for the Multi Species Union. She and her assistant Cisara had to take a space shuttle to a nearby nation, and were picked up by the airship afterwards. She was talking to Archemperor Percival of Stormwrath for the last few hours; she was very curious about Stormwrathian technology and culture. "Ah, this must be the High Overseer you mentioned," Tyfis had a smile on her face, in a better mood than she was for much of her time at the Union; not that she did not like it there, but there was no place like home, "Welcome to our lands. These orbs sure do like to chat, do they not? I am still getting used to this technology... but I digress, I am happy to be home for a while. Aunt Kasah even managed to make it back for this!"

Princess Kasah, Tyroth's third daughter, was actually only about a year older than Tyfis, meaning the pair grew up together. As an ambassador overseas, the two of them were among the forerunners of promoting relations with foreign nations. As Tyroth was not on deck at the moment, she was the current host. When the other guests either teleported in or boarded, it was her job to greet them.

"Greetings to all of our foreign guests! I am Kasah, Princess of Dyste. It is my honour to welcome you all aboard the Gungnir. We shall be taking off shortly in order to take you all to Castle Dyste. My father is currently taking a rest in his cabin... come to think of it, he should've gotten up by now... perhaps someone can go and wake him?"

"Good luck with that," The leather-clad drow who was aiding the kobolds earlier was sitting on one of the cushions; "I know Tyroth enough that he sleeps like a log. Then again, maybe one of our guests can do it? The Olweans have a long history with the king, and I also would imagine seeing this massive dragon would be enough of a shock..."

"I guess that could work, Sigrin," Kasah was all-too familiar with the drow, the older sister of Mishera Val-Shorath and former enemy of the Black Fangs. "I am certain several of you would like to meet him, or see him again for those of you familiar with him already..."

"I reckon at least one person here's familiar with our king," Cori remarked, though he didn't clarify who exactly he was referring to.

"We are just fine, thank you. We have shown everyone that human beings can learn to fly without the aid of magic." said Anja to the crowd.

"The conquest of the skies represents a major metaphysical triumph for mankind." said Kazimierz to the crowd.

"A few minor injuries are the price of discovery, and they are very small price to pay." said Anja to the crowd.

"For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return." said Kazimierz to the crowd.

"Leonardo Da Vinci said that. He really admires Leonardo Da Vinci." said Anja to the crowd.

"Leonardo Da Vinci and Sir Francis Bacon were my childhood heroes and they inspired so much of what I do." said Kazimierz to the crowd.

"However, there are still some people like his big sister Svetlana who thinks that his heroes were madmen and that he is also a madman for following his dreams." said Anja to the crowd.

"Why must you even bring up the topic of Svetlana? As much as I dislike galas and balls, we should be cherishing the fact that she did not demand to come along with us this time." said Kazimierz to Anja.

"You may know Svetlana as "the Pani Bogatyr". She thinks he is weak and effeminate because he is a scholar rather than a warrior like she is, and she loves to verbally abuse him and occasionally beats him up." said Anja to the crowd.

"Why must you embarrass me like this?" said Kazimierz to Anja.

"In any case, we are indeed here for the banquet. How should we get from here to there?" said Anja to the crowd.

[Olwe]

"Sounds like we were thoinking along the same lines," Jake said to Reglay. "I'm also taking time off from research at the House of Lore. You know, it occurs to me that some joint research between our two institutes might be mutually beneficial."

"You can say that again, Cori," Ovor said, smiling. She returned his kiss on the cheek, but before they could do more Cori had stepped away to draw the magic circle. Like Florica said, she thought, first business... then business. There would be time enough to spend with Cori later, since knowing Tyroth this was likely to stretch on for quite some time rather than being a simple one-off banquet.

"It's good to see you again, Kasah," Jason said, suppressing laughter at the antics of the Stormwrathians. Sounds like something Trasta would do, he thought about their pranks. Hope they try it on her... won't they be surprised to find she doesn't wear underwear!

[Otulia]

The dragon-flight to Dyste was a long and dull experience for Chancellor Regrets, several hours spent in a cabin underneath a longwing's belly, moving along at just below the speed of sound. Of course, she'd been reading briefings and reports all the way to Undellah; the Communists were flaring up in Kazuma, and she was putting the final touches on her Condition of the Federation speech, to be delivered next week.

Of course, these weren't particular issues to her, just routine, so it was refreshing news when they began to descend over the designated Dystan skyport, landing with the usual abrupt thud typical of a longwing. While strong in flight, they were weak on the ground, and only the strongest didn't crumple upon landing, especially with several tons of steel and sapient on them.

"Ah, Msss Regretsss, good to sssee you," the hissing voice was from a small blue wyvern, about half her height, and waddling into the cabin. Tinkerer hardly seemed like the ferocious civil rights warrior who was leading his (for lack of a better word) people towards more freedom and independence. He was speaking in Italian, but, of course, they continuously had that hissing accent, and Regrets doubted whether any wyvern didn't.

"Of course, Willing, how's the Embassy?"

The wyvern tipped his head to one side, but then nodded. "I-It'sss good. Everything isss fine. I haven't had much opportunity to meet their leaderssship much, but you know how it isss. I hope to make sssome inroadsss with my agenda at this banquet for the firssst time. Too many, too many." Lynchings had gone through the roof following the passage of the Wyvern Suffrage Act, and, despite their best efforts, the Ministries of Race Relations and the Interior were struggling to convict participants on all-pony juries.

Regrets, a changeling, had suffered her own discrimination early on in life. Ten years on selling yourself on the street did much to educate a young mare about how life worked. It was a good thing she'd finally pulled herself away from that industry and gone into politics. Nonetheless, the scars of the oldest profession stayed with her.

"I understand, Willing. Well, you've seen it: These dragons of theirs have plenty of kobolds around, so I think they'll be more than receptive, though what you have in mind for them to do is beyond me."

This elicited a quick reply from the Ambassador. "Sssimple! We invite them to tessstify before the Chamber of Deputiesss! Ssshow those Humanissst bastardsss that we're just asss free-thinking and independent asss them! That'll throw them off their thermal!" Knocking his head back and forth in self-approval, the tiny wyvern waved to the skyway.

"Well, enough about my agenda. What was yoursss, thisss time?"

Regrets rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, you know it well enough: Better relations, more immigrants, maybe even a little military agreement! I don't recall Dyste ever being in a war, were they?"

"Hm... not that I recall, Chancellor, they were isolationist for several centuries before they opened up." This third voice, of course, was Careful Advance, the Foreign Minister, who had come up behind them while they were talking.

"Luckily, they're very tolerant of other species, and anyways, we've got our little wyvern here to break through the species and language barrier. They would probably be open to our advances, though I suggest we keep ourselves open up to any other nations attending, I believe the Stormwrathians are in attendance; Vice-Chancellor Cloud told me in her memo from Percival's state visit that they might be interested in trading silk."

Otulia, which relied on spiders for all its textile needs, had dirt-cheap silk, at about 10 cents per square meter, almost 50 times cheaper than the international price.

"Maybe, that's a good idea to propose to the Dystans as well. I don't recall that dragons had much use for cloth, though," was the Chancellor's comment.

"Well, let'sss not dillydally, ssshall we? The Dystansss will be waiting, and a hungry dragon isss an angry dragon." Laughing, the trio began to look around for somesapient to accost and extract directions from.

[Ruskarkand]

Valyrnov felt rather apprehensive about the idea of teleporting again, derived from how her method of travel had otherwise failed ever so slightly. Really, it was indeed a rather perilous action as far as she saw it. Botched magic as a whole is dangerous, but an injury, or even death, by falling following an off-target teleport was a rather humiliating undertaking. Then again, not every perception of magic was the same. Drawn circles like the one she observed were not practiced within the realms where she had originated from. A focus based component, perhaps? No. It couldn't of been. She simply settled down and refrained from objecting, instead deciding to dwell on the remarks of Vylon. "Scale Polish?" she murmured to herself, before opting to lift a single paw to stare at the marred, interlinking plates lining the back of it.

A short huff sounded from her, two parts bemused and one part sarcastic. Most Dragons, being the large things they are, often bumped into a lot of things in their surroundings. Metal-like scales being what they are, they took a vast amount of wear and tear as they scraped across adjacent surfaces. The condition of one's scales normally denoted age as part of a social stigma, purely because it'd take ludicrous amounts of polish and a lot of willpower to keep a coat looking 'reasonably' good. It was often perceived as being hardly worth it so society grew to accept the worn and rugged looks that Dragons sported, although she figured that it must of been different in the regions of Dyste. Then she went on to think about the premise of the hot tub. 'This is really what the prelude to a banquet entails?' she thought, before simply opting to shake her head as she dismissed the quip. 'No, it's fine. I suppose I'm being too harsh.'

By the time she left her thoughts, her surroundings were different - instead, she found her gaze locked on the Airship. A tiny, shrill smile appeared on her mouth as she tried to imagine the premise of something Draconic requiring a flying machine. Luxuries couldn't exactly be indulged upon when one was flying with just their wings, not unless they were particularly talented. It wouldn't exactly be labelled 'Heresy' in Ruskarkand, but it'd be a point for ridicule. That's just any old airship, however. Something as extravagant as the one she was looking at would be something to harbor an amount of pride for. Being wealthy enough to own something such as that. Even as the established 'leader' of the Pantheon short of a specific deity, she didn't have much to swear by short of the treasures she typically rested upon and that one particular family member who was perhaps more important to her than any treasure, even if they were perceivable as nothing more than a simple machine in the eyes of some. Alas, she put aside any feelings of envy and focused on the tasks at hand which was making the decision of where to stay on the Airship.

A moment after Valynov listened to the verse of Kasah, she decided that the Hot Tub would of likely been ideal, thinking back to the remarks of Vylon. Her proud form visibly shrunk a little as she began to navigate towards the room, sparing as little time as possible given how uncomfortable it was to try and navigate an enclosed space. Her thoughts veered back to dwell on the AI she left at home. Perhaps she should of brought it? It'd be a point for future consideration at the very least.

She'd come to arrive at the Hot Tub room sooner or later, and as she stood upright without any form of hindrance, she allowed a brief sigh to escape from her. Another moment of respite at the very least, although that wasn't particularly a good thing. Company was nice, and she often fell back to her own thoughts far too much. She remained by the edge of the pool of water, staring down into it as she harbored some reluctance. Water, even water that was boiling hot, was still relatively unpleasant...

[Torsiedelle]

"We're going to be arriving soon.", Said the pilot, bringing the small, sleek, private jet into descent. The jet, unlike those used by other Confederate leaders, wasn't a military design, but a civilian model, built entirely for luxury, and outfitted just the way she liked it. Her escort was a young, but serious-looking soldier who had been assigned to her before her departure, although he would not be accompanying her for her visit. He was guarding the jet, his Kalashnikov rifle laid across his lap as he stared out the window in boredom.

"So, they couldn't get anybody else to come, Ma'am?"

The diplomat, one Dimitrus Nikolaevna wiped her thick glasses with a cloth. "No, sadly. Our glorious leader is too busy playing Warlord, and that other asshole is up to his neck in international stuff, so I, as usual, have to do the talking. I swear, those guys love making me suffer."

The soldier chuckled. "Didn't think government people talked about each other like that."

"Yeah, well, I hear the Army is worse.", She said. "I've heard some of the vulgar stuff that the Fuhrer and the Colonel say between each other. it's absolutely terrible!"

The soldier chuckled again. "We just don't hold back. It's no biggie.", He said. "By the way, we're landing."

Dimitrus sighed. "Shit. Well, I guess if anyone has to come here to extend a hand and prove that we can handle other nations, then it's me alright. I admit, I hate to do this, but it's better than what could happen if the Colonel makes a Black joke like he did at the military day in Kalmykia. Granted, the crowd loved it, but, then again, we aren't back home anymore."

She grabbed her long, dark-grey trenchcoat, the kind that the Confederate Air Force used to use. Her entire outfit was in the same style. Her sleek black boots, tight white leggings, white shirt, black tie, and black coat all came together in a professional look. She put on her glasses and made sure that the collar, lined with red, was right. If anything looked wrong to her, it was her light-blonde hair that seemed a little too light, and her red eyes. She never understood how she inherited them from her parents, but apparently albinism was a recessive trait, and a one-in-four chance at that. Just like her career, she got the short end of the stick.

No sooner had their jet landed did she disembark, the soldier standing in the doorway waving. She waved goodbye and made haste into the airport, hoping that she wasn't late at all. How long ago had it been that she visited another nation? She hated travel. This was going to be terrible, she though. She'd be lost and clueless, and then people would think that she was a foolish person. It would be the source of even more annoyance in her job.

The sight of a well-dressed woman with red eyes fretting over time and life would be pretty noticeable in the area...well, for a human nation. Maybe being human would make her noticeable?

[Romandeos]

Undellah Skyways

Robert just smiled at the Dystan's confusion. Major Salzwedel, on the other hand, stepped forward and cleared her throat before speaking, gesturing to her Prince as she did so.

"Prime Minister, I am Major Salzwedel of the Imperial Household Guards, and it is my honor to present to you His Imperial Highness the Prince Robert Lockeheart, Heir Presumptive of the Imperial Federated States of Romandeos and the Romani-Mar'si Union, my principle and one of the primary guests from our country."

Robert nodded wordlessly as he was introduced.

"I also have the honor to present His Eminence, Devon Cardinal Farrow, senior Cardinal of the Romani Marshite Church."

"A pleasure," said worthy proclaimed quietly with a nod of acknowledgement.

"Finally," the Major said, gesturing to the Cardinal's bodyguard. "This is-"

"I am Sister-Captain Keshia Hester," she said. Her voice was almost flat. "Of the Knights of the Sacred Chapel, trusted guardians of His Eminence at home, and when he insists on going abroad."

"Against the wishes of my minders," the Cardinal quipped with a smile. The comment did not seem to amuse Hester, who only blinked.

As the options for transport to the castle were listed, Hester and Salzwedel made their decision within seconds. Teleportation was out. They did not know the hosts well enough to let them just launch them through arcane planes to...anywhere they wished. An airship was the perfect location for a trap, or could be hijacked, which left...

"The limousine would be preferable," Salzwedel said calmly. "As soon as we are on our way, the helicopter will head back to the ship."

Prince Robert, meanwhile, watched with idle curiosity at the Confederate jet which was landing at the airport.

[Torsiedelle]

There was nothing particularly different about the jet, it was just a private aircraft, which now sat, landed at the airport.

However, Dimitrus was different. She eventually had come back to her senses and stumbled towards the strange group, running on the logic that "there's a group of them all dressed up, they must be it!"

Sure, it wasn't the best logic, but she wasn't really in the best mind. Being around all these people was weirding her out. She was the one who always sat inside and did her work alone. Once she was at a meeting with fewer people, she'd be calmed down.

The short, slender woman waved. "Hello? Is this the meeting place for an international banquet? I'm a diplomat. I know it's probably a stupid question, but it's worth asking."

[Planeia]

Knowledge District,
Valitora, the City of Life

Within the Knowledge District of the Dystan city stands the crystal shining embassy of Planeia. Like most of the Planeian buildings in Dyste, it's one of the few buildings in the nation that doesn't run on magic or the work of Lightning Draconids, but rather the X-9 5000 Dark Matter Core located at the Promethean Research Center in Calberona, connected to the embassy via a power transfer beam network.

For this fact, the embassy has the most energy to spend in miles, and at night, is one of the brightest buildings on the block. This is all to say: in this magical nation, it stands out like a sore thumb.

There were, however, talks of using Dark Draconids for their dark energy, or the core being used to power the nation. This would have to be ironed out, though. First and foremost: the eggheads at Promethean need to know whether the dark energy that Dark Draconids use is the same dark energy expelled by the core; the energy equivalence of dark matter. This would lead to many implications about the nature of dark matter and dark energy if it were true.

---

"Now, little one, Buhbuh is going to an important event today. Be nice to your buhbuhs and muhmuhs and siblings while I'm gone and I promise I'll take you to go flying again, okay?" the middle aged looking Planeian, Ambassador Oldit Zet says to his youngest son, Chito as he sits on his lap.

"Okay Buhbuh!" Chito says enthusiastically bouncing, giving Oldit a full hearted hug.

Oldit smiles, then embraces Chito tightly. He wants to cherish every moment he has with Chito while he's still a child. He's only seven years old, but Planeian maturity varies, from being complete by as late as twenty-six to as early as five. Planeian children have a higher propensity to absorb information in a process that starts as early as incubation, which contributes to mental development. The average age of reaching adulthood capacity in Planeians, and therefore legal emancipation contingent upon passing a related exam, is 14, and though that gives Oldit seven years (and even less when counting adolescence and the struggles that entails), there's still the chance that it may be earlier, and so he wants to cherish every moment while he still can. This will probably be the last, as all his others are well past the cuddly, lovable child stages ([OOC] Not to say that Planeians aren't always cuddly and lovable ).

"Oh, I almost forgot, got a new app for you." Oldit brings up his holowrist display, with a shining tetrahedron shape displayed in the hologram rotating in the air.

"The I9? No way, cool!" Chito brings up his own holowrist. The tetrahedron attaches itself to his display, in which he examines it and types on it.

"Alright, run along now, Chito."

"Thank you, Buhbuh!" Chito says as he hugs Oldit again, much to his happiness. He hops off of Oldit's lap and runs along, playing with his new holowrist app.

Oldit got up and proceeded out of the room, where he was met by robot arms that followed him down the corridor. The arms swiftly replaced his current attire with a tuxedo, hairstyle, and scent appropriate for the event, all while he was still moving.

As he reaches the end of the corridor, he is met by his six spouses; his three wives and three husbands. "Well, my loves, I'm off to the banquet."

"Do come back soon and tell us all about it, and treat Dr. Elanato with respect, she deserves it." Nolya, his second married wife says.

"Of course, otherwise I'd be out of a job if I treated her in other way." Oldit replies. Indeed, Aiya Elanato is not only Oldit's employer as Chairwoman of the Planeian Committee of Xeno Affairs, but a national hero on Planeia as well. It'd be unthinkable to Oldit to disrespect such a woman. "Anyway, goodbye my loves." Oldit says before kissing each spouse and leaving the building, the sliding doors lightly hissing as they close behind him.

Oldit proceeds to walk through the streets of Valitora, the City of Life bustling with Kobolds and Draconids of many kinds. Often Oldit would be addressed as 'Bluebold!' by some of the Kobolds. He finds it kinda funny and cute, mildly offensive, but funny and cute nonetheless.

Oldit proceeds to the nearest high hill, where he agreed to meet Aiya. It took some effort to climb the hill without ruining his tuxedo, but he managed to do it. At the top, he stands and waits. While he waits, he takes a minute to look around and enjoy the beautiful city of Valitora, with its Romanesque and Renaissance architecture, mountainous terrains, and beautiful, bright skies. He looks back and sees the Planeian embassy, and can definitely see why the locals call Planeian buildings "eye sores".

As he looks back up at the sky, he sees something, someone soaring through the air, a faint trail of magenta light tailing the figure. The figure has on a peculiar looking suit that seemed to slightly shimmer electronically in tiny, barely visible circuits. As the figure approaches, her helmet mechanically separates and compacts into the back of the suit, leaving her head exposed and revealing her to be Dr. Aiya Elanato, the green headed Planeian woman.

While still soaring, she reaches for an apparatus on her belt. A faint whirring noise sounds as a black 'light' explodes around her. This seems to have knocked her out of balance and stability, as she spirals towards the ground like a falling helicopter and crashes into the side of the mountain.

"Chairwoman Elanato!" Oldit shouts as he rushes down the hill to check on her.

"Well, there goes having some sort of progress to show to the Dystans." Aiya says as she pushes herself up, brushes off the dirt from her face, and then detaches the malfunctioning apparatus from her belt, tossing it to the side. "That was supposed to be a prototype of a new quantum tunneling device developed at the Promethean Research Center."

"Well, at least you are safe." Oldit says as he extends his hand to help her up. She takes it and pulls herself up, brushing the dirt off of her suit.

"Meh, I've crashed landed into the ground in much worse ways. Besides that, though, now it seems we'll be going empty handed."

"I doubt his Majesty will mind, the purpose of this banquet was for convening and enjoyment."

"Very well then. Are you ready to go?"

Oldit paused. After seeing Aiya crash land into the ground like that, he now has doubts and low confidence regarding his own safety. "You know, on second thought, I think I'll walk."

"Nonsense, we're late as it is." Aiya says as she closes her eyes and reopens them to reveal they are now glowing magenta orbs devoid of pupils. She begins levitating off of the ground, then swooshes forward to grab Oldit by the arms and carry him away as they soar to their destination.

"Agh! Agh!" Oldit yelps. "Why couldn't we have just summoned a shuttle?" Oldit yells out as the wind grows louder with their acceleration through the sky.

"Why? Let's enjoy the fresh air in this Earthling atmosphere. Interesting story: back in the First Contact Event, I was exposed to this very same atmosphere without first taking adaptation drugs. I had to adapt the hard way, it nearly destroyed my respiratory system and rendered me unable to speak for hours. Now, I love this atmosphere, and I have yet to take a single drug. Oh how I love Earth."

Oldit notices that they're heading north, and far from the others at Undellah. "Chairwoman Elanato, this isn't the way to Undellah."

"I know, but I figured we could head directly to the castle first, and meet Tyroth later. I want to speak first with the one I've been exchanging letters with."

"Queen Sarisa?"

"Queen Sarisa."

The two continued soaring north towards the castle, with a tail of magenta light that lingered in the sky like a single colored rainbow.

---

Promethean Research Center,
Calberona, the City of Magic

Within the peaceful and mystical city of Calberona stands the 60 story tall Promethean Research Center, a state-of-the-art facility that acts as the helm of the research initiative between Planeia and Dyste, and all research efforts of Planeia within Dyste. Through a close partnership with the Jarlsberg Institute, it remains the number one Planeian facility for Supernatural Phenomena Studies and Research, or the science of magic. It's also heading research efforts to improve teleportation technology using enchantments to keep subjects alive through quantum entanglement transfer. Through its X-9 5000 Dark Matter Core, it powers all Planeian buildings within Dyste, as well as projects and experiments that require high amounts of energy.

And once again, it stands out like a sore thumb... that at this point should probably be amputated.

---

Capris and Neera's shuttle comes in for a close approach to land at the spaceport in the top level of the facility. The roof slides open with a wide aperture, and the shuttle is guided to land by the control tower.

Capris and Neera exit the shuttle and proceed to the nearest elevator to reach ground level. After the smooth elevator ride, which didn't even feel like it was moving thanks to spacetime manipulation, the two exited the building to the streets of Calberona.

"So this is Dyste. Seems quite beautiful." Capris says. "I kind of feel bad that we chose to have a massive building with irrelevant architecture ruin the look of this city. Anyway, let's get to that rental boat."

The two proceed to the docks, which isn't that far from the facility. They enter the rental speed boat, then set sail along the coast to Undellah.

"By the way... did you remember to bring the gift?" Capris asks Neera as they boat along the coast, referring to the gift that the two had bought for King Tyroth, something they'd thought he might like.

"I thought you did." Neera replies, a grim look of realization setting on her face.

"I told you to... so you mean to tell me that you didn't bring it?"

"No... I did not."

"Ugh, I told you a million times to set the reminder in your holowrist to bring the gift. I even put it next to the frucking bed!"

"Godsdabbit, Capris, why do we have to get into an argument right before every godsdab time we go to an event? I'm only Planeian!... and if you were so concerned with reminding me to remind you, why couldn't you have remembered it yourself?" Neera lashed out.

Capris remained silent, realizing the validity of his wife's counterarguments. The two remained quiet for the duration of the trip, until finally they arrived in Undellah.

Capris and Neera spot Vylon and Kamato on the beach, then bring the speed boat in for landing in the sand. While Capris shuts off the boat, Neera eagerly hops off and waves towards them as she approaches them. She really loves those two, how could she not after they bought her a dress like this?

[Polkopia]

Upon exiting the spacecraft, Anna and Mikhail hadn't been sure what to expect. It was a foreign planet after all, one with hardly any knowledge from their home country, so what could they expect? To their delight, it felt no different than back home, the only thing a bit strange to them was the different species who made their lives here.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Mikhail said, nudging at Anna who did nothing more than stare up at the large, glass building, mouth wide open in awe. She wanted to take as much time as she could to take in her surroundings. She had always been fascinated with other cultures' architecture and this was no exception.

Her study was cut short, however, upon the arrival of Astram Ventus. Anna blinked a few times, a bit embarrassed. "Oh, excuse me, I'm terribly sorry." She said, giving a nervous smile. "Thank you." She finally said while following the Wind Draconid to Prime Minister Zihark Jemson.

Upon seeing the Prime Minister, Anna, Mikhail, and Anton all placed their fist over their chest and bowed, a common greeting in Polkopia to those of equal or higher authority. They said nothing for the time being, however, not wanting to interrupt him, as the Prime Minister was already conversing with the Romani representatives.

Anna noticed that Mikhail was glancing at the Romani guests every once in awhile, but she pretended as if she didn't notice. She knew that expression that he had. He was just trying to get their attention to give them a friendly smile so that at least one of them knew that he had nothing but good intentions. Anna stopped paying attention to him and focused her attention back on the Prime Minister.

When the Prime Minister had finished speaking, Anna cleared her throat to speak herself, but she found that one of the Romani guests had beaten her to it. She listened tentatively as they introduced themselves one by one, making mental notes on each of them as they did so, not wanting to forget names like she had previously done while in MInroz. She nodded from time to time, showing that she was, in fact, paying attention.

When she was sure that they had finished speaking, she finally spoke herself. "Greetings, Prime Minister. My name is Anna Demonova, and this is Mikhail Sheov." Anna motioned to Mikhail, who bowed his head slightly. "We're ambassadors from the Allied States of Polkopia. Semyon Polk, our dictator, sends you his regards for not being able to attend, as he has important diplomatic measures to address."

Mikhail looked behind him. "Oh! My apologies. This is Anton Marovich, who will be acting as our lone bodyguard for the evening." Anton stepped forward, in his hand a tall tray of various Polkopian deserts. Various cakes were stacked at the bottom of a large, circular food tray. Above the cakes, other Polkopian deserts lay stacked on top. "Also, please accept these Polkopian treats as a gift." Mikhail added. "And if possible, we'd like to take the airship, please."

Mikhail knew that Anna wanted to see as much of the country as he did and he figured that the airship would be the perfect place to do so.

[Dyste]

Undellah Skyways

When the Polkopian ambassador stepped forward, Zihark crossed his arm and bowed, “The pleasure is all mine, surely.” The Prime Minister salivated slightly at the smell of the desserts; though he did not look it, he had a sweet tooth. He gestured to a kobold to take the tray of food from Anton; There was no chance that the carnivorous kobolds would be eating any of the desserts, making them the perfect choice to help transport them. Getting another pair of kobolds, one directed the Polkopians to the airship, while the other guided the Romani to where the limos were parked. “I shall see you soon,” Zihark said to them; he himself planned to teleport to the castle when his job there was done.

Right afterwards, another group of delegations arrived; the Torsiedellie. “Yes, this is the meeting place. Prime Minister Zihark Jemson, at your service.” By simply being in proximity to her, he felt some level of negative emotions; anxiety was to be expected, but there was something more to this… stress? Fear? Or something else... “You need not be afraid of me; I am a pacifist, I will not harm you. We are currently determining preferred modes of transportations for people; we can teleport them directly to the castle, take one of our limos, or board our king’s airship. The choice is yours to make, honoured guest.”

Otulia’s delegation, meanwhile, instead encountered a red unicorn with a black mane and green glasses, accompanied by two kobolds, “Ah, I thought I felt somepony was here!” Running up to Careful Advance, the pony had an accent not unlike a high-class Brit. “You’re here for the banquet, right? I may not look it, but I am a naturalized Dystan subject. I am Solar Chaser, Minister for Pony Affairs. … wait, did you actually fly on a dragon? I didn’t know that you could do that…” She seemed momentarily distracted; a closer look at her revealed her cutie mark to be that of a dragon’s head. “Oh, sorry! You all wish to get to Castle Dyste, correct? We could just teleport there, but where’s the fun in that? We have limos waiting outside, or Lord Tyroth’s airship is waiting just a ways over there!” The kobolds, meanwhile, were looking over Willing Tinkerer, confused over whether he was actually a kobold or not.

The Romani was taken to what could be graciously be called a ‘limo’; to a human, it looked more like a very fancy truck, still having the tinted windows and sleek black design, but much taller than normal. There was good reason for that, though; they also needed to hold the Draconids also accompanying them. The one greeting them directly was more evidence to that; even by Draconid standards this one was burly and muscular, carrying a large mace with an electrical charge on it. Despite the appearance, the voice that came out of this one was cheerful and light...

“I am Princess Tynah, eldest daughter of the king and member of the Royal Knights! I shall be both your host for the ride and part of your protection. Forgive my husband, he is… well, being rather lazy at the moment,” she opened the door to reveal a rotund golden-scaled Lightning Draconid sleeping on one side of the limo. “We shall get him awake soon. In the meantime, no harm will come to you ladies while I am around!” Tynah seemed proud that she was able to determine that they were all female; granted, how would she know otherwise?

---

Muston was not directly attached to the gala; he was a moderately successful merchant from Valitora who dealt in produce. However, he was an opportunist; he knew that aiding one of the delegations could greatly improve his business, help him get noticed, maybe even by the Royal Family. “Well, we could help take you there! I know the way to the castle, of course; just north of our capital!”

Lykah gave a short sigh; Kazimierz and Anja should know all the details. “Well, His Majesty’s airship is docked in the Skyways not too far from here, we might be able to make it. If we take the route, we will likely come across some of the land transportation driving that way. My magic may be able to aid us here, but I am no Sage; the last time I tried to teleport a group of people to a location, they appeared a few kilometres away!”

Undellah Docks

Vylon was worried that the first group to come by sea would be the last, until Capris and Neera came in with their speed boat. Kamoto made a dash for them, easily faster than her husband. She almost leaped into a hug with Neera, her fur not the least bit sweaty for her jogging earlier, “Hiya, guys! I’m so glad you could make it! Vylon and I hoped you could make it today… ooh, can we head out with them to the Castle? We could even take the speedboat there!”

Vylon laughed; he was used to his wife occasionally talking without thinking about what she said, “Well, considering Castle Dyste is in the middle of the island, no, that would be impossible… but we would gladly accompany you two, I can get one of my friends to take over here.” Like everyone else, they has a choice of taking teleportation, the airship, or a limo; in their case, Vylon was willing to offer his own for this sake. “Either way, how have you been? I recall you still owing us a meal…”

Castle Dyste


Strom Blackwing has served as castle steward since the structure had been created six centuries ago. As manager of the castle staff, the Dark Draconid has recently celebrated his one thousandth birthday, being one of the few in the nation to have reached that age; not because Draconids typically did not live that long (Draconids had no known age limit, and were believed to be chronologically immortal), but since their early history was begat by violence; most Draconids that would be his peers had died from raids on their tribes, not to mention the plague that had ravaged the nation only a few decades before they formally opened their borders. Despite being the age that would make him an elder amongst his people, he showed no outward signs of his age; as the saying went, dragons grew stronger with age, and Draconids were no exception.

He stood in the castle courtyard, in the middle of the massive structure; regardless of which manner any of the guests arrived, they would end up here. The grassy field had several flowers both local and foreign, and a statue of the king and queen commemorating the founding the the nation.

“Enjoying the sky, Strom?” Queen Sarisa of Dyste was an Ice Draconid, her species easily identified by her silvery scales. At eleven feet, she was fairly tall for her species; she just often seemed smaller when compared to her husband. She was wearing a special black cloak with a starry pattern.
“Ah, Your Majesty. I was just waiting for the first of our guests to arrive. I regretted being sick the previous banquet was being held, so I do not want to miss it this time… oh?” He noticed a magenta streak heading towards them.

Royal Airship Gungnir

The Polkopians were greeted at the airship by a Fire Draconid with blood-red scales; his right eye and chest had very noticeable scars on them. His name was Kelvon Darkfire, better known as Sir Kel or Kel the Bloody, the Knight Commander of Dyste and former adventuring partner of the king. “So, you are here for the banquet, I presume? Naturally you are, why would you be boarding our ship if you were not? Well, at the very least, I know of some gluttonous monarch who will enjoy these sweets you brought.” He lead them to the lounge, where the Stormwrathians and Olweans were already present talking with some of the locals.

Tyfis laughed at the Stormwrathian prank, showing her the have the same booming laugh as the rest of her family, “GHAHAHA! Guess you humans still get embarrassed when clothing is removed suddenly; maybe you should consider not wearing any if it is such a bother!” her tail swayed side to side, as she widely grinned, “Sometimes I worry if people in the Multi-Species Union see me as a, how do you say it, branch in the dirt? I am really not; it is just that… well, that is work. We of the House of Blackfang pride ourselves at being approachable and affable!”

Her assistant Cisara, however, was more curious about the aging process, “So, you say your people age slower than regular humans? Is it just a physical effect, or do you actually have longer lifespans? To be honest… sometimes it’s hard for elves like us to relate to humans because of how short your lives are, that’s why there’s quite a few of us living in Dyste with Draconids.”

Reglay loved the idea of joint research with the Olweans, “That would be excellent! I have been going over Jarl’s old work on alternate universes; he believed that by finding key people in history, you can see how things might’ve gone differently. Naturally, our own subject is Lord Tyroth; what if instead of being the benevolent ruler he was, he was a ruthless tyrant? That is the sort of thing that could’ve changed history as we know it. Regardless, it’d be good to have some help; we can’t all be Cori and just party and have fun all the time…”

“C’mon, cuz, I reckon I do good things all the time,” Cori said while sitting on a cushion with Ovor; though they were close, it was sometimes hard to believe that the more straight-laced Reglay was related to the laid-back and rather promiscuous Fey’ri; granted, the latter having his demonic blood be more dominant might have something to do with with. “I help out in findin’ great minds for magic ‘cross the globe and beyond, so what if I have some fun while I’m doin’ it?”

Kasah smiled, “Hope you and Trasta are doing well, Jason,” knowing how informal Olweans were; she then made another announcement to the guests, her booming voice easily heard by all. “We are going to be launching soon as we have determined a few more of the guest’s preferred methods of transportation. Oh, and once James stops harassing our pilot…”

The brown-coated human was leaning over the kobold, “I’m telling you, Kyryk, I built this ship! I know how to fly it. You can just sit back and let me handle this!”

The kobold narrowed its eyes, “Pilotbold!”, utterly refusing to budge on the matter. Kyryk took pride in being the airship pilot, and was not willing to just let anyone do the job.

The princess sighed, “I may have to intervene if they do not stop soon…”

---

While Valyrnov was taking a dip in the ship’s hot tub, she was greeted by a visitor she was anticipating to see, though likely not in this situation.

“Well, what do we have here? I presume you are the guest from Ruskarkand?” The Draconid that entered the room was eleven and a half feet tall, sharing the same onyx black scales and golden underside of the other members of the Royal Family. Despite having a round belly, his arms and legs had the thick muscles of a warrior. He wore a black cape, covering his wings, and carried a sceptre with a golden dragon pattern.

“I see you had the same idea as I did; I do not suppose you mind if I join you? Granted, it is my ship anyways...” making his cape and sceptre disappear, the Draconid slowly dipped in, not seeming bothered at all by the high temperature. “Ah, good for the scales. But where are my manners? I am Tyroth Blackfang, King of Dyste. On behalf of my people, I welcome you to Dyste. I will be making my formal introduction to the guests in a bit, but before then, I am free to discuss anything you desire.”

[Stormwrath]

The first orb had a rather odd personality, having the AI core for such. However, the personality core came with a tint of perverted personality, and sometimes this can make him say things that should've been left in his thoughts. When Tyfis suggested that the Stormwrathians not wear any clothing altogether, he then replied, "I would kindly take that suggestion and-"

Percival immediately pulled a small switch in the orb's rear, turning off the Finite Improbability Generator. "Don't even think about it", he interrupted. The Archemperor was now intent on not letting someone, robot or organic, activate that device for now. He did receive a call from his holoslate, "Excuse me for a moment", he said, and he began to answer.

"Hello?"

A bombastic voice came from the other side, which belonged to a certain Nathan Frost, his best friend. Informally and shamelessly he said, "Hey Percy! I heard you were going to show up in this banquet, and I am apparently on vacation, so I thought to myself, 'why not come over here to Dyste to attend?' So here I am!"

Percival now looked a bit annoyed. "Nathan, where are you right now?"

"Oh, I just landed at the Skyways. Damn that Infinite Improbability Drive messed me up. By the way, do you happen to be at the huge airship right now?"

"Wait a minute. How did you know we were on this airship?"

"Because it was the obviously large one with the coat of arms and all."

"Alright. But you better hurry, the ship will be leaving for the Castle sometime later."

"Will do. Just wait for me there."

"Sure, if you won't cause any trouble."

Cisara did ask on the question of Zeronian humans aging slower than normal humans, and because Percival was talking with someone on his holoslate, Cassandra answered, "For the first twenty one years of our lives we age at a rate comparable to regular humans, but after that our aging process slows down. It is probably because of the difference in our genes compared to humans in that we have certain genes that allow us to extend our lifespans much longer than regular humans. The average lifespan of a Zeronian human is around 135 years for males, and 140 for females. Stormwrathians so far have the longest lifespans in Zero, with 147 and 151, respectively."

Ambassador Musahiro then added, "If one must talk about lifespans, we anthros have slightly longer lifespans, with 162 years for males and 168 for females. Faunus may have lifespans somewhere in between our humans and anthros."

By the time he was finished, Nathan had made it on the ship. He dressed more casually than the other Stormwrathians, wearing a vest while Percival and Jeffrey wore more formal suits. He came by where they were seated and said, "Salutations, everyone!" Turning to Tyfis and Cisara he introduced himself, "Hello there, the name is Nathan Frost. Nice to meet you."

[The High Tatras]

Undellah Skyways

When the Polkopian ambassador stepped forward, Zihark crossed his arm and bowed, “The pleasure is all mine, surely.” The Prime Minister salivated slightly at the smell of the desserts; though he did not look it, he had a sweet tooth. He gestured to a kobold to take the tray of food from Anton; There was no chance that the carnivorous kobolds would be eating any of the desserts, making them the perfect choice to help transport them. Getting another pair of kobolds, one directed the Polkopians to the airship, while the other guided the Romani to where the limos were parked. “I shall see you soon,” Zihark said to them; he himself planned to teleport to the castle when his job there was done.

Right afterwards, another group of delegations arrived; the Torsiedellie. “Yes, this is the meeting place. Prime Minister Zihark Jemson, at your service.” By simply being in proximity to her, he felt some level of negative emotions; anxiety was to be expected, but there was something more to this… stress? Fear? Or something else... “You need not be afraid of me; I am a pacifist, I will not harm you. We are currently determining preferred modes of transportations for people; we can teleport them directly to the castle, take one of our limos, or board our king’s airship. The choice is yours to make, honoured guest.”

Otulia’s delegation, meanwhile, instead encountered a red unicorn with a black mane and green glasses, accompanied by two kobolds, “Ah, I thought I felt somepony was here!” Running up to Careful Advance, the pony had an accent not unlike a high-class Brit. “You’re here for the banquet, right? I may not look it, but I am a naturalized Dystan subject. I am Solar Chaser, Minister for Pony Affairs. … wait, did you actually fly on a dragon? I didn’t know that you could do that…” She seemed momentarily distracted; a closer look at her revealed her cutie mark to be that of a dragon’s head. “Oh, sorry! You all wish to get to Castle Dyste, correct? We could just teleport there, but where’s the fun in that? We have limos waiting outside, or Lord Tyroth’s airship is waiting just a ways over there!” The kobolds, meanwhile, were looking over Willing Tinkerer, confused over whether he was actually a kobold or not.

The Romani was taken to what could be graciously be called a ‘limo’; to a human, it looked more like a very fancy truck, still having the tinted windows and sleek black design, but much taller than normal. There was good reason for that, though; they also needed to hold the Draconids also accompanying them. The one greeting them directly was more evidence to that; even by Draconid standards this one was burly and muscular, carrying a large mace with an electrical charge on it. Despite the appearance, the voice that came out of this one was cheerful and light...

“I am Princess Tynah, eldest daughter of the king and member of the Royal Knights! I shall be both your host for the ride and part of your protection. Forgive my husband, he is… well, being rather lazy at the moment,” she opened the door to reveal a rotund golden-scaled Lightning Draconid sleeping on one side of the limo. “We shall get him awake soon. In the meantime, no harm will come to you ladies while I am around!” Tynah seemed proud that she was able to determine that they were all female; granted, how would she know otherwise?

---

Muston was not directly attached to the gala; he was a moderately successful merchant from Valitora who dealt in produce. However, he was an opportunist; he knew that aiding one of the delegations could greatly improve his business, help him get noticed, maybe even by the Royal Family. “Well, we could help take you there! I know the way to the castle, of course; just north of our capital!”

Lykah gave a short sigh; Kazimierz and Anja should know all the details. “Well, His Majesty’s airship is docked in the Skyways not too far from here, we might be able to make it. If we take the route, we will likely come across some of the land transportation driving that way. My magic may be able to aid us here, but I am no Sage; the last time I tried to teleport a group of people to a location, they appeared a few kilometres away!”

Undellah Docks

Vylon was worried that the first group to come by sea would be the last, until Capris and Neera came in with their speed boat. Kamoto made a dash for them, easily faster than her husband. She almost leaped into a hug with Neera, her fur not the least bit sweaty for her jogging earlier, “Hiya, guys! I’m so glad you could make it! Vylon and I hoped you could make it today… ooh, can we head out with them to the Castle? We could even take the speedboat there!”

Vylon laughed; he was used to his wife occasionally talking without thinking about what she said, “Well, considering Castle Dyste is in the middle of the island, no, that would be impossible… but we would gladly accompany you two, I can get one of my friends to take over here.” Like everyone else, they has a choice of taking teleportation, the airship, or a limo; in their case, Vylon was willing to offer his own for this sake. “Either way, how have you been? I recall you still owing us a meal…”

Castle Dyste


Strom Blackwing has served as castle steward since the structure had been created six centuries ago. As manager of the castle staff, the Dark Draconid has recently celebrated his one thousandth birthday, being one of the few in the nation to have reached that age; not because Draconids typically did not live that long (Draconids had no known age limit, and were believed to be chronologically immortal), but since their early history was begat by violence; most Draconids that would be his peers had died from raids on their tribes, not to mention the plague that had ravaged the nation only a few decades before they formally opened their borders. Despite being the age that would make him an elder amongst his people, he showed no outward signs of his age; as the saying went, dragons grew stronger with age, and Draconids were no exception.

He stood in the castle courtyard, in the middle of the massive structure; regardless of which manner any of the guests arrived, they would end up here. The grassy field had several flowers both local and foreign, and a statue of the king and queen commemorating the founding the the nation.

“Enjoying the sky, Strom?” Queen Sarisa of Dyste was an Ice Draconid, her species easily identified by her silvery scales. At eleven feet, she was fairly tall for her species; she just often seemed smaller when compared to her husband. She was wearing a special black cloak with a starry pattern.
“Ah, Your Majesty. I was just waiting for the first of our guests to arrive. I regretted being sick the previous banquet was being held, so I do not want to miss it this time… oh?” He noticed a magenta streak heading towards them.

Royal Airship Gungnir

The Polkopians were greeted at the airship by a Fire Draconid with blood-red scales; his right eye and chest had very noticeable scars on them. His name was Kelvon Darkfire, better known as Sir Kel or Kel the Bloody, the Knight Commander of Dyste and former adventuring partner of the king. “So, you are here for the banquet, I presume? Naturally you are, why would you be boarding our ship if you were not? Well, at the very least, I know of some gluttonous monarch who will enjoy these sweets you brought.” He lead them to the lounge, where the Stormwrathians and Olweans were already present talking with some of the locals.

Tyfis laughed at the Stormwrathian prank, showing her the have the same booming laugh as the rest of her family, “GHAHAHA! Guess you humans still get embarrassed when clothing is removed suddenly; maybe you should consider not wearing any if it is such a bother!” her tail swayed side to side, as she widely grinned, “Sometimes I worry if people in the Multi-Species Union see me as a, how do you say it, branch in the dirt? I am really not; it is just that… well, that is work. We of the House of Blackfang pride ourselves at being approachable and affable!”

Her assistant Cisara, however, was more curious about the aging process, “So, you say your people age slower than regular humans? Is it just a physical effect, or do you actually have longer lifespans? To be honest… sometimes it’s hard for elves like us to relate to humans because of how short your lives are, that’s why there’s quite a few of us living in Dyste with Draconids.”

Reglay loved the idea of joint research with the Olweans, “That would be excellent! I have been going over Jarl’s old work on alternate universes; he believed that by finding key people in history, you can see how things might’ve gone differently. Naturally, our own subject is Lord Tyroth; what if instead of being the benevolent ruler he was, he was a ruthless tyrant? That is the sort of thing that could’ve changed history as we know it. Regardless, it’d be good to have some help; we can’t all be Cori and just party and have fun all the time…”

“C’mon, cuz, I reckon I do good things all the time,” Cori said while sitting on a cushion with Ovor; though they were close, it was sometimes hard to believe that the more straight-laced Reglay was related to the laid-back and rather promiscuous Fey’ri; granted, the latter having his demonic blood be more dominant might have something to do with with. “I help out in findin’ great minds for magic ‘cross the globe and beyond, so what if I have some fun while I’m doin’ it?”

Kasah smiled, “Hope you and Trasta are doing well, Jason,” knowing how informal Olweans were; she then made another announcement to the guests, her booming voice easily heard by all. “We are going to be launching soon as we have determined a few more of the guest’s preferred methods of transportation. Oh, and once James stops harassing our pilot…”

The brown-coated human was leaning over the kobold, “I’m telling you, Kyryk, I built this ship! I know how to fly it. You can just sit back and let me handle this!”

The kobold narrowed its eyes, “Pilotbold!”, utterly refusing to budge on the matter. Kyryk took pride in being the airship pilot, and was not willing to just let anyone do the job.

The princess sighed, “I may have to intervene if they do not stop soon…”

---

While Valyrnov was taking a dip in the ship’s hot tub, she was greeted by a visitor she was anticipating to see, though likely not in this situation.

“Well, what do we have here? I presume you are the guest from Ruskarkand?” The Draconid that entered the room was eleven and a half feet tall, sharing the same onyx black scales and golden underside of the other members of the Royal Family. Despite having a round belly, his arms and legs had the thick muscles of a warrior. He wore a black cape, covering his wings, and carried a sceptre with a golden dragon pattern.

“I see you had the same idea as I did; I do not suppose you mind if I join you? Granted, it is my ship anyways...” making his cape and sceptre disappear, the Draconid slowly dipped in, not seeming bothered at all by the high temperature. “Ah, good for the scales. But where are my manners? I am Tyroth Blackfang, King of Dyste. On behalf of my people, I welcome you to Dyste. I will be making my formal introduction to the guests in a bit, but before then, I am free to discuss anything you desire.”

"Teleportation sounds like it would be a blast!" said Anja.

"Yes, let's try that! I want to know how it works!" said Kazimierz.

Amber rolled her eyes at Kazimierz.

"Amber, what is the worst thing that could possibly happen to us?" said Kazimierz.

"Meow! Meow! Meow!" said Amber to Kazimierz in a fearful tone.

"You say that about everything! Do you have no since of adventure?" said Kazimierz to Amber.

"Let's go!" said Anja.