Two Souls as One(ATTN Roseheim. Closed/Private)

[Orlenais]

Marieselle, Orlenais

March 29th, 2092


Over the past seven decades Orlenais had grown under the careful guidance of the Imperial family and their allies within the government. Yet the memory of the previous centuries’ events still permeated the minds of the Empire’s rulers. Within the past two hundred years the Orlenasian empire had managed to reunite their former territories but at the cost of many lives and much treasure. In particular the many bloody battles against their countrymen had left the Orlenasian rulers with heavy burden of guilt over the somewhat senseless sacrifices that had been made to rebuild their country. Yet nothing bore down upon them more than how the chaos they had caused left a great deal within their nation destitute in the face of a post war recession that they had only just recently managed to emerge from. Yet despite the numerous setbacks of the past two centuries, Orlenais went on to become one of the few remaining independent powers in a world dominated by their neighboring state of Roseheim. Within the past seven decades the once tiny nation had risen to become a global superpower and the most technologically advanced nation on the planet.

In the past two years alone the Roselians had managed to build a colony upon the surface of the planet’s sole natural satellite and had begun working on a fleet of colony ships for interstellar missions. This rapid rise had not escaped the notice of the Orlenaisian monarchy who during that time decided to initiate closer ties with the Empire by offering up one of their princes to the currently unmarried princess Alexia. This prince, known as Tiberius de Orlenais was a young man of around twenty five who had the distinction of being third in line to the throne and was of prime marrying age in Orlenaisian culture. Tiberius was of fair complexion and with a head crowned by wavy brown locks with twin green eyes. Overall he was relatively intelligent but he was plagued by a continuous worry over the future. Between the pressures of this tradition and his father’s declining health, Tiberius searched desperately for one he could share his life with. Ultimately, this search brought him to the Empire of Roseheim wherein he found the Princess Alexia who was everything that he admired in a woman. She was strong willed, intelligent, and above all a being of sublime beauty but one concern weighed upon his mind however. That concern was that he did not want to repeat the mistakes of his father by rushing into marriage with someone he barely knew or that he had only just met. With these thoughts in mind he had approached his father with a proposition which in essence stated that while he would be betrothed to Alexia, he had six months to a year to determine whether or not a marriage between them would actually survive. With his father’s blessing in hand invited his fiancé to his homeland to begin their trial period and awaited her with heavy anticipation. Nearly a week later as he stood alongside his guard detail on the docks awaiting the arrival of Alexia and her entourage he couldn’t help but feel a large amount of anxiety weighing over his mind. Numerous questions coursed through his mind and left him in a state of near panic before he was finally calmed by his nearby handlers. Finally the ornate Roselian airship appeared upon the horizon and began its descent to the docks and all presented waited with bated breath.

[Roseheim]

Observation Deck,
RIS Praxis,
Empire of Orlenais.

Taking a deep breath Alexia watched as the lands of Orlenais approached steadily as the airship began its decent to the docks. The RIS Praxis, had the standard compliment of two thousand Marines, eight hundred crew and staff and enough room for four hundred guests, a ball room, multiple salons, three observation decks, state rooms, and other amenities. This was the Imperial Family's personal airship and had been dubbed "a flying palace," rightfully so. Dressed in a fashionable outfit Alexia paled in comparison to her grandmother, the Kaiserin who was styled in one of her more regal gowns. Her grandmother had decided to accompany Alexia so as to discuss some other matters of state with Tiberius' parents and the government of Orlenais. Matters were deteriorating in the west, where Roseheim had entered a Cold War with the Calraxes Imperium that had reunited their once proud empire and thus the entire continent of Hesphion. The two had disputes over the Osirian Islands that both had control of at different points in the last three centuries. During the Third Great War the islands had been occupied and then subsequently annexed by the Calraxes Imperium, and Roseheim had to agree to a bitter treaty of recognition that the Imperial Dominate wished to see undone. Eight Calraxian spies had been apprehended in the Imperial Capital of Rosenwald, their objective was unknown but they were executed publicly. Roseheim was known as the Imperial Dominate abroad, but the Konigreich at home. For centuries Roseheim was a League of trading oriented City States, loosely unified by the Throne of Roses. Eventually the Kaisers and Kaiserins gained more authority and power and established the First Empire. Since that time nearly twenty-three hundred years ago Roseheim has been steadily growing.Some wars set the Imperial Dominate back as well as civil wars. In the eighteenth century Roseheim had established itself as a world power when they formed the First Coalition to combat the Trinity Powers in what would be the First Great War. Standing arm in arm with her allies Roseheim eventually emerged victorious. Time passed and a new Golden Age dawned, and Roseheim prospered. But that was history and this was the present. The Captain came over the loudspeaker system interrupting the observation deck's classical music, "This is Captain Marbridge, we are commencing docking procedures. All VIPs please report to the atrium for disembarking procedures. Thank you." He said calmly as the ship began to seemingly glide over the water. They had descended rather quickly from their cruising altitude. Kaiserin Hildegarde smiled at her granddaughter and the pair walked through the ship to the atrium. Within a couple minutes the bulkhead began opening and beautiful light poured in.

Smiling Kaiserin Hildegarde stepped forward, "Annoucing Her Imperial Majesty, Hildegarde Trost, Second of Her Name, Matriarch of the Imperial House Trost, Kaiserin of the Imperial Dominate of Roseheim, High Queen of Roseheim, Protector of the Poor, Bastion of the Gods,..." the herald was cut off as the Kaiserin stepped onto the dock and called up to him, "Not today Thomas, thank you." She said smiling. Alexia was still standing inside the atrium nervous and fidgeting with her hands. Her breathing was increased, as was her heart rate. "Miss, I will be with you, do not fear." Came the familiar voice of her lady in waiting, the Lady Lavinia Lyrias. Alexia smiled at Lavinia and took a deep breath, steadying herself. Walking out onto the platform and looking at the herald, "Just the short version today Thomas please." She said smiling and beginning to descend the stairs. "Her Imperial Grace, the Princess Alexia Trost, Princess of the Imperial Dominate of Roseheim, and Countess of Avenheim." Alexia approached where her grandmother stood and smiled at the delegation of Orlenais. "Thank you for having us," She said gracefully, ending in a curtsy. Her grandmother smiled and looked at Prince Tiberius, "It is most appreciated that your parents sent us word about your eligibility. The Gods themselves would be pleased by this fortunate turn of events." The Kaiserin said happily. To be honest, she had been looking for ways to bring Orlenais into the Imperial Dominate's influence or so far as into the Dominate as a Client Kingdom, much as had happened with Eddoren twenty years prior. Alexia smiled as her eyes met with Prince Tiberius', a feeling of warmth crossed over her. "Pleasure to finally meet you," She said.

[Orlenais]

Mariselle, Orlenais

As the Kaiserin and her entourage made their way down the exit ramp of the Piraxis, Tiberius was taken aback by the gorgeous woman that followed in her wake. To him she was a creature of sublime beauty and grace but nonetheless she exuded an air of grace and power that could be felt from where he stood. Yet even amongst his anxiety over meeting her the prince, who was dressed in a fine cobalt blue military uniform, still held himself high with a façade of humble pride. Making his way towards the Kaiserin he bowed deeply before the powerful ruler and said “Your majesty welcome to our most humble country of Orlenais. I must say that it is an honor of the highest order to have you and your illustrious family grace us with your presence. In honor of this meeting my father wishes to offer you several fine gifts of greeting ranging from these dresses sewn of our finest cloth to these ancient tomes. In addition I must say that both my father and I look forward to being able to discuss matters of state with you, your grace.”

Tiberius bowed once more before he began he turned to Princess Alexia and bowed once more before saying “Your majesty I wish to extend to you a formal and heartfelt welcome to my family’s abode. To be truthful we do owe your grace and your fellows our sincerest apologies for not having everything up to the standards befitting a family of your esteem. Nevertheless we shall endeavor to change that. Irregardless we welcome you to our lands.” Turning back to the Kaisering for a moment he spoke in a reverent manner “Yes one would suppose that the gods have smiled down upon us your majesty. Truly both my nation and myself are fortunate with regards to the recent turn of events.Indeed my parents are eternally in your debt for paying a visit to our humble realm and for honoring us with your presence.” Once more Tiberius faced Alexia and spoke softly while meeting her gaze “No mi’lady the pleasure is all mine. Truly I am grateful that you honor us with your presence.” At this Tiberius felt a slight hint of warmth cross over his face as he blushed subtly before regaining his composure and motioned for the attendants to carry out their duties. The gathered men dealt with the belongings of the Kaiserin and her entourage while Tiberius drew their attention to two waiting vehicles wherein they would make the journey to the palace. Once they had embarked, the vehicles began the short drive through the historic government and cultural district. On the way they passed several government buildings such as the Elysian palace, which had dated back to the fifteenth century and for centuries had served as the center of government for the empire. It’s azure façade set it apart from the nearby buildings but it paled in comparison to the monument district which lay ahead. Throughout the district lay both memorials to the fallen defenders of the Empire and many tributes to its glorious and triumphant past. The district itself was dominated by the Arteum tower, whose gilded and marble construction, set it apart from every other structure in the city. In essence the purpose of this monument was to commemorate all of those who had been lost during the campaigns to reunify the former Orlesian territories nearly a century ago.

Finally the two vehicles reached their destination, a large palace sheathed in the finest marble and stone and surrounded by a vast network of lusciously decorated grounds and gardens. As the two cars stopped in front of the massive entryway, they were greeted by a phalanx of guards clothed in the darkest of blues and crested by silver helmets. It was from this phalanx that a tall and weathered looking man emerged to the sound of a guard shouting “Presenting his Imperial majesty, Emperor Gaius de Orlenais.”

[Roseheim]

Marseille, Orlenais

Alexia smiled at Prince Tiberius and couldn't help but notice the light red that graced his cheeks. The Princess was more than used to boys blushing in her presence, doing anything she asked, or begging for her attention, she sincerely hated it. Deep inside Alexia hoped that Tiberius wouldn't be just another bumbling fool more bent on her appearance than her actual personality, which few had been lucky enough to experience first hand. The Lady Lavinia and the Kaiserin being chief among those. Alexia just wanted a friend, someone not with her because of her station but someone instead who wanted to be with her.... well for her. The wealth, money and ultimately the power that came with her, as being apart of the Imperial House Trost meant most were not able to overlook those facts, to see her for herself. They just saw the Sapphire Dragon on a field of white, rather than a scared girl who had been throne into a life she hadn't asked for. Though she put up a gilded facade to rival even the greatest marbled facades in the world, event to rival that of her cousin and one of her closest friends, Eren, Kronprinz of the Imperial Dominate, and direct heir of the Kaiserin. In Alexia's mind, only Eren had a worse life than her... and perhaps that is why they got along so well. The pair had always been chastized in the Palace and at the Estates for getting into mischief together and giving the Staff a hard time, be it stealing cookies or just throwing snowballs, they were nearly inseparable, especially since Eren spent his school years at the same boarding school Alexia had. In fact that is where she had met Lavinia, where they had become such close friends and in turn the trio had been known to cause issues for the Headmistress and her Teachers. Alexia sighed as they walked to the cars remember those times. Such good times, she thought to herself sighing once again. The ride to the car contained relative silence while she watched the sights pass by and she made mental notes to ask about some of them at a later date and to possibly visit a few. Finally arriving at the Palace, Alexia found the opulence a bit "in your face" so to say, but it reminded her of home at least. She curtsied deeply and respectfully when Emperor Gaius was announced, though she noticed the Kaiserin did not... something her grandmother rarely chose to abstain from doing. This intrigued Alexia and she would talk to Lavinia about it later.

The Kaiserin thanked the staff and Tiberius opting to get into the car he would not be in. She had a couple matters to discuss via Telelink and preferred some relative privacy, so her personal secretary and the High Chancellor got into the car with her. Her personal secretary was the Baroness Elizabeth Wagner, a woman in her fifties, with blonde hair that had evident grey streaks, likely from her stress as being personal secretary to the Kaiserin of the Imperial Dominate for the last twenty years. She wore a nice, and relatively fashionable pair of glasses to aid her in her reading and typing, and more recently just in her daily life. The High Chancellor was a man of sixty eight, and was broad shouldered, tall and very stout. He embodied the common image of grandfatherly while maintaining that image of a military man. Indeed High Chancellor Roxas Lyrias had served in the Imperial Armed Forces, in the Imperial Legions for thirty years before becoming a Senator. Ten years in the Senate had taught High Chancellor Lyrias a lot. To him he was safer on the battlefield than in the Senate Chambers of the Imperial Congress. He had served in six wars, and five conflicts during his thirty year tenure in the Legions. By the time of his retirement, every recruitment poster, propaganda film and poster featured Imperial Legate Lyrias, a Hero of the People, Champion of the Legions and Guardian of the Realm. He had been knighted by the Kaiserin four times for outstanding service in the line of duty, and received the highest military honor for valor and selflessness, while going above and beyond the call of duty, a historic four times. Sure enough when he ran for High Chancellor, Roxas Lyrias won in the largest landslide in the history of the post, with a whopping ninety-eight percent vote in favor, and not a single opponent was able to receive a full percentage. Knowing that working together was the only way to achieve a lasting victory, High Chancellor Lyrias quickly established a name for working across party lines and coming together for the betterment of the people and the Imperial Dominate. His unwavering, incorruptible, and incredibly driven personality gave him a moral compass that would kill him before he swerved from what he deemed right and just. The High Chancellor was the workhorse of the Imperial Congress, while the Kaiserin handled other matters of internal and external importance. He supported her in her efforts, while she aided him in making sure Roseheim prospered, and not just the upper classes.

"So, I assume the plans are all in the works Roxas?" The Kaiserin asked, looking at the High Chancellor. He nodded and with his rather commanding and grandfatherly tone spoke calmly to his Sovereign, "Yes your majesty. The military has been ordered to begin its covert operations into the Imperium. We should know soon whether they truly were behind the submarine's disappearance or if it was truly a mechanical failure as they have suggested." He said recalling the disappearance of one of Roseheim's Seraph-Class Nuclear Submarines, two days prior to the State visit to Orlenais the sub had disappeared off of Naval Radar just outside the territorial buffer zone between the Calraxes Imperium and the Imperial Dominate of Roseheim, who had entered a Cold War state of affairs some decades earlier. The sub had managed to send a distress signal but no wreckage had been located and while he Imperium seemed genuine in helping with the search and rescue of the submariners and the sub itself, the Roseheim military insisted the Imperium attacked or at least covered up what really happened and had convinced the Kaiserin to send in some special ops into the Imperium to discover if they had any involvement or at the least knew if anyone did. "Good, let's hope this doesn't escalate while we are here," she said looking out the window at the skyline of the city. She recalled coming to Orlenais when she was just a child during the reign of her mother, Kaiserin Potema III, but it had been a relatively brief visit due to only neutral relations between Roseheim and Orlenais. When the cars arrived at the Palace and the Emperor Gaius de Orlenais was announced, Hildegarde did something she rarely did, not bowing out of respect. It was not meant to be a disrespect to the Emperor, and while she had bowed to other Imperial Title holders before in other nations and when they came to visit in Roseheim, she believed the Emperor to be someone... equal. He was intelligent, and cared deeply for his nation. While most of the monarchs she met did as well, they were figureheads, while here in Orlenais like back in Roseheim, the Monarchy was the seat of ultimate authority. She nodded but did not bow and she knew that would raise questions from her granddaughter later. Both High Chancellor Lyrias and Baroness Wagner bowed and curtsied respectively. "Your majesty thank you for accepting us into your nation with such open arms. I look most forward to discussing varying matters of importance with you and your son." Hildegarde said smiling and keeping an air of superiority and grace about as she had done before. All the while not meaning any disrespect.

[Orlenais]

Verdanat Palace, Mariselle, Orlenais

While his father made his introduction, Tiberius couldn't help but notice a few things about the Rosealian delegation. Most of his observations or concerns could be written off as just mere differences of culture but two remained prominent in his mind. These were the way in which the Kaiserin greeted his father and how something seemed rather off about alexia. He thought that he was merely imagining the subtle drop of her façade but he could have sworn that for the slightest second that he saw her somewhat grimace. To be truthful he really didn’t care for the arranged marriage or the rushed nature of the affair. To him the entire mess was despicable as he believed that people should be able to choose the ones to who they wanted to be involved with rather than having it forced upon them. Nevertheless, that did not mean that he disliked Alexia, in fact quite the contrary. Tiberius was actually rather fond of the Princess, well at least from what he had heard about her from the diplomats who had brought back tales of the young princess. However at the moment he really wasn’t particularly interested in the idea of marriage but rather living his life with someone he could call a friend or companion. However even in spite of his feelings he would heed his father’s request to find a companion even if it meant sacrificing his own personal freedom.” : His father’s words echoed through his mind “Remember Tiberius that as royals we must place the welfare of the nation above our own desires, even if it means sacrificing our wishes for our future.”Sighing almost inaudibly he then turned his attention to the Kaiserin whose behavior had been the biggest puzzle of all. You see in Orlenais, it was customary for visiting dignitaries to bow in the presence of the Emperor as a sign of respect and homage. Yet the Kaiserin had refused to bow and instead had merely offered her words of greeting as substitute. It was not to say that the Kaiserin had meant this as insult but rather he found highly intriguing what message the esteemed woman was trying to convey through such actions. “Nonetheless.” He thought “It doesn’t matter in the short term as for right now father’s interaction with her is of more importance.” With these thoughts in mind the young Prince once more bowed to the Rosealian delegation before taking his place by his father’s side.

Whereas Tiberius was somewhat taken aback by the actions of the Kaiserin, the elderly Emperor was not really surprised by her choices. To be honest from what he had seen the failure to bow was meant as a sign that the two rulers were equal in stature. To him it seemed a little ludicrous to call Orlenais and the Imperial Dominate equals because after all Roseheim was far and away the more powerful nation of the two. You see over the past two hundred years, while Orlenais had somewhat grown in power, he had seen Roseheim and the Calaraxes Imperium eclipse his nation in terms of power and prominence. Such events had worried him greatly as a hidden fear of his was that his neutral nation would be turned into a battleground between the two superpowers and end up being absorbed into one or the other. To partly counteract this he had informed the Kaiserin of his son’s eligibility for marriage and through this he hoped that his nation would be able to avoid hostile annexation by either country. Yet he had another reason behind offering his son to the Rosealians, one which was truly dire. For you see, Emperor Gaius was a man of poor health suffering from a terminal illness which threatened to end his life within the next two years. With this in mind he had begun grooming his son at an early age to succeed him on the throne by educating him in politics and apprenticing him to several famed politicians within the Empire. To be truthfu,l the young Tiberius seemed to take the preparations in stride but deep down the Emperor knew that his son was distressed over the arrangements for his future. Nevertheless the Emperor did his best to alleviate his son’s concern. Now that the day had arrived for his son to meet with Alexia, Gaius had pulled out all the stops to ensure that the Rosealians would hopefully be pleased. Shaking his head the Emperor cleared his throat and began to speak “Kaiserin Hilengarde, welcome to Orlenais it is an honor to have you grace our humble country. I presume that your journey here was without trouble?” The Emperor turned to his son with an inquisitive glare for a minute before continuing “ Nevertheless I look forward to discussing any matters of concern or importance with you”

With this he turned to Princess Alexia and spoke “Lady Alexia I must say that it is good to have you here as well. To be truthful, your reputation precedes you and it is quite a noble one indeed. Truly the stories of your grace and nobility have made both you and your family quite admired within my realms. Nonetheless welcome to Orlenais your majesty.” Yet while he publicly seemed somewhat cold, Gaius was indeed quite happy to have the Kaiserin, Alexia, and their entourage visiting his nation. Nonetheless, he privately held some concerns that he hoped the Kaiserin would be able to address during her visit. For the most part these concerns centered around the increased military activity that the OSI had picked up during their weekly reports to him. He knew that for a lengthy period of time the Calraxes Imperium and the Imperial Dominate had been locked in a cold war while vying for influence over the remaining neutral nations. Their cold war had been precisely why for the longest time he had strived to keep Orlenais neutral and maintain friendly relations with both nations. Recently though, the Imperium had begun conducting naval drills just outside of Orlenasian territorial waters while also pressuring Gaius to open talks with them over the possibility of establishing a formal alliance. Naturally the elder Orlenais did not trust the Calraxians and as such had decided to instead turn to the Rosealians for assistance. Brushing aside such thoughts the Emperor began to speak “Well I believe that is enough dallying for the time being. Shall we venture inside and show you to your quarters?”

[Roseheim]

Verdanat Palace, Mariselle, Orlenais

The Kaiserin smiled at the Emperor, "It is a pleasure to return to your nation. It has been far too long since I last visited, some where near seventy five years or so. During the reign of, I believe your father," She said thinking to herself about the Emperor Gaius and his family. "On behalf of the Imperial Dominate of Roseheim, the Rosalian People, and the Imperial Senate, I wish to extend to you and your nation a gift," she said motioning for her personal secretary to hand her a rather simple looking jewelry box. It was white marble, carved with the crests of Houses Trost and de Orlenais neatly joined together in the middle. It would no doubt eventually make its way back to Alexia after her marriage to Tiberius as a symbol of home. Opening the box, the Kaiserin revealed something rather intriguing. A key, though it was carved of the finest diamond quality and appeared to have some electronic device embedded in the rear end of it. "Your majesty, this key represents something important to the people of Roseheim, a link to our Communication Network, and this key holds a copy of every piece of historic literature produced by Roseheim since it's founding. While the latter is less glamorous, the former is quite important. Holding this key it will be sealed with your DNA and then subsequently that of the Prince Tiberius. It allows for instantaneous communication between anyone of my House. If you are ever in need of something all you need to do is hold the key, speak a phrase which activates the key and it will allow you to speak to whomever in House Trost you name, from wherever." She said, hoping the Emperor understood the significance of what that meant. In a roundabout way the Kaiserin had just confirmed that Roseheim was willing to look on Orlenais as a friend, and not just some other nation. For only three other World Leaders possessed one of the keys and they were all close allies and friends of Roseheim. "If you wish to discuss some matters, I would be most delighted to answer any questions you might have for me," the Kaiserin said taking on a more serious tone and look after handing the box to one of the King's men.

It was no secret, the state of the International Community was coming undone thanks to the cold war between Roseheim and Calraxes. The submarine was only a drop in the pond. Several fighter aircraft incidences had occurred recently where Calraxian Air Defense Fighters crossed either within ten miles or into Rosalian Air Space requiring a response from the Imperial Air Forces. Spies had been apprehended and executed or Espionage which carried the ultimate punishment in Roseheim. A month before, two Calraxian Destroyers were sighted deep within Rosalian Territorial Waters causing the Fourth Fleet to respond en masse to their location forcibly escorting them from Rosalian Waters, the matter caused the Kaiserin to expel the Calraxian Ambassador and to recall the Rosalian Ambassador to the Imperium. Matters seemed to be getting worse in the international community and while the Kaiserin did not want a war with the Imperium, she was not about to let them subvert, and undermine the security and prosperity of the Rosalian people or their allies. Two weeks prior the Kaiserin had stood before a Summit of Roseheim's closest allies and pledged to each of their leaders assembled that she would use every ounce of power and authority of Roseheim to ensure their nation's security and prosperity in the face of the dark and looming clouds of potential conflict with the Imperium. A situation and event that none were looking forward to. Few knew what went on in the Imperium, as they were an iron tight Autocratic Monarchy ruling their people through jingoism and oppression.

Alexia watcher her grandmother and the Emperor's actions closely, and when he spoke to her she curtsied once more before feeling a light coat of blush rush over her cheeks at his compliment and praise. "I thank your most gracious and wise majesty for his compliments. Thank you for having my grandmother and I in your most beautiful nation and city." She recovered and smiled at the Emperor before quickly gazing at Tiberius. He was handsome and definitely was one that she would be perfectly fine with appearance wise, but she was nervous that he was not on her level emotionally or mentally. He gave off a marvelous facade but, having perfected it herself, Alexia understood he was likely hurting beneath it and in pain. Something she knew all too well. She shook her head a little when the Emperor's attention went back to her grandmother and her gift to him. Alexia zoned out just a little, until her Lady-in-waiting and best friend, Lavinia gave her a subtle nudge from behind, which caused the Princess to release a rather loud and unflattering yelp, and also caused her to take a step forward. She quickly brought both of her hands to her mouth covering it and turning a very deep red, as she was most thoroughly embarrassed. Lavinia chuckled a little causing the Princess to turn and glare at her friend, who couldn't help but smile sheepishly. Returning to their conversation the Kaiserin and Emperor seemed to pass over the moment with grace and tact which really helped Alexia calm her nerves. Right, don't make an idiot of yourself Alexia.... wait too late for that now darling, the Prince and his father probably think I'm some skittish child. She thought to herself silently as she watched the proceedings coming to a close. Her grandmother had just suggested the Emperor and her retire to somewhere to discuss matters of importance and state, and Alexia was not sure if that would include Tiberius and her, or just Tiberius. There was a chance she would be able to just go to her quarters and relax for a little while before the dinner, though she doubted that would really happen. There was always something requiring her attention. Another, but much quieter sigh escaped her delicate red lips. The Princess was nervous and she hated that feeling more than nearly anything.

[Orlenais]

Verdanant Palace, Mariselle, Orlenais


As the Kaiserin finished presenting the key to him, Gaius smiled slightly before saying “Thank you for this wondrous gift your majesty. Truly this key will mark the day that our nations come together not just as mere allies, but the truest of friends. In any case I will make sure that both myself and my nation treasure this key for generations to come.” While he displayed a facade of calm, Gaius couldn't help but internally smirk at the way events were progressing and how the Kaiserin’s gifts had served as sign things were going his way. To be truthful to Gaius the key, while holding an immense level of utility and practical value, held a far greater symbolic value as implied by the conjoined crests. After all in essence what the key represented was the first step on what he hoped would eventually culminate in the establishment of a very close relationship between the Empire and the Imperial Dominate. Nevertheless Gaius still understand the deeper meaning of the key and some of what it meant to the people of Roseheim. You see from some of the rumors he had hear, the Kaisering had presented similar keys to some of the Imperial Dominate’s closest allies and should such rumors be true this would mean that the Kaisering now viewed the Empire as worthy of the title of friend. Nevertheless, the Emperor still had some concerns over what it meant for the future of his nation, even if some his concerns were somewhat far fetched.

Most of the concerns that Gaius held stemmed from his worries over how the Calraxes Imperium would react to Orlenais’ deepening of ties and to the state visit. It was well known that in recent weeks the Imperium had begun ratcheting up their rhetoric against the Empire as it drew closer to Roseheim and there were even rumors of Calraxian spies and agents being snuck into the Empire’s borders. With this in mind, Gaius had authorized the Imperial Intelligence Service to begin combing the court and capital for any suspicious activity as well a beginning mole hunts within the Empire’s various agencies. Nevertheless, he knew he couldn’t afford to let such worry shine through. With this in mind the Emperor drew his hand into his cloak pocket and withdrew a small cobalt colored case emblazoned with the crest of Orlenais, before offering it to the Kaiserin. As he did so he stated “Your majesty, this doesn't compare to your gift but it is something that has been passed down from Emperor to Emperor for nearly a millennia. Inside that case you will find what is known as an auram. In essence it is a device which records the memories of the past and enables the holder to view them as if they had been present at that moment in time. Among these are contained first hand accounts of the great battles of Orlenasian history to our encounters with your nation throughout history. In particular there are a couple of memories within that device that you may find quite familiar. However, that device also has a couple of secondary functions such as providing various ways to contact other holders and the capability of accessing several archives. Again I am sorry that it is not more but that is one of the greatest gifts I can offer you your majesty.” The Emperor paused for a quick second to evaluate the Kaiserin’s reaction before continuing “ Now as to your request to discuss matters of state, I believe that it would best if we included both ourselves, my son and Lady Alexia. However should you wish to limit them to the two of us that would be perfectly acceptable.” Finally he turned to Alexia and stated “Your grace, the pleasure of having you and your esteemed family her is all mine. Truly I am sure that both myself, Tiberius, and the entire nation are honored to be in the presence of noble visitors such as yourselves. In any case, I hope you do enjoy your stay within Orlenais” With this Gaius returned his attention to the Kaiserin and stated ‘”Now your majesty, if may shall we head to my office to begin discussing the matters at hand?” As he waited for her reply the Emperor began to ascend the staircase at the palace’s entrance and entered into the building, all the while guiding his guests through halls constructed of the finest marble and coated in a multitude of hues and furnished in an ornate style.

Finally,the group arrived at the Emperor’s office which while somewhat modest compared to the rest of the palace, was nonetheless filled to the brim with ancient charts, tomes, and even several fine paintings depicting everything from long dead Kings to the gardens of Mariselle. Gaius proceeded to take his place behind his polished mahogany desk and asked “Well your majesty I believe the first thing we need to discuss is the ongoing debacles with the Calraxes Imperium. As you are aware, the Imperium has been attempting to court my favor for quite some time in an attempt to gain yet another area of influence in their conflict with you. Naturally they have tried everything from bribes, gifts, to even attempting to woo young Tiberius here with their heiress. Fortunately though, their attempts have met with less than stellar results. Following the failure of these attempts they have changed their tactics to mostly ones of intimidation or outright aggression with methods ranging from naval exercises near our territorial waters to plotting my assassination. Needless to say, this had left me quite concerned over how much longer my country will be able to maintain its neutrality in the cold war between your nations. Should the current trend continue I believe it may very well be possible that Orlenais will face a full-scale rebellion by Imperium sympathizers or even a coup.” The air was filled with silence as the Emperor awaited a response from the Rosalians. Truly he hoped that by illustrating the extent of the Calraxian activities he would be able to secure some degree of cooperation from the Imperial Dominate.

In contrast to his father, who was concerned primarily with the growing threat of the Imperium and securing an alliance with Roseheim, Tiberius’ mind was preoccupied with an ongoing analysis of what had befallen Princess Alexia at the entrance to the palace. To be quite honest he was somewhat perturbed by how the Princess had seemingly lost focus during the greeting ceremony and that was without mentioning how she had almost fallen. In Orlenaisian society to do so was considered to be quite rude but Tiberius couldn’t help but think that the Princess may have been slightly distracted by something that was weighing heavily upon her mind. To him there were numerous possibilities as to what seemed to be troubling her ranging from discontent at the arranged marriage to worry over whether or not Tiberius himself would meet her standards to any number of other things. Truthfully while he found Alexia to be an exquisite example of Rosalian royalty, he was still wracked with doubt over whether or not he would live up to her seemingly lofty expectations. After all he knew that it would more than likely just take one mistake for him to be written off as some incompetent fool who was incapable of meeting her standards. With this in mind he resolved that he would do his utmost to at least appear competent while also trying to befriend Alexia. Honestly at this point it was his hope that at the very least the two would be able to build a somewhat friendly bond. Pushing such thoughts away he turned his attention his father’s query towards the Kaiserin and his subsequent request that she and the rest of her entourage join him for a round of discussions within his office.

As the group made their way towards the office, Tiberius kept a subtle eye upon he actions of the Rosalian princess to see if he could glean any further information about her mental state but upon finding himself stymied he turned his attention the questions his father had brought before the Kaiserin. As he listened to his father recollect and relay the recent actions of the Calraxians, Tiberius couldn’t help but find himself filled with a feeling of disgust at the mention of their less than subtle attempts at coercion or intimidation. Truly if there was one thing he couldn't stand it was the perceived cowardice that Imperium had shown when it had attempted to assassinate his father. Nonetheless his disgust at that action had paled in comparison to his reaction when the Imperium had sent their so-called heiress to seduce him into betraying his father and seizing throne. To him it was one thing to utilize underhanded tactics to undermine an opponent but it was quite another to attempt to have someone betray their kin. Needless to say he had felt almost felt euphoric when he had managed to manipulate that Calraxian dog into leaving of her own accord. Regardless such events were of little consequence to him at the moment as his primary concern was to be the discussions or Alexia.

[Roseheim]

Verdanant Palace, Mariselle, Orlenais

The Kaiserin smiled as the Orlesian Emperor handed her a gift and then explained the significance of it. Hildegarde had to admit to herself that it was by far one of the most generous gifts she had ever received from a foreign leader, let alone a person in general. "Majesty, I must say, I am deeply touched and delighted that you and your people are so generous as to gift this most valuable artifact to me and mine." She said beaming one of her most genuine smiles. She thought to herself for a bit about the prosepect of Alexia and Prince Tiberius being present for the stately matters, "I believe having the Prince and Princess present for the discussion would teach the two about such important matters about the world they live in. A world that is being darkened every day." She said her face growing rather grim at the prospect of Roseheim and Calraxes entering a hot conflict rather than the Cold War they were in. As they had been en route to Orlenais the Kaiserin had ordered nearly eighty thousand soldiers to board ships and to arrive in one of Orlenais' neighboring nations where they would conduct military drills with said nation, who was part of an Alliance with Roseheim. As well a the Seventh and Tenth fleets. In all this was more than enough to make the Imperium back off, lest they risk escalating the conflict into something more than simple saber rattling. She looked around at the decoration of the interior as they made their way to the office of the Emperor.

Listening to the Emperor talk about the situations between Orlenais and the Imperium were nothing new. The information had been monitored as the situations had unfolded, the Imperial Dominate had been keeping a very close eye on Orlenais because of the proximity to Roseheim's mainlands. In recent years the coastlines of the Imperial Dominate had been dotted with military instillation preparing for any possible threat of invasion from the Imperium. Most Rosalians had gotten used to them, though tourists would sometimes comment on them and would be rather intimidated by the massive concrete and titanium reinforced structures that housed massive guns, multiple ground to air and ground to ship borne missiles among a slew of other things. Rosalians had taken to calling them Concrete Bastions or more popularly Dominexes referring to the Imperial Dominate Dominate and the term Dominex which is a female Dominus. In addition to the coastal defenses, Roseheim had been building up their fleet from two hundred warships to now nearly seven hundred and fifty, with fifteen supercarriers and thirty Prosperity-Class Dreadnoughts, and then came the Sovereign-Class Dreadnought, a combination of super carrier and the Prosperity-Class Dreadnought, the Sovereign-Class had but one ship and one purpose, a floating fortress meant to act as the Flagship of the First Fleet, the most powerful warship in the arsenal of the Imperial Dominate, greatly outclassing the Imperium's Virtue-Class Dreadnought and the Dominate's own Prosperity-Class. Her exact specifications were not yet known to the public because she was still in dry dock but would be launching within two weeks of the Kaiserin's return to Roseheim, following this visit. Security was top class as it was greatly assumed by Military Intelligence that the Imperium would do anything in its power short of open war to prevent the Sovereign's Launch.

Taking a seat on the opposite side of the desk from the Emperor, Hildegarde smiled at her granddaughter before speaking, "Majesty, I understand your concerns for the safety of your nation but I assure you it is not necessary any longer. In addition to that key I presented you, which holds great symbolic purpose, I have another item to give you." She said, her Baroness Wagner pulled out a jet black folder bearing a golden crest of a Circle contained within was a sword with laurel framing it. In beautiful calligraphic type beneath the crest in the same shade of gold were the words, United Alliance of Independent Sates. The inside was a a treaty written up outlining the purpose of the UAIS, which was the Alliance that Roseheim led with nearly a dozen other nations, that constituted the bulk of those nations still in existence in the late twenty-first century. Most of the others were neutral, with those very few who remained aligned in the Coalition of Free States, headed by the Calraxes Imperium, a guise for their imperialistic puppet controlled states. The Kaiserin waited for a second before continuing, seeing the Emperor slowly flip through the pages. The last page contained a list of the signatures of all the UAIS's member states, with one blank and beneath it the words, Orlesian Empire. "On behalf of the United Alliance of Independent States, I hereby extend to your nation, the Orlesian Empire a seat at the table of the Alliance and full membership and all that that entails. Security through a united front." She said smiling some. It had taken weeks of closed door conferences with the other Alliance Leaders to get them to agree to admit Orlenais and Roseheim had lost some influence in the process as the Alliance wished to not provoke the Imperium any further and by bringing Orlenais into the Alliance that is precisely what would be happening. "It would be a great honor to have Orlenais join the Alliance and to attend the Alliance's session in the next two weeks that Roseheim is hosting for the second time. Naturally that means Orlenais is entitled to send a delegate, though for this particular conference I know that all but one of the other nations will be sending their leader." She said smiling and trying to make the atmosphere seem a little nicer than it had.

Alexia just sat silently listening to the Emperor speak and not overly surprised when he spoke about the Crown Princess of the Calraxes Imperium attempting to marry Tiberius. She was already earning a reputation among the world's monarchies for being advantageous without trying to hide it. Something generally looked down upon by monarchies who would rather hide such things behind nicely woven and intricately decorated facades and curtains. She was attempting to continue to focus and keep a subtle smile while her grandmother and the Emperor spoke about the pressing matters of state, though Alexia knew that it was a matter of time before her facade broke. She was good at hiding but matters as of late had stressed the Princess out to the point of breaking. Issues had arisen in her branch of the Imperial family when her younger brother, who was fourteen was diagnosed with Cancer and due to some laws that were passed in the fourteen hundred he could not inherit the County of Avenheim due to being terminally ill. While she did have a younger sister, she was already betrothed to another noble house in Roseheim to strengthen House Trost's retention of the Imperial Throne. Matters were even further complicated because Alexia could not matrillineally marry which meant the County of Avenheim would pass from House Trost to another Noble House considering her children would be of another dynasty. If she did marry Tiberius then one of her children would rule Avenheim but retain the surname de Orlenais and while that wasn't really an issue it also meant that she would have to rule till the child came of age to take the County themselves. She quietly played with her fingers and her signet ring. The rose of House Trost carved into a sapphire. The band itself held four amethysts and was made of titanium, a gift from her grandmother to her when Alexia had been four. She had had the ring re-sized multiple times over the years. She just sat thinking to herself of various things to keep from freaking out again like she had earlier.

[Orlenais]

Emperor's Office, Verdanant Palace

As the Kaiserin said this, the Emperor couldn’t help but slightly smile and took a slight bow before saying “ Well your majesty in Orlenais we have a tradition in which we only give such gifts to those who have been steadfast friends to us.” While he said this a thought ran through Gaius’ mind about the hidden meaning behind that statement. Essentially he was in effect acknowledging the Imperial Dominate as a true friend of the Empire in a gesture that he hoped the Kaiserin would grasp. “In any case” he said with a coy smile “Yes I do believe your point on including my son and your daughter to be quite correct and I had actually considered before you arrive. I mean after all if we do not include the next generation in discussions of state how can they hope to govern properly?” Over the following few minutes as the Rosalian delegation and Tiberius settled into their seats, the elder de Orlenais carefully scrutinized their facial features to see if anything was amiss while finishing his explanation of the details of the past few weeks. To be truthful he had neglected to mention that he had also ordered the agents of the Imperial Intelligence Office to monitor the movements of Rosalian vessels outside the Empire’s borders. From what his agents had gathered it seemed as if his concerns about a potential heating up of the cold war between Roseheim and Calraxes had been correct. “Great just what we need at the moment, more sabre rattling from the Imperium. In any case we best get moving….” While he watched as the Kaiserin was handed a black folder by one of her aides.

Taking the black folder from the baroness and bring it to a halt on the desk before him, the Emperor retrieved his spectacles and began to carefully analyze the document. As he read he noticed that the treaty for this UAIS went into excruciating detail and covered several conditions and benefits to becoming a member. To be truthful this was the other portion of the diplomatic goals he had hoped to achieve by inviting the Rosalians here and was actually quite elated. Nevertheless, he knew that by signing this treaty, he would more than likely pave the way for the Imperium to declare open war open both Orlenais and the members of the UAIS. Yet in the long run the benefits of belonging to the organization seemed to far outweigh the price the Empire would pay should Gaius not accede to the treaty. However while he was inclined to support the treaty, Gaius at least wanted to ensure that his son would have some input into the final decision and thus quickly gestured for Tiberius to come to him. Once there, Gaius passed the folder to the young prince and watched as he carefully flipped through the pages, pausing every few seconds to ensure that he had read everything. After a seeming eternity, the younger de Orlenais bent down and whispered into his father’s ear his opinion on the treaty “Father, I realize that you wish to keep the Empire neutral, but I believe that this organization will allow us to fend off the Imperium while also maintaining our neutrality. Yes it is risky but should we not sign it we risk facing the Calraxians alone. Furthermore, unlike the deal the Imperium proposed we will be able to hold onto our sovereignty.” As the Prince finished and passed the folder back to his father, the Orlenais patriarch mulled over the document for a few more minutes before stating “ Very well Kaiserin Hilegarde, the Empire of Orlenais will sign the treaty and become a member of the UAIS. As for sending a delegate to the conference you may consider it done your majesty. In any case you have my sincerest thanks for allowing us to join with you in this noble alliance. Although I must say that I bet you probably had a difficult time securing the conditions from the other members that would allow my country to remain neutral.” With these words the Emperor withdrew a gilded cobalt pen from within his desk and proceeded to sign the Treaty thus committing the nation to the UAIS.

Tiberius merely observed and mentally noted the key points of the discussion between his father and the Rosalian Kaiserin with a façade of attentiveness. To be truthful, while he did enjoy politics to a degree, he did not expect his father or the Kaiserin to involve either Alexia or himself in the discussions much less inquire as to their opinions. Needless to say the young prince was quite taken aback when his father gestured for him to review the document with which the Kaiserin had presented him. Following his recommendation to his father, the prince returned to his seat and monitored his father’s facial expressions for any hint of his intentions. As usual his father’s mastery of maintaining a façade prevented him from getting any clue as to his course of action. Nevertheless, he was not surprised when his father announced that Orlenais would commit to the treaty. Logically it made sense for the Empire to commit as they would be on their own otherwise. In any case such matters paled in comparison to the other issue that was occupying his mind, which was Princess Alexia. From what he knew about the girl she was going through somewhat of a rough patch in her life, although he didn’t know the specifics. However he had managed to glean from subtle hints in her behavior that something was weighing heavily upon her mind as evidenced by her behavior earlier. “Perhaps she does not wish for this marriage to go through? Though there is always the possibility that there is an issue with the way in which her marriage would affect the inheritance that her children would receive. Then again, there exists the possibility that I am merely reading into items that aren’t there.” The prince quietly mused before noticing that he had been mindlessly staring at the princess for quite some time in a manner seemingly unbecoming for a man of his stature. Quickly turning his gaze from her he muttered under his breath “I am such an imbecile for not noticing that I was gaping at her like a slack jawed fool.” In any case, the attention of the Prince soon returned to the ongoing discussion between his father and the Rosalian Kaiser. From the sounds of things his father had inquired if it would at all be possible for the Orlenasian Navy and that of the Imperial Dominate to possibly conduct joint drills within the near future. Though it sounded a bit preposterous at the moment he knew the exact reason as to why his father would make such request, his father was trying to ensure that he would be able to discourage an inevitable move by the Imperium to seize control of the country.

While his son mulled over his father’s decision to request naval drills between the Imperial Dominate and the Empire, Gaius was preparing to move the discussion to the next matter at hand, the oncoming war between the UAIS and the Imperium. “Your majesty” he spoke in a collected manner “I realize that we have only just signed the alliance, but I do believe that it is time we discuss the eventuality of war between the UAIS and the Imperium. For now the Calraxians are merely sabre rattling as well as conducting exercises but how long do you believe we have until they begin making overt moves…Well I mean it will more than likely occur following the public announcement of this treaty but nonetheless it would be most appreciated to hear your opinion upon this matter your majesty.” As Gaius said this his previously somewhat disinterested expression broke into a façade of intense contemplation as he waited the Kaiserin’s response.