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As the two brothers headed for the throne room, Lawrence could’ve sworn that he saw a small smile tugging at the corner of his brother’s lips. It wasn’t a pleasant smile; it was more like heinous satisfaction. As they arrived at their destination, Lawrence hoped that Shasta was able to catch up with the lass..

Magnus sat in his throne with a wide smile on his face. He was talking with Lord Moonstone and Lord Reinbolt about something, and laughing. His cheeks were flushed, and his demeanor seemed strong, which made Lawrence relieved.

His father hadn’t been in the best of health for a long time, but hadn’t had any issues since Skye had healed him after the Mage Trials. It was both a relief, and questionable to many..

As soon as the MacArthur brothers sat down, the meeting began. Every lord and high-ranking official was there, except Shasta. Since she hated politics, Zas always volunteered to go, whenever Tidas wasn’t present.

Anna and Victor were excited to see the RMC Headquarters with Shasta, so it was one less worry for the Ruscovic King. For some reason, he’d been especially paranoid to bring them to Alcon this time. Like he knew in his bones that something bad was going to happen while he was there.

Seeing his father in excellent health alleviated some of his worry, but something within Lawrence was warning him that things would change, and soon...

Lost in his thoughts, Lawrence barely heard his farther begin speaking; “Good day to you, my Lords. We have many things to discuss today, but I would like to start by congratulating my son, King Lawrence, on his engagement to our fair Vice Commander of the RMC: Shasta.”

The clasps were not as enthusiastic as Magnus would’ve liked, but at least they were all smart enough to do it. A few were worried about another kingdom taking one of their strongest warriors, but many were more disturbed by the fact that a King would marry a Fae.

.....

Since Fae and humans couldn’t procreate, they weren’t considered ‘proper marriage prospects’ for humans. The only Fae/human couples that there were, were ones that truly loved each other..

Even in Ruscovic; Lawrence and Shasta would be the first human/Fae rulers in the Star Continent’s history. The only rulers that had ever been Fae were the ones that ruled the Fae Nation. A few royals had been known to take Fae lovers, but none were ever elevated above mistress status.

As the clapping stopped, Magnus continued; “The first thing we must discuss is the movements of the Sync Kingdom. According to Lord Moonstone, they have been buying up vast amounts of rope, wood, and cloth. As you all know, Sync can produce these items themselves, so why would they need to buy up extra?”

Magnus paused for dramatic effect; “It’s because they are building a massive fleet! Bigger than anything we’ve ever seen. They were smart about it, and used up all of their materials for the ships. Most of their armada is built already..”

Murmurs and whispers began to spread amongst the lords, until Lawrence stood up and spoke; “Did you all forget that there are two allied kingdoms in this room that also have ships? Princess Karena: would your brother join me in providing ships for his ally?”

Karena stood up in her over-the-top red dress and replied; “My brother will honor his alliance with Alcon! He has already pledged fifty of his swiftest ships to come to our aid. How many can you provide, dearest Brother-in-Law?”

Lawrence wanted to snap at her. It was well known that the Meccano Kingdom had close to two-hundred ships under their control. The only kingdom that rivaled them before Sync was the Fire Nation. In such a situation, fifty ships was laughable.

“And what of the other one-hundred forty or do ships? Will they be idly sitting in the waters? Or does your brother plan to fight as well?”

Karena cleared her throat nervously; “My brother is currently engaged in negotiations with the Sync Kingdom. He is trying to get them to agree to a truce-”

“Doesna that violate the treaty he holds with the King of Alcon?” Lucas asked with a scrutinizing stare.

Karena shook her head; “No, the treaty he proposed excludes him from any fighting between the two kingdoms. He would not be allowed to offer help to either kingdom, should a conflict between Alcon and Sync occur..”

The room erupted with the angry opinions of the nobles. The treaty that Meccano held with Alcon stipulated that they had to provide aid during war, and Alcon had to do the same. Meccano was located under Sai, and controlled the second largest port to Sync.

Both the Fire Nation and the Sync Kingdom had attacked Meccano’s main port city, and Alcon had sent aid every time. Soldiers, food, Shamans; everything that Karena’s brother had requested, they sent. He had only aided in a couple skirmishes with Sync and Ital: nowhere near the same that Alcon had had helped.

Magnus slammed his hand down on the arm of his chair, gaining everyone’s attention; “If your brother is our ally, then why is he selling to my enemies? Tis in the treaty that he’s not allowed to sell anything that could be used in war!”

Karena flinched at her father-in-law’s harsh tone before she meekly replied; “My brother hasn’t sold any weapons or munitions to the Sync King-”

“No! Just everything the Sync King needs to finish off his Armada! Are you going to stand there and tell me that your brother had no idea Why the Sync Kingdom wanted such things in bulk orders?!”

Karena’s anger flared slightly; “I know almost nothing about what my brother does! I’m here! I am loyal to My King and Kingdom! I am not to blame for my brother’s follies!”

Many were shocked at how Karena had spoken to her king, and Magnus was no exception. As his anger surged, he readied himself to snap on his daughter-in-law.. But Marco spoke before he could.

“How Dare you speak to your King like that! Leave this room, and wait to be summoned! Now!”

Honest fear shined in Karena’s eyes as she did what her husband ordered. Many of the nobles seemed to approve of him ‘putting her in her place’. Lawrence was torn over it; he hated Karena, but Marco should’ve stuck up for his wife, not screamed at her.

Although she had gone about it in the completely wrong way, Karena was right. There was no way that she could know what her brother was up to from another kingdom. No one would send such sensitive information so far away, and she only visited once a year for a couple of weeks.

‘I can’t believe I’m doing this..’

Standing up, Lawrence spoke in a booming voice; “I believe that she should be punished for her disrespectful attitude, but not for her brothers actions. I believe that Princess Karena is quite loyal to the crown that she will wear some day. I do not see her jeopardizing that.”

Magnus sighed and nodded; “You are correct, King Lawrence. Her attitude needs some adjustments, but her loyalty is sound..”

Magnus turned to Marco; “You are her husband, so I will leave her punishment up to you..”

Standing to address the room, Magnus spoke in a booming voice; “Even without Meccano’s full-backing, there is another potential ally.. Genie, come up here lad! They need to see whom I speak of.”

As he stood up from his seat, many began to whisper and gossip about him..

“So that’s him?! That’s Jin Laos?! He looks so small..”

“Fool, he’s the world’s deadliest ninja! What did you expect?! He’s built for stealth..”

“Really? I thought the point of a ninja was to go unnoticed? But he’s famous..”

Lord Reinbolt got sick of all of the chatter and practically yelled; “He’s Sai’s deterrent, like the Pillars are for us, you fools! Why would a ninja show his face otherwise?!”

Genie has to stifle a laugh at Reinbolt’s comment. He was completely right, but Genie wasn’t the only renowned warrior in Sai, nor was he the strongest anymore. A man he hated more than anyone held that title now...

As he approached Magnus, Genie shook the unpleasant thought from his head. He bowed respectfully to the Alconian King, then addressed the nobles before him..

“I am Jin Laos, or ‘Genie’ as my friends call me. I am the representative for the Sai Republic, and I have come here to attempt to create a treaty with Alcon. But there are certain things that I must clarify for that to happen.”

“First, Princess Skye would need to go to Sai with her dragon. The Senators wish to verify that the dragon is both real, and in good heal-”

Marco stood up; “Why do they need to verify anything about a dragon that has nothing to do with them?”

Genie kept a neutral expression as he replied; “As most know, Sai revers dragons. We believe them to be the representatives of divinity in this world. My leaders simply wish to see the miracle for themselves, and to make sure that there’s no chance that the only known dragon in existence is in danger.”

“Who would it be in danger from?” Marco asked with an even tone, but something glimmered in his eyes that Genie didn’t like.

A veiled threat shined back at Genie, but he didn’t flinch.. ‘If he thinks he can get me to react, he’s got another thing coming..’

Genie was only a year or so older than Marco, and their closeness in years made them both feel a touch of competitiveness every time they had seen each other over the winter. Since Lucas and Lidia had come up to the palace for Hogmanay, he had been spending more and more time within the palace.

He knew that Zazzy had gone after Skye and Tidas, but he still made it a point to spend at least a chunk of his time at Zazzy’s Place. He said that it was in case she did come home, but that wasn’t the whole truth.

Maevis and Nicolas were sitting in on the meeting, too, and nodded to Genie; giving him their okay to share what they had told him..

“There is a place in Sai that can examine Zazzy, and see if she’s like her mother..”

Magnus stared at him; “What? Big and scaly?”

As the lords laughed, Genie smiled broadly and replied; “Well, that’s a given.. But I meant a breeder..”