Iuthia
20-09-2004, 22:48
Several men had gathered in the dark war room situated somewhere deep below Iuthia Prima, it was a large room designed for multiple uses such as planning attacks, secret meetings and on the odd occasion... poker. In the middle of the room was a large round table with green felt making the top of it feel smooth. In the background a large tactical screen could be seen for all people seated at the table to view during planning.
“Call”
James lay down is five cards on the table; three aces and a pair of twos. The other four Iuthians in the room cringed as three of them dropped their hands face down. The last person, the only woman in the room, had already folded and wasn't in the game... she had a bad deal from the start.
“Read them and weep guys; a full house.” The Lord General deGritz then pulled the mediocre pile of casino chips towards him. James wasn't winning over all, but he had pulled back some of the fake money he had lost.
Business was often too dull for James these days, when he was younger he had a habit of taking every matter very seriously; calling meeting with the best advisors in the land and generally making a huge fuss over the smallest of problems. Back then he was a young man, only just getting used to his infinite power over Iuthia, "With great power comes great responsibility" and all that crap. However, these days he found other ways of doing business, having a informal game of poker while talking about the security of the nation may have seemed rather irresponsible to some, but it helped his some of staff to relax while they talked about problems both large and small... though the former was farley rare these days as Iuthia was a rock of stability.
The men around him represented various experts and members of the Iuthian government who would be needed to help him reach a decision regarding this latest problem. Three of them James knew well: Scientist General Kristine Kale, his chief scientist and scientific advisor, Foreign Minister Mick Lakely, James’s close friend and foreign affairs advisor and finally General “Buck” Turgidson, the minister of defence for Iuthia. The final player in this game of poker was a tall, bald man with a stern appearance and a scar across his face, it had surprised James to find out this man was an anthropologist… others said odd things about this mans beliefs but his record was exemplary.
“Dr. Mandrake, after reading your latest report on the finding of ‘Operation Hound Dog’, you have concluded that these creatures who killed our men in Umbar Rain Forest are not only intelligent, but are likely to be very much sentient as well; a conclusion which gives us a whole new concern as we can’t just exterminate them as pests.” James took the cards and started to shuffle them for another round of poker. “With this in mind you have proposed that because they are capable of language and society we can probably work out some form of… ‘arrangement’ with these dog men. How do you suppose we can go about doing this while minimising the losses from our own people?”
James started the deal the cards out to everyone, handing out five cards each one at a time. It wasn’t any particular form of poker, it was more of a small game designed to keep everyone at ease as they discussed matters of national security. Dr. Mandrake listened carefully and made sure that James had finished before replying.
“Well Sir, we would need to study them carefully without them knowing in order to get the best results. That way we can work out how their society works and maybe even work out their language so we can communicate properly and make our terms.
“So far we have determined that these dog men, who have been linked to being close in physiology to Gnolls, have shown signs of having an form of tribal society and a verbal language similar but much more advanced then that of a hyena. We know that food is their main drive due to the large amount they need to consume due to their large size and strength… the biggest problem we will have with them is convincing them we are not food, perhaps we will, once proper contact has been made, be able to use food as our bargaining chip by showing them we can bring more food then we are worth.
“What I’m proposing is a long term anthropological study of these creatures to determine the best way to deal with them and perhaps even use them to our advantage in the future… it’s clear that they would make excellent fighters if they can be controlled.”
James and his advisors listened to the man carefully, considering his words with their own ideas of how to handle the situation. The doctor had an odd history with the military; he had been professionally with the army for five years before even starting on the long road to anthropology, few people knew why he did this though the suggestions were that he wanted to understand Iuthia better by experiencing the biggest influence on the Iuthian society for himself. He had always been interested in the way human society grew and it was a surprise to his teachers when he professionally joined the army for a period. During that time he had been an excellent soldier and had achieved a reasonable rank before leaving. Since that time twenty years ago he had become one of the most capable in his field working around the world, as Iuthia wasn’t the best nation to indulge in such interests in history. He was now considered to be the leader of his field after surviving some hairy situations in which he earned his scars. General Turgidson liked the man for his honour and discipline… though Kristine didn’t like his tough outlook on life.
“And how would we keep them under control Dr. Mandrake? These creatures don’t look like the type who will listen to reason. After all, you stated yourself in this report that these Gnolls are led by the strongest fighter, not the wisest.” She asked him in a cold voice. They had a little bit of a history regarding a previous issue, but thankfully their lines of work rarely cross.
“While our studies have suggested that these creatures most likely have strong leader, that doesn’t mean to say that the wise people of their tribes are ignored. We are hoping that they will be looking to support their tribe in the best manner they can. We can offer them the best way without them actually having to do much.” He retorted.
“But you are not certain, Doctor. What will you do if we can’t secure a deal with them? They would still pose a danger.”
The anthropologist turned directly to Lord General deGritz who had finished dealing the cards out earlier but hadn’t started the hand because he was listening carefully to the argument.
“In that case we would have to use a show of force to illustrate our intent to secure our nation. If they are unwilling to accept our offers to bribe them from attacking our villages then we will have no choice but to defend ourselves aggressively. In time they will either learn to fear us and stop trying or they will reconsider our offer.” He finished, facing the general, not his science advisor who had asked the question.
“It’s sound military reasoning Sir, these creatures see us as easy food. If they can’t listen to reason then we will have to show them that we are above them in the food chain.” Buck Turgidson agreed with the Doctor.
“But for all we know this species could be rare… we can’t seriously consider military action against them. They could be one of a kind!” Kristine complained.
“We wouldn’t wipe them out, that’s against our policy and morals. We would just make a point of giving them something to relate to when they next consider our families as food. Anyways, we can plan the specifics of how we will show force if it should come to that.” The General replied.
“I have to side with the Doctor on this one, we can’t afford to show weakness to these creatures. Should it come to that we will need to show our resolve. However, I want to avoid that… if we can do this peacefully then all the better.” James deGritz finally commented. “Now Doctor, how do you propose you conduct your anthropological studies on these creatures?”
“Well sir, we are still considering the ‘how’ but we have a few ideas already drawn up. I will update on the best plan of action once we have ironed out all the possibilities.”
“Very well, Doctor.” James looked at his cards and considered the future. “I’ll start the betting with ten credits.”
“Call”
James lay down is five cards on the table; three aces and a pair of twos. The other four Iuthians in the room cringed as three of them dropped their hands face down. The last person, the only woman in the room, had already folded and wasn't in the game... she had a bad deal from the start.
“Read them and weep guys; a full house.” The Lord General deGritz then pulled the mediocre pile of casino chips towards him. James wasn't winning over all, but he had pulled back some of the fake money he had lost.
Business was often too dull for James these days, when he was younger he had a habit of taking every matter very seriously; calling meeting with the best advisors in the land and generally making a huge fuss over the smallest of problems. Back then he was a young man, only just getting used to his infinite power over Iuthia, "With great power comes great responsibility" and all that crap. However, these days he found other ways of doing business, having a informal game of poker while talking about the security of the nation may have seemed rather irresponsible to some, but it helped his some of staff to relax while they talked about problems both large and small... though the former was farley rare these days as Iuthia was a rock of stability.
The men around him represented various experts and members of the Iuthian government who would be needed to help him reach a decision regarding this latest problem. Three of them James knew well: Scientist General Kristine Kale, his chief scientist and scientific advisor, Foreign Minister Mick Lakely, James’s close friend and foreign affairs advisor and finally General “Buck” Turgidson, the minister of defence for Iuthia. The final player in this game of poker was a tall, bald man with a stern appearance and a scar across his face, it had surprised James to find out this man was an anthropologist… others said odd things about this mans beliefs but his record was exemplary.
“Dr. Mandrake, after reading your latest report on the finding of ‘Operation Hound Dog’, you have concluded that these creatures who killed our men in Umbar Rain Forest are not only intelligent, but are likely to be very much sentient as well; a conclusion which gives us a whole new concern as we can’t just exterminate them as pests.” James took the cards and started to shuffle them for another round of poker. “With this in mind you have proposed that because they are capable of language and society we can probably work out some form of… ‘arrangement’ with these dog men. How do you suppose we can go about doing this while minimising the losses from our own people?”
James started the deal the cards out to everyone, handing out five cards each one at a time. It wasn’t any particular form of poker, it was more of a small game designed to keep everyone at ease as they discussed matters of national security. Dr. Mandrake listened carefully and made sure that James had finished before replying.
“Well Sir, we would need to study them carefully without them knowing in order to get the best results. That way we can work out how their society works and maybe even work out their language so we can communicate properly and make our terms.
“So far we have determined that these dog men, who have been linked to being close in physiology to Gnolls, have shown signs of having an form of tribal society and a verbal language similar but much more advanced then that of a hyena. We know that food is their main drive due to the large amount they need to consume due to their large size and strength… the biggest problem we will have with them is convincing them we are not food, perhaps we will, once proper contact has been made, be able to use food as our bargaining chip by showing them we can bring more food then we are worth.
“What I’m proposing is a long term anthropological study of these creatures to determine the best way to deal with them and perhaps even use them to our advantage in the future… it’s clear that they would make excellent fighters if they can be controlled.”
James and his advisors listened to the man carefully, considering his words with their own ideas of how to handle the situation. The doctor had an odd history with the military; he had been professionally with the army for five years before even starting on the long road to anthropology, few people knew why he did this though the suggestions were that he wanted to understand Iuthia better by experiencing the biggest influence on the Iuthian society for himself. He had always been interested in the way human society grew and it was a surprise to his teachers when he professionally joined the army for a period. During that time he had been an excellent soldier and had achieved a reasonable rank before leaving. Since that time twenty years ago he had become one of the most capable in his field working around the world, as Iuthia wasn’t the best nation to indulge in such interests in history. He was now considered to be the leader of his field after surviving some hairy situations in which he earned his scars. General Turgidson liked the man for his honour and discipline… though Kristine didn’t like his tough outlook on life.
“And how would we keep them under control Dr. Mandrake? These creatures don’t look like the type who will listen to reason. After all, you stated yourself in this report that these Gnolls are led by the strongest fighter, not the wisest.” She asked him in a cold voice. They had a little bit of a history regarding a previous issue, but thankfully their lines of work rarely cross.
“While our studies have suggested that these creatures most likely have strong leader, that doesn’t mean to say that the wise people of their tribes are ignored. We are hoping that they will be looking to support their tribe in the best manner they can. We can offer them the best way without them actually having to do much.” He retorted.
“But you are not certain, Doctor. What will you do if we can’t secure a deal with them? They would still pose a danger.”
The anthropologist turned directly to Lord General deGritz who had finished dealing the cards out earlier but hadn’t started the hand because he was listening carefully to the argument.
“In that case we would have to use a show of force to illustrate our intent to secure our nation. If they are unwilling to accept our offers to bribe them from attacking our villages then we will have no choice but to defend ourselves aggressively. In time they will either learn to fear us and stop trying or they will reconsider our offer.” He finished, facing the general, not his science advisor who had asked the question.
“It’s sound military reasoning Sir, these creatures see us as easy food. If they can’t listen to reason then we will have to show them that we are above them in the food chain.” Buck Turgidson agreed with the Doctor.
“But for all we know this species could be rare… we can’t seriously consider military action against them. They could be one of a kind!” Kristine complained.
“We wouldn’t wipe them out, that’s against our policy and morals. We would just make a point of giving them something to relate to when they next consider our families as food. Anyways, we can plan the specifics of how we will show force if it should come to that.” The General replied.
“I have to side with the Doctor on this one, we can’t afford to show weakness to these creatures. Should it come to that we will need to show our resolve. However, I want to avoid that… if we can do this peacefully then all the better.” James deGritz finally commented. “Now Doctor, how do you propose you conduct your anthropological studies on these creatures?”
“Well sir, we are still considering the ‘how’ but we have a few ideas already drawn up. I will update on the best plan of action once we have ironed out all the possibilities.”
“Very well, Doctor.” James looked at his cards and considered the future. “I’ll start the betting with ten credits.”