NationStates Jolt Archive

Westwood, Jarridia- The city is overflowing with excitement as the Westwood Alliance's newly elected President, Robert Barker, announced a summit meeting with the nation Xeraph. The sidewalks are barracaded to accomodate the approximately 4 million excited Jarridian citizens that will cheer the motorcade carrying the alliance President and Xeraph's President up
the main stretch of roadway to the Alliance's government center. The thoroughfares of the city and many buildings have been adorned by signs annoucing the summit, as well as the flags of the nations Leahlandistan, Yugoslavitania, and Jarridia, whose delegations will be attending the meeting. Trade and foreign relations are expected to be the main topics of the meeting which will last 1-2 days. George Winston, speaking in front of the Westwood government center, Westwood, Jarridia, Westwood Central News

The Emperor of the Xeraphian Empire was feeling especially splendid this morning. He had been looking forward to this Summit for weeks, and had for the first time in his reign summoned the royal tailor for an outfit suitable to the occasion. His normal attire consisted of a battle-suit of black leather, a titanium alloy chainmail chemise, a black leather tunic, and matching trousers. His outfit was completed with dual Glock 9mm handguns in shoulder-holsters and his twin double-edged katanas. The only thing that indicated his leadership status was the thin band of iron set with the black ruby of Xeraph on his head. This was the uniform he wore day and night, to whatever function in whatever nation he was visiting. And his retinue was identically clad, except for the iron crown.

Today, however, was different. The royal tailor had outdone himself. The Emperor was, for the first time in history, wearing a business suit. A simple cut of the finest Khitan black silk matched with a dark grey cotton shirt and matching silk tie. A dark grey silk hankerchief was discreetly tucked into the chest pocket of the suit coat. A pair of hand-crafted eel-skin dress loafers finished the look.

But there was no mistaking Alaric Tan'it for a smooth-talking playboy. It was plain to see that he was a ruler not to be trifled with. Standing six feet seven inches tall, he was 266 pounds of hard-muscled brute force. His long black hair hung freely about his shoulders and his greying chin-beard and moustache were trimmed neatly. As he raised his hands to wave at the screaming crowds, one could see the tips of his many intricate tribal tattoos which festooned his arms and back. He wore no jewelry.....that was for women. His piercing blue eyes were all the color he found necessary to complete the new clothes. Them and the solitary Glock he still insisted on carrying.

It was good to be back in Jarridia after almost 45 years. Jarridia was one of the Empire's oldest and trusted allies.....friends actually. He thought back to the last time he was here to have a chat with President Branham, long since dead, and old Eric Valtane of Verboten Luftewaffe, also long gone. But, the new president of the WWA, Robert Barker, seemed to be cut of the same cloth as his old friends, and so he was anticipating a good time.

"Mlord, it's time.....President Barker is waiting."

" Thank you, Captain. I assume I'll be riding alone with the President?"

" Yessir. President Barker has more than sufficiently provided security for all attendees. But I guess that you'll still want the Brujah with you."

" Not in the limo, Captain. I've instructed them to meet up with me at the conference center. I'll explain to everyone when they show up."

" Very well m'lord. Shall we go?"

As the Emperor appeared from the plane, President Barker and his wife Leah, appeared and walked down a red carpet on the tarmac to greet the Emperor. The President was wearing a dark blue conservative looking suit with white shirt and bright blue tie. Barker was a limber man, with a yet athletic build, and piercing green eyes, and a no-nonsense attitude. He had just been elected not long ago. Despite bumps he faced in his first days in office, he had managed to weather the storm and was very confident as he strode up the red path, an honor guard to one side standing in serious unwavering stolid fashion in their soviet-era uniforms. His wife Leah, was a slender beautiful woman with long black hair, and a strong confident appearance walked arm in arm with her husband. As the two parties met and shook hands, Barker said," Welcome to the Westwood Alliance, it is good to see you your majesty in our honored city and land in more than 45 years. I hope it won't be another 45 years before you visit again. We are honored to have you in our city and to hold meetings with you and your government to strengthen relations. I feel that is important to stay in touch with our allies and to have a strong friendship with them. Your presence here is magnificently admired here in Westwood. They walked toward and stepped into a dark 2007 Cadillac DTS Limousine and drove off into the distance awaiting the greeting by nearly 4 million people inside the inner city.....

As the limo sped along, there was a bit of an awkward silence for a minute or so. Alaric broke the ice by commenting on the beauty of the city, and then asked, " So, Mr. President, it seems that WWA has been pretty effective since it's inception. Far more peace has prevailed than war. Xeraph has been involved in only two major wars and a couple of terrorist incidents. Although the last war was a doozy. I had three of my nobles, of my own family, rebell and form an alliance that grew so rapidly that we and our allies could hardly keep up with them. The Allied Coalition defeated the Black and Grey Imperium, but it was the second costliest war in our history. And now it seems that the remnants of that evil axis are rattling their sabers again.

But, enough of war. I understand that you are interested in some new trade and research agreements with us?"

Tag

The President and his wife were looking out the window at the cheering crowds on the side walks. The President and his wife looked over at the emporer and the President replied, "We wish for Xeraph and the Westwood Alliance to work together to cooperate in economic programs and joint work in the space program. We wish to work together in the educational sector as well as trade. One of the ideas involving trade is the Westwood Corporate Exchange program, a program to allow Xeraph to build factories in the Westwood Alliance and invest in The Westwood Alliance. In turn, The Westwood Alliance would invest in Xeraph and build factories in Xeraph. Therefore you usher in Mutual Prosperity."

The President and his wife were looking out the window at the cheering crowds on the side walks. The President and his wife looked over at the emporer and the President replied, "We wish for Xeraph and the Westwood Alliance to work together to cooperate in economic programs and joint work in the space program. We wish to work together in the educational sector as well as trade. One of the ideas involving trade is the Westwood Corporate Exchange program, a program to allow Xeraph to build factories in the Westwood Alliance and invest in The Westwood Alliance. In turn, The Westwood Alliance would invest in Xeraph and build factories in Xeraph. Therefore you usher in Mutual Prosperity."


Alaric thought about this for a moment. "Mr. President, as you know, the Empire has some holdings in space, specifically in the Typhon Expanse and the Taiuuen Expanse, both in the Tau Ceti Constellation. We have settled six planets, four in Typhon and two in Taiuuen. Of the six, two are primarily manufacturing sites. The planets NeoGaia and Ascendington provide us with 82% of our manufactured needs, including military hardware.

We have scheduled construction on three more planets in the near future. Perhaps you would be interested in a joint venture to develope these planets for our mutual benefit?"

bump

As the limousine arrived at the entrance of the government center, an ontourage of press officials converged on the cars. The President and his wife as well as the Emporer emerged from the vehicle. They were met with flashes of cameras and the yells of questions from conscientious reporters. They entered the lobby of the government center and proceeded down the hall way to be met by a delegation of Westwood officials as well as others. On the way down, the president said" Yes we would like to develop these planets for our mutual benefit, your majesty. We hope to work to forge agreements for such a program during this summit." They met a group of officials, led by a large Korean tall and broad shouldered man of 65, named Kim Yong Nang. Nang was the Ambassador of Yugoslavitania. It was quite clear, from Kim's immense knowledge and his eloquence, why Barker chose him to hold Ambassador and co-lead the summit delegation. The group filed down a hall way into the congressional chamber where they were loudly applauded by the alliance congress. They made their way to their seats as the applause subsided, and as the first lady of The Westwood Alliance made her way to the rostrum and addressed the chamber. It was the first time she made her appearance in public before. The beautiful slender woman with hair as dark as the night, lips and nails painted crimson red in a blue dress suit with a skirt, who had never spoken before a crowd, began to speak: " Mr. President, his majesty, the Emporer of Xeraph, members of congress, fellow citizens, We gather in this hallowed chamber to usher in a new era of foreign relations. We welcome his majesty to our city and we are honored to have him here today.We hope to usher in a new era of peace, prosperity, and security by holding a summit meeting with Xeraph. We hope to grace many frontiers, here on earth, as well as in outerspace. Thankyou very much for your time, and God bless." She remained at the podium as the audience erupted in applause and stood in ovation.........................

Alaric stood, bowed to the President's wife, and gave a short wave to the audience. He sat back down, suddenly realizing that he was completely unguarded by his Brujah. He wasn't alarmed as he knew they would not be far away. It was just an unusual feeling. They were always at his side, and knew that if he needed them they would be there in less than a second. It was just as well that they were not visible....they always created quite a stir.

His attention returned to the proceedings.

The President and his wife, and the Emporer entered through the double oak doors into the room, their respective delegations following behind. The parties took their seats across from one another. They began the discussion, with the President opening the meeting. "Your Majesty, we would like to discuss a joint space program, a military pact, and a few other provisions. One thing is the construction of universities in Westwood for both sides to take part in. Second, a program that would allow your nation to invest in the alliance by constructing factories and agricultural centers in the Westwood Alliance. I do hope we can create agreements for these programs."

The President and his wife, and the Emporer entered through the double oak doors into the room, their respective delegations following behind. The parties took their seats across from one another. They began the discussion, with the President opening the meeting. "Your Majesty, we would like to discuss a joint space program, a military pact, and a few other provisions. One thing is the construction of universities in Westwood for both sides to take part in. Second, a program that would allow your nation to invest in the alliance by constructing factories and agricultural centers in the Westwood Alliance. I do hope we can create agreements for these programs."


Alaric agreed. " I'm sure we can come to agreement on all points mentioned. If I may, I would like to start with the universities.

What I envision is one massive, multi-academic educational site wherein all of the various disciplines are made available. Liberal Arts, the Sciences, the Humanities, and so on. I would also like to see a medical school and a School of Theology. One further discipline, also. A military school similar to the old StarFleet Academy. Qualified candidates would spend six years learning about every aspect of war, both offensive and defensive.

Secondly, as you know, all of the Empire's manufacturing is done off-world on the planet NeoGaia, Typhon Expanse, Constellation Tau Ceti. It is a very large planet, about half again as large as Jupiter, and has six moons orbiting it. NeoGaia is also the location for the largest XSL Space Dock. As a result, the planet is heavily guarded by Orbital Battle Platforms, Extra-Spatial Battle Platforms, and an OctaSpheric Sensory Sentinel. The OBPs are one square mile in size, the ESBPs are twelve square miles in size, and the OSSS is the size of a large asteroid, approximately six hundred square miles in size.

I relate all of this to you so as to assure you that any investment that you make in Xeraphian manufacturing will be well protected.

In addition, I am willing to build whatever types of manufacturing plants you deem necessary in WWA territories. My AI engineering teams can construct a 600,000 square foot plant in less than a month. As they require neither rest nor food, they are both economical and fast. And, they don't require a paycheck. If you provide the building materials, I will provide the labor."

It was at that moment that his bodyguards appeared. The Brujah were a disturbing sight to those who were familiar with them, never mind those who weren't. The Jarridian guards in the room started forward, automags pointed at the intruders. Alaric held up his hand.

" Please stop where you are. These are my personal guards, and they mean you no harm.....as long as you don't come within ten feet of me." He spoke a gutteral syllable, and Brujah stepped back twenty paces. They had a curious gliding motion as they moved.

" Mr. President, please forgive me. My friends here have dedicated their existence to guarding me from all harm, real or perceived.

They are called Brujah. Their scientific name is Hominis Nocturnis. 'Men of the Night'. Some call them vampires, but they are not what you would traditionally think when you hear that word.

They are citizens of my subject-nation, Vhammpyr. There are two types of citizens in Vhammpyr. The common man, and the Brujah. There are about two and a half million commoners in Vhammpyr. There are only 712 Brujah.

Vhammpyrians are long-lived even by my standards. The average citizen is about 250 years old, a bit older than myself. The Brujah are thousands of years old. In fact, their King, Teii, is known to be just over 9,200 years old.

At any rate, they are fearsome in appearence, which is why they are covered in a long robe. A simple touch from one of them, and the affected person falls to the floor, writhing in unimaginable pain, blood pouring from every orifice in the body."

Alaric glanced at the President's wife, who had turned a curious shade of white. " Madame, no one in this room has to fear my Brujah. Please relax, and lets continue the discussion."

The President said," Well, I am happy to see that both parties have a set groundwork in WWA-Xeraph relations. We can begin work on the factories immediatly. That being said, I hope to conclude an agreement, essentially a pact of sorts known as The Westwood International business exchange program. Next there is another agreement I wish to conclude is Westwood Alliance Treaty Organization (WWATO). This agreement will set up an organization of collective security in The Westwood Alliance and in the territory of its allies. The organization would be headed by a supervisory group of military and civilian officials of each nation called The Westwood Alliance Military Supervisory Board (WWAMSB). There is also a pro-education agreement called The Westwood International Education and Enlightenment Organization (WWIEEO) to provide for the international cooperation in education and universities. I do hope that these agreements can be beneficial to WWA-Xeraph relations."

The President said," Well, I am happy to see that both parties have a set groundwork in WWA-Xeraph relations. We can begin work on the factories immediatly. That being said, I hope to conclude an agreement, essentially a pact of sorts known as The Westwood International business exchange program. Next there is another agreement I wish to conclude is Westwood Alliance Treaty Organization (WWATO). This agreement will set up an organization of collective security in The Westwood Alliance and in the territory of its allies. The organization would be headed by a supervisory group of military and civilian officials of each nation called The Westwood Alliance Military Supervisory Board (WWAMSB). There is also a pro-education agreement called The Westwood International Education and Enlightenment Organization (WWIEEO) to provide for the international cooperation in education and universities. I do hope that these agreements can be beneficial to WWA-Xeraph relations."

" Mr. President, I am prepared to offer two Royal Xeraphian Carrier Battle Groups to the common protection of all WWA members. These are in addition to the WarHammer Battle Group already stationed in Jarridia. Also, should you wish to pursue a space program common to all members, I am willing to contribute two Orbital Battle Platforms, an Extra Spatial Battle Platform, and an Octa-Spheric Sensory Sentinel. In addition, Xeraph will construct a base on a planet of WWA's choice for the basing of all WWA space vessels. WWATO and WWIEEO are excellent ideas, and Xeraph backs them all the way."

The President said to the emporer, " I hope to conclude these agreements with our signatures. I will have the agreements set up ready for signing in the treaty room."