NationStates Jolt Archive

Oslo, Norway
The morning of July 14th started at seven o’clock in Oslo, as seven M71A1 LW155 field guns at Akershus Fortress broke the morning silence with a twenty-one gun salute in honor of the King, who had risen an hour prior and who was now about half-way through his morning routine, which included a 3 kilometer run around the block along with his security detail and some cardio workout, a trip into the bathroom to shower and shave, consume a breakfast and read the morning newspapers from all over the Realm over a few cups of fine Colombian coffee. He was just finishing the first cup of coffee and reading through Aftenposten, the newspaper of choice for the King when the gun salute shattered the peace. Finishing the cup, he rose and walked over to the tall window that overlooked Karl Johan Street, which was the national parade street, and down at the white clouds of smoke that originated at the 900 year old fortress.

He had a long day ahead of him, with meetings with the Cabinet, the leadership of the Storting, the military chiefs of staff, a delegation from the commerce guilds, a lot of ambassadors, and a group of school children, all of whom would come to wish him a happy birthday, and all of that before lunch. After lunch, which would be held at Oslo City Hall, he’d visit various places in and around Oslo before the long-announced party at the Royal Palace in the evening. The servants were probably already busy pulling out the crystal glasses and cracking out the good stuff, he mused. After all, this was the chance to really show off to the many heads of states and governments that would participate tonight.

All over the country, people were displaying their flags and celebrating the King’s birthday. Bars and pubs used the opportunity to make a buck by having a semi-arranged birthday party in honor of the King, and many shops and stores had a portrait of the King placed in the window storefronts with congratulating streamers and flowers at the picture. All the way down Karl Johan, Cottish flags were decorating the street and all public buildings, and most businesses and private buildings, also flagged to honor their King. It wasn’t mandatory, but they did it never the less as a show of support and love to the King, who was one of the most popular persons in Cotland. A whooping 96 % supported the monarchy in a recent poll, with 1.7 % not being certain and a lowly 2.3 % being against the institution, and the support for the monarchy showed.

The King returned to the breakfast table and poured himself another cup – he had servants for this purpose, but they were normally dismissed after having carried in the breakfast and newspapers – and sat down again, reading over the headlines in Verdens Gang, which had a massive portrait of the King on the front page and the words “Happy Birthday” in war print. On page 2, the daily editorial was remarkably positive, discussing the King’s reign so far and the much publicised royal party that was to take place at the Royal Palace this evening. The editorial listed the participants, and spent a considerable amount of space – two paragraphs – discussing the significance of the announced presence of the Russian President at the party and its effect on the relations between the Realm and the Russian Federation. From what the King could tell, the editorial was mostly correct in its guest list, which confirmed the memo he had received the evening prior.

The Emperor of Layarteb, Prime Minister Wells of Hawdawg, the Fuhrer of Hirgizstan, Emperor Valerius of the Roman Empire, Premier Zhao of Marimaia, one of the Spizanian Regent’s Captains, Premier Nasir bin Abdullah al Assad of the Eurasian Federation, and President Stepanov of the Russian Federation were the most prominent guests at the party, which would also include a large number of Cottish dignitaries such as the cabinet, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and invited guests.

Most of the foreign guests were expected to start arriving in the morning and early afternoon, and due to the large number of foreign guests arriving, the many executive aircrafts were diverted to Kjeller Airbase and granted immediate permission to land at the fighter base with a 4,200 meter runway that were suitable for even the largest of planes, including the massive aircraft the Layartebian Emperor travelled in. A fleet of black Mercedes-Benz limousines and Mercedes-Benz S600 escort cars were already in place at the airbase, which was currently under the careful protection of the Diplomatic Protection Corps and the 19. Air Force Security Battalion, and the highway between Kjeller and Oslo had already been closed down for civilian traffic by the police, allowing the vehicles to get from point A (Kjeller Airbase) to point B (downtown Oslo) in less than twenty minutes. The Foreign Minister would spend the better part of the day at the Airbase, greeting the visitors and making them feel welcome to Cotland. All this would take place while the King got through his packed itinerary. He had something more important to do first though, involving the Queen who was just waking up…

Premier Zhao yawned loudly as his aircraft entered Cottish airspace and grinned as one of his aides presented a fresh cup of tea. After enjoying the scent of the blend, he looked across the table at Ruiyu Xian, who was pouring over the official Eastasian file on King Haakon. Ruiyu gave a little wave.

"You know, we're younger than him."

"Just slightly, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Royalty just gets under my skin. It's stiff, wooden and archaic, I still don't know why you dragged me to this thing."

"Very simple really. Firstly, we have to show that we care, because the Cots are more acceptable than other nations and being on their good side is always helpful. Secondly, I need to remind our hosts and fellow guests that the UER accomplish what we set out to do, particularly the unification with Japan. Thirdly, you're the best looking partner of any world leader, and I'd be stupid to turn up without some eye candy. Besides, there are a couple of guests who think that we're 'moral deviants' and all that crap, so I've brought you along to show that we don't care."

Ruiyu smirked mischievously. "That's the Kristan Zhao I fell for."

As the aircraft began to descend towards Kjeller Airbase, the two started to discuss the guest list and which guests were 'favourable' towards the Republic.

cotland (20:14:14): get the Emperor arriving @ Oslo
layarteb (20:14:28): :: poof ::
layarteb (20:14:29): he's there
cotland (20:14:51): lol
cotland (20:14:52): RP it

...for cotland...

The VC-26F Condor touched down in Oslo with eight F-22B Raptors in front of and behind it. A Layartebian tanker refueled the fighters over the Atlantic Ocean and again over the North Sea. The nine aircraft flew without opposition towards Oslo and landed on time and arrived to a Cottish escort. The Emperor, though he was scheduled to go right to his hotel, would stop off at the embassy and speak with the staff there. The Layartebian embassy in the Realm had twice come under attack by angry Cottish mobs and once it was overrun. A visit by the Emperor was definitely a big deal and he was scheduled to remember the lives lost from the attacks. From there it was to the hotel where the Emperor, his long-time girlfriend, and his support staff, took up an entire floor. They would be joining the King for his celebrations and for the occassion, the gifts brought were well fitting for a king. As usual, the Emperor brought finely made Cuban cigars, rarities but delightful smokes. There was also a golden sword brought from the Empire. The sword dated back to the early 1400s and it was a cherished piece of Layartebian history but it had a tradition with it. The sword had been made for a king but the king never received it, due to an untimely death. Until the formation of the Republic of Layarteb, the sword was carried by each and every Scythian king during ceremonies. It was fitting too that the Cottish King should have it since an ancient Cottish blacksmith crafted the sword, long before the two countries began formal relationships.

[OOC: I'm going to do several arrivals in one post here, just to keep things moving. Just assume some time has passed between the segments.]

[Marimaia]
The honor guard of about a hundred sharp-looking airmen dressed in the skye blue uniforms of the Royal Cottish Air Force snapped to and, upon being given the order, presented their brand new DR-83M rifles as the foreign dignitaries arrived. The first ones to arrive were the Eastasian Premier and his entourage. The clean-shaven young men, most not older than nineteen, presented arms and maintained completely neutral looks, although their eyes displayed that they placed their personal honor into doing their best, which they did excellently.

The Foreign Minister waited at the end of the staircase with the red carpet, dressed impaccably in a tailor-made and expensive beige suit that suited the forty-four year old woman well and accentuated her blonde hair, which ruffled a little in the mild breeze. It was in the middle of July, and the temperature was in its lower thirties, which along with the shining sun made it a tad warm for those standing on the tarmac.

With a polite smile and after a bow in respect for the customs of the Eastasians, the Foreign Minister extended her hand for a more western greeting.

"On the behalf of His Majesty's Government and of the people of Cotland, I welcome you to the Realm of Cotland sirs," She said, shaking the hands of both Premier Zhao and Ruiyu Xian. "I trust you had a plesant flight?"

In the distance, a group of journalists under the careful observation by a number of armed Air Force officers dressed in camoflage uniforms and no distinguishing nametags or insignia on their uniforms filmed and took photos of the historic occation, using their zoom features and powerful lences (all of which had been checked carefully before they were allowed into the base) to keep the intrusion to a minimum.

[Layarteb]
Shortly after the arrival of the Eastasian visitors and getting their aircraft safely over to the tarmac where it would remain for the duration of the visit, guarded by Air Force security forces with orders to use deadly force if anyone tried to access it without authorization, it was time for the next visitor. This time, it was the massive aircraft carrying the Emperor of Layarteb, which made the landing smoothly and also taxied over to the red carpet and staircase.

Again, the airmen presented arms as the visitors decended the staircase, the Foreign Minister welcomed the Emperor, Ms. Wilson and the rest of the delegation, a few pictures were taken from afar by carefully guarded journalists, and the visitors were sent on their way in the luxurious Mercedes-Benz limousines with police escort, and the less important visitors (aides and such) in still-luxurious Mercedes-Benz S600 sedans. With the Emperor and his entourage on their way, the VC-26F Condor was moved over to the vast tarmac, where it stood next to the Eastasian aircraft, seperated by about fifty meters, and guarded by the Air Force security forces. They were ready for the next arrivals.

The Layartebian VC-26F Condor eclipsed the Eastasian transport plane. Standing 79.5 feet to the top of its tail, the Condor was built from the Airbus A380, a super jumbojet if there ever was one. Following the retirement of the Boeing 747-400 in the early 2000s from the role of "VIP transport," the Airbus A380 jumped into the mix. It was chosen because it offered far more than any other airliner out there although it came with a price. It needed long runways to take off and land, a well seasoned crew, and always required special maintenance due to its huge size. Still, the airliner was the safest out there and that was saying a lot since jetliners grew safer and safer each time a new one was made. Joining the Cottish guards, Layartebian soldiers, armed with M80A1 Assault Rifles, stood close guard to the airliner. Its F-22 Raptor escorts, which looked like ants next to the giant jetliner, were put inside a separate hangar to shield them from elements. The Condor was too big to fit inside any hangar that the Cottish had, which meant it would be exposed to the elements. Although not too much of a worry during the middle of summer, the pilots and flight crew would make inspections around the aircraft daily, ensuring that it was still fit for flight, especially in the case of an emergency.

The Fuhrer's plane, a black, yellow and red colored E-4B landed in the early afternoon in Oslo. Two F-15L Super Strike Eagle's stayed in the air until called down, the escorts would follow the Fuhrer's plane back after the festivities were over.

The E-4B was not the biggest of the executive jets, that honor was reserved for the VC-26F, the Emperor's plane. The E-4B was longer but overall smaller. It was essentially a HAI (Hirgizstanian Aircraft Industries) 747-800 that could control nearly everything in the Commonwealth from the air.

As a gift the Fuhrer had brought something quite special, two trained Hirgizstanian wolves, a symbol of Hirgizstan itself. The two specimens were perfect, taken from the wild while still pups and trained as guard dogs for the Fuhrer's residences. They were obedient but more fierce than any other dog on the planet because they retained their feral traits. The Fuhrer would present the bitch and the male to the King as birthday gifts. They would provide companions for the Royal Family, able to breed if the family so wished.

The E-4B taxied to a hangar whereby it was met with steps and a number of Cottish Air Force personnel detailed the plane and an honor guard snapped to attention.

ooc: Shit, I got no Russian letter stickers to put on my laptop keyboard that means I can't type Russian....from now on if a conversation is in Russian I'll put Rus- at the begining of it and -Rus at the end of it.

IC:

The Russian plane has landed at the Cottish airstrip delivering Ivan Mishin and President Igor Stepanov to their destination. The mood inside the cabin was mixed, Igor was still having trouble with viewing the Cots as friends and it took quite a lot of discussion between him and Ivan Mishin before he decided to attend this event. Ivan was now 78 and tried to stay out of the hostile world of Russian internal politics and yet he was recognized by everyone for his accomplishments such as allowing the Russians to return to their motherland without the war with Cotland that seemed inevitable at that point in time. Igor considered the old man his mentor and always has respected his opinion, he understood just like Ivan that better relations with Cotland were good for the Federation and its people but unlike Ivan he could not simply brush off the suffering the Cots brought to his people not so long ago. And yet he was a good politician he knew how to put his true emotions away without making it seem fake. In a few minutes after the landing the two men stepped out of the airplane.

[Hirgizstan]

The airmen snapped to attention as the Fuhrer's plane came to a halt, presenting arms and looking very impressive. The Fuhrer was a long-time ally of the Realm and had proven on many occations that he was a true friend of the Realm, and was therefore always very welcome to Cotland. Knowing this very well, the Foreign Minister gave the Fuhrer a heartfelt affectionate smile and a warm handshake as he came down the stairs.

"Welcome to the Realm sir. It is always a pleasure to have you visiting the Realm. His Majesty sends his complements and appologies for not being able to be here to greet you in person, but he is looking forward to meeting you tonight sir."

[Pushka]

The Foreign Minister had mixed feelings about recieving the Russians, but being the professional politician that she was, she hid her emotions behind a veil of professionalism and put on a smile that seemed like it was genuinely warm. After all, one of these men had managed to avoid a very costly war between the Realm and the Russian Federation. The other one, on the other hand, had almost started a war between the Realm and the Russian Federation as far as the Cottish were concerned, but that wasn't an issue right now. Welcoming the Russians was.

Glancing to the Air Force Major that was responsible for the honor guard, she was confident that one of the young airmen wouldn't do something stupid. The young men had been taught to despise and fear the Russians from birth, having been told horror stories about the Russians and heard the threats of the Russians coming to get them if they didn't finish their dinner when they were young. When they entered the military, those threats became even more intense, as the Royal Cottish Armed Forces still considered the Russian Federation as the prime enemy, something which was the justification for the massive military forces in Siberia. Still, she had confidence in the airmen being professional and well trained enough to leave their emotions at home and carry out their orders like they were trained to in Basic Military Training. Besides, they didn't have ammunition in their rifles.

The airmen had all decided that they were going to show the Russians how a honor guard should conduct, and thus stood like statues, presenting arms as if one person did it, their stern expressions revealing no emotion of any kind. In short, they looked very impressive and disciplined - in other words very representative for the rest of the Cottish military.

"Gentlemen, on the behalf of His Majesty's Government and the people of Cotland, I welcome you to the Realm of Cotland."

OOC: Child brainwashing? Really? Lol. The bear people are gonna getcha!

IC:

"It is a pleasure to be here, I still remember those Golden Days then Russians and Cots considered each other friends. Events such as this are yet another step towards what was lost. I am very pleased to finally get to meet the king as you know in the past I had all my dealings with my good friend Mr. Rothsky."

Ivan said as he shook the Foreign Minister's hand. Igor repeated the gesture.

"Yes it is truly a pleasure."

"So the Russians are here as well." The Emperor said within the confines of his hotel room. "What assurance do we have that this will not turn into each and every time they come somewhere?" He asked an aide, who happened to be sitting down, writing a memo concerning the Emperor's visit.

"It should be interesting to say the least sir. The Russians detest the Cottish. It's in their blood. These two sorts cannot get along regardless so it will be interesting to see how this goes. Like I said sir, at the very least, it will be entertaining."

"Indeed. What do we have within the area?"

"We have a Luna Carrier Battle Group in the North Sea right now. Should things for sour, we'll be ready to leave at a moment's notice."

"I'm glad to hear that. Well let's relax then. Tomorrow is a big day."

[Marimaia]
The honor guard of about a hundred sharp-looking airmen dressed in the skye blue uniforms of the Royal Cottish Air Force snapped to and, upon being given the order, presented their brand new DR-83M rifles as the foreign dignitaries arrived. The first ones to arrive were the Eastasian Premier and his entourage. The clean-shaven young men, most not older than nineteen, presented arms and maintained completely neutral looks, although their eyes displayed that they placed their personal honor into doing their best, which they did excellently.

The Foreign Minister waited at the end of the staircase with the red carpet, dressed impaccably in a tailor-made and expensive beige suit that suited the forty-four year old woman well and accentuated her blonde hair, which ruffled a little in the mild breeze. It was in the middle of July, and the temperature was in its lower thirties, which along with the shining sun made it a tad warm for those standing on the tarmac.

With a polite smile and after a bow in respect for the customs of the Eastasians, the Foreign Minister extended her hand for a more western greeting.

"On the behalf of His Majesty's Government and of the people of Cotland, I welcome you to the Realm of Cotland sirs," She said, shaking the hands of both Premier Zhao and Ruiyu Xian. "I trust you had a plesant flight?"

In the distance, a group of journalists under the careful observation by a number of armed Air Force officers dressed in camoflage uniforms and no distinguishing nametags or insignia on their uniforms filmed and took photos of the historic occation, using their zoom features and powerful lences (all of which had been checked carefully before they were allowed into the base) to keep the intrusion to a minimum.

Zhao flashed his trademark boyish grin at the Foreign Minister as he shook her hand.

"Oh, it was an excellent flight, thank you. I don't really get much chance to leave the Republic, but I thought, what the hell, it's not every day you get invited to a King's birthday."

----------------------------

Once the delegation had settled in and Premier Zhao had been presented with yet another cup of tea, discussions began regarding each of the major guests, including how to approach them and which issues would be relevant to converse about.

Premier Nasir bin Abdullah al Assad airplane landed in Oslo without incident, the Eurasian delegation was compose of the Premier and his lovely wife Roxelane , his staff and his bodyguards. The Premier along many gifts for the Cottish King such as handmade Persian rugs and etc, the Premier and company walk down the stairs and ready themselves to be greeted by the Cottish honor guard and whoever else was send to meet them.

A plane ride to Oslo

"So there will be cake, I take it?" asked Valerius to his aide, P. Aemilius Runus.
"Yes there will be. We've been through this one hundred times," replied Runus.
"Yeah, but I just like how it sounds- 'cake'. Can't go wrong with 'cake'."
"Why are you so obsessed about cake Your Highness?"
"Why not? What's not to obsess about?"

Valerius had a lot of things on his mind- Koryakia, his budget, fixing Roman transit, figuring out just what to do with all those Canadian resources- but he wasn't in much of a mood to discuss any of them. As far as he was concerned, this was a vacation, but he wondered how much "vactioning" he'd do with opportunistic and politically ambitious heads of state nosing around. Still, if he wasn't there for the King's birthday, there'd be trouble in both Rome and Norway, because he can't slight- or appear to slight- a great ally.

"Sir, we're ready to land", stated the pilot over the intercom. When the plane touched down and the doors opened to greet the Emperor, he wore his trademark ear-to-ear grin- a smile of apprehension. Let the opportunism begin he thought, hoping there would still be a party to attend in the end.

[Pushka]

The Foreign Minister shook the hands of both men and smiled, motioning for them to follow her down the red carpet past the soldiers towards the waiting limousine.

"We're glad to have you both here sirs. Perhaps this visit will finally herald our two great nations into an era of peace."

[Marimaia]

The Foreign Minister smiled and escorted the Premier and his date to the waiting limo, sharing plesantries and inspecting the honor guard before they were safely placed inside the luxurious Mercedes-Benz, which sped off towards Oslo, driving in excess of 160 kilometers per hour on the deserted highway until they reached Oslo, where the limo slowed down a little, until they reached Grand Hotel only eighteen minutes later.

[Ottoman Khaif]

The honor guard snapped to attention for the fourth time that morning, presenting arms and looking very impressive while the Foreign Minister once again smiled, this time genuinely, and welcomed the Premier with the traditional Arabic greeting of first touching her heart, then her mouth, then uttering the traditional greeting in only lightly accented Arabic.

"Aasalaamu Aleikum," before switching to English, presenting her hand for a more western handshake. "It is a great honor for me to welcome you and your wife to the Realm of Cotland on the behalf of His Majesty's Government and the people of Cotland sir."

[RomeW]

For the fifth time, the Honor Guard snapped to attention and presented arms, looking impressive as normal. The Foreign Minister smiled as Valerius decended the stairs, seeing his trademark grin and figuring that he was turning his charm on - after all, this was his first state visit to Cotland.

"Your Imperial Majesty, on the behalf of His Majesty's Government and the people of Cotland, I welcome you to the Realm of Cotland." She said with a smile as she shook Emperor Valerius' hand. "This is your first visit to the Realm, isn't it?"

The Premier and his wife nodded, then the Premier replied “ Salaam, it’s good to be here..We look forward to see the King and wish him our best.”

The Premier wife nodded in agreement, and so did the staff members who were behind them.

Stockholm Airport

Prime Minister Wells had his personal secretary pull the cargo manifest and double check it as they hastily boarded the Bombardier BD-700 Global Express XRS. This new plane was delivered to the PM not two weeks earlier at his request to have a smaller regional jet to travel to and fro nations close to the Republic. Naturally when the order was placed the largest airframe available was taken to assure comfortable settings for the sundry staff and small security team that travel’s with PM Wells. The ability to travel around the world in one stop didn't impress Wells as much as the fact the aircraft allowed the Prime Minister to travel in ambiguity if he so chose. Ambiguity wouldn't be an issue on this flight. Slowly the Lt. Colonel pulled back on the yoke as the BD-700 callsign H-1 took to the air for the short jaunt into Cottish Airspace. A trailing pair of F/A-225A Kestrel Fighter's held a tight formation slightly to the rear of the PM's plane. Up until recently fighter escort wasn't necessary, but recent vague threats on the PM's life had warranted an uptick of security.

With the usual fervor of acceptance and tower talk via the pilot and air traffic controller's at Kjeller Airbase PM Wells was anxiously nervous. He was very concerned about his precious cargo, a gift to the King. Inside the hold of the BD-700 sat several cases of the finest Whiskey money could buy, along with several danish pastries and other fine chocolates that would be given as a party gift to the great king. The most personal item Prime Minister Wells carried as a special Keg of Beer he brewed himself made from the finest hops that were a gift from the Bavarian Alps from the North Germanian Ambassador. Slowly the three plane formation rolled to a stop on the tarmac, as the security team exited first, Wells had them open to the hold to find the cache of alcohol to be intact. The chocolate was also nice and crisp from the high altitude flight.

A feeling of relief came over the Prime Minister as he greeted the honor guard at the airport.

"It is simply splendid to be back in Cottish Territory to celebrate such an occasion. Gentlemen please make sure these delicate items all make to the party tonight they are gifts from the Republic to the King."

[OOC: I’m going to fast-forward this a little so we can get the party started.]

[Ottoman Khaif]

”I am certain that His Majesty is looking forward to meeting you as well sir, madam.” The Foreign Minister said, smiling as she followed them down the red carpet, past the honor guard and down to the waiting limousine, which would rush the Premier and his entourage from Kjeller and all the way to downtown Oslo.

[Hawdawg]

”Mister Prime Minister, I welcome to the Realm of Cotland on the behalf of His Majesty’s Government and the people of Cotland. It is an honor to have you visit the Realm again sir.” The Foreign Minister said after the honor guard had presented arms and the Prime Minister emerged from the aircraft.

*****

[A few hours later]

It was just over six o’clock in the evening in Oslo, and at the Royal Palace things were starting to happen. The plaza in front of the palace had been filled with cheering people, held well clear of the palace by the police, all of them there to see if they could get a glance of the King or any other of the visitors. The party had been mentioned in the Cottish media for the better part of the week, and had been dubbed the Royal Extravaganza by them.

The guest list included among others family and close friends of the Royal Couple, the visiting Heads of State with entourage that had already arrived, the various Ambassadors to Cotland from the nation-states that had diplomatic representation in the Realm, members of the Royal Cottish Order of Saint Olav (the highest distinction the Realm had to offer), those who were part of what was called the Official Cotland (the Cabinet, leaders from the Storting, the Supreme Court and the Military), the Bishop of Oslo, and other guests. All in all, a guest list of just over two hundred people. The dress code was formal, which meant white tie, dress uniform or national costume for the men and evening gowns or national costume for the ladies, as per the Protocols of the Court.

http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/1738/slottet600hc1.jpg
The Royal Palace in Oslo

Outside the Palace, the normal detachment of soldiers from His Majesty the King’s Guard, the elite infantry brigade that had the single task of guarding the Royal Family, were in their normal posts, guarding the Palace, but in addition to that, a company of them were standing in formation near the driveway up to the Palace, presenting arms as the guests arrived. Add to that the amount of police that were controlling the crowds and the plain-clothes security personnel both inside and outside the Palace, and it was safe to state that security was pretty tight.

It was around this time that the guests started arriving. The vehicles transporting them drove quickly up the driveway and past the happy crowd and the honor guard before driving into the archway and stopping just inside, where military officers opened the doors and saluted the guests before a Palace lackey escorted the visitors up the stairway and into the Palace, passing a lot of unique pieces of art, paintings and decorative objects that had been accumulated over the course of a thousand years, showing off the grandeur and historical significance of the Cottish monarchy. It was meant to impress visitors and give them a feel for the glorious and distinguished history of the Realm of Cotland and its monarchy.

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9351/vestibylengb6.jpg
The Lobby of the Royal Palace

After the walk from the stairs, the visitors arrived at the Lobby where the King and Queen would be waiting to greet the guests, welcoming them to the party before letting them move on to the Grand Hall where the guests would mingle and party.

The Lobby was an impressive room in its own right. It had five large windows that showed Oslo outside, with white marble pillars and discreet but elaborate decorations in the walls and doors. On the innermost walls, portraits of various previous monarchs of Cotland hung, watching the guests as they passed them and giving a historical feeling of the room. The entrances to the Lobby consisted of a pair of decorated oak doors, each guarded by two soldiers from the King’s Guard, who opened the doors as the visitors arrived. A senior lackey stood at the entrance that led back to the stairwell had the single task of announcing the guests as they arrived, and had been chosen for this task due to his powerful voice. A significant logistical infrastructure was necessary to pull off a party of this scale, and the Cottish certainly had that.

At six o’clock, the King and Queen were present in the Lobby and waiting for the guests to start arriving. The Heads of State with entourage would be expected to arrive first, as per protocol. The King was dressed in white tie with a red, white and blue sash made to appear like the Cottish flag on and with several decorations on his tailcoat, including the unique golden star that showed that he was the current Grand Master of the Royal Cottish Order of Saint Olav, while the Queen was dressed in a silk evening gown with a similar sash to the King and a few decorations of her own, including the Grand Cross with Collar of Saint Olav, as well as a diamond tiara. Several of the guests that were attending this evening’s party, more specifically those heads of state that had visited Cotland before, had been awarded the rank of Grand Cross of Saint Olav as a courtesy, and were expected to wear them tonight.

The guests would all be welcomed by the King and Queen and share a few words with them before moving on into the Grand Hall.

http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/8797/storeballsalxv1.jpg
The Grand Hall of the Royal Palace

The Grand Hall was impressive, with elaborate features in the decorations on the walls, doors, windows and all the other features of the room, and an impressive four grand and eight smaller crystal chandeliers hanging from the roof, which was an impressive 10.7 meters over the expensive hardwood floor. A lot of gold had been used in the decoration of the Hall, which was large enough to have over three hundred people be inside it, comfortably. Just over two hundred people would be present in the Hall this evening for the party, so there would be plenty of room for the guests. Additionally, there was a small gallery on the second level with a few sitting groups and a small bar for more intimate conversations to take place, accessible from a set of stairs discreetly placed near the back of the Grand Hall. The view out the large windows that dominated one of the long walls offered a view of the plaza in front of the Palace, the state of the mounted King Karl Johan, who had ruled Cotland in 1814 when the Constitution was passed at Eidsvoll, who overlooked the street named after him, and much of downtown Oslo. If anyone needed to draw some fresh air, the large balcony outside was accessible through the large double French doors and open after the King and Queen arrived inside the Grand Hall, which would be after the guests had all arrived at the Palace.

Several sitting groups of comfortable leather chairs were present in the room for the guests to have a seat. Of course, smoking would be allowed in the Grand Hall, despite the fact that smoking in places where people worked was forbidden in the Realm – being King and the ultimate say in legal matters had its advantages. A large table was situated in the back with rows upon rows of bottles, crystal glasses, mixing water and ice, and other necessary accessories, so that the bartenders there could give the guests whatever they desired to drink. On other large tables, a lot of warm and cold snacks, pastries and cakes were located, placed on silver plates along with the porcelain plates, silverware and napkins, ready for the guests to help themselves to. Additionally, an army of lackeys in the would mill around the Hall, ready to take orders and bring the drinks or whatever else the guests wished, saving them the trouble of making their way to the bar or the snack tables. The lackeys and bartenders were dressed in an uniform that seemed like it had been taken directly from the seventeenth century, with white knee stockings, black wool knickers and a black tailcoat made of wool with golden buttons over a red vest and white silk shirt with white gloves on their hands – an outfit that hadn’t been changed in over a hundred and fifty years and that emphasised the role of the lackeys as servants and waiters. Fortunately for the lackeys, the uniform was only used during important events such as tonight. They normally wore more modern suits at work.

For entertainment, a professional Army brass band would provide background music to the party, and would be open to take requests from the guests. Additionally, several internationally acclaimed artists hailing from or otherwise affiliated to Cotland would give a small concert for the visitors later in the evening. For those who were so inclined, dancing in the Grand Hall was more than encouraged.

The first thing that had to happen was for the guests to arrive at the Palace though. The only question was, who would be first?

[OOC: Phew, monster post completed. Feel free to have your people arrive and meet the King and Queen.]

Prime Minister Wells exited his car and as the elegantly dressed servants escorted him up the stairs and into the main lobby. Wells couldn’t help but stop for a moment and admire the grandeur of this magnificent palace. As the giant hallowed doors opened inside he could see the good king in his full regalia along with the eloquent Queen at his side. Never one to be late to a party, Wells immediately extended his hand to the King as he approached them. As he shook hands with an old friend he studied the layout of the room.

“Ah Great King, it is such a pleasure to be here. I am simply taken-away by the décor. Let me be the first to congratulate you for making the milestone of 34. I can’t say anymore without offering the sincerest hello to your stunning bride. Might I say madam that you are as stunning now as you were at your glorious union to this wonderful statesman.”

Prime Minister Wells carefully took the hand of the Queen and planted a delicate kiss on the back of her hand in the most respectful of displays.

“Great King, I had a special allotment of the finest Blended Whiskey sent over from my plane this morning, along with several other spirits of various tastes. As a special present for you on this day of days, I also present you with this authentic Norse Battle Axe taken from a recently recovered Viking Long-Ship of the Northern Coast of England. I hope that it goes with the décor.”

Prime Minister Wells carefully opened the handsomely carved wooden display case so the King could examine the Axe more closely.

OOC: I'm going to divide what I have to say in two posts- otherwise, it'll be too long.

[RomeW]

For the fifth time, the Honor Guard snapped to attention and presented arms, looking impressive as normal. The Foreign Minister smiled as Valerius decended the stairs, seeing his trademark grin and figuring that he was turning his charm on - after all, this was his first state visit to Cotland.

"Your Imperial Majesty, on the behalf of His Majesty's Government and the people of Cotland, I welcome you to the Realm of Cotland." She said with a smile as she shook Emperor Valerius' hand. "This is your first visit to the Realm, isn't it?"

My, the foreign minister is either gullible or easy to please, thought Valerius, shaking her hand. "Yes this is, and your country is very lovely. I am very glad to be here for the first time and I look forward to a fun time here." He posed for a photo opportunity and then bid the Minister goodbye to prepare for the party.

The morning of the party, Valerius' wife and her associates were out looking for dresses to wear at the party. They wanted to impress the King and Queen with their love of Norwegian fashion, but they did bring their own dresses "just in case". Valerius, meanwhile, played a little "backyard American football" with his friends to get the adrenaline going for what they figured would be a very long night. Both teams played with six men each, with all players playing offence and defence (when needed). They played without offensive or defensive lines and gave the quarterback a count of four "Steamboats" to get the ball off before he could get rushed. Valerius always played receiver or the defensive cornerback role, but he prefered cornerback, because he never had much of an arm to play quarterback and had too much fun picking off passes instead of receiving them. In this particular game, he was matched up against Publius Marcus Corus, a long-time friend of Valerius' from his early political days and six years his junior, at 35. Corus was just recently divorced from his wife of three years and, while comfortable to live the life of a bachelor, he never shied away from the thought of "settling down" should the right girl present herself.

"So what kind of party are we going to?" asked Corus while Valerius was covering him.
"Shouldn't your mind be on the ball?" replied Valerius.
"I know, but there are bigger issues than a simple game."
"It's a Royal birthday, only far more stuffier than the parties I'd throw."
"Stuffier? C'mon Maderia, you know that's not my style."
"You agreed to come." The ball was thrown right to Corus and Valerius in their makeshift endzone at the edge of the lawn. Despite a good lunge by the Caesar, Corus made a one-handed catch to grab the touchdown.
"Haha, beat you again."
"Yeah, but I'm still your boss."
At that time, the two teams called timeout to rest their legs.

"Anyway, back to this 'party'." Even after enjoying an Oslo restaurant the night before and noting its very hospitable staff (some of whom seemed more eager for autographs than getting their order right) Valerius still wasn't that excited about the party. "Yeah, it's a stuffy one. See, the Norwegians like to think that 'formality' means 'sophistication' when it's really just boredom. Besides, I know at this party I'll have to deal with drunken heads of states offering me the Moon and then forgetting about what we discussed the next morning. It's not my idea of 'fun', but, what the hey, there's going to be cake and wine. Margret and I will have our fun later on- these heads of states will be past their bedtimes, after all."
"Yeah, but will I find anyone?"
"Why not? I'm sure there will be some young girls there who'll be dying to have some real fun and get out of their haughty environs. Just remember to watch how much you drink and what you do and say- we don't want any 'international incidents' here. Besides, we'll have our real fun once the party is over. Margret and I have a VIP room booked for two days at a nearby Oslo nightclub- if you don't find a girl at the party, you will there." Both men grinned, then Valerius continued. "Who knows, maybe I'll find someone too."
"Valerius!" Corus knew Valerius said that in jest, and both men then laughed. The game then resumed, with Corus' side eking out a 28-21 win.

An hour after the game finished, Margret- Valerius' wife- returned after her shopping adventure with her friends. Each of them- including Margret- found a dress except one Maria Cornelia Apulina, who was so adamant on finding a miniskirt for the party afterwards that she couldn't find a "more appropriate" dress for the party, meaning she'd have to use the dress she brought with her.

"How was the shopping trip?" asked Valerius with a touch of sarcasm as he sat in the suite's kitchen.
"Heh, well, I have to say Norwegian couture isn't that bad. We found everything we were looking for- well, except Maria. She really wanted a sexy dress for her boyfriend."
"Oh Maria and those battles with the hemlines."
Margret shrugged. "I know, but this is a fancy party...at least the dress she brought with her goes to the knees."
"Ah, the Norwegian Royalty and their thigh problems...what a shame really." Valerius feigned concern.
"You never had a problem with thighs."
"Oh I know I don't." Margret then sat in Valerius' lap and kissed him before Maria walked into the room.

"You're ruining our porn shoot! How could you?" snapped Valerius non-threateningly.
"Relax, I'll be out in a minute...I just want a drink," replied Maria with a laugh.
"Hey, it's a bit early to start with that, don't you think?" answered Valerius.
"Well, if this party's going to be anything like you say it is Caesar, I might as well start drinking now. This doesn't seem like it'll be a lot of fun."
"Don't be silly...I've seen King Haakon in a couple of rap videos. He seems to be 'down wit it." A likeness of the King had been in the video by Roman rapper The Truth for the decidedly anti-October Alliance song called "International Babysitting", where the rapper depicted Haakon as a schoolyard bully beating up on a likeness of Russian President Igor Stepanov.
Maria chuckled. "C'mon. Videos by The Truth don't count."
"Hmmnnn, maybe you're right...in any case, you've still got to be marginally sober for afterwards. You can then wear all the skin-baring midriffs you like then."
Maria then made a smirking gasp. "You won't quit on those do you...I like to be sexy...doesn't mean that I sleep with everyone. Gaius means everything to me."
"Yeah, too bad King Haakon doesn't like sexy. He needs to get out more."
"Or get laid."
"Maybe he will tonight. It's his birthday after all."

*********************************************************

The Roman delegation- despite some having a round of pre-drinking- arrived at the party half an hour early, at 5:30. They would be the second group to arrive after Gordon Wells' entourage, but they made a somewhat louder entrance as the drinking had made them chatty. The group made numerous comments about the elegance of the hall, some of which caused some of the guards to smirk. Just then, Corus noticed the Queen.

"Hey, who's the hottie in the dress," whispered Corus well out of the Queen's earshot to Valerius, "I'd so like to bang her."
"That would be the Queen," came Valerius' whispered reply. "You can't."

The group continued their pace to the King and Queen. Valerius, as was the protocol, would be the first to greet the Royal Couple.

"Great King, it is my honour to be here," started Valerius. "Here, we brough this for you in honour of your birthday."

An aide then presented the King with a greeting card from the Roman Greeting Card Company specifically designed for the King. It was decorated with a plush, purple fabic designed to look like a cape and inside the card it read: "Dear King, Happy 34th birthday! We know you'll have a good time- because we know you'll order yourself to."

"That's not all," continued Valerius, "this is from the Roman Museum." He then presented the King with a box. "It's a relic of Augustus, complete with a certificate of authenticity from the Museum itself. We hope you like it."

After the Romans were finished greeting the couple and talking with them, the delegation dispersed a little. Valerius and Margret both went to say hello to Wells, while Corus went straight to the bar. He gazed around the room when he spotted Johnny Morris, guitarist for the '80's rock act Prism, one of Corus' favourite bands. He shouted out to him in astonishment that he'd actually be looking eye-to-eye with him.

"Dude, you're a f***ing legennd man," said Corus as he shook Morris' hand. "What brings you here?"
"We're playing," replied Morris. "A little bit later on though, got to give the Army band a chance to play before they have to go to bed."
Both men laughed. "Man, if I knew you were here I'd have brought my Power Is In The Mind album. That album is a classic. I can't put it down."
Morris chuckled. Corus wasn't the first to tell him that. "Let me sign your program for now- it should list when we'll be on. Talk to me when we're done and I can give you something even more proper." Morris proceeded to sign Corus' program and said his goodbye to join his bandmates.

Corus examined the signature, looked at the program and saw a bandlist that he really admired. Looks like this party won't suck after all...I'm going to have a lot of fun here. This was the best decision I ever made.

Premier Zhao and Ruiyu Xian entered the lobby in matching mandarin suits, wearing their best formal smiles. Zhao was somewhat irritated that his presence was not the most controversial at the party (that honour of course going to Stepanov), but he wasn't about to let that show. The two approached the Royal Couple, with Zhao respectfully shaking King Haakon's hand.

"Your Majesty, I bring you the best wishes of all Eastasians on this, your joyous birthday! We've been wracking our brains trying to think of a gift for you, and I believe we have succeeded; unfortunately we were unable to bring it ourselves due to the size of it, but Ruiyu has some pictures."

Ruiyu grinned as he produced the photographs from his pocket.

"As Kristan has already stated, there was no way we could have brought this ourselves. Your gift from the Eastasian people is a replica of the Terracotta Army, all eight thousand and ninety-nine of them. Built to last and identical down to the last detail, just give the word and we'll start flying them over."

Zhao resumed addressing the couple. "We've always appreciated your nation, and we wish you to have a long life; since we cannot protect your ourselves, please accept this gift as a symbolic representation of the protection we would give you if we could."

The Emperor, Ms. Wilson, and the rest of the entourage arrived just after the Eastasians and were slightly shocked to see Premier Zhao and Ruiyu Xian. The Empire was not a pro-homosexuality nation and though they expected it, they still had some misgivings but dared show none. As they headed off and further guests greeted the King, the Emperor turned around to one of his aides. "The sword." He mouthed and the aide handed it to him with a smile. "Honey. Do you want to present it to him?"

"Yes. Please." The line progressed until finally the Emperor and his long-time girlfriend, Ms. Rachel Wilson were standing in front of him.

"The Emperor of Layarteb and Miss Rachel Wilson. I present," the man besides the king announced, as if they needed an introduction.

"Happy Birthday Your Majesty. The Layartebian Empire would like to present you with this sword. It is an ancient artifact of Layartebian history." The sword glistened with gold. "It dates to the 1400s, had been made for a king but the king never received it, due to an untimely death. Until the formation of the Republic of Layarteb, the sword was carried by each and every Scythian king during ceremonies. It is only fitting that it should now rest in your hands as it was crafted by a Cottish blacksmith in Layarteb City." She handed it over and its beauty radiated in the common area as the Emperor smiled.

"Happy Birthday and many more to come. We shall have a drink later I hope?" He smiled as the delegated paid their respects and they continued onward. There would be plenty of time for conversation throughout the remainder of the night.

The Fuhrer and his entourage arrived at the gathering just in time to see the sword being presented to the King. A pair of strange looking men in stranger attire were just walking away as the Fuhrer entered. He recognized them as the Chinese Premier and his partner, staying well clear.

The Fuhrer waited patiently in line and nodded at the Emperor and Ms. Wilson in greeting as they stepped away. The Fuhrer was now in front of the King and he was announced.

The Fuhrer stepped up and bowed his head slightly, as one does in front of royalty, "Your Majesty, I wish you a bountiful and enjoyable birthday, hopefully with many more to come. Naturally I have brought a gift, two gifts actually. However, they cannot be here as I am sure the arrival of two Hirgizstanian wolves would not meet the standards of this event! They were presented to your household staff this afternoon, two prime specimens, male and female wolves. They are fully trained and something of a rarity even in Hirgizstan. They are the very symbol of our nation, presented to you on your birthday as a sign of friendship between our nations."

The King beamed and shook hands with the Fuhrer who smiled and stepped aside, allowing the next guest to step up.

[Hawdawg]
"Thank you Prime Minister, you honor me with these gifts." The King said as he accepted the gifts from the Hawdawgian nation, looked at them and handed them over to a lackey who would place them on a table inside the Grand Hall along with the rest of the gifts. "It's good of you to be able to attend this evening. I hope you'll enjoy the party."

[RomeW]
With the Hawdawgian Prime Minister attended to, the King and Queen talked with the Romans, commending them on their choice of clothing and thanking them graciously for the special gift the King had recieved, quietly wondering just what the hell they were supposed to do with it after the party.

[Marimaia]
Next was the Eastasian first couple, who were impaccably dressed in mandarin suits. Their gift was also a special one. A Terracotta Army? Where am I going to put that?

"Thank you sirs. I must say that I am honored and surprised, but plesantly so, by this most gracious gift." The King said with a friendly smile. "I thank you both for attending, and I trust you'll enjoy this humble gathering. I'll have to think a little over where to put my new army though." He said with a grin before shaking their hands again. Then the Queen added to Ruiyu, "Later on, I was hoping you might want to sign an album? I'm a great fan."

[Layarteb]
Next was perhaps one of the King's closest friends of the people gathered here tonight, who had another surprise for the King - the legendary Scythian Sword. Accepting the gift with a look of awe, the King took the sword by the grip and felt it and its weight in his hands before returning it to its case and handing it over to the lackey.

"Thank you, both. I'm humbled by the honor you've bestowed upon me. Please, enjoy the celebrations, and yes sir, we shall have a drink a little later on."

[Hirgizstan]
"I'm honored sir. Please, enjoy the party." The King said, shaking the Fuhrers hand before letting the man proceed into the Grand Hall to join the rest of the crowd. There weren't that many people left, save for the Russians and the Spizanians.

Immediately, the Emperor found his old friend, the Hirgizstanian Fuhrer. "Fuhrer. How good to see you again. Prime Minister Wells is around here somewhere. It seems the last time we all convened for an occassion was the cessation of Operation Sunfall. How hve things been since? I'm not sure if you remember but this is Ms. Wilson." He introduced her having almost forgotten she was there as memories of Sunfall dotted his imagination.

The Fuhrer smiled at the ravishing Ms. Wilson, "How good to see you again Maam, I do hope your enjoying yourself." He took her hand and kissed it, she smiled and nodded. The Fuhrer turned to the Emperor, "Indeed it was on your yacht after Sunfall, the last time we all convened. It seems we are all here now though. I wonder will Der Fuhrer or the Kagan be attending?"

When the Premier and his wife Roxelane arrival to the party, they walked thought the party on their way to greet the King and Queen, they just smiled and nodded as they past, other nations leaders or ambassadors. The Premier was dress in typical black suit and his wife was wearing a Royal Chinese Black Silk dress. They both bow in respect to the King and Queen. The Premier says the following fluent Cottish, something he picked rather recently

“King, it’s a good to here…we all wish you a very happy birthday, I wish you and your wife the best. My gift is a number of handmade Persian rugs which date back to the 1600s, all in mint condition…my staff has already present these rugs to your household staff…enjoy them..we all wish you the best.” Said the Premier

The Emperor smiled and Ms. Wilson took the subtle hint that the state of affairs between him and the Hirgizstanian Fuhrer could be nothing short of private. She left with a smile, entirely used to the occurance. "I do not believe we shall see the Reichskanzler Kübler at this occassion. After what unfolded in Portugal just last month he's definitely busy. As we were too for a while. There is; however, something I would like to discuss with you, concerning these Portugese traitors to the Reich. It seems, after long and arduous digging, that they are indeed linked to a certain terrorist group that has been plauging the Empire for the better part of two years now. It also seems they have ties elsewhere. Ties that lead to some of your more remote, African regions although they are, at best, spotty."

The Fuhrer nodded knowlingly at the Emperor, raising his eyebrows slightly in surprise that they had tracked terrorists to remote parts of Hirgizstanian Africa. In Hirgizstan they were nothing more than bandits from Mali that had somehow evaded capture. "Emperor, I am surprised that you have linked these terrorists to Africa. We have had reports of banditry in certain areas, linked to the ongoing problems between Mali and the Ivory Coast. Our agents in Mali have unearthed links to certain people in North Germania via seized weaponry, we haven't been sure who but it seems clear now, the link was Portugal. It would be the prime place to ship weapons and perhaps people from Africa, and through North Germanian Algeria, why they could travel almost undetected. If indeed the problem is originating in Mali then TATO can deal with it, but bear in mind the situation in Mali and the Ivory Coast is extremely delicate and things have been on a knife edge there for some time."

"How impeccably rude of them."

Ruiyu lowered his glass and frowned at Kristan; the two had been discussing the potential propaganda value of Ruiyu having the Queen of Cotland as a fan, but Kristan had suddenly changed the subject.

"Who are we talking about?"

Premier Zhao cocked an eyebrow in the direction of the Emperor and the Hirgizstanian Fuhrer.

"They're here to celebrate the birthday of one of their allies, yet they're acting as if the rest of us don't exist. We travelled all the way here and so far the King and Queen are the only ones who have actually acknowledged us. I knew that society and culture were..different..in these parts, but surely they understand the value of being polite?"

"Leave them to it. If they're muttering to each other like that then they're probably discussing something very sensitive.....the sort of thing that they don't want us to know about. We, on the other hand, have no such worries."

OOC: Don't worry the Emperor will be over, he just happened to run into the Fuhrer first.

"Indeed I am fully aware of the situation. The situation is, to put in carefully, extremely fragile. We don't have much right now and our intelligence ministry is working on it night and day and the information will be shared, in accordance with our mutal agreements. It is entirely possible that this organization that we fight against is one that is global. It is very likely as we've found clues in the nether reaches of the world such as the Caucasus and the Falklands Islands. We've even been to Brinkian African where the atomic bomb came from that destroyed Saint George's. We've been all over hunting them down and now we're coming to Portugal. The Reich will, soon enough, unleash unholy hell upon them but, at the same time, we need people alive. I am going to negotiation with the Reichskanzler to have some of my agents on the ground before the bombs fall. We need certain people alive and we need to find out this link. So far, at best, we have the link between this organization and funding of the Portugese. That is a given. We've passed that information to Berlin. But a name sticks out. The name is Abdul Sallah Fayyeen and he is from Libya originally but now intel puts him smack dab, in the middle of the Ivory Coast. Whatever rebel force you have there, they are linked directly to him. Whether or not he's linked to the Pasdaran from the Caucasus I don't know yet. That is why I am asking you for something. A favor, so to speak. Although. I don't need an answer tonight. I'd rather you slept on it.

"I need to insert a team, completely clandestinely into the Ivory Coast to snatch and grab this guy. I need to get him under an interrogation lamp and find out what he knows. He could be our best link yet." The Emperor looked over at the Eastasian Premier. "Ah...Premier Kristan. I didn't know where he went. Fuhrer. If you'll excuse me. I have an interesting proposition for the Eastasians that I know the Premier will thoroughly want to talk about. We'll talk tomorrow on this matter further. I am in country another two days. Will you please join me for lunch?" He nodded to the Fuhrer upon the reply and moved off to meet with the Premier.

"Premier. It has been some time sir. It is a pleasure to see you here at this auspicious occassion. I'm glad you have brought Ruiyu. When was it the last time we met? Was it the conference in Beijing?" He said with a smile.

"Premier. It has been some time sir. It is a pleasure to see you here at this auspicious occassion. I'm glad you have brought Ruiyu. When was it the last time we met? Was it the conference in Beijing?" He said with a smile.

"Yes, I do believe the conference was the last time, how time flies. Maybe our next meeting could take place in Tokyo; you should see it these days, a shining beacon of Eastasian prosperity."

Premier Zhao smirked as he continued. "So, have you been busy recently? The accession of our five newest states has turned Beijing into a hive of activity; I haven't seen Ruiyu as much as I would prefer, so when this opportunity came up I grabbed it. Good food, good company and a few days with Ruiyu, devoid of hassle and schedules."

"We were ecstatic with the demise of the Japanese. They constituted a grave and serious threat to the Empire, nay the whole world. It is good that your Republic has taken over in their demise. I cannot explain to you how busy we have been in the Empire. Terrorism continues and the Amazonian situation was a nightmare. We're still reeling from that, which is why I am glad I've found you. The Empire has a minor presence in the Pacific Ocean and we'll be keeping it that way. However, we would like to expand interocean trade, which is why we are adding a fourth set of locks now to the Panama Canal, which will increase size to support even newer supertankers.

"Our trade deals are ancient and in desparate need of restructuring. With this fourth set, the capacity of volume we can trade between our respective nations will increase by over forty percent. It seems worthwhile to take advantage of this. Perhaps we could have a meeting in due time concerning this 'luck'?"

"We were ecstatic with the demise of the Japanese. They constituted a grave and serious threat to the Empire, nay the whole world. It is good that your Republic has taken over in their demise. I cannot explain to you how busy we have been in the Empire. Terrorism continues and the Amazonian situation was a nightmare. We're still reeling from that, which is why I am glad I've found you. The Empire has a minor presence in the Pacific Ocean and we'll be keeping it that way. However, we would like to expand interocean trade, which is why we are adding a fourth set of locks now to the Panama Canal, which will increase size to support even newer supertankers.

"Our trade deals are ancient and in desparate need of restructuring. With this fourth set, the capacity of volume we can trade between our respective nations will increase by over forty percent. It seems worthwhile to take advantage of this. Perhaps we could have a meeting in due time concerning this 'luck'?"

Premier Zhao flashed his trademark boyish grin.

"Oh, absolutely. Increased trade means increased cooperation, increased cooperation leads to increased understanding, and increased understanding leads to harmonious relations. It is also nice to see that other nations approve of the Asian Unification; I admit that we are still on a high after achieving that dream of ours.

While we're talking about trade and the like, we'll be opening up new 'special economic zones' in our newest states in the near future; I would like to think that some of your corporations might see fit to invest there. In the meantime, if there's any way we can help you out, simply let us know and we'll do what we can....assuming that people won't be offended by the idea of you accepting assistance from the likes of us, of course."

"This is beyond advantageous. An economic zone would be most beneficial. We have thought of opening one near Panama City or near Mobile, Alabama, where the tropical weather can be the most beneficial. Our commerce would be most than willing to invest in the burgeoning Eastasian Republic and I am sure that so will our government. But let me ask you, why would people be offended by this partnership? Surely our countries have different social and economic policies, that is true but co-existence is what keeps the missiles from flying, is it not?" The Emperor said with tact but kept his expression solid, waiting to judge the Premier's response and weigh it against the odds.

"This is beyond advantageous. An economic zone would be most beneficial. We have thought of opening one near Panama City or near Mobile, Alabama, where the tropical weather can be the most beneficial. Our commerce would be most than willing to invest in the burgeoning Eastasian Republic and I am sure that so will our government. But let me ask you, why would people be offended by this partnership? Surely our countries have different social and economic policies, that is true but co-existence is what keeps the missiles from flying, is it not?" The Emperor said with tact but kept his expression solid, waiting to judge the Premier's response and weigh it against the odds.

"Can you honestly say that all of your policy-makers and allies love the idea of 'jumping into bed with me'?"

Zhao smirked before continuing. "I know that to several quarters I am some form of moral deviant, a freak, something less than a man. I am the butt of jokes, a target to be ridiculed. I fully understand that it is due to simple minds and fear; I don't quite fit into everyone's idea of what a statesman should be. I would not care about such things normally because I am in a relationship more stable than most can enjoy, and my people have always supported that relationship, but I want to make one thing perfectly clear.

The United Eastasian Republic will not tolerate small-minded fools. As you say, co-existence keeps the missiles grounded, but the fact is that with the Japanese gone, we are no longer the strategically convenient 'friend' that we were. I just hope that your hawks realise that this is not a reason to start thinking of us as a disposable acquaintance."

OOC: Did anyone else bring a huge delegation or was I the only one?

Also, Cotland, is it just Norwegian drinks or will there be others available?

IC:

Corus was restless. Enjoying a drink with friends Lucius Silius Jurus and Olus Fabius Kaesou, the only other Roman men at the party who were also single (all the women in the Roman delegation came with their significant others), Corus felt the party was moving a little slowly. He understood that the party was mainly for the heads of state and they were there partly for business, but he's the mingling type and didn't feel like sitting around...especially considering that dinner had yet to be served and the good bands wouldn't play until later anyway.

"Man, look at all those suits...who knows what they're talking about," said Corus.
"My guess it's not the beer," cracked Jurus.
"What is this stuff anyway?" said Kaesou quizzically. He never before ordered anything except Roman beer, so he wasn't used to the Norwegian brews.
"Norwegian beer," said Jurus. "C'mon, you'll get used to it."
"I'm going to the bar to see what else I can get...this beer is awful," replied Kaesou.
"Hey, don't say that too loud, lest you anger the band," cracked Jurus.
"C'mon. Just because they're Army folk doesn't mean they'll do anything."
"Sure, sure."

As Jurus and Kaesou bantered back and forth, Corus noticed a beautiful woman at the snack bar and figured he'd go talk to her. He didn't realize it was Rachel Wilson, the Layartebian Emperor's girlfriend, partly because he'd never seen what she looked like...or the Layartebian Emperor, for that matter.

"Excuse me," said Corus, who spotted some delicious-looking rolls in front of Wilson. "You going to have any of the rolls?"
"No, no, I'm done with them, go ahead," replied Wilson.
"So, who are you here with?
"Oh, I'm here with the Emperor."
Corus took a step back to take another look at Wilson. He thought "Emperor" referred to Valerius and he was wondering why he didn't meet her with the delegation. "Really? I'm here with Emperor Valerius too...man, I'm sorry, I must have missed introducing myself before the delegation left Rome."
Wilson chuckled. "No, no, I'm here with the Layartebian Emperor."
Corus nodded and breathed a sigh of relief, although he was slightly embarassed. "Ah...my mistake...so, where is the Emperor?"
"He's over there, having a chat with the Eastasian Premier." Wilson pointed out the Layartebian Emperor to Corus, who felt awed to finally see what he looked like. "So I take it you're with the Romans then?"
"Yeah...I'm Publius Marcus Corus."
"Pleased to meet you. So where's your table? I don't see Valerius sitting anywhere."
"Oh, we're over there." Corus then pointed out his table to Wilson. "I'm sitting with my buddies trying to pass time while Valerius chats with the other heads of state- and to figure out when this party will really start."
"I know how that feels...but I've been through this before. Gets boring but I'm used to it."
Corus smiled. They sure raise them well in Layarteb...she's hot... he thought. "Anyway, I should head back to my table. It was a pleasure to meet you and I hope you enjoy the rest of the party."

Corus then headed back to his table with his snack dish, filled while conversing with Wilson. His friends were more than eager to hear him spill the beans.
"How'd it go man?" asked Kaesou.
"She's with the Layartebians," replied Corus. "That's all I got."
"You didn't get her name? How could you?" stammered Kaesou.
"I spaced out...she's hot, do you blame me?"
The three men nodded in agreement. "So where's the Layartebian Emperor?" asked Jurus.
"Over there, by the Eastasians," replied Corus.
"Wow, he's young...younger than Valerius even...never thought I'd see that," said Jurus.
"Well, Layarteb is a one-of-a-kind country," said Corus. "Who's up for another drink?"
"I am," replied Kaesou. "Hey, we all know we need to get this party started...it's going way too slow."
"Agreed," said Corus, who called over a lackey to order more drinks.

OOC: RomeW, nice but she wouldn't introduce herself that way. She would introduce herself simply as being with the Layartebian delegation and that she was a close confidant of the Emperor.

The Emperor watched as the Premier went on, "Policy makers within the Empire follow the will of the Cabinet and myself and if we didn't approve of our partnership it wouldn't exist. Regardless of what they believe, personally, that isn't the case. They are elected, appointed, or hired to serve in the best interests of the Empire and it's nearly 1.3 billion people. That means if the Cabinet decides it is beneficial to world stability, which is beneficial to the Empire, then that is the end of the line. They can think what they want in their homes but that is as far as it goes.

"Your personal life is your own Premier. Despite the fact that it does not coincide with the 'Layartebian' idea of morality who are we to dictate our morality to your people? Premier. I respect sovereignty and I respect it more than anything else in the world. I would never encroach upon yours simply because of a matter of societal disagreement. If I thought so, I wouldn't be standing here right now. I believe that in a world full of superpowers that our two are amongst the largest, if not the largest.

"Hawks within our government must pursuade me that our partnership is no longer beneficial. Despite the lack of Japan, I don't see how our partnership is no longer beneficial. Mr. Premier. You dominate the Pacific Ocean and East Asia. The Empire dominates the Atlantic Ocean, North, and South America. Wouldn't it be wise for our two nations to remain allies, improve on our relations, and forge an ever-lasting peace? I think it would."

Prime Minister Wells was working the room exchanging pleasantries. In the corner of his eye he noticed the Emperor of Layarteb chatting with Premier Zhao. Wells walked up to both men and extended his hand to the Emperor.

"It's good to see you old friend. I am glad to see you brought Ms. Wilson with you, we exchanged hello's at the drink fountain. I'll bet we can finally have the poker game we have been putting off for so long."

Wells also took the opportunity to introduce himself to the Premier. Extending his hand he introduced himself to Zhao.

"Premier Zhao, it is such a pleasure to meet you in person. Our newly assigned ambassador has told me so many good things about your great nation, I can't wait to have an official visit and see the wonders of the world and the magnificent culture she has told me so much about."

Ever the statesman Wells continued with his introduction.

"And you must be Ruiyu Xian I presume? It is pleasure to meet you. The happiness you two share simply lights up the room. May you always live in a state of bliss!"

"Ah. Prime Minister Wells. I trust you know Premier Zhao?" He introduced the two of them and stood back slightly while they talked to themselves. "Our poker game will commence eventually and we must have a discussion later. For now, gentlemen, if you'll excuse me. I must meet with the Romans about certain South American problems. Premier. It was a pleasure, as always. Please, think about our discussion." The Emperor extended his hand for a shake and departed the small group of them for Caesar Valerius. He approached him slowly and extended his hand for a shake when he got near him. "Caesar. Pleasure to see you here tonight. I hoped that we could discuss some developments along our borders."

OOC: Just wondering, i forgot about this completely, is it too late to join the party?

Zhao nodded as the Emperor began to move on.

"I shall take the discussion under consideration, to be sure."

He then turned to Prime Minister Wells, his smile broadening as he shook his hand.

"Ah, Prime Minister, we meet at last. I am glad to hear that your ambassador thinks highly of us; our Foreign Ministry has heard constant praise about your hospitality from our ambassador. I think I can speak for the Eastasian people as a whole when I say that we would love to play host to you; we don't get many state visits these days, which is a shame because we can offer so much to a potential guest.

As far as Ruiyu and I are concerned, I think it's safe to say that we are 'in it for the long haul'. I mean, we've had our occasional disagreements, but we learn from each one. He's proving to be a very positive influence on me actually."

Yes Premier relationships grow over time. A stable companion is much like a warm fire on a cold winter's day, comforting and healing for the soul. I often think about the sacrifices my wife makes for my being the Prime Minister. The late nights, the long hours would make for trying times if I didn't have such a splendid companion myself.

I wanted to thank the Premier for settling the unrest in the Japan region. We had a long working relationship with the former regime for a time, but the illogical behavior and rash judgements rendered by the last leader left us feeling shorted in our long working relationship. I often feel we were led to believe things were fine just so Okinawa and mainland Japan could be obtained from Hawdawgian hands. I was saddened when we had to remove all of our citizens from the islands for fear of rampant lawlessness and potential retribution from the now defunct ruling party.

Which brings me to my offer, would the Premier consider allowing the Hawdawgian Navy to reopen its facility on Okinawa? Or would the Premier consider the sale of Okinawa back to Hawdawg? We have a soft spot for the home of Karate not to mention it would help us with our logistical issues in ship refueling on those long treks across the Pacific to Papau New Guinea. Naturally we would reward your government hansomely for this.

OOC: Alright Im back to this thread, I kinda skimmed the last two pages to get a general idea of whats going on and since there is no way for me to enter the conversation that is currently on-going lets all assume that my guys aproached the king prior to the time then the conversation began since his royal highness wanted a few minutes with every guest from what i gathered.

IC:

"It is truly a pleasure to finally meet you and your spouse, your Highness."

Igor said with a slight accent. He never had to deal with royalty before but after a momentary delay decided to extend his hand for a handshake as he did with everyone else.

OOC: Thanks. Changed the initial post. Valerius wouldn't be sitting...he was walking around to be able to go from conversation to conversation easier, and was walking with his wife. So I'm also going to alter the initial exchange a little to fit that in.

"Ah. Prime Minister Wells. I trust you know Premier Zhao?" He introduced the two of them and stood back slightly while they talked to themselves. "Our poker game will commence eventually and we must have a discussion later. For now, gentlemen, if you'll excuse me. I must meet with the Romans about certain South American problems. Premier. It was a pleasure, as always. Please, think about our discussion." The Emperor extended his hand for a shake and departed the small group of them for Caesar Valerius. He approached him slowly and extended his hand for a shake when he got near him. "Caesar. Pleasure to see you here tonight. I hoped that we could discuss some developments along our borders."

"Hello," replied Valerius, shaking the Emperor's hand firmly while departing from the bar. "It's an honour to meet you." Valerius took a sip of his wine and then motioned to his wife. "This is my wife Margret," he continued, introducing her to the Layartebian Emperor.
"Pleased to meet you Margret. Caesar, I hope we could discuss some developments along our borders," replied the Layartebian Emperor after being introduced to Margret.
"I'll let you two be," said Margret, departing. "I'll be over by our table." Margret waved goodbye to both men and told the Layartebian Emperor it was nice meeting him.
...and here I was hoping we'd be talking about football now. Such a young fellow...he should be relaxing and enjoying himself here...oh well, Valerius thought. Valerius slapped a smile on his face and tried to be as cordial as possible despite his discomfort at these proceedings, knowing he'd have more 'talks' to deal with tonight. "So, border issues you tell me...tell me more about this, I would like to know more about this. Also, would you like a drink? It's on me."

Rachel smiled as Corus headed back to his table and she continued to peruse around, making her way through the crowd. Rachel was quiet but for a reason, she knew much and would say little. The Emperor trusted her and that was a lot to say for a man who, despite his lengthy Cabinet apointees, trusted fewer people than the fingers on his hands. He smiled as he shook both Valerus' hand and the hand of his wife. "Pleased to meet you as well. Our two nations are great, large, and share countless borders with each other but we have yet to formally meet in a setting such as this one. It is a definite pleasure. I would introduce you to my companion of the evening but I can't seem," he looked around. "There she is. Ms. Rachel Wilson talking with that gentleman there." He pointed and then returned to the conversation. "A drink. Yes. Please a scotch with two fingers of water. Johnny Walker Black if they have it." With a drink in his hand, the Emperor carefully made sure nobody was too close. "You are aware of our recent incursion into the Federal Republic of the Amazon and our subsequent annexation after their failed cooperation in the Venezuelan matter. We have uncovered a dangerous web of illegal narcotics within their country. Though not government sponsored it seems that the Venezuelan rebels funded a significant portion of their campaign selling illegal drugs. It seems that many may have gone across the border to your territories in South America. That is just one issue. I would also like to pick your brain about a possible 'cultural exchange,' perhaps international sports? Our football, baseball, soccer, and hockey leagues would love to have international tournaments."

"Ah women, always off doing their own thing," Valerius cracked after the Emperor pointed out Wilson, "Margret's much the same way...not even I can keep track of her, and of all people, I should be able to do it." Valerius grinned. "Women...but where would we be without them." The wine was beginning to have an effect on the Caesar, but he was watching his own drinks to ensure he wasn't drunk at "important moments" like this one with the Layartebians. "I believe that fine gentleman she was with is Publius Marcus Corus...he's been a friend of mine since my University days...he's a good man, you have my word on that.

"Anyway, as for the Amazon situation, I am aware of the situation but, as far as I know, our officials have not yet spotted any 'suspicious actvity'. However, we will step up our coverage of the area and do everything we can to prevent illicit activities from occuring on our soil. Does your intelligence unit have a list of names that our intelligence agency can have a hold of so we can better monitor their activities and catch them if they cross into Roman borders?

"As for the cultural exchange," Valerius warmed up to this topic, which was much more to his liking and more of what he envisioned talking about at a party, "what do you have in mind? We would be delighted to stage international tournaments between our two nations. If it is at all possible, we would like to know the possibility of including the rest of the athletes in The October Alliance because, between us, we have the class of the world to choose from, and would make for an excellent set of tournaments. Hockey and soccer are definites from us, as well as rugby" Valerius adopted a mock cockiness to his tone, "'cause you know they're our staples and we're quite good at it...just stating the facts here." He smiled and then continued, "as for the other sports you suggested, they're not as big in the Imperium as I'm sure they are in Layarteb, but I'm sure we could get something together. Just make sure your athletes bring their games, because ours sure will." Valerius, always one to talk sports, was delighted to have this unexpected topic for discussion, and he hoped he could loosen up the Layartebian Emperor a little. He's far too young to take things *too* seriously...one day, he'll learn to relax, for his own good.

OOC: You keep referring to the Emperor as young but, in reality, he is 50+ [true age = state secret]. He was a major in the special forces in 1970s fighting in Venezuela and what not. He looks younger than he really is [say he looks like he's in his lower 40s]. Ms. Wilson is just a year younger than he is.

"I'm glad to hear that he is although I wouldn't expect unsavory characters here. Trust me, not for one second did I question his honor. This room if full of both ladies and gentlemen, a truly auspicious affair. Concerning these drug cartels, our intelligence and interior ministries are working on the problem in conjunction with our justice ministry. Names, banking accounts, and all sorts of juicy information will be made available. I would request that your intelligence department liaison with ours to curb this flow. We fought two, very long drug wars in the Empire since 1980 and I am proud to say that we won both of them. I do not want to have to begin fighting a third one, our country is too exhausted to have another perpetual war.

"This cultural exchange will do our nations good. Perhaps we can start small, Romania and the Empire and expand outward. Rugby is a popular sport within our borders and we do have an official sports 'major' league of rugby. I'm afraid I still don't understand the rules in its entirety but who am I to know the rules of every sport. Baseball is enough for me," he said with a laugh. "Perhaps we can begin to set up various leagues. Within our countries we can have our leagues as they are and then, perhaps we can expand to a bigger grouping including our leagues in joining with each other. I don't have any specifics worked out right now but I am sure our sport's institutions will be pleased with the idea. There has been ideas for cross border leagues for decades now and I'm afraid we've been too busy to get to it but the time is now. We could increase a significant amount of our cultures with this, including trade and tourism. I only see positives from this endeavor."

OOC: You keep referring to the Emperor as young but, in reality, he is 50+ [true age = state secret]. He was a major in the special forces in 1970s fighting in Venezuela and what not. He looks younger than he really is [say he looks like he's in his lower 40s]. Ms. Wilson is just a year younger than he is.

OOC: My apologies...however, you probably couldn't fault my characters for thinking he's young anyway...the picture you provided certainly gave that appearance so I inferred from that.

IC:

I hope his drink loosens him up...he's taking things way too seriously, Valerius thought. "I'll send a message to our intelligence department on that very subject right now," replied Valerius as he whipped out his PDA and began to type. "Ah, the beauty of modern technology...sometimes I wonder how our predecessors survived," Valerius cracked, "especially Constantine. He could have used a cell phone in his day."

"Don't worry about not knowing about rugby," continued Valerius, who laughed with the Emperor. "I don't follow it much either. I'm more into football myself...the American kind. Nothing like a good game of pigskin to keep yourself glued to the television. Unfortunately, most of my countrymen don't like it because it's 'too slow', but once they realize just how tough the sport is, they'll be hooked. Perhaps we can also co-ordinate a football league so we can further promote this wonderful game.

"Eventually, I too envision a unified, cross-border league, maybe even with promotion and relegation to keep all the teams going each week, for each of our sports. First, though, we should have a Challenge Cup, in part to buy us time to create the new league system and in part to whet the public's appetite for the unified leagues. What do you think?"

A distinct trail of thoughts was running through Igor's head as he was waiting for the King to either shake his hand or give him some sort of sign that such a gesture was inappropriate.

"Ооо, да блин сколько всё таки тиранов здесь собралось? Сам Король Котландии конечно же, этот...эх ну да Император Рима Валериус...Киргизстанский Фюрер, ну и даже сам Сатана, Император Лайартеба. И как меня сюда Иван затощил? Сбор всех кто репрезентирует силу зла на этой земле. Эх старик хочит мира это понятно но как может нация свободных людей находиться в мире с этими рабовладельцами? Надо будет сказать привет Истатцам, давно их не видел."
Oooh, shit just how many tyrants assembled here? King of Cotland of course, that...eh yeah right Emperor of Romania Valerius..Hirgizstanian Fuhrer, and the Satan himself Emperor of Layarteb. And how did Ivan manage to drag me here? A party of everyone who represents evil in this world. Eh the old man wants peace, thats understandable, but how is a nation of free people supposed to be in peace with these slaveowners? Will have to say hello to Eastasians, long time since I've seen them.

Igor made sure that none of his thoughts were given away by his facial expression.

OOC: Hey Rome, I remember you were interested in maybe participating in Operation Brotherhood RP (the whole Kamchatka business), if you have a minute we can discuss it on AIM, my screen name is kuzmich20.

Which brings me to my offer, would the Premier consider allowing the Hawdawgian Navy to reopen its facility on Okinawa? Or would the Premier consider the sale of Okinawa back to Hawdawg? We have a soft spot for the home of Karate not to mention it would help us with our logistical issues in ship refueling on those long treks across the Pacific to Papau New Guinea. Naturally we would reward your government hansomely for this.

"As much as I would like to say yes, I must unfortunately refuse your offer for the time being. Please realise that it is nothing personal. The people of Nihon State would have to be consulted, as the island lies under their jurisdiction; if they agreed, then it would be put to the vote of the federal legislature. You must understand, we did not unify eastern Asia to then hand over an island in the heart of our territory to a nation with whom we have only recently established ambassadorial relations. I shall convey your request to the people, and we shall see how things develop from there."

[OOC: Sorry for the absence. Just got back from the vacation and is busy trying to get everything ready for the start of the semester tommorrow. I'll be more active from now on. Rome: There are beverages here from all over the world. Spiz: Just assume your character arrived like everyone else.]

The King nodded as the Russian delegation proceeded up the line to them, shaking the Russian President's hand.

"The feeling is mutual sir," The King said. "I hope that your presence here tonight will help ease the remaining tensions between our two nations. Please do enjoy the party sir. I trust we shall talk a little later?"

***

A short while later, the last of the guests had been greeted and it was finally time for the King and Queen to enter the Grand Hall. This was signalled by the band finishing the song they'd been playing prematurely and for the lack of the background music to get the people's attention before they started playing another song: "Happy Birthday to You".

As it was played, the King and Queen entered the Grand Hall, walking graciously down the Grand Hall towards the center of the room. The Queen was seven months pregnant at this time, but she still walked with an almost divine grace down the Grand Hall. When the band stopped playing, it was time for another thing.

Prime Minister Rothsky had gotten a hold of a microphone, and he stepped up on the small stage.

"Your Majesties, your excellencies, esteemed visitors, ladies and gentlemen, friends, may I have your attention for just a moment please." Rothsky said, waiting until things had quieted down before he continued. "If Your Majesty could please come up on the stage for a moment?"

The King did so, standing besides Rothsky without really knowing what was going to happen.

"Your Majesty, I would like to take the opportunity to wish you a happy birthday on behalf of not only myself, but also of the whole of Cotland. Today, it is not only we who celebrate You, but also the whole people. I'm sure Your Majesty doesn't know about this, but we in the Cabinet commissioned an opinion poll a while back, asking more than ten million Cots all over the Realm, a representative selection of the population, about what present they thought appropriate for Your Majesty and what they thought the Cabinet should buy. An overwhelming majority - seventy-three percent - said the same thing. Your Majesty, on the behalf of the people of the Realm of Cotland, I have the great honor and privilidge of presenting you with the present from the Cottish people."

Rothsky handed the King a large manila envelope while two lackeys in the background carried out a large object that was covered in a silk cover. The King opened the envelope and took out a few pieces of paper, skimmed through them, and then looked up at Rothsky with a surprised expression on his face.

"Yes Your Majesty. The people wanted you to have a new yacht. In fact, this yacht." Rothsky said, removing the silk cover, revealing a large picture of a large, luxurious yacht inside a golden frame.

http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/9559/02suj4.jpg

"Your Majesty, I present to you, His Majesty's Royal Yacht 'Royal Lion', which is named after the highly successful Cottish Man-o-War Royal Lion, which served the Navy with distinction from 1779 to 1817. This 'Royal Lion' is one hundred and thirty-eight meters long, weighs in at 1,680 tons when fully loaded, and can cruise at speeds of over twenty-eight knots while providing the luxuries of a five-star luxury hotel for the up to fifty VIP guests. The 'Royal Lion' finished her sea trials in the Irish Sea just last week, and is probably on her way up the Oslofjord right now, while her sister ship, the 'Royal Knight' is still fitting out in the Manx shipyard that built them. The 'Royal Lion' is from this point onwards at Your Majesty's disposal, with the 'Royal Knight' expected to be completed by November."

Rothsky stepped aside and bowed respectfully to the King. "On the behalf of the Cottish people, I wish you a Happy Birthday sir."

The King, still surprised, accepted the microphone a lackey offered.

"Prime Minister Rothsky, I honestly don't know what to say, apart from a profound thank you. Thank you." He turned to face the audience. "Your Majesties, your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to take the opportunity to thank all of you for taking the time to be here tonight. I know that you are busy people, many of you with large nations to manage. I hope you will be able to relax tonight and just enjoy the party. And in case you aren't, that was a Royal decree." He added with a grin, handing the microphone back to the lackey and walking over to the picture of the yacht, which had been placed on the side of the stage so everyone could see it, inspecting it with experienced eyes.

Meanwhile, in the background, a team of lackeys were busy trying rolling in a massive seven-story cake...

"As much as I would like to say yes, I must unfortunately refuse your offer for the time being. Please realise that it is nothing personal. The people of Nihon State would have to be consulted, as the island lies under their jurisdiction; if they agreed, then it would be put to the vote of the federal legislature. You must understand, we did not unify eastern Asia to then hand over an island in the heart of our territory to a nation with whom we have only recently established ambassadorial relations. I shall convey your request to the people, and we shall see how things develop from there."

I understand Premier no offense taken good sir. Hopefully things will come about that we may someday be allowed to reopen our facility. As I stated earlier Premier I am serious about coming to the mainland, perhaps an official visit could be scheduled around the middle of September?

"Constantine with our technology? Now that has to be a great alternative history book. I could just imagine what the ancient Scythians would have done in 1157 when they declared themselves independent from Tnemrot if they had a cell phone. Thanks to technology though we no longer have to wait months for a message. It is to our favor but it may also be to our fault. Football will work just as well. Perhaps that is where we can start? It is quite popular in the Empire, not the most popular of sports but certainly well over a quarter of the Empire watch games on a yearly basis. That's a lot of people and a good place to start. Perhaps it will only increase its popularity. Yes a Challenge Cup would be perfect. Perhaps the winner of our own football tournament versus yours vie against each other in a sort of 'world' match?"

Igor Stepanov and Ivan Mishin approached the King again, it was apparently the gift giving time. An aide brought out a long, slightly curved object wrapped in a dark, very soft cloth. The aide handed it to Igor, Ivan began to speak.

"Although our gift pales in comparison to the one presented to your Highness by my old friend Mr. Rothsky, if you would allow us, we would like to present you with an Alexandrian Shashka...."

Igor took the cloth off, inside was a sheathed sword, it was guardless, one handed and slightly curved. In the middle of the blade there was two inscriptions running parallel each other, one in Russian, the other in Cottish, both said: "A gift to the King of Cotland from the proud people of the Russian Federation".

http://www.mym.ru/shop2/psv_oh02.jpg

"...swords such as this have been used by Pushkan Cossack settlers back during the rule of Alexander the Ist, our greatest Tsar. There is in fact only one known master in the whole world that still makes them like this. It is a very light and sturdy weapon, good for horseback as well as on-foot combat. Can cut off a man's head with a single swing, a true warrior's weapon. I present it to your Highness not only as a gift for your 34th birthday but also as an offer of continued friendship between our two great nations."

I understand Premier no offense taken good sir. Hopefully things will come about that we may someday be allowed to reopen our facility. As I stated earlier Premier I am serious about coming to the mainland, perhaps an official visit could be scheduled around the middle of September?

"My Foreign Ministry will talk to yours, and I'm sure it'll go ahead. Ruiyu, do we have anything going on around the middle of September?"

Ruiyu shook his head. "Don't think so....no, nothing. We'll have just come back from that week in Thai State we arranged, so we'll be full of energy."

Zhao smirked at the thought. "Indeed. Prime Minister, we shall give you a welcome that you won't soon forget."

"Splendid, absolutely splendid. Premier it has been such a great honor to finally meet your excellency and Ruiyu, but I am afraid I need to see another old friend before he has too much of these fine Cottish Spirits. It has been a pleasure, may the sun shine on you in your travels. Until we meet again."

Prime Minister Wells offered a symbolic bow to the Premier and Ruiyu as he turned to find the Romans. In the corner of his eye he saw them chatting with Emperor of Layarteb. He polited waited for the two men to finish there conversation before he moved in to introduce himself.

"Emperor I hope you don't think I am following you around old friend."

Wells motioned for a servant to bring him a fresh Whiskey.

"I don't think we have met, Prime Minister Gordon Wells, Holy Republic of Hawdawg."

Wells extended his hand to greet the Roman.

"Valerius let me introduce Prime Minister Gordon Wells of the Holy Republic of Hawdawg. Where are my manners going these days," the Emperor said as Wells thrust out his hand to shake Valerius' hand. "We were just discussing the possibility of opening an international football league between both of our empires in hopes for international sports."

"Valerius, it's a pleasure to me you. International sports competition? We would be interested in participating for sure. I know our World Cup Team would love to travel and have exhibition style games. I would also bet our Regional Basketball and Baseball Teams would be more than willing to mix it up in whatever came about. Soccer is King in England and Morocco of course, but Baseball and Basketball are really making strides in both Sweden and Finland. The South Texas Baseball Team has several team members that are world class home run derby style impact players, or so I am told.

Let me talk it over with the Regional Governor's when I return home, I bet we can put something together."

OOC: Hawdawg, do you have a team list for the South Texas baseball team?

IC: Valerius greeted Wells the same way he had the Layartebian Emperor- with a firm, sincere handshake. He was a bit more jovial at this juncture than he was when the Layartebian Emperor first greeted him, but that was because he was anticipating a dreaded "heavy" talk of politics and trade deals, and the unexpected topic raising of sports brought out the best in him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Prime Minister Wells," said the Caesar. "Would you like a drink? It's on me.

"I'm a very big fan of the South Texas Team...I don't think I've seen a baseball team work quite as efficiently as they do.

"You know, now that we are three...perhaps we can stage national and club competitions, in much the same manner of the Olympics. We can use our stage to promote our sports to new audiences who would otherwise never be exposed to these events and open their eyes at the excitement that other cultures bring. I know us Romans could use a 'cultural awakening'...it seems like the only sports (OOC: rugby, hockey, wrestling, gladiatorial combats, soccer is a "high society" game) that catch on in Rome are the ones where the competitors have to kill each other...if only they saw the valour and endurance that other athletes go through they'd warm up immediately; and, with our nations sharing several common sporting interests, we can be assured that these national competitions would be incredibly even, so the public can be assured of a riveting competition."

"Indeed gentlemen and it is a sort of personal mission of mine to spread baseball throughout the world. I know the New York Yankees would love someone else to beat on," he laughed, taking a final sip of the scotch in his glass. "The presentation is beginning soon, is it not?" He checked his watch.

OOC: Hawdawg, do you have a team list for the South Texas baseball team?


OOC: Yes here it is. It's the current San Antonio minor league team.

Pitchers
Num Name Pos Bat Thw Ht Wt Age DOB Status 40-man MLB
16 Paul Abraham P R R 6' 2" 220 27 01-10-1980 Active No
47 Manny Ayala P R R 6' 3" 237 22 11-06-1984 Active No
11 Michael Ekstrom P R R 6' 0" 185 23 08-30-1983 Active No
27 Jonathan Ellis P R R 6' 0" 190 24 10-03-1982 Active No
48 Joshua Geer P R R 6' 3" 190 24 06-02-1983 Active No
55 Dirk Hayhurst P L R 6' 3" 200 26 03-24-1981 Active No
39 William Inman P R R 6' 0" 200 20 02-06-1987 Active No
10 Neil Jamison P R R 6' 3" 185 24 08-04-1983 Active No
38 Wade Leblanc P L L 6' 3" 202 23 08-07-1984 Active No
51 Edwin Moreno P R R 6' 1" 170 27 07-30-1980 Active No
34 Jose Oyervidez P R R 5' 11" 195 25 02-18-1982 Disabled 7-Day No
43 Cesar Ramos P L L 6' 2" 190 23 06-22-1984 Active No
33 Jonathan Searles P R R 6' 3" 200 26 01-18-1981 Active No
52 Kyle Stutes P L L 5' 10" 185 25 01-22-1982 Active No

Catchers
Num Name Pos Bat Thw Ht Wt Age DOB Status 40-man MLB
13 Nick Hundley C R R 6' 1" 210 23 09-08-1983 Active No
47 Colt Morton C R R 6' 5" 230 25 04-10-1982 Active No

Infielders
Num Name Pos Bat Thw Ht Wt Age DOB Status 40-man MLB
23 Matt Antonelli 2B R R 6' 0" 203 22 04-08-1985 Active No
54 Brett Bonvechio 1B L R 6' 1" 200 24 11-13-1982 Active No
25 Tim Brown 1B L L 6' 3" 228 24 02-21-1983 Active No
35 Luis Cruz SS R R 6' 1" 180 23 02-10-1984 Active Yes
14 Brett Dowdy 2B R R 6' 0" 190 25 02-22-1982 Active No
7 Chase Headley 3B S R 6' 2" 195 23 05-09-1984 Active Yes

Outfielders
Num Name Pos Bat Thw Ht Wt Age DOB Status 40-man MLB
21 Chad Huffman OF R R 6' 1" 217 22 04-29-1985 Active No
15 Drew Macias OF L L 6' 3" 175 24 03-07-1983 Active No
28 Will Venable OF L L 6' 2" 205 24 10-29-1982 Active No


"Valerius, here is a copy of my boy's roster from San Antonio, they are quite a crew indeed. I went to see them play the last time I was in Texas and it was a joy. I managed to arrive on the .25 cent hotdog/soda fan appreciation day, nothing beats a good hotdog during a lively game. I bet we can get everyone together to have these games, it shouldn't be too much trouble. The only concern I have is our Manchester Soccer Fans. If we have soccer matches, they will show up in force and often misbehave a tad bit. They don't reflect the true nature of a good fan, but alias anyone can buy a plane ticket these days. Emperor I would bet the Missions would give your Yankees a good show. We will talk about the specifics later gentlemen, I believe the Emperor is correct the presentation is about to start."