NationStates Jolt Archive

The spacious interior, in its blue and white splendor, was filled with eight rows of seats, where passengers stood in wait for the ending of a long travel. There was a very soft sound of silent turbofans seeming from behind, although it was nearly ignored as the voice coming from a headset silenced such. The seats were superb, and to the side a seedy individual was enjoying his own sort of trip, fortunately being too relaxed to bother, or perhaps out of respect, specially considering what lied on her lap. The SF-27 submachinegun on her lap was a very clear indication that Cecily Lockhelm was not in the perfect mood for pothead humor. Actually she did not mind, but there were advantages inherent to have a gun capable of making a world of hurt visible to everyone around. Hopefully the safety lock on it would never have to be released, just like she hoped that having the thing on her hip would not make her look too "gangsta" for someone who supposedly was a head of State.

The message the headset transmitted to her was the voice of Júlio Santiago, her old friend, right from the middle of the battlefield, speaking to her in Spanish:

"Cecily, from the resistance we are facing in Mallorca, continental Spain is going to be a very tough front. Some of us already had to give in their lives for the cause of freedom, and I fear that the supreme quality our limited manpower might not be able their sheer quantity."

"Júlio, I know it. We are taking risks in being hasty, but if we allow for them to regroup even greater losses could ensue. The only way for us to win this war as we must is to be five times faster than them, and more aware of their moves than themselves. Encircle and convince their soldiers to defect or even join the true defenders of Spain, train guerrillas from the locals to fight together and defend their own freed towns and cities, but do not let them put us into a standstill. The faster Mallorca is freed, the better for our future." Cecily then replied, for apparently her long train of multiple roles never abandoned her. Not even in moments like this.

"I know, but should we not wait for our allies from India?" came the answer to her headset, as the distant noises of battle could be captured by her transmission.

"This is a war that we must win by ourselves Julio, we cannot rely too much into allied support for it, for many political reasons. With our naval and air superiority assured, victory shall be natural." Cecily then replied from the airplane.

"I understand. Now I have to cut down this comm, there is some serious advance here. Julio out."

Supposedly was the right world. Supposedly a diplomatic meeting, she knew what was the primary purpose to be there. Spewing the usual rhetoric, Cecily managed to disguise it quite well that what she truly desired was for a vacation in an exotic land rather than for a diplomatic travel, to clear her head of all the war that everybody was talking about to her seemingly twenty-four hours a day. Once asked whether she came for business or pleasure, the answer would be very clear.

She came for both, and the SA-60 Silent Aircraft would take a few hours before arriving at Aresium. At least there was something for entertainment around: her notebook attached to a hanging frame to the seat ahead, a convenience very cleverly made by the Hidal Airlines Cooperative. Using its interface, she would eventually open something, as a 3d rendered battlefield would appear, following to a main menu. Prior to diplomacy, the usual past-time was that of strategic war games. Fittingly, the scenario was a recreation of their very history of the moment, with the goal being the liberation of Iberia from a simulated enemy that combined the People's Republic of Spain, Stoklomolvi and even the infamous and nearly legendary Automagfreek into a gameplay of nearly impossible proportions. Cecily spent the hours in flight playing it, sometimes losing and having to reload the game as she thought to herself, in a typically superfluous conclusion:

This is still easier. In real life there are no reloads. Once lost, there is no turning back. Once a wrong diplomatic decision is done, there is no turning back either.

The travel was finally at its end as the airplane (http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42283000/jpg/_42283094_sax-clouds_203.jpg) flew through the indications of flight controllers to land in the International Airport of Laches, as it controlled lost altitude for landing. Cecily shut down the notebook and closed it into the frame, where it would stand firmly and safe as a small turbulence came from the landing.

"Attention passengers of the first travel to Laches, we are about to land, please proceed to the services area if you have no ID. Remember the non-disclosure policy on instant passports, and have a nice tour in Aresium." the phones of the airplane then announced in their descent. There was a certain inconvenience on how the Confederacy lacked any form of national ID card, although that some companies, endorsed by the complete lack of laws against it in the Confederacy, would not hesitate into with the help of some of its best hackers to develop perfect forgeries of international passports for those who have not managed to acquire legitimate ones due to their lack of ID cards inherent to a true anarchy like the Confederacy, where the control of the individual by the fist of a State was frowned upon.

Lockhelm's was obviously not one of those, although hopefully no issues would come, or otherwise she would have a really unlucky first travel trying to explain why some of the tourists have forged passports because they really wanted to visit Aresium even though the official means were blocked, or to justify why she saw nothing wrong in that. The hundreds of tourists from Third Spanish States would soon head towards the customs area of the airport, although they politely allowed for Cecily to come in first, perhaps because of the large gun in her hilt, perhaps because of the respect she had, or perhaps to let her be far away from there if one of the few with faked passports was caught red-handed. Carrying her notebook with her left hand, and boldly heading through the customs with a submachinegun in her hilt, she wore a perfect replica of one of the uniform (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Woman_with_cntfai_flag.jpg)s used by women in the militias of the First Spanish Civil War.

Red carpets weren't really something she fancied, although expectingly, someone would likely come to personally escort her there, even though she continued to head among the passengers, like if trying to not be spotted. Maybe the fact she refused to come in a private jet was a good sign of her usual ways. Now it was the time for seeing what they would say about her, as she was about to step into the customs area, where a clerk lied to check in the Confederacy tourists, still unaware of her presence in the middle of the crowd, until she finally stepped out of it, with a certain worry.

Philomena Kosseri had been pacing around her office anxiously while her stoic bodyguard silently stood and watched with a low level of amusement and while the Foreign Minister, wherever she was, was getting herself ready for Cecily Lockhelm's visit to Aresium. The impending visit was looked forward to with intense trepidation and respect by the Aresian hosts with every luxury obtained for their esteemed guest regardless of whether she would want them or not. It was said, though, that although the government system of the Third Spanish States was viewed, in Aresium, with a sense of skepticism that suggested the people thought it just a bit too good to be true, the Aresian nation was very willing to be friends with the nation regardless of ideological differences. This was the Aresian standard: Don't think too highly of a foreign ideology but respect those who believe in it as if they were your own people.

The city of Laches, capital of the Republic, was adorned with news reports that called for the people to hope for better relations between Aresium and the Third Spanish States to be made during the meeting but which, also, inspired satirists to joke about the nation's traits and way of life but in a good way so as to not let Cecily and others think that they were trying to defame and insult the land. Dressed in a lovely autumn dress that complimented her figure, instead of dressing in her old military uniform, Philomena Kosseri was very ecstatic and looking forward to seeing Cecily in person. Cecily was, so far, the foreign leader who had interested Philomena the most. Lanus, on the other hand, couldn't care less who was visiting Aresium. To him, foreign dignitaries were simply foreign dignitaries and he held none above the other at the moment. Once word came in that it would only be a matter of time before Cecily's plane landed on the runway which would be adorned with members of the elite security forces, Philomena and Lanus went to the dormant limosuine waiting outside and she ordered her personal chauffer to drive her to the airport. Levana, the lesbian who became the Foreign Minister, also took her limosuine to the airport. She was dressed in a business suit and looked absolutely gorgeous for the meeting but it was for merely making herself look presentable and respectable (as she wanted to do regardless of who she was meeting) rather than trying to seduce Cecily into doing something carnal. No one in the government thought much about that.

In the limosuine which drove down the somewhat busy streets of Laches with their posters advertising movies and community events such as children's theatrics, Philomena smiled. She was truly happy to be able to meet Miss Lockhelm. She knew that her father, the previous leader, would want her to be professional but she felt, in essence, just a bit childlike. It was as if she was meeting Santa Claus or some hunk who became the envy of schoolgirls but she restrained the emotions so as to not embaress herself in front of Lockhelm. ".....I don't think that Cecily will have a bad time here, Lanus. I am sure we have made her visit surely pleasurable. She'd be more than welcome to explore our nation should she desire it."

Lanus smiled but retained his stoic expression. "....I am sure you will have done well, Philomena. You have retained the professionalism that your father wanted you to have."

And so it went like that: Philomena and Lanus talked about childhood memories while Levana simply went over notes one last time before they all met Cecily Lockhelm. They all got to the airport just as Cecily's plane gently landed on the runway and as she came out to be greeted by a military band and some welcoming well wishers. No one seemed to care about her appearance. They all simply wanted to welcome her with joyful dance and song and the stoic expressions of the soldiers, of course, who kept an eye on her in the name of security. Philomena and the others rushed to Cecily and Philomena, being Aresium's leader, welcomed her first. ".....Miss Lockhelm, it is a pleasure to be finally meeting you in person. I welcome you, on behalf of all of us, to the Republic of Aresium. I am Philomena Kosseri, the leader of the land, and this is the Councilwoman for Foreign Affairs, Levana Flaman."

Levana smiled. Cecily looked nice, she thought, although she didn't expect that Cecily would have chosen to wear militaristic style attire but that really did not matter nor did it matter that Levana, for a fleeting moment, considered Cecily to be attractive and interesting. She wondered if Cecily had served in some militia or what not. It was entirely possible. She knew, though, what had to be held first in her mind. "...It is an honor to meet such a well known stateswoman. I'm Levana Flaman, as Miss Kosseri just stated, and I'll be representing Aresium during our talks. I must say that your nation has drawn up quite the interest here. The anarchism you subscribe to has interested plenty of people although, truth be told, some people find it just too good to be true but let's not let ideological differences get in the way of good will, shall we? Follow us, Miss Lockhelm, and we'll show you around."

Levana and Cecily, just them, got into one limosuine while Philomena and Lanus got into the other and both of them sped off at an equal speed into the still somewhat busy streets of Laches. Levana, as the chauffer drove, pointed out various buildings and posters for Cecily to see such as the libraries filled with books and e-books, the theatres where people of all ages could see old fashioned plays, and the schools which were held to a Spartan style of education but which wasn't all too harsh. Levana seemed very happy to tell Cecily all about Aresium's capital. It was like she was a little girl telling her grandfather about all the things she had done and seen. They did pass a golden statue of a philosopher which one could say was the man who inspired the current political nature of Aresium. It looked magnificent, really, and people were loitering around it. In some places, loitering was legal as long as there was, well, a valid reason. They soon came upon Levana's complex, that is, the place where foreign affairs and policies were handled. It was flanked by plenty of other buildings of various natures and guarded by security guards due to the occupant who would work inside. Levana and Cecily walked past them without any need to check for security passes. Inside, Cecily could see the architectural luxuries of the complex such as the intrinsic mosaics and, as well, the hard working diplomats including someone described as Aresium's soon to be Ambassador to the Third Spanish States. Cecily could hear the news that a lesbian diplomat married a Mephrasian duchess and Levana, who was never afraid to say it, confessed to Cecily that she was openly lesbian. "....I don't see why I should cover it up." was all that Levana said about it then to Cecily Lockhelm and the tone of voice she used was calm.

Levana's office was soon shown to Cecily to be a comfortable little room set aside for Levana to work and relax. It was adorned with posters, books, pictures and notes of all sorts. Levana took her seat and invited Cecily to do the same. "....I'm sorry if you were inspecting some sort of conference room, Miss Lockhelm. Once we are finished here, I'll give you an detailed tour of Aresium's capital and, possibly, another meeting with Miss Kosseri. Now, to begin our meeting, what does the Third Spanish States seek from Aresium? So far, all we seek is the establishment of trade, the exchange of embassies, and perhaps a cultural exchange."

bumped.

It was inevitable, that no matter how carefully she worked to ensure her arrival would be extremely discrete and simple, as someone believing deeply that she was no better than all the other passengers that came from the same flight, it would suddenly break as she would at last be spotted, and seemingly everything Cecily did not want to happen occurred simultaneously. They were expecting her like one would expect a ruler, the last thing in the world she wanted to be treated like. The overbearing guards protecting one who needed no protection, as evidence by the gun on her back, the songs and dance, treating her like if she was a bourgeois or queen. The excessive presentation bothered Cecily, although that a career like that required some rationality, and perhaps a mask over her true feelings of the moment. After all, perhaps it was better to enjoy the vacation where the only thing she has paid so far was the plane ticket, and let worries vanish.

Among the local representatives, she immediately directed her attentions to Philomena, and as she was greeted by her, Cecily immediately forced a smile for the occasion and tried to make some preemptive judgments. Cecily did not care about knowing on what was personal, although that the woman next to Kosseri was certainly different, from the way her eyes were focused at her figure. As Kosseri gave her greetings, Cecily came straight to the point, inadvertently cutting off the first greeting attempt of Levana, for Lockhelm was not a woman of formalities, and the limousine clearly did not impress her.

".....Miss Lockhelm, it is a pleasure to be finally meeting you in person. I welcome you, on behalf of all of us, to the Republic of Aresium. I am Philomena Kosseri, the leader of the land, and this is the Councilwoman for Foreign Affairs, Levana Flaman." said Kosseri, nearly immediately answered by Cecily, who tried to disguise a certain impatience.

"Very well Philomena and Levana, and no need of such address, just call me Cecily. I believe we have much to discuss, eventually the directions shall become clearer on the potential venues for the future. But I have forgotten to ask something, maybe once we arrive at a more convenient location I will ask away."

The foreign relations minister of them then simply awaited for an opportunity to greet Lockhelm. Clearly, the woman had something about her looks, and Cecily knew quite well what it was. The very reason for the infamous "rumors on the Internets" that tended to involve her person, for some local morons with nothing better to do in their lives judged people by the nature of their friends, and perhaps right they would be crafting something new from the visit. Nevertheless, the air of the location led her mind to forget such things as Levana spoke:

"...It is an honor to meet such a well known stateswoman. I'm Levana Flaman, as Miss Kosseri just stated, and I'll be representing Aresium during our talks. I must say that your nation has drawn up quite the interest here. The anarchism you subscribe to has interested plenty of people although, truth be told, some people find it just too good to be true but let's not let ideological differences get in the way of good will, shall we? Follow us, Miss Lockhelm, and we'll show you around."

Nodding, Cecily then looked at Levana and, while following them rapidly thought up a reply, hiding an inner laughter as she was referred to as a well known stateswoman. Apparently they were not very aware of the nature of Third Spanish States foreign relations, as they weren't aware of the historical Second Spanish Republic and the flawed anarchist revolution that happened in it, right in the Civil War, of which the Confederacy was a direct successor. Scratching her chin, she then said to Levana, smiling genuinely:

"Nice one, but I don't need such flattery. Even the statesman of Micronesia is more known than me, and I am not really a stateswoman after all, just a direct representative to execute the will of the people, according to what they want. If they wanted to dismiss me, they could do it right now for example. There is nothing really special to us in such role I have taken."

It was then that Cecily would board the luxurious vehicle, with its comfort suddenly numbing her ideological inner rants, as a tempting feeling began to slowly reach her mind. It was something she'd rather not feel, the sensation of power that being treated in such way brought, and as all forms of power, it was not free from the greatest threat to any direct representative: the temptation of corruption, that even with their nearly nonexistent power, still could the fool and weak of morals, something that fortunately has never happened, for her was the first, and perhaps last direct representative of the Confederacy. Otherwise, should corruption ensue, the head of State would no longer be attached to its body.

The travel showed some disturbing sights. It was certainly a society entrapped into hierarchy, with an inner bomb waiting to be exploded. The excess of security, of pompous decorations and all the red carpets were hammering into the paranoid box inside her mind. Perhaps there was something very well hidden beneath such facade, and certainly, it was a question of time before the Republic degenerated into a Kleptocracy or into a Police State, for that was the very nature of power. Cold and calm, Cecily simply let her thoughts remain to her, and seemed to look more at the chauffer than at both leaders. In her eyes, there was no difference between them other than the result of a culture. All men were equal, and only the unnatural development of tools to maintain the conformity to submission ensured the perpetuation of injustice, hierarchy and tyranny in its blatant and implicit forms. It was just her way, to drive by her own, to have paid the plane tickets from her own pockets, and to whenever possible, refuse such luxuries, out of principle, and of being used to being independent and not pampered.

Cecily tried to picture in her mind how such place would be different if it was a true democracy. She'd imagined the complete lack of police, a duty given to the people themselves, the absence of official buildings, with no infrastructure other than computer networks making what would exist of a government, the lack of defined hierarchies and the fact nobody would receive her on a red carpet. In her mind, it would have been a more pleasant presentation, and likely with much more potential. As the new revolutionary ZapataZulu was on her list of potential places to visits, perhaps later she would find it. Now it was the time to leave ideologies aside and enjoy her vacations. The golden statue of one of the classic Greek philosophers also passed through her view, as Cecily thought:

Just a monarchist trying to add fluff to his reactionary ideas against democracy, and the mob got him. No matter that such democracy only attended a minority of people with citizen status, it still was one in shape, even though not in principle for modern standards.

The fact that one of the disciples of such man thought Earth was flat came again into Cecily's mind, although she did not make any external reaction out of respect. The travel seemed to be over while Levana parroted all about the city, some interesting facts but still nothing that answered her primary doubt about Aresium, and a guarded building was just right there, through which she followed Levana. Again the luxury of the hall seemed to conflict between her pleasing senses and ideological beliefs, and as she went through it, soon she would notice the confirmation of what she has thought on the way Levana presented herself, to which the same quickly addressed, certainly not ashamed, as they had at least one thing in common. Perhaps Cecily should leave behind preemptive judgments of her initial trip for now, as she heard:

"....I don't see why I should cover it up."

"There is nothing wrong with it, and it's completely natural in the Confederacy, as are the gays. I have many friends who also are lesbians, and unlike some ignorants think, that coupled with the fact I am single like ninety-five percent of the women of my homeland I lack the passiveness that some call "feminine" does not automatically make me one. There is still some veiled prejudice though, because of the Internet, but the teenagers who tend to make such comments aren't worth the time to even talk about."

Cecily behaved naturally, and tried to not think about the possibility of a Freudian slip in her ways. It was just the Internets, and its rumors, and everything there was a big lie written for "the lulz", nothing to be taken seriously. Levana was elegant, and Cecily wanted to avoid it, but she could not resist her thoughts from realizing the woman was attractive. It was not really out of any desire, but of the very nature of beauty. Or maybe it was, for Cecily thoughts swirled, making maneuvers to shape themselves according to what she wanted to think and feel rather than what she really thought and felt.

Finally the office was there after they walked through the building floors, with many posters and messages, where Kosseri immediately took a seat as Cecily followed in, and the woman spoke to her, on behalf of her businesses:

"....I'm sorry if you were expecting some sort of conference room, Miss Lockhelm. Once we are finished here, I'll give you an detailed tour of Aresium's capital and, possibly, another meeting with Miss Kosseri. Now, to begin our meeting, what does the Third Spanish States seek from Aresium? So far, all we seek is the establishment of trade, the exchange of embassies, and perhaps a cultural exchange."

The fact it was not a conference room actually was pleasant to Cecily, for after all they were not so pompous as she initially thought, and the office was simply utilitarian. The question could be answered two ways, and she has chosen her own, hiding quite well that she was there for the enjoyment first rather than for negotiations:

"First, Levana, I am actually glad we are not in a conference room, it distances people and makes conversations impersonal. On behalf of the Confederacy, I believe that our greatest interests lie with knowledge, and we stand for the free flow of information. From the nature of your nation, I hope to be correct into assuming that science is one of your main strengths. We have a strong scientific base, unrestrained by greed and corporate interests, which has led us to many advances, for all possible areas. As for embassies, that is something I'd take for granted. However, to be honest, another thing we really need is uranium, for nearly ninety percent of our needs are supplied by nuclear powerplants, because our space is limited, as we have more than three hundred millions in an island with roughly the same land area of Spain, plus most of the "clean" sources are highly inefficient and space-intensive and coal would turn our island into a dump filled with smog. As for cultural exchange. I am not sure if it would work, as our cultures are quite opposed to each other in certain key aspects"

Although omitting it, Cecily knew that it would be quite easy for one to become aware that the Confederacy, although still somewhat isolationist, was quite belligerent regarding the development and construction of nuclear weapons. Their commitment to the adage "Freedom or Death" had no limits, for they believed vehemently that without any freedom, mankind would better become extinct than slave to the whims of a few. However, she could not lose the opportunity to make a very important question, which she immediately did, resuming what she was saying:

"Also, Levana, I have a doubt in my mind since I arrived here. Our economy is a free market, but not a capitalist one as it is ran by many democratically managed workers cooperatives rather than by the interests of moguls and their oligopolies. I believe that you know what is my question, but anyway, I would like to know what sort of economy Aresium actually operates under, and would really be glad to know it is not another capitalist economy with its privileges and frivolities, counter-productive to the path towards Eudaimonia."

Hopefully her honest views would not be too offensive, provided they were another capitalist economy like any, different from their unique political system. Hopefully Aresium would be a good place to have some vacation at as well.

"Very well Philomena and Levana, and no need of such address, just call me Cecily. I believe we have much to discuss, eventually the directions shall become clearer on the potential venues for the future. But I have forgotten to ask something, maybe once we arrive at a more convenient location I will ask away."

Philomena smiled. She was quite pleased with the fact that everything seemed to be going exactly as she had planned and she hoped that Cecily would find Aresium to be a pleasant place even if she frowned upon the way that the people lived. Levana simply thought the same. So far, she noticed, everything was going according to plan.

"Nice one, but I don't need such flattery. Even the statesman of Micronesia is more known than me, and I am not really a stateswoman after all, just a direct representative to execute the will of the people, according to what they want. If they wanted to dismiss me, they could do it right now for example. There is nothing really special to us in such role I have taken."

Philomena was interested by these words: "....You sound like an interesting woman which makes this meeting all the more appealing to me. I've often been curious about the world around me and, with you here, I'll be able to learn more about the anarchist thought prevalent in the Third Spanish States. I do hope you will find Aresium to be a nice place. You may disagree with how we run things but that is of insignificance to me."

Philomena smiled. "....If you hated Aresium for how it looked in terms of aesthetic and environmental appeal then I would be concerned but I don't think that will happen."

The travel showed some disturbing sights. It was certainly a society entrapped into hierarchy, with an inner bomb waiting to be exploded. The excess of security, of pompous decorations and all the red carpets were hammering into the paranoid box inside her mind. Perhaps there was something very well hidden beneath such facade, and certainly, it was a question of time before the Republic degenerated into a Kleptocracy or into a Police State, for that was the very nature of power. Cold and calm, Cecily simply let her thoughts remain to her, and seemed to look more at the chauffer than at both leaders. In her eyes, there was no difference between them other than the result of a culture. All men were equal, and only the unnatural development of tools to maintain the conformity to submission ensured the perpetuation of injustice, hierarchy and tyranny in its blatant and implicit forms. It was just her way, to drive by her own, to have paid the plane tickets from her own pockets, and to whenever possible, refuse such luxuries, out of principle, and of being used to being independent and not pampered.

OOC: I don't really know how I gave the impression that she was seeing disturbing sights as the limosuine entered Laches. All the citizens are just going around with their daily lives and what not. Correct me if I misinterpreted the quoted part of your post.

Cecily tried to picture in her mind how such place would be different if it was a true democracy. She'd imagined the complete lack of police, a duty given to the people themselves, the absence of official buildings, with no infrastructure other than computer networks making what would exist of a government, the lack of defined hierarchies and the fact nobody would receive her on a red carpet. In her mind, it would have been a more pleasant presentation, and likely with much more potential. As the new revolutionary ZapataZulu was on her list of potential places to visits, perhaps later she would find it. Now it was the time to leave ideologies aside and enjoy her vacations. The golden statue of one of the classic Greek philosophers also passed through her view, as Cecily thought:

Philomena had been a tad concerned with the reliance upon the military band without a red carpet to greet Cecily since she did not know of the values of the Third Spanish States concerning such innovations. The Republic of Aresium usually reserved military bands only for diplomatic meetings and were well known for their austere and stoic lifestyles. Philomena sighed. She really hoped for the best.

"There is nothing wrong with it, and it's completely natural in the Confederacy, as are the gays. I have many friends who also are lesbians, and unlike some ignorants think, that coupled with the fact I am single like ninety-five percent of the women of my homeland I lack the passiveness that some call "feminine" does not automatically make me one. There is still some veiled prejudice though, because of the Internet, but the teenagers who tend to make such comments aren't worth the time to even talk about."

Levana smiled when she listened to Cecily speak. She knew very well how homophobic some people were towards her when she was chosen to represent Aresium in foreign affairs with other nations and she found Cecily's words to be those of a wise woman. Once Cecily had finished talking, Levana swiftly responded:

"....I must say that I am very well comforted with yout words, Cecily, and I must make note to you that the Republic of Aresium allows for the total sexual freedom of all its citizens save for only a certain group of people which I am sure you know about. I never pay attention to homophobes who would deny me my post merely because of my love of women and I thank Philomena for not falling into their values when she hired me as the Councilwoman for Foreign Affairs. I must express a desire to visit your nation and must tell you that Philomena wishes to visit the Third Spanish States in the future."

Levana smiled. "....The Republic of Aresium strives to be a peaceful nation organized according to our interpretations of the philosophers' dialogues and essays. We may appear to be not so good in your eyes and I respect that. To be honest, I'd expect you to disagree with how we run things here though I am sure we won't let that get in the way of friendship between our nations."

Cecily behaved naturally, and tried to not think about the possibility of a Freudian slip in her ways. It was just the Internets, and its rumors, and everything there was a big lie written for "the lulz", nothing to be taken seriously. Levana was elegant, and Cecily wanted to avoid it, but she could not resist her thoughts from realizing the woman was attractive. It was not really out of any desire, but of the very nature of beauty. Or maybe it was, for Cecily thoughts swirled, making maneuvers to shape themselves according to what she wanted to think and feel rather than what she really thought and felt.

Levana looked over Cecily with a smile but then shifted her eyes away to her surroundings lest Cecily become suspicious of her intentions. Levana admitted to herself that Cecily looked like an attractive and elegant woman and she considered courting Cecily but she didn't know if Cecily would be receptive to such entreaties. Levana just walked alongside her with a smile and tried not to focus on the thoughts that held Cecily in a much different light.

OOC: I wouldn't mind hooking Cecily and Levana up, by the way. If you feel like doing that, I'd be more than willing to roll with it.

"First, Levana, I am actually glad we are not in a conference room, it distances people and makes conversations impersonal. On behalf of the Confederacy, I believe that our greatest interests lie with knowledge, and we stand for the free flow of information. From the nature of your nation, I hope to be correct into assuming that science is one of your main strengths. We have a strong scientific base, unrestrained by greed and corporate interests, which has led us to many advances, for all possible areas."

Levana was pleased: "....The pursuit of knowledge and technology has always been of high importance to the people of Aresium out of the idea that the attainment of both will lead to the furtherance of the overall happiness of our people and the improvement of the standard, or quality, of life."

As for embassies, that is something I'd take for granted. However, to be honest, another thing we really need is uranium, for nearly ninety percent of our needs are supplied by nuclear powerplants, because our space is limited, as we have more than three hundred millions in an island with roughly the same land area of Spain, plus most of the "clean" sources are highly inefficient and space-intensive and coal would turn our island into a dump filled with smog. As for cultural exchange. I am not sure if it would work, as our cultures are quite opposed to each other in certain key aspects"

"....We have plenty of uranium which we can bestow upon you but before we would do so, we'd like to know what you can offer us in exchange for the uranium you desire. As for cultural exchanges, I am sure that we would be able to have them despite our opposition because we both have people in our nations who would be interested in learning more about the other and, indeed, we should not let our differences get the best of us."

"Also, Levana, I have a doubt in my mind since I arrived here. Our economy is a free market, but not a capitalist one as it is ran by many democratically managed workers cooperatives rather than by the interests of moguls and their oligopolies. I believe that you know what is my question, but anyway, I would like to know what sort of economy Aresium actually operates under, and would really be glad to know it is not another capitalist economy with its privileges and frivolities, counter-productive to the path towards Eudaimonia."

Levana nodded her head: "....The Republic of Aresium operates according to the system known to the world as Distributism in which ownership of the means of production is spread out as widely as possible to the masses rather than their centralization under the State or wealthy private individuals. Co-operative economics and the concept of partnership between the employee and the employer are emphazied here. We also rely upon participatory economics to an extent so as to allow the masses to have a say over the direction of their nation's economy rather than leaving them in the abyss of ignorance concerning such matters. Our nation emphazies workers' rights and mutual respect between those who work and those who manage. If you wish to learn more, I suggest speaking to Shandor Saran who is the Councilman for Economics. He's well versed in this field of work, that is, the management of the economy."

OOC: Distributism is the economic philosophy developed by Catholic social thinkers such as G.K Chesterton and Hilaire Belloc. Papal encyclicals such as Rerum Novarum can be called Distributist.

Levana smiled. She looked quite happy to be meeting with Cecily to discuss political matters whilst remembering those thoughts in her mind that she tried to restrain and which made her state to herself that she'd only go forth with courting Cecily if she was courting Levana. "...The Republic of Aresium would love to learn more about the Third Spanish States in the mutual sharing of knowledge despite our differences concerning political organization. I would hope you could tell me about your thoughts concerning our nation and I hope you do not grow to hate it. You'd be more than welcome to stay longer for a vacation if you so desire with our five star hotels open to you at your leisure as would be restaurants and beaches. You may also, indeed, look into our nation's history and the essays of influential thinkers who formed our nation's system many years ago. Those can be found at libraries and bookstores. If you are inclined to the affairs of the heart or if you are a lesbian, like myself, you would be able to visit the GLBT district of Laches. This city is open for you to explore, Cecily, and for you to experience at your leisure. I wouldn't mind being your tour guide and it would be a pleasure to show you around. Anywho, is there anything else you wish to discuss?"

bumped.

bumped.

Bumped!

It seemed that many of her preemptive thoughts were wrong, and that after all, there was a sort of functional economy somewhat between socialism and capitalism under the philosophically-inclined government of such nation. Cecily was soon realizing how her bias was blinding her to the fact such nation was in many ways better than the average capitalist plutocracy that seemed to be predominant in the world. However, it was still a bit too good to be truth, and as taught that power inevitably corrupts, Cecily still had reservations into believing Aresium was a nation free of corruption, or of the risk to descending into tyranny due to the inevitable greed of the rulers. However, it seemed like a potential deal was in place, and as she listened attentiously to the conversation with Levana, Cecily then nodded to the question pointed by her:

"....We have plenty of uranium which we can bestow upon you but before we would do so, we'd like to know what you can offer us in exchange for the uranium you desire. As for cultural exchanges, I am sure that we would be able to have them despite our opposition because we both have people in our nations who would be interested in learning more about the other and, indeed, we should not let our differences get the best of us."

Cecily wondered a while on what to reply, letting her thoughts form in three seconds as she reminded of the global situation. To rely only in a few exporters was unwise, and thus, remembering of the FSoft, she looked at Levana and replied:

"We are very short on raw goods and commodities, thus we can only export industrialized goods. Our main export and best products lie with the area of information technology, as we have developed a new network protocol from scratch to handle millions of simultaneous connections from users of the EDDNet, which is basically the closest thing we have to a government. Networking, computers, specialized electronics, robots and alike are what we could offer, other than military technology and automobiles. Of course we have other opportunities for exporting. The only detail is that I cannot exert control over these matters, which will be handled by the cooperatives according to their interests, thus I cannot give exact numbers of how much we will request and how much we will be willing to offer, only open the way for trade to happen." she said, and with a small interruption, as she pondered about the other part of the question, rubbing her eyes, Cecily continued:

"As for cultural exchanges, likewise they'll depend solely upon individual will rather than on my approval for such to happen. I'll arrange for advertisements and for tourism to be expanded regarding it, but I cannot guarantee that a steady amount of our people will show interest, if anyone at all. Again, I cannot demand anything from anyone."

Cecily, still sitting down, would feel like if some big hammer nailed her head when the discussion got more personal rather than diplomatic. It could be an interesting vacation, and she had a deep interest into finding some good places to visit, or perhaps people in need of help, for even there she could not forget the point why she has decided to travel in the first place. However, the question came as nearly offensive, an insulting invitation that came from improper judgment of her nature, and which hit her hard. Cecily feigned everything was all right about it, and tried to focus on telling what so far she thought about Aresium, or at least part of it:

"Levana, I shall be honest here, and I hope to not regret it, for, with good reasons, I have been taught that sometimes lying is the best choice for diplomacy. Aresium seems a bit too utopian to me. Nearly every hierarchical government of human history sooner or later became ridden in corruption, if it did not also regress into tyranny. I have witnessed a man, knowledgeable and extremely learned on philosophy, saying he was the salvation of the Spanish workers, to then become a ruthless tyrant, able to sell his own people as slaves for no reason other than the truculence, brutality, oppression and corruptibility that is inherent to a government, and proportional to how much of a say the people have on it. Like I have written before, the people have to emancipate from the Cave, all at once, rather than rely on minority with access to the truth, for this minority would have a so grand advantage that only a saint with direct guidance of God would resist the temptation of power. Thus, free flow of information is the only safeguard against tyranny."

Feeling a certain fear from being honest, Cecily tried to catch up with all the fears in her mind. Perhaps she was making too many points, perhaps she was spoiling any possibility of foreign relations or trade, and perhaps she was being too offensive by indirectly claiming their susceptibility to corruption. No longer managing to keep it inside, she then sighed deeply and began to tap her feet over the ground, as she lost the battle to anxiety. One last try existed for her to calm down on her fears, as quickly she looked at Levana and replied:

"As for what you have asked about me, no, I am straight and a very conservative person on sexual matters for the standards of my land, I just don't feel at ease with the idea of doing it in public, or in a tensome. As for tastes, I am really not a big fan of beaches, and one of my friends advised me to not focus any vacation on them. Is there any historical place that I could visit? An ancient temple, some ruins, a place with many myths and legends, or perhaps... a ghost tour? I am a real skeptic about these matters, but I'd still like to see a supposedly haunted location by myself to confirm my scientific views on the matter. As you have noticed, I'm not much into conventional travel spots."

Looking at Levana then, Cecily said, with a visible glint of boredom in her eyes, apparently someone who seemed to be a bit bored from seeing the sameness over the place, which was, superficially, just another metropolis, and seeing "concrete jungles" was a common thing in most of her life:

"I am just tired of modern civilization thingies. I prefer to visit ancient and natural places, and places with good legends and mysteries, to sleep in a tent and exchange the luxuries of urban life for the thrill of the experience, to perhaps paradrop, climb a hill and go through some interesting experiences, including to have a sleep in a supposedly haunted house to prove it's all superstition. I hope to meet your head of government as well later. Now Levana, where would you suggest for me to come before which is not too far away so that the night arrives first than me to such place?"

"....We have plenty of uranium which we can bestow upon you but before we would do so, we'd like to know what you can offer us in exchange for the uranium you desire. As for cultural exchanges, I am sure that we would be able to have them despite our opposition because we both have people in our nations who would be interested in learning more about the other and, indeed, we should not let our differences get the best of us."

Levana contemplated this statement for a brief moment before she began to speak. "....I would think that uranium would be quite acceptable to the Republic but, as for what we would offer in exchange, that depends on what your nation desires."

"We are very short on raw goods and commodities, thus we can only export industrialized goods. Our main export and best products lie with the area of information technology, as we have developed a new network protocol from scratch to handle millions of simultaneous connections from users of the EDDNet, which is basically the closest thing we have to a government. Networking, computers, specialized electronics, robots and alike are what we could offer, other than military technology and automobiles. Of course we have other opportunities for exporting. The only detail is that I cannot exert control over these matters, which will be handled by the cooperatives according to their interests, thus I cannot give exact numbers of how much we will request and how much we will be willing to offer, only open the way for trade to happen." she said, and with a small interruption, as she pondered about the other part of the question, rubbing her eyes, Cecily continued:

Levana was interested in learning more: ".....What sort of robots could you offer the Republic, Miss Lockhelm? I believe that we can offer you a variety of natural resources, for example, or we may offer you processed goods and the like. It all depends on what your nation needs most."

"As for cultural exchanges, likewise they'll depend solely upon individual will rather than on my approval for such to happen. I'll arrange for advertisements and for tourism to be expanded regarding it, but I cannot guarantee that a steady amount of our people will show interest, if anyone at all. Again, I cannot demand anything from anyone."

"....I would not mind that at all, Miss Lockhelm, because one can never fully control the minds of the masses and, besides, I am sure a few will at least hold some interest in Aresium. That would be alright with me."

"Levana, I shall be honest here, and I hope to not regret it, for, with good reasons, I have been taught that sometimes lying is the best choice for diplomacy. Aresium seems a bit too utopian to me. Nearly every hierarchical government of human history sooner or later became ridden in corruption, if it did not also regress into tyranny.

Levana was silent. Had Cecily Lockhelm been opposed to the ideals that her forefathers had relied upon to construct the ideal society that they felt would be good for the masses? Levana never really was as devoted as the more hardline members of political cliques were but she still had some pride.

"....Cecily, I shall be frank with you as well for the sake of mutual honesty between us. The Third Spanish States seems too utopian to some of us here as our nation does to you. While you are correct to say that hierarchical government can become saturated, in the end, with corruption.....one can say that those governments or, rather, those societies with anarchist ideals as well are wracked with corruption or that they, too, are not immune to it. All societies can fall into corruption, Cecily, and no matter how individualistic or communalistic a society may be and no matter what beliefs they cherish....they are never immune to the fruits of human nature."

Levana nodded her head. ".....Aresium and the Third Spanish States, however, must not allow our differences in beliefs to prevent us from creating a stable friendship; our hope is that you will share this belief, Cecily."

I have witnessed a man, knowledgeable and extremely learned on philosophy, saying he was the salvation of the Spanish workers, to then become a ruthless tyrant, able to sell his own people as slaves for no reason other than the truculence, brutality, oppression and corruptibility that is inherent to a government, and proportional to how much of a say the people have on it. Like I have written before, the people have to emancipate from the Cave, all at once, rather than rely on minority with access to the truth, for this minority would have a so grand advantage that only a saint with direct guidance of God would resist the temptation of power. Thus, free flow of information is the only safeguard against tyranny."

Levana smiled. "......False faces hide what the false minds knoweth, Cecily, and there are those people whose claims to truth are soaked in the blood of innocent folk slain out of a desire to keep the tocsin of freedom from ringing in the ears of the masses. The freedom, that is, to their inherent right to free will. No man can truly control the entirety of a nation. I am sure that even your nation has dissidents as does Aresium. In Aresium, we try to bring all people out of the Cave.....the men and women who have campaigned for our current system struggled to achieve this."

"As for what you have asked about me, no, I am straight and a very conservative person on sexual matters for the standards of my land, I just don't feel at ease with the idea of doing it in public, or in a tensome. As for tastes, I am really not a big fan of beaches, and one of my friends advised me to not focus any vacation on them. Is there any historical place that I could visit? An ancient temple, some ruins, a place with many myths and legends, or perhaps... a ghost tour? I am a real skeptic about these matters, but I'd still like to see a supposedly haunted location by myself to confirm my scientific views on the matter. As you have noticed, I'm not much into conventional travel spots."

".....I suppose that my beliefs concerning human sexuality are that people should have the right to be pleasured, sexually, in whatever way they desire except for those ways in which people are harmed. I have not cherished virginity, Cecily, as my experiences in the past can relate to you. I don't think I would really want a tensome or anything like that nor would I really want to do it in public. I think that my ideal bout of sexual passion is just between me and one woman. Yes, I am a lesbian, Cecily, and I hope you won't mind that. As for beaches, I think they are alright. As for historical places, you'll find an abundance of those in Aresium. We have ruins, temples, and much more. I would not mind being your tour guide, by the way."

Levana was a bit nervous; what if she was giving Cecily the impression that she wanted to proceed with the creation of a lesbian relationship with her and that this was solely why she would offer to accompany her as a tour guide? Yes, Cecily was nice looking, but that didn't mean she wanted that sort of attention from this interesting anarchist.

"I am just tired of modern civilization thingies. I prefer to visit ancient and natural places, and places with good legends and mysteries, to sleep in a tent and exchange the luxuries of urban life for the thrill of the experience, to perhaps paradrop, climb a hill and go through some interesting experiences, including to have a sleep in a supposedly haunted house to prove it's all superstition. I hope to meet your head of government as well later. Now Levana, where would you suggest for me to come before which is not too far away so that the night arrives first than me to such place?"

Levana nodded her head. "......Your mind is filled with the desire to enrich your life by experiencing the wonders of nature and the achievements of people long departed from us. I'm pretty sure you can do all of those things you have mentioned and, if you are speaking about a hotel or somewhere to stay, I can easily get you to some place like that. Shall we take our leave, Cecily, of this office of mine?"

The discussion was finally reaching the moot point of agreements. Cecily main professional duty in this young nation was to secure economic and diplomatic agreements, and now it was the time, to listen at the offers they could make, at the potential that could be reached, for there were many manners to promote change, the reason d'etre of the very Confederacy, and promoting change through peace, through the strength of arguments rather than through the argument of strength, was the best of all of them, for like Asimov has once written, violence is the last refuge of the incompetents.

How exactly to change Aresium was something that wasn't the actual focus of Cecily's mind, instead, she listened to what Levana had to say about businesses, and about her questions on foreign relations.


"....I would think that uranium would be quite acceptable to the Republic but, as for what we would offer in exchange, that depends on what your nation desires... What sort of robots could you offer the Republic, Miss Lockhelm? I believe that we can offer you a variety of natural resources, for example, or we may offer you processed goods and the like. It all depends on what your nation needs most."

Seeing the questions of Levana, Cecily pondered about it for a while. What Aresium could do would only delay the inevitable. Since the very foundation of the Confederacy, a scientific research organization was formed to develop a viable manner of gathering the power of the sun, the power of fusion, which was for many, the only viable alternative to the power of oil. It has been two years since oil has peaked, and a recession with no solution has thus begun. A race against time was believed to be happening, for should the demand of oil exceed too much its supply, the very essence of the civilized world, of the unity and cooperation between men, could collapse into the barbarism of a world no longer able to supply the human population of it with enough food. For without oil, the industrial civilization could not exist.

"Levana, I believe you would expect this answer, but what we need mostly after enriched uranium is petroleum. And let me apologize, but when I said uranium I meant depleted uranium, for we import all the uranium we need for our nuclear reactors, and if you are willing to export enriched uranium, we certainly will purchase it, like I mentioned. We have taken many efforts to reduce our dependency upon petroleum, as we don't expect for its reserves to last more than a century, but the more we find of substitutes, more we find of problems, and nearly everything in modernity depends of it. Another thing we would be willing to trade for is research. As for robots, it is one of our primary industries. Our people has long emancipated themselves from the order of capitalism, and as the fact repetitive jobs are a burden to all of us, we have done much to automate them. We have Household cleaning bots that can work both as vacuum cleaner and as cleaning products dispensers, industrial-grade robots that have automated almost all assembly lines, and a few military-grade robots. Again, I can't just sign an exports deal, for that's up with the local cooperatives to send their representatives to here and sign. As no laws restrict imports either, formalities are not necessary for Aresium to begin exporting goods to the Confederacy. I just believe that mentioning what we mostly need is helpful. As for processed goods, thanks for the offer, but we already have more than enough of them."

The conversation proceeded, and as Cecily mentioned, opening herself, what she had of pre-emptive ideas about Aresium, a somewhat appropriate answer was given, for it seemed that, just like the idea of a government like that of Aresium working without corruption seemed improbable for her, the idea of a stateless society where socialism was natural rather than government-enforced. She simply nodded when Levana explained she also was skeptical about the Confederacy.

"....Cecily, I shall be frank with you as well for the sake of mutual honesty between us. The Third Spanish States seems too utopian to some of us here as our nation does to you. While you are correct to say that hierarchical government can become saturated, in the end, with corruption.....one can say that those governments or, rather, those societies with anarchist ideals as well are wracked with corruption or that they, too, are not immune to it. All societies can fall into corruption, Cecily, and no matter how individualistic or communalistic a society may be and no matter what beliefs they cherish....they are never immune to the fruits of human nature."

Nodding, Cecily replied back, as something she perceived as absurd was said, originated from such differences of paradigm. It was something natural for her, that if a man was born truly free, he would never tolerate corrupts and oppressors, and even kill those who dared to oppress or steal from the people if necessary, while if a man was born to learn that one was a ruler, the position of power would be prone to being corrupted and barely questioned. She simply nodded again as it was said that such differences should not be barriers, but she couldn't hold what she had to say:

"Levana, I'll be honest, and I expect that the thinkers who gave birth to your nation would have called this I am about to say "despotism of the mobs", but freedom must not be granted to those who seek to stomp upon countless of free people for the sake of pride, megalomania and malice. Many have tried to corrupt our Confederacy, or to proclaim dictatorships but the majority of our people is honest, hard-working and merciless against the corrupt and tyrants. All of them are now dead, by the very hands of our people who have killed them in legitimate defense of their freedoms and dignities. Truth be told, I have killed before to defend our freedom against the monsters between men. This is why we have never fallen to corruption, because we care, because we do not waver, and because we are watchful."

The other words of Levana, as Cecily mentioned the "enlightened" mass-murderer, tyrant and slaver of peoples Carlos Cavallo, were soon interpreted by her mind, but this time, she simply nodded to them. The politics argument was getting a bit tiresome, and she knew that it would lead nowhere. She knew The Republic, and the fact that it was written in it that some people would have to remain "in the cave" for a functional society to exist because of their supposed inability to escape from it. For Cecily, it was simply reactionary rhetoric, but perhaps the concepts of old philosophers could not be taken literally, and kept permanently unchanged.

"......False faces hide what the false minds knoweth, Cecily, and there are those people whose claims to truth are soaked in the blood of innocent folk slain out of a desire to keep the tocsin of freedom from ringing in the ears of the masses. The freedom, that is, to their inherent right to free will. No man can truly control the entirety of a nation. I am sure that even your nation has dissidents as does Aresium. In Aresium, we try to bring all people out of the Cave.....the men and women who have campaigned for our current system struggled to achieve this."

But when the conversation came again to certain intimate questions, Cecily began to feel herself uneasy again. She hoped her lie would hold, and tried to keep a level head, avoiding to give in anything. It was a matter of convenience, and after all, she thought to herself, she still preferred men over women, and never had any relationship with people of the same sex, to avoid issues with her image, maybe because of her despising of the Internets crowd who would delight from discovering she was willing to get with both genders rather than only one. A cold, professional expression was all that came from her as she listened, but she was feeling funny:

".....I suppose that my beliefs concerning human sexuality are that people should have the right to be pleasured, sexually, in whatever way they desire except for those ways in which people are harmed. I have not cherished virginity, Cecily, as my experiences in the past can relate to you. I don't think I would really want a tensome or anything like that nor would I really want to do it in public. I think that my ideal bout of sexual passion is just between me and one woman. Yes, I am a lesbian, Cecily, and I hope you won't mind that. As for beaches, I think they are alright. As for historical places, you'll find an abundance of those in Aresium. We have ruins, temples, and much more. I would not mind being your tour guide, by the way."

Cecily could no longer hold her emotions at bay, and she suddenly blushed as Levana offered herself to be a tourist guide. She simply tried to get over it, to find a good excuse, as she suddenly replied:

"Levana, I am sorry to say this, and I have nothing against your choice, but there are some immature cretins in my land that would love to spread rumors, should I be spotted travelling with you. I am just sick of being called a lesbian by people who simply want to use it as an agenda for their bible-thumping ignorance, or for their memetic idiocy of "LULZ" and the Internet, and I don't want to give them fuel. And I doubt that we could just travel around without a bunch of meddlers asking about. Or is there no alienated audience for those imbeciles called Paparazzi in Aresium? And yes, I believe we should leave now that I told you what we need and what we can export. I will inform the industries about it, and you can set up some convoys of uranium, and if you have too, petroleum, to our home islands, you can be sure we'll buy everything you import to us of these resources. I don't mind if you guide me to an hotel either."

(OOC: Sorry for the long delay, but this is a normal problem I have in any RP I start, and sometimes in RPs I participate of. Also, it seems like my style is confusing things. Actually that was a retake of Levana's words. Third Spanish States has no uranium. I'll put in italics now anything I retake from your own character's words)