《On the Overmorrow》 Chapter One: Three Perfect Strangers Aren was woken up on the first of three days to decide the world''s future in her small, unadorned room. The first bells of the morning let out their ring in the morning light. Moving slowly, she stretched, threw on her suit, which she had prepared for herself the day before, and headed downstairs to her bathroom. She combed her auburn hair in the mirror, then tied it up into a long ponytail. Moving on, she went to her small kitchenette and prepared herself breakfast. She picked out a purple-red raspberry jam and sliced herself a few tranches of bread. Even though, as the head of Arian¡¯s largest- and most important- embassy she could afford wheat bread, she had rye instead. She never understood why the nobility preferred it; wheat bread was bland and tasteless when one compared it to rye. The bread got slathered in jam, then eaten, in time. Eventually, she checked the front door''s mail slit, and only one letter sat in it. It was unusual, in her mind, for so little to come in before such an important event. Mail could be sent almost instantaneously across the world, thanks to teleportation circles, which were set at ley lines¡¯ intersections. So could a pillow, or a sword, or a snack. But send a living thing through a circle, while the body would come, the creature¡¯s essence would stay behind. As such, she¡¯d normally get sent a smattering of letters any day she met with another nation¡¯s delegation. Regardless, Aren opened the letter, and was promptly met with a surprise: it was from Arina''s ruler himself. That was nearly unheard of, even for days like this one. She¡¯d only gotten four letters from him previously, each of which she¡¯d kept in one of her desk¡¯s drawers. To: Representative Aren de Gephyra From: His Majesty King Olis IX of Arina Representative de Gephyra, I would first like to thank you once again for your service to our grand nation. Your work in Zeryzian at the Grand Embassy as a representative of my will has greatly aided Arina in diplomacy. However, I''m not writing to congratulate you. You know as well as I, or any Arinite does, that diplomacy will not work with a force like The Evil. Perhaps those who don''t see conflict firsthand think that a signed piece of paper will stop it from fighting, have it gently settle into humanity¡¯s civilization. It is my opinion that that shall not, nor shall ever, work. They will fight and kill us the second our guard goes down. You''ve been given relatively free rein over diplomacy- and for good reason- but understand that if you agree to a treaty being drawn up, you will be exiled. Of course, if a treaty is drawn up without your ¡®yea¡¯, you won¡¯t be punished. Arina will be reasonable should that be the case. I understand that our interests and opinions align regardless, but precautionary measures are, well, precautionary. The other nations, however, I worry do not share our views. As such, the International Relations Corps have arranged for two others who share our views to help you at the trial. For the sake of safety, their names have not been given to me, but know that the password is ''BORDER'' and that you can meet them at 5th Avenue and Greensborough Street at 08:00 on the first day of the hearings. Signed, His Royal Majesty Olis IX of Arina, on the 8th of the 1st of 662 "Wait, 8 o''clock? It''s already 7:40!", Aren thought, startled. Up to this point, she¡¯d been taking her time, as she assumed she¡¯d had much more time to prepare She snatched the letter and ran back up to her room, placing it in her drawer. She ran back downstairs and quickly shoved on a pair of shoes before she began the walk to 5th & Greensborough.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. On her way, she passed through several blocks¡¯ worth of busy markets. The senses of the bustling city washed over her. The smell of the bakers¡¯ bread wafted out of many of the buildings. Ahead of her, one of the street corners had been turned into a market for the morning. Stalls with colour-striped tarp coverings dotted the corner, each selling some unique good. Overhead, the sun shone, just above the water of Zeryzian¡¯s coast. It illuminated a bright, clear sky, the very edge of which was still streaked with the daybreak¡¯s yellows and oranges. The sounds, smells, and sights of the city washed over her, and she was soothed. ¡­ Any fear of delaying the other two by not making it in time proved to be unfounded, as the others were late as well. The three gave the password to each other in turn. The first of the duo, a young Sterlir with close-cropped green hair and a face peppered with freckles, whom she thought she recognized, introduced himself as Quill. She noted that he was wearing a suit that one would expect at the country¡¯s embassy. The other, an even younger woman who wore a traditional garb that reminded Aren of what she might find in rural Arina, introduced herself as Trici. "So, I, um, I was told we shared a sentiment against... it?", stammered Trici. She was visibly nervous. "Yeah, I got a letter from- you won''t believe this- King Aliso himself", beamed Quill, clearly pleased with himself. Aren found it strange; her nation and Sterlir rarely agreed on trivial matters, yet their rulers were directly collaborating on something as important as this. Even though their kings both wanted no peace, Aren wouldn¡¯t have expected for them to directly cooperate. ¡­ Quill and Trici continued on chatting for some time, but Aren only listened with half an ear. "It''s getting pretty close to the first hearing. I should go", she remarked. "Oh! Might as well join you; Department Head de Thern would kill me if I''m late", Quill added. Aren realised that he was the translator for Mari. Trici spoke up just as Aren turned to leave, "They''re not letting in us regular folk until right before it starts, so I can''t join you, but we could meet for lunch. I know a place; it''s called The Shattered Egg. It''s just a few blocks down on 8th." Aren and Quill quickly agreed before turning to leave towards the Grand Embassy. Trici let out a "See you there", though Aren barely heard it. She broke off from the pair, and headed off towards 8th Avenue. Aren wondered if she was going to her caf¨¦. ¡­ No matter how many times he saw it, Quill was never not dazzled when he saw the Grand Embassy. It rose above the skyline of Zeryzian, or at least the portion of the city-state that was at sea level. The noblity¡¯s complexes overlooked the city on a set of chalky cliffs. The embassy was constructed of sandstone blocks, interlacing to create intricate walls. The building peaked in seven places, each sloping up to one of the corners of the heptagonagol building. The flag of a country flew on a pole that topped each peak. Though Quill wasn''t particularly trusting of the woman he walked besides, especially after he had seen how she interacted with Mari, he didn''t doubt that Aren knew what she was doing. "Make sure to watch out for anyone that might be useful to us. We''ll need all the allies we can get. Even Mari is seriously considering it, and you know how she is about the status quo", he said, attempting to start a conversation. "I can''t disagree there. I can only think of Eric as being definitivly on our side, and maybe Hothal if we can push him." "I doubt that he''ll be able to exercize any free will about the i- WATCH OUT!", Quill replied analytically, before yanking himself and Aren back as they nearly ran into a teenager with crimson red eyes. "Sorry about that, we didn''t mean to almost hit you", Aren quietly consoled the androgynous teenager. Quill noticed an oddly straight section of their left arm''s sleeve, but didn''t bring it up. It would be idiotic to not be able to defend yourself if you looked lower-class or vulnerable. She turned back to Quill, a "What were you saying" coming from her lips. Quill started the conversation back up, "Hothal is just obeying his orders. I doubt he''d be given free rein for a descision here. His nation¡¯s rulers have told him how to vote, and you know he¡¯s not one to disobey." "You''d be surprised how long a leash we get. As long as we aren¡¯t causing international incidents, our rulers don¡¯t care. Anyways, we''re here. Keep an eye out for Trici, will you? I''ve got to go", Aren replied, ending the conversation. Quill watched her go off in Arina''s embassy''s direction. ¡­ He made his way towards his home country''s chambers. Mari de Thern, a woman dressed in her ever-formal suit, met him at the entrance. Her amethyst eyes met his emerald ones. "Hello, Quill. Just on time as always. Would you mind bringing up the list of speakers to the office? Tehran''s out on an errand", she greeted him. While normally he would mind, it was too convenient an opportunity. Only the head diplomats themselves had gotten a list of all the speakers that would present over the following three days, each vying to change the council members¡¯ minds. "Sure", he agreed, taking the recently-signed paper. He made his way to the office while checking the full timetable. Trici was on the list, he noted, as the last speaker tommorow. The decision, he thought, would be rather hurried, only a day after Trici''s speech. Two days from now, on the overmorrow. Chapter Two: One to Two to Tria Marina had a decent amount of time to kill before the trial would start. Luckily, Trici knew a place. Or, rather, Marina did. She had always found it difficult to separate herself from her aliases, especially when she was tired, but it was Trici who knew of the caf¨¦. Not her; not Marina. At the end of the day, she was just another identity, who knew things her aliases didn''t and who didn''t know things her aliases did. She continued- needlessly, as she was only thinking to herself- to try to create a difference between herself, Trici and all the others at any level other than the very surface as she made her way to 8th Street, towards The Shattered Egg, Trici''s- not her''s, she thought- favourite. There wasn''t a line between identities, no matter how much she tried to pretend. "Hey, Trici! Would you like your usual?", questioned the host, Nyx, a middle-aged server she had gotten to know quite well over the past few months. She¡¯d been sent to the city-state to document the trial, but kept up Trici¡¯s identity in place of Marina¡¯s nonetheless. That, of course, includes interpersonal relationships. Though she might just be making excuses to herself to continue visiting the caf¨¦. "...Trici? Hey, Trici?", Nyx asked. Oh. Right. Trici. Her. "Er, yeah. The usual, pleas, Nyx", she managed to say after a quick mental reset, "Is Table Five open?" "As always, for you, yes. Your drink will be ready in maybe five minutes." "Thanks, Nyx", Ma- no, Trici, said, sitting down, "Is there any chance I could reserve this table for around Noon? I''m bringing over some others for lunch." "Yeah, we aren''t too busy then; our lunch rush won¡¯t have started yet. I can avoid seating others here without issue, and I can ask Mara to do the same." "Thanks, Nyx." "No problem! Anything for you, as long as you keep on coming back and buying stuff. And also so long as my bosses doesn¡¯t get annoyed about me saving you a table. Upper management is scary. I''ll be back with your drink in a bit!" ¡­ Tria had turned into a creature of the night. They had stayed up much too late a few nights before, and the cost had been their sleep schedule. Two younger-looking adults, maybe a decade or so older than Tria themselves, had nearly run into them earlier, distracted, but in reality, Tria was so tired that they would have run into someone else regardless of whether the other was distracted or not. Regardless, they pressed on. Collapsing in the street wouldn''t do them any good now; the monastery had given them a job and Tria intended to go through with it. Tria continued onwards. They approached the assembly hall. To their dismay, a pair of security guards were blocking the entrance. There were maybe twenty people outside, speaking all sorts of languages- Tria caught some snippets here and there- that were gathered in clusters or sitting alone in the shade. They collapsed onto a small bench. Even though they didn''t sleep, just the rest of lying down helped. ¡­ By the time Nyx had finally brought Trici her drink, Marina had gotten her thoughts in order. Trici had met Aren and Quill and would see them from the audience at the council chambers once the bells struck at Nine AM. Trici had gone to The Shattered Egg and ''reserved'' a table with Nyx for lunch later today. Trici was going to have lunch with Aren and Quill.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Not Marina. Marina wasn''t the person here, Trici was. The coffee helped jolt her awake, and the distinction quickly grew. Trici was out the door, and the bill was paid to Nyx in full, within ten minutes. Time was running out, without her really having realised until now, if she wanted to get a good seat. She raced through the streets of Zeryzian on foot to get to the assembly in time. ¡­ The 3/4 Hour bells tolled out only a couple minutes after Trici reached the yellowish monolith. It towered over her and the nearby buildings. She could see one of the flags that topped each of the seven-sided building¡¯s flapping high above, framed by the light blue sky. Nearby, an urchin was startled awake by the ringing. They stretched briefly, then clawed themselves off a bench they were lying comfortably on. The urchin meandered towards one of the grand structure¡¯s gates. A guard or officer of some sort drew open the gates that closed the building off from the outside world, and shouted above the multilingual din. ¡°Alright! Those of you who are coming to the hearings, line up¡± Some particularly eager members of society started shoving their ways toward the gates, causing the guard to add a belated ¡°And stay orderly!¡± The homeless teen joined the others, now flooding into the area, and Trici got the hint to follow them. She ended up just around a dozen spots behind the urchin in line. One had to wonder what interest a street urchin had in international politics, but that was neither truly here nor there. Slowly, the line started filling into the chambers. After what felt like an eternity, but was probably only a precious few minutes, Trici got to a seat- her seat, now, for the next three days. A brochure that sat on the seat listed the speakers. She noticed the teen behind her diagonally, obviously fighting to stay awake. Quickly, she introduced herself to her neighbours. The first, was a timid Iridawali woman who quietly introduced herself as Oila Irith, was a 30-something-year-old who had striking red hair and matching eyes quickly and quietly introduced herself before averting her eyes, looking down at a thick binder that rested in her lap. She busied herself pouring through its pages, silently jotting down the occasional note. Conversely to Oila, the young man on her other side had no qualms talking to stranger. He sat just to her right got to introducing himself loudly to her. "Hi! I''m Mahir, Mahir Gethalt. I''m from Rathia, but I''ve spent most of my life here in Zeryzian or travelling. What about you?" Taken more than a bit aback by the man¡¯s brazen attitude, Trici replied, "Arina- I''m from a village in the south, Orgi-on-the-Moor. I only came here recently though, not like you", the smiled pleasantly at him in turn, "Are you here to present, or just watch?" "A bit of both- I''ve got a job relaying the proceedings'' developments back to Raithas for a newspaper I do work for, but I''m to present at 7:00 PM today. You?" "I''ve got your time slot tomorrow. I imagine you want it to strike some sort of deal with us, given your homeland?¡± "Oh, no, no. While many there are distant enough from the front lines to not realise the reality about the dangers The Evil poses, and care more about money they''re losing to taxes that pay for the war effort than anything, the reports I see- or even bring in myself- have more than disillusioned me to any treaty", he clarified, "There''s one story in particular I''ll always remember. A monastery in Rathia had taken in one of them- Decaepta it called itself- and was found ravaged later, monks dead, and the demon, bloodied, in the centre of the grounds, looking north towards The Evil. That''s the one that truly pushed me over the edge, to the point where I couldn''t make any excuses, and I just had to face the truth." "Oh- that''s- haunting. Well, at least we''re together in this. I''m Trici, by the way", she replied. Think, Trici, Marina said within her, can we use him to help us? What to do? She pushed the thought, anlong with the identity, away. He was already on her same side; she didn''t need to push him for a desired outcome. Outside, bells tolled once, twice, nine times. The urchin snapped alert, clearly startled by the noise. It would be only fifteen minutes to the first hearing. She checked her brochure, which told her that the first speaker up would be Terys de Valen, a woman from Sterlir. She''d be up once those fifteen minutes passed. Scanning quickly through the leaflet, she found Oila''s slot, after lunch on the final day. Trici made a note to bring the list to lunch with Aren and Quill. ¡­ Tria couldn''t stay up, even though they¡¯d just been awakened by the bells. It didn''t matter how much they tried. They slipped into dreams of the monastery, of Enas, of Epta, of all the others. Of all sixteen of the other children they had grown up- if you could even call it that- with. Chapter Three: Enter Eric Aren heard the bells toll once, twice, nine times. Sighing, she called Marin, a young errand boy who worked at Arian¡¯s embassy, over for the day''s itinerary. A Sterlir, a woman named Terys de Valen, would be the first -her time started in fifteen minutes- to speak. She would be followed by a fellow Sterlir, Griffin Parlos, and after his time was up, the council would break for lunch. She, of course, was going to lunch with Quill and Trici. Zinnia, her translator, was relaxed in a corner. Aren turned to her questioning, "We''ve got to be up there in ten minutes. Ready?" "Yeah, I got breakfast and I''m dressed up properly. I talked to the other translators a bit ago; Pyros is the only one who knows Gilish, so he''ll be the one translating for the second speaker. ¡°I don¡¯t like that he¡¯s going to do a whole speaker alone, but it seems to short a timetable to find him a second translator to swap with. Quill mentioned that two of the afternoon''s speakers will need to be translated for everyone", Zinnia replied, her light accent punctuating her ''T''s, which were much airier than the lenitioned ¡®T¡¯s of Aren¡¯s native Plutasine. ¡°I think Pyros will be the one swapping out with Quill when need be for one of the speakers, though I can¡¯t remember the other¡¯s assigned translators. "Got it. Just remember to follow my lead if you don''t know what to do, Zinnia. I can promise that¡¯ll work out fine for you, so don¡¯t panic. The others will start lining up for their entrances rather soon", Aren said, turning to the door. She motioned for Zinnia to follow, holding the door open for her. ¡­ "And lastly, I''ll be going out to lunch, so I won''t be available during the break", Quill stated, running out of breath, to Mari. "That''s the whole day''s itinerary?", questioned Mari. "That''s it. Ready?" "Yes. If you don''t know what to do, just follow my lead. And remember, Quill, even if we all are all on a first-name basis, there is a crowd watching", Mari said, holding the door for Quill, "I''d like you to be as formal as possible while translating, and when addressing me, Pucoths, Liara, or whomever else you talk with." "Got that", Quill replied, leaving the room. Mari followed, briefly speeding up to be even with him. They passed by several doors- those would be the other ambassadors'' rooms- which were carved with the ornate, intricate designs of their respective country''s seal. Several of the others had already begun lining up. Aren, up ahead of Mari and him, caught his eye and nodded subtly at him. He returned the gesture. He ended up in front of Dwilen in the translators'' line, Mari parallel to him in the other. Liara, Eric''s translator was in front of him. If he remembered correctly, she had been working with a translator in Eric''s retinue since before he had retired from fighting to take his role as an ambassador. Quill wondered what use a translator was in a war without diplomacy between the combatants, though that was neither here nor there. ¡­ Eric saw this all as utterly pointless. He already knew his stance on The Evil. He had fought it, either personally or in command of others, for long enough to know they wouldn''t be able to reason or deal with it. If absolute power corrupted absolutely, then so did absolute evil. They might play nice for a while, but they would turn, they would attack, and humanity wouldn''t be prepared. The best-case scenario would be hundreds of thousands of deaths. Why some from more distant nations never realised that, Eric didn''t know, but the idea posed a threat nonetheless.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. He had already made up his mind. No matter what, he was going to vote against a treaty. The others, though, might not be so set in their stance, either way. He would have to try to target the more weak-willed or neutral-on-the-issue members of the council who could have their minds changed and make absolutely sure that they would vote against a treaty. Like, for example, Aris, who should¡¯ve- and would¡¯ve- caused international incidents with his bumbling idiocy by now if it weren¡¯t for everyone else keeping him in line or out of the way. The 15-minute bells tolled clear and loud, snapping Eric out of his winding train of thought. An attendant on each side of the hallway opened the doors and the group filed into the commons. Murmurs from around the room quieted. Just over a dozen chairs scraped, grinding against the stone ground, as the delegations of each country sat down. A presenter at the head of the room began the proceedings in a doubtlessly boring statement that Eric decided to tune out. It would just be a restatement of the itinerary Liara- or was it Tehran?- had given him to read an hour ago. He would wait a few minutes for the speaker to begin their speech. ¡­ Tria was snapped out of their semi-asleep daze and alert by a speaker, an older woman clad in a light grey dress, with hair similar in tone to their own outfit, who began speaking. Even if they were tired, Tria was determined to listen. As long as the monastery got their information, it would be worth it. The speaker began, "Ladies, gentlemen, and all those in between, may I please have your attention. I¡¯m sure each and every one of you know why we¡¯re here, though you may be lacking details. Today the Council of World Powers'' appointed representatives shall listen to the first seven speakers, from 9:15 AM to 8:30 PM, with a break from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM for lunch. ¡°Speakers shall have exactly 60 minutes- from one bell to the one four following it- to deliver their speeches and will be allotted an additional 15 minutes, the space between the fourth and fifth ringings of their speech, to answer questions and defend their speeches. They may cede their time allotted for speaking to answer more questions in their monologue¡¯s stead. ¡°The topic of these meetings shall be the decision to- or not to- proceed with negotiations for a treaty to peacefully co-exist with the Grand Army and Armada of Demons, Hellbeasts, and Creatures of Darkness, more commonly known as The Evil.¡° Tria started tuning them out. Was the speaker trying to make her speech as boring as humanly possible? Quickly, they snapped themselves back to attention by harshly pinching their elbow¡¯s interior. Hopefully whatever the speaker had meandered on about wasn¡¯t that critical. "The representatives of the nations shall be Representative Aren de Gephyra of Arina, General Eric Myros of Ferthusia", she paused before continuing, "commonly known by his epithet ''The Bloodaxe'', Department Head Mari de Thern of Sterlir, Council Head Rei Wathrel of Rathia, Duke Aris von Grissom of Zeryzian, Minister Hothal Derisz of Mexai, and last- but far from least- Representative Pucoths Ragthdottir of Iridawal.¡± Tria smiled a little bit. Such a convenient listing of persons-of-interest was fairly rare, even in dry and formal settings like this one. It would be giant time-saver for them, not having to track those names down themself later. "By accordance of the Council of World Powers, a majority of votes- four- are required for the motions to pass. A representative may either vote ''For'', ''Against'', or ''Abstain'', the announcer explained before pausing briefly. She took the time to grab a sip of water. Tria found the small notebook in on of their tunic¡¯s pockets and started scribbling notes on the pad of paper now in their lap, realizing it may be a good idea. Taking a breath, the Speaker continued her statement, "The voting period shall occur no earlier than 8:30 PM on the third and final day, overmorrow. Representatives may, should they wish, call upon a speaker to reiterate or clarify a point in their speech during said time.¡± Tria kept scribbling down the rules. The monks may have an interest in how the Council ran its meetings, no matter how minute. They could pour through them later, and maybe find a loophole or two if they were lucky. "Lastly, a representative who has already cast a vote may change their vote, so long as it is within the allotted timeframe for deliberation. Should no vote be cast, they shall be automatically assigned ''Abstain''. "With that out of the way, please give a hand to your first speaker, Speaker Terys de Valen, who hails from the nation of Sterlir.", the woman finished. She stepped to the side, allowing a shorter woman sporting cyan eyes. Tria noted that the speaker''s stark white hair matched her suit. "Speaker de Valen, your time starts with the quarter-hour bells. You may commence your speech then." Chapter Four: Terys de Valen The announcer stepped aside and gave the stand to a short woman on their older side. Quill noticed that she had icy blue eyes and silver hair, matching like the sky and earth after a blizzard. After a long few moments, the bells struck. She let her voice fill the hall, one with a lower, slightly accented timbre, to introduce herself. She had a slight Kannan accent that bled through her Zeryziani, though it was relatively easily to comprehend her speech. He figured she would have come from southwestern Sterlir, or perhaps the very edge of Rathia¡¯s shared border with the country. There would be no wordplay or job for him as a translator here. Surely for one speaker or another, he¡¯d be able to take advantage, but for now the speech would be delivered in Zeryziani. For now, Quill simply had to sit back and plan his moves. ... Speaker de Valen spoke slowly and deliberately but resolutely. She spoke of how her loved ones died. She spoke of her father, lost at sea during a naval raid, and her mother, abducted in the night. She spoke of her son, currently at sea defending against the Evil. She wondered aloud if he¡¯d ever return. In short, she appealed to emotion. And skies above, she could not have been more direct about her feelings. "Many of the nations only care for whether or not territory gained by the Evil will create a trade deficit", she said. Charging on, she thanked Aren and the others for their time, and closed out her speech. She had that much propriety at least. The bells had yet to ring, so "I would like the rest of my time to be allotted for questions from the ambassadors", Terys proclaimed. She left plenty of time for questions; barely three bells had been struck during her monologue. Aren took her chance and charged ahead. "Why", Aren asked, "Does this give reason to stop? While we can feel for your loss, what reason does the possibility that the deaths will end trump the possibility that they''ll simply infiltrate our society, and then kill us?" "We don''t know if it will fail. If a treaty works, no one will ever have to die anymore. If one fails, then we will suffer. But if it doesn''t, our children and grandchildren will never have to know the loss we have", Terys responded. The point she raised was fair. Aren had to concede that much; it was, after all, a basic premise of one of the arguments for offering up a treaty. It was just that she thought the risk/reward wasn''t nearly as good a ratio as Terys or another promoter of ¡®peace¡¯ believed it to be. ... Eric had grown tired of waiting around for Aren and the Sterlir to finish arguing. Taking advantage of a brief gap in the two¡¯s argument, he charged ahead; "Aren, for all she''s said so far has missed pointing out one crucial detail. You talk of your mother, who you say was ''abducted in the night''. Why would a species that would abduct us want to live peacefully with us?", Eric asked, "I''ve heard stories like your mother''s dozens of times, both on the battlefield and around it. That wasn''t an isolated event. Do you truly believe that such a species would want to co-exist with us?" "Yes. We, as I keep saying, have never so much as attempted to co-exist. We attack them. Why in the world would we not so much as try to stop the cycle of violence?" "Why don''t they try to stop the cycle? They invade us. Why should we trust them to stop?" "Why shouldn''t we?" "Why shou-" "Please, both of you, stop this inane cycle. We are here to decide if we should try to stop the cycle. Your argument contributes nothing", a third voice spoke up. That would be Mari. She- naturally- would stand up for her fellow citizens. "Let me ask a question of my own, and one as direct and simple as possible, Speaker de Valen: Do you believe that the risk of danger being caused by letting the Evil integrate into our society is outweighed by the chance that they won''t act out against us after we compromise our security to let them in?"If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Yes. It''s not even close. For you all, the upper echelons of society, maybe it is, but for us? The danger for us average folk is that we''ll die at war now, not that society might suffer later. For us average folk, it''s just who we''re paying taxes to that''ll change", Terys responded, obviously encouraged by the question. Mari kept on questioning, and Terys kept on answering. She was clearly being swayed towards a treaty. That could not possibly be good for Eric and the others'' chances. ... Trici watched on as the clocks tolled, clear and loud in the morning. They alerted everyone of the time; it was 10:30 AM. The conversation died down- Council Head Rei Wathrel had taken control near the end of it. She finished taking her notes and heard fourteen chairs scrape against the stone ground. The woman in the grey dress came back up to the speaker''s dais. She explained that the council members would take a 15-minute break, and reajurn with the following bell. Next to her, Mahir immediately started peppering Trici with comments. Trici didn''t take note of most of them, choosing instead to let them go in one ear and out her other, but was quite interested in one of his remarks; while the stories he covered usually were about the destruction of villages, Terys talked about the abduction of individuals. She decided she''d prod him further on that inconsistency when he stopped talking for long enough for Trici to sneak in a question. ... Tria slumped down in their seat. Maybe just a wink of sleep wouldn''t hurt. They let themselves drift off, sixteen voices calling out to them. ... "Not good, not good, not good", Aren muttered, pacing. The first speech, bluntly, had gone terribly. She''d expected Rei to be in favour of a treaty, but Mari had obviously been swayed by Speaker de Valen. She and Quill had found a small room off to the side and were using it to talk privately. "Aren, calm down. We have only a handful of minutes to figure out how we''re going to reposition and not let anyone fall too firmly towards the side of a treaty during the next speech "Pyros, Pucoths''s translator, lost family to the Evil. While that''s far from a guarantee he''ll be against a treaty- just look at Terys- I do think he is. He''s the only one of us who knows Gilish, so he''ll be translating. I doubt that Pyros will twist words like I will to make or dampen a point, but he likely won''t be looking to paint the Evil in a redeemable light in his translation", Quill assured Aren. "True, true. But your twisting of words isn''t going to be that useful until tomorrow, right? That¡¯s when you and Liara will have a whole speaker to yourselves. That''s when we can really try to make strides forward by making arguments for armistice seem silly", Aren replied, "For now, we need to plan out our moves to minimize how much anyone is swayed towards a treaty. Are you sure we can''t get Pyros to join us?" "Yes; he''s far too rigid in his moral code to do anything but faithfully do his work. Liara likely would, especially if we get Eric to work with us and directly agree to such a plan, but I doubt the others would bend the speakers'' words like that." ... Eric, Liara, and Tehran gathered around a small table in one of the many small rooms off to the side. "Liara- you don''t have many people you need to translate for over the trial, right?" Eric asked. "No; we agreed that I''d only have one speaker overmorrow. Other than that, I''m free from duties" "Could you take notes, maybe? If we can call up speakers later, it would be wise to keep track of who can help make our points the best" "Yes, that should be rather easy. Anything else?" "No, not for now", Eric replied, finishing the exchange. He turned towards Tehran. "Can you run a message for us, Tehran?", he asked. The wiry teen rolled his eyes. "That''s my job, isn''t it? I''m your errand boy, not your king." "Tone, Tehran. There''s no reason not to ask nicely. "Now, here''s what I want you to do: Go up to the post office and send something to this effect back to Arginos: ''First speech went badly. If you can, get someone to find out the other council members'' opinions on the matter''" "Will do. I''ll be off, then", Tehran replied. He turned to leave, and strode up to the door, but quickly turned back. "No cipher or anything?" "No", Eric confirmed, "The information is mostly public anyways, so it''s not like we''re letting a third party see anything classified." "Gotcha. I''ll be back by lunch, I suppose", Tehran said, leaving at last. Liara spoke up a few seconds after he left; "Guess we should start heading back?" "Sure" ... Mahir relented after some time. Trici, after waiting what felt like an eternity, questioned him, "Did you mean anything when you mentioned that Terys talked about abductions while you see villages burned?" The response was rather disappointing. "No", he said, "I just tend to cover the large-scale things. You can still find plenty of disappearances if you know where to look. It''s just not my specialty." Disappointed, Trici turned away from him. He seemed happy to leave their exchange there. She noted that the 3/4 hour bells were ringing. She supposed that the break was over. She nudged the teen behind her, who had fallen asleep during Mahir''s monologue. ... Tria snapped awake from a dream of times since past. They thought they remembered seeing Monk Orir, but the details were already fading. They thanked the woman in front of them, and quickly focused their attention on the chamber''s doors, which were now grinding open to mark the return of the diplomats. ... Aren and Quill split off from each other, promising to uphold their previous lunch date. Yet another speaker who yearned for a dangerous change would be up next. Quill just hoped that Mari wouldn''t be dragged further towards the other side. Chapter Five: Damage Control This time, it was a tall, skinny man with darkened skin in his mid-thirties at the podium. He shared Terys''s stark white hair, though his eyes were black. Even his sclera were tinted dark grey. Only thirteen of the simple wooden chairs ground against the floor this time. Pyros split off from Pucoths, who he usually would translate for. He went up to the dais and stood next to the lanky man. He would be translating for him if Aren remembered correctly. Zinnia, her own translator, took a seat next to Aren. The woman in the grey dress went up to the dais. Pyros and the man stepped back to accommodate her. "Attendees, could you please give me your attention? Our next speaker will be Speaker Griffin Parlos. He will be giving his speech in Gilish, and it will be translated into Zeryziani for your convenience by Pyros Nike. Please turn your attention to them. Thank you." She surrendered the floor to the two. Speaker Parlos chose to let Pyros do the public speaking for him. He spoke quietly to the translator, who let his voice ring out in a much louder tone around the hall. "To those on the council, I would like to thank you for having me", Griffin started through Pyros, "I know that some of you are already rather set in your views. I''d like to appeal, nonetheless, to you to change. "We''ve spent an extraordinarily long time at war. Like Speaker de Valen before me, I think that war can stop. While she may deride you for only caring for your respective government''s bottom line in this, I don''t think that is true. My country''s representative, Mari de Thern, asked a simple question to the aforementioned speaker earlier; whether or not Speaker de Valen found the risk worth it. I do. Please, just hear me out." ... Eric found the Sterlir''s speech long and winding. "The good in us all" and "Never given a chance to change" came up frequently. Slowly, he started to piece Griffin''s true reasoning together. It was all too reminiscent of the speeches he had heard time and time again on the frontlines. The Gils, as a people, were incredibly distant from the frontlines, but centuries ago had been at the forefront of the war. They had brought their religion to Ferthusia, even as far north as Arginos. It claimed that thousands of years ago, some few demons had rejected the evil inside them and humans were those few''s descendants. Dozens of times, he''d learned of villages or temples hiding members of the Evil amongst them. They all had one similar throughline: the preachers claimed that given a chance to change, demons would even in this modern world find the good inside them. Despite their charred skin, demons were as human as humans themselves if they took the chance to reject evil. Eric had seen the result of a ''chance to change'' too many times to count. Still, Eric could ask about whether or not Griffin''s argument was based in theology. If he was right and Griffin''s answer truthful, it may just poke a hole in Speaker Parlos¡¯s argument. ... Tria had realized long before Eric what Griffin''s argument was based on. The monks had told them time and time again that demons could become human if they seized the good within themselves. Tria of all people had no reason to doubt them there, but they had always wondered if the opposite was true as well. Leaning forwards, they tapped the black-haired woman in front of them''s shoulder; the one that had awoken them earlier. In a whisper, they asked the woman to wake them when Griffin started taking the council members'' questions. She murmured in agreement, and Tria drifted off. ... Griffin had gained a great deal of confidence in his voice over the past hour. "Inwi-", Griffin started, but was cut off by the 45-minute bells. Pyros hadn''t even had the time to translate. Quickly, the man readjusted. He muttered something quietly to Pyros, who gave a formal thanks to the council before asking for questions. Eric tried to take the initiative, but Aris beat him out. "It''s true", Aris called out, "that people can change. But can demons?" "Yes. We know they have a navy, their Armada", Pyros responded, listening to a now much quieter Griffin. That confidence had evaporated with the bells'' toll. Continuing on, he translated, "That shows they have intelligence. An unthinking horde isn¡¯t going to build a trireme. If we, as sapient beings, can choose good, then so can they. They just need a chance."This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. "And this treaty is extending this chance to them? They''d co-exist with us, not as Speaker de Valen says because they''re as tired of all the death as we are, but because they could genuinely become better?" "Yes", Pyros said. Griffin''s voice started overlapping with his once more, "It''s worth at least a shot." Aris nodded. "I suppose it is." ... Aren felt her heart sink lower and lower in her chest. Everything sounded louder, sharper. Pyros, Griffin, murmuring audience members, and most of all her heart, beating like an undampened bass drum in her ears. The duke, incompetent and blundering as he was as a diplomat, still had an equal vote to hers. Mari was slipping towards the giving it a chance, and now Aris. Rei and Pucoths''s votes might as well already be pencilled in. Hothal''s would be as well for now, though Aren could hopefully change his mind; he wasn''t nearly as steadfast in his opinion as the other two. Those two, plus Mari and Aris made four. Hothal would make five. More than the magic number for the treaty. Aren would have to go on the offensive if they had any shot left. Just then, Hothal spoke up. Oh, no, no, no, no, no. ... Tria was shaken from a dreamless sleep. "I''m sorry", the woman whispered, "You wouldn''t wake up at first. You missed some of the questions." Tria started internally panicking but forced themself to stay calm. "Anything important", they hissed back. With a start, Tria realized the exchange had just occurred in Lwini, not Zeryziani. "No, that duke was just asking some questions. He was already leaning towards peace, though. All the merchants here can''t shut up about it sinking ships with their goods, and he''s likely going to fold to them regardless." "So he''s in agreement with the- what''s the word?" "Speaker?" "Yeah. He''s in agreement with the speaker on a treaty?" "Looks like it. You should be caught up now", the woman said softly, smiling. Tria thanked whatever was up there for such a useful person being so near to her. ... Annoyingly, Eric would have to wait even longer to ask his question. It''s not like they had forever to pose them. Hothal cleared his throat and began his question. "Speaker Parlos,", Hothal said. Across from him, Aren''s face turned sour and panicked, unlike her usual confident self. "You''ve talked about morality and rejecting the evil within us. That strikes me as being incredibly similar to the theology of your people, the Gils. Is your argument for integration based on your religion?" Eric watched Aren''s face go through a whole cycle of emotions before she finally collected herself. ... Pyros''s brain was fried; he''d been translating live for more than an hour now. If any of the other translators spoke Gilish, he would have swapped out long ago. Words were escaping him at this point. He fielded Hothal''s question and turned to Griffin. In Gilish, he asked a simple version of Hothal''s question; "Are you making your argument because of your religion?" He felt faint. ... The answer came unsurprising to Eric. A simple ''Yes''. What was more concerning was Pyros, who clutched his forehead and stumbled forward to the dais. He leaned on the podium before he gave out completely. Griffin caught him before his head hit the maple, and looked over to the grey-clad woman, waiting for her next time to speak in a corner, clearly a bit panicked. She rushed up to the dais and shouted above the now-murmuring crowd. They quieted for her, and she assured them that the situation was handled. Going on, she continued, "Speaker Griffin will be given his remaining five or so minutes to speak at the end of the day." She glanced towards Eric and the other before following on. "For now, we''ll simply break for lunch early. The proceedings will restart at One PM. Thank you." She glanced back over to Griffin and made some gesticulations. ... Pucoths was the first up. She reached the dais in a matter of seconds and helped a now-conscious Pyros to his feet. Aren and the others raised themselves from their chairs. Beside her, Zinnia got her attention. "I should go check on Pyros. I''ve had the same happen to me; it''s not a pleasant experience. You said you were going out for lunch, right? I should make sure he''s alright, so it''s better if I stay." Good. She wouldn''t have to shake Zinnia, who''d normally follow her around like a cart strapped to a horse, always close behind. "One more thing; can you tell Marin to run out on an errand if you run into him? I''d like to get a notebook." ... Eric had given Liara leave to check on Pyros; she''d be back in a minute. He opened the ornate doors to the Ferthusian embassy. Tehran lounged on a chair. He pointed towards a small pile of boxes lying on an adjacent table. It had two more chairs around it. "I got us some food. Want to talk over lunch? And where''s Liara?" Eric strode over to one of the empty chairs; a nice one with armrests. "Liara''s checking on Pyros. She''ll be back in a minute. And I''d love to." ... Aren pulled Quill into a small, unadorned room on the side, not unlike the one they''d been in earlier. "I''m going to see if Mari will come with us. If we''re lucky, we can shift her viewpoint during lunch." "That sounds good. I''m going to check up on Pyros before heading out. The cafe''s on 7th & Greensborough, right?" "8th, I think. See you then." ... Aren rushed through brightly lit hallways, passing her own embassy before reaching Mari''s. She opened the door emblazoned with Sterlir''s crest and found Mari making small talk with an aide inside. They looked similar to Griffin, so Aren would guess that they were a Gil as well. She waited for their chat to die down and asked Mari the question. "Would you like to go out to lunch with me?" Chapter Six: Lunch at The Shattered Egg, Part One "I''m really sorry", Mari said, her violet eyes cast downwards, "But I''m hosting the Sterlir speakers for lunch today. Maybe tomorrow?" "Yeah", Aren replied, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice, "Maybe tomorrow." She turned to leave, but Mari called out, "You could stay! I''d love to have you, and the speakers would gladly take the chance to talk with Quill!" "I''m sorry, Mari, but I have to go. Tomorrow." ... Thankfully for him, Pyros was okay, if a bit dazed. Liara, Pucoths, and Quill had crowded around him, each asking after how he was in turn. They''d taken him back to the Iridawali embassy, and Pucoths had sent an aide off to find him assistance. As if he needed it anyway. Liara turned to Pucoths, who''d been sitting on the side of him. "Can you make sure he doesn''t overexert himself this afternoon? Keep him off the floor until Speaker Parlos gets his time." ... "I''ve had that happen to me before", Liara said after an all too-long silence, "You have to pace yourself, Pyros, and make sure you don''t overdo it later, even if it means wasting time. You should rest, or else it''ll happen again. We have to be more careful for future speakers. Someone I knew had a stroke because he pushed himself too far." "I... Yeah, I guess", Pyros replied, quietly, "You guys probably have people to meet up with during lunch, right?" "Yeah", Quill responded, "I should be going." Liara murmured in agreement. She crossed the foyer and reached the door, Quill''s footsteps close behind her. "After you, I suppose?", she questioned, pulling the door open. "Sure", Quill replied, stepping out. He still had to catch Aren at the Sterlir embassy. Behind him, Liara asked Pyros one last time to get some rest before closing the door behind her. "See you this afternoon?" "Yeah", Quill replied, "See you." ... Quill found Aren looking rather dejected outside the Sterlir embassy. "Hey, Aren", Quill said, "That''s a rare look on you." "It doesn''t feel like it, right now", Aren replied, cyan eyes downcast, "It seems like it''s the most common look on me lately. "Nothing''s going our way. If the votes were to be cast now, only Eric and I would go against it. We''re fighting an uphill battle, and the slope''s just getting steeper." "The votes are cast overmorrow, not now. We have still got plenty of time to show them why it would be so bad. Let''s go meet up with Trici." "Yeah. Let''s." They began the walk, passing embassies and brilliant stained-glass windows. On the way, they passed by Terys, chatting with an emerald-eyed man in Zeryziani. She shot a glare at Aren, though said nothing. ... After several minutes of trekking across the halls, they reached the streets. Familiar, soothing sounds washed over her. Food sizzling on street carts, their vendors calling out to the passers-by. The clip-clop of horses'' hooves on the ground. The call of birds, hundreds of feet overhead. It helped calm her, though there was one disphonic sound she couldn''t ignore. A small, spindly boy was crying on the ground, lying in an alleyway''s corner. His arms were riddled with lacerations, some old enough to have scarred over. Larger, fresher wounds still were open. Put bluntly, he was a mess. He was ignored by all the passers-by but clearly needed help. Aren looked briefly back towards Quill, bringing his focus to the child by pointing a finger at him. "We should help. He clearly needs help, and no one has given it to him", Aren said, rushing over. She turned to the child. "What''s your name? Can you walk?" "Y... Yes. I can walk. My... my name''s Dodeca." "Well, then, Dodeca. I''m Aren. If you can go to the big yellow-white building over there, and find the door with the wolf on it, you can go get some help. It should be in the third hallway to your right once you enter."The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Th... Thank you..." "One more thing", Aren said, reaching to her collar, "Take this so they know I sent you. Ask for Marin or Zinnia if someone doesn''t help you." She removed a small pin from her collar, emblazoned with her city''s crest, and handed it to the boy. "Be safe." "Okay." ... Quill watched the child go. "That was kind of you Aren. Why''d you do that?" Aren let her gaze drift from Dodeca to him. "The thing that makes us different from it is our ability to feel compassion and to help those in need. We''d be no better if we let an injured child rot in a gutter. "It only took us a brief moment, but his chance of a future will be so much higher thanks to us taking that moment to help." "Unlike everyone else around here?" "Yes. They chose to ignore his plight. Maybe someday humanity as a whole can do better." In that moment, Quill finally thought he understood Aren''s raison d''¨ºtre. "Shall we be going then?", Aren asked, "We don''t want Trici to have to wait on us." "I suppose we don''t", Quill responded. ... They followed Greensborough Street, passing through several blocks of markets and shops. The euphonic sounds of the city washed over Aren, soothing her. But there was one small detail, a single broken link in all this, that she didn''t understand. ... The pair reached the junction with 8th Street. On the southwest corner, a caf¨¦ with an elaborate front showed. The shop had dramatic arches and sharp peaks in its architecture, despite the shop''s small size. reminding Quill of Lyces, his hometown, in all its beauty. No wonder Trici liked the place. From the open windows wafted the smells of freshly baked food and newly brewed drinks. A single sign poked out of the front. On it, a crowing rooster was overlaid on the restaurant''s title, The Shattered Egg. A scattering of tables, with parasols to protect them from the rain, were arranged outside the entrance. Customers occupied several of them, though it would be another two hours still until the lunch rush would start. Aren spoke up first. "I guess we should go inside, then?" "I suppose", Quill replied. They crossed the road and entered the caf¨¦. Those wondrous smells grew tenfold. A young, plump woman standing at a dais greeted them. Her eyes and hair had the hue of a cloudless day. "Hello. I''m Mara, I''ll be your server today. Can I ask for your names?", she said. "I''m Aren, and he''s Quill. Could we have a table?" "Oh! Nyx mentioned you! They said Trici asked them to save a table for you", Mara replied, "I can take you there, but Nyx will be the one serving you. Sound good?" "Er, yeah, that would be great", responded Quill, beating Aren to the answer by a split second. ... Mara led Aren up a grandiose brownish-pink wooden staircase with wrought iron railings. She guided them past tables, of which only a few were filled. She led them to a small balcony on the opposite side of the hall. "Trici always makes sure to come here during slow hours to grab this table", Mara said, "Can''t say I don''t wonder why. It has one of the best views in the city." She was right. Thanks to rising a story above most of the surrounding buildings, you could see all the way to the sea, your view only blemished by the Council''s hall. Aren suspected Trici had another reason, though. Thanks to a combination of the balcony''s door and height from the ground, you could have a reasonably private conversation. Not like the first didn''t play a factor, though. There was only one small problem. Trici wasn''t there quite yet. So she couldn''t quite yet ask her question. ... Quill took his seat first, followed shortly by Aren. They each took a stool, sitting opposite each other. "Aren. Is that child going to be alright?", Quill asked. "Yes. Dodeca should be fine. I sent him to Marin and Zinnia with my pin; they''ll help him. He probably just needs an antiseptic and some rest." "That''s reassuring to hear." ... "So", Quill posited after a brief silence, "Trici isn''t here, but she''s not going to speak until tomorrow. Should we talk about this afternoon until she arrives?" "I guess that would be best. There''ll be five speakers, no?" "Yeah. Two of them will need to be translated. One''s speaking in Qusi, the other in Kowal. They''re named Sydney Montas and Aerith Macar respectively." "As far as I can tell, they''re all on our side save Speaker Montas", Aren replied, "Who''s translating for them?" "It was going to be Pyros, with me substituting in when need be, but I doubt he''ll even be let into the chamber today. Even then, Liara an-" "Liara!" "What?" "Does Liara know Qusi?" "I''m not sure. I''d have to check with her." "If she does, we can corrupt a speech. Just like you mentioned this morning. The whole afternoon could be ours to exploit!" "You''re looking a lot less glum." "We still have to actually convince Mari, Aris, and Hothal. But it''ll be a great start." ... After a while more of chit-chat, Nyx finally showed up. They almost reminded Aren of a Gil, but their charred skin was far darker and their eyes almost like the midnight. They almost resembled a gash in reality, a spot of pure black. If it weren''t for their more human mouth and ears, Aren would''ve mistaken them for a demon. "Welcome to Table Five. I don''t see Trici, but Mara said you''re her friends. Can I get your orders?" "Yeah", Aren said, "I''ll take Fish & Chips. And could I have some Sancerre to go with it? I could use a drink." "Do you have any specialty coffee here?", Quill asked. "Yes, we could give you a cup of our own design. Anything else?" "I''ll take the garlic flatbread." "Is that all?", Nyx questioned. "Yes", Quill and Aren said in unison. "I''ll be back in maybe five minutes with your drinks", Nyx responded. ... Nyx kept their promise. Five minutes later, they returned with the two''s drinks. With them was Trici, a drink of her own in hand. It was something bubbly and sweet-smelling. "Sorry for being late. I got a bit sidetracked", Trici said. "It isn''t a problem. We were a bit slow ourselves", Quill replied, "We only just got here a few minutes ago ourselves. Plus, the quarter-hour bells haven''t even rung quite yet." "Oh, good", Trici said, taking the remaining seat, "I was worried I''d lost us too much time." ... Aren took her chance. "Trici, something''s been feeling a bit strange to me." "Oh? What?" The quarter-hour bells drowned out Aren''s response from even her own ears. Chapter Seven: Lunch at The Shattered Egg, Part Two Clang, clang, clanging echoed out around the three. Aren¡¯s lips moved, but her voice, her potentially dangerous question, was completely drowned out by the ringing of the bells. Somewhere within Trici, Marina panicked, but Trici pushed down the feeling. She kept herself composed, at least outwardly. ¡°Could¡­ you say that again, Aren?¡±, Trici questioned to Aren. ¡°Trici¡±, Aren replied, ¡°I don¡¯t really understand why you¡¯re here. Why you¡¯re with Quill and me here right now, why you were given a letter like ours. Yes, you have a speech, which can affect the results, but I have a direct vote, and Quill can twist wording in our favour. ¡°Do you have any idea why you, rather than Eric or Pyros or anyone else with more direct or large-scale a sway, was chosen?¡±, Aren finished. ¡°Quite honestly¡±, Trici replied, quickly thinking her way through a coherent response, ¡°I don¡¯t. Maybe other countries¡¯ leaders weren¡¯t willing to directly work together, or maybe I was just a convenient option who would likely be loyal to the Arinan crown. I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t offer a better response than that.¡± ¡°I understand now, I think¡±, Aren responded, ¡°You were probably just a convenient, likely loyal option.¡± ¡°¡­Yeah¡±, Trici confirmed, ¡°Probably just that.¡± Internally, her panic slowly started to dissipate and fade. Moving forward, she tried to change the subject to something less worrying, ¡°Their food¡¯s good. You two are enjoying it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not bad. You certainly have some good taste¡±, Quill said. He was sipping a rather dark-toned coffee from a cup. ¡°I¡¯d second what Quill said. But onto a more pressing topic, we need to figure out what we can do tomorrow and overmorrow once you can come on to answer questions¡±, Aren pitched in. ¡°Not this afternoon¡¯s events?¡±, Trici asked. ¡°Since you can¡¯t really impact it, Quill and I went over it without you¡±, Aren replied, a small bit too curtly for Trici¡¯s liking. ¡°Ah. OK, then, onto my speech then.¡± ¡°Wait¡±, Quill butted in, ¡°We should run over the speakers before you. It will probably help if we want to add built-in counterpoints or rebuttals into your speech. That way, we might be able to damage speakers¡¯ points before Hothal or Mari takes control of the conversation again.¡± ¡°That sounds good¡±, Aren replied, ¡°Any objections, Trici?¡± ¡°No, no, that would be fine.¡± ¡°Okay¡±, Quill started, ¡°Xaros Inexa and Kiera Patheos are the only two speakers, as far as I¡¯m aware, that are openly for a diplomatic end to our war on your day. Kiera will go before tomorrow¡¯s lunch break, so I think it would be best to plot out some counterpoints then.¡± ¡°Wait¡±, Aren replied, cutting off Quill, ¡°Mari couldn¡¯t come today, but it would be a good idea to get her here tomorrow; she even offered to come. We can try to change her view then.¡± ¡°Got it¡±, Quill said, sighing, ¡°I suppose we¡¯ll go over both speakers today. ¡°The first, the aforementioned Kiera Patheos, is a minor noble from Zeryzian, though I believe she¡¯s not from the city. We can¡¯t say for sure, but we should assume that she¡¯s worried about her house¡¯s losses during trading to naval attacks. That¡¯s what most upper-class Zeryziani seem to be worried about. ¡°Because of that, I find that we should build in the idea of the risk in financial terms.¡± ¡°I see¡±, Trici responded once Quill finished, ¡°Maybe I could talk about it in terms of financial risk/reward?¡± ¡°Yes!¡±, Quill exclaimed, ¡°That¡¯s it! If we can get our hands on some numbers for how many- or how much total value- goods are lost every¡­ year, maybe, to naval attacks, then maybe we could build something from there.¡± ¡°We should all be able to access that¡±, Aren pitched in, ¡°Since we got letters from our heads-of-state. If we ask Arinan or Sterlir intelligence, they¡¯ll almost certainly have something useful that they¡¯ll be willing or forced to give us!¡± ¡°I think that¡¯ll work out¡±, said Trici, ¡°But how are we going to make a point about potential damages if a gamble for peace fails?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m stuck on, too¡±, Quill agreed, ¡°We can get a real, solid number for current losses, but how would we quantify an uprising of the Evil if they integrate into society?¡± ¡°Maybe¡±, Aren replied, ¡°We don¡¯t have to. If we also get a figure on total maritime trade, and the percentage lost to the Evil is small- maybe less than 2 or 3 percent- we can show it¡¯s not worth it because of just how small the losses are in the context of the total trade volume.¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°I¡±, Trici said, ¡°Think that will work.¡± Shifting her focus to Quill, ¡°The other speaker. Their name was Xaros Inexa?¡± ¡°Yes¡±, Quill said, right as the half-hour bells cut him off from finishing his sentence. ¡­ Clang, clang, clang, went the bells, echoing out yet another time throughout the city. Again?, Quill thought, It seems those bells can never ring when someone isn¡¯t saying something important. Clearing his throat, Quill rearticulated his cut-off point. ¡°The problem¡±, he said, ¡°Is that while we can guess why Kiera Patheos wants an armistice with reasonable accuracy, Xaros, as a more ordinary Mexain, could have quite a few different reasons.¡± ¡°Right¡­ like what?¡±, Trici asked. ¡°Mexain doesn¡¯t see war the same way Arina or Ferthusa or any other border state does¡±, Quill answered, ¡°It could be possible that they¡¯ll argue that the economic losses aren¡¯t worth it, whether that be as Terys did earlier, pertaining to the average citizen¡¯s taxes, but it could also be a similar argument as what we think Kiera¡¯s was. If that¡¯s the case, we can make similar points against the risk of integration.¡± ¡°Right¡±, Aren said, ¡°But the problem is that we don¡¯t know that their argument uses the economy as its crux.¡± ¡°Yeah¡±, said Trici, ¡°What, then, are the other realistic options in your mind, Quill?¡± ¡°Well¡±, Quill answered, ¡°If they make a theology-based or religious argument, then we don¡¯t have much to go on yet. If Mahir Gethalt¡¯s remaining time goes poorly, then we can assume that Xaros¡¯s argument will also fall flat. But if he successfully defends himself in his remaining time¡­ who knows.¡± ¡°It might be good to talk over after today¡¯s hearings are over¡±, Aren added. ¡°That sounds good¡±, Trici said, ¡°And the last argument to expect would be based on the human cost of war, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Given that Terys seemed to sway Mari¡±, Quill answered, ¡°I think we should worry about Xaros giving a speech about the human cost. It could go very poorly.¡± ¡°Wait¡±, Trici butted in, ¡°But Mexai doesn¡¯t share a land border, or even a maritime border, with it. Why would they argue that? And wouldn¡¯t it fall flat if they haven¡¯t had personal losses like Terys to draw from?¡± ¡°Trici¡±, Aren replied, ¡°Just because Mexai doesn¡¯t directly border the Evil doesn¡¯t mean that Mexain soldiers don¡¯t fight against it. It¡¯s perfectly realistic that Xaros lost someone.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ Yeah, that makes sense.¡± Aren swirled her still-untouched wine in its cup. ¡°We just can¡¯t guess with good accuracy. Our best bet is to either have more general attacks and try to get you back up regularly as an attack dog of sorts.¡± ¡°An attack dog?¡±, Trici asked, ¡°That sounds a bit¡­ aggressive.¡± ¡°Trici¡±, Aren said, ¡°Let me finish. We can try to build up as many points into your speech as possible, so that I may call you back up later, and you can answer loaded questions that we think up beforehand to act as attacks against those who want a peace pact by firing off each off those loaded questions, letting you answer our ¡®perfect answer¡¯, and hopefully diminish a speaker¡¯s point, or maybe even eliminate its effect entirely.¡± ¡°I¡¯m¡­ not sure I got that. Is what you¡¯re saying that we come up with answers to questions beforehand, then you call me up to answer those questions later?¡± ¡°Yes¡± ¡°And then that will¡­ help us somehow?¡± ¡°Yes, hopefully, we can make pro-peace speakers¡¯ points weaker by calling you up and having you answer a question that would act as a counterpoint to the speaker¡¯s point.¡± ¡°That sounds fine by me, but what about the other option you mentioned?¡± ¡°Right¡±, Aren said, finally taking a sip of her wine. Quill had finished his drink before she even started her own. ¡°The other option is that we make a few variations of your speech for each realistic option for Xaros¡¯s speech. ¡°We¡¯d take the base speech that you already have, then tweak a portion that counters said speech into a few variant speeches, and then you just will have to orate the right one when it is your turn to speak.¡± ¡°I¡­ I think I¡¯d rather do the latter option¡±, Trici replied, ¡°It¡¯s not like we have forever to draft up some perfect speech, let alone work out a bunch of counterpoints.¡± ¡°Okay¡±, Aren responded, ¡°That¡¯s fine by me. Quill, do you have anything to say? You¡¯ve been rather quiet.¡± ¡°Oh! No. This is just a bit out of my range of control or expertise. You¡¯re the ones who can do the most with speeches, especially those in Zeryziani.¡± ¡°Got that¡±, Aren said, ¡°So we have an agreement, then? You¡¯ll write a few variations of an attack against Xaros¡¯ possible points into your speech, which I assume already exists-¡± ¡°It does¡± ¡°I would hope so. Back on track, you¡¯ll then give the right one.¡± ¡°Wait¡±, Quill asked, ¡°What happens if Xaros¡¯s speech fits none of Trici¡¯s variations of her speech?¡± ¡°I can just exclude the section entirely and surrender my remaining time to questions¡±, replied Trici. ¡±Good. That should work out.¡± ¡­ The remnants of their shared lunchtime flew by. It had little heavy argument or discussion, which helped Aren fully calm down. At some point, Nyx came out to their little shielded balcony and, balancing each of the three¡¯s dishes on the server¡¯s midnight-toned forearms, Her food was delicious. The fried salmon tasted much better than salmon ever should. It was cooked to perfection and complimented perfectly the accompanying fries. She¡¯d always loved Fish & Chips as a dish, but this dish was the perfect form thereof. ¡°Trici¡±, she said, ¡°You really lucked out finding this caf¨¦.¡± ¡°Thanks. The staff especially are great once you get to know them.¡± ¡°You said you¡¯ve only been here in Zeryzian for a short time, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. No more than a scattering of weeks at most. They¡¯ve just warmed up to me rather quickly.¡± ¡­ Only a few minutes after the three-fourths-hour bells, Aren and Quill left the table, leaving Trici with their meals¡¯ cost in coins. Trici didn¡¯t mind much, as they had more reason to get back than she. She waited on her little balcony until Nyx came back. She made small talk with them, before counting out her own meal¡¯s cost and giving the three¡¯s total to the server. There was another reason for her to wait, though. She¡¯d been late to Quill and Aren¡¯s lunchtime meetup for a reason, and she hoped to collect on her investment of time. To do that, she wanted to avoid having to explain why she would split off from the pair if they were to walk back together. Marina had sent a message to her intelligence agency, and she fully intended to check for an answer to her question; so that she could hopefully figure something important out. Aren might have been rightfully suspicious of why someone like Trici, with so little influence on this trial, was included in their group. But Marina thought someone else was the unusual outlier in said cadre. Why in the world would kings of nations almost always at one another''s throats choose to go for the translator firmly set in his views, rather than the person who was much more important and whose position was so, so much more volatile?