Growing Embers

[Adwest]

Balfonheim, Adwest (3 Zechyr 1600)

Grashielle Blancbaston sat fixed in her chair nearly an hour following her after lunch tea. She had always enjoyed the ergonomic design of her office furniture, more so as she sat directly behind the sole and rather large window in the place. The afternoon sunlight made its way to the office through that, providing illumination except where it was covered by the partially pulled-back polyester curtains.

The Deputy Foreign Minister was typing away at her computer as a rap came from the door. Giving affirmation for entry without looking, the woman heard the voice of her junior aide - a lanky senior at the Royal Balfonheim Academy of Humanities, and the second or even third son of a high noble whose name Blancbaston did not care to remember.

"Madame, the Goldecian Ambassador has arrived and entered the premises."

At these words, Blancbaston took her sight away from her PC, then replied. "Bring him in. Ask if he wants anything on the way here."

The junior aide nodded, disappearing as quick as he came. The minutes passed by quickly, with Ambassador Hugh Owens eventually arriving for the meeting.

The Deputy Foreign Minister stood from her chair, offered a greeting and a handshake, and gestured for the envoy to sit in front of her desk. Everything was done briskly, and Blancbaston took the first word.

"Ambassador Owens. It is in uninspiring terms that the Lord Charles XIII has summoned you here today. He is, unfortunately, unavailable to personally attend to this matter, so I shall convey the message on his stead."

A second passed before she resumed talking. "Her Majesty's Court does not view the Goldecian reaction to the South Kolhar situation as constructive. The hard-fought ceasefire signed between the two Kolhars has allowed for the building of peace and order in that island in the past couple of years, and it would be upsetting for everyone in the region to see what has been built there, to be rolled back. The domestic troubles of South Kolhar are none of Goldecia's concern, and it is rightful that your government now refrain from undue interference."

-

Quvak, South Kolhar

Hours later, at about eight in the evening, the Foreign Minister landed in South Kolhar's capital via a private commercial jet. The confidential nature of this impromptu visit was of high priority, and both sides knew this well. The correspondence of the visit was sent less than twenty four hours ago, and directly to the office of the Davyl Jaw.

Charles Windamier took a good look of the airport as he disembarked from the plane. It was the first time he found himself in Kolhar, a land just across the pond but seemingly so alien. He had read before on this country's history and profile prior to his appointment, and keenly kept himself abreast of the developments in the country's civil war even before he succeeded his father as Duke of Maleroy more than two decades ago. He imagined this would not be his last visit, however.

The Adwestene envoy greeted Charles in the tarmac, and accompanied him as they made their way to the government vehicle sent to pick them up. The vehicles of the embassy were not used for this occasion, again to ensure confidentiality, but the car the Foreign Minister and Ambassador rode were trailed from a distance by diplomatic security personnel.

The ride did not last long, and soon the Foreign Minister found himself face to face with the Davyl Jaw. The Adwestene ambassador took to the sidelines after introducing one to the other.

"It is not so much a pleasure, Mr. Kurn, as it is a perturbation." came from the Foreign Minister, as they took their seats and began.

"Two interconnected issues are the reason why I find myself here, tonight. First is the commotion happening in your capital, and which has only seen a growing momentum instead of a complete halt. Second and more concerning is the external reaction generated by this commotion.....your Northern countrymen and those uppity Goldecians. While we have foreseen this to happen, we have allowed ourselves to neglect the matter. If we had not, then I would be here much earlier than now.

But what is important is to move forward. And moving forward could see an escalation of this commotion to lengths which the both of us do not wish to see but ultimately may have to bear. And the Grand Kingdom is, at the moment, disinterested in bearing it. So tell me Mr. Kurn, what is the reason behind this issue and what measures are you taking to address it? Why do you think it is not stopping?"

[BrumBrum]

The diplomat responding to the aide said he was good. He met the deputy foreign minister . He listened to what she had to say. He responded to her "We shall always support the values of liberty and justice. These are after all core values of our nation and in our foreign policy. Now we are willing to compromise and accept steps of reform. In this situation may I suggest dialogue with all sides at the table to discuss the matter as the current situation is unacceptable. They can't get a permit to protest legally so are effectively being denied their civil rights , we cannot abide while that happens and the government threaten innocent mothers, fathers and children in some cases with violence merely for disagreeing with their government."

[Zabuza825]

Kurn nodded as he listened. He chose his words carefully as he spoke.

"I've heard about what's happening outside of my country. While I am aware of the north's secret military planning, I have seen no reports of actual troop movements from the north that is out of the ordinary. I do not believe that the north will invade unless the protesters are deliberately killed.

"Goldecia, on the other hand, I have no faith in. To be frank, their escalating language makes me worry that they may start pressuring the north to join them in an invasion. I don't know if these concerns are founded in fact, but given Goldecia's hostile history towards anything that isn't a liberal hellhole I would rather not be one to be surprised later.

"Taking into account the risks of foreign intervention, the party is debating two different possible options to deal with the situation. We have not yet reached a final decision. We will either engage in dialogue with the protesters, or crush them. Engaging in dialogue probably will be the most peaceful way of dealing with this, but I can't tell you how long it would take.

Those in the party that want to crush the protests... want to declare martial law and use the military. I don't think this is a good option, it would definitely bring a quick end to the protests but I worry that the north and Goldecia would invade should I do this. Not to mention the fact that it would absolutely destroy my country's international reputation.

As I stated before, a final decision has not been reached yet, but I will inform you when one has been reached."

[Adwest]

The Deputy Foreign Minister blinked, twice, as she lent her ears to the Goldecian envoys words. She had always been aware of the difficulty of dealing with Adwest's regional neighbors, as most of her colleagues in the foreign service did. This kind of perspective drew itself from two sources; first were the inherent constraints to policy flexibility. The National Rejuvenation was a load of work for the nation's diplomats, as it squarely focused Adwest on the goal of territorial reunification. The avoidance of war over the last thirty years was great relief for many, although they knew that at any time even today it was possible.

The second source of the perspective held by Blancbaston and her colleagues were the nature of surrounding states. Liberal democracy and all of its tentacles was not exactly compatible with the Adwestene idea of empire, much less so its highly undemocratic politics. Without a very pronounced bias to either, however, the nation's diplomats also found the former's idealistic approach to international relations as somewhat of an annoyance. The prevailing theoretical school in Adwestene foreign affairs had always been realism, although the public pronouncements of many of its most prominent leaders in recent times seemed to counteract this.

As Owens concluded, Blancbaston took the cue and responded, careful to avoid overtly criticizing the Goldecian's apparent indignant stand regarding reform in Kolhar.


"As it is your government's stance to abide by those values you mentioned, one can also surmise that it is the stance of the South Kolhar government to deal with their affairs according to their own values - ones which differentiate from Goldecia. Nonetheless, despite varying opinions, I believe that neither of us are in our positions to resolve fully the question of the universality of certain values. And I hope you are with me on this, Ambassador Owens."

Blancbaston allowed some time for the ambassador to make a response, before continuing.

"What matters more is ensuring that there is peace for our time. As you are aware, the Grand Kingdom has a security commitment to South Kolhar, and will defend it against an attack from Goldecia or any other power. Make no mistake that we will follow through with this commitment no matter what. With this stated, I would like to know if Goldecia has any intention to attack South Kolhar, or perhaps truly considers it a viable option."

-

Charles nodded slowly as the Davyl Jaw spoke, one hand on his chin. Despite a lack of orders from the Lord Protector, he knew well enough that the Queen herself was possessed of a distaste for war, unless it was absolutely unavoidable. The Duke of Maleroy himself stood on the same side of the fence, as his family had more to lose than gain from a widespread armed conflict. His house held the Grand Kingdom's monopoly on the logistics and shipping industry, and an interruption of normal economic life in favor of war would be disastrous for the business. He had no idea why some high nobles were the opposite.

"This is a troublesome quagmire you find yourself in, Mr. Kurn, isn't it?" came from the Foreign Minister, more a statement of fact rather than a question for affirmation.

"I appreciate your commitment to immediately inform us of the next steps your government will be taking. Whatever it may be, they will be crucial not merely in the coming days for your country, but in the coming weeks for the entirety of Kvaenna."

A pause came. The Foreign Minister leaned back on his chair, thoughts cycling through his mind. The choice of what way to back was not an easy one, as neither possessed the qualifications he envisioned; quick and silent.

"I would like to go through both options in detail, if you will. Are you aware of what conditions the protesters would demand of your government, or at the very least an idea of it? And if so, what would the implications of these consequences be to your government?"

"Regarding the second, I agree that the immediate deployment of force will something that might be regrettable.....but it is not an option that should be thrown out the window. Why not take the main instigators of these protests out? And let it dissipate like mist in broad daylight."

[Zabuza825]

"Indeed, it's quite the quagmire." Kurn answered, biting his lower lip as he spoke. He listened closely as the Adwestene foreign minister spoke, and then explained what he knew about the protesters.

"To answer your first question, we do have some idea of what they want. The protests started as a demonstration against our withdrawing of subsidies for the largest food providers in our country. However, they have since evolved to include other demands. Legalization of opposition parties and democratic elections are two of their most consistent demands. I won't lie, I fear that what they hope to do is use those elections to force my government out of power.

"I agree that the option of crushing the protesters should not be completely taken off the table, should things spiral out of control we will need that option. However, regarding the second question, I fear it is not that simple. At the moment, there is little centralized leadership among the protesters. Based off of the information I have, I can tell you that they organize themselves with cells, each with their own leadership. While generally speaking some cells are more powerful than others, when the leaders of one cell is arrested a different leader from a different cell takes their place. It has been, and I fear it will continue to be, an endless game of cat-and-mouse."

He let out a sigh.

"We have been attempting to disrupt the communications between these cells, but these demonstrators prove very resourceful. They seem to have set up their own unique underground network. People from all walks of life are taking part, some of the cells are even organized by Ladan's¹. Messages are traveling through various different means. It's tough to track down and stop."

---

1 - A Ladan is a Tikist (Kolhar's traditional religion) place of worship, similar to a Mosque or Church.

[Zabuza825]

6 Zechyr, 1600

Another day, another round of protests. The same pattern, the same people. Clashes between protesters and police were a regular occurrence at this point, and things showed now signs of slowing down.

It was time for the Kolhari Advancement Party to make a decision.

A Party Commission was called of all high-ranking members of the party. The time for a final decision to be made was now. Would there be negotiations, or would there be a crackdown?

The debate raged on for the entire day, heated words were thrown by everyone involved. It wasn't going to be an easy choice, but it was also a choice that was starting to show clear divides in the Kolhari Advancement Party. The time came for a final vote on the matter, and the results were tallied.

With all the votes except for Kurn's counted, it was an even split between those favoring a crackdown and those wanting negotiations. When Kurn heard the results, he cast his own vote.

"I, respectfully, must cast my vote in favor of negotiating with these demonstrators. The last time we cracked down on demonstrators with military force, it did not end well. We must not repeat the mistakes of the past."

---

7 Zechyr, 1600

A single police officer came to the protest sight, holding a large megaphone rather than any weapons. His armband clearly marked him as the political officer, and it was a sight that caught the protesters off guard. He brought the megaphone to his mouth and began reading off of a letter.

"The Party has decided that, while this demonstration is unlawful, there are concerns that must be addressed in a peaceful manner. As such, we kindly request that you send three representatives to meet with representatives of our own so that we may better find a way forward. Should you accept, those three representatives should present themselves in this exact spot in exactly 48 hours. Our representatives will meet you, and we will attempt to find a way to resolve this peacefully."

The protesters were caught off guard, none had expected this. But it was progress. Or was it a trap? The possibility of a trap was something protesters were very concerned about, but eventually and with the approval of the protesters, 3 volunteers were chosen to speak to the government in exactly 2 days time.

[BrumBrum]

News of the growth of protests spread but then some unexpected news came in. They had expected another brutal crackdown on the protests but news came through that not only had that not happened this time but apparently there was going to be some sort of negotiation between protesters and the government. The foreign minister Felix Underhill went to the prime minister Marianne Stewart Adler. They chatted over a cup of tea over what they should do. They had not been prepared for such a quick change. It was agreed they would not release a statement until they could get more information on the outcome of negotiations. They did not want to risk praising the government only for them to then roll back any liberties at the last minute but neither did they want to disrupt the current process. They would say nothing until something significant changed.

Meanwhile they would still accept refugees from Kolhar. Some of whom may now arrive via the international Taliat to Goudadam train service.