Rising Sun above the Land of Pearls (Ashigawa-Franerre)

[aimway921]

Nakimoro would follow Volke to his offices, to convey the message. Simaru, meanwhile, remained with Jaques to go over the details of Ashigawa's assistance to Franerre as gratitude for this operation.

__________________________

"Pretty easy," Nakimoro said. "We have a set of phrases prepared in advance, all of which stand for specific instructions. We simply need to find an excuse to have them in the broadcast, and I know just the thing. A message from Trueno spokesperson in honor of opening the first factory of the Franerre branch. That way we can send the message in Ashigawan so that the agent does not get confused by the translation."

[callmedelta]

"That's a good idea," Volke replied, "Elenrian and Kumosenkan forces likely have more expertise in cracking Franch codes than Ashigawan ones anyway, considering our history of actions in Elenria. I'll start assembling the squad for this mission."

[callmedelta]

Ambassador Seth Bruler still wasn't quite sure what was happening. The entire capital had gone under lockdown, and the translator given to him by the Ashigawan government could only tell him fragments of what happened, likely due to the spotty and conflicting nature of what little word he had received. What he did know for certain was that the city had gone into lockdown, enforced by the army, and there were plenty a rumor of a coup, but nothing substantial. It was the fine details where everything seemed to fall apart. Some claimed that the Kampeitai, who the translator informed him was the Ashigawan equivalent to the Gendarmerie, were the ones behind the coup. Others claimed it was the palace's own guards, while some even claimed it was a rogue army unit. Whoever attempted the coup, it was clear that it would thankfully remain just that - an attempt. But that still left Seth with plenty of questions, and only one person who he knew in the government where he could hope to get some answers, the Foreign Minister.

[aimway921]

Seth would have to change his final destination before being able to speak to the Foreign Minister - or anyone form the Ashigawan government, for that matter. When he arrived at Minister Tagomi's house, he would discover that Tagomi is, in fact, former Minister, and is currently in custody of the Royal Guards. After Tenno Yuzuru ascended to the Throne several weeks ago, the Imperial Council - the government body that consisted of the Ministers - has been disbanded, and a temporary Emergency Council has been set up in it's place which reforms for a democratic government are being made. Seth would be informed that the Emergency Council is seated in the Royal Palace.

[callmedelta]

Seth was both glad and a bit disturbed by the news. Glad that he could go to the Tenno herself, or at least, her Council, to understand what was going on, but disturbed at the fact that Minister Tagomi was held by the Royal Guard. It didn't bode well for the man, and he seemed like a good man from the limited interaction the two had. Regardless, Seth turned his sights to his new destination: the palace. 

[aimway921]

Upon arriving at the palace, Seth would be met with a commotion of several dozen soldiers next to the main gate. An officer would demand him to halt and question the reason for his presence. Once Seth would explain why he arrived at the Palace, a Royal Guard, in a uniform distinct from the Army soldiers, would lead Seth inside. He would ask Seth to please not commit anything he sees while en route to the meeting chamber to memory. And rightly so, for the scene was unsettling. The main hallway they walked through, there have been blood trails everywhere. Walls were dotted with bullet impacts. From one of the rooms, 2 men, one Royal Guard and one Army soldier, carried out a dead body dressed in a Kempeitai uniform. The Guard leading Seth would stop to talk with them for several seconds, before pointing somewhere towards the gate from which Seth entered. They then proceeded.

Arriving in a small room on the third floor, the Guard would apologize for what Seth had to witness on the first floor, and inform him that whoever Tenno chooses to send, be it the Emergency Foreign Minister, another Counselor or herself, shall arrive shortly. Seth would also be asked to remove his shoes before entering the room.

The room itself was probably a bit unusual. There was a small bare floor area around the doorway, while the rest of the floor was several inches higher. The higher section was entirely, with the exception of spots where furniture stood, was covered in a soft mat. In the center there was a very low square table, one you could only comfortably sit at if you were sitting on the floor, and wide but relatively thin pillows around it. By the wall there was a cabinet with some cups and plates.

A few minutes later, a young girl walked in, carrying a tray with a kettle and some round treats that looked very vaguely like dumplings. She would bow to Seth and apologize for intrusion (in Ashigawan), before setting the tray in the center of the table, and then move some cups - a total of 3 - to the table.

While the servant was busy doing her work, the doors opened again, and two people walked in - one was a fairly young man dressed in a black suit. The other was a woman of the same age wearing a traditional Ashigawan suit.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting," the man said, as they both bowed before taking seats at the table, folding their legs under themselves in the traditional Ashigawan way. "I am Akagawa Danno, temporary Foreign Minister of the Emergency Council. This is my colleague, Chiyo Naoko, who is my assistant and adjutant." While he was introducing themselves, the servant finished pouring the tea in all the cups, and placed them, along with a plate with 2 pastries, in front of each member of this small meeting, and left, closing the door behind her.

"Please tell me, why did you wish to meet us at this time?"

[callmedelta]

Seth would return their bows once the pair came in, then following their example in how they sat at the table. "My name is Seth Bruler, acting Ambassador from Franerre. As for the purpose of this visit, well, I think it's easy to guess. The whole city has gone under lockdown with rumors of a coup swirling around. When I try to find one of the few men in the Ashigawan government I've had contact with, I hear he's been arrested. When I arrive here at the palace, I can see that some sort of skirmish happened, though my questions still lay answerless. Whatever happened here, Pareau needs to know."

[aimway921]

"The rumors are correct," Akagawa said. The has been an attempted coup against Empress Yuzuru. Elements of the old government, conspiring with the Kempeitai, have yesterday attempted to lock the Empress in the palace and take control of the nation into their own hands. The Royal Guards, however, were able to squash the coup rather quickly, the mess you've seen on the first floor being the aftermath. The lockdown was ordered by the Empress herself to prevent anyone involved in the coup form escaping."

Chiyo spoke up next. "Former minister Tagomi has been arrested on his involvement in the Elenria incident. He has not been charged yet though, as the investigation is still ongoing, and based on what I know, he will be found not guilty. He would not be returning to his post of Foreign Minister, however - unless he runs and wins the election - which we at the Emergency Council are still formulating. This will be the first public election in Ashigawa's history."

"Overall," Akagawa spoke again. "Other than the new Empress building a democratic system to replace the old autocratic regime, the are no changes. The coup was poorly executed and was a minor hiccup in the flow of the events. Although I think you will be interested in knowing - the instigators of the coup are the same ones who instigated the Elenria Incident and were provoking Kumosenkan. Should the coup have succeeded, likely we'd be at war with Kumo at this time."

[callmedelta]

"I think, for both our nations' sakes, I can say it's a good think the coup failed, and that those who carried it out were brought to justice," Seth said. "I take it the trial of those involved with the Elenria Incident should still go on as planned?"

[aimway921]

"Those who are still alive, yes," Chiyo replied. "Most of them committed seppuku before they could be apprehended. The most important perpetrators, the high command of the Kempeitai, however, are still alive and will be brought to justice."

[callmedelta]

"I'm glad," Seth said, "Though while I am here, I do have another thing to ask of you. When the Tenno made her radio announcement, King Marchégia made an announcement of his own, wishing for this trial to be made public before the world. I was instructed to bring this request to your government's attention, but I think you can see why I haven't been able to do so yet. The more public this trial is, the more the world can see Ashigawa's commitment to reform and peace."

[aimway921]

"We shall bring that up with the Counsil," Akagawa said. "I wager they will likely agree, so feel free to telegram your homeland to prepare representatives."

[callmedelta]

"I'm sure I'll have plenty to telegram home about, Minister." Seth stood up, giving a bow. "I should probably go make that message now. If I need to contact you again, am I to come here to the palace, or is there somewhere else I can find you?"

[aimway921]

"It would be here in the palace," Chiyo replied, as she wrote something on a piece of paper before both Ashigawans also stood up and bowed. "However, please call this number and announce your intent to meet us first. As you can see, today we met in a rather informal setting, which is due to the short notice we had of your arrival. We apologize for disrespecting you in such a way, but no meeting chamber could be prepared in such short time."

[callmedelta]

Seth took the piece of paper, folding it and putting it in his suit pocket. "Don't worry, I understand. I didn't give you any notice in the slightest, so there was no way you could have been prepared. The next time I need to contact you, I will be sure to call."