The Powerhouse and the Jewel [Tyvia-Ida Koi]

[EpicToaster1]

The Powerhouse of the North and the Jewel of the North

Diplomacy Thread

The Tyvian Empire and the Republic of Ida Koi

---

Kym Leavitt would drive up to the Ida Koian Embassy in Novgoród, Tyvia, beginning her shift once again as the head diplomat between the two nations. She'd saunter up the main walk, greeting the guards before stepping inside. Once in, she'd let the door close behind her, looking around the empty lobby. She'd tap her foot on the ground twice before the secretary manning the front desk would step out. "Welcome back, Miss Levitt. How was your night?"

"My night was well, Yuris. Yours?"

"Oh, you know. Uneventful. As is nominal for a well-off country."

"And here's to hoping it stays that way." She'd raise a hand for a moment before dropping it and walking forward, walking over to the main door. The buzzer would sound as it would unlock, letting her through into the heart of the building. Kym would greet some of the other diplomats as she walks by, others having their heads buried in their papers. She'd walk upstairs to her office, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. She'd let out a sigh as she stared at the stack of papers that accumulated at her desk throughout the night. These Tyvians sure keep us busy with paperwork.

[aimway921]

Some time into the day, there was a knock on the door to Miss Levitt's office. After waiting for an "enter" response, in came Mr. Alexandr Domogarov, the soon-to-be ambassador to Ida Koi, and currently the head diplomat between the Koians and the Tyvians. Wearing what seemed to be travel clothes, he was carrying a briefcase.

"Morning, Miss Leavitt," he said, as he sat down in the chair in front of Leavitt's desk. As he continued to speak, he took out some papers and a pen from his briefcase, and set them on the table. "I shall be departing for Põhiliin later today. Before I leave, however, I wanted you to look at this," he slid several of the pages of his unpacked paperwork closer to Leavitt. "This is the progress report on the Trans-Tarnowsk Railway. It is going quite good. Soon our nations shall be connected like never before. However, there have been some... complications... due to the winter storms. The work has been set back almost 3 months, we now expect it to be open by late Fessera. I'm sure you understand."

[EpicToaster1]

Leavitt would work through her papers for most of the morning, getting her stack of papers down a significant chunk before she'd finally get a visitor. "Come on in."

"Good morning, Mr. Domogarov." She'd watch him as he sat down and began taking papers out of his briefcase. Please don't be giving me a thousand more papers to do. She'd listen to him speak, nodding as he slid the papers forward. Listening to the complication, she would nod again. "I'm sure the engineers know what they're doing when they push back how long it will be. I'd rather it be done safe and right than rushed and dangerous, personally." She'd grab the papers, looking at them, letting out a sigh as she flips through it quickly. "I'll need to read that later I suppose?"

[aimway921]

"Yes, indeed..." Alexandr said, with a clear sign of understanding in his voice. It was obvious he hated the massive levels of bureaucracy too.

"Now, I had a bit of a more... Personal question, before I depart. Could you advice me on some of Koian customs that I should know of while I'm in your homeland?"

[EpicToaster1]

Kym would look up from the papers, looking him over briefly before nodding. "I'll tell you what I can." She'd lean back in her chair, thinking for a moment.

"In general, it's a good idea to bow to members of the government, irregardless of their position. Soldiers salute, obviously, but most everyone else greets with a bow before shaking hands. If you happen to be the one driving, or if one of yours is driving and not an assigned driver from us, roads in the north generally suck. Poor maintenance, constant snow or rain keeping them from being able to be properly kept, you know, that, makes it difficult to drive in the northern states. While, officially, we have ended segregation of Koians and Humans, it's still a very sensitive topic. Even some Koians believe it was too sudden. If you don't want to start a fight, don't bring it up."

She'd think a moment more. "Don't touch a Koian's wings. That's an intimate move, and so not generally accepted by most. Uh...Don't speak bad about the Dictator, general rule of thumb. If traveling long distances, the train is the best way to go. Not a customs thing, just generally more comfortable and easier. Don't comment people's eyes, whether Koian or Human or otherwise. Don't know what it is, but a lot of people don't seem to like it, so best just not to." She'd place her hand on her head, slicking back her antennae. "Oh yeah, antennae. Also intimate to touch for some, so best not to do it."

Another staff member would poke their head in briefly. "If it glows, don't smoke near it." They'd move back out, not staying long enough for questions or further comments.

[aimway921]

"Thank you, Miss Leavitt. I shall keep it in mind. Glowing would I assume be Staol, yes? Yeah, that's quite the fire hazard... Luckily I don't smoke." Then Alexander stood up, offering a handshake to Kym. "I must depart now. You shall be dealing with my partner, Gregoriy Dem'janenko, while I'm Põhiliin."

He then started moving towards the door, but the stopped for a moment, and looked at the giant stack of papers on Kym's desk.

"Want a little trick? Skip the first 10 or so pages of each file. It's just a bunch of legal jargon and definitions that the self-important entitled guys in more expensive suits than us from upstairs want to be put down everywhere to avoid loopholes. It's usually the exact same in every file, so if you read it once, you should be good for all the other ones."

With that, Alexander left the embassy and headed for the Novgorod Central train station.

---

Later in the day, a new person arrived at the embassy. When he entered Kym's office, he began with introducing himself.

"Good day, Miss Leavitt. I'm Gregoriy Dem'janenko. I'll be filling in Mr. Domogarov's position while he's in Põhiliin."

As he sat down, he took out what the office could use less - more paperwork.

"The Imperial Council has drafted out a proposal for an update of the Factory Lease Treaty. Tyvia offers to lease up to 45% of it's factories to Ida Koi for a period of 10 years, in return for a moderately large increase of Ida Koi's export of Staol and Food to Tyvia."

[EpicToaster1]

"Hello, Mr. Dem'jen-...Dem'janenko. Sorry." She'd bow to him before extending her hand to shake his. As he'd sit and pull out the ever growing paperwork, she'd sit herself, looking him over and then to the stack of papers in his hand.

She'd think for a moment before nodding. "As is usual, we can always increase Staol exports. Lord knows we got plenty to share. However, I will need to contact home about food. I do believe that's something we are just barely meeting." She'd stick out her hand for the documents, taking them and quickly reading through the opener just to get the jist. "I can see what else we could potentially have if there is anything your government may be interested in instead?"

[aimway921]

"Yes.. Let's see..." Gregoriy said as he went over several pages of the documents he had brought. "The Ministry of Science and Research requests an increase in supply of aluminium, as well as a supply of titanium. In return, they offer to share future technologies with Ida Koi. Other than that... I've heard rumors that Mr. Domogrov went to Põhiliin with propositions of an international policy. Other than that, unfortunately, I have no clue what the Imperial Council has planned.

---

Around a week later, Alexandr Domogarov has finally arrived with his staff in Põhiliin, the Koian capital. After setting up the embassy offices and a small tour of the city, he began to work. First thing, he requested for a meeting with the highest available government official, stating that he himself shall be directly representing the Imperial Council.

[EpicToaster1]

"Let me give my higher-ups a call and see what we can produce. I don't recall Titanium being a major industry of ours, so I'll need to check on that. Same with the rest." She'd turn in her seat, grabbing the phone and calling up the Ministry of Trade.

"Hello, you have reached the Ida Koian Ministry of Trade, how may we be of service?"

"Hi, this is Kym Leavitt, ambassador to Tyvia. I was just wondering, what's the feasibility of us increasing our trade of Staol with Tyvia, as well as trading Aluminum, Food, and/or Titanium?"

"Certainly, one moment Ms. Leavitt." There would be some audible papers shuffling about through the phone receiver. After a few moments, the man on the other end of the line would speak up. "As per usual, Staol is always able to be increased, we have plenty to give. We can begin the trade of aluminum with proper permissions. However, we do not produce enough food nor titanium to be able to trade it. In fact..." There would be some more papers shuffling, as well as some whispers that couldn't be made out. "The government currently has no possession of titanium."

"Alright, then that was it, thank you so much."

"No problem, Ms. Leavitt. Pleasure to serve."

The two would hang up, Kym turning back to Gregoriy. "So there you go. We can increase staol and begin the trade of aluminum."

---

Alexandr would be notified he would have a meeting late in the evening the next day after he sent in the request. At least they were quick on getting back. He wouldn't be told anything else besides it would be conducted at the embassy, the government currently unable to procure a room fast enough for this meeting.

As the time would come, he'd receive a knock on his door. As he'd answer for them to come in, the Dictator herself would step into the room, adorning a plain white and orange dress. She'd smile to him as she'd close the door, bowing before walking all the way to his desk. "Good evening, Mr. Domogarov. I was alerted you wished to speak to the highest official you could?"

[aimway921]

(will come up with a continuation of the conversation between Leavitt and Dem'janenko tomorrow.

---

"Yes, Dictator Valgus," Alexandr said as he bowed. "I have indeed, for I have been sent to discuss a matter of the greatest importance." He would then offer the Dictator a seat, before sitting down himself.

"As per the policy of my nation, before proceeding, I must inform you," he began, as he moved a piece of paper with the coat of arms of the Empire and some writing on it, "that during this meeting, I directly represent the Imperial Council and the Emperor himself, who leads the Council. Whatever consensus we come to here, the Council vows to honor. This document here is proof of that." At the bottom of the document were the Imperial Seal and the signatures of all 19 members of the Imperial Council in green ink, with one of them - the Emperor's - in red.

Alexandr would give the Dictator some time to read through the document, before proceeding.

"The Empire is worried by the rumblings in bottleneck region between Reseria and Nardras, specifically the former Luclistan - Eonivelt. We have full reason to believe that their aggressive ways are a threat to the balance of power in Ouhiri. In addition, both our influences on any nations in Nardras is weakened by the severing of most transport connections through Luclistan that occurred during their revolution. You have troubles exporting Staol there, while we have run into problems with exporting the produce of the factories that we rent.

Now, we previously did not anticipate the Eoni to make any moves any time soon. However, the Imperial Council has been highly alerted by our Eastern neighbor, Lusatia, recognizing the sovereignty of the rebel state and opening diplomatic relations with them.

Thanks to the surveys in the past, we also know that Eonivelt sits on one of the biggest, in proportions to the size of the state, deposits of Uranium, which our scientists have recently found to have potential for being weaponized as a weapon of mass destruction. If they forge an alliance with Lusatia and combine that potential with the Commonwealth's military might, the whole of Reseria, if not the entirety of Ouhiri, might fall under their influence. What's worse, wherever they make gains, they might decide to enforce the same policies they did at home. And frankly, them never meeting a Koian is the only reason we know not weather or not they share the same level of prejudice against Moths as they do against Humans.

Now, despite our warrings in the... relatively distant past, during the last decades Tyvia and Ida Koi has shared a level of an international friendship. For this reason, we turn to you for your opinion on the matter, advice and, in the worst case scenario, if push comes to shove, military aid."

[EpicToaster1]

The moth would seem to be severely caught off guard by all the sudden information, taking a moment to need to process it all. "Just to make sure I got it right..." She'd pause a moment. "You, meaning the Tyvian government, believe that Lusatia and Lucli-Eonivelt are going to forge a military pact...? On what grounds do these accusations come from? And you request us to be willing to back a war with the two of them if this is true?"

She'd look back at the documents, staring at it for a moment before continuing. "As it stands, our cabinet is debating on whether we should recognize Eonivelt as the rightful nation or not. By doing so, we can hopefully reopen the raillines, or what is left if they've been destroyed, and shorten the runtime of our trains. However, while not optimal, there is always the Chunnel between us and Amali that will hopefully alleviate some of the travel time once that's completed, but it's a waiting game to when it's completed.

"I, for one, don't know much about uranium, but I'm aware we have a decent deposit we're aware of that we've been stockpiling. We haven't found much of a good use for it yet, but we're working on it."

She'd pause again, staring at his desk but not at anything in particular. Without breaking gaze, she'd continue. "I do believe since the Third Staol War we've forged great relations, however at this time, I do not believe it to be beneficial for either of our nations to go about accusing others of the plans of world domination until we know for certain. That can get us into worse trouble than us waiting until we see the signs. A nation recognizing another does not mean an alliance will form. We have no plans to go beyond having their area once again join the International Staol Trade Treaty. There is no benefit for us at that distance. And..." She'd finally look up at him. "If the stories of their horrors are true, we won't get any more involved with them. If they are false, only then will we seek to better relations beyond ending hostilities."

She'd sigh. "And that comes as advice from arguably one of the weakest militaries in the region. We haven't been watching as closely, so we may not be as informed on the situation, but from what we know, that's our take on it."

She'd seem to lighten her tone pretty quickly after that. "Is that all that's within this document, or is there some other things?"

[aimway921]

Alexandr would look as Status for a moment.

"I'm sorry... I see how I might have formulated my thoughts into words in a way that could be misinterpreted... From trusted sources I know that regime in Eonivelt is a communist one. And Tyvia had to deal with communists in the past - the Civil War of the early 20th century.

Now, I do understand your thought, that just because Lusatia opened relations does not guarantee an alliance... However... Lusatia already has moderate levels of civil unrest. A state of affairs on which the communists thrive, especially among the poorer layers of the population.

There are 2 nations in history that we know of, where communist ideas were spread. Both of them had revolutions and civil war. Tyvia successfully defended itself. Luclistan, evidently, fell to the revolution. We are not as much worried about the Commonwealth forging an alliance with Eonivelt, as much as we are worried about the Eoni revolutionary ideas spreading."

Alexandr leaned forward, tapping through some words with his finger on the table's surface. "I am not saying that everything I am describing WILL happen. I am saying it MIGHT. And IF it does, and we are not ready, we both shall regret it.

Some of our experts predict, that if Lusatia undergoes their own revolution, they, along with Eonivelt, might start a new Staol War. As it stands, however, this time time Tyvia vows to stand by Ida Koi's side in such an event."

Alexandr has leant back in his chair. "Now speaking of the Chunnel. It is as much in Tyvia's interest that it is completed as soon as possible, as it is in Ida Koi's. For that reason, all factories, workers and materials contracted from Tyvia via our Factory Lease Treaty, that would be directed to the construction of the Chunnel, shall be contracted at a large discount."

[EpicToaster1]

"From our own sources, we can also confirm they are a communist regime. However, at their distance from us and their desire to be left alone all this time has led us to believe them to be a threat of low concern. Not least concern, just low." She'd stand up, walking over to a window and peering out. The building across the street would have a large banner with the Koian Emblem on it.

She'd turn back to Alexandr, listening to the rest of his speech as she leans back against the window. "And you forget that Lusatia is a divided house, with half conservative and half communist...socialist...whatever. Eonivelt isn't the only one. You forget of Tanus's uprising back in 1932, which ended in a bloody quelling and the corporations becoming more involved in the political process. We had a communist party attempt to form here, and it was disregarded because a party of twenty-five members isn't gonna do much. We know of the consequences of communism, and we understand not wanting them to spread. However, it is within our best interest not to jump the gun, as our aggression can cause those who purchase from us to back off, and we fail. While Tyvia and Amali are our largest importers, we would still be severely hurt by the rest leaving."

She'd pause and think for a moment. "If I recall, our nation agreed to support and join in on the Allied side during the Great War. We forged a great friendship fighting a common enemy. And as such, we do believe it within our best interest to be willing to defend our friends when we are called upon. However, any major stride towards us disowning a nation we have yet to recognize beyond the embargo will severely hurt our reputation."

"As for the the Chunnel, the end of its construction should be nearing soon. Same with the mountain tunnels. While we always accept a discount, with the work nearing to a close, you needn't make it insane."

[aimway921]

Alexandr listened to the Dictator patiently. Closer to the end of her speech, he leaned in on the desk, resting his chin on his clasped hands.

"You speak wise words, Dictator Valgus. It is possible that the fear of repetition of the Civil War of 1914-17 has blinded the Council." He let out a small sigh, which sounded more like he was worried rather than bored, before looking up at the Dictator. "What course of action would YOU recommend in this situation?"

[EpicToaster1]

"What I would recommend?" She'd think for a moment. "Military build-up isn't necessarily a bad thing. All nations do it. Just don't put it under any pretenses. You're doing it to do it, nothing more nothing less. Don't engage in trying to oust Lusatia or Luclistan-slash-Eonivelt and make relations worse there. Lusatia is still the same as you at the moment. If you make strides into trying to show they're siding with Eonivelt, then they actually just might. Long story short, you can prepare yourself without needing to denounce everyone. Best case, you've simply built up a military and don't need to use it. Worst case, you're ready if something bad does happen."