As the tilemet vanished from the sight of those in Ejey, Yagou began to scream his lungs out as he was thrown through space-time by the Mekhanite device, desperately holding on to Myrdan as their trek threw them out of Qua-Toyne. Twisting and tumbling, as the horizon seemingly moved behind them over and over again, the light of the sun being bent and skewed before all became dark. Then, with a loud BANG and a brilliant flash of blue light, Yagou's eyes fluttered open, soon found himself in the ocean, appearing to stand on a ship of some sort. Yagou's mind continued to reel itself back to sanity from the sudden whiplash of being teleported possibly thousands of miles throughout what felt like hours but what was, in reality, mere seconds. That is when a sudden weight fell upon his gut as he desperately held his hand in front of his mouth, gagging loudly before running over to the side and proceeding to violently vomit over the side.
"Heh. Tilemet sickness," Myrdan laughed as she walked over to him, patting him on the back to help him expel the rest, "Don't worry, it happens all the time to those who get their tilemet cherry popped." Once Yagou finished expelling the contents of his stomach into the sea, he grabbed a nearby towel that had been replicated from a pedestal on the deck, wiping his mouth before placing it back.
"It is certainly an experience that I would NOT want to repeat," He began as she shook his head out, looking down the deck towards the stern, before his eyes suddenly widened, "How... How big is this ship?!"
"About one-sixth the length of Athens' walls. Accounting for the settling of the ground, I'd say it's 1.3 kilometers."
"1.3 kilometers..." Yagou repeated in shock, taking a deep breath as Myrdan began to walk away, causing him to immediately run after her, "Who's ship is this?!"
"The Archon's vessel. It's a battle carrier of the Mekhane's Wrath class. Only six were built." Myrdan answered as they walked to a watertight door at the front of the ship, with Diogen and Anaxi standing side-by-side in front of it. The flight engineer looked at the two men as they opened the door, turning the crank as the pneumatic pistons holding it closed hissed with air as the pressure inside the locks released. With a loud "CLANK", the door's secondary lock had been released, and with a creaking wail, it had opened. "After you," Myrdan offered, "And do mind your step."
As Yagou began to lift his foot into the door of the vessel, the loud blaring foghorn of the vessel was heard, causing him to jump in surprise. Once shaking his head out, he carefully stepped inside and began to follow Myrdan down into the belly of the ship once she had snuck past him.
The sound of Yagou's shoes on the metallic flooring rang out across the hallway and his ears as they continued to descend staircase after staircase, walking down for what felt and seemed like an eternity as they continued to descend into the massive ship. Suddenly hanging a right, Myrdan and Anaxi walked out in front of the diplomat, causing him to shrug as they went past, before he turned a corner, and came face-to-face with a massive set of wooden doors. The doors themselves appeared to be made of a beautiful mixture of African blackwood and pink ivory, and etched with all sorts of Mekhanite fables and myths, images of Mekhane, and those of Mekhanites fighting outside of a massive city. The doors gave him pause as he began to blink rapidly, gazing at the two Mekhanites with an inquisitive look on his face before they were opened with a creaking whine as he stepped forward.
The room behind the doors, however, was a different story.
With loud sounds that seemed to echo deep within his chest, a series of massive floodlights, some as bright as the sun, filled his vision, causing him to immediately flinch in response as his eyes adjusted. Once they did, however, their pupils had gone to the size of pinpricks in shock. The room was a massive, golden, cathedral-like structure, the sound of glittering jewels being heard as a massive chandelier that appeared to be made of pure diamond swung from above. The opulence and grandeur of the display caused the diplomat to pause as he took everything in, his eyes practically darting around the room from the left, to the right, and over again. Until the sound of a clearing throat snapped him out of the trance.
Looking forward, he saw a rather tall man, at least compared to him, with a massive scar over his eyes, white hair that cascaded down his shoulders nearly to his waist, and a simple goatee, although the eyes in their sockets whirred quietly like mechanical devices. His dress, however, undermined it all completely, wearing a mixture of chrome and blue robes, with small plates of armor attached. Under their outfit, there appeared to be a slight decrease in his body mass when compared to the rest of his body, causing a small huff out of the man before he locked his gaze right onto Yagou's face.
"I take it you were the one who wanted to talk," the man spoke with a deep, booming voice, although it also sounded somewhat like the grinding of metal if one listened closely, "Not many would consider such an event trivial. But from what the others have told me, these events are far from trivial."
"That is correct, I did want to talk, yes," Yagou quickly replied, taking a quick breath to regain what air of professionalism remained, "I am Yagou, diplomat and staff member of the Qua-Toyne Foreign Affairs Ministry. The reason I came was because of something that occurred not too long ago. I take it you are the Archon, then?"
"That assumption is correct," the Archon began as he smiled at the floor, before looking up at Yagou as he opened his mouth to speak, "I am the head of state that He has given us. The wielder of His gifts. Bearer of His soul, His voice, and His blood," Yagou began to slowly back away as the Archon's voice began to grow in volume, radiating off of the walls as the resonant tone of the room was revealed, "I, AM TORENAL! ARCHON OF THE MEKANITES! CHOSEN BY MEKHANE TO BRING OUR LAND TO PROSPERITY, AND LIGHT!" Torneal took a deep breath as he clutched at his head, giving a calming wave to Yagou before he could get the chance to run over to him, "It is alright, just light-headed. Now with introductions out of the way, are you here because of the ornithopter crash? And before you ask, I was informed of the event the moment it happened. Automated signal for exploration model ornithopters when they go down."
"Well, yes and no. I was more referring to the fact you violated our airspace and nearly killed one of our wyvern knights and his mount when the two collided." Yagou once again replied, regaining his composure. Torenal sighed, then sharply snapped his fingers, causing the lights to begin flickering and fading as a rumbling soon filled the air, causing Yagou to once again look around, but in panic. The man, however, simply stood still and laughed quietly to himself as the lights soon faded back to brightness.
A loud hum filled the room a plate in the floor opened, followed by a light whir as a few chrome platforms rose out of the ground between the two men, as what could best be described as small particles of blue light began to emerge from them, rising to the ceiling and beyond the chandeliers before rocketing down to shape what appeared to look similar to a set of chairs and a table. As the form continued to solidify, Torenal sat down on one of the chairs at one side of the table, gesturing for Yagou to do so as well. The diplomat quickly acted upon the gesture, sitting down on the other side, opposite the Archon.
"Although this sort of action, were we in normal diplomatic terms, be an act of war by the Mekhanite Empire on the Qua-Toyne Principality," Torenal began as he crossed his hands on the table, causing Yagou to hasten his breathing a bit, "We did not even know of your country's existence before our nation's displacement. Despite the work of the Eye of Mekhane in Troy, we did not have an accurate representation of this planet's population, and it was both the error of the ornithopter pilot and the other party involved that resulted in the injury of the wyvern and rider, although records show an attempt at evasion by the ornithopter before the collision."
"Well, I suppose the blame does belong to both parties, if that situation was applied to other states, but-" Yagou began before Torenal raised his hand, causing him to reflexively quiet down.
"I am not finished." The Archon cleared his throat before placing his hand back down on the table, "Due to the error caused by the Mekhanite Empire that resulted in... not the best first contact event, I would like to issue a formal apology to the garrison of the city the ornithopter had crashed near, the rider that was injured, the nation of the Qua-Toyne Principality, and to the Qua-Toynian head of state. It was our error in violating your airspace, despite not knowing of your nation's existence, that resulted in the event."
Yagou paused as Torenal looked him dead in the eyes, a gaze of remorse and pity on his face as he looked up, "I formally accept the apology. With that out of the way, what do you wish for your state?"
"The end of the strife, as a start," The Archon spat, "Our nation has not been in the best of conditions since the War of the Flesh. We are a torn nation, despite being supposedly united under one banner, and no matter what I try, I always manage to fail in the long run. What we need is stabilization. Is it possible for the Qya-Toyne Principality to supply such?"
Torenal's words cut deep into Yagou, causing him to begin contemplating, rubbing his chin in thought before replying with one word...
"Yes."
Only eight days later, once again aboard the Archon's ship and at the maritime border between the two nations, diplomats from both the Qua-Toyne Principality and the Mekhanite Empire met, sitting in the same room that both the Archon and Yagou had negotiated in, and on the same chairs and table. The two parties, each composed of seven men and women, began to deliberate back and forth on trade agreements, the status of diplomacy between the two states, and military actions. Eventually, the two parties reached an agreement, and with both the stroke of a pen and the shake of a hand, the following document was signed into effect.
"On this day, May the 22nd of the year 1630 of the Central Calendar, the status of the Mekhanite Empire and the Qua-Toyne Principality both reached a state of diplomatic agreement. Upon the signing of this document, the following effects will take place between the two states.
- The Mekhanite Empire will guarantee the independence of the Qua-Toyne Principality from aggression and oppression by fellow states on the continent of Rodenius and beyond.
- The Mekhanite Empire will allow for the trade of goods created between the two states, including goods created by the Mekhanite device known as a "replicator".
- "Replicated" goods will be from the excess that was not factored in by Mekhanite demands, to not drain them of critical supplies that are required in their current state as of this document's signing.
- The Qua-Toyne Principality will gain access to the technology of the Mekhanite Empire after a grace period of approximately 11 years after this document is ratified into effect.
- The Qua-Toyne Principality will assist the Mekhanite Empire in matters of stability for the state, and cannot under any circumstances change the governmental status of the Mekhanite Empire.
- The status of the Mekhanite Empire's government will be changed to that of a constitutional monarchy, with the title of Prime Minister given to an elected individual, appointed by the Archon. The Mornaris Family shall remain as the formal heads of state, while matters of the state shall be handled by the Prime Minister.
- A state of free diplomatic access between the Mekhanite Empire and the Qua-Toyne Principality..."
Many more statements were made in this singular document, with amendments and changes being made in the months after the signing. The original version of the document, which started as a rough outline between the two states, was shaped, molded, and formed into the foundation of relations between the Qua-Toyne Principality and the Mekhanite Empire. On the 22nd of October, the final draft was signed.
And so, the Mekhanite Empire made its first steps into the new world.
And their faith followed them...
That Trimaran makes a fool of the Milishial aircraft carriers that are technically Catamarans
As long as your healthy i can wait as long as necessary for a new chappie!