Volume 6, Chapter 6 – Margo’s Rise. The Fall. IRS Summit
"The world is an amazing thing..." — words flashed instantly through Margo's head as she flew, cutting through air currents downward. "— Two seconds — and it's like an eternity.
You can walk over heads and demand what's yours from the world... But the world is made of slaves who live only by what long ago settled in their heads as 'familiar,' 'convenient,' 'comfortable.' And if you just give a slave a whip, he won't become a master — he'll become a slave with a whip.
So it is with me... I have a pistol — but I'm still the same slave with a whip, trying to snap back at a world made of a herd of 'masters.'"
Her body crashed roughly into boxes of spices and sacks of wheat. The wheat, along with blood, spread across the road, forming a circle — with Margo lying in the center, a fistful of wheat smeared across her face. Maybe it was the same sprout she'd whispered to a couple of months ago — maybe it was just a coincidence, or Archon's intervention — but from these sacks rose no longer a little sprout of Margo, but a ripening woman who had fallen to the bottom again.
Everything before her eyes turned into one black spot with flecks of white. Her stomach ran up her throat, trying to escape. And all over her body were cuts and bruises, beginning to fill with blood and turn blue. Air came in fits and starts — but when it reached her lungs, her body revived, and Margo could at least move somehow. But coughing drove her back into the wheat.
A crowd had already formed around her, whispering quietly and waiting for the guards. No one tried to help — everyone just stared and commented.
A figure seemed to flash on a rooftop — somewhere far away, unreachable. But it could have just been a spot — there were plenty of those before her eyes. But a second later, a man approached Margo and took her in his arms. Hellish pain spread through Margo's body, and she felt a burning sensation.
"Everything... This... I'll solve..." — the words reached Margo's brain in fragments, without connection.
But everything before her eyes swam more and more, and the wind beat against her whole body. The burning intensified, and she could already feel blisters sticking to the fabric.
—
—
Margo opened her eyes, immediately finding a male figure looming across from her.
"Good morning, Margo," — he greeted.
"And who are you?" — she thought vaguely, feeling no fear.
"You," — he corrected.
"You," — she waved off the "subordination" they were trying to impose on her from the doorstep.
"A psychopath with suicidal tendencies, and rude on top of that," — the Man muttered displeasedly.
"A smelly old man with a funny little beard. Shall we keep exchanging compliments?" — Margo continued to snipe, lying down.
"Excellent — we've met and woken up," — the Man clapped his hands, heading toward a tall door. "— I'm waiting for you in ten minutes in the hall."
He lingered on the door handle for a couple seconds longer, casting a last glance at Margo.
"Want some advice? Don't be rude. To anyone — neither beggar nor rich man," — with those instructive words he left the room.
"Thanks for the 'advice,'" — Margo answered into the void, beginning to look around.
A spacious room with curtained windows, no sunlight coming through. Heavy ceilings that seemed to press down on you, feeling the weight of the whole building on your shoulders. The bed, thankfully, was the right length — and her legs felt comfortable, not hanging off the edges.
Something had changed in Margo, but she herself didn't notice it — even though her body had been restored, most likely with magic. Not every healer pays attention to the brain, and working with it is very delicate and complex even for professionals. They hadn't touched her brain — only restored her body and bones. But in her brain, everything had become different. She thinks she's always been this fearless and sarcastic — and all the memories she tried to recall were murky and seemed to be redrawn to fit her new disposition.
"Well then..." — Margo rose from the bed, completely naked, but it didn't embarrass her. "— Let's go talk to the Kidnapper or savior."
And she headed for the door — but stopped, noticing clothes on the armrest of a chair. Dressing in a new outfit — which lately she'd been changing like gloves — Margo left the room into a large living room with a long crescent-shaped sofa, and in the center a table extending from the middle of the room right into the wall, completely blocking the passage. The only way to reach the room was to go all the way around the sofa — which took half a minute.
Margo climbed over the table, cutting the time to two seconds, and entered a new room where the man sat, with guards around the perimeter, hands on their swords. They stared straight ahead like statues, not reacting to Margo.
"Funny little dummies," — she tapped one guard on the shoulder, and he looked at her menacingly.
Margo walked behind the desk and sat not in the chair across from the man, but right on the armrest of the chair he was sitting in.
"So what's this conversation about?" — she asked.
"About—"
"Oh! Margosha and KV-1!" — she admired, noticing the pistol and rifle on the marble table.
Margo quickly jumped up, taking Margosha in her hand, and aimed it at the man.
"I'm listening," — she said calmly without trembling, holding the barrel in her hand with composure.
"My name is Baron Bernardo," — he shifted a little in the chair and started stroking his goatee.
"And? Get to the point," — she waved the pistol, indicating "speed up."
"You probably know who I am, and—"
"No idea. A guy with a funny beard and statues," — she sniped, reaching for a plate of apples and grabbing a rosy one.
"And you, by any chance, aren't immortal?" — the Baron propped his fist under his chin, crossing his legs.
"And you?"
"I'm a Baron. I'm mortal — but my organization, without a head, is still an organization."
"Deep philosophy," — chewing an apple with a smack, she waved Margosha dismissively side to side. "— But the point isn't whether your organization kills me — it's whether you can live to see it."
"Who are you?" — he waved his hand, and the guards left the room in a line, leaving the two alone without extra ears.
"I'm no one," — she tossed the apple core onto the silk sofa and lazily wiped her face with Margo.
"I noticed you... Long ago, back in Magama. And I was..." — the Baron glanced at the pistol, then shifted his gaze to Margo's bored face. "— I was interested in this item called 'Margosha.'"
"It impresses me too. But it's just one," — she smiled.
"One..." — the Baron thought.
"Oops. Thinking in the wrong direction, Baron Baronovich," — she sat on the armrest next to him, wrapping the arm holding Margosha around him so the pistol hung carefully over his shoulder. "— This thing explodes if someone else uses it... Or..." — she tilted her head and looked into his eyes. "— If I die."
"Don't forget you can be kept alive," — he yanked her quickly, seating her in the corner between his leg and the armrest, pinning her hard with his leg. "— But the living can also sit on a chain and bark."
"But these ones... Can show their teeth," — with a metallic clang, Margosha was pressed between the Baron's legs.
"Fine," — the Baron shoved her off the chair and adjusted his clothes. "— We're not getting anywhere this way."
Margo didn't plan to get up and contemplated the ceiling with curiosity, each time breaking the Baron's expectations.
"Here's the deal. An engineer who doesn't stick his nose where it doesn't belong — and five workshops," — she rocked Margosha in the air, studying with curiosity the patterns and metallic look of the pistol that fit perfectly in her hand.
"OW!" — the Baron cried out theatrically, grabbing his leg.
"What is it?" — Margo didn't get up from the floor.
"Your lip fell on my leg," — the Baron said, lowering his leg and reaching for the water jug.
A second later, the entire contents of the jug went over the right armrest — right onto Margo.
"Refresh your mind. Maybe you'll get smarter."
"Thanks for your investment, Baron Baronovich."
—
—
A couple of days later, Margo was in an ordinary workshop — with other workshops nearby that looked identical, but it was in this one that there was a pleasant and cool guy she liked immediately, and she became interested in him.
The workshop had high ceilings with two staircases on either side leading to the second floor, where the office of a certain "No-one No-onovna" was located. So the Baron did have a sense of humor — and very big problems with a certain syndicate "Emerald Scion," which had obtained new, unknown technologies and was now taking all logistics under itself, pushing former allies into the corners of the world map.
"How's the process?" — Margo stood behind the engineer, massaging his shoulders.
"Yeah, it's ******* (great), I'm just in **** (awe!) of this thing, and in complete ***** (triple surprise) that something like this lies before me disassembled like a wh*re on a bed — take it and ****** (act and do) whatever you want!" — Gegorvin shared his emotions, studying Margosha disassembled down to the last bolt.
"That's so wonderful..." — Margo continued. "— But be careful with it — she likes tenderness."
"As said, so ***** (done)," — he nodded, turning to Margo with very familiar facial features.
The dark-skinned, short guy was associated in Margo's mind with KV-1 (Kuribal Vilan the First). But the character and manner of speech were different. Margo was searching for someone else — but hadn't found him yet.
"Eh, get to work. By tomorrow I want the first prototype."
"Yes, sir!" — he saluted in GPSD style.
"Don't screw it up," — she threw over her shoulder, slowly walking up the steps, each step echoing with the metallic clang of the whole workshop.
—
—
International Royal Summit. IRS Island in international waters.
01.08.7450. 07:59:59.
The annual summit of kingdoms on the IRS island had changes today. A round table with seats for each state's leader stood in the center of the room in blue colors, with all the flags of the IRS member states along the walls — but at the moment, staff were removing the flag of the Duchy of Malevych and hanging the flag of the Democracy of Silence, while the nameplate by the Duchy of Malevych's chair was instantly changed to DS.
Protection groups for the leaders entered the room — intelligence agencies from IBR-A to GPSD, and Pex with Alpha Group — meticulously checking their leaders' places and the perimeter.
An hour later, the hall emptied, and leaders entered one by one with their two trusted people. First, the Emperor of Arbakan with Gustav Craig, Chief of the ISBI, limping on one leg (Imperial Security Bureau of the Emperor) — followed by Guya Stumanskaya, the new Chief of IBR-A (Imperial Bureau of Investigation of Arbakan).
Next, the King of Ruma entered with Maya Li, Chief of GPSD (Guard of the Council Chamber and Special Forces), and Ukhin Mansky, Chief of KSR (Royal Intelligence Service).
Then came Monarch Charles of the City-State of Rekhilon. The Duke of Firkun, the Duke of Tsubalin, and the Duke of Yozhhur. And last into the hall came a short girl — almost a teenager — accompanied by Aviana and Paladin.
Everyone settled into their seats, and Lady Tezrian studied the IRS hall and the serious rulers with curiosity and calm.
"The year has been hard..." — the King of Ruma exhaled. "— And I'd like to begin... With receiving the promised support after that incident at the Tournament a couple of months ago." — he cleared his throat, adjusting his collar. "— Every state sent a sheet with pleasant words and promises, but," — he took a stack of papers from Maya Li's hands, "— no one has delivered anything yet. But in this incident..." — he put on glasses and started flipping through the papers, scattering them in different directions so they reached every leader, "— we're all to blame. For not cutting out this tumor called Malevych earlier. Ahem-ahem."
"Not at all," — the Emperor objected, removing his crown and placing it on the table. "— It's hard for us to deliver help to you. If only we had licenses for invisible arrows..."
"Don't start, Iliran. That was never on the table," — the King returned to the point.
"By the way," — the Monarch shifted in his chair. "— It's storm season now, and our whalers physically cannot cross the Ocean of Oceans."
"And what say those who are on the same continent as Ruma?" — he looked at the Lady, the Duke of Firkun, the Duke of Yozhhur, and the Duke of Tsubalin.
"At the moment we... Ahem-ahem... Have internal problems in the state, and we've thrown all our forces at solving them," — the Duke of Firkun answered.
"We have no transport," — the Duke of Yozhhur parried.
"We have no right of passage through the states of Firkun," — the Duke of Tsubalin parried.
All eyes turned to the Lady.
"Huh?" — she raised her head, puzzled. "— Aviana."
"We assembled the aid package long ago, and it will arrive at your kingdom's borders any minute," — Aviana answered coldly. "— The package includes two hundred thousand Gold Euro Coins. Medicine, a Cleanup and Suppression Group, Food, and two Stryker armored personnel carriers for evacuating residents from dangerous territories," — Aviana finished announcing the package, stepping back.
"Wait. But you don't trade your technology," — the Monarch objected.
"Absolutely. The package is for aid, not escalation," — Aviana parried.
"Right now it looks literally like escalation," — the Duke of Firkun intervened.
And the Emperor of Arbakan was enjoying himself — because a week ago he'd received his first F-35C Lightning II, and his people were already learning to use it under DS specialists' guidance. Soon, a hegemon like the Kingdom of Ruma with its monopoly on air technology would be shaken.
"Silence, Dukes, calm down," — the King tapped his palm on the table. "— As we know from the package, disclosure of the Democracy of Silence's military information — even though their technology surpasses ours a hundredfold... Ahem-ahem... KHA... Excuse me. Ours. — This technology cannot be transferred, because it's... — the King raised his head, studying Aviana and Paladin. "— A piece of the Lady's officers' lives. And I'm sure the technology will be withdrawn as quickly as the... Difficulties are resolved."
"We understand everything," — the Duke of Firkun began. "— But not a single group of experts has ever been sent to study their technology."
"And what, you're going to strip us down?" — Aviana raised her voice, silencing all the dukes who were heatedly whispering among themselves.
"Good thing Lelik isn't here," — Paladin leaned toward Aviana's ear. "— Or everyone would be getting a spinning kick right now. Ha-ha."
"Lelik! Lelik," — the Lady cried out, clapping her hands.
"Yes! We'll strip you down if it secures our states!" — the Duke of Tsubalin objected.
"Try it, Duke," — Aviana spread her arms, while Paladin looked down at him.
"Only that would be an encroachment on our state's sovereignty," — Aviana hinted coldly.
"Ha-ha-ha!" — the Emperor laughed, wiping a tear.
"Oh, Archon! What a circus," — the King covered his face. "— No one is stripping anyone. Calm down, dukes."
No one fell silent. The Emperor howled with laughter, the dukes argued about experts and inspecting the DS arsenal, the Monarch petted his orange cat, calmly watching the argument, the Lady demanded Lelik, banging on the table. Only the King sat with his face in his hands, silent. All the attendants supported their leaders with silence or short phrases. The blue hall filled with noise and unintelligible arguments.
"By the way..." — Aviana said coldly through all the noise.
The King raised his head, and the Emperor slowly, still smiling, stopped laughing. The dukes were discussing something, leaning across half the table toward each other.
"Wasn't today's opening topic of the summit something else?" — Aviana looked at each of them, holding her gaze for just a second, and stopping on the King.
"Yes, yes," — he shifted in his chair and perked up. "— As everyone has noticed, a new state leader has appeared at the IRS — the Democracy of Silence..." — he looked at the Lady. "— Some of you know her, some are seeing her for the first time," — he ran his gaze over everyone.
Two dukes continued arguing, practically under the table.
"You're at a summit!" — the King snapped, slamming his palm on the table with all his might.
The dukes jumped, straightening in their chairs, glancing at their attendants.
"Ahem, ahem..." — the King cleared his throat into his fist, receiving documents from his attendant. "— You have the floor, Lady Tezrian..." — he quickly read the title. "— The President of the Country of the Democracy of Silence, Lady Tezrian, speaks."
Silence. Gazes darted over the Lady, awaiting her words.
The Lady received a slip of paper from Aviana and studied the large, colorful letters and drawings with curiosity.
"I'm Lady Tezrian..." — she became shy, hearing her own voice bounce off the ringing silence and return to her. "— Pre... Pri..."
"Pre-si-dent," — Aviana whispered in her ear.
"President!" — the Lady said proudly. "— And I'm Very! Glad to be here at this pl-place with all of you!" — she looked at Aviana, receiving an approving nod. "— And I..."
Everyone not personally acquainted with the Lady sat with mouths open and blinking (essentially just the dukes). The rest listened calmly.
"And I'm glad to be here at this pl—"
"From here," — Aviana pointed with a smile at the line below.
"Oh!" — the Lady blushed. "— And I'd like to offer... Everyone a first gift. Gifts?" — she turned sharply, blinking, looking at Paladin and Aviana.
"And to you too..." — Aviana smiled. "— Our MC-1-FF* is finished."
[*Machine Complex-1 Factory Factory. For those who forgot: this name was invented back in the temporary branch with Seraphim, to be on the same wavelength as local names like: Silent Silence, Ocean Sea, Ocean of Oceans, Mountain Cleft, High Mountain.]
"Cool..." — the Lady melted with joy.
"Go on," — Aviana nodded.
"Oh! Right!" — the Lady quickly ran over everyone with a curious gaze, returning to the slip. "— In every capital there's already par... ParKed... Huff, an exclusive transport called the Vatour S-class... Range on one tank — four hundred kilometers... Is that a lot?" — she tilted her head back and looked upside down at Aviana.
"That's already a violation of state borders!" — the Duke of Tsubalin shouted.
"Heh... Heh... Ha?" — the smile slid off the Emperor's face.
"You misunderstood," — Aviana interrupted coldly. "— Figuratively — to the capital. Territorially, it was placed in accordance with your border services, to whom we handed over the transport."
As soon as the dukes heard this, they calmed their anger but replaced it with interest.
"What is it?"
"How fast does it move?"
"What do they want from us?"
"Why such a gift?
The dukes filled the space with noise, bombarding the Lady with questions — while she, with a frightened face, peered at them from under the table, occasionally peeking out.
"Gentlemen!" — Paladin boomed in his bass. "— Come and see for yourselves, like you've never seen a car before... Uh-uh-uh..." — he connected the threads in his head. "— Well, it's a cool thing, you'll like it, only it guzzles like—"
"I think Paladin wanted to add," — Aviana raised her voice a little, interrupting Paladin, "— that this transport can carry up to four people, as well as the personal belongings of the leaders and their entourage."
Aviana crouched down, matching the seated Lady, and stroked her head, bringing her back into the light from under the table.
"Silence!" — the King slammed the table again, trying to pacify the dukes, who endlessly asked the same questions in circles.
"And what about the no-man's land?" — the Monarch asked.
"Ahem... I've been thinking about this... I'm planning an escheat," — the King said calmly.
And then it began: even the Monarch became displeased with these words — though his holdings were on another continent.
The Emperor didn't like this idea, where one person wins. He wanted access to the continent where both Ruma and the DS are. And if it wasn't Malevych's territories that would give him this opportunity, then who? Because it would be both a staging ground and a shield for the future. The Emperor nudged Guya Stumanskaya with his elbow.
"The Empire of Arbakan does not consider this logical or an equal measure of distribution," — Guya said calmly.
"Divide among all IRS participants," — the Duke of Firkun added from the opposite side of the table.
"Distribution?" — the King raised an eyebrow, looking at the Emperor in surprise, not listening to the dukes.
"Ahem-ahem," — Aviana intervened, stroking the Lady's back. "— At the moment, our troops are on the entire territory of the Duchy of Malevych..."
The dukes' eyes darted.
"We're not against division. But since the demilitarization was carried out by the Democracy of Silence, we claim three cities for ourselves," — Aviana said coldly, gathering glances. "— From the sea all the way to the Silent Silence Wall. Such cities as: Gramer, Sivilia, and Malensia."
—
During the long arguments, the remaining territories and seven cities were divided among the states:
Three cities — to the Kingdom of Ruma, due to the border with them. Now Ruma's border with the DS had expanded, since the three cities the DS chose cut Malevych's territories in half.
Two cities were claimed by the Emperor, located on the opposite side from Ruma and separated from Ruma by the DS's new territories.
One city went to Tsubalin, and now Tsubalin had two cities in its holdings. Firkun wanted to claim it for himself, but was poked in the nose with the fact that he had "internal problems," which he'd announced earlier.
One city went to Yozhhur.
The dukes each got a city — but those had no access to sea/ocean, no infrastructure, and existed as "cities" only on paper. In fact they had no benefit for them, since these two cities were closed off from them by the new territories of Arbakan and the DS — turning them into a cauldron surrounded by two states.
The Lady fell asleep while all the leaders monotonously sat over papers, formalizing the division. When the last paper left with signatures, Aviana decided to play a card.
"Also, a no-drone zone applies over the new territories," — and she looked at the Emperor.
The King expected her to address him — but his face slowly paled, and he shifted his gaze to the Emperor, who'd stopped smiling when Aviana subtly hinted to the whole world about their shared secret.
"And why did you look at the Emperor of Arbakan?" — the King asked, not taking his eyes off the Emperor, who was no longer smiling but simply looking into his eyes with a stone face.
"I was thinking," — Aviana answered briefly.
"And what about..." — the displeased Duke of Firkun began carefully, but didn't show it. "— The question of the syndicate and other criminal organizations."
"I was thinking..." — the King studied the Emperor with interest.
"Ah! Right," — the Emperor delved into the boring topic. "— Guya has some interesting data and..." — he raised his head and glanced at Aviana, showing he could play too. "— Guya, give the green folder."
Guya Stumanskaya produced a thick folder of some five hundred to seven hundred pages. With lots of notes, stamps, and dates on the cover.
"Gentlemen..." — the Emperor smiled, looking at the King. "— And ladies," — he looked at the impassive Aviana. "— As you know, there's a syndicate called 'Emerald Scion.'"
"Uh-huh," — the Duke of Tsubalin snorted.
"And my intelligence uncovered that at the moment, the Emerald Scion is gaining control over new territories, pushing other shadow structures aside," — the Emperor smiled. "— Here's an interesting line... — he lazily ran his finger along the text. "— 'Two Syndicate agents came out of an alley and stopped, drawing unseen artifacts — and a second later a deafening sound rang out, and their opponents fell dead.' After analyzing their bodies, pieces of lead were found in them — five pieces each. Also, according to witnesses, the same artifact was noticed on Tournament participants who came... — he glanced at Aviana, "— from the Democracy of Silence."
"So... That means 'I was thinking'..." — the King continued staring at the Emperor and muttering under his breath. "— Decided to play..." — the King smiled and started coughing hard.
"But I received information," — the King interrupted the Emperor's report, "— that... Supposedly a certain individual from IBR-A — he looked "casually" at Guya Stumanskaya, "— obstructed and destroyed sports ethics at the tournament, up to threats, blackmail, and murder," — he made a long pause. "— And all this to help one individual get through the tournament."
"Oh!" — the Emperor objected. "— I didn't know the King now believes rumors."
"There's more truth in rumors than in reports," — the King parried.
Guya leaned in and whispered something in the Emperor's ear, giving him a fleeting smile.
"It turns out that a certain individual — and we're talking about the same one — crossed half the Kingdom of Ruma using... — the Emperor smiled into the King's face, "— wings. Is that also a rumor, or is it that your air technology can't handle air control?"
"Everyone needs to know everything. Those were planned exercises," — the King quickly regained his composure, finding a good excuse.
"Yeah?" — the Emperor twirled his crown on the table with curiosity, leaning on his arm and looking at the King "lovingly."
Aviana decided to intervene in this argument — because the DS had plans for this "individual" and no desire for other states to get to this person and share with each other what they'd already dug up.
"About the syndicate," — Aviana said, raising her voice a little. "— The Emerald Scion received weapons from us."
"Just a moment!" — the Duke of Tsubalin shouted.
"Interesting..." — the Emperor began to ponder, thinking about the true reasons for this.
"And have you forgotten about international conventions?" — the King calmly hinted, glad for the change of topic.
"Weapons for killers? That looks like a stupid joke and an attempt to control psychos," — the Monarch expressed his opinion.
"Pff. So it's because of you that we have problems in our state?!" — the Duke of Firkun protested.
"We remember the international conventions," — Aviana interrupted everyone. "— But you're only seeing the tip. I'll explain." — she surveyed everyone and continued. "— At the moment there are about seven major syndicates and organizations in the world, and more than thirty minor ones. It's like a hydra — unkillable. But if the syndicate remains alone, then it can be weeded out like weeds in a garden," — she tried to convey her thought in a language they'd understand.
"Do you understand what a scandal this could cause?" — the King protested. "— I can already see the headlines in the yellow press: 'IRS Accepts Weapons Supplier,' 'DS — Child Killer,' 'We're Friends with Enemies!' And a bunch more like that," — the King was very displeased.
"This is all interesting, but—" — the Emperor decided to continue the game, glancing at Aviana.
"We understand everything," — Aviana interrupted. "— But this measure will bring more benefit. And also, within three months, we'll be able to see the result — and you. For free," — Aviana said, looking at the Emperor.
The Emperor smiled, hearing what he wanted. (More benefit within three months, for free. Right now, unnoticed by the others, the Emperor had received a free three-month supply of DS specialists, kerosene, and engineers for his military base and fighter jet.)
"Ahem, did you want to add something, Emperor?" — the King addressed.
"No, I think we should wait. Maybe today I'll be able to see the result," — the Emperor smiled, closing the folder.
"Of course. Today the result will be visible. States can already notice the absence of gangs in their cities," — Aviana added.
And so the Emperor accelerated the process of drafting documents and sending specialists from an unknown date to today.
"But you don't understand," — the Duke of Firkun intervened.
The King and Emperor turned their attention to him.
"Your plan may be flawless and logical on paper. But organizations that lose retreat to our territories. The Dukes' territories," — the Duke of Firkun continued. "— And thirty-some cornered predators can destroy absolutely everything!" — he tried to scare them with that terrible thought.
"We accounted for that too. And since we're in the IRS, our country can allocate troops to protect your cities," — Aviana added calmly. "— In case, of course, your regular army can't handle it," — she subtly hinted.
"Or maybe we should all, dukes together, open the doors and let your whole army in right now?" — the Duke of Tsubalin sniped displeasedly.
"That's not what's being discussed!" — the Duke of Firkun shouted. "— You can't just take, pump up with weapons, sorry, 'gangsters,' and then come with the same weapons and stage street massacres in my cities."
"Then how do you want to solve this?" — Aviana asked.
"We can help," — the Emperor smiled.
"No. Not needed!" — the Duke of Firkun disowned the "help." "— I want the Democracy of Silence to take and confiscate all weapons from the Emerald Scion Syndicate. Even personally run around and collect them. But as long as I see problems on my streets, I'll hold my veto against the DS and against its votes," — he finished displeasedly, leaning back in his chair with crossed arms.
"I'm also against it, and my veto will reject everything," — the Duke of Tsubalin added, and the Duke of Yozhhur supported them.
"Three against — that's serious. Ahem-ahem," — the King began. "— Even though this idea is beautiful on paper, considering three votes against ending this operation, you need to take measures."
[How veto rights work:
One vote against can close a vote and prevent it from being accepted for the entire life of the duke. However, upon a change of government, to avoid eliminating power, the vote will continue for another ten years against all votes, until the residents of that state understand that their ruler is sane and not someone's pawn for self-promotion.
Two votes against mean the closure of the vote and a revision of the voting conditions — redistribution and the appearance of greater benefit for others at the IRS summit.
Three votes against mean the closure of the vote and immediate solutions to the problems that appeared during the creation of this vote, or that could have led/led to it.
Four to seven votes against definitively close the vote on this issue with no possibility of returning to it.]
"Mm..." — Aviana nodded.
"Home already?" — the Lady woke up, stretching.
"No, sweetie..." — Aviana smiled and straightened up. "— This problem will be solved within twenty-four hours. But I'll ask your special services to cooperate with ours. For an effective solution to this issue. And by mid-August we'll return to the same problem — where syndicates rule the world and take your gold and resources."
"Yours? You forgot to add your new territories to the count," — the Monarch parried.
"Our territories are controlled by a service called 'Police' — for you, the City Guard — and the detection and prevention of crimes already exceeds seventy percent across the entire new territory," — Aviana parried back.
"And we also have Lelik," — the Lady boasted proudly with such childish pride and composure. "— And even a car—"
"The Lady is tired," — Aviana interrupted and sat down to hug her. "— We plan to return to the continent. The question of the syndicate will be resolved. Do you have any other questions for voting?"
"Police, huh..." — the Emperor pondered and whispered something first to Guya (IBR-A), then to the chief of security.
"I'd like to put forward a vote on compensation from the DS for their inflicted damage due to uncoordinated actions and influence on the Syndicates," — the Duke of Firkun put forward his demand, while his attendants went to the corner of the hall, starting to draft documents in advance.
"I suffered no damage," — the Emperor shrugged.
"Rekhilon also didn't suffer from these actions," — the Monarch added.
"Huff... Ahem. As we can see, there are already two votes against," — the King stated calmly, letting the Dukes know nothing was in store for them.
The attendants crumpled the papers, threw them in the trash, and returned to the duke.
"I'd also like to remind you. KHA! About winter," — the King said, coughing into his fist.
"Remind about what?" — the Emperor propped his head on his hand, contemplating the King.
"I don't quite understand either," — the Monarch added, watching the King with curiosity.
"Oh! I love winter," — the Lady said contentedly.
"You do?" — the King asked. "— In the Silent Silence, winter is clearly calmer than on the continents," — he assumed. "— Though I don't know such information — could you share how winters go for you?"
"Without storms," — Aviana answered briefly.
"That's good to hear," — the King smiled for a second. "— I'd like to open a general assembly two months before the planned date."
"Sounds like the King wants to get funds and solve his problems," — the Emperor parried.
"And you have nothing but intrigues and conspiracies in your head," — the King reproached.
"Not only — also 'rumors,'" — the Emperor returned the arrow.
"I heard you, but let's decide this on the official day," — Aviana added. "— And if there are no more questions, we're leaving," — Aviana scraped back her chair, and the Lady jumped to her feet, stretching her legs.