Gallia/Avalon Summit

[iamthey]

Situated in his own private apartments Michael wrote out the invitation which would be delivered to the principality of Gallia. The Council had given him their blessing to push forward with his outreach to South America and if all went well he would return to his Eden in IX with a new ally.

[quote][i]The Gallian head of state and his relevant deputies are cordially invited to a summit and succeeding dinner in Fiji to discuss the furthering of relations and trade.

-Michael Atrevier, Councilor Superior of Avalon[/i]

[/quote]

Having finished the note he handed it to a courier and prepared to again disembark for Suva.

[Elrich von Richt]

Cordelia gi Randgriz decided to task one of her youngest ministers, Alicia Melchiott, with the task of this visit. The summons by the nation of Avalon, situated in many a pacific isle came as a surprise to Her Majesty. Irregardless, opportunities were opportunities. Cordelia herself was currently attending the ball in the country, and thus could not attend personally.

Departing from Lanseal International Airport, Alicia could also tap her fingers and waste the time away until their arrival at destination.

[iamthey]

Though at first mildly put off by the Gallian head of state’s absence to be, Michael quickly concluded the impolitic decision presented a unique opportunity for greater informality. Either Cordelia’s proxy would arrive as an inexperienced executive, making her more pliant to his will, or she would arrive with no negotiative power in which case he could make a nice lunch date out of the meeting- in either case circumventing the ritual of another dinner was a surprise to be welcomed. Reviewing her file on his tablet he mentally confirmed the arrangements he had prepared. Selecting an upscale Mongolian grill located on the thirtieth floor of one of Suva’s many high rise commercial buildings, he had cleared the restaurant of its patrons for the afternoon and brought in his Seraphim to assist Viktor with security.

Passively reminding him, Konrad spoke to Atrevier across their invisible network of thoughts.“My Lord, the Gallian minister and her seraph escort have arrived at the building.”

“I am aware, thank you Konrad. Ensure I have ninety seconds when she arrives at our floor.” Leaving the main dining room he moved towards the establishment's entrance, letting the tips of his manicured fingers drag against the chic wooden tables as he progressed. For the occasion he had again chosen unconventional diplomatic attire, preferring a gray pinstripe three piece, sans the coat, and a purple tie to the traditional formality his aides had urged. Taking his final moment he adjusted the tie and took his place at the threshold. As the minister and her guard came into view, the seraph stiffened and approached at pace with Melchiott. Halting before him the guard saluted, a gesture which Michael acknowledged before dismissing him. Turning his attention to his guest he greeted her archaically taking her hand and raising it to his lips to kiss, “Welcome to Suva Frau Melchiott, I trust your journey here was traversed without incident?” She assented, “Indeed, you must be famished though, please join me for lunch.” He said taking her hand and leading her through the empty restaurant to a secluded table by one of the tall windows that surveyed the metropolis below.

Taking their seats, an attendant appeared to service them. Providing an answer before its implied question could manifest, Michael dismissed the interloper. “Fetch us a bottle of that 31 Burgundy chardonnay I had last time I was here.” The aide bowed slightly and departed. Letting his eyes follow the servant for only a moment, he returned his focus to Alicia. “As a brief interlude to the business at hand, as this meeting concerns at least in part- trade, I thought offering a talisman of our industrial acumen would be an appropriate gesture.” He said summoning one of his aides who approached bearing a compact box fashioned out of light polished oak. Taking the box he passed it across the table to her. Slowly retracting the lid, her eyes came to rest first upon a red velvet cushion and soon thereafter on large ruby which was itself suspended from a necklace appearing to be woven from thousands of tiny polished metallic fibers.

“Petty jewelry, the utilitarian mind may first presume, but do not be fooled, that is actually the culmination of years of Avalonian research. The decorative cable is a carbon-titanium alloy, the same alloy which is used by our military in various state of the art medical applications, and the same alloy which each of their rapiers is fashioned out of.” He elaborated gesturing to the nearest Seraph. “It is exceptionally light, unrivaled in its strength, and like gold relatively inert. Furthermore the intricacy of the weave uniting its many fibers mimics that of some of our more advanced composites which I would say is a comparable or possibly superior feat. Finally the ruby- that ungodly rock, was was actually synthetically assembled by researchers working with our nano assemblers. Of course there is not a technician on the planet who could actually distinguish it from any other natural specimen.” As he finished the attendant returned with the wine. Taking the bottle Michael poured a glass for each of them continuing as he did so. “There are rarer and more expensive vines available, but this particular strain I find truly- phenomenal.”

He passed her the glass, pausing for a moment before sipping from his own. “Now onto the reason we are both here- I will be to the point. It is my vision in expanding Avalonian diplomatic reach, to open American Markets to our goods and secure a few stable partners on the continent. Gallia I feel sufficiently shares with us a common vision of the world and of the continent, and together, it is my opinion that a meaningful synergy awaits us to be tapped. To accomplish this- my program is threefold. First I would like to normalize relations between our two nations, second I would like to secure an agreement of free trade and open waters, and third I desire to militarily align Avalon with Gallia via a defensive arrangement.” He held for only a moment before inquiring, “Is this objective mutual or are you, shall we say, less ambitious than myself?”

Edited January 2, 2012 by iamthey

[Elrich von Richt]

Alicia let out a small chuckle. This man's speech patterns were quite interesting, and analyzing them only made her view him as more interesting by the second. The formalities displayed to her, while trivial and the norm to most, still made her feel more comfortable at the meeting. Although she was a Minister, and her ascension to Edy von Bruhl's secondary post had yet gone unannounced outside Her Majesty's inner circle, she was still a young girl. Her emotions, and her way of acting were fragile and whilst polite, she found many of the things surrounding her job occasionally overwhelming. With time, however, she felt that the experience would open itself up to her and she'd be capable of handling whatever was thrown at her. During the USAN summit, although her figure was hidden by shadows, she handled herself well. Proving herself to Cordelia was something she wished to achieve.

Taking the amulet into her left hand, her eyes sparkled for a moment. Most women her age had a stereotypical affinity with jewelry. Either way, jewelry was a possession to her that generally found 'beautiful', although considered luxurious by many in the Gallian state. His technical specifications towards the material and manufacture of the cable, down to him making note of it's use in other fields of interest was astounding. This man, as far as Alicia could tell, was definitely intriguing.

Despite being their first meeting, he had shown her hospitality of a higher level. While she expected this to be somewhat typical for states that could afford meetings of such grandeur with foreign dignitaries, it still took her by surprise and provided her with quite the shock. She had been given the order by Her Majesty to accumulate what she saw to be in 'Gallia's best interest'. The agreements presented by the man in front of her were definitely within sight of what she viewed as in the best interests of the state. Gallia found itself only shielded by USAN, have to foreign partners with which to call upon should the nation find itself in rather... hairy circumstances. One of Alicia's personal goals was also to find the right people to align with, as well as to build up diplomatic agreements and contact with other nations, South America included, in general.

She took the glass, moved her wrist as to stir the wine around ever so lightly in the glass, and took a sip. It had an interesting flavor to it, and she'd only ever drank something of similar texture and composure once, during the ball held in Randgriz. She never openly came out and associated with anyone, but once again in the shadows, Alicia found herself brooding in light of festivities regardless. However, memories of past events were not what she had come here to accomplish. Clearing her mind, she thought about the words spoken by Atrevier, came up with a sufficient reply, and finally spoke her mind.

[i]"If any seed of doubt lies within your mind that leaves you to believe that I do share similar views, now is the time to toss those seeds into the waste bin that history commonly finds things tossed into. I think on the grand scale of things, Mr. Atrevier, and the very way you've presented my arrival, and the subsequent hospitality you've shown me, says alot about your character. I've been on limited foreign visitations, but this has been wonderful so far. Despite out limited contact, you've openly invited me to country, nay, you've invited a Gallian minister to your country to speak with you personally. Gallia requires commitments, Mr. Atrevier. When I mention commitments, I mean that both of us must work towards assuring the agreement that gets signed today, whatever the wording, stays true until the sun sets on this Earth for the last time. I can at least say this from Her Majesty's perspective: 'A reliable friend and ally shall never abandon another. While they are rare to come across, once you find one, do not let them go.', but that is all I can say from her lips themselves. Now, from what I see? I provide you the answer to your initial question: the objective is far more mutual than you could ever imagine."[/i]

She smiled, and wondered how he would respond to her.

[iamthey]

Mildly taken aback by the articulate quality of the young Minister's words Michael smiled and nodded.

"Though it has been well over a century since an outsider transgressed the threshold of the great metropolis IX, I can confide in you that for the duration of our tenure one institution has remained sacrosanct: that is [i]contract[/i]." He replied wondering to himself whether or not he had initially misjudged the girl. "Everything within the experiment we have conducted on the Avalonian mainland is principled around it, in fact the vast majority of our laws are not promulgated through the Council, but conditional to securing a lease or obtaining employment. There are no prisons or cages for criminals, such things are unnecessary for a society where one's liability is unlimited and accountability is everything. If you violate the law, you likely void your lease or employment contract. So beyond indemnifying your victim through either monetary or labor restitution, the incidental penalty is exile to the outer holdings. For crimes so severe they breach the fundamental contract- the basic law is clear, retribution is offered to the victim with a choice of silver or blood. However I digress, the core of my content is elementary- any agreement we assent to we consider inviolable." He paused snapping at a different aides who approached with a touchscreen tablet.

Accepting the tablet he clarified- swiftly working the screen to locate the appropriate document, "I have taken the liberty to draft an agreement which I hope you will find agreeable."

[quote]
[center]
(insert flags)

[size="5"][b]Suva Defense Accords[/b][/size][/center]

In joint recognition of the shared visions and regional proximity of Avalon and the Principality of Gallia (hence referred to as Gallia), both nations here by contract themselves to the following terms.

[b]Section I:[/b] [u]Non-Agression[/u]

Both signatories recognize the sovereignty of their counter-signatory and pledge strict non-interference in the affairs of the other. Both signatories pledge abstinence from any and all forms of aggression and interference which would be directed at the other.

[b]Section II:[/b] [u]Free Trade & Rights of Passage[/u]

1) Both signatories agrees to a bilateral policy of free trade and economic cooperation. Pursuant to this objective, both agree to abolish all tariffs and trade restrictions levied against their counter-signatory.

2) Both signatories grants general free right of passage to all civilian and military marine vessels and air traffic belonging to their counter-signatory. Special exception may be made for declared exclusion zones which are closed to all forms of alien traffic. Such zones must not obstruct or frustrate access to critical international trade routes and the counter-signatory must be given 47 hours prior notification before such zones apply to their vessels and aircraft.

3) Gallia recognizes the land contained within, the coastline of, and the thirty kilometer strip of ocean surrounding the Avalonian mainland (the Kergulens) as one such exclusion zone.

[b]Section III:[/b] [u]Mutual Defense[/u]

i) An attack on sovereign territory of one signatory, or an attack on any asset belonging to a signatory shall be considered an attack on all.

ii) Retaliation for belligerent acts or status as a belligerent in an ongoing conflict does not activate section III(i).

[b]Section IV:[/b] [u]Optional Assistance[/u]

Both signatories are encouraged to cooperate in all conflicts including those which are not defensive in nature. However, aggressive action on the part of a signatory does not oblige any other signatory to provide assistance in the effort.

[b]Section V:[/b] [u]Withdrawl[/u]

i) Either signatory may opt to withdraw from this pact at any time by notifying the counter-signatory. Upon notification the pact will remain in effect for a period no less than 47 hours.

ii) In the event that a signatory violates sections I, II or III, this pact may be immediately voided by the offended party.

[b]For Avalon:[/b]

[i]Michael Atrevier, Councilor Superior of Avalon[/i]


[b]For the Principality of Avalon:[/b]


[/quote]

"For reasons that should be obvious, we do not permit outlanders- even Diplomats in the halls of Avalon Proper. Our legal system requires a particular regime of accountability which diplomatic custom and tourism is incapable of accommodating. Therefore we choose to conduct all external business here in the outer holdings; I trust your people will respect this tradition of ours."

Edited January 8, 2012 by iamthey

[Elrich von Richt]

Alicia would continue to listen to Atrevier as he spoke quite eloquently, using elaborate speech to establish a point rather than directing right towards the point. Regardless, Atrevier was the kind of man she enjoyed the company of most. Maybe he'd be capable of entertaining her fancy for many months and years to come in a similar manner.

[i]"The only signatures you require on this document are mine and Her Majesty's. Parliament has not yet met, not has the cabinet been completed to this day. Cordelia is being quite picky about how she chooses, which is sensible if you consider that this country isn't as established yet as it could or should be. No matter. With time, all things shall come together."[/i]

After speaking, she would sign her name a little below the section for 'The Principality of Gallia', leaving room for the stamp she possessed with the Queen's signature. She was one of only two Ministers allowed to ever carry this, and it was generally revoked immediately after it's usage, and stored away until it was required again. This was a very handy tool in-case Her Majesty couldn't make it to such formal arrangements herself where a signature might be required in her name. After she finished stamping along with signing her name, she slid the document back towards Atrevier.

[i]"I consider our end of the contract to now be in effect, sir."[/i]

Edited January 10, 2012 by Elrich von Richt

[iamthey]

"Excellent," Michael spoke conveying his satisfaction with the outcome as he accepted the signed treaty. "Now, as I have already signed for Avalon, it only remains is for my Council to assign their assent - so I would suspect international notice inside of a week." His counterpart nodded. "How about lunch then?" He continued giving a cue to the waiter. "And... not that I am really one to nit pick over titles, but I am apparently a quite brilliant mathematician and social theorist- so technically its Doctor, not [i]Mister[/i]." He smirked, "However, you may simply call me Michael."

OOC: We can end here, and if I don't reach you on IRC sooner please PM me your flag and sigs.

Edited January 11, 2012 by iamthey