The past week has seen some interesting diplomatic developments across the face of Atys, as both the Zorai and the Matis sent embassies to their respective allies, the Fyros and the Zorai.

First to announce this were the Zorai:

“Homins of Zora hearken to my words! I am the Herald, Giao Fo-Chen and I represent the Guild of Dynastic Circle.

Our most wise leaders have debated for a long time now, on how we are to face the revelations that Elias brought us not so long ago that Jena, the Goddess of the Karavan, is to come unto Atys, with the declared goal of battling and obliterating the Kami, to vanquish Ma´Duk, to “liberate” their followers and thus to destroy Atys once and for all.

We came to the conclusion that we should seek out an Ally amongst the people of Atys. Only the war hardened Fyros, witch in the past had proven to be stout fellow travelers on the way of the Kami, came to mind for this special Alliance. An alliance to build a Wall, a Fortress, against the dark Forces of Jena.

It is therefore announced today, that Chan Ji-Cian of the Guild of Cho has been asked to lead a diplomatic mission to visit our brethren the Fyros and to discuss an alliance of the forces of the Kami in the face of the coming struggle. We wish to show Emperor Dexton and his brave Fyros that the Zorai will stand with them as supporters of the Kami whatever the future may hold.

Accordingly, I am asking you to help your leaders in two ways. An honour guard is needed to accompany the ambassador and so I call on all of you with the Rank Expert in melee or magic (Level 200) to volunteer as guards and protectors and to demonstrate the might of the Zorai peoples.

Crafters your assistance is also required! We wish you to make objects of the highest status and quality (Supreme quality level 250) that represent the best of Zorai craftsmanship which can be given to the bravest and best of the Kami forces. They may be donated by both individuals and guilds and the names of the donors will be noted for
posterity. The crafters are of course, welcome to join the delegation and witness the bestowal of their gifts.

Please meet here in two days' time at the same hour to register that you will accompany the party to Fyros and to hand your goods to the Zorai representative. The embassy will leave in four days at a time to be announced.

The Zorai people thank you.”

Not to be outdone, on the same day came this from the Matis:

“Most Loyal subjects of Matis, I am the Royal Herald Libi Freldo, of the Guild of the Royal College.

His Majesty, King Yrkanis announces that Miani Sinia, Leader of the Guild of Karavia will lead a diplomatic embassy to Fairhaven, the capital city of our allies, the Tryker. The announcement made recently in King Yrkanis' name has caused some stirrings of doubt among our friends the freedom loving Trykers. The embassy will be to affirm the unity of the alliance and friendship of our races.

For the embassy, the king wishes that we Matis show our dedication and appreciation of our friends the Tryker, by presenting to them gifts of materials of most excellent quality: materials from our forests harvested and hunted and freely given by us to our allies. These excellent materials will be collected in Yrkanis by Miani Sinia, leader of the Guild of Karavia, three days from now, prior to the departure of the embassy. They, together with the names and the guilds of the generous gift givers will be presented at a ceremony of unity.

The King calls also to the guilds of Matis to honour the embassy by providing their finest and warriors and magicians (level 200+ title). The honour guard will represent the nobility and prestige of the Matis people and should proudly wear the finest arms and armour our forest crafters can fashion. Miani Sinia, leader of the Guild of Karavia, will call for the escort to be ready in three days time prior to the departure to Fairhaven.

May the Guilds and people of Matis make us proud with the blessing of the King and Jena.”

From the Trykers came this reply:

“Oi! Fellow Trykers,

Governor Still Wyler has asked me, Roggan Agdan, to bring you the latest news.

The last official message coming from our neighbors and allies was quite unsettling. Like me, I think a lot of you must have thought the official who made that announcement had drunk a bit too much firewine.
King Yrkanis has announced this was not intended and wants to send a special peace embassy, to strengthen the alliance and bring friendship to the race.

I think we all know our neighbors can be a bit stiff sometimes, but this might be a good moment to let them loosen up a bit. So I have decided the embassy is welcome. To make it a real party, I ask you to be here, wear you best clothes and give them a good welcome.

As a gift for the ambassadors, Still Wyler wants to ask the Tryker guilds to provide gifts for them, to show them we Trykers might be small, but our goods are among the best of this planet. Therefore the best jewelers are asked to make their jewels (quality 150 or higher) as a gift for the embassy. Just like the Trykers, the gift will be small… but as a Tryker, it is priceless…

The embassy will arrive in a few days time, and then let us show these Matisian diplomats what a real welcome’s party is when they arrive.

The relevant gifts having been gathered, the embassies set off at the appointed hours, the Matis leaving first for lakeland Fairhaven. Once there, they met with some unpleasantness due to the antics of Purim, a Tryker anarchist and rabble rouser. Spies from his protest meetings at a low bar in Fairhaven reported his speeches like this:

“Hey ho, me lads and lasses, I been thinking about them there upstart Matis over a few pints O’ ale here. Cor, where be me manners, Barman! A round of yer best ale fer me friends here if ye please. Listen to me a while! I invoke my right of free speech! Those…. Matis! Do they think they can enslave us again? Yarrr, ye all heard what that king Yrkanis and the Lady Lea had to say didn’t ya? HA! They want to enslave us again! There own words make it clear to me…. What their intentions toward us are……… and I think you feel the same way as I do me friends! Just listen to this proclamation of theirs.

Ah Ha! Here’s the part I be talking about. The Matis king himself states that, “For too long a time we have abandoned the future which is ours by right”. “To conquer the common races and to reign over this world”. COMMON RACES!!!!! Yarrrrr, Common Races, how dare they! In Jena’s name…..How Dare they! My friends we are the FREE TRYKERS! Free Citizens of the Lakelands!! Never will we bow down again as we did in the past, all those years ago when the haughty Matis enslaved us!!! They think themselves the rulers of Atys…… HA!! Hey Ho, we should teach them a lesson in diplomacy!! Hi Ho this be makin me thirsty…. Barman! Another round for all of my buckos here, if ye please.

Harrrrr, that hits the spot right Mates?

What say ye all, are ye with me in this, will you see your families, friends and lovers enslaved again under the yoke of brutal Matian rule?? I think not dear friends… I think not. Let us band together and give this coming Matian Embassy a very “WARM” welcome, one they will never forget, we will meet them and let them know…… in no uncertain words just what we be a thinking about their King Yrkanis and his intentions.

What say ye to that my fine friends??

I’ll be makin some announcements wit the local Town News Mongers, keep yer eyes out for it, we will intercept these pasty skinned Matians and give them a piece O our minds….. Harrrr Harrrrrrr!!!

Barman! Another round fer me friends!!”

Due to this, there was some heckling at the official welcome ceremony, but the mercenary guild Samsara, having been hired by persons unknown to keep the peace managed to restore order and the speeches of welcome were given.

First from the Tryker side:

“Honoured guests, embassy of King Yrkanis, and allies of the Tryker race, on behalf of Governor Wyler and my fellow Trykers, I welcome you to the floating city of Fairhaven.

You have traveled a long and dangerous journey, to meet us here in our capital. That means a lot to us, as we know how dangerous the lakelands can be to travel through. To us Trykers, that only shows how much honour you do coming here to Fairhaven.

To give this welcome a little more then just words, I am happy to tell you that our best jewelers have been busy for days, to craft their best wares, as a gift for the embassy. I hope you will wear these proudly, and will think of the small gift of the small homins, and that your memories will be as shiny as the gift is.

Please thank these generous donors

    Please feel welcome in Lands of the Lakes, I am sure my fellow Trykers will be happy to share our lovely beaches with you, and to show you the nicest places of Fairhaven…

    Now, what about a drink?”

    Then the Matis:
   

I am Miani Sinia, as the leader of the Guild of Karavia, the sworn bodyguards of the King. I have been asked to speak on behalf of his majesty King Yrkanis and the Matis people to you, our allies the Tryker.

On behalf of the King I extend thanks for the hospitality of our friends and the warm welcome we have received in your beautiful city. In gratitude to our glorious hosts, the people of Matis have collected many excellent materials of the forests as gifts. These I present to you together with these magnificent forest mektoubs. The following individuals and guilds have contributed:

I come then to the matters that have prompted this occasion. For this I have the words of his majesty King Yrkanis as told to me:

"Most Independent and noble Trykers, masters of the Lakes. It is with regret that the announcement of my own hand has understandably caused misgivings and grave concern of the tryker towards us. Words the threatened the very trust of our alliance. There are no doubts as I have heard many whom are outraged by such words. The words were placed in the original without my knowledge. The damage is obvious, our alliance weakens, and there is distrust among friends. It is now through my trusted aides led by Miani Sinia, that I wish to show you most free and independent of all homins the true honour and respect we Matis show to our friends, allies, and above all faithful of Jena. We are faced with the enslavement and restrictions of the Kami; the Blessed Jena comes to us as a liberator!

We must stand united for the freedom of Atys."

With the blessing of Jena, King Yrkanis”

The Zorai arrived in Pyr the following day, and the ceremonial entrance was stately and unmarked by controversy.

The Fyros started the event:

“The Fyros greetings:

I am Boen Eunix, Emperor Dexton’s herald, and proud member of the guild of the Imperial Headquarters. In the name of Emperor Dexton, I welcome our friends and allies, Zorai of the Witherings.

To our friends, thank you for visiting the imperial dunes, main region of our loved Burning Desert. We, Fyros, are honored of receiving this Zorai embassy, sent by the Great Sage Mabreka himself, and led by Chan, from the Guild of Cho.
Fyros and Zorai have had excellent relationships for long, and our common goal has always been improvement in the Homin condition, the eradication of the Kitin, and the quest of the truth guided by the Kami. Let this day strengthen relationships between our two races.

On behalf of the citizens of Pyr, Thesos and Dyron, it is my privilege to welcome you and to invite you to our homes. Now shall the fraternity of the Emperor Dexton and the Great Sage Mabreka be the light that will guide us during the following days and that will open the eyes of those who doubt.
I hope that you will find here a second home, we will do our best to make your stay as pleasant as possible.
We have gathered here today to discuss a Fyros and Zorai grand alliance, an alliance blessed by our protectors, the Kami, and made stronger by the threat of Jena and the Karavan. Every Fyros and every Zorai is welcome to make his voice heard on these important issues during the debates that will take place.

Finally, I hereby declare that in the honour of our guests, Emperor Dexton has decided to organize a series of great games in which the Zoraï are most welcome to participate and join our champions in the quest for perfection.
The War Games are organized in a warm and friendly community which strives to promote and develop Fyrosian knowledge and ability.
We would like to invite you to our fighting games, where the mightiest warriors and mages can showcase their abilities with the sword and the lance or their master of sorcery.

Truth, honor and Discipline!”

To which the Zorai responded:

“Our honoured Brothers and Sisters of the Fyros nation, we thank you from our hearts for your most cordial welcome to this fair city of Pyr, this fire- jewel concealed in the shifting dunes of the burning desert.

Know, oh fellow worshippers of the omnipotent Kami, that we come to your lands in peace and harmony, seeking to forge in your fires of strength and purpose the bonds which join our two nations in historical alliance.

We are proud of our fighters and magicians as you are of yours and we look forward most keenly to witnessing the Grand Games you have just announced for our edification. These games will have a stronger purpose than the simple one of entertainment, as they will demonstrate to the world the superiority of our combatants and numbers and the skill of our individual champions.

To adorn the winners on both sides, we have bought gifts for the strongest and most skilled, the best our crafters can produced shall go to the winners. Let them carry these with pride in the struggles that we know will cloud the clear desert sun in the times to come, and let them think of their Zorai brethren who crafted these items with love and patience for the greater Kami cause.

We accept your hospitality and your invitation with gratitude, and we anticipate the strengthening of our relationship and our alliance that this meeting can only achieve.”

Finally the Fyros thanked the Zorais for their valuable gifts:

“We thank the Zorai for their fine gifts, true proof that the Ancient Zora craftsmanship did not disappear during the Great Swarm. Fyros of the Burning Desert, admire the precious items our allies brought us:

These most valuable items constitute perfect rewards for the champions”

Thereafter, all retired to prepare for the Great Games, to be held the next day.

Meanwhile, disquieting rumours are adrift in the air of Atys and tidings of unrest and strangeness swirl in the winds of change…..