Leon impatiently tapped a finger on his chairâs armrest as he waited for the outstanding delegates to arrive. It was a fine chair, more than suitable for his high standing, but he didnât pay it any attention as he slowly wore away a depression with his incessant tapping.
He wasnât alone in the grand room he now sat in: his family stood around his chair, his retainers just beyond them, and his closest Tribal allies on his expedition around them, save for a few who stood by with the ark fleet, just in case. They, however, only made up a third of the total people in the room; three additional chairs had been set up in the room facing each other in a circle. To Leonâs right sat the Grand Druid sitting prim and proper in a magnificent golden dress, while to Leonâs left sat the Lord Protector in white robes and a vibrant purple sash. Their adjutants and assistants surrounded them, while the Director, Penelope, and the rest of the small Heavenâs Eye delegation hovered around the periphery.
The room they sat in was in a large country estate that had been owned by the Sunlit Emperor and was as well-appointed as an estate of such august ownership demanded. It had been only a week since the Emperorâs body had been paraded through the streets of Thunderhaven, and it was almost time for it to be brought on a tour of the Empire so that all the citizens of the Empire could lay eyes on and mourn for their Emperorâbut before then, Arcaion had sent Leon an invitation to finally sit down and formalize their peace. This estate was the locale chosen, being not too far from Thunderhaven to necessitate a long journey, yet not so close as to offend any of the cityâs citizens. As close allies of Leonâs Kingdom, naturally, the Lord Protector and the Grand Druid had been invited to sit in and represent their Empires in the proceedings.
Leon was both surprised and unsurprised that the Keeper wouldnât be attending, though heâd quietly hoped the man would make an appearance, if for no other reason than to finally bury the hatchet and let their peoples move on from this ancient conflict. But he wasnât holding his breath for that to happen, and if he walked away with only one peace deal with an Emperor, then heâd consider it a job well done. The Keeper could hardly launch an assault on Kataigida all by his lonesome, after all.
Just as Leonâs impatience was about to get the better of him, he noticed with his magic senses an approaching band of flying mages, numbering perhaps two hundred, and he recognized Arcaion in the lead. It was only a few minutes more before the man himself led the way into the meeting room for his party, though most remained in adjacent chambers.
âApologies, apologies,â Arcaion said as he took a seat in the last remaining chair, his immediate subordinatesâincluding Apolloniosâtaking their positions at his side. âYou can imagine that I donât exactly have much free time, and getting away from trying to keep this Empire stable even for a meeting this important is no easy task.â
âWorry no more about it,â the Lord Protector said with a booming laugh, his pink nebulous eyes quickly darting to Leon and the Grand Druid as if daring them to make a big deal out of a little tardiness. âWhatâs important is that weâre all here!â
Leon gave the Lord Protector a thin-lipped smile. He supposed the man was going to play mediator; he had no problem with that so long as he got what he wantedâand he didnât want much.
âLetâs cut to the chase, then,â Leon said as he locked eyes with Arcaion. âIâm eager to make peace, so letâs do that. Right here and now, let us declare that our respective states cease all hostilities.â
Arcaion blinked in surprise but quickly recovered. âWhile nothing would please me more, there are a few⊠issues that I would like addressed before we make such declarationsâŠâ
Leonâs smile shrank as his eyes narrowed. âSuch asâŠ?â
Arcaionâs pleasant expression became slightly strained, and he averted his eyes from Leonâs for a moment before visibly steeling himself and meeting Leonâs gaze again.
âThis Empire is solid and united,â Arcaion said, his tone indicating the opposite. âI have no doubt that the generals of the Empire will abide by the terms of this treaty, as befits their loyalty to the Empire and its wellbeing. However⊠if some of them were to⊠not keep this Empireâs wellbeing in mind and attack those that I have made peace with⊠I want it known that I disavow them completely. They are traitors to the Sunlit Empire, and can be destroyed without official reprisal from Thunderhaven!â
Leonâs eyebrows rose, and he could sense quite a few others in the room reeling from that announcement. He wasnât quite sure how to take himselfâArcaion could be planning something and preemptively laying groundwork to deflect blame, but Leon didnât think that he was the sort to do that. On the other hand, Leon knew that Arcaion was loyal to the Sunlit Empire, if not to its Emperor, and now that he was in control of the Empire, he might do something unwise.
Even worse, he might feel like he must attack Leonâs Kingdom as revenge for the Sunlit Emperorâs death and the attack on Argos and Thunderhaven.
Leon stared intensely at Arcaion as others in the room filled the air with the sound of whispering. He didnât glean any new insights into Arcaion just from staring him down, so after a moment, decided to just take the statement at face value and make contingencies later. It wasnât like his people werenât expecting Sunlit troops between them and the Argonaut Sea to resist them if given the chance.
âMy Kingdom,â Leon finally responded after Arcaionâs face started to twitch, âwill answer all attacks made upon it in a manner that we deem proportional to the offense.â He left it at that, not wanting to elaborate and carve a response into stone.
âWe also wish it known,â the Grand Druid added, âthat the Sacred Golden Empire recognizes Arcaion as the legitimate head of the Sunlit Empireâs interim government. We wish for our southern neighbors to know peace and stability, and encourage everyone to rally to this new government and follow its directivesâso long as those directives continue on the road to peace.â
âYour support is well-received,â Arcaion said with a respectful head nod.
The Lord Protector quickly made a statement of his support as well, which Arcaion responded to similarly.
âMy other major concern,â Arcaion said, âis the repatriation of all prisoners taken by both sides.â
Leon blinked. He didnât think the Sunlit Empire had taken any prisonersâall those who had fallen into Sunlitâs hands had been executed. On the other hand, heâd taken hundreds of thousands of prisoners, and he certainly didnât want to keep them.
âMy Kingdom will transport all prisoners of war to Argos,â Leon said. âFrom there, I hope that you can take it from there.â
âThat is a judicious proposal,â the Lord Protector said. âSurely no one would have a problem with that?â
Arcaion gave the Lord Protector a hesitant smile. âThat would depend on the status of Argos going forwardâŠâ He turned expectantly back toward Leon, waiting for him to state his terms.
Leon answered with a brutal smile. âArgos is to be completely demilitarized. The citadel torn down, its city walls dismantled, its garrisons returned to their respective Empiresânot more than five percent of the cityâs population may be garrisoned soldiers. You have nothing to fear from my Kingdom, but I would put my peopleâs minds at ease by removing this dagger at their throats.â
Arcaion didnât immediately answer, but the Grand Druid said without hesitation, âDone. The Sacred Golden Empire has no problem pulling out of the jointly-administered city.â Her ruby eyes flitted in Arcaionâs direction before turning back to Leon.
âThe Ilian Empire agrees,â the Lord Protector added. âNo more Ilian defense forces shall be stationed at Argos!â
âWe⊠agree,â Arcaion said, though in truth, he had little choice. Leon wasnât going to leave it to chance, so before he and his people turned back across the Argonaut Sea, they were going to tear down those fortifications themselves. If Arcaionâor any potential successor should Arcaion fail to maintain his positionâtried to have them rebuilt, then Leon would revisit the issue.
âIn that same vein,â Leon continued, âthe cities of the Shield Mountains are to be subject to a similar restriction. We will not demand that their defenses be torn down, but they are to receive no Imperial garrisons at all.â
The responses were a little less immediate this time, but all three of Leonâs counterparts agreed.
âFinally,â Leon said, âthe Sword is to be formally acknowledged as belonging to us.â
âThat wonât be a problem,â the Lord Protector responded, âbut I must insist that the cities of the Pegasi States be free from raiding.â
âAll cities must be free from raiding,â the Grand Druid clarified. âI would prefer it, Leon my boy, if your Kingdom doesnât engage in raiding at all.â
âSo would I,â Leon replied. âAnd Iâll make it so. No one anywhere has anything to fear from the people of my Kingdom, save for our wrath if violently provoked.â
As Leon finished, he looked at Arcaion again, silently asking if he had anything to add.
âThe Sunlit Empireâs last condition for peace,â Arcaion said, âis similar. We would have the complete removal of all of your occupying forces, King Leon. From both our Empire and Argos.â
âDone. We were never planning on sticking around anyway,â Leon answered with a half-smile.
Silence descended upon the room for a long moment before the Lord Protector loudly stated, âThat sounds like weâre all in agreement! Let us finalize this peace, then! And then celebrate!â
âI wonât have much time for celebration, Iâm afraid,â Arcaion said, âbut Iâm more than eager to finally get this peace set in stone.â
Leon gave him the most genuine smile of the day and rose from his seat. Arcaion rose only a moment later, and they met in the center of the room. Leon clasped Arcaionâs wrist and the two shook on their agreed-upon peace.
It was a bit of an understated affair as far as Leon was concernedâa short negotiation period followed by a mere handshake that saw the end of a conflict that had been ongoing for eighty thousand years. Heâd have figured that the actual end to the war wouldâve been a far more dramatic affair with long ceremonies and the exchange of many rituals. But he and his people wanted to get home and he was sure Arcaion had his own problems to deal with in securing his legitimacy and position in the Sunlit Empire. There was no mood to drag this out.
Their negotiations were recorded by the scribes and there would soon be a complete document for all parties involved, but until then, the handshake would do. However, before they parted, Leon gripped Arcaionâs arm a little harder and said, âThereâs one last thing I want. An unofficial favor just for me, you could sayâŠâ
Arcaion froze, his expression almost cracking as Leonâs fingers locked around his wrist. âYes⊠Your Majesty?â
Leon fought the urge to chuckle at the sudden use of his style. âThereâs something in the Sunlit Empire that I want to look for. Something left behind by my Clan that Iâm interested in. I will want to look for it in the coming months or years.â
âYou will⊠not be bothered by me or mine when you decide to begin,â Arcaion said. âSo long, of course, as our peace is maintainedâŠâ
âI have no intention of breaking this peaceâcertainly not while trying to find something in this Empire. In that same vein, Iâd also hope that if you were to⊠âfindâ anything else that belongs to my Clan, you would return them to me.â
Arcaion bitterly grinned and said, âI-I will do my best. Though I do not currently believe that the Sunlit Empire has anything remaining of the Thunderbird Clan.â
âIâm sure something will fall out of the Empireâs pockets at some point,â Leon said in a pleasant tone even as he stared holes into Arcaion. âAnyway, hereâs to peace.â Leon shook Arcaionâs arm one more time before finally releasing the not-quite-Emperor.
And like that, peace had been established between his Kingdom and the Sunlit Empire.
---
Not long after negotiating peace with Arcaion, Leon and his ladies met with the Director and Penelope aboard Silver Spear.
âYou know,â Penelope said as she and her father got themselves comfortable in the meeting room, âwhen Argos was first sacked and we came to its defense, I didnât think this was where weâd be ending up.â
âNeither did I,â Leon admitted. âThere have been some close calls, I couldâve easily never been declared King.â
âIâm happy everything turned out well,â Elise said as she took Leonâs arm and gave him a glowing smile. âMy husband proving his moral fiber by making peace just puts me in a good mood!â
âJust a good mood?â Cassandra asked with a teasing smile. âThe way youâre clinging to him, I expect youâll be tearing each otherâs clothes off the moment our guests leave.â
Penelope gave them an embarrassed laugh while the Director hardly reacted beyond a shallow smile.
âAnyway,â the Director said before they could move down that particular road of discourse, âLeon. In these past few months, Iâve been focusing on bringing the arks of the Thunderbird Clan in my possession into my soul realm.â
All trace of levity in Leonâs demeanor vanished as he turned all of his attention to the Director.
âIâve finally finished,â the Director announced. âIâve managed to squeeze all five arks into my soul realm; theyâre ready for transport to Kataigida.â
Leon burst out laughing, glee pouring out of him in every possible way. âFantastic!â he boomed. âI made peace with the Sunlit Empire today, but Director, Iâm tempted to say that that is the highlight of my day.â He paused and glanced at Elise. âSo far.â
His first wife grinned back at him with unmistakable heat in her emerald eyes.
âAhem,â the Director cleared his throat. âIâm hoping to get these arks dropped off as soon as possible, and then I can return to Occulara. Iâd rather not be gone for long.â
âThatâll be a journey of at least a few weeks,â Leon informed him. âAre you prepared to be gone that long?â
âYes,â the Director swiftly answered.
âIâll be heading back,â Penelope said without too much enthusiasm. âIâll be filling in for a while in my fatherâs absence.â
âDonât sound so excited my dear, youâll give them the wrong impression,â the Director said sarcastically.
âOr maybe the right one,â Penelope responded. âIâm perfectly fine with being one of your Hands, but running the whole Guild isnât something I find enticing.â
The Director gave Leon a look of faux dejection. âWhere have I gone wrong as a father?â
âHah! Where havenât you gone wrong?â Penelope shot back. âYouâre doing fine these days, but letâs not get too carried away, now.â
âAll right, that hurts. Perhaps we ought to begiââ
A knock at the door interrupted the Director. One of Leonâs eyebrows shot up as irritation flooded through him. However, he knew this was seriousâheâd given explicit instructions that they werenât to be interrupted for anything less than spectacularly important news.
So, Leon contained his irritation and rose to answer the door. He wasnât surprised to find Gaius standing there with a subdued but still recognizably nervous look.
âWe have⊠some other guests,â Gaius said. âThey⊠insisted on coming here.â
From behind Gaius stepped two figures, both of whom Leon recognized. His blood froze for a moment as his eyes traced the Keeperâs plain features before the Thunderbirdâs lightning flashed through his veins. He wasnât going to start anything yet, but especially with his family behind him, he wasnât going to take any chances. Thankfully, the other figure was the far more reassuring figure of the tau.
âLeon,â the tau said as he stepped past Gaius. âHave you a few moments to discuss peace?â