Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

"You are welcome Baroness. On the matter of the accidents, let us speak at the end of today's session," Cao Chun said curtly.

Ling Qi nodded, hearing the polite dismissal for what it was. She could sense the Wang functionary hovering just out of their conversation screening range too after all. "Yes, we will. And I believe Lady Cai will be amenable to your suggestion."

"I would be thankful."

She bowed, he lowered his head, and they parted ways. Ling Qi wove back toward the table, stopping briefly to speak with a Luo courtier. They were interested to know her opinion on the matter of sedentary versus nomadic judges, that is magistrates who performed a circuit among settlements rather than staying in one.

Reading between the lines, the Luo were probably interested in distributing the infrastructure on the southern border rather than seeing it all gathered here at the current embassy.

She'd keep that in mind. Maybe a promise to expand later? She didn't think there was enough throughput for more outposts yet.

…Besides, she couldn't say she fully trusted establishing more potential points for failure and conflict before this one was even proven.

Passing out of the conversation, she arrived at Cai Renxiang's side as the other girl was leaving her own conversation, and conveyed the deal.

"A Ministry selected judge from the peaks? Doable," she said thoughtfully. "There are few methods of gaining the Ministries support which will not cost some influence, given their goals…"

"But on the matter of Law, closest to their root expertise, I think it is where that cost is lowest," Ling Qi agreed.

"Yes. You have my approval for this. Do you have a position prepared for the clans?"

"I have thoughts, but Lady Cai is still more familiar."

Her liege frowned, looking past her toward the chatting nobles. Ling Qi's eyes wandered. Meng Dan was conferring with his uncle, who was watching everyone with a severe expression. Wang Lian was standing with her hands behind her back, talking to Inzha. Luo Jie was now speaking with Cao Chun, and Jaromila was talking to Dzintara and another older woman with an intricate headscarf and religious markings on her clothes.

"Legitimacy. That the throne is paying attention provides our endeavor legitimacy. We have our own judge, standing equal, we are allowing this, in good faith. We are a province which demands that much respect."

Ling Qi nodded, even as across the room, Jaromila caught her eye.

"I see that is a working lead. I think the implication that it is better for us to see the thrones agents than not works as well?" Ling Qi asks.

"So long as it remains an implication," Cai Renxiang agreed.

"Agreed," Ling Qi said. "Excuse me, Lady Cai."

Cai Renxiang nodded, and turned to look at Meng Dan who was approaching with his hands clasped. She gave him a small smile and passed him by, heading for Jaromila, by a slightly meandering route.

"Emissary Ling Qi. It is good to see things are proceeding so civilly, is it not?" the blonde woman said as she came near.

"It is, Emissary Jaromila," Ling Qi said. She did not bow this time, remembering herself. Instead she took Jaromila's outstretched arm, clasping it around the wrist for several seconds. Jaromila did the same to her, iron nails were sharp on her skin even through her dress. This was, she had learned a somewhat familiar gesture for the Polar Nation. So it implied a degree of trust and closeness to hold it this long without testing each other's strength.

The older woman standing with them frowned a little, though Dzintara merely pursed her lips. "I hope that everyone is feeling their concerns borne out?"

"I feel decorum could be better kept through a speaking scepter, but things are managing without," Dzintara said.

That was their method for these 'things' to have some badge or idol which conferred permission to speak while informing others to listen. It had been proposed, but got bogged down in arguments over what the etiquette for passing it would be.

"I hope that future summits can refine our methods," Ling Qi said. "For now I think freer debate is serving us well."

"It is. There is too much to discuss and too many disagreements for the single speaker methods to work here," Jaromila said. "I think talks on identification methods for border crossing are going well?"

"They are, though I hope you will forgive Inspector Cao and some of our delegates for their bluntness. Cloud tribe raids and our security are not distant matters to them," Ling Qi said, putting just a little apology into her voice.

"No one has gone beyond the bounds of slightly heated debate, yet," Dzintara said grudgingly. "Nonetheless, we will need guarantees that your 'concerns' do not allow malicious actors."

"I understand, we will find a method which everyone can accept," Ling Qi said positively.

"The young Emissary is very confident," the old woman said. "But do you truly speak with such weight?"

Her accent was thick and her words a little odd and halting.

"Their people aim for ascension more commonly than ours," Jaromila said firmly.

"But the ascended speak for themselves, who do you speak for? What voice do you channel," the old woman asked.

Ling Qi took it in stride. "Right now, I speak for her grace, our Duchess, Master of the Divine Pillar Xiangmen. I hope that is enough. You have not after all, brought Crowfather, or any other here for debate."

"It would be madness," The woman said. "But, you do not wear her mantle, the one you call liege does, yet you are called Emissary. Is it only because your mantle is akin to ours. A sop for this history we once shared?"

"Priestess, you are being rude," Jaromila said, frowning.

Ling Qi raised a hand, forestalling her though. "It's true, our methods are not at all the same. All of the effort to find commonality is an exercise in making everyone as comfortable as possible. I do not think this is necessarily bad. I am not treading the path of any one spirit or god, but rather making my own. This is the way that we do things."

"I thought I understood this, until I came here and witnessed it."

"I agree, but I do not find there methods, completely heterodox, after spending longer on it," Dzintara said. "It is possible to recombine different paths. More than that, Emissary Ling Qi words and intentions are matched."

Ling Qi gave the other woman a surprised, but grateful glance. Dzintara merely regarded her stonily under her woven headscarf.

The older woman nodded, pursing her lips. "She may. But their walking god is down among these mountains. Every seer in ten thousand leagues can feel her, burning their eyes and deafening their ears. How is this to be taken as peaceful intention?"

"It is a threat, but not for you," Ling Qi said. The Duchess was here to oversee the war. "Emissary Jaromila must have told you of the Twelve Stars Titan."

"That creature was certainly some type of demon," Jaromila said. "As unsettling as the elders of this Argent Sect were, they could not compare to that foul crumbling star."

"I have heard this, yes," the priestess.said. "And the portents are bad here. It is true that the Sibiar once allied and mingled with your ancestors…"

It was gratifying to hear that plainly accepted.

"But this whole situation is… difficult, divination is too uncertain here."

But it was of course, only ever a foot in the door. "Divination is a useful tool, but those of us who are still here cannot expect to know everything that is coming. I feel overreliance on future telling is bad."

"It is not to be treated as the whole truth, only an aid," Dzintara said. "Still I understand this discomfort. It is difficult to see peace among all the fires burning here."

"Which is why it is our duty to do so," Jaromila said.

"It is," The priestess said. Eyeing Ling Qi, she seemed to come to a conclusion. "You say all these concerns are in good faith. Very well, so are ours. It is not enough for there to be judges alone. Judges can only hear the evidence brought before them, though a good one can see lies for what they are. Most disputes, I imagine will be about the nomads. There are not yet enough of us in contact."

Ling Qi had to nod her head, that was true.

"Then your soldiers and our soldiers will need to collaborate as they do here. Many eyes to see that there are not lies spread in the ears of judges."

"I'm not sure that's possible along the whole border," Ling Qi said. There are simply too many commands."

"I agree," Dzintara said with a grimace. "Perhaps an agreement for sharing duties on outposts that follow designated routes?"

Ling Qi hid a grimace, glancing toward the rough edges of the construction here. That would be a harder sell too.

"I do think an investigative force attached to the judicial one is worth pursuing. I think that the Hierarchy could spare a Crow or two on retainer…?" Jaromila said leadingly.

"Possible. Perhaps I am overestimating how many claims there will be that 'our' tribes are making trouble," the old priestess said.

"So this force would mostly be for… distant claims, those that occur well away from here?" Ling Qi wondered. "I'm sure there are more hurdles than I am thinking of, but if we are constructing this from the ground up…"

"Outposts through which all legitimate traffic must travel would do more to remove the problem," Dzintara said flatly. "If you are outside approved routes then you have forfeited our protection."

Jaromila gave the younger woman a slightly sour look. "A degree of variation is necessary to survive, migrating in the Wall. Where the valleys and passes might change from decade to decade. "Also, shall the Axemother's temple open their coffers to chain checkpoints across a continent and man each one?"

It was a surprising show of friction, the White Sky didn't usually do that.

Dzintara grimaced at her, flashing sharpened iron fangs. "No, I was not proposing that. Only mutually manned outposts where the routes are likely to cross dangerously close to these northerners and their itchy blade grips. We cannot just grant those who come to us license to continue doing whatever they want."

"And that is not what I am proposing," Jaromila said coolly. "Apologies, Emissary Ling Qi, this is untoward of us. I do think pushing an investigative force will be good for everyone."

"And it is the opinion of the temples that we should minimize the need for it. Though we will not oppose its existence. Correct, priestess?"

"That is accurate, young lady. To answer Emissary Jaromila's question, the hierarchy can both spare a Crow, and open its coffers, to a point," the old woman sniffed.

Ling Qi mulled over what she had heard. The glimpse at the foreigners own internal friction was a useful insight… it seemed they weren't totally united on their approach to the Cloud Tribes either. Was Jaromila using this to raise that issue in her own Confederations regard? Gaining control of the tribes in the mountains would be more important, if this succeeded.

"I believe I can advance adding an investigative arm to the deliberations," Ling Qi said slowly. "At this early juncture, it may be more difficult to convince others about mutually manned checkpoints, rather than separate ones."

"Separate checkpoints will happen by default," Dzintara said bluntly. "But it does not solve the problems of communication and duplicity between them."

"It does not," Ling Qi sighed. Should she…

[ ] Promise to push for an investigative arm to be created attached to the judiciary here. It would be split much like the judges. (No Favor change, +20% on next roll for Polar Theocracy Favorability. Theocracy influence on Embassy Increased)
[ ] Promise to push for an investigative arm to be created attached to the judiciary here. It would be split much like the judges… and you can proactively offer Ministry involvement to match the Crows. (+1 to Ministry of Integrity Favorability, +20% to next roll for Polar Theocracy Favorability. Increased Theocracy and Ministry Influence on the Embassy.)
[ ] Support the idea of mixed manned checkpoints on designated routes through which White Sky aligned tribes will move when their routes demand passing close by. (+1 Polar Theocracy Favorability. -1 to White Plume Favorability. Shift in internal White Sky nomad dynamics)
[ ]Support both. (+1 to Polar Theocracy favorability, -1 White Plume favorability. +20% to Next Polar Theocracy or White Sky Roll. Increased Influence of Theocracy. lesser WS nomad Dynamics Shift.)
[ ] Support both with MoI Involvement. (+1 To Polar Theocracy Favorability, +1 To Ministry of Integrity Favorability. Increased Influence of Theocracy and Ministry, lesser WS nomad Dynamic Shift.)