15 Priority: Peace Talk P.1

--Edge of Paradise restaurant, Utopia Ring--

The restaurant is on the edge of the ringworld, which provides a unique view. On one side is the orange sky of the evening and beautiful landscape, on the other side, one can see millions of stars shining in the dark of space. Directly above them are the sun and the ringworld curve up into the sky. A scene that is straight out of a fantasy world.

The DSA arranges for the group to have dinner at this location because not only it has the best view but also has the best food in the entire ringworld. They have secured the entire rooftop for this.

"Princess, this place is like the home of the gods themselves" Hamilton says while still looking around and marveling at the scenery.

"Even the Imperial Place could not be compared to this heavenly place. No place within the Empire can" Grey says.

"Yes" Pina replies as she lacks any word to describe the feeling she is having.

Being an Imperial Princess, Pina is used to having the best of the best. She has her own place back in the capital with a beautiful garden and view, but even that does not even come close to being able to compare with this place.

"Commander, there's one thing I was meaning to ask" Pina says.

"What is it, your Highness?" Ava replies.

"Although we have been here for a short time, to my observation, all your people are beautiful regardless of their age and status. Even your warriors show no scars or any mark of war. Is there any secret to this?" Pina asks.

"Of all the marvels you've seen and beauty is all you care about?" King Duran says with an amusing tone.

"It's ok, Jimmy would be better at answering this question than me" Ava says then nods at Jimmy.

"There's no easy way to answer this but I'll try. Deoxyribonucleic Acid or DNA is the molecule that carries genetic instructions in all living things. Basically, it decides how we look and our capabilities and it is different for each of us that's why we all look unique. Hundreds of years ago we successfully manipulate our DNA by genetic engineering" Jimmy pause for a while.

"Genes are what made up of DNA and by controlling them we can basically 'code' our DNA to be the way we desired. By perfecting our DNA we have to expand our life expectancy to 600 years, we're also stronger, smarter, and as you can see aesthetically look better" Jimmy continues "Each of our DNA was tailored to fit our job, for example, our DNA is tailored to be warriors. We are stronger, quicker reaction, we have an excellent memory and keen attention to detail. In the case of Commander Ava, however, she is more beautiful and smarter than most of us but she's natural".

"One lucky girl" Ashley comments.

There's a long silence as everyone is trying to understand what Jimmy says.

"I think I understand, by controlling what you can do, your society is so much more efficient and nobody will be left behind because they born unlucky" Lelei breaks the silence.

"Exactly, smart girl" Jimmy says "Not only do we do it for humans, but we also perform DNA engineering on animals and plants to help them survive easier when we bring them to other worlds, or to help with terraforming. We also brought back some extinct species like the killer whale or red gazelle".

"You're basically like the gods" Rory comments.

"But we're not, we're as human…erm…as normal as you people" Rob replies "Our civilization just understands how things work better than you do".

The conversation goes on about various topics, mostly about the UNE society. To spend the night, they stay at the DSA mansion that used to house diplomatic delegations.

--Diplomatic Hall, Presidential Complex, The Pacific, Earth--

President Liam is in a private meeting with the Citadel Council via a secure channel. The holographic figure of the 3 councilors is displayed sitting in front of him. They are the representatives of the council races, the most powerful nations within Citadel Space. Under them are hundreds of Council Associated nations that act like strategic allies but have to follow the council decision regarding galactic matters. When combined, although not as technologically advanced as the UNE, they could rival the UNE military with sheer number.

"We have already told you Mr. President, while we appreciate your concerns, we can't just mobilize troops and implement wartime policies base on myths, hunches, and guesses" the Salarian councilor says.

"It's not a myth, they're real. The Prothean database we uncovered has all the information, they were here millions of years ago and now they're coming back to do what they did the last time. Destroy all advanced civilization" President Liam says.

"For all, we know the Prothean is also a myth and this so-called database is something you human came up with as a diversion to redirect our focus on something else while you go against our back. Unless you have any solid evidence, we will put this matter aside right here" the Salarian councilor replies.

"The Salarian councilor is right, Mr. President. Mobilizing our troops without any evidence of a real threat would cause mass panic and destabilize our nations, however, we will keep our options open but in the meantime, we have more important matters to attend to" the Asari councilor says.

"I believe that concludes our meeting, good day Mr. President" the Turian councilor says as everyone signs off.

"Bunch of paranoid, selfish a**" President Liam mumbles.

--DSA Mansion, Utopia Ring--

The sun is slowly fading into the morning on the section of the ringworld. Different than on a planet, the ringworlds each have a day-night cycle vail close to the star they occupy. These vails absorb the power from the sun's heat while orbiting the sun to create a day and night cycle on the ringworlds. Therefore, create unique phenomena of sun fade-in and sun fade-out that can't be seen on a normal planet. The cycle is in sync with Earth's cycle.

Today is an important day for the Falmartian, especially for Pina. Hamilton is helping her get ready for the day in their room. The Princess shows clear nervousness on her face. As the daughter of the Emperor, she was provided with the best education. However, politics was not one of the lectures because men are deemed to be better at decision-making than women in the Empire. She goes into this meeting without any knowledge or experience, she's going in blind.

"Your Highness, are you ready? Commander Ava and everyone are waiting for us down the hall" Grey knocks on the door.

"We're coming!" Hamilton replies.

"Hamilton, I'm terrified, I don't think I can do this" Pina nervously says.

"There's no turning back now your Highness, you're an Imperial Princess, you can do this. You will be remembered as the savior of the Empire, I believe in you" Hamilton says.

"You're right, I can't fail now" Pina replies.

The two then leave the room and follow Grey down to the hall where everyone is waiting. As she walks down the stair, she can see that Ava is in a different uniform than usual. The commander is wearing a dark blue suit skirt and heels with her hair down instead of tightening up ponytail style like usual, she also has some light makeup. Because of the replicating technology, the suit elegantly fit her body making her attractive while still having that professional look.

"Commander, you are like the reincarnation of Venus herself!" Pina says as she approaches.

"You should've seen her at a ball, woosh…" Rob comments.

"Thank you, your Highness, you are beautiful too" Ava replies with a smile then gives Rob a glare.

"I've met Venus, I have to agree that Ava could be on the equal with the god herself" Rory says.

"Ava the goddess of beauty" Ashley says with a laugh "By the way, why do you call Venus a 'god' instead of 'goddess'?".

"I assume you UNE people use 'goddess' to address female gods? In our world, all gods are called 'god' regardless of the gender they choose to appear in and they can switch as they please or need. Emroy is almost always a man, Hades appears as a woman mostly, Poseidon a man etc" Rory explains.

"Interesting, you have both Roman and ancient Greek gods" Ava says.

"What?" Rory confused.

"In ancient times, people on Earth used to worship the same gods you mentioned. Venus was the goddess of beauty in ancient Rome but Poseidon was the god of the seas in ancient Greek" Ava explains "Emroy is the god of war in your world, it was Mars for Rome and Ares for the Greeks".

"You know a lot about historical mythologies, commander" Ashley says.

"Well, I read" Ava replies "Anyway let continue the conversation on the move, we have a big day ahead".

The group board a D-20 that is waiting on a landing pad outside to start heading to the HSS Destiny. Ava received a message from General Nguyen that the President wanted to see her privately for something important. The meeting is classified and the President will discuss the detail with her himself.

--Earth, Sol System--

Earth is bustling with ships traffic being the only planet that has its own Interstellar Gate in addition to the Sol System Interstellar Gate. Hundreds of fortified space stations orbiting the planet and the traffic of cargo transport between them make it looks like a hexagonal nest warping around Earth.

Like every other system in the UNE, Sol has 1 Guardian Fleet to protect it. However, the fleet in the Sol system is twice as large as every other Guardian Fleets with 2 Guardian flagships and half of the fleet is always in the orbit of Luna.

"Welcome to Earth, the home and birthplace of humanity" Admiral Hackett says as the Destiny exists the Interstellar Gate of Earth.

"So this is your capital" King Duran says.

"The most heavily defended planet in the entire UNE space, yes" Ava replies.

"Are you all born here?" Lucas asks.

"No Lucas, I was born here but the others are not. Although I believe Ash's parents are Earthborn" Ava answers.

"Docking authorized for Installation E207, docking sequence initiate" the Destiny AI announces.

Installation E207 is part of a defensive octahedron with 5 other similar installations. These installations' nickname "Aniketos Fortress" pretty much says it all about them as Aniketos is an Olympian demigod of fortification in Geek mythology. Massive in size and pack powerful firepower, it would take a massive fleet to even have a chance against them.

The group travels down to the hangar bay of the Destiny as it docks and without boarding the station, they get on a D-20 and head straight for Earth. Most of the land is covered with the green of flora save for snowy regions or the Sahara desert. Thanks to the advancement in clean energy and terraforming technology, the Earth is no longer polluted and was turned into a paradise world.

"That's where we're heading?" Lelei asks.

"Yep" Ava replies.

"Let me guess your people built that island too?" Lelei continues.

"Yep" Ava nods.

"I knew it, it's too round to be natural" Lelei comments.

"Commander, why are the others on your team not coming with us?" Pina asks.

"They're not invited so they would not be authorized to board the Presidential Complex" Ava replies.

The Presidential Complex is secured by the Presidential Security Agency, the PSA is excels at providing security and protection as well as counter intelligent and counter espionage. While the SIFs are trained to infiltrate and conduct operations behind the enemy line, the PSA are trained to defend their objectives. A SIF operator would win in a one-on-one fight against a PSA agent but when it comes to providing protection, the PSA is multitude better.

"So the President wants to meet you too. Tell me, what is he like?" Pina curious about the man that controls a nation so powerful.

"I've only met him a few times, but he was a soldier. He's a very good politician, so don't try to fool him" Ava replies.

There are 3 meetings and a dinner scheduled for the President and a representative of the Foreign Relation Committee to meet with the group. They'll first meet with Pina and her knights to discuss the future of the Empire-UNE relation, then King Duran to discuss a formal treaty between the UNE, Elbe Kingdom and Alguna Kindom. The third meeting will be the President and Ava alone and then everyone will have dinner together before they fly to London for the night.

When they land, a few PSA agents escort them to a lounge inside the main building.

"Greeting everyone, I am Sarah Hanson, the President's Secretary. I hope you had a good trip" Sarah greets the group with a bright smile "The President will first meet Princess Pina Co Lada and the knights, please follow me".

As they follow the secretary to the Oval Office, Pina's heart beats harder, her face grows pale and she feels like she could doze off at any moment. Grey walking behind her realizes what is happening, he gives her a pad on the shoulder and nods as the princess turns her head to look at him. It's not long before they reach the door of the Oval Office. Sarah puts her right hand on the scanner and asks for permission to enter. She then opens the door after the President authorizes it.

Unlike the Oval Office in the White House of the USA sector, which was turned into a museum, this one is twice bigger and has a semicircle table facing the President's desk. There's also a set of sofas at the back of the room and the decoration is simple but elegant.

"Welcome to the Presidential Complex, I'm Liam Brown, the President of the UNE. This is Ambassador Noah Jason, he is the representative of the Foreign Relation Committee" President Liam and Noah takes turn to shake hand with each of the knights then he continues "Please take a seat, we have a lot to discuss".

"It's an honor to meet you Mr. President and Ambassador Noah" Pina says as she and the other two hold a fist against their heart and bow. This kind of bow is only used to show respect when one meets royalty or the top-ranking Generals, commonly just bowing without the fist is enough.

After Pina and the knights took their seats at the semicircle table with Noah while Liam sit at his desk, a holographic document appear in front of them. It's the formal treaty that the President submitted and approved by the Foreign Relation Committee.

"This is the treaty we would like to propose to you. Please take your time to read it thoroughly and present your counteroffer when you are ready" Ambassador Noah says.

It takes a while for Pina to finish reading the treaty as she makes sure she does not miss anything important. The terms are very reasonable to her surprise, very generous even. They want their people back, compensation for the damage done on Eden Prime and the Empire has to give recognition of sovereignty to vassal Kingdoms that wish to be independent. In addition, the Empire has to reduce its military to just enough to defend its borders. All-Empire officials are allowed to keep their positions and the UNE will return all POWs. The area around Alnus Hill will become UNE's territory and some other minor terms.

There is one term that Pina is dreading is that the Empire has to turn over Emperor Molt as well as all Senators and Generals responsible for the invasion through the gate. She knows that she is not in any position to negotiate, but if she even mentions this in front of the Senate, her head will roll.

"Grey, Hamilton, what do you think?" Pina talks to her knights.

"These terms are too good Princess, even the most generous General I served when I was in the Imperial Army was not this generous after conquering a land. All except for one term" Grey says.

"Princess, if you bring this back to the Empire they will execute you for treason" Hamilton says, she is shaking from fear.

"Mr. President, Ambassador Noah…" Pina speaks up.

"Uh…Noah is fine, your Highness" Noah says.

"Right ok, Mr. President, Noah, your terms are the most generous offer I have ever seen" Pina pauses to think about what she's going to say next then continues "However, there is one term that I am afraid I might be unable to…follow".

"Ah yes, I know which term you are talking about and we also considered it and comes up with a plan" Noah says as he looks over to Liam.

"Send him in" President Liam speaks to his secretary via a private comms link.

Entering the room is Special Agent Viktor, he greets the President and the Ambassador then bows to Pina and the knights.

"This is Special Agent Viktor Volkov of the GIA, he is one of our best operatives in espionage. Our plan is for him to accompany you back to the Empire as one of your close lieutenants and use his skills in espionage to protect and help you gain political advantages. He will help you rise in political power and once the Empire is yours, you can easily turn the war criminals to us" Noah explains.

"I'm looking forward to working with you, your Highness" Viktor says.

"But you're asking me to betray my own father, you're asking me to send him to his death" Pina shaking.

"Death? No, he will be fairly judged in a justice court and will be given a chance to defend his action. Our highest punishment is life imprisonment, which means he will spend the rest of his life in prison but you will be able to visit him" Noah says.

"Princess, sometimes parents make mistakes, and the children's duty is to correct their mistakes and help them realize that they are wrong. We're not asking you to betray your father or country, we're asking you to help your father right his wrong and to help your country" President Liam says "You said you want your country to make progress like us, there is no progress without sacrifice Princess. That is the burden of a leader, are you up for it?".

"You would help the Empire?" Pina asks.

"Once peace is achieved and everything is stable, then we can have another meeting to discuss a partnership or maybe even an alliance" President Liam smiles.

Pina feels a sense of desperation running through her mind. To save the Empire she has to go against her father. She keeps trying to think of her lost mother, wondering what would she do in this situation but it's all so empty. Taking a deep breath she tries to stay calm.

"He will be my protector and my spy?" Pina asks.

"Yes" President Liam answers.

"Will he answer to me?" Pina continues.

"No, you are his objective, which means he will do anything to keep you safe and help you in political theater. However, he will ultimately report to us and will prioritize our instruction" President Liam explains.

"So if you order him to assassinate me…" Pina says.

"Then he will perform his duty" President Liam continues Pina's sentence.

"Right, so he's your insurance to make sure I don't go against you" Pina concludes.

"That is part of it, yes" President Liam nods.

"Do I have a choice?" Pina asks.

"It's either this or the war continues, millions will die and we will get what we want in the end" President Liam says.

"Then I accept" Pina says as she is unconsciously holding her fist tight.

"Perfect, now to finalize, please put your hand on the pad in front of you and say your title, full name then say you accept this treaty" Ambassador Noah says.

"Princess Pina Co Lada, I accept this treaty" Pina says as she let the pad scans her handprint.

"And that's it, we're done here. My secretary will take you back to the lounge and you can freely discuss with Agent Viktor about this mission" President Liam says.

After everything is done, they say goodbye and the President calls his secretary in to lead the guests out. Once Pina and her knights leave the room, President Liam turns to Noah.

"Well, that was easy" President Liam says.

"The Princess is smart, she has heart but she is naïve. Give her time and a good teacher she's going to be a great leader" Ambassador Noah comment.

"I hope you're right, we need to conclude our business with Spes as soon as possible" President Liam replies.

Being a seasoned politician, while he can't really tell for sure what the President means, he can tell that something is up. From the worried look of the President, this 'thing' must be big and he has a feeling that it won't be good.

"The next meeting is up in 20 minutes, let relax a little" President Liam says as he walks over to the sofas.

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Author's note: I'm sorry it took so long, I just found a new game I really enjoy and I have been playing whenever I'm free. Now that I've finished it, I can write again :D