Sunless Alliance

Lothaire passes by the men clad in black and gold armour, both of them giving him suspicious glares as the Vampire walks into the Emperor's office.

The door closes behind him as he's confronted with Emperor Voorhis and Nilfgaard's bravest commander, and rumours say the strongest warrior... Though, it's only the publics speculation.

Stairrde Strickut steps forwards, he's covered almost entirely with thick black armour from head to toe, the only exception is his left arm, which looks somewhat see-through and pulsing with power... Lothaire felt danger from it, even as an Elder Vampire, which was saying thing.

Voorhis "Ah, greetings. Please, sit." he states, gesturing towards a single lonely chair placed in-front of the huge desk.

Lothaire slowly nods and takes a seat, "As you say Emperor..." he says, taking his place, "I've come to see if you'll accept my offer."

Voorhis shakes his head, "Hold the formalities for a moment." he mutters as he gets up and walks to the wine cabinet, grabbing a bottle and three glasses. "Good drinks in good company makes the occasion, yes?" he says as he pours everyone a drink.

Lothaire sighs and drinks, not wishing to upset the emperor and potentially miss out on an opportunity... "Unfortunately, there isn't much time left... I can only hold them back for so long.."

Stairrde "It matters not, if they invade I will personally send them to hell." he states, clenching his ephemeral hand into a fist.

Lothaire "This is an offer that will only be given to your Empire, and only because I, unlike my peers, am a compassionate man."

...

Voorhis "I have received reports that many regions have been invaded by your allies, some even belonging to the Empire, so forgive me if your words don't seem reliable."

Lothaire "Ah, you speak of Toussaint and Aedirn?" he asks, the Emperor nodding, "Those regions are out my control, the people residing in them are far too powerful for me to influence... The one who sacked Toussaint is the strongest of us, and I believe he did it simply to air his frustrations with recent developments."

Voorhis "Developments?" he asks, curious.

Lothaire "Alas I am not at liberty to discuss such private things... If I did so I'd most likely be executed before I could say a word of protest."

Voorhis sighs, "What makes Nilfgaard so important compared to the other nations you've already destroyed?"

Lothaire crosses his legs and rests against the back of the chair, "You know about the supposed weaknesses of Vampires, do you not?"

Voorhis nods, "Garlic, Sunlight, Running water, Holy objects... I hear their effects vary though." he says with a thoughtful expression.

Lothaire "You are partly right... Those weaknesses only apply to our weaker kin, as well as the more savage variety."

Voorhis frowns, "What does this have to do with my question?"

Lothaire smiles, "Nilfgaard is famous for its sun is it not? Direct sunlight can cause immense pain for weaker vampires, this would make it rather annoying to destroy it. Of course this also applies to Zerrikania."

Voorhis "Hmm, so, you're saying that one of the reasons you destroyed the Northern Kingdoms is because... Of the weather?..." he asks in disbelief.

Lothaire nods, "Partly, that and the fact we don't require the entire continent to do what we want, means that your Empire can be spared... If you agree to our terms."

Voorhis looks at the desk with a troubled expression, "The terms, are they... Negotiable?"

Lothaire grins, "Of course."

Voorhis "Then... The tax is agreeable but, forcing me to send civilians to act as chattel is not. As you know, civil unrest was recently quelled with the death of Rudild Aep Num. If I were to agree to send civilians as chattel then there would no doubt be another. The commoners would not stand for it." he says with a conflicted demeanor.

Lothaire slowly nods, "Hmm, you have magic users at your disposal?" he asks, the Emperor nodding... "Removing the chattel from the terms can be arranged, if you ship human blood to us." he states.

Voorhis "Hmm, that can be arranged, the route is long but magic can stop it from spoiling..."

Lothaire "Then, we're in agreement!" he says.

Stairrde "Wait." says, causing both men to look at him. "I wish to make a request, and possibly add my own term."

...

Voorhis frowns, "Commander, I appreciate your enthusiasm for negotiation, but you are not in a position to ask for anything."

Lothaire raises his hand to stop Voorhis from lambasting his subordinate. "Wait, let's here what he has to say." he says, feeling "Something" pulling him in a certain direction..

Stairrde "The City of Monsters... Has it been destroyed?" he asks, his expression hard.

Lothaire raises a brow, "From what I know, it is still standing... They've apparently put up quite a fight, their King managing to even kill one of us..." he says, still unsure of the validity of the news as someone killing an Elder seems farfetched at best.

Stairrde "If it still stands, then I request to assist you in destroying it... They've plagued Nilfgaard long enough, and I personally wish to see them destroyed." he states absolutely.

Lothaire "I wonder where your hatred of them comes from?" he wonders aloud, not getting an answer from the man... "I think I can agree to your request however, their existence is a thorn for us and any assistance in rooting them out would be appreciated," he says.

Voorhis gives a relieved sigh, truth be told, he'd been bluffing about potentially refusing the terms... The Vampires were simply too strong to fight off. Luckily he'd managed to secure the safety of his people, but he still wasn't sure about attacking Ichor, every battle the Empire had ever fought against them had resulted in a loss... Hopefully now with Stairrde Strickut they'd manage to get rid of their enemy, and potentially create good relations with the new leaders of the continent...