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‘Welcome Frederick. It is good to see you.’ said Otto as soon as Frederick had taken his seat.
‘Thank you, My Lord. May I inquire as to your health.’
‘Actually, that was the first thing I wanted to discuss today. My health is not good, and the doctors are not sure how much longer I have in this world. But we will not dwell on that, as we have much to attend to today.’
Otto continued ‘First, Frederick. I am signing the Holy Succession Papers today, with a special clause. As of today we will share responsibilities for the running of the government. For public and religious purposes, I remain as Emperor until my death.’
‘That means, Frederick, that you will set up quarters in the Palace immediately, and you will attend every meeting and discussion that I do.’
‘Understood, My Lord.’
‘You, Simon and I will be going over the economic and administrative review later. But we have two more important matters to attend to. Matters which, given my state, you may need to conclude. Simon?’
‘Yes, My Lord. The first is the Serenity Island Proposal. We hear through international channels that Japan is still stridently opposed. Some nations support Japan’s claim to Skull Island, and a number have come out in support of the Serenity Island proposal. Admiral Barboni has confirmed that our ships are currently not capable of reaching the island. And furthermore, we have never met these Japanese, so we have no way of directly communicating with them.’
Otto chuckled. ‘Communicate is an odd word to use, Simon. Anything I have seen of the Japanese response is simply ranting and threats. But more seriously, we of all people can appreciate their passion regarding the island. They are clearly a small nation; and they need land. They have never met us, so they know little of our people or our proposal for the island. And on reflection, it was a fairly ambitious proposal. It would have required a level of international co-operation I don’t think even you will see in your day.’
‘So, what do you propose, My Lord.’ asked Frederick.
‘To be honest, I am not sure Frederick. It would be good to talk directly with the Japanese, but we have no way of doing so.’
‘Unless one of our neighbors could act as an intermediary, My Lord.’ suggested Simon. ‘Perhaps the Khmer.’
‘Yes, excellent idea, Simon. Suryavarman does seem to know everyone that we don’t. Can you inquire please.’
‘Yes, My Lord’.
‘And now the other matter’ said Otto solemnly, as he gazed around the table. ‘It would seem that our peaceful continent grows restless. You have all no doubt seen the most recent public message from the Metals. This despite the Funglish call for a second Hastings conference. Simon, any updates from foreign affairs?’
‘No, My Lord. No one is at war with anyone else. The Americans are behaving themselves in the Western Lands. So, it is not clear what lies behind the Metal statement. The foreign affairs office has concluded that there are three possibilities. First, that the Celts, maybe in consultation with the Americans are pressuring the Metals in the west. Secondly, this may be diplomatic posturing by the Metals to mask an offensive move by them. And thirdly, there may be a possibility no one has contemplated yet.’
With that, the table erupted into laughter. Otto gently shook his head. Ever since the American fiasco, it seemed that the Foreign Affairs office spent most of its time trying to cover their butts. Otto looked at Frederick ‘We will discuss the Foreign Affairs office later as well. But now I am more concerned that we are ready regardless of which way this may go. Admiral?’
Admiral Barboni was a stout individual, with a kind, peaceful look on his face. However, he was known as an excellent leader, superb sailor, and solid tactician. The navy had prepared well under his guidance.
‘We still have two galleys ferrying troops to the Western Lands, until that matter is finalized, My Lord. The remainder of the fleet is in home waters, and can set sail with a days notice.’
‘Excellent. Thank you Admiral. General. Our defenses?’
General Rickard van Heusten was as tall as the Admiral was stout. Also, he seemed to carry a constant scowl on his face. But, he too was an excellent leader. And perhaps most importantly, he was, unlike many in the military, a good innovator. This was critical given the various technological achievements of the last number of years. Technology that was directly applicable to military uses. He had personally overseen the development and training of the 1st Holy Roman Elephant Regiment. And long bows were scheduled to replace the short bows in use by the numerous archer regiments. As with most things in the military, gold was the limiting factor, but the Palace was doing its best to meet his needs. The recent statement by the Metals could quite possibly expedite the flow of funds.
‘My Lord, the army continues to prepare. We need to upgrade more archers with long bows, or even the new cross bows, and as I have already tabled, this requires funding. And technology to upgrade our axe regiments would be greatly appreciated, My Lord.’
‘Yes, I understand, General. And in the Western Lands, are we returning our troops to the south of the peninsula? And is our settler well protected?’
‘Yes and yes, My Lord. ’
‘Well, we will discuss your requirements with the head of the treasury. We have limited funds, as you are aware, but we will see what we can do. The Minister of the Interior also advises that walls around key cities can be built in very short order. It is something we may want to attend to earlier than later.’
After a lengthy pause, the Emperor continued, ‘But I think we should take these preparations very seriously. We all know our nation’s history and the citizens of Prague even more so.’ After another pause, ‘General. Admiral. Thank you for your time.’
As Barboni and van Heusten bowed to the Emperor and left the room, Frederick was left with the nagging feeling that the Emperor had left something unsaid. Maybe it was just his imagination. Maybe it was the Emperor’s poor health. But the meeting turned to other matters, and Frederick’s attention focused on the business at hand.
‘Thank you, My Lord. May I inquire as to your health.’
‘Actually, that was the first thing I wanted to discuss today. My health is not good, and the doctors are not sure how much longer I have in this world. But we will not dwell on that, as we have much to attend to today.’
Otto continued ‘First, Frederick. I am signing the Holy Succession Papers today, with a special clause. As of today we will share responsibilities for the running of the government. For public and religious purposes, I remain as Emperor until my death.’
‘That means, Frederick, that you will set up quarters in the Palace immediately, and you will attend every meeting and discussion that I do.’
‘Understood, My Lord.’
‘You, Simon and I will be going over the economic and administrative review later. But we have two more important matters to attend to. Matters which, given my state, you may need to conclude. Simon?’
‘Yes, My Lord. The first is the Serenity Island Proposal. We hear through international channels that Japan is still stridently opposed. Some nations support Japan’s claim to Skull Island, and a number have come out in support of the Serenity Island proposal. Admiral Barboni has confirmed that our ships are currently not capable of reaching the island. And furthermore, we have never met these Japanese, so we have no way of directly communicating with them.’
Otto chuckled. ‘Communicate is an odd word to use, Simon. Anything I have seen of the Japanese response is simply ranting and threats. But more seriously, we of all people can appreciate their passion regarding the island. They are clearly a small nation; and they need land. They have never met us, so they know little of our people or our proposal for the island. And on reflection, it was a fairly ambitious proposal. It would have required a level of international co-operation I don’t think even you will see in your day.’
‘So, what do you propose, My Lord.’ asked Frederick.
‘To be honest, I am not sure Frederick. It would be good to talk directly with the Japanese, but we have no way of doing so.’
‘Unless one of our neighbors could act as an intermediary, My Lord.’ suggested Simon. ‘Perhaps the Khmer.’
‘Yes, excellent idea, Simon. Suryavarman does seem to know everyone that we don’t. Can you inquire please.’
‘Yes, My Lord’.
‘And now the other matter’ said Otto solemnly, as he gazed around the table. ‘It would seem that our peaceful continent grows restless. You have all no doubt seen the most recent public message from the Metals. This despite the Funglish call for a second Hastings conference. Simon, any updates from foreign affairs?’
‘No, My Lord. No one is at war with anyone else. The Americans are behaving themselves in the Western Lands. So, it is not clear what lies behind the Metal statement. The foreign affairs office has concluded that there are three possibilities. First, that the Celts, maybe in consultation with the Americans are pressuring the Metals in the west. Secondly, this may be diplomatic posturing by the Metals to mask an offensive move by them. And thirdly, there may be a possibility no one has contemplated yet.’
With that, the table erupted into laughter. Otto gently shook his head. Ever since the American fiasco, it seemed that the Foreign Affairs office spent most of its time trying to cover their butts. Otto looked at Frederick ‘We will discuss the Foreign Affairs office later as well. But now I am more concerned that we are ready regardless of which way this may go. Admiral?’
Admiral Barboni was a stout individual, with a kind, peaceful look on his face. However, he was known as an excellent leader, superb sailor, and solid tactician. The navy had prepared well under his guidance.
‘We still have two galleys ferrying troops to the Western Lands, until that matter is finalized, My Lord. The remainder of the fleet is in home waters, and can set sail with a days notice.’
‘Excellent. Thank you Admiral. General. Our defenses?’
General Rickard van Heusten was as tall as the Admiral was stout. Also, he seemed to carry a constant scowl on his face. But, he too was an excellent leader. And perhaps most importantly, he was, unlike many in the military, a good innovator. This was critical given the various technological achievements of the last number of years. Technology that was directly applicable to military uses. He had personally overseen the development and training of the 1st Holy Roman Elephant Regiment. And long bows were scheduled to replace the short bows in use by the numerous archer regiments. As with most things in the military, gold was the limiting factor, but the Palace was doing its best to meet his needs. The recent statement by the Metals could quite possibly expedite the flow of funds.
‘My Lord, the army continues to prepare. We need to upgrade more archers with long bows, or even the new cross bows, and as I have already tabled, this requires funding. And technology to upgrade our axe regiments would be greatly appreciated, My Lord.’
‘Yes, I understand, General. And in the Western Lands, are we returning our troops to the south of the peninsula? And is our settler well protected?’
‘Yes and yes, My Lord. ’
‘Well, we will discuss your requirements with the head of the treasury. We have limited funds, as you are aware, but we will see what we can do. The Minister of the Interior also advises that walls around key cities can be built in very short order. It is something we may want to attend to earlier than later.’
After a lengthy pause, the Emperor continued, ‘But I think we should take these preparations very seriously. We all know our nation’s history and the citizens of Prague even more so.’ After another pause, ‘General. Admiral. Thank you for your time.’
As Barboni and van Heusten bowed to the Emperor and left the room, Frederick was left with the nagging feeling that the Emperor had left something unsaid. Maybe it was just his imagination. Maybe it was the Emperor’s poor health. But the meeting turned to other matters, and Frederick’s attention focused on the business at hand.
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