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Offline Achkaerin

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"The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« on: June 21, 2022, 11:56:52 PM »
While most of Mundus, had at least going off of initial reactions, been busy celebrating the discovery or rather unveiling of Princess Kyoko the mood in Valtheim was without question very different, there was an air of fury about the place, the high ranking intelligence figures, the advisors and even the Emperor himself were all trying to figure out the answer to a question - how had this happened? How had this information got leaked? Nettie Taylor, who herself had only had possession of all the facts for a few hours, stepped into the study of the Marble Palace and found Peter perched on the edge of his desk talking to the head of Achkaerinese Intelligence Sally Barkley
"INIS think it was the Anausa." Nettie said
"So they've followed a different set of instructions but still built the same model." Peter said "Who the hell leaked this?"
"I don't know." Sally said "It was a tight circle."
"It's Charles I know it's Charles." Serenity said coming into the room "Only person with an axe to grind."
"So if he knows how does he know?" Peter asked
"There was one Rokkenjiman apart from Cecelia who knew." Sally said "Akane Fujimoto"
"Cecelia's Lucinda." Peter said "I remember her, she had a lot of intelligence responsibilities in those days."
"Charles was Cecelia's inside man, Iso's to Shillings Akane was the liaison." Serenity said, Peter sighed and looked across at Nettie
"You'd better get Evanthe, Kyoko, Emerson and the rest of the circle on a plane up here." the Emperor said "The time has come the fox said to talk of many things, of skies and seas - and the oaths we took - of Emperor's and Queens, of the promises made and the secrets long kept."


In Pyrena the Viceregent Emerson Ravenswood walked into Evanthe's study and put a sealed letter on the desk "Much I wish I could say that's the booking for a weekend away somewhere it isn't." he said "We've been summoned to Valtheim, you, me, Kyoko, Cecelia, Yuriko and Cole junior." he smiled at Evanthe's expression the last time an Achkaerinese Monarch had 'summoned' the Rokkenjiman one had been during the 'great schism' "That's not in Peter's hand it's in Cecelia's, it advises you and the others to go. It's what's called a break glass in case of emergency letter. We can be in the air within two hours."

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #1 on: June 23, 2022, 01:17:30 AM »
"The Imperial Ryūsei and the Concorde can be airborne much sooner, though we'll be taking the Imperial Concorde in addition to a cover story as to why it is flying to Valtheim," Evanthe said with a grin. "I do believe it is best to address what cannot be approached via video links and it would give me a chance to check up on the Crown Princess in person. I've had a brief that while our reveal of Princess Kyōko has given us space in front of potential trouble makers we may have inadvertently given Groves a prize," Evanthe paused for a moment. "Princess Kyōko is the sister of the Saisei Empress, a descendant of Islyna, and she shall be accorded all the rights and privileges of her birth," I realize what INIS was doing however there is now a legitimate argument that Princess Kyōko, who shall ultimately serve as Matriarch of the Anselmo Family, what with Cecelia still bearing the scars of her confinement and the Saisei Empress facing her own illness. Regardless of what we do these may yet prove to be turbulent times. With the Enthronement before us it couldn't have been timed more perfectly. Anyway, let us depart," she continued and, relatively shortly, they would be joining their counterparts in Achkaerin.

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #2 on: June 24, 2022, 12:31:26 AM »
There was no pomp and fanfare, no this was as low key as possible, no sooner had the Rokkenjiman's landed than they were in cars and driven away. Clearly the presence of the vast majority of Rokkenjiman royalty on Achkaerinese soil was hard to miss, so with the Mundus Games coming up several Rokkenjiman teams had been invited up to an invitational event in preparation for the Games, the visit had been hastily advertised as the Rokkenjiman's showing support for their athletes as such they were joined by Achkaerinese counterparts in the stands before a few hours later heading to the Marble Palace, they were shown to the lounge. It was just the royals either waiting were a small number of others including Xiao Mei, who'd flown back from Lijiang for this, upon seeing Kyoko Mei hugged her.
"As you can see there are a few things that need explaining." Peter said "In all honesty I never thought this would happen, in fact the closest we came to having this conversation was when Beatrice was almost assassinated, but that in itself perhaps vindicates Cecelia's desire at the start of this, ensuring that the line was unbroken. This is a rather brutal story for all of you in one way or another but I want to make this clear the decision Cecelia made is one that made a great deal of sense at the time, and the decision that I made to enact it comes from the compelling way Cecelia put it. I can't guarantee you'll like what you hear."

Peter took a breath "As you all know following the First Patriotic War the Anselmo family ended up living in exile in Gowu. In 1985 Cecelia gave birth to Beatrice, at that point the bloodline was secured and she began planning her attempt to take back Rokkenjima, a few years later in the mid nineties Cecelia became pregnant for a second time, I was newly appointed as the defence liaison in Gowu at the time, Cecelia decided that she wanted to hide this second child as an insurance policy, a way of preserving the Anselmo line, in case anything happened to Beatrice's branch of the family. Mrs Barclay?"

"An operation of this type requires a lot of planning." Sally said "Step one was constructing the cover story, taking into consideration various factors we chose the Xiao family as the foster family, the fathers side of the family from Lijiang, the mothers side the Marino's from Rokkenjima so the child would be able to retain Rokkenjiman citizenship and then of course there's the step sister." she pointed at Mei "So while Cecelia was pregnant in Gowu, Isabella Xiao was 'pregnant' in Freshwater, a required step in explaining where Princess Kyoko or rather Lucretia came from. On the day you were born Princess, you weren't in Gowu long after..." she glanced at Peter

"Iona delivered you, you were transported to Freshwater. A story about Cecelia having miscarriage was put out and up in Freshwater the Xiao's were introducing you as their daughter. The rest you know you made your way to Rishiri." Peter said "We are concerned about the leak because this was a tight circle but that's what we'll come onto shortly."

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #3 on: June 25, 2022, 06:04:31 AM »
“A manufactured life and existence, yet all the experiences were so very real. I do not yet know how to resolve these conflicts, but the revelation that my life was some sort of an insurance policy, a box with which one may break glass in case of emergency, not one of you can take the sting from that. Who I am now, with my education, I can see the logic behind these decisions, though none of the pain is erased due to having that knowledge. I have the life I lived, the life that passed me by, and the joining of the two. Emperor Peter, I require a room in which I may be alone, to resolve these thoughts and figure something out, so please direct me there now.”

“I had no other choice,” Cecelia said, to which Kyōko glared. “Somewhere in your perfect plan Beatrice and I ended up crossing paths, mother is that not a glaring failure in your design? You all allowed her and I to become best friends and no one thought that this was perhaps in some manner perverse? I need to be away from you, at least for now, so I can gather what thoughts I have left. Xiao, it is nothing against you, but I need to collect my thoughts. At least we have happy memories to share between us, and we shall focus on those.”

Once Kyōko had been removed Evanthe sighed, “This is one right mess, is it not? But it does raise the question as to why INIS was capable of picking up on this at this stage, and just before the Enthronement of the Crown Princess. Someone wishes to cause trouble and they’ve gone a long way to doing so. We must ask ourselves who would wish to do so, why they would wish to do so, and what do they seek to gain.

“Who stands the most to gain from the chaos which would result in this becoming public?” Evanthe asked, returning her gaze upon Emperor Peter. While she was emotionally conflicted, she recognized she had to remain composed.

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

Offline Achkaerin

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #4 on: July 01, 2022, 08:15:47 PM »
"The big mistake people make is in assuming big moves require a great number of pieces." Serenity said "The truth is the more pieces on the board the more likely a stalemate or failure is, the fewer pieces, the less there is stop checkmate. There are three pieces this time." she placed a Queen, a King and a Pawn on one of her dad's many chessboards, pointing first to the King. "The clear person with an axe to grind is Ofdensen, he's got the motive, does he have means? Only if he knew about Kyoko because he can't tell what he doesn't know." now she pointed to the Queen "Back in the nineties he was Cecelia's inside man in the Federal Republic Government his handler was Akane Fujimoto, who to put it simply is to Cecelia who Lucinda is Beatrice and who Gemma is to Asuna. Akane knew about Kyoko, as one might expect given her position, and we think she may have mentioned Kyoko to Charles back then. It's also worth noting two further things, Akane was never reported dead in ninety seven, as far as we know she's MIA presumed dead but the thing is..."

"The thing is." Peter said looking at Cecelia "You told Charles where you were landing, he used that to set the trap but you still needed someone to lead you into it, someone like Akane, we think she knowingly led you into that trap."

"We wouldn't think it unless present circumstances could explain it." Serenity said "So opportunity - Charles is safely and securely locked up in Coral Reef he doesn't have the capability to call up the INIS without sounding a lot of alarm bells. Akane is officially MIA, if she popped up there'd be too many questions and she's way too a valuable a piece to throw away on something as menial as a mail drop. However the INIS is accountable to the machine of democracy, it converses with committee members, it's not difficult to see a path for the information to get to them, from the right Representative or the right Councillor..." she paused for a moment tapping the pawn "The mistake we all made was we assumed Charles to be an opportunist who tried to leverage the circumstances of the Andean Genocide for personal gain, but considering his desire and motivation he's a planner not a seat of the pants type of guy, what if he's been playing the long game all this time?"

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #5 on: July 02, 2022, 02:18:44 AM »
As Cecelia remained silence Evanthe rolled her eyes as the word "Councillor" was uttered. "Randolph Groves," she said without elaborating further for a moment. ""He's already argued that my reign is unconstitutional and illegal and, lo and behold, Kyōko is revealed. If anything we may be thankful that INIS didn't allow for control of the narrative to fall into their hands, however, I would be willing to bet that Groves is the pawn. Ever since I rebuffed his advances he's been a thorn in my side, though acting to destabilize the Imperial Government, well, previously I wouldn't have suspected him of being that petty. Unless there is someone else you were suspecting, I would recommend we look into Mr. Groves and where he was in '97."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #6 on: July 06, 2022, 07:38:30 PM »
"We're already doing that." Sally said "Remember though assuming there is a plot afoot it's one of Charles design and I don't think we've seen anything yet, there may be more players, more secrets, an endgame we haven't the first clue about yet, we'll figure it out but it'll take a bit of time. Meanwhile Kyoko represents an unknown quantity, we don't know her role, is she a weapon, a target, what's her part in this? However she's better in your house than outside it, easier to monitor, easier to protect, easier to counter."

"So the question is what we do now?" Emerson said "I've got a couple of ideas."

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #7 on: July 07, 2022, 11:33:27 AM »
"And I would love to hear them," Evanthe replied, "but from this moment forward we operate under Citadel provisions. The Ardians couldn't get the job done against the Anselmo line, the Republicans failed likewise, some rat rotting in a jail cell will not succeed where they failed. We move forward, with due care and attention, and with the full strength of the First Empire protecting our legitimate government. It is fortunate that we have mock-ups of the Diet's Chambers aboard the Ashinxao, because that shall be their home for the foreseeable future, whilst the People go on about their business as if nothing out of the ordinary is occurring. Military command remains with the Empress so," Evanthe paused, "they understand what Citadel provisions are so nothing which doesn't come directly from my mouth over authorized ICON signals is done by them."

"With that being said," Evanthe turned to Emerson, "what ideas do you have?"

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #8 on: July 09, 2022, 12:37:51 AM »
"There are two issues." Emerson said "First we have the political, she's a new Anselmo, she's by virtue of being Beatrice's sister higher up the line of succession than you but Beatrice chose you that carries weight. That said we don't know her role, we need to control the situation, if she's going to be out there on official duties, talking policy and all that then she does so as a part of this government and communicating our policy. Appoint her Imperial Councillor for Foreign Affairs, that gives her advisory role in the government, she answers to me, she answers to you, we can watch her. Chances are if she is playing a part in this her role involves being close to decision making, we control the narrative." he paused "Now that would mean Yuriko will need a new home..."

"We've got that covered." Serenity said "We have a bi-election coming up, one of the candidates is currently our Royal Liaison Officer a position they have to resign from to run. That creates a vacancy we'd offer to Yuriko, liaising with government departments, sitting in on cabinet meetings, advising us on things. Sounds like your kind of thing,"

"Issue number two." Kayleigh Pryde said looking at Evanthe "Is the safety one. My job is protecting your family, so while I don't want to tip our hand I will be tightening security, until we have an idea of what we're dealing with it's official duties only, no surprises, no drop ins, if it isn't in the diary it's not happening. I will be putting an agent on Kyoko as well, that won't be unexpected we're known to provide your security. I don't know the nature of the threat if any but I can at least narrow the options down. Keep you safe while intelligence plays catch up."

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #9 on: July 09, 2022, 04:45:55 AM »
"We need not necessarily displace Yuriko," Evanthe replied, "before, even in the Saisei days we have had an Imperial Councillor for Foreign Affairs and an Imperial Liaison for Foreign Affairs. The later is a position appointed by the Empress for individuals trusted to speak with her authority on the matters in the purview granted to them. I do not believe Princess Kyōko will be someone to cause disruptions herself, even in this short time the bonds she is forging with Crown Princess Asuna have been apparent to everyone in Pyrena Castle, thus I believe that appointing her Imperial Liaison for Foreign Affairs would be sufficient to our goals. She will naturally consult with you on such matters as Vicegerent, but she will have the authority of the Crown backing her as a person empowered by the Empress of Rokkenjima."

"On the second matter we will proceed as advised in addition to Citadel provisions. This multi-tiered response will most likely give us the best well-rounded protection," Evanthe continued. "I have word from Imperial High Command that members of the Diet are being boarded upon the Ashinxao as we speak. The word being given to the RBC for their departure is an annual drill which will proceed for two weeks, to ensure that our capabilities in operating in any and all conditions are as they should be. RBC has assured me that the story will be released outside of key time frames, most likely this coming Friday news dump. We may thus proceed from that point."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #10 on: July 12, 2022, 10:07:47 PM »
Sally took a breath before looking at Evanthe "Your Majesty I say this with the greatest of respect but the Viceregent's play is the right play." she said "We don't know the full extent of this conspiracy that appears to be taking shape, but if Kyoko is part of it then the chances are it involves her being in the decision making position not in the advisory one. Put her in the position where she helps shape policy and we may draw out more actors. Also consider that whatever this is has been in the works for a while so having both of Rokkenjima's most notable Premier's from the Beatrice era in the same place to help piece this together is to our advantage, we just need the cover to do it, and we all know Kyoko may lack Yuriko's experience but that doesn't make her any less knowledgeable. Better to do this right than with one hand tied behind our back, use the proper tools rather than the wrong ones."

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #11 on: July 15, 2022, 07:59:38 AM »
"We shall proceed as advised then," she said as she cast a look to Emerson. "As the Imperial Naval Intelligence Service was largely insulated from the influence of Charles we must then cast our gaze to areas of the Imperial Government where he would have had the influence to appoint his people, who would view their service to him as a higher calling than their service to the Empress. To my knowledge, excluding institutions we've already rooted out, the Imperial Household Ministry was his previous remit. There remains a chance that in our efforts to clean house there may be some lingering influences there. I believe that is where we should start."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #12 on: July 17, 2022, 04:31:11 PM »
"Knowing Charles he will have planned this for a while." Sally said "He may have made moves that you're not aware of. So question everything, you are in the position to discover those moves if they exist. Meanwhile on our end we will try to figure out what Charles is up to and what his endgame is."

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #13 on: July 21, 2022, 03:18:24 AM »
"Allow me to speak with him," Evanthe said. "If there's one thing I know of the man is he's always proud of his work, and I know a few buttons I can push if need be. Perhaps, through speaking with him, we can yield answers more quickly rather than trying to look at this from the outside, so to say."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #14 on: July 29, 2022, 11:30:15 PM »
"I have no doubt that some point someone will have to talk to him." Sally said "But if we do that then we run the risk of tipping our hand and Charles then either accelerating or changing what he intends so it's a trade off. Whether we rattle his cage or not we need outside information. As I said you have that ability when you return to Pyrena, look into it, question anything that doesn't quite add up, question anything that might conceivably be or have been in Charles's interests as well. Figure out the shape of the game."

"I have my suspicions on some of that." Emerson said

"So do I." Serenity said

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #15 on: July 31, 2022, 06:15:13 AM »
"His communications are monitored and managed," Evanthe chuckled, "he has no links to the outside world that aren't controlled by the walls and bars which surround him, as are those links in the prisoners he associates with, hence the risk in showing him our knowledge is eliminated. In this case it is best that we go to the source, let him take pride in what he's done and reveal the totality because that's all he has left at this point. His plans will not succeed, but if he can explain why his vision is perfect to another ear, it'll be good enough for him. I know this bastard, give me five to ten minutes in a room alone with him and I'll have all the answers I need to navigate these times."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #16 on: August 03, 2022, 03:18:52 AM »
Evanthe came to accept that a meeting with Charles wouldn't be the best course at this time and instead turned her focus to Tamaki Kado, Director of the Imperial Naval Intelligence Service, via a videochat. His agents continued their work and, apparently, he had information to relay.

"Thank you," he said as Evanthe transferred the call to a larger screen. "Our investigation to date has taken us down some unexpected roads and, at present, is focusing upon CFO's time as head of the Imperial Household Ministry. It was perhaps in this period of time he was at his strongest, with vast influence over the Anselmo fortune as well as managing the day-to-day operations of Pyrena Castle and even having a hand in the health care decisions of the Imperial Family. This leads us to my first area of concern," he paused, "as it is during this time we begin to see a decline in Empress Saisei, increasingly erratic actions and decisions being taken and, whether one liked Empress Saisei or not, prior to this period of time no one could call her sloppy or erratic. It was in fact that stability and predictability upon which the Imperial Diplomatic Corps built their reputation and, naturally, with  the state of Empress Saisei's condition, we can see the trajectory even to the modern day."

"We've examined financial records and found pretty much what we expected to see, it's the one area he managed largely well as building the Anselmo fortune which, given his position, would directly benefit the accomplishment of his goals. Medical records are where things become more problematic. Large swaths of Empress Saisei's records were either altered or destroyed. Aside from pregnancy issues the Empress was in good health, both mentally and physically, yet medical incidents seemingly increased as CFO held a position over the healthcare of the Imperial Family. We believe this ties into recent events as well, as while the Empress exhibits some symptoms there are other areas where we have not seen the expected trajectory to track. It is thus my recommendation that our counterparts in Achkaerin, including the medical team of Empress Saisei, conduct in-depth tests, scrutinize what medical records we could decipher, and pay great attention to prescribed medications, especially any which were prescribed to her during the period of time I've mentioned today. While I cannot be confident that this is a smoking gun, if CFO wished to introduce a period of uncertainty within the Imperial Government Empress Saisei would have been his first and primary target: gradually removing her from the picture and casting her as diminished would certainly be an avenue I would put money on CFO pursuing."

"We'll continue our investigations into other areas of concern, however, I feel this should be a priority on your side for now. We'll collaborate as necessary."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #17 on: August 15, 2022, 09:40:35 PM »
"What are your suspicions?" Peter asked looking at Serenity and Emerson

"Charles has only ever been after one thing power." Serenity said "Cecelia wasn't going to give him status, so he betrays her. Beatrice gave him status and she proved an easy puppet for him but being the puppeteer that's not enough it only takes one moment of trust and the strings are cut. If you want power in Rokkenjima you have to get past the Anselmo's but they're so beloved of the public that conventional measures don't do it, you'd need to discredit them."

"If he's been planning this a while then he'll have left fingerprints." Emerson said "We'll head back to Pyrena and analyse oddities."

"And hopefully that leads us to what he intends." Sally said


1 Week Later

Emerson had spent a week having various documents from the last several years brought out of storage and being poured over, it wasn't lost on him that there had been many odd decisions in that time frame, he also agreed with the assessment that if you were going to try and seize power from the sort of position Charles was in then you had to do it from within, that was why Kyoko was setting off alarm bells, but also you needed to isolate the Empress, remove the scapegoats so to speak. Emerson went through the box of folders on the table in front of him and found what he was looking for, reading through the first page of it his eyes widened "Bold of you Charles." he said "Amy tell Lucius I need to see him"

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #18 on: August 25, 2022, 09:30:36 AM »
Lucius was easy enough to summon, "What can I do for you?" he simply asked.

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #19 on: August 30, 2022, 02:12:17 AM »
"Take a look at this" Emerson said handing the attorney the folder "That's a copy of the petition that triggered the referendum on the Premier, look at the names on it." he then   handed Lucius another folder "Same list but with an overwhelming majority of names highlighted, all of them don't exist, the big giveaway is the top few names are rogue Anausa all noted as deceased in the Kirby report and they were dead before the petition. But all those names have registered address's, passports, ID, drivers licenses, pay taxes, they even have jobs, fill in the census and keep up to date on postal votes." he paused "A group of floating voters this size being run by someone at the heart of Pyrena, Charles could have rigged every election since 2004. But the more immediate issue is that this makes the petition invalid, and if the petition is invalid then the referendum is invalid and that means sixty five percent of Rokkenjima's electorate voted to abolish the Premier based on fraudulent foundations."


In Valtheim Peter and Serenity were sitting down with Sally, Nettie, the Attorney General Robert Westbrooke and Doctor Joe Naylor from the Royal household medical team. Joe had a piece of paper in his hand.

"Following concerns expressed by the INIS we've taken a look at Beatrice Anselmo's medical records, lack of expected symptoms plus other expected conditions medical experts are of the opinion that she does not have Parkinsons." Joe said "Having looked at her records it's believed medication was used to give the impression of Parkinsons."
"How do you get her to take medication she doesn't need?" Robert asked
"Best guess Asuna's kidnapping." Serenity said as Sally nodded "Plenty of medication she'd take during that, just slip it in."
"Implications?" Peter asked
"Legally it invalidates the diminished responsibility defence." Robert said "Prosecution can appeal and should appeal, Beatrice ends up in an actual prison not where she is."
"Politically it's another lie, it's not going to play well." Nettie said "So many lies have already been told, public trust is not going to stand it."
"And that's without igniting the dynamite." Serenity said
"Meaning?" Peter asked
"Assume Beatrice was drugged when she gave that Imperial Address, she'd have to be for the records to add up, that makes the denial of talking to Barren a lie. Which means we have a Rokkenjiman Empress conversing with Mundus's most wanted terrorist, what's that going to do for relations with East Moreland?" Serenity said
"Nothing good." Peter said
"She told me a half truth." Serenity said "She told me what she did, the one thing Charles couldn't risk... so she's drugged again."
"Which means there was an insider." Sally said she looked at Peter "As I believe the INIS to be compromised I'd like authority to send investigative assets to Rokkenjima."
"Do it." Peter said
"I'm going to Redwall." Serenity said "I want to talk to her."

Offline Beatrice

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #20 on: August 30, 2022, 07:25:22 AM »

"That the implications of such findings are vast would be an understatement," he sighed as he looked the documents over. "I'll see that my Office looks into this matter, however, in matters concerning the Anauša there is one source which would be foolish not to call upon," he continued as he removed his phone from his pocket, bringing up Lucinda's contact. "She knows them inside and out, and if there's lingering remnants acting in a manner which would harm Asuna, well, she'll exhaust all means to ensure her safety."

Pausing for a moment Lucius added, "In my duties as Attorney for the Crown much of my time is spent home, in Pyrettania and, as you are all well aware, it is rare that I get to see my wife these days. Once we've dealt with these matters it would be nice to have her home more often."

Paroxetine had been something which Beatrice rarely thought of though it had become a part of her daily medication regimen. There were others too which had been prescribed at the direction of the Imperial Family's personal doctor; at one time he had been an associate of Charles yet following his fall from grace Doctor Araya had distanced himself from the former Head of the Imperial Household Ministry. For quite some time she could mask her challenges, not even Alex could pick up on them. She did her best to explain away the twitching, loss of appetite and movement problems yet the confusion, agitation, anxiousness, loss of appetite and libido, increasing insomnia and psychosis were things she couldn't quite hide.

"I do believe I said we had nothing further to discuss, have you nothing better to do than sit there and take pleasure in my present circumstances?" She threw her pillow, confident she would hit her target yet scowling as it bounced softly against the wall opposite of her. "Pleasure, no, pity yes," he replied, using the pillow to prop his head against that same wall. "Before you were my friend you were my adversary, one worthy of respect in many ways yet now, I'm only sorry to see what has become of you. Evanthe can't even bring herself to face you directly, you must understand it brings her too much pain, so I made a promise to her that I would do so on her behalf, so she can tell Asuna that you are living as best you can despite the circumstances. You never wondered why I have full access here, why I am trusted to sit here with you? The Anselmo who stared me down in the Illumic was sharper than that, much sharper."

"You'll know what I speak of when I remind you that lives were on the line, many of them our friends," Beatrice said, with her voice raising with each word spoken. "Where would Asuna be today, where would David be, where would our nations be, had I not acted where no one else would? Even today my actions are maligned for something they are not, I stand alone, a source of virtue and sacrifice in a world that does not understand it, and you would judge me for that? I had lives in my hands...." "Beatrice, calm yourself, no one else can hear you," he sighed, "Gods know you don't have to deafen me to get your point across. I think, though, that both you and I know there's a good many things you don't need, and we argue about it each time I come to visit you. Your enemy is not me, he's the one who managed to destroy you from within, you have to stop taking those things one way or another." "The doctor said...." he laughed, "The doctor said..." and I bet he also said the parties at Pyrena weren't the best thing for your liver but you kept the good times rolling anyway, yes?"

"Beside the point," Beatrice sighed, "can you go away now?"

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #21 on: August 30, 2022, 05:54:53 PM »
Marble Palace, 2003

It was a familiar sight, or rather it had become familiar, the Azurewind evening routine the young Prince Simon doing his homework, Iona cooking the meal and Peter and the then seventeen year old Beatrice sat at the chessboard while the five year old Serenity watched enthralled by the contest. "You still place to much emphasis on strength." Peter said as they made their moves "Too much focus on attack, you see where to attack me and you've lined it up well you had checkmate in eight." he moved a pawn "But you didn't see that I had checkmate in five, the ability to adapt is more important for leaders, learn to see the whole board, learn to think about all the possibilities in any situation, sometimes the right move doesn't look to be the strongest."
"Meanie." Serenity said sticking her tongue out at her father, which resulted in Peter laughing and Beatrice ruffling Serenity's hair


Present Day

Serenity had had more enjoyable drives than this one but then this whole equation, truth or lie it had been her dance for a while now but having hard evidence of something? That was new, the implications were disturbing but maybe Beatrice had learned more than she'd thought. This wasn't Serenity's first time in this sort of facility, as a military lawyer she'd frequented corridors like these before but this was the first time not in uniform, when she got to the door of Beatrice's room she leaned against the outside of it, her back flat against it, such was the proximity that she could hear Beatrice's voice from within and it somewhat brought a smile to her face as she nodded for the door to be opened.

"It's all right Josiah." Serenity said, very familiar with hallucinatory conversations and such she had them herself from time to time, "I've got her say hi to Isaac and Caspian for me."  it was quite possibly among the most ridiculous things she'd ever said but it was enough to hopefully draw Beatrice's attention, Serenity walked over and sat next to her "I'll save you the trouble of asking I'm here because a well played move deserves recognition, way to slow Charles down."

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #22 on: August 30, 2022, 08:38:31 PM »
"It's never enough when it comes to him, though," Beatrice sighed. "Every step of the way he's seemingly able to take the table and command it to his benefit, even contained he holds all the advantages, he made sure of it. I was so worried that the military would try to turn me into their tool that I didn't see the true threat or the designs he had for me or the Empire. Despite the best of my efforts even if he is denied all the comforts he so loves, the wine, the whiskeys, fine food, his collections of antiques....his work undoubtedly continues. Where Stalin failed Charles seems poised to work out some semblance of victory."

"With the troublemaker gone, however, it's nice to have a pleasant voice to listen to. While our options are quite limited, what would you wish to do today?"

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #23 on: September 01, 2022, 12:21:15 AM »
Serenity half smiled "Charles plays a good game but I know someone who plays better and you slowed him down enough for us to get her in the game and she's the best there is so have a little faith, this time we're putting an end to this for good." she said "As your attorney of record on the case I have to disclose to the prosecution that your condition is drug induced, I expect them to appeal, so we'll probably be back in court soon." taking a breath she sighed a little, something about this still bugged her but she couldn't quite put her finger on it yet. "So tell me... what does Euphy like to do?"

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #24 on: September 04, 2022, 09:31:53 PM »
"I have to be honest, there's so much I can't....it's just not there, Serenity. I can't remember the Speeches, even watching them on video I look and I don't recognize the person on the stage. She looks like me, she talks like me, sounds so very much like me but it's just like looking at someone from the outside. That's not even to mention the chunks of my personal life that just aren't there, just how much time have I lost with my family? I talk to a Rhodes more often than I have any of them, convincing me that Charles has invaded me and is conquering me from within. He often tells me to decline medication, but it wouldn't have been given to me if there was no need, I was sick and now, just as he always does, he lays a trap, or at least he tries to. But," she leaned in and whispered, "I'm more clever than he is.....but what if he's right?"

She paused for a moment, "Euphy, she likes planes I know that, shopping, painting, oh you should see what she can do with a paintbrush! She's also got this thing for obscure trivia that would put many of the game show panelists to shame. She's fun."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #25 on: September 13, 2022, 11:03:56 PM »
"Guess I'll have to find out how fun." Serenity said taking a breath before reaching into her bag and handing Beatrice a piece of paper "Don't ask me questions because I can't answer them. That's a DNA test, sample A is yours sample B belongs to someone you know as Lucretia Marino. The results conclude that there is a 99.9% chance that you and her are sisters. Take your time with it and I'll see you when we end up in court again."



Ashai Castle was home to Achkaerin's Military Defence Initiative, in short cyber, electronic warfare and other related things. It was also home to the Justicars, the specialised intelligence operatives, drawn from all walks of life to do their job, counter threats to their country and their allies. The Justicar CO was Rion Ayanami, ever since investigations into this had started she'd had her team as she called them on it, whatever Charles was planning was years in the making so moves had most definitely already been made and now she had what Emerson had found in front of her and had the Viceregent on a video call.

"Gotta give Charles credit it's a well crafted Zugzwang." Rion said "The petition's invalid, so the referendum's invalid and therefore the Premier was wrongly forced out. Either you come forward with it which makes Rokkenjima's authorities look incompetent or Groves exposes it and frames it as a cover up. Those paper voters of Charles it's very easy to paint a picture that they were used at the beck and call of Beatrice Anselmo."
"Either way public trust in the Rokkenjiman leadership takes a hit." Emerson said
"Which is probably what Charles bread and butter is going to be." Rion said "The Anselmo's are so beloved of the Rokkenjiman public that killing them would martyr them, can't do that so first you shake public trust in them."
"So what's his endgame?" Emerson asked
"Broadly speaking he wants power." Rion said "He had it and then lost it, now he wants it back. But this is also a revenge tour."
"So even though he can't kill them it doesn't mean he can't hurt them." Emerson said
"We're only going to easily find that which Charles wants us to find." Rion said "Everything else is intuition."
"Good hunting." Emerson said, he disconnected the call.

Rion stood up and walked out of her office, along the walkway and down onto the operations floor and tapped the shoulder of Julian Lawson "Boss?" Julian asked looking at her
"I need you to do something." Rion said "And you need to keep it quiet."
"What is it?" Julian asked
"Head to Bethesda and look into the events happening on the night of the 16th August 2018." Rion said
"That's the night before Joshua left." Julian said "Why?"
"I've just got a bad feeling about it." Rion said "Take Lassie with you."
"Ok." Julian said

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #26 on: September 14, 2022, 08:26:09 AM »
"Lucretia...." she said as the paper slid from her fingers and fell to the ground beneath her. "I must see her, though not in these circumstances. We always had such a connection throughout the years and now I know why, not just that she is a wonderful person, but we were meant to be at each other's sides throughout this life. If there is one thing in this life you could do for me, just one, please bring her to my side just....not in these circumstances. I wouldn't want her to see me lamenting here. We have much to discuss and much to consider for the future, and I would like for that to happen in the sunlight. She's been kept in the darkness for much of her life, both her and I need the sunlight to cleanse this from our souls. Please, give us our day in the light together, if even for a few moments."

Charles began his day as he often did, putting the pieces of the puzzle together from the scraps of information he could piece together. "Guard," he asked with an air of authority he no longer held but clung to so tightly, "I would like the morning papers. Specifically those from the RBC, DBC, Northfort, the Imperial News Service, Mangai Nui and the Defense Journal. You see, it's the crosswords in each I wish to solve," he said with a chuckle, "if I don't do that, I feel as though my day is incomplete."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #27 on: September 22, 2022, 10:30:15 PM »
"You know I can't promise that." Serenity said getting up "I'll do what I can but I can't dictate what a court of law will decide. The verdict odds are not in our favour, but the sentencing ones are, if things go well you'll get the chance. Now work on getting well and I'll see you in a few days."



By the time Serenity got back to the Marble Palace Peter was in a meeting with Rion, stepping into the study Serenity sighed "How is she?" Peter asked
"Getting there now she's off the drugs." Serenity said "What's occurring?"
"Rion was just going through hypotheticals." Peter said "Go on."
"Charles can't kill the Anselmo's, or at least not yet." Rion said "They're too beloved of the Rokkenjiman people, kill them you martyr them. This is why the original scheme was what it was, as Lord High Steward puppet Beatrice, Euphemia as Viceregent is inexperienced so she won't object to Charles's suggestions, but Beatrice perjures herself and takes herself out of play so Charles has to change tact."
"Discredit the Anselmo's, turn popular opinion against them, you create the means for something different." Peter said "So these paper voters..."
"Will partly do that." Rion said "But it also says something about his endgame. Reinstating the Office of the Premier is what he wants."
"Why?" Peter asked
"So he can occupy it." Serenity said
"But he's in prison." Peter said
"He won't be for long." Serenity said "There's enough evidence to show Beatrice was drugged at time of trial, we have no independent hard evidence showing Charles was drugging her at the time of the genocide, Charles was convicted based on circumstantial evidence held together by Beatrice's word, her word is now in a legal sense worthless, the minute the court rules that she wasn't drugged Charles will be appealing and he'll walk."

"Another Zugzwang." Rion said she looked at Peter "You know what I'm going to ask."
"I do." Peter said "Go turn it into checkmate."

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #28 on: September 23, 2022, 01:24:41 AM »
"Now don't sell yourself short, while a most bitter memory I remember thinking in those moments at the hospital that I was no longer there as a Head of State, but as a friend, someone understanding and in a position to bring some light, any light, I could to you and your father. I still see so much of her in you, all the years, trials and at times horrible words exchanged and here you are," she continued as a tear fell from her eye, "still kind, still strong, and gentle as always. I only wish I could have seen the snake in my house much sooner, perhaps we would never have been moved to be in opposition all those times? Then again, all we have in looking to the past through that lens is impossible possibilities, and as none of that can be rewritten I can only promise you that we won't be writing any more sour memories together."

"Whaling, because that is a winning issue," Charles chuckled as he read his morning papers, casually speaking to the guard who was never too far away. "I wish the Borlanders had turned the tables and demanded some ransom for her at least, perhaps they could have received a little something more from their troubles. Oh come now," he said as the guard rolled their eyes, "Naturally I am happy that no harm came to the Crown Princess, she was such a sweet girl, but she's so obviously ill equipped for the role which she is to assume. This world is encumbered by the weight of families who cling to power by right of birth, does that not anger you? You, a humble prison guard, could have had a much higher station if you were pushed out of a noble womb yet you're here, entertaining me, instead. I'll have my breakfast now."

Beatrice Anselmo
Grand Chancellor of the Independent Order
Empress of the First Empire of Rokkenjima

Factbook of the First Empire of Rokkenjima - Kingdom of Clysperis

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Re: "The time has come" the Fox said "to talk of many things."
« Reply #29 on: October 04, 2022, 10:15:41 PM »
For Amber Duff this was like Deja vu, pulling up to the former residence of Charles Ofdensen, the estate of the Duke of Pyrettania, it had been vacant for years now, kept under guard but no one lived there and no one really wanted to. When the original investigation had happened Amber had led a team through searching the building and come up empty handed but that time had been about the genocide this time was about something else. Accompanying Amber was her sister Sarah, computer bag slung over her shoulder, her presence might have seemed odd but trust was important in this situation. Stepping inside the house Amber closed the door and sighed "This hasn't changed." she said
"Where do we start?" Sarah said
"His personal rooms are all upstairs." Amber said "Start there."
"Computers?" Sarah asked
"Yep, he had some top notch security for those." Amber said "Remove the computer from the premises and the data got wiped."
"The word paranoid comes to mind." Sarah said
"Yes it does." Amber said as they headed up the stairs
"So what are we looking for this time?" Sarah asked
"Evidence." Amber said, Sarah raised an eyebrow "Assuming Charles has a plan to seize power it's been a long time in the making, they'll be traces."
"Of what?" Sarah asked
"His plan, network, anything." Amber said

Once they got into Charles's office area, Sarah sat herself down at the desk and started going through the computer while Amber went through the bookshelves,
"Didn't you do that the first time?" Sarah asked
"Yes." Amber said running a finger along the shelves containing diaries "But this time's a whole different game." she paused "Beatrice takes the throne in early 2004." she grabbed the 2004 diary off the shelf and started going through it "Charles is made Lord High Steward reasonably quickly, most of that year is spent on two things - the Constitution and Beatrice and Alexs's wedding... but nothing unusual."
"Try another year." Sarah said "You'll find something." Amber smiled, it took until the 2006 diary but she found something
"How about this?" Amber said "In 2006 Charles visited Seaforth."
"That's not in the Pyrena diary." Sarah said looking on the computer
"So an off book trip to Seaforth." Amber said
"Does it say who with?" Sarah asked
"A Doctor Lucas Cavanaugh." Amber said "Interesting. Let's see what other meetings he had that weren't official."


In Pyrena Emerson was hard at work, as much as he would like nothing more than to be throwing 100% of his focus on countering whatever Charles had in the works he still had business of state to deal with. He glanced up as Kayleigh walked in and handed him a cup of tea.
"Thanks." Emerson said
"There's something bugging me." Kayleigh said "We can prove that Beatrice was being drugged by Charles in 2017 prior to her arrest but..."
"Go on." Emerson said
"She was diagnosed with Parkinsons before transferring authority to Evanthe." Kayleigh said "And she wasn't on any medication in prison, so how does she test positive for Parkinsons after Charles is put in prison?"
"You think someone else picked up where Charles left off?" Emerson asked
"It makes sense." Kayleigh said
"Any guesses who?" Emerson said
"One" Kayleigh said putting a piece of paper in front of Emerson "Do I get him picked up?"

Emerson read the name and looked at Kayleigh "Do it." he said

It was about half an hour later that Michelle Frost and David Barker were parking up outside a picturesque country house, the pair had been flown down to Pyrena to provide extra security given the threat but here they were. "It's flat open ground behind if he runs." Michelle said "We catch him either way
"Let's hope so." David said as they got out of the car and walked up the path to the front door.
"So good cop or bad cop?" Michelle asked
"Let's do it by the book." David said taking a deep breath before hammering on the door "Junichiro Koizumi, we have a search warrant, come and open up please sir!"