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12:00pm Kavov, Zydarin Oblast, Imperial Federation of Skalvia
Empress Tanya Ulisi Ydrakov I, the first Empress of a now post imperial Skalvia since her mother Katarina Elmar Ydrakov took the reigns as Empress Regent in 1998 and then abdicated and handed the crown over to her daughter in 2009. Tanya was only 21 then and 14 years went by so fast. She wasn’t the youngest leader the Imperial Federation had but when she ascended the throne, many of her peers were trying to hook up at nightclubs, studying, drinking and having a good time, a time; all the while she was at meetings with her advisors about economic development, and improving Skalvia’s diplomatic standing after the brutal and ultimately disastrous War of Balthnian Independence from 1992-1997.
Now 35 years old with a 7 year old daughter named Zoya, a small bright blonde-haired blue-eyed little girl. She never told anyone aside from her mother who the father was, however a few people back in the mid 2010’s would recall her taking frequent secret trips to the Republic of Sverigen within the Union of Vynlandia and the Balthnian Republics. It was autumn and she had a large security detail with her guarding her property. A small Dacha about 30 kilometers north of the small town of Kavov. It was a small harbor town facing the sea of Balthnia; once known as the Lake of Balthnia not too long ago. The air was crisp, little Zoya was inside occupied by a colouring book, her mother preferred that than her mindlessly playing video games when she wasn’t at school.
She was waiting for an important guest, a leader that she has been wanting to reach out for a long time. High Commissioner Jorman Sygvaldi, she wants to reach out to that man. The war fought many ears ago, though it was lost on her country’s side. Tension still exists, and irridentism has been known to occasionally in an implicit way rear is ugly head. Skalvia for its crimes against humanity committed on the people of the people across the sea now Sea of Balthnia has been walled off diplomatically and not given a chance for redemption, she knew if this were to continue that her late father Emperor Sergey Vladislav Grogorvich’s ugly and venomous form of fascism will resurface, not from her however, but throughout Skalvian society. She went inside a looked wistfully at her daughter colouring and hugged her daughter and gave her a kiss on her forehead.
“Whats wrong mummy?” Zoya asked with a confused look on her face. “Nothing krolik.”
Empress Tanya greeted High Commissioner Sygvaldi and hugged him with open arms. She had a bright smile on her face. “Jormin.” She spoke with a seemingly familiar casual tone even though she hadn’t met him beyond today, however she would give off the feeling that she was a rather casual leader. “I’ve been wanting to meet with you for a long time.” The inside could be described as old-world rustic, hard wooden floorboards with a Yuzati rug tying the room together with hard wooden outlined furniture with a 19th century but retro fitted design in a mid-century styled overtone added to a cozy atmosphere of the room and would set the tone for the meeting itself. “Please sit”
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She sat down gesturing to the sofa on the opposite side of the wooden coffee table with a wooden duck ornament and a vase full of sunflowers. She had heard the High Commissioner’s story, how he was a veteran, how he was responsible to keeping troops alive and served mostly in medical tents, how his brother died in the long 6 month Battle of Värmea, how he witness his father die in his arms after bleeding out due to loosing his left leg due to a landmine planted by soldiers of her country. She didn’t know how to start or approach this meeting, but she knew that this had to initiate some dialogue.
“I’m sure you have questions as to why you are here Commissioner.” One of the staff the Empress and the High Commissioner some coffee in matching pure white fine china cup and saucer sets, the coffee was from the Qumran Oblast, in the nations southwest on the coast. They’re coffee was called Raf, the drink was prepared by adding cream and vanilla sugar to a single shot of espresso and then foaming the mix with a steam heater, the drink is popular throughout the Skalvian Imperium.
She wanted to give off the feel of a normal person, not an Empress, but a normal person. Her mother admired her skill for her people skills and approaching situations with a calm demeaner and a relaxing presence. A feature that distinguished herself from many leaders within the established order in her country.
“I’m just going to just rip off the band aid. High Commissioner. I am aware that my country is hated throughout the region. I’m aware of my father’s policies and decisions leading to the ruination of…Many lives…I mean I understand that hatred. Millions of people of your generation and a little younger would have memories of that horrible war decades ago. Since then however no-one on either side of that hyper militarised border haven’t approached each other…I wish to change that today…In order to do that however. I will need your help.”