Chapter 14: Diplomacy

September 21, Montfortal Throne Room...

"Well, gentlemen, are we ready to begin?" Rigan asked courteously, glancing at each of the three individuals in front of him. The three creatures nodded in unison. The newly appointed Regent slid a piece of parchment in front of each creature. Written on the parchment were the King's demands.

"The Goblins are prepared to accept these concessions outright," The goblin said immediately, barely skimming through the parchment, "in exchange for the exclusive rights to the mines and the establishment of a bank, with the exception of becoming subject to Ionian laws."

"The Gnomes are also ready to accept your generous offer as well! In addition, we will increase your profit to thirty percent!" The short, large nosed and floppy eared creature retorted. He shot the goblin a haughty look that seemed to mean "Beat that!" "But like the goblins, I'm afraid we cannot accept becoming Ionian citizenship."

"Bah!" The dwarf exclaimed, pounding his fist on the table. "You lot are too greedy for your own good." He said gruffly, receiving glares from both injured parties for his callous words. He promptly ignored them, and turned to face Rigan. "Lord Regent, on behalf of the dwarves, I accept your terms as it is. But we only wish to mine your mountains and have no wish to establish a bank here. We will leave the unsavory task of counting gold to these two greedy blighters." He pointed his thumb to the two other growling creatures.

Rigan, amused by their banter, turned to the Gnome and the Goblin looking at them expectantly. They remained silent for a moment under his gaze, before the goblin spoke up. "We are willing to concede the mining rights to the Dwarves for exclusive rights to the bank. The dragon breeders will be easy enough for us to contact and negotiate with. But I must say again, we refuse to subject ourselves to your laws!" He grinned toothily at his fellow negotiators.

"I won't stand for this!" The Gnome exclaimed. "We want both the bank and the rights to the mountains. We will accept all terms except for the subjection to laws. In addition, we will update all existing wards free of charge plus provide the wards to the new buildings! Surely that is worth more to you, Lord Regent?"

The goblin shook his head, exasperated. "We will match the Gnome's offer. After all, Goblin wards are second to none!"

Rigan sighed. "As I have said yesterday, the conditions you see before you are the bare minimum my king requests. I'm afraid that refusal to submit to Ionian Laws is the same as refusal to do business with us."

"Is there no way to circumvent this? You are the Regent Lord! You are supposed to act on your king's behalf." The Gnome said.

Rigan narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Are you suggesting I refuse to obey my king's explicit orders?" He hissed. "That is treason!"

"He is merely a boy! His mind is not the soundest, given all his hormones. We can convince him that this is far better." The Gnome argued. Both the Goblin and the Dwarf edged away from the Gnome nervously. To speak like this, in the King's own castle, no less, was foolhardy.

"Still your tongue, Gnome!" Rigan shouted, rising form his seat. "I will not listen to your poisonous words!" He breathed heavily for a few minutes, trying to calm himself down. "The King," he growled, "is no one's fool. How do you think he was able to rally the Kingdom and fight two consecutive wars victoriously within the span of two months?"

The Gnome, visibly shaken by the outburst, nodded tentatively. "Forgive me for my brashness. It shan't happen again."

Rigan sat back down. "Be sure of it." He shot one last glare at the diplomat before continuing. "I believe we should retire for-"

"Before we retire, Lord Regent, we have one last proposal." The goblin spoke up.

The Regent stared at him calculatingly. "Let's hear it then."

The goblin nodded in thanks. "The proposal is a joint one between the Goblins and Dwarves. They will receive the Mountains, and we will receive the Bank. We will subject ourselves to your laws," the goblin gritted his teeth as he said so "in exchange we wish to each be given a voice in the Imperium Council. We goblins will take care of the wards for the dwarves and they will provide the storage space for our bank. Is this acceptable to you?"

"A voice in the Imperium Council?" Rigan repeated, too shocked to comprehend their other words.

"I told you they'd never consider it, goblin." The dwarf muttered under his breath.

This was pointedly ignored by the green fellow. "Yes sir. Not the power to vote, of course," he amended, "merely someone who can give counsel and provide another…perspective before you decide on matters."

"I...I shall take this matter to the King." Rigan murmured. "Let us retire for the day."

The goblin smirked triumphantly at the dwarf who was muttering under his breath. "Just because they didn't outright deny it doesn't bloody mean they're going to accept it."

They watched as the proxy head of state walked out of the room. "We'll see, Dwarf. We'll see."

The Zyder Docks...

"Regent Lord!" A soldier barked. "The Merpeople's representative is here."

"Do we have a translator ready?" Rigan asked, inspecting the other soldiers critically.

"Of course, sir. A Guardian has recently arrived who has some skill with the wand. I believe he will be acting as intermediary."

"Best to not keep them waiting then. Lead the way, Lieutenant."

"Right this way, sir." The Lieutenant nodded. "Company!" The men snapped into action, forming rank and file around Rigan. "Forward!" He maintained shouting the last syllable. "March!" As one, the group moved in cadence.

"Impressive, Lieutenant. Is this General Storm's work?" Rigan asked, eyeing the phoenix insignia engraved on his armor.

"Yes sir!" The man barked. "The General's been making these recruits march every day for two hours. Won't accept any less than their absolute best."

"What is the point of this exercise, if I might ask?"

"General Storm says that it's to increase coordination, unity, and drill into them instinctual obedience to commands. A little discipline also never hurt 'em." He answered gruffly.

"How goes the training then?"

"As well as can be expected, sir. We reckon it'll be another six months before they'll be ready for a field test. Right now, the General wants us to cover the basics - marching and fighting." He replied. "Company, Halt!" The entire body stopped on their next step, then stomped loudly as they brought their feet together.

"Send my regards to the General, Lieutenant."

"As you command, sir."

Rigan strode forward by himself to the water's edge. The Guardian, he noted, was already in the water awaiting him. "Guardian, please translate this to the merpeople. Make sure they understand all of our terms completely." Rigan said, handing him a piece of parchment.

"Yes sir." The Guardian cast some spell on himself and dived further into the water after memorizing the contents of the parchment. It was another ten minutes before he resurfaced, gasping for air. "Sir, the Chieftain says that the terms are agreeable to him. However, he does not wish to separate his tribe."

"Very well, tell him to settle ten miles from Marporre, on the side facing Azkaban Isle. Warn him, however, not to be complacent. The State of Azkaban is hostile to all inhabitants of Ionos, and in the event of undeclared war, they should relocate closer to the island. For now though, all we require is that they maintain a strong border patrol, and to give us advance warning in case of suspicious activity. They may hunt to their heart's content, and expand if they wish. Oh, and hand him this." He said, giving him a mirror.

"You wish for me to give the Chieftain a mirror?" The man asked questioningly, quirking his left eyebrow.

"It's a two-way mirror. The king wishes for the Chieftain to have it for ease of contact. It is charmed to be resilient to underwater pressure, and has an automatic translation function."

The Guardian grabbed the mirror and dived again. This time he did not resurface for fifteen minutes. Rigan was actually getting worried his messenger had drowned past the ten minute mark. "Sir, the Chieftain agrees to your plans." The man managed to say in between his gasps for air. "His tribe of six thousand merpeople will be in place by next week. He also thanks the King for the wonderful gift."

"Well, at least they're easier to talk to than the mountain dwellers." Rigan muttered.

Hogwarts, Dumbledore's Office...

"Care for a lemon drop before we begin, Mr. Potter?" The aged headmaster asked, popping one into his mouth.

"No thank you, Headmaster." Harry politely refused. "Why did you call me here, sir?"

"How do you find school so far?"

"More or less the same, Headmaster. I was actually hoping for more of a challenge this year."

Dumbledore looked at Harry with piercing eyes, the familiar twinkle disappearing all together. "How about your summer?"

Harry did not flinch or break eye contact. "I was in Ionos, sir. I managed to meet with some interesting people there." He answered coolly.

"I would say so. After all, it's not everyday one meets a king and gets appointed as an ambassador." Dumbledore said. "Tell me, what do you know of this new Lord of Ionos."

Harry paused to gather his thoughts, thinking of the best way to answer the question. "I know a great many things about him, sir. Unfortunately, I am oath bound against revealing that information. It is quite...sensitive. I'm sure you understand, as head of the Wizengamot, that some secrets are much too important to be revealed."

Dumbledore chuckled. "I know all too well. I only wish to know his stance on the brewing conflict."

"The conflict, sir?"

"The Death Eaters in Ireland. Surely you know of it?"

"I have read about it in the papers, although I wasn't all to sure myself sir. You can never really trust the Prophet for the absolute truth." Harry lied.

"They do have a knack for embellishment." Dumbledore nodded agreeably. "But you have yet to answer my question."

"Well sir, I am not privy to state secrets, but the Lord Ionos seems to have taken a neutral stance in the matter. He does not wish to be involved."

Dumbledore frowned. "Why not? The Death Eaters are a threat not only to the United Kingdom, but its affiliated Autonomous States as well. Surely he sees the folly of letting these terrorists consolidate their strength." He huffed angrily.

I know all too well, but I shan't reveal that to you right now. Harry thought. "The King does not feel comfortable declaring an openly aggressive stance yet. With the Ministry weakened, and Azkaban eager for vengeance, Ionos has few allies to rely on if they were attacked by Death Eaters." Aside from the Irish of course. Harry added silently. "Seeing as you have seen fit to interrogate me, sir, I feel I am entitled to at least ask what the stance of the Wizengamot is?"

"The Wizengamot and the Ministry are intent on fortifying the mainland in the event that a Death Eater incursion arises."

"And you agree with this approach?" Harry inquired.

"No, I do not. Waiting for the enemy to strike is a foolhardy approach. Offense is the best defense, in this case." Harry nodded. Albus Dumbledore was many things, but a fool he was not. "Which is partly why I called you here today, Mr. Potter. I had hoped that the new King of Ionos would be more open to the idea of a preemptive strike."

"You would have my..." Harry paused abruptly, silently berating himself for nearly slipping up, "my King's men fight and die in a quarrel they aren't part of?"

"Ionos is more involved than you think. If the mainland falls, do you think those men will let you off? They want power! And they will take it by force if necessary!"

"Power? I thought the war was about blood supremacy or some such nonsense?" Harry was thoroughly shocked at the revelation.

"Don't be naive, Mr. Potter. Voldemort had used that ideal to gather followers, but it is power he is truly after!" Dumbledore exclaimed. "Why would he convince werewolves to fight with him if it was a case of blood supremacy? By his logic, werewolves are supposed to be beneath muggleborns. They don't even consider them human, but rather rabid animals that need to be put down! No, Voldemort and his followers are after power and nothing else."

"I...I will speak to the king about this." Harry said, shaking his head. Just as well that I had sent that expedition. "I cannot make promises though."

Dumbledore nodded, calming down. "That is more than enough, Mr. Potter. Before you leave, there are just a few more issues we must settle. Will there be instances you will need to leave the school to attend to your duties? Do you have a method of transport? I would like to request you give me prior warning if you need to leave."

"I cannot be completely sure if my services will be required, although my King has provided me with a portkey to Ionos should I be needed. I cannot always guarantee a warning though." Plus, I have my two way mirror to contact Rigan.

"Good, another thing. I am aware that your guards are here to protect you. However, I must ask that you restrain them and do not kill anyone in this school despite of your diplomatic immunity."

"I will do my best to control them." Harry agreed. "I'd rather avoid the headache of having to deal with the repercussions."

"That will be all, Ambassador Potter. I bid you a good day."

"Good day to you as well, Headmaster."

"...Dwarves, Goblins, and Gnomes are the three major sentient races that inhabit the underground and the mountains. Their preference to these otherwise dark and damp locations is due to their fondness for mining. Gold and especially Mithril veins are only found in these areas nowadays, which explains why these races are digging deeper into the earth's crust. because of this, they have been refereed to as Mountain Dwellers and Children of Stone. Each of these races is distinctly different form each other.

Goblins are short, with an average height of three to five feet. They have green skin, yellow eyes, sharp pointed teeth, and claws. They are relatively bald and have triangular ears granting them excellent hearing. They are dangerous and shrewd creatures, and remain are famous for being the most involved with wizard king. Throughout the years, they have engaged in businesses such as banking (the Gringotts Banking Chain), set up several notable casinos (Monaco, Las Vegas, Macao, Sydney, Cairo, Montreal, etc.) and have even bought stocks in wizarding business (notably Nimbus Corporation and Zicher Potions Industry). Aside from this, they are separated distinctly from the other two races by their love of wards. They are frequent visitors to Egypt to study the ancient warding techniques guarding the pyramids and their untold treasures.

Gnomes, in contrast, are elvish in appearance with their large floppy ears. They are also small in , they are not as adept in magic as House Elves, nor are they bound to servitude. They have only recently begun transacting with wizard kind. They are fierce rivals with the goblins, especially since they began their own banking chain which has gained prominence in Asia and Africa. Gnomes used to be the premier experts in technomancy, until the Unity Corporation overtook them. Nonetheless, they are skilled inventors and notorious for creating golems.

Dwarves are the most humanoid of the the three creatures. One might even mistake them to be short humans. They do, however, have several key physical features which set them apart. They have rounded bodies, and have seven fingers in each hand, but no thumbs. There is also a small metal protrusion on the tip of their elbows. Autopsies have shown that these creatures bone structure are composed purely of metal. Socially, they are reclusive creatures who rarely interact with other races. The few times they have reacted with other creatures have been due to war caused by territorial disputes. Several of these wars happened to be among the various clans of their race, nearly driving them to the point of extinction once. Dwarves pride themselves as craftsmen and frequently boast that their weapons are second to none in quality..."

-excerpt from: Magical Creatures, Fauna and Flora by NevilleLongbottom

AN: How did you find it?