06-07-2023, 12:02 AM
(Joint post with Lauchenoiria)
Chuaztlapoc East Federal Police Station
Chuaztlapoc, Huenya
The Huenyan Federal Police had taken the would-be assassin of Tlalzixiuhxa into custody. The HFP was the federal agency responsible for, among other things, monitoring and trying to protect the Auroras residing in Huenya. The Special Residents Taskforce (SRT) had that distinct honor, along with protecting other foreign nationals and Huenyan citizens deemed in need of extra monitoring and protection.
Special Agent Miahitlina of the SRT was the agent assigned to interrogate the assassin and find out more about her. The contents of the assassin’s pockets hadn’t revealed much. A few knives, a gun, and a cyanide pill that the assassin happily noted she had never intended to actually use.
Miahitlina hadn’t been able to gain any other information from a search of the assassin, and she did not come up at all in the Huenyan Federal Identification Database. The SRT agent was expecting a tough interrogation, with hours of questioning.
She would be disappointed.
From the beginning, Kaleigh Traversi had no intention of hiding her origin or mission. She was proud of it, in fact. When asked why she had tried to kill Tlalzixiuhxa, she was blunt. “The Aurora in question has betrayed the Matriarchy. She is a traitor. There is only one punishment for that in Kerlile.”
“This isn’t Kerlile. You seem to have forgotten that,” Miahitlina replied firmly.
“It doesn’t matter. You have refused to send the traitors home to face justice. You have instead harbored them. The blame for this falls on Huenya and its government. Technically, they deserve to be tortured for five years, and then executed, but the Matriarchy has decided to settle for death. You're welcome.”
Miahitlina was stunned that Kaleigh was being so forthcoming. She was also stunned at the blithe dismissal of Huenyan sovereignty. "She's not even in your country. You can't just extrajudicially kill people in other peoples' countries. You do get that, right?"
“You wouldn’t extradite her,” Kaleigh replied matter-of-factly. “If you would just give us back our traitors, we wouldn’t have to resort to this.”
Miahitlina sighed. “You do realize you’re going to be punished for this, right?”
“You’re not from Kerlile. You don’t know punishment.” Kaleigh gave a dismissive sniff, and Miahitlina’s face reddened. The agent stood up and walked out without another word; she had all the information she needed anyway.
—
Three hours later
Tecpancalli Tonaltzintli, office and residence of the Huenyan Vice-Speaker
Chuaztlapoc
Tiacihitli put down the report from the Federal Police, and the attached notes from the Federal Intelligence Service, with dismay. A single post-it note, with the words “Please address this” in Yauhmi’s handwriting, flittered down as he was lowering the folder to land gently on his desk. He had no idea how Yauhmi had intercepted the report prior to it reaching him, but she had.
He really didn’t need this right now. Between the unilateral Xiomeran annexation of a big chunk of Huenyan land and the everyday issues associated with trying to build a brand-new stable democracy, his plate was full to overflowing. But Yauhmi was right, this needed to be addressed. Such a violation of Huenyan law and sovereignty could not be allowed to stand without at least a protest and a warning. He therefore, reluctantly, instructed his assistant to place a call to President Arnott of Kerlile.
When Arnott received the phone call, she was less than happy. She hadn’t particularly approved of the assassination attempt when it was first brought up, but after Patel kept pushing, she agreed in order to solve their domestic problems. Of course, the consequence of that was now she had an international relations problem to resolve. This was not going to go well. Nevertheless, she answered the phone.
“Vice-Speaker, how are you?” she said upon picking up.
"I am doing well, madam President, thank you for asking. I hope you are as well. I hate to interrupt your day, but there is a matter of concern which has come up. It concerns one of your citizens named Kaleigh Traversi." Tiacihitli paused for a reply.
“I’m sorry, I’m not immediately familiar with the name,” Arnott replied truthfully. After all, she’d only seen codenames in the reports she’d read and proposals she’d authorised.
"The KCID 36949025 may help you. It belongs to one of your citizens who was just arrested by the Federal Police. They claim that they were sent on a mission by the Kerlian government to assassinate someone who has been given asylum in Huenya, a certain Tlalzixiuhxa." Tiacihitli waited once more for Arnott to respond.
Arnott swore mentally, but managed to refrain from actually opening her mouth. She’d really been hoping this was about a Kerlian drunk driver or some other such thing. “Ah yes, Tlalzixiuhxa. Is she okay?” Arnott asked. Might as well find out if the assassin succeeded.
"She is quite well." Tiacihitli noted mentally that Arnott had not denied his statement. "The person who attacked her is likewise fine and currently in custody." The Vice-Speaker was curiously pondering whether or not Arnott would request the assassin’s return.
“Glad to hear everyone is fine,” Arnott lied. She had no intention of admitting anything, or denying anything that could be proven to be a lie. Meaningless platitudes would have to do for now. She’d see how Tiacihitli responded to this.
Tiacihitli had been a lawyer by trade before entering politics. He knew exactly what a meaningless statement sounded like. He went from concerned to irritated in the blink of an eye. He decided to press the issue. "Are the claims of the attacker true, madam President?"
Arnott did not respond. She allowed the silence to collect, settling on the two leaders, knowing that the silence was itself a condemnation of Kerlile but powerless to do anything about it. What was done is done, and to speak now would be to invite even more trouble. So, the silence stretched, its meaning ambiguous in theory, but clear in practice.
"I see…." Tiacihitli finally broke the silence. "I must say, madam President, your decision to ally more closely with Xiomera seems to have them rubbing off on you. That is the sort of thing they would do, after all. But while Kerlile may be pretending to reform and become more aligned with the rule of law and international practices, Huenya most certainly is not. Your citizen will be tried for attempted murder. You are welcome to provide them consular or legal assistance as their case is handled in our legal system. This is also how any future such incidents will be handled. This is the conduct of truly civilized and democratic states, a concept that seems to elude Kerlile's leaders."
“I am perfectly aware that a Kerlian citizen accused of a crime in Huenya should be tried under the Huenyan judicial system,” Arnott replied. “We have no objection to such things. Serious crimes should, of course, be punished.” Serious crimes like treason, she thought to herself. That was, after all, what Tlalzixiuhxa was guilty of.
Tiacihitli silently marveled at Arnott's power of delivering particularly bland word salad, before replying. "I should warn that future such incidents would cause significant damage to our bilateral relations, as well as necessitate potentially stronger penalties. There are undoubtedly some within our government who would argue that we should treat such incidents as acts of espionage." The Vice-Speaker allowed it to remain unspoken as to whether or not he shared that opinion.
Arnott found it amusing in a way, how the Huenyans were now worried about espionage, given how Tlalzixiuhxa had first ended up in their country. Nevertheless, Kerlile couldn’t really afford to keep sending assassins to Huenya anyway. Financially, not morally. So she felt fairly confident in promising to Tiacihitli, “I can assure you that we have now decided to leave the traitors you choose to harbour to you. I do hope they don’t prove to be as dangerous to you as they were to us. And, of course, if they ever set foot in Kerlile again, they will be arrested.”
"I am certain that they will not choose to return to Kerlile; they are safer in Huenya. In any event, we shall accept that promise as a resolution. Thank you for taking my call, madam President." Tiacihitli sounded relieved and at the same time vaguely disgruntled.
“My pleasure,” Arnott said drily… and then hung up the phone. She leaned back in her chair, beginning to massage her temples to hopefully prevent the headache that threatened to form. It wasn’t that Kerlile wanted to upset Huenya. If they did, it would be easier. Rather, the Matriarchy felt betrayed by Huenya, for harboring traitors, and for ousting Yauhmi in favor of her male son. Kerlians were still suspicious that gender may have been a motivating factor. They always were.
Chuaztlapoc East Federal Police Station
Chuaztlapoc, Huenya
The Huenyan Federal Police had taken the would-be assassin of Tlalzixiuhxa into custody. The HFP was the federal agency responsible for, among other things, monitoring and trying to protect the Auroras residing in Huenya. The Special Residents Taskforce (SRT) had that distinct honor, along with protecting other foreign nationals and Huenyan citizens deemed in need of extra monitoring and protection.
Special Agent Miahitlina of the SRT was the agent assigned to interrogate the assassin and find out more about her. The contents of the assassin’s pockets hadn’t revealed much. A few knives, a gun, and a cyanide pill that the assassin happily noted she had never intended to actually use.
Miahitlina hadn’t been able to gain any other information from a search of the assassin, and she did not come up at all in the Huenyan Federal Identification Database. The SRT agent was expecting a tough interrogation, with hours of questioning.
She would be disappointed.
From the beginning, Kaleigh Traversi had no intention of hiding her origin or mission. She was proud of it, in fact. When asked why she had tried to kill Tlalzixiuhxa, she was blunt. “The Aurora in question has betrayed the Matriarchy. She is a traitor. There is only one punishment for that in Kerlile.”
“This isn’t Kerlile. You seem to have forgotten that,” Miahitlina replied firmly.
“It doesn’t matter. You have refused to send the traitors home to face justice. You have instead harbored them. The blame for this falls on Huenya and its government. Technically, they deserve to be tortured for five years, and then executed, but the Matriarchy has decided to settle for death. You're welcome.”
Miahitlina was stunned that Kaleigh was being so forthcoming. She was also stunned at the blithe dismissal of Huenyan sovereignty. "She's not even in your country. You can't just extrajudicially kill people in other peoples' countries. You do get that, right?"
“You wouldn’t extradite her,” Kaleigh replied matter-of-factly. “If you would just give us back our traitors, we wouldn’t have to resort to this.”
Miahitlina sighed. “You do realize you’re going to be punished for this, right?”
“You’re not from Kerlile. You don’t know punishment.” Kaleigh gave a dismissive sniff, and Miahitlina’s face reddened. The agent stood up and walked out without another word; she had all the information she needed anyway.
—
Three hours later
Tecpancalli Tonaltzintli, office and residence of the Huenyan Vice-Speaker
Chuaztlapoc
Tiacihitli put down the report from the Federal Police, and the attached notes from the Federal Intelligence Service, with dismay. A single post-it note, with the words “Please address this” in Yauhmi’s handwriting, flittered down as he was lowering the folder to land gently on his desk. He had no idea how Yauhmi had intercepted the report prior to it reaching him, but she had.
He really didn’t need this right now. Between the unilateral Xiomeran annexation of a big chunk of Huenyan land and the everyday issues associated with trying to build a brand-new stable democracy, his plate was full to overflowing. But Yauhmi was right, this needed to be addressed. Such a violation of Huenyan law and sovereignty could not be allowed to stand without at least a protest and a warning. He therefore, reluctantly, instructed his assistant to place a call to President Arnott of Kerlile.
When Arnott received the phone call, she was less than happy. She hadn’t particularly approved of the assassination attempt when it was first brought up, but after Patel kept pushing, she agreed in order to solve their domestic problems. Of course, the consequence of that was now she had an international relations problem to resolve. This was not going to go well. Nevertheless, she answered the phone.
“Vice-Speaker, how are you?” she said upon picking up.
"I am doing well, madam President, thank you for asking. I hope you are as well. I hate to interrupt your day, but there is a matter of concern which has come up. It concerns one of your citizens named Kaleigh Traversi." Tiacihitli paused for a reply.
“I’m sorry, I’m not immediately familiar with the name,” Arnott replied truthfully. After all, she’d only seen codenames in the reports she’d read and proposals she’d authorised.
"The KCID 36949025 may help you. It belongs to one of your citizens who was just arrested by the Federal Police. They claim that they were sent on a mission by the Kerlian government to assassinate someone who has been given asylum in Huenya, a certain Tlalzixiuhxa." Tiacihitli waited once more for Arnott to respond.
Arnott swore mentally, but managed to refrain from actually opening her mouth. She’d really been hoping this was about a Kerlian drunk driver or some other such thing. “Ah yes, Tlalzixiuhxa. Is she okay?” Arnott asked. Might as well find out if the assassin succeeded.
"She is quite well." Tiacihitli noted mentally that Arnott had not denied his statement. "The person who attacked her is likewise fine and currently in custody." The Vice-Speaker was curiously pondering whether or not Arnott would request the assassin’s return.
“Glad to hear everyone is fine,” Arnott lied. She had no intention of admitting anything, or denying anything that could be proven to be a lie. Meaningless platitudes would have to do for now. She’d see how Tiacihitli responded to this.
Tiacihitli had been a lawyer by trade before entering politics. He knew exactly what a meaningless statement sounded like. He went from concerned to irritated in the blink of an eye. He decided to press the issue. "Are the claims of the attacker true, madam President?"
Arnott did not respond. She allowed the silence to collect, settling on the two leaders, knowing that the silence was itself a condemnation of Kerlile but powerless to do anything about it. What was done is done, and to speak now would be to invite even more trouble. So, the silence stretched, its meaning ambiguous in theory, but clear in practice.
"I see…." Tiacihitli finally broke the silence. "I must say, madam President, your decision to ally more closely with Xiomera seems to have them rubbing off on you. That is the sort of thing they would do, after all. But while Kerlile may be pretending to reform and become more aligned with the rule of law and international practices, Huenya most certainly is not. Your citizen will be tried for attempted murder. You are welcome to provide them consular or legal assistance as their case is handled in our legal system. This is also how any future such incidents will be handled. This is the conduct of truly civilized and democratic states, a concept that seems to elude Kerlile's leaders."
“I am perfectly aware that a Kerlian citizen accused of a crime in Huenya should be tried under the Huenyan judicial system,” Arnott replied. “We have no objection to such things. Serious crimes should, of course, be punished.” Serious crimes like treason, she thought to herself. That was, after all, what Tlalzixiuhxa was guilty of.
Tiacihitli silently marveled at Arnott's power of delivering particularly bland word salad, before replying. "I should warn that future such incidents would cause significant damage to our bilateral relations, as well as necessitate potentially stronger penalties. There are undoubtedly some within our government who would argue that we should treat such incidents as acts of espionage." The Vice-Speaker allowed it to remain unspoken as to whether or not he shared that opinion.
Arnott found it amusing in a way, how the Huenyans were now worried about espionage, given how Tlalzixiuhxa had first ended up in their country. Nevertheless, Kerlile couldn’t really afford to keep sending assassins to Huenya anyway. Financially, not morally. So she felt fairly confident in promising to Tiacihitli, “I can assure you that we have now decided to leave the traitors you choose to harbour to you. I do hope they don’t prove to be as dangerous to you as they were to us. And, of course, if they ever set foot in Kerlile again, they will be arrested.”
"I am certain that they will not choose to return to Kerlile; they are safer in Huenya. In any event, we shall accept that promise as a resolution. Thank you for taking my call, madam President." Tiacihitli sounded relieved and at the same time vaguely disgruntled.
“My pleasure,” Arnott said drily… and then hung up the phone. She leaned back in her chair, beginning to massage her temples to hopefully prevent the headache that threatened to form. It wasn’t that Kerlile wanted to upset Huenya. If they did, it would be easier. Rather, the Matriarchy felt betrayed by Huenya, for harboring traitors, and for ousting Yauhmi in favor of her male son. Kerlians were still suspicious that gender may have been a motivating factor. They always were.
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