[Lauchenoiria]

Old North Fleuran Cabinet Room, Kerlile (Temporary Meeting Place of the Inaugural Council of Kerlile)
April 1934

“We have to do something,” Chiu Yijun addressed the Council. “We disposed of the Six who would threaten our plans, and yet a new threat now presents itself in the guise of these Lauchenoirians. Regardless of what else we do next, I am sure you all know that we are not safe unless we take extraordinary measures.”

“What exactly do you have in mind, Yijun? We cannot hope to triumph on an open battlefield; for all our discipline we simply do not have the resources and equipment to maintain a prolonged conflict,” Margaret Robinson replied.

“Waging war is what a male would do in our situation,” Chiu retorted. “We must be better than them; not merely a reversal of their positions. Weakness cannot be tolerated, but nor can false posturing. This is an opportunity to show the world that we are worthy of their respect. We must speak with them.”

“They do not even consider us a real nation,” lamented Camila Hale. “The only reason they have not already attacked us was the storm.”

“Thank the Goddess,” chimed in Edith Hart, nodding her head in prayer. “The storm was divinely delivered to allow us time to gather our thoughts. Now, the South Fl– Lauchenoirians, sorry, my pardon. The Lauchenoirians do not have a reputation for being open to dialogue. And yet I must agree with Yijun. We must try.”

“That in turn begs the question: what can we offer them that we are willing to give?” asked Sunita Patel.

“You are not going to like this,” Yijun warned, and then opened her mouth to speak.

*

Council Chambers, Kerlile
Present Day

“We have to do something,” Lia Chiu addressed the Council. “After the leaking of the Secret of the Six, our reputation on the international stage has become even poorer. Regardless of whether you are a reformist or a traditionalist, I am sure you all know that we are not safe unless we take extraordinary measures.”

“What could possibly make this situation better!?” Nirmala Patel exclaimed. “We don’t even know the location of this Quinn pretender. While she lives we’re not safe!”

“The damage is already done, Nirmala,” pointed out Pauline Pierre. “There’s nothing much she could do to make things worse at this point.”

“Wanna bet?”

“Councillors!” Chiu warned. “You are both right, in a way. The damage is already done, but we are indeed not safe if we do not do something about the situation. The world already hates us, they will hate us more if we do not respond to this. Our silence is both proof of guilt, and proof of a lack of remorse.”

“I only found out about this when I joined the Council,” Rosemary Arnott pointed out. “Mother didn’t tell me before, and you all saw how I reacted.”

They had indeed. Upon the disclosure of the Secret to Rosemary, she had threatened to tell the press; then had a full-on panic attack; then started crying over those dead for decades. They’d needed to bring her mother, the President, into the Council Chambers to console her daughter and talk her out of doing something stupid. Then Rosemary had proceeded to call the others every name under the sun, and inform them that they all deserved to be at the very least in prison, if not six feet under.

“We can’t change things that happened ninety years ago.” Electra Georgiou said. “What would you have us do, Lia?”

“You are not going to like this,” Lia warned, before she spoke.