Imperial Entente

[Tarusa]

Tarusan Embassy
Chagny

The door to Ambassador Morkov opened and closed as a new member of his staff had arrived in Chagny. The man was an officer of the Okhrana and would be temporarily taking up a new posting in the Holy Frankish Empire, in actuality he came with papers from the Foreign Ministry in Kremlyov and an order for rapid secret negotiations overseen by Ambassador Morkov. The Ambassador had known he was expecting a new member of staff, as he had been forewarned days in advance, but he did not know much else before seeing this small slender man standing before him who began to utter to him in authority.

"Who I am is not important, in the eyes of the Tsar and the secret services of the Empire, I do not answer to you. I have a mission, and am here to carry it out and keep this under wraps then I will return to kremloyv and be no more a bother to you. Summon the Foreign minister to the Embassy, but do it quietly. Have an aid make the errand, or do it yourself and bring him here, I do not care which. If a reason is to be needed, you are discussing the supposed sinking of a merchant vessel by a Tarusan submarine as is being claimed in the news. Now make it happen."


@Holy Frankish Empire

 

[Holy Frankish Empire]

Pierre de Aumont was a septagenerian. Short. Bald. Sporting a bulbous nose. Shuffling. He had served two emperors and was frankly, a nobody. A Baron of the Empire as well as being of minor nobility did nothing for his true stature. Yet he had always acted as a trusted imperial confidant and emissary. When he arrived at the embassy, many noted that the shuffling old man's ice blue eyes moved far quicker than the body they resided in. They seemed to take in everything. Darting and then rolling, the eyes had a weight to them. He simply had waved his ID card and refused to answer questions before being shuffled into a room. There were some half-curious glances at the old man clad in an ill fitting gray suit who shuffled along with a mahogany cane. The few staff who noticed him glanced at him and did nothing more. Shown to a waiting seat, the old man produced a tiny notebook and pen from his pocket. He looked at it in his hand and as if deciding not to use it, slowly pushed it back into a pocket of his suit coat. He waited quietly; wrapping and drumming his fingers around the head of his cane.

 

[Tarusa]

Ambassador Morkov walked in first with the unidentified man right behind him, with his briefcase. The Ambassador reached out and greeted Baron Aumont before taking a seat himself.

The other man spoke up while still standing in front of both whom were now facing him.

I'll make this as quick as I can.

Gentleman, if an agreement is reached here today it will be between you two, I was never here nor a part of it. This agreement is essentially an offer for a secret pact, some parts of it may come to light as the situation allows, but a majority of this agreement will remain secret until the days our governments no longer exist. Parts of it will obviously become public policy, without the public ever knowing why it is truthfully policy.

First and foremost, the Tsar and the Empire will recognize the reigning Emperor, and subsequent Emperors as the Defenders of the Catholic Faith, in return the Tsar is to be recognized as the Protector of the Slavic peoples. Nothing major, but it is giving recognition where recognition is due for the parts of each of our nations prestige. Next, the Empire recognizes the Frankish speaking lands in Bourdignie as an integral part of the Frankish Empire, and as such, if a move is made to secure the future of these people the Empire will not stand in the way of such progress and will voice its support for whatever measures are taken if they are ever acted upon. We also will not stand in the way of the Frankish Empire reclaiming the Frankish dominated lands that are currently part of its germanic neighbor Eiffelland.

He paused for a moment to gauge the interest of the baron before he continued, he could tell he had pegged his interest.

In return, the Frankish Empire will recognize the Tarusan Empires role in Csengia, and will recognize Csengia as the successor state of Pannonia. It will buttress the idea of Eugenia as being an integral part of the Kingdom of Csengia. We have taken note of the Frankish Empires silence during most of the conflict, and we believe there is a credible reason, a reason that we believe perhaps is the fact we both share a common ancestral rival that is potentially still a rival for both our nations, and maybe more. While these are the major points of the agreement I am here to propose, there are others that are minor that I will leave for you to simply read.

The man slid his briefcase across to the Baron.

Take it, inside is the entire text of the agreement including the finer details. If you have the authority to speak fully for your Emperor you may do so now, if you will need to report back please do so with the utmost urgency. I will only be here for 48 hours. I thank you for coming, and hope we can accomplish something of greatness in the shadows here today.

 

[Holy Frankish Empire]

Pierre was silent. He arched his fingers and sat back, staring at the briefcase. "My God these easterners are an impatient lot" he thought to himself. He leaned forward and glanced at the case before looking over to the man across from him. "Je suis l'Empire" he said, opening the case without breaking eye contact. There was nothing cold nor warm in his gaze. Nothing calculating. Just a penetrating look. He pulled out the documents and sat back. He casually flipped through them, using a pen as a pointer. Sometimes shaking his head. Sometimes nodding. It was about 15 minutes before he placed it back on the table. He began to sign the various portions where his signature was required on both copies.

"We Franks have no ambitions beyond our sovereign borders. But, at day's end, who can put a price on a good insurance policy that is mutually pleasing" he Pierre said, matter-of-factly. "The Franks are one people" he continued, pausing to lick his thumb for better purchase on the sheets before flipping to the next page, "we know and accept that some Franks will never live within the embrace of the Empire. That is ok with us". Pierre paused to read a section again, before putting pen back to paper. "However, there must be an acknowledgement that wherever Franks may be; there is but one Frankish monarch they should look to" he concluded. Having added the last signature, he finally looked up. He placed a copy back in the briefcase and slid it across the table. Taking the Frankish copy, Pierre stood and slowly jammed it unceremoniously into his leather case which was already dangerously full. "I bid you a good day. I must be off to the Palace" he said, reaching for his cane. "It is a long walk and I am not young" Pierre said. As he was turning he noted the look on his counterpart's face. "I shouldn't worry about me. Most do not even know who I am in my own government. In fact...." he continued with a playful smile, "I believe your intelligence service, as good as it is, has me listed as a member of the Minister of Health. I wish you a good day". With that, Pierre shuffled from the room to begin the long walk across the district to the palace.