Whispers in Kuressaare

[Saaremaa]

Captain Koit Mark was leading the Sikandari Chancellor Babur Suleymani on the halls of the Kadriorg Palace. He was has followed by two members of the Sikandari secret services, providing security for their leader and behind them four men from the Revolutionary Guards, with black uniforms and green brassards with a fasces embroidered on each. The Sikandari Chancellor arrived in the morning with a secret flight in the Kuressaare International Airport and with a simple black car from the Ministry of External Affairs he was transported to the Kadriorg Palace, once the royal palace, now the State Defender’s Palace – an equivalent of a Presidential Palace.

“Your excellency, the office of the State Defender!” Proclaimed Mark as he opened the door to Vaino’s Office.

As the men entered the office, newly promoted Marsaal Mihkel Vaino rose from his desk and went to shake the hand of the Chancellor. After he made a hand gesture so that the guards should leave the room, he said:

“Your Excellency, welcome to Kuressaare, how can the National Revolutionary State be of service?”

 

[Serenierre]

Palace of the State Defender
Kuressaare, Saaremaa

Events which had transpired in Saaremaa these past few months had perplexed the many minds in the foreign service, leaving many to wonder how the Imperial State stood to benefit from the removal of the, generally undesirable but, still, monarchist tradition in this far flung land. Not to say that the two countries enjoyed anything close to robust relations, if in fact any at all. But with a new Imperial Chancellor at its helm, the imperial government was willing to try extending its hand of friendship to Scania, a heretofore neglected region as far as the Shahdara Doctrine was concerned. Though officially Sikandara had not recognised the new regime – though not out of any high moral standing, more out of unfamiliarity of the goals of the generals.

Sitting in the office of the Marshal Vaino, whose official title Suleymani found far too pompous to actually refer to him as such, he wasted little time, following the initial pleasantries and official congratulations on his victory in the parliament, the Sikandari asked, his grey eyes locked straight into the eyes of his host, "Let me be frank, the sole reason we do not recognise your government is because we do not know – I do not know – where you stand." He leaned slightly forward, "On your eastern borders lies Kyiv, a nation with whom we have had our differences, and to your south lies Ivernia. While I understand your position on Kyiv will be nuanced, I must know this, must we be concerned on the behalf of our Ivernian allies of any threats to their security from the establishment in power here?"

Suleymani knew that this direct approach could either work wonderfully on a military man, unused to formal diplomatic language, or completely alienate the highest authority in the country. But Suleymani knew that a friendly Sikandara would yield greater rewards for Saaremaa, especially now as the new regime sought legitimacy and acceptance in the region and internationally, an effort in which the extensive Sikandari network of diplomatic missions and contacts in various countries could help tremendously. And even if the talks resulted in nothing concrete, at-least the Ivernian government could count on a detailed portfolio on the country's leader, which would help them undoubtedly since they didn't recognise this government and would make Sikandari acquisition of the latest Ivernian advances in aeronautics a smoother process. He leaned back into the chair, folding his arms, his attention fully and completely on the Marshal seated in front of him.

For him, this was a complete win-win situation, internally, he smiled.

 

[Saaremaa]

Mihkel Väinö smiled as he saw that the Sikandari official went to the subject immediately, avoiding the endless oriental pleasantries. But he also was now happy to go to the subject hoping that the meeting would end soon. He didn’t like Sikandari. He was far too arrogant, especially in the tone he used when he asked, like he was questioning the Marshal.

“Your excellency, Kyiv is a communist state. The Stratocracy sees Communism and Post-Delegationism as anarchistic societies. Though Post-Delegationism may be more evolves as they preach for a society without political parties, like us, they were still perverted by anarchy. We will do anything to stop those vile ideologies destroy the minds of the Saaremaan people.

Regarding Ivernia, we won’t harm them in any way as long as they won’t do the same with us. We were friends with Ivernia and we still hope that we can be again. The elections in the beginning of the week and my reform projects may also make them see us with other eyes, thus slowly, we would return to our old relations.”

 

[Serenierre]

Having heard Väinö, and all that he stood for, Suleymani visibly relaxed, knowing that the turn of events in Saaremaa would work completely to the advancement of certain goals espoused by many who thought like him. Smiling, the imperial chancellor sat up straight in his seat, "Forgive me Marshal Väinö for my coarseness earlier... this was something that had to absolutely be dealt with. So to hear your position, directly from you, is something which is a great relief to me..." As he spoke, even his tone had changed, speaking with a lightness which was aimed at making the other man warm up to him after the initial routine. "I am sure, without a doubt that, our Ivernian brothers will reconsider their positions and surely my diplomats will carry the message, with your permission of course."

"But onto more important matters: Your country is bordered by the Kyivian Revolutionary Republic, and we believe that your national security is severely compromised following recent events due to the reactions of foreign powers and, accordingly, we and our Mezhist friends in Swiecziema have come to a joint decision to extend a hand of friendship to your government, seeing the common threat that is posed to our nations by the Kyivian menace. I am simply communicating that desire on their behalf since I happened to arrange a meeting earlier. But our two capitals, as allied states, are quite adamant about securing the position of your rule." Suleymani paused, allowing the suddenness of his proposal to sink in, "Before I hear your answer, I want this to be extremely clear," he said with seriousness, "Saaremaa has a lot to gain by such an alliance and our two nations have a lot to give to shore up your government and its vision... but also remember that this offer is highly confidential and we require an answer at the earliest."

The tension hung heavy in that room. The two men were quiet, only the sound of their breathing could be heard.

"So Marshal Väinö, your thoughts?" the Sikandari man asked eagerly, having already sought the document detailing the specifications and details of any such alliance, confident that the only answer would be an affirmative one.

 

[Saaremaa]

“It is imperative for the Saaremaan people to gain some friends that would support them if the Kyivan People’s Revolutionary Republic is to start an aggression war. That is why we would be happy to have a joint accord of defense against the socialist state. “
Marshal Väinö stopped for a little. He breathed deeply and then continued:

“As much as we want to end the communist potential aggression, we must be aware of the huge territory and population Kyiv and the fact that Saaremaa is isolated from our friends in the Mezhist Union or Sikandara. And again, there is also the potential threat of Sylvanian and Austwegian aggression, as we support the Fennian Union in its conflict with those. That is why we need stability in the region over anything and above that we need to reestablish the old relations with the nations that were friendly to Saaremaa before the revolution."

 

[Serenierre]

"And Sikandara believes that fully and completely. Supporting the Fennian Union is also a priority for us, as we speak His Majesty the Emperor of Sikandara is in that noble land speaking with Marshal Häyhä. Currently, we are looking to a policy being referred to as the 'Nordic tilt' by our journalists and in that let me say we are seeking to be the mediator to resolve political misunderstandings plaguing the countries here and to cooperate to consolidate their security. And this meeting has shown to me that the men in command here are very much friends of Sikandara and of True Civilisation and an official proclamation shall be issued without delay recognising this government as the sole representative of the Saaremaan peoples. We must remain in contact," he said shaking the hand of the Marshal. Embassy staff had already provided all the essential contact details to the government aides and as Suleymani left Saaremaa later that night, to continue his mission on in other parts of the continent, he felt sure that this new friendship would surely benefit Saaremaa in this time of isolation. While on the surface the talks had achieved nothing, they had established a connection, which would be built upon later during subsequent diplomatic meetings and conversations.

OOC: I think the talks really are done.