Chapter 72: 071 A Dying Light

The negotiations between the Terrans and Holifanians had concluded for the time being. In the Arboreal Maiden's eyes, the fruits of the proceedings had proven to be more than satisfactory. Per her role as the ceremonial overseer and de facto advocate for the rights of those being integrated, she ended up not having to speak, which only made her that much more pleased. The Theocracy, Montaug, had not made moves to pressure Donovan and Diana into accepting something they didn't want without compromise, and they were extremely transparent with their intentions.

In comparison to the other integration negotiations she had proceeded over in the past, the Terrans had received a particularly beneficial deal. The fact that the Holifanians were willing to spend the time and resources to set them up on a Verdant Globe of all places meant that Donovan and Diana would have a solid economic base so long as they could secure a source of manpower.

Of course, she was well aware that the Holifanians were aware of the nature of the goals the Great Csillacra had, at least their highest ranking individuals were. More than that they were willing participants, hence their historical ties to the Sanctum. The Arboreal Maiden was of the mind that their apparent eagerness to help them was a bid to further their collective goals in a safer and more constrained manner. The bishops probably only understood the end goal and requirements to begin, but were uncertain about how exactly the best way to proceed was. As a result, their commitments were tamer than they could have been, focusing instead on future potential and placing the duo in a prime strategic location.

Having a buffer state would certainly be helpful for the Theocracy, but they didn't really need one. The truth of the matter was that it was the Terrans who would benefit more from the arrangement. Once they began to border the Theocracy, they could completely ignore that border's security. The principles of force concentration, something so basic that even the Arboreal Maiden could see them at a glance, would permit them to expand further and faster as a result.

Even as they walked out, exchanging words with the Librarian at her encouragement, she could vaguely surmise that the Terrans were still blind to this facet. They were, understandably, operating under the assumption that the Holifanians wanted something from them in turn. There were benefits to this, namely breeding caution, but it could be a hindrance in some ways as well.

Regardless, one of their top priorities would have to be securing manpower. This made the small framed individual bowed before her all that more valuable.

- - - - -

"What is it you wish to confide, little one?"

Titanyana, unsure of how best to demonstrate submission in the face of absolute authority, was as close to the ground as she could possibly get while still maintaining the bare minimum level of dignity. She hadn't expected that she would have the opportunity to converse with the Arboreal Maiden, so she had not brushed up on her manners.

"Please save my people."

Titanyana did not beat around the bush. She had heard stories of the Arboreal Maiden's abilities, among them being able to see through lies and deceit.

"Your people, the Nekh?"

"Yes!"

Titanyana did to dare lift her head for fear of making eye contact, completely forgetting about the blindfold. She could vaguely feel something passing through her, analyzing her, reading her, and suppressed the shivers that lingered as the sensation passed. Whether or not this was the work of the Arboreal Maiden or merely a figment of her imagination didn't matter, she wouldn't be able to hide anything regardless.

"Well, chances are I will not be able to provide the assistance you need, but I will hear you out all the same. Speak, child, explain to me your plight." A wave of relaxation washed over Titanyana at these words, the work of the Arboreal Maiden no doubt.

"My people, my planet, my star, they are all dying! I have it on good confidence that we will be reduced to nothing unless we are evacuated within the next five years. Our crops don't grow as they should, our livestock are weaker than we can afford, and our children die before they reach adulthood if they even make it out of the womb! Please!" Titanyana turned a teary face to the person above her. "Please help us!"

If there was anyone she could expose her people's biggest vulnerabilities to, it was the person that did not care about such matters.

"Have you not tried migrating to neighboring countries? Would they not be willing to take you in?"

"Absolutely not! We would be treated as slaves, if we are even permitted to step foot on their worlds in the first place. I cannot throw my subjects to the wolves like that, not without exhausting every possible option first!" Titanyana shivered at the thought. Her 'neighbors' were nothing more than organized bandit kingdoms.

The Arboreal Maiden remained quiet for some time, thinking. Titanyana could not help but wonder what someone like her could be pondering, especially in this situation. Was she being brushed off? Not out of the realm of possibility given her duties, but Titanyana found it unlikely that someone as serious as her would completely disregard the matter at hand.

"Could you tell me more about your situation, that is in more detail? I feel like I might be able to offer you a solution if only I knew what options are available."

"Of course!" But where to begin? Surely not the beginning right? She couldn't possibly be interested in the vague history of the past thousand years could she? Besides, she didn't even understand when everything started going downhill anyways, none of her people did. To her knowledge it was an extremely gradual shift, tectonic in nature.

"From what our legends say, our star was a vibrant shade of yellow upon our integration, and remained that way for quite some time. Eventually, though, we began to notice that it wasn't quite as yellow as it should have been, through subsequent centuries witnessing it become more and more orange. We have made many attempts to avoid the effects of it, from territorial expansion to the import of devices to increase the local concentration of split, but there was only so much a single planet nation could do, especially when we also had to worry about being attacked by other powers eager to expand."

"Are the Nekh not notorious for being incredibly difficult to fight?"

"A reputation we gained at great cost, my lady. Easy though dispatching an invading army may be, in the time it takes to rally a counter-offensive much damage can be done. I have heard tales of entire continents being subjugated, plundered, and its inhabitants enslaved before the invaders could be driven off."

"I see, continue."

"Of course. As I was saying, our attempts at expansion were consistently thwarted by other nations, and eventually we simply lost the ability to mount an invasion ourselves. With the loss of our ability to purchase ships due to not being able to make money, we eventually gave up on that idea and instead focused our efforts on rejuvenating our star. I will admit we descended to some degree of barbarity in our desperation, human sacrifice and blood rituals surfaced for about a century until we saw they weren't working. Despite our best efforts, our star just kept getting redder and redder."

"No doubt, it was foolish of you to think that stars could be manipulated in such a way by mere mortals." The Arboreal Maiden sighed at the arrogance, almost in complete disregard for the little Nekh's pride. 

"In our defense, my lady, what else could we have done? Nothing else had worked!"

"True, I apologize for my rudeness. It's just that it saddens me to think that someone would be forced into that level of desperation. In spite of my best efforts, nothing seems to change on that front, does it?" The latter half of that seemed more like she was musing to herself than carrying on a conversation.

"My lady?"

"Ah, it was nothing. Is there anything else you think I should know?"

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"Nothing that comes to mind."

"Hm."

With that the Arboreal Maiden reclined in her seat, letting the backrest take the brunt of her weight. She was silent, thinking no doubt, all the while exuding an air of tranquility Titanyana did not think appropriate for the situation. Then again, she had probably done this whole song and dance before.

She was incredibly old after all.

Titanyana justified it by imagining she was thinking about how to make this a neutral exchange. Surely if there was something she could do she wouldn't hesitate, she just had to worry about procedure or something, right? Surely she wasn't going to be told no again was she?

Surely not right?

Titanyana couldn't tell, but she was on the verge of a breakdown. If the Arboreal Maiden rejected her, there really was no hope, was there?

"I'm sorry, little one, but I don't think I can provide the help you need."

'Ah, its over then?'

She hadn't been stabbed through the heart before, but she could imagine it felt something like this.

If she wasn't already on her knees, her legs would have given out. If her tail wasn't already neatly curled below her, it would have dropped limp like a beheaded snake. If her body had the strength to, her ears probably would have fallen flat in depression. If she had a blade on her, she might have made an attempt on her own life.

Not much point in heading back alive if she was just going to end up dead anyway.

"However, I think you might find there to be someone else far more responsive to your pleas for assistance than this rigid organization I am a part of."

Immediately, her ears perked up and her tail returned to life. Hope was a hell of a drug. Cut its use cold turkey and you end up wishing for death, but introducing it in even the smallest dose could revive the dead.

"Who? Please! Please tell me! I need to know!" Titanyana was poised to pounce on the Arboreal Maiden in an involuntary bout of excitement. "Even if they can only take on the women and children, I would be willing to give them my everything."

"Calm down, young one, you already know them."

"I do? The Holifanians?" They were the only ones she could think of. Nobody else she was acquainted with fit the bill as being strong enough to carry such a burden, and yes, her people were a burden.

"Oh heavens no. You would have more luck convincing the dead to rise. The other ones in the room tonight."

The other ones in the room tonight? Could she mean...

"Donovan and lady Diana?"

The Arboreal Maiden only nodded silently. She almost seemed smug about it, almost.

"But how?! Forget people, they don't even have a navy!" Her concerns were valid given the current paradigm. "Even if the Holifanians offered their aid, I doubt they could muster enough ships to ferry even a thousandth of my people to a safe haven."

"I would not underestimate their capabilities on that front, little one. In fact, I believe it would be best if you rid yourself of any and all expectations of them that are based on your knowledge of information unrelated to them. I believe it is fair to say that they are in the midst of creating a grand armada as we speak. They have that capability."

"But there are only two of them!"

"It is precisely because there are only two of them that they are more likely to be accepting of your proposal. They need people, trusted allies, more than just about anything at the moment. Even if you are weak, a billion people is still two billion more hands than they have available to them. I'm sure I don't need to do the math for you to understand how much of a leap four to two billion is?"

"No..."

"I think it would be best if you became citizens of their nation, whenever they get about to officially forming one. Trust me when I say that your people will not be treated as slaves. It is almost an inevitability that they will be blessed with a standard of living more akin to royalty than peasants."

"You would suggest we swear fealty? Even if they were gods, my people would not submit to rule by only two people." Titanyana was well aware of her people's relatively rebellious nature, even if it was subdued by the current crisis.

"Not fealty, loyalty. They have no need for subjects, they prefer equals, underlings at worst. Even if they set up some form of autocracy, something that is likely to occur given their unique situation, I can guarantee that you will have a great degree of freedom. Perhaps more than you already enjoy."

To Titanyana, this sounded like a joke. They would be under an autocrat yet given unparalleled freedom? What sort of insane leap in logic would that require? And yet here the foremost authority on, well, authority, was telling her this with a dead serious face.

"I will speak to them about it, though I encourage you to bring up the topic yourself. The sooner you open up to them about it, the earlier they can make plans for it." With that, the Arboreal Maiden stood up and made for the door. "Now that I think about it, now is probably a good time to teach them how to make that."

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