A Meeting to Remember

A Meeting to Remember is a piece of literature that tells the story of the first meeting between the nations of Geltisch Handelsrijck and The Fallen Empire of Einsiedeln. The piece is written from the third person perspective. It was written by BelgianFries#1181 on August 24, 2022.

= A Meeting to Remember =

Context
Geltisch Handelsrijck, the third state to ever unite The Geld restarted the relations between the two countries. 2 years and 3 months after the founding of Geltrijck, their king, Zephyr Pradox reached out to the Einsiedelnisch Princess, Emelia. They scheduled a meeting at Schwarz Palast for a week later, but when the Geldish delegation arrived, they were told that there was no meeting scheduled. It became apparent that when the letters were translate from Geldish to Einsiedelnisch, the translator wrongly translated the month from (3rd month name) to (4th month name). After this discovery the Geldish delegation went back to Handeldam.

They came back again the next month, at the original date for the Einsiedelnisch side. At the meeting attended by the Geldish king Zephyr Pradox, the Geldish Senator Kadrys van Zyl and the Einsiedelnisch Princess Emelia, a Non-Aggression pact was signed along with a cultural book exchange.

A Meeting To Remember (GC Year 2 Month 4) Zephyr woke up to the sun shining very brightly, almost blindingly into his eyes. He knew what day it was. An hour or so later, he was out on the streets of Handeldam, walking to the Senate. That’s where his trusted senator and friend Kadrys van Zyl told him they would meet before embarking on their small journey. His carriage was already waiting for him in front of the building, with horses and guards next to it. “Where is Sir van Zyl?” Zephyr asked his assistant. “I’m not sure Your Majesty. He could still be inside the building, I heard he had some documents to sign and read before leaving.” the man replied. The king took one look at the door and walked towards it, entering the Senate building. He went to the archives and there he was, Kadrys van Zyl. “Kadrys, we will be leaving shortly, how long do you still need to finish your work?” Zephyr asked. Sir van Zyl, visibly thinking, answered slowly; “Maybe twenty minutes or so, my liege.” he answered. Sir Pradox nodded slightly and left the room, heading back to his carriage.

* It had been slightly more than an hour when Zephyr exclaimed outside the building.* “Sir van Zyl, we are leaving, come here!” after a short pause, a voice was heard from inside the building; “Don’t wait for me, Your Majesty. I will catch up to you shortly!”

* If you say so my friend* Zephyr thought to himself. “Let’s go then!” the king told his men.

At once Your Highness.

The journey wasn’t a very eventful one. Zephyr Pradox read some notes left by his assistant on things he shouldn’t forget about the Einsiedelnisch etiquette along with some scrolls about their culture and recent history in the carriage. The scrolls didn’t have much detail and only had small bits of reliable information. Zephyr was left very interested, but with no way of getting more information, he sulked and tried to get a small nap in.

The smell of rain was a fond one for Zephyr, he had always liked to watch the rain and let the moment sink in. He was interrupted this time though, by a knock on his carriage’s door. “Your Majesty, we have arrived.” he heard from outside. Steadily, he stood up and opened the door. Looking at his surroundings, he let out, “So this is their capital, Schwarz Palast.”

It looked half-dead, though that was to be expected of a city recovering from The Solemnity.

“Where is it that I will meet Princess Emelia, and where is senator van Zyl?” Zephyr asked his assistant. “I will lead you to the building where the meeting will take place, but for the latter, I have no answer.” the man replied.

Walking through the streets of the capital, there were people, though not comparable to the streets of Handeldam. The grey clouds and rain perfectly fit the gloomy atmosphere. The signs were comprehensible to Zephyr as he had studied Einsiedelnisch when he was younger, though not on a level to communicate decently. The guards stopped in front of a big building, looking a lot more polished and well-maintained than the others. “This is where the meeting will be held, The House Ascania Manor.” his assistant said.

“Noone is waiting outside for us, I guess we’ll just knock on the door?” Zephyr said, almost questioning himself. *knock knock*. “I am Zephyr Pradox, koninch of the Gelts, I come for the meeting scheduled for today with Princess Emelia,” he exclaimed. They waited for a few minutes but the door didn’t open. Right as the king was about to knock again, the door opened in front of him and he half-punched the air. “Greetings Sir Pradox, sorry for making you wait but as you probably know, I am blind. It takes me a little while to find my way around without help.” the princess stated. Zephyr replied quickly, “It is a pleasure to meet you, m’lady.” *How come I wasn’t notified that the princess was blind, that doesn’t sound like a minor detail to me* he thought to himself as the princess let him through the door.

They sat down and started talking. “So, why is it that you wished to meet today?” Princess Emelia asked. The answer was fast, almost like he was prepared for this exact question. “Well, our people feel a strong connection to Einsiedeln’s people. Our cultural, historical and linguistic similarities speak volumes. I think you know that too, don’t you?” Zephyr replied in a calm tone. The princess's eyes weren’t visible because of her crown. Her long black and white hair seemed mysterious but beautiful at the same time. Her white clothes looked good on her because of the contrast with the red cloak over her shoulders. The cloak looked like linen, no actually it looked like it was silk. It shined brightly even though the room wasn’t illuminated well. “I do not know much about your history or culture I am afraid, though I would love to listen to you if you wish to teach me something,” she said. Zephyr had mixed feelings about that answer. How could a foreign ruler know so little about a neighbouring nation they were meeting, especially seeing as they had close ties before? On the other hand, he loved teaching others about Geldish history and culture. That is why he had written a book about it in the first place. “I won’t turn down that offer m’lady, I must admit that I quite like telling foreigners about our culture and history. Probably because I feel a good sense of pride in that.” Zephyr said smilingly.

The two talked for a few hours about Geldish culture and history, occasionally talking about Einsiedelnisch history too. Midway through his sentence, Zephyr realized that they had completely swayed from the reason for his visit. “I would love to tell you more, maybe next time though. I am afraid we have swayed very far from the purpose of my visit. I shall be straight-forward with you m’lady. I come here seeking a Non-Aggression pact. It would hurt me and my people if we were ever to enter a conflict against Einsiedeln. I find that reason enough to nullify the chance of there ever being a conflict between our two lands. For as long as I reign, and hopefully after that too. Call it an everlasting bond if you will.” the Geldish king said. The princess didn’t take that long to answer. “I think that the feeling is mutual. It would be beneficial for both of us and our people to sign such a treaty,” she replied, smiling ever so slightly. “Well then, what about we a book exchange too. We can gift books about our culture and history to Einsiedeln’s archives and you could do the same for us. I see you are eager to learn anyway.” Zephyr said, hinting at their previous conversation.

* sounds of a galloping horse coming closer* “My liege, it is me! I am sorry for the delay but I am here at long last.” a voice could be heard shouting outside the manor. “Would that be the senator you were talking about?” the princess said, trying not to laugh. “I’ll open the door for him.” Zephyr had forgotten that the princess was blind at that time. He let her walk slowly and cautiously to the door, meanwhile wondering why she was being so slow.

The princess left the room to get the senator. When coming back, senator van Zyl was helping her walk. Realising what he had forgotten, he whispered something to Kadrys’ ear after he sat down. “Wait, you knew she was blind?”, “Yes my liege, it is common knowledge that Einsiedeln’s ruler has lost her vision.” Zephyr whispered back a little louder and frustrated “It seems so.”

Now that the princess had sat down too, Zephyr introduced his senator to the princess. He offered that they talk a little bit while he wrote down what would become the treaty. “Excuse me but I think I left my book and quill in the carriage, I shall be right back.” He got up from his chair and hurried to his carriage. It didn’t take long for him to find his equipment, fortunately. He was back in a few minutes. “Welcome back my liege,” Senator van Zyl said. Zephyr nodded at him and proceed to sit down. “I have noticed that your people respect you deeply, sir Pradox. Your carriage driver, your guards, your assistant and now also your senator all speak very respectfully to you. I hope I can get that level of respect from my people one day.” Princess Emelia said. Zephyr smiled, “you flatter me, m’lady. I am sure that you will be respected by your people as your reign continues and you help them recover from The Solemnity.” The princess nodded, though almost unnoticeable.

Zephyr started writing. He had become pretty good at cancelling out voices while writing because of experience. After what seemed like an hour, he had a treaty written down. It’s done. The king cut Kadrys’s sentence short. “You can read the treaty and if you think that it is good and well, you can put your signature down in the designated area.”

There was a moment of silence. “My liege, I think you may have forgotten that Princess Emelia cannot see.” Zephyr’s face turned red, he was happy that the princess couldn’t see him at that moment. “Oh, I am really sorry. I’m forgetful as it is, but today has been worse than usual.” the king said quickly. The princess didn’t reply. “I can read it out loud for you if you want, but I’d understand if you wouldn’t trust me with that.” The king let out. “I have a servant that usually helps me with written documents.” The princess said finally. “She should be standing on the right if you take the stairs to the upper floor.” Zephyr got up and went upstairs. Indeed, there was a young woman waiting there. “Princess Emelia asked for you,” Zephyr said to the woman. She hurried into the room, not saying a word. Zephyr took his time walking back. Taking deep breaths and exhaling. *Everybody makes mistakes once in a while Zephyr, it's alright* he thought to himself before entering the room.

The woman had already begun reading the document for Princess Emelia.

After a few minutes, Princess Emelia had heard everything. “This sounds fine to me,” she said while signing the document. “I am happy to announce that this treaty between our countries is now official. “ she added. “This is a great day for Geltrijck and Einsiedeln.” Senator van Zyl said. “Indeed,” Zephyr affirmed the statement. “We should shake hands, as is the etiquette in Einsiedeln I heard,” Zephyr said while raising his arm for the handshake. “That is right,” the princess replied, as she shook the king’s hand. He didn’t understand how she knew where his hand was, but he knew that he was in no position to ask that question.

This time, he offered to help Princess Emelia while she tried to stand up. The princess nodded. They left the building, the weather had cleared by then. “Your Majesty!” the Geldish guards bowed as he exited the manor. "Thank you for agreeing to this meeting. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance and meet you, Princess Emelia.” Zephyr said. “Same here, m’lady.” Kadrys van Zyl said. The princess smiled back. “It was a pleasure to meet both of you as well. I wish you all the best and a safe way back.” The king and senator nodded simultaneously.

'''An everlasting bond. Geltrijck and Einsiedeln.'''