Interstellar Age

After much effort to convince the Dvrakian Consortium to agree with the Germanic Star-Empire's demands. Erich was now faced with an extremely difficult task. He had to say goodbye to S'aleth yet again, and so soon after reuniting with her.

He had only just begun to scratch the surface of their relationship in this world. And yet he could no longer stay in the world of Thexkar and court the young alien beauty. Instead, he had to return to his home. However, while he was brooding in silence within his temporary quarters, Tia reminded him of a valid proposal that would allow him and S'aleth to continue to regularly see each other.

"Master, I am sensing that you are distressed over the idea of leaving behind your alien lover. If you don't mind, I have an idea on how to take her back with you to the Empire's capital..."

Erich looked over at Tia's holographic projection, which displayed itself inside his own head via his NeuroLink system. He was confused at first, that is until the aritficial intelligence began to speak again.

"According to the Empire's records, there has not been a proper ambassador to the Empire from the Dvrakian Consortium in approximately 127.3 years. Now that the Empire is formalizing ties to the Dvrakian Consortium through a temporary military alliance it stands to reason that an Ambassador should be sent to the Empire's Capital.

It makes sense from S'varin's position to send a member of his own household to Germania. After all, he is the architect of this alliance, at least so far as the Dvrakians are concerned. And since you hold an esteemed position in the Empire, and are already favorable towards S'varin's daughter, it won't take much to convince him of this matter...."

Erich wanted to smack himself in the head for not thinking of this opportunity. Now that Tia mentioned it, it was a kind of obvious. But then again, it relied on the knowledge that Dvrakia currently had no embassy on Germania, or an appointed ambassador. Thus, Erich actually had a reasonable explanation for now thinking of this.

With a confident smirk on his face, Erich complimented Tia before dusting himself off and heading towards the Governor's Palace on Thexkar where he could meet with S'varin before his appointed departure.

---

Soon enough Erich arrived at S'varin's office, where he was permitted entry. S'varin was slightly surprised by this fact, and was incredibly busy making preparations for the ongoing rearmament campaign that he was personally in charge of.

Yet, since the beginning, he had suspected that Erich had a far more important position in the Empire than just a mere adjutant, and thus he made time for whatever reason Erich had to approach him.

"Captain Jaeger... I was not expecting your visit. This is a surprise, but a welcome one nonetheless. I pardon the appearance of my office, but I am dreadfully busy now that the Consortium will be going to war for the first time in over a hundred years. But that's none of your concern. Tell me what can I help you with?"

Erich wore a confident grin as he sat down in front of the Dvrakian Governor before making his thoughts heard.

"It has come to my attention that the Dvrakian Consortium does not currently have an embassy on Germania, nor do you have an appointed ambassador. These re-armament efforts will take years, and since our two races will be shedding blood side by side in the face of the looming threat. I feel it is a tad disrespectful not to have such formal ties established between our two civilizations."

S'varin was stunned into silence by this statement. He had also completely forgotten the fact that there was no ambassador currently. He quickly looked into his computer to find that this concern was most certainly valid. Once he had done this, Erich proposed an offer he couldn't refuse.

"If you and I are discussing this right now, then you can bet the other members of the Assembly are as well... Tell me Governor... After all the work that the two of us have put into building this alliance, do you really want someone else to gain the advantage by having a member of their household represent the consortium?

If you ask me, it should be a member of the house Tavarian who represents the interests of the Consortium in this alliance. Do you not agree?"

S'varin smirked when he heard what Erich was saying. He leaned back into his chair and placed his the back of his head in his palms while looking at Erich with a confident expression.

"I knew it... You're not a just a simple Adjutant are you? What's your real position in the Empire? After all, to approach me and suggest an ambassador, you must have enough power to approve their entry into the Empire do you not? I know your people are extremely strict on just who can enter the Empire's borders, and that includes foreign envoys."

Erich returned the man's confident grin, with a slight nod of his head and an admission of his current status within his homeland.

"If the Empire were an actual monarchy, you would be referring to me by the title of Crown Prince. We have yet to announce this to the public due to my condition... But the leaders of the party all agree that I am the chosen successor to the Supreme Leader... I hope you now understand the level of importance that my people have for this alliance..."

S'varin was blown away by this fact. He suspected that Erich was the governor of one of the systems that bordered the Dvrakian Consortium, but he had never expected that the man was actually the heir apparent of the Germanic Star-Empire.

With this knowledge, things started to make a lot more sense about the interactions between Karl and Erich, as well as the fact that Erich had commonly acted on behalf of the Empire without waiting for the Deputy Leader's permission to do so.

Thus, S'varin wore a wry smile as he shook his head and admitted defeat.

"Your people are far more cunning than we give you credit for... Most of the galaxy considers the Germanic race to be a bunch of dumb brutes, in a similar regard to the Orcs. I'm glad to see that we were mistaken. So tell me, Mr. Crown Prince... Is there anyone in mind you had from my household that you wish to serve as our ambassador to your people?"

Erich leaned back in his chair, and pressed his fingers together as he spoke a single name aloud, one that shocked the Dvrakian Governor.

"S'aleth..."