I am very eager and excited to attend the Second Pigletville Ball, should you have me. I would be most grateful if you would have me and some of my guests at your ball. I would also be grateful if you would be able to accommodate some of my staff.
Ayuda was showing more guests in when he suddenly cocked his head. "Directive. Representative from NPTO Nation to Pigletville Ball. Forwarding to Akerman for background checks. Replying to the sender with acceptance," he said before returning to normal. The advantage of having an artificial intelligence was his speed and multitasking skills. He sent a transmission to the president that said:
Transmission:
Dear Mr. President:
The Office of the King has received your letter and will be processing it for criminal activity. Of course, as you are a beloved member of the North Pacific Treaty Organization, your check has a huge chance of success and we hope to be seeing you at the ball soon.
Associate Minister of Information
This transmission was sent via the GusNet. Please do not respond directly to this transmission. All concerns should be sent to Kyle Hall at khall@gusnet.org
Meanwhile, back at the ballroom, a woman wearing a huge feathered dress made her way onto the stage, escorted by two militia guards wearing feathered armor on their shoulders. This was Debra Leopard, who was the Minister of Entertainment. While neither the Ministry of Entertainment or the Ministry of Dragon Affairs were considered to be a part of the major Cabinet, Debra liked to wave her title in the air. She tapped the microphone on stage, and whether people were listening or not, she was going to speak. "Good afternoon everyone, and welcome to the Second Pigletville Ball! My name is Minister Debra Leopard, and I represent the Ministry of Entertainment. Now, when Minister Beier first approached me with providing entertainment for this event...," she began.
Baldwin rolled his eyes as he listened, not only had she gotten his name wrong, but she actually thought he was the minister who was now dead. As Debra went on about how she was the region's greatest minister, Leah talked to the Kannexan prince, who was now approached by Atlas Shaw. She didn't know the relationship between the two, so she kept a close distance to make sure peace was kept. "Sure, I'll have a drink," she said, extending her hand toward the Kannexan prince. She actually had spoken to him this long, and did not know how old the prince was. "Wait, are you even old enough to drink?" she asked, now quite curious.
On the other side of the ballroom, Captain Reynolds, Hilley's Chief-of-Guards, was now putting Minister Hall in handcuffs. "Sir, you have the right to remain silent," he said, as Hall kept bickering with the server. "Should we take him outside?", asked one of the guards. "No, no, just keep him under tight guard and let him roam around as he pleases in those things," said Reynolds as he made his way back to Hilley.
Back with the Syrixians, Margaret was approached by a younger girl. "Mom, where's Leah?", she asked. "Excuse me, you guys may go ahead, I've got to speak to my daughter," said Margaret, turning to the girl. "Lily, she's a minister, she is probably with a diplomat, what do you need?" she inquired. "Leah and I have performances tonight," replied Lily. "Okay, I'll search her out for you," said Margaret as her daughter ran off.
At the front of the ballroom, Akerman got the transmission from Ayuda. "Check!", she yelled, before handing the half-drank bottle of whiskey to the Cronaali delegates and walking off. Hilley, now free, walked over with his wife to the table. "Hello, how are you guys?" he asked with a smile.
Back at the stage, Debra had just finished her ten minute speech. "Now, without further ado, directly from Miragea, GU, we have one of Guslantis' own Japanese pop stars with our first performance of the night!" A woman took the stage in a beautiful, flowing gown, and the music started.
Prince Reinhard's brown eyes sparkled as he lead Charles to the table. Couples were beginning to sway to the soft music now and everywhere people in fine dresses and suits flocked together like birds seeking conversation and drink. Guards in full livery held their posts at the doors; a sense of security filled the room despite the outburst. This was the high life, the one Reinhard was so used to. Reinhard noticed Debra Leopard and paid brief attention but then continued to the table. "Hmm, ich?" A bashful smile took over, partly obscured by his curly black hair. Reinhard was seventeen, but his shoulders were wide for a boy's. He was also tall, as tall as most men. As a child he had been chubby, but when he was thirteen his parents had forced him into wrestling and other fighting sports to prepare his looks for the Kannexan paparazzi cameras. He supposed, now it paid off. "Well, in my country, I am able to drink," Reinhard responded. It was not really a lie.
Shera looked half-dead, the speech had not done wonders for her attention span, she felt quite relieved that Sebt had brought them to the bar, ordering a glass of red wine each before he made his way to mingle with other leaders. Their uniforms somewhat contrasted with the other guests but it made it easier for her to keep an eye on him as he mingled. She noticed he was closing in on the Syrixian party. She sipped her wine, in spite of her stern look she was quite beautiful, her steel blue eyes contrasting with her olive complexion. She sighed, not quite sure what to do with herself.
"It is good to see you as well!" said Alec with a happy smile on his face. "Now tell me, what's it like being minister of information? Tedious? Exciting?" Before Alicia could respond he continued, "I applied to become deputy minister for foreign affairs so I could travel, instead of sitting around in committees or something. They actually picked me. That's why my nickname around parliament house is wonderboy. After I secured my country's position as a permanent member of the Peace Council, the government was all over me. I mean, even the king said I was good. Now I'm a permanent rep. So tell me, how'd you get your portfolio?"
(OOC: Sorry for the absence, it's like there was a war or something. )
Charles smiled at the seventeen year old. The Minister of Human Services knew that he would not be given a drink by the Guslant bartenders, so she escorted him to one of the bars. "One glass of white wine please, and give this gentleman a drink of his choice," said Charles to the bartender. "Okay, let me check the system," said the bartender as she went to a computer system and checked the drink count of the two. To track that none of the delegates went home drunk, all bartenders tracked the alcohol intake of each of the guests. Leah looked at Akerman's count, who was definitely at the highest. "Um, Minister Charles. The man is not twenty-one and the King has ordered us not to serve those who are minor," said the bartender. "One moment," said Charles, taking out her smart phone. She tapped the GusNet app and spoke into the phone. "Pigletville Ball: Order 34, System Override," she stated. "Access accepted. Thank you for using the GusNet," said an automated message of Ayuda. Leah looked back at the bartender, who saw that the Kannexan prince now appeared on the list, along with the rest of the minors. "Let me guess, you want the prince's rejection overridden?", said the bartender. Charles nodded as the bartender adjusted their counts. "Have a great day...," said the bartender, handing the drinks to the duo. Meanwhile, Alicia looked at Alec with awe. Even though she didn't really like him, she couldn't help but feel this was who she was destined to be with. "Well, I actually started my career at the Boreaux Academy, let me tell you the story...," she said before beginning.
Cafeteria
Boreaux Academy
Pigletville, GU
(Twenty-Three Years Earlier)
The fourteen-year-old Alicia sat at one of the lunch tables with the pieces of an AI she was making. The sixteen-year-old Leah was talking loudly to the crowd behind Alicia, and Alicia tried her hardest to ignore her. "You should've seen the way that Hunter looked at me! He is soooo cute! I totally want to date him," said Leah, talking about Hunter Hilley. "A little quieter, ma'm, I'm trying to work here," said Alicia, rolling her eyes. "Why is the nerd talking to me?", said Leah, turning to face Alicia. "Because instead of talking about some future diplomat, I'm actually working on a project," remarked Alicia. "Whatever, I'm just saying he's cute. Not that you'd ever know what a guy looks like," argued Leah. Hunter approached the group and looked at Leah. "Hey pretty lady, want to be my girlfriend?", he asked Leah. "Of course," replied Leah, overjoyed. "I wouldn't do that," said a projection of a small thirteen-year-old kid. "The odds of him actually being your soulmate are low," he said. "What is that?", asked Leah. "I'm Ayuda. The Advising Yet Unkind Digital Assistant. I know that you don't understand this but...," he said before glitching and turning off. "Crap. That was where that code went missing from. I need to fix that," said Alicia, beginning to repair him. "Good job, nerd freak. You broke your only friend," said Leah, laughing at Alicia.
Grand Hibernal Ballroom
Beier Manor
Pigletville, GU
(Present Day)
"Hunter and Leah had a decently successful relationship. Ayuda got me discovered by Kyle Hall. Hunter was salutatorian, and I was valedictorian," said Alicia, finishing the story.
Shera smirked as she watched the proceedings along the bar, sipping her wine softly "Its good to see someone unafraid to ignore the lesser rules." she chuckled "and a young man who knows what he wants..." A little drunk but still in control "Grand Legate Shera Goltah, I'm here to stop the Khan boring everyone with diplomatic talk and actually have a night off for once... And so far I have had zero success and a half bottle of wine..." She sighed exasperatedly.
(World War III: The Sequel you've all been waiting for! Is no excuse young trousers! *bangs cane on footstool* )
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