The Enigmatic Invitation - Levantine Struggle diplomacy thread

[phonicsmonkey]

Constantinople, ancient Byzantium, winding city streets layered in the thick lacquer of countless generations of memories, the lost souls of innumerable civilizations clamouring to be heard amidst the hustle and bustle of daily life. Girt by the impenetrable Bosphorus in whose murky depths lay the detritus of millennia, encrusted with barnacle and shrouded in thick silt.

If all roads in the west lead to Rome, surely even the humblest pony trail in the orient must at some stage in its wending way converge with its multitudinous peers in one hideous nexus on this beating heart of humanity, bringing with it the wayfarers, adventurers, soothsayers, rogues and clergymen cast adrift on the shifting sands of the Levant.

So it is of little surprise that there are to be found within the walls of the mighty Byzantine burg representatives of the major powers of the east: the Crusader States of Antioch and Jerusalem, the Sultanate of the Turks, the Caliphate of the Fatimid Egyptians and of course the Byzantine Emperor himself..each have their appointed persons in situ.

It is of some greater surprise however that these very persons should each find themselves invited, by way of a parchment of unrecognisable seal, delivered by hooded messenger in the dead of night, to a parley of unknown intent, to be held at a disused Basilica in the obscure Sixth Hill district of the city.

And it is to this mysterious rendezvous that we are now ourselves invited, to observe the events which are now to unfold before our curious eyes....

*This is the in-character diplomacy thread for players in The Levantine Struggle hotseat game. Please do not post in this thread unless you are invited to do so by the GM of the game.*

[Cecil XIX]

A man enters dressed in a simple, knee-length chlamys. His cloak is off-white, perhaps from too much time outdoors, and is a bit frayed around the edges. It's only decoration is a cross which dominates both front and back.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

"Well well well, what's all this then? Is there anyone else here bothered at having been awakened at such an ungodly hour just to be summoned for... something?"

He pauses, and looks around.

"Oh. There's no one here. Well if this is another ambush then GET ON WITH IT!"

He pauses again, this time with his head darting to look at every which way. After a while he sighs.

"Man this is boring. I suppose I could leave, but then an anonymous summons in the middle of night just sounds so interesting..."

He takes a seat in the apse vault and waits, his eyes occasionally darting to some shadowy corner.

[Nightbringer]

After a few minutes, the sound of boots on stone becomes audible, and three men march into the room. Two of the men are fully armored in chain mail and brigantine, with masks covering their faces, leaving only their eyes to be seen. The man in the center is garbed entirely in black silks, and from his posture it is obvious he is the leader of the group, he turns his scared and wrinkled face towards the Christian diplomat already in the room and makes a disgusted face.
I wasn't aware that barbarians were going to be invited as well.
With that, he makes his way to the center of the room, turns, and directly faces the doorway, (away from the other diplomat) waiting.

[GeneralHankerchief]

As the various diplomats enter the room, they notice a piece of parchment hastily tacked on to the front door.

The Kingdom of Jerusalem seeks to maintain trade and friendly relations with all powers of the Levant and surrounding areas. Any diplomat proposing such will not be turned away. In addition, the Kingdom hereby and publicly claims the lands of Damascus and Banyas for its own.

[Nightbringer]

Having read the parchment, The Fatimid diplomat burst into laughter
It seems that the so called, "Kingdom of Jerusalem," is too afraid to even show its face at a diplomatic meeting. I wonder, how shall such men fare in battle?
He gestures and one of the men with him hands him a scroll of parchment. He hastily scribbles a message on it and tacks it up next to the one from Jerusalem.
It reads The Fatimid Caliphate seeks to maintain its lands against these Christian invaders, and in doing so, it is first necessary for its armies to forcibly remove them from said lands. We ignore all claims to land you make, for it is not your land to take. If you wish to live, you had best set sail for home now, for a wall of steel is coming your way.

[Lachin]

A person in green enters the room, nods to the men already present and takes a seat.

[GeneralHankerchief]

The Jerusalem diplomat walks in.

The Kingdom of Jerusalem is dismayed to hear of its less-than-desirable relations with the Fatimid Caliphate. We wish to hear of what we may do to improve relations with our Islamic neighbors.

He bows deeply to the Fatimid representative, and does the same in turn to the rest of the diplomats afterwards.

[Nightbringer]

First, sir "crusader," you can leave the Holy lands. You have seized lands from our people, killed them, and defiled our Holy Places. We understand it may take some time for you to leave, so you may begin by handing over the Holy City of Jerusalem.
Second, you will pay reparations in the form of 50,000 florins over the next 10 years for the damage you have caused,
Third, you may inform your overlord the pope that if he sets his dogs on us again, not only will we whip them, but we shall come and take his head to make sure it doesn't happen a third time.

Turning to the Byzantine diplomat
My apologies if I seamed overtly rude earlier, but I took your cross to mean you were one of these crusaders. I still do not agree with your choices, but my people have no hostility toward your nation.

turning to the man in green
Hello, and who might you be?

[GeneralHankerchief]

The Kingdom of Jerusalem regrets to inform the Fatimid representative that it cannot accept those terms as it would mean the cessation of its very existence. However, as a counter-offer, we are willing to cede Ascalon and 5,000 florins for peace.

We also take offense to the Fatimid representative's accusation that we defiled their Holy Places, as it was their previous Caliph Al-Hakim's unwarranted destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and your persistent warring with the Turks over the site that prompted us to come in the first place.

[Nightbringer]

hmm, that shows remarkable good will. I am surprised. Perhaps you Crusaders are not all vicious dogs. Very well, the Fatimid Caliphate shall accept 5000 florins and Ascalon and remain at peace with you. But be warned, if we hear that you have committed any atrocities, you shall pay.

Our armies will be there to claim Ascalon soon, and many of our troops will likely move east of you to bring some rebellious tribes back into the fold of the Islamic Empire.

[Lachin]

I am Lachin, servant of sultan Nur-ad-Din. :nods:

[_Tristan_]

A tonsured monk walks serenely into the nave of the basilica, perusing both the artwork decorating the walls and the persons assembled. His age is undefinable due to the deep tanned and wrinkled skin of his skull, giving an impression of old age immediately contradicted by a youthful glimmer in his eyes. Though clearly a man of the cloth by his robes, one cannot help but notice the mail hauberk worn underneath, nor the scabbard holding a broadsword of Toledan steel hanging from his belt.

Fellow conspirators, bonjour (turning to the Jerusalem emissary)... As salaam alaikum (turning to both the turkish and egyptian emissaries)... Hephaistos (turning to the byzantine emissary)


Please excuse my tardiness but my mule is not as fast as an arab mount...

I'm Frère Laurent, sent to this assembly by the noble Prince of Antioch, Bohemond the First, to speak in his name and make and receive diplomatic offers to your own rulers.

Antioch regrets the state of war that exists with the Turkish Sultan. It allowed many petty chieftains to rise against their betters and ravage the Holy Land.

I have just arrived here and so do not know the stance that has been taken by the Sultan Nur concerning this state of affair.

(OOC : Tosa : to which account should we direct any PMs ?)

[TosaInu]

(I'll check Lachin daily or more often).

[Lachin]

What is the state of affair are you talking about Frère Laurent?

[_Tristan_]

The state of war between our kingdoms that allow petty chieftains to ransack the Levant, defying both your master's power and mine

[Lachin]

I've heard some reports about this Frère Laurent.

[Nightbringer]

We have not yet received the payment and city of Ascalon. Our armies will be camped near this city, if we do not receive it and the payment promised we will see that you are a liar and will take it by force.

Turning to the Seljuk diplomat
We would greatly like to engage in trade with you, please send your diplomat to finalize this agreement if you wish this also.

[Cecil XIX]

Having been napping for some time, the Roman emissary awakes with start.

Eh? Apologize? He looks at the Egyptian. Ah, well that's fine I suppose. I wear this cross because I am the Grandmaster of the Knights of St. John, an order founded by the most noble Makedonios Ksanthopoulos under the reign of Aleksios Komnenos. We are not a crusading order, but our mission to protect pilgrims in the like. Your confusion is understandable.

What is not understandable is how you say you have no hostility towards us. I suppose you're going to just hand Egypt back to us then and return to Arabia?

[GeneralHankerchief]

Turning towards the Fatimid diplomat, the representative from the Most Holy and Noble Kingdom of Jerusalem raises an eyebrow.

Sir, neither the speed of our diplomats nor their number is infinite. By the time this deal was agreed to, the Kingdom's sole emissary was already on his way north. Rather than have him turn back, it was decided that King Baldwin recruit a second emissary for the specific purpose of liaising with you for this endeavor and all future negotiations that may arise. He is in the process of being trained in the diplomatic arts as we speak, and will make his way south upon satisfactory completion of his training. Patience, you will have your payment in due time.

Additionally, there is also the option of your own personal emissary approaching our territory to hasten the negotiation process.

[Nightbringer]

Turning towards the Fatimid diplomat, the representative from the Most Holy and Noble Kingdom of Jerusalem raises an eyebrow.

Sir, neither the speed of our diplomats nor their number is infinite. By the time this deal was agreed to, the Kingdom's sole emissary was already on his way north. Rather than have him turn back, it was decided that King Baldwin recruit a second emissary for the specific purpose of liaising with you for this endeavor and all future negotiations that may arise. He is in the process of being trained in the diplomatic arts as we speak, and will make his way south upon satisfactory completion of his training. Patience, you will have your payment in due time.

Additionally, there is also the option of your own personal emissary approaching our territory to hasten the negotiation process.

Unfortunately, our emisary became somewhat lost and found himself in a small village in the desert. (occ: seriously, the fatimids only get one diplomat and he is right in the middle of the desert way to the East at the start of the game. The nearest thing is one of the eastern Turkish cities which is two whole turns away from where he starts. WHY WAS HE THERE?!?!)

[GeneralHankerchief]

The Kingdom of Jerusalem would like to report that we have finished the training of our second emissary and he will be in a position to officially negotiate the handover come next campaign season.

[Nightbringer]

Sir Crusader, we can see that though you may speak as one who wants peace, you do not act as such. We see that you have razed the buildings of Ascalon merely to obtain cash for yourself, we also see the numerous spies and assassins you are sending into our lands. In light of this, we must demand that you hand over Karak, fully intact, in addition to Ascalon and 5000 florins, in order to make up for this hostility towards us.
If you refuse, I think you shall find you have more than just us to contend with.

[GeneralHankerchief]

We have done no such thing in razing the buildings of Ascalon. King Baldwin simply refused to order any new construction as soon as it was agreed that Ascalon would be handed over (OOC: phonics, check through the saves, I'm telling the truth on this one). In addition, none of our agents are in Egyptian territory. The deal will remain as it is, and we will not allow your false accusations to pressure us into further concessions.

[Nightbringer]

(OOC: don't worry about checking the saves phonics, this isn't a rule's issue, he would be perfectly within his rites to have raised the buildings, plus, I believe him)
Hmm, perhaps you are telling the truth about ascalon, but I can assure you, as you apparently have utterly lost control of your own agents, that they are in Egyptian territory. They must leave immediately, and we will know if they do not.
We revoke our demand on Karak however, but demand an additional 1000 florins, bringing the total to 6000, due to the delay and the presence of your agents.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Firstly we would like to apologize to the Fatimid Sultanate misidentifying the position of our agents. Upon further examination of the most recent maps, it has become clear that one (and only one) of our agents is, in fact, Egyptian territory. However, he is also right near the border and is monitoring the progress of a large host to make sure that it does not advance on Jerusalem territories once the handover is completed. We do not apologize for ensuring that the deal remains unviolated.

However, two other agents of ours that you most likely speak of are in Ascalon's province, which still belongs to Jerusalem. As such, they have every right to be there and King Baldwin will not remove them until the transfer is complete, at which time you have his every assurance that they will retreat to further Jerusalem territory.

Furthermore, King Baldwin wonders how the Fatimids could be so well-informed of our agents' presence in our home territories unless of course you yourselves have agents of your own in the territory. Normally we would call you out for hypocrisy on this issue, but we will overlook it seeing as how the province will change hands shortly and you could just be setting up to make the transition easier. However, we refuse to pay the extra 1,000 florins.

[_Tristan_]

Sitting apart from everybody, Frère Laurent seems amused by the constant haggling between the Crusaders and the Fatimids.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Dear Egypt:

We cannot peacefully hand over Ascalon to you if our diplomat mysteriously disappears in the desert, never to be heard from again.

Love,
Jerusalem

[Nightbringer]

Excuse me, but this is the last straw.
We had nothing to do with the disappearance of your diplomat. We did not even have a chance to attack him after he was trained, so we can guarantee to the court that this is a fabrication by the Crusader states to prevent their handing over of Ascalon.
Our every suspicion has been confirmed about you crusader dogs. You lie and make false accusations, deny your own actions, refuse our demands, NO! You have stalled enough! This means war!

[_Tristan_]

To untrained hears, only a few words can be heard coming from the corner where Frère Laurent sits...

"... biting more than he could chew..."

[Cecil XIX]

The Grandmaster leisurely strolls back into the Basilica.

"My my, isn't it a nice day. I can understand why no one wants to spend time here. But don't you all think we should discuss the Principality of Antioch's sudden, unprovoked and unannounced invasion of Anatolia? Or how they assassinated my Emperor's beloved eldest daughter, Maria? Now if it were me, the fact that the Roman Empire is the toughest outfit around would be enough to justify going to war. But I'd make a big show of it and get everybody pumped, you know?

He turns to the Antiochean monk.

So why don't you explain yourself?"