As we headed into our audience with the Lady Celine, I was definitely not in the frame of mind to meet the Holy representative of a Deity in the flesh. My thoughts went back to what Phee had told me when we were in the jungle together; about the Fire Monitor attacking her village and nearly wiping her people out.

She had mentioned it so briefly that I never gave thought to what the actual experience must have been like for her. She’d been only 17 at the time and while she said she’d lost a lot of family and friends, I hadn’t given thought to how that might have scarred her even years later.

As Phee walked next to me, I felt like nothing more than to hold her and console her for what she’d experienced. I wanted to tell her I was sorry for not realizing the trauma I was putting her through by tussling with that Kino idiot and also for understanding how she reacted.

But I couldn’t do any of that now.

We were on the clock, with our one chance of salvaging the Guild ahead of us and I needed to focus. Being there for Phee, was unfortunately going to have to wait.

As we passed through the marble clad halls of the City Hall, out footsteps echoed noisily off the walls that were adorned with huge murals and tapestries. Many were coats of arms of what I assumed were the various guilds. Others were pictures of castles and other places across the world of Grandia. I recognized what had to be the desert and the great city of Aziz, but there were other locales that I had no clue of where they were. There was a castle atop a snow covered precipice somewhere and what looked like an entire city built into a forest of giant trees. Truly amazing stuff and places I even hoped to see one day.

As we rounded a corner, we entered a long corridor with a set of double doors at the far end a good fifty feet away. Through a small gap in the doors I caught a glimpse of a woman dressed in blue, standing before a large glowing portal with her back to us.

“Yes, I know what we’re expending fighting the hedonic kingdoms to the east,” the woman said, her voice strong and assertive as it echoing down the hallway to us. “But we’re doing the best we can with the mana shipments.”

“Excuse me a moment,” Percival said rushing forward ahead of us. “It’s seems the Lady is still engaged.”

“That’s not the point,” a man’s voice came back through the portal. “We’re risking half the treasury on this experiment of yours and it needs to produce results. That canal needs to be completed within one year not two!”

I slowed down out of respect, but couldn’t help but listened in on the conversation as it continued down the hall. I figured that had to be the Spirit Link that Percival had mentioned. Some magical means of communicating long distance, or so I assumed. But with a name like Spirit Link, it was equally possible she was communing with the dead.

“My method will produce the most fit and practical Guild for the job,” the woman, Lady Celine, I realized, said. “Otherwise the money will be wasted, like always. You can’t select the best Guild for this work based on how well they perform on a battlefield!”

“Daughter, House Ifrit has lost many souls defending our homeland and they have offered to do the work for ten percent less than what you have offered to pay.”

“Yes and take twice the time to do it? Didn’t you just say we need it done in one year instead of two?”

Only a year? I thought. Holy crap! And I guess that Kino dude wasn’t bluffing about that call being about him either. Looks like House Ifrit was trying to underbid everyone else. But from the Lady Celine’s reply it didn’t look like she was having it.

“We owe them a blooddebt of honor, Vendria! I implore you! Take the deal now!”

Percival finally reached the end of the corridor and rushed through the doors pulling them closed behind him. The conversation continued even as we reached the doors. It was too muffled to hear anything clearly, but I did hear a lot of shouting. It didn’t last for much longer however and after a moment more, Percival poked his head out again.

“It’s time,” he said and beckoned us forward. He then opened the doors wide and announced in a loud voice. “My Lady, may I present to you, Guildmaster Cole Jacobs of House Velmar and his entourage.”

I strutted in, putting on my game face, but sweating bullets on the inside. I glanced at my companions and noticed they too looked equally nervous. Even Devena who usually wore a condescending bitch-face had switched to a more neutral gaze as she entered the huge office.

Dealing with the political level of an organization was always tricky. You had to balance between being respectful and not blatantly obsequious and annoying. And nothing ticked off an actual politician more than realizing his ass was being kissed.

But I had to admit, kissing this particular ass would be kind of a privilege.

I’d heard the stern, no nonsense voice, but I didn’t expect it to be attached to such an attractive face. The Lady Celine looked perhaps in her fifties, with a conservatively styled head of neck length blond hair that was bordering on platinum white. Her features were elegant but strong, a mature woman who knew how to issue orders, and get things done. The Gladys Grumm of the jungle, I decided. I pegged her as a bit of a hard ass as well from the faint scar on her chin. Back on Earth that could mean anything, but in a world where people fought actual monsters, maybe she was a warrior too.

Or at least had been in her younger days.

She followed me with her piercing grey eyes as she sat behind a sizable desk that was completely empty safe for a single sheet of paper and a quill-tipped pen. From what I could see behind the desk, she had a slender figure that was tucked neatly into a royal blue dress, which I was quickly learning was the official color of the Commission. But in addition to that, she wore a gold broach on her left breast of what looked like a mermaid with wings. Upon closer inspection I saw it was not a mermaid exactly but a naked female upper body with the lower half of a snake instead of a fish. A Naga, if I remembered my D&D compendium correctly.

I gave her a pleasant smile as our eyes met, but she didn’t return it. I then noted an almost imperceptible sigh escape her lips. That wasn’t a good sign. I noticed her skin too, which was quite tanned was also flushed about the face, perhaps still agitated by the conversation she’d just had. I tried not to let it affect me as Percival brought all four of us to a halt before her desk.

“Mr. Jacobs, may I present to you, her Holy Majesty, and representative of the most High and Excellent Emperor Talus the IX, Holy Emperor of Grandia, the Lady Vendria Celine of Celt, Heir to the House Celine and High Commissioner to the Vult Exploration Concern.”

Holy shit what a mouthful, I thought, but kept my actual mouth closed.

“Before you even say anything, my answer is no,” she said curtly. “The only reason I’m even meeting with you, is because Percival said you actually hailed from a distant realm called Earth. Is this true?”

It took me moment process what she’d just said. Did she just tell us no right off the bat? If so, I’d certainly called it right. This was like dealing with Glady Grumm all over again. I was stuck as to what to say next, so I tried to answer her direct question at least.

“Ah, yes…your Majesty, I do—”

“Holy Majesty,” she corrected, glancing away from me and down at the paper before her, writing something down. “But I suppose your lack of protocol speaks truth that you hail from beyond our borders at least. But I’m having trouble believing you actually came from a different world.”

“It’s all very real and true, your Holy Majesty!” Yunni suddenly piped up. “I casted the spell myself which brought him here. He didn’t even want to come at firs–”

Devena suddenly jabbered her in the side and Yunni quickly shut up after squeaking out a faint, “Sorry…”

“Er…yes,” I said trying to cover for her. “I am from a place called Earth. A place where the person you know as the Great Sage of House Velmar originated.”

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Failure

-50 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: -50 Indifferent

“Any fool could make up lies while standing on his feet,” she said, writing something else down. “Do you have any proof of what you claim?”

“Proof?”

“Yes proof,” she snapped. “Physical evidence of what you claim.”

I could tell this was going to be a tough sell. I thought back to my clothing, but I’d trashed it all once I’d gotten my new duds. Crap. But then remembered I did have something in my pocked that I though was worth keeping. I reached the vest of my new apparel and produced by dead cell phone. “Would this do?”

Percival quickly collected it from me and handed it to Lady Celine.

She examined it, staring at its surface from the side as if it were a knife. Then she flipped it over and stared at twin cameras on the back next to the Samsung Logo. Her eyes went wide as she looked back up at me.

“I see you speak the truth,” she said and my relationship with her jumped up by 200 points. “I’ve never seen anything like this, save for notes I’ve seen within the archives. What is it?”

“It’s a….” I nodded to the now empty frame which moments ago held the glowing portal. “It’s like a Spirit Link, from my world. People use them to communicate to one another.”

“So small?” she asked.

I nodded. “The technology is very common where I’m from so nearly every person has one these days.”

“Technology,” she said, handing it back to Percival who gave it back to me. “Is that like magic?”

“It is where we come from, yes.”

“I would indeed like to hear more of your world,” she said.

“Well I can tell you–”

“Not right now,” she said, cutting me off again. “I have other pressing matters to attend to. I will summon you at a more appropriate time. Percival will see you out and collect your contact information.”

She stopped speaking after that and continued writing, which I understood now, probably didn’t have anything to do with us and was just her multitasking during our meeting. Percival smiled and cleared his throat, ushering us towards the door. “If you’ll step this way.”

We began to depart and I could see the despair in my companions’ eyes. Yunni looked like she literally wanted to cry. Devena looked pissed, assuming to her perma-scowl-bitch-face again and poor Phee looked relegated to hopelessness, her big shoulders nearly dragging on the ground. I felt the pressure mounting as I took the first step. I’d be way out of line to say anything further right now, I realized. Percival had given us our shot, but we hadn’t done much with it.

The Lady Celine had shot us down right from the start. Even her interest in me being from Earth was luke warm. I had to do something to turn this around and my opportunity was closing by the second.

“Tell me something,” I said stopping, my back still to her. “What do hope to hope to accomplish with this little competition of yours?”

I could feel her eyes burning into me like lasers. When I risked a look over my shoulder the look of indignation on her face was intense enough to melt lead.

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Great Failure

-400 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: -450 Very Negative

“How dare you address me out of turn!” she shouted, her stern, no-nonsense voice returning. “I’ll forgive you this once, outlander, as one who doesn’t know our customs, but do not take liberties with me or my patience again.”

My butthole tightened like a kid getting balled out in front of the class, but I pressed my ego to not let it show. If there was one thing I had learned about women like Glady Grumm, it was that no matter how tough they were, they would still respect an Alpha male. And right now, I needed to be Alpha as fuck.

I put on my best smile as I turned fully about. “I meant no disrespect, your Holy Majesty. It’s just that, in my world, the method you are using is somewhat commonplace and the right way to go in my opinion, I might add. Fair competition is no better way to identify the best candidate for a job.”

Her eyes lightened at that, the way I hoped they would. From her conversation earlier, it was clear a competition like this was something new to them. Even her own father, if that was indeed her father she was speaking to, was against it. No better way to gain favor with a girl, than to side with her in a war of words against dear old dad. My gamble paid off with a +200 to our relationship meter, confirming I was on the right track, but I was still -250 in the hole.

“And having a fixed price per mile certainly controls your overall cost,” I added. “Very smart, but have you given thought to how are you going to control your delay risk?”

The meter jumped up another hundred points as her stare of indignation became a furrow of curiosity and mild concern. Her conversation had given me my second piece of ammo. Time was a huge factor in this, and by the rules of the contract, one she hadn’t fully considered.

“Delay risk?” she said.

“Yes,” I said. “The risk of delay. Time. Sure you might pick the Guild who can cut through one section of the jungle the fastest, but when they hit the real job, what if they run into hardened rock, or a cave left by a worm burrow that needs to be filled in with a mountain worth of earth. They might takes months to progress a single mile. And while you’ll only pay them for that one mile, you’ll still be behind three months. Not to mention that they might spend so much money on that one mile that they reduce their ability to complete the rest of the task and end up forfeiting the entire job.” I paused and then added with dramatic effect. “And then this attempt will end like all the others. The Vult undefeated for yet another 100 years and your legacy as High Commissioner will stand as bitter testament to that.”

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Major Success

+200 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: 100 Slightly positive

Her countenance changed as she suddenly became the student in front of the teacher now. I breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. I’d just taken a big risk with what I’d said and it could have gone either way. If she was a hardheaded narcissist, it would have been a negative reaction for sure. But the fact that she was open and humble enough to see truth in the criticism of a stranger, told me a lot about her. This wasn’t just a tough women…this was a wise woman as well. And that was a good kind of person to have in power.

Still, as wise as she was, this was all contract management we were talking about and while I knew the principles like the back of my hand, for the lady Celine it was a new and evolving concept, spawning from within her own mind.

“So…what would those on your world do to accomplish such a task?” she asked.

I cheered inwardly as the asked the question I was steering her towards. “We’d build the risk into the competition. We’d have the Guilds compete as you have, but compete by submitting a price and a time to complete the work, not just a demonstration that they can perform it.”

“You’d allow the Guilds to name their price? That’s preposterous!”

“It’s not when they each knows the other is doing the same,” I said. “And they will compete by lowering the price, not raising it. Then you can add penalties if they are late and rewards if they are early. That way you end up with the best price for the fastest Guild who has built in incentive to work as hard and as fast as they can at all times.”

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Great Success

+300 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: 400 Positive

A lightbulb went off in her head as she stared at some blank space in front of her. “By the Goddess… that makes sense.”

I had her hook, line and sinker. I just needed a way to steer her back in a direction to actually helping us now.

“Yes…but as you’ve already set up this competition this way,” I said disheartened. “It’s a bit too late to impose all that now.”

I watched her expression as she puzzled through everything I’d just said. She was still staring into space, trying to figure things out. I risked a look to my girls, and they were all staring at me with their jaws on the floor again. Devena and Phee seemed more in shock that I had managed to speak to the High Commissioner in such a way, but Yunni seemed in actual awe, perhaps understanding what I was talking about. Phee reached down and grabbed my hand and gave it a firm squeeze while giving me an affirmative nod.

A silent “well done”.

Her faith in made gave me courage and I pressed on with my final checkmate play.

“But there is something you can do to achieve the same thing,” I said tauntingly. “Even with the method you have set up now. It’s possible.”

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Success

+100 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: 500 Very Positive

“And what’s that?”

“I didn’t see a time mentioned in the rules, so you set the time you want,” I said. “And then for each day the winning guild beats that time they receive a bonus payment. And for each day they are late, it will take away from the reward.”

Our relationship increased another 100 points as she nodded and finally I saw her smile for the first time. “I will consider that. Thank you very much, Guildmaster Cole Jacobs.”

Holy crap, she remembered my full name too? Now was my chance if I ever had one.

“Speaking of consideration,” I said. “We were hoping you would give us consideration regarding your edict that Guilds must be in good standing to participate. We’re a bit behind on our taxes you see and—”

Negotiation versus Lady Celine: Failure

-0 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: 500 Very Positive

“Vice Commissioner Percival already explained your situation to me,” she said. “And as I stated from the start of this meeting. I will not help you with that.”

I was thrown for a loop yet again. I’d just pulled our relationship from minus 500 to plus 500. Why the hell wasn’t she helping us?

“But, I’m the heir of the Great Sage,” I said trying another angle. “The legendary Guildmaster who constructed the whole of New Haven. I just gave you great insight into your own competition­--factors that you never even considered or knew about. Don’t you think it would be a huge travesty for us not to compete based on a technicality such as unpaid taxes?”

The Lady Celine cradled her forehead and breathed out a sigh. “Guildmater Cole, as you have helped me as you said, I will in turn give you the respect and honor of being very plain with you.”

Oratory versus Lady Celine: Success

+100 Relationship

Current relationship with Lady Celine: 600 Very Positive

Whoa another increase? But it still didn’t sound like she was about to help us.

“I am not one to so easily reveal my hand at play,” she continued. “But the fact that an heir to the Legendary Great Sage has somehow arrived on the eve of greatest, most risk laden venture I have ever embarked upon, has not been lost on me. To be clear, it is nothing short of a miracle from the great Goddess Lythandra herself. An answer to my very prayers, and reinforcement that I am on her divine path.”

I blinked at her stupefied. I wasn’t expecting that kind of candor or explanation. “I see…”

“However,” she continued. “I am also trying to change the way my family goes about both our business and our relationships with the guilds. For too long we have played favorites, the tax condition you speak of being no exception—an imposition by the Emperor and a begrudged compromise on my part.

“But such actions over the years have been to our detriment. More than a few wars have even occurred, as a result. When one guild gains the favor of the Emperor’s eye, it means strife and turmoil for all the others. I seek to undo this imbalance created by my ancestors. But to do so I need to gain the Guilds’ trust and show them that I am a fair and honorable ruler in the eyes of the Goddess. The people must know that I am completely unbiased and dedicated to the will of the Goddess and the good of the Empire only.” She then looked me in the eye. “So that means, Cole Jacobs, when a Great Sage of the long dead House Velmar suddenly appears asking for special favors, I have to resist my carnal urge to do away with my plans for fairness and appointing you via divine edict, and instead force you to follow the same rules as everyone else and pray to the Goddess that she puts you in place as the one she deems fit.”

I was blown away by what she’d just said. I don’t think I’d ever received such a complement and vouch of confidence in my whole life. I shared a look of incredulousness with my companions. She was actually rooting for us now. Unbelievable.

“And so House Velmar,” she said, finally looking to my companions now as well. “It is with a somewhat heavy heart that I must reject your petition for special consideration and insist that you find the Eight Thousand Two Hundred and Twenty Seven gold to pay your back taxes within ten days so you can fairly compete in the competition to finally execute the Great Vult Canal Project.”

I nodded to her, impressed she knew the exact figure in her head.

“We will, your Holy Majesty” I said, fully understanding what constraints she was under and what was truly at stake for her now.

“There is one mercy I can offer,” she said. “Percival, ensure they are signed up for the Expo.”

I recalled Kino mentioning something about an expo, but I didn’t know what it was. “What is that exactly, your Holy Majesty?”

“A chance for you to showcase your Guild to the people of New Haven and more importantly the craft guilds.”

“Craft guilds?”

“Masons, iron workers and the like,” Percival explained. “Along with the general labor guilds such as the Goblin and Orc unions.”

“Holy shit, they got labor unions here too?” I said with a laugh, but then quickly silenced myself when I saw the look of shock come from Lady Celine. “Sorry, your Holy Majesty.”

I expected another relationship decrease, but instead I got a little bump as she gave me a cute little smile.

“Yes the exposition is important for you,” she said. “So I encourage you to attend. It will be a good time also, so don’t feel pressured. It’s a friendly event. Besides being a part of the competition, it’s also a chance for me to throw a celebration. Living this deep in the Vult, people need outlets for entertainment so any chance I get to keep the morale of the populous up, I take it.”

I was starting to respect this lady more and more. She might be as tough as Gladys Grumm, but she was lightyears ahead of her when it came to true poise and leadership. This was no bossy bully, this was a true stateswoman—a Lady and a scholar indeed.

“There is no stipulation on you being in good standing to participate in the Expo, so again I encourage you to attend.” She then smiled directly at me. “I would relish a longer conversation with you about the world you come from as well.”

She smiled at me again, but this time in a way that gave my loins a little tingle.

“The Expo is in three days,” she said. “Till then I imagine you will have a lot of work ahead of you, Guildmaster Cole. I suggest you get to it.”