Runepolis, Holy Mirishial Empire

Pleasant sunlight shone through the tinted glass windows of the main altar of Albion Castle, bathing the entire room in an ethereal golden glow. This design aspect allowed for an atmosphere where it truly seemed as if the gods themselves had descended to bless this room. Kneeling in the center with his eyes closed and hands holding magic gems, Emperor Mirishial remained still, silently uttering prayers to the gods.

In the midst of his prayers, his ears twitched imperceptibly, leading him to finish his thoughts. As he spoke the final few phrases to his prayer, the magic gems died out. Their glow diminished as they began to fade away, dissolving into an ethereal mist. Mirishial then opened his eyes and without turning, commanded, “You may speak now.”

“Your Excellency,” the man behind him spoke with a barely noticeable shakiness in his voice, “I’ve just received word from the delegation we sent to the dragonfolk in Eimor. They’ve made use of the magic gems we gave them, and their seers,” he said, pausing to regain his composure, “have determined that…” He gulped. “The Ancient Sorcerous Empire will be returning in less than two decades.”

Silence befell the room as Emperor Mirishial swallowed the information. He stood up, asking, “Do we have a more accurate timeframe, Liage?”

Liage nodded his head, but soon realized that Emperor Mirishial couldn’t see him, as his back was still turned. “To a small extent, Your Excellency. Their best estimates place the return of the light-winged bastards around fifteen years from now. They anticipate an error bound of three years.”

Mirishial sighed. He finally turned around. “So, the time has finally come upon us… Do we have any word from Siwalf or Phiam?”

“Yes,” Liage bowed as his emperor’s gaze graced his presence. “Minister Siwalf’s delegation disembarked from the Galatine in favor of a quick return from Otaheit International Airport. They are waiting for us in the Foreign Affairs’ main conference room. Minister Phiam’s delegation left the United States yesterday, but had to resupply in Altaras for more fuel. They should be arriving in several hours.”

“I see. Have Minister Siwalf prepare his discoveries and reports while we wait for Minister Phiam to return. Summon Ministers Pao and Brinston; I think they may find these reports… informative.” Emperor Mirishial walked past Liage. “In the meantime, I have an urgent meeting to attend to.”

——

Castle Albion, Imperial Office

Standing alone outside the door, Emperor Mirishial placed his hand on the cold, metal handles. He hesitated, finally letting some of his emotions leak out into the world after bottling them up for so long. He sighed heavily, and allowed no more of his feelings to manifest as he quickly steeled himself and entered as if nothing had happened.

Inside, two men awaited him. In a rare moment of transparency, they both had their white masks removed, revealing their identities. One of them, a brash, middle-aged human by the name of Hirkane Parpe, represented one of the most important figures in the entire Holy Mirishial Empire. As the director of the Mirishial Ancient Arms Department, he exercised control over ancient weapons left behind by the Ravernal Empire.

An aging elf sat across from him, his appearance very much resembling that of a professor at a university. Serving as the director of the Mirishial Preparations Department, Birkburn led the Holy Mirishial Empire’s defensive operations with regards to the Ravernal Empire. He managed budget constraints and allocated resources in order to prepare for the inevitable return of Elysia’s conquerors — duties that have grown increasingly important as of late.

“Your Excellency,” they simultaneously got up from their seats and saluted Emperor Mirishial.

“Let us get started with this meeting,” Mirishial said, his urgent action reflecting the magnitude of the imminent threat. “Our envoys to Eimor have discovered that the Ravernal Empire is returning in around fifteen years. Due to this, I will be opening up our treasury to expedite our preparations. Birkburn, coordinate with the Ministries of National Defense and Military Affairs. Prioritize research and the construction of our new weapons: the Orichalcum Class, the Alpha-4, and so on. Hirkane, this may be the time where we can start to forego secrecy in favor of faster results.”

Hirkane gave an expression of uncertainty, tilting his head as he began to open his mouth in protest. Before he could say anything, Emperor Mirishial continued, “Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean a complete announcement of the existence of your department. The MNN will release this troubling news soon. In the meantime, I want you to expand your recruitment activities. If you see promising individuals in our universities or one of our empire’s innovation firms, seek them out and bring them into the fold. If we are to readily defend Elysia from her ancient tormentors, we must be able to understand the technology that has been left behind.”

Moved by Emperor Mirishial’s reasoning and determination, the two men nodded, dedicating themselves to their new orders.

“Now, I think there may be some information that might be useful. Siwalf and Phiam, along with their respective delegations, should be waiting for us by now. Let’s see what they have discovered.”

——

The shuffling of chairs accompanied the arrival of the meeting’s officials as everyone took their seats around the grand circular table. Placed in front of each seat were stacks of papers — copies of reports that the delegations submitted. Rising up from the dull soundscape of papers shuffling and nervous tapping, Emperor Mirishial’s voice broke the silence. “I’ve heard many rumors and tales of these two countries. It brings me great contentment that my curiosity will finally be satiated. Siwalf,” Emperor Mirishial nodded at him.

Taking the cue, Minister Siwalf recounted the details in his report, starting with his first impressions of the Gra Valkas Empire and culminating with a summary of his encounter with his Gra Valkan counterpart. “Unfortunately, this Mister Dallas proved to be quite an annoyance. He carried himself like some hoodlum, like some barbarian from the great south. He demonstrated no semblance of proper diplomatic etiquette,” Siwalf ranted, “He even disrespected our status as Elysia’s greatest superpower, likening us to Leifor and lambasting our ‘arrogance’.” Siwalf calmed down after feeling his cheeks heating up. As he allowed the redness to subside from his face, he continued, “I apologize for the outburst. I wished so much to berate that hypocrite.”

“I understand, Minister Siwalf,” Emperor Mirishial said. “You performed your duties well. We may have suffered a blow to our pride, but we will inevitably demonstrate how wrong they are. Hopefully, the unprofessionalism of this single diplomat doesn’t reflect the attitude of their leadership.” He then turned to Zammas. “Now, what of their technology? Zammas, you may speak freely.”

“Thank you, Your Excellency. Included within the report are sketches of Gra Valkan vehicles, from their battleships to their aircraft. Officers Pasha and Gorms helped provide their initial insights. I suppose I could begin with their naval vessels,” he sighed. Reviewing his descriptions once more, he recognized how fantastical they sounded. He would have considered his own writing unbelievable, had he not seen the Gra Valkans with his own eyes. Hoping his colleagues would take him seriously, he began, “Their naval vessels, at first glance, are similar to those of Mu. Made of steel, their designs share many characteristics with Muan warships, although the Gra Valkan ships seem to be larger in size. Gra Valkan fleet doctrine revolves around maritime air superiority and battleships, accompanied by plentiful escorts.”

Zammas analyzed a sketch of the immense warship they encountered as they entered the waters of Leiforia. “Their standard battleships are on par with our Gold and Mithril classes. However, we happened upon one that dwarfed even those — one so large that our ship looked like a Muan destroyer in comparison. Based on visual inspection, this ship boasted a length in excess of 800 feet, its topside completely armed with massive cannons. Most notably, the ship had three triple turrets…” Zammas began to sweat, still in denial of the sights he saw. “We estimated their caliber to be around eighteen inches.”

“Preposterous!” A voice immediately shouted.

Liage held his hands up, “Let’s not get too excited, Minister Brinston. Like he said, the estimations were done via visual inspection, of which the duration was likely short. Officer Zammas, please continue,” he said.

“Sir,” Zammas nodded. “While the estimations of their warship do seem unbelievable, we have matched its description with those from surviving Leiforian military personnel and even Muans who had the opportunity to see it up close during a diplomatic encounter between the two nations. There may be some room for error, but I stand by the analysis of the ship’s guns. Moving on,” he said before anyone could protest, “Gra Valkan ships were noted to have metal constructs atop their masts. They also employ many aircraft carriers, and the number of destroyers they have incorporated into their fleets suggest that they are experienced with maritime aerial warfare. The aircraft we spotted, which we assume to be ground-based, have a top speed that clearly matches — perhaps even surpasses — the top speeds of our latest fighter aircraft and the speeds of wind dragons.”

Gasps of surprise erupted from the non-diplomatic personnel. Curiously, Phiam’s delegation demonstrated no surprise at all. While everyone was still too stunned to speak, Zammas continued, “Finally, we attempted to catch a glimpse of their army units. This was something we could not do, but we did receive the opportunity to view their civilian vehicles — which suggests the capability for rapid deployment — and their guards’ weapons, which are short-barreled machine guns. We assume they are a more advanced version of the submachine guns that Mu recently developed.”

Discussion swelled up amongst the top military officials within the room. It died down once Emperor Mirishial put his hand in the air, a signal that everyone received and promptly reacted to. “Director Freeman,” he said, “What do you think of the information acquired by Officer Zammas?”

Arneus was still in a state of disbelief, but he affirmed his trust in Zammas. “I can’t quite believe what I’m hearing, but I do also believe that Zammas is telling the truth. Minister Siwalf, do you corroborate the information provided?”

“I do,” Siwalf said. “I may not understand the terminology, but I have seen the things he has and can attest to his credibility.”

“That settles it, then. We will move forward with the given assumptions. This means we will have to take the western giant more seriously from now on,” Mirishial decided. “Now, what about the eastern giant, the United States of America?”

Phiam summarized his eventful journey throughout the United States, quickly skimming over his impressions on their tourism and then going into detail regarding his meeting with the American leader, President Lee. “Their president’s abode seems to be quite humble, but the amenities are certainly fit for a king,” he commented. “He, along with his administrative staff, expressed great desire to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with us. This includes trade and potential knowledge exchanges: magical technology for scientific technology.”

“That sounds excellent. Before we work on terms, however, we should know more about what they can offer us. Officer Rydorka, what have you found?”

Rydorka felt the same pressure experienced by Zammas, albeit amplified tenfold due to the even more ridiculous descriptions of American technology. He calmed himself down by considering the broadcasted MNN interview, along with data from Mu and the Parpaldian Republic. At least he had some basis for the claims he was about to make. “We haven’t been able to see much of their naval technology; we only saw a few ships docked in their San Diego port. Of these ships, most of them had singular cannons. They looked advanced, but unthreatening. If the tales of guided light arrows are to be believed, then their cannon armament makes sense. They may have developed a means of fighting far more powerful than ship-based artillery.”

Murmurs of agreement swept the room. Everyone thought back to the descriptions of such guided explosives during the Lourian and Parpaldian wars.

“Although we weren’t able to glean much of their navy or army, we certainly saw a considerable demonstration from the Air Force. In fact, our very first encounter with the Americans involved aircraft, whereby two of their fighter craft escorted our plane to their airport. They broke the sound barrier by a significant margin, producing shockwaves as they soared past our plane. While impractical for conventional dogfighting, speeds like this are practical for deployment and what they term as ‘BVR combat’. Evidently, their guided light arrows are capable of striking targets farther than the eye can see, using unknown technologies.”

“I notice you say ‘Air Force’. Does this mean it is a dedicated branch?” Minister Pao asked.

“Yes,” Rydorka nodded. “It was once part of their Army, but split away as air power became more important. I don’t know if this is true, but a common point of pride among these Americans is that their Navy owns the second largest Air Force in the world, with the United States Air Force, of course, being the first.”

“To make such a claim… That would imply that the air forces of other nations couldn’t even come close. Just how powerful were they in their old world?” Freeman wondered.

Rydorka recalled his interactions with American military personnel and citizens who were military enthusiasts. “I’ve been told that the United States shed the term ‘superpower’ in favor of a more fitting one. They grew so powerful that they came to be known as a… ‘hyperpower’.