Diplomacy was more than holding a meeting, making demands, and negotiating a treaty. It was hard work, and many behind-the-scenes maneuverings included details left to Gwen and Zui to deal with. Details they didn’t have much time to work with because of the haste with which the Hindel had responded.

Both women had proven helpful as the days had blended into weeks, and we had managed to complete the Dojo and begin organizing the Xiwang and Myche Fief. They had worked hard to turn volumes of information gathered throughout my Fief into concise reports that were condensed for me to understand easily. Reports and memos that freed me to work on cultivating and training. I would have been hard-pressed to find enough time in the day for everything if they hadn’t.

I wasn’t sure what I would have done without the political savvy of Gwen or the organizational abilities of Zui, and I didn’t want to find out. They made what was a daunting task manageable.

I hoped to found and build a government around people just as capable. A fool’s dream, perhaps. But even if it became impossible to find people as skilled as they were, I would still select the best available. The citizens had endured enough corruption, and I needed to fill positions with talented people, more importantly, people who could empathize.

I believed people that were paid well were less prone to engage in corruption or sabotage. I was positive that people that enjoyed their jobs and were supported and respected performed better.

We had traded a few missives with the Hindel Alpha and her pod before the meeting, enough to iron out any last-minute details. The fact missives could travel to depths deep beneath the ocean had been another reason for their popularity. Communication between our people would have been much harder without the missives and was probably the main reason no one had attempted to break the monopoly Clan Velize maintained on their production.

The missives worked and worked well. For now, they were the only way to coordinate the meeting. They made it possible for us to notify the Hindel of the change in venue for the setting of the planned meeting.

The coral reef that ran parallel to the coast and protected the bay that Xiwang abutted ranged from a mile to ten miles from shore. Atid procured one of the boats the divers used when farming the coral to ferry us to the location I had chosen and for us to use as a staging platform.

Since I was only taking Atid, Gwen, and Zui with me, I would be able to surround them in a Qi bubble to keep them dry until the environmental arrays of the pavilion were activated.

The place we selected as a meeting place was nearer the surface, only about 120 feet deep. As Elves, with our natural accumulation of Qi, that depth was nothing. We could survive depths about twenty times that distance without worrying about issues of pressure or decompression when surfacing.

Our capacity to withstand the extreme pressure from such deep dives was why the farmers without cultivation could harvest the reef. The Qi that even a non-cultivator circulated as a natural part of homeostasis allowed for deeper dives and their ability to hold their breath longer.

A talented diver could survive up to thirty minutes without needing to surface and breathe even without equipment to augment that ability. None of them relied on that method anymore. The use of talismans allowed them to work naturally while underwater. Atid had procured each of us one of those talismans, a trinket I hadn’t realized existed. They made swimming easier, as I wouldn’t need to cycle my Qi to maintain an air pocket for the three of us, which Zui could manage on her own.

The ocean’s water would have been cooling and refreshing if I’d allowed it to reach my skin, even warmed by the sun’s rays. My Fief was located in a tropical area for this world, and the temperatures and humidity could get oppressive for some. Now that the Bay was being cleaned and the sewage that Chon had allowed to be dumped into the ocean removed, swimming was a part of daily life for most citizens.

I enjoyed the surreal beauty of the ocean as we descended, reaching a small pavilion that Zui had had erected for this meeting. It had been built using arrays that would provide a suitable environment for both Hindel and Elf alike. An innovation of runic craft that monitored the Qi emissions of any individual and adapted the environment to conform to their needs.

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The Hindel would be able to move, breathe, speak, and eat in comfort. The area surrounding them flooded with ocean water. While Atid, Gwen, Zui, and I would remain dry and enclosed in pockets of air.

Gwen had someone supply a bounty of food for this meeting. A buffet of fresh raw fish. Sushi, ceviche, and carpaccio all lined a banquet table, the dishes arranged in eye-catching displays of decorative design, highlighting the chef's knife skills. The chef had also included a few cooked dishes, soups, chowders, and gumbos that gave nuance and flavor to some of the rarer fish he had sourced.

There was a pair of guards stationed near the pavilion to keep any of the schools of fish swimming near from making a meal of the prepared dishes. Those that might be able to slip past the defensive array that protected the pavilion.

The pavilion seemed overdone to me, but I wasn’t surprised to find it had been constructed so quickly. The grandeur and attention to detail that went into staging were impressive. Nothing had been mentioned to me about something this elaborate when I had been briefed on protocol and what to expect.

The Hindel Alpha arrived almost at the same time as we did. Her arrival was obviously timed to match our own. That they had managed to monitor our descent was expected. They had perception skills similar to mine, and theirs were even better suited to a world of underwater wonders.

My sight worked here, but it wasn't clear and took time for me to analyze the information I was gathering. It was similar to looking through a clear pool of water to see the world beneath. It might seem crystal clear and detailed, but there were shifts in location created by light refraction and reflection.

My perception and vision were feeding me conflicting information; nothing was where it appeared to be. My perception was processing where things were in relation to myself, and that information was causing a kind of double image as my eyes saw something else. If I had to traverse or fight in this environment, I would need to ignore what my eyes were telling me.

“We find the location for this discussion interesting,” The Hindel Alpha said by way of greeting, barely waiting until after introductions were made.

“I searched our memories after receiving your missive. I wondered if this type of location had been used for any other discussions between our two people and found that it hadn’t. In no other summit with the Elven people was a meeting done within the waters the Hindel call home.

“It made me realize that we may have been giving an advantage in negotiations and talks before they were even underway by always agreeing to meet on land. I wonder what makes you different and why you suggested meeting here?” She asked, surprising me with the topic of her question.

I wasn’t certain how to answer this question. Still, I could recognize it for the land-mine it might become if the Hindel came away from this meeting believing Elves were deliberately orchestrating affairs in an attempt to gain face.

“I am too new to my Realm and position as a Baroness to be well versed in political machinations,” I began explaining, my words measured as I tried to walk that land-mine and parse an explanation that would explain my own position without making the rest of the Elven nation look bad. “And for this first meeting, not only do I come to you to ask for your help, but I also come after being informed that the relations between our people were damaged badly by the former Lord of this city.

“It seemed appropriate, since I was seeking to heal the strained relationship between our people, that I meet you here, in an environment that is more comfortable for you, next to the coral reef that I seek your aid to heal.”

“And how would you explain no other Elf willing to entertain your approach to negotiation?” A woman introduced as an aid to the Alpha asked.

“Tradition, most likely,” I answered simply. “Both our people are long-lived, and once a pattern has been established, it becomes hidebound and one of the tenets of our culture. We meet on land because that is the way we have always done it.”

“How do we change this tradition,” The Alpha asked, almost spitting her distaste at the very idea of continuing a protocol that put the Hindel in a position of weakness from the very beginning. The translation device she was using was detailed enough to include the emotional context I would have missed without them.

“Slowly,” I answered thoughtfully. “You can use this meeting as precedence for any future meetings and negotiations you might have. Treat those meetings like the Elven people would when meeting each other. Those who are weaker or have come asking for favors or help should meet in your chosen location.”

“And if they refuse?” She asked.

“Then don’t meet with them,” I answered without hesitation. “If they are meeting with you because they need something, the onus is on them to make the effort to accommodate to your needs and demands.”

“As simple as that?” The Alpha wondered aloud. “I wonder if it really is that simple.”

“You will probably have to deal with some pushback from those steeped in tradition or those that see the Hindel as lesser. I am sure you have already dealt with Elves like that and know that they exist.

“There are Elves that see other Elves as lesser, so it should come as no surprise that they would have the same bigotry towards another race,” I warned her.

“But if you are willing to stand your ground and are convinced that you gain something from demanding this concession, the Elves you deal with will relent and conform to the new requirements or be forced to find alternative solutions and resources.”