The night had quickly passed and the next main summit meeting was to start at midday. Theodore was sitting at his desk, which now had even more papers on it than the night before. An old man entered the room, he was called Orden, an old secretary that had served the previous king, Theodore's father.
"Lily told me you were holed up here since last night, you really should walk around for a bit, get some air". Theodore looked at Orden but ignored him and got back to reading. "Now I know you don't like my nagging but Alric always used to say one of the most important things to do in the summit was to socialize outside of meetings".
"As you know, there is a reason I don't do things like my father", answered Theodore. "Yes I know that you think he was a bad ruler, but that does not mean his every word is bad, or a lie". Theodore put down his papers, "I know, it just happens that most of them were".
Orden was about to argue before Theodore lifted his hand and stopped him. "I get it Orden, but there is something I need to get done right away". Orden sighed and nodded. "Oh, and deliver these on your way out". Theodore handed him a stack of envelopes that each had a blue seal. "Magic mail, and this many?" asked Orden. Theodore didn't respond so Orden left.
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After a couple more hours, Theodore decided to take Orden's advice and explore the facilities. Theodore had only been ruler for a year, so this was the second summit meeting he had been to, and the first in Snowbed. There were few situations a Westwood royalty would find himself in Snowbed, so he had to explore a little.
The summit meeting was held in a large compound, each country had its separate buildings, all very beautifully built. The summit meeting itself was held in a large building in the center, which had a large white-crystal dome as a roof. "They sure have money to spend", was what Theodore thought while looking around. But he knew that the compound itself was also a show of force, a lackluster summit might make the wrong impressions.
As he was walking by some fields of flowers close to the main building, he saw a woman approaching him. With long azure hair and a beautiful oriental appearance, it could only be the queen of Yotoki. "Hello Theodore, lovely that you finally left your office". Theodore smiled wrily, "I'm sure you already know why I was busy, right Arya?". Theodore saw Arya's eyes waver for a second before returning to normal.
"Smart as always, never liked that about you" scoffed Arya as she started walking beside Theodore. "Well, that's not what you said when.." started Theodore before Arya hastily interrupted, "Shush, we agreed not to speak of that, ever". Theodore smiled and said, "Then can I speak of what happened later that evening, dear queen of Yotoki?".
Arya didn't respond, but stared daggers at Theodore. "Don't be mad Arya, I've already scanned the area for any listeners". Arya laughed before quickly regaining composure, "Wow, the magicless Theodore suddenly learning search magic, now that would shock the world". Theodore shrugged, "You figured it out, and I who planned on keeping it a secret". Arya smiled as they walked together silently for a while.
Theodore sighed, "It's that bad huh". Arya looked at Theodore who was staring at the sky. "How could you tell?". "Well, if I joked like that normally I'd already be a dead man", said Theodore. Arya smiled, she had truly been a bit nicer than normal.
They both stopped walking. "I say this as Arya, and not queen of Yotoki Theodore, but good luck". Theodore looked at Arya, "Thank you, Arya". As he watched Arya leave, he was finally worried. Worried that his curiosity would grow so much he'd break in to find the weapon himself.
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It was time for the summit meeting. Ellie had gotten ready and was standing in the waiting room. She wore a white dress with snowflake patterns, paired with her snow-white hair she looked like a snow fairy. As she looked through some papers with her secretary, Leon walked in. "I'll fix it right away Saint", the secretary said before leaving. Ellie turned and looked at Leon, "Wow, that suits you so well!".
Ellie walked around Leon, tugging at some parts of his outfit. "Well I prefer something more comfortable, but I guess you have a plan?", Leon said awkwardly. "You have to look handsome tonight, you are the main character after all, dress to impress as they say", Ellie smiled and glanced over Leon again. "Or for today, dress to scare".
A secretary opened the door, "It's time, Saint". "Thank you, Lya" responded Ellie as she turned to Leon, "Well are you ready?". Leon nodded and they walked out of the room and down a long hallway. At the end of the hallway stood a man and a woman, guarding the door. They opened the door and the woman yelled in, "Ellie Snowbed, the queen of Snowbed has arrived".
As Ellie and Leon walked into the hall, surprised stares could be seen on three of the people around the table. Someone bringing another person with them into the summit main hall was not unprecedented, but it was not a common occurrence. Theodore was watching them calmly, not showing any reaction.
Ellie and Leon walked towards the last seat, Leon pulled out Ellie's seat for her and stood silently behind her as she got seated. After she had sat down Theodore opened his mouth, "Didn't think you would be the first to bring a lover into the summit hall". "What the…" Leon yelled as he stepped forward, but Ellie raised her hand to stop him. He took a step back and stood still, he remembered that Ellie told him he was not act out. "Show some respect Westwood" Leanna stood up and yelled at Theodore. Arya who sat next to Ellie looked confused at Theodore.
Ellie turned to Leanna "Sit down". Leanna grumbled, but sat down. "You will soon find out why he is here, no need to rush", Ellie was in too good of a mood to let Theodore bother her. She took a breath and continued, "Then since everyone is here, let the second day of the summit begin". The first day had been started by Theodore, but that was purely a friendly formality, and Ellie would head the rest of the meetings.
Leanna stood up and started speaking; "Midden Lake has started teeming with monsters, some adventurers have given reports of seeing large dead creatures never seen before floating to the surface". Ellie wrote down some notes before asking, "Any ideas of what could cause it?". "We don't know, but the last time these same reports were given a large wave of monsters attacked and spread through our lands, and into Westwood". Ellie pondered for a moment, "Any suggestions?".
Arya spoke up and said; "It might be a mana leak from a dungeon affecting the monsters, or something more… deliberate". Leanna nodded, "We've thought about those scenarios but they seem implausible". Ellie was silent for a second, "Snowbed will send some reinforcements, if repelled properly the monster wave might be profitable". Leanna smiled, "Thank you". "Any in opposition?" said Ellie to the rest. "Nay", was answered by all."
Arya was about to stand up as Ren stood up and slammed his hands to the table. "I can't wait any more, someone tell me why this goody two shoes blonde is in here?", he stared at Leon. A vein on Leon's face popped as he forced himself not to react. Ellie smiled and responded, "Yes, that works too, this man is Leon". Ren looked blankly at Ellie, waiting for more. "But before continuing his introduction I'd like us to go out to the balcony, we have a little show to watch".
All eight stood up and walked out to the balcony. This balcony had a very nice view of green forested lands, and in the distance you could even see the vast blue sea. "First I'd like everyone to point their attention to the sea in the distance, can everyone see the island?". Everyone nodded, there truly was an island out there, a few miles long and propped with shoddy buildings. "Can you see it without magic Theodore?" prodded Leanna. Theodore sighed, "Yes, I can". Leanna scoffed in response.
As everyone stood on the balcony Ellie walked to the front of them all, along with Leon. "Get ready Leon" said Ellie as she turned to the rest. Leon walked to the edge of the balcony. Ellie took a breath and then spoke, "For many years now Snowbed has risen in power, from a small territory in the snowy south we have grown to this point". "But our victories were hard fought, and even harder kept… but now we have gained the one thing we lacked, absolute power". Ellie locked eyes with Theodore, his face was stone cold. "So observe the power which if you resist will surely cause you certain death, Leon go".
Leon had gathered power for a while, the air twirling around him. A small red spark could be barely seen traveling into the distance, reaching the island far in the distance. As the spark hit the island Theodore heard a large rumble, as an explosion the size of the whole island spread out. Shocked gasps were heard from the other country leaders. The fireball continued to increase in size, destroying the island and burning the sea.
Theodore was shocked, the size of the explosion was massive. Destroying an island of that size with a few minutes of preparation, that attack could destroy the capitol of Westwood if not disrupted. He noticed that someone was looking at him, Ellie. Meeting her gaze, he admitted she truly looked powerful. The explosion in the distance had slowed down and was receding, but was a good background for her to show off.
Her eyes were resolute, seeming to search for any weakness inside of Theodore's gaze. As he met her gaze his mind raced, he had thought of many possible weapons but the weapon was a person. A powerful wizard without compare. A man. "A man", thought Theodore. A smile started to spread across his face. "Yes, I can work with this".