Amazons ᶳᵉᵐᶤ⁻ᴬᵈᵛᵃᶰᶜᵉᵈ ᴿᴾ discussion

The mountains are cold, so when it rains the rain coats everything and freezes, creating the beautiful ice caves. They're nice and sheltered from the wind, so despite the ice they're warmer than it is outside.

Most meetings where you wanted to keep the two people meeting from killing each other, it was agreed that they would come unarmed. Not this one. There was no chance in hell Lykopis was going to trust a male, especially a Gargarean King. At least they agreed on a neutral territory though. He may not have been the warrior king, but to get his position Lykopis knew he would still have to be a good fighter. She was not stupid and she was taking no chances. So she had arrived way early to avoid getting ambushed. And also to avoid doing the awkward, undignified major slipping hazard getting into the cave in front of someone else. Her tribe wasn't exactly pleased with her, but this was worth it. It was odd for her to meet a Gargarean and not be able to kill him. Really the only truce time was the Styrs, and she had never gone to that. She already had a son. Probably. Unless something had happened to him, in which case someone was going to pay. Quite possibly the man she was about to meet. But she wasn't planning on attacking, she was just mentally preparing in case she did. She waited patiently, leaning against a stone ice ledge thing in the back of the main cavern of the cave.

Darius had made it to the top of the icey side of the mountain. He had planned this in advance and only messaged the Amazon Queen through a raven. He was not going to risk someone else spreading word of his plans to meet with her. War was coming and he hoped that she understood the importance of this meeting. Once he reached the cave entrance he held tightly to it's rock and ice walls and ceiling to avoid any slipping that could be misinterpreted as unlawful actions of attack on neutral grounds. Once he spotted Queen Lykopis he gave a nod grateful to feel solid rock under him once he had passed the icey floor and went further in. "Queen Lykopis, I trust the trip here was with ease...perhaps you actually showing yourself here signifies the urgency that we have both felt need for such a meeting. I will say now that my kingdom and my subjects are deaf to our arranged meeting. If you kill me no one will come looking for my body until it is long overdue. Shall we small talk or continue on to business as planned?" He spoke with a strong, but nonthreatening tone. He wasn't showing weakness, but he was trying to show understanding.

"As long as you give me no reason to kill you, your quite alive body will be able to make its way back to its people, King Darius." Lykopis said pointedly, standing from her spot and walking forward to meet him. "My people know no more of this than yours. But they would find me eventually." Though her words were almost warning, her tone was simply matter of fact. Well, part of that was a lie. She had told one person that she was going to the ice caves, though she didn't say why. And she had only told the blacksmith, simply so that if Kratos ever returned he'd know where to look. She trusted the girl to not say anything to anyone else. "You called this meeting. What is it you wish to speak about?" She asked, though she knew. Obviously it was because their people wanted to kill each other. But he had wanted to meet, so it was only polite for him to start.

Darius nodded, "Of course, perhaps it is foolish to already mention that both sides are desiring a full on war without this years breeding ceremony. I already know of many enemies in my court who desire me to be overthrown simply for war to take place, but I am offering full truce. I will keep my men from your half of the mountain entirely even when hunting if you aid us in ridding our lands of the invaders. These are not demigods. These invaders are far worse and are infact doing more harm than good. I do believe it was the very queen before you that laid with an invader calling themselves a demigod. I trust that we are in agreement that niether side will conduct in any form of peaceful transactions with these invaders. Perhaps I can also trust that if either of us suggest peace to our tribes we will face death ourselves. I want a solution. I want a way to stop the fighting and gather against a common enemy." Darius knew that most Amazonian warriors would only be suspicious of his words of peace and slit his throat for making such a suggestion in beleif that it was some for of trickery, but he hoped that this queen would be as wise as he had strived to be himself.

Sighing, Lykopis shook her head. "You and I both know that there are always people that won't listen. There has been too much blood. Everyone wants revenge for someone, and then they will die in the name of vengeance, and then others will go fight for their honor. It is a vicious circle that we came into rule far too late to stop. But invaders are troubling, certainly." She agreed, "But they may be the ticket to a truce. I am not my predecessor. She was a good queen, but I am a different queen than she was. If something happens to someone or something that each tribe holds dear or requires, then there is a common enemy. I will not attack these people yet, as they have done nothing to us. Yet. But we must have a plan for when they do." She said fiercely, then her gaze narrowed. "I have one additional requirement. Kratos. When he was part of your tribe one of your warriors tried to kill him, and he had to defend himself and kill Alcander. If he is found by your people, he is not to be punished because of that. And if he is found, I want to know. And if he wishes to come back to us, you let him."

Darius listened and nodded in understanding. "Kratos is of no fault in my kingdom. Murder is not a crime but an aspect of life. Thievery is far worse than a murderer. My people are set on the ways of revenge so a killing happens at least twice a day, this does not stop us from keeping order, but allows s to exercise freedoms. If Kratos enters you have my word he will come unharmed...If he chooses to leave however is not a matter that I can personally allow. If the people view it safe and fit for a man to leave my kingdom without lawful banishment then it will be so and it happens hardly. However, I can say that he might be able to rejoin us in our scouting and hunting parties. Simply send a group to retrieve him in the jungles." Darius offered a solution as he always was gifted with such things in delegating the laws of his own kingdom.

((oi?))

"I do understand that you can only do so much, and appreciate what you are doing. However, I must warn you, if I find out something has happened to my son and I can trace it back to you or your people... I will find out who and whether you try and stop me or not, I will make them pay." Lykopis said very matter of factly. There was no question in her voice. It wasn't an optional addition to what she said, it was a statement of fact. She stared at him fiercely for a long moment, then blinked and released him from her gaze. "If you understand that then I will agree to help you. We must figure out how to deal with the intruders, as well as find a way to get our people to agree to the truce. I say that for a time we just observe. Send some people as scouts to see what they are doing before we act.

Darius nodded in full understanding, "Very well, even though you or your people have done nothing in return for me I can ensure that I will keep an eye out for your precious male heir. I expect that should my people rebel as I feel will happen very soon I won't be the one you will be trying to make cordial arrangements with. It will be a warrior who has skill beyond his years and no heart for peace. No heart for a truce and no desire to even consider care for your son, but infact slay him and bathe your border with his blood on neutral grounds. We need to observe, but we may not have much longer. Perhaps, if we could open a trade road one day if this truce last?" He offered as a gesture of kindness, but deep down he even doubted if she would want that much peace between them. Darius had been observing the newcomers and he had found that even with weapons they had yet to attack without being provoked to do so. Perhaps that was what he felt his own kingdom should be modelled after. The behaviour of the savages who have invaded. Perhaps they were not nearly as savage as he believed with their nomadic homes and strange language which seemed complex, but rather easy to learn upon hearing.

"And if anyone did that to my son I would cut off his limbs. Then a few days later, if he's lucky, I'd kill him." Lykopis said. Her tone started out rather flat and emotionless, but no matter how much she tried to keep it that way, her ferocious intensity slipped in. Then she sighed, letting out a slow breath. And when she spoke again her voice was back to her simple matter of factness. "I agree that I would rather work with you than many of the others. However. It would take a lot for me to get my people involved in a civil war simply for you to hold your rank. It is not worth the deaths it will bring to my people. While you are in control, I would be definitely willing to agree to a trade road. It makes sense to me. Perhaps we can each choose a few of our most trusted people to make a scout party together to keep an eye on the intruders. An experiment to see how well we could work together."

The Gargarean king was reluctant at first to agree to a civil union of scouts from both kingdoms, however, he was happy to know that Lykopis was indeed seeing eye to eye with him. He gave a respectful nod as a king would bow to a queen with such a gesture. "I could not be more pleased with such ideas. Including that of removing the limbs of the one who would dare to cut down your own bloodline. As mine has ended with me I hope that I may find a suitable replacement to be voted into the throne when the time comes." He smiled for once it seemed genuine as if he was truly pleased with something. "I do understand your own bargaining points, such a subject of bloodline brings me to my part of our truce. If I may so humbly ask of you a child to claim as my own it will not have to be one born of this year nor does it have to be of any nearing year, but a child not of my loin is all I ask for so that perhaps I may not have to give my throne up to tyrants of our kingdoms. As I am sure you are more than aware that even I must participate in the annual ritual of thriving generations to have an heir to my throne, but I have and I never saw a child when the time came for my people to receive their children. I must confess I was not nearly as disappointed with discovering no son to raise as much as I was to have no knowledge at all as to if I even had a child bore by my blood." Darius explained ow feeling if the queen was as understanding as she has proven to be perhaps she would also be udnerstanding of the situation which he faced.

"I do not keep track of the parents of the children born. And I have never been to the Styrs, so I don't know when you went. I have no idea if you have a child among my people or not. There very well may be a girl among them that's related to you." Lykopis shrugged logically, some of the tenseness finally started to leak from her posture. She wasn't exactly relaxed, but she wasn't braced for an attack anymore. "Let me try and understand what you're getting at here. I haven't had as many opportunities for talking lately so my diplomacy skills are rusty. So my apologies if I get your meaning wrong. Correct me if a do." She leaned back and half leaned half sat on the ledge, crossing her ankles out in front of her. "If I understand this right. You want me to just hand you a warrior to have a child with? Because that's not likely. Women volunteer to go to the Styrs. Most of my best warriors don't want children, and I won't make them. And you already have Kalika because she got desperate and acted foolishly. She's the only one I may be able to convince. The other explanation of what you said is that you want me to hand over one of the children born and you raise it as your own. I do believe that the father would argue the point.

Darius frowned, "I see, what I was in fact asking was should a warrior became pregnant to a slave of your own and bare a son. Perhaps instead of turning such a son into another slave allow me to raise him as royalty." He elaborated more thoroughly. Maybe just maybe she would understand his own predicament. He had gone to the Styrs once and only once when he came up empty handed he was quick to dismiss such relations with women ever again. He knew his people could populate without him, but he seemed so eager to raise a son at that time that he was pushed from the thought that it could ever be a girl or the woman he bred with could be infertile or even himself be infertile. Darius nodded for a moment, "If you feel this is too much to ask apart from a trade route and truce what on my part can you offer so I know I have your word. Your son should he ever come into my sights or knowledge is my bargain, what is yours?" He asked feeling if she didn't agree to a child perhaps something else could be offered.