[Philo in his bedroom surrounded by things he’s imported from Kooup, wearing a tank top like the one Ree wore at the start of the comic saying “show me your secondaries”. A knock at the door.]
philo: what is it?
Adol: Council meeting in 10, remember?
P: I remembered, but I’m surprised you did.
A: A chance to watch the Feldpassers waffle on about how Ree and her band of idiots attempted to kill everyone with smoke bombs at the ball is a chance i would not pass up. I’m relying on you to give us a recap the moment you get back, before the press manages to spin it whichever way they're feeling that day.
P: the latest shipment?
A: Just in. Large. Uri’s sorting it …Are you sure about this? There’s not really any going back once this is in play, you know.
P: I am well aware. But how else do you propose we keep our sister safe, hm? So long as she’s around that Crow, she’s a target. I originally planned for it to just be us to go and retrieve her, kicking and screaming if need be, but she has managed to get herself entangled in something far greater, and we need a larger force, now.
A: and you think this will solve that?
P: it’s the only bargaining chip we have. We just have to hope it doesn’t come to that, and the Council manages to strike a peaceful deal with Kooup, instead.
A: they’re definitely there, then?
P: We have not had confirmation they reached Kooup. the Cardinal saw them get on the boat, but she cannot tell the Council, or she’ll have to reveal it was her who let them go. And we need to make sure they arrived before making a move, everything’s on the line and we can’t afford mistakes.
A: Why did she just let them go?
P: because she has more to gain from them being there, than here. Come. Let us hope our dear Councilors are not as short sighted as they are known to be.
A: Gera has asked to see you first.
P: oh? acting as her errand boy are you? Lead the way then, brother.
[Gera and Scradad waiting in sitting room. they look up as the brothers enter]
Philo: Be quick, I have a meeting.
Gera: we have it. we’ve got a signal. There has been some kind of block to it before now, but we just got a hit. We know where the King is.
[scradad holds up a phone that looks like one farrah worked on at the raven lab. it shows an outline of Kooup, with a dot where the City is.]
Adol to Philo: Is this it? are we doing it?
Gera: We do not have the numbers for it alone. We need Redguard, and all else we can muster.
Adol: And we definitely cannot accomplish getting them back with just a small squad to sneak in and extract them?
Scradad: This may be our only shot at getting my mate back, too. If she is alive, she is there. If she is being held by some force, we will need a force to counter it.
Philo: We knew our sister in law was going to return to the island, and that our sister would follow her, and that we would not be able to stop it. This way, all parties will get what they want. And who knows - maybe, if we succeed, the future of this world will be brighter than we could hope. If we fail, well, we probably won’t be around to see it anyway.
[Philo at a Council meeting as the Feldpassers (farrah’s parents) argue with the council and try to put the blame for the bombings at the solstice ball on Scra and co.]
Farrahdad: And just how DO you explain it - a so-called lost King turning up with an entourage of foreigners, a sudden attack on this country’s leaders, and said lost King fleeing into the night? It all adds up, and it all points to one simple and damning conclusion! You must see it, Councilors!
reamerdad: the investigation into the bombings is still ongoing. As no one was hurt, other matters have been prioritized.
FD: the persecution of the culprits takes precedence, surely! It was still meant as an attempt to overthrow -
Kymom: It does not matter who set off the explosives - that will be determined in time. For now, we have only one matter of importance - retrieving that Crow King. He was last spotted by the coast, there is only one destination he will have had in mind. We must -
RD: There is no proof they returned to Kooup, and we will not incite a war with a hostile nation on a whim.
Kymom: My Redguard have searched this entire continent. There is no other place he will be -
RD: We will not go without cause. And we will not go for one single person.
KM: You have made THAT apparent, Councilor.
RD: (hisses) do not bring her up here again, I have ruled -
KM: You have ruled, have you? And what of us other Councilors? What use are we, if it all depends on the ruling of one? Tell me, how is that any different from a monarchy? The crowds in the streets would prefer the return of one, from the sounds of it.
Councilor1: It is true, Councilor Imperius. The monarchists have shown in full force and are getting…impatient.
C2: With the Crow King alive and the Council showing their support by inviting him to the solstice ball, his disappearance has outraged them. They think we are the cause of it. Any delay in his return may be seen as sabotage, on our part.
RD: You forget, Councilor Oropa, that to openly oppose the Council is still cause for treason -
C1: If he does not come back there could be riots, Councilor. His support was dormant, but far-reaching. Now they have seen him, those who have held out hope all these years, or who have become dissatisfied with us, will dream of his rise to power once more.
RD: the King has said himself he has no wish to rule -
KM: Then make sure of such conviction by having him back here, under our noses. Gone, he is susceptible to being influenced into any change of heart.
C3: there is of course another worry, too.
RD: go on.
C3: that, should the Kooup government learn of his being there, they may also be interested in using him for whatever purpose they see fit. Blackmail us, perhaps. If they kill him, and his supporters here learn of it, we will be blamed for allowing it to happen. Our people will revolt. And when we are weak, then…perhaps…
RD: they could not hope to invade this country, their size alone is -
C3: but it is not their size that is the determining factor, is it? They have technology far more advanced than ours. They have weapons that are not merely swords and arrows. We are too far behind, and frankly we have allowed them to grow unchecked and have no real idea what they are capable of at this time, only that we are not. If there is another battle here, as there was 50 years ago, we may not be victorious, this time.
RD: There will be no battle - we will manage any disquiet here as we always have, and in the meantime we have our labs working on catching us up and will soon be able to defend ourselves should it come to it. Kooup has enough inner turmoil that an attack will not be forthcoming any time soon. We are safe here, and we will not engage -
Philo: The Ravens have confirmed the King is on Kooup. [everyone turns to look at him. KM frowns] They got a tracking hit just now. He’s there, in their city.
KM: You see! Now we can -
RD: No. This changes nothing.
Philo: the ravens would work with us -
RD: the ravens serve their own interests, not that of this nation’s. But in the interest of this not being a monarchy [sideglance at KM] let us vote on it - those in favor of war?
[KM puts her hand up. the other councilors look away, uncertain, but dont put hands up. KM sneers]
RD: We will deal with any fallout that may come from this, but we will not engage. Dismissed.
[everyone starts leaving. Kymom looks at Philo]
KM: do not worry, Husband. You will be too late to save this continent, but I will not be. [to Philo as she reaches him] You. Take me to them.
Philo: Cardinal, I don’t think -
KM: I vouched for you in your bid for the subcouncil seat in exchange for that which I seek most. I did as you wished. Now it is your time to uphold your end of the bargain -
philo: I will uphold it. and now you have your reason for the invasion you’ve been yearning for too, cardinal.
KM: And thanks to you, the weapons to make it a possibility.
[Show a storage cave full of crates. rows of laser guns peek out from them]
I've changed some things around a bit compared to the first version of this just fyi!