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Embassy of and Port of Entry to Republique Latine de St. Esprit

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Woody catches a bus for St. Esprit, while en-route he uses his wireless PDA to look up a fellow Presbyterian in the Cayman Islands and asks him to deliver a note to a fancy estate on the island of Cayman Brac.
"Please enclose a clipping of the announcement naming me as mediator for Amnesty Worldwide with the attached note. Approach the grounds/gate with care, preferrably on foot, and say you have a note for the owner. Give it to whomever they send out to meet you. Smile, thank them, and leave. You can further the cause of peace by this."
Mr. Nikolai Volkov,

I will be dining at Namaste Indian Restaurant in Fort-au-Francais, St. Esprit, every evening for the next week, or unless contacted sooner. If you could get word to some of your former associates' clients it would be appreciated.

Yours in the cause of peace,

Reverend Woodrow Park
Click to expand...
When Woody gets to Fort-au-Francais he checks into a two star hotel, unpacks his bags and checks his e-mail. At 7 PM he goes to the Namaste Indian Restaurant, and orders the vegetable somosa appetizer, the mixed tandori grill, with a side of alou gobi. He washes it down with a Kingfisher beer. He notices that there aren't many Koreans, Chinese, or Japanese diners.
 
Woody pays the check and leaves a generous tip, making a later reservation for the next evening. He picks up his umbrella from the coat check girl, and tips her $2. He then walks back to his hotel and sets the alarm early so he can catch the train to Villeneuve in time for the connection to Buen Puerto.
"I can catch up on my sleep on the train."
 
Woody changes trains at Villeneuve to catch one back to Fort-au-Francais. He drops his bag back at his hotel room, picks up his umbrella, even though rain is not expected. He opens it in his hotel room to see if any messages had been slipped into it when he last dined at Namaste. He folds it up and heads to his late dinner reservation there. He orders Mulligitawny soup and Chicken Jalfrazie as the main course, which he washes down with a Taj Mahal beer. After dinner he pays his check and gets his umbrella from the coatcheck girl. When he gets back to the room he opens it again, as before. He then checks with Amnesty Worldwide to see if any creditable leads had come in.
 
The next morning, Woody sends an e-mail message to former President Loic de Fourgéres, who now lives in St. Esprit, introducing himself and explaining his attempt, on behalf of Amnesty Worldwide, to mediate an end to the violence in Tilapia stemming from the New Bengal situation, and asking whether he had any better way of contacting Nikolai Volkov who might have been involved in supplying arms to the Separatists, or better yet, whether he had any more direct leads about how to get in touch with the Separatists directly.

Woody then checks to see whether any confidential messages have been turned by Amnesty Worldwide, and goes on to reading other news, he sees the election slates have been published, and so he can now make the one campaign speech he promised his partymates he would make. He puts on his best suit and catches the train back to Eutopia. He doesn't check out of the hotel, as he plans to be back here this evening.
 
Von Hapsburg manages to get to Fort-aux-Francais, and leaves a note requesting if General Levitsky could see him. He then checks in at the same hotel where Park is staying.
 
After giving his speech in Hurteau, Woody returns to Fort-au-Francais, changes back into something less formal and goes to Namaste for dinner again, carrying his umbrella as usual. Tonight he orders a chicken tikka appetizer and Goan fish curry as his main course, with a glass of the house white wine. By itself he wouldn't think much of the wine, but it has enough character to stand up to the stong flavors of the cuisine. After dinner he goes back to the hotel room, sends a message to the Indian embassy in the UPE, then checks his umbrella and e-mail for messages.
 
An email from Amnesty Worldwide indicates that someone has placed an anonymous post on the bulletin board he mentioned in his press release. The poster mentioned a particular desire not to be seen with him in public, as the long arm of the Tilapian secret service has been operating with lethal force in both of its neighboring countries for months now, but says that a representative will find Park soon.

As Park reads the note, there is a knock on the door. "Room service!"
 
Woody, having ordered nothing, wonders about whether this is just a misplaced order, or whether the universe has a screen writer as well as a supreme being. He remembers reading a book once that showed how if you are looking for million to one coincidences, they are easy enough to find. He shouts through the closed door,
"Just a minute!"
He closes the e-mail screen, opens the door without looking through the peephole and says,
"Come in!"
 
A young Indian man is standing out in the hall with a cart, wearing a waiter's uniform. Without looking at Park, he pushes the cart into the center of the hotel room. When the door shuts, he looks up, and gestures Park into the hotel bathroom. He turns on the faucet and the shower, then closes the bathroom door.

"The Tilapian secret service has been hunting down and executing our agents on the mainland, in all three countries, hence the cloak and dagger. Also, forgive me for not sharing my name. If that makes you uncomfortable, call me whatever you like. But I wouldn't be surprised if the Tilapians have been here, since they know you're trying to meet with one of us.

By the same token, we need to keep this meeting fairly brief. But you wanted to meet with one of us, and here I am. I represent my brothers in New Panjim, and we're all very hopeful for your prospects of ending this conflict. So, we're listening."
 
Thank-you for coming. We may need to meet again, so would you prefer New York, where I could dine at Utsav and stay at the W, London, where I could dine at Veraswamy and stay at the Horseguards Thistle, or Paris, where I could stay at the Hotel California and dine at the Baie de Bengal? If you need to tell me later, just a message with a solitary letter: "N", "L", or "P" will do, and I will be there pronto.

I had a constructive meeting with Pro Consol Marcos, but he is in a minority that would like to see a peace, as the others say they won't negotiate with terrorists. It is not my place to be judgmental, so I will not opine on their tactics or those of your brothers. He reacted favorably to some ideas how Eutopia might trade land or money for all or part of New Bengal Island. I passed those on to President Leary. If he doesn't act, I will pass them on to the next President, as we are having elections soon. He did ask whether you would still want to become part of the UPE, or if you and your brothers now have set your course towards independence.

I will also try to find some international philanthropic funding as an alternative to buy your freedom from Tilapia, but this is extremely improbable, unless you have some supporters with huge checkbooks or if the Indian goverment would be so inclined. The practical suggestion I have to discuss with you would be whether there could be some sort of cease fire. To get the process started, I would suggest that you unilaterally call a one month cease fire on the Tilapian mainland, and either your spokesperson or I announce that you would be willing for there to be negotiations about extending it to New Bengal Island. This would probably require international peacekeepers, I would have to arrange for, and Tilapia and you both would have to invite. There are other possibilities, but this is the main idea I wanted to discuss with you. I realize you and your brothers have all lost family members at the hands of the Tilapians, so seems unfair to unilaterally make such a gesture. But I believe something like that would be needed to get the Tilapians to talk. I don't think a one month pause, if it should prove fruitless, is going to diminish your chances of making the Tilapians quit. It is not a sign of weakness, it is a sign of strength. They seem fairly set on their path at present, and if things start going less well for them, they could succumb to the temtpation to completely obliterate your city of New Panjim, i.e., using enough explosives so not one brick remains on top of another, and not person remains alive. They did not say this or suggest it, but if they feel cornered, they may strike out in some inhuman way. That would of course create an eternal emnity, a blood fued that would last generations. That is but a glimpse of the abyss we face, so I would encourage you to take any other path. If you have any other idea that you want me to put forward to the Tilapians or message that you want me to anyone, please let me know. I cannot say where a ceasefire would lead, but you know better than I where the lack of one leads. Peace talks only work if there is a basis for peace, but you have to talk to find out whether such a basis exists.
 
The young man listens, nodding occasionally. "I cannot promise anything, but I will talk to my leaders about this, and I think they would agree to a one month cease-fire on this island. If they do not respond with any similar gesture, we will resume our campaign exactly one month later. However, if the Tilapians cease their own operations on this island, and stop utilizing fixed-wing aircraft to bomb New Bengal Island, we will maintain the local cease-fire.

I think this is fair...we stop bombing their cities, they stop bombing ours. As a corollary, there is no longer any need for them to execute our people on this island. If we get through a month with these terms, then I think our two sides will have suitably demonstrated a mutual commitment to trying to end this conflict.

If the Tilapians cannot even reign in their bloodlust that far, then there is nothing that peace talks would accomplish."
 
"I will have some preliminary discussions on that basis with potential peacekeepers and the Tilapians, but it will be all be in the conditional until your leaders decide and your part of the cease fire starts. Since you didn't mention them, I assume you would rather not have the peacekeepers there, but they might be necessary to the Tilapians, then again they might not want them either. Please have someone get back to me about that, and about whether you prefer independence or to be part of the UPE if our country is considering making a financial sacrifice to buy all or part of your island."
After leaving the steamy bathroom, Woody signs the check and tips the 'waiter'. After he is gone Woody checks to see what he ordered for his midnight snack. He then says to the mirror,
"It is a good thing I am not married, this is not a good situation to have your wife hear about, meeting a strange young man in your hotel room, and suddenly needing to take a shower."
 
"If we agree to a peace, we will keep it. This whole thing began when 'peacekeepers' were sent in, having more soldiers around will not help. And at this point, we would rather have our independence. The UPE has sat around on its laurels watching us suffer long enough for us to see quite clearly how they feel about us."

The young man accepts the check, leaves a covered dish with Woody, and departs with the cart. While the situation may have left Reverend Park uncomfortable, the chicken satay he gets to enjoy as a result of the meeting is delicious.
 
Woody maintains the same routine for the rest of the week, as if he hadn't been contacted, so no one would think about immediately pursuing his "room service waiter". He went to the Namaste Indian Restaurant the next four nights, ordering:
  1. lamb kebob appetizer, prawn biriyani, and a mango lassi to drink
  2. Onion Bhaji appetizer, lamb vindaloo and a Flying Horse beer
  3. House salad, Chicken Tikka Masala, and a glass of Riesling
  4. Lamb Somosa, Salmon Tikka, and a glass of Gewurztraminer
After the last evening he sends a message to the Tilapian embassy. The next morning he leaves a tip for the maid and then checks out of his hotel room and catches the train to Villeneuve, intending to check his e-mail on the way to see which train he should catch from there.
 
*The current ambassador is invited to a private dinner with President Glasser.*

(OOC: I don't need to role play this. Just know that Glasser is trying to build good relations and will hint at his wanting to pay an official state visit to the country. Thanks.)
 
The sovereign nation of Republique Latine de St. Esprit is here by formally invited to join a communications network not being established by the nations of Tilapia and the United Provinces of Eutopia. This network will allow any two, or all three, of the island's military commands to talk directly, securely, and privately (if only 2 of the countries are involved) in a time of crisis. This communication will avoid misunderstandings and allow for quick cooperation against any external threat.
 
St. Esprit issues a press statement expressing the view that, while they have largely demilitarized, rapid communications between senior-level officials in the island's governments is nevertheless desirable. They name one of the officers, a Colonel, remaining in their military to liaise with Tilapia and the UPE for the purpose of establishing this network.
 
(OOC: In chaos like this, the normal rules of decorum still apply, but as the GMs have declared that the normal process has been suspended, I cannot reasonably expect a response to the event requests related to my character. Therefore, I will take my cue from lack of sanctions (only harsh results) that have befallen others who have acted post apocalyse, an engage in a bit of hopefully reasonable content creation. I will do this bit by bit, so if those in charge want to reign it in, they only have to give the word, such as "Woody is still a PC")

Loic arranges to meet the French Ambassador to St. Esprit, claiming to speak for the approximately 4 million Francophones in the former UPE, mostly in Nouvelle Anjou and Nouvelle Acquitaine, in the latter province, where they are the majority.
"Your Excellency, the flood of refugees has already started, fleeing the Tilapians, fleeing the volcanic plume. They would overwhelm this small country, tripling its population. I would encourage La Belle France to forestall this impending disaster, caused by both man and nature. Intervene to let at least the people of Nouvelle Acquitaine feel safe in their homes, in a Republic, where France is the official language, with no state religion. The world will look favorably on this."

The ambassador responds, "I received you because you are a former President, so I thought you might be asking for asylum. Beyond that, what have you to say to us? We know what is going on in the former UPE, far better than you, and apparently far better than your successors did. We can decide on our own what is best, without your advice. You bring nothing to the table. To include you in the process would weaken it.

When you became President of the UPE, we looked into your background. We said nothing of it before, because it is always useful to have a way to demand favors of a President. We know you never attended the University of Nantes, and never got a law degree there. We know you spent 7 years in a French prison for forgery, you were never a French citizen, and that your name isn't Loic de Fourgéres, is it Frank?

I have informed our base commander of this, and if you approach the St. Espritan government, this will all become public. Now unless you are applying for asylum, get out of my office and let me get back to dealing with this crisis, without some over-the-hill disgraced politician/con artist trying to make one last score."

Loic thanks the ambassador for his time and leaves. He stops by his home and let's his wife know what has happened.

"I am going to sail for the Azores. I will cast off in an hour. Do you want join me, or would you prefer to meet me in Lisbon in two weeks? Don't hang around here in the meantime though, be on the first flight out to anywhere east of here."

Loic hurriedly packs. He calls ahead to get the boat stocked with food, water, and fuel. Other than clothes and a laptop, there is not much he can or would want to take with him. He goes down to the marina where the same boat he sailed to New Lancaster City from St. Malo 18 years ago is moored. It is sturdy fiberglass construction, and so is still seaworthy. The wind in the marina is blowing in from the sea, so he uses the auxillary engine to power out past the breakwater before raising sail. He then shuts down the engine and enjoys the sounds of the wind and the sea. He checks the GPS, sets a course of 160 degrees using the auto-tiller, and applies some sun screen. He realizes he has forgotten his hair dye, and will arrive in the Azores with his grey roots showing.
"Well, it was about time to make some changes. And I'll need to change course when I clear the gulf."
He plugs his laptop into the solar recharger and begins reading a copy of the Koran he had on his hard drive, looking up regularly to scan the horizon.
"In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful..."
 
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Loic looks up as the wind shifts and notices the GPS showing his speed over the ocean floor is actually negative, even though the breeze is still fresh and somewhat more favorable than before. Remarking to a passing gull, he says,

"This gulf has some tidal currents, but the moon isn't new or full, so they should not be this strong. I am not getting anywhere right now anyway, so I had better drop anchor and figure out what is going on."

The anchor seems to be holding. Loic leaves the sails set as that lessens the tug on the anchor, and picks a heading that keeps him from pulling sideways. Loic checks the weather radio, then the web edition of NEWSLINK. He let's out low whistle and then begins sketching out the flows. He throws the gull a crust of the sandwich he had been eating, and continues thinking out loud.

"The water can't just keep flowing one direction, or not for very long at least. The volcanic hot spot raises the water temperature so it rises to the surface and then flows away from that point, so that water must be replaced by cool water flowing in from nearby, but under the surface. EUREKA! I have found it."

Loic gets the sea anchor out of the locker and cuts up the spare jib to augment it, into a larger parachute shaped device. He hauls up the actual anchor, losing ground as he does, and adds the enhanced sea anchor near the bottom of the chain. He lowers it back down. Once it gets more than halfway to the bottom, it begins to pull forward instead of dragging back. Allowing for the usual 7:1 ratio, Loic lets it out enough to be three quarters of the way to the bottom, and secures it at that point. The drag forward on the ballooning sea anchor is stronger than the surface current's push backward on the streamlined hull of his boat, so the Benneteau Oceanus begins to make progress again. He sets his course at a modest angle to the pull from the sea anchor to avoid passing directly over the hot spot.

"I wonder how this will impact the arrival of the boat I am meeting."

He hated to have lied to his wife, but if all went well he would indeed be in Lisbon in two weeks, just via some other islands than the Azores. He then wondered whether flights from St. Esprit were effected or not.
"Even if she stays there, she should be okay." he told himself.
 
As his boat makes progress, the surface current lessens or rather shifts towards the foward starboard quarter, and the counter-current near the bottom shifts the aft port quarter. Sea birds were swooping down to starboard and scooping up "steamed" calamari that had floated to the surface after too close an encounter to volcanic hot spot. Loic heeds their lesson and hauls up the sea anchor a bit before the current is abeam, and heads at an angle, away from the hot spot but still bearing out to sea. When he completes his exertions he looks at the latest news while he rests. He starts gasping and crying.
"She should have come with me on the boat..."
He starts throwing ice cubes as the swooping gulls.
"Get away you cowardly scavengers!"
Not hitting any (that he notices), he breaks down and cries again and eventually he sets the auto-tiller, reefs in the sail, and heads below as the sun sets. He remembers a sunset as he walked with her on the beach in Bretagne, near Quimper, looking out over the waves crashing on the jagged rocks, white on black, with the grey sea in the background, under a pinkish orange sky.
"That is, or was, the problem with Eutopia, all the best beaches faced the sunrise, not the sunset. Stupid island. I hope it sinks!"
 
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