Chapter 152

　　"I`ve said it before. This entire endeavour is a complete waste of time. We`ve been here for three days and accomplished nothing." Praxis stated, swallowing the last of his tea and handing the cup to a nearby servant.

　　They were in their camp` on the far side of the plain that served as the location of the Peace Summit. Although camp` was an inadequate word to describe their lodgings. Mindless drones and hundreds of servants had erected an entire small town in the days since they arrived.

　　To board the representatives from each of the Ducal Houses, mansion-like structures had been erected for each of them, filled with all of the comforts of home. It was reasoned that they had no idea how long the talks would require, and they should not have to live rough during that time.

　　The six Titans of Augustus` camp towered over the town, guarding it from the opposite side. Argyle`s camp could be seen in the darkness, glowing brightly with lights as they had similar quarters. A No Man`s Land` had been kept between them, over two miles wide, with a single pavilion established in the center that would accommodate the delegates.

　　Each of the Dukes and Duchesses had arrived for the summit, along with both Princes. The first round of talks would be held in the morning, at dawn, and was expected to either last a very short or very long time, depending on the attitudes of those present.

　　"These things take time, Praxis. Rushing into it will likely get everyone`s backs up. We ease into things and let everyone get comfortable seeing the other side, then we talk." Duchess Samira replied. Her cousin, Yanis, stood next to her in his Pilot Bodysuit, ready to engage any threat in his Titan.

　　"We should just settle this quickly. A quick slice of the knife across their throats." Duchess Carmichael retorted, and her husband nodded at her words. The viciousness of the young woman was alarming to some present.

　　"They have more Titans than us." Yanis responded, shaking his head at the thought of thirteen Titans battling across Terra. Nothing would be left of the planet, let alone the entire system. Humanity would never forgive them for the destruction.

　　They would be pariahs.

　　"Irrelevant. Half of them are scared little children playing with fire. Kalen Caledon, Marella, Katherine Havencroft, even Patrick Grandster, are undoubtedly incapable of using the Titans to their full potential." Praxis commented.

　　The representatives from Yamada and Castillo frowned at the comment. Their Pilots were of a similar age and experience. Praxis` slight was directed at them as well.

　　Before things could get contentious, Augustus spoke up from where he sat on a couch in the center of the room. His new wife sat beside him, looking pleased at her elevated position.

　　"That will be enough. We are committed to seeing peace return to the galaxy. I will be Emperor, and Argyle will pay for his crimes. The Houses aligned with my brother will see reason. I guarantee it." Augustus promised, silencing everyone in the room.

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　　On the other side, the gathering of the Ducal Houses and their representatives was much more harmonious.

　　It wasn`t surprising, considering that several of them were closely related. Caledon and Havencroft were united through the marriage of Kal and Mare, while their Pilot, Katherine, was incredibly close to the Princess.

　　The three of them sat together, talking quietly. An occasional laugh erupted from their group as Patrick, the Pilot for Grandster, joined them. Overall, four of the seven Titan Pilots were on friendly terms, while other members of their Houses gathered near them, occasionally engaging them in conversation.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

　　Since Kal and Mare were both at the Summit as Pilots, it would be up to Samuel and Miranda to represent Caledon. Kal had invited them as his closest allies and for the relationship Samuel had developed as the former Imperial Herald.

　　Amara, Magnus, Duke Mason, and his wife rounded out the group.

　　On the other side, Prince Argyle, his wife Patricia and the rest of the gathered Nobles and representatives were discussing tomorrow`s negotiations.

　　Argyle looked tired, drained of life. He seemed to have aged a decade, and from a distance, he could have been mistaken for the elderly Emperor. The stress of the War and the burden of responsibility had battered the once tall and stern Prince.

　　Despite his agreement to the Peace Summit, he privately doubted they would accomplish anything. He couldn`t allow Augustus to become Emperor after the War and the attack on Terra. His brother probably had similar thoughts, leading them to an impasse.

　　Tomorrow`s discussion will be an attempt to sound out a third option. An option where everyone was satisfied and ended the War but saw neither of the Princes ascend to the Throne.

　　The only problem was that Argyle had no idea how to accomplish that.

　　None of the Ducal Houses supported another of their number becoming Emperor, and both princes had promised their supporters that they would be expected to keep. For a time, Argyle had even considered turning to Amara and proposing having her become Empress, but her connection to Havencroft would make that idea intolerable to the Nobility.

　　If Alexander were alive, Argyle would even propose their youngest brother become Emperor. Although he was a mess, the man was unmarried and unburdened. Both brothers could stomach him as their monarch as long as Argyle retained control of the Imperial Guard and Augustus had a tight grip on the government.

　　It would have been similar to how things were under their father. In time, they could manipulate the naive Alexander and using marriage alliances to secure the future of the Empire.

　　But unfortunately, Alexander was dead, killed in the attack perpetrated by Augustus.

　　Argyle frowned at the thought, draining his glass of wine and setting it on the table beside him. It was amongst the last vintage produced on Terra before its destruction, making it priceless. He had thought it fitting to serve it during the talks, symbolic of what they hoped to accomplish.

　　In the time since the attack, his anger had cooled. Rationality had returned to him, and the details of the assault on Terra still didn`t add up.

　　Johnathan, or Jack, despite his lies and untrustworthy nature, claimed that Augustus had freed him from prison. He even had the proof in the form of a pardon, signed by his brother. There was overwhelming evidence to support that idea.

　　It made sense that his brother was responsible for what happened here.

　　But Augustus also presented proof of Argyle`s involvement. And, he had to admit, the evidence was damning. Even Argyle would believe it if he wasn`t aware of his own actions that day. The truth was, he had been unconscious, dragged away from Terra, unaware of the threat by his father.

　　A fact that Augustus also admitted to.

　　Argyle had a plaguing doubt, one that intruded on even his sleep. Could this have all been a ploy by an outside force to have them fight each other? But what would be achieved in such a division? The only people who stood to gain were the Ducal Houses.

　　It was something that kept him up at night. Could one of his allies, or those of his brother, be responsible for the destruction around him? Could they have orchestrated this entire thing for their own advantage? A ploy that Argyle and Augustus were allowing to succeed by fighting each other.

　　It was a significant reason why Argyle had agreed to the peace talks and would sacrifice much to have them succeed. The other was the disturbing dreams that the Titan Pilots were having. Mentioning the Envoys and external threats to the Empire was a powerful motivation to settle things quickly.

　　Clearing his throat, Argyle stood up, his wife joining him soon after. Bianca eyed him from across the room, flashing him a small smile that he ignored. His personal relations would need to wait until this matter was settled.

　　"I believe we should all call it a night. Tomorrow will be quite hard on everyone, and I suggest we be well rested to greet the day." He stated, patting his wife on the hand as he left the room separately. It was well known that the couple slept apart for their entire marriage.

　　"Ahh, all good things must come to an end. I shall you see all in the morning, cousins." Patrick said with a sigh, standing up and joining the others of his House to return to their quarters.

　　"Rest well." Kal replied, before giving Mare a kiss on the cheek. One Titan Pilot would always remain on alert, taking shifts to guard the camp. Kal had taken first watch, requiring him to stay near Atlas in the event of trouble.

　　Standing outside, leaning against the leg of Atlas while he watched the stars overhead, Kal had an unexpected visitor.