Army of the Damned

VOLUME 3 Chapter 6

Inside the quiet and armored conference room of the Presidential Jumbo Jet. Alana finds herself sitting at the edge of the large laminated oak table, etched ontop of it the seal of Eldwood as the Secretary of State sat beside her. Quietly watching Bahamut loudly munch on the peanut bowl without any reservations.

A click is heard and the gigantic flatscreen TV at the other end of the room comes to life. On its idle screen was the logo of the Men of the Woods. The Pine Tree flanked by guns and swords as an Italian Wolf sat in front of it, holding a Combat Knife with its mouth as its sneering stare looked outward. "Lady Minuit, how have you found your time with us from Earth so far? I know you've only been with General Jackson for a handful of weeks."

"I've found you people to be absolutely delightful. My Lord had not once failed to meet my expectations and it has elevated my opinions on those from Earth." Umberto then showed a slight smile as he clicks the pen and began writing things down on the notepad in English. "And how would you rate the lower ranking players? I am fully aware of how you treat people in the Vampire Kingdom, Lady Minuit and I mean no ill-will with this statement. I am merely curious. We, are curious."

Outside of the windows behind him, the clouds were far below them now and the sun brightly shone on the side of the aircraft as the digital clock behind her showed it was already past 12 and the date was still tuned to planet Earth. Having an unfamiliar word on it but she does understand the 15 in the middle of another number and 4R 1152 next to it. "I uhhh... I apologize. I feel overwhelmed by all of this."

"Please, do take your time." He showed no hostility at all, not even daring to hide his emotions as his pleasant voice was miles better than Jackson who usually spoke with a far more lenient and open tone. "In my humble experience, no matter the Outworlder. They've all been great company."

With a smile on him, he then crosses something off on the list he had written down. "Then, may you share with me your opinion of us, Humans now? After some adventuring with one of our species?" She held herself high even through the interview with the top level politician of the Players. "Of course, I separate the Men of Threa from the Men of Tur. I do believe that I understand your species' plight more thanks to my congenial time with My Lord."

"Now, please forgive me for this question if it offends you but have you had any thoughts of escaping General Jackson's grasp?" as Bahamut has finished eating the bowl of peanuts, he signals with his finger to the Agent who quickly gets a new bowl. "Goodness... No. As a Noble of the Vampire Kingdom, this is Tradition and Culture. It is embedded in our very duty. To learn from one's mistakes and grow." This made the Secretary of State then write a long winded paragraph on the notepad. It took him a good minute to finish it, taking up three whole pages. "That is very good. No wonder your species is such a force even though you're thousands of miles away in another continent and separated by a vast and dangerous ocean."

"Vampires willing to lower themselves and learn from those who defeated them and adapt these tactics later on... huh. So this is not some rumor... and it makes sense. A human lifetime and even an Elf's is nothing to your kind and you get to be immersed in an entirely different style of thinking..." he then pushes the pen up his mouth. Pushing it up his chin, making loud clicking sounds as the tip continually appears and disappears.

"How... would you..." Alana kept a silent but obedient stare at him, to much of her surprise, her beauty almost seems to not work on the Secretary of State, she could openly feel his use of Mana was extremely precise and methodical and it would take someone of great skill to even spot it. "Say, if we were to make an Alliance with the Kingdom of Rose?"

She was caught off guard for a moment by his question, but having so much experience by now, her face didn't even show a hint of it. "How would you wish to begin such a process, though? As my only advice is to contact the House of Lords." Umberto then lets go of the pen, placing it next to the notepad as his figure was brightly illuminated by the sun. "We'll take that into account then, Lady Minuit. It's just a draft for now, but we need allies from everywhere if we wish to last for even a year in this world."