Parliament House - Parliamentary Education Office.jpeg

Capitol Building, Sacramento

Kamala walked into the Cabinet Room and was the last to arrive. Tanya, with the Environment portfolio, smiled kindly. Kamala sat with her trademark grin.

"Good afternoon, everyone. Before we get started...how are y'all doing?" asked Kamala. Pete let out a sigh.

"Missing my husband and family," he answered. "Writing a white paper proposal for aviation regulations."

"Umm...working with fisheries, UCLA and the EPA," Yana Garcia answered.

"I have labor meetings," said Stacey.

Country name:United Duchies
Population (in RP):125,986,776
Catholic % of population:22.80%

Country name:Svarna Surya
Population (in RP):55,325,000
Catholic % of population:5.1%

"Oh goodness, I have not been in St. Lucas for months now," Chai replied. The motorcade was too much for Chai, though she endured. She could not wait for the summit and the negotiations to commence.

Results

New 2025 House.png

New 2025 Senate.png

CLP-49%
CDP-32%
FDP-14%
CWP-03%
Greens-02%

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Elizabeth Íkrat awoke to find herself lying on the floor, face to the ice-cold wall, someone tapping, if lightly, her back with an irritating persistence. Her mouth was dry, her eyes hot and watery; her bones ached, and she wanted nothing more than to return to sleep. But the tapper would not stop - the tapper went on incessantly - and so sleep was, already, a lost cause; there was no point in even so much as closing her eyes.

Elizabeth Íkrat was thus forced to turn over, to move away from her lovely wall, and discover the young Colonel-Minister Kuldar Loime kneeling at her side, face pale and pained, shirtless.

"Put on a shirt," said Íkrat, voice low and raspy. "You look disgusting." He was not, in fact, disgusting - he was, after all, a young-ish military man who was as close to Western celebrity as was possible in Istkalen - but it was not appropriate, could not be condoned; and in any case, he was the most dangerous sort of thing in Istkalen, a likable reactionary, and so had to be reminded of his place as often as as possible to keep him in check, to prevent him from getting any real ideas.

"The Czechs have arrived," said Loime, tone measured. He seemed entirely unperturbed; a shame, really. But what else to expect from the type of man insane and resilient enough to be popular and power-hungry in Istkalen? Nothing, nothing at all...

"More reason to put on a shirt," Íkrat complained. "You were in one when we got here. Why did you take it off?"

"Get up," Loime said, reaction still, somehow, absent from his response. "You'll upset them if they find you here sleeping. Imagine, you write them an apology, invite them here so as to deliver it in person, and then they find you lying down in the corner of the room, half-asleep..."

"Imagine, they come here and find you shirtless."

"I'll put something on."

There was nothing left, then, for Íkrat to do but to sigh, rouse herself, and wander out to go and find the Czechs. She had not quite managed to make the Colonel bow, but she had gotten him to do something, or at least say that he was going to do something, and that was perhaps prostration enough - enough to keep him subdued a day more, enough to keep reaction at bay, at arm's length.

Surrounded by corruption, she muttered bitterly, allied with reaction, playing these strange, paranoid mind-games; she was dead, really, and carrying on as a corpse simply out of mechanical duty (ritual?)

But put it aside, she thought; yes, you are a corpse. Thinking is not your province; thinking is for the living. So go on, go on; going on is all that's left to you.

Four turns down hallways she barely recognized brought her to the Czechs - a strange man in stranger clothing, dignitaries in suits she did not recognize, and then, then, the dearest mother, the Paramount Leader, the President for Life - !

She screamed in anguish, looking up to the heavens as her knees trembled violently, in fear and awe and shame, before giving out entirely; she fell to the ground, prostrating herself before her superior, sobbing profusely. She perceived, dimly, Loime bursting through (in suit and tie again, praise be to God), stumbling, gasping, but it was of no matter, no matter in comparison to the terrible need to confess and to repent bursting so violently in her heart as the radiant light of the woman before her singed and scorched her slimy, fallen flesh....

"Forgive me!" she yelled, her voice shrill, already hoarse. "Oh, forgive me, forgive me, forgive me...."

PART I:Hour 36 of discussion

The War Rooms consist of eight adjoined chambers running horizontally. There is one room for each member of the Braetha themselves, then one communal meeting room: Room 4.

Room 4 was in complete tatters. Before the meeting began, attendants removed all the ancient valuable relics to prevent them from being destroyed. All the rooms were decorated with ancient artwork, except for Room 4.

Berra Nacar, the Braetha for infrastructure, was screaming at Head Braetha Fornithias Cranst:

"Why won't you listen to me? Eh? I've said about a million times now, NO!" Groans followed from the other members.

"We are not," Berra said, "and I REPEAT, we ARE NOT, letting ONE MORE person from Spain into this country, EVER AGAIN!"

"Berra, calm down!" barked Thomas Ilgras, the Braetha for mechanical industries. "In the past 36 [nearly 37!] hours, you have contributed nothing but a sniffly and upturned nose to this discussion."

"Oi!" said Cranst. "That's your fifth ad hominem attack this session, Thomas. I must expel you after the next one".

"Stop threatening me, Fornithias--"

"MASTER Cranst. Mr Ilgras, we are public representatives, certainly not friends. You will not address me by my first name if you do not want to be chucked out by your suspender braces", Fornithias said.

"Yes," Berra continued. "I can SNIFFLE, all I WANT! As I was saying, we must remove all Spanish forces from Sertia regardless of--"

"regardless of the results of the referendum?" Thomas interrupted, "regardless? Master Cranst, I must remark that at this point in the discussion, we have allowed Ms Nacar to barrage us with Aspernian Spanish-hating propoganda for 36 hours.

"Need I remind you all", Thomas looked around at the members of the Braetha pacing the margins of Room 4, "that Ms Nacar was Mr Guthrun Wond's pick to be European Councillor? That ought to speak louder than anything more I can say".

"Oh my goodness, really?" said the Braetha for Energy and Sustainability with a yawn. "That's groundbreaking, Thomas. Tell us again, for the 6,000th time, would you?"

"Thomas, need I remind YOU that I denounced Guthrun almost immediately after he'd said that. I just didn't know the EU rules about choosing a councillor, so I accepted his offer," said Berra Nacar.

"That is exactly my point, master Cranst. All Wondites are incompetent and lazy enough to allow dictators to simply do what they want. That is what democracies do, Ms Nacar. We are not a democracy here," Thomas said, pointing at Berra, his very long finger nearly touching her forehead.

Berra gave Thomas a very long, condemning scowl. "Oh," Berra said snidely, "you're a hypocrite too, are you?"

Thomas went for Berra's hair. Shouting erupted, and then--

A well-dressed intern rang the dinner bell. It was time for dinner.

Berra and Thomas sat down, huffing and puffing. There was finally stillness in the War Room.

Finally, Cranst spoke: "I am making an executive decision for everyone's benefit".

"36 hours later," groaned the Braetha for Education and Welfare.

Cranst glared at the Braetha for Education and Welfare. Then he spoke: "I propose we contact Spain about this after we receive the referendum results. Only then do we make a statement".

Berra scoffed. "This is just ridiculous. You really trust Spain to answer the phone for us? For all we know we've scared them off. You know, we wouldn't be in this malarkey if not for the free press".

"Don't you start, Berra," Cranst said. "It's time for dinner."

Part 5 - La Prima Riunione a Quattro

Luquillo (Puerto Rico)

Sebastián Rubio, or as they called him, Il Predestinato, was driving to the designated meeting place listening to the radio. The island of Puerto Rico had been chosen by Jean-Claude Juncker as the venue for the first meeting of The Great Three with their candidate to become the newest Spanish President. Suddenly, the radio started to play the song NUEVAYoL, by the famous Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny, and Sebastián began to sing: «Si te quieres divertir, con encanto y con primor, solo tienes que vivir, un verano en Nueva York». Just after the song ended, the radio gave Saturday's news, with Nofoaga being the main headline. "We rather rush all of this and get the Nofoaga affair done, or this ship is going to sink faster than the Titanic", thought Il Predestinato.

On the other hand, The Great Three had just parked in front of a typical Puerto Rican restaurant that was nearly full. «Over my dead body», warned Donald Tusk, who was the co-driver. Jean-Claude Juncker, who was driving, replied back: «C'mon Donald! It will be fun, and no one will realise about what we are discussing as there will be a lot of noise. By the way, I am really hungry, and I have told Il Predestinato to meet us here, so you have no other choice. Jesús, what do you think?». Jesús Aguilar was seating in the back seat, answered: «Well, I would love to know why I am in the back seat, but overall, this is risky».

«Cowards! That is what you two are! Donald, send a message to the kid and ask him about the food. You should be thankful that I told him to bring something as it was his first meeting with us!», cried the former Premier Commissioner. «He says he is bringing it, no worries. In the meantime, I have a question for you, Jesús: why do you say we cannot backstab Alberto? That was what we agreed on...», Tusk told the other two politicians in that car.

«You two remember we were the ones that encouraged him to run for the party's presidency, right? He did not want to leave Galicia, he wanted to retire there, and you Jean-Claude were the one to tell him 'Alberto, this is the chance that you were waiting for. You deserve it'. Is this even moral? Ethic? Is this the way you treat your friends? Forgetting about what they have done for you in the past? Because if those are our values, then I am sorry but do not count on me for this», Aguilar pointed out.

Tusk and Juncker were speechless. Jesús was right, they both knew it; and Donald felt increbibly guilty after the former President called them out: «You are right. We cannot backstab Alberto, it would not be morally correct to betray him the way we intend to», the Council Speaker added. Juncker reacted in a serious way: «What do you want us to do, Jesús? Put him in the Cabinet? There are no good destinations for him! Unless... Donald, didn't Ana want to retire and leave politics to make a career in the pricate sector?».

«She did indeed, Jean-Claude. Why?», inquired Donald. «I have got an idea... let's give Feijóo the Presidency of the Congreso de los Diputados! That's it, problem solved! He becomes the 3rd authority of Spain, gets a job, barely does anything at all... It is the perfect job, ideal for forcibly-retired politicians that no one wants in their Governments and that have no other choice. Obviously Europe would be the obvious place to go for him, that is where all that people end up at...», announced Juncker, who seemed to be realising about the fact that Donald and him were sent to Europe by Aguilar. Both the Speaker and the former Premier appeared to be thinking the same, and looked to the back seat, where Jesús was.

«I know what you are thinking, but I swear to God that is not the reason why I sent you two to European politics. I sent you because you are experts, that's all -Jesús explained rapidly, seeing how his friend's faces had changed in seconds- By the way, I believe that proposal is perfect, and certainly what we have been looking for». Juncker and Tusk decided to believe him.

Just as the three agreed on the new plans for Feijóo, Il Predestinato shew up in the parking lot and knocked at the car's window: «are you three planning to stay there for the entire day or what? C'mon, get out and let's go to a place I have discovered». After greeting him, the four made their way to Punta Bandera, a few hundreds meters away from where they were.

Punta Bandera, Luquillo, Puerto Rico

When The Great Three and Il Predestinato arrived in Punta Bandera, Sebastián Rubio gave his masters a menu from the fast food chain Burger King. «Jean-Claude, will you bring food the next time?», Donald asked his friend. «It is up to Christiane... remember I do not know how to cook, Donald!», the former Premier Commissioner laughed. «I think Sebastián needs to learn how to cook, because his first meal has not been as good as I would have expected. Yet, he saved the day, so I will not complain at all», commented Jesús. «You three should be more thankful - you would not be eating right now if it wasn't for me!», remarked Rubio.

Once they finished their meals, time they spent speaking about their lives, the four got down to business. Jesús Aguilar was the first to speak: «Okay, I believe we are good to go. Firstly, I would like to welcome you, Sebastián, to our private meetings. I will be very honest with you: we would have preferred this to happen later, but certain unpredicted events have forced us to act faster. During the last 4 days, we have been preparing part of your Cabinet. We want you to respect the current's Government Ministerial distribution, that is, same amount of Ministries, same Ministries; but not the same Ministers. Donald, do you have the list of confirmed members?», Aguilar inquired the Council Speaker.

«I do, Jesús. -Donald answered- Marta Merino will be the First Vicepresident and the Minister of the Presidency and Relationship with the Cortes; Roberta Metsola will be your Second Vicepresident and Minister for Territorial Administrations. Your Foreign Affairs Minister will be your great friend Gabriel Attal, the Ministry of Justice will be held by Cayetana, Penny stays at Defence, as Bravo, Bendodo, Mariastella, Anja and Pablo do in their Ministries. Last, but not least, Jenniffer Grandholm gets Energy. You get to choose the rest of your Cabinet», explained Tusk, who gave the paper with the empty Ministries to Il Predestinato.

«I am thankful to you guys for your help. I want Fátima in employment and Borja in Education. That leaves us with Agriculture, Environment and Health. Ester Muñoz will be my Health Minister, as she has huge knowledge on that area. On the other hand, Rafael Hernando in from Almería, which makes him the perfect profile for Agriculture. Finally, Luís Montenegro has suggested me to choose Marcelo Rebelo da Sousa for Environment; which completes my Cabinet. Then, we just need to get Alberto out and that would be it!», explained Sebastián.

«That is not the end of it, Sebastián. Of course, Alberto needs to accept he has to leave, and the new position we are offering him. Yet, we need to deal with the annexation of an island that we already control: Nofoaga. Concerning this Caribbean island, I have made a plan to make the annexation progress fast and easy: Marián Fonseca, the Spanish representative in the Nofoagan majority, will proclaim herself as the leader of the Republic's salvation Government, due to the inactivity of Lula's cabinet. Meanwhile, the Spanish military will back up Fonseca's claims, recognising her as the leader. As we hold a monopoly over the use of force in the island, there will be no powerful opposition to our moves, not even politically, as Lula dealt with that. Speaking of whom, she and all our friends will be brived, and will come out supporting the annexation. About civil unrest, we will obviously address it proportionally: if there is violence, there will be arrests. However, a referendum will take place, and considering we have been controlling the island from the shadows for a long time, that Nofoagans are as poor as rats, and that the political class will support becoming a Spanish Overseas Territory, they will massively vote yes. One month of pure political games to get a nice island in the Caribbean, and making people forget about... what was his name?», Juncker told the others.

«I thought that when you told me you were going to work on a plan concerning Operation Turtle Beach you were being sarcastic. This is simply amazing. Congratulations, Jean-Claude», said Jesús, who was surprised about Juncker's work. Suddenly, Il Predestinato interrupted them: «That is a nice plan, I must confess. Nonetheless, you seem to be forgetting the most important thing of this plan: how do we get rid of Alberto? If I remember correctly, you were planning to backstab him until a few days ago, when you changed your criteria. Now, what is the plan? We need him to accept that new job you were talking about!».

«You are just too worried about it all, relax!», Donald added. The Councillor for Spain then proceeded to describe what the plan concerning Feijóo was, shortly after he gave Rubio a paper with a poll on it. «What is this? A poll? How is this going to help us?», Rubio protested. He did not understand what Donald Tusk was trying to tell him with that paper. «Look at the results. If you analyse it carefully, you will realise that the Partido Popular does not have an absolute majority. In other words, we would lose power. So, all we have got to do is sending this poll to a newspaper, make them post it, and then talk to Alberto and convince him of leaving while he designates you as his successor. Easy!», Tusk exclaimed.

«Hang on for a minute... are you telling me the poll is not true? You have made these numbers up?», Rubio insisted, seemingly concerned. «No, these are real numbers, this is real data and those are the real results. If Feijóo decided to hold elections today, we would not remain in Government», added Aguilar. «Then, he will go. He will not be an obstacle to our aspirations concerning the next General Election», Sebastían concluded.

«If I were you, Sebastián, I would get your debate speech ready. Oh, and I would prepare another for when you take over the Party's presidency. Things are going to spice up next week, I assure you», Jean-Claude pointed out. «Concerning you two, we do agree that the Three of us will visit our dear friend when things begin to look bad for him; and convince him of retiring, do we?», he questioned Jesús and Donald, who agreed. «Fine, then we will meet in Madrid the next time...», continued Juncker.

«Not really... Before that, Mario has insisted on meeting again in Manarola. He wants us to attend, and for some reason he did not tell me about, he does not want the kid there. Rumours say he plans to gather all the regional leaders to convince them about the convenience of choosing Il Predestinato over Alberto, yet he did not confirm this», Tusk said. Juncker was just about to lose his temper, but controlled himself: «I hope he does not become another obstacle in our way», he exclaimed.

«Then I will see you in Manarola. Oh, and Seb, remember: do not talk to anyone about this. Operation Turtle Beach does not exist. Am I clear?», Jesús insisted. «Clear enough, Jesús», Il Predestinato answered back. The four politicians left the place. Countdown had started. The final days of Alberto Núñez Feijóo as the President of the Kingdom of Spain had begun.

With Miura I's Lunar Module headed for the Moon, the rocket stage flew on a trajectory past the Moon. On 6 January 2025, Miura 1 passed behind the Moon and fired its service propulsion engine to enter lunar orbit. Soon enough, Sara García communicated with Mission Control in Seville: «Sevilla Mission Control, this is Miura 1. The Moon is beautiful, simply astonishing. What a lovely view!», she said. Smiles could be seen all around the hall, that was looking at the very same view. The livestream of the Mission also offered the same picture to the general public, being the top viewed live transmission of the World at that time.

Everything went according to plan. After all the proceedings, the Matador was orbiting the Moon being monitored by Mission Control, while the four astronauts were onboard for their Moon landing. As planned, at 06.00 Sertian time, Miura 1 touched down on the Moon's surface. Álvarez then informed Sevilla and viewers from Spain (where Radiotelevisión Española was broadcasting the arrival) and the World about the success of the Mission: «Sevilla, this is Foso Base. Miura has landed». The room exploded in cheer and joy as the first tense part was over. Then, Sara García and the other astronauts suited up, and with a GoPro cam ready and connected to the live broadcast, they headed to the Miura 1 door to get prepared. They were hours away from setting foot on the Moon.

The Moon
7th January 2025 - 12.00 Caribbean Time

Sara García was the chosen one to be the first member of the Mission to set foot on the Moon's surface. The door opened, and with the GoPro in her hand, she started the descent to the ground. She shew her foot as she put them on the ground, and then spoke in Spanish, visibly moved by the circumstances: «Sevilla, we are here. We have done it. This is a huge step for the Kingdom of Spain Spain, a bigger step for the Caribbean and a new beginning for humanity. I hope you are watching this... it is just beautiful». They were, indeed, watching. King Felipe VI then spoke to the radio: «Astronaut García, this is King Felipe. The atmosphere here in Sevilla is amazing. Congratulations for this achievement. The entire World is watching you all. We are very proud of you».

Then, one by one, Parse, Huie and Álvarez followed Sara's steps and set foot on the ground. Each of them was carrying their own national flags, which at the same time and being recorded by García, planted them on the Moon's soil. A few minutes later, and being recorded by one of the Miura 1 cameras, the four astronauts planted the commemorative Starman Mission flag and the AEE-SSA flag. They then began to carry out all the research tasks that had been assigned to them, as well as collecting samples of the lunar soil. Presidents Feijóo and Namatatiki, alongside the Head of the Braetha Fornithias Cranst, had a joint phone call with the astronauts. They all stayed there for 3 days, the longest stay of a group of humans in the Moon.

On 10 January, 2025, the group of astronauts left the Moon heading back to El Matador, and just after the rendez-vous, Muira 1 and Matador began their trip back to the Earth. The mission developed as planned, and on 11 January 2025, 14.00 Caribbean team, Muira 1 splashed down somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, being rescued by two ships of the Spanish Armada, taking the astronauts back to Sertia. The mission was complete. The Kingdom of Spain had done it. So had Sertia and Nofoaga. The Moon had been conquered.

President Mouri-Kudo’s eyes lit up with interest as she listened to Kamala’s explanation. “That’s fascinating, Prime Minister. It’s a unique history—five independent colonies coming together to form what is now such a dynamic and influential nation. Adopting the name ‘California’ for the whole region must have been a unifying and visionary step.”

She paused thoughtfully. “It’s remarkable how histories of federation often mirror the values of collaboration and unity we strive for today. Leagio’s own journey has its parallels, bringing together diverse regions under a shared identity while maintaining their unique characteristics.”

With a warm smile, she added, “Thank you for sharing that piece of history. It’s these kinds of stories that deepen understanding and appreciation between nations. And, on behalf of the people of Leagio, I’ll make every effort to enjoy and learn from California during my visit.”

Kamala jumped from the surprise.

"General Secretary Watanabe, Toukyou ni shoutai shite kurete, arigatou. I studied Yosainese in undergraduate studies but I'm rusty," she said. "Ueno Park is so beautiful, I didn't mind the mild infarto (heart attack)."

«Checks were under our estimations, do not worry about them», Feijóo noted.

«As I see there are no more topics up for discussion, I guess it is time to call this summit to an end. Mr. Key, it has been a huge pleasure and a very productive one. I hope that the steps that we have given today mark the start of a new era in our bilateral relationship, which I expect to grow in trust and friendship. Thank you very much for coming», Feijóo concluded.

For a time, it was the official stance of the Inquistan Orthodox Church to vehemently deny even the faintest possible existence of the UNSR. While Archbishop Mikaela Kligenberg has no ideological qualms allying herself with communists or socialists, as seen with her personal and diplomatic closeness to the Czechoslavonic President, her undying loyalty to one of her best friends, Queen Anastasia, led her to accept Firoux's radical stance of only recognizing the Nicoleizian government in exile. Despite this, the Archbishop had also pushed for a reconciliation of the various Nicoleizian governments, even hoping to bring some sort of unity agreement between socialist and democratic forces with the help of President Reiserová.

However, things have drastically changed over the last while. The officially non-existent UNSR split, with the north remaining as an increasingly more authoritarian UNSR, while the south emerged as a newfound democratic republic. While the Nicoleizian government in exile never returned to power, the south became the official beacon of Nicoleizian democracy. While the country split, both sides have officially recognized each other, effectively bringing legitimacy to both the UNSR and the newfound republic in the south.

Inquista now recognizes both Icholasens, and the Archbishop even more enthusiastically supports a reunification of the two countries under one banner. In her first official visit to the UNSR, the Archbishop is looking to normalize relations between Inquista and the UNSR, and to build goodwill to support reunification efforts.

The Archbishop's plane was now enroute to the UNSR, where she was eager to attend the Christmas soirée. As Christmas was by far the most dominant social, cultural and religious celebration in Inquista, the Archbishop didn't even think twice of why a communist state would be celebrating the festive occasion.

"Everyone loves Christmas, right? I mean, it's lovely time of year with the best atmosphere. The movies are great... especially those Hallmark ones! They're are all so unique, with those unpredictable endings that always get me, like who would of thought the city girl would go back to her small town and get back with her high school fling!? So cute!" Mikaela sighed sweetly as she turned to Captain Jimin, who was sitting beside her in the co-pilot seat of the cockpit.

The Archbishop had gotten bored of always sitting as a passenger in her private jet, and had started learning how to fly herself under the supervision of her beloved private pilot. 627 hours logged into Flight Simulator on Steam had really begun to pay dividends for the Archbishop, whose Twitch livestreams of her Flight Simulator let's plays even led to Beyonce completely copying her entire gaming fit, including the pink headset THAT SHE WORE FIRST (as stated by Mikaela's cease and desist letter to Jay-Z).

"You know that Bina has been in a few films like that? I've watched all of her movies, they're SO good. Ugh, it's no wonder her people love her, she is T-A-L-E-N-T-E-D", the Archbishop emphasized enthusiastically. "And the music! So good! My entire Spotify Wrapped is all Christmas music, and that's because I can't help but to begin listening to it starting in July. I feel so embarrassed because I never share my Wrapped with anybody, they don't get it."

The Archbishop turned to Captain Jimin and let go of the plane's control to continue her point, but the captain quickly freaked out and signaled to her to pay attention to her mission at hand.

Mikaela tried her best to make the descent to the airport, and after a rocky and shaky landing, managed to complete her first complete voyage as the primary pilot of her private jet.

"Nailed it, right?" Mikaela asked calmly while Captain Jimin flinched at her suggestion. "What? I asked calmly?" Mikaela asked calmly.

The Archbishop then pulled out hand mirror from a nearby cubby and examined herself as she repositioned her pastel pink santa hat. "I hope I came dressed properly for the occasion. It's Christmas themed, I think, or something. I don't know. The instructions weren't clear at all. I came dressed in costume just in case."

The Archbishop then got up and walked to a mirror that had been installed the plane's small lounge and began to admire herself.

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"So cute!"

The Archbishop then departed from the plane and made her way to her her specially requested pink limousine. As she approached the pink limousine, a very large crowd of Nicoleizians had gathered to catch a glimpse of the Archbishop as she made her first visit to the UNSR. "Ich bin ein Icholasener!" Mikaela announced, with her hand raised, to the crowd before stepping into her limousine which took her to the soiree.

Upon arriving at the soiree, the Archbishop performed her usual ritual of beelining straight to getting some drinks. "I'll have a White Nicoleizian, please! As they say, once you go White, well... I don't know what they say actually. Two shots, though, please?"

Results - Indirect Elections to the National Assembly

Indirectly elected seats before election
63 - Agrarian Union
45 - National Republican Party
42 - Statebuilding Party
40 - Union
23 - Social Democratic Party
15 - Radical Democratic Party
10 - Farmer-Green Alliance
7 - Democratic Movement

Indirectly elected seats after election

49 - Agrarian Union
39 - Statebuilding Party
36 - Democratic Movement
31 - Communist Party
29 - Republican Labor Party
25 - Farmer-Green Alliance
17 - Social Democratic Party
12 - National Republican Party
7 - Radical Democratic Party

Composition of the new National Assembly

82 - National Republican Party
69 - Agrarian Union
64 - Social Democratic Party
63 - Statebuilding Party
59 - Democratic Movement
41 - Republican Labor Party
41 - Communist Party
35 - Farmer-Green Alliance
21 - Union Party
20 - Radical Democratic Party

Government: 300
Opposition: 195

"That sounds like a wonderful plan, and a way to really show our cooperation as countries. I will ask our Brætha to mark 15 January as an official state holiday, and I'm sure they'll commission some extra festivals and celebrations.

"The Sertian astronauts we have chosen for this campaign are people who have shown an outstanding dedication to fostering international relationships, such as the one our two nations have."

Breakdown House of Duchies:
%:

Duchy/Constituency The left IUAC PSD Liberal Party: Moderate Party: Union of Democrats: Unus AFD Total Cair Para 3.84% 0.00% 19.75% 11.02% 31.91% 0.38% 15.31% 17.79% 100.00% Supseaxe 4.56% 0.00% 24.15% 18.78% 34.63% 0.76% 12.92% 4.20% 100.00% Westseaxna 0.49% 0.00% 12.25% 6.01% 31.66% 4.73% 29.97% 14.89% 100.00% Baltica 0.57% 0.03% 27.55% 17.90% 39.66% 0.78% 5.12% 8.40% 100.00% Albion 1.21% 0.00% 6.88% 9.07% 23.84% 2.09% 33.88% 23.02% 100.00% Doornevale 0.83% 0.00% 6.82% 3.33% 19.41% 3.16% 47.83% 18.62% 100.00% Aranvale 1.13% 0.00% 13.54% 7.44% 15.83% 3.84% 33.60% 24.63% 100.00% Overseas 4.06% 0.00% 28.18% 9.00% 41.58% 12.90% 3.58% 0.70% 100.00% Total: 2.40% 0.01% 21.11% 13.64% 34.26% 2.84% 16.63% 9.12% 100.00%

Votes:

Duchy/Constituency The left IUAC PSD Liberal Party: Moderate Party: Union of Democrats: Unus AFD Total Cair Para 69726 0 358489 199912 579062 6910 277774 322838 1814712 Supseaxe 1258335 0 6670657 5187448 9566873 210212 3569306 1161557 27624387 Westseaxna 84346 0 2103887 1031679 5437117 812791 5147169 2557946 17174936 Baltica 96597 5047 4634217 3011720 6671254 131221 860625 1412525 16823207 Albion 25202 0 143110 188619 495580 43556 704382 478606 2079054 Doornevale 21159 0 174002 85041 495547 80680 1221230 475361 2553020 Aranvale 23730 0 283598 155857 331625 80500 703882 515988 2095180 Overseas 254257 0 1765930 563791 2605425 808155 224429 44072 6266059 Total 1833353 5047 16133889 10424066 26182484 2174026 12708797 6968893 76430555

Seats:

Duchy/Constituency The left IUAC PSD Liberal Party: Moderate Party: Union of Democrats: Unus AFD Total Cair Para 1 0 6 3 10 0 5 5 30 Supseaxe 1 0 7 6 11 0 4 1 30 Westseaxna 0 0 4 2 10 1 9 4 30 Baltica 0 0 9 5 13 0 1 2 30 Albion 0 0 2 3 7 0 11 7 30 Doornevale 0 0 2 1 6 1 15 5 30 Aranvale 0 0 4 2 5 1 10 8 30 Overseas 1 0 8 2 14 4 1 0 30 Total 3 0 42 24 76 7 56 32 240

Round Two General Election Results, as reported at 22:45 on 17 August

Union des Saints: 41.42%
Ligue Socialiste du Travail: 33.32%
Front Republicain National: 25.26%

"We much appreciate that Spain is so willing to be a strong partner in these increasingly trying times. The shipping arrangement you've mentioned would be perfect for us, as well."

"With regards to Telum: Istkalenic foreign policy remains non-aligned. Our focus, for the time being, is on obtaining security guarantees from our independent partners and neighbors: Czech Slavia, and perhaps even Vayinaod. While we are interested in reinforced cooperation, economic and military, with the Telum bloc, we do not think that membership would be ideal or realistic for us."

"The agreement on trade remains in place - I would actually like the broach the question of whether an expansion, ideally to full, free trade for all but the agricultural sector, is possible."

"As for rare-earth metals, while we are willing to provide an additional supply to Spain, we will not do so without discussing the issue with the other signatories of the Treaty of Yokohama.:"

Mouri-Kudo smiled in response as she shook hands with President Feijóo.

"It is an honor to finally have the chance to meet you as well, President Feijóo and I have been looking forward to this summit as well. Please do forgive me for having this summit here in Elmena Estate in Arlick, normally it would be held in my nation's capital of Tullion. But I felt that the need for a change of scenery in this time of the year. Is there anything that I can get you? Like some tea for example?"