Strangers when we meet

There was a flutter of unseen wings as it arrived, a whisper-thin touch of something soft against her cheek as the letter plopped onto the desk, and the rush of wind as the messenger departed. It was the third such delivery of the day, the eighth this week, and despite having worked here for less than a moth, Bozena had already learned to dread their contents. She used the silver letter opener to unseal the missive. She grunted in exasperation as she read it, shaking her head more than once."Why are people so stupid?" She only realised she had spoken out loud when a deep man's voice spoke behind her in answer."Because they are people," it said with weary amusement. She spun on her chair and colour rose in her cheeks as she found the Master of the Hidden Hook, Lord-Magister Anton Trescher, stood by the narrow window of her office staring out across the gardens. She had needless to say not heard him come in, or been aware of his presence, and with a guilty glance at the drawer where she kept her sherbert and cherries, she wondered how long he had been there."I assume given the method of delivery it is from one of the Magician-Princes," he said as if they were engaged in a casual conversation. As if she was one of his peers rather than a clerk whose main responsibility was to reply to the more inconsequential letters while passing the relevant ones to someone more important."It is, Lord-Magister. From -"He cut her off with a raised finger, still not having looked at her."It hardly matters. I further assume it is another of those demands that I secure trade routes with the Empire of Catazar while also proposing a slightly hyperbolic fear that they are secretly sending troops to support the Commonwealth?"She looked down then up. He was of course correct, but she felt she needed to add something."It's specifically concerned with sweetwater and... some sort of delicacy they make by burying vegetables in the ground. Is that a thing?"He didn't answer her question, just made a rumbling noise in his throat and said something she didn't catch under her breath. He looked at her for the first time and she felt sweat break out on her brow. He wasn't angry, but neither was his happy, his face a carefully constructed mask that gave nothing away."What the House of Princes so often fails to understand is that wanting something and it being true are not the same thing. They can want trade routes re-opened and reassurances all they like but we cannot pull them out of our sleeves on command. Diplomacy requires accommodation and pragmatism and you cannot easily force people who do not fear you to compromise or be practical. Especially not people who are deafened by their own righteousness. But try telling that to the Magician-Princes who want their sweetwater and their... whatever that thing is called. It sounds dreadful."Lord-Magister Anton continued to stare at her, and she realised he hadn't blinked the entire time he was talking. Then he turned away again."Still, we all serve in our way. Even I am ultimately a servant at the end of the day. Bundle the letter along with the others and I will try again. There is an old saw that the very definition of futility is doing the same thing over and over in the hope the outcome will be different. Perhaps this time the Empire will be overcome with an unprecedented level of reasonableness. Perhaps."He swept out, and as the door closed behind him, Bozena allowed herself a brief exhalation of relief and relaxed back into her chair. She fumbled for her drawer, selected a plump cherry doused in sherbert and popped it into her mouth."Oh one last thing." She stiffened. Her celebration was obviously been very premature and while she'd assumed the Lord-Magister had left her office he had in fact paused in the doorway holding the door open a crack. "I would advise you never to let me catch you calling one of the Magician-Princes stupid again. I will allow it to pass this time as you are new, but you had best mind your manners even when you think nobody is listening. Because someone is always listening in a place like this."With that he was gone, leaving Bozena shivering slightly and mentally deciding that she needed at least three more sherbert cherries to settle her nerves.

Overview

One of the six great powers, the Principalities of Jarm are no friends to the Empire. The magocracy, ruled by the House of Princes resents what it claims are repeated attempts by Imperial citizens to interfere with its interests. Via the Liberty Pact, the Empire is allied with Jarm's enemies, the Commonwealth, and open war now rages between the two great nations. They may not be at war with the Empire, but they know that Imperial citizens and the Imperial Conclave in particular have provided significant assistance to their rivals. Communications tend to be brusque, bordering on the curt.

The Jarmish ambassador to the Empire is Lord-Magister Anton Trescher of the Hidden Hook, Who attends at the House of Princes. A canny and influential politician who has served the House of Princes for over forty years, he represents the Jarmish to the Empire and vice-versa. A potent master of Autumn magic, he is known for his sarcasm and dry wit, and for his commitment to the sovereignty of the Principalities he serves.

Blocks to Trade

After the Spring Equinox, the Ambassador to Jarm expressed their disappointment not to hear from their opposite number. Lord-Magister Anton Trescher offers a formal apology, but his words lack a certain degree of sincerity. They also mention that it can be challenging to find anything positive to say when faced with what he characterises as "a wall of refusals to engage in diplomacy" from the new Ambassador and their predecessors. Strong words from the Jarmish ambassador.

In a recent missive, the Ambassador to Jarm apparently suggested that the primary roadblock in securing trade ties between the Empire and the Principalities lies with Imperial membership the Liberty Pact. While the Principalities of Jarm remain signatory to the "Freedom Accords" and continue the practice of slavery, any trade between the great powers is seemingly impossible.

After come consideration of this claim, the Lord-Magister has responded with a refutation. From the version of the Liberty Pact that Trescher has seen, the principles of the Pact require that "The signatory nations... place economic or trade sanctions of their own choosing on nations defined as slaving nations." Certainly the Pact has since been amended to specifically call for a trade embargo on the Principalities, but the Jarmish ambassador cynically suggests that this is simply a sign the Commonwealth are throwing their weight around as they are wont to do. Why are no other embargos enshrined in the Pact? What is it about the Jarmish that the Liberty Pact finds so much more threatening than, say, the Asaveans or the Grendel? This embargo against Jarm is not in the Empire's interests, says the Lord-Magister, and is being forced on them by their so-called allies, the warmongering militocracy to the south.

Furthermore, the ambassador stressing that it is the Jarmish membership of the "Liberty Pact" that causes problems is easily interpreted, yet again, as the Empire desperately wanting to involve itself in matters of nations beyond their borders. What does it matter to the Empire that the Jarmish feel they have more in common with those targeted by the Liberty Pact members than with those who practically refuse to talk to them? Who constantly try to disrupt and upend their culture and society because it does not match the arbitrary mores of the Empire?

In short, Lord-Magister Trescher restates that the House of Princes could be persuaded to re-open their ports to the Empire at almost any time, but that the bare minimum requirement would be removal of the unjust embargo the Imperial Senate has in place against trade with their nation. An embargo that serves no purpose save to deny the Empire access to Jarmish goods and the opportunity for its citizens to engage in lucrative trade due to the unrelenting zealotry and jealousy of the Commonwealth who clearly want to make the Liberty Pact into a weapon of their own.

Lore and Law

The Ambassador points out that "Imperial military units will not be deployed to support the Commonwealth just as Imperial Conclave have not authorised ritual text disbursement to Jarm". Lord-Magister Anton stresses again that this has gone some way to reassure the House of Princes that they have made the right decision withdrawing their support from the Grendel... but it is also a little disingenuous. The Conclave, after all, makes the whole of their Imperial Lore available to Commonwealth magicians and yet will not extend the same courtesy to the Jarmish.

It is the understanding of Lord-Magister Trescher that the Commonwealth secured their unfettered access to Imperial Lore by making gifts of their own ritual texts to the Empire. The Jarmish Ambassador wishes to point out that as a centuries-old magocracy, the Jarmish have significantly more rituals - and more diverse rituals - than the Commonwealth with their singular focus on war and oppression do. The ambassador expresses regret that the Principalities cannot share their ritual lore with the Empire even if they wanted to. While the embargo specifically applies to ships visiting Imperial ports, the spirit of the tariffs seems to suggest the Empire does not desire any trade from the Principalities. Worse, any ritual texts the Jarmish House of Princes arranged to be shared with the Empire would then immediately become available to their enemies. A thorny conundrum.

Yet there is still interest in some parts of the Principalities in exploring the Empire's ritual lore. While the Magician-Princes are proud of their mastery of ritual magic, there are few so foolish to imagine they know everything there is to know. With the best will in the world, though, Lord-Magister Anton stresses that access to Imperial Lore is significantly less valuable a boon to the Jarmish than it was to the Commonwealth. Certainly access to rituals such as Brotherhood of Tian are valuable, but hardly as significant a deal as granting the Commonwealth access to powerful military enchantments has proven.

Right now this is all theoretical anyway, with the existing embargo and the Ambassador's apparent lack of interest in resuming trade between the two nations. But if the matter of the embargo were resolved, then Lord-Magister Anton has been authorised to discuss trading a selection of Jarmish rituals to the Empire in return for a degree of access for magicians from the Principalities to Imperial Lore... on the understanding that these rituals would become part of Urizen lore rather than be subject to the will of the Conclave itself. It is the understanding of the Jarmish Ambassador that the eternal Värelev Arhiiv is involved in some fashion and might be persuaded to oversee such an arrangement. Perhaps the Ambassador, the Imperial Conclave itself, or the people of Urizen would like to discuss the matter?

War in the East

All of that said, Lord-Magister Anton continues to be satisfied that Imperial involvement remains minimal in the "war in the east" between Jarm and the Commonwealth. He is surprisingly candid in that he presumes the Empire is offering some aid - the Commonwealth are their allies after all - and it is to be expected. At the same time, Jarm has allies of its own who are providing their own limited degree of assistance. The forbearance of the Senate continues to be viewed favourably by the House of Princes.

The Jarmish Ambassador presumes the Empire is kept appraised of the situation along the shores of the Sea of Steel by their "friends" but for what it's worth shares the news that in his opinion victory for the Principalities is inevitable. They are not the aggressor in this war, after all, having been asked to protect their allies in Lantir when the Commonwealth invaded the country and overthrew its rulers. Regardless, though, Anton believes that a peace treaty is inevitable. Both nations have just as many concerns and threats both internal and external as the Empire no doubt does - a war of annihilation is a phantasm for xenophobes and fantasists. The war will continue until it stops, and then the diplomats will move in and find a way to return to the uneasy peace that existed before, and is the natural status quo. The childish generals of the Commonwealth may want an eternal "just" war, but the Principalities of Jarm are adults used to dealing in the reality of what war actually means to civilised people.

So while the House of Princes is prepared to re-open proper diplomatic ties with the Empire, to engage in trade (limited as it is likely to be by the tariffs both sides would impose), they are content for the Empire to simply... stay out of things. Just as the Jarmish continue to stay out of the Empire's affairs. At least until the current war ends, and everyone has to pick up the pieces.

As he has said before, though, in the unlikely event that Imperial mercenaries do turn up in battles between Jarmish and Commonwealth forces, the House of Princes will view it as a declaration of war by the Empire and respond appropriately. Their aid to the Grendel for example was more symbolic than anything else and more about appeasing the Asaveans than any particular rancour; that would change significantly if the Empire became involved in the war in the east.

Spiritual Matters

The Freeborn Ambassador raises the possibility for a productive conversation around "shared faith" and, with a somewhat weary air, Lord-Magister Anton Trescher repeats what he has apparently said a number of times. Jarm and the Empire do not have a "shared faith" because unlike the Empire the Principalities embrace religious freedom. Spiritual beliefs are relevant only to the individual and it is equally acceptable to remain indifferent to religious matters as it is to wholeheartedly embrace the tenets of one creed or another, or anything in between. If the Empire wishes to learn more about how Sumaah efforts to convert the people of Jarm are going, then it should probably ask the Sumaah Republic.

Obviously there is some middle-ground - Lord-Magister Trescher makes a reference to the ill-starred Limitu Principality House of the Way - but suggests that Jarmish followers of the Way probably want to minimize any connection between themselves and "pilgrims" in the Empire or the Republic given the way the current political winds seem set on blowing.

There is one spiritual matter that may be relevant however, although the Jarmish Ambassador considers it an amusing anecdote rather than anything of pressing diplomatic business. In the last few weeks no fewer than three astrologers of the Ministerial class have contacted him about "dire portents" related to the Empire. Their divinations suggest that there is "something untoward" growing in or near the Empire that threatens doom to one of the nations there - although when pressed for details they are infuriatingly vague as astrologers so often are. They can't even be certain that it is an Imperial nation that is threatened or one of the nations that fall in its "sphere of influence"; they aren't even agreed on whether this is a singular threat or a general air of catastrophe. But it was apparently clear enough that they felt they should let the ambassador to the Empire know what their divinations have "revealed." An amused Trescher suggests the Ambassador may wish to consult their own astrologers with regards to this matter.

The Civil Service notes that the Ambassador must be aware of the distinct difference between an astrologer in the Jarmish sense - one who divines the future and provides advice by studying the stars - and an astronomancer who uses that magical tradition to work rituals. Lord-Magister Anton is referring to the former - a class of professional diviners who provide advice to their clients that their clients then either follow or ignore depending largely on whether it aligns with what they were planning to do in the first place or not. Still, given some of the recent statements of the Synod, declarations of the Conclave, and oddly worded appraisals there may be more to this than just Lord-Magister Trescher trying to be amusing.

An Elephant in the Room

There is one matter that Lord-Magister Anton is keen for the new Ambassador to understand. The one thing that is not going to change any time soon is the use of slaves in the Principalities to do all the work too dirty or degrading or wasteful for the Landfolk. Unlike some of the other nations however, the Imperial perception of Jarm as some benighted den of savagery is extremely simplistic. Their slave class arguably has more rights than the so-called "serfs" of their good friends in the Iron Confederacy do. It remains illegal to shed the blood of Jarm even if it belongs to someone who has been a slave all their life. There are opportunities for slaves to advance their class, primarily in the army, but they exist. Something that is also not true of the Suranni, for example.

Jarm is not changing its attitude to slavery. The Empire has certainly helped cripple the international slave trade with their destruction of Rachensgrab, and the Jarmish Ambassador is not shy about acknowledging its impact. But the only thing that can cause a change of this magnitude in Jarm is for the Magician-Princes to decide it is what is best for them and for their nation. Something that is simply not going to happen soon - and will never happen as a result of outsiders demanding it. The Jarmish are at least as Proud as Imperials are and have been a unified nation (albeit for a given value of "unified" admittedly) longer than the Empire has existed, longer than the Commonwealth, Sumaah Republic, or the Sarcophan Delves. Is it any wonder they see common cause with the Asaveans who are the only people on the "world stage" that have been around as long as they have. Even though beyond their longevity the two nations do not actually have all that much in common, neither side tries to force their values on the other.

Most of the principalities have a slightly unsophisticated attitude to orcs that both the Empire and the Commonwealth find distasteful. But Lord-Magister Anton reminds the Empire that up until very recently their allies in the Sumaah Republic simply executed any orcs that they didn't kill in battle. Most Jarmish have no more information about the Empire that the Empire has about them, and many are entirely unaware (and unconcerned) that the Imperial orcs or the Apulian orcs exist. In the past there were guidelines in place to accommodate orc visitors to the ports of Vezak and Kavor, but the Grendel have done more to convince the Magician-Princes that their blanket attitude to orcs always being slaves should change, than the Empire has in recent years. Indeed, suggests the Jarmish Ambassador, its been less than a century since the Empire treated orcs as anything other than enemies to be killed or property to be enslaved; how can it appoint itself an authority on the best way to deal with them?

It may not be ideal from the point of view of an Imperial citizen, but it works. The first step towards any actual diplomatic discussion with Jarm - a discussion that might allow the Empire to help shift Jarmish attitudes toward orcs at least, or improve the situation of slaves under the law - is to stop trying to change the nation by force. If the Empire genuinely want to have an open discourse around the lowest caste of Jarmish society, they can only do so by talking to the people of the nation rather than shutting themselves off behind a wall of embargo, or shouting at the Principalities about how wicked they are.

Lost Opportunities

The offer from the House of Princes regarding Measure - the original Pilgrim's Shield of Wisdom gifted the Seven Pilgrims by Ezkiah the Benefactor - has well and truly expired. As mentioned in Autumn last year, the window for the Empire to secure the shield has closed, potentially permanently. The Jarmish ambassador does not elaborate with regards to what has happened to it, beyond noting that it is something of a shame to see the tradition of arming the Champion of Wisdom with this storied tool has come to an end. It is extremely unlikely any Imperial citizen will ever see it again. Indeed, Lord-Magister Trescher doubts even Silm Taevas will be able to find it.

Likewise the interest from the Circle of Six in acquiring Imperial ritual tools has declined, with the artificers looking elsewhere for the goods they desired. Even a compromise in the kind of tools they were looking for was insufficient to arrange a trade which is unfortunate. The Imperial Artisan's Guild no doubt has plenty of other potential customers but it is a shame no arrangement could be reached for direct trade. On the other hand, there are other less reliable ways to secure good quality Imperial merchandise and the magicians of Jarm will simply have to get used to doing their business through the Beskonechnyy Rynok in future.

Further Reading

Click Expand to see a summary of various pages related to the Principalities of Jarm.

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