Slowly, like a stick being dragged through the dirt, the proud prow of the<em>Fortune</em>sliced through the dark blue waters of the sea. First it appeared to the dockhands milling about the ports of Ende as a mere twinkle in the horizon, possibly a trick of the light. Then, as the mighty frigate got closer, it become unmistakably clear that the looming black dot in the distance was in fact - a ship. And a very big one. Soon, one of the masts appeared. And then two. And then three. Then the flag atop the crow's nest was visible, flapping merrily in the wind. A great big white eagle was in the middle of the flag with its wings outstretched and its head raised upwards, with a blood-red teardrop upon its feathery chest; the bird was positioned solemnly before a dark blue background. Below the bird's talons was a banner with a slogan that read, "<em>Bon sang ne saurait mentir.</em>" Noble blood does not lie. This was the flag of the Kingdom of Avantier, home to the noble and artistic Avantieri people.<br/><br/>Aboard the<em>Fortune</em>, sailors scurried about, raising the sails, climbing the rigging, bumping into each other and cursing, and so on. Marines aboard the<em>Fortune</em>strode about casually, unperturbed by the rush of activity, their swarthy faces inscrutable and their hands resting upon the pommels of their cutlasses. The<em>capitaine</em>of the ship, a man by the name of Armand Badeau, stood by the side of the ship and observed the distant peaks and turrets which marked the city of Ende. The man nodded to himself absently, in approval or disdain one could not tell. He reached into his smart navy officer's coat, pulled out a telescope, dragged it open, and pointed it at Ende before he stared through the lens critically. He did so for five minutes or so before he was alerted to the presence of another who was approaching him from behind. Armand quickly snapped the telescope shut and wheeled around to face the newcomer with a salute.<br/><br/>Lous-Verrant of the Avantieri Ducal House of Baptiste, styled Lord Lous-Verrant Baptiste, nodded at the subservient ship's officer with a pleasant smile and a bow of his head. The man returned the smile, having warmed up to the flawlessly polite and eloquent young aristocrat since the first day he set foot on board. "<em>Capitaine Badeau.</em>" Lous-Verrant greeted, halting beside him. "<em>Tout va bien?</em>"<br/><br/>"<em>Oui, mon seigneur.</em>" Armand replied, although he frowned at the city of Ende as he did so. As if to make a point, the<em>capitaine</em>switched from his native language of Avantierais to the Tanperi tongue, though he spoke in a very heavily-accented voice. "But zese Tanperais ... Ze do not 'ave manneurs? Ze are not greeteeng az, even though we are so near zem... Zey 'ave a most seeriouz lack of etiquette."<br/><br/>Clapping his hands and laughing genially, Lous-Verrant responded with an amiable "<em>C'est la vie - Pas grave!</em>" He then proceeded to speak in the Tanperi tongue so fluently one could hardly tell he wasn't a native. "They are a nation which until now has been exceedingly xenophobic, my dear Armand. Instead of being unhappy no one is coming to greet us, we should be glad they are not sending battleships to meet us! We can do without the fanfare, I am sure. We have enough of that in Avantier.<em>Non?</em>"<br/><br/>The<em>capitaine</em>bowed his head. "If you say-so,<em>mon seigneur.</em>" Raising his head again, Armand raised a frilled sleeve and passed on order to switch to no-sails and drop the oars, as they were nearing port.<br/><br/>Immediately, the<em>Fortune</em>'s sails folded up and oars emerged on either side of the ship, dipping into the water and plowing the massive vessel towards the waiting docks of Ende, where several of the sailors stood and gawked. Almost as if Lous-Verrant had made a prophecy, when they had gotten near enough to the city that Lous-Verrant could make out the time from a clock-tower by the seaside, half a dozen small sloops armed to the teeth sailed out to challenge them. Once directly alongside them, one of the officers upon one of the Tanperi sloops stoop up and hollered to the<em>Fortune</em>to make himself heard. "You are sailing in Tanperian waters! State your business, or we<em>will</em>open fire for your trespass!"<br/><br/>Armand looked dubious. "Lack of le manneurs." He turned to Lous-Verrant, who simply leaned over the side and called out in an amiable yet carrying voice "My most valiant officer, this ship bears the colors of the Avanteri and is property of the<em>monarques de Avantier</em>! I am Lord Lous-Verrant Baptiste, third son of His Grace, the Most High Duke of Norait, and representative of my liege, the King of Avantier! I am here as a royal diplomat and my intents are to open trading routes which would be enormously beneficial to both Avantier and Tanperi and should not be deterred no matter what the cost, but if you insist..." The young nobleman let the words drag out.<br/><br/>The Tanperian officer on the sloop hesitated, had a quick discussion with his second-in-command, and then appeared to come to an agreement. He turned back to the<em>Fortune</em>. "Understood. We will let you through to the docks and allow you to drop anchor, as well as acquire any supplies you may need for replenishment of your ship's stocks, but you may not set foot on Ende's soil until someone from the Court arrives to verify your legitimacy. And that may take awhile, as it is around this time that the Emperor tends to hold court."<br/><br/>"You have my thanks, officer! Give my regards to your family, for they must be truly proud of such a valiant man of chivalry in the family." Lous-Verrant shot the officer a blinding smile, causing him to clear his throat abashedly and order one of his subordinates to depart on a rowboat and inform the royal court of the<em>Fortune</em>'s pending status as the ship itself sailed slowly towards the docks and begun to drop anchor.<br/><br/>While the sailors all around him busied themselves with random tasks, Lous-Verrant Baptiste folded his arms and looked out upon the city. Pale-skinned even after months at sea, the royal diplomat looked immensely out of place standing upon a ship's deck laden with tanned seafarers, though he exuded an visible aura of power and authority simply by standing there. "Tanperi ... Hm?" He murmured to himself as he waited.<br/>