SRA-Victoria DiploMagic

[Markus Wilding]

"I've heard a lot about Judgements," Kaur said with a somber tone. "Never seen one outside of newsreels. This'll be interesting, and lunch with the Royal Family to boot? I'm being spoiled."

[Sabriel]

"It's not as great as it sounds, Judgment, to be honest." Khadija shrugged, some of the excitement gone from her voice. "People die bad. They die loud. You were a pilot, right? You never had to see things up close. I was there at Pryamobalka. Gave the order for it, even. Judgment isn't something we ever take lightly, or enjoy. We just have to put on a mask for the world, y'know? Like, you know the point of it all, right? The last unchecked war unleashed the German Flu, and every year we get more and more advanced. The next war like the one against the Axis? We might not survive it. So someone's gotta make sure that we never get that far again. And if turning ourselves into the most feared bogeyman the world's ever face is what it takes, then that's what we'll do. It's the mission that Victoria undertakes. It's why we fight so far from home. Why we enact Judgment. Why Catharine wears her masks. And why we have to burn those stupid fucking assholes from Bangladesh, so other stupid fucking assholes don't get it into their heads to try the same bullshit."

Khadija placed one hand on her forehead, closing her eyes as she did. "It's just. I hope you win your election. And I hope you understand that witnessing a Judgment isn't being spoiled. It's something we have to do. Something you need to do, to prepare yourself for the realities of leading one of the world's great powers."

[Markus Wilding]

"I hope I win too," Kaur said, sighing heavily. "I don't know what Connally's done to my country. It's like there's some madman behind the controls who changes his mind every twenty minutes and has no idea what the next button he pushes is going to do. I didn't enjoy flying missions because it meant somebody somewhere was losing their life, but it's a chore like any other. I suppose Judgment is much the same way. Maybe some day far off in the future there'll be no war, no racism, no ideology, no us versus them, just people working to better humanity. Wouldn't that be nice?"

[Sabriel]

"Heh. We can hope. We can fight for it. For our grandchildren, perhaps. But, let's not get caught up in melancholy. We've gotta look ready for the Judgment." Khadija popped open a mirror and examined her face. She frowned and shrugged, reaching into a compartment to take out a Victorian style mask of Judgment, and put it on. She offered a second mask to Kaur. "It's tradition for leadership to wear these at Judgments, now."

It wasn't long before the car stopped at a stadium where the execution was to take place, and both the Victorian Crown Princess and the American presidential hopeful were ushered to a room where the Inferno Queen was already waiting.

Catharine was in her full regalia, her wings half spread, small flames burning at each wingtip. She turned her head to regard the new entrances to the room and tilted her head very slightly toward them. "Welcome," her voice echoed out of speakers, picked up by the microphone in her mask. "Today you stand beside your ally in seeing justice done for the world."

[Markus Wilding]

With little else to say besides thanking Queen Catharine for her graciousness in allowing Kaur to witness this event, Kaur took her assigned place and waited for the inevitable to happen with Sergeant Price standing by.

[Markus Wilding]

In a show of goodwill and friendship, Special Ambassador Grace Walton has been dispatched to Victoria. In order to continue facilitating good relations between the SRA and Victoria, this ambassador shall have a phone on her person at all times which can only call President Kaur, and shall be first to inform Victoria of any new updates or projects of interest that the SRA has elected to undertake.

[Sabriel]

Victoria signaled its approval of this.