For Trade and Stimulus plans

[Ress]

Resplendent fire, 13

* Within the quarters of Ame, The glowing form of Ress appeared as normal, wearing his grand imperial robes. Unlike normal, his hair was tied back with a black piece of twine.

Ress bowed to her in introduction.. but quickly became business as usual.*

" Hello Ame... I wish I could have come here on better terms... but I am afraid there is a small to moderate problem in the empire, of which your particular skill set may be of use.

But lets not beat round the bush then, Ame... The problem at hand is that The Empire is out of funds."

[Terrestrial]

Resplendent Fire 13,

Emperor!

*Ame turned from her work to grin at Ress, apparently unphased by his sudden arrival. She was in the kitchen, attempting to cook, her recipe out and all of the ingredients in the prep stage. She was wearing an apron and it looked like nothing else, but when she put the knife down and moved to stand in front of the image he would be able to see that she wore black leather boots with large slats out of the material to create a bondage style look complete with black jade studs and five inch heels. She also happened to be wearing a black leather strapless mini-dress with slashes through the sides that ended in the front to sit on her pelvis and a straight bar neckline. At his news her smile turned more serious and she nodded*

Yes, I was afraid that this would happen before the trade routes could save it. Well, did you want to brainstorm with me or would you rather I compile a list for you? I can tell you right now that having an event or attraction that pulls people from outside the empire is a good idea. And war is always a popular vote for quick fixes, though I have to warn you that if your military isn't ready, or if you'd rather stay a friendly nation war isn't really for you

[Ress]

Resplendent fire, 13

* Ress pinched his chin as he pondered her words, knowing trade routes were indeed the way to go for long term strategies... but unfortunately this required a much quicker and dirtier method of recovery. He nodded at her mention of war, it of course being a double edged sword*

" Indeed... war is a difficult thing. Could I condemn people to injury or death to fill the empire's coffers?... but at the same time, a stagnant economy would mean a caste system forming within empire walls...

As far as looking like a threatening nation, there are ways around that. If I staged an assault on The Linowan Nation, I could earn the respect of the more martial nations around us... such as Lookshy or The Republic of Halta, as well as gain necessary funds to continue the growth of Imperveress.... I have also been toying with another idea."

* He closed his eyes and let his hand fall to his side, heaving a sigh as his face contorted slightly. with another hard sigh, he opened his eyes, putting his hands on his hips*

" Though it would be a lot sooner than I had intended... we could host a martial arts tournament to celebrate the open borders of Imperveress.... These events usually bring considerable amounts of silver and jade, but open borders leaves us vulnerable to outside corruption before the fiber of the empire could be solidified.

What do you think Ame? There are no dumb suggestions after all."

[Terrestrial]

Resplendent Fire 13,


*the Water Aspected woman tapped the edge of the knife against her lips, managing to avoid cutting herself while doing it*

To be honest, I don't think that a war would be appropriate. I say that partially because of personal moral standards and partially because if you were to start a war so soon in Imperveress's infancy that would probably damage their faith in you for starting it and would also be rather difficult given the small state of military elites we have. Most citizens here are just that, citizens, and most won't have any combat experience. A temporary caste system is better than no Imperveress because we were dominated by the nation we chose to war against

*Ame's hand went to her hip, the same one with the knife, as she addressed the next suggestion*

You look pained to suggest such a tournament, not really in your tastes? I understand not wanting to open up to corruption, and I can definitely see where you're coming from. I do have to bring up that it won't be a quick fix, setting up a good and flourishing tournament takes time. You'd have to set a date at least six months from now, though a year or so would be more profitable and smart, so that you have enough time to spread word about the event and its time and fees. You'd also need the time to get contestants and give martial arts displays to the people outside of Imperveress so that they would want to attend, and build the anticipation enough that people will actually travel a good distance to see it. You'd also have to make sure there is enough lodging for the numbers that would arrive and if you do want to do this, a personal rivalry between a couple of your stronger fighters from Imperveress would create some interesting drama. It would have to be genuine, though, because faking something like that might make those who know them confused.

I'm afraid to say that I'm not sure that there is anything that would bring instant revenue, or at least appropriate funds compared to the single season it would take for the tradeships to return with our profits. In the case of the trade routes, I think you should let the people know that if they want to contribute items to the selection they can do so for a small fee and will reap a larger profit. They can charge more and gain notoriety both in and outside of the empire's walls for things like that. I don't recommend tainting the Imperveress name with slavery or drugs, but if you happen to run across drugs, I could fence them anonymously for you and give you the money from it.

We could go out and gather up leftovers from fallen nations or leftover ruins from the area. I would love it if we could get into Denandsor, but I don't think that's been done since its downfall. Anything we find we could sell for profit, I'm sure we could find exalts willing to do the ruin-running for free. We could also make miracles for other nations if we have anything that would be valuable to them, like an oasis for Gem, and could charge for its services. We might start a procurement business where what other nations need we could get for them, as long as that's actually possible of course, and for a fee based on the difficulty of the request. The problem with gaining money on a global scale is that everything I can think of takes quite a bit of time.

If you really want to get money fast, find a wealthy smaller empire and eat it. Strike fast and hard, take no prisoners but annex the whole place and relocate the people and their money to Imperveress. Or you could just kill all the people to save money, though if you wanted to maximize profits slavery is the way to go. Again, not my personal choice, but it's not my decision to make. That tax for using the waterways would help also, so starting that soon would be good. Maybe put on shows of various types outside of the empire and the performers donate the profits to Imperveress. The participants would have to agree to it first, but with sufficient skill and a small tour you could rake in a lot, especially if you have a dancer with sex appeal or something equally enticing

[Ress]

Resplendent Fire, 13

* His eyes glossed over a moment at the notion of annexing a nearby nation, staying in this stupor until Ame was done speaking. Once she stopped, a huge smirk crossed his face as he nodded, then laughed semi-meniacly, before speaking up*

" Yes! You are absolutely correct! What we need is to gather up more people surrounding our fair Empire and bring them here! Then once we are more established, we may take back those lands for an external provence of Imperveress!..."

* Ress blinked a few times as his expression became neutral. he stretched his face as if yawning, then shook it off and returned to their conversation*

" And I thing an expedition to Gem is a great course of action. A fleet could be sent out to the costal nations along the south, making an extended dock in Chiaroscuro for more trade, then a trip to Gem to sell water.

That combined with the peaceful assimilation of some of the local thousand villages and posable contracting out of some of our more skilled citizens, we could get Imperveress out of this slump.

Thank you Ame, for your input. I will have supplies sent you as soon as possible for the trade situation. I will also send a sanction for you to requisition what you need from the armory, the marina, the skyport or any other place you might need.

Is there anything else you would like to say or might need?"

[Terrestrial]

Resplendent Fire 13,


*Ame raised a brow at his slip into the glossed-over state she'd somehow activated. A little later she'd replay the last bit of conversation in her head and see exactly what had triggered it, if anything. For now she gave Ress a cute and girlish grin, biting her lip a little*

Well, I have to say that I can only provide my services through the Manse now. Dagan and I, well, we're having a baby. I wanted to stay in the Manse for the duration of my pregnancy in order to give our baby the best chance at becoming a Dragon-Blooded. I also wanted to request tutelage in the art of sorcery, I think it will be beneficial in the long-run and I know we have a few competent sorcerers here

*she let a hopeful look slip into her eyes, offsetting the cute grin and making it almost puppy-like*

[Ress]

Resplendent fire, 13

* Ress chuckled as Ame gave him puppy dog eyes, feeling the power of the stare working over him. he slapped his thigh and heaved a sigh*

" Of course, Ame... I will defiantly schedule an appointment with a sorcerer for you.

But as for staying put... you leave that to me, Ame. I have a few tricks up my sleeves."

* He gave her a wink, then bowed out*

" Thank you Ame. I will make preparations right away"

[Terrestrial]

Resplendent Fire 13,

*her expression split into bright joy and her eyes sparkled a little at his acquiescing to her request*

Thank you!

*she gave the emperor a little wave*

See you soon!