Katie couldn't stop staring at all the riches and jewelry displayed out in the dining room. It was the complete opposite compared to the throne room.

The throne room gave off an eerie feeling with its gloomy color while the dining room was bright and gave off a rich feeling. It almost made Katie relax for a second but she knew better than to lower her guard in a possible enemy's den.

The empress's grip on her arm loosened as she led Katie to her seat.

At the long table, the empress had to sit at the head so Katie was placed right next to her on her right. Theo and Dorrie, who were both following them from behind, sat themselves on the opposite side of Katie. Dorrie faced Katie while Theo's view was clear to see the rest of the room and watch out for anything.

The Empress gave Katie a brief smile before clapping her hands together two times. A chef came out of the door with a small face.

"What would you like for dinner, my empress?" He asked, looking down and the empress gave him some quick orders that Katie couldn't quite understand because it seemed like a whole different language.

"Our dinner will take some time to be prepared so shall we discuss more about the deal you brought up again?" The empress asked Katie, turning back to her once the chef made it back into some doors she assumed was the kitchen.

Katie explained the rest of the details to her, not leaving out anything while the expression of the empress became brighter and brighter. It seemed that she was offered more from Katie than from Prince Lotor.

"So," Katie said, finishing off, "will you join us and enjoy the luxury of a whole new kingdom built with the help of Galraen and Doral?" 

"The whole deal is quite intriguing but how will I be sure that you keep your end of the deal?" She asked, raising up one dark eyebrow and Katie nodded towards Dorrie.

 Dorrie nodded, knowing what to do, and got out a folded piece of paper from her sachet before passing it to Katie. She unfolded it, feeling all eyes on her and showed the contents to the empress.

"This will be our contract." Katie said as Dorrie passed her a pen across the table. "After we both sign this, if one of us violates it then the other will have the right to take over the kingdom." 

"Oh ho ho. Is that so?" The empress said, her expression amused as she lazily smiled again.

"If you completely promise that you won't do any harm to either of us and fully be on our side during the war, sign here." Katie said, giving her a hard look before showing her where to sign.

"Why don't we finish that up after we eat?" The empress suggested instead as the doors opened to a chef pushing a long cart of food.They placed all the plates down and Katie's mouth watered to the smell. 

They had survived in the forest by just eating berries, nuts, fish, and sometimes rabbit. Other than that, it had been a while since Katie got to eat a proper meal. 

She tried not to show the expression of her true hungriness when the chefs opened the covers of the plates to show the food inside. She looked across the table to see that Theo also seemed to be struggling keeping his eyes away from the food as well. 

Dorrie seemed to be the only one who could keep calm around the nice smell of the food. She was the daughter of a king and had lived her life with these same luxurious foods so it wasn't surprising either.

"This is Emberlands' special." The empress said as she picked up a certain fork from her many silverwares, "roasted pork chops  with honey." 

Katie's stomach growled at the thought of getting to taste honey and meat in the same meal. The empress laughed as Katie hid her face by looking down.

"What are you waiting for?" The empress asked them all when they hesitated to pick up their silverware, "Eat! After dinner, we'll sign the papers and you'll be on your way back."

Katie tightened her lips together, giving both Theo and Dorrie looks that told them to still be on guard before grabbing a fork and digging into the meat.

It wasn't too big of a portion but it quickly filled her up. She licked her lips after finishing all of it and leaned back in her seat. That was one of the best meals she had gotten to eat in the past few months. The empress smiled, satisfied at seeing Katie finish all the food.

"Delicious, right? This is one of our specialities since we raise the best pigs." She said, proudly as she watched Theo and Dorrie finish all their food as well. Just simply saying that made Katie believe that the empress really did put pride in her kingdom.

After the servants took away the empty plates, Katie signed the paper first and then passed it to Dorrie, who signed it and passed it to Theo. At last, Theo signed it and gave it to the empress. 

The empress then looked like she was thinking before turning to Katie.

"One more thing...can we be promised to be left alone from the other kingdoms?" She said, raising a brow and Katie bit the inside of her cheek.

She couldn't guarantee or predict the way the kingdoms felt about the existence of Emberlands but she could guarantee safety.

"We could add that in as an extra if you promise to not cause trouble on others and visitors." Katie said, her eyes meeting the empress's cold black ones.

Katie didn't want anyone to be tormented or troubled by Emberlands like she was. She didn't want another kidnapping case from Emberlands like what happened to them.

The empress clenched her jaw before smiling slowly at Katie again.

"Fine. Deal." She said as she finally signed the paper.

Dorrie quickly grabbed it after the empress signed as if she was afraid the empress would change her mind and strike at them.

The empress laughed, noticing their sharp and guarded movements around her as she played with her staff. It would've been a lot less heavier in the room if the staff, she was currently playing with, wasn't one of the most dangerous weapons in all of the kingdoms. 

They still were on alert as the empress guided them back into the throne room where the exit doors were.

"So, you want a few men of my army to help you against the galra that's been coming down?" The empress asked casually and Katie's mouth fell open. The empress knew the entire time and she did nothing. The older woman laughed again at her expression.

"So yes?" The empress asked, holding in another laugh and Katie nodded, shutting her mouth to prevent any bad curses from coming out.

"If you need any help before the war, come knocking on the doors." The empress said smirking as she seated herself on the throne again, rubbing her staff. That was the last they saw of the empress before they left out of the doors with at least a dozen thousand of men. 

All of them let out the biggest breath they've been holding since they entered the kingdom. Katie didn't think it would actually work but she was glad it did. 

They gave each other satisfied smiles before getting back on road to their campsite. 

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A/N

Katie now has the support of both Doral and Emberlands, do you think Emberlands will keep their promise?

Just a little update on my life:

Honestly these days haven't been too well for me. My uncle died from COVID recently and many of my loved ones have been getting COVID lately. (Sometimes don't you just wanna say "f*** you Covid"?)

Please stay safe out there. I hope you all will be careful when you're going out and please, please don't forget your masks. Make sure to wash your hands and social distance as well. 

Anyways, thanks for reading this chapter and I hope to see you all in the next one as well. 

-Silver ❤️