The British are Coming | Summoning the UK.

CHP4 - First Impressions.

"One nation's common sense is another nation's high blood pressure." - E.B. White

--

Cabinet Office, 70 Whitehall, London

First impressions were important, it was a saying was so prevalent throughout British society that even nursery children would know to be on their best behaviour when meeting somebody for the first time.

Two days had passed since Foreign Minister Rinsui's arrival in London and already his team had established themselves in the building that had once housed the embassy of Zimbabwe.

At both their request, as well as the encouragement of both the Ministry of Defence and Foreign Office, Rinsui and his countrymen had been taken on a tour of the Greater London Area to see the sights, learn more about British people, culture and history, and most importantly to learn its industry and military.

Certain outspoken individuals in the cabinet had protested at the decision, with some claiming it wasn't right to shock or frighten their visitors with such strange technologies and information so soon, while others didn't feel comfortable with letting foreigners from an unknown world learn of Britain's capabilities.

Both were right in their own ways.

But Stewart knew that his country's transportation-- or 'summoning' as he had since been told the natives referred to it as-- presented just as many opportunities as it did hardships.

On Earth, the United Kingdom was bogged down with diplomatic commitments, historic precedents, and even its own history. 

In the New World, there was the possibility of a fresh start.

Further reconnaissance flights, alongside interviews with Qua-Toynian diplomats had revealed the presence of two other countries on the Rodenius Continent; the Quila Kingdom & the Louria Kingdom, the latter of which having been described as a hostile entity towards the Principality.

(Their visitors hadn't stopped telling them about the Lourians since they'd arrived, in-fact.)

Highly prejudiced against this world's non-human sentient species, or 'demihumans and beastmen' as the Qua-Toynian Foreign Minister had so elegantly put it, Louria had been described by all of the visiting diplomats as an imperialist, militaristic society.  

According to the information they had collected thus far, both they and the Quila Kingdom were at a similar stage of technological and cultural development to Qua-Toyne.

And while Stewart was well-aware that their newfound neighbours would be inherently biased in how they described Louria, aerial photographs captured by the RAF did show large formations of troops gathering on what the British government now recognized as the Principality's border.

The Minister of Defence had described it as an invasion force when he'd seen the pictures.

The Prime Minister hadn't disagreed with him.

In response to the images, a think-tank of defence analysts, military brass and even several historians had been hastily put together by the MoD to assess the Lourian Army's capabilities, size and overall strength.

Their findings had been encouraging to say the least.

Comprised only of infantry and cavalry, the Lourians fought primarily with swords, spears and bows, a majority of their troops appeared to lack armour, the few that didn't were estimated to only be wearing primitive chainmail and steel, while their only air power, a flying species the Qua-Toynians had identified as Wyverns were only about as manoeuvrable as a Chinook.