A letter

[Oroigawa Koreyasu]

Cousin Rai,

It is good to see that you are well. It has been a long while since we have spoken, and I hope you are well. Surely you must be used to the cold north by now. I'm glad to hear that your mentor was finally laid to rest. He was a wonderful man and was deserving of such a wonderful ceremony. I'm sure you are proud to have known him so well.

I also write to you to ask a favor. I foresee my eviction from Eastern Absentia, and fear that this will leave me without a base of operations for the training of the pilots for Project Jötunn. If you would be so kind, would you mind lending me a few square kilometers of Cape Farewell's land to relocate my aeronautics academy? I've already prepared a seat for you on the Board of Directors for Jötunn Heavy Industries, if you wish to accept it.

I look forward to hear from you and hear how you are doing. We do not speak often enough.

With loving care,
Corey Oroigawa

[Rai Avon-El]

My dear friend Corey,

Thank you for your kind letter and for your gifts. I graciously accept them.

Ayreon was a strange man. I am glad to have known him long before.... But I never understood him. But he is at peace now, in Ennabruk.

Yes, I am well now, thank you. And it's not particularly cold now. It's spring, soon midsummer. The glaciers are still white of course, tundra is still there. But small flowers spring up, giving life to the frozen world. No longer a desert of ice, Cape Farewell is now, for a short while, the paradise of flowers, shrubs and berries.

I will happily draft a contract between the county government and your company regarding the use of an aeronautics academy in Caligaean lands.

What I can offer is:

- access to the harbour of Civitas Nova, ice-free even in winters.
- access to the Imperial Observatory of Elwynn, located right on the Arctic circle.

30 000 sq km in the inland of C. Farewell.

In return I expect the utmost respect for nature and creatures great and small.

Hurry back with your answer,

Sun bless, Earth keep.

R. A-E.

[Oroigawa Koreyasu]

Cousin Rai,

Your offer is most gracious. Doing my best to protect nature is of the utmost importance, which is why this project will inevitably move to the far reaches of space where my projects will harm only dead rock and nothingness. I give you my word that the plants and animals of Cape Farewell, and of all of Shireroth, shall be preserved to the best of my abilities.

Please join me in Avakair upon the completion of Jötunn Heavy Industries Headquarters. The first board meeting will be held in a few days, and I'm hoping that you'll be able to join us. Your unique views on the world will prove to be an invaluable asset to the company.

Stay well, and may Ikol guide you.

Yours always,
Corey Oroigawa

[Rai Avon-El]

Dear Mr Oroigawa

Thank you for your letter. I must ask you that you discuss the matter with Prince Ísur-Ai.

Sincerely yours,

R. A. E.