"Is there any old business that needs to be reviewed by the council?" Gregor asked, almost dreading Krynarx's inevitable question.

"Yes, councilman," he said, as Krynarx raised a massive forelimb.

The digger gave a little nod of recognition, and then began to speak. "King Gregor, may I once again draw your attention to our new trade agreements; the King", he motioned to the digger's monarch, who had no command of English and required a translator, "wishes to have them re-evaluated".

Luckily Gregor had prepared his response, "I would suggest, Krynarx, that you bring this to the attention of the new Merchant's Guild, this is their area of expertise," Gregor then continued before the digger could slip a word in edgeways, "Any more old business?"

This time, the nibbler King Dividian, raised his paw. Gregor nodded to him, already anticipating his question.

"Warrior," the nibbler began, Gregor knew that he was trying to flatter him, using the grander title of Warrior, instead of King, "I must insist on again bringing to the council the oldest piece of business on the agenda, the re-homing of the nibbler population. After the population boom following the war, the population is over 45,000; 30,000 outside Regalia alone. We need to find a home for my people, and I suggest that it be within the territory the gnawers took from us, before trying to wipe us out!"

Lapblood immediately leapt up, "No! That is our territory; if you tried to take it over you would begin an exodus on a scale unseen since the Bane's driving out of your people."

Dividian was seething, he appeared to be on a role now, "And would that exodus begin with genocide? Shall we massacre the gnawers in territories we desire, as the Bane massacred us, used us as a scapegoat for the gnawer's problems! My people need a home, and you gnawer's appear to be the best possible race from which to seize it."

The council erupted. Athena, Nike and Venus shuffled their wings angrily, screeching to each other in a wave-length inaudible to Gregor's ears, Lapblood practically shook with rage. Temp and Proc clicked to each other from across the table, sounding worried from what Gregor understood. Krynarx was relaying the events to his king in their dialect whilst Weevox and Ferrox simply tried to hide, the noise being too much for those sensitive spinner ears.

Only two were silent, Gregor himself, and the reassuringly familiar presence to his right.

Ripred stood and, slowly and deliberately, scraped one claw against the stone table. The screeching noise silenced everyone at the table except for the spinners, who began thrumming to themselves in groans of pain.

"There is one option that hasn't been considered," Ripred paced around the room, stopping by the large map that dominated one wall. He swept his claw casually through the parchment yellow area to the north-east of the human territory, far north of Regalia.

"You could go here."

The words were said with simplicity disproportionate to their magnitude. Mareth replied first.

"The Uncharted Lands? No, you know what Sandwich said of that place". Gregor silently thought that Ripred didn't give a hoot about Sandwich's thoughts on the subject, but he decided he had to be a good human king and ask.

"What did Sandwich say?"



This time, Nike answered, "Not long after he arrived. Sandwich decided he wished to expand from Regalia, so he sent two armies out, one consisting of those of the middle-class, the other of low class workers. The first, under his second son, went south-east, founding the Fount. The other, under his youngest son, went north-east, into the Uncharted Land. Not one of his men returned, so Sandwich decreed his descendant's would lead no army to those lands again."

Dividian spoke up, angrily again, "And now he suggests that we go into this land of unknown horrors, this is the fate his people were threatened with after the war. Typical gnawer."

Lapblood appeared ready to start up again, but Ripred silenced her with a glance, "Now you don't expect me to say that every nibbler, male, female and pup, go immediately. I was going to suggest that expeditions be sent into these lands, investigate, and return with their findings. If they don't return, then we find somewhere else."

"Who would contribute to this expedition?" thrummed a now recovered Weevox.

"I would say there should be three expeditions, each going in different directions. The largest would go to the north-east. The seven races would all contribute in accordance with their numbers, so diggers would be the fewest, and crawlers the most numerous, and of course, the other races would be expected to contribute."

Gregor was surprised, Ripred had obviously been thinking about this for some time.

"And who would lead the north-eastern expedition?" rumbled Krynarx.

"Well, I would be a part of this, obviously" said Ripred.

"I refuse to let my people's future be left to a gnawer," cried Dividian, "I will go as well."

"No." Gregor almost surprised himself by speaking, "Your people cannot go without leadership at this time. I will go instead".

"You cannot go," said Heronian, "Sandwich said that the human's monarchy would not lead a force to the north-east,"

"That's not true," Mareth said, quietly "He said none of his descendants would."

"And not one of those, the Warrior is, not one of those." Temp clicked.

"So it is decided." said Gregor. The council nodded as one, except for the digger king, who waited for his translation before nodding himself.

"Then we go to the Uncharted Lands." he said simply