Right i totally forgot to do the risk-rewards for the team expansion options, so I'm reconsolidating the risk-rewards into this one post, i'll unthreadmark it later after voting closes.
[ ] Investigate ONE lead now. High risk other leads may go cold.
-[ ] Investigate the Malusial system (pirate warship source)
Reward: Likely to be the easiest investigation. Potentially gets us rung up the ladder and more threads to unravel the conspiracy.
Risk: Low political risk, Limited potential gains - Malusial is at best a middleman.
[ ] Investigate ONE lead now. High risk other leads may go cold.
-[ ] Investigate SA-Caledfwlch (pirate refit supplier)
Reward: Successful investigation will give leads on SA-Caledfwlch's "clients", potentially reduce proliferation of milspec weapons/systems to bad actors, and may uncover the money behind these orders.
Risk: Moderate political risk, fairly large investigation scope, actions will be constrained because our agents will be operating in Fenghuang territory. Pushback from Fenghuang and Siam-Astra will be inevitable.
[ ] Investigate ONE lead now. High risk other leads may go cold.
-[ ] Investigate 4th Fleet (suspicious posture)
Reward: Audit 4th Fleet's leadership and logistics. Possibly be able to install new, more reliable leadership. Potentially gain greater IRG favor and increased access to IRG support/cooperation.
Risks: High political risk, if discovered will guaranteed burn bridges with Kanda & 4th Fleet; high risk of burning other bridges with rest of the Navy outside former 13th Fleet units, potential negative backlash suffered by Commmander Fleet Operations, Fleet Admiral Yonatan Chew and Commander 10th Fleet, Admiral Masatada Akasha.
[ ] Expand investigation team, Thorough vetting. High risk all leads may go cold.
Reward: Expands investigation team now, allowing for multiple investigations in the future. Thorough vetting ensures the candidate pool will not have any red flags or skeletons. Expands team sooner instead of later, when the situation may not be as permitting.
Risk: Time taken for thorough vetting risks all investigation trails going cold.
[ ] Investigate ONE lead & Expand investigation team, Moderate vetting. Moderate risk all leads may go cold, risk of undetected red flags in candidates.
-[ ] Investigate the Malusial system (pirate warship source)
-[ ] Investigate SA-Caledfwlch (pirate refit supplier)
-[ ] Investigate 4th Fleet (suspicious posture)
Reward: Expands investigation team now, allowing for multiple investigations in the future. Shorter vetting time means less time for trails to go cold. Similar rewards as accompanying investigation vote.
Risk: Moderate risk all trails go cold. Shorter time of moderate vetting risks a candidate pool with undetected red flags or skeletons. Similar risks as accompanying investigation vote.
Basically, the votes are a tradeoff. Taking any of the Investigation options delays expanding your investigation team, but you have a high certainty of being able to chase down the one lead you choose right now, before time and distance and obscuration make the lead go cold. Expansion trades immediate investigation of this lead for an expanded team that in future can either either handle multiple investigations or put all its resources and effort on a single investigation. The Do Both option is a compromise that gives up a bit of both in options in order to get something of both.
[x] Investigate ONE lead now. High risk other leads may go cold.
-[x] Investigate SA-Caledfwlch (pirate refit supplier)
You consider the risks and rewards, and come to your decision. Malusial is the lowest risk, and you're tempted to play things safe, but that's your stung pride speaking: low risk is matched with low reward. Auditing 4th Fleet doesn't sit right with you, and anyhow, if you really wanted to investigate Shiki's fleet, there are subtler, gentler ways to do that. SA-Caledfwlch is just right: moderate level of risk, moderate level of reward, commensurate to the effort, and even if the trail stops cold there, letting pirates get their hands on milspec weapons and systems doesn't sit right with you. If you can close that supply, it'll be a worthwhile outcome.
"I've decided, Daniel," you say. "Let's investigate SA-Caledfwlch."
Daniel nods, and makes a note to himself. "I'll get started on that then, ma'am," he replies. "I'll brief you on Wednesday, there's a number of things I need to get started on my end."
"Let me know what you need, so I can make the necessary arrangements," you agree. "I'll brief Her Majesty on the Egon investigation and advise her that we're continuing to follow up on developed leads. I want you to head out as soon as possible, but I also want to make sure that we've gotten all our ducks in a row before you set out. I think after you get back, we'll need to look into expanding our team - I have a feeling we're going to need more investigation leaders in the future. But for now, let's put our focus on SA-Caledfwlch. I think this will give us the best return on our effort."
"Yes ma'am. We could run the investigation overtly or covertly, which posture would you prefer?"
You consider. As a mere member of the Regency Council, you don't really have the formal authority to conduct this investigation (beyond the personal verbal orders of the Empress). An Overt investigation would put you in the spotlight as the chair of the investigation committee: you'd have to spend time to assemble the investigation committee and work your way through the bureaucracy. It would tip your hand, you'd have to burn political capital to get the committee setup, pushback would be loud and immediate, and your moves would be watched, but your agents would be able to investigate openly and subpoena documents, and all evidence Daniel finds would be admissible for legal proceedings. Such an overt investigation would make plausible deniability difficult to achieve; you can't guarantee you can insulate Ahri from any fallout.
On the other hand, a Covert investigation would require you to arrange things for Daniel to perform off-book investigation of questionable legality. It has the advantage of being quieter and lower profile, and faster to get moving - you're not tipping your hand, you're not burning your political capital. However, your agents won't be able to investigate as openly, there will be limits to what they can find out, and not all evidence gathered may be legally admissible. And that's not counting the stink Fenghuang and Siam-Astra will make if Daniel's blown and they learn he's snooping around them. Still, it would allow a layer of plausible deniability, insulating Ahri from any fallout.
What is your investigation team's posture?
[ ] Overt Investigation
[ ] Covert Investigation
There's also another matter: Major Nakahara, your IRG liaison officer, did promise you that the IRG would assist you within reason. The IRG intel team did turn out to be quite helpful to Daniel in the Egon System investigation. Perhaps you should reach out to the IRG and involve them in this investigation? It'd be helpful to have the IRG backstopping Daniel's investigation, in case anything goes wrong. On the other hand, you're not sure if you want to give the IRG more access to you and your movements.
Will you reach out to the IRG for support?
[ ] Yes, involve IRG in the investigation
[ ] No, do not involve IRG in the investigation
Energetic Voiceover: "On this episode of Hotline, Karen Kale sits down for an unprecedented face-to-face meeting with none other than Her Excellency, Lady Akagi Sumeragi of Great House Sumeragi."
Karen: "Thank you for this meeting, Lady Akagi."
Akagi: "Thank you for having me, Karen." (smiles pleasantly)
Karen: "The honour is mine, Lady Akagi."
Karen: "Perhaps let's begin the interview with your opinions on the state of affairs these past few years?"
Akagi: "Well, that depends on which state you're looking at, doesn't it? For example, politically we're in a stable period with no major upheaval, save for the recent Ascension to heaven above for Her Late Majesty Empress Kensei. Economically speaking, the Empire as a whole is in good health: the budgets are being passed, the deficit is minor and controllable, social spending and stimulus packages are being regularly applied to tangible effect. And yet, for Hibiscus Energy, the last five years have been the most difficult, most challenging years of their existence."
Karen: "How so?"
Akagi: "They were working on something that sounds simple, but was treacherously difficult in execution." (removes phone from her jacket and taps the back)
Akagi: "Building a better battery. Specifically, a battery capable of powering a space ship. Well, a small space ship." (chuckles lightly)
Akagi: "We're not at the level of interstellar transport. Yet. But what we have is aimed more towards interplanetary travel and the orbital littorals."
Karen: "And thanks to this battery, Hibiscus Energy recently posted a 20% jump in revenue, directly attributable to the launch of the E-Cap. This is despite initial market analysis decrying the product as a white elephant, citing that existing reactor technology is safe and compact enough as it is. So how did Hibiscus Energy do the impossible and prove them wrong?"
Akagi: "Well, the first thing to do is to never listen to someone who tells you no. It's an unofficial motto of Great House Sumeragi." (smiles charmingly, audience chuckles)
Akagi: "The second thing to do is to understand why are people saying it's impossible. Is it because of physics? Is it because of orthodoxy? Is it just because it hasn't been done before? People said that powered flight was impossible - until it was. People said it was interstellar travel was impossible, they said there was no way to move between the stars - Karen, we live in an Empire of five hundred inhabited star systems. So what we did - what my people did - was they went and they studied the reasons why people told them it was impossible. They looked at the physics, they looked at the history of batteries - because batteries aren't a new thing, they're a mature, ancient technology- and the first thing they did was that they established the limits of the box. And then they started pushing the box outward, bit by bit."
Karen: "And because of this drive to do the impossible we are all much better off. Now let's talk about your role in the Privy Council. For those who are unaware, what are the duties of the council?"
Akagi: "Ah, a small clarification, Karen, it's the Regency Council. Though it's an understandable mistake to make, since the Regency Council is effectively the Privy Council with representatives of the Imperial Family and the Five Great Houses. What we do is, to put it poetically, we stand in the gap for the Empress until She's of age to formally ascend to Her throne. It's a solemn duty - we're temporary caretakers of the Empire for Her Majesty, and to say it in the vernacular, we need to leave it in better shape than when we got it."
Akagi: "What I do, what all of us in the Council do, is we bring our different perspectives and viewpoints to the table, and we come to a consensus, and we keep the lights on and the meter running, and we advise and aid Her Majesty in whatever way she may need. Ruling this Empire of five hundred stars is a challenging task, particularly for an innocent young maiden, and so it falls to us to provide Her Majesty with wise counsel."
Karen: "With such an important task, surely there has to be some disagreements in regards to what actions to take?"
Akagi: "Disagreements are an inevitability in life, Karen, but it speaks to the maturity of the Regency Council that we can work through disagreements and come to a consensus. It's a useful skill at all facets of life, from inside the household, to the palace, to a boardroom. Even my company's not immune to disagreements: when we first began the battery project - this was a little while before I came onboard - there were serious disagreements on the direction of our battery project. Some people wanted to focus on the consumer electronics sector, some people were wanting to completely replace warship naval reactors..."
Karen: "I see, now let's move on to the recent spike in pirate activities across the empire. Despite the best efforts of the Imperial Navy, many worlds have fallen victim to pirate raids. With many in the Senate blaming the glacial response of the Imperial Navy on bureaucracy, what is your view on the increase in pirate raids and the Imperial Navy's response?"
Akagi: "Well, Karen, I feel that relying on the Imperial Navy isn't a viable longterm solution. I'm not judging the Navy, it's simply a matter of resources: the Navy has to patrol five hundred systems across our Empire: it takes months to travel from one end to the other. The Navy can't be strong everywhere. The only viable long term solution is for the local systems to increase their strength, which is why I see the Naval Forces Realignment Act as a key element of that solution. There are thousands of ships in the Mothball Fleet that are just floating idle in space. Imagine if we could release those warships to local ducal forces. When every system is stronger, they're better able to fend off pirates in their space, and instead of trying to be strong everywhere with penny-packet deployments, the Navy could better concentrate their strength for responding to requests for assistance. It's really a no-brainer, and I can only wonder why it's taken so long for this idea to come to fruition…"
Karen: "Though many in the Senate support the bill, there are some who feel that the bill should have gone further. Perhaps even to the extent of splitting up the Imperial Navy among the various sectors as independent commands. What do you think of this point of view?"
Akagi: "Well, I think first we need to acknowledge the elephant in the room: the Imperial Navy's sector commands are de facto independent commands - the realities of interstellar travel mean that it's nearly impossible to micromanage the Navy from the capital. That said, splitting the Imperial Navy is a bridge too far. The mindset of the Imperial Navy is that it patrols and guards all the Empire, allocating ships to regions as needed - say there was a need for more ships in 4th Fleet's area of operations, you could reassign ships from 13th Fleet with minimal fuss, because the ultimate "owner" of those ships is the Imperial Navy. Going to a more static model, of independent commands, means less responsiveness on the strategic scale - you'll find the forces will be less motivated on operations because they aren't defending their own homes, assuming you could even get outside help. There's a difference between independent commands on their own, and independent commands under the umbrella of the Imperial Navy."
Karen: "I see, so you are not in favor of splitting up the Imperial Navy?"
Akagi: "Not at all, Karen. What I want is for all parties to grow stronger. I believe part of the problem is that the Imperial Navy has spent too long carrying the security burden, and doesn't realise that many ducal forces are willing and able to pick up the slack. We need to be working together, as partner forces, which is very much how I operate with my company."
Karen: "Pardon me?'
Akagi: "I am the supermajority owner of Hibiscus Energy, within the company my word is law. But I find that I have better results out of my people when I approach matters as a partner, not a ruling tyrant. They do the science and engineering, I do the PR and raise capital, we work together and help each other, and that, I believe, is the greatest thing I've achieved at Hibiscus Energy, even greater than our batteries. We're going to revolutionise energy storage and that's no mean feat, but we've built something wonderful here at Hibiscus and I want to protect that for as long as I can."
Karen: "I see. Now, moving on to a different topic, can you share with us any idea of how active the Regency Council will be in ruling on behalf of Her Majesty Empress Meigyoku?"
Akagi: "We'll be as active as we need to be, Karen." (smiles charmingly)
Akagi: "But on the whole, our intent is stability. We want to ensure that there's no major upheaval, that consumer confidence remains high. When the political and economic situation is stable, it allows businesses to prosper, research and development to flourish - Hibiscus would have had to make serious decisions about its future if we were trying to develop the E-Cap in a state of uncertain stability. Thankfully that wasn't the case, and thus we can not only bring this new product to market, but do so in the knowledge that the market isn't under undue strain and can actually buy our E-Caps. Karen, the revolution in energy storage has only just begun! Space travel has remained skewed toward a select few, because reactors are specialised technology that required skilled personnel to maintain and operate. If I wanted to take my yacht out for an afternoon cruise, it would take two hours to get things ready before I could cast off. But with an E-Cap powered yacht, I could just go to my dock, turn the switches on, and be on my way. Karen, I can bring spaceflight to so many more people! And there are just so many more possibilities for these batteries. We've been talking to disaster response agencies and humanitarian NGOs, and we have discussed the possibilities of scaling down this tech into portable units. Imagine being free of mobile reactors, when you've got smaller, more portable E-Caps that can power a displacement camp, or a whole town! Of course, the Imperial Army, Imperial Marine Corps and the Imperial Police Force have also expressed interest in seeing what we can do with these batteries-"
Karen: "I-I see, that's quite fascinating indeed-"
Akagi: (leans forward enthusiastically) "I never expected to ever be interested in batteries but it's such an amazing, interesting subject, with all the history of batteries and the breakthroughs Hibiscus Energy has achiev-"
Karen: "I see, I'm sorry to interrupt you, Lady Akagi, but let's take a quick break for commercial. We'll continue when we return."
Akagi: "Of course, Karen. I'm just so excited, we're living in amazing times-"
Sorry, he tells you. Sorry. As if that one word makes up for ruining your plans!
You growl in frustration and throw the cloth against the table. By your mother's standards, this would be a terrible tantrum, but fuck her, she's not here, and this is your apartment, you'll act however you damn well please in your own abode.
Damn Johnny and his sense of duty! You had things all planned out: you were going to bring him here to your decadently luxurious apartment, you were going to make an exquisite dinner for him, give him a taste of what it would be like to live in the lap of luxury, you were going to do things to him, sexual things, and work your claws deeper into him-
"Sorry Maggie," he told you apologetically (and doesn't that do things for your ego, a Fleet Admiral apologising to a mere Captain). "I know it's the New Year, but I had to take the duty. It's okay, take the night off, you need a break from me. I'll see you after the holiday."
Unbidden, an angry snarl escapes your throat. Damn that Johnny worming his way under your skin. He's just your target, there's nothing special about him at all. How dare he ditch you for his duty! How dare he piss you off this way!
You look at the glass table: your angry reflection glares back at you. You close your eyes and take a deep breath. Focus. Control. You'd never have let yourself get so worked up before. Johnny's just a target. You're honeypotting him to turn him into your asset. You need to stay on top of things. You're not some blushing secretary trying to snag a husband. You're so much more than that. Nobody rejects you: you're the one who seduces targets and tosses them aside once you get what you want.
I want Johnny.
That little thought flits through your mind; you ignore that inner voice. But fair's fair: as far as assignments go… well, as a lover, Johnny has clear gaps in his skill and experience. But he's also been the most personally tolerable of all your targets. As honeypot assignments have been, this has been your most pleasant experience.
A low bar to clear, to be sure.
You take the cleaning cloth, crumpling it into a ball, noting dispassionately how your grip turns white-knuckled. You were meant for so much more than this, yet an accident of birth relegates you to playing errand girl for the Main House. You're a cadet branch member, Ri-Sumeragi, and don't you forget it. How can you serve the Main House today, Ri-Sumeragi? Who next shall we have you whore yourself out to, Ri-Sumeragi? Your career isn't important, Ri-Sumeragi. You were born to be a honeypot, Ri-Sumeragi. Go seduce the Third Star Lord, Ri-Sumeragi. What have you done for us lately, Ri-Sumeragi?
Welcome home, Maggie.
Damn that Johnny! You shake your head to dismiss that memory of his voice, but it's like an airlock's been opened: more memories flit through your mind, flashes of sound and sight and smell. Little, insignificant things-
-Johnny bringing you breakfast in bed-
-Johnny making a late night snack as you work your way through a mountain of reports-
-Johnny pouring you drinks and hand-feeding you hors' d'oeuvres after you spent the night socially managing his party-
-Johnny massaging your feet as you lie on his couch-
-Johnny holding your hand for the first time-
-Johnny kissing you again and again and again-
You shake your head, march to the kitchen sink, and repeatedly splash your face with ice cold water. Get a grip, Amagi, you tell yourself. You're not some lovesick schoolgirl.
Really, Maggie?
"Get out of my head, Johnny," you snap. It takes you a moment to realise you spoke out loud to a figment of your imagination. Wonderful. Your boyfriend's not only ruining your composure, he's turning you senile, without even lifting a finger or being physically present.
You take a deep breath, and another, and another, and settle yourself. Fine, you decide. If he's not coming here tonight, you're definitely dragging him here tomorrow morning, once he gets off duty. Same plan, delayed execution, no plan survives contact with the enemy, et cetera et cetera. Time to Improvise, Adapt and Overcome. You're still going to get your claws into him, one way or another.
And, well, let's be honest. Your apartment needs cleaning anyhow; you haven't been here in months, not since you moved in with Johnny.
-=-
You give yourself a final inspection in the rearview mirror. Perfect. Your outfit is stylish, just the right balance between being demure and tilting your man. What did your boarding school roommate call it? Being thotfully proper. He'll never be able to resist your charms.
You pull up as Johnny exits Admiralty House; his eyes light up as he spots your car and recognises you. You take a moment to admire his dashing form. He wears his uniform well; getting him those bespoke tailored uniforms was an excellent use of your operating funds, worth every crown you spent on him. He truly looks and behaves like the Third Star Lord should. He waves at you, and you smile and wave back to him as he walks briskly to the passenger door.
"Good morning, Maggie," he says cheerfully, and his face is unreservedly happy to see you. He really should work on his poker face more, he's an open book to you, but, well, you work with what you have.
"Good morning, Johnny," you reply, as he buckles in. "How was your night?"
"Not as fun as yours must have been," he says wryly. You keep wearing your pleasant smile: you spent yesterday and last night cleaning your apartment and preparing the dinner you were going to cook him; now all that's left to do is to bring him back to your apartment, take the meat from the fridge and put it into the oven to slow roast, and spend the day working your claws into him (and his manhood into you).
"I really don't see how you couldn't have gotten out of being the duty officer," you say, letting a little crankiness seep out. Your man needs to be reminded of his place sometimes. "You're a Fleet Admiral, since when does a five-star do the duty?"
"Lieutenant Commander Indra Wijaya had the duty," he says matter-of-factly. You place a face to the name - SWO, doing a staff tour at Admiralty House, up for a ship command, on the promotion list for Commander. "But he's got a family and two young children. I'm a bachelor. So I swapped with him, it was a no-brainer."
You blink a few times; the cool winter air is getting to you, even inside your heated car. You turn to look at Johnny's profile, how he sits in your car, staring out the window. You remember how he treated you the first say you met, the way he treats all his subordinates, how he could never do them dirty, from the lowliest sailor to his royal niece and his best friend.
This is a man I could follow, you think. This man…
He glances in your direction, as you ignore the turnoff to the route to your apartment. "You missed your turn. Maggie, where are you taking us?"
"Home," you say firmly. "We're going home."
Johnny simply nods quietly, and reaches his hand out. You take it, letting it rest in your lap. He squeezes your hand.
"It's Golden Week. We took the whole week off. We could have gone anywhere. We could have gone off-planet. We could have gone to my private beach. Hell, we could even have gone to that cabin in the country and played with your guns! But no, Johnny, you had to choose to stay here."
"Maggie, there's nothing wrong with a staycation," you say, ignoring your girlfriend's annoyance. You set the tray down with its snacks and the pitcher of lemonade on the little table by your pool, and drop your towel over your pool chair. "I don't get to enjoy my house enough. Of course I'm staying at home."
"Join the Navy and see the Empire," says Maggie dryly, quoting the old recruiting meme. "Evidently you missed that portion of indoc." She drapes her towel over her pool chair, and looks quizzically at you. "Johnny, you do realise we're alone, and there are no eyes on you. You don't have to get dressed and then undress at the pool. You could just wear your swimwear from the get-go. You could even walk right out here naked and no one would ever know or care."
"You have your quirks, I have mine," you say, stripping off your t-shirt and retying the drawstring of your swimming trunks. You roll your eyes at Maggie - she's wearing a long-sleeved wetsuit that covers her entire body, save for where it ends mid-thigh. It looks fetching on her, the way the wetsuit conceals and yet reveals her body, the way it gives her a smooth sleek shape. She's a beautiful woman, your girlfriend, and you shake your head at the idea that someone like you could be with someone like her. Never in your wildest dreams.
You're two steps away from the water's edge before you get your first inkling that something isn't right, but just as you open your mouth, you feel a shove and faceplant into the water. You're already tucking your body into a roll when you hit-
JESUSCHRISTFUCKCOLDCOLDCOLD
Your mouth opens in a silent scream, which just makes the freezing water rush into your mouth and make you scream some more. Your feet hit the bottom and you lunge, propelling yourself upward; your head breaks the surface of the water. Your mind wants to roar in indignation, but your weak treacherous body prevents that with its shivering and chattering teeth.
Maggie looks far too pleased with herself. "How's the water, Darling?" she says sweetly. You're not fooled in the slightest.
"I thought you'd be above such pettiness," you reply through chattering teeth. "You know damn well how cold you set the pool."
Maggie merely smiles and ties her hair into a long ponytail, and then takes a running swan dive into the pool. Despite the cold, you admire her form, and can actually feel yourself harden. Goddamn, you have it bad for that woman. Actually this reminds you of that story Sonny told of SERE training, how his Green Team class were hosed with freezing water then paraded outdoor for female roleplayers to laugh at and insult their junk, and how Sonny was the only person to rise to the occasion…
You sneeze and shiver and look up, to see Maggie calmly standing in the pool, without nary a care. She gives you a smug smirk. "It seems some of us are dealing with the elements a little better than others, hmm?"
"You're wearing an insulated wetsuit," you retort. "You've got an unfair advantage. Make it even and then you can talk."
"I can always back up my talk, Johnny," she smirks, reaching for her zipper. she pulls it down and her wetsuit splits apart oh so slowly, and you can see the indentations of her pointed nipples against the material. She's definitely feeling the cold, she's just not letting you see it. Maggie gyrates in the water, peeling the swimsuit off, leaving only a pair of tiny neon yellow bikini bottoms on her body. You've seen gauze patches with more surface area than that tiny glorified strip of dental floss. A tiny glorified strip of dental floss that is doing things to your anatomy.
Maggie walks to you imperiously, even as you see her shoulders shivering and her sodden tails wrapping around her in an instinctive attempt to retain heat. You're shivering hard now, but you just say, "Looks like you're having trouble staying warm."
"Johnny please. As a Sumeragi, I would never let myself show weakness in public. The cold doesn't affect me at all."
"You admit it's cold," you retort (the chattering reduces the effect of your statement somewhat). "Is your pride as a Sumeragi really worth this discomfort?"
"I may be a member of the cadet branch, but I am a Sumeragi noblewoman. I lay my body on the altar of my pride."
"Or you could lay your body on the altar of staying warm by sharing body heat," you suggest. "Nobody would need to know…"
Maggie puts on a show of considering, and raises a finger. "On one condition," she declares imperiously. "I cannot abide the fact that your are in a superior position to me. We must be equal."
"Meaning?"
"Lose the trunks, peasant," she commands you, her beautiful blue eyes boring on you.
"Lady, you want these trunks gone, you gotta come and get them," you declare. Maggie merely reaches down and unties her knots, and off comes the dental floss bikini. She balls it up and throws it at you, you instinctively reach your hands out to catch the garment, and that's when an icy wave bowls into your, drenching you. You feel hands yank your feet out from under you, divesting you of your swimming trunks. You come up for air, greeted by Maggie's smug face, as she waves your swimming trunks around like a victory flag. She throws your trunks onto the deck and lazily swims to you.
"There," she counters triumphantly. "We're both equal - of course, as a member of Great House Sumeragi, to say I am first among equals is to belittle how far ahead that first place is."
You snort. "You Sumeragis and your Sumeragi hottakes on things."
"Darling, I am Sumeragi. I am expected to comport myself in a manner befitting Great House Sumeragi." Maggie draws closer to you, the pool tantalisingly distorting her naked form, a form you've seen so many times that never fails to excite you, even in this freezing cold water. She wraps her arms around you, and you lean in-
-and sneeze.
You both jerk apart in stunned, shocked silence. You can't help it. You start giggling hysterically at the sight of Maggie's face, at her shock and outrage that you of all people would sneeze on her-
-and then she sneezes and you stop laughing.
Carefully, slowly, you reach a hand up and wipe your lips. "Should we call this even? We're freezing, we should get ou-"
A wave slams into your face, and you sputter in indignation. You clear the water from your eyes and see Maggie daintily washing her face, her expression righteous. "I'm sorry, Johnny," she says, clearly not sorry at all, "but I cannot let that stand. No one sneezes in the face of a Sumeragi and gets away with it."
You consider the situation you're in, summon your dignity, and choose to respond with the appropriate level of maturity. You bring your hands together and shove, sending a wave of water at Maggie. She yelps in surprise, as you grab her and pull her underwater. She wriggles and squirms her way out of your grasp, and as soon as your head breaks the surface she's splashing you relentlessly. Maggie is a ferocious opponent, but in the finest traditions of the Imperial Navy you counterattack and give as good as you get.
Eventually, by mutual unspoken agreement, a truce is called, and you catch your breath. You look down at yourself: your hands are numb and you can feel your goosebumps. Maggie's in much the same state.
"Call it a draw?" you suggest. "We can get out of this pool and get warm?"
Maggie sniffs haughtily. "First person to get out of the pool is a wimp."
"What are you, five?" you ask incredulously. "You freeze to death if you want, I'm getting out."
"I didn't realise you were so quick to throw in the towel," smirks Maggie, doing a lazy backstroke (and giving you a wonderful view of her physical perfection personified). "I so do fear for our Navy's future: if you're going to give up so quickly in the small things, My Lord, how ever will you endure the large things?"
You realise two things: One, she's baiting you. Two, it's working. Three, you might be freezing to death, but there's a part of you that would rather freeze to death beside Maggie than be warm and dry and alone. Four, the cold water is doing wonderful things to her nipples. Wait damnit Yoyo that was four things. Oh, fuckit, chiong ah, chiong ah!
You gather your hands before you, and break the ceasefire.
-=-
"Ohohohoho is this truly the limit of the Third Star Lord's ability?"
"I thought Sumeragi were hot stuff, put up or shut up!"
-=-
"Y'know your nips have been rock hard for a while now maybe it's time to retreat now?"
"If you stay in Darling, you get to admire them even more."
"Damn you that's actually a good ret-"
"Less talking, more splashing, Johnny."
-=-
"Okay we've been at this an hour h-how about we call it quits?"
"Darling, please, I can keep on going. Unlike you, I'm perfectly fit. No wonder you don't have enough endurance in bed."
"Oi I'm sixty."
"Life begins at sixty, Johnny. Besides, you're fifty eight, you've no excuse to claim the frailty of old age. En garde!"
-=-
"M-maggie, p-p-please, n-no m-more."
"T-t-this is good f-for Sumeragi."
"Oh for fuck's sake-"
"S-submit to me your G-Grand D-D-Duchess!"
"You have issues. That's it, we're done."
-=-
"This is all your fault, you realise." Maggie's voice is a lot weaker than usual; for once, she's unable to summon her usual Sumeragi imperiousness. Truth be told you're not that much better. You just wrap your arms around Maggie and cuddle as you both lie on the sofa, snuggled in your cocoon of warm blankets, sharing body heat, while Aces at War plays on the big screen. Neither of you are ranting about the show, which probably shows how out of it you both are.
"I fail to see how both of us coming down with a chill is my fault," you reply. It's probably your fault: rule number one, the wife is always right, happy wife happy life, but you're feeling ornery and you want to push back a little.
"If you'd gone to my private beach with me like I wanted to, we'd be sitting on a warm tropical beach right now, not bundled up like Eskimos," she sniffles.
"Maggie, you were the one who set the pool temp to freezing," you point out.
"Well I had to make a point to you."
"And how's that working out?"
"...somewhat less than ideally."
Yup, she's definitely under the weather. She'd never have admitted that so readily, not if she had her full mental faculties.
In hindsight you should probably have just dragged her out of the pool rather than let yourself get baited, because both of you are looking forward to spending your vacation at home, sick. Good job, Johnny! Very good, I like! Well done Third Star Lord!
Maybe Maggie does have a point to her spurious complaints…
"I don't need to go anywhere," you say gently. "The important thing is being with you. I'd rather spend a week at home with you than two weeks alone on a luxury beach resort."
"Johnny," growls Maggie, "the whole point was that you and me would go to my private beach!"
"Oh," you say dumbly. "Sorry?"
"Johnny. Let go of me so I can punch you."
"I think I'd better not let go then," you say, and Maggie growls. She subsides moments later, sighing, and you take advantage of that to cuddle some more.
"You're a sap, Johnny."
"Guilty as charged," you admit. "But… just think about it, Maggie. You and me together in our house. No Navy, no politics, no Imperial Family, no Great Houses. Just Johnny and Maggie at home. It's not so bad, is it?"
Maggie doesn't say anything, but she gently, firmly worms her way out of your grasp, turning so that she's lying on your chest, facing you. Her face is an open book to you; she's genuinely happy. "No," she says, smiling gently. "It's not so bad."
Then she jerks her head to the side and sneezes and the moment is ruined; you reach for the tissue box help her wipe her nose, and you both sigh and settle back onto the sofa.
And when you wake later and realise you've both fallen asleep, snuggled together, with your fingers intertwined, well. That's not so bad at all. Not a bad vacation at all.
Staycation, all I ever wanted
Staycation, had to get away
Staycation, meant to be spent with you
[X] Covert Investigation
[X] Yes, involve IRG in the investigation
"I think that it would be best if we keep this investigation off-book," you tell Daniel. "I realise that you'll be operating under constraints you wouldn't have if we make this a formal affair, and that your intelligence gathering will be limited, but I'd rather not tip my hand just yet. Let's just start quietly and see where the trail leads us."
"Yes, ma'am. I can work with that."
"I'd also like you to arrange a meeting with Major Nakaraha."
"Your IRG liaison, ma'am? We're involving the IRG?"
"I think it would be prudent, given that they were of help to you in the Egon System investigation, and I believe that our mission will be of common interest. They've also got a vested interest in keeping milspec systems out of pirate hands."
"Is that wise, ma'am? You're giving them more access to your movements."
"I'm already under IRG scrutiny," you say. "This way, we can build a closer rapport with them, and perhaps assuage some of their concerns. I'm certain they'll have taken note of Admiral Vickers' confrontation with Commodore Muryoutou."
"Noted, ma'am. I'll take care of that."
"You can do that tomorrow," you say. "I'm sorry to have taken up so much of your weekend. Please do give my regards to your family."
"Thank you, ma'am."
"You're welcome, Daniel."
- 女王之天命 -
"Refills please, mama-san!"
"Konnie, this is my house, not that snack bar at Anchorhead," you protest mildly. "Please, control yourself."
"I'm an Admiral now, I don't have to do inspection, I don't have to sober up on Monday," counters Konnie. "I think I'll take tomorrow off."
You just give Konnie a look and sigh. You remember the first time you met Konnie, when you were roomates at Anchorhead: you'd been so happy, so relieved that finally you were going to get a calm, sober presence, you'd finally get a roommate who you wouldn't have to sober up before CO's inspection…
...and then you got Konnie, your roommate who you had to sober up so she could do CO's inspection.
"Konnie, I think you're taking that the adage of "work hard, play hard" too far," you say mildly.
"Yui, please. Your house is intact. The bottles are all neatly arranged in the basket. Neither of us has been thoroughly enjoyably fucked. We haven't even begun to play." Konnie rolls her eyes at you.
Some things, you can't change. You give in, and refill her glass. Ah well, she deserves it. It's the least you can do for her.
"I want you to know I appreciate you throwing yourself on your sword to protect me and Her Majesty. You didn't need to do it, if 4th Fleet escalates this further you're going to take the brunt of the scrutiny, and I'm sorry you'll face the music for my decisions. You deserve better."
Konnie looks at you, and sighs. Your best friend takes your hand and looks you in the eye. "I'm a big girl, Yui, I can take care of myself. I knew what I was getting into and I went in with both eyes open," she says seriously. "We swore an oath to Her Majesty to protect this empire. You're my best friend. I will always have your back. If the situation was reversed, you'd do the same for me."
"I'll make it up to you," you promise heartfully. Konnia just laughs.
"Fill my glass and I'll call it even. No, on second thoughts let's empty your liquor cabinet and then call it even. Actually, no, come paint the town red with me tonight and then I'll call it even-"
"Konnie no-"
"You need to play harder y'know, you don't play hard enough-"
"Konnie, no-"
- 女王之天命 -
Fortunately, you were able to escape Konnie's clutches, though your liquor cabinet was not so lucky. The rest of the day proceeds normally: you return to the palace, spend the afternoon swimming with Ahri, and curl up on the sofa catching up on the final season of Aces at War (and explain to Ahri what they did and didn't get right). Then it's off to brushing your tails before bed, and you and Ahri kiss each other goodnight and snuggle in to sleep.
When her nightmares wake you, this time, you wake her. When you hear what Ahri has to say, you regret that decision
"Why didn't papa stay?" sobs Ahri. "Why didn't he love me enough to stay?"
It's a question you have no reply for. In absence of profound answers, you follow Mummy's example. You kiss her tears away, you promise her that you won't leave, you hold her in your arms, you comfort her.
Sleep comes to both of you, eventually, but it's a long while coming.
- 女王之天命 -
Your week progresses, much like last week. You brief Ahri on the findings of the Egon investigation, and explain your intent to follow up the SA-Caledfwlch lead. Ahri is chagrined that things weren't as she believed, but at least she's not publicly embarrassed, and it's been a learning experience for her. You mention the confrontation between Konnie and Commander Muryoutou, and Ahri is horrified at the thought that her officers are fighting amongst themselves. You have to talk her out of preemptively issuing an Imperial Pardon for Konnie; you want to leave that as the nuclear option, the absolute last resort. Moreover, accepting a pardon is an admission of guilt, and you don't believe Konnie did anything wrong. You manage to assure Ahri that you have things under control, and that things will settle down, and you need to focus on moving forward.
With Ahri's approval for your expanded mandate, you spend the week getting Daniel ready to ship out to Fenghuang. He'll be setting up in the Cymru system, where SA-Caledfwlch's main offices and yards are based, though he expects he will also need to look into their facilities in the Cwmbrn and Vaizen systems. Major Nakahara came through for you; the same intel team that assisted Daniel with the Egon investigation will be following along, as well as some augmentees previously of a joint IRG-NavInt-Treasury taskforce.
The week goes by in a flash, not very much different from last week. The highlights remain the same: Uncle Johnny comes by for breakfast and a current affairs discussion with Ahri, you supervise Ahri's studying and make sure she diligently reads her briefing boxes, and work continues on getting Ahri to eat better and exercise more.
All this while, you wait for the penny to drop. And drop it does, on Sunday night.
The message from Fleet Admiral Chew is short and succinct: "To: VADM Akasha. From: FADM Chew. Please report to Commander Fleet Operations at 1000 hours tomorrow, Admiralty House."
You sigh, check your uniform, and prepare to face your reckoning.
- 女王之天命 -
As you make your way to the Third Star Lord's office, you can't shake the feeling that you're being called to the headmistress's office. You don't believe you did anything wrong, you don't believe Konnie did anything wrong, but you can't shake your guilty feeling.
Outside the Third Star Lord's office, you notice two Ensigns you don't recognise standing in the waiting area, perusing a datapad. Strange. Normally, junior officers don't hang around a flag officer's door, what more the 3IC of the Imperial Navy. And their uniforms are sanitised, with only their nametags and rank insignia visible, no awards or qualification badges to be seen. Ri-Sumeragi seems to pay them no mind, as she flits between her desk and the staff bullpen, so you mentally shrug and carry on.
The second the Ensigns notice you, they snap to attention, clicking their heels and giving you crisp salutes - a little odd, given neither of you are wearing headgear. The moment you return the salute, they bow deeply to you. Again, strange. The culture of the Navy is that while you wear the uniform, your naval rank takes precedence over your social rank: your rank as a Vice Admiral should be acknowledged over your position as an Imperial Princess. And you could swear you see the color drain out of one of the Ensign's' faces, which strikes you as odd: most officers working in Admiralty House should already be used to the presence of high nobility: why, the First Star Lord, Fleet Admiral Elizabeth Georgina Hood, is also the Duchess of Clydebank, and of course Commander 10th Fleet is the Prince of Akasha…
Ri-Sumeragi notices you. She nods to you, greets you politely, and motions to you to wait, while she picks up the intercom handset. "Sir? She's here. Understood. Yes, Sir." She replaces the handset and nods to you. "Fleet Admiral Chew will see you now, Vice Admiral."
As you enter, you notice, out of the corner of your eye, the two junior officers taking up guard positions flanking the door…
You enter into the Third Star Lord's sanctum. The first thing you see is Fleet Admiral Chew, seated at the coffee table. The second thing you see, kneeling before the coffee table, is Admiral Kanda Shiki. He is whisking a small bowl of tea, with a pair of small enamelled plates in front of him, each with a single piece of mochi. As you enter, he wordlessly sets the bowl down, turns both bowls slightly, so that their decorations face towards you and Fleet Admiral Chew, and pushes them and the mochi towards the two of you, and gesturing for you to sit. You glance at the Skipper, who nods to you, and you wordlessly take your seat.
You search the two men's faces for insight. The Third Star Lord is serious. Kanda returns your gaze. His pupils dilate, he takes a breath, and swallows, and steels his expression. His right foot is tapping the floor. He's worried, angry, nervous; most people wouldn't notice that tell, but you're not most people.
"Admiral Kanda has concerns about your conduct, Vice Admiral Akasha," says Fleet Admiral Chew. "I'm giving him the opportunity to raise those concerns, and for you to respond, before this needs to proceed in a more formal setting. Admiral Kanda, you have the floor."
"Thank you, Sir." Kanda reaches into the briefcase set beside him, withdrawing a manilla folder, portable holoprojector and a datapad. He taps the datapad's screen, and a holrojection blossoms to life, icons emerging in the aether. You recognise it for what it is: Task Force Soyeon's arrival into Egon.
Kanda looks you dead in the eye - and then he averts his gaze. He blinks, takes a deep breath, and parts his lips - and then falters. He picks up the folder, and flips it open.
You frown - subtly, stealthily - at that display. You'd expected Shiki to be a bit more composed; he has an excellent memory, he doesn't ordinarily need to rely on notes. But then, it's probably difficult for him to be confronting you. You have no illusions about how hard it would be for you to confront him, if the situation was reversed.
"As you can see," he begins, "on the 24th of May this year, a warfleet - a heavy task force - of ships from the 13th Fleet jumped into the Egon System. First, three light CruRons jumped in as screen, then after signalling the main force, they jumped further in system, drawing the attention of Egon STC. Subsequently the main force - two heavy CruRons, a battlecruiser squadron, and a battleship flagship - jumped in-system. Assuming an attack formation, they made a beeline for this asteroid, operated by VSS as an armskote. The main force employed jamming against VSS, and proceeded to conduct an audit of the PMC, and then proceeded to engage in a oiracy suppression operation. In short, forces under her command invaded-" his eyes make contact with yours, and he falters. "Entered an Imperial system," he amends, "and proceeded to an audit a PMC under the oversight of another Navy Fleet. Then, when 4th Fleet forces arrived in-system, 13th Fleet's forces were, they were... less than forthcoming as to their intentions. And when the task force OC was confronted on her actions, she was glib and dismissive."
You know what you did, how you had no untoward intentions. But Kanda's narrative paints a damning picture. A warfleet entering the system in screening formation, jamming the local security provider, Captain Chimtaum's attempt to mislead Commodore Muryoutou's squadron, Konnie's confrontation with Muryoutou…
Kanda hasn't outright accused you of treason. But the unsaid implications are clear.
"In short," he concludes, slapping the folder closed, "forces under Vice Admiral Akasha's command have performed highly questionable actions, actions which may be reasonably construed as beyond conduct becoming of naval officers. I would like Vice Admiral Akasha to explain herself and her actions. I do not believe she was ignorant - I'm sorry, I meant unaware - of these happenings, not when the officer commanding TF Soyeon is Rear Admiral Constance Vickers, her right hand and closest friend."
"That's a fair question. Vice Admiral Akasha, what do you have to say for yourself?"
"I don't believe that Rear Admiral Vickers did anything wrong, and I stand by her decisions," you say calmly. "My spacers acted in accordance with Navy protocol and performed their duty as expected."
"Acted in accordance with Navy protocol? Performed their duty?" asks Kanda incredulously, his voice rising in a squeak. "Are you listening to yourself? You took an invasion warfleet into an Imperial system! You jammed an authorised PMC! You spread your tails and threw you weight around in my house, how the hell is that Navy protocol?!"
"Kanda, you can knock it off, or knock it down. I'm fine with either option," says Fleet Admiral Chew mildly.
"You can't seriously-"
"I believe Fleet Admiral is still more power than Admiral. Control yourself," opines your mentor, raising his wrist and meaningfully running his fingers over the rank stripes on his sleeve. "That said, Kanda's right, Akasha. That non-explanation is unsatisfactory. Try again."
You have to make a decision right now, in this moment. Do you disclose Ahri's involvement, or do you try and obfuscate? The whole raison d'etre for your actions was to be a buffer for Ahri, to be a layer of plausible deniability, insulating her from blowback. But you're not just talking to some Tom, Dick and Harry. It's Uncle Johnny, your godfather and mentor, and Shiki, your closest friend after Konnie. "Verbal Orders of the Empress" is a phrase that absolves many sins.
You marshal your thoughts and control yourself as you step into the armored SUV. Your IRG escort team is professionally dressed in good suits; not as nice as your suit, of course, but good, decent work suits, the kind you used to buy, before Maggie entered your life. You stifle the feeling of guilt that flares up every time you think about the money your wife has spent on you.
No. Not your wife. You have to keep your guard up. She's a honeypot sent to play you. You're counterplaying her. You have to wake up and be on guard.
You make polite small talk with your escort along the drive; the team leader escorts you through security at the palace, and leads you to the Empress' apartments. You part on friendly terms, and he lets you know his team will be your transport after your meeting.
Breakfast goes well enough; Yui prepared your ingredients for you, following the shopping list you gave her: you were quite aware there was no way you were going to bring outside food into Her Majesty's palace. While part of you still feels annoyed at having to get up so early to make breakfast for your niece and her royal cousin, there's a part of you that relishes the chance to show off your culinary skills to Her Majesty. Not to toot your own horn, Johnny boy, but you've gotten pretty good at this cooking thing. Let's be honest, Maggie played a part in that. You've always been passable as a cook, but you've never really been keen on cooking when it was just yourself all alone in your house. But cooking for two… yes, you'd rather slave away over a stove to cook for your lover, than you would for yourself.
The Empress' ignorance about current affairs is concerning, but her physical condition… Lord, you could see her ribs. And it's pretty obvious to you that she has a crush on Yui. When a girl walks naked into the kitchen and wraps her arms around you, yes, she damn well is sexually interested in you.
You remember when Maggie was the naked girl wrapping her arms around you, and smile, remembering the events of this morning, and other past encounters. You also thank your lucky stars that Yui is as oblivious as ever, and doesn't seem to have realised the significance of Maggie's perfume on your jacket, or even realised it's there.
You shake your head, thinking of your niece's denseness. She literally went on a date once, and she still doesn't realise it was a date, or the extent of his feelings towards her. But that's her problem. You're not going to touch this with a ten foot pole: you've got enough problems already, you don't need to add being a shidduch to the pile.
There's a surprise waiting for you at the tram station: Ri-Sumeragi, waiting for you, wearing a smart gray skirtsuit that's a half size too small, looking proper, sexy and professional. She nods to your escort. "I'm Captain Amagi Ri-Sumeragi, Fleet Admiral Chew's adjutant. I'll take care of his transport."
"I guess I won't need your ride, Staff Sergeant," you say to your escort. You shake hands, bid him farewell, and gesture to Ri-Sumeragi to preceed you. Within minutes, you're in your own SUV; she points you to the back seat while she hops in the driver's seat, and you settle in as she expertly brings your vehicle onto the main road.
"Why the back seat, Maggie?" you ask. Maggie knows you hate sitting in the back. It's a little embarrassing, but sitting in the back always makes you a little carsick (which you deal with by napping or being otherwise distracted).
"I brought your uniform," she says, gesturing at the garment bag lying against the seat. "There will be less questions if you show up at Admiralty House in your uniform." She sighs wistfully. "A pity. You look ravishing in that suit."
"What about you?"
"I'll change after you. So, how was your meeting?"
"It was fine," you say, beginning to disrobe. Your jacket comes off, then your tie. "Breakfast was fine, we talked about current affairs, the Naval Forces Realignment Act…"
"Are you still fighting with your niece over her support for the Act?" asks Maggie. You just know she's smirking, like the smug vixen she is.
"She's entitled to her own opinion, as am I," you say piously, as you change into your uniform. You leave your jacket for last; you'll put it on just before you arrive. Maggie merely makes a thoughtful sound, before changing the subject: "So, let's talk fashion. I do recall telling you you'd look ravishing in that suit. Surely you must now agree with me, Johnny."
"Yui said I could probably find a wife with this suit."
Maggie laughs. "Excellent. That's exactly what happened. But what was Her Majesty and Her Highness wearing?"
"She changed into this short kimono thing, and Yui was wearing stuff from her grandma's label. Designer sweater and jeans."
"I'll give you an eye for fashion yet, Darling. But what was Her Majesty wearing at the start? You mentioned she changed. Did she come to breakfast wearing a cute bunny eared onesie?"
You bite your tongue. Sure, Her Majesty wasn't trying to tilt you, and the only woman you want to get hard for is Maggie. But a sixth sense is screaming at you to change the subject. "Shouldn't you be getting changed, Maggie?"
Maggie deliberately reaches up and angles the rearview mirror so you can both see each other. She gives you a flat look, one that says she saw through your transparent effort at misdirection. And then she smirks, punches a button on the touchscreen console, and activates the self-driving mode. "Why, yes, Johnny, I absolutely do need you to help me change," she purrs.
Fuck.
Maggie worms her way out for the driver's seat and deposits herself beside you, smiling winningly. "Help me with my jacket, Darling," she commands, as she bends over to unfasten her pumps. Her beautiful shoulders shrug as you slide her jacket down her arms, getting an eyeful of her cleavage, displayed most tantalisingly by her thin scoop-cut blouse.
No bra. Your mouth goes dry.
She lifts her hands above her head, and you slide her blouse up. "Unzip me," she commands, and you obey, unzipping her pencil skirt, helping to slide it down her legs, as she lifts her derriere off the seat. All these movements bring you close, right next to her, where you can smell her hair and her scent and her.
As you fold her skirt, Maggie starts peeling down her pantyhose. It's a light color, accentuating her beautiful legs, but it's most definitely not Navy regulation. Nothing she wears is reg-compliant. She's doing this deliberately to tilt you.
"Darling, do this one favor for me," says Maggie. She hooks her fingers in her panties, a pair of tiny, red, lacy, sexy panties, smiling innocently at you. "Could you hold on to these for me? I don't have any pockets."
She draws them down her legs, oh so slowly, it's almost torturous. You follow the undergarments route down to her ankles, focusing on her beautiful fingers, the safest thing for you to look at. As if on autopilot, you take the lacey scrap of red tilting and put it into your pocket, and fight the urge to sniff that titillating handful like some repressed degenerate pervert.
Maggie sits beside you, smugly preening, basking in her naked glory, and you don't dare say anything. She crawls over to sit in your lap, straddling you, and she leans down and kisses you. You kiss her back, hungrily, longingly. Maggie finally breaks your kiss, with a reluctant sigh and a glance at her small, chic, elegant watch. "We don't have enough time," she says, and you could truly believe in that moment that she does sincerely desire you, that it's not an act. She sighs, and leans her head against yours; you sneak another quick kiss from her. Maggie laughs, and kisses you again. She untangles her fingers from your grasp, and trails them up your leg; you squirm and make the most embarrassing squeak as she caresses you.
"My Lord," she says, using the highest of upper class registers. "Believe me when I say that nothing would give your servant greater pleasure than to relieve your need, but alas. Duty is a harsh mistress, and I hear her call in my ear."
"You're laying it on pretty thick there. Does this mean that I'm not really your lord whom you service and relieve?"
"Johnny, Darling, shut up and let me have this."
"Noblewoman turned maid servicing her erstwhile nobleman master while she's holding the true upper hand roleplay?"
Maggie's response is swift and direct: she punches your shoulder. Let's be honest: you deserved that.
"Forgive me, My Lady." You're not too proud to grovel. "Your humble servant forgot his place momentarily and begs your forgiveness."
Amagi Ri-Sumeragi's imperious gaze is no less piercing despite her nudity, and you can feel yourself shriveling up from her cold blue eyes. And then she smiles, laughs, and kisses you. "You'll make it up to me later," she commands. "We really don't have enough time for this. Help me get dressed, I can't show up at the office like this." Her smile turns sly. "Even though I'm sure you would want me to." She sighs, and reluctantly removes herself from your lap.
"Do we have to?" you ask, a little petulantly. Surely it's alright to drop in late tod-
Maggie shifts into a kneeling position. She takes your hand and presses it to one glorious breast. You can feel her palm atop your hand, her soft supple flesh beneath your hand, the excited racing of her heartbeat. She holds your hand in place for a minute, her eyes never leaving yours, as you drink in every inch of her beautiful face. She removes your hand, leading it between her legs, tracing her curves on the journey down. You feel her, and all you can say is, "Oh."
"Oh," she agrees. She draws your fingers out, and licks them clean, which does absolutely nothing to relax your heart rate.
You know when you're beat; you raise your hands in surrender and help your lady dress. When you're done, she fixes her makeup, cleans your face, and hops back into the driver's seat, while you pack away the clothes. By the time you arrive at Admiralty House, your facade of a model flag officer and his adjutant is secure. You don't say another word until you're both in the private elevator leading to your floor, when Maggie leans over and whispers in your ear, "So, Darling, I assume Her Majesty came to breakfast au naturale?"
You cough, and Maggie's tails swish triumphantly. "I knew it," she proclaims teasingly. "You dirty, dirty old man. You enjoyed that eyeful, didn't you? Don't deny it, I know you've got an eye for young girls, you depraved cradle robber you." She leans back, fluttering her eyelashes, fanning herself dramatically. "Oh woe is me! My man hath pursueth me for mine youthful looks, but his gaze now wanders to a babe in the woods! Darling, please. Don't look at the Empress, look at me. Youthful innocence is fleeting, sexual maturity is eternal."
"I could see her ribs," you say softly, and it's like a dam breaks inside you. "Her ribs, Maggie. She's not eating, she's not sleeping, she's just a kid, a kid who lost her mom and lost her dad because the fucktard decided to kill himself and join his wife in death instead of manning up for his kid. What kind of father is that? The only person in her life who cares about her, as a person, is Yui. It's not right. It's not right at all. The Empire is in the hands of a lonely grieving little girl who's unprepared to rule and this house of cards is going to crash down on us-"
Maggie takes your hand in hers. You're filled with a sense of horror as you just realise what the fuck you said, but your fingers intertwine with hers, seeking out that comforting warmth. She stands there, beside you, her hand in yours, her eyes locked in on yours, and all she says is: "How can I help?"
"I don't know," you say, and her eyes soften at the quiet despair in your voice. "Oh, Johnny," she says. She pulls your head down and she kisses you, and then kisses your hand, and tells you, "No matter what, I'll be right here."
You kick yourself furiously. You've revealed something you were trying to keep hidden. And she said that, but of course she would say that, that's what a honeypot does-
"I thought Sumeragi didn't like the Imperial Family?"
"I'm not doing this for Her Majesty, Johnny. I'm doing this for you."
As the elevator doors ding open, as you reluctantly release your hands, you feel something in your heart, something that terrifies and excites you at the same time: Hope.
God, this was a busy day. You've never really bought into the idea of romantic weekend getaways, because every single time you plan to knock off early from work on Friday, you always end up sangkut with the responsibilities of your rank. But not today. This time you managed to clear out on time, and you and Maggie are on your way to your weekend retreat at her private beach.
Quite frankly, you'd have preferred to just stay at home and have more time to relax instead of using it on traveling, but Maggie insisted, and you kinda do owe her for ruining her Golden Week plans. So here you are, this Friday night, inside a private jet, heading off to Maggie's private beach. It still amazes you sometimes. You're hardly poor, you might even qualify as being vaguely rich (a Fleet Admiral's salary is comfortably upper middle class to start with, and you've got a few decades of investments seeded by frugal living), but the Ri-Sumeragi family is super ridiculously turborich, and it's times like this that reminds you that Amagi Ri-Sumeragi comes from a world very different from Yonatan Chew's humble origins. Flying across the planet in a private aircraft for a weekend getaway? That's the sort of madness thst only the rich would do. And this jet's furnishings, dear Lord the furnishings!
You lean back in the luxuriously soft, decadently comfortable chair, and sigh. Passenger chairs shouldn't be as comfortable as this, it's almost criminal, but ooooh. You won't have any problems falling asleep in this chair.
The VIP jet is luxurious, but small, so small that it doesn't have an in-flight stewardess. "Discretion, Darling," Maggie told you. "The less people on board, the fewer mouths there are to spill secrets. Besides, I want to spend this flight with you, not with you and a stewardess hovering in the background."
Once you were airborne, she'd excused herself to use the facilities. You frown. She's been gone a while-
"Good Evening, sir. Please accept this whiskey, compliments of Amagi Air."
"Thanks," you say, accepting the proffered glass of whiskey. You look up, and your jaw drops.
"Coffee, tea or me, Sir?" asks Amagi sultrily, and you swallow. Your girlfriend is wearing an outfit you can only describe as powerful. The tight red jacket is cut to accentuate her generous figure. Her pencil skirt tightly hugs her hips, highlighting every dangerous curve, complemented by her black stockings that show off her long, beautiful legs. Her cream-colored blouse is sheer, and as she bends to pour you your whiskey, you can see the silhouette of her lacy black bra. The gold ascot, with red and black trim, draws attention to its knot at her throat, and you can feel your heartbeat rising.
Powerful. Dangerous.
"Maggie, if you wanted to have flight attendant cosplay sex we could have just done it at home," you say, finally finding your tongue. "This is very method of you, but y'know, cosplay, roleplay, it's acting. We can do that at home. Did you really have to go this far in pursuit of your method acting memes?"
Maggie smiles sweetly, and climbs into your lap, straddling you, smiling lustily at you - and then she seizes a small pillow and proceeds to begin beating you to death with it.
"I haven't done anything!" you protest, throwing your hands up to protect yourself, and Maggie glares sternly at you.
"Johnny. I have a very specific scenario I wish to enact, which requires all of these elements which I have painstakingly assembled. I am very invested in this. I have to deal with your shitposting on a daily basis. I give you that. This is the least you could return towards me. Or, in plainer words, Darling: don't fuck this up for me."
"Yes, Dear," you say contritely.
"Good," says Maggie, climbing off you, and you exhale a sigh of disappointment. "Now grab my ass like the entitled douche you are."
"Excuse me?"
"You're a rich passenger who believes that paying for a first class ticket entitles him to take liberties with the stewardess."
"So the exact sort of guy I would punch if i could get away with it," you muse. You reach up and sink your fingers into Maggie's amazing ass, and sigh again. Maggie narrows her eyes expectantly at you, and you affect a sneer. "Barely acceptable," you declare, in the haughty entitled tones of many a noblewoman you've seen. "Goodness gracious, how they expect to earn my coin with this level of service is simply disgraceful? Can't they get better girls to be stewardesses? I want to talk to your supervisor."
"Sir, I am the supervisory stewardess on this flight," replies Maggie, with the tired patience of a customer service professional. "I do beg your pardon sir, but the service you are implying is not a service provided by our company."
"By Jove what the devil am I doing spending five hundred crowns on this flight? For the money I've paid I expect a certain level of service! Can't you incompetents even achieve that level of-"
"Johnny, five hundred crowns is a low cost budget airline with no stewardesses. Multiply that figure by five hundred, please."
"Look I'm not actually rich-"
"Get back in character," snaps Maggie, and you obey.
"-I paid fifteen thousand crowns for this flight, the least I demand is to be serviced as I am accustomed to."
"Perhaps," says Maggie slowly, "it would be possible to come to a mutually agreeable resolution? We would be grieved to lose a paying customer such as yourself, sir."
She kneels before you, and reaches for your trousers, undoing your belt and zip. She fishes out your cock, and experimentally strokes it, You're a little ashamed to see it instantly spring to life at her touch. She smiles smugly at you, opens wide, and swallows your cock in one wet gulp.
"By the goddess," you breathe. The feel of her mouth and tongue on your cock is exquisite. She expertly performs her oral sorcery on you, licking and sucking and slurping your member. You get even harder, stimulated by the lewd sounds and physical sensations, and all thoughts of trying to hold it in are abandoned.
You meant to warn her, you really did, but it's as if a switch is flipped, and you explode in Maggie's mouth with an embarrassed moan. She doesn't skip a beat: her oral sorcery shifts to sucking up your semen, drinking from the hose of your degeneracy. You ride out the orgasmic wave, and Maggie just calmly, expertly takes you in her mouth.
Eventually, the wave subsides. Maggie releases you in a slurping motion. You glance down at your watch and you're shocked at how much time has past. Amagi stands, smirking smugly at you. She bends over and parts her lips, and a trail of drool intermixed with semen slips out of her mouth. You watch, as if in slow motion, as that liquid degeneracy falls from her lips to land on you, splattering on your wet cock and mons. Amagi licks her lips - but you can see past her poker face and sense the undercurrents of disgust and disdain behind that lustful gesture.
"That was very naughty of you, sir," she says smugly. "Company policy frowns on our guests participating in acts of public indecency and making a mess of themselves. Our company has a policy of immediate blacklisting of any guest found engaging in such degeneracy. This blacklisting cannot be appealed. Once we land shortly, sir, please know that you are no longer welcome on any of our flights, and from this moment forward, are to be treated as an inanimate object, not a paying passenger. Good day, sir."
Lord, that's cold.
"Far gentler than such a man deserves," laughs Maggie, and you realise that you said that aloud without realising it, again. Damn it, Johnny. She smiles sweetly at you. "I'd leave such a man to clean his mess himself. But for you, Darling, well. I suppose you deserve some reward for being a good boy today."
Your instinctive retort of "I'm older than you" is immediately suppressed when Maggie kneels before you and takes you into her mouth again. It's a feeling that's just as exquisite as the earlier encounter, but this time it feels different. She hums happily to herself, sending good vibrations through you. Whereas before she was sexual and cold, she's now loving and warm.
She's an excellent actress, you'll grant her that. You could almost believe she enjoys your taste. No one could.
Maggie cleans you thoroughly, and makes a show of smacking her lips when she's done. Her last move is to lovingly kiss your cock, before fixing it back in your trousers and making you presentable, Somehow, despite the outwardly submissive nature of her actions, you can't help but feel that she's been in control all this while. You reach for your whiskey and offer it to her; she raises an eyebrow quizzically at you, takes a sip of the whiskey, and returns it to you.
You wonder if she realises why you do that, each and every time. You're not sure you want her to know.
"Well, I've had my fantasy," she purrs. "I can be generous and let your have a turn. Spread the wings of your imagination a little, Johnny."
She stands, looking down to you, and her skirt does interesting things as it rides up her legs. You swallow, and take her beautiful hand and kiss her fingers. "Well," you begin, "I was thinking that I'm a businessman, and I'm feeling a little smug, because I've bought out all the seats in First Class so I can spend that time with one particular stewardess. Y'see, my wife is the Chief Stewardess on this flight, which means that she gets to take care of First Class instead of slaving away in Economy. And I was thinking that it was our wedding anniversary, and we wanted to spend the time together, but she had to work this route and couldn't get the time off, and she's not the sort of woman to pull strings and screw over her colleagues for her own sake. So she sucks it up and she deals, and I suck it up and I deal, and now we're here, in First Class, we have the entire cabin to ourselves for this flight. I get to be with my lovely wife, the most beautiful woman in the world, while she gets to relax on the job. There's no one else in the world, just me and her, together."
Amagi Ri-Sumeragi gives you a look, which only gets flatter and flatter at the words "husband", "wife", and "wedding anniversary", and you cringe. She lifts one beautiful leg, full of steppy power, planting it on your seat, right between your legs, fixing you with that same look.
And then Maggie laughs and her face comes alight, her tails swishing behind her in genuine mirth. She climbs into your lap, straddling you, and you feel your cock hardening as she rubs against you.
"Well," she smirks smugly, "if my husband" - and oh does the way she say those two little words make your heart beat faster -"if my husband has gone through all this trouble to arrange this flight for me, he deserves a reward."
"I'm totally okay with just cud-"
Maggie interrupts you with a kiss, one which you sit up and lean forward into to reciprocate. When you come to your senses, your shirt's unbuttoned and your jacket's off, tossed to the side: you have no memory of how that happened. Maggie's jacket and her shoes are on top of it, and she's curled up in your lap, leaning against your chest, her face flushed with excitement, looking very smug and pleased with herself.
"As fantasies go, it's a little vanilla. But adventurously vanilla," she grins, and then she hikes her skirt up, straddles you, and after that, you both have no more need for words.
I first want to note that the formal report is my true thinking, I'm not dressing it up for Hood. Salsu looks like it'll take some effort, but we can turn this around. We've got a good team, my people are on fire. We've done insurgency suppression before, things'll be fine. No, I no longer want to shoot everyone I see because I'm surrounded by incompetents.
At this point, my reforms of the local military are mostly complete. I've shitcanned the incompetents, shepherded the chiongsters, and the mediocre are, for the most part, where they can't do too much harm. I hope.
The civil service has seen some ruthless trimming - when their functions haven't been suborned to military authority - and I believe I've sufficiently cowed the nobles into shutting up and listening to me. Being an Imperial Prince does still count for something, afterall!
I really need more ships out here - I know, I know, everyone says that. It's true though. I swear on your mum. We're patrolling aggressively to deter pirates and maintain a presence in all systems - I don't want anywhere in Salsu feeling neglected and deciding this is a grand old time to secede, and I'm not comfortable with letting the locals crash build their forces - forces which might well be used against me.
Sorry, I'm rambling a little. Sorry, I've been a little vague on what my plans were for Salsu, because I didn't want anybody accusing you of conspiring with me. This way, we've got a little bit of plausible deniability, enough to do things. It reminds me of when we were the boys of DesRon 413, the Die Live Again Gang. Sorry, I'm stalling. Lightyears away and I can still see that disapproving look on your face, Hyung, so I'll just come out and say it:
I've effectively declared myself military governor of the Salsu Frontier. In deed, not name, but that fig leaf will last as long as a corvette under a battleship's broadside. I just didn't see a way to effectively assert control over the situation. It's actually worked out pretty well, and everyone has gotten with the program (and with surprisingly little need to have guns continually pointed at their heads!).
I suspect that someone was and still is stirring the pot here in Salsu. The pirate presence was too well armed, too well-equipped, not like some of the jokers we've crushed. We've managed to streamline the command structure and reorganise our forces, and so far, piracy remains suppressed, the problem moving forward is going to be separatist and insurgent movements springing up in the systems. There's a lot of unrest and unhappiness here, especially with Hoou's indifferent, negligent mismanagement of the frontier: this place is ripe for becoming another Pattani. Politically, moving forward, I think the only way Salsu stays in the Empire is if it becomes an Imperial Protectorate - not quite to the same level as Takama-ga-Hara, the Five Great Houses would throw a shitfit over that - but administered and overseen by the Throne. But that's going to be a decision for Her Majesty.
I know my tour will be up in half a year, but I'd really appreciate it if you could work things to extend my tour by another year. I'd love to come home - Goddess, I miss my wife and my daughter (and you, of course) - but you know how it is. We sacrifice our desires on the altar of service - you taught me that. I really think that if I can stay on another year I can keep things on the rails, or at least buffer things so that some dumbfuck social admiral can't fuck up Salsu. It'd be best if we could get all of our gang out here, but there's only so much I can impose on you.
Please give my regards to your mum, and take care of yourself, especially that thing I keep arguing with you about. If there is anything you need, you only need to ask and I'll help: all my resources are at your disposal. Don't be too proud to make use of them.
I don't tell you this enough: thank you for looking out for me and Yui. It means the world to me.
"I had good reason," you say slowly. "Good reason that I would rather not say."
"What th-"
"Kanda." With a deceptively soft word, Fleet Admiral Yonatan Chew stills Shiki. "Don't interrupt again."
"...yes, Sir."
"Continue, Akasha."
"Sir." You draw a deep breath, hesitating. Part of you wants to try and obfuscate, to keep as many cards to your chest as you can-
And then you look at your mentor. He sits there calmly, meeting your gaze, watchful, patient, and he nods imperceptibly to you. You hear his voice in your mind: Once you commit, go all in. Don't hold anything back. You chiong means you chiong kau kau.
"Task Force Soyeon wasn't in Egon just for a training cruise," you admit. "I was there with a hidden agenda. I was using elements of my fleet to conduct a fact-finding mission in the Egon System, following the verbal orders of Her Majesty Empress Meigyoku."
That quiet bombshell gets their attention. Kanda leans forward, his eyes intent. Chew nods once, eyebrows raised. "Well," he comments, "I don't think you saw that coming, Kanda." His expression turns sardonic. "See? Unofficial Vicereine. Continue, please."
"Her Majesty had seen indications that untoward actions might be happening in the Egon system, and dispatched me to investigate the matter. I chose to take a heavy task force out of my concerns over the opposition that I might encounter there. I would submit that this decision was partly justified by the piracy suppression mission that Rear Admiral Vickers performed."
"If you keep showing up to fights with overwhelming firepower, you'll never become a blooded admiral, Akasha," opines your mentor.
"I'm not really interested in that, Sir, I just want to finish fights as quickly as I can," you say seriously. "If I put myself or my people into a position where heroics are necessary, something has gone very wrong." Out of the corner of your eye, you can see Kanda nodding in spite of himself.
"I will, of course, need confirmation of this," Fleet Admiral Chew continues seriously. "As much as I'm inclined to take your word for it, I can't and I won't. I'd appreciate it if you could persuade Her Majesty to meet with the three of us about this matter. Discreetly."
"Of course, Sir," you agree. You meet Shiki's gaze. "I trust this satisfies your concerns, Admiral?"
"Satisfies my concerns," he repeats dumbly. "Satisfies my concerns?" He leans forward agitatedly, his eyes blazing. "Are you for real?!" And then he slumps back into his seat, burying his face in his hands, like a puppet whose strings have been cut. "You have no idea what you've done, do you."
"Enlighten me, please, Admiral," you ask, putting steel into your voice, and Kanda looks at you bleakly.
"Do you not realise how closely you came to kicking off a war? Egon is disputed territory. You took a goddamn heavy taskforce into a system equidistant between Sumeragi and Fenghuang. Didn't you see the projection? To anybody outside this room it looks like you took an invasion fleet to cap that system for a staging point to invade Sumeragi!"
"Imperial Navy ships have the right to travel freely throughout the Empire-"
"You took a fucking invasion fleet to an invasion staging point, do you not know Sumeragi and Hoou are itching for a fight-"
"13th Fleet's mandate is to conduct presence patrols within the Empire, the Egon system is part of the Empire-"
"Didn't you hear what I just said, did you suddenly go deaf-"
"Enough, both of you," orders Yonatan. His expression is stern and disappointed. "What nonsense is this? You're both adults, you're both flag officers, fucking act like it can or not? You two are my students, your conduct reflects on me. Both of you control your shit, can or not?"
"Yes, Sir," you say, gritting your teeth; Shiki follows suit. Fleet Admiral Chew shakes his head.
"Let's get this all straight. Her Majesty gets it into her head that there is hanky panky in Egon and sends you to investigate. Akasha decides to jump a heavy task force into the system. This tilts Kanda, who sends a recce squadron to investigate, and eventually your ships and his ships run into each other, and start dickwaving. And that brings us here. And this could all have been avoided if you two had acted like adults and just talked to each other. Like, whiskey tango foxtrot, over, the both of you." It's his turn to bury his face in his hands, emitting a tired, long suffering sigh. "Why la my two best students so sohai? Why?"
That's laying it a little thick, you think.
"Well. Akasha: I know you won't pull a stunt like this again, because you don't have a fleet anymore, and I expect you will behave more judiciously when you get a fleet again. Kanda: how did you find out about Akasha jumping her TF into Egon?"
Shiki hesitates. "I have ISR assets. That's all I'm prepared to say."
Your mentor gives him a raised eyebrow. "And does Sumeragi or Fenghuang have the same ISR as you?"
"I have to act as though they do-"
"Dei I'm asking same intel Sumeragi got or not, don't gimme your grandfather story!"
"...I don't have any indications that they do," he admits reluctantly, and Fleet Admiral Chew sighs.
"I told you already, you need to control your paranoia, Shiki." He sighs again, and leans back in his chair. "Alright. So, as it stands, the only people who know what happened in Egon are the three of us, and your respective forces. Sumeragi is likely ignorant of all of this drama. We can fix this.
"Both of you did dumb things that were arguably within your rights to do as Commanders of Numbered Fleets. Yui: don't use an invasion warfleet for a fact-finding mission. Shiki: don't run around half-cocked when no one is trying to play you out. It is nobody's interest for all this to become more official. We're gonna end up with both of you losing face, getting censured, and I don't want to imagine the political blowback onto Her Majesty. So, let me tell you what we are going to do: Shiki, Yui, you two are going to apologise to each other, sincerely, like friends and fellow naval officers, and we are going to forget this little tiff ever happened."
"You're going to sweep this under the carpet," says Shiki accusingly.
"I mean, if you wanna lose face and sabo yourself and Yui, you go right ahead, Candy," shrugs Uncle Johnny, but you can sense the annoyance below his calm facade. "You want to sign extra? Can, I give you twenty four extra! You want Admiral's Mast? Come, lagi better, I order a JAG investigation and I relieve the both of you. You wanna lose your command because loss of confidence isit?"
"No, Sir, my apologies, I spoke hastily."
"Sir, I'm a reservist, I don't have a command," you say.
"Yui. you please don't sohai, I am 3IC of the Navy, I can reactivate you to give you twenty four extra also."
Both you and Shiki wince. Neither of you are strangers to the Navy's concept of assigning extra duties as punishment. Twenty four weeks of extra is a dismaying thought, on top of the indignity of an Admiral serving as the weekend duty officer.
Fleet Admiral Chew, meanwhile, is just getting started. "You know ah, your mistake is you think I care if I lose face. Sure I lose face, but eh, I don't really give a fuck anymore. I got two years and a wakeup and then I'm out and I don't have to deal with all this stupid. Hell, if your drama tiao me so hard I kena fire, also can! Siao, I don't have to deal with all these sohai cibai anymore! Very good, I like! Do some more, do some more! Eh just now you got a lot to say? Talk some more, talk some more lah! Don't shy-shy!"
"Er, no, we're good, Sir," you say. Shiki silently reaches over and removes the datacard from his tablet. He stares at it determinedly for a few moments, and then crushes it in his hand. The sound of snapping plastic and metal fills the room.
As well as Shiki's yelp of pain.
"Candy, please," your mentor sighs. "You wanna show off and impress girl that's your business, but don't make a mess of my office. I thought I taught you better than that."
You sigh mentally, and move closer to Shiki. "Here, let me see that," you tell him, taking his hand and examining the injury. He's managed to tear his hand and it seems there might be bits of datacard in the wound. You reach into your pocket and remove a handkerchief, and do your best to mop up the blood and brush broken bits of datacard onto the floor.
"Oi, my carpet," remarks the Skipper flatly, as he brings a mug. "You better appreciate this Candy, I'm using Nectar Dore to disinfect your wound," he adds, as he pours a shot of whiskey onto the wound. "My driver was a medic, have him take a look at that hand. Yui, what are you doing?"
"Just a little housekeeping," you say mildly. You clean out most of the bits of datacard from Shiki's hand, and use your handkerchief to staunch the bleeding. "No need to trouble your driver, Sir, I can take care of this."
"If you say so," says your mentor, and you roll your eyes at his exaggeratedly dubious tone. "Candy, you don't have anything more to say?"
"I'm fine," Shiki says, wincing. He looks at you, his expression gratefully conflicted. "Thank you, Yui. You didn't have to."
"Think nothing of it. We're still friends, aren't we?"
"...yes, we are."
"Hold that thought," orders the Skipper. He returns to his desk and stabs the intercom call button.
"Ri-Sumeragi, I need you to bring the first aid kit to my office, at your earliest convenience, please."
"Understood, Fleet Admiral. On the way."
"Thank you, Captain."
A momentary frown passes Shiki's face; it's gone by the time the Skipper returns to his chair, as the door opens, and Ri-Sumeragi enters, first aid kit in hand. Her expression doesn't shift a millimeter as she takes in the scene. "Sir," she nods to Fleet Admiral Chew. "Admiral Kanda, do you require my assistance?"
"No, thank you," replies Shiki, and you detect an undercurrent of tenseness in his voice. Ri-Sumeragi shares a brief look with your mentor, nods, deposits the first aid kit on the table, and makes her exit. You take the first aid kit and begin treating Shiki's hand.
"I'm gonna piggyback off that for a moment," interrupts Uncle Johnny, his tone serious yet gentle. "All this pain could have been avoided if you two just had talked to each other. Why couldn't you pick up the phone and talk to each other? Yui, all you had to do was drop Candy a back channel: 'Hey Candy I'm bringing a task force into your AO to do factfinding for a sensitive mission.' Candy, you could have just dropped her a line: 'Hey Yui you took a heavy task force into my AO, is there something going down I need to know about?' Was that really so hard?"
"I've never needed to ask permission to bring my fleet anywhere," you argue. "I don't see why it's suddenly become an issue."
"Hello, usually you will make a big show about moving a giant fleet around! This time you snuck your force into Egon!" shouts Shiki, clenching his fists. He yelps as you stab the disinfectant-soaked cotton ball a little too hard into his wound. You give him a flat look as you bandage up his cut.
"I'm woman enough to accept that I made an error of judgement, and I'll own that. But I have to wonder if your aggressiveness in pursuing this matter isn't a smokescreen for something else. I was conducting a mission personally appointed to me by Her Majesty, what's your excuse, Shiki?
Shiki glares at you, but then he sighs and just covers his face with his free hand. You sigh yourself.
"Don't start again. Be that as it may, you two need to get to the root of this problem," interjects your mentor. "Yui, Candy, you've been friends for years, you're both my students. Something is very wrong when neither of you can talk to each other. If you can't trust each other, who can you trust? I don't want to hear about OPSEC and need to know, those are excuses. You two need to think about your relationship and why it is that you're both behaving like this. I want you two to look deeper into the root cause of this mess. For your own self-interest, if nothing else, We all have enough enemies in the world, we don't need to also turn our friends into enemies, okay? Okay?"
"Yes, Sir," you both answer. Uncle Johnny sighs tiredly and shakes his head. Shiki stands and reaches into his pocket, removing a second datacard, and hands it over to the Third Star Lord, who accepts it with a pointedly raised eyebrow.
"My report as follows: On the 22nd of May, Buntoku 1, Task Force Soyeon of the 13th Fleet arrived in the Egon system at the request of Commander 4th Fleet to participate in joint fleet exercises with authorised security provider Veritas Security Solutions and with Task Force Thales/M of the 4th Fleet. Following the exercises, a joint piracy suppression mission was executed by elements of Task Force Soyeon, Task Force Thales/M, and Veritas Security Services. Operations concluded on the 5th of June, Buntoku 1. A pirate base was raided and captured, a number of pirate vessels were destroyed, several pirate assets were seized and prisoners were taken. Interrogation and investigation results pending. Fleet maneuver AARs enclosed."
Kanda winces for a moment, cradling his injured hand, before breathing slowly again. "End report." He turns to you, and gingerly extends his hand. You stand, and likewise take his hand.
"I'm sorry," you preempt him. "I'm sorry for worrying you. I should have been more considerate."
Shiki's expression softens in return. "I'm sorry too," he says. "I shouldn't have gone off on you like that, I was just…. well. It doesn't matter anymore." His hesitant smile is a mirror of your own, and you feel a rush of affection in your heart. This is what true friendship really means.
Fleet Admiral Chew just shakes his head. "Yui, send me TF Soyeon's original AARs, then you both prepare the official AARs for filing. Alright, I think that concludes our business. You're both dismissed. Don't make headache for me in the future, can or not?"
"Yes Sir."
"Go and deal with yourselves. Yui, I'll expect that meeting with Her Majesty to take place this week, at your earliest convenience. Send Ri-Sumeragi in as you head out."
"Yes Sir."
- 女王之天命 -
You count the meeting as a win. True, you weren't fully vindicated in the Third Star Lord's eyes, and he did rebuke you, but you can deal with a little wounded pride, if it means you don't need to fall on your sword to protect Konnie and Ahri. Thank the Divine Founder for Her small blessings.
As you return to the Palace, you consider your plans for the week. Shiki will be remaining in the Capital for the next few days, which gives you your timeframe to arrange for that meeting with Ahri. You wonder if you should seize that opportunity to probe Shiki further about 4th Fleet. While you made the decision not to investigate 4th Fleet, you still feel a niggling sense that perhaps something isn't quite right in Comberth Harbour… but do you really want to wake a dog that's just gone to sleep?
Will you probe Shiki about 4th Fleet's posture and irregularities?
"On the whole, I think you came out ahead, Ma'am," says Daniel thoughtfully. "Any official sanction and attention could have made our future moves more difficult."
"I'm definitely filing this in the Learning Experience column," you say ruefully. "It's a reminder to be more discreet, that not everything will go our way. Still, I can live with this result. How's your planning for the investigation?"
"I've finalised my team and I have a budget ready," he says, handing you a folder. "Major Nakahara came through: the IRG provided an intel team to assist us, the same team that was involved with the Egon mission, along with some specialist augmentees, led by Major Kazusa Ueda. I'm pretty sure she's got some Rabid Foxes in her intel team: if you look at her org chart, her team's organised like a microscopic NSW Task Unit."
"Is that something to be concerned about?"
"Yes and no," he replies. "There's a lot of crossover between spec ops and intel - I know a former operator who went over to NavInt after he was downgraded from injury. Operators will be quite useful for close target reconnaissance and site security, and for on the ground intelligence gathering and surveillance. On the other hand, the fact that special forces are coming along could be a sign that the IRG suspects things are going to get rough, and we'll need a team of operators to shoot the way out for us. Or maybe they're a package deal with the intel section, I really can't say for sure."
There's also the third possibility, that those operators are there to give fangs to the IRG's eyes and ears on your people. You both don't say anything, but you know Daniel's thinking about it, just as you are.
"Well, I suppose we'll have to be careful, and take things as they come," you say, and Daniel nods his agreement. You take a few moments to go through the folder, while Daniel waits patiently. "Everything seems in order," you note. "I note that you've prepared three seperate funding requests, for three seperate investigation durations."
"Yes ma'am," affirms Daniel. "In an ideal world I'd stay there until the investigation is completed, but it's not an ideal world, and we don't know how long the investigation will take. Every month I'm investigating is a month I'm unavailable to you, and I want to balance between taking enough time to investigate and taking myself off the board for a wild goose chase."
"Thank you, Daniel, I appreciate your thoughtfulness."
It's quite true: the whole reason you took on Daniel as your equerry was so that he'd run your private intelligence team and be an extra set of eyes for you. Sending him off to do a private investigation defeats that reason. But your bed's been made, so you'll just have to sleep in it, and fix it in the future. One problem at a time.
How long should Daniel spend on investigating SA-Caledfwlch?
