Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux - Imperial Princess Troubleshooter Space Opera Quest

Whiskey Golf · Nov 12, 2018

Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux

Founded by Hagoromo-no-Kaneo-no-Mikoto, the Golden Orchid Empire has ruled five hundred suns unopposed for nigh as many years. And for five hundred years it has suffered no rival beyond its borders - nor has it met any.

But while fire from without fails, the rot within endures. Nobles scheme and plot, and outlying systems rumble with sedition and secession, all while outlaw kings pillage the weak and defenseless. Even the once-iron loyalty of the Great Houses has begun to rust, memories of the Unification resurfacing from the depths of history as eager eyes gaze on an increasingly hollow throne.

And now comes the true test.

The Empress is dead. Long live the Empress.

Admiral, you have been summoned to the Imperial Court for an occasion of great import: Recently enthroned, Empress Meigyoku has granted you her Imperial Mandate. No small matter, for it is one of the very first acts of her rule. With this, more so than any other in Her Majesty's Imperial Navy, you will be her eyes and ears, her instrument in enforcing her Will.

And by her will, you shall cleanse the corruption, purge the rot, and strengthen the Empire once more in any way you see fit.

Or perhaps not. It is your choice. After all, such a prestigious position grants both unprecedented responsibilities...and opportunities. Not to mention enemies...

-Mandatum Celestis Imperatricis-

Character Selection:

Welcome to Mandate of the Heavenly Empress. You are an Imperial Admiral who has been specially appointed by the Empress to be her personal troubleshooter. Choose your character and your character's Adjutant from the choices below:

Imperial Admirals:

[ ] Count Alastor von Toth: Military (Fleet Combat). A minor noble who has become a rising star within the Imperial Navy, you are ambitious and hungry. You are one of the most famous "Combat Admirals" in the Navy, with the bare minimum of desk assignments: if it's a tactical role on a warship, you've done it. Your track record of successes has only made you thirst for victory all the more, and has led to some jealousy along the way. Being a young and handsome war hero celebrity means you have no small number of admirers - and you count the Empress among their number: her girlish interest in you is quite obvious, and may be something you can exploit.

Fleet Combat genius (easier military rolls).
Empress's affection starts at Medium (Crush).
Handsome Slavic bish in his mid-30s.
"Skillful fleet command, comprehensive strategic consideration, and excellent tactical execution wins the day."
Balanced fleet mix. Firepower ++, Mobility ++, Sustain ++.
Politics S-rank.
Combat is as much art as it is science. A well-executed fleet battle should have an air of performance to it, beyond the mere simple execution of the commander's intent.

[ ] Yonatan Chew: Military (Logistics/Staff/Support). A commoner who enlisted and subsequently earned a commission as an officer, you are dutiful and diligent. You have seen your own share of action and ship command, but on the whole you have served away from the front. You are not a warfighter, but you enable the warfighters, and you leverage the combat commanders serving under you. You know where the skeletons are buried, you know what a fleet needs to keep running: you work for a living and get shit done, and clawed your way up the ladder without any form of patronage. You are fairly unknown to the public eye, and you were a little surprised that the Empress even knew of you to ask for you by name; perhaps your assignment as the late Empress' naval aide a decade ago made an impression on her.

Logistics/support master. (Almost) never run out of supply, get shit done.
Empress' affection starts at Low (Subject).
Average-looking ossan in his late 40s.
"I believe in the 7Ps: Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance."
Sustainment fleet mix. Firepower ++, Mobility +, Sustain +++.
Politics A-rank.
Minefields, the jeune ecole, hit and fade attacks, anything goes so long as it's not an outright warcrime. Honor's meaningless if you're dead.

[ ] Princess Yui: Imperial Court (Politics). An Imperial Princess of the blood, you are supportive and cunning; your father was the late Empress' younger brother. You were raised and trained to navigate the snakepit of the Imperial Court, before embarking on your naval career, for what is war but politics by other means? You have exploited these skills within your fleet: you may not be the greatest military mind of your era, but your fleet is loyal to you and their morale is unbreakable. You are a decade older than the Empress, and you were her childhood playmate and lady-in-waiting; even in public today, she respectfully addresses you as "Older Sister", and gazes at you with pure unadulterated adoration; she truly is the younger sister you never had.

Political operator. See political maneuvering coming your way and exploit it.
Empress' affection starts at High (Oneesama).
Beautiful elegant kitsune princess in her late 20s.
"There are very few problems that cannot be solved by overwhelming firepower."
Heavy fleet mix (predominantly BB, BC, CA). Firepower ++++, Mobility +, Sustain +.
Politics SSR-rank.
Showing up with the grandest most powerful fleet around is all fine and well, but as a princess of the blood, it behooves you to fight fairly and justly, in a manner befitting your station, as an exemplar to others. Which means that you generally must fight a matched, even battle with your foes.
Special Bonus: As second in line for the Golden Orchid throne, Yui has access to Imperial Royal Guard support, ranging from a Tier 1 personal protection detail up to a Mobile Aerospace-Ground Task Force.

- 女王之天命 -

Adjutant:

Choose one character to be your adjutant, allowing you to utilise their speciality. Adjutants are competent generalists outside of their specialist focus.

[ ] Risa Hayao (Fleet Combat +). A seasoned warship captain, with a reputation for calculated aggressiveness. While some look askance at her tactics and risk estimation, Risa Hayao is an undeniably capable naval officer, with an admiral's stars a certainty for her future.

[ ] Ayako Tomioka (Logistics +). A seasoned logistics officer, with a reputation for skillful resource management. While she has not seen much combat, Ayako Tomioka is a genius with making sure the fleet has what it needs in sufficient quantities.

[ ] Mulia Ketmanee (Politics +). A scion of Siam-Astra Intergalactic Consolidated Holdings Limited, one of the largest megacorps in the Empire. He pursued a naval career for the sake of building up his resume and network of contacts. Mulia Ketmanee is a competent enough naval officer, but his true calling is navigating the treacherous waters of civilian and military politics.

[ ] Daniel O'Farrell (Intel +). An impoverished noble who rose through the ranks on talent and results. Daniel O'Farrell is skilled at taking information from a variety of sources, and weaving it together into a cohesive, meaningful package. Give him a day and he'll give you a dossier on your enemy; give him a week and he'll tell you where all their hiding holes are.

-Mandate of the Heavenly Empress-

Imperial Crest created by @Slayers148

Whiskey Golf · Nov 13, 2018

Right, I know I said i was going to leave the voting until 0700 but I've decided to call it 9 hours early, I don't think there's a point to leaving things any longer: by my count, out of the 60+ votes received, it's 32-24 for in favor of Yui, so I'm going to call the vote and get started. Winning PC is:

[X] Princess Yui: Imperial Court (Politics)

At the same time, voting for the Adjutant is a bit of a mess and has gone all over the place - in hindsight, I made a mistake in not stipulating plan voting. Damnit Whiskey. >_< That's my bad, and that's on me, so what we're going to do is that instead, for the next 24 hours, until 2200 GMT+8, I'm going to leave the voting open for the Adjutant.

In the future, moving forward, we're going to do plan voting to avoid this messiness. -_-;; Sorry, everyone. Will try not to derp again.

So, let's restart for Adjutant Voting only:

[ ] Risa Hayao (Fleet Combat +)
[ ] Ayako Tomioka (Logistics +)
[ ] Mulia Ketmanee (Politics +)
[ ] Daniel O'Farrell (Intel +)

Whiskey Golf · Nov 16, 2018

The winning options:

[X] Princess Yui: Imperial Court (Politics)
[X] Daniel O'Farrell (Intel +)

-Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux-

So it has come to this, you think to yourself, as you stand before the doors to the Empress' audience chamber, in the Imperial capital world of Jinko-sei.

You had been torn on what to wear - court dress, perhaps? There had been that new hanbok Mother had commissioned for you, or that new set of formal robes, but no, the summons was for Vice Admiral HIH Princess Yui of Akasha IN, not just Princess Yui of Akasha, so that implicitly stipulated you were here in your naval persona. That meant Full Dress. Well, like all naval officers, you do look dashing in Full Dress Blues.

You give yourself a final once-over. Your long dark hair is pulled back and braided in the naval style, your Full Dress uniform is crisp and tailored to flatter your womanly curves. Your medals and decorations are placed with millimetric precision. Your belt is tight against your waist, your stockings are regulation black, your boots are shined to perfection, your sword scabbard gleams and the blade has been oiled and polished, your royal aiguilette is proudly worn on your right side, your appearance is perfect. Your nine tails have been groomed to fluffy perfection. 1st Warrant Xavier from the Academy would surely gaze on you with approval and hold you up as the perfect example of a naval officer.

The doors open and a voice announces you: "Enter, Her Imperial Highness Vice Admiral Princess Yui of Akasha."

You marched a couple of steps forward and wait for the door to close behind you. With the sword straightened at your side, you salute smartly toward the young empress, and continue marching forward until you reach the prepared spot, standing before the microphone. You take the folder from the palace steward, your eyes flicking over the words printed inside. All is indeed as you had expected. You are gratified that protocol is being followed, that things are done properly.

You stand at attention, raise your right hand, and read your oath of obedience to the Empress, swearing your loyalty to her, that you will support and defend the Imperial throne, that you will justly, honestly, faithfully execute the will of the Empress, swearing on your Goddess, Hagoromo-no-Kaneo-no-Mikoto.

You give Empress Meigyoku your oath as the Empress's Imperial Vicereine and she accepts it; you step back from the microphone and bow low to her, then turn and march back to stand amongst the Regency Council, the only witnesses to this audience. Your eyes glance amongst the expressions of the Regency Council; no information to be gleaned there, they're all wearing poker faces just as solid as yours. The Empress, by contrast, is an open book. A riot of emotions flits across her face: defiance, petulance, satisfaction, vindictive triumph. Her expression softens as she makes eye contact with you, and she blushes and ducks her head low, bashfully averting her gaze from your face.

It's the behaviour of a cute, adorable girl, but she can't afford to be that right now, she has to be an Empress, not a maiden. Even if she's only 16, even if she's still grieving over the deaths of her parents.

You discretely motion to one of the palace stewards, who moves to your side. "I need a private audience with Her Majesty," you say directly. "Now."

The steward nods and whispers to his superior, who whispers in the Empress's ear. The Empress nods her assent, and the stewards announce that the Empress urgently requests her Imperial Vicereine to attend to her privately, and that the Regency Council remain in the audience chamber for time being. You break from the assembled Regency Council as soon as protocol allows, swiftly stalking towards the empress like your flagship bearing down on a pirate frigate. The stewards usher the two of you into her private waiting room, closing the door behind them.

"Your Majesty," you say seriously, bowing formally, and the Empress shakes her head, as she gazes at you with unadulterated adoration and seizes your hands.

"Oneesama," she says gushingly. "You don't need to bow to me. You'll always be my oneesama and you can always call me Ahri. Aren't you happy? Now we can be together and you can take care of me and help me run my empire and we can brush our tails before bed and it'll be just like befo-"

"Ahri, stop," you say sternly, and she stops in shock at your tone. You drop your mask, the blank face of a courtier giving way to a naval officer about to give an ass-chewing.

"Oneesama?"

"You made me your vicereine which means that I execute your will and I call you out on your mistakes," you say. She's shocked into silence by your stern tone and expression, and you press on. "This is me calling you out. You've made a mistake and you need to walk it back, right now before it gets worse. Do the words "political shitstorm" mean anything to you?"

"But why?"

If you were a blushing virginal maiden you would have howled to the stars and ripped her throat out with your teeth while pinning her down and asserting dominance like Hagoromo-no-Kaneo-no-Mikoto smacking down the Great Houses. But you're an Admiral of the Imperial Navy, an Imperial Princess of the Blood and you've spent your life training to be a political operator, so you restrain yourself and wield your words like the sword at your side.

"Listen to me carefully. This act is ultra vires, you exceed your authority - don't interrupt me yes I know technically it isn't, you're fully within your rights to do this, in practical terms it is, I'll give you the full lecture later- if you really love me if you really think I'm your oneesama you're going to keep quiet and listen to your oneesama. You cannot bypass the Regency Council in this way, you cannot act unilaterally. You are a minor, the Regency Council rules in your name until you reach your majority, and if you act improperly and unilaterally like this the Regency Council loses confidence in you, and if that happens, at best, they won't confirm you as Empress upon your majority. Worst case, you're giving ammunition for our political enemies to use against us, potentially even costing us the throne."

"Sumeragi's scion is on the Regency Council, and you know they've been eyeing our throne forever," Ahri protests. "I was just trying to keep what belongs to our family out of their hands-"

"You gave them a reason to doubt your competence and political ammunition to use against you. By the Goddess, Ahri, what were you thinking?"

"...it seemed like a good idea at the time," she says, in a small voice, nine tails dropping defeatedly, her face pale and her eyes glassy, and your heart twists at her sadness. There's a part of you that wants to hug her and comfort her and kiss away her tears and pat her head and stroke her tails and promise her that oneesama will fix everything.

You give in. You pull your hands out of her grasp, and then you seize her shoulders - Goddess she's thin, has she been eating properly? - and pull her into a hug. Her tails jerk up in surprise, before settling down and swishing side to side, and you rub her back placatingly and hold her close to your bosom, and pretend you don't hear her soft, hiccuping crying.

"There, there," you say comfortingly. "So you made a mistake, but we can still walk it back, okay? I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at what you did, but I'm always gonna be your oneesama, I'm always going to love you, okay?"

You feel Ahri nod, and you lean down and kiss her forehead, pat her head and stroke her ears. Thank goodness the Coronation hasn't happened yet, there's no way you could headpat her while she's wearing the Imperial Crown. You release her from the hug and lift her chin to meet her eyes, and you give her a comforting smile.

"I'm sorry I scolded you, but I had to do it. So, here's what we're gonna do, okay? We're gonna wipe your tears away and fix your makeup, and then we're going to call the Imperial Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice to meet us, and then we're going to walk this back and fix this, okay? As long as it hasn't been published in the Gazzette, as long as news doesn't leak out, we can still do things. Do you trust me, Ahri?"

"I do, oneesama," she affirms, nodding rapidly.

"Good girl." You reward her with another encouraging hug, and kiss her tears away, and check her makeup - ok, it's still holding, no fixing needed. "Right, you compose yourself now, and I'll get the Imperial Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice in here. We can do this."

"And then, later…?" she trails off hopefully, and you nod.

"Yes, we can brush our tails later."

She gives you a smile of pure happiness and adoration, one you return. As soon as your back is turned your smile goes away and you proceed to the door, purpose and determination in your steps. You exit the room, signal a steward and explain what you want; within moments the steward is ushering in the Imperial Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice. You greet both men, who have knowing looks in their eyes, and you explain to them that yes, that was a tremendous breach in protocol, yes, the Empress made a faux pas with bypassing the Regency Council and appointing you as Imperial Vicereine, but the Imperial Gazette hasn't been published yet, so let's be practical adults here and make this work.

It's Ahri who throws a wrench into the plans. "No matter what, I want my royal cousin here, by my side."

Goddess damn it Ahri. You're not too old for me to give you a spanking, you think. You can taste salt in your mouth at the thought of the morning's events. But instead you respectfully turn to the Imperial Chancellor. "My Lord Chancellor, how would you counsel Her Majesty?"

"As I see it, Your Majesty, Your Highness," says the man who runs the Empire on a day-to-day basis, with a diplomatic and conciliatory tone, "the simplest option is that that I step down from my position as Regent, whereupon you appoint Her Royal Highness Princess Yui as your Regent. I would, of course, remain a member of the Regency Council and would assist Her Highness's regency." You can see in his eyes that he's quite sincere in suggesting this option. Probably because he gets to reduce another source of work and stress in his life.

Ahri's lips part, but she stills at a minute shake of your head. Wait, you mouth at her.

"My Lord, might I suggest an alternative option?" you ask. At his nod, you continue. "My royal father, Prince Masatada, is currently serving as a naval officer on deployment in the Outer Rim. By convention, the Regency Council must include one member of the Royal Family, to serve as a personal voice for the Empress's interests, and he is the most prominent choice. Would it not be possible for me, with Her Majesty's permission, to relinquish my office as Imperial Vicereine and instead take his place on the Regency Council?"

"I have no objections. My Lord Chief Justice?"

"There are no legal issues with either option," affirms the Lord Chief Justice.

"I would suggest a compromise," says Ahri, swallowing and straightening her back. "I would rather my royal cousin retain her office as Imperial Vicereine, and my royal uncle to sit on the Regency Council. But he is, as she has said, on deployment to the Outer Rim. Surely there would be no issue if she remains my Imperial Vicereine, and temporarily sits on the Regency Council, until such a time as my royal uncle returns from the front to take up his duties here?"

The Lord Chief Justice has a wry expression on his face. "Legally speaking, Your Majesty, there is no issue with the option you propose, or indeed with any of the options proposed. What you should consider is the political aspect. There are many things legally allowable that politics makes untenable, and politics sees many things done that are less than fully legal."

"My Lords, I believe we should depart to give Her Majesty some time to consider these options we have presented her," you say, and you turn to leave-

"Wait. Princess Yui, please attend to me."

Well, you did want her to listen to what you had to say.

You lead Ahri to the farthest corner of the room, and you put your heads together, pitching your voices low. "Yui-oneesama, what do I do?" she asks. "I'll listen to what you tell me to do."

You purse your lips and think, a habit you learned from your first CO. "It depends on you and the pros and cons of each choice.

"Making me Regent simplifies matters for you: I'm here, I'm in charge of the Regency Council, the Chancellor can focus on his day job, running the Empire, I can go and get shit done. But there will be more scrutiny on you and me, and there's a risk this might spark conflict with our rivals in the Great Houses. Too much overt favoritism. On the other hand, we can act quite overtly, and that simplifies matters.

"If I give up being Vicereine and sit on the Regency Council, then things go to the status quo. I won't have the same sort of pull, but it's significantly less likely to tilt any of the Great Houses. It would require us to act a lot less overtly and a lot more discreetly, but I think that's fine, because it gives me more time to train you.

"The compromise… well, I'm not fully happy with it. You proclaiming me as Vicereine ruffled more than a few tails out there. Having me as Vicereine sitting and participating in the Regency Council shows that you're not going to be acting unilterally and improperly, but at the same time it's sending a reinforced message to the world that suggests that you don't fully trust the Regency Council, and there are going to be questions about how my role as your Vicereine and my role as an advisor balancing your interests and the best interests of the Empire will conflict."

"I think your most important role is being my oneesama," Ahri asks, smiling bashfully at you and ducking her head. You reach out and ruffle her hair.

"I'll always be your oneesama. But you do need to make a decision."

"You told me to listen to you, oneesama. I'm listening."

Well. Ball's in your court, Yui. Which option are you going to advise the Empress to take?

[ ] Become Regent. You would give up being Vicereine, become the Regent and the head of the Regency Council, and you'd be ruling in Empress Meigyoku's name. But this choice might spark conflict with the Great Houses.

[ ] Member of the Regency Council. You would give up being Vicereine and represent the Royal Family on the Regency Council; if the Empress need you for a personal mission, you would need to quite discrete, but this would be the option of least drama.

[ ] Compromise. Remain Vicereine, but sit on the Regency Council, until your royal father returns from the Outer Rim. Hopefully sitting on the Council would dilute their concerns about the Empress' unilateral action, and you could still act overtly if she needed you to troubleshoot. It does imply the Empress doesn't trust the Council.

-Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux-

Edit: All roads lead to the council because...

Whiskey Golf · Nov 18, 2018

Whiskey Golf · Dec 8, 2018

[X] Member of the Regency Council. You would give up being Vicereine and represent the Royal Family on the Regency Council; if the Empress need you for a personal mission, you would need to quite discrete, but this would be the option of least drama.

- Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux -

You stand there, lips pursed, thinking. Ahri's Compromise is rejected immediately; you don't think it's a good idea. You aren't interested in being the Regent either; you don't want to be tied down with governing, and there's a reason the Chancellor is by default the Regent, and let's not get into the optics of how ridiculously Ahri is favoring you. That leaves sitting on the Regency Council, which is the option you prefer, and is the reason you were initially recalled to Jinko-Sei in the first place.

"My advice," you tell Ahri, "is that I should relinquish the office of Imperial Vicereine and sit on the Regency Council as one of your advisors, and you should withdraw the appointment of an Imperial Vicereine." You raise a finger, forestalling Ahri's protest. "I also know why you wanted a Vicereine: you wanted someone who was going to be on your side, supporting you. Well, you don't have a Vicereine, not officially, but I'm still going to be on your side, I will always be on your side, and if you need my personal assistance, I can still help you. We'll just have to be discrete. It's fine to leave the Chancellor in his position as Regent; he has to keep the Empire running anyway, that's what his role in the government and Regent boil down to."

Ahri still looks a tad unhappy - she didn't get her way, after all - but she nods in acquiescence and she walks over to the Imperial Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice. "My Lord Chancellor," she addresses him. "I have made my decision. I consent to my royal cousin relinquishing her office as Imperial Vicereine and taking up her position on the Regency Council. I shall withdraw the appointment of an Imperial Vicereine. Furthermore, I see no reason why you cannot continue in your office as Regent; I look forward to your wise counsel and your continued service in administering my realm."

The Chancellor nods slightly with a smile.

She turns to the Lord Chief Justice. "My Lord Chief Justice, thank you, for the wisdom you have shared with us in this meeting. You have my gratitude."

"Tis merely my duty, Your Majesty."

That could have been better, but that could also have gone a lot worse, you think, as both men murmur their acceptance to the Empress. You nod to the Chancellor. "Shall we inform the rest of the council of this result?"

"Yes, quite so, Your Highness." As Ahri moves out of earshot, he leans closer to you. "I'd say that was quite a feat, getting Her Majesty to change her mind. It's a pity, you would have made an excellent Regent, ma'am."

"I trust in your wisdom and experience, Lord Chancellor," you reply. "I have conveyed that trust to Her Majesty, and I believe she will have the same confidence in you as the late Empress had. Do keep up the good work; your deft hand in guiding Her Majesty's Empire is akin to that of a master painter working with brush and canvas. I, a mere hobbyist, would not presume to challenge a master in his chosen field."

The Imperial Chancellor smiles at you. "You flatter me, Your Highness. But surely the task of being Regent would be more suited for an intelligent and energetic, not to mention beautiful, young woman in the prime of her life?"

"You flatter me in turn, Lord Chancellor. Would you mind it terribly if I speak plainly?"

"By all means, please do ma'am."

"Stefan, you won't get out of this job that easily, not on my watch, and most certainly not on my father's," you say, smiling sweetly at him. The Chancellor merely chuckles lightly, and inclines his head to you.

"Well, this old man had to give it a try. Well played, Your Highness."

You nod pleasantly to him in return and you exit the waiting room. The faces of the Regency Council are blank, with the practiced calm nobles affect, though you can see clear interest and anticipation in the eyes of one woman: Lady Akagi Sumeragi, the Heir Apparent to the Great House of Sumeragi. Empress Meigyoku nods to the Chancellor, and he announces the result of the discussion to the council: you will resign the office of Imperial Vicereine and take up your place on the Regency Council, and the Empress will withdraw her appointment of an Imperial Vicereine. A palpable murmur of relief moves through the Regency Council, and they nod in agreement and praise the Empress for her wisdom and maturity.

Lady Akagi Sumeragi hides it, but you can tell she's quite displeased with this result. And no wonder. Becoming the Imperial Viceroy and sitting on the Regency Council would have been a case of a power imbalance and conflict of interest. Becoming the Regent would have been outright favoritism. She could spin both outcomes against the Empress and yourself, but she doesn't have the same ammunition in this situation: a member of the Royal Family, serving on the Regency Council as a representative of the Royal Family, as is proper. As what should have been done from the start.

You make a mental note to see Ahri as soon as possible and start fixing her lack of political instruction. It's painfully obvious to you (and probably the Regency Council as well) that she's woefully unprepared to rule, and in the farthest corner of your mind, a seditious voice is cursing out the late Empress - your late Aunt - for not preparing her daughter to rule. You started your political instruction when you were eight, and you kept up with your training even when you were juggling life and duties as a junior naval officer. It's a wonder the studying and stress didn't turn your beautiful auburn hair to gray.

The Chancellor and the stewards are quite efficient: within a few minutes everyone is lined up and you stand before the microphone once more. You officially resign your office as Imperial Vicereine and the Empress accepts your resignation. You take your oath as a member of the Regency Council and you are sworn in, and as the last matter of business, the Empress formally announces that she is withdrawing the appointment of an Imperial Vicereine. You imagine you feel a sigh of relief passing through the council (well, anyone who isn't Lady Akagi).

"If there is no further comment," says the Chancellor, "I would like to adjourn this meeting. The Regency Council shall reconvene in two weeks' time, on the 28th of May. I shall personally relay the result to the Secretariat. The Imperial Gazette should be published within the hour. Your Majesty, My Lords, My Ladies." He bows formally to the Empress, who returns his bow with a nod, and then to the Regency Council, before making his exit with the rest of the Regency Council. You let out a breath you didn't realise you'd been holding, and sigh.

You idly glance at the clock in the corner, and make your decision. It's late morning, not yet noon, but nevermind, you'll just have an early lunch, and maybe a drink, or two, or three: you feel you've earned it. You don't really have anything to do today, just the usual paperwork that a fleet generates upon returning to port (if returning much earlier than expected), but you've already gotten a head start on that. And anyway, that's what having a staff is for.

Your Flag Lieutenant, Emiri Suzuhara, is waiting for you outside the audience chamber. Her No.1 Full Dress Blues are just as immaculate as yours, with the gold and dark blue Staff aiguillette on her left. She comes to attention as you approach. "All done, ma'am?"

"For now," you reply. "Any news while I was gone?"

"Commander Fleet Operations' office called. They requested you push up your meeting at Admiralty House to 1700 today, instead of 1000 tomorrow as originally planned. If it was convenient for you."

"Yes, I suppose I had better make it convenient for me," you muse, sharing a wry look with her, both of you mentally lampshading the order framed as a request. "Have you notified the Fleet Adjutant?"

"Aye Ma'am, I've advised Captain O'Farrell," she replies. "I've also notified the shuttle. They're warming up and preparing for our departure. Pilot requests you advise him whether you want to RTB to Yamato or proceed elsewhere."

"I think RTB," you say, pulling your sleeve back and checking your watch. There are indeed privelages to being a member of the Royal Family; unlike everyone else, who has to take a tram up and down the side of the mountain atop which Huangshan Palace is built, your shuttle gets to land at the Palace's landing pad. It makes things a lot more convinient. "We can have an early lunch and get squared away before I need to meet COMFLTOPS."

"Your Highness," murmurs a palace steward, discreetly grabbing your attention. "Her Majesty requests that you attend luncheon with her."

"Of course, I would be delighted to attend to Her Majesty," you agree, immediately shifting gears with a mental sigh. "Could you please see to luncheon for my staff, if it's not too much trouble?"

"Of course, ma'am."

- 女王之天命 –

You're ushered into the Empress' private apartments, into the sitting room. It's not the first time you've been here, but it's the first time you've been here in awhile. The Empress enters moments later, her formal robes replaced with a white and pink ensemble that's significantly more casual and shows off her legs. With her face free of makeup, she looks younger, more vulnerable, and a memory flits through your mind - Ahri, five years old, running across the lawn, happily crying "Onee! Onee!", laughing as you lift her up and twirl her in the air, wrapping her tiny chubby arms around you and resting her head on your shoulder as you carry her in your arms and shower her with kisses -

"Cousin," you greet her, bowing, and her expression is displeased. "You don't need to bow to me, Onee-sama," she says. "And you can always call me Ahri."

"My father and mother and I bowed to Auntie," you say calmly. "You bowed to Auntie, because she was the Empress. It's the same for you, Ahri. You're no longer just my cousin who I played with and brushed her tails and read her bedtime stories and kissed her goodnight: you're the Empress now, with the responsibilities, privileges and courtesies that entails."

Ahri's face twists unhappily, but she nods and takes your hand. "Let's talk before lunch," she invites you, leading you to the couch. She sits at one end, and gestures for you to sit next to her, before kicking off her shoes and tucking her legs under herself, turning to face you. "You said, earlier, that I technically could appoint a Vicereine, but couldn't practically?"

Still a child, you sigh mentally. Oh well. Political education has to start somewhere.

"Things are a lot more complicated than just making declarations," you say. "Yes, technically, the Empress has the authority to appoint a Vicereine, but there's nuance that you missed. You're a minor, you haven't had your coronation, and until you reach your majority, until you are prepared to rule, the Regency Council rule in your name. They don't do any major policy changes, they avoid upheaval, their job is to keep the status quo until you become Empress. Any major decisions you want to make should have been made in consultation with the Council, not unilaterally. That's what had them concerned. And then there's the whole appointment of an Imperial Vicereine. When was the last time a Vicereine was appointed?"

"...a long time ago," she admits reluctantly.

"Exactly my point. There hasn't been a Vicereine or a Viceroy in living memory. The last one was maybe five Empresses ago, if I recall correctly. You appointing a Vicereine is a signal to the Council that you do not trust them." You give Ahri a flat look; she quails a bit under your gaze, and then nods. You sigh. "That was not the best way to begin your rule. You really shouldn't have done that."

Ahri's face is downcast, her tails drooping. She nods jerkily, trying to blink back tears. "If it was a bad idea, if you didn't want to do it, why did you go along?" she asks.

"Politics, tradition, and constitutional conventions, that's why," you tell her, and sigh again at her confused expression. She really needs to work on her poker face. "There is an unspoken constitutional convention that when the Empress makes a formal request of you, you do not refuse her," you begin. "However, in practical terms, there's an understanding that people may have legitimate reasons for refusing an imperial request, so what should have happened is that your political secretary should have approached me and asked me, "Would you agree to the Empress' request to be Her Imperial Vicereine?" Then if I'd said no, he'd just move on to the next candidate, no harm done. But because you sent your missive so publicly, I didn't have the option to refuse - not if I wanted to still preserve convention and tradition. So I came, I played along, and then as soon as I could, I met you to talk you into reversing that decision. Yes, the popular image is that the Empress rules by decree and nobody disobeys her, but in practical terms, we follow traditions and convention because it's part of the social contract, the unwritten constitutional law of the Empire. There's only so far you can push people."

Ahri nods slowly, an unhappy expression on her face. "I've messed up, haven't I?"

"You have, but it's nothing that we couldn't fix," you say gently. "I meant what I said in the waiting room. I'm here to help you. That means not just advising you but also training you to rule. Know this: You might not trust the Regency Council, but I'm still your onee-sama and I will always look out for you, and I want you to succeed. But it's a two-way street. You need to do your part."

Ahri dives forward, tackling you against the couch's armrest, wrapping her arms around you and burying her face in your generous bust. You return her hug, one hand gently stroking her head, as you watch her tails wagging in happiness.

"Thank you," she mumbles against your chest. You merely smile, and plant a kiss to her head.

- 女王之天命 –

Ahri has always been clingy. You spend a fair bit of time in her death hug, before there is a discrete knock at the door. You gently shake her loose, and give the steward permission to enter; the steward announces that lunch is ready, and escorts you and Ahri to the dining room. You note the table settings: for two, with you at the Empress' right side. Intimate and familiar, instead of reserved and formal. The table has been set, with the main courses on your plates and various side dishes on the table; once the stewards have served both of you, Ahri politely requests privacy. The stewards retreat, Ahri kicks off her shoes, and lunch carries on.

It's actually quite pleasant, having lunch with her, where, for a moment, you can just pretend that you're a naval officer on leave having lunch with her little sister.

You do your best to be a considerate, comforting presence during lunch: Ahri is obviously lonely and hurting, with her parents both dead and no other family around. Unfortunately, the way you know to deal with loss - have a beach bonfire, drink lots of alcohol, tell embarrassing stories of the deceased, raise merry hell - is for spacers, not teenage girls. So you try to keep the conversation on lighter topics, about how Ahri's days are ("lonely and boring"), her schooling ("I guess I kinda dropped out after Mama died?"), her love life ("Well, there's someone, but I'm not sure if they feel the same way?").

By paying attention, asking the right questions, and listening to Ahri, you develop a mental picture of her education. Academically she's more or less middle of the road, neither a star student nor bottom of her class, and she has a decent grasp of general knowledge. Her political education is severely lacking; what knowledge she has is shallow and incomplete. You find yourself getting annoyed at Auntie again. You guess that she probably wanted to give Ahri the nice, easy, relaxed childhood that she never had, and that's not an inherently bad idea, except that Auntie went and died suddenly and left Ahri holding the ball. Damnit, Auntie.

Unfortunately, Ahri has also found 9chan, and is a little too taken in by the conspiracy theories floating on that message board. Case in point: the Egon system. She's utterly convinced that there's hanky-panky going on down there, and that House Sumeragi is making a landgrab, and she's this close from storming into the regency council and confronting Lady Akagi on her House's actions and oh could oneesama please take her fleet to Egon and go and sort out everyone and assert her dominance?

"How do you know all this?" you ask, feeling imminent migraines in your future.

"I read it on 9chan! And there was mention of PMC activity in Egon and other outlying systems in the boxes."

You give Ahri a flat look, and then bury your face in your hands and tails. "I'm not going to take my fleet to Egon and fix things at gunpoint, Ahri," you say tiredly. "It doesn't work like that. What I will do is this: I will look into the matter, and I will let you know what I find, and I will only head to Egon on a fact finding mission if I am satisfied there's hanky-panky that needs to be sorted out. In return, you will study up on Imperial Rulership in a topic I choose for you. Do your homework on this: I will quiz you later. Understand that this is just a temporary arrangement until I schedule proper tutors for you, and you will study under them. Okay?"

Your tone makes it very clear that this is not a request. Ahri nods energetically and obediently at you.

What topic do you want Ahri to study?

[ ] Political Etiquette
[ ] Constitutional Law
[ ] Crisis Management
[ ] Governance

- 女王之天命 –

"Respectfully, Ma'am, that has got to be one of the stupidest things I've ever heard," says your Fleet Adjutant, Captain Daniel O'Farrell, in your office aboard your flagship, battleship Yamato. He shakes his head. "Our Empress is relying on social media and those idiots on 9chan for her intelligence brief."

"It was in the boxes as well," you point out, referring to the boxes carrying the daily briefing packets for the Empress. "Could you help me look into this, please? I think we both expect we'll find nothing going on, but hard proof is always good."

Daniel gives you a doubtful look, but nods and makes a note on his to-do list. You appreciate that; he has the right mix of voicing out his opinion and being your sounding board, and shutting up and getting things done. "Well, I think that's business taken care of for the day. Is there anything further you'll need from me, Ma'am?"

"There is one thing," you say. "You know I'm going to be reassigned from 13th Fleet, my duties on the Regency Council will keep me tied down to the capital."

"It's not a surprise. We'll miss you, Ma'am," says Daniel sincerely.

"Thanks, I appreciate that. But you'll have the chance to continue working with me, if you like. I'd like to offer you a position as my Equerry."

"Admiral, don't you already have a lady-in-waiting?"

"I do, yes, but Kitakami can't do the things I need. I'd like you working for me, because of your skillset. If you say yes, I'll arrange things with Personnel and see you're appointed as my Equerry. You'd get several special allowances in addition to your Navy pay, there's an excellent benefits package… you'd have a fair amount of autonomy and the freedom to choose your staff, and a comfortable operating budget."

"You want me to lead your private intelligence team for proactive troubleshooting, and to generate political intelligence on your potential rivals," says Daniel thoughtfully, and you nod at him. "Could I have some time to think about it, ma'am?"

"Sure, but I'll need to know your answer by end of the week, so I can start things rolling," you tell him. "Whichever way you choose, I'll respect your decision."

"Thank you, ma'am. I'm honored you think so highly of me."

- 女王之天命 –

Admiralty House. The modest name belies the size of the structure, a sprawling complex serving as the administrative headquarters of the Imperial Navy. You make your way to the office of Commander Fleet Operations. One of five Fleet Admirals in the Navy, and third in command after the First Star Lord and the Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, Commander Fleet Operations manages and commands the Imperial Navy's deployments throughout the Empire. The First Star Lord sets the Navy's policy; ComFltOps executes that policy.

"Vice Admiral Yui Akasha, Commander 13th Fleet, reporting."

Commander Fleet Operations stands and returns your salute, and waves you to a chair before his desk. You're both wearing Service Dress Blues, but in contrast to your immaculate inspection-ready uniform, his uniform jacket is tossed on a polehanger behind his office chair, his tie is loosed, and his shirtsleeves have been rolled up. Half of his desk is covered in a haphazard array of hard copies, post-it notes and sheets from a legal pad with handwritten notes; wargaming warship miniatures act as paperweights, keeping things from flying all over the place. A small smile slips past your lips, sentimental nostalgic memories coming to the fore. Some things will never change.

You place your briefcase and your small carry case on the floor, settling your hands in your lap. He makes eye contact with you and shrugs, his hands making a vague "What can you do?" gesture at his desk, and he takes his seat.

"Welcome back, Vice Admiral Akasha," says Fleet Admiral Yonatan Chew formally, looking you in the eye. "Don't stand on ceremony, we've got a lot of things to clear by tonight."

"Then let's dig up that shit, Skipper," you say, and he relaxes, cracks his knuckles, and gives you a genuine, pleased smile.

"I trained you well," he says, his face taking on an annoyed expression. "Though not well enough to skip saluting when neither of us can be bothered to do so." He scowls at you, and you smile innocently back at him. He grabs a set of printed orders from one corner of his occupied desk and hands them to you. "Your orders. Cutting the legalese out: you're being relieved of command of 13th Fleet and reassigned TDY to Admiralty House, so that you can easily pop around to the Palace, because the Empress has appointed you as her Pimp Hand. You've got two weeks to settle your admin shit as Commander 13th Fleet."

Half of you is horrified at how cavalierly and irreverently he's treating Ahri's intent to appoint you as Imperial Vicereine; the other half of you that spent the last decade of her life in the Navy agrees wholeheartedly with his assessment. "Technically, I resigned my appointment as Imperial Vicereine; I'm just sitting on the Regency Council."

"Okay, so you're the Empress's unofficial Vicereine," he continues unrepentantly, rolling his eyes at your raised eyebrow. "What? I'm a salty old timer with a nonexistent social life, I need to find some amusement in my work. This shit's boring as all hell, it'd put me to sleep if I took it seriously."

That's a lie, you think to yourself. You know Fleet Admiral Chew quite well; you've been his Flag Lieutenant and later his adjutant, many years ago, and in many ways, despite the utter difference in your social standings and backgrounds, he's been more of a mentor to you than your own father, especially concerning your naval career. He pretends that he doesn't give a shit, but that's a lie, a facade he wears; he cares deeply and takes his duties quite seriously. If anything, as your father once said, he gives too much of a shit.

You make a placating gesture with your hands and nod at him. "I expected as much, really. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to give up my command. I earned my place there. There's more that I want to do with 13th Fleet, to make it the best fleet in the Navy. But the Empress commands and we obey," you say, quoting the traditional marching song.

Yonatan looks at you sympathetically. "It's never easy to give up your command," he agrees. "On the other hand it's happened already before, this isn't the first time, so get over it and get on with things."

"Skipper, you've never gotten over losing Fubuki," you say, pointing at the scale model that's prominently placed in his bookshelf. Destroyer Fubuki was Yonatan Chew's first posting as a young enlisted spacer, and his first command as a mustang officer who'd worked his way up the ladder. When she was finally decommissioned and sent to the breakers, he was inconsolable.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he says blandly, and you just give him a flat look at his lie, choosing not to call him out. "Still. You need to get over it because 13th Fleet is going to be disbanded."

"Fleet Admiral, I beg your pardon," you say, very carefully and formally. "My ears must be deceiving me. You are disbanding my fleet?"

"Excuse me. Whose fleet do you really think that is?" he retorts, the smooth upper-class accent giving way to the rougher tones of his commoner middle-class background. "It's the Empress's fleet, your cousin's fleet." He shakes his head chidingly. "I'm Commander Fleet Operations, my job is to act as caretaker of Her Majesty's navy for the good of the service. Follow me, I'll show you something."

He opens a connecting door and leads you to the adjacent meeting room, and you raise an eyebrow at how he's turned the conference table in the center into an old-school map table: a large printed map of the Golden Orchid Empire's territory is splayed out on the table. A transparent sheet covers it, and you take note of the notations he's scribbled here and there, the border lines drawn between the Great Houses, the breakdown of the empire into the Navy's 12 Administrative Sectors, plastic toy bricks used to represent Imperial Navy formations…

"You know, Sir, there is such a thing as a holoprojector. Or a computer," you say chidingly. "I pity your adjutant who needs to take care of all this."

"There's something to be said for tactile kinesthetic sensations improving memory retention, and an old-school map table gives you a certain impression of the fleet's posture."

"With Legos."

"Color-coded Legos," he stresses. "Look at the map. There's a method to my madness. Each two-by-four brick is a division: black for BB, grey for BC, red for CA, yellow for CL, blue for DD. Bricks in the tray on the left corner are ships working up to deploy. Bricks in that tray in the right corner are ships in refit. That box there, all the ships laid up in ordinary. Look at it, and tell me what you see."

You give the map a thorough examination. Your brows furrow as you look at the notations by each system on the strength of the local system defense forces, especially those of the Great Houses. You look at Imperial Navy deployments throughout the Empire - the Core systems, the Great Houses' territories, the Inner and Outer Rim - and at the ships in refit, working up, and in mothballs, and your face takes on a grim expression.

You work your way from one side of the map to the other, then go over the map again, and recheck your mental figures. They don't lie. You turn to Fleet Admiral Yonatan. "We don't have enough ships."

"We don't have enough ships," he agrees grimly, mirroring your expression. "Forty percent of the total fleet is laid up; the rest is split roughly evenly between deployment, working up, and refit. At any given moment, maybe about only twenty percent of the fleet is actually deployed to cover five hundred systems. It's all smoke and mirrors and a shitton of bluffing." He gestures bitterly at the box labeled Inactive Reserve. "Forty percent of my total fleet strength fucking laid up in ordinary, because those fucking greedy tightfisted Senators keep refusing to increase Navy funding, and past Empresses were too weak and complacent and just kept to the status quo. And then those asshats introduced that Bill to see mothballed Navy ships given to local garrisons. And even if I had the crews and funding, I can't even reactivate the mothball fleet, because we've been cannibalising those ships for parts to keep the Fleet going. Bloody hell, I knew there were problems, but then when I get here and I really started to dig deep…"

"I didn't realise things were that bad," you say, honestly shocked, and he gives you a flat look.

"Yui, please. When you took over 13th Fleet you cycled the fleet through refit at your family's shipyards, and paid for the refit out of your own pocket, because it was faster than working through Navy bureaucracy and getting spares made was faster than waiting for Logistics Command."

You nod, acknowledging his point.

"Strategic situation is deteriorating," he continues, taking a pointer stick and pointing out hotspots. "Unrest is increasing in the Outer Rim, more and more systems are making noises about seceding, about their manifest destiny and self determination. I'm glad it was you who came back to be the Vicereine, because I need your dad out there, keeping a lid on things and propping up loyalists.

"Pirate activity is on the rise outside the Core: it's not just armed merchantmen, we're seeing a lot more serious hardware. Frigates, destroyers, even the odd cruiser are showing up in pirate hands. NavInt has a joint task force with IRG and the taxmen to try find who's selling their hardware to pirates. We also can't discount the idea of nobles using cutouts to sabo their rivals.

"I'm stripping the Core to get more hulls patrolling the Inner and Outer Rim, and that means the balance of power between the Navy and the Great Houses is shifting away from us. Used to be that if the Great Houses tried to start shit the Navy could manfight all of them at once. Now? We're losing local numerical and firepower superiority. Yeah, if I pull in and concentrate fleet assets I can still rollover Sumeragi, but that means uncovering other areas."

"That's what 13th Fleet is for," you counter. "Conducting presence patrols and freedom of navigation exercises in the Core to remind everyone not to get ideas, while having enough firepower to overwhelm any single system's forces, and serving as a mobile reserve for the Administrative Sectors."

"Yeah well, that's not cutting it anymore. You've got twenty two percent of the deployed capship strength and ten percent of deployed cruisers concentrated in 13th Fleet. I need those ships out patrolling the Rim and reinforcing fleets, not burning up reaction mass and spares flying around the Core, T-posing and dickwaving at your Royal Family's rivals and allies. Shiki's been begging me for heavier assets for months now: the Sumeragi-Hoou border looks to be another possible flashpoint." He taps the map, at the ships assigned to 4th Fleet, commanded by Admiral Kanda Shiki, an old shipmate of yours. "Tensions are rising between both Great Houses, their ships are playing chicken with each other on their borders and harassing each other's merchant shipping, and sooner or later we're going to have an incident. Best case it's just a border violation that ends in a collision, worse case those dumbfucks will start a war. Shiki has 4th Fleet's screening units on patrol, so far they've been able to keep a lid on things for now, but he's been screaming for heavier units to reinforce him. And then if that wasn't enough, both sides are courting experienced Navy personnel as cadre for their forces, and Hoou's on a crash building program, spamming corvettes in every system."

"I agree it's a serious situation, but corvettes aren't FTL-capable. They're area denial assets, you can't project power with them," you point out. "One destroyer is as good as four corvettes. Six, if you know what you're doing. "

Yonatan wordlessly snags a specification sheet and hands it to you. You read over the information, and then sigh defeatedly, shaking your head ruefully. "Tonnage, sensors, weapons fitout… Hoou's latest corvette design is a destroyer in all but name. And the spooks missed this?"

"They looked at the word corvette and took it at face value. Then someone really looked at the spec sheet. Heads rolled at NavInt." Yonatan has a sardonic look on his face. "You're still right that these heavy corvettes are area denial assets, but they will make Hoou a harder turtle to kill, if we have to go and beat their faces in. For an Empire at peace, it does seem like two of the Great Houses are gearing up for war. NavInt also suspects that Eisenwald may be quietly rearming, but so they haven't made any trouble yet. Peyrac-Beausoli's posture appears cautious. And Fenghuang, for all they're supposed to be allied with Sumeragi, aren't making any moves to arm up or secede, which is why I've only got a token force in their territory."

"I'm not surprised about Hoou and Sumeragi," you muse. "The way the legends tell it, they were rivals for the throne during the Founding, at least until my divine ancestor won the throne and put them in their places."

"They need to get over their butthurt," says Yonatan tiredly. "Come on." He leads you back to his office and takes his chair and seems to sag, the weight of his responsibilities weighing down on him. He gives you a wry look. "So. It has come to this. That's why I need to disband 13th Fleet. I'll parcel out the capships to Shiki and other combatant commanders, I'll send your cruisers to the Rim-"

"Apologies, Fleet Admiral, but it occurs to me that if you're emptying the Core, there'll be less ships available to do inspection patrols and make sure the nobles aren't building ships they're not supposed to."

"That's supposed to be the taxmen and the IRG's job, not ours," he grouses. "Yes, I'm concerned about that as well - hell, I'm pretty sure some systems Rimward and Coreward are already secretly building destroyers and cruisers off the books, I just can't prove it. I don't like it either, but I'm trying to keep the Rim from descending into anarchy and secession. Once that's fixed, maybe then I can spare some more attention for the Core." He looks at his watch, and then comes to a decision. He reaches under his desk, and pulls out an unopened glass bottle: Vin Clar, the Imperial sake, made on Beausoli, capital world of the Great House of Peyrac-Beausoli. It's the most expensive, most exclusive sake money can buy, sold only to the most discerning of customers. "Consider this my bribe to you, to ease the blow of losing your fleet."

You raise an appreciative eyebrow at the bottle and accept it graciously. "I have a counteroffer instead," you say, settling the bottle on the desk and reaching inside your carry case. You remove a bottle of twelve-year old Nectar Doré; the golden-hued whiskey is the most expensive, most exclusive whiskey, sold only to the most discerning of customers: the Imperial Whiskey, also made by Beausoli, companion product to the Vin Clar that Yonatan offers to you. "Fleet Admiral. Please accept this as a token of our long relationship, of our friendship, of how you mentored me and guided my career. Please accept this, my bribe to you, to keep my fleet whole, and not torn asunder."

Yonatan's eyes widen and then narrow, and he leans forward. You smile innocently at him. Your mentor's tastes might generally run to the simpler things in life, but he makes an exception for good whiskey. (Although calling this good whiskey would be an insult, it's the best whiskey in the Empire). Wordlessly, he takes the bottle, and reaches under his desk, and produces another bottle of Vin Clar, with a raised eyebrow.

With your best "butter won't melt in my mouth" expression, you produce another bottle of Nectar Doré from your carry case.

"...right, nevermind, let's call it a draw," says Yonatan, making surrendering hand gestures, reaching into his desk and producing a pair of mugs, setting them to the side. "I'm sure you want to plead 13th Fleet's case, have at it."

You lean back, thoughtful. "My first instinct is to keep 13 Fleet as a whole," you tell him. "13th Fleet's original purpose is still, I believe, a valid concern. The Navy needs some strength left in the Core if anybody gets uppity. 13th Fleet serves as a fleet in being, as a constant threat that must be respected, because you'd need to mass the entirety of a Great House's personal forces to fight 13th Fleet."

"There's an argument to be made that the IRG better fulfills that purpose," says Yonatan mildly, ticking off his fingers. "The Capital Defense Fleet, the Dragon Fleets, the RAGTFs…"

"But they aren't Navy assets," you counter.

"No, but so long as Admiralty House is on Jinko-sei, so long as Ame-no-Mihashira is a joint IN-IRG base, they'll make more than a token effort to defend us as part of their umbrella of protection over the capital world and the Empress' residence. Plus, being the Empress's unofficial Vicereine, you should probably be able to call on IRG assistance if you have to do any fact finding or smackdowns. You don't need Navy ships for that."

"And you don't need ships in the Core?"

"I told you already, I'd like to have ships Coreward, but I don't see the point keeping twenty two percent of my deployed capships and ten percent of my deployed cruisers in safe zones when i could send them to flashpoints instead."

You purse your lips and consider. "A compromise, perhaps? Reduce 13th Fleet. Send some capships as reinforcements, send the bulk of the cruisers to the Rim, and keep a minimal screen. This keeps 13th Fleet Coreward for presence patrols and still available as a reserve for anyone who needs heavy combat units."

"The weakness of that plan is it's neither here nor there," muses Yonatan. "It's a helluva lot easier to ambush a bunch of battleships and battlecruisers who don't have a screen, y'know." He looks out the window at the setting sun, and makes a decision. "Fuck it, enough work talk. Write a memo later, if you want to put your opinion on the record. For now, for the next two weeks anyhow, just take care of your fleet and kau tim everything."

"Of course, Sir."

In your memo, what opinion will you advance?

[ ] Disband 13th Fleet.
[ ] Keep 13th Fleet.
[ ] Reduce 13th Fleet.

Yonatan cracks open a bottle, and pours a finger of whiskey into each mug, and hands one to you, inhaling the scent appreciatively from his own mug. "Thanks, by the way. I appreciate it, Yui."

You nod your thanks and toast him with your mug, taking an appreciative sip of the neat whiskey. "One thing I've always wondered about, Skipper. Why do you always drink whiskey out of mugs?"

Yonatan gives you a look, like he can't believe you're asking him the answer to an obvious question. "You've been in the Navy for how long? And you still don't know this? Camouflage from the fun police."

You give him a disbelieving look. "You're a Fleet Admiral. I'm a Vice Admiral. We are the fun police."

"Less talking, more drinking. You hungry?"

- 女王之天命 –

"We're in Admiralty House. There's a mess. There's an executive chef available to cater to flag officers. We could order food delivery from FoodPanda. You're a Fleet Admiral, you can afford takeout from Balthazar's, four blocks away. And instead of all that, you're eating MREs."

"Food is food what," says Yonatan, tossing an MRE packet at you. "And this is the good stuff. Ham fried rice with sausages in sauce and beef and beans. And kimchi. Needs more salt though."

On one hand, you have a refined palate that must be protected from being ruined by the travesty to good taste that is the Meal Ready to Eat. On the other hand, the sun has set, you've been here for a while, and you are hungry.

You sigh and open the MRE packet, activating the warming element and letting it "cook" your food, and dig in, shaking your head. There's an unpleasant feeling in your stomach, not just because of your anticipation for the MRE. You've worked hard and served diligently and busted your ass, and now your fleet is being disbanded and scattered to the winds.

Yonatan has a knowing look in his eyes, as he gazes at you over the brim of his own MRE. "You need to get over it, y'know," he says gently. "Besides, think of it this way: losing 13th Fleet's no big deal, because you're the worst combat commander I have."

You choke on a mouthful of fried rice and cough, spluttering indignantly. "Excuse me?"

"It's true, ah girl," says Yonatan unrepentantly, using your childhood nickname. "Of all my combat commanders, in terms of tactical and strategic acumen, you're just about competent. That's why you got 13th Fleet, patrolling Coreward. Alastor von Toth got the Despa Sector fleet on the Outer Rim, I put Kanda Shiki with 4th Fleet on the Hoou-Sumeragi border, because quite frankly out of the three of you I trust them the most to handle themselves in combat."

You give him a hurt look, and your mouth opens to retort-

"On the other hand, you're the best damn adjutant I ever had." He sighs wistfully, staring off into the distance. "I shoulda yelled at your dad more about this; he really wanted you to go command track like him, and you really wanted to be just like him, but really, you're better suited as a staff officer. Like, you're diligent, you're careful, you're conscientious, you make sure of your commander's intent and then you go out and you get things done. That's like, gold, right there. You know how many morons can't even follow orders?"

"I don't think that could have been an option for me," you say slowly, still feeling stung. "I'm self-aware enough of my own weaknesses, but am I really that bad?"

Yonatan pours himself another finger of whiskey, drinks, and considers. "Okay. Maybe not that jialat," he concedes. "You can find your ass with both hands and you listen to your subordinates. You can leverage people with better tactical acumen. If you had to run everything yourself you'd look like fuck, but you know how to stay out of your people's way and let them make you look good. And sure, the higher you go, the less relevant your technical skill is. But I will continue to insist that you'd have been better off as staff instead of going for command track."

You take a deliberate bite of processed rice, sausage, beans and beef, and swallow. "Well, it's 12 years too late to change things now," you say, and you almost succeed in keeping that little touch of bitterness out of your voice.

Yonatan shakes his head sympathetically and tops off your mug again. "There's a saying in my hometown. Later regrets lead to no earnings." He shrugs at the raised eyebrow you give him. "It loses something in the translation." He sighs wistfully, pouring himself a generous amount of Nectar Doré. "Man. I wish I hadn't listened to my CO and gone officer. I shoulda just stayed enlisted, then at this point I'd be a Master Chief, or hell, I'd be a Warrant now. Maybe a Master Warrant, that'd be paling best. Maximum tai chi, all of the authority, none of the responsibility, and nobody fucks with a Master Warrant because the Master Warrant fucks you back."

"It's not too late to go to WOCS," you say innocently. Yonatan snorts and gives you the one-fingered salute, which you return, somehow managing to make the rude gesture look charming.

"I'm too old to start over as a 3rd Warrant. No thanks," he says. "So anyway. Since your dad's my bro and he's not here I gotta back him up. Off the record: when are you gonna get married?"

"I can't get married if I don't have any proposals."

"Bullshit," he retorts. "This is your Uncle Johnny talking to you now. You should be drowning in proposals. You have looked in a mirror recently, right? Are you blind? Look at yourself. You're charming, elegant, you're a beautiful young woman in the prime of her life. Only the blind or siaolongs would be able to resist you. Or is it because you like girls? There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, and if you need to produce an heir, that's what IVF and iron wombs are for."

"Uncle Johnny," you protest, your cheeks afire. "This is inappropriate conversation for me. I need an adult."

"You are an adult. You're almost thirty. I know I gave you the birds and bees speech, you've done your practicum already." He gives you a look. "Or did you only study your sex ed theory, and didn't do your practicum?"

You bury your face in your hands; Uncle Johnny just tsks chidingly, waggles his eyebrows ridiculously, and pours you both more whiskey.

"I just want someone to propose to me because they've fallen in love with me, not because they're offering a political-economic alliance."

"You can't be too picky, you know. By all means don't sell yourself to short, but don't price yourself out of the market at the same time. Otherwise… well, you're liable to end up as a spinster. Or the only companionship you can find will be a kept boy relying on you to keep him, and I really don't think you want that, so perhaps you might want to reconsider your choices?"

"Uncle Johnny!" you exclaim indignantly. "Can't you respect my choices?"

"No, not really."

"You're not even married!"

"Have you looked at me? No looks, no riches. Hell, even I don't want me, so I totally get why I'm unmarried. You have so much going for you: youth, charm, beauty, elegance, you're in the prime of your life. And you're ridiculously wealthy in your own right, plus you have your Navy career, so it's not as if your husband needs to take care of you."

You bang your head on the table and make a frustrated growl; Uncle Johnny pats you on the shoulder comfortingly. "There, there. Worse come to worse, there's always Shiki, isn't he like your best friend or something?"

"If I marry him, Hoou's scion will immediately revolt," you grumble. "Taihou's had her eye on him since forever and Kanda's been fleeing her grasp since forever. And no, I don't think of him that way."

"Suuuuuuuurrreeeee," drawls Uncle Johnny, snickering at your expression. "Just do it, and kick off the war! And then you have the perfect excuse to keep your fleet." He smirks at you, and taps his temple with his fingers. "Can't disband a warfleet built to smackdown the rebelling Great Houses if you need it to smackdown a rebelling Great House."

You give him a flat look, as he grins and adds, "Remember, you're the heir now, it's your duty to provide the Royal Family with a spare, and I'm sure your mum would love to have a grandchild to take care of…"

Your forehead makes contact with his desk. Repeatedly.

- 女王之天命 –

You finally make a tactical withdrawal from Uncle Johnny's office. You can understand why he acts like this: he's lonely at the top, he's been a close friend of your dad since before you were born, he's always liked you, he can relax and let his guard down around you and engage in irreverent banter. But there's a limit to how much you can endure.

You reach that limit when he offers to act as your matchmaker, managing your dating app profiles and arranging your omiai sessions, and when he starts talking about looking into personnel records to find enterprising young men to be your fiance candidates...

Still. It's not all idle drollery. You did get some work done, and you have a better understanding now of the Navy's strategic situation.

Life as Commander 13th Fleet and the paperwork you need to deal with doesn't end just because you're going to be reassigned and your fleet might be disbanded. Training continues: there's plenty of empty space and your fleet goes on maneuvers, operating as a formation, splitting into sub-task forces for force on force training, even tangling with Imperial Royal Guard ships from the Capital Defense Fleet that come out to play.

Daniel drops by on Tuesday with two pieces of news. Firstly, he agrees to become your Equerry and do for Princess Yui what he did for Vice Admiral Akasha, with a greater focus on political intelligence work. Secondly, the Imperial Royal Guard has sent you a liaison officer.

Major Yui Nakahara carries herself primly and properly, the very model of an Imperial Royal Guard officer. Daniel got you her file: she's young for her rank, which suggests either nepotism, connections, competence, or a mixture of all three (which reminds you of how a certain young Vice Admiral entered the Navy as a Lieutenant at the tender age of 17). There are no major red flags in her file. Her long brown hair falls to her waist, and her violet eyes are sharp, intent and focused. She gives off the impression of an icy beauty, like a frozen sculpture.

"Why do I need a liaison officer from the Guard?" you ask her pointedly. To her credit, she doesn't appear intimidated by you (or perhaps she just has a good poker face; like many IRG officers, she's nobility herself).

"Commanding General's orders, Your Highness," she says. "My role is to assist you in whatever endeavours you may undertake on Her Majesty's service. And, in the event that you do not agree to a personal detail, I'm your last line of defense."

You give Daniel a questioning look; his shoulder shrugs, ever so slightly. You present a raised eyebrow to Nakahara.

"And what assistance can you provide me in my current endeavour?"

"Within reason, Your Highness, anything from a commando team to a full Royal Aerospace-Ground Task Force. It depends on the severity of the matter and availability of forces on our end."

Well.

"Suppose I was looking into a matter, unofficially, for the Empress. Suppose that this matter would require the utmost discretion, for a fact finding mission."

"Then command would make arrangements for an intel team to augment your staff for this fact finding mission, and would pull in relevant data from various sources to be forwarded to Your Highness. Unofficially."

Well, that will be useful. Daniel nods to you, and you incline your head. "Very well. Major, my Adjutant will brief you on the matter. Please assist him with this project, and make the necessary arrangements with IRG command."

"Understood, Your Highness."

"Welcome to the team, Major Nakahara," you say, and make a mental note to be on your guard. You're not inclined to simply take her at her word: she's obviously been placed with you to be the IRG's eyes and ears in your household, though to what greater purpose, you can't say. Still, she's an asset that you can use, so you'll use her...

- 女王之天命 –

Come Friday, Daniel and Nakahara give you an unexpected piece of news. They hand you a thick folder, and brief you as you peruse the contents. The combination of Daniel's skills (he was an Intelligence officer by trade) and the IRG's intel team have found credible intel that there is hanky panky going on in the Egon system, warranting a closer, more personal look. You can feel a migraine coming on at the thought that fucking 9chan was actually right. (Well, partially right. But still.)

Well, you're a fox of your word. Looks like you're going to Egon afterall. It'll be an eight day round trip, and you plan to spend two days at Egon, which isn't much time at all. You'll be cutting it close: the next meeting of the Regency Council is on Monday, the 28th of May, ten days from now. Still, worse come to worse, you could leave Daniel behind to continue fact finding while you rush back to the Imperial Capital.

You're still in command of 13th Fleet, so you've chosen to use your own assets for this fact finding mission: you'd rather use ships and crews you know are loyal to you, whose measure you already have. You'll be taking a task force with you to the Egon System - the official story is that your task force is going on a training cruise. You've been debating with yourself how large you want your task force to be: the smaller your task force, the easier it is to slip past people's notice, but a larger task force would have a greater intimidation factor at the cost of being less subtle. Still, you've made your bed, and now it's time to sleep in it. You put the finishing touches on your memo and send it off, and collect your kitbag.

Let's be about it.

What is the size of the Task Force you're taking to Egon? (IRG intel team is included in all options)

[ ] Small Task Force
[ ] Medium Task Force
[ ] Heavy Task Force

- 女王之天命 –

Whiskey Golf · Dec 10, 2018

FROM: CAPT D. O'Farrel
TO: VADM Y. Akasha

Admiral,

I've generated the intel brief on the Egon system as per your orders. The findings, summarised:

Pirate activity in the Egon System is peculiar. Instead of the usual patterns of behaviour when faced with piracy suppression activity, pirate activity in Egon is in waves, as if the pirates are regularly being resupplied and reinforced.
Veritas Security Solutions (henceforth "VSS"), the PMC contracted by Egon for piracy suppression, is operating with an aggressive optempo, with heavy use of ammunition and reports of engagements with pirate ships.
Overall year to date figures show no appreciable decrease in pirate activity vs last year (measured by pirate sightings, merchant shipping seized/threatened, ransoms taken).
VSS is using a hollowed-out asteroid in-system as an arms depot. Shipments to the depot have been increasing in frequency and tonnage over the last several months. More concerningly, VSS is shipping in milspec weapons and has been refitting their ships with milspec ECM suites, as opposed to the civilian-grade weapons and electronics used by most PMCs and armed merchantmen against pirates.
Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi , a senior member of Great House Sumeragi's cadet line and high-ranking executive of Siam-Astra Intergalactic Consolidated Holdings, has spent the last several weeks on the ground in Egon, in private meetings with the Earl of Egon (the system ruler) and his government and civil service.

Please refer to the attached documentation for further details.

My recommendation is that a fact-finding mission be made to Egon to gain a better understanding of the local picture.

Signed,

Captain Daniel O'Farrel
Fleet Adjutant
13th Fleet

Whiskey Golf · Dec 14, 2018

[X] Plan Practical Politick
-[X] Political Etiquette
-[X] Disband 13th Fleet
-[X] Heavy Task Force

- Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux -

As you make your way to the bridge, you mentally review what should be happening in your absence. You have Ahri reading up and studying on political etiquette (including watching some of the better-researched historical dramas dealing with politics and the Imperial throne), with the understanding that when you get back you're going to quiz her on her knowledge. You've roped in your Lady-in-Waiting, Shoko Kitakami, and Ahri's Private Secretary, Pimmalai Wattanasilp, and together they're going to be looking for tutors to bring Ahri's political education up to scratch. By the time you get back, they should have a list of names ready for you to interview.

You ignore the little voice in the corner of your mind that whispers that you're acting like a Regent right now. Or as Ahri's mother.

Meanwhile, your memo is on its' electronic way to Commander Fleet Operations and the Navy bureaucracy; in the end, despite your personal feelings for your fleet, Fleet Admiral Yonatan Chew's reasoning is sound and compelling. You struggled with what was best for 13th Fleet, but ultimately, your choice was decided for you by six little words drilled into you as a junior officer: "For the Good of the Empire."

It's better for 13th Fleet to stick together, in a coherent force. But it's better for the Navy, for the Empire, to have more loyal ships dispersed as reinforcements, hopefully where they can stiffen the resolve of the local forces, instead of being concentrated in the core. And it's not as if the Imperial Capital is defenseless. As Fleet Admiral Yonatan pointed out, Ame-no-Mihashira watches over Jinko-sei and the worlds of the Capital System. The massive space station serves as a shared base for Imperial Navy's 1st Fleet and the Imperial Royal Guard's Capital Defense Fleet; the two fleets are powerful formations built around their respective flagships, the most powerful warships ever constructed: the Takemikazuchi- class dreadnoughts. Twice the size of a battleship, hull bristling with weapons and thick with armor, a dreadnought holds more firepower than a battleship squadron, all in a single ship. Only five of these mighty ships were ever built; two for the Imperial Navy, three for the Imperial Royal Guard. Two dreadnoughts, one each from the IN and the IRG, guard Jinko-sei at all times. The other three dreadnoughts and their attendant battlegroups remain within Takama-ga-Hara, defending the territorial holdings of the Imperial Family, firmly out of the reach of the Great Houses.

You take your place on the bridge; a crewman announces "Admiral on deck!" "As you were," you reply, and nod approvingly: the bridge crew carries on with their work instead of stopping to bow and scrape; their focus should be on their work, not on you. The captain of your flagship acknowledges you with a quick, respectful nod that you return, and turns back to her station. You strap in to your chair, and bring up your console, looking over your taskforce composition. There'd been a lot of thinking on what size force to bring to Egon. A small task force, say a light cruiser squadron, would have been very discrete and subtle, but there were concerns that it might not have enough firepower to take care of whatever business you found in Egon.

In the end, you went with a heavy task force. Not your entire fleet, you were trying for some subtlety and discretion, but it's still a formidable force in its own right. In addition to your flagship, battleship Yamato, you have a squadron of four battlecruisers, led by Rear Admiral Constance Vickers, flying her flag from battlecruiser Kongou. Two squadrons of heavy cruisers and three squadrons of light cruisers complete your task force, bringing the ad-hoc Task Force Soyeon to a total of twenty five ships. That number of ships departing Jinko-sei is more subtle than the 124 ships of 13th Fleet, but it's still a noticeable formation.

"Admiral," says your captain, drawing your attention. She gestures to the captain's station, smiling invitingly at you. "If you would do the honors, ma'am."

"It's your ship, Captain Lee," you demur. "I'm a just a passenger."

"It's your final cruise as our Fleet Commander, ma'am," she persists. "Please. It would mean a lot to us."

You look around, and realise that everyone on the bridge is looking at you eagerly, supportively, nodding to you, and you smile and blink away hints of mist from your eyes. It doesn't matter what Uncle Johnny said, you can't have been very bad as a commander.

You unbuckle yourself from your seat and move over to the captain's chair; Captain Lee smoothly unbuckles herself and slides out of the chair, coming to attention.

"I relieve you, Captain," you say formally.

"I am relieved, Admiral," she replies. You nod to her and take the captain's chair, your eyes looking over all the oh-so familiar consoles, while she moves to stand behind and to the side.

"Admiral has the deck," you announce. "Orders to the helm. Take us out."

- 女王之天命 –

Your staff prepared three departure plans for your Task Force. Which plan did you choose?

[ ] In Force Departure, In Force Arrival. Depart as one large force and arrive in Egon as a large force from a single vector.
[ ] Staggered Departure, In Force Arrival. Depart as subunits and converge upon arrival in Egon from multiple vectors.
[ ] Staggered Departure, Screening Arrival. Depart as subunits, rendezvous at a rally point, and send the CLs to screen before the task force jumps into Egon.
[ ] None of the above. You drew up your own departure plan to use. (Write In)

Whiskey Golf · Dec 14, 2018

Alright guys, take note, if you will reread the update there is now a fourth option:

[ ] None of the above. You drew up your own departure plan to use. (Write In)

The voting moratarium remains in effect, but upon further consideration, I decided this might be a decent opportunity to allow a write in, and see where that leads us. About my only rule is that ship management is going to be at the squadron level; micromanaging individual ships is just way too much effort for Yui and is no bueno and that's not her style anyway.

A division is 2 ships.
A squadron is 4 ships.

Your forces are:

1 BB (Flagship Yamato)
1 BC squadron
2 CA squadron
3 CL squadron

Your write in plan should be written as per the style below:

[X] Plan Fluffy Tails. Hot water shower, nice shampoo, hair dryer, fluffy brushing. (Write In)

Whiskey Golf · Jan 30, 2019

[X] Staggered Departure, Screening Arrival. Depart as subunits, rendezvous at a rally point, and send the CLs to screen before the task force jumps into Egon.

- Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux -

As your flagship departs the Capital System, you find yourself subconsciously tensing, waiting for the other shoe to drop, for questions of varying levels of alarm at what you're doing -where are six squadrons of warships going to, what are your intentions, why are you doing such things, Vice Admiral Akasha what are you doing stop now -

Your flagship jumps into hyperspace, and you relax: Daniel's staggered departure plan worked. Once again, you privately thank your lucky stars at your wisdom in choosing him as your Fleet Adjutant; you don't think many other officers, assigned to a fleet whose purpose is to be seen and heard, would have thought of using deception measures for your fleet movements. But he did, and he did his staffwork months ago, so all he had to do was take his plans and scale them as needed to the size of your task force.

So. Phase One of the Egon System Fact-Finding Mission is a go. Task Force Soyeon has successfully departed Jinko-Sei without drawing attention from anybody, including Lady Akagi Sumeragi. Especially Lady Akagi-

"Ohohohoho! What a mighty force, Princess Yui! Pray tell, are you intending to bring some uninhabited system to heel? Truly, the boorishness and waste of the Imperial House knows no bounds! Is this really the extent of stewardship displayed by the Prince of Akasha and his spawn?"

You can't help but shudder in horrified distaste at that mental image, especially when you can see her standing on her bridge wearing a fetching dress that displays her cleavage, flatters her charms, and lets her spread all her fluffy tails-

-while you're following Navy Regulations, and so you're wearing your skinsuit and your tails are vacuum sealed and can't be spread. The ignominy of it all.

You let out a breath, shake your head, and remind yourself that such a terrible scene did not come to pass, thanks to your adjutant. Truly, he's worth his weight in gold.

- 女王之天命 -

The four days you spend in transit to Egon go by in a flash, simply because of how busy you are. Your time is consumed with a detailed review of Daniel's intelligence brief and planning for the approach into the Egon system, along with your actions once you arrive in system and a response to the results of the fact finding. It's with some effort that you manage to squeeze in a working dinner with TF Soyeon's second-in-command.

"Yui, you're cutting things real close, y'know." Rear Admiral Constance Vickers rolls her eyes at you. This level of familiarity would be scandalously improper in public, but some things can be relaxed amongst old friends sharing a private working dinner.

"I've a lot on my plate, Konnie," you say, as you refill her glass. You both take another appreciative sip of the wine she brought; an excellent vintage indeed. "And the Regency Council meeting puts a hard limit on how long I have to spend in Egon."

"Sure, but two days in-system isn't really enough time to get anything done," Konnie points out. "Chances are that you'll head back to the Capital without having achieved much by default. Really not the kind of commitment you needed a heavy task force for."

"Oh?" you ask mildly. "Alright, let's play a bit of Devil's Advocate. Like old times. What would you have gone with?"

"Cruiser task group," says Konnie unhesitatingly. "One heavy cruiser squadron, two light cruiser squadrons, a dozen ships max. Small enough for me to escape notice, but with enough juice to take on pirates and win. Even if they have actual warships, I'd put any one of our cruisers against two of theirs at least, and it's not as if we have dozens of pirate vessels just hanging around looking to pick a fight. We're an IRG RAGTF sans troop transports, they wouldn't fight us for all the gold on Salazar Secundus." She picks up Daniel's intel dossier, waving it at you. "And this? This looks hinky. There's no way any pirate org is this well-equipped. They're cheap bastards. In it for the booty, which they'll take in loot and slaves. Snatch and grab and run, and they build around that."

"Unless they're being sponsored by a third party, or are actually mercs hired for a false flag op," you counter.

"More likely that VSS is slowboating and letting the pirates get away so that they can justify their contract. Say you're the Earl of Egon and you hired me to protect you against pirates. Say I'm crazy motivated, I'm on fire, and I clear all the pirates outta your system in a week tops. Then a week goes by, then another, and another. No pirates in your house for months. You start thinking maybe you don't really need to keep your glorified security guards on retainer to protect you against a threat they've already taken care of…"

"It's a compelling argument," you allow. "If not for Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi's presence. It does lend credence to the idea of a certain Great House advancing their interests in the region."

"Yes, and what would those be?" asks Konnie. She raises a hand, ticking off points on her fingers. "There's two reasons to perform a land grab for a system equidistant between Sumeragi and Fenghuang space: you either want to use it as a forward staging point for an invasion, or you want to use it as a tripwire against enemy invasion. Militarily, both reasons are irrelevant. Sumeragi can afford tenders if they want to support their fleets, and anyone who would dare fight a Great House has the same capacity. Besides, they've been allied with Fenghuang for the last five centuries - unless something changed while I wasn't looking; like, say, in the last few days or so?"

"If they've broken their alliance, they haven't seen fit to inform me - yet," you affirm with a chuckle. "You're right about Fenghuang, in any case. They've never cared for the throne, though I doubt the Founder - bless Her spirit - quite forgave them their declaring for Sumeragi early in the War."

"And thus did She in all Her divine might smite them both and bring them to heel before Her golden boots and snow-white thigh-highs."

"That too," you say, "and I'll be damned before I think either of them has forgotten." Or forgiven. Far be it from Sumeragi to ever forgive. "Still, the last few Fenghuang Grand Dukes have been distancing themselves from more overt manifestations of Sumeragi's desire from the throne, choosing to focus on enriching themselves instead. I'm reminded of something the current Grand Duke's great-grandfather said: 'It is for the best that we devote our house to the pursuit of wealth, such that we may enjoy pleasurable company, rather than expend our efforts in the vain hope of acquiring an empty prize .' Or something to that effect."

"'Something to that effect?' Forgive me, Your Highness, but please, say that again for these plebeian ears," drawls Konnie airily.

"Fuck bitches, get riches."

Konnie snorts and refills your glasses. "How crude. I like it already."

"Well, there's a reason the newest motto for Shangri-La's sector-wide chain of pleasure palaces is "Heaven is a place on Shangri-La". But with the money they've been rolling in...now, Sumeragi and Hoou are our obvious leaders. Sure. Still, it does seem a bit convenient that a bit of political posturing should totally rule small, hitherto uninvolved Fenghuang out."

"You're saying Sumeragi wants a secure corridor between them, just in case their erstwhile partner isn't telling all in the bedroom."

"Do you think they trust anyone, Konnie?"

"No. But it still seems like a lot of effort for little gain. Not to mention that any conspicuous flare-up between them would attract undue attention to their Great Project." Konnie scrutinises her wine glass. "And we both know what that is."

"Hoou," you reply, taking a sip. "And Hoou's traditionally had little stake outside their own territory, neighbouring systems, and maybe the Salsu Frontier."

"'Maybe'?"

"That's what they told my father."

"Sure. And Eisenwald will stop being the rusty shithole of the galaxy."

"You're from Eisenwald."

"Exactly," says Konnie, rolling her eyes. "So, yeah. Odds of major Sumeragi action? You'd sooner show up at a ball in something that isn't your dress whites. No point land-grabbing out here when there are perfectly good systems in Hoou territory I can use to support a push into their space."

"I thought someone said that you don't need staging systems when you have a fleet of tenders?" you ask dryly, elegantly raising an eyebrow.

"Eh. No such thing as too much logistics," Konnie retorts cheekily.

You snort.

"Point taken." Reaching out, you pat Konnie on the shoulder. "It's always good to pick your brain, you know."

She gives you a dirty look in response.

"Are you kidding? Without me, you'd still be ramming your poor battlecruisers face first into enemy formations."

"And you would have drowned in paperwork long before you made RA."

"Ah, patronage." Your second downs the rest of her glass in one go. "We'll get you for that someday, Yui. The people, too, will rise!"

It must be the alcohol, you think, that you even give Konnie's last statement a second thought. Or maybe it's the job you've been given, its enormous import -to say nothing of the consequences of failure- looming over your every move. You and your little -so it feels to you, certainly- fleet could make or break the future of the Empire. And it all begins here.

But still, what of it?

The Empire did not rise in a morning, nor will one sun's nadir spell its end. If the people must rise, you and those like you must first have failed so utterly as to lose the mandate to lead. If it comes to that, you think traitorously, well - then let fall the Empire!

So decided, you reach one closed fist out.

Konnie doesn't even miss a beat.

- 女王之天命 -

You know what people say about 13th Fleet, how it's just a glorified parade formation, how all your fleet ever does is fly through the Core and posture at the Great Houses. If only they could see your task force now. The 13th Fleet is not just for show.

Given the interstellar distance, staggered departure, and the oblique routes taken to disguise their destination, you'd been prepared to wait a while at the rally point for your task force's components to assemble. Instead, when you arrive, your task force is already assembled and waiting for you, spread out in combat formation, alert and and on guard, smoothly and quickly falling into formation around your flagship. Since you're several hours ahead of schedule, you make a last minute adjustment to your plans, and execute early.

Your three light cruiser squadrons jump into Egon in screening formation, on the very edges of the system, ECM in deception mode, sensors passive, scanning for potential threat. They then do a tactical jump further into the system, within range of Egon's listening posts: first they signal the all clear to your taskforce, and then they drop their ECM and make their presence known. Egon System Traffic Control immediately hails and challenges them, but the Hang Tuah's captain is already playing his role, loudly and publicly proclaiming he's leading an Imperial Navy task group on a Freedom of Navigation exercise, that they don't take their marching orders from Egon STC, that they are on Her Majesty's service and are not to be hindered (and oh, by the way, might they be pointed towards docking berths for a spot of shore leave) -

-and while they're doing all that, the other half of your task force slips into Egon and makes way for your objective.

The asteroid isn't large enough to have a name, only a designation: FC2-PPV-880652. Your ships proceed in combat formation, bearing down on the asteroid while jamming their comms. You're a fox on a mission and you won't be gainsaid. In another deception measure, Konnie's flagship, battlecruiser Kongou, sits at the center of a diamond formation, with her squadron mates flanking her. Battleship Yamato brings up the rear, looking like yet another battlecruiser from a distant first glance.

Unlike some other admirals, or other scions of Great Houses you could name, you have absolutely no problem with sitting back and letting your subordinates take credit and attention, especially when that subordinate is your girl Konnie, your 2IC, your trusted comrade, and also because if the commo transcript leaks, Rear Admiral Constance Vickers is a name that'll draw significantly less attention than Vice Admiral Yui Akasha.

The arms depot's administrator tries to stall her, of course, but Konnie simply verbally plows through her protestations like a battering ram, and pointedly reminds her that she's an Imperial Navy admiral who has a baker's dozen warships watching this asteroid. In short order, shuttles land on FC2-PPV-880652, disgorging boarding teams who fan out to inspect the installation.

Daniel lands with his people and half the IRG intel team in the second wave. Other admirals would have been tempted to follow him and micromanage, but that's not your style. You trust your people to carry out your orders and use their judgement - plus, if you were going to backseat drive his every move, there'd be no point to taking Daniel on as your Equerry. Your instructions to him were simple: "Turn the asteroid upside down, ferret out the truth, and if you need me, call me, but otherwise I trust in your ability to execute my intent."

You're six hours into your neverending mound of electronic paperwork when the bridge notifies you of a secure call, and patches it to your office with your permission. Daniel's face fills the screen, transmitted by a helmet camera. "Admiral."

"Captain. You've found something?"

"Yes ma'am." Daniel backs out of camera view, and gestures, and the cameraman takes a panning look across the warehouse. There's a lot of military grade weaponry there; the arms depot wouldn't look out of place in a Navy garrison. "As we suspected, VSS has been stockpiling weapons. We're still going through the shipping manifests for the full details, but it looks like about 4 months ago they started offloading their civ-grade gear on the locals and brought in a lot of milspec hardware. Anti-ship missiles, countermissiles, DU rounds, the works. They have top-tier milspec ECM suites, Baseline 16."

"We're running Baseline 18, they're only 2 versions behind us," you muse thoughtfully. "And the Fleet standard is Baseline 17…"

"Yes ma'am," says Daniel, stepping back into the camera's view. "They didn't ship in any sensor packages, so either they couldn't get those and are running civvie sensors, or their ships are already equipped with milspec sensors. According to the sign out sheets, they've been drawing ammo like they're on a wartime footing, and it looks like the bulk of their forces are out patrolling aggressively, but the depot administrator refuses to let me see their mission logs to verify weapons usage. She insists that we're not authorised to view their logs, and the only person who can release them to us is her boss."

"Sounds like someone with something to hide."

"I thought so too, ma'am, and that made me wonder if they had permission to bring in all this hardware. So I confronted the depot administrator. She claims that 4th Fleet HQ signed off on that. Well, we've got the digital permits in the computer systems. But the hard copy permits are missing."

"That sounds very convenient for them," you say, frowning. "Computers can be hacked. That's why these sorts of permissions must always be supported with hard copy documentation."

"I made the same point to them. The administrator swears that they have all their paperwork in order, that her clerical staff have just misfiled the paperwork, and things'll be sorted out if we'd just wait and if she can call in the VSS garrison commander to sort things out with us."

"Do you believe her?"

"Given their level of professionalism and record keeping I've seen… I don't think so. They don't look like the sort of fly by night outfit that would lose their paperwork. Is it possible, yes, but is it likely? In my opinion, no, Ma'am. The administrator's ex-Navy, and she runs a tight ship."

"You're sure of that?" you ask, keeping in mind the possibility that Daniel's bias might play a part in his assessment. He's a solid, competent officer, but you're well aware of how he defaults to distrust whenever PMCs enter the picture. The PMC administrator being ex-Navy… well, it's not that surprising: not everybody joins the Navy intending to be a lifer like you or Daddy.

"I'll confirm that once I get back, but yes, I'm sure of it. Her name's Ayako Tomioka."

"Understood. Carry on, Daniel. And good work."

"Thank you, ma'am."

You kill the connection and lean back thoughtfully. Bringing in and using milspec hardware without the appropriate permits… well, they claim they have the appropriate permits, which are now misfiled somewhere. You're well within your rights to seize the contents of that arms depot, but the question is, should you? At first glance, it seems a rather convenient excuse. On the other hand, you've seen just as stupid things happen before, and Daniel admits that the possibility does exist. He obviously doesn't believe them, but his bias could be affecting his judgement. And if it turns out that Tomioka's telling the truth, then you'll have illegally seized VSS's property, and you know that'll get out, and Sumeragi will pounce on that gaffe.

What will you do about VSS's milspec hardware?

[ ] Confiscate VSS's arms. You're not buying their convenient excuse.
[ ] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
[ ] Leave VSS's arms alone. You've seen stupid things like this happen before.

- 女王之天命 -

Even with your head start, it's still not enough time. You've been in-system for barely more than a day and a half, and you already need to start preparing to head back to Jinko-sei. Still, while your stay has been short, you've learned that:

Daniel has confirmed that VSS has been shippingmilspec weapons in. Until he gets access to VSS's mission logs and can do a complete audit, he can't say for sure where their weapons are going, whether they're being used on actual combat operations, or being sold on the black market. What he can say is that VSS has shipped in more weapons than the arms depot can hold: that's a lot of arms that need to be accounted for.

Ayaka Tomioka was an Imperial Navy logistics officer, who mustered out as a Lieutenant Commander after a 15-year career. No black marks or red flags were found in her Navy file. She is still stonewalling and refuses to release VSS's mission logs to Daniel's intel team without authorisation from her boss, and continues to protest VSS's innocence in this affair.

Despite repeated attempts at contact from FC2-PPV-880652, the local VSS garrison commander, Lee Bashkan, remains incommunicado. Tomioka insists this is unusual and Lee hasn't fled, but the silence is concerning.

While half the IRG intel team is assisting Daniel in auditing the arms depot, the other half have already infiltrated Jesselton City, the Egon system's capital, and are already running intelligence-gathering operations. So far, they've only been able to ascertain the following:

Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi, Junior Vice-President of Siam Astra Frontier Heavy Industries, and senior cadet branch member of Great House Sumeragi, has spent the last ten weeks in Jesselton, longer than initially thought. She and her staff are operating out of an entire floor of the Renaissance Jesselton Hotel, one of the premier establishments in the city. She has been holding regular meetings with the Earl of Egon and his government at all hours of the day, even into the weekend.
Local RUMINT suggests the Earl of Egon is heavily subsidizing Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi's stay and rolling out the red carpet for her.
Egon's Minister of Security has been making regular off-book meetings at Ashton's Steakhouse, with Lee Bashkan, VSS garrison commander.
On at least two occasions, the Earl of Egon, Rafidah Aziz-Sumeragi, and Lee Bashkan were all present at the same time in the Istana Negri, the Earl's official residence.
Public opinion believes VSS is defending Egon, which is under siege by pirate hordes. VSS is popular with the locals, and apparently enjoys a cordial working relationship with the miniscule Egon System Defense Force (which consists of several dozen lightly armed customs enforcement cutters and a dozen or so corvettes).
Egon SDF assets are apparently under VSS operational control, which is an unusual situation: the Earl of Egon is VSS' client, but the Earl's forces are effectively acting as VSS's auxiliaries.

You're actually impressed by what they've managed to uncover, though you note the caveat in their report that these details are merely scratching the surface, and lacking in context, and that with more time they can give you a better understanding of what's going on. You appreciate that honesty; context is everything.

Come what come may, time and the hour runs through the roughest day. You can't delay your return trip any longer. Before you depart, you have decisions to make.

The obvious option is to return now with all the evidence you've gathered; even if you don't confront Sumeragi right away, you can still lay the groundwork for political maneuvering. On the other hand, context is key, and you don't have enough of it. You could leave Daniel and the intel team behind to continue investigating: a smoking gun would be exponentially more compelling than the circumstantial evidence you have right now. Of course, the downside is you're not sure how long he'd be away from you, and you might have need of him.

What is your intent for Daniel and the IRG intel team?

[ ] Conclude the investigation and return with you.
[ ] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.

There's also the question of pirate activity in and around Egon. The last 36-odd hours have been quiet, but the girl in the street seems convinced that Egon is under threat. Perhaps it would be a good idea to split Task Force Soyeon, and leave Konnie with a task group in the Egon system for a while to keep an eye on things?

What are your orders for Task Force Soyeon?

[ ] Full pullout. All ships will return to Jinko-sei at once.
[ ] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.

- 女王之天命 -

Whiskey Golf · Jul 7, 2019

[X] Plan Dig Deeper
-[X] Trust but verify. VSS has 2 days to produce the paperwork, failing which their arms will be seized.
-[X] Continue the investigation and stay in Egon.
-[X] Stay behind force. Konnie's task group will stay and monitor Egon for a few weeks.

28th May
Huangshan Palace

It's a little hard to believe that it's only been two weeks since you were sworn in as a member of the Regency Council and averted a potential political crisis. It feels a lot longer than just two weeks.

Your return journey had no issues, and your deception movements allowed your scratch task group to slip back into the Capital System without drawing undue attention. You arrived at Huangshan Palace in time to attend the Regency Council meeting in the mid-afternoon. As it's the first official meeting of the Regency Council, it's relatively short, intended to serve more as an introductory session, so that all the council members can gain each other's measure: the more serious, more substantial meeting will be taking place next week. You're not looking forward to that, because you're sure today's cordiality and lack of posturing won't be the case next week.

You make your way to Empress' apartments; the palace stewards escort you in and announce your entry. Ahri is overjoyed to see you, a statement she punctuates by squealing and tackling you in a hug as soon as you step through the doors. It's a good thing she's shorter and smaller than you, and you've been trained in the basics of CQC; you drop your Navy-issue duffle bag, extend your arms, and brace yourself to catch Ahri: you're able to absorb the impact and remain standing, avoiding a pratfall and the inevitable loss of face and decline in the estimation of the palace stewards. The two Guardsmen at the door simply stare ahead with practiced nonchalance, as the stewards beat a quiet retreat and shut the doors behind them.

"I'm glad to see you too," you gasp, petting Ahri's head, "but I do need to breathe, Ahri." Mentally, you sigh and add this emotional outburst to the ever-increasing list of things you'll need to talk to Ahri about. She still hasn't fully internalised that she's the Empress now, and acting like an ordinary teenager is indecorous…

Ahri mumbles a muffled noise of protest, but finally loosens her grip. "I'm so happy to see you, Onee-sama!" she gushes. "Welcome back! Did you bring me any souvenirs?"

"I have brought you the greatest gift of all," you proclaim. "Information!"

Ahri's face is an open book to you: her adoration for you is warring with her disappointment at how lame she thinks your gift is. Oh well, your cousin's a work in progress. Huangshan Palace wasn't built on this mountain range in one day…

"Also," you say, "I was thinking, maybe I could have dinner with you and then stay over tonight? We could have a sleepover and fluff our tails and have some girltalk, it's been far too long-"

"YES!" squeals Ahri, jumping in the air. "I mean, I'd like that, onee-sama," she hastily corrects herself.

"Alright," you say, smiling at her. "But there's something you need to do for me first."

"Anything!"

"I want you to review with me the homework I gave you two weeks ago."

Ahri visibly deflates; you chuckle softly and pat her head. She retaliates by resuming her death grip and burying her face in your bust.

- 女王之天命 -

Reviewing the results of Ahri's Political Etiquette homework, you find that Ahri is worse than you'd hoped, but better than you'd expected. If you had to rate her on a scale of one to ten, she'd barely rate two. In all fairness to Ahri, it's still an improvement from two weeks ago, when you'd have rated her as one. You give her a pointed look, and she fidgets under your gaze.

"Well, onee-sama? How did I do?"

You look at her nervous hopeful expression, the way she fidgets cutely, and your resolve crumbles.

"We can talk about it tomorrow, at teatime," you decide. "I need to report to Admiralty House in the morning, but I'll be free after lunch and I can come visit you again. If you want."

"I'd love that, onee-sama," says Ahri, doing her best not to squeal in happiness.

- 女王之天命 -

To your surprise, Ahri hasn't moved into the Empress's rooms; she's still staying in her rooms - well, the Crown Princess's rooms. It's been weeks since the late Empress's funeral, but she's refusing to move from where she is.

"I like where I am," she told you. That sent up warning flags in your mind: add that to the list of things you need to talk to her about.

You didn't intend to turn the sleepover into a teaching moment, but an offhand comment from Ahri - "onee-sama, why didn't you just take your whole fleet with you?" - spurs you into action. You seize Ahri's bed to use as a map table, and grab sundry items - pens, markers, lipstick tubes, cosmetics, hair brushes - and start arranging them on the bed.

"I wasn't quite expecting this," she says glumly. "I thought we'd be having fun."

You frown, allowing your face to mirror the confusion you feel. "But this is fun." You can understand why Uncle Johnny would use Legos on his own map table, but you don't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he's rubbed off on you. He can get unbearably smug, sometimes.

Ahri gives you a blank look, and sighs. "I was expecting a different kind of fun," she says, her hand fiddling with the hem of the sheer babydoll she wears. Aesthetically, you approve: the babydoll's design is tastefully daring, both elegant and tillitating, concealing and revealing all at once. But what it reveals is concerning to you. The babydoll hangs loosely off Ahri's frame; you'd thought she was slender, but looking at her now, she looks painfully thin. And it's quite obvious from how it hangs loosely off her slender bust that the babydoll she's wearing is sized for an older, more developed woman: her mother, the late Empress.

You can't help but worry some more about her. She's wearing the late Empress' negligee. She's refused to move into the Empress' chambers, she's still using the same rooms she had as Crown Princess. She's obviously not eating well, and she isn't getting enough exercise, and she's painfully lonely.

But calling her out right now won't do either of you any good, and if she suspects what's in your mind she might close up to you, so you've got no choice but to carry on and give her a crash course in naval tactics and distract her until you can call your mother and Uncle Johnny and get advice.

"Moving your fleet in a large formation is good if you want to make an impression," you say. "If you're making a state visit somewhere, if you're conducting presence patrols, for missions like that, where the point is to be seen and noticed, yes, moving the entire fleet would be the way to go. Here, follow me." You take Ahri's hand and lead her to the door, and point at the fleet. "From here, we can see the entire fleet - it's large, it's easily seen, it's easily tracked. Now, just stay here, and watch what happens." You jog back to the bed, move a few articles apart from the large collection, and jog back to Ahri's side. "What do you see now?"

"I don't get it?" asks Ahri confusedly, and you smile reassuringly. "That's the idea. Come."

You lead her back to her bed and point at the warship stand-ins. "See that? From afar, it still looks like my fleet is whole. It's only once you move closer that you realise that there are ships missing. A squadron here, a squadron there… twenty five ships is an invasion fleet, what more a force five times that number. But six squadrons of warships, departing on individual training cruises? That's a lot more discreet, and that's what the situation called for this time." Ahri looks at you dubiously, and you give her a serious look. "Imagine what would have happened if my task force had departed in force, or taken my whole fleet to Egon."

"You'd have shown everyone that you're the bestest onee-sama and all those bitches gotta get outta your way!"

"Language, Your Majesty," you say flatly, chiding her. "I'd have been blatantly obvious. That would defeat the entire point of the idea of a discreet fact finding mission. And I'm sure you can imagine how Lady Akagi Sumeragi might have words to say about that." You draw yourself to your full height, spreading your tails behind you in all their glory, raising your hand to your mouth as you perform an arrogant noblewoman's laugh. "Ohohohoho! What a mighty force, Princess Yui! Pray tell, are you intending to bring some uninhabited system to heel? Truly, the boorishness and waste of the Imperial House knows no bounds! Is this truly the extent of stewardship displayed by the Prince of Akasha and his spawn?"

Your choice of sleepwear - a worn Navy t-shirt and sweatpants - ruins the effect somewhat, but judging by Ahri's horrified expression, your impersonation of the Sumeragi heir is spot on. You feel quite pleased at that reaction.

- 女王之天命 -

There's at least one clear benefit to channeling Lady Akagi (an act that makes you cringe internally and want to down a few drinks): Ahri is so unnerved by your impersonation that she can't summon the mental capacity to argue with you as you continue your crash course. You give her the broad strokes, how Daniel and your staff prepared the movement plans months in advance, because you try to anticipate every reasonable eventuality, how your timeline had fudge time built in to mitigate possible delays, how you used your CL squadrons as a screen and distraction, how you left Konnie and Daniel behind to investigate further. Under your instruction, Ahri has been a docile and obedient listener.

Your fingers are probably a more significant and immediate contributing factor to her current state of docility.

"So you left them behind?" asks Ahri. She's seated cross legged on her bed in front of you, her tails swishing this way and that, twitching pleasurably as your fingers massage her back. For a teenaged girl, she's got some really stiff shoulders; her murmurs of pleasure are interposed with hisses of pain as you work on her knotted muscles.

"I did," you answer. "Some people think leadership is micromanaging things, personally keeping an eye on what your people are doing. I disagree. Leadership is equipping and enabling the officers under your command to take action, making sure they understand your intent, and then stepping back and letting them go out and get things done."

"I guess, for that to work, you have to trust them," says Ahri thoughtfully. "Is that why you let Konnie plan her task force disposition?" You nod in acknowledgement, even though she can't see you.

"Exactly. Trust is how the Navy functions," you say. "I trust Konnie and Daniel to execute my intent and accomplish their objectives. They trust me to enable them and let them operate. It's a two way street. It's something I learned from watching Uncle Johnny - the higher up the chain you go, the less directly involved you are. If you don't trust the people under you, you can't get anything done. You have to delegate, you have to spread things out for other people to do, because you literally can't do everything. Of course, it also helps to know the people you're trusting. Konnie and I were squadronmates, Daniel's the best adjutant I've ever had. That's another thing I learned from Uncle Johnny: it's easier to trust people to get things done if you know they can get things done. Now, lie on your front."

Ahri eagerly shifts forward, as you run your fingers through her tails. Ahri squirms and her tails wag happily in excitement; you smile indulgently, pick up a grooming brush, and begin to fluff up her tails: one down, more to go. She sighs blissfully, and you can't help but smile. For a moment, you can pretend that this is an earlier, happier time, onee-sama and her little sister having a sleepover, staying up late talking, telling each other stories, brushing each other's tails, and cuddling each other to sleep.

When you finish grooming her tails, Ahri demands you let her groom your tails; you allow it, with the condition that she goes to sleep immediately. Ahri balks at your demand, claiming it's too early to go to bed, but caves the second you stand up. You sweeten the pot by agreeing to sleep with her tonight, conveniently pretending that you hadn't suggested a sleepover some hours before.

Truly, this deviousness is surely Uncle Johnny's influence. You don't recall being this manipulative before you became his protege.

Still, for all of Ahri's protestations about how she's not a little girl who needs to sleep early, she yawns sleepily once you get under the covers with her. "Good night, onee-sama," she says, kissing your cheek.

"Good night, Ahri," you say. You kiss her forehead and pat her head, and snuggle in to sleep, wrapping your arms around your cousin.

- 女王之天命 -

It's the middle of the night when you wake up. Your eyes snap open in the darkness, as you groggily try to figure out what woke y-

"Mama."

It's just one word, but it's filled with such despair and sorrow that you feel your heart seize up. Ahri's back is turned away from you, but you can hear her sobbing for her mother, begging her to come back, begging her father to wake up, begging for her parents to just come back don't leave her she'll be a good girl-

You touch her shoulder, and she turns and buries her face in your bust, trashing in the throes of her nightmare. All you can do is hold her and kiss her tears away and try to be a comforting warmth.

Ahri eventually subsides. Her nightmare fades. Her breathing slows and her body relaxes. She goes back to sleep, eventually.

You bury your face in her hair and inhale her scent, and pretend that you aren't blinking your own tears away. You need to be strong for her.

It's a long while before sleep claims you.

- 女王之天命 -

In the morning, the only sign that anything's different at all is that Ahri is clingier than usual. She whines childishly when you try to rouse her and tries to drag both of you back to bed. As a serving naval officer, you too can appreciate the simple luxury of spending the day in bed, but duty calls, so reluctantly you abuse your superior height and strength to drag both you and Ahri out of bed, into the shower. Ahri's sleepy cuddling ends with a startled shout as she's drenched in cold water. Her indignant incoherent sputtering subsides once you strip her with businesslike efficiency and start scrubbing her down, and by the time you're done rinsing her, the water's warmed up and she's awake enough that she offers to help wash you in turn. Truth be told, when all's said and done, it would have been a lot faster for you to clean yourself, but you can sacrifice some time for Ahri's happiness; she's a lot gentler, more languid in her movements, and she keeps blushing and giggling happily as she washes you.

At the breakfast table she manages to eat a piece of toast and jam for breakfast, though she spends more time staring in horror at your plate than she does eating.

"You eat that much?" she gasps. You look down at your plate in confusion. Eggs sunny side up, bacon, steak, sausages, toast, baked beans, hash browns, fried tomatoes, orange juice, black coffee with a dash of salt in it - it's a perfectly ordinary navy breakfast. You tell her as much.

For some reason, she seems unnerved by the amount of food on your plate, and by how you demolish your breakfast faster than she eats her slice of toast. You manage to coax her to have a bit of your eggs and bacon. A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step; your journey to get Ahri to eat better begins with a single bite of bacon.

Once breakfast is done, you check up on her homework reading for the day, give her a goodbye kiss, and head out to take care of your business.

Your morning is full and busy, but the upside is that you manage to keep wasted time to a minimum: the Navy's unofficial motto may be "Hurry up and wait", but Vice Admirals get to wait less - especially Vice Admirals who're Imperial Princesses and the protege of Commander Fleet Operations. You sort out the running of your fleet, prepare to handover, and take care of all the paperwork that needs your signoff. In between all of that, you manage to message your mother and Uncle Johnny, asking for advice on dealing with Ahri. You're discreet, of course, keeping Ahri's name out of it, crouching the request in generalities and half truths. Mummy's reply is fairly non-committal, just a note that she'll think on it and come back to you later. Uncle Johnny's reply is slightly more helpful.

She civ isit

You roll your eyes at his typing, and reply back. Yes. Was it that obvious?

eh if she navy.you wouldnt ssk for ky help la
like you see the thongs on the holo snd you just like
dont do it ok
ike y dont just ssk them if they okaymsll thhe goddamn time its super snnyoing like walau dun hav berrernthings to do isit
just be ere for them sndndont tskl too much
gib ice cresm its tood, lostsa icecresm
That's it for now, I'll provide you with more advice later.
Remember, be there for them, be supportive, provide hugs and handholding if necessary, I will think about it and come back to you in a while with regard to the eating and sleeping issues - I assume that you want to keep this on the downlow and don't want to involve any medical professionals in this matter, for now. It would be remiss of me not to point out to you that with a condition like this, professional medical help will be an inevitable requirement, sooner or later, for treatment of both physiological and psychiatric symptoms.

His typing improved quite dramatically there, towards the end. He probably gave his phone to his adjutant and dictated; you'd know, he's done it with you before, plenty of times.

You'll be meeting Ahri in a few hours. You really should take this time to decide on your reaction to her progress, and your involvement in her life.

What is your approach in giving Ahri feedback?

[ ] Encouraging. She's making good progress, keep at it!
[ ] Measured. She's made some improvements, but she still has a long way to go.
[ ] Harsh. This isn't good enough. She has to buck up and unfuck herself.
[ ] Siscon. Everything Ahri does is correct. Even the mistakes.

Moving forward, how involved are you going to be in Ahri's life and education?

[ ] Hands off. Her tutors will take care of her education, and Ahri will take care of her life. You'll keep your independence to operate as you see fit.
[ ] Present. You can play a role in her education and life, to a reasonable extent. You're giving up a certain degree of independence, but you're not completely chained to Ahri.
[ ] Involved. You'll effectively be Ahri's surrogate parent, directly overseeing her education and life. You're giving up a good amount of independence, anchoring yourself to nurture Ahri.
[ ] Helicopter. You will never leave the palace. Ever.

Mandat de l'impératrice des Cieux - Imperial Princess Troubleshooter Space Opera Quest

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