"What's wrong?" Julia asked as she emerged from the communication center's rear emergency exit a few minutes after Solae had. Damaris skipped behind and let the thick alloy door close behind them. It hissed as it electronically sealed shut per standard protocol. The only way into governmental buildings were the disarmingly strong translucent doors, but they were required to have multiple exits for safety reasons, and thus any means of departing such a structure had mechanisms to ensure it was not misused. While they could see where the door that closed behind them was, there was no handle on the exterior, it possessed no visible lock, and it was manufactured to be airtight unless propped open.

"You're in danger," the marquise declared as she paced. The ground had been composed of broken seashells ground into a gravel-like texture, but most of it had been washed away by the typhoon, leaving a thick dense mud and scraggly bits of grass that had evaded the attention of landscaping. Very few people wandered around the back of the building and those that did probably cared little about appearances.

"In danger?" Julia asked with obvious confusion. "Please, tell me what is wrong. I'm sure there is something we can do to help-"

"No, no, you don't understand," Solae said shaking her head emphatically. Damaris, who was still behind her mother, was starting to look scared. The noblewoman inhaled sharpy, fought internally to gain some semblance of composure, and exhaled slowly. Frightening a young girl who ought not to be tangled up in the tragedy of a coup in the first place was paramount. "Let's go back to your home. I'll explain on the way," she promised diplomatically.

"Did you get what you needed then?" Julia asked. She was still concerned but, seeing as they were not somewhere private to discuss whatever sensitive matter troubled Solae, she recognized the need to relocate. Taking Damaris by the elbow she began to lead the way around the side of the communications center.

"Yes, thank you." More than anything Solae was glad something had gone to plan. They had been besieged by frustrating complications since New Concordia and this was a tangible victory. She'd need Mia's assistance and no small amount of time to analyze the data and look for clues and discernible patterns, but it was something she felt she could accomplish, something that played to her strengths rather than in spite of them. "Have you ever heard of Duke Alexis Tan?"

"I might have heard the name in passing, but I'm not really familiar with any dukes," Julia shrugged. They were cutting a path between abandoned storefronts as they progressed into more residential areas of the city. Most peasants didn't familiarize themselves with the aristocracy; there wasn't much of a point when no titled imperial would stoop so low as to mingle with the lower class. The only exception was if a lord or lady had a direct influence over their profession, their town, or a a situation in which they'd make a personal impact.

"He's..." Solae started, trying to find the best way to sanitize the news for Damaris's ears. Sooner or later the rebellion would spread to  Panopontus, and the imperial citizens would have tragedy strike for a second time as they watched the fleeting stability of governance torn apart, but so long as she was the messenger of poor news she wanted to soften the blow. "He's made a move to create his own empire."

"What does that mean?" Damaris asked curiously. They jumped over a small creek in someone's back yard that was overflowing on account of all the recent precipitation. Julia had paled and fallen silent as she let the gravity of the words sink in. Both fortunately and unfortunately Damaris was too innocent to understand they were talking for war- and what the implications of a war were.

"It means that on the planet Rene and I came here from, New Concordia, Duke Tan wants to be in charge rather than the empress," Solae replied delicately.

"But I like the empress!" Damaris proclaimed. The Stellar Empire had come a long way in gender equality, yet on rural planets the culture tended to do a backslide into more traditional, conservative, and archaic customs. She strongly suspected the support Damaris had for the empress was because of what a strong role model she was for youth on these more patriarchal outliers. It was hard not to idolize what appeared to be a beautiful, wealthy, shrewd, and confident leader that strove for justice.

"I do too," Solae said with a smile, "which is why I didn't want to help Duke Tan. We landed here on our way to go tell the empress what Duke Tan is trying to do. He knows he's in a lot of trouble if the empress finds out, so he's trying to stop Rene and I from finding a way to send her a message, and that's why I have to hide what I look like. Do you understand?"

"I think so," Damaris said with a sigh. "Do you think Duke Tan knows you are here?"

"Not yet, but he is trying to find us before we get to the empress," the marquise replied slowly. Damaris furrowed her brows in thought. It wasn't until they reached the small one-story home that was their destination that the silence was broken. Like any rambunctious adolescent, Damaris exclaimed with relief they were [i]finally[/i] home dramatically, as if they had been gone the entire day, and scampered off to her room. Solae similarly retreated to the guest bedroom but with an entirely different purpose in mind. With mounting paranoia she grabbed her transponder and tried to call for Rene. There was no response. Five, six, seven calls went unanswered which meant either he had lost his device, he was intentionally ignoring her for reasons unknown, or there was interference blocking his reception.

"Are you okay?" Julia inquired softly from the doorway. Solae picked up Rene's duffel bag and hauled it up onto the bed. She had no idea how he carried it so casually without being bothered by its weight; it was another testament to his strength and endurance that had had not made any complaints while shouldering it from where they had landed on the beach to here.

"They attacked everywhere at once. Rene's entire base was wiped out. He only survived because they didn't see him among the corpses. Everyone at the embassy I worked at died in front of my eyes and I ran but... everyone I knew was gone. They dragged people from their homes or murdered them outright. They put a bounty on my head, Julia, and are offering a reward if I'm captured alive. When we were at the center there was broadcast where they had found out about Rene, that we escaped together, and were calling us dangerous rebels. I need to find him. I changed the pictures they were using but there is still a chance he was recognized before I was able to..." she drifted off and her turned, meeting Julia's gaze. "You're safer without me, Julia. I can promise you I haven't hurt or killed anyone, and Rene only has defending us from criminals and killers, but I don't want anything to happen to you because you were seen with me."

"Solae..." Julia was at a loss. She believed that her guests were as virtuous as they proclaimed if only because they had saved her daughter and risked themselves to deliver her back to them, but had expected nothing in return. "Tychon probably took Rene to Vitger's for fuel. I can give you directions, but are you sure you should go alone? I can go by myself and find him for you."

"No, you stay here with Damaris. I'll find Rene and Tychon. If they come here without me let them know where I've gone, all right?" Julia's lips parted to voice another objection as the noblewoman opened the bag and withdrew a pistol. Solae grimaced and tucked it under her arm where it was partially concealed by her blouse before slipping the sack's strap over her opposite shoulder. It might be overkill to bring their small armory with her in addition to the supplies she had prepared, but she'd rather be overly cautious rather than under-equipped, the latter of which would be catastrophic. 

"Please be careful, Solae," Julia worried. Solae gave the aging mother a hug, patted her on the arm reassuringly, and left for Vitger's before her courage dissolved.