Blackout
The Meeting
Raia and Smough tense as Lexianna enters. Her similar appearance to Hands puts them on edge. They both come to the same conclusion but keep their questions in the back of their mind. 

"I'l start by saying that things here in the south are going exceptionally well since Shadow purged the corrupt officials. There are still raiders and defectors who fled into the forests but incidents with them are fewer each day. Things are going well." Karnariel states. 

"West point is doing well now that the bloodmen stronghold has been toppled. The kidnapping and slave trade is new and still very small. My contacts in the capital say that about upwards of fifty Son Kai men, women, and children are being smuggled to nobles in the capital."
"I still don't believe you. Do you have proof aside from these so called contacts I'm supposed to believe you have?"
"You can see for yourself. You do ride the Eternal Wolf." Karnariel replies. Raia looks around the table. Chron is instantly there. Raia reaches up, placing a hand on him, and vanishes. She reappears seconds later both livid and mildly embarrassed. 
"It's true." She says quietly. It took every ounce of self control to not kill the posh noblemen who have stolen her people. She knows that would only tip off the slavers. She mulls over her options as Karnariel continues. 

"I won't talk of East Point. We all know the outcome of that." Everyone casts an accusatory eye at Baruss. 

"The north is mostly okay. The real problem stems from Valkyrie herself." Karnariel says. 
"Yes, she's very... zealous in her duties." Smough chimes in. He and Sia have been chatting in pirate code involving simple gestures and seemingly insignificant movements and actions. The conversation has mostly been about booze.

"Most of the people freed from the Bastille were sent there by her. It's not a far stretch to say she's a fanatical follower of the father. She turned her back on everything she knew for his ambition."

"As for the mainland... it's hard to say. I haven't been but my agents say it's an eerie sort of tranquil. No one will talk. No dissidents. The city guard and soldiers are well behaved. But every agent seems to... change. Their messages go from suspicion to acceptance far too quickly. But they do still report. I don't know what to make of it."
"Could it be The Commander? I don't know much about them." Jalen asks. 
"No one does. She's an enigma raised after our coup and given the capital by the father. We can tell she is female. But that's about it. No one has seen her outside of her armor and any attempt to see her appearance has proved fruitless." Shadow elaborates. 
"The armor. It masks her from being seen." Baruss announces. 
"Really." Raia answers sarcastically. 
"In more ways than you realize. I have knowledge. An analysis report from mother. May I? Baruss asks Lexianna who nods. The light Lexianna placed at the table moves over and a holographic representation of the information takes its place. Baruss reads. 

Subject's armor is of normal construction. Steel and leather. Chain mail protected joints. Padded inner lining. 

After acquiring [redacted] a secondary analysis of the armour has revealed paracausal properties. Hypothesis: [redacted] must be an ontological shaper of extreme potency. 

Hypothesis: Bearer of the armor: Lord Commander, is unable to be identified while wearing the aforementioned protection. 

Note: due to lack of tested variables regarding [redacted] it is unclear as to the armour's true potential. Exercise caution when interacting with subject: Lord Commander. 

The file ends and vanishes. 

"That's all mother had to say." Baruss finishes. 
"That sounded like a human report. I thought your mother was the- what was it? Prime Mind?" Karnariel asks. 
"Yes. It was from before her accident." Baruss answers.