"Absolutely not," Solae replied immediately without a moment of hesitation or consideration. While she understood the motivations behind his request she had no illusions about what her conscience would demand. She could not so much as imagine a scenario in which she would willingly flee an injured Rene to save herself. It was selfish and greedy of her not to consider all the people that relied on her warning to the empire, the only action that might halt Duke Tan's violent coup, but there were sacrifices she was incapable of making. Only if her paramour was dead did she have a chance to convince herself to abandon his body for the greater good- assuming she was not overcome with paralyzing emotions. She had lost so much in the past couple weeks that to risk the person that meant the most to her out of everyone was asking too much. Her parents were murdered, her colleagues killed, her closest friend had bled out in front of her eyes, and even a former boyfriend had been dragged from his home before undoubtedly being slaughtered.

"Could you do the same?" she asked him knowing what his answer would be. "What if they do not recognize who I am? What if I was wounded, crawling on the ground, and your only chance at survival was to leave? In the chaos it's possible that either one of us could be hit by a stray bullet... but we are doing this together or not at all. Didn't your battalion have a code about not leaving a soldier behind?"

Without waiting for his rebuttal she turned and walked to the jeep that Ten had given them and climbed into the passenger side. Wearing the armor felt strange. It was not as bulky nor heavy as she had anticipated, but so much of women's fashion incorporated skirts, loose blouses, or exposed skin, that the way the stocking and ceramic armor fitted was bizarre. Many ex-military ladies preferred suits if and when they were discharged. She was beginning to empathize with why- it was a least a step closer to what they had become so accustomed over years of service.

"I'll be sending the message you composed on the [i]Bonaventure[/i] for your father," she confirmed once he had joined her in the vehicle. It was one of the topics they spoken very little of since in the last few days. The marquise remained convinced the missive to someone personally invested in their predicament was the best course of action. By virtue of using Rene's family to alert the empress they would also elevate his standing. Whomever was their messenger, so long as they were loyal and took the threat seriously, would be praised so long as the empire did not itself crumble. In light of the revelation about the senior du Quentain there was no one she through more trustworthy or deserving.

"I do have a condition," she insisted solemnly.

The diplomat waited until her lover's full attention was on her. She coyly smiled as he stared on apprehensively and then declared, "After we reach the PEA, send out our warning, and retreat, I want you to put on that suit again. I feel like I haven't had a chance to truly appreciate it," she said with feigned despair. "Of course I still have ambitions to see you in your dress uniform but that is unavailable. Ten has assured me that he will turn us over all the clothing that we've already worn," she added with a mischievous dance in her eyes. She'd let him surmise when she decided this was a matter of paramount importance to discuss.

"It's better for morale to have something to look forward to," she reasoned as she sank back into her seat, unapologetic about her plans for the 'after party' for two. "I may have also arranged for a certain amount of chocolate to be packed in our crates of supplies for when we have to depart Zatis. We won't be able to stay here for too much longer. Still, there's no reason we can't take advantage of our host's hospitality."