The former marquise, now duchess, was seated at the desk in the otherwise vacant suite that had been set aside for hers and Rene's use. Her long hair had been piled atop her head and loosely and pinned into place with a variety of decorative butterfly barrettes that briefly gave the illusion of the flaxen-haired beauty being a princess of the forest rather than an aristocrat on a seedy criminal world. Solae's dress was a flowing gossamer gown tied at the waist but allowing a free range of movement. One hand was on a screen set into the table while the other was poised on another attached to the wall. The topic of research was obscured by records scrolling by in a language foreign to all present except the diplomat herself.

"You should be resting!" she objected as she heard the wheelchair enter the room. The sound had made her jump to her feet not in alarm, as she knew she was safe within the walls of the fortified dwelling, but because she was outraged at this apparent lack of concern for her fiance's health. "You should have sent word you were awake and stayed with the doctor," she clarified, not wanting to sound ungrateful or annoyed by her paramour's presence, "until she confirms you ought to be out and about."

"I think he deserves to know what you've been planning," Ten replied casually with a slight hint of disapproval peeking through his more reserved demeanor.

"No need to be so sensationalist," she said with a good-natured roll of the eyes as she gestured for Rene to be wheeled to the desk. Despite the apparent disagreement between the illicit broker and linguist, their words belied a level of respect, one that had developed naturally during their time spent on Zatis. Solae appreciated the risk that Ten took in forming an allegiance with them and throwing his weight behind the loyalists, however quietly, because he was not obligated to offer any assistance. Ten admired (though he would not admit it aloud) that Solae was incorruptible in an age when everyone else he knew could be convinced to abandon their morals with the correct incentive. Someone as fastidiously loyal as the couple was exceedingly rare.

"It occurred to me that our ship had a crew of four originally and it can support more than you and I," the duchess explained as she motioned to the foreign text. Realizing it was indecipherable to her audience she called up a schematic of the [i]Bonaventure[/i] and pointed to the unoccupied crew's quarters. She and Rene had cleaned the room out briefly but otherwise not been using it even for storage. There were four beds within if memory served, and though it was tight quarters to be comfortable for month-long journeys, it was a decent enough accommodation if one had free reign of the rest of the vessel.

"Specifically she was hoping to procure additional members of an entourage," Ten remarked dryly.

"I don't want to see Rene more hurt than necessary, and it's madness not to attempt to recruit a few more individuals that could help guarantee our survival," she said, more trying to convince the older mastermind than her beau herself, but she quickly returned her gaze back to the latter. "I have every right, as a duchess, to have more than one bodyguard. If we can find a couple trustworthy souls to protect us we won't be in as much danger as we were at the embassy. Just two more would significantly strengthen us."

"You're leaving out the critical information, my dear," Ten said as he crossed his arms.

"I want to recruit a couple Syshin," Solae said without apology for the extremely unconventional notion. Syshin were relegated to the role of labourers only; it was unheard of for them to do anything more elevated than being a domestic servant at the highest rank. To provide them armor and weaponry would be madness for anyone else. Almost every human in the empire thought the subjugated race was not intelligent enough, not capable enough, and would lash out at their superiors given the opportunity to do so. That Solae spoke to them so kindly was a breach of etiquette. There was no law forbidding the duchess- especially with her station- in appointing whomever she chose for her security detail, but it would raise the brows of the most liberal minds.

"Duke Tan would never try to appeal to them," she elaborated, "and that makes them inherently a better choice than a man or woman whom he'd have the means to persuade to join the coup. He'll try to kill them certainly, but he wouldn't lower himself to bribe a slave, what he thinks is slightly better than a beast. They'll listen to you, Rene," she promised, "and be eager to follow any training you give them. It's a rare chance to show the Stellar Empire that they are worthy of more rights. Additionally," she added, her eyes drifting to Ten, "we could more easily appeal to other races if we can prove we are open-minded when it comes to allies."

"If you'd consider a human rather than a Syshin I could provide recommendations," Ten suggested. "Not my best men, as I need them for myself, but men that would follow you and not be Syshin."

"I've been looking through the records of the Syshin already here on Zatis to try to determine the best candidates, and from that pool who we'd need to... liberate," she said as she pressed a few keys to make the text display in a common tongue. Besides the Syshin brothels there were also a few fighting rings for the visitors that got their figurative jollies from watching violent battles, a couple factories that utilized them for raw strength and endurance, and a few owners that 'rented' them for a variety of tasks that were 'beneath' an imperial citizen.