Trebar awoke to an unfamiliar sight. It wasn't unfamiliar because he hadn't seen it before, it was unfamiliar because he didn't normally see it the first time his eyes opened for the day. Did he like it? He couldn't yet say. The sight definitely had its ups and downs, it was just a matter of getting used to it. Surely he would come to recognize it to be just as integral to his wakeup routine as he had the ceiling. These thoughts would never be spoken aloud though, not after Diana's rant. 

She had told him to be honest with the woman laying beside him, to make his thoughts clear, but maybe some things really shouldn't leave his mouth. He trusted that Zhoie would not take offense to it, but it felt redundant. 'I'm still trying to get used to sleeping in the same bed as you.' Yeah, both of them knew that already. They had been talking about it in private when possible, why bring it up again? 

Of greater importance was what figuring out what he should do in this situation. Trebar had a few mornings of experience, but he couldn't say with any degree of certainty if he actually had an answer for that. A kiss? A hug? Maybe caressing her head? Did she want him to massage her shoulder? Maybe he should get a little bit more intimate and put his hand on her waist or posterior?

Trebar was finding a renewed sense of respect for Donovan. How the hell did he do this? Surely he did it in such a way that pleased Diana, right? Why would Diana appear so happy every morning if it wasn't for his influence? Did they just have that much synergy? Did he and Zhoie lack synergy? He would rather not consider it, deciding instead to do what he had done yesterday. He shuffled close to her without disturbing the bed until their noses were almost touching. 

This position felt comforting to him, odd though it was have his breath interfered with by hers. It had the added benefit of him being able to look directly into her eyes when she woke up, something he hoped was considered more along the lines of flattery than creepy. It had been made clear to him that he did not adequately understand how to express his affection. 

". . . what do I do?" Little whispers under his breath. Unless she was awake, nobody would hear him. "What do you want me to do? What do you want?"

Was he reciting his lines? Practicing the questions he wanted to ask her? Or was he trying to get an answer out of himself? Trying to figure out what he needed? He didn't know.

"I know we are trying to be more intimate, but how? What are you okay with? Is it children you want? A family?"

He closed his eyes and let the questions burn themselves out. He wouldn't claim they could afford to wait forever, but a few more minutes in bed together would not hurt. If push came to shove, they would just have to be late. 

"Grmmm." Zhoie stirred, a hand making its way towards her eyes to rub them open. "MrmMMmm."

"Good morning."

"Hmm."

Zhoie moved her head forward, eyes still closed, fishing for affection. She had been riding something of a high over the past week and a half, finally being given the attention she craved. He had no intentions of cutting her off from that, but he had to wonder if it was going to hurt their performance somehow. Pulling her close, he planted a light kiss on her forehead. Trebar wasn't going to crane his neck down to get to her lips, not when their heads were on the pillows.

Zhoie sighed contentedly, taking the kiss as his permission for her to get even closer to him. Something else he had notices was how cold women seemed to get. He had always assumed that Zhoie wore less revealing clothing out of either a sense of modesty or because they provided an advantage in combat, but now he was fairly certain she wore them to keep warm. He wasn't going to complain though, it was an easy form of relief for him to provide. 

"Did you sleep well?"

"Mmm!"

Had someone approached Trebar two weeks ago and suggested that Zhoie would act like this, he would have been tempted to knock them out. Now he would be surprised if she returned to her old cold self. She was competitive, that seemed to be a core aspect of her character, but she wasn't nearly as distant anymore. Be it emotionally or physically, she was much closer. 

"We have conditioning with Donovan today."

"Mrrng."

Donovan seemed to make it a priority not to overwork them like he did his subordinates. It was a sort of consideration for their relationship, one that Diana undoubtedly enforced. Trebar was jealous about that difference in treatment (he desperately wanted to know what a real workout was) but he understood that he had work to do and an image to uphold. He could not afford to be debilitated from exhaustion, nor could he be seen as weak to others.

The same could not be said of Zhoie. The only reason she participated was because Cholst would parade a victory over her should she stop. The day after the session was the problem for her, becoming so sore that she struggled to get out of bed. She would go about her day as if nothing was wrong - or at least she would try - so that Cholst couldn't claim a win in the game of endurance. 

"You don't have to go if you don't want to. Donovan won't care."

"Jolst." Her answer was all Trebar needed. She wasn't going to back down on this just because she was tired. "Mnggeeii?"

The covers suddenly being removed startled her, the warmth she had been enjoying replaced by a slight chill. Her tired surprise only furthered in intensity when Trebar lifted her up out of bed. 

"Pum-me down!"

Trebar rotated his body before letting her loose on her feet. He still supported her while she struggled to wake up, but he had made his decision to get a move on. If Zhoie really wanted to compete with Cholst, then he was going to make sure she did so.

"I believe Diana does not have class today. Would you like to have a talk with her?" Trebar did not dare to put a label on their relationship. They could be friends, acquaintances, or somewhere in between, all Trebar knew was that Diana could help Zhoie navigate whatever issues she might be having. 

"Mhm." Trebar hugged her from behind, avoiding putting his face in her hair. 

"Do you-" Trebar stopped himself before he could finish the question. Was this really the right time to talk about it? When she was still groggy and incoherent? "-nevermind."

"What?"

"No, it's nothing. We can talk about it later."

"Mkay." She leaned back into him, taking one last deep breath before swinging back forward to stand on her own. "Hueh, eh, mgmmm. Love you."

Zhoie rubbed her eyes as she stumbled towards the dresser. She had brought it from her room to keep her clothes in, and right now she was going through her own morning routine of getting a bath in. She would be taking three today, one in the morning, one after their exercise, and one before bed.

"I love you too."

- - - - -

How long had it been since the Montaug had visited the Theocracy's campus residence district? Ten years? Twenty years? Thirty? Was it when he graduated? It certainly had to have been sometime before he actually became the Montaug. He rarely ever left his assigned quarters, but things had changed since the arrival of the Terrans. Now he was frequently out and about, speaking with foreign powers in search of material, diplomatic, or naval capacity support for the operation to save the Nekh.

It had been mostly fruitless thus far, the primary reason for this being the secrecy involved. Many of the diplomats he spoke to made no attempt to disguise their suspicion that the Theocracy of all powers was asking for help with something. If they couldn't handle it, what help would they be able to provide? That isn't to say he had completely failed to find help. A few of the merchant companies the Theocracy maintained relationships with to cover discrete export operations had been receptive to the proposition even if they didn't give an immediate answer.

That shouldn't have been surprising in hindsight. Merchants were, by nature, motivated by profit. These merchants in particular worked in the business of moving merchandise, they were practically specialists. Moving people around wasn't that much different. Even if the distance the Nekh needed to be moved across in a single trip promised to be prohibitive they would do it for the right price. If Montaug had to guess, their hesitancy was because they didn't know what they should be charging for it.

He didn't bother with knocking on the door, not only because it was already open but because nobody would question his presence here regardless. 

"Good morning gentlemen. Where might I find Trebar?"

"Probably in the dining hall at this point."

"If not that, then the bathing room."

"Thank you."

"Our pleasure, sir Montaug."

He dismissed them before they could perform gestures of respect. The Montaug was not owed such reverence, least of all for doing his job.

Now that he really thought about it, more had changed than just the frequency of his interactions with foreign powers, not all of it to do with the Terrans. Radio reports had become far more frequent, ridiculously more frequent. There were status reports on the Terran's new home (a planet which they had annoyingly not given a name yet) as well as updates on the status of the kingdoms in their immediate surroundings, but the information he was more interested in was related to the uptick in civil unrest. 

The general public seemed to understand that the government was searching for opportunities for them, the plight of the Nekh had proven to be valuable there, but there was no way to resolve their desires without some form of large scale operation. If a natural crisis did not rear its head within the next few years, war was going to have to be an inevitability. A war for which they had already determined a target, another one of the great powers. Montaug had dutifully informed the Marshall of this so that he might share it with the other Grand Elders and the Arboreal Maiden. She definitely knew about it already, the Skwiven would not let such a noticeable development go unmentioned, but this information formally being revealed would open the door for her to offer them solutions.

"Is this something we can talk about in the open?" Trebar's words did not convey respect, but they weren't disrespectful either. This was fine, they held equal status internally and neither had any desire to get bogged down by formality.

"It should not matter." Montaug registered that Trebar was seated next to his betrothed, he just didn't comment on it. Business came first, though he might dedicate some time to speak about it afterwards. "In a few months most of the Theocracy will be aware of it, there is no reason to leave the men here out of the loop."

"Have a seat. Do you want something to drink?"

"I'm fine. I would rather get this over with quickly so I can get back to work."

"The Terrans?"

"The Terrans, though the focus this time around centers on the Nekh."

"Shouldn't you tell it to them directly then?"

"Visiting their barracks directly would be a bit of a problem, and I don't have Gawan to carry the message for me."

"So you came to me?"

"You are in frequent contact with them and I can excuse a meeting with you as part of my duties."

"Fair enough. What do I need to tell them?"

"We have made contact with the Nekh, and we have evacuated as many as we could safely stow on the ship. We are still in the process of finding the best route in concert with the Sanctum, but the process will start with our current path. One of the people we have evacuated has made it clear that she wishes to serve as Princess Strapper's maid while at the academy, so she shall be brought back to the Sanctum alongside Gawan and Bishop Kayes."

"Kayes is coming here?"

"Yes. As it stands, he is the only one who has experienced what that planet is going through and knows what needs to be done. Kayes will be the person responsible for relaying that information to the Sanctum's assets." Montaug could feel a rare emotion in Trebar, excitement. "He will be here for some time, so you should be able to spend some time with your mentor. Don't let it interfere with your duties though, I shiver at what he might do to you should the army be out of line."

"Naturally, I'm just hoping I've improved enough to pose a threat."

"I'm sure you've matured well, Trebar."

"I won't know that until our swords cross."

Montaug did not know Trebar to be someone who craved combat, so this attitude of his seemed a little odd. Perhaps he was welcoming the chance to demonstrate his progress, those at the academy apparently lacked the ability to challenge him.

"Keep it to a minimum, please. He has a new student now."

"Name?"

"Cayzi. Much like you he was inducted a bit young, but I've heard he shows promise." Montaug hesitated for a second. "There is another matter."

"Hm? Is it important?"

"I suppose. I would ask you to keep this particular piece of information private . . ." Montaug shifted his eyes over to Zhoie, who closed her eyes and plugged her ears. ". . . we've got a lead on the Hunter."

The fork stopped just before entering Trebar's mouth, his expression morphing to one of extreme seriousness.

"Where."

"We haven't yet nailed him down, nor do I feel it smart to tell you the general location, but we are working on a trap." Trebar slowly put the fork back down on the plate. "You will be called upon when the time comes."

"Can I tell Cholst?"

"Only if you think he can hold himself back.'

The two men stared at each other in silence for a few seconds Trebar thinking while the Montaug patiently waited for a response. This was ultimately a decision that should be left to Trebar, even if it was in name alone he was the person in charge of this manhunt. The only reason more information was not provided to him was because he had not yet assumed the position in an official capacity. He had the title, but not the power.

"That would be a no."

"If you believe that to be best."

"Hoooo. Alright. That's soured my mood somewhat. I think it's prime time for me to head over there, so I will have to bid you adieu for today. Zhoie, let's go."

Montaug did not follow Trebar out. He didn't even say goodbye, only nodded and closed his eyes. As rowdy as this place was, it provided an excellent atmosphere for him to think. Thinking was something he needed to do a lot of these days.