Lonnie strode through the still largely unfilled offices of the Horde's new Department of Foreign Diplomacy. What few personnel there were busied themselves carrying stacks of paperwork from one file to the next, clearly trying to get the freshly formed divisions files organized to their directors specifications. Several of Lonnie's new subordinates had told her of just how strictly the previous second in command -who frankly, had been the divisions leader in all but title- had enforced her filing system. Honestly Lonnie was grateful, that attention to detail had made it quite easy for her to get situated in her new role.

Everyone was so wrapped up in their duty that no one seemed to notice her as she made her to the desk of Shakra's assistant, the elf Romeo who was himself busy typing up a report on his holopad. Lonnie announced herself by knocking on his desk causing him to lazily look up from his task.

"I'm sorry but we're ver...Force Captain Lonnie! what a pleasant surprise, what can we do for you?" By the time he'd finished, he managed to put what was clearly meant to be a pleasing smile on his admittedly handsome features. But the look in his eyes betrayed the sense of unease Lonnie's presence was actually causing him.

"Is Director Shakra in?" She already knew the answer to that, she'd had someone keeping an eye on the old woman since she'd decided to have this little chat. "I need to have a word with her, one department leader to another" She made sure to keep her tone even, it wouldn't help her to be confrontational so early.

His eyes widened a bit in surprise but the appeasing smile never left his face. "Well she's in yes, but she's going over some paperwork at the moment. I'll see if she has a moment" With that, the elf rose walked to the main office door, opened it with a knock then entered. After a brief exchange Lonnie couldn't make out, he emerged & held the door open.

"She'd be happy to see you" He said, that nervous look still on his face.

"Thanks" she said simply before entering the office, closing the door behind her. There, sitting at her desk behind a moderately sized stack of files, was Shakra Blackstar. The source of so much of the change going on in the Fright Zone. If she shared any of her secretary's nervousness, she did a much better job of hiding it.

"Force Captain Lonnie, welcome to the Department of Foreign Diplomacy. Please pull up a seat" The older woman gestured to a series of folding chairs in the corner, :onnie took one & set it up across from her host. "I've been meaning to congratulate you on your new role as the head of intelligence. May you find your time there as enjoyable as i did mine."

"Thank you." she replied in as warm a voice as she could muster. "And i'm sure it must be nice to be the official leader of your own department" she let a breif pause sit before continuing "Though from what I've been told, you actually have a bit of experience running your division...just not officially."

A smile grew on the directors face. "Despite what you may have heard, Force Captain Mantenna & i came to a mutual agreement on how to divide our shared workload." she said in a tone that was clearly trying to sound humble. "Though i must confess it's nice not to have to track down my commanding officer every time i need a form signed. Aside from the odd blue flash on my monitor every now & then which the tech people can't seem to get rid of, it's been a pleasant upgrade."

"Yeah i'm having that same issue, they think it's something Entrapta put in"

Lonnie was sure to examine the elderly woman from the moment she walked in. For the first time the friendly smile on her face left, not just left but vanished. In its place was a look of utter disdain. Her good hand, already gripping the opposite elbow, tightened its grip to the point of her knuckles turning white. She inhaled sharply though her nose before practically hissing "Is there no end to that woman's treachery?" The question was so low, Lonnie wasn't sure Shakra wasn't speaking to herself.

"Don't worry about it" she said overcome by a sudden urge to calm the veteran Hordesmen "They insist they'll get it out eventually and as for the traitor...Adora swears she'll get what's coming to her"

Her words seemed to have the intended effect. "One can only hope". With that, the Horde's sole envoy buried her head into her hands to calm herself.

Lonnie took the chance to scan the office for anything suspicious only to find almost an exact replica of her own headquarters. Same simple desk, same monitor & Keyboard, same large file-cabinet. Only one thing stood out. "Nice map" she said before she could stop herself.

Shakra let loose a confused "Mmm" before following her eyes to the map in question. A massive thing detailing Etheria's sole continent, with certain nations marked with either a checkmark or an X "Oh, thank you" the chief diplomat said putting a somewhat strained grin back on her face "Lord Adora thought it would help me keep track of my progress."

Lonnie could see that, a second look confirmed that the checks were over the nations Shakra had already visited & had come to terms with but the others...

"And why the X's?"

"Nations with whom i feel an agreement cannot be made" The former spy said with a somewhat regrettable tone. As Lonnie peered closer at the two nations marked as such, the ambassadors meaning became clear. First of the pair was Dryl, home to the traitor Entrapta. The woman who had been brought into the Fright Zone, into the inner circle of Lord Hordak himself after her fellow Princesses has left her to die, only to go running back at her first opportunity. Of course there could be no talk of peace with such a dishonorable bitch. More curious at first was the second X which was actually positioned over the southern ocean with a line connecting it to the Fright Zones' vast coastline. It took a moment before Lonnie realized what that symbolized.

"Halfmoon"

"Yes, regrettably since the late Force Captain Tara inadvertently destroyed the remains of their cultural hero Saz, they've made clear any negotiations would be a waste of time." Shakra informed her. Lonnie remembered people speaking of Force Captain Tara. How her unit had destroyed a site of great importance to the Magicats while attacking an entrenched position. The Magicats had gone mad with rage & over time had hunted the Tara's squad until like animals until she had been the only one left. It had taken such a toll on the woman she had committed suicide only two weeks after receiving her promotion. Suicide was one of the most dishonorable things a Hordesmen could ever do -it meant permanently throwing away any chance of ever contributing to the Horde- & technically it meant that she should've been forgotten entirely but the Horde's thriving rumormill meant she stayed alive as a cautionary tale.

"So" Lonnie snapped out of her thoughts at the sudden interruption. "How may i be of service?" Lonnie was just noticing that the woman's Perfect Speech had the hint of an accent to it.

"I've been going over your file and i wanted to ask a few questions about this...bold plan of yours" Lonnie saw no reason to lie. Her intentions would become clear in time anyway.

"Ask away" Her predecessor said with a tone & look that Lonnie could feel was meant to signal "i have nothing to hide"

"We'll see about that". She thought to herself. "So one thing i notice is despite being in the intelligence division, you were known to make repeated criticisms on how Lord Hordak directed the war effort. Care to explain why you felt the need to do that?" May as well start strong, get her off balance.

And the former intelligence operative did look taken aback, but she managed to summon an answer. "With respect, that description is a bit overblown. Over the years i've become rather close to Force Captain Grizzlor & he would occasionally update me on the happenings at the front." Shakra adopted a somewhat bashful expression "My time as a soldier may have ended a long time ago but i still like to know how things are going. Regardless, over time i noticed that a recurring theme was that Plumeria was by far the easiest Runestone Kingdom to gain ground in. My suggestion was merely that since they were offering literally no resistance, it made the most sense to focus on defeating them before moving on to more...tenacious opponents."

Lonnie could see the sense of that, Between their historical refusal to form an army & Perfuma's refusal to perform her duty, both the Horde AND the Rebellion held more of her kingdom than she did. If it wasn't for Catra turning traitor they would have conquered the plant-lovers already. Still sensible as the plan sounded Lonnie found something a bit off. "Still for an intelligence officer to be commenting on military matters seems a bit...odd to me."

"I concede i may have....overstepped my bounds" The old woman sounded just a bit ashamed "but i meant no disrespect, i was merely suggesting an idea i thought would be beneficial to the Horde."

Once again, her words sounded sincere but Lonnie still had her doubts. Still, perhaps a change of direction would help her get to the bottom of this.

"I also noticed that your idea for negotiating with the Crownless goes back a long time. Might i ask how you came up with that?"

Shakra seemed to take a moment to decide how to answer. "Do you enjoy studying history Force Captain?"

"Where did that come from?" "I find it interesting subject sure"

"Well one thing i'm sure you noticed" the ambassador broke in "is just how frequently the Crownless end up suffering when the Princesses lose control. Princess Kaneme literally melted Dryl & Phlax both, Salineas steals every traderoute they've ever found. Centuries of such abuse has lead to a natural feeling of resentment among the Crownless which -along with Lord Hordak's lack of interest in attacking them- made them seem like natural allies against the Princesses."

"Except Adora claims that your current plan includes peace with the Princesses. Why the change after all this time."

A look of discomfort passed over the slightly wrinkled face of her host. "My first instinct was to leave them out of it. Simply shore up as much Crownless support as possible & then continue the campaign against the Princesses with full force. But as i discussed the details of my idea with my friends in the army high command, it became clear that the rash of defections made even that unworkable. Even without idiots like Vultak & Storm trying to effectively declare independence, we still wouldn't have enough manpower to maintain the offensive against the Runestone Kingdoms. The only way to bring us back up to a sufficient level of strength is to cease all hostilities for a time & allow ourselves to rebuild."

Lonnie knew all too well how depleted the Horde had become. Between Vultak declaring his own personal fiefdom near Halfmoon, Storm trying to conquer Halfmoon for himself & all the other smaller groups that had run to the Rebels hoping to barging for mercy -sometimes with stolen equipment as leverage- well. Kyle's disciplinary officers had done wonders & the people had brought back from the Crimson Waste were helping where they could but the were still feeling the effects of losing so many highly trained officers & soldiers.Once again Lonnie had to admit she could see the logic of the plan even f the plan made her feel more than a bit uneasy.

It was time to get to the heart of the matter. "If i haven't taken too much time i have one final item i'd like to ask you about."

"Lord Adora only gave me permission to do light paperwork today so i have plenty of time," came the kindly reply.

"Yeah well speaking of Adora, you & she brought back a rather special guest from your joint trip north."

For all of an instant Shakra actually went pale but she recovered quickly enough. "Ah yes the Spirit Ember, what of it?'

"I'm just curious as too how much you knew going in." This was it.

"I'm sorry but i knew nothing. I didn't know Lord Adora would be joining me until she told us all in the hanger. And as for the Spirit Ember, i thought it a mere myth until she pulled up with it in the skiff with her."

Something about how the old woman said that, the sheer genuine disbelief of what she was recounting, struck Lonnie to the core.

"That may be" was her voice shaking? "but you're smart enough to know what it is right? You-you realize it's a Runestone and that Adora is a-a..." why was her mouth so dry? "A-Adora is a P-princess. You understand that right?" She hadn't realized how panicked she'd sounded until after the words had left her mouth.

"I...understand that yes" Shakra suddenly seemed rather concerned. She opened her mouth to say something else but Lonnie cut her off.

"And that doesn't bother you? The Horde is being lead by a Princess and you're just OK with that?"

"I spent the first twenty odd years of my life living under a Runestone Princess" Shakra began slowly. "And while i never thought i'd end up serving one again, i find there's a faint..." she was searching for the word "familiarity to it."

"And that's a good thing? I mean do correct me if i'm wrong but you took part in a revolution against your last Princess" she didn't mean to snap but she was struggling to get her emotions under control & anger was a comforting one at the moment.

"Well actually Force Captain...you kind of are wrong." Shakra replied somewhat nervously.

".....What?"

"Well you see, the revolution in the Fright Zone was more against the nobility in general, not against the royal family. In truth, the last king -Unita- & the last Princess -Halandra- were actually quite popular in certain circles due to their genuine, if ineffective, attempts to improve things for the people. It's just...it's just that the Kingdoms problems had gotten too big for one family to fix meaning it fell to the common people to make changes for ourselves. I mean...Lord Hordak & King Unita actually worked together for a time until they had their....falling out."

They sat in silence for a few moments. Shakra didn't seem to know what to say next while Lonnie had so much she wanted to say she couldn't decide what to say next. Deciding this meeting had run its course, Lonnie stood abruptly.

'Well i think i've taken enough of your time. I think i'll be going."

Her sudden announcement had clearly caught Shakra off guard & the director looked at her with...sympathy? pity? Whatever it was Lonnie didn't like it. "Allow me to walk you out" She rose, extended her cane & escorted Lonnie to the door. Before she opened it however she turned & addressed Lonnie one final time.

"Force Captain, i hope you realize that if you need anyone to talk to about how the division operates or...anything else for that matter, you can always come talk to me. After all, what's the point of all this experience if i don't use it to help the younger generation." She flashed a smile but that look from before was still in her eyes.

Lonnie hesitated for a bit before saying simply "I'll think about it."

With that, Shakra opened the door letting Lonnie leave without issue. Lonnie needed to get to her office. Needed to be alone to think about...about everything she'd heard today. She wasn't sure she trusted Shakra Blackstar but she didn't have anything to hold against her either. Lonnie would be sure to keep an eye on her going forward.

And maybe another talk wouldn't hurt.