[Private] Stable

"The former? Both. She's strong in the Wyrd, but there's ways to alter the passage of time with the Hedge," he explained, gesturing vaguely with the cigarette. The inquisitor blinked, hearing some of the frustration and fear creeping into a Wizened that had been surprised one too many times.

"The old monarchy cling to this place even in the echoes of dreams and the afterlife, where everyone's scurrying around in their imprint. They're going to die, or change, and it's going to cause everyone to turn in on themselves, so Uriel and Philicia are trying to take power from them." The topic was making him nervous, attention drifting to the growing shadows as if the Fall King could be listening.

"It's all supposedly cyclical and has happened before, where we're all stuck on a track that she can jump from point to point on the record. Or, you know, she's crazy." He took a deep drag.

"Her Keeper is an aspect of the Norns — a celestial wheel or a fate weaver. She's mentioned a- like a sort of purgatory she had to experience to tap that insight. It came at a cost. But she's not a Loyalist."

Solomon's expression darkened — he had checked. The Fairest was disturbed with whatever he had seen and was trying to articulate, but he had made his choice.

"The Chevaliers are starting to bleed into Tolltaker territory, and worse, without contract with the Wyrd. It tells me that the Freehold is seeking its vengeance without formality or measure and the idea of mercenary justice is just irrelevant." The red pinpoints rolled in the void of his eyes, exhaling smoke. Their Court was ramping up in a way he hadn't seen since the Civil War, and his connection with Wrath made him all too aware of it.  

"Rallying everyone under a common enemy that they can actively focus their energy on is a way to start. You mentioned that in the report."

The Fairest was quiet, burning through the second cigarette much faster than the first as the brand his Mantle hissed.

"I think we need to take a page from the Witch King and wield Fear as a weapon this time around to give civilians a sense of unity." It was callous, and blatant propaganda, but Solomon came from a time before it was a dirty word in times of war.

"She's amenable. I brought it up as an option. Our weakness is that our most charismatic member among the nobility is...Loki, I suppose." It was weird to think of him as the same rank now, given how long they had known each other. And the rise didn't come as a point of channeled control.

"All of us started as insular hunters and mercenaries part of the same band, and picked up our politics by osmosis and necessity. Uriel's the stereotype of the Reluctant Monarch, in the sense that she holds the position out of sheer devotion to the stability of our Freehold." He sighed, messaging a temple as he mulled why she was so stubborn about being direct in her position and beliefs.

"I don't know how to get her to get over her experience with the Iranian Revolution. But the- the public perception of her passivity with Spring's Monarch pulling the levers is messing with the Crown. It's like a calling that we're all ignoring. I'm not confident Loki will understand that it's just Summer messing with our heads to start a fire."

The Knight's brow pinched, before nodding. It was a weird concept, she was allowed to be flashing her obvious humour on the idea of Spring finding the inquisitor palatable.

"It means the Season might call for a change in leadership, Rose." He growled, expression ugly as shadows emphasized the disgust with the idea. "And though we're all the same rank with experience in leadership, I don't like what kind of cowboy nonsense comes from that sudden transition. We need more than just a university student touting modern theories of justice to keep everyone's opinions checked and on the rails."

Solomon blinked.

Sign me up...?

"Like a Squire's Oath?" He seemed more dumbfounded that she was floating direct service, that the comment on Spring's gifts almost flew right past him. But he was a detail oriented by nature, and actually laughed. The sound was dry and cracked, like he wasn't used to vocalizing humour or joy.

"You got the Sunset Prince. The Sunset Prince, to teach you outside their rules of engagement regarding supernatural emotional manipulation?"

Radio silence answered the first statement, even if it was made in jest. Even without Kai's empathy it was easy to determine that the Knight was uncomfortable, doubly so when he was well aware it wasn't professional to be flustered like this. He flip flopped between examining the dying filter between his fingers as he tried to gather his thoughts to trying the basics in encouraging his vassal that she had performed exceptionally, looking lost at what to say. A surface read would have just told her he was agitated rather than not knowing what to do with the sudden rush of positives.

"Good work."