Sophia smiled, she'd already gotten one of the items on her wish list. "I'll be transferring command of the group to the Edward Truden, do see that a discreet transport is arranged for me. I do believe that they're due for some manner of resupply, thus I'll make my way over then." Hours later the Vice Admiral was aboard Edward Truden; if the Achkaerinese were going to be making a visit it presented an opportunity to speak face-to-face on some concerns that would best be discussed in such a setting. Naturally an apology was to be owed, however, the circumstances at hand required a bit of ruffling to draw attention away from the primary reason she was not presently back home.
Once she had been informed that the mission of Hunting Girl had been completed she relayed the necessary orders to effect their withdrawal from the region. Despite calls for violence against Rokkenjimans by Ramose, the time spent in Clysperis by the Rokkenjimans was rather uneventful, aside from one misguided youth throwing rocks at a Rokkenjiman sailor. Once he was subdued into Clysperi custody the appetite of the crowd for further acts of violence seemed to diminish greatly, granting Forrester the chance to take pictures of the Pyramids, the Great Sphinx, and she enjoyed sampling the dishes Akasha had to offer for her guests. It wouldn't be a visit to change the entire course of their relations, but that they'd been so well received spoke toward the path of normalization which the Pharaoh had pledged her Kingdom toward.
"Let's make sure our intentions are clear," Sophia said as they reached the understood point for this "stop and search". "We'll follow the protocol we've seen in the Illumic," she continued, ordering Edward Truden's guns aimed so that they'd be wholly targeted away from any approaching Achkaerinese vessels or territory, "be prepared to strike the colours as well," she said, knowing there were a couple newer faces on the bridge. "But...why?" one would ask, which prompted Sophia to give her best Picard impression its time in the spotlight, "In case we decide to surrender to them, Number One," which prompted chuckles amongst those more well versed in Sophia's brand of humour. "In all seriousness we've inconvenienced them quite a bit," she continued, "best to let them know just why it was necessary. Have some fresh tea ready, will you?"
In some way the concerns of INIS were secondary to her; prior to Kado guiding her to opening her eyes she never would have doubted Rowe's sense of duty to the First Empire as it appeared most unshakeable. Now that she had found herself in the unenviable position of being his greatest adversary in the Imperial Rokkenjiman Armed Forces, she had to relay her concerns, perhaps find some reassuring that she wasn't witnessing something that wasn't truly there, and that friends abroad would know how to differentiate renegades from those whose loyalty remained steadfast with the Empress and Empire if the worst should transpire at some point in the future. Intelligence gathering was one part of the mission and, with that seemingly accomplished, she could focus fully upon her personal part in this, indeed, the very reason she offered no resistance to the plan in the first place.
