It was unusual to see all the other seats empty in this circular hall.

But despite that Damien was sat casually in his appointed chair, personal banner waving slightly due to a breeze from a ventilation duct that was surely positioned nearby. His honor guard were absent, unnecessary given Ramsey's voluntary and obsessive obligation towards internal security. And something nearing the magnitude of a ringleader dying aboard the Fort would amount to an irreparable stain on their self proclaimed unblemished record.

Waiting was boring, even if he possessed the patience needed to do it. An attempt was made to pass the time by watching heat radiate from a trolley containing food not far from his seat. When it sounded like footsteps were on an approach, Damien turned to face the main door. But he did spare a brief glance at the banners representing Harmony and Roanoke on the wall, conveniently positioned on either side of his. They were allies, or cronies, that interpretation was dictated by ones position on the LFR's own political spectrum.

Deeming it better to stand and greet Knight as an equal this time - Damien did just that. At least this way it would appeal to her military pride rather than unnerve her. Though that was likely his own fault given the deliberate positioning of his hand on her neck the last time, intended to send a message regarding the future of her involvement serving the cause. There would be no more cold feet and departures now.

In his head, he mused which of the two officers that were invited to attend this meeting would be the first to arrive and therefore more punctual.

A smile and shake of the head preceded an actual verbal response.

"Take a seat, feel free to grab something to eat if you're hungry. We're still waiting for the main event who no doubt got lost on her way here." With Belle having been first, Damien felt entitled to humorously comment on Knight's continued absence from this meeting. It was also an entirely plausible premise since it appeared that she spent little time aboard the Fort, content to stay aboard the ship unless absolutely required.

For his part, Damien was dressed formally. That usual and by now iconic white and red uniform that marked him out as the Commander. It was well made and had all the hallmarks of a movement that intended to do more than just engage in violence for the sake of it, giving a shape of things to come after if not outright disclose the goal of independence.

Once again he smiled, but this was a different sort of smile. A formality. "Commander." Damien supplied a correction when she announced him in civilian fashion. Perhaps she needed to be reminded that was no mere armed dissident, but for now he was willing to settle for merely pointing out that her choice of title was perceived as a slight.

"There's food if you're hungry. We have access to real eggs here, courtesy of the Freeport." He had tried inquiring with the Harmony's radio officer how the "Admiral" liked her eggs but they were simply too baffled by the fact produce of this sort was available here at all and therefore neglected to answer. She would have to settle for the chef's choice this time unless intending to clarify at some point.

With things now well and truly underway, Damien seized control of the conversation and directed it towards the intended purpose. This of course meant that pleasantries besides those he already offered were being left at the wayside so as to not prolong this already fairly awkward arrangement more than necessary. "Right, I think the way to make this simple is for you to tell me where your knowledge of current affairs ends. That way I'll fill in the blanks all the way up to the present day." This obviously spared him the trouble of having to consider what Knight might already have heard about or seen.

A brief smile presented itself before he addressed the comment about ranks. "No. The other groups have their own structures and unique designations. I'd considered a revision myself, but I'd only really see that as necessary if you were to decide to integrate your vessel into the Alliance. I don't expect you to be too eager about the prospect of giving up autonomy - perceived or otherwise. I know I wouldn't." He spoke quite casually about that whole affair, hinting at the differences in culture but also the fact that he was prepared to make changes to the entire structure of the Alliance if necessary. Evidently he was comfortable here despite the scale of the room, enough that he leaned back in his chair if only slightly and crossed one leg over the other. This was hardly surprising given that he had attended almost every single LFR assembly session since his first term as Commander.

"As for the chickens, I'm sure they have a creative solution. After all, you've been able to hold a warship and its crew together through exile. I don't think that by comparison getting birds to lay eggs consistently would be the hardest thing to do on the frontier of the old world." The old world, more a mindset now than a defined area. The epicenter of it was the Great Houses. And their respective struggles were in trying to circumvent problems of their own making while competing for power and prosperity. The hypothesized new world was intended to break this cycle and start fresh but that was still by all means a big dream.

For a moment Damien seemed to glance between the food spread out on the trolley and Knight. It was as if he was silently questioning if she really didn't want any of it, he almost seemed surprised. This look also conveyed a mixture of invitation and reassurance. She wasn't going to be judged for enjoying an actual meal as opposed to some artificially preserved slop. And in any case there were far more crucial metrics than might motivate Damien to be judgmental about his peer. "I'll do my best to keep things brief and just give you a running summary. You're already aware of a few things such as our conflict with the Technocracy."

What followed was a series of encapsulated events, confined to the bare minimum needed for Knight to grasp prior circumstances. The fact he never let his words grow heavy with excess explanation convey an implicit trust that Knight was intelligent enough to piece together what she was being given. From things as far flung as the slave revolt which occurred on Malta, Erie's sudden occupation, the mutiny, the new cardamine network based out of Ouray, the loss of Nome due to Kepler, and something that seemed oddly personal for him.

The Abrams incident.

This in turn clarified the Alliance's position on the conflict between the Order and the Technocrats, and placed the group decidedly in the Order's camp. They were simply the better choice for the future the LFR intended. Though something he neglected to detail but was still visible all the same was a change in his own behavior. It was a pleasant contrast to their first meeting that sought to negotiate her new allegiance and perhaps this was the most welcome change.

Damien noticed the glance cast in Belle's direction. And for a moment he appreciated the irony of the fact that he was in uniform while she wasn't. A few years ago the positions and mindsets were switched, at least somewhat. It seemed like a portion of their worldviews had shuffled and been adopted despite their own initial misgivings, or perhaps Belle was always like this and merely pretended otherwise out of an imposed set of expectations.

The comment about Erie made him nod emphatically, it seemed he would have preferred making the matter a priority also. But circumstances prevented a full commitment to the freedom struggle brewing in Pennsylvania. "You're preaching to the converted so far as Erie is concerned. But Erie is why an invasion of Ontario is a risk. The plan is this, to coordinate two struggles and resistance efforts at the same time. It's the only real way to win. Anything Liberty devotes to its occupation is one less asset it can spare for a hypothetical reclamation of Ontario. Vice versa, anything sent to die in the sea here is something the Erie rebels can exploit." There was some wisdom to this, the kind only observation could provide. Perhaps it was cruel to know that his studies were gleaned at the total expense of entire movements that had failed to repulse Liberty's aggression in the past, but it was still wisdom all the same.

"Bering was lost because Liberty had a single minded commitment to liberate it. Vespucci was lost for an identical reason despite the grit of exemplars like the Triton. But there's a pearl to be found in all that blood. The Delaware was destroyed despite extreme force disparity by a ship that was an order of a magnitude beneath it in tonnage. Why? Liberty is not infallible - and when stressed enough all branches eventually break. An occupation and an invasion are tall orders for any fighting force and definitely something Liberty's political rivals on the interhouse stage will want to exploit. Hudson is still a looming risk of another war, and the scouring of Bering has only deepened that paranoia." He raised a finger to momentarily supply emphasis to what he was going to say next.

"What we need to do is emulate the Triton on both fronts. Keeping in mind that the only thing that secured victory in Vespucci was Liberty's ability to throw another ship at the problem. But what happens if she can't? What happens if she has to choose and the risk of losing on both fronts becomes too high? We are faced with an extremely uncertain future and an unprecedented level of opportunity. And our only option is to leverage things for what they are." It was settled then. Erie would have to be a priority going forward. But Toronto being used to secure industrial expansion was still an immediate priority that Damien doubled back to address.

"Which is why we must secure anything of value from Toronto to reinforce Ramsey's capability. Toronto itself is not something we are keen to restore and operate." Despite his confidence, it was clear that the gears behind is eyes were grinding down the numbers and accepting how violent and ugly all of this would be. That many people on all sides of potential conflicts would have to die in order to secure any hope of victory.

And he was already prepared to make that sacrifice.