Grand Marshall CYOA part 2

You give up on the idea of having a meal before the meeting, and head outside to go get debriefed from Annie about last night. Sitting in front of the garage, clearly bored out of her mind, she jumps up when she sees you. Excited to see you, or just excited to have something to do, it's hard to tell.
"Morning sir! Where to?"
"Morning Annie. Sorry, but I'm not currently headed out. I wanted to ask you about Vivian."
"Well, I'm sure she's not a human worshiper, but I couldn't really tell much beyond that."
That's...fast.
"You could tell that already?"
She nods.
"Absolutely. She may like humans, or be sexually attracted to humans, but she's no human worshiper."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Easy. When a human worshiper is having sex with a human, we kinda fixate on the human's eyes. We wanna know how they are feeling about everything at all times. She was there, but she didn't fixate like that. The biggest tell was when you had me lick her. A human worshiper asked to take that position and remain until told otherwise, would have. If our positions had been reversed, I would have yelled, maybe even cried, but I wouldn't have pushed myself across the bed trying to escape."
"Why not?"
"Because a human asked me to lay in that spot, not move around."
Yep, you are going to have to arrange some special rewards for the human worshipers.
"You are an obedient girl, aren't you?"
Her tail wags, but she blushes and looks away.
"Yes sir, I am an obedient girl."
"Follow me into the garage Annie."
You lead her into the garage and shut the door. You pat the hood of one of the parked SUV's.
"Go ahead and take off your pants and underwear and have a seat."
Annie is incredibly fast, and is sitting with her legs spread on the hood in five seconds, her tail making a light sound behind her as it rapidly sweeps across the hood. You get right up to the front bumper, then grab her hips and pull her until they are right at the edge.
"Annie, I would like you to give me an update on your special friends. I'm not asking for any secrets or anything you wouldn't want to tell me, but I do want you to tell me what they would like to say to me. What are they saying about being recognized and welcomed by the Grand Marshall, what they would like to see, anything you think might be of interest to me. While you do that, I'm going to tell you how much I appreciate the job you are doing."
You move your hands off her hips, and grab her legs, lifting them up and towards her chest. She leans back, resting on the hood, looking excited. You lean down and slowly lick from the bottom of her fortune-cookie shaped pussy to the top, then look at her.
"Messenger, I'm waiting."
"Oh, uh...a lot of them are pretty excited about the messages you had me give them."
That gets rewarded with a series of kisses all around her cookie. She quickly understands what you want, and the floodgates open.
"A number of the group thinks we should be your personal harem. Many have asked me to see if you would be willing to arrange for them to meet humans. 14 have submitted marriage proposals. 8 have requested to be owned as your slave. One is begging to be your personal cock cleaner, she says the Grand Marshall's penis should be cleaned by mouth alone."
You take your time "pumping her for information". She has some difficulty continuing to speak under your affections, but you get a great deal of information out of her. The group officially calls themselves the Order of Danue, based on the name of the slave anthros who served that human tribe so long ago. They unofficially laughingly refer to themselves as the Cult, short for the Cult of Human Cock. The Order is 100% female, and has no specific leader but a number of "trusted' voices that the members tend to follow. They get that position by giving good information and advice to their fellow members, on ways to remain hidden and still attract human men or women. The group is mostly straight, but about 25% claim to want both male and female humans, and a small number are only interested in human women. That being said, they would willingly serve male or female humans if asked to do so.
Annie herself has no real interest in women, but she was more than happy to participate in last night simply because you asked. She says herself and any other member of the order would be willing to have sex with any male or female asked, provided a human is asking. While there is a wide range of people in the Order, and varying beliefs on how humans should be worshiped, they have a few core beliefs about how the relationship between humans and anthros should be.
In between gasps and whimpers, she talks about how they believe first and foremost that an anthro should obey a human unless the instruction given would harm another human. As for harming another anthro, that's apparently situational, but harm for just the sake of harm is to be avoided.
Second, they believe anthros should show a certain level of respect when interacting with a human. Insults or anything considered rude is straight out, they should be polite and accommodating, and should apologize if they can't fulfill a request or fail to deliver.
And lastly, any real human worshiper should make it a point to give priority to humans around them. IF a human gets behind them in a line, let them go ahead. Hold doors open for them, open doors for them, stuff like that. They refer to it as "casual serving", as in a way to casually serve a human in public in a way that wouldn't be obvious as asking them if there's anything they would like done.
She barely gets a chance before her orgasm to tell you that the majority would like you to open an account on their hidden forum, so they can communicate directly to you in a private message. You hold her hips and gently lick around her cookie as she comes down from her high, then have her get dressed.
"Annie, does that mean they are unhappy with you as a messenger?"
She looks up from straightening out her pants.
"Huh? Oh, no, not at all. It's just some of them want to be able to say things to you without anyone else seeing it. I'm guessing they are too embarrassed. I mean, it's one thing to confess your feelings to the person you want directly, it's another to say it all to another person and ask them to deliver the message."
"Understood."
You pull out your wallet and hand Annie a few 100-note bills.
"I have a task for you. I want you to go out and buy yourself a matching collar and leash. The cuter, the better."
She shudders like she just got cold.
"A collar sir?"
"Yes, one that says Good Girl on the front. Would that bother you?"
"No, not bother. It just has certain uh...connotations here in Resnea to wear a collar."
While you do believe anthros should submit to and serve humans, you aren't trying to insult her.
"I'm sorry Annie, I wasn't trying to insult you."
"No, it's um, not an insult. It's more like a...proposal."
Ok, you misread that one.
"Which is why I must insist you only wear it when we are together in private."
She squeezes her legs together and shudders again. Her rapid tail lets you know her opinion of the idea.
"M-matching collar and leash, right?"
"Yes, that says Good Girl on the front, the cuter the better."
Giving a deep and overly formal bow, she responds with a somewhat goofy looking grin.
"As you command Grand Marshall!"
You manage to avoid rolling your eyes, and send her on her way. Your cabinet should be waiting for you now.

What do?

A)Write in
B)Yes, write in

C)Get a net and go hunting your gardeners

D)Write in

You head on inside, stopping by a bathroom to clean yourself up. While you personally enjoy the smell and taste of female anthros, you don't think your cabinet will appreciate you having dog-pussy breath. Amelia is waiting for you the second you leave the bathroom, pushing that familiar cart.
"Lunch is ready sir. I notice I seem to be getting your meal ready when you are busy, would you prefer I cook lunch later in the day?"
"No, this is fine. I'm just a bit busy lately, but I would like to try and eat around noon."
Lunch today is a baked or fried bread... thing. A wonton? Beer rock? Meat pie? You bite in and taste potato, then your tongue and the rest of your mouth burns. Ah, a samosa. You pass on the dipping sauces and just carry the samosa into the meeting with you. Just because it's green doesn't necessarily mean it's a mild sauce, you've learned that the hard way before.
Everyone save Chloe is already in the spare office that has quickly become your unofficial cabinet meeting room. You make a mental note to ask your maids if there is an actual meeting room. The offices in the palace are nice, but meeting like this still feels cheap for some reason. Funny enough, without Chloe around, the group feels a bit drab since everyone else is wearing business wear.
"Sorry I'm late everyone, busy morning. Chloe won't be joining us, she's busy on an important diplomatic mission. Depending on how well it goes, we should have the food bank issue and short-term funding issue dealt with within 24-48 hours. With that in mind, I'd like to hear whatever ideas everyone has come up with, or whatever else they've managed to accomplish so far."

Who do you hear from first?

A)Katerina
B)Antonio

C)Zara
D)Kayla
E)Nikan
F)Richard
G)Call Chloe, put her on speakerphone
H)Write in

"Katerina, I understand there was a terrorist attack recently, just how well can we actually respond to something like that?"
Sharp claws idly scratch at her chin.
"Force-wise, we could hit with decent strength, if we know our target. We know it was Coalition, but if we knew where they were, they would already be dead or arrested. If you mean prevention, we don't have the numbers to put our troops on the streets to act as police. Technically, this is more of a police matter, and they are already investigating this."
"So I'm guessing I would need to talk to the police about the amnesty as well?"
"None of them have bothered to inform me if anyone has turned themselves in, so most likely sir."
Sounds like the police aren't exactly cooperating with your new Minister. You make a note that you may have to step in on this one.
"So, what can we do about our numbers?"
She doesn't look too happy.
"Beg for volunteers who will only be capable of serving part-time, offer prisoners their freedom in exchange for a certain number of years of service, secure funding for enlistment bonuses or worse yet, mercenaries, and ask existing personnel to take a pay cut. And before anyone asks, I don't like any of these options. This was all I could come up with."
No need to ask, you can already see the flaws. Weekend warriors, potential war-crimes, more money, and giving your existing forces a reason to retire. Still, at least she's keeping an open mind.
"Thank you Katerina. Antonio, any ideas on how we can get ourselves some more farmers and drivers?"
He looks over at Richard.
"Well, I'm not sure how this would impact finances, but I think it would be a good idea if we could offer tax breaks for farmers and drivers. Would make both jobs a lot more attractive to people if they can keep more of what they make. If we could offer complete tax immunity, I think we would see a lot of people trying to get those jobs."
Not entirely a bad idea. You might have judged Antonio to be a bit more dim than he really is.
"I also have an idea to help get new farms going, but I dunno how popular it will be."
The table waits in expectant silence for a few seconds before you realize Antonio can't read a room.
"Tell us Antonio, we have to consider all options."
"Well, there's some farmland that is goin' fallow because no one is there to work it, and there's some where the owners and workers all died or moved away. Some of it may not even be owned by anyone anymore. If the government could seize that land and give it to some new farmers looking to start, it could get that land back to producing pretty quickly. Even better, we could overhaul the land a bit before handing it over, putting in drip irrigation and all that, so all the new farms will be operating at high efficiency right off the bat. Whaddyathink?"
Possible, if handled properly. Not bad at all. The results would be a bit slower and more long-term, but could result in long-term food stability, and even boost exports.
"Excellent, anything else you would like to throw out there?"
"Nope, that's all I got."
Well, off to a good start at least.

Who next?

A) Zara
B) Kayla

C) Nikan
D) Richard
E) Crawl onto the desk, tell them to wake you when the meeting is over, and take a nap
F) Write in

"How about you Kayla, what have you come up with?"
Kayla shuffles some papers, looking relieved.
"I had some ideas about getting some donations for the food banks, but I'm glad to hear they won't be needed."
"Share them anyways, I'm not going to complain if our food banks wind up with a two year supply of canned goods."
She snags a paper she shuffled to the back of the stack.
"Very well, I was thinking we could have a public plea for local businesses to donate any goods they have that are going in expire in a week or more. A lot of food just sits on a shelf until it is no longer edible, then gets thrown away. Better for it to get eaten than be trashed."
A noble idea, but you know how businesses are. They'll just look at it as "people will wait until the food is given away, then get it free". Lost sales.
"Good, what else have you come up with?"
One scaled hand flicks the paper to the desk, and she reads off the next one in the stack.
"Coordinate with the bus companies, or setup our own bus line, to help get would-be workers out to the farms and back home. Unemployment is highest in Strena, and many of them would gladly work a farm job if they had the transportation. Any farm that doesn't have on-site housing for the workers struggles to find and keep employees. By getting some form of transportation going between the capitol and the countryside, we could solve both problems at once."
Much more viable. You feel your jacket pocket vibrate, Intel sent you something on your tablet.
"Good, anything else?"
"Mass distribute seeds and basic gardening supplies, nationalize all water sources, and have everyone grow crops at home with free water. While some will take longer, certain crops can be grown in as little as a month. I figure the seeds and soil can be seized from the vacant farms we currently have with no complaints."
A little extreme, but last time you spoke with her she did think a large section of the population would be starving soon. You aren't entirely sure what she was expecting to fill in the gap between the two weeks the food banks specified and the month it would take to grow a single specific crop. Maybe rioting and just stealing it from someone else?
"Interesting. Anything else?"
"I'm not sure how popular this would be, but we could open the adoption system to foreign parents. As it is, no orphanage will allow a non-Resnean to adopt an orphan. The idea behind the law is to help keep kids close to their birthplace and the friends they know. But the system is overloaded, these kids need a home. They need a bed to sleep in. Right now, we can't really provide either. This isn't ideal, but just getting these children into a home with a bed they can call their own and three meals a day...that would provide a far better future for them than what they have now."
Making a mental note to ensure those children wind up in human homes, you think your thanks to Kayla for giving you an excuse to put Resnean children into a more controlled environment. Down the line, they should be useful for propaganda.
"Great. What else have you got?"
"That's all. Other than to say I can second Antonio's ideas for the tax immunity and the new farms. Both would encourage citizens looking for work to heavily consider farming and truck driving."
"In that case, I would like you to do an assessment on the education system. What is being taught to students, what grade level the material is presented, teaching methods, materials, I wanna know the whole nine yards. I'm sure the war had a negative impact on the education of Resnea's children, it would probably be a good idea if we put some focus into making sure they are getting the best possible education going forward."
"I'll look into it."
"Zara?"
She taps a few more times at her tablet, then looks your way.
"Sir?"
"I need you to write some speeches for me. I'll know the content of them once the meeting is over, so come see me after. As for now, any ideas on ways to encourage Crown or Light forces to take the amnesty?"
Her claws tap at the desk that has been serving as the cabinet's meeting table, and an ear twitches.
"You should probably get to the nearest police station."
You aren't following.
"Why?"
"You declared amnesty, but that doesn't mean the rank and file know how you want it handled. Maybe they think you made that announcement to lure in rebels to capture. Maybe they are worried they will get in trouble if they release the rebels. If there's a bunch of rebels sitting in lock-up overnight, everyone willing to surrender who didn't do it today, won't. They'll believe you were lying about getting released, or their records being purged. There will be no rebels seeking amnesty tomorrow, if the ones that already surrendered aren't released today."
Good news for Annie, she's gonna have something to do today besides get fucked. Bad news for your schedule.
"Point. I'll head over right after the meeting."
"I'll come with you, to brief you and prepare you for the appearance."
You almost ask why before you remember her anger yesterday.
"Excellent. Any other ideas?"
taktaktak
"You could extend the amnesty to existing prisoners. Many will re-offend, but it would be a clear signal to the public that you want to offer a fresh start to people over holding them to account. That would encourage many rebels to take the amnesty, since it would act as proof of your intentions."
"You mean freeing everyone currently in prison?"
"Yes."
All sorts of potential nightmares in exchange for some short-term political benefit. Not exactly a winner.
"I'm willing to accept that for non-violent offenders and political prisoners, and maybe even leniency for first-timers. Other than that, I can't go along with that idea."
You think you see something in her eyes shift, but you can't be certain, and it's gone before you are even sure you noticed anything, if there was anything there.
"Very well sir, I'll start preparing that speech."
She doesn't have any more ideas to add, or at least she doesn't volunteer any. Two remain.

Who next?

A)Nikan

B)Richard
C)Take a break, then lock yourself into a bathroom and barricade the door
D)Write in

"So Nikan, any ideas for helping with the price issue?"
"Just one, and I don't know how well it will work, or if it will work at all. How would you feel about playing some dirty pool?"
"Nikan, I'm hoping you aren't talking assassinations."
"No, no, nothing like that. Just being a bit dishonest, that's all."
"How so?"
"The issue right now is businesses are caught in a trap. First one to drop prices will most likely take the biggest financial hit. No matter what incentives we offer, they are looking at that and nothing else. We need to force them to be concerned about a bigger problem. If we leak out that the government is planning on price controls or nationalization of specific companies that aren't playing ball, then they'll all rush to drop price to avoid getting stomped on."
An interesting idea, you'll give it that. But like Nikan said, you aren't exactly sure how the businesses would respond to news like that. Maybe they comply, maybe they jump ship.
"Richard, what's your take?"
"I...would be very careful about starting rumors about nationalization of anything. Just the hint would send investors scurrying away. A rumor about price controls might work though. It would be bad for a business, but not a death sentence."
Might be feasible, but you are a bit leery about the concept. You hate uncontrolled variables.
"I'd like the two of you to get together and war-game it out. Best case scenario, worst case scenario, I want both of you to seriously consider what might come out of this and report back."
They nod.
"Anything else to share Nikan?"
"Advertising. We need to direct some funding into advertising Resnea in foreign countries. Let potential immigrants know this would be a good place to find work. Print ads would be best, they are the cheapest and can float around long after the advertising campaign is over."
He has nothing else to add, but it's not a half bad idea. You have your own ideas for some specific ad campaigns.
"Sorry to bring you up last Richard, but that's just how things went. What ideas have you got for us?
"Well, if we are getting some financial aid soon, and you aren't adverse to taking on debt, then I suggest we go all in with incentives. First aimed at getting more farmers and truck drivers, but then for whatever we need to get the economy rolling again. In an effort to save money, I suggest we use a gradual roll-out of incentives, but grandfather in incentives for the early adopters so people aren't upset about getting less for signing up sooner. For example, we'll start off by offering a small flat tax amount for anyone signing up to work as a farmer or truck driver. Then if we don't get enough, we upgrade that to tax-free status. Then cash bonuses. Free equipment, however far we need to go. Mind you, that wouldn't be the exact system, but just a general idea."
"Just how much debt can we take on?"
"Depends on how the world views our ability to pay it back. If they think we can pay forever, we have no limit. If they think we might not be around next year, then we won't be able to do much. We can print more, but then we'll have to deal with the inflation that comes from that. Inflation is beneficial when it comes to holding debt, but terrible for the savings of the public."
"And naturally, if we start printing money while going around begging for loans, everyone will immediately assume we're insolvent, right?"
"Exactly. Debt is preferable to printing, but we need to keep our overall debt below the tipping point. If we go too deep, then we'll be paying too much in interest to stay afloat."
"Any numbers?"
You muse that rabbits are indeed fast as he whips out a notebook, checks it, then provides you with an answer in three seconds flat.
"Before the war, Resnea had an economy of about 600 billion notes in income. We're down to about 200 billion now, and we hold 80 billion in debt that we are aware of and pay interest on. As long as we stay below 100 billion in debt, we should eventually recover. If we go over, the interest will start to strangle us, until we have to take debt to pay the interest. Once we hit 200 billion in debt, our money will become worthless no matter what we do."
That comment he made the other day about debts that may not be known rings in your head. 20 billion is a small buffer when there's potential land mines.
"We are to do nothing that puts us over 90 billion in debt. I know that's not much to work with when we have so much to do, but I'd rather we not flirt with disaster."
Nodding all around, no one wants to drive the country into the ground. Now what?

A)Dismiss meeting, and go talk with your PR Minister about future speeches

B)Dismiss meeting, and check your tablet to see what Intel sent
C)Walk away backwards while repeating "No one can walk as backwards fast as I can, because I am the backwards man. The backwards man."
D)Write in

You let everyone know you're going to consider the ideas they've brought up tonight, and together you'll attempt to set some policies tomorrow that can be communicated to the public at a future date. You ask Katarina and Zara to stay behind, and dismiss the others.
"Katarina, I need you along because I want to make sure law enforcement understands full well they are under your command. Zara, this will be a very public appearance by both me and my Minister of Defense, so this is your show from here until we get back."
The tigress gives a quick salute, and Zara examines both of you before launching into her job with gusto.
"Grand Marshall, lose the tie and open the jacket. Be friendly and jovial to everyone no matter what happens. Smile and be happy, but don't laugh much if at all. Don't make physical contact with anyone outside of a handshake. We'll go over what you'll say during the ride over. Minister Katarina, avoid speaking, either your own words or on the Grand Marshall's behalf. Remain neutral, don't look angry or upset, nor happy."
"And you are trying to make me look like a robot because?"
Zara looks like she bit off a response before she replies.
"Not a robot, a professional. One who isn't gloating over a fallen opponent, or angry she couldn't execute a captive. While you are actually there since the Grand Marshall wants to make clear what the chain of command is, any surrendered rebels will view it as you personally coming to accept their surrender. If you do so with a professional manner, that tells them that you respect them, and they can expect to not be treated poorly.
Our feisty feline calms a bit at that, and she nods her agreement. On the way to the convoy, Zara tells you what to say, how to say it, what attitude to have and when, what to do with your hands, how to stand, and more details you aren't even sure if you'll remember.
The drilling goes on with Katarina also being a target, until the three of you are loaded into the center SUV of the convoy and headed out of the palace grounds. Zara and Katarina sit on the left and right side of you respectively on the back seat, and both you and Katarina do a slack-jawed double-take when Zara reaches over and slides a hand under your belt and inside of your pants. Katarina is the first to speak.
"What the fuck are you doing?!"
You feel the SUV wobble as Annie checks the rear-view mirror and sees what's happening in the back seat before she re-focuses on driving and straightens out. Zara's right hand grabs your limp dick and rubs it while she speaks. The warmth surprises you, you honestly thought all scaled species were cold-blooded.
"My job."
You are flattered, but you really don't have time for this right now.
"Zara, I don't recall this being in your job description."
"I'm not doing that."
She pulls her hand back out and wipes it on your pants over your penis, then shoves her hand back inside your pants.
"I know you humans can't smell something unless it's strong enough to gag, but other species have more sensitive senses."
The hand comes back out and wipes on the same spot, while Katarina is watching the process with a look of disgust.
"What is this supposed to accomplish?!"
Zara meets Katarina's glare with a cold look of her own.
"Completing the image. Most people who meet the Grand Marshall today will get the impression he is a friendly, laid back sort of person, with pheromones you can scent through his pants. A man of power, who is approachable."
You curse yourself mentally for forgetting to acquire a flask. Maybe one day you'll get used to the weirdness of other species, but not today. Two applications seems to have satisfied Zara that the crotch of your pants smell like your dick, and she goes right back to drilling you and Katarina on how to behave at the police station.
Zara's briefing seems to end exactly as you reach the station. You can't tell if she somehow managed to set that up like that, or if she just ran out of steam. Surrounded by your personal security detail, you and Katarina enter the nearest PD to the palace, which just so happens to be on the south-west edge of the Denson district. Rather than your average PD that was designed to be a PD first and foremost, this six-floor building looks to have originally been some office building that was converted over. Spotting a city map kiosk nearby, you can't resist the urge to check it. The comedian must get all over town, as this one has "AND WE AREN'T THE ONLY ONES WHO KNOW!" written under the "YOU ARE HERE" marker. With that out of the way, you and your entourage enter the police station.

A)Go see the chief, get the chain of command thing sorted out first.

B)Go see the prisoners, time for some housecleaning
C)Point at Katarina and yell out "That's her officers! She did it! I tried to stop her!"
D)Write in

Inside the ground floor of the PD, the main lobby is a mostly square room. The wall facing the street you just came from is mostly glass, though it looks to be pretty thick and sturdy glass. Probably bulletproof or shatterproof or something. The walls on the sides and back are some sort of laminate, making them a smooth surface with dark blue coloring. The floor is well-worn granite, half polished smooth, half worn smooth. A row of counters and a security door separate the room from the back wall, where a double-door leads deeper inside. Rows of chairs sit in front of the counters, a number of them filled with citizens waiting their turn to be called.
A handful of pairs of police officers are around the room, engaged in conversations that taper off once they spot you, Katerina, and your bodyguards. Likewise, the closer you and your team get to the counters, the quieter the room grows, as more people stop to stare. You see an avian officer manning the counter your party approaches, dark black feathers under the blue uniform. He/she is talking rapidly into a phone until you finally reach the counter, then abruptly hangs up on whoever they were talking to. You don't know if this is a raven, crow, or some other dark-feathered bird, and you resist the urge to ask. Either way, they speak before you can.
"Grand Marshall, sir, uh, what can I do for you?"
Male by the sound of the voice. Nametag reads "TREAPEN" Seems nervous, and everyone staring at you in silence is starting to creep you out. Hopefully Zara knows what she's doing. You remind yourself, powerful but approachable. Friendly and jovial.
"Hi there Officer Treapen, I'm looking to have a chat with your chief. Are they in today?"
He must have been expecting a bit more demanding response from you, he looks a bit surprised.
"Uh, yeah. Yes sir. Chief's in the office on the third floor towards the back of the building. Elevator is just past the doors. I'll buzz you in."
He reaches under his counter and you hear a buzzing noise, and your bodyguards lead your team past the security door and through the double doors. It's a bit less crowded in the hallway there, and your team splits into two groups to take the dual elevators up to the third floor. Some helpful signs suspended from the ceiling direct you to the Chief's office, and you knock on the door.
"Who is it?"

A)"The Grand Marshall, is the Chief in?"

B)"Your boss, open up!"
C)"It's Captain Sum Ting Wong, he says it's an emergency!"
D)Write in

The voice from inside the office sounds male. You wonder if he was buzzed in advance and is just playing dumb.
"Grand Marshall here, are you the Chief?"
You hear some noise from inside the office, then footsteps approach the door.
"Hah hah, very funny, I don't have time for this guys..."
The door opens to reveal a haggard looking puma or possibly mountain lion in a rumpled button-up shirt and brown slacks. He looks like the very caricature of a worn-down businessman. He goes from a mildly aggravated look to absolute fear as he snaps to attention and salutes.
"...Sir! My apologies, I wasn't aware it was you, I mean, I didn't know you were visiting. Ah, what is, er, how can I assist you on your visit today sir?"
Fucking hell, is everyone going to twig out today? You're starting to understand Zara's directions to be very friendly and jovial now. Might be the only way to avoid causing stress-related heart attacks. Giving a slight smile(concerned showing too much teeth might be interpreted as a threat), you make introductions with a hand held out.
"Nice to meet ya. You are the Chief of police at this station, correct?"
His hand goes into a karate-chopping motion as he is temporarily torn between holding the salute and shaking your hand, then he settles for shaking your hand.
"Yes sir, nice to meet you too Grand Marshall Anon. I am Chief Eddie Pandulph, what can I do for you?"
He has a firm grip, but his fur feels scruffy. You look past him into his office.
"Could we come in?"
The Chief quickly moves aside and invites you and Katerina and a few bodyguards inside. You and your minister have a seat, and get him to sit back at his cluttered desk. He casts a quick ever-suffering glance at a pile of paperwork, then asks again what he can do for you.
"I was wondering what the current chain of command looks like. My Minister of Defense has mentioned she hasn't gotten any sort of reports from the civil forces like the police, so I'm worried there is a vacuum there somewhere."
He looks both confused and worried. His tail jerks and twitches instead of the smooth side to side you usually see in felines.
"Sir? I thought police reported to the Minister of Social Services?"
Katerina breaks her silence to chip in.
"I was under the impression all armed forces report to my office."
You aren't entirely certain anyone knows who the hell the police are supposed to report to. Either way, Kayla is going to have more than enough on her plate, she doesn't need this stuff too. Time for a quick'n'easy fix.
"I assure you both, I have no idea. To make things simple, we'll just have all armed government agents report to the Minister of Defense from here on out. Chief Pandulph, can you get the word to the other police departments?"
"Uh, I guess so. It would probably be easier if you put it in writing and had it sent out though."
"I would, but a lot of records were lost during the war, so we don't exactly have a calling list."
"Understood. We have a mailing list we use to keep in touch, I'll send the message over that. I'll also send the list to your Minister."
He's cooperative, but still seems nervous. Something to hide, or just meeting-the-boss jitters?
"Excellent. Has there been any rebels surrendering since I announced the amnesty?"
"Yes sir, we have about a dozen upstairs."
"Great, how long until they are released?"
Tail freezes.
"Released sir?"
"Yeah, you know, all rebel-related activities purged off their records, and then released. How much longer have they got?"
"You mean you were serious?"
"Of course, I wouldn't bother with a public announcement for a joke. I'm not that good of a comedian."
"We'll get started right away sir!"

A)Ask to visit the prisoners before they are released

B)Ask about the current state of affairs for the local PD
C)Ask the Chief if he has stopped beating his wife yet
D)Write in

"Tell you what, how about we both head to the cells and make sure the release gets rolling personally? That way when they see me, they'll think they were held because I wanted to make an appearance, and not due to some snafu in communication. Probably wouldn't sit well with them to know they almost spent the night in jail because of some error."
You're honestly a bit upset people clearly aren't listening to you, but you are striving to follow Zara's directions. Hopefully this run-ragged feline can pick up on the hint that you are trying to deflect blame off of him. He seems to do so, and looks a bit more relaxed now he knows you aren't looking for an excuse to execute him.
"Very generous of you."
Hey hey, this cat knows when it's being thrown a bone, and has clearly dealt with politicians before. Simple rule of politics, you don't give the other side any benefits without cost. Someone with barely any political power at all is probably used to being thrown zero bones. You wonder if Zara accounted for that when she suggested the friendly and jovial persona. You also wonder if you made a mistake in putting one of your few intel agents on Antonio instead of Zara. If she's really on your side, she's going to be amazing. If she's looking to do damage to you, she's probably better equipped than anyone else close to you. Another idea filed away under "Shit I can't deal with right now". You keep the persona up as he leaves his desk and leads your team out of the office and to the elevator.
"Not at all. I've barely been on the job long enough to know where I am, much less how to reach the people I need in the loop. It's not your fault you didn't take a sudden public announcement from a new government at face value."
At least his tail isn't twitchy anymore, that was starting to get annoying.
You make some meaningless small talk with the chief on the ride up to the 5th floor, where they have the holding cells. There is most likely a number of issues he wants to bring up, but you'd rather he run all that through Katerina. Arriving on the 5th floor, the elevator doors open to a small but very secure room. Just metal walls, a security door, and some hard clear material that is probably very strong for a window. Spotting the chief, the officer sitting as door guard hits a button and the security door unlocks. While the security door setup on the ground floor probably came with the building, this one looks a bit more custom.
Your group plus the police chief head on inside, where rows of cells line the walls. Two orderlies armed with only batons and wearing body armor approach, and the chief asks them to bring forward every single prisoner involved in rebel activities that surrendered into custody. One is a burly bear who probably doesn't even need the baton, the other is some sort of canine, most likely a wolf or dog of some kind. They are good at their jobs, as less than five minutes later you are looking at a group of about 15 Resneans of varying species.
You see warm and cold blooded, furred, scaled, and feathered. A male lion looking at you with dull anger, a female mouse staring with abject fear, a camo-green snake of indeterminate gender that just looks tired. You glance at Katerina to make sure she's ready to play her role. Her eyes flicker your way for a split second, and her stance relaxes slightly. You guess you aren't the only one who has to keep reminding yourself how to act. Friendly and jovial, strong but approachable.
"Greetings to all of you. I'm sorry for the wait, I've had a rather busy morning. I just wanted to personally thank all of you for being willing to give peace a chance, even if only for now. Chief Pandulph here will be over-seeing your release and purging of all your rebel-related activities off of your police records. I've brought along my Minister of Defense, since she wishes to speak with you folks."
She's quick on her feet, you should probably expect that out of a cat.
"I commend you all on your willingness to fight on the behalf of your country. If you are still willing to fight on the behalf of your country, the military needs you. Time spent as a member of the Crown or Light will count as time served for initial pay and rank assignments. Any who served as officers for either group are guaranteed an officer position. Also, no soldier or officer who was previously a rebel will ever be asked or ordered to fight, capture, kill, or otherwise interact with Crown or Light rebels as a member of the military. We won't ask you for intel on them either. You will never be asked or expected to betray your former comrades. That is all."
She finishes by snapping to attention and saluting the prisoners. Some do nothing, a few reflexively salute back. They stare in silence until the green lizard finally speaks up.
"Can I just go home?"
No one else seems willing to speak right now. You aren't entirely sure if this visit was a good idea or a bad idea.

A)End your visit ASAP

B)Try to comfort/befriend some of the rebels

C)Ask Katerina which rebel she thinks would be a good sacrifice to the dark gods
D)Write in

Right. They've been sitting in a jail cell for who knows how long, some of them probably wanna get gone ASAP. The lizard's voice is so raspy you can't tell if it's male or female.
"Of course you can. Chief Pandulph, how quickly can you get this individual's record scrubbed and get them out the door?"
"If it takes more than 10 minutes, some one is dragging their tail."
"Please do. Get them out of here as soon as you can, those are cells we could use for actual criminals."
10 minutes a head means it will be some time before everyone is processed out, so you decide to try and use this time to win over hearts and minds. Going for the low hanging fruit first, you approach the frightened female rodent who's been staring at you since you walked in. Her already wide eyes seem to get wider as you walk over to her.
"Sorry about all the trouble ma'am. Are you alright?"
The reaction wasn't quite what you expected. At first she looked like she was about to run away, then she looked REALLY afraid. She froze up solid like a block of ice, then responded.
"Fine! I'm just fine!"
Like the rest of the surrendered rebels, she's wearing cheap-looking casual clothing. You wonder if a lot of the rebels come from the poor class, or if they just decided to go cheap when they surrendered in case their clothes were destroyed. Her jeans seem to have had suspenders sown into them after they were purchased, and a rather amateur job of it too. But given the size of the pants, and her small stature, it's probably the only reason they haven't fallen off of her. Perhaps the racial discrimination you've been hearing about also applies to clothing.
Her reaction seems strange to you. She's acting afraid but not even attempting to move away from you. Either way, you figure the best thing you can do is to back off and leave her alone.
"Glad to hear it. Hopefully the rest of your day is more pleasant."
You quickly move away from her, worried she might be so frozen she might not be breathing. Trying to calm the fearful didn't work out so hot, so you change tack and try your hand at soothing the angry. The angry looking lion you spotted earlier seems like as good of a candidate as any. He glares daggers at you as you walk up to him.
"Hi there, how are you holding up?"
"I've been sitting in a fucking jail cell for the last ten hours, how do you think I'm holding up?"
At first, you thought he was going to take a swing at you. He looks angry, but you don't see any of his muscles tensing up at all. You've seen your cabinet members looking more like they are about to fight than this lion. More resentment than anger? Perhaps, but he really looked like he was about ready to attack before you talked to him.
"Sorry about that, hopefully they'll have you out of here soon."
"I hope so too."
You aren't following at all. He still looks angry, but his tone of voice isn't. What is with these reactions? A nasty thought bubbles up, and you excuse yourself to ask one of the officers a question. The nearest is the bear, so you pick him, and speak quietly to him in a low voice.
"Officer, have any of these people been tortured or interrogated since surrendering?"
He shakes his mini-fridge sized head.
"No sir Grand Marshall, they've just been here in holding."
"They have been given food and water, no starvation diets or ill treatment?"
"Yes sir, no one has laid a hand on them."
"Excellent."
Ok, that's not the issue. Not knowing the cause of this is going to bug you, but you need to move on. You aren't sure how much success you are having here, and you really have a lot of other things demanding your attention. You address the group one last time and apologize again for how long they've been stuck there, and thank them for being willing to give you a chance.
Once the doors close, you ask the chief to spread the word to every other police station in the country on how you want the surrendered rebels dealt with.
"Last thing I want is some rebel sitting in jail overnight. That's taxpayer money we can't afford to spend on someone who is no longer a criminal. Katerina, I want you to oversee this. Follow up on getting that contact info from Chief Pandulph here, and make sure no one doubts his word comes from the palace, and that they all know law enforcement now reports to Defense and not Social Services."
The worn-down looking mountain lion fills in the tigress on the other PD's in the city, their chiefs, and you tune them out, already thinking about other things. Whatever intel sent you on your tablet earlier, ways to get some more drivers and farmers, dinner, what the hell went on in that jail, and a few other ideas. You're fairly certain you gave the chief a proper good-bye on your way out the door.
Once you and Katerina are back in the SUV and the convoy is moving, Zara begins to pepper the both of you with questions. What was said, to who, how it was said, what happened, what did they say, how did they react, and on and on. About half-way back to the palace, Katerina loses her cool with her tail lashing back and forth.
"Enough with the questions already! We went in, met with the prisoners, got them freed, end of story!"
"You said some saluted back? Did any of them attempt to speak with you directly?"
"I said enough of these pointless questions! Can't you listen?"
"I am listening. You are failing to give me information."
You see Katerina's tail freeze, and her words come out oozing with tension.
"What do you mean, failing?"
Deep feelings of regret for not hiring a kindergarten teacher to be on your cabinet wash over you.
"If you are not capable of giving me the information I need to do my job properly, then I can't do much about your public image, now can I?"
"If you are not capable of doing your job properly sitting on the back lines, then maybe you should get into the field!"
You wonder if they make babysitters for adults. Knowing your luck, probably not.
"Kids, daddy has a headache, please shut the fuck up."
They redirect their angry glares at you, then both turn to face away from each other, and you spend the rest of the ride back in blessed silence. You speak up the moment the vehicle is back in the garage.
"Zara, Katerina, stay in your seats. Annie, get out."
She doesn't even ask or respond, she just shuts the engine off, then exits the vehicle.
"We don't have time for this, so let's get it resolved now. You two have a problem with each other? I've got a country trying to eat itself, I need my cabinet at each other's throats like I need a bullet in my head. So, what is the problem?"
They glare at each other in silence.
"Don't everyone speak at once."
Katerina goes first.
"I didn't serve my country for over a decade to be treated like a grunt by some civie in a business suit. I don't appreciate the disrespect or the implications about my competence!"
Zara fires back.
"I don't appreciate being put in charge of your public image only to have you fight me every step of the way. And my questions are not 'unimportant', no matter what you may think about them."
You resist the urge to spray them both in the face with a water bottle.
"We're facing a food crisis and you two wanna get upset over hurt feelings? Get over yourselves. Katerina, you are the head of Defense, but Zara handles your public image. Do what she asks and answer her fucking questions. She's just doing her job. Zara, learn some fucking interpersonal skills. Rather than just shove your hand inside of someone's pants, try telling them what you want to do and why you want to do it before you do it. Katerina might be a bit more cooperative if she was in the loop instead of just having you tell her what to do."
They are still glaring at each other, but hopefully you got the point through. You dismiss them, and think about your next move.

A)See what intel sent you earlier

B)See what Annie's new collar looks like
C)See about getting dinner before you kill and eat the next anthro you see
D)Kill and eat the next anthro you see
E)Write in

With that business out of the way, you decide to finally check to see what Intel sent you. It's quiet in the SUV now, and you do have privacy, so you pull out your tablet and get to work. Apparently, it's been an interesting day at the palace while you were out having an adventure.
Sidney chased Mary around with some electric shears, then Mary chased Sidney around with a rake. Fortunately for Sidney, it was a plastic rake. Unfortunately for Sidney, Mary can run faster. On the one hand, you want to have a chat with Sidney about professionalism, on the other hand it's nice to have some entertainment. Besides, she seems to have tamed the lawn and is keeping it at a somewhat socially acceptable length. Plus she's too damn useful for dragging Mary into stupid shit. You don't know how long it would have taken you to see the fine wispy wool between Mary's legs if Sidney hadn't pushed her into it.
Intel stumbled across a copy of some old blueprints of the palace, and they show a basement accessed through the library. Intel poked around and found the entrance behind a bookshelf(naturally). At first they thought it was storage. Then a prison. Final analysis is a nightmare of a dungeon. God only knows what previous Grand Marshall's got up to down there, but they could have done all manner of horrific things with the tools available. There's enough room and chains attached to walls to keep at least 40 people trapped in hell, and more than enough torture implements and devices to have at least three on each victim. The only bright side of their investigation was the entire area was covered in a thick layer of dust, apparently untouched in a very long time.
You internally debate if you want to use the dungeon as intended, or for some fun, or not at all. Another subject filed under "I'll deal with it later."
While you were gone, intel picked up on a signal broadcast from the palace. Very short, gone before they could pin-point where it came from, or what was being sent. They immediately checked the cameras to confirm locations on all your staff, and no one was doing anything suspicious or out of the ordinary. Given security and intel would have picked up on anyone entering the palace, that is highly unlikely. Meaning you have a mole in the house, and everyone has an alibi.
Feeling a headache coming on, you put the tablet back in your jacket pocket, and open the vehicle door to get out, almost crawling into Zara.
"Sir, I have some more questions for you about your appearance today."
Why would you get a break? At least she seems back to her usual calm self.
"Of course, come on in."
You scoot back and she climbs into the back with you, sitting facing you.
"So you said you spoke directly with three of the rebels? How exactly did they react to you? To your words?"
"One seemed just beat and wanted to go home, one seemed afraid of me but answered me when I asked how she was doing, and another seemed angry, but was kinda calm when I spoke with him. My words didn't seem to have an effect one way or another."
She blinks and tilts her head slightly to the right.
"The fearful one, did she try to back away from you, or scream at you to get away from her?"
"No, she didn't. She seemed kinda...passive."
"And the angry one, did he ignore you or be rude to you?"
"He was a bit sarcastic at first, somewhat hostile, but then he just seemed homesick."
Her head tilts slightly to the left.
"Homesick?"
"After he complained about sitting in jail all day, I told him I hoped he would be going home soon. He just looked at the floor and said he hoped so too."
Zara nods.
"Perfect, everything went as hoped then."
You look around the SUV, searching in vain for a clue, before looking back at the stone-faced dragoness.
"Zara, I want you to pretend for a moment that I'm a human that wasn't born in Resnea, and has been in this country for a few days. Pretend I don't know the customs, slang, culture, opinions, or the usual behavior or non-verbal communication of non-human species. Can you just explain to me what the hell happened back there?"
"It didn't matter what you said to them, as long as it was friendly. The point was, you didn't rape them."
You sit there waiting for her to explain what the fuck she's on about. She doesn't seem to catch on, so you elaborate.
"What?"
"They were enemy forces, imprisoned. Suddenly they are faced directly with the person who holds the power of life and death over them. That person is being nice, but once he gets close enough, they are overwhelmed with the pheromones he's putting out. They may not be thinking about it, but subconsciously their mind is telling them anyone putting out that much pheromones is probably crazed with lust, and they are likely going to get violated. But this person doesn't, is instead polite to them. They aren't likely to understand why, but all of them who got close enough to you will have a vary favorable view of you since you didn't rape them."
"Crazed with lust? I thought you said it was to project an image of a 'man of power'?"
"I did tell you to avoid making physical contact outside of handshakes. Crazed with lust but in firm control, how wouldn't that be a man of power?"
You aren't sure why, but every time you and Zara speak alone, you get the urge to get wasted drunk. Instead you just sigh.
"Any more debriefing Zara?"
"No sir, that was all I needed to know. Good night."
You briefly consider starting a betting pool. Which will kill the GM first, the rebels, his cabinet, his staff, or himself?
After Zara leaves the SUV, you get out and spot Annie cleaning road dust off of another SUV in the small convoy with a towel. Double-checking to make sure you are alone with her, you approach her and ask her if she can show you the collar she got. She runs over to the SUV you got out of, explaining she keeps it in the glove box.
"I just figured, we usually are uh... together alone in the SUV, so might as well keep it there."
Annie climbs into the SUV, and holds a hand in front of her neck when she climbs back out. She keeps the hand there walking back to you, then strikes a pose revealing the collar.
"So, what do you think?"
Not what you were expecting, or what you were hoping for. Plain black leather about half an inch wide, and metal letters spelling out ANNIE. But looking at it, you think it really does fit her personality. She's not trying to impress anyone, and does dress on the professional side.
"Looks great Annie. I love it."
She tries to suppress her reaction, but her tail springs to life and gives her away. Well, that's most of today's business taken care of. Now what?

A)Hunt down Amelia and get some food

B)Have some fun with Annie

C)Say "fuck it all" and go take a bath
D)Write in

Getting the urge to reward Annie for not being a pain in your ass, you tell her to go grab a bunch of those towels and meet you in the backseat, then you climb back in. She joins a short while later with an armful of the plain white towels, and the two of you have some peace and quiet inside the armored SUV. You have her strip, tie a towel around her eyes as a blindfold, and put her cap back on her head. She didn't take the collar off, and you specifically don't say anything about it.
After the towel-blindfold goes on, she tenses up.
"Am I in trouble sir?"
"Not at all Annie, relax."
"Oh, ok."
She flashes a grin then flops back onto the backseat with the arms and legs spread out and up.
"What are we gonna do on the backseat today?"
To her credit, she does have a sense of humor, but she really needs to learn timing. You gently pat her hip.
"Annie, please don't make me gag you."
She drops the pose.
"I'll behave."
Taking four of the towels, you use them as makeshift rope and tie one each to her ankles and wrists. Having her roll over onto her stomach, facing the seat, you use the towel-ropes to pull her arms and legs behind her. Her left arm gets tied to her right leg, and the other arm gets tied likewise, putting her limbs in an X pattern behind her back. She's left in a kneeling position facing the seat with her ankles and wrists all nearly touching one another. Her tail beats a rhythm against her own knees.
"We're going to play a little game Annie. If I go too slow or not intense enough for you, say green. If I go too fast or too intense for you, say red. If you are happy with what I'm doing, you can say nothing or anything at all except red or green. Understood?"
"Understood sir."
You begin by slowly stroking your palm over her pussy, and using your other hand to scratch at the base of her tail. Given how wet she feels, you aren't surprised to hear her speak up less than 10 seconds later.
"Green."
Rotating your wrist so your fingertips point downwards, towards Annie's front, you slide your middle and ring finger inside of her. You push forward until you feel a rough patch, then back out a bit before developing a thrusting rhythm. Every 5-10 strokes, you push a bit deeper to hit the rough spot before going back to being just shy of it. You dig deeper with the scratching hand on the base of her tail. Annie gasps and pants with her tongue hanging out, while she tries to hump your hand as well as the towels will allow her to.
Five or so minutes later she calls another audible for more, and you stop restricting the reach of your fingers. Every stroke runs over the rough spot, and the wound-up canine fights against her restraints trying to hump harder and faster. She's pretty well secured with the towels though, and whines and grunts in frustration for a bit before calling green again. Instead of speeding up or pressing harder, you immediately slow down and go back to gently stroking her with your palm. Annie howls with her teeth clenched.
"Sir please, green!"
You push your fingers back inside of Annie, then give her a rapid finger-fucking. You keep expecting her to call red, but she just humps at your hand and makes a variety of strange noises, all of which sound happy. It doesn't take long before that treatment pushes her over the edge, and she spasms with her orgasm before going limp. You untie her, hug her from behind with one arm and scratch behind her ears with the other.
"See you tomorrow Annie."
"Mmmmm, see you tomorrow boss."
You wash your hands in a sink in the garage, mindful that nearly everyone around you can smell things you can't, and head back to the palace.
Was nice to have some fun after all the weird shit you dealt with today. Your stomach pains remind you to eat before you get a headache, and you exit the garage.
"Evening Grand Marshall."
You quickly shut the door behind you, hoping most of Annie's scent is contained to the SUV for now. Amelia apparently decided to hunt you down, and has the familiar rolling cart with her.
"Good evening Amelia, I'm hoping that's my dinner for tonight."
With a slight flourish, she lifts the silver lid to reveal a hearty meal of thin-sliced pork chops fried almost to a crisp, scalloped potatoes, and sweet corn on the cob. Also supplied is a bottle of spring water and a glass of red wine. Hunger beats decorum, and you thank her for the meal and tell her you'll return the cart when finished. She looks uncertain, then surprised as she watches you inhale the food while standing. Not your preferred way to eat, but both Annie and Amelia were starting to look like viable meals to you.
You think about your staff and wonder which one is the mole as you eat.
Annie was with you when it happened, but she could have planted something on a timer to do it. You don't think she's likely to be the mole, but you have to admit that presenting herself as a human worshiper would be a very good cover. She could be waiting for the right moment to strike, playing along until then.
Amelia could be responsible, you don't recall if intel put any surveillance cameras in the food truck she's been working out of. Seems the easiest way to take you out would be to poison your meals, but so far you haven't had any ill effects. Or maybe she's using a poison that is cumulative, slowly building in your system until it's too late.
Chartreuse can get herself up the corners of rooms, into places the cameras don't point. Given how much she seems to enjoy taking certain liberties with her uniform and your laundry, you don't think she's the culprit. But maybe her silent routine is just an act to play on your sympathies so you won't look at her too closely.
Vivian could be a plant, she certainly moved into your bed quick enough. She seems obedient enough, but maybe she's just playing that angle to keep you from suspecting she's out to kill you.
Sidney easily has plenty of opportunity to send messages covertly, she easily knows the palace grounds well enough to hide in a bush for a minute with the excuse of pruning it. Her exhibitionism could be a ploy to keep your eyes on her tits and ass, and not her covert actions.
Mary is ex-military, she could easily be harboring loyalties. She doesn't spend all day in the greenhouse either, so she also has excuses to get places where she wouldn't be seen by the cameras or security forces.
By the time you finish the meal, you've come to the conclusion that everyone on your staff had the means to be the mole. You can't just rule anyone out by default, and a really talented mole won't drop their act now. So now what?

A)Spend another night with your chambermaid

B)Get a night alone so you can rest without worrying about getting killed in your sleep
C)Barricade yourself in your room and plot your escape
D)Write in

You wheel the cart into the palace, leaving it in the main hallway for a maid to find and deal with. Annie was fun, but now you would like some satisfaction of your own. Heading upstairs, you find Vivian inside your room just finishing re-applying the insanely large linens to your bed. It clicks that the linen and blankets are all probably custom made to fit the bed, and need to be cleaned pretty much every day. You're probably likely to see her putting the linen on the bed around the same time every day, so you make a note of the time on your watch. 7:34PM. You make a mental note to have intel start working on the daily routines of your staff so you can spot irregularities easier.
Vivian finishes and turns to face you, giving her trademark smile of absolute terror.
"Good evening Grand Marshall, how may I serve you?"
"I am in dire need of a bath."
Getting the hint you are in a hurry, she gives a quick nod and heads to your bathroom to get the bath ready. The moment you hear the water running, you rush over to your desk and unlock the lower drawer. Grabbing the gun you were issued, you check to see it's loaded. Satisfied, you grab two of the holsters and head over to where you usually sleep on the bed. There's a slight gap between the spring box under the mattress and the rear baseboard, and that is where you wedge one of the holsters. Putting the gun in the other, you strap it to the wedged holster with the grip of the pistol pointed to the ceiling.
Thinking better of your eardrums, you go back for the silencer and put it on. The added length will make drawing from behind your head a real pain in the ass in the tight space the pistol is hidden, but you don't wanna risk your life attempting that sort of draw in the first place. Better to twist around and pull it out. From experience, you are certain you can get it out and pointed at a target from a resting position in about a second.
In the event one second isn't enough time to defend yourself, you were probably going to die anyways even if you already had a gun in your hand. Not great, but it's the best you can do right now. You get your clothes off fast and dump them on the floor, barely getting into the bathroom before Vivian finishes. Her uniform is neatly folded over on the counter, and she's already in the water.
"Hop on in sir, the water is warm and infested with sharks."
You may not understand certain details about the non-human species, but you recognize she's not trying to be humorous. Almost feels like a challenge of sorts. You just don't know the exact right direction to go. What might she be challenging about, unless...
"Thank god, I've had a long day and could use the comfort."
That appears to have been the correct tack to take, as she holds her arms out to you with a soft smile that is a bit less scary looking than usual.
"Then come be comforted in these shark infested waters."
You hope this isn't some weird shark ritual. If she tries to go with some sort of nautical roleplay, you're fully prepared to use the "thar be boobies" gambit. Either way, you climb in and she begins to bathe you. About halfway through you break the silence.
"Thank you Vivian, it feels good to wash off the shame and disgust of my day."
She takes a bit longer than is needed to scrub your stomach.
"Tough at the top eh?"
"I'm not leading a country, I'm putting out fires and babysitting the rich, the powerful, and the insane. On a good day. I don't understand most of my interactions with anyone who isn't human since I don't know all the non-verbal messages. It's like half of every conversation goes right over my head. I grew up in a country where 98% of the population is human, I never even met a non-human face to face until I got assigned here. I didn't ask for this job, I didn't run for the office, I just got this dumped in my lap. Like they drew my name out of a hat and said 'Hey, let's have Anon get this country back on it's legs. Who cares if we just blew it's fucking feet off?!'"
Vivian is a bit surprised at the anger in your rant, and pauses in washing you for a moment before resuming. Before she has a chance to jump in you speak up.
"Which is why I'm so glad to have you as my chambermaid. My life may be a disaster waiting to turn into a catastrophe, but you help me keep the dark urges away."
She looks a bit concerned but continues with her task.
"Dark urges sir?"
"You know, the urge to flee the country and start a new life under a different name, the urge to drive into incoming traffic, the usual stuff. I cope with the stress by doing naughty things to a sexy shark, what do you do?"
Her motion with the sponge slows down, going from scrubbing to more of a stroking.
"I put on a maid uniform, lay on my back, and spread my legs."
Considering yourself clean enough you reach over with a hand, put it on her head, then push her head beneath the water. She makes no effort to stay above, and after about ten seconds you feel her nuzzling her slick snout against your thighs.
Not exactly what you have planned, so you reach down and pull her back above the waterline with a hand under each arm.
"Go ahead and get yourself cleaned up Vivian, I have a favor to ask my chambermaid."
While she cleans herself, you go ahead and get out of the bath, and dry yourself off with a towel. Once finished she does the same, looking a bit apprehensive.
"Sir, please not the doberman again. My cervix still hurts."
"No, it's not that. I want you to act as if you don't consent, that you are unwilling. I don't want you to bite me or kick me in the balls, but I do want you to act like you are being raped."
Vivian looks uncertain for the first time you've seen in a long while.
"Is this something you really want to practice sir?"
"Don't give me that look. I may need to do some under the table negotiations with some of those rich, powerful, and insane I mentioned earlier. Some of them have some rather extreme tastes. I understand if you are uncomfortable with this, so am I. But I need to know I can perform if and when the time comes. Can you handle this?"
"I'll try sir."
Part of you is doing this just to see how Vivian reacts. Part of you is doing this because you want your chambermaid to be open to unusual experiences. Part of you is doing this just because you enjoy taking a non-human female who is unwilling. Seeing Annie ruthlessly torment Vivian, and Vivian pleading and begging for mercy, brought back that urge. While one day in the future you would like to violate the utter hell out of a captured rebel inside the palace's dungeon, for now you'll settle with a simulation. Taking Vivian by the hand, you guide her to the bed. She starts trying to pull away.
"Hang on, not yet. I doubt any of those psychos will be wanting me to chase them around the room, and even then I'm getting too old for that sort of shit. Just lay down on the bed, I'll get on top of you, and we'll go from there."
"As you wish Grand Marshall."
She lays down somewhat near the edge of the bed closest to the bathroom, but about six feet away, and you climb on top of her. You notice she's leaving room to struggle around without falling off the bed. You position your legs in-between hers, and make sure that her tail is to the side of your legs and not between them. You've already asked her to avoid nut-shots, but she could make a mistake and you don't want that meaty tail slamming into your balls. Once positioned, you look at her.
"Now?"
"Now."
Two hands on your chest gently pushes away.
"No, get off me you monster!"
She seems to understand you aren't looking for a fight, more of a scene. Excellent. You suddenly get a flash of inspiration. You grab her wrists and pin them to the bed, she doesn't try too hard to prevent it.
"It's too late Vivian. If you wish to escape your fate then you had better talk. Confess or I will show you no mercy."
She looks a bit confused about you using her name like this, but quickly plays along.
"I'm innocent, I haven't done anything! Please spare me sir!"
You move her wrists together above her head, and hold them together with one hand. You use the other to put a finger under her lower jaw(you can't really call it a chin in a traditional sense) and push her head up a bit, a classic villain move you've always wanted an excuse to use. You shift your voice into the most intimidating low growl you can.
"Lies! We already have the evidence! Answer or face the consequences Vivian, which rebel group do you work for?"
"I'll never talk you monster!"
Well damn. You were hoping to scare her and see what shakes out, but she thinks it's just part of the roleplay. It was worth a shot. Might as well move on to the fun now.
"Then you will pay, with your body!"
She stops struggling, and the look of disappointment on her face says it all.
"Well sorry I'm not putting a lot of effort into believable rapist dialogue. Just work with me Vivian."
She rolls her eyes, but resumes her ineffective struggling to escape.
"Please don't! I have a family!"
You use your free hand to play with her sizable tits.
"I wonder what your husband will think when he sees you pregnant with a human child."
Sliding your knees apart forces her legs apart, and you leave her breasts alone long enough to guide yourself inside her, then use your free hand to hold yourself up. Once inside, you push in deep.
"No! Get out of me you filthy human!"
Slowly you build speed while you taunt your "victim".
"There is no escape. You are going to be spending the rest of your days tied to a bed, getting fucked by 'filthy' humans. We're going to breed you, repeatedly. Even when you are pregnant, we'll still have you tied up and getting fucked. Your body just became the property of the government, and you are going to be doing your part to help with the population shortage. Every time you give birth, we'll knock you up again. I hope you learn to enjoy human dick, you'll be spending the rest of your life getting better acquainted with it."
"Stop! I don't want to be pregnant! I'll kill you!"
Vivian says that, but she's wrapped her legs around you. Feeling a bit pent up from Annie earlier, you decide to not hold back and just go for it. You pound hard and think of the things you will be doing to captured rebels in the future, and feel release coming.
"Shut up and get pregnant!"
Pushing deep, you cum inside of her, and the two of you lay panting face to face. More or less finished, you roll off of her. After a brief recovery period, she speaks.
"So I'm guessing you'll want to do more of that in the future sir?"
"I hope not."
"Really? I thought you enjoyed yourself a great deal."
You do a brief mental review. Surely you didn't let on?
"What makes you say that?"
"She fidgets a bit before answering.
"Sir, I can smell that you are capable of another round, but not interested. I can smell that you did something with that doberman earlier. And during sex, I can smell just how aroused or not you are by what I do."
It takes a minute for you to digest that, then the unsettling implications make themselves known. If what she says is true, then that means either most or every non-human can tell exactly what you like and don't like during sex. They won't be fooled by actions and words, since your scent would give you away. With the "dirty talk" you used earlier, then that means Vivian knows...
She cuts that thought off by speaking up.
"Your secrets are safe with me sir. I won't tell anyone."
But how would she know that...oh. You suddenly flash back to your meeting with that veteran of the war. The bastards can smell your fear, indeed. She could fucking smell your worry. How in the hell did you let yourself forget what he said? You suppose hearing about it and actually living it is two different things, but you usually pride yourself on being prepared. And you just got caught with your pants down, while you had your pants off.
"Sorry Vivian, I don't know what to say. You make rape enjoyable?"
She looks a bit surprised.
"You mean you don't know you enjoy dominating during sex?"
You see a silver lining on this development. They can smell your moods, but they don't know the exact motivation behind the mood. At least they aren't fucking mind readers.
"I do, I just wasn't expecting to enjoy...this."
You make yourself feel shame over forgetting the warning. You were specifically told about this aspect of non-humans, and you didn't listen, like a moron. Vivian picks up on the scent, and reads what you want her to read from it.
"It's alright sir, I know you don't really have an interest in rape."
The relief you feel is natural, but not for the reason Vivian thinks. You can still manipulate, but you are going to need to greatly improve your acting skills to successfully fool non-humans with a sense of smell.
"Thank you Vivian. Now lets get some sleep and forget this horrible day ever happened."
Just when you thought things were coming together. Now you are forced to wonder how many have been humoring you, knowing you felt very different than you presented yourself. As if things weren't complicated enough. You think about your first move in the morning.
Shit is moving far too fast for your tastes. You are used to being in full control of the situation, and finding out you've been transparent as glass since you've arrived has thrown a lot of your plans into doubt. No wonder Chloe was so pissed off at you. She knew full well you were lying about not knowing what she wanted. She probably picked up on your enjoyment of her frustration as well. You're going to need to shift to a different strategy the next time you see her, and hope she assumes that encounter was just a misread on her part.
The mole is also a thorn in your side, preventing you from fully trusting any of your staff. Knowing your enemies have someone placed so closely to you is a major concern. If they decide to go for the kill, they already have an assassin in the perfect position. Or they could stay subtle and use the mole to glean information to sabotage your operations. Either way, you need to talk with Intel about ways to keep tabs on your staff. They also need to look closely about what information about activities inside the palace leaks outside, so you can try to figure out who would know that information.
Still need to get together with Annie and setup an account on that forum. For all you know, many of those human worshipers could be in positions beneficial to you. Some people loyal to you in the media could be very useful. A few on your staff wouldn't be so bad either.
What will you do in the morning?

A)Go see intel

B)Go see Chloe
C)Go see Annie
D)Go see a shrink
E)Write in

You don't sleep very well that night, even with your shark pillow. Knowing you've been effectively a social retard hasn't put you in a good mood. You decide you need to hit harder. So far you've been playing in the garden, taste-testing candidates for your future harem. Now there is no immediate crisis demanding your attention, you figure you should put some serious effort into finding the mole, and making some sort of strike against the Coalition. You hate feeling like you are just reacting, so it's time to take direct action.
After waking you gently wake up Vivian and the two of you dress. After sending her out to start her day, you grab your stashed gun and both holsters and put them back in the desk drawer, then lock it. It's not until halfway to the room intel commandeered that you wonder if Vivian could smell the oil used to maintain the weapon, or any trace gunpowder from previous firings. Or maybe you are just being paranoid now.
Two agents of the four are inside the room, doubled up for the shift change. You go ahead and tell them to pull the agent watching over Antonio, you have bigger problems right now than potential issues. You tell them you want them to figure out the average movements for each of your staff, and to flag anything outside of those movements. You also want ID cards for your staff rigged to the gills with GPS, sound, and video, so you can see and hear anything they do as well as know where they are at all times when on palace grounds. You also ask them to contact the home country for some additional intel agents to be assigned. You plan on going to war soon, and you're going to need to know exactly who to shoot.
That ball now rolling, it's onto your next task.

A)Go see Amelia about breakfast
B)Go see Annie about getting on that forum

C)Go see Katerina about readying whatever she has into a strike force for going after the Coalition

D)Go see what sort of shenanigans your gardeners are up to
E)Write in

Intel gives you your Defense Minister's phone number, and you ask them to issue cell phones to your cabinet. Probably should have done that sooner. Yet another instance of you being behind the eight ball. Katerina picks up on the 5th ring.
"Hello?"
"Morning Katerina."
"Grand Marshall?"
"Sadly enough, yes. I need you to get together a strike team, we're gonna be going hunting soon."
There is a brief pause.
"A strike team?"
"Yes. You know, people with guns, armor, maybe some explosives, that sort of thing."
"Sir I...I might be able to pull together a small group of police officers into something resembling a strike team, but I don't really have any soldiers. 95% of our military is on base guard duty to prevent any rebels from breaking into our bases and stealing what little we have left. The majority of them are support roles. Drivers, cooks, mechanics, comms, supply chain, all with minimal training on how to even hold a gun. What sort of strike force do you expect me to create from that?"
It's a good thing this conversation is over the phone, so she can't see you facepalm. Of course, you don't have a military, you have a militia. And pulling from police would just leave them even more understaffed than they currently are. Still, you need a good hit. Need to bloody at least one of your opponents. The optics aren't 100% important, doing some damage is. If the mole isn't scared yet, you want them to be.
"Got any spare uniforms?"
"Too many, and not enough bodies to put in them."
"Perfect. Send 50 to the palace, and I'll get you the strike team to put in them."
Another pause.
"Sir, might I recommend against mercenaries? They are usually more trouble than help."
"Not mercenaries, actual soldiers. Good soldiers, well trained and ready to follow orders and kick ass."
"Understood sir. I'll bring the uniforms."
A grandfather clock in the corner chimes 10. One of the agents informs you that the agent watching over Antonio has gotten the message to abandon the mission and is on the way back to the palace now. He has seen zero evidence that either Antonio is up to anything or that anyone is trying to target Antonio. The possibility remains, but looks good so far.
You have intel contact the nearby base where your personal military assets are garrisoned. The request is simple. Need 50 soldiers, fully armed and equipped for close-quarters combat in a city setting. Rules of Engagement are to only open fire on those that are armed and shooting. Goal is capture of as many enemy combatants as possible, but entire target location is to be cleared of hostiles by any means necessary. APC's for transport of the strike force, trucks for transport of prisoners, and two helicopters providing overwatch. Delivery of the soldiers is requested for noon today at the palace, everything else is to be coordinated through your Minister of Defense.
It's a start at least.

A)Talk to Annie about getting on that forum for some much needed reinforcements
B)Talk to Amelia about what is now brunch for some much needed nutrients

C)Talk to somebody about getting a flask for some much needed escape from reality
D)Write in

You leave intel with orders to dig deep and find you a Coalition safe-house, armory, meeting place, anything. Amelia is camped out in the main hallway of the first floor, and makes a beeline for you the moment you leave the office, her hooves clacking all the way.
"Sir, you really need to eat."
"Tell me about it. What's for breakfast?"
The tray this morning contains some sort of fruity yogurt(strawberry is your guess), a hard-boiled egg(already shelled), four slices of bacon, and a pear already sliced with peanut butter. Nutritious, but light, not like a stack of pancakes that would put you to sleep in the afternoon. A bit closer to an athlete's breakfast. You really hope Amelia isn't the mole. It's not too often that you get a chef who cooks in accordance with your needs, rather than just pumping out meals.
You thank her for the food and take the tray to an empty office. Having ignored your hunger for a bit long, you down every scrap in about 4 minutes flat, then head outside to go see Annie. Today she's outside the garage, leaning against one of the closed garage doors. She spots you exiting the Palace and waves, then opens one of the garage doors when she sees you walking her direction. You almost feel bad that you aren't going to be asking her to drive you some place.
"Morning boss. Where to?"
"Back seat Annie, we have some business to discuss that can't be talked about in public."
The two of you climb into the back of one of your SUV's, and shut the door. You pull out your tablet and tell Annie that you want to get your own account on the cult's forum for reasons previously discussed. She ends up having to manually type in the address for you, since it is a convoluted mess of random letters and numbers.
"It's so no one will ever accidentally stumble across it."
Once on the forum, she guides you through creating an account. You decide to use the screen name 'GM', and then make your first post announcing your arrival. You are promptly met with demands for proof. It take a bit of internal debate before you decide they are probably going to be the most trustworthy anthros you meet. So you take a picture of yourself holding Annie's necklace and post that.
Instantly, you are THE most popular person on the forum. The forum moderators mark your profile with a Verified Human tag, there are a flood of replies to your thread, and your inbox fills with messages and links to pictures and videos. Annie looks a bit embarrassed at the response.
"Yeah, they can be a bit much sometimes."
"No, this is good. They understand I welcome them with open arms, they aren't afraid to speak to me."
You check out one of the pictures you were sent. It turns out to be a female feline with jet-black fur, giving you a welcoming pose of her own. On her back, open arms and open legs. Only covering she has on is a sheet of paper over her stomach that says "COME SEE ME". Annie makes no comment, but you can see her pointedly ignore looking at the tablet. You decide to check out one of the videos.
There is no intro or anything, the video just starts with an avian wearing either a legless leotard or a one-piece swimsuit. A chicken if you are guessing the species correct. She is wearing heels and a top hat, and has a cane in one hand. Music begins playing, and she starts to sing along with it.
"I love you, a bushel and a peck, a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck, a hug around the neck and a barrel and a heap, a barrel and a heap and I'm talkin' in my sleep, about you, about you, cause I love you, a bushel and a peck, you bet your purdy neck, I do, a doodle oodle, ooh doo, a doodle oodle, oodle, ooh doo..."
You hit the pause button and hear Annie's desperate attempts to stifle laughter.
Looking at her, she's trying very hard not to laugh. She's shuddering in a spasm, and tears are coming out. You force yourself to not laugh as well, but it's too damn early in the day for this sort of thing. Then again, you don't think you'll ever be prepared to see a chicken dancing and singing along with A Bushel And A Peck. Much less the Andrews Sisters cover. You thank Annie for the assistance, and mentally prepare yourself for your next move.

A)Filter through people on the forum for possible recruits

B)Check on the status of cleaning and repairs at the palace
C)Send your security on an important mission to get you a flask

D)Make some modifications and tests on your new dungeon in preparation for some fresh victims

E)Grab your gun and take yourself hostage
F)Write in

You tell Annie to keep the vehicles prepped to move, you are hoping to travel today. Wanting some privacy to browse the forum, you head back inside the palace to the library, and take the secret passage down to the dungeon. A brief inspection later, and you have a general idea of the layout of the dungeon, and the items contained within. You are mildly surprised and disturbed to find the layout of the dungeon mimics the layout of the second floor of the palace. The difference being the rooms are smaller, there are more of them, and where your bedroom would be, is what you view to be the main torture chamber. Most of the hardware is in that room. The smaller rooms are more like cells, with thick stone walls and heavy locking steel doors. Inside the cells are three sets of manacles securely chained to mounting rings built into the wall, floor, and bed. The one on the wall for a standing position, the floor for a kneeling position, and the flat wooden bed for prisoners lucky enough to be allowed to sleep laying down.
While the 2nd floor of the palace has about 30 large bedrooms besides your own, the dungeon has about 80 cells. While not as spacious as the 2nd floor rooms, there's plenty of room in each cell for 2-3 prisoners to be tortured at the same time. The main torture room could probably fit about 20 prisoners at once, which would be good for group breaking. Cruel experience has long since taught you the value of using someone's comrades against them.
Funny enough, there is almost a check-in desk inside the main torture room near the door. It's as good a spot as any to browse in peace and quiet, and there is more than enough light from the florescent lights on the ceiling. You pull up a chair, pull the tablet out, and start taking a good hard look at the human worshipers.
It's hard to be certain just how big their numbers are, and given their paranoid nature you are not certain it's safe to ask. The forum is divided into a number of sections, some similar to what you would find in a standard forum, some will probably never make sense to you. Along with General, News, and Fictional Stories, you also see Discretion and Scenting.
With Katerina's project in mind, you go looking at the stories section of the website, looking for the ones writing the more 'extreme' material. You wind up with a list of about 15 authors with fixations on permanent chastity, cock and ball torture, castration, nullification, and other forms of creative torture of male non-humans. Checking your messages, you notice you have a message from each one of them. And they all say Annie told them you asked them to contact you. You then remember asking Annie to contact these ones for you. Where the fuck is your head? Usually you aren't this forgetful. You reply to all of them asking them if they would like to live out their fantasies for real.
Next up you need to get all sorts of recruits in different positions, so you post a thread in the General section asking everyone to post their jobs(without naming companies or locations or anything identifying). You then notice the clock on the tablet says it's 11:30, and your cabinet is going to be here in 30 minutes, along with those soldiers you ordered.

A)See if Amelia has anything ready to eat before you go to the meeting

B)Wait for responses to your thread to see what you have available to you for personnel
C)Head into the meeting and hope Amelia brings you lunch eventually
D)Have security blindfold and drag Vivian into the dungeon, then take off the blindfold and yell "YOU'RE ON CANDID CAMERA!"
E)Write in

Putting the tablet back away, you leave your dungeon of solitude behind. On the way up the stairs, you think about what will be going on at the meeting. Was Chloe supposed to be back, or still out 'negotiating'? Didn't you have something planned with Katerina? Did you even speak with Richard last time? You end up stopping halfway up the steps as you realize you really can't remember much about the previous meeting. This is not like you. At all. Sure, you've been a bit stressed out since entering the country, but you usually do a better job of keeping it together. You should probably get more sleep than you have been, and eat more. You'll feel pretty damn silly if you end up getting a bullet to the brain from some sniper because you weren't on your A-game.
Right, today you were supposed to come up with official policy. How could you forget that? Given it's actually before noon for a change, you head out to the food truck that has taken up permanent residence in your yard. Halfway from the palace to it, Amelia comes out of the truck with the cart of meals in tow.
"Afternoon sir, ready for lunch?"
"Very. I actually get to sit down and eat today."
You guide her and the cart inside the palace to a spare office, and Amelia deposits the tray onto the desk. She removes the lid to reveal a grilled sandwich of some kind and a side salad, then leaves you to eat your meal in peace. A bite confirms your suspicions. It is in fact, a Cuban. You open it up and remove the pickles. Pickles are great and all, but you never cared for the taste of pickles and pork together with mayo. Sans pickles, it is a good sandwich if slightly greasy. You're glad to see she didn't use the usual cheese, instead opting for some interesting cheese you can't identify.
It's nice to be able to taste your food instead of just inhaling it. You're also able to take advantage of the time to think over events since you arrived in Resnea. Checking your memory against some of your notes. Trying to brush away the cobwebs. Given how good you usually are about staying on top of things, and how lately you just seem scattered, it just seems...
You spit out your current mouthful and drop the remains of the sandwich in the tray before the thought finishes. And then you hope you are being paranoid. With no small amount of worry, you pick up the tray, and head back to the intel room. You have their full attention when they see the look on your face, and one takes the tray off to be analyzed. About five minutes after noon, he calls back to report the lab over at the base discovered something that wasn't bread, meat, veggie, cheese, or sauce. Not exactly sure what, more testing will be required, but something is in your food.
You finally find a chef who gets you, and she tries to get you dead.
"God dammit Amelia."

A)Go to the meeting, you'll get the goat later

B)Have your security seize Amelia and take her to your dungeon, cancel the meeting

C)Put intel onto Amelia, and have a 'clean' set of meals delivered, don't let Amelia know you're onto her

D)Ask her for seconds
E)Write in

You tell intel to keep you informed about the substance in your food, but to not make a move on your chef yet. You instead have them tell security to be on stand-by to seize Amelia at dinnertime. You should know more by then, and know exactly how to proceed as a result. If it's something harmless, then you can just have a chat with her about it. If she's been dosing you, then she's going to be the very first guest in your dungeon. You have them send someone out to get you something safe to eat. This incident has cost you your appetite, but you hope it comes back.
If it is a poison, she clearly hasn't been using a lethal dose. Probably cumulative, slowly dosing you down. Easier to avoid suspicion that way. A quick mental review of the cumulative poisons you know, that don't have strong flavors, confirms your initial suspicions that there is no point in trying to induce vomiting. You had it in your bloodstream the moment it went down your throat. If it is a poison you know.
The agents check your vitals, looking for any signs of medical distress. You seem healthy, physically. With that, you can't delay any more, you're already late. One of your intel agents volunteers to fetch a medic to be on standby just in case. A short walk later, and you are at the office your cabinet has been using. Everyone else is already there, including Chloe.
"Sorry I'm late folks, an issue required my attention."
You force yourself to feel calm, you don't want the cabinet prying.
"Now then, we need to work on getting a clear idea of what Resnea's official policy and laws will be. So far we've been letting the country operate in a strange limbo mash-up of the previous Grand Marshall's administration and the military government that was here prior to me. We obviously aren't going to hammer out all the fine details today, or even in a few weeks worth of meetings, but that isn't the goal right now. The goal is to establish a general guideline that other policies and laws will be based on."
A few seconds later they finally understand what you are getting at, but Nikan asks for confirmation anyways.
"You mean we're writing a new constitution?"
"Precisely. Let's get the principals this country will be built on set in stone now, so our Minister of Public Affairs has plenty of time to get it polished just right and ready to be shared with the public."
You feel your tablet vibrate, so you pull it out and check the message.
"UNNATURAL, LAB MADE"
And so it's a nightmare scenario you didn't even think was likely. Not even a normal poison, you've been given something special. Something your lab might not be able to identify. You send a message that Amelia is to be seized and secured in your dungeon the moment she steps out of the food truck.
"Sir, is something wrong?"
Richard is the one who asked, and is staring at you, along with the rest of your cabinet. They must have smelled your panic.

A)Move onward, it's not their business

B)Let them know you have a problem, and need to call off the meeting for today
C)Point accusingly at Richard and say "You. YOU YOU YOU!" then glare at him
D)Write in

"Only on days that end with a 'y' Richard. Moving on. I understand this country may have a great deal of tradition, a way that things were done for a very long time. With all due respect to that, there are certain things I will not tolerate in the new Resnea."
A bit of silence before Katerina speaks up.
"Do you mean harsher punishments?"
"No. During what little time I've been in this country, it's become clear to me that this is a stratified society, and a pecking order is more or less enforced. It would seem the main determining factor in the opportunities available to someone in Resnea, is what species they were born as. Or am I completely off the mark on this?"
Antonio and Richard silently nod a no, Chloe, Nikan, and Zara all stare at Kayla, until she finally feels pressured into speaking.
"Unfortunately, you aren't wrong sir. The order roughly goes primary carnivore mammals, primary herbivore mammals, lesser carnivore mammals, lesser herbivore mammals, avians, amphibians, reptiles, and then rodents."
You have no idea what the hell a primary carnivore is compared to a lesser carnivore, but you aren't going to ask right now. It won't be important in the future anyways. A mild intellectual curiosity at best.
"Unacceptable. I'm not going to bother building up a country where nearly half the population gets the short end of the stick just because they were born. Either I lead a country where everyone has an equal chance to succeed, or I'd rather watch the damn thing burn. Make no mistake, I have the capability of doing either one. This is non-negotiable, and will be one of our core principles. Any questions?"
Reactions around the table range from surprise to shock at the sudden threat out of you. An important part of your public image is you appearing to view all species equally, even if your own viewpoint is a bit different. You figure eventually someone is gonna mention that the Grand Marshall threatened to lay waste to the country if it wasn't going to be a country of 'equality'. Given how Kayla is looking as if she agrees entirely with your statement, even if slightly surprised by the threat, you figure it will probably be her. Chloe finds her voice first.
"Uh sir, I think everyone here would support that idea already. And you are the Grand Marshall, your word is the law, it's not like you need our approval. Sir."
Seeing a cowed Chloe, you think you might have gone a bit far. Frightened into submission doesn't suite her.
"Just wanted to make clear where I stand on the matter, and where the country will stand on the matter. Excellent. Zara, make it official."
The room is filled with the tak-ing sound of Zara tapping away on her ever present tablet. She gives a brief nod when finished.
"What next sir?"
Expectant eyes around the table meet your own. Your brain feels like it's in a fog, and all the ideas you had seem out of reach.

A)Press onward, when in doubt just copy your home country
B)Ask for input from the cabinet on what policy should be

C)Declare the first day of each season to be a holiday celebrated by everyone in the country doing the Monster Mash for four hours straight
D)Write in

"I thought I would open up the floor. Where do you all think Resnea should stand on environment, education, personal rights, economic policy, and so on? We don't need specifics just yet, but ideas for a general stance would be good."
Before anyone can speak up, there's a knock at the door, and one of your security staff is poking their head in.
"Sir? Those soldiers you asked for are waiting outside."
Oh, right. Your watch says it's 12:30, so they've probably been waiting for about a half hour before they decided to send a reminder. You can't deal with the meeting and the soldiers at the same time...but this does give you a chance to solve two problems at once.
"Tell them I'll be out shortly."
He nods and shuts the door on his way out.
"Sorry folks, but I have a security issue I need to deal with. While I'm gone, please continue on with discussing policy. Zara will make a record of it, and can fill me in when I get back. Katerina, you're with me."
The two of you quickly make an exit and head outside. You try to not let your relief be to obvious, forcing yourself to the same calm you've been holding since you found out about the odor thing. This way you can let your cabinet do some of the heavy lifting until you get back, hopefully with a clearer head. And you can make it all look planned. Yep, everything is under control folks, nothing to see here. Right. You have a brief fantasy about taking a dremel to Amelia's hooves.
Outside the palace is the soldiers you requested. They are uniformed, armed, and look ready to go kick some ass. Perfect.
"Katerina, you have the Resnean uniforms, right?"
She scratches at the back of her neck.
"I have... Resnean uniforms, yes."
"What do you mean?"
"Sir, you remember how I said I had a shortage of uniforms?"
Now you do. You don't like where this is going.
"You mean you couldn't get 50 army uniforms?"
"I don't have 50 uniforms of any specific branch."
Who the fuck did you piss off in a previous life? You must have sinned horribly against god in some way.
"So, what do you have?"
"Whatever was large enough to fit your average human."
About 30 minutes later, and your soldiers are in their "new" uniforms. About seven were lucky enough to get actual army camo. Three are stuck with PT sweatpants and t-shirts. Four are wearing sailor's uniforms, and two are wearing wetsuits and shaking their heads. Eight soldiers are dressed to the nines in formal dress uniforms complete with jackets, twelve are not so nice looking in mechanic's overalls, and three are clearly wearing uniforms from the army's marching band. Four are wearing pilot's jackets and the bodysuits designed to be pressurized, three are in scout ghillie suits that will be completely worthless in an urban environment, two are wearing medic scrubs, and the last one is wearing short shorts and a wifebeater.
"Katerina, what exactly is that soldier wearing?"
"Bush or jungle environment scout uniform."
"I don't know if I should laugh or cry."
"Just don't do both at once, trust me."
You bury your face in your hands and wonder if you'll ever hire someone normal.
"Moving on. Alright folks, listen up! I'm sure you all know who I am. The person standing beside me is my minister of defense, Katerina. She's in charge of all operations within Resnea, and will be in charge of this mission. Your target is going to be rebels of the Coalition faction, specifics of when and where will be coming later. Every member of the Coalition is a mercenary, period. None of them are strangers to combat, and they will fight. They all know I have promised death for them, so don't expect them to be rushing to surrender. I want as many captured as possible, but don't hesitate to use force, you may not have a choice."
"Katerina, intel will let you know the moment they identify a Coalition location. After that, let me know when you're ready to strike."
She salutes and you leave her to it. You were gone for about an hour, hopefully the rest of the cabinet has some policy for you to chew over. You debate if you should make a detour to your dungeon to punch a certain goddamn goat in the face repeatedly.

Current Choice:

A)Get back to the meeting, Amelia can wait
B)Go take out some of your anger on Amelia
C)Get booze and go drink in a bathtub
D)Write in