NationStates Jolt Archive

Chorus: Let us take a brief walk through the linden and oak arbours, the tall and orderly forest that surrounds the Palace of the Moon and the Stars. The tall pillars surrounding the main entrance which resemble tall shining giants of beautiful and grave face, rebuilt after their defacing during the Winter Ball of two years' past. Those surfaces of shining stone, evoking the glowing surface of the moon itself show no hint of the bloodshed and terror of that night.
If there is some dark fate that moves always closer for Lavenrunz; if every celebration is some sort of ritual sacrifice that brings it nearer, Empress Aurora is determined to defy it by holding her birthday celebration in the very place where the treacherous Count Mirbach attempted to grasp Lavenrunz in his iron fist.

"What a lovely spring rain." Aurora observed, smiling. She loved that time of year the best, when the faintly musty smells of leftover winter were washed away by the rains, and the first buds were beginning to appear, and there was the promise of everything beginning again. What a wonderful time to have a birthday!
"It will be the first time the Imperial Family has gathered together all at once for quite some time." said her secretary, Baron Ehrfurt gravely. "Is Your Majesty sure that this is wise, with possibly a great many foreigners present?"
Aurora smiled. "We defy augury." for a moment she felt sadness, remember her mother's fondness for the play she was quoting. But she shook it off. "This will be a day of great pleasure, Ehrfurt, it will be one of Lavenrunz' greatest parties! Now...put the standard invitation but add as I tell you..."


Dear (inserted: Excellency, Majesty, Highness, Mr. President, Lord General, etc)

You are cordially invited to attend my sixteenth birthday party. This party will have many wonderful spectacles, some games and will be all about enjoyment. Please do not hesitate to leave undue gravity and serious affairs at the doors of the Palace of the Moon and the Stars, at which it is to take place. I urge you to make what security arrangements you require with Baron Shein, the Minister of Information and Imperial Security.
As for accomodations, the Palace, which has only just begun to be used again, is fully prepared to be ready for any guests.

Hoping you are in the best of spirits and health
I am, yours affectionately

Aurora von Sachshausen
Empress of Lavenrunz



OOC note: the following nations have been directly invited: Menelmacar, Nathicana, Hack, GMC Military Arms, New York and Jersey, Tsaraine, Treznor, Iuthia, Vegana, Pantocratoria, The Territory, The Resurgent Dream, Knootoss, North Star, Tanah Burung, Ilek-Vaad, Excalbia, Syskeyia, Reichskamphen, Melkor Unchained.

OOC: Quick question; when do you envision this being, in relation to Iuthia's wedding thread?

Aesa Erikson noticed the announcement in the stack of mail to be forwarded back to Chiba City. She added a quick note of her own before forwarding it on to Elisa.

Elisa,

I'm running on the assumption that you'll be attending, and I'd just like to let you know that I'd love to attend as well.

Aesa

---

Elisa reviewed the letter, and Aesa's note before leaning back in her chair, thinking about everything. Things had gone well (so far) with the transfer students, and her life had been reasonably calm since the attempt on her life. Her main concern was the firm religiosity of Lavenrunz.

She also giggled softly at Aesa's request. The young ambassador was eager to prove her worth, especially since Aurora often deferred to Elisa. Of course, the fact that Aesa had a soft spot for the Nordic court of Levenrunz was probably the truly deciding factor. Still, it would be proper for Aesa to attend.

Empress Aurora,

I would be honored to attend your birthday party. I hope you don't mind if I bring my wife and bodyguard. They enjoyed our last trip and would love to visit on a less "businessy" trip.

Our ambassador to your wonderful country, Aesa Erikson, would love to attend as well. I hope none of this will be a problem.

Yours,

Speaker Elisa Day

OOC: Good question, Tsar...

OOC: Can you add me to the invitation list? This would be a great occasion to bring in my new ambassador, too. :)

OOC: IC I'd be most terribly dissapointed to be left off a guest list that Melkor's Minions are on. EDIT: (Alas, one can't put tone on text. This post isn't intended to 'sound' petulant.)

http://members.iinet.net.au/~a_marrington/ns/despotdauphin.jpg

Your Teutonic Majesty,

I would be honoured to attend Your Majesty's birthday party in the spirit of friendship between our two nations. I have heard great things about Lavenrunz, and even greater things about its Empress, and I look forward to seeing both in person.

In eager anticipation,

Andreus
Despot of New Constantinople and Dauphin of Viennois

OOC: This party would be presumed to take place after the party in Iuthia. Ctan I'm terribly sorry for not including you. I was mostly thinking of nations I've had very direct relations with, but of course your country would have received an invitation for the reasons you stated.
And Constantinopolis, yes you may attend. :)

Several members of the cabinet sat rather wearily around the antique oval table in centre of the Map Room. In the earlier days of Sweyn Castle, the Map Room had served as the Emperor’s war room. That function had passed into history in the relative peace of the 19th and 20th centuries and the room had become merely another exquisitely appointed reception room in the Imperial family’s main residence. With the Upper Virginia conflict and the rising tensions with the Confederation, however, the Map Room had been returned to service as a meeting room for the Emperor’s unofficial war cabinet.

To the Emperor’s right, Lady Christina Freedman watched her sovereign with a worried look on her face. David IV looked old. Maybe, the Imperial Chancellor tried to convince herself, it was just the light. But, deep down she knew that the Emperor was troubled. He wasn’t sleeping well, as evidenced by his newly acquired habit of calling her and the defence minister in the middle of the night. The stress was obviously taking a toll on the Emperor. Lady Christina sighed. She was just conscious enough of her own TV-perfect looks to worry about how the stress would start to affect her.

Lord Yornis Halton, the Minister of Defence, finished his briefing and turned to uniformed naval officer beside him. “Sir Derek, is there anything to add?”

Admiral Sir Derek Kunle, the recently installed Chief of the Imperial General Staff, looked thoughtful for a minute, then, in a deep, rolling voice, he said, “Only that construction in our shipyards remains ahead of schedule. INV Reliant is due to return from its deployment near the Resurgent Dream in two weeks. She will be replaced by the newly commissioned INV Valiant.”

“Very well,” Lady Christina said. “Is there anything else? If not, your Majesty…”

“I am sorry, Lady Chancellor. Your Majesty,” Minister of State Albert Cummings shifted his bulky frame in his beautiful, but quite uncomfortable antique wooden chair, “if I may?”

Emperor David IV nodded. “Please, go ahead, Minister Cummings.”

“Thank you, your Majesty.” Cummings pulled a letter out of his official portfolio. “You have received a letter, your Majesty, inviting you to a sixteenth birthday party for Her Teutonic Majesty Empress Aurora of Lavenrunz.”

There was a smattering of laughter around the table. “A party for a sixteen-year old?” Lord Halton said incredulously.

“A party for the Empress of Lavenrunz,” Cummings said sharply, “a country with whom we have wanted to open diplomatic relations, my Lord.”

Lady Christina turned to the Emperor. “Your Majesty?”

David IV rubbed his chin. “It sounds quite lovely, actually. Unfortunately, my place is here.” Minister Cummings started to speak, but the Emperor held up a hand. “However, we must send appropriate representatives. Contact my nephew in Pantocratoria. We will send Prince Peter. Also, Minister Cummings, send an Ambassador, someone appropriately senior and trustworthy. And…,” the Emperor looked pensive for a moment, then smiled. “And we will send my daughter, Princess Rebecca. She is almost the same age as the Empress and it is time she start learning to navigate in diplomatic circles.” The Emperor stood and everyone followed suit.



Your Teutonic Majesty,

I have received your invitation with joy, for I have truly desired to establish cordial diplomatic relations with your Empire for some time. Regrettably, the current military crisis in Upper Virginia and other matters of state will prevent my personal attendance at your party. I hope, however, that you will find a delegation composed of my daughter, Princess Rebecca, and my nephew, Prince Peter, a suitable substitute. In addition, with your consent, I would like to send Lady Allison Blugar to you as my Ambassador.

Please accept my sincere wishes for a joyous and happy birthday.

Peace in Christ,

David IV,
Emperor

'Mr Dyer? Message.'
'Oh lovely, an invitation!' Exclaimed Daniel as he sipped some tea from a new travel set.
'To what exactly?' inquired Bratcher from somewhere under a large pile of sheets.
'The Princess' sweet sixteenth it seems.' Mumbled Daniel as he took yet another sip, and, inevitably dropped a small dark spot onto the card.
'Oh for the love of..'
'Never mind about it sir, I'm sure they won't mind too much.'
Daniel now got up from the chair behind the tiny desk and piles of paper, he steadied himself on a walking stick, refusing to at least take a break in the wake of the bombing, the large pile of paper Bratcher was under suddenly burst as he also stood. Bratcher stood grinning and chuckled a little.
'Oh don't be such a daft sod Bratcher, and get your coat!' barked Daniel as he reached for his, now slightly battered bowler hat.
'Yes sir.' coughed Bratcher as he too reached for his grey coat.

"No, there's gotta be some mistake," the alchemist paced a circle around her office/study/workplace. It could be described as either of those -- an office because it was meant to be that, a study because no one came there, and a workplace because she did what little work that came to her desk in it. For the moment it was a pacing room, a task it was most unsuited for, being only a few meters long and wide with some of that scarce space occupied by a cheap desk and some bookshelves, most of which housed plants instead of books, plants whose healthy, dark green leaves trembled when the trolley clattered down the street, or when the neighbours in the brownstones on either side slammed their doors.

"No mistake, miss alchemist," the kid who was her secretary, assistant, and errand boy poked his head through the door, quite literally. Art was insane -- you didn't just go off and let one of your subLords start a thaumaturgic school. She muttered a quick curse. "I'll be out."

She muttered a quick curse. "Yeah, sure," she grunted.

"I do something?" he blinked at the hostility.

"No, just...bleh," she went ‘round the room. His black eyes followed the crimson-haired young woman. "How're you feeling for a trip around the world?"

"Eh?"

"Well, Lavenrunz, to be exact," Kira corrected.

Yes, this was Kira the alchemist, the paper alchemist, to be exact, the same one who managed to embarrass the Kingdom and the Tower repeatedly at every function she had ever attended until getting shoved into the farthest possibly corner of the galaxy. You couldn't go much farther than Istel, after all, it being sixty thousand light-years from Sol, according to holoflicks. Kira didn't care. Really. She cared more about the fact that she was suddenly under orders from both the Margrave and the Grand Alchemist to get her ass to the other side of the galaxy, again. She was a damned alchemist, not some diplomat. She wasn’t supposed to meet empresses and kings and queens and other inbred royals; she was supposed to keep an eye on things and tell Art not to be an idiot. Well, Agwene was more or less decent, all things considering. But that didn’t matter.

"You want..." the Quendi tried to wrap his mind around the concept.

"Yes," she sighed, halting in the middle of the green-carpeted, small office. "Do you want to go with the Margrave and me to Lavenruz, to attend the party of their sixteen-year-old empress?”

“Hell yeah,” he grinned. Kira didn’t joke, near as he could tell. She had the sense of humour of something…that had no sense of humour. If she said something, she was perfectly serious about it.

To: Her Teutonic Majesty, Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: Office of the Consul-General, Kingdom of Weyr

The Kingdom of Weyr will, regrettably, be unable to attend your celebration due to the passing of the Regent Victoria, which has resulted in a lack of suitable persons who can act as the Kingdom’s head of state.

Respectfully yours,
Josiah Willard Gibbs,
Consul-General

To:Her Teutonic Majesty, Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: Crystal Palace, Mark of Istel

I have received your invitation, and having long desired to establish diplomatic relations with the Empire would be most honored to attend. Unfortunately, recent events along the Line, especially the recent increase in raid ships penetrating our borders, dictate otherwise, and I must respectfully decline the invitation.

Best wishes,
Artur li'Istel
Margrave

To:Her Teutonic Majesty, Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: Office of the Consul-General, Kingdom of Weyr; Crystal Palace, Mark of Istel

Having discussed the current problem of attendance, the Kingdom of Weyr and the Mark of Istel hope you will accept the Paper Alchemist Kira li’Starhavven as a substitute for the Kingdom’s and the Mark’s inability to send proper delegates to your celebration.

Luck and Happiness,
Josiah Willard Gibbs, Consul-General of the Kingdom of Weyr
Artur li’Istel, Margrave of Istel

OOC: Istel is basically an independent state, but isn’t a puppet as such since it’ll be independent of the Kingdom for maybe a few more RL weeks.

Your Imperial Majesty,
It is with the greatest fondness that I recall our meeting of earlier this year and with it is correspondingly with genuine regret that I must write to inform you that I will be unable to personally attend your celebration of the sixteenth anniversary of your birth. However, the Danaan High Kingdom shall be represented at the celebration by my own sister, Her Grace, the Grand Duchess Vicotira ni Gwydion. May the next year of your life be a happy one and likewise every year after.
Sincerely,
Agwene ni Gwydion
High Queen of the Resurgent Dream

The man smiled at Vicotira as the squirming seventeen year old Sidhe sat across from him in the small chamber. "Which of the nations invited to send representatives are allied with the Danaan High Kingdom through VERITAS?"

Vicotira rattled them off. "Menelmacar, New York and Jersey, Iuthia, the C'tan, and Knootoss."

"And Lavenrunz herself, of course." The man added gently.

"You said of the nations invited to send representatives."

The man laughed lightly. "So I did. So I did. It should be noted that the Dominion and Excalbia are also on friendly terms with us. We want to ease relations with Pantocratoria after recent tensions. We want more contact with Tsaraine and Treznor. Vegana and North Star are nations we'd just as soon not establish contact with, but, from what we know of them, they'd just as soon not speak to us either so it shouldn't be a problem. If they do approach you, be polite and non-committal. The same attitude applies to the Five Kingdoms and Constantinopolis, though they are more likely to make overtures. Everyone else on the list is considered neutral and should be treated with a friendly and polite attitude."

Vicotira nodded. "I know." The poor girl had had this briefing eight times already. The diplomats didn't trust the teenager to remember anything. In Lavenrunz, they let girls younger than her run empires, hence the party.

The instructor nodded again. "Good. An important point to remember is that Lavenrunz, while open-minded in her foreign relations, does so as a discrete culture that does not need or desire to give up her Human, Catholic identity. You should..."

"Honestly, I do not see how that would effect anything at the party. I was hardly going to start a debate on the value of internal diversity or propose an open border policy." The girl smirked slightly.

"Yes, yes, of course, Your Grace...Your Majesty!" The man stood and bowed deeply as High Queen Agwene entered the room.

The High Quen smiled gently at him. "A moment with my sister, if you please." After the man left, she hugged Vicotira. "Everything he told you, important to remember. Still...Empress Aurora is more than a foreign policy objective. She's a good woman who deserves a sweet sixteen. I want you to go, be yourself, and have fun. I'm sure you'll get along splendidly. And, if you can score a diplomatic coup while you're there, it would be nice. But mostly have fun."

The girl smiled up at her big sister. "Yes, Your Majesty. I hope to."

.


Empress Aurora,

Her Excellency Duchess Lenore D'abrais is full of joy to attend such a happy occasion. She and her Aide, Commander Stiglöt, are happy to accept your invitation.

Philip Rotsson
Acting Charge D'affair, Veganian Embassy

To his Highness Andreus, Despot of New Constantinople and Dauphin of Viennois

I am very glad that you will be coming to my birthday party. It is my hope that you will find visiting Lavenrunz for the first time most pleasant. In my opinion, it is the very nicest time to coming, during our spring.

warmest regards
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen




To First Speaker Elisa Day

It would hardly be a party without old friends being present--the emphasis being on the length of friendship, of course. And please, your new ambassador will be most welcome. I am sure that somehow the Teutonic Empire will be able to manage another place setting and a sufficiency of cake and ice cream.

Affectionately
Empress Aurora



To their Excellencies
Josiah Willard Gibbs, Consul-General of the Kingdom of Weyr
Artur li’Istel, Margrave of Istel

I am grateful for your good wishes and kind thoughts; during such time of change in your country it is thoughtful to consider my birthday. However, I'm just slightly puzzled: why would you send an alchemist to my birthday party?
If this is a cultural question that I do not properly understand, I would like to be enlightened.

most amiably
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen




To His Majesty Emperor David IV

I would like to extend my best wishes for the future of your nation, which I am sure from recent news you are doing a splendid work in; not to be self pitying but it is honest to admit that ruling can be a lonely business, and I hope you are encouraged by your great demonstrations of ability. We in Lavenrunz, though quietly, have been following the news from your nation with some interest.

As for my party: all those your Majesty wishes to send will be welcomed as friends, and Lady Allison Bulgar credited as Ambassador. Our Foreign Ministry will make arrangements with one of the several houses in Hofburg until Lady Allison has found such to her satisfaction.

may God bless and continue your reign
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen
Empress of Lavenrunz



My dear Queen Agwene

I am sorry you will not be able to attend; I won't pretend not to be disappointed, but of course your responsibilities are more important. Your sister Vicotira will be most welcome.
Thank you very much for wishing me a happy birthday.
The Spring here in Lavenrunz is exceptionally beautiful; I have the greatest hopes for the future and I have prayed aloud, asking God to realize those hopes.

with much affection
Empress Aurora




[quote]
To Philip Rotsson
Acting Charge D'affair

The Empress will be very happy to receive her Excellency the Duchess. Also, Her Majesty extends the hope that Duchess Lenore is in the best of health. Please do not hesitate to ask us if you require anything at all.

with warmest regards
Count Chemnitz
Imperial Chamberlain


The big question for Lavenrunz was over their own ambassadors; who to send to cover these much needed posts? Aurora von Konigsmark and the Chancellor ruminated over the issue, and began to come up with a few that they liked the idea of presenting to the Empress.

Baron von Steuben (whose scientific background might make him the best person to send to the Glorious Hack)
Claudia der Waal (sending the former Chancellor to Excalbia would be a good way to pave new relations)
Count Hohenloe (the former Imperial Chamberlain was busy raising cattle on his estate, but his sense of etiquette and neutral political views would make him a good choice to send to Vegana.)

Alexander Nikolaev and Justinian Tiberius - the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars and the newly appointed Ambassador to Lavenrunz - walked alone towards the airplane that would take Justinian to Lavenrunz. This was a completely unnecessary exercise, as the plane could have easily moved into the standard boarding position next to the terminal, but the two men wanted to take some time to talk. They were good friends, and they both enjoyed the cool spring air.

Alexander gave Justinian a last minute summary of the information they had on this birthday party and the guests that would attend. As they approached the airplane, he remarked:

"Oh, and, Justin... while most of the guests are people we've never dealt with before, one is likely to be..."

"...Sirithil nos Feanor", finished Justinian with a look of utter disgust on his face.

"I don't think I have to remind you to keep an eye on her."

"That goes without saying. But I'm far more concerned about Empress Aurora, and not just because of our objectives..."

"I know what you mean. Running an empire at sixteen? Poor girl. I still can't understand why she didn't choose to hold a more private birthday party. How can you enjoy yourself - especially if you're a teenager - when you're around people who lie and deceive for a living?"

"Oh dear, my cover is blown - I think I'll have to kill you now.", said Justinian barely restraining his amusement.

"Ha ha ha, point taken, I'll try not to stereotype so much in the future.", exclaimed Alexander after a burst of laughter.

Justinian regained his composure. "If Aurora is anything like her mother, diplomacy runs through her veins."

"Well, be sure to send me a full report after the event." The two men reached the airplane. They shook hands, and Justinian gave a Constantian salute - putting his right fist over his heart and bowing his head slightly. Then he climbed into the plane and Alexander began walking back.

Some time earlier, this message was sent:

To: Her Majesty Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: The Council of People's Commissars, Holy Socialist Republic of Constantinopolis

We would be honoured to send our most distinguished ambassador, comrade Justinian Tiberius, to attend your majesty's birthday party. We also wish to express our best wishes for you and your people on this occasion. May these years of your life mark the beginning of a long and prosperous reign such as Lavenrunz has never seen.

Respectfully yours,
The Council of People's Commissars

The invitation passed through the state department until it reached the very top, and from there it went to Gregory himself. Checking over it slowly he sat back in his chair and wondered just how long had it been since he'd been to a sweet sixteen party..it seemed like it had been an eternity..long before he became President-General..long before the military did its experiments on him. Now he was being invited to such an event. Had it been anyone other than Lavenrunz he'd have turned it down outright or sent a low level diplomatic lackey. With a small sigh he lifted up his pen and shook it a few times, he'd need a new one soon enough.

"Dear Empress von Sachshausen,

I shall personally be attending the party. It is an epic milestone you reach in your short life and the more extravagent the party the better. You'll find as you get older the chances to throw grand events and parties for the sole sake of your birthday will decrease,and affairs of state will increase more. All the same, I shall pry myself from my work to attend. If I happen to be late, please accept my humble apologies, tense problems on our end..same old business you know. Also forgive me if my gift is not up to par..its been quite sometime since I brought a gift for someone of signifficant youth.

Sincerely,
President-General Gregory de los Santos
Federal Republic of New York and New Jersey"

To their Excellencies
Josiah Willard Gibbs, Consul-General of the Kingdom of Weyr
Artur li’Istel, Margrave of Istel

I am grateful for your good wishes and kind thoughts; during such time of change in your country it is thoughtful to consider my birthday. However, I'm just slightly puzzled: why would you send an alchemist to my birthday party?
If this is a cultural question that I do not properly understand, I would like to be enlightened.

most amiably
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen

To: Her Teutonic Majesty, Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: Office of the Consul-General, Kingdom of Weyr

Alchemists have been used as diplomatic emissaries in the Kingdom for over a millennia. Because of their training to rapidly adapt to shifting conditions, they are considered more capable than traditional diplomats at handling varying situations. There are very few persons your age that are still listed as interested in diplomatic work, and Paper Alchemist Kira is the only one currently available. Although her track record has not been perfect -- she does not appear to understand certain aspects of conversation etiquette outside of the Kingdom -- she has thus far not caused any property or personal damages.

Respectfully yours,
Josiah Willard Gibbs,
Consul-General

In the name of God, Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Sister in Christ and sister by blood.
I have known you for sometime, and I would be more greatly flawed than you already think me, if I didn’t offer my regards to you on this special day…
To show my feelings I present you this sword. Crafted 650 years ago in the forges of your own nation, it was brought to Iesus Christi by a warrior maiden named Elisa…a true valkyrie of the proudest lavenrunz tradition. She rode with your ancestors into battle alongside my ancestors…they fought side by side in union against the barbaric pagan hordes. Her courage, beauty and heroism are legend….She is a model of Lavenrunz virtues…She is a echo of an age when our house was not divided.
I could not think of a better gift for you as you enter womanhood.
God keep you always.
Matthew Iesus

OOC: Damn you, I wanted to give her a sword as a gift! :p

Princess Letheran Wasterin, third cousin of the King of Aerion, sat at her laptop within her sleeping chamber at her country estate reading over her email, and messages. She clicked over, and saw a message from one of her friends, an undersecretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She had been looking for an excuse, a good one, to get out of the country with the recent death of the Royal Regent, assassination of the Lord Chancellor as second in line to the Royal Regent. The King was in a coma, and the Royal Family was divided so she did not feel safe any longer especially with the Royal Regent dead. She did not trust the rest of the Royal Government and their corporate interests. There were no direct relatives of the King, only his cousins, and she felt she was in danger. She decided to write a hardcopy letter in response, with her signature on her personal stationary.

To: Her Teutonic Majesty, Aurora von Sachshausen, Empress of Lavenrunz
From: Princess Letheran Wasterin

Your Majesty,

It would be a great honor for me to attend your birthday festivities if you would so like me to join them. I will arrive by private jet at the appropriate and designated airport. I would like to leave immediately, though I am unsure when you are prepared for the arrival of your visitors.

Sincerely,
Princess Letheran Wasterin

Aurora looked up at Baron Ehrfurt after reading the letter from Weyr. "Are these people crazy? Alchemists are better suited than diplomats, but she doesn't understand customs outside her own country? What use is she, then? What's she going to do...bring me a philosopher's stone?"
The Imperial private secretary laughed quietly.
"Find out by some means what they're talking about." she said decisively. "Property damage? What is this, a joke?"


To the Council of Peoples' Commissars

Many thanks for your kind wishes. It will be a pleasure to receive your ambassador and to increase the friendship and understanding of our two nations.

with warmest regards
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen



Dear President-General Gregory de los Santos

I did not know you had changed your title. That is extremely interesting, and I'd be very curious to know why. Of course I will be very glad to see you and meet you face to face at last. Please do not worry about time constraints and visit me in Lavenrunz regardless of them.

in all friendship
Aurora von Sachshausen
Empress of Lavenrunz



To Lord Protector Matthew Iesus

Thank you very much for the gift of the crusader's sword. It is very kind of you to think of me on my birthday.

may God bless you as well.

Aurora von Sachshausen
Empress of Lavenrunz

"I give thanks to God for one thing." Aurora murmured as she spoke of the letter to Baroness Toll. "That I did not have to hear him talk about me entering womanhood. The filthy creep."
Baroness Toll nodded and said, "You've never forgiven him for what he said about your mother."
"I have. But I know he's a disgusting pervert and a tyrant, and I despise everything he stands for. Edifying words from him are like hearing someone praising cancer."



To her Royal Highness Princess Letheran Wasterin

Thank you very much for your intentions to help me celebrate my birthday party. You are most welcome to arrive when it is most convenient to, and we will be glad to have you as our guest.

sincerely
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen

Office of the Archbishop, Office of Foreign Affairs, Tol Isam, Isam Nation, Imperial Faith Union

Another slim file in a seemingly endless list, a slender brown folder holding heavy parchment sheets held by a simple paperclip and stamped with the official seals of the Imperial Faith Union.

The pile of document folders was eternal, the working hours of Judas Tay filled with folder after folder, sheet after sheet and lines fine black type.

The simple white walls of the room held important documents and notices, personal letters and pictures carefully framed and hung on the plain white plastered wall. The floor was polished wood that stretched from one edge of the large room to the other, a large window dominating one wall and a large bronze crucifix dominated another. Before the cross was the carved mahogany desk of Judas Tay, Archbishop of the Imperial Faith and head of the foreign office. He was presently relaxed in his high-backed chair and gazing over steepled fingers at one of his assistants, who was talking about the birthday party of one "Empress of Lavenrunz".

"Only sixteen, and an Empress?"

"Yes, Father Tay"

The slender Archbishop nodded slightly and mentally brought up what he knew of Lavenrunz, running over it briefly in his head before speaking calmly to his aide. With a birthday for a sixteen year old head of state he did not feel that the Imperial Church's usual method of ambassador would be appopriate - a Chaplain or one of the Lords Militant would seem too hostile for such an event, while a member of the Church Civil would be perceived as weak by an imperial state. Similarly, someone who ran the nation would be perceived as the Union begging for attention but unwilling to risk a head of state, or else as though the Church of Christ Imperator considered itself on the same level as other national leaders who would be attending. The Church considered itself above such national leaders due to the spiritual nature of their calling, although they readily acknowledged themselves as beneath foreign heads of state as men, but they would never agree to the Church being less than any secular body.

Judas' fingers tapped his desk irritably as he looked out of his window at the colossal spire of the Great Cathedral. The Great Cathedral, symbol of God's favour of Isam. God's favour. The thirteen disciples, the saints. Judas smiled.

The Archbishops smiled and sent the appropriate missives to Lavenrunz to inform them of Simon's imminent arrival, along with thanks and blessings.

-----------------------

Personal resident of Simon Tyrain, Holy Precinct, Tol Matthew

The elderly man ran with surprising agility as he chased the boys. With his grass-stained white robes hiked up to his knees and wrinkled legs flashing in the bright morning sun, especially when combined with his cheerfully carefree laughter and unkempt hair, Simon Tyrain did not appear one of the most powerful and influencial men in the Imperial Faith Union. He was playing a game vaguely reminiscent of forty-forty, a version of the game invented by the primary school children who he was teaching theology in his own peculiar way by requiring them to recite verses of the Bible while catching someone or trying to make it to "home".

Tyrain was over seventy years old and was in fine form, well looked after by the best medical care in the Isam Nation and protected at all times by the Chaplaincy he was free of troubles or accusations. He was innocent of any sin - both in truth and by declaration, and was famed throughout Isam. His face was one of the best known in the empire and his reputation impeccable. Sitting on the grass a short distance away was his twelve-year-old assistant, the orphan Judas Hyrain, and standing next to his was Chaplain-Colonel Abel whose pale eyes never ceased scanning for possible threats.

A breathless Church messenger ran into the garden a few moments later and panted out his news to the old man who nodded and smiled cheerfully, waved goodbye to the boys and girls whom he had been teaching and headed into his house accompanied by Judas and Abel.

"Come on lad, hurry up young Chaplain, we must pack! Oh yes indeed, a birthday party to go to, an empire to see, a party to attend! Come on, more haste more speed!"

While his two companions hurried around packing - Hyrain with enthuisasm bubbling over on his young features and the chaplain with his usual tolerance - Simon was trying to pick out a suitable gift from his rather large collection of objects.

"Sixteen, and an Empress! My goodness, whatever can we give her...something valuable...she's got a task like old Judas Iscariot with that poor man's duty. Not a sword, far too unpleasant and rather cliché if I do say so myself, although one of the Chaplains would give her one of those. Something encouraging...valuable...pretty. Ah! I know just the thing, although it is a bit less flashy than I'd like...well, I can give her some platinum jewellery, she'd probably like that, most young ladies like jewellery."

"Talking to yourself again, Simon? We're packed!"

Tyrain turned to his young assistant and smiled, carefully putting the object he had selected into a chestnut box bound with steel and gold. He put a delicate platinum necklace and matching bracelets into the box as well, the jewellery inlaid with golden holy symbols - Simon was a clergyman after all.

"Right, let's go!"

The Living Saint picked up a walking cane and, with the box under one arm, strolled out of the door and into the waiting car.

Agwene smiled brightly as she read the response to her letter to Aurora. For a moment, a considerable moment, she pondered simply freeing herself from immediate affairs and going anyway. Lavenrunz was an ally dearly valued both for her power and her virtue, twin attributes that gave her a high rank among Danaan priorities abroad. More to the point, or at least more on the High Queen's mind right now, was the growing fondness she felt for the Empress. She did not know the young woman all that well, if truth be told. So far, she had met her once for but a few days. Still, that meeting had left a very positive impression in Agwene's mind. Yes, she wanted to go. But there really was too much going on at home to allow it. Nonetheless, she wanted to send Aurora something nice. Oh, Vicotira would be bringing grand gifts, gifts Agwene had promised to allow her to pick out herself, gifts of the kind normally exchanged between rulers. Hopefully, it wouldn't be a sword. Agwene had discovered that monarchs receive swords for birthdays, coronations, and every other conceivable celebration and often from more than one guest. An army, though hardly a modern one, could be armed with such presents. In any event, Agwene was certain her sister's gifts would be an appropriate indication of the respect the Danaan High Kingdom had for the Teutonic Empire, but still...

After giving the matter thought, far more thought than a more pragmatic and less symbolic culture would have seen fit to give such a seemingly small matter, Agwene sent a single white acacia, the traditional symbol of friendship, as her response to Aurora's last letter.

Count Chemnitz paraded like a commanding general before the under-chamberlains, valets, maids and other servants in the main service hall of the Palace of the Moon and the Stars.
"All of you, be aware that you will be representing your country during the time of Her Majesty's party as much as any ambassador. When you are providing service, you will in every particular reflect upon Her Majesty's household." he paused, brushing at an imaginery piece of lint on his white and gold uniform, his shoes' heels clicking quietly on the marble floor. "However, do not let this make you nervous. You have been chosen carefully after many trials and have been trained for just such a time as this. I have every confidence in you. Now: one last thing I charge you with. Do your duty."

Each arriving guest would be met first by Imperial Carbineer Guardsmen at the gates; they would then be escorted by a vehicle with Imperial State Security to the Palace itself, and once disembarking would be greeted by Count Chemnitz, the Imperial Chamberlain, and led through the entry hall to the Celestial Room whose dome, dark shades of purple and blue, showed glittering stars and would in fact reflect them over the southern skies of Lavenrunz. A light buffet would be arranged, and servants would circulate offering drinks on trays so that the guests would not lack for refreshment. The initial atmosphere of the party would be casual, giving the arrivals a chance to relax and enjoy themselves.

Most Esteemed Empress von Sachshausen,

It is rare to see a leader of worth, full of wisdom and courage. And it is, thus, even harder to find a leader worth of praise that would be young of age. And yet, Your Imperial Highness is one of such rare persons that bless our world with their presence. It is thus our wish to present Your Imperial Highness with the best of wishes on the occasion of your birthday, in our name and in the name of the Taraskovyan People.

It would be a great honour for us should you allow a Taraskovyan envoy to attend the ceremonies to present you with a gift in the name of the Federation.

From equals to equal,
Ruling Councilor Mstivoy Ustinov
Ruling Councilor Vladimir Voevodov

***

General Miloliudov, High Secretary for Foreign Relations, sat by his desk looking at Lieutenant Khat, his aide in the rank of Secretary for Foreign Relations. Both men were awaiting the response from the Teutonic Empire of Lavenrunz to the letter dispatched earlier by the Ruling Council. Miloliudov was in charge of the ‘operations’, Khat was to be the envoy, so to say, both were directly concerned.

Vicotira was dressed in a light gown of green gossamer that formed ever shifting patterns of light on her nicely formed body. The dress was mostly modest, leaving much of her shape to the imagination, in spite of a fairly low neck. She had radiant brown hair that fell in luxurious waves down her back. Not for her the short cuts favored by her sister. Her skin was smooth and pearlescent, shining with a preternatural golden aura of beauty and nobility. Vicotira stood only five feet and three inches high, a short girl from a short family from an otherwise tall race.

In her hands, the young girl carried a medium-sized box wrapped in green paper and golden ribbons. She was accompanied by no entourage as she politely allowed the Lavenrunzians to show her all the way to the main ballroom. She choose not to avail herself of the refreshments just yet, awaiting the arrival of the Empress, or, barring that, of some of the other guests. The Foreign Ministry had given her photographs where available so she hoped to be able to recognize most, if not all, of the other representatives by sight.

Federal Department of External Affairs, Marshall Island

Scinfaxi blinked several times as Rachel finished, 'You want me to act as a special ambassador to Lavenrunz?'

Rachel shook her head, 'Special envoy. Really you're just a glorified bodyguard, I'm afraid.'

Scinfaxi sat back in her chair, the small, rather cute Segonune flicking her long white hair aside and smiling, 'I guess this is something to do with you wanting me to get out and meet people as well, isn't it?'

Rachel nodded, 'Yes, that as well. I suggest you go and find yourself a suitable gown beforehand...And remember, nobody else there knows who you are, and we'd like this state of affairs to continue.' She held out a finger, the small white bird sitting on her hand hopping onto Scinfaxi's hand, 'Give the Empress my warmest regards, along with those of the rest of the Federation.'

Rachel smiled, 'Oh, also...' she held out a letter, 'That's for Aurora as well. Princess Sarah may only be young, but we've got to stand on such matters.'

'The reply to her letter?'

Rachel shook her head, 'No, already sent that.'

Empress Aurora,

While I regret being unable to attend in person due to pressing matters related to the imminent coronation of Princess Sarah Renard, I would be honoured if you would accept a representative to deliver your gift on my behalf. Our ambassador, Miss Bryde, would also enjoy attending, if this is acceptable.

Yours,

Rachel Knight, Speaker for the Department of External Affairs, on behalf of the Supreme Commander

[Hand Written Letter to Aurora, Empress of Lavenrunz]

Empress Aurora, friend to Iuthia,

Firstly I would like to thank you personally for this inviting us to this special occasion of yours, though unfortunately as our honeymoon is still ongoing we are unable to attend such a special occasion personally. For this I would like to apologise as I would loved to have come, perhaps once we return home we can congradulate you personally in a more private affair...

In many respects I know exactly what you may going through at this period of time as a young leader empowered with the highest authority. I myself was forced to replace my father at a young age, only fifteen at the time with the fear of military coup looming from all around... of course, training and education prevailed and I came out as a stronger man because of that experience.

From this experience, I know that moments when we can truelly relax and enjoy ourselves like so many below us take for granted each day; are few and far in between. Such times should be treasured and it is my hope that this occasion is one of them... have a gone time for the both of us.

Thanks for the invitation, sorry I couldn't make it,

Lord General James deGritz, leader of the Iuthian people.

Dear Empress von Sachshausen.

Although the Regime of Adejaani and the nation of Lavenrunz have never properly met, on any level... We still wish to attend. Although your open proclamation states to leave all serious business and politicking behind... Nevertheless, we shall hope that, if you would be so kind as to welcome our esteemed Minister of Foreign Relations, (Mister) Caesar Knox, that this could usher in an opening of friendships between our two peoples, as well as having a darn good celebration. In any event, we wish to participate in this celebration, which is yet another milestone in your nation's exteemed achievements.

With Regards
Brigadier General Jack Brightman, Adejaani Regime Land Forces
Special Advisor to the Triumvirate Leadership of Adejaani
On behalf of the Triumvirate Leadership of Adejaani

Gregory had made it to the party ontime, unexpected really, but a period of transport had opened up where the military felt that they wouldnt be shot down by some overzealous Crimmond military officals. Under heavy escort they would have arrived at the edge of Lavenrunz airspace before having allowed them to take over. However that was nearly two hours ago. Now they were in the main party hall. They being Gregory and his date Vethara Shakhovskaya. He ran into her on a business trip to Menelmacar shortly before the party and well Gregory wasnt in the mood to appear at another diplomatic function with the usual envoy in tow, so he figured he'd give his local press some reason to buzz. It had been sometime since Gregory had played up his image as a playboy. And now it appeared that the local higher up socialites didnt catch his attention anymore. Overtures made to the Archduchess Sophia of Lavenrunz and now this had Op-Ed colums back home buzzing with titles, "Is the President of Old Back?" and "Old Dogs Never Learn".

However he'd deal with whatever fallout from this public appearance after the party. Right now he was just here to enjoy himself and lose himself from a regular routine of turmoil and stress which led to everything from headaches to ulcers. Dressed in a olive green military uniform, he was his typical sharply dressed self. Uniform cap tucked under his left arm, in his hands he carried an ornate box. No wrapping at all on the wooden box with carvings of snow flakes on the side and the round lid, the hinges of which were made with gold, the only visable wrap a red silk strip wrapped around the very middle and tied in a simple bow. A box itself wasnt really huge, a foot long and six inches wide it was a thought out gift. The typical non thought out gift being "Here's some cash, see to do with it what you will." Looking over toward the direction of Vethara he gave her a small smile and said politely, "Would you like something to drink?"

As the arrivals came into the hall they could hear the strains of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody with a slightly jazzed up emphasis being played. The sweet and pleasant strains were meant to be soothing to those who may have come a long way. Count Chemnitz bowed deeply to Princess Vicotira, smiling and saying, "Welcome, your Royal Highness."
As the President-General came in, he bowed deeply again, saying, "Welcome, Mr. President, it is very good for us to see you here again."
A number of people were already present. For the Chancellor, Hans Schlabel, it had been a trying few months of his new government, and this was probably the first relaxation he had had. He was sipping some schnapps and talking to old Archbishop Wittmar, who was quietly saying that it was high time the laws allowing same sex marriage in Lavenrunz were dropped.
Archduchess Sophia, looking svelte in a green gown that emphasized her smooth creamy firm muscled arms, taut from all her skiing and swimming, swayed towards the President-General, her blue-green eyes dazzling, her hair shining like gold, exclaiming, "Welcome to Lavenrunz, dear Mr. President. And it is so lovely to see you again!" there was some sort of merriment dancing in those eyes.

Vicotira was welcomed by the Chancellor, who looked dashing with his eyepatch and his blue Imperial Air Force uniform, who bowed over her hand and said, "Welcome, Highness. May I introduce you to anyone, or would you care for some refreshments?"

At this time, perhaps there is supposed to be an explanation for those events within the Kingdom, which led to a just-certified alchemist to be sent to an imperial birthday.

Technically, only the Paper Alchemist Kira was officially attending the party, but her Quendi companion was the heir apparent to the Azure Duarchy of Skai and Shea, and had decided to take the alchemist up on her offer to tag along. Technically, the Duarchy was part of the Kingdom. Technically, the Kingdom owned a hundred systems. Both technicalities were as valid in reality as the idea that the earth was flat, maybe even less valid, only thirty or so of those systems were settled and only two were able to do more than live under their domes and barter processed metals for basic things like food and water. The Kingdom was made up of technicalities.

The Diplomatic Service had a few hundred trained workers once, about three centuries ago. It had the Consul-General, three aging directors, and about three dozen unpaid interns by the time Kira had arrived to Lavenrunz aboard a commercial airliner, or maybe dropship, she was too airsick to care much by the time she got off the transport, the last leg of a cross galactic journey that was possible only through three centuries of hard work on the part of the Kingdom's alchemists, thaumaturges, scientists, and investors. Technically, the Diplomatic Service was the second-largest department of the rapidly shrinking government of the Kingdom. When the Weyr First party dominated the High Council, when there was no High King, when all spending went to the military, everything else suffered. Then again, the unemployment rate halted at 29% because of new job openings in the arms sector.

Technically, Paper Alchemist Kira li’Starhavven was a semi-trained diplomat. Technically, Viscount Feirnon no Skai i Shea was only a clerk.

"You're still at it?" Feirnon had sighed, wondering ianyone was listening in and if that anyone actually understood what they were saying. Weyrik was not exactly popular outside the Kingdom. It wasn't particularly popular within the Kingdom, either, at least not in any particular incarnation, what with seven dialects and two bastard offspring know as Querik and Anglish. "Look, I was going to tell you." He hated this – Kira was too nice for him to lie to like this.

"When?" Kira had asked finally, somewhat angrily, speaking at the air in front of her.

Feirnon had simply shrugged. The young Quendi, although there was definitely some Wayrin blood somewhere in there since it hadn’t taken him fifty years to reach ‘manhood’, hadn't really planned to tell Kira this. There were reasons for that, but those reasons belonged to others, and he wasn't about to tell Kira that he was her bodyguard because of those reasons. A bodyguard without weapons, but that wasn't something he was concerned about.

"Right," Kira muttered. "You weren't." She had no idea why Feirnon wound up as her assistant. Near as she could tell, there were two alternatives -- either he was running from something, or someone had sent him to work for her. Which meant, what? She had no idea, at least not at the moment.

"Oh, c'mon," Feirnon nudged the crimson-haired alchemist. "You're just pissed Ash hadn't come here."

"Huh?" she felt herself redenning, felt stupid for showing it.

"Well, as long as you're not going to get killed on me," he stated finally, rising from his chair in the place theyw ere staying in.

***

Then it was time to go, and then she was in the hall, her standard-issue alchemist blues of a military cut that resembled something from eighteenth century Europe looking positively bland in comparison to everyone else, at least as far as Kira could tell. The Tower was not known for its taste, or for providing for its members, which was why Kira was here, after all, because she was getting paid to be shoved around the world for a living wage, which was still a damned sight better than leeching off some phyle's good grace and living in a public shelter, as far as Kira was concerned. She had the sudden urge to find the strongest bit of alcohol available and make good use of it -- Fir could have done the representative shittum instead of her, he was born to it. Too-tall, fiery hair that refused to be subject to anyone’s whim, much less its owner, with about as much grace and diplomatic intuition as a tub of mayo, she really didn’t want to be here, because, after all, it was still damn embarrassing to screw up on a job.

((OOC: Grand Duchess, not Princess))

Vicotira paused a moment to consider. To be honest, she was slightly nervous. While of royal blood, Vicotira had never before met a Chief of State besides her sister and her mother. It even showed in her face. Beauty beyond words and the grace of preternatural nobility aside, the birthright of her people amplified emotions much more often than it hid them.

She shook her head to the Chancellor. "No one I'd seek an introduction to at the moment. I would like to meet the President and the Archduchess but I have a feeling it would be imposing at the moment. Some punch would be lovely, however. Is there somewhere I should place my gift?"

An official in a white uniform with gold braid and medals clicked his heels, bowing, and said, "And you must be Paper Alchemist Kira. Welcome to Lavenrunz. I am Count Chemnitz, the Imperial Chamberlain. If there is anything you require, please let us know. Some of the other guests are here, and the Empress will arrive shortly."

"Archduchess Sophia, I see my messenger arrived safetly and expeditiously gave you my message. I'm glad to see you once again." He straightened his posture slightly when he noticed Sophia approaching and even sucked in his gut slightly. She was definately in better physical shape then him and in the back of his mind he'd address the problem over lack of exercise when he had free time. At the current moment he smiled warmly at Sophia, dark eyes giving her a quick glance over before moving back up to her eyes once more. "I am also glad that you do not appear to still be crossed with me over my previous conduct. I was...a bull in a glass shop."

"Bull in a china shop." Sophia said, her eyes twinkling merrily. "Yes. You look very smart in your uniform, Mr. President. But then New York and Jersey is a very militant country, isn't it? I remember when you were going to expel all muslims from your country but you were advised against it by my Aunt Joanna."

"Glass and china my dear are equally as fragile. I doubt if you owned a shop that catered in glassware that you'd be pleased with the pressence of a bull..." He gave a small warm laugh and then did his best to conceal any sort of a flinch at her mention of that. "Well of course...I remember that well, it was bad advice given to me by an advisor..we all listen to bad advice or dont listen to advice at all..I'm sure someone gave you advice on not arguing with the leader of a well established nation." He held the warm smile on his lips, if she were trying to bait him into an arguement she'd be sore to see him cool, and calmer than his ill-tempered manner before. He was putting on a show, it wasnt easy to pick up, but he doubted Sophia was dumb enough to not notice that his attitude was different for a reason.

"Of course, that is all in the past, correct? The arguements of the past should be set aside and learned from..dialouge..improved..on. Correct?"

As she awaited the Chancellor's response, Vicotira's attention wandered somewhat. First, it went to Gregory. She had no idea what he and the Archduchess were discussiing, though she could tell from their body language that it was...between them, so to speak. She did make a mental note to introduce herself to the President momentarily, once the moment seemed more opportune. She also noticed Kira. Kira, who she probably should be talking to. Kira who had a horrific reputation for creating diplomatic incidents. Vicotira decided that difficulty could wait a moment as well. She shifted her position beneath her gown of dreams, changing her expression and demeanor towards the Chancellor. While she said nothing overt, the meaning was clear enough. She was no longer looking at him as a functionary to be greeted as part of arriving but as a conversational partner for the next several minutes. She smiled demurely, a breath-taking, soft smile.

"Of course. Now, Mr. President, let me lead you to the buffet table...would you care for something exotic? A honey roasted lark perhaps?" she smiled. "I'm afraid we have none...the Empress has very simple tastes in food. So there are deviled eggs, there is excellent sliced ham, butter rolls, fruit, all manner of things. It doubtless seems rather dull after New York..." her slightly opened sweetly rich mouth suggested either laughter or an offered kiss.


The Chancellor bowed and nodded to an Under-Chamberlain, who bowed and offered a tray to put the gift on. "This way, Highness. Yes, of course, thirsty work, travelling. May I say that it is such a pleasure to have another member of Sidhe royalty among us. And I have heard that this is one of your Highness' first trips abroad, so we are doubly honored that we were chosen for it..."

Vicotira set the package on the tray before moving to follow the Chancellor. She laughed liltingly at his words. "Lord Chancellor, you flatter me. In truth, it is my honor to visit Lavenrunz, a nation highly distinguished for her substantial might and, more importantly, her great virtue. My sister and her...and many of our allies speak nought but praise of your nation and your Empress."

Vicotira colored ever so faintly. "Though, you are correct about it being my first time outside of the Danaan High Kingdom. While the Resurgent Dream has become far more cosmopolitan of late, it is still a novel experience to go abroad."

Gregory leaned forward abit and then turned his head to look toward the direction of the buffet table. "I'm sure the young Empress has more sophistication than some of the other royals in this quaint nation..I do keep up with the society page of the international press..." Gregory looked over toward the direction of Sophia once more and gave her a calculated smile. To him this was remarkedly better than their last encounter even though there were entirely subtle insults and baiting. Just what was the game she was trying to play with him. "Oh how rude of me..Archduchess, allow me to introduce you to Archduchess Vethara Shakhovskaya of Tarasovka. She's accompanied me tonight."

He allowed sometime for pleasentries to be exchanged before speaking up once more, "So Archduchess, how are affairs of state..by which I mean, how is your skiing..I see you hard at work for your nation on those slopes." He smiled broadly looking down at her.The air between them was as thick as armor on a battleship and it wasnt getting any thinner.

Sophia smiled. "Hello. Welcome. As for me, Mr. President...someone has to enjoy the fruits of the labours of our great former monarchs, Emperor Frederick and Empress Joanna. Besides, I am sure if you pointed out the need for duties for me my little and august cousin would be glad to give me some." she looked totally unashamed of herself, smiling sassily at him.

"Ah.." as he handed her a glass of wine, the Chancellor bowed to a tall Menelmacari in simple and yet striking robes of black and white, with hair sweeping his collar and a grave demeanor. "Doctor Lindir, this is the Grand Duchess Vicotira of the Resurgent Dream. Highness, this is Doctor Lindir, the Royal Physician."

OOC: I'm skipping all the messages back and forth to make up for time lost to that unfortunate logistical delay ... hope you don't mind.

The Tsarainese delegation entered side by side. The Arkhora and much of her immediate staff had, unfortunately, been kept at home by internal matters, so attendance had fallen to Tsaraine's diplomatic presence in Lavenrunz; Ambassador Sekhat tsaKell and Diplomat-Commandant Andrine tsaKelhai. Sekhat was greying and dignified, Andrine young and pretty; both wore the black common to the Tsarainese diplomatic corps.

It was perhaps an unfortunate choice, a somber tone on the young Empress' birthday, and it accentuated the pallor of their skin, but it had several hundred years of tradition behind it in Tsaraine.

Andrine, being the junior of the two, carried the present for Aurora. It had been selected by Rene Seingult and securely wrapped back in Tsaraine, and despite it's size it was quite heavy.

He gave a low chuckle and tilted his head to the side as he gazed at Sophia still, "Really..when I see Aurora I'll have to tell her to give you some actual work then. So you can better enjoy the larbors of your aunt and uncle as well as the fruit." Straightening up once more he continued on, "Of course I rarely take vacations, and even when I do I make sure that someone from the lower class or even an entire group accompanies me on the trip...no sense in enjoying the fruit of the work of the people if they themselves can not enjoy it themselves every once in awhile as well." Of course there he went as well...the anti-monarchist side shone briefly for a moment and then flickered away..as much of a conservative capitalist he was on the outside, on the inside he was still a rather compassionate progressive when it came to his people. "Allow me to say, you look very lovely tonight Archduchess."

Vicotira smiled politely. "It is nice to meet you, Dr. Lindir." She extended her hand, palm down. Despite her youung age, her eyes had the same bizarrely ageless quality of all Sidhe.

Vicotira turned her head briefly towards the entering representatives from Tsaraine, distracted for a moment. She almost looked like she meant to go introduce herself to them but then she turned her attentions back to the Chancellor. Her lips turned downwards ever so faintly for a moment as she regarded him thoughtfully, looking between him and the Noldor.

She spoke to Lindir in slow but correct Quenya. "Greetings. My name is Grand Duchess Vicotira nos Gwydion."

"Welcome to Lavenrunz." said Count Chemnitz. He had the most horrible feeling in his head. Why, when he said that, was he starting to imagine that he was a South Seas hotel keeper, with a big lei and a bunch of ukele playing islanders nearby singing happily? Was this some form of reincarnation? The Empress must never know! "W..welcome to Lavenrunz, your Excellencies. Please...the guests have already begun to arrive. An under-chamberlain will take your gift..."

Doctor Lindir gravely replied in the same tongue, "I am very glad to meet you, dear Lady, and to welcome you here. I hope your stay will be a happy one." he smiled. "Chancellor Schlabel is at times abrupt, but have patience; Lavenrunzians are among the most hospitable people in the world..."

As he said this, Archduchess Sophia said, "La, I hope so, Mr. President, that I look alright. Frankly, it's such a bore dressing up for these parties, though of course I adore my cousin and want her to have the best sweet sixteen in human history...and what sort of things do you think I could do for the Imperial Government?" she said, with a teasing smile.

Vicotira replied again in Quenya, this time quietly, half-confiding in the reputable Elf. "The fault is mine. I am overeager to meet the many guests in the room. It is hard to resist the urge to flit from conversation to conversation like the butterfly." She hoped the others around her did not overhear. Vicotira wanted very much to appear as calm and serene as she had seen her mother appear on similar occasions.

Reurning to German, the Sidhe smiled softly. "Perhaps we should mingle with the crowd, my lord, doctor?"

"If it was such a bore then maybe you should have just arrived naked and saved yourself the trouble." He said in a teasing manner fixing his uniform slightly and then raised his left hand up to his chin. "Well now...you could always do some sweeping..or clerical work..or how about run for an actual government office like Prime Minister...I'm sure you couldnt do a worse job than say..Mirbach.Although maybe your first job should be to greet the other guests...then maybe when you're done with that I can suggest something more suitable to your station, if you would so permit." He cleaned off the cuffs of his uniform and looked over toward Vethara and then back toward Sophia, it was a polite way to end the convo not particularly rude but definately in line with how the convo had carried itself thus far. "By all means allow me to move out of your way so you can get to the task at hand." Gregory gave her the slightest of bows and stepped away from Sophia, taking Vethara with him.

When Gregory parted from Sophia, Vicotira took the opportunity to get the introduction she'd been waiting for and to begin the mingling she'd just invited Schlabel and Lindir to join her in. Gliding, and she did more glide than walk, over to Gregory, Vicotira smiled charmingly and seemed to consider protocol for just a moment. Then, she gave Greg a sixty degree curtsey. For those few who might be familiar with Danaan customs, a sixty degree curtsey was what one used when greeting someone who was one's superior in rank while not having direct authority over one. For the many more unfamiliar...well, it was still a polite enough curtsey. "Your Majesty..." the young girl began, smiling sweetly "...I'm Grand Duchess Vicotira ni Gwydion representing the Danaan High Kingdom. I only thought it proper to introduce myself to our new ally." She spoke in English.

"Grand Duchess it is a pleasure to meet you.And please, its not your Majesty, its President-General now. But lets discuss politics at another time the last time I had a chance to mingle with someone from your nation I believe it was at the VERITAS summit, or am I mistaken?" Gregory stopped fully to watch the woman do a curtsey. A grin wide and broad came to his lips as he thought of something suitably evil to request but that grin quickly disappeared as it had arrived and Gregory raised his left hand up to the side, "Allow me to introduce you to my date Archduchess Vethara Shakhovskaya of Tarasovka."

When Mephet’ran finally arrived he was unaccompanied. Wherever his fiancée had gotten herself to, she would probably show up and join him later. He didn’t much mind being on his own, for all that he enjoyed spending time with her, it did some good from time to time to be alone. As such, he arrived slightly late, dressed for once in a relatively plain outfit of emerald green crushed velvet and silk. He took his time walking to the palace, reviewing his memories of the last time he had been to this place.

He did so with a broad smile.

Vicotira inclined her head with a light smile. "You most likely met Lord Gilroth ap Fiona who represents my sister to VERITAS. He is an honorable nobleman, to be sure, but it is likewise fitting for us to have some contact at a higher level." She doesn't say it as though she's bragging about anything. A Grand Duchess is higher than a lord. A Grand Duchess is lower than a Chief of State. Both are simply facts and are treated as such.

The Sidhe then turned to Vethara and gave her a thirty degree curtsey. It was the greeting exchanged by equals (except monarchs, who did not bow or curtsey save to Dana) among her people. "It is nice to meet you, Archduchess Vethara."

The shining woman spoke to both of them. "I hope you are enjoying the party so far?"

"Thank you, Your Lordship." Sekhat bowed politely, followed a fraction of a second later by Andrine. "It is, as always, a pleasure to be in Lavenrunz."

Once the under-chamberlain had departed with the present, the two moved off into the room.

Mentally, Sekhat noted the guests already present, matching them up with the embassy's prior work in identifying the expected guests. There was Grand Dutchess Vicotira of The Resurgent Dream, Archdutchess Sophia of Lavenrunz, and the President-General of New York and Jersey.

He hadn't personally met any of them; Sophia was an aristocrat rather than a politician, Vicotira appeared to be a new face from the Danaan High Kingdom (a nation which Tsaraine knew only second-hand), and the Ascendancy didn't often cross paths with the Federal Republic.

Daniel and Bratcher arrived quietly and without a fanfare.
Daniel took off his smouldered, slightly battered bowler hat and tapped his stick a couple of times on the floor.
'Well well, very nice place indeed.' remarked Daniel as he looked around at the room and various guests
'Indeed, same builder?' mumbled Bratcher
'Possible.'
'Well, shall we perhaps mingle a little? Looks like this place has alot of big guns here, very high up officals, not many diplomats.'
'We're not here as diplomats lad, we're here for well wishing! Wishing the Empress Happy Birthday!' Daniel prodded Bratcher with the cane and chuckled. 'You can relax a bit tonight, it's is a party after all.'

Lavenrunz

Scinfaxi smiled brightly as she stepped out of the car, dusting her red gown off self-consciously. For a Segonune she was fairly short, around five-feet-two, and slightly built, her hair white and shoulder-length, contrasting with her black fur. In form she shared many features with her species' distant ancestors, the skunk family; a large, bushy tail and short muzzle the most notable. Her face and chest were white, and the low back of her dress did a good job of showing the two white stripes that ran down her back and all the way to the tip of her tail. She glanced down in the car, sighing, 'Yes, Georgina, I know...No talking about Scinfaxi. I got you the third time.'

Georgina Bryde smiled, her left arm's servo motors whirring faintly as she stood. The ambassador was difficult to mistake for anyone else; almost half her face on the left replaced with black, vaguely metallic plate ringed with scar tissue, a slit red 'eye' that glowed faintly recessed slightly into it. The same as true of her left arm, and, while it couldn't be seen under her black military dress uniform, her left leg below the knee as well. Otherwise, she was really quite an attractive woman, her hair long and blonde and her remaining eye red.

Scinfaxi reached back inside the car, carefully retrieving the bird in its cage and the letter, and followed Georgina inside.

Exiled Royalties

Heiress to the ‘throne’ of the Grand Duchy for some, legitimate Grand Duchess (and, thus, the ruler of the Grand Duchy of Tarasovka) for others, a remnant of past corrupt times for somebody else, Vethara (http://ns.goobergunch.net/wiki/index.php/Vethara) did not seem overly concerned, on this occasion at least, with all the plots and conspiracies related to her mere existence. For some she was a threat, for others she was a hope, on this occasion, however, she was Gregory’s date. As simple as that, politics could wait for afterwards.

She was dressed in a rather modest white dress, that left the arms, neck and a part of the back open, with only some embroidering on the skirts. In her free hand she held a small box, wrapped into covers suited for a gift, after all, a Taraskovyan could never show up at somebody else’s house without bringing a gift. And not bringing a gift to a birthday celebration would be a double sacrilege! Vethara was always known for a certain simplicity and reluctance to be in the center of attention. But due to her current situation, she was bound to be in the center of attention if not for the guests, but of the Taraskovyan press for sure. In no time, the Federal media will be bustling with reports, rumours and assumptions, some giving a positive view, others yelling to ‘high treason and conspiracy against the Motherland’.

But she did not think of it at all, smiling to those greeting her and returning their greetings politely. She greeted Sophia and waited patiently for her discussion with Gregory to end, taking a distance of several steps from the couple and concentrating her attention elsewhere, until Gregory led her away. “A bull in a china shop?” She said with a grin, looking at her cavalier. “You two seem to have a very enjoyable way of communicating.”

She greeted Vicotira with a slight nod of her head, smiling as she thought to the little scene she witnessed mere moments ago. “Yes, the party has started quite… interestingly, I should say.” She said as she shot a glance at Gregory.

***

Ze Federalists

The official delegation from the Taraskovyan Federation arrived just on time. Actually, the delegation was comprised only of one person, a Lieutenant of the Airborne named Ithun Khat, in his black uniform, the rest being the pilots of the aircraft that brought the Federal envoy to Lavenrunz and two men in civilian outfits that were busy carrying a rather large box around. It was not overly high, but quite long. Obviously, it did not contain any rocket launchers, portable nuclear bombs or whatever paranoid security officials might come up with and, as such, was presented to the same local security officials for thorough scanning. However, since that box contained the gift of the Ruling Council to the Empress of Lavenrunz, it would have been very, very, and even overly very much preferable that nobody knew what was inside for the sheer sake of surprise.

[OOC: Well, Joanna allowed me to participate when I communicated the details to her in private, so I guess here I am.

And yes, the box contains the gift. And no, it is not the same as the one presented earlier by the same Lieutenant to an other foreigner on an earlier occasion.]

Vicotira arches a golden brown eyebrow at Vethara, ever so faintly. "Yes, it has. It has." She commented off-handedly, looking around the room, making a few mental notes. "I believe this is our first contact with anyone from Tarasovka. Unfortunately, I know all too little of that land."

The Sidhe paused for a moment to reach for a small slice of ham which she ate delicately, watching the two for the moment, considering.

Gregory turned and looked over toward Vethara to say, "Interesting?Maybe more like less hostile. Its a long story and I'll have to tell you it sometime.." Turning his head forward to look back toward Vicotira he nodded his head, "Well Lavenrunzian parties are never one for lack of boring parties. If you keep your eyes and ears open you're bound to hear something that will foreshadow events to come." Noticing that the guests were all putting their gifts down onto a table, Gregory moved to take Vethara's gift. "I'll go pick our gifts down onto the table. I'll be right back." Gregory moved off to put the presents where they belonged.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled to Gregory as she handed him her gift for Aurora. She then turned back to Vicotira, smiling. "And it is my first contact with somebody from your own lands, Milady. And as of the Grand Duchy of Tarasovka, I am afraid I can only give a personal point of view, for as of now, the matters of my nation are, sadly enough, out of my hands."

She paused for a moment, her smile fading away from her face as her eyes showed some sadness, before she smiled again, clearly forcing herself not to importunate her interlocutor. "You will have to talk to the envoy of the Taraskovyan Federation, or whatever they have called my lands, to learn the official stance of the current leadership." She sighed. "But of course, I am always ready to answer any questions you would have."

Vicotira looked up at the older woman, not quite sure what to say. A moment ago, Vicotira had been worried about a minor technicality of protocol, but that faded quickly to be replaced with sympathy for the sadness of another person. Choosing her words carefully, Vicotira made a simple statement of policy. "The Danaan High Kingdom of the Resurgent Dream fully recognizes all legitimate claims of royal blood irregardless of the concrete situation in the nation concerned." Diplomatic language for Vethara still being Grand Duchess as far as the Danaan High Kingdom was concerned.

The Sidhe looked at her quietly. "I'm not sure where to begin. I know essentially nothing of your homeland and I fear it would be terribly rude to sit here and ply you with questions when we should be celebrating. But...tell me what the people are like? I have always found that the key to understanding any nation."

OOC: Apologies. Editated the post before this one to have only Kira at the celebration. No, there's nothing dangerous in the box.

The crimson-haired alchemist's white-gloved fingers adjusted their grip on the unwrapped, undecorated slender box, unless mitaril warning runemarks were considered decoration. To Kira they weren’t decoration, though they did look pretty enough, sort of like mithril, some said, though Kira had no idea what mithril looked like. Seals weren’t decorations, Kira knew, though she wondered if anyone else did; they meant there was either something important, dangerous, or both inside that slender black box. The young alchemist doubted it was something dangerous; it wasn't in the Weyrean psyche to randomly blow things up.

‘Paper Alchemist’, that was her title, and she hated it even as she understood the connotations behind it, because no one else except a few alchemists did. The Tower didn't title you without making a point. People who got impressive titles like Flame Alchemist or Astral Valance Alchemist were utter imbeciles, and The Tower's joke on them was making them seem powerful and important. Though she wouldn't have admitted, Kira didn't think she wanted to have Paper in her title. There was too much associated with a piece of paper.

But she wouldn't have admitted it, or even had thought about it, so she stuck with hating her title, and had wanted to tell the Chamberlain never to call her Paper Alchemist, or even bow to her, except he had moved on by then and she had to drop off her gift box, which didn't look all that threatening, onto the table with the pile of other presents. It wasn't her present, or the Kingdom's present, it was Ash's present, but that little point wasn't something she was about to tell anyone. Besides, Fir wasn't here, was he? So she could do whatever she wanted, more or less, she decided, placing the present onto the table, wondering for a moment what was inside that needed this much security, before turning away.

Her sharp green eyes considered the pickings of the refreshments, if that was what they called them here. Maybe she could quietly pass out in the corner and no one would care. The Kingdom wouldn't care one way or another, near as Kira could tell; it was too busy killing itself off. The guests probably wouldn’t mind either, probably, she thought; they knew one another, at least.

OOC: Skipping letter and stuff, cleared this with Lavenrunz herself.

Stepping into the hall where the rest of the party invitees are mingling Lidric immediately takes check of himself to ensure the best possible impression of his nation. His black military uniform stands out only because of his youth and the slight baggyness to the clothing.

Walking slowly forward he casts a nervous eye about the room, hoping to find a face intelligence had briefed him on or a member of the lavenrunz government whom can help him in finding the right people. Giving his uniform a quick brush over he takes a breath and steps into the mingling crowd nodding greeting to those that look his way.

Heading towards what he hopes is a table of food he spots a lavenrunzian official and alters his course slightly so that he might pass past this official to the table. "Excuse me, sir. Perhaps you could help me." Lidric says softly, his nervousness controling the level of his voice. "I'm the representative from Iraqstan, my father sent a reply in haste the day before I hope you were notified of my attending his occasion."

Cursing silently to himself Lidric stops talking quickly, his nerves causing his voice to crack. Smiling sheepishly at the lavenrunzian he simply awaits a response, his eys wandering over the rest of the crowd.

Elisa smiled as she noticed the GMC delegation, walking up quickly and giving Georgina a friendly hug, "Georgina, hi!" She smiled happily at the ambassador and giggled slightly at the confused looks from Sarah, Kara and Scinfaxi.

A quick round of introductions followed. Aesa grinned at being introduced to Georgina, "Good to see you again." With everyone properly introduced, she smiled happily, "Shall we head inside? The Empress throws some very nice parties," she grinned, "and I'm sure it's a lot warmer inside."

Lenore swept into the room with her aide by her side, a large looming man obviously from the Special Forces. She looked around the room, this was so much more a gathering of statesmen than a childs sweet sixteen gathering. She felt sad and glad for Aurora at the same time, sad because she would not be allowed to live the life of a teeenager, glad because she really had gathered a lot of important people here.

She walked over to the table and started looking for Aurora, her aide attached himself a few steps behind her like a shadow watching the people around her for any apperent threats.

Foreign Minister von Konigsmark nearly had a fit when she realized that the Tarasovkan Pretender and the present Government were represented; she was nearly fainting when her aide suggested that there was a means of getting round the official toasts...and von Konigsmark raised the skirts of her evening gown enough for her to discreetly hurry from the room so she could advise the Empress.

The official Lidric was talking to was actually an under-chamberlain named the Ritter von Ihengen, who was a neat, trim, barrel chested young man who looked most impressive in his uniform of black and silver, who bowed and said, "Yes, your Excellency is expected of course, and naturally as an ally of Lavenrunz are most welcome. Is there something I may help your Excellency with?" He affected not to notice the change in the voice, though he in fact thought, Poor boy. Most unfortunate.

Sophia felt a bit disappointed. Oh, poo, I went too far. she thought, and decided not to show it but...she wondered how much he liked the rather too pretty and interesting Heiress and Pretender he was walking around with. Boy, that's declaring your politics openly. she thought. Got to hand it to him...he's got brass. And cheek.

Archduke Carl observed the lovely Vicotira a bit wistfully, and then realized that his wife was glaring at him. The Archduchess said quietly, "I hope you can contain your filthy perversions for one night."
"My dear..."
"Don't you 'my dear' me. I remember you flirting with the Princess of Aelosia. You have a disgusting tendency towards miscegenation. I suppose you find that skunk woman attractive as well."
Carl could not contain his own disgust. "You embody all that prejudice and provincial mindedness that have kept us back." he growled. "Tradition is one thing; not realizing when you are looking at someone with a soul is another." He bowed to her politely and walked away, pointedly greeting Lindir on the way to the buffet.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled softly as she thought of the best way to resume the overly complicated character of her people. “The Taraskovyans are quite a paradox, for you see, Tarasovka is known for its multicultural and multiethnic composition, with Elves, Taraskath, Slavic ethnicities and most recently Dutch. But that does not prevent the Taraskovyans from being quite xenophobic towards foreign nations. One of the worst insults there is sounds along the lines of ‘you act like a foreigner!’” She laughed softly, surely remembering some quite hilarious and absurd cases. “And yet, a Taraskovyan will cheerfully welcome a foreign guest to his house, for the laws of hospitality are a sacred tradition in my lands. The very mentality and customs are very confusing at times and even Taraskovyans sometimes fail to clearly define the difference between a ‘foreigner’ and a ‘guest’. We also love to throw in a party, something that we owe to our Russian community. Often the party comes first, the reason to party is found afterwards. Of course, all this was before the Plague and before the current still ongoing unrest.”

She looked around her a little, noting the people present at the event, her eyes instinctively searching for some figure in a uniform that she would recognize immediately, for the Federation still uses the Grand Ducal military outfits. She returned her gaze at Vicotira and smiled again. “I am afraid that even a short résumé of the Taraskovyan character would take hours, Milady, and I do not wish to be rude by wasting your time.”

Vicotira smiled as she listened to the description. "That sounds quite charming. We have always prided ourselves on our diversity as well. We...let us just say the Danaan High Kingdom is a VERY diverse country."

The Sidhe smiled, laughing liltingly. "I would hardly consider it a waste of my time to learn about a great people. However, I doubt the President-General would appreciate being so robbed of such charming company." Vicotira glanced over towards Greg again as she mentioned him.

Smiling Lidric nods "Perhaps you could help me arrange a few moments with the empress after everyone has finished depositing their gifts to her. I have some things that I'd like to discuss with her in private." He says softly, a color creeping into his cheeks.

"I'd realy appeciated it." He says awkwardly before staring at his feet. "Other than that I was wondering if it was possble for me to grab something to eat? I didnt get a chance to eat on the flight over."

He found where the gifts were kept and put his and Vethara's down onto it. Staying at the table he had the perfect vantage point to peer about toward the other guests. Eyes stopping on Sophia he frowned alittle as he thought to himself, "Oh dear maybe I left her a lone too soon. Guess she wasnt prepared for someone to dish it out back to her." The frown was quickly lost though as shifted away his gaze not wishing to be caught looking he checked out some of the other guests. He figured it was still early and more people who he recongized would eventually show up for now though he walked back toward the direction of Vicotira and Vethara.

Nodding politely to both when he returned he stayed to the side, just abit disjointed from the group, his thoughts elsewhere he paid minor attention to what was going on picking up on a few words and phrases but not much.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled to Gregory as he returned, quite absent minded, and her grin became wider as she addressed Vicotira again. "Oh, I am sure the President-General would not even notice that he was robbed of company. He most surely has other things to worry about, the busy gentleman that he is.” She laughed lightly and shook her head, picking up a drink from some passing waiter, sipping it a little.

“But it would be rude to continue this conversation in a one way format. So, pray, tell me about the lands you hail from.”

Stupid forum note: THIS POST IS MORE THAN 1 FREAKIN CHARACTER
IC:
To: Her Teutonic Majesty, Empress Aurora von Sachshausen of Lavenrunz
From: The Citadel, Syskeyiapolis

It gladdens my heart that you will be celebrating your sixteenth birthday, and my spirits are lifted even more that you have requested my presence at your party. Be assured that I shall personally be there at your celebration of this landmark in your life.

God bless,

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v123/Syskeyia/sukosig.gif

To- Empress Aurora

From-the High lord of technologyMergus Diandre

I would love to attend you party as I wish
My nation to make more and more relations. I would also
present gifts worth large amounts of mechina's(our currency).
I would be so pleased if i could come

Mergus Diandre
High lord of technology

Prince Peter led the way into the entry hall of the Palace. His movements were casual, yet precise and confident. He looked around. The Palace was certainly impressive, though far less gaudy and opulent than Andreus’ gilded menagerie in New Constantinople. In a way, while he certainly enjoyed his time as Andreus’ guest, it was a relief to be in a different environment.

The prince glanced over at his young cousin. Princess Rebecca was becoming a lovely young woman. She held herself with well-practiced poise, although Peter could detect a certain widening of her eyes. In her own way, she was as naïve and sheltered as Andreus’ sisters and cousins. Peter made a note to himself to make sure his uncle, the Emperor, never dispatched her for a visit to New Constantinople.

Princess Rebecca tried to hide her excitement as she followed Peter into the entry hall. She was glad that her father had let her join the delegation to Lavenrunz. She was looking forward to meeting Empress Aurora and the other guests. The princess straightened her blue silk dress and looked towards the man who seemed to waiting to greet them.

Lady Allison Blugar, a distinguished looking woman in her fifties and His Imperial Majesty’s newly appointed Ambassador to the Lavenrunzian court, leaned over to Princess Rebecca. “Your Highness, I believe that is Count Chemnitz, the Imperial Chamberlain.”

Rebecca nodded to the Ambassador and waited for the man to greet them.

ooc: I’ve telegrammed Lavenrunz, of course.

Half a world away from the stormy seas which pounded themselves against the granite walls of Ian's Island, HIM the King of Iansisle and Emperor of Gallaga walked into one of Lavenrunz' finest halls.

"James, don't worry so much," whispered his youngest sister, HRH Princess Alice the Duchess of Evanpass. She was holding his arm and felt every muscle - or those which had not atrophied with age and disuse - tense up at the place’s very atmosphere.

"I can't help it,” James replied under his breath. “It’s been so long - I’ll just make a fool of myself, as usual. I wish that Anna were here.”

“Mr Bradsworth was quite right when he insisted that Dame Anna stay at Dûn Ádien - quit fiddling with that!” James had been twisting the bright scarlet cockade pinned to his lapel one way and then the other. He dropped his free hand back to his side. “Besides,” Alice continued, “You always do just fine at social events.” She hated it when James would descend into a mood plagued by self-doubts.

“Maybe in the Honeycomb, when it’s just the usual gathering of local nobility,” replied James. “But here...”

“Quiet,” Alice insisted. “Here comes someone.”

Vicotira nodded politely back to Gregory as he returned. She smiled and looked at him thoughtfully for just a moment before looking back to Vethara. "Still, I'm sure the President-General has some very interesting things to tell of his campaigns."

She then pondered how best to answer Vethara's question. "Well, the Resurgent Dream is called a High Kingdom because it consists of seven smaller kingdoms: Shieldcrest, Wintermore, Farinor, Fireforge, Bilbtoria, Holista, and Garmar. Shieldcrest is by far the largest kingdom, currently populated by around 795 million souls, and the location of the national capital, Tarana, the Marble City. Like I said, the population is astonishingly diverse and we value diversity greatly. We normally give the ethnic make-up as the population as 49% Human, 41% Fae (like myself), and 10% Prodigal, but each of those groups contains multiple whole races within it so dividing the population into three groups doesn't really give one a proper idea. But we encourage this and have open immigration policies. In matters of religion, the population is entirely more uniform. Over 80% of the population are members in good standing of the Danaan Church." She paused, thinking. "What else would you wish to know?"

"His Imperial Highness the Most Pious Prince Andreus, Despot of New Constantinople and Dauphin of Viennois!" announced the doorman as the Pantocratorian delegation entered the hall.

At its head was the unmistakable figure of Prince Andreus, the Pantocratorian heir apparent. Even if he hadn't been dressed in a splendid tuxedo embroidered with silver and gold threads, with a purple sash suitably decorated with medals he had no business wearing, the Prince would've still been easily identifiable by his proud expression and almost arrogant saunter. He was very handsome, with an athletic physique which was more a product of his vanity than a desire to be in good shape for health reasons. The striking man was followed by splendidly dressed servants, carrying gifts for Aurora wrapped in cloth of gold and secured by purple ribbons. The decision to make a relatively late arrival was deliberate, of course, and not in a small way influenced by the Pantocratorian custom of precedence, which dictated that the most important person should enter a hall last. He therefore noted with some satisfaction that Prince Peter of Excalbia had already entered before him, and his eyes took in Princess Rebecca with some interest. He strode into the hall, alongside Prince Peter, waiting to be greeted by one of the hosts.

"I hope that our German is up to the task, my friend." he joked in French to Peter as he walked past him towards Lady Allison Blugar and Princess Rebecca.

"Peter, won't you introduce me to this beautiful young lady?" he asked, in English this time, bowing chivalrously to Rebecca.

How the hell do you encourage diversity, Kira considered her drink, swirling the liquid in its glass. It's like...do they keep breeding quotas or something?

The concept of diversity was difficult for a Weyrean to grasp. Outsiders who tried to study Weyrean culture explained it away as something so ingrained into the social structure that the idea did not need to ever be mentioned. Kira had never read those outsiders, few as they were, and either way didn't care about explanations for why talking about how many quendi, humans, dwemer, or what have you a nation had seemed strange. It was strange, that was what mattered. Either way, it wasn't her business, the crimson-haired alchemist decided, still examining the contents of her glass.

Definitely nothing strong enough to do much, she sighed inwardly, tipping the contents of the glass into her mouth, noticing the new arrival out of the corner of her eyes. Some prince, probably, considering the sheer arrogance he showed, and the amount of servants he had brought along. She didn’t call him an idiot; arrogance didn’t equate with idiocy nearly as often as she had thought before her stint in Istel. Well, that was her experience, at least. The Line wasn’t the sort of place where people could afford to be idiots.

She scratched behind one long, pointed ear that made quendi ears look like little half-thoughts, deposited her glass with a passing waiter, or whatever they called them here, decided to see if there was anyone who’d be interested in talking with an alchemist, or with a person who probably looked like a low-ranking officer to someone unfamiliar with The Tower, which was probably everyone present.

Rebecca blushed at the Despot’s compliment. She turned her head slightly, glancing at the Pantocratorian shyly.

“Ja, hoffe ich auch,” said in rather poorly accented German. He smiled and shrugged. Then turned towards his cousin. “Your Highness,” he said in French, “may I present Her Imperial Highness Princess Rebecca, the Emperor’s daughter and my dear cousin.”

Rebecca curtsied with a smile. “Your Highness,” she said in her classroom French, “it is a pleasure to meet you again. Do you remember that we met at Anna’s and Joseph’s wedding?”

“And,” Peter interjected, “your Highness, if I may, I shall also introduce our Ambassador to Lavenrunz, Lady Allison Blugar.”

“Your Highness,” Lady Allison said as she curtsied with practiced grace.

As he waited to be greeted, Peter leaned close to Andreus and whispered in French, “I see you have come without company. What do you think Marian, Helen and my aunt are up to in New Constantinople without us around?”

Georgina nodded to Aesa, 'Yes, inside is good.'

Scinfaxi sighed gently, already missing her sister a little. It was odd to call her that, being as Hrimfaxi's avatar was human and they certainly didn't look like sisters, but it was the first time they'd been apart, and it made her rather uncomfortable. Still, best to enjoy the party.

She glanced down at the bird in its cage as she entered the hall, smiling and opening the door, letting it flutter up to her shoulder and laying the cage down on the table with the other gifts. Georgina blinked, 'That's-'

Scinfaxi smiled, 'I'll give it to her myself, I'm not going to keep it.' She glanced back at the confused-looking doorman, having missed his first request for her title after Georgina was announced, 'I'm ok without, if that's not a problem.'

Lenore couldn't see Aurora anywhere so she walked up to the place where they had the presents and put a single envelope on the table. She slowly stepped away as she watched all the trinkets and presents that had begun to hoard on this space. She walked back out in the room and started to mingle.

"I do remember, of course." Andreus replied. Rebecca hadn't been quite as interesting at Anna and Joseph's wedding as Madame d'Isakiosopolis. "I see that you've grown up since then, Your Highness, into the very vision of loveliness. I hope your appearance at this party marks your debut into courtly circles which will eventually see you in New Constantinople, sooner rather than later I hope."

He took Rebecca's hand and kissed it lightly, briefly pondering whether Peter liked the proverbial shoe being on the other foot. He gave Rebecca a flattering look, complete with a suggestive twinkle in his eye, before moving on to politely acknowledge the ambassador.

"Madame Ambassador, delighted to meet you." he said, before cracking a little smile and making a joke. "Are you here to make sure His Highness doesn't get up to any mischief?"

He chuckled at Peter's comment and whispered back, "Saving the world, no doubt."

At that moment, there was a sprightly fanfare, and out of a hidden door came first a buxom, handsome young woman in a ball gown with bare pretty shoulders and elbow length gloves, followed by a young man in black and gold uniform wearing a dress sword, and a group of ceremonially dressed Imperial Jaegers who quietly fanned out to tactical points of the room, but in such a way as to appear more splendid than menacing. These men and women were wearing dark green uniforms with black frogging and shakos that had black brims.
Stalking out after them came a leopard, rumbling quietly, great yellow eyes like lamps, and close enough to touch was Empress Aurora herself, wearing a dress that appeared to be made entirely of interwoven camelias and bluebells. Her strawberry blonde hair flowed to her bare shoulders, and her movements were lithe and graceful. The Lavenrunzians to a person bowed.
"Thank you all for coming." she said, hoping her nervousness didn't show in her voice. "I am very touched...and I would like to welcome you to my favourite home in my country. Please, have a wonderful time! We will be going into the banquet now...I hope no one minds, but I have not done a pre-seating arrangement, because there are so many old friends here that I don't wish to show precedence, but I assure you: there is room for all. Please do sit down once you come in," she added, just to cover etiquette for those who were specially aware of it.
Count Chemnitz did not show any expression, but he had frankly thought this was a very bad idea. However, he simply made sure that the under-chamberlains, footmen and maids would be ready to make sure everyone was comfortably seated.

The banquet hall in question was large enough for a much bigger set of tables; indeed in the Renaissance it had seated the entire court, which used to be far bigger. The only persons who were seated right by the Empress were the Chamberlain himself and Archbishop Wittmar.

Some noticed Empress Aurora smiling but her eyes being a bit distant as she greeted her older sister, the red haired slim Archduchess Magda, who was in a black dress that showed off her lovely athletic figure and was with her husband, the Hegemon of Terraus.
Archduchess Sophia made sure she was sitting across from President-General Gregory de los Santos.

The menu:
A consomme along with spinach salad to start
Followed by:
squab a la foie gras
Followed by:
Lamb provencal
A roast of beef with carrots, new potatoes and leeks
Followed by:
Chocolate gelato with espresso sauce
and
A birthday cake of layered lemon, vanilla and strawberry cake with cream, currant jam and a cream cheese icing with a biscuit bottom.


The footmen began to discreetly pour wine, iced water or requests such as the guests might make. They were alert to anyone declaring vegeterianism, for which there was an alternate menu.

Nodding to the Lavenrunzian he was speaking too Lidric turns and follows the people into the banquet hall, his eyes opening wide at the place and smiling "We dont have this back home." He mutters to himself in the slightly german dialect of Iraqstan.

Sitting himself at a conveniant table Lidric watches Aurora idly a slight eyebrow rise at the distant look she has greeting a lady intel identified as her sister. Looking over the menu he accepts a glass of Ice Water with anod of thanks and smiles. "Even the food is different." He mutters and looks up and down the table trying to see if anyone elses menu has the same listings. Shrugging he turns to the person seated beside him and extends his hand. "Greetings from the Union of Iraqstan." He says in accented english, hoping people would understand it.

Waitng for a response he casualy looks about the room with his eyes noting the people from countries he knows and from others he has yet to be informed of and shakes his head. "Quite the diverse turn out." He whispers softly and looks back to the person beside him. "Forgive me, my name is Lidric Quil'raya ambassador for the National Socialist Union of Iraqstan."

Making his way into the hall and looked around. Taking the first two open seats he saw he assisted Vethara into one before taking a seat of his own. Turning his head from side to side he wondering where Sophia had gotten off to..of course he was alittle startled to see she snuck into the seat across from him. Surpressing a smirk and thoughts of his own ego superiority he said loudly to all those sitting around, "From the looks of this menu it appears as if we shall all leave here filled with some of the finest foods around. I myself am trying not to drool over the thought of the cake." Making sure the cloth napkin was properly across his lap he turned his head from side to side finally getting a look at the guests who had arrived.

"It is an amazing sight really that such a diverse group has shown up. Its an obvious testament to the respect most nations have for Lavenrunz and its leadership at the royal level." Again said to no one really in particular, just thrown out for conversation purposes.

Vicotira curtsied to the Empress as Aurora entered the room. Since she was already in the company of Gregory and Vethara, she accompanied them to the dining room and sat down across from Vethara, which presumably placed her next to ArchDuchess Sophia. She watched the other guests to see who would sit on her other side. To an extent, she was hoping it would be Mephet'ran, she'd heard many good things about the Emperor of the C'tan from her sister. Really, though, she would be happy to converse with any of the guests with the possible exception of Leonore. From what she knew of the Reich, the Veganan wasn't likely to want to sit there either, so that wasn't really a worry.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled again at Vicotira, shaking her head slightly. “I believe I shall satisfy myself with this knowledge for know, for it would seem that we called for dinner already.” She smiled to Gregory, following him to the hall. She thanked him as he assisted her seating and nodded slightly with a smile to Sophia and Vicotira, in sign of repeated greeting, nodding politely to the rest of those present around her in greeting.

And as her eyes wandered about the faces of her neighbours, she caught a glance of a figure, which made her breath stop for a second and a slight shiver to run down her spine. For some distance away she saw a man in the uniform of a Taraskovyan Lieutenant of the Airborne. The man’s eyes suddenly came to meet hers, his face showing surprise for a moment before a smile appeared on his lips and the man made a slight bow with a hand gesture, in a good old Taraskovyan traditional way, in sign of greeting.

She nodded back, making the same gesture, quickly bringing her right arm to her heart, then to her mouth and then stretching her arm slightly into the man’s direction. The officer grinned and went to take a place at some distance from her, making Vethara sigh with relief of not having to support the presence of a ‘Federalist’ in her vicinity. She smiled as she leaned slightly towards Gregory, whispering softly to him. “Did you catch a glimpse of that man in black uniform? He is one of my most loyal and obedient subjects.” The irony and sarcasm of her remark were quite obvious as she smiled sweetly.

***

Ze Federalists

Poruchik Ithun Khat, in his parade Airborne uniform, entered the hall where the guests have gathered, giving his ‘escort’ a quick indication to depose the gift by all others and to stand guard in its immediate vicinity. Not that the gift needed to be guarded, but just in case they needed to move the box elsewhere, for Ithun clearly did not wish to have to do it all by himself. He greeted those who greeted him, smiled and nodded to others as his gaze met theirs, until finally his eyes were caught by two magnificent emeralds mingled among the guests that were sitting by a table.

He recognized the features of the woman he was looking at immediately. After all, every Taraskovyan would immediately recognize Her Highness Archduchess Vethara Shakhovskaya of Tarasovka, known throughout the nation for her kindness, generousity and, the last but not the least, for her beauty. He smiled to himself as he greeted her from a distance, deciding not to approach the lady, for he did not wish to cause her any worries. Her presence at the event was maybe the last thing he expected and it came as a complete surprise, unforeseen by any. Moreover, the fact that Her Highness was seated by one Gregory de los Santos was also quite surprising. Whatever the reasons of her presence at the party, he decided to leave it for afterwards, taking a seat at a certain distance from Vethara.

At last Mephet’ran ‘deigned’ to stop skulking around the grounds of the palace, and entered the hall. ‘Humm, it appears I’m rather late,’ he thought to himself, ‘Oh well, this is all splendid anyway,”

Crisply stepping forward he took a look around at the occupants of the room, identifying many of them by sight alone, and storing the memory of them in his mind in case he needed to recall who had attended. But he also needed someone to talk to, one could hardly spend the entire party alone after all.

After a moment’s deliberation he selected Kira, briefly wondering what his ‘brother’ would say on such an instant bias toward the elf. Striding over to intercept her before they sat down, he gave the Weyrik Alchemist a broad smile, and bowed a little, clicking his heels together in a suitably Prussian manner, “Good evening,” he said. Well, it wasn’t what he actually said, which was “Iran Cilas,” but somehow, despite not being spoken in a language other than necrontyr, the meaning seemed to become known to all who heard it..

“Esca issia isti issa thela såssi nacata rianah-iran?” he asked, once more showing off, ensuring that anyone who overheard his words would understand them; “May I have the pleasure of knowing your name my good Lady?”

Rebecca blushed ever so slightly at Andreus’ compliments. “You are most kind, your Highness,” she said excitedly. “I do hope this will be the first of many trips for me. And I certainly hope to have the opportunity to visit New Constantinople!”

Prince Peter watched Andreus lavish attention on his young cousin and tried not to wince. Certainly, not even Andreus… Of course, Peter knew his friend well enough to put nothing past him. He sighed a brief prayer that Rebecca would never be dispatched to New Constantinople; he couldn’t even begin to imagine his uncle’s reaction to what went on in the Despot’s palace.

Andreus’ joke about the women in their lives trying to save world relieved the tension and Peter joined him in a light chuckle. “No doubt. And without us in the way, they just might succeed, eh?”

The sound of the fanfare brought Peter’s attention back to the hall. He gently prodded Princess Rebecca to move forward into the hall. They arrived just in time to see Empress’ Aurora’s arrival. She was quite lovely, Peter thought, though she was only a little older than his little cousin.

At the Empress’ direction, Peter led the Excalbian delegation into banquet hall. Peter looked around to see with whom they might sit.

Vicotira nodded her agreement to Gregory's comments, not having anything to add at the moment. She looked at the menu quietly, smiling warmly. She had been prepared for the style of feasting in Lavenrunz but it still struck her as delightfully extravagant. If only she could talk her sister into serving like this back home...

She glanced up as Prince Peter seemed to be looking around, smiling politely at the Excalbian. "There are empty seats over here, Your Highness." she mentioned politely, looking to the seat on the other side of herself from ArchDuchess Sophia.

James took quick stock of the surrounding nobility and leaders as he joined the other guests in paying their respects to the Empress. This was certainly one of the most exclusive parties which he had ever attended, and yet the proportion of crowned heads was lower than he had expected. Briefly, James wondered if perhaps he would have been better served by allowing Rinehart or one of Bradsworth’s other lackeys to attend in his place.

He forced himself to remain calm, with what he hoped was a regal air, regardless. In many of these other countries, the monarchy hadn’t quite become the fifth wheel that it was in post-revolutionary Iansisle. The Assembly and the Gallaga Office would function perfectly whether the King-Emperor were in Antarctica or Ianapalis.

“The menu looks delicious,” said Alice after the had gained their seats, trying to force small-talk on her reclusive brother. He didn’t have time to answer before the man sitting next to Alice turned and

Shrugging he turns to the person seated beside him and extends his hand. "Greetings from the Union of Iraqstan." He says in accented english, hoping people would understand it.

Waitng for a response he casualy looks about the room with his eyes noting the people from countries he knows and from others he has yet to be informed of and shakes his head. "Quite the diverse turn out." He whispers softly and looks back to the person beside him. "Forgive me, my name is Lidric Quil'raya ambassador for the National Socialist Union of Iraqstan."

The man’s heavy German accent and distracted manner put Alice off her stride temporarily, but she quickly regained her posture. Her eyes flicked temporarily from Quil’raya to James and then back again.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ambassador,” she said in her lightest voice. “I am Princess Alice; this is my brother, King James of Iansisle.” Alice used titles sparingly, trying to maintain royal dignity while not overpowering Ambassador Quil’raya.

Prince Andreus endeavoured to make eye contact with Empress Aurora across the dining room as he made his way about the hall. He didn't want to look like a hanger-on to the Excalbian delegation, but was wandering about with them when he saw a rather impressive young woman gesture to Peter that the seats to the otherside of the Archduchess Sophia were free. It was a sidhe woman, obviously an important one, and Andreus had developed a taste for sidhe women of late. He didn't go for the seat the sidhe was gesturing for Peter to take, but instead approached Vicotira, and leaned on the empty seat next to her (as opposed to the one in which Sophia was sitting).

"Pardon me, Mademoiselle, but is anybody sitting here?" he asked in his smooth, charming voice.

((OOC: The seat next to her is the one she offered to Peter))

Vicotira blushed lightly. With Greg at a diagonal from her and Andreus sitting next to her, she was fast finding herself surrounded by cute, older men. Cute, older human men. She imagined what the Traditionalist Party would say. Some trite, archaic lecture about the sin of miscegenation no doubt. With a small smile, she reminded herself that the Traditionalist Party was nicely out of power, grinning up at Andreus. "No, Your Highness, it isn't. You're welcome to join us."

Vicotira looked off thoughtfully a moment, before looking back to Andreus. "I must, however, confess to being rather surprised. I was under the impression I was persona non grata in Pantocratoria these days, after the short period of recent but past...unpleasantness...between our governments."

She hadn't rushed into the banquet hall, mainly because she didn't really care were she got to sit. It wasn't like there was any difference who she got to listen to out of the corners of her ears. Except someone really was moving towards her, she realized belatedly.

“Esca issia isti issa thela såssi nacata rianah-iran?” he asked, once more showing off, ensuring that anyone who overheard his words would understand them; “May I have the pleasure of knowing your name my good Lady?”

“Kira li’Starhavven, milord,” she responded, after a moment of thought occupied thankfully with a precise bow. She hoped the elf knew English, because she sure as hell didn’t know what he was using. “Most people think knowing my name is a curse,” she nervously scratched behind one long ear. "So...I'm not sure if pleasure is the right word." Weyrans were not elves, although some said it was easy to confuse the two up until a Weyran opened her mouth. Kira knew she shouldn’t have said the last part as soon as she had said it. This…was going to be a really sucky night, she decided.

Having deftly stolen the chair Vicotira had in mind for Peter, Andreus thought it unkind to leave the Excalbians standing, and motioned in a friendly fashion for Rebecca and Peter to sit in the chairs to his left, as if he was unaware that he wasn't the highness to whom Vicotira had addressed herself.

"Hmm?" Andreus asked, as if unaware of what Vicotira was talking about. He actually assumed she meant the Pantocratoria First Party's time in government. "Not at all, Mademoiselle. There's no reason for there to be unpleasantness between us for such trifling matters. I would never be able to hold such a silly thing as politics against such a beautiful lady as yourself!"

Vicotira arched a brow ever so fainrly at Andreus's comment. "I do not know what the duties that people of our station are born to would be, Prince Andreus, is they did not include a passionate concern with politics and with the welfare of our peoples." She spoke as though she assumed he already knew who she was.

She smiled politely. "So, I do understand that you have met Queen Eleanor. What were your impressions?"

Prince Peter smiled and nodded as the lovely sidhe noble waved to him to join her. As he turned to his cousin, whose attention was riveted on the Empress and the high table, he glimpsed Andreus swooping in to take his place. Thinking a few curses that he dared not mutter – not around his cousin at least – Peter walked up to the table just behind Andreus.

Peter bowed deeply. “My lady,” he said to the sidhe, interrupting Andreus, “I don’t believe I have had the privilege. I am Peter, Prince of Kuldiga, nephew of Emperor David IV of Excalbia.” He turned to his cousin, who curtsied gracefully. “And this is my cousin, Her Imperial Highness Princess Rebecca, daughter of the Emperor.”

Peter smiled and turned to ArchDuchess Sophia. “Your Highness,” he said with another deep bow. Then, he took the seat of the other diagonal from Vicotira (OOC: assuming its empty, I remember one diagonal being taken). Princess Rebecca took the seat Andreus had offered Peter to the Despot’s left.

Belatedly, Peter gestured to Lady Allison. “Ah, and our Ambassador, Her Excellency, Lady Allison Blugar.” The Prince gestured for the Ambassador to sit and she did, taking the seat beside Princess Rebecca.

Peter turned back to Vicotira. “Since you already know me, it seems you have me at the advantage. From your grace and beauty, I deduce that you are from the Resurgent Dream. Perhaps you could tell me more about yourself?”

((OOC: Gregory de los Santos, President General of New York and Jersey, is at the other diagonal. Peter is sitting next to Grand Duchess Vethara, the Tarasovkan Pretender))

Vicotira blushed even more at that. She was used to ceaseless flattery, of course. What high born woman isn't? But normally not from her peers. She rose to return to bows and curtsies of the Excalbian delegation with appropriate curtsies of her own to Peter and Rebecca. "It is lovely to meet you all." she said as she resumed her seat.

She then turned to Peter. "I am Grand Duchess Vicotira ni Gwydion, sister to High Queen Agwene."

As Peter made the introductions, Andreus turned to Rebecca and gave her a smile that suggested he was very happy that she was sitting next to him.

"I imagine you've been breaking dozens of hearts in Citadel Excalbia." he whispered to her playfully. "I hope you're not too cruel! I'm sure you've been much better at it than your cousin in New Constantinople."

He leaned back and gave her a friendly wink.

Peter nodded. "Your Highness," he said to Vicotria, "it is indeed a pleasure to meet you. I have had the honour of meeting some of your fellow countrywomen in New Constantinople, including Queen Eleanor. However, I must say that you are the loveliest by far. I must make it a point to visit such a wonderous land that could produce such beauty."

Peter paused for just a moment to take note of what Andreus might be up to, then turned back to Vicotria. "Tell me, your Highness, have you traveled much?"

Rebecca's deepening blush and coy smile revealed to all that she was indeed enjoying the older Despot's attentions. "Not yet. I am afraid that, until this party, my father has kept a rather close eye on me." She leaned closer to Andreus and lowered her voice. "He is a bit old-fashioned, you know." The young Princess glanced at her cousin and continued in a low whisper. "I would be surprised if Peter weren't breaking hearts. He has quite a reputation back home..."

Archduchess Sophia sipped briefly at her soup, and listened to the conversation with the serene contentment of a cat. She had inclined her head to Prince Peter and was prepared to converse with him if an opening presented itself. She kept a bit of an eye on Gregory and his...date.

Archduke Carl, who was seated near King James, said politely, "Your Majesty, it is an honor. You must forgive the lack of formality on your first visit, but I'm afraid that we are normally so very formal that this is a breath of fresh air for us, but doubtless a bit confusing. I am Empress Aurora's maternal uncle, and I am very glad to meet you." this man was rather craggy faced, fair haired, with blue eyes and wearing the formal dress uniform of the Imperial Air Force, a light blue with gold lace and crowns and leopards on it.

Prince Peter could see in Archduchess Sophia's posture that she waiting to say something. "Your Highness," he said with a gracious bow of the head, "it is a great honour to meet you." He looked at Vicotria. "We were about to discuss travels. Have you traveled much? I have, yet somehow, until now, have managed to miss both your fair countries..."

As he spoke, the Prince tugged slightly on the sleeve of his tuxedo shirt. He looked quite elegant in formal tails, with a blue sash bearing a number of ribbons and medals.

"Oh, it isn't through lack of effort, I can assure you." Andreus murmured back with a smile. "A word of advice, from someone else with an overbearing, old fashioned father... what daddy doesn't know doesn't hurt him."

Glancing to check how closely Peter was watching him, he called a footman over to him, and asked for an extra glass of wine. When it was presented to him he handed it to Rebecca.

"His Majesty needn't know everything, after all." he smiled.

With a cautious glance in her cousin's direction, Rebecca took the glass from Andreus. She raised it and said in a low voice, "To their Imperial Majesties and what they don't know." After clinking Andreus' glass, she sipped the wine, the blush on her cheeks almost matching the color of the wine.

Prince Peter could see in Archduchess Sophia's posture that she waiting to say something. "Your Highness," he said with a gracious bow of the head, "it is a great honour to meet you." He looked at Vicotria. "We were about to discuss travels. Have you traveled much? I have, yet somehow, until now, have managed to miss both your fair countries..."

As he spoke, the Prince tugged slightly on the sleeve of his tuxedo shirt. He looked quite elegant in formal tails, with a blue sash bearing a number of ribbons and medals.

"It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Prince Peter." she said pleasantly. "I hope you had a pleasant journey." A footman deftly moved in and began to remove her soup plate, as indeed others were along the table and replacing them with the squab. "Do you enjoy skiing? I was just at Mount Vanaheim; some of the slopes are absolutely to die for."

"And to what the two of us can find out." Andreus added, returning the toast. He looked over to Peter, almost hoping that he saw them, although he hoped he wouldn't make a scene and embarrass Rebecca. He wanted to tease Peter, not get the young princess into any trouble.

Well... not get the young princess into much trouble.

Peter, having been caught up in conversation with the Archduchess and the Grand Duchess, paid little heed to Rebecca's and Andreus' toast. "Yes," he said to Sophia, "we had a quite pleasant trip. Though it was perhaps a bit long for my cousin, since she had to fly to Pantocratoria to meet me before we flew here."

He tasted the squab. "Excellent," he said, before putting down his fork. "Yes, I do rather enjoy skiing. We have a few slopes in Excalbia, though I prefer the Swiss Alps myself. Though Mount Vanaheim sounds intriguing. Do plan a return trip anytime soon?"

As Rebecca sipped her wine, she was quite proud of herself for not giggling. Part of her was relieved that the other member of her family here was her wayward cousin. Though another part wished someone else were there. Just to see her father's reaction to hearing about her flirting with a much older - and handsome - prince!

"So, what do you get up to when His Majesty isn't watching?" Andreus asked over his glass of wine. "What is this gorgeous creature Rebecca all about?"

Mergus came out of his car and walked over to the palace entrance.
"sorry for being late, I have a gift for the empress and was asked to get it inspected first"Mergus began
"Its ok your fine to go in"
and with that mergus went itnto the wonderful palace."Sorry for being late everyone. I was just finishing developments on the new machine suit for the lovly empress aurora"

Mephet’ran laughed, and smiled at her “Eiåanah ri, eran nersara issisan kataken nacatånah,” he said, once more the words instinctively translated into ‘My dear lady, many people have cursed my name.’ Finally switching to English, he smiled, “So I doubt one more will have any effect,” he said, taking her arm and gently, so much so that one would barely notice unless determined to resist, leading her to the banqueting hall. “Besides, it is a very nice name, Kira.”

“And it appears we’re missing the meal my dear, so perhaps we had best speed up a little, yes?” he said, walking a little faster and encouraging the, apparently rather nervous alchemist to keep up.

Even though he did not appear to be looking at her, he seemed to manage to give the impression of his attention being entirely focussed on her at all times, but simultaneously managed to give the same feeling a flattering edge.

Gregory patted Vethara's hand a few times as he leaned over and whispered to her in response, "Dont worry about anything. You are perfectly safe and alright here. Enjoy yourself and if the man makes any ill moves toward you, tell me, and I'll deal with it." Gregory sat back into his chair a broad smile on his face as he looked around the dinner table at all the other guests. A passing glance toward the direction of Sophia and the man she was currently talking to he decided to start conversing directly with Vethara.

"So my dear Vethara, after the dinner is done would you care to dance? I warn you its been sometime since I've danced last so dont think bad of me if I step on your toes six or seven thousand times." A small chuckle followed up by a minor wink he moved on the seat slightly until he better faced her.

Vicotira inclined her head to Sophia as Peter brought her into their conversation, not about to simply start talking to someone without some sort of greeting first. "It is a pleasure to meet you, ArchDuchess Sophia."

She then answered Peter's question. "Actually, no. This is my first time abroad." Her tone managed largely to maintain a certain regal serenity, but there was just a hint of a teenager's excitement in it. Much more of a hint than Vicotira would have liked.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara shot Gregory a grateful smile upon his reassuring of her, saying as much quietly. She covered her mouth with her hand as she laughed lightly at his next words, shaking her head. “Of course, Milord, I shall with great pleasure reserve the first dance for you.” She shot him a lightly wry smile as she continued. “But, mind you, should any damage come to my lower limbs because of your actions, you shall be the one getting the honourable task of carrying a Taraskovyan Archduchess around.”

Archduke Carl, who was seated near King James, said politely, "Your Majesty, it is an honor. You must forgive the lack of formality on your first visit, but I'm afraid that we are normally so very formal that this is a breath of fresh air for us, but doubtless a bit confusing. I am Empress Aurora's maternal uncle, and I am very glad to meet you." this man was rather craggy faced, fair haired, with blue eyes and wearing the formal dress uniform of the Imperial Air Force, a light blue with gold lace and crowns and leopards on it.

"Not at all," replied James to the Archduke's apologies while he frantically recalled the face-name exercise he had practiced before arriving in Lavenrunz; he was relieved when the Archduke simply introduced himself. James also noted Archduke Carl's air force uniform, which turned his stomach slightly. He had been born in the days before the first Shieldian took to the air in a powered craft and he still got notoriously airsick. His trip to Lavenrunz, the slower speeds be damned, had taken place by sea and land. “I somewhat prefer the casual atmosphere - it is a festive occasion, after all.”

He gestured to the assembled royalty and dignity which surrounded the table. “Quite the turnout - the Empress must be even more popular on the international scene than my advisors had led me to believe.”

Peter was clearly enjoying the attention of the two women. He turned from Sophia back to Vicotira. He smiled at the sound of excitement in her voice. “Well, we shall have to see to it that this is the first of many journeys. Perhaps, when this is over, we can all go on a skiing expedition. And, of course, you would both be welcomed to visit Excalbia.”

As Peter spoke with Vicotira, he found himself wondering just how old she was. It was, after all, so hard to tell with sidhes.

Meanwhile, Rebecca tried not to blush as she took another sip of her wine. “Unfortunately, I’ve not been able to do as much as I’d like, even when my father isn’t watching. If he isn’t, then my teachers or bodyguards or my aunt or my cousin…” Rebecca sighed. “I guess it is the fate of being part of a royal family to always be surrounded by people. That’s one reason I enjoyed Joseph’s wedding so much – there were so many royals there that I kind of blended into the background. That’s also one reason I’m so looking forward to this party.”

((OOC:The plural of Sidhe is still Sidhe. Like sheep or deer...but shinier.))

Vicotira nodded. "I've never been skiing before. It does sound, however, like it might be rather fun to try. And I would love to visit Excalbia. We've had friendly relations with the Excalbians for quite some time now and have not yet paidm a royal visit. One is doubtless long overdue."

"We should," she reddened slightly. Damn, that was fast.

At least she had someone to talk to, hopefully, letting herself be led by the stranger. That was, assuming there was something to talk about. She wasn't exactly the most interesting company, Kira knew. Should she ask his name? Did it matter? Was he just laying it on to get in her pants? Scratch the last one; people like him didn't want an alchemist. The food did smell good, the crimson-haired alchemist decided, breaking off the thought-trail. Wasn't much point in worrying.

Sitting at his table, Benedict Michael Sukothai, President and First Consul of the Republic of Syskeyia, hunted for the meat of his consommé as it disappeared into the murky boiled water.
Damn soup – you never how you’ve got left under that liquid, he thought before finally catching a piece of meat with his fork and eating it.

Unlike some of the other delegates, the First Consul had decided to make a discreet and unpublicized entrance. As the Republic was currently at war with Eurusea and the Reich, Sukothai did not wear a tuxedo; rather, he wore the ”dress blacks” (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v123/Syskeyia/sys_possible_dress_uniform.gif) of a Syskeyian Army officer. (He did not care for the hat, though, and consequently did not wear it.) Two medals adorned his chest – one for participation in the Objectivist War, and another for valor in combat – and no sign of rank could be seen on his uniform, save for the large gold chain that extended from his right should to just right above his left hip. To the President’s side was Joachim Chunghow, Syskeyia’s ambassador to Lavenrunz.

Sukothai turned to the ambassador. “Um, I seem to have forgotten-” he pointed to the menu. “-just what is squab a la foie gras?”

“Goose liver.”

The First Consul coughed up his meat, gulped it back down again, and cleared his throat.

“It’s actually quite nice. Very buttery.”

Open mind, Benedict, open mind… Sukothai thought as he waited for the beef and the lamb provencal.

He smiled a little, and held a seat back for her, doing all but steering her into a sitting position, “As I feel you wish to know, I am Mephet'ran, ‘Emperor of the C’tan.’” He pushed the chair forward a little (as and) when she sat and took one for himself at her side. “So,” he said, quietly spreading a serviette over his lap, “Please, tell me about yourself then.”

"In New Constantinople, you'd be surrounded by people, you certainly wouldn't fade into the background. But there's one difference; in New Constantinople, nobody would judge you." Andreus said. "I'm fortunate like that, having a place to call my own. I think that your father's court is very much the worse off for not letting you... express yourself. You're a mature young lady, if you want something, you should have it. If you want to do something, nobody should stop you from doing it."

Andreus gave her a friendly smile, as if he wasn't just encouraging her to get up to mischief, but as if he was actually giving her proper advice.

"But, I wouldn't want to get boring." he said lightly. "I seem to recall you not having any regard for the fact that His Majesty was watching when you danced at our siblings' wedding. Do you like to dance, Rebecca? Pardon me, may I call you Rebecca?"

Aesa scanned the room, smiling softly to herself as she saw the Empress' entrance. At the urging to find seats, she looked around and saw, a little glumly, that many seats were being taken, and largely by representatives of nations she'd never met. She noticed the delegation from Tsaraine hovering over by a table and strode over to them, smiling happily, "Hello."

She sat down next to Sekhat tsaKell, the Hacker ambassador introducing herself. Sarah took the seat next to Aesa, followed by an alert and silent Kara. Elisa gave Sarah a kiss on the cheek before sitting next to her bodyguard. She motioned to Georgina and Scinfaxi, "Looks like we've got seats."

"Hello," Sekhat replied politely, and smiled in return. "I don't believe you've met esen tsaKelhai here? Andrine, this is Aesa Erikson, the Hacker Ambassador to Lavenrunz. Esen Erikson, this is Andrine tsaKelhai, a junior member of my staff."

Andrine smiled with genuine warmth, and leaned over to shake Aesa's hand.

"Pleased to meet you."

Bowing his head respectfully Lidric smiles faintly, "An honour to meet you both your excelencies." He says as he casts a glance over James before focusing on Alice.

"Tell me your highness how is it that Iansisle has come to know her majesty Aurora and Lavenrunz?" He asks, using the only idea for small talk he can think of. Royalty almost on every side of me. The goddess bless me I hope in this diplomatic time. He thinks quietly to himself as he takes a sip of water from his glass.

He laughed alittle and nodded his head a few times after a moments contemplation. "My dear, you should becareful for I fear my feet will undoubtably target your poor toes now if only to hold you up to that end of the threat." He gave out a small hearty laugh and once more looked about, this time for the Federalist, he wanted to know if they were being closely watched. He didnt like unfriendly eyes on him and he was definately certain to say something about it.

Archduke Carl smiled, though his expression gave nothing away. "I believe that it is in part due to Empress Aurora's mother's popularity and effective diplomacy that so many nations have such close ties, though certainly...Her Majesty's reign is most promising. You know, her mother...my sister...was the head of the South Atlantic Treaty Organization, the alliance that," he glanced discreetly at the Veganan Ambassador, "Halted the Reich Alliance from its perpetual assaults on smaller weaker nations. And Lavenrunz has been host to a number of important conferences and treaty negotiations. But then, so as far as I know is the same case with your Kingdom, Sir."

With a smile, Archduchess Sophia said to Prince Peter, "I'd certainly like to. If I could I'd spend the whole season skiing, though of course there is going abroad to sunny locations to relax on the beach after you've been on the slopes for a while. However," she sighed, "The Family has been after me to have some sort of position or career. Do you have any responsibilities at all?" She was deliberately focusing on Peter now, furious at Gregory for that little intimate protective gesture to Vethara. Even though he was a jerk she had no intention of marrying.

So that's Prince Andreus. thought Aurora. And that's Lidric. Great. A pompous arrogant womanizing jerk, and the shy heir of an Iraqstani tyrant. She leaned over to Baroness Toll and said, "Who's that Prince Andreus is chatting up?"
"That is Princess Rebecca of Excalbia, I believe, Majesty." said the Baroness discreetly.
Aurora waited for a moment to catch Andreus' eye, and gave him an ironic glance that she had learned from her mother, a slightly lifted eyebrow and an amused quirk of her mouth.

The Machine Warrior envoy in fact found that supper had already begun, and an under-chamberlain quietly found him a seat, near a Lavenrunzian Army general, a bishop and the envoys of Hack and GMC Military Arms.

Vicotira looked at Sophia expectantly for a few seconds, daintily folding her soft, shining hands in her lap. She quietly listened to the buzz of conversation for the moment. Groups this large could be exciting sometimes, but also a bit confusing with rather rapidly shifting conversations. Over the last five minutes or so, she had been speaking with at least six different people. None of those conversations had actually ended. She had just drifted into talking to someone else and her conversational partners had as well. A Boggan could have lectured for hours on things like that.

Vicotira turned towards Andreus and Rebecca for a moment. There was some inside manuever going on beyond simple flirtation, or so it seemed from Andreus's expression. Still...damned if she knew what.

Sparkling brown eyes turned back to Peter, the man whose attention she was splitting with the ArchDuchess for the moment. "Perhaps I should bring King Gregory. Your missionaries have had quite the effect on Holista."

Sukothai turned toward Vicotira.

"Have we met?"

<inster response here>

He extended his hand.

"Greetings. I am Benedict Michael Sukothai, President and First Consul of the Republic of Syskeyia."

"No, we haven't met, President Sukothai." Vicotira did know his name anyway, from memorizing photographs prior to her trip. She self-conciously tucked a strand of shimmering, golden-brown hair behind an elegantly pointed ear.

She extended a shining white hand, palm down. "I am Grand Duchess Vicotira of the Resurgent Dream. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mister President."

After the greetings, she commented "I must admit to be largely ignorant of Syskeyia. You are known for your faith and your heroic resistance to aggression, even among my people, but more...specific details...I'm afraid I must plead that I am rather ignorant, although curious."

OOC: I’ve telegrammed Lavenrunz. And this is my first RP post ever, so please forgive me if it’s too long…

Two Days Previously

Katsuma stared out the window of the medical ship Sydenham, slowly orbiting over the nation of Mountana, the only nation on Solont of the Beta Aquilae system. Still visible on the surface were the scars of recent wars. Sadly, orbital bombardment was nothing new to the inhabitants of Mountana, and even more so in the latest war, when the UTOO infected and effectively ruined large portions of Solont’s land and oceans. But even the planet and it’s people had been healing well, returning to their former prosperity. Katsuma, Lord Protector of Beta Aquilae, had only begun the process of repairing the wounds he’d received in that final battle three months ago.

But even though he was in no shape to pilot ships or lead great fleets into battle, that didn’t stop High Minister Imbenarion from keeping him busy. James Flask, personal attaché to Lord Protector Katsuma, now stood behind him, briefcase in hand.
“Why are you here, James? Whenever you come to see me, it’s because of an emergency. So what is it? Have the UTOO returned?”
James, unfazed by Katsuma’s worrisome nature, pushed his glasses back up on his face. “Actually, no. High Minister Imbenarion has something special in mind.”
Katsuma’s ears perked upwards. Something special? If not combat, then what?
“A formal affair. Apparently, Mountana has been contacted regarding a formal occasion in the nation of Lavenrunz, on Earth of all places.” Harry went on.
”I’m no diplomat…” Katsuma whispered.
“We know, Katsuma. But, seeing as how most of our fleet has been decimated…” James gestured out the window as several tug ships flew by, hauling the warped and infected hull of a super-destroyer. “And that the rest of the fleet is on high alert, you’re the only ranking official not preoccupied.”
Katsuma sighed in resignation. “What’s the occasion?”
“Ah, yes,” James said, running through his notes. “The Empress of Lavenrunz, Empress Aurora, is having a sixteenth birthday party. A representative of our nation is cordially invited to attend. Considering what we’ve heard of this nation, Lavenrunz is one of the largest and most politically and economically powerful nations in and out of the Earth Sphere. As Beta Aquilae has had no political or economic ties with the Sol system in over 40 years, we think it would be prudent to accept their invitation in hopes of establishing some for of relationship with such a powerful nation.”
Katsuma was silent for several moments, lost in thought. Finally, he turned to James and said “A sixteenth birthday party? Well, we’d best come bearing gifts then.” And that point, Katsuma smiled for the first time in weeks.

*******************************

Present Time

Katsuma stepped gingerly out of the small troop dropship outside of the palace. It was an uncomfortable ride through Slipspace, but it was all the Beta Aquilaen military could spare, and he was thankful.

He stood tall in his black and grey military dress uniform, but self-conscious as he was, he wished he could remove the easily visible bandages around his forehead, just under his brown hair, and those around his arms. His strange fox tail and ears, in sharp contrast to his otherwise human features, and the bandages were causing the otherwise handsome 17 year old officer to worry.

"I’ll be the only wounded genetic experiment in what’s sure to be a palace full of opulently dressed human diplomats. Still, I hope my trip was worthwhile.”

He was awestruck at the palace’s size. And even more so at it’s grandeur! Nothing in Beta Aquilae could compare to its luxurious majesty! And yet, rather than be taken in by it’s beauty, Katsuma felt only inadequacy.

”Our nation… Our world… has never produced anything like this. We’ve space fortresses a hundred miles across, but never have we envisioned something this grand. And… why? Why would they invite representative from one of the most remote reaches of human existence? We’re nothing to them. Still…” Katsuma chastised himself, ”I must remember that I am their guest. I must show our gratitude. And surely there must’ve been some reason for our invitation.”

An escort quickly arrived and ushered Katsuma into the Banquet Hall, were a sight that did nothing to ease his tension greeted him. Royalty, noblemen, and diplomats from wall to wall! He was dumbstruck. And the stack of gifts on the nearby table were no help either.

”My god! Those gifts are so large! And so ornately decorated!” Katsuma instinctively felt the small box within his inside pocket. ”I’m such a fool! Why did they let me pick the gift?! Choosing a gift for a girl, instead of for an Empress… I should have known better… Perhaps it will be better if I hang on to my gift and give it to the Empress in person.”

Katsuma noticed at that point that someone was motioning him to sit at an empty seat at the table. Not knowing anyone in the room, he knew better than to not comply. Finding his seat, he was treated to sights, smells, and sounds more exotic than he had ever known. The food was intoxicating, the dress of the diplomats around him was fascinating, and they conversed on topic Katsuma knew nothing about as though they were the most natural things in the world. But one thing grabbed Katsuma’s attention and kept it. Seated at the head of the table was the Empress herself, Aurora. Katsuma was captivated. Was it the shock of being in the presence of such royalty for the first time? Or was it something else…
Regardless, Katsuma was transfixed.

I do hope that before the night is out I will have the chance to meet her.

(OOC: Sorry... Catching up...)

“Yes,” Peter said warmly to Vicotira, “a royal visit would certainly be in order. And quite appreciated. Especially if you are among the delegation, your Highness. And King Gregory would be welcomed as well. I understand, as you said, that he looks with favor on our missionaries. How does the rest of your empire regard them?”

Peter looked from Vicotira to Sophia. “Both skiing and relaxing on the beach sound good to me. Perhaps when we finish here, we arrange a little excursion.”

Peter leaned back into his chair as he considered the Archduchess’ question. “Well, I could have a number of positions – a military career, like my cousin Joseph, or a career working with our charitable foundations, like my aunt Christiana.” Peter shrugged. “If it were possible, I would pursue a career in politics, but the Holy Empire frowns on members of the Imperial Family engaging in party politics. So, I’m left with being a freelance diplomat, as it were.” The Prince smiled. “How about you, your Highness? What kinds of careers appeal to you? In your country could you be active in politics?”

Peter noticed the man in the black uniform introducing himself to the Grand Duchess. He leaned slightly over the table. “President Sukothai, allow me to introduce myself. I am Prince Peter of Excalbia. A pleasure to meet you.”

* * *

Rebecca felt for a moment as if she might jump out of her seat. “Oh, yes, your Highness. Yes, to both actually! I do like to dance and, please, call me Rebecca.” The young Princess glanced away shyly from Andreus, then looked back with a sweet smile.

OOC: TRD, since you spoke to Vicotira my impression was that you've spoken to nearly half a dozen other people. I was just assuming that there was chatter all over the place. Just speak to her again if you want her attention.
IC:

Sophia frowned. "Politics? That sounds awfully dull, having to listen to all those speeches in the Volksraad. Being an Ambassador might be nice. I really don't know!" she laughed and pushed her half eaten squab away. "I might like to become involved in finance or something like that..."

An under-chamberlain sat Katsuma down near a uniformed, one eyed man who was eating what appeared to be a small bird stuffed with a fragrant pureed meat. "Hello. I'm afraid I have not had the pleasure." said the man. "I am Chancellor Hans Schlabel, the head of Her Majesty's Government."
http://e.1asphost.com/Terraus/Lavenrunz/Schlabel.jpg

Exiled Royalties

Vethara blushed slightly at Gregory’s words, smiling again and answering softly. “Well, Milord, you may be assured that Taraskovyans never take threats lightly and, should they issue one, they tend to respect it.” She smiled to herself once again, as her fingers reached forward to rub his hand gently, the touch suddenly reminding her of Nekshas. She stared blankly at her hand touching that of her cavalier for a second before withdrawing it, smiling slightly and sighing just as Gregory’s gaze concentrated elsewhere.

***

Ze Federalists

Remarkably enough, Ithun was not staring wide eyed at Vethara and her company, communicating all his findings via a secret communications device. In fact, he was mostly concentrating his attention on other guests. After all, he was not there in quality of spy, that was the Kaskad’s business, his job was to maybe establish contacts, if he felt like it, since his official mission was to present the gift of the Taraskovyan People to Her Imperial Highness, the rest was very much optional. He took a random seat next to some other guests, not really caring to pick a place. After all, very few people would be offended by the presence of a representative of the Taraskovyan Federation due to the country’s traditional ‘more or less neutral’ policy towards foreigners and he did not see representatives of any ‘hostile’ nations in the hall so far. And those offended would most surely be representatives of various Taraskovyan movements, such as, for example, Archduchess Vethara that was sitting at some distance.

Sophia frowned. "Politics? That sounds awfully dull, having to listen to all those speeches in the Volksraad. Being an Ambassador might be nice. I really don't know!" she laughed and pushed her half eaten squab away. "I might like to become involved in finance or something like that..."

"Ah, finance." Peter smiled, focusing again on Sophia. "I have thought about that. My aunt recently acquired one of the largest companies in Pantocratoria, and it make me think that perhaps I might try my hand at running one of the companies controlled by the Imperial Trust." Peter shrugged and gave Sophia a mischevious smile. "However, I am such fun as an official Ambassador for the Empire, that it would be hard to do real work. You should think about such a career. You could undertake a diplomatic mission to Excalbia. I am sure we would be happy to receive you. And I could introduce you to our beaches."

Kira quickly considered several responses, after getting pushed into a chair before she had even noticed it. All of her ideas sounded stupid. Sure, everyone had heard of the Necrontyr Empire. She just wasn't sure that Mephet'ran was joking; what were the chances someone like him would want to talk to her? Would someone make that joke here? She decided against that; it wasn't the sort of place.

"Well," Kira said after a moment of silence. "What do you want to know? I'm an alchemist at The Tower, I do random jobs for a living, and I don't know anyone here."

"Well," he said, "you know someone now, don't you?" he smiled, "An alchemist you say? Splendid. That must be an absoloutely fascinating profession. What precisely do you do? Indeed, what do you turn into what - forgive me if that's a misconception."

Peter's question would have been a lot easier to answer if Vicotira could lie.The case being otherwise, she took a few moments to ponder her words while her attention was on Sukothai. Finally, she answered with a light smile. "The Kingdom of Holista now has a Catholic majority and King Gregory himself is likewise a Christian."

Bowing his head respectfully Lidric smiles faintly, "An honour to meet you both your excelencies." He says as he casts a glance over James before focusing on Alice.

"Tell me your highness how is it that Iansisle has come to know her majesty Aurora and Lavenrunz?" He asks, using the only idea for small talk he can think of. Royalty almost on every side of me. The goddess bless me I hope in this diplomatic time. He thinks quietly to himself as he takes a sip of water from his glass.

James, already engaged with the Archduke on his other side, is quite glad to avoid a conversation on two fronts. He met Lidric's eyes, bowed slightly and returned to his other discussion.

"I do not think there is a nation on God's Earth who has not heard of Lavenrunz and its Empress," said Alice politely. She held her silverware aloft over her steaming plate but did not cut into the food. "Although the Shield has chosed to remain aloft, by and large, from the rest of the world's affairs, we have kept a fairly weather eye on them."

She put down the utensils again and looked curiously into Lidric's eyes. "I hope you will not think this question too impudent of me, but I was under the impression that, well, Iraqstan and Lavenrunz were not on the most friendly of terms." Alice left the meat of the question unasked except with her expression, which tinged just a shade on the curious side of neutral.

Meanwhile, James listened to Archduke Carl's stange mix of compliments and pride.

Archduke Carl smiled, though his expression gave nothing away. "I believe that it is in part due to Empress Aurora's mother's popularity and effective diplomacy that so many nations have such close ties, though certainly...Her Majesty's reign is most promising. You know, her mother...my sister...was the head of the South Atlantic Treaty Organization, the alliance that," he glanced discreetly at the Veganan Ambassador, "Halted the Reich Alliance from its perpetual assaults on smaller weaker nations. And Lavenrunz has been host to a number of important conferences and treaty negotiations. But then, so as far as I know is the same case with your Kingdom, Sir."

"In our own way," said James, deciding on the most humble answer. "And never on such a scale. We were a founding member of the Alliance of the New Highlands - which was insignificant compared to SATO - and have dabbled here and there, mostly in the Third World Conferences."

James smiled, though not in his eyes. "It is one of my greatest regrets that my governments - conservative, liberal, even revolutionary - have continued to choose the path of the sword over the peaceful path for which Lavenrunz has most often opted."

Kats bowed his head respectfully and shook the hand of Chancellor Schlabel.
"It is an honor to meet you sir. I am Katsuma, Lord Protector of the Beta Aquilae system. Let me first say that we are most honored that a nation as powerful and noble as Lavenrunz would extend invitations to Mountana and Beta Aquilae."

Hans Schlabel smiled and continued to eat his dinner. "You may dispense with the formalities, Lord Katsuma. This is hardly a heavy handed occasion. Relax and enjoy yourself."

"Uh... thank you, Chancellor Hans." Katsuma sized up the big man seated next to him.

He's quite likeable. Courteous. Nothing I can immediately see to fault the man. Judging by his dress and eyepatch, I'd wager he must have seen combat on many occasions. Which begs more questions...

"Chancellor Hans," Kats spoke, careful to maintain his respectful and deferrent tone, "This is the first time in many years that a representative of Mountana or Beta Aquilae has been to Earth, and I must say, I'm at a loss. It's far more than what I ever imagined it to be, and I'm so fascinated by Lavenrunz. What can you tell me about Her Majesty's kingdom?" Katsuma said, nodding towards Empress Aurora seated at the far end of the table. "I am sure this land must have a great history, and I'm fascinated by the royal family itself."

OOC: Apologies to Mountana and Lavenrunz if this is messing with seating arrangements or anything. As to the post, Mountana, it looks good!

Sekhat looked up from his meal as someone else was seated nearby. There was Hans Schlabel, whom his father had known, many years ago, at the Conference on Religious Warfare, and whom he had always spoken highly of.

Beside him was a young man with the ears of a fox; based upon the hurried names-and-faces report the embassy data analysts had given him on the attendees of the party, he could only be Katsuma, the Lord Protector of Beta Aquilae.

Neither Beta Aquilae, Katsuma, or his home nation of Mountana featured at all in Tsaraine's Plexus information network; indeed, the data analysts had been unable to find out much more than the name and the face. Sekhat resolved to speak to him, later in the evening.

Andreus returned Rebecca's sweet smile with a self-confident, suggestive one of his own.

"Please, call me André." he said. "I'm rather fond of dancing myself, actually. Perhaps after dinner, you would do me the honour of allowing me to dance with you, Rebecca?"

He caught Aurora's gaze across the table, and noted her strange, ironic smile with some interest, before turning back to Rebecca so that she didn't feel that she had lost his attention. Even as he paid his attentions to Rebecca and talked with the young princess, he started to wonder what Aurora's look was all about.

Leaving his own plate untouhed for the moment Lidric smiles softly at the questions asked of him and pauses to cut the food before turning back. "I will be the first to admit that relations with other nations suffers heavily in Iraqstan, but lavenrunz we view as a proud nation and have some very small links with them, we are how ever moving to strengthen the ties between our two nations.

In fact the main role I play for mein fuhrer, is an ambassador to all the nations Iraqstan percieves as allies. It would be rude of me to not of attended this occasion, and even afterwards I have things that need discussing. But for the moment I am here to simply celebrate a birthday nd take part in the joyous festivities." He says, and sips from his glass of water.

"I must confess that I know very little of your own country, do tell me about it, I a forever curious about other countries and it's native people.s"

After such a long flight to Lavenrunz, Gregory was starving and thus it would have been of little surprise to see him eating as quickly as he was going. Of course as he ate, he paid attention to the conversations going around, around the table. So many familiar voices, and yet at the same time ones he didnt know. A few he didnt care to, and others he'd wish he brought at least a dedicated diplomatic with him in order to establish some sort of contact. Of course the conversation which caught his ear was Peter trying to court Sophia..and when he mentioned her going to Pantacoria, he almost choked on a piece of beef. After a few coughs Gregory sipped from the glass of wine and stood up slowly. "If you'll excuse me, I shall return shortly."

Walking away from the table Gregory made a beeline toward any open balchony. A minute or two of fresh air was in order. Of course he was slightly ticked about that upstart of a Prince hitting on Sophia..but he didnt care its not like he planned to marry the self centered little royal anyway.

Peter turned from the Syskeyian back to Vicotira. He smiled wryly, noting that the sidhe had neatly sidestepped his question. “Interesting. I hope that our missionaries from the Church of Excalbia have been making some headway as well. I love our Catholic brothers, but my first loyalty is my own church.” He tilted his head slightly. “I presume that you follow the Church of Dana. I hear that some missionaries of your church have traveled to Excalbia. Yet another reason for you to visit.”

As he spoke, Peter noticed that the uniformed man with whom Sophia earlier had been speaking suddenly excused himself and headed towards a balcony. Peter grinned slightly as the man’s obvious discomfort. He turned to his Ambassador and silently mouthed the word ‘who,’ to which Lady Allison mouth the words ‘president’ and ‘New York and Jersey.’

Peter shrugged slightly. The Holy Empire had no official dealings with that state. He turned back to Sophia and Vicotira and wondered idly whether they still played American football in New York and Jersey.

Meanwhile, across the table, Rebecca continued flashing her sweet smile at the Despot of New Constantinople. “Of course, André, I would love to dance with you!” As she continued to chat with Andreus, she looked over towards her cousin to see if he noticed her flirting. She wondered, with a mixture of fear of excitement, how her father would react when he heard.

Vicotira decided two things when Gregory left the table. The first was that it was her "duty" as an ally to try and keep Peter from challenging the dynamic between Gregory and Sophia. The second was that the best way to do so would be to try to draw the attentions of the Excalbian Prince herself. And, if she had to flirt with an attractive, older royal like Peter to do it...well, that was just her duty too. Anyway, that's how she decided she'd like to think of it.

She focused her gaze on Prince Peter with a flirtatious smile. "Some, yes. But, to be honest, it is the support given to the Catholic Church by the King that has made all the difference. I don't mean to suggest that the conversions are politically motivated. They are all doubtless sincere. It is merely that King Gregory's subjects are influenced by his judgment, as a man known for his spirituality and love of right and truth."

Vicotira nodded. "I am a member of the Danaan Church, yes. It is still the state church of the Resurgent Dream, despite certain recent moves in Parliament to separate church and state. I would certainly love to see how our missionaries are doing, as well as to see a service of the Excalbian Church...if, of course, I could find a proper escort?"

"Ah," Peter said with a dashing smile and a gallant bow, "look no further for an escort, your Highness. I am at your disposal. For anything you wish."

Exiled Royalties

Vethara sighed and shook her head as Gregory dashed off, sitting back in her chair. She observed the interaction between Sophia and Peter and her cavalier’s obvious reaction and then Vicotira’s immediate charge. Everything was happening like in a good roman, or a bad soap opera. She pondered for a second on the best course of action and finally decided to stand up, following Gregory to the balcony. Maybe it was not the right thing to do, but well...

She stood several steps behind him and shook her head as she looked up at her company. “I am sorry to disturb, but... is everything fine?"

Vicotira glanced up again as Vethara followed Greg. It was a natural enough move, now that she saw it, but not one she had been expecting. She wasn't sure exactly what was going on with Vethara and Sophia and Greg. Still, she hoped she could talk to Vethara again before the woman left to convey support and tell her it had been a pleasure to meet her. Part of her, in spire of how much had happened since, still hoped for an explanation for Vethara's initial mode of greeting her as well. While she was fairly sure now that the Taraskovyan had meant no offense, the incident continued to bother her in the back of her mind. It was certainly not something she was used to.

She turned back to Peter. "I would wish a dance if it were not the gentleman's place to make such a request, Your Highness." Her words were really equivalent to asking herself, she knew, but she hardly minded.

Gregory turned slightly and looked back toward Vethara and smiled lightly. "Oh yes everything is perfectly okay. I just came out here to indulge in a bad habit." Gregory reached into his left pocket and removed a packet of cigarettes. "Although its rather rude to smoke in the pressence of a Lady, so I'll just save it till after the party." Pocketing the smokes he walked over toward her and moved his arm to lock with her own and walked her over toward the balchony railing. "So are you enjoying the party thus far? And would you care to be the first one on the dance floor after we go inside once more? Or do you still need time to armor your precious feet?" He laughed alittle once more and stepped closer to Vethara.

Peter smiled, looking quite pleased with himself. "Your Highness, may I have the pleasure of the first dance? I presume that as soon as the dinner is concluded the dance will begin." As he talked, he watched the Tarasovkan exiled royal follow the New York and Jersey president. He was a little more up-to-date on royals than commoner presidents, and didn't need the Ambassador's help to indentify her.

Chancellor Schlabel had (along with everyone else) finished the squab and was toying idly with the greens and the rice he had not eaten when a footman deftly reached in without interrupting the conversation with Katsuma in the slightest. "Well, as a matter of fact I can recommend an excellent book: Lavenrunz and Recent History by one Doctor Kotzebue, I believe I could easily obtain a copy for you before you leave..." but he was pausing, as were they all, Sophia glancing away from her curious perusal of Vicotira, wondering what the hell she was up to when there was another fanfare, and two roast lamb were brought in, flanking an entire roasted ox, whose rich aroma filled the hall (OOC: I'm afraid, Greg, you probably choked on a piece of pigeon instead, since beef is always served with ceremony in Lavenrunz, however humble the home)
The Lavenrunzians stood, as it was a birthday feast, and watched as Aurora ceremoniously took a slender sword; she demonstrated its sharpness by tossing a linen napkin in the air and letting it part over the blade. Then the Lavenrunzians began to sing:

O bring out the Ox!
The young Ox!
The best Ox!
Bloody and rare
Firm and just dry
Like velvet in the belly lie

and how shall I sing
and how shall I look
In the honor of the Master-Cook?

From the loins!
From the ribs!
From the haunch!
From the flank!
Bloody and rare
Firm and just dry
like velvet in the belly lie

and how shall I sing
and how shall I look
In the honor of the Master-Cook?

They sang this with merriment and enthusiams, regardless of any previous mood, as Aurora deftly sliced off a piece for each person to sample, and then bowed to the Master Chef of the Palace, who proceeded to neatly serve the rest to order.

Chancellor Schlabel raised his glass to the envoy of Tsaraine, smiling and saying, "Well met. I don't believe you've met Lord Katsuma?"

((OOC: Greg's also the legitimate king, as I understand it. Just prefers to other title.))

Vicotira could have been up to any number of things. She could have been trying to get Greg and Sophia back together by distracting Peter, the kind of thing one might expect a well-intentioned teen with a naive and near total ignorance of the ways of love to do. She could have been trying to slight Sophia in some subtle way, unlikely, since she was there as a token of friendship. She could have simply been trying to get a dance with a cute boy from a friendly country, the most likely scenario. There were probably a good many other possibilities also. She nodded to Peter. "It would be my pleasure."

The Grand Duchess stood with the Lavenrunzians out of respect for their Empress, though, not knowing the words, she did not sing. She took her sample with a smile and tasted it. She said nothing, as the serving seemed to be a ceremony she did not know.

When she sat down again, Vicotira addressed Sophia once more. She had, rather grudgingly, come to accept that the Grand Duchess must have missed her introduction in the chatter. It was the kind of thing most people learn as a frequent event at crowded parties. Vicotira, however, had never before had the opportunity. Never having left the nation her sister ruled, she was not used to being quite so surrounded by people who were, for the most part, peers. Looking towards the Lavenrunzian ArchDuchess, she said, "It is beyond delicious, Your Highness. I am given to understand that beef has a strong cultural significance to your people." In truth, she had not exactly been given to understand that, but the ceremony made it quite obvious.

[OOC: All right, it would seem that repeating ‘Taraskovyan’ several times in a post yields no result since people still spell it ‘Tarasovkan’, so I will dare remind everybody that the correct spelling is Taraskovyan and not Tarasovkan. Good. Now, I hope I can stop repeating the adjective in every post several times over.]

***

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled and nodded to Gregory as her gaze wandered off into the scenery outside. She breathed the fresh air, enjoying it. “To indulge in a bad habit indeed,” she thought to herself, smirking mentally at his excuse. But she did convey any sentiment of displeasure as she turned her head slightly to look up at Gregory. “Empress Aurora, it would seem, has made her best to ensure that the party is enjoyable and I will not be the one proving her wrong.” She grinned slightly as she thought about his words for a second. “And I will be honoured to be the first on the dance floor in your company, Gregory.” She decided to take the risk of addressing him by his name, bypassing the ceremonial titles. “And worry not for my toes, I have endured greater ills than simple… uhm… toe squishing?” She laughed lightly, shaking her head.

***

Ze Federalists

Poruchik Khat ate his meal with quite some appetite. Of course, he did not devour it as a hungry wolf, but it was clearly obvious that he was appreciating the local cuisine greatly. He of course could not help but notice the rather curious scene that happened at the place by which Her Highness Vethara and Gregory de los Santos were seated. The sudden departure of Gregory and Vethara following shortly after. Curious indeed, but he did not stand up to go spy on the two, because, yet again, it was not his job. He was an officer of the Airborne, veteran of the Plague, not some filthy Kaskad paparazzi!

He tried to follow along with the tune to which the Lavenrunzian part of the attendance sang, but not knowing the words he simply hummed more or less in rythm. Obviously, he did not deign to remain seated when the master of the place stood up, retaking his seat once Her Imperial Highness did so, too.

[OOC: I have missed out Joanna's post with the song. Terribly sorry. But well, since nobody pays any attention to the Federal representative, I will allow myself the extreme audacity to edit the post in the best traditions of godmodding...
Yet again, truly sorry, shame on me... shame on me... In penance, I'm off to life at a monasteree... :( ]

Sekhat smiled as the Lavenrunzians sang. Tsaraine had very little so cheerful - before the Obsidian Event people had held their horses in high regard, but now there were only the solstice festivals, scarcely more than parties after four hundred years of State-mandated atheism.

He raised his own glass to Schlabel in reply.

"Well met! I don't believe I have."

Turning to Katsuma, he continued;

"And well met to you, sir. I understand that your homeworld is some distance from Sol - I trust that your travel was not too onerous?"

"They sing before they eat the main course...dear God we've stepped into a musical." He caught the noise from inside of the main hall and spoke just loud enough for Vethara to hear him. Making sure she was by his side he moved to step back inside with Vethara not in tow like before but standing next to him. "Lets finish with dinner, I'm sure we turned a few needless busy body heads with me and then you leaving..all of this for choking on a piece of meat and the need for a smoke. I really should just start chewing nicotine gum if it'll mean less people stare when I go out for a smoke." He said the end part loud enough for others to hear the smoking part, but not the busy body part, that was said low enough to Vethara.

When they arrived at the seats they occupied before Gregory helped Vethara being gentlemen like once more with his actions and then he took the seat next to her once more. "Forgive me once more for my sudden departure. It wont happen again."

Leaving his own plate untouhed for the moment Lidric smiles softly at the questions asked of him and pauses to cut the food before turning back. "I will be the first to admit that relations with other nations suffers heavily in Iraqstan, but lavenrunz we view as a proud nation and have some very small links with them, we are how ever moving to strengthen the ties between our two nations.

"Oh!" was all Alice could say before moving an embarassed hand across her mouth. "My apologies if I have caused any insult - our Foreign Office is notioriously poor in gathering information on nations outside our own sphere of contact."

In fact the main role I play for mein fuhrer, is an ambassador to all the nations Iraqstan percieves as allies. It would be rude of me to not of attended this occasion, and even afterwards I have things that need discussing. But for the moment I am here to simply celebrate a birthday nd take part in the joyous festivities." He says, and sips from his glass of water.

"I must confess that I know very little of your own country, do tell me about it, I a forever curious about other countries and it's native people.s"

"I would hazard to guess that you know more of Iansisle and the Shield than I do of Iraqstan, especially after that embarassing incident," said Alice. "But where can I begin? - Iansisle, officially known now as the United Kingdom of the Shield, is a large nation-state on the continent of Tilsitia but with colonies and other dependencies spread from Gallaga to Dianatran."

She smiled. "Or that's the tourist book definition, at least. I'd much rather tell you about the rocks, green with moss, or the way the waves crash at Feinwick Point."

Both Alice and James listened to Lavenrunzians' song with polite rapture and awaited the next course, which would certainly prove to be as delicious as the first.

"Anything to anything," Kira grinned in response to Mephet'ran's question. "We're forbidden to do stuff like turn lead into gold, but otherwise the sky's the limit. Doesn't pay the bills, unfortunately," she added, poking her food. "It's..."

The standing-up and the singing cut her off. Why people would sing to their food, she had no idea, but it seemed prudent to get up, though the absolutely refused to attempt to sing along, and quickly sat down as soon as it seemed good to do so.

"It's fascinating, yes, but when there're a few million people who can do the same thing an alchemist can by pushing buttons..." the alchemist shrugged, seeming to talk to her plate for a moment, before turning to Mephet’ran. "So, may I ask what it's like to be an emperor?"

Exiled Royalties

Vethara laughed again at Gregory’s remark. “Well, maybe it is a musical, but it is also the local tradition. And traditions play an important part in a society.” She smiled, thinking back to some past events. Taraskovyans were a fiercely proud people that, despite its multi ethnic composition, defended common traditions and customs vigorously against any threat, be it foreign or interior. Needless to say, Conservatism was the favourite way of thinking in Tarasovka. And as they entered the hall yet again, the young woman smiled to those paying any attention at their little escapade. She leant slightly towards Gregory, whispering quietly. “I am sorry, it was foolish for me to stalk you like that for no reason at all… just that, well, you parted so abruptly after choking on your food that I feared for the worse. I am a proud bearer of a diploma in medicine, you know.”

‘Doctor Vetha’, as Nekshas used to call her jokingly (indeed, Vethara did study at the Medical Faculty of the Vigvar State University and did get a diploma with honours at the end of her studies), smiled to herself, sighing slightly, for she knew that her words were not exactly true and that she guessed of the true reason of his departure. And maybe he knew that, too. He knew that she knew? But how could she know that he knew that she might have known? Vethara chased the confusing thoughts away as Gregory helped her get seated once again. The young woman smiled joyfully to her neighbours once again, asking forgiveness for her own sudden departure from the table.

Smiling Lidric shakes his head "No offense was taken your majesty." He says politely and listens attentively as she speaks of her country. "It sounds like a wonderful country, a place where peace could be well sought." He says almost dreamily, as he thinks back over the recent news from his own country. Stopping to listen to the lavenrunzian people Lidric bows his head in respect before casting a quick glance over the people seated before returning to the princess beside him.

"Please, tell me about some of your country, this Feinwick point perhaps? I see very little of such things in my homeland, infact the most probable area for tourists to visit would be in the heart of the great desert, where the ruins of some of my ancestors reside. But tell me of the shield, it sounds like a fairytale for a person of my country." Lidric says politely as he waits for the next course of the meal eagerly.

Andreus stood with the Lavenrunzians and almost blanched as everybody burst into song at the sight of the ox.

"Oh dear..." Andreus muttered under his breath. The singing was truly disturbing, and he found that the German language had a way of making such songs sound so coarse and rowdy. It was quite distasteful. He accepted his sample of the meat with a flourish of courtesy, however.

Having stood up and broken his attention away from Rebecca from a short while, he noticed that Vicotira and Peter seemed to be getting on rather well, and began pondering courses of action to get Vicotira's attentions whilst not losing Rebecca's. He looked down at the bloody cut of beef on his plate, and suppressed the urge to curl his lips and nose up in disgust. Not that he didn't like beef - far from it, but his palette leaned towards more sophisticated preparations than extremely rare beef cut from an whole ox with the use of a sword, and slapped onto his plate.

And... that... damned... singing!

"It's equally hard for me to imagine a place without water," said Alice earnestly. "I've lived my entire life within a stone's throw of the ocean, never mind the fact that the Shield has more days of rain than of sun. Feinwick Point is the rocky outcropping which forms the primary breakwater for the Bay Ádien. My mother used to take me and my brothers down there, near the lighthouse, after mass on Sundays and we'd listen to the waves crash and the gulls cry."

Alice paused. "But I'm really dating myself now and, I fear, hogging the conversation. Please, Ambassador, I am not a degree less curious about Iraqstan than you are about Iansisle and yet all I know is that it is a desert country. Praytell, what else is there to know?"

Archduchess Sophia smiled and said, amused, "I'm not so sure Prince Andreus agrees with you, your Highness. I'm sure he's used to some sort of la di da grande cuisine. However, there is the lamb provencal for those guests who are more...discerning. But beef is important; our culture is founded on it in fact. You see, of old we were herders of horses and cattle, and so the true feudal foundation of our society comes from that. It is partly why we became a warrior race rather than a race of peasants."

In fact after the sampling of beef, the Pantocratorians present doubtless chose the lamb, which was rubbed with garlic, pepper, olive oil and white wine and then cooked in a rack, sliced very thin and served with flageolet beans and sauteed tomatos.

The musicians in the nearby alcove began to play Bach, which was believed to be soothing to the body.

Sekhat smiled as the Lavenrunzians sang. Tsaraine had very little so cheerful - before the Obsidian Event people had held their horses in high regard, but now there were only the solstice festivals, scarcely more than parties after four hundred years of State-mandated atheism.

He raised his own glass to Schlabel in reply.

"Well met! I don't believe I have."

Turning to Katsuma, he continued;

"And well met to you, sir. I understand that your homeworld is some distance from Sol - I trust that your travel was not too onerous?"

"Not at all. Though Beta Aquilae is on the extreme edge of civilized space, I would gladly journey twice as far to attend such an important event as this. After all," Kats said, his gaze drifting to the varied assortment of people seated around him, "it's not everyday that our backwoods nation is invited to all the way to Sol! But pardon me. I don't believe I know your name."

The man introduced himself as Sekhat of Tsaraine.

"Tsaraine? Forgive me, but I do not know much of your nation. Diplomatic ties between Sol and Beta Aquilae have been almost nonexistent for quite some time, I'm afraid." Katsuma said, sampling the bloody meat before him.

"Delicious! I wonder if all Earthers eat this well... And that ritual of song. I've never seen anything like that in Beta Aquilae. But the music... I believe I have heard that before. An ancient composer... I can't recall the name, but the music is beautiful. And so serene..."

Katsuma snapped to his senses before he lost himself in the simple delights of food and music, delights he had never experienced to an extent such as this. "Tell me about your nation, Sekhat. I know so little of Earth and it's people. And more importantly, tell me about yourself. How could I leave this party without at least making a few friends?"

Vicotira smiled at Greg when he came back to the table. Since she was sitting rather near him and no one else had yet responded to his remarks, she decided to. "We all have to step outside for a moment every now and again, President General. I hope you had a good smoke and a good conversation with the lovely Grand Duchess." She smiled to Vethara as well.

Vicotira nodded to Sophia, managing not to laugh when she actually said 'la di da'. "The prowess of Lavenrunz at arms is well known, Your Highness, and is quite admirable. It is equally well known that such prowess is wielded in the cause of justice, which is even more admirable."

Vicotira choose the beef, eating it with relish, though also with a dainty air and perfect manners. She smiled lightly at each bite. When Sophia referenced Andreus, she did glance over but did not try to engage him in conversation. Two people were enough to talk to at once, really. She also looked briefly at the man with fox ears and a tail but no more than she would at any other delegate. In a room with a C'tan, two Noldor, a Weyrean, a Sidhe, and a Segonune. Much more shocking, to Vicotira's perspective, was that a number of people did not stand when Empress Aurora did. Noting this, she frowned ever so faintly.

OOC: I take a week off and everyone has fun without me! :P I hope you won't mind a bit of backtracking RP on my part.

IC: A while earlier, when the guests were still arriving...

"For God's sake, why must there be so many aristocrats?" were the first thoughts that swept through Justinian's mind when he entered the Palace of the Moon and the Stars. It was quite clear that "commoners" were a minority - a rather small minority - at this party. Justinian found himself cursing the fact that so many monarchies seemed to have survived through the 20th century. But no matter - the 20th century had seen the demise of untold numbers of established monarchies, and, God willing, the trend would continue in the 21st. For the moment, Justinian had more immediate concerns to think about.

For example, he could not give Aurora's gift to anyone but Aurora herself. It was not dangerous per se, but it could cause a lot of trouble if someone played around with it without knowing its true nature. And Justinian did not want to reveal that "true nature" to anyone but Aurora. After all, half the fun of using the gift lay in seeing the surprised looks on other people's faces when you activated it.

As he scanned the hall and noticed the various conversations, Justinian was slightly surprised. "This is supposed to be a party 'all about enjoyment'?" It seemed to him that the party was very much saturated with politics and the demeanor of the guests was far more diplomatic than relaxed. Back in the Holy Socialist Republic, informal parties were truly informal: the guests called each other by their first names (or, at any rate, they did not use any title other than 'comrade') and the atmosphere was much more... perhaps 'uninhibited' would be the proper word. Then again, in Constantinopolis it was rare to find more than one or two politicians in a single family, so most of the guests at a politician's birthday party were usually not involved in any kind of politics. Here, every guest was a government official. "I wonder what Aurora thinks about this... where is she anyway?"

OOC: You can assume Justinian mingled with some unimportant and unmentioned guests after his arrival and nearly up until the present time. And that he found out his first impression was wrong. ;)

OOC: More catching up...

IC:

At one point, Justinian had considered approaching Paper Alchemist Kira, who seemed to keep well away from the rest of the party. He knew preciously little about the Weyreans, and next to nothing about Kira herself - except for the fact that she wasn't much of a diplomat. He found this intriguing, given the fact that everyone else in the hall seemed to have almost perfect manners. But there was one other reason why he wanted to talk to Kira: Constantinopolis was very interested in acquiring interstellar travel technology. The Holy Socialist Republic had already explored most of the Solar System and established a good number of space colonies, but its fastest ships could only achieve speeds of 0.1 c. This meant that even a trip to Alpha Centauri would take over 40 years. Much greater speeds - perhaps even some sort of FTL technology - would be necessary if Constantinopolis was to spread communism among the stars. And, if history was any guide, collapsing empires like that of the Weyreans were all too eager to sell their technology to the highest bidder.

Unfortunetaly, Mephet’ran got to Kira before Justinian could. But Justinian wasn't worried - after all, Mephet’ran had to end his conversation with Kira when Sirithil finally arrived.

In the mean time, Aurora entered the hall and the banquet began... and Justinian sat down next to Benedict Michael Sukothai of Syskeyia. He turned to face the President and greeted him.

"I can't say how happy I am to see you here, old friend."

(OOC: I assume they already know each other)

Sekhat smiled - it was rare, and refreshing, to see such honesty among political circles. Most of the time, diplomacy was formed of polite lies and evasions sugar-coated with truth. The Kitsune man was young (only a little older than Aurora, seemingly), which doubtless had something to do with it.

He wondered how the young man had recieved whatever injuries were hidden under those bandages.

"Of Tsaraine - where to start? It's hard, I fear, to describe something so complex as a nation. Certainly you should not judge it by Lavenrunz - although our two nations are allied through the Non-Democratic Alliance, they're very different in almost every way.

"Geographically, there isn't much to see - much of the nation is located in arcologies underground. It requires strict governance to keep a nation of over four billion people running in those circumstances, but we manage well enough. We're moving into space - one nation cannot hold four billion people forever, after all - but not so quickly as could be desired.

"As for me - well! Nobody's asked that for a while. I'm afraid I'm not so interesting, as people go."

Andreus caught Vicotira glancing over in his direction, and flashed her a charming, friendly smile. He didn't think a great deal more of the lamb than he did the beef, but at least the absence of German singing made it more palatable than the beef. He turned back to Rebecca.

"I'm afraid to say it..." he jovially whispered in French to her. "...but German is such an ugly language!"

He gave her a bemused wink and resumed his dinner, glancing back and forth between Rebecca and Vicotira, hoping to attract the sidhe's attention and to retain the young Excalbian's.

Smiling Lidric takes a long sip of water before speaking. "well your majesty, Iraqstan is as you know largley a desert nation, it is the largest of four islands in it's area the smallest being Isla Quatio, an island we use as a military way point into the island group, the next largest is Um Lizaa which is almost the sister of Iraqstan save for it being mostly forrested with settlements scattered through the northern half. Iraqstan herself is nintey percent desert with some tropical forests along the coastlines.

The main attraction for people in Iraqstan to travel are the ruins of some of the older clan houses in the great desert, these date back to bfore the seven hundred year war,which saw house Quil'raya win control of the nation.

The ruins in the desert are largely arabic in design whilst the coastal ruins and the country's heart are german in origin, we share a mixed ancestry with the arabic world and some of the medieval german world. Predminantly we are german in descent with Um Lizaa being the islamic minority.

I'm afraid there isnt very much to tell of Iraqstan that would be attractive to outsiders, we're a modest people and we take pride in our racial heritage." He says with a soft smile "I remember growing up in the capital SIrithilia, it is a vast city it houses well over one hundred milion people, it's the very heart of our nation and many are the vast temples to the elf queen Sirithil.

Aside from temples Sirithilia is also home to the square of enlightenment, the square with which my father took power from the corrupted dictatorship of his father. The nationalist revolution was before my time but I grew up in the glory days of the movement.

Now.... unfortunately it's stagnating the pride and glory is there, but the square remains unused it's power forgotten as we move further and further towards total racial purity..." He whispers softly a faint look of sorrow in his eyes. Smiling he covers his sadness up and nods "I would deeply like to know more about your majesties family and how they came to power, my father would say I am too interested in the histories of outsiders but I view myself as a man who is eager to learn."

The slender redhaired Archduchess Magda leaned across the table, her glorious fiery hair tumbling over her bare shoulders, exclaiming, "Excuse me, Excellency Lidric, but I have to say that that is fascinating, my husband as well comes from a desert country. And in a sense Iraqstan is very isolated as well, wouldn't you say?"

Following the singing and serving, Archduke Carl turned to King James once more and remarked, "And things have been, forgive me but you have had many uphill battles in your country since the Second Great War, have you not?"

The Bach concerto came to an end, and was replaced by Chopin's 18th Arabesque.

Vicotira looked to Sophia briefly to see if she reacted at all to the Sidhe's statement about Lavenrunz. To the Danaans, good was the highest compliment, of far greater importance than wealth or power or land or even beauty and, to date, it was a compliment that ranking Danaans normally only paid to Empress Aurora and Lady Sirithil, at least in such emphatic terms.

She then turned to take in the diplomat from Constantinopolis, if for no other reason than that he was a new face. He didn't carry himself like an aristocrat but then she had hardly expected him to. Her instructions were simple: Be polite if he engages you in conversation but don't seek it out. That's exactly what she intended to do.

Vicotira then stood up from her chair. "If my lords and ladies will excuse me for a brief moment..." she asked everyone sitting around her. It didn't really matter who it was addressed to as it was a simple courtesy and the answer, if anyone bothered to answer aloud at all, a given. Inclining her head politely, Vicotira went to the little girls' room, discretely asking a servant where it might be found.

Archduchess Sophia found the sidhe actually a bit intimidating, which is why she was not replying. Her unnatural beauty and grace made her wonder if she was wearing too much makeup or if she was sweating. She smiled when Vicotira glanced at her and felt herself flushing unexpectedly.

Alice found herself mesmerized by Lidric's words for the first half of his speech and increasingly uneasy during the second half. Talk of revolutions had never set well with the Iansislean established classes, especially in these days of turmoil and upheaval. However, she listened politely and suppressed her instinct to fidget at the mention of how power transfered in Iraqstan.

Despite her misgivings, the Iansislean princess was quite surprised when Archduchess Magda suddenly thrust herself into the conversation. She glanced from Magda to Lidric and back again, completely at a loss for words.

Meanwhile, James had been wondering whether or not to compliment Archduke Carl on the singing, which he enjoyed. Although James was a notoriously poor student at languages - much to his father's disappointment - he loved to listen to voices in unfamiliar tongues, even if German was not his favorite in that regard. However, Carl's question came before he had quite made up his mind and posed a fresh conundrum.

"Well..." he started, before remembering Charles Bradsworth's specific instructions to avoid politically sensitive topics. Of course, James reminded himself, Bradsworth and the government were half a world away from this table. "There have been some troubles," he continued, "both on the Shield and in Gallaga."

James fumbled for words to properly describe the Gull Flag Revolution which had rocked his country, destroyed the old Grand Empire and nearly toppled his throne. "Quite a few, ah, 'uphill battles,' in fact. Are there any matters in particular about which you would like to hear?"

Vicotira took her trip to the restroom to plan some. She was rather shocked by the expression she's seen on Sophia's face. The Sidhe took her aura rather for granted and was much more intimidated, although she hid it well, by the many older, more experienced, politicians in the room, at least one of whom (Mephet'ran) was essentially a god.

Vethara she liked as well and she rather dearly wanted a chance to talk alone with the woman. She seemed to maintain the dignity and grace of her station beyond the crimes her own people had committed against her.

Still, her mind kept wandering back to Prince Peter of Excalbia. He was cute. He wasn't beautiful. He could never be beautiful like the men among her own people were. Still, he had a solid, earthy presence to him that Sidhe men lacked and that Vicotira found strangely fascinating.

So, priorities for the rest of dinner: Make clear to Sophia that she was a woman like any other despite her fey (literally) appearance, find a moment to chat with Vethara in at least semi-privacy, introduce herself to Mephet'ran, dances with Peter...a lot.

Scinfaxi stood as Aurora did, watching the...Well, ritual with more than a hint of good-natured curiosity. She rather enjoyed having the little bird sitting on her shoulder; it's mind was uncomplicated, and kinda sweet in a way.

The bird was slightly confused by Scinfaxi's avatar; her emotions seemed oddly absent. From the others, it got the vague impression it should try to make itself look presentable, and started preening itself, only pausing when Scinfaxi handed it scraps from the meal.

Scinfaxi herself ate with every sign of enjoyment, taking her time so as not to drop anything because of the odd angle she had to sit at for the chair to accommodate her tail. She flicked her ears a couple of times, glancing down the table at the assembled guests, but keeping fairly quiet.

Georgina smiled softly, 'It's not like you to be nervous...'

Scinfaxi smiled, 'It's also not like me to represent my country, Ambassador...'

Kara Dimitriev was glad Elisa was with her – remembering she was supposed to be mute in public outside Eurusea and the Federation to hide her accent was pretty difficult at times. At present, she was wearing a ceremonial uniform, the black military-style clothing comfortingly familiar even if the insignia were different.

Within the Federal party she didn't really stand out, other than as the smallest; Scinfaxi was only a fraction taller, but still, taller. Kara's short, dark grey hair framed a surprisingly pretty face, her skin pale and her eyes the same shade of red as Georgina's.

As she always was when she was out in public outside her homeland, Kara was nervous; still, it was always good to be where Elisa was, so she'd been more than willing to put up with it. Burying the propaganda was a lot tougher; every instinct she had told her that she was surrounded by the enemies of the people, that she shouldn't be in a place like this...

So she concentrated on Elisa, and her meal.

As Sekhat spoke of the Non-Democratic Alliance, of which Katsuma knew nothing, Katsuma's eyes began to wander the room again, surveying the partygoers. To his surprise, he saw a very inhuman guest, oddly remniscent of a skunk given human form. Intrigued, Katsuma made a mental note to introduce himself later. And like before, Katsuma's gaze drifted to the head of the table, to Empress Aurora herself. Patting his coat pocket, he confirmed that his modest gift to her was still there, and hoped he would find the opportunity to give it to her in person. But when Sekhat's speech turned to the geography of Tsaraine, Katsuma snapped back to attention. The thought of an entire nation of 4 billion housed entirely within underground arcologies was astounding. And the very notion of moving such a nation into space was almost beyond belief! Katsuma was fascinated.

"I cannot imagine the sort of resources required to move an entire nation into space, let alone one of Tsaraine's size! I wish you and your citizens the best of luck and the safest journey in their transition into space, and I hope you will find a peaceful home."

Katsuma's thoughts turned from the ideal vision of Sekhat's space-bound society to his own nations encounters in space. Remembering the intense chaos, confusion, and violence of Beta Aquilae's latest space conflict.

"In our region, space hasn't been what one would call 'hospitable' as of late..." Katsuma said, detached, his eyes looking at nothing. Unknowingly, he raised his left arm and clutched at his bandaged right, the pain jarring him back to the present.

"Are my ears deceiving me, or were those people just discussing the Second Great War?" Katsuma thought with a sudden and intense focus. "No... They're referring to a different conflict. Our Second Great War was Beta Aquilae's fight alone."

"Lord Katsuma, are you alright?" Sekhat asked, a look of genuine concern on his face.

"I appreciate you asking, but no. I am fine." Katsuma replied, shaking away his morose expression, the pleasant smile returning to his face. "Merely distracted. Nothing to worry about." Kats paused for a few moments to continue eating his meal. "In any case, you shouldn't sell yourself short, Sekhat. I'm sure you're more interesting than you like to let on."

Blinking in surprise Lidric quickly regains his composure and bows his head respectfully, " That is indeed correct your excellency. Iraqstan by her nature is isolated because we find much in the way of hostility towards us from other nations. If it wasnt for the Non-Democratic Alliance Iraqstan would be an isolated yet self sufficient power with enemies all around her.

Now we accept that part of the dislike towards us is because of our political system and our way of life but we also acknowledge that there are a few nations out there with an inexplainable desire to hate everything that isnt democratic or socialist. We belive in the sovreign rights of each nation to choose how they see fit to be goverened." He says with a slight smile. "I am sure your husband would find much of Iraqstan to be almost homelike in feeling Archduchess. From which country is your husband native too may I ask?" Is the question of the moment as Lidric glances apologeticaly towards Alice.

Aesa watched the Tsaraine delegate talking with the new comers, people she'd never seen before. The prototype uplink that had been installed a few months ago remotely accessed the Hack's database, pulling up all the information her nation had on this new country and displayed it superimposed on her field of vision. There really wasn't much, largely because the Hack usually didn't keep track of nations that weren't Earth-based; even for major powerbrokers such as the Segments had minimal information on file. She filed a brief request to expand intelligence dossiers before settling for gathering information the old fashioned way: evesdropping.

Elisa smiled softly as she sipped her wine, mentally reassuring Kara, If it makes you feel better, they're religious capitalist swine... She squeezed Kara's hand under the table reassuringly as she peered at her rare ox, hoping it wouldn't wander off her plate.

(ooc: catching up a bit...)

Peter smiled when Vicotira accepted his invitation. “Excellent. I can hardly wait for the meal to be over and the dance to begin.”

The Prince stood with the others as the ox was presented and ceremonial slices served. He gave Andreus a smug smile as he noted the Despot’s attempts to hide his reaction to the ceremony.

As everyone returned to their seats, he overheard Victoria’s conversation with Sophia and turned to the Archduchess. “My friend, the Despot of New Constantinople, may not appreciate the cuisine, your Highness, but I find it quite familiar.” Peter took a piece of the beef and chewed it with evident satisfaction. “And it is quite good. You know, not so long ago my ancestors were what Andreus would have called barbarians – pagans and warriors. They were highlanders and more known for their cattle than their crops. We may have been Christianized and may have adopted the trappings of a high court, but highlander blood still flows under the skin.”

When Vicotira stood to excuse herself, Peter stood as well. Even as he returned to his seat, he found himself looking forward to her return.

For her part, Rebecca ate the beef, not with the relish of her cousin, but certainly without the disdain of her new crush. When Andreus leaned over to make his comment, Rebecca frowned slightly. “German isn’t so ugly,” she said somewhat shyly in passable French, “it is closely related to our original languages. My father insisted that I study it…”

Andreus could hear his name being mentioned by Peter, who was only a couple of seats away after all.

"So did mine." Andreus replied. "And this is the only time I've been glad of it. I suppose it isn't so bad... but French is a much... prettier language, especially when you speak it, Rebecca."

While her French was only passable, Andreus found Rebecca's slight awkwardness and accent quite charming, so he wasn't being disingenuous, no more so than usual anyway.

"Your cousin is gossiping about me." Andreus said softly to Rebecca, smiling. "I'll just make sure he's not saying anything too unkind."

Andreus turned to Peter.

"I couldn't help but hear my name being mentioned, my friend." Andreus said to Peter in whatever language Peter and Sophia had been conversing. "And I must say, for a highland barbarian, you seemed quite at home in my cousin's arms in New Constantinople."

He gave Peter a friendly wink just to remind him that he was close by. He didn't mean any harm by his comment, asides from causing Peter some mild embarrassment. He turned back to Rebecca, and engaged her in friendly conversation, waiting for Vicotira's return.

Gregory was rather silent, he typically ate by himself back in NYNJ and thus this was rather foreign to him. Not so much foreign as it was so rarely that he ate with company that it was more or less uncomfortable. And to show it Gregory fidgetted in his seat every now and then as if it were uncomfortable. Trying to keep focused on the food he wished he'd been able to show up late for this affair and missed the food. It wasnt anything he was used to and it tasted odd. He didnt know whether he liked it or not really but he kept on eating not exactly wishing to insult the chef, or Aurora, this was her party after all. Thus he put on an uneasy smile every once and awhile and looked up from his plate around the table. When Vicotria spoke toward his direction he nodded his head a few times, "I must admit I tried, but when Vethara showed up outside I felt it best to wait another time for it. My cigarettes arent going anywhere."

Sophia was in fact more composed on Vicotira's return. The idea that she had to go to the bathroom like anyone else dispelled a bit the image of Fae superiority; it was just a matter of presence. However she still found herself at a bit of a loss for words as to what to say to her, and listened instead to the conversation involving Prince Peter, Prince Andreus, Rebecca and the others around them.

Magda glanced at the darkly handsome uniformed man beside her. He had a slightly brooding air, and in fact looked as if he could be a dangerous man to provoke. "My husband, the Hegemon of Terraus." she said. "Witzig, this is Lidric, the son of the Fuhrer of Iraqstan. I'm sorry, have I got that right?"

An underchamberlain was beckoned to Aurora, who whispered something, and then, a faint smile on his lips, went down to Scinfaxi and bending whispered, "Excellency, Her Majesty is very happy to see an Ambassador of the Federation complete with bird again."
Aurora smiled.

The arrival of the cake came with fanfare. This cake was made with the latest of techniques so that a photo finish picture made of icing was on its great expanse, which was the very likeness of the Empress herself, a few years ago flying her mothplane over the open sea. The ornithopter like vehicle, which ran on motion rather than on combustion or artificial power of some kind, was now in the Museum of Science and Technology. (if anyone cared to ask)
Chamberlain Count Chemnitz rose and said, "Majesties, Highnesses, Excellencies and Notable Ladies and Gentlemen. I am very pleased to state on behalf of Her Majesty that we have such friends at this milestone event. For today Her Majesty is sixteen, and on this joyous occasion wishes all here to be happy with Her."
At that, at some signal no one could see, there was a resounding BOOM from outside, and those who were able recognized it as an old fashioned smoothbore cannon. Cannon were fired sixteen times, the sound rolling and echoing, and following this there was an explosion of coloured lights as fireworks began to go off.
Empress Aurora said, "Thank you all for coming! I hope you are having a good time. Please enjoy some of the cake, and during this time. Traditionally this is when presents are given out, but you may find that it is also a tradition for there to be gifts within the cake....so be careful when eating it!"

As the slices went round, some did indeed find small presents in their cake.

Scinfaxi found: a small jade owl.
Gregory de Los Santos found: a little golden snake which when placed on the table at a certain angle began to slither, its scintillating scales articulated.
Lenore of Vegana found: a little silver whistle that played three notes.
Katsuma found: a little soldier with bright blue jacket, black trousers and boots, a shako cap and a musket over his shoulder who would march if placed on an angle on a surface.
Vethara found: a small music box that played 'happy birthday' on one side and 'Claire de Lune' on the other.
Andreus found: a moth made of gold whose wings were a fine lattice of the same.
James found: a rose made of rubies and emeralds.
Vicotira found: a small bell made of mithril.
Elisa found: a small top that made a jingling sound, made of some light pretty and slightly aromatic wood.
Justinian found: a little ivory rhinoceros
Sekhat found: a little jewelled egg which when tapped produced a hopping chick made of brass and little opal eyes.
Peter found: a small prowling leopard made of onyx, gold and garnets.

The guests were discreetly informed by means of little cards placed on the plates with the cake of how the etiquette for presentation would go. Essentially, each person would directly offer their present to the Empress.

Unbeknownst to them, Colonel von Paderborn and Colonel Zimmermann were watching with eyes like hawks ready to signal security. They had begged on their knees--as had their superior officer, General Mondorf--for the Empress not to be so informal.

Vicotira did return after awhile. She sat quietly when Sophia didn't speak to her still, looking down at her hands somewhat sadly. Like any girl her age, Vicotira wanted nothing so much as to make friends and be accepted and she was starting to feel more and more like an outsider at this event. She had been very excited to come here on her first trip to a foreign country but part of her desperately wished to just be home. The whole situation made her feel very unwelcome in Lavenrunz. She looked briefly at Sophia again, her eyes slightly wounded, and then back at her cake.

Vicotira ate her cake eagerly when it arrived, glad to have something to do with her hands. She grinned slightly as she examined the bell. "Mithril..." she said, half in awe. It was not a metal she'd ever personally seen before, much less owned.

Sophia was smiling at her demolished cake; this had been one of Empress Joanna's favourite traditions as well; she herself just had a coin, but to a Lavenrunzian it was significant; it had the profile of her namesake, Empress Hedwig Sophia, who had been co-ruler with her husband, and after his death had led his armies to victory. She looked up and was surprised to see Vicotira looking sad, and she said, leaning over a bit, "Are you homesick?"

Andreus found his gold moth and was quite impressed by its delicacy. Seeing that Rebecca's cake didn't have anything in it, he offered it to her with a friendly smile.

"Here," he said sweetly to her. "I'd like you to have this moth. It's an exquisite little thing, with the delicate latticing for its wings. It might be prettier if it was a butterfly, but still. A momento from your first trip abroad as an adult!"

She should have something to remember it by, after all. Andreus glanced at Vicotira, who looked a little unhappy, and thought it a good time to get to know her better. He switched back to English.

"Ohhh..." Andreus said, pretending to take an interest in what Vicotira fished out of her cake, leaning across her. That was one way to get her attention. "What sort of metal is that? It looks... very... well, it shines almost as much as its recipient. I'm afraid I've been very rude, I hope you don't feel that I've snubbed you at all, Mademoiselle. It is certainly to my detriment that I've not availed myself of this opportunity to get to know you better!"

He reasoned that some of the other guests would want to produce their presents before him, so for the time being, he remained in his seat. He'd rather not be the first gift-giver anyway.

Vicotira cheered up when Sophia softened, smiling a little towards the older woman. "Not exactly. I was just expecting more people my age, Your Highness. Aside from Her Imperial Majesty herself everyone is much older." She paused, her smile broadening in innocent excitement. "Is mithril commonly seen in Lavenrunz? It is still extremely rare back home and I've never actually seen any, though I'm aware my sister does own one or two items."

She then turned as Andreus hit on her, rather unsubtly. Too bad he wasn't as cute as Peter. She smiled a little to him. "It's mithril. It's a Noldo...Quendi metal." She reminded herself that the Sindar in Aelosia were also allies. No need to be politcally incorrect.

Greg felt his mouth go dry as he was about to dig into the cake to see the gold shimmer slightly. Cutting into the cake he figured to mostly be his gift..using the spoon almost surgically to remove parts of the cake from around it caused him to rotate the plate like a child with a toy. Of course when he first caught sight of it appearing to slither he almost jumped out of his seat. His jaw locking into place he looked down at his plate and leaned over to whisper to Vethara, "There is a snake on my plate...and I'm scared of these things...god knows it cant be real..but.." Before he could finish he sat back up in his chair and moved a shakey hand to take a spoonful of cake. At the rate things were going in the back of his mind he considered an early departure. He did have some business to attend to a day from the next..but that would have been rude and thus far a bad start didnt mean it would be horrible entirely. Thus he continued to look at his plate while eating each piece of cake which under other circumstances would have been the best thing he had indulged in, in quite some months.

After about three bites of cake he needed to get away from the object and thus the Empress and customs presented him with opportunity as he stood up from the chair, moved behind it and bowed to the guests. "Ladies and gentlemen excuse me..I shall return in a brief moment." Walking off at a a slightly quickened pace Gregory went to where the gifts were kept. After a few seconds of searching he gathered his own and Vethara'sand began to proceed back toward the dinner table. Stopping first to put Vethara's gift beside her, he then approached Empress Aurora with the ornate wooden box. "Happy birthday Empress." Openning up the box for her eyes only she'd see that inside was nearly a footlong rose, the stem made up of jade stone, the petals themselves were ruby cut. Thorns made of diamonds stood out within the stalk itself and were arrayed so that Aurora could grasp the gift without hurting herself on the diamonds. Beside it was an ornate broach shaped like the nation of Lavenrunz, it wasnt so much to wear as for show as it would have undoubtly looked akward. Closing the box after a brief moment of inspection he left it beside of her to further admire or pass along.

Sophia nodded slowly. "It must be very strange. But we are a hospitable people, and I am sure you will adjust well." glancing at Andreus when he interrupted, she said, "La, your Highness, the rare and lovely are wondrous and often encountered in Lavenrunz. Even when they have to come from foreign lands." she said, glancing and lowering her eyes slightly at Vicotira.

The venerable Field Marshal von Thessmar, white haired, octogenarian, exclaimed, "What! Herr President, did you say snake?" and grabbed his table knife fiercely. "Vermin!"
At that moment, the snake, which had been moved accidentally just the right way slithered enthusiastically across the table, leaving a trail of icing and crumbs.

Vicotira blushed softly at Sophia's compliment, lowering her own eyes demurely. "That is nice to here. Though, I do not see why you would have to bring too many objects of beauty in from abroad. Lavenrunz seems to abound in them."

The Sidhe paused, glancing at Peter. Then she whispered under her breath so that only Sophia could hear. "Although, Your Highness, I am rather glad you have brought some pretty things in from abroad." She gestured towards Peter with her eyes and smirked the kind of smirk a schoolgirl might have passing a note about crushes after gym class.

Vicotira then straightened to watch the snake. She eyed it fairly calmly. She considered simply grabbing it but realized that might make a valued ally look foolish. Definite no no.

Empress Aurora smiled graciously, but her eyes lit up, and she said, blushing, "Thank you President Gregory..." and stood up on tiptoes to kiss his cheek, making it very clear to all Lavenrunzians present that he was her absolute equal and a friend to boot...and whispered in his ear, "They all are grinning because according to our language of flowers we are passionate lovers. But they know better." with a wink, she stepped back applauded, saying, "Thank you for this lovely gift. It shows what a great friend you are, and I hope that in generations to come it will remind my descendants of that." What a stupid cow Sophia is...too bad he's so old.

Vicotira clapped at Greg's gift to Aurora and the aftermath, grinning at both of them.

Soon thereafter,Vicotira stood and quietly murmured her excuses, going to get her own gift. She then approached Aurora and awaited the end of the exchange between her and Greg. When the Empress was free, Vicotira bowed sixty degrees, as she had to Greg, and offered her box.

Inside the box, Aurora would find a golden music box embedded with finely cut emeralds along every edge. When the box was opened, it revealed a miniature world of tiny metal figurines of ice skaters, dozens of them, skating on a replica ice pond. The skaters, the benches and trees around the pond, the scrapes in the surface of the ice, the snow on the shore, all of it was done to the minutest detail. The skaters didn't magically move or show full automotion, however. The gift was not the product of advanced technology but of countless hours of attentive, old fashioned clockwork from a master craftsmen. As the figures moved in accord with the gears within the box, a lovely classical composition played, which one might or might not recognize as the original work of the great Trollish composer Loravyre Battleheart.

Gregory smiled at a loss for words on the occassion. It was to say putting him in more akward positions than before. Never really good with people on a level other than offical matters he was at a loss for words and stepping back he took a slight bow of the head to the Empress, while her kissing his cheek made it obvious to all Lavenruzians that he was her equal, for this night and this occassion in her land, he was making it clear, he was a step below her on the pecking order. Without words he returned, however uncomfortably to his seat..and the toy snake..having gone from his plate he was quite relieved..he'd speak with Aurora later on..days maybe even months later..but not tonight. He was flushed with embarassment and it was certainly going to do no good to bring it up further.

Elisa enjoyed the cake quite a bit, paying more attention to her conversation with Sarah than what she was eating. She paused as she felt Kara's hand on her wrist and glanced down at her fork, blushing slightly as she saw the small top's top stuck between the tines of her fork. She carefully extracted the toy from the utensil and used her napkin to wipe the blob of currant jam from it. She admired it, smiling a little as it jingled.

Aesa smiled weakly at Andrine, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ignore you, I was just lost in thought..." She tapped the back of her neck with a slight wink, "Uplink." She set down her fork on her empty plate, there was no surprize in her slice, "It's very nice to meet you too, Andrine. Enjoying Lavenrunz so far?" Now that she wasn't staring into space blankly as she accessed the Hack's databases, she looked quite friendly, and quite in place, actually. She was even dressed in the current Lavenrunzian fashions; if it wasn't for her accent, she'd fit in just perfectly.

"How utterly beautiful!" exclaimed the young Empress. Vicotira noticed that in fact the appearance of flowers woven cunningly to make her dress was no illusion--she could smell the flowers and though Aurora was perfectly modest apart from her bare arms and slender neck, in fact there was the notion hinted at that flowers and their stems and leaves was all that she wore, sweeping down to her slender calves from her slightly low neckline, showing what had become a prominent bosom like her mother's. The courtiers nearby were craning their heads to look, enchanted smiles on their faces.
"It is such a magical gift. I'm so glad you have come, and thank you for my present." said Aurora, giving her the full effect of her glorious smile.

Vicotira smiled back. "It is my pleasure to be here and the gift is merely the natural reflection of the feelings which we have for the people of Lavenrunz and their most noble empress."

She curtsied again before returning to her seat. She did allow the Empress time to make any further comment, if she wished, before she turned. She took two paces back when leaving before she turned. No one could turn their back directly on a sovereign in Danaan custom but the distance one had to give them before turning varied according to rank. Another royal took two steps back first. A noble four. A commoner eight.

Vicotira made her way back to her seat, smiling contentedly. She folded her hands demurely in her lap and gave an outward impression of confidence. She did surreptitiously murmur under her breath to Sophia "Do you think Prince Peter likes me?"

"Oh, not the entire nation!" Sekhat explained to Katsuma. "Although I believe it has been done a few times before, that is well beyond our capabilities. Just a segment of the population will move out among the stars - the majority of the people will remain on Earth, in our ancestral lands.

"Oh? There has been some conflict, then? I note you're injured."

As if on cue, Katsuma clutched at his arm in obvious pain. Sekhat frowned - What sort of people are these Mountanans, to send an injured man out to make pleasant with foreigners?

"Lord Katsuma, are you alright?" he asked.

Stoic, he thought, listening to the Mountanan's reply. A militaristic society, then? The signs point that way.

"Not at all, I'm afraid," he replied. "I'm just a diplomat who's done fairly well. But please, I admit to being intrigued - how did you become Lord Protector of Beta Aquilae? Is it hereditary, as Empress Aurora became ruler of Lavenrunz? And what does the job entail?"

They fell silent as the cake was portioned out, and Sekhat dug into his with his fork, hitting something hard. The cake squashed outwards somewhat.

"I do believe I've found something," he commented. Excavating it from the surrounding cake, he uncovered the jewelled egg, with bits of cake clinging to the chick which had emerged.

"How very clever! They have some skilled artisans here in Lavenrunz. You see, Andrine? It's like a jack-in-the-box."

Sekhat passed it to the junior diplomat, who laughed in delight as the little bird popped out.

"It's cute," she said, and showed it to Aesa. "Lavenrunz? Oh, certainly! It's a very interesting place - all that culture, you know? We don't have so much of it, in Tsaraine.

Unusually among the diplomatic corps, Andrine lacked the Direct Network Interface implants a lot of Tsarainese used to connect to the Plexus network. It had held back her career somewhat, but demand for the augments well outstripped supply - she wouldn't be able to get it for another year or so, and as a diplomat she was a fair way up the waiting list.

Elisa excused herself briefly, taking a rather small box up to Aurora once there was a gap in the procession. She smiled at the young Empress, "Good to see you again, Empress, happy birthday." She set the box infront of Aurora, grinning a little.

The box, while only a few inches on each side was remarkably heavy for its size. As she opened the box, Aurora would be met by a pair of cutely blinking cat eyes. The little liquid metal cat hopped out of the box and mewed at Aurora. The kitty shimmered a little, it's body and fur rippling. Elisa smiled as the kitten started to purr softly, despite being metal, it was warm and soft to the touch, much like a real cat.


Aesa smiled at the little bird, "Oh, very cute." She smiled at Andrine, "If you like, I can give you a bit of a tour. I've been here for awhile and would vacation here even before I was assigned. It's a lovely country, if not a little cold."

"Would you? That would be wonderful," Andrine replied. "I got here a few weeks (OOC: Months?) ago, but I haven't really had a chance to look around at all - I arrived a little before the bombing, and things have been really hectic since."

(OOC: Sorry for the extra long post. Got a little carried away...)

"Conflict. I suppose you could call it that." Katsuma began, carefully taking a bite of his cake. "It's a relatively long story though, so I hope you don't mind long-winded narration."

Sekhat nodded his approval, and Katsuma continued

"The Allied Navy, the major military power in Beta Aquilae, has always prided itself on being able to deal with most any threat. Up until 4 years ago, that threat was mostly just isolated pirate raids on our shipping. However, 7 years ago, our scientists discovered a new set of hyperspace corridors leading to stars beyond Beta Aquilae. Most of these new systems contained nothing of interest. No resources, no new hyperspace corridors, and no habitable worlds. And so, we never established much of a military presence there, save for extended recon flights. However, 4 years ago an unknown fleet appeared in Gamma Draconis. We had no idea where they came from, but without any attempts at communication, they destroyed our recon, and the small task force sent to investigate. On the orders of High Minister Imbenarion, the entire Allied Navy was scrambled and sent to engage the enemy, which we dubbed 'QB' or 'Quasi-biological' as their ships seemed to rely on mostly organic design. Don't ask me how that's possible. It still baffles our leading xenobiologists. Anyways, the Allied Navy was sent to engage the QB, and we waged a year long campaign across several systems. During that war, which we called the Great War, we discovered that the QB could latch onto and 'infect' or assimilate our ships and technology into their own organic design, turning them against us. Though we succeeded in erradicating the QB, we lost most of our fleet, and the post-war years were mostly devoted to reconstruction."

Katsuma paused momentarily to take another bite of his cake. "I was 14 when the war ended, and already in my second year at the Naval and Marine Academy on Solont, homeworld of Mountana. Though it's unusual for such young people to be in the armed services, it's not unheard of for orphans such as myself to sign on at an early age. In any case, 3 years later we had rebuilt our fleet, and faced a huge shortage of officers. While ships were easy to replace, qualified human lives weren't so easy to come by. And so, I and many others my age were given command of ships in the reformed Allied Navy. My first command was the Corvette Saffron. That was 6 months ago. 4 months ago, the QB returned. Somehow, they bypassed our entire defense network and jumped right into geo-synch orbit around Solont, taking our fleet completely by surprise. Though we put up a brave fight, Solontian defenders lost over half their forces in the first 30 minutes of battle. Were it not for the speedy and accurate fire support from Neo Greizon, defense platforms in orbit around Solont's moon, Solont would have been completely overrun. With most of the admiralty and Lord Protector SchwarzSturm dead, the governing body of Beta Aquilae promoted many lesser captains to admiralty to fill the vacancies. I was one of those. They gave me command of the Super-Battlecruiser North Star and we immediately rejoined battle with the QB forces. The campaign lasted another two weeks, and the fighting was vicious. During the final battle, the North Star was infected and destroyed, the bridge torn free and explosively decompressed. Though I was nearly eviscerated by the shrapnel, the speedy intervention of nearby medical ships saved my life, as well as many of my crew. Eventually, all QB were destroyed, though at a terrible cost. Nearly the entire Allied Navy has been destroyed, and our entire society's resources are being funneled into the reconstruction of our home system."

Katsuma took another bite of his cake and looked around. He blushed a little, embarrassed, when he realized that some of the guests had overheard his story and were staring with intense interest. He turned back to Sekhat and lowered his tone. "I'm sorry for my rambling. I often forget my surroundings when I recall those events. In either case, now you have the story of the Second Great War of Beta Aquilae, of how I received these injuries, and of how I came to be Lord Protector of Beta Aquilae. I came to the position as a matter of necessity, rather than heredity. And now, I'm tasked with commanding the entire Allied Navy, to personally lead our forces into battle, and to protect our home from all threats, answering only to High Minister Imbenarion himself, and he answers to the citizens of our nations." Katsuma took yet another bite of his cake. "Too be honest... I'm a little overwhelmed by it all. It was never my wish to take one this responsibility, but... here I am. Circumstances put me here, and I must do what I can for the good of my home."

Katsuma himself was surprised at his latest statement. It wasn't like him to be so forthcoming with anyone, much less a complete stranger he had met only minutes before. Was it the uncertainty of being in an unfamiliar environment? The jovial atmosphere of the party touching something deep within his heart? Whatever the case, Katsuma found himself feeling more out of his element than he'd had in any space battle.

"In fact, I believe that's why my government decided to send me to Lavenrunz. Beta Aquilae can't survive forever without allies and friends. I suppose that wanted me to forge diplomatic relations with some powerful Earth nations, to help strengthen our home. But... I'm no diplomat," He said, and with a faint smile returning to his face again, he added, "And anyways. This is a Sweet Sixteen party, not a delegation meeting. We were invited here to enjoy ourselves, to have fun and forget our nation's concerns, at least for a little while. And I plan on doing that for now."

"Though I still wonder why Mountana was invited to this event..."

Katsuma dipped his fork into the cake again and, oddly enough, struck something metal. "Ah, the gifts in the cake Aurora spoke of." Looking around, he realized many of the other guests including Sekhat had already extracted their gifts, and so Katsuma followed suit, and slowly pulled a toy soldier from his cake. Wiping away the creamy mess on the soldier, Katsuma examined it, and for some reason, began to feel tears well up within him.

"I've witnessed the destruction of entire moons. I've personally torn holes in the fabric of space and time, rocketing across hundreds of lightyears in the blink of an eye. And yet, here's this toy soldier..."

He placed the soldier on the table and watched it march, tears silently rolling down his cheeks.

"No matter how much violence and death is exacted upon the world, there will always be these small gestures. In a world filled with destruction and loss, people can still give gifts, be happy, love and care for one another. It's........ it's what I fight for. God, why am I crying? I've never cried before..."

Katsuma picked up the toy soldier, put it in his inside pocket, dried his tears with his serviette and composed himself quickly, hoping no one had noticed his sudden show of emotion. Looking about, he noticed that the guests had already begun to present the Empress Aurora with the gifts they had brought. Patting the small box in his inside pocket, Katsuma resolved to wait until later to present Aurora with his gift, whent he Empress would be unoccupied with other guests and he would finally have the chance to speak with her, perhaps even get to know her. She did invite him, after all. There must've been a reason...

(ooc: catching up again...)

“Well,” Rebecca said blushing slightly, “André, I must say that your French is quite lovely. I think I could listen to you all day.”

In response to Andreus’ comment about Peter’s gossip, Rebecca half whispered, “I’m sure there is nothing bad that Peter could say about you, André!”

Peter returned Andreus wink. “Even a barbarian, André, can learn to appreciate the finer things in life.” Then, with a look in Sophia’s direction, he added, “And as for Helen, your cousin was quite frightened that day at your palace, with the Queen of Wintermore appearing and disappearing so…”

As Vicotira returned, Peter stood and bowed slightly. He flashed her a smile as he returned to his seat.

After the presentation of the cake, as he joined the other guests in cutting into his slice, Peter discovered his small gift. He used his fork to work it out of the cake this lifted it with his fingers and cleaned it carefully. Smiling, he placed the tiny leopard next to his plate.

Rebecca took the gold moth from Andreus with a grateful smile. “Oh, Andrè! How sweet,“ she exclaimed. She held it up to her face with excitement and brushed it against her cheek. “I’ll always treasure it!”

When Andreus turned his attention to the young sidhe girl, Rebecca felt her face redden with jealousy. Then, she saw the sad look in the girl’s eyes and smiled at her. She waved in a small gesture towards Vicotira and mouthed the word, “Hello.”

At an appropriate moment, Lady Allison caught Prince Peter’s attention and the Prince, in turn, gestured towards Princess Rebecca. Together the cousins retrieved their gifts and made their way towards Empress Aurora. Once it was their turn, Peter bowed deeply at the waist and Rebecca curtseyed with a flourish.

“Your Majesty,” Peter said with a warm smile, “on behalf of His Imperial Majesty, we thank you for your invitation and wish you all the best on your birthday. This has been a spectacular party and we are honoured to be here.” Peter lifted a long, intricately carved wooden box and presented it to Aurora. Inside the box, nestled in a bed of blue and gold velvet was a broadsword, obviously scaled for a woman warrior, and bearing an intricate design. “This,” Peter said, “is one of the swords presented to Queen Hiordis of Excalbia to celebrate the defeat of the Grand Duchy of Saxmere in 1737. It is a symbol of virtue and courage. May those traits mark your long reign, your Majesty.”

Peter stepped aside and Rebecca presented a small, carved wooden box. Inside, again set in blue and gold velvet, was a large, golden cross pendant. Rebecca smiled. “The cross was a gift to Queen Hiordis from the Grand Duke of Saxmere after his defeat. Of,” Rebecca looked shyly at the young Empress, “at the time our people weren’t Christians…” Peter gave Rebecca a sharp look and she paused. “Oh, but we are now and,” Rebecca blushed, “this is a wonderful party. Thank you for inviting us and, well, you look so lovely, your Majesty.” Peter gave his younger cousin another look. “Happy Birthday, your Majesty!” Rebecca curtseyed again and Peter bowed and they made their way back to their seats.

As Elisa Day was approaching the Empress, Sophia whispered, "I think so." she felt a bit touched, clearly the Sidhe woman was more vulnerable than she looked, and Sophia felt suddenly very sophisticated by comparison and far less threatened. She decided it might be fun to take the Sidhe princess under her wing a bit...

With an exclamation of delight, Aurora petted the strange cat, fascinated, and caught a baleful glance from Thirty Camelias, who was clearly a bit jealous. Aurora gave it a last stroke and put it aside, saying, "Thank you, Elisa, and thank you so much for coming. You are always welcome." She was itching to ask all about how it had been made but decided to save that for later.

"Prince Peter of Excalbia Majesty." whispered Baron Von Ehrfurt as that worthy approached.
O God not another sword... she thought, though she smiled gloriously. It certainly was an impressive gift, and she made herself remember that she was a head of state, not just a sixteen year old girl with her own interests. She solemnly said, "It shall become one of our national treasures, as will this pious artefact. I am glad, Prince Peter, that we are coreligionaries. May it bind us with further ties." It was impossible not to want to like the rather dashing man; he was less obviously decadent than Andreus and seemed to be a genuinely warm and outgoing personality. She found herself fighting a blush, she was very aware suddenly of the fact that she was (however thoroughly covered) just wearing a lot of flowers.

((OOC: Grand Duchess, not Princess))

Vicotira smiled back at Sophia. In matters of poise, grace, manners (except her intentionally informal comment to Sophia), Vicotira never seemed to falter. In matters of life, she was clearly a child who did not have nearly as much experience as the cosmopolitan, politcally astute Lavenrunzian.

She smiled over at Rebecca and raised a hand in an understated, noble wave that involved a slight turning of the hand. "Good evening, Your Highness." she said. A plot entered her mind. Aurora had intended to have a birthday party based more on fun than diplomacy. So far, it had been fun, but rather diplomatic too. If she and Rebecca could get Aurora aside for a moment, the three of them might be able to act their age for awhile. She smiled at the thought as she watched others give their presents. She wished she could somehow remind someone that Excalbia was largely Protestant but there was nothing to be done for it.

[OOC: I just hope I didn't forget anything...]

Vethara laughed joyfully as she discovered the little music box, listening to its tunes as her eyes lit up with joy. She gave Gregory a smile and nodded gratefully as he deposed her present for Aurora next to her. She decided not to rush off to present her gift straight away, for she knew not the one responsible for the event personally, she was not there in quality of a representative of an invited nation, neither was she invited as a private guest! In fact, she was at the event only due to a series of coincidences, in the center of which was one Gregory de los Santos.

***

Ithun smiled as the gift giving time finally came crashing down. He gave a glance at his two ‘colleagues’ keeping guard by the box that contained the Federal gift and motioned his head slightly, ordering them silently to get be prepared to move out. For the time being, he would let other guests pass first, because there was no prior arrangement with the hosts as in previous cases. Indeed, due to the absence of official relations between the two countries, Ithun could not just pop up as first in the row to present his gift. It would have been very unprofessional, impolite and insulting not only to the host, but also to the dearest friends of the host.

***

Vethara sat patiently at her place, exchanging a couple words with her neighbours from time to time. She smiled as she saw her cavalier present his gift and be thanked by Aurora in a very particular way. And as her company was rewarded, she suddenly felt something deep within herself, something long forgotten. The feeling was not strong, and she could not say that it was bad, but it made her feel uncomfortable for a moment before vanishing away.

The young heiress to the Sword of Rulers, the Grand Duchy having neither throne nor crown, the aforementioned blade fulfilling the symbolic duties of both of the royal attributes, sighed slightly and smiled at Gregory as he returned to his place. “Well, well, you look quite content.” She joked as she shook her head slightly, toying a little with her little music box, making it play ‘Clair de lune’ for a moment before silencing it.

She waited some more time, watching other guests present gifts more splendorous and magnificent that the previous ones. Refined, exotic, generous, such were the words that came to her mind when she thought about the best way to qualify them. They were simply divine compared to her little knick-knack of a gift and she truly wondered whether it was wise to present herself to Aurora and not simply sit it out. But all panicking thoughts were immediately chased out of her mind as her Taraskovyan nature burst in. “You have spent too much time abroad, my dear,” she thought to herself. “Never forget who you are.”

She smiled lightly to herself as she judged the moment good enough to stand up and walk towards the young Empress. Even if Vethara would soon hit her fourth decade of life, her Taraskath blood made her age seem nothing compared to the time still left for her to live. Indeed, members of her kin were quite known for their extreme longevity, after all, and, albeit having been quite mixed with ‘humans’ over the past millennia, still boasted thousands of years worth of living. Of course, in most of the cases, they went mad as more and more zeroes attached to their age to the point when they either chose voluntary exile and life in solitude, or rushed into the streets with their blades drawn to get shot first by arrows, then by bullets generously handed out by the law enforcement agents. But, fortunately for her, Vethara was very, very young for a Taraskath and had no reasons to worry about what would happen in the centuries to come.

She made her way towards Aurora with all dignity that is proper to a member of the Ruling Dynasty. Even if she was not really in charge of things at home, it was not a reason to drag her tail between her legs like a beaten dog. No! She was a wolf! A Taraskovyan black wolf! Moreover, a fine specimen of the Cardinian Northerner breed of the Taraskovyan black wolves! Meow! Euh… Rawr!

She made a Taraskovyan greeting to the Empress, first slightly pointing towards the floor with the palm of her hand, the back of her hand facing the floor. She then brought it up quickly and elegantly slightly above her head, without turning her hand, to point to the sky, before lowering it to the level of her eyes and then extending the arm forwards, the palm facing Aurora. “Between earth and sky I greet you” was the meaning of the ritual. Indeed, the Taraskovyans, being extremely proud, did not have such a notion as ‘bows’ in their etiquette (indeed, the bows were only used by a Taraskovyan when greeting a foreigner of a rank higher than him), the greetings usually executed by elegant motions of hands and slight nods of the head. Sometimes, the expression on the face also played a role, but not in this case, when a greeting used to greet an equal was used.

And just at that time her eyes caught movement to her side, movement caused by Poruchik Khat and his two colleagues. The Federal officer smiled politely to Vethara, nodding his head slightly, fixing the floor with his eyes for a moment, in sign of respect and a certain extent of submission, and invited her to continue. Vethara did not answer him in any way at all, her eyes returning to look at Aurora. “I know that I come uninvited, but not impolite.” She said with a soft smile. “I hope Your Majesty will accept my congratulations along with this modest token of respect.” She said as she handed Aurura the small box. Inside of it, the young Empress would find a brooch, made of silver and ornated with sapphires. The silver on the brooch was crafted into thin treads resting on a solid nest of the metal, with the stones of dark blue colour placed with great skill between the threads, the game of metal and stones forming a slight dome in the center of the oval shape. The entire construction seemed some fragile that even a slight blow of the wind would flatten it, but making such assumptions was to not know the great skill of Taraskovyan jewelers, who had not centuries, but thousands upon thousands of years of experience. But, as always was the case with things of Taraskovyan craft, there was a secret with the brooch. A secret that the young Empress would have to find by herself, for Vethara would only mention that there was more to the jewel than the eye could see.

And while the gift giving took place, Ithun waited patiently several steps aside, quite curious of what the young Lavenrunzian Empress would have to say to the young Taraskovyan Archduchess.

When Peter and Rebecca returned to their seats, Andreus politely acknowledged their return. When Rebecca sat down, he turned to her and gave her a congratulatory smile.

"Were you nervous?" he asked her. "You did very well in any event, Rebecca, you should be very proud of yourself. Don't let Peter's look worry you, he's had a lot more practice than you at these things. You impressed me, and I'm not easily impressed."

He wasn't easily impressed, and in all honesty, he wasn't particularly impressed with Rebecca's shy display. He did find her somewhat awkward conversation charming, however. She was a lovely young woman, no doubt. Still, Andreus couldn't help but look back across at the Empress. Before long, he'd be the one giving the gifts, and he'd have his first opportunity to meet her properly. He was getting nervous himself, not about giving Aurora her birthday presents, but about his father's instructions, which had been playing in the back of his mind all evening. He had sought to distract himself by flirting with Rebecca, and would've dearly loved to distract himself with Vicotira in addition, but she didn't appear interested. Nevertheless, the Emperor's orders reverberated in his skull, and were getting louder and louder as the night wore on.

After all, the prospect of trying to convince a girl he had never even seen before tonight to marry him was enough to make even Prince Andreus nervous.

James peered at the faint red glint inside of his cake curiously and picked at it carefully with his fork. Much to his surprise, it turned out to be a rose of rubies and emeralds. He showed it to Alice, who admired with him.

----

Iansisle's gift to the Empress Aurora probably ranked among the bulkiest if not the most valuable. Footmen had arranged the foot foot tall blue and gold package in one corner next to the gift table and, when James' turn came, muscled the box forward. When unwrapped, a perfect copy of a ship's bridge compass and binnacle from a Shieldian heavy cruiser was revealed.

It was a working copy, not an ornamented one. The binnacle of teak, complete with the corrector magnets needed in a steel ship, supported a brass hood complete with receptacles for oil-burning lamps, which in the age of electric power were more a symbol of the traditionalism of Iansisle's shipwrights than anything else. Just above the clinometer, on a ring of polished brass, the ship's name, motto, and commissioning date were engraved: "HIMS EMPRESS AURORA -- 15 FEB 1954 -- 'GRATIA PERFECTA'"

"A tribute to your Majesty on all Our behalf," said James when presenting the compass to Aurora. He detested the strict formality of an occasion such as this but would not be thought less of by one of his most prestigious peers. He handed to her an envelope which contained a large black-and-white photograph, taken from the stern of another ship, which showed the heavy cruiser next in line firing to port; her heavy cordite smoke obscured nearly the entire right half of the photo. An inscription on the back read "Empress Aurora fires her first full broadside on trial while steaming in line with 5th Cruiser Squadron - April 1954"

After the gift was accepted, James returned to his seat in the most regal manner he could manage.

((OOC: I'm sure there isn't another country in the room whose current date lines up with Iansisle's properly. 'February 1954' will read as five months before whatever the current date is in your reality to your characters and so on. :)

Empress Aurora can be seen on the official RIN ship list (http://forums2.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=5985404&postcount=23); she's just above the section titled 'light cruisers'.

Oh, and apologies for the rushed quality of the first part. I wrote that last but in something of a hurry.))

Sekhat listened to Katsuma's tale with interest - it was the freshest information they had on Mountana and Beta Aquilae, after all, and it was interesting on it's own merits.

Biological technology? The Sakkrans had that, but, like the Mountanans, it baffled Tsarainese researchers.

And ... six months? Ainra eka Ruki, that's a truly meteoric rise! But it does explain his youth.

"You'll grow used to it, I'm sure," he assured the young man. "Our Arkhora, Rene Seingult, was not much older than you are now when the Tsarainese Commonwealth was destroyed, and she has led us well ever since."

To be truthful, Rene Seingult had been twenty-four when the Obsidian Event razed the Commonwealth to radioactive glass, and that had been over fifty years ago, but the comparison was true all the same. Sekhat's father Schaden tsaKell, who had accompanied Rene throughout the difficult rebuilding process, had told him once how difficult had been, when all of them had risen too fast, too young, too high.

And then Katsuma found the toy soldier, and began to weep. Sekhat froze with indecision - what did one do in such a situation? It wasn't covered in any training he'd ever had, and he had no time to think of the right words. But the Lord Protector quickly recovered, replacing the stoic mask upon his face, and Sekhat elected not to mention it. One's dignity was important, at seventeen or forty-one.

OOC: Too long? Too long! Fie, laddie, there's no such thing as "too long"! Well, I suppose there is but I have yet to see it.

Smiling Lidric nods towards the introduced and chuckles "Yes your excellency you have got it right. A pleasue to meet you sir." He says to her husband as behind them things start to happen.

Turning Lidric watches as the cake is served and enjoys himself despite his efforts to remain serious. Smiling he watches as presents are presented and frowns slightly. "Cant very well give her my gift here." He mutters quietly and resolves to wait until he can approach the empress later.

Watching as others give the young empress many fascinating gifts he takes note of many things and frowns all worth more than the paltry gift given from me. He thinks sourly and looks back towads the table hiding the guilt on his face.

"No, we haven't met, President Sukothai." Vicotira did know his name anyway, from memorizing photographs prior to her trip. She self-conciously tucked a strand of shimmering, golden-brown hair behind an elegantly pointed ear.

She extended a shining white hand, palm down. "I am Grand Duchess Vicotira of the Resurgent Dream. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mister President."

After the greetings, she commented "I must admit to be largely ignorant of Syskeyia. You are known for your faith and your heroic resistance to aggression, even among my people, but more...specific details...I'm afraid I must plead that I am rather ignorant, although curious."

"Gladly." He moves closer toward the Duchess. "Syskeyia's a Catholic republic in Southeast Asia. Our history goes way back, but the nation sort of begins when some English nobles, diverted from going on the Third Crusade, washed up on our shores. Since then, we're not sure if we're Western, Asian, or a bit of both." He laughs. "It's really a nice country, especially the Kardja mountains. And, pray tell, what's your country like?"

Unfortunetaly, Mephet’ran got to Kira before Justinian could. But Justinian wasn't worried - after all, Mephet’ran had to end his conversation with Kira when Sirithil finally arrived.

In the mean time, Aurora entered the hall and the banquet began... and Justinian sat down next to Benedict Michael Sukothai of Syskeyia. He turned to face the President and greeted him.

"I can't say how happy I am to see you here, old friend."

“Thanks," replied Sukothai. "Haven't seen you in a while. How are things going?"

OOC: Come on, Syskeyia, we're running behind schedule here! :p

Justinian smiled at Sukothai. "Well, as you can see, I'm enjoying retirement! Sort of..." He laughed. "In any case, you have to admit this isn't your average diplomatic summit." Justinian's face slowly became more grave. "If you want to discuss the war, I'm all yours..."

***

Later, after the guests had finished eating the cake...

Justinian examined his ivory rhinoceros with curiosity, half expecting it to spring to life and run across the table like Gregory's snake. He was a bit dissappointed to find that it was in fact only an ivory figurine, but he still admired its craftsmanship. Suddenly, he found himself wondering what everyone else in Lavenrunz was doing - for example, what the people who had sculpted that rhinoceros were doing. Were they aware of Empress Aurora's birthday party? Of course they were... everyone in the country must have known about it. So what was their opinion on this rather extravagant spending for a birthday party? What was their opinion on the Empress herself? Did Lavenrunz have polls to determine the Empress' approval rating? No, of course it didn't - criticizing the Empress was taboo. Did Aurora herself have any idea of what her people actually thought about her? Probably not. Interesting... Whether she knew it or not, the Empress was quite isolated in her ivory tower. And I bet the aristocracy would give anything to keep her that way. Well, then, I'll just have to make sure they fail. A plan began to form in Justinian's mind...

(OOC: Hoo boy... I don't even know where to start. Is it too late for me to get into this? Eh, I'm posting either way.)


Jarret Sargos had to walk at a brisk pace to keep up with Thomas Pierce as the two Glorious Human diplomats walked into the Celestial Room. Due to buisiness back at the embassy they'd gotten away late, and were just now arriving for the party. Thomas was more than a little irritated by this turn of events, and his stride stopped just short of being a run. The young man clearly displayed the haste with which he'd prepared. His silk suit diplayed several wrinkles from the haste with which it had been hauled on, his hair was hastily combed down and pinned with gel, and his face bore the worried to death look of someone who was afraid the world was about to stop turning. His present to Aurora was tucked under his suit, awaiting an opportune moment to present it.

"You know, the party's not going to go anywhere, unless they decide to move it out in the garden or something," Jarret commented. "In which case, we can get directed to the new place. You're not going to miss too much, Thomas, and you certainly won't miss a chance to see her Divine Majesty up close and personal."

"So?" Thomas asked. "Don't you want to get in there? We are kind of embarassing Glorious Humanity by being late."

"Not that much," Jarret replied evenly. "And we'll embarass our country more if we show up looking like we just ran a marathon in our suits." With at least a couple decades more experience in last minute preparations, Jarret looked as perfectly diplomatic as ever. There was not a single crease in his suit that wasn't supposed to be there, his hair was perfectly styled, and his face bore a calm, slightly amused look as he watched Thomas hover on the verge of a panic attack.

"Fine, fine," Thomas mumbled, slowing down to a power walk. By now they had arrived at the festivities, and Thomas started looking for anyone on the very short list of people that he knew here while Jarret vanished into the crowd of dignitaries, mingling and smalltalking.

Scinfaxi smiled a little as the messenger spoke, carefully lapping from the shallow glass she was drinking from, 'I'm sure the Empress will be pleased to hear Ambassador Hawkins' sister is recovering well from the injuries she received during her term of service. The Ambassador should be able to resume her duties soon.' Scinfaxi grinned, 'Though I believe she may have to fight Ambassador Bryde for the job.'

She blinked a few times at the little owl, cleaning it off carefully and pondering the significance of it, then simply smiling brightly. It was certainly a sweet little thing...She'd have to find somewhere to put it inside her other avatar when she got back, to remind her of this. It wasn't like the Scinfaxi itself had any real lack of space inside...And her Segonune avatar's cabin was a little bare and empty.

As it came time to present the gifts she stood, brushing non-existent crumbs off her dress self-consciously and waiting her turn. She let the bird hop onto her hand as she bowed deeply, before looking up, 'Empress Aurora,' she stroked the bird gently before offering it, 'His name's Gerhart, on behalf of the Supreme Commander, Princess Sarah Renard and the Federation, happy birthday.'

She made a Taraskovyan greeting to the Empress, first slightly pointing towards the floor with the palm of her hand, the back of her hand facing the floor. She then brought it up quickly and elegantly slightly above her head, without turning her hand, to point to the sky, before lowering it to the level of her eyes and then extending the arm forwards, the palm facing Aurora. “Between earth and sky I greet you” was the meaning of the ritual. Indeed, the Taraskovyans, being extremely proud, did not have such a notion as ‘bows’ in their etiquette (indeed, the bows were only used by a Taraskovyan when greeting a foreigner of a rank higher than him), the greetings usually executed by elegant motions of hands and slight nods of the head. Sometimes, the expression on the face also played a role, but not in this case, when a greeting used to greet an equal was used.

And just at that time her eyes caught movement to her side, movement caused by Poruchik Khat and his two colleagues. The Federal officer smiled politely to Vethara, nodding his head slightly, fixing the floor with his eyes for a moment, in sign of respect and a certain extent of submission, and invited her to continue. Vethara did not answer him in any way at all, her eyes returning to look at Aurora. “I know that I come uninvited, but not impolite.” She said with a soft smile. “I hope Your Majesty will accept my congratulations along with this modest token of respect.” She said as she handed Aurura the small box. Inside of it, the young Empress would find a brooch, made of silver and ornated with sapphires. The silver on the brooch was crafted into thin treads resting on a solid nest of the metal, with the stones of dark blue colour placed with great skill between the threads, the game of metal and stones forming a slight dome in the center of the oval shape. The entire construction seemed some fragile that even a slight blow of the wind would flatten it, but making such assumptions was to not know the great skill of Taraskovyan jewelers, who had not centuries, but thousands upon thousands of years of experience. But, as always was the case with things of Taraskovyan craft, there was a secret with the brooch. A secret that the young Empress would have to find by herself, for Vethara would only mention that there was more to the jewel than the eye could see.

And while the gift giving took place, Ithun waited patiently several steps aside, quite curious of what the young Lavenrunzian Empress would have to say to the young Taraskovyan Archduchess

"What a lovely brooch..." murmured Aurora, looking over the weave of precious metals and jewels with admiration.
"That kind of craftsmanship only occurs in places like Tarasovka." remarked Archduchess Magda.
Aurora gave her sister a cool look of Who the hell asked you? and looked at Vethara. Magda flushed angrily and lowered her blue eyes, and with a trembling hand picked up her wineglass.
To Vethara, Aurora said, "You were not invited, but you are certainly most welcome." and taking her hands, she kissed the Archduchess on both cheeks.
(OOC: Tara, please feel free to add a response, we can just sort of presume it took place here, I'll just quote you and make the context clear in my response if need be)


Iansisle's gift to the Empress Aurora probably ranked among the bulkiest if not the most valuable. Footmen had arranged the foot foot tall blue and gold package in one corner next to the gift table and, when James' turn came, muscled the box forward. When unwrapped, a perfect copy of a ship's bridge compass and binnacle from a Shieldian heavy cruiser was revealed.

It was a working copy, not an ornamented one. The binnacle of teak, complete with the corrector magnets needed in a steel ship, supported a brass hood complete with receptacles for oil-burning lamps, which in the age of electric power were more a symbol of the traditionalism of Iansisle's shipwrights than anything else. Just above the clinometer, on a ring of polished brass, the ship's name, motto, and commissioning date were engraved: "HIMS EMPRESS AURORA -- 15 FEB 1954 -- 'GRATIA PERFECTA'"

"A tribute to your Majesty on all Our behalf," said James when presenting the compass to Aurora. He detested the strict formality of an occasion such as this but would not be thought less of by one of his most prestigious peers. He handed to her an envelope which contained a large black-and-white photograph, taken from the stern of another ship, which showed the heavy cruiser next in line firing to port; her heavy cordite smoke obscured nearly the entire right half of the photo. An inscription on the back read "Empress Aurora fires her first full broadside on trial while steaming in line with 5th Cruiser Squadron - April 1954"

After the gift was accepted, James returned to his seat in the most regal manner he could manage.


Aurora rose and said, smiling, "Thanks to your Majesty..." she seemed actually very moved and for a moment bit her lip, then said, "I...We are very touched by this gift and by this tribute." Her blue eyes shone, and she smiled radiantly at the King of Iansisle.

As the appluse was dying down from this latest gift, one of Aurora's cousins, Archduke Amadeus, leaned over to Justinian and said, "Ah, how remarkable, Excellency--that is a very nice example of traditional rural carving of a Greater Hairy Rhinoceros. I'm sad to say that those beasts are long extinct, though a related species is now protected."

Aurora looked up to see who was approaching next, and smiled warmly at Scinfaxi. She regretted that her adopted sister Raven had been held up by a storm in Lavenrunzian Antarctica, because it would have done her good to see nonhumans of status received well in Lavenrunz.
With a look of delight she held her finger out for the bird. Thirty Camelias eyed it but was in fact mostly watching the room, sitting protectively near the Empress. "How lovely, and how appropriate." she said. "And also, I formally welcome you to Lavenrunz. I hope you will enjoy your stay with us. Count Chemnitz, please arrange a formal reception on the Ambassador's part."
"Majesty." said that worthy, bowing his head gravely.

Her smile still on her lips, Aurora paled and then blushed furiously as she saw Thomas arrive. Shit. she thought with feeling.

Sighing Lidric stands and heads over to where Aurora is recieving her gifts and waits to be ushered forward, his hands empty but his eyes glinting with mischeif. Watching Scinfaxi and the bird curiously Lidric stands quietly trying to put together a small explanation of why he has no gift but why the empress should come with him outside once the presents have finished being given.

Commander of an entire army, and I cant even talk to a girl. What the hell is wrong with me. He thinks ruefully as he waves at one of the lavenrunzians standing beside her to get their attention and come talk with him.

Baron Ehrfurt walked over, bowing his head politely, and said, "Yes, Excellency, can I help you?" as he stood before Lidric, speaking quietly and discreetly. He had long since gotten used to being asked the strangest things by foreigners, including a "where is the washroom" from a delegate at the International Mediation Conference.

To the court of the Imperatrice Aurora just a messenger from the Sacred Sindarin Empire of Aelosia arrived, a colorful messenger, one might add. As a solitaire messenger, it doesn't used any protocol or even an official transport. It arrived using just a standard commercial flight. Of course that both her appearance, outfit and behavior was...strange and too "Original" to not be noted by the people around her.

Felina Daeros nos Laeneon was indeed a merry, happy and cheerful woman, in part thanks to both her education and occupation as a minstrel, bard, storyteller, and trouvatore of the Empire of the Sindar. She was born in a family of artist, and was the normal thing to do to follow the family's example. The Great Family and Noble House of Daeros could trace their ancient lineage back to the beginnings of the Sindarin's history, their founder, Daeros, being the most fabled elven composer and singer, being only comparable to Maglor of the Noldor in quality, and Felina was set upon living by the shadow of such great example.

She displayed a great talent from her early years to both play the flute, the lute and create great stories and make audiences enjoy them around the bonfires in the long nights of above the stars. Many nobles and young promising bachelors fought over her favour as soon as she matured into a beautiful, wondrous and merry teenager, but she refused them all, dedicated her entire love an attention to her art. Her attractive was not based, as many of the desired Maidens of Aelosia, in her striking looks or appearance, but more in her sympathy, empathy and talent for emotional display and relationship, although she was recognized by her impressive and colorful wardrobe. Soon she drew the attention of more important and great personalities, and she first was patronized by the Paelisi Great House of courtiers, and then by the Imperial House.

Her art, dedicated to rescue the old ways of Sindarin tradition, yet oriented to adopt a fresh and modern approach to keep those traditions interesting soon transformed her in one of the most favored minstrel of the Everqueen's Aelosia Elurin, who named her Great Singer in the court, the youngest ever to attain that title since the fall of Doriath in the First Age of the elves. Also she also turned into a great friend and advisor to the heir of the throne, Princess Aliria nos Elurin, friendship that greatly improved her influence and power inside the court, giving her a political edge that she as an true and inspired artist neither asked nor desired.

Soon the situation in the court turned difficult and tense enough for her to be distracted from her main duties, with many courtiers and politicians trying to curry her favor to win themselves a position near to the Princess or the Queen. Finally consulting about the problem, she was granted both a leave and a mission, to go to Lavenrunz and to present the Empress Aurora with the gift from the Sindarin people and from their Princess.

Finally, showing the proper documents and the letter she was carrying from Aliria to Aurora, she arrived to the door of the palace, without any escorts or companion, and asked politely to see the Empress, to give her the gift of the sindarin people.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v203/Aelosia/1_p69.jpg
Felina Daeros nos Laeneon

Passing the security and reaching the palace doors, Felina Daeros nos Laeneon was escorted up to them by a captain of the Imperial Carbineer Guards, who was still wearing the winter greatcoat as it was early spring, and whose boots and helmet gleamed in the lights. She could hear the sounds of merriment, a burst of applause and music in the background from inside the Palace. The guards near the door stood at attention as they went in, and the officer approached another who commanded a detachment inside. Forthwith, an under-chamberlain in silver and black approached, clicked his heels and bowed, and said, "Excellency, the meal is finished but there are arrangments for you to dine in another room if you would like to take refreshment before presenting yourself to Her Majesty."

"You're one of the most kind of the second children of Ilúvatar, and I thank both your attentions and your favors. I wish you a merry and happy day, and I hope that the Valar shower you with their grace, Sire", was the only answer of Felina Daeros nos Leaneon to the Lavenrunzian Chamberlain, showing him her most sincere and wam smile.

"And about that dinner, well, I deeply believe that such terrenal issues can wait, as I have something important to talk with your most beloved Highness the Edain Empress Aurora Sachsausen. I traveled all the way here to enjoy everything that Lavenrunz has to offer, and food indeed is one of my first options...But as you will discover in the future, I expect to have plenty time in the future to enjoy such pleasures". Felina smiled again, winking with a delicate en exquisite gesture that could be the doom of many men in her homeland. "But now, and I take into account that in such an important day as today she can be really busy, I would like to see your Empress, your Imperatrice, as soon as possible".

Peter smiled politely at Empress Aurora’s comment. “We, too, hope that this evening will mark a new chapter in both closer and warmer relations, your Majesty.” Peter bowed, struck by both the young Empress’ beauty and poise. Peter had to consciously remind himself that she was only a year older than his ‘little’ cousin, Rebecca. He bowed again. “I hope we will have the opportunity to speak later, your Majesty,” he said as he and Rebecca left to return to their seats.

On their way back to the table, Rebecca stood on her toes and whispered in Peter’s ear. “Did you see her reaction? I knew we shouldn’t have given her a sword. I wouldn’t want a sword on my sixteenth birthday! We should have given her something fun…”

“Like a BrianFreeze CD, Rebecca?” Peter asked softly through a tight smile. “Besides, we always give swords. Or crosses. Or Bibles. Or land grants. It’s who we are.” The note of sarcasm in his voice brought a fleeting smile to Rebecca’s face.

Returning to the table, Peter acknowledged Andreus and his other dinner companions, including the Presidents of Syskeyia and New York and Jersey, though they had done little to acknowledge him. However, Sophia and Vicotira had acknowledged him and he greeted both of them with warm, inviting smiles.

Rebecca smiled at Andreus as she returned to her seat. “Thank you, André,” she said. “I was a bit nervous.” She threw her cousin a cool look. “And Peter certainly didn’t make matters any better with his sharp looks.” The young princess leaned towards Andreus. “Thank you for encouraging me. I wish Peter were a bit more like you!”

Andreus chuckled a little. He couldn't help himself.

"So does he." he joked in reply.

Shakara shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the round. The invitation sat on the table before him, staring him down as he scratched his chin.
"John, Kjersten", he asked, "what do you think?"
John was surprised. Ever since their dealings with Sirak, Shakara had been unwilling to have anything to do with nations outside of Brobund. He even halted the destruction of the wall seperating Brobund from Byteholland, her neighbor to the West.
"I think it's a good idea father", John told him truthfully. "We could certainly use an ally, especially in our current state."
"It is certainly an opertunity to re-connect with the outside world." Kjersten added. "I miss home so much, and even though I can't go back, this would be an opportuinity to reach out to other nations, like ours, who have felt the effects of Sirak's evil."
Without warning Shakara changed the subject completely. "There are stories of a strange light eminating over the Gro-Ton mountain range. I fear evil is again reaching up from it's depths."
"You worry too much father. Gro-Ton is a peaceful place now."
"Perhaps, but I will dispatch Neron to see what he may find. In the mean time; you and Kjersten may reply with pleasures to the empress, I however will remain here in Tinagra."
"Shakara, Brobund is much more than just the city of Tinagra. You of all people should know and appreciate this. You need to leave Tinagra and re-connect with your Nation and your people. They need your support."
"You speak wise words Kjersten, but now is not the time for me to venture. I will wait on Neron's findings. I look forward to hearing of your trip to Lavenrunz. Be kind and deliver my heartfelt greetings to the Empress. Go now."

Kjersten composed the response to the message.
Quote:
Empress Aurora:
My lord Chancellor Shakara came upon a notice that you are celebrating your 16th Birthday. Shakara wishes greetings upon you and regrets that he is not able to attend your gathering. We understand that we have not recieved a direct invitation, however, the Chancelors Son John and I would adore the opportunity to pay you greeting in person and share in teh festivites. We are a small nation, recently scared by the opression of an evil Count. We wish to re-connect with the outside world and would love to make Lavenrunz a friend. We look forward to greeting you in person.

Kjersten White
Lady of Trinasta
Daughter of the Commonwealth of Brobund
"All Hail the commonwealth"

Elisa giggled at Thirty Camelias' reaction to the LiME kitty. The kitty for its part was more interesting in purring at it was pet by Aurora, mewing happily. As Aurora put it away, it would become clear that while a kitten, it weighed as much as a full sized cat would. Elisa smiled before making room for the next gift-giver, "It'll grow as it gets older, so it won't always be overly heavy." She bowed polietly, "I wouldn't miss your birthday for the world," and headed back to her table.


Aesa smiled, "I'd love to." She winced and the mention of the bombing and nodded glumly, "Yes... the attacks." She sighed, "It seems there's always something happening. It's the only complaint I really have about Lavenrunz, actually." Well, that and the rampant homophobia, she thought to herself. She smiled happily again, "I was lucky, actually. Elisa had everything running smoothly, so when I took over there wasn't much adjustment necessary. Feel free to stop by the embassy whenever you have some time for yourself, and I'll take you around."

"You're one of the most kind of the second children of Ilúvatar, and I thank both your attentions and your favors. I wish you a merry and happy day, and I hope that the Valar shower you with their grace, Sire", was the only answer of Felina Daeros nos Leaneon to the Lavenrunzian Chamberlain, showing him her most sincere and wam smile.

"And about that dinner, well, I deeply believe that such terrenal issues can wait, as I have something important to talk with your most beloved Highness the Edain Empress Aurora Sachsausen. I traveled all the way here to enjoy everything that Lavenrunz has to offer, and food indeed is one of my first options...But as you will discover in the future, I expect to have plenty time in the future to enjoy such pleasures". Felina smiled again, winking with a delicate en exquisite gesture that could be the doom of many men in her homeland. "But now, and I take into account that in such an important day as today she can be really busy, I would like to see your Empress, your Imperatrice, as soon as possible".

The under-chamberlain took a couple of breaths but then began to listen politely; he bowed more than once in response to the envoy's courtesy, and when she was done said, "Excellency, please come this way." and led her into the dining hall. There she could see a number of guests, Lavenrunzians of standing, and farthest away Empress Aurora herself, a leopard crouching at her feet, and gifts on a side table. Nearby stood her closest courtiers, mostly dressed in white and gold or black and silver. The Empress was in fact speaking to someone as she was led in...that worthy bowed and withdrew, Aurora turning to speak to a greying haired gentleman of great dignity to who stood beside her.

OOC: Brobund, please assume that earlier you received this letter so that it is not an instant telegram thing.
IC:
To: Kjersten White
Lady of Trinasta
Daughter of the Commonwealth of Brobund

I am very glad that you have begun your international affairs with Lavenrunz; we will be delighted to receive you. I'm afraid that 'evil Count' situation is catching. We have one imprisoned for life ourselves; and another ally also had one try a coup d'etat.
Thank you for offering to help me celebrate my birthday. I am always glad to make new friends.

warmest regards
Empress Aurora von Sachshausen

Felina started to walk slowly towards the end of the room, knowing that her multicolor and parrot-like outfit sometimes looked more like a disguise than a a true formal dress in this kind of gathering, and that with no doubt she was going to draw more than just one look from those all around the place. Of course, she was just interested in the attention of the Empress Aurora, and cared little for the opinions of others, and although she was smart enough to avoid being shocking and disgusting to others, with no doubt she always believed in being herself at all times, even if that meant being an eccentric artist in the middle of important and formal personalities from around the entire universe.

Courtesy was the main social virtue of her society, however, and so she dedicated a delicate and small nod of her head and bow of her back to each of the persons that she encountered along the hall. That would meant that her way towards the Empress without doubt was going to be a slow one, but she knew that courtesy was free and that anyone deserved it.

Also she was at the service of a House of courtiers for half a century, and she knew how to behave in a court's hall. She knew that she should try to approach the mighty yet young ruler enough to be noted at the proper time, and not interrumpt or disturb any of the actions of the queen, because that would be the worst possible show of rudeness.

Felina had enough time to remember the histories about Lavenrunz, about how the Lavenrunzian, after being one of the best friends of the Menelmacari, turned bitterly against their friends the elves, and tried to ban them from their territory in a strange and warped act of sudden racism. She still remembered the words of her friend Aliria when she ordered her to go to Lavenrunz and "deliver" the aelosian gift to Empress Aurora...

"The Lavenrunzian are special people, curious and wonderful. Once I was almost magically enchanted with both the beauty of her people and the firm values upon their constructed their society and culture. I believed them to be a superior, wondrous type of humans that were above all the flaws and problems of the rest of their race, I even was marveled so much with a Lavenrunzian ArchDuke that I started to see him as a man, and not as a friend. And yes, don't laugh my friend, me, the Princess of the Sindar, almost fell in love with a human in Lavenrunz. Yet, as many times before, the spell was broken and I realized that they could be as vicious and pervert as any other human. Another Lavenrunzian noble, may Mandos never forget his sins, took care of showing me that they were capable of orc words and orc deeds, and that they were a dangerous bunch. Don't forget that this capability of being wonderful or hideous is directly linked to the human race. They will show you their amazing traits and your eyes will be blinded, but then be careful, as many devious minds hide beneath their impressive façades. About the Empress, well, I never had the opportunity to meet her. The first time I had the chance it was a sad occassion, right after her mother Joanna died, and I didn't want to meet her under those depressing circumstances. Then came my the second chance, that wretched Winter Ball, and my intent of meeting her was interrumpted by unwarranted guests, and before I had any chance bullets were all over the place and many people were looking for her to kill her. I was lucky to get out of there unharmed, as did Lady Sirithil. The third time, Mirbach, the twisted and evil Lavenrunzian noble that I mentioned earlier, took care of prohibiting me to talk to her when I went there trying to help on the situation between humans and elves in Lavenrunz. I have heard that Empress Aurora is a friend of the elves, and that as me, she is a young and inexperienced ruler that even as such have achieved to be successful in all the challeges presented to her, revealing an impressive determination and unnatural talent. That's why I have decided to give her that present you carry, Felina, even as it is more precious to me than all my jewels and possessions, because I think she deserves it after everything she has achieved, and because even after everything that happened, I still look upon the people of Lavenrunz as friendly and charming. But anyway be careful my friend, and may the valar go with you"

Felina sighed again, after hearing inside her mind those words of the Princess as clear and soft as she heard them a week ago in the Royal Palace of the Sindarin Empire, and took the final steps to remain few paces away from the Empress, waiting for her to finish her without doubt more important issues, and finally being able to attend what she was going to say, and offer, to the Majesty of the Lavenrunzians. She just remained there motionless, her eyes fixed in the admiration of the huge and regal form of the leopard at Aurora's feet, waiting for the permission of the Empress to present herself.

A sleek, black limousine pulls up silently to the entrance of the building. Half a dozen men and women in two different sets of uniforms open the doors and step out, scanning the area for potential threats. After a moment, the woman in the black and red nods to her counterpart in black and silver, and he nods back. They both speak into cleverly hidden microphones.

At last, another door opens and a short, indefinably ugly man steps from the vehicle and pauses to straighten his jacket before reaching out to assist his imperial date. "Baby steps, Red. Let's go inside now. You'll be fine."

There's nothing red about the woman who takes his hand, with the exception of the design of her dress. She favours him with a mild glare before she glances around with an uncharacteristic look of nervousness. "Il dios, Dev. You remember what happened the last time (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=296611) we were here."

Treznor scowls slightly. "You don't have to remind me. But Aurora has much tighter control than she did then. All the reports agree that Schlabel is no threat to us, and loyal to her. I'm very impressed with the way they're handling matters, to be frank.

"Besides, even if something does go wrong, our people will be inside and reinforcements aren't far away. They got away (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=371642) with that trick once; they won't do it again." There's no need for him to clarify who "they" are.

She sighs and squeezes his hand. "Don't leave me tonight. I couldn't handle it."

"I promise. We'll be joined at the hip." He pauses briefly. "But with more decorum than usual."

She glares and thwaps him lightly, but a smile appears on her face for the first time.

Bowing in return Lidric blushes slightly and speaks slowly "I was wondering if you could pass along to her majesty a request for me. I am unable to present my gift to her in a such a crowded setting, I would be honoured to later once she has some free time to present the gift to her without any fear of injury should someone startle or create a loud noise.

If not then I will gladly wait until such a time that it's possible to bring the present inside and risk startling it." He says a boyish grin on his face.

"I assure you it is a gift, I have researched her majesties likes and dislikes and gained a gift worthy of her. I would be greatly honoured if you could put my request to her sir." He says before looking once more shy and embarrased waiting for a response.

Across the room, Thomas froze, feeling that he'd been spotted. Slowly, he turned around to look at the Empress. A blush raced up his face, almost the same shade as the one that had flashed across Aurora's features. Suddenly, he was sweating profusely, more than he had almost running to get to this place. For a moment their eyes locked, and the young diplomat could not look away. His feet rooted to the ground as if they'd been nailed there, his muscles all locked and unresponsive to any command, he could only look at her.

A second later, her attention was diverted to another of the guests, and Thomas was released from the spell. He still stood for a another couple seconds, watching her, then he turned away, explosively blowing out the breath he'd unconciously been holding. He blinked several times to restore moisture to his drying eyes, and quickly checked himself over. Everything seemed straight. He checked again, then started moving back into the crowd.

Immediately Jarret materialized by his side, falling into step beside Thomas as they moved to the back of the room. "I told you you would see her," he murmured as they got a little space between them and the rest of the people.

"I knew I would," Thomas replied. He had returned to normal now (he hoped). His breathing was steady again, and his face was no longer flaming. "Now I have to talk to her whenever she has time."

"Not likely tonight I'm afraid," Jarret noted honestly. "After the festivities are concluded, she'll probably go straight to bed. All this formality can be more draining than it looks." He appeared thoughtful for a moment. "I suppose you could ask her if she wanted company," Jarret continued with a completely straight face. "I'm sure the big royal bed gets lonely sometimes, and she-"

"Ambassador!" Thomas said as loudly as he dared, his face turning nearly apple in color. Hastily the young man looked around, but no one else appeared to be listening to the conversation. Very slowly, he relaxed again. "Not funny," he said with more composure.

"From my end it is," Jarret chuckled softly. "Relax, Thomas. I know how highly you think of her Majesty." His expression turned serious as he reached into his pocket and withdrew something wrapped in cloth. "I think you should present the official gift," Jarret told Thomas, holding out the item. "It'll be good practice in making speeches. You've got your personal presents for her too?"

"Of course," Thomas nodded, patting one of the pockets of his suit. "I think I ought to wait to give her those though. When there's less ceremony."

"Wise beyond your years," Jarret quipped, nodding approval. "Well, better go pay your respects."

Thomas nodded. He did take a moment to add something to the package, then he joined the line of people waiting to present gifts to the Empress.

"What a lovely brooch..." murmured Aurora, looking over the weave of precious metals and jewels with admiration.
"That kind of craftsmanship only occurs in places like Tarasovka." remarked Archduchess Magda.
Aurora gave her sister a cool look of Who the hell asked you? and looked at Vethara. Magda flushed angrily and lowered her blue eyes, and with a trembling hand picked up her wineglass.
To Vethara, Aurora said, "You were not invited, but you are certainly most welcome." and taking her hands, she kissed the Archduchess on both cheeks.

Vethara blushed slightly as Aurora thanked her, nodding politely to the Empress and to her sister, smiling to the both of them. “In Tarasovka we have a proverb saying that nothing is as it seems.” She gave an indicative glance at the brooch before smiling one last time to Aurora. “I will now take my leave, Your Majesty.” With that, she retired from the ruler of Lavenrunz, giving a glance at Ithun before going back to retake her seat by Gregory’s side. Being a person kind and generous by nature (a nature that her very awkward and strange life did not manage to wipe out) this short friendly exchange made her happy, sparkling in her a desire to talk to somebody and make jokes and laugh. And since she did not have thirty six and a half solutions on the spot, she turned towards her cavalier, smiling. “Gregory, is everything allright?”

***

Lieutenant Khat waited patiently for his exiled compatriot to present the Empress with the gift, noticing the subtle little details that happened during the brief exchange of words. Little hints that left room for interpretation, such as the overly friendly attitude of the young Empress towards the Archduchess. Indeed, taking into account that the two women never met before, it did leave room for interpretation. But he would do the brainstorming after presenting the Lavenrunzian ruler with the gift from the Federation.

He made a step forward and saluted the Empress in military fashion, clacking the heels and swiftly bringing his right hand horizontally to the right side of his forehead. “In the name of the Taraskovyan Federation I would first of all like to thank Your Majesty for allowing me to attend this event.” He motioned to his two colleagues who made a step forward and lay the box by his feet. Ithun stood on a knee next to it, lifting the lid to reveal a cloth, which he took off. Beneath it was something that appeared to be a shield. In fact, it was a shield, crafted in the ancestral Taraskath style. Its general shape was that of a trapezoid, not made of straight lines, but of elegant curves. The shield was around a meter in length, from the top to the lowest tip.

On the main part of it was a Teutonic cross, engraved with writings in Taraskath, Russian and Latinic alphabets. All around the cross were further decorations consisting of delicate motives made in relief on the surface of the shield. If one looked closer he would see that these decorations were actually scenes depicting various scenes from Lavenrunzian history. Obviously, such scenes were the ones that could be found in a good book on the history of the nation, text reproduced into images of the finest of qualities by the craftsman’s imagination. Ithun picked it up and held it in front of him, for the Empress to view what was now her own. “This shield has been crafted by combining the ancestral traditions of my kin with the latest technologies to make it light as a feather and as resistant as a mountain.”

The young officer grinned as he lay the shield back into the chest, facing the Empress once more. “As has already been said before, nothing is as it seems in Tarasovka. As such, in that chest, you will find a letter for your personal attention, describing the shield fully.” With that, he bowed in respect to Aurora.

[OOC: It is 6am in Geneva, so sorry for the lousiness. But had to make the post now, otherwise, I could as well not do it in the coming days :\
Anyway. Here ( http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v77/Namellar/uglysketch.jpg) is an ugly rough line schematic of how the shield would look. I made a hand drawn picture of it, but, well… the author of this thread knows what fate came to the drawing :\
Here (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v77/Namellar/GDT/giftscript.jpg) is an ugly webcam shot of the Taraskath writing on the shield. In all three languages it would say something like ‘Empress Aurora von Sachshausen of Lavenrunz’. On the picture it says, literally, Imperatek(k)h Avrora fon Sa(k)hs(k)hauzen. But I will not go into the chaos that is the Taraskath language right now. And no, I don't have a scanner =(
Joanna, will catch you on IRC sometime to tell you about the shield in private. =) ]

Of course he didnt acknowledge Peter, as far as Gregory knew, the child was a teenage friend of Aurora and no one of any real consequence. Not having more than himself and Vethara here he was only told about those people attending who mattered on some level in respect to the Federal Republic. Looking at Vethara upon her return he patted her hand a few times and gave her a warm smile. "I'm quite alright really..I'll tell you about it when we have a moment alone. You'll laugh no doubt, but I'll take someone's head off when I return back to the Republic." Gregory tried to smile widely but at best he could manage at the moment was a hint of it.

Looking around the table he went back to watching as everyone gave in their gifts. Thus far things were going rather smoothly, thankfully. Turning over back to Vethara only slightly, he whispered to her in a low voice as not to be rude to the gift giving ceremony of sorts which was being carried out. "Are you having a good time? If you arent tell me, I'll try and be a better escort. I'm just not used to..festive occassions."

With a polite bow, the under-chamberlain said, "I will deliver the message forthwith, Excellency." and withdrew. He went quietly up to Count Chemnitz and whispered something to him. The Grand Chamberlain nodded and waited while Aurora was speaking with the Tarasovkan envoy...


He made a step forward and saluted the Empress in military fashion, clacking the heels and swiftly bringing his right hand horizontally to the right side of his forehead. “In the name of the Taraskovyan Federation I would first of all like to thank Your Majesty for allowing me to attend this event.” He motioned to his two colleagues who made a step forward and lay the box by his feet. Ithun stood on a knee next to it, lifting the lid to reveal a cloth, which he took off. Beneath it was something that appeared to be a shield. In fact, it was a shield, crafted in the ancestral Taraskath style. Its general shape was that of a trapezoid, not made of straight lines, but of elegant curves. The shield was around a meter in length, from the top to the lowest tip.

On the main part of it was a Teutonic cross, engraved with writings in Taraskath, Russian and Latinic alphabets. All around the cross were further decorations consisting of delicate motives made in relief on the surface of the shield. If one looked closer he would see that these decorations were actually scenes depicting various scenes from Lavenrunzian history. Obviously, such scenes were the ones that could be found in a good book on the history of the nation, text reproduced into images of the finest of qualities by the craftsman’s imagination. Ithun picked it up and held it in front of him, for the Empress to view what was now her own. “This shield has been crafted by combining the ancestral traditions of my kin with the latest technologies to make it light as a feather and as resistant as a mountain.”

The young officer grinned as he lay the shield back into the chest, facing the Empress once more. “As has already been said before, nothing is as it seems in Tarasovka. As such, in that chest, you will find a letter for your personal attention, describing the shield fully.” With that, he bowed in respect to Aurora.

Aurora had asked the advice of Foreign Minister von Konigsmark about how to deal with this. And she now put that advice to practice. "It is a great pleasure to meet you." she said warmly, and looking at the cross, she remarked, "And this is a lovely example not only of craftsmanship but of piety. My thanks to the people of Tarasovka." She found the fellow rather striking in a saucy kind of way, but she was now feeling rather more confident than she had at the Iuthian wedding and her smile was regal but generous.

Devon Treznor and his 'date' arrived in the hall not long after the Glorious Humanity delegation, and could see other NDA envoys from GMC, Iraqstan and the Hack present. Aurora had turned to listen to something the Grand Chamberlain said, and she looked at Lidric and gave him a grave look and a nod.

The under-chamberlain nearest Felina whispered, "If your Excellency is ready?" inclining his head towards the Empress.

OOC: Blargh... writers block...

Katsuma leaned in close to Sekhat and spoke in hushed tones. "Sekhat, I'm worried. I really want to make a good impression on the Empress, but the way things are right now, with people just lining up and presenting their gifts, if I go up now then she'll merely give me a passing glance, some empty words, and then go on to the next guest. What should I do?"

"Razing a small moon and fighting a battle in subspace is one thing. Making a good first impression on a teenage girl is another thing altogether."

"And after all," Katsuma said, motioning to the extravagent gifts that had already been presented. "My gift has no chance of comparing to these."

"In other words, I'm a fool who chose a gift for a girl rather than an empress."

A brief moment passed, before Katsuma finally asked, "Sekhat... what do you think I should do?"

The palace was stunning. Each decoration seemed more intricate than the next. As they walked down the large hallway John thought to himself that this place rivaled the Temple Infinity in both beauty and design; a feat not easily accomplished. John stood out at the gala, to say the least. The most formal attire he owned was nothing more than a forest green cloak given to him by Neeron on the coldest of nights during their battle in the Black Wood. The tear from the wound John had recieved to his shoulder had been mended, quite obviously, and Lady Orchid had somehow managed to completely cleanse it of the dirt and blood that had stained it. Kjersten, on the other hand was a sight to behold. Even this gorgeous palace could not compare to the beauty that stood next to John's arm. She wore the silver gown that had belonged to Johns mother. Her blonde hair was curled ever so lightly. John noticed that it had grown longer than he realized.

The two "Warriors," as it were, entered the main ballroom and were astonished at how many people were present. Brobundians consider it rude not to announce ones self immediately upon arrival, so both began the process of searching out the young Empress.

Kjersten noticed the line first. It was not difficult to guess what was happening at it's head. "We should wait in line?" Kjersten asked.
"It would indeed be rude to skip the line just to introduce ourselves." John agreed.
"Well then, do you have her gift?"
John pulled from his pocket a very small leather pouch. He examined its contents and returned it to it's place. "It's here."
"Are you sure you want to give her one? We do not know these people at all."
"That's the beauty of it." John replied. He had been looking for an opportuinty just such as this. He hadn't expected one so perfect to present itself so soon. "Besides, from the look of all the security around this place, it appears as though she could use it. Especially so young.
"Your mother wasn't much older than she." Kjersten reminded him.
"My mother was 20...a far cry from the inexpereince and naivety of 16. Besides, she sat in the round, she did not rule alone. I do not envy this young girl.

The two got in line and waited patiently for their turn to greet the Empress.

OOC: Sorry to take up so much space...it's just all flowing out so fast I can't stop it.

John knew something of the naivety of a teenager. He himself was only 16 when he left home for Brobund. John wondered how many hours had passed back on earth in the 5 Years he had spent in Brobund. It seemed funny to him that He and Kjersten celebrated their birthdays only a week apart, both born in the same year, in the same week, even in the same hospital, and yet he was now almost a year her senior. It still boggled his mind how time passed so differently here in this world.
But now the scars and lessons of 3 years of bitter war had taught John more than any human being should ever have to learn. He wondered, had he been old enough to serve in Desert Storm would it have been remotely the same? How could it be? Ka-Bars instead of Broadswords, .50 Caliber bullets instead of dark spells. John was glad that the kind of warfare from 20th century Earth had not yet made it in this world.

“Which one are you giving her?”
John was startled out of his own thoughts by the question.
“The Green one.” He replied.
“Really? Is that wise?” Kjersten asked
“Jealous?” John quipped. He knew of course that she wasn’t but he liked to tease her anyway. Kjersten wore around her neck a similar item, differing only in color, hers was almost pure nothingness. It was, in fact, a complete absence of color, transparent all the way through, with the exception of the silver fireburst in the middle.
“It’s just that the green one is quite powerful, perhaps too much so for a nation we know so little about.”
“I’m not worried about it.” John calmed her. “Besides, this gift is not for the nation but for the Empress. I have a feeling about her and this is the perfect way to find out if I am correct. I’ve asked Neeron about Lavenrunz, and from what he tells me, if she is indeed pure of heart, than this will serve her well.

Exiled Royalties

“You will take someone’s head off? Oh… what did one do to earn such a punishment?” She said, blinking for a second, before smiling sweetely at her company again. “And I cannot say that I am having a bad time. The host is most charming, my company is most gallant.” She switched her gaze from Gregory to the little music box lying on the table next to her, making it play one of the tunes before returning the attention of her emerald eyes at the President General. “And I even got my own gift!” She laughed softly as she shook her head.

***

Ze Federalist

Ithun bowed again to Aurora. “Your words honour my kin, Your Majesty. There is no better reward for Taraskovyans than to know that their gift has pleased.” With that, he stood straight yet again. “If Your Majesty allows, I will now take my leave.” And, upon receiving the awaited authorization from the Empress, he left the place for some other guest, dispatching his two colleagues to enjoy themselves.

Rebecca laughed at Andreus' joke, though she was certain that she was not getting his full meaning.

Peter, for his part, remained oblivious to the Despot's joke at his expense. Rather, he continued to focus his attention on Sophia and Vicotira. Both women were lovely and either would make fine companion for the evening.

In the back of his mind, however, it bothered him that he had introduced himself to the two presidents seated nearby and had been thoroughly ignored by both. He was the Emperor's nephew after all. And if Excalbian succession had worked like Pantocratorian succession he would be the emperor!

Peter sighed. Normally such things didn't bother him; he'd much rather have a light conversation about skiing than discuss affairs of state. But, for some reason it did bother him.

Perhaps, he thought, the fellow from New York and Jersey simply hadn't heard him. So, with a light smile firmly affixed, he turned to the president and the Taraskovyan royal. "Good evening," he said jovially, "I do not believe we have formally met. I am Prince Peter of Excalbia..."

Vicotira smiled warmly at Peter as he returned, inclining her head. She didn't rise as he had for her, which was no mark of disrespect so far as she was concerned. Lords stood for ladies of equal or higher rank. Ladies never stood for lords unless said lord was a currently crowned king. At least, that was her custom. She did frown a little when Gregory ignored Peter and even more when Peter pressed the issue.

Her concerns about the earlier perceived slight vanished when she saw that Vethara did not even bow to Aurora. Or, rather, any idea that it might have been even unintentionally dismissive on a personal level faded away. However, Taraskovyan custom fascinated her. So different from that in her sister Agwene's court or, for that matter, in the court of her other big sister who sat as the Empress of Akaton by marriage. And yet, there was something strangely similar under all that and something...purer in Vethara than in anyone she'd met before. Of course, she didn't voice these thoughts. Complimentary as they were, they would have been odd and out of place at the moment. Instead, she asked, "Do you like music, Your Highnesses?" While she spoke most directly to Vethara, she cast and phrased her words so as to also include Sophia.

She did note Treznor arriving with her guest. She could even hazard a guess who it was. However, out of respect for the apparent desire for anonymity, she kept her guess to herself.

Exiled Royalties

Vethara smiled at Peter joyfully and nodded her head slightly in sign of greeting. “And I am Vethara Shakhovskaya, Grand Duchess by Right of Tarasovka. It is a pleasure to meet you.” With that, she turned over to look at Vicotira, rather amused by her question. “Of course, just who does not like music? What kind of music do you prefer, Milady?” She asked Vicotira in return.

((OOC: Done with Tarasovka over mIRC))

Vicotira arched a brow slightly at Vethara in the same manner she had so much earlier in the evening. "I like most forms of music, m'lady." She put just the slightest emphasis on the last word.

The Taraskovyan royal blinked for a second at the change in expression on Vicotira’s face, but replied to the question in her usual joyful tone. “Oh, I like classic music, mostly Rachmaninov and Vivaldi.”

"Both fantastic composers, m'lady."

“They truly are. But, pray, tell me more on your tastes.” Vethara said as she smiled again at the Sidhe.

"I am a great fan of Arakahn Emeraldagger, Duke Hydi ap Fiona, Count Eigon ap Leanhaun, Rosalie Lacroix..."

“Oh…” Vethara blushed slightly as she had to admit she knew nothing of the names listed. “I am truly sorry, but I am completely ignorant about these composers. Could you please tell me more?”

"Well, m'lady, I can do better than that. I will give you their music so that you might have it played for you. Words can hardly do justice to art." She smiled lightly.

“Oh, pray, call me Vethara. I feel rather uneasy when I addressed to be ceremonial titles. They… seem to… just wiped away my name and replace it with something more general.” She blushed softly yet again, biting her tongue before going any further into a debate on ceremoniality and its effects on personality. “And I would be most honoured should you provide me with some of their music. Indeed, words can hardly describe art, apart from lit

"Very well, Vethara. And you may feel free to call me Vicotira instead of by my title of highness." She smiled charmingly. "It is easily enough provided. I can have it to you before you leave this event."

Vethara nodded to the Sidhe and smiled again. “It will be most welcome. And I do believe you will have all the time you need.” She glanced over at Gregory and smiled sweetly at him again. “I hope not to leave the party in the coming moments.”

Vicotira inclined her head. "It is far from over."

“I hope it is not. There was no dancing yet. And I am eager to see how the people of various nations dance together to the same tune.” She laughed softly again, shaking her head slowly to chase the laughter away.

Vicotira studied Vethara a moment, trying to discern if Vethara picked up on what she was trying to point out. "Dancing is one cultural trait that seems to be universal. I think people will manage quite fine." She smiled brightly.

Vethara tried hard not to erupt into laughter as she remembered some of the traditional Taraskath dances. “There are always some exceptions, Vicotira, such as some of the dances of my own kin. In fact, many customs of my kin are different from those of others, due to our innate xenophoby and suspicion of… foreigners…” She said the last word in a mysterious tone, smiling maliciously to point out the irony of her words.

Vicotira laughed lightly. "You don't strike me as even slightly xenophobic, Vethara."

“There are always exceptions to confirm the rule, as they say.” The young Taraskovyan said as she smiled happily, trying not to laugh.

"Well, there's little I can say on the matter. We were rather similar until a mere nine years ago."

“Oh? You also come from a nation that viewed foreigners with suspicion?” She said, pensively. “Sometimes I wish my kin was more open to others. Not that we are hostile or aggressive, no. Hospitality is, for example, sacred to my country. But still, there is no better means to destroy something in Tarasovka than to say that it serves foreign interests.” She shook her head and smiled again, clearly exaggerating the reality to prove her point.

Vicotira inclined her head. "That did. The past tense is rather apparent these days, since my sister took the throne."

“My brother also tried to push some reforms through while he was in charge. Ended up in a war against my xenophobic sister, which cost their lives to the both of them.” She sighed sadly and shook her head. “But today is not a place for such talks.” She forced a smile again to appear happy and joyful.

Vicotira smiled sympathetically back, not sure what to say. Vicotira glanced over at Peter again, half-distractedly, before looking back at Vethara

Vethara smiled at Vicotira and decided to switch the object of their discussion to something typically female, referring to a scene that she has been admiring during the evening. “Tell me, Your Highness, if you will forgive my rudeness…” She leaned slightly forward over the table to tell quietly her question to Vicotira. “Have you come accompanied? I could not help but notice your certain attention to Prince Peter. Your company, if any, should be worried by now.”

"And..yet I have none." She made an attempt at a wry smile but was mostly blushing furiously and trying desperately to hide it.

Oh dear, Sekhat thought. I haven't had to worry about impressing girls for twenty years now!

"Katsuma," he said quietly - choosing to leave that particular part for later - "Any foreign potentate is going to have almost everything she could possibly want, so this is less about the gift itself than about the act of giving it. It may be trite to say "It's the thought that counts", but it's true.

"If you want it to count more, why not arrange to give it to her privately? I think I see Ambassador Quil'raya over there doing something of that nature - it's worth a try."

The line finally brought John and Kjersten before the young Empress. Kjersten elbowed John in the ribs and he jolted to see she was bowing slightly. John did the same, all the while thinking to himself that he was glad this custom had been done away with in Brobund. Shakara followed the customs established by the round during the Great Hope movement that all Brobundians were equal regardless of position in Government.

“Empress Aurora, on behalf of Chancellor Shakara, the Senate, and all citizens of the Commonwealth it is my great honor to bid you greetings and a joyex annum. My name is John White, of Brobund, and this is my greatest ally, Lady Kjersten.” John’s words were crisp and polite, he had rehearsed that short line a thousand times on the journey here. International Politics was a very new thing for this sixteen year old boy from Vancouver. Kjersten though he was a bit stiff; but then again she hated it when he referred to her as his ‘Greatest Ally’ rather than simply his ‘Wife.’

“Thank you so much for your hospitality Empress. We have enjoyed your countries many splendors and look forward to returning to Brobund with stories of your wonderful nation.” Kjersten realized she was beginning to sound a bit over flattering. “Please accept this gift as a token of our gratitude for your hospitality and of good tidings for your next sixteen years.

With that John withdrew the small leather pouch and removed it’s contents. The bracelet was made of pure silver, laced with lines of black iron for strength and contrast. The dark green stone centered on the mount caught the light perfectly and ignited in a burst of fire from its center. The stone was held to the mount by silver lacing in the shape of the infinity spider. It was an identical setting to the one Kjersten wore around her neck.

“Empress, this stone is one of only five like it in the greater world. It was taken from the hilt of the broadsword yielded during the defeat of Sirak. Each of the five stones have a unique characteristic. This particular stone, if you are frightened, will show you the truth of good and evil in those around you. In essence it will show you who you can trust and who you can not. Three of the other stones are scattered across Brobund, the fourth is buried in a place and time familiar only to Kjersten and I as Wyoming. Guard this stone well and it will do you a great service.” John handed the bracelet to the Empress and hoped that she could see past the fact that it would not match anything she probably ever wore. Both new diplomats gave a short bow and waited for a response from the Empress who had obviously been taken quite by surprise.

Aurora was used to weird gifts by this time; if she was surprised by anything it was the rather strange things the Brobunders were saying. Also, she had no idea how to address the young man, so she had to take a moment to gather her thoughts. "Thank you, John White, and Lady Kjersten, for this very thoughtful gift. I should like to speak to you later perhaps about the details of how this wonderful stone works. I hope you have a pleasant stay in my country, and that you enjoy my birthday party." with a smile, she put the stone aside. Her rather scientifically oriented mind was wondering, How can this thing work? Is this like Elvish 'magic' or what?

Sophia listened quietly to the conservation between Vicotira and Vethara, smiling with faint but benevolent amusement at Vicotira's blush. Not far away, Magda had lapsed into a quiet silence, not really looking at anyone, though she held the hand of her husband under the table.

With a nod, Chancellor Schlabel wiped his moustache of a dab of icing and said, "I concur with my noble Tsarainese friend, Lord Katsuma. And if I may, in international affairs one must be conscious of one's actions but without self consciousness."

John and Kjersten made one last small bow and took their leave of the Empress. The two wandered the room wondering what exactly to do next. They overheard a few conversations...nothing really notable as far as they were concerned. The didn't know anyone here and they didn't want to just barge their way into conversations that didn't include them in the first place. "Perhaps we should just go." Kjersten said.
"I'd rather not. We can learn quite a bit about the nations in this region, even if we just walk and listen."
It was a good idea. So John and Kjersten opened their ears and simply walked the ballroom taking in bits and pieces of different conversations, learning as much as they could in this rather un-orthodox method of study.

John thought most of the conversations to be mere aristocratic mumblings. He did notice a conversation between a young man and his apparent advisor. This man was quite obviously enammered on the Empress. John remembered the first time he kissed Kjersten. This young man appeared to be suffering the same response he had had. Flush skin, obviously moist and sticky palms, John could even see the artery in his neck beating ever so slightly but with a tempo unmatched by even the fastest of compositions.

Nodding to Aurora in return Lidric turns about quickly, hiding the red tinge coming accross his cheek and flees from the gaze of Aurora. As he walks he spots Devon and makes his way there, hoping to find some advice in his father's oldest friend.

walking quickly he heads towards them and smiles "Your excellency it's always good to see such a friendly face." He says quietly, a look of embarrasment running through his eyes.

"I'm quite proud of the girl, you know," Nathicana replies to her companion. "To have been through so much and come so far ... yes, quite proud. I'm certain her mother, god rest her soul, would be as well."

She keeps close to Treznor all the same, making it seem as though she just happens to be rather affectionately inclined towards the Emperor short of appearing scandalous. The fact that she does love him dearly, and any who are familiar or close with them know it, only completes the picture. As always, Lavenrunz is breathtakingly beautiful in ways at once both slightly familiar yet entirely foreign to her. And as always, given past experience, she cannot help but be reminded of a calm sea just touched by the sunrise, hiding the dangers that lay just beneath its surface. A proud and elegant nation, this - and one whom in its own way is just as dangerous as her own.

Nathi glances around at those present, matching names and faces where she can, speculating on identities where she cannot, and greeting those she knows with a pleasant smile and a subtle wave or nod. Aurora, she notes, looks as lovely as ever - radiant, even. She can't help but feel a renewed sense of pride in the young woman as she watches her meet and greet her guests, quietly observing it all from a distance and smiling quietly to herself between continued glances around the room. Situational awareness was something she had sworn never to take lightly again.

What was most surprising and pleasing was seeing Lidric in attendance for Iraqstan - there, she hoped, was the answer to many of their current problems within the alliance. One can hope, indeed. As well as pray that the sins of the father do not overshadow the son. For many, regardless of how things turn out in the end, it will be difficult to forgive or forget. She smiles warmly as the young man approaches, giving Devon's hand a gentle squeeze.

<LOS Communications - Devon>
{
<< Amazing how he's grown, isn't it? Turning into quite the impressive young man, in spite of everything. One who, perhaps has the strength and drive to settle things in his homeland, do you think?
}

"Your Highness," Peter said as he bowed his head. "A pleasure to meet you indeed. I have heard many interesting things about your nation and your peoples."

After the introductions, Peter sat back and listened to Vicotira's and Vethara's conversation. As he does so he glances back at Empress Aurora, who still seems to be receiving presents. Peter finds himself looking forward to the dance, not only to dance with Vicotira - and perhaps Sophia or even Vethara, but also for the chance to dance with the Empress. Some time with her one-on-one would go a long way towards his uncle's goal of establishing close relations with Lavenrunz. And it would bolster his own standing in his uncle's eyes.

Treznor squeezes back, then drapes his hand casually but firmly across Nathicana's waist, less for proprietary reasons and more for comfort. "You know her better than I do. It's amazing what children can do when they don't know that they can't. Then again, I wouldn't expect Joanna's child to do less. My only concern is that she's going to assume the weight of the world on her shoulders and forget she has friends to lean on."

Nathicana settles in under his touch, almost scandalously wriggling her body against him. "I don't think she'll be so bad. She gambled under Mirbach, but as you say Schlabel is much more reliable, and a better influence. Once she proves her worth to herself, she'll be a real terror."

Treznor gazes around the room noting bodies, faces, colours and insignias. His mind rapidly sorts them in terms of threat, influence and connections in that order before settling down to digest what he's observed. He reserves the rest of his attention for the lady beside him, except when the Iraqstani representative approaches.

"Lord Lidric," he says with the formal bow of peer-to-peer. When he straightens he winks. "Please, call me Devon. Your father is one of my oldest friends, and your mother was...very close to me. The last thing I want is for my closest allies to withdraw into cold diplomacy. We're family here, right Nath?"

<LOS Communications - Nathicana> {
>> I think he's got what it takes. But Carlos was quite lucid in his early days. You didn't know him before he pulled his fascist card on us. His father was apparently very similar. I wonder if your sister might have some insights on their heritage?
}

OOC: Come on, Syskeyia, we're running behind schedule here! :p

Justinian smiled at Sukothai. "Well, as you can see, I'm enjoying retirement! Sort of..." He laughed. "In any case, you have to admit this isn't your average diplomatic summit." Justinian's face slowly became more grave. "If you want to discuss the war, I'm all yours..."

"Sure." the First Consul looked around the room. Nobody's looking here. Good. "Things are looking up, but there's much still to be done. Vegana's agreed to a cease-fire and, God willing, they'll withdraw from Bendecitia. As for St. Peter Claver Island..."

He darted his eyes around the place, then drew closer. "..Not so good. There, we've got two problems: One, there's about a million-and-a-half Syskeyian refugees, starving and desperately in need of help, in ships headed toward Guam. Second, Eurusean and Reich forces are, for all we know, in full control of the island. Lord knows what they've done."

A sigh. "Perhaps we could discuss such things later, in a more secure environment?"

<insert response here>

"Changing subjects," Sukothai regained his posture. "What's been going on in Aperin these days?"

OOC:Don't worry, Excalbia, I'll get to you. :) Also, when would be a good time to give Aurora her present(s)?

Felina nodded to the Chamberlain, and took a step towards Aurora, standing in front of the fabled and young Empress of the Lavenrunzians. With a wry smile in her face, she produced a long, big hat like one of a musketeer from her back, with a beautiful and exotic peacock feather attached to it.

Holding it in one hand, Felina started to bow, moving the gracious and funny hat in front of her as her body and neck both bent with a smooth movement towards the Empress in the traditional aelosian custom.

"It is an honor, and a pleasure to meet you, and to offer you the gift that my friend and Princess, Aliria nos Elurín, wants to present such a promising and wonderful ruler as yourself, Your Majesty, Lady Aurora of Sachsenhausen and of every man and woman in Lavenrunz", said Felina, following the classic and typical aelosian etiquette. "I am Felina nos Daeros, and I have come from the distant lands of the sindarin elves, the Empire of Aelosia, to congratulate you in the celebration of your 16th birthday. It is said that you are a friend of the elves, or at least that you aren't our enemy, and respect our ways", Felina said, conscious about the meaning of her words and being really careful about her choosing of them.

"Please let me explain you first about this gift Princess Aliria thought you would appreciate. It is not a shiny gift, although it is colorful, she said. It is not easy to use, but can help you in many ways, she said. It is a gift that can think, and share thoughts with others, she also said. Even more, it is a gift that will take any effort or sacrifice to make your living a more pleasurable and nice existence. It is a gift with free will, although its actions will be forever linked to your wishes and orders, your Majesty. It is a gift designed and directed to you to present you the beauty of life according the aelosian way of seeing it, and to present you with a fun and fresh optic of life in every day of your life as a ruler", started Felina to say, daring to stare directly at Aurora's eyes, clearly a breach of etiquette according Aelosian etiquette, yet allowed in really important and decisive issues and conversations.

Felina now placed a hand inside her big hat, and closing her eyes, she started to sing a childish song in her native language, a song that was a little simple, even childish, but had its beauty just in that simplicity, the simplicity of a child's happiness, the simplicity of a soft breeze caressing the grass of a prairie in a warm spring's afternoon, the simplicity of a true sympathy's smile. She finally withdrew her hand from the inside of her hat, and revealed a wonderful and distinct flowers made from the purest crystal, as clear and translucent as if the flowers were crafted from sculpted ice, continuing her song.

Then she opened her eyes, or to be more exactly, she displaced her eyelids away to show her eyes in a violent movement of just her pupils. And her song changed. Her voice roared like thunder, like a beast running wild through his natural environment after being caged for years, like a warrior showing his defiance. The new aspect of her "Wraithbone Song" was an epic and regal, almost threatening without being delicate. Her voice turned proud and aloof, distant and noble.

And then the magic of her voice started to work, and the glass flowers in her hand quickly shifted, warped and changed, turning into a miniature copy of Thirty Camelias, the Aurora's leopard bodyguard, with the exception that the body of the little cat was as translucent and transparent as the flowers that gave birth to it. The miniature looked at its original as amazed, and then placed itself in front of the true leopard, moving its tail as overwhelmed with happiness, emitting a tiny, and daring little roar.

Felina ended her song right away, her eyes still transfixed on the little copy of Thirty Camelias, and smiled. "As I said before to you, Your Wondrous Majesty Aurora of the Lavenrunzians, I am Felina nos Daeros, Minstrel and Bone Singer of the Sindarin Empire, and Princess Aliria offers you my services and company for the rest of our lives, or until you decide to dismiss me. I swear to dedicate my art and my skill to both your entertainment and needs, as I swear to dedicate my life at your service and be loyal, obedient and steadfast to you in every circumstance. I am you gift, Empress Aurora, a gift that want to be your friend and serve you to the end. And I wonder if you would accept me here to honor the offering of my Princess?"

Princess Letheran Wasterin of the few surviving members of the Royal Family of Aerion arrived very late to the party, perhaps due to the fact of the events transpiring in her nation. Her features were a mixture of what appared to be Arabic and Native American, making her very beautiful with flowing black hair. She had the features of a model, as many in her family did, it was considered a tradition of the men of the Royal House of Wasterin to marry beautiful women. Her grandfather was uncle to the now comatic King, but was long dead, and her father had also died in rather mysterious circumstances. She herself had to leave the country as quickly as possible. Now she was safe at this party, attempting to look regal and warm as possible. She wore a beautiful shimmering white dress that was low cut in the back and cross-tied designed by one of the top fashion designers in Aerion. Around her neck was a fine twinkling diamond necklace of such exquisteness it would appear to be a million dollars. She was the image of the decadence and luxury of the Aerion elite, though her life was not safe at the moment...

With a smile of welcome, Aurora received the elf woman, and waited to hear what she would say and do. Listening to the song of the strange elf, Aurora felt a longing mingled with wariness. How strange and wonderful was this music, evocative and yet haunting by turns, and how much the moods changed with each part sung! Bone Singer..that was an intriguing title, and she could not help but say, "Your pardon if this offends, my responding first with this but I must ask...what is a Bone Singer? And why are you called that?"

Archduke Carl felt sad hearing this song, for it reminded him of the beautiful Aliria, and what might have been. He sipped his wine but suddenly it tasted like ashes. He realized everything had since that sorrowful day when she had left abruptly. So much had Mirbach damaged and destroyed for his wicked ambitions...

So enraptured were the courtiers that the lady from Aerion was almost not noticed, till a "ha h'm" sound caught the attention of the under-chamberlain nearest the door. The officer who had escorted her in bowed to her, and was greatly looking forward to watching her enter the hall. He felt a bit intoxicated, really. The under-chamberlain bowed and whispered, "This way, Excellency."