Alexia Veritas's page

"I do swear, Rabek. Why must you be so difficult?" Alexia says to the pacified mercenary as they depart from the League box. In spite of the staff's warning to remain seated, the duo make their way down the corridor. "If you only knew how to behave, I would never have had to resort to such crude measures."

Alexia glowers miserably at Alice, a frown now resting on her features.

"Come now, child," she says in an admonishing tone, stroking the terrified girl's face with a finger, "Is this not what you wanted? I saw the way you look at her. Your excitement from just being in her presence. Look at her go! Your precious idol is now in her element. Surely you have at least half of Cassandra's mettle."

"Well that most certainly was not the ending I came here for," Alexia muses calmly, seemingly oblivious to the reality of the violence they had just witnessed. "But I am afraid it will have to do. I am on a very tight schedule." Delicately placing her wineglass on her seat's armrest, she lifts herself off her seat and offers her hand to Darkov, who takes it without hesitation. "It was a pleasure, Cassandra. Perhaps we can do this again sometime. "

"The more the merrier," Alexia says sweetly, smirking at Cassie's last comment. I wonder if it would be possible for her to make him any angrier...? she ponders curiously, feeling the rage bubbling out of the man's very being. Manipulating his behavior at this point would be of no use - total pacifism would have to do. Not that it matters anymore.

"I am afraid not," Alexia answers Cassie, a frown of dissatisfaction besmirching her features. It was not what she had been hoping to hear. Nonetheless, she leans back in her chair and sips the last of her wine. In response to Ysillith's question, the princess smiles lazily, casting a sidelong glance at Darkov. Oh, surely that would make you unhappy, she thinks sarcastically. The Brigadier stirs for but a moment, as though in response. "Kill him? Why bother?" she answers, offering a shrug, "I have far better use for a toy than I do for a corpse. If he falls out of line, then I break him as I did the doll. It is as simple as that."

Alexia waves her hand over her head casually; the same manservant from before almost immediately arrives on cue, holding another platter of drinks for everyone. As she claims her second glass, she watches with a curious expression as Cassie fiddles with the Serv-Bot. Sending a message to someone? Not that it matters. She continues to watch as it moves on to make the delivery, before abruptly being confiscated. Well, that's that, then.

"Oh, I do wonder when the show will start!" she then complains loudly, making no effort to hide her over-exaggeration.

"Indeed," Alexia simply responds, only briefly regarding whatever implement Ysillith slipped out of sight. She could not tell whether the woman was trying to patronize her or not, but she did not take kindly to her tone. Not that it matters. Her words ring true, after all... She takes a moment to sip from her glass, before revisiting her discussion with Cassie.

"Just last week, I received the most remarkable of presents for my birthday," she tells her, leaning on her armrest. Yet again she taps on her chin repeatedly, as though remembering something so recent were a chore. "It was certainly a delightful surprise. I received this life-sized doll, that looked just like me! Every detail was absolutely perfect; it was absolutely perplexing! It could even move and speak!" The excitement in her voice gradually dies, her smile soon fading into a pout. "It is a shame I broke the poor thing. I should have known better - it was only a toy, after all. So strange that Baron Von Ryuko would go through all that trouble and then send this man to kill me. Why bother giving me such a beautiful gift in the first place?"

Alexia smiles and nods politely as Ysillith speaks, showing no indication that she objects to the woman's less than polite behavior. Even with her hands tied she tries her best to absorb as much information as she can from the unfamiliar captain. I have never heard this woman's name before, she contemplates, taking care to dedicate another part of her mind to keeping Darkov on a leash - even the precaution posed a substantial risk. This is rare indeed. It makes her interesting... and dangerous. She lets out a small huff of frustration. If only she didn't have her hands tied! Perhaps then reading her would be possible. No matter... it's more fun this way.

"Oh? You must be quite skilled then," she remarks playfully, looking the captain in the eye, "Have you ever considered employment as a privateer?"

"A cortex bomb?" Alexia says with a light gasp, covering her mouth with her hand in exaggerated indignation. A small explosive hardwired to the central nervous system, she recalls quietly, tenderly biting her lower lip, The trigger mechanisms are laced to specific nerve endings, with enough precision to manipulate the exact circumstances under which the bomb would detonate. Thinking this over briefly, a smile creeps its way onto her face. “I can count the number of people with access to that kind of technology on one hand," she remarks, extending four slender fingers to emphasize her point, “But only one of them sent me a birthday gift last week…”

The princess’ train of thought is interrupted by the sudden return of Drake Khoth - she smiles with delight upon seeing the handsome celebrity. It recedes however, when she sees that Ysillith is accompanying him. “A captain, you say?” she says with a curious tone, looking the tall woman up and down. Her unfamiliarity brought on an uncharacteristic feeling of uneasiness. “It is a pleasure to meet you, then. What kind of ships do you commandeer?” Her question is politely asked, though even the royal is unable to fully hide her scrutiny.

There is something strange about her, Alexia decides, a sudden feeling of apprehension welling up. Feeling a sharp twinge of anger rise in the Brigadier General, she quickly tempers her concentration, quelling the man’s rebelling mind. A will like his took everything in her power to suppress – she could not afford to let herself be distracted. The conclusion made the princess uncomfortable; she would be able to act on her hunch, otherwise.

"Hm, that sounds like an excellent idea," the princess says with a nod, raising her hands and clapping them once. In a matter of seconds a servant enters through the velvet curtains, holding a platter of wineglasses. He first presents it to Alexia, then to Cassie, and finally Darkov. "He will not be needing one," she tells the sharply-dressed manservant, who simply nods and takes his leave. "I do confess, the service here is quite excellent. I will have to give my compliments to the owners of this establishment after the show."

As Alexia holds up her glass, a pair of small, metallic orbs emerge from the voluminous sleeve of her fur coat. Floating through the air, they position themselves around the wineglass. One orbits around the rim of several times, as the other orbits the entirety of the glass lengthwise. The entire process takes no more than five seconds, after which the orbs slip back into her sleeve. Nonetheless, the princess sighs in annoyance, her face lightens up with delight when she is finally able to take a sip.

"Now where we again? Ah yes, I remember now," she states, despite it being abundantly clear that she never forgot to begin with. "Despite my efforts, I was unable to make dear Rabek divulge his employer's identity to me. I can only go so far without breaking a man... and I suppose he must have had some kind of fail safe planned, anyway." She pauses for a moment, taking another sip of wine as she contemplates the matter. "There is no shortage of people who wish to see me dead, even amongst those in the League. Though I suppose it is a tad strange that Darkov came to me alone, rather than with his mongrels." Frowning for a moment, she looks Cassie in the eyes, narrowing her own slightly.

"Do you perhaps have any insight on this matter? The two of you do seem to have a quarrel of some sort. Not many would dare hold such scorn for a war hero... but that simply means you know what Rabek Darkov truly is."

The princess pouts profusely as Drake stands to take his leave, watching with mild interest as he leaves the box. "Your company really has its way of leaving you," she comments, slight disappointment evident in her voice. That's a shame... I was hoping we could all have a bit of fun later on. Looking to Cassie, she smiles again, giving as polite of a shrug as possible. "No matter. We can have plenty of fun, just the two of us." She plays with an idle strand of hair for a moment before speaking again, returning to the original subject. "Ah yes, your question."

The noble turns her head, glancing at Darkov for a moment. Seemingly oblivious to their conversation, he continues to look forward, as though show had already started. Nodding with satisfaction, Alexia then turns back to Cassie and leans in again. "Well you see, believe it or not, this gentleman here tried to kill me earlier. I did not fancy that at all. Not one bit. So..." She turns to the passive Brigadier, running a finger along his jawline. "I simply said to him, 'Rabek, my dear. What are you doing? You are supposed to be escorting me to the opera. You promised!'" Patting the man's cheek, she looks at Cassie yet again, continuing her casual tone. "And then he remembered his manners and obligations, got dressed all proper, and then we were on our merry way."

"Though I must say, it has taken a considerably greater effort to keep him pacified since we arrived. He must really not like you at all. Not one bit," she says, tapping her chin again, "All because of a dance, you say? He did not step all over your feet, did he?"

The League-reserved box is parterre 1.

"You do not need to flatter me," Alexia says with a hint of annoyance in her tone, before casting a glance up at the mitte box with a scowl, "Look at her up there, as still as a statue. But I know that she is looking down at us all - all of her kind do. Do they truly believe themselves to be gods?" She shakes her head skeptically, her long black hair swaying side to side. She could not deny her envy, but she could most certainly shroud it with disgust. Looking to her guests, she smiles wistfully. "My apologies, it is not appropriate for royalty to fawn over others. After all, she does look rather fabulous. And I am happy you chose to join me." She takes a seat, Darkov sitting at her left. The princess pats on the seat to her right, an open invitation to Cassie and Drake.

"There is now the question of why you chose to join me," she states matter-of-factually, before leaning into the arm of her seat, bringing her face closer to Cassie's. "I do not need a third eye to see that you and dear Rabek here have had daggers in your eyes for one another since we all met. Is there something that you should perhaps tell me?"

Despite her seeming efforts to make her questions covert, her words are more than loud enough for Drake and Darkov to hear. And yet, the Brigadier General remains calmly seated. The man is strangely aloof, his eyes directed towards the stage as though it were the only thing that mattered at the moment.

Alexia looks on with an amused smirk as Duchess Montresor drags her latest victim off into the shadows of her box. The look of dread on Lord Ritter's face was one that was all too familiar. As the two nobles disappear from view, she brushes some a strand of hair away from her face, before looking to Cassie and Drake. "I heard that the old Duchess murdered her last husband," she says to them in a conspirational tone, "Apparently Duke Fortunado liked his women a little younger... and perhaps a little thinner." With the interruption out of the way, she moves onward again. "It is as I said - perhaps she is what Lord Ritter deserves. I am sure that he can satisfy her needs."

Within a few moments the princess and Darkov stop, having reached their box. "Ah, we are here. And with time to spare, I suspect." Looking to her two guests of honor, she speaks. "This is your last chance to run away, I am afraid." Sticking her tongue out at them, she turns to enter with the Brigadier, with or without them.

"A knight, hm? I am afraid I do not get the joke," Alexia says, tapping her chin with a finger. The princess clearly does not mind Cassie's close proximity. "Though, that little ditty reminds me of Lord Ritter here. From the things I have heard, it does present a rather accurate summation of his life story. The important parts of it, at least."

The small group continues toward the box corridors, approaching a flight of stairs.

"Privacy? Nonsense!" Alexia replies in earnest, resting her hand on her chest, "Some say art is a personal experience, but I prefer it when more than one person can appreciate it together. And besides, some of us can afford to be generous." The tail of her coat nearly sweeping the ground as she turns away, she smiles at the three aristocrats. "You do not have to join us, of course. I am not so crass as to present an ultimatum." With an exaggerated pout, she adds, "But I would appreciate the company."

Looking to the wary Brigadier, she smirks, having thoroughly enjoyed his inexplicable discomfort. Taking his arm in both of her own, she heads off, with or without the others. "Come, let us explore the sensorium..."