More of the Imperial Court was arriving. Princes David Obed, Prince Isaiah Davenant, and members of their family. Prince David was a strikingly handsome man with raven hair and an olive tanned face, slim and with an air of swagger about him.
“Look at Prince David strutting, and for what?” said General Unwerth, noting his arrival with contempt. “The man who threw away a kingdom for a whore.”
“He’s a good soldier, though. Not a brilliant one, but a good one,” said General Hagar. At Unwerth’s look, the Butcher of Stonehaven said, “Don’t give me that look, Your Excellency, my dear sir. If he were not, I’d have disgraced him and sent him home.”
“Ah, speaking of good soldiers….” said Colonel Count Falk, nodding.
“That’s General Zaher, the fat swine,” said Colonel Weber.
“You’re new to the West, Colonel,” said Hagar with a faint smile. “That fat swine is one of the best commanders in this hemisphere, and no fool. Ignore his foul cigars. General Zaher!” he exclaimed, approaching. Hagar was a tough looking muscular man, who had pacified the Union and much of the Lesser Diols with his ruthless tactics. “I don’t know if you know me, General Abishai Hagar, and I hope you know these gentlemen--General Unwerth, our Minister of Defense, Count Falk, commander of the Imperial Guard, Admiral esarhaddon, the commander of our naval squadron, and Colonel Weber, who commands our famous 14th Hussars. You are welcome here, sir, it is a pleasure to salute so famous a soldier.” He snapped his fingers, and a slim, naked girl painted with orchids appeared and presented glasses of cognac.
Meanwhile, Princess Desdemona and her best friend, Amelia Hanneghan, had entered the grand hall in the company of the Dowager Queen Rebecca. The Dowager was still relatively young, and because she had a naturally elegant slim figure appeared almost girlish at a distance, though up close delicate crow’s feet and laugh lines appeared.
Both girls were remarkably attractive, their ball gowns baring their arms but the rest hidden by soft folds of blue in one case, red the other, subtly hinting at healthy young curves. Desdemona was an eighteen year old beauty with long brunette hair that flowed to the small of her back. Her five feet ten inch body was slender and curvy and well proportioned. Hazel eyes sparkled at everyone who met her and her face was beautiful with a perky nose, luscious full lips and an angular chin.
Amelia was every bit as gorgeous as her best friend. She was an inch taller than Desdemona with long black hair and green eyes but, other than that, she could have been mistaken for Desdemona’s twin. Their shapes were identical as were the basic contours of their faces. They were both unusually tall for Baran girls.
Not far off, their father, Vice-Admiral Prince Isaiah Davenant, paused to nod a few people he recognized and accepted a glass of champagne.
“They are an fine couple,” considered Parminder while she jabbed at various food items and plopped them unceremoniously on her plate. She was not a chubby woman and still maintained a high metabolism in her early thirties that gave her a healthy appetite and the envious ability not to gain weight regardless of how much she consumed. “A little of this,” Parminder sung quietly to herself, “And a little of th...” Reaching for some tomatoes, and not fully paying attention to her surroundings, Parminder bumped into a woman standing near the buffet tables and grunted out a loud “Oompf” as her plate went crashing to the floor, scattering her tasty prizes across the floor like the poor meatball in that old children’s song she annoyed her mum and dad with as a child.
“Pardon me,” her voice apologetic and her dark cheeks flushed with embarrassment, “I am afraid that I have been terribly clumsy and have interrupted your pleasant evening with an unpleasant intrusion.” Parminder then bowed slightly and continued, “Please forgive my inattentiveness, I am Parminder Raj and if there is anything that I may do to rectify my error, please let me know...”
Several others nearby sprang to life, startled by the noise. Lieutenant Gore and Lieutenant Shadrach hurried to make sure the guest was alright. “I’m sure it’s fine, there are servants for this sort of thing, could happen to anyone,” said Gore pleasantly. “Parminder Raj? Forgive me, madame, I’m not familiar with the title…I am Lieutenant Gore, an officer in the Navy of the Holy Empire…”
A nude young man painted with green lily pads and white flowers knelt and another approached with an upright dust pan and a broom, while a young woman painted with roses and green stems and petals knelt with a small mop. Their expressions were calm. Yet another, a young woman with a long piled braid around her delicate head and a key pattern painted around her bare midriff said, “Excellency, there are many distractions. We have the matter in hand.”
On the move was Captain Royce Rackham in his dark brown army uniform and red beret. He was somewhat handsome. Enough for women to call cute but not very talkative. Rackham sidled up to Sarah Wendt. He was next to her, a hand behind his back and the other holding a glass of beer at his waist while his green eyes studied the crowd. “Madam.” He said simply in greeting without looking at her.
“I was searching for someone else who seemed out of place to bond with. I think I found her.” Rackham said in a low voice then looked at her with a soft smile. He then took his eyes off and went back to looking at the crowd. After taking a sip of beer he turned towards Wendt again and stretched out a hand. “Captain Royce Rackham, 71st Noviteran Hinterlanders.”
“Oh,” said the woman, turning to face him, “I’m Lieutenant-Colonel Sarah Wendt, Intelligence Corps. It’s very nice to meet you, Captain, you come from a famous regiment. And I’m afraid I am a little out of place. Right now, I am attached to Procurements but I’m out of my depth, I do confess it.” she bit into a carrot carved into a peony. “Are there others from your unit attending?”
Elsewhere Folais face lit up to see Geta. “Mister Geta! My man!” He exclaimed happily and rapidly closed the distance to give Geta an embrace. One arm around Geta’s shoulders, he turned to face Giselle who was wondering who this man was. “This is my daughter! Giselle. She’s been living in Heselory working in digital marketing. But she’s moving to Fineberg so we can spend more time together and I’m thrilled! Now that you mention it, yeah she’s going to be applying for graduate school at University of Fineberg.”
“Giselle, meet Minister Hosidius Geta. He’s Minister of Foreign Affairs for New Edom so we see each other a lot.” Folais introduced Giselle then took his arm off Geta.
Giselle stepped forward and extended a hand. “Oh, nice to meet you Mister Geta.” She said warmly in a very good Roman Latin. Her Noviteran accent was very moderate. Folais, being an international man, made sure of that. “Thank you but I don’t know if you could really call me a scholar. I chose an easy major after all.” There was a shyness to her. Giselle was not unfamiliar with being social. In fact, she was normally a very outgoing and confident girl who was well aware of the effect her looks had on others. This was different however, as she was not use to being around so many powerful men and women. Although Geta’s politeness and apparent delight made her relax a bit. “So...Mister Geta, how do you like working with my father? I imagine you two put in many long hours to hammer out deals together.” She said, paying him a high complement in the Noviteran fashion.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Folais,” said Geta, bowing gallantly. He tolerated Folais touching him a few seconds before deftly dodging away to reposition himself.
“Your father is a dedicated public servant, I could not ask for a better partner in negotiations on the matters we have been engaged in,” he replied, glancing at the bigger man a moment before looking back at her. “Marketing! Now that is a subject that has caused a late hour on many occasions. I am sure you have covered the difficulties of marketing across cultures!”
“As for attending graduate studies in New Edom,” he said with evident sincerity, “I think it is a good idea. As you see, New Edom is a very centerpiece for development and new markets, for building new infrastructure and preparing for the future. It fairy dazzles us, to be frank. Where your country has been in a steady increase of technological approaches and innovation for many decades, ours has had a shocking and dazzling ascent of less than a decade. Why, you know, this hotel is a deception….” he lowered his voice looking at her sagely. “In many parts of the Holy Empire, people still live as though it was the 19th Century. The contrast at times makes us all dizzy.”
