“Jacque, do you know what I hate more than sunshine?” The almost musical voice of the Liverian noble woman was measured and calm. She stood beautiful and composed at six foot flat and in the leather combat jerkin that she was encouraged to wear by the wolf-whistles of a few drunkards, the evening before. They had probably not been aware that the woman was actually a member of the newly created Queen’s Blades, or that she could have killed them very easily, were she not representing a prince. Such a pain, that little entitlement had become.

“Cucumber, m’lady?” Jacques’ voice, in contrast, was monotonous and controlled. Perhaps he had grown bored of being a servant for the Le’roux noble, or more likely it was because the pair had not been so fortunate as to have a good rest for nearly a week. The travelling had been uncomfortable at best.

“No Jacque…well yes, but that is beside the point. What I hate more than sunshine is all this damnable walking. Couldn’t they have provided a coach?” The tone of her voice had a genuine whine, but that was about the only thing genuine about her complaint. As a vampire, she struggled to feel fatigue at the best of times. It came with the whole ‘undead monster’ territory. Add that with the fact she’d travelled at her own pace, beside a man-servant who was shading her with a parasol, no less, and you begin to realise how unfatigued she was.

The reason she complained was a simple one. Basic court etiquette demanded that you have one fake weakness on display; one glaring ‘fault’ that an opponent might look to exploit or that a person might characterise you with. Take the whining, for instance. It portrayed the dark skinned woman as a creature of frailty: A damsel in distress, if you will. People would underestimate her, some might even strive to protect her. That presented her with an advantage. It was the same as in duelling. You present a fake weakness and someone is likely to take the bait. Deception, used correctly, is worth ten bodyguards or all the plate mail you can fit on a person. Which, considering her thin frame, was not that much.

Alicia let out a measured yawn as she contemplated the meeting ahead. She would be greeting with the fascinating matriarchs of the Renaltan kingdom. One of them, Kouri was of great interest to the vampire. She was rumoured to be a great many things: a ravishing beauty a competent swordsman, and a mage to boot. The other one was equally fascinating, although Alicia’s interest was a bit dampened by the knowledge of lycanthropy. She suspected that the second queen would have a healthy contempt for the Liverian noble.

Out of the blue, something took to interrupting the peace. The sky was darkened as a flock of ravens: A number in the thousands, no less, took to swarming towards the town. If ever there was a bad omen…

As if to compound the omen, a figure was rushing towards the group. She informed the gathered blades of an attack on their destination, and Alicia let out an open sigh. Jacque, who had been silent for as long as she had, could tell that tension was mounting in Alicia’s muscles. The tension was like a razor’s edge, the razor being that of an excited Alicia. She was looking to be introduced to a test on her very first mission for the Queens of Renalta. What a titillating concept!

“Jacque, hand me my weapons.” Obliging, Jacque handed the woman the parasol, careful not to let a ray of sunlight drift past the provided shade, before he advanced towards the donkey that had been trailing behind the pack. No self-respecting noble could be expected to carry her own luggage, after all. She had ordered Jacque to acquire her a weight bearing beast: and he’d returned with Beatrix.

Off of Beatrix, Jacque withdrew two long, thin bundles. He carefully unwrapped the two bundles and handed Alicia both weapons, which were swiftly looped into the sides of her belt. Two rapiers, one of steel and one of silver, both as finely crafted as money could buy. It took her a minute to be prepared and in that time, a good number of individuals had abandoned their position in the pack of Queen’s blades and left for various locations. Spotting one man in mid run, Alicia decided to follow after him, parasol still in hand as she half-jogged, half-sprinted towards the watch tower. She felt the light breeze pick up as her pace did, and the feel of wind touching against her neck was as delightful as a lover’s. A broad smile formed on her lips, revealing an elongated fang.

Alicia arrived much at the same time as 	Dirge began to speak. Her attention was solely on him and the way he spoke, not on the attacks put against the bomb makers themselves. [i]”people certainly like to rush things here. How boring. Even logic dictates that an attack like this should have been coordinated with a distraction for the orc.”[/i] Her silver eyes visibly rolled as she stopped between the orc and the archer: after he’d fired the first shot, of course. She cleared her throat and adjusted the parasol slightly: She was less-than-happy that the building provided so little shade, It would prove disadvantageous for her, should the orc manage to break the Parasol.

“Dirge, was it? I apologise for my rude associates: they clearly lack class. I am Lady Alicia Le’roux, member of the Queen’s blade and quite possibly an opponent of yours…” Her fingers rested on the pommel of her steel rapier: ready to draw the blade as soon as the orc made a movement towards her. She waited for him to finish doing whatever he would in response to Dread Fang and Kasim’s attacks. “…Although I must ask, is that really what you want? You may be in the sworn service of one James Moriarty: but not all service is sworn willingly. Tell me, Dirge. Do you truly wish to fight and possibly die for this Moriarty fellow? Would he do the same for you?” She withdrew the rapier from her hip with a practiced flair. It was all for show, of course, but it served to demonstrate at least some of her talent to Dirge, before he made the vital decision. “Answer with words or answer with your steel. Either way, I am eager to hear your response.” Her lips curled into a sultry smile as she stared into Dirge’s eyes. To meet a creature who fascinated her so quickly. What an interesting day, this was turning into.