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Sister Elzibeth glances at Princess Marie and shakes her head. "Oh, no, we couldn't possibly remove ourselves from the war at this stage..."
"Don't be silly, Elzibeth!" Marie steps in front of the lens. "We would be delighted to come aboard the Savoir, Lady Engel. I look forward to meeting you."
"Very good. I will expect you shortly." The voxscreen turns dark.
Elzibeth pointedly turns her head toward Marie. "What are you doing? We can't quit the battle now!"
Marie is already beckoning a servant to ready her shuttle. "The battle will go on without us! Think what having access to a ship of that size could mean. Not just the transportation, but access to goods, to information..." Princess Marie stops. She is beginning to sound like Kitty.
Elzibeth shakes her head once more. "I hope you're right."
An hour later, Marie is being served a sampling of desserts by a man old enough to be her grandfather half a dozen times over. "My confectioner is legendary," Violette confides. "Most of the servants aboard the Savoir have been in the family for generations." The Rogue Trader dabs a tiny silver pick at a row of candied bird's hearts. "It would be a great loss to our house if he was allowed to die. Isn't that right, Sergei?"
A wheezy moan escapes the ancient man's chest. "Yes, Lady Engel."
Marie smiles and takes another polite nibble. The princess glances about the room and is suddenly glad she did not have to play host. Compared to the opulence of the Savoir, Marie's own palace more closely resembled that of her subjects. Standing in the far corners of the tasting room are more servants at the beck of Violette than Marie has in her entire palace.
