Discontinued Private A Hawk and Rabbit between the Sun and Moon

[Lady N]

Cruise Ship: Eien no Taiyō

A moonlit night.
Aboard the Eternal Sun.

Life was full of contradictions like that. A world where Chelsea was wrapped in such a cursed game like Terrasphere, but still, no matter how little she cared for it. Had to be a Nexon as well.

Not the "Always on the Forefront" type either. Which was what Chelsea had held great pride in and still does even with the mega-corporation snatched away from her. No... it was the more obligatory well-to-do affairs that also came with the territory. Her upbringing was a mixed bag of learning technology and business from her father and the great academy he created, to also being groomed as the perfect lady (or as her aunt had pressured her), to be the perfect Japanese lady.

The tradition was important, and the woman's place was clear. This created a dual skillset for the young Nexon, one she wanted, and the other forced. However, it wasn't like she didn't at least somewhat enjoy the singing lessons. Although no one would ever hear those come out of her mouth.

Sometimes, one needed to mingle with a certain crowd to hear the right things. The right rumors, make the right connections. This was something her father did well. She not so much. It's not like she was nervous or felt out of place, or felt like she would rather be designing or planning a new venture. No, it was nothing like that!

And of course, it wasn't because there was a killer videogame she needed to be playing. Tsk stupid to even think such things!

So tonight, Chelsea R Nexon was aboard a very luxurious vessel. "Eien no Taiyō" A ship owned by an extremely powerful Japanese billionaire that had once known her father. He was unfortunately very old and barely spoke to anyone anymore. Although he still called her his "Chīsana Usagi" when they greeted.

After an hour or so of using all of her energy up trying to be personable. Chelsea did what she did best. She sulked her way to a corner of the ballroom and held a small glass in her hand of whatever drink they were serving she didn't even pay attention over her own thoughts.

Chelsea wondered if she could learn anything about Nexus here, or anyone who knew the devs of Terrapshere and only talked to people of a certain class. Or information the VRSA had. Anything...

Sigh... her ability to afford this was also not what it once was. She had a budget and good investment trades or business deals would only help so much now that she had the name of "the princess that lost her castle" sort to speak.

Perhaps this was a waste of time. Her aunt would be proud of her appearance if nothing else...

@Darko Ljubicic

 

[Darko Ljubicic]

Miroslav, who had dressed sharply for the occasion, was speaking with yet another CEO, that time of an entertainment company, as he was holding a wine glass on his left hand. To an outsider, the meeting seemed really cordial, as was the atmosphere of this grand meeting of the elite of all aspects of the business world. But to some of the people who attended this ball, including Miroslav himself, this was actually a battleground, and the first one who compromises, loses hard and might not even earn the right to attend a ball like this the next time it would happen.

This was always the case for Miroslav, ever since he had been brushing elbows with elite businessmen, to secure his rise from a humble restauranteur, to the mighty conglomerate that is the Milosevic Group. He had always been aggressive on his methods to wealth, had been involved in the rise and fall of many a fad, and always cashing out on the exact right time. As the Milosevic Group had grown from selling foodstuffs to becoming one of the greatest conglomerates in Serbia and extending its reach beyond its former headquarters in Belgrade, Miroslav still made sure that his activities were almost quiet while he was still paying the right taxes to ensure that no one will know what he was up to. But the elite of course knew his existence among the youngest billionaires of the age, and only a select few knew his tendencies. That, while Miroslav had a serene and cute face that seemed that it could do no wrong, he was actually a wolf in sheep's clothing. And Miroslav would welcome those criticisms whenever those reached his ears, because in return, Miroslav could only regard them as leeches who had stalled the progress of humanity for decades.

Miroslav had concluded the conversation with the CEO of the entertainment company, and managed to secure a lucrative deal for the sponsorship of his soft drink company for one of the concerts that would be going to be held in Belgrade. This would be a great opportunity for Miroslav to show that his naturally-flavored soft drinks would be the best to drink to celebrate any party or even just to unwind while listening to good music. Of course this would not be the best drink for gatherings like this; only good wine would be served in these gatherings, and even his mass-produced wines, however excellent they were, would never match the quality and taste of artisanal ones like the one that he was drinking right now.

But anywhere he went, he could not keep his eyes away from what seemed to be the belle of the ball: the daughter of the Nexon family (@Lady N) that had been one of the greats in the business world. The patriarch of the family, the CEO of the Nexus Corp., went gone instantly and after that, a huge war among stockholders had erupted. That much was known after one of the stockholders decided to retire and sell all of his stocks to Miroslav, who had been monitoring the situation from afar. That situation had always been a cautionary tale for Miroslav, and that was why he did not decide to take up suitors for the time being. If the Milosevic Group would descend into infighting like what had happened at Nexus, it would mean that all of what Miroslav had been riding the tides of business for would be in naught. Now it seemed that this scion of the Nexon family was building her own ventures, or might have built it already, and it seemed to be related to the VR space; and Miroslav found it suspicious to say the least. At the time when VR development ground to a halt because of the Terrasphere fiasco, or, as it should be emphasized, the VRSA's bungling of affairs in the VR space that had worsened the fiasco; there was one person who decided to brave the tides and delve into a serious research on the VR space while it was still heavily regulated. Miroslav was reminded of that instance in the tavern where he might have realized the nature of Terrasphere as one petite woman had inculcated it into his mind. Or was that woman in the tavern and the woman in this ball the same person all along? There was only one way to find out.

He then moved towards the woman, who, from being the belle of the ball, had become another wallflower all that same night. It seemed that she was also a introvert loner just like him, and so he did not push his chances yet, as he only took up position at the wall not that far from her, just drinking wine and partaking in some finger food after finishing the wine as he then left the position temporarily. After taking up another glass of wine, he then returned at the same position, and then, after one sip of the wine and a long pause, while watching the other people conduct their conversations, he then turned to the woman. "Sometimes it is a chore to talk to such 'prestigious' people in the art of business. I think you also share the same feeling." To suss her out, Miroslav said those words not in the characteristic soft-spoken way that Miroslav had always conducted, but in the satirical yet romantic way that his alter ego in Terrasphere, Darko Ljubicic, would always conduct himself.

 

[Lady N]

Cruise Ship: Eien no Taiyō

Chelsea held her glass close to her lips as she eyed a couple that chatted. They seemed particularly close for a social gathering like this. Then again, that was the act many here had mastered. Strange how it contrasted to the way players changed their persona's in Terrapshere. Either way, Chelsea was not one of those. Her personality never really changed... did it?

"Sometimes it is a chore to talk to such 'prestigious' people in the art of business. I think you also share the same feeling."

Her glass lowered as she was shaken, but not stirred, from her thoughts.

A man she had recognized from her time in Nexus Academy. He was one of the prime examples the school used to incentivize students.

Miroslav Milosevic.

Yeesh, talk about a slap in the face., and was he calling her out as well? Urgh.

"....Not at all. This is a wonderful party. I would not miss it for the world."

Her face hardened behind the makeup she wore.

"I don't know how you came to such a ridiculous idea."

Looking at him as she sipped her drink and did her best to hide her frustrations. Chelsea would do the correct thing and greet him properly.

" Mr. Milosevic? Your reputation precedes you."

She couldn't help but be somewhat passive-aggressive. Jealous? Not at all.

"I could see how making the sorts of deals you do would become tiring."

There was something about how he spoke though that was different. She did not know why so she ignored it. Instead going for her own obligatory introduction.

"Chelsea Ronda Nexon. You probably know my father. Matthias."

She wouldn't stick out her hand, bow her head or do anything overly formal. It was hard enough just doing this much. Her father's name just reminding her of her troubles.


@Darko Ljubicic