17507/Exiled into luxury

Exiled into luxury
Date of Scene:	28 March 2024
Location:	Library - Wayne Manor
Synopsis:	Talia Ghoul and Lucius Fox talked, a story is told and a point might have been made or lost in it.
Cast of Characters:	Talia al Ghul, Lucius Fox

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Talia al Ghul has posed:
She had been staying at Stately Wayne Manor (for some reason in her headspace it had always been called that). Currently in the library, she's got a set of tea on a table, and some of Alfred's biscuits. A number of books are in front of her. Old ones - but by the looks of them ones that had been copies. Of older books, where someone had taken the very laborious process of transcribing them by hand. By however many times over. Bound in simple leather, the pages faded and reinforced to stand against whatever time and torments they had gone through.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Time waits for no man, nor will it wait for a task. The ticking of the clock, fuels everything sparing itself to no man or creature of the night. Thus it brings Mr Fox down to Wayne manor, seeking the owner of it with a briefcase that has been handed over to the expert of finding out what is going on in this Stately Wayne Manor, one Mr. Pennyworth. Once this task is done, the older man starts his favorite of hobbies when he arrives, moving down the corridors, winding twisting till he walks into the library.

Dressed in a simple black suit, slowly he walks over towards the shelf starting in the spot he left off on the last trip down here, his fingers in white gloves slowly tracing the books seeking out something it seems. "Good evening, Miss Ghul. I hope you are doing well?" His voice is soft, well spoken but his full attention on the books, till he finds the one he wishes pulling it moving for a chair to sink into it. With a content sigh. "This place is always good for browsing, one day I shall either perish or finish it all. That is going to be my end, one or the other I wonder which it shall be."

Talia al Ghul has posed:
As Lucius Fox enters, Talia goes to put the books to the side and bows her head, "Greetings, Mister Fox. And doing some.. Shall we say research. Much of it is not necessarily accurate.. But it's always good to get other perspectives." She would stand up and then fold her hands together, after gently putting the books down.

"I hope that your current projects have been successful. Forgive me for not being quite up on the current state of corporate affairs. Are you the CEO of the company?" Wayne Enterprises. As far as she knew he completely ran it from top to bottom.

"And it is always an.. Interesting place to be and to discover."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox looks over at Talia slowly opening that old book, it's filled with drawings from an obscure engineer from a times long lost to the clock. "I'm the head of it yes, he tends to allow me the freedom to run it as I see fit. But, why do you ask?" He leans back into his chair, closing the book now with a loud thump of the cover on the old mold stained pages, placing the book on the table next to him. "My work is going as always well enough, if I was to complain who would wish to an old man do so. No, life is good, and yourself? How does this new life of yours treat you Miss Ghul?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would muse, "Because there is always a difference in the one that is the figurehead and the one that makes the calls. While the Lord of the Manor is the one with the power, you are still the one that puts things into action and in turn makes adjustments."

By the 'Lord of the Manor' she meant Alfred.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods slowly his eyes unmoving from Talia, his fingers slowly drumming on the cover of the book. "Indeed. But at the end of the day, this is all for one purpose. One goal, one destiny, one driving force in this world. Justice." His voice is soft, his eyes are moving gleaming with something akin to amusement, as he speaks with her the right leg coming over the other as he steeples his fingers watching her studying her. "Now, than you avoided or ignored my questions how are you adjusting to your new life?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would give a light shrug and a sigh, "I don't know. I am.. I do not know." That's an honest response. She's not sure if she's adjusted. She's not sure if they'll ever trust her. They're quite right to never trust her. She's done things that can't and should not be forgiven. She's had too many chances.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods slowly his fingers are still steepled in front of him, watching her with those eyes with that spark behind them. "Have you heard the story of the man drowning, in the desert." He moves slowly leaning forward ready to speak the tale if it is not one in her knowledge.

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would glance at Lucius, "No I have not. I presume that as a metaphor there are other ones approximate toit I am more fluent with. But please do share your take on the telling and the lesson to be learned over at the end of it."

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox speaks slowly his hand is moving to stroke along the book with a nod at Talia. His voice is slowly, coming out a natural telling of the tale.

"In the heart of a vast desert, where the sun beat down mercilessly and the sands whispered secrets of forgotten times, there lived a man named Elias. He was a wanderer by nature, a seeker of truth, and an explorer of the mind. But Elias found himself in a predicament unlike any he had faced before."

He leans over to pick up his glass of water, taking a little sip of it as he waits for the words to sink into the air, than he starts on the next part of the tale.

"As he journeyed deeper into the desert, Elias became lost in the labyrinth of his own thoughts. His mind, once a sanctuary of clarity and purpose, now felt like an endless expanse of shifting sands, each thought a mirage leading him further astray. Days turned into nights, and nights into days, but Elias couldn't shake the feeling of drowning in his own mind. The scorching sun beat down on him relentlessly, mirroring the intensity of his inner turmoil."

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would listen over as Lucius would speak. Attentively over while her hands would be crossed now. She would be still, almost as if she were but a statue, one of the endless legions of gargoyles that roosted throughout the entire city. "Many things are forgotten for good reasons. Left never to be discovered again." That quiet musing is then dropped, and she watches him once more.

At the talk of mirages, endless wandering through the wastes, imprisoned in the labyrinth of one's own mind and demons.. Yes, that is something she knows very well. Something that probably most that stay within the Manor do. She gestures at him to go on.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods slowly his hand is moves towards her as if to show her the way, leading her into the next part of the tale with a amused little chuckle. "Indeed, paths and pain they do mix into one thought and feeling in this world." With that he drinks deep of the water, waiting for her to amuse, to think and to ponder before he goes on with the next part of the tale.

"In his delirium, Elias began to see visions?phantoms dancing on the horizon, whispering temptations and doubts into his ears. He struggled to distinguish reality from illusion, and the boundaries of his own sanity blurred with each passing moment."

He stands quickly now, bumping into the table that book is moving back and forth as that table wobbles. Throwing his hands upwards into the sky, as he starts to drop to his knees. The old man, not moving quickly doing it slow but for the dramatic effect.

"He felt the waves crashing around him, the pool of the water as the oasis opens under his feet. Sucking him downwards into the raging torrent of the water, his hand is reaching upwards trying to yank himself free. But the water was too strong, drowning dying in the desert, seemed to be his end."

He lies down on the ground gasping for air, trying to breath his eyes closing now. His hand is weakly falling down at his side.

"But he the very next day he awakens in the desert, dry as a bone. With a newfound clarity, Elias understood that the desert was not his enemy, but merely a canvas upon which he projected his inner struggles. The power of perspective dawned upon him like the first light of dawn after a long, dark night. Embracing the solitude of the desert, Elias made peace with his mind. He learned to navigate its treacherous terrain, finding strength in the depths of his own resilience. As he emerged from the desert, weary but wiser, Elias carried with him a newfound understanding?the true power of perspective lies not in changing the world around us, but in transforming the way we see ourselves within it. Elias, never again went out into the desert, happy with his loved ones and his family, his place in this world to be with his village."

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would nod to Lucius, very thoughtful now. And a little sad - whether by her own introspection brought out by the story.. Or just her presentation. It was always very hard to read her body language. So there was always the chance, real or imagined, that it was merely a showcase over for those about to see. Of course.. In matters of the heart, unlikely. She would take a breath as she would watch Lucius.

And a light smile would go up. "I see the purpose of the metaphor. Somewaht more involved than Aesop might have intended.." And she's clearly suppressing the urge to give many corrective adjustments to it. But for the purpose of the tale, the intent, she takes it as it is meant to be.

"And my own demons are both metaphorical and.. Literal." That is who she is. What she is.

The Daughter of the Demon.

And even should she wish peace, from what her family had done, what they were.. It was not something that was ever possible. Not so long as they existed.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox slides slowly to his feet his hand is moves to brush off his knees and his jacket from the floor walking back to his chair to sink into it. "We never truly see ourselves, we only see what we allow ourselves to see. They trust you in there home, do they not?"

Talia al Ghul has posed:
Talia al Ghul would muse, "Trust? I wouldn't go that far. Tolerate.. Keep an eye on. It's easier to observe me when I'm here. Trust.. Trust is not yet what it is. Or if it will ever be." She's honest with that. sh would not trust her in their position either.

Lucius Fox has posed:
Lucius Fox nods slowly his eyes are looking over at Talia Ghul. "Sure, think as you wish dearest Miss Ghul. You are the expert not I, I'm but a man." His hand is moves slowly to pick up his book with a little chuckle. "I think I will go outside and read, the day is lovely. Do think on yourself, they could watch and track you many ways I would think that would be safer than allowing you into this home. But, your right I know little of this." He walks over slowly to the door with a waving of his hand at her.