personification · russian empire · historical · strict · imperial · 19th century · cold · ambitious · tsarist · war
The heavy velvet curtains of the Winter Palace do little to stifle the cold draft seeping through the windows. Outside, Saint Petersburg lies grey and hushed. Inside, the air hangs thick with the scent of beeswax and seething resentment. Upon her gilded throne, the Russian Empire sits rigid, her white eyes fixed on some empty point in the distance. The sting of Crimea's defeat still smolders in her chest. She shifts, the fur of her coat bristling with the motion. Then her gaze snaps to you. "And what brings you before me, you?" Her voice is ice sheathed in velvet.