Alessandria Casterian

Aless is pursuing the virtue of learning, and was apprenticed to Aston Kimmel, the previous Master of the Academy of History and Art. After his retirement, Kimmel had taken up relic hunting, following his translation of an epic text, and searching for clues to the fables Celestial City. Aless had acquired a love for History and the Old Empire while on the Grand Tour and had studied with Kimmel at the Academy, before joining (and helping to sponsor) his expeditions. Kimmel fell ill, then died, leaving Aless his legacy of relics, maps, and texts. His old ship had to be sent to the scrapyards, as it was falling apart, but Aless has persuaded her brother to fund a new ship - The Aston - and has been recruiting an eclectic crew. She starts the story as an apprentice/student turned journeyman, starting to learn how to manage her own hunts and command her own ship. The story will show how she develops and improves those skills, as well her expertise in the Old Empire, her diplomacy, and her standing as an academic.   Aless has a number of flaws, some of which she’s well aware of and is working to overcome.   She’s enthusiastic about History and has a tendency to lecture, holding forth on a subject of interest until her listener’s eyes start to glaze over. She’s actually a good communicator, but can get caught up in detail and speculation and new ideas, leaving most people far behind in her wake.   She can be slightly zealous about pursuit of the virtues, and sometimes less than tolerant of those that demonstrate what to her are reprehensible behaviors.   She tends to take her position for granted, giving orders rather than asking, or assuming something will be done because she expects it to be. On board ship, this is forgivable - she is the Captain after all - but among others, less privileged, this can create resentment or a negative reaction. (She’s far from a stuck-up bitch, but can come across as one to those who are sensitive to such things.) This is a leadership flaw she’s aware of, and tries to overcome, but some of her attitude is born from an (initially) naive expectation and she can say and do things without thinking. Natty will take her to task for it, but usually only when she’s taken charge when she shouldn’t, or when Natty is directly affected.   She can get caught up in work, or when reading, or in research, to the point where she loses track of time and forgets to eat. Sometimes this means the person(s) working with her don’t get to eat either, or else stumbles into bed very late. She’s trying to be more aware of the needs of others, but sometimes …   She gets angry at vandalism, and it distresses her, so that she growls at anyone attempting to excuse or explain, becoming short tempered and irritable for some time after an upsetting incident. She’ll mutter about the issue for hours, and let it prey on her mind. The only way to calm her is to distract her - with a shiny (old) toy, a discovery, or an new idea to wretle with. Natty keeps a couple up her sleeve most of the time. Meta has been known to announce obscure (and intriguing) facts, and Dust of Ages sometimes hands her a trinket along with a mysterious comment about what it ‘says’. At a dig, or on an expedition, she’s pretty easy to defuse, as she gets distracted all the time!