"I was under the impression, sir, that the Prince con- sidered you one of his friends."
"Well," Sir Jehan began, sounding like the elf had caught him in a subtle deception. "I do my best to heal the rift between father and son, but there is very l I can do when the boy refuses to reform. There's still hope; he's still quite young. Perhaps when Kai comes to his senses, if ever, I can do something about the problem."
Which neither confirmed nor denied Sir Jehan's double role in all this. Naitachal decided not to pursue that particular question. Instead, he formulated an appropriate cover story that would both pr Alaire's identity and flush out some bits of inform Sir Jehan might not otherwise volunteer.
"What can one do?" Naitachal said, sadly shaking his head. "This was not the sort of problem I had planned to deal with on this mission. If there is any trouble -- and I trust Alaire enough to doubt that he will become involved in anything he perceives as counter to the interest of either our kingdom or -- any trouble Alaire happens to get into is his own problem. He knows this. I rely on his good sense; it may even be that he can exert the steadying influence that you feel your Prince requires." Naitachal leaned forward, as if about to impart a confidence, and con- tinued. "My family has a long tradition of magic use.
Are you familiar with the term Necromancer?"
A flicker of recognition passed over the neutral mask Sir Jehan was trying to maintain. Yes, he knows exactly what I am. But will he admit it?
"I'm not familiar with the term," Sir Jehan said, his eyes shifting to the side, indicating a lie. "I know that it describes some sort of magician."
Naitachal smiled thinly. "Yes, a magician. A very powerful magician. Using magic is as natural to me as breathing air is to you. Though I would not dare to demonstrate these abilities to you now, in this land where it is illegal. I could raise a corpse from the dead, or force a soul to answer my questions. And -- there are more ways available to me to destroy an adversary than I have time to tell you, all of them painful. This training began many, many centuries ago."
Sir Jehan gazed at him thoughtfully, without co Naitachal continued to smile. "There are certain ways in which I could use these powers to defend myself. Ways which, given the laws of your kingdom, I could easily guarantee a long residence in your Prison of Souls."
Naitachal watched his eyebrows raise appreciably.
"So you know of this."
Naitachal gave him a look which said plainly, What, did you think I was deaf, blind and a fool as well? "
I do. And I would never want to find myself imprisoned in such a place."
"You needn't worry," Sir Jehan assured him. "Our laws apply in fact to the peasants, the lower classes, not to those like you or me. We created the Associa- tion to police potentially dangerous magic among the peasants, so that they couldn't use arcane powers to oppress each other, or as tools in a revolt." He steepled his hands together, and put on a thoughtful expres- sion. "And that, I fear, again puts you and your assistant into jeopardy. Though I cannot verify this either way, rumor has it that Kai has been actively recruiting mages in order to overthrow his father, and take the Crown now. This would be a tragedy of the highest magnitude. We must prevent this at any cost.
You may find our laws regarding magic confining, even unfair, but I assure you that there are good rea- sons for regulating it. Surely you can see the wisdom in these precautions."
"Of course," Naitachal said evenly. "I didn't mean to suggest that these precautions were unnecessary.
I surely would never do anything that would make someone think I was willing to use my powers against your King. That would be more than foolishness!"
"Actually, I'm glad you brought it up," Sir Jehan said, standing. His smile was crooked, as if he could not bring himself to produce a real smile. "This is one of the things the King wishes to speak to you about."
He gestured grandly towards the set of double doors.
"This way, please."
When they entered the chamber beyond the dou- ble doors, Naitachal saw King Archenomen gazing at the barren winter countryside through a tall bay win- dow. Framed in the pale afternoon sun, he seemed extremely worried about something.
Sir Jehan cleared his throat. "Sire," he announced.
"May I present Ambassador Naitachal from Al Envoy of King Reynard."
Eyes still fixed on the landscape beyond, he "Thank you, Jehan."
Sir Jehan bowed slightly, and quietly left the chambers.