The Kinstrife
Part
31
In
which we hear Neithan’s viewpoint and Ilviren and Colfen trade insults
over house pets and grandmothers; the Great Council continues but Kunbeshu throws a party to alleviate the tedium; the Great
Council continues and out of desperation Ragnor asks
a question to relieve the ennui – to no avail; Daeron
asks Ragnor to corroborate Rhavas’
story to King Castamir.
Telemnar
apparently does not need my services so the evening is our own. Ilvirin invites Neithan to dinner
at the Drunken Southron and, of course, we discuss
the matter of the moment, the Council.
Neithan
thinks Daeron’s appointment an odd one, as the mere
squire of Linhir in Dor-en-Ernil.
Of doubtless competence, Neithan believes he may have
been set up as a ‘fall-guy’ since a decision either way will blacken the eye of
one or other of Castamir’s principal supporters at
court.
On the
other hand, Daeron is very capable and it would
surely be a feather in his cap if he could solve the situation amicably. It
occurs to me that if we can supply a fair reason to refute one faction, we may
be doing him a favour.
While I
talk with Neithan, Brand and Ilvirin
engage Colfen. Brand asks if Colfen
knows who ‘Tevildo’ is or was (Tevildo
is the name from the inscription on the Benish Armon tomb). Colfen replies that
he does know but refuses to explain the name claiming it is a secret matter
concerning the Benish Armon
cult.
This
appears to be the signal for Colfen and Ilvirin to start swapping petty jibes over religion and Ilvirin’s great-great-great-grandmother, in particular how
long she lived. Ilvirin refuses to take a hint and
eventually it takes a direct order to make her desist, but not before Colfen retires in something of a huff, entirely
justifiably, in my opinion, though I am a little surprised that he descended to
Ilvirin’s level.
So Ilvirin and I compare family history. I don’t have the full
details of my genealogy to hand but Granny Serni is
176 and presumably is past child-bearing, even were
her husband still alive, and may comfortably assume a further span of upwards
of fifty years.
In
comparison, while most of Ilvirin’s ancestors conform
to the typical Numenorean pattern, her
great-great-great-grandmother, Ilvireth, was still
bearing children at over 200 years and lived until nearly 500! That is quite a
span. It is possible that she preserved a pure blood-line from the middle of
the Second Age, before the Akallabêth, or that there
is Elven blood in her line from more recent times.
However, Colfen evidently thought it a pithy jibe and
Ilvirin is clearly sensitive to it; can it be just a
coincidence that Ilvireth was found washed up on the
shore in 830, the year Beruthiel married Tarannon?
I remark on
Ilvirin’s name: we Numenoreans
customarily receive names from both father and mother at birth. Superstition
holds that the mother-name is somehow tied to the child’s fate or destiny. If Ilvirin’s name was given by her mother, it would imply some
sort of connection with her great-great-great-grandmother, Ilvireth.
However, she assures me that Ilvireth was her
paternal ancestor and her customary name was given by her father.
The day
opens with a cross-examination of Kunbeshu. He is
asked a number of good, pertinent questions, and an awful lot more that are
impertinent, repetitive or just strange. Kunbeshu
consistently refuses to suggest policy, insisting his role is merely to report
the facts as he finds them. At least it’s all over by lunch, at which point Kunbeshu announces a party for everyone on board his ship,
the Nenduhir (my Quenya may
be at fault here but I think the name means ‘Night Water Seeker’, not exactly
an auspicious name). Well that might be something to alleviate this tedium; Kunbeshu makes a point of declaring unlimited food and
drink.
In the
afternoon the councillors each take turns to speak their piece. Luckily, some
visionary has decreed that each speech is timed by an hourglass to no more than
five minutes, which makes it bearable.
Having
taken time to freshen up and assume finest dress, we report to the quay where Kunbeshu has arranged rowing-boats to shuttle guests to and
from the Nenduhir. The ship herself is decked out in
lights from stem to stern, very pretty. Evidently Kunbeshu
has been preparing this for some time. The food available is of putative Raj origin, but Aerin assures me
that while the chefs may be from the Southron
Quarter, the cooking style suggests that it’s Raj cuisine modified for an Umbarian
palate. Nonetheless it is both impressive and tasty.
Kunbeshu
is conducting guided tours of the ship, showing off his pride and joy to all concerned
and Aerin, Brand and Ilvirin
all sign up for a later tour.
Meanwhile,
I take the opportunity to accost Zimrakhil regarding
our forthcoming tour of Near Harad. I advise him of Celebrindor and his unsavoury activities and of his
construction work in the Harad. Zimrakhil
has heard rumours of such but when Brand gives the location and a description
of the site he frowns. He says a tribe in the area with which he corresponds
fairly frequently has been out of touch for a few months and our news makes him
think something may have happened to them. When we reveal that roughly half Celebrindor’s workforce failed to return, he becomes very
concerned and agrees we should detour from the route he had planned for us to
investigate.
Dressed up
as I am, I wear the Serni jewel openly and I just
catch sight of Zimrakhil noticing it and then
averting his gaze. He forebears mention of it but, when I ask to learn of Haradaic culture and their myths and legends, offers that
we have much to discuss once away from the prying ears of Umbar.
I assure him that I am looking forward to the trip and we part.
While Aerin, Brand and Ilvirin are on
their tour, I manage to talk briefly with Marmedon
regarding the assassination. I ask if his agents had uncovered anything and he
confirms they’ve found hints of an association with the Storm King. Without
giving details, I let him know that the whole thing was a set-up by people
close to Menelmir. It is possible that my guesses are
wrong but if the Storm King is involved, it means his principal operative is an
unemployed shoemaker.
Of course,
I tell him that I have told him nothing and that our discussion never happened
and he wearily concedes that he’s used to talking to politicians, such as me.
Some part of me is vaguely affronted by his comment but I suppose if I waddle
and quack I must be a duck – just so long as I stop short of laying eggs!
Telemnar
is also on board and we exchange a few words: Daeron
has met Rhavas and accepts the Sea Faction’s
duplicity in the assassination as fact. He wants to talk to me tomorrow, which
is hardly a surprise, and wants me to brief Castamir,
which is a bit of a surprise but I suppose it shouldn’t be. Obviously I am not
about to refuse and I make it clear I am more than willing to support Daeron’s decision.
The Council
starts debating the form of words for the motion to be voted on and I think we
reach the nanwë (low-tide) of the proceedings. This
exercise in puerility betrays the unbelievable lack of foresight in the polity
of Umbar as a whole.
The Land
Faction are not completely acca-pella (literally ‘to beyond’, meaning outré), probably
thanks to Telemnar’s leadership. But the Sea Faction
display an absurd lack of awareness of the real world, speaking glibly of
simply sailing down and occupying the Raj. At
last, out of sheer desperation, I break my promise to myself and ask ‘How
exactly do you estimate the probability of successfully occupying the Raj’.
Perhaps I
thought this might bring them to their senses but instead it merely provokes
another three hours of drivel. They genuinely seem to believe that we can just
sail down to the coast and the locals will simply let us take them over.
Unbelievable!
At last
it’s over and Daeron sends word that he wishes to see
me and my entourage this evening so I duly report to the Governor’s palace with
Aerin and Brand. (Ilvirin
apparently has a hot date with Kunbeshu, with whom
she appears to have developed a liason.)
Daeron
wants to double-check Telemnar’s story and I am happy
to corroborate. We discuss the political realities. I explain that I am
planning a tour of Near Harad after the Council but
am willing to forego this if he needs me to return to Pelargir
immediately to confirm recent events concerning the staged assassination
attempt on Menelmir. Daeron
demurs; he wants to be able to look the King in the eye when he explains his
decision and affirm that I am able to confirm all the details. It is not
immediately vital that I be present at the time as long as I am ready to
confirm these details when I do appear. I assure him that I will put my part in
the affair in writing before he leaves.
I take the
opportunity to apologise for my outburst in Council this afternoon. Daeron is kind enough to call my question ‘shrewd’. Again I
get the feeling he is being deliberately pleasant to a comparative political
lightweight. I reply that I thought the question obvious but I was, perhaps,
hoping it might stimulate shrewdness in the debate. Alas, I was being naïve; I
can hardly educate the Umbar polity in political
reality in the course of an afternoon.
To do list:
Great
Council meets June 27th-June 30th
Write
narrative for the Queen and for Daeron, the King’s
representative before he leaves after the Council
Colfen’s
raid on Tol-Cirya at end of Great Council
Visit for Celebrindor’s construction site in Near Harad
Approach Zimrakhil over the Umbar portion
of Key of Fuinur’s Well
while touring Near Harad
Inquire
after Perhaladin – might be a cult for Ragnor
Advise
Father of that coins used to pay Khoradôr may come
from The Straight Man
Ask Granny Serni why she gave me the jewel
Who was Tevildo from the Benish Armon tomb in the Ethir Anduin?