The Kinstrife
Part
46
In
which Aradan and Giladan
agree to grant Hwiniel immunity from prosecution; Halbarad gives his opinion on our suspects; we cross the
bay to ask for Elvish healing but end up with Elvish clothes, liquor and weapons; Hwiniel
names Iriel as closely involved in the conspiracy
against Adrazôr but Iriel has flown.
Brand and I
need to talk to Aradan so I instruct Misternil to ask Halbarad if he
has any information regarding the 5 names given by Hwiniel.
On my
request for an audience Aradan sends word he can see
us immediately and then keeps us waiting, of course. When he consents to see us
I’m braced to challenge any slur to my honour but strangely he seems quite
personable, almost affable in fact. He no longer seems to think I’m involved in
a conspiracy with Giladan or anyone else.
I relate
how we interviewed Hwiniel who has given the names of
5 conspirators, including Ioreth and has promised
more in return for a letter granting immunity from prosecution from Aradan and Giladan.
I affirm
that Hwiniel is a minor figure in the conspiracy who may be having second thoughts about her involvement now
she’s aware of the victim. I mention that Halbarad
believes she has influential connections that have protected her from
prosecution in the past and, in my opinion, it would be worthwhile to grant her
the security she requests in exchange for persons more deeply involved in the
conspiracy.
To my
surprise Aradan agrees in principle but he will want
to see the document himself before signing. He’s happy enough to grant leave
for me to approach his brother over the wording of the document but he affirms
his believe that Giladan is conspiring with the King
against Aradan, intending to convey Lond Ernil to the Crown in return
for recognition as prince on a more restricted basis than at present.
In an aside
I mention the young man who kept us waiting yesterday (who may have set Aradan’s paranoia against me); he’s a local nobleman called
Elmir. I make a mental note of the name with the
intention of asking Halbarad about him.
Giladan
proves very amenable and is happy enough to draft a document which I can convey
this afternoon for Aradan’s seal. We discuss the
expediency of leaving loopholes to allow prosecution of Hwiniel
but he elects to draft the letter of immunity with such circumlocutions. I
observe that if Adrazôr recovers there will be nothing in the letter preventing
him from pursuing Hwiniel himself.
We vaguely
discuss Giladan’s relationship with his brother – he
regards my inquiry as impertinent but he claims he’d be happy to work for his
brother if his brother would accept his service – perhaps he’s telling the
truth? If Giladan is involved in a conspiracy with
the King, as Aradan believes, it would, in my
opinion, be shortsighted; I would also have expected Giladan to make some sort of approach to me, as the King’s
emissary, which hasn’t yet happened. On the other hand, having now seen the
nature of Gondorian politics for myself, it is still
possible that Giladan is involved in some sort of
conspiracy against his brother, perhaps of a more subtle nature, which he
doesn’t want someone like me to know of.
I just hope
neither brother is involved in the conspiracy against their father.
Misternil
returns from Halbarad’s office with his comments on Hwiniel’s conspirators:
Ioreth:
we already know of, a daughter of a minor nobleman of a possibly tainted
bloodline; she’s either in hiding or at the bottom of the harbour;
Tinuthel:
a small time merchant dealing in ‘esoterica’ (a
euphemism for euphoric herbs, apparently); she has no actual criminal record
but her clientele include some shady individuals;
Celeblas:
a thug frequently arrested for fighting and a nasty piece of work, associated
with Tinuthel above and a frequent customer of her ‘esoterica’;
Gilraen:
a minor noble with a town house in Lond Ernil, Halbarad believes he lives
beyond his means; arrogant and vindictive, he has no known criminal record but
he must be getting his pocket-money from somewhere…;
Salkhôr:
a clerk working for Aradan! Like Gilraen,
he is not a known criminal but has unsavoury connections. Not a favourite of Aradan’s but a servant of long standing. Mentioning him to Aradan will require some delicacy.
Aerin
reports that Adrazôr is slowly declining. Aerin’s
ability is not in question but Adrazôr’s affliction
is extraordinary and he needs an extraordinary healer. Brand mentions that
Elves are known for their healing skills and I recall that Edhellond
is just across the bay, close enough for a day’s excursion!
Ilviren
is happy enough to ferry us across the bay, though I have some misgivings about
entering an Elven haven in a ship named ‘So Much for Subtlety’. I confess I’m
eager to meet Elves and relish Brand’s excuse to visit the place.
The Elves
on the docks, in my opinion, frankly show off their superior skills in casting
ropes, tying off, and so on. Complimentary wine is sent aboard and Ilviren’s
men commence to enjoy themselves – I hope they’re fit to sail back this
afternoon.
Meanwhile,
we are conveyed in to the presence of Nithor, who
apparently governs Edhellond (though not exactly a
‘lord’ in our use of the term). He sits, wearing bright red robes, in a chair
carved from some pale grey wood.
I explain
that Prince Adrazôr lies on his bed across the water, stricken by some vile
dark magic. His affliction seems beyond any healer readily available and I ask
if Nithor has a healer willing to cross the water and
tend to him? Nithor sends for a woman who examines
the poison sample from Aerin and listens to her
description of Adrazôr’s symptoms. She says the
poison is slow acting and now that Adrazôr is no longer receiving it he should
recover. The poison was being used to finish off Adrazôr, as otherwise, unlike
Maeglin (who was old) Adrazôr might linger for a long time, or even recover!
However,
the dweomer is a very powerful dark magic and it
would take a great mage to control it. I ask if the Elves have such a mage; she
replies that they might but they would probably not wish to intervene. I ask
permission to address any such mage and she offers to ask but she doubts they
will even deign to speak to me.
Indeed,
after an hour it becomes clear no one is willing to come forward. I am
disappointed but I suppose I should have expected this response – to Elves, we
are ephemeral, mayfly beings; why should they save Adrazôr today only for him
to die tomorrow?
But if the
Elves won’t help personally, it occurs to me that they might have some tonic
that would act in an opposite way to the poison, helping Adrazôr fight off the
affliction and giving more time for Mordulin to come
to his aid. In this the Elves seem happy to gift Aerin
with a vial of an elixir called ‘miruvor’.
We also
take the opportunity to visit the shops on our way down to the docks. Aerin buys a second vial of miruvor;
Brand a cloak of elven weave, which should make him stand out in Lond Ernil or Pelargir; I spend
almost all my ready funds on a rapier, superbly balanced and of beautiful
design with elven script along the blade. The Elf who sells it to me, a
jeweller (which tells you something of the Elven mentality), says it was made
in Eregion for the Orc wars
of the Second Age and is called ‘Celegmaeg’, which he
tells me is Sindarin for ‘swift-piercing’.
A sudden
thought makes me offer Granny Serni’s jewel for his
opinion: he remarks that it is definitely of Elven make. He asks for other
pieces and Aerin shows him her portion. He says it has
a representation of the skies and may serve, with a point of reference, as a
navigation aid. The filigree around the edge is the star map, the magical
component functions as the key.
And so we
re-embark on ‘So Much for Subtlety’ and sail back to Lond-Ernil (despite the
inebriation of Ilviren’s crew) in time to collect Hwiniel’s
letter of immunity from Giladan which I convey at
once to Aradan.
Again he
keeps us waiting but this time he even apologises, explaining that one of his
staff has gone missing. Feel prescient, I ask if the missing clerk is called Salkhôr and Aradan seems
impressed at my guess. I explain that Salkhôr is one
of the five names given by Hwiniel as a conspirator
in the matter of Prince Adrazôr’s illness and
suggests he apprehends Salkhôr and Gilraen as soon as possible.
With the
letter of immunity signed by both brothers, we descend in to the city in search
of Hwiniel, finding her in the Blind Voyager with two
ruffians. When shown the letter she removes us to a private room. It seems she
either trusts me or doesn’t trust her guards as she leaves them behind; I bring
Brand. In exchange for the letter she has just one name, that of Iriel! Hwiniel claims that Iriel is the one who organised Boron’s recruitment and death
and is presumably behind the conspiracy to kill Adrazôr by dark magics.
I’m
disappointed that there’s only one name but Iriel
does fit in many ways. My one caveat is that Brand reckoned such magic takes
years to master and Iriel seems much younger than we
would expect. But she may just be the public face for a conspiracy involving a
much older magician.
We must act
quickly; Pimm escorts Aerin
to the harbourmaster to ensure Iriel cannot escape by
boat while the rest of us take ourselves to Iriel’s
town residence. We learn from her servants that she left 2 hours ago, they know
not where. I leave a note to the effect that I have a free evening and would
appreciate her company for dinner – oh, how the lie drips easily from the nib
of the pen – then we return to the castle to continue our search. But I suspect
Salkhôr’s disappearance indicates Iriel
has already been warned. I wonder if Hwiniel hasn’t
tipped the wink herself?
Back at the
castle I write the promised letter to Bauglir advising
him that the Cor Aran have a potential recruit in Hwiniel. However I stress this is part of an agreement and
I take pains to stress Hwiniel’s character. Once the
letter is on its way my debt is discharged and it will be up to Bauglir to manage matters from then on but I withhold
dispatching the letter in case Hwiniel’s apparent
co-operation proves perfidious.
To do list:
Send letter
to Bauglir regarding Hwiniel
Administer miruvor to Adrazôr
Ask Halbarad about Elmir
Find and
interview Vorondil and Arthradur
Establish
what is to be done about Morthond – it can’t keep the Royal army out long
without strong political leadership
Survey my
estates and produce a plan to improve them
Ensure
Brand looks for the 5fth part of the Key of Fuinur’s Well
Who was Tevildo from the Benish Armon tomb in the Ethir Anduin?
Inquire
after Perhaladin – might be a cult for Ragnor