Journal Entry 3
As all subjects of the royal kingdom, I obeyed the Shah and dutifully took up my new position. After a few months of trailing my new acquaintance, I believed myself ready to move forward in our ambivalent relationship towards one another. How little I knew then of the collision course I had set myself upon.
All of my contact with Erik up until this point had been free of conversation. We regarded each other with the curious silence that two foes extend to each other when passing on the street. I had heard the court gossip regarding Erik's voice. Of this I was not oblivious.
When I finally allowed myself to abandon my position of investigator and approach Erik, I was not prepared for the voice which greeted me. To say that he had a beautiful voice is too much of an understatement. When Erik spoke, what emanated from his lips was something mellifluous and instantly mesmerizing. At first I wanted to find out what sort of marvel had caused such a thing to be produced from his mouth. To my astonishment, Erik played no tricks at the moment and was clearly using his speaking voice when he addressed me. Despite his appearances, Erik had the voice of the Devine.
At once I was taken aback by his commanding stature as well as posture. During the previous months of following my charge, I had not had the opportunity to come within a close proximity for fear of being discovered outright. His mask only added to the uneasiness with which I regarded him. He seemed to be no more scared of me than of a common flea.
Even without making formal introductions, Erik knew my name and my position held within the court. Nothing had eluded him. Apparently he had been learning as much as he could about me as I had been gathering about him.
Our first encounter was brief, but it allowed us to size one another. I quickly realized Erik's mind games were meant to probe my mental stability and my analytical and logical reasoning skills. I used this time to do the same and to make a mental profile of my subject. Days and weeks were spent in this precarious state, trying to cleverly outdo one another while maintaining the upper hand. We soon found that we were both forces to be reckoned with. I made every effort to not abase myself to Erik or appear unsure. To do so would have been my folly.
An uneasy alliance was made between the two of us. I never let my guard slip while in his presence, and neither did he. We held each other in high regard, never deluding ourselves as to what was expected from each other personally and professionally.