Chapter 2: Of Balance
Arteris Galvarey paced casually in the grand hall of the Harper's headquarters within Athkatla. The tall, broad shouldered young man picked his path carefully, stepping only in the illuminated parts of the entrance hall, the light of massive torches on the roof and walls dancing off his armour in a way that made him look almost ethereal. It made him look powerful. He wanted to seem almost celestial, for it was only in appearance that he could rival the man he was due to meet.
Herald Vedus of Athkatla had ordered him to meet and brief the sage Gorion Greenmantle when he arrived. Galvarey had always been intimidated by the great man, who was one of the most powerful mages of the Harpers, barring Blackstaff and such. Although Gorion was not, technically, a full member of the Harpers, but rather the closest thing to a sub-contractor they could get, he held more prestige and power than Galvarey himself did.
Understandably, the young Harper hated this. He was on his way up, working to ingratiate himself with Herald Vedus until he could gain a post of power of his own. He was a Herald's right-hand man; that in itself should offer some kind of cache. And he was still young. There was still that ladder to climb.
The great door of the entrance swung open with a loud creak. Three times the height of a normal man and about twice as broad, it seemed ready to proclaim the arrival of a grand group of victorious adventurers, rather than the silent coming of a single, humble man.
Gorion Greenmantle drew his emerald robes closer around him as he closed the door. Though it was pouring down with rain outside, a thunderstorm threatening sleeping Athkatla, the mage seemed bone-dry, and hardly hindered by the climate.
The sage looked around confidently. For as long as Galvarey had known him, the wizard had seemed eternally aged. He didn't know just how many years he had seen, but his hair had remained a close-cropped steel-grey for all the time Arteris could remember him.
Finally, Greenmantle's eyes settled on Galvarey, and the mage stepped forwards slowly. Although there was nothing threatening about his pace, the Harper felt mildly intimidated as Gorion walked carefully and confidently towards him, smooth and silky as a cat.
The sage eventually outstretched a hand towards the younger man. "Arteris. It is good to see you in good health," he greeted Galvarey, a small smile tugging at his otherwise utterly emotionless face. There was no twinkle in the eyes as he regarded the Harper.
Galvarey resisted the urge to squirm as he shook Gorion's hand. "A pleasure to receive you, milord Greenmantle," he responded humbly, bobbing his head up and down in a rather lackey-ish manner. Then he remembered just who he was, what he was doing, and that someone with his designs would not be intimidated by the mage and he straightened up. "The Herald asked that I brief you the moment you arrived. We should not waste more time."
Gorion nodded, his green eyes twinkling at last as he noticed Galvarey's attempt to remain in control of the situation. "Yes, Vedus can be a little impatient," he commented as the younger Harper turned and veritably scurried towards one of the side rooms off the great hall, all the while trying to stand up straight and look imposing. Greenmantle smiled; the ambitious youth amused him.
The room Galvarey had chosen was small and cosy, each wall lined with bookshelves filled with various volumes on history, culture and mythology. The only gaps were for the door and the fireplace, where dying embers cast a slight, reddish glow on the otherwise dark room.
Galvarey moved to the fireplace and picked up a log lying beside it. Gesturing absently for Gorion to take a seat, he hefted the bellows and gently goaded the fire back to life. Soon the previously dark and cold room was warming up, and most of the shadows were being chased away to the darkest corners of the bookshelves.
Gorion took the large, overstuffed armchair in front of the heavy oaken desk that sat in the centre of the room, made a little steeple with his hands, and peered at the young Harper inquisitively. As Galvarey started to pace in front of the fire, he had the horrible impression that the mage already knew what was going on.
"Slavery in Athkatla has always been a most active business," Arteris Galvarey started falteringly, clasping his hands behind his back – not a mean feat when wearing the chain mail he sported. "But in recent years, mostly thanks to our endeavours, it has slackened off considerably. The Shadow Thieves have withdrawn in their advances in that direction, limiting themselves to their usual activities, and thus it is an enterprise usually only undertaken by independent parties."
"And the Shadow Thieves most certainly do not like that," Gorion mused levelly, stroking his silvery beard with a thoughtful air. "Thus any successful slavers in the city would have to be the most resourceful of individuals."
"Precisely," Galvarey responded, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice. He had rehearsed this briefing carefully, wanting to impress the sage with his knowledge. He was starting to think, however, that Greenmantle already know more than he did. "As such, there are only a handful of slavers now active in Athkatla, and we have tabs on most of them. They're small-time operators, and present little threat to anyone."
"Other than the slaves they keep," Gorion pointed out mildly.
Again, Galvarey resisted the urge to glare at him. "Uh, yes. As it is, they're being taken down one by one, but subtly enough that they don't realise we're keeping tabs on all of them." He paused, looking straight at the mage. "Unfortunately, there's one party that has just emerged which aren't so easy to deal with." He pulled a scroll from somewhere inside his armour and slid it across the desk towards Gorion.
The mage took and unrolled it wordlessly. "Ah, the infamous Baron Ployer strikes again," he commented lightly, raising an eyebrow. "The man gets around, I must say. I believed we had seen the last of this particular Calimshite."
"Not a chance," Galvarey replied, shaking his head and offering what he hoped was a knowing glance. "He's as slippery as an eel, this fellow." The Harper wilted under Gorion's inquisitive glance, and he bowed his head a little miserably. "I've read the file."
Greenmantle raised his eyebrow even higher, but passed no comment. "I take it you wish for me to investigate, and bring down his organisation if at all possible." It wasn't a question. "I believe that is within my capabilities, gods willing. Who do I have working with me?"
Galvarey glanced down at a second sheet. "Darial's party," he answered brightly, smiling hopefully. "Belgrade should tag along, and two newer members as well. A suitably highly skilled group."
"Darial…" Gorion frowned thoughtfully. "Since when was she given a party to run? Last I heard, she was working under Aisath."
"Things have changed. Aisath has retired from the field," Arteris Galvarey responded lightly, shrugging in a non-committal way. "The Herald thought she quite capable of running a group herself. You have no problem?"
"With her? No." Greenmantle shook his head firmly. "It simply seems I have been away long enough to be out of date on the recent Harper politics. And I am a little concerned to have Belgrade and Darial working together."
Galvarey looked blankly at him. "They seem to get on perfectly well. I have heard no cases of any trouble between the two of them," the desktop-working Harper replied mildly, a little nonplussed.
"You obviously haven't been in the field with the two of them together," Gorion muttered under his breath, before standing up and looking straight at Galvarey. "I shall meet them when they arrive tomorrow," he said simply, slipping the scroll into the recesses of his emerald robes.
"They should be here in the late afternoon. Darial is travelling with Khalid, one of the two newer members, a half-elven native of Calimport. He may have connections which will help in finding Ployer. Belgrade is with the second new member, Jaheira, a druid whom I, personally, have reservations about yet Belgrade was insistent should join the group." Galvarey looked a little miffed, as if Belgrade's opinion couldn't possibly be as valuable as his own.
Gorion gave him a thoughtful look. "I shall reserve judgement for when I meet the girl," he replied levelly. "If Belgrade's found something of worth in her, then I shall trust his opinion enough to give her a chance. Good day, Arteris," he finished formally, before turning and striding out of the room.
Galvarey glared at the closed door once Greenmantle was gone. "Belgrade has found something of worth in her," he muttered bitterly, "because he's bedding the girl…"