Chapter 21; Talks among friends

Characters of the chapter

Bazyl Joubert, Orlesian ambassador to the South Kingdom of the Twin Kingdoms

Tyrion Lannister, Hand of the Queen to Queen Daenerys

Tyrion walked through the streets of King's landing, followed by a pair of Unsullied. He stopped in front of the residence of the Orlesian ambassador, eyeing the entrance. He was here by the ambassador's invitation. As to why that was, Tyrion was not certain. Bazyl had not given any reasons for his invitation, only the instructions for Tyrion to "bring his own wine". He had considered declining the invitation, but he had been sufficiently intrigued by the request to change his mind. Given the current circumstances Tyrion might have considered it too dangerous to wander into the residence an ambassador of a hostile nation, but he had considered Bazyl a friend at one time, that had to count for something. And in any event the ambassador's home was swarmed with Unsullied, which was the best insurance he could think about.

Tyrion sighed before walking to the door. This promised to be awkward…

As soon as he knocked on the door it was opened from the inside and he was greeted by a manservant who proceeded to escort him through the corridors and halls of the ambassador's home. Everywhere they went Tyrion saw the ambassadors personal guards, warily eyeing the Unsullied that were there with them. The tension of the Orlesian guards was easy to see even with casual examination. The Unsullied were harder to read, but Tyrion had learned their tells long ago, and so he was able to see that they too were uneasy. This was an ugly situation in the extreme. One wrong move from anyone here and there would be blood.

"And the ambassador is made to live here now, day after day? I almost pity him." Tyrion thought as he walked through the Corridors.

Finally he arrived at the ambassador's office. When he entered Bazyl looked up from the papers he had been reading. "Ah, Lord Tyrion, you're here, good. Please, take a seat."

"I was uncertain if you would come." The ambassador said as Tyrion took the offered chair.

"I was uncertain of it myself. Why did you ask me here?" Tyrion asked, his tone formal.

"Oh, no particular reason. I just thought we should meet. It has been far too long since the last time." Bazyl said, offering Tyrion a wineglass, then opening a bottle to pour a drink for himself.

Tyrion gave him an incredulous look. "Ambassador, need I remind you that our countries are at war? And that our last interaction hasn't exactly been friendly? With the situation being what it is I don't think that a social call is appropriate in any way."

"I'm aware of that." The ambassador said quietly. "But I hope you understand that I was merely doing my duty that day. I harbor no ill will toward you or the kingdoms, and I assure you that our friendship was always genuine. That is why I wished you to come, to clear the air and restore our friendship, if at all possible.

Tyrion squinted, looking at the ambassador. To his considerable surprise Bazyl seemed honest, even thought he could only see his eyes.

"I see. What you ask may prove difficult, considering all that had happened. Still, I suppose that there is no reason for us not to be civil." He said, his expression thoughtful. "Tell me, why did you ask me to bring my own wine? Traditionally it's the host who offers refreshment, particularly if his objective is reconciliation." He asked then, lifting the bottle he had brought.

"Traditionally." The ambassador agreed. "But I think you and I agree that these are unusual circumstances. My instructions were a simple courtesy, my Lord. Bringing a sealed bottle of your own prevents any opportunities for poisoning. So hopefully that will make you feel more comfortable, because that is the duty of a host first and foremost."

"Oh." Tyrion said, lifting his eyebrows, having not expected his explanation.

"Of course I had no intention of doing any harm to you, particularly not here. With my home overrun by Unsullied soldiers any suspicious behavior on my part would result in immediate retaliation. And as I said I consider you my friend, so I have no interest in foul play toward you in any event. Even so, with the current situation being what it is, my word is insufficient, so I thought it prudent to arrange additional assurances."

As Tyrion considered his words, the ambassador finished his glass, then eyed the wine Tyrion had brought.

"Ah, Arbor Gold. You're indulging." Bazyl, said approvingly. "It might be imprudent to ask, but if you do not mind…?"

"By all means. Help yourself." Tyrion said, motioning at the wine. "Provided of course you aren't concerned for your own safety?"

"Of course not." Bazyl said casually as he refilled his glass from Tyrion's bottle. "I am your only link to the Orlesian court should you wish to negotiate. You'd be foolish to kill me. And in case you suffered a lapse of judgement I have already taken the antidote for most common poisons, and my personal doctor stands ready should something more exotic be used."

"You actually thought of all of that?" Tyrion said, surprised.

"The Great Game in my homeland teaches all its players to be touch paranoid. Everyone below you wants to usurp your position, while everyone above you wants to kick you in the head to ensure you never pose a threat. So one either learns, or dies." The ambassador said in explanation.

"Sounds brutal." Tyrion commented.

"It is, it is." The ambassador confirmed with a tired shake of his head. "That's the reason I accepted this post. Unlike some, I am not fond of playing the Game. So far from the halls of power I can minimize its effect on my life, since all I need do is ensure my assets at home are not compromised."

"You might be in for a disappointment then. We have our own version of the game hereabouts." Tyrion said.

"Indeed you do. But in comparison your version of the game is a pleasant card game among friends, whereas ours is the Master's league, played to the death. Indeed I daresay that our version of the Game would drive even the most diligent players hereabouts into madness within hours." Baizyl said.

"Is that so?" Tyrion said, sounding dubious.

"Quite. I have heard a local saying that says *when you play the game of thrones you win or you die*. With respect, allow us Orlesians to know better. There is no winning the Game. Everyone plays and plays because they don't want to get destroyed by their enemies, but eventually we all lose, and we are replaced by new players."

"The Queen calls that the Wheel, one where the players are the spokes, each at the top in turn as the wheel rolls on relentlessly, crushing the common people on the ground." Tyrion commented.

"A most apt metaphor from her. Far better than anything they have come up in my home country." Baizyl complimented.

Tyrion nodded, accepting the compliment. "It is one of her dreams to do away with it, to break the Wheel so to speak." He continued.

The ambassador was quiet for a time. "Quite a noble dream to have, shared by many in the world. In my country for instance the founder of the Empire had such thoughts. Our current emperor can be counted among them as well, being a soldier through and through, wishing that the Empire could be governed in the same manner as one commands an army. Yet in having such a dream I'm afraid Queen Daenerys may have engaged in a conflict from which even she cannot emerge victorious. So far every attempt in history has ended more or less the same way: The beast that is the Game retreats at first, stung and confused that it has been attacked. Then it assumes a new guise and reasserts itself, often with a vengeance. It may be that the Game, or Wheel as you call it, is simply too integral to the nature of humanity and cannot be destroyed without taking us right along with it. I wish her well in her efforts nonetheless. The pursuit of a better world alone ennobles us, lifts us above our base origins, even if final victory can never be attained. And who knows, maybe she will even find some way to prove me wrong? I would not put it past her."

"I'm surprised to hear you speak of her with such high praise." Tyrion said.

"I do not hate her." Baizyl said with a shake of his head. "She is a remarkable woman with dreams most of us would not dare to have. In truth I don't even support this war we have levelled against her. If she was fighting against any empire but my own I might wish her success on the battlefield, but her triumph will mean the death of great any of our sons and daughters, so I cannot in good conscience offer her that."

"If I may… when did you know?" Tyrion asked.

"Of the war? A few days before I was called upon to declare it before your Queen. We were instructed to remain silent about the matter until the first blow was struck, which is why I only confirmed the matter when confronted directly." The ambassador answered. "And before that I had… hunches. Little things behind the scenes that pointed in that direction, that made me suspect. I never knew who that potential war was directed against, however, or why. But the fact of the matter is that even if I had been confident enough about these suspicions to tell you about them, I would not have."

"You wouldn't?" Tyrion asked, frowning.

"No. Because that would have been betraying my people. It's not a very fair thing to do to a friend, but as an ambassador I have a responsibility toward my people. I must serve their interests before anything else. I'm sure that if our roles were reversed you would have done the same." Baizyl explained.

"…Perhaps." Tyrion asked after a time of reflection. "But what about these attacks that have taken place all over Westeros? These infiltrators smuggled into our midst, who have taken gods know how many lives, many of whom were notable individuals of vital importance to the realm?" He then then inquired with a calm but pointed voice.

The manner of the ambassador darkened briefly. "I had no knowledge that such a thing was planned against you. Information about an operation like that would be kept on a strict need to know basis for reasons of security. And so someone like me would definitely be kept out of the loop so to speak."

"However…" He added after a pause. "…as I mentioned there had been a number of markers that made me suspicious. An unexpected reduction in the number of bards and other agents available to hire was one of them, although the reason eluded me at the time. Marquis Briala was propably had a hand in making all of it happen. I don't know who else could have managed it. I suppose that as many agents as the Marquis commands an operation as massive as this would require additional support. And of course the majority of her agents are elves, which means there are only so many she could involve without raising suspicion, not to mention her desire to keep her people away from harm."

"To affect recruitment of agents in a way that gets noted…. the scale it implies is just staggering. This much I can at least tell you: The extent of this operation tells me that this was not some sudden idea that just occurred to the Emperor. Something like this was a deliberate, considered move, done after a great deal of planning and preparation." He added, sounding awed.

"I thought as much." Tyrion said, nodding.

"Indeed. The Emperor must have been moving for years, perhaps ever since he became aware of your existence, recruiting operatives for the cause and positioning them to where they could do the most damage. And no one figured what was happening until it was too late. It is really quite impressive." Bazyl contemplated.

"I'm not sure that's the word I would use." Tyrion commented dryly.

"Well, while I might disagree about the ethics of his chosen strategy I cannot argue with the result. Those infiltrators were brought here to cause chaos and disruption and this is certainly what they have done. Together with the traitors in your midst they have done much to hamper your ability to respond to the invasion." The ambassador said

"The irony perhaps is that the Queen foresaw a possibility of an attack by enemy agents, just before we received word of your invasion. If only we had thought of it sooner. But even so I would say a wise man would not consider us defeated just yet." Tyrion replied.

"Of course not. At this point anything could still happen. Still, I must say the Emperor made a brilliant opening move." The ambassador said.

"Aye, I'll give you that. But I think I'll refrain from congratulating him." Tyrion said, dryly.

Bazyl gave a short laugh. "I understand. Where I in your position, I might feel the same way." He said.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens next, how this whole mess goes." Tyrion said.

"I guess we must at that." Bazyl agreed.

There was uncomfortable silence, both of them uncertain how to continue from that point onward.

"My Lord…" The ambassador finally said. "I know wars are an unpleasant business, and that it is not easy to foster friendship amongst such circumstances. If this war puts an end to our friendship, I will accept that as something that had to be. Even so, should there be some way for our friendship to survive this conflict I would prefer it."

Tyrion took a deep breath. "As it happens, I too would prefer for our friendship to survive this. You have been honest with me and I respect that. Given all that is going on I'm not certain that such a thing is a possibility, but I'd like to make the attempt. But officially I must keep my distance until the war is done. It would represent a very questionable image if I were caught consorting with an ambassador of an enemy nation in the middle of a war. Appearances are important, as I am sure you know all too well."

"Indeed. The language of proper appearances I speak better than my mother tongue. Very well My Lord, until the war is done we shall restrict ourselves to official communications only. And afterwards we shall see what remains to be salvaged." Bazyl agreed.

"But to commemorate our resolution I propose a toast." He said then. "To the Queen and the Emperor. May they find a path to a mutually agreeable peace sooner rather than later." He said, lifting his glass.

Tyrion smiled warmly, lifting his own glass: "To the Queen and the Emperor."