Akkarin paused as he heard a faint sound from below him. He frowned. There should not be anyone in the basement room at the moment. He cast out his senses, and it did not take long for him to realize that there was an unfamiliar magical signature in the basement room. Takan, we have a guest, he sent. He felt his servant's surprise, surprise that Akkarin also felt. He had set up some magical barriers in the tunnels though he had put the most magical defenses on the door into the house, feeling that most of the tunnels' defense came from the difficulty in navigating them. It seemed he should have reconsidered.
What would you like me to do, Master?
Come to the drawing room and watch for Sonea. He felt Takan's assent and stood, making his way silently to the stairs. He was grateful that Sonea had not yet returned for the night. He descended the stairs just as quietly, and he caught sight of the Ichani immediately. The other man had his back to the stairs, studying the shelves on the other side of the room. "I do not recall inviting company tonight," Akkarin said softly in Sachakan. The man whirled around, but Akkarin had already sent a strong Forcestrike at him. He put up a shield just in time, but the strike still pushed him backwards slightly. Unfortunately, he recovered quickly, sending a couple strikes towards Akkarin. They bounced off Akkarin's shield harmlessly as Akkarin advanced further into the room.
Akkarin sent his next strikes curving around to hit the man from behind, but he had strengthened his shield, and it held without trouble. The man returned a volley of his own which Akkarin side-stepped. The strikes hit the shelves behind Akkarin, causing them to collapse and sending an avalanche of books to the ground. Akkarin's eyes narrowed as he focused on the man, sending a series of weaker strikes to test the other man's shield. It was strong, but Akkarin had not needed to fight an Ichani in awhile and still had a good deal of power. Concentrating, he found the weakest portion of the shield and sent a series of strikes at it, gratified when he saw the magic waver slightly. However, the shield held. "Is that all you can do, slave?" the attacker hissed, sending a series of Heatstrikes towards Akkarin's shield.
"I am not the slave here," Akkarin remarked cooly, stepping away just as the cabinet beside him shattered under a powerful Forcestrike. Akkarin sent another series of strikes at the man, stronger than the last one, and watched as his shield flickered again. The door clicked open, and he glanced over to see Takan standing just inside the door. Sonea is here, his servant sent through the bloodgem.
Go see if you can keep her from coming down here. Akkarin strengthened his shield under the next barrage of strikes before gathering a large amount of power and forming it into a precise strike. He sent the strike right at the center of his opponent's chest. Just before it reached the other man's shield, it shattered into five separate strikes, each of which sought a weak point in the shield. Though it obviously took some effort, the other man managed to shield against the strikes. "You will have to do better than that." The man's smile was cruel, and Akkarin could tell he was forming his own powerful counterstrike.
"As you wish," Akkarin sneered in Sachakan. With that, he released his most powerful Stunstrike yet, right at the weakest spot in the shield. The other man's eyes went wide as he screamed. At the same time, the strike pierced through his shield, knocking him over backwards. His shield flickered out, and Akkarin strode to him immediately, slashing the other man's neck with his knife. He pressed a hand to the wound, letting the power flow into him when he heard Takan gasp in surprise. Glancing up, he saw his novice staring at him in horror. He sighed. Just when he thought that he might be making headway in getting her to trust him.
"Sonea," he said, too tired to conceal his annoyance. In truth, he was not annoyed at her as much as himself and the situation. "Come here." He created a shield to push her forward, but she simply straightened her shoulders and walked into the room. She would be a formidable ally he realized, not for the first time, but he resolutely pushed those thoughts away. He lost the chance for that outcome when he had forcibly read her mind and taken her hostage.
Akkarin tried to explain why he was doing the things he did without giving away too many details, but he could tell his explanations did not change her opinion of him in the slightest. Finally, he gave up and reminded her of what was at stake before sending her to bed. She went stiffly, and he turned to Takan who was still standing across the room. "I don't like it either," he told the other man, knowing Takan's thoughts without needing the blood gem. "But I truly do not see any other option."
"You could tell her everything and let her help you."
Akkarin kept his face impassive and his mind clear, refusing to acknowledge that he himself had had similar thoughts once or twice. "Help? She's a second year novice," he said dismissively.
"You know how much power she has," Takan persisted.
Akkarin took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "This is my burden to bear, Takan. You of all people should know that."
"And what happens if you should fail, Master?"
"Then we're all doomed." And with that gloomy thought, Akkarin refused to say more on the subject.
Akkarin had a meeting with most of the King's Council to attend the following morning, and he woke, exhausted, with a pounding headache. For a moment, he wondered what it would be like to have a relaxing morning where he could sleep as late as he wanted, but he quickly dismissed those thoughts and sent some healing energy to his head as he swung his legs out of bed. He bathed and dressed quickly before heading to the dining room where Takan already had breakfast waiting. Sonea was not present, but Akkarin had expected as much given what she saw the previous night.
She left even earlier than usual this morning, Takan sent, and Akkarin could sense the disapproval in his tone. He sighed inwardly. He did not have time to deal with this set of problems right now. Instead, he chose to ignore them, eating quickly before heading out to the stables. He knew he could have taken a Guild carriage, but he felt that he needed a ride.
The stablehands seemed surprised to see him, but he dismissed their offers of help, saddling his horse himself. Having grown up around horses, it did not take him long before he was ready for his ride, and he swung up into the saddle with practiced ease. As the horse's hooves pounded down the well-worn road to the Palace, Akkarin finally felt his body relaxing. By the time they had reached the Palace stables, he was considerably calmer, and he handed the reins off to one of the Palace stableboys, adjusting his robes before striding into to the Palace.
Akkarin quickly found the West meeting hall, one of the larger meeting rooms in the Palace where the King typically met with his full Council. Akkarin took his seat to the right of Merin, noting that the seat across from him–typically occupied by Duke Harris–was still empty as were about half of the other seats at the table. Akkarin glanced at the clock on the wall, noting that he was about ten minutes early. Deciding he should use that time wisely, he pushed himself out of his seat and poured himself a cup of sumi from a pot that a servant had set out on a banquet table along one of the walls. There was food as well, but Akkarin had always found he preferred Takan's cooking to anything else, even food from the Palace cooks, so he did not take any. Instead, he walked slowly back to his seat with his drink, staying far enough away from the table that no one paid attention to him but close enough that he could hear the conversations taking place. He had perfected that particular art years before, and it was one of his most useful skills when it came to dealing with Court politics.
On this particular occasion, Akkarin learned nothing of interest–at least, nothing in which he was particularly interested. He heard the usual Court gossip of who might be marrying whom–or not, in some cases, but there was nothing noteworthy. Akkarin snorted internally at that thought. After all his experiences in Sachaka and years of dealing with the slaves, he was pretty sure he would not find anything noteworthy unless it put the kingdom in imminent danger.
As the last of the Council filed in and took their seats, Akkarin took his as well. King Merin called the meeting to order and quickly launched into the first item on his agenda for the meeting. Akkarin did appreciate the King's efficiency during the Council meetings; if the Council seemed to be debating something for too long, Merin would quickly table the discussion for later and move on to the next item on the agenda. Akkarin knew that he did this mostly because he himself did not like to sit through long council meetings, but it was still beneficial for Akkarin as well, especially with all the other duties Akkarin had.
Merin quickly navigated through all of his planned topics before asking if anyone else had something to add. Akkarin knew from private conversations with the King that he hated this part of the meeting, for he did not have as much control over it, but it was something the Council expected, and even the King could not change that. A couple Council members introduced their own topics. Both seemed trivial to Akkarin, but one generated a lively debate which only ended when Merin instructed the opposing sides to come to a compromise on their own and present it at the next Council meeting. As he did so, he exchanged a look with Akkarin who let the corners of his mouth curl up in a small smile. Akkarin had once shared the fact that he and Lorlen called the Guild their family, adding that it sometimes felt like a family full of squabbling children, and Merin had laughed, claiming his Council was the same. It had become somewhat of a private joke between the two men.
"In that case, there is only one final matter before I dismiss everyone," Merin said, stacking his papers and handing them off to his scribe. "I have been in contact with King Harkin of Lonmar, and he proposed a marriage contract for his youngest daughter, Melia. My Advisors and I have looked it over, and it appears to be mutually beneficial for both our countries. We have some small changes which I believe King Harkin will accept without hesitation after which we will be formally announcing our betrothal." Akkarin heard the murmurs around him at the news, but he noted there was not much surprise. Everyone knew the King would marry for political reasons, and strengthening an alliance seemed like an ideal choice. "I wanted to bring this matter here to make sure there are no major objections before we continue."
Merin looked straight at Akkarin, and most of the rest of the people in the room followed suit. Akkarin grimaced inwardly though he did not let anything show on his face. He was not sure how or when he had become the King's unofficial spymaster. It made some sense–after all, the Guild was one of the main places where all the members of the Alliance worked together. However, he doubted his predecessors had played such a large role in foreign relations. But Akkarin's travels had given him a network of contacts in the Allied Lands, a network that the royals had apparently not established. When Akkarin was able to provide Merin's father, King Terrel, with a few crucial pieces of information about other countries early on in his tenure as High Lord, the older man had begun to come to the young magician whenever he had a problem on foreign soil. When Merin ascended to the throne six months after Akkarin took his position, he came to Akkarin more often, for he seemed to believe that Akkarin had a solution to every problem and, Akkarin guessed, appreciated the fact that Akkarin was younger than him and thus didn't patronize the other man. I only wish I had a solution to everything, Akkarin thought to himself, but he would never voice those doubts aloud. Instead, he said simply, "Lonmar is a strong member of the Alliance with robust trade and large amounts of natural resources. Strengthening our ties with them is an intelligent move."
"What do you know of the king's younger daughter? This. . ." The wizened man asking the question stopped to consult his notes "Melia?"
Akkarin thought for a moment, trying to remember if he had ever heard the name before. To his surprise, he could not think of any of his contacts mentioning it. "Honestly, I have not heard of her before, but I will reach out and gather what information I can." The man nodded, satisfied, and Akkarin made a mental note that he needed to pay more attention to the Lonmar situation. It was unusual that he not know someone in such a high position in a foreign court, and he intended to rectify that as soon as he could. After all, if he became so focused on the Ichani invasion that he let something else slip, all of his work would be for naught.
Feeling his headache returning, Akkarin sent more healing energy, wondering if he would ever have a chance to rest.
When Akkairn returned to the Residence, it was nearing lunchtime, but Takan had not yet finished the food. While he waited, Akkarin decided to take care another task that had been nagging him since the previous night. He walked quickly to the Novice's quarters, expecting that Sonea would still be at the University, and he was happy to find them empty. Stepping inside, he closed his eyes and drew on his power before beginning to weave it into the magical wards he had earlier placed on her room. He knew that he was risking her safety when he brought her into the Residence, for he had assumed it was only a matter of time before one of the slaves found his way to Akkarin's home. However, he had not realized just how close at hand that time was. He had other magical wards around the Residence, so he had thought he would have some warning before a slave could break through those. But he had forgotten to reset a couple of the ones in the tunnel after his last excursion to the Slums, for he had been exhausted upon his return. It was a sloppy mistake and a costly one, and Akkarin vowed he would not be so complacent in the future.
As Akkarin wove the last of the magic into the wards, making them nearly impenetrable for anyone with a magical signature who was not Akkarin, Takan, or Sonea, he closed his eyes briefly, letting his senses probe the wards to make sure there were no weak spots. As he checked carefully, he realized something else he had not considered when first taking Sonea as his novice–he had not been aware how much he would care about her safety at the time. And now that he came to that realization, he had no chance to change their circumstances.
Akkarin finally decided the wards met even his exacting standards, and he stepped out of the room, pulling the door shut. He stood for a moment in the hallway, staring at the room, once more wondering if he could have handled things differently. But as always, those thoughts led nowhere. He had to keep his actions a secret or risk having the Guild and Kyralia–everything he had ever cared about–destroyed. The method he chose was the least objectionable way to achieve that goal. As he turned, he once again repeated the mantra that seemed less and less comforting as time went on. It was necessary.