I looked again at my surroundings as I relaxed into a cushion. It was clear why Horix had made this room his office. It wasn’t just to provide him with entertainment looking out through the ice. This was a place designed to impress visitors and intimidate students. It was a tool to earn respect, and I could appreciate that.
I half-expected Horix to remain on his feet and use his height to further intimidate me. Instead, he sat on the floor behind the desk with his back ramrod straight and his hands folded in his lap. The Guildmaster watched me for a moment, and the intent behind those cold, pale eyes was completely hidden to me.
“Thank you for coming to my guild,” he said finally. “It is always a pleasure to hear from Guildmaster Xilarion.”
“He sends his greetings,” I said. “Xilarion mentioned that you were old friends.”
“Indeed.” Horix nodded. “We fought together for Emperor Talekon during his campaign against the Tainted Armies.
“We fought against an alliance of tainted guilds,” Horix said in answer to my puzzled look. “They believed that, by coming together, their magical atrocities would be given more strength and that their combined arms would prevent the Emperor from stopping them. They had not counted on the determination of the Emperor or the skill of General Xilarion. We destroyed their armies, razed their fortresses, and scattered those who remained.”
“You were brothers born in battle,” I said. I now had far more confidence that Horix would heed whatever words Xilarion had penned inside the scroll. I pulled the message from my belt and put it on the desk.
Horix smiled at the seal and met my gaze. “It takes a certain kind of fresh disciple to cross the mountains into our province. I take it from the lack of injury that you passed through unharmed?”
“I have friends who accompanied me.”
“I see. They are the young woman, Vesma, and the Wild, Kegohr?”
I nodded as Horix tore the seal with a long fingernail and unfurled the scroll. The elf snorted as he combed over the letter. After only a few seconds, he placed it down on his desk. His eyes swept back up to me with laser-like precision, and my gut twisted.
“I take it you were not so impertinent as to read this letter?” he whispered.
“I wouldn’t give me so much credit, Guildmaster. I’m a glorified messenger pigeon.”
The less the elf knew about me, the better. I had no intention of playing his little mind games. All I wanted was a bellyful of food and a warm bed. But I’d seen types like Horix before. They were puppet-masters.
“How fare Xilarion and the Radiant Dragon Guild?” he asked.
I barely hesitated with my answer. “Master Xilarion didn’t tell you?”
“I’d like to hear it from you, Disciple.”
“The guild was recently attacked. Clan Wysaro made a play to increase their power at our expense. There was a battle on the grounds of the guild, and a lot of people were killed or injured.”
He leaned forward and steepled his fingers. “So. you have come for aid. I would be happy to send Augmenters to the Radiant Dragon Guild. They could put down this rebellious clan with little effort.”
Was this a power play? One like Jiven Wysaro and his guise of ‘helping’ the Radiant Dragon Guild?
“Thank you for the offer,” I replied, “but it’s not necessary. We beat the Wysaros, in large part thanks to Master Xilarion, and they’ve retreated to their fortress. We have the situation under control.”
“I am glad to hear it.” Horix straightened and folded his hands in his lap. “I know what it is to face a troublesome clan.”
“You’ve been having similar problems?”
I knew of the conflict between this guild and the Qihin Clan, but it seemed Xilarion’s letter hadn’t mentioned it, or Horix was keeping its contents close to his chest.
And I’d be damned if I didn’t find out what was going on between them. After all, Xilarion wanted me to help resolve the conflict. I thought it would only require delivering this letter, but it seemed the task wouldn’t prove so easy to accomplish.
“The Qihin Clan,” Horix answered. “They have not been so bold as to make a concerted attack, but they are not controlling their members. Untamed warriors and Wild Augmenters cause trouble across the province while King Beqai sits idle.”
“What sort of trouble?” I asked.
“Assaults. Thefts. Destruction. The sort of unchecked violence one would expect from a tribe of aquatic savages with no sense of discipline.”
I considered what I’d seen since we emerged from the mountains. The Wild warriors attacking Kumi seemed like evidence of what the Guildmaster was saying. They had both acted like wild savages and tried to kidnap a woman while she bathed. I had seen firsthand the criminal violence that brought an extra layer of steel to Horix’s voice.
But they hadn’t been Qihin Clan members.
I considered Kumi herself and her brother Labu. I had seen them in action, talked with them, and fought alongside them. They hadn’t seemed like criminals. In fact, they’d been every bit as disciplined and effective as Cadrin, a guild member in apparently good standing. If I added in Kumi’s claim about the guild members taking her people’s crops, I got a mixed picture.
“I’ve met some of the Qihin,” I said cautiously. “Admittedly, only a few, but they don’t seem out of control.”
“I would advise wariness,” Horix said as he narrowed his eyes. “The savage can put on an air of civility if they want to pass without trouble. They can even seduce strangers with their friendliness and other wiles. But when you have been here for a while, when you see their constant, self-destructive cycles as I do, you will understand. And in the meantime, I hope that you will trust to my judgement and my desire to keep my old friend’s messenger safe.”
“I’ll do my best.”.
There was
