"Why didn't you summon help?"
Naitachal shrugged. "None seemed available at the time, and afterwards, I doubted it would make any dif- ference. So. You didn't send an assassin to kill me?"
Lyam seemed flustered. "What possible reason would anyone have to do that?"
Naitachal frowned. "I did not think you to be so obtuse, Captain. To trigger a war, of course. But if you did not -- "
"I most certainly did not!" Lyam exclaimed. "I was looking for an ally in your company, not a target for assassination!"
Silence, for a long moment. "Then who could have?" Naitachal asked, grimly.
Alaire caught a key word in Lyam's last statement.
Ally. That would imply an inner political struggle of some sort, one that this man would want us to take sides on. Perhaps our guesses weren't so far off afte Naitachal seated himself on one of the benches, folding his hands comfortably, and unaggressively, on his lap. The posture had the desired effect; Lyam relaxed slightly, emphasizing how little he'd tensed up.
Naitachal began. "My researches lead me to trust you, sir. In fact, I came looking for you, Captain Lyam.
I wish to lay my cards on the table, so to speak."
Lyam nodded cautiously.
"I have... questions. The first, and most obvious to me, is why are there so few non-humans in this land?
This was not the case several years ago. Though other non-humans were not plentiful, the dwarves, who are excellent artificers and makers of weapons -- and never had much love for magic either -- were present in great numbers."
Lyam nodded in agreement, opened his mouth to say something, then apparently thought better of it.
He let Naitachal continue uninterrupted.
"My own people, as well as the White Elves, vi Suinomen often enough that most folk knew, at least, what an elf looked like. Your own Guard employed many orcs upon the northern border. But all of this has changed." Naitachal raised a single eyebrow, inquisitively. "Why?"
Lyam cleared his throat, but Alaire could see it was only a stalling tactic, designed to give him time to for- mulate an answer. Yes, Captain of the Guard. Why is that? If anyone would know, you would.
"Well," Lyam said. "The non-humans were at one time more numerous, I must admit But about twenty-five or thirty years ago, the government encouraged them to leave. Something happened back then -- what, I do not know, but it was decisive, and sudden. I was a child herding dieren in the hills then; I remember nothing except that suddenly the non-humans were gone. And this didn't happen over several years. It happened almost overnight. And now, the government advises those who cross our borders to cross back as soon as their business is complete. Once they hear about the Prison of Souls, they usually find urgent business elsewhere."
Naitachal nodded sagely. "Was this about the time magic became illegal?"
Lyam frowned. "Suinomen has always regulated magic," he corrected carefully. "At that time, however, it became more difficult to practice. That's whe Association came into existence. And, of course Prison of Souls."
"And the Swords of the Magicians?" Naitachal per- sisted.
"The same. They are the enforcement arm o Association. Actually, magic isn't illegal, it simply requires a permit."
Naitachal snorted. "Let us not spar with words, my dear Captain. Semantics is my specialty. Magic is, for all intents, illegal in Suinomen. I've seen the Hall, and the farce it really is. No magicians of any reputation would bother with it And how much is the price 'license'? More than most can afford. It is a common tactic, my friend -- if you wish to make something dif- ficult to obtain without actually making it illegal, you put a high price upon it. And I am sure, if someone like myself actually had the gold to pay for such a license, there would be other obstacles to obtaining it than mere money."
Lyam seemed chastened, but didn't seem eager to leap to the defense of Suinomen's magical policy. "Of course, the magician in question would have to pass certain criteria. He couldn't have a history of non- compliance with Suinomen law."
"He couldn't have a criminal record," Naitachal translated. "I'll agree with that. What else?"
"His political view would have to align wit King's"
Naitachal shrugged "And?"
"It would be helpful, but technically necessary, to have a friend within the Association."
"That goes without saying," Naitachal said dryly.
"Now, assuming one had all those things, what would be the price of an unlimited license -- the kind the mages of the Association have?"
Lyam sucked in his breath, shook his head. Ten thousand crowns."
"That's outrageous," Naitachal said, echoing Alaire's thoughts. "How can anyone, much less professional magicians, afford such a fee?"
Lyam raised his upturned palms in helplessness, a strange gesture from a man as strong, physically and psychologically, as he. "I don't make the rules, Ambas- sador. The answer is, they don't, because there are no professional magicians in Suinomen, save for the ones in the King's employ. The Association, in other words."
Naitachal nodded "And it goes full circle. Magic is legal, but it isn't, and the only magicians who can prac- tice their trade are for all intents and purposes dancing to the tune called by the King. Am I leaving anything out?"
Alaire cringed at the last statement his Master made. If he doesn't watch out, he's going to ali Captain Lyam, and we need this man.
But Lyam did not take exception to Naitachal's evaluation of Suinomen; if anything, he appeared to be in full agreement.
"No, I don't believe so," he said simply. "As I said, I don't make the policy."
"Yes, I know. Another thing," Naitachal said, leading the conversation, "What gave the King the notion that his son is conspiring against him?"
That Lyam didn't seem surprised indicated this was probably a common rumor. "I'm not in His Majesty's confidence. However, I am the Prince's friend as well as his swordsmanship tutor, and I do not think there is any truth in the idea."
Naitachal cast a questioning glance towards Alaire, as if to confirm this. Alaire picked his words carefully.
"Captain Lyam here is an excellent swordsman, and from all I could see, he and the Prince have a unique friendship. I think that the Prince needs friends. He is nowhere near as -- ah -- mature as he would like to appear."
Lyam nodded. "The boy is raw, that is for certain; he's like a cornered wildcat if the wrong blades come after him, and he won't hesitate to defend himself in a fight, but I know for a fact that he has no designs on the throne. In fact, I think he would rather not have the throne. He dreads the day he will have to sit in it, because he knows it will be the end of his freedom when he does. And -- I think he fears that day as well, because he knows how ill- prepared he is to rule."
"I suspect this might be the reason for his hedonis- tic lifestyle, then," Naitachal said. "Which, because of his extreme youth, has yet to affect his health."
"The Captain keeps him in shape," Alaire offered.
"If it's not the other way around," Lyam said. "He'll never believe I said this, so I feel confident telling you.