Hior Celadrendir's page

Sweeping a long, thin hand to the side, Hior bowed low and said, "It shall be as you desire, your Highness. Please, consider it an early present. Harbormaster, let us convene at my estate on the morrow and see this situation amended, shall we?"

At Alis' plans, Hior's expression became slightly more pensive and he spoke, "These are noble goals, your Highness, and worthy of your station, yet even the not-inconsiderable influx of capital that accompanied your arrival can salve Dafar's economic woes for overlong. With confidence in trade waning, what demand do you imagine Dafar's markets can generate for ships — beyond naval concerns, of course?"

"Your Highness' scribe recites poetry quite well for one who skulks about casting aspersions like cantrips. I particularly enjoy such fanciful imagery as towers piled high with treasure, an enviable fantasy to be sure, almost as droll as constructing mighty vessels without plank or beam."

Now beginning to walk about himself, he looked up toward the ceiling as if imagining something as said, "It strikes me as... ironic, however, that an individual obliged to abandon their past life would deign to lecture one thrice their age on corruption. Given his boasts, I wonder... does the young pup speaks from personal experience?"

"Please forgive me," Hior said, "in my hasty review I must have overlooked the plethora of commissions for new vessels that our ardent scribe inquired after. Or perhaps it is not my eyes that fail me, but my elven ears. Surely the both of these honorable men just testified before the hand of our King that there was not in fact a 'scarcity of new ships' on order."

In the moments of silence that followed, the Commodore growing red in the face, the Treasurer looked from one man to the next before extending a hand to Arion. "And there you have your answer, young man. There is a crucial gulf between desire and its realization. One must be possessed of sufficient means for the former to become the latter, and wishing otherwise does not make it so."

"It truly is a pity, your Highness, but given the adverse economic conditions rendered by ongoing civil unrest, several once hale industries have been forced to close their doors. Sadly, Marna Thalasia was one such casualty. Betwixt shortages of lumber and a paucity of contracts, the shipyard could scarcely keep its shipwrights fed, let alone their taxes paid. Lest the presumption of government charity bankrupt our coffers entirely, necessity dictated a precedent be set."

Several in the room shifted uneasily at Lureene's comments, and Lord Celadrendir's aides gave one another questioning looks. Their master however, merely replied enthusiastically, "How wonderful! It would indeed be a pleasurable surprise to learn we have an ardent proponent of economic stimulus in you, Miss Lureene."

"No doubt you did," Hior responded, "Lord Gallo has enthusiastically privatized as much of the drayage business as possible whilst leaving less profitable tasks such as garbage collection to those who can afford the luxury of fresh air. While there is something to be admired of such a keen nose for profit, the protests levied at my office by his merchant competitors are becoming quite... noisome."

Lord Celadrendir tipped his head to Amhranai, still smiling as always, "Then the privilege is ours, it would seem, for this unlooked for boon."

Turning back to the map, the Treasurer whisked a crenelated figuring from a nearby table and placed it in the location designated for the keep. "Master Architect, would it be correct to guess that whilst your engineers draft schematics, and laborers prepare the site that the Fraternity's stonemasons might attend to Lonndenost as well, or do they find themselves mired in the morass of our tumble-down penitentiary?"

The Treasurer cocked his head slightly at the appearance of the tattooed elf, yet offered a slight nod of courtesy upon spotting her badge. Perhaps picking up on her distaste for Iole Bonati, he smiled and commented, "Ah, yes yes... the fledgling Lord Bonati. No doubt his demesne would benefit from the auspices of the Lightbringers, particularly after snuffing of hope's light. No doubt our stalwart champion's torch shall prove more resilient."

"By the by," he continued, "I cannot recollect such a memorable countenance from my tenure at court. Good Dame, are you, like her Highness and retinue, newly arrived in the capital?"

Lord Celadrendir gave an 'aah' of approval at the suggestion. "A more decisive military presence could stabilize Iole's slums. Why we should not even have to exercise our right to eminent domain nor squander funds on a labor encampment."

"An astute observation, your Highness," Hior complimented. "In light of the dilemma that our extant constabulary is loathe to police the Outer Quarter, perhaps the good Sir Hellhammer's order could champion peace and civility south of the city proper."

Turning to his aides and the apprentices who had accompanied Master Petronius, Hior added, "You see, one must always consider the practical costs of not only property and labor, but ongoing needs such as provisioning and accessibility, and whether the expected economic benefit can adequately sustain the necessary infrastructure."

"After all," he said, bowing respectfully to Alis, "we should neither wish to squander our patron's fortune, nor neglect that a sovereign invests the wealth yielded up by their populace."

As the Treasurer finished his impromptu lesson, the younger aides in tow nodded quietly to one another, unaware that they were not his true audience.

Although Lureene and Sasha might not have noticed it, Hior's perpetual smile waned slightly at the Princess' words. Bowing again, he replied, "It would surely be my loss, your Highness," before straightening.

Glancing at the human beside him, Hior ventured, "Might we presume the purpose of this meeting, so soon after your immigration to the Palace proper, concerns its current state of... repair?"

As all bowed to the Vicereine-Appointee, Hior, as the eldest and most highly-ranked in attendance, greeted her, "A fair Starsday, your Most Royal Highness. How eagerly we have awaited your leisure. It is not every day one is so privileged as to receive an invitation to spend their day of rest in such illustrious company. Quite the lovely surprise indeed!"

Although it may have gone over Lureene's head, the rest of you suddenly realized that it was neither Hior nor Luca who had requested this weekend meeting but rather Alis herself! Even as Sasha bit her lip and looked imploringly at Arion, chagrin evident, it was not lost upon the more perceptive members of your group (Alis, Arion, Darvesch) that the Lord Minister of the Treasury was less than amused at such an unorthodox meeting time.

As he turned to go, the minister hesitated and glanced over his shoulder, eyes opening just wide enough to reveal a hint of pale blue. "I do wonder though, what could you have thought I was implying that you took such offense?"

Although it slipped past the distracted redhead, it didn't take a genius to realize Hior was implying that Lureene and Arion's reactions were indicative of some hidden, guilty secret involving the 'angelic diva'.

"My my," the Treasurer said, waving a hand apologetically, "such scary faces, perhaps spirits have dulled my tongue. It is no secret her Highness arrived in the company of celestials, half the city heard her refrain in the language of Heaven. I thought it natural to wonder if perhaps you were the agent of some higher power that she served."

Bowing in respect, he said, "Perhaps I should be on my way lest I embarrass myself further."

"A pet monkey, and an otherworldly handmaiden... I see our Princess' has a love for the exotic. Tell me, Lady Ourson, and please take no offense at my curiosity," the treasurer said seating himself after the succubus had done so, "but is it some pact that binds you to our Princess, or does some deeper bond move her?"

While Sasha was too busy bubbling away at her waterpipe to pick up on Hior's innuendo, it was not lost upon Arion or the Commodore and least of all upon Lureene. He might just as well have come out and asked if the Princess was bound to her.

"My My," the treasurer said, eyes still mere slits and lips pressed into a thin-lipped smile, "I shall have to speak with Master Petronius about what sort of work his men are doing. I can't imagine her Highness will be well pleased if my humble estate is garnering more praise than the palace. And here I thought the repairs were coming along quite nicely."

Turning his head but not his gaze slightly towards the retreating soldier, he commented, "Obviously my ostentatious displays of wealth do not sit well with Ms. Ardagnir, you have my apologies, Thrandel."

Although it escaped the notice of Lureene and Sasha, it was readily apparent to Arion that the treasurer did not enjoy being called out in such a fashion, especially when his office must already under a great deal of scrutiny due to recent budget shortfalls.

"Charmed, I'm sure," Hior said simply.

At the man's greeting, a few others seated further down rose to their feet out of respect.

The man seated closest was of about Arion's height, an elf with long wavy brown hair parted neatly in the center. Although he smiled, bowing his head in respect, his eyes seemed perpetually squinted as if against a bright light. It was not merely for the way in which he cleared his throat that you gathered he was not nearly as enthusiastic as the more flamboyantly-dressed Sareth.