Jackal Among Snakes

A lean man of above-average height wearing gray robes opened the door and walked inside. He was bald, though with sharp handsome features that seemed to have an indelible grin. This was not, despite appearances, Magister Hegazar. Instead, Argrave spotted a dim gray silhouette just behind. That would be the man himself.

“Hello, Magister Hegazar,” Argrave greeted, his legs crossed as he waited casually atop a couch. One of his arms rested across the back of the couch just behind Anneliese. Galamon stood behind, arms crossed before him as the ever-diligent guard.

Magister Hegazar was an S-rank mage whose A-rank ascension was closely linked with illusion magic. He was one of few Magisters in the Order to specialize in that branch of magic. The human figure Argrave saw—the bald, handsome man—was a constantly projected illusion. The silhouette was where Hegazar’s body truly was. Argrave suspected the only reason he able to glimpse even a hint of Hegazar’s true form was because of Garm’s eyes.

“Well… if it isn’t our Order’s resident Kinslaying Serpent, Argrave,” Hegazar greeted, his voice husky and deep. It had a certain intonation that dripped with amusement and cynicism. “My, I feel half a child again confronted by so many giants. My neck may hurt by the end of the conversation, craning it to look up at you.”

“Well, you are the true senior here, head and shoulder above us all,” Argrave answered at once, almost excessively flatteringly. Hegazar had an ego rivalling any A-list actor—Argrave’s strategy was to act as though he was ceding control to him while still controlling the flow of the conversation.

“I’m very glad we could meet today,” Argrave continued, rising to his feet. “Please, have a seat.”

The door shut behind him, and the lock clicked a second later. “Mmm…” Hegazar’s illusory body gave a nod. “Took you a while to reach out. I was beginning to think you were stringing me along like an ugly, kindhearted girl you didn’t have the heart to say ‘no’ to.”

Hegazar stepped into the room, and though his illusory body took a seat in the couch opposite Argrave, his true body roamed about the room, examining things. He didn’t ask about Anneliese or Galamon—he didn’t seem to care.

“But I suspect you were rather busy trimming your nails, cutting your hair, getting yourself presentable for the big crowd forming outside this tower,” Hegazar continued, voice projecting from his illusory body flawlessly. “Your pa must have a soft spot for you—he’s gathered so many people that are screaming your name, waiting for the very moment you step out onto the stage.”

Argrave laughed politely and sat back down, doing his best to keep his eyes away from the silhouette that wandered the room. “Fortunately for them, I’m not one to disappoint the people. I’d like to step onto the stage soon enough. But… stagecraft, any sort of art… it can be an expensive thing. Sometimes you need a patron. A sponsor.”

“Ahhh,” Hegazar’s false body leaned forth very naturally, placing both elbows on its knees. As it did so, Hegazar’s true form finally decided it had seen enough, and went to sit down where the illusory body already sat, lounging while the illusory form remained animate. “I see where I come in, I think. You’ve got production issues. Bit off more than you can chew, hmm?”

“Sometimes an opportunity’s too good to pass up, even if you have to overextend a bit to seize it,” Argrave said, putting his arm back behind Anneliese.

Argrave knew Anneliese well enough to tell immediately she was ill at ease when faced with Hegazar. It seemed that, despite his illusion, she could tell that the form sitting before them was not real flesh and blood.

“Mmhmm,” Hegazar leaned back, silhouette and illusion overlapping for but half a second. “Not to condescend, but these patrons, these sponsors—as much as you might be fooled into believing they throw money at half-baked ideas for the sake of throwing money, that’s not the case. These fools with gold in their soles—they’ve got an agenda. Either they like the art, or they see a golden, glimmering treasure mound at the end of the tunnel.”

even if you spin it as something avant garde, the crown prince dying isn’t something I care to hang on my wall. I don’t know you. I won’t stick my neck out. As for profit…” the illusory figure threw up its hands in a shrug. “Your pockets look a bit light to me. I certainly don’t see any pile of riches in sight. All you’ve got, as I see it, is an angry father. I have enough fathers angry at me—I don’t care to add another to

felt very much swept along by Hegazar. The fact Argrave recognized that, though, probably meant he wasn’t. And soon enough, the man would be cast

Argrave nodded. “Back when the Order of the Rose fell, Vasquer issued a ban on exploring their fortresses, and

That’s a poor start to

even got them. But the ban on exploration is up, and yours truly has the location of a cache of preserved books that’ll be a more-than-fitting replacement for the pile of riches you might want. And even if it isn’t… if you

and clicked his tongue. “If I wanted sweet promises, I could pay some troubadour to sing me songs about all my virtues, or some fortune teller to tell me

valuable things in Argrave’s possession. He needed juicy bait to hook the biggest fish. He set it on the coffee table between him and Hegazar and slid it over. Rather than allowing the Magister to

in the couch as the A-rank matrix took shape. “The A-rank spell [Full Bloodmoon]. It’s the last of a series of spells

one’s body. Rather than matrixes… these spells took root in the body, too. Rather than conjuring a matrix, the body itself served as

betrayed his true body got off the chair,

a painting…” marveled Hegazar. The silhouette reached out towards the book briefly, but the sound of a lock clicking echoed in the silent room. Hegazar’s true body came to attention at once, prepared to fight, while the illusory body merely turned its head backwards

She had gray hair with orange, predatory eyes, and looked quite young. Argrave thought

eyes scanned the place calmly as she crossed her arms. Wrath set in when she

at first, then ponderance, and then a stirring curiosity, each running across her face

stepped deeper into the

and shut the door behind her. She followed his true body with her eyes,

Some ploy by this old witch?” Hegazar asked,

the hell? This wasn’t..!” Argrave acted

couch just beside Argrave.

wrong time,” Argrave whispered in show, rising to his

Durran asked, then shook his head. “To the blazes with that. You don’t pay me enough to deal

show of theirs. Argrave couldn’t tell if they were convinced,

of the Rose work. And this book…” she reached down.

the silhouette by the door. Eventually… the

up, looking between Argrave and Hegazar. “You two