[Under special seal]

My Lord,

I most humbly apologize for not having reported for so many months, and I beg your mercy. As I am certain you have heard, I have left the employ of Baron Hugo Marianna and joined a group of mercenaries nominally headed by Viscount Phoebus Halloravant of Lindholme, Talinie. Although I realize my joining this group is contra your orders, I pray that you will forgive me and grant me leave to continue in my current position. The viscount's mobility and interest in maintaining close ties with other regents throughout Anuire puts him and those who accompany him in a particularly admirable position to gather information and to enter courts that might otherwise be closed to them. Although it is not my place to advise your grace, I feel in my heart that I will be more useful to you in the viscount's company, and moreover I will have more freedom to travel from place to place as you should order, for I owe the viscount no explanation for my absence, as I would owe Baron Marianna were I to have remained in his employ. I am, of course, your loyal servant, and I will leave this company as you command.

Until that time, your grace, allow me to report from this company as I would under any other circumstances. The mercenaries I am traveling with are, to date, the blooded air-sorcerer Viscount Halloravant and his manservant Murdoch; Lady Jorden Galliard of Roesone, who also maintains excellent political ties with other regents and is a font of information, particularly about nobles' personal matters; a blooded dwarf from Baruk-Azhik named Bjork Fainwright who seems harmless but actively seeks the bloodkill; a Khinasi cleric of Avanalae named Galeno Faraji who is quite knowledgeable and may be a useful source of information, particularly about Khinasi affairs; a blooded Brecht historian from Kiergard named Konrad Victor Wilhelm von Macabre who may be useful for his in-depth knowledge of Brecht and Anuirean aristocracy; a Rjurik fire-mage named Heidi Nika Kolin who is an estimable warrior but probably of little political use to us (though I humbly call her to your attention should you ever require the services of a dragonslayer); a halfling named Vil Shadowstalker who wields a magical weapon and has only traveled with us on occasion; and a blooded Anuirean-turned-Khinasi sailor who calls himself Foxfire and who seems harmless, although I shall endeavor to learn more about his parentage. I am, to them, Malachai Gothos, as I entered their employ directly from that of the Baron Marianna, and should your agents have need to contact me I respectfully request that they do so using that name.

Several months ago I witnessed an interesting political situation engineered by Duke Gavin Tale of Ghoere, in which he ordered that Chamberlain Landen Olsenssen of Mhoried's son and companion be framed for the murder of two women. The chamberlain hired Count Halloravant's group to discredit this accusation, which we did. However, the tensions this has undoubtedly heightened between Ghoere and Mhoried may be of some use to you (immediately after this event, the Morr ordered forces away from Marlor's Gap to Anerian, although whether this new deployment persists, I cannot say). Should witnesses to this event be of any use, the innkeeper, Rufus Oldkemp, and his daughter Beth, both of who were involved in the frame, left our company in Riumiche, heading south on River Maesil. It is possible that Duke Tale will seek to have them killed.

In the confusion following the denouement, I took the opportunity to appropriate the dagger, bearing the Mhoried insignia, that had been used to frame the chamberlain's son. This I enclose. I have also appended a series of observations made about the individuals, armaments, and deploy of defenses in Mhoried, where I spent some time as the regent's guest. May I respectfully draw your attention to Regien Gelien, the Morr's wizard. I believe that he has private ambitions that are not necessarily those of the Morr, and may be vulnerable to manipulation. In particular, his daughter Tierlan Gelien, now mute, may be useful in the future. She is in turn vulnerable through her friend the Rjurik Ruorned Eriksson. We maintain good relations with Chamberlain Olsenssen and I feel that I would have few problems returning to Mhoried should you so request. This is not the case for Ghoere.

We have more recently escorted a young lady named Rune from Tuarhievel, where she was a guest of the Thorn Throne, to the realm and city of Ariya, in Khinasi. The young woman was accompanied by two elves, called Reason and Silence, of whom I could learn little. There seems to have been some fear that Rune was vulnerable to assassination, but by whom and for what reason I was unable to determine. However, she was taken to the home of Rida Sabirz, a half-Khinasi who serves as ambassador from Roesone. It thus seems possible that Roesone has a hitherto unsuspected political agreement with the elves of Tuarhievel.

The viscount's company then spent several weeks in the city of Ariya as a guest of the ambassador. While here, I came into contact with Tolodin Nusim, in fact Tolod Mutandier. Within minutes of meeting him I was able to deduce his position in your employ, which ought to tell you something of his competence at this business. I beg to protest his appointment in your service on both personal and professional grounds. On personal grounds, I find it distressing that he did not, in fact, die by my father's hand and upon your order fifteen years ago. To find him alive is personally repellent to me, and with your permission I would be both happy and grateful to finish the job in my father's stead. Although I do not desire to deprive you of a competent operative, in this case there is no question that his elimination would be safer for your interests.

Tolod is extremely unprofessional and careless, and I believe he is a danger to your credibility. The briefest search of his rooms was sufficient to reveal that he takes little care to hide his identity or, indeed, his work. I found an incriminating ring of skin dye staining his bathtub, and his report to you - including his seals for transmitting his letters - was out in the open on his desk. He seems incapable of casting spells under duress and, should his spell research be the thing that interests you, all of it was lost in the following incident. Finally, what Tolod might reveal under torture could be embarrassing; he was incapable of controlling his emotions when I set him a simple test, and I am sure he would be even more incompetent under personal duress.

In this case, Mutandier had been magically controlled to deliver a hidden message for a rebel operative defying the Red Kings in Aftane. Agents of the Red Kings - the Brotherhood of Khet - were trying to steal the jambiya hiding this message. Our group saved Mutandier's life in Ariya's marketplace when the Brotherhood set him up to be kidnapped or killed by a creature called a `displacer beast,' an illusion-using feline. Consequently, the viscount and I chose to protect Mutandier - the viscount out of interest in Mutandier's spell research, I to protect your interests. We were only just able to protect Mutandier from the attackers who burned his hideout and laboratory; Mutandier was worse than useless during combat. The next day we rooted out and dealt with the rest of the Brotherhood and their employees. Mutandier was not present.

In case it should interest you - and I report this because Mutandier was not privy to this information - an agent named Dawud works for Kalilah Sun-Eyes, a blooded leader of the Aftane revolutionary forces. His contact with people in Ariya is Tanstin, a dwarf. Apparently Dawud fathered a child, Gottopur, on an Ariyan dwarven woman, Gada. (I presume, therefore, that Dawud is also dwarven.) The revolutionary messages are concealed in the hollow hilt of a black steel jambiya. The message this time appeared to be a simple love-letter; unfortunately, I cannot read Basarji and thus could not search the letter for encrypted messages.

I have no idea why Mutandier was chosen to carry the jambiya this time - out of fairness to him, I believe he was merely a convenient (and undoubtedly easy) person to exert control over, and not a double agent of any sort. Regardless, should you have any interest in Aftane's politics, you have a potential hold over Dawud through his son.

I have, your grace, one other important item of information to impart, although it may be of more use as a warning than as a strategic observation. While in Ariya, the dragonslayer Heidi left our group to go on another mercenary endeavor and ran across a meeting of awnsheglien representatives from the White Witch, the Gorgon, the Magien, the Harpy, the Raven, and, I believe, the Pale Rider from the Shadows (who, Heidi reports, is a halfling). These awnsheglien are apparently planning to divide the continent of Cerilia into their own territories (I have reproduced the sketch in the appended items). Heidi and her group apparently managed to disrupt the meeting and flee. I have confirmed this tale from others who were in this group and firmly believe they are telling the truth. I shall attempt to learn more about this subject for you, if at all possible.

We are now back in the Imperial City, but we have no permanent lodgings as yet, and thus I may of necessity be difficult to reach for some time. Your agents know my usual stops and I will make all arrangements with them as soon as one contacts me.

My lord, I remain your loyal servant, and I hope that you will permit me to continue as a member of the viscount's company in the belief that I shall be able to serve you as well if not better here than in Baron Marianna's employ. Moreover, I pray now and always for the day that you shall in your magnanimity and kindness recall me from this duty and reinstate me in my former post, where I can best serve you as have my fathers before me.

I remain Your Grace's most obedient servant,

R.