The Marillion is always a busy place. As the seat of the Vanir Princedom there is a constant influx of people arriving for secular reasons. As the Spiritualist center of Fanatika, there is also a constant flow of pilgrims, dedicates and the curious. Add to that the madness as the staff prepares for the coronation of a new prince and the activities of the Vanirian nobles as they form the basis of the Vanir Confederacy and massive cleanup and repair efforts from the terrorist attack and the mighty palace resembled a hive of bees. A hive of bees after being given a swift bash with a stick, to be precise.
Into this maelstrom of activity came a small group of American horsemen. They carried the standard of the noble house of Denver, which was related to the Prince of Vanir by marriage, so had readily gained entry past the Vanirian patrols. The leader was an impeccably dressed man of middling height that was more than compensated for by his prodigious width. Perhaps "foppish" would be too strong a word for his appearance but it wouldn't be off by much. He wore no moustache but had a fringe of beard in the American tradition. The beard did little to hide his jowls and they flapped moistily as he cantered his horse to the stable.
The other men were obviously his guard and carried a strange mix of weaponry - both firearms and swords. There was even a lance (from whence the Denver standard flew). The guardsmen helped their leader leverage his prodigious bulk from his mount with as much dignity as was possible and then assisted him in brushing off the dust of the trail and generally making his appearance acceptable. Before he allowed his horse to be led off he took a satchel from one saddlebag and a box from the other. He opened the box and the curious onlookers saw what appeared to be a small dog inside. He snatched the canine out, gave it a vigorous shaking, and plunked it down upon his greasy locks whereupon it became obvious that it was in fact a powdered wig.
Sufficiently attired he began wheezing his way up the grand embankment towards the Marillion proper. Within a hundred yards or so he was leaning on one of his guards. Within fifty more he was being supported by two guardsmen and by the time the hill was crested a total of four men were working to support his prodigious bulk as he himself was overly occupied with the strain of breathing.
The rotund diplomat (for the seal on his satchel could now be seen and identified him as such) was deposited unceremoniously on a bench and sat there for several minutes gasping for air as his crimson face gradually receded to a more normal, though still ruddy, complexion. During this time, two of his guard entered the palace to announce his arrival and see to accomodations. Rudy, the castellan of the Marillion, learned of the arrival and quickly went to investigate. He was led to where the two guardsmen waited, in obvious embarrassment over their charge. He quickly ascertained that the dignitary was one Benjamin Smythe, of the Denver Smythes. Mr. Smythe was an attache to the Margrave of Denver and was in fact here at the Margrave's orders seeking an audience with the heir to Vanir.
Rudy had been working quite hard to shield the crown prince from latcheys and and other such bloodsuckers who sought to attach themselves to his rising status. This was a delicate situation as the Margrave of Denver had been fairly close to Prince Shaitan and was married to his daughter Anja. It was even remotely possible that the message being delivered was the long awaited agreement for Denver to secede to Fanatika, something that Shaitan had been working towards for many years. He decided that he would ascertain Smythe's intentions and pass him to the heir if the situation warranted.
When Rudy arrived at the scene, Smythe was generally recovered and in fairly good spirits. His accent was horrid so Rudy broke protocol and conversed in Anglish. Smythe would tell him nothing of the message he carried but intimated that it was of great import to Denver and Vanir and would have repercussions to the bonds of friendship between America and Fanatika themselves. Thus reassured of the import of the Margrave's missive, he arranged a brief audience for Smythe with Grandmaster. Rudy would serve as interpreter at this meeting. Though Grandmaster was fluent in Anglish he had no wish that this ability be generally known.
The audience started well, with consolations on the death of Shaitan and wishes that the two nobles could soon meet again, perhaps for some foxing in memory of the departed prince. It quickly degenerated as Smythe got to the meat of the message. Rory Denver, the young son of the Margrave by Shaitan's daughter Anja, was being proposed as the true heir of Vanir. Grandmaster almost lost his composure when this was said but managed to hold himself in check. Aparently, the good Margrave was concerned that Grandmaster's claim was false. Though specified in Shaitan's will, the marked heir was neither a legitimate child nor was he named the living heir before Shaitan's death. Both of these were generally accepted as necessary to circumvent the established chain of inheritance. As Shaitan's oldest legitimate grandson, Rory had the strongest claim to Vanir's throne.
The stick thusly delivered, Smythe then offered a carrot of sorts. In exchange for Vanirian properties north of Gunningheim, Rory would abdicate his birthright. At this point even the rather blockheaded Smythe could not fail to note the red fury barely contained by Grandmaster and with protestations of the difficult ride and his poor health he took his leave. The fact that he did not ask for permission to depart was not lost on Rudy or Grandmaster.
After the bulbous dignitary had left, Grandmaster called his councilors to discuss the situation. It was indeed grave. Though Shaitan's wishes were specific, they were not necessarily lawful. Young Rory did indeed have a stronger claim to the throne than Grandmaster, whos illegitimate birth would taint the ascension. There was no doubt that the Vanir Confederates would support Grandmaster over Shaitan's American raised grandchild but if push came to shove, the relations between America and Fanatika could indeed be strained. It was even remotely possible that the King would be forced to support Rory's claim.
Several of the councilors thought that a bargain of land (less than what was being asked, of course) in exchange for a firm seat on the throne was a worthwhile exchange. Rudy disagreed violently. He had been part and parcel to Vanir's stellar growth and berated these men for their caution (or cowardice, as he intimated). But no matter what the councilors advised, the decision would be Grandmasters...
