Visit To Tasha: IngreyIt was quite common for Ingrey to be asked to visit Mandor prior to one of the diplomat's periodic visits to Chaos to report to the Emperor, and this time proved no exception. Ingrey headed up to the Castle after finishing some last amounts of dreaded paperwork. While there were secretaries and aides for most such matters, Lady Paloma preferred more sensitive documents, such as these pouches destined for Chaos, to be handled personally. Ingrey eschewed a teleport or trumping, and instead had a driver from the Embassy drive him up to the Castle. He nodded to the guards who had long since been used to seeing him enter the Castle countless times, and made his way to the office that lay just off of the Great Hall. He gave a staccato knock on the door to the office. "Lord? It is Ingrey Wererathe." Ingrey tried not to laugh as he remembered a comment that one of the Amberites, he had forgotten which once told him. "You don't have to say Wererathe every single time you announce yourself, in less than high formal situations anyway. There aren't exactly a surplus of Ingreys running around Amber. We know who you are by now." "Enter." It was Mandor's voice, as clear and crisp as always. After all these years in Amber, he had never quite completely excised the flattened vowels in his Thari; to retain them must, of course, be a deliberate decision. When Ingrey entered, he was standing by the window, looking out over the roofs of Amber - the tiles that proclaimed the newer Amber he had been so instrumental in creating - and the thatch of old Amber that survived in a few of the buildings. "Ingrey Wererathe," he said, without the inflection of a greeting - and then he turned, fixing Ingrey with those oddly unsettling eyes (even by Chaosian standard, there was agreed to be something unsettling about Mandor's gaze). "I have a task for you." The Minister-Counselor to Paloma Baccaran did not sit without invitation. Instead, he chose a place several paces inside the room, and held his hands together before him, and he bowed. It was possible that he bowed to avoid overly staring at those unsettling eyes of the power behind Amber's Throne. "Sir. It would be a pleasure to serve. May I guess that this task involves my imminent trip back to Chaos, and my report to The Thelbane?" "Indeed," agreed Mandor. "I have a mission for you ... " There was a slight pause. Mandor seemed to be smiling, "Tell me," he said, "how do you feel about the concept of innocence in a Chaosian?" "Innocence, Prime Minister?" Ingrey's look was one of moderate confusion, melded with mild curiosity. "Innocence is a rare thing in Amber or in Chaos, and often only possible by fierce and vigilant protection." Ingrey replied. "There is the example of Florimel's son, for instance, although he is an Amberite. I suppose there are such examples in the Courts as well." Ingrey gave a slight nod and waited for Mandor to continue. "It appears so," said Mandor. "And I would like you to verify this phenomenon for yourself." He nodded towards his desk, where there was a slender folder bound in demonskin. "You'll find the information on her there." Ingrey picked up the folder, opened it, and flipped through the pages with the practiced speed and comprehensiveness of a diplomat used to paperwork. He nodded at a few points, made a few noises, and finally placed the folder down. "Niece of the House head, raised in shadow. Uncommon to be sure. Certainly, sir, I can learn more about the girl." Ingrey paused a beat and then added. "What sort of middle game are you seeking, Prime Minister? Do you intend to possibly play her on the board? Is there anything in particular you wish me to confirm or deny in her nature and upbringing?" "Game?" said Mandor mildly. "You suspect me of playing a game?" It seemed Ingrey was on the edge of a line it might not be altogether prudent to cross. "If such a suspicion, voiced, would cause a tightening and tension of the working relationship and bond between us." Ingrey responded, keeping his countenance to one of cool detachment "then I will withdraw and discard such speculative suspicions and ask that the query that I might have erred in voicing be unasked." Mandor waved a hand. "Consider it unasked. Do you have any other questions, pertinent to your mission?" Ingrey gave a curt nod of the head, in response to both Mandor's answer and his question, and perhaps a private confirmation of what Mandor was doing. "Do you have any suggestions as to a cover story, or would you prefer that I, ah." Ingrey moved his countenance toward, but not quite a smile "improvise?" "Flexibility is our provenance," said Mandor. "Let the Amberites be Ordered - and ordered." It was an old joke - and it never quite reached Mandor's eyes. "Feel free to improvise," he added. "Of course, sir. If there are no more explicit instructions." Ingrey said. "I shall continue my preparations to depart." "My thanks," said Mandor. It seemed that the audience was at an end. "You're welcome, sir." Ingrey walked to the threshold of the door, and turned to face him. "And, well played, sir." Ingrey said, with just a trace of a smile. He bowed, and then left. EOT
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