She laughs and steals his knife. "I hope some of them are cleverer, at least."

"Perhaps. Where next?"

"Not many of them seemed to have much potential. Perhaps that lead enchanter?"

She nods. "What tack do you wish to take with him?"

"Hm. He's survived to be old. He'll be too cautious, I think, for revenge fantasies. Offer him freedom. Hope for the youth. Ascendancy for his people."

"I'll follow your lead. You have more of a talent for people than I do."

"I shan't disappoint, then."

To spy more closely on Orsino!

Still dealing with paperwork. He has more things than the other mage did, his office is cluttered with various curios, not all of them magical. A staff with three dragon heads leans up in one corner.

And how long does it take him to notice her moving things when he's not looking? (This is both hilarious and a good test of how observant and wary potential allies - or potential targets - are.)

Not very long at all. He casts a spell, and a pulse of force sweeps out across the room at chest height, high enough to avoid disturbing his things but low enough that any hidden intruders will be caught by it and knocked against the wall.

She ducks, like a sensible shinobi.

And the Keres is, of course, unaffected. It's unwise to beard a mage in his den without putting precautions in place.

Orsino frowns at the lack of effect. "Very well, then. Show yourself."

She likes the 'disembodied voice' routine, but she thinks he'll be more receptive if she plays along.

She appears, modifying the chameleon technique a bit so her normal colors slowly bleed back into her, starting from the head down.

"Hello."

"No demon, and not one of the mages here. You're no Starkhaven refugee, either. Who are you, and why have you come?"

"A harbinger of the change to come, and I am here because you seemed to have more... Ambition, let's say."

"Ambition?" He scoffs. "Hardly. I have a spine, and refuse to cower just because the templars snarl."

"They're much the same, aren't they? To stand strong. To stand free."

His eyes narrow. "Where did you come from?"

"Outside."

"That's not an answer."

"I have walked the place between worlds. I have seen more than their narrow minds can imagine. Chains broken, power where it should be..."

"And where is that?"

"Surely you have answers of your own. I'm merely a passing gust of wind."

"The breeze doesn't usually stop to chat," he says dryly.

"You must not listen very often."