"If you can delay your departure for a few hours," Magnus replies. "We will provide any further comments in writing. Otherwise, the Prima can expect Atolycus and Constantine in Harco in the autumn."
Benedict departs and the magi descend upon the letters that he's brought. Among the letters is one from Stonehenge addressed to the magi in general. Magnus opens it and reads it aloud for the benefit of the others.
"So it begins," Magnus says after he finishes reading the letter. "A request being made by one of our contributing covenants. I doubt very much it will be the last. And, as if to drive the point home, the letter was sent along with Nigrisaxa's monetary contribution to our treasury."
"Thankfully this is not an onerous request, as we'll ultimately be in need of members for our chapter houses. But it comes a bit sooner than expected, as we haven't the income to open up the chapter houses. It also offers us with a difficult choice in whether we accept him. If we read between the lines, this is not just a request for us to consider this Atticus fellow, but a request to take him into our covenant. I suspect that if we deny Atticus a place, we'll lose the support of Nigrisaxa, and make an enemy of a friend."
"What do you say, sodales? How should we respond?"
OOC: The Beholden Hook for the covenant rears its ugly head for the first time.