"I heard you just fine. Perhaps your observational skills are simply too undeveloped to recognize that agreeing to see something done, and the actual execution of that agreement, are entirely independent of one another.
"Now that he is gone, Talia, my objection to his unreasonable request has nothing to do with his mundanity. It has everything to do with his dishonesty, and his blatant disrespect for each and every one of us, in insisting that his value as an assistant is worth more than our own contributions.
"I feel the need to clarify an earlier point I made to Eilid. No, this Ysebrand is not committing a Hermetic crime by consuming vis, because he is not bound to the Hermetic Code. Any magi of this council voting to take his "sustenance" out of the salaries of this council's magi, however, is directly depriving other magi of our magical power. I am not Whitburh, to turn a blind eye to the law; I will prosecute if this goes any further.
"If he needs vis to subsist, fine, he may work for vis. But not out of the covenant's largesse. He will not draw a guaranteed salary while the rest of us are at the mercy of politics and chance. Neither will he hold a monopoly on our Corpus supply, when others here are in need of longevity rituals. His well-being is no more important than any of ours, but whatever the size of his member, Talia, his health is less relevant to this Council than ours. If he is to earn any vis, he will do so on an individual basis, at a rate to be negotiated by whomever is to be retaining his services."
Talia gives Drystan a nod of understanding, but doesn't say anything.
"I honestly had no idea about his condition. He's private, and I had some idea that he was an apprentice for someone in the past. The way he talked, he knew too much about the Order, and he could tell right off why in his words, 'he didn't like' me, so he has had experience with the Gift. I also had some sense that he was generally wary of Magi, but he gave me the benefit of the doubt, because I did not pry into his past, and only made use of his services as a factor of sorts, to negotiate cargo shipments on my behalf. Ysebrand was able to negotiate a few shipments for me, kept me and my crew fed, and kept him in some coin, too. A few months before we came here, he asked to come to Inverness with me, said he'd struck out on a couple of deals and needed a change of scenery. I obliged him. When I found out about coming here, I invited him to come along, and he seemed at once eager and anxious. I now have a better idea why."
Talia pauses and asks, "Eilid, did he tell you how this happened to him?"
"What dishonesty? Please point it out, because I fail to see it. I see someone who has likely been used and abused in the past attempt to use his talents to negotiate the best he can from the situation. He can choose to go to whomever he likes to disclose this. Do you feel slighted that he did't choose to come to you?"
"The council determines how vis is spent, after it is spent the surplus is divided among the members. This is little more than ensuring there is enough vis for the annual Aegis. It is not depriving a magus of their power. And in return for vis, he enhances our magical power. I don't find this sound legal reasoning at all. I'll seek out this Whitburh and get her opinion, if I must"
"He's already indicated he agrees to work for vis. Your arrangement necessitates that he negotiate individually with the person who has the corpus vis, what if one year someone claims it all, and in so doing they claim the right to his services for a year, denying us the right to his services. That strikes me as depriving me access to my magical power."
"Then feel free to have Whitburh investigate. With the reduction in your salary for this charlatan, you will certainly not be able to afford her going rate."
"Haile, you're just wrong. I don't agree with your understanding of the law. By your rationale, casting the Aegis is depriving a magus of their magical power. As it allocates a resource from individual use to common use. This is the exact same thing. The only difference is that instead of protection for our covenfolk we get assistance in the lab, and instead of it costing Vim vis, we have to pay in Corpus. I may not know much of Longeivty Rituals, but reading Corpus Revealed over the summer and now Arguing With One's Reflection, I've learned that Longeivty Rituals can be created with Vim, Corpus and Creo vis, and in certain instances with vis relating to a Magus's keen understanding of another Art."
"Really? I'm wrong? When exactly were you educated at Magvillus in Hermetic Law, Talia? No, your unique interpretation is dependent upon a false assumption, that placing one of your lovers on the payroll, at a rate of half again in excess of his ostensible need and in excess of everyone else's salary, benefits the rest of us on par with an Aegis. I have talented lab assistants who also require vis, and I have not moved to place them on a ludicrous stipend, because it is neither legal, nor fair, nor just."
Aodhan was present but scratching onto a slate he brought with him most of the time. He finally looked up as the voices were raised regarding Ysebrand.
"Oh, I didn't realize it was him you were talking about. He should stay, he'd make an excellent Venditor. That can bring in a lot of vis. I could draw up the usual vis fees I can command as determined by my Primus, that could bring us some vis, and we need to have someone to hawk the wares among other magi or even mundanes if we want some silver. I suggest we put him to work and let him be sponsored by us and make his excess vis through selling my wares. He seems rather smart, I'm sure he can make us a lot of vis."
"When I met him, he wasn't in the shape he was when I brought him here. He had steadily declined over the past few months, and had rejected my offers to contact a healer of the order. I mean he's not a very hale individual to begin with. I thought he had some form of consumption, but it didn't seem to be catching to anyone he was around. And quite simply, while is attractive in a fashion, he's not athletic or muscular enough for my tastes. Paolo, my navigator rarely enjoys my bed for the same reason. We all have a type."
"Excellent. Then Aodhan can take responsibility for him and see to his needs out of his own income. If this man's capability for generating profit is as Aodhan expects, he can earn in excess of what he needs without impacting our incomes as a whole."
Aodhan shrugs. "You're not really thinking about the future then. If ye don't want me impacting your incomes as a whole, what will you say when I start turning a nice profit? 'Too late, too late' will be the cry when the man with the deal has passed you by.'" he says in a sing-song voice. "I don't deny that I'd like Ysebrand to stay for my needs, but an investment in me and him will earn you all something in the end. But if it just falls to me, don't come to me later when my investment pays off and pays well. I may seem a bit scatter brained, but I've a fine eye for a deal, and a decent memory." he says tapping his temple.
Halie quirka a brow at Aodhan. "I would not begrudge you success, and I do not know why you'd expect me to," she replies. "Suffice to say, I am as confident in your ability to turn a profit on Ysebrand's assistance as you are, and wish you both well. If whatever covenant you came from expected to be tithed from your own personal endeavours, they were rotten indeed, and I am glad you found your way here."
"If Ysebrand must negotiate with the individual magi for service, then I can envision the price for his services being driven higher. For example, say Aodhan and I both have a project that requires his assistance, Aodhan and I get into a bidding war, and we end up paying for a resource far more than we would've had to otherwise. It's not about success, it's about controlling the cost. I believe that Ysebrand was still addled when he struck the bargain with Eilid or at the very least, concerned about his long term success at maintaining a stable supply of what he needs to live. How about this. We amend the deal to 4 pawns of corpus for 2 seasons of lab work, and he can earn a percentage of vis on beneficial trades and other activities. I would prefer his lab work remain a covenant resource that we can rely on to some degree. Ysebrand is a merchant, first and foremost, we should not forget that, we should take his initial bargain, or at least refine it so it is more palatable."
((Just throwing it out there, Talia, for example could outbid all y'all for his service with her horde of Herbam vis. My idea behind Ysebrand was to be a communal resource that was shared by the magi as a whole, with the exception of any Venditor duties he needs to perform for Aodhan. I think the concerns raised are reasonable, but I can see a scarce resource like Ysebrand bidding out his services to high levels quickly, because two magi really need him for their project. The present structure makes that less likely to happen. Honestly, I'd like him to be used on different projects than Talia's for some time to come, although +8 for her LR LT isn't something to sneer at.))
"The total of our registered vis sources," Drystan says, "is about 51 pawns a year, of which 8 pawns are Corpus. In case that factors into anyone's decisions. And our current Aegis requires six pawns."
"Again, Talia, you assume that what he provides benefits us all equally. I do not believe that his assistance is worth three pawns per season; if he can get more through individual bartering, more power to him.
"With a new covenant springing up on our front porch, and the potential for losing perhaps half our registered vis sources, we do not have the luxury of putting an avaricious, deceitful lab aide on retainer at an exhorbitant rate. I am certain Dalla would lend her aid to others for lab endeavours, but she would not presume to demand a greater salary than we ourselves draw.
"If he wants to know where his next meal is coming from, take him on at subsistence level, for half a year's work. If he wishes to turn a profit half again above his actual need, he should look for a sponsor in a far less precarious position than ours."
"Fine, it sounds like we're ready to vote. If it is the decision of the council, I invite you to prosecute us all. I move we ratify Eilid's agreement with Ysebrand, it serves our long term interests, with some short term expense."
((Really take issue with deceitful and avaricious being used. In the first case, he has not been dishonest. You may disagree with what he has done, but he was entirely honest. Secondly, there is nothing in his actions that suggest he is avaricious. IS he seeking advantage, more than he needs to get by? Sure. Secondly there is nothing firmly established about Three Hour Tour, and I'd appreciate letting that story reach some sort of resolution before we bring it up into the discussion, you're making an assumption that I bother to tell anyone about it, which, if I were a nasty Tytalus. It's my story, and it's fair for me to relate the events in my own manner. )
This is a full season after that story resolves. I assumed you were not out to screw everyone else over, and that by the time this comes up for a vote we are all at least aware.
Halie votes no, unless stipulation is made that Ysebrand's salary cones directly out of the salaries of the magi who use him. She makes it very clear she intends to prosecute each and every magus who votes for it as stands on Deprivation charges.
((You are correct, that it is a full season away, but it has not resolved itself, has it? Can I please be allowed to finish the story to some degree before we discuss it as a council item? I mean it's left hanging in the air as to what's going to be agreed upon. Not everything has to be negative, it could be a positive. I don't know. I'd like to explore it without any assumptions. And even then, why would we say half the vis sources are at risk? They're registered, right?
I don't understand the threats about how a covenant allocates resources. You personally, as a player may not like it, but I don't see how as a Code matter your character is being deprived of magic, it's merely been converted from one form to another, exactly like the Aegis. Do you honestly expect Haile thinks she'd be allowed to remain a member of a covenant when she files a charge against the members if the measure should pass? I'd think the vote to kick Haile out would be a slam dunk if she proceeds with that plan. And suddenly Haile's standing for the suit is moot. There's a lot of room for deprivation of magic.))
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