HFQ Official Snippet #28

Hooked wrote:The Inner Circle had Nimue (Seijin Ganieda Cysgodol) assembled to provide protection for Prince Daivyn and Princess Irys. Nimue is now providing spy reports in Siddarmark. That raises the question about what has changed in Corisande? Is Irys now so proficient with pistols that she can provide her own protection, is her pregnancy already confining her to the castle or has Coris been provided with more insight to the seigin spy reports, or?

Tonto Silerheels wrote:Hooked wrote:

The Inner Circle had Nimue (Seijin Ganieda Cysgodol) assembled to provide protection for Prince Daivyn and Princess Irys. Nimue is now providing spy reports in Siddarmark. That raises the question about what has changed in Corisande?

Excellent observation! I might suggest that there are times when Irys is in less danger than others, as you already suggested. When she's in Cathedral Square getting married, the presence of the public increases her risk. When she's in the royal wing of the palace caring for her husband there's rather less. She also has the purpose of conveying seijins' reports to appropriate people which can be done on an intermittent basis. She may also have the task of demonstrating to Safeholdians that some women are able to perform well in traditionally male rôles--something that doesn't have to be continuous.

~Tonto

PeterZ wrote:One wonders if Hektor might not be able to claim some of the seijin's powers for general consumption? He has already proven he can heal rapidly. It is becoming common knowledge that God Graced him with health for his selflessness. Would it shock people to discover Hektor was also gifted with special "sight"? Sight like Merlin is reputed to have.

I think it highly likely people will believe it a divine gift if Hektor claims visions like Merlin's. At least to the second tier Charisian circle.

Kakai wrote:

PeterZ wrote:One wonders if Hektor might not be able to claim some of the seijin's powers for general consumption? He has already proven he can heal rapidly. It is becoming common knowledge that God Graced him with health for his selflessness. Would it shock people to discover Hektor was also gifted with special "sight"? Sight like Merlin is reputed to have.

I think it highly likely people will believe it a divine gift if Hektor claims visions like Merlin's. At least to the second tier Charisian circle.

That's a nice idea. I wonder, though - is Destiny still in Corisande? 'Cause if it is, then his friends from it will sure start asking questions - nagging him, maybe? - about it. Would they start asking him about how their families back home are doing? Where the enemy is? The weather? Bah, Merlin's one thing, but I'm pretty sure there's be people who'd say that with his visions, Hektor is now valuable military resource (although perhaps they wouldn't put it like this). I'm not saying that's the reason not to do this, it's just that the Inner Circle should take it under consideration.

JeffEngel wrote:

PeterZ wrote:One wonders if Hektor might not be able to claim some of the seijin's powers for general consumption? He has already proven he can heal rapidly. It is becoming common knowledge that God Graced him with health for his selflessness. Would it shock people to discover Hektor was also gifted with special "sight"? Sight like Merlin is reputed to have.

I think it highly likely people will believe it a divine gift if Hektor claims visions like Merlin's. At least to the second tier Charisian circle.

Seijins are reputedly a bit unearthly, and Hektor is one of the most charmingly salt-of-the-earth, this-worldly men on Safehold. Visions out of him would seem weird, really weird, and not in a seijin kind of way.

Seijin messages are getting through in Manchyr well enough as it is. They don't even need bricks as delivery systems anymore!

PeterZ wrote:Visions that are given to Hektor might allow him to accompany the KH VIIs and perhaps direct their fire with surprising accuracy. Besides providing phenomenal firing solutions, Hektor might be on hand to guide the ICN at sea.

Notes that appear mysteriously on board ships traveling as fast as the KHs might draw more questions than they are worth. Better to have a junior seijin develop than have truly "impossible" things happen routinely. Those visions begin as insights or intuition and gradually grow more explicit. Of course both Merlin and Nimue and nod sagaciously and agree that receiving that sort of gift comes at different ages. Heck, they wouldn't be surprised if Keys began experiencing similar insights.

JeffEngel wrote:*quote="PeterZ"*One wonders if Hektor might not be able to claim some of the seijin's powers for general consumption? He has already proven he can heal rapidly. It is becoming common knowledge that God Graced him with health for his selflessness. Would it shock people to discover Hektor was also gifted with special "sight"? Sight like Merlin is reputed to have.

I think it highly likely people will believe it a divine gift if Hektor claims visions like Merlin's. At least to the second tier Charisian circle.*quote*
Seijins are reputedly a bit unearthly, and Hektor is one of the most charmingly salt-of-the-earth, this-worldly men on Safehold. Visions out of him would seem weird, really weird, and not in a seijin kind of way.

Seijin messages are getting through in Manchyr well enough as it is. They don't even need bricks as delivery systems anymore!

EdThomas wrote:Some thoughts on the military discussions here...
1. Lyonheart's the only one using textev in his calculations and and seems to be being faulted for not assuming/presuming high(er) levels of re-supply of scarce items in the AOG's cupboard.
2. K's reinforcements are said to include a large contingent from Tanshar. Tanshar's a long haul away. It'll be interesting to see how Magwair moves them without impacting MHOG movements. They could be used for a test run of the AGS movement through Dairnyth

Peter2 wrote:

n7axw wrote:
[snip]

In addition to that there has been the occasional covert mission such as getting Nynian out of Zion and keeping Daivyn and Irys alive and getting them out of Delferak.

[snip]

I've never been clear on precisely how far Merlin was involved in that, in terms of who did what.

My understanding was that Nynian was beyond doubt the prime mover in getting her own people to safety, and I'm 98% confident that it was her organisation that set up the route along which Archbishop Cahnyr escaped. I'm also pretty sure that she was responsible for the mechanics of the escapes. I think Merlin may well have done more in arranging the later stages of the escapes, though – things like shipping, say – and his visit to Nynian was one of the main factors in setting the ball rolling.

What I'm not clear about is what happened in the middle, where the two operations touched. I don't know where the list of Nynian's people stopped, and the others started. Did Merlin "piggy-back" on Nynian's route by adding more people, or even more wagons amd so on? He must have had an input, but I don't know what.

But I don't suppose it matters anyway.

n7axw wrote:So far in the Safehold books, the Seijin has done primarily two things. The first has been to provide security for and advice to the dynasty. For Merlin that has been primarily Cayleb, although there has been occasion where he has gone with Sharleyan instead. In fact there was one time when he took a trip with Archbishop Mikael to Corisande. The second has been intelligence which basically monitoring the feed on the snarcs and seeing to it that the info gets into the proper hands, especially at critical moments.

In addition to that there has been the occasional covert mission such as getting Nynian out of Zion and keeping Daivyn and Irys alive and getting them out of Delferak.

I don't see it being different for Nimue. Her basic security task is to see to the security of Irys and Daivyn. At this point, they are critical as glue binding Corisande to the Empire. The actual level of threat is diminishing, but still there. But there is also the intel function. While Irys can monitor the feed, she has no way of getting critical info into the hands of people who can act upon it. As a known Seijin who has established her credentials, Nimue can. And while I like the overall direction things have been going in Corisande, that situation is going to require special attention from the snaecs for some time to come.

I see no reason at all why Nimue can't also do the special op that takes her away from Corisande just like Merlin has. But on the other hand, it makes real good sense to have her "home base" in Manchyr with Irys and Daivyn just like Merlin's is with Cayleb and Sharleyan.

Don

lyonheart wrote:Hi Don,

On the contrary Irys and Hektor can have OWL do what Merlin did in an emergency in passing messages to Gahrvai, and if necessary I suspect the SNARC sensors can kill or injure any assassins etc they find in extremis and then arrange more plausible causes [obvious evidence] of death or accidental injury afterward.

You [NTM Irys, Hektor and Nimue] could have a lot of fun with all sorts of embarrassing or humorous accidents that leave assassins easy captures, broken or twisted ankles, feet, fingers, or arbalest bolts etc from unseen seijins keeping watch.

Imagine how if necessary, the news that Corisande is being watched over by its own network of secret seijins or their friends will help secure the public to the empire.

Strategically, having Nimue at Manchyr [13+ hours ahead or behind east Haven] means she's able to visit east Haven as needed while Merlin is obviously publicly elsewhere is probably helping Cayleb, Sharleyan and the rest of the inner circle sleep better after Nynian saw through his attempted disguises so easily.

L