(Oh my lord, has it really been nine days? I thought you posted like... three days ago.
)
Vuda was, of course, unwilling to cede to him the point - even his advantages were in question, and he brought the larger focus into the picture; Alistair's uneven ideology, or so he perceived, a mage liberationist who yet still fought heavily against the tides of liberated mages that called themselves the Coven of Ellasin. Only . . . they were, more than products of the society he wished for, great liabilities that held him back from any and all ambition, and his people any positive recognition.
"The Coven are worse than mage hunters," he said.
"They are the casus belli for mage hunters. The providers of motivation for all of the hungering children whose mothers and fathers were forced into thralldom. All of the street gnats who would stick a shiv into a mage's back, indiscriminately, only to be pulled from his corner by Hiladrathi or a vigilante or -- what have you. You are not, ethically, a pure thing . . . but you are also a shadow cast upon the wall, wearing Pahrn's skin, free from liability to the eyes of the public. All you are is a strong, lone mage . . . a thing I wish to see the world populated with."
Vuda was, perhaps, not interested in his ideology. This was fine. Alistair understood his own actions to be based on little more than self preservation or, perhaps, a towering ambition that sought to expand upon the surface of their world. He was a drawer of maps, a slayer of his foes. His magic was likely even more a tool than Alistair's was - a thing to be utilized as a weapon for waging his eternal war against the obstacles around him. His domains, in that regard, made a great deal of sense. Abrogation for self-preservation, and suppression of his foes. Rupturing to watch as the great overseer that he was, and strove to be. An unbreaking, unbound man who could be wherever he wanted and could command things to go his way.
Vuda made a lot of sense to him. Perhaps more sense to Alistair than he made to others, though he was certain that the first impression was always the most accurate; that whatever he did, and whatever he said, his goal was control.
In our circles, he called it. He must have referred to the den of lying aristocrats that the two of them certainly surrounded themselves with, even now. In truth, Vuda was right. He was incredibly wise, and clever, and capable of viewing all of his many faults with the eye of a hawk - as if he knew him greater than even his closest companions.
And though that scared him, it oddly made him feel at ease. Vuda knew everything he could have known. There was no need for lies. No place for deception.
"I did, then, what I thought was for the best. I fought not for power, nor growth, nor the ascension of any ladder. My ideology was one thing, and one alone: an all-inspiring will to be with him. But Fridgar is dead. As I said, I am a simple man. Whatever fury you may feel at my souring of our deal, I truly have nothing to soothe you. It will never be about you to me, or me to you, and we both know that. It's about ourselves. You want to be rid of this nuisance. I am your greatest tool to that end. Discard me afterwards if you wish. Or don't," he said.
And then, he thought. Pondered, for a trill and more, of something meaningful. What Vuda offered him was a chance to bring reason to the table, and perceptive as he was, he did not intend to lie to him. The opportunities for both of them were evident; Vuda had approached him, again, for a reason. Alistair provided him something that he did not previously have.
"Wholly rewardless? No. I would want Talia's artifacts," he stated.
"Perhaps not all. But some. Many are not even hers - they are the products of greater mages, a collection of secrets and wonders from generations past. She is a collector of great and marvelous things. I wish to acquire some of these things." Alistair spoke bluntly; he did, in truth, expect
some reward . . . but not the grand ambitions that Vuda expected. Alistair did not wish to found a new Coven, nor did he intend to become a thorn in Vuda's side. If Vuda and him
could have a symbiotic relationship, then he did not mind. Alistair had little interest in betrayal or trickery. Though many of Vuda's concerns
were warranted. He did not wish to get caught up in the war between Alistair and Ellasin. Inspiring the wrath of the Necromantress, a woman more vile and powerful than Vuda himself, was unwise.
He understood that. Unlike Vuda, he did not have the choice. Vuda . . . did. And Alistair had, in some ways, placed him along the edges of this war or at least... hastened the process.
"You're right," he whispered, narrowing his gaze.
"I do need you - from the beginning. And the element of surprise? We must not waste it on trivial battles, or violence against the fringes. All in one stroke, we must siege Rosenthal, and slay Talia. But I provide you a direct route to do so - I can open portals for us to funnel through. My thralls, Damien's, your manpower. We can cull them, quickly; of that, I know. And though you think I have strengthened your foes, that is not the case. Many of their mages continue to observe your own men, stationed in your outer realms, conspiring and gauging your forces. But that means they are gone. Their power structure lies vulnerable, Talia isolated with tens of new acolytes, unknowing of how to cast even a trickle from their fingertips. You overestimate our enemy. Why do you believe Ellasin crawls in the mud and secludes herself within caves? Because she must. Because she is weak, and her influence is pervasive, not martial. We can destroy her. If we cull Rosenthal, she will not be able to come for us. Especially not with all that she is doing in Rynmere - the grand act she is performing. To leave Rynmere now would be to swear away the culmination of her greatest ambitions. She will never retaliate."
Alistair did have one advantage that Vuda did not. Knowledge. Though his ideas were vague, what he knew was enough to felt secure. And that was why, ultimately, he attacked now. There had never been a greater moment to do so.
"As for me? I will simply garner protection from the Seekers. I will leave Etzos, and continue to strike at Ellasin from elsewhere. She will hunt blindly in the dark for me, and you may continue to root out the Al'Angryl, or whatever opposition you desire. Ultimately, however, my ideas are much more certain than any attempt at prolonged diplomatic negotiations with the Coven. They will strike you, eventually. You and I should much rather strike now."
And then, of course, came the final thing. The future beyond all that - or perhaps amidst it. The thing that Vuda quite possibly wanted, but didn't. Alistair's allegiance.
"And, if my leaving is not an appealing concept to you, I am not unwilling to discuss... further partnership," he added. Though his expression was stale, the implications were compelling. Alistair was a warrior that even Ellasin could - perhaps - not best. He had transcended many of the limitations he previously lingered upon, dreading among the supposed precepts of his mortal form. Vuda could appraise of that, or not. He could recognize him as an asset - or not. Alistair would allow his thoughts to be his own.
"If the mere decimation of our mutual enemy is not enough, then consider the decimation of all of them. I am no God, nor infinite foundry of power. But I am an asset, greater than any you will ever acquire. I have grown since our last encounter; I am double the man I was then."