[Milo L'Evienne]

Given Nell’s hard pressed efforts, Milo’s grin twitched past a swallow of his water at her inability to keep the quill completely in check, while at the same time pondering her comments on a hopeful candidate for providing them the information they were after. ”The High Sage,” he repeated while that grin dissolved a bit. ”Ordinarily I’d say that lord Z’kron was the perfect choice. In fact, given his apparent longevity, he’d likely have all the information we need already at hand in his mind and would be more than eager to share it. Unfortunately there’s a bit of a problem there at the moment. No, he’s not in the forum at the moment and I do believe I am partially responsible for that, though circumstances seemed to warrant it at the time. The last I saw him, he’d hailed the city’s nature spirit through a portal in his office so that I might converse with her. A strange creature who manifested herself by way of a thick cloud of insects. A most unusual personality,” he remembered with a frown while getting up to fetch an ashtray and then return.

”At any rate, during that interaction, lord Z’kron began to shift form at random into a bird, though his mind remained as sharp as ever. But while I assumed at first that he was in control of such a transformation, I soon realized that he was not himself driving it. I then assumed it was the influence of this spirit, as she seemed inclined to a certain level of mischief, but was again proved mistaken. It worried me, not only for his own sake, but I was concerned about such a lack of control, him being an Advisor to the Crown. And so I questioned him and was told that yes, he’d been just recently experiencing some bothersome irregularities with his magic, though it had not affected his mind. He was honest enough to admit though, that he worried it might be the case if left unchecked. Now the nature spirit,” Milo added with a thump of his cigarillo to knock away an ash, ”seemed to feel that such could be easily righted. Given my concerns, I requested that he do that as soon as possible, then to please keep me informed of any developments. If it could be easily righted, I was not compelled to immediately remove him until I knew for sure given his mind was sound and his thinking as sharp as ever, and the effects of the irregularities affected only himself. It might be viewed much the same as a temporary, but debilitating illness. But on the other hand, felt his service should be put on hold until such a time the situation could be put to rights for the sake of avoiding any negative mishaps. I believe he was in full agreement on that count. But it was the last conversation we had, and then he’d wandered off with not a word since. It's been a few months now. Though I’ve heard a rumor or two recently and may now be compelled to act in an official capacity unless he presents himself very soon. Though I'm aware that there are those in his offices that can carry out brightening to brightening duties to a particular level. So the Ministry is by no means non-operational. Meantime, he's being considered to be on official hiatus until such things are resolved. Otherwise, he seems not to have presented himself at all elsewhere in the Empire in his official capacity since that time. In fact, he seems to have vanished and I may well need a new High Sage at some point soon. It's not a situation that can be left too long, though I'd hoped for a quick resolution, and have of course not advertised his particular status beyond those in the immediate need to know, or who can otherwise gain needed information from his offices, despite his own absence at the moment.”

”But you’re probably right love,” Milo added then after puffing a few smoke rings into the air. ”I don’t suppose both of us should go, given the possible risks and the fact that one should remain here to run the store meantime,” he added with a wry grin. ”And I wouldn’t mind getting out of the office. Barrett tells me I’m getting a little pasty. I could go then, in the company of the Rosemen and those adventurers we bring together for the task, then once making sure all is safe, then we could both go over and have more of a look around. As for visiting this Shrine in particular though, I’d like to do that as soon as possible the two of us.”

Then snuffing out his cigarillo, he leaned forward and propped his elbows on the table, but turned his head aside abruptly so that her lips met his, instead of his cheek. ”Yes, orders,” he said with a smile and slid a piece of parchment in front of her. ”I’m still not at all sure how to word a call for candidates, and I guess we should put out a call for mages and adventurers as well. Or should we simply just contact those we’re familiar with already who might be up to the task? So we need more information on Cyraxians in case there are any to run across. Maybe an educator, a professor in the city might have such knowledge readily on hand? Alexis needs to be contacted about setting up patrols around the island, we need to find out something about pegasi in the city, we need to gather those who might accompany an expedition to the Isle before candidates can be escorted to the Isle, and we need to pen a call for the candidates themselves.”

”Now this call, I’m not sure how to go about wording an article. I guess we should make note of the requirement that a Regent is to organize such a thing within a particular amount of time. A mention of the reappearance of the Isle of the Crown, and that the pieces necessary are now in place, as well as this being a historical event given the time elapsed since such was possible added the circumstances…Timing. I guess we should choose a proposed date for the gathering of candidates, how much time is to elapse before they should present themselves here in the Palace?”