"In favor."

"Do you have someone in mind?"

She won't do much but slow them down but she might provoke them into admitting something foolish.

Elias waits silently, nodding along to His Grace's requests but saying nothing.

"Exactly," Berenguer-Aspex says. "Someone with the forces to secure order when the Reclamation leaves. Capable, disciplined, and not urgently needed in the rest of the country."" 

"Surely you mean that the convention should recommend a candidate to Her Majesty, for her to approve on an emergency basis. Let's not cause any confusion about who this power rests with in the long term in fixing problems, pressing as they may be."

"Oh yes," he says insincerely. "To Her Majesty." Her Majesty is not doing her job and he'll pretend she is if everyone else wants to.

He nods. "Recommends to Her Majesty for immediate appointment on an emergency basis."

"A city-dweller, of course. Certainly doesn't have to be from Westcrown but no one else will be able to do the job."

“I have a man who’d do well. Manel Sarroca, formerly d’Orval. Born here, raised in Cassomir in Taldor by a good family. Not a noble but thought he was - his mother lied about his birth.

He came back after the four day war, restored order in Ostenso with men and food. He was doing a good job there, by all accounts, until someone checked his mother’s story and Archduke Requeña i Cortes regretfully removed him.

He has some men - I was negotiating with him to help clear out part of my March, but he’s needed more here.”

"How soon can he be here, if summoned? The rest of us ought to meet the man, before we recommend him to the queen."

Thoughtful nod.

“He accompanied me to the convention today - he can be here as soon as we send for him.”

How fortunate and not at all because this nomination was settled days ago. 

"Then I suggest we do so now, and discuss other business of this committee while we wait." He nods to a servant.

"What is the man's record from before the Four-Day War? Adventuring? Ruling?"

“He began guarding merchants on the Inner Sea, and did well enough to form his own company. He can tell you the specifics.”

"In that case, while we wait for him to return, I'd like to turn to the question of freedom of the pen. I know that we passed some" wholly inadequate "restrictions this morning, but — as His Highness the Archduke mentioned — those restrictions did not include a ban on slander or libel. I see little reason to permit that sort of defamation, given the immense harm that recently resulted from such behavior."

He passes out copies of a draft version of the law. This might technically be illegal, because apparently when the radicals were busy leaving loopholes in the censorship law large enough to march an elephant through it did not at any point occur to them that they had defined a "small audience" to be smaller than the maximum size for a committee.

1) To publicly make, aloud or in writing, a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person is a crime.

2) To privately make a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person is a crime unless the statement is true.

The punishment shall be not less than a fine of 10gp and not more than the punishment for the conduct falsely ascribed to them, be it a crime, or not more than exile from Cheliax, if the conduct falsely ascribed to them is not a crime.

"This was the law in the years before Asmodeus. I suspect it may need some modifications for our present circumstances, but I believe this is a good starting point, and I'd like to have a final version ready to present to the floor when the session resumes."

"I would like to modify it to 'claim or insinuation', the habit of pamphlets being to say something indirectly by metaphor and this still being conduct that should obviously be prohibited, and I would like in order to reduce the discretion of the judiciary to direct them to apply the maximum penalty in cases where the claim was made intentionally to a wide audience or in print for wide distribution and not withdrawn immediately. The lighter penalties should be for slanders that are unintentional, not intended to reach a mass audience, or apologized for; if a man writes some vile slander in a pamphlet that he papers the whole city with, he should be punished exactly as if the slander were true of him."

"Is this law intentionally scoped only to individual targets as opposed to any large class of them such as 'nobles' or 'wizards' or such?"

To run an economy through, thank you very much. It's like you think money comes from the sky.

"Everything would be a crime if you include 'by claim or insinuation', Count Solpont. What you just said would be the crime of slandering the judges by insinuating that their judgment is poor. That is not a standard by which judges can Lawfully judge, even if the queen continues to geas every justice she selects. Find another wording that wouldn't condemn you with penalties up to those prescribed for treason and the committee should of course consider it, the scurrilous pamphlets about Geryon are dead but I don't want more speakers like them any more than you. The rest is re-outlawing things already illegal under the censorship law and seems a waste of time."

"For the original proposal, verifiable truth, under magic, must be a defense even in public statements. We can argue partial versus total defense if you insist, but given the state of local justice, particularly the many unvetted barons and local lords, it is needed. If the local baron is a diabolist and there is no paladin on circuit to appeal to, it must be legal for the one or two of his servants or subjects who are aware to denounce him, if when the denouncement is able to call justice in they can verify that the original person believed and was justified in believing the the accusation."

His brother is burning in Hell because he cannot possibly justify the expense of a Resurrection when those funds could be spent repairing his county's infrastructure, he is perfectly aware that money doesn't come from the sky.

"'has poor judgment' is not a scandalous or malicious claim, Archduchess, and ought not to be prohibited, and the law has always required that a specific person be identified, if not by name, so 'judges' don't suffice either. ...it would be acceptable to me if truth were a mitigating consideration during sentencing, but there are absolutely true words that should not be spread widely, because of the immense damage they do to the social fabric. I was going to draw an analogy to Valia Wain's speech but of course you spent this weekend diligently working to get her freed to continue to poison our city, so I suspect you do not see eye to eye with the people of Cheliax in this matter."

He's right but he shouldn't say it. If Conde Solpont spends half the meeting provoking the Archduchess they aren't going to get anything done.

Count Solpont did not actually take any issue with the Queen or her new appointments, one week ago, and was diligently de-Asmodeaning his county, and missed absolutely nothing about infernal rule. Now he means to destroy everyone who ever helped Valia Wain get away with it and will gladly go to Hell for it. He does not think he can reasonably be expected to be civil when insulted by the deranged radical whore queen of the radical whores, even if she's an Archduchess.

"Perhaps one might say that to speak to a person empowered to make lawful arrests is a third category?" Elias offers quietly, "and so permit denouncement of criminals even before open court, provided the accusations were true."

"I have not spoken to the people of Cheliax, but I doubt they care, other than those hundreds whose lives Wain saved before she arrived in Westcrown. I do know I see eye to eye with the people of Westcrown, which is overall relieved by both her verdict and the end of wild pamphlets. The delegates of the convention, less so, quite understandably, but in my view incorrectly. I am in any case unconvinced that accusing a judge of poor judgment is neither malicious nor scandalous, especially if it a judge who is deciding the matter. Malicious and scandalous are very broad words that can be interpreted in truly Mephistophelean fashion by anyone who chooses to, and the lines must accordingly be narrow in all other respects. 'Claim or insinuation' is far too broad. Try something else."

Wow, she wants a fight.

The nerve to give him an order like that. He turns his head away from her with an expression of utter contempt and disdain. "I have heard no objections of sensible men, shall we vote on my amendment?"

Solpont's got balls, starting a fight with an archduke. No brains, but balls.

Dear gods. At least that time Solpont decided to be provocative in a helpful direction?

"I certainly agree that restricting the law to direct claims would fail to prohibit many instances of clear slander, including many of the claims that led to the riots. But I worry, Your Excellency, that 'insinuation' might regrettably be interpreted too broadly — under ordinary circumstances, the judge could of course apply his discretion to such cases, but as it stands that is currently impossible. Would 'clear insinuation' be an acceptable phrasing?" That is to say, Solpont is clearly right that they need to cover implicature, but he doesn't want the Archduchess trying to convince the floor that this would outlaw anything that could possibly be interpreted in a negative way.

"'Clear and intentional' would, I think, largely address my objection to the amendment, Conde Castell. Other than outlawing something already twice-banned."

"If it gives less ammunition for lies to Valia Wain and the Archduchess's faction we can also specify, though it's the plain reading of the law, that a 'scandalous or malicious claim' has never in the law referred to every single potentially negative statement, nor is it intended to here. The claim 'that man drinks to excess' is not scandalous, and is prohibited only if false; the claim 'that man is a Norgorber cultist' will observably move some men to murder him and should be illegal even if the other elements of incitement are not present and even if it is true."

"Why not clear or intentional? I expect either to be sufficient for it to be damaging. Let us not make our crimes so narrow that they can be easily avoided by those with ill intent."

"Clear or intentional seems like a reasonable standard to me."

"Damaging, sure, but not criminal. If a theater accidentally copies my next year's dress for their comic opera's lead and suffers her a great many pratfalls, but they can honestly protest that they picked the dress before I picked my own, I will be mightily annoyed but I have no grounds for an accusation of slander or libel."

He shows the room his new draft.

1) It is a crime to publicly make, aloud or in writing, a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim.

2) It is a crime to privately make a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim, unless the statement is true.

3) Neither of the above statutes shall apply if the claim is made directly to a person empowered to make lawful arrests, as part of a formal investigation of malfeasance, provided that the claim is true.

4) A "scandalous or malicious" claim does not describe every possible negative claim. For example, it is not scandalous or malicious to claim that a man drinks to excess, if such a claim is true. Magistrates are directed to apply their discretion in determining whether a claim is scandalous or malicious.

5) A claim made about a group may be a violation of this statute, if such a claim clearly implicates distinct individuals and this statute would otherwise apply.

The punishment shall be not less than a fine of 10gp and not more than the punishment for the conduct falsely ascribed to them, be it a crime, or not more than exile from Cheliax, if the conduct falsely ascribed to them is not a crime. In cases where a claim violating this law is made intentionally to a wide audience, or published in print to wide distribution, the magistrate should by default apply the maximum sentence, unless the claim is revoked immediately or other mitigating circumstances apply, in which case the magistrate is directed to apply his discretion.

"Are there any further objections before we vote? I have tried to address the other concerns raised as well, but I may have done so imperfectly." That is to say, he made these edits in about a minute and would sincerely prefer not to accidentally pass a law that imposes the death sentence for calling someone ugly in front of a crowd.

"Thank you for your swift work, your excellency. I think this incorporates well the perspectives raised in this committee."

"I appreciate Delegate Montcada's suggestion and I am happy to include it, but I do not think it suffices for the example I gave, where the principal problem is that one man - or woman - reaching someone empowered to make lawful arrests other than the one being denounced is very difficult."

"In the apprehension that making complaints of illegal conduct to the law was impossible Valia Wain decided to make them directly to the people and while you perhaps enjoyed the result no one else did. I do not think we should encourage that."

He nods. "Is there an alternative phrasing you'd prefer that would more clearly reflect your intent, Your Highness? I certainly don't mean to prohibit anyone from Lawfully seeking redress for genuine misconduct, but nor do I wish to allow anyone to whip up a mob with malicious accusations, even if those accusations are true."

"I did not enjoy it. I was fortunate enough not to be attacked myself, but I was worried, as many were, all night. Everyone agrees that speech was a mistake, and the result a disaster after the pamphlets grabbed it, Count Solpont. Select Wain included. She left the country behind immediately to ensure she never makes such a large mistake again. Please cease your insults before they rise to slandering me."

"...There are many cases this would criminalize acting on for accusations very serious but less than criminal, such as charging Mammonian interest while not being actual diabolists. But I will concede that it would be very difficult to fix that without causing at least a low risk of lynching mobs in those cases."

"In the absence of an alternative, I think this wording is as good as we will get in the time we have. I move that we vote."

The Archduchess helped Wain flee the country so she could rabble-rouse from exile and the committee would be unable to stop her. They're always eviller than you think.

"I specified malfeasance with the intention of covering situations in which someone, for instance, informs their count about technically legal misconduct by their baron. With that being said, if there are no further objections, I call for us to vote on this proposal."

"I have two concerns; The first is that I still think it should not be a crime to make true scandalous claims publicly. I understand the worries about people stirring up violent mobs, but those circumstances should already be covered by existing laws regarding incitement; if they weren't, it still seems to me that it would be better to compose or broaden laws forbidding incitement than to make it slander to say true but unflattering things about someone. Second, I think that the minimum fine of ten gold coins is excessive for petty slanders among the common folk. While it might be appropriate to have a fine of that size or larger for slandering a prominent figure whose reputation is highly valuable, it seems disproportionate in those cases where the fine is greater than the financial wealth of both parties combined... Unfortunately, properly addressing this would require a much more complicated law."

"I don't believe there's a currently-in-force decree which describes what is to happen if a fine is beyond the convict's ability to pay."

"I don't think we need a minimum - the magistrate can set the penalty in a manner as to reflect lost income and standing from the slander, at their discretion except in the case where we already established they should issue the full penalty. I'd accept treating true scandalous claims as something other than slander if we had adequate incitement law, but we very evidently don't. The Queen's ban on denunciation lists includes denunciations that are true so I think we are following her example in this."

"It seems to me that making truth a universal defense against slander is a policy that almost necessarily requires good judgment and character on the part of the men the law applies to. But the men of Cheliax are very recently free of Hell, and do not have those virtues needed to refrain from making true but unwise statements, nor for that matter to verify that their claims are actually true. Many of them, too, are well-practiced in the ways of misleading others without saying anything technically false, this being an important skill in the negotiation of infernal Chelish contracts."

He notes down Conde Sopont's proposed revision to the slander law, and deletes some "falsely"s that would otherwise be inconsistent with the text of the law.

1) It is a crime to publicly make, aloud or in writing, a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim.

2) It is a crime to privately make a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim, unless the statement is true.

3) Neither of the above statutes shall apply if the claim is made directly to a person empowered to make lawful arrests, as part of a formal investigation of malfeasance, provided that the claim is true.

4) A "scandalous or malicious" claim does not describe every possible negative claim. For example, it is not scandalous or malicious to claim that a man drinks to excess, if such a claim is true. Magistrates are directed to apply their discretion in determining whether a claim is scandalous or malicious.

5) A claim made about a group may be a violation of this statute, if such a claim clearly implicates distinct individuals and this statute would otherwise apply.

The punishment shall at minimum be a fine that in the magistrate's judgment accurately reflects lost income and standing as a result of the slander, and shall not be more than the punishment for the conduct ascribed to the victim, be it a crime, or more than exile from Cheliax, if the conduct ascribed to the victim is not a crime. In cases where a claim violating this law is made intentionally to a wide audience, or published in print to wide distribution, the magistrate should by default apply the maximum sentence, unless the claim is revoked immediately or other mitigating circumstances apply, in which case the magistrate is directed to apply his discretion.

"I think possibly testimony and verdict at trials themselves should be exempted wholly from the scope of slander."

"Oh, yes, you're right. And statements about the findings of a court of law, if they are truthful, since in that case there is no concern of encouraging mobs to rush to their own judgments."

More writing.

1) It is a crime to publicly make, aloud or in writing, a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim.

2) It is a crime to privately make a false, scandalous, or malicious claim about another person, or to clearly or intentionally imply such a claim, unless the statement is true.

3) Neither of the above statutes shall apply if the claim is made directly to a person empowered to make lawful arrests, as part of a formal investigation of malfeasance, provided that the claim is true. They shall also not apply to truthful testimony at formal trials or similar proceedings, nor to the verdicts of said trials, nor to true and non-misleading statements about the findings of such trials.

4) A "scandalous or malicious" claim does not describe every possible negative claim. For example, it is not scandalous or malicious to claim that a man drinks to excess, if such a claim is true. Magistrates are directed to apply their discretion in determining whether a claim is scandalous or malicious.

5) A claim made about a group may be a violation of this statute, if such a claim clearly implicates distinct individuals and this statute would otherwise apply.

The punishment shall at minimum be a fine that in the magistrate's judgment accurately reflects lost income and standing as a result of the slander, and shall not be more than the punishment for the conduct ascribed to the victim, be it a crime, or more than exile from Cheliax, if the conduct ascribed to the victim is not a crime. In cases where a claim violating this law is made intentionally to a wide audience, or published in print to wide distribution, the magistrate should by default apply the maximum sentence, unless the claim is revoked immediately or other mitigating circumstances apply, in which case the magistrate is directed to apply his discretion.

"I don't want to exempt perjurious statements at trial. Is this revision acceptable?"

"It resolves my concern."

He looks questioningly at Lord-Marshal Cansellarion, to try to gauge whether he's likely to make a big deal out of the issue of true slanders on the floor. The Archduchess probably can't get people to vote it down by herself, everyone knows she's a radical, but Cansellarion is a reasonable man and a paladin besides.

"I would still prefer a statute that only bars falsehoods, including accidental falsehoods, to one that punishes true slanders. Perhaps you could provide some examples, of things which are true but should be punishable as slander?" In his opinion the best defense against true slanders is to not have any slanderous things be true about you.

"Truly I am loath to speak such words in this company, but I had waved in my face as I arrived at the trial a pamphlet which said of a woman, "Assuredly," and then the woman's name, "is not a whore in bed with Geryon. That was, I am sure, true."

"In that case, to let the truth of the written word stand as defense against the injurious lie of the implication would not see justice done." Felip wasn't going to bring it up directly, but he supposes that directness does make the example clearer.

"Consider also that the archduke of the Heartlands is a Thrune by name, but I do not think the public was made better off by this becoming widely known, and he was surely injured thereby. If that does not count as a slander, I am not sure what the point of a slander law is."

"Possibly a more precise term would be 'disparagement'."

"I won't say slander's ever right, but some men need to be disparaged."

"As written, the judge could take into account the truth of a statement as a mitigating factor, in cases where it is genuinely relevant— oh, Captain Sarroca, welcome. Our committee had a few questions for you, but first, I call for a vote on the proposed law against slander."

"In favor."

“Directing the magistrates to apply their discretion seems .. promising,” Vidal says slowly, “but I am unsure their enchantments allow them any discretion, even if the law grants it. If they do, though, perhaps we should include that phrase more generally.”

The magistrate in Valia’s case clearly wanted to come to a different decision, but he doesn’t know if it was the enchantment or the phrasing of the law that restrained him. 

“That said, I am in favor of it as it stands.”

"In favor."

"In favor."

"In favor."

"In favor." They do need some slander law, even if it's not the one he'd prefer.

"In favor."

"I agree with the Lord Marshal's concerns, but very well, if we're not going to vote on them. In favor."

"In favor."

What a good efficient committee. Hopefully the floor debate goes as smoothly. He's going to have to be careful which true extremely derogatory things he says about Valia Wain's allies, though.

"In favor."

"In favor. The proposal passes unanimously. I believe there were some questions for Captain Sarroca, now?"

Manel Sarroca is tall man with tanned skin and a confident stride. He walked in unescorted, wearing a coat tailored to imply but not mimic a Taldan naval uniform. 

At Jonatan’s words he steps forward and bows formally. “I am at your service, Your Excellency.”

"Lord Marshal, you have the other most relevant expertise, shall you begin or shall I?"

"Go ahead, Archduchess. You know more about being a Lord Mayor than I do."

"Thank you. Captain Sarroca, could you summarize your main methods, in Ostenso, after order was initially restored? You would not be just a guard captain, of course, but all the differences between an average guard captain and a really good one lie in that period."

“Of course, Your Highness.” 

“In my experience, the foundation of order is certainty. When the people know what to expect - when they know that following the law will see them protected and safe, and they know breaking the law will see them found and punished, they choose well. If no one knows what the next day will bring, if the laws are twisted and used to advance one’s agenda, if they are applied capriciously, above all if they are not enforced - then there is no certainty, and no order.” His voice is firm as he meets Jilia’s gaze.

“I began with a curfew and men to break up the riots, which were near daily when I arrived. I had brought food from Tandak - enough to take the edge off the masses for a few days. I put what clerics I had, and some of the more persuasive officers, on the food lines to proclaim the most important things: there is a curfew, crime will be found and punished, you will not be punished otherwise, Asmodeus is gone.

That meant it was just the real troublemakers on the streets at night, and I could target and remove those. By the time I was back to depending on the archmagi for grain shipments, there was enough momentum for stability that I could keep a lid on things.”

It’s not a large crowd, so he can take note whenever someone nods in agreement and mirror them, build on those little connections.

“I continued in the same vein - keep the people happy enough to avoid significant trouble, while maintaining a low-level presence throughout the city to keep the law on everyone’s mind, and leaving my best to focus on their worst.”

A philosophy she has seen from numerous average guard captains. "And how long did you continue that for?"

“I continued in that vein for the next three weeks, then began to relax the curfew by stages and by districts. Where that lead to more crime I reversed course, but it was only necessary for a few particular trouble spots. After another two months of success with that policy, the Archduke of Sirmium replaced me.”

He’s bitter about it but not that much. Xavier’s proof was damn convincing. He’d be furious with his mother instead if it hadn’t worked out so much better than most alternatives. Xavier even offered him a barony, but he couldn’t bring himself to settle for the scraps. 

"In short, you treated securing Ostenso as a military operation and conducted it, from what you say, in very good order," she says coolly, smoothly, "But a military camp generates no tax revenue, and so a city is not a military operation, and cannot be run as such." She shrugs slightly and continues, "Ostenso was a modest failure, sir, not a success, and you did not observe this because you had neither the time nor the tools to see it."

"Firstly, the tools. What you did may work to establish certainty in Taldor, but it does not work in Cheliax. The lower classes, especially of the city, do not believe in any such thing. For the next generation, or longer if we are unlucky or unskilled, every city in Cheliax will be expecting arbitrary cruelty, and crackdowns which are pointlessly brutal and revel in their excessive brutality, from its guard, in response to anything and nothing." She pauses to make vaguely placating wave. "I do not mean to impugn your men's discipline, but that would be true even if it were spotless, and we know perfectly well that it is not, not unless you lead paladins. Determining the actual state of impulse to unrest requires a network of observers or informants to keep tabs on how discontent the rioting classes are when they are out of sight of their governors. What you do then has a great deal of variation based on circumstances and the aptitudes of your staff, of which preemptive crackdowns are the most common option but one of the least effective."

"Secondly, the time. From my experience, in my own city and others, such a policy does not work in the long term, with problems generally seen within six months and always within a year. It suppresses riots, but the factors that drive them remain to emerge at the next opportunity, leading to more deaths and property damage in the city over time. It also requires substantially higher guard mobilization, across substantially larger fractions of the year, than a more politically-oriented mix of methods; an expense we can ill-afford, especially at present. Again, those other methods have many variations, most of them ungentlemanly; I needed to simultaneously support a nascent rebellion against the Thrunes and so had to work by earning loyalty, but well-run secret police can also be effective, and targeted bribery works more cheaply than you'd expect."

"I mean no insult whatsoever to your character or intelligence, Captain; many sensible military men have made these same mistakes before you, and many more will make them after you. Your skill and expertise would be an asset any lord mayor would be pleased to rely on, did you offer them to him, and I am surprised you have not yet been offered another holding - a coastal county, likely, if I understood your nautical background right. With experience you would learn some of the other skills and then be a good candidate for the mayorship in a few years. But the situation is too delicate at present, and we cannot wait; the Lord Mayor cannot be you. Has anyone else a candidate to recommend? Duke de Fraga? Ser Cansellarion?"

"Archduchess, Kintargo is constantly on the brink of revolt. I cannot imagine how you claim any expertise in this matter. You rule weakly, with catastrophic result, and then hector men doing real work."

He's right but she's also an archduchess, even if she shouldn't be.

She's just here to slow them down, everyone should say "no doubt, Archduchess" and keep asking Sarroca questions, but she just passed the ball to Fraga and Cansellarion.

They do in fact have other options if the Archduchess decides to be difficult about this, but his best guess is that Captain Sarroca will do a better job than any of them. 

"We are discussing Westcrown, not Kintargo. Whatever challenges the archduchess faces, we face different ones here." Hopefully that tables that line of discussion without actually defending her.

"I suspect if you dislike Sarroca, you will not like Horta or Rigau much better. Sadly, those friends from Mendev that I could convince to come to Cheliax are already employed in Fraga. If the Lord Marshal has a city-dwelling candidate, I think we should consider him, but if not, I do not think Sarroca would underperform an empty chair, which is the rulership the city currently enjoys."

"Kintargo 'was constantly in revolt' because that served the rebellion, and in point of fact we did not have significantly more riots than Westcrown according to all intelligence reports I received. I made no attempt to hide them, unlike virtually all the other lords mayor, because it served my purposes to protest to my hostile Asmodean superiors that my city was constantly in revolt despite my best efforts. I was fighting a war for fifteen years where it was death to declare it, I have made more brutal choices than any three of you put together except perhaps in Mendev, and it would strain most of your stomachs to hear them. I will be happy to fetch my champion for a duel by the time the convention concludes if you continue on this approach, or if anyone else wants to embark on it, but I would prefer you drop it like a man of breeding."

"I am pleased and surprised to learn there are men with any honor in your service and must regretfully remind you the Archmage forbids me from killing them or you for the insult you offered me when you testified for Valia Wain."

Well, this is a disaster. He would not have said a week ago that women are more likely than men to have the virtues of wide-eyed radical idealist revolutionaries who can't control their tempers but it would, frankly, explain a lot about the convention.

"Your Highness, this would be a temporary measure, to restore order in the immediate aftermath of the riots, and the Queen would certainly be free to replace him once she has identified a suitable permanent candidate — or earlier, if she finds his leadership lacking and believes another candidate could perform his duties better. Your concerns about whether the same measures would be necessary in the longer-term are understandable, but I think His Grace has the right of it, when he says that for the time being our alternative is an empty chair."

How convenient for her that all of her supposed issues are invisible and in the future. The fact of the matter is that it worked, in Ostenso, much better than the poisonous viper pit Kintargo sounds like. The point about informants isn’t totally wrong, a month in he realized he needed way more of those. But by the second month trade was up and crime was down and if she couldn’t manage that it speaks more of her than of him.

He can’t say that to an archduchess though, just enjoy playing out the conversation in his head while smiling politely and listening to the others tell her how wrong she is. At least there are enough competent men here that she won’t derail things. 

"I apologize for the necessity of responding to that interruption, but certain insults are especially deadly in my position and cannot be abided, any more than an accusation of perfidy for a military officer. Conde de Cerdanya, there is certainly some truth in what you say, and if we formally made a temporary recommendation I would be somewhat reassured. I would still like to interview others at least briefly, if they can be brought here within a day, or two if necessary. An empty chair for a few more days will do less damage than a poor mayor would in their first few months, and so it is our duty to ensure we do not recommend one such and follow the appropriate forms."

Berenguer has decided to ignore the Archduchess of Kintargo. "No doubt, Archduchess. So, Captain Sarroca. What difficulties did you face locating and dealing with the troublemakers, in the first few months, and how did you overcome them?"

“The foremost issues were those of the populace that saw us as Asmodeans in new colors, the radicals on the other end that thought no more Asmodeus meant no more Law, the infernals seeking a resurgence, and the seasoned criminals taking advantage of every disruption.

To the first, many people were unwilling to report crimes nor provide evidence when called upon, for fear of the government. There was little I could say to convince them otherwise, so I rather let my actions speak for me. 

The radicals were the easiest of my problems, and in fact I was able to make good use of them, for a time. They were the one sort willing to report on the problems simmering under the surface back under infernal rule, which gave me some excellent leads on the major crime families and Asmodean holdovers. Once they moved beyond that and started organizing, their inexperience and their very goals worked against them.  They sought to organize, to recruit, to swell their ranks, which made my informants’ task much easier. When they crossed the line into any unlawful behavior - usually incitement - I had enough information to quickly quell them. 

The infernal remnants were likewise off-balance, without the support network they were accustomed to. There was no sympathy towards them from the rest of the city, so I was not restrained in their pursuit. Any whisper of devilry could be thoroughly and fiercely investigated, as any of those torturers found and executed bought me significant goodwill. 

I must admit, the criminals were the most tenacious of my problems, using their existing connections and enjoying any weakness in the government. I know no place short of Axis or Heaven that has solved that problem fully, though I did my best. I claim no significant innovations there, just old-fashioned guard work - investigate crimes, follow the money, and hit them hard when they show their heads.

Does that address your question, Your Grace?”

"Yes, I think so. Sounds like good work to me, Captain. How'd you handle the manpower to get yourself the spells you needed?" Zone of Truth. Detect Thoughts. The things that make every interrogation yield results.

“Anyone who can cast is an asset in many ways,” he smiles “whenever I find one I do my best to hire them.”

“Two decades of running escorts, fighting pirates and fishmen and everything else on the Inner Sea with more teeth than sense, meant I knew people like that. Many of them gained circles under my command and were willing to continue. I had a solid core with me initially, and I brought some more on a temporary basis. Enough would have stayed long-term for the promise of stability and the chance to build something here.”

He was also paying them quite a lot but that’s what taxes are for.

He nods. "Divine as well as arcane?" See, Marshal, you're getting someone who comes with his own clerics.

“Leaning arcane - they’re easier to hire - but divine casters too. Many gods smile on protecting innocents and merchants.”

Jonatan realizes, belatedly, that the reason there's suddenly a lot less noise outside the committee room is that the floor session has resumed. He'd really been hoping to have a Lord Mayor candidate in time to present to the floor today, but he doesn't know how long the archduchess intends to obstruct this, and he'd prefer to at least ensure the Lord Marshal is in agreement if they need to fight this out again on the floor.

"—I believe our break is over. My sincere apologies for keeping you all so late; I look forward to meeting with you again this afternoon."

"Welcome back. I hope you all had a pleasant lunch."

"Yes, Your Excellency, thank you for your consideration."

Solpont's wife came and found him during the lunch break and gave him a hug and told him with surprising intensity that she wants, more than revenge, for him to keep passing good laws like the slander law that will keep them safe, and that he mustn't provoke any Archdukes. He is determined to try.

You're welcome.

What would I do without you.

"Yes, a pleasant lunch indeed. The Lord Marshal and I have duties on other committees that I think hope to meet today, and so perhaps we should attempt an expedited version of our agenda?"

He nods. They certainly should.

(Assuming their agenda is reasonable, but it seems to be.)

Nod. "I believe our first priority is still to propose a recommendation for a temporary, interim Lord Mayor — it's going to be difficult to restore order without that, especially now that the Lord Marshal is once again occupied with the convention." He nods to Conde Cansellarion.

(They continue to interview Sarroca, but it's already quite late, and by the time they have to adjourn it's not yet clear whether Cansellarion will oppose him on the floor, so they end up putting the matter off to the tenth.)