"There's an outside chance Nethys's high priest will give you a better deal because she thinks I'm hilarious and is fond of my children. 

... Obviously the one I know is a completely different person from a thousand years in the future in an alternate branch of reality, but I've found things like that matter less for them than for most other people." 

"And Nethys might - have more to gain from prophecy breaking - But Nethys is, as conventionally understood, himself broken. I don't know that I would trust an assurance from Nethys via His priest to not use the information He gained apart from passing it on to me, at least not as far as an assurance from Abadar via His to the same. I'm worried the gods are all obligated to protect common interests - like prophecy - and I think I can buy Abadar's limited nonintervention but I don't know about anyone else."

"That's all true – though Lawful gods might have more commitments to protect prophecy – really I'd prefer not to tell any of them. But I can't think of anything that would, from your perspective, be a better alternative." 

"I'm afraid that I'd have to view any convincing arguments for settling for some less extreme measure as coming from Mephistopheles. I know it's a risk but - Abadar's priest will be able to tell me before I make the specific request whether the confidentiality I'm asking for is available, and if it's not I'll look for other options."

And she holds out her hand for the plane shift. She can't imagine there's much more to be said when she's determined to be unconvinceable.

It's what he would do in her situation. He'll take them back to Absalom without protest. 

After a conversation with Tilbun - yes, the sort of miracle she's hoping for is something Abadar can do, purchased nonintervention and all - then teleport back to the staff meeting that she left in the middle of when she got Élie's letter.

"I need our miracle-grade diamond, by tomorrow morning, and I cannot tell you why. It is important, and I am very sure that if you had all the information that I do you would agree that this is a good use of it."

"Good one," Karlenius says flatly. "Had me for a second there."

"Do I look like I am joking."

"You just need to wave the diamond in someone's face, or are you using it?"

        "You trust her to bring it back?"

"Yes I do, if she says she'll bring it back."

"Using it. I expect to be able to acquire another diamond on less short notice and can pay it back, but this particular stone I intend to use."

"Tar-Baphon could easily have orchestrated something that looks to you like an emergency, so you'd leave us without one."

"Can you explain why you can't explain in more detail -"


"I'm sure someone in Absalom will sell you one, if you're willing to pay for it -"

"What interest rate are we talking about for this loan which no one else in the world would make you?" asks Pereza, not that anyone seems to hear him.

Iomedae stands up. "Give us a moment, please."

- they'll step out, with varying degrees of apparent objections but not a trace of actual disobedience. 

And now she has to talk to Alfirin, which is terrible, but - Alfirin gets worse around other people, and she doesn't do that around Iomedae, and -

"There is information I have, and if I tell you or you rederive it or maybe even suspect might result in much worse outcomes, by my values and yours. I am not concealing an intention to take an action that I believe you would disapprove of, if you had full information. I can tell you more if you insist, I think there are some relatively safe things to tell you, but in expectation every piece of information I give you now causes significant harm."

- well, that does kill dead many of the questions she would otherwise have asked.

Ultimately it's not as if Alfirin couldn't have stolen the diamond, if she'd set her mind on it for some reason, and - and she really doesn't think Alfirin would do that.

"I need to check if you're in your right mind. An antimagic field, and - and also you're going to need to take all your magic items off, I don't know what artifacts you've run into along the way and - thought it better not to mention -"

"Sure. Call someone in." She starts removing her jewelry, then stripping, because she does not wear very many nonmagical clothing these days and - Iomedae really should not be confident that Alfirin could not hide an artifact-strength magical aura on her undergarments.

Iomedae is not confident Alfirin couldn't do that. She just couldn't bring herself to actually say it and knew she wouldn't need to. 

She ducks outside the command tent to Telepathically call someone for the antimagic field. Returns. 

She waits for the antimagic field and then, when it's up, stops to think for a few minutes. In case she was, in fact, being subtly controlled.

"...I understand the reasoning I was following before. I think the core of it is valid. None of it seems obviously invalid. I can't check all of my reasoning for exactly how likely I was expecting different outcomes to be but pessimistically adjusting my previous estimates - It's still a good use of a diamond and I should be able to tell you more tomorrow."

She takes a deep breath. 

"I trust you. I hope that this is - whatever you're hoping it is."

If it's not - she'll be able to tell Iomedae everything, and be judged then. She thinks it was worth the gamble, even if she loses.

She doesn't say that, even though she thinks it's safe, because she has not taken the time to really work out in detail what it is safe to say and what is not, and once said words are difficult to unsay. She hasn't worked it out because - that will take hours, at least, more likely days, and she should do it with Élie, who, if real, seems likely to be a very bright individual with a lot more context than she has.

"Are we done?"

"Yes." 

She'll get her the diamond.