Devil's Advocate

In good faith

To Jurian Cornelissen,

First and foremost, thank you for showing interest in this project. It is true that the situation has proven more nuanced than we first expected. A wholesale ban on pact magic might no longer be desirable. Still, if our own citizens can reach out to these spirits, and reach an accord with them, we need clear ways to govern those dealings. I expect it will be impossible to enforce any of our laws on an interplanar scale. But at least where these pacts affect our own demesne, we need rules in place that protect and serve our citizens' best interest.

For this project we are currently getting support from a hierophant of the Crown Temples, and a theurge of House Dreilandt. But their experience with these spirits is as distant forces at best, or purely theoretical at worst. You, however, have met them. I think your insight in these matters will be invaluable. With that in mind, I ask that you please be candid in your descriptions. For technical clarifications I can ask the others in my team. But from you, I would want to hear what it is really like to deal with these entities. How they interpret law between themselves, and how they interact with us.

Now, the first thing I would want to know is: How does a lawyer without any magical capabilities keep their wits about themselves when they come face to face with those entities?

Annemiek Smalbrugge

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To the esteemed Councilwoman Annemiek Smalbrugge,

I am happy to hear I've made an impression on you. Enough so that you asked for my help in this project. And though I will gladly share my perspective on these matters, I have to admit your first question is quite a complicated one to answer. I have spent the past few years of my life meeting up with Warlocks and cultists, mediating between them and their benefactors, and observing the power my clients obtained from their pacts. There is no better way to render the fantastical mundane than to revolve your career around it. So I struggle to describe the feeling of it all. The best I can think to do, is tell the story of the first time I crossed that threshold, hopefully getting a grasp of some of the things I felt then and putting them to writing.

This all happened briefly after the Ghalaunach case, which I suspect is the same case that put me in your sights. That case did much to help my career. For starters, most of what I earned from it was used to acquire my new office. The building was as narrow as my victory in that case, but it was as large as it needed to be, and at least it got me out of my apartment. The walk to the market-square was a great way to mentally separate my free time from my working hours, and granted me the time to appreciate the fortuitous location of my new place. After all, the market is where deals are forged and disagreements are born. And my bureau, in the shadow of the weigh-house, was conveniently nearby. I had spent the last few days giving free consultations. During these, a lawyer meets with prospective clients to discuss the viability of their case: How will I be able to help you? How much might that cost you? If I cannot help, what other legal actions would it be worthwhile to pursue? For those who cannot afford to hire an attorney unless they win their case, this offers an opportunity to assess their situation and get legal aid they might otherwise never have gotten. For the lawyer, this is a great way to get more clients. So far, this had been working out well that day. At one time I'd be busy assessing the prenup for an upcoming wedding. At others, settling a border dispute between an Elven dignitary and the descendants of the humans to which they sold land some three-hundred years prior. Right after, I might be assessing the validity of an NDA between an Dreilandt Wizard and a paid test subject. I find myself thriving in that variety. The calculated unpredictability. It keeps my days interesting, and gives me a glimpse in ways of life I might never have considered otherwise. And if that is what I most appreciate about this job, I was in luck on that day. After a brief break and realigning the stack of business-cards on my desk, I called in my next visitor.