>It is implied in the story that he's (more or less) in the Jhereg >Council's pocket, so I don't know if it's really possible to separate the >council from the overall house leadership. Yeah, the more I consider it, the more I'm inclined to agree, based on what we've seen in the books. I think I was just enamored with the idea that the top guy in the Jhereg might not be a "mafioso" at all, but some courtier-type who is so ruthless and competent at what he does that he's capable of keeping the other branches of the House in check most of the time. >The mysterious "number one" of the Jhereg mentions only a vague and >fleeting reference at the beginning of /Jhereg/ when Vlad is trying to >figure out who the Demon is hiring him to kill. "Who is number one?" "You are number six." Sorry, geek siezure is past now. :^) >I wonder how much the events of /Issola/ may have affected this worldview? Anyone can be killed. I don't suppose that having a Great Weapon to protect his soul will be likely to make Vlad any less careful about avoiding death whenever feasible. The trouble he got into with the Jhereg was a case of passion and desperation. If going after the head of the Organization is a sure death sentence under normal circumstances, I doubt that having a Great Weapon will change those odds significantly enough to warrant taking the job in cold blood. >The Jhereg are (or were when the house was founded) the intelligence corps >of the Empire. Scouts, and such. This is the natural area for spies and >assassins to grow out of, of course, so it's likely that the Jhereg as a >House once filled the role now occupied by the Imperial Surveillance >Corps, Special Tasks Group, Third Floor Relic, etc. >Does House Jhereg still serve this function? Perhaps. But I doubt it. The >Warlord likely wants more direct (and reliable) control over his agents. Very good point. With the changeover in Emperors every millenium or so on average, there probably isn't a reliable need for a "personal spy network" on the part of the Emperor. A House that felt the need for such things would come pre-equipped with it. The rest might or might not feel the need. >>As a side benefit, the other Houses have someone marginally respectible to >>go to as an intermediary when they need something unsavory done. >How many of the other Houses would really condone assassination? Athyra, >Chreotha, Orca, maybe? >I can't really see the Lyorn, Phoenix, Dragons, Hawks, Iorich, Issola, >Tiassa et al having much use for such services. Ah, in this case I was thinking of individuals rather than House representatives. If you wanted to hire an assassin or contact a loan shark or arrange for an invitation to an upscale casino, you wouldn't want to be seen walking around the bad parts of Adrilankha to do it. You'd want someone you could invite over for an afternoon meal, some hint-laced conversation, and the problem dealt with in a discreet and plausibly deniable manner. I imagine that the non-Organization nobles already serve this purpose reasonably well, even if they have no other power or use in the House.