Vizier Ilyas ibn Umar
The Vizier is a high official in Udyn, and seems to be in charge of much of what goes on in the city. He claims to have soldiers and informants in many places.
He is a goateed, turbaned man of medium height. His ethnicity is unknown, but he seems to be fluent in several languages, including Noriki.
Somehow, the vizier heard of the companions' attempt to reach the opposite bank of the Udena River (or Slave Island). He sent soldiers to tail them through the city, and ultimately, have them arrested at the docks. The soldiers then brought Yuri Barolov, Anatoly Frolyn, and Lokan before him at the citadel. Earlier, his men had also arrested Alden, apparently after a long drinking binge.
Ilyas accused the companions of unruly behavior, espionage, and endangering the security of the city. He demanded to know who stood behind them. Specifically, he was concerned about any expedition to slay Yaqub and free the Vladykino captives, because he said this exposed Udyn to Yaqub's wrath. When the companions tried to argue with him, he ordered to have them thrown in the dungeon, and only relented after Yuri named himself the leader of the expedition, and volunteered to be imprisoned himself. Ilyas struck the deal only after the other companions promised to avoid going to the opposite bank to confront Yaqub. He did imprison Yuri. The following day, he visited him in his cell, and told him to accept the fact that things happen in this world that humans are incapable of changing, and suggesting that instead of worrying about Yaqub and his betrothed, who is now lost to him, he should concern himself with the fate of his family members.
When the companions returned to the Nart Quarter after Yuri's imprisonment, Zinovii Surikov speculated that Ilyas might be in cahoots with Yaqub, and had a vested interest in blaming the Grand Prince for the raid.
Ilyas ibn Umar returned to Yuri's cell later, and took the prisoner to another part of the citadel to speak to Princess Botagöz. The princess told Yuri that she had visions of the city being burned from above by fire. The vizier voiced his belief that her prophecy is directly connected to Yaqub. In response to Yuri's attempts to question the prophecy, the vizier said that the princess had proven her power with other predictions. He added that as a high official, it was incumbent on him to not take any risks with people's lives. When Yuri rejected the vizier's offer to free him in exchange for pledging he will not attack or provoke Yaqub, and Mitrofan's entreaties to Yuri to accept the offer, Ilyas ibn Umar had Yuri thrown back into his cell.
After Yuri's escape, the vizier's soldiers captured Yuri's companions Lokan, Alden and Yaakov. He had beefed up the guard presence at the gates to catch them, and then accused them of aiding Yuri's escape, and of going back on their pledge. He questioned each of them one by one, trying to trip them up to incriminate one another. He also pulled fingernails from Lokan and Yaakov. They stuck to their story, so eventually, he seemed to accept that they knew nothing about Yuri's escape, and after they swore not to help him on religious items, he paid them restitution for the torture, and let them go.
The vizier later appears at the nomad encampment, to question the captive Anatoly. It appears that he knew about the party's plan to congregate at Shatkal to cross the river, or at least was informed of this fact by the nomads who captured Anatoly. He attempted to question the bogatyr at the camp regarding the whereabouts of his companions, but got no answers, so he ordered Anatoly to be killed by the nomads, and rode off. It is possible that he knew the answer anyway, as later the same day, his soldiers scouted out the riverbank on the opposite side, and took up positions around Yaqub's hill, to stop people from getting in. The party later defeated them, and gained entrance into the lair.
The vizier later reappeared, after the party had slain Yaqub, and after his serpent-wife had flown off, and burned down Udyn to avenge him. The vizier and his soldiers disembarked near the lair the following day, and confronted the party, holding it responsible for Udyn's destruction. The party led the vizier down into the lair to show him the treasure, but fooled him into entering the chamber with the organ, and incapaciated (or possibly slew) some of his soldiers with poison gas. The vizier then struck a deal, causing the party to cease attacking him, and allowing them to return home with the captives in exchange for leaving behind the rest of the serpent's treasure, and promising not to tell the Noriki rulers of Ladeisk about Udyn's destruction. In passing, he also revealed that Anatoly had escaped capture and crossed the river (the vizier thought that he was the one who killed the serpent). He also revealed that Yaakov ben Asher was his agent all along.
The vizier is now supposedly back in Udyn, or somewhere nearby.
He appears in Chapters 11, 12, 13, 16, and 22.
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