The group slips away from Vordegern’s warehouse under the bright mid-morning sun, its rays casting long shadows as they weave through the alleyways. Alexis casts a quick glance over his shoulder, then leans in to Rask.
“You looked… surprised when you saw that Cedric Ironjaw character.” His voice carries a hint of curiosity, as though he’s fishing for a story.
Rask asks Alexis, “Alexis, if you are going to continue to nurture our connection with Lady Alba, I would like your permission to establish a security sharing agreement with Ser Olvar. I was thinking I would start by offering a short threat assessment based on our recent investigations.”
Rask has another messy draft document in is hands and the he shows to Alexis.
SER OLVAR:
GIVEN THAT ALEXIS MY LEIGE AND YOUR LIEGE HAVE BEGUN NEGOTIATIONS ON CONTINUED ALLIANCE, I AM GRANTED LEAVE TO MAKE THE FIRST OFXXX SHARE THE FoLLOwING INTELLIGENCE SHARED AS IT RELATES TO THE SECURITY OF OUR POTENTIAL SHARED OPERATIONS.
WE HOPE THAT LADY ALBA WILL ALSO GRANT YOU PERMISSION TO SHARE INTELLIGENCE THAT THAT SHE DEEMS APPROPRIATE WITH US AS WELL.
THALINDRA OF THE COLLEGIUM KILLED ALERIC TREVAYLEN AND TRIED TO FRAME LADY ALBA. THIS WAS DIRECTED BY “THE SPIDER” AN AGENT OF THE DARK HAND.
HOUSE LASCARIS HAS BEEN COMPROMISED BY THE DARK HAND.
THALINDRA IS NOT No EVIDENcE oF CONNECT TO HOUSE LASCARIS.
?WARDER AND ALTHORIN ARE LIKELY CORRUPTED BY THE DARK HAND OR OTHER FORCES MOVING AGAINST US ?
DARK HAND AGENTS USE THE SEWERS
GOBLINS & GIANT LIZARDS INHABIT THE SEWERS – THREAT ASMT: HIGH
DWARVES WE ENCOUNTERED MAY BE CONNECTED TO MOUNT SUTHERON
HALFLING ?
MOTIVE: SEEKS ANCIENT ITEMS OF POWER
USES POISON, MURDER, EVIL MAGIC, NON-HUMAN ALLIES
KNOWN OPERATIVES: THE SPIDER, THE SNAKE, THRAAN LASCARIS, SHYEENI, VARISIMUS, BANDESING, BRIN
KNOWN ALLIES: VORTIGERN SHADOWBLADE, THALINDRA
MOTIVE – SEEKS ANCIENT ITEMS. GLORY. ALLIED DARK HAND.
KNOWN MEMBERS: LORIANNA LASCARI, THRAAN LASCARI
MOTIVE UNKNOWN. COLLEGIUM MEMBER. WILLING TO USE POISON
END REPORT.
IF YOUR LIEGE ALOW WE WELCOME ANY INFO YOU HAVE ON THESE TOPICS OR oTHERS THAT YOU DEEM oF IMPORT TO MUTUAL INTEREST. MAPs? BoOOKs W INFO?
RF – THE CRIMESON CAULING
Rask muses as he looks at his work, “Why do you think they chose to frame Lady Alba? And who chose? Was it Thalindra or The Spider?”
Rask approaches Alexis with a piece of parchment in hand, the parchment has several things written on it, many of them crossed out. Rask’s hand-writing is rough, bur the all caps simple style is readable, where not blotted or marked out.
“I want to send a message to Captain Blackwood, my old CO. Cedric Ironjaw is still alive, Maris Bloodbane is too, if Mavon’s intel is correct… Ironjaw said the Captain still believed in me…
“I’d like to see if I can get him to back off, maybe sow some dissention, and warn him about the corrupting influence of the Dark Hand… I’ve been trying to remember the ciphers, but I don’t have a Code-Book…”
“Anyhow, here’s what I was thinking.” Rask hand the parchment to Alexis.
STAT-REP – CIPHER 3-BLACK – TS/NTN
FROM: SGT. FELMAR TO: CPT BLACKWOOD
GLAD YOU ARE ALIVE. CHAOS-FIRE-CURSE BATTLE RESULTS UNKNOWN.
I HOPE LT. E.N. SGT K.S. & CPL. L.S. ALSO STILL LIVE.
NTN/TS: I AM ON A MISSION FROM RAIDEN THE HIGHEST AUTHORITY
THE DARK HAND HAS CORRUPTED COMPROMISED THE KINGS DOGS.
CPL CI FOUND ME OBSERVING OPS OF WORKING TO INFILRATE SUTHERON SHADOWBLADES LOCAL MOCKERY OF OUR UNIT *sHADowBLADE THAT HAs pROPERTY
VORTIGERN IS CONECTED TO THE DARK HAND IN SUTHERON. sEEkS
NORTHBROOK IS CENTER OF KI-DARK HAND’SG GS DOGS IN SUTHERON
^ DO NOT TRUST ^ WALDER – LIKELY COMPROMISED INFEKTED
DO NOT TRUST ALTHORIN – LIKELY COMPROMISED
I WILL FIND YOU WHEN THIS MISSION ENDS. PRAISE RAIDEN. FOR AEGIR.
“I want to try to let him know that the Dark Hand has corrupted the Raidensblud and to not trust Warder or Allthorin. If we do it right, maybe we can see if he tells them something or not? Maybe get them to focus on Vortigern?”
There are several notes, and a rough cipher, but sections seem to missing.
“Can you help me with the cipher?”
Rask is also clearly asking for permission and help crafting the message as well.
“Wait, what if… ” Rask crosses a bit out and adds a rough edits, “I share that Vortigern has an item the Dark Hand wants? And we ask the Bloodfangs to keep an eye on Vorty’s warehouse? See who rolls up on it? Maybe even we could get Marcellus to raid it with not-us…”
Rask looks at the red uniforms Mavon procured, signature outfits of the of Crimson Calling.
“and signal that we are going to be there to Cap, and if they or the Red Cloaks show up, I’ll know where I stand with my old unit.”
Alexis can tell that Rask means he will know how many of his old friends he might have to kill.
To my dearest family,
My apologies that I have not yet come to see you since my return to the city. Much has been moving fast. My return has stirred old currents, and though our name has been respected for generations, I fear it now draws unwanted attention from enemies I have in our wondrous city. The politics within the Collegium are complicated, and I am in the middle of more of them than I would like. And beware the Lascaris family.
I left a considerable amount of gold from my first adventure, and I urge you to use it wisely. Whether it’s for additional guards or securing our home and shop, take every precaution. Be cautious of those who come asking too many questions or offering deals too good to be true. Brothers and sisters, please keep to familiar paths and avoid attracting curiosity. A harmless question today may grow teeth tomorrow.
While I work to untangle these unseen threads, know that I will do everything in my power to ensure our safety. Until I can speak more plainly, use the gold as you see fit, and stay vigilant. The road ahead is uncertain, but with caution, we will weather it. If you need to communicate, send messages to the Lord of Mithril. My love to you all.
Love in Haste
Alexis Laelius; Adept of the Collegium
My Esteemed Publius Helvius Laeca,
My greatest apologies for not writing sooner, but with how matters stood between us when last we talked, I feared you would want nothing to do with me.
Regardless if you want to hear from me or not, I felt I must send you news and tidings. I am back in our wondrous city and events are moving fast around me. Hopefully all of them will turn out of the best and our city will be better for it after these trials.
You might have heard, I am a full-member of the Collegium, although I know how you feel about my patron, so I am not sure how happy you are for my admittance. You also might have heard that I was ambushed in the Collegium library by Lorianne of house Lascaris, including with the use of fire.
And this gets me to my first reason for this correspondence. It has been said by some that your dear Helvia Minor has been working with some treasure hunters, and I would ask after her well being, as many in my line of work can be somewhat unpalatable.
I know we both want what is best for her.
The second reason for this letter, is that some of my competitors know that I still have a fondness for yourself, and might attempt to use it against me. They already lured me to the ambush with a letter falsely signed by yourself (a copy has been included to sooth any curiosity you might possess). With how dangerous things are in our fair city currently, I beg that you take extra precautions.
If you need communicate with me, send to me through the Lord of Mithril.
With a nervous heart,
Alexis Laelius, Of the Crimson Calling
<Copy of message addressed to Alexis, that was the lure for the ambush by Lorianne of house Lascaris>
Armored and clean. Back in the scene.
As usual, he quickly scoops up and girds the Black Blade of Aegier.
Unusually, he does not stretch or patrol the permiter.
Instead, he immediately moves to find Alexis Laelius, leader of the Crimson Calling.
No longer exhausted, the deadly Aegeirien warrior finds and rouses the Sutheroni lordling.
“We need to talk,” Rask says in an even; non-threatening tone, as he gently shakes AlexIs’ shoulder.
Once Alexis is a awake and ready, Rask speaks again, calmly:
“I am not a mercenary Alexis. Not yours or anyone else’s.”
“I’m not much of a treasure hunter or deal maker either. I know what I am.”
A hint of sadness, a heap of resigned determination.
“I joined with you because we seek a common goal: the end of the Dark Hand.”
“It is time for us to figure out how to trust each other, our work will only get more dangerous.”
“I need to know, from you, why you wanted those… Dwarves… to live and escape.”
Alexis is staying up on his watch with the smell of smoke still coming into the mansion of the Crimson Calling. He has spent the time on his watch so far pacing to try and stay ahead of the memories from his time with Malkar.
During his pacing Alexis checks on Gustav, and notices Sally as well. Alexis is able to forget about himself as he remembers what Sally went through.
Alexis squats next to Gustav and speaks to Sally “we both went through a lot today, didn’t we, although I might have come out with fewer scars than you, huh?” Alexis smiles faintly at Sally and reaches out to pet her.
Alexis gets up and walks away coming back a few minutes later with some morsels for Sally. After feeding Sally Alexis asks “I’m going to keep walking around, did you want to join me?” Alexis extends his hand for Sally to hop on.
Ca’armine does not like being caged, he discovers. On reflection, he realizes, neither does he prefer being ambushed. Or, violating the sanctity of the Collegium, which he can’t help but respect and even fear. He muses, “I can forgive myself for drawing my weapons when the enemy attacked, since they were in earnest about killing us. But I am doubtful the Collegium will overlook the transgression.
He paces. Back and forth in the cell, stepping around his companions, watchful. He has not been traveling with them long, but he feels sure they will not harm him nor help themselves without aiding him too. However, he is learning that they are not infallible.
“Who is?” he chides himself. But he realizes, in his longing to join a group, to take up the cause and make meaning out of the exile in which he found himself, he unwittingly created in his mind, a vision of these heroes (surely they deserve that title!) as larger-than-life.
“They are powerful, certainly, but they do make mistakes.” He thinks about the nonchalance with which Alexis led the stopover at the Collegium today. “Rask didn’t even put on armor! As if he could blend in with the crowd. As if any of us could!” He shakes his head.
He is loathe to tell Alexis, or any of the group, what they should or should not do… but at the same time they would be wise to emulate his long habit of stealth and concealment. “What do we stand to gain, boarding in the gaudy manor of their friend the thief? Why are we operating in Suthron at all? I long to strike a blow at the Dark Hand, but it seems we are easily manipulated, by anyone who tells us we are getting closer to finding them. We are in truth pursuing the agendas of others, more interested in gold than in justice.”
After the group is arrested by the Collegium guards and taken to the comfortable “holding cell”.
Alexis, looking tired and energized at the same time, who is still bruised from the bookshelf and burned from the scroll magics, speaks.
“Well” he says looking around the richly appointed room “if we’re going to be held for questioning, this is a better spot than most.”
He sits down and starts fiddling with his jasper necklace.
“Lorianne’s surely going to have already gotten the first word. I never thought the Collegium could be so compromised. Have to see how this plays out.”
After shortening the leather thong around the jasper necklace, Alexis wears his red jasper around his wrist. He moves to Gustav to tend to him while they wait.
The man on the street had grabbed onto Ca’armine’s leg with an iron grip. He then told Ca’armine “You may have killed the Snake, but the Wolf still hunts and spider weaves its web, and the King Behind the throne is coming.”
Seeing that Rask was about to draw his sword on the man, Alexis threw himself between Rask and the old man. After the threat of Rask’s sword has passed, and Alexis gets back to his feet, he looks at Rask with concern.
“Are you doing okay? Did he remind you of someone from your past?”