Rise of the Tyrants – Session 3

SCENE 1
When: Nineteenth to Twenty-fourth of Dalios
Where: Around town, Gela, Sicily

After the second run in with the Tuskans there were no further attempts on my life. Everything went quiet. A week passed without incident.

I spent the time pressing what contacts I had for information that might lead me to Krateros. I wanted to know who he was and why he’d paid to have me killed. And yet, when I mentioned his name everyone I spoke to either didn’t know anything or clammed up.

I made little progress until I talked to Hieronymus, one of my old friends from the Watch. At first he too denied knowing anything but later that day, he brushed past me in the street and slipped me a note.

Given the precautions he’d taken I kept the note concealed and didn’t read it until I was alone in my room at the Captain’s Rest. I burnt it immediately afterwards.

It said simply:

He’s big in the Red Circle. Watch your back

The Red Circle; I’d heard of them. They were a shadowy organisation that ruled the criminal underworld through fear and intimidation. Those who crossed them invariably wound up dead. In addition to being their name ‘The Red Circle’ was the mark that they left behind as a warning to others.

I began digging deeper, trying to find someone both willing and able to shed more light on the Red Circle’s activities.

There were some rumours that they’d been more active of late and that trouble was brewing between them and a group of Trolls who were muscling in on their territory. If what I’d heard was true there could soon be a turf war between the two factions.

SCENE 2
When: Midday. Twenty-fourth day of Dalios
Where: Market Square, Gela, Sicily

My search for information eventually led me to Kalliope. I hadn’t seen her in a long time, not since before Alcmene died.

I probably should have gone to her sooner but she’d been Alcmene’s contact not mine and I feared that through meeting her I would reopen wounds that I wasn’t yet ready to expose. I imagined she would see the burden of guilt that I carried and blame me, as I blamed myself, for the part I’d played in Alcmene’s death. If I hadn’t involved her she would still be alive.

I found Kalliope plying her trade in the market. I watched as she brushed past a stuffy looking dignitary and surreptitiously cut the ties on his purse, liberating it from him while he was haggling with one of the traders. She turned towards me and for a moment our eyes met. To my surprise she recognised me almost at once and came straight over.

“Hi Rhadamanthus” she said. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here. How are you?”

“Not so bad” I lied.

“I was really sorry to hear about what happened to Alcmene. She was alright you know”

For a moment my remorse welled up inside of me and threatened to spill out. I struggled to push it back down. “Yeah” was all I managed to reply. Damn! I miss her, I thought.

Seeing my discomfort Kalliope quickly changed the subject. “So are you here on business or pleasure?” she asked.

“I need your help,” I said.

“How about you buy me lunch then?” she smiled.

And so I did.

When I asked Kalliope about Krateros and the Red Circle she baulked, just as everyone else had done, but she had spirit. She said she would tell me what she knew because Alcmene had loved me and would have wanted her to. The two of them went back a long way.

I took a deep draught of wine to drown my emotions and poured myself another before I felt I’d regained control.

Kalliope told me that by all accounts Krateros was a very dangerous man. He was rumoured to be a sorcerer but nobody knew exactly who he was, where he came from or how he was tied to the Red Circle. It was true that they often appeared to be working together but as far as she knew he wasn’t actually part of the Circle. His agenda was his own.

Where or how one went about finding him was a mystery also. As far as she knew I was the only person to have tried. Normally people were intent on avoiding him.

She also confirmed what I’d been hearing about the growing ructions between the Red Circle and the Trolls. It seemed likely a turf war was imminent.

A fence named Baruch might know more but he wasn’t to be trusted.

“If you decide to approach that one you must be careful,” she warned. “Oh and in case you need reminding, if anyone asks, you didn’t get any of this from me”

That was all she knew but she assured me she would keep her ear to the ground and let me know if she heard anything else that might help.

I thanked her, gave her ten silvers and, at her urging, promised to come back and see her again some time soon. In truth I’d found her pleasant company.

SCENE 3
When: Twenty-sixth day of Dalios
Where: Baruch’s Shop, Gela, Sicily

A couple of days later I tracked Baruch to a small shop. It was the public face behind which he hid numerous criminal activities.

I went in. After all, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

For a few minutes I perused the assorted items that were for sale; in particular a well-crafted sword caught my eye. I also noted that the man behind the counter was flanked by three big bruisers, which seemed like a lot of security for such a little store. Thanos would certainly have looked right at home there.

“Can I help you?” the man asked casually. I presumed he was Baruch.

“Maybe you can” I replied. “I’m looking for information”

“Then you’ve come to the right place” Baruch smiled. “What is it that you wish to know?”

“It’s a rather sensitive matter. Are your friends to be trusted or should we speak in private?”

Baruch laughed heartily. “What do you take me for? I hardly know you. Tell me what you want or go. Stop wasting my time”

“Alright then. I want to know about Krateros”

For a moment Baruch almost choked but he quickly hid it by laughing once again. “Well, aren’t you just full of surprises?” he observed. “As it happens I do know something of the one that you seek but I must confess to being somewhat puzzled by your intentions. Surely you understand I’m a businessman. The risk of imparting such information is quite considerable and so I find myself wondering what you could possibly have to offer that will make it worth my while. Forgive me but you hardly look like you have sufficient collateral.”

Indeed I had very little and was not of a mind to pay someone like Baruch even if I did. I confessed as much to him.

“Perhaps you should come back when you’ve had an opportunity to think the matter over,” Baruch said dismissively, “Be creative. Coins are not the only thing I value.” The conversation was evidently over. Baruch turned to one of the thugs and added for good measure, “This gentleman is leaving now, escort him outside will you”

I got the message and went before I was thrown out.

SCENE 4
When: Midnight. Twenty-seventh day of Dalios
Where: A meeting place, Gela, Sicily

Earlier in the day Simonedes had contacted me and asked me if I would accompany him to a business meeting that night. He said it was merely a precaution, as this was the first time he’d done business with the people he was meeting. But he’d rather be safe than sorry.

So I agreed.

At around midnight, I found myself standing a short distance behind Simonedes while he conducted his business with Gezalla, a Troll matriarch. I studied my counterpart, the large Troll bodyguard who was standing a short distance behind her. I sincerely hoped there wasn’t going to be any trouble as he looked like he could rip my arms and legs off and make me eat them. Needless to say I didn’t fancy having to take him on.

To my relief the meeting concluded amicably and they left.

I hadn’t been able to eavesdrop on what was said as the conversation had been in a language I didn’t understand but afterwards my curiosity got the better of me and I asked Simonedes if it had anything to do with the trouble that was brewing between the Trolls and the Red Circle. He said it was just business and I didn’t pry further. It would have been rude to do so.

SCENE 5
When: Thirtieth day of Dalios
Where: Around town, Gela, Sicily

On Sunday I went to pay my respects at the Temple of Agonius. It had been a while.

Agonius is the patron of soldiers. He is the son of Ares, God of War, and Lachesis, the drawer of lots, the second of the three fates.

Before the Titan War, when the Gods were young, Ares seduced Lachesis in an effort to discover the fate allotted to one of his favourite priests, and Agonius was born as a result.

During the Titan War, in which Zeus led the Gods in overthrowing the Titans, Agonius protected Asclepia the Healer, daughter of Apollo, and love grew between them. After the war, Asclepia and Agonius were married. And so their two cults were bound closely together.

Once I had paid homage at the temple I went about my business.

During the day I heard that Darius the Head of the Guild of Inn and Tavern Keepers had died suddenly and that an unmarked Spartan ship had arrived in the harbour.

SCENE 6
When: Noon. First day of Thesmophorios
Where: An alley in Gela, Sicily

The next day I was cutting through an alley on the edge of the Dock and Trade Wards when a familiar looking Tuskan stepped out of the shadows in front of me. Just behind him was the tall, gaunt man who had introduced himself as Menelaus, though I now knew him to be Krateros.

There was no one else around. I prepared to defend myself.

The wind picked up a little and there was an almost imperceptible darkening of the sky. Without warning I found myself in the grip of some fell sorcery. Something in my chest tightened and I could hardly breath. I staggered as my insides twisted. The pain increased.

Suddenly Krateros was standing over me. He whispered a warning. “You are making a mistake. I overreacted before and you survived. I suggest you leave it at that. If you come looking for me again I won’t be so lenient.”

And with a swirling of the air he and the Tuskan were gone. However the pain in my chest remained. I staggered a short distance, trembling with the exertion. My breath came in gasps.

I tripped and stumbled against a door. A moment later, as I steadied myself, it opened. The man on the other side looked almost as surprised as I was. I might have fallen if he hadn’t reached out to support me. He called urgently to someone behind him.

“Evadne come quickly. This man needs our help”

A younger woman appeared and took my other arm. Together they ushered me inside.

“My name is Phalanthus,” the man said, “and this is my daughter Evadne. This is our home. You’re welcome to rest here until whatever ails you passes.”

And so it was that I lay on a blanket in their small courtyard while Evadne brought me water and gently bathed my forehead. She and her father watched over me for about an hour before the pain subsided.