Rise of the Tyrants – Session 6
SCENE 1
When: Evening. Fourth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Tuskan Lance tavern, Gela, Sicily
That evening, as arranged, Cyrus and I made our way into the slums on the edge of the Dock and Army Wards to pay a visit to the Tuskan Lance. When we arrived we bought a pitcher of wine and found a table in a dimly lit corner where we could watch the other occupants without drawing attention to ourselves.
The proprietor, Orath, stood at the bar. He was an exceedingly large man. One of his eyes and one of his ears was missing and his features were heavily scarred. Three Tuskans were drinking rowdily at a table near the centre of the room. Among the other patrons were a couple of groups who looked like Northmen, maybe seven men in total. Not surprisingly they talked in Tuskan or Norse respectively so I couldn’t understand their conversation, but nothing particularly suspicious appeared to be going on.
I leant across and whispered to Cyrus “Do you recognise anyone?”
Cyrus surreptitiously scanned the room, “Not really” he shrugged. “Tuskans all look the same to me but I don’t think the one who attacked us is in here.”
We took another drink.
“Wait a minute!” Cyrus suddenly exclaimed under his breath. He nodded towards the bar. “Over there. That bow looks awfully familiar don’t you think?”
A large bow was propped up behind the bar, near where Orath was standing. It looked very much like the bow that the Tuskan archer had used against us, but it could merely have been a similar one. It was hard to know for certain.
We returned to our drinks and kept our eyes open. I did my best to memorise the faces of everyone present, just in case we came across them again.
After about an hour another Tuskan walked in.
Cyrus nearly choked on his wine. “It’s him” he breathed, “I’m sure of it”
The new arrival went up to the bar and ordered a drink. While he was waiting, he turned and looked around the room. His eyes briefly settled on us and then moved on.
Before going over to join the other Tuskans he said something to Orath. In response the big Norseman took a pitcher from behind the bar and made his way purposefully over to our table.
“Don’t do anything stupid” I whispered since Cyrus looked as if he might bolt. It was understandable with such a giant of a man bearing down on us.
“Graal, that Tuskan over there” Orath rumbled gruffly. The words were slightly mangled due to a large scar that passed across his lips. “E’ says e’ recognises you from a spot o’ business e’ did and hopes there ain’t no bad feelings.”
He scrutinized us with his one good eye and thumped the pitcher firmly down on the table. “And we don’t want no trouble from your sort round here” he added. “So mind you don’t start nothing”
At that moment ‘starting something’ was the last thing on my mind. “If there’s any trouble it won’t come from us” I assured him.
I took the pitcher and poured myself a drink, raising it to Graal to acknowledge his peace offering. Then I knocked it back.
Orath seemed satisfied by this gesture and returned to his position at the bar.
We stayed there for a couple more hours before we gave up and left.
As we departed I went over to Orath and paid for a pitcher of wine to be served to the Tuskans. “Just to show there are no hard feelings” I explained.
The big Norseman squinted at me thoughtfully. “I might’ve been wrong about you” he said “If you want to, you can come back”
SCENE 2
When: Morning. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Saffron Pearl tavern, Gela, Sicily
The next morning when we awoke, there was an ungodly stench emanating from the sewers near the Captain’s Rest. A party of slaves soon arrived to conduct repairs but in the meantime it seemed prudent to find business elsewhere.
After the attack on Thanos, Cyrus had been nagging Philomena to recognise the seriousness of the situation and hire some guards for her protection. He understood her reservations about becoming indebted to the Temple of Agonius but maintained she could easily avoid doing so. All they need do is go to the Temple and recruit the guards themselves. It was still the best place to find warriors who were looking for work but if Philomena hired them and paid for them herself then she was hardly accepting charity. Grudgingly she agreed and the two of them headed off to the Temple together.
Meanwhile I returned to the Saffron Pearl hoping for the opportunity to speak with Darius’s slaves and employees about what they knew.
To my surprise, when I arrived there, I found that the tavern had already been reopened under new management.
Enquiring within, I was told that none of the old staff remained; everyone there had been taken on by the new owner. Apparently all Darius’s bar staff had been slaves and had been auctioned off the previous afternoon, along with the rest of the Persian’s property. This was the custom when there was no next of kin.
I noted with interest that the new owner of the Saffron Pearl was Philomena’s friend, Hesperos. He had moved quickly. Perhaps he’d merely taken advantage of Darius’s misfortune but it seemed a little suspicious that he’d been sufficiently well placed to get things up and running again so swiftly.
SCENE 3
When: Morning. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Inn and Tavern Keepers Guild House, Gela, Sicily
The outcome of Guild auctions such as the one that had disposed of Darius’s estate was a matter of public record, so I went to the Inn and Tavern Keepers Guild House to find out what had become of the slaves. To my consternation I discovered that the whole lot had been purchased by an anonymous buyer, save for the Saffron Pearl which had gone to Hesperos.
Furthermore, both the slaves and the remainder of Darius’s possessions had been collected from the tavern the previous evening and subsequently spirited away.
The sequence of events surrounding Darius’s death was growing increasingly suspicious but no further information could be gleaned at the Guild House.
SCENE 4
When: Morning. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Carter’s Arms tavern, Gela, Sicily
Thinking that little gets transported around the city without the Carters’ knowledge, I decided to seek out a recent acquaintance and ask for some help finding out where the slaves had been taken. I tracked Avel down to the Carter’s Arms tavern where he welcomed me enthusiastically.
“Rhadamanthus! How are you? How’s Thanos? Has he recovered from his injuries? Nasty business that. Wish I could lay my hands on those villains. Hope he’s still coming to the Orphanage fundraiser. Kids aren’t half looking forward to it. Going to be quite a do. Yessir”
He prattled on for a while. I bought him a couple of drinks and we chatted. Eventually we got around to business. Once I’d told him what I knew and what I needed to find out, he tapped his nose conspiratorially.
“Don’t you worry” he assured me. “You leave it with me. There aint nothing goes on around here that old Avel can’t sniff out. I’ll have you an answer right soon I will. I’ll come find you at the Captain’s Rest this evening. I’ve got a load to take over that way a bit later”
SCENE 5
When: Early Evening. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Captain’s Rest tavern, Gela, Sicily
Things got decidedly murkier after that.
As good as his word, Avel showed up at the Captain’s Rest that same evening to tell me that one of the Carters named Markos had moved Darius’s possessions on the quiet. He and two of his friends had loaded up three carts with the slaves and other goods and then taken them out of the city through the South Gate, heading for an unknown destination.
The Carters Guild were decidedly unhappy about this, as doing unsanctioned transportation work was a serious breach of regulations. When they found Markos he was going to be in a lot of trouble. However for the time being nobody knew where he was.
SCENE 6
When: Evening. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The South Gate, Gela, Sicily
Acting on the information Avel had provided I went to the South Gate to ask the guards whether any of them had seen anything out of the ordinary the night before. Fortunately an old friend of mine named Lysagoras was among them. He told me that three carts had indeed left the city the previous evening, two of them full of slaves and the other one full of goods.
He distinctly remembered them because he’d thought it odd that the carts were leaving so late, but there had been no reason to detain them.
Lysagoras also informed me that a militia patrol had subsequently found three bodies lying just off the road about a mile out of town. It seemed pretty likely that these were Markos and his two friends. The carts themselves were nowhere to be found.
The mystery thickened.
I thanked Lysagoras for his help and pondered what my next move should be. In order to gain anything useful from visiting the wagons’ last known location I would need to find someone with knowledge of the wilds; a tracker who could read the signs and perhaps determine what had occurred. The only person that sprang to mind was Kalliope’s brother Feodor. I knew he spent a fair bit of time outside the city hunting wild game.
SCENE 7
When: Late Evening. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: Kalliope’s Residence, Gela, Sicily
It was getting late but, at the risk of wearing out my welcome, I went to find Kalliope. I wouldn’t have troubled her but I didn’t know how to contact Feodor without going through her.
I knocked tentatively at the door of the house where she stayed.
After some time an old woman answered, warily opening the door and eying me disapprovingly.
“I’m sorry to disturb you so late” I said as politely as possible “but I was hoping I could speak to Kalliope. It’s important”
The woman considered me for a moment, tutted and then shook her head.
“Wait here” she instructed and went back inside
“Kalliope!” I heard her call from within.
“What is it?” came the muffled reply.
“There’s a man here to see you. At this time of night mind. What will the neighbours think? If I’ve told you once I’ve told you a thousand times my girl”
“Alright… alright, don’t go on”
After a few minutes Kalliope appeared in the doorway.
“Oh it’s you” she said wearily.
“Sorry I didn’t mean to get you into trouble”
“Oh, don’t worry about her. Her bark’s far worse than her bite. What do you want?”
“I need to get hold of Feodor”
Kalliope blinked at me disbelievingly. “So after disturbing me at this hour you’re telling me you came to see Feo?”
“Yes but I can explain”
“This better be good,” she grumbled.
We sat on the steps and talked. I told her everything I knew.
She looked at me and shook her head. “You’re damn lucky I like you you know. I’ll speak to him but it won’t be until morning now. He won’t be around before then. Come back here first thing. Oh and by the way, you owe me another dinner for this”
SCENE 8
When: Late Evening. Fifth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The Captain’s Rest, Gela, Sicily
After leaving Kalliope I returned to the Captain’s Rest and discovered that the guard positions that Cyrus and Philomena had been recruiting for had already been filled by a friend of Thanos’s called Barachus and the three men who Philomena had sent away the previous day. It was clear that the Temple had had a hand in this but, now that Philomena was paying them the going rate, her objection to having them there had been nullified.
SCENE 9
When: Morning. Sixth day of Thesmophorios
Where: Outside the City of Gela, Sicily
The next morning I picked up Feodor from Kalliope’s and then met Cyrus and Thanos at the South Gate.
The four of us made our way along the road out of the city until we reached the spot where Lysagoras had told me the militia had found the bodies.
Regrettably the whole area had been trampled by the patrol, so all evidence of what had happened there had been destroyed but, after some searching, Feodor eventually found the tracks from the wagons. They were well hidden, having been brushed out until some distance away from the incident. Apparently in an attempt to conceal what had happened to them. Once Feodor had discovered them however they were easy enough to follow.
We did so and gradually realised that we were circling around back towards Gela. Eventually we came back into the city via the North Gate.
SCENE 10
When: Early Afternoon. Sixth day of Thesmophorios
Where: The North Gate, Gela, Sicily
After thanking Feodor for his assistance I spoke to the guards on the gate who confirmed that the three carts had entered Gela the previous morning. The group driving them were led by a thin looking man with a sneer and a whiney nasal tone to his voice.
“You know” said Thanos afterwards. “That sounds awfully like the guy from the alley who warned me to stay away from the Captain’s Rest”
SCENE 11
When: Afternoon. Sixth day of Thesmophorios
Where: Around town, Gela, Sicily
Our subsequent search of the city bore little fruit. Cyrus and Thanos sought help from Avel once again and Kalliope and I checked out the market, as Kalliope had discovered that some of Darius’s possessions had been sold there for a quick profit. Unfortunately the identity of the seller remained a mystery and all the Carters were able to determine was that the carts had gone into the Residence Ward and disappeared.
After all our efforts we had lost them.
