“We have interrogated over a dozen different bandits that were hiding in the forest, and yet we still don't have the location of the main encampment.” Captain Tasius paced behind his desk as his lieutenant reported what the prisoners revealed during interrogation.
“But sir, we have uncovered the locations of three smaller camps. Two of which we have already raided.”
“Unfortunately lieutenant, the bandits are still very active and have no intention of stopping. We have almost no information about the group or the leader, and no leads to follow.” The captain paused and gassed out the window at a large intersection where many people walked to and from all throughout the day.
‘How can I help them if I cannot guarantee their safety, or at the bare minimum catch the ones causing them such pain?’
“As far as I can tell we only have one option, and that is to enlist the help of Arthur of Dom Badaher. He has helped us before, I see no reason why he wouldn’t be willing to help us now.”
“How should we get into contact with him sir?”
“As I recall he is a member of the mages guild. But he is also on friendly terms with the guard of the northern district. Try the mages guild first first and if that doesn’t work ask around the northern district guard, I am on good terms with Capatin Pelagius so they should be willing to help.”
*********
Arthur stood over his alchemy station as he distilled a batch of potions with his retort into a large bottle. Since Arthur had saved up a bit of money he bought some nice and durable clothes specifically for working with alchemy. Master Calvus was the one who recommended the tailor, it was the very same one he buys all his clothes from.
There were three identical sets of clothes in question, each set had thick brown trousers, a well made and light white shirt that was covered by a brown leather overcoat, and one pair of brown leather boots. It wasn’t the most expensive set that was available but it did its purpose and now Arthur looked the part of an alchemist, and it was easier to perform alchemy without stiff armor getting in the way. But when he returned to the Elder Nymph he noticed that Aurelio wore something quite similar, just without the overcoat. Instead he elected to wear an apron.
‘Master Calvus must have taken Aurelio out to get some proper clothes as well in the past.’
Arthur finished up with the potion and bottled it up before adding a label and placing it on a shelf for later.
Since it was about lunch time he wanted to go and get something to eat, for some time now he had been cooking his own food but from time to time he would go out and eat from one of the stalls or from one of the restaurants when he ate with Calavia.
Arthur would also take the time to check his mail box to see if he had received the books on evocation magic he ordered a few days ago. Even after passing both of his courses he did not stop his pursuit of knowledge. But instead of the books he was greeted by a letter, and not from someone he knew.
To Arthur of Dom Badaher
At the request of Captain Lar Tasius of the southern district of the city of Antium you are asked to schedule a meeting at your earliest convenience to discuss a matter of utmost importance.
We look forward to your answer.
Lieutenant Kalum Goldenshield
The letter stunk of formality leading Arthur to think that the captain must be asking for his help on behalf of someone else. ‘The captain must have spoken highly of my exploits and I'm betting someone asked him to arrange a meeting between us.’ Arthur may have been off the mark a bit but it wasn’t uncommon for such things to happen. Calavia even shared a story of a noble who asked for her help to heal the members of his personal guard for a scrimmage with a tribe of goblins after they burned a whole village to the ground with only a handful of survivors.
‘I'll just drop by and see what his friend or political ally needs me for before I make a decision.’ Arthur inwardly grumbled to himself wondering if speaking with the captain was a bad idea those few weeks ago.
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Before he went to the southern district he made sure that Master Calvus knew that he had business there and might not be back for quite some time.
The walk to the southern district had changed quite a bit since captain Tasius was promoted to captain. The guards actually patrolled the streets properly and dealt with any crime they could see. The only problem was that since the disbandment of Misery's End the entire district has become a no man's land amongst the underground criminal organizations resulting in all the big players and a few of the smaller ones trying to take new territory.
But most of this fighting was being done behind closed doors so the general populace did not see it regularly.
As Arthur approached the barracks the guards on duty there gave him a small nod and allowed him to walk unimpeded to the captain's office. “Ah, there you are Arthur. Please take a seat.” Arthur noticed that he and the captain were the only two in the room casting doubt on his theory of being needed for a friend.
“It is nice to speak to you again captain, is there anything I can help you with?”
“Why that is the reason I asked for you. You see we have a problem with criminals here in Antium. The situation inside the city is being dealt with, the problem I need you for is actually from outside the city.” Captain Tasius took a map from his desk and placed it on top. The map showed the city of Antium and the surrounding lands.
“Despite what most think, the authority and responsibility of a captain does not start and end within the capital itself. It actually expands out into a radius of about 5 kilometers. We captains are expected to keep this land safe from bandits and if the threat exceeds our power and resources we are expected to contact the crown and ask for help in the matter.”
“And you want my help in dealing with something that exceeds the strength of a few bandits.”
“It's not just a few bandits, it's several villages worth of bandits. The problem is we do not know where they are or how they are recruiting more. My ‘Predecessor’ was either so incompetent to allow these bandits to dig their heels in or he purposely allowed it in exchange for a cut of the profits. We don’t know because he fled when his connections with Misery's End was uncovered.”
“You have no leads on the location of this camp but you want to enlist my help in finding it. I am hearing this correctly.” Arthur was a little baffled by the situation. The only reason he found the vampire's base of operations was because they led him right to it.
“You won't be doing it alone, do you know a stone elf by the name of Titia. If I recall correctly she did participate in the raid on the vampire cult.”
“Yes, I did briefly speak to her. Is she taking part in this operation?” Arthur thought back to when he was almost killed by Lord Darius the self proclaimed vampire lord. If not for her intervention he likely would have died.
“When I was speaking with Captain Pelagius asking for advice on how to deal with such a scenario he was more than willing to lend her to me for the duration of the operation. I trust from your reaction that she is a trustworthy individual.”
“She is very trustworthy and she is very talented in illusion magic. She used an invisibility spell to follow me to the vampire's hideout without being seen, even by me.”
“That is a relief to hear your opinion on the matter, but that isn’t the only reason I brought her up. I wanted to ask you to work with her in an attempt to locate the bandits' main encampment.”
“I'm not against working with her, but without any clues we would just be wasting our time. I doubt that you even have the necessary manpower to sweep the entire forest, so the two of us would be no better.” ‘If he seriously thinks that we could find anything without pure luck on our side then he is insane.’
“We do know the location of one smaller camp in the Pelcester Forest. All such camps that we have come across have a leader who before he or she can be captured uses poison in a fake tooth when they see that all their men are dying. The plan my lieutenant and I came up with was to capture this last one in his sleep with the use of magic.” Captain Tasius placed one of the false teeth on the table, showing Arthur what they would be looking for.
Arthur took the tooth in his hand and inspected it. It was quite simple, just an animal tooth with a hollowed out core that must have been inserted by someone with considerable medical skill if it was to stay in on its own. “This is what I am looking for?”
“Yes, based on what our surgeon said it is likely they have someone with considerable skill in medicine and teeth in particular.”
For quite some time Arthur remained silent as he looked over the tooth familiarizing himself with its color and shape for when he would need to extract it. “I'll do it, but not for free.”
“Of course, I expected you would say something like that. That is why I have a bag of 25 silver coins ready for when you return with a location.”
*******
Titia walked down the hall toward the office of Captain Pelagius. He had summoned her to his office and based on the wording it was quite serious. As soon as she entered the room she gave a salute and stood at attention. “Corporal Titia reporting sir.”
“At ease, corporal. I have an assignment for you and your specific skill set.”
Titia kept her smile from showing as he was inwardly ecstatic. It had been weeks since she had anything other than collecting incriminating recordings of various criminal organizations while she remained invisible.
“You will be working for Captain Tasius of the southern district to combat the rising bandit threat that was allowed to fester by his predecessor. You will be tasked with uncovering the main encampment of the bandits who have taken residence in the area by interrogating the leaders of the smaller camps.”
“When do I begin sir?” It wasn't quite what she had hoped, but it was still better than waiting for criminals to spill the beans all day.
“After you go to the armory and gather all the equipment you will require. Dismissed.”