"Well gentlemen, that concludes our meetings for this year. We will reunite in the new year for our first meeting. Until then, joyful holidays to you and yours!" His Resolute Honor Cobb Darg, Lord Mayor of Irongate, said to his colleagues on the city council, as he picked up his cane with a dramatic twirl.
Some of the newer councillors exchanged glances, confused at the Lord Mayor's theatrics, but the veterans merely shook their heads. They'd long since gotten used to Darg's eccentric flourishes, and put up with it for the sake of getting along with him.
As the councillors left, Darg returned to his private offices, where a few of his aides were finishing up some items of paperwork that needed his signature.
"Merry Needfest to you, Your Lordship," Cius said to Darg, handing him the documents. "Do you have anyting planned?"
"Nothing, unless you count sitting in front of the fire with a hot cup of cocoa while I plan my next acquisition," Darg said, with a twinkle in his eye. "It's a fine piece this time, Ciu-a figurine of Wee Jas herself, carved in maple. One of the most challenging and most rewarding woods all at once, my boy. That, and re-reading some of my favorite tales of vice and scandal among the fairy-folk," he said, a lewd grin crossing his face.
Cius blinked a few times at the Lord Mayor's response, but he kept a straight face. Not much surprised him about his master anymore, whether it be his strange obsession with his collection of wood figurines and carvings, his refusal to drink alcohol or his eccentric reading habits.
"You won't be joining anyone for Needfest?" Cius said. "I must say, it sounds quite lonely. Your Lordship's more than welcome-"
"No, lad, no," Darg said, his expression softening. "I appreciate your kindness, but I won't be lonely this Needfest. I need time to myself every now and again-humans can be exhausting creatures."
Cius tried to protest, but Darg ignored him as he reviewed and signed the final necessary documents and handed them back. Darg doffed his hat and bowed to his staff before returning to his private quarters in the Irongate town hall, which doubled as the Lord Mayor's residence.
It was the last they would see of him that year.
Hayrene felt sick to her stomach as she read the letter, her latest set of instructions. She cursed herself once again for letting herself get into Leonadis's debt, cursed herself for endangering her family. She'd already gathered the information Leonadis wanted, and this letter contained her instructions for the dead drop she was to leave the information in.
She could only thank Lendor that her husband Elrec and their children didn't know about the things they were forced to do. They were already at his sister's house for Needfest dinner, and she would join them once she dropped off the information. Hayrene praised herself for her skills at keeping a straight face-she'd need it after what she was doing.
She was shocked out of her thoughts by her front door slamming. The surprise she felt at that was nothing compared to her surprise at the strange character who walked into her study. He was a large, rotund man with a long white beard, clad in a rather overdone red and white suit. He bore a wry grin on his face, but Hayrene could tell from the look in his eyes that he was deadly serious.
"Who...what do you..." she said, fear replacing her surprise. "I'm an official-"
"An official with the government of Irongate," the white-bearded man said. "Yes, I know as much already. What I'd be interested in is what kind of letters you'd be writing at such a time of year. Needfest wishes to friends and family, or something else altogether?"
"N-Neefest..." Hayrene stammered, but she fell silent. She was good at not revealing her inner feelings, but open lying was something she'd never been good at.
"It wouldn't happen to be information on Irongate's military strength, for instance?" the white-bearded man asked. "Or about its diplomatic relations with central Flanaess states like Greyhawk and the Urnst states?"
Hayrene turned white with terror as she realized the white-bearded man knew the whole truth. Tears formed in her eyes, both from the consequences she'd suffer for her treason and what her husband and children would have to endure.
"I...I never had a choice...we'd be ruined if...Leonidas was my only hope..." she stammered, putting her face in her hands.
"Leonidas the sage? What use could he have for such information?" the white-bearded man said, raising an eyebrow.
"He passes it on to others," Hayrene said, "and pays me well. I've no choice, sir. If it's not treason, it's penury!"
The man rubbed his beard thoughtfully, recalling what he knew and heard about Hayrene and what she did on her own time.
"They say horse racing's the sport of kings, but it's more the sport of criminals if you ask me," the man said. "I see it now-Leonidas's payments help you make good on your gambling debts, don't they?"
"As I said, I've no choice in the matter," Hayrene said. "I've never been back to the arenas since Leonidas snared me."
"You haven't, eh?" the man said, stroking his white beard again. "Tell me, then-what do you owe?"
"Over 1,200 starries," she said, refering to Irongate's silver currency. "If I don't deliver these to Leonidas-"
"Give them to me," the man said, "and you can have this in exchange." Reaching into one of his suit pockets, the man pulled out a pouch. He counted out a hundred and twenty gold dragoneyes, which he placed on Hayrene's desk. She was too stunned to stop the white-bearded man from taking the information she was supposed to leave for Leonidas.
Finally, she mustered the nerve to speak.
"Who are you? Why are you doing this?" Hayrene asked.
"Suffice to say you can call me Klaas Sinter," the white-bearded man said with a wink. "As for why I'm doing this, I'll just say I have my reasons. Be sure to stay away from the horses-if you end up in a problem like this again, I may not be able to help you."
With that, Klaas promptly left Hayrene alone, slamming her door behind him.
All she could do, in both shock and relief that her problems were now somehow over, was prepare herself for the visit to her sister-in-law.
Leonidas scowled at Hayrene's betrayal. He was going to make her regret not delivering the information he wanted. His friends among the bookmakers would call in their debts, and she'd be ruined. He'd have to find a new mole, but that was only a minor inconvenience.
Leonidas was just about to leave his townhouse when the door burst open and Klaas walked in. Too stunned to react, Leonidas simply stood there as Klaas roughly pushed him back.
"Who in the Nine Hells do you-" Leonidas started to say, but the look in Klaas's eyes stopped him cold.
"I know everything, Leonidas," Klaas said. "All about it."
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Leonidas said, an angry scowl on his face. "And I'll have you know I can call the Watch-"
"Your words might say one thing, but your mind says another," Klaas said, his eyes gleaming. "My attire made you think of scarlet robes, eh? Well, that explains so much..."
Leonidas became the second person Klaas made turn white with terror that evening.
"You're...one with the Scarlet Sign?" Leonidas said, his expression tense and uncertain.
"No," Klaas said, "and that's all the worse for you. Treason is a hanging offense, is it not?"
Klaas glanced from side to side, as he felt his world falling in around him. He tried to find something, anything, that he could use as a weapon.
"Hold!" Klaas said, and Leonidas found himself suddenly frozen. Try as he might, he couldn't move a muscle.
"Such awful crimes, you've committed," Klaas said, his eyes seeming to glow golden. "And yet, there might be a hope for redemption..."
Leonidas suddenly felt a crushing shame as he realized the extent of his crimes and his collusion with the men in the scarlet robes. He'd disgraced his family, his city, everything he was supposed to stand for...
"What kind of redemption do you offer?" Leonidas said, almost pleading with Klaas for guidance.
"A full disclosure of your interactions with the Scarlet Sign, for one," Klaas said. "Copies only, given that they'll likely be coming by for the originals. And then, should you punish yourself properly, I see no reason why this matter should go any farther."
"Of course, of course!" Leonidas said, desperate to prove himself to Klaas.
They talked for the better part of two hours, before Klaas left for the night.
Two days later, one of Leonidas's friends visited his house to check on him. No one had seen or heard from him, and his friends were worried about him.
The friend who visited Leonidas learned the hard way when he found Leonidas's body hanging in his study. The Watch was swiftly called, and they determined it was a suicide. No one could fathom why a respected sage like Leonidas would want to kill himself, but the facts were undeniable.
Cobb Darg pretended to be shocked when he heard of Leonidas's suicide after Needfest. The city government had employed his services as a sage more than once, and he was well-known to the city council.
Figuring out where the information leaks his spies had expressed concern about wasn't too difficult. Most of the city staff learned to ignore his random jaunts around the city offices, given how preoccupied he often seemed. It was all an act, of course, a way to listen to the gossip and thoughts of the lesser bureaucrats. That was how he'd learned about Hayrene's love for betting on horse races. One of the magical amulets he wore, a medallion that allowed its wearer to read other people's thoughts, told him about her worries about her gambling debts.
Darg hated putting a scare into Hayrene to make her give up whichever spy she was working for. He didn't have much choice, since he had to make sure she would tell him the truth. Leonidas was fairly easy to deal with, especially once Darg magicaly compelled him to reveal everything. That same magical compulsion made it easy for Darg to "persuade" Leonidas that he should punish himself for his crime. Darg's alias of 'Klaas Sinter' and the second amulet he wore, one that protected him against diviniations to find his identity, ensured his tracks were covered.
That was straightforward, but the knowledge Leonidas gave Darg about his work with this 'Scarlet Sign' was all too complex. Darg hadn't known what to make of the red-robed men who came from the southern land they called 'Shar', offering alliance and friendship, but this was a very, very bad sign. He didn't dare reveal his knowledge of the Scarlet ones' spy operations-that was why he made Leonidas give him copies instead of taking the originals-but now he had to figure out how he could use the information Leonidas gave him.
Darg realized he had many sleepless nights ahead of him.
The only consolation in the whole affair was seeing Hayrene after Needfest. She carried herself as someone who'd been given a new lease on life, learning to feel joy again. His amulet revealed to him that she planned to someday find 'Klaas Sinter' and thank him for his help...
...but she never would, of course.
Darg chuckled to himself at that realization.