A thief in the night
Splendid evening most revered mother,
It has been another eventful day here in Sparta. Following the revelation that my companion Ouroboros was taken by the law keepers, I found myself stalking the Forum precinct of Sparta. There is a central building that looks like it might be used for short term jailing of those bound by law. While I was pondering my next steps, a strange man-animal peeked out of a bush to say hello. He’s looks very much like the Greek god Pan, except he has painted his hooves a gold color. He asked questions about what I was up to and claimed he had a ‘feeling’ he needed to be here. I suspect Lady Alex might want to meet him. We went into the forum building where I was able to speak briefly with Ouroboros via clandestine message. He was fine so far as that goes and indicated he was willing to face the trial.
I took both this message and my new friend who is called Silenos, back to the Leche Palace to meet the other companions. On the way I make a brief stop by the captured amazon, Niobe, delivering much needed water. We discussed briefly Ouroboros’s wishes, and I got to meet Kiros an old friend of Ouroboros. It seems as fates would have it, he was directly responsible for our friend the Amazon’s capture. She apparently was here to deal with the younger king, was stopped by Kiros who cracked a wine amphora over her head. The younger king was very impressed and elevated Kiros from helot to Spartan. Kiros seemed to have had enough lauds over this and wished to speak of it no more.
It seemed like we would move forward with our plan concerning some impersonation work by Lady Thalia via introduction by Leonis to the younger king. There was some special dressing and preparations before those two went off. Nicolos was spending time finding out more about the mountain peoples and the skyborn metal he’s here to seek. At time for the trial approached, Silenos suggested that if the younger king was otherwise occupied, it might make a good time to peek see around his home. It seemed like a good opportunity to have a peek see. Lady Alex said she would go to the Forums to see Ouroboros’s trial. I’m assuming Lady Thalia will be there as well; I’ve not seen her since she and Leonis left to get her a special dress and to introduce her to the king.
I’m not sure how the trial at the forums went, I’m sure I’ll be able to update you in my next letter. Our visit to the king’s villa however was very productive. I helped Silenos move about unseen, and we took divergent paths into the estate. He came in via a window into the guest room that we had previously scouted. I clambered onto the roof to head for the central courtyard. We dodged a few of the house helots and guards, moving into the back rooms of the villa. The first place we found was an office of some sort. I gave it a search, as Lady Alex mentioned she was looking for notes, scrolls, or journals relating to Alexander or the younger king’s father Aegis the third. While I fussed over the small library of scrolls, Silenos went next door. Not knowing what else he found there, he certainly did find the unique double ended sword that belongs to Niobe. After several minutes he returned, and we moved quietly back out of the same window he entered. However, I couldn’t help myself and nicked the infantry blade belonging to the younger king. It might make a nice surprise gift for Niobe, a plant to incriminate someone if we need cover to escape, or a fantastic keepsake. I also picked up a few scrolls that look like they might be something Alex is hunting for. Caught up with Silenos after the heist, he seemed very pensive. Perhaps he doesn’t indulge his curiosity as often as some of us do. I’ll be sure to write more later once I can catch up with the other companions.