Lord Aldric cleared his throat with the kind of deliberate preparation people employ when they’re about to deliver information they’ve rehearsed mentally multiple times, wanting to get the presentation exactly right because the stakes were high and the first impressions of complex plans matter.
He leaned forward slightly, clasping his hands together in front of him, his crimson eyes losing some of their manic energy and taking on the focused intensity of someone shifting from theatrical performance into actual business negotiation mode.
"Here’s what we need from you and your crew," he began, his voice still carrying that natural projection but tempered now with careful articulation. "Intelligence gathering. Detailed, actionable, provable intelligence on the Ivory Gambit’s brothels—specifically, we need you to find exploitable weaknesses that can be leveraged either for political pressure or direct action by city authorities."
He paused, seeming to gather his thoughts, then continued with the kind of measured explanation that suggested he’d thought through every angle and anticipated my questions before I could ask them.
"Each of the five brothels in their faction operates with some degree of illegality or moral compromise—as do the brothels in my own faction, I’ll admit with complete candor because pretending we’re all running squeaky-clean operations would be an insult to both our intelligences." His smile turned wry, almost self-deprecating. "Everyone bends the rules, everyone operates in gray areas, everyone has secrets they’d prefer stayed buried. The brothel industry in this city fundamentally requires certain... ethical flexibilities... that polite society pretends don’t exist while simultaneously benefiting from our services."
I nodded along because yes, obviously, the entire underground economy ran on moral compromise and strategic blindness from authorities who were usually either bribed or complicit, and anyone pretending otherwise was either naive or lying.
Lord Aldric gestured expansively as he warmed to his subject, his natural theatricality returning. "However—and this is the crucial distinction—finding provable wrongdoing that the Spire would actually act upon despite their general policy of turning blind eyes? That’s the real challenge. We’re not talking about minor infractions or the standard corruption everyone engages in. We need something substantial. Something so egregious, so publicly damaging, so impossible to ignore that even the most bribed official can’t justify looking away without risking their own position."
He ticked off examples on his fingers. "Trafficking in forbidden substances beyond the tolerated norm, involvement in slave trading that violates even this city’s extremely permissive laws, embezzlement from city coffers, connections to treasonous activities—the kind of secrets that, once exposed, create political firestorms no amount of money or influence can extinguish."
I raised my hand slightly, interrupting his flow. "So essentially you want us to become your investigators, digging through their operations until we find something prosecutable, then somehow acquire enough proof to take to authorities who are probably already compromised but might act if the evidence is overwhelming enough?" I tilted my head. "That’s... actually a massive undertaking. Like, genuinely huge. We’re talking months of work potentially, significant risk of discovery, and the very real possibility that we find nothing usable despite investing all that time and resources."
Lord Aldric’s expression flickered with something approaching sheepish acknowledgment before he let out a nervous laugh that seemed wildly out of character given his usual bombastic confidence.
He scratched the back of his neck. Yes, scratched his neck like some embarrassed teenager as his voice dropped into something far more humble.
"I’ll be completely honest with you—and this is perhaps not the most confidence-inspiring admission I could make—but intelligence gathering isn’t really our faction’s specialty." He winced slightly as he said this. "That’s more the Ivory Gambit’s area of expertise. They’re the ones with extensive spy networks, informants in every district, sophisticated surveillance operations. We’re more... direct action oriented. Smash the problem, burn the obstacle, overwhelm opposition through superior force and resources." He waved his hand vaguely. "Which works great for maintaining territory and winning fights, but not so much for the subtle infiltration work required here."
I blinked, processing this information and trying to decide if it made me more or less confident in this arrangement. "So you’re asking us to do the exact thing your faction is worst at, hoping we’ll somehow succeed where you’ve presumably already tried and failed?"
"When you phrase it like that it sounds much worse than I intended," Lord Aldric admitted with a grimace. He paused, taking a breath, then continued. "To support this investigation, I’m prepared to provide a substantial advance payment of funds. Additionally, Silas will serve as your intermediary, providing a secure method of communication that can’t be traced back to either of our brothels. Dead drops, coded messages, the full espionage apparatus."
He gestured up toward where Silas still stood watching. "And most importantly, we’ll provide dossiers on each of the five brothels in the Ivory Gambit’s faction—everything we’ve gathered over the years about their operations, known associates, rumored activities, structural vulnerabilities. It’s not comprehensive, as I mentioned we’re not exactly masters of this particular craft, but it’s a starting point that should save you considerable time."
I sighed, long and theatrical, letting the sound carry my mix of exasperation and reluctant interest. "Let me make sure I understand the plan in its entirety, just so we’re completely clear on what we’re agreeing to."
I held up one finger. "Step one, we gather information on all five of the Ivory Gambit faction’s brothels, investigating their operations for anything prosecutable. Step two, we uncover a significant secret that violates laws the Spire actually enforces. Step three, we gather sufficient evidence on said secret, documentation that would hold up to official scrutiny and couldn’t be easily dismissed or buried. Step four, we take that evidence to the city officials, probably through carefully orchestrated leaks or anonymous tips to avoid direct attribution. Step five, watch as the brothel gets taken down, their spot in the Pantheon opens up, and chaos ensues." I paused. "Does that about cover it?"
Lord Aldric perked up immediately, his energy returning in full force. "Yes! Exactly that! You’ve articulated it perfectly!" He clapped his hands together with great enthusiasm. "Though I should clarify what happens after a spot in the Pantheon opens up, because that’s where things get interesting from your perspective."
He leaned forward again, his expression intense. "When a position becomes vacant—whether through destruction, disgrace, or the extremely rare voluntary retirement—the city doesn’t just hand it to whoever asks nicely. They host a competition. An evaluation period where candidate brothels demonstrate their worthiness through various metrics, revenue generation, client satisfaction, unique offerings, political connections, public reputation, and occasional combat between representatives if things get spicy."
I gave him a simple nod, absorbing the information without comment.
"Now," Lord Aldric continued, his voice taking on a conspiratorial warmth, "my faction also operates on a hierarchical system—I won’t pretend we don’t, because that would be disingenuous—but here’s the crucial difference from the Ivory Gambit’s approach."
He placed one massive hand on his chest in a gesture of sincerity. "If you’re willing to go through with this job, if you successfully help us take down one of their brothels, my faction has agreed—unanimously, I might add, which was harder to achieve than you’d think—to pool all our available resources into getting your establishment that position in the Pantheon."
He let that sink in for a moment before continuing with building enthusiasm. "We’re talking about political influence, bribed officials, favorable press coverage, strategic sabotage of competitor applications, every dirty trick and legitimate advantage we can deploy all focused on ensuring you win that competition. And here’s the beautiful part—" his grin widened into something predatory and satisfied, "—the Ivory Gambit’s faction will be too busy recovering from the massive blow of losing one of their own, dealing with internal recriminations, external investigations, and the sudden reduction in their political power. They won’t have the cohesion or resources to mount an effective opposition to your candidacy. Which means—" he spread his hands wide, "—you’re essentially guaranteed that spot. Not hypothetically, not ’if things go well’—guaranteed, assuming you don’t catastrophically fuck up the actual competition itself, which given your track record seems highly unlikely."
I sat there processing this information, my mind running through scenarios, probabilities, and potential complications.
"Are you willing to go through with this proposition?" Lord Aldric asked, his voice carrying genuine curiosity beneath the presentation, like he truly couldn’t predict which way I’d lean despite having clearly bet on me accepting.
I met his eyes, those impossibly bright crimson depths that blazed with conviction and dangerous ambition, then felt something settle in my chest—a decision crystallizing with the kind of clarity that suggested my subconscious had already committed before my conscious mind caught up.
"Yes," I said simply, letting the word hang in the air for a beat before elaborating. "Yes, we’ll do it. We’ll investigate your rivals, find their secrets, gather evidence, and help you take down one of their brothels."
Lord Aldric’s reaction was immediate and overwhelming. He surged toward me with impressive speed then reached down and simply picked me up from the floor—grabbed me under the arms like I was a particularly exciting package he’d been waiting for—and pulled me into a tight hug while spinning around the stage with manic laughter, sounding as though he’d just won a lottery jackpot and discovered the prize was exactly what he’d hoped for.
"Yes!" he bellowed, the sound probably audible from the lobby and definitely loud enough to make my ears ring. "Brilliant! Perfect! This is going to be magnificent!" He spun faster, his robes billowing around us, and I found myself lifted completely off the ground, my feet dangling uselessly as the centrifugal force tried to fling me into the theater seats.
"Okay—okay that’s—put me down!" I shrieked, the words coming out higher-pitched than I intended because being manhandled by this overenthusiastic lunatic while spinning at velocities that defied various safety regulations was not how I’d envisioned this conversation ending. "Lord Aldric—I’m going to vomit—seriously!"
He laughed harder, the sound vibrating through his chest and into mine where we were pressed together, but mercifully he slowed his spinning and set me back down on the stage floor with enough care that I didn’t immediately collapse in a dizzy heap.
My legs wobbled slightly as I tried to remember how balance worked, one hand shooting out to grip his arm for stability while the world continued rotating in ways it absolutely shouldn’t.
"Apologies!" he said with little to no apology in his tone, clearly delighted by my disorientation. "I get... enthusiastic... when plans come together. Hazard of my personality."
He gave my shoulder a firm pat—firm enough that I stumbled forward a step and had to catch myself before his expression settled into something more businesslike despite the manic energy still crackling around him.
"Silas will provide you with further details. The advance payment and dossiers will be delivered by morning. He’ll walk you through all of it."
He glanced up toward the balcony where Silas still stood watching with that mix of concern and resignation—the look of someone who had seen this exact scenario unfold more than once and had long since learned there was no point in trying to rein in his boss’s impulses.
"Silas!" Lord Aldric bellowed. "Schedule a proper briefing with our new associate! Full intelligence package, operational security protocols. Make sure they understand exactly what resources we’re committing!"
Lord Aldric turned back to me then, his grin still impossibly wide, and extended his hand one final time, his crimson eyes blazing with satisfaction. "I have a feeling you’re going to be spectacular."
I took his hand, shook it firmly despite my still-spinning head, and returned his grin with one of my own. "Oh," I said with dark promise coating every syllable, "I fully intend to be."