View source for A QUESTION OF STRANGE COMPANY

There are questions that demand to be asked, not because the answers are known, but because the silence around them is deafening.

Let us begin with a name. 
<br>Mud.
<br>A greenseer of the Heartwood, a man of the grove.

By all accounts a humble soul, concerned with rot in the forest and the welfare of the land. 

A man who has worked alongside the Radiant Heart and other surface forces in their ongoing efforts against Dhraknar, Tyrant of the Sharps, feeding them intelligence about the spread of Moander's blight across Arelith's forests.

A good man, you might say. A man of the earth.
<br>So then, why was he receiving visitors like Sinaid Ruharin?

For those unfamiliar with the name, Sinaid is a former Commander of Arbiters of Sibayad. He and his husband Zelsamir, a man noted in multiple intelligence circles for his known ability to use various names and faces to infiltrate governments, have loudly, publicly, repeatedly declared their retirement from Sibayad's politics. 
<br>They are librarians now, they say. Simple keepers of books. They have no hand in the city's affairs.

And yet.
<br>Sinaid was seen making his way through the Arelith forest, accompanied by Crow, a figure known to move in the orbit of Slicer, the former operative who once performed espionage on behalf of Minmir Keep. 

The same Minmir Keep whose connections to the Zhentarim have been a matter of public record and whispered rumor for years. Crow. Divine in nature, by certain accounts. Guarding Slicer as she recovers from a recent and turbulent conversion. A loyal hound to powerful masters.

What were these two doing in the forest?
<br>They were visiting Mud.

Now, one might ask, perhaps this is innocent. Perhaps a former city official and a creature of the shadows simply wished to commune with a greenseer about the health of the forest. 

Perhaps they too were concerned about the rot. People of all stripes share concern for the natural world.

Except.
<br>Inside Mud's home, confidential documents originating from Sibayad were found. Intelligence files. Dossiers. The kind of material that does not simply wander from city archives into a druid's hut by accident. The kind of documents that require a deliberate hand to carry them across that distance.

Documents about people Sinaid's government considers enemies.

Let us now string these threads together and ask the question plainly.

There is a document, circulated some years ago, that names a coalition of Zhentarim agents and Harper operatives alleged to have worked in concert to consolidate control over Sibayad. Whether every name on that list is accurate is a matter of debate. But certain names have since been validated. Sinaid appears on it. Zelsamir appears on it. Vestelle Duskmere, now married to Vizier Eduard Helbrecht, appears on it.

Sinaid has always denied being a Zhent. Sinaid has always said he acts independently. Sinaid has always said he is retired.

And yet Sinaid walks into a greenseer's home with Crow at his side and leaves behind confidential Sibayadi intelligence.

Why would a retired man carry state secrets to a druid?

Why would a man with no government affiliation be distributing intelligence files to someone operating in the orbit of the Radiant Heart?

The Radiant Heart, it should be noted, have been pressing their crusade against Dhraknar with notable enthusiasm. Mud has been providing them with intelligence on the Moander rot. The rot that, by multiple accounts, traces back to orcish activity in the forest, activity many have attributed to forces connected to Dhraknar himself.

So let us lay it plain.

A man with alleged Zhent ties carries confidential dossiers to a greenseer. That greenseer feeds intelligence to the Radiant Heart. The Radiant Heart presses hard against Dhraknar. Dhraknar, meanwhile, had been quietly moving toward peace, or at least a ceasefire, with those same Sibayadi interests that Sinaid once served.

Is this a coincidence?

Is it a coincidence that Crow, who moves in the shadow of a former Minmir spy, walks alongside a former Sibayadi intelligence chief, into the home of a man feeding a crusade that serves Sibayad's political interests?

Is it a coincidence that Mud, humble Mud of the grove, finds himself in possession of secret files that have no business being in a forest hut?
<br>Or is this something else entirely? An old network, wearing new faces. Zhentarim hands in green gloves, tugging at strings in the dark, pointing righteous men and women in whatever direction serves their masters best, whilst the puppeteers themselves retire to their libraries and their books and claim innocence.

The questions are simple.
<br>Who gave Mud those documents?
<br>Why is a retired Arbiter Commander still carrying state secrets into the forest?
<br>And who, precisely, benefits from the Radiant Heart's crusade against Dhraknar?

Ask them.
<br>Ask loudly.
<br>Because the silence will answer for you.

"Only in remaining anonymous do their twisted deeds thrive."

       Day 10, Month 3 (Ches), 189 AR
<br>       Anonymous        
[[Category:180-189 AR]]
[[Category:Minmir]]
[[Category:Sibayad]]
[[Category:Notices & Proclamations]]
[[Category:Harpers & Zhents]]