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You've just sat down for dinner in your usual fashion in Absalom, thinking how lucky you are to be working for the Society and drawing a few cushy jobs studying some old books. Unlike other adventurers you've talked to in the past, your duties have been boring by contrast. Of couse that means its also safer, so there is a plus to that.
However, there is a quick tap on your shoulder and an envelop handed to you by a stranger. The stranger is gone, answering none of your questions. With a shrug, you open the envelope after seeing the Pathfinder Society seal on the letter. Inside isa note.
"Greetings Society Member. While your work here has been highly appreciated, you are now being called to meet Ambrus Valsin at the Grand Lodge. He is expected you to arrive as quick as possible."
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Sorin refolds the letter then taps it on the edge of the table as he looks at his half eaten bowl of stew.
Soldiers sleep and eat when they can. No need to waste good food!
Sorin quickly picks up the bowl, shovels the remaining pieces of meat and vegetables into his mouth and stands up, cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk.
Off we go. Sorin made a jaunty salute to the rest of the folks in the room, snagged his sword from the corner and went off to the Grand Lodge.
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Kurama Kenjin motions toward the envelope breaking his restful meditation.
After reading the message, the bright haired tiefling reflects on completing his daily vows and recites to himself.
To master both the blade and shadow, I am commited and remove any distractions.
The sword. The shadow.
(1) To exist as the sword and the shadow, I must separate myself from everything else. (Vow of Celibacy)
(2) To understand the sword and shadow, I must purify my body of taint and imperfection. (Vow of Cleanliness)
(3) To speak as the sword and shadow, I must listen to the wisdom. (Vow of Silence)
(4) To reveal the secrets of the sword and shadow, I must utter the truth. (Vow of Truth)
To achieve enlightenment, I adhere to these tenets.
I am the sword. I am the shadow.
Kuruma pats his pocket where he carries a palm-sized stone etched with his personal dogma. He moves quickly to the Grand Lodge navigating through the paths less traveled.
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A silent form enters the Grand Lodge. It's a fiery haired tiefling. He abstains from imbibing spirited drinks as it may inhibit his performance or judgment. Glancing around the room, he notices other pathfinders summoned here. Recognizing Sorin in brief passing at Andoran faction gathering, Kuruma approaches the barbarian and hands him a small etched stone bearing his monk vows which are written multiple times in several languages (Common, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Gnome, Halfling, Orc, to name a few) repeating the same words.
Kurama then pats his chest to signify himself and reveals a tattoo under his forearm of a fox demon in sage's garment. He points at the tattoo then himself. Kurama waits for Sorin to react hoping that the barbarian would grant him a name or temporary moniker. Kurama tilts his head forward trying to determine if Sorin understands; the tiefling also shows his letter to appear at the Grand Lodge.
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Osric bows briefly to his companions, then, with a wry look at the Tiefling, Osric lifts a glass of wine for a sip, then tosses a few olives in his mouth. One of the joys of travelling is getting to try out new foods, after all.
He paces about the room slowly, looking at what little is there to see.
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Slypher enters the room casually, holding his staff and a mostly-eaten loaf of bread. He takes another bite, notices the wine, and heads directly over to pour himself a drink. Once seated and washing down his interrupted dinner, he looks around and eyes the other pathfinders in the room.
What a shabby group. I would get stuck with this lot. He frowns.
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After waiting for the others to go first, Pai Song gracefully enters the room, giving everyone a pleasant and seductive smile, posting herself near the table and gesturing a servant to poor her some wine.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Pai Song, official emissary of the Quadira Faction, representig their interests here and waiting for a special mission presented by Ambrus Valsin. You over there, the one with the bread, have i seen your face before? Might be you´re from Quadira too? If the other gentleman would have the honor to introduce themselves?
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After a few minutes of chatting with each other, a messenger enters the room, "Excuse me, Mr. Kurama Kenjin, you are requested elsewhere at this time. Please come with me. The rest of you, we are waiting on more member of your party to arrive and then Mr. Valsin will take audience with you. Until then, please continue to help yourselves to the refreshments." The messenger bows and leaves the room.
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Slypher's eyes narrow at the small gnome and he starts to speak, but the messenger interrupts him. After hearing the message, he takes a drink from his cup and wonders, "Who else is coming? I'd rather hoped to get this business settled more quickly." He returns focus to his bread and wine, looking a bit annoyed.
Welcome Jostrum Finderwell, nice to meet you.
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Alonzo looks at the letter that he received. With a mental sigh of relief he starts off towards the Grand Lodge. finally some work to do i hope he thinks to himself. He makes his way to the waiting area. As he enters he hears the end of some introductions. Never one to hide in the shadows he enters the room with a flourish and bows. Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen. I am Alonzo Silvertongue. As he stands everyone hears the clink of something which as he tosses on edge of his cloak back over his shoulder you realize he is one of the few people that call themselves Gunslingers. He looks around the room Am I late?
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Oh well what a nice company we got here. All big and powerful men it seems and even a healer to keep them alive. I think i don´t need to be worried about my safety on this trip, isn`t that so? But good mister Silvertongue, say what is a pistol? I never heard of it or saw one before. What do you do with it?
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Sorin clomped into the room, his hobnailed boots thumping heavily on the carpeted wooden floor as he made his way across the room, scarcely looking at the others already assembled. Sorin plunked down into a velvet covered sofa and leaned back with a sigh.
"Man's gotta enjoy luxury when he can." he said to nobody in particular. Seeing a few curious eyes on him he simply grins and nods back in acknowledgement.
"Hello. Afternoon." he says, then realizing the motley assembly he leans forward on the sofa.
"So does anybody have any clue as to why we are here?", he asks.
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In a moment of quite between sentences, the door into Valsin’s office burst open with a thud. Before you stands the famed leader, looking irritated.
“Come in, its time to get this started. I have another meeting in just a few minutes.”
As all of the PC’s enter his office he quickly bids you to sit in the assorted chairs and one rather large plush couch.
“Close the door,” Ambrus Valsin gesters to no one in particular. “Let me start by saying, this mission is not for discussion among other members of the Society.” The chamberlain of the Grand Lodge gives everyone a serious look in turn before continuing. “This mission is not an investigation, just a simple, straightforward assignment, but that makes it no less important.”
“I need you to book passage to the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, and cross over into Irrisen. You’re to head north and rendezvous with another team who have captured some ...” Valsin pauses for a heartbeat before continuing. “...persons of interest. We have reason to believe that these individuals have information on the Shadow Lodge cells that are refusing to reconcile with the Society under Grandmaster Torch’s leadership.” Valsin’s expression becomes particularly grim at that point. “If these rogue cells are outright refusing amnesty, then they represent a clear threat to all of us. I need you to take charge of these captives and get them out of Irrisen safely and quietly. Once you’re clear of Irrisen, a larger extraction team will take custody of them and bring them in for questioning. Of course, we will cover the expense of your travel in full, and provide maps to lead you to the meeting point in Irrisen. Because of the nature of the mission and Irrisen itself, you’ll be meeting the other team in the field, away from what passes for civilization up there. The team you’ll be getting the prisoners from will show you the best route out of Irrisen, and the castellan of Trollheim has agreed to grant you passage through his lands. You are responsible for avoiding unexpected trouble between the handoff and Trollheim.”
Valsin gestures for the team to depart, but pauses, staring at his fireplace for a moment before adding, “Wait. You need to know this. Your prisoners will be goblins. The Shadow Lodge separatists made extensive use of the sadistic creatures as soldiers and servants, and as much as you may want to throttle them, please remember that we need them alive.” Then with a final nod for luck, the venture-captain dismisses the group.
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Goblins are always trouble. Also in the north it´s cold. That´s trouble enough. And i heard tales of the witch queens from Irrisen, i don´t think they are too friendly and supportive.
To the venture Captain, with her cutest smile(Diplomacy) :
Captain Valsin, Sir, is the mission in Irrisen territory official or should we avoid contact with Irrisen administration? Could you be so nice and provide us with further details and perhaps some hints about the region and so on?
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"Sounds easy enough. Goblins are tribal, we just put a good scare into them and they will be meek as anything." Sorin leans back against the wall.
"The hardest part is the travelling...and if the Shadow Lodge is on to us, I imagine that they will try to kill the beasties."
"So are we getting provisioned? Horses, wagons to pen up the beasties? Also, what is the weather like up in Irrisen right now? I know it can't be snowing all the time, but I imagine that the weather and terrain is going to make this much more challenging than just moving the goblins across town to the Lodge."
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Valsin responds to Sorin's questions seeming forgetting Pai even exists, "There will be no wagons, unless you want to pull them son. Normally I'd give you all the horses or even dogs to pull sleds. But these little goblin blighters wont tolerate either of those beasts to live. Be prepared to travel on foot, along with the goblins. You'll be given some better directions once you get there, but the Iceflow River follows the border. That should help you keep out of disputed territory unti you are ready to cross."
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I think what he wanted to say is that the goblins will go mad at the sight of dogs and horses and try to kill them constantly. Might be unnecessary trouble we could avoid then. Perhaps instead we should prepare some stuff to impress them or give to them, so they are more willing to cooperate. This Valsin won´t ignore me like this again. Typically big folks grrrrr
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,As you are shopping in the crowded business district a soldier calmly walks up and hands you a letter. He waits a moment for you to start to read it and then leaves.
"Dear Friend of Freedom- Irrisen has an underground resistance movement, known as the Heralds of Summer’s Return, that we want to encourage. One of their agents is deep undercover in the small village you’ll be passing through in the course of your mission. Locate her at the local tavern; she wears a pin of a white eye. Deliver this note discreetly, and whatever you do, don’t expose her in front of anyone. The common folk in Irrisen are too broken down to be trusted.
- Major Colson Maldris
Before leaving Valsin's office he descretly hands you a sealed letter. Without so much as a wink, he ushers you from his office.
The confidence of the Ten be upon you, I’m writing to you privately, aside from the mission briefing, because I require someone dependable on this expedition. If the remnants of the original Shadow Lodge have retreated to Whitethrone, we’ll have difficulty getting to them. I can only imagine the sorts of allies they’re making in that damned city. We need to learn what these goblins know, but not at the risk of making the jadwiga Elvanna aware of our actions and interests. To that end, make sure nothing goes wrong. Don’t allow a single goblin to escape alive, don’t let any border guards live to see the group, and don’t allow an ‘incident’ to happen in Harvest’s End. This operation needsto be smooth, quiet, and efficient.
- Venture-Captain Ambrus Valsin
While conversing in one of the city markets, you both handed a sealed letter from a spice merchant. Without a pause, he goes back to work, haggling with customer.
Unwavering Servant of the Satrap,
As you are well aware, frozen Irrisen is one of the locales where we have the fewest trade agreements. Yet the jadwiga are generous to those who meet their needs, and despite their frigid exterior, their needs are many.
You have never failed your people, and I trust you never will. There are those who do lucrative business in that frozen land. Seek them out and speak with them. Find out the current appetites of the ruling class, no matter how unsavory. If we can satisfy them, they will be one step closer to being ours.
- Trade Prince Aaqir al’Hakam
While purchasing good in the market, you are given this letter.
Loyal Servant of the Ruby Prince,
The pharaoh has few contacts in Irrisen, and the people are tight-lipped under the lash of the witches. It is a land of great mineral wealth and heavy taxes, but all the wealth seems to disappear in Whitethrone. Your mission has you passing through a small community. Find a local person willing to speak, and make some discreet inquires about what exactly they’re mining and how much of it is going to the capital.
There are strange rumors about the monuments being constructed in Whitethrone, and wealth that would buy a small kingdom. We wonder whether Elvanna might be attempting to construct a contemporary “artifact.” You see, our interest is the mining industry is anything but mundane.
-Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage
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Last chance to purchase any items and gear before leaving. One last warning about the cold weather. For the sake of my sanity, let me know if you DONT have any cold weather gear or magic.
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Ok let me see, got a cold weather outfit, furs, a poncho, snowshoes and skis with two pickle extractors as spicked poles. That should be sufficient. Also got a winter blanket and bedroll. Perhaps we should organize a larger tent? I´m afraid though i couldn´t carry that. Ah i´m getting all excited, finally something new and hopefully thrilling. I already feared falling to the bleaching here.