8 Gozran, 4718 AR; Sunday
The winter months of ‘17 and ‘18 have been fairly harsh, even as the snow broke in late Calistril, the days of Pharast have been wet and dreary. As you leave your abode, the sun is rising on a cloudless day filling you with a moment of rare optimism.
Three days have passed since that strange encounter in Lolly’s Toy Shop. At the end of the encounter with Le Quatrième Voile, the cloaked figure told you to come to the statue of Alseta on Le Avenue Champs-Élysées.
You approach the state with some anticipation. Then ten minutes pass… then twenty minutes. Nobody has approached you, or given you any signals. Certainly you didn’t get the date wrong. As your patience wears thin, a young flower peddler approached you. "Seems like you’ve been stood up, perhaps this will brighten your day?" The young peddler hands you a lily from her cart. As soon as you grab the flower from the girl’s hand, your mind is instantly flooded with images.
You see the north plaza exit, then a side street a few blocks down. Off that street, a small fenced alley, filled with abandoned storefronts and workshops. Hidden behind a heap of shattered workbenches, chairs, and shelves the images point to a rotting and forgotten door.
Once the images stop flashing, you realize no time has passed since you touched the lilly, your grip had not yet closed. "Is everything alright?" the peddler asks. After a brief denial and a courtesy excuse to the peddler, are all you offer up as you make your way to the northern exit from the plaza. You walk a few blocks and recognize the alley, exactly as you saw it in the vision. The pile of scrap wood had already been shifted a bit, the rotting door more accessible than it was when you saw it. You shift the pile aside some more and push the door, which swings smoothly and silently, despite the apparent age and rust on the hinges.
As you squeeze through the door frame, you see stairs descending to a cellar.
As you reach the bottom of the stairs, you see a dark fog at the base of the stairs. Walking into the fog, you emerge into a somewhat spacious room. The space has a trio of tables, the largest of which sat on a small platform on the far side of the room, raised a few inches from the rest of floor. This larger table has five high-back chairs, all facing the staircase, and left of the center seat is a small figure standing on its chair: Le Quatrième Voile. At the other tables, or shuffling about the room, you see four other people.
”Welcome, welcome,” the mysterious voice sounds friendly and more masculine than your last meeting. The moderately spacious hidden room contains a trio of tables. The larger table was on the far side of the room sat on a small platform a few inches above the floor. The five high-back chairs all faced the staircase, and left of the center seat is small figure standing on their chair: Le Quatrième Voile.
”Have a seat.” Le Voile extends a robed hand out toward two the pair of tables set perpendicular to the main one. A sphere of invisibility faded, revealing four other citizens seated at the lower tables. On one of the tables, a modest spread of bread, cheese and a bottle of wine. ”I made them wait until you all five were together. I apologize for the overly formal layout of our chamber. It was made for a different time.”
”Please, enjoy. Discuss. Engage.” Le Voile, still hidden all in robes, is more animated than le rendez-vous at Lolly’s. ”I imagine some of you may already be familiar. The other counselors shall join us in due time. Until then, enjoy the privacy of our sanctum.”
A curmudgeonly looking halfling sits at the table, spreading cheese over bread. He wears a modest coat with a clip for his eyeglasses, though a keen observer would likely make out the mithral shirt worn beneath. "My name's Lev," he says, talking over a bite of the bread, crumbs flying from his mouth and into his beard. His leather tricorn matches his boots, which he places on a neighboring chair to rest as he quirks an eyebrow and sardonically says, "Nice chairs."
The halfling removes the hood covering her face, and you discover a female face, young and full of ideals.
"Thank you for the invitation. My name... well, you can call me Red Rose for now."
She takes a Red Rose brooch from somewhere, and fasten it on her chest.
"I am glad to meet you, if you are, like me, friends of liberty!"
Nyx strides into the room confidently, totally relaxed at the meeting, as she sends a brief glance through the room, observing who else was present. Her dark eyes linger for a moment on the other tables, before the half elf selects a seat of her own, sitting elegantly on her chair.
"My name is Nyx, for those of you that don't yet know it" she remarks carefully as she carefully pours a glass of wine for herself, her movements subtle but prepared.
A slim, severe looking human woman leans against a wall near the entrance, arms crossed. Her scrutinous gaze falls upon each of the guests for a moment, a wry grin playing on her lips. The woman adjusts her worn coat and brushes aside the long black hair from her face before taking a seat at Lev's table.
"I'm Thisbe."
"Well I don't know what I expected but it certainly wasn't this. How very curious. Emilien Moreau to those whom I haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet," Emilien said with a small but dramatic bow and flourish. Making his way into the room his gaze seems to dart around constantly, rarely settling on anyone or anything for too long before flitting to something else. He approaches the table where Lev is sitting and sits down opposite the older halfling man.
"Fancy seeing you here Lev, don't suppose you have any idea what exactly all this is about do you?" Emil asks with a friendly smile as he takes his seat. As he sits back he pulls a small black book out of his pocket and sets it on the table in front of him, drumming his fingers on it as he continues to look around the room.
"Yes, yes, friendly banter," Le Voile gives a mock cheer as they pace across the large table. "Be not afraid my children, you sit behind my own veil. None outside may see or hear, magically or otherwise. Though many councilors have fallen since our founding, the city has many secrets still. This meeting hall has remained secret since Hossetter himself configured it, when first began to see that the politics of the city might overtake the needs of it's citizens."
"You all have strong opinions, and some are even conflicting," Le Voile continues, "But we chose you not because of how you want to change the city, but why. It is because you care about your fellow citizens, and because you are willing to act for their betterment." standing on the raised table, robed figure scans each of you with a veiled face.
Truthfully, Nyx is a little rattled that she doesn't know much about who this person is, and less pleased that an entire underground network had apparently been active in the city. Granted, it was very well hidden but Nyx had always been rather hard on herself.
As the individual speaks, Nyx's analytical mind works quickly as she digests what Le Voile had said. "You said "we chose you", implying that more than one person had a hand in the selection process. Might we be meeting them soon?" she asks curiously.
Wyssal follows Nyx comment.
"And even if our motives are known to you, your own motives are hidden from us. Who are you? What do you want for Galt and its people? Why should we trust you?"
"No idea, Emil. Still, it seems encouraging- true revolutionaries don't operate in the daylight. Not with what's at stake."
Lev looks over to the Red Rose with some surprise. She didn't seem like the type to be overly cautious, with her reputation for staying one step ahead of the Grey Gardeners, but he wholeheartedly agreed.
"At least they took proper precautions. Never can be too careful if you want to have an honest conversation during these times of rampant Gossite influence."
Finished with his bread and cheese, Lev pours himself a generous portion of the wine and slurps it loudly, waiting to hear more.
"That's a fair question," a new voice offered. Two new figures stood by the based of the stairs, just within the sanctum's barrier. The one who spoke was a man in his late 30s, with his shoulder-length blonde hair tied back and a messenger bag slung across his shoulder. He wore simple clothes, leather boots and vest, wool pants and a cotton shirt. The other, a woman, is armored, with a breastplate and a helm with a visor. Her gear has red accents, but under her armor is only a simple tunic.
"I am Damien Martel, though I suspect the more politically minded of you knew that already. For those that did not, I am the aide to Jacques Doucet, the head minister in the Parliamentary Party. You'll have to forgive my fellow Councilors, our history has taught us to be slow to trust. Le Quatrième Voile is not hiding her identity at all, she is always under all those rags." Damien and the armored woman made their way up to the platform sitting by Le Voile.
The armored woman spoke up next, "The Cerulean Council was started by Hosseter when he realized that the direction of the first Revolutionary council was being usurped by its Chairman, General Rane. He recognized that the powers given to the Revolutionary Council were broad and could be abused. Those very same powers were used to imprison him and led to his meeting with Razor Jeni." She then gestured to Damien and Le Voile, "We are the current version of the Council, much smaller than some of our past iterations. Many of our allies lost their lives, forcing us to bide our time until we could expand our ranks."
"We may not all agree on the exact future we want for Galt, but we are not here to decide Galt’s future for it," Damien took over. "When we were first recruited by our predecessors, we were told the Cerulean Council exists to undo injustices and corruption in Galt. We’ve rescued the wrongfully imprisoned, outed corrupt politicians, and discovered many secrets of the city, old and new."
Nyx observes the new figures with a watchful gaze. It doesn't escape her notice that the armored woman had so far declined to release her name - something she was a little disgruntled. Nyx never liked doing work for people that knew her name and withheld theirs - she always considered it bad business.
"So that indicates that there are three of you, hiding under the radar, making movements as appropriate. I can understand wanting to keep a low profile, but my colleagues and I have found ourselves here. Might I ask what has recently changed to encourage you and your colleagues to select us? Are you planning on taking a more active role than what could previously be accomplished with three individuals?" the investigator asks.
Wyssal smiles at Nix, and nods, supporting her question.
Thisbe drummed the table with her gloved fingertips, her impatience palpable. She thinly veiled a sneer after hearing Martel introduce himself as a Parliamentarian before she calmly addressed the room in her clear voice.
“I cannot fathom why installing a shadowy oversight council was deemed a democratic safeguard by Hosseter, yet I am eager to hear the answers to Nyx’s inquiries prior to posing a few of my own.”
"Bah," said Lev as he set his wine glass on the table. "Shadows are necessary to hide the work of revolutionaries! Why, imagine if this council were open- we'd have all manner of Diabolist agents reporting to Thrune or Gossite degenerates." Emil recognizes the beginnings of one of his political tirades as he continues to speak.
"But a broad organisation cannot apply methods of strict secrecy (since this demands far greater training than can be required from all those in the struggle). How is the contradiction between the need for a large movement and the need for strictly secret methods to be reconciled?
"Centralization of the secret functions of the organisation by no means implies centralization of all the functions of the movement! Active participation of the widest masses in the illegal press will not diminish because a dozen professional revolutionaries centralize the secret functions connected with this work; on the contrary, it will increase tenfold.
"In this way, and in this way alone, shall we ensure that reading the illegal press, writing for it, and to some extent even distributing it, will almost cease to be secret work, for the police will soon come to realise the folly and impossibility of judicial and administrative red-tape procedure over every copy of a publication that is being distributed in the thousands."
Lev is no longer addressing any individual as much as he is now pontificating as if he were writing one of his polemics, but quiets for any interruption.
“I seem to remember five people eager to make their city better. It’s interesting to see the mood change so sharply.” Le Voile huffs and unceremoniously walks across the head table, flopping into her own seat on the armored woman's right. “I discussed this council’s goals with you in at Lolly’s Toy Shop, and it was my understanding that you all were on board. We will happily offer you information and support, but we must impose upon your trust. More will be revealed in due time, but we will respect your freedom as Galtans to leave at any time.”
Damien quickly added, trying to bring back the conversation from Le Voile’s irritation. “While we have faith in you, keeping secrets in this town is more than a matter than simply deciding not to share them, something we are certain some of you, and Emilien in particular, know well. I have come to this meeting exposed as a show of good faith, but more than that must be earned. You’re right to not trust us blindly, we’d likely not have chosen you if you would.”
“Thisbe, you’re right that Hosseter held some lofty ideals that this Council is not particularly in-line with. But the Red Revolution is a brutal teacher of the worst in people. As you all must know, Hosseter died jailed and disgraced as an enemy of his own Revolution. Lev is a student of the Revolution, he will confirm that the first Revolutionary council was usurped by its original Chairman, General Rane. This lead to the Rane Council, one of the bloodiest in the history of the Revolution. Hosseter realized too much power was placed in the Revolutionary Council, and recognizing his end was approaching brought our predecessors together to curb these abuses, hoping a more honest government would follow and fulfill the promises he and Darl Jubannich set forth. Unfortunately, that day has not yet come to pass.”
Relax, no-ones mood has changed significantly” Nyx replies smoothly with a sharp glance, ”We are trying to learn more about the situation. Everyone here can appreciate the value of information leading to a successful outcome. That said, if you want secrets held, that is perfectly fine, but what task do you need from us now that we know the common goal”
Thisbe nodded sagely, considering Martel’s words a moment before speaking. She caught Nyx's glance and tempered her tone into a more diplomatic one. “I’m not opposed to shadows. I certainly understand the value of guarded secrets. Yet, certainly you expected some consideration of what those might be from the group you’ve invited here? The worthy goal of opposing injustice, fighting for Galtan freedom and tearing out the corrupt in our city is not one I disagree with. Only, what would you ask of us to accomplish this?”
Emilien had been mostly quiet as people asked their questions back and forth. Generally he was happy to jump in and join any conversation around him but frankly everyone was asking the questions he wanted to know the answers to and this was one of those circumstances where it seemed possibly dangerous to show ignorance. As people opened up a bit more though and he was reminded of the strange situation which had brought him here in the first place from the toy shop he nodded to himself. After listening to Lev begin his small rant Emil smiled and shook his head. He knew that the man was aware enough to break off if he was interrupted but Emilien generally prefered to hear the man out fully before offering counter arguments or agreements. When Damien referenced him in particular he fluttered his fingers in acknowledgement.
“For our own reasons we all signed the pledge seen in the mirror. I cannot speak for everyone but Id hazard to guess that for one reason or another you have managed to thoroughly capture our curiosity at the very least. I am somewhat intrigued about how you were able to find out about us. Some of us, Nyx and myself for instance, keep our public and private faces very separate whenever possible,” Emilien said with a wave towards the half elven woman whom he knew had more faces than he strictly knew of. His own business was done privately in the backroom of his bar but Nyx tended to be even more circumspect in many of her dealings. The fact that they had tracked them both down without them getting much wind of it was impressive. A part of Emilien was even almost offended that he hadn’t caught even a hint of such a group before this point. But it was also exciting to him. After all, he was about to become a part of a rather grand new secret and that was thrilling.
“Everyone here has secrets,” he continued, “I hardly expect anyone here is willing to divulge too many of them. But I must assume you chose us for some reason. There are countless do-gooders running around in capes and masks seeking to improve or protect the city in their own way. Instead of them you chose the people sitting in this room. I can only surmise that you have something in mind that you feel we are well equipped to handle. As Nyx and Thisbe have said, I find myself very intrigued as to what exactly those initial tasks are."
Emilien finally poured himself a glass of red wine as he finished speaking. He swirled it in his glass and glanced over towards Lev who seemed to be ready to start in on his second glass. The man didn’t have what Emilien would call the most discerning taste, generally preferring free liquor to fine liquor. But this whole charade was rather complex just to poison them so he shrugged and took a drink of the wine.
“Right! The mission!” Le Voile picks up, once again chipper. With a mutter of an illusion spell and a wave of a ragged arm, a fog rises atop the table, becoming a topographical map of Isarn. As she out each point, lights appear in the fog to outline the area of discussion.
“We recently discovered the whereabouts of an old ally of ours. One we have thought long dead.” Le Voile continues. “Pauline Delarus is a founding member of the Sisters of the Everbloom, but vanished shortly after Goss rose to power. We assumed her dead, but it turns out Sister Pauline was abducted in secret, and imprisoned without a trial, and kept deep in the cells of the Monolith. Now, Korran Goss is ready to execute her quietly in Litran.”
”We have established a safehouse for Pauline in the Foreign Quarter. The only important objectives are getting Pauline to the safehouse alive and well, and without any of your identities being revealed to the Gardeners, who will be transferring her. You’ll have a few days to prepare anything that might make her rescue easier.”
“We certainly can’t bribe or leverage the Gardeners themselves. They are zealous and steadfast.”
“We can’t attempt to break Pauline out of the Monolith. It is the most fortified location in all of Isarn.”
“We know that a small team of Gardeners will be taking Pauline out of the Monolith, and will pass by La Scène. We don't know the exact route they'll be taking, but they will be exiting the city through the Farmers’ Gate. Hopefully we can get some more information on their route before the transfer.”
“We know Pauline will be escorted by at least four Gardeners. Our primary goal is to free Pauline from their grasp. Disabling the Gardeners temporarily, or causing a distraction to divide them seems prudent. Fighting some of them directly might be necessary, but killing them would attract a lot more attention.”
“The Sisters of the Everbloom have arranged a safehouse for Pauline in the Foreign Quarter. Once she is free of the Gardeners, the alert level in the area will increase, especially crossing La Rue du Pain. There must be some sort of escape route, or a place to hide from the Gardeners and lose their trail.”
“Any other suggestions on freeing Sister Pauline are open for discussion, but please keep everyone’s safety in mind.”
“The transfer is scheduled for the midnight hour, as Wealday turns to Oathday. We’d like a rough idea of what each of you plan to work on. We don’t expect anyone pairing off this early, but try to avoid groups of three if you’re working together. We shall reconvene after sundown. We are arranging for a place where we can meet and notify you secretly on Wealday.”
Squinting his eyes and leaning back in his chair to seemingly stare at nothing, Lev purses his lips and lets the information ruminate. "I harbor no great affection for that floral sorority, but I'd still hate to see such a soul killed for no better reason than the good Chairman's latest fit of petulance.
"We'll need to know the route they take, and possibly manipulate it. The real trick will be ensuring they can't find us afterwards." He sits up and brightens, slapping the table. "What if they think she's dead? We could stage an accident and fool them into believe she was killed- if they don't know we're rescuing her, there's no need to scry on us afterwards, or to pursue retaliation!
"What if we create a hazard- a building ready to fall over or some such- and used a crowd of spectators to distract the Gardeners while we whisk her away?"
"This is theoretically impossible". Nyx stats flatly, reflecting on what they currently knew and what she believed she knew of their combined abilities.
"The Gardeners are entirely faceless, which means knowing who they are is impossible to predict. If you don't know who they are, its impossible to manipulate them. Likewise, a straight up fight in the middle of the streets isn't ideal either, as the Gardeners likely have more experience in that area so you need numbers advantage and a way to disengage safely. Fighting however, is not my strong suit. The transfer is probably going to happen at night so curfew is probably enforced and less likelihood of a crowd of spectators intervening. You can try an illusion but the chances of that affecting all four gardeners feels a little slim."
Pausing for a moment, Nyx thinks harder, going through a mental checklist of possibilities.
"You could try vision impairing abilities, extreme darkness or mist I guess, but that relies the Gardeners cannot see through it. I can disguise myself as literally anyone but would need to select something the Gardeners would listen to. I guess its possible for me to take the disguise of someone important to Goss, a trusted friend or ally and we can try and fake documents that imply a change of plan, that the Gardeners drop the target off in a building of our choosing, but that has a number of obvious pitfalls."
The investigator falls silent again as she rubs her temples gently, trying to spot an angle that she had missed.
“While I’m not opposed to the destruction of property, Lev, I would be concerned with unintended consequences in bringing down a building. The areas the Grey Gardeners would potentially travel through with the Sister are very populated and I’d not trade an ordinary Galtan’s life for a political prisoner’s.”
Thisbe sat back in her chair, her forehead wrinkled in a grimace of deep thought. She added, “Nyx, impossible as it may seem, the key to a successful strategy is not to choose a path of victory, but to choose so that all paths lead to a victory.”
She took out parchment and quill to draw a quick map of the city, from La Scene to the Farmer’s Gate, then a swift line showing La Rue de Pain.
“Let’s not put the cart before the horse in considering tactics. We need to address our resources and knowledge. Without that data on the table, we’re making shots in the dark.”
First, she circled La Scene. “Grey Gardener territory. We know they’re passing through La Scene. Intercepting the prisoner there would be the most obvious mistake. Yet, perhaps that makes the area a key target?”
Next, she starred the Freedom Smithy and Moulin Bleu. “Does anyone connections to the Smith, or Moulin Bleu? They could potentially be used as distraction, or decoy.”
She drew an X on the Farmer’s Gate. “We clearly need to stop them prior to the gate, otherwise we’ll be dealing with both the Gardeners and the Guard. Unless, we can blockade the gate, and reroute them to a different course?”
Finally, she drew an arrow to the far West end of the City, the Foreign Quarter. “The long path to the safe house through the West end of the Sud Riviere and across La Rue de Pain, heavily guarded. Where can we circumvent?”
Quill in hand, she looked up expectantly at the group. “What else?”
"Pauline Delarus! In the name of the Everbloom!"
She moves towards the map illusion and stands on her toes to see it as well and as close as she is able. The excitement is obvious in her voice.
"Of course we have to save her! It is a great news that she is alive, and we must make sure she is freed! How long has it been? 7 years since she disappeared?"
She looks with some disgust when Lev mentions he doesn't like Milanites but refrains from saying anything.
She looks at Nix while she ponders possibilities, but seems unconvinced... when Thisbe talks she seems transfixed by her...
"Well, maybe we don't need to make the plan right now. I would like to investigate what is known of the transfer, to see if it is official and sanctioned or something they will keep in secret even if we attack it, and scout the locations to find the best place to act, before committing to a course of action. But I am glad this group seems to have ideas because I am sure we will need those."
”I can get into Moulin Bleu easily, but it operates independently, so I couldn’t draw on anything to make a distraction or decoy. Allows me a plausible reason for being there though l” Nyx offers as she bounces off ideas.
Emilien drums his fingers on his book as he listened to the parameters being set out before them for their mission. He expected that they would want something of the group but frankly it was a rather daunting task for what was to be their first endeavor. He listened to Lev’s suggestion and nodded slightly, he didn’t know about bringing down a building but he rather enjoyed the idea of making it look like some attack where they staged Pauline’s death. Even as the ideas started flowing he had to agree with Nyx when she stated that it seemed basically impossible. But no one seemed to let the scale of their task daunt them and Emilien certainly wasn’t going to back down from a challenge.
He nods when Thisbe circles La Scene, “As you said, although it would almost certainly have addition Grey Gardener assistance nearby La Scene may be our best chance to make something happen. Especially if we were to perform some kind of subterfuge or fake attack where Sister Pauline’s death can be falsified in some fashion. Besides unless we can find out more about the route it seems as though that is one of the few points where we know for certain we could possibly intercept them. Though frankly I agree with everyone that finding out a bit more about their route would be ideal. Perhaps I have some favors I could pull on to help us get some information. If they plan to do a transport then its possible the Grey Gardeners have been out scouting their route and we may be able to find some hints of that if we ask the right questions.”
Gesturing at Nyx he added, “I also think there could be something to the idea that you mentioned, a mixture of falsified documentation and some mundane or magical disguise work to create if not a direct change of plans for the Grey Gardeners than at least enough hesitation and distraction for us to carry out some secondary plan. I would happily lend my aid to any paperwork you feel we could write up.”
Damien chimes in to add his two cents to the recruits' ruminations, "We know it is a difficult mission. We chose all of you because we believe your unique skills can lead to creative solutions. Fighting the Gardeners head on, or near La Scene is likely a death sentence, as you've identified."
Making his way down to the illusory map, Damien continues, "If I may offer some follow-up thoughts. We do think that finding the exact route would be very helpful in making more concrete plans. While the Gardeners themselves are often-tight lipped, there must be someone in the Monolith’s employ, or perhaps elsewhere in the city, that you may find easier to extract information from. Though you already have a few plans for information gathering. With regards to distractions, the transfer route will almost certainly go into Caydog territory. While those drunks are difficult to come to terms with, some of their more belligerent members are easy to manipulate through provocation. Be mindful not to get the whole gang agitated. There are other opportunities to cause disruption beyond the Caydogs, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention them."
“This meeting is more about brainstorming and proposing suggestions.” the whip continues. “A few of you might have sources you wish to keep secret, and that’s fine. We will meet after dark on Wealday and finalize the mission with the resources or assistance you are able to accrue between now and then.”
“Any ideas are welcome, whether you believe you can execute it or not. Another among you may have ties that you don’t. Once everyone has at least one task you can attempt, we will convene our Council until Wealday evening.”
”I’ll use my connections to work out the transfer route, and I’ll get myself sorted in Moulin Bleu as well. Explains proximity, and worst case scenario, it’s a room or space to hide someone for a few hours.” Nyx decides, before glancing at Emilien briefly. [b]”I don’t mind joining forces with any documents we make, but I’d prefer gathering important information first, and then forge later as required.
Lev strokes his chin as he thinks, then stands on his chair to lean over the table. Pointing to La Scene, he says, "We know they'll be going through La Scene, likely parading Pauline in front of Madame Margery. We could use that to our advantage... but only if their route takes them immediately next to the river. I can gather a crowd to ensure that the only space available for them to pass is right by it.
"Once the troupe begins to pass closest to the water, I'll incite the crowd to riotous outrage, all directed at the complacency of the Sisters of the Everbloom.
"One of you, disguised as a member of the Blood Rose and far enough away to make your escape, will shoot the good sister, knocking her into the Kantele.
"You'll use a blunt arrow so as not to kill her, but one of us will have gotten into position and be waiting- invisible, mind you- with a gently reposed corpse (in chains and dressed as Sister Pauline) to drop into the river. Another of our band will await to catch Sister Pauline, and if possible render her invisible as the Gardeners attend to the corpse.
"The invisible members saunter off, and make their way to the safe house before the Gardeners can even realize she's not dead. Hells, if we dress the corpse right- maybe mangle the face as if it had been fish food- they might not even realize she isn't dead!
"We may also want to get a message to her, telling her to expect the deception and to play along. What do you think?"
"These ideas are all excellent. If more than one of you looks for something as important as the route, that would be very prudent."
"Lev's plan; there's some decent ideas in there, but keep in mind, the transportation will happen during the midnight hour," Le Voile pipes up. "If she were being paraded by a large group of Gardeners, then this task would certainly be impossible."
"The Gardeners are trying to keep Sister Pauline's execution a secret: there aren't many who would criticize a group that cares for the sick," the masked face pauses to look at Lev with what is almost certainly a glare. "Executing one of their founders would not be a good look for the chairman."
"I like the idea of getting her a message. Keep the ideas flowing. There may be a way to turn the Gardeners need for secrecy against them."
"That is why I want to investigate in which legal capacity they are detaining, transporting and executing Sister Pauline. Maybe they won't be able to make a fuss of it if they need to keep it all under wraps, even if we save her under their noses."
Lev nods, "Ah, yes, they're transporting her at night... Hmm. Well, in that case a crowd won't work. Still, the river and a corpse might not be the worst idea. Since it'll be dark, it will be even harder for them to make out the body we could replace her with.
"That still leaves the task of separating her from her wardens and swapping her with the decoy. Staying hidden should be relatively simple, but how can we make it appear as if she's fallen into the Kantele? Perhaps we can free her of her chains long enough for her to jump into the river- where we can make the switch.
"Another option would be to create a distraction that draws a crowd regardless of the hour- a fire, for instance. Of course, that sort of uncontrolled blaze could have drastic and unintended consequences."
"I don't favor any interaction that puts us in close quarters with the Grey Gardeners. I don't see any of them standing by watching as we try to release her from her bonds and I'm not the sort to fight them blade to blade." Nyx begins with an irritated tone, not altogether favoring the idea of challenging the Grey Gardeners in a melee.
"Lev does bring up a good point though, this is damaging for the chairman, so discreetly let people know. Its unlikely to provide a mechanical benefit but the outrage will be sure to put pressure. Maybe it changes things, maybe it doesn't, but it weakens the position. Its better than setting a fire, such a thing is unlikely to work out well."
Emilien considers the various proposals put out by the various members of the group. Lev’s idea, while appealingly dramatic, sounded as though it had a number of ways in which it could go wrong and was rather complicated. But there were parts of it that he liked. When Nyx brought up the fact that it might be damaging for the chairman he snapped his fingers and grinned an almost feral grin.
“Now that is a lovely sounding idea. Secrets are beautiful things, beautiful and dangerous. Few things can be more destructive to a plan than having its hidden nature broadcast widely,” Emilien comments before looking to Le Quatrieme Voile, “Is there anything we would stand to lose by ensuring that certain elements in the city got wind of what is happening? In addition to applying pressure to the Grey Gardeners and looking poorly on Goss it might make them feel the need to change plans. As long as we are all on the lookout that might just give us the best chance to take advantage of any impulsive changes they attempt to make. And as besides there are a number of people whom, as Wyssal points out, that would be concerned with the legality of all this. If they could be stirred up by Lev or someone else it would give us more people to hide among in case we did wish to make some kind of scene. It would be easy to let the rumors slip in the Clerk of the Cork and Nyx I am sure that you could drop some hints across town to ensure that the word gets around quickly.”
Le Voile considers Emilien's suggestion.
"I worry about spreading word of their illegal prisoner. Pauline has been gone so long that they may decide to forgo the the transfer, and deny they are holding her. Exposing the Sister's unlawful imprisonment would require proof. We stumbled across some clothing discarded from the Monolith and are certain that the garment was worn by our friend. You can certainly verify this, but such proof cannot be presented to the court of public opinion. I hope we can hold them accountable for this crime, but Pauline herself is the proof we need." The small robed figure nods to Damien, who produces a dirty prison schiff for Emilien to view.
“I also share Nyx's concern with facing the Gardeners, although they are not likely to have their prisoner out of arm's reach. A scuffle may be unavoidable, but if it does become necessary, it would be easier to escape and cover your tracks than fight the Gardeners toe-to-toe.”
"We are getting a little off topic, but I can always disguise myself as Pauline. Then we could stage a "capture" and then spread rumors that Pauline is under guard. Wholly impractical for our actual current mission in rescuing Pauline from the Grey Gardeners, but useful for disinformation purposes. I'm not disguising myself as Pauline though for the purposes of our rescue, so don't even suggest it, that's suicidal." the investigator adds to the discussion, still unclear on a plan but deciding that tracking down the transfer route would clear things up.
As she took copious notes, listening attentively to the ideas offered, a glimmer lit her dark eyes and she stopped writing, placing her pen down on the table, careful not to smudge any ink.
“The Gardeners… do you think they know their own identities? Are they even hidden from each other? Perhaps we could depose and replace one of them with one of ours in disguise, allowing us to get close to Pauline. We’d need to develop a plan to distract them and move them away from the other Gardeners in order to do so. And our disguises must be exact replicas if this is going to work. A risky plot, to be sure.”
She rubbed the space between her furrowed brow before continuing. “Nyx, I hate to say it, but you could be instrumental if you didn't take disguising yourself as Pauline off the table. If you disguised yourself as Pauline, you could act as a decoy, pretending to be Pauline escaping and drawing off the Gardeners. Beforehand, the one of us dressed as a Gardener could pass Pauline an invisibility potion, or somehow make her invisible, so the Gardeners believe that she’s missing. While the Gardeners are chasing Nyx, our replacement Gardener will lead the real Pauline to safety, possibly transferring Pauline to another of us while they get rid of their Gardener disguise.”
Thisbe smiled vaguely. “This could work. We’d need to identify the route they intend to travel in order to develop a precise escape route. This is a challenging operation, and one I think will test our skills, but very much worth saving a Sister from the Blades.”
”Fantasic, Pauline escapes and I get chased and eventually captured by the entire group of Grey Gardeners because everyone else has their hands full saving Pauline and getting her to the safe house. The plan ‘works’ but I’m taking it off the table because I’m not trading places with our target” Nyx replies in a caustic tone, not at pleased that her ally seemed to care more about Paukine’s rescue than everyone returning alive.
With a wry grin, Thisbe replied, "I didn't expect such hostility in a so-called 'brainstorming session'. Certainly we'd need to further develop this idea so that we could waylay the Gardeners giving you chase and keep you from harm, but if it's off the table, it's off the table." Thisbe sat back in her chair, her face neutral in response to Nyx's hostile reply to her query.
Thisbe turned to face Lev,"Your plan to have a false Pauline jump into the river and replace her with a corpse would certainly waylay the Gardeners. I would not be opposed to playing decoy myself. I'm a bit scrappier than I look."
With a wry grin, Thisbe replied, "I didn't expect such hostility to ideas in this planning stage. Certainly we'd need to further develop this idea so that we could waylay the Gardeners giving you chase and keep you from harm, but if it's off the table, it's off the table." Thisbe sat back in her chair, her face neutral in response to Nyx's hostile reply to her query.
Thisbe turned to face Lev,"Your plan to have a false Pauline jump into the river and replace her with a corpse would certainly waylay the Gardeners. I would not be opposed to playing decoy myself. I'm a bit scrappier than I look."
"I apologize, I didn't mean to sound so hostile. It came across as a plan being entirely focused on getting Pauline to the safe house, rather than being concerned with the Gardeners capturing me in the process. Hence the brusque response. As I said, I apologize." Nyx responds shortly, aware that her temper had gotten the better of her and wanting to mend bridges swiftly.
Lev purses his lips as he thinks. "It seems to me that we need a way of turning Pauline invisible. Imagine, the gardeners are escorting her when she simply disappears- I, dressed as Pauline, will turn a corner and get their attention. They will presume that Pauline was somehow magically transported away, and give chase.
"We'd also need an escape route planned to get me out of there safely, and to plan the swap at the most tactically convenient place along the route. We should acquire a body in case a swap at the river is still the best option, or maybe a backup option. If we want to get cheeky, we can lead them on a chase to the river and then fake her death at their hands- they'd want to drop it as soon as possible rather than admit they'd killed her!"
Emilien takes a moment to inspect the prisoner’s shift, handling it gently as if it were a fine garment. He draws on the psychic residue and emotional impressions left on the garment but after a while he shrugs, for all he can tell this could have belonged to anyone. Anything more than about a week old would not give him any impression of its previous owner, “As you said, unfortunately this offers us till in the way of proof. Although if our goal is merely to stir up a distraction I don't feel we need concrete proof, just enough doubt to create chaos.”
After that he looks back and forth between his compatriots as they discussed possible plans to disguise at least one of them as Sister Pauline. He didn’t personally offer himself up. He knew that his skill with disguises was nothing special. Especially compared to people like Nyx who could put on a different face in moments. Shrugging he said simply, “I admit that my own speciality lies more in the information gathering part of the plan. I can scry and scout out to a mile away from myself at any given time. So for the purposes of inspecting the route or trying to gain some intel on the path they will attempt to move the prisoner I feel comfortable offering my assistance. I have no way to disguise the young woman once we get her. Although as Nyx suggested earlier I can offer falsified documentation to get Pauline to safety once we have her. Although I still think that the idea of using the Gardener’s own dependance on secrecy against them could be beneficial to our goals. Orders that seem to countermand their current ones, enough to give them pause might allow us to spirit Pauline away more easily.”
Lev nods, contemplating. "Yes, transfer orders- maybe passed off as a security measure, a last minute route and guard change to throw off any 'rebels'. Perfect!" Lev slaps Emilien on the back and takes another loud slurp of wine. "Is there a way we can keep in communication with each other, while you watch the route from some ways away? I can find a Gardener to emulate the night of and pass off the paperwork- this way won't give the Gardeners the false impression of closure, but it seems less risky than my suggestion."
"I can help with the communication part."