A female elf watches her teammates enter the room. She is curious about them, but fear overtakes her as she turns to her side. Just a shadow. Still, that's enough for her to sit perfect still.
She musters enough courage to say "I am called Three Twenty Two."
You are Aspis Consortium operatives, hand-picked by your superiors for one of the most daring missions ever attempted against the hated Pathfinder Society. For centuries the Society has been the hyena of the archaeological world, descending upon legitimate Aspis operations to snatch whatever the Pathfinders want, kill hardworking contractors, and grow wealthy on the profits of their “historical preservation.” As they say, the victors write the history books, and the widely distributed Pathfinder Chronicles paint the Society’s piracy as heroism guided by a moral compass as true as the wayfinder each agent carries.
Despite the thick walls and heavy windows of the rented home that serves as your safe house, the passage of Pathfinders from across the Inner Sea region creates a muted rumble as they make their pilgrimage to the Society’s Grand Convocation, an annual gathering in which Pathfinders tell tales of their exploits, show off their discoveries, and celebrate another successful year. Every additional Pathfinder is another set of eyes to spot trouble and another blade ready to defend the Grand Lodge, yet every voice and footstep makes it even safer to discuss the impending attack.
A man with a burly physique and a pockmarked face stand leaning against the wall. His stance is relaxed, but he seems restless. He shifts his weight to his other leg again and starts cracking his knuckles once more, one by one at a slow pace.
when the elf breaks the silence, he turns his head towards her, giving her a studious look that tells him everything he needs to know.
"Marnarius," he offers by way of introduction to the group. "Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"
A dark skinned human stands the the head of the table inside the Aspis safehouse. Dressed in fine navy and turquoise silks he strikes a commanding yet charming figure. He looks around the room wearing the grin of a prowling jungle cat on the hunt. When everyone has arrived and the room is secure he begins to speak.
"It appears that we have all arrived safely yes? That is a joyous thing for today we all take center stage in a plan most grand. For some there will be vengeance and for others there will be glory. However let no one argue that by the end we will reap the rewards that have been coming to all of us. I am Rataji and I have the honor of leading the blades that will strike a great blow to the society." Rataji takes a deep breath and pauses for effect.
"For months our fellow agents and contacts have been gathering in Absalom for this very mission, to strike the society during the grand convocation! We will take back the artifacts that were rightfully ours while our gluttonous rivals celebrate foolishly. Rataji lifts a slip of paper with an notice of the Pathfinders celebration and tears it in half.
"First we will need to plan the ground work and gather any useful information in the city. Once we have completed this we will have to infiltrate the grand lodge and eventually the towering stronghold of Skyreach." Rataji points to a map of the city and circles the area contain both the lodge and tower with his finger. "The sheer volume of attendees and new faces should work to our advantage. Also other agents will be in place to give us a window to approach Skyreach. They will make their move after the speech from the Master of Swords." Rataji paces back and forth trying to get a measure of everyone's talents in the room.
"Once inside we will have to located the Antarnicus Wing in the vaults beneath Skyreach. The entire tower is thought to be impenetrable so we must be ready to break in. In the vault we will locate the notes neccessary for the next part of the plan. From that point we will have to locate the Hoa Jin Tapestry and the Sky key in that order. Once we have the key the extraction team will meet up with us and use a code to identify themselves. We are to hand it over and proceed to vacate the grounds. Any Questions? Please introduce yourselves and your expertise before you ask, it is only polite after all."
"Once again, I am Three Twenty Two. The darkness and the...stars look upon me constantly." The elf fidgets before catching her breath. "If you need me to keep quiet, I can do so. I can also mend your wounds, but I hope I don't have to."
A masked orc stands quietly at the side of the group. "I am Zurnzal. I am a skilled infiltrator, and close combatant. My hands are as deadly as any blade." he says in a sibilant voice. He does carry a long dagger, and a short-bow, but the weapons seem more like accessories than needed tools.
"Nice to meet you all. My name is Shohiraj, if you have to hide something, hand it to me. Do you have a trap to disable or a lock to pick? Tell me!"
"...name's Marnarius, as I said. I hunt thing down, and I kill. And by things, I mean Pathfinder agents," states the burly man in a matter-of-fact voice.
"Now...," Marnarius continues before wetting his lips, "you said we're to locate the tapestry and the sky key. We're to hand over the sky key, but what of the the Tapestry?" His gaze is fixed intently on Rataji, with a mixture of emotions struggling for dominance.
"The tapestry will fill another purpose." Rataji smiles and shows the group a small bundle of notes. "Using these notes and the information we locate in the vaults of Skyreach we will open a gateway into the tapestry. We will welcome our waiting allies from the other side and once they are through we proceed to the small museum where the sky key is held."
The answer definitely gets Marnarius' approval. The fire in his eyes lights up, and he starts pacing around like a caged animal. "Good, good. I like this plan. So, we're ready for action?"
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Zurnzal nods. "I was born ready." he intones. "Though perhaps our outfits are not the most appropriate for a Convocation. Does anyone know the social norms for such an event?"
The professional, like any good one, has done her homework. She clearly recognises the Grand Lodge's main tower (2), the 20-foot-high statue of that ill-revered pathfinder 'hero' and founder Durvin Gest (16). The wall of names (13) is off to the west, next to a menagerie of exotic creatures (10).
With the current crowds, it will be nigh impossible to break into skyreach unseen. It seems it will be nearly two hours before Marcus Farabellus' speech. Time to act!
Marnarius looks intrigued at the mention of exotic creatures. "The gall of these pathfinders, to keep a bunch of animals in a zoo just to boost their own ego and prestige. Typical! However... They might provide a nice distraction. Think about the confusion that could arise, from all these beasts roaming free."
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Zurnzal dresses in nondescript adventuring gear for the occasion, packing his mask away in his bag. He heads for the statue of Durvin Gest and looks around thoroughly.
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"Since we don't have a lot of time, we might as well split up and cover more ground that way. See what we can find out in the time we have. Meet back here in 2 hours?"
"I like the way you think Marnarius. If you go there to check it out I'll might join you at the exotic beasts in a bit to see if I can help out with anything. I'll spend some time nearby - strength in numbers and all that. The wall of names is next to it. So that should be close enough to provide some cover in case it's needed."
Joliryn will walk with Marnarius in the direction of the zoo before taking a detour towards the wall of names to take a look around there.
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"Oh, and if anyone happens to come across a shop ..or a butcher, or a scroll salesmen please remember where it is. Depending on what type of creatures they have in the zoo we might want to get some meat or animal lure scents..or even a scroll of speak with animal..they might want to work with us in escaping"
"Shorijah, you said you are good with locks...any way you could rig some locks on say...cages, filled with large animals to open at a specific time? Maybe apply some slow eating acid that will chew through the chains or mechanism when we want to?"
322, dons her favorite black cloak and heads towards the statue of Durvin Gest. She has little understanding of the man, and wonders what tormented him into forming the Pathfinder Society.
"This could do..." She wonders. She sticks her pad of dreamstuffs to it.
"Work quickly and if you find anything important try to pass it along if possible. It seems we work better while split so remember to meet before the speech!"
They were right. This group is full of "Personality". It does not seem like my rank will be honored. Well let see if I can gather anymore useful information
Shohiraj tries to blend in with the Pathfinder Agents crowd. She remembers the letter she received and looks around if she can spot her target.
Shohiraj looks for Janira. If she spots her she tries to get the keys mentioned in Kitio Aspenthi's letter. But nothing else, just the keys so Janira hopefully won't detect the theft until Shohiraj is out of sight. If asked about her wayfinder she pretends to be an apprentice.
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And then look up at him and comment about how "the wall slithers like a snake through grass"
The Ambitious and the Experiment set out for statue of Durvin Gest. Already carved in larger-than-life proportions, the stone statue of Durvin Gest towers over the surrounding lawn on a pedestal flanked by angelic figures and carved with elaborate friezes depicting some of his most famous voyages.
Several dozen Pathfinders are gathered around the statue, swapping stories and participating in improvised competitions of braggadocio. A halfling is just telling a story about Selmius Foster, and his fabled race against a marid and an efreeti, whom he cleverly tricked into distracting one another while he sped across the finish line. The story earns polite applause, and the halfling hops down from the bench she had used as a speaking platform.
Rataji spends an hour gathering the latest local rumour, piecing them together with his own knowledge:
The Grand Convocation is particularly crowded this year. In addition to agents from all over Golarion, several dignitaries from Absalom are in attendance.
Although both Kreighton Shaine and Marcos Farabellus have made appearances, nobody has spotted the Master of Scrolls Aram Zey. It’s not especially surprising, given Zey’s dislike of crowds and dealing with the public.
Several dozen Pathfinders have begun unloading kegs from carts on the Center House lawns, likely in anticipation of Marcos Farabellus’s big speech. It’s an open secret that he intends to announce that the long- awaited reconstruction of the Sky Key has concluded.
Although nearly every Pathfinder at the Grand Lodge is allowed to wander about and relax, several dozen are on guard duty on the walls and in Skyreach. Most of these assignments are punishments for debts incurred to the Society or bungled expeditions. Part of the reason that Aram Zey hasn’t been seen yet is because he is supervising these patrols.
Two of the unfortunates assigned to guard duty are Loshari and Telandril, part of a team sent to Isger to recover a relic lost during the Goblinblood Wars. The venture was a debacle and resulted in part of a town being set on fire and inadvertently let goblins loose in the town square. Most blame Loshari, but Telandril stubbornly insisted on sharing the punishment—likely so that he could lecture her further.
Trees surround the small hill that bears a curving wall of black glass, providing visitors some privacy as they read any of the thousands of Pathfinder names inscribed on the surface. More trees grow in tight formation to the west, where the copse abuts the Grand Lodge’s wall.
Despite the huge number of visitors at the Grand Lodge, the Wall of Names has relatively few visitors. Even with the numerous trees that shield the monument, the dull roar of agents testing each other’s wits, theories, and strength invades this solemn space.
A scholarly figure stands close to the wall, looking at the names.
Taking the hint from his halfling companion, Marnarius first makes a quick stroll around the city, hoping to purchase a potion that will allow him to speak with animals. It might be worth a shot. We're strapped for time, though. If I can't find it within ten minutes, I'll do without and improvise.
He then makes his way over to the Grand Lodge, counting on his adventuring gear to allow him to blend in. He makes his way to the menagerie of exotic creatures and spends a while looking around, under pretense of being interested in the exotic beasts. To provide a decent distraction, they'll have to break free in about one hour, just as the Grand Convocation is about to start. The more that escape, the better. I could tamper with some locks, but don't want to set the beasts loose when I'm still here. We don't want to alarm the Society too soon.
Marnarius pays special attention to the cages and their locks, to the nature and state of the animals and to the amount of people or guards that might spot him, if he tries to do something.
Marnarius notices a number of zookeepers walking the grounds, one of which has a promising looking keyring.
Zurnzal approaches 322. "Our employers want me to find a Pathfinder traitor, or make one of them disappear so that they can be made to look like a traitor. Want to help me?"
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In the first hour Shohiraj will try to localize Janira and asks around. "Hey, I heard a halfling is telling great stories about Pathfinder's adventures. Have you seen her? I'm alway up for good stories!" she asks several Pathfinders. She also tries to hear somebody telling stories.
Zurnzal approaches 322. "Our employers want me to find a Pathfinder traitor, or make one of them disappear so that they can be made to look like a traitor. Want to help me?"
"Yes, I will help. This will distract everyone long enough for me to...inspect the statue."
The wall indeed does. None would step on so great a serpent. the scholarly figure responds, but then hesitation fills his voice But perhaps it is a fool who invites the viper into his home.
The wall already sums up so many names. How many would be added through the actions of one man?
Halfling? Stories? a green-haired female gnome alchemist full of mosquito bites replies, Ahh! You must mean Janira! Yes, everybody knows her, she does like to tell stories a lot. I'm sure you can find her at the storytelling contest, near the statue.