Today you have received an unusual summons to meet with District Councilmbember, and priestess of Abadar, Jostlyn Ferqyr at the Vault of Absalom over in the Ivy District.
Upon arrival, Ferqyr herself is already waiting at the compound's main gate, flanked by a pair of stern templars bearing Abadar's sigil.
"Greetings. I trust you are the duly assigned agents of the Society I am to expect? Before we proceed, I have a missive for you from your Master of Spells."
She carefully hands you an envelope as well as a small satchel of handwritten documents.
The Letter:
Pathfinders!
The Hao Jin Tapestry demiplane is on the verge of complete collapse. Despite our best efforts and the personal sacrifice of the former Master of Spells, Aram Zey, we have only been able to slow the demiplane’s disintegration, and it is now only weeks or even days from utter collapse. If this happens, the thousands of beings still within the demiplane will die, and what treasures are still hidden within shall be lost forever. The Society has therefore prioritized rescue and salvage missions, the last of which made a remarkable discovery: Hao Jin is still alive somewhere on the plane of Axis. At this point she may be the only person who can avert this disaster, so it is imperative that you travel to the Eternal City.
Included with this letter is a satchel containing documentation of the Society’s activity in the demiplane, including what we explored, what we modified, and how we’ve tried to keep it intact since. Provide these to Hao Jin, as I can only assume she doesn’t know of the tapestry’s condition. I have also contracted Jostlyn Ferqyr, Keeper of the Vault of Abadar and a district councilmember, securing her assistance. She shall use a holy relic to transport you to an ideal starting point for your search. From there, find the Ruby Phoenix and convince her to help repair what she created—before its inhabitants and secrets are lost forever.
Finally, be on the lookout for trouble. I have noted and thwarted several attempted scrying attempts in the past two weeks, but I cannot assume my colleagues are so vigilant. You may not be the only ones trying to find Hao Jin.
Sorrina Westyr
Master of Spells
Once you have read the letter, Ferqyr politely asks you to follow her. She leads you through several locked and guarded rooms and descends two staricases, and finally unlocks a vault that contains several small stone plinths, each containing a lockbox. She unlocks one and carefully lifts out a golden miniature in the shape of a circular city and about the size of a dinner plate.
Keeper Ferqyr carefully hands the intricate golden miniature to one of the paladins beside her and pulls out and reads from a small scroll.
“The Vault of Absalom hereby contractually gives permission to the Members of the Pathfinder Society here present to make use of the miraculous powers of the Golden City of Tumen to travel to and return from the realm of the Master of the First Vault, thrice-blessed be his name. During their stay in Axis, the Pathfinders shall conduct themselves in a matter befitting their role as representatives of the Church of Abadar, and not bring ill repute upon it or any of its subsidiary organizations.
“Once you are prepared, please place your hand on the City to signify your acceptance of these terms”
Hao Jin, also known as the Ruby Phoenix, was a sorcerer of incredible power and the creator of the Hao Jin Tapestry, a museum demiplane in which she placed entire landscapes along with her greatest treasures. She mysteriously
disappeared several centuries ago and was presumed dead until very recently.
Hao Jin was a master of elemental magic who earned her title from her talent for resurrecting with ever bolder red hair whenever she died.
Unlike most spellcasters of her power (such as Tar-Baphon and the runelords of Thassilon), Hao Jin chose not to follow the path of power and domination, but instead studied and cataloged the wonders of the multiverse, the greatest of which she placed in her personal demiplane tied to the fabled Hao Jin Tapestry.
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A broad shouldered half-orc who stands at 6'7 and has plenty of tattoos on him enters the room, kicking the door open with no great care. He is wearing a mithral breastplate with a mendevian flag on it. He has a Falchion at his side that has a special aura to it.
The man bears no sign of his belonging to the society nor to any faction, aside from one tattoo who looks like metallic wings burning, covering his muscular right arm.
Looking at the persons around, he yells
Shamak looks like he just woke with a really bad hangover and his breath stinks of an interesting mix of mead and beer.
He looks around slowly, acknowledging the situation and eventually shouts
He then loudly explains what he know to the pathfinders willing to hear him talk about Hao Jin.
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Drake Finnigan is a rather handsome man, although odd once you take a closer look. His thick hair is long and dark green, with a hint of small leaves growing here and there. His skin appears tanned from a distance, but appears to hold qualities more like bark than flesh. His clothes are of fine quality and hold a good array of dark greens, earthen browns, and trimmed in gold. Right now he just appears to be amused by his loud comrade.
"Well, this certainly seems to be a point of intrigue. I admit, I have no mastery over knowledge of the planes. What can you tell us about this Golden City and the plane of Axis, as well as anything that could help us find Hao Jin?"
Drake will round out Shamak's knowledge on the Tapestry, adding that his wife was one of the Pathfinders who took part in the Ruby Phoenix Tournament.
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A shorter human woman enters, she is half Tien and half Varisian, clad in a sea captain's coat over a simple shirt and trousers. she seems to carry no weapons, not even a sword can be seen. she wears a tricorn hat but the sides have been pulled down to eliminate the tricorn look.
Captain Noro of the Malevolent Grace. she eyes the others present, takes a swig from a bottle of rum then puts it away in a coat pocket.
gussin' you all got the same message. Don't know much bout this Hao Jin fella, but I guess ya be needing on of my talents.
a perceptive person will notice a few tattoos on Noro but their significance may be unknown to you.
Noro is a member of the Pirate Council of the Shackles with a bit of infamy on the high seas, she is commonly known as "The Iron Maiden".
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A Varisian lady follows the captain up to the group. She has the dusky complexion of someone that's been out in the sun for extended times. Her dark reddish-brown hair, which oddly always seems damp, is tied back from her bright green eyes with a red, orange, and turquoise kerchief, while the rest of her hair trails back to pool around her shoulders, and fall a couple inches down her back. She wears a brightly-colored vest and sashes over a fine blouse and leather leggings, using a large green and turquoise sash around the waist to act as a faux skirt. Peeking out from around her neck and sleeves, however, is some golden leather that seems protective in nature. "Apologies, through it seems that I'm not the the only one running a mite behind," she says, as she nods to Noro. "I'm Lissa,from the Villasani clan. A pleasure to meet you."
After reading the letter, Lissa looks seriously at the Keeper. "While I will admit that I am not the most... fond of the Abadarian church, I consider myself a loyal agent of the Pathfinder Society, and I do my best to not break it's friendships or bonds with other organizations. As such, you have my word that I will do everything in my power to follow your conditions..." After a moment, she quietly adds, "Sheesh, we're going to Axis, of all places?"
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A bald androgynous humanoid seemingly just appears. "Chrone is the name that fits me best," their voice seems to be spoken in two different octaves simultaneously and in harmony. "to attend the whole of Hao Jin's test. The Streams of Time is what I serve, I have been sent here to observe. If Time thinks there is a disconnect, I use my skill set to correct." They carry very little, only a cloak, a headband, three wands, and a small pouch.
Their skin has a pearly tone and their eyes are white voids, no eyeball to be seen. Affixed in their forehead is a clear gemstone (zircon).
"Hao Jin is also known as the Ruby Pheonix. A powerful sorceress known for magic tricks. She created a tapestry in her name, a museum that holds great landscapes in demiplane. Many records lost her over many century, until some was found but very recently. She has a focus on magic primal and is known to never die eternal. With red hair she studies magic not for powers own end, but to enhance understanding and knowledge extend."
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Chrone lithely approaches each of her pathfinder compatriots...
The Keeper looks a bit annoyed when Drake asks questions about Hao Jin, and is about to say something, but then decides otherwise.
With closed eyes the Councilwoman scowls at you.
"Your mission is your own. The Church is merely acting as a contracted intermediary temporarily providing transportation."
She looks around the group.
"I require a clear "Aye" or "I do" from each of you to show you are willing to undergo this contractual obligation with the Church of Abadar. By your assent you also hold your animal or magical companions to the same agreement. You also absolve the Church of Abadar, thrice-blessèd be his name, free of fault for any injury, death, dismemberment, or damnation of your soul which you might incur while present in Axis."
Because the plane of Axis is strongly law-aligned, some spells function differently there than elsewhere. Additionally, creatures with non-lawful alignments take penalties from being on a plane of pure law.
Strongly Law-Aligned: Creatures who are not lawful aligned take a –2 penalty on all Intelligence-, Wisdom-, and Charisma-based checks.
Enhanced Magic: A spell or spell-like ability with the lawful descriptor functions as if its caster level were 2 higher.
Impeded Magic: To cast a spell or spell-like ability with the chaotic descriptor, a caster must attempt a concentration check (DC = 20 + the level of the spell). If the check fails, the spell does not function but is still lost as a prepared spell or spell slot. If the check succeeds, the spell functions normally.
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The sorcerer nodded at the strange words of his companion, but did well to remember them.
Drake looked more amused than anything else by the curt response. Sometimes they had good information before a mission, other times they did not. Such was the life of a Pathfinder. "Aye, I'm willing to accept the obligation entrusted to us." Drake will take the satchel and skim through it to get an overall grasp on its contents.
Keeper Ferqyr smiles.
"All right. Everyone please carefully put your hand on the artifact," she says, holding out the disk of the golden city.
Once everyone has done so, she intones a phrase and the room turns inside out around you.
* * *
Moments later you find yourself in a large room that is tastefully decorated with ornate stone benches and chairs. You seem to be at least on the second floor of a building, as the large picture windows overlook the largest open-air market you have ever seen in your lives. Countless smells and scents fill your nostrils: cooking meats and vegetables, spices, fresh fruit, and many others you can't identify. Beings from across the multiverse can be seen walking through the market eying the goods being sold there, or else trying to hawk their wares to passer's by.
Out of the window to the right is a massive wall and a golden gate easily over 120 feet in height decorated in gold- and silver-traced murals depicting all manner of commerce. Standing on top of the gate stands what looks to be a statue of a fully armored warrior of gold and steel, his or her hands resting on an enormous warhammer.
The wall to your right is covered by an embroidered curtain, depicting a monstrous creature being confined to a prison. The room contains no obvious exit, although you can't see what's on the other side of the curtain.
The embroidery on the curtain depicts the defeat of Rovagug by the combined powers of the other gods.
The gold and steel statue on the gate is actually the Lawgiver, the herald of Abadar, which means that the gate leads to Aktun, the domain of Abadar.
As you move toward the curtain, which is really more of a wall hanging, it briefly parts and a miniature draft horse with blue metallic skin, golden eyes, and a white star-shaped patch on its forehead steps through.
Seeing the massive creature it lets out a horse-like whinny and backs up, nearly stumbling over the curtain and its own legs.
"Ahhhh! What are you? Who are you? What do you want?" it shouts, fear obvious in its voice. It is using an unusual form of communication where the words you hear do not match with the movement of its lips, yet it all makes perfect sense.
She tilts her head to her side, stating "You are not priests of the Master of the First Vault! But you came through the Priest Portal from the Cage!"
The creature is using truespeech, a form of communication employed by creatures of the Great Beyond. Truespeech sounds like whichever language is your native language.
The creature is an orsheval, a servitor race of the god Abadar. They are quite intelligent, loyal, and hard workers.
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Shamak tries to agree but, as he extends his hand, is unable to finish his word.
Once on the plane of Axis, the big half-orc coughs and squints his eyes, looking for any sign of life.
When the small horse-like creature appears, Shamak can't contain a deep laugh when he's compared to a priest.
"AYE! I AM NO PRIEST. WE ARE MEMBERS OF THE PATHFINDER SOCIETY. GREETINGS!" he says, bowing a little clumsily.
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"Please, don't be alarmed. We have an accord with the church and have their blessing to be here. My name is Drake. Are you stationed here to greet the priests as they arrive, or is our meeting a coincidence? What should we call you?" Drake looks around the room after he finishes speaking. His wife always told him he should be more observant.
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Noro is pretty amazed at the market out the window. various thoughts running through her mind. what an opportunity, probably something out there worth a fortune back home. she ponders to herself.
when the creature appears. she seems almost unfazed like she has encountered many unusual things her whole life. She take a swig of her rum. I am so far from bein' a priest, it ain't funny
With Drake having the talkin' stuff down for now, and there ain't no heads that need bangin around, Noro looks to the window again, trying to see it can be opened.
The orsheval seems to accept your explanations. "Ah, I see," she states, throwing her main to one side.
"Well, greetings travelers, and welcome to the Guesthouse of the Cage. My name is Esfir, member of the 14th Order, 289th Echelon of Abadar's eternal retinue. We are conveniently located just outside of the God's realm of Aktun. I am happy to help you with any question you might have about the blessed realm."
"You are Pathfinders, my records show that you are looking for someone named Hao Jin. I have heard that name, though not for some time. Come, we can investigate."
And with that she turns and heads through the split in the wall hanging, down a wide set of stairs and to the building's ground floor.
The room downstairs is quite sparse and contains a large table with chairs and access to what looks to be a kitchen, along with a longish corridor heading out of sight and a door that leads outside. Next to the table is a large bookcase that sags under the weight of many hefty tomes. Esfir clops over to the bookcase and considers the spines of the volumes before picking up an old one using magic. She places it open on the table and leafs through it without touching it. Less than a minute later she has found what she is looking for and looks up at you.
"Here it is: Hao Jin, a sorcerer of considerable power arrived 333 years ago, after which there’s no formal record of her having departed. This designation here indicates she received a formal reprimand from the Eternal City soon afterward, and the last entry points to her performing research in the Empty Court as a guest of the axiomites."
The Empty Court was the divine realm of Aroden. When he mysteriously perished more than a century ago, it began to collapse. It is no longer formally part of Axis and does not benefit from the Eternal City’s protection.
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"Well, that is certainly interesting. Can you tell us what she was reprimanded for doing? And perhaps the date of that last entry? In top of that, my knowledge of the planes is rather limited, unless one of my associates could be kind enough to clue me in, could you tell us about the Empty Court and the axiomites? Drake put on his best smile. "And I must thank you for being so patient and helping us out with all of this."
The orsheval Esfir is happy to oblige the strange visitors; it is, after all, her job.
"Axis is the Eternal City and the Perfect City! It is all things to all people ... well, all people that love order and the law, that is."
She looks at you to see if that resonates with you.
"The axiomites are the original inhabitants of this realm. They created it, one might say, from formless chaos and void."
She seems happy.
"Traveling about the realm is quite easy, there are magical portals that instantaneously whisk you between your desired destinations."
She whirls around.
"Axis is vast and is broken down into countless small neighborhoods, each with a distinct focus. Sometimes that focus is a philosophy, other times a greater power (what you call gods), and other times it is a species of people. There are many species in the Great Beyond who enjoy a bit of green amidst their cities, so there are many parks in Axis."
Esfir nods.
"Getting to see Hao Jin as quickly as possible is the current priority of yours as it seems. I also see here in the note, your Master of Spells was quite insistent that time was of the essence as the some 'plane' of which I have no knowledge could collapse any day. That is sad - no sightseeing and visiting axiomites!" the orsheval says with a smile.
"Maybe one last note: Axiomites are the lords, caretakers, and architects of the plane of Axis. They have a wide variety of forms both humanoid and non-, as they are literally an immortal, intelligent construct of mathematics. You'll be seeing plenty of them around Axis. The inevitables are their creations: intelligent constructs each designed for a specific task."
Esfir promises to take you to the nearest transportation portal and show you how to use them once you have finished your business in the guest house.
"You should also be aware that the inevitables, the creations of the axiomites, take their enforcement of the rules and laws of Axis very seriously. Visitors are given some leeway in the infringement of minor laws, but you should know that public, unlicensed displays of violence are strictly prohibited within the City of Cities."
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Noro mostly listened to the info being presented, though she rolled her eyes at the part about violence.
Great, guys I'm gonna end up in prison or dead before this all ends. she says a little jokingly and a little serious as she is prone to violence every so often.
She looks for something good to drink before leaving, taking the bottle (if it comes in one) with her.
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"I'll second that,Lissa agrees when the inevitables are brought upon. "I had to deal with a malfunctioning one on a mission once. It wasn't fun, and wasn't at full capability when we fought it. Not something I'd want to do again."
"Unlicensed displays.... Is there any way to get said license?" Lissa asks hopefully, already knowing it's a pipe dream. "And I assume area damage is looked upon even more poorly?"
Esfir responds to you. "There is no license for you. Unless the inevitables are present at the beginning of the fight and see everything, it is most likely that they will arrest everyone who seems to be involved. Those arrested are taken to processing stations where statements are taken from everyone involved and from any bystanders who witness the event. This is done to assess who the guilty party might be. If the inevitables determine that someone acted in self-defense, that person is generally allowed to go free soon thereafter. The mill wheel of justice does not move swiftly, but it does grind exceedingly fine."
Once everything in the Guesthouse has been completed, Esfir leads you out into the marketplace. The sights, sounds, and smells here are almost overwhelming, assaulting your senses from many different directions. Most are not unpleasant, it is just that the sheer number and volume of them is hard to take.
The orsheval trots past the market and down a side street and to a small rotunda where a semicircular wall partially encloses a fountain. Seven arches in the wall each have a lantern that hangs nearby, with flames that ignite and extinguish for a minute at a time. While the flame burns, creatures periodically walk into the arches and disappear, and while a given flame is out, creatures sometimes step out from that arch.
"This is one of numerous permanent sets of portals, each of which travels to a distant part of Axis"
Esfir explains, heading for the rightmost arch. A petitioner whose body is grey and covered in glowing runes, letters, and sigils who seems to serve as the rotunda’s custodian briefly tries to warn her about that portal before she waves the petitioner off with the shake of her head. Turning back to you, she explains that this portal doesn’t see much use anymore, but that it travels to within sight of the Empty Court. Esfir then excuses herself and invites you to call on her again should you need further directions.
As those that felt the strange eyes on you can now not feel it anymore, you continue.
The far side of the portal is a seemingly barren wasteland between different parts of Axis several hundred feet from the golden wall that forms the boundary of the Empty Court. In the distance you can see other neighborhoods of Axis, but they seem to have shrunk back from Aroden's former realm, withdrawn their borders as if to avoid whatever befell the God of Mankind.
The golden wall of the Empty Court (easily several hundred feet in height) has a single gate that is being guarded by two massive inevitables.
They each have three legs with bodies like three torsos fused together. These torsos are topped by a single head bearing three faces, each set in a bland serene expression. Each inevitable carries two large golden halberds.
These are axial monitors, the "police force" of Axis. They are powerful inevitables dedicated to maining the order of the Perfect City.
You walk through the deserted scrubland toward the massive golden gate that leads to the Empty Court.
Once you are about 100 feet away, the inevitables seemingly come to life, shifting from parade rest to a more active stance, and heft their massive halberds, pointing them at the group.
"Halt, humanoids!" they command with amplified voices, "Pause your approach and relay the reason for your presence here. The Empty Court is off-limits to all unauthorized individuals."
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Drake bows to the outsiders before wondering if, here in their home plane, that was the proper term for them. "We are Pathfinders contracted as representatives of the Church of Abadar. We seek an individual from our home plane who, we've been told, has not left the Empty Court in many of our lifetimes. She seems to be a guest here. I ask forgiveness; we weren't told of any needed authorization." Drake spoke humbly, and only stood up straight again when he was finished.
The two inevitables consult with one another for a moment upon hearing Drake‘s request. Still on guard, the rightmost axial monitor turns to you and proclaims:
"Please maintain calmness and remain in your current position and make no further perambulations in our direction. An appropriate representative is being summoned."
Approximately 15 minutes later there is a short flash of light at the transportation portal, and a small flying orb appears and begins flying toward you at high speed. Once it comes closer, you can see that it is about a foot in diameter with a large central eye that his a triangular pupil, two small decorative wings, and long, delicate arms: an arbiter inevitable, the messengers and minor functionaries of Axis.
It slows down as it approaches and makes a complex gesture with its hands that could be interpreted as a greeting.
"Greetings, mortals. This one is classified Eleven-Sun-Truth and represents the one classified Hao Jin in all matters before her Tribunal. I have been informed that you have business with said individual but must inform you that the one you seek is not accessible on orders of the Godmind itself. How else may this one be of service?"
The Godmind is the semi-divine central consciousness of the axiomites that coordinates the actions of all the axiomites and inevitables throughout the Great Beyond. It does not speak to individuals, and only very rarely makes prophetic announcements. You are not sure what the Tribunal is.
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"All of those who are from the of purest law, are guided by the Godmind whose logic is without flaw. It speaks not with anyone, only rarely announces prophesy finespun. The Tribunal is likely its name's sake, adjudication does it undertake. Eleven-Sun may be in our way, but our mission far from done this day."