The Star-Crossed Court takes place on the iruxi island city of Ekkeshikaar, which is off the coast of western Garund, south of the Mwangi Expanse and the nation of Vidrian.
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You see before you a tall, muscular, ulfen woman. She is heavily armed and armored and carries a shield. She pounds her gauntleted fist on her shield and speaks loudly in a heavy Skald accent.
"I'm Astrid Gertasdottir, shield maiden and warrior of renown. I'm stealthier than moonlight and fiercer than a summer storm. I've killed more men than winter and drunk enough ale to sink an armada."
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This portly Ulfen man looks as if he doesn't remember how he got here. The stench of middling alcohol on his breath provides context on that front. Still, he stands fairly steadily at the meeting place. He wears fine animal hide and thick spectacles, which are currently focused on a small white dog wending around his legs. Upon noticing other Pathfinders, however, he instantly perks up.
"Good day, Astrid!" His voice has much less accent than one might expect. "I'm called Pyotr. I can't lay claim to any such amazing feats, I'll admit - I'm just a humble merchant from simpler lands." He takes a moment to chuckle at himself. "But our higher-ups saw fit to send me here, thankfully. It'll be a treat to capture our deeds in a play or something later if they're up to your usual standard."
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A small, black kobold speaks up with an excited but scratchy voice, "And you may call me Umbra! Like Dark, but darker!" He lifts up his hand that radiates darkness to prove his point though some of you may have seen Chill Touch before and aren't impressed. "Umbra like shadows. Lots of Shadows. Hear Nidal nice place to be. Maybe some day I can be Umbra the shadowcaller!" he jumps up a bit with excitement.
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Quinoline, an Osiriani human woman, walks in. She's sporting not one, but two black eyes - one far more recent than the other. She's also wearing a brand new pair of glasses, as if her old ones were knocked off her face and into the ocean.
She smiles at Astrid. "New glasses! Two missions in a row!"
Quinoline is wearing her hair up, pulled back into a utilitarian ponytail, and is ostensibly unarmed - but two crossed bandoliers full of colorful alchemical reagents suggest she may not be helpless.
She greets Umbra in Draconic.
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”Heh.”
A tall elf stands on the fringe of the group. A set of chain mail covers his otherwise bare torso, accentuating the lines of muscles in his surprisingly porcelain skin. A silver chain necklace clinks against the chains, ending in a pendant of a trio of daggers in a circle. A large curved sword is strapped to his back, easily accessible at a moment’s notice. The viridian orbs that are the elf’s eyes stare at Poytr like a predator eying its next meal.
”A merchant, a playwright, and knows how to have a good time? Now that’s a man I can get behind.” The elf bends over at the hip just enough to look the Ulfen man in the eye. ”Celister. The pleasure is all mine.”
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Pyotr smiles at the attention. "Good to meet you! As nice as the idea sounds, I'm not certain there'll be time for work and fun. Whatever the work ends up being. That is, if Golarion was so unfortunate as to have only one of me!" As if one cue, an exact replica of the Ulfen steps around a nearby corner!
Well, that didn't work. Melodious Spell is a fun feat.
It isn't as obvious as most spellcasting, but there aren't many other explanations. Pyotr doesn't seem too perturbed. "Well, that's a better trick for the riffraff. Your seeing the truth is a testament to your character."
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Quinoline, an Osiriani human woman, walks in. She's sporting not one, but two black eyes - one far more recent than the other. She's also wearing a brand new pair of glasses, as if her old ones were knocked off her face and into the ocean.
She smiles at Astrid. "New glasses! Two missions in a row!"
Astrid punches her friend on the shoulder.
"Ha, fantastic. And the way you raised your shield and stood up the that monstrosity after being impaled like that? We'll make a shield-maiden out of you yet."
Negotiations have begun.
“As you know,” Venture-Captain Eras begins, idly fidgeting with some paperwork in front of him as he talks, “our audience with the city’s ruling council to discuss the possibility of reopening trade is tomorrow, and it’s important that we make a good impression. It seems that there are some here who feel that Ekkeshikaar has nothing to gain by trading with us–“
“Backwards isolationists! Everywhere has at least a few,” interjects Calisro with a snort, taking a swig of a colorful drink that nonetheless smells strongly of liquor.
“Yes, well.” Eras clears his throat. “In any case, this… reclusive sentiment is certainly not shared by all of Ekkeshikaar’s citizens, but it has a grip on enough of them that we feel some additional preparation is in order. To that end, we’d like you to take on a few tasks that will help give us an edge when the time comes tomorrow. First and foremost, we need you to recover some documents from the city’s Hall of Records. We’ve already identified the documents we need, which outline some of the finer points of local law, as well as the details of the original trade agreement with the people of Vidrian. We put in a request for the documents days ago, but we have continued to be met with red tape and bureaucratic delays.”
“He means they’re stalling, and don’t want to give them to us.” Calisro chimes in cheerfully, with a wry smirk.
“A tactic my colleague here is very familiar with,” Eras retorts good-naturedly. “Sadly, I’m beginning to think she’s correct. And without these documents, we’re essentially going into the negotiations blind. So, we’d like you to head down in person and sort these ‘irregularities’ out yourselves. How you do this is ultimately up to you, but by happenstance, we’ve already agreed to send a stack of Pathfinder Chronicles to the Hall of Records to be transcribed. These particular chronicles come with a rather complex index written in Hallit, which is not a language known here. Someone will be spending a fair deal of time assisting the clerks in translating, organizing, and otherwise sorting through the chronicles. If it’s you, you’ll have plenty of time to get to know these bureaucrats—and perhaps learn a bit about the iruxi yourselves.”
“Or,” interjects the half-orc captain, producing a small wooden box, stamped with a Taldan coat of arms and labeled ‘Voinarum Glade Winery: 4700 ar’ “I’ve never known a bureaucrat who would say no to a good bottle of wine. Just offer it as a thank you gift for expediting our request,’ and try not to wink or nudge them with your elbow as you do it. That way, you don’t have to spend the whole afternoon sorting papers.”
Eras sighs with a nod. “As much as I’d prefer we not start our relationship with Ekkeshikaar with bribery, it’s true that time is at a premium here. We do have other tasks we’d like you to attend to after this is done. I’ll leave how to handle the situation to your discretion, but please hurry back either way: Calisro and I will need as much time as possible to look over those documents, and you’ll need as much time as possible to complete the other things that need doing.”
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Umbra nods at Quinoline when speaking Draconic and looks as though he did not expect to hear Draconic today.
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Papers! Umbra called to great Society to work on....papers?! Umbra resigns himself to great boredom and "I don't speak Hallit but I can certainly try to assist in this task of such great importance!" his voice calm until the end when he places special emphasis on the last two words.
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The elf groans.
”Fine! I’ll flirt with one of the bureaucrats! I didn’t deal with a magnetic gargoyle just to get stopped here. Now gimme the wine, Calisro.”
"Hallit huh? That's fortunate."
"Ik bin tafallich flot yn Hallit."
** spoiler omitted **
Celister looks at Astrid and raises a well-plucked eyebrow.
”I’m guessing you speak it, toots? Well, how good are you at guiding someone who doesn’t know the language through the grammar and syntax, miss ‘warrior of renown’? Or are you going to tell me that you graduated from the Arcanamirium and decided ‘screw that, imma hit stuff with a sword’?”
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Celister looks at Astrid and raises a well-plucked eyebrow.”I’m guessing you speak it, toots? Well, how good are you at guiding someone who doesn’t know the language through the grammar and syntax, miss ‘warrior of renown’? Or are you going to tell me that you graduated from the Arcanamirium and decided ‘screw that, imma hit stuff with a sword’?”
Astrid grins menacingly at the elf.
"I'll have you know Mr. Smarty-smart book reader. I hit stuff with my shield too."
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"I'll have you know Mr. Smarty-smart book reader. I hit stuff with my shield too."
"Excellent news. A well-rounded team will surely carry us to victory over the tides of demons no doubt lurking in these books and ourselves! Wouldn't you agree, Boru?" Pyotr's question is directed at his dog. True to form, it doesn't respond.
"You complain about having no say in matters, and yet never use your voice. I'll have to give your vote to Celister."
"No other questions for us?" asks Eras.
"Hah! I like that in a sailor, makes the seas less rough when I don't have to explain every bleedin' thing! Now jump to sailors!" Calisro scoffs.
Society or Iruxi Lore Check:
Iruxi or Mercantile Lore check:
The Ekkeshikaar Hall of Records is an imposing stone building with a massive central dome made of blue-green glass. Surrounding the main building are a number of tall, spiraling minarets that transition at the highest levels from smooth stone to gleaming glass. The interior is no less impressive, with the glass-filtered sunlight creating beautiful patterns on the stone floors, themselves engraved with different patterns, that complement and seem to change with the light as it
moves across the floor with the time of day.
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"What are some priorities in our trade agreement?"
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"I've been waiting to see a true iruxi city since I read about them in school," Quinoline bubbles. "People in Absalom call them 'lizardfolk,' but they call themselves Iruxi. Those simple villages that people usually associate with the Iruxi are the homes of migrants in outlying regions - in true centers of iruxi civilization, such as Ekkeshikaar, they build impressive complexes of glass and stone. There are some that even say a vast empire of dinosaur-riding iruxi called Droon dominate southern Garund, beyond the maps common to the Inner Sea region ..."
Quinoline trails off, imagining riding a pterodon mount while raining bombs from above ...
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"Who can blame the iruxi for some insularity? As is often the case, Cheliax was a driving force behind that little quirk." Pyotr grins, not bothered by his subject matter. "Our would-be allies were already trading in and around Sargava when the Chelish barged in, took the place, and deemed the iruxi monsters. Little surprise they started sailing around such places, and stopped taking interest in our affairs! Their loss, I say, but it's understandable."
Upon reaching the Hall of Records, the Ulfen takes much more time than is necessary staring at the structure. He'll likely need a push to remind him there's work to be done.
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Heading to the Hall of Records Umbra continues to grumble to himself about the importance of these records. Under his breath "Paperwork...paperwork! But Umbra meant for greatness! Spent enough time behind desks and paper!" He otherwise seems willing to assist. Once the group arrives, Umbra tries to ask around and find whomever is in charge.
"Um, Hello? Yes, yes! I am Umbra! We come from the Pathfinder Society and are looking to assist with some important documents pertaining to trade agreements. Is there anything we could do to help with these documents, it is up great importance and we're all very willing to assist!" He motions to his companions and smiles eagerly for a reply while nodding his head ever so slightly.
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"I'll have you know Mr. Smarty-smart book reader. I hit stuff with my shield too."
”Ouch. What a comeback.” The elf says in a complete deadpan.
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"No other questions for us?" asks Eras.
"Hah! I like that in a sailor, makes the seas less rough when I don't have to explain every bleedin' thing! Now jump to sailors!" Calisro scoffs.
”Just point me where I need to go and I’ll do what needs to be done. Simple as that.”
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”Yeah, I’ve had an iruxi or two as a customer back in the day. The ‘building of glass and stone’ thing is cool and all, but not really my style.”
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Upon reaching the Hall of Records, the Ulfen takes much more time than is necessary staring at the structure. He'll likely need a push to remind him there's work to be done.
Without even so much as a passing glance, Celister grabs Pyotr by the collar of his shirt and drags him along. ”Come on, lover-boy. No time to stand around gawking unless it’s at me.”
The elf otherwise stands aside as Umbra speaks, waiting for his own skills to come into play.
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"The ‘building of glass and stone’ thing is cool and all, but not really my style.”
Quinoline excitedly explains how glass isn't a solid, but a liquid; its age can be determined by carefully measuring the difference in thickness between the top and bottom of a pane.
"Look at the craftsmanship on this pane! This is perfectly clear glass, only produced when the high quality sand is worked by skilled artisans. The glass alone on this one building might run 500 silver in Absalom."
She notes his intrasigence.
"Think about that next time you send someone through a pane of glass."
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”Ouch. What a comeback.” The elf says in a complete deadpan.
Astrid shrugs.
"Well I thought it was funny."
"Think about that next time you send someone through a pane of glass."
Astrid nods approvingly at the suggestion of wanton property damage.
"Ha! Excellent idea Quin! We'll have to go bar crawling when we get back to Absalom so I can try that."
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"The glass in the pubs is atrocious. Low quality stuff, probably made by first year apprentices and from local sand. Look through two stacked panes and you can see the yellow color and the inclusions. That stuff is so bad that I wouldn't even recycle it.
I'll let you guys break a pane of high quality glass from my workshop when we get back to Absalom. It practically sings when it shatters.
It's a tradition that when people win the Glassmaker Festival, they smash their sculptures on the podium. I never won, but I'll admit I smashed my sculptures when I got back. It's ... cathartic."
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Pyotr proves even heavier than his significant bulk would suggest, but someone of Celister's strength shouldn't have a problem. He keeps chatting even as he is dragged. "And how many common folk are cut out to be professional glassblowers? What's important is that they put some heart into it in the short time they wore the mantle."
Thankfully, he peters off as Umbra finds someone to talk with.
"What are some priorities in our trade agreement?"
"That's the thing," Eras answers "We really need those documents first, and foremost, so we can start going over them. In order for Vidrian to remain independent, we need to re-establish ancient trade routes between the nation of Vidrian and the iruxi of Ekkeshikaar and that depends on what the old agreements were.
It doesn’t take Umbra long to find the particular bureaucrat they need. Simply following signs to the right office, and by asking other clerks. ~~~ she smiles nicely,[ ~``~~`~ ~~ ~~~ ~/b] she asks in iruxi.
[b]Oh I see." she says switching to comman. "Hello, I am Narsha, how may I help you?"
[b]"Um, Hello? Yes, yes! I am Umbra! We come from the Pathfinder Society and are looking to assist with some important documents pertaining to trade agreements. Is there anything we could do to help with these documents, it is up great importance and we're all very willing to assist!" He motions to his companions and smiles eagerly for a reply while nodding his head ever so slightly.
"As I have explained before, the requested documents they’ve been entered into a queue and will be processed in the order received." She pleasantly waves long green fingers over a large stack of documents. "As you can see I will be to your request shortly.
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"Oh, yes," Pyotr says, remembering the language barrier. "One of my aunts spoke this noble tongue, I think. I could try to dredge up a few of those lessons..." he is interrupted by Narsha's language switch. "But that'll do, if you can stand it."
"Any chance we could lend a hand? Bureaucracy is, of course, volatile, doubly so when other parties barge in. Though I'd fancy myself well-trained enough in the field to know that, among other things!"
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Quinoline waits patiently while the iruxi putter. She explains her extended patience with a tidbit about iruxi society:
"Various forms of divination, but especially astrology, are of vital importance in iruxi culture. However, while they often have one eye on the future, they are patient and cautious, with strong ties to tradition that occasionally make them seem slow to act."
She looks around but she's mesmerized by all the beautiful glass.
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"Greetings Narsha! Hm, I understand there is a queue for your precious work time, yes, but we are all eager to help if you have some work that you can delegate to us! Our boss is very motivated to procure this documentation, I'm sure you can understand such bureaucratic pressures. We could help take the work off your hands and our boss will be happy. Win-Win, I think!" Umbra continues to nod his head ever so slightly while talking, hoping this subtly steers Narsha towards agreement.
[dice=Perception]1d20+11
"If you do need help, I can assure you that Pathfinders are excellent record keepers. We may have some dirt under the fingernails, but we all know the value of meticulous reporting."
"Oh would you dear? Narsha says sweetly. "I would be so gracious for your help with this incredibly xhotle language." The word in iruxi has a clicking sound foreign to most Inner Sea languages. The large stack of documents in front of her are written in Hallit and these are the translations that are needed.
She starts sorting parts to Umbra, Astrid, Namza and any others willing to help.
During this time you have a chance to work with Narsha. You may also attempt to learn more about iruxi culture, by warming up to her.
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"Most excellent! Umbra has spent long time as student and knows just what to do with this!" He hop-skips over to his stack of papers and gets to work almost immediately.
Paperwork so boring! But Society says...Umbra does. All part of plan!
While working, he asks about Iruxi culture and maybe even try to find common ground with Narsha such as overbearing bosses, penchant for darkness, tail problems; the usual.
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Quinoline doesn't speak Hallit, but she will gladly ask Narsha about iruxi glassmaking and its role in society.
"I see that many glass panes here are old - much older than historians of the Inner Sea thought the iruxi civilization existed. This represents a fundamental misunderstanding of your society!"
It's unclear why Quinoline is so excited. Probably a nerd thing.
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Pyotr gladly throws himself into the task at hand. "There isn't much in the way of written Hallit. Who knows what that signifies?"
During lulls in the translation (which is mostly looking over Astrid's shoulder) he tries to cajole Narsha with more talk. He also throws constant glances at the piles of paperwork while doing so. "An iruxi I know quite well, by the name of Urwal, sets much stock by stargazing. Is that a common practice around these parts?"
Astrid tries to duplicate Narsha's pronunciation of xhotle.
"Ha! I like it. what does Xhotle mean? Is it a curse word that I can add to my repertoire?"
Oh, nothing really. It is a word me and my brother used after graduating. We had the same professor for Northern Garundi Studies, Professor Xhotle. His lectures sounded like so much bleating: 'Bar... Bar...'
While working, he asks about Iruxi culture and maybe even try to find common ground with Narsha such as overbearing bosses, penchant for darkness, tail problems; the usual.
Narsha has many stories of boss’s, though she never talks bad of any of them. She remains polite while even describing one who managed to start fires on three different occasions. ”Is it true, you are gifted a single tail in your life? While it isn’t common, there are many iruxi who also die with the tail they were born with.” She seems to be getting along quite well with the other scaled folk of the group.
"Tell me, Narsha, what type of academic work do you find most interesting? For me, it is magical theory."
“Learning and education,” she answers ”Especially exquisite,” and the clicking sound pervades the word even if it is in common,[/b] are those bits of knowledge that are written down and passed well beyond the scope of a single master-apprentice relationship.[/b]
"I see that many glass panes here are old - much older than historians of the Inner Sea thought the iruxi civilization existed. This represents a fundamental misunderstanding of your society!"
”I am still amazed that your Inner Sea even has ‘historians’. She concedes that anything from a even two generations ago is technically history. ”Humans are only 4000 years old, dwarves only recently discovered the Inner Sea, and half-orcs—no offense intended—are not even their own pesople as of yet. She smiles wistfully, ”It is hard for me to think of history in such short terms.” She does point out some cathedrals which have the most beautiful colored glass mosaics, ”though none of these are ‘historic’ either, she winks.
During lulls in the translation (which is mostly looking over Astrid's shoulder) he tries to cajole Narsha with more talk. He also throws constant glances at the piles of paperwork while doing so. "An iruxi I know quite well, by the name of Urwal, sets much stock by stargazing. Is that a common practice around these parts?"
”Of course,Narsha answers, It would be folly to think something as big as the universe, has no pull on our lives. There are wanderers large enough to fill with dozens of Golarians, and hundreds of those would fit into our sun. And there are hundreds upon thousands of stars in the universe. And some think they can avoid the influence of such immensity? Her face seems to sour, ”But iruxi love stars, and dwarves love axes and elves love trees and orcs love violence and humans love humans. Then she regains her professionally pleasant demeanor.
Astrid practices saying her new word while she works. "Xhotle, Xhotle."
After several hours of working Narsha is warmed to see so many of you learning about iruxi culture. "Your determination is admirable as well." She disappears behind a swinging door and returns with a covered box. Here are the documents you requested. She thanks you as you leave and there is a sense she is outgrowing her isolationist attitude.
Where to now? If nothing specific please report back to the Embassy!