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he young half elf enters into the room. The half-elf has Tian features. He bows in greetings and in a strong Taldan accent greets his companion. He is dressed in white and golden robes with flecks of gold in his hazel eyes. I am Iustanus. I am pleased to meet you all.
Iustanus carries a quarterstaff. The staff is carved in blue lacquer and with wave designs on it. It smells of rain.
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A Kelish woman strolls in, full of confidence and dressed in flowing silks and an ornate turban and scarves.
"Is this the place? Yes, it must be. Hello. I believe we will be working together in the coming days, so let me introduce myself. The name is Kyra, and I hope to keep you all alive. But you never know... so if you do not already have faith, perhaps I can show you the ways of Sarenrae, may she ever provide light on you! She can protect you now, and shine light on your soul in the afterlife! But let's hope that day is far in the future, shall we?"
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"That sounded familiar" can be heard from outside and soon a sky-blue haired elven woman enters, tall and slim even for her race. Also her outfit reminds of the sky, some blue, some puffy white like clouds. It looks rather pleasant if one can disregard the clear clash of styles from Taldan shirt, to Quadiran temple skirt and Osirian funeral jewels. Her face is too young, her eyes deep dark, and her steps have the light grace of an expert dancer. She carries only a small dagger, and the collection of scrolls at her belt confirm her skill in magic.
"Iustanus! Great to see you!" she says as she waves at him. She turns to the others and explains: "We just returned from a successful mission, Iustanus did wonderful work with his dragon blood.". She walks cross the room, opens a window, sits on the window sill and snaps open her butterfly-shaped fan, starting to give her face a constant breeze. "Sarenrae doesn't have to take all the burden, Desna inspires my path", she says showing the fan. "I am Lindevaile Tindome, of family and clan unknown. I feel the wind", she finally presents herself.
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"I think I know that voice!" The goblin scampering in is particularly scruffy, wearing a tattered brown robe despite his recent dress shopping trip with Lindevale, "Oh hi!" he says, waving enthusiastically. He is accompanied by another Goblin, who's a little less scruffy and a lot less energetic; he actually looks a little nervous.
"Hi!" he says to the people he doesn't know, "I'm Zibini. I'm a Pathfinder, and I do magic!"
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A tall willowy woman with golden hair enters the room.
"Well met, fellow Pathfinders" she greets the gathered throng, the slightly musical lilt of her voice giving away her Elven heritage. "Kaitlyn Deathsbane is what I'm called, though you may call me Kat. I was told I was to be your medic for the group?"
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After your brief introductions at the bar of the seaside tavern in the bustling port of Quantium, you all move out onto the weathered patio to meet semi-retired Pathfinder Khoumrock Blackthane, who drinks his mug of dark stout as the gulls punctuate the morning serenity at the docks. The dwarf is a salty old sea dog with a nose reddened by years at sea, and armor that appears to be a suit of full plate heavily modified and integrated with a mechanical diving suit.
The mariner speaks in a booming voice (with an accent somewhere between a south-Absalom brogue and a sailor’s worldly clip), “As ye lot might’ve heard, we’re currently lookin’ into the trail o’ the ole foundin’ members o’ the Pathfinder Society, Selmius Foster. He made loads o’ discoveries before he vanished on an island in the Obari Ocean. We’re pretty sure he died there, but we don’t know the details. Other than some mention of him being killed by some ‘dog-faced people,’ whatever that means. Ambrus Valsin wants ye lot to travel to the jungle isle o’ Bhopan and find out what ye’ can about ole Selmius. There’s supposed to be a city there, but weather’s rough that time of the year, so there’s a decent chance we’ll have to drop ye lot off on the other side o’ the isle. Ye all should prepare for a trek through the jungle. Anyways, yerr smart ones, so if ye can, try to not make a fuss with the locals while there, got me? There’s a good chance Selmius didn’t leave us with the best reputation there, so try to be discreet and tactful.”
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Lindevaile Tindome enjoys the sea wind on her face as they walk to the docks.
She listens to Khoumrock's explanation. "Traveling through a jungle doesn't sound bad, I sleep outside anyway. I have traveled around, never in a jungle though. It sounds fun."
She glances at Zibini. "At least it isn't orcs. Wait, he was killed by them? Maybe those are as bad, let's be careful."
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He often relied on his trusted companion Adolphus to clean up after his social faux pas. Adolphus’s entry on Foster’s death was oddly brief for the methodical scholar—a fact that many have attributed to grief over the loss of his mentor.
Adolphus’s wife, Ganjay, was known for her keen intellect and noble bearing, and she had a striking, multicolored appearance, reminiscent of an opal. Ganjay confided in her friends that she was once the princess of a faraway land, but she was reluctant to speak more about her past.
Additionally, Kaitlyn was actually present for a recent foray into Andoran where her group found a letter from Selmius’s adventuring companion Kerinha Napsunar that refers to Selmius as a “pompous buffoon”, who is “a scholar and by no means a diplomat,” and expresses that, with regards to his journey to Bhopan, she “fears for his safety” more than she “holds out hope he will uncover anything.”
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"So Selmius helped to establish spice trade with Vudra, and got us a manor in Absalom, now in Grand Lodge. His wife Ganjay and assistant Adolphus built a lodge here", Lindevaile Tindome summarizes their findings to the group.
After listening to Kaitlyn, she thinks aloud: "He wasn't that nice later on, and might mean we will not be accepted warmly in Bhopan. How could we show them that we are actually nice people? Ganjay or Adolphus may know, but they aren't here anymore? Would there be some notes from them in the lodge?"
She turns to Khoumrock. "Did you check the lodge here for any information, notes, diaries, letters? Gunjay and Adolphus are not here, I guess?"
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"Sorry, I ain't got no more info than what'n I'd told ye already. We can be headins out for Bhopan as soon as yerr ready. Best do yerr shoppin'n such, I'll be heres waitin'." The dwarven mariner leans back in his chair, takes a long swig, and squints to study the intricate rigging on a nearby vessel.
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Lindevaile Tindome goes to the nearby magic shop. She touches the scrolls on display gently, chooses a few and pulls out her purse. Noticing it to be alarmingly empty, she returns the scrolls on the shelves, and shrugs. "Seems I have to just manage without. How hard can it be?"
She returns to the docks and goes to sit at the windy end of the pier, watching the waves as she waits for everyone to get back.
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Once everyone has resupplied and regathered, the dwarf pays his considerable tab and escorts you onto his ship The Unsinkable. It is a sturdy vessel, much like its captain, with at least as many hard years on it.
Unfortunately for you all, the voyage is as rough and stormy as Blackthane had feared. You can reach the lonesome island after several weeks of sailing eastward over the Obari Ocean. The Bhopanese coast is covered in mists hiding jagged stone reefs and it takes all his effort for Blackthane not to run aground. The turbulent seas actually prevent the ship from rounding the island to drop you off at the intended landing point on the far side, so Captain Blackthane leaves you on a desolate crag of a beach to cross the island by land while he waits out the storm.
"Heh, I'll see ye on the far side once this dread weather clears." The mariner waves hopefully as the ship departs.
The coast of Bhopan is straight and somber and faces a mist-shrouded ocean. Reddish trails of earth are visible through the dark-green foliage of bushes and creepers that trail along the low cliffs. A chain of jutting, jagged rocks stands out from the waves like remnants of a wall breached by the sea, while inland, the vast, primeval jungles cast their shadows toward the eternally toiling waves. The red clay earth of Bhopan houses plenty of shallow pools, many of which contain swarms of practically invisible, biting mites.
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Lindevaile Tindome jumps to the beach, exited. She looks around the island, interested in the new terrain. "It looks so different, and adventurous! I have never been this far south, I wonder what animals live there? Shame it's a bit misty, we can't see so far, but it makes it look more mysterious."
She smiles and waves at the departing mariner. "What does he mean by dread weather? Doesn't his ship move the better, the more wind? It's a bit wet though", she comments to her team.
She intuitively hops around the pools, and when one insect manages to land on her arm, she easily shakes it off. "Just keep moving and they cannot land or bite", she instructs Zibini. "So, what was the plan? Follow the coast or through the jungle? Both seem nice."
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The group trudges on - after some time coming to grips with how to handle the scourge of mites. However, a new problem quickly presents itself. Thousands of tiny shards of obsidian are lodged in the clay ground, covered by leaves and branches. It will take some quick feet or quick thinking to avoid loss of blood.
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Lindevaile Tindome continues happily forward, occasionally stopping to examine a strange-looking plant for a moment but easily catching up again with her nimble elven step.
She looks at Zibini following Kaitlyn's exact steps over the dangerous sharp stones. "Wasn't this a human children's game?" she asks and tries to jump on the same rocks they did.
"Hop hop hop... Ooops! Her longer legs got a bit tangled on the branches.
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Zibini, Kyra and Kat plot an initial route through the trees, while Azu follows triumphantly along on the ground (using the sorcerer's timed blasts of water to highlight the way), successfully leading the entire group through the dangerous shard-land.
A few hours further into the dense jungle, a patch of trees with multiple thorny protrusions in the bark hold fist-sized pumpkin-like fruit above you, which might fall down and detonate at any perturbance. You must plot a new way around fast, or simply risk the pendulous "bombs" directly.