Pathfinder! You've been summoned to the Pathfinder Lodge in the Andoran city of Almas, a former cathedral of Aroden, now one of the Society’s foremost libraries. As you approach the front steps, you see some other Pathfinder Society field agents waiting outside for the appointed time to enter.
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A half elf, rather opulently dressed with a stylish Taldor beard entered the compound on a fine warhorse."Greetings, I am Senator Lorian Therian, Marquis Urfa-Halji, Ambassador of Taldor, more commonly known as "Lorian the Peacemaker" he said as he dismounted from the horse.
"How is everyone doing today?" he asked as he greeted the group.
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A vibrating bright orange ball of energy zooms up to Spica and Lorian, flying around their heads before careening to a stop at their eye level. Finally it's still enough for them to see what it is: a female gnome with fiery orange hair, bright peach skin, and emerald green eyes. And she's already babbling a mile a minute. "Oh hi! I'm Pai! Are you my new team? Gosh, I'm so glad to have another mission. You can't believe how boring it is to sit around all day doing nothing, just waiting for an assignment. Honestly, I don't even know what we're doing. Do you? I mean, it's pretty common to not know before the briefing, which I guess I'm not late for this time. I think I was late once, but usually I'm early. Oh, gosh! Here I am babbling, and I haven't given you a chance to introduce yourselves! Haha! What're your names?" She barely gives them a chance to respond before launching into another rapid-fire monologue.
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"Hello again Pai, still itching to blast someone so hard they will not be able to sit down for "weeks"?" he asked with a smile and a bow.
With a smile to Spica, he turned on the charm. "I started as Pathfinder and found myself working to defuse "situations" that arose for the kingdom along its borders. I do not get out in the field as much as I use to, but sometimes, someone with pull will ask me to assist in matters that the Society is concerned. Other times, I have a caravan that is looking to open new trade routes and it works out for the both of us" he said.
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"Hello again Pai, still itching to blast someone so hard they will not be able to sit down for "weeks"?" he asked with a smile and a bow.
"Absolutely!!" Pai exclaims exuberantly. "Ohmygosh Lorian! I hardly recognized you! I gotta slow down--geez! The day I don't recognize an old friend 'cause I was going a mile a minute--well, I guess that's today!" She laughs ruefully. "So, you've been busy, yes? What've you been up to?"
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"Absolutely!!" Pai exclaims exuberantly. "Ohmygosh Lorian! I hardly recognized you! I gotta slow down--geez! The day I don't recognize an old friend 'cause I was going a mile a minute--well, I guess that's today!" She laughs ruefully. "So, you've been busy, yes? What've you been up to?"
"The joys of nobility, I go through many changes of clothes and hair styles everyday." he said. "As for myself, I was able to see everything concerning the Tapestry get put back into their proper places at Round Mountain. That chapter of the life of Hao Jin can be closed, satisfactorily." he said with an ear to ear grin.
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An angry looking half-orc enters. He has many tattoos, but the most striking of them is a butterfly that covers his entire face. No matter which direction he turns, or what expression crosses his face, the butterfly looks enraged.
"I am Tull, warpriest of Desna," he intones sullenly. "For too long, the evil-doers of this world have acted with impunity, mocking the meaning and purpose of our Lady. Now, finally, the time has come to repay their scorn and teach them the true meaning of fear. For fear they shall know, be sure of it!" He pounds the table. "They. Shall. Fear. The. Butterfly!"
A servant opens the front doors of the lodge and ushers you all in. Although now one of the Pathfinder Society’s foremost libraries, the lodge in Almas was once a cathedral dedicated to Aroden. Thus, you see the walls are lined with packed bookshelves competing for space with religious icons and statues. You're led to what might once have been the personal study of the cathedral's bishop, but now serves as the office of Venture-Captain Brackett, a middle-aged, hawk-nosed man.
As you enter, Brackett is wincing as another man is shouting at him. “Our manuscripts are sacrosanct! You must make an example of this thief!”
Seeing you come in, Brackett holds up a hand to stop the man from continuing. "Wystorm, our recovery team has just arrived. Pathfinders, allow me to introduce Wystorm Telfyr, librarian of the Almas Lodge."
Wystorm continues to rage: “I don’t expect you field agent types to grasp the gravity of such a theft!”
Brackett tries to smile apologetically. "We have a situation," he says. "Wystorm, if they're going to help, you need to explain it to them."
Wystorm snorts. “Somehow a thief sneaked past the wards of our reliquary, and stole the Fleshforge Manuscript, a priceless example of the illuminator’s art, embellished in rare inks and exquisite gilt. Certain scholars of the arcane arts--myself excluded, of course--might also perhaps covet it for its content. The Fleshforge Manuscript details how Nex’s fleshforges in Ecanus supplied monstrous beasts for its ancient war with Geb. I myself have a modicum of talent for constructs," he adds with a flash of pride. “Yet I freely admit this manuscript has proven beyond even my comprehension.”
Venture-Captain Brackett unfurls a map on a table: “Thank you for favoring us with your presence so swiftly, fellow Pathfinders. Divination pinpoints the manuscript on a tiny island off Nex’s barren coast--the Monastery of the Unremitting Tide--here. The mission is twofold. Return the Fleshforge Manuscript safely back to the Society, and ensure this thief will never try to steal it again. Questions?"
An energetic dinosaur youthling nudges her druid master with her snout. Clearly she would rather play than listen to a mission briefing.
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An angry looking half-orc enters. He has many tattoos, but the most striking of them is a butterfly that covers his entire face. No matter which direction he turns, or what expression crosses his face, the butterfly looks enraged.
"I am Tull, warpriest of Desna," he intones sullenly. "For too long, the evil-doers of this world have acted with impunity, mocking the meaning and purpose of our Lady. Now, finally, the time has come to repay their scorn and teach them the true meaning of fear. For fear they shall know, be sure of it!" He pounds the table. "They. Shall. Fear. The. Butterfly!"
Pai's eyes go wide. "Uhhh... I fear the butterfly! Especially the one on your face. That is an awesome tattoo, actually! Look, it's like it's glaring at me, no matter which way you turn!" She flies up, down, and around, admiring the angry butterfly on Tull's face. "Yup! You're some kinda awesome there, Tull! I like you!"
But as soon as she sees Ginger, she turns and squeals with glee. "EEEEEE! I love you! Ohmygosh! You're my best friend!!" Suddenly Ginger is being strangle-hugged by a hyper, vibrating gnome. It takes a moment for her to notice The Rock. "Oh, hi! I'm Pai! Are you this dinosaur's sidekick?" She gushes, still hugging Ginger.
Pai tries so hard to pay attention during the briefing, but the pompous drama queen's ego is so distracting. She spends more effort trying not to guffaw at him than trying to remember and sort out information. She does think of one question, though, and it's a really good one: "So, what do we know about the thief?" Yup, she's got the brains, all right.
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Lorian looked at Pai, seeing that she had not change much since the last time he encountered the walking whirlpool of energy on the adventure to Axis. He might as well get ready to use some magic to dry his clothes between her and the Undine.
Entering the former cathedral to The Last Azlanti, he noted what he could about its features in case he ran into a follower of Aroden back in Taldor.
Hearing the outburst of anger, Lorian felt at home. The half-elf smiled as he turned on the charm "The loss of knowledge cannot go unchecked. Please, Senior Librarian Telfyr, why not have a seat and go into the details of the theft." he asked, inviting him to sit down.
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Tull grimaces at Spica. "Indeed, travel and the night sky and luck itself, what could be more fearsome!?! I'm glad you agree with me!"
Turning his attention to the Venture Captain's guest, Tull is evidently shocked by the news that someone has stolen sacred manuscripts. "By Desna's drawers, they'll not get away with this!"
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"Ah, if only they were new. But she is an old goddess, venerable even."
Pai pictures a piece of furniture with drawers briefly, then cracks up laughing as she realizes what Tull actually meant. "Bwahahahaa! Eeew! Man, I bet they're threadbare to the point of barely existing anymore, if they're that old! Dang!"
"What do we know about the thief?!?" Wystorm erupts "I'll tell you. Absolutely nothing! It was one of several documents I moved down from the West Chapel into the reliquaries fifteen days ago. I noticed the scroll was missing four days ago. Look Brackett, they're going on about a goddess' underpants! Oh, how I wish the Sleepless Detectives were available! They're professionals."
Venture-Captain Brackett has tolerated the librarian's verbal tirades so far, but he adopts a stern look as he reproaches him. "Wystorm, I'll have you know that I've assembled some of the best and brightest Pathfinder field agents in the Inner Sea. The Decemvirate takes this theft quite seriously, I'm told, and wouldn't authorise their assignment to this task if they weren't quite capable of recovering your manuscript."
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I can think of several ways the thieves could have got in. Dimension Door, Teleport, Open Lock, access through either the Ethereal or the Shadow Plane
And, as for finding it, hopefully Locate Object will be sufficient. Otherwise we may need to resort to Outer Planer divinations
And as for the other topic. Briefs I believe, not drawers
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During this briefing, another Pathfinder arrives - a tall bald human in blackened mithral armor, witch fits perfectly on his slim figure. He has a bastard sword on his back and a strange pistol on his belt. His dark cloak on the clasp is decorated with two symbols: sword and a red wing, the holy symbol of Ragathiel, and a red star with some peasant tools depicted on top. He looks around thoughtfully rubbing his chin, and nods to familiar faces.
Greeteengs, comrades! Lorian. Spica. Tull. He comes up and shakes hands first with those with whom he has already gone on other adventures, and then with the rest of the squad. My name is Nikita Volkov, I am a paladeen of Ragathiel nov and a captaeen in zeye Red Army in zeye past. Yoah can rely on my blade, my revolver, and my vord as an officer.
His accent is slightly reminiscent of Irissen, but still subtly different.
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"Hi, new guy! --Oo! Oo! Hey! I heard one of the folks who works here say the door was locked the morning after the theft. So yeah, they probably used spells to get in there, like Spica said. Is the reliquary warded against magical intrusion? If not, it prob'ly should be. Oh! Or maybe they had a key, or picked the lock and then un-picked it when they left. Usually thieves don't do that last part, but it's a great way to throw people off your trail, you know? Like, who'd expect it? Everyone'll be looking for a magical thief, and there you are a regular schmo, getting away with everything. Pretty sweet, huh?" Eventually Pai stops babbling long enough to take a breath, which gives someone else an opportunity to get a word in edgewise.
It completely escapes her notice that she's not doing much to burnish the Pathfinders' reputation of professionalism right now.
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"How have you been doing Nikita and Tull?" Lorian asks. "May I introduce you to Pai Shecks, she was with the group that went to Axis to petition that Hao Jin be allowed to close out the chapter on the Tapestry." Lorian said.
"Pai, May I introduce you to Nitika Volkov and Tull Shadde-Quah, they can attest that evertying got puck back itno their respective places."
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Hi Nikita. Spica smiles. Looks like we're tasked with finding a missing manuscript that got stolen. Looks like it's been taken to the Monastery of the Unremitting Tide. That's on a small island just off the coast of Nex.
And by the way that vein in the Librarian's head is pulsing. I suspect we should get on with this soon.
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Sensing the librarian's lack of confidence in the group, Tull grimaces a smile. "Don't you worry, by Desna's Dandelions you have my promise that we will find the missing manuscript and I assure you that the thief will rue the day they undertook such foolishness!" He pauses for a moment, as if catching a thought and unused to the experience. "So uh where should we look?"
"Why was it moved?!" asks Wystorm rhetorically in answer to Lorian's question. "Didn't I just say I could barely make heads or tails of it?! The reliquary is where items that are valuable are kept if they do not need to be immediately at hand. And believe me, it is valuable indeed! It is a scroll made from three sheets of paper sewn together, scribed in Osirian hieroglyphs around 150 years ago, illuminated with gold leaf, and bound to two scrimshawed rollers each carved from a human rib. A talented, evil mage might decipher the manuscript and recreate the nightmare creatures deployed in the ancient war! Though, I doubt the document alone would suffice.”
When another field agent (Nikita) arrives and requires explanations to be caught up on the situation, and then Tull asks aloud where to look for the stolen manuscript (when divination has already located it), the librarian begins to visibly shake with rage and stutter for words sufficient to explain his frustration.
Venture-Captain Brackett winces again and says to you, "Why don't we let our master librarian return to his collection. I imagine you have enough information to get started. A fast ship is waiting to take you across the Obari and to the island where the Monastery of Unremitting Tide stands. Please, make any last preparations you need and get aboard. Good luck, Pathfinders. And please," he spares a glance back at the librarian, now almost frothing at the mouth, "hurry back."
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As you make your way out, servants deliver correspondence that has found its way to the Almas lodge--letters from old friends, the newest issue of the Pathfinder Chronicles, and the like. And sometimes, slipped inside the mail, is something of more direct interest to the mission at hand . . .
Firebrand of Freedom,
This Monastery of the Unremitting Tide has a reputation for peaceful scholarship. However, it hides a depravity beneath its veneer of devotion. Someone there is enslaving innocents. Ensure those
who treat life as chattel find the justice they deserve.
In the wrong hands, this Fleshforge Manuscript you seek could endanger us all. I would consider several of our rival factions “the wrong hands.” This document proved vulnerable even in Almas. We must take direct action to keep it safe. Thankfully, few can comprehend this document, particularly its final paragraphs. You can make their task impossible. Alter or remove a hieroglyph or two from the end of the manuscript, without alerting your fellow Pathfinders.
For freedom,
Captain Colson Maldris
Servant of the Satrap,
Truth is a tradable commodity like any other—we match eager buyers
with a suitable supply. The Monastery of the Unremitting Tide holds
truths our clients would pay dearly to read. Ensure the monastery’s
leader receives the enclosed missive. It promises generous riches from the Satrap in return for a brief loan of codices from their library, hopefully the first trade of many.
One particular document cannot wait for this exchange however.
The monastery’s library contains an ancient map detailing a hidden pass
through Osirion’s Barrier Wall. We alone travel this trade route today,
to our rivals’ consternation. We are not eager to share our advantage.
Destroy this map.
Kind regards,
Pasha Muhlia Al-Jakri
Agent of the Empire,
Isa, a priestess of Irori at the Monastery of the Unremitting
Tide, is selling Chelish secrets in the alleyways of Ecanus,
apparently unaware of their true value. You must reap this unexpected harvest for Taldor’s glory. Specifically, find out from her which of these two supposed Andoren loyalists in Almas actually spies for Cheliax: Mabrias Hoytain or his brother Galidric Hoytain.
Two months ago, one of the Imperial navy’s ships, The Glorious Reaper, failed to return to Oppara following routine maneuvers near Absalom. We suspect mutiny or some noble’s feud. A Garundi trader now reports sighting the ship in the western Obari Ocean not long thereafter. Bring me news of our ship’s location if she still floats, or else evidence of her wreck.
For Taldor!
Baron Jacquo Dalsine
Loyal Seeker of Knowledge,
For those skilled enough to wield it, knowledge is a subtle blade. The Monastery of the Unremitting Tide’s library houses one of the most trusted collections of history on Garund. Its books hold truths long forgotten elsewhere. We count the monks among our allies.
Traditionally , they have allowed Osirian scholars occasional access to their bookshelves. Ensure that the library remains safe in the hands of those devoted to its preservation.
One piece of knowledge cannot wait however. The monastery library holds the true final will of one Nerecchus of Jalmeray, an ally of the Qadiran satrapy, and a diviner without peer in his time. Tell me the beneficiary of a certain item he referred to as “the Osirian device”.
To serve is to honor,
Otoneraphim, Humble Scribe of t he Ruby Prince
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After reading her letter, Pai a gleefully mischievous grin flashes across Pai's face. Oh, I'm going to have fun with *that*!
With that, she pivots and zooms off to buy herself some goodies.
Zipping back to the group, she waves around her new treasures. "Hey guys! I got these scrolls here. Can any of you cast them? Hopefully we won't need them, but better safe than sorry!"
The sea journey across the Obari Ocean is pleasant and uneventful--frankly, a little bit boring, but sometimes for a Pathfinder, that's a nice change of pace!
Eventually, you reach Nex and switch to a small rowboat for the final approach to the island where the Monastery of the Unremitting Tide stands. The island, just off the coast, is barely a quarter-mile across. Nothing of interest stands on it but another small boat hove up on the island's only sheltered shore and the monastery itself. With the cover of darkness, you're able to approach silently and unseen.
The monastery’s wooden gates stand tightly sealed. Hundreds of carvings cover the gates, no two of which appear alike. The wood is badly weather-worn, and, in places, split and crumbling.
To either side of the gates, wooden walls rise fifteen feet to a peaked terra-cotta roof. Inside, several buildings rise above the wall, including two towers nearly one-hundred feet tall!
Outside, a nearby crop garden appears overgrown and untended. The plants’ lush growth contrasts starkly with the lifeless waste a stone’s throw away on Nex’s mainland
Buoyant in the air, Pai effortlessly ascends towards the tops of the gates and peers over them.
You see into a quadrangle. Two towering edifices face each other across this meadow, one reverently decorated as a temple, the other austere as a library. Overgrown wildflowers choke former pathways between the buildings. At the center lies a sunken pool teeming with lotus flowers. An elegant tiger statue crouches, preparing to pounce, beside the pool. Several doors line the courtyard--one on the south side is slightly ajar. An alcove on the western side contains a plinth holding a wooden bust: depicting, of all people, Nikita! In the northeast corner, steel glints from two weapon racks. An aged, white-haired man sits on a chair beside the weapon racks, his back upright and his eyes focussed on two young students sparring; the old man flinches occasionally as he watches them.
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Pai zooms back down to report what she saw. "Ohmygoshyouguys! It's actually kinda pretty in there. There's lots of flowers and a pond and some statues--OH! Nikita! One of the statues is you! And there're a couple of young 'uns sparring with an old guy watching them. He...doesn't seem excited about it. He keeps flinching. Anyhoo, no murder and bloodshed right now, anyway. So I really wanna go in there and ask about Nikita's statue, 'cause wow! I didn't realize you're that famous!" Pai grabs his hand and begins shaking it hard enough to make his armor and weapons rattle against each other.