A Pathfinder’s First Mission

Illustration by Bruno Cesar

Nixret looked over the sides of the rickety fishing boat and sighed before quickly remembering how much she hated ocean voyages, quickly bringing her gaze down to the wooden deck before another wave of nausea could overwhelm her. The captain of the small boat, Masuhei Okonase, was deftly navigating the relatively calm seas on the way to Kayajima from Sakakabe in Minkai. Despite this, even the slight motion of the Auspicious Pearl on the waves left Nixret reeling. “Kobolds were not meant for sea travel,” she opined miserably in her head. Of course she wouldn’t voice any such complaints. That’s not what heroes did.

Last year she was saved by the real deal, when that weird planar nexus had trapped the Tskikha iruxi enclave along with some Pathfinder initiates–herself included. It was all she could do to keep her wits about her in that crisis, but the agents sent to rescue them did more than that–they got everyone home. After that she had redoubled her efforts, achieved her confirmation, and was even recognized by Kreighton Shaine for her part in helping those Pathfinder agents resolve the Blackwood Crisis. She nervously grasped the wayfinder he’d gifted her, feeling its weight. “And now I’m the hero,” she thought to herself.

Illustration by Giorgio Falconi

Of course, heroism would have to wait. Newly confirmed agents were rarely sent on the most dangerous of missions and this was no different: routine maintenance on the leylines of Kayajima to keep the Three Gates Lodge properly protected. Still, she could hope. She risked another bout of nausea as she glanced around at her fellow Pathfinders. A few—like Kisuke, a kitsune sorcerer, and Tara, a human with aspirations to be a swordlord—were well known to her. Their goading was at the root of most of her misadventures resulting in angry lectures or extra chores during her time as an initiate. The tanuki sitting with them, Mochi, was apparently field commissioned after some incident in the Maze of the Open Road. Nixret didn’t really know the details, but wilder rumors spoke of a dance-off, and that couldn’t be right.

Noting her gaze Kisuke gave a grin, “Didn’t think kobold scales changed color, but I swear yours are looking even greener.” Nixret shot the kitsune a withering look, but the sight of the horizon bobbing up and down behind him sent her stomach reeling. Though her friend meant well, she was not enjoying this part of adventuring. Where were the dragons? The beasts barring her path? The artifacts of power they all would need to race to collect? She sighed and gave voice to her thoughts. “Weren’t we supposed to be adventuring, not doing cleaning and maintenance over some leylines that our predecessors already made safe?”

Her three companions nodded in understanding, but Tara calmly noted, “we can hardly be expected to be handed responsibility right after our Confirmations. I’m sure greater challenges will come. Besides, the task is important or else Venture-Captain Mukai wouldn’t have requested our help.” Nixret envied her friend’s ability to remain calm and composed–even when egging Nixret on to break curfew–but had to admit that she had a point. Besides, who knows when a routine mission could turn into a crisis? If nothing else, the events back in the Blackwood Swamp proved that without a shadow of a doubt. “Sometimes I just wish these routine tasks could turn into something much more epic,” she said with a sigh.

Illustration by Enrique Barajas

Josh Foster
Pathfinder Society Developer