Amenopheus's page

Abadius, 4714

Initiate of Osirion's Mysteries,
As you no doubt recall, our dismissal from the Ruby Prince's inner circle made it possible for us to research the organization known as the Jeweled Sages, a society that dates back to Osirion's golden age millennia ago. These men and women sensed the decline of their kingdom and began to gather the relics and wisdom that might otherwise be lost to the ages. Each sage carried a jewel in which he or she stored memories and secrets of the past, passing them to chosen successors when a member inevitably passed away. Our desert homeland's tumultuous past scattered the Jeweled Sages to the winds, but I am certain that if they were still united as in ages past, they would praise your accomplishments over these past months—while they valued the wisdom of the whole, they also honored the initiative and excellence of the individual.
Yet are they truly gone, and I the last? We recently learned that someone calling herself the Diamond Sage has lived in central Osirion for years, and if her agents are any metric, she is as interested in meeting us as I am to finally meet another of my order. What's more, I have divined that several other sages' jewels are also buried nearby, though I do not know their exact locations. Because my reputation in Osirion is still stained by last year's developments, I am sending you, my loyal agents, to find these jewels, locate the Diamond Sage, and arrange for us all to meet formally and determine the future of our fractured order. I am not certain quite what to expect when we finally meet the Diamond Sage, and I trust I will have your insights to aid my own judgment of the matter.
The Pathfinder Society has been most generous in providing me a home and offering its support in our endeavors. Even now I am working with Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir to orchestrate a formal Pathfinder expedition to the trade city of Eto, where I hope you can pick up the trail of my elusive colleague. I owe the Society much for its aid. When our business near Eto is done, let us remember your fellow Pathfinders and the equally monumental task they face to the north.

For the Jeweled Sages,
Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage

The Pathfinder Society Organized Play campaign continues the Year of the Demon, its fifth season of Pathfinder RPG adventures. Keep the words of Amenopheus in mind, and be on the lookout for opportunities to help Osirion succeed in its objectives. When the time comes, ensure that you represent Osirion proudly in Pathfinder Society Scenario 5–12: Destiny of the Sands, Part 1: A Bitter Bargain, Pathfinder Society Scenario 5–15: Destiny of the Sands, Part 2: Race to Seeker's Folly and Pathfinder Society Scenario 5–16: Sanctum of the Sages.

Arodus, 4713

Faithful Servant of the Past,

Returning to Osirion was a bittersweet experience, for as much as I appreciated the sweatless warmth of the desert sands, I am also the bearer of dire news.

When I walked into the royal apartments where the Ruby Prince reclined, I could see that at least one of my cures had halted the ongoing decay of our monarch’s arm, but the damage was hardly undone. To say that he was impatient to be rid of this affliction would be akin to calling a boot-trodden asp mildly irritated; every other breath was accompanied by a curse disparaging our tireless work. Although I assured him that this cure would take a few days to work, he furiously reprimanded everyone present before calling upon his own power to crush the infection himself. In a flash of light, he banished the Thassilonian affliction but at great cost to his own health. It pained me to see him taxed so heavily by the spellcasting, but it pained me even more when he dismissed me from his service.

You and I are no longer servants of the Ruby Prince in anything but spirit. We have not been exiled, but neither are we welcome and honored. I spent three days humbly requesting that you not share my fate, but our prince’s counselors were unwilling to hear me; however, do not despair—especially those who might have returned to life as a Risen Guard.

I still have my title of the Sapphire Sage, for it was not granted to me by the reigning dynasty. In fact, it is not a self-proclaimed title but one that I inherited a rather long time ago when I became a Jeweled Sage. These sages have long existed in Osirion to protect the kingdom’s historical integrity, guide its rulers, and guard the secrets of the past. The Ruby Prince may have released me from his service, but in truth he has allowed us the opportunity to extend our protection to far more than just Osirion.

I long acted with the understanding that I was the only remaining sage, but several years ago I communicated with a venerable man named Zuberi who promised me information about one of the other sages should I assist him. Someone interrupted the ritual he needed, and the trail died with him.

Assist the Pathfinder Society, and I shall work to reestablish our network of contacts. Ensure that you keep alert for any signs of the Jeweled Sages, learn what you can, and report back to me. Do not, however, pester everyone you meet. If any other sage is alive and has not made himself known, I do not doubt he would frown on tactless, indiscriminant inquiries.

Together we shall persevere,
Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage

Faithful Servant of the Past,

I would be remiss not to open this correspondence with an account of the Ruby Prince’s condition, for as you likely know, he has been afflicted with a terrible curse from ancient Thassilon. I cannot say in truth that our beloved ruler is cured, but with your help and the efforts of Pathfinders like yourself, we have made headway in fending off the worst of the curse that plagues him.

Despite the outpouring of aid from Pathfinders throughout the world—and especially Varisia—I am still being personally blamed for the Ruby Prince’s condition. I admit that it was my hand that directed a Pathfinder to his court with an ancient Lissalan icon, but my position in Absalom and within the Pathfinder Society is now in dire jeopardy. Even if the Ruby Prince were to recover tomorrow (and by Nethys I wish he would), my time may be drawing to a close. And were he to perish from this affliction, I cannot guarantee that his successor would honor his policy of allowing the exploration of Osirion’s sands—which all Pathfinders should fear for the secrets that could again be lost below the dunes.

You remain my greatest hope to ease the Ruby Prince’s suffering. Even now, the Pathfinder Society is closing in on the cult of Lissala, which plans to restore a long-sleeping runelord to the world. With such ancient, untapped power buried beneath Varisia, surely the solution to our problem is linked to what you must do to prevent the cult’s plans from coming to fruition. Do all you can to stop the cult and seek not only an end to their plots, but a cure for our beloved Ruby Prince.

I know that you are close!
Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage

Subject of the Ruby Prince,

It is with a sad and worried heart that I bear to you ill tidings of our most esteemed ruler, the Ruby Prince Khemet III. A month ago, while enjoying a visit to an exhibit of antiquities in Sothis, he stepped away from the many Osirian relics on display and took particular interest in several artifacts from ancient Thassilon. Among them was a statuette of the goddess Lissala—a long forgotten deity of runes, obedience, and fate.

Oh, but was fate not twisted that day. For no sooner had he set the statue down than it crumbled to dust in his hand, seemingly turning the Ruby Prince’s arm to a dried husk in the same instant. Only a moment later, as the Risen Guard rushed to his aid, his face took on a terrible pallor as though it were turning to ash, and flakes of his once radiant skin began to slough from his cheeks like pieces of parchment blown by a raging sandstorm.

Between his own powers of healing and the arcane knowledge of Sothis’s best wizards and sorcerers, the Ruby Prince was able to stave off much of the quickening deterioration, and even restore some of the heavier damage to his mortal form. But to date no cure to his condition has been discovered, and there is only so long he can hold its effects at bay.

But the problem is worse than that, dear friend, for the Lissalan idol that seems to have caused this curse was brought from Varisia to Sothis by a Pathfinder, a promising young agent who I had taken under my wing. It was I who urged her to impress the Ruby Prince with relics of an empire older and ultimately more feeble than Osirion itself. And since I was indirectly the cause of the Ruby Prince’s interaction with that damned idol, he rightfully blames me for his condition. If I am unable to find its source and, more importantly, a cure—and find them quickly—he has promised that my time serving the Osirian throne will be at an end.

Thus I need you, who are more able to explore the ruins of ancient Thassilon, to search for lore on Lissala and the magic she and her faith may have used to forge such a harrowing curse. I will work here in Absalom to piece together what clues I can from the works in Forae Logos and the Grand Lodge on a potential cure. I may, from time to time, ask you to retrieve reagents or ingredients that I can’t easily get while conducting my research; know that such requests are of dire importance, for the life of the Ruby Prince may well rest in all of our hands.

May the secrets of the past undo the damage they have caused,
Amenopheus, the Sapphire Sage