It's an ordinary Summer's day in Oppara, Taldor, where you've all been called to meet at Venture-Captain Muesello's lodge, which hides behind the facade of a simple bait and tackle shop. Walls full of fishing tools, rods and baits, nets and lures. The shop already smells of fish, and it permeates all the way to the backrooms. Venture-Captain Muesello's pockmarked face breaks into a smile as the bell on the door jingles, and he motions for everyone to gather indoors before he'll lock up the shop and put up a 'Closed' sign on the door.
A rather regally dressed lady sits in the backroom by a small fireplace, smiling. Many might recognize her, but she refrains from answering any questions until everyone is present.
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Darven pushes open the door to the shop, causing the bell on the door to jingle. When compared to the clothing of the smiling woman, Darven's clothes appear to be boring and plain to the point of a commoner's. The smell of fish permeating the air doesn't seem to bother Darven as he moves to stand in a place designated by the Venture-Captain.
Alongside his clothes, Darven has plain dark hair that falls to his shoulders and is clearly kept clean, but unstyled. Part of the hair is pressed tight by a headband but is otherwise loose. Combined with his headband, the only other feature betraying his wealth is a sapphire amulet hanging from his neck.
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Looking around at the location, Tinker paused and smelled the fish scent, taking in a good whiff of it. The smell and the possibility of food that might still be alive, he realized that he was a bit hungry and will have to remember to get a container of live shrimp for a snack. Walking into the shop, he paused at the counter to make his introduction.
The kitsune was informed to head to the back room and he promptly made his way in, meeting the others that were there. "Greetings, I am Tinker Boneshaker, how are you all doing today?" he said as an introduction.
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A smelly dwarf with a greasy, unkempt beard and clothing encrusted with bits of gore sighs and sits in the corner. "How am I doing, fox-man? The same as the world. Sliding towards devastation and extinction. Mark my words and bide not your time, doom comes for us all!" Spittle hangs from the dwarf's chin as he speaks.
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A colorfully dressed gnome wanders around the shop as the others come in, seemingly fascinated by the various fishing items hanging on the walls. He practically skips from place to place, his dark purple hair bouncing around like crazy as he does. "I've never been fishing before, or even seen someone fish. Is it fun? Surely it must be exciting. A mighty battle of strength, man vs fish, in a battle to the death! How marvelous." These questions don't seem to be directed at anybody, he almost seems to be talking to himself.
When the others start talking, the gnome seems to snap out of his fascination and comes over to join them. He opens his mouth to respond to Tinker when the dwarf begins his response. The gnome's mouth continues to hang open at the incredible response given. He finally begins to speak, saying "well, I do enjoy slides as a rule, though a slide toward devastation and extinction sounds slightly less entertaining. Not that I wouldn't try it, mind you, just would be a little scary. I'm Henrikuaxian, nice to meet you all! I have gotten to see new things today, so I'll call this day very good regardless of what else happens. What fascinating scents this store has! Wonderful."
Muesello is amused by the gnome's inquiries. "Oh no no no no," he begins with a hearty laugh. "You must have been reading too much of Moebius Dickus to think fishing is a fight between life and death! Ah yes, it's more like trapping; laying your trap and patiently waiting for a fish get caught in! Truely, it's ideal for those who are diligent and thorough. Not for those with impulsive tendencies, nay!" The venture-captain then looks at a list of agents invited, counts the heads inside the backroom now, and goes over to the front door to peek around the corner for the last one coming.
The lady sitting in the backroom looks at and listens to Makras's tirade about a potential future outcome, but retains her genial smile.
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Bocke is diligently scribing a scroll when his assistant walks in.
"Master Reed, weren't you supposed to depart for Taldor today?" his assistant inquires.
"Yes, but the boat doesn't depart until the sixth hour," Bocke replies, without looking up.
"Master Reed, my profuse apologies, but ... it is already the seventh hour."
Bocke looks up at his hourglass. He made the mistake of taking it out of Osirion just once, and now all the grains of sand stick together! He mutters some choice words in Ancient Osiriani, and declines to translate them for his assistant.
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A disheveled Osiriani man disembarks from the merchant vessel and beelines straight for the Oppara Lodge.
"Sorry I'm late," Bocke explains. "I, uh, missed my boat."
As Muesello sees that Bocke enters the backroom, he walks up to the front, props up a sign in the window saying 'Gone fishing', closes the curtains, and locks the front door. He quietly closes the door behind him before speaking. "The Pathfinder Society does not have a sterling reputation in Taldor, despite my and others' constant efforts to impress the local moves and shakers. As a result, the most prestigious universities and colleges often deny our agents access to the best libraries in Oppara, thinking we are meddling good-for-nothings. As one of the oldest intact civilizations near the Inner Sea, these libraries no doubt house some very, very precious volumes. Recently we received a most wonderful opportunity—an invitation, really, from a very powerful patron," he adds as he withdraws a scroll tube with a broken wax seal from his apron.
"This patron will secure us two hours in the rare books collection at the Kitharodian Academy, during which we may peruse for whatever we wish so long as we also retrieve several documents of interest for our friend. That," he punctuates by tapping the scroll tube on the table, "is where things get interesting. Apparently there is an even more precious archive hidden beneath the academy’s library, and our patron believes it to contain numerous original records and undoctored historical accounts otherwise unknown to the world! Our contact knows how to get into the archive and has shared the secret with us."
"Two hours is little time, so you must make the most of your time. I know it will be tempting to research other interests, but it would be selfish for the Society to think of itself when the Worldwound’s borders threaten to envelop Mendev and beyond. I am sending you in with the express purpose of uncovering more information about the Shining Crusade, the sustained war against the Whispering Tyrant a millennium ago."
The lady by the fireplace, Lady Morilla, snaps open a fan to fend off the room’s growing warmth, adding, "Historically, Taldor is the authority on massive military campaigns, but most texts have undergone extensive revision to serve some political agenda or another. Entering this hidden archive is an excellent opportunity to learn from the real mistakes of the past and apply those lessons to the Mendevian Crusade. Remember that you have permission to be in the academy’s library, but not in this secret archive, so do everything you can to avoid being noticed while exploring. In fact, the fewer clues you leave of your passage, the better. Specifically do not steal or destroy any of the library’s contents. A few slip-ups might alert the authorities that someone has been poking around, and too many with give them enough evidence to trace this act to us."
Muesello nods in agreement and turns back to the agents. "It might come to you as a relief to know there's going to a diversion of sorts tomorrow evening during the time of your visit," he says with a vicious smile as Lady Gloriana Morilla picks up where Muesello left and adds, "the Kitharodian Academy will host an extravagant orchestral performance in celebration of the Grand Prince's birthday. Such an event should last several hours, and if rumors are to be believed, the Kitharodian's finest intend to play a complex medley of Taldor's greatest songs. Several of these are rather dramatic at times, and the sound should drown out any noise you make. With any luck, the performance will also draw away most of the guards."
"And given that the secret library is, indeed, secret," the Venture-Captain says with a sly smile, "it is most likely guarded with traps, riddles, puzzles, and all that sort of stuff. Nothing you haven't already seen, I'm sure!"
Muesello opens a drawer in the table and begins pulling out a couple small parcels wrapped in cloth and a stack of white paper accompanied with ink and pens. He slides them towards the agents. "This one," he says, tapping the first parcel, "contains a deck of illusions that I am in the process of modifying; instead of each card creating a random creature, each one creates a copy of one of you. The illusions won't interact with anyone, but they can pretend to be reading and deceive the casual observer. Each only lasts for two hours, though. Stick a card to the bottom of a chair to create the illusion, and don't forget to remove the card when you're done! The other package contains several potions in case of emergency."
"Anything else on your minds?" Muesello asks.
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Darven looks somewhat shocked, "How can they call themselves libraries if they bar access to those seeking its knowledge? They are stifling their own progress with these restrictions. Everyone has the freedom to read." he says sternly. "And don't get me started on these doctored histories. How can you learn from the past if lies blind you to reality?"
"Welcome to the real world of politics, Darven," Lady Gloriana replies with a slight sigh, "the Kitharodian academy is definitely not the only place where this sort of fabrication occurs, sadly. It is the way of the world for victors to write down history."
Muesello chuckles a bit at Darven's outrage. "There's a reason I invited an Irorian to this mission," he says to Lady Gloriana.
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"I'll help you get the books you want, because it's an absurd of an idea as doing anything else. I could write the only book worth reading: 'Once upon a time there were blind maggots crawling on a rotting corpse until it was thrown on a pyre and they were instantly incinerated. The maggots are people and the corpse is existence. The end.'" Surprised at his own profundity, he decides to write that down.
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Darven muses over Makras' statement, "Who does the throwing? It seems like there is always someone out there trying to throw the corpse onto the pyre." he stops and thinks further on it, "Does it matter who in the end if we are to be incinerated anyway? Is the knowledge capable of saving us or bringing us back? Probably not."
"I can't deny nor confirm our patron's whereabouts," Muesello says nervously, fiddling the scroll tube and eventually pulling out a scroll out it, handing it over to the table. "And here, of course, is the request form already signed by Arch-Exarch Gregorius that will allow the bearers of the scroll to enter the rare books collection at the Kitharodian academy. This paper is quite important so don't lose it!"
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Henrik's eyes widen in shock when they talk about a library being closed off, and he looks positively outraged when it turns to the altered history books. He looks to be practically quivering with indignation, his mouth moving up and down as though he wants to say something but just can't make out the words. Just as they are about to end the meeting, the temporarily-speechless gnome finally finds his voice.
"How can they just... but they wouldn't! How are you supposed to know anything if they just change things all willy-nilly? Of course we will do whatever we can! I have a few questions, though. How are we supposed to return with these documents if we aren't supposed to take anything out of the library? Do we need to find a way to make copies, or is it OK to take just these few things? How large is this hidden archive, and do we know how it is organized? How hard will it be to find the information about the Crusade? Do you have any recommendations of any specific preparations we should make to make the task easier?" He finally runs out of steam and shifts his large eyes up to the Venture Captain, hoping for more guidance.
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Muesello nods at Henrikuaxian's questions. "Let me rephrase: take as little as possible. Copying texts is preferable, and for that exact reason," he then pats the pile of papers accompanied with ink and pens, "I'm providing you equipment for that task, free of charge!"
Lady Gloriana Morilla picks up the conversation. "The hidden part of the library and its layout are utterly unknown to us. But we know it to be underground. So no windows or backdoors."
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Once all but Makras have left the lodge, venture-captain Muesello looks at the strange dwarf curled into a fetal position on the floor, and rubs his chin as he looks at Lady Gloriana. "I'm beginning to second guess my picks..."
"But his recommendations are favorable," Lady replies, "a dwarf in a library excavated in stone. Their innate abilities with stonework could prove to be important."
"...But was he really the only dwarf available?" Muesello seems unsure but even he can't turn an invitee away at this point. The Pathfinder Agents' union forbids that.
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Darven wracks his mind of the various archives and libraries he has worked in our visited. "Well, if they stick the standard layout that most other libraries use, it will probably be easy to navigate. At the very least, I might be able to work out whatever system they are using to organize their materials and go from there."
As everyone gets up to leave a strange figure climbs in through a window.
Before anyone can react it straitened up and smiles.
"Hello! Sorry I'm late! Someone locked the door and I’m not allowed to blow out the locks on offical buildings!"
The rapid, staccato voice reflects the figures obvious excitement. But the creature before you, vibrating like a child waiting in line for the circus, is... a little... different.
”Don’t worry I heard lots through the door and the rest while I was climbing the wall.”
Standing just under 4 feet tall the ratfolk's fur is pure white, except for the fur on the third arm that sprouts from the back of his right shoulder blade. This limb seems almost monstrous. The fur is course and a dirty grey colour. The muscles are much more defined than those of the rat's natural limbs and while all the paws have claws the one on the third limb seem more like the sort of thing Pathfinders have seen lunging out of the dark at them than those of even a ratlike humanoid.
Both limbs on his right side come up and the ratfolk gives an enthusiastic wave to everyone in the room.
"Hi! My name is G L 13 but you can call me Gillie!"
”I have some questions!” He holds up a hand and starts counting questions off on his fingers talking rapidly and not waiting for answers.
”Why did they make a secret library? If we all know about it does it still count as secret? Do they know we know the secret? Also! Why did they keep the originals when they revised the texts? Why did they revise the texts in the first place? Who is they? Does everyone know the texts where changed?”
Before anyone can respond to this stream of consciousness he turns suddenly to Makras.
” The doctor said you should only burn bodies in a properly designed and filtered incinerator. Burning organic matter on a pyre risks air contamination. Also destroying a body is wasteful unless it cannot be reused or salvaged for parts due to arcane or biological deterioration”
This is said very matter of factly as if giving instructions on a cooking recipe.
Shifting back the other way he waves at Henrik ”Hi! Are you a wizard? If you are a wizard do you know the spell to remember pages? A friend of the doctor used it to copy his notes! But the doctor said it was okay after he checked in his head... I think it was called Memorised Pages!”
He looks back to the Venture Captain. ”Are you suppling fish too? The smell is making me hungry! Though it does smell like the time the doctor gave me gills and took my lungs out cause he wanted to try something else with them.”
Gillie stops talking as he realises he’s been talking quickly and non stop for a while.
”Sorry...”
He cowers like a beaten dog expecting any other blow.
Gillie's entrance startles Lady Gloriana, and while Muesello is just as surprised, he seems as if he had forgotten something. "Oh of course, Gillie! My apologies for forgetting you!" he hastily replies, and gestures to Lady Gloriana that the ratfolk is in fact part of the group, and is deeply sorry for the unexpected intrusion.
After the flow of questions with no time to answer, Muesello grunts unapprovingly and rubs his temples. "Take a fish and join with the other tomorrow evening..."
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Henrikuaxian smiles with glee at the latest addition to their troop, and his wild burst of random questions. "Hi Gillie, I'm Henrikuaxian! You have a third arm? That is fantastic! Why do you have a third arm? Can you use it just like your other two? Does that make your other arms jealous? Does it get old having to clip 15 fingernails instead of just 10? I've already asked them lots of questions about the secret library, and they don't seem to know much."
When he is asked about the spell, he bobs his head rapidly, almost in annoyance. "Yes yes, I know that spell, it is so boring! Takes 10 whole minutes to cast, and you only get to memorize one lousy page with 10 whole minutes! I have a spell that lets me magically copy a whole page in just 1 minute, and I don't have to have all those pages gumming up my brain so that it is free for more important things. Like learning about how to get a third arm!"
"Ambrus Valsin had contacted me to give you this," he says as he slips you a piece of paper, "it has an encoded message written in a Taldan cipher that our Society is yet to crack. If you come across with ways to help decode the message, report back with your findings."
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Gillie is reassured by someone who can match his enthusiasm.
”Hi Henrikuaxian! The doctor gave me a third arm to make me good at climbing! It sometimes feels funny cause its different than the other ones! It works different cause its big and strong but it doesn’t move as quick. Its like how a tail feels different to a leg! Why do you clip your nails? My nails are claws and so I don’t have to carry heavy swords and knives and things!”
He seems disappointed that his spell suggestion wasn’t helpful but that passes quickly.
”I didn’t know it takes a long time... I don’t do spells! I mix up things in my bottles and that makes stuff happen... Sometimes it explodes! Mostly when I want it to explode but not always!”
All the pathfinder agents have been doing their preparations and whatnot before the big evening at the Kitharodian academy. Crowds of commoners and nobility alike jostle to enter the music hall. The agents have no trouble pushing their way into the increasingly crowded building, but it appears the staff is rather preoccupied showing the way to other guests.
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The pathfinders arrive at the library, which opens up to a vast hall. The tall halls' walls are lined with inbuilt shelves full of various books, the open space filled with intricately crafted wooden tables and chairs, each table holding multiple candelabra. The arching ceiling creates an echoing acoustic, which might seem counterintuitive for a library. The air smells of paper, parchment, and leather. Gilded chandeliers hang from the high ceiling, complete with clear stones to shimmer the candles' light all across the library hall.
It is almost devoid of people now; only one young Taldan man sits by a counter, fiddling with a pen. He's startled as the agents enter, nearly dropping the pen to the floor in the hassle. "O-oh, greetings!" he replies hastily, quickly tidying the countertop, "I'm sorry to tell you, but the library is closed due to a reservation! O-oh, but, yeah, you surely must have been the ones who reserved it?" His disbelief is apparent, but he doesn't seem condescending, "surely you have some sort of permit with you, wouldn't you?" He hold out his hand, expecting to be given some sort of paper perhaps.
The young man takes the paper, has a cursory look on it and lets out a quiet 'ooh' as he spots the arch-exarch's name and signature. "Right-o, you got yourselves a treat then, heh!" he says nervously, "a-oh, my manners! I'm Tobias, and I'll be helping you to find whatever you might need. I understand from the permit you are to access the rare books collection, hm? Follow me then!"
He guides the pathfinders to off the main hall to a more secluded section of the library. There are two grandious doors with lion head ornaments, intricate metal doorhandles, and artful carvings. With a hefty and complex looking key Tobias opens the doors and reveals a rather robust suite. A large red marble table stands at the center of this large room, whose walls are lined with rows upon rows of inset shelves. The set of double doors is the only way into the room, and two stone statues depicting bearded scholars with open books are the only other decorations.
"Right, you'll have time to read anything you like till the play upstairs ends, so around two hours I reckon," Tobias ponders aloud, "is there anything else you would need? A-oh, and drinks and foods are forbidden in this collection for, well, quite obvious reasons, heh."
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"Are we allowed to scribe important information and take it with us, or do we have to remember everything?"
Bocke has his scribing tools out because we are definitely going to be furiously researching and definitely not sneaking around.
"We have a lot of research to do, so we absolutely don't want to be bothered."
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Henrikuaxian looked all around the lavish library with wide eyes that swept all around. So many books! Even with Skim I couldn't read them all in two hours!
"Can you tell us anything about how the books are organized? Would be nice to not have to bother you for help to find things."
Once he gives them whatever info he has on that, Henrik nods in thanks and immediately goes to one of the shelves. "That should do it, thanks for the guidance! We'll see you in a couple of hours!" He gives a friendly wave before turning to start looking at the names of the various books on the shelf.
"Organized? First by category in alphabetical order, then by author, also in alphabetical order, of course," Tobias chuckles, not sure if the question was serious, "and I understand, no interruptions, got it." He gives a light knock on his head.
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Darven nods and begins searching for a copy of Unbinding the Fetters by Irori and Azvadeva Pujila by Gruhastha. Once he finds the texts, he takes them to a table to skim through them. While he sits and reads, he checks his pocket to make sure he is in possession of one of the illusionary cards.
Darven occasionally glances up from his reading, waiting for the signal for the rest of them to proceed to the next stage of their mission.
Tobias leaves and the pathfinders are left alone in the study. They can hear the orchestra doing their last preparations before the show starts. Tinker places an illusion card on the bottom of a chair, and a manifestation of him appears on chair as if he were reading a book. The illusion stays stationary.
At first glance most of the books seem to be workbooks of famous composers, original copies of musical treaties, and withered manuscripts describing various operatic traditions from beyond the Taldan empire.
The two stone statues standing at the corners of the room hold open books in one hand, and a stylus in the other. Peculiarly the western statue's book has words embossed to the stone book, a column of words that reads "innovation, respect, knowledge, courage, integrity, honor, excellence, glory".
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Tinker looked around the room, quickly spotting some discrepancies. "The wall to the west appears to be the door to the section of the library we want and the stone hand on the statue seems to be the mechanism to open it." he said, stepping over towards the statue on the western wall.
Pulling out a small vial, the kitsune started to drink it.
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Once his card has been activated Gillie happily sheds the bulky cloak he wore to hide his extra arm and darts over to look at the statues in question. He climbs up the wall next to the statue to get a close look at the book to see if any words seem to be visually different.
"This is probably not a situation for blowing the door off its hinges is it? That is something I can do if we need it!"
Makras pulls the hand of the statue, but the secret door doesn't open. It only moves the stylus to point a different word. Faint click sounds can be heard on each word.
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"As we are in Taldor, they like to think they are honorable, courageous and talk about their glories. For a library to not use "Knowledge" is sad but a combination of those three words should unlock it. Hum, I can hear the mechanism click on Courage, Honor and Glory. Lets see if that will unlock it" Tinker said.