Nadia enters the Emerald Clan Village with Maelin and Corren close behind, the black vellum and cipher wheel secured in her hands. Emerald guards wave them through as the three clan delegations hurry toward the Elders’ Meeting Hall.
Inside, Zey Yeni stands beneath the meeting hall’s carved rafters beside the seated elders. Each elder has a human face, wolf ears, and a furred tail, their clan colors marking Emerald, Ruby, and Lapis alike.
Zey Yeni
You are back sooner than expected. Set the case before us, Nadia, and let Maelin speak before judgment settles on her.
Nadia places the vellum and cipher wheel on the central table. Maelin remains standing rather than claiming a seat, while Corren lowers his spear and faces the elders openly.
Maelin Voss
Ferric ordered the operation through records maintained by the Ashen Registry. The split-crown seal routes information to Renova, where covert channels identify clan paths and selected targets.
Corren Vale
I gave an Imperial contact the eastern paths and the memorial’s location. I believed Ferric’s promise to protect my family. I was wrong, and I will answer for it.
Emerald elders
You carried Ferric’s writ into our sacred ground. Why should we believe you abandoned his command rather than seek a safer way to complete it?
“*Nadia steps forward, looking to the elder who had just spoken.* "Elder Lute, with all due respect. stand down." * She looks to Voss, then back to the elders.* "Listen to the Messenger. We have found critical information that points to a campaign, an order made. An order, which could spell war against all of Demi-Human Kind. Let her speak. And let her prove herself in what she has to say and her actions. She is WILLING TO HELP US." *she takes a moment to breathe* "Elder Lute, you and the rest of the Elders, Nana Yeni especially, know me best in this situation. Since you adopted me into the clan, I do not stand up for people often. But in this case. It's dire. Let her speak the facts."”
FAILURE (Good Reasoning, rolled -3)
“*Nadia steps forward, looking to the elder who had just spoken.* "Elder Lute, with all due respect. stand down." * She looks to Voss, then back to the elders.* "Listen to the Messenger. We have found critical information that points to a campaign, an order made. An order, which could spell war against all of Demi-Human Kind. Let her speak. And let her prove herself in what she has to say and her actions. She is WILLING TO HELP US." *she takes a moment to breathe* "Elder Lute, you and the rest of the Elders, Nana Yeni especially, know me best in this situation. Since you adopted me into the clan, I do not stand up for people often. But in this case. It's dire. Let her speak the facts."”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled -1)
Nadia Veyas
Elder Lute, with all due respect, stand down. Listen to the messenger. We found critical information pointing to a campaign that could mean war against all demi-human kind.
Nadia steps between the table and the elders, then turns her fixed stare toward Maelin before facing the council again. Her voice stays controlled, but the room feels the urgency beneath it.
Nadia Veyas
Let her speak and prove herself through her words and actions. She is willing to help us. Elder Lute, Nana Yeni, you know me best. I do not stand up for people often, but this is dire.
The appeal wins the room, though it costs valuable time. The elders postpone judgment and require Maelin to establish the cipher’s meaning before anyone commits the clans to action.
Lute
Very well. The messenger will speak, and we will test her claims against the case and wheel. No verdict will be passed before the evidence is heard.
Maelin Voss
Then I will begin with what I can prove. The split crown routes records to the Ashen Registry in Renova, and these markings identify the receiving chain.
Maelin turns the cipher wheel beneath the elders’ lamps and begins explaining each mark. Zey remains beside Nadia, while the council leans closer, now listening instead of threatening judgment.
✓ Quest Accepted
Establish Maelin’s credibility before the elders
Director's note
Nadia will stand silently beside Maelin, listening to her explanations. while also monitoring the room in case an elder speaks out for no good reason
Maelin Voss
The outer ring marks the archive, while the crossed stroke identifies the receiving chain. This sequence is not a battlefield cipher. It records intelligence transfers.
Maelin rotates the wheel again, aligning its etched symbols beneath the lamplight. Nadia stands silently beside her, eyes fixed on the courier while her attention also measures every elder around the table.
Lute
And the four clan marks? Do not tell us they merely describe old records. Why were they placed together?
Maelin Voss
They identify a shared operation. The final stroke indicates active authorization, not an archived report. Someone ordered continued collection against all four clans.
A quiet stir passes through the elders. Zey’s ears angle toward Maelin, while Nadia’s stare remains steady, catching each raised brow and tightened hand before dissent can become disorder.
Lute
Then your captain is not acting alone. What proof ties this authorization to Ferric, rather than to some older campaign buried in Renova?
Maelin Voss
The route cipher is current, and the dispatch seal matches Ferric’s command office. I cannot prove who wrote the first order, but I can prove his unit received and acted upon it.
Director's note
a look of concern on Nadia's and Yeni's faces.
“We all know the Royal Guard only acts upon a order from the Emperor and his Generals. So is it possible the Emperor has a say in this...? *Nadia will ask Maelin curiously. But also fearing the worst.*”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +0)
Nadia Veyas
We all know the Royal Guard acts on orders from the Emperor and his generals. Maelin, is it possible the Emperor himself has a say in this operation?
Nadia remains beside Maelin, her eyes fixed on the courier while concern tightens her expression. Zey’s ears angle forward, and worry briefly shadows her elder’s face as the room waits.
Maelin Voss
Yes. The Emperor could have authorized it, directly or through his generals. The Royal Guard would not treat an operation of this scale as Ferric’s private undertaking.
Maelin Voss
But this cipher does not bear the Emperor’s personal seal. It proves Ferric’s unit received active authorization through the Ashen Registry, not who first issued it.
Maelin turns the wheel through another sequence, checking the outer ring twice. The examination costs the council several minutes, and the marks yield no further distinction between imperial command and delegated authority.
Zey Yeni
Then we possess a confirmed chain, but not its highest hand. We must not mistake suspicion for proof, even when the possibility points toward the throne.
Maelin Voss
That is the honest answer. I can identify the receiving chain in Renova, but learning whether the Emperor ordered this will require the Registry’s original authorization record.
✓ Quest Accepted
Determine whether the Emperor authorized the operation
Director's note
The face Nadia gave to Zey was one she'd know all too well. Nadia plans to gather info on her own accord, likely about to do something reckless and/or dangerous
Director's note
The look that Nadia gave to Zey is that Nadia plans to do something dangerous, and on her own. Most likely to find info on her own
“*Nadia's face tightens; she looks toward Yeni, determined, and then looks to the rest of the room and Maelin.* "Continue this talk; I trust you will all work together, as we are all now in the same boat. With Maelin here, and having not returned to his garrison. Ferric will start to suspect, as well as giving her inside knowledge. i must... prepare myself.. accord)”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +0)
Nadia Veyas
Continue this discussion. I trust you will work together. With Maelin here and absent from her garrison, Ferric will suspect her, especially with her inside knowledge. I must prepare myself.
Nadia’s face tightens as she looks to Zey, then across the elders and back to Maelin. Her meaning is clear: she will listen, but intends to make her own preparations afterward.
Zey Yeni
I know that look, Nadia. Do what you must to be ready, but do not mistake preparation for solitude. We will keep this council working.
Maelin Voss
Her absence will raise questions before night is over. I will explain the cipher’s chain while the elders decide what can be verified without sending anyone into Imperial hands.
The council resumes its examination. Time passes over the cipher wheel, and the delay costs them a precise account of the Registry’s highest authority, but the receiving chain and its active authorization are established.
Lute
Then we continue together. Maelin will give us every mark she can read, and the clans will decide what preparations follow from proven facts rather than fear.
“*Nadia leaves the hall, venturing out and to the shared residence of Elder Zey Yeni, which she now calls home.* (end scene)”
SUCCESS (Good Agility, rolled -2)