Campaign: “The Shrouded Vale”
Episode 13: Hidden Ink
April 9, 2025
The moment Tavi Falconheart touches the envelope, the other three objects vanish in a shimmer of golden light. Gone. No time to reconsider.
He breaks the waxed seal. There's an old parchment inside. Opening cautiously, he begins to read. The paper is Smooth. Blank
Then, slowly—like ink blooming across fabric—a name begins to write itself at the bottom.
Borra.
With a low groan, the wall beside him begins to shift. Pipes retract. Stone panels grind back. A doorway opens into darkness—and torchlight floods out.
From the shadows, a figure steps forward. Limping slightly. Cloaked in deep red, black armor beneath, hands gloved in fine leather stitched with silver.
Older. Scarred. Confident. It was Borra. Smiling like they’d just seen each other yesterday.
Tavi, my friend,
he says. Still alive. Still impressive. Come—walk with me.
They enter together. The chamber beyond is massive—circular, torchlit, and lined with weapon racks, hanging chains, pressure plates. A dueling arena, perhaps.
Borra continues calmly. I’ve followed your progress. All of it. You’ve handled yourself well. You’ve done things even I might have hesitated to try. And more importantly—
he pauses, placing a hand on Tavi’s shoulder—you’ve done it with grace. A Ranger, yes. But you could’ve been the finest rogue I ever trained beside.
Tavi doesn’t respond. His eyes scanning the room for a possible exit.
I lead something now,
Borra continues. We call it The Shrouded Vale. Not a place—an idea. A guild. My guild.
He pauses. Our guild! And now I offer you something rare.
He gestures toward the letter still clutched in Tavi’s hand. It’s no longer blank.
Somehow, while they walked, it has filled itself in—line by line, clause by clause. A contract. Detailed. Signed already by Borra. At the bottom, in bold strokes, the words: Sign here.
You’ve earned more than survival, Tavi. You’ve earned legacy. Join me—not as an initiate. But as my right hand.
There’s no pressure. No threat. Only silence, and the hum of magic in the walls around them.