Emissaries - A Primer

Honored Grandfather,I pen this missive to you with a heavy heart, for I bring tidings of a great danger that may threaten our people. For all the life of our great people we have warred against our Blinded cousins (as you well know, having instructed us all in this matter within zrathikai). Our greatest strength in this struggle has never been our blades, or spellcraft, or even our mastery over the primal energies of our home here. It has always, rather, been in our ability to allow all true sons and daughters to adapt and excel in their own ways, while still keeping the unity of purpose and vision of freedom bestowed upon us by Your esteemed forebear. It is a talent which the Blinded ones, shackled as they are to the will of their false queen, have never been able to equal. But now I fear that they may have found a way to match their strongest wills against us. Many of the Blinded still willingly die to feed the ego of their deathless liege, but some have found another path - that of the Emissary. These souls, though few, have powers and experience unmatched among the Blinded ones, and perhaps are a match for even the mightiest of our own kind. They pose a new danger to our vision and our purpose, one which must be understood and fought if we are to survive. It is to this end that I write these words to you, O Honored Grandfather, so that you and my brethren alike can know what we now face.What is an Emissary?Two great lies are sheltered within the heart of each of our Blinded cousins: that the great expanse of nothingness and thought called the Astral is their birthright, and that none of their kind may be allowed to pose a challenge to the power of their false queen. So deep do these lies worm themselves that most of the Blinded who achieve greatness offer no opposition when their tyrant seeks their lifesblood; of those who do seek to resist, many fight openly, or flee to a distant corner of the Astral, and are inevitably crushed. A few, though, are bold enough to depart the Astral entirely in their quest for survival, and pass on to another of the Outer Planes. Those that do so often survive a great while, and are known as Emissaries.An Emissary, then, is one of the most powerful members of a dread and fallen race. He is often skilled both in the ways of blade and of spell, and possesses many items of ancient magic. He has learned to walk the planes and can survive and prosper in the deadliest of them - for those Blinded ones who become Emissaries are, by nature, drawn to the fiend-torn wastes of the lower planes rather than more hospitable climes. And though the bleak expanses of the Astral are no longer his home, an Emissary still knows much of the Silver Road, and can use it as a temporary retreat or means of travel should such prove necessary.If an Emissary has any true weakness, it is isolation - as outcasts, they will naturally seek to avoid any contact which might betray their existence to their shackled kindred and the queen they have abandoned. It is for this reason that few Emissaries have ever been seen in a gate-town, and why they never set foot within Sigil. They also seek to avoid the chaotic planes, knowing that we would not let them live in peace. (It is a shame, perhaps, that no Emissary has ever sought to join our cause, though such a redemption would be difficult for us to trust. Truly, the blindness of our cousins runs deep.)Make no mistake, however - though an Emissary may fight alone, this does not make him easy prey. Challenge an Emissary in a warband, and he will see the rifts and grievances between you, and know the best way to set you against one another - or so the legends say. And while an Emissary has no true friends, no being can survive the Lower Planes for long without establishing truce with fiends and other local allies. Threaten the life of an Emissary, and he will call upon their aid now and worry about the price afterwards.And finally, if you find an Emissary alone, worry that all may not be as it seems. While it was true in the past that such outcasts would always seek to rely on no one but themselves, matters have begun to change in recent cycles. Several Emissaries have now joined together in bands, and some are even joined by brethren and servants drawn from the younger among the Blinded. Why such a matter has come about, and why it is so dangerous to our kindred, I shall relate presently.Known Bands of EmissariesAs I have explained, Emissaries can theoretically be found on any of the Outer Planes, so long as they place a barrier of reality between themselves and their false queen. In practice, most avoid the planes devoted to the powers of Good - the foul ways they have learned from the pretender who has enslaved them bind too closely - as well as those planes that are closest to our own demesne. What follows are some of the most common (and a few of the less common) places in which one may find Emissaries, and how one might deal with these most dangerous of our cousins.AcheronThe iron battlefields of Acheron are perhaps one of the favorite (if such a word can apply) planes for an Emissary to seek out. In such a strife-ridden and bloody place, one more exile often goes unnoticed, and many a petty warlord is willing to accept the strength of a wandering blade or a conjurer's magics. In this way, a newly exiled Emissary may manage to regain some measure of respect.The dangers of Acheron are varied and subtle, however. Some who arrive here find themselves drawn into its pointless wars, fighting out of sheer bloodlust and dying by mischance on some nameless battlefield. Others who try to pick and choose which battles they will participate in make enemies, earning the enmity of powerful fiends or generals who see the Emissary's refusal to wholly join the cause as only one step shy of outright opposition. To attract such attention is often fatal.As a result, most of the longer-lived Emissaries on the plane of Acheron become wanderers, usually mercenaries. This lifestyle makes the most of an Emissary's skills in battle, while avoiding the dangers of being too closely entangled in any warlord's plots. A cunning Emissary will seek to part with each employer on good terms, so that he may have allies in the future should he retrace his steps, and takes service as a special agent rather than a common freesword or even commander of soldiers. In no event will any Emissary ever accept a lieutenantcy under one of the powers of Acheron, however, or take any other permanent subordinate's position - the arrogance of the Blinded runs deep within them. Were it not for the cause of their choices in this matter, I could applaud their desire to remain free.Though a few Emissaries have successfully gathered other warriors under their banner as a company of freeswords, nearly all Emissaries on Acheron fight alone. It was here, therefore, that the rumors of Emissaries gathering into bands first came to my attention, and I began to investigate this matter further. The bands that have gathered most often have four to six Emissaries together - which alone is frightening enough, given the capabilities of any Emissary alone and their apparent willingness to cooperate closely on the battlefield. Worse yet, I have heard reports of a band of exceptionally dangerous Emissaries that includes a full dozen individuals. Rumor is as slippery and uncertain as a slaadi's breath, to be certain, but I believe that I have heard enough to confirm that this group exists. They command extremely high prices for their service in Acheron's endless battlefields, including items of magic, and I fear that they may be building an arsenal for later use. Why this is a matter of concern to our kind, Honorable Grandfather, I must further beg your indulgence with a promise that all will soon be made very clear.CarceriMany Emissaries also seek out the prison plane of Carceri as a place of exile, willingly imprisoning themselves as an escape from their vengeful kin. Though the dangers of this place are many, an Emissary who comes here has one unique advantage. He knows many tales of the plane of Torments and its denizens, while they know little of him or indeed any of our kindred. This mastery over secrets, and the advantages it can create, are all an Emissary needs to live - if used wisely.Those that come to Carceri often take up the lives of hermits, neither interfering in the lives of others banished to this place nor asking for help in return. To continue living here is not as difficult as in some places - though Carceri is a place of torture, it rarely kills those it has entrapped, for such a death would mean an end to all suffering. A watchful Emissary, then, can avoid the worst torments of this place and survive well enough - though he will rarely be happy, or free from fear. Such is not the nature of this place.An Emissary trapped in Carceri rarely acts on new arrivals, save sometimes to sate his baser instincts. Like all our Blinded cousins, Emissaries revel in vicious acts and the infliction of pain and suffering. While trapped within Carceri, an Emissary has little chance to practice such cruelty, for his more powerful neighbors would surely object and torment or slay him in turn. But those newly exiled to the plane, without power or allies, have no such protection. Such are inevitably prey should they come across an exiled Emissary too soon, their suffering either being expressed directly or possibly more subtly, as the Emissary traps them into being the toys of some greater power of the plane.GehennaEmissaries also seek a place within the blasted lands of Gehenna. This fiery plane is within the sphere claimed by the dread Baatezu, and is their favored ground within the Blood War. Any Emissary that comes here, therefore, must be willing to deal with these creatures and their endless conflict. (Such is also true for Carceri and the Tanar'ri, mind you, but is of lesser import; the Tanar'ri are more disorganized and less apt to object to an intruder into 'their' domain, and there is a greater space in which an exile may hide.) Those Emissaries that fail to match wills with the agents of the Lords of the Nine soon perish.It is perhaps apt that in such a shattered and empty place as Gehenna that most Emissaries end up claiming a tower or fiefdom in some forgotten corner of the plane, ruling over a scrap of land at the sufferance of its higher powers. Such a citadel is necessary if one is to survive within Gehenna; any lesser defense or dwelling would inevitably be crushed in one of the innumberable clashes between baatezu and tanar'ri. Of course, the claim that any Emissary has over his fief is tenuoous at best. Some are free in all but name, holding their lands with the understanding that they will oppose any of the Abyss who may seek to pass but turning a blind eye to the movements of devils and their kin. Others are more unfortunate, earning their holding only with the promise of servitude for a time in the armies of Baator. These misguided souls inevitably perish, forced to fight against demons that far outmatch any mortal soul.As in Acheron, so in Gehenna; groups of Emissaries have come together within the past few cycles, claiming greater fiefs and ruling them more freely than the Baatezu might like. A few of the mightiest towers have gathered lesser beings in their wake, unfortunates who seek protection or opportunists following deep-laid plots, and the Emissaries may command the loyalty of such. These citadels serve as outposts, strongpoints for our Blinded cousins outside the Astral Plane - but I have revealed too much on this matter, and must turn my pen aside for now.The Grey WasteThough an uncommon destination for Emissaries, this plane still sees its share of exiles from those who are Blinded. One might think that such a colorless, empty wasteland would prove to be a poor place to hide, but in truth those that flee here are shaped by the plane itself, vanishing within its bleakness. Unfortunately, such a camoflage is hardly healthy, and those who seek it are soon reduced to nothingness. For a being as powerful and arrogant as an Emissary, who instinctively strives against such a reduction in self, the process is all the quicker.For this reason, those Emissaries that prosper in the Grey Waste are generally those who are quickest of wit and fondest of intrigue. They make powerful agents for the masters of this place, and can even try their own hand at the great game - though no Emissary has more than a pittance of power to work with, they have equally little to lose. Like their fellows in Acheron, though, they walk a tightrope between masters - displease any being too greatly, and vengeance will be both quick and deadly.Among the foremost of players that any Emissary within the Grey Waste must consider are those fiends we know of as the Misshapen and others call 'yugoloths'. With many games to concern themselves with, the Misshapen are the most likely patrons for any Emissary, and at the same time most able to betray an Emissary to his false queen. For this reason, an Emissary usually seeks to find an equal hold upon any Misshapen patron he may accept, some surety against betrayal. In the all too common cases where this is not possible, the Emissary must settle for serving as short a time as is feasible and always having a path of escape.The BeastlandsTo one born to the lifeless silvered emptiness of the Astral Plane, there is perhaps nothing more alien than the verdant expanse of the Beastlands - and yet, Emissaries still come to this place. Their numbers are few, perhaps, and most have studied the ways of the hunter or traveled the distant lands of some Prime world, but they exist. A lesson may be drawn from this - we must never mistake the depths of decision that an Emissary may draw upon, nor discount what experience may lie in his past. Of all our Blinded cousins, the Emissaries are perhaps closest to recovering the truth of adaptation that Your forebear, in his wisdom, did gift to us.An Emissary who dares the Beastlands may find safe haven and a long life, or may meet a quick and bloody end - the choice is up to his own nature. It is possible, sometimes, for an Emissary who lives as a predator of the plane itself would - hunting only for what is needed, not disturbing the cycle of life otherwise, and opposing those who would upset it. Such a path leads to a guarded acceptance from the natives of this plane, but it is rare, for most Emissaries in this place seek to sate their cruelty and malice upon the defenseless creatures they meet. Those who indulge in such folly find themselves opposed by the powers of this place, or the plane itself, and are repaid in the pain they sought to inflict.PandemoniumOne would not think of Pandemonium as a place where an Emissary might seek to avoid the wrath of his deathless queen, and one would likely be correct. Its caverns are dangerous both to body and soul, testing an Emissary even more harshly than any would-be pursuers, and for those as twisted as the Blinded the madness offered here is even worse than death. Moreover, Pandemonium's howls are far too close to the centers of our own power, and no Emissary could afford to chance that we may not be merciful should we meet him.And yet, I have heard legends of one Emissary who chose to take the bleak path into this plane, and the tales are ones I fear to discount. They speak of a Knight among the Blinded called Vraijin, or Vlaijik, who sent many to the heart of his false mistress until he himself found himself damned to such a fate. It was he who dared Pandemonium, welcoming its winds rather than meet those he had sent before him, and the myths say that he survived the howls, and with his blade carved a hollow free of all madness. Nonsense, you must say, o Honored Grandfather, and I would not dare to disagree. But given what other deeds I know to have been done by Emissaries, I fear for what may be the truth behind the legends.An Emissary's FateTo all of these planes and more, then, may a Blinded one who seeks to avoid an empty death may flee. Yet in the end, this has only proven to delay the inevitable, rather than changing it. An Emissary who has made a home on one of the outer planes may have escaped a mandated doom, but he soon comes to find that his continued existence means nothing, or less than nothing. He has been allowed to flee because he can no longer speak to or lead his former people, and his death - though it may be delayed, and come in a different manner than a Knight's silver sword - is in the end no less certain.It is difficult to say what an Emissary does when he first realizes this truth, for in their loneliness there is rarely another soul to see what may come of this discovery. A few Emissaries have chosen to try and force meaning upon an indifferent cosmos, seeking to strike back in open rebellion against their false overlady or carving out some place for themselves within their adoptive home, but such attempts are rare. Moreover, born of sudden spiteful passion and without planning or focus, they are doomed to failure. It is to Your blessing and that of Your insightful forebear, O Honored Grandfather, that our kindred not only have the focus needed to avoid such futility but also the purpose sufficient to turn such a focus towards greater ends. But I digress.For the majority of Emissaries, it is said, the realization of their meaningless against the larger struggles of the cosmos causes despondency and anger, but does not change their larger lot. The habits of survival have grown too strong in them, and they seek to keep their flesh and their places within the cosmos intact, as inconsequential as that may seem against the larger scheme. Such Emissaries are morose, bitter, and cynical, seeking to control passions within themselves that never can be truly controlled. They may survive for a time, but eventually age, or the lures of some cunning fiend, overcome them and consume their vigor. So ends the greatest lie of all, that those of our blood might ever hope to prosper without knowledge of the great purpose that we, the cousins of the Blinded, possess.... Or rather, so it used to end. For truths can change, even on these Planes, and the false queen who shackles our kindred has found what may be the most dangerous words of all.I have hesitated to place these words on parchment, O Honored Grandfather, for fear of making the deeds behind them more true. But I find that I can delay no longer, and so I must tell you what you have likely, in your wisdom, already guessed: The Emissaries are exiles no longer. Those who have braved the pathways beyond the Astral have common cause with their brethren once again, and are at the forefront of a new expansion of empire. Lesser hands and astral-born magic now support the Emissaries' works; in return, the once-exiles share their might and learning. And so the power of our Blinded cousins extends beyond the citadels in their home of emptiness, and gains a foothold within all planes. For those like ourselves, who know of their past folly, it is a matter for grave concern.I do not know how such a decision came about. The tyrant who rules over our Blinded cousins is certainly no less fearful of challenges to her power, for the deaths of Blinded ones who have achieved any real measure of power still continues apace. Established Emissaries may work alongside their lesser brethren, but are still barred from appearing in any Astral citadel themselves or exercising any power within the heart of our Blinded cousins' empire; should they seek to do so, they are executed in the same way as their more shortsighted brethren. And yet they serve their race from afar, willingly, returning themselves to the bondage they once slipped and seeking to impose it upon all others. It is a sickness of the soul that I truly do not and can not understand. Nonetheless, it is real. It is all too real.For The FutureWhat this may mean, O Honored Grandfather, I am certain you understand far better than I. Nevertheless, I humbly seek to offer my thoughts on this matter, in hopes that you may clarify my poor insight. Fundamentally, I see this as a slow, but steady shift in the balance of power on the planes. With the Emissaries under her command, able to exercise her plots on many of the Planes, the false queen of our Blinded kindred will become a power that all must take into account. The question is what she may now seek to achieve.Best of all ends, but unlikely, is for the Blinded to battle again with our ancient enslavers. While this would pit our two great foes against one another, to the weakening of both, it is hardly something we can hope for. The skills of the Emissaries lie further outwards on the Great Wheel, not within the caverns of Ilsensine and his brood, and she who has shackled the Blinded must know the strength of the ancient ones as well as we do. Moreso, revenge has never so much been the tyrant's aim so much as raw ambition. I fear, therefore, that we must look elsewhere, and have mentioned this possibility here only to forestall those who might dream of such a happy mischance.The psurlons are another enemy that the Blinded might seek greater aid against, but again I think this unlikely. While the Emissaries would certainly prove worthy allies in such a campaign, they would have to return to the Astral to do battle - something which the tyrant must surely fear to allow. Barred from the battlefield, the Emissaries would only be able to provide magic and coin from afar to aid the efforts of their fellows - a minor enough contribution to be sure, and one which I do not think can justify the false queen's actions. No, the foe must be elsewhere. We may wish to remember the psurlons, as another threat which may draw the attentions of our Blinded cousins away from their ambitions, but they are not the target of this latest work.It is possible, also, that the false queen seeks to extend her reach so that she might meddle in that most ancient of conflicts, the Blood War. The Emissaries are uniquely suited to such a task, being spread all across the war's extent and having knowledge of both sides. With the full might of our Blinded cousins behind them, they might manage to affect the course of some battles, as we suspect the Misshapen of sometimes doing - but again, it is difficult to see why they might wish to do so. For all their faults, the Blinded have never suffered any obsession with the Blood War, nor any delusion that they might be able to affect its course. Without any sense that this may have changed, this also must be rejected as the cause.We come, then, to the last possible enemy that the Emissaries may be directed against - our own people, here in the Place of All Possibility. The pieces of the puzzle fit. Though no Emissary has direct experience with the conditions of our home, they have experience elsewhere - more than most of the Blinded ever receive. They have power, and knowledge of battles past, and need not use it on the forbidden expanse of the Astral Plane. And what they have learned, we have no knowledge of - giving an Emissary a better chance to triumph over us in battle.I think that we must assume the worst, O Honored Grandfather, and prepare for such a trial as has not been seen in a thousand cycles of the Wheel. I will not presume to advise you as to what our people must do, but I urge you: have them act. If my life is forfeit for my temerity, so be it; I would gladly sacrifice myself for the Vision and the Purpose. Even should you spare my words now, I fear that I will soon have to sacrifice myself in battle against the coming foe.Honored Grandfather, I fear. I fear for myself, for my brethren, for our people, and for the Purpose and the Vision. I fear for the legacy of Your most legendary forebear. I do not know what the future may bring, but for now I take what comfort I can in your power, your heritage, your cunning, and your wisdom.I remain, in all faith,Your scion,- Zerthjigai