Dark supporters: Recognition that tickles the conscience

[*frozen_heart_of_cania]

A six by six feet, heavy, dark mahogeny box stands in the Barrack's reception hall. It may perhaps be a matter of confusion to officers how it got there, and it may have took some explaining to their superiors that no one actually brought it in: simply, one second it wasn't there, and another just was.  {Sense Motive/Spot/Diplomacy DC35: A subtle but clear display of power}

Seal of baatorian Ministry of Mortal Relations pins an envelope addressed "To the commanding diplomatic officer".

Whoever opens it finds the attached letter

"To Merited Keepers of the Peace,
Virtuous Champions of Order,
Heart and Blood of Sigil's Law
 - the Harmonium,
{Sense Motive/Spot/Diplomacy DC30: Whoever wrote this certainly went an extra mile customary sugarcoating.}

along with words of Respect for your continuous demonstration of heartly effort towards achieving a Better Tomorrow, on this tragic anniversary we wish to pass our deepest condolences. For little consolation this may offer we more than anyone understand the anguish of perdition. May the humble tribute attached with this message symbolise our sympathies and support for your cause. {Sense Motive/Spot/Diplomacy DC30: The tribute is a nice gesture, but you get a feel there is something potentially upsetting between the lines being said delicately here. You don't think it's a mockery, but the thought of genuine understanding from senders like this may be just as troubling.}

The Ministry's firm belief is that the Harmonium's rise to might over recent centuries along with its undisputable dedication to righteousness are enough to prove them a force to be reckoned with, and a partner worthy of discussion. {Sense Motive/Spot/Diplomacy DC35: Sugarcoating again, this time gradually scaling down. Textbook technique for managing your and other party's position of power in negotation. }

Bearing that recognition in mind we are thus pleased to humbly invite the Harmonium's representatives to a diplomatic summit, to open a channel of dialogue between our parties, in location of your choice. {Sense Motive/Spot/Diplomacy DC40: One could learn a lot from the baatorian diplomacy: while allowing the other party such choice may seem foolish - for the capacity to abuse it - and hence weak, this in fact is another display of strength, subconsciously relaying either trust or fortitude to withstand potential attempted abuse}.

Signed: on behalf of the Sigil Coordinator,
Aesmenoth
The Nine Hells of Baator Ministry of Mortal Relations"

Below given is a return address.

When the box is opened inside found are four large buckets of shimmering yellow flowers. {Lore DC25: These are pyrite daffodils. A type of flower that grows almost exclusively in Nemausus. You begin to put pieces together. The tragic anniversary the devillish letter refers to must be of the the infamous descent of the the formerly Arcadian layer Nemausus to Mechanus - by many and not without a reason thought to be the Harmonium's greatest failure, an ultimate monument to their guilt, where somewhere in the allegedly dubious practices in "prisoner reformation" camps, ideals of law tipped away from ideals of good a step too far - so far a whole layer of an outer plane slipped away from the dominion of good}

With them packed are also around 50 platinum cogs and a few handful of valuable gems, few warding amulets, three Holy Avenger* blades, and a pile of contracts allowing the holder to summon a devil from Lower Planes to serve them for 2 hours; these include one amnizu, two cornugons, four hamatulas, eight osyluths, sixteen erinyes and thirty two barbazus.

[*Viann]

Nica wasn't the first of the Harmonium to reach the box, nor its message. It was under thorough investigation already by the time she heard of the mystery box. However two words struct an immediate recognition even before seeing the letter. Baator, and diplomatic. The already naturally stern looking hardheads eyes squinted in an inherent suspicion, a reaction she had to all things fiends. "Maraphiel..."  She uttered her suspicion, there was a tiny edge to the words. Once given the opportunity, Measure One Nica read through the letter carefully. Having both the past encounters with all the baatezu whom had already long time tried to form ties to the Harmonium through her, and particularly high attention to details, she could see through the many sugarcoated convoluted implications. ((Having 42 spot without helmet, she can't fail those checks. Since in DnD you don't auto-fail skill checks even on 1.))

She hadn't quite expected this kind of maneuver, but then. In hindsight she should've. Politics, she never liked politics. It was always twisting arms to gain an advantage over one another under the guise of working together, that was the unwritten rule and not going by it would turn everyone against you - even those you spoke for. But often the correct move was to do just that. It was undeniable that a collaboration would be in mutual benefit. With the resources and assistance of Baator any form of attempt to spread the law would be that much easier. And the amount of information immortal devils could provide could become vital against the many dangers of the multiverse. And they shared many ideals...

She analyzed it quietly, biding her time as those around her were waiting for a reaction. "We should decline." She finally decreed, after long time of trying to remain non-commited to the matter, tossing the letter on the desk as she straightened. "Maraphiel and her ilk have been endlessly trying to gain my support for this. Maraphiel is a baatezu, like the sender of this letter." she regarded as she gestured at the very letter. "At the end of the day, they are fiends. They're barely better than many of those whom we seek to see behind bars. Barely better than most of the factions - just planning to use us as fodder. Gifts they offer are cheap in the grand scheme of things." She straightened up, looking at others. "I joined the Harmonium to serve its goals. I did not join to serve the Nine Hells." She let that sink in for a while before continuing. "But it's not my decision to make. I will respect my superiors decisions."

[*Bloodlines]

Measure Nica was not the only one that had caught word of the letter from the so-called Baatorian representative. A mysterious package being delivered to the barracks so overtly definitely caught someone's attention, and perhaps some of their ire. Upon reading the letter, Factol Sarin crumpled it up and tossed it aside.

"A sad joke and a pathetic bribe," he said to those in the room with him, and turned to the package that was delivered. "Return the cogs and gems to the messenger. Burn the scrolls. As for the holy avengers, they've been liberated from the hands of fiends. We'll add them to our armory after our mages have cleansed them of any taint the devils may have placed on them."

He then turned to address everyone in the room. "Let me make myself painfully clear. The Harmonium do not deal in the false promises of Baator. We do not bend our views in support of the falsehoods of the Lower Planes. Our way, the Harmonium Way, is the true path and we seek to spread these virtues across the multiverse and not allow the forces of corruption to sway our Golden Harmony."

He then took up a quill and paper, wrote something down, and handed it to Nica. "You can consider this your Factol's official response and deliver it to this fiend along with the rest of her trinkets."

The letter reads:

To Aesemenoth,

Bollocks.

Ill Regards,
Factol Sarin