Guardians of the Veil Status ●
The Emissary has a low-status job with a deceptively simply description: he relays communication between the Guardians of the Veil and other orders. Secrecy and espionage complicate matters considerably, however, and give the Emissary more dangerous duties.
The Emissary’s simplest job is to relay messages from the caucus to the local Consilium. As some Guardians will not even name their Epopt or indeed, even show their true faces, the Emissary is often the first one to be interrogated by the Hierarch about the order’s motives and activities.
These meetings can include blackmail, lies, bribery and threats, all delivered to order from the Guardians’ caucus. Some mages get very, very upset when an order flunky drops by to utter a secondhand threat. Emissaries risk the wrath of angry mages who might “shoot the messenger,” but Guardians do let others know that they will not tolerate assaults on their chosen Emissary. The Emissary is often belittled, insulted and goaded into a challenge. Persecutors should be careful, however, because even though the Emissary is a low-status job, powerful and influential Guardians aren’t barred from it, either.
A good Emissary has an excellent memory. Not only does she need to recite long messages at will, but she is expected to take note of what she encounters during the course of her duties. Later, the rest of the caucus will debrief her, squeezing out any information that the members might find relevant.
Finally, the Emissary maintains contact with Guardian agents in other orders and factions. The Emissary rarely knows the purpose of intent of a message. Instead, the caucus designs coded statements for the Emissary to recite. This way, Emissaries bring orders and information to anyone who secretly serves Guardians of the Veil. On other occasions, the Emissary has a more active role, representing the order when it comes time to pay the agent or court the services of someone new. After consulting with the caucus, the Epopt usually gives the Emissary a specific plan: offers to make, non-negotiable items and relevant facts. Emissaries in these situations need to be able to improvise without overstepping their bounds. Even though Guardians are not above breaking promises, they do prefer to avoid the tactic as much as possible. An Epopt often gives low-status Emissaries chances to prove themselves by sending them to negotiate with agents.
