A nondescript gardener wordlessly delivers a basket of fresh-cut blossoms to Olympus. The ever-vigilant Tod inspects the gift, searching for any ill omens. He withdraws a cleverly concealed note bearing Kaatya's mark. The parchment is secured for presentation to the guild.
Had Tod not resisted the urge to open it himself, he would have read:
"Dearest Guardians, I have left you in form but not in spirit. The malaise that has plagued me 'lo these many months has caused me great puzzlement and must be resolved.
Our former emperor and Senator of War were each subjected to prolonged torture, and tho rescued, they exist now in torment. The threat to the balance of our world is more pernicious than ever I have seen it.
If its source, strength and strategies are to be known, I must work from the shadows, incognito. Sadly, this means that my identity as a Guardian must be hidden from all. I dare not risk retribution upon you, my family, for my actions --- thievery, assassination, extortion, untruths, chicanery. And so, I go forth, asking for your prayers and that the gods watch over me.
Protect the balance, Guardians, as you always have. Even our Pain has value, for without it, how would we truly know our Pleasure."
Ever your sister,
Kaatya