Portalseers

When a collection of rifts that looked out onto other planes was discovered under the surface of Nazerum, a frozen world orbiting the flickering core of an ancient star in Near Space, the planet quickly became a tourist destination. Scientists briefly studied these “windows” and determined nothing could pass through them, and soon people from across the galaxy came to witness breathtaking vistas of the Elemental Planes, Heaven, Hell, and other planes in relative safety. Some believe an ancient civilization created the portals as entertainment, while others think they are naturally occurring.
However, when stories began to circulate a few years ago that the energy from the rifts could heal almost any affliction, a pseudoreligious group coalesced from those wishing to control and benefit from this phenomenon. They came to be known as the Portalseers and gained complete control over Nazerum. They now control access to the rifts, and access comes at a high price.

Structure

MEMBERS Membership in the Portalseers is small, and the group has only a few dozen members. Though they come from several different planets, all of them now live on Nazerum in a bunker that straddles the entrance to the mystical underground caves. Most members rotate their duties within the bunker and the caves, keeping the business of allowing visitors to the rifts running smoothly. A scant few others operate on other worlds, finding those who both need and can afford the portals’ powers and ferrying them to and from the planet.
LEADERS The leader of the Portalseers, Kaelee Cadlucaas (NE female Human envoy), keeps her past a secret, not even deigning to speak the name of her original home planet. Kaelee is fond of saying that Nazerum is her home now, and many of the Portalseers follow suit. Kaelee controls nearly every aspect of the Portalseers’ lives, establishing duty rosters and having final say on which visitors are allowed access to which rifts. The Portalseers view her as a kind, motherly figure—an image reinforced by Kaelee’s gray hair and smiling eyes.
ENEMIES The Portalseers don’t allow outsiders to study the rifts and haven’t accepted a new member since their founding. This hasn’t stopped a small group within the priesthood of Eloritu from attempting to infiltrate the Portalseers to discover Nazerum’s secrets. So far, they have posed as wealthy clients but have been turned away twice.
Kaelee’s hidden wealth has also attracted the attention of the Aspis Consortium, who sees the supposed scam of the Portalseers as another financial windfall it can control. Several Aspis agents have sent communiqués to Kaelee to establish terms for this merger but have received only thinly veiled threats in response.

Public Agenda

Ostensibly the Portalseer’s goals is to aid the sick by using the planar energies of the rifts, but their effectiveness is questionable. The Portalseers seem to take in those whose maladies are ill defined and, some would say, psychosomatic. Of course, guests to Nazerum return home claiming to feel recharged and energized, their expensive treatment worth every credit. This word-of-mouth praise and the air of exclusivity fostered by the Portalseers mean they will always be able to find clients among the rich and gullible.
Though Kaelee claims that every credit the Portalseers take in is used to maintain their facilities and study the effects of the rifts, she secretly has a private bank account that is quietly growing through embezzlement. Only a handful of other Portalseers are aware of this account, and they do everything in their power to deflect suspicion away from Kaelee, though it is unclear how she has engendered this loyalty.

Type

Illicit, Front