The scribe was an older woman seated behind a desk of heavy oak.  She had a half-dozen inkwells next to her and a massive feather quill that looked to have been taken from a griffon or similar massive beast.  A stack of parchment higher than her head was on one side of her desk, and she was slowly moving it to the other side after adding a few notes.<br/><br/>When approached she nodded without looking up and pulled out a piece of paper.  “Names please.”  She carefully recorded each name under the job.  “Equipment insurance?  50GP per person.  It covers any loss of gear for any reason other than sale.”  Regardless of the answer she wrote a note and gave those gathered directions to the job’s contact.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Rockbreak Hill was somewhere between a large hill and a small mountain.  It was located roughly two day’s hard walk inland from Freehaven, a trip along mostly forgotten tracks through fields of grass and rolling hilly forests.  It had once served as the main quarry for Freehaven, only to be replaced by lower-quality but closer sources.<br/><br/>Near dusk on the second day a young forest melted away to reveal a massive plain of unweathered stone.  A half-mile in length and at least a mile in width it was smooth and flat with only occasional cracks and ridges where blocks had been broken off.  It ended at a sheer stone wall several hundred feet tall, as smooth as the plain it rose from.  At the base of the wall was a small collection of tents and scaffolds around which a group of people were moving.<br/><br/>As the adventurers drew closer they could see that the people were wearing clothes with many pockets and carrying around notebooks and quills.  There were no visible weapons, and many of the people had stained fingers and smudged faces.  Scribes by the look.<br/><br/>The bulk of the activity was around a rockfall, where part of the wall had collapsed to reveal a gaping chasm that faded into darkness.  A pair, a man and a woman, were arguing and their voices rose above the general din of activity.<br/><br/>“Then you go!”  The woman protested.  “We’ve already seen what they do to women, maybe they’ll act differently around men!”<br/><br/>“No no no.  We have seen that they won’t kill women, so clearly based upon the evidence it is better to send more women.”  The man countered.<br/><br/>"You just want to watch!"<br/><br/>"How dare you!"<br/><br/>"I am going to report this to the academy!"<br/><br/>"I am insulted by the very insinuation!"<br/><br/>The argument dragged on in increasingly incoherent and specific sentences.  It was clear, no matter that the current argument was about, it was an exercise the pair had engaged in often together.