It was the early months of the Searing. Duchess Adelaide Barradin had received a private summons from Prince Rurik and was tasked with leading a diplomatic mission to Kryta. Having recently served as a diplomat to both Kryta and Orr at the end of the Third Guild War, she had the respect of the Krytan royal court. By her own discretion, the duchess handpicked a small but elite detachment of her own students and contemporaries, many of whom welcomed the reprieve from the front lines, while others worried for the comrades they left behind. The coterie of mesmers were to deliver correspondence and crucial tactical information to King Jadon of Kryta on the prince's behalf. In her later journals, she would reflect on this moment as the last time she would speak to her daughter and her husband.