The Caliph was a figure of no small weight in the Ottoman Empire, whose recent death has opened a vacancy of power and shifted the balance of rule. His passing is confirmed in converse between the Crown Prince Abd-ul Mejid and Osman Hamdi Bey, wherein the latter agrees to lend the Prince his aid in the transfer of power. The legacy of The Caliph presses still upon the politics of the Empire and colours the conduct of many a hand.
The party comes to learn of The Caliph's death through their talk with the Crown Prince and with Osman Hamdi Bey, both of whom urge the gravity of the hour. Osman Hamdi Bey allows that he shall want assistance as he takes up the burdens that fall to him upon the Prince's accession. The company perceives that it is being drawn into the intrigues that follow The Caliph's demise; Osman Hamdi Bey lays out a design to turn their several talents against the threats now gathering upon the Empire. So is the stage set for the party's part in clandestine work under the "certain Community" — which is to say the Empire's secret service — amidst all the tension that attends The Caliph's death.