WEBVTT 00:00:01.989 --> 00:00:04.549 Hello, all you beautiful pants people. Just wanted 00:00:04.549 --> 00:00:07.049 to pop in to say thank you so much. Thank you 00:00:07.049 --> 00:00:09.070 for listening. Thank you for being our friends. 00:00:09.189 --> 00:00:11.490 And thank you for making this journey so meaningful 00:00:11.490 --> 00:00:56.719 and worthwhile. Our cultures are rich and varied. 00:00:56.899 --> 00:00:59.640 Our beliefs strain to one another. And this can 00:00:59.640 --> 00:01:02.240 be a challenging fact to some, a cause for some 00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:05.500 strife. But, you know, I like to focus thought 00:01:05.500 --> 00:01:07.980 on our commonalities and how beautifully they 00:01:07.980 --> 00:01:10.959 stand alongside our differences. Take our religions. 00:01:11.239 --> 00:01:13.280 Whether your world reveres land, spirits, or 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:15.459 covenant gods, faceless prophets, or death itself, 00:01:15.620 --> 00:01:17.459 we are all equally humbled by the great powers 00:01:17.459 --> 00:01:20.239 that shape our worlds and lives. These old stories 00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:22.439 of miracles bear so many similarities to one 00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:25.159 another. Like the many, many tales of old mortal 00:01:25.159 --> 00:01:28.000 heroes wielding divine or natural powers beyond 00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:30.780 what we generally consider possible. Stepping 00:01:30.780 --> 00:01:33.260 forth in times of calamity and making things 00:01:33.260 --> 00:01:36.099 right. Mythical figures like Phi May Moon of 00:01:36.099 --> 00:01:39.900 Samhka or Metzli of Talatepec. These old stories, 00:01:39.939 --> 00:01:42.879 much like our celebration of skyline shows, how 00:01:42.879 --> 00:01:45.180 we all connect to each other. Because there's 00:01:45.180 --> 00:01:47.519 one thing that every person in every world can 00:01:47.519 --> 00:01:59.620 appreciate. Steven? Nobody remembers how to do 00:01:59.620 --> 00:02:01.819 this. No. It's been a while. It's been a while. 00:02:02.519 --> 00:02:04.719 It's been two weeks. Two weeks. For us, yeah. 00:02:04.799 --> 00:02:08.280 Mr. Jimmy Wolf has been off in Chicago. Oh, yeah. 00:02:08.520 --> 00:02:09.759 Chicagoland. We haven't talked about that yet. 00:02:09.979 --> 00:02:12.979 Oh, yeah. I legit thought Chicago was on the 00:02:12.979 --> 00:02:14.740 West Coast. No, I was trying to think that we're 00:02:14.740 --> 00:02:16.860 fucking up our timelines again, but we're not. 00:02:17.759 --> 00:02:20.439 We're good. You're back. I'm back. Yeah, we couldn't 00:02:20.439 --> 00:02:24.120 have possibly talked about it before. Wait. Wait 00:02:24.120 --> 00:02:26.500 a second. Jeremy's just not there. He's still 00:02:26.500 --> 00:02:29.539 in Chicago. It's like, fuck. We already recorded 00:02:29.539 --> 00:02:34.520 the Chicago session. We're too good at this now. 00:02:34.699 --> 00:02:38.020 Tell us all about it. Tell us about it. It was 00:02:38.020 --> 00:02:41.180 fun. It was a whirlwind. It was a blur. Lots 00:02:41.180 --> 00:02:43.759 of things happened every single day. Ate way 00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:45.919 too much food. Oh, excellent. Way too much food. 00:02:46.199 --> 00:02:48.620 I swear I gained like 30 pounds, but we don't 00:02:48.620 --> 00:02:51.300 have a lot of stuff up here. So, right. You know, 00:02:51.300 --> 00:02:53.740 when we go back, you know, we get everything 00:02:53.740 --> 00:02:57.319 that we can't get here and get it in excess. 00:02:57.680 --> 00:03:00.020 Four inch thick pizza. No, we didn't have any, 00:03:00.099 --> 00:03:02.960 we didn't have pizza. Huh? No, no, but we went 00:03:02.960 --> 00:03:04.639 to one of our favorite spots. It's called Portillo's. 00:03:05.139 --> 00:03:08.520 It's like a, like a Chicago classic. I got like 00:03:08.520 --> 00:03:11.520 Chicago dogs, Italian beef. What's on a Chicago 00:03:11.520 --> 00:03:13.719 dog? Crinkle fries. They got the pizzas? Got 00:03:13.719 --> 00:03:15.800 the pizzas? What's on a Chicago dog? What's on 00:03:15.800 --> 00:03:19.199 a Chicago dog? It's a hot dog in a bun. And it's 00:03:19.199 --> 00:03:23.020 got mustard, relish, a pickle, some peppers. 00:03:23.379 --> 00:03:26.099 Cool. No ketchup. So the pickle makes it a... 00:03:26.099 --> 00:03:29.039 You get murdered if you put ketchup on it. That's 00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:31.199 what makes a Chicago dog. The murder. The murder. 00:03:31.259 --> 00:03:36.659 The murder. Because blood instead. No, many establishments 00:03:36.659 --> 00:03:38.259 have a wall of shame where if you get a Chicago 00:03:38.259 --> 00:03:40.330 dog and request ketchup on it... you get put 00:03:40.330 --> 00:03:44.129 up on the wall of shame. They just pin your whole 00:03:44.129 --> 00:03:46.530 body up onto the wall of shame. It's just a thing. 00:03:46.629 --> 00:03:48.310 They're like, hold on, let me get the ketchup 00:03:48.310 --> 00:03:50.189 for you, and they pull out a Polaroid instead. 00:03:53.189 --> 00:03:54.729 I don't know. I don't understand the reasoning 00:03:54.729 --> 00:03:57.770 behind it. It's a thing. It's just a Chicago 00:03:57.770 --> 00:03:59.569 thing. Well, if you are listening and you're 00:03:59.569 --> 00:04:02.650 from Chicago, you are a barbarian, and get off. 00:04:03.330 --> 00:04:05.909 All right, I want to make us some Chicago dogs 00:04:05.909 --> 00:04:10.219 so you can see. They're wonderful. Okay. They're 00:04:10.219 --> 00:04:11.759 really good. I'll try it. They're really good. 00:04:11.860 --> 00:04:14.759 I'll try it. Well, Stephen, you have some news 00:04:14.759 --> 00:04:16.899 for us, right? Very exciting news. Very, very 00:04:16.899 --> 00:04:21.319 cool news. We kind of sort of have mail. Mail 00:04:21.319 --> 00:04:28.019 time! Yes! Yes, Jeremy! Yes! It's mail that we 00:04:28.019 --> 00:04:32.220 sent ourselves. And if you follow us online, 00:04:32.279 --> 00:04:35.420 on our social media, or on Discord, then you 00:04:35.420 --> 00:04:39.509 will already know that we have... An ugly coyote 00:04:39.509 --> 00:04:44.149 zine. Boom, boom. But Steven, what's a zine? 00:04:44.430 --> 00:04:49.350 What is a zine? Basically, take a eight and a 00:04:49.350 --> 00:04:51.550 half by 11 inch piece of computer paper. Wow. 00:04:52.529 --> 00:04:57.050 Hold it. Hold it landscape. Hold it sideways. 00:04:57.709 --> 00:05:00.370 Fold it in half. And you have sort of like a 00:05:00.370 --> 00:05:02.610 booklet. Say no more, fam. But then stack a bunch 00:05:02.610 --> 00:05:04.209 of those on top of each other. Did you just call 00:05:04.209 --> 00:05:08.300 him fam? He's talking. So it's a mini magazine. 00:05:08.579 --> 00:05:11.240 It's a zine. And it's all about the Ugly Coyote, 00:05:11.300 --> 00:05:14.800 our fictional tavern that we have on the Radiant 00:05:14.800 --> 00:05:18.000 Citadel where our characters live and love and 00:05:18.000 --> 00:05:21.259 laugh and stuff. Because you guys made me make 00:05:21.259 --> 00:05:23.279 up a name on the fly that one time and I was 00:05:23.279 --> 00:05:26.379 really tired. And here we are. And here we are. 00:05:26.420 --> 00:05:29.120 It's a zine now. So what we're doing with this 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:32.180 little zine is we're simultaneously launching 00:05:32.180 --> 00:05:37.839 a coffee account. K -O. slash, no, sorry, not 00:05:37.839 --> 00:05:40.660 slash, dash. Hyphen if we want to get technical. 00:05:40.879 --> 00:05:46.019 Okay. K -O hyphen dash F -I dot com slash fantasy 00:05:46.019 --> 00:05:48.139 pants. Not the bad coffee. Not the shitty, gross, 00:05:48.160 --> 00:05:50.019 disgusting drink coffee. It's the good coffee. 00:05:50.160 --> 00:05:51.560 You know that's what it means, right? It means... 00:05:51.560 --> 00:05:55.660 Yeah. What? K -O -F -I. They're talking about 00:05:55.660 --> 00:05:58.500 like... It's like a cute thing. It's like, hey. 00:05:58.600 --> 00:06:00.379 It's like, buy me a coffee. You can go here and 00:06:00.379 --> 00:06:02.319 you can, you know, buy me a coffee. That's nothing 00:06:02.319 --> 00:06:07.459 for me. Too bad for you. So we didn't pick KO 00:06:07.459 --> 00:06:12.339 -FI because David dislikes coffee. We picked 00:06:12.339 --> 00:06:15.360 it because when we receive one -time donations, 00:06:15.639 --> 00:06:19.100 there are no pesky fees. We don't have to, you 00:06:19.100 --> 00:06:19.980 know what I mean? So it's like, if you want to 00:06:19.980 --> 00:06:21.399 give us a buck, cool, you're giving us a buck. 00:06:21.399 --> 00:06:23.920 You're not giving us 90 cents or whatever. So 00:06:23.920 --> 00:06:28.019 that's where the zine comes in. Wow. If you make, 00:06:28.160 --> 00:06:32.110 if you do a minimum of five bucks for us. We're 00:06:32.110 --> 00:06:33.250 going to mail you one of these. You just got 00:06:33.250 --> 00:06:35.709 to get us your address and you're going to get 00:06:35.709 --> 00:06:39.310 one. And they're really cool. The front cover 00:06:39.310 --> 00:06:42.629 was done by our friend Hungry Familiar. In the 00:06:42.629 --> 00:06:47.810 center of the zine is a removable double -sided 00:06:47.810 --> 00:06:52.009 map of the Ugly Coyote drawn up by our friend 00:06:52.009 --> 00:06:55.769 Rochelle Sound Pukey Girl. Then on the back cover, 00:06:55.910 --> 00:07:00.230 you have the character portraits done by Eric. 00:07:01.250 --> 00:07:05.209 who we've talked about a lot. Our Arakasan, he's 00:07:05.209 --> 00:07:07.490 on Instagram as well. You can find him. And then 00:07:07.490 --> 00:07:10.290 in between all of that stuff is a bunch of good 00:07:10.290 --> 00:07:13.170 things. A couple of mini adventures written by 00:07:13.170 --> 00:07:17.250 David, some history about the Ugly Coyote, some 00:07:17.250 --> 00:07:21.769 write -ups about the Cherry Delights who live 00:07:21.769 --> 00:07:24.410 in there, a little menu and all sorts of fun 00:07:24.410 --> 00:07:27.019 stuff. It's all slotted perfectly to make it 00:07:27.019 --> 00:07:30.100 into your worlds. Nothing that's tying it directly 00:07:30.100 --> 00:07:32.439 to this setting so that you can take it, put 00:07:32.439 --> 00:07:33.720 it in your world, and have all the characters 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:35.740 be there in their own ways that you decide if 00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:38.120 you're a DM and you want to add some fantasy 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:41.180 pants flair to your setting. So your players 00:07:41.180 --> 00:07:43.480 could someday show up to the Ugly Coyote. Yeah, 00:07:43.519 --> 00:07:47.019 yeah. And me, Chester. Hey! Chester's in it. 00:07:47.300 --> 00:07:49.300 Chester's in it. He's in it. He's in it. He got 00:07:49.300 --> 00:07:52.839 benched. So that's it. That's our spiel about 00:07:52.839 --> 00:07:54.480 the zine. You'll probably hear about it again. 00:07:54.500 --> 00:07:56.740 If he didn't, he'd be dead by now. Probably. 00:07:59.019 --> 00:08:01.180 With all that being said, do you guys want to 00:08:01.180 --> 00:08:06.300 put the zines away and play some dreams? What? 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:10.360 I don't know. You rhymed. Let me start. Okay. 00:08:11.379 --> 00:08:14.589 Let's retract that. That's not the segue. We 00:08:14.589 --> 00:08:16.329 can't use that. So I'm going to keep talking 00:08:16.329 --> 00:08:18.730 about zines for a second. All right, take it 00:08:18.730 --> 00:08:20.250 away. All right, and I'm going to find a better 00:08:20.250 --> 00:08:21.930 segue at the end of this. I don't have it now. 00:08:22.029 --> 00:08:23.870 It will be there. I just need to say one thing. 00:08:24.970 --> 00:08:28.610 Looking at the zine, the cover and the back and 00:08:28.610 --> 00:08:30.629 the map in the middle and all this coming together, 00:08:30.750 --> 00:08:33.690 it really makes me think about how much this 00:08:33.690 --> 00:08:38.629 whole campaign, how much what we do is so completed. 00:08:39.309 --> 00:08:41.850 by the community. I mean, like, I'm sitting here 00:08:41.850 --> 00:08:43.950 with my dice tower, and I've got my gold vein 00:08:43.950 --> 00:08:46.429 die from Zubir, my full metal die from the captain. 00:08:46.669 --> 00:08:48.669 You're looking at a zine that has so many hands 00:08:48.669 --> 00:08:51.230 reaching out and making it. We're eating candy 00:08:51.230 --> 00:08:53.409 from Michelle in the corner. Like, everything, 00:08:53.710 --> 00:08:56.159 this is amazing. I just want to say real quick 00:08:56.159 --> 00:08:58.860 that you guys are incredible for, for reaching 00:08:58.860 --> 00:09:01.659 out and like touching this campaign in so many 00:09:01.659 --> 00:09:03.700 ways. You're, you're having the luminary spotlights, 00:09:03.720 --> 00:09:05.519 having all these little things. It's, it's just, 00:09:05.539 --> 00:09:07.179 it's, I don't know. It's really cool. It's really 00:09:07.179 --> 00:09:09.639 humbling. I didn't expect there'd be so much 00:09:09.639 --> 00:09:12.360 community involvement in, in, in doing this sort 00:09:12.360 --> 00:09:16.320 of thing. And I'm so thrilled by it. Um, you 00:09:16.320 --> 00:09:24.659 know what else is thrilling? It was quite thrilling. 00:09:24.940 --> 00:09:27.240 It was a little ham -handed. Shut up. Shut up. 00:09:29.039 --> 00:09:32.399 Real quick, real quick, before we get into this, 00:09:32.460 --> 00:09:35.379 I do have something to say here. Last episode 00:09:35.379 --> 00:09:38.500 was awesome. I had a whole encounter ready to 00:09:38.500 --> 00:09:41.159 go. I had the Ettin ready to fight. I had the 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:42.720 Paraton ready to go down. This is going to be 00:09:42.720 --> 00:09:46.500 a dangerous fight, potentially, again. And we 00:09:46.500 --> 00:09:49.559 just didn't have it because you guys were creative 00:09:49.559 --> 00:09:53.480 and cool and awesome. And for that, I have a 00:09:53.480 --> 00:09:57.080 button for each of you. Hey. Because you've saved 00:09:57.080 --> 00:10:01.200 this arc for me one episode longer. That's worth 00:10:01.200 --> 00:10:03.779 it. And honestly, I love creative play. I love 00:10:03.779 --> 00:10:06.639 what you guys did. It was really cool. And maybe 00:10:06.639 --> 00:10:08.659 it's a little late to the party. Maybe, maybe 00:10:08.659 --> 00:10:09.960 I should have done this last time, but I was 00:10:09.960 --> 00:10:13.639 so excited I couldn't do it. Jeremy Wolf. When 00:10:13.639 --> 00:10:16.600 I said the name Zavar, I expected literally no 00:10:16.600 --> 00:10:18.620 response whatsoever, and you caught on to it 00:10:18.620 --> 00:10:21.000 immediately. You even quoted the scene in episode 00:10:21.000 --> 00:10:23.980 fucking 11. Damn straight. The only time this 00:10:23.980 --> 00:10:25.679 name has ever been said on the entire show, if 00:10:25.679 --> 00:10:28.059 I'm not wrong. Take a second button, sir. You 00:10:28.059 --> 00:10:30.779 deserve it. I will take this button that you're 00:10:30.779 --> 00:10:32.700 giving me because you feel bad after we discussed 00:10:32.700 --> 00:10:37.960 this just before we started recording. Hey. I'll 00:10:37.960 --> 00:10:40.460 take a pity button. Oh. I definitely closed Discord. 00:10:40.659 --> 00:10:44.279 Oh my God. I 100%. Okay, hang on. Hang on. Thanks 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:48.279 a lot, Zoobeard. Was it for real? Zoobeard. That's 00:10:48.279 --> 00:10:50.419 awesome. I'm going to read his Discord live in 00:10:50.419 --> 00:10:52.980 case it's funny. Oh, okay. You know, I'm going 00:10:52.980 --> 00:10:54.360 to read this out loud in this episode because 00:10:54.360 --> 00:10:56.360 it's really cool. Okay. This is Zoobeard reacting 00:10:56.360 --> 00:10:58.279 to the Luminary Spotlight he finally heard in 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:01.940 the episode. Oh, dude. Excellent. Already heard 00:11:01.940 --> 00:11:04.019 your Luminary spotlight on Instagram. Real. But 00:11:04.019 --> 00:11:05.480 I didn't realize it was going to be in the episode 00:11:05.480 --> 00:11:07.899 until today. You guys are more than a podcast, 00:11:07.960 --> 00:11:09.620 just like Zoobeard is more than a character. 00:11:09.820 --> 00:11:12.259 You deservedly have a great and loyal fan base. 00:11:12.360 --> 00:11:14.159 I was just talking about this. Oh, man. I love 00:11:14.159 --> 00:11:16.159 that guy. You fucking guys are so cool. Dude, 00:11:16.179 --> 00:11:19.559 for real. I can't even. It's so cool. So real 00:11:19.559 --> 00:11:25.500 quickly, I'll touch on the Spotify Rewind thing 00:11:25.500 --> 00:11:28.960 just came out, and we got to look at. Some of 00:11:28.960 --> 00:11:31.960 the stats and things like that. And my biggest 00:11:31.960 --> 00:11:35.399 takeaway, you look at the number of people who 00:11:35.399 --> 00:11:38.580 like listen to your podcast more than any other 00:11:38.580 --> 00:11:42.419 podcast. It was 29 people. We were number one. 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:44.620 Yeah. And then it jumped up to, I don't remember, 00:11:44.700 --> 00:11:49.159 for like top five was. 85. 85. Holy shit. 85 00:11:49.159 --> 00:11:51.519 people were in their top five podcasts. I think 00:11:51.519 --> 00:11:52.899 it was 85. It was somewhere right around there. 00:11:52.899 --> 00:11:54.500 I think it was 80 something. Just on Spotify. 00:11:54.759 --> 00:11:56.120 There's over 100 in the top 10, right? That's 00:11:56.120 --> 00:11:59.740 fucking wild. Yeah, top 10. 110 have us in their 00:11:59.740 --> 00:12:01.600 top 10. Top 10. I mean, I'm going to guess that 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:03.620 a lot of people just don't listen to 10 podcasts, 00:12:03.820 --> 00:12:07.019 period. I know I do. But, and then you think 00:12:07.019 --> 00:12:10.019 about it, that is just on one platform. It's 00:12:10.019 --> 00:12:15.279 fucking wild. Insane. So you, listening with 00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:20.340 headphones on your way to work. Thanks. On the 00:12:20.340 --> 00:12:23.139 bus. Thank you. For real, thank you. Man, speaking 00:12:23.139 --> 00:12:25.320 of top tens, you know what's going to be a top 00:12:25.320 --> 00:12:28.440 ten episode of Fantasy Pants? Episode 60? This 00:12:28.440 --> 00:12:34.600 one right now. Grown. It's getting better. We're 00:12:34.600 --> 00:12:39.120 getting hotter. Okay. Before we get really started, 00:12:39.200 --> 00:12:40.700 because I'm going to have a flashback to get 00:12:40.700 --> 00:12:44.279 this going. Spoiler alert. Before that, what 00:12:44.279 --> 00:12:47.059 do you guys remember about the term Mazir Drakon? 00:12:47.240 --> 00:12:49.340 I don't believe this has come up since Sapsunko 00:12:49.340 --> 00:12:52.279 in like episode 18 or so. Yeah, I remember that 00:12:52.279 --> 00:12:55.700 old guy said it about Ramin. It was like, not 00:12:55.700 --> 00:13:01.480 the chosen one, but like a important person. 00:13:02.019 --> 00:13:04.279 Yeah, yeah. You know, that's very close. Yeah. 00:13:05.210 --> 00:13:06.750 So long and short of it, there was an old blind 00:13:06.750 --> 00:13:09.389 man in Sbsunko that seemed to revere Amin Rasool. 00:13:09.549 --> 00:13:12.690 He referred to him as this Mazir Drakhan. And 00:13:12.690 --> 00:13:14.169 when prompted to explain the word, he went on 00:13:14.169 --> 00:13:16.309 to tell you that it was an old word, an ancient 00:13:16.309 --> 00:13:19.529 word passed down in old legend. Some would use 00:13:19.529 --> 00:13:21.950 this to refer to Fai Maymoon, the legendary figure 00:13:21.950 --> 00:13:23.870 in Sbsunko lore that called upon the spirits 00:13:23.870 --> 00:13:26.210 of the land and pulled the tall mountainous borders 00:13:26.210 --> 00:13:28.149 from the earth, protecting the residents of the 00:13:28.149 --> 00:13:30.769 Valley of Zantini from an outside attack. This 00:13:30.769 --> 00:13:33.159 was long, long, long, long, long ago. According 00:13:33.159 --> 00:13:36.080 to this man, Mazeer Drakon translates to one 00:13:36.080 --> 00:13:39.039 that is chosen by the spirits of the land. Whether 00:13:39.039 --> 00:13:40.940 this translation is the same outside of Sipsanko, 00:13:41.000 --> 00:13:43.679 you don't know. It is a world that worships great 00:13:43.679 --> 00:13:47.659 spirits in lieu of gods. There have been a number 00:13:47.659 --> 00:13:49.019 of such figures throughout the histories of all 00:13:49.019 --> 00:13:50.919 the worlds, born during times of great crisis, 00:13:51.139 --> 00:13:53.700 figures that wield unbelievable powers and the 00:13:53.700 --> 00:13:56.740 ability to create miracles. He referred to this 00:13:56.740 --> 00:14:00.200 man, referred to such people as being born with 00:14:00.200 --> 00:14:03.419 the words of spirits in their ears. and as people 00:14:03.419 --> 00:14:06.120 who could change the world in impossible ways. 00:14:06.600 --> 00:14:08.740 And he did believe that Ramin Rasool was one 00:14:08.740 --> 00:14:11.139 such figure. Because many know of Ramin's resurrection 00:14:11.139 --> 00:14:14.019 by Atash, which is in itself very odd, as Atash 00:14:14.019 --> 00:14:16.480 only resurrects criminals who have yet to face 00:14:16.480 --> 00:14:19.820 full judgment. He never uses powers or the powers 00:14:19.820 --> 00:14:22.019 of subordinate celestials to bring the innocent 00:14:22.019 --> 00:14:24.720 back to life. But what makes Ramin's case even 00:14:24.720 --> 00:14:27.419 stranger is the fact that he returned with burgeoning 00:14:27.419 --> 00:14:30.639 celestial powers of his own. A seeming miracle. 00:14:31.419 --> 00:14:34.299 Whether or not Ramin truly is a Mazir Drakon, 00:14:34.360 --> 00:14:37.840 as the man thought, you do not know. But it seems 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:40.519 there is a Mazir Drakon that walks among the 00:14:40.519 --> 00:14:44.559 worlds in the form of little Paul. And hearing 00:14:44.559 --> 00:14:46.299 this, Jules, you might recall a number of times 00:14:46.299 --> 00:14:48.259 where Paul seemed to be aware of something before 00:14:48.259 --> 00:14:51.340 it happened, such as the storm over Tythos or 00:14:51.340 --> 00:14:55.440 the fall of the Sapphire. So with that reminder 00:14:55.440 --> 00:14:59.899 in place, I'd like to go into a little flashback. 00:15:00.539 --> 00:15:03.840 And I need to, right now, say, this is going 00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:06.399 to be dark. This is going to be very dark and 00:15:06.399 --> 00:15:10.399 grim, and it will involve children. So, if that's 00:15:10.399 --> 00:15:15.720 uncomfortable, skip ahead. Black screen. We hear 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:20.960 the sounds of metal grinding against stone. And 00:15:20.960 --> 00:15:25.100 we open on a massive doorway, iron -made, closing 00:15:25.100 --> 00:15:29.639 shut. on a vast mining cavern. As we stare out 00:15:29.639 --> 00:15:31.379 at the light of day, disappearing behind the 00:15:31.379 --> 00:15:33.639 great metal barrier, we can see a number of armored 00:15:33.639 --> 00:15:36.799 men on the other side. Their eyes are haunted, 00:15:37.039 --> 00:15:39.820 mouths tight. They look sickened by what they 00:15:39.820 --> 00:15:43.100 see inside the cavern, by what they leave behind. 00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:46.539 And as we see these men in this light, fully 00:15:46.539 --> 00:15:50.580 vanishing behind the slamming of metal, we see 00:15:50.580 --> 00:15:55.029 what Miskin sees. The Laroche Guard. that usher 00:15:55.029 --> 00:15:57.629 the children from Aurora Town to the Fire Opal 00:15:57.629 --> 00:15:59.269 Conquer Jewel, and then from the Gemstone Port 00:15:59.269 --> 00:16:01.990 in Manzanare straight to the mines hidden behind 00:16:01.990 --> 00:16:04.710 the nearby town of Hollow. Those men are gone 00:16:04.710 --> 00:16:09.269 now. There are no men left within this mine. 00:16:09.730 --> 00:16:14.950 Only monsters. If Jessenth Kellig was radish 00:16:14.950 --> 00:16:18.629 in his features, then Zavar can be best described 00:16:18.629 --> 00:16:22.700 as a boar. Slanted nub of a nose, bulging, uneven 00:16:22.700 --> 00:16:25.419 eyes. His frame, with his hunched back and bloated 00:16:25.419 --> 00:16:28.779 stomach, looks nearly spherical. No neck to speak 00:16:28.779 --> 00:16:32.139 of. It's a grotesque sight, but not one that 00:16:32.139 --> 00:16:34.379 would surprise Jules or Dredna. This is the man 00:16:34.379 --> 00:16:37.460 they knew in their days in the Tower of Authority. 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:42.639 But the gray, slick skin, the sharp, dagger -like 00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:45.620 teeth form perfectly for rending flesh, the eyes 00:16:45.620 --> 00:16:49.220 sunken and lifeless. These features are new. 00:16:49.759 --> 00:16:53.519 A stink radiates from the news of our particular 00:16:53.519 --> 00:16:56.419 potent smell of rot that seems to fill the entire 00:16:56.419 --> 00:17:00.399 massive cavern. His henchmen are much the same, 00:17:00.460 --> 00:17:03.059 two of them, lingering in the light, though more 00:17:03.059 --> 00:17:05.700 linger in the shadows of the deeper mine. Cold, 00:17:05.700 --> 00:17:08.480 pale flesh, hungry eyes with no sparkle, long 00:17:08.480 --> 00:17:10.779 tongues that hang from their mouths, lolling 00:17:10.779 --> 00:17:13.099 and swaying around with their every movement. 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:16.920 One of them has their icy hands. Wrapped around 00:17:16.920 --> 00:17:20.500 Miskin's arms, grip unnaturally strong. He's 00:17:20.500 --> 00:17:23.299 been held fast as a monster called Zavar moved 00:17:23.299 --> 00:17:25.880 between him and Paul, looking over his other 00:17:25.880 --> 00:17:29.799 two gifts from Cerise. Round stuff had been taken 00:17:29.799 --> 00:17:32.920 immediately to a nearby cell, and she now watches 00:17:32.920 --> 00:17:35.799 her thick bars, hands shaking, where she grips 00:17:35.799 --> 00:17:42.279 as her friends are appraised. This one, the imbecile, 00:17:42.660 --> 00:17:48.720 he is worthless to me. Zavar speaks. A drop of 00:17:48.720 --> 00:17:50.619 blood runs down Paul's forehead where Zavar's 00:17:50.619 --> 00:17:54.579 long, clawed fingernail has cut a slash. Paul 00:17:54.579 --> 00:17:57.779 stares forward, quiet, his consciousness buried 00:17:57.779 --> 00:18:00.960 deep behind his eyes. I realize I've never actually 00:18:00.960 --> 00:18:03.920 described Paul in much detail. I've always seen 00:18:03.920 --> 00:18:06.039 a boy about eight years old, still very young, 00:18:06.200 --> 00:18:10.940 always imagined, especially small, dark skin 00:18:10.940 --> 00:18:12.819 with very short cut hair that never seems to 00:18:12.819 --> 00:18:15.980 really grow. I imagine large eyes, light brown 00:18:15.980 --> 00:18:18.519 with specks of shimmering gold, often staring 00:18:18.519 --> 00:18:23.519 far off as if lost in a dream. And this one? 00:18:24.420 --> 00:18:28.839 Zavar looks into Miskin's narrowed eyes. I know 00:18:28.839 --> 00:18:32.579 a lost cause when I see it. You may take them 00:18:32.579 --> 00:18:37.559 both into the dark and feast. Paul does not react 00:18:37.559 --> 00:18:40.630 to the words. Miskin tries to struggle to move 00:18:40.630 --> 00:18:42.890 against the ghoul that holds him, to reach his 00:18:42.890 --> 00:18:46.930 belt of ragged cloth. No! Roundstuff screams 00:18:46.930 --> 00:18:48.869 out from her cell, prompting Dvar to turn in 00:18:48.869 --> 00:18:51.230 her direction, his arm flashing out in dramatic 00:18:51.230 --> 00:18:55.869 sweeping gesture. Do not touch that tiefling 00:18:55.869 --> 00:19:00.269 under any circumstances. Her blood is blessed 00:19:00.269 --> 00:19:03.650 by demonic influence already. Roundstuff with 00:19:03.650 --> 00:19:05.950 her light. Purple skin and small tiefling horns 00:19:05.950 --> 00:19:10.009 continues to scream out against the bars. Itsmin's 00:19:10.009 --> 00:19:12.990 child has shown us the potential inherent in 00:19:12.990 --> 00:19:17.130 tieflings, and this specimen will be even more 00:19:17.130 --> 00:19:21.529 potent. Perhaps it will hold her new form even 00:19:21.529 --> 00:19:25.730 during the light of day. He begins to move towards 00:19:25.730 --> 00:19:28.710 round stuff, grinning a hungry growl entering 00:19:28.710 --> 00:19:34.579 his voice. Congratulations, child. Come the toll 00:19:34.579 --> 00:19:36.859 of midnight on the night of the remembered, I 00:19:36.859 --> 00:19:40.339 will remake you. The bones of the ancient be 00:19:40.339 --> 00:19:44.259 brimming with power. Power to be shaped. Power 00:19:44.259 --> 00:19:48.720 to transform. Like the Tlacatecobalor that hunts 00:19:48.720 --> 00:19:51.019 the rebellious scum for my masters, you will 00:19:51.019 --> 00:19:56.000 become a most honored tool of Zalmat Eshab. But 00:19:56.000 --> 00:20:00.559 such a high being has no need for reminders of 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:04.259 the past. He turns toward his two ghouls, each 00:20:04.259 --> 00:20:07.779 holding a child. Take them now. Do what you will, 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:13.039 just do it out of my sight. No, no! Miskin, holding 00:20:13.039 --> 00:20:16.079 back tears and still fighting, struggling. Roustaf, 00:20:16.220 --> 00:20:20.680 stay strong. Jules is coming. The two are dragged 00:20:20.680 --> 00:20:22.200 by the ghoul's paw, moving easily, and Miskin 00:20:22.200 --> 00:20:24.880 dragging and kicking with every step. He's coming. 00:20:25.079 --> 00:20:27.440 He's coming to save you and kill this monster. 00:20:28.900 --> 00:20:32.720 Silence dinner. The ghoul calls out. You'll be 00:20:32.720 --> 00:20:37.180 such succulent dinner. And Miss Skin, hearing 00:20:37.180 --> 00:20:39.059 this, kicks out with all of his strength, pushing 00:20:39.059 --> 00:20:40.839 his body higher, moving his hand towards his 00:20:40.839 --> 00:20:44.220 waist. Not without a fight! He produces a dagger, 00:20:44.299 --> 00:20:46.220 pulling it from the cloth of his belt, a weapon 00:20:46.220 --> 00:20:48.440 stolen from one of the La Roche Guard on the 00:20:48.440 --> 00:20:51.519 journey here. With an effort, he thrusts his 00:20:51.519 --> 00:20:53.359 body downwards, driving the dagger into the ghoul's 00:20:53.359 --> 00:20:56.099 leg. It does not scream out, it does not react 00:20:56.099 --> 00:20:58.420 to the pain at all, but it does lose balance, 00:20:58.720 --> 00:21:01.259 collapsing to the dirt and releasing its prisoner. 00:21:01.849 --> 00:21:04.529 And Miskin begins to run, turning back once to 00:21:04.529 --> 00:21:06.230 make sure the other ghoul, the one holding Paul, 00:21:06.450 --> 00:21:08.509 had let the more complacent child go to give 00:21:08.509 --> 00:21:11.950 chase to the quicker, more furious prey. Run, 00:21:11.950 --> 00:21:14.710 Paul! Miskin charges towards the darkness of 00:21:14.710 --> 00:21:16.890 the tunnels, heart pumping, eyes watering, leaping 00:21:16.890 --> 00:21:19.470 step by leaping step in the darkness he can hide, 00:21:19.569 --> 00:21:22.250 in the darkness he can escape, in the darkness... 00:21:22.250 --> 00:21:25.529 A cold, clammy hand wraps around his leg and 00:21:25.529 --> 00:21:29.589 he falls, hard, crashing to the ground. Did you 00:21:29.589 --> 00:21:34.130 think... You could have Ronald's child. Zavar's 00:21:34.130 --> 00:21:38.470 voice. You bear the weakness of a beating heart. 00:21:38.930 --> 00:21:42.750 Lungs that must breathe. A body that can tire. 00:21:43.490 --> 00:21:48.630 We have no such flaws. I am sorry I could not 00:21:48.630 --> 00:21:52.150 make you better like I will the girl. But rest 00:21:52.150 --> 00:21:54.769 assured your flesh will serve a purpose yet. 00:21:55.599 --> 00:21:58.279 His grip is strong. His other hand reaches around 00:21:58.279 --> 00:22:02.099 Miskin long, claw drawing towards the boy's throat, 00:22:02.380 --> 00:22:08.180 and the ground begins to shake. Zavar snaps his 00:22:08.180 --> 00:22:10.000 head around, searching the room, and his eyes 00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:12.519 settle on something growing wide, something akin 00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:14.980 to astonishment shows in the dark, faded pools 00:22:14.980 --> 00:22:17.740 of his pupils. Miskin turns to look too, and 00:22:17.740 --> 00:22:22.319 he sees what Zavar sees. He sees Paul. The boy 00:22:22.319 --> 00:22:25.549 had run per Miskin's request. He had run, but 00:22:25.549 --> 00:22:28.609 not to an exit. To one of the enormous, spine 00:22:28.609 --> 00:22:30.990 -like fossils that protrude from the earth, the 00:22:30.990 --> 00:22:34.549 cavern's edge. And he embraces it now, eyes closed, 00:22:34.750 --> 00:22:38.430 face pressed against the rough, black bone. And 00:22:38.430 --> 00:22:41.569 the shaking grows in intensity. A rumbling sound 00:22:41.569 --> 00:22:43.930 echoes through the caverns, then behind and beyond 00:22:43.930 --> 00:22:47.849 it, a deeper rumbling. Cracks form in the ceiling, 00:22:47.930 --> 00:22:50.289 small at first, then splitting and growing. Dirt 00:22:50.289 --> 00:22:52.930 showers the ground of the lab, followed by larger 00:22:52.930 --> 00:22:56.000 stone. crashing down. One of them crashes onto 00:22:56.000 --> 00:22:57.680 one of the ghouls that moves towards Paul and 00:22:57.680 --> 00:23:00.460 the creature's head is crushed instantly. It 00:23:00.460 --> 00:23:03.940 twitches and falls. Miskin feels the head and 00:23:03.940 --> 00:23:06.319 his leg loosen. He looks for a moment to seize 00:23:06.319 --> 00:23:09.460 a bar. He sees a manic smile on the creature's 00:23:09.460 --> 00:23:12.579 face, every sharpened tooth revealed. Then Miskin 00:23:12.579 --> 00:23:14.980 kicks out hard, slipping from the grip and running, 00:23:15.059 --> 00:23:17.920 running again to the deeper tunnels. The shaking 00:23:17.920 --> 00:23:20.240 ground seems to calm before him, giving stability 00:23:20.240 --> 00:23:23.099 to his flight. Though he can hear the sounds 00:23:23.099 --> 00:23:25.859 of falling, crashing stone behind. He hits the 00:23:25.859 --> 00:23:28.779 tunnel, pressing deeper. And a voice rings out 00:23:28.779 --> 00:23:30.940 behind him, booming through the cavern. A voice 00:23:30.940 --> 00:23:35.440 filled with zealous fervor. A dark prayer. Oh, 00:23:35.440 --> 00:23:41.640 Galaxania. Do you see? He speaks with the ancient 00:23:41.640 --> 00:23:49.990 ones. He is Meseitra. A loud crack. Sounds from 00:23:49.990 --> 00:23:52.130 behind. Misc in the tunnel entrance. Caves there. 00:23:53.009 --> 00:23:59.549 Drowning out in all sounds. All sights. Yeah, 00:23:59.589 --> 00:24:13.130 and that's what happened. That's so fucking stupid. 00:24:14.940 --> 00:24:18.180 This is our tone. This is our tone. It's like, 00:24:18.220 --> 00:24:21.039 we go so hard. Let's just fucking slap that, 00:24:21.099 --> 00:24:28.859 though. You guys are back in the mountains, moving 00:24:28.859 --> 00:24:35.759 swiftly. Miskin's a great storyteller. I figured, 00:24:35.880 --> 00:24:37.319 like, I was like, you know what? I can just rescribe 00:24:37.319 --> 00:24:38.779 to all the stuff he knew, but it's easier to 00:24:38.779 --> 00:24:40.500 just have a scene, and now you guys know the 00:24:40.500 --> 00:24:44.450 stuff he knew. It's just easier. He goes on as 00:24:44.450 --> 00:24:45.950 you're kind of swiftly moving down the mountainside. 00:24:46.410 --> 00:24:49.210 I ran through the tunnels in the dark. I heard 00:24:49.210 --> 00:24:51.769 a cracking sound beside me there, like the stone 00:24:51.769 --> 00:24:56.289 was opening up just for me. I felt Paul urging 00:24:56.289 --> 00:24:59.509 me forward. I pressed through the dark for maybe 00:24:59.509 --> 00:25:02.049 an hour until I saw light. Then I climbed out 00:25:02.049 --> 00:25:05.289 into the desert and I ran. I ran and ran until 00:25:05.289 --> 00:25:07.230 I was exhausted, banged up from pushing through 00:25:07.230 --> 00:25:09.470 the tunnels. I was found by the Cabral's, that 00:25:09.470 --> 00:25:13.759 family. And they kept me safe. I must have left 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:16.480 some trail behind me, fool, because men came 00:25:16.480 --> 00:25:19.039 looking for me soon after. They didn't find me, 00:25:19.099 --> 00:25:21.180 though. You know this was the bounty hunters 00:25:21.180 --> 00:25:24.559 that Arlon dispatched. And once I thought it 00:25:24.559 --> 00:25:26.359 was safe to move, I was going to head for the 00:25:26.359 --> 00:25:28.359 city. I was going to find a way to message you, 00:25:28.420 --> 00:25:32.730 Jules. Then the Yetin came. He looks back up 00:25:32.730 --> 00:25:34.450 the trail, sort of towards the mountain peaks 00:25:34.450 --> 00:25:36.809 that loom behind you, where maybe the faintest 00:25:36.809 --> 00:25:39.430 sort of rumbling roar can be heard every now 00:25:39.430 --> 00:25:42.250 and then, something screaming out in some agony 00:25:42.250 --> 00:25:46.650 and rage. They're monsters, but I almost feel 00:25:46.650 --> 00:25:49.390 bad for Shalmal. They lost their only son many 00:25:49.390 --> 00:25:51.809 years ago, and they never found him. When they 00:25:51.809 --> 00:25:53.829 heard of a half -orc, they considered it close 00:25:53.829 --> 00:25:57.569 enough. Shal called me her cousin -child, I think. 00:25:57.730 --> 00:26:00.730 Their orc is just... it's pretty rough. And he 00:26:00.730 --> 00:26:02.950 just looks back to you, Jules, and goes quiet. 00:26:04.130 --> 00:26:07.470 It's going to be safe now. We got you. I know, 00:26:07.589 --> 00:26:10.730 but they're not. Roundslip and Paul, that thing 00:26:10.730 --> 00:26:14.150 has intentions for them. I didn't know what it 00:26:14.150 --> 00:26:16.410 was like for you, Jules. Until now, I didn't. 00:26:16.970 --> 00:26:19.630 He actually just runs over and, like, hugs you. 00:26:19.670 --> 00:26:22.150 Like, embraces your leg. Like, it must have been 00:26:22.150 --> 00:26:26.069 hard. Yeah, it was. And then Jules will bend 00:26:26.069 --> 00:26:29.170 down and kind of hold him by his shoulders. And 00:26:29.170 --> 00:26:32.150 look him straight in the eye. We have to go back 00:26:32.150 --> 00:26:35.410 for them. I hate that I have to ask you to go 00:26:35.410 --> 00:26:40.609 back, but I will protect you. Jules, I was always 00:26:40.609 --> 00:26:44.509 going back. I know. It's like shared moment. 00:26:44.829 --> 00:26:47.369 These two intense sets of eyes looking at each 00:26:47.369 --> 00:26:51.490 other. And then he, and God, I got to stop saying 00:26:51.490 --> 00:26:53.470 things like I will protect you to people. Cause 00:26:53.470 --> 00:26:57.980 then they just die. Oh God. He's looking at you 00:26:57.980 --> 00:26:59.880 and his eyes sort of like clear for a second. 00:27:00.559 --> 00:27:02.819 Jules, that moment in the cavern, I've thought 00:27:02.819 --> 00:27:07.180 about it a lot. Paul, whatever Paul did back 00:27:07.180 --> 00:27:09.519 there and that rumbling sound in the cavern, 00:27:09.619 --> 00:27:12.880 it was so impossibly clear and close that I thought 00:27:12.880 --> 00:27:15.640 it couldn't possibly be, but I've been living 00:27:15.640 --> 00:27:18.279 in that moment and I'm sure of it. It was thunder, 00:27:18.579 --> 00:27:21.259 Jules. Thunder like the Keening Gloom on the 00:27:21.259 --> 00:27:25.539 Citadel. Thunder like that storm over Tythos. 00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:29.299 And here, our little camera's going to pan away 00:27:29.299 --> 00:27:32.359 from Miskin and Jules for just a moment and slowly 00:27:32.359 --> 00:27:36.559 zoom in towards Crispin Dubois. Crispin, hearing 00:27:36.559 --> 00:27:41.019 this, what expression do you wear? Crispin's 00:27:41.019 --> 00:27:44.079 been listening to this and it's kind of put him 00:27:44.079 --> 00:27:47.279 in a bit of a daze. And then at the mention of 00:27:47.279 --> 00:27:51.559 thunder, that kind of tipped the scales and his 00:27:51.559 --> 00:27:55.509 fur stands on end. And he's... Crispin's trying 00:27:55.509 --> 00:27:57.990 to keep his composure. He doesn't want to give 00:27:57.990 --> 00:28:02.250 away that he's scared, I think. Hell yeah. Let 00:28:02.250 --> 00:28:06.329 me deception check. Just to see. Deception. Oh, 00:28:06.390 --> 00:28:09.289 excellent. At a minus two. Here we go. Oh, no. 00:28:09.690 --> 00:28:16.869 That is rough. Five minus two. I think there's 00:28:16.869 --> 00:28:19.069 a notable stiffening, maybe. Like, just hear 00:28:19.069 --> 00:28:20.890 this for a second. And I think, like, Jules, 00:28:20.990 --> 00:28:24.869 you catch this with your passive insight. Your 00:28:24.869 --> 00:28:27.029 eyes flicker to Crispin. Yeah, and Crispin's 00:28:27.029 --> 00:28:31.529 eyes dart and he kind of audibly gasps. And with 00:28:31.529 --> 00:28:35.650 that, let's drift back into a second flashback 00:28:35.650 --> 00:28:37.710 because we're having a very special episode here 00:28:37.710 --> 00:28:39.069 today and we're going to turn back that clock 00:28:39.069 --> 00:28:43.130 again. Double flashback, baby! I got to make 00:28:43.130 --> 00:28:45.609 a flashback sound now. In this particular case, 00:28:45.609 --> 00:28:47.349 actually, we're going to have the second half 00:28:47.349 --> 00:28:50.769 of a flashback we started a while ago. So, I 00:28:50.769 --> 00:28:51.910 don't know. Maybe that counts as a full one. 00:28:52.029 --> 00:28:56.779 I don't care. Let's cue some music. Let's drift 00:28:56.779 --> 00:29:00.359 back into the mists of God's breath. Into the 00:29:00.359 --> 00:29:03.880 swamps near Blackwater Cove. To a clearing surrounded 00:29:03.880 --> 00:29:07.519 by tall, gnarled trees where Crispin Dubois stares 00:29:07.519 --> 00:29:11.579 up at a truly enormous creature. A reptilian 00:29:11.579 --> 00:29:15.039 face. Draconic, perhaps. It's hard to make out 00:29:15.039 --> 00:29:18.299 so much in the dense fog. Some great wall of 00:29:18.299 --> 00:29:20.200 water wraps around the trees that surround you 00:29:20.200 --> 00:29:23.869 like the coils of a serpent. This thing peers 00:29:23.869 --> 00:29:27.329 down from the skies. Or it could be more accurate 00:29:27.329 --> 00:29:29.750 to say that it is the sky, mouth open, tongue 00:29:29.750 --> 00:29:32.049 hanging beneath a throat filled with swirling 00:29:32.049 --> 00:29:35.589 black clouds. Thunder claps within this stormy 00:29:35.589 --> 00:29:39.549 cyclone. It is a scene much akin to peering into 00:29:39.549 --> 00:29:42.230 the great Keening gloom beneath the Radiant Citadel. 00:29:42.849 --> 00:29:44.930 And with a roar that leaves your rabbit ears 00:29:44.930 --> 00:29:48.910 ringing, the creature has just said, We will 00:29:48.910 --> 00:29:57.680 be sad again! Again! Crispin, what do you do? 00:29:58.579 --> 00:30:01.759 You're playing it out. Oh, shit. Sorry, I didn't 00:30:01.759 --> 00:30:06.900 warn you. What does Crispin do? What does he 00:30:06.900 --> 00:30:09.420 do? Here, take a second to think. I'm going to 00:30:09.420 --> 00:30:10.779 represent my rock star because I destroyed my 00:30:10.779 --> 00:30:12.920 throat with the ghouls and again with this guy. 00:30:13.000 --> 00:30:15.579 Yeah, that's pretty tough stuff. I got two episodes 00:30:15.579 --> 00:30:23.470 and I'm in trouble. I mean... Crispin tilts his 00:30:23.470 --> 00:30:27.450 head all the way back to take this thing in and 00:30:27.450 --> 00:30:33.369 chokes out. He can just repeat the words. Does 00:30:33.369 --> 00:30:38.130 that mean anything to him? I don't think it does. 00:30:38.910 --> 00:30:41.750 I think if you wanted to learn about it, you'd 00:30:41.750 --> 00:30:45.769 need to. Holy shit. That's a loud storm. Let 00:30:45.769 --> 00:30:50.450 me turn that down. I think you need to seek out 00:30:50.450 --> 00:30:53.009 that term in order to understand it, essentially. 00:30:53.390 --> 00:30:54.869 And at this point, you'd have no reason to have 00:30:54.869 --> 00:31:00.809 done that. Okay. Maybe he'll ask. He'll sort 00:31:00.809 --> 00:31:05.029 of scream up like he's speaking to the sky. What 00:31:05.029 --> 00:31:10.710 is... What is Shah Drakan? You just rail out 00:31:10.710 --> 00:31:14.690 this thing, its mouth still open, eyes peering 00:31:14.690 --> 00:31:22.829 down at you. And then... Truth. Truth in form. 00:31:23.130 --> 00:31:32.230 We are lost. Drawn by the planes. Displaced and 00:31:32.230 --> 00:31:43.430 consumed. Fragments. We gave ourselves all for 00:31:43.430 --> 00:31:51.500 nothing. thunder cracking in the throat. Crispin's 00:31:51.500 --> 00:31:55.619 looking to his right and to his left, and he's 00:31:55.619 --> 00:32:00.839 getting closed in on... What? What do you want? 00:32:01.559 --> 00:32:11.940 What do you want from me? Live. And unite them. 00:32:14.400 --> 00:32:19.109 And the thing... Begins to fade away. The sounds 00:32:19.109 --> 00:32:22.309 of rolling thunder. The sudden harsh wind, all 00:32:22.309 --> 00:32:25.109 that fades, leaving you in the murky silence 00:32:25.109 --> 00:32:30.869 of the swamp. For a moment. Then, noise does 00:32:30.869 --> 00:32:34.630 return. The mists all around you come alive with 00:32:34.630 --> 00:32:38.490 dozens of dark shapes. The things that hunt you, 00:32:38.509 --> 00:32:41.160 that you've led from your village. They stepped 00:32:41.160 --> 00:32:42.680 from the mist and you could see the elongated, 00:32:42.720 --> 00:32:45.480 snapping maws of these giant crocodiles. You 00:32:45.480 --> 00:32:47.299 could see their scales dripping away and pools 00:32:47.299 --> 00:32:50.880 of rot riveting yellow bone beneath. You could 00:32:50.880 --> 00:32:54.079 see their broken, brutal teeth. Some still coated 00:32:54.079 --> 00:32:56.799 with the blood and fur of your friends and neighbors. 00:32:57.799 --> 00:33:00.779 Undead monstrosities, born from the Shadowfell's 00:33:00.779 --> 00:33:03.640 touch on your world. And they have you surrounded. 00:33:04.480 --> 00:33:06.539 You knew this was going to be a suicide mission 00:33:06.539 --> 00:33:09.319 when you ran, but the others had time to get 00:33:09.319 --> 00:33:13.619 away. Your life and your death will mean something, 00:33:13.740 --> 00:33:18.720 Crispin. How does that feel to you? He's... It 00:33:18.720 --> 00:33:24.380 feels scary, but it also feels peaceful. He's 00:33:24.380 --> 00:33:27.099 afraid, but he's grateful. Perhaps there's comfort 00:33:27.099 --> 00:33:30.140 in this, in the wake of the horror you face now 00:33:30.140 --> 00:33:33.599 and the strange vision you just saw. Perhaps 00:33:33.599 --> 00:33:37.980 there's comfort as they move in, swarming all 00:33:37.980 --> 00:33:41.750 over you. At least I'm gonna go out with a bang. 00:33:43.990 --> 00:33:48.150 And with that, something slams into you. Not 00:33:48.150 --> 00:33:50.470 one of the creatures, nothing physical, but a 00:33:50.470 --> 00:33:54.069 wave of emotion, palpable, nearly physical, coming 00:33:54.069 --> 00:33:56.130 from somewhere deep beneath your feet, coming 00:33:56.130 --> 00:34:03.170 from the land itself. Pure rage. Sickening and 00:34:03.170 --> 00:34:05.630 intoxicating all at once, like nothing you've 00:34:05.630 --> 00:34:08.010 ever felt before. Like bolts of lightning shooting 00:34:08.010 --> 00:34:11.309 through your veins. Your muscles go taut. Your 00:34:11.309 --> 00:34:14.449 body shakes with it. And these monsters are nearly 00:34:14.449 --> 00:34:17.190 on top of you, but you feel, in this rage, you 00:34:17.190 --> 00:34:22.309 feel larger. So impossibly large. As large as 00:34:22.309 --> 00:34:26.369 this clearing. As large as the swamp. What happens 00:34:26.369 --> 00:34:29.719 now? as these monsters come to claim their prey. 00:34:31.079 --> 00:34:36.780 Crispin can feel this power, and he doesn't believe 00:34:36.780 --> 00:34:40.079 it. He knows that nobody else will believe it. 00:34:40.519 --> 00:34:43.320 He just wants to... He thinks, if I can get out 00:34:43.320 --> 00:34:46.099 of here, I want to remember. And he starts to 00:34:46.099 --> 00:34:52.260 say to himself, Shahadrakhan. Shahadrakhan. Shahadrakhan. 00:34:52.699 --> 00:34:55.900 And as he's saying it, he can feel the... the 00:34:55.900 --> 00:34:59.980 power in the ground. And the first time it happens, 00:35:00.019 --> 00:35:04.960 it's like a ripple escapes from him through the 00:35:04.960 --> 00:35:08.820 ground. And as the ripple pulses out, it pushes 00:35:08.820 --> 00:35:14.199 all of these creatures back. And then it happens 00:35:14.199 --> 00:35:18.000 again, a little stronger this time. And as it 00:35:18.000 --> 00:35:20.440 pushes them back, it flings them up into the 00:35:20.440 --> 00:35:23.730 air. And then the third time it happens, it comes 00:35:23.730 --> 00:35:26.510 from the ground all around. And the ground and 00:35:26.510 --> 00:35:29.750 the rocks just shoot up from out of the ground. 00:35:30.130 --> 00:35:34.130 And these creatures get pelted with rocks and 00:35:34.130 --> 00:35:37.710 boulders from below. And then as they start to 00:35:37.710 --> 00:35:40.829 fall, they get hit from above as the rocks and 00:35:40.829 --> 00:35:43.730 boulders start to fall from above. And then slowly 00:35:43.730 --> 00:35:49.250 they eventually stop moving in the torrent in 00:35:49.250 --> 00:35:53.239 the ground. Begins to slow. But the sand is still 00:35:53.239 --> 00:35:59.420 moving and shaking like water. And the shapes 00:35:59.420 --> 00:36:05.099 begin to disappear under the ground. And by the 00:36:05.099 --> 00:36:08.260 time everything settles, they're not just dead. 00:36:08.340 --> 00:36:13.739 They've completely been swallowed into the soil. 00:36:13.960 --> 00:36:18.940 Holy shit. And as this happens, as they're swallowed, 00:36:19.929 --> 00:36:24.690 That rage, that power drains from you, seeping 00:36:24.690 --> 00:36:27.050 from your body like a dream from a waking mind 00:36:27.050 --> 00:36:31.090 until it is gone. Until you are alone in the 00:36:31.090 --> 00:36:34.949 swamp accompanied only by hidden, broken bodies 00:36:34.949 --> 00:36:40.530 and swirling mist and the sound of distant thunder. 00:36:45.010 --> 00:36:48.690 And we're back. So yeah, that's how it happened. 00:36:53.139 --> 00:36:59.079 Round of applause for Steven. I'm just going 00:36:59.079 --> 00:37:01.199 to give you a button. I'm just going to give 00:37:01.199 --> 00:37:03.699 you a button for the scene. I'm going to give 00:37:03.699 --> 00:37:06.920 you two buttons now. Oh, my goodness. That was 00:37:06.920 --> 00:37:12.260 good. Wowee. I'm generous today. It's because 00:37:12.260 --> 00:37:15.440 we give you shit before we hit record. Yeah, 00:37:15.619 --> 00:37:25.219 that's true. Oh, my God. Holy shit. Got him. 00:37:25.719 --> 00:37:31.019 Then for our third flashback. No, I'm so done. 00:37:32.300 --> 00:37:34.659 No more flashbacks. Can't handle any more voices. 00:37:35.340 --> 00:37:37.380 Just gotta whisper for the rest of the session 00:37:37.380 --> 00:37:40.519 and the next one. Next one is jeans. And that's 00:37:40.519 --> 00:37:43.900 how it happened. All the soft voices, yeah. Yeah, 00:37:43.920 --> 00:37:46.840 exactly. Every soft voice. Oh, I need more soft 00:37:46.840 --> 00:37:49.219 voices. Too many growls. I just like doing them. 00:37:49.260 --> 00:37:51.440 That's your doing. I like doing them. I don't 00:37:51.440 --> 00:37:54.860 know. You make it up. Yeah. No. Well, on this 00:37:54.860 --> 00:37:58.039 note, I noticed, and this is like not making 00:37:58.039 --> 00:38:00.440 fun. This is like fascinating, fucking awesome. 00:38:00.800 --> 00:38:04.099 When you were doing those voices, your face started 00:38:04.099 --> 00:38:06.679 going red and I could see the veins around your 00:38:06.679 --> 00:38:10.400 eyes. Like, you know, like where you like take 00:38:10.400 --> 00:38:12.340 a deep breath and then like close your mouth 00:38:12.340 --> 00:38:14.820 and push really, really hard. It was that thing. 00:38:15.150 --> 00:38:17.829 Well, I mean, it's got to take some sort of strain 00:38:17.829 --> 00:38:25.309 to voice Vizar, the ghouls, and Miskin, who arguably, 00:38:25.449 --> 00:38:27.289 like if I did them, would all have the same exact 00:38:27.289 --> 00:38:30.530 fucking voice. Yeah. Yeah. They probably did. 00:38:30.809 --> 00:38:33.610 No, no. I thought they were each unique. And 00:38:33.610 --> 00:38:35.710 then the thing, the thing in the swamp. Oh, that 00:38:35.710 --> 00:38:37.349 thing is a totally different beast. That thing 00:38:37.349 --> 00:38:41.409 destroyed me. Yeah. Oh, okay. All right. Crispin, 00:38:41.409 --> 00:38:47.360 following that event. Let me not punch my mic. 00:38:47.440 --> 00:38:53.280 Hang on. It's been a while. Following that event, 00:38:53.460 --> 00:38:57.920 Crispin, you never really touched that same level 00:38:57.920 --> 00:39:02.139 of power. But that rage, you found a similar 00:39:02.139 --> 00:39:05.360 rage within yourself. Or perhaps is it your rage 00:39:05.360 --> 00:39:07.639 that you call upon? Or is it the rage of the 00:39:07.639 --> 00:39:10.900 land again? The rage of that thing in the swamp? 00:39:12.219 --> 00:39:14.440 Wow, that is such a good question. Maybe other 00:39:14.440 --> 00:39:18.179 things like it? You get the impression when you 00:39:18.179 --> 00:39:22.059 use your abilities, like seeing visions through 00:39:22.059 --> 00:39:25.420 Augury, you're calling upon something, not just 00:39:25.420 --> 00:39:28.380 the land, but something within the land. Something, 00:39:28.480 --> 00:39:33.260 some things like what you saw that day. Yeah, 00:39:33.280 --> 00:39:36.659 those are very obviously not Crispin's powers. 00:39:36.699 --> 00:39:40.809 He's using those, borrowing those. I really like 00:39:40.809 --> 00:39:45.809 thinking about the rage. That's very cool. Where 00:39:45.809 --> 00:39:47.710 does that come from? Do you think he knows? I 00:39:47.710 --> 00:39:49.550 don't think Crispin knows. That's awesome. Well, 00:39:49.590 --> 00:39:52.409 I know Steven doesn't know, so I think Crispin 00:39:52.409 --> 00:39:56.909 doesn't know. That's awesome. Yeah. Do you think 00:39:56.909 --> 00:39:58.869 Crispin, in all the time after that, as he's 00:39:58.869 --> 00:40:01.769 wondered about the Shah Drakon, do you think 00:40:01.769 --> 00:40:03.989 he's come across the term Mazir Drakon before 00:40:03.989 --> 00:40:06.909 was mentioned just now by Miskin? I mean, we 00:40:06.909 --> 00:40:11.000 learned earlier. with Zebulon, how difficult 00:40:11.000 --> 00:40:14.599 it was to track down and define these terms. 00:40:14.940 --> 00:40:17.980 Yeah. I think maybe he's been looking. Do you 00:40:17.980 --> 00:40:19.360 want to roll a history check to see if he's learned 00:40:19.360 --> 00:40:21.000 anything? Oh, sure. Yeah, that's much more fun. 00:40:21.119 --> 00:40:22.780 Ooh, nice. Let's do it. Give me a history check. 00:40:23.039 --> 00:40:26.199 Let's see if your time as a luminary has taught 00:40:26.199 --> 00:40:28.519 you anything. Plus zero. He really should have 00:40:28.519 --> 00:40:32.440 talked to Sholay about this, huh? The time might 00:40:32.440 --> 00:40:37.860 come. It's a 10. Just a 10? Just a 10. With a 00:40:37.860 --> 00:40:40.469 10? I don't think you've heard Mazir Drakon before. 00:40:40.769 --> 00:40:44.110 Yeah, I think these terms are rare, not well 00:40:44.110 --> 00:40:45.570 known. I'll give you one thing. Difficult to 00:40:45.570 --> 00:40:48.170 define. In your travels, you may at least with 00:40:48.170 --> 00:40:53.010 a 10 have come across similar knowledge to what 00:40:53.010 --> 00:40:56.449 Jules has of the term Shah Drakon. You understand 00:40:56.449 --> 00:41:00.329 that it's from a forgotten tongue. Generally, 00:41:00.369 --> 00:41:04.530 two words. Shah always seems to relate to land 00:41:04.530 --> 00:41:08.610 or world. And Drakon... Seems to change always. 00:41:09.969 --> 00:41:15.949 Spirits, ancients, storms? And one strange chance. 00:41:16.250 --> 00:41:19.449 I believe it was on the world of Zing. An old 00:41:19.449 --> 00:41:23.070 man there referred to Dracon as meaning serpents, 00:41:23.070 --> 00:41:26.530 an old tongue. That's as far as you've gotten. 00:41:27.050 --> 00:41:30.030 I am going to mark down that canonically Crispin 00:41:30.030 --> 00:41:33.980 has been to Zing and look up. what creatures 00:41:33.980 --> 00:41:37.099 are on Zing that he may have seen to transform 00:41:37.099 --> 00:41:40.719 into? Hell yeah, all right, all right. As you 00:41:40.719 --> 00:41:42.559 are, as your mind flashed back to this moment, 00:41:42.679 --> 00:41:45.940 Jules, you see Crispin's reaction to the words 00:41:45.940 --> 00:41:47.699 you see as my flashback. Did you tell, I mean, 00:41:47.719 --> 00:41:49.360 it was a joke. Did you tell everybody that moment? 00:41:49.400 --> 00:41:50.739 No, no, no, it was just a joke. Okay, okay, gotcha. 00:41:51.940 --> 00:41:54.940 Your attention on Crispin's noted by Dance, Arhalon, 00:41:54.960 --> 00:41:57.500 and Miskin. And Crispin, as you kind of blink 00:41:57.500 --> 00:41:59.199 out of this, you notice that everyone is looking 00:41:59.199 --> 00:42:03.510 at you. It's a nightmare for me. I think Jules, 00:42:03.570 --> 00:42:06.650 at least, Jules isn't necessarily surprised by 00:42:06.650 --> 00:42:10.809 it. He gets it. I think he understands what just 00:42:10.809 --> 00:42:13.469 happened, or at least the feeling of what just 00:42:13.469 --> 00:42:16.309 happened. Yeah. He's been in it before, and he 00:42:16.309 --> 00:42:18.489 knows. Crispin takes a step back to kind of, 00:42:18.510 --> 00:42:23.110 you know, excuse me, that's a hard story to hear. 00:42:24.809 --> 00:42:27.929 I'm sorry, child. I think what's kind of surprising 00:42:27.929 --> 00:42:30.349 is Arhalon sort of steps towards you, and with 00:42:30.349 --> 00:42:34.230 legitimate concern. Crispin, are you all right? 00:42:36.469 --> 00:42:40.269 Yes, thank you, Arhalon. I lost my composure 00:42:40.269 --> 00:42:44.369 for a moment. Please excuse me. Very well. Turns 00:42:44.369 --> 00:42:47.070 away. Do you guys continue to move down the mountain? 00:42:47.590 --> 00:42:49.710 Yeah, I mean, it really sounds like we need to 00:42:49.710 --> 00:42:53.090 move with all haste. Let me give you guys some 00:42:53.090 --> 00:42:55.510 information if you are ready for that. Yeah. 00:42:55.710 --> 00:42:59.739 Yeah. Okay. Miskin? I think we'll go, as you 00:42:59.739 --> 00:43:02.380 move down, as the Mourn Bridge comes out, you 00:43:02.380 --> 00:43:04.360 just talked about going back. Miskin tells you 00:43:04.360 --> 00:43:06.119 he can get you into the tunnels. Then he came 00:43:06.119 --> 00:43:08.340 out of the tunnels he believes were forged by 00:43:08.340 --> 00:43:10.840 Paul. New tunnels that lead into the desert. 00:43:11.460 --> 00:43:13.119 Maybe they found this tunnel out, maybe they 00:43:13.119 --> 00:43:16.440 didn't, but it's a small thing. Subtle. Very 00:43:16.440 --> 00:43:20.079 likely not guarded. We have to try. He remembers 00:43:20.079 --> 00:43:21.559 there are landmarks there that can help him find 00:43:21.559 --> 00:43:24.760 it. But there is one problem. Jewels you could 00:43:24.760 --> 00:43:29.929 squeeze through. Barely. Arhalon cannot. Arhalon 00:43:29.929 --> 00:43:31.510 will not be able to make it into the tunnels. 00:43:31.750 --> 00:43:34.630 And if this comes up as you're talking, Arhalon 00:43:34.630 --> 00:43:38.190 just sort of nods and offers instead to create 00:43:38.190 --> 00:43:40.929 a distraction. Should you intend to enter that 00:43:40.929 --> 00:43:45.110 way, he will go to the front. And he will try 00:43:45.110 --> 00:43:48.150 to hold the guard, lead them away, do what he 00:43:48.150 --> 00:43:49.949 can to make sure there are no reinforcements 00:43:49.949 --> 00:43:53.250 coming when you make your way inside. Arhalon, 00:43:53.269 --> 00:43:56.760 I can't let you sacrifice yourself. It's no sacrifice. 00:43:57.739 --> 00:44:00.199 Arhalon, you know what would happen. It's not 00:44:00.199 --> 00:44:05.860 your choice. A child or me. It's an easy thing. 00:44:06.739 --> 00:44:09.739 Arhalon, if you don't go home to Sholay, Eda... 00:44:09.739 --> 00:44:15.099 A child. Two children. We have so little time. 00:44:16.019 --> 00:44:19.920 And I'll tell you this. He's right. Because it 00:44:19.920 --> 00:44:21.539 was about four o 'clock when you found the Eddins. 00:44:22.280 --> 00:44:24.260 You made brief work of that, so we're going to 00:44:24.260 --> 00:44:26.639 continue at four o 'clock as you're pushing south. 00:44:26.820 --> 00:44:28.340 But your journey through the mountains took nearly 00:44:28.340 --> 00:44:31.579 six hours, and it will take the same to return. 00:44:31.800 --> 00:44:35.199 It's not easy footing. It's a hard climb. By 00:44:35.199 --> 00:44:37.000 the time you get down to the farm you started 00:44:37.000 --> 00:44:41.800 in, it'll be ten. An hour, at least, to get to 00:44:41.800 --> 00:44:46.340 Hollow. Longer to take the path through Miskin's 00:44:46.340 --> 00:44:50.179 Cave. It may be very near midnight, the time 00:44:50.179 --> 00:44:53.320 of the ritual. when you arrive there, as it stands. 00:44:54.019 --> 00:44:56.500 There's no time for other options. There's no 00:44:56.500 --> 00:45:00.219 one else coming to save Roundstuff. I can't fail 00:45:00.219 --> 00:45:04.860 again, Arhalon. No, you too. All right. I want 00:45:04.860 --> 00:45:07.900 to ask a couple of questions. Yeah. The quote 00:45:07.900 --> 00:45:09.440 -unquote, the front, the front door that you're 00:45:09.440 --> 00:45:11.519 talking about that Arhalon wants to go to. Yes. 00:45:11.639 --> 00:45:15.800 And the cave entrance. What is the distance between 00:45:15.800 --> 00:45:21.099 those two? The cave entrance is maybe... It's 00:45:21.099 --> 00:45:23.219 not... Actually, I'm just going into it. It's 00:45:23.219 --> 00:45:25.760 probably a good half a mile. Maybe a good 600 00:45:25.760 --> 00:45:30.079 feet. Half a mile. Okay. Yeah, it's far. He was 00:45:30.079 --> 00:45:31.880 moving the case for quite a while before he pushed 00:45:31.880 --> 00:45:34.260 through and got out into the desert. Okay, there 00:45:34.260 --> 00:45:37.099 goes that. Were you thinking you could turn into 00:45:37.099 --> 00:45:39.940 something and get us there quicker? Because what 00:45:39.940 --> 00:45:42.960 if somebody flew on Arhalon as well? Yeah, Arhalon 00:45:42.960 --> 00:45:45.039 does not have the difficult terrain. He can move 00:45:45.039 --> 00:45:46.800 normal speed. So he goes ahead of you. He can 00:45:46.800 --> 00:45:49.159 get there sooner, but... Oh, I'm thinking of 00:45:49.159 --> 00:45:51.219 like... Somebody flying on its back with him. 00:45:51.699 --> 00:45:55.900 That could be done. Yeah? Fuck. I really don't 00:45:55.900 --> 00:45:59.079 want Arhalon to die. And, like, I could help 00:45:59.079 --> 00:46:04.039 him, but it would be my other second -level spell 00:46:04.039 --> 00:46:07.340 slot. Arhalon is strong. He may be able to hold 00:46:07.340 --> 00:46:10.199 his own. Just fine. He's not trying to fight 00:46:10.199 --> 00:46:13.260 them all. He's trying to lure them away. Sure, 00:46:13.300 --> 00:46:14.420 right, right, right. He doesn't necessarily know 00:46:14.420 --> 00:46:15.860 who he's walking into. Miskin will tell you that 00:46:15.860 --> 00:46:19.730 there's at least eight men. The men that brought 00:46:19.730 --> 00:46:21.949 them there, he thinks that's all there is, but 00:46:21.949 --> 00:46:24.489 there could be more hiding around. All LaRoche 00:46:24.489 --> 00:46:27.610 Guard. Not necessarily the highest trained, but... 00:46:27.610 --> 00:46:31.670 It's not... Crispin's digging in through his 00:46:31.670 --> 00:46:34.909 bag, looking for something to help, and he's 00:46:34.909 --> 00:46:37.730 not coming up with anything. I've got nothing 00:46:37.730 --> 00:46:41.130 for you. He's pulling out, I'll say for flavor, 00:46:41.230 --> 00:46:45.510 just these little packets of herbs and tinctures. 00:46:46.250 --> 00:46:49.019 Take this one, this one will... This one will 00:46:49.019 --> 00:46:51.679 help you with your focus and take this one and 00:46:51.679 --> 00:46:54.480 this one will get a little boost of strength, 00:46:54.619 --> 00:46:57.760 a little vitality for you. But it's really nothing 00:46:57.760 --> 00:47:02.079 of consequence. I think you're doing this and 00:47:02.079 --> 00:47:04.719 almost like you're so nervous and you just feel 00:47:04.719 --> 00:47:07.619 a huge hand just like resting on your shoulder. 00:47:10.079 --> 00:47:13.800 You're a good soul, Crispin. A good luminary. 00:47:14.480 --> 00:47:16.800 But you have to understand more than anybody. 00:47:17.530 --> 00:47:20.929 We are not servants of Sholay. We are servants 00:47:20.929 --> 00:47:26.550 of the light. Justice. Oh, well. It's not entirely 00:47:26.550 --> 00:47:31.130 selfless, I'm afraid. If both of her grandchildren 00:47:31.130 --> 00:47:39.090 die, then she'll send me with you. It's not just 00:47:39.090 --> 00:47:43.510 your skin. Yeah, hold on. I need you to come 00:47:43.510 --> 00:47:49.440 back. I need you to try. Very well. A promise, 00:47:49.519 --> 00:47:54.880 then, between comrades. Crispin reaches his small 00:47:54.880 --> 00:47:59.159 -sized Haringon hand out to shake. And his one 00:47:59.159 --> 00:48:02.320 hand that Ken's removed reaches out, shakes yours. 00:48:03.400 --> 00:48:06.480 Besides, someone needs to keep an eye on you, 00:48:07.019 --> 00:48:09.679 Jules. And there's actually a little smile here 00:48:09.679 --> 00:48:14.980 at this. As he smirks, Jules walks directly up 00:48:14.980 --> 00:48:19.360 to him. Staring him in the eyes. Don't you go 00:48:19.360 --> 00:48:24.780 getting yourself killed. For Zebulon. Laroche 00:48:24.780 --> 00:48:29.460 men killed my brother. I won't say my intentions 00:48:29.460 --> 00:48:35.039 are selfless either. Not wholly. I want vengeance 00:48:35.039 --> 00:48:40.000 for that. And I want... I want my light, my oath 00:48:40.000 --> 00:48:43.460 returned. I will save the children. I will be 00:48:43.460 --> 00:48:48.449 whole again. For Zebulon. Jules slowly extends 00:48:48.449 --> 00:48:52.030 his hand. Another shake. I'm also curious, what 00:48:52.030 --> 00:48:57.650 hand? The right. I think he halts and then takes 00:48:57.650 --> 00:49:01.710 it. If it's going to make any difference in anything, 00:49:01.829 --> 00:49:06.030 as they shake hands, Jules' lute lights up and 00:49:06.030 --> 00:49:09.329 he gives him some bardic inspiration. Power floods 00:49:09.329 --> 00:49:15.619 into him. Looks down at the golden moat. You 00:49:15.619 --> 00:49:20.440 are my friend. And I do love you too. And he 00:49:20.440 --> 00:49:24.320 just almost looks, has a moment of almost shame. 00:49:24.800 --> 00:49:29.300 He kind of nods. You are a good man. And they 00:49:29.300 --> 00:49:33.280 even dance like steps beside you. And she's had 00:49:33.280 --> 00:49:35.280 her doubts this whole time. Even she just nods 00:49:35.280 --> 00:49:38.980 in agreement. And he takes a step back, looks 00:49:38.980 --> 00:49:42.019 at you. Jules looks at you, Crispin. And then 00:49:42.019 --> 00:49:45.780 finally his eyes fall on Miskin. And through 00:49:45.780 --> 00:49:48.500 all the rage and the pain, for the benefit of 00:49:48.500 --> 00:49:52.840 the child, Arhalon smiles as wide as he can. 00:49:52.860 --> 00:49:56.619 It's unnatural, almost creepy, but it's a try. 00:49:57.300 --> 00:50:03.800 And he takes off and shoots down the mountain. 00:50:04.820 --> 00:50:09.719 Crispin has been unusually animated just now 00:50:09.719 --> 00:50:14.519 between getting riled up at the Paul thing. And, 00:50:14.519 --> 00:50:16.400 you know, was still losing it a little bit with 00:50:16.400 --> 00:50:19.679 the whole Arhalon thing. He's kind of regained 00:50:19.679 --> 00:50:23.300 his composure, his calm, cool, collected nature. 00:50:24.579 --> 00:50:27.380 Well, there's no more time. Let's go get the 00:50:27.380 --> 00:50:30.960 little ones. You continue your journey down the 00:50:30.960 --> 00:50:34.139 mountain. I'll ask, is there any way you want 00:50:34.139 --> 00:50:35.920 to speed the journey, or are you going to just 00:50:35.920 --> 00:50:39.000 get there? As it stands, you will get there to 00:50:39.000 --> 00:50:41.760 the bottom around 10, to the tunnel around 11. 00:50:42.819 --> 00:50:45.820 Yeah, I mean, I could use Wild Shape, but I don't 00:50:45.820 --> 00:50:49.800 think I would be able to move all of us on horseback. 00:50:50.099 --> 00:50:52.699 Yeah, Jules is not in the right enough mindset 00:50:52.699 --> 00:50:54.900 to really think about anything else but just 00:50:54.900 --> 00:50:58.519 moving to where they need to go. Okay. You know, 00:50:58.599 --> 00:51:02.920 if something comes up, he'll hop on, but he is 00:51:02.920 --> 00:51:06.139 just moving. Yeah, there's four of us now, and 00:51:06.139 --> 00:51:08.260 even if Crispin turns, that's two people. I don't 00:51:08.260 --> 00:51:10.599 think he can take three riders, so probably just 00:51:10.599 --> 00:51:15.079 best to hoof it. Foot it, not hoof it. Literally 00:51:15.079 --> 00:51:18.039 the opposite of that thing, yes. Rabbit feet. 00:51:19.000 --> 00:51:21.059 You are moving down the mountain. I'll ask one 00:51:21.059 --> 00:51:23.780 more thing. You've received information from 00:51:23.780 --> 00:51:26.079 Miskin. You know where you're going last. You 00:51:26.079 --> 00:51:28.599 know where this lab is. You know a little more 00:51:28.599 --> 00:51:31.639 about this Claticolo, the creature that is creating 00:51:31.639 --> 00:51:36.260 Serenno. That it's been child. I think I might 00:51:36.260 --> 00:51:38.039 have accidentally let slip Sun in the last episode. 00:51:38.239 --> 00:51:40.599 I didn't put it in the cutscene, so just... I 00:51:40.599 --> 00:51:42.380 said sun instead in the cutscene. I don't care. 00:51:43.579 --> 00:51:46.940 It's been sun. Apparently was the subject used 00:51:46.940 --> 00:51:49.079 to create this demon. There was a mention of 00:51:49.079 --> 00:51:51.940 it only happening at night. It only changing 00:51:51.940 --> 00:51:55.019 at night. Because round stuff wouldn't do it 00:51:55.019 --> 00:51:57.039 during the day. Right, exactly. Yeah, so it wasn't 00:51:57.039 --> 00:51:59.719 directly that you mentioned it only changes at 00:51:59.719 --> 00:52:02.079 night. It was a given for inference. Right, because 00:52:02.079 --> 00:52:04.460 you said that she might even be strong enough 00:52:04.460 --> 00:52:07.059 to hold her shape throughout the day. Hey, here 00:52:07.059 --> 00:52:09.889 we go. You're listening. At least that much. 00:52:09.949 --> 00:52:12.469 Hey, give him a third button for that. I buttoned 00:52:12.469 --> 00:52:14.150 out. You guys are done. I think I'm over the 00:52:14.150 --> 00:52:16.429 limit. I think I have four. No, he raised it 00:52:16.429 --> 00:52:17.769 to five for this arc. Five for this arc. That's 00:52:17.769 --> 00:52:22.210 right. Yeah. But no. But yeah, yeah. So you know 00:52:22.210 --> 00:52:25.230 all these things. My last question is, you have 00:52:25.230 --> 00:52:28.849 the sending stone. Before, like if you send a 00:52:28.849 --> 00:52:30.630 message now, you do not get another one until 00:52:30.630 --> 00:52:33.130 dawn tomorrow, but you hold information that 00:52:33.130 --> 00:52:35.909 the other group might find useful? Yeah. We've 00:52:35.909 --> 00:52:39.550 literally figured out that. The sereno creature 00:52:39.550 --> 00:52:44.369 is Yitzman's son, and he reverts to his human 00:52:44.369 --> 00:52:46.190 form during the day. And you don't know a lot 00:52:46.190 --> 00:52:47.670 about Yitzman, but I think Dance would at least 00:52:47.670 --> 00:52:49.449 like hearing that, like be going and telling 00:52:49.449 --> 00:52:51.769 you all about, you know, he's the CEO of Marfil. 00:52:51.909 --> 00:52:54.650 Right. He's, you know, he's a person of huge 00:52:54.650 --> 00:52:58.670 interest to the rebellion. Right. So as long 00:52:58.670 --> 00:53:00.750 as we understand that the party is sharing information 00:53:00.750 --> 00:53:03.349 and we all kind of like pass that around, yeah, 00:53:03.510 --> 00:53:07.269 let's craft a message here really quick. Hell 00:53:07.269 --> 00:53:09.659 yeah, let's do it. 20 words, 25 words, I forgot. 00:53:09.800 --> 00:53:15.260 25, I think. 25. Okay. So Crispin picks up a 00:53:15.260 --> 00:53:19.679 sending stone. Rescued Miskin, saving utter delights 00:53:19.679 --> 00:53:24.800 tonight. Severno creature is Eatsman's son. Believe 00:53:24.800 --> 00:53:29.380 reverts humanoid, maybe tiefling form during 00:53:29.380 --> 00:53:35.340 daytime. Once finished, meet Moreno Church. We 00:53:35.340 --> 00:53:39.440 zoom into the stone. As you guys rush, zoom into 00:53:39.440 --> 00:53:42.619 the blackness of the mouthpiece, and out the 00:53:42.619 --> 00:53:45.659 blackness of the earpiece in the hands of Dresden 00:53:45.659 --> 00:53:48.679 Kellig. You've been awake for some time after 00:53:48.679 --> 00:53:52.599 resting following the battle with Pigman, and 00:53:52.599 --> 00:53:57.059 you are preparing for this night. A party perhaps 00:53:57.059 --> 00:54:01.239 riddled with danger, and maybe a hunt afterwards 00:54:01.239 --> 00:54:04.239 if you are to learn more about this creature. 00:54:05.159 --> 00:54:07.300 Do you have anything you want to say back before 00:54:07.300 --> 00:54:10.579 the stone's magic fades? Yeah, I think he just 00:54:10.579 --> 00:54:16.079 says, be safe. We'll be there. We'll be there 00:54:16.079 --> 00:54:18.840 after. Sorry, I just wanted to clarify, not we'll 00:54:18.840 --> 00:54:24.920 be there, like. There's no there, there. There's 00:54:24.920 --> 00:54:29.800 no there, there. Crispin's sitting there, there 00:54:29.800 --> 00:54:34.440 what? There was a mountain. But what about there's 00:54:34.440 --> 00:54:44.530 there? And so we are back in Sanction City, in 00:54:44.530 --> 00:54:47.389 the mining caverns beneath the Sereno Estate, 00:54:47.650 --> 00:54:53.070 where this party rests and prepares for one last 00:54:53.070 --> 00:54:56.650 hurdle. So the sending stone comes down. Do you 00:54:56.650 --> 00:55:00.269 know what this means, boys? Yes, sir. What's 00:55:00.269 --> 00:55:02.989 it mean, sir? What? I believe we'll have to kill 00:55:02.989 --> 00:55:07.639 the pig man's brother. We'll call it there.