Hey Pants People, check out our friends at Wanderlust
D &D. And I burned with it. But I came back with
fire in my lungs and family in my sides. It's
just another mask we wear, isn't it? Mine just
fits better than most. Time has a funny way of
catching up. No matter how much you check back.
cognitive independence leads to such corruption
and violence. You would strip us of what makes
us unique? That's your solution? To become like
you? I don't understand. I haven't done anything
wrong. I can still spread your influence wherever
I go. I was sent to die that day. At least that's
how I see it now. Sacrificing everything I knew.
My ship. My beliefs. Even you. The military took
everything from us. And I'll burn them down before
I let them do the same to our city. Secrets don't
stay buried for long. Who will you become when
the mask finally cracks? Citadel establishment?
Rumors that mass shield air officers following
the lead of Captain Commander Aria were behind
this attack? It's a lot. Thankfully, it's all
complete nonsense. Look, there was a misunderstanding
last night, and it led to a very scary scene.
But it had nothing to do with the Shieldbearers.
And if you don't want to take my word for it,
just wait until this evening when I have it on
good authority that Salome the Sightweaver herself
will be addressing the true sequence of events
live in a press conference. So look forward to
that. In the meantime, for those of you that
are still unconvinced, Captain Commander Ariad
will be taking a short leave from his position
and from the Radiant Seidel. Now I won't be saying...
where it is he is going, as this whole situation
has painted a target on the innocent man's back.
A shame, given everything he has done for you
all. Anyways, for the time being, the S .H .I
.E .L .D. Bears will be in good hands, as Deputy
Commander Man Kong will be acting as the interim
captain until Alriot's eventual triumphant return.
So hooray for that, right? Do you guys remember
Deputy Commander Mankong? No, you said the name
and I... Yeah, I remember the name. She was mentioned
like once or twice in episode four and then never
again. Deep cut, bringing it back. I was sitting
there and I was like, who would be the... I should
announce who's running it. And I was like, wait,
didn't I announce like... say there was a deputy
commander a million years ago that i totally
forgot about thankfully right before this episode
i remembered that and i looked it up and i was
like oh yeah cool so you looked it up no for
those who think i have it all planned out a lot
of times i'm just like wait i said something
about this 600 episodes ago or people remind
me like wait a minute how does this correlate
with the thing you said here and it's like ah
all part of the plan i always yeah yep you figured
it out you clever listener So I'm going to be
on the news, huh? You're going to be on the news.
Get ready for that. That's going to be fun. Yeah,
Stephen, how much do you have prepped for that?
Zero. I had no advance notice. Oh, yeah. Don't
worry. We're not getting to that tonight. We
have a lot to do before this evening because
during this coming day, many, many, many things
are going to happen. Many things are going to
change. But there will be a choice made tonight.
There will be... Let's just say, I don't want
to, I'm glad I'm not you guys tonight. That's
all. I'm glad I'm not you guys. So it's like
a, it's like a normal, normal night then. I'm
glad not you guys, any given night we record
this show. Chardonnay or Bordeaux. It's so funny.
Way, way back in this arc, we had that little
slip up where I, I think I've mentioned it in
the show itself, where you looked at my note
page, Stephen, you saw the title of my notes
and I was like, ah, shit, it's a spoiler. So
now I'm actually going to say what the title
was because it's kind of funny given everything
that's going on. My note page, which is now 100
pages long, just about, I think it's 98 pages
at this moment, is called Sins of Sholay, which
is based on the sort of adventure in the book.
This whole thing is based off what's called Sins
of Our Elders. So I'll let you say about that.
We are coming unzipped. The difference is there
because it's pretty fun. But yeah, yeah, so.
That's a, you were, you kind of were sitting
on that this whole time. Sins of show in your
mind. You had some pinkling that something was
going to happen. Come around. Something not great.
Yeah. Yeah. And didn't you like send me that
on like Google docs? Oh yeah. I did. Yeah. No.
Yes. It was stupid. It was very dumb. Uh, I gave
you a, yeah, it was dumb. Uh, but Hey, now, you
know, but Hey, so. any more business to attend
to in this in this bant moment before we get
serious um when does this air what's our date
on this oh that's the most dangerous question
you could ask dude there's a there's a 25 chance
any answer given is correct okay so let me in
is the next one and it's this coming monday and
this is the next monday okay so i can say the
title because it's already been released that's
true that's true uh all right crazy episode right
So in October, so a couple months from even when
this airs, October 5th, Fantasy Pants is going
to be at the Vermont Anime Gaming Expo in Burlington.
Did you think there was a chance this wouldn't
come out until October? Hang on. Go back. Did
you think there was a chance we were that ahead?
When have we ever been that on our shit, Steven?
I don't know. I forgot what day it was. It's
July. You know what? I get it because Halloween
shits on all the stores. You're like, it's gotta
be October. The like 14 foot skeletons are in
laws already. Yes. Yes. Bring it back. Vermont
Anime and Gaming Expo. Is that what it's called?
Yes. Yes. Yeah, that's where we're going to be.
Hell yeah. So we'll have. Links and if it'll
be somewhere, it'll definitely be on social media
and probably other places. Website. There you
go. See, I didn't want to like volunteer Jeremy's
extra work to put it on the website. Check back
in October. You'll find it. Oh yeah. No, send
me the flyer. We'll put it up. Oh yeah. For real.
It's actually, it's a cool flyer. Yeah. Sweet.
Whose phone was that? David. I swear I turned
mine off. David. No. Throw it in the river. David.
Oh gosh. No, please. But yeah, I really want
to be there. And hopefully I can be there. But
yeah. Yeah, work. Work. But it's two months away.
There's one day I'm going to try to take off
work. It's going to be that one. It's going to
be awesome. Any more plugs? You want to plug
the Discord? Can we get to it? Always plug the
Discord. Don't shut up. Don't stop it. Because
without further ado, I think it's time we all
learned about the sins of Sholay. Let's open
in the ballroom. This is a sweet track. It's
called Ashes in Fantasy Plus. I just saw that
and I was like, yep, given everything we were
talking about, I don't know what it's about.
I don't know what the sound's like, but this
is the track for the episode. Let's open back
in that ballroom. That darkened ballroom. The
doorway's still just like this singed opening.
There's no sound in the hallway outside. Seems
like this wing of the palace has been mostly
vacated. Unless Sholi requests. Others come.
I think we see there is food before all of you
now. I think she ordered some before, so it only
makes sense rather than interrupt the episode
halfway through. Someone had come, there's food
out there, there's breakfast, you know, a nice
little display, various sort of like rice dishes
and some fine sort of flattish breads and a lot
of steamed vegetables and fish. But good, solid
display despite your... Kind of awkward situation
here in the palace. You are still being offered...
Hospitality? Thank you. The queen's most wondrous
hospitality. That's a hard word. Don't pick on
me. I think we see Chester and Akio. are awake
now they would have been awake actually during
your sort of yelling match and the threat of
fire and of course the uh scream song that happened
uh they at some point during all of that the
two of them snapped awake we're kind of like
what the fuck is going on over there by the way
still not over that really cool oh my i listened
so many times just last week oh my gosh oh my
gosh i'm sure everyone did find it on spotify
that plugging is over find it on discord um So
we see everyone together now, maybe, like, plates
of food sort of emptied, Sholay giving you a
moment as she collects her thoughts. She may
have said, like, something to the effect of,
I need a moment to consider how best to tell
you this story. And so she goes sort of quiet.
She does not eat herself. And while you guys
sort of eat quietly, the sound of just, like,
clacking, clittering sort of plates and dishes,
all that fills this... Open space. And finally,
as your digits are pushed to the side, as all
of you sit together, Sholay comes before you.
Now, you notice that during your song jewels,
something strange happened. I mentioned before,
last episode, there were these golden lines,
very faint, between all of you. Between you and
Blanche when you woke up. Now they have spread.
They're golden lines. Very, very hard to see
in this sort of dim... Because this room is very
darkly lit, it's the only reason you can see
them at all. Just this very almost invisible,
phantasmal connection between you and Jill Lanch,
you and Chester, you and Akio, and you and Sholay.
All of you just bound together through jewels.
A connection that seems to push away that familiar
haziness that seems to accompany the revelation
that you just came across. The idea that a memory
has been changed, a person erased. You've realized
this time and time before and it has just faded,
forgotten. But it's not fading now, not quickly
at least. Chester and Akio, through this connection
it seems, even understand what you have discovered.
As they wait patiently for the full story. And
so, Facing You All, Sho -Le begins. To speak.
You are a mystery to me, George LaRoche. From
what I've been able to gather, your soul has
been torn in such a way as to open it up to outside
influence. I believe your mother intended for
you to be open purely to the powers of the demonic
abyss. But you have broken beyond such limitations.
I wonder, and she smiles, this faint smile, if
that is a result of what they did to you. One
incredible quirk of the person you are. As I've
come to know you more, I find myself leaning
towards the latter opinion. In a way, you are
very likely a royal diamond itself. Connecting
worlds and planes. People. And that smile fades.
And minds. Yes. We should talk about that. Much
like your own powers, Jules, the Royal Diamond's
magic is complex. Even now, after these nine
years, I do not understand all of its quirks.
It is a constant function of the Royal Diamond.
I cast a spell, a wish, in a sense, to see a
certain memory erased and changed forever. It
is being channeled even now, acting on its own.
But it can be slow to warp the minds of those
who come to understand it of their own accord.
Were I to try to tell you of these changes, my
words would be lost to you, the memory gone immediately.
But self -realization is a different matter.
You are not the first to have discovered this,
far from it. But those who have learned of my
crime before have had their words fall on deaf
ears, until their own mind was wiped of their
realizations. You would not believe the resources
I've had to pour into removing all physical evidence
that could awaken such realizations. Even still,
nine years later, it occupies me. This is all
to say that, given the means by which you have
discovered this truth, we have some time before
your memories will be lost. Time enough for me
to tell you my story. And to make you understand
the impossible choice I face now. When all is
said, I'll burden the two of you with a crushing
weight. Life or death. For incalculable souls.
So let us start. I will be as brief as I can.
Now, there's a point where you, as your characters,
want to ask questions, gain clarity, anything
like that, please let me know. I have a fair
bit to say here, and I apologize. But you have
earned yourself, for lack of a better term, an
info dump. Hey, I'm here for a cutscene episode.
It's a cutscene. It's a cutscene. Yeah, I don't,
Jules isn't going to do anything. He's quiet,
staring intently. Hell yeah. You notice they're
sitting there too, again, like Chester's sort
of sitting, I think, apart from you. Mm -hmm.
Every once in a while his eyes shifle to you
kind of awkwardly and then back to show Leia
as she's speaking. Akio is just like full on
good boy, good posture, nose straight ahead,
just listening very intently. His ears kind of
doing that thing where they kind of turn every
once in a while just to make sure you understand
he's really listening. His head cocks every once
in a while. Yeah, it's great. It's very adorable.
What a good boy. All right. 257 years ago, I
was suddenly tasked by the Dawn Incarnates to
find the Radiant Citadel. This quest required
me to travel between the various connecting planes
to each of our 25 worlds, and attune a gemstone
to each one that I visited. One of the first
adventurers I met as I set off on this journey
was a man called Zebulon. We traveled. We survived.
We saw a quest done. And as this all transpired,
we... we fell in love. Once we settled on the
new Radiant Cyrodiil, we had a child together.
Well, Zebulon was named for his grandfather.
Arhalon was named for his father. Arathelon.
Though for many years I have not been able to
bring myself to say the full name. Neither has
Arhalon, it seems. You should be able to receive
the name now. You heard it. She looks to you
for confirmation. And you did. Yeah, Blanche
just nods without speaking. It will be lost soon.
Arathelon. Wrath, we called him. And he was perfect.
He was clever and strong and brave. And for a
time, he was so kind. But that changed. The day
that Arthash appeared in the skies of Orancor
and Sengar, the day that the very idea of a luminary
bled through the crystal network, it was like
a poison. As the years moved on, as more of these
luminary adventurers came forward to roaring
applause, my son grew more and more sick. He
was obsessed. He wanted to be one of them, the
greatest of them. They wanted to be greater than
me. I was warned once that living in my shadow
would be hard for my son, so I did the hardest
thing I could. I let go of my control. My only
attempt to dissuade his recklessness was to introduce
him to Xena, a half -dragon I had been aware
of. And that romance seemed to dull Wrath's ambition,
set him on the right path. They had a child together,
as you know. It... was a very happy time for
us all. But Wrath would not be easily satisfied,
and he would still vie for the spotlight of the
Crystal Network. And I would not try to stop
him further, no. I let him act purely on his
own will and drive, fly freely. And fly he did,
directly into the arms of my greatest nemesis,
Calypsania. and her coat of the fractured horn.
They promised him fame and power, and they delivered
on both. He became more and more estranged to
his new family, who continued to cheer him on
from the sidelines, too forgiving as he came
to neglect them further and further, until he
would betray them, betray Xena, when he would
lay with Calypsania herself. And the two had
a child together as well. Part black, part brass.
A beautiful child. And they would name that child
with a dagger to my own heart. Zebulon. My little
Zebulon. The hostage to keep me out of the fractured
horn's way. Wrath offered the boy to me, threatening
a life of dark hardship for him if I refused.
A life much akin to the young Jules LaRoche.
Tortured in his own home at the hands of his
own family. I could not refuse this offer, and
so I gave them what they most desired. I let
the fractured horn run free, unsuppressed and
unpunished by my hand. I think it was only then
that I started to hate my son. It destroyed me
to let them. do as they would. But it was okay.
The lives they stole, the looming threat they
represented, it was okay. Because I had Zebulon.
I told myself I wouldn't see the same mistakes
happen with him. I would control him entirely,
keep him under my wing. And once again, I failed.
Every time. Every path I have. Failed. Especially
then. That day. Nine years ago. There was a party.
Here. In Yanido. Thrown by Queen Jinmi in my
honor. Xena was in attendance. And so was Wrath.
Our quarrel. His darkness unknown to the greater
worlds we played. the loving mother and son,
to the public. And so he was there. We had danced
this dance so many times before, but that day,
he came to me. And he spoke to me. And I think
here you hear a voice overlaying Sholay's own
to this connection. A voice that seems to like...
boom out from her own heart, a memory locked
so deep into her that every line is so vividly
remembered, displayed. I wanted to congratulate
you early, Mother. Calyxania would like another
child, and so we are going to start trying. This
one, I think we will keep. Broke. Right there
and then. It just happened. All the weight of
it crushed me and all reason left my mind. I
was just so heartbroken, so disappointed. And
so filled with rage. When it was over. When he
was dead. In the Phoenix District in Smoking
Ruins, I find myself fleeing from the screams
and the carnage. They chased me as I took control
of the Amethyst, as I fled into the Preserve
of the Ancestors, as I went straight to the Incarnates
to tell them of my failure, and their coming
doom to their dreams. It was there that I was
reminded of certain special functions of the
Auroral Diamond. Functions that were revealed
to me by the Sapphire Wyvern 250 years ago. The
ability to connect all minds to one. Through
the central node of the diamond. To bring mass,
continuous change to memory and thought. To even
dominate all wills entirely. A last ditch effort
to stop another war. An effort the incarnate
swore to me they would never use. Jules, as she
speaks these words, your mind goes back to the
vision Salome shared with you. A world at peace.
A perfect utopia. And yet, when you looked into
the eyes of one you loved... All you saw was
the pulsing blue of the sapphire. A hollow peace.
And yet, seeing the imminent danger to the plants
following my episode, my sins, they were turned
towards using this power. A plant sparked yet
again by the sapphire wyvern. I should have seen
the treachery coming. But I was so broken, so
scared. Even just days ago, when you revealed
his part in all these current happenings, I could
not see the sheer extent of his machinations.
I could not understand how he could have been
involved in my coming downfall, because he was
there when I did it. When I came once again to
stand at the Master Node, within the great crystal
amphitheater of a rural town. And there I cast
my will into the diamond, into the world, to
erase myself from the tragedy of Yanito. and
to erase all traces of my son from memory. A
will that was granted only through a unanimous
allowance from the Incarnates. I had my son buried
in secret on Unido, under the guise of Daewon
Ha. Likewise, I buried the entire truth under
the guise of a Dragon Clan conspiracy, forcing
the royals to become guilt -ridden scapegoats
for my crime. Despite it all, I could not help
but see a coffin made for my son. The proper
bed to lie in. For the boy I wanted so dearly
to remember. So we find ourselves here. At the
unraveling of it all. And the choice I must make
for the worlds. Tell me. Do you understand the
mechanics behind the Gwishin? The rituals required?
So one can face them and appease them. Someone
who knows them must speak of them. Yes. They
must call upon their name and their memory. Hold
them true. But it's not as simple as just that.
For the one that calls upon the Gwishin cannot
be the malefactor that created the Gwishin. An
outside party must act in judgment of the sin.
One that knew the victim in life. Typically a
spirit arbiter. But in all the worlds, only I
remember my son. Only I can hold his memory and
only I can make him appear. And I took everything
from him. And so Yenido is doomed entirely. The
Gwishin's power will grow rapidly. Already the
Stones of Control are... Growing. Its assaults
more deadly. As I said before, I believe. This
city has until nightfall before it is entirely
encompassed. Entirely taken. Rogue Gwishin wandering
free out of control. Enraged by my son. I don't
know how he became so powerful in death. And
I cannot stop him. Unless I stop the spell. And
I can stop it. I do not need the unanimous permission
of the Anconas to end the magic, only to activate
it. It would be so easy. But if I stop the spell,
if everyone remembers, I will no doubt be arrested
and my position removed. Not only would we lose
Yanido's speaker as we feared, but every other
ally I have built. The populace of the world
has come to fear me. As well as the Incarnates.
And Arthas will reign supreme over all. He will
win. But this world will die. Truly die if we
do not let this happen. 30 ,000 people in this
city alone. Swallowed up by my son's hatred.
It will spread like wildfire until all of Halri
burns. And these people will not leave their
city, let alone their world. They are set in
tradition, and they so dearly love the lives
they have. And so I ask you, all of you, when
faced with this choice, what would you do? What
if there is another option? I have not foreseen
one. There are two here who knew... Alharion?
It's not Arhalon. It's Arathelon. Arathelon,
yeah. Your name memory stick is really going
to go to blatch. Oh, I wanted to say Arthelon.
See? It's not just me. It's actually funny. Way,
way back in the show, it was revealed, I think
Arhalon showed his actual license and said Arathelon
Brass. I remember the name. He's never gone by
his full name, and there is a reason for that.
He didn't want to. Almost like... I guess like
subconsciously he didn't want to. There are two
here who knew Arathelon in life. We slowly learned
about the truth over the course of, was it a
day? Was it two days? How long did it take us
to unravel this while we were here? It's been
one day. Okay. We learned over the course of
a day enough that we can retain the truth. The
truth will not be enough. You need to have actually
known him. Hold his memory. A memory of him.
In your heart. And speak his name to call upon
him. Arhalon and Xena are here. But they will
not remember. If they go through the steps that
we went through today... She looks down. And
there's something she's like... Almost bubbling
in her throat, she wants to say, kind of clenched,
then she kind of finally lets it loose and looks
to you, Jules. I believe they're not the only
ones who knew my son. Tell me, Jules LaRoche,
despite everything you've learned, do you remember
Arathelon? Do you remember him being there? In
your home? And you don't. You don't. You feel
like you remember something. We've had these
memories before. The day that the candle was
poured into your hand, someone was holding you.
You feel claws almost holding you. You want to
remember, but you can't. He was there. He'd always
been there. But you can't remember him. And you
begin to realize the truth behind Xolay's word,
this ultimatum. Until the spell is dropped, you
cannot hold him in your memory. Not the way Kunon
Jun held the owner of that tea shop. Which might
have been Bisu Min. I can't remember anymore.
That sounds right. So you're telling me. Yeah.
That this entire world. Yeah. Is going to be
killed. Yep. By this Guishin. Or we basically
surrender Xena. Or not Xena, sorry, Xolay. Yeah.
And essentially give control to... Atash. To
Atash, yeah. I think I built this up as a pretty
rough choice. Well, there's rough, and then there's,
like, impossible. Well, now you understand why
Xolay has been sitting here in a rage. Not trying
to, like, I don't know, evacuate the world. Can
you evacuate an entire world in one day? No,
but could you evacuate, like, thousands? Probably.
Yeah. Yeah, but they don't want to leave. Would
they go? Would they listen? They can't even remember
what it is she's afraid to tell them. They're
all trying to ignore this even happened because
much of this world believes the royal family,
as the royal family does, were the ones behind
this. And they've been taught to hide from that
belief. Gwishin are not something to be considered.
They're something to be ignored because they
are not your problem. It is a shame to reflect
on them. This entire situation was a powder keg
built up to blow all of Shirley's plans to high
hell. You just happen to come here and arrive
right before the keg blew. This is really heavy
breakfast conversation. Yeah. And for the first
time in a while, Shirley goes, I, David, go silent.
Yeah, that was impressive. As I hand the reins
to you, it is a hard choice. If you want to believe
in the greater good, then let hollow re -burn.
Let wrath go free and kill everyone. But can
you hold that on your conscience? At what point
does this become your sin as well? It is. Already.
Hang on. Pause. Pause. I need my fidget because
this is intense. I've been, like, spinning this
button around the entire time talking. This button
that maybe, just maybe, I'm going to use on you
if you choose to fight. Sick fuck. Wait, it'll
be a fight? Huh? I mean, this will allow the
spirit to appear. then you have to deal with
it. Remember, the Gwishn in the tea shop is very
much a prototype of what you're facing now. Oh,
so we essentially have three options. Leave the
world to its fate, rat out Sholay, or fight the
Gwishn. Ratting out Sholay involves fighting
the Gwishn. If the world remembers what happened,
it will open you up to be able to face the Gwishn.
But you cannot face the Gwishn until the world
remembers. Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, okay. In the T
-Shop, Kunon Jun could not let you fight that
thing until he called upon name and memory. And
so it's just like that, but on a way grander
scale. Huh, so we can't just fight it? No. Dick?
Not unless you remember. Zebulon. Your grandson.
My Zebulon. The Zebulon that I knew and loved.
He got a little overzealous at times. Kind of
let himself get caught up in the vanity of being
a luminary. But he never wavered in his honesty
and his desire to save as many people as possible.
You did good with him. And now I think we all
need to do good by him. I loved Zebulon greatly.
He would never dream of just letting people die.
No matter the consequence. But Jules, what about
the Vision? If Sholay can't protect... can't
protect the worlds, then... the Sapphire Wyvern
will... everybody we save today will... fall
under his control. And everybody else. That's
a possibility. Oh, I love this. The party's heart
and mind split. It's a possibility. But if we
don't, 30 ,000 plus dead is a certainty. I'll
take my chances to save everybody. Before we
continue, I want to give you a button, Jeremy.
Because that speech was amazing. Because this
isn't the first time you've done it. What is
a rare thing for a mortal to make a dragon cry?
As Shoalaze just lets tears fall freely down
her cheeks. Thank you. I'm still so unsure about
this. Good. I'm still so unsure about this. So...
Roll for initiative, Blanche. Shall I? What?
If you do this, what happens? What's next? Spell
it out for me. For me, there will be no next.
I am sure of it. I will return to the citadel,
return to a rural town, break the spell, and
I doubt I shall ever leave again. No, that is
wrong. I will leave only once. To be taken to
Ankaran Sengar and placed in the Sky Prison.
And then the worlds will be on their own. Then...
then Atash will surely gain power who will stop
him. We can't. Perhaps. And yet, haven't you
stopped him before? Even slightly halting him
in his tracks. What if you could convince...
Queen Jin Mi to evacuate the world. I could try,
but there won't be time. And with everything
out of control as it is, the Quixian wandering
free. Already the city is in chaos. To try to
ask them to do this thing with only a day. We
may save a few thousand in the end, but the vast
majority will die. I think. As you're saying
this, I think Chester moves over to you, Jules,
reaches up to put a hand, like, it tries to reach
your shoulder, probably doesn't quite get there,
so there's a hand on your bicep. Hey, big guy.
I'm in. Jules will give him a little pat on the
head. I know, buddy. I know. Then after that,
Jules looks up at Blanche. Good can never back
down. Good has to fight. Until I can't fight
no more. And you know what? That moment's never,
ever come yet. Why would it now? Good fights
until I can't no more. Blanche, you feel a nose
poke at you. Wet nose. You see Akio looking up
at you. Big puppy eyes. This old dog's face.
Master Ozen. What would he do? He believed in
the greater good. Roof, but he also saved everyone.
You are like him, Blanche Trudeau. So, Master
Blanche, I will do as you request. Whatever you
believe in, I believe in, Roof. For you are the
most like Master Ozen. You will do the right
thing. The odds against Atash, against the Sapphire
Wyvern, they're almost impossible, even with
Sholay. Without Sholay, the risk of losing everything
is greater. Fuck. This is so awesome. I hate
this. This is awesome! Sorry. We can hedge our
bets, Jules. If we yield, they've already won.
And we will live with the blood of thousands
directly on our hands. This is our burden now,
too. And we can stop the cycle. I don't know
what to do. I don't know what to do. Holy fuck.
Here's the fun thing. You don't need to convince
each other. Realistically, you need to convince
Xole. One of you. Needs to convince Jolay. You
could argue against each other and make contested
roles. You could just come at me with everything
you've got. As it stands, she's been listening
to this entire thing silently, just kind of,
I guess, amazed at how well, how in stride you're
handling it. I think you look at her and see
eyes that are finally understanding just how
much she underestimated both of you. Jules will
look up to Jolay. another mistake. You know what's
right. Redeem yourself. This pain. The blood
of thousands on your claws. You are right. It
is a horrible thing. I am so tired. I have sent
men and women. Soldiers, I have sent them to
war knowing many would die. And Zinda stands.
The kingdom stands. We just see superimposed
over those images of Sahagrin and turtles fighting
the golden bay, becoming very red with blood.
as his defenders fall. And yet, it all stands.
And Sholay hears this and nods as well. Almost
like she wants to believe in you, Jewel. She
wants to take that path. When Blanche speaks
reason, Sholay, she is bound by the shackles
of reason. Those shackles are so tight. How can
she break them now when they are most needed?
She looks to Blanche and nods. And she still
looks so undecided, so unsure. How? I'm going
to ask you. How do you guys want to resolve this?
Do we do a persuasion check? I mean, you'd have
to rule insane, Blanche, to beat Jules in this.
Yeah. But that might be okay because that's kind
of what... You know, it'd be weird to not to
ignore persuasion and charisma. I said that weird
in a situation like this. I want to open it to
players. What do you guys think would be fair?
How should we determine the fate of the worlds
in this moment? Small thing. Could be for flavor.
Could be for something. I don't know. But Jules
will look to Blanche. I'm never, ever going to
fight you, Blanche. And then he turns to Chauvelet.
You know what's right. For Zebula. And then Jules
walks over to the wall, presses his back up against
it, and slowly slides down into a sitting position
against the wall. Chester comes over and sits
before you, legs crossed, and stays silent. The
camera pans to Blanche. Any final retort? Any
last words before we resolve this? Blanche walks
up to Jolay. Starts to plead, basically. Oh my
gosh. You can fly many out. I can convince, or
you can convince. We can cast a spell, and we
can get Queen Jinmi to evacuate as many as possible.
We can... This doesn't have to be the end, Jolay.
We need you. This is amazing. The world needs
you. This is amazing. Holy fuck. And you feel
a good boy stand tall beside you as you speak
these words, believing in you, as always. And
I think I'd like to ask for persuasion checks
from both of you if you think that is a fair
way to resolve this. I don't see any other way.
Okay. Holy shit. Jesus fucking Christ. I'm not
using a button. Contesting? No, because I'm going
to just use a button and it's going to cancel
it out anyway. But I just, I want this to be,
I want this to be fate. Save your button. Because
I know that you have like a plus 11 to persuasion
or something like that. I think 10. My computer
died. I have plus 10, right? Plus 10. I have
a plus zero to persuasion. So like the only way
that my argument wins is if I like crit. and
you, you know what I mean? The other crit. Yeah.
And I think that that is fair enough. I like
this a lot. Because I, Steven, know that the
moral argument is the better argument. My heart
is racing right now. This is crazy. I'm glad
that you took it out of, like, the realm of PvP,
where you were like, we don't have to convince
each other, we have to convince Sholay. Yes.
Because, like... Blanche can't cast hold person
on show leg. You know what I mean? Oh my gosh.
Oh my gosh. So for this roll, I'm going back
to the original blessed D20 that I got from Rochelle.
It's on Pukey Girl Maps. Oh shit. What do you
got over there, Steven? What are you firing on?
I've got my gray duck. Ooh. Super cool. Forgetting
the name of the dice set. Die. Wishing I had
Zebulon's die here. Because that would be cool
too. You just bury yourself. We shall see. What
will the face decide? Are we going to roll this?
You need to roll 10 higher than Jules. And no
matter what happens at the end of this roll,
I don't know, are Jules and Blanche going to
be friends still? Wait. I want to ask you something.
I want you both to drop your die into the Port
of Pain. And I do not want you to see the results.
I know what your dice look like. That's fun.
I fucking hate it and I fucking love it. Yeah,
I think it's fantastic. You have to move because
I can see the end of your dice tower there. Okay,
how do I do this? Actually, no. The way you had
it was great because I couldn't see. How about
that? No, no, no. Put it back the way it was.
Yeah, because your screen now is blocking it.
Cool. All right. And I can see the corner, but
I'm going to be honest and not look because this
is full of shit. I'll hide it anyway. Just drop
it in and turn away. I don't want to do it. I
don't want to do it. Let's see what your dice
is. Green. Your dice is greenish, but you have
blue letters. Okay, we got this. I don't want
to do it! I don't want to do it! I don't want
to do it! Oh, my God! Holy shit! Oh, plus ten
and a plus zero! Jeremy, look me in the eyes
when we do this together! Three, two, one. Oh,
my God. Oh. Hmm. What's going to happen? What's
going to happen? What's going to happen? Holy
shit. Okay. Oh, my God. Move the dice so we can
look. Yeah. They moved. They're inside. Okay.
Cool. The room falls very silent. For a long
moment. And then... Blanche. You are correct.
This is the logical choice. This is what must
be done. But that is the path I've always followed
and has brought me here. And so I side with you,
Jules. With the will of my grandson. I will sacrifice
myself. Return memory to these worlds. And we
will save this city. And we'll call it there.
Holy shit. Holy shit. What were the rolls? You
rolled a three. He rolled a seven. Oh, my God.
Oh, shit. Dude, so there was a chance that Blanche
could have won that.