Eight, Rou, and Arthas start their exploration of Kidohlva and all the mountain city has to offer.
After their meeting with the University’s Headmaster, the group heads down further into the mountain. Upon arriving at the guard station, they’re able to turn over Arcterus and obtain a brochure to help guide them through the city. It is suggested they head to The Silver Pearl, an inn close to the residential district and therefore less prone to be swarmed by tourists.
Wandering through the city, they get glimpses of the diversity of its inhabitants and layout. Alcoves for musicians, symposiums, and artists flow into market stalls and reading nooks. Even the inn has been carved from stone, and although Arthas’ accommodations take a little creative thinking, the innkeeper is more than happy to take their coin.
The next morning, they meet the Headmaster and some of her staff in the observation lounge as they finally begin their research.
Follow Dax @GM_Dax, Kappa @TheKappaChris, and Wren @ThornyDryad
Transcript by CJ Kallevig
Upbeat piano intro ends[00:28]
Gentle piano fades in [00:29]
Wren (as Eight): Hello, I am Eight and you are listening to Roads Uncharted. Previously, on Roads Uncharted, my companions and I arrived in the university city of Kidohlva. Upon our arrival, we were met with very friendly guards, who let us into the city and told us where to find the Headmaster of the university. They suggested an appointment, but time is of the essence. So we decided it would be more appropriate to announce ourselves and present the missing staff member, Arcterus, to the Headmaster.
Upon doing so, it was revealed to us that Arcterus was actually a scamp of sorts, having stolen a magical artifact and having been exiled from the university. Oh wait, no. I believe the terminology they used was “banished”. At any rate, bringing Arcterus back was fortuitous for the staff but it also explains some of the hesitancy he expressed with returning to the Headmaster. Our job is now to hand over Arcterus to the guards at the station so that he may be tried and judged for his crimes, and the Headmaster has agreed to provide us with assistance in locating resources that might assist us in discovering the cause of the missing children in the city of Saleen.
Music shifts to a mysterious guitar[01:53]
Dax: You head past the stairs to the Observation Lounge and down this winding hallway. It is a spiral that goes downward, but it is a very wide spiral. So it doesn’t really feel like you’re going in circles. The banister the entire way down is this intricately carved stone banister. If you were to peer over the edge of it, you could see clear down towards sparkling lights at the bottom. Every so often, the hallway, the ramp, whatever you want to call it, levels off and there is an entryway to another part of the city. You eventually get to the bottom, and the first thing you see is one of those entryways. The doors are open, and you can see that there are tables and chairs and lamps and things. You do see some Elves milling about. All of them are wearing those dark blue uniforms again. This time, though, their hoods are down because they’re inside. As you approach, one of them walks up to you.
Dax (as the guard): [British accent, deeper tone] Can, can I help you? Are you lost?
Kappa (as Rou): Sort of? We’re new here. We were instructed to go to the guard house. Is this here? Is this it? Is it far?
Dax (as the guard): Oh. You are the ones the Headmistress called about.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh yes. Called? That was literally like twenty minutes ago.
Dax (as the guard): Yes, plenty of time for her to get in contact with us.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh that’s so cool.
Dax (as the guard): You’re dropping off, uh, a thief of some sort?
Kappa (as Rou): Yes, yes. Here.
Kappa: I will produce the skull of Arcterus, plop it down on the table.
Kappa (as Rou): This main person, main part, but there’s also some limbs over there on our mechanical donkey. Do you need those too?
Dax: The guard is staring at the skull.
Dax (as the guard): You know, she said that it was a skull and I honestly thought she was joking. Yes, we’ll need all parts of him to stand trial.
Kappa (as Rou): He’s also, he’s also, you know, a person too. You, you just called him an it.
Dax: He looks down at the skull.
Dax (as the guard): I’m sorry.
Dax (as Arcterus): That’s fine [grumbles to self].
Dax: The guard tilts his head.
Dax (as the guard): What did you call me?
Dax (as Arcterus): Sorry, you, you looked like somebody I once knew named Reginan.
Dax: The guard squints.
Dax (as the guard): Wait a minute, you wouldn’t be Arcterus, that, that flippant professor of history? [chuckling lightly] That ran off and got banished 100 years ago, would you?
Dax (as Arcterus): Perhaps?
Dax (as the guard): My father used to tell me stories about you and how you were always getting into trouble. You ended up biting something too big to swallow. Well,
Dax: Picks up the skull.
Dax (as the guard): Sounds like it’s time to deal with you for good now, isn’t it? Come along. If you’d like to bring the remnants of the rest of his body, follow me.
Wren: I’ve been reaching into the saddlebags and pulling out an arm. Yeah, I’ll just produce whatever pieces of him remain. Basically just like, how do I carry all this skeleton? And follow after the guy holding his head.
Dax: If anybody wants to fanart this, I would love to see it. Alright, so you’re carrying Arcterus. Rou and Arthas, what are the two of you doing?
Kappa: I mean I’d, I’d also follow. If that’s cool? I do have a note to give to one of the, whoever’s in charge of, you know, the folks that do get dropped off.
Neil: I’m going to follow along, mostly because the entire judicial process that I’ve known is being thrown off of a cliff. But I’m going to keep my eyes peeled for any tattoo parlors along the way.
Wren: Arthas is curious how banishment does not involve being thrown off a cliff. [chuckles]
Kappa: Eyes peeled for a cliff.
Neil: [laughing] Yeah like, so, is there just a pit you people dig in the ground? Or..?
Dax: So the guard leads you into the back rooms of this section of the city, and when he leads you through the next set of doors, you see that it’s an area that leads to barracks and it leads to a mess hall. It’s like the back quarters for the guards. Keep going down the hallway and at the very end, he unlocks the door and leads you into a room where there are a few stone cells that you can readily see and then a pathway leads farther down, out of your viewpoint. He opens up the nearest one, places the skull very gently on the bench. Turns and says,
Dax (as the guard): You can, you can put the rest of his body on there.
Wren: I drop it unceremoniously in the corner.
Wren (as Eight): There, nice and tidy.
Dax: He locks the gate, turns to the group of you.
Dax (as the guard): He wasn’t carrying anything on his person, was he?
Kappa (as Rou): No, no.
Dax (as the guard): No? Alright.
Kappa (as Rou): I will say, he does not eat but he does get hungry. So, you know, if you, you know, had just a spare bit of food, you could just put it into his mouth and then sneak it from below and feed it back to him so that way you’re not wasting anything.
Dax (as the guard): I’ll be sure my staff knows...
Kappa (as Rou): Otherwise, otherwise, he just talks and..you know, complains.
Wren (as Eight): Mhmm. Oh, he excels at that. He tells jokes as well.
Dax (as Arcterus): I’m still sitting right here.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes?
Wren (as Eight): If possible -
Kappa (as Rou): I know.
Wren (as Eight): Covering his body with a blanket might prevent him from getting chill. He did complain about being cold earlier.
Dax: The guard just nods his head very slowly.
Dax (as the guard): Is there anything else that you require?
Wren (as Eight): A map.
Dax (as the guard): Of what?
Kappa (as Rou): Kidohlva? Surely you have some sort of one of those here?
Dax (as the guard): I do, yes. But we have a few maps so I needed to know specifically what you needed.
Dax: And he starts to gesture for you to turn and go back through the door you came through.
Kappa (as Rou): Okay, okay. Bye Arcterus.
Dax (as Arcterus): Bye.
Kappa (as Rou): Let us know if you need anything.
Dax (as Arcterus): Yeah, sure. [starts singing] Nobody knows…
Dax: You hear as the door shuts. Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.
Wren (as Eight): I am going to miss him. If only for the fact that he kept me company at night.
Dax: The first person Eight has met that stays up as long as they do. The guard leads you back to the main entry area and starts pouring through some papers that are on a shelf near the door.
Dax (as the guard): Let’s see, not, I don’t want this one. Mmm! Here.
Dax: Pulls out kind of like a, a brochure almost and hands it over to you, Rou. You open up the trifold and it has like a, not quite so detailed map, but it is certainly outlined with little lines that say ‘hey, this is what this is’. ‘Here’s the residential district, here’s the market’ and so on and so forth.
Dax (as the guard): We get a lot of tourists during the summer months. And it’s just easier to hand these out than to worry about people getting lost.
Kappa (as Rou): Great, appreciated. And if you were to stay at, if you were, if you were one of these tourists, what would be the, you know, the choice place to stay to avoid other tourists?
Dax: He kind of smirks at that.
Dax (as the guard): I see… Then you want to stay at The Silver Pearl.
Kappa (as Rou): Silver Pearl. Okay, okay. Okay, I think I see it on the map.
Music shifts to a playful guitar [09:51]
Dax (as the guard): It’s that one right there that’s a little closer to the residential district and farther away from the markets.
Kappa (as Rou): Great. Well, thank you very much. Have a good day.
Dax (as the guard): You’re welcome. Thank you for dropping off the prisoner.
Kappa (as Rou): He likes cheese.
Dax (as the guard): Noted.
Dax: As you head into the city proper, you start to see more people. You start to see a greater mix of people and not just overwhelmingly Elves. You pass by various shops for the market, you pass by little alcoves where people can sit and read or you pass by alcoves where there are musicians playing and people are sitting and listening. There are lots of locations where it is very clear that this is… kind of picture like a college town? Where you have people that are, not that kind of college town, but like, it’s very clear that there is a university here, you know?
You see that there are some individuals that are wearing black and silver uniforms with a silver emblem emblazoned on the left shoulder. You can rightly assume that they are students attending the university. Past the markets, past all the touristy sections, you do arrive at The Silver Pearl. And it is a very lovely looking establishment, very old. The stone appears to be well worn in a very comforting looking way. You’re greeted when you arrive by a plump woman, human woman, sitting outside in one of the rocking chairs. She’s knitting.
Dax (as the woman): Ahhh. New faces. Here to stay at The Pearl?
Neil (as Arthas): Yes, please.
Wren: When she says new faces, I cock my head slightly.
Wren (as Eight): I’m sorry, our faces are the same ones we’ve always had. Perhaps you are mistaken?
Dax (as the woman): Oh, no. New to me. I try to keep a running tally of everybody that I meet that comes to stay at my establishment.
Kappa (as Rou): That’s so nice! Yes, we are, we are trying to stay here. It was recommended to us.
Dax (as the innkeeper): You’re more than welcome. I do have some rooms. How many are you going to need? Three? Two? One?
Kappa (as Rou): I mean, based on availability. Are you able to accommodate us though? I mean, we have a mechanical donkey and our friend here is, you know, probably going to need something a little, sort of a larger accommodation.
Dax (as the innkeeper): Yes, yes, yes. In fact I do have one room in the back. It’s technically a storeroom, but I’m sure I could move some boxes around and get something comfortable for you in there, dear.
Dax: She looks up at you, Arthas.
Neil (as Arthas): I’ve slept in worse, I assure you.
Dax (as the innkeeper): Well, the good thing is at least you don’t have to worry about the elements down here. Now, are you here for the University? Are you here for the library? Just, just passing through? I mean, most people don’t pass through at this time of year, but you know, stranger things have happened.
Kappa (as Rou): Not here for the University itself but for the library. It’s largely what drew me here. The reason why I’m traveling with these fine fellows. Ah, yes, um, this is, this is Arthas. This is Eight, my name is Rou. Hello. And we’re all friends and adventurers.
Dax (as the innkeeper): Oh! Well, lovely to meet you. My name is Beverly. I’ve been running The Silver Pearl for about 25 years now. But I’m sure you don’t want to hear my life story. Why don’t you come in? I’ll get you something to eat, it’s just past lunchtime so I’m sure you’re famished.
Kappa (as Rou): Lunch would be lovely. Sorry, you said your name was…?
Dax (as Beverly): Beverly.
Kappa (as Rou): Beverly, okay.
Dax: She leads you in and Arthas, the doors are large enough. You’re going to have to stoop a little bit, but these are larger than most doors that you’ve had to deal with so, I mean, it’s not too bad. Leads you in, and instead of stone, which you’ve been seeing everywhere, you are greeted by darkly stained wood. You have a roaring fireplace in one corner, it feels very homey. You can smell stew and you can smell coffee and bread. There are people sitting among all the tables, and they’re chattering. It feels like a very lively yet comfy and homey establishment.
Dax (as Beverly): Oh, oh! I, I’ve been doing this so long I often forget. Um, how do you plan on paying? And how many nights are you staying?
Kappa (as Rou): Well, at the moment, I don’t know how, I believe we don’t know how long we’re going to stay, so kind of like on a need basis. And in terms of payment, I mean we, we have currency. We can acquire more.
Wren (as Eight): How does one go about obtaining more currency?
Kappa (as Rou): Well, I mean, I’ve done some odd jobs and been paid for it in the past. Some people work, there was one time where I didn’t have enough, you know, gold to pay for a meal, so I worked in the kitchen for a little bit, washing dishes.
Wren (as Eight): Oh, okay. Similarly to how we were given gold for solving the mystery of the murder.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes. Always get paid for your services.
Dax: Beverly kind of raises her eyebrows at this comment about murder.
Wren (as Eight): I see, I see. Yes. Ah, that was exactly what we had talked about in the other city. Being compensated for your efforts. Right! Yes.
Kappa (as Rou): Mhmm. Yes, yes. We’re, we’re, we’re a world class investigative team.
Dax (as Beverly): Uh-huh. Well, if you’re going to be staying on a need by basis, I don’t think that will be any problem. I will say that if you, if you’re not back by supper time and I haven’t had word from you, I will assume you no longer need the rooms. Does that sound fair?
Kappa (as Rou): Sure… Is it, would it be okay if we just left our stuff in the rooms?
Dax (as Beverly): If you pay me in the morning, yes.
Kappa (as Rou): Okay, okay.
Dax: She bustles over to, kind of a bar area and grabs out a ledger. She starts writing.
Dax (as Beverly): Ah, so, if you want to, let’s say, start with two rooms with a deposit for tonight and tomorrow, let’s say two gold.
Kappa (as Rou): Two gold, sure.
Kappa: And I will produce two gold from my coin purse.
Dax: She takes it.
Dax (as Beverly): If you would like some, some lunch, feel free to grab a seat and I’ll, I’ll go tell the cook. Oh! Um, you know what, sorry. I keep forgetting. Why don’t I show you your rooms first, and then you’re welcome to have something to eat.
Kappa (as Rou): Thank you, Beverly.
Dax (as Beverly): Let’s start with you dearie.
Dax: And she, she reaches up and she grabs your hand, Arthas, and she starts to try and drag you towards the back.
Neil: I, uh, follow along.
Dax: She leads you through this large archway and you see that she’s actually leading you into the kitchen.
Dax (as Beverly): If you just come back here and..
Dax: Through another large door, she leads you into what is essentially a large storage room.
Dax (as Beverly): Alright, so if you want to place your things, there!
Dax: She kind of just points to an empty corner.
Dax (as Beverly): I’ll make sure that over the course of the afternoon, most of these barrels and things are shifted so that you have plenty of space. Do you think this will accommodate?
Neil (as Arthas): This is ideal. Thank you.
Dax (as Beverly): Will you be needing blankets? Pillows? I don’t know if I have a bed that’s big enough.
Neil (as Arthas): A pillow would be great, and if you have a spare horse blanket, that generally works.
Dax: She sits there and thinks for a minute.
Dax (as Beverly): I’ll see what I can rustle up.
Neil (as Arthas): Thank you.
Dax (as Beverly): Now, I do have to ask before we go back to our friends. You’re not going to be…grinding up any of my patrons, are you?
Neil (as Arthas): Ah, no?
Dax (as Beverly): Sorry, it’s just, when I was a little girl, my grandmother used to tell me stories about Giant-Kin grinding up people to make bread out of bones. So…
Neil (as Arthas): It’s funny, I’ve heard that many times but I’ve never personally ground anything up that wasn’t grain.
Dax (as Beverly): That’s good to hear! I’ll be sure to tell my grandchildren.
Neil (as Arthas): Spectacular.
Dax (as Beverly): Well, come along. We’ve got to get you fed, I’m sure a young man like you needs to be eating nearly regularly. I mean, such a massive…anyway.
Dax: Rou and Eight, she comes back into the main area and leads the two of you up a small set of stairs, down a hallway. She assigns each of you a room. You have a four-poster bed with a nice canopy, the mattress is very plush. Each room smells very lightly of sage. You have a desk, a washbasin, and all sorts of things.
Dax (as Beverly): If you do want a bath, it is going to cost a little extra but they are available. We do have some nice lotions and oils and…
Dax: She looks at you, Eight.
Dax (as Beverly): I’m assuming you don’t need a bath per se?
Wren: Uh, I have been feigning polite interest in all of the accommodations that would be afforded to an organic patron. And when she turns to me and says that, I shake my head no and say,
Wren (as Eight): I will not require a bath or a bed or a washbasin or food. Quite frankly, if there is a closet that I can stay in, that would be sufficient. We did pay for two rooms, I assumed that was for my companion Rou and Simply Arthas, to stay on the first floor.
Dax (as Beverly): You paid for two nights.
Wren (as Eight): Oh, I thought it was two rooms. Oh, then perhaps I can just sleep in the, I say sleep but I meant perhaps I can just stay up in the dining room?
Dax: She kind of tilts her head down a little bit and then looks back up at you.
Dax (as Beverly): Dearie, I’m sure that you mean well, but I’m pretty sure if one of my patrons came downstairs, they would, you would frighten the living dickens out of them. If, if you need a place to stay, maybe one of your companions wouldn’t mind sharing the room with you if you don’t want your own.
Kappa (as Rou): Eight, I thought you would be staying in my room.
Wren (as Eight): I would be happy to watch you sleep. Do these rooms have closets?
Dax: They have closets, yeah.
Wren (as Eight): Friend Rou, I can stay in the closet overnight.
Kappa (as Rou): Only if it suits you.
Wren (as Eight): I suppose we shall see how the evening strikes me?
Kappa: I nod.
Dax (as Beverly): We do have a stable for your companion if the donkey needs one.
Wren (as Eight): Oh yes, you can treat her just like a normal, living animal.
Dax (as Beverly): Okay! Well then, let’s go downstairs and I’ll bring her to the stables. And you can have lunch.
Dax: She slowly turns and starts to walk back down the stairs and as she does so, you start to hear,
Dax (as Beverly): This is by far the strangest group of people I’ve had in the inn to date.
Dax: But she’s muttering it to herself. So you are able to drop off Bessie at essentially a stable. You’re given, if you wanted to eat, a lunch of hearty stew with large chunks of very fatty meat. Crusty bread, ale if you want it, water. Not much of note happens over your lunch. Arthas is brought as many bowls as will keep him happy. Beverly, more than glad to just continuing to serve. Is there anything the three of you talk about while you eat?
Kappa: Yes.
Music shifts to a mysterious string [22:35]
Kappa (as Rou): So, this is quite different than any other place that we’ve been. There’s, you know, things to do, it’s not agrarian. Are there any other cities in Eulela that are like this? Centers of knowledge?
Wren: I’ve got food in front of me, but it’s basically, you know, up for grabs for whoever wants it. And I just have my fingers steepled in front of me, my elbows up on the table. I lean in.
Wren (as Eight): Well, out of the locations I have been, I would say that Kidohlva is most similar to Saleen. In the fact that, it is a busy city, and there are lots of things to do. Ehh, there also was the trip to Isha. Which was built into the canyon walls out in the desert. That was certainly a town that was steeped in tradition and scholarly pursuits. Arthas, your thoughts?
Neil (as Arthas): I mean, it was warm.
Kappa (as Rou): Interesting. I’d be very curious to come visit any of those places at some point. But as of right now, Kidohlva is, has so much to offer and explore. You get the sense that, you know, there’s something more going on with the Headmaster. There was also that strange individual that, you know, looked at us and nodded and walked away. Do you think it has something to do with the super secret mission?
Neil (as Arthas): I certainly hope not. We haven’t been, well, exactly advertising it.
Wren (as Eight): That’s correct, Arthas. If someone does know of our secret mission, that would give me some pause for concern as well. After all, if it were perhaps a member of the leadership from the city of Saleen, I would be curious as to why they simply did not come here themselves in the first place instead of sending us on a fool’s errand to obtain information on their behalf. That said, assuming all goes well and we do find the information we seek here, it is entirely plausible that if you do desire to continue traveling, Friend Rou, we will be returning to the city of Saleen to provide a report of our finding.
Kappa (as Rou): That would be lovely.
Wren (as Eight): It would however be quite impossible for us to take you to the city of Isha, for it collapsed in on itself during our last visit.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh. Oh, oh. Oh, that’s, that’s okay.
Wren (as Eight): It was besieged by bandits and some sort of strange magic man.
Kappa (as Rou): I remember you mentioning something about that in our first meeting.
Wren (as Eight): I suppose something else I would like to discover while we are here, pertains to his weird organization and how it might relate to what are called ‘Spellweavers’.
Kappa (as Rou): Spellweavers. Are they people that just do magic weird?
Wren (as Eight): Well, their magical aptitudes far exceed those of even my own skill. So, I suppose you would say that they are the most seasoned practitioners on the continent?
Kappa (as Rou): And that in and of itself is not, not bad, right? It’s just how they use it that has this air of shadiness to it?
Wren: I unsteeple my hands and kind of lay them palm down on the table.
Wren (as Eight): Well, from what I have gathered and from what some of the circumstances regarding our travels have taught me, it’s that Spellweavers originally were a group of magicians who used their power to summon extra-planar entities and bound them to their will to fight in what was called the War of Seven Hells here on the continent.
Kappa (as Rou): That’s quite interesting. Maybe there’s some sort of like, you know, text, some sort of scroll? That is super interesting.
Wren: I shake my head in agreement.
Wren (as Eight): That was my thought as well. I had hoped to discover some history with respect to that topic precisely, and how it might relate to the gods, the will of the gods, cults that were created with respect to those gods, and cults that were formed with respect to splintered factions of the ancient empires that might have vied for control of the continent. I believe that some of our goals may be interconnected. Regardless of circumstance and whether or not we actually planned it that way.
Kappa: And so I’m just sort of, you know, considering all of this, and,
Kappa (as Rou): You know, I’m just wondering my place in all this, just as someone that has just been meaning to observe. Now it’s, it feels a little bit more grand, my journey.
Wren (as Eight): Friend Rou, might I ask an intrusive question?
Kappa (as Rou): Sure!
Wren (as Eight): Your family..
Kappa (as Rou): Yes.
Wren (as Eight): All possess similar qualities?
Kappa (as Rou): As far as I know, yes.
Wren (as Eight): Does your family history tell you where those skills were acquired? Or how you came to have them?
Kappa (as Rou): You know, I’ve asked before. It does not seem that anyone particularly cares. It’s, it’s like saying ‘why, why, why two legs?’ Just makes sense.
Wren (as Eight): To live and lack curiosity?
Wren: I shake my head.
Wren (as Eight): I cannot imagine such an existence as to be complacent without asking the important questions as to why. Or how.
Kappa (as Rou): You see, I agree with you there. Baukora, as you know, is very innovative and steeped in technology. Everyone is so focused on the future, and, you know, making something better than it was before or than it is now. They’re, there’s very little time that is dedicated to reflection of the past and history. Not in the same way that I’m, that I love seeing here. Now, this is both a blessing and a curse because the contraptions, machines, the automatons that you see all over the continent of Baukora are, now that I’m thinking about it, would not have ever had the chance to exist if someone wasn’t thinking about the future. Then it, sometimes it all feels a little hollow, like it’s missing purpose, it’s missing meaning. I mean of course something, everything has a purpose but, a little deeper than that.
Take for example, pocket watches. The way people used to tell time was just to look outside, look at, you know, how bright it is. Is it bright? It’s probably day time. Is it dark? It’s probably nighttime. But then people needed to know, you know, segments of time. So they invented, you know, a system using shadows and stuff. But, that, when the light hits it a certain way, the shadow is angled in a certain direction and as the sun moves around, it points in a different location where that, you know, shadow is pointed. But what if it’s cloudy that day? And so, they needed something that wasn’t always so reliant on fair weather.
Wren (as Eight): I suppose it would be difficult to improve your present without digging into your past, to understand what it is you’re improving or building upon.
Kappa (as Rou): It’s, it’s that sort of thing where people are so focused on what the issue is at the moment but haven’t really gone back to see why that issue existed in the first place and going back to sort that. Again, with the, with the pocket watch. Why are we so concerned with the time? Why is that an issue? Is this an issue that we need to be thinking about? No, we just need to make sure that we can tell time independent of cloudy weather. And it’s this sort of thing that made it feel so awkward to be home. Because no one else was thinking about it, and I couldn’t really talk to anyone about it. No one was exploring. Sorry, I might have gone on a tangent there, but hopefully it was not so dry.
Neil (as Arthas): You come from a strange place.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh yes, and so do you.
Neil (as Arthas): Comparably, I suppose.
Wren (as Eight): Are your people mired in tradition as well, Arthas?
Kappa (as Rou): What was it like for you, Arthas?
Neil (as Arthas): I would wake up, more or less do whatever I’d like, scrawl stuff on the cave, listen to stories, hunt. I’d go to sleep, and repeat.
Kappa (as Rou): You weren’t beholden to any, any expectations or rules?
Neil (as Arthas): I mean, I would become an Aerir when I was of age but… that was more or less it.
Kappa (as Rou): Like, what, what if you, you know, wrote on the wrong part of the wall? Or over someone’s other writing? Was there, was there, was there you know, discourse about that?
Neil (as Arthas): I mean, that happened all the time. That’s how you knew what the current events were.
Kappa (as Rou): You see, it seems so much more relaxed. Uncomplicated.
Wren (as Eight): Would you ever consider it to be that your people were more concerned with the past than with the activities of the present or future?
Neil (as Arthas): Well, certainly.
Wren (as Eight): I find it interesting, you fled from a life where the past was always in the back of your people’s minds.
Neil (as Arthas): Yeah, I think that’s a good way to put it.
Wren (as Eight): Rou, you have fled from a lie where the past was never considered. And for my part, I have left a life where I cannot for the life of me remember my past. And it all culminates here in Kidohlva.
Kappa (as Rou): I wonder if it’s just, the amount of brainpower that exists in this city, but I feel like this, these are the same sort of conversations that are happening all over Kidohlva. Getting into the spirit of it all.
Wren (as Eight): Considering this is a university, I would not be surprised if there were open forums where discussions of this nature were being held.
Kappa (as Rou): Maybe, maybe if there’s free time. Going there, and you know, showing them up. We can, we have very interesting perspectives.
Wren (as Eight): I certainly believe that would be a good way to spend some time in-between research.
Dax: Out of curiosity, aside from looking for a markist shop for tattoos for Arthas. Is there anything in particular that the three of you wish to accomplish before your meeting with the Headmaster in the morning? As far as the markists shop, you did find one. If you went wandering in the city, it would have been in the markets. They were actually closed that day, so you would have to go back on another day.
Music shifts to a gentle, calming piano [35:09]
Dax: The next morning, the three of you are actually the first to arrive at the Observation Lounge. Again, it would have taken you another half hour to get all the way back up there. Heading up the stairs opposite of where the Headmaster’s office, you run into, yet again, another hallway where there are several doors open. Most of them are reading nooks, little areas of study. At the end of the hallway, there is this vast room full of bookshelves. What you can see are windows that have been chiseled out of the mountain. So you see these large, thick windows that look out onto the mountains. And that’s all you see is mountain ranges and clouds. You’re able to watch the sunrise, as it climbs atop the snowy crests. Light filters in, and when the sun is fully above the mountain-tops, you can hear footsteps. The Headmaster arrives with three others.
Dax (as the Headmaster): [British accent, femme voice] Oh! You are here a little early. I trust you slept well and were able to find appropriate lodgings?
Kappa (as Rou): Oh yes! Yes, we’re staying over at the Pearl, The Silver Pearl.
Dax (as the Headmaster): Ah, so you’re staying with Beverly. Very nice woman.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes, yes. Though, just like with any other innkeeper, very unprepared for us.
Dax (as the Headmaster): I’m sure she was able to accommodate regardless. She is a very pleasant woman and very smart. Alright. [sighs] Um, what in particular are you looking for? My staff has been well informed as to the importance of this mission and they have set aside a few days of their time to assist you in finding what you need.
Kappa (as Rou): There’s a whole team? We thought that we were going to be doing this on our own. This is great.
Dax (as the Headmaster): Based on the seriousness of this task, I figured it would be imperative that you get this task completed as quickly as possible. Especially considering how vast the library is.
Wren: I kind of shuffle my feet a little bit and I look to Arthas, I look to Rou. And then I look at the Headmaster and the team of folks assembled behind them. I say to her,
Wren (as Eight): Well, I could write a list of topics of which we have interest, given the nature of our inquiries. I do believe that there are a number of topics that are covered. Ranging from gods, to historical incidents, and even organizations in history that we would like to look into.
Dax (as the Headmaster): Yes. A list would be perfect. My staff can go and get the books that you need. If you would like to peruse sections of the library yourself, you’re more than welcome to do that as well. But if you want to give us a list, we can start pulling documents. Depending on what it is, it might even be in a section of the library where only staff are permitted. If you so wish, we can have your meals brought here to the Observation Lounge. If you would like to, you know, you’re welcome to come and go as you please. With the exception of the aforementioned sections of, that are restricted, but the university is also open to you as long as class is not in session. Which is usually until about three o’clock in the afternoon. Some of the professors might be willing to talk to you about things that you’re looking for as well. So you’re more than welcome to reach out to them.
Kappa (as Rou): This is wonderful. I think I’d like to do a little bit of exploring, if that’s okay with you? I’m not really the expert on the situation, though I do wish to help.
Kappa: I look over at Arthas and Eight.
Neil (as Arthas): May I have anything answered?
Dax (as the Headmaster): As long as the knowledge is held within our repository, of course.
Neil (as Arthas): Spectacular. Eight, prepare a piece of paper and a writing implement.
Wren (as Eight): I am already one step ahead of you, Simply Arthas.
Wren: And I have already produced a piece of scrap parchment and my favorite quill and a reservoir of ink, which I set on a, is there a little table here?
Dax: Yeah, there’s large tables with stone benches all over the place. It’s like a big study room essentially.
Wren: Gotcha. Yeah, so I’ll go over to one of the tables and I’ll put my reservoir down, put the quill in it, and I’ll flatten the piece of parchment over the table. I will gesture to Arthas, and say,
Wren (as Eight): My companion Arthas, I do know that there are topics in which you expressed interest in researching during our time in the forest. And I believe now would be the perfect time to further our pursuits of that knowledge. Conveniently enough, researching the gods may prove useful with yielding information that is relevant to the missing children.
Neil (as Arthas): A spectacular coincidence, and I do have several other questions. Such as,
Wren: As you’re asking the questions, I’ll just be like paraphrasing the topics of inquiry. So it’s like…astronomy.
Neil (as Arthas): How do people make glass?
Wren: Glass-blowing techniques.
Neil (as Arthas): Why is there no rain in the desert?
Wren: Earth sciences.
Neil (as Arthas): Where did sand come from?
Wren: And I’ll put in parentheses “make it a double” next to earth science.
Neil (as Arthas): How small of a rock can you carve a Giant-Kin from?
Wren: Reproductive habits of Giant-Kin.
Neil (as Arthas): Why do people get sick?
Wren: Epidemiology and medical science.
Neil (as Arthas): How many separate types of cats are there?
Wren: Feline studies.
Neil (as Arthas): Is a Cat-Folk a cat?
Wren: [holding back laughter] The history of Cat-Folk.
Neil (as Arthas): Am I allowed to ask if a Cat-Folk is a cat? [holding back laughter]
Wren: Social etiquette
Kappa: I, I like the google search engine [laughing] train.
Neil: [laughing] Cat-Folk, question mark.
Kappa: I’m like, I imagine asking these questions and like Rou and Eight are just like going along with him, like mhmmm that makes sense. And everyone else is just like what is happening?
Dax: Every once in a while, some of the staff kind of very slowly look at each other like, oh boy.
Wren: It’s like, one column kind of like ‘Arthas Inquiries’. And then in the other column, I’ll be like ‘Missing Children Inquiries’. And then it will be like, list of gods, history of the gods, folklore of gods, history pertaining to gods, history of missing people, incidents revolving hundred of thousands of people disappearing without a trace. The name of that town that I keep forgetting that literally history was remarked as having just instantly been devoid of all life overnight. Spellweavers, War of Seven Hells, strange cults related to War of Seven Hells. Swordsmen of the War of Seven Hells. And it’s just like a completely similar -
Dax: Uh, descending list. Kind of like -
Wren: Yeah.
Dax: Okay.
Wren: And then I pass everything over to Rou and I’m done, and when Arthas is, like, run out of questions to ask, and I’ll just say,
Wren (as Eight): And you can add questions you have to this page.
Kappa: And it’s going to be like, Rou’s line of questioning, my line of questioning is more like, if you were trying to, if you didn’t have an incognito window, and you’re trying to like, not end up on any FBI lists. You know, wolf people.
Dax: So it’s a DM search history, is really what it is. [chuckles]
Kappa: Yeah, yeah it’s like, because he’s interested in like, you know, lycanthropy, werewolf history. If there was like any successful empires of stuff, wolf society. But he’s really trying to hide the fact that he’s really interested in werewolves, so he’ll throw in something like sociology and political structures of agrarian societies, you know something like that.
Dax: Once finished, the Headmaster takes the lists which I’m sure have now encompassed a couple pieces of parchment. She scans them.
Dax (as the Headmaster): Well, this list certainly is varied, isn’t it? Um, alright. Well, I would recommend that.. you’re more than welcome to wander but some of these you are going to need an escort. They are in some of the older parts of the library. Why don’t.. might I suggest, I could assign some of my staff to each of you, take you through the older sections first, and with whatever’s left, you’re more than free to wander? Does that sound acceptable?
Kappa (as Rou): I think that sounds wonderful, yes.
Dax (as the Headmaster): Okay. There are a few that I can, I can send my staff to get you started this morning. And then after midday, we can take you on the tour. Why don’t you go ahead and have a seat and they’ll be back shortly with some of these items?
Dax: Alright. So, the Headmistress, she starts tearing up the parchment and handing certain pieces to her staff. You can hear her mumbling in Elvish, pointing to different pieces on the parchment. You see the staff eventually kind of disperse.
Dax (as the Headmaster): They should be able to assist you in all your needs. If there is anything additional you need that they are unable to provide, feel free to get in contact with me. Otherwise, I wish you the best of luck.
Dax: She gives a slight bow and heads out. And with that, we are going to call this session ended.
Music fades out [45:40]
Dax: Thanks for listening! We hope you’ll join us next time but in the interim, follow us on Twitter @RoadsUncharted.
The “Roads Uncharted” podcast is GMed and produced by Dax, who you can find on Twitter @GM_Dax. We use the Genesys RPG system published by Fantasy Flight Games, and music licensed by Epidemic Sound.
Arthas, Champion of Offam, is played by Neil.
Eight is played by Wren, who also composed the music for our opening theme. Follow them on Twitter @ThornyDryad.
Rou is played by Kappa, and you can follow him on Twitter @TheKappaChris.