A clip compilation from Season 3.
CW: This episode includes references to corpses and hanging bodies related to the destruction of a town the party encounters. Please skip 1:22:55 to 1:23:00 if this content may be difficult for you.
Welcome to the Season Three Recap episode! If you are just joining us and want to jump right into Season Four – or you need a reminder of some of the events from last season – this episode was made for you.
Follow Dax @GM_Dax, Kappa @TheKappaChris and Wren @ThornyDryad
Transcript by Dax
Upbeat piano intro ends [00:28]
Dax: Welcome to the Season Three Recap episode! If you are just joining us and want to jump right into Season Four – or you need a reminder of some of the events from last season – this episode is made for you.
We started off our story in the city of Kidohlva, where Eight and Arthas did a favor for their innkeeper before reconnecting with an old friend.
Sentimental piano music begins [00:53]
Dax (as Beverly): [higher pitched femme voice] Umm Eight my daughter needs a babysitter for Benny for just a couple of hours while she teaches a class. It’s her first day at the University! She’s going to be the newest professor of Art History.
Wren (as Eight): Oh, delightful! The history of art!
Dax (as Beverly): Well, there appears to have been some miscommunication between us as to who was going to watch Benny and…Benny’s too young to be left on his own..would you be willing? You, and potentially Arthas, be willing to watch Benny for just a couple of hours? Until Maddie is done with her class. And in exchange I will give you two free nights here at the inn.
Wren (as Eight): Uhh…uhm..
Dax (as Beverly): You’ve mentioned you’re..you’ve experience in caretaking. I can’t imagine it would be too difficult.
Wren (as Eight): I have extensive experience with caretaking for individuals old enough to care for themselves…and individuals who were too old to take care of themselves. That said, I certainly would not volunteer Arthas’s time for such an endeavor as this without consulting him. And..you say only for a few hours?
Dax (as Beverly): Yes! Only for a couple hours, just as long as the class goes on and then Maddie can take Benny back from you.
Wren (as Eight): May I respond with a question in turn? Why does Benny not simply take the seminar for himself? Learn something.
Dax: Beverly smirks, glances over at Benny, looks up at you.
Dax (as Beverly): Eight have you ever taken care of a two-year old child?
Wren (as Eight): I have not. Though I do have a mechanical donkey that is less than two years old. Are they similar in principle?
Dax (as Beverly): Not quite.
Wren (as Eight): That’s true, Bessie does not make any mess.
Dax (as Beverly): Children this age need to be watched, they need a little bit more attention than a class could provide. Benny is generally very well behaved. Just would maybe need a snack, maybe for you to play with him a little bit..he’ll probably end up taking a nap before the class is over with. I promise, it won’t be much mind at all.
Wren (as Eight): If you will wait for just a moment, I shall return with an answer shortly forthwith.
Dax (as Beverly): Excellent. Maddie follow me into the kitchen. I need to get out of this sticky mess.
Dax: Beverly and Maddie, with Benny, head on into the kitchen.
Wren: I will turn around abruptly, my blue fabric cape kind of swishing with the motion and I will walk across the floor to where Arthas is. And I will stop short, look to my friend and companion and say,
Wren (as Eight): I have..news, Arthas, of a potential job.
Neil (as Arthas): Is it..watching that child?
Wren (as Eight): Arthas were you eavesdropping?
Neil (as Arthas): I was.
Wren (as Eight): It is a good thing that you did because that is the job that has been offered, is to simply watch a small child named Benny for a few hours. I do not know how many hours go into a few, however, considering the size of the child I do not believe it will be of much difficulty to sit on them for that long.
Neil (as Arthas): Precisely. And how hard could it possibly be?
Wren (as Eight): Exactly! I’ve been told that children like to eat, they like to be watched, and they may enjoy some playtime. I feel as if these are all things that we can be quite capable of. After all, we both have eyes with which to watch. You have a meat bag, inside of which you keep meat, which we might feed the child with, and if Benny requires playtime, I can simply summon Eight Junior to play with him. What makes a better playmate than a wild chicken?
Neil (as Arthas): I would be hard pressed to find anything else.
Wren (as Eight): Does this job interest you, Arthas?
Neil (as Arthas): Certainly. Besides, it’s the least we could do for all the hospitality we’ve been shown.
Wren (as Eight): I suppose that is true, though we have paid for our nights’ stays so far.
Neil (as Arthas): True.
Wren (as Eight): We have been offered two free nights, if we watch Benny.
Neil (as Arthas): Ooh!
Wren (as Eight): I do believe Rou handles most of the finances at this point. I am sure he would be delighted to hear that we scored two free evenings of stay here at the inn without him having to have been involved in watching a child.
Neil (as Arthas): Precisely. I say go for it.
Wren (as Eight): Then we have an accord. It seems, Arthas, that you and I are becoming quite entrepreneurial. [chuckles to self] This is delightful! I shall go tell them that we will sit on their child.
Music fades out [5:47]
Melancholy piano music fades in [5:48]
Wren: I will approach the bartop, my feet clomping on the floor as I thud my way over towards it.
Wren (as Eight): Beverly! Beverly!
Wren: And I will wave a hand.
Dax (as Beverly): Yes, Eight!
Wren (as Eight): This individual’s drinks and food are on me. As in I will pay for them, please do not place them on my personal being.
Wren: And I will stop as I stand next to this cloaked, hooded figure at the bartop.
Dax: Do you stand to the left or to the right?
Wren: To the right.
Dax: When you started speaking, you did notice that the individual kind of sat up a little straighter, and when you and Beverly are finished having this exchange, and you comment about the food not being put on you, you do hear a deep throated chuckle.
Dax (as the stranger): [slightly masc voice] I see time has not changed you, Eight.
Wren (as Eight): I see that time has not diminished your sense of humor. You may remove your hood, you are among friends here.
Dax (as the stranger): Thanks, but I’d rather not.
Wren (as Eight): Well, then you would do me the honor of reminding me who you are.
Dax: They turn their head ever so slightly to face you, and you do get a glimpse of pale skin and an ice blue eye.
Wren (as Eight): Oh..it’s you!
Dax (as the stranger): I guess I should ask. Where is the elf, Jokul? Where is Rialla? Are they safe?
Wren (as Eight): Well, they have taken refuge in a very safe haven. Arthas and I have continued along on our quest, and we have made a new friend. Friend Rou.
Wren: And I will gesture towards the table.
Kappa (as Rou): Hello!
Wren (as Eight): If you would like, you may join us.
Dax: He takes a second to think about it and nods his head yes.
Wren (as Eight): Wonderful.
Dax: Once Beverly delivers his mug, he stands to follow you back to the table.
Wren: As Beverly comes to the table, err comes to the bartop, I will say,
Wren (as Eight): Beverly, if you would, I would love a crudité and cheese platter to be delivered to the table.
Dax (as Beverly): Sure..why not.
Wren (as Eight): I’m sorry is that not on the menu?
Dax (as Beverly): No but I’m sure I can put something together.
Dax: As she turns around and goes back to the kitchen you hear a low mumbling,
Dax (as Beverly): What the hell is a crudité?
Wren (as Eight): Wha..I saw that you had it out for this morning’s session! [pauses] Thank you!
Dax: You suddenly hear,
Dax (as Beverly): Did you mean a jam sampler?
Wren (as Eight): Yes, a jampler!
Dax (as Beverly): Okay!
Wren (as Eight): I really must consult the menu next time I order.
Wren: And I will escort this person back. I don’t remember this person’s name, but I remember who they are. So, I will walk back to the table with them.
Kappa: While that was going on, I’m just going to lean over to Arthas.
Kappa (as Rou): Arthas, what are the odds that that is the person that we talked to through the brooch?
Neil (as Arthas): That’s a great idea. Should we ask?
Kappa (as Rou): I think we should ask. Just on the off…how fortunate and serendipitous would it be if that was the person on the other side of the brooch and they just walked in a few minutes later?! I-I’ll ask, oh here they’re coming…I’ll ask.
Dax: This person, just for Rou’s information, is just slightly taller than Eight so pretty average height, wearing what appears to be a mish-mosh of leather armors - you know, knee-high boots, all very dark browns and blacks. And doing their best to keep their face shadowed in the hood.
Kappa (as Rou): Ah! So..we’re so glad you could join us. Hello, I’m Rou. I waved earlier, don’t know…you didn’t wave back so...um, did you receive a message a few minutes ago through magical means? You probably would have heard this voice, and maybe the name…are you friends with Arcterus?
Dax: You can see that the hood kinda like, look’s in Eight’s direction and then looks kinda towards Arthas, then looks back at you.
Dax (as the stranger): I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Music fades out [10:17]
Dax: Taking an opportunity to expand their skills, Eight learned divination from a professor at the University, but was surprised by an unexpected warning. They were also able to find out more information on Mother’s past.
Sentimental piano music fades in [10:35]
Dax (as Professor Trela): [soft, femme voice] Let’s begin instruction. If you’ll take a seat at one of the tables, please.
Wren: I will do that. I will take a seat at one of the teaching desks near the front of the amphitheater.
Dax: I was going to say how close to the front do you sit? [giggles]
Wren: All the way in front! [chuckles] If I could I would just hover over the teaching desk.
Dax: It takes about three hours for Professor Trela to give you the basic instruction on how to divine on both people and locations. She goes over which herbs and components are best to use, she goes over certain requirements. She also hands you a textbook, and you can tell this is a textbook that obviously the students of her class would get, it’s kind of small. It’s almost journal-sized, and it is “Divination 101” on the cover.
Wren (as Eight): Thank you.
Wren: I will flip it open and kind of check the headings and see what the different lessons listed might be or what the headings for the sections are in the book.
Dax (as Professor Trela): As you read through this book, follow the instructions step by step. No alteration, no guessing.
Wren (as Eight): Of course. I will follow these lessons to the letter. No improvisation, no alteration, no permutation. Without fail.
Dax (as Professor Trela): Do you have any questions, Eight?
Wren (as Eight): Oh, do I. But, it would take a lifetime for me to ask them all. I suppose, I will just have to learn through practice. I do appreciate you taking the time to teach me, and with any luck I would be able to return and perhaps take some more advanced lessons from you in the future.
Dax: She nods and goes to put a hand on your…what is essentially your bicep.
Dax (as Professor Trela): May the goddess Zorei bless your…bless your adventures then. And may she guide you in learning this new form of magic.
Wren (as Eight): Thank you. You can rely on me, with the task you have provided.
Dax: Seeing you standing there, she very gently gestures towards the door.
Wren: I will nod and I will exit as quietly as I came in.
Dax: As you are closing the door, you suddenly hear in that same voice of duplicity,
Dax (as Professor Trela): [high-pitched and playing in duplicate] Beware the man with a heart of stone.
Wren: I will probably hesitate for a moment, closing the door upon hearing that, but shrug and finish leaving.
Music fades out [14:00]
Playful guitar fades in [14:01]
Wren (as Eight): I would like to speak with you about the Ruheran Council.
Dax (as Latham): [masc british accent] What is it you wish to know?
Wren (as Eight): How long have you been a member of the Ruheran Council?
Dax (as Latham): I have been a member for…about a hundred years?
Wren (as Eight): Ah, excellent. That’s quite the length of time!
Dax (as Latham): Indeed.
Wren (as Eight): As a follow up question, I must ask..do you have any knowledge of the Jruna family?
Dax: The Silarin kind of furrows his brow at first.
Dax (as Latham): Do you happen to know when they would have served?
Wren (as Eight): Well…it was quite some time ago. They were, according to my research, the family that originally created the blueprints for those of my kind. And they were members of the Ruheran Council. I was hoping you might have some sort of information regarding their history, where I might find current members of the family, should any still exist.
Dax: He stands up, turns around and starts perusing through a subsection of books on his bookshelves. These are much larger, they’re thin. He opens one such, lays it out flat on the desk and as he’s perusing through the pages he stops and looks up at you.
Dax (as Latham): Did the family crest look like this?
Dax: And points to a page where that crest with the ibis sits.
Wren: I will lift up the draping shoulder wrap that I have to display my own crest symbol and I will just nod.
Wren (as Eight): Yes! That’s exactly what I’m looking for. Does this book contain information about that family?
Dax (as Latham): It’s more of an accounting of when members served. Ah..so according to this, the Jruna family stopped serving on the council about three hundred years ago. Does that sound about right to you?
Wren (as Eight): I know it has been some time. I suppose I was hoping that existing members of the council may know more, or have access to records that were not kept in the library here. Is it possible that there may be more private records that council members might have access to? Maybe in a localized depository?
Dax (as Latham): Hmm..not here. Because the family is from Baukora, all their private records might be there. All we have is an accounting of how long they served, who the serving members were, and so forth. All we have listed is that when they stopped serving it was because the member of the council decided not to run again and gave up their seat.
Wren: I will tilt my head, quixotically.
Wren (as Eight): Do you have the name of the last member to serve on the council for the family?
Dax (as Latham): Mm it looks like it was a Lord Evan Buxley. At least that’s the name we were given.
Wren (as Eight): Interesting.
Dax (as Latham): If it helps, it does list the city of birth as Ankhora.
Music fades out [17:36]
Dax: Gifted a sword from Venya, Rou requested Arthas’s expertise in learning how to use it.
Playful guitar music fades in [17:45]
Kappa: At some point, I’d approach Arthas and I have a question, maybe closer to a favor from Arthas.
Neil (as Arthas): What can I do for you?
Kappa (as Rou): So, one of the gifts that we got, the one designated to me, was a sword. I mean you know this, you were there. And I was really hoping I could perhaps learn a little bit? I mean you are a knight and this..uh, maybe this could help us both? You know, knights are..at least from what I understand..knights always willing to help and I have need of help. I want to learn.
Neil (as Arthas): Have you held a sword before in your life?
Kappa (as Rou): No…no. I imagine it’s depending on the..see, I took a class but they were using these heavier swords than the one I’ve got and so it was very hard to translate.
Neil (as Arthas): Step one..
Neil: Dax, is there a stick nearby?
Dax: I guess it depends, where are you? If you’re at the park, yes. If you’re just by the inn, no.
Neil: Well..if we’re by the inn I’m going to go find a broomstick.
Dax: That works, yeah. That’s easy to find.
Kappa: And how…so, we didn’t decide what kind of sword this is going to be. Thinking like a hand and half sword?
Dax: I will put it in your chat.
Kappa: Sure! [chuckles]
Dax: Because I told you -
Kappa: Yeah, what it does -
Dax: What the ability was I forgot to give you the actual stuff.
Kappa: It is okay. But yeah, so in conversation with Arthas just trying to find a broom.
Kappa (as Rou): Yeah, so I mean I know…I think I understand the basics and all that, I just feel like if we’re leaving soon I’m going to need just a little bit more sustained, ya know, influence than the one two-hour class that I audited earlier today.
Music shifts to a jaunty celtic tune [20:01]
Neil: I snap the head off the handle and hand Rou the stick.
Neil (as Arthas): This is your sword for the moment.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh! Okay, I’m very familiar with sticks.
Neil (as Arthas): Now I’m going to shove you, please prepare yourself.
Kappa (as Rou): What?
Neil: I shove Rou to figure out which foot he falls back on.
[Kappa grunts, imitating a push and colliding with the floor unexpectedly]
Kappa (as Rou): Oof! Okay!
Kappa: I fall on my butt.
Neil (as Arthas): Now we’re going to do that again. But this time, maintain your footing.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh, okay, sure. [chuckles] Maybe a sort of countdown or you know like ‘on one’, maybe ‘three’, maybe ‘one, two, three go’?
Neil (as Arthas): Ah.
Kappa (as Rou): Maybe ‘three, two, one go’?
Neil (as Arthas): One.
Neil: And I shove.
Kappa: [chuckles] And I will fall back on…what is it…on my left foot?
Neil (as Arthas): Good. Now notice that your legs are apart, and one of your feet is pointing at me.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh, yes.
Neil (as Arthas): This is called ‘circling’. Stay like that.
Neil: And I’m going to prepare my weapon, as if I was going to hurt Rou but I will of course not.
Kappa: Okay.
Neil (as Arthas): Now, notice if I step forward, point your broomstick at me.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh, okay. Point.
Neil: And I’m going to walk into the broomstick in such a way that the front of the stick stabs me in the torso.
Neil (as Arthas): Observe that if I walk towards you, and do nothing to get your weapon out of the way, I die.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh, sure! Yes. This is very effective, I’m very good at this.
Neil (as Arthas): This is called ‘bull stance’. I have to do something about your weapon.
Kappa (as Rou): Bull stance, okay.
Neil: And then I’m going to hit his sword.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh! Okay so then that’s a parry? Or block?
Neil (as Arthas): Kind of..the big thing is, notice your point is no longer going to affect me. What are you going to do about it?
Kappa (as Rou): Well I’m going to try and point it back at you.
Neil (as Arthas): No, because now I can hurt you. Step backwards.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh..sure.
Kappa: I will step backwards.
Kappa (as Rou): Circling.
Neil (as Arthas): Your ability to hurt someone is directly correlated to how much blood you have in your body.
Kappa (as Rou): I never thought of it like that.
Neil (as Arthas): You’ll learn in time.
Neil: And with that I’d probably just explain most techniques that I understand that goes into actual sword fighting, and not me clubbing things with a big rock.
Kappa: I imagine it’s very much, like, a lot of Arthas’s self taught techniques? Like the whole ‘your ability to fight is dependent on the amount of blood that you’ve got in your body’ or ya know other Arthas-isms like that.
Neil: Yeah like, there’s legitimate training in there it’s just, ya know, mangled a little bit.
Kappa (as Rou): So, okay so ‘bull technique’, I think I understand that. Is this because bulls charge with their horns in a piercing motion? Is that what’s going on here?
Kappa: As we’re practicing like cling clang. Or like, with sticks, clack click.
Neil (as Arthas): More that if you hold that weapon forward, if I charge you I die.
Kappa (as Rou): Ah. This is very useful.
Neil (as Arthas): Weapon ranging is important.
Kappa (as Rou): See I’m very good at blocking. I used to have that stick, you know, and I was very good at deflecting attacks. But that was all based on sense and intuition. None of…this is quite different as I’m swinging a sword and learning footing.
Neil (as Arthas): Staying on your feet is ninety percent of it. If you fall over, you die.
Kappa (as Rou): Okay, so what’s the other ten percent?
Neil (as Arthas): Violence.
Kappa (as Rou): Mm..okay.
Music fades out [23:58]
Dax: On the road, the group came upon the town of Ravenspire, where they met a Jerboamin named Florence. While assisting her with a rescue mission, it was Arthas’s intimidation that eventually saved her kinsman.
Jaunty melody fades in [24:12]
Shadow: Being a small being of only two feet tall, from head to toe, with a cross between a squirrel and mouse-like features, dressed in a blue suede vest and a blue suede cap. I am dragging a fairly large box down the road to the other pile of boxes that I have gathered in front of the storefront. I’m tugging and I’m pushing, and I’m wiping my brow with my padded leather gloves and having to take many rests in the sun of this beautiful day.
Dax: Now you said you’re dragging your packages in front of this building, what building are you standing in front of? And what is the name of this town in which you dwell?
Shadow: I am standing in front of the general tavern, which is fondly named Fish and Hooks in this town of Ravenspire.
Music fades out [25:27]
Mysterious melody fades in [25:28]
Dax (as the stranger): [in a masc cockney accent] Oy! Did you see this thing come outta the sky?
Neil: I’m trying to think of what to say…because I’ve got something either really stupid or it just might work. [pauses] I squint at the man. Does he look like he would know what a Jerboa is or is he just gonna call it a squirrel?
Dax: It’s hard to say.
Neil (as Arthas): I smell Jerboa blood!
Neil: And I’m just going to advance at the man.
Dax: How are you advancing? Are you just taking steps, are you charg -
Neil: Menacingly.
Dax: But are you like doing the power walking thing? Are you running?
Neil: I’m gonna do a trick I learned called ‘lumbering’.
Wren: Like Bigfoot through the wilderness?
Neil: Exactly!
Kappa: Exactly my thoughts.
Wren: Can I ask to clarify? You weren’t gonna go ‘fee fi fo fum, I smell Jerboamin blood’ were you?
Neil: I might’ve been thinking that.
Wren: Okay, I just wanted to make sure.
Neil: Might’ve been rattling that around in the head.
Dax: I’m not gonna lie, one of these days Arthas you have to go through with the..like lean into that trope. Because everybody seems to make that assumption about the Giant-kin.
Neil: That’s advancing a negative stereotype.
Dax: That’s fair.
[Neil laughs]
Neil: Nah, I probably will.
Dax: Alright so you advance on this man. Eight, you arrive at a dazed Florence and a coughing Rou.
Wren: I will stoop down and put my hand on Rou’s shoulder.
Wren (as Eight): My friend, are you okay?
Kappa (as Rou): [coughing] It came out of nowhere! Go..go check on Florence I’m fine. I’ll be fine! It’s mostly the pride.
Wren (as Eight): Very well.
Wren: And I’ll clomp forward to Florence.
Wren (as Eight): Inspector Florence, are you okay?
Shadow (as Florence): Oh…oh, uh..
Shadow: And you see me kind of swaying a little bit. I’m unsteady and shaking my head.
Shadow (as Florence): Umm..man, I think so? Adventuring is a lot of work and it hurts sometimes.
Wren (as Eight): So I’ve been told. However, when you live the adventuring life you come to expect these types of things. Come!
Wren: And I gesture broadly towards Arthas’ direction.
Wren (as Eight): Inspector Arthas undoubtedly is engaging our foe to rescue your cousin.
Shadow (as Florence): Oh, most excellent!
Shadow: And I dust off my vest and take off on all four legs, scampering.
Wren: I draw my spoon and continue trundling in that direction.
Kappa: And I will get up and brush myself off and follow. This time, keeping aware of stray branches.
Music shifts to a melancholy tune [28:21]
Dax: The three of you arrive at the edge of the clearing just as Arthas is coming upon this man. And you see this crater, you see this individual, you see the mule carrying packs. Arthas you had said ‘I smell Jerboamin blood’ and you started advancing on this man, and this man is now taking a second to actually look at you and realizes how tall you are. You watch as his eyes get very large.
Dax (as the stranger): I’m sorry, were you talkin’ to me?
Neil: And I would like to try and rush up and grab him by the collar.
Dax: Yeah, sure, no problem. I mean it doesn’t take too much for you to take a step and get into engaged - yeah, sure.
Dax (as the stranger): Oy! Oy! What…what’s this then?
Neil (as Arthas): I’m going to grind your bones into dust! And drink your marrow before I eat that Jerboa!
Dax (as the stranger): Wha..wait, wait!
Dax: Give me an intimidation check. Which would be…coercion in this system. [laughs] Go ahead and give it to me at Medium Difficulty, upgrade it once.
[sound of dice rolling]
Neil: I end with an advantage.
Dax: He is shaking. He’s got his hands, are clawing at yours as if trying to pry your fingers loose.
Dax (as the stranger): I don’t know about any Jerboamin! What’s this then? Why you comin’ up ‘ere and accotin’ me?
Music fades out [29:45]
Dax: That night, however, Arthas received a vision from Vuldarin, the god of luck. He left Ravenspire in the early morning light and headed south on his own.
Sentimental piano fades in [29:57]
Neil (as Arthas): I would just have to go to a tower, reclaim it, and then you and I are square?
Dax (as Vuldarin): Ah it’s not so much square, it’s not like you’ve offended me in the past. It’s not like I’m asking you to do this as compensation, it’s just…if you could do me this favor, and provide an answer to this mage’s prayers, just make sure you tell him Vuldarin sent you…I will bestow the gift of luck on you.
Neil (as Arthas): And…what is your icon? Something I can show the mage to prove that I’m speaking with some authority?
Dax: A sly smile comes across Vuldarin’s face.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Hold out your hand. Whichever one you choose.
Neil: I hold out my right hand.
Dax: Your palm starts to itch and you look down and you start to notice it’s getting a little pink right in the center. And then suddenly as if out of nowhere a dark, red, stylistic ‘V’ forms on your palm. It’s not like it’s burned or anything into your skin, it just looks to be a raised mark. As if you had an allergic reaction.
Neil: Neat.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Show the mage that, when his tower is freed and he will know you are not lying. And with any luck he might give you some gold.
Neil (as Arthas): Well, then I see no reason to object to any of this. I accept.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Perfect. Now, there is one catch. You can’t bring the human and the warforged with you.
Neil (as Arthas): Would they compromise things?
Dax (as Vuldarin): Let’s just say that this thing that is in this tower could perhaps be their demise. They don’t have your..hmm…what’s the word? Resilience…to damage as you do. And besides, their legs aren’t as long they’ll only slow you down. And furthermore!
Dax: And with that Vuldarin hops down out of the chair and spreads his arms wide, and you watch as ale sloshes out of this pint..uh, mug.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Furthermore, who ever heard of a knight that went off and did everything with assistance. Every once in a while you gotta do something by yourself!
Neil (as Arthas): I suppose, but..
Dax (as Vuldarin): But?
Neil (as Arthas): Still…as long as nothing happens to those two while I’m gone.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Oh, no no no.
Dax: And Vuldarin kind of gives this very gracious bow and even more ale sloshes out of the mug.
Dax (as Vuldarin): I give you my honor as a god, no harm will come to them.
Neil (as Arthas): Then, I accept.
Dax (as Vuldarin): Perfect!
Music fades out [33:22]
Dax: Now on their own, Rou and Eight followed the road south. While camped one night, they ran into a strange individual named Shepherd.
Melancholy piano fades in [33:33]
Dax: As you stand, what do Rou and Eight see?
Gaynor: A fairly young person with sort of long, bushy..really has a lot of volume to it..blonde hair, and wearing horribly misfitting clothes that are worn like just quite not right. Like a shirt misbuttoned by like three buttons, but still tight, and a jacket worn but not quite on the shoulders correctly. Everything’s there it’s just not put on with an understanding, and bright, huge brown eyes that look out and are very watery.
They have a genuine shame to them, as if there is a real honest sadness that they haven’t snuck up on you properly. And I think Shepherd is just trying not to make eye contact with Rou because I think he has realized that he has lost this game and now Rou has the upper hand. I say,
Gaynor (as Shepherd): I..um..I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I've interrupted your meal. Uhm..are…if we're gonna fight I’m ready! I’m ready to go but I…yup.
Wren: Hearing this young voice..hearing this young lad say that I turn to Rou.
Wren (as Eight): Rou we aren’t seriously going to fight a random stranger, are we?
Kappa: Giving a puzzled look to Eight and then over to this new character.
Kappa (as Rou): Did you want to fight?
Gaynor (as Shepherd): Uhm..uh..shu..uh…
Kappa (as Rou): ‘Cause I personally would rather share a meal.
Gaynor: Again, there’s that deep stomach rumble.
Kappa (as Rou): It seems you’d rather do the same as well.
Gaynor (as Shepherd): I am hungry…I am hungry. Uhm..but, um, this is my territory and you need to know that if you come any closer..oh boy, we’re..we’re gonna rassle. And I'm probably gonna beat ya real good.
Kappa: Looking back and forth between this person and Eight.
Kappa (as Rou): I didn’t..I don’t think we knew this was your territory. Sorry if we’re intruding, we’re travelers. We’re adventurers and we just didn't know what signs to look for, there was no ‘this territory belongs to’ - what’s your name?
Gaynor (as Shepherd): Uhm…uhm..
Wren: I interject real quick.
Wren (as Eight): Rou this person indicated that they called themselves Hungry.
Kappa (as Rou): Ah. ‘This territory belongs to Hungry.’ That’s not your name, is it?
Gaynor (as Shepherd): It could be? I don’t think so, uhm, Hunter always calls me Shepherd.
Kappa (as Rou): Shepherd.
Gaynor (as Shepherd): Yeah! I’m the Shepherd, uh, I…travelers is that like hunters? Do you hunt?
Kappa (as Rou): Well, hunting does come hand-in-hand with adventuring sometimes. But…Shepherd it appears that we are intruding, let us pay for the short stay here with a meal! If you’re hungry. It appears we have not engaged in combat yet, so..usually these things start right away, like a snap decision we don’t mull over whether or not we should be in combat.
Gaynor (as Shepherd): Quite honestly, I’m not used to making that decision for myself. Usually if I need to fight someone, usually I’m told like ‘hey, go fight ‘em’. And then I go do it. But if you don’t want to fight, I would like to sit down and eat and sleep and also I am very lonely. And I would like to see people.
Kappa (as Rou): Here..
Kappa: And I’ll motion to a spot next to Eight and I’m gonna go over to Bessie and pull out an extra bowl.
Music fades out [38:34]
Dax: While helping Shepherd rescue his friend Hunter, they were forced to go through a portal to confront a terrifying being.
Tense piano fades in [38:43]
Dax: As each question starts to come faster and faster, and the three of you are kind of piling on Granny Thistle and she’s getting less and less of an opportunity to talk, you start to notice that she is appearing very frustrated. And it’s getting harder and harder for her to pretend like she’s really interested in the social niceties.
And it is at that point when you slurp the tea that she slams her hands down on the table, and she looks at the three of you and you start to notice that this really blackish purple kind of mist starts to form around Granny Thistle and encases her entire body. Her hair starts to come undone from that silvery bun and starts to weave out from her head as if it was standing on static electricity.
Music fades out [39:37]
Dax: As Rou and Eight continued their journey south, they came upon the town of Honey Hills. There they met an old adventurer named Dawson Sawyer, who requested their assistance to discover the fate of his lost companions.
Quirky music fades in [39:53]
Wren (as Eight): I can almost imagine this one dancing right now. Buzz, buzz, buzz.
Wren: And I kinda float it over towards your face, and boop your nose with it.
Wren (as Eight): Boop. [sighs contentedly]
[Kappa laughs]
Wren (as Eight): This is nice.
Kappa (as Rou): This is very nice! And everything’s so conveniently nearby. Look, there’s a tavern over there - we can get lunch - and then I think there were rooms upstairs.
Wren (as Eight): And look! That man has a giant hammer!
Dax: Dawson if you wanna…[starts laughing] describe yourself.
Music shifts to a more somber tune [40:30]
Graeme: [joins in laughter] Yeah, sure!
Dax: Oh god..I can’t..
Graeme: So, probably in stark contrast to the two of you, Dawson is a human, probably early sixties. They have kind of a crew cut that at one point was brown but it’s just streaked with gray. They are heavily muscled, wearing a chain shirt with leather thrown over it. They stand at like 6’6” and are probably close to like 220 pounds.
They have scars covering their arms, they have one gash across their face in a straight line and these piercing green eyes. And they have a sword on their hip, a shield on their back, and they’re carrying this two-handed maul that is like basalt, with a brown leather wrapping around it. And it almost seems to be…emanating a heat from this hammer, as you get closer.
Graeme (as Dawson): [in a deep, gruff voice] Didn’t mean to interrupt your shopping or anything, but do the two of you happen to be adventurers?
[Kappa laughs]
Kappa (as Rou): Uh, yes! What gave it away?
Graeme (as Dawson): Well, your penchant for trinkets I suppose.
Music fades out [41:52]
Somber fades in [41:53]
Dax: As the three of you are standing together after this battle, you start to notice a very pale blue energy, very similar to what you saw with the necromancer, arrive. Out of it, are three dark humanoid figures and they take much clearer form so that you can see the faces of individuals that look very familiar to Dawson. You see the face of Forrester, Taylor and Crick.
Graeme: Alright so that leaves Delilah and Jezebel. I think I kinda pull my arm off of Rou’s shoulder, kinda stumble forward and be like,
Graeme (as Dawson): Well, hey gang. It's uh…been a while.
Dax: You hear a very ethereal voice respond out of Forrester.
Dax (as Forrester): [echoing voice] You look like shit.
Graeme (as Dawson): Yeah, well, I got old.
Dax (as Forrester): Thanks for coming back for us.
Graeme (as Dawson): [voice breaking] You know I’d never leave you…any of you down here.
Dax (as Forrester): Look, uh, I know you couldn’t do anything about what happened to us after you left.
Dax: Forrester kinda nudges Crick. ‘Cause Crick was the one you took out during the last fight, right?
Graeme: Yeah!
Dax (as Forrester): Crick told us what you did. We uh…we made a mistake coming here. We didn’t know that..that thing had taken up residence. Just glad you got out.
Graeme (as Dawson): Not everyone is here though.
Dax (as Forrester): Jezebel escaped.
Graeme (as Dawson): And Delilah?
Dax (as Forrester): She found a way out, and we were too big of fools to follow. We don't know what happened to Delilah though.
Graeme (as Dawson): Well, I’m gonna get you all out. I guess, there’s a whole other side of this place that I ain’t been...maybe she's over there. But I’m not gonna leave any of you behind here.
Dax (as Forrester): Just remember to give yourself some grace.
Dax: And the three forms of your former friends slowly disappear.
Music fades out [44:34]
Dax: In the town of Marble Moon, they helped a Minotaur named Tamsin solve a mysterious labyrinth and obtain a magical artifact named the Eye of Zorei. One of the rooms within the labyrinth was filled with enchanted bubbles that displayed painful memories when popped.
Sentimental piano fades in [44:54]
Lexi: My character, her name is Tamsin, she is a Minotaur. She’s a large Minotaur, I wanna say like six or seven feet tall? Which are, you know, those two numbers are pretty close together but that’s a lot of difference. But she’s very tall, you can’t really tell how tall she is just by looking at her, but you feel the presence of this huge - not bull-looking Minotaur, but cow-looking Minotaur - so she looks a little soft. She’s got cute little round ears that have tons of earrings going through them to the point that normally they would be up near her head but they kind of fall down from the weight of the earrings.
She’s got tons of necklaces that seem handmade, each jewel and metallic piece on the necklace whether it’s short or long, you can tell that it wasn’t precisely cut. She’s got a long sash, a dark gray vest piece that is actually a piece of armor, very buff arms that she’s showing off that you can kinda tell she’s trying to show people ‘don’t mess with me’. And on her belt, you see that she’s got a specific, like she’s got tons of belts layered up, but on one belt you see, hanging down, a couple of pieces of just chalk that sway with her every step. She has two glaives on her back that she wears pretty proudly.
And she kinda stands there, as she’s walking out she seems super defeated. You notice that she’s a little charred in some areas, she’s very dirty, she’s got smears of charcoal. Her glaives look recently used and she seems to be, with one of the pieces of chalk, she has a little tablet in front of her and she’s marking something down and she’s like,
Lexi (as Tamsin): No, that’s not..that’s not right. I can’t..that’s not it. [grunts in frustration] Wrong, that’s the wrong…[scoffs and grunts again]
Lexi: And she seems to be figuring something out.
Music fades out [47:08]
Sentimental piano fades in [47:09]
Dax: Eight this bubble pops on your fingers, and as you’re watching the spice fall to the ground, just as they’re settling, an extremely bad memory is revealed to you...and Tamsin and Rou subsequently. Eight, what is this bad memory that you relive?
Kappa: [gasps] Backstory!
Wren: Is this supposed to be a memory from my most recent escapades or can this be a bad memory from…the time long past?
Music shifts to a somber melody [47:41]
Dax: I will leave that up to you. That is a character..that is a player choice.
Wren: Hmm.
Kappa: Ohhh….
Lexi: [whispers] Agency.
[Kappa laughs]
Wren: It’s also difficult because some of that I’ve left up to you to write, so..I, uh..
Dax: This could be your opportunity to give something Eight didn’t realize Eight knew -
Kappa: This is Dax fishing for a prompt.
Wren: Pretty much.
Kappa: To write off of.
Wren: Yeah, so the image of being hunched over a desk in a well lit study forms, and all of you see this vision as if it was your own eyes. You see a pair of humanoid hands scribbling furiously in a notebook. Or in a little leather bound journal, I suppose I should say, and the notes are fairly illegible, almost, just with the speed at which these notes are being scrawled in wet ink.
After a few moments of writing a few notes down, they dip the quill in ink and you just see it strike all of the writing straight through, and they turn and on the table you would see..uh, well you would see a table to their right. On that table you would see pieces and parts of what appears to be warforged parts, and I would say to the untrained eye they look similar to Eight’s pieces. But I would probably argue that to Rou, and definitely to Eight, as those pieces flash, the two of them would know that those pieces actually don’t belong to Eight. They are a different make.
You hear the voice of a woman, as she says,
Wren (as the woman): This is wrong. This all turned out wrong. This one’s a failure.
Wren: And you hear her sigh as she starts to pull pieces apart and disassemble things, and she says,
Wren (as the woman): Well, maybe the next one will be a success. After all, this is very important…
Wren: And it kind of fades out with those pieces of warforged being violently jerked and ripped apart, and disassembled.
Dax: The room returns to the room of bubbles and marble.
Wren (as Eight): Oh my! Did everyone see that? Or was it just me?
Kappa (as Rou): Saw that too! Something similar happened earlier after you had fallen. Is everything okay, Eight?
Wren (as Eight): Fine! Why?
Kappa (as Rou): I…that was quite a, uhm…I don’t know, the memory affected Tamsin more..I don’t know it seemed very emotional.
Wren (as Eight): I do not know where that memory came from. But…it does feel vaguely familiar.
Wren: And there’s a moment where you see Eight’s eyes shift violet to blue as they’re talking, and they maintain that cerulean color as they’re talking.
Wren (as Eight): I am sorry I missed whatever happened with Tamsin. Are…are you okay, Tamsin?
Lexi (as Tamsin): [in a mock Russian accent] I’m fine. I…Eight I’m..I’m completely fine. I just…this room is bringing things up that I don't think we want to experience.
Music fades out [52:10]
Sentimental piano fades in [52:11]
Dax: Rou as you feel that bubble pop against your cheek, you’re suddenly overwhelmed with a bad memory of your own. What do you and the group see?
Music shifts to a mysterious, tense tune [52:27]
Kappa: It is..it is night time. We are out in the forest, but there is a clearing. There are about twenty..about twenty-five individuals at the edges of this clearing. The center of the clearing is worn down, packed dirt and away from the center of this are ya know, tree stumps, logs, boulders, places to sit. A younger Rou, maybe Rou about late teens?...is in the crowd talking to an older woman - older than him but maybe around Rou’s age now?
The conversation seems pretty mundane, they’re having a good time. People pass by and they’ll wave, like acknowledge each other and all that stuff. And then an older individual, kind of scarred, tired looking, plain clothes announces from the center and a few individuals gather in front while everyone else takes seats at the various boulders, logs, places to sit. Six individuals including the woman that Rou was speaking to are among those in front.
You hear this person go through the spiel of strength, what is right for the pack, time honored tradition. And then will motion to the sky and at this moment you see that it is a full moon. The six individuals spread out, the rest of the folks clear the clearing, and you start to see them go through a transformation. As they..Eight you’ve seen this before, Tamsin you have not…all the humans shift into a werewolf form.
It only takes a couple of seconds, but in those couple seconds it’s shifting of muscle and flesh, and cracking of bones. Growing of hair. A few individuals out in the audience also shift and change, but not everyone. Only a few individuals. Rou, the younger Rou, looks excited. Looks very very..part of the festivities and really enjoying himself. And then a horn blasts and the six individuals start to engage in combat with each other.
It’s brutal, claws flying. Lots of gnashing of teeth, there are people who have formed alliances and stuff and it goes on for a few minutes and it’s extremely bloody. A few people get knocked out and dragged away as they are unable to compete anymore, and you’re not sure if they’re dead or just unconscious. And it comes down to two individuals, one of which is the wolf that Rou was speaking to, and you can see that her eye is either closed shut or has been clawed out.
She is very tired and ragged, and the other wolf that she is competing against at the last of this competition is much bigger, much more agile and walks up very slowly and takes a final strike. Knocking her out. And you see Rou, not excited any more. Instead, a look of horror in his face and his fists are clenched, white-knuckled at his sides…and he runs off into the forest.
Music shifts to sentimental piano [56:05]
Dax: As this memory ends and the three of you are returned to the room, Rou you are able to notice the additional clouds and in fact you now notice several leading up to the door. You also notice that as this memory comes to an end, the door cracks open.
Kappa (as Rou): Well I assume..you both saw that as well.
Wren: I nod slowly.
Lexi (as Tamsin): Yes..we did. For what it is worth, I’m..I’m sorry.
Kappa (as Rou): Thank you? You have to understand, I..I tried to change how we handled this rite of passage. Eight, this is why I’m exploring the world. Because there has to be a better way.
Wren (as Eight): I see. Well, I can only hope that we will be able to find your answers on this adventure together.
Kappa (as Rou): I think we have.
Kappa: I assume this is all happening while we’re hopping from cloud to cloud.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes, Tamsin, my lineage is closely tied to those of werewolves. That’s the transformation I was telling you about.
Lexi (as Tamsin): I see. Well, um, I think that doing what is best for yourself and the future is something that is hard and it takes a certain person with a certain heart to do that.
Kappa (as Rou): Like you, I want desperately to be able to go back home, but…not without..not without something to enlighten everyone there.
Lexi (as Tamsin): A solution. An answer. Well, maybe in my search for answers and solutions, I’m sure that you’ve already found some useful things to take back but..
Kappa (as Rou): Oh! Oh, yes. There’s so much I’ve learned since leaving. Entire societies that don’t rely on violence in the way that we did.
Lexi (as Tamsin): Well, I should hope that all of us can find our answers. And even you, Eight. I hope that the question mark that is where your memory came from..I hope that you’re able to answer that as well.
Wren (as Eight): Thank you. I have many questions about my past, and not many answers.
Music fades out [59:08]
Dax: Leaving Marble Moon behind, Eight and Rou continued southward in the hopes of meeting up with Arthas as planned. While camped one night, Eight mysteriously fell into a trance and experienced a strange series of visions. While they were out, Rou ended up meeting a Packless named Elaine and became more connected to his bestial side.
Sad melody fades in [59:45]
Dax: Your memory goes a little blurry and dark again and when you come back, you are seated at a bedside. The Princess’s bedside. She looks very old at this point, her hair is graying. She looks up at you with watery eyes.
Dax (as Alia): Amara, I want you to promise me something.
Wren (as Amara): Anything.
Dax (as Alia): Promise me that no matter what, you’ll keep working on those silly contraptions of yours. [half-heartedly chuckles]
Wren: I nod slightly. Point of order, how old do I look?
Dax: Well…
Wren: By looking at my hands, I should say.
Dax: Uhm…I’d say, like it’s hard to tell with your hands, I mean you do…you can definitely tell they’re not the hands of a youth? But they also are a little weather-worn from, you know, obviously working on building a home, a garden..this is not the hands of someone who sits and reads all day long, is what I’ll say. So there’s some callouses, there’s some wrinkles but it’s…they don’t look extremely aged. If that makes sense?
Alia reaches a hand up to caress your cheek, and her hand stays there.
Wren: I grab it and hold it.
Dax (as Alia): I’ve heard…rumors…the emperor is looking for your kind. And I don't want anything to happen to you. You’re going to have to do something about those ears, or find somewhere else to hide. This place is not safe.
Wren (as Amara): I won’t go anywhere without you.
Dax: She smiles weakly.
Dax (as Alia): I’ll always be with you, Amara. Just not…physically here. Do you think…Baradesh will forgive me? And allow me safe passage?
Wren (as Amara): She already has forgiven you, you know that.
Dax (as Alia): How can you be so sure?
Wren (as Amara): Because Baradesh has forgiveness for everyone.
Dax: She takes a sharp inhalation of breath, and a pained expression comes across her face. And when the pain subsides, she just looks up at you.
Dax (as Alia): Amara, listen to me. I don’t have much time left and I have a confession to make. I tell you this in the hope that you’ll forgive me too. I was the reason…that Velar was destroyed. I found them making it…again. [voice begins to break] They didn’t learn from the first time. I had to destroy it. Sacrifices had to be made, but I had to destroy it. I’m so sorry. Say that you forgive me. Please…
Wren: A look of disbelief will cross my face.
Wren (as Amara): You’re the reason…but…all of those people…
Wren: I’ll look her in the eyes.
Wren (as Amara): Of course. Of course I forgive you. I understand why you did it.
Dax: Tears are streaming down her face, and she’s got a weak smile on. And when she takes her final breaths, your sight roams over the room that you’re in in this hut. You see very simple adornments, wooden chairs, a very well-loved sofa. Beyond the sofa is a room, where on a table you see that there are scraps of metal and wood, and a single mechanical arm.
Your memory goes dark and when you come to, you see the campfire.
Wren: I feel like I wanna be crying. [chuckles nervously] Like, literally I feel like…I feel like Eight’s crying for the first time.
Music fades out [1:05:28]
Mysterious, sentimental melody fades in [1:05:32]
Dax (as the stranger): Curiouser and curiouser…a Packless that follows with a construct. And walks around in the woods…yelling at people?
Kappa: I whip around and go,
Kappa (as Rou): I’m a bit unconventional, but it’s worked out so far. Are you friend or foe?
Dax: A young woman emerges from the brush.
Kappa: Mhmm.
Dax: She has this mousy kinda colored brown hair, this olive skin and hazel eyes. She’s got kind of an athletic build, she’s not as tall as you are.
Kappa: Mhmm.
Dax: Overall, honestly, rather plain looking?
Kappa: Mhmm.
Dax: Except she wears a tunic and pants that look to be a little oversized.
Kappa (as Rou): And you’re able to tell that I’m Packless. Does that mean you…understand? Or are also one of my kin?
Dax: She walks a little closer but still keeps her distance. And you watch as, when she shifts her head forward a little bit, you can see that she’s actually scenting the air. You can watch as her nostrils get a little big.
Kappa: Hmm.
Dax: As she’s taking in gulps of air, and she looks at you and says,
Dax (as the stranger): I wouldn’t exactly call you kin, but you…[sniffs loudly] smell like kin.
Kappa: I’ll raise up my hands sort of like..whilst I’m still holding a sword, but like..I don't want to occupy my hands trying to tie it to my…anyway! I’ll go,
Kappa (as Rou): I might not be kin but you can at least count me as a friend, if you will. Please, I just tried to pass through. Get some rest for the night. I’m..sorry, my name is Rou.
Kappa: And I’ll motion.
Kappa (as Rou): And you are?
Dax: Give me a Charm check, Rou.
Kappa: [in a sing-song voice] Charm check!
Dax: Give it to me at Medium Difficulty please.
Kappa: Okay.
[sound of dice rolling]
Kappa: That’s good! That is three Successes and one Threat.
Dax: How do you feel about taking a strain for that Threat?
Kappa: I’ll take the strain.
Dax: Mkay. She nods her head ever so slightly, gives you a glance up and down and says,
Dax (as Elaine): Elaine.
Music fades out [1:08:04]
Melancholy tune fades in [1:08:06]
Kappa (as Rou): If you’re curious, being part of a pack does have its benefits and all but it doesn’t come without its own issues. Which is part of the reason why I left. I was always raised on ‘you need the pack’, ‘the pack is the strength of the wolf’ and all this..I mean all these platitudes. But being on my own here, I’ve found individual strength and I’ve found other people that I could rely on. When I was told that everyone was out to get you, everyone outside of the pack that is.
For example, you and your mother were exiled because of some custom tied to violence, and I didn’t like that about my own pack. As we are supposed to be strong together, as we are supposed to be a tight-knit community we’ve lost so many people to tradition. Of course you want a strong leader, but you don’t want to lose those who are also strong in search of a stronger leader. Right?
Dax (as Elaine): I suppose that makes sense.
Kappa (as Rou): I don’t mean to diminish your curiosity or your longing for a sort of community. I do believe that it’s important to respect where you’ve come from. That much is very true. I do suppose there’s value in learning outside of a vacuum. Which, I don’t know about your mother, but I believe you’ve done.
Dax (as Elaine): Well, don't get me wrong. I think the only thing that I find hard about living without a pack is that..I can’t openly have conversations like this.
Kappa (as Rou): Why not?
Dax (as Elaine): Have you tried talking about this with a human? Someone who fears us, hunts us?
Kappa (as Rou): I suppose you’re right. No, I haven’t. But…there are those who don’t hunt or fear us. For example..
Kappa: I imagine we’re coming up on the campfire or something.
Dax: Yeah.
Kappa (as Rou): For example, underneath that blanket right there is a companion of mine who never knew me before, don’t know if they’ve encountered or heard any stories, but you know..you hear legends of our kind terrorizing entire villages and being a menace to society. And even with all of that knowledge that person still accepted me for who I was. And I think I concealed my..other half..far longer than I should have, out of fear that I would be rejected. At the very best. The worst, probably hunted as you say.
Music fades out [1:11:07]
Dax: The next morning, Eight ended up sharing what happened to them and Rou offered comfort before they moved on.
Sentimental piano fades in [1:11:18]
Kappa: I will walk up.
Kappa (as Rou): Eight, is that you? Is everything okay?
Wren: In response, the blanket kind of lifts up as I grab the cloth with my hands and just kind of pull it back. And you would see that my eyes are full of..well, what appear to be tears.
Kappa: Catches me off guard.
Wren (as Eight): [voice breaking] Friend Rou, you’re awake. I..
Kappa (as Rou): As are you. [pauses] Are…Eight is there something wrong? Is there..is there anything I can do? You were…asleep last night.
Wren: I’ll actually wipe my eye and look at my finger, and furrow my brows and I’ll say,
Wren (as Eight): That’s impossible, friend Rou I…
Wren: A concerned and vexed look will cross my face.
Wren (as Eight): I appear to be leaking in some fashion.
Kappa (as Rou): You’re crying. I also thought that would be impossible but here we are. Do you…you’re feeling sad, no?
Wren: My thoughts race back to the visions that I had and the bedside, the promise that I made to Alia. And…it’s almost like I can see her in the dying embers of the campfire, and I look back up at Rou.
Wren (as Eight): [voice wavering] I believe I am sad. And I think…I think for the first time I am truly experiencing the emotion. Friend Rou, how..how does one cope with loss?
Kappa: Are you kneeling right now? Or like in some sort of like…
Wren: I imagine I was sitting criss-cross applesauce.
Kappa: Okay, great. Okay. I imagine I was down to one knee but this time I will sit across from you, and mirror your seated position.
Kappa (as Rou): We all cope with loss and sadness and grief in different ways. If this really is the first time you are experiencing sadness for the first time, anything that I tell you might not fit. Some people spend some time alone. Others throw themselves into their work, or into the lives of other people. Grief and loss are extremely complex emotions.
Kappa: If you’ll allow, I’ll take Eight’s hands in my own and hold them tightly.
Wren: I’ll allow it.
Kappa: Holding them, and maintaining eye contact with you..
Kappa (as Rou): It does help that you are not alone. I’m here, friend Eight, to guide you through this as best I can. I might not be the best example of dealing with the pain of loss. The last time I had to do that was..I ended up leaving home, traveling to an entirely different continent. But I’m here. Do you…want to talk about it?
Wren (as Eight): I…suppose. It might be in best interest to at least have a discussion. After all…
Wren: And I’m just letting my hands stay cradled in yours.
Wren (as Eight): You said I was sleeping?
Kappa (as Rou): Um...yes, strangely enough. I tried to get your attention, I even nudged you a little bit and you did not respond. I had assumed you had finally found rest. You might have had visions, right? Experienced emotions in this state.
Wren (as Eight): It would seem so.
Kappa (as Rou): I think you, for the first time, had dreamt.
Wren (as Eight): If these were dreams, they were so vivid. As if..as if I had lived through moments through the eyes of someone else.
Music fades out [1:16:19]
Dax: When they arrived at the designated meeting place, they learned that Arthas had actually moved on but was able to leave quite an impression on the townsfolk.
Music fades in [1:16:31]
Dax: There seems to be a division of three different perspectives going on here. One group you hear somebody say, ‘No no no no. What they’ve done has been extremely helpful, you know I don’t think..I think someone like him would prefer a statue in his image.We’ve got this giant boulder, there’s no use for it, we should carve his likeness into the boulder.’ and a bunch of people agree ‘Yeah, yeah that’d be a perfect way to give him thanks!’
Another group says, ‘No no no no, you don’t understand. A boulder will degrade with time but a name, a name lasts forever! I vote that we change the name of the village to Arthasville from Chillfalls!’ And a bunch of people are starting to agree and say, ‘Yeah, yeah it’s time for a change!’
A third group says, ‘No no no no, you’re thinking too small. We should have a holiday set up. Once a year, where we have a giant pyre - we make an effigy as large as he is, and we burn that effigy and we celebrate him for a week! that’s ..that should be what we do.’ And the third group is assenting to that, and nobody seems to be conceding that the other ideas might be just as good. Everybody’s like, ‘no no no, it’s not enough’ and they’re being very stuck on that argument and it’s kind of looping.
Kappa: When I hear ‘Arthasville’..
Dax: Uh-huh.
Kappa (as Rou): Eight are they..are they talking about Arthas?
Kappa: I’ll whisper this so that they can’t overhear us.
Wren: I will turn, completely flabbergasted. Just like, my jaw kinda hanging down a little bit.
Kappa: Yeah I’ve an extremely puzzled look on my face too. Like, ‘what?!’, brow furrowed.
Wren (as Eight): It would seem…that these people are debating the best way to honor our friend Arthas.
Kappa (as Rou): Give me one second Eight, I have an idea.
Wren (as Eight): I also have an idea. We have to tell them not to have this boulder changed. Arthas loves boulders!
[Kappa laughs]
Kappa (as Rou): I..I agree. I agree with you. Uhm, excuse me! If this is the Arthas that I think you’re speaking about, and discussing over, why not all three? To match the man, you would have to do all three, wouldn’t you?
Dax: The group slowly dies down. You can hear the number of voices just go quiet one after another, and those closest turn to see you and everybody else just kinda follows suit.
Dax (as a villager): I…beg your pardon?
Kappa (as Rou): You’re speaking about Arthas, the Triumphant of Azarra right?
Dax: A couple of them look at each other, back and forth and they’re nodding their head -
Kappa (as Rou): Eleven feet tall?
Dax (as a villager): Yes!
Kappa (as Rou): Sword with a stone through it, uses it like a hammer?
Dax (as a villager): Yes, bald! Yes.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes! That Arthas, yeah! I mean, Arthas doesn’t do anything in half measure, everything about Arthas is over the top, right?
Dax: You hear a bunch of murmurs of, ‘yeah…yeah’.
Kappa (as Rou): So why not do all three? You could have the boulder…speaking of, we have ideas about the boulder...my friend and I. And you could rename the town. Chillfalls is quite…it’s a good name, but Arthasville does quite sound amazing and you could have the naming day celebration be also in tandem with the honor of Arthas.
Dax: The group kinda turns in and of itself and you hear more quiet murmurings, and after a couple minutes they turn back to the two of you and be like,
Dax (as the villager): I think that’s a wonderful idea. How do you know Arthas?
Kappa: I look over at Eight, and try and share a knowing smile.
Wren: After making eye contact, I just interject,
Wren (as Eight): Arthas is our best friend!
Music fades out [1:21:10]
Dax: At Chillfalls, soon to be Arthasville, the mayor recommended that they search for a magician named Liam Renwick, supposedly south of Pineview. However, when Rou and Eight arrived at Pineview they found that it had been laid to ruins.
Calm piano melody fades in [1:21:31]
Dax: So over the course of the two days, you travel over winding hills, and through a small forest where a narrow dirt road has led you over a babbling brook. A few times it passed so close to the rocky outcroppings you wondered if the cart would fit, and while it was tight you did manage it. And you manage to get through the small forest.
As you continue down this dirt path that has now widened enough to be a road, dim light starts to shine over the horizon as dusk begins to settle. And over the smell of grass and wind and the wetness of dew, you smell smoke and the acrid tang of char.
Music shifts to a sad, suspenseful tune [1:22:30]
Dax: As you round a bend, and a rocky outcropping, you can see ahead of you what should be the village of Pineview, but all that’s left are charred buildings and utter destruction. A tree, a very old and tall tree, stands above a destroyed sign and hanging from its limbs are several corpses.
Music fades out [1:23:00]
Tense, mysterious tune fades in [1:23:03]
Kappa: Before noticing the footprints, catching eye of this symbol..you said it’s in multiple places? And is recurring?
Dax: Correct.
Kappa: Passing by the fifth or sixth one, I’ll just…as I touch it and run my hand over it, I’m talking to Eight.
Kappa (as Rou): I wonder what this means, or what sort of group left this behind. It’s some sort of a calling card, some…maybe they wanted to send a message? They wanted anyone who came across it to know who did this? It’s very deliberate.
Wren (as Eight): It is.
Wren: And I’ll kind of walk up to one of them, one of those symbols etched into some of the wood and run my fingers along it. And as I do, I’ll look at Rou and say,
Wren (as Eight): This is the symbol of a cult, a destructive cult, obviously. This is the same cult that laid siege to and destroyed the city of Isha in the desert and they kidnapped a spellweaver. This is most disturbing, that they would attack a remote location like this. Perhaps...
Wren: And I’ll lift my hand from the symbol.
Wren (as Eight): Hmm. I’d hate to think that there was another spellweaver here because that means no place is safe, so long as they harbor one of those empowered spellcasters.
Kappa: Listening to you go over this, my expression changes from bewilderment, to just a modicum of understanding, to disgust at the fact that this is now a recurring thing.
Kappa (as Rou): I’d hate to bring it up, but if this is your second time encountering this cult…maybe it’s possible that they’re aware of your, and our, purpose?
Wren (as Eight): The thought had crossed my mind, quite frankly. If you recall from Venya’s vision, the one received in Kidohlva, part of the vision involved a single face with yellow skin and a balding pate. The leader of this cult bears a striking visage to that description. I have the feeling that our fates may be intertwined with that of this cult’s actions.
Music fades out [1:25:35]
Dax: With the hope of finding survivors, they were given strength and pushed on. As they headed toward Liam’s residence they met Pax, a member of an organization known as the Scarlet Harmony. Pax joined them in the hopes of finding survivors from the Pineview tragedy and hopefully to get a message to her organization about what had happened.
Calming piano fades in [1:26:01]
Dax: It is just before dawn, Pax. You can see the sun is just starting to crest over the horizon so it’s still relatively dark. The road ahead of you is lit just enough where you can see where you’re going. Why don’t you describe what you look like and tell us what you’re up to?
Mer: Am I currently on the road or at site?
Dax: On the road.
Music shifts to a frantic beat [1:26:31]
Mer: What we see is a orange Tiefling, she is like a darkish, rusty hue and several patches of her skin seem to have what looks like some kind of reptilian scales. Her hair is a very short pixie cut, of a slate gray, and her horns curl back on her head. And if one of the horns was not partially missing, it looks like they would eventually form a diamond shape.
She is donned in leather armor with many buckles, and a pauldron on her right shoulder, and she is heavily armed with a sword, several daggers, and a crossbow. At her hip, you can see three types of sailor’s knots of monkey fist, or perhaps a globe knot, attached to a triangular piece of metal. She is currently riding her horse, hard, towards the horizon.
Music fades out [1:27:36]
Dax: The group found the Pineview survivors at Liam’s, and Pax was able to trade a favor to gain his cooperation in the investigation. When he divined the potential location of the children that Rou and Eight had been looking for, it was Rou who realized where they needed to head next.
Sentimental piano fades in [1:27:57]
Dax (as Liam): [masc voice] I think the three of you will want to follow me.
Dax: He leads you back into that room where you did the Sending and instead of the silver bowl on the table, there is now a copper bowl and in it is water that has, around the edges of it, this golden glow. He stands next to the bowl and just points down and says,
Dax (as Liam): I think you want to take a look at this.
Kappa: Lean over, take a look.
Mer: Just making my way in between Rou and Eight.
Wren: Just peering over into the bowl.
Music shifts to an eerie tune [1:28:36]
Dax: You see flashes of images. First, of a bunch of children, huddled together in what appears to be an underground cavern of sorts. They appear dirty, they’re faces look a little frightened, but they don’t seem to be hurt in any way. Just very scared, very dirty, huddling in mostly dark.
The image flashes and it turns to a pathway that’s very curvy, leading upward. Almost as if it appears to have been carved out of the mountainside itself. Among the sheer drop from the edges of the pathway you can see jagged rocks sticking up, and pointing towards the sky.
You see another flash, and you see an entryway carved into stone, very ornate and decorated with many figures and vines and flowers. You also get a flash of an individual with pale, yellowed skin sitting in a chair looking very weak. And then it flashes back to the children, and it keeps going on loop.
Wren: Seeing the yellow-skinned individual, I get excited and I’m like,
Wren (as Eight): Rou! Rou! That person! It’s just like from the vision!
Kappa (as Rou): Wait, yes, you’re right!
Mer (as Pax): Vision?
Kappa (as Rou): Uh, yes there’s a vision. A sort of prophecy, type deal. Well, we can get into it later.
Kappa: While looking at the bowl..
Kappa (as Rou): Liam, is this right now? Is this..or is this some sort of like temporal weirdness?
Dax (as Liam): As far as I know, these images are current.
Kappa (as Rou): Oh, okay, okay.
Mer: Do any of us recognize the location? I think you said there was like switchbacks and a cliff and a cave?
Dax: Rou could you give me a Geography check please?
Kappa: What?!
[Mer chuckles softly]
Kappa: Okay..hold on, let me see. Geog-raphy…
Dax: Yes…
Kappa: What difficulty?
Dax: Hard difficulty.
[Sound of dice rolling]
Kappa: Oh ho ho! Holy sh- okay. Three Successes and like a bajillion Threat…six Threat.
Dax: Oh…kay…six Threat.
Mer: That’s so many!
Dax: Wow..
Kappa: Yeah. On all of the purple die I rolled the two Threat. [laughs]
Wren: Apparently you’re just really worried by the fact that you know where that is. [laughs]
Kappa: Yeah.
Dax: So..
Kappa: How many Threats to make a Failure, like that’s where I’m at.
[Dax and Kappa laugh]
Kappa: I know that’s not mechanically in the game, but like…[chuckles]
Dax: So I’ll say take six strain, and here’s my reasoning for it. The -
Kappa: Oh! Okay…yes.
Dax: The weight and the pressure of everything you’ve gone through in the last forty-eight hours, the tenseness of what you’re currently going through. You know that wave of ‘holy crap maybe we have a lead’ finally washes over you and it’s almost like it breaks something.
Kappa: Hmm.
Dax: And you realize all this pressure and stress that you’ve been holding on your shoulders, that you didn’t know was there, finally kinda releases itself and with that it just…you just suddenly feel exhausted. As far as your successes go, you recognize that pathway as being part of the Dread Wastes. Which is what Baukorans call the massive desert on their continent.
Kappa: Playing around with the emotions that you’re describing to me, and like the weight of everything just sort of clicking together. You see me sort of straighten up, away from the bowl and back up a couple steps.
Kappa (as Rou): I know where that is, Eight.
Wren (as Eight): You do?
Kappa (as Rou): I think we’re going to have to go back home. My home.
Mer (as Pax): They’re in Baukora?
Kappa: Yeah I will make eye contact with all three of the people in the room.
Kappa (as Rou): Yes, they are…on the continent of Baukora.
Music fades out [1:33:29]
Dax: Beginning February 3rd, 2023, join the party as their story continues in Season 4.