A glimpse into the activities of Indy & Company while Rou, Trix and Eight infiltrate the hidden fortress.
Join Dax and guest Val as they explore a scene between the Sultan of Duskhollow and the members of Indy & Company.
Thank you all so much for sticking with us!! We can't wait to be back early next year.
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Transcript by Dax
Upbeat piano intro fades out [00:27]
Gentle piano music fades in [00:28]
Dax: Welcome back to Roads Uncharted, a podcast for nerds by nerds. Hi, everybody. This is going to be a special bonus content episode of Roads Uncharted and today I am joined by the wonderful Valiant Dorian. Val say hi for the folks.
Val: Hi folks. I’m Valiant Dorian I use he/him/his pronouns. You can find me across the internet as Valiant Dorian or at otsospiritbear. Please enjoy that lovely treasure hunt I just sent you on. And I’m here! I’m back.
Dax: For those of you that have been with us for a while you might remember Val as the voice of Sultan Akbar from Season Four. Well, Val is going to be reprising his role as the Sultan in this little mini, uh, bonus content episode that we’re gonna do for you today. So, with that let’s get started.
Audience, we watch as the camera pans over Duskhollow. It is a beautiful day. The sun is shining, the streets are full of people milling about, shopping, and talking, and just enjoying their daily lives. We watch as the view weaves in and out of the crowd, leading up to the beautiful palace that the Sultan resides in. We come to the palace and find that there is this long queue of people that…it leads up to the throne room. Val what exactly is the Sultan doing right now and why is there such a long line of people to see him?
Val: The Sultan is currently sat on his beautiful throne. Right by his side is this shelf holding this ornate beautiful, almost made of a dark black obsidian metal glaive that gleams in the sunlight. Right now, the Sultan has his face resting on his knuckles looking out at a huge line of citizens of all walks of life. We see, um, you know, a merchant who has brought countless papers and scrolls. We see some soldiers who are also lined and we see, you know, ordinary folk of all sorts of professions. And we hear the sort of court announcer off to the side of the Sultan. Slowly but surely announcing the names, the concerns or complaints, levied to the Sultan from the people. That is essentially what this is.
This is a “Open Chamber” for the Sultan to hear the feedback from his people. To hear the current problems and issues that are plaguing them. Issues of taxation, of merchant access to certain goods, of trade, of crime, and any and every issue under the sun. However major, and however minor. And he leans on this, on his knuckles, chin resting on it and the other hand, partially transformed are the tips of his fingers into Weretiger claws. Just tapping against the stone, hearing a particularly irritating complaint about the minutiae of trade agreements and the access of merchants to certain types of goods from across the border. Riveting, riveting conversation of course. [chuckles]
Dax: Yes. Tedious, but necessary I do believe especially, um, you know, as a ruler of such a grand and wondrous city. As the line continues to move, albeit at a slow and arduous pace, we actually pull away from the Sultan momentarily and we head a good dozen or so people down the line to a very familiar group. We see a tall woman with black hair, hung loose and wild about her shoulders and plate armor from head to toe. We see a Dwarf woman with a bunch of mysterious jars and bottles hung at a utility belt around her waist. We see a very large dog at her side, panting. His tongue lolling out happily. And beside them is a man with a crossbow on his back, a long trench coat and a big old floppy hat, who seems to be bouncing back and forth on his feet. Almost impatiently.
Dax (as Sierra): [femme tone] Indy, I…bouncing is not going to make the line go any faster.
Dax: You watch as the person named Indy stops for about sixty seconds and then starts whistling to himself. Again, starting to weave back and forth. Less bouncy this time but still movement, very fidgety.
Dax (as Sierra): Indy. Please stop whistling that tune. We’re going to be in line for a little bit longer and it’s…it’s going to get stuck in my head. And I will kill you if it gets stuck in my head.
Dax (as Indy): [in a slightly Australian/British combo accent] Yeah but…love, we’re in an emergency! You know? Trix and Rou and Eight could be needin’ us right now! And we’re stuck here. We have every right to cut in front -
Dax: You hear the interruption of, uh a small voice from below.
Dax (as Dassana): [femme, slightly higher pitch] Indy it is very rude to interrupt, okay? These people are the Sultan’s citizens. Okay? They have more of a right to intrude on his time than we do. Can you just…please be patient? Nothing is going to happen in the next five minutes -
Dax (as Indy): We’ve been here for an hour, Dassana. An hour already!
Dax (as Dassana): Yes. I, I know Indy. But…it’s okay. It will be okay, nothing is going to happen in the next five minutes that is going to end the world. Okay? I am sure Eight and Trix and Rou have, have by now gotten into the fortress and it will be fine but…I mean look at Bonebreaker. Nothing is bothering him and he’s been sitting here in line with us too.
Dax: Indy looks down and when Bonebreaker looks up the panting kind of stops momentarily as if Bonebreaker were giving Indy the look of ‘Yeah! I’m doing fine!’ You know, because we all know what that looks like on a dog’s face. Especially when they’re the kind of breed that has, like, those eyebrows? That move just enough that you kind of…they have those expressions. Indy flusters a little, lets out this very heavy sigh as the line shifts one person up. This goes on for…Val, how long do you think it takes the Sultan to get through, like, I don’t know fifteen people? What would you guess?
Val: Fifteen people?
Dax: Definitely not five minutes. [laughs]
Val: Definitely not five minutes. I think what the Sultan does is, I think as each…many of these complaints are not hugely substantive for him. Some of these are honestly better flagposted to someone else. Like, a lot of the queue is because everybody decided to meet the Sultan and sometimes the Sultan himself has to go,
Val (as the Sultan): [slightly deeper voice] I believe the Chamber of Commerce would be the better avenue for this particular inquiry.
Val: And then turns to the guard to like, hand over a scroll to direct them to the Chamber of Commerce within the palace grounds. And the Sultan, I think would take, by doing a lot of this sign posting maybe another thirty-five to forty minutes to get through fifteen people? If we’re estimating like a quarter or half of them to be signposted? [laughs]
Dax: Yeah. [laughs] Shunted off to the appropriate party.
Val: ‘I am Sultan, I don’t need to be doing everything here’. [laughs]
Dax: No. As the queue continues on, the Sultan would notice this group of clearly strangers to this city -
Val: Hmm.
Dax: Standing in line. Particularly since one of them is continuing to bounce and does seem very impatient.
Val: Mhmm.
Dax: I think that the person that is in front of them, uh it’s actually two people and I think they show up and it’s an argument about…one wants to put up a flower plot line. A garden on the edge of their property and the other person - it’s basically a fight over a property line.
Val: Mhmm.
Dax: And you know you hear arguments,
Dax (as older person 1): [crackly, aged voice] Well my grandfather staked out the claim of that property line when he was just a young lad. It has been in my family for generations!
Dax: And you hear,
Dax (as older person 2): [crackly, aged voice] Yes but I’ve always been the one that’s tended it so therefore I have the rights of the property line! Sultan, please, in your great wisdom what would you deem the appropriate course for this?
Val: Sultan’s tapping the claws against the stone. This is the last thing that he wants to deal with and I think his eyes are slightly glazed over hearing this particular - I think he’s heard, like, maybe thirteen property line debates already.
Dax: Oh, definitely, at least.
Val: Yeah, at least, you know. And a couple of them are actually interesting debates but a lot of them is just this. And we hear him kind of like do a low growl at this question, and then notice this interesting group of adventurers that just linger behind these two complainants. And the Sultan goes,
Val (as the Sultan): [quietly] Hmm…
Val: And his eyes, what was once glazed over now light up in interest. If his Weretiger tail were visible we would see it moving in great interest and his pupils are wide. So much like a cat seeing something interesting. Shiny, dangling right in front of it to tug or snatch. And we see the Sultan, who is slumped over, rise upward and reach for the glaive, slam it once and say to one of the attendants nearby,
Val (as the Sultan): [loudly] Bilal! [at normal volume] My two citizens here have a key concern. I assign you to their case. Ensure that you re-review all of the leases and easements in relation to the property lines and make your due judgment.
Dax: Bilal comes up to your throne when you call their name and does give a gracious bow and does gesture to the two citizens, but you can tell because you have worked with Bilal for so long, not pleased -
Val: No.
Dax: About having to deal with these, these old complainants that are surely going to be taking up the rest of his afternoon. But anything for the Sultan.
Val (as the Sultan): Better their afternoon than mine.
Dax: Yup! [laughs] Bilal escorts them away and it is at this point, Sultan, you would notice that the woman seems to be having a slightly heated whispered discussion with the man with the floppy hat. And when they realize that they are next she immediately ceases whatever this conversation is and walks up to you. Giving a very awkward bow, with the other two doing the same, very much in that vein of ‘I don’t know what is exactly the right gesture that I should be giving but I’m gonna do something’.
Val (as the Sultan): Welcome. You are adventurers, no, this is not a land you call home.
Val: And we see the Sultan, from a slumped position, leans back into his throne. His posture is straightened, he eyes them with a bright curiosity, and the sharpened canines in his mouth are visible as he just executes this toothy grin at all of them.
Val (as the Sultan): Pray tell! Why have a group of adventurers who -
Val: And looks at how clumsily they bow.
Val (as the Sultan): Have not set into the graces of my land, come to seek audience with Sultan?
Dax: The woman gives a furtive glance at the other two and then says,
Dax (as Sierra): Um…Sultan. My name is Sierra, I am here with my fellow adventurers Dassana and…
Dax: And she pauses to look at Indy and just says,
Dax (as Sierra): Indy. And we are here on behalf of some.. what I understand are mutual friends of yours? You see we met some other adventurers by the names of Rou, Trix and..[long pause] Eight -
Val (as the Sultan): And Eight.
Dax: And you watch as her face kind of clouds a little bit when she says “Eight”.
Val: The curiosity only increases as the Sultan, like, pre-empts Eight by saying “Eight” and then leans forward and goes,
Val (as the Sultan): Ha ha ha ha! You should have mentioned this to my guard, you would have saved yourself an hour and forty-five minutes in line but your patience is well appreciated.
Val: And, there’s probably a line behind them, right? Of people -
Dax: Oh yeah.
Val: Yeah. And you see that the Sultan stands up from the throne, gestures to the rest - ‘cause the way the throne room is constructed, is that we have on sort of a raised platform the throne and we have ministers lining the staircase all the way down. And he goes, uh, and looks to the rest of his ministers who are known as menteri. Like collectively. And he’s like,
Val (as the Sultan): My menteri! Please see to the concerns of my people. I will return in a short while. Please escort these lovely guests towards the sanctum.
Val: And he, the Sultan, picks up the glaive in one hand, does a gracious, regal bow to the rest of his citizens who are graciously waiting. And starts marching off, trying to have this conversation in a private sanctum.
Dax: There is quite a bit of murmur…murmuring and whispering and talking from the general citizenry as to this astonishing change in procedure. But as requested, your ministers do attend to them and Indy, Dassana, Sierra and Bonebreaker are all escorted to the sanctum as you wished. I kinda feel like Priya might have still been here at this point. I mean, she very clearly does prefer the company of her favorite uncle [chuckles] as opposed to her own father’s house.
Val: This is so funny because, you know, Priya had mentioned that she was planning to return to her father. And I think there is...and I’ll leave it up to you but I feel like this is definitely like a ‘she said that but she’s still here’. [laughs]
Dax: Oh yeah. One-hundred percent. She never said she was gonna do it immediately! She did say ‘yes I will return’ but she never gave a deadline, so like it’s very much like ‘I’m gonna stay as long as I can get away with it’.
Val: Wonderful. Yeah, I think the inner sanctum is similar to how it was constructed before the meeting the Sultan had with the party. The only addition is that the scent that is…the scent here is seasonal. The attendants of this room are incredibly keen on the Sultan’s ever volatile changes of taste, and as such, where before it was probably the scent of jasmine and sandalwood, now it is rose. This beautiful scent of rosewater permeates in the air. There are three little fountains, like small ones, that are made out of a stacking of pots that have constant rosewater poured into them as they cycle through each other. Cooling the room, also filling this room with this rosy scent.
And I think this group of adventurers are brought here by the guards and the other attendants of this place, to find the Sultan resting on a chaise lounge. Like feet on the lounge itself, leaning down, head upon the knuckles in keen interest and keen excitement. Priya I think is sat on a lounge or a chair close to his side. There are a bunch of snacks and jugs of, not only water, but also punch and wine that are made available by the attendants. As they enter he goes,
Val (as the Sultan): Come! Come, come, my honored guests. Please make yourselves comfortable. What news have you brought me?
Dax: Before Sierra can do any sort of explaining, hearing ‘make yourselves comfortable’, Indy immediately finds the next open chair, takes off his hat and sets it aside and starts picking at a bunch of the little snacks and dainties.
Val: Mhmm.
Dax: Seems particularly keen on a pistachio dusted cake.
Val: Mmm!
Dax: And then just turns and looks at Sierra and says,
Dax (as Indy): Well, love, I…you’ve got all the details. You can into it don’t ya think?
Dax: And then pops the cake into his mouth. Basically, pointing out, like, subtly ‘Hey, I was told I could eat, it’s on you to do the dirty work now’.
Val: Mhmm. Mhmm.
Dax: Sierra and Dassana slowly approach, they also take seats but are much more…they’re definitely doing their best to be more professional about this discussion as opposed to Indy who is clearly not. And, uh, Sierra says,
Dax (as Sierra): Yes. So, we have, as I mentioned, had some dealings with Rou and Trix and…Eight…and we ended up…we met one of your -
Val (as the Sultan): Why do you hesitate on Eight’s name? What great concern clouds your mind? Are they well? I trust that my companions are, at the very least, still with us?
Dax: Sierra looks like she’s trying to find the best way to word this and it is Dassana that pipes up and says,
Dax (as Dassana): Well, you see, um, when we met Rou and Trix they were actually, uh, companioned with a um…in Eight’s body, but it was someone who called themselves Amara? And a completely different personality than the Eight that Rou and Trix…they kept calling them Eight but it - any time Eight spoke they claimed that they were Amara. It was a very weird situation, so, that..that is…it is not something that we were used to calling them? So it’s..you’ll have to forgive us. We’re still getting used to referring to them as Eight as opposed to Amara.
Val (as the Sultan): Right…understood. Continue in your tale. What has befallen my companions?
Dax (as Sierra): Well, I don’t know so much as..[sighs] anything has befallen them. We know that they have taken to going towards the hidden fortress in the Dread Wastes and we promised them we would come with assistance and they spoke so highly of you that we figured you might be the best person to approach? Especially given we ran into one of your spies while we were infiltrating the outpost. Uh…
Dax: She looks over at Dassana and Dassana pipes up,
Dax (as Dassana): Um, I...Anaan.
Val: I think the Sultan, like hearing - I would've…correct me if I’m wrong. Would I have heard about the successful taking of the outpost?
Dax: Yes, you would have -
Val: I would have, okay. Mm. And I think the Sultan…I imagine the Sultan’s Spymaster is never too far away from him -
Dax: Oh yeah.
Val: I think they, like the Sultan looks to a curtain. Perhaps to everyone’s confusion, and then emerging from behind the curtain the Spymaster appears. Probably confirming that this is indeed one of ours.
Dax: Mhmm. Yeah, and I’m, uh, probably would have confirmed but also would have left almost immediately basically to go get Anaan -
Val: Mm.
Dax: And summon him to the chambers to kind of vouch for their story.
Dax (as Sierra): Sultan I - we - don’t have anything to offer you but it is our understanding that you had asked them to infiltrate and look into the Order’s activities at the outpost. And if Eight, Trix and Rou are taking on the fortress by themselves, they’re going to need assistance. And while Eight and I might’ve had our disagreements in the past…
Dax: And you kinda can see that Sierra is doing her best not to talk through her teeth on that one.
Val: Mm.
Dax (as Sierra): I do know that Rou and Trix at least deserve a little…a little backup.
Val (as the Sultan): And they shall have it! I’ve known of their successful infiltration of the outpost but I had not heard yet of their plans moving forward. I knew each of them had their own…
Val: And we see the fingers - the claw fingers - tap against the fabric of the lounge.
Val (as the Sultan): Interests in pursuing this group and as you all might have rightly discerned this Order is not welcome on my lands. They were a thorn in my father’s heel and they’re a thorn in mine. I’d be glad to be rid of them. Tell me! What is the situation? What is the best way for us to move forward? I will not send my people into a death trap.
Dax: This is when Indy, Dassana and Sierra all look at each other, because they really don’t have an answer and you can tell - you’re very experienced with dealing with people that do not have great poker faces. You would know that they’re trying to figure out a way to ask each other what they should say without actually saying anything. And I think this is when -
Val (as the Sultan): Please…
Dax: Priya pipes in.
Val: I think Priya pipes in as the Sultan’s about to say something.
Dax: Yeah.
Dax (as Priya): [femme tone] Um, may I make a suggestion? We know very well that the Dread Wastes are…inhospitable…at best. What do we have that indicates there is a secret entranceway, perhaps? Or…I mean, as far as I’m aware, there is no fortress that is sitting at the base of a mountain. Did not your spy come back with paperwork and blueprints?
Val: And I think you see that the Sultan turns his head over to Priya. And I think there’s a moment maybe for these adventurers where they, because they do not know who Priya is -
Dax: Mhmm.
Val: And see this sort of intense, volatile Sultan turn over to someone who speaks so casually, so freely in the Sultan’s presence. And I think there’s perhaps a moment where they think ‘Oh god, is this man going to snap back at this person?’
[Dax laughs]
Val: And the Sultan goes, like slaps his own thigh and goes,
Val (as the Sultan): Ha ha ha ha! Do you see that? How sharp my niece is? That’s from me, she got it from. That’s the sharpness from my side of the family.
Val: And you see that he turns toward the Spymaster and says,
Val (as the Sultan): Come, come, come. Fetch me those blueprints. Fetch me whatever updated information we have on the lay of the land. And we will scheme and plan a robust, unyielding, attack.
Dax: As the Spymaster returns with the blueprints, and with Anaan at his side, to basically confirm that Sierra, Dassana and Indy are who they said that they were, we watch as the camera kinda backs away and up out of the palace. From the sight of the Sultan and the odd group that is Indy and Company beginning to plan their attack. That is where we will end this session.
Music fades out [30:56]
Dax: So, audience, can’t wait to see you in Season Seven and Val thank you so much for joining me today for this little..little peek into what’s been going on while the party’s been at the fortress.
Val: I love to be here and I love playing the Sultan. Like, this is a great joy for me.
Dax: Everyone take care of each other and we’ll see you next time. [pauses, then says in a high-pitched voice] Thanks Val!
Val: I wave as if anyone can see me -
Dax: I know, it’s okay!
Val: In a podcast format.
[both laugh]