Transcript:What Dreams May Come

Pre-show
MATT: Hello everyone, and welcome to tonight's episode of Critical Role where a bunch of us nerdy ass voice actors sit around and play Dungeons & Dragons. (shouting)

ASHLEY: Yes, we do!

MATT: That's still weird. Well, speaking of which, our first sponsor is NordVPN. Ashley, last time you revealed yourself to be the virus known as Setty, hypnotized us, and took over the set. So what happens now?

ASHLEY: (Cockney accent) What happens? Nothing. I won, the bad guy won. That's it, the end.

MATT: But like, NordVPN is still our sponsor, and their whole thing is providing the highest quality encryption for your internet traffic and hiding your IP and physical location. Available on windows, iOS, Android, and Linux. With one simple click, it's easy to get high speed protection.

ASHLEY: So what, my guy?

TRAVIS and MARISHA: (laugh)

MATT: Well, a computer virus winning isn't exactly reinforce their whole security concept of the company.

ASHLEY: That's your problem, friendo. Like our audience, I was sick of Sam's endless hacker gobbeldy gook and had to stop it. So from now on, no more computer talk. No more LED costumes. No more gleaming the cube. These NordVPN ads are going analog, baby. Starting with the most non hacker activity ever: balloon animals! (shouts) Matt, what kind of animal should I make?

MATT: A giraffe?

ASHLEY: I heard "sword." (laughter)

ASHLEY: Give me two seconds. (muffled laughter)

ASHLEY: It's going to be real good.

MATT: I'm excited.

SAM: Oh wow! That's pretty good. Oh...

MARISHA: Oh wow!

ASHLEY: Hah!

MATT: Oh, wow. Okay. How is this related to NordVPN, though?

ASHLEY: Ah, give me another one, tuna breath.

MATT: Great. Monkey?

ASHLEY: No! I heard "spaghetti." (laughter)

TRAVIS: Nasty sound.

LIAM: It's going great.

ASHLEY: There it is! Look at this noodle. (laughter)

ASHLEY: Well, another NordVPN in the can. Nope. Another NordVPN ad in the can. Go to nordvpn.com/criticalrole, or use criticalrole to get a two-year plan plus a bonus gift with a huge discount. Matt, hack to you. (laughter)

MATT: Thank you, Ashley. (laughter)

MATT: The sword was impressive. That sword was impressive.

ASHLEY: Listen.

TRAVIS: Did you build a cross guard for that?

ASHLEY: That was--

MATT: It's a saber.

ASHLEY: That was-- it's a saber.

LAURA: That's a great sword.

TALIESIN: Oh my god.

MARISHA: How did you know how to do that? Did you just improvise that?

MATT: It's a saber with a little penis.

LAURA: You just know how to make a little sword.

ASHLEY: Just looked it up on YouTube. (laughter)

MATT: Well done. Well done.

ASHLEY: Little bit like a dick.

TALIESIN: We all do.

MATT: Exactly. This episode is also sponsored by our friends at Cash App. The easiest way to send, spend, and save money. You can invest as little as $1 and connect to your direct deposit to get paid two days early. So check out the number-- Check out the number one finance app and the App Store or Google Play Store now. New year users can use CRITROLE, and they'll receive $15 when they are finishing completing their account, and $10 will go to our very own Critical Role Foundation. Terms apply.

SAM: Yes!

LAURA: Yay!

ASHLEY: Woo!

MATT: Taliesin, you got an announcement.

TALIESIN: Yeah! Yep, yep, yep. All right, all right. Our second official Critical Role novel-- (oohing)

TALIESIN: The Mighty Nein: The Nine Eyes of Lucien is coming in November with our pals at Penguin Random House.

TRAVIS: Look how pretty that is!

TALIESIN: Featuring incredible cover art by Matt Hubel. That's I hope is correct. This is a tale from author Madeleine Roux. Chronicles Lucien's early life and his fateful meeting with the Mighty Nein.

SAM: Wow.

ASHLEY: Woo!

TALIESIN: And now, I am pleased to reveal that our narrator for our audiobook is Robbie Daymond. (cheering) (clapping)

TALIESIN: He did such an incredible job narrating the audiobook version of Kith & Kin. So we're thrilled to have him return.

SAM: Story time with Robbie.

MATT: Thanks for coming, buddy.

TALIESIN: Pre-order your copy in your preferred format at your local bookshops or criticalrolebooks.com and look for its release on November 1st.

LAURA: Wow.

SAM: Ooh, wow.

LIAM: The library grows!

MATT: Love it! Laura, you're up.

LAURA: Hi. Guess what.

TALIESIN: What?

LAURA: We're partnering--

ASHLEY: Chicken butt.

LAURA: Yeah. We're partnering with the wonderful folks at Pin Club to bring you these Bells H-- hold on. (laughter)

LAURA: These Bells Hells 8-bit chibi pins. (oohing)

ASHLEY: What?

LAURA: Look at these designs by the Pin Club team. They're amazing. They're made of hard enamel, feature gorgeous metals like gold and rose gold and Laudna has a special--

MATT: They're so cute.

LAURA: Is that gun metal? I don't know. It's dark.

ASHLEY: Oh my god.

LAURA: Collect all seven, and guess what? You'll receive this free Critical Role pin collector's book to keep them in.

SAM and TALIESIN: Wow. (oohing)

LAURA: Really freaking cool when you're not wearing them out in the world, these Bells Hells 8-bit chibi pins-- You want to see it?

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LIAM: Gold is best.

LAURA: -- are limited edition, so get yours now at pinclub dot, nope. Pinclub.shop/criticalrole. Did I say that right?

TALIESIN: Yep.

MATT: We got there, we got there.

MARISHA: URLs.

LAURA: Did I say it?

SAM, LAURA, and TALIESIN: Pinclub.shop/criticalrole.

SAM: Yeah.

LAURA: Ta da! That's all I've got. Aren't they so cute?

ASHLEY: Yeah!

LAURA: That little box is really cool.

MATT: Oh my goodness.

LAURA: Anyway, that's what I got.

SAM: Cool! They got the 8-bit vibe.

LAURA: I know.

MATT: I want one. Okay. Well, I think that concludes our announcements.

TRAVIS: No, listen, the last game ending was so crazy.

MATT: So let's go ahead--

ASHLEY: We have-- you know, there's stuff I got to... No, no.

MATT: -- and jump in to tonight's episode of Critical Role.

Part I
MATT: And welcome back. So last we left off.

LAURA: No!

SAM: Ugh.

SAM: Shut up, you asshole. (laughter)

MARISHA: Jesus Christ.

TRAVIS: Shut up, Matt.

MATT: Last we left off: Bells Hells had infiltrated the Seat of Disdain and had located the cell holding Armand Treshi, the target that brought them to Bassuras in the first place. Convincing him to go and come along with you at his best interest, you tossed him into your portable hole and ran into Artana Voe, another bounty hunter. After making an odd alliance with her, you began to escape the compound, noticing that it was under siege by what seemed to be Artana or at least a group that was likely in cahoots with her. In the midst of this chaos, some of you were running interference in the middle of the courtyard. Other ones were trying to whisk Armand out. You all began to reconvene, but not before running face to face with Otohan Thull. Once, while our good friend Laudna was climbing the side of the fortress, and the secondary time as you attempted to escape in two separate groups at the exterior of the perimeter wall in the middle of a raging sandstorm that had just begun to calm, Otohan squared off with you. The skirmisher that one half of your group had been using to escape had been sliced through, exploded, and left your party sundered and separated. After a brief discussion, combat ensued, and throughout this combat, one by one, some of you began to fall. Otohan gleefully carving the life from members of Bells Hells, eyes focused and trained on Imogen, and asking for her to give in to her nature. With each death, the pulse within her began to grow stronger and stronger. In the back of Imogen's mind, Fearne and Orym both lie slain in the center street here of the sandstorm-smothered Bassuras. Laudna on death's door. When that impulse driven by trauma, anger, and whatever strange force lies within her pushing Imogen over the edge. And in doing so, screaming. That latent power and energy swelling within her, overtaking her body, and where once a sandstorm once stood, instead, bursts of red energy and light began to swirl around. The surrounding structures began to carve away. The secondary internal storm beginning to tear and destroy within the proximity. With a final scream, everything goes white. Fresh Cut Grass.

SAM: What? But I'm just a-- I'm just a little boy.

MATT: In this pure, endless void of all color, you feel the psychic pulse open a flood of memories. Waking to Dancer's curious smile, enjoying polishing the armor of your other automaton companions, exploring this new world with fresh eyes and protecting your friends. Meeting Ashton in the depths of your despair, discovering a new family and righting wrongs. Lifting the spirits of those you admire. Older memories break through. An endless cloudscape brushing past a skyline of pristine lavender spires. A parade through prismatic cobblestone streets, thousands of metallic beings cheering, celebrating. A dark room. A man you fear of short, graying blond hair shouting, his mouth making no words. None of this imagery makes sound, it's just visual. But you know there's anger in his heart, the intent, the defiance. A green path of flowers and stone stairs. A kindly, older noble woman greets you. You like her, and your new life away from him. She sits and speaks silence, but you know the words of confidence and vulnerability that she shares. You grant her perspective, and encouragement, and understanding. She smiles. She frowns. She is gone. Chetney.

SAM and LAURA: (gasp)

MATT: Within the endless light, you feel like your very soul is pried open. Memories spilling forth, gentler times of wayward romances in your youth. Deanna and her laugh, Frudell and her patience. How you filled each lonely gap with work, fixation, and even the longest of lives can extend rapidly under such pursuits. Within your belly, a hunger stirs. An itch hits your skin. An iron smell fills your nose. A howl pierces your ears. You look up to the full, glowing, red moon Ruidus above you. From its ruddy light streaks a single beam of pure crimson light that envelops you. You let it wash away the sadness and you give into the beast, tearing your skin away. As you feel the anxious tingle that you always feel at the zenith of this moon, now grow into an uncontrollable impulse to hunt, to kill, to eat, to ruin. It sees you now, and it's found common ground. Ashton. Enveloped in shadowless infinity, too bright to blink nor look away, you are a child. You were worried as others rush to finish something you do not understand. You do not hear. Your elven father shouts orders without sound, pointing about excitedly. You look back to your saintly, strong mother, the fear within you growing with the tension in the air, but she touches your shoulder and kisses your head. She points ahead as the many people take their places around the vibrant, glowing gateway. Your mother steps to your father and hands him his vestments. He place his leather mask and headdress upon his face, the details curving upward as if reaching for the sparking opening. (Ashton's father) "It begins." Laudna. Here beyond the edge of death, the light envelopes you. You remember, soundlessly, the lush forests of the Parchwood, surrounding the edges of your family home. You remember the warmth of fire under the hearth and the comfort of a stew's smell filling the air as your family gathers for dinner. Dinner. An impossibly long, decadent table. Watchful guards. The dark Lord and Lady speaking wordlessly, and the dread that fills your heart. Her gaze meets yours. A gaze that never stops. You see her at the edge of your vision always. Her shape creeps beyond every blink. Her words mingle with your own. You fear you may lose yourself. Are you yourself, or just her incubating? "I am of his blood. I will endure. My will is unrelenting. You are my vessel in life, unlife, and beyond. I will endure!" Imogen.

LAURA: Oh!

MATT: Your entire body and spirit shakes into energy, a cosmic mass of vibration and power. You feel your body pulse and burn unstable and threatening to burst, wanting to explode. You wince and hold yourself with all your might, your eyes tightening shut. You are walking, toppling over a rock by a swaying tree. A hand catches your clumsy form just as it strikes the dirt. You cry loudly, silently as your eyes meet hers, her lavender hair tied up over her ears in a long braid. Your smile-- Her smile calms your tears to a still. She wipes your cherub cheeks and lifts you into her arms. She speaks to you, wordlessly. In your mind, you know everything is all right. She suddenly looks concerned. Her face snaps away into the distance. Intensity. You open your eyes once more, and there, in this vacant space crackling before you, you see Otohan staring back, her body crackling with the same type of energy as yours. (Otohan) "You are a true predator. A gift in their image. If you can, be as strong as we can. To deny your nature is to be consumed by it. To embrace it is to master your own fate. I am proud of you." The voice of Liliana echoes in your mind. "Run, Imogen. Run!" What do you do?

LAURA: Is it too late? I try to back away.

MATT: You back away and Otohan just begins to close the gap.

LAURA: I turn my back and take off as fast as I can.

MATT: You turn around and she's right there in front of you, smiling. "The bell tolls and looms soon enough. Come. Create something beautiful with us." And she reaches out.

LAURA: I look up and I try to take off into the air.

MATT: You look up and she's right there looking down at you. What do you do?

LAURA: I try to blast her face.

MATT: Okay. In that moment, you reach within you, and as the energy begins to burble up and ignite, this bright, burning, chaotic, swirling energy just begins to build up and build up as you unleash it with an immense scream. You watch her get blasted and streak away into the white darkness. The light blinks out. A void envelops you, and you hear the sound of 1,000, 10,000 stones and bricks hitting the ground. The wind hits your face, the sand stinging across your cheek as you come down to your feet. Looking around you, you now stand in the streets of Bassuras once more. In the vicinity, where a number of buildings stood, most of them are gone.

TRAVIS: Oh my god.

MATT: There is a circle of earth pushed away.

TRAVIS: (laughs)

MATT: In that moment, (apparating) your companions appear where they were, as they were.

SAM: Oh god.

LAURA: Fuck.

SAM: This combat is brought to you--

ASHLEY: Too soon.

SAM: -- by WizKids Miniatures.

MARISHA: No, dude. No. The newest set of pre-primed miniatures--

LAURA: No, no, no. Is Otohan gone?

SAM: -- from WizKids is available now at your local game store. Check out the entire Critical Role collection at wizkids.io/crminis.

LAURA: Does that mean if-- Okay, here's my question. Oh my god.

LIAM: All the buildings are gone.

LAURA: Would all the people that had been on the ground, would they have been just (destruction)? Was it just the buildings?

TRAVIS: He said we kind of--

LIAM: It was the shadow assassins, and then we reapparated. So the shadow assassins are gone.

MATT: You landed, and all of your companions then, a moment later, all appear where they were.

TRAVIS: How the fuck did that work?

LAURA: I don't know.

SAM: You're there, though.

MATT: Indeed. Laudna. You were next in the initiative order when we last left off.

LAURA: Oh no, what?

TRAVIS: What do you mean? You can't bring up this shit now! We're not ready!

LAURA: Wait, what?

MARISHA: Yeah, this is it, you guys. This is it.

LAURA: Oh my god, she really was.

TRAVIS: What?

LAURA: She's next in the initiative order.

TALIESIN: Yep.

TRAVIS: Wait. Is Otohan here?

MATT: Just roll a death saving throw. Otohan is nowhere to be seen.

ASHLEY: I can't breathe.

SAM: Otohan is nowhere to be seen.

MARISHA: This is it. This is it. I've been thinking about this moment for so long.

SAM: For exactly one week.

MARISHA: For exactly one week. Which one? Let's do the red one.

LAURA: Oh god, the red one.

MARISHA: Fuck you, Ruidus. My heart is pounding.

LAURA: Does anybody else hear a high-pitched ringing?

MARISHA: A ringing? Yes.

ALL: Yes.

LAURA: Okay. Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. What is it? No! What is it? What is it?

ASHLEY: Bad or good?

SAM: I can't see it.

MARISHA: Natural one.

LAURA: (gasps) (groaning)

MATT: Laudna. In the final moments before you expire, please explain to me what crosses your mind.

LAURA: Fuck.

MARISHA: I imagine it would be confusion. Flashes of all of the powerful women in her life. Imogen, Fearne, her mother, Delilah. As Delilah is still there, but still powerful.

MATT: As the darkness begins to creep in and carry you to whatever threshold lays beyond, an oddly familiar threshold. This is a line you've walked for many years. As the dark curtain begins to fold in, you feel her arms wrap around you as Delilah embraces you from behind and whispers in your ear, "Worry not, child. Death is but a waiting game." As Laudna's final breath escapes and she lies still, cold.

SAM: What happens next?

MATT: Well, who's next in the initiative order?

LAURA: Oh my god.

TRAVIS: That's FCG.

LAURA: FCG!

TRAVIS: The math, the math. Just hit my head.

MARISHA: I told you I didn't have a good feeling about that roll.

LAURA: Why did you roll the red one?

TRAVIS: It's real pretty.

MARISHA: The Ruidus dice.

LIAM: You die so pretty.

SAM: Can I see Laudna?

MATT: At the moment, no, because the rubble of the building that currently sits between you and her unconscious body on the ground obscures your vision.

TRAVIS: Where is she? Oh is she over here?

LAURA: She's back in the back.

MATT: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Dude. Dude. (laughs)

SAM: So we got three down, although I don't really know about Laudna. I can see Orym and Fearne down.

MARISHA: Natural one.

LAURA: A natural one is just it. She's failed everything.

SAM: Boy oh boy. Tell me this, Matt.

MATT: Yes?

SAM: The different between unconscious and dead--

MATT: Correct.

SAM: -- is a game mechanic.

MARISHA: Yeah. Someone's probably dying today.

SAM: Would I perceive any different? How do I know they're dead?

TRAVIS: You're the Predator.

MATT: I would say for the purposes of gameplay, your connection with your friends, there is a difference between seeing a person on the ground who is writhing in pain or breathing heavily from the exhaustion of a battle, but not present, versus, and I hope that, you know, few of us know, but when you see a person expire.

SAM: Okay.

MATT: You know.

SAM: So they're dead. So I get to decide who lives and dies now, guys. Tell me this, because I want to do this right and not meta-gaming anything.

ASHLEY: Fuck.

SAM: Do I know that Fearne has the Revivify spell?

MATT: I mean, I would leave that between your discussions. Having how long you've traveled together and tactically sharing or not sharing what capabilities you have at your disposal.

LAURA: You know she can heal people.

LIAM: Also, we haven't roleplayed taking a poop, but we all know that everybody poops. So we can assume conversations have happened.

ASHLEY: It's the same thing.

LAURA: Imogen does not poop. Imogen doesn't poop.

LIAM: Orym poops the most.

ASHLEY: Pooping and bringing people back to life is the same.

SAM: I don't want this to be cheap, right? When we started off, I saw Orym go down first, and he's who I was trying to get to first. Now Fearne's down, too. I'm smart enough to know that she has healing abilities.

MARISHA: Mm-hmm.

SAM: So I would go to her. Even though she went down second, I think I would go to her first.

MATT: Okay. So on your turn, you're heading towards Fearne, you said?

LAURA: Can you get to her?

SAM: Yes. I also don't know how Revivify works. I've never done it before.

TRAVIS: Oh shit.

SAM: So I don't know how long it takes.

LAURA: Can you hold it and then I can at least push her body towards you, get you closer if you hold the spell?

SAM: Do I have to be touching?

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: Probably.

MATT: Revivify, I'm pretty sure, is a touch-based spell.

SAM: Is it instantaneous?

MATT: I believe it's an action.

TRAVIS: Yeah.

MATT: But it does have a material cost. It does have a component cost to it.

LAURA: You have that.

LIAM: It is touch. It's touch.

SAM: I got to get over there. So I'll move.

TALIESIN: Diamond.

SAM: I can't use my action to get any farther.

MATT: 30 feet, right?

SAM: Yeah, I guess I will hold my action.

ASHLEY: Drag me.

LAURA: I mean, I can't get you that far. I can't get her that far, but I can maybe pull her--

SAM: Oh wait.

LAURA: I can maybe pull her--

SAM: No. I should not hold my action.

LAURA: Why?

SAM: Because if you don't get her to me--

LIAM: It fizzles.

SAM: -- it's gone.

MATT: Yeah.

LAURA: Oh fuck.

SAM: So I will not do that.

LAURA: Okay, okay, okay. Jesus.

TRAVIS: (laughs) I love this!

TALIESIN: It's 10 rounds before anything's fucked fucked.

SAM: Yeah, we're on round five I think now, right? Four or five?

LAURA: Not five of them being down. You're on round--

SAM: Yes, of Orym being down, we're on four or five of that. Yes.

LIAM: It happened quite a bit before--

SAM: At least.

LIAM: -- the end of the fight.

TRAVIS: We should just all take our pants off and relieve some of the tension.

ASHLEY: I can't-- Yeah. (laughter)

TRAVIS: Just get naked underneath the table. Should just be buck ass.

SAM: Maybe six. I don't know, I lost track.

ASHLEY: Definitely turtled a little. (laughter)

TRAVIS: You got a little kickstand going? (laughter)

MATT: Oh my goodness.

LAURA: Oh no.

SAM: Yeah, I'll just move over there and say--

MARISHA: Come here, Pâté.

SAM: Imogen, what do I do? What do I do? And that's it. That's all I can do. I have no spells. I have one spell slot left.

MATT: You can use your action to dash, if you want to try to move again.

SAM: Oh sure, to be there for the next round.

MATT: If you want to.

SAM: Sure. I will action dash to Fearne.

MATT: Okay. That finishes FCG's go.

LAURA: Oh my god. Do you have a bonus? Nothing bonus.

SAM: I can--

LAURA: No, but you already used your spell!

SAM: No, no, no!

LAURA: Don't use your spells!

MATT: Ashton, you are actually over here, I think.

LAURA: You only got one spell left.

TALIESIN: And then a bunch of shit just happened.

MATT: A bunch of shit just happened as you land.

LIAM: You're by the building.

MATT: The memories begin to fade for a second. The light subsides, and you're back in the city, the storm still blowing, but beginning to subside, and you just FCG rushing, panicking, and a number of your friends lying still on the battlefield.

TRAVIS: Boy oh boy oh boy.

TALIESIN: It's quiet. I'm going to turn around and fucking book back. I don't know what else to do. I'm just going to book towards FCG.

MATT: Okay. Double move. You can easily get over here next to Fearne.

TALIESIN: Yep.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: What the fuck?

SAM: Mm-hmm.

MATT: All right. So Ashton rushes up to you. Chetney, you are on the ground and conscious in your wolven form. You are looking, after taking some hits and coming back, you do not see your quarry anywhere. Right above you, you see the energy crackling around Imogen as it fades and she touches on the ground, and you can see the somewhat lightning-esque designs and colors up her body have stretched even further up her skin.

TRAVIS: If I drop unconscious, does that hybrid transformation, do I revert back into sexy Chetney? I could check it. But I don't think--

ASHLEY: Sexy Chetney.

MATT: I don't think so. You only get to use it a handful of times.

TRAVIS: I went under for a second, so yeah.

MATT: So yeah, I'll say it continues. When you die, you revert.

TRAVIS: Do I see any enemies? Is Otohan or anyone else around? The buildings aren't, but--

MATT: Make a perception check for me.

TRAVIS: That's a natural 20 for 21.

MATT: Nice. Thankfully, the dust storm is not strong enough to obscure the environment too much beyond just a couple of blocks away, but glancing around in the space, your keen eyes as you roll over, look around, and glance, nobody.

TRAVIS: Yep, yep. Hmm. I will move... Where in the fuck am I, even?

MATT: You are on the ground in front of Imogen over there.

SAM: You're lying down in front of Imogen.

TRAVIS: Oh! I'll stand up.

MARISHA: You got a monkey butt in your face.

SAM: Is the monkey still alive without Fearne?

MATT: Yeah, it stays around and acts of its own accord.

MARISHA: I thought you said he bamfed away.

LAURA: Yeah, I thought he bamfed.

ASHLEY: I think he left.

MATT: Did he bamf?

LAURA: Yeah, you said he bamfed out.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: In the last--

MATT: I'll listen to you guys.

TRAVIS: I'll turn around and look at Orym.

SAM: We're the DM now.

LAURA: Or maybe it was just that you weren't able to do something through him.

ASHLEY: I wasn't able to do spells through him.

MATT: I recall you reading up the rule that if you're unconscious or dead, he acts on his own accord.

ASHLEY: That's right. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SAM: He's back, baby!

LAURA: He's back. Guess what?

ASHLEY: I think it was that I couldn't do the spell through him. That's what it was. Yeah.

LIAM: Welcome back, Schrödinger.

TRAVIS: I'll walk towards Orym.

MATT: Mm-hmm.

TRAVIS: And kneel down and just prop up his head and shoulders, just trying to get a look at him, and I'll look back at Imogen and say: What happened? Yeah, that's it. That's all I got.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: I don't have any werewolf shit, you guys. I mean, I could bite him.

SAM: Bite Orym?

TRAVIS: Yeah.

SAM: Make him a werewolf?

MARISHA: Wake up.

TRAVIS: Well, he's dead. I just mean bite him. I get real nervous when people die.

MATT: Imogen, it's your turn.

ASHLEY: Just out of panic?

SAM: Could you bring him back as a werewolf?

LIAM: It's just one of these.

TALIESIN: A dead werewolf, but yeah.

TRAVIS: No, no, no!

TALIESIN: Drop it.

ASHLEY: Leave it.

LAURA: I got nothing.

ASHLEY: But nothing would happen if you bit him, right?

LIAM: Oh boy.

TRAVIS: I don't know. I don't think so.

SAM: I mean, only one way to find out.

TRAVIS: That's true. I'm sure he wouldn't say no.

LAURA: (trembling) Laudna?

TALIESIN: Where is Laudna on this fucking table?

LAURA: (trembling) Laudna? I reach out with my mind.

MATT: There's nothing there to reach back.

LAURA: I run out a few steps to see if I can spot her. I'm looking around everywhere.

MATT: Okay. You run past Chetney off to this space, and just as you get to the edge of your movement, about there, in the rubble of one of the nearby buildings, you see a hand limply hanging on the outside.

LAURA: (gasping) No. I'm going to take off as far as I can to her.

MATT: Okay. You can get just within reach of her.

LAURA: I'm going to start pulling rubble off of her.

SAM: Hitting her?

LAURA: Just slapping her across the face.

MATT: Just beating the shit out of her.

LAURA: Pulling rubble off of her.

TRAVIS: Is that what we're doing?

LAURA: Try to get her unburied. (laughter)

LIAM: You just do an Ed Harris in The Abyss. You bitch!

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LIAM: You never gave up on anything in your life! (laughter)

SAM: Fight!

ASHLEY: Such a good movie.

TRAVIS: That was a good reference.

LAURA: Oh why? Why would you start that sound now, Matthew?

MATT: It's on the playlist, I'm sorry.

ASHLEY: Look at his little happy--

TALIESIN: Who's got the hole, out of curiosity?

MARISHA: Who what?

SAM: Who has the hole? Imogen had the hole.

LAURA: I have the hole.

MARISHA: Oh yeah. Do you think what's-his-butt might have solutions?

LAURA: Oh god, what's-his-butt is in there.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

MARISHA: He might be slowly dying himself.

TALIESIN: He's probably still alive, though we might need to--

LAURA: Not lying, I'm not thinking at all about fucking Armand.

SAM: Treshi.

TALIESIN: I got a different idea, but yeah.

LIAM: He's all right. This is five minutes later.

TRAVIS: What if he's got a Revivify bracelet or anklet or cock ring or something?

SAM: Sure.

LAURA: Just a cock ring.

TRAVIS: Of Revivify!

MARISHA: Revivify cock ring.

ASHLEY: I only have this!

SAM: Can we make that an item in our game?

TALIESIN: It is now.

MATT: You have the ability to enchant items. I mean.

TRAVIS: I mean, when people pat you down, they're like, oh, sorry, I'm on your junk. They're not going to check for a Cock Ring of Revivify.

MATT: Depends on what city you're in.

TRAVIS: Sure.

LAURA: We are in Bassuras.

LIAM: You never know when you're going to have a heart attack in the sack, you know what I'm saying? (dies dramatically) I'm back, baby! (laughter)

MATT: That's your backup character right there. (laughter)

SAM: Hey, bada-bing, bada-boom.

MATT: Oh my god.

ASHLEY: Gabbagool.

SAM: Gabbagool, I fucked myself to death.

TRAVIS: Oh shit.

MATT: All right. Well if that finishes your turn, that brings us to FCG once more.

SAM: Oh!

TRAVIS: There's not a lot of people.

SAM: Not a lot of people left.

MATT: Yep.

MARISHA: Isn't it great, guys?

SAM: Yes.

MARISHA: This is how fast initiative could always go.

SAM: I kind of like a trim table.

LIAM: This is a regular-sized party.

SAM: All right.

MARISHA: Yeah.

SAM: Drawing on my inner mechanical powers, I will lean down and touch Fearne on the side of her cheek, on her face, as gently as I can with my metal hands, and I will whisper in her ear: Please don't leave us. And I will cast Revivify.

MATT: Okay. Do you have the 300 gold worth of diamond?

SAM: I have one diamond worth 300 gold.

MATT: All righty. That is expended upon casting the spell. Now, as part of this, because Revivify works differently than larger resurrection magic, you are the only person who can contribute to this ritual.

SAM: Oh, wait, what?

LAURA: It's a ritual?

MATT: It's a faster ritual. So you're the one person who can contribute to this.

LAURA: Already? She already got to do the ritual, though?

SAM: There's a ritual?

LAURA: She's just been dead for a second, though.

MATT: What you whisper is the initiation of it.

SAM: Sure, sure.

MATT: In the moment, this is you, and you're the only person who can do this. You attempt to reach out and call the spirit back. What do you do to reach out to Fearne to try and reach across this bridge of life and death?

SAM: Wow. What do I do? Is this a-- Should I be-- (laughter) Oh boy.

TALIESIN: I have a bag of gems, and I believe we discussed there were a couple diamonds there were in that, too.

MARISHA: We had that bag of jewels.

LAURA: Yeah, yeah, yeah, bag of gems.

MARISHA: Bag of gems.

SAM: I'm going to-- Boy, I don't have the spell to be in her mind, but she doesn't have a mind anymore.

LAURA: Three diamonds is 300 gold, so there were three diamonds.

MATT: You don't have to worry about a spell specifically. This is just part of the ritual of you beseeching to the spirit, and whatever that means to you, whatever connection to the character you're reaching out for. How does that apparate?

SAM: Sure. I think I would just talk to her and tell her, or try to tell her spirit anyway: I know your family has not been easy for you, but I feel like you're making a new one with us, and I want to help you. I want to help you be whole again, and I think you would break all of our hearts by leaving, and I just need you to stay. I need you to stay. I'll just sort of command her to stay.

MATT: Okay. As you complete the ritual, I need you to go ahead and roll a d10 and add your spellcasting modifier.

SAM: Roll a d10?

MATT: Sorry, d20, my bad.

SAM: Okay.

LAURA: Okay.

MATT: Sorry.

SAM: Spellcasting.

LAURA: If it doesn't work, then--

SAM: Spellcasting. What is my spellcasting?

TRAVIS: Roll better than Marisha.

MATT: It's wisdom, so whatever your wisdom bonus is.

LAURA: Oh my god, fuck.

SAM: That's a seven plus three.

MATT: 10 is literally the difficulty class base on this for a character who has not died.

ASHLEY: I hate this game. (laughter) (laughter)

TRAVIS: Ah, you kill me. You really do.

ASHLEY: I'm just kidding. (grunts in frustration)

MATT: Fearne.

ASHLEY: Uh.

TRAVIS: No.

ASHLEY: No.

MATT: In the shadowed darkness, as you felt the world pulled from you and whatever dark thread of the Unseelie or beyond that's been haunting you through mirror upon mirror since you've come here, you feel it get its tethers in you, and you feel yourself being pulled. And just as you feel that sense of hopelessness wash over you, that light glimmers and you hear the words of Fresh Cut Grass echo. That light becomes a tunnel. Almost a ladder before you. Do you reach for it?

LAURA: (laughing) Bye!

ASHLEY: Well, what else is there?

MATT: Do you look behind you?

ASHLEY: I'm sorry.

MATT: Do you look behind you?

ASHLEY: Yeah.

MATT: You look behind you, and you see a dull green sliver of a moon. You see a blackened hillscape of tangled jungle and thorns, brambles and eyes, so many wicked, hungry eyes waiting for you. And behind those eyes, darkness. Uncertainty. Cold oblivion.

ASHLEY: I'm not quite ready for that part yet. I'll turn around and start reaching up.

MATT: As you reach out and grasp a ladder like structure, you hold onto it. It seems to pull you away. You glance back and feel the tethers tear free from you. You can almost hear the screams of disappointment and frustration in this endlessly echoing space below. As you glance back up, the ladder is no longer a ladder, but almost like an arm of light pulling. As the light rushes up towards you and your eyes are flooded, you begin to focus once more as you blink, and the hand of light is now a hand of metal. You glance up into the face of Fresh Cut Grass who is pulling you from the ground.

ASHLEY: I'll stay. Jeez louise, calm down.

SAM: Oh boy.

MATT: You are at one hit point.

ASHLEY: Oh.

LAURA: Oh my.

ASHLEY: I don't even know how to do this. Will all the red go away?

TALIESIN: Yeah, it'll go away.

SAM: Oh, I think I-- I think I also absorbed five hit points in the last round from something else.

MATT: Okay.

MARISHA: Dead bros.

ASHLEY: What's, what's--

SAM: Fearne?

ASHLEY: Hi. Thanks for doing that.

SAM: Sure.

ASHLEY: It was really, really nice of you. How's everybody doing?

SAM: Real bad.

ASHLEY: Okay. (laughter)

ASHLEY: I'm going to get up and dust off a little bit.

SAM: Orym's dead.

MATT: It's not quite your turn yet. We'll get to that in a minute.

ASHLEY: Okay.

SAM: Orym's dead, and you have... 16 seconds to save his life.

LAURA: Oh my god.

SAM: Wait, no. Six times six is 36 seconds. Right? No, how many rounds we got in this?

TRAVIS: Stop trying to put a number on it!

SAM: 30 seconds left.

MATT: You have 30 seconds left.

ASHLEY: Time doesn't mean anything anyway.

LAURA: Oh my god.

ASHLEY: Wait, what do you mean?

LAURA: 30 seconds!

MATT: That finishes that round.

SAM: You got 24 seconds to save his life.

MATT: Top of the next round, Ashton.

ASHLEY: ♪ You only got 30 seconds to save the world ♪

TALIESIN: I can see what the fuck is going on over there, I believe, from my vantage.

MATT: You glance around and look, and indeed, you see Imogen just bee lining over towards the rubble and beginning to brush it away.

LAURA: On my knees.

MATT: Pulling it off of what--

MATT: You can just see--

ASHLEY: I smell so bad.

MATT: -- the outer shoulder and arm of a limb.

TALIESIN: Full speed and, well, let's see how long it takes me to get over there. I've got a walking speed of 40.

LIAM: Don't worry you guys, the dust is alkaline. (laughter)

LAURA: (laughs) Dick.

MATT: You can dash and get there, if you'd like.

TALIESIN: I will dash and get there and in a second, start helping.

MATT: Okay.

TALIESIN: And... can-- (sighs) Can you call Jiana Hexum?

LAURA: What?!

TALIESIN: Can you message Jiana Hexum?

LAURA: Fuck Jiana Hexum! What?

TALIESIN: Tell her I will do anything. Tell her whatever she needs. Fuck, I'm just going to start digging in.

MATT: Okay. Finishing Orym's go. That brings us, or sorry, Ashton's go. That brings us to Chetney.

TRAVIS: Yeah. Okay.

SAM: Loot bodies?

TRAVIS: They're gone.

SAM: Well, Laudna.

LAURA: (laughs)

LIAM: My shield's real good.

LAURA: Yeah, that's right. ♪ Dee do do ♪ mine. ♪

MARISHA: I got a good pair of scissors on me.

LAURA: Oh, look at this sword, mine!

LIAM: (like Chetney) Little small people tool.

TRAVIS: Fearne's still on the ground next to FCG.

MATT: Yes. She's just coming back to life, literally.

TRAVIS: I'm going to pick up Orym. I'm going to split the difference between Fearne and Laudna.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: Just tracking both edges of our--

MATT: Sorry, Orym, you said.

TRAVIS: Yeah, I'm going to go right here.

LAURA: But when Fearne gets up, she won't be able to go that far.

MATT: He's pretty light. Okay, that gets you about there.

TRAVIS: What's your speed?

ASHLEY: He's like, "How do I just get out of there?"

LAURA: But you use half of it just getting up because she's prone.

SAM: Where are you going?

ASHLEY: 35.

LAURA: Oh, cool.

SAM: He's going away from us?

TRAVIS: Oh no, I was, yeah, let's go that way.

SAM: Where are you going? Where are you going? Oh, okay, that's better.

TRAVIS: It's half my speed because I'm carrying somebody, right?

MATT: Correct. But your running speed is what?

TRAVIS: 25.

MATT: 25, oh, so it's-- You can, if you want to dash, you can get there.

TRAVIS: Yeah, okay.

MATT: You do manage to pick him up, and he's pretty light, I'll say, thankfully. He's, you know, a lithe fella.

LAURA: It's like carrying a toddler and you're a werewolf. You're fine.

MATT: Yeah, you're fine. You get there. You're fine. So you rush over with his limp body in your arm. Rush over just as Fearne is starting to climb her way back onto her feet. Does that finish your turn?

TRAVIS: Unfortunately, yeah.

MATT: Imogen.

LAURA: (groans)

MATT: You've taken around with Ashton's help and you've cleared what little bit of debris may have fallen off the nearby structure that was now barely what little bit of rubble there still stands after the strange occurrences of recent moments. What would you like to do?

LAURA: Just going to put Laudna's head in my lap and brush her forehead off and say: Come back, come back. I'm going to... reach into my pocket and get out the rock that Fearne hid in there. I'm going to say: I know you're there, you bitch. I know you still want her. I'm going to put the rock on Laudna's chest.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: With her hands over top of it.

MATT: Okay. Finish your turn? Fearne, you're up.

ASHLEY: What the fuck do you mean Orym's dead?

MATT: At that moment, the lifeless body of Orym is placed in front of you by the wolven form of Chetney.

ASHLEY: What?

TRAVIS: Tell me you have something.

LAURA: Oh god, I didn't even say that Laudna's dead.

ASHLEY: Yes, yes. Yes, I can, I can... I've never done this before, but... how do I do this?

SAM: You just touch him and say something to him or pray. Do you have a thing to pray to or a way to bring him back? You know him better than a lot of us. Can you say something to him?

ASHLEY: Do I need anything?

SAM: Or call to him?

ASHLEY: I just do it, I just touch him?

SAM: You need a diamond. Do you have a diamond?

ASHLEY: Why would I have a diamond?

SAM: Because you steal everything.

LAURA: Yeah, maybe you stole a diamond.

SAM: Do you have a diamond?

MATT: Do you have a diamond--

LIAM: She lost the list.

MATT: -- worth at least 300?

ASHLEY: No, I have it.

LIAM: Oh, you found it?

SAM and MATT: But do you have a diamond?

ASHLEY: Mm-mm.

SAM: Oh.

TRAVIS: Oh boy.

TALIESIN: You don't have a diamond?

ASHLEY: We have, we have-- I feel like we got some, but I don't have it.

MATT: It's up to 300 gold worth of diamonds or diamond.

LAURA: Ashton has diamonds; Ashton has them in the bag. You don't know that, I'm not there.

TALIESIN: No.

ASHLEY: I don't have anything. What do we-- Do we have anything? Any?

SAM: Diamonds?

ASHLEY: Any diamonds? Orym is dead! Orym is dead!

TALIESIN: We know. Fuck, yes, diamonds. Yes, diamonds, yes. Fuck!

SAM: Get over here.

MARISHA: Run the jewels.

TALIESIN: It's not my turn.

MATT: All right, that finishes your turn, Fearne?

ASHLEY: I'm going to grab Orym and I'm going to take him and put him in my lap and just hold him.

MATT: Okay.

ASHLEY: I can do this, I can do this, I can do this.

LAURA: You can do like a little puppet hand.

MATT: Fresh Cut Grass, it's your turn.

SAM: I can't carry him. I mean, maybe I could. But I can't do the spell, so.

LIAM: You carried him when he was alive.

SAM: So there's not much purpose in me carrying him if I can't do the spell.

ASHLEY: I can carry him.

LAURA: How much fucking-- We're running out of 30 seconds!

SAM: Well, after I'm about to go, it'll be down to 18 seconds. How far away is Ashton? He got over there in one round.

MATT: He did.

SAM: We'll be fine.

TRAVIS: He dashed.

LAURA: With a dash.

SAM: He'll be fine.

TRAVIS: Nobody can carry him and dash.

SAM: I can't carry. I mean, I can carry him, but I can't do the spell. Doesn't help.

LAURA: Maybe you could go a little bit and Ashton can meet you, and then you can come back and give it to Fearne.

TALIESIN: That's very, well.

SAM: He made the whole span, I just watched him. He made the whole span in one round.

LAURA: Yeah, but he didn't have any actions left.

TRAVIS: Told you, we're going halfway the other way.

SAM: I will go halfway just in case that helps us, I guess.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: Half of your movements, and then I don't know.

MATT: Three, right there.

SAM: And I will hold my action to dash.

MATT: Okay, you got it. Getting ready down. The wheels prep, or wheel prepped. All right. We're now at 18 seconds. Top of the next round. Ashton.

TALIESIN: What the fuck do we do?

LAURA: Laudna's dead.

TALIESIN: Is she out of the rubble?

MATT: She's free of the rubble, yeah.

TALIESIN: Fuck, shit, piss, fuck. Boy, I do not like this fucking choice.

MARISHA: I took a picture of it, I know.

TALIESIN: I don't like this fucking choice. I'm going to, we got 18 seconds, fuck it. Can I grab her and dash towards the center, too?

MATT: You can, I mean, it's half movement carrying another body.

TALIESIN: So it'll be 40 feet, though.

MATT: 40 feet if you dash, yes.

LIAM: Laudna might weigh less than Orym.

TALIESIN: I was about to say, yeah.

MATT: I know, from mechanical standpoint.

LIAM: Stressed, man, I'm stressed.

MATT: And exhaustion's kicking in.

TALIESIN: How much can you move?

SAM: I can move back, but I need some diamonds.

LAURA: He needs diamonds.

TALIESIN: Fuck, okay. I'm going to fucking-- (groans) I'm going to fucking dash.

SAM: With Laudna, or--?

TALIESIN: I am making eye contact with you as I grab her.

LAURA: Can I tuck the rock into her shirt? Because I don't want it to fall away.

MATT: Sure.

TALIESIN: I'm going to, I'm going to drag her, too. We got two down.

LAURA: Don't drag her! Pick her up.

TALIESIN: I'm picking her up. I'm not going to dust the fucking ground with a ragdoll.

MATT: All right, you pick her up and--

TALIESIN: Full speed.

MATT: Fireman's carry, turn around and dart off. 40, that's as far as you can get right there carrying her there with the full movement.

TALIESIN: While I'm carrying, I'm just: We have another down!

SAM: Great.

MATT: At this moment, as you see him rushing by, you hadn't quite focused it, but at this moment, Fresh Cut Grass, you realize that Laudna is also no longer with us.

SAM: Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Okay.

MATT: All right.

SAM: We got to decide. Fearne?

MATT: Ashton, that finishes your turn?

TALIESIN: Unless I can do something with my bonus action.

MATT: Unless you got something you want to do with your bonus action.

TALIESIN: I don't know.

MATT: With Chetney on deck.

TALIESIN: Nope.

MATT: Chetney.

LAURA: Can you toss the diamonds to FCG?

MATT: It's your turn.

TALIESIN: Bonus action.

SAM: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Should I help in this movement train?

SAM: Sure.

TRAVIS: Should I take him?

SAM: I guess, but I mean, Fearne would have to move up to him, but she could do that, right? She can move 25, 30 feet before she does this. So yeah.

LAURA: Set them to next to each other so you can go eenie meenie miney mo?

TRAVIS: You just have to touch him, so.

TALIESIN: Do we know if--?

TRAVIS: Well, I mean, she's got to get the diamonds in her hand and come back.

TALIESIN: Well, also, do we, I mean--

LAURA: Oh my god.

ASHLEY: I can walk.

TALIESIN: Do we know if either of them can do--

TRAVIS: What's your speed, 30?

ASHLEY: 35.

TALIESIN: Do we know if either of them can pull somebody out from death or do we not know?

LAURA: We don't know.

TALIESIN: We don't know.

LAURA: But we do know that Laudna has come back from the dead before.

SAM: Yeah.

TALIESIN: I hate it. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it. I hate it fucking all.

MATT: Okay. Well?

ASHLEY: Mister can teleport 15 feet.

SAM: We'll get to them in time.

TALIESIN: Mister can grab the diamonds.

SAM: We'll get to them in time.

TRAVIS: Yeah, I'll take Orym.

TALIESIN: Yeah, we're not--

TRAVIS: I'll walk 15 feet towards where FCG was.

MATT: Lifting him back up, carry him over to here.

LAURA: Okay. Great.

TRAVIS: Doesn't matter either way.

LAURA: Great, so now they're close to each other while you choose.

SAM: Yeah.

MATT: Okay. So that finishes Chetney's go. Imogen.

MARISHA: Easier to be dead for this choice.

LIAM: Yeah, just an audience member.

TALIESIN: I know how you feel.

LAURA: God. All I'm thinking about is how I have the ability to split spells and dual spells. It's useless for this.

TALIESIN: Is it? I've got a lot of diamond.

LIAM: Maybe you could jump start us.

MATT: You can't twin spell somebody else's spell. How much diamond do you have, by the way?

LAURA: It's 300 gold worth of diamond that came in that bag of gems. I have it marked down.

TALIESIN: That's right, there's 300.

MATT: Okay.

ASHLEY: I had it marked down as well.

MATT: So.

TRAVIS: It's the same one.

LAURA: But you know what's funny?

MATT: I was going to say, is it the same one marked down?

TRAVIS: But she doesn't have it.

LAURA: No, he had one already. Here's the thing. You had it in the bag of gems, and then I crossed it out like somebody took it from the bag of gems. So somebody took those diamonds.

MATT: So it was probably her.

LAURA: It was probably her that took the diamonds to have. You just don't realize you have them on you because maybe you didn't write it down. But somebody took those diamonds.

ASHLEY: I don't feel like I took the diamonds.

TALIESIN: I genuinely don't remember.

MATT: I trust the person who would've taken them to know whether or not they took them, so.

ASHLEY: I don't feel like I did.

LAURA: Maybe we gave them to FCG. Somebody took them.

ASHLEY: Well, if we all get close enough...

LAURA: It doesn't matter. I'm going to just--

TALIESIN: I don't feel like I gave them to anybody.

LAURA: -- walk back.

TALIESIN: Have to think, going that speed.

LAURA: In a state of shock and just saying: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Can you save them?

ASHLEY: I-I-I-- I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. This is...

SAM: It's not fair for you to choose.

MATT: Well, Fearne, it's your turn.

SAM: It's not fair for you to choose.

ASHLEY: I don't know what to do!

SAM: Get over here.

ASHLEY: Okay.

MATT: Five more feet of movement, if you'd like it. In fact, put you here.

LAURA: Rollies.

SAM: Holy shit!

TALIESIN: No!

TRAVIS: I was going to say coin flip, but Rollies is.

LAURA: Oh my god, if you guys Rollies it for whoever wins gets brought back.

TALIESIN: This is the darkest shit ever.

LAURA: The darkest Rollies.

MARISHA: This is pretty dark. Darkest timeline.

TRAVIS: Hold on. Because one is impartial, one's a coin flip, and one is one of your faults.

ASHLEY: I don't know how--

TALIESIN: The devil went down to Bassuras.

SAM: He's been--

ASHLEY: I don't know how healing works. Maybe I can just cure them. Maybe I can cure one, and I can Revivify another.

SAM: Think they're dead.

ASHLEY: That doesn't work? Okay.

TRAVIS: They're dead.

SAM: I hate to say it. She has been dead before.

ASHLEY: Haven't we all, in some ways? I have. Okay.

SAM: You have? Wait, what?

ASHLEY: I think.

LAURA: I mean, technically, she had.

ASHLEY: Yeah. Yeah.

LAURA: Now.

TALIESIN: Nope, nope, nope.

LAURA: We're running out of time.

ASHLEY: Okay, okay. Imogen, I don't know what to do. I don't want to put a choice on you. I don't know what to do. Should we do... Who votes for Orym?

LAURA: No, no no no no no no! (laughter)

ASHLEY: That's so weird. (laughter) (laughter) (laughter) (laughter)

SAM: There is five of us up, so we could vote three out of five.

LAURA: No.

ASHLEY: We're not doing that. We're not doing that. No, we're not doing that. That was a terrible idea. I was just trying to--

LAURA: The only thing I know, and it's a horrible thing to think, is that Laudna's come back before. But I don't want to say Orym if it means that Laudna's gone forever.

SAM: If Orym were here, he would absolutely say save Laudna. He's too nice a guy.

TRAVIS: I reach into my pocket and pull out a small, platinum coin.

TALIESIN: Oh my god, we're really doing this.

LAURA: Are you flipping a coin right now?

SAM: I have a coin.

TRAVIS: Well, sure. But this one's made of platinum. You could use a wooden one.

SAM: I have one from a god.

TRAVIS: That's good, too.

MARISHA: (laughs)

LAURA: It's on his fucking--

ASHLEY: Jesus Christ.

TRAVIS: Listen, you can suffer with the grief of this decision or you can just let it go.

SAM: I was just given this coin by Imahara Joe.

ASHLEY: Okay.

LAURA: I cannot believe we're flipping a fucking coin for their lives.

SAM: It's from a god. I don't know. Does that make this... We could say a prayer. I could say a prayer.

ASHLEY: Who do you pray to?

SAM: Well, the person, this coin--

LAURA: What is that god?

SAM: It's the Changebringer.

LAURA: Well, they're certainly bringing change.

ASHLEY: Maybe we can pray to Laudna's god, and she'll bring her back, and then I can bring back Orym, you know?

TRAVIS: Flip the coin.

ASHLEY: Do you want to choose which one is Laudna, Imogen?

LAURA: I don't get to go. You don't--

ASHLEY: Okay, okay, okay. This is me, this is on me. Give me the coin.

SAM: Okay.

LAURA: I'm going to send a message to Delilah as soon as I can.

TRAVIS: Yeah, you send that fucking message first.

LAURA: I have a third spell left. I want to send a message to Delilah but it's not my fucking turn in the initiative.

MATT: Nope.

LAURA: Oh no, Marisha!

MARISHA: (deeply) Told you it was time.

ASHLEY: Okay, do I flip a coin or do you guys Rollies?

LIAM: I'm not getting involved.

MARISHA: I agree. We're dead.

ASHLEY: (shouts) Oh, thanks! (laughter)

ASHLEY: Okay, give me the coin.

MARISHA: I am not getting involved.

SAM: I'll hand over this coin, but as I do--

TALIESIN: They have the easiest shit to do.

ASHLEY: It's not-- I hate this.

TRAVIS: You're just flipping a coin. What are you going to do?

ASHLEY: I don't fucking want--

SAM: I'm going to hand over the coin, and as I do, I will just sort of hold it for a second and just say: I don't know you, but please guide us in the right direction.

TRAVIS: To the Changebringer?

SAM: Yeah, to the Changebringer.

TALIESIN: Oh boy.

LAURA: Which one is which?

ASHLEY: Okay, so. I'm going to go this side for Orym.

LAURA: That looks like his shield.

ASHLEY: It does, right? That's exactly what I was thinking. Then this one's going to be for Laudna. (sorrowfully) I don't want to do this.

SAM: Then don't do it, just decide.

TRAVIS: Well, make a choice, yeah.

ASHLEY: Okay, okay. Can we at least just smoosh them together?

TALIESIN: To try and make one big one?

TRAVIS: Fearne. Fearne. Laudna's been dead before. Maybe something could happen. Orym is just living and breathing like everybody else. If you want to make a decision, that might sway it, or flip the coin and let fate have it.

MATT: In the time that transpired here, I'll say it's another round.

LAURA: Oh god!

MATT: It's been 12 seconds.

ASHLEY: Oh fuck, okay, okay.

MATT: You can take your Sending, if you want.

LAURA: Okay, then I'm going to send a message to Delilah.

SAM: To Delilah? Okay.

LAURA: I don't know if she's able to do that. But I'm going to try to send a message to Delilah.

LIAM: She's on a plane somewhere.

TRAVIS: Somewhere.

LAURA: You better bring her back. I know you want to be in this world, and she's your only way here. Get your ass down here and bring her back!

TRAVIS: Yep, got it.

MATT: "Poor thing. I would if I could. But I ask you to bring her back, too, for both of us."

SAM: She can't.

MATT: That's all you get.

ASHLEY: Did you get it? Did she say anything? Did she give you an answer?

LAURA: She's too fucking weak.

ASHLEY: That fucking bitch.

TRAVIS: (gasps)

LAURA: (exhales) Oh god.

SAM: You just stole my coin, didn't you?

LAURA: (whispers) She stole your coin.

SAM: Fuck.

ASHLEY: Okay. I'm going to kneel down. I'm going to go to Laudna. Sort of push her hair to the side. We'll find a way back for you, I promise.

LAURA: Oh no.

ASHLEY: I'm sorry. This is-- I don't know what to do. It's the coin's fault. We can be mad at the Changebringer later. (tearfully) Oh, I don't like how this is making me feel! Okay. I'll go to Orym. Just going to gather him up. Hi. Hi, friend. Um. Can you please come back? (tearily) Because I'm getting a little scared. And we need your help, because we can't do this just by ourselves, okay? Oh my god, I'm shaking so bad. What do I do? I just roll?

MATT: You roll a d20 and add your wisdom modifier.

TALIESIN: (groans) (groans)

LAURA: Fuck, okay okay okay.

MARISHA: Give me a fucking last tissue.

ASHLEY: Sorry, I forgot what I was doing. I mean, I didn't, but I forgot I had to roll. Okay. Okay. My wisdom modifier? Jesus Christ, I'm so sorry. 17.

MATT: 17.

ASHLEY: Yeah.

MATT: Okay. You expend the spell's energy, place your hand upon Orym's cold body. Orym. The tension has passed, and a calm peace comes over you. There's this shadow, this looming darkness of regret and anxiety, gives way to the sounds of a soft breeze of Zephrah through the tree. You feel the presence you've missed for a bit as you turn from the shadow. Amongst the various cherry blossom branches and the wind that blows in this soft dreamscape before you, you see Will, just looking back. You want nothing more than to stay here. In that moment of relinquishing to whatever the next life may be, you hear Fearne's words echo out from above. The soft dream begins to fade a moment, and you glance up into a shaft of light. Her words call out to you, and you're torn. You look back down to Will, who looks back at you, as his voice echoes. "You're not done."

LIAM: (tearily) I really wish I could stay.

MATT: "I'll still be here."

LIAM: I miss you so bad.

MATT: "There will be a time. I look forward to it."

LIAM: Say hi to Derrig for me. Say hi to Dad.

MATT: "I will." He reaches out and embraces you. Like a hot spring that just envelops you, you feel the warmth and light of a connection you've missed for so long. "Now, go." He throws you up towards the shaft of light. As you drift upward, you watch the tree begin to fade. You see his face begin to fade.

LIAM: Love you.

MATT: You feel the sting of dust and sand against your cheek. You blink and squint and come to focus as you look right up into the face of Fearne, upside down above you, tears streaming down her face.

ASHLEY: (shakily) Hi.

LIAM: Hi. Hey, Fearnie.

ASHLEY: Hey, best friend. We were in a bit of a pickle. And-- (tearily) I'm glad that you're here.

LIAM: Where is everybody?

ASHLEY: Well, everyone's here, but Laudna is not.

LIAM: What do we do? Letters? Letters?

SAM: We've done everything we can so far.

ASHLEY: No!

LAURA: No, no! What are you doing?

TALIESIN: I'm-- mm.

MARISHA: (blowing kisses)

ASHLEY and LAURA: (gasp and cry)

LIAM: (teary) What do we do, though? But what do we do? Because we always do something.

TALIESIN: I'm going to grab the portable hole off-- Who has it?

LAURA: I have it in my shirt.

TALIESIN: I apologize. I'm just going to grab it, fucking throw it down.

LAURA: I'm going to just fall to my knees and pull Laudna.

TALIESIN: I'm going to jump in the hole. Is he still breathing?

MATT: You jump into the hole, and immediately, you almost break an ankle on the bits of clutter that have been tossed in there, some known, some unknown by Fearne along your journey. But you see there, crouched in the corner, immediately standing up, putting his back to the inside of the hole, is Armand Treshi. Now, getting a good look at him as well, from your perspective for the first time, you can see he's thinner, looks a bit paranoid in his eyes, and is like, "What? What do you want?"

TALIESIN: We have a problem. Can you-- A friend of ours has died. Can you fix it? Do you know anything that can fix it?

MATT: "No, I'm not a miracle worker."

ASHLEY: What do you have?

TALIESIN: What fucking use are you? I'm going to jump back out of the hole.

MATT: Okay, he starts to climb after you to try and get up towards the edge of the hole.

LAURA: Keep him in the fucking hole. He's coming out.

TALIESIN: Is he crawling out?

MATT: He's trying to crawl out after you.

TALIESIN: I'm going to toss him back in.

MATT: Okay. (grunts) Inside.

ASHLEY: Does that give us an extra 10 minutes?

TALIESIN: That was some air. We can call in favors. I can find people.

LIAM: (crying) Fearne, you can heal people. Can you heal her?

ASHLEY: I-- I-I-I can't, because I... We picked you. We didn't, we flipped a coin, which feels super careless, now that I'm going back on it. Imogen?

LAURA: I'm sorry!

ASHLEY: Okay. We're going to figure it out.

LAURA: You'll just keep hearing in your heads, over and over again: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!

LIAM: Orym's going to stumble off in that direction and just start yelling "help."

SAM: No no, no no, don't.

MATT: As you start shouting help, and FCG tries to stop you, the storm itself subsiding, you can hear--

LAURA: Can you grab me another?

MATT: -- the tense shouts and rallying conversation of the Paragon's Call beyond the partially crumbled wall that currently surrounds, or mostly surrounds, the Seat of Disdain.

LAURA: We still got to get out of here. Can you pick her up? Pick her up, Ashton.

TALIESIN: I'm going to unfold the hole and put her in the--

LAURA: No, do not put her in the hole!

ASHLEY: Where else are we going to put her?

LAURA: She's going to be in there with Armand, just rattling around? No, you carry her! You carry her to Joe's!

TALIESIN: Fuck. Just fucking--

MATT: Okay.

TALIESIN: Fuck!

MATT: As you pick her up and lift her, the rock that you placed within her grasp tumbles free and hits the ground.

LAURA: Fuck. I pick it back up.

MATT: Okay.

TALIESIN: Full fucking speed, I guess.

MATT: Which direction?

TALIESIN: Where's the yelling come from?

MATT: This is the Seat, so.

LAURA: Away, toward Joe's.

TALIESIN: Fucking away, full goddamn speed.

LAURA: We're heading toward Joe's.

MATT: Okay. Charging and running further into the streets of Bassuras, running from the sound of a rallying Paragon's Call, angered at the recent assault upon their homestead, the storm itself subsiding, the people of the city beginning to slowly peek around the edges and try and grasp what sort of maelstrom just burst through the center of their city, you go rushing to find shadow or solace, a place to reconvene and gather your thoughts, whatever the next step may be. We're going to take an early break so we can give our players a moment here to process. We'll pick up here in a few minutes. See you guys there shortly. (blows kiss) Hey Critters, Laura Bailey here to guide you through what's new in the Critical Role shop. Style should never be a dump stat, darling. The cuteness! It's overpowering. It's so cute. I can't handle it. I mean, The Traveler always says impulse purchases are a good decision. Look at this. Isn't it fashion? So much fashion happening here. And hey, if you want, you could head over to the Critical Role shop right now. (light music) (peaceful music) (light music) (typewriter clicking) (inspirational music) Narrator: When the forces of evil threaten Exandria, these heroes are there to answer the call. Taliesin: I'm Super Scanlan, with my Critical Role Twitch subscription, I can watch all my favorite CR shows before they come out on YouTube. Take that evil doers! Ashley: Here comes Jester, with her Twitch subscription to Critical Role. She can access gnarly emotes and post links in the chat, too. Taliesin: Radical! Ashley: Boosh! ...Oh no! Here comes some trolls to jam up our live chat. Taliesin: Don't worry, Laudna will stop them with the help of Critical Role's Professional Moderators. Ashley: She's spooky, but I like her. Here comes Laudna's friend Chetney. He has an Amazon Prime membership, which gives him one free Twitch subscription of his choice. Of course, he subscribes to Critical Role. It's the power of teamwork. Die, die, die! Taliesin: I'm spooky. Ashley: I cast Agonizing Bolt! Taliesin: Scanlan's Hand! Ashley: Stab 'em Chetney Ashley: And look, there's Caleb with the power of introspection and existential dread. (cows mooing) Taliesin: Now that we've defeated all the bad guys, let's gift subscriptions to other users. You can do that by name or randomly. Matthew: Taliesin, Ashley, please. I've told you so many times just don't play with those, okay? They're super fragile, custom made, custom painted. You know what? We have to film in about 30 minutes, so why don't you two just come with me. Come on. (clicks tongue) (footsteps receding) Ashley: Oh, it's Major Buzzkill here to take away all our fun. (indistinct exclamations) Ashley: Is it Thursday yet bitch? Taliesin: You can certainly die! Ashley: Oh! Good one. Taliesin: Loot his corpse! Take his vest! Ashley: Goooosh! Matthew: Would you please stop that?! (fast bright music) Ashley: Grog smash! Narrator: Subscribe to Critical Role on Twitch and collect all 21 action figures. Alternate forms and familiars not included.

MATT: And welcome back. So, picking up where we left off, the storm subsiding, the winds beginning to die down a bit where the midday sun is now peeking through the intensity. I ask the rest of you, what do you want to do?

SAM: I ask for my coin back.

LAURA: That fast?

SAM: Do you give it?

ASHLEY: No.

TALIESIN: I think we're running, if I recall.

LAURA: Yeah, we're running. We're running. Are we running to Joe's, or are we trying to run somewhere else?

MATT: Maybe. I'm trying to remember. Was it nighttime at the time?

LAURA: I head to Joe's, but I don't--

MATT: Sorry, I'm trying to remember. Was it nighttime at the incursion?

TALIESIN: I don't remember.

TRAVIS: I thought the sun was--

LAURA: No. The sun was not out.

MATT: Yeah.

TALIESIN: There was a dust storm, though. It was going all crazy.

MATT: Yeah. That's what it-- Okay. So we're good. Sorry, continue. Just double checking myself to make sure I don't throw the time off.

LAURA: Oh, okay.

LIAM: We just need to get somewhere alone so we can talk this out. Let's go to Joe's. Anywhere will do.

SAM: Joe's is-- Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

TALIESIN: We're running.

LAURA: Yeah.

SAM: Let's go.

MATT: Okay. All right. So charging, probably at a wide arc, I assume, through the streets?

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: I'll drop my wolf form, too.

MATT: Okay.

SAM: We have no way to contact the air ship, right?

LAURA: Not yet.

TALIESIN: Not yet.

LAURA: I can do it after we take a short rest.

MATT: Okay. So are you attempting to look inconspicuous?

TRAVIS: There's still some dust storm up, but yes, and I will aid Orym on keeping eyes on rooftops and behind us as we move, making sure no one's following us.

MATT: Because of the storm still being around somewhat, the DC isn't that high, but I would like you to make a group stealth check to just look like people--

SAM: Who's carrying the body?

MATT: -- dodging through a storm.

LAURA and LIAM: Ashton.

SAM: Oh.

TALIESIN: That's right. Stealth is a thing.

SAM: Disadvantage.

TRAVIS: 18.

LAURA: At disadvantage?

SAM: No, no, for me. For me.

TRAVIS: Oh.

TRAVIS: 26.

MATT: 26.

SAM: 11.

MATT: 11.

ASHLEY: 13.

MATT: 13.

LAURA: 12.

LIAM: Eight.

TALIESIN: 25.

MATT: 25. Okay. Some middling scores, some really high scores, one low one. As you push through the streets, the wind and sand still whipping past you, you pull your various bits of Bassurian garb across your face and your mouth to protect from any of it getting into your lungs, and dart past other people that are emerging from their domiciles, looking to basically find any sign of it clearing as well as investigating the apparent large eruption of noise that seemed to rock the center of the city but a moment ago. You dart around, mask your movements, as looking back as well and try and match the curiosity of the various denizens as you hear in the distance the shouts and yells of either Paragon's Call or other figures of some importance within the city, also seeking the source of this recent event. Pushing through the streets, you eventually round back around to the front of Imahara Joe's place. The doors are closed, the windows are shut. It looks like it was closed for the storm and is still currently sealed.

TALIESIN: There's a back door, right?

TRAVIS: (knocks)

MATT: There is a fence around it, but as you're inspecting this, you walk up and bang on the door.

TALIESIN: That's a way to go, too.

LIAM: Is there anyone around on the street?

TALIESIN: Thank you.

MATT: There's a handful of people that are darting past and moving from place to place, especially as it's clearing up, folks are starting to open up a little bit. They're just waiting for it to pass. You get the sense that this is not an uncommon occurrence here in Bassuras. So people are just treating it as it is.

TRAVIS: We're not wearing our cloaks anymore, right? Our Paragon's Call shit?

LAURA: No, we would've ripped those off, I assume--

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: -- when we were stealthing.

MATT: So you knock on the door, the curtain pushes past and you see one of the associates of Imahara Joe glance past and closes it up. (locks unlatching) The door opens and you see a young dwarven male figure lean through. "Can I help you?"

LIAM: Yeah, we need Joe. Is he here right now?

MATT: "Yeah, he's--"

LAURA: Let us in!

MATT: "Okay, okay." Pulls back. You recognize, you've seen this fellow around the office a bit. As he pulls open the door, on the inside you can see everyone's hunkered down a bit. There's a little table put in the center with a somewhat chipped tea set that has freshly steaming tea in it. Most of the employees of Imahara Joe as well as Joe himself are sitting around it, waiting the storm out. He glances over towards the rest of you. "Oh, hello! You're back so soon! Come in, come in. It shouldn't be long before the storm passes over."

TALIESIN: Thank you. I'm going to open the hole really quickly. How you doing in there?

MATT: That's a valid point, because he was in the hole for the run through the--

TALIESIN: Just the run.

MATT: -- city there.

LAURA: I mean, we would've opened it if we--

TALIESIN: I was counting and I was paying attention.

MATT: Right. This would be about the time you needed to open it. So.

TRAVIS: (gasps for breath)

MATT: Yeah, literally, he's like, "(gasping for breath)."

TALIESIN: Do you want out?

MATT: "Yes, please."

TALIESIN: Do you promise to behave?

MATT: "I'm at your service."

TALIESIN: That'll do. Sorry, things have been really fucked up. I close the--

MATT: Looks around.

LAURA: Tie up his hands. Don't let him run.

TALIESIN: Fair.

MATT: "Where the hell am I?"

TALIESIN: Halfway out of this.

MATT: Glance around, looks over.

TRAVIS: I'm behind with the 50 feet of rope, tying up. Hold still!

MATT: "This is Imahara Joe's place!"

SAM: Joe. Joe, we're sorry.

ASHLEY: No.

SAM: We're putting you in a little bit of danger. People are after us.

MATT: (Joe) "I wish I could say that's not an unfamiliar occasion based on the clientele I've worked with, but I'd like to know a little more about this danger so I can adjust accordingly. What am I in now?"

LAURA: Did anyone see us come in? Was anybody looking?

LIAM: I was always looking.

TRAVIS: I don't think so.

MATT: Correct. Both of you make perception checks, or if you're helping him, he can-- he already has advantage, so.

LIAM: I rolled a natural one. That's much better, changed into a 19, making that a 25.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: I gave him advantage.

MATT: No, he already has advantage from his shield.

TRAVIS: Oh, well, fuck you!

MATT: Just roll on your own.

TRAVIS: Guess what?

MATT: (laughs)

TRAVIS: Hey, it's 18!

MATT: Great. All right.

LAURA: (laughs)

MATT: Both of you glancing outside and taking a moment peering through the curtains. Not enough to really reveal that you're peeking through, but just enough to glance both sides of the street, as well as the nearby walkways between the buildings. You don't see any signs of somebody immediately in pursuit.

LIAM: I say to the dwarf: You might want to lock that up.

TALIESIN: I would lock that up.

MATT: "Okay." He goes and locks it up, looking over at Joe and Joe gives him a nod. Sips his tea and sets it back down on its pristine porcelain saucer.

LAURA: I'm going to stay on the ground next to Laudna.

MATT: "Is she all right?"

LIAM: No.

TALIESIN: I finish putting her down. No, she's not.

LAURA: I imagine you would put her down since you pulled--

TALIESIN: Oh, I was-- I've been, yeah.

LAURA: -- Armand Treshi out of the hole.

TALIESIN: I would've just had her like over the fucking shoulder.

LAURA: Just fucking over the shoulder.

LIAM: He's got big guns, he could do it.

TALIESIN: I have not been thinking clearly.

LAURA: Tying him up.

ASHLEY: She's just a little bag of bones.

MATT: "Oh my. I am sorry to hear that. Once again, what am I in?"

SAM: One of the sects? Clans? What are they called? The groups doesn't like us very much right now.

TALIESIN: Paragon's Call.

SAM: They might be watching, looking for us, or maybe they're doing something else, but there was a big attack on the Paragon's Call and we ran.

ASHLEY: It wasn't us. It wasn't us.

SAM: It wasn't us, actually!

LAURA: But we do need to get out of town.

SAM: It really wasn't.

MATT: "They kidnapped me," Treshi now says with arms bound.

SAM: We did kidnap him.

TALIESIN: Only a little.

MATT: (Joe) "Are they angry at you because you kidnapped this guy?"

LAURA: No, no.

TALIESIN: I mean, among other things.

SAM: I assume they don't like that, but I think that's the least of their worries right now.

TRAVIS: Well, I mean, honestly--

LIAM: I honestly don't think that they know he's gone.

TRAVIS: -- it was like a transfer. You didn't look like you were very welcome company where you were at. Tell me, were you a guest or a prisoner when we found you?

MATT: You talking to Armand?

TRAVIS: Treshi.

SAM: Treshi!

LAURA: Armand Treshi!

MATT: Looks over to you. "Yes."

SAM: A guest and a prisoner?

LIAM: Yes, both.

TRAVIS: Do you know what happens to people that answered a question with multiple choice with a single answer? They lose a finger!

SAM: Oh shit.

ASHLEY: I've heard that, too.

MATT: He just started glaring at you.

TRAVIS: No, it's okay. I have all these tools, right. But those I save for people I like. I got this real pointy son of a bitch right here.

MATT: Joe kind of, "Okay, okay. You know, if people are looking for you and are you followed? Are they coming?

LIAM: No one saw us. You're good for now.

MATT: "You're certain?"

LIAM: I am.

MATT: "Not good enough." He turns around and moves one of the tables over.

TALIESIN: There's one thing you can-- "Could you give me a hand?"

TALIESIN: Yep, yep. Yeah, let's do this.

MATT: Across the ground, moves his table over and he pulls up a hatch that you can see has a hidden, broken interior. As he pulls it up, puts it over, there's a set of stairs that go underneath and beneath the floorboards of the structure. "If you're going to hide, hide there, please."

LIAM: Thank you, Joe.

LAURA: Thank you.

TALIESIN: I owe you a lot.

MATT: "All right. All of you," and looks to Armand. "Okay. The less I know at this point, honestly, probably the best. I'm going to go ahead and hold on to whatever plausible deniability I can maintain. Let's say that you owe me a favor. Get inside, get inside, get inside."

ASHLEY: Real quick, do you or any of your friends here know how to bring someone back to life?

MATT: "If I did, do you think I'd be doing this job in this shithole?"

ASHLEY: That's a good point.

MATT: "Sorry, I'm just a little concerned about this."

ASHLEY: No, I completely understand.

MATT: "This wasn't what I was expecting in the middle of my tea."

SAM: That coin you gave me, that deity, you really believe in that one, right?

MATT: "Yeah."

SAM: They haven't led you astray before?

MATT: "I'm still here. I've helped out some of the good people in this town with their guidance, but."

SAM: Okay.

MATT: "Not deep in it, but you know, it doesn't hurt to have a little faith."

SAM: All right.

TRAVIS: Down, let's go.

SAM: Down, down, down.

LIAM: We're going to try to stay less than a day, 12 hours if we can help it.

MATT: "Oh, so you're in for a long haul? Okay, well, stay really quiet. If anything does go down, I will do my best, but at a certain point, I have to protect the people I care about, too."

LAURA: Of course.

LIAM: We understand.

TALIESIN: We clearly threatened you.

MATT: "Obviously. It was a terrifying encounter and I'm lucky to escape with my life."

TRAVIS: You got that right.

ASHLEY: Really, yeah.

MATT: "Okay." You all get down and he closes it, moves the table back over on top, gets back to his tea. You hear him gently say, "Well, I mean, we all chose to live here. I'll give you all a little hazard pay, how about that?" There's a couple of, "Yeah, okay, okay. Yeah." You hear a little rattling of porcelain on saucer.

TRAVIS: What do we see down here?

MATT: So this is a small storage space. Down in here, you can see there are a number of crates and cases and chests and box that are filled with all manner of metallic ingots, with raw materials, bolts, nuts, tools. This is essentially a storage, a subterranean storage room.

SAM: I'm going to anxiety eat some of the bolts.

MATT: Plenty here to popcorn chicken it, yeah.

SAM: Cool.

TRAVIS: There's no other entrances or exits into this little storage space, right? It's just enclosed?

MATT: Make an investigation check.

TRAVIS: I'll use my nose too to smell for drafts or any drafts or-- Oh man, that's good. 23.

MATT: 23. Okay.

TRAVIS: With advantage--

MATT: I will say for this, no advantage, because there's no real draft coming in.

TRAVIS: But I'm amazing.

MATT: But you're amazing, so 23 is still a pretty good roll. It's pretty amazing. As you're all adjusting to the subterranean dark space, you feel your way around and you do see on the, what would be the northeastern edge of this small cluttered chamber, it looks like there is a door. It's mostly hidden and covered in dust and dirt, and you can see old roots of something that may have once grown above and was cut to build the structure, but was left behind, hang over the upper part of it and make it a bit obscured except for in approached bright light. But you know, you got darkvision and you're able to scope past it. It looks like this is some sort of a doorway.

TRAVIS: Watch Treshi, keep him quiet. Don't let him touch anything on himself that might be like a beacon or a little bitch signal. Be right back.

SAM: I'll just whip out my blade and start spinning it.

TRAVIS: That's what I'm talking about.

SAM: (whirring)

TALIESIN: People. We are, in fact, going to get you out of this. Or, if we get out, you get out.

MATT: "Well, that is good to know. So what do you want? You obviously made quite a scene."

SAM: What do we want with this guy?

LAURA: We got to bring him back.

SAM: What did you do? What did he do? I mean, he's trying to get Paragon's Call.

LAURA: He unleashed the Shade Mother.

MATT: "That was not my doing. That was Ira. He's a dubious creature at best, right? But it was my mistake to do business with him."

LIAM: Why were you doing business with him?

MATT: "Because he's effective in forging the chaos we needed to push the council to require the help of the Paragon's Call."

LAURA: What chaos?

MATT: "Creating threats, dangers, to have the people rise up, feeling like they weren't secure in their lives. But the Quorum wasn't doing its job. So we needed additional aid."

SAM: This was all just to get Paragon's Call to be hired by the Jrusar Quorum?

MATT: "Well, that's what I thought it was."

LIAM: You were using the Nightmare King as a PSYOP?

MATT: "More or less."

TALIESIN: I punch him.

LAURA: He was using you.

LIAM: Thank you.

MATT: "Look, I didn't seek him out. He made himself available. And our timetable was short. I was getting a lot of pressure from Otohan and the Call that we had to work quickly. I was out of options. I didn't think he would take it so far. He was overzealous in his work. He was far too knowledgeable and curious about my dealings with the Call, asked too many questions. I was about to end our relationship when the tower fell and did the work for me. So it was his fiddling with the Shade Mother and that imbecile Emoth that set me on the run in the first place. I did not want this to happen."

SAM: Otohan wanted Paragon's Call to be up in Jrusar. But why? Just for influence? Power? What does she want up there?

TALIESIN: That is the fucking question, isn't it?

ASHLEY: Do you know?

MATT: "No."

ASHLEY: Insight check.

MATT: Make an insight check.

SAM: Ooh!

TRAVIS: Let's go.

ASHLEY: 23.

TRAVIS: Oh!

SAM: Ooh.

TRAVIS: Get over there!

SAM: This whisper is brought to you by something. God, I've lost it. Here it is. Here's something. You know start playing One D&D today, Download One D&D playtest materials, try them on your home game and provide feedback at dndbeyond.link/CRDND.

ASHLEY: Just a hunch, but I think you know a lot more than you're telling us.

SAM: I'll spin my blade faster.

MATT: Make an intimidation check.

SAM: Intimidation.

MATT: Yes.

SAM: Eight. (laughter)

MATT: The blade gets stuck.

SAM: Need some oil.

TRAVIS: He's got 10-- Wait, how many fingers do you have?

TALIESIN: No, no, no, no, no, no.

TRAVIS: I'm just asking a question.

SAM: I think he has 10.

TALIESIN: I really want to punch the wall right now.

TRAVIS: Why do that when his face is right there?

TALIESIN: That'll make a lot less noise. So give me a reason not to figure out what will hurt the most.

MATT: You make an intimidation check.

TALIESIN: All right.

TALIESIN: Ooh, natural one, so that's an eight.

TRAVIS: Wet fart. It was those two dice that fell over.

MATT: Chuckles to himself.

TRAVIS: Oh my god!

MATT: "I would be lying if I said I wasn't surprised that a group of imbeciles like you were the ones to extract me, but I imagine that she'll find us soon enough."

TALIESIN: You know, I should have assumed someone of your stature--

LIAM: I stab him through the foot.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

SAM: Your what?

MATT: You stab him through the foot?

LIAM: Stab him through the foot.

MATT: "Oh, god. Ah!"

TALIESIN: I cover the mouth.

LAURA: I push him back in the hole.

TRAVIS: Damn.

MATT: He gets into the hole. You hear a (knocking). (Joe) "Keep it quiet, please."

TALIESIN: Sorry.

SAM: Sorry, Joe.

LIAM: We're having a bit of a raw day, Armand. We just lost one of our own, as you can see. And I'm the peaceful solution guy in this group. So why won't you just start fucking talking right the fuck now?

MATT: Make an intimidation check. The DC gets higher with each failure, so.

TALIESIN: Mm-hmm.

LIAM: Sorry, loading my D&D Beyond page. It was down.

SAM: D&D Beyond, guys!

TRAVIS: ♪ D&D ♪

LIAM: Intimidation, you said?

MATT: Yes.

LIAM: 23.

SAM: Ooh.

LIAM: Rolled a 19.

MATT: Damn. Okay. Down in the hole, glancing up at you, you can see the sweat beads gathering on his forehead from what little bits of light are peeking through the floorboards at the top of Imahara Joe's shop. Huffs a little bit, takes a deep breath. "Look, this is all bigger than me, okay? I thought it was an opportunity to establish myself as indispensable in Jrusar. Rise within my house, make greater allies within the Quorum. But now I am a fugitive of my own choices as well."

ASHLEY: Aw.

MATT: "Look. My hope was that if we could complete these last shipments, my contract would be done. She promised to help clear my name in Jrusar and reestablish my family's alliance with the Call if we did so. But I'm quickly coming to believe that our deal was likely more about this shipment line from Wildemount than over political interests."

LIAM: What were you shipping? What does the Cerberus Assembly have to do with all this?

MATT: "I don't know the specifics of it. I have a shipment line that crosses the Ozmit Sea into the Menagerie Coast."

SAM: Ozmit Sea.

MATT: "I've been allowing numerous shipments over the past year or so to pass through across the sea and wait by a compatriot of mine in Jrusar who's been holding onto them until the time was right to bring them here to Bassuras. Once they were here, the Call took them in to wherever their site was. Then they airshipped through an intermediary to try and keep it separated and hard to follow, hard to trace. Look, I merely arranged for their acquisition and distribution out of the city."

SAM: But you don't know what was in the shipments?

MATT: "Once again, the less I know, the easier it was for me to feel comfortable doing this business."

SAM: Lots of small boxes?

LAURA: Insight check.

SAM: Lots of big boxes?

MATT: Make an insight check.

LIAM: Roll it. Roll it, girl!

TALIESIN: Crates with stamps?

LAURA: 19.

MATT: 19.

SAM: More whispers means more D&D Beyond. I threw away the page.

TRAVIS: You did, it's far behind you now, but try D&D One today! Follow the link that Sam mentioned before, and if you can't remember it, that's what rewind is for.

SAM: Neither can I.

SAM: Yeah, just hit pause on Twitch and rewind. Does that work?

TRAVIS: Sure.

MATT: I appreciate that on Laura's notepad, the whole page just reads "Laudna is dead." (laughter)

LIAM: Well!

LAURA: Technically.

TRAVIS: Betrayal!

LIAM: It technically says, Laudna is derd. (laughter)

TALIESIN: I don't like any of it.

SAM: That's your note? Laudna is dead.

TRAVIS: Oh no!

SAM: Is there at least a sad face?

LAURA: Laudna is derd. No, it's just says Laudna is derd, period.

TRAVIS: Did you at least draw a unicorn or something?

LAURA: That's it.

SAM: Laudna is dead.

LIAM: She is.

SAM: Good episode title. (laughter)

MATT: As you say with symbols on them, stamped on them, gives you a look. "Yes."

TALIESIN: Any dealings with Hexum? Insight check.

SAM: Jeez, so many insights.

TALIESIN: You took a second. If you had not answered immediately. Where's insight? There it is. 12.

MATT: 12. I mean, he's starting to crumble a little bit.

TALIESIN: All right.

MATT: I'll say between the pushing and stuff, you get the sense he's hiding something still with the response to that question, which might tell you something.

TALIESIN: Yeah, yeah, yeah. That'll do.

MATT: "Look, I have no need to protect her in her scheming, okay? You want to bend her arm for answers? Be my guest."

TALIESIN: I should-- Well, go ahead.

MATT: "She held onto them until it was time to ship."

TALIESIN: Ah.

ASHLEY: What did you say?

SAM: She held onto them until it was time to ship.

MATT: "If they went straight through, they would draw more eyes. So we received them, she held onto them, when the coast was clear, we would continue shipments to Bassuras."

LIAM: Part of the chain.

TRAVIS: We don't know what the shipment were?

SAM: No, but we've seen-- Ashton's seen some boxes, right?

TALIESIN: We have one in the hole.

SAM: We have one?

TALIESIN: We do. We have a couple things in the hole.

TRAVIS: He was in the hole, too.

SAM: We have one. We have one, we should look!

LAURA: It's in the hole next to Armand.

SAM: Well, get it out, and put him back in it.

LIAM: He's in it.

LAURA: He's in it.

LIAM: We're talking down to him.

LAURA: Pass that box up, Armand.

MATT: "I cannot. My hands are tied."

TALIESIN: I'll get it. I'll drop down, and I'll pull up everything of interest, the--

MATT: Which boxes did you put in there?

TALIESIN: I think we got two of the crates and one of the little safes, if I recall, little black--

SAM: There's a special--

MATT: If I recall, one of the boxes broke.

TALIESIN: One of the boxes broke.

MATT: If I recall, I could be wrong. We'll go back and check.

TALIESIN: But we have at least one crate and one box, if I recall.

LIAM: And weren't potions scooped up?

MATT: Indeed.

LAURA: Yeah, two of the potions.

MATT: From the broken crate.

LAURA: Yes.

MATT: So he looks and says, "These are indeed examples of the contraband, yes. It began slow years ago, and it'd been ramping up in the recent year."

SAM: The potions are the contraband, or these boxes are the contraband?

MATT: "All of it."

TALIESIN: Half of one.

SAM: Did you open all the boxes?

TALIESIN: No, we've got the-- We haven't opened any of them.

SAM: Open it! Let's see what it is.

LAURA: It was the black box, it was the black.

TALIESIN: I pass it up to you.

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: There's plenty of minds on this. Can I go look at that door and just check it for rusty hinges, a welded frame, a lock, anything? Just to see if it's operable?

MATT: Make an investigation check.

SAM: I'll open one of these boxes.

LAURA: I have Laudna's head in my lap, I'm just.

TRAVIS: 18.

MATT: Okay. 18, the door does appear to be locked, but there is-- it doesn't have like an overt knob or anything, it looks like it just has like a pull handle. But as you tug on it, it has something blocking the opening and you can't really-- You're not sure if it's like something enclosing the other side or if there's-- Well, no, you rolled an 18. I would say that you can tell that there is a slide bar that is locking it in place from the opposite side. There is a hidden mechanism to alleviate the bar's tension.

TRAVIS: Oh yeah, let me get to work on that.

MATT: Okay, while you're working on that.

SAM: I'm going to open the box.

MATT: Okay, the crate or the black box?

LAURA: Did we get a full crate or did we just?

TALIESIN: I grabbed a crate.

SAM: I'll open the crate first.

MATT: Okay.

LIAM: So, sorry, so it's a couple of potions from a smashed crate, a full crate and a black box. Is that accurate?

TALIESIN: ♪ Five gold ♪

TRAVIS: The black box is the more like armored of the--

LAURA: With the Cerberus Assembly.

LIAM: With the Cerberus Assembly insignia. I needed my mind space to be accurate.

LAURA: Is that exactly what you wrote down?

ASHLEY: It's totally what I had written down, actually.

TALIESIN: Be very careful with that.

MATT: The crate and the black box are both locked.

SAM: Oh, the crate's locked?

MATT: The crate is locked as well, though the black box looks like it has a more intense locking mechanism upon it. The two vials that you received that fell out of it, you look at them, too. Like these crystal vials, similar in shape as to the things that you saw set within-- Fearne, that you saw set within that weird device on Otohan's back.

SAM: Oh.

LAURA: The crate has that?

MATT: The cylinders, that weird device that she was wearing under the cloak. The crystal, and now you look at it and you look at the crystal potions that you scooped up and they look very similar to what you saw set within the two cylinders in the device on her back.

LIAM: Gray fluid.

TALIESIN: Do they--

MATT: A weird gray flowing fluid. As you swirl it in there, you see it seems to ignore gravity for a moment you see it seems to ignore gravity for a moment before it settles in, like a slow motion mercury that just floats and then reconstitutes again.

LIAM: Can you remind us, did we see those things in action on her back?

MATT: No, you just saw--

LIAM: Just saw them.

LAURA: But we saw those things appearing from her back? We saw those Mirror Images?

MATT: You saw those things appearing.

LIAM: Not connected to?

LAURA: But they came from behind her?

MATT: They seemed to, more or less, appear in spaces around her. But you did see energy flashing from underneath the cloak.

LAURA: She pooped them out.

LIAM: She pooped them out.

MATT: More or less, yeah. She just took a big squat and--

LIAM: Poop magic.

MATT: Made more poop fighters.

ASHLEY: Do you know what these are?

TALIESIN: Defe-ication.

SAM: What?

ASHLEY: Does Treshi-- do you know what this is?

LAURA: Is that how big it is?

MATT: It's about that big.

LAURA: That big?

LIAM: What is this?

SAM: (laughs)

ASHLEY: What am this?

TALIESIN: It's about the size of a He-Man figure.

TRAVIS: Are these corn... bits?

MATT: "I do not know, I do not care to ask. Look, the people I've been dealing with are very dangerous people and have shown historically that the less you know, the better chance you have of getting out alive. I made money, I made allies, and through this process, a lot of my house came to a higher prominence. I was a golden child for a time before all this Shade Mother bullshit went down with Emoth. It honestly fucked everything up."

TALIESIN: So, just so we can make sure that we can get you out of here, who should we not trust? Give us a list of people you would not like to see on your way out.

MATT: "Otohan Thull. If you can protect me from her, I'll give everything you need."

ASHLEY: Well.

MATT: "Anything."

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: We can work on that.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Who was attacking the shipment?

MATT: "I have no idea."

SAM: Well, we can just--

MATT: "It was that woman who showed up in there, but I assumed that that was-- I'd heard that there was a bounty out for my head in Jrusar, and I left and I assumed you were here for the same bounty, but your words say that you're into other interests."

TRAVIS: Yeah, we're altruists.

TALIESIN: (snorts) I think we need to have a group meeting.

MATT: You trying to unlock that door?

TRAVIS: Yep.

MATT: Go ahead.

TRAVIS: Working on that latch.

MATT: You got it, go ahead and roll a--

LAURA: Does this all count as a rest? We're short resting right now?

MATT: If you want to take it, you can make this a short rest.

LAURA: Yeah, I'm just sitting.

MATT: Okay. So we'll count this conversation as a short rest, nothing real physically intense in this moment. Unless somebody decides to, in which case it might.

LAURA: Shift.

TRAVIS: A dexterity check plus my Gloves of Thievery proficiency. That's a 26.

MATT: 26. (creaks) The door opens ever so faintly and you can see a tunnel beyond it.

TALIESIN: Good to know.

TRAVIS: (sniffs) Smells like?

MATT: It smells a little musty. It smells like minerals and--

TRAVIS: Damp at all?

MATT: Make a perception check for me with advantage.

LAURA: (child-like) Smells like fruit!

LIAM: Smell advantage.

TRAVIS: (child-like) Yummy fruit! (normal voice) Fuck, 16, 17.

MATT: 17, the smell reminds you of a particular moment during the Deathwish Run, in which you were pushing through a subterranean cavern that existed beneath the plateau that the city was built upon.

TRAVIS: That had a big, terrible creature in it?

MATT: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Yep.

MATT: Kagaronk was in there, but it has that mineral, musty, earthy smell to it that stands in stark contrast to what the rest of the city smells like.

TRAVIS: That's good to know, though.

LIAM: Yeah. Back door.

TRAVIS: I'll leave the door open just in case we need to--

TALIESIN: Just to--

TRAVIS: Skedaddle.

TALIESIN: It'll also be a good point if we're going to hit those crates or that box or somewhere where if it's trapped, it won't fuck us up too much.

MATT: Yes, the crate and box are locked.

SAM: The crate and box are locked. We can probably assume that the crate has more of these potions in it.

TALIESIN: Let's assume.

SAM: The box seems more interesting.

TALIESIN: Let's open the box in the hole.

MATT: If you want to take your short rest to inspect the potions, you might be able to ascertain their nature.

SAM: I do have Identify still.

MATT: You do.

SAM: But I'm not going to use it until we open the smaller black box.

LIAM: To see what the--

SAM: Just in case that's more interesting.

LIAM: -- selection is.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: We should open it in the hallway.

SAM: Can we open it, Chet?

LIAM: Chet, can you get this? It looks a little tricky.

TRAVIS: Can I check it for any kind of traps first?

MATT: You may, make an investigation check for me.

TRAVIS: Just because.

MATT: Investigation or perception, your choice.

SAM: Guidance! Boop!

TRAVIS: Which is a--

SAM: Plus d4. You don't have any d4s?

TRAVIS: Got one.

MATT: It's hidden amongst the rest of them.

TRAVIS: I don't have advantage on this.

MATT: No, you do not. This is not scent-based.

TRAVIS: Amazing! 17. 17, 18, 19, 20, 21!

MATT: 21, indeed, the box is trapped.

SAM: Okay.

TALIESIN: Let's take it in the hallway, shall we? If something goes wrong, I have a potion.

TRAVIS: Okay!

LAURA: It'll bring us all back to life! Yeah, that's great!

TRAVIS: I have a lot of hit points because I'm durable as fuck, 400 plus.

TALIESIN: We don't want to wait on this thing?

TRAVIS: No, I'm, I mean--

LAURA: Should we wait while we're at least on, so we can regain health points on a short rest?

TRAVIS: Can I tell, from that check, what kind of trap it might be, or on what part of the apparatus?

MATT: Yeah.

LAURA: Do you want to do traps?

MATT: There is-- and it is a very well crafted box, and you can see there's like this thick, heavy polished iron frame to this black material, like a polished slate that has been polished to a dark, dark black with some sort of a coloring agent. The latch on the front of it, you can see there is, beyond just the lock itself, there is some sort of a golden wire that is looped through and into the box on each side of where the key enters, you can just barely make out from that slight gap between where the latch covering and the actual slate box front is. You get the sense that even putting any sort of a key or any sort of contact there will trigger something. Something metal will trigger it.

TRAVIS: Yeah. Good thing I'm a master of wood. (laughter)

MATT: What you going to do, Chetney? Tell me how, in this moment, your wood specialty becomes the heroic point.

ASHLEY: (laughs)

MARISHA: (off-camera) (laughs) (laughter)

LIAM: It's like I can still hear her voice.

SAM: I can still hear her dumb laugh.

TRAVIS: So my options are use metal tinkerers' tools to try and pick the lock, but if I touch the gold wire, that's a problem?

MATT: Correct.

TRAVIS: Or try and pick the lock with finesse wooden tools, but they are not as durable as metal?

MATT: If that's what you'd like to try.

TRAVIS: Is the impression that metal touching the gold wire would close a circuit or is it just pressure on the gold wire?

MATT: You get the sense, the way it's designed, it's not in the way of the key.

TRAVIS: Right now, it's just if it touches it, like Operation?

MATT: It's just against it. So it looks like it might-- a metallic connection to the wire would be the trigger.

TRAVIS: Well, that's a high DC, I think.

SAM: Do you need me?

LAURA: Can you Guide him again?

LIAM: You're trying to spring this shit? My dude, I'm at one hit point.

SAM: You can hold my hand, and use me as a tool.

TRAVIS: I can use your hand any way I want?

SAM: Just hold my hand and you can use me as a tool.

TRAVIS: Well, it's not that, the keyhole's very small already, but there's a thin, gold wire on the inside of it. If I touch it while I'm working on the lock, which isn't a problem, we all die. So I could either use a wooden tool and it wouldn't trigger that gold wire, and I can be a little bit more liberal with my application of skill, or I have to be really careful with the--

TALIESIN: I know how we all wouldn't die. Have him to do in the sealed hole.

TRAVIS: Yeah, go in the tunnel and shut the door? Yeah.

ASHLEY: Go into the portable hole.

TALIESIN: And we'll close the hole.

TRAVIS: Yeah, yeah, it's just me in there.

TALIESIN: We count for a minute.

TRAVIS: Yeah, I'd be fine.

TALIESIN: Open it up.

TRAVIS: (laughs)

LAURA: No! No! We don't have any spells, What if he dies and we can't bring him back?

TRAVIS: If you hear a (thump), you'll know what happens.

TALIESIN: That's if nothing goes-- We can just wait, we can just wait.

TRAVIS: What are we waiting five minutes for?

LAURA: If we wait--

LIAM: If we can wait an hour.

LIAM: A little less than an hour, then we can all just heal up.

LIAM: Yeah.

LAURA: And be at full health.

TRAVIS: Yeah, let's wait an hour.

SAM: Great.

TRAVIS: There's no rush.

TALIESIN: In the meantime, I would like to have maybe a-- (laughter)

TALIESIN: -- fucking private conversation. I'm going to, since he's in the hole, it'll just be a minute. I'm going to close the hole.

MATT: "Wait, wait."

TALIESIN: Yep. We got to tell Lord Eshteross. I cannot believe I am the fucking person saying this, but we have to--

LIAM: Uh-huh. I don't know what the fuck happened, right the fuck now.

LAURA: Does--

LIAM: Okay, okay.

TALIESIN: This is real bad.

LIAM: This is a hard conversation. We've got to talk out what we're going to do next. Yes, we have to warn Eshteross.

TALIESIN: And next we fix that.

SAM: Fix what?

LIAM: Laudna.

SAM: Oh, Laudna.

TALIESIN: We are fixing that.

LIAM: We got to get out of here.

TRAVIS: Yep.

SAM: Who can fix this, though?

TALIESIN: We will fucking find them.

SAM: If Eshteross is running away-- I mean, if we're going to tell him he's in grave danger, he's not going to be able to help us with this.

LAURA: But he's powerful, maybe he knows people. Maybe he knows--

SAM: But if he's running away from something, how's he going to help us?

TALIESIN: If he can't help us, we'll fucking find someone.

LAURA: I can at least send him a message. Maybe he knows of someone that can help us?

SAM: But if he can't, because he's got to save his own hide, is there anyone else who can help us?

LIAM: Well.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

TRAVIS: I mean, if we remember, we met that professor at that school in Jrusar?

SAM: In Yios?

TRAVIS: No, in Jrusar, the one in the learned center that knew about--

LAURA: The one that we went to for you.

TRAVIS: Yeah!

MATT: Ajit Dayal?

TRAVIS: Ajit Dayal, yeah.

TALIESIN: There's Hexum.

TRAVIS: What my notes say.

SAM: Does he know about reincarnation?

TRAVIS: I don't know, but he's--

TALIESIN: You never know.

TRAVIS: He's got to have a hookup. He's at a school

TALIESIN: Hexum's into some dirty stuff, we could get lucky. I'm happy owing more.

TRAVIS: I mean, we got to get back to Jrusar, that's the one. That's the place.

LAURA: Maybe, unless Eshteross knows somebody around here. It's a long journey back.

ASHLEY: My--

TRAVIS: Five days, right?

ASHLEY: My Nana can bring people back.

TALIESIN: What?

LAURA: Has she done it before?

ASHLEY: Oh yeah, yeah.

TRAVIS: What do you mean?

SAM: What do you mean, "Oh yeah?"

TRAVIS: Your Nana, where's your Nana?

ASHLEY: Well, she's in the Fey Realm, but--

LAURA and SAM: How do we get there?

ASHLEY: I don't know, actually.

SAM: Oh, does your mom know or dad?

LIAM: Would she do it? I mean, we just heard a lot of stories about strings attached to any deal made with your Nana, but she's your Nana.

SAM: Also, if we go to the Fey Realm to try to ask your Nana for help and we come back, is the Apogee Solstice going to have happened 40 years ago?

LIAM: That's-- That's a--

TALIESIN: What are our other options?

LIAM: FCG, that's a great point. Okay, there is the--

TRAVIS: That's a terrible point, FCG, very terrible.

LIAM: There is the Lord and Lady of Laudna's hometown.

LAURA: Whitestone?

LIAM: Yes.

SAM: She was brought back once there, maybe going there could bring back that same?

LAURA: But Delilah--

LIAM: But they know everything there is to know--

SAM: So we talk to Delilah and get her to bring her back again.

LAURA: I tried!

SAM: Maybe she has to be there or something.

LAURA: Delilah is gone!

SAM: But like in the city, how did she get her back the first time?

LAURA: I don't know, she was powerful, she was really powerful.

ASHLEY: Delilah's gone where?

LAURA: Delilah lives in Laudna's head. She's not a physical being anymore, at least not according to Laudna.

ASHLEY: But she's real, right?

LAURA: Well, yes, she's still some powerful entity. I thought she was like a goddess or something, but she certainly didn't respond when I--

LIAM: She is powerful. She's not a goddess. The de Rolos know everything there is to know about that woman. That's one option. Another is calling my boss.

SAM: Can she bring people back?

LIAM: Usually.

LAURA: She can bring people back? But wait, I thought it, I mean, how long can Laudna be--?

LIAM: I don't know, but we could reach out to her, you could reach out to her, and she could maybe- not here- but she could come here. This is weird, but if we can figure out the right, sorry, tree, she could come here.

SAM: That sounds amazing. There aren't a lot of trees around here, but I'm just saying this to say it, weren't you trying to protect her from the people who are in this city with us right now?

TALIESIN: Which is why we got to get out of this city

LIAM: Trying to understand what the fuck is going on, FCG.

SAM: I know, but you'd be bringing her--

LIAM: I'm not asking you to bring her into the middle of this city, we got to get out of here.

SAM: Okay.

LIAM: But we could get a day or two away, get a head start.

LAURA: So we call the air ship.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: It picks us up.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: Then hopefully by the time it gets here, which is in a day, then we'll know where we're going.

LIAM: If she can come, we stay here for a day and then we can leave.

SAM: Sure, go home.

LIAM: Go back where she came from.

SAM: But at least where she is, she's protected. If she meets us on an air ship somewhere, I don't know. Can't Otohan find us and find her?

LAURA: And is she really going to listen? I'm just a random--

SAM: But yes.

LAURA: -- person in her head.

SAM: We should definitely call her, 100%.

LIAM: She found where she is already, she knows where she lives.

TRAVIS: True. Does she do this a lot? Your boss, bring people back?

LIAM: No. We try to not let that happen where I'm from.

TRAVIS: Right.

SAM: Would she want like money for it?

LIAM: I mean, I don't know. Laudna is a unique case, but I can't think of anyone better to ask than her or the de Rolos.

TRAVIS: It's a solid option, we've got a good list. We've got to rest and make our calls.

SAM: Yeah, first priority is to get out of here and get somewhere safe to alert Lord Eshteross.

LAURA: As soon as the short rest is done, I'm going to send a message to the air ship.

TALIESIN: Once we're done with this, I'm going to open the-- It's not been close to 10 minutes, just enough for--

SAM: Fearne. Oh.

MATT: Right. (panting)

TALIESIN: Oh, thank you for the privacy.

MATT: "Least I could do."

LIAM: You're good, you really, if you just count to, like, 540, you don't have to worry until that point.

SAM: Imogen, do you think someone needs to take care of Pâté and Sashimi?

LAURA: I use my Telekinesis to lift Pâté up. Yeah, we should take care of him.

SAM: (half-hearted) Ah, ah, I'm horny.

ASHLEY: Oh, I've got a chubbles.

SAM: This really feels icky.

TALIESIN: Yeah, I'm walking away from that shit.

LIAM: It really only makes sense when she does it.

LAURA: I'm just going to keep him. I'll keep him on my belt for now.

TRAVIS: I'm slowly, just meticulously making wooden copies, thin slivers of my tinkerer's tools.

MATT: Okay, roll a dexterity or intelligence check,

MATT: Okay, roll a dexterity or intelligence check, your choice, plus your proficiency modifier.

ASHLEY: Little scissors.

TRAVIS: Okay, they're the same. Plus five. Oh, 19 plus five, 24.

MATT: 24. Within rapid time, to the point where you even take a moment to polish, you know, and then properly smooth.

TRAVIS: Little oil.

MATT: Yeah, just make an impeccable replica of your thieves' tools made of shreds of leftover mahogany.

ASHLEY: Ooh.

MATT: A nice hardwood, functional, might only be good for one lock, but pretty solid.

TRAVIS: On the back end, I also worked in several different surface heads, so it functions as a toothpick as well.

ASHLEY: Wow.

LAURA: Wow.

ASHLEY: That's very, very impressive.

TALIESIN: I'll be impressed at the end of that process. Are we going to do this in the pit?

TRAVIS: Wait, no, we're waiting an hour. I'm just doing this slowly.

LAURA: Pâté is just petting Laudna's head.

SAM: That's so creepy.

LIAM: Orym's going to sit down crisscross applesauce and hold Laudna's hand.

MATT: Okay. All right, so you take your short rest.

TRAVIS: Yes!

MATT: You can and spend--

SAM: Sashimi is just--

LAURA: Don't, no, Sashimi, no.

LIAM: Now, you-- Stop being foul. You remember that we did a short rest, right? I think I remembered that now, too, as soon as you said it.

SAM: We did have a previous short rest because I only have one hit die left, which I've just used if we are short resting now.

LAURA: I didn't use any of the hit dice on our last.

LIAM: I think I did, but I don't remember how many. So I'm just going to allow myself three today, because I don't remember.

TALIESIN: I've been fine until this clusterfuck.

SAM: There's a possibility that only I needed to do healing, because I was the one who was, I think we fought me today.

LAURA: Yeah, we fought you.

MATT: Yeah, that's earlier in the day.

SAM: So I had to heal myself a ton, and that's why I used six of my seven hit die or something like that.

LAURA: Okay.

LIAM: I think I did, though, too. I'll allow myself four.

LAURA: I'm going to use my, I get all my sorcery points. Oh, no, when I finish a long rest, fuck me running! I thought it was a short rest!

TALIESIN: Do we do a long rest? Do we just?

TRAVIS: No, I am working on this box, I'll go in the tunnel.

LAURA: I'll have to do it, fuck, that means I'll have to do it. I can't call the air ship until we sleep.

SAM: Okay, well then we should get to sleep soon.

LAURA: I'm sorry, you guys. Well, it's been a long day.

SAM: Yeah.

LIAM: So much has happened.

TALIESIN: A fucking long day.

TRAVIS: Maybe something amazing will be in this box. Don't worry, if I come out of here like Bruce Banner, though, you know what to do.

LAURA: Are you in the hallway?

TRAVIS: Not yet. I'm saying my goodbyes right now.

TALIESIN: I thought we were going to put you in the hole?

LAURA: No, not in the hole.

TRAVIS: In the tunnel.

LAURA: In the tunnel.

TALIESIN: Well, we're going to put you in the hole, right?

LAURA: Why? With Armand--

TALIESIN: Because it doesn't make--

LAURA: -- and all of our shit and the dynamite? No, we put him in the tunnel.

LIAM: Oh, would that be special.

TALIESIN: I mean, we wouldn't know until it was over.

TRAVIS: That's why I was thinking the tunnel might be better.

TALIESIN: The sound of it.

TRAVIS: Plus, if it goes bad, I could just scream and yell.

LIAM: We wouldn't hear anything.

TRAVIS: Please let me in!

LIAM: We would hear nothing, we'd just open up and find potpourri.

TRAVIS: Yeah. (sizzling)

MATT: Well, do you have any other spell slots available?

LAURA: I have, yes, I have two 1st-level spell slots.

MATT: Depending on how many sorcery points you have left, you can also convert spells into--

LAURA: No, I know, I have zero sorcery points left.

MATT: Gotcha.

LAURA: I used up all seven sorcery points in the full day of fighting that we've had.

MATT: Yeah.

TALIESIN: Let's--

LIAM: This day feels like it's been weeks.

TALIESIN: Give the old man some luck.

SAM: Yeah, of course. Are you ready? Are you doing this?

TRAVIS: Yeah, I'm fucking-- I was born ready. We're going wood tools first.

SAM: Yeah, sure.

TRAVIS: Yep.

SAM: I will guide you.

ASHLEY: I'm going to go over and flick your--

LAURA: Penis!

SAM: Nose?

LIAM: Bean.

TRAVIS: The tip of the peen?

ASHLEY: Guidance.

TRAVIS: Oh!

LAURA: Double Guidance? Can you double up on the Guidance?

MATT: No, but hers is fine.

TRAVIS: Oh, one of them's an iceberg now. Woo, I'm ready! What is it, oh, it's a d4, we just did this, okay.

MATT: So here's the scenario. With the wooden--

ASHLEY: He's doing something else.

MATT: The craft that you did, they will act as--

LIAM: Because of the nipple flick, is that what he got?

MATT: -- as lockpicks. The DC is the same--

LIAM: You'd have to reach way down.

MATT: -- but if you roll less than 20--

LIAM: You're like seven feet tall.

MATT: -- they break.

TRAVIS: Yeah, that's fair, that's fair.

LAURA: Roll less than 20?

TRAVIS: Well, yeah.

LAURA: But they still can work if they're broken?

MATT: They can function. Well, no, if they're broken, they're broken.

TRAVIS: Got to roll higher than 10.

MATT: You don't know what the DC is for the lock.

LAURA: Oh, oh, oh, I understand.

TRAVIS: We good.

LAURA: Okay.

TRAVIS: 14, 20, 24!

ASHLEY: Ooh!

MATT: 24, okay. (lockpick clicking) It takes you a moment, and you get the sense that this is an extremely intricate lock, spending a few minutes with it and like this--

TRAVIS: He touches that wire like, ah!

MATT: The sweat forms in your forehead. You can feel it dripping into your bushy eyebrows and starting to get in one eye and stings a little bit.

TRAVIS: Two icebergs now! (laughter)

MATT: Then eventually, (clicks) does not trigger the trap.

TRAVIS: Oh! Release!

ASHLEY: That was amazing.

TRAVIS: ♪ Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh ♪

MATT: You open it up.

TRAVIS: I'm still singing, don't rush me.

LIAM: Chet, what are you doing in there?

TRAVIS: ♪ Ooh, ooh ♪ It triggered, it's horror! No, I'm okay. (creaks)

MATT: You open it up. The box, which is about one foot by one foot or so has a smaller, there's a thick wall to it, like it's protecting what's inside or at least is, there's a heavy buffer. The actual space within it is about six inches by six inches in the center, by six inches, like a cube. In there, you see a pile of finely ground green glass.

LAURA: Oh, residuum!

LIAM: Fuckers.

TRAVIS: Beer bottles.

SAM: Could be a lens, could be a lens.

LAURA: That lens was made of residuum.

TRAVIS: In little shards and pieces, or any sort of crafted shapes?

MATT: No, actually, it looks all like it's been evenly ground to almost like a sand consistency.

TRAVIS: Whoa.

LIAM: Precisely calculated amount of that.

TRAVIS: Oh, right.

SAM: Wait, it's powder?

MATT: It's like a sand.

TRAVIS: Oh man.

SAM: Green residuum sand.

LIAM: A brick. Residuum.

TALIESIN: How it's--

LAURA: Are you going to just snort it?

TRAVIS: Wow. I just do a numb-er. (laughter)

LAURA: What?

TALIESIN: What the fuck?

TRAVIS: Only one way to be sure!

LAURA: Ah!

SAM: Do we know what that is?

TRAVIS: (screams)

TALIESIN: It burns.

MATT: If you'd like to roll an arc-- If anyone has more than zero in arcana, you can go ahead and roll.

TRAVIS: Yes!

MATT: Orym.

LIAM: -- one. Yes?

MATT: Make a history check for me.

LIAM: Yeah. Come on, baby.

MATT: With a low DC specifically.

LIAM: 26!

LAURA: Ooh!

MATT: 26.

LIAM: I always roll high on those history checks.

MATT: You know exactly what this is. You know this is, one--

TRAVIS: Good shit.

MATT: This is the prime controlled export from Whitestone. You also know that your leader has been working with the Lord and Lady of Whitestone to ensure that this material, which as far as you know, is only available out of the Alabaster Sierras that surround Whitestone, doesn't fall into the wrong hands. The fact that this has been shipped in this space is a concerning revelation.

LAURA: (gasps) It all comes back to Whitestone.

MATT: You also know that its application is used in the amplification of various forms of arcana, simple to extremely powerful.

LIAM: And you're in the tunnel with it.

TRAVIS: (sniffing)

LIAM: Wandered in.

TRAVIS: Ha, the drip's so good.

LAURA: Stop!

TRAVIS: What?

LIAM: Why is there a divot in that?

TRAVIS: I've just got powder next to my nose. (manic) It's open! (laughter)

TALIESIN: Put down the Ecto Cooler.

TRAVIS: My heart's like (rapid beating)

TALIESIN: For fuck's sake.

TRAVIS: This might be it! (laughter)

MATT: Oh my god!

LIAM: Just your wolf tail all just puffed out, it's just wagging.

TRAVIS: Get in here!

ASHLEY: Well, okay, you're ready to go now? Just needed a few hours.

LIAM: Chet, can we bring this back into the room?

ASHLEY: Just that little green pill.

LIAM: Okay.

TRAVIS: (cheerful humming) Carefully, open.

LIAM: Okay, so this is from where I come from. Not exactly where I come from, this is from Tal'Dorei. It's extremely valuable. It is found in one place that I am aware of, and it is bolstering my belief that we need to reach out to either the de Rolos or the Tempest or both. This shouldn't be here.

SAM: And the other stuff, the stuff in the vials?

LAURA: Oh yeah.

TALIESIN: We have to figure that out.

SAM: I can Identify that now.

LAURA: All right.

TRAVIS: Is it dangerous, this stuff, or valuable?

LIAM: Yes.

TRAVIS: Oh, okay.

LIAM: Yes. It's used to--

SAM: Multiple choice.

ASHLEY: Multiple choice answered yes.

TRAVIS: Okay, got to come up with a finger.

LAURA: Yeah.

LIAM: Always works.

LAURA: Should we close it, then, in case we lose some of it?

LIAM: Yeah. Already, I think Chetney spilled a little bit out, because there's a little bit missing.

TRAVIS: Yeah. It's (sniffs). There.

LAURA: Can we not make it canon that Chetney fucking snorted it?

LIAM: It's not canon.

SAM: Give it to Fearne, and she can put it in our inventory?

ASHLEY: Yeah.

SAM: So we'd remember.

ASHLEY: I can take care of it.

LAURA: Do you want me to keep track of the inventory?

TRAVIS: -- is still active because I didn't disarm the trap?

MATT: Correct.

ASHLEY: This paper here.

TRAVIS: So I don't think we can close it again, well.

TALIESIN: If we close, it'll just be a son of a bitch opening it.

LAURA: Also, just double up.

TRAVIS: Would it relock if we close? Any way to know?

MATT: You don't really know.

TRAVIS: Can I spend another--?

MATT: You barely fucking picked that lock. Like... You didn't get high enough to fully understand it, you just know you managed to squeak by.

TRAVIS: I saw the Matrix.

MATT: Yeah, yeah.

TRAVIS: Can I spend a minute to look at it now that it's open to see if being able to see inside of it, if I might be able to disable whatever the trap is, or the trigger, or the explosive, or anything that's in there?

MATT: If you'd like to make a roll for it.

TRAVIS: Just to look. If I can't see it, or if it's part of the inlay or whatever, I'll leave it alone. Investigation?

MATT: Investigation, yeah.

TRAVIS: 18.

MATT: 18.

TRAVIS: 13 plus five.

MATT: There may be a way to disable it, but it's going to be a tough roll.

LIAM: We could transfer it.

TRAVIS: Yeah, let's do that.

LIAM: As far as I know, it's not a combustible. It's not explosive, unless you add magic.

TRAVIS: I mean, I am magic, but I think if we just leave the chest behind, that might be in our best interest. Otherwise, we're carrying around an open chest.

LAURA: I agree.

LIAM: With the symbol of a pretty bad organization on it.

TRAVIS: Just again, because it's that six by six and a big-ass chest. It's hollow, or is it just padding on the inside? There's no other secret compartments to the?

LIAM: Thick metal.

MATT: It looks to be a thick metal.

TRAVIS: Okay, okay, okay.

LAURA: Like a lead? Lead can block people from being able to locate things.

TRAVIS: Oh!

LAURA: So if that is a lead box, then, I mean, it could be useful.

LIAM: Would they be able to track that specific dram of?

LAURA: They would try to track the box because they wouldn't be able to track the residuum. So I mean, wherever we leave that box, we're putting, if we leave it under Joe's place, we're leaving him at risk.

LIAM: That's true.

SAM: Joe has other boxes, I'm sure.

LIAM: Yeah, but if anyone tries to--

ASHLEY: Is there--

LAURA: But this one specifically.

TRAVIS: But this tunnel goes out to the cave.

LAURA: Then leave it deep in the cave.

ASHLEY: Is there a reason it's in that casing, is it very dangerous just on its own? Like, can we just put it in a baggy?

TRAVIS: Yeah, does it have a bad attitude if it gets jostled?

LIAM: Well, we have to not, I mean, we have to be careful with you guys--

MATT: Roll an arcana check for me, Orym.

LIAM: -- around it.

TRAVIS: Take a number, Orym.

LIAM: 19.

MATT: 19?

LIAM: Rolled an 18.

MATT: Residuum can be very dangerous or volatile if the magic channeled through it is dangerous and volatile, as it is an amplification material. However, it is just an amplification material. So depending on the magic that it's utilized with, it can have unpredictable, if powerful, results, which is why it's so sought after and dangerous. It can also entirely replace material components based on the worth of it.

LIAM: (like Caleb) Ja, that is correct.

TRAVIS: I take one craggy fingernail and I hold it up to Orym.

MATT: Jesus Christ.

LIAM: I'm good, Chet.

ASHLEY: So it's an amplification material.

LIAM: For magic stuff.

MATT: You've been around a while.

LIAM: So you don't want to fire anything into it. Like, it's not going to catch fire, normally, but--

TRAVIS: Your 20s are always the best the fourth time around.

MATT: In Hupperdook especially, man.

LIAM: You don't want to run any kind of sorcerer shit through that.

MATT: That place gets crazy.

LIAM: What do we have that we could put it in?

TRAVIS: Gargoyle.

SAM: Me?

TALIESIN: Oh fuck.

LAURA: No, we're not putting it inside of you.

LIAM: You're magic.

SAM: Any box that Joe has? I mean, he has lots of stuff.

LAURA: Or a pouch.

ASHLEY: Let's see if I can.

TALIESIN: I have a bunch of bottles.

LIAM: What if Joe has a lead box?

ASHLEY: Did we--

TALIESIN: I have a bunch of random-ass bottles.

LIAM: He might.

LAURA: Should I ask him?

LIAM: Yep.

LAURA: I'm just going to knock on the door for a second.

MATT: Okay. "Yes?"

LAURA: Joe, do you have a lead box up there or down here? A small lead box.

MATT: "I have lead, I don't have a box."

LAURA: Can you make a small box out of lead?

MATT: "How small, how soon?"

LAURA: I mean soon.

TALIESIN: Tomorrow?

LIAM: Enough to hold a cantaloupe.

MATT: "That's an odd request. We do have a lot of things currently in the queue that we're in the process of developing. That'll be a bit of a premium to go ahead and bump it to the front, but--"

LIAM: You got it.

LAURA: Whatever you need.

TALIESIN: I got a bag of gems, man.

TRAVIS: It doesn't have to be pretty. You could just, you know.

LAURA: Yeah, it can look like shit. It just needs to be made of lead.

LIAM: And just secure.

TRAVIS: Or lined with lead, right?

TALIESIN: Look like shit, the better actually.

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: "300 gold?"

TALIESIN: Got it.

LIAM: Yes, sir.

MATT: "All right."

LIAM: I mean, he's covering our asses.

SAM: Sure, sure.

LIAM: We should be paying for that.

MATT: So.

TRAVIS: I'm going to get rid of this box, I'll be back. If you don't hear from me in like an hour, I'm dead.

SAM: Great.

TRAVIS: I just take the box, I start walking down the tunnel.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: But slowly keeping an eye out for any pressure plates or any other weird shit.

MATT: Understood. Make a perception check for me.

LIAM: I'm going with you.

SAM: You're going with him?

LIAM: I'm going with him, he's not going by himself.

TRAVIS: Natural 20!

LIAM: Yeah!

ASHLEY: Hey!

MATT: Nice.

TRAVIS: 21.

MATT: You feel pretty confident that there is nothing affixed to this tunnel that is a trap as you move through. It does go on for quite a while.

TRAVIS: The box is pretty heavy, too, right?

MATT: Yeah.

TRAVIS: I start dragging it after we're--

MATT: It's not terribly heavy. Actually, with the lead, it's pretty heavy. (laughter) No, you're right. The contents are not heavy, but the box itself is is fairly heavy.

TRAVIS: I mean, I'm strong as fuck, but once I'm out of prime reach.

MATT: You're going (grunts) as you go.

TRAVIS: Oh, there are wheels on it! (laughter)

TALIESIN: Too soon.

ASHLEY: We knew.

MATT: It does grind through.

ASHLEY: We knew it was a bad idea.

MATT: But no. You continue on for awhile before the tunnel opens up into an underground cavern and you with darkvision have no issues seeing, but there is definitely the familiar interior of this subterranean tunnel network that you had ridden through beneath Bassuras. So glancing about, you're uncertain at the moment which direction goes where, but it definitely opens up into a cavernous space.

TRAVIS: Humanoid tunnel, right? Not a wide tunnel? It hasn't gotten wider and wider as we get to the mouth of this thing?

MATT: Right now, it's about 15 feet and now it opens up into a 30-, 40-foot cavern.

TRAVIS: So Orym, we're going to play a game called run, okay? And I just fucking throw the box into the cavern.

MATT: (box thuds)

TRAVIS: Go! I run back. Yeah, I'm like (whoosh).

MATT: You got it. All right. So you both run back to the chamber--

TRAVIS: Two points.

MATT: -- and return. Okay.

LAURA: (laughs)

SAM: I'll hold one of those vials of gray liquid.

MATT: Okay.

SAM: I guess. My lens will pop down and I'm going to use Identify.

MATT: All right.

TALIESIN: I'm going to close--

TRAVIS: The box did not detonate, did it?

TALIESIN: -- close the hole again so that our friend doesn't have to learn what the fuck we found.

SAM: Sure.

TALIESIN: It's for your own good.

MATT: Okay. You focus on it and as your eye focuses, the flash of built-in knowledgeable arcane power flares for moment into your eye and as it does, you begin to ascertain the nature of this strange vial. This is a Potion of Possibility.

LAURA: (gasps)

SAM: Potion of Possibility.

LAURA: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

MATT: When you drink this clear potion, you gain two Fragments of Possibility.

TRAVIS: Damn.

LAURA: Two Fragments of Possibility?

TRAVIS: They got all this stuff.

MATT: Each of which looks like a tiny, grayish bead of energy that follows you around, staying within one foot of you at all times. Each fragment lasts for eight hours until used. When you make an attack roll or ability check or saving throw, you can expend a fragment to roll an additional d20. Then you choose which of the d20s to use. Alternately, when an attack roll is made against you, you can expend a fragment to roll a d20 and choose which of the d20s to use, the one you rolled or the one the attacker rolled.

TRAVIS: They got all the toys.

LAURA: (gasps)

SAM: So two of those?

LAURA: Two of those, but what about the other crate we have?

SAM: It probably has another one or two in there as well.

LAURA: Maybe. Should we open up that crate and find out?

MATT: It's up to you, it's locked.

ASHLEY: Let's do it.

TALIESIN: Is it trapped?

LAURA: Chetney, is this trapped?

TRAVIS: What?

LAURA: You're so talented. Is that crate trapped?

TRAVIS: Let me look.

MATT: Investigation check.

SAM: Guidance.

TRAVIS: Thank you. Well, that's not good.

SAM: You got this. Okay, that helps. That helps.

TRAVIS: 14.

MATT: 14? It seems to be safe.

SAM: Seems to be safe.

LIAM: Take it in the tunnel, maybe.

TALIESIN: Take it in the tunnel.

TRAVIS: What's the box made of? Wood? Metal?

MATT: Wood.

SAM: Wood can't hurt you.

TRAVIS: Not me. I take it in the tunnel.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: Shut the door after me.

TALIESIN: Happily. (laughter)

TRAVIS: I'll use my regular thieves' tools on this.

MATT: Okay. Since we are now stepping into the tunnel, we are going to go ahead and just change our position here. We are underground.

SAM: Oh, nice.

TRAVIS: See you guys later. (laughs)

LAURA: Do you have a cantrip--

TALIESIN: I can't wait to see what you rolled up.

LAURA: -- that freezes the body--

MATT: All righty. So.

LAURA: -- so it can last longer before--?

MATT: You go ahead and you're trying to unlock it?

TRAVIS: Yeah, I'm going to try and unlock it even though I have no idea if it's trapped or not.

MATT: Go ahead.

TRAVIS: Wait, wait, wait, wait. (knocks) Open the door.

SAM: Don't do it. Don't open it.

TRAVIS: Open the door.

TALIESIN: Say the magic word.

SAM: What's the password?

TRAVIS: Grundle.

LAURA: (laughs)

TALIESIN: That might it, I'm not totally sure.

ASHLEY: That happened to be it.

TALIESIN: I'll open it.

TRAVIS: Can you Guide me?

SAM: Oh, again? Sure.

TRAVIS: Yeah.

SAM: Guidance.

TRAVIS: Oh, thank you.

TALIESIN: I close the door. (laughter)

LAURA: Oh.

TRAVIS: Dope. Super dope. 28.

ASHLEY and TALIESIN: Woo!

MATT: 28.

TRAVIS: Those gloves of thievery, y'all.

MATT: Man, all right. So this lock, it's an intricate lock. It's not as intricate as the lead box was but it's still a fairly decent design to it. You realize in that moment that the lock itself appears to have been trapped and you missed it in the first go and you realize in the same moment, being a person who is so well-versed in wood, that this lock isn't as well-fastened to the wood crate itself. So as opposed to unlocking the lock itself, you whittle around the lock until it's no longer attached to the crate.

LAURA: Yeah. (cheering)

SAM: So good.

ASHLEY: Awesome.

MATT: There, you set it down gently into a pile of gently-marked shavings.

TRAVIS: I pocket the shavings. Nothing goes to waste. (laughter)

LAURA: Sawdust in your pockets.

TRAVIS: Yeah, it makes a good deodorant or antiperspirant.

MATT: (creaks) Open the lid and there are six more of these potions within there.

LAURA: (gasps) Six more!?

TRAVIS: There's only two in the box. Open the door.

MATT: (laughs)

SAM: All right. Wow, two more, that's great.

LIAM: We've got four total now.

ASHLEY: Potions of Possibility, what are they called again?

TALIESIN: We see the notches in the fucking box, man.

LAURA: There's holes in it.

TRAVIS: The box had been damaged in the heist.

SAM: So I know what they are and what they do?

LAURA: Thank you.

LAURA: (swoosh)

MATT: As part of Identify, you know exactly what they do. You don't understand their nature.

LAURA: So we all take one of the potions because there's six of them.

MATT: Actually--

LAURA: No, there's eight of them.

MATT: Oddly, you would learn the general school of magic that you're familiar with as part of the Identify spell. It helps you understand the nature of it. This is something you've never encountered before.

TRAVIS: Oh.

MATT: This doesn't fit directly into Transmutation or Evocation or Divination. It sits outside of it. It's not something you've ever encountered or read. It's very odd.

SAM: Huh.

LIAM: Dunemantic immunity.

LAURA: Do we each take one of the potions?

TRAVIS: Because now we have six.

LAURA: And then leave two?

SAM: Is he telling us that he has them?

LAURA: Yeah, he just said.

TRAVIS: I take them out with Wolverine claws.

LAURA: Keep two in the group inventory and then everybody mark down one in your own inventory.

LIAM: One Potion of Possibility.

SAM: You got the inventory, lady?

TRAVIS: What's it called again?

ASHLEY: We also have a backup now.

MATT: Potion of Possibility.

ASHLEY: Because we know it probably would be smart.

LAURA: Not Imogen. Imogen is obviously not keeping inventory, but Laura is keeping inventory in addition to--

SAM: You're taking a second inventory list just because you don't trust Ashley Johnson?

LAURA: No.

ASHLEY: Why would any of you?

LAURA: I completely trust Ashley Johnson.

ASHLEY: I do not.

LAURA: Ashley Johnson told me she didn't trust Ashley Johnson.

ASHLEY: This is not my specialty.

MATT: That's fair.

ASHLEY: I am disorganized and I am a scatterbrain.

MATT: (laughs)

SAM: I trust you.

ASHLEY: Okay.

TRAVIS: Oh, cool.

LAURA: Would that be something we can add in the potions?

TALIESIN: You can, look at that.

MATT: Indeed.

TALIESIN: It just popped right up.

ASHLEY: But the strength is knowing this about myself.

MATT: That is the strength.

ASHLEY: It is.

MATT: Self-awareness is very important.

TRAVIS: "Each fragment lasts for eight hours, or until--"

ASHLEY: I got a lot of it.

TRAVIS: "-- you use it."

ASHLEY: Ooh.

TRAVIS: So it just stays up until you use it.

MATT: Or until eight hours later, in which they vanish.

LIAM: I don't see it on mine.

TRAVIS: Oh, so the potion only lasts for eight hours unless you plan on using it--

MATT: In the next eight hours, exactly. Lasts more than eight hours, please contact your physician.

TRAVIS: (wheezes)

LIAM: That's what I did.

ASHLEY: Oh!

SAM: That potion sure would've helped when Laudna rolled that one.

TRAVIS: I've got a persistent possibility.

MATT: Yes, it would have. (laughs)

TRAVIS: Oh man.

LIAM: 'Tain't on mine.

LAURA: Weird, why?

TRAVIS: We were running. We didn't really have time.

TALIESIN: It says "puls" not "poss" right now.

LAURA: Because you're not typing it in correctly, dude.

LIAM: I did P-O-S though.

TALIESIN: That P-O-S.

TRAVIS: Is that all the crates and boxes and shit?

LAURA: His doesn't have it.

TRAVIS: Is there anything else?

LIAM: Told you so.

TALIESIN: We want to go in the hole. I open the hole.

SAM: Critical Role content.

MATT: It's in the Explorer's Guide to Wildemount.

TALIESIN: Do a sweep, if you want to.

LIAM: I put it under unique equipment.

TALIESIN: Actually, please do a sweep.

MATT: That's fine. Keep a note of it.

TRAVIS: I'll drop down into the hole.

LAURA: I don't want to put it in the hole with Armand, though.

TRAVIS: I'm just going down anyway.

LAURA: I don't want to put those potions in there.

TRAVIS: No, no, no, we're holding them.

TALIESIN: No, he's checking down there.

LAURA: Okay.

TALEISIN: We're not putting them in.

SAM: We can take Armand out of the hole, right?

LAURA: No.

TALIESIN: Not yet.

SAM: What is he going to do?

TRAVIS: Your hands're still tied?

TALIESIN: They're not quite tied.

MATT: "Of course."

TRAVIS: Turn around and show me. Slower.

TALIESIN: Do we have one of those cloaks, by the way, still?

SAM: One of the what?

TALIESIN: Paragon's Call cloaks.

TRAVIS: Okay, you're good.

SAM: We must, yeah.

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Do you need any water or anything?

TALIESIN: I want to grab two of them really quick.

MATT: "I could use some water, actually, if you have some."

TRAVIS: Yeah, me, too. I'll let you know if we find any. Are there any other boxes down here or anything?

LAURA: There is a Jiana Hexum bust.

TRAVIS: Oh, the one that looks like you?

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LAURA: Yeah. There's some Taste of Tal'Dorei tankards. Four sticks of dynamite, apparently.

SAM: How do you know? You're not the inventory person.

LAURA: Just kidding.

ASHLEY: We used to have five sticks.

SAM: Okay.

ASHLEY: But now we have four because we used one of them somewhere.

TALIESIN: I have one on my person.

TRAVIS: I go over to Treshi and I just pat him down. Make sure he hasn't grabbed any of the shit sitting down here.

MATT: Okay, make an investigation check.

LIAM: Or see if he just has anything good.

TALIESIN: That's true.

TRAVIS: Yeah.

LIAM: This fucking lying liar.

TRAVIS: Fucking awesome, 24.

MATT: 24.

TRAVIS: A natural 19.

LAURA: Check for a cock ring of Revivify.

TRAVIS: Yep.

MATT: (laughs)

TRAVIS: I give a full--

ASHLEY: Full pat-down.

LIAM: I never told anyone about that thing. I don't know. (laughter)

ASHLEY: I love that guy.

TRAVIS: Gig ga!

MATT: After--

LIAM: I got three of them lined up just in case.

ASHLEY: Three of them.

MATT: -- a thorough illegal airport pat-down.

ASHLEY: My favorite.

LAURA: Huh?

MATT: No, nothing. You get the sense that whatever immediate belongings he had with him were left behind in the Seat of Disdain or had been confiscated when he was placed within his cell slash guest room. He has not grabbed anything else from the chamber because there was nothing for him to grab that seemed to be of use in the moment.

TRAVIS: Fair enough.

TALIESIN: I am taking a little bit of rope. Well, I'm going to walk over to Imogen. We're going to fucking fix this, okay? Trust me? We're going to fucking fix this.

LAURA: (nervously) What are you going to do?

TALIESIN: Whatever we have to. Don't panic. You can help if you want. I'm going to lay some of the Paragon Call blankets down and then gently wrap Laudna up and then tie it together so she'll be easier to carry and not be a cadaver that we're running around with.

MATT: Okay, okay.

LIAM: Like a Bjorn sash?

TALIESIN: You've seen like a mummy.

LAURA: There's a spell that will make the body last longer.

SAM: I'll look it up. I don't have any spells currently, but I'll look it up.

TALIESIN: In the morning.

LAURA: In the morning.

MATT: Okay.

ASHLEY: (sighs)

LAURA: That's meta-gaming.

TRAVIS: That's all our boxes and crates and everything that we need to?

TALIESIN: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Okay.

TALIESIN: No spells either.

MATT: All right, so what now? Are you resting up here for the evening here in the basement of Imahara Joe's shop?

LIAM: Yeah, we could--

TALIESIN: It's as good a place as any.

LIAM: -- stay here or we could--

LAURA: Where?

LIAM: -- take our chances down that passage and save Joe the trouble.

TALIESIN: I think as long as we're keeping watch. If we hear something coming--

LAURA: He's making us a box.

TALIESIN: -- then we can drop into the tunnel.

TRAVIS: That's right. We can--

LIAM: If he's taking too long.

TRAVIS: -- skedaddle because we know he'll open the door but if it's empty, then no harm, no foul. We stay unless there's a commotion above. Cool.

TALIESIN: Oh, and we have that statue.

ASHLEY: Yeah.

TALIESIN: I'm going to pull that statue. A little help, it's hard. We're going to pull it out and we'll put it on the other side of the door so if we have to run through the door, we can just tip it.

TRAVIS: Oh!

TALIESIN: And shut the door real well.

MATT: All righty.

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LIAM: Which statue is this? Is this the shifting face statue?

TALIESIN: The one that changes faces.

LAURA: The shifting face statue.

LIAM: I didn't know we still have that.

ASHLEY: We do.

LAURA: Just randomly rolling. I love that Armand was just dealing with the statue smashing into him in the hole--

TRAVIS: We're doing a lot better than the Grog Bag of Holding. That thing was a fucking meat locker of horror.

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: (laughs) Yeah, it was.

LAURA: Rot, meat, poop.

TRAVIS: Be glad it's this one and not his.

MATT: (laughs)

TALIESIN: We eventually had to get you a cooler, didn't we?

TRAVIS: Elf arm.

LAURA: Decaying, yeah.

TRAVIS: Orc ear.

LAURA: Body parts.

LIAM: He was in there getting hit with a statue of his own face. (laughter)

ASHLEY: Yeah.

TALIESIN: Appropriate.

MATT: All righty, so you are taking a long rest. Is anyone keeping watch?

LIAM: Yes.

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: All right, who's keeping first watch?

LIAM: I will.

MATT: Go ahead and make a perception check for me with advantage while the rest of you begin your evening's rest.

LIAM: Sleep, you guys.

LAURA: Fuck.

LIAM: That's pretty good. That is a 24.

MATT: Okay. The first quarter watch or I would say a third since it's in three waves for a 10-hour period so everyone gets an eight-hour watch or an eight-hour sleep, you would be watching until the end of the afternoon into the early evening since you'd definitely set up here a little earlier in the day, comparatively. Even with the short rest entirely, but no major event. You can hear now work going on upstairs in Imahara Joe's shop. A couple of shouts here and there, some conversation. It sounds like a music box was put on for a bit to just keep the work atmosphere going and it looks or sounds, I would say, like they're getting to work on your box. But you finish your watch, no major issue.

LIAM: I would say that the whole time, I also couldn't stop thinking about Thull and thinking how seeing Imogen reminding me of my own day six years ago and how much there is to do.

MATT: Okay.

LIAM: That's it.

MATT: You finish your watch. Who takes second watch?

TRAVIS: I'll take it.

MATT: All right. While everyone else rests, Chetney, if you don't mind, go ahead and roll a perception check for me.

TRAVIS: 18, 19.

MATT: 19. Okay. Partway into your watch into the later bit of the evening, you hear the door open up top.

LAURA: (whispers) Oh shit.

MATT: A couple of heavy footfalls hit and Imahara Joe's voice go, "Hey, stranger, can I help you at all?" A voice goes, "Yes, we're looking for some problem-makers who might be involved in an assault on the Seat. Do you know anything about this, Joe?" (Joe) "Well, I don't know why you're coming to me for this. What do they look like?"

TRAVIS: Wake up.

MATT: "Are they coming around for a reason?"

TRAVIS: Wake up, shh.

MATT: (Call member) "Well yes, word is around here that these same people were doing some business in your shop in recent days."

LAURA: (whispers) Close the hole.

TRAVIS: Come towards the tunnel.

MATT: "Got some crawlers from you for the recent Deathwish Run. You were all watching that."

TRAVIS: (whispers) Come into the tunnel.

MATT: "You know who we're talking about?" (Joe) "Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. They're out-of-towners, right? New folk came in here, tore through the Run. Took down some of your folk, too, if I recall." (Call member) "Yeah, yeah. You seen them anywhere, Joe?" A bit of a pause. (Joe) "I wish I could help you, buddy. I haven't seen them since they left. Isn't that right?" You hear a couple of the voices come and go, "Yeah, yeah, no, no." "Okay, okay." (Call member) "You don't mind if we have a look around, do you?" (as Joe) "(chuckles) Be my guest, I got nothing to hide. It's just my workshop, though."

TRAVIS: We're into the tunnel.

MATT: "It's a lot of tools."

TRAVIS: We shut the door.

MATT: (Call member) "We'll take a while."

LAURA: I'm going to Prestidigitation the ground to make it look like we weren't here.

MATT: Okay, a few other boot falls begin to enter the chamber on the wood above (thuds). In the low lantern light that peeks through, you can see the shape of shadows moving overhead. Some shifting of chairs (creaks), (swoosh) moving of curtains. "Mind if we have a look in your workshop at the back?" (Joe) "No, please, be my guest." What are you all doing?

TRAVIS: We're in the tunnel now. The door has been shut. I would wait until there's a large sound to just try and (clink) shut the latch on the other side of the door. But not until there's a bang or something.

MATT: Okay.

TALIESIN: Not until they're moving the fucking--

TRAVIS: Yeah, anything else.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

MATT: Okay.

TRAVIS: And then holding our breath.

MATT: A few quiet moments pass, walking around, shifting of things. A growl. Joe going, "Look, we've been in good standing for a while. I've been really helpful here. I have nothing to hide on this and believe me, if anyone was trying to get involved in some of your business, I would really not want to be a part of that." (Call member) "No, I hear you, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I wasn't thorough. Why is the dust shifted on this?" (Joe) "Oh, it's just our storage area. Don't worry about that."

TRAVIS: (laughs)

MATT: (Call member) "Oh, I think I'll worry about that just for a moment. After all, you got nothing to hide, right?" (Joe) "Yeah, yeah, no worries. Let me just go ahead and move that out of the way. You want to help me over here? Let's move it here." (grunt, thuds) "Shit, why are you so clumsy? (thuds) Sorry, it's a heavy table." (thuds, scrapes) Shifting off to the side, while that's happening.

TRAVIS: We've moved the latch when that large sound hit and now Ashton and I--

TALIESIN: And I do the lean gently.

TRAVIS: We're holding just on the other side of the door.

ASHLEY: Yeah, same.

SAM: We're in the tunnel?

ASHLEY: We're in the tunnel, yeah,

LAURA: And I Prestidigitation to the ground.

LIAM: On the floor.

LAURA: To make it look like--

LIAM: Sweep it up.

LAURA: -- we were not there.

MATT: I take it you've closed up the hole?

LAURA: Yes, very much.

TALIESIN: Oh yeah.

LAURA: The minute we heard something, we closed the hole and brought it.

LIAM: That was one of the first things we did.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LIAM: Early on.

MATT: And are you staying there?

TRAVIS: I'm staying there with Ashton if you guys want to go further down the tunnel.

ASHLEY: I'm going to stand and hold the door.

TRAVIS: They may see the door. They may push on it.

MATT: So we have Fearne, we have Chetney, and we have Ashton waiting at the door, okay. The rest of you are heading down the tunnel.

LAURA: Just a ways.

SAM: Sure, a ways. Do we need light down here?

LIAM: We do.

MATT: It is pitch black.

LAURA: I will use Dancing Lights.

MATT: Okay.

LIAM: I'll go out front.

MATT: Crackling lightning orbs.

TRAVIS: You're far enough away where it wouldn't peak under the door, right, the light?

LAURA: Far enough down.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: It only gives like 30 feet or, no, I don't remember what it gives, but I'll go far enough down.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: 120 feet. Fuck me running.

SAM: Oh god.

TRAVIS: Maybe no Dancing Lights.

LAURA: One single Dancing Light far away.

TRAVIS: I just don't want it to come out from under.

LAURA: Yes exactly, I know, far away.

MATT: You hear beyond the door.

LIAM: I think you have room for--

MATT: (rattles, creaks) (thuds) (footfalls) (thuds) (sniffs) "Give it the rounds." You hear their footsteps (clacks) coming down the steps behind. You hear rummaging and moving, crates being shifted, lids being lifted.

LAURA: The minute I heard the sound, I got rid of the Dancing Lights. I don't like it.

TRAVIS: She did Thaumaturgy.

MATT: Okay. (footsteps)

TRAVIS: I've got to pee.

MATT: (footsteps)

LIAM: I think I'm getting that long rest.

MATT: "(sighs) Let's check the back." You hear multiple footsteps now rising up the stairs once more before (door closes). (dragging) And you hear the footsteps.

SAM: I think we're okay.

TRAVIS: Unless they left somebody in the room. Just wait.

LIAM: Wait.

MATT: How long you do wait?

TRAVIS: Wait until we hear them leave the shop.

TALIESIN: If it's been a while, I'm going to slowly back up--

TRAVIS and LAURA: ♪ It's been a while ♪

TALIESIN: -- and just get a second of air in that thing.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: Oh, oh. I can--

MATT: Good looking out.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: Wait, you know what I can do?

LIAM: (quick breath)

TALIESIN: Just shh.

LIAM: (quick breath)

LAURA: I'm going to use Open Mind to see if there's any thoughts on the other side of that room.

LIAM: Yes!

MATT: Okay.

ASHLEY: Oh, good idea.

MATT: All right, so you're using Open Mind?

LAURA: Yeah, because I don't have any spells left.

MATT: Okay. So that would be with the people that are in your proximity, in order to get them within proximity--

LAURA: Would be three people, so.

TRAVIS: You'd have to come back through the door.

MATT: Three people and then the individuals you're going for, which would be three more in the basement.

LAURA: Well, I would do it after they left. So, wait, I'm trying to see if anybody is still in the basement.

MATT: Oh, I see, I see. Okay. Okay. So go ahead and roll for me.

LAURA: Okay. And I add anything to it? I can't remember.

LIAM: Like 30. Yeah, like 30.

MATT: It should be under the Open Mind ability.

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: There's a DC plus the number of minds that are within a distance of you.

LIAM: Open your mind.

LAURA: Open up your mind!

TRAVIS: Face off!

LAURA: Class features?

TRAVIS: No more drinks for that man.

LAURA: Open Mind. You cast... Wisdom saving throw. Okay, wisdom saving throw, which is, I rolled a 12 and the DC is eight plus the number of creatures, so I succeeded.

MATT: Okay, all right. You expand your consciousness beyond the doorway, keeping all the whispers and thoughts at bay, pushing off into the space beyond this egress, nothing finds you there.

LAURA: They're gone.

MATT: It's right about this time that you hear, "Well, Joe, there is quite a purse, should you have any information about these individuals. Otohan would personally be happy to do a favor and pay very handsomely. So stop on by should anything come into your periphery and thank you for your cooperation." (door creaks closed) You hear numerous exhales from above.

TRAVIS: Amazing. Open the door. (toots) (laughter) We don't even have to go into the cavern, we can stay in here.

TALIESIN: I was going to say, I want to go back to sleep very, very badly.

TRAVIS: I come to the door and go: Thanks, Joe. That was a pucker moment!

MATT: "Yeah. 400 gold."

LAURA and SAM: (groan)

TRAVIS: Yeah, sounds right.

ASHLEY: For sure.

TALIESIN: Fair.

MATT: You get back to rest.

SAM: (sighs)

MATT: Who's taking the last watch?

SAM: I'll take the last rest.

MATT: Okay. Perception check, please.

SAM: As I'm resting, I'm just watching.

TRAVIS: That was Quentin Tarantino.

SAM: I'm watching Chetney the whole time I'm resting. I've got my blade out, just spinning it and looking at him while he sleeps. Remembering how we started this day. (laughing)

LAURA: What the fuck?

TRAVIS: (snores)

SAM: Perception? 18.

MATT: 18, okay. While interrupted mid-sleep, the rest of you find a return to a very exhausted, necessary rest. You keep an eye out. Everything seems to be fine, until--

SAM: Ah, Jesus!

MATT: You finish your long rest without issue. (groaning)

MATT: So you can all take a long rest.

LAURA: I have a question.

MATT: Yes.

LAURA: I mean, obviously, you probably would've said it if I had.

MATT: Yes, you did.

LAURA: So I didn't have--

MATT: No, what's your question?

LAURA: Oh.

MATT: (laughs)

LAURA: So I didn't have the dream that Laudna walked into the storm like Bertrand did?

MATT: Not at the moment, no.

LAURA: Okay. That's comforting.

TALIESIN: At the moment? No.

MATT: It's the first night of rest. But you do feel a little element lingering, a little bit of that buzz from that moment that doesn't quite subside, like the faintest of butterflies that continue to turn in your stomach.

LAURA: I feel that right now. I feel it.

MATT: Yeah.

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: So, go ahead and look at your feats.

LAURA: My feats?

MATT: Yeah.

LIAM: Ooh.

TALIESIN: What? You did that fucking shit.

LIAM: Sneaky devil.

LAURA: When did you do that?

SAM: What? How?

ASHLEY: Sneaky.

LIAM: With D&D Beyond.

MATT: So you all come to consciousness, finishing your long rest. You can go ahead and heal up as you want to. Sore, tense, battered, emotionally spent, but physically recovered to a certain point. But the day is yours. What would you like to do?

SAM: Chetney.

TRAVIS: Yes?

SAM: I want to talk to you about what happened yesterday.

TRAVIS: Oh?

SAM: When I was feeling weird and you came and hit me.

TRAVIS: Mm-hmm?

SAM: Thank you. Thank you for trying to reach out and I'm so sorry for what I did to you. Now, more than ever, we need to stick together. I'm sorry about that.

TRAVIS: Oh, well, I wouldn't worry too much about it. It just seemed like you needed to let off some steam or something.

SAM: I shouldn't have taken it out on you, and I know that I said some things, and I shouldn't have, to all of you. So I stayed up during the night to make you this. (laughter) (laughter)

SAM: It's a toolbox for your wooden tools.

TRAVIS: (laughing) Oh no!

LAURA: Aw!

ASHLEY: And look at the-- (laughter)

SAM: I used my blade to carve it during the night. It's not as fine workmanship as you, but--

TRAVIS: No, it's not. (laughter)

SAM: But I thought that you might like it.

TRAVIS: How? Oh, I love it. I love it so much! God, it's awful. I love it.

SAM: All of you mean so much to me and I'm sorry that I did that to you. And for Laudna's sake, we got to stick together and be honest with each other and not hide money from each other. You know, just in general. That's a general comment. Not directed at anyone.

TRAVIS: FCG, this is so great, and can I just say it's not all bad what happened yesterday. I am actually encouraged by what I saw you throw down with. That's the shit I'm talking about. So if you need to let that out every once in a while on our enemies, I fully encourage it. Just on our enemies! Because when your eyes go red, that's some crazy shit, but I'm here for it.

SAM: Well, it sounds like I'm not the only one who has some dark powers hidden within.

ASHLEY: We should probably, maybe just a little bit--

TALIESIN: Get the fuck out of here?

ASHLEY: -- talk about--

TALIESIN: Oh.

ASHLEY: -- the breaking down of a block of buildings.

LIAM: She's in rules and mechanics.

ASHLEY: That was a lot.

LAURA: Sorry. Sorry, what?

ASHLEY: No, you're fine. I just, we were talking, that was-- What did you do? It was like a poof.

TRAVIS: Oh my gosh.

TALIESIN: Oh, I'm getting so tired of this. I close the fucking hole again.

ASHLEY: Oh, I took it-- I'm sorry.

TALIESIN: No, I've been holding it. I was going to say, I've been holding it.

ASHLEY: I'm going to let you take care of that.

LAURA: I have no idea what happened. I have no idea. I lost control. I don't-- I felt more in control than I'd ever been at the same time. There was so much. And then Otohan was there and...

LIAM: She was super into you.

LAURA: And then she just wasn't. Did anyone see what happened to her? I hit her and then when we came back to the city, she just was gone.

LIAM: Came back? Where'd you go?

LAURA: I don't know. Everything was white. Everything was stormy. Everything was just gone.

SAM: She just wanted you. She didn't want us.

TALIESIN: Clearly.

LAURA: I'm sorry I ran.

TALIESIN: We all ran.

SAM: Why did she want you?

LAURA: I assume because we have similar sort of abilities. I mean, did she talk to any of y'all in your mind as well?

TRAVIS: No.

TALIESIN: Maybe.

SAM: No.

LAURA: Yeah, she did to you.

LIAM: Oh. Well, she reached into my mind.

LAURA: Yeah.

TALIESIN: I don't know. That white flash was weird. That's all I'm going to say is that white flash was kind of weird.

LAURA: I've never had anything like that happen. That was more-- I didn't think I was capable of it.

TRAVIS: What, you've never removed a city block before?

LAURA: Not to my knowledge. Also, in that moment, it's like... I saw my mother, and as far as I know, she-- she was gone from the day I was born. I don't remember her in my childhood, and she was there. She was there.

TALIESIN: Wait, what do you mean?

LAURA: I saw into my memories, I saw my mother before she left. I think she was really powerful. She was still talking to me.

SAM: Your mom?

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Did Otohan talk to you in this?

LAURA: I mean, she was trying, but my mother was still telling me to get away from her.

SAM: And just to be 100% clear, your mom, in this vision, was not Otohan, right?

LAURA: No.

SAM: So she's not the same person? Two different--?

LAURA: No, it's not.

SAM: Okay.

TRAVIS: And your mom's told you to run before?

LAURA: Every dream. My mother always tells me to run away from the storm.

TRAVIS: Are you sure she's saying that you should run away from the storm, and it's not that you should run away?

LAURA: Wait, huh?

SAM: What's the difference?

TRAVIS: Well, the storm would be the thing that's dangerous. What if, sorry, what if you're the thing that's dangerous?

SAM: You did make some pretty big boom.

ASHLEY: Well, how could she run away from herself?

TRAVIS: I mean, if you ever-- I'm just saying, if I ever removed a city block and the people around me were hurt, I think they'd probably be scared. Didn't you say your dad always kept a distance?

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: I'm not scared. I'm not scared of you!

TRAVIS: I'm not either, I fuck with you big time! But like...

LAURA: Yeah.

TALIESIN: Did anyone else see anything?

SAM: See anything? Like visions or something?

TALIESIN: Yeah. Did anyone else see anything?

TRAVIS: I mean, I saw some old... some old flings.

SAM: Oh yeah. Oh yeah! When she went off, I saw some stuff, too.

LAURA: You did?

TALIESIN: Me too.

SAM: Another land and lots of automatons, and a man who was mean, and a woman who was nice, and I don't know where it was or who those people were, but.

LIAM: Automatons like you? Or like Oatmeal?

SAM: No, like me.

LAURA: Wow.

TALIESIN: I saw my parents.

TRAVIS: Your parents?

TALIESIN: Yeah.

SAM: Aren't you an orphan?

TALIESIN: I'm going to give you like 10 seconds to work that out.

MATT and LAURA: (laugh)

SAM: So you do have parents?

TALIESIN: Five.

SAM: But you did-- But I didn't know if you ever knew what they looked like or saw them.

TALIESIN: I don't.

SAM: But then how did you know that they were them?

TALIESIN: I do.

TRAVIS: You just know?

LAURA: You just knew.

TALIESIN: It's a dim memory that was just suddenly really fucking clear.

TRAVIS: Do you want to tell us what they looked like?

TALIESIN: Actually, I've been meaning to ask, did that helmet, the armor and the helmet is exactly what I think it is?

MATT: Yeah.

TALIESIN: Okay.

LAURA: Is that like, hmm?

SAM: They were football players.

LAURA: Is it the armor that you took?

TALIESIN: The helmet that I-- Yeah, it was the stuff we saw in the museum. I don't know why it was-- Did something.

SAM: The helmet that you--

LAURA: You remember, he took the armor in that museum?

LIAM: He took some stuff from the museum.

TALIESIN: I pull out--

LAURA: At Jiana Hexum.

SAM: Why was it there?

TALIESIN: I pull out the helmet that I stole from the museum. It was some sort of ritual, I guess. I don't know. They were doing something. I think my mother said, I believe, I think it was my mother who said, "It begins."

LAURA: It begins.

TALIESIN: And then I woke up, had to--

TRAVIS: It begins?

TALIESIN: I don't know. This is it. This fucking thing is it. It's what I fucking got.

TRAVIS: Is that helmet or armor from somewhere that you recognize or people?

LAURA: What did it say in the museum where it was from? Do we remember? Did you write it down?

TALIESIN: I did, and it's a--

LIAM: It sounded like Ashari, but it wasn't Ashari.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: Oh, that's right!

MATT: Hishari.

TALIESIN: Hishari.

MATT: Which while the term, the language base is similar, it isn't Ashari-based. It is more elemental-based. It's what the secondary portion of the word is derived from.

ASHLEY: What if you put it on?

TALIESIN: I'm not putting it fucking on.

TRAVIS: But I mean, what if it's a lock and a key? Like what if you put it on and you grow wings or some shit?

TALIESIN: I throw it to you.

ASHLEY: Well--

TALIESIN: You figure it out.

MATT: You can see that it is a cured leather mask and headband combination where there are these leather tendrils that curl up like a living flame in the back that weave and pull upward. There is a sculpted heavy brow that pulls across the nose. It looks like it's a ceremonial dress more than it is an armor.

TRAVIS: Got it.

LAURA: I'm going to, while everything's happening, I'm going to send a message to the captain of our airship.

SAM: Oh good.

LIAM: See if he can find us.

MATT: It also looks slightly damaged.

LAURA: Xandis?

TRAVIS: The helmet, or the head piece?

MATT: Mm-hmm.

TRAVIS: Can I do--?

SAM: I can Identify it.

TRAVIS: Yeah, I was going to do an investigation check.

TALIESIN: I feel like we did. It was a basic-ass thing last time we tried.

LAURA: Yeah, it wasn't--

TALIESIN: I recall it's just a basic-ass thing.

SAM: It's just a helmet.

TRAVIS: Like a ceremonial headdress.

TALIESIN: I'll admit I was working out the courage to talk to you, Orym, because I don't know. I thought maybe-- I don't know, I thought maybe you would know what the fuck it is. I don't know. I don't know what the fuck I was thinking.

LIAM: It would've triggered any kind of knowledge or memory I had when I saw it the first time.

MATT: Roll a history check.

LIAM: That's an 18.

MATT: 18. You've heard about it once, the Hishari village. It's kind of, at least in Ashari terms, it's used as a tale to spook people from toying with the elements if they don't know what they're doing.

LIAM: Okay.

MATT: You don't know much beyond that. You know that it was a group of people that delved into things they didn't fully understand or knew how to control.

LIAM: But it's somehow connected to my people?

MATT: Only in the sense that the Ashari are considered long historically guardians of the elements within Exandria, both control and uncontrollable. What the Hishari village did was reckless and they paid for it. That's basically what you know.

LIAM: Okay, I share that little dribble of info.

TALIESIN: Yeah, it was a memory of the last day I spent with my parents.

ASHLEY: How old were you?

TALIESIN: Too young to remember. And-- I remember, vaguely, watching everything fucking go, everything just rip apart.

LIAM: What do you mean? Metaphorically, physically? What do you mean?

TALIESIN: Oh, wind and light and air and people flinging through the air, cracking and breaking and--

LIAM: This is your last memory of your parents?

TALIESIN: Yeah, I woke up wandering the--

SAM: (sneezes)

TALIESIN: -- deadlands outside the city.

ASHLEY: Stop it.

TALIESIN: After however long, they fucking found me. Put me in the Greymoore Home.

SAM: So there was a cataclysmic event with your parents and elemental forces?

TALIESIN: I guess-- I don't know.

TRAVIS: You remember them saying, "It begins?"

TALIESIN: I remembered it today. Yesterday.

TRAVIS: Imogen, did you see any of this in us while we were seeing these things?

TALIESIN: I know you saw some weird shit in my head.

LAURA: Well, in the past, but yesterday, no. There was just the storm.

ASHLEY: So prior to that moment,

ASHLEY: So prior to that moment, when you had that memory, you didn't remember it before that?

TALIESIN: It was vague.

ASHLEY: Okay.

TALIESIN: It was not-- There were not faces I could pull together, not words I could really put together, just flashes of something. It was a very long time ago, and I was a very different person, and a lot's happened since then, and it's not really the sort of thing one really wants to dwell on as much as possible. Plenty of other awful fucking things to dwell on.

LIAM: I'll tell you what I know. I don't have a lot of answers, but this Thull woman is playing a long game, and whatever she's interested in with you, she's not going to stop. These are the people who attacked my home and took my family from me. That was six years ago, and they seem a lot further into whatever plans they have. So if she's willing to play whatever game they're playing for years, then she's not done with you.

LAURA: I know.

LIAM: So there's no point sitting around wondering. We need to get help for Laudna, I hope. Then we got to find this woman and stop her.

LAURA: I've called the airship. I called the airship.

TALIESIN: Have you called Eshteross?

LAURA: Before all of this, as soon as we woke up, I called the airship.

MATT: Okay, okay. So you're reaching out to, I believe, Captain Xandis, then?

LAURA: Captain Xandis of the Silver Sun.

MATT: You got it.

LIAM: Oh, hi, Xandis.

LAURA: Oh, hey, Xandis. We need you to come get us. At the edge of town. Lay low, if you can. It's hectic here. We're on the run. Come fast, please.

MATT: "Oh, hey there. Yeah, you're in luck. We've been sort of circling around for a bit, so we're really only about half a day away."

LAURA: Half a day.

MATT: "Sucks you're on the run!" That's the end.

TALIESIN: Want to get word to Eshteross, too?

LAURA: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I should mark these spells off, that's for sure.

TALIESIN: Maybe that's where we hold, unless you can think of who you want to talk to to fix our problem.

TRAVIS: Imogen--

LAURA: Should I call--

TRAVIS: Sorry.

LAURA: No, what?

TRAVIS: I know we're all a little unsettled, and obviously miss Laudna, but how do you feel after that? Do you feel the same, different?

LAURA: It's hard to tell, Chet, because I feel really sad.

TRAVIS: Right.

LAURA: I feel like there's a bit of a fuzziness at the back of my brain, if that makes sense. Little pinpricks that weren't there before. I look at my arms. Do the marks look any longer, at all, than they were?

MATT: They've crawled at least an inch to an inch and a half up from where they previously were.

LAURA: So they're getting about here now, if not higher.

MATT: Yeah, just past the elbow.

LIAM: Orym just abruptly hugs her around the knees, above the knees. You hear down by your thigh: We're real sorry, Imogen.

LAURA: I'm so sorry. I feel like if I hadn't run away, none of this would've happened, and you guys wouldn't be hurting, and Laudna wouldn't be gone, and I-- I just thought we were all running, and then she just kept coming for us.

TRAVIS: We were. We were running.

TALIESIN: We were all running.

SAM: We had to.

LAURA: And she wouldn't have even gone after you if... It's like she was trying to make me break.

LIAM: That might be so, but we went into her house, all of us.

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LAURA: I just didn't know how powerful she was. I just didn't understand it.

ASHLEY: There was a lot that we didn't know.

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: And that's not your fault.

TRAVIS: I didn't mean to be insensitive before. I mean, we didn't know how powerful she was. Seems like she's the only one that knew how powerful you were.

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: And I know a thing or two about people being afraid of you. I just want to help you embrace it, or control it, or use it, or something, but we were all on the same team. You didn't run. We all did. She was just fucking strong.

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: Could we see if Otohan had those...? Probably not, with her jacket.

MATT: Her whole body was covered in leather armor, except the fingers were exposed, and her head.

TRAVIS: Those barrels on her back.

LAURA: Just pure magic potions on her back?

TRAVIS: No.

LAURA: It was different?

TRAVIS: I was down there fucking around near her ankles at one point, and it looked like these big cylinders that were under her cloak, but I couldn't get too good of a look.

SAM: You got a look at her.

ASHLEY: I saw those, too.

SAM: Did they look like the thing that we have?

LAURA: The gray potion?

ASHLEY: Yeah. Yeah.

MATT: It looked like they were metallic cylinders, and they were set into them.

SAM: What was set?

MATT: The crystalline potion.

SAM: The crystalline potion?

LAURA: She can use those things at will.

TRAVIS: Fuck.

ASHLEY: That's-- But--

TALIESIN: I've been meaning to ask. Do you know what that is?

LAURA: What is? These? The mark of Ruidus? I don't fucking know.

TALIESIN: Do they hurt?

LAURA: No.

ASHLEY: Do you remember when... I can't remember if we've talked about this before. Do you remember when those first showed up?

LAURA: Yeah, they started showing up when I starting having the dreams.

SAM: And how old were you?

LAURA: About 18.

TALIESIN: How do they make you feel?

LAURA: These?

TALIESIN: Yeah.

LAURA: Well. Up until yesterday, they kind of felt good. I mean, at first, they were terrible. It let everyone in town know I was different, you know? And then as soon as I realized I could defend, like when I defended Laudna when she came to town, then it was like they were proof that I was stronger than I thought I was. But now, it just feels like evidence.

TALIESIN: It looks like proof to me. You fucking saved us.

TRAVIS: Yeah.

TALIESIN: You saved all of us, and we're going to save her, too.

ASHLEY: Yeah.

LAURA: We will.

TALIESIN: It's proof that you're going to be able to fucking do it.

LAURA: Yeah. I don't want to give in. I don't want to be like Otohan.

LIAM: So don't.

TALIESIN: That's some hero shit, man.

LIAM: You don't.

ASHLEY: And also, it seems that you're more powerful than her, or could be.

LAURA: Maybe just in that moment, you know. She wasn't expecting a fucking blast to the face.

TALIESIN: Well, if we learned anything yesterday, it only takes one moment.

ASHLEY: We all know now that that's in there. And that saved us.

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: I mean, you took down a city block, but--

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: That's pretty fucking cool.

LAURA: But at the same time, you guys didn't get blown away like the buildings did, so maybe there was part of me protecting you at the same time.

ASHLEY: That's how I feel about it.

TALIESIN: I think so.

SAM: You think you could choose when to do that power?

LAURA: Oh. You know, it was seeing three of my best... friends die that kind of triggered it, so I-I-I don't know if it'd happen just on the reg. At least, I would hope it wouldn't. I don't want to see that again.

TRAVIS: Well, it's interesting to know it's in there.

LAURA: Yeah, it would be nice to be able to control it and not feel like I was part of something evil at the same time.

TALIESIN: Goddamn superhero. Are you fucking kidding?

LAURA: We've got to save Laudna.

TALIESIN: We're going to save Laudna.

LAURA: And we've got to find out what's going on with the Apogee Solstice, and if they're trying to... This is so big.

TALIESIN: No shit.

LIAM: Yeah.

TALIESIN: We have to call Lord Eshteross at some fucking point.

LAURA: Yeah, we got to call him.

TALIESIN: And then get the fuck out of here.

LIAM: Power is power.

TALIESIN: Fuck.

LIAM: What you do with it is up to you.

LAURA: Yeah.

LIAM: We're going to leave. We're going to lick our wounds. We're going to figure it out. You got us.

LAURA: Yeah.

LIAM: Okay? Let's just get out of here and help our friend.

LAURA: Yeah.

LIAM: All right, what do we need to do? Do you need to rest? Do you--

LAURA: I need to send a message to Eshteross. We need to open the hole, make sure Treshi isn't dying.

LIAM: He's got 90 seconds.

TALIESIN: Yeah, I only closed it for the conversation.

SAM: Do we have any more diamonds?

TALIESIN: This is my new favorite.

TRAVIS: You just hear (gasps).

TALIESIN: You'll thank me later that you know nothing.

SAM: Were those our last diamonds, by the way?

LAURA: They were our last diamonds.

TALIESIN: Yep.

SAM: Great.

LAURA: We got to get more.

LIAM: Yeah, keep an eye peeled for that.

LAURA: Although that shit doubles as--

TALIESIN: That's not going to work for this. We're going to need-- Actually, it does.

LIAM: I think maybe?

LAURA: Missed it.

ASHLEY: Oh?

LAURA: Now it's gone.

TALIESIN: Oh no.

LIAM: (like Caleb) Yeah, that is their natural property.

LAURA: (laughs)

ASHLEY: I'm really sorry.

LAURA: So am I. I'm glad y'all are back. Thank you, FCG, and you, Fearne.

SAM: What did I do?

LAURA: Well, you brought back Fearne.

SAM: Well, I'm sorry I couldn't do more.

TALIESIN: Any luck with that spell?

LAURA: I'm sending message right now.

SAM: What spell?

TALIESIN: We were talking about--

SAM: Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes. If anyone has a pinch of salt, do you think Joe might?

LAURA: A pinch of salt?

TRAVIS: Probably, he's going to charge us 50 fucking gold for it.

SAM: That's all right. I just need a pinch of salt.

ASHLEY: A little pinch?

SAM: Yeah.

TALIESIN: I have a packet from Taste of Tal'Dorei. (laughter)

LAURA: Yeah.

SAM: That's great.

TRAVIS: That's not salt.

TALIESIN: It didn't break properly.

SAM: If you can undo her shroud so I can reach her face, I'll just place two copper coins on her eyes and a sprinkle of salt. I don't have lips, so.

LAURA: I'll lean down and give her a kiss on the forehead.

SAM: Thank you. And I'll cast Gentle Repose on her.

MATT: Mm-hmm. All right.

SAM: Yeah, ritually? I don't know, is that a thing?

MATT: You can cast it as a ritual.

LIAM: Just takes extra time.

LAURA: Takes 10 minutes.

SAM: I'll just--

ASHLEY: We got 10 minutes.

SAM: Yeah, sure.

MATT: Okay, so you don't use a spell slot for it.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

MATT: Okay.

TALIESIN: Freebie.

MATT: So as you complete the ritual, you focus on her body, her corpse, her essence, whatever earthly connection still remains with the currently absconded spirit that you know as Laudna. You complete the ritual, and there is a flash of vibrant, warm, orangish light around it. None of you pick it up, but you do, a weird sense that the spell definitely headed something off at the pass.

LAURA: Oh shit.

MATT: And now she rests for the next 10 days.

SAM: For the next 10 days?

LAURA: 10 days.

TALIESIN: Repeat the spell every 10 days.

ASHLEY: Wait, wait. Wait, What did you just say?

LIAM: Cured that meat.

TRAVIS: Oh. Okay.

TALIESIN: We don't know that, though. We don't know that.

LIAM: Yeah, we don't know that there was a cutoff point.

ASHLEY: Wait, he said what?

TRAVIS: Oh no! We're just fucking around with all sorts of atom bombs. Oh man.

TALIESIN: Learn to juggle.

SAM: Not to be disrespectful.

TRAVIS: Wow.

SAM: But is there anything that she had in her possessions that we think we might use to bring her back or help us in our endeavors? She had an immovable rod, for instance.

LAURA: Did she? Does she still have it?

TALIESIN: I will admit, that's practical.

LAURA: Maybe we can ask an angel later about it.

SAM: Why don't you ask Pâté?

LAURA: He raises up.

MATT: Yeah, you can discuss that at another time with the player.

LAURA: Yeah.

SAM: Okay.

LAURA: I got to send a message to Eshteross.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

TRAVIS: Just do it.

LAURA: Yes, I always call it message, but whatever. I'm Sending.

MATT: Okay.

LAURA: We have Armand. We lost Laudna. Do you know of someone powerful enough to bring her back? Tell us what to do.

MATT: Is that it? Okay. He responds rather quickly. "I am very sorry to hear. A terrible sacrifice. Perhaps we can make right on this with Armand. Such magics are rare, though."

LAURA: He doesn't know of anyone.

SAM: Did you warn him?

LAURA: Warn him of what?

SAM: They're coming for him.

LAURA: How would I know that?

SAM: Didn't one of us know that?

LAURA: Orym knew it, but we never talked about the fact that Thull--

MATT: Otohan said out loud.

LAURA: Oh, she did?

MATT: Eshteross' name, yeah.

LAURA: Oh fuck. Okay, then I would've warned him.

TRAVIS: You had six words left.

LAURA: I had six words left.

LIAM: BTW.

SAM: Also, you in danger, girl. (laughter)

TALIESIN: Leaves you one. Pooping? Sorry.

LAURA: Otohan. And Paragon--

MATT: Do you want to use another--

LAURA: No, no, no. If I knew that he knew, I would've warned him in that message.

LIAM: She said it down to my body.

MATT: Okay.

SAM: I have Sending.

MATT: It would've changed his response.

LAURA: Oh, okay, okay.

SAM: I can use Sending as well.

LAURA: Okay, well then, you fucking warn him.

SAM: I will follow up with: Also, you in danger, girl. (laughter)

SAM: Otohan knows you sent us, and might come for you. So be safe.

MATT: "I knew this time would come. I will see if I have contacts who can aid in Laudna's predicament. Bring her here."

LAURA: (whispers) Okay.

MATT: "I will prepare."

TRAVIS: Oh shit.

LAURA: That's good. That's good.

SAM: He's not going to run.

ASHLEY: (shivers)

LAURA: Yeah. He's strong.

TRAVIS: Get all those weapons out of the bushes and bookshelves.

ASHLEY: He's going to...

LIAM and TRAVIS: (whooshes)

LAURA: He's got a house of death around him.

LIAM: He's all covered in mud, disappearing into the--

TRAVIS: Uh-huh!

LAURA: Yeah.

MATT: (laughs)

TRAVIS: He's painted like the wallpaper.

MATT: (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) I'm here! Kill me! All right.

TALIESIN: I don't trust him.

TRAVIS: (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) Yeah, come on! Kill me. I'm here, do it! (laughter)

TALIESIN: Never mind.

LIAM: (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) Do it!

TRAVIS: (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) You're one ugly motherfucker.

MATT: Oh my goodness. All right.

TALIESIN: What did he say? (laughter)

SAM: He talked like Arnold Schwarzenegger. (laughter)

SAM: It was really weird.

LIAM: (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) Do you like my cookies?

SAM: He was doing bits.

LIAM: These are fresh gingersnaps!

SAM: He said come.

TALIESIN: If he relayed the whole message--

SAM: Yes, I did.

TALIESIN: -- did anyone else notice he said there's nothing he can do, and then suddenly there's something he can do?

LAURA: No, he said these magics are rare.

TALIESIN: Rare.

SAM: He said he'll look for someone.

LAURA: Yeah.

TALIESIN: Okay, I think we should keep looking for someone, too.

TRAVIS: Further motivated.

LAURA: He doesn't know for sure.

LIAM: Retroactive magical insight check.

LAURA: The only-- the other person, we should send something to is, your boss, your leader? Or should we wait?

LIAM: Okay. I think we should wait a little longer.

TALIESIN: Let's get on the ship.

LIAM: Let's get out of here.

LAURA: Okay. He said half a day, so we could wait just a little bit, and then make it to the edge of town where they dropped us off before.

TALIESIN: It's going to take a while to get to the edge of town. We are very conspicuous.

TRAVIS: While you've been doing the messages, I just wanted to hand FCG this. I used the paints from Imahara Joe. Just in case you start feeling wild again, I just thought maybe we could craft something that could help you describe your emotions, so if you're feeling happy--

MATT: (laughs)

TRAVIS: -- you could just leave this up, or maybe if you're like, "Ah! I'm going to buzzsaw you!" You can do this. Maybe we could just mount it to your chest or something. That's for rebooting.

LAURA: (laughs)

ASHLEY: Oh.

LIAM: Like an emotional thermometer.

TRAVIS: Just keep it real simple.

LAURA: Isn't it so cute?

TRAVIS: It's real smooth. The paint is slightly corrosive, so just be careful.

LAURA: Look at the sad little scar.

SAM: Why is the paint corrosive?

TRAVIS: I think it's meant for metal, but it's really burning the fuck out of my skin. My prints are all gone. So, you know.

SAM: I love it.

LAURA: Aww, it's real cute. I like the suave one over there.

TRAVIS: Yeah, that's if you want to get your freak on. You can just walk around, let people know, hey, it's time, if you're interested. Just put the vibe out with the arrow.

SAM: I'm very happy right now.

TRAVIS: Content?

SAM: You can't tell because my face can't make emotional movements.

TRAVIS: This one could be unsure, or you got to dookie.

LIAM: Nine o'clock is just Marisha.

ASHLEY: This is spectacular. (laughter)

TRAVIS: Thank you for what you said.

SAM: Thank you for this emotional clock.

TRAVIS: Thanks for my toolbox, my amateurishly made toolbox.

SAM: I did the best I could. I have a very large buzzsaw.

TRAVIS: It's okay.

SAM: It's not a fine cutting--

TRAVIS: I understand.

SAM: It's got a wide gauge to it.

TRAVIS: The drip of the stain is particularly horrifying, but, you know, it's a good starting place.

SAM: I salvaged what I could from Joe's while he was asleep.

TRAVIS: We've got a long trip ahead of us. Maybe we'll refine your skills. I have to be able to pass on my craft to someone. You could be my legacy.

SAM: Is there one here that eye rolls?

LAURA: (laughs)

TALIESIN: Somebody's going to loot one of their bodies one day and be so disappointed. Fuck.

ASHLEY: I mean, it would be amazing if he could pass on his legacy to you, because you won't ever die.

LAURA: Didn't you ask to be taught by him?

ASHLEY: Well, we're all going to die.

TRAVIS: I don't know. I don't know if that's in the cards for me.

ASHLEY: I just did, so we all die at some point.

LIAM: Orym actually knows a little bit of woodworking.

TALIESIN: Well, shit.

TRAVIS: Do we move from our position, or do we wait it out here for our airship to arrive?

TALIESIN: I think it's going to take--

LAURA: Oh. (knocks) Oh shit.

SAM: (clattering) (laughs)

LAURA: There go the emotions. (laughter)

TALIESIN: Don't panic, don't panic!

LIAM: You're a mess!

TRAVIS: Give him some rope! Give him some rope!

LIAM: He's going to kill all of us! (laughter)

TRAVIS: (fake scream)

TALIESIN: Doomsday clock is a concern.

LAURA: I'm feeling everything!

SAM: (sobbing) (laughs) (cries)

TALIESIN: I'm going to die.

MATT: Oh boy.

LIAM: DM, what time of the day are we?

LIAM: We were keeping watch and there were people coming.

LAURA: Oh, that's right. Is it early, early morning?

MATT: Right now, it's early morning.

TALIESIN: All right.

LAURA: It hasn't even gotten light yet, early morning?

MATT: I'd say you're just past dusk at this point.

LAURA: Okay, so if we're going to go--

LIAM: Now is better than later.

TALIESIN: Now is definitely better than later. Let's settle our debts upstairs.

LAURA: Yeah.

TALIESIN: And take the tunnel out?

LAURA: Tap tap tap tap.

MATT: Okay, for the sake of brevity.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

MATT: You make your 400 gold payment amongst whoever here--

LAURA: Yeah, who has money?

MATT: -- wishes to split that cost to Imahara Joe.

LAURA: ♪ Who has money, Chetney ♪

TALIESIN: Chetney, just want to cover it?

SAM: I can't do it!

LIAM: I'll throw in 100, if need be.

TRAVIS: I'll throw in 250.

LAURA: Did you choose the wrong--

ASHLEY: Wait, no, these are the wrong ones.

LAURA: You chose the wrong one, you stupid. (laughter)

LAURA: This thing is for toddlers.

TRAVIS: We just need 50 gold from the rest of you.

LIAM: 50 gold, anybody?

TRAVIS: From the last four of you.

SAM: Get it off of Laudna. (laughter)

TALIESIN: I mean.

ASHLEY: No!

TALIESIN: I mean.

TRAVIS: She's a team player.

TALIESIN: It's what she would've wanted.

LAURA: No, I can do 200. I'll do 200.

LIAM: It's what she would've wanted.

LAURA: It's 400, right?

TRAVIS: Yeah.

LAURA: Oh, I'll do 150. There, we're even.

LIAM: We just need 50.

LAURA: I'll do 50.

TRAVIS: I mean, I'll give less.

LAURA: No, you can do it.

TALIESIN: No, that's fine. That's good of you.

LAURA: Okay.

TRAVIS: All right.

LAURA: How much money do you have left, Chet? Are you almost out of your money?

LIAM: Like 5,000 gold.

TRAVIS: Getting lower.

LAURA: Is it?

TALIESIN: We'll make more.

TRAVIS: For me. I can't swim in it anymore.

LAURA and MATT: (laugh)

LAURA: This is what happens when you steal. We don't know how much you have. And we just assume that you have a lot.

TRAVIS: Get out of here with that mess.

MATT: You pay up and settle your debt with Imahara Joe and now have, in your gathered materials, a singular lead box.

LAURA: We put the white powder in it.

MATT: Okay. Easy enough to do, easy enough to seal. It has a loop for a lock, but it is currently just a box with a lid, heavily lead lined.

LAURA: Does it shut, at least?

MATT: It closes, yeah.

LAURA: Securely?

MATT: Yeah.

LAURA: Okay.

MATT: You can latch it over, but you'd have to put a lock onto it to close it.

LAURA: Make it lock.

LIAM: I don't have that.

LAURA: I'm just going to tie it with the little string, with some rope, to keep it shut for now so it doesn't pop up.

MATT: He chuckles and gives you a lock.

LAURA: Thank you, Joe.

MATT: (laughs) "Just keeping you on your toes. I like your resourcefulness, but you're going to want to use this." Hands you two copies of the key. Glances you over a bit and says, "So, I take it you're leaving soon, for all of our sakes?"

TALIESIN: Get to the edge of town today, is the hope.

MATT: "Good. Wherever you're off to, good luck."

SAM: Thank you for everything you've done for us. You're a good guy, and I'm sorry if we brought danger to your doorstep, and I hope next time we see you, it'll be under much more lighthearted circumstances.

MATT: Takes his goggles off a bit and sets them down. "I hope so, too. And, look. I'm used to being on the edge of troubling circumstances. Honestly, it pays pretty well. I got enough friends in this place to feel okay, for the most part. Be careful out there."

LIAM: Thanks, Joe.

ASHLEY: If that person ever comes back, who dropped him off.

MATT: "Mm-hmm?"

ASHLEY: Should we give him a message or something? Or do you want to steer clear of that?

SAM: I'd love to know more. Just see if you can find out anything about him or where he's from.

MATT: "Oh, that--"

SAM: D?

MATT: "D? Okay, yeah, I'll keep an eye out."

SAM: Tell him one of his, I guess, one of his friends just wants to know about him.

MATT: "Okay, I think I got an idea. Not going to lie, I'm kind of curious myself, and, I mean, you're certainly enough of a curious specimen over conversation, maybe it'll be enough to interface a little more than the distant auction he likes to hold."

SAM: Sure.

MATT: "Okay. Well, with all due respect, please leave."

SAM: Great.

LAURA: Yeah.

TRAVIS: I'm keeping the paint. It's fairly corrosive. Don't let the kids play with it.

MATT: (laughs)

TALIESIN: On the way out, just as a quick pat: I don't know if you know any of the Greymoore kids, but if you see Zeeland, Bennet, Shady Sally, any of those kids, if you know them, if they're still around, let them know I'm looking for them.

MATT: "Okay, I'll get the word around. It's not often folks come to me and want to be found, so that's unique."

TALIESIN: Appreciate it.

MATT: "All right. Stay safe, stay low."

LAURA: Is there anything we can do to make ourselves more--

TRAVIS: Inconspicuous?

LAURA: Yeah, as we head out.

SAM: We're going onto a skyship.

LAURA: I know, but as we get to the edge of town, and they've gone to all of the businesses and offered a huge reward for us.

TRAVIS: Do we have our old shaggy cloaks? Do you have any tarps?

LAURA: We have our cloaks from when we first came to town.

MATT: You do, you have those still.

TALIESIN: Pull out my jumpsuit and hood, put the cloak over it, got a big satchel on top with a bunch of other shit. I just look like I'm towing things.

TRAVIS: I strip down naked. It's reverse psychology. See, when you see me coming, everybody just looks the other way. It's like they don't want to have the uncomfortable eyes meet, right?

LAURA: I understand that, yeah.

TALIESIN: I just want to punch you when I see that, so I don't know if fight or flight, I feel like, is definitely--

LAURA: So leathery.

TALIESIN: Such a good height that I just want to--

TRAVIS: It's okay. I don't need to read thoughts to know what you're thinking.

ASHLEY: Wow.

TRAVIS: I'll lead the way!

MATT: All righty. I would like a group stealth check, please.

TALIESIN: Oh fuck.

LIAM: Oh man, biting it on stealth tonight. I'm going to have my head on a swivel, too.

MATT: Okay.

SAM: Stealth check. 15!

MATT: 15.

TRAVIS: 16.

MATT: 16.

ASHLEY: Four.

MATT: Four.

LAURA: 14.

MATT: 14.

LIAM: 10.

MATT: 10.

TALIESIN: 20.

MATT: 20. Okay. It's a challenging go, and you move, at times, slower than you want to because there are patrols around, not just of the Paragon's Call, but pretty much any Crawler gang you're currently paranoid of. A few eye you as they pass, but no different than when you first came in here. Some of it, you can't tell if it's just posturing, or genuinely curious, or a glimmer of recognition, but the few times that does creep upon you, you quickly pass through the various alleyways and try and lose them best you can. The adrenaline pumping through your body for the better part of an hour, you eventually get to the closest outer edge of the city from The Ends, and there, as you begin to push beyond the carmine red wall and into the Outer Skids of the city, you make out the shape of a distant, floating object that gets larger and larger and larger. It's a little ways south from where you're currently standing. Didn't specify where in the city it's going to be.

LAURA: Just assumed it would be where they dropped us off.

MATT: Yeah, I don't know if you have any way of indicating a position of pickup, or you're going to meet them outside of the city, what do you plan to do?

TRAVIS: I got one of these dynamite sticks.

LIAM: That's sounds loud.

LAURA: No, wait, hold on.

TALIESIN: Where are you keeping it right now?

LIAM: Get a message out?

LAURA: Yeah, we'll just--

TALIESIN: Cast Fireball.

TRAVIS and TALIESIN: (laugh)

LAURA: I'll just use Sending to Xandis and give him our exact location.

MATT: Give them your exact, okay. "Oh, right, okay. Appreciate the more specific information. That would've been extremely, I don't know, time consuming? Anyway, see you in a second." You see it list a bit to one side and shift, and head your direction. As it does, you also begin to notice that there are crawlers starting to head out in the direction of the airship. Looks like a pack of three are curious as to why an airship would once again, in the middle of the day, head off of the normal airship shipment paths.

LAURA: Oh, well, fuck. There's a normal one?

MATT: Well, if you recall, Bassuras is not a common skyship trade route.

LAURA: Oh, right right right. Right.

MATT: But they're on the ground. At which point, the skyship, you can see, begins to lean forward, list in a forward direction, and pick up speed. The sails flare up even wider, and it begins to careen quickly in your direction.

LAURA: Can we catch it on the run? Is there a ladder dropped down?

MATT: Well, as it gets to the edge of the city, there are larger buildings. You can see it begin to get closer and closer. Folks are starting to come out of their city and look up, and you can hear a voice going, "What is that? A skyship, what the... Get the kids! I want them to see!" People start coming out in the streets to look up to it.

LAURA: Fuck.

MATT: As it begins to push down, you can see off both sides, two rope ladders begin to unfurl.

LAURA: Run and grab them. Run and grab them.

TALIESIN: Run and grab them?

ASHLEY: Yep.

LAURA: Can you hold onto Laudna while we're--

LIAM: She's Bjorned, right?

TALIESIN: Bjorned. I've got a big backpack.

MATT: As it pushes through the street, you can see it's having a hard time. They're not precise vehicles, and as it pushes through, around, you see one of the rope ladders get snagged on the edge of a roof before about 10 feet of it snap off.

LAURA: Oh, jeez louise.

MATT: It's starting to lose some height, but it's pushing through the outside of The Skids, which is the best possible position you have here before it starts to get into the higher buildings outside of the Carmine Wall.

LAURA: We really should've gotten farther out of town, I guess. This was not well thought.

MATT: But what are you doing now, as they approach? Are you pushing off to try and meet it?

LAURA: I mean, yeah.

SAM: Yeah.

LAURA: We're trying to run and grab onto the rope so we can lift up.

MATT: All right. So you all rush off and try and leap for this. I would like each of you to make a dexterity check for me.

LIAM: Orym's going to try to be the last one on, just in case anyone falls off.

MATT: Yeah. We'll say a dexterity saving throw.

LAURA: Also, I'm going to-- Well, I'm not. I won't have any use.

TRAVIS: (groans)

ASHLEY: Cocked.

LAURA: Natural 20.

TALIESIN: That was a shitty.--

MATT: Natural 20, fantastic.

SAM: Natural 20!

TALIESIN: Dex saving throw?

MATT: Dang!

MATT: Dex saving throw, group dex saving throw.

TALIESIN: Come on.

LIAM: 23.

MATT: 20, natural 20, natural 20.

ASHLEY: 17.

MATT: 17.

TALIESIN: Eight.

MATT: Eight.

TRAVIS: Natural one.

SAM: Oh!

MATT: That cancels out a natural 20.

LAURA: Okay, okay. Before I hop on, or maybe because I rolled a 20, this can work? Can I use a 4th-level spell to hit anybody that looks like they're not going to make it with a Fly spell?

MATT: If you'd like to, yeah.

LAURA: Yeah.

ASHLEY: Oh, cool.

MATT: All right.

LAURA: I can hit two people.

MATT: So as you all begin to leap and climb and hold on, the rope itself is swinging left and right. At one point, it slams into the side of Ashton's hip, and it hurts, and you take seven points of bludgeoning damage.

TRAVIS: Damn!

TALIESIN: YOLO.

MATT: Shattering the corner of this roof off, and you're like (groans), the white, searing pain for a moment before you just hold on and clutch.

SAM: Drop Laudna.

LAURA: Oh god.

ASHLEY: No!

MATT: You almost lose your grip.

LIAM: Rock and roll.

MATT: You full-on miss the ladder.

SAM: Oh no.

TRAVIS: I biff it.

MATT: As you go downward--

TRAVIS: I'm just holding this fucking toolbox.

MATT: Suddenly, you're about to hit the ground, and then you just coast along the ground.

TRAVIS: What? What is this devilry?

MATT: You glance up, and you can see, hand extended at the top of the ladder, Imogen looking down at you.

TALIESIN: He's starting to believe.

TRAVIS: Are you doing this or am I? (laughter)

TRAVIS: I try to go up.

MATT: All righty. Pulling up. You coast up alongside the edge of this rope ladder.

LAURA: Is there anybody else that needed it? It was just you?

TRAVIS: I just keep going up. You've got the touch!

MATT: Up and away, you coast past the sails, and as you tear up past, you can see now on the deck, half the crew there waiting, and Captain Xandis, they're standing there with their arms on the sides of the wheel for the actual skyship. Kind of shout out, "(laughs) That's one way to do it!" (laughter)

MATT: The rest of you, as the ship begins to pull up and pull up, you can now see, the crawlers are now following it in tow, and you hear (distant firearms)

SAM: Oh no, they're shooting at us.

TALIESIN: Let's get the fuck out of here.

MATT: Rifles firing.

SAM: Oh no.

MATT: But, the skyship is a little too quick and a little too far out of the range to make any sort of impact. You do hear a few of the bullets make their mark on the bottom of the wooden hull, but it's a strong hull. As it pulls up over the city, pushing through the pillars of the smokestacks of the various cisterns that climb out of the top of the city, it turns to the left and begins pushing in a northward direction, taking you back out over the belly of the Hellcatch Valley, onward to your destination, back to where this all began, the city of Jrusar.

TRAVIS: Chetney goes, (drops and smacks). (laughter)

MATT: And that's where we'll pick up next time.

TRAVIS: Oh my god.

TALIESIN: That's too much, too much, too much.

SAM: Jesus.

LAURA: I used a 3rd-level spell, since Chetney was the only one that needed flying.

ASHLEY: Fuck.

MATT: Okay, fair enough.

TRAVIS: Oh, only a 3rd?

LAURA: Only a 3rd.

SAM: We lost one, guys.

ASHLEY: I miss her.

SAM: We lost one.

TALIESIN: Yeah.

ASHLEY: I miss her real bad.

MATT: I know. Me too.

SAM: Who?

ASHLEY: (sighs)

TRAVIS: Uh-oh.

MATT: Oh, you're awful. We'll pick up from there next time and see where this rush to adventure to the northwest and all these moving pieces eventually carry us. But in the interim, thank you so much for joining us. We love you very much, and is it Thursday yet?

LIAM: Laudna.

MATT: Good night.

TRAVIS: Oh man, we got to fly fast.

TALIESIN: Oh no.