Icebound | Ep. 32 | Fated Feast
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Welcome to Legends of Avantris. I'm Barnabas Dreadwake and you're listening to Icebound. Here's what happened last time. It's in this moment that Queenie chimes in, saying that she will escort Daisy. Make sure that she arrives and sees safe passage into the Citadel, this fortress.

What we need to do is pick out a pig and then we can go out on the hunt. Okay, so this is the first time we're hearing about any kind of hunt. So what's the deal here? Why are we picking out a... Well, it's a part of the wedding. They only... They want the freshest ingredients and it's been a tradition for...

It has been many winters since Thrilmer has been on the hunt.

Wilbur is the best truffle hunter. The best around. You collect your truffles, you eventually reassemble, and you start to make your way back. You turn, and Wilbur has been falling farther and farther and farther behind, looking and looking and looking, and you see a shadow flash over all of you, and you hear a sound.

As it disappears between two talons, massive wings having picked Wilbur up off of the field, clearly swiping down, the Princess of Wrath immediately grabs Wilbur and disappears into the sky as fast as you saw the shadow flash over you. Wilbur! Move! You think she's going to eat him? It is a mere certainty.

I don't know why a dragon would make off with such small fare, although I suppose he was a big pig, eh? Hello, you are the newcomers. I was told that you might be visiting. Yes, we're here to secure a gift for the wedding tomorrow night. I am Rosemary Nightbloom. I'm very, very happy to meet each of you.

From out beneath the mountains known as the Spine, you crashed into a city of conquest and cold. Argentholm. You discover that many thousands live here under the reign of an ancient dragon that claims Drakkar as her dominion. These thousands are the disparate tribes of Drakkar, now united under one banner by that same dragon, the Princess of Wrath.

You also discovered the peoples you thought you left behind, the Ogres of Ogerton, had been brought to the city by facing and defeating Korokhan the Unbroken, the Goliath's chief. In mortal combat, you forged your own tribe under the rule of the Princess of Wrath and are now bound by name and magic as the icebound castaways by an oath-swearing ritual for all to see.

Not all who were brought here from Ogerton could join you, however. Many hundred others, the humans who once were called vassals, dwell somewhere within the Biting Bastion, a great fortress castle at the center of Argentholm. There now, perhaps, Daisy and Queenie are learning more about their own fates. Your first task brought you to the Circle District, where the Spirit Keepers toiled to keep the city alive with their druidic magic.

There you got a taste of the princess's wrath within the lodge of spirit caller Grey Wind. The screams of his punishment still ring in your ears.

Then another summons arrived, this time from the Shadow Vale Cabal, the elves of this land. Your experience with them began in the tavern known as the Quiet Quill, your first refuge upon your arrival here, which is where you find yourself again now in response to a wedding invitation, a seeming pretense for some other purpose yet to be known.

Moments ago,

You walked in through the doors and you found yourself confronted by perhaps a little more than half dozen of these elves, these strange elves, very tattooed, very serious expressions turned bright into smiles as they face and turn you. The elder welcomes you, excited to meet you, and immediately you are confronted by a tray of goblets.

It's Nimrodel. He walks up to you. Oh, you came, you came. Welcome, welcome, welcome. Thank you. Let me get you things. I have wine for each of you. Oh, thank God you have wine. Yeah, I'll take some. Thank you, thank you. It's good to see you, Nimrodel. I hope you enjoyed your day. I have other beverages if you are interested. Thank you, Mr. Nimrodel. Please let me take your things. You must be cold. Fridge it from the outside. Thank you.

It was a harrowing day, to say the least. Thank you for coming to my humble tavern for this rehearsal dinner. It is a great honor to have you, all four of you here to...

Hey, I don't know what's going on, but you seem a little nervous. You can relax. We're here, all right? Of course. I just want to make sure you're feeling comfortable and happy and good. Have a little bit of wine. Relax. Unwind yourself, you know? Good Lord, you're wound up to God's knows what. I'm extremely wound. Here, here.

Everyone gather around. This is the chieftain of the Icebound Castaways, Barnabas. And this is Taishen, Yornir, and of course Grimm.

How do you do? You get some nods, eager nods, smiles from the group. You see a young couple. Are you there? From across the room, holding hands. This is clearly the bride and groom-to-be. You guess, based on the age of the other assembled elves, that you're looking at perhaps their parents. That this is very much the assembly that...

a family would enjoy before the day of a happy event such as a wedding. And in one corner, still sitting at the head of one of these long tables in the tavern is this silver-haired, ancient, elderly elf, much, much, much older than the others, sitting there smiling, having said nothing more since your entrance. Will the iceborn

give their congratulations to the newly betrothed and our thanks for inviting our new clan to a sacred ceremony. Nimrodel gestures to Mus, who had escorted you here, the young man who you...

new as Mustardseed, who preferred his short name, Muss. And he steps outside of the door, seeming sort of to watch, to sort of keep watch outside of the tavern. And in the same time, you also watch as the bride and the groom walk up to you.

The young elf woman is beautiful and clearly full of life. The man seems to hold himself as confidently as he can, but clearly has a tremendous amount of perhaps nervous energy or just energy overall. She raises her hand first.

I am Mo'Kwaila. It is a pleasure to meet all four of you. Thank you so much for agreeing to come out tonight and for accepting our invitation. It means so much to my husband, Valamin, and myself.

Of course, yes, the least we could do. You know, we're here, we're here, this wine's good, you know, looking for good food. That's, you know, just a little bit of rest, right? Easy. Well, we hope to enjoy a meal and to learn about your journey here into Kar and to feed you and then, of course, to have the ceremony tomorrow. Oh, yeah, the wedding, of course, of course, the wedding. The wedding, congratulations to whomever's getting wedded.

And pardon our ignorance, we are a new tribe here. Who will be in attendance at the wedding tomorrow? Much of the cabal will be attending. Most of the heads of important families, many of our own relatives, of course. I mean beyond the cabal. Other houses, clans, the princesses.

None of the other clans, but the princess has accepted our invitation as well. Ah, that's fancy. Does she usually do that? For a wedding like this, she's looking back now, and the elder sort of gives a serious nod, if you can be honest. Yes, yes, yes. She does tend to attend these. Weddings are not very common in our culture, and so...

And this one is, well, I myself am here to hopefully take the reins as matriarch, as all-mother, to replace Elder Nightbloom when her time should come. So I am sure I'm of great interest to the princess. This is my spiritual advisor,

Mr. Yornear, Grimnear, he goes by many names. Please, please be seated and feel free to speak freely. They sort of start to escort you. The others are also sitting down and Nimrodel is handing out fluffy rolls that have been toasted with herb-infused honey goat butter. Oh, fuck.

Real quick. Real quick. I was literally raising his hand. Can you remind me or maybe us on the nature of our blood curse that I don't know if we covered, but we're like horribly cursed and we have to be loyal to her. Oh my God. We have this mess. Holy shit. I forgot about all that. Oh, I totally forgot about that. Cold immunities.

You have had a bit of a bargain, a benefit and a boon. You've been diminished in some ways by accepting the token of fealty going through this oath swearing ceremony. We lost our main stat. You would have subtracted your main stat by two. As a sorcerer, if you were to 20, that's why you're at 18 shots. That's right. Ignore my roll. I just rolled.

Yeah, there's the -2 from other modifier. Yep. I never would have even realized that. I was wondering why, like, I don't have any 20 stats. Yep. That's very funny.

Whether or not this is conscious or not, how much you feel the magic of this bond that has locked you in under her wing, as it is said, the Princess of Wrath and you now seem to be like the other tribes, connected by more than just words. I guess my question would be like, in Jorner's position, would he feel like there's some level of surveillance at all times from the princess? Or if you would even have that.

I think that you could fairly deduce a few things in your experiences here in Arjenholm. The first is that this music is a little too loud, and you ask the choir standing nearby to stop, to diminish their volume a little bit. Can you turn it down, please? The elves in the corner flip a page and look shyly at you.

You are aware of real surveillance that has happened. You are aware that there are white kobolds known as the Frosthammers who are very much the city guard and police the streets and enforce the Princess of Wrath's own governance or policies or what have you, breaking up fights, that sort of thing. You're aware of an ivory clutch, which is a magical sect within the kobolds who worship the Princess of Wrath. They possess...

Possess wings and you know that Whisperfang is perhaps a powerful magic user himself. That has been hinted at. You have knowledge of some of this surveillance very literally happening because of the arcane eye that Daisy and Queenie spied when they were out in the mountain, as far out as the mountain. Whether or not those kinds of tools are being used in this space, you aren't sure, but you could make a guess that those kinds of tools could be anywhere at any time.

but not necessarily that because we have the Blood Curse or whatever it is, she can, like, Wargand us and, like, look through our eyes. Maybe that's a strategy. I don't know. Make an Arcana check. Oh, shit. Ooh. Holy fuck. Use the Shy Halasi. Oof. Oof. I'm going to twist that. You can't twist it. You have to decide before you roll. You can add five to it. You're right. You're right. You...

Three. These thoughts cross the back of your mind as you're watching people get comfortable at their seats at the dining table and you feel a tremendous amount of disturbance that you're not sure the extent of this magical bond, that it could go beyond even the more obvious things, as subtle as they are within your spirit, within your magical being. Then I would sit down and say, I brought a juicer.

What is that for tomorrow? Mr. Yornear. Uh, your... I actually recall, and I didn't get a chance to watch every little minute. No, no, no, no. My recollection was that you selected the gifts, but that they would be wrapped and delivered to the wedding. Okay, that's fair. And so that there would be a moment of presentation similar to... It's still very Yornear-coded for you to just tell them what you got. Yes. I'll be sure...

Basically stopping myself of maybe sharing more than I should in case there's surveillance. That's what I'll say. The elder speaks up. Rosemary Nightbloom, as you've come to know her first and last name. A very... I'm so sorry. Is the person we're talking to right now one of the parents of the betrothed? You're speaking just to the bride and groom? Or speaking to the bride and groom themselves right now? Yes. Aquila and... Velik?

She named... He hasn't spoken up, but Balamon. Balamon. Balamon. I thought you said Balamon. And... Yeah, we got Balamon's body. Really sweet. Let's fucking go. And... Get fucked up on Quaaludes. Shit. Yeah, Quaaludes and Valium, they seem to be a really tremendous pair. And even as you're talking, they are giving each other looks that tell you they are deeply in love. Oh, that's sweet. Ah, well...

Thanks for having us, I guess. Is there more wine? I could use more wine. Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, there's more wine. Immediately with a pitcher. Thank you, appreciate it. Nimrodel shows up and pours this wine. It is very low alcohol fermented grape product, but it is extremely subtle and delicious. Even you recognize the...

luxurious premium quality of this wine for what it is. You mean even me? I believe you once drank like a gum rum or something from the ship. So what if I eat trash? I'll take yours too. Yeah, I put mine in front of Scrim as I sit down. I'm double fisting already. We've been here for 50 minutes. A very generous gift. Thank you, Yornir. I hope that your day was

a comfortable one and one that we could share together. We wanted you to understand a bit of our culture and a bit of our ways before the wedding tomorrow. It was not comfortable, but thank you. What disturbed you? It was something that we did. We do not know your ways as newcomers. Yone was a pig. He was a pig. Yes. He scared some people. I was a pig. And then...

Our pig. The other pig. Not your pig. Our truffle hog got snatched by the princess. Perhaps on an evening hunt. I can't even say it. The princess picked up the truffle hunting pig that you went on the hunt with? We were securing truffles for your very ceremony. I got the screams. I have...

led the Shadow Vale Cabal under her wing for centuries. And she participates in the truffle hunt each year. Ah, did she just take the pig from you, or...? It was instant. It was so fast. Why? It wasn't intentional. Why our pig? There is a chance that she was taking the pig to her own hunt. Don't do that. Don't give me hope.

What does the Princess of Wrath need a truffle-hunting pig for? I don't think she... You think she has a fine taste for saved truffles? She has been kind enough to honor our... the tradition. She's a very competitive soul. So she too participated in the truffle hunt for the ceremony? If she found a truffle, I wouldn't be surprised if you saw it tomorrow.

And perhaps we might see Wilbur at the wedding, Mr. Yornear. It is unlikely. There is hope yet. He was squealing his death throes. Son of a bitch. It was clear. It pleases me that you are so caring individuals, that you would feel such heart for a simple beast. If she needed to feed, to eat, to live, then...

This would be the way of things. But this is not why she took Wilbur. She intended to show disrespect to the Iceborne, and our Warchief does not tolerate disrespect. You mean Barnabus, your chief here? Yes. How has she treated your clan in court? Not well. Not well at all. We can be open with each other, honest.

Our people are very much in decline. Our people are suffering. It is part of the reason I wanted to invite you here. So that we could speak plainly about our situation. Are you worried she'll hear? I mean, like, is it safe? Why do you think that we can speak freely here? She has many eyes in Argent Home. Eyes only.

They cannot... No ears! ...understand the words we speak aloud. If someone were looking in through the window, or if their magics were to peek at us from afar, they would just see us enjoying a meal together, not a spoken word. In our short time here, we've seen the kinds of things that she can visit on a plan and decline. Has she cast any such...

Terror on you? This is meant to be a celebration. I ask that we enjoy some food, enjoy a meal together. When we're done, the wedding party can make their way and we can have a more private conversation about what the Princess of Wrath has visited upon the Shadow Vale.

Of course, I'm- my apologies. I didn't mean to upset the ceremony. Ah, speaking of dinner, there isn't any meat. You guys aren't serving meat, are ya? No, no, no, we would never- we don't do that sort of thing, no. Not tomorrow at the wedding either. Wait, what is on the menu?

And Nimrodel chimes in, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, salad greens we have, rosemary, vinaigrette, and toasted parmesan, cheesy croutons. For entree, eggs poached in honey wine sauce, fried sage leaves, handmade noodles in a creamy pesto-like sauce, and of course for dessert, honey cakes with rosemary-infused cream cheese. Thank goodness. All right, no meat.

Don't eat any meat. Don't do it. Just don't do it. We never do. No, it isn't our way. You had lost me until you said honey cakes. I do like a good honey cake. Well, eat up, eat up, eat up. Please enjoy. Now, I thank you for this food. The rolls are delicious. Honey bread, good breadless. I have...

procured the first step of a gift for the betrothed. But because I don't know them, I'm not prepared to customize it for them. Could you tell me a bit about the bride and the groom? What are the things that speaks to their soul? Perhaps a spirit, a beast, a bird, a symbol, maybe in your case a plant, a fruit, a vegetable?

Tell them of your love, of your... Speak, speak up. O'Quilla turns to you and she says, A bird. A bird sounds nice if I were to choose a beast, an animal. A bird can be free to fly. What kind of bird, lass? She names a Dracarion bird with an Elvish word that you haven't heard quite before.

Can you describe that? When she's finished describing the bird, you are struck by sort of the image of some kind of a crane, but with much more long flowing feathers. All right, okay. I can work with that. And is the groom there as well? Yes. And you, lad, what is it that resonates in your soul? You see, I've got many a tattoo, the faintest species I've killed.

He... Or into their brains without the skulls, for the... ...Optipus ears... case.

He looks a little taken aback when you mention killing beasts in this way, but... And curious at the same time, looking at your tattoos. So strange they are in this land. And he looks at you dead in the eye. He says, for me, the...

A beast of burden. A cow. I've worked with them my whole life. My family, we make cheese. We make with cheesemongers. And I'm proud to say that I have been friend to many, many animals like that. Beasts of burden.

Does he look like a little skinny or is he strong? Does he look like he's built? He doesn't look like he's stocky, like he's overly muscular. He's live. He's live. Well, you don't got the frame of an ox or a bull, but maybe it's the spirit or maybe it's the love of cheese. Maybe a mouse would be a bit more fitting. Whatever you think is best, sir. Why, thank you. I look forward to the ceremony.

I appreciate young lovers celebrating that love and sharing it with all of us. He takes another spoonful of food and Aquila speaks up. Anything you give beyond what you're already doing is more than generous. It is a mere... We appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. Now we'll get to this.

Which fork do I use? I think it's that one right there. Throughout this time, the parents are, um, exclaiming how delicious the food is speaking with each other, speaking with, uh, Nimrodel, um, listening in on the conversations that you're having with the elder and the, um, the bride and groom. Uh, they, uh, uh, are looking at you with curiosity. Um, when, uh, the, um,

Elder-- more elderly husband of one turns to you and... Scrim. It's Scrim, yes? Yeah, that's me. That's my name, Scrim. I must ask you, how did you find yourself here? There are no...

Creatures such as yourself that we're aware of and we've been here as long as memory is old. Oh, thank goodness. No other goblins anywhere around? No, not that we know. Yeah, well, to be fair, to be honest with you, I've been traveling a lot my whole life. And walked into the wrong inn one night, met this gang, ended up in a prison together, and the rest is history.

from across the sea, I understand. Many seas. A lot of them. Not just one. Amazing. Tell me, do all people like yourself travel so much?

I mean, goblins in general? I don't know, maybe, yeah, sure. I don't know, it's a hobby. Goblins, yes, that's what I mean. You're unique, then, as you're... Although all goblins like you, I'm just trying to understand, to learn. No, no, not all goblins are like me. I see.

Well, that is great. You are a unique and special goblin, certainly. That much is clear. Those are some words for it. Yeah, yeah. What is the nature of this death hound that you worship? Well said, Monsieur Yorneer. There's a silence, a pall that sort of stretches out over the dinner, and Elder Nightbloom speaks up. The hounds...

Plural. The two dogs that are part of our tribe, they are sent from the gods. Sent to protect, empower, to strengthen our people. They are our spirits. We are theirs. And do they not possess the power to free you from the influence of the princess? Quite the opposite. It is the princess who has captured them.

The script gets, like, pale green. Pardon our ignorance. Like I said, we are very new to this land. How does the princess, despite her being a fearsome dragon, truth be told, how does she chain up beasts of the gods themselves? If we knew the answer to these questions, we would perhaps be closer to breaking their chains. But it is...

This that she holds over us. Why we are in decline. Why we cannot meet the gods. This is an appropriate time for this. You asked. We are not going to be dishonest. This is the way of things. Okay. All right. It's your ferryman.

You can't go to the locker without these dogs. They are the ones that ferry the souls. Exactly correct. I'm gonna ask. I'm gonna ask a question. We're all thinking it, I'm gonna ask it. I see. Do you, like, see these creatures following you, stalking you everywhere you go? We hope to be blessed by their sight. What? It is a vision, a wonderful omen, that we will live a

life of meaning, of purpose, that we will have children and families and achieve and be strong. It is our connection to magic, to the world, to this land. Okay, all right, I don't want you to freak out here. Promise me, promise me you're not gonna freak out. No, they might freak out, Mr. Stabberscotch. It's been... They're not gonna freak out. It's been years.

Relentless, non-stop years. I mean months and months without sleep. Relentless stalking of me by this thing. Everywhere I go, it doesn't matter how many miles I put between me and it, it finds me. Amazing. No! No, horrific, terrible, nightmarish. It's mean. It's angry. It, I'm sure, seems fearsome. It is a...

violent image and it is... More than just violent an image, let me tell you. It is not without its teeth, but it is our... It is a blessing. It is a strength. It is chosen you. For whatever reason, that is... No, no, no, no, no, no, no. This wasn't a choice. This was no choice. I am so...

Pleased to hear that you share this. Look... This magic, it is a miracle, don't you understand? I entered into something unwillingly. Stupidly, maybe. We could use that word, perhaps. It was a deal, a contract. It wasn't like I woke up one day and they were like, we pick you. There was this thing, this man thing...

I signed a contract like an idiot. I didn't know what I was signing and then all this started. However you came to it, however it came to you, doesn't matter. I believe that you were meant to bring this guardian to us. Like you can just take him? That is what tomorrow can test. No. What's to stop the princess from chaining this hound up like the other two?

She looks at the others at the table. Had meant for this conversation to happen after you left, but as long as we're here, I want to enter a limited conspiracy with the Icebound Castaways. The Iceborn. The Iceborn, sure. You do know the princesses will not... Do you think that we're happy with Shadow Vale Cabal? No.

I think that she's... Someone needs to tell her. She needs to get better at naming things. I think she does it on purpose to piss us off. We are not castaways. Aye, that's true. She will keep you under her talon. She will use the token that binds you to... For her whim and her will. She will keep you here. She is domination. She is ownership. She will...

This is why you see here these parents of the bride and groom, they should not be grandparents or 100 or 110. They should have already joined the gods. One final point. The princess is stealing our lives, making it impossible for us to give ourselves to our faith. Stealing your deaths, I suppose, is more appropriate. Our years, when we choose to join...

These guardians. It is us giving up our years. I myself am many centuries old. Nearly a thousand years. But as matriarch, that is my sole responsibility. I am the only one who is meant to live this old. To pass down the knowledge and the tradition. Everyone else, 30, 40. Beyond that, it is a shame. A dishonor. A waste of those years when they could be given up.

given to our gods, and she denies us this. Why does she do this to you? Why does she plunge your house into decline if it would be of benefit to her to have your house at strength? Why does she do this to you? She does not see beyond the present. She sees us removing ourselves from this plane to join our gods early,

and when we could be more soldiers, when we could give her more magic. She wants to grow our population, and it's a perversion, a twist of our culture, what we believe in. I would be remiss if I didn't mention one last thing. I'm not going to deny that I'm only here, right here, in this moment, partially because of my friends and the power that this thing has lent me. I'm not going to deny it.

It's my friends here who have told me to lean into it. Use it! And I have. To some effectiveness. There was a moment these people, they tried to send me to Ogre Heaven. I know that sounds crazy. I didn't go to Ogre Heaven. I went someplace really, really awful. Do you know what happens to you guys when it comes to collect? It is not in our legends, this place you describe.

For us, we are giving ourselves up. It is a sacrifice for our souls. We are no different than the meat of an animal. We are consumed. It is oblivion that waits for us on the other end. I only ask because... Look, maybe it was Ogre Heaven. Maybe the whole thing was...

Fucking crazy, but when I was there, wherever I was, in whatever nightmarish layer of hell I saw, it felt like I was supposed to be there. And it wasn't good. I don't ever want to go back. But it feels like that's all there is.

I cannot speak to this vision that you had. And I don't know the full context of what happened to you. I don't either. You're certain that it is related to your blessing? I don't know. I'm not certain. But something inside me made me sick. I could feel it like it was a part of me. Or I was a part of it or something. Maybe I'm wrong. But again, I just felt like I had to bring it up. I can't speak to...

Your full experience. Your... your guardian may be different from ours, you're from another part of the world, but it... My hope is that we can test tonight that it is yours, that it is ours, that we share this bond and that you can help us. You alone, with the permission of your Warchief, of course. Look, I would give anything to get out of whatever I signed. I'd give anything. But again,

Not delusional. If I lose whatever's empowering me, I'm gonna be useless to you people. I'm just gonna weigh you down. I don't think you're going to lose it, Mr. Stavisconsh. If that hound wanted to chow down on you, it would have done it already. And I believe it owns your soul. If you have the chance to die at any moment, there's a reason why it hasn't killed you yet.

Just promise me. Promise me! If I don't... If I'm not as strong, I don't have this gift anymore after whatever we try. Just leave me here and get out. Keep going. I don't want to cause your death because you're worried about me. Scrim, we're not all here together because you have the power of a hound. If you woke up tomorrow and it wasn't a part of you, and you couldn't do...

fancy things and wield great power, we would still fight for you. I'd be dead in like four hours, Taishen! No, you wouldn't! Mr. Stavisconch, do you think any of us fear death? Yes. Why? I don't know. Because of what waits on the other side of what doesn't. We don't know what happens. It's terrifying. I know what happens. No, you don't! I do! Then tell me. I will be met by the ferryman.

and he will hold his lantern out and I will gladly follow that light I will step aboard his ship and he will take me to the green flash and I will be at the fiddler's green sea is green as the most beautiful eyes you ever seen Mr. Samuskite and from there I will sail for all time and I know that Mr. Yornir knows that death is part of his natural world

I presume. And Mr. Fireblossom has wisdom, and I presume he's faced his mortality and is at peace with it at this point. That's exactly right. All right, all right, fine. He's fine being killed in battle, brutally disemboweled, crushed perhaps beneath the claw of a dragon or other great beast, torn apart, tortured even. Look, at peace with it, I says, says I,

If there was nothing but abyss on the other side, I might even agree with you. That would be preferable, but what if it's unending torment? For all eternity! Torture, pain! Isn't that a good reason to be scared of it? Scrim, I have heard stories like Barnabas's before. Many cultures here in Drakkar have their own ideas about what happens. I can assure you one thing. For us, there is nothing.

When one of us dies to a disease, when one of us falls and is trampled, when one of us is slain in battle, this is a tragedy because we were not able to give ourselves to the gods to empower our tribe. Only through this special ritual, through what you possess, can we meet them and revitalize, to make strong our tribe.

Hundreds of years ago, this was a very different world. We were young, ambitious, full of magic and life like you wouldn't... like you cannot understand. I cannot tell you what happens to you, but I can tell you that you have an opportunity to do something very special for us. We wish to join your conspiracy. We are assembling a horde, a war host, to fight against the princess.

We are making ground under the Warchief. We have assembled Hogers. Aye. We have parlayed with the Orcs. Aye. We will do what it takes to gain your trust and restore your power if we can. Even if this means we must go through these rituals. Is there a way we can free this house for you?

If you can, then you go beyond my wildest dreams. Even just inviting you here to tell you this meant risking much. Had you been loyal to the princess, we would have had a very different conversation. And I, historically, have not been one for sea lawyers and mutineers. We're a long way from the sea, and winter is here.

We will do what must be done and I know that the spirit walkers have been done a grave injustice by the princess and I am certain that the other clans have suffered as great or perhaps even greater as you or us. Make no mistake, something worse than the princess is on its way but what she does isn't right and we'll do what we can to make good.

Everything she does, she does with what you saw at the oath swearing in mind. She says she is here to protect Drakkar. Everything she has done to try to squeeze us and pull us here to this damned city has only hurt. She is selfish. She is only putting herself first. Not all the tribes agree. I had to risk everything to...

speak with you and hope that there is a chance for survival. Alright. Look, I had a little too much wine, I'm a little tipsy. Oh, I shouldn't have given you my cup. No, no, I- It was a mistake, I was feeling generous. I got a little emotional and I apologize for that. The point is, I'm in. I've grown a lot, you know, a different scrim a different time would have said, "I'm outta here." That's not my problem. But if you're telling me that this is gonna help you, there's a chance that I can do some good with this,

Maybe help my own situation, of course. And of course we can topple that evil bitch. Tomorrow starts early. Waiting for our people is a long affair. We will have presents, dancing, and all of the competitions, the truffle. These, just enjoy them. The most important thing during your time is that you keep this a secret.

Only the ones here in this room, even. I am not telling the rest of my tribe until we are sure. There's so many who crave what you represent, and we must be sure. We call them malcontented. Parents or other elves who have gone beyond their years, who should have been consumed decades ago, years ago. It is a tremendous dishonor when a wedding happens

they would normally be met by the gods at the end of the wedding. In our current day, they are instead hidden away, shuffled away, and they become malcontented. The parents here, they are hoping that at the end of tomorrow's wedding, that you will be able to call forth your guardian. Ah, right. To consume them. The bride and the groom. The parents. Ah, parents of the bride and the groom. Yes.

This is wonderful news. Taking crazy pills here. Ty's shit, help me out here. Come on. Wonderful news. I gotta call forth this thing to eat some poor people? These are nice people. They will be grateful. They will be doing so much. You will be empowering our tribe in a way that we have been desperate for for decades. Only rarely does the princess grant us this favor.

This is sick. This is sick! It's unusual to me too, Scrim, but if they're living in a form of eternal servitude, and the only way to free them of that is this. It's what they want. And I, perhaps I'm too old for this, and perhaps I've sailed too far and seen too much, but I've seen plenty of death cults.

This seems pretty standard death cult stuff as far as I've seen, Mr. Staviscog. We've come this far fighting for the denizens of Drakkar. Their right to choose their fate. This is another instance of that. It's really the second most common cult I've encountered. After sea cults. But usually the sea cults are just sea death cults. Death cults after sea cults?

There's got a cult in between that's more popular than-- Oh, you know, sea cult is one and death cult is second. You'd think. And there's a lot of overlap between the death cult and the sea cult. You'd be surprised. Or something just a little bit more, you know, common. Yeah, I mean. Or keep to the coast, mind you. Something a little happier. We did not choose who we are. We did not choose...

these lives. We can choose what we do with them. Just as you cannot choose the sheen of your scales. I appreciate that. Just like I will be where I'm meant to be on the Fiddler's Green, you will achieve oblivion devoured by a shadowy beast. When the wedding is done and the procession moves into the woods, we will have a private moment.

We will divert the princess, and you will be sneaked into the final ritual, hidden from the princess. We can perform it there, then, and when the consumption is over, my hope is to ask your guardian to join us forever, that we will be able to keep it secret and safe, and...

We will be doing us not just an immediate boon, but releasing us in so many ways to grow our strength back. In return, I will share with you a magic that I have been keeping to myself from the princess for a long time. Ah, you're holding out on us. When the release of this ritual occurs, we will be re-empowered with our magics again. I will be able to break the link between

that binds you to the princess. Is she going to know? She should not know. And in this doing, I will make an ally of you and we will be able to muster our forces. That would be a great act of kindness if you could achieve that. If we could operate unfettered and unchained.

We've spent too long on this godforsaken rock chain. We want no chains. We only wish to follow our faith, to live as we have. If we can find this agreement together, then I would also ask for your silence after the wedding. My tribe, until we are sure and news spreads, we will be needing to control it. We will still pretend that

We will be whisking the parents away. We will fake their deaths so the princess does not know that they are gone. There are a lot of moving parts to this and I need to know that you will be able to keep this close to your chest. Yeah, no problem. We will keep your secrets. Aye. What is to stop the hound of Scrim from devouring all of you? Good question, Mr. Yornian. That's why you're a spiritual advisor.

He is. I'll give you this. He's wise, he is. Of all of my interactions with it, it doesn't seem like a wild beast. It's intelligent. It seems to be. It's a very minute ease. It doesn't rampage. It doesn't, you know, it's... I don't know how I can tell you that I get that feeling. I'd be lying if I said I didn't have that concern. But there's something about it. It's knowing in its eyes. It's like Barnabas says in its...

Truly a bridge to the afterlife. A ferryman of sorts. Aye. It is possible that should it present itself and it sees so many souls beyond their time, it might seek to ferry all that it can to oblivion. And that would be paradise to these lovely folk. Our own guardians did not consume us all. Only when we were

Ready and willing. I see no reason why they would take more lives than what is offered. It's only spoken to me one time. But it can speak, and I've tried to speak to it a lot. I've shouted a lot of things at it, but it's only spoken to me one time. What did it say? You want me to say exactly what it said? I am all ears. All it said was, say the words. What words? It was a long time ago. More crazy stuff happened that you'd never believe about.

It can speak. These creatures. And if it had to speak with you, then it must have been guiding you. Guiding you on your path. I've tried yelling at it a lot. That was the only time it ever said anything. We can unveil this mystery. If you'll let me, I may be able to see a vision with you. Sure. At this point, I got nothing to lose. Then I ask our dinner be done.

so that we can have a little more privacy. Before anyone goes, I'd like to look at the bride and the groom and see if they're into this. Or are they in love? Are they excited? Are they scared? Does it feel like they're being put up to this wedding so that the creepy cult can do its thing? Make an insight check. I would like to do that. I'm using two twists. Dad, plus two.

Plus two? Yeah, it's one plus one, three twists up to maximum. Oh, right, right, right. I'm using three twists. Yeah, I thought it was that you could, I forgot. Yeah, yeah. Because the change is that you can call two and reroll twice. Yeah, yeah. We're using three twists. Altered how it works. I was happy I just remembered it as different. I remember one thing. And so, why do I not? Plus three. Not bad. Not bad, plus three is 19, plus two is 21. Ooh. With 21...

You see a serious Moquila. She is hinged on every word. She...

You even see a little bit of what will make her into a future matriarch of this tribe, a young chieftess-to-be. And she is taking seriously, listening to the elder, but not jumping in or trying to dominate the conversation, certainly. Her hand is being held by her husband-to-be, and he...

is interested, but you get the sense that he is here because he loves her and wants to support her in this role more than an investment in these conspiracies. He just wants the suffering to end. I will keep an eye on him. To directly answer your question with a 21, they don't seem like they're coerced or hesitant about the plan. All right. I'll just observe. I'll sit back in quiet contemplation. The family stand...

The parents, each of them in turn come to you as a couple, thanking you. What you're doing is beyond imagining. They never thought that they would be able to be fed upon and give their lives in this glorious sacrifice.

If you want any more wine, the other family seems to be on an orchard. And that's the wine you've been enjoying tonight. They'd be happy to send you a case. Lifetime supply. Please do. I need it. They also are struggling with their age. They were afraid. Afraid of growing older. And they're hobbling a little bit. They're weaker now. Jesus Christ.

The other parents come to you, again, firm handshake. The mom explodes with a hug and wraps her arms around you before putting on her layers and starting to make her way outside to the transport that Mus has arranged and has been guarding. Finally, Aquila and...

Valium, comes up to the four of you and thanks you, wishing you the very best for tomorrow, that you'll have a great time regardless, and as newcomers, to understand their culture and to be so generous with it. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you. We will be in your debt for generations. And, lad, Valium, what was it? What was your name again? Valium. Valium and Alam.

You mind if I grab a private word with you as the chieftain of the clan and you to be a new warrior, cultist, sage to protect your bride-to-be? I'd love to chat one-on-one with you, given your new station in this cabal. Uh, let us step outside. All right, man.

You go outside and you can see that... Thank you, young lady. I'll nod and I'll go out with him. I'll bring him back in one piece. Don't worry. I don't bite much. I will then transform my teeth into literal shark teeth and do a little bit of a...

If your expectation is that they, like, sort of, like, be frightened by this, the... It's more of a cheeky joke. Okay, cheeky joke. If it's out of touch and it does scare them, that's fine. Oh, no, they get it. They're into it. They seem... You feel like you could do almost anything with how serious they are about this agreement that they...

that you wouldn't be able to offend them. And taking a few steps away from the entrance door, with light tufts of snow slowly floating down under the lantern light of the street, you find yourself alone with Valamin. Anything you need, please. Young lad, do you love this young lady? With all my heart, to give up a normal life so that I can be with her, I would do anything.

What do you see when you look into her eyes? What is it that you see? Tell me lad, you can't take that long if you're marrying her tomorrow! I see the night sky. I see a moonless sky with no clouds. I see that beautiful inky expanse and I fall into it and I am at peace. I am at peace. Is your life that you want

Is that changing and giving up everything just so you can follow her? Is that your path, boy? I will gladly give my life to be with her. If you had never met her, what would your life have been? What would you have chosen to do?

I would have followed in my father's footsteps, and I would have become a master cheesemaker, and I would have found a way to expand that enterprise into the market and feed all here in Argent Home. We would have to try and expand as aggressively as possible to make the very best. I would have been an artisan.

And I still may be able to do some of that. But my role will be to grow old and live with her. Aye lad, it brings me no joy to say this. And it breaks my heart. And makes me wanna weep, lad. But I promise you, she will know. And if you really do love this girl, the best thing you can do for her is to let her go. Let her live the life that she needs.

and you live the life that you need. Both of you will be happier that way, lad. And you will love her forever. Don't get that mixed up for the rest of your long cheesemonger's life. Now just wait one minute. Just because I answer a question about what future I might have had if she didn't exist, you think I have doubt? I see it all over your face, boy. You see the passion that you spoke with selling cheese, feeding people,

instead of sitting beside a matriarch of a death cult. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Now, as chief of your tribe, I understand what you say, and I hear you, and with everything that we have at stake, I must listen, and I won't do anything. But you offend me, sir. I don't mean offense, sir. I mean to say that I...

When I was younger, I was in a position similar to yours. And I knew that my tides carried me in a different direction than hers. And I loved her more than all of the sea and all of the sky. But I knew that I would never be able to fool her. That what I really wanted was to give up everything to be in her wake. You understand, lad? You know what a wake is? It's when... To be in her shadow!

Like the night sky. I let her go. It was the worst decision I've ever made. But it was the right decision. And I encourage you to do the same. You can do whatever you want, lad. Listen to your heart, listen to your mind. Listen to that. Whatever you need to do, lad. But think about it. You have one more night. I'll carve your wedding gift all the same. That's a good lad. And I'll smack him on the back. Shall I bring you back to your betrothed? Please.

I'll carry him in. You both start to make your way. You make your way to a carriage, which is readying. Aquila is standing one foot up into the door, waiting for her groom, and he gets in without another word to you. Aquila looks into the carriage and then looks back at you. I hope that your conversation went well. It went great.

I know that this lad is ready to spend the rest of his life at your side, young lady. That's a good lad. Have a good night. You slam the carriage door and you turn to make your way back inside, and the scene has changed. In the time that, uh, Barnabas has been outside, the table has been cleared, and, uh...

A variety of parchments and papers have been put out. More pretense. These appear to be table configurations, wedding plans, calendars and timetables. These kinds of secrets for peering eyes to not be able to see what is happening inside. But more candles have been lit just to give the place a little bit more illumination. And Nimrodel has passed out a little bit more wine.

Yes, please. And finally, with everyone having departed the Quiet Quill, you find yourself alone with just Nimrodel and Elder Nightbloom. Are you ready, Scrim? Are you willing again to let us explore the past, to see what may be going on? Ready as ever. Take both of my hands. Then I do. Close my eyes. Close your eyes. Breathe. Breathe.

Think on the moment that you first signed that contract. When you first started being harried by your guardian. Nah, I'm doing it. Look into the past. Now open your eyes. You open your eyes and you're not staring at Alder Lightloom.

You are staring at a creature that you've only seen once before. A creature with the head of almost a jackal. Oh shit! You are staring into a long snout, long sagely robes. You recognize this creature as the monster that was once a human that you met in a tavern and then transformed into, right before you, melted into this person.

looks directly at you and you hear the voice of Elder Nightbloom come from its throat. We are here, yes? Oh yeah, yeah, whoa! Yep, yep, this is it. We're in a burial site of some kind. Yeah, yeah, graveyard, cemetery, I can never keep track of the two. This was where you first were followed by the beast, by your guardian?

Well, it was right after the signing of the contract. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, this was the one. A place for the dead. Very appropriate. Okay. What happened next?

The thing, the thing I'm looking at, it cornered me and it was speaking in strange tongues and saying all sorts of stuff and it said my name and that I had to sign and I just didn't see it either way, so I did! And to be clear, you're put in a very odd position. You're not looking at Elder Nightbloom and then also this creature. No! You're looking at the creature, but it is...

has been taken on, is being commanded by Rosemary, by the elder of the Shadow Vale, Keval, and she is looking at you and has the same mannerisms as the elf, the elderly elf that you were just looking at moments ago. She is getting used to her body. She's getting used to the space. You said you signed a contract? I smoked and it appeared and it was a writing of a mint. I just did it. My hand almost moved on its own.

She manifests the contract. After a moment of feeling around, she picks it out of the air and she holds a rolled up scroll and she begins to... You may read it. You said you signed it. You were forced to sign it. I'm asking for your permission to look at it unless you want to take it.

No, no, but I couldn't read this. You unscroll it and it is written in a language you don't understand. You remember now in that fear that you felt almost like you couldn't read it because of the heart beating in your chest because of the motions that were flooding through you. But looking at it again, it's almost like this isn't written in something that Scrim's ever studied or a script that you could even read if you had an hour. No, I can't read this. Can you read it?

This is the language of our gods. Okay. I'm gonna have a heart attack. She starts to look through it. Yes. Well, this is very strange. Tell me what's in it! It says that the person who signs this contract, I'm using plain language, that it irrevocably binds your soul to a graveyard jack.

Until such a time as the beneficiary, this is Graveyard Jack. Okay. That he has consumed a thousand souls, or until he declares himself satisfied. Well, that doesn't sound so bad. Is there like a number that I'm up to? It doesn't have a counter. How do I know if I've ever given him a soul? I can't tell you that. I don't know your experience. You gotta be kidding me.

You can tell me all this and you can't tell... During this period of time, your soul is subject to the laws and influences of Graveyard Jack's plane of existence. Your soul is held in shared possession. Shared possession between me and it? Yes, yes. This is what binds you. Interesting. You retain autonomy over your actions, but part of your soul exists within this domain. I knew that wasn't Ogre Heaven.

And if you should die, your soul is wholly and immediately forfeit. Okay, okay. That's all there is except the line to sign. A thousand souls. I don't even know how to... This is miraculous. A thousand souls. That is...

There's never been a sure sign that you were meant to come here, that he has been driving you, pushing you to come here, to find us, to save us. How many of you are there? There are thousands. Damn! I can be out of this by morning! Tomorrow night. I mean, you guys are practically begging for it! We will be able to get our gods back. You know what? Things are looking up for old Scrimm.

I can't believe it! She claps her hands, and a moment later you blink. It's almost like your eyes come down and you're holding her hands again and you're back into the room. For the rest of you, only a silent minute has passed unspoken as this trance or vision or binding has occurred between Elder Nightbloom and Scrimm, and Scrimm suddenly jerks back into awakeness.

Did you guys hear that? Did you hear that? No. Tell me you heard that. No, you sat silently, Scrim. What? You sat in meditation with the Elder. I tell him really quickly about the brief experience I had when I was back in the thing. A thousand souls. It's only a thousand souls. I just gotta give it a thousand souls and I'm free. How many have you given it so far? Nobody can tell me. It's very unclear. I don't even know if there's a process of giving a soul to it, but it doesn't matter. Have you ever killed?

Yeah, it's been necessary. Each one of those would count. We have killed. We've killed ogres and alien beings from beyond this world, beasts and beyond. Do these all count towards this deal? Yeah, yeah, what kind of souls? What kind of souls does it need to be? Sentient, mindful. You can't just go and crush a bug under your foot or slay a beast.

It must be a creature with a soul. Okay, so the point is that it's less than a thousand now, and she told me that there's thousands of them, and they all want a guy. Do squid-faced...

creatures from beyond the stars count as soulful creatures. Oh, those fuckers knew what they were doing. They were intentful. That's about sex. Were they aware of their own existence? Did they have intelligent thought? Did they have that perception? They knew how to perceive themselves? I say true. Then, yes. Why that sucks. At least. Eight? Six? I mean, that's just the beginning. Think about it.

Think about it, think about all of them. I mean, we've been in a lot of conflict. Now, please, we must not rush. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. We have to go through the ritual tomorrow. Okay. And when the torch has been passed, then we will be the ones who have Graveyard Jack to work through our population, but we can't do it all at once. We must keep this a secret.

Until the princess is gone or until... We can't just do it all at once. But you said the power will come back. Like, if we eat two people, what if we eat all the power with a thousand? If the princess catches wind of this, we'll all be dead. And when we're crushed under her talon, we'll be unable to give ourselves to the gods. We'll be gone. How long before the next opportunity to do a similar ceremony?

We will have to try to go as quickly as we can, perhaps. Every week? One? Two people a week for... Four people a week. Okay, that's a little better, but... We don't have that kind of time. We're talking years and decades! We probably have just weeks before... Unless... We're this close. We're this close. You know how we can buy some time.

Are you familiar with the kobold they call Whisperfang? That fuck. She doesn't say that. She doesn't say that. Yeah! Oh, yeah! Somewhere! A powerful magic user. We suspect that it was his family who first unlocked whatever it is that prevents us from reaching our gods. Aye, it's a whole clan that must go then, I see.

We believe, our entire clan supports me on this, I don't know if you knew this, that Whisper Fang is a mastermind of sorts. We believe he would be better for our grand conspiracy dead rather than alive. We have not yet hatched a plan to achieve that given how protected and cowardly he is.

What I will say is I am not against mutiny. I am against mutiny. I stand against it philosophically in this instance. I will allow it. I will compromise. Maybe. Normally I am against cowards' tactics to kill. Poisons, blades in the dirt. In this instance, I will compromise. The princess doesn't have any love for her people.

I may have told the young lady.

to shoot him between the eyes of their first chance to kill him. Oh, no, shoot! You're right! We may have... I was just gonna say, Barnabas, I know you got a mega hate boner for this guy, but I was gonna ask you if I could give him the old red smile, you know, just to dub my tally a little bit. The young lady...

Oi, the young human lady that traveled with us as part of Ogerton? Ah, yes. She's a companion that has since gone to the Biting Bastion. When the people that joined your tribe arrived, there was also another group that made their way into the fortress, the Biting Bastion. Aye. They have not come out. Do you think that they interface with Whisperfang at all?

We haven't met him.

Well, if you do, just know that he is considered protected. Very special. For no reason anyone can explain. A poet protected? We will find out. We will seek out this great sage. By the princess? The princess, I think, perhaps just thinks him silly or amusing, but... She's got a thing for humans. She has killed for...

Denying him a place to stay? He sleeps where he wants, he drinks what he wants. So I shouldn't add him to my tally. I would consider him alongside Whisperfang. If you are ready to face the princess in a fight, only then. And bear in mind, these tokens. She draws power from all the tribes of Drakkar that she has under her banner. Each chief who carries one of these makes her stronger.

By breaking this bond, we'll be able to diminish her and perhaps get her closer down to where we might be able to change the way of this place. How many willing souls of your clan are there? It is not just a matter of willing. There is a, for lack of a better term, a bucket list. A list of things that you want to do before you die.

Having children. Great achievement. It is all wrapped up in our culture. There are milestones that one must achieve, and the faster one can do that, the greater honor you bring your family, the tribe. How many have achieved all of these milestones and are now ready to move on? Yeah, give me upper triple digits. Come on. I don't have a tally off the top of my head. Start working on that. It's

If tomorrow is successful,

I swear this on the honor of the Iceborn. What did this poet look like again at startin'?

I'm starting to recollect. He had a sort of thick frame, balding, slicked over hair. He was very alien to our eyes as the only human until the group that arrived a few weeks ago. The drunk, I see. I do know of this man. I believe I spoke to him at your chieftain coronation. Yes, he was at the oath swearing.

If anyone says that the Iceborn denied him firewood, a bald-faced lie I says. Oh, fuck! And I presume that when the ogres arrive from Ogerton,

That they were briefed on the importance of not snapping the neck of any such human? We specifically told them to do that. I presume that they were briefed? He was trying to steal our stuff and we were working really hard for it and I told the ogres, who were very strong and scary, that if he stepped out of line they could kill him. They were with only the Stormfist Legion for this time. I have no idea if they told them. It certainly wouldn't have come from any of us. We may have made a tactical boo-boo.

It hasn't been that long, Mr. Stafford Scotch. I think that we can get to Manius and the rest of the ogres and keep them up to date. We've finished our business here. If you need to, go where you need to be. I ask that you join us early morning tomorrow and we'll have a celebration. Okay. We should make sure that we prevent the murder of this poet and get some sleep. We shall retire and

The slavering hound will prepare to feast. I am so very, very pleased to have met each of you. You know, it may just be the wine, but things are looking up. I feel pretty good. Yay. For the first time in a very, very, very long time. You know your way home? Yeah. I'm sure one of them do. We do. Yeah, we do. Good night.

He is our guide spiritually and literally. I am a little old to walk at night. And she starts to make her way up the stairs to one of the inn rooms of the Quiet Quill, and you push out into the very frigid cold of Argent Holmes' winter night.

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real quick yes let's say i get all these thousand souls right and and and or or until this thing is satisfied that was the other clause might not have to be a thousand until the creature that calls itself graveyard jack until graveyard jack is satisfied as the other stipulation of the clause of the contract and we're not going to debate what that means right now but let's say i kill all these people i feed all of these people to this thing and i get out of this contract and i'm free

What then? Am I gonna be judged by some other being? Gods? There's so many of them. What if I'm still punished for all of the bad things that I've done? To get out of this contract? What then? You could spend the rest of your life wondering what if, Scrim. You could be paralyzed by what if until the day that you die. And nothing will change what happens in the end.

Or we could deal with what's in front of us right now. I don't think if we adventure for 40 more years that you would kill a thousand souls. But if Yornear's vision was true and we're on a fated path to stop an apocalypse and Graveyard Jack was it? That's what they said. If he stepped out on that cliff and bade you commit yourself to this cause

Stopping an apocalypse has got to be worth it. I imagine that at that point he might say, I'm satisfied. So a bunch of few for the many. Regardless of me, if I suffer one way or the other, I guess so be it. It's for everything. And what's a few hundred, what's a thousand souls? A thousand and one, I guess. Compared to an apocalypse. Or the end of all things, I guess. I guess. I don't think the beast that's craving...

A thousand mortal souls would be easily satisfied otherwise. Scrim, have you ever wondered why you are here? Just about every day, Joiner. Just about every day since we've landed on this godforsaken continent. What you have learned today can bring you great peace and solace and conviction. Fate has led you here, to this moment, to this place. You have traveled halfway around the world.

Now we know why. You must feed the hound. With every soul we can hope it grows stronger. Fate has brought the hound here. I believe, I feel it, to grow strong and aid us in the coming wars. I don't imagine a beast, a slobbering, mangy beast of a dog would have much of a taste for metal, man.

I can't imagine Secundus had a soul. He was certainly aware of himself. Sentient enough to have a quest. You need not flesh to have a soul. He may be a metal man, but a man all the same. And even if not, if Scrim is able to feed the beast, we've seen him grow in power alongside the Hound. He's not one-sided in this way.

If the deal is done and Scrim regains full ownership of his soul, a powerful soul it will be. Alright, so at the end of the day, what you're saying, like you've always been saying since we've been here together, this isn't about me. No. Fine. It's about something greater. It's about none of us. Fine. We all must realize this. And realize it is greater. And the Hound to devour one thousand elves ready to die

It is worth every soul. You must feed him as much as you can, as quickly as you can. Okay. The fate of the natural world depends on it. All right. Then that's what I'll try to do. You've made your way, as you've had this conversation, about a third, maybe perhaps a little bit more, from the district of the...

Cursed Glade, towards your own district. When... And the streets are largely empty. It's the middle of the night now. Your feast had taken most of the evening. And the...

Sky is clouded, still drifting down lazily, large tufts of snow coming down, coating the streets. It's not too slick, but it is, of course, very cold. The only thing keeping you warm are the layers that you have, the furs, and your own natural ability to resist such cold.

However, as you are making your way down one street to make a direct path back towards your home, you see two figures standing on the end of that street. As soon as they come into view, you can see by the torchlight that one of them carries that these are two Goliaths from the Stormfist Legion. Presumably they all are of the same tribe. And I need everyone to make a perception check.

I have my character sheet out. First dice I've rolled tonight! I don't know if anyone knew this. Perception? God! I'm good at that. Um, I would like to use three twists. Do it. To mump it up. So it's a total of plus nine for me. 21 for Barnabas. Holy! Yes! 23. 13. Is this a minus?

No. You must have gotten five. That's minus five. No. Your wisdom is one. You don't have one wisdom. No, no, no, no, no, no. There's something override. Click on your wisdom. Is there a score override? Your override score is one. Yeah, delete that. You must have tried to do minus one. His wisdom wouldn't have dropped. His charisma would have...

Is his charisma correct? It should be 18. Yeah, charisma is 18. That was 20, and then I lost it too. Oh my god. So...

I was talking to that squirrel. Barnabas Scrim, you recognize one of the faces. Not both, but you do see across this great distance, flickering in the light, the new chief of the Stormfist Legion. You understand this to be the brother of the man that Barnabas slayed, the...

Korvac. And he is looking out and grim, but it is not him who yells out and speaks out in this moment, but instead a still moderately tall and fierce looking woman just to his side. She yells out, Barnabas Dreadwake! Aye, this is he, chieftain of the Iceborne family.

I claim my right by law of the Stormfist Legion. I claim my right. You will wed me or die. I shall do no such thing, madam. So I suppose it shall be you who will die. Just like I killed the last one. What's another Goliath or two or three more? You fell my husband, the father of my children.

And I will have my vengeance. Perhaps you should choose your husbands more wisely. She takes a few steps forward and brandishes a dagger. A long, thin blade that comes to a curved tip. We will finish it here if we must. I'm going to... Is she close? I would say that she is about 50 feet away. I'm gonna approach. You take a few steps forward.

As I approach, when I get a sense that I can lower my voice, and I'm going to say, I am not trying to shed any more blood, especially on account of your backwards customs. But I already turned down to marry a Goliath, the love of my life, and she had far prettier eyes than you did. Oh.

She was the greatest woman I've ever met. And I still turned her down. What makes you think that I would say yes to you? And if you think I would not kill a woman right here in the streets, I suggest you try me. I, Stavner, cannot remarry until I find peace here by our laws. I will take my vengeance. I know you are strong, but unless you agree...

I must best you in combat. Until you yield, I must not, can not. Well, I am sorry to hear that you are shackled by your tribe and your beliefs. But I will do you a kindness. I will not spare you from what you must do. But I will make sure your head gets put beside his.

after I cut it off just like I cut off your husband's. Don't try me. You are strong. I am. And I don't need a weapon to kill you. What is that knife going to do? I... very skilled with this blade. We would make very strong children. I... we would. Not interested. I have my lover. She speaks to me. I lost her for decades.

I had her only in dreams. She returned to me after things beyond stars open those doors and open those chests. If you think I will violate that memory by degrading myself for something like you, you insult me, madam. I suggest you take your manservant, you forget we had this conversation, and you go back

and make up whatever lie you have to, woman, to get out of whatever fate your tribe deems you must have. I will not play your game. Do you understand?" She keeps her eyes on you, but she very slowly turns her head a bit and shouts out, "Chief Voronar, we fight! You will bear witness!" She starts to circle around you.

clearly ready for combat. We will not allow this. Vornar yells out. You must allow this. It is not your right to intercept. You may not interfere. This is the way of the Stormfirst Legion. Have you not had enough honorable combat? Have you not already lost enough of your numbers? By our hands or his?

You could have come at me with any other demand, woman. You understand that. And I may have heard you out. But I am not in the mood. And my spiritual advisor perhaps is advising me not to cross your skull in. And I may heed his word. But it will be him that stands between you and your brains being on the street right there. You will yield.

She is breathing heavy. You can see the rage in her eyes for what you've done. She looks full of ferocity, emotion. "Shall we do? Shall I pay for what I've done here or somewhere else at a later date?" She doesn't answer. Instead, she races forward, leaps from her feet,

puts the dagger into both of her hands and starts to swing down to stab into you. I will attempt to, as she does that, to pull out my anchor and charge up my smash attack and intercept her with my anchor. Do I have time to act? What action would you endeavor to act? I would like to use the magic action. Oh! How fucking dare you?

I'd like to kill her before she gets to Marlow's. I have Dark Crescent! What would you like to do? I would like to cast Hold Person. That's badass! I would say that... That's pretty fucking good. You see the collision that is about to occur, and you immediately tap into the weird, and you cast your spell just as she leaves the ground and starts to leap. What is the... Wisdom saving throw. DC 16.

Yeah. I think while this is going on, I would have walked up to be close to Barnabas, but I actually would not move to take a fighting stance. But I would be very much in the vicinity. He would recognize that the chief is matching. He clearly is ready to try to stop any of you from doing anything, but he's not familiar enough with magic to prevent Yornir from doing things. He is his eyes dead set on you. He looks fierce, as fierce as his brother.

She fails. Oh, got her! Alright, um, as she leaps, I will be holding my staff, and I'll just simply raise it up and do this, and all of a sudden you'll see ice start to hold her form. Um, ballerina the boss, step back.

Are you gonna try to reason with her? She slides, still standing, but into the hard pack of the path in front of Barnabas, coming just a few feet away from him. Her arms still locked in position directly above her. She's balanced, and you can see the strain against your magic, but she is still held in place. Go ahead, sorry.

I trust you, Mr. Yorneir. You hear Vornar yell out, "What magic is this?! You dishonor this- this fight?! You dishonor the- the Stormfist Legion?! Fuck your honor!"

If your honor dictates that this woman must wed the murderer of her husband, that is no honor I want to kneel to. I won't kneel, and I may not be wed. That is a decision and a mistake I made long ago. But I am spoken for. I have a lover.

And I will kill this woman if I must! You better pray to the Triad that Mr. Yornear is more merciful than I am! You would leave this woman a widow! You would make this... our people an enemy... an enemy for all! Aye! I might be a widower myself! It's not great, but it's not so bad! I promise you that! Give it a few more days!

He races up and he is assessing what has happened to... You make a saving through every round. I will step back though. I am stepping back and letting Yorneir do what he's doing. I'm going to... I trust... Barnabas implicitly trusts Yorneir. And I'm going to get between Barnabas. From where I am from, I am called Yorneir. I am friend to giant Yorneir.

Friend to man, I have acted as a shaman and as a wise man to Jarls and Kings. And without fail, brother kills brother, clan kills clan. Families are annihilated. It never ends unless you choose to end the cycle of violence.

I long ago gave up hope to change the minds of mortals. But if you wish to be free from your petty honor and from the talons of the princess, real freedom, I suggest you stand down.

If she wants to fail a bunch of more times, I try to cast Gesh. It was one minute. What? I cast Dispel Gesh. What does Gesh do? Code Gesh! He's looting! He looks at you and he says, You are weak!

You do not understand our ways. You do not understand what it is to defend someone. The world is a violent place, and you wouldn't try to join us, try to marry into our tribe. You do not see the wisdom of what you took away from us. It was your own honor, your own rituals, your own duties to violence.

that leaves you leaderless and leaves her husbandless. Do you not understand? Let us say that we allow this to happen.

and our chieftain kills her, then who is next? Her brother? Her son? Will they come next? They demand honor. And then what? Then Barnabas will kill them too. And then what? His brother. Perhaps his wife. They will come and demand honor and justice. When does it end? It would have ended when he was killed. She would marry again and start anew. Aye. You're not going to kill me. She's not going to kill me.

Worst things have tried. I've sailed to sea my entire life. I grew up in the deeps and the one thing that I know is that there's always a bigger fish. No matter how big and tough and strong you think you are, no matter how sharp the teeth, there's always the bigger fish and you do not know me. I am the bigger fish. You come one by one and you will be devoured one by one.

Feeling this swell of emotion and memory in you

makes you think of your shell and makes you think of the green eyes. It reminds you of that moment in the beach when you were forced to visit these memories. And, uh, it is making you almost dizzy with it. And it's in this moment that the, uh,

Goliath Woman Stamina unfreezes, and it's in this moment, Jornir, that if you wanted to cast Gesh, you'd be able to. As long as it's been a minute of casting time and my monologue counts as casting, which is my intention, make a wisdom saving throw. I use all of the dreads against the DM. I use dread against the DM. I don't know what the hell Gesh does. I'm going to use a twist of dread. Oh!

You can do that? Fuck, it's genius. Why didn't I think of that? I'm going to use one more to see if the dice really want to tell the story. I got a seven, a four, and then a three. That's it. Gesh takes hold as you are using your connection to the triad, to the spiritual world, to the weird, and you feel that you have this ability to command. In the name of Amun,

the Allfather of the Giants, the God of your kin and mine, you will stand down and you will join our ranks if you choose to.

That's it. So she has to obey that for 30 days. Read me Gushen in full. I give a verbal command to a creature that I can see within range. I'm trying to cast it on her, not him. Ordering it to carry out some service or refrain from action or course of activity as I decide. The target must succeed in the way of saving a throw or have the charm condition for the duration. The target automatically succeeds if it can't understand my command.

While charmed, the creature takes five detent psychic damage if it acts in a manner directly counter to your command. It takes its damage no more than once each day. You can issue any command you choose short of an activity that would result in certain death. Should you issue a suicidal command, the spell ends. Remove curse, greater resto, and wish can end the spell. And it lasts for 30 days. So she doesn't have to listen, but it'll like crush her brain. When she unfreezes. 30 days? She races forward and she pulls her knife up before...

Oh! Fuck! Oh, whoa! What have you done to me, magic man? The weird connects us giants together. You have become one with the triad for one moon. When the moon is new, I will find you. I will find you again. You will... Do not think that the princess will not know of this. Yes! Yes!

That's things that we will not speak with, Princess. You're more than welcome to tell her what occurred just now. You can tell her that I am not to be wed, that I am spoken for, I am not available, I am no one's husband, especially not yours.

Bornar takes the dagger and puts it into his belongings and he spits on the ground before taking out another object. A thick woven rope that's decorated. You look at it and he tosses it at the ground and it moves a bit with the wind. You recognize this as perhaps bonds for a marriage, a hand fasting. And he...

gives you all one last look before turning Stavna, who's still gripping her head in pain and agony, and starting to turn. This is not the last you hear of the Stormfest Legion. The Warchief has spoken. They begin to make their way. I just glare. I just look at her. I don't say anything else. They turn their backs and begin to make their way, clearly evidently heading back towards the giant step. What the fuck was that? Arjenholm is certainly never boring.

Are you okay? I will be. What the fuck did you do to her?! I stopped her. You are lucky, Mr. Yornear, that I trust you. Or she should be groveling and thanking you. I was ready to cave her skull in. You may yet get your chance. It sounds like all we've done is delay her mission. She pledged once again in the moon.

To find you. Wow, you bought us some time at the very least, right? I mean, good lord. What the... We might not make it, but fine. These people are a mockery of the Makani. They make me sick. I tire of their culture and their customs. Their cruelty. They're all slaves to it. We must gather our strength. For if we cannot make a play to bring them under our banner, we will have to face...

Their legions. I think it's safe to say that the Thunderfist clan stands with the princess. I'm not surprised. There's a reason that Mokka left this icy hell. I'll spit on the ground. Let them kneel. Truly, let them lick the claws of that scaly beast. I've killed plenty of scaly beasts in my life. What's one more?

Is another 30 minute walk before you reach

district that you your own little home the number of houses that were afforded to you by the princess of wrath as part of your fail agreeing to house and home those that you call your own tribe those of the ogres and it's still late at night but you can see there are fires rolling windows and it's relatively quiet

before you see that your house is in sight. As you walk into your own space, you're left with a decision. Do you continue to go into the district, or do you make your way home to rest and see the morning? I would be going straight home. I would be trying to lead the gang to our home so that we can rest and get ready for this ritual tomorrow. Also, we have picked up that wedding thing.

I would walk up after they're gone and I would kneel down and pick it up and I'll look at it. What does it look like? What is the vibe here?

This is braided fabric that clearly would be used in a union of marriage. Had you agreed to marry, you imagine that you might have joined hands in that very instant and been wound around the wrists together as something like a ritual of marriage in this space.

Nothing as elaborate and full of pomp like the elves. Instead, a short, simple, singular moment that would have bound your lives. Such a delicate little thing for a hard and cruel woman. Mr. Fireblossom. It burns. And I throw it as it burns. Is it just like a piece of cord? Like rope? Yeah.

It would have been decorated, perhaps painted. Not all of the fabric was of the same color. You might even have seen symbols on it, but those symbols turn to ash. Like a snake, it burns up and turns into a very stark shape against the white snow of the street. And...

And then I would... Much later. Yeah. You find your way, working your way into unlocking and opening your way into your home, and you're confronted by a more delicious smell than you enjoyed in the tavern. The smell of...

vegetables, of broth, of some form of stew. And looking at the hearth, you can see that there is a pot that is resting on some coals. Very, very dying down, but clearly a meal has been left for you and cooked in the time that you have been away from home. Oh, come on! Somebody's doing Bonobos' job now! Who's here? You don't get any answer. I look around for just any kind of sign to see if anybody's been here.

Make a perception check or investigation, your choice. I will, as Scrim is looking around, I will go to the kitchen and I will try to see what's cooking.

You go to the kitchen and you can see that things have been shuffled around. Clearly tools of cooking have been moved. There's open cupboards. The actual pot where the food smell is coming from is coming from the hearth, a large almost iron cauldron that is sitting against the dying coals, which is where Scrim is looking around.

I don't, I got an eight. I don't see anything, but as I'm investigating, as I'm perceiving, I'm going to just be like, nobody fucking ate this. Let me take a look. It doesn't smell like meat, but regardless, there's no point. Don't eat it. I'm going to grab a ladle and I'm going to attempt to use my long storied history as a ship's cook to see if I can discern the ingredients in this broth, in this stew, the

the best that I can. It is roughly made. It does not have much in the way of seasoning. You imagine that it was all just put into water and then put over flame. The ingredients include some of the potatoes and carrots that you've been able to get from the marketplace in your short time here. The perhaps in onion, whole, un-chopped.

The water isn't particularly, like, it hasn't been anti-scummed or anything, which gives you an indication that there is bone in this, and flesh. And it doesn't smell like anything you've smelled cook before. Not at a meaty level. I am going to fish around to see if I can find a bone or meat chunks. As I...

as my face will fall, and I would have been seething, still like quiet seething, and then I just would have kind of, just a stillness would come to my face as I would try to scoop out bone, try to see what I can. Getting down in with your ladle, you start to scoop up the very bottom to find those bones, and you're able to pull out the crisscross mash of what has been settling

at the bottom of this broth, clearly laid out for you to consume. And there does appear to be bones in here. I need you to make a nature or survival. I'm using five twists. I'm using five twists. Exactly right. Who has the highest passive perception? Mine's passive perception, mine's 16. 18. Nice. Oh, 14. At least you're wiser than me. Is that 8? Certainly am.

Wisdom. 22 survival. Receptionist, Wiz. 22 survival. You put together that these are not bones from a beast. As you are, you're near, you see on the back of the door, that you're closing it, that there's a note there, written in big script, says, food, underlined. I walk up and I pull it down. You may not be alone.

This isn't based in this story. What? I want to look at it and just see if I can tell, like, I don't know if I can discern, like, a forgery, if someone's pretending to look like, you know, an over-manning. Or if it was, like, placed there and they'll try to trick us. I'd say that feels investigation-y. What are you looking for? That's fine. Yeah, I mean, or whatever you want. 20.

With a 20. Damn. This is written in common, but it is written by a hand that was probably holding the pen like this, a big meaty paw that just put, without further explanation, like you would write in plain language, a full letter, the word food, assuming that you would know what that means. This leads you to deduce that this was written by him. I believe it to be the genuine, but... Mr. Yorneir, you deal in bones.

What do you reckon this is? If the ogres cooked this, what meat would they have used? Did we even have any for them to prepare? I thought we just had vegetables. Well, we sent them out for errands and all sorts of stuff. I mean, who knows where they found it, but clearly there's... Tyshan and Scrim, you find Maneus. I will investigate the bones.

Okay, let's go. And let's make sure we don't miss anymore. Stand back. I'm going to grab my anchor and stand to the side and...

hammer it down on the lid of the cauldron to tip it over and spill all of the contents on the floor. With a great rush, you hear the sound of the water and broth, the contents of this cauldron splash against the floor of this living area, and all of the vegetables spill out, eventually coming to rest. You can see all of the bones there out, spilled out in front of you.

Um, I will kneel down, and I will try to collect as many bones as I can. You don't need to. You start to push through, and one of the bones stops in sections, and you can very clearly see a fingertip with a fingernail that is very evidently from a human. This human, she knows. What is this, some kind of threat? What else could it be? Can you tell which human it is?

Mr. Yornir, is there any way... The ogres definitely couldn't have done it. ...peer into the weird with your eye? The ogres couldn't have known, you're right. They couldn't have known. This is a clear threat. She knows the laws of the land. She knows it won't work on us. It's a scare tactic. At first glance, just with my natural ability, am I able to discern anything about it?

I- Who might have come from- Would we even maybe get a sense of just like, like from sizing of the bones like male, age, female, like is this like- I can see a cipher card. I'm just- I'm just saying. It is. The femur is exactly 27.8 millimeters. I don't know if- What is a millimeter?

Do you think Taishan would have- I think Yorner would, as our surgeon medicine man. Okay, you're just justifying. As our doctor? As our doctor? You're not helping. That's an officer. No, I'm not helping. I don't know. I'm sitting like- Dude, I'm here right into the weird to find this big man. From Yorner, I feel like Yorner may be able to- I have lots of experience with bones. I think he may be able to discern that kind of thing. I'm not like a surgeon, and I'm not a CSI investigator. But you're bone! You're the man from Yorn! I don't think that I'm going to let you have a role.

I think that it would be impossible to deduce what human, particular human this could be. Yeah, there's no fucking way. Right? It could be fucking a random person. It could be fucking anyone, right?

Let's use the weave. And so you're looking through it and all you can see is, yes, it's confirmation. This is clearly from the same human, right? This isn't multiple humans. You don't seem to be finding duplicates of any particular bone. And you're all watching Yornir sort of make this initial poke and push through, picking things up, starting to try to put the puzzle together when you hear...

Almost without even thinking, I spin around in a puff of smoke the Brutal Blade is in my hand. I run over. "Who's there?" "Manny." I move to the side of the door just right next to Scrim. I look. I peek out with one eye. "You get home later than thought."

I... You see in front of you the very familiar figure of the man you originally knew as Manius Blaginius. Blade's still behind the door. I crack the door open a little bit more, and I look a little bit farther left. I look a little bit farther right to see if I can see around him, to see if anybody else is with him. Make a perception check. Oh fuck. Twist it. Five. Give me five. Five twists. Five. Five twists. Thank God, because that's gonna be a total of 12.

After I got a natural one. You reach... Wow. I know. I had two bad rolls. And we don't do critical fails here. No. No. That's just the rules. So a 12 is still pretty good. And you peak. You'd have to stick your head out in order to see more of the range of vision. But what vision you get, you feel very confident Manius is alone. Manic.

Uh, I don't stick my head- He's smiling down it. I don't stick my head, I don't open the door anymore than I just previously did. And I say to him, "Who made this food? Are you aware of this? Do you know about this?" Many make food. Where'd you get the ingredients? Yes, uh, the veg- uh, vegetables and, uh, the poet and, uh, water. Wait, you're saying you got some of the ingredients from the poet? Yes.

From certain point of view. What do you mean? You gave him... You gave him... Money. Trade. And he gave you me. No, no, no. Poet in soup. Poet. Gift for you and friend. I step back and the door will swing open. Guys, kill the fucking poet. Walk off you thug. And that is where we'll end tonight's session.

Okay. Holy hell! Okay. I guess it's true, he really did become the suit pervert. Holy shit. Jesus. Oh, also, I did not want to ruin the tension, but I was trying to find a way the entire rest of the session to fit this in. As soon as they mentioned that there were two Bargas or Grimms

I almost- wait a minute. This is getting out of hand, now there's two of them! You could've found it. You could've found it. No, the tension- No, that would've been fine. The time was never right, but I had to say it now to prove that I'm funny and clever. By just- the preferences.

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