EP. 118 The Thread and the Light

[00:00:05] Speaker A: You are listening to an atomic broadcasting production. So sit back, relax and enjoy the feature presentation. [00:00:13] Speaker B: And remember, do your part. [00:00:15] Speaker A: Such as like comment rate and don't forget to tell a friend to tune in for an atomic time. [00:00:31] Speaker C: Now, where did we leave off? [00:00:35] Speaker A: Ah yes. [00:00:38] Speaker C: After returning from the dead roads, the party reconvened and Uver encouraged Neros, reminding her that regardless of her place in the world, she will still be herself. After he left, Neros took the letter from her childhood and burned it. [00:01:02] Speaker D: Everyone quiet. It's story time. [00:01:05] Speaker A: Oh yeah. [00:01:05] Speaker D: Okay, so this morning everything was going great. Everything was normal, right? Jordy got up, I stayed in bed for a little bit cuz I was. [00:01:14] Speaker E: Cold, as one does. [00:01:15] Speaker D: He was taking a shower. I let the dogs out, let them go potty, brought the dogs in, fed them, went to go make coffee. I started making the coffee, right? Put the filter in the water, the grounds, everything was going great. Shut the lid of the coffee maker, push it back against the wall like it's supposed to be. So it's out of my way. I press the on button, something outside explodes. [00:01:43] Speaker B: Wait, wait. [00:01:45] Speaker D: It shakes the house, it rattles the windows. I just yell, what the crap? And so in my pajamas, I walk out my front door and I look around, I'm like, what just happens? [00:01:59] Speaker F: It's like 20 degrees. [00:02:00] Speaker D: The power has gone out. By the way, for your coffee, did. [00:02:05] Speaker B: You break the power system of your neighborhood? [00:02:08] Speaker D: So I'm out on my front, on our front porch looking around, looking to see if something is smoking. I'm like, what is going on? I walk out the back door and look around and no car alarms are going off. Everything, everyone is acting like it's just a normal Sunday. However, a transformer definitely blew up. [00:02:30] Speaker F: Oh no. [00:02:31] Speaker D: Literally, right? Like the next house over from ours. It was like right there, it was so close. [00:02:37] Speaker B: Overloaded the transformation as coffee. [00:02:40] Speaker A: Coffee was too powerful. [00:02:44] Speaker D: The coffee was not any stronger than normal. It should not have blown the transformation. [00:02:48] Speaker A: That's what you think. [00:02:49] Speaker E: Do the dogs have all their teeth? Because if they have a big bone. [00:02:52] Speaker D: Bite, I mean, yes, they have all their teeth, they're fine. Although my golden retriever did not want to go back outside because it exploded out there the last time she was there and she was not having it. But thankfully we do live in the city and it only took like 45 minutes for them to figure out where the transformer blew when we got our power back before we left for church this morning. [00:03:16] Speaker E: Then you got your coffee and then. [00:03:18] Speaker D: Yes, thankfully the power came back on and I Literally ran to the coffee maker and turned it on. And I said, I need this. [00:03:25] Speaker B: The transformer blew again. [00:03:28] Speaker D: But the transformer did not blow. We still had power when I turned the coffee pot on. [00:03:33] Speaker F: And then Jordi got out of the shower. [00:03:37] Speaker E: Standing in the darkness, wet and afraid. [00:03:40] Speaker C: It got really dark. Quiet. While I was showering. [00:03:44] Speaker E: Are my eyes still closed? I was just washing my hair. [00:03:46] Speaker F: Like a two hour shower. There while he waited for the lights. [00:03:49] Speaker D: To come back, he came out and I gave him the job of calling the elect the city utilities and, like, please let them know we have no power. [00:04:00] Speaker F: Wow. [00:04:01] Speaker E: Oh, that's funny. [00:04:03] Speaker F: Is the transformer okay? [00:04:07] Speaker A: I think that one met its end. [00:04:09] Speaker B: No, not. [00:04:09] Speaker D: I mean, they replaced something. Everything got fixed. But I was like, the timing of that was outstanding. [00:04:19] Speaker F: Outside. [00:04:20] Speaker D: Outside it was. [00:04:21] Speaker A: I'm just gonna make a little pot of coffee. [00:04:26] Speaker D: You don't expect an explosion to happen when you turn on your coffee pot. [00:04:30] Speaker A: That usually happens after the first sip. [00:04:33] Speaker D: Speak for yourself later. [00:04:35] Speaker B: I have my coffee pot hooked up to an explosive. [00:04:39] Speaker E: One of these days. Jenkins, I'm awake. [00:04:43] Speaker D: Is your coffee pot attached to, like, some sort of nuclear fusion? [00:04:48] Speaker F: It's got six random wires that will go down and one of them will set it off. [00:04:53] Speaker B: Every day it chooses a different wire. [00:04:55] Speaker A: Coffee roulette. [00:04:56] Speaker E: Surprised it hasn't gone off yet. [00:04:58] Speaker B: I mean, I'm very lucky. [00:05:00] Speaker E: This must be a really good coffee. [00:05:02] Speaker D: Well, if we hear an explosion later, like, I don't know, tomorrow morning or something. It's Jenkins. [00:05:07] Speaker A: Jenkins. Jenkins had his coffee. [00:05:10] Speaker E: His teeth are glowing. Hey, guys. I made some really good coffee. [00:05:13] Speaker D: He's radioactive. He turns into the Hulk after a little bit. [00:05:18] Speaker E: That's what happens when I drink coffee. [00:05:20] Speaker D: You turn into the hole. [00:05:21] Speaker E: I don't drink coffee. [00:05:23] Speaker D: Is that a monster that has more caffeine than coffee, bro? [00:05:27] Speaker E: Yeah, I know, I know, I know. It's also got erythritol, but apparently gets rid of your brain cells. [00:05:33] Speaker D: I mean, I believe it. [00:05:34] Speaker F: Have you been observing? [00:05:35] Speaker D: It's probably why. That's probably why I've gotten dumber. It's been slowly growing all the monsters I've drinking. [00:05:40] Speaker E: How long have we been recording this show? How much has my mind degraded? [00:05:45] Speaker F: I know, like, literally watch. You don't want me to pay attention to petite and just watch degrading over. [00:05:51] Speaker E: The course of the day. [00:05:52] Speaker B: It definitely will tell us in the comments. [00:05:54] Speaker D: You know, that's probably why I've gotten dumber the past few years, because I've drank too much. Monster. [00:06:00] Speaker E: This is almost empty by the time I'M done. The degradation will start. [00:06:05] Speaker D: I think it's already started there, brother. [00:06:07] Speaker E: Yeah, I did just mess up that word. [00:06:09] Speaker C: Speaking of already starting. [00:06:10] Speaker D: Oh, no, no. [00:06:11] Speaker F: And monsters. [00:06:12] Speaker B: He's been playing over there this whole time. [00:06:14] Speaker D: Yeah, he's been rolling dice over there by himself. [00:06:20] Speaker C: The guards do not notice. [00:06:21] Speaker B: Oh, good. [00:06:22] Speaker C: As your castle begins to take off. [00:06:24] Speaker A: Flies. [00:06:26] Speaker F: Crappy guards. [00:06:27] Speaker E: Guys, wasn't there a thing over there? [00:06:30] Speaker C: No. [00:06:31] Speaker D: Are we going after the knife thingy? [00:06:34] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:06:34] Speaker D: The weird cutter? Yeah. [00:06:37] Speaker B: We get Woodhurst. [00:06:38] Speaker C: A dramatic skyward, not a sword montage. [00:06:44] Speaker B: I mean, we're going after a sword. Like thing has a blade. [00:06:49] Speaker C: As your castle is flying to Irison, does anybody have any plans, intentions, or concerns about crossing the border where the political tensions are so high? [00:07:02] Speaker A: I think at 4,000ft, we're all right. [00:07:06] Speaker B: I don't think we'll need it. But can I forge political documents saying it's okay? [00:07:10] Speaker A: Do they have an air force? [00:07:12] Speaker E: Do we have political documents saying it's okay? [00:07:15] Speaker F: Well, from the group that the other group is probably tense with. [00:07:19] Speaker C: Yeah, it's like, you know, the Germans coming up to England and saying it's okay we have German documents. [00:07:27] Speaker E: I can't read that. [00:07:28] Speaker C: So I. [00:07:29] Speaker E: It doesn't matter. [00:07:31] Speaker F: What's the meme that won't stop me because I can't read. [00:07:34] Speaker E: That's the one. That's the one. [00:07:37] Speaker C: So is everybody good with Sven's suggestion of just shooting at it at a high altitude, or do you want to go with Jenkins suggestion of trying to forge documents? [00:07:46] Speaker B: Porqueiro nos dos. [00:07:48] Speaker D: I was gonna say porque nos dos. [00:07:50] Speaker F: Let's be really high and, like, throw documents off the end. [00:07:55] Speaker D: Sour them with cocaine. [00:07:57] Speaker E: Propaganda. Bomb. [00:07:58] Speaker A: Propaganda documents. [00:08:00] Speaker E: Hey, guys, it's okay. We're not the enemy. [00:08:02] Speaker D: We're the drug cartel. [00:08:04] Speaker F: We probably should go down and say, hey, can we cross? We're crossing here, by the way, whether. [00:08:11] Speaker D: You like it or not. [00:08:12] Speaker F: We're going across documents. We'll see what's going on. I think that's probably a safer bet than just showing up in ear system being like, where did you come from? [00:08:21] Speaker E: I mean, we do look like a. [00:08:22] Speaker A: Cloud before we get pulled over by the skyway patrol. [00:08:25] Speaker D: We do look like. [00:08:27] Speaker F: We do look like a cloud run by a witch. [00:08:30] Speaker E: That's true. [00:08:32] Speaker F: Do you think she might know the. [00:08:35] Speaker E: Entry bowl over, Mr. GM. Do you think this cloud is cover enough to even warrant not having to do anything like that? Because we couldn't see it when we first came in, and it was stationary. So if we're floating, just be In a cloud, just doing what clouds do. [00:08:54] Speaker C: You would feel confident without any magical means of noticing that just people on the ground. They would just see a floud, a flautist, a floud. [00:09:06] Speaker E: There's a Persian playing flute up there. [00:09:07] Speaker C: They would see a cloud drift by. However, you do not know just right off the top of your head if they might have any magical means of determining that you've crossed the border. [00:09:17] Speaker E: They could have flydar. [00:09:19] Speaker F: They could. They could have so many things that just say, someone just entered this area and no one said yes. [00:09:27] Speaker A: Breach, breach, breach. [00:09:28] Speaker F: The beat drops, the alarms just start going off. [00:09:32] Speaker C: Would anybody like to make an occultism or society check? [00:09:36] Speaker B: I can do society. [00:09:38] Speaker D: Can I use gossip lore? [00:09:39] Speaker C: Yes. [00:09:40] Speaker F: I can aid society. [00:09:41] Speaker A: That is such a utility. Utilitarian. [00:09:45] Speaker C: What? A utilitarian skill. [00:09:47] Speaker F: Utilitarian. [00:09:48] Speaker A: What's the word I'm looking for? [00:09:49] Speaker F: Utility. A good utility. [00:09:51] Speaker E: I'd like to ask you something. [00:09:52] Speaker A: Oh, how well she can use gossip. [00:09:54] Speaker F: Or how often she utilizes it. [00:09:56] Speaker E: Well, what is this society or occultism lore encompassing? Is that what you said? [00:10:02] Speaker C: Yeah. So this is to know about what possible means of detecting you or defenses they might have on the border. [00:10:09] Speaker E: Okay, I'd like to argue underworld lore, considering I would think that the criminals. And I'm assuming that's what underworld. And I've never used this literally in 117 episodes. I've never used this lore. [00:10:24] Speaker C: I would allow underworld lore. I just wouldn't. It would be at a higher DC than a more applicable ore. Because you could argue for, you know, illicit deals going back and forth across borders. But with Zephyr's history, he'd primarily been working within the land of the Linorm Kings and not moving back and forth between Iris and. So this would be a bit of a reach for your experience, but it's not so much of a reach as for me to say that that lore is irrelevant. [00:10:50] Speaker E: I'm gonna roll 28. [00:10:54] Speaker D: Okay, 33. Gossip lore. [00:10:57] Speaker B: Okay, 32. [00:11:00] Speaker F: Society with my plus one. [00:11:02] Speaker E: Yep, don't worry about it. [00:11:03] Speaker B: I rolled the six death. [00:11:07] Speaker C: So from Alward and Neros knowledge of Irisani culture and defenses and such, you are familiar that their primary line of defense is with either dolls that have souls imbued within them or with. What do they call them? The sentinel huts. Which are, if anybody's familiar with Baba Yaga and her little hut with the chicken legs. Yeah, these are modeled after that hut. But they've got a bunch of these around the borders and they're essentially walking guard towers. [00:11:48] Speaker B: Cool. [00:11:49] Speaker C: With this Knowledge at hand. You feel comfortable that you could fly your cloud castle over the top of the border and go beyond their detection. Most of their defenses are concerned about a ground assault using more normal pedestrian means of entry. They're not really concerned about the barbaric Vikings using magic to slip past their defenses. [00:12:13] Speaker D: We're not barbaric. [00:12:14] Speaker B: That's fair. [00:12:15] Speaker C: Well then you're not. What they're worried about, the country that. [00:12:18] Speaker A: We'Re coming from is the barbaric Vikings. [00:12:20] Speaker B: So we're sure that flying over is going to be fine? [00:12:22] Speaker C: Yes. You might consider drafting up some sort of form of documents for when you do land. [00:12:27] Speaker B: Yeah, that's fine. Like I said, why not do both? [00:12:30] Speaker C: What's your society bonus again? [00:12:32] Speaker B: 25. [00:12:35] Speaker C: So yeah, you just casually whip up the documents with no concern. [00:12:38] Speaker B: I would be argue for a critical. But there is no critical success effect. [00:12:42] Speaker E: Wait, question. What is the language of the territory we're moving into? [00:12:46] Speaker B: I know it. [00:12:47] Speaker A: I was. [00:12:48] Speaker E: I was gonna make a joke, my friend. I was gonna say. Are you sure you know that? [00:12:51] Speaker B: Yes. [00:12:53] Speaker C: The portion that you're going to. They still speak Skald. Quite commonly. You might run into a few people who speak Hallett. And the further east you go, the more common palette will become. [00:13:02] Speaker B: Hold on. [00:13:03] Speaker E: Do I know how it. [00:13:04] Speaker B: I think you do. [00:13:05] Speaker C: I think at least one of you does. [00:13:07] Speaker E: I. I don't think I do. [00:13:09] Speaker C: Because that's where. When you were talking to the old man and old woman outside of the Grungir forest. [00:13:13] Speaker F: Oh yeah. I think I spoke with them. [00:13:15] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:13:16] Speaker E: Oh yeah. I didn't know. [00:13:17] Speaker A: Isn't Hallet the other common technically? [00:13:19] Speaker C: So, yeah, it's the common in the realm of the mammoth lords, which is on the other side of Iris. [00:13:23] Speaker F: I don't think I did. [00:13:24] Speaker B: It's Tian Talden. [00:13:28] Speaker C: Whoosh. Your sky castle flies across the border and this like creepy doll looks up and goes, windy today. [00:13:40] Speaker D: I don't like that we have possessed dolls just staring at us. [00:13:45] Speaker C: Well, Irison is not. Doesn't want you guys here either. [00:13:49] Speaker F: So there's a little Annabelle just neck cracking as it looks up. [00:13:53] Speaker C: Well, it's heated. [00:13:54] Speaker F: It. [00:13:54] Speaker C: It's a little porcelain face that's on like a straw doll that's covered with like cloth and stuff. [00:14:01] Speaker F: That's dope. We should befriend some of them. [00:14:03] Speaker E: That sounds like the things from one of the episodes of Doctor who. [00:14:05] Speaker A: You hear that, Neros? We need to befriend some porcelain straw dolls. Dolls. [00:14:11] Speaker D: I don't know if they can be. [00:14:12] Speaker C: Charmed, but I can try before too long, you notice that the ground beneath you has suddenly shifted to winter. It is still late summer. [00:14:26] Speaker D: It's Narnia. [00:14:27] Speaker C: Yeah. It's always winter, never Christmas. [00:14:30] Speaker A: Did we make sure that we bought enough wood for the fireplace? It's starting to get a little chilly. [00:14:37] Speaker D: Isn't it just a magical castle that. Can I have central heating? [00:14:45] Speaker C: No. [00:14:48] Speaker D: What do I have? A wood burning fireplace? Is that how this works? [00:14:51] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:14:51] Speaker C: Like all of the major living spaces and bedrooms have some form of fireplace to heat. [00:14:56] Speaker D: Can we just, you know, wave that? Yes. There's enough wood on board. [00:15:00] Speaker A: There's enough wood to cook. [00:15:01] Speaker C: There's at least enough wood for now. [00:15:05] Speaker B: We bought food. We didn't buy wood. [00:15:07] Speaker C: Well, there's a tree out in the courtyard. [00:15:09] Speaker D: Wait, don't. No, don't chop down my tree, Castle. [00:15:12] Speaker A: Don't chop down. [00:15:14] Speaker C: Of course, the real question is, have you remembered to feed the rocks? [00:15:19] Speaker E: The rocks. Feed the rocks. [00:15:21] Speaker F: The giant birds that we have. [00:15:23] Speaker E: Rocks? [00:15:24] Speaker F: I don't know. Is it still alive? We never killed it. [00:15:28] Speaker C: No, they're just there. [00:15:29] Speaker D: We just have pet rocks. [00:15:31] Speaker F: The answer is no, we did not feed them. We do no longer have pet rocks. [00:15:36] Speaker C: Woodhurst is a small hamlet on the western side of Irison, so closer to the land of the Linorm kings. [00:15:44] Speaker D: See, there's plenty of wood. It's Woodhurst. [00:15:47] Speaker E: Their destination is on the down. [00:15:50] Speaker C: Is just to the north of a deep and dense forest and has a small stream running along the northeastern side of town. [00:16:01] Speaker E: This one's the Grungire forest. Similar, yet different. [00:16:07] Speaker F: So are we going to just land near this town? [00:16:11] Speaker D: I don't know that we should land near it. Maybe find a clearing out in the woods or something. [00:16:16] Speaker B: We do have the bucket to go. [00:16:17] Speaker D: Up and down, but we don't have anything to anchor the castle with. [00:16:22] Speaker C: The bucket is also now bucket sized. Oh, no. Because the castle is human sized, we. [00:16:27] Speaker E: Could tie the bucket to a tree. [00:16:29] Speaker A: The bucket is now bucket sized. [00:16:32] Speaker B: I mean, it stayed placed. I guess you did have it on the ground. [00:16:35] Speaker D: It was on. It was parked on the ground. [00:16:38] Speaker A: I mean, if you're controlling it, I. I would assume you can keep it from moving. [00:16:42] Speaker D: Can I keep it from moving? [00:16:43] Speaker C: Yes. [00:16:43] Speaker D: Oh, okay. [00:16:45] Speaker E: Says the voice in the sky. [00:16:49] Speaker A: So you hear it too. [00:16:51] Speaker D: So I suppose I could just bark it above the trees and then we could just float down to the. I don't know how we're all getting down there. [00:16:59] Speaker F: Did you just land and then take it off after we get out? [00:17:02] Speaker A: Can you shrink it down so that it's tiny? [00:17:05] Speaker D: I mean, I guess I could just fit into my pocket. [00:17:08] Speaker E: We could teleport. [00:17:10] Speaker C: You're not sure what the extent of the size modification of the castle would be? [00:17:16] Speaker A: We could land in three. [00:17:17] Speaker D: I'm so afraid of putting it in my pocket. And then something happens and it's destroyed. [00:17:20] Speaker B: What if it keeps the same weight as the castle when it's tiny? [00:17:23] Speaker C: We found the solution for the bbeg. It's a black hole. [00:17:27] Speaker E: Big black hole. A hole. [00:17:31] Speaker D: Can Sigurd just transport us one by one to the ground? [00:17:35] Speaker F: Oh, yeah, probably. [00:17:37] Speaker D: Problem solved. [00:17:38] Speaker A: Can Sigrun carry us? [00:17:40] Speaker C: Sam, remind me what kind of bird Sigrun is? [00:17:42] Speaker F: A raven. [00:17:43] Speaker C: Okay. [00:17:44] Speaker D: Why are you asking? [00:17:46] Speaker C: You know, just in case the audience has forgotten after, you know, 50 or. [00:17:50] Speaker F: 60 episodes would be 20 or a plus five on strength. [00:17:54] Speaker C: And she is a large creature. [00:17:55] Speaker F: Yes. And Athletics 21. [00:17:57] Speaker C: I think that Sigin would be quite capable of transporting you all down. But she would not be capable of flying anyone back up other than Zafir. [00:18:07] Speaker D: We can cross that bridge when we come to it. [00:18:10] Speaker E: Good planning. [00:18:12] Speaker D: Thank you. [00:18:13] Speaker C: All right, so you guys begin ferrying down using Sigrun. [00:18:18] Speaker F: I. Sure. [00:18:20] Speaker C: What order do you go down in? [00:18:23] Speaker F: I'll go first in case some were ambushed. I am the tankiest. [00:18:28] Speaker C: And are you like, landing near town or how far away from town are you landing? [00:18:33] Speaker D: How far away do you guys want to be? [00:18:35] Speaker A: We would have to be far enough away that they don't see a big castle come down from the sky. [00:18:41] Speaker F: 10 miles. [00:18:42] Speaker B: That's so far. [00:18:43] Speaker E: It's just a cloud. It's just a cloud. [00:18:45] Speaker F: I don't know. [00:18:46] Speaker B: Two miles outside of town, I guess. [00:18:48] Speaker A: How. How far are we keeping the castle up in the air? [00:18:51] Speaker B: 1700Ft. [00:18:53] Speaker F: The right amount. [00:18:54] Speaker C: I mean, it would not be suspicious for your cloud to be as close as 2,000ft above the ground. [00:19:00] Speaker A: Sticking a thousand or 2,000. [00:19:01] Speaker E: Yeah, that sounds like a lot. [00:19:03] Speaker A: It's not for clouds. [00:19:07] Speaker E: Wouldn't you know, Cloud boy. [00:19:12] Speaker C: Anyway, you guys make this like, dramatic decision point. We have the dramatic music sting as we have the fade wipe across the screen. And now you're all walking into town. We cut out the part with the bird descent because it was out of budget. [00:19:26] Speaker E: Man, that was so dangerous when the. The wind picked up and bird turbulence, I fell. [00:19:33] Speaker F: Bird turbulence. [00:19:35] Speaker C: The town is small, quiet and poor. The buildings are ramshackle lean tos. There's patchwork buildings and such like that. [00:19:46] Speaker D: Dink Town is made up of lean tombs. [00:19:49] Speaker C: Pretty much, yeah. [00:19:52] Speaker D: How is this a dip? [00:19:55] Speaker C: You okay? [00:19:56] Speaker F: What? [00:19:57] Speaker A: It's my. [00:19:57] Speaker D: They Have a whole forest. [00:19:58] Speaker A: It's a logging town. [00:20:00] Speaker D: They have a whole forest. Why can't they build homes? [00:20:03] Speaker C: Good question. [00:20:05] Speaker B: It's like the gr. [00:20:05] Speaker A: It is like the grungear forest. They tried that once. Did not go well. The town used to be a lot bigger. [00:20:12] Speaker C: It is. It actually is very quiet for its size even. Like it's a small town. But it sounds like there's nobody there. Like, there's no sounds of talking or anybody out. Like baking. There's just one chimney that has smoke rising out of it at the moment. [00:20:29] Speaker D: Okay, so it's suspicious that we're here. Love that. [00:20:34] Speaker B: Should we all break up and gather information? You're breaking up with me? [00:20:38] Speaker A: Gather information from who? [00:20:40] Speaker B: Whoever lives in the lean tos. [00:20:44] Speaker F: Lean to. [00:20:45] Speaker A: Do you see? [00:20:45] Speaker B: People. I presume we'll find them eventually. [00:20:48] Speaker D: Oh, look. There's chim. There's a chimney. Smoke. [00:20:52] Speaker E: We already know everything we need to know. Like. [00:20:54] Speaker B: No, we don't know the location. [00:20:55] Speaker E: Oh, I thought he had more extra. [00:20:57] Speaker A: Special information than we got the information from. Ser Dyer stated that the Weirdcatter is with a witch that is possibly outside this town. [00:21:10] Speaker B: Well, they don't. They love witches here. [00:21:14] Speaker C: Tolerate. Do we? Do we in America love CEOs. [00:21:21] Speaker B: Depends on who you're talking about. [00:21:23] Speaker C: There you go. The witches are the power people in Irisa. [00:21:26] Speaker B: Gotcha. [00:21:27] Speaker E: That's terrifying. Also a little literal power people. [00:21:32] Speaker A: We also now know that the town is possibly cursed. [00:21:35] Speaker E: Oh, it's just the town. [00:21:36] Speaker B: No worries. [00:21:37] Speaker A: So I don't think splitting up would be a wise decision. [00:21:42] Speaker E: Curses. I don't like him. [00:21:44] Speaker F: Like can break curses. [00:21:47] Speaker A: Well, yes. [00:21:49] Speaker B: The weird cutter. [00:21:50] Speaker A: So can. The weird cutter is a bit more efficient, I think. Or powerful. [00:21:56] Speaker B: We don't know. [00:21:58] Speaker E: Is a little rude. [00:22:00] Speaker A: Well, I. I don't mean is that there are curses that you are not yet able to break. [00:22:07] Speaker F: That's fine. [00:22:09] Speaker E: So do you think we can trust the person in the house with the chimney or should we go straight to the witch? [00:22:14] Speaker A: It might be best to perhaps find somebody in the town. And that is the most likely spot to get a better understanding of what is happening. [00:22:23] Speaker B: Do it. Val. Knock, knock. [00:22:26] Speaker A: Come in. [00:22:27] Speaker B: Oh, it's very kind. [00:22:29] Speaker A: So was the couples that was under the witch's spell or the. The cult one? [00:22:33] Speaker B: Oh, no. They wanted us to leave multiple. [00:22:34] Speaker F: They weren't under a spell. They just were being held hostage. [00:22:38] Speaker D: We say as we walk through the. [00:22:40] Speaker C: Door of his house. I haven't got your package pulled to. Oh, excuse me. I wasn't expecting visitors. [00:22:48] Speaker F: That's okay. [00:22:49] Speaker D: We thought you were not abnormally friendly to a knock on the door. So that explains it. [00:22:54] Speaker C: Hello. Well, sorry we don't have a lot to offer, but welcome to Belko's house. [00:23:03] Speaker B: Is that the name of a tav. [00:23:05] Speaker D: Are you Belko? [00:23:06] Speaker C: I couldn't think of a better name than just naming my place after me. Ha. I'm Bilka Adamov. [00:23:12] Speaker E: Why'd you name your place? Most people don't name their houses. [00:23:16] Speaker C: Well, I have a spare room upstairs that I use for, you know, those who pass by and need somewhere to stay. And I also am sort of the trader in town. If you need something, I am your best chance of getting it. [00:23:29] Speaker E: Also, you were expecting visitors, obviously. [00:23:32] Speaker C: Well, I was expecting Elma. Ay, Elma. [00:23:36] Speaker E: He's having a stroke. Can somebody help? [00:23:38] Speaker F: It's the curse. [00:23:39] Speaker C: Lay on hands. [00:23:41] Speaker E: You can't say her name. [00:23:43] Speaker C: I was expecting Emila. She lives here in town. [00:23:48] Speaker A: The town is a very quiet, quaint town. [00:23:53] Speaker C: Yes, that's one way of putting it. I don't think it's much longer for this world. [00:24:02] Speaker F: The town or the people who live here? [00:24:04] Speaker C: The town. Hopefully the people wise up and leave before it's too late. [00:24:09] Speaker D: So why haven't you left? [00:24:11] Speaker C: I feel a duty to my community. If I leave, then there's no one to supply them with what they need. And, well, they're too stubborn, I'm afraid. They'd just starve and die here. [00:24:23] Speaker F: Why? Why are people leaving? I should leave or should leave? Yeah. [00:24:28] Speaker D: Have you seen the outside, Val? [00:24:30] Speaker B: It's made up of lean tos. [00:24:32] Speaker F: What is a lean to? Why are you saying that word? [00:24:34] Speaker C: I. I prefer my leany house. And he leans up against the wall and it's at like a 15 degree angle. [00:24:41] Speaker B: What was his name again? As a makeshift. [00:24:43] Speaker C: Belko? Adamov. [00:24:45] Speaker D: Belko. [00:24:46] Speaker A: Putting cabinets in this place must have been a nightmare. [00:24:50] Speaker C: Oh yeah, look at my kitchen. Everything's just like a cattywampus angle. [00:24:55] Speaker E: I love this art style, architecture style. Nothing's. Even my inner carpenter's screaming. [00:25:03] Speaker C: Oh, my outer carpenter's screaming. There's just this from outside. [00:25:10] Speaker E: Oh, that's just. [00:25:11] Speaker B: My outer carpenter must hit his thumb with a hammer. [00:25:15] Speaker C: Anyway, it's. No, it's not the architecture that makes us want to leave. It's the fact that, yeah, people keep going missing. [00:25:23] Speaker B: Oh, that's a good. [00:25:26] Speaker D: Aren't we about to start a side quest? [00:25:28] Speaker B: We heard there was a witch outside of town. [00:25:30] Speaker C: That's why I think people keep going. [00:25:32] Speaker B: Okay, can you tell us where? [00:25:35] Speaker C: Yes, south. In the woods. The deep Dark woods that are really difficult to find your way in. [00:25:40] Speaker D: Oh, so it is the Grim Gear Forest. [00:25:44] Speaker A: We have experience with Southwest. [00:25:46] Speaker F: We managed to be well last time. Let's just pray to those forest gods. [00:25:49] Speaker B: We're gonna go talk to the witch. [00:25:51] Speaker E: Have you ever thought about the fact that the people going missing, maybe the people that just want to leave? [00:25:55] Speaker C: No, these are people that. So they go to bed at night, they start to sleep, and then the next morning, there's nothing but a little straw doll left in their bed, and nobody knows where they went. [00:26:07] Speaker B: How do you know that they. It doesn't matter. [00:26:09] Speaker F: Are they the straw. Do you still have all those dolls? [00:26:12] Speaker C: He, like, goes ghost white and he's like, no, no, no, no. [00:26:18] Speaker B: You burned them, didn't you? [00:26:19] Speaker F: Where are they? [00:26:20] Speaker C: I don't know. I didn't do anything with any of them. [00:26:23] Speaker E: You don't have a basement, do you? [00:26:24] Speaker F: Just all in their home still. [00:26:26] Speaker C: I mean, usually. Well, for the most part, it was children. [00:26:30] Speaker D: Insight check. This isn't D and D, but insight check. [00:26:35] Speaker C: So make a perception check. [00:26:37] Speaker D: I'll join it 24. 5. [00:26:43] Speaker C: You are confident that this guy is now shaken by the thought that perhaps these people have been cursed to become straw dolls and he's done nothing to stop it? [00:26:54] Speaker A: Okay. [00:26:56] Speaker E: Technically, he's feeding that by keeping them here. [00:26:59] Speaker A: And how often have the children have been going missing? [00:27:03] Speaker C: Well, not so much anymore. Used to be on a week, almost a weekly basis, but now we've sent them all away. Originally, we thought that it was some. Something that targeted children or only affected them. And we thought if we just removed the children, we could sort of starve the problem, you know? But now, now that there's no children, it's just sort of moved its way on up and is now just going after the younger adults. And folk are starting to get the picture and starting to leave. But until. Until everyone's come to the consensus, it's time to go. I'll stand with my people. [00:27:40] Speaker F: Do you happen to know, are any of these. Are there any of these dolls still around? [00:27:48] Speaker C: I'm afraid I don't know if anyone's been keeping them. We. You might ask with the other villagers. And while he's talking, suddenly the door opens behind you and a woman, like, starts walking in quickly and stops real quick when she realizes the room is not empty. She, like, almost runs into you. Oh, I didn't realize you had visitors. [00:28:09] Speaker E: Oh, you must be. What's her name, the one he was waiting on. [00:28:11] Speaker B: Emilia. [00:28:13] Speaker E: Immi. Yeah. [00:28:15] Speaker C: I am Amela. [00:28:16] Speaker B: Amella. [00:28:17] Speaker D: Amella. [00:28:18] Speaker E: Oh, you must be Amella. [00:28:23] Speaker C: Belka's just like, oh, Imela, come on in. I don't have your package ready. And she just walks up and like, no, it's. I'm not. I understand. You don't have it ready yet. I. I was just here to get something for Mina and Stanko. Belko just. His face falls and he's like, Ivan. She nods. Oh. [00:28:54] Speaker F: Was that one of the children? [00:28:57] Speaker C: Yeah, the. The last of the kid folk that was still in town. Well, was still in town. [00:29:05] Speaker F: Well, where are they at? [00:29:08] Speaker C: Imela just like points down the road and the last house on the left. [00:29:13] Speaker F: I might be able. I might be able to help. [00:29:17] Speaker C: And. And you are? [00:29:18] Speaker F: Oh, my name is Val. I'm a champion of pharasma. [00:29:22] Speaker C: She reaches out to take it in. [00:29:24] Speaker F: I'm actually a mortal Herald of Phrasa. Well, Bell. Yes, It's a long story. At the moment, it's a little influx. [00:29:34] Speaker E: Oh, she's between jobs. [00:29:37] Speaker C: What. What brings you to town? [00:29:41] Speaker A: Your witch. [00:29:43] Speaker F: We heard about the witch problem to the south. [00:29:46] Speaker C: And do you think you can help? [00:29:48] Speaker F: Maybe I can. I've recently learned how to break curses. And potentially I could help break Ivan out. And if that doesn't work, we should be able to take care of the witch herself and break that curse. [00:30:04] Speaker E: What are you implying, Val? Break Ivan out? [00:30:07] Speaker F: Well, if it is indeed a curse that's turning these children into dolls, then I might be able to break the curse. [00:30:17] Speaker C: Amela just starts like breathing really quickly. [00:30:20] Speaker E: I have a feeling that's what's happening, but I don't think we ever mentioned that. I don't think they are even thinking of that. [00:30:27] Speaker C: Okay, I am now. [00:30:30] Speaker F: I just remembered. [00:30:31] Speaker D: It takes eight hours to break a curse. [00:30:35] Speaker F: Well, yes, to break a curse. I mean, but it could be faster if we just went to the witch. [00:30:41] Speaker A: It would also be useful to know what curse you are breaking. [00:30:45] Speaker B: Yes, that was. Yes, you might get insight that's true. [00:30:50] Speaker F: Either way, can you. But I could at least tell. [00:30:53] Speaker A: Lead us to the house, please. I think it would be better that we had an introduction from someone that they knew. [00:31:02] Speaker E: Also, sorry to break the news if that is troubling to you, that they might be the doll. [00:31:06] Speaker C: That's very troubling. I'm just trying to just bottle that up for now. Come with me. She starts walking down the road. [00:31:15] Speaker A: I do not think that is the kids, the children or anyone being missing turned into dolls. [00:31:20] Speaker F: You don't think that. [00:31:21] Speaker A: No, I do not think so. [00:31:23] Speaker C: Why is that? [00:31:24] Speaker A: What would be the use of leaving behind what you turn someone one into. If it is a witch revenge, there. [00:31:31] Speaker F: Could be several motivations for it. It just depends. We don't like dolls. [00:31:35] Speaker A: I think it is more that they are spirited away. [00:31:40] Speaker F: Potentially. [00:31:41] Speaker A: And I do that purposely loud enough so that she can hear it. [00:31:46] Speaker F: It's worth looking at them just to make sure. [00:31:48] Speaker C: Yeah. Her. Her shoulders relax a little bit. Over here. I was about to say. [00:31:52] Speaker E: I wonder if this is reassuring or just. [00:31:54] Speaker A: It's reassurance. Yeah. Uver, though I will say genuinely doesn't believe that the. The children are the dolls. [00:32:02] Speaker C: She leads you down the road to the last house on the left on that street. It's equally ramshackle to all the others with just strange angles to the geometry of the architecture. But it's cozy in its own way. And she knocks again on the door. It's opened by a pale, thin faced woman. Emila, I. Oh. Who are all these? [00:32:29] Speaker A: Hello. We are adventurers that have come to this town to perhaps help. We heard about your son. [00:32:45] Speaker C: Amela nods. [00:32:46] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:32:46] Speaker C: Son. [00:32:47] Speaker F: Ivan. [00:32:48] Speaker A: Ivan. Would we be able to take a look? [00:32:53] Speaker C: If you think there's anything to be done, you're welcome to look around. [00:32:58] Speaker E: Do you still have the doll perhaps? [00:33:01] Speaker C: Yes. We. We haven't brought ourselves to touch anything yet. [00:33:07] Speaker E: I apologize if that was insensitive. I'm trying to work on my sensitivity. How is it working? Well, I'll give you a survey later. [00:33:13] Speaker D: Oh my gosh. [00:33:15] Speaker B: Can I touch the doll? [00:33:17] Speaker C: You'll have to get to the room first. She's opening the door. [00:33:21] Speaker B: I was asking if it was okay. [00:33:24] Speaker C: If you think that would help. [00:33:26] Speaker F: My name is Val. I'm a healer. And I have some where you can help with the situation. But we have some theories we're just playing around with to see in what ways we need help. [00:33:41] Speaker A: As he goes to touch the doll. U casts detect magic. [00:33:47] Speaker C: U. You do not detect any particular magic. Alward. You're touching the doll? [00:33:55] Speaker B: Yep. [00:33:56] Speaker C: With your hand? [00:33:57] Speaker B: Yep. What? What, what, what? What's the vibe? [00:34:00] Speaker C: The vibe is how to put this thought concisely. I know the thought. I know the feeling. [00:34:06] Speaker A: I can. [00:34:07] Speaker C: That's what I need. A face in my brain. Let's say cruel delight. [00:34:15] Speaker E: Ew. [00:34:17] Speaker C: Albert, as you're holding this doll, it's made out of straw. So like there's a bunch of straw bent over by half and then like crosswise straw to make the arms. It's a really crude dollar. And out of the top of the doll you see just the faintest hint of a golden thread that trails out the window. [00:34:39] Speaker B: I don't like that. Geordi. Howard is gonna watch the thread go out the window. Do you guys see that? [00:34:52] Speaker A: See what? [00:34:52] Speaker C: No one else sees this. [00:34:58] Speaker B: I'll be back. I won't go far, and I'm gonna follow it out the window. [00:35:04] Speaker E: Didn't we just say we're not gonna split up? [00:35:07] Speaker C: So alward, you climb out the window and follow this thread, and it weaves its way down the road and turns and starts heading south towards the woods. [00:35:21] Speaker B: How far away am I from? Is it a house or is it a lean to? [00:35:24] Speaker C: It's a lean house. [00:35:26] Speaker B: Okay. It's a leaning house. [00:35:27] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:35:29] Speaker B: If I were to shout, would I be far close enough to it or. [00:35:32] Speaker C: It depends on how far you travel. I mean, if you want to stay within shouting distance, that's easy. [00:35:35] Speaker B: Okay. [00:35:36] Speaker C: It's a small town. [00:35:37] Speaker B: I'm gonna shout back. I know how to find the witch there. [00:35:43] Speaker A: Hearing that from the window because he was watching. [00:35:46] Speaker B: It'd be a little weird if you did. [00:35:48] Speaker E: Yeah. [00:35:49] Speaker B: I'm gonna bring the doll back. Well, I'm gonna go back into the house, I should say. [00:35:55] Speaker C: Did you. You found something? [00:36:00] Speaker B: I think I need to keep this for the time being. I'll bring it back. [00:36:04] Speaker C: You think it'll help you find Ivan? Yeah. [00:36:09] Speaker B: Is that whose doll this is? [00:36:12] Speaker C: Well, we found it on his bed this morning, and he was gone. [00:36:18] Speaker F: Then. [00:36:19] Speaker A: We will take our leave. [00:36:21] Speaker B: I trust my friend Val hasn't done anything. [00:36:27] Speaker E: I don't think there's much to be done at the moment. [00:36:29] Speaker A: There is no magic here that I can see. [00:36:32] Speaker B: Okay. I'm gonna mage hand the doll because I'm tired of feeling it. Do I still see the thread? [00:36:41] Speaker C: You do, but it's fainter. [00:36:42] Speaker B: That's fine. [00:36:43] Speaker F: Can I roll religion on this to see if there's any sort of. [00:36:47] Speaker C: Yeah, go ahead and roll. [00:36:48] Speaker E: Before Alward came back, I was literally just about to jump out the window with him. [00:36:53] Speaker F: Natural 20, so 40. [00:36:55] Speaker A: Golly. Nice. [00:36:58] Speaker C: There are no rituals or, like, religions or anything that you're familiar of doing this. You actually get the sense that this was more done out of spite to mock the victim. [00:37:11] Speaker F: Okay, what's the evidence on to you? [00:37:15] Speaker D: Is the victim the kid or the victim the parents? [00:37:17] Speaker E: That's a good. [00:37:18] Speaker D: Because that would be mocking the parents more than. Yeah, just saying. [00:37:22] Speaker A: Very good question. [00:37:23] Speaker F: We'll go and deal with the situation and everything should work out and be fine afterwards. If you are able to just hold out here for a bit. [00:37:34] Speaker C: We'll wait here. You. You bring Ivan home. [00:37:38] Speaker F: We'll do Everything we can. Only the lady of Graves watch out for you. [00:37:44] Speaker B: What? [00:37:45] Speaker D: Well, maybe that's not the best thing to say in this particular circumstance. [00:37:50] Speaker B: Yeah, maybe. [00:37:51] Speaker D: Maybe shelving would be better. [00:37:54] Speaker F: Yes, the Eternal Rose as well. [00:37:57] Speaker C: Oh, okay, that sounds a lot better. [00:37:59] Speaker D: They just lost the sun. I don't think bringing up graves is a good thing to do. [00:38:05] Speaker F: Well, she watches over spirits. [00:38:09] Speaker D: Let's just get out of here. [00:38:11] Speaker F: Everyone has a spirit. [00:38:13] Speaker D: Not the time. [00:38:14] Speaker E: Now. [00:38:16] Speaker B: As we're walking out the door. [00:38:19] Speaker E: But before we leave the room, Zafir just turns around and hands her a piece of paper. Paper with a happy face and a sad face. And two boxes next to it. And just. I'll be back. [00:38:30] Speaker D: Is that your survey? [00:38:31] Speaker F: You really committed to that bit? [00:38:33] Speaker C: I'm. [00:38:35] Speaker E: We'll be back. [00:38:37] Speaker C: Am I supposed to fill this out now or later? [00:38:41] Speaker E: While it's fresh in your mind? If you would. [00:38:45] Speaker C: She takes the. As you guys leave, she takes the paper over to the table, sets it down, takes a quill, and starts slowly, meticulously filling in the box next to the frowny face. [00:38:59] Speaker D: You need to work on your sensitivity. Maybe we all do. [00:39:03] Speaker E: That's what surveys are for. [00:39:05] Speaker A: Speak for yourself. [00:39:06] Speaker C: Actually, we really do. [00:39:07] Speaker D: I said nothing. [00:39:09] Speaker F: Albert, what was it that is happening? What do you see? [00:39:15] Speaker B: This doll is. And I'm still walking in the direction of the thread. I think this doll is connected in some way. [00:39:25] Speaker A: And what did you feel? [00:39:27] Speaker B: Cruel delight. Like they were happy to be doing this. [00:39:32] Speaker E: I felt that many times before. [00:39:34] Speaker A: You see Uvair's knuckles whiten around his staff. Then we best get on our way. [00:39:44] Speaker F: Yeah, that was the same sense I got from it. [00:39:47] Speaker C: As you begin to make your way into these deep, twisted woods, alward, the thread starts getting harder to follow. It's almost like it was catching sunlight and glinting in the light. And as you're getting into the darker woods, you're only able to catch glimpses here and there. [00:40:06] Speaker B: If I grab the doll with my actual hand, does it get any better? [00:40:10] Speaker C: Yes. It brightens up and you're able to continue forging on. But it's still. As it's getting darker in the woods, you're still having more trouble. And you've got that just. That weight of just feeling, that just cruel glee. But then all of you notice a little ways ahead of you is a bluish light just sitting steadily in the woods. [00:40:36] Speaker A: I cast Detect Magic again. [00:40:39] Speaker C: It is out of range of Detect Magic at this point. [00:40:42] Speaker A: Okay. When we get into range. [00:40:44] Speaker C: Okay. Before you would get within range of Detect Magic, you would see this to be a lantern posted on a meticulously carved staff that's got like a bird clawed foot that's just like perched on the ground staff. Yeah. So you've got like a post. Yeah, with like a bird clawed foot and hanging off of this post. Rather not. Not a staff, a post. Okay, okay. Is this lantern? [00:41:13] Speaker A: It's the only one. [00:41:14] Speaker C: Just the one by itself. When you get close enough, you can cast detect magic and you detect that it is magical. [00:41:23] Speaker A: 30Ft and rank. [00:41:27] Speaker C: Let's say fourth rank. [00:41:28] Speaker F: Are we. Do any of us know what this is? Basically like a cultural thing or is it. [00:41:34] Speaker C: Society? Check. [00:41:38] Speaker D: Gossip lore. [00:41:40] Speaker C: Okay, yeah, Gossip lore can be used for pretty much anything. That's a recall knowledge. [00:41:45] Speaker D: Yeah, I know, but I still want to ask and be respectful of the GM arcana. [00:41:50] Speaker C: You could do arcana 30. [00:41:53] Speaker B: Same. [00:41:54] Speaker D: 35. [00:41:56] Speaker A: 40. [00:42:01] Speaker C: Okay. Ben, there. You know, with all of these checks, the conglomerate of what you're all able to learn and glean out of this is. No, this is not a cultural thing. It's really strange that you would find such a well carved posted lantern out in the middle of the woods. The gossip lore and arcana are able to also include that the hue and the light and everything here seems very reminiscent of wisps. Like will o' the wisp type creatures. [00:42:31] Speaker D: That's what I was thinking. It was a wisp when you said blue light. [00:42:36] Speaker C: And as you're standing there pondering this, the lantern kind of hops in place. [00:42:44] Speaker B: Oh, should we follow it? If it moves. [00:42:49] Speaker F: Well, where does the string take us? [00:42:52] Speaker B: Oh, it's, it's. It's faded. Also, I didn't tell you how I knew where we were going. [00:43:01] Speaker F: You know, it's like, Detective, they have strings of evidence. [00:43:05] Speaker C: That was a trainer. [00:43:09] Speaker D: I knew it's. [00:43:11] Speaker E: What we're saying is I shouldn't touch this. [00:43:13] Speaker C: The hint of golden thread that you've been following seems to be pointing exactly in the same direction as this lantern. [00:43:21] Speaker B: We need to go that way and aloud points to the direction of the hopping lamp post. [00:43:27] Speaker F: I mean, we could just walk around here, right? [00:43:29] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:43:31] Speaker F: In theory, this thing could just be a nice thing, or it could be some sort of like alert system for the witch. [00:43:37] Speaker B: If it's an alert system, it definitely has alert. [00:43:39] Speaker F: It's hopping right now. [00:43:40] Speaker E: Unless it's trying to get there to alert. [00:43:42] Speaker F: It's not moving. It's just hopping. [00:43:44] Speaker E: Maybe it doesn't know how to move forward. Just hopping in place. I've had that problem before. There are some very interesting drinks out there. [00:43:55] Speaker F: Does it speak? [00:43:57] Speaker B: It doesn't have a mouth. [00:43:58] Speaker E: Why don't you ask it? [00:43:59] Speaker F: Hello. [00:44:00] Speaker C: The post, like, waves back and forth. There's a little bell on the lantern. [00:44:05] Speaker D: It is an alert system. [00:44:08] Speaker E: You just activated it. [00:44:09] Speaker D: It is definitely an alert system. [00:44:11] Speaker B: Is going to step past it to see what it does. [00:44:14] Speaker C: It goes boink, boink, boink. And kind of hops to watch you as you walk around it. [00:44:19] Speaker D: But it doesn't follow him. [00:44:20] Speaker E: So, like, it's turning if you just. [00:44:22] Speaker C: Kind of, like, walk past it. Yeah, it's, like, turning to watch him. And then it kind of, like, kind of bends to look back at the rest of you. [00:44:29] Speaker E: Okay, what if I go to the opposite side? Like, parallel. That's not the right word. Yeah, that's the right word. Same line of. So it can't look at both of us at the same time. [00:44:38] Speaker C: It does little 180 hops of, like, outward zafir. Outward zafir. [00:44:44] Speaker E: All right, somebody stand to the right and somebody stand to the left. I want to see this thing go in circles. [00:44:47] Speaker C: It slouches. [00:44:48] Speaker F: We're not here to attack. We're not here to antagonize this post. [00:44:53] Speaker C: It leans in close to the doll that Alward is holding. [00:44:57] Speaker B: Gonna move it away. [00:44:59] Speaker C: It lets you move the doll away. But then it kind of, like, leans back up like it's looking alward. [00:45:06] Speaker B: I don't. I don't like how it's looking at me. [00:45:09] Speaker F: Do you want the doll? [00:45:10] Speaker C: It shakes side to side now? [00:45:12] Speaker A: Do you know where the child is? [00:45:14] Speaker C: It nods. [00:45:15] Speaker A: Can you take it to us? [00:45:20] Speaker D: Take the child to us. [00:45:21] Speaker E: We'll stay here. [00:45:22] Speaker D: You bring the child. [00:45:23] Speaker A: Let me restart that phrase. [00:45:24] Speaker C: Thank the child for the audience's benefit. I've got my arm held out like a puppet and I'm, like, doing the lantern. And when he asked that question, I just instinctively had my hand in confusion. [00:45:42] Speaker A: Can you take us to as a child? It is. [00:45:45] Speaker C: It nods. [00:45:47] Speaker A: And then I have one final question. Is that which your master. [00:45:54] Speaker C: It wavers back and forth. [00:45:57] Speaker E: Are you your own master? [00:46:00] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:46:01] Speaker A: Would you like to be free? [00:46:03] Speaker C: It nods vigorously. [00:46:04] Speaker E: I hand it a sock. [00:46:06] Speaker B: Are you. Were you once not what you are now? [00:46:10] Speaker C: It nods even more vigorously. Ah. [00:46:13] Speaker A: Are you one of the missing people from the village? [00:46:20] Speaker C: No. It shakes its head. [00:46:22] Speaker A: But you were once someone else. Are you a sprite or yes. [00:46:29] Speaker C: Not. [00:46:30] Speaker F: Are you just a captured being? [00:46:33] Speaker C: Not. [00:46:33] Speaker B: Can we just break your lantern and set you free or no? [00:46:38] Speaker C: It cocks to the side, like thinking. Slowly shakes its head. [00:46:44] Speaker E: It may hurt it. [00:46:45] Speaker B: Well, that's why I asked, actually. [00:46:48] Speaker A: Can I Can. Yeah, we're probably thinking the same thing. [00:46:51] Speaker F: Can we recall knowledge? [00:46:52] Speaker C: Yes. [00:46:54] Speaker F: To see if we know of a way. [00:46:56] Speaker A: Because I rolled a 40 on Arcana. [00:47:00] Speaker B: Accounting lore, music lore. [00:47:05] Speaker C: This from what you have recalled knowledge and looked at and thought about. This doesn't bear any resemblance or any markings of known ways of binding, like a sprite or a fairy to this. Alward, what's your perception modifier? [00:47:19] Speaker B: 20. [00:47:21] Speaker C: Alward, you see this lantern just like everyone else does, but if you kind of turn your head sideways and squint a little bit, you see golden threads binding the lantern shut. [00:47:34] Speaker F: Oh, no. [00:47:35] Speaker B: Alward cocks his head and squints his eyes a little bit. And then after a second, his eyes go wide, and he's like, oh. And he's just moving his hands and very confused. [00:47:48] Speaker F: What's going on, Albert? [00:47:50] Speaker A: What do you see? [00:47:55] Speaker B: Time. I think I'm gonna reach out and try to pluck one of the threads. [00:48:05] Speaker C: I was waiting, petite. [00:48:06] Speaker B: Zafir is buffering. [00:48:07] Speaker E: Oh, sorry. What did you do to me? [00:48:10] Speaker F: It's okay. It's too late. [00:48:12] Speaker B: The moment's past. [00:48:14] Speaker C: So, Alward, you reach out and you try to pluck one of these strands, for lack of a better term, make a spell spell attack roll. So, essentially, I want to make. I want you to make a check that uses your spell modifier. [00:48:27] Speaker B: Yeah, I'm gonna Hero point. [00:48:30] Speaker D: Be so heroic right now. [00:48:31] Speaker B: Being the most heroic. [00:48:33] Speaker E: I forgot those existed. [00:48:35] Speaker F: Oh, no. [00:48:36] Speaker D: What? [00:48:36] Speaker B: I haven't rolled above a 10 this entire time. [00:48:39] Speaker A: Oh, no. [00:48:39] Speaker E: Don't worry. Me neither. [00:48:41] Speaker B: I rolled an 8 for a 29. [00:48:46] Speaker C: Hour. Do you try to get your finger on that thread, and you're able to just, like, barely get this. Just the slightest slack in it to pluck your finger under. And as you become familiar with. You see, like, the all of the essence of all of the threads and all the ways that it could go, and, you know, notice that they are all just wrapped around the lantern. And when you try to pull to make more slack, you just lose your grip, and it snaps back to the lantern. [00:49:13] Speaker A: What's that look like for everybody else? [00:49:16] Speaker C: You just see Alward reach out towards the lantern and just kind of, like, run his finger next to the lantern. [00:49:23] Speaker B: And just that just, like, petting the air. [00:49:28] Speaker E: He does some weird things. I'm not gonna say anything. [00:49:31] Speaker B: I think this thing is trapped in time. [00:49:34] Speaker E: Not even gonna touch it. [00:49:36] Speaker F: All right. [00:49:38] Speaker A: This thing can shake its head and shake and nod its head and act confused. [00:49:43] Speaker F: It's related to the Witch. [00:49:45] Speaker A: Did the witch do this to you? [00:49:47] Speaker C: It nods. [00:49:49] Speaker A: How long have you been. I can't answer that question. [00:49:52] Speaker D: Yes or no question. [00:49:54] Speaker F: You could hop. Hop. How many years you've been trapped? [00:49:58] Speaker E: Stands there for 10 minutes. [00:49:59] Speaker B: Have you been trapped more than a decade? [00:50:03] Speaker E: Do you know time? Can you tell time? [00:50:05] Speaker C: It waggles its head. [00:50:07] Speaker F: Cool. [00:50:08] Speaker D: We don't know. I think more or less. [00:50:10] Speaker B: The moment in which it's trapped is always the moment that exists in the current space. Okay, so it doesn't progress or regress. It just stays. [00:50:22] Speaker E: I can be forever young. Can you do this? Never mind. We'll get back to that. [00:50:26] Speaker C: Albert, make an occultism check for me. [00:50:28] Speaker B: Oh, yay. I wanna be forever young, but not. [00:50:35] Speaker F: Trapped in a lamp. [00:50:37] Speaker A: You need new dice. [00:50:39] Speaker D: What did you roll this time? It's a nine. [00:50:41] Speaker A: Buddy, are you rolling a detail? [00:50:43] Speaker D: Get a new. Yes. [00:50:45] Speaker B: Okay. [00:50:45] Speaker D: Get a new dice set out. But this is the 1 4L. I know, but they need to be put in jail right now. [00:50:52] Speaker F: They'll start rolling better after Jenkins. [00:50:54] Speaker D: They are gorgeous dice, I will admit, but if they're not rolling, well, it is time to change the game. [00:51:01] Speaker F: Don't do it. [00:51:01] Speaker B: I really want this. I'm gonna use another hero point. [00:51:05] Speaker D: Keep the economy going. [00:51:07] Speaker B: Okay, go try a different dice. No, no, no. Okay, Sam, I' ma trust you. [00:51:12] Speaker D: He rolls below a 10. [00:51:13] Speaker E: If you need another jail. [00:51:17] Speaker F: All of the best dice decisions. [00:51:19] Speaker A: Double jail. [00:51:20] Speaker D: Exactly 10. [00:51:22] Speaker E: You rolled above a nine. [00:51:25] Speaker B: It's progressively been getting better with every roll. [00:51:28] Speaker C: He's warming up. [00:51:29] Speaker A: So 10 more rolls, you get a 20. [00:51:32] Speaker B: 34. [00:51:35] Speaker F: You forget how high the modifier is when we're discussing these rolls. [00:51:39] Speaker D: It's still not great to roll below a 10. It's still frustrating. [00:51:43] Speaker C: Al, take your hero point back. [00:51:48] Speaker E: Oh, it's on the. [00:51:49] Speaker B: Oh, the nine would have got it. [00:51:51] Speaker C: I was, like, debating being like, it's. It's a question of how much information you get. It's not. Do you get anything? [00:51:58] Speaker B: Oh, okay. [00:52:01] Speaker C: And then when I found out what your modifier was, I'm like, the nine. [00:52:04] Speaker E: Was fine rolls the one. Oh, you know, everything. [00:52:10] Speaker C: As this conversation has been going alward, you've been able to kind of keep your attention focused to see the thread, and you're starting to notice just the slightest hint of, like, unspooling. [00:52:26] Speaker B: Like, it's untangling itself. [00:52:28] Speaker C: So, like, there's a strand that's kind of just dissipating. That's like unwinding from the lantern. But at this current rate, it would probably take centuries before it would be Completely unbound. Wow. [00:52:40] Speaker F: You're really good at seeing things. [00:52:44] Speaker B: Thanks. [00:52:44] Speaker F: I can tell that thing's coming. Decaying at one in every century. [00:52:49] Speaker C: Well, so imagine numbers. Imagine it like this. It's. It's a wad of thread around the lamp that's like inches thick, and there's just the barest hint of unspooling. [00:53:02] Speaker F: Right. [00:53:02] Speaker E: I used to have a cable box with that, like power cables. And it looked just like that. [00:53:08] Speaker B: Guys, I think I really want to talk to the switch. Is that bad? [00:53:12] Speaker E: I mean, you have a chance. [00:53:13] Speaker F: Maybe we need to get some answers to see if we can cure people or not. [00:53:17] Speaker D: If she doesn't immediately try to kill us, then yes, you can talk to the witch. If she tries to immediately kill us, I'm not gonna promise anything. I will Shadow blast her. [00:53:26] Speaker F: I'll try to knock her out. [00:53:28] Speaker B: Fair Neros. And I don't think I want to kill her or kill her. [00:53:34] Speaker D: Kill the witch. [00:53:35] Speaker A: Kill it. [00:53:35] Speaker E: Well, you are right. [00:53:36] Speaker B: I don't think I want to talk to it that badly, Val. But keep it in mind, I guess. [00:53:41] Speaker F: Well, yeah. Well, if we show up and she attacks instantly, we kill her. What if the magic doesn't instantly break away? Then we'll learn nothing. [00:53:49] Speaker B: That's fair. [00:53:50] Speaker E: Yeah, but then we will have found the thing that breaks curses, right? [00:53:53] Speaker B: Well, we don't even know if this is a curse. [00:53:55] Speaker F: This is still a rumor. We're not actually for sure about that. [00:53:58] Speaker E: Rumors usually tend to be true, in my experience. [00:54:02] Speaker F: I not sure. Um, Dewey Lamp, you want to come with us? [00:54:08] Speaker C: It nods. [00:54:11] Speaker F: By the way, do you know how to move? [00:54:13] Speaker C: It knots and like, starts hopping a few steps further into the woods. [00:54:17] Speaker A: Are you an. An alarm system of sorts. [00:54:21] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:54:22] Speaker F: Do you need the bell attached to you? [00:54:24] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:54:24] Speaker E: Can we keep you? [00:54:25] Speaker F: I take off the bell, it slumps. You just said no. [00:54:29] Speaker B: It likes the bell. [00:54:30] Speaker F: I asked him if he needs it. He said no. [00:54:31] Speaker B: Do you want it back, dog? No, I don't think it'd be. [00:54:35] Speaker C: It puts forward to get the bell back on. [00:54:38] Speaker F: Oh, all right. There you go. [00:54:39] Speaker C: It hops, hops, hops and makes. [00:54:41] Speaker B: Ding, ding, ding. Can we remove the. What's the thing inside? A bell? [00:54:46] Speaker A: It likes sitting. [00:54:49] Speaker C: It nods at Uvir. [00:54:50] Speaker B: Oh, okay. [00:54:50] Speaker D: We are afraid that if we get close enough to the witch, you will be an alarm system. So that is why we were asking. [00:54:56] Speaker F: If you need the bell, can you be stealthy? [00:55:01] Speaker B: Rolls dice. [00:55:03] Speaker C: Ding, ding. It lands on a branch, looks at Val, shakes its head. [00:55:08] Speaker F: Well, you can come with us. Part of the way. And then when we get to the. [00:55:11] Speaker A: Hold on. Just because we have it coming with us doesn't mean the witch would necessarily be alerted. The witch knows that you are in the forest? Yes. [00:55:19] Speaker C: It nods. [00:55:20] Speaker A: And you haven't told her that we are coming? [00:55:25] Speaker C: It waggles its head. [00:55:27] Speaker A: Can the witch see something through you? [00:55:30] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:55:32] Speaker A: But how would the witch. But the witch can know that we are here through you? [00:55:39] Speaker B: It has a bell. [00:55:41] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:55:43] Speaker A: Do you go near as a witch often. [00:55:48] Speaker C: Side to side, like eh, Kinda. [00:55:52] Speaker A: Did you see the witch take a child? [00:55:55] Speaker C: It nods. [00:55:56] Speaker A: Then the child is at least the body is here and it is not at all. [00:56:00] Speaker B: That's. We need to hurry because if the witch. [00:56:03] Speaker D: We've talked to this lamppost a lot. [00:56:06] Speaker B: Please lead the way to the witch lamppost. [00:56:08] Speaker C: It starts hopping into the woods. [00:56:10] Speaker F: I like you, lamppost. [00:56:12] Speaker D: If this is a trap, I swear. [00:56:13] Speaker F: We will free you as best as we can. [00:56:15] Speaker C: The lamp turns around, looks at Neros and nods. [00:56:17] Speaker A: It's a trap. [00:56:19] Speaker C: It nods at Uvaire. [00:56:21] Speaker B: Oh, we assumed that. [00:56:24] Speaker D: Wait, are you a trap? [00:56:26] Speaker C: It shakes its head. [00:56:27] Speaker F: Can you get us around the trap? [00:56:29] Speaker E: Is it still a trap? If we know about it, yes. [00:56:32] Speaker C: It shakes its head at Val and then kind of eh. At Zafir. [00:56:36] Speaker F: So it's just an all encompassing trap. [00:56:38] Speaker A: Uvaire turns invisible. [00:56:40] Speaker B: Doesn't that only last for 10 minutes? [00:56:43] Speaker A: Is the witch 10 minutes away? [00:56:47] Speaker C: It shakes its head less, shakes its head longer, nods. [00:56:52] Speaker A: He doesn't turn invisible. [00:56:55] Speaker F: Let us know when we are within 10 minutes of the witch. [00:56:58] Speaker E: Well, it may not be 10 minutes. As the lamp hops. [00:57:04] Speaker A: It could be you can following the lamp. So we're going at the speed of the lamp. We're going at the speed of lamp. [00:57:11] Speaker B: New means of travel. [00:57:13] Speaker C: As it starts hopping. It has a speed of 10ft. [00:57:17] Speaker D: Okay, so something is a trap. We don't know what is a trap. Can everyone please just be on their guard? [00:57:23] Speaker C: If I. [00:57:23] Speaker B: If we pick you up, can you just waggle your head in the direction we need to go? [00:57:28] Speaker C: It nods. It looks excited. [00:57:29] Speaker F: All right, I pick him up. [00:57:32] Speaker C: It leans forward like a pointer hound. [00:57:36] Speaker F: It's like a metal detector. [00:57:38] Speaker B: It's a witch detector. [00:57:40] Speaker F: I'll put it up on my shoulders. [00:57:42] Speaker E: All right, now just try to. I have to take us somewhere that doesn't. It ended our death. Yeah, that wasn't a question, that was a demand. [00:57:52] Speaker B: Off we go, over the river and through the woods to the witch's house we go. [00:57:58] Speaker A: Whenever we get near, let me know. [00:58:00] Speaker C: Just out of sight, it nods. And as you continue on through the woods, dowsing, rotting your way with this magic lantern. Leans right, you turn right. Leans left, you turn left. Alward, you can still kind of faintly see that thread. It's still flickering, harder and harder to. [00:58:19] Speaker B: See what happens if I grab it and tug on it. [00:58:25] Speaker C: Make a spell check like I had you make earlier. [00:58:28] Speaker F: What if you eat it? [00:58:29] Speaker B: What if I eat it? I've never tried eating time yet. [00:58:32] Speaker E: I just want to make this. This point. If we're following the lamp, if it goes straight, it should never deviate unless the center of our direction. [00:58:39] Speaker D: What did you roll, buddy? [00:58:40] Speaker B: I rolled a 19. [00:58:41] Speaker E: Oh, that's so much better. [00:58:42] Speaker F: It's on my back right now. [00:58:44] Speaker B: 40. [00:58:45] Speaker C: A 40. Let me refer to my be moving. [00:58:49] Speaker E: The direction it's pointing. So unless we start going in opposite direction, it would never change. [00:58:53] Speaker F: Unless we're taking, like, a path. I don't know why we want a straight line, because maybe the terrain's not passable in a straight line. [00:59:00] Speaker C: Yeah, so that's what I was trying to describe with the. Where I was going with the thread of the thread is pointing like a compass in the direction where you need to go. And then the lantern is guiding you along along a more gentle path. You know, turn left here, turn right there. But in the end, you're still following that same path Alward with a 40 on your check, tugging on that thread, you give that pull, and then the thread itself just lights up like fire, Just like a beacon through the woods, straight off into the darkness. And then you feel something tugging back. You take six mental damage. [00:59:39] Speaker E: I don't. [00:59:40] Speaker B: Okay. [00:59:41] Speaker F: Tug of war time. [00:59:43] Speaker C: And as that's happening, you see just a whole bunch of just threads, like a web network through the woods. Just like a flash, kind of like, you know, like a light show where they, like, like, lights up. You just, like, see, like, a wave of light of threads running through the forest all in the same direction. [01:00:06] Speaker B: Yeah. Okay, I need to talk to this witch now. [01:00:09] Speaker F: What happened? [01:00:11] Speaker B: I don't know. [01:00:14] Speaker A: Does it have to deal with your powers? [01:00:16] Speaker B: Yes. Not mine, but yes. Time, time. [01:00:23] Speaker F: Time. [01:00:24] Speaker A: Since this witch is more dangerous than we first believed, there's a lot of. [01:00:30] Speaker F: Witches that play with the weave, the weird of destiny. So that would be time adjacent alward. [01:00:36] Speaker C: As you're, like, processing mentally, those threads that you just saw, your brain kind of, you know, catches on processing, and you realize a lot of those threads were going past you just, like, off into the distance. But some of them actually seem to have been stopping Nearby, one of them was actually running up into the tree next to you. And as you look up, one of the branches is slowly reaching down towards you. And that's where we'll end this episode. [01:01:08] Speaker D: Oh, my gosh. [01:01:10] Speaker E: Don't touch my apples. Look at my apples. [01:01:13] Speaker B: I don't want to get touched by a tree. [01:01:15] Speaker E: I don't think any of us do. Oh, I forgot to write notes. [01:01:22] Speaker C: Sorry. [01:01:22] Speaker E: Hello. [01:01:23] Speaker C: The hero point for this episode goes to Jenkins for the clever investigation and usage of his psychic and timey wimey abilities. [01:01:34] Speaker B: Thanks. No, I genuinely appreciate it. I had to use one this episode, so it's nice to have it back. [01:01:42] Speaker F: You tried to use 2? [01:01:43] Speaker B: I tried to use 2, but I was rejected. [01:01:45] Speaker D: Jordy said no. [01:01:46] Speaker E: If that's not on recording, that's, you know. [01:01:49] Speaker C: Jordy said, you'll need this. [01:01:51] Speaker D: He gave it, which is ominous, honestly. [01:01:54] Speaker B: Well, Alward's about to get touched by a tree, so I'm gonna go chop one down. And for revenge, preemptive revenge. [01:02:01] Speaker E: That does not sound like Albert. [01:02:02] Speaker F: Sam. Amy, Delete. [01:02:03] Speaker B: That's not Howard, that's me. [01:02:04] Speaker D: Just go. George Washington. A tree. [01:02:06] Speaker B: Yep. [01:02:07] Speaker E: Not your fault, but I'm taking out on you. [01:02:10] Speaker C: Well, we'd love to see you all in the comments on our Discord or on the YouTube video, or really anywhere that you can engage with us. Engage? Engagement. But I would really love to see your theories on what's going on with the golden threads that only Alward can see. [01:02:26] Speaker F: What's your favorite tree? [01:02:28] Speaker C: I will not. I will not like or dislike any of the comments because I don't want anybody to know who got close and who didn't. So that's just letting you know. I'll read them and then I won't respond. [01:02:41] Speaker D: So your usual. [01:02:44] Speaker E: Quick cut the episode. [01:02:45] Speaker D: Your response is like maybe. Maybe twice. [01:02:48] Speaker B: I like the tree that explodes. [01:02:50] Speaker A: Our GM likes to be mysterious. [01:02:52] Speaker C: Good morning, everybody. We will see you all in the next episode. [01:02:57] Speaker E: Bye. [01:02:58] Speaker A: Bye. [01:02:59] Speaker C: This has been an Atomic Broadcasting production. If you enjoyed the show, make sure to give us some support by liking, commenting and following. These things really do make a difference in getting the word out and helping our community grow. Also, make sure to check us out on threads and check out the Discord server where you can chat with other fans and discuss all the recent developments and happenings. Links to all these good things in the description below. The written and the Lost is an original story that uses trademarks and or copyrights owned by Paizo, Inc. Used under Paizo's fan content policy. Atomic Broadcasting and the written and the lost are not published, endorsed or specifically approved by Paizo. For more information about Paizo, Inc. And paizo products, visit piezo.com hope to see you all in the next episode. Until then, have an atomic time. [01:03:50] Speaker F: He likes ear holes. [01:03:52] Speaker D: Ear holes? [01:03:52] Speaker B: We're level 12. [01:03:53] Speaker C: I heard that right? I like ear holes. [01:03:56] Speaker D: I did not hear that right. [01:03:58] Speaker F: My accent isn't that strong. We. [01:04:02] Speaker B: We are 12. Yeah, okay. [01:04:05] Speaker F: Yeah. 12 years old. I was talking about ear holes over child. [01:04:12] Speaker A: I heard it correctly. [01:04:13] Speaker D: Listen, I have the mind of Laura Bailey. That's all I'm going to say. [01:04:20] Speaker E: Chet clip that.