Beneath Dark Wings | Ep. 39 | Roar of the Bull: Part 1
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Welcome to Legends of Avantris. I'm Felix Ackerman and you're listening to Beneath Dark Wings. Here's what happened last time. You require respite. You require salvation. Why not say my name thrice?

Perfectly placed in seven parts is the rod of the seven parts. And you see that there is, there's a massive vat of molten metal on the far end of the room with grooves and channels going into this mold. You all see Torvald and Velhardt.

And as soon as you enter the room, he looks at you, Persia. And he says, oh, hi there, Persia. How you doing? I thought you were dead, Mr. Anvilheart.

Yeah. Why would they be dead? That's ridiculous. About this whole, like, put a part of your soul into this, I'm really hung up on this. I really don't have much to my name. I don't know what you expect or the Wind Dukes expect me to give. So are we actually putting some of our soul in there? Yeah, boom.

Hold on there, Charlie. Because I don't know if I can do that. No, it's more of a figure of speech. Gosh, where do you meet these folks? And your consciousness slips out of your current reality.

as you feel like you're on the plains of ancient primeval Striga, as the Vaati fight the demons, and at the very head of this massive army, the Angel of Tyr get completely devoured. You also see Herja herself, as if your friend tears her head off,

It gets torn apart by this horrible, vicious, demonic prince. Out from the cloud cover, rockets, dive bombs, Torvald Anvilheart, wielding the rod of law. Hell yeah. Getting ready to swing down and smash into it. You are standing in the forge. Torvald is before you. All remnants of that black ichor

Now gone. As you see before you, glowing in this beautiful light in the mold, a glaive, a weapon, an improved Rod of Law. You all have returned from the vicious battle, and I want to stress that you have, it has been moments

Since you have seemingly taken on the form of these angels, half angel, half Vaati, the Wind Dukes are turning to reality. The corruption of Miska the Wolf Spider, the original, original Prince of Demons. As far as you know, his corruption cleansed. The Rod of Seven Parts now reforged into the Rod of Law, but more. Before you, a full glaive.

The blade of special make, it shimmers silver, and you all feel the weight of your duty lift slightly from your memory that you've escaped. And as you look around, you see Torvald, the elderly dwarf, Dwarven blacksmith, grip the side of the wall as he's breathing heavily.

He himself being the one to take up the rod and the memory and strike down Miska once he was weakened. And you realize that all of you are whole, but you had used the channel of the power of Anubis, Iris, to bring Herja back from the dead. And you weren't really sure if you die in a memory, do you die in real life? And as you all turn to Herja, you...

realize that that's the case. You see that where the fatal wounds that Miska had left, despite her very clearly drawing breath and being alive, the wounds are very present. All of you healed. But the swirling, undulating corruption of Miska the wolf spider pulsing in her body. As soon as you all regain your senses surrounding the reforged Rod of Law, Hersha's eyes roll back and she collapses onto the ground.

What do you do? I'm gonna rush over to her and immediately start checking her. I pull out my thermometer and I ask her if she would prefer the anal option. She doesn't speak, so I choose not to. I wish you were here, Maya. It's a drag race reference. Anyway...

No, I would like to medicine check her and... Make a medicine check, please. See if I want to see if it's the remnants of the fact that she had gone down or if it seems like it's a lingering thing from Miska that we're going to have to deal with. Okay. No, you're a bad guy. So I'm going to use you. Natural 20. Wow. That's...

Nice roll, Andy. Nice! Derek is filling in for my natural 20s. For this, man, it's perfect that it's a virgin natural 20 first roll back. It is a fucking fate. What am I? Did I scare you, Andy, a little bit? I forgot we had a command for mine. 25. 25. I'm doing what I can. With-- Natural fucking 20!

- Yay! - That was good. That was very good. - I didn't want to, but I had to. - Okay. As Iris, you're checking, what are the rest of you doing?

I would be kind of like, you know, checking myself and checking on Toa and kind of back behind Iris, like trying to get a peek of what's going on and like, you know, just surveying the area. I don't want to get in Iris' way. Yeah, I would like be very concerned. Right. But I would obviously like let Caprice and Iris do their thing and I'll just be in the back like this.

- They're there. They're there. - I would be literally hanging over Iris' shoulder. Is she dead? What's happening? What does that do? Is she dead? You're not helping. You're pulling on my neck fur. - Caprice, what are you doing? - Stop talking. Just let her. Is she okay? Fix her, fix her, fix her. - You're spitting on my face. I'm dealing with this, Caprice. - I don't know what to do with my hands. - Iris.

As you survey with a 25, and because the first roll on her is a natural 25 after a first roll back, you get the full scope of what the situation is. Is... Thanks, baby. You...

You survey the wounds and you realize that all of the wounds... Persia was the only one who saw this. But you can deduce this, I'll give you for that role, that there was corruption spreading in this forge as you had been battling Misca, spreading to be unleashed from the Rod and potentially spread out into the rest of Mogherkai. And every wound that was sustained

in this battle was done to you physically as well. And although all of you had been healed as a result, Persia, dying the fatal wound, seemed to break whatever sort of protection that there was. And she's very much alive, but there is a lingering corruption. And you've been dealing with the chaotic magics of demons for a while now.

And this seems similar, but is far more ancient and even more confounding, as there very much is a clear corruption and there's something that it reminds you of. Reminds you of the spots of black feathers in

What was the name of the-- the Akula! The Wind Duke who had been corrupted by Pazuzu. And it reminds you of that. And it seems to have knocked her unconscious. She's very weak, very feeble, and needs immediate attention. What do we do? Does it-- just a clarifying question. Please. Does it look like

or is it more of a we need to get her to someone with more specialized medicine? Yes, that's exactly, yeah, that's exactly, that there needs to be some sort, it's something that you can't just do a healing touch or something to address, correct. I just wanted to clarify, I just wanted to clarify. Iris, do you think maybe I, I have some healing magics left, I could probably sing a tune or I, you know, I still have a,

I still have this ointment. Do you think that I could maybe apply that and that would help? I'm going to lift Hersha's hand and I'm going to move it towards Caprice. No, but I think you should hold her hand. I'm on it. She has a long journey ahead of her. This is not something I can heal. This is not something any of us can fix. We're going to need to find someone that can help. Toa.

I'm going to need you to carry her. Yes, of course, of course. Gently. Caprice, stay by her side. When she awakes, let me know immediately. And I'm going to rummage around in my bag of holding, and I'm going to pull out one of my fine linen robes, and I'm going to wrap her in it, gently. I will gently, very gently pick her up, and I'll look around the room. Is her dad there? So, you now realize that...

Torvald this whole time has been wheezing. And he's very out of shape. And he's clutching his chest. And he's so focused on trying to recover from the battle that he hasn't been paying attention at all to what's happening. And you just see him kind of just gripping the side of the wall. I haven't done any fighting that hard or ever before. Oh!

Can we... Do you see? And you finally snap his attention to his daughter. And he looks at her and his eyes go wide for a moment. And he kind of takes a few steps forward and says, Oh no, did they...

What happened to Hersha? Hersha? Are you alright? And he steps forward. He seems to have a slight bit of concern, but it seems to be measured. It's a little bit more measured than you'd expect for a father that sees his daughter in that state. She may be dead. She may be... Dead what? No, she may be dead. Koa? I did... Are you intoxicated?

No, I quit drinking, but you know, it's been a... it hasn't been that long. But what happened? Is there anyone that can help us? Anyone that... any kind of healer in town? Oh, this is my fault. I got Urge mixed up in all this business. That's not important right now. What's important is that your daughter's in danger. We need to find a healer right now. Is there anyone you can think of who can help?

I can help, I'll talk to the golden lotus! We'll fix her right up, Ursa! I'm sorry I got you all into this. But we should not be taking her. Please lead the way. That's a good plan, tall fella. I forgot all of your names by the way already.

My name is Capriccio De Sesto. You can call me Caprice. Come on, let's go! Fuck! Felix, is that... And I will point to the glaives. Is that... There is the... Yeah, so you see in the cast there is a fully reforged Rod of Law, but the Rod of Law is encased in a massive glaive.

I don't know if that's safe to touch or what we should do with it, but we probably shouldn't leave it here if we're all leaving with Thorvald here. We're definitely not leaving it here. Let me inspect it. I don't really know much about it. I agree. Look, you guys deal with Hersha. I'll stay right here and do what I can to make sure nothing happens to this and learn as much as I can. Catch up when you can. I will. Let's go. Well, I'm not leaving Skinnybridges by himself. You can stay. That's fine. Then we'll stay here. Then the three of us will go.

Well, I suppose that's a good plan there. But I think we can all take solace, especially you, Urja, although you can't hear me, is that this was all part of the Eternal Blossom's plan. And it will all work out, even if she doesn't make it. But we'll heal you, Urja. What? Beatrice!

And then I'm going to follow Tala. The golden bird flutters out. She'll settle on his shoulder. I'm going to walk over to him and I'm going to take, you know, I'm towering over him. I'm near six feet tall. As I look down, I'm going to tilt his head up to mine. You are trying to tell me that you're a daughter of fall today. You accept this.

Everybody dies. I don't want Ursa to die, but... Oh, no one knows death better than I do. We have to be at peace with our own mortality. That's what the Eternal Blossom told me. I'm going to squeeze his chin really tightly, digging my claws in just a little bit, not enough to hurt him. Okay. I'm going to turn his face left to right and look at him. Does he seem like he is... You know, I've been...

concerned with this passiveness that everyone within the Eternal Blossom has been dealing with, could I perceive that he seems to be at least somewhat under that effect as well? Make a perception check. You were doing well for me, but I don't trust you twice. That's fine. That's pretty good. Perception? Perception. Perception. 24. Okay.

As you reach in to his beard to grab his chin, your fingers scrape against something that shouldn't be there. And as you grab his chin, you realize, you feel like there might be hidden within the hair, perhaps a fleshy tendril.

Just like the orcs have. I will make note of that. Keep my face completely passive. Well, as a follower of Nubis, I understand that death comes for all.

And then I will turn and walk back towards her with Caprice and all of that. So we're just skipping the warmup, uh, compression gym. I do have to say something. No, we're not talking to chat, but someone mentioned that I was wearing a labyrinth shirt. I keep, people keep confusing that this is actually Phil Collins in the movie maze. Um,

Very similar film. You're fired. Easy. Very easy to read. Directed by Sam Raimi. It was, yes. It was one of his first films back in the 80s. Oh my goodness. Well, that's disgusting. I'm so upset. DMs take note. Hide it in the beard. That's disgusting. I'm repulsed. I'm repulsed.

Fixer, fixer, fixer, fixer, fixer, fixer. And he kind of snaps out of it for a little bit. He kind of looks at me with wide eyes and he says, okay there. I mean, cause you're also a tabaxi. I'm sure you're as smart and wise. Well, almost as, as golden Lotus. So I, I guess I'll let, and he kind of like pulls back a little bit.

Just follow me, we'll get her healed up. I'm pretty, it was part of what I did back home, and I've been helping Golden Lotus with all the orc fellas here. So she'll be fine, don't worry. I'm staying calm. If I can stay calm, then you all should stay calm. I've known her a lot longer. Now is not the time to stay calm! Well, we always should be staying calm. Nope. Still, as you know, there knows. Whoops.

- They call him every bear. - Look around, the horn legion is marching on to Mogra Kai and everybody is keeping their heads. You should do the same thing. - Your daughter is unconscious and probably gonna die. - I will heal her. - Now, post haste, let's move. - And he like, he kind of like lingers a little bit. He's almost too calm in this situation.

Do I start to pick up on... He doesn't have a sense of urgency. Yeah. I would say that you're getting the sense of kind of the same kind of attitude that Revali had when you had encountered him. Right. You get the sense, you don't know who Torvald was before he came to Mogir Kai, but you're definitely getting a sense of everything that Herja said. It's not quite adding up.

With that feeling of uncertainty, I will lean towards Torvalima. I know you're Hersch's dad. We just really... I just think that... I would suggest that we...

Go on a brisk walk, and I'm going to try to cast Suggestion. Okay. Remind me how Suggestion works. Let's find out together. He will have to make a Wisdom saving throw. He doesn't have to do it if he doesn't want to on a success, but on a failed save, he pursues the course of action that I just described. What's the DC? The DC is 17.

He fails. So, you, um, as soon as you say that, he kind of snaps up and says, you know, you're a really persuasive fella there. And he slaps you on the back really hard. And, uh...

And he says, I'm really glad that Urja met friends with positive, pure intentions like you. And then he starts leading you out of the room for a brief moment. And you guys start walking down the pathway.

out of this large forge that seems to be of that combination of the architecture of the Dancing Blade and Dwarven make, which is very clearly designed by Torvald. And for a moment, Lufti and Felix, you're left in the forge with the rod. The glaive. I'm gonna whip out my...

- Skein of wine, never ending, and just pull a little glass out. Vel, what are you going to do? - I am with a quill and my spell book, jotting and flipping and looking and getting closer and wholly ignoring Lufthake for the most part. - You can write in your diary later.

Uh-huh, well, maybe we-- He's got nothing. I'm gonna-- I'm just gonna drink, like, a lot. Could you go quieter, please, for just a moment? Gosh.

I'm gonna take the dagger, my arcane focus, as I shoot her a glance and attempt to just kind of poke the thing with the dagger. Oh, that's his plan, he's gonna poke it. You lean forward and you poke it with, where are you poking it?

The handle. In the middle. In the middle. So as you poke it, as you tap it, there is... It gives off this radiance that almost kind of sounds like a wind chime. It's almost musical in the resonance that it gives off. And it's almost kind of like a bit of a flash of gold. And as you see this beautiful...

glaive weapon that's been forged. You see that there's a-- the actual, I don't know what you call it, the stick of a glaive. Like a hilt? Yeah, whatever it is, the handle of the glaive. I should have looked this up. The pole, I believe. The pole of the glaive. It's this beautiful shimmering gold.

But then the blade itself is a striking silver that has a sheen that almost seems like otherworldly of how much it shimmers silver. And it kind of, once you tap it, it gives off this radiance that makes you feel, it almost affects your emotion and your mood and it just makes you feel good. It just feels, it just sounds pleasant. I will...

set my pack on the ground, I'm gonna set my spell book next to me, put the quill on top of it, reach in my pack, pull out some cloth, just spare cloth, take my hat off, set it down on top of the spell book and quill. - What are you doing? - And then very Indiana Jones like with the cloth, I'm going to attempt to try to pick it up. - As you're reaching for the glaive, you,

you're getting closer and closer. And the second you are mere inches from the pole, you hear a voice suddenly behind you. Do not touch that.

And from the door opposite of the one that Toa and the rest, and Iris and the rest left, you see Golden Lotus. You see her pristine outfit, very simple, but just completely, perfectly pressed together. And you've only really seen her with that same pose holding that glaive, and now her hands are clasped together.

and she takes a few steps forward, and her familiar smile is still there. "I do not think that you are prepared to handle such an artifact, young man."

What are you doing here? The rest of the group went to find you. Hersha, she's grievously wounded. They need you right now. I saw them leave. Why aren't you... She'll be fine. You're not going to find them to go with them? There are more pressing matters here. Young Felix, that is more pressing. That holds the key to all the survival of us all. And if Hersha passes, unfortunate as that is, it...

Would be in great service to the many. What is one life to save many? I will heal her though. Do not fear. My powers, the powers of her father, are strong. You should not fear. You should be calm. Look at all of my people. They are calm in the face of possible annihilation. You could learn from the dancing blade. You could learn from the eternal blossom.

"Yeah, you know, maybe you're right. I'm gonna go stand next to Felix and tell us more about this. We're very concerned for our friend, but I'm interested. What should we be doing with this glaive?" "I'm gonna make sure that we are very much between the glaive and her." She takes a few steps forward and says, "That is a wonderful question.

I have been training our warchief for his entire life, his unnaturally long life, to wield it. He will be the one to strike down Baphomet. It is his destiny, just as it was your destiny to reforge it. It will be he who will have the ability to wield it against our insurmountable foe.

Listen, all of that sounds great, but I'm really concerned about Hersha. If you could just follow the rest of the group and, you know, make sure that she's okay. We'll stay here and make sure that this doesn't fall into the wrong hands. I would ask that I retrieve the Glaive and the three of us go together, and we shall all tend to Hersha's wounds. You can see her off and be relieved.

And your worry is settled that she is in good hands. Or pause. Is it wise to bring the glaive to potentially where there's some sort of corruption? And your Hersha, I don't want anything bad to happen to her. The corruption of that sort is no match for the glaive of the Seven Laws. No match at all. Did you see in the memory what it did to the Prince of Demons himself?

Yeah. And that was in its raw form, pure form, not improved and enhanced as I have done. Yeah, it was very impressive, I think we agree. But it's just that I, you know, she's in pretty bad shape and when we get there you'd have hands full of glaive and I mean...

Maybe we just take care of it for you. Make persuasion check. What was the name of the person that she said she was training? Uh, uh, Wurshi. Shengoro Frostfang. You know, you know that. Yeah, Frostfang. I, uh... That was real bad. I got no love. She continues to step forward and is intending to walk past you to grab him.

I'm just gonna kind of look at Lufty like, I'm not prepared to physically fight, you know, a tabaxi who's potentially taller than I am. She is. And menacing and imposing. I'm not gonna like punch her. I'm not gonna fist fight her, you know? I don't, you know. Please, I insist, and I'm gonna grab the glaive.

- Let's fucking go. - And as you do that, actually, I would like you to make a dexterity contest. We're gonna do acrobatics contest. - I'm gonna be shocked and be like, "Lusty!" - Good luck being more dexterous than Tabaxi. - If anybody, I'm giving it to the monk. - Can I cheat? - Any chance, any chance, it's gonna be the monk. - That's true. - I hate how neuroses makes me wanna use only blue dice, but my blue dice suck.

It's a new day. Mine's kind of a blow if you want to borrow it. I don't trust it. I know, it's probably dirty. It's got cooties. It's got dirty cooties. Come on. What you gotta do? I didn't get the worm off. Let's twist it. One twist. Yeah, we might as well use a twist. Give me some birthday blows.

That's not... That's not what you said. It's her stream, it's her stream, it's her stream! I'm gonna get that cross. Well, that's better. Acrobatics, you said? Yeah, plus nine. 13 plus nine. 22. That's where you're a viking. She's a viking. That is where she is a viking. 22. That's a borderline. Yeah. As you... That is funny, hilarious.

And what are the rules if it's a tie? Ooh, do you have discretion? The current state remains the same. So theoretically, if it's just sitting there, it's still sitting there.

Like as in you have to try and get it? They could grab it simultaneously and maybe do that like chopstick dumpling game from Kung Fu Panda. Like a strength to try and get it. I don't have a theme. I don't have a theme, Kung Fu Panda. As Felix is, he kind of steps aside as she almost glides past him.

And despite her moving, she keeps a perfect posture. - I see that. - And the second you lunge forward, she almost in the blink of an eye, it's like you see almost like a flash as she leaps forward and her paw reaches out and she grabs it a millisecond before you do. And then you grab and you,

- Grab the handle and I need you to make a constitution saving throw for me. As you grab it. - Do you need a birthday blowie? - Give me a birthday blowie. - Ooh, yeah.

He didn't work last time. No. Well, I was better than her two. A con saving throw is a 17. 17? Luki bursts into flames. Thanks for playing. Hand over your character to the DM. Get the fuck out. Don't even grab a bagel. Don't even grab a bagel. Oh, we didn't get bagels. Oh, we didn't. We're assholes. Oh, no, Kels. Oh, no. Question. You said that Hersha didn't heal, that we did?

Your wounds physically heal, but you still have the same hit points. I mean, I was at full. I swear that we got topped off at the end or I never got hit or something. You never got hit, I don't think. You never got hit. I spelled my... Okay, I'm just kidding. I'm okay. I'm going to be okay. I went unconscious twice. I'm not good. You got rolled up pretty good. You take 34 points of radiant damage.

- Am I able to sense that she's taken? Would I know that she's screaming in pain? - I will, so what happens is as you grab it, the pull of the glaive flashes and it rings out in that same kind of resonance.

as you see a strange flash on the actual blade of the glade. Flashes in bright silver and then gold of the hilt, and almost blinds you as it singes your hands and almost bursts like it is

there is almost a repelling of your soul as you get blasted off of it. As she grabs it. Like the little girl in Jurassic Park when she grabs it. Yes, exactly right. And you would see this all Felix and know that she is like, she's frazzled. Your hair is like burst out. So I would have been very, very tense the entire time. And as soon as this happened, I would make a diving roll for where my hat spell book

thing and knife are, grab the knife and then like kind of get in a position where I'm down on one knee, hands up, knife in hand and be like, okay, all right, nobody move. All right, everybody take it easy. Luffy, are you all right? The dagger begins to glow a little with arcane magic. I did warn you, did I not? I am trying to spare you.

Everybody take a deep breath. I'm gonna walk to Lufty and nobody's gonna make any sudden movements. Understood? My breaths will remain at the same rate as they have been, always.

I'm gonna very closely half-moon shuffle around her and get to Lufty and try to scoop her up with my non-dagger arm and help her sit her up and get her up on two feet. And arm around my shoulder. You are among friends. I do not fault you. It is the foolishness of youth. You are also emotional due to the state of your friend. You should practice tranquility through submission to the Eternal Blossom.

You would spare yourself. And she steps over to you as you hold her. I've just got her arm out of my-- And she places her paw on you, and you see a flash of gold. Oh god. And suddenly you're healed for exactly as how much damage you took. Oh.

Luthia, are you all right? It's 34, because you were at 39 before and you're at 5 now. Oh, fuck. That could have gone south very quickly. She looks between you, both of you, and she smiles. Shall we proceed? And she waits for your response. Are you all right? Yeah, I, uh...

I feel okay now. Just some static electricity it seems. So...

Maybe we just follow her, like she says. I'm going to sheath my dagger and say, just give me a moment to gather my things and I'll help you along. And I'll gather my stuff and my pack and all that. And then I'll continue to help Lufty walk if she feels that she needs it. Yeah, I'm going to very exaggeratingly limp and lean on him and kind of hang on his neck and everything.

I'm going to groan and sweat a little and be like, this is my favorite. Try a little bit. Come on. Tell her when you need them. You do that. And as you're about to leave, she extends a paw and you leave and you hear a tap, tap behind you. And there's a hesitation. And then she follows behind you. And the rest of you.

You are being led by Torvald, who he's kind of looking around and you get the sense that despite living here for as long as he has, he's like, "I think that it was this way." And then you'll go down a certain turn. "No, I think this is the other way. I'm pretty sure, I'm pretty sure. Hold on there, you're going to be fine."

This way. And so he's kind of leading you through the city and making regular wrong turns, and it seems confusing. And you know that there's a number of great peaks that this whole city is built on, incredibly fortified and safe, bridges connecting them. So whenever there's a wrong turn, a wrong passage made, it's quite a bit of time to find the correct path. And...

He eventually leads you through the mountains to a very simple building that smells incredibly fragrant. And you recall that every time Golden Lotus enters the room, the room smells of saffron.

And this room itself is just absolutely inundated with it. And it wafts out of the doors as he opens it and steps in, and you see that there are, it's a very simple room, a number of beds with wooden partitions in between that can easily be moved around.

And you see that, you kind of hear the groaning and heavy breathing of a few orcs that might be behind other partitions in what seems to be some sort of hospital equivalent in this situation. And...

Torvald goes over and he pulls one aside, and he says, "Put the injured down right there." And you see that there's actually a number of small stools that people could sit and maybe visit with the injured or sick.

And he gestures over as he starts to look at himself, and he's completely covered in just the soot and the dust of the forge. He's like, "I'm disgusting here. Let me clean up here." And so he starts taking off all of his apron and his gloves, and he's trying to get himself ready for his priestly duties, his cleric duties that he has been familiar with.

So are we at a specific bed? So yeah, you're at a specific bed. You actually get the sense that this seems to be... The partitions seem to be of varying sizes. And this seems to be one that is a little bit bigger, reserved for potentially more important people if they were there. So it seems like a legit infirmary. Yes, it's an infirmary. That is the word. Thank you very much for that. It's a legitimate infirmary, and it actually seems very... It is pristine.

It is absolutely pristine, it smells really nice, and although there's labored breathing, and I would say that you maybe get a glimpse at another, you get a glimpse between one of the partitions, and you see that there is an orcish nurse tending to someone who has been horribly wounded, just bandages everywhere, blood-soaked bandages, and despite the horrible state that they're in, there seems to be a peaceful contentment on the face of the injured individual.

So that will remind me, I will gently lay Herja down in the bed that we're at. I want to listen, do I hear war drums or bestial screams? Can I sense that they're at the walls? Thank you.

As I was saying... The whole Batman thing. Yeah. So... You should probably get rid of it. So thank you for reminding me. Yikes. As you've been making your way, you turn back and you know that it's built up into this massive mountain in the steps and you can see for miles and miles and miles. And you... Is it like Minas Tirith style? Like it's sort of up into like a mountain range? It's built into like kind of in a mountain range. It's not as ridiculous as Minas Tirith, right? But like, you know, it's like what's their tax policy? Uh...

I'm kidding, I'm kidding. And it's basically like...

It's the Temple of the White Tiger from Kunlai Summit in Mists of Pandaria, basically. But like a city of that style, if you know what I'm talking about. Right, right. So it's built into like a series of like a mountain. You can kind of see all the steps and the planes. And so you've seen the kind of billowing smoke and you look out on the horizon and it's far closer. Like they... It is...

It's still very far off, but they're not like at the walls, attacking the walls, but they're close. I would say that from your knowledge of dealing with the Horned Legion since you arrived in Korovakia, basically, you would get the sense that another one more day and then they'd be there. They're about a day away. That's like an eternity.

And so, and so, yeah. So you had seen that the whole time, but once again, you see the orcs are going about their business and they seem to be making preparations.

They seem to be preparing for war. There are regiments of guards. You see that the walls are increasing their fortifications. You see that as you look at the peaks that are above the city, your attention is occasionally drawn to the white tigers lurking and the massive yetis hanging around the subsequent beastmasters, right? Or not subsequent, the respective beastmasters, as well as the...

the hawks that continually increase in number, flying over the city, as well as flying out back and forth doing reconnaissance. So you've seen that on your way. Okay.

So I'll just keep that in mind as I lay her down. There's an immediate battle to go to, but it's close. I'll pull a stool up and I'll be right by her just holding her hand. And I'll just sort of kind of step back. I'll let Caprice kind of be close and I'll just sort of step back and keep an eye over her head. And I'll just continue to take care of her. I'm assuming they would have water and cloths and so I would like make a cold compress and put it on her face and...

You do that, and then Torvald goes to the basin. He's trying to clean himself up as much as possible. And he's like, I'm going to have to go to the back to take care of all this. I am not sanitary. Give me a moment. And he kind of stumbles off, and there's actually a small room for the nurses and the doctors and the healers that are there. And he actually gives you a bit of time where it's just the three of you and Herja. Torvald, one question. Ah!

Do you think that he should be more concerned about his daughter's safety? Or well-being? Being a state of being alive? Yeah. Yeah, I do. I think that very much. Can you keep your voice down? Hersha's resting. Yeah. Yeah, I do. I think that very much.

I don't know. I think... Is there any way you can help the RS? No. Unfortunately not. And I think we are going to have to accept that we are going to have to leave her in the hands of the hopefully capable staff in this place. And there is something we need to discuss. What's not here and not until Felix and Luffy are back with us. What kind of thing?

I'm not sure what you're asking. Like what? I hate secrets. Do you mean like, like, can you just tell me now? Well, it isn't really a secret if I'm going to tell you. I hate anticipation. Give me a hint. I'm going to speak words to you? No, but like about what? Oh. The subject matter. Is that a thing? Um, about...

That he's a good guy and he's going to help them. Definitely. Oh, God. You're right. Was it just me or was I the only one who thought we were going to the Golden Lotus to have her specifically... This just seems like a general... What's the word? Infirmary. He's probably going to get her right now. Before it gets... Do you think I should go ask around and see if she's... Maybe I can find her faster than he can. He's...

Not that great of a shape. Do you have any clue where she may be? Well, I would start yelling, but I should keep my voice down. Hersha's not the only person sick in this place, Mr. Chase. I guess we'll just stay here and hope that she shows up. Is she, like, still brilliant? Does she seem comfortable? You rest Hersha down, and she's still, you know, in her armor.

And maybe if you had wanted to take time-- I'm still like bandaging her. You're bandaging her. Maybe you were taking her for armor and getting her into-- I'm wrapping her into those linens. You're wrapping her into the linens. And you've been in an infirmary before. And it might not be the same style. Maybe an attendant was going to head in to check. And they see Torvald leaving. And they turn around. And they're like, you know-- they don't do that. But they know not to mess with that. And so they go back to their business.

And so you do that, and it's not very long until you hear footsteps. And the sound of the footsteps are unmistakably from... It sounds like one person, because Lifty and...

and Golden Lotus are so light on their feet, but you hear the military grade boots that Felis has clacking along the smooth stone of this infirmary as the three of them enter. And you all see the same thing. So you have a chance to maybe discuss with Golden Lotus

She's not, as she guides you through, she's not gonna make any attempt to talk to you. - I got nothing to say to her either. - So you all manage to, you see the exact same thing that Toa and the rest did, as you see the, and you can see,

It is like you see those golden fields, right? Those golden plains and steps spreading out all the way to the horizon. You see the massive Serpent Spine Mountains, but that route that the Horned Legion is taking, and you just see that mass of destruction, and it looks like a blot on the landscape, but you know that it is the mass of beastmen and minotaurs and demons and just absolute death.

that is descending upon the city. But you eventually arrive. - Just don't worry everyone, we found Golden Lotus. - Lovely, can you fix our friend? - I can, be at ease.

Especially with the power of the Rod of the Seven Laws, the Glaive of the Seven Laws. So she's holding it, right? She's holding it. Do I recall, oh, she's holding the Rod of Law. Yes, exactly. You basically got the sense, you realize that in her glaive that she's had this whole time, that the six pieces were in there. And then you added the seventh and forged it into basically a new weapon, more or less.

And she looks at all of you and says, you seem uneasy. How long will it take for you to cure Herjove? What ails her? I do not know. I have encountered many such darknesses and evils, none such as the darkness of the original Prince of Demons. It could take some time.

I am confident that I will at the very least save her life. What state she is in, I cannot promise you. Either way, we will have to be at peace. And if she does not make it, she will have made a noble sacrifice for the safety of us all. Whoa, whoa. No, I'm not comfortable with that. I mean, there are magics that can just, you know, undo all sorts of things. Let's just, you know, if she passes, then we can... Isn't that right, Iris? Yeah.

Anubis will watch over her. I have no doubt of that. And he will watch you, ever watching, ever present. I will appreciate his assistance. I'm sure. As Torvald and I will heal her. And I will make sure that she is in good hands. And what more capable hands than a father to protect his daughter. Exactly right. So we will trust. And I look at Caprice and I...

It's very apparent that I'm trying to tell you that I know something here and to trust me. Do you trust that you have the best interest at all? Of course. She was foretold. Her coming was foretold by the Eternal Blossom. You all have been foretold. It is...

I... you will stand by our warchief when he strikes down Baphomet. That has been foretold. Yes, and in the interim, while you are taking painstaking and loving care of Persia for us, what should we be doing as the Horn Legion vastly approaches? I was just about to say. To address your low spirits. You have been invited to a feast in your honor.

feast with the warchiefs and his generals as they currently plan for the coming battle. They are very confident, but they wish to thank you to hold a feast in your honor for finding the final piece of the rod, for forging this great weapon that our warchief will use to save us all. You have earned it. Enjoy it.

Is there going to be any kind of issue about the varying levels of allegiance that we've all, or respect levels that we've all shown the Warchief over the past few days? And you see that there's a bit of hesitation. Her face, once again, doesn't change. But there's a bit of hesitation. And then she says, The Warchief was skeptical at first. You must understand his history with

The High General of Korovakia is long and storied. It was he who removed the use of his arm. It was he who has been at war with Korovakia for decades. For the entire life of General Zurn and our warchief's long, incredible storm history, they have been at odds.

Do you know if Chief Frostrang ever injured Xurn? He did, yes. So you're saying that he's the one that cut off, or maybe not cut off, but wounded his arm. Yes, it was something that the Warchief does not give much detail about the situation, but he says he had almost slain Xurn, but does not say why he did not finish the job.

I'm sure he hid his reasons. That being said, I have convinced him. And you have proven your loyalty to us. You have proven your loyalty. Your companion Revali is now one of us. Torvald, the father of Herja. He points to Herja, who's...

Still, you see the swirling corruption in all of her wounds that she's breathing, labored, but it's, and she seems to be unwell. I haven't let go. And yeah, you're still holding her hand. You can feel her pulse, right? And it is weakening, but it is staying. Her heart continues to beat. I have, I know the kind of language that can convince the Warchief, and he has softened considerably.

I would still urge respect for him and his generals. Your manipulation techniques are admirable. With that being said, dinner soon? So we should get ready. You, there are... There are outfits for you, traditional, waiting in your dwellings. And you should change into them, arrive politely,

Once you are fetched by his steward, then there's not much more we can do here. No. Yeah, but maybe we could spend some time, just a few minutes, to leave some blessings with Erza before we go get ready.

Thank you!

You see her wait, and as soon as you say that, "Thanks. Bye." And then she turns. Bye-bye! Okay, now, bye. I will. Bye-bye, now. Go in now. Okay. And you are left temporarily alone. It was not good. What was not good? I tried to pick up the glaive, and I was stopped right before I could do it, and then

Some things happened and... and... and... Lufty lunged for it and it... it hurt her. But it didn't kill you. Oh my god, very close! What did... what did it feel like? But it didn't kill you. Um... Well... I don't know, it was... it was like a... a night. And like, ouch. But she was holding it just fine. I know, and she healed me after I was done. It was... I don't know if it did it or she did it. I think it was pretty clearly the item.

Just instinct, I guess. I don't like this. I feel like we're trapped here. I'm worried about Ravalli. I'm worried about Hersha. I'm worried about all of us. What are they going to do to poor Hersha if we leave her here? They are going to heal her. So if she can be healed, otherwise they will allow her a gentle death. It's not acceptable. It is acceptable. And it's something we should...

acclimate ourselves to and we can talk about further once we get to the room. I don't know. I just don't feel good about this. She's always like, be calm, be the head. I don't like that. I don't feel calm. This is hardly the time for any kind of dinner. It's just like when you're very frustrated and I tell you, well, it's not that bad to get over it and then you scream at me not to tell you to get over it. Makes it worse. Let me feel my feelings. Yes, sure.

I'm generally a laid-back kind of guy, but when there's a literal demon prince-king-lord type guy knocking on the gates with a legion of beastmen, I think I would be concerned at that point. I'm very concerned. The only thing I can think that would make any of this better is to have dinner tonight. You don't think any of this is weird? You're being very calm. You're being kind of like her. Don't insult me. No.

I don't mind telling you, I give

zero fucks about this feast. But we have no friends. We're... I don't trust Golden Lotus. I don't trust any of the people around here. I don't trust any... I have no idea who may be listening to you now in an infirmary. So we will continue this conversation when Haja has time to rest and heal the priest. I know you're saddened, having a difficult time. I need you to trust me.

All right. I'll say what I need to say, and then we'll go and have the best feast ever. I'll lean into Herja. Herja. Herja. Just a simple, small melody. And I'll give her my inspiration. In case we're doing that. And, uh...

Give her another squeeze on the hand and back up and immediately just lean against the doorway at the exit. Should we return? Yes. Does anyone else have anything they would like to say to Hersha? Lina, do you have a big bowl of jello salad waiting for you? Yes. I don't even know what that is. You don't want to know. Everything's going to be okay.

I will turn and I will head back to the, uh, to our dwellings. You all leave and... As they leave, I want to quickly move towards her with my feline grace. I'm gonna run my hand along her cheek. Both Anubis and I will watch over you. And I'm going to cast Death Ward on her. Now she can't hear anything at all. Death Ward.

And then I will follow behind everybody else. And you do that and you follow and you feel that same kind of comfort of the same force that brought her back. Anubis, the god of death in your pantheon. You feel his presence almost standing behind you.

Almost as if he's in the room himself watching over her job and it gives you peace but not in the way that that that that golden Lotus might be trying to instill upon you and And as you're turning iris coming behind you Caprice you take one last look and her job is is breathing shallow you see the kind of bits of corruption peeking up from the bandages that

that Iris has given her, and you see down at the far end Torvald and Golden Lotus both coming back together, and you give one last glance and then turn back, and you make your way back to your dwellings.

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You all leave Herja and the infirmary behind, as you know that Golan Lotus and Torvald Anvilheart are tending to her wounds and her corruption. And you make your way through Mograkai, and you see the undulating mass on the plains. The Horn Legion is getting closer and closer. They're less than a day away.

Without a doubt. And the billowing smoke and results of the destructive path that they've cut through this entire country is stretching behind them.

And you had a question? Yes, compression Jim. I am curious if I see out to the horizon what time of day it is. If it's less than a day, do I think that they're arriving at night? Do I think they're going to breach in the morning or the evening? I would say roll intelligence check. Oh, that's where I'm...

A history check. We'll do history. Can I twist this? Eight. You may not. Compression Jim says, "You don't fucking know." This is not your specialty. You know fucking fiddles in the city. It's like Clippy and Microsoft. These guys are going to be here in like 30 minutes. Would you like some help?

Is everyone gonna be okay? Okay, that's fine. I don't say a word. Yeah, you get the sense that like, you don't have like, Felix is able to piece it together because he's from the military and he's been like, noticing this. You'd be like, oh man, fiddles and hers is thick thighs. Like, that's all in your head. And like, that's all you care about. There's not much other room in there. Oh, my.

Exactly right. So you see this all and however, it's the same thing. You see that there's far more presence on the walls of the city. And you know that there's multiple levels of defenses here that go all the way to the main massive fortress, which is the palace.

of Warchief Frostfang. And you make your way to your dwellings and you see that the... that as you're making your way through... Toa, give me a...

- An animal handler, Chuck. - Oh God, I have an animal in my character. - What the hell? - Yeah, we are playing Dungeons and Dragons, come on, man. - Oh no. - It's bad, it's bad. - Are you an animal handler in any sense of the word? - I have pretty good wisdom. - I don't believe you. - But it's bad, it's less than six.

- You just see, you look around and you make your way back to your lodgings that you've been provided and you make your way and you see that it's feeling as pristine

And calm and quiet as it always has, that same willow over the lake as you see another heron or crane take off into the mountains. And you see that Revali is nowhere to be seen as you make your way, and you see that on each of your beds is laid out an outfit, traditional vestments or garb that would be expected at a feast such as this.

Seemingly tailor-made for all of you. You can try them on if you care to, but if you don't, you get the sense that this is eerily close to your measurements and well-fitting, and you're not really sure how they came to that. I put it on immediately. I literally waste no time. It doesn't take much for me to get dressed. Yeah, exactly right. Yes.

I'm undressed. Dressed. And so you are, there is a fresh bowl of pistachios as well as a smaller bowl for the shells. Jesus Christ. I'm going to look at my outfit and then shaboot myself into that because I can alter self at will with my Nimbansi mask and then I will immediately start working on a pistachio.

While we're getting ready, I'm going to like, you know, as an aside to Toa, just kind of say, hey, you know, I don't really know what's going to happen tonight at this dinner. For as much as everybody keeps talking about staying calm, this place kind of just seems like it's,

tenuously hanging by a thread. There's a chance that when I go to this dinner, all of those people are gonna just loathe me for being Korvacian. And what I need you to do is help keep the peace. I don't care what they do to me, you know. Kargash wasn't very receptive and that's fine.

It's not a big deal. I can handle it. But I need you to keep everyone calm, because you're pretty level-headed. Well, I think that just make sure that you don't, like, give off that vibe, right? Like, just don't show anyone your dagger, if you know what I'm saying. Well, I'm not leaving it here. We don't know what we're getting into. I understand that, but I mean, I should probably find it weird that these clothes are perfectly measured to my very unique body type, but... I wasn't going to bring it up. I'm sure it's fine.

It's a little strange, isn't it? Just promise me you'll help keep the peace and I'm just worried the slightest thing could set anybody off. I know that they preach calmness and being relaxed, but it doesn't feel that way. Well, here's the thing. If we get to the point where respecting the Warchief is an issue...

Would you be against kneeling or bowing or at least paying respect to the leader of the city? I don't know what I believe anymore. Even just to show him a sign of respect for his long life and this beautiful city he's built? I'll tell you what. The only thing that I know at this point is survival enough to find out if Maio is still out there.

If I have to lie, or whatever, you know, bend the knee temporarily, fine. I just... We gotta get out of this city. I wasn't kidding before when I said I felt trapped. And I just... I don't know what's gonna happen. We can't get out of the city until they're stopped. And Hersha's okay. I know, I know. There will be a very deadly battle in the coming days. And we may all die.

But I'm happy to make our last stand here if it means that we die protecting people. Okay, it's not over yet. As long as we draw breath, right? As long as we draw breath, we're going to be fine. We're going to be fine. My first and foremost goal is that Hersha's okay and that these people are okay. And if you need to kneel, I'll do it genuinely, but do you have to mean it?

Whatever it takes. Whatever it takes. Understood. That's all I'm saying. Yeah, no, I hear you, I hear you. Okay. All right, all right, and I'll finish adorning my vestments and then retire to the lobby where perhaps Caprice is still pounding away on his nuts. Yeah, he's pounding away on his nuts, and also there's pistachios. Exactly.

That's exactly right. Is it called the foyer or the foyer? I've abandoned the pistachios. I'm just stuffing the clothes into my pack so that I can sell them. Felix, what's the difference between a foyer and a foyer? I've heard people say both. Do they mean the same thing? I don't know everything. And I'm just going to walk out of the foyer. Wow, it's been a while since you pulled back. Well done. Hey, pistachio?

Oh, I'm also there. No, thank you. Would you care for a pistachio? You've asked me that question 14 times now. Would you like me to stop asking? No. I would like a pistachio. Open your mouth. Oh.

I'm just picking them off the ground. No, you're not Felix, you're the priest. The show was still on then. It was? Yeah. Oh, it just went down like that. That's okay, it's fine. You're going to have a bad time in 24 hours. Battle or no.

They always told us extra fiber in your diet is a good thing. I'll be fine. Well, now that the two of you have arrived, I have something I need to tell all of you. Yes? I felt weird tendrils in Hersha's father's beard.

What? Why? What does that mean? They're orcs, right? Yeah. Well, you know the orcs that are around the city. They have the beard. Oh, those things. Yes, he had them as well. Tendrils. What? Why would he have those? Well, because I think everyone here is a disaster overcome or turning into things or something, but it is not good.

No. He seems like a really disorganized guy. Are you sure that that wasn't food? It's food. It has to be food. I do not trust Hersha with them. I do not think they are going to care for Hersha. I think she is more than likely going to have beard tendrils the longer we leave her with them. So why don't we leave her? We don't have any other choice.

Were... Yes, Felix. I believe Ravoli is probably also going to turn into one of these creatures. This sucks. Were they made of dwarven flesh? I'm honestly not sure. I had grabbed his face to look at him because he was not reacting the way a father should react to the death of their daughter. And in doing so, his slimy tendrils wrapped around a bit of my finger. What?

And I let go. You felt like they actually... They move, I believe. They weren't like actively. They were just like face jiggle. I brushed them. I brushed them. Well, I mean, he has to be... Him, he couldn't be a disguise. That was the secret I wanted to tell you. But he crafted the rod. He has to still be... Yes, so more than likely...

It was not a good idea to craft the world. Well, no, here's the thing. Listen, listen. We know that orcs generally don't have these things. Listen, listen, Aris, listen. Do we know that generally orcs don't have these things? Yes, you made that determination back at Folsom.

the village that you've stumbled upon. So we know that most orcs don't have these weird chin tendrils, right? Yes. And we know that these orcs are very nice and pleasant and built this big city because they're devotion to the... The eternal. The eternal blossom. Thank you.

Perhaps just devoting yourself to the Eternal Blossom, orc or dwarf or otherwise, grants you these tendrils as a sign of worship. Thank you, Toh. I mean, the point is that he's him. Whether he's different now or not, he's not someone in disguise.

But it's very concerning! Well, even if Revali sprouts these things, if his faith is bringing him happiness and joy, who are we to say that he shouldn't feel that way? Toa, you know that that Revali was not the Revali that we know. I know that, but he was a pretty miserable guy when we met him! And he was happy that way! He doesn't want this shit! You think he was happy before? He didn't seem happy to me! No, but he was happy being unhappy!

I don't know what that means! That hurts my head! Trying to comprehend that! Do you think that if we cut them off, it'll break the spell? Cut off what? We're not cutting off anybody's flesh. I don't want to touch anybody's flesh. Nobody's. No one's. That is so out of character for you. I'm sorry, but they're out of place. I don't care for them. I don't think we're going to remove any tendrils from anybody. It's not our decision who we worship.

Is it? You don't think it's weird? It's weird, right? It's very weird. How are we the arbiters of what's weird and what's not? Well, because I've been around all the world and I've never seen this... I can't even say it anymore, but you know what I haven't seen. This place is different, is what I'm trying to say. Yes, it's different. Of course it is. Well, I think maybe it's different in a bad way. But my point is, is we don't know if it's different in a bad way. Yes, Revol is different. So we're just going to test it on her, Jean? Don't you think...

tell them that if it were not in a negative way they wouldn't be so secretive about it. Don't you think they would have let us know, well, one of the signs of being a devout worshipper of the eternal blossom is to sprout these tendrils upon thine chin.

Iris is right, they're hiding something. Have we asked about the tendrils yet? If it was something that Herge's father, what is his name? Torvald. Steve? Torvald. It's not Steve at all. Are you sure? Steve's not even close. He took the words right out of my mouth, Tela. They're spelled the same, regardless. Look, I don't have a problem with... Who's speaking, priest? Torvald. Go ahead.

Well now I forgot what I was going to say. I don't have a problem with the hangy bits.

I do. No, it's not. They're kind of gross, and whenever they turn their head, it hits their shoulder in this weird, disgusting way. However, what the real problem is is that it's indicative of the fact that they don't sense danger. I mean, I know they're kind of sort of bolstering their defenses and whatnot, but everyone seems so fucking chill when we all... It's the problem. There needs to be some panic. Now's the perfect time to panic.

Maybe that's why we're here. Maybe we can panic for them. We will protect this city. We'll protect these innocent lives.

But just because they're not panicking, it's because they have... They're trying to get us not to panic, too. We don't have to believe their faith, but they have every right to believe what they believe. What if they force us to believe it? Yes. But if it's a plot or a conspiracy... I keep stepping on you. I'm sorry. Please go ahead. I've forgotten what I was going to say again, Caprice. But if it's a plot, then... I'm upset.

Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that we have not been once forced or they haven't tried to compel us to worship this god. That's not true. When we were there and I got shucky shucked. Chucky chucked? Shucky shucked. Oh, shucky shucked.

Shucky shock, all right. I understand that. She said, why not you just be more calm and you follow... You were there, Felix. What did she say? I mean, she didn't try to recruit us, but, you know, in so many words, it was a little, you know, suggestive in what we should do moving forward. Oh, you should be calm. And we were forced to bathe in that spring.

Yeah, that was weird. Are we just going to forget that? Did we grow tendrils? Did we all of a sudden change our personalities now? No, but... It was very pleasant. Revoli did. Was it not pleasant? Are you telling me that spot there was not pleasant? You have no proof that what is happening to Revoli was of his own free will.

And Hersha is currently unconscious. She's going to get face penis. I know it. Here's the thing. Here's the problem. So, yes, if Hersha all of a sudden starts growing things on her face, then I will be concerned.

But my point is that they've been respectful. They've given us these lovely pistachios to stick on for days! Days worth of pistachios! That's very respectful to us! Caprice? Is it not? Caprice? Yeah, yeah? If you eat the shell of a pistachio, does it poison you? I have no idea! Toa, that's not real! A pistachio plant growing in my stomach! Toa, that's not real! I think it's a tree! Toa, come on!

You don't really believe that, do you? For the next week, I'm gonna be thinking about the pistachios. Felix, comfort him! He's fine! He's gonna... We're going way off track here! Did you just able-sum me for big news? Time out! Everybody, just let's take a step back! Iris! Do you think that... What is her father's name? Torvald? Torvald. Does Torvald know that you know about the flesh tentacles? Who is Torvald? Hers is father. Oh, okay.

Yes, that was... Does he know? I don't believe so. Okay, well then for now... Did you squeeze him? No. Did you? Have you spoken to him? Felix is trying to speak. For now, we keep this to ourselves. I'm with you. We have to see what happens. I don't particularly want to wait to see what happens to Hersha. I'd prefer to make sure she's safe ahead of time. Same with Revalian, same for all of us, but... You're right, I...

If we do anything now that's taken as aggressive and pre-active, we're gonna cause more trouble than it's worth.

Our goal should be making sure her's is okay and making sure a little demon lord god thing doesn't kill everyone and us. That's what we should be concerned about. Those two things and nothing else. You're not worried about Golden Lotus and the Glaive? I'm extremely worried. Well that wasn't on the list. I'm just saying it should be on the list. Why is she... She will use it against Baphomet. Remember Baphomet, the big horn guy? And then who?

Who what? Tua, are you not worried that every time you drink a beverage, you're going to be watering the tree in your belly? Iris, stop. You're going to have nightmares. Now I am. Why would you say that? Should I stop drinking? Should I stop consuming entirely to prevent it from absorbing nutrients or liquids? Tua, Tua, you have to hydrate.

You have to. What if I don't? You'll die. I'll die? Yeah, because the tree will suck up all of your... No, no, there's no tree, Toa. God, he's going to wake me up at three in the morning with these problems. 64 ounces a day, make sure. Thank you. It's much harder than you think. Thank you.

Please keep drinking water, Tella. You're not going to grow plants inside your body. It doesn't make any sense. He did feed me that whole pistachio. He tricked me. I don't think it was a trick. I think it was an accident. I also think that was kind of all on you. Was it an accident, Caprice? It wasn't an accident. Here.

Fool me once, shame on... How does it go? Shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. This one opened right away. That's wild. Well, okay. Focus! Everybody needs to focus. What are we going to do when we walk in looking absolutely fabulous in these outfits they've provided and then they won't...

to change us into believers. I have my own beliefs. They won't change my beliefs. You don't know that. What if they can... and then make you believe? I believe that my faith is stronger than whatever they have.

Of course. I mean, magic will make you believe whatever the fuck you are going to believe. That's the nature of some magics. I disagree. I think my faith is strong enough. Say, my tattoos are dumb, and I cast Suggestion on to him. DC 17, Wisdom saving throw. Oh, that's going to be close. My tattoos are dumb. Why did I...

Are my tattoos dumb? What did I say? I must believe that. No, your tattoos are badass. I just cast a spell on you and I made you believe something that you didn't. But I didn't have any sense that you cast a spell on me. Like potentially everyone here with their crazy magical tendrils of insanity. I don't know what to believe anymore, Patrice. My head hurts. Just believe in the things you kept believing before I did that.

But I don't believe in those things anymore. Oh, I broke Noah. I don't. Are y'all going to die? No. We're going to live. Does nothing matter? I mean, we can't, I have no agency in life. If you can just compel me to say things. Try harder to resist. We're going to practice that. The point, what are we going to do with this feast? If things, just hold on. We've got to work on scaling that back for you.

I feel a little all over the place. The last 48 hours have been pretty fucking crazy. I don't know about you guys. We need to have a sign at least between the five of us that we can... If something is funny going on, we need to be able to know.

Is anyone else concerned that we may be tainted or templated? No, I'm sure that's fine and we shouldn't think about it again. I'm hungry, I'm starving. So here's the thing, especially in regard to that. Golden Lotus has said many times that our place is within the battle against Baphomet. I don't think that they have any intention to harm us before that happens.

As ill-timed as this feast may be, I don't think we're in any immediate danger. I'm much more concerned when it comes down to actually facing Baphomet. I agree, and I think that at the end of the day, they have not done anything to lead us to believe that they're trying to hurt us or kill us. My entire point of bringing it up is to make sure that we're aware that it's happening. Should Herrscher come forth from this place...

with those things. Maybe that's when Caprice can cut them off. No, that doesn't harm her. Caprice, I'll give you permission to cut them off. I'll give myself permission to cut them off. Well, you'll need to get hers permission to cut them off. Well, she'll be super chill about it if she's anything else like these... Well, that's fair.

Okay, so we feel strong, yes, that we can resist whatever they're going to bring on us at this feast. I mean, I'm relatively confident. I have magics to protect myself. I feel pretty beefy. I can withstand it. Beefy is one word. I'm a little tapped from our fight, but yeah, I feel like a big feast.

You know, something that would benefit you like a hero's feast. I feel that. Would be great. That would be amazing. Would this constitute as a short rest? Yeah. We're cashing out my arcane recovery. Let's go. This is a young boy short rest. I would like to rest in a short manner, please. I feel that there's not much we can do about this feast. We have to deal with Bartholomew.

We don't have any other option. We have to get through Baphomet with all of our lives intact. I agree. You guys are probably right. I'm with you. What about... Will Anubis watch over? Yes. Do you promise? Always. As he would watch over all of you. For my family now. Well... And if anything ever happens to one of our family, we can just come back and burn this place to the ground.

That's very violent, but I appreciate it. I'm tired of losing family members, and I'm not going to let anybody push us around anymore. Let's burn it. If we have to. Not yet, Danico, not yet. It is not Taekwong. I sing a quick song, everyone gets an additional something. What's the song? Damn.

What's the song? ♪ Party, it's your short rest ♪ ♪ God bless us this day ♪ ♪ You gave me the power of something and something ♪ ♪ And I don't have the lyrics prepared ♪ Yay! Yay! Those are good lyrics, Caprice. What's your die? Uh, yeah... An additional 1d8. If you spend one hit die, additional 1d8. That might save me. It does not. Oh, sure. You can hear, darling.

Uh, yes? I'm going to touch your stomach. Oh. Uh, what? What? Well, if you would like me to, I'm going to sap the life force from the tiny plant inside of you so it cannot grow and kill you. You can kill the pistachio tree in my stomach? I'm clear of death. Please, please, please, please do.

Yes, yes, yes, please! Do it now! And I'm going to obviously not actually do anything, but I'm going to put my hands on his stomach and kind of squeeze the muscles just for a little longer than I really should. And then I'm going to start chanting in a language that's not real and pretend to disrupt the plan. It's a very believable ritual, Tom. Oh, thank you so much, Maurice. Oh, what a relief.

Felix, our rush just killed the pistachio tree in my stomach. Oh, did she? Yeah, she did. She stopped it. I don't have to worry about it. I only have to think about it for one more second. How did she do that? She did a ritual of death, and she killed it. It's dead.

Well, Toa, I certainly hope that this will bring you peace and you won't wake me up at three in the morning. Promise, Felix, I will not wake up at three in the morning. Let's not make promises we can't keep. Oh, okay. I'm glad for you, Toa. Thank you, Felix. I would watch eight hours of just Toa keeping Felix up. What is the difference between a foyer and a foyer?

It doesn't take long, much longer, until Chief Frostfang's steward arrives. And it's a younger orc with a bit smaller tendrils than, you know, a lot of the others, but, you know, still very polite and very respectful. And he fetches you all, and he guides you through the city. And it doesn't feel like it's been that long.

since you were getting dressed and in your quarters, but you look out on the horizon, the great steps and planes stretching down from the mountains, and you just see just the torches and bonfires spreading out across the entire land. And you see the camps of these beastmen. As you realize they're not camps, as you see the flickering light

It's moving closer and closer as the sleepless army continues to move. And it's far closer than you feel like it should be, but they are moving very quickly at this point now. And it won't be long until they arrive. You are, despite that, you look around and it's exactly the same. There's not a single panicked face. And this all feels familiar. You were in Zentra.

with the horn legion bearing down on it too. And you saw the people panic, terrified, shuttering their homes, trying to flee the city north. Here, no such thing. Not a single soul is attempting to leave or flee. They have full trust and confidence of their safety, and if they're worried, they don't show it. You're guided across the bridges. You see the yetis, the tigers, the hawks waiting.

tame, calm, just like the orcs. And you make your way across the bridges until the highest peak of this city, the great fortress of Mogra Kai, the ruling place of the Warchief. And as the steward approaches, you see the guards at various levels on the stairs waiting for you. They open the doors without a single word.

And you hear the loud resounding echoes through tall gilded halls. You see the great murals and statues and you see ahead the young man being cleaved dramatically, his arm off, almost cleaved in half. And you look at the face and you see the strong nose and prominent brow of a young man, but definitely the attempted death.

image of a young Virgil Zurn. And you recognize the Warchief, no tendrils on his chin, with his dancing blade, obviously embellished in this scene. But you think there might be some truth in this story.

I saw a hand. Does Zurn still have his arm as far as we know? Yes. But it was in a sling. Yes. It's in a sling. It is basically totally useless. This depiction is, he's literally cleaving him off. He's cleaving him, he's cleaving him almost in half. Like he's basically, yeah, it's basically like a very exaggerated, and you see in this orc, and you know that Warchief Frostfang is a very large orc.

But like this, his muscles are just absolutely bulging. And it's very much almost a piece of propaganda. A piece of... A role depiction. Yes. So this is like a statue within his... Yes. And you had seen it when you first met him. You saw it when you first met him. And now you really were wondering probably why there'd be this image of someone just killing some random... It looks like he very easily is killing someone.

this random young human boy, more or less a teenager, no older than 16. Right. Wow. And, um... Do we remember his arm state specifically from when we met Frosthang the first time? What about arms?

Isn't he also injured in one arm or the other? Or is it just certain? Just certain. I'm misunderstood. Thank you. Yep. And so, you are guided. And you remember just the beautiful artwork. And you see that...

You've all heard of orcs and tribes and clans, and this level of artwork and architecture is unlike anything that you've heard of in the orcs that you may have learned about.

And it just is, if the situation wasn't so dire and off-putting and eerie in some ways, you would say that this is a place that you'd love to visit and enjoy in its beauty. And you remember all of the various doors going off into this fortress. And you see as the large doors where you had met the Warchief Frostfang in his throne room, you're led off to the right and a large door opens for you.

and you see a large feasting hall. And you see that in this, at its max capacity, could hold hundreds of orcs feasting. But there seems to be just one table that is set. And you see the heavily armored and decorated orcs with very long tendrils from their chin that seem to be, have the most gilded and ornate orcs.

clothing and armor, seemingly denoting their rank. And at the head, you see Warchief Frostfang, that bluish-toned skin with the largest tendrils of them all, just absolutely gilded with all sorts of bits of gold and jade.

And you see him at the head and there is an entire feast set on this table. And you see, and then the smell hits you as soon as you enter, just this roast boar and yak and all sorts of incredible spices that none of you have ever smelled before.

and it smells absolutely delicious and the food looks pristine. And it seems as if the food hasn't been touched though. They're waiting for you to arrive. And you see that there are six places sat, placed, and expecting six of you. Only five of you arrive. And you see that on either side seems to be

One is a female, another is a male that seems to be the most decorated below the warchief. They are both kind of leaning in and the three of them are discussing while a couple of other generals might be discussing. But there are several places beyond your set places. And so between you and the warchief is only two. And the steward just extends a hand outward and gestures for you to take your seat as you look around.

You see that, similar to the throne room, that up on perch is hanging all in the ceiling are dozens of hawks. And at the side, not even chained up, but just sitting watching, are tigers at attention, almost like statues. And behind the warchief is a yeti.

that's almost the size of the one that you had slain at Krasang Pass, that had been cursed by Beast Plague.

that seems to be the personal pet or war yeti of the Warchief. That is just, you see that whatever was served, it's a side of yak and it's tearing into it. And occasionally the Warchief reaches out and gives the horn or its scruffy white fur a pet as it seems to be deep in conversation with his generals. What do you do?

Do we have, so he's not paying attention to us? Not at the moment. The door opens and you can tell that they're in discussion, that at the very least the war chief is in discussion with the generals on the right and left of him.

as there are places set for you, however. - I mean, I would try to like take, I'm still wearing my hat even if it clashes with my ceremonial garb. And I try to kind of pull my hat down a little bit and just try to, you know, find my seat. And if anybody is intentionally trying to make eye contact with me, I would try to give them a polite smile and like, you know, disarm them a little bit. Being very wary about how they might respond to, you know, me there in the...

You do that and you all approach. And for whatever reason, Felix's boot just clacks a little loudly and echoes through this grand hall. And suddenly every single orc at this table stops the conversation. All eyes turn to the five of you. And as they survey you, you see all of the eyes zero in on you, Felix.

And they watch you all approach and sit down. And none of the orcs besides the Warchief stand. And the Warchief, rather, they don't speak. And the Warchief, no one stands to greet you. As the seats are there pulled out for you. And the Warchief waits for you all to take your seats. Do you do that? Yeah. Yeah, I would. I do immediately, yeah. Thank you.

Do a big curtsy. Hello! Is the steward still with us? The steward left you at the door. And then you hear the door shuts behind the steward. A guy named steward was a nice guy. Oh, I just called it. No, I'm talking about the steward. You! Almost all of you refuse to kneel. But it seems as if

"The trust that Golden Lotus put in you was not misplaced." He kind of leans back, folds his arms, and as you look at him, you see that the tendrils are long and gilded. You see that although he seems to be of middle age, from what you discern, the closer you look, you see the lines of age on his face. And there just seems something... He seems far older.

than he presents himself to be. And there's a, he almost seems tired as he speaks every word. There's some, there's, there's weight on it as if it's, it's as if he has, he's very much outlived his time. And he turns to each of his generals on his left and his right and he whispers something in each of their ears and then turns his attention back to you.

And so is his custom for my people. A feast in your honor to grant me a weapon better than the weapon of a king, horned or otherwise, a weapon of a goddess. I thank you for helping my people. Eight. And he extends his hand towards the great feast and immediately all of the other generals past you start shouting,

reaching out and like grabbing and filling their plates. Thank you, Warchief. You will be wielding the great weapon that we've completed. Yes, I have trained my entire life. I was told of my greatness by Golden Lotus decades ago when she arrived on these shores. Everything she has said has come to pass. And now my destiny is a day away.

I will wield it and save our people. Well, we are ready. Nothing I can speak for everyone. We are ready to help in the battle and we will do what we can to defeat the Horned Legion. Do you feel ready to wield this weapon? Do I look unready? That's avoiding the question. No, you look fine. I'm just saying it is a very powerful weapon. Yes.

I have killed hundreds of my countrymen by my own hands. Decades of civil war. Uniting every single tribe into one clan. United as one. I am ready. Okay. Well, he's ready. So he says. Do we have a plan? How can we help best?

Should we just go to the front lines with your troops, or do you have a plan for how you can best utilize us in our skills? The battle will not last long. My High Overlord and my Beast Lord have assured me we are confident after the, despite the heavy losses at the Wall of the Inner Kingdom, they are safe.

but a savage, bestial horde. We shall be able to hold them off as long as we need to for me to find that fiend himself and strike him down with the weapon you have helped forge. Your role here is whatever you see fit. I will meet him at the wall. I will strike him down in one blow. They will disperse, it has been foretold.

That was going to be my next question. How do we know that he's going to disperse, that they're going to disperse after you take a Baphomet down? Yeah. Who foretold this again? The Eternal Blossom. Just as she foretold of your coming, just as she foretold of the reforging of the Rod of Law into the Rod, the Glaive of the Seven Laws.

If this Baphomet thinks he can destroy my people with his glaive, he is but a king. What is a king to a goddess? He does not know whom he is dealing with. You said it was the glaive of the Seven Laws? Yes. Where's my pencil? Sorry. A weapon... I remember that. A weapon that has been in the process of being crafted for decades, only just finished.

Uh, do we know what the seven laws are? Or is it just a name? The Eternal Blossom herself knows. And we trust. Everything she has foretold, everything she has predicted has come to pass. I was told of my destiny so, so, so long ago. And now it has come.

And now I will finally achieve my greatness. And you see that there is just a weariness as he says that behind his eyes. It's not anything that is difficult to perceive. Well, we will do what we can to assist. And I believe we can defend the city. And I believe we will stop Baphomet and end his warpath here. It should be effortless as far as all things are considered.

My beast lord, Harthak, he points to the male at his right, assures me that our yetis and tigers are awaiting in the mountains and the spires to devour any beast men that crosses their path. Hundreds. My high overlord, Karun, he points to the female at his left, assures me that the layout of the city, the narrow paths, the bridges...

will be nigh untravelable for their bulk in their hooves. That is why we ride tigers. These beast men and their unsteady footing. They'll fall and be splintered across the grounds of the ravines. Well, that all sounds very well in hand. But I, you know, never hurt to be overprepared. When do you think they will arrive at the walls?

We do not know for sure when they do arrive. We don't know when they will attack. But all of our reconnaissance has shown that they are just a mindless savage horde crashing against the walls. This city is the most fortified citadel in all of Striga. Zurn, and he turns and looks at you, would like to think that Zentra is more fortified than Mogra Kai. Ha! Ha!

I laugh. What do you say to that, boy? Um, I'm sorry. You startled me a little. Um, I don't want to disagree or contradict you, but are you sure that they're just mindless creatures? Have you seen them, dear mindless beasts?

No match for the military genius and might of myself and my generals. We have been hardened from decades of war. Corovacchia, with Erios, with Scythraniel. Enemies at all fronts. We have learned how to survive in this land. They have no idea what they are dealing with. And now, with the Glaive of the Seven Laws predicted,

and foretold by the Eternal Blossom herself. What hope does a demon lord have against us? With all due respect, I mean this. I just don't want anyone to underestimate them. I appreciate your concern, but myself and my generals have it handled, and I still owe you respect.

Even a Korovakian here in my own home. Excuse me. Um, he's not really Korovakian, after all. He's more just a guy. Do you think I don't know a Korovakian when I see one? Just, well, he may be from there, but that doesn't make him a Korovakian per se. He's just a, he's just Felix.

Him being a Korovokian doesn't define who he is or what he does. Is all I'm saying. In all due respect, of course. That may be the case. And I grant you respect, as you were the only one to kneel. You respect the laws of the land that you are in. Of course. And the culture. What we've had to do to survive. You could teach the rest of your friends, but that said...

My people and I are indebted to you. And so this feast is for you. You will have allies, protection, and friends in Mogul Kai as long as I am Warchief.

"Good feast, this." And I'll just take a piece of whatever and start eating. - I'll just follow suit and eat a little bit and sip on whatever they're serving to drink and keep my eyes down. - Try the soup. It's really quite delicious. - Oh, I haven't had the soup yet. - You do that. And then there's kind of this awkward silence. It kind of falls over the feast.

And then suddenly you hear a commotion from outside the feasting hall. You're kind of shouting and scuffling. And you hear the bleeding of a goat. And you hear... And then suddenly the door... The doors open. And you're... And you hear, like, struggling. And the doors close behind and you see the steward. Pardon my interruption, Warchief. There is a...

Halfling, here, that is demanded audience and he knows an awful lot about us and our people, he claims to be an orc. That is so much better than I thought it was gonna be. I'm okay with that. You've got goat PTSD, I know. Exactly. And there is silence that falls over the room. Excuse me, we were not going to bring him more, Chief.

But we do not know what to do. He says he needs to warn us about the Horn Legion and Baphomet and their plan. And he said that their plan is to break the seventh seal. Immediately, the Warchief's face goes to stone. And he looks at all of his generals and then to you all. Leave this place.

Now, immediately all of the generals get up, including the Beast Lord and the High Overlord. And they immediately start walking away. I scoot my chair out and I start to stand. And he looks at you, Felix. You, no, all of you, stay! Is this one of Zurn's tricks? I look at Iris.

Well, no, I'm not particularly fond of Xurne myself. I can attest to there was an orc who happened to die and we needed information, and I cast a spell that was new to me. Well, it was reincarnation. I don't think he was too pleased to come back as a halfling. I cannot confirm nor deny whether this particular halfling riding on a goat is the same one that was previously an orc that I resurrected.

and became a halfling riding on a goat, but I wouldn't say the similarities are there. It's a fitting image. This isn't a trick. I know you have no reason to trust me. I'm just throwing my words and her hat into the ring. So you do have something to do with this? Oh, I do, yes. And so does Anubis. All the generals have gone off to side doors. They close, and you see the...

the Beast Lord and the High Overlord, who had had so much confidence and were feeling very sure of themselves and their plan, they are immediately fleeing this room. And the doors close behind them, and you see the Warchief look at his steward, and he says, Bring him in.

and the doors open. And you see a halfling being handled by an orc guard who does not very clearly know what to do with an angry halfling.

as you see him squirming and trying to force his way out of the arms of a guard. And then you see another guard with a large greatsword in his arm and a goat under one arm. And he starts to follow in, and Wartree Frost is like, "Not the goat!"

Yeah, he'll smell what we're eating. And immediately, the guard turns around, and as the door... As the guard grabs the halfling and holds him out, and you see your...

Not friend, but very much the acquaintance of the former orc, now halfling of Kargash from Fallsong, who's trying to squirm his way out, and just the guard just places him down and then lets go. Oh yes, that is that highly aggressive halfling. Backs out. Halfling. And leaves the room. And the door closed and you hear another... And it closes.

And you see the halfling, a full, like, scraggly beard at this point, wild, almost bloodshot eyes, longer hair down to the shoulders, and very much covered in dirt and grime as he looks around with wild eyes, as he looks at the Warchief and says, "I've been trying.

to get in touch with you. And he takes a few steps forward and the Warchief Frostfang looks at each of you like very uncertain and says, "Are you certain this isn't a trick?" I'm just gonna take my hat off and nod yes, like I'm sure. He's the genuine article. Yeah. And you see Kargess step forward and he is no more than three and a half feet tall.

as he steps proudly in and says, "I may not look it, but I'm more of a proud orc than any of them out there. I promise you that, Warchief Frostfang." And he immediately kneels deeply and reverently for the Warchief. And Frostfang takes in the sight and says, "You may stand."

And your god has the power to do this. Yes, as miraculous as a night sees. It is but a tranquil of his power. I am grateful that I worship the eternal blossom. Step forth. What is your name? Orc. I'm Kargash of Fallsong. My town was lost to beast plague.

It's pronounced plague. Beast plague. And these people, these outsiders, they did this to me. I don't fault them. I am alive because of it. I can get my revenge because of it. I'm ashamed of my current state, Warchief. I'm sorry. I've lost my tendrils. I am ashamed and I apologize.

I told you to rise, orc. Kargess seems to be taken aback. And you see kind of a tear fall down his face as he stands and he seems to

almost not be sure what's going on. And you see Warchief Sengoro Frostfang look at him and it's a look of respect. He seems to have believed Iris at face value. And despite him being stern, he seems to have a deep reverence for his people. As he extends a hand and says, "Come forth. What do you wish to warn us of? And what do you know?"

And Kargash steps forward, looking very small in this grand hall as he begins to speak and then Shingoro Frostfang holds up his hand. "First, what do you know of seals?" "You mean us?" "Yes."

Are you referring to the animal or the variety that, you know, encloses like a tomb? Do not test me! I know a lot about seals. They're kind of furry, they're very cute, um, they have lots of good blubber for what... Oh, the different, the other kind of seal! Oh, totally confused, I'm sorry.

Should you leave the room or should you stay? I would like to do whatever you would like. Then what do you know of seals? If you know what I refer to, speak now or leave. We know of what you refer to. I thought so. It was foretold. That kind of seal, eh? Yes, Toa. He sits down and the scraping in of the chair echoes through.

And he gestures for everyone to sit, including Kargash. And he looks around and you can tell that there's bags under his eyes. He has bloodshot wild eyes. And he hops up in the chair and scoots it in. And the Warchief looks at him and says, Speak, Kargash of Falsal. I thank you, Warchief.

After good fortune, maybe bad, running into these folk again, but maybe my fate was to come here and survive. I've been tailing the horn legion for weeks now, and I've been listening, getting as close as I can, and being this small is humiliating, but I've been able to get a lot closer, and I'm a lot sneakier than I used to be.

And those horrible bulls and goats and beasts that they got, they speak some terrible language that I can't understand. The ones that have been turned recently, the new villages every single time, they still kept talking in Orcish. Just little bits and pieces garbled with that terrible speak. And I piece together that there's some sort of plan.

They're fixing to trick you. They're coming for this seal. It's the seventh one. Once they smash it, there's no going back. I believe the intention. And they want to draw you out, make you think that it's going to be a proper fight like it was at Zantra, they say. But there's apparently, it's all a diversion. They're going to go right to the seal, what they say.

You cannot fall for the trap, Warchief. You have to protect it. I don't know nothing about seals beyond what I pieced together, but I know that it sounded bad if they got what they wanted. If they did trick you. A moment of silence falls over the room and Warchief Frostfang crosses his arms. Do you expect me to believe

that savage, mindless beasts are going to outmaneuver our greatest military minds. They have a plan to trick us and subvert us. They've thrown their bodies against our troops every step of the way. Why should I believe any different this time? I don't know what to tell you, Warchief. He will never look. Warchief Frostfang in the eye. He continually looks off to the side, showing deep reverence and respect.

It's an army of beasts. This horned king that they call him. He's savage. He's far more cunning than you're giving him credit for. This is some sort of plan that he hatched with somebody. Something. Something that he was promised. I don't know. It's what I've pieced together. Maybe it's been difficult to piece it out of that horrible speak. I hear it in my head. I've been around him so long I don't even know what

What are my own thoughts anymore? But he is cunning. He's a hunter. He marks his prey, makes him feel complacent and uncomfortable, and then he strikes and kills and feasts. I've seen it every village every time. I implore you, you must take it seriously. They have some plan for Mogra Kai. The other seals apparently have been easy pickings, but they got a plan.

They got these creatures in cages that they're planning for some sort of ritual. I don't know what they're gonna do. They don't look like this world. The Warchief leans back again. He thinks. I do not know what sort of plan they have, but I have been assured of our victory. By Golden Lotus, by the Eternal Blossom herself. You do trust Golden Lotus, don't you? With... without hesitation, sir.

Then why do you doubt our plan now? I don't, sir. Forgive me. I'm just trying to get my revenge. I'm just trying to do my part. Then perhaps your part is to trust and believe. Have faith in the wisdom of others and not yourself. Trust in the group, the collective, and not your own wits.

"Is that not what is noble and good? Yes, of course. I'm sorry I've been tracking him for so long, and I have lost so much." And he rubs his chin and looks incredibly shameful. "But I promise you, sir, you might be underestimating." And you can see that he's fighting back the urge to just completely submit. He wants to, desperately.

Sir, please don't underestimate the Horned King, the Horned Legion. Don't underestimate them. And he just kind of sits back and his eyes are wide and he's shaking. War Chief, sir, may I speak? Proceed. I can confirm what Kargash is saying. Kargash, right? Yep. Despite being a king of beasts, despite being seemingly a slavering, mindless tyrant, Baphomet is...

is cunning. We witnessed it ourselves in Zentra, the capital city of Korovakia. He hatched a plan to summon out Moloch, some sort of devil, I don't really understand. Feel free to layer on if I'm getting any of this right. But my understanding is that he made some kind of alliance that wasn't really an alliance, and that he abandoned his ally, leaving us to defeat him as he left.

Seemingly all part of his plan. And so I would encourage you, implore you, that we can vouch for what Kargash is saying, that he clearly has some sort of plan in place beyond just killing and fighting. Perhaps he could have taken Zantra, but he didn't. He left. He let Morlock be summoned by his servants and then left him to die. And die he did. Make a persuasion check at advantage, being helped by Kargash.

roll two threes oh dear god twist yes please yes use one of these other guys hey there we go uh that's a 19. way better than two threes that was a good old plus one yep plus one as you finish

Have you already removed one from him? We've not, so please, thank you. As you finish, Kargash kind of pipes up a little bit more. He's right. And his glaive. They call it heart cleaver. I've seen that thing tear through Orcs, and not only that, it can spread that beast plague in an instant. Turn an entire regiment.

into savage creatures, spread the plague faster than any actual ailment that I've ever seen. They say that's the key. They say he's gonna use that and turn all of us and kill the rest, just like they've been doing in all of Striga. The Warchief leans back and you see that there is an ounce of uncertainty in his face. He kind of looks over his shoulder, almost expecting to get some sort of guidance from someone that would normally be behind him.

It's not there, just a yeti chomping away at its meal and turns back to you all, says, "What do you suggest then, Korgash of Folsong, that I do as war chief?" "Just, I don't know, sir. I'm no military mind. I know how to swing a sword and I know how to herd and farm and that's it. And I know I've lost my tendrils. I know I've lost my everything.

But just don't go to the wall. Just don't fight them head on. Don't expect that the horned king, the bifemap, is gonna meet you and get killed that easily. He's a lot smarter than you think. He looks at you, Toa, and backs to Kargash and then back at you. Seems to be a bit of... There's... The level of respect that he looks at Kargash with is not that different from you, Toa.

Very well. I will consult my generals. They have a plan, but you know of my burden to protect more than just Mogra Kai here. Yes, we do. The six of you and seven, I presume, including your friend, Golden Lotus is tending to currently. You know what we are dealing with. Far worse than any bull. You do know this.

We know what we're protecting, and we know what's at stake if this seal that we're speaking of falls. I will not go to the wall and be baited out like some sort of fawn to a wolf. Karghesh of Fallsong, you have my word. I will not cower in my fortress like Zurn does himself. But I will not go to the wall.

Then I want you to know that this Horned King, so he calls himself, is no match for the weapon that has been crafted for me and that I have trained for my entire life. This goddess is far more than a king, but more than that. Its blade, silver blade, has been crafted with the knowledge of my order. Legend has it it has killed far worse than demon lords in the past.

It deals of souls. It deals of the land of Striga itself. Power of death, united with the power of law and order. Baphomet does not stand a chance. Take solace, and you keep yourself alive. Do you know when they plan on attacking? Yes, sir. That was my last point. They'll arrive by morning, but they are going to wait until tomorrow night. Once the sun falls and they have the cover of darkness, they can see real well.

They're nocturnal predators. They hope that you're stupid enough to meet them on the field of combat like Cern's forces were. But if you don't, don't matter to them. They're ready for that too. Baphomet's gonna do what he's gonna do and I don't know what it's gonna look like. It's not gonna be pretty. But you gotta do everything you can. And I wish I could help more than that. You have done more than enough, Kargresh of Folsom. You will be granted private quarters in my citadel.

You will be granted safety and protection. I thank you for your submission to the Eternal Blossom. Of course. And I will grant that you be healed and cleansed and made whole once again by Golden Lotus this evening. Holy fuck. Thank you, sir. That's kind of a big fucking deal. Holy shit. And he leans back

And he looks at all of you and he says, "Do you concur with everything that this orc has said?" I'll solemnly nod, yeah. Yes, sounds about right. Every word of it. He speaks the truth. And he looks at all of you and there's a bit of confidence in his face as he leans back and kind of folds his arms and reaches out and grabs a piece of yak and

You've seen him before where he's gotten heated, but every time you've interacted with him, he's had Golden Lotus with him to help calm him down. And now you can tell that he's without anyone to advise him. And he's kind of reaching out and grabbing, he tears a piece of meat off. And it seems more of that kind of savagery that you have come to expect from Orcs. As his eyes kind of look like there's some spirit to them.

And he tears into a piece of meat and he says, I still, regardless of their plans, have no doubt that this Baphomet is not as powerful as he thinks he is. And I think, and you hear a smack sound.

And suddenly a loud splattering on the table happens. Oh god. As a hawk drops to the ground dead, and suddenly you hear a shriek as they start flying around, you're fluttering ahead, as they are freaking out, smashing into the walls, dead hawks flying. You see as the tigers all look around,

looking at each other, roaring, snarling, as they start bounding for the door. One of the doors where the generals had gone, one white tiger smashes through and bounds out, letting out almost a whine as you see a massive, as you see hawks falling to the ground, dead as they start to freak out, and you hear the loud roaring and whining and shrieks of hawks beyond the citadel.

as panic starts to ensue, and you see behind the Warchief who has been sitting so confidently, his blade at his side as a looming massive yeti, wild eyes with a mixture of fear and rage, leans forward with his arms as if to kill him, and in one motion, the Warchief, despite his age, leaps from his chair, grabs his blade, and swings

And the yeti's head flies across the room. It claws mere inches from the head of the warchief as it collapses. As absolute pandemonium starts to occur all around, and you hear nothing but shrieks and roars. And the warchief stands, his blade, his long, ornate sword, covered in blood of his prized yeti.

Oh shit. Damn. And he almost seems to be taking in as the animals and the beasts of Mogra Kai start to panic. What's going on? And Kargash holds his head. They're here. They're close. He is coming. I felt the same thing. Baphomet, the Horned King, he's here. He's here. He's here.

He is coming! I'm gonna turn towards Kargash and I'm gonna cast Calm Emotions on him. How does that work?

He has to do... I'd like to roll for initiative. He has to roll a charisma saving throw. I too would like to roll for initiative. He does? Yes. What does he see? 17. He fails. So I'm going to suppress his emotions and just calm him down. So that way he can breathe more comfortably and get himself together.

And you see the Warchief just slightly move as another hawk falls down dead, its neck's horribly snapped as they are attempting to flee.

I will pull my totem out and be like, what's happening to them? We don't see anything physically attacking them. No, you just see that the, that the, the hordes are slamming themselves against the walls, trying to get out. As, as the, as the tigers have all fled into other rooms, you hear the loud clattering and the fear of the generals in other rooms. They may have been sitting down for, for a drink, some plum wine. And, uh,

As you just hear just absolute pandemonium, this is what he does. Miles around, they're close. They're close. And suddenly, as you see one tiger, the last one, as it was bounding for the door, stop. And it kind of relaxes. And Kargash is calmed down by your paw. And he kind of grips it with a small halfling hand. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

And suddenly, all of the pandemonium from outside, the roaring of the yetis, the tigers, and the shrieking of the hawks, stops all at once. And the doors open. Wolf spark in the distance. And a single tabaxi stands there holding the glaive. All is well, war chief. Do not fear. His presence makes our beasts uneasy. But they are calm now.

As she steps forward. Most of them. Except for the wolves in the distance. As she looks at the... Can you guys hear the fox dance here? They definitely can. The mastiffs howl in the distance. As suddenly quiet returns.

And you see Kargash as he is calm now, his breathing stills. There's a wildness to his eyes. And the eyes that, the look in his eyes that you see, and probably you, Toa, it's the most familiar look to you. It's almost like a boar being hunted, as if it's this prey desperate for survival, knowing that the predator is closing in.

And you see the same look in all of the other beasts. And he just, Kargash stops and he looks and says, they are close. They are coming. May the eternal blossom save us. And Golden Lotus steps in, holding the glaive. And she walks over to Kargash and places a hand, a paw on her shoulder and says, she will. Warchief, shall I attend to our new friend? He doesn't say anything. He just nods.

And she pulls his chair back and helps him out and reaches down to hold his hand. Come, we will get your tendrils back. You will be calm. The power of the Horned King has no dominion here. Come and be well. And she starts to guide him out. And you see Warchief Frostfang lean back and he says, Golden Lotus. She stops. May I have...

My weapon. She stops and several seconds pass. I must pray over it tonight. Make sure it receives its final blessing. And I will bestow it upon you tomorrow at sundown when the battle occurs. And you will strike down Baphomet as it has been foretold. And you see a little bit of...

of frustration in the Warchief's face. He's been worked up all night and he's looking down. He's not even looking at her. He's holding his blade out still and he's looking at his yeti covered in blood. Why not now? What if they attack in the night? What if... Tap, tap. And you see some calm wash over him.

The tap kind of rings out from the glaive in this almost musical chime now that it's been reforged into the glaive of seven walls and takes a deep breath. I must sleep and rest. Yes, you are so very tired, Warchief. Get your rest. Tomorrow is your destiny and you will need it. Of course. Thank you for your eternal guidance, Golden Lotus. Of course, my Warchief.

She turns and stops at the door and says, if you need me at any point in the evening, I will be at my sanctum as I always am and will always answer your call at any hour of the night. He says nothing as he kind of slumps back at his chair, turns away from his Yeti. His eyes kind of turn to its head and turns back. The table now covered in dead hawks, blood smeared on the walls.

It kind of collapses in, and the door closes behind Golden Lotus and Kargash as she guides him out. And it's just the six of you now. Does it occur to Caprice that Golden Lotus said...

by sundown tomorrow for the battle, but wasn't necessarily present for Kargash saying that they're going to arrive, but wait until evening to attack. Is that...

You got the sense that you could piece that together if you wanted to. So how would she know is what Caprice is going through in his head? That would be up to Caprice. Okay. I think if Derek couldn't pick up all that. No, Caprice is dumber than Derek, so I have to be careful. As peace suddenly returns, and despite the corpses of the beasts all around you,

And you see now that a guard has, enters, stumbles in, claw marks on his armor and his spear covered in blood. And you see a dead tiger on one side. And he checks on the Warchief and Warchief just waves his hand, but a lot more measured and calm now. After being soothed and the door closes, Warchief just looks focused, calm, but not as calm as everyone else that you've encountered before.

There's still an energy in his long, long life, and there seems to be a bit of conflict, of struggle there as he just rubs his chin and it strokes down to his long tendrils, his fingers knocking over each of the jade and gold adornments. This is going to sound like a weird question after everything that's happened. When did you first...

to get bestowed with the the tendrils did they start this large or did they grow into how did you that's a little inappropriate for dinner conversation well i saw that it was a quite an honor for kargash to be uh uh given them and i and i wondered uh if you perhaps the first uh being such a great chief as yourself yes i was the first this is the mark of the eternal blossom

This is what allowed me to unite all of the tribes into one clan, the Dancing Blade. Stop the bloodshed, brought us peace, prosperity, tranquility, harmony. Without it, we'd be fighting amongst ourselves. We would have been slaughtered by the Korovakians. He doesn't even linger that long on you. He doesn't even seem to care at this point. It is her blessing, her mark, that allows us to suppress our innate urges and instincts.

"Be at peace, and with that peace, act proper and true." He continues to kind of just think. And I assume it was Golden Lotus who introduced you to the blessing in the first place? When she arrived on these shores and found me and showed me the brilliance of the Eternal Blossom, the Golden Sky, I will never forget that sight. It was divine. Where did she come from? Do you know? From Yulong, she says.

Does not matter. She was delivered by a goddess. She has granted me this life, this destiny. I owe her everything. Yes, Darwin? Sorry, sorry, I just dropped my fork. Fork or fork. I mean, we've all got a fork fork. And also utensils. It's just a two-pronged fork. For pork. Um...

Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. Oh, uh... Has she always had the prophesizing premonition-y future-seeing Joe Jack? Yes. That is how we met. She knew my name. She said I was destined for greatness. You get the sense that there's a bit of cavalierness to how he's addressing you. You can tell that

He's surprised to see that you five strangers know of the seal, the burden that he has. You know of what's going on, you know of Zurn and Baphomet, and you seem that there's almost a relief of people that can share the burden of his knowledge that he can't even share with his generals. And there's a bit of cavalierness, a bit of comfort that that gives him that he probably doesn't normally enjoy. As he kind of slumps back, it's not the rigid,

show of might that he maintained for his generals and his subordinates. And it's almost just a... There's almost a strange comfort there, despite him being a very long-lived warchief. When you, uh... Before you were blessed by the Eternal Blossom, you...

had more raging emotions and that was what allowed you to unite the tribes is that you were able to suppress those. Do you miss those pieces of you? Is there some regret there? He sits and he stares at his table. His eyes kind of wander around the room, seeing all that he's built, all that he's created in his life.

And he looks at you. You actually see the tiny hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth. To be honest with you, I don't even remember what it was like before. Can't miss what you don't remember. So how can we help? Where should we be tonight? Where can we be stationed? Tonight you should rest. As I must rest, you heard. Golden Lotus. And tomorrow? Tomorrow, perhaps...

Golden Lotus will have an idea of where you should be. She has been the one that has told me of your destiny. Perhaps she will know how you can help. Tonight, check on your friend. Make sure she lives. Then rest. Get sleep. Tomorrow is the destiny I've been waiting for. The destiny of you all as well. The Lord of Demons marches upon us.

A king of beasts, so they say. I am not convinced. We will strike him down, so it has been foretold. I must retire now. We will retire as well. Thank you very much, Warchief, for this feast and being candid with what you know, and we will help in any way we can. We will see how much fruit that help bears tomorrow. Judgment today. Yes. Sleep well.

And he leans back and pushes out his chair and he stands. And he takes a few steps and he takes one last look at his Yeti. And then just turns and goes towards a door in the back of this feasting hall. So who's in the hall now? The door's open and the steward arrives with guards. You see that they're trying to clean up the blood and all of that. And you see immediately a cleaning staff rushes in.

as they start awkwardly scooping up the dead hawks. You see two staff members come in and they look at the yeti and they're like, "Oh fuck, don't do this." And you just see as they try to, "Oyx, oyx." And you hear, "Bring in, we're gonna need some more help." And so they're trying to clean up the place and you see someone come in and start to clean up the feast.

But the guards stationed at the door that arrive, they're keeping their eyes on you, making sure you don't go anywhere else in the fortress. What kind of teeth do yetis have? They have these, like, fangs, like these large fangs, but they're simian-esque, right? But, like, you know, kind of, like, sharp. I would like to approach one of the guards and ask them if I could procure the two predominant fangs of the yeti. I would say at this point... Actually, just roll a general persuasion check. Like a bubble one.

I don't trust you. You're bad dice. You are bad dice. No, I persuade nobody for anything. I persuade nothing. Is that supposed to be a 20? No, it's a 2. I would say that... Is it supposed to be a d20?

Yeah, no, yeah, it is. That's a d20. Yikes. Oh man, now you have a 20. That's a natural 20, so 29. You gotta give it up. To me for noticing. Let's role play it. I always assume that the largest die is going to be the d20, and on this set, it's not. You're welcome. Let's role play it. As you see, now the room is filled with orcs, and this young woman

She can't be older than 20. As you see that she has relatively small tendrils on her chin and the shade of her skin is this kind of teal, aqua. And she's in very plain clothes and light armor as all of them are. And she like leans down and she's trying to heave the head up and it's massive. And this was Warchief Frostfang's

you know, prize war yeti, that you saw the murals of some scenes of him even riding this yeti in the battle and just tearing apart Korvacians. You see him ripping off the wings of Aarakocra.

Pardon me, darling.

Yes? You look very strong and capable. An up-and-comer, yes? That is my hope. Yes, I would like to do something kind for the Warchief. I know this beast meant a great deal to him. I would like to have the fangs fashioned into a necklace for him. Would you be able to procure them for me?

She looks at you and obviously takes into the fact that you are a cat. You're a tabaxi. And she says...

Well, I think that you must know Golden Lotus, so sure. And just very effortlessly. Yeah, the BFFs. And that is all the confidence that she needed, was to basically hand over and allow you to harvest whatever you need from the mouth of this. I basically instruct her how to do it. Okay, you do that. So yeah, she kind of takes it and helps and says, and she hands it to you and wraps it up in some cloth. So it's nice. And you're able to... Thank you so much, darling.

You have upward mobility. I hope so. You are ushered out by the same steward that guided you. And you look around and you see that the various beastmasters are trying to calm their animals. The hawks, the yetis and the tigers. As you see that there are a number of corpses of some that had

You see a tiger down at the bottom of a ravine as you go. It has thrown itself off the cliff. You see a yeti who has smashed its skull against a rock. Oh, Mike. Whatever sort of horrible effects of Baphomet, you see the results of it for just a moment. And the fact that it all calmed down instantly is miraculous. As the...

You see for the first time a bit of uncertainty and a tiny glimpse of fear, but it only lasts for a moment as suddenly calm returns as they're trying to clean up the results of this temporary madness of Baphomet. And you look out ahead and you see the fires of the Horn Legion. And you listen and you hear almost very faintly on the wind...

Bait drumming? You're not sure if that's just your own heartbeat in the quiet of the city, or if it's the war drums of the Horned Legion approaching. But you can see that they are drawing near as you make your way through the city. What do you do on your walk back? Felix, how important do you think these beasts are to the defenses of Mokra Kai overall? That's a tough question, Caprice. I don't know. I mean...

You know, every beast of burden has its play in some sort of military strategy, but I don't know enough about Mogra Kai, and... Make a history check, Felix. It's the first dice I've rolled. That's where Felix is a Viking. Natural. Good advantage, actually. Because of the research that you did in the library at Zentra. Thank you. I just remember that.

That's better. And I'm sorry, you said history? History, yeah. History. I apologize. Let me pull up my... I apologize. That's at least a... That's going to be a 26. 26. I would say, Felix, that you know that... Yeah, you knew it. That the beast mastery that the Dancing Blade has practiced over the past decades has been one of the key facets that has helped repel the...

the Korovakian military. And you recall that, and you even saw the Watchtower, that Korovakia had invaded Grann decades ago and had occupied most of it. I take back everything I said. I was an absolute fool moments ago when I said that I had no idea. I retcon all of it and say that it's one of their most important military facets. The behavior exhibited tonight by these

Animals is concerning, to say the least. To say the least? I mean, doesn't that mean we're totally 100% super mega-fucked?

Look, I... Because if he can do that temporarily, and he can do that to the whole defenses of Mokra Kai, and that's the chief thing that they use in order to defend themselves, he's got an off button that immediately undefends the defendingness. There's no doubt about it that saying that puts us at a disadvantage, but we still have the peoples, okay? The people here are strong. They're strong-willed. And look, we can't give up.

For hers' sake. We can't give up. I'm not giving up. I'm just saying that I don't want to fight alongside a bunch of people who are just Hindu cows ready to... Nothing here makes any sense. You're talking to somebody who, being in the dark, I don't like feeling stupid, okay? And there's a lot of things that we just don't know, and I don't have the answers to, and I hate it. But we just...

We gotta move forward. I don't have the answers now. Caprice, I don't... Neither do I. I just was trying to make a risk assessment. It's worth discussing, for sure. We're going to have to make our own answers to this. Maybe. I think, yes, we might not have their beasts and their beastmasters to help defend, but we have a weapon that we...

Just very recently, I think, literally earlier today, we nearly died for. The Glaive of Seven Laws will hopefully have the same impact on Baphomet as it did in the past on Miska.

Hoa, we do not have a weapon. We don't, but I have no reason to believe that Golden Lotus will not use it. I believe she will use it, but for what purpose? We don't know. And I'm very concerned by what I've seen here today. I don't trust Golden Lotus. She's removed the fear, which at surface seems like a wonderful calming technique, but fear is there for a purpose. Yes.

Well... Protects you from danger. I think that it's good for the people to not be panicked. It doesn't do any good beyond making people worry, giving them anxiety, making them, you know, cloud their judgment. It makes them complacent. That's why we're here. We'll protect them. Beasts are not. Look, to say that the weapon is powerful is an understatement. I mean...

We've seen what it can do, we've experienced what it can do, and the fact that we can't even touch it is something. It's worth something. Maybe I just need a second try, because I'm sure if I just try... Luffy, no, no, no. Look, I don't want to... It did hurt a lot. I don't want to trust these people. I don't. But we don't have a choice. And so I'm with you, Tela. I don't...

As unwilling as I am, we have to trust them and we have to trust this weapon and maybe I don't trust Golden Lotus, but the chief, the war chief is, is there something real there? Look, I don't want to believe that everybody's being duped and everybody has the wolf over their eyes. But at a certain point, I have to ask myself, where do I draw the line?

Our number one goal is to make sure that seal does not get broken. Right. We know that it's the seventh seal. We know that when the seventh seal... I think if I'm understanding the math correctly, it's more than half of 13 seals. That's correct. Which means really bad stuff's going to happen. Also, we don't know if the other...

Six seals are okay. This could be the last seal. Where are the other seals? Are they broken? There's this seal. I think we need to assume that this is the worst case scenario. Where is this seal? We need to panic. If it's anything like... Well, I would assume... I don't even know why I'm saying this. In the heart of the city, it has to be the most offended point. Do we know? Have we been told...

Have we been told somewhere under the city or outside the city? We knew where Zentra's seal was though, right? You were told that there was a seal underneath Zentra. You are presuming that there is a seal and Warchief Frostfang

- Confirmed it and alluded to it, but never said where it was or anything like that. - I mean, again, so Felix's point stands. If I had to guess, it would be, look, I mean, think about where we were at the Haunting Lodge. It was underground in the heart of the lodge. Granted, the lodge is not Mogra Kai, it's not Zantra, but you know, I mean, if it were me-- - Parallels could be drawn. We must figure out where this could be here. - Well, I think he's right that for tonight, we need to rest. If they come in tomorrow night,

We have 24 hours until the fight. We should check on Heja. That's where I'm headed next. We're on our way there, right? He said to visit, but if you guys want to go to hers or if you want to go home... I assumed that I was on the way there. I've been presuming that you've been going to the infirmary. Yes. Yeah. You're on your way to the infirmary. Once we check on Heja, we need to rest. We need to plan. But my goal is...

We find out where the seal is and we stand there and we make sure it doesn't get broken. It was almost broken at the Lockfeather Lodge. It was very close. It didn't get broken, did it? It was very close to being broken. I don't know if I feel comfortable resting before we have that information. Look, we can do some digging and maybe we can ask around and...

If we can find the Warchief, maybe he'll tell us, or maybe even... Golden Lotus might tell us, but... I agree with you. I don't know how I'm gonna sleep. Well, we should have someone awake at all times. Even if there's some sort of beast disturbance like there was during dinner. But either way, someone should keep watch, someone should listen. Someone should be aware in case they attack a day early. I agree. Um...

All right. So I'll continue heading towards the infirmary. Okay. You make your way through the town, and you can see that just in the 20 minutes it takes to kind of make your way through the city, or 20 or 30 minutes, the initial unease of that strange uproar of all the beasts suddenly calmed in an instant. The unease is past.

has returned, the same peacefulness and harmony of the peoples and the animals of Bunker Kai returns. You make your way through the winding passages and you see the infirmary, a bit of golden light gleaming through the windows, and as soon as you approach the door, you smell that incredibly intense saffron.

and you make your way inside and you approach that same partition that you had left and you enter. Golden Lotus is nowhere to be seen but you see Hersia sleeping peacefully. You see the bandages all over her although mostly covered by a blanket. No more corruption is pulsing from her wounds. She seems to be healed and as

As you look into the corner, you see Torvald. He looks incredibly tired after a day of work and then battle and then healing. He is slumped over on a stool in the corner of this area, passed out and sleeping peacefully. And as you enter the room, all five of you, Herja stirs and her eyes open and she looks at you. Holy shit.

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