Edge of Midnight | Ep. 32 | A New Dusk
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Welcome to Legends of Avantris. I'm Nikki Scarlet and you're listening to Edge of Midnight. Here is what happened last time. You broke our agreement, Briggsie.

The souls in that soul for me. I'm tired of sharing a domain with my dear brother. Old Philip has been here long enough, I think. Pazuzu! Now Jericho! Kill my father! Bind him! Bind him! The lingering, corrupted echo of Pazuzu lets out a malevolent shriek that is instantly snuffed out as the door of your body's cage slams.

Lady of darkness and loss and oblivion, for too long you have been diminished. Dark lady, with this act of retribution I deny your resurrection. In the name of my true god, in the name of Striga, your power will be silenced forever. The Mourning Lord cares not for me.

I am his forgotten son. I have been cast aside by this high and mighty god. I've turned monster and I must embrace it. Rise, Samarius Renethil, blood knight of Lilith, the queen of hell. You look around at each other and realize that not just you are different. Of you are different. Well, well, well.

Isn't this quite the shot? So many twists and turns to this story, not to mention turns to darkness. I sometimes think that folks forget that this is a horror story after all. But all the same, it seems like this chapter is coming to a close. Time to turn the page. You have all left your rooms. You have taken the time that you needed to adjust to...

who you have become, or maybe who you've always been. And as you put away some of your secrets, you make your way out into the common room and are shocked to find that you aren't the only one that has made a deal this night. You're not the only one who's been affected by the dark entity that's always watching, lurking over your shoulder.

You all knew that each of you struggled with your own...hatron, for lack of a better word. But it seems like tonight you've all become intimately familiar with them. And it is very clear upon looking around this room that something has changed within all of you. Well, how was everyone else's evening? What the fuck?! You two?! And you?! And you?!

I feel like I don't look that different compared to the rest of you! Are you smelling more fragrant, Rigsy? Yes, you have changed quite a bit in that respect. I couldn't resist.

What do you mean? Did we all gain amazing power? I mean, all of us, right? Well, I failed, but I'm sure the rest of you found the power to kill Sister Effigy and all of the other witches, hopefully. You failed? What do you mean? Well, I don't think I have, like, ultimate power that's gonna, you know, take care of, uh, take care of old Snake Lady. I disagree with you, Jericho. I believe that there's power deep within you. Mine.

was illuminating. And I'm going to sit down on one of the plush chairs and pour myself some wine and just soak in my companions as I look about the room. Particularly looking at Jericho and say, my friend, are you alright? Your arm, your leg. Well, yeah, I think...

You know, I use that there key, and so it's actually, well, this don't look like a key right here on my new banjo. Uh, Virgil made me a new banjo! And I think there might be some horribly ancient proto-demon what's trapped inside.

So the arm and the leg, are they Virgil's or this proto-Devils? Well, I think they're either mine or they're Virgil's, but I guess from a manner of speaking, on account of me being able to flex my talony fingers like so, I am able to... I mean, it's not bad for plucking arms, I suppose. I mean, Virgil should have told me that bird claws would be good for plucking. Um.

And I'll kind of play a little tune. And I'm still getting threat easy with them same old fingers I always did have. But I think they might be Virgil's, but I'm able to control them. I'll walk over and also pour myself some wine from the same decanter. And still standing, continue to turn towards Jericho. Tell us exactly what happened to you. We need to know that you are okay. Me? Yes. Or Briggsie.

Well, I want to hear everyone's tale. Yeah, Briggsie, tell us the tale of what happened earlier. Is that flesh? Oh, isn't that weird? Is this what flesh feels like? Hold on. It's got a bit of give under the feathers. Hold on. Yeah, there's actually... It's got a bit of give. I had forgotten that you are not made of skin and bone. Garsh, look at this.

I guess I got all old on account of having crow feet. That's very funny, Jericho. That is very funny. I'm sort of impressed. Okay, yeah. Lethika, I know that you cover your face with a mask, but I need your makeup routine on account of me having crow's feet. Jericho, it is a pleasure to meet you in this new form.

Oh, well, uh, Ms. Lefica, are you wearing your... I thought you was a snake, not an owl. Uh, only a metaphor, the dress, I believe. The owl you see before you is my true form. This is what has lightened my heart for a very long time in the darkness. Wait. What? Wait. What are you... You have a... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You... You...

Wait, wait, hold on. It's a fine mood. Before anyone says anything else, did everyone use their artifacts? No. No. Oh. What the fuck? I mean, I did. I did. I thought it was... Oh, jeez. Were we not supposed to? Oh, God. I believe we were permitted to do whatever we wanted. The artifacts were given to us. I used my artifact in a manner of speaking. It showed me the truth.

The truth? The truth about what? I thought the whole thing was that you and I weren't gonna be cursed anymore. Wasn't that kind of the whole thing? Oh yeah! You're still a vampire and you're still a zombie! Well... So the thing is... It worked. Okay. I had to give the cutlass away to the old crocodile god. It's gone!

It's finally gone. And I was back to normal. You fellas should have seen it. It was amazing. You mean you were living again? Yes, I looked like me old self. And you remained alive? I was alive. I was fine. And I could smell and I could taste. But I lost me powers too. It somehow broke whatever... Well, that's fine. Crossroads. Whatever deal I had. You don't need powers.

What did you do, for example? He-

That's what he said! That's exactly what he said! That's what he said! I was so worried about it! That's what he said! And so... And so I was like, "Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, I need my powers back!" So I called him. Alright. I phoned up Old Crossroads, you know, I happen to know his... Ooh, he showed up? ...settling stone runes and... He showed up. And he offered me a deal, and he said he would give me back me powers!

And I wouldn't be cursed anymore. Terrible praise. Certainly. As I walked about today. And I'm like, oh, he's got a way with words. He speaks in kind of a poetic sort of way. And no, no. Okay, so when it's daytime, you'll be flesh and blood? So that's the thing. When it's daytime, I guess I'm presumably not cursed. But here we are.

Briggsie. Oh, I'm proud of you. Well done. Besides, who needs the sunlight? Well, I mean, presumably I'd like to leave at some point. But, well, anyway, that's what happened to me. I got some power- Oh! I left out the coolest part. Okay? So, you know how I've been a little scared recently and I'm trying to work on that, you know, look inward?

You know doing some self reflection on why I feel the need to run away in combat when I get brutally maimed and attacked by our spooky enemies. And I'm just filled with fear. It happens quite often, yes, yes, yes. Well... Go on, please. Don't let me interrupt. Oh, sorry. Well, here's the thing.

Frostfroze came to me, right? And I don't have a sword anymore. What am I going to do? He gave me my magic back. But then he says to me, he says...

Who needs courage when you have a gun? And I laid my hand and in a burst of neon light, my blunderbuss will appear in my hands. Whoa! Oh, isn't that cool? Whoa, what does it do? I shoot like a beast. Roll an attack. Oh gosh! Not the wine! Not the wine! My father was decorative! Uh...

17. Yeah, you take the blunderbuss and you slightly aim towards the door. You blow a big hole through the wall right above the door. You can see out into the hallway the splintered wood and plaster is smoking with dark magics.

but it's spectacular. You can see a faint shimmer of similar etchings, like the runes that you see dangling and painted all over the gun that just kind of sparkle in smoke before dissipating. - Whoa, whoa, whoa! - Well done, Grimmson! - That was the first time I did that. - Very impressive.

Oh, so, you know what? Frankly, in all of our weeks of adventuring in Druskin Vault, I feel like this matches more of my style lately. You know what I mean? I've changed a lot. And I don't need to be Briggsie the Cutlass Cratch anymore. What's your new moniker? Oh, well, I don't think I need one. But I was sort of workshopping Briggsie the Cannon Cratch. Ooh, with a K? Of course with a K. Oh, that is, ooh.

-Ooooh, hey, that's pretty nice! -I'm still workshopping it, though. -That's a handsome moniker! -I think I will continue to call you Briggsie if that's fine. -No, please do. I really am Briggsie. I don't... You know, it's still undecided at this point. -That's a genuine hand cannon! -So... Oh, one more thing. Is that... He didn't take me senses away. I can eat and I can taste and I can smell and...

I don't stink as bad. I just kind of look with it now. At one moment. Where are our manners? We didn't offer our friends a drink. Let us pour. Please, how about me? Yeah, we pour you a drink together. Oh! Oh! Oh, Asimov! It does check the decanter. I'm sure there is plenty more in the, well, can you get drunk? Roll a constitution saving throw.

- Oh, can't hold me liquor like I used to. - No, you can't hold your liquor like you used to. The alcohol hits you almost immediately. You haven't felt the effects of alcohol in a long time and it is overwhelming as the dizziness assails your senses. - Oh, I think I need to eat. I should have had it on an empty stomach. - Well, gosh, your tolerance ain't what it used to be. - No, it ain't quite like,

That ain't... Whoa. Take your time. It's all right. Sit down. We have all night. Please, pace yourself. And I want to run over to the tray that I brought back and take the bowl of pistachios. There actually isn't much left. Once you first had your senses back, you consumed the majority of what was on that tray. It's mostly just the pistachios you couldn't open. Hey, fellas. Yes? I like this. I think it used to be this.

Drinking, being drunk, or getting sick? All of the above. Into a pot of blood. Well, I'm glad that you find yourself feeling swell about your decision. And is the idol still in your quarters? Your captain's quarters, perhaps? No, it's gone. I gave the colors back, and it just...

Presumably went back to wherever I brought it from. But I don't know. I'm just assuming. I mean, I don't have any proof of that. I'm just guessing that, you know, where else would it go? Well, and to think... Could it be, like, gone forever? To think all of that and at no terrible cost. That we can see. Does anyone have a sandwich? That's actually cool. That's wonderful. How about that? You go for a sandwich right now. I feel like... See if anyone wants some pizza. Mr. Crossroads sure is, uh... Henri! Henri!

There's no one here, remember everyone has turned to stone. Oh, is everyone? We could make our way to the kitchen and cook for ourselves. I'm sure that the food is still very fresh and flavorful. No, I just wanted to go first because I feel like mine's like least impactful and important. Why? No. No, it's very impactful. And besides Jericho, regardless of personal sacrifice or cost, there's no cost too great.

For what we need to accomplish. Briggsie did a wonderful thing. He had the courage to take what was his. Well, he's got a new gun, that's for sure. And he's able to taste and able to get a little sloshed if you don't pardon my French. Worth it. I say enjoy it. Are you alright? You're crying, Briggsie. Do you know that you're crying? Oh no, it's fine. It's fine. It's fine.

You alright? I'm fine. Do you want to talk about it? No. Why? I just want some pizza. It's okay. Oh, gosh. Someone else go. There, there, Briggs. I hope you don't mind if I touch you with my weird, gross crow foot. Oh, wow, that's like fresh. There, there. I can feel everything. Oh, look. Wow, that's a mighty fine, strange sensation. How does that feel, Jericho?

Well, it feels different than having my... Feels different than my wooden metal contraptions. I can still feel, but it's got a little give. It's a little tough. It's a little sharp. But it's got a bit of give. Oh, gosh. You still have not fully explained exactly what transformed you and what transpired when you used the key. I'm not sure I understand what you've undergone. Oh, yeah, well, I...

Well, Vergil and I was kind of rehearsing in a manner of speaking. And Vergil's with a crow. Oh, let's rest in peace, that weird, gross crow. Vergil is gone? Wait, what? He's gone? Well, that there bird that he was. That's gone.

Because it was more of a prison for Virgil now that Virgil's a little bit more tethered and has a bit more power than he used to. That bird is gone. He's more in his demon form from what I'm ascertaining. Jericho, are you aware of another? Is there a passenger with you still? Oh no, well he's a passenger of my banjo. In the instrument? Yeah, right here. Virgil, is the name of your banjo?

No, no, no, no. Virgil and I are still apart, cut from the same cloth, so to speak, sharing the same body, and maybe this is probably the incarnation of Virgil having a little bit of... This is strange. It's weird being able to flex my foot like this. Here, give me a goblet! I'll throw a pewter goblet onto the floor. I'll catch it with my crow foot. Wow.

Wow, this is strange. That's quite the party trick. Jericho, you seem in high spirits. Are you feeling... good? Yeah, I'm feeling good. Virgil... Virgil's feeling good. He's... he's been feasting and gorging and resting.

But I'm sure he'll be out soon. All right, so what I'm gathering is that you and Virgil are now even more entwined than previously. He has more agency and power, perhaps? Are you worried about that? Does that concern you at all?

Well, Virgil usually knows what's good and what to do, so I don't mind it. And we got rid of that there fellow that was so mean to us. He was all crazy and had a very spooky voice and was, I think, maybe from another dimension. I don't know what a dimension is. I think he was from another dimension. I think he almost brought about the apocalypse. Something about an eclipse. Something about fallen angels. I don't know. It's all very complicated. Virgil knows more than I do.

But I think he's still gorging and resting. There's a lot of, on account of, he's feasting on them, their secrets of his father, what is there trapped in this banjo. You are a strange, strange little man. Where in the banjo does he live? Oh, in the headstock right here. See? See it's an amber? It's got four wings. Is there a little door on it somewhere? Yeah.

I don't know, it's like window ocean. I think he's trapped in there in the same manner of our dear old antagonist, Kellyanne of the Crooked Teeth was trapped in that there monolith. His spirit is trapped. It's not like there's a small man. Virgil's father's essence, which was actually in both of us, which we didn't know until Virgil was able to eat some of them secrets of...

the Archbishop and then Billy and Kellan and Jorgrim and Farron and all of them other folks and was able to get a bit more of his mind back. You are dealing with some very, very strong magics. Things that I certainly can't even begin to comprehend. Well, the magic of music, that's exactly right, Sir Marius. It's the magic of music, the magic of this and I'm sure Virgil will come out when he's feeling... Virgil, are you ready to come out?

No, you're still resting? Okay. It was a lie. He... Oh, you should have heard him. He spoke some language that I never did hear before, and he summoned forth his own father, and he banished him, and I helped! Oh, you helped? I helped, that's right. Oh, that's so cool. This is why you seem so different. I helped. There is a confidence to this new Jericho that...

is very new and welcome. That's right! Virgil says that I should be able to stand a little taller. I concur. And have a little bit of confidence. Jericho, I'm proud of you. Well, gosh, thanks. He said I don't have a spine, but that's no reason not to have a spine. And the key now, it is gone completely? Or just what is left here? Yeah, I guess there ain't a key no longer. It's the amber headstock shaped like four wings of, um... Well, I shouldn't say...

Is it clear through the clothes or through, like, is there still, like, another cage or something along those lines in the chest? I'm just trying to remember how your torso would appear. I think my shirt's probably covering it still a little bit. Maybe you can see a little bit. There's a little bit of darkness in within. I won't pry.

I must say, I'm eager to speak with Virgil the next time he wants to make himself known. I think if we do go to the kitchen and enjoy a supper, and I get a nice big plate of green jello as velociraptors stalk us, I think Virgil might come out to feast.

That's very funny, Derek. That was very good. Chilean sea bass. Sebastian's making Chilean sea bass. I don't know why you'd have both. Chilean sea bass. Yeah, of course. Well, I am a little hungry. Do we want to walk to the kitchen and perhaps enjoy some food while we continue this discussion? Well, I think that maybe, I feel like you all are enjoying some wine and...

I feel like we should all be able to talk it out before we move quarters. The vibe might change. Then I will sit. If the scene changes, the energy might change. Then I will sit. I'm certainly in no rush. No, please, allow me. Oh, thank you. And you, look at you. Yeah, look at you. Marius, we have both undergone some transformation. I would be very eager to hear what you did with the goblet and how that may have changed you.

Transformation? Change? I'm not so sure. I mentioned previously the cup showed me the truth. Simply, that's it. I didn't drink from it. What? I did not consume any of the liquid therein. Is that why you don't look any less cursed than you did two hours ago? Briggsie, previously we'd have conversations about whether or not these curses were even breakable. What's been shown to me is that mine is not.

What I was always afraid of is the truth. I am what I am, and that is Vampyr. Oh. Oh, don't look so glum. Please. We're learning to embrace these things about us. Is that why you kind of have a bit of a spookier affectation about you? Spookier? No. A little bit more...

i'm kind of spooked a dracula affectation perhaps jericho simply i had been wearing a mask no the lefic was wearing the mask i wasn't being true to myself i was trying to be someone that i am not the truth of the matter is my kingdom is gone my king is dead what why there was no hope that the grail

could provide. - Your, the whole kingdom and king, like that's basically your whole thing, King Victor? - How do you know? - I looked deep within the chalice and it showed me the truth. Many of the legends have always said that that is what the artifact does, it shows you the truth. Nobody really knows because no one had ever found it before. As the legends say, I did what I was told and I viewed upon what is left behind in Avantris.

Now I know. All this time, I pled, I begged, and I worshipped the Morning Lord, and I received nothing. No answer? Not a hint? Nothing. This entire time, it was one singular entity who was watching out for me, giving me the strength that I needed to carry on and help all of you. So, I simply was made aware, and my pledges, my oaths, my allegiance was directed to the right place.

Well, uh, I mean, what is Mr. Le Fender gonna think about all that? Won't he be Mighty Cross? Does it matter? Well, isn't that who you're always waking up at the equivalent of morning and praying to the tenants and the oaths and doing your stretches and the like? After 80 years of that and getting nothing in return, would you continue?

That's a long time, you're kind of right. When in reality, the sole person who cares about me is the Duchess. It was her all along. Well, I mean, wasn't she the, you know, seductress of what cursed you? That's true. Well, I guess I do not really want to talk. Well, isn't she, uh, isn't she bad news? At first I thought so. Aren't the

Aren't the flags that she bears as red as her skin-tight evening gown? When it's all red, Jericho, they're just flags. I've been elevated. I've been given a gift. Oh. One that I was very eager to turn a blind eye towards. Well, gosh. What does she look like? Oh, I bet she's fully hot. That's a story for another day. Oh. What's important now is that...

I have a sense of freedom, a sense of relief that has been lifted off of me that I've been carrying for decades. Decades! The way is clear. The path has been illuminated. I have been given what I need to slay these witches and more importantly help my friends. Well, I mean if she's on board with helping us kill witches, I mean that's why we is here.

Ain't it? Yeah, well that's very thoughtful, but you know... And that's a nice thing that she did. Maybe she ain't so bad. Yeah, and in a moment, you know, you're alone with your lady. And you were still thinking of me. You know, that's very touching because I was thinking of you too in a moment. Would Mr. Crossroads continue to offer you more power, another gift, if he didn't want these witches gone?

Would Virgil agree to cooperate with whatever he has, whatever machinations he might have, and lend you some of his gift if he didn't want his witches gone? No. That's right. Virgil does want, does he wants what's best for me, and so maybe the Duchess also wants, wants what's, what's, what is, what, what's best for you. And Lethika, you may be the boldest of all of us. Why do you say this? Clearly you had some plan all along.

And I'm so eager to hear all about it. Tell me, Marius. Have you forsaken your oath? Oath? Oath? My oath was one of the cr- My king. I miss him terribly. But the truth is he is gone. And nothing outside of the duchess will fix that. So I simply made a new oath. And you feel good? I feel very good. I would be a hypocrite

if I condemned embracing darkness in order to achieve my goals. And so I am pleased that you have shed the things that were getting in your way. I'll drink to that. Jericho? I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. Well, I don't mean this in a weird way or nothing, but you look way cooler now. Like, whoa.

Y-you! Well, that's very kind of you to say. Man, what an upgrade! Are you okay, Prigsy? Sorry. I'm fine. I'm fine. We're almost out. I'm fine. Brace yourself, Prigsy. Pace yourself. Pace yourself. I'm fine! I'm fine! Look, I'm fine! You have the rest of your life to enjoy all of the things that food and beverage have to offer. No, you're wrong. Speaking of that, I'm not going to make a sandwich.

I'll pick off whatever's left on the tray and I'll bring it back. Just the crusts. I too had a eventful night. I was victorious. I triumphed. I was able to do a task I had been endeavoring to do for, well, longer than 80 years. I was able to destroy the death knell. I was able to banish Shar from ever returning.

Wait, wait, wait, wait. So you're saying...

Wait, what?

Like the place?

embracing death, and that it was all a deception, that it was all good, was just for the chance to get close to this Nell so that I might be able to deliver the killing blow. Do you understand? So just to get this straight, you deceived a god? Yes. Bravo. It was not on my own, I assure you, but I am glad to be rid of it now. I feel...

Free. Free to enjoy my life and to practice my faith as I have always dreamt. Free to show my true feathers. So, wait, so this whole time you were killing a god? I didn't know you could do that. It was not me who got Char in this position. Had I rung that bell, Char would have been released and there would have been nothing any of us could have done to stop her death.

Doing whatever it is that she would have done. However, by destroying the Nell through the power of the liquid that I have in this... in this flask... This is something I have carried with me for as long as I can remember. I poured it into the mouth of that bell and it is but a smudge.

on the ornate carpet beneath the bed. Oh, that's some strong shit! Can I get just a taste? Did you hear what I just said it did to an ancient artifact that contained the goddess? Oh, yeah, it sounds like strong shit! Can I get a taste? No! Oh! It would destroy you. Oh! Or it would take your memory, or it would depend on the ritual. It is not for drinking.

It is not for drinking. I didn't say I was going to drink it. I just thought if it was even a chip. Striga in her wisdom has transformed my outfit, my mask. Much of what I told you about what I believe about death is still true. As I said, I mixed the truth with lies. I will not pretend any longer. I am here to do good in this world.

and to continue to do it as we have promised regarding the witches in Druskenwald. To kill a god requires sacrifice. Now here we go. I know this to be true. Vergil, I was wondering if you would ever join us again. Perfect timing. I know what a priestess of Striga looks like. Well done keeping your deception as long as you did. I must offer you my thanks.

for not revealing the secret just as I was about to reach my aim. Of course not. That was not my secret to reveal. Just to consume. And if I asked you what your aim is, would you be honest with us? We do care for Jericho very much. Anything that I say is still coming from the mouth of a demon. Can you trust a demon?

Oh, this is getting interesting. Are you enjoying the wine? I'm waiting to savor it. I have not truly tasted it in so long. Is there like a creepy bird head right now that's talking or is it the... Okay, I'll just check. Wait, so you say you killed a goat too?

Wow. Man, we just knocked down a few rungs. You couldn't show up here! I thought everything was very impressive until these two... ...god killers showed up. Do you wanna go find a god to kill? Let's kill a fucking god! Are any gods around here? It was not me. I simply... ...set the board. Wish that little shit the fandom. Oh my! Gracie, is it?

Some might consider that blasphemy. Oh, well. Fuck him and his tenants! Stupid beaver- Oh, no, we're not throwing out all of the tenants! We're demonstrating them right now! Always be positive. We're looking on the bright side of things. No pun intended. Heh. Alright, go on, Fancy Pence. I would just say that we should not be quick to cast down Marius the good intentions

All the good intentions in the world will build the road that leads directly to hell. It is inevitable. For all your talk, boy, there was no other outcome. For all your prayers, no outcome. But with Striga on our side, there is hope. There is power, ancient power. And now, we wield ancient power. But I do not know if you are ready to see my true form.

Wait, what? This is likely more palatable for your eyes. You've a true form? It's not Jerry? Well, I mean, you are a bird. And... But sometimes you talk like this? Close to true. Jericho is here. He is not imprisoned. Oh, just show us. We can take him. I want to see. I want to see that God killed his true form. I like the sound of ancient power. Am I alone? Just me? Only me?

It is some of the oldest power known to me. It was just a fragment, an echo, not anything more. But this will do. It will serve. And the more that I feast and gorge, the more secrets I consume, the more I will be able to harness its power and grow my own and bring an end to the plight of Druskinwald. If we are aligned, then why not? I think we are aligned, unless...

I, as the worshipper of Striga, must strike down the creature of the night. I must... I pull up my chakram. I must turn thee, turn thee undead! And I throw it against the, like, couch and it clatters. Actually, I think I'll have more wine. Well, you had me worried there for a moment. Whoa. I have clarity. I can think, I can laugh, I can taste. What, uh... Can you tell us about what happened when that key was turned?

Jericho gave us his version, but I would hear yours. The Obereth demon that created me left a fragment before he was destroyed, cast out from reality. It lingered because he created me in my mind, in my soul, in my anima. The demon that I am, Ra'um, is whole, but it was influenced by my father. I removed that essence, that echo, that corruption, and cast it into this.

Are you- Virgil, I mean Jericho helped. He was invaluable. The courage he had to trust. It was the only way that that could have happened. Are you concerned about what might happen if the piece of amber breaks? Is that possible? Is that a thing that can even happen? I have plans to deal with that as that happens. But let us hope that it does not. I will keep my flask as closed tight as I can. But I can see so much now. And I can think. Finally think.

Your friend Macduff was useful. You didn't harm her, did you? I did not. Oh, she's not eaten? No, I simply... Just books trinkets knowledge. She mentioned this. The ritual that you used to banish Kellen from that tree by the heart of the woods. I used that knowledge, the power of the land. I took the incantation, translated it into abyssal.

modified it for my own aims. That is how I was able to sever the tie of that echo. I'm not so certain that we can trust him yet, but I'd be lying if I said he wasn't growing on me. You talk nice. You do not have to trust me. We should not trust any one of us. But we do not have a choice. If I wish to leave this place, and I do, if I wish to be freed from this prison, and I do, we must all work together to achieve our own independent aims.

You wish to leave Druskenwald? Don't we all? No. Where do you wish to go? This place has felt almost like a home to me since I have arrived. It is a domain of death, and I wish to understand its mysteries for as long as I know life. I'd like to get the fuck out of here. I too still wish to leave. I have things I have to do. I'm sure your goddess awaits you.

on the continent that she formed. What? He's talking-- they're all talking crazy. Gods and continents? Right. What, so God can be a place? Larry, did you know that my god is the local gazpachos down on 42nd Street? Well, I wish I knew what any of that meant. Praise be their unlimited breadsticks. And their priceless pizzas. I hear they're combination platters or something else.

I have a cutte pasta that fucking locks it on. Well, how about that sandwich? How about that sandwich? Let's go eat! Virgil, would you care for a meal? I am still weakened from the battle. I must rest. Jericho could use me. Are you prepared to see my true form so when this emerges you are not alarmed and draw your arms? Before you do,

Is there anything we need to know to help or protect Jericho? Nothing that you haven't already done. Then proceed. I suppose. Oh, gosh, well, how about that? I'm back. As a shadow emerges from all up around my neck, from inside the cage, the shirt kind of bellows, and there's a bit of a...

as all around me this dark, shadowy shape emerges, and it's this undulating mass that looks like feathers as it takes shape, and it's constantly moving and undulating as a head forms with an elongated beak that looks strangely avian but off with a jagged beak, and two eyes emerge, glowing with this orange fiendish magic with crossed pupils,

four-pointed star pupils as four wings emerge back and across the entire body are dozens, hundreds of orange eyes all with those same pupils as they are all just staring in all directions.

AAH! AAH! AAH! MY KID! AAH! It's alright! It's alright! Breathe! Breathe! Relax! Relax! This is why I did this now. This all sloops back into me. Oh! Garg, hey! Oh, God. I'm gonna be sick. Are you alright, Seriko? Are you aware of what just happened? Yeah, I was there the whole time. Well, alright. I... I'm feeling a little peckish.

And you know that we are going to go get the sandwich. Well, I was gonna get a plate of jello, but... gelatin, not Brandon. Wow, that was spooky. I have to be honest, I'm not sure what to make of any of this. If you feel alright, Jericho, then I feel alright as well. We have all experienced a kind of death, haven't we? From a certain point of view, yeah. Well, a life. Our lives, guys.

And then when you made the deal, now at night you're kind of dead. So you lived and then died again. I lived and let die. You lived and let... Oh, that's a good... Oh, that's pretty good. I'm going to start working on a song. You know, you should. I just want to remind you all, you know, Mary's got all sexy and Lefka got all sexy and is apparently a god killer and Jerry's got, you know, the whole sexy voice thing going on. Don't you all forget

Did I have a gun? We could never fix it. That's very impressive! It's a very big gun. It's a very big gun! Look at how big it is! Yeah, it's really big! That's a pretty big one! It's cool looking, don't you think? It's got a little crossbones on it, the crossbones cannon! With Ks, yet again. Be careful, if you close a door as you're passing through, you might get that cut just as the door closes. That might be something to watch out for. Oh, yeah.

BAM! BAM! BAM! Can you practice more finger? I got it, motherfucker! What do you think? Just keep your finger off the trigger as you're doing this. Just practice more safety here. BAM! And it shoots off. Oh, fuck! I forgot! It's not like a... It's sort of like a magic... It's a magic gun. Take that, witches.

In due time. In due time. Oh, 13 of you. I do not know how we proceed. I have faith. I believe each of us will do what we need to do in the time that comes, and I am glad that I can call you each strong allies. Time will tell. I should go eat. Yes. I could use a nice tray of gelatin. Perhaps dyed green? Sounds quite nice.

We go to the kitchens. We look for the kitchen. Yeah, we would go try to find food. Oh, we accidentally found the vault. You leave the room and begin to make your way through the hallways, and you are met again with that strange, eerie silence that has befallen this place since everything was turned to stone.

The kitchens are not a place that you've been to. You've been to the dining room, but you have been nothing but guests here, and so it does take you a while. You make your way towards the dining room. Throughout the chateau, you are meeting servants in stasis.

clearly moving throughout this place during the festivities of the masquerade and frozen in the exact moment that Sister Effigy cast her curse across the entirety of this place. And it is strange to see so many of these servants, some that you met, some that you had never seen before, realizing just what an orchestration this was.

as you make your way through the corridor after corridor, eventually finding your way to the dining room and then through the servants hallway and eventually making your way past the large pantry where you're able to find the pantry that's filled with dry goods. You find a meat locker that is still strangely cold. You find a smoker room where there are meats that have been smoking for far too long now.

dried and becoming shriveled. There was no one there to take them out when they were ready. You do eventually make your way to the kitchens where the coals in the stove have completely dwindled down to nothing, no longer being tended to as you see at least 15 members of staff here frozen in stone.

holding trays in the midst of cooking, you see a head chef who you had never met directly next to the oven itself.

His chef hat completely turned to stone, a ladle in hand as he was clearly pulling it up to test the soup as this happened. And all of it is here for you to use. Nothing that wasn't being held at the time still seems to be functioning in its state. It just requires a little bit of work, but you were able to find essentially everything that you'd need to make a meal should you choose to.

I assemble and bake a pizza. Sure? A pizza? What the fuck is a pizza? I made it rectangular. It's neat. Did you used to work at the Spachos? No, there are no Spachos in Sriga, as far as I have traveled. Oh, I'll feed you everywhere.

I believe they're on different continents. I have heard of them though. I would have you roll a perception check for me, a group perception check please. Oh, oh. Group perception, eh? Oh.

And Lethika, because you made a pizza, I will have you roll an advantage. Oh, that's great. I got a 19. All of us? No. Yeah, all of you roll. It's a group one, but Lethika rolls an advantage because she made a pizza. And the funny thing, it actually makes sense. 18. 18, perfect. 16. You... We did well, everyone. Nice job. You got very up close to the oven, which is...

the closest thing in the space to a fireplace. And you, moving over to it, you had passed Haars. You have one in your room. And all of them had burned down to nothing, completely gone out without the servants there to tend them. And as you make your way to the oven,

This is a bit strange. You notice that there is a small bit of heat coming off of the oven. The coals are completely burned down, but there's a heat to it. It's almost as if shortly before you'd entered the room, there was something burning in here. But you reach down and you feel the coals, and they're cold. They haven't been warm for a while. Oh, no. I will pick up a...

poker or any instrument that's nearby that I could shift the coals around dual purpose keeping an eye out to see what might have been burned if anything and also to stoke it and start to warm it for the coming pizza bake

You stoke the coals and you can see that they're completely died out. There's no heat that remains in them. The fire in this had to have died out quite a while ago.

You can see nothing that would indicate where heat would have come from. It definitely wasn't from a fire burning in this thing. There would still be remnants of warmth. You'd still be able to see the soft orange glow of the burning within the pieces of coal themselves, but they've turned their... they crumble into ash and dust and...

You feel the stone around the fireplace and it's not even warm. It's cold to the touch. If something had been burning in here, the brick on the outside would at least have retained some of that heat. It's the air in the middle of it as if something inside had been warm. And as you feel it and as you sense it, you feel it begin to cool even more until eventually that heat is completely gone as if it had never been there at all.

I can't wait for pizza. I'm so hungry. Before I cook the pizza, I have to ask, can someone feel a warmth in this space as though there was a fire? I feel like there may have been. It just felt very warm to me for a moment. Can someone pee in the pool? It's warm over here. Oh, me, me, me, me, me. Oh, this is so new to me now. Oh.

It's nothing but chill. Chill air. You feel a draft come in from the stack and the cold night air rushes in and you feel no warmth. Oh, this is me skeleton hand! Oh no, it's still cold. Perhaps someone was here? Is there any chance that...

There's someone still lurking around this mansion, even though everyone else has been turned to stone. There is a chance the witches are still here. We haven't explored the whole mansion. Someone was fixing for a snack? Got a little hungry? Impossible. They aren't cold. I just got a sensation of warmth somehow. It's past. I'm going to...

- Start the fire. I'm gonna, as I do, I'm not stoking the fire, I'm actually just dredging and raking through the ashes to see if there's any artifacts or objects or cloth or indication that there's anything in there. - Roll an investigation check. - Two. - Everything looks exactly as you would expect. You, and as you begin to tend to this, preparing to light the fire and get everything,

ready for cooking. Um, the task of doing all that completely pushes that warmth out of your mind. It must have just, maybe there was a warm breeze coming up off of the moors that pushed itself down through the, uh, the smokestack, but, uh, whatever it was, it's clearly nothing to worry about as you continue to make the, the fire. As I finish making the fire and I feel that it is at the, the heat that it needs to arrive at, um,

I'll push the pizza in and sort of absentmindedly like lift my mask off my face just for a moment just to clear off my face from an odd sensation, let's say. And I will... It won't take very long. Everything's going to be quite delicious. I used all the best ingredients. I can't wait!

The smell of garlic assaults your nose, Brixie. You haven't smelled garlic in ages. - I hope you like black olives. - It smells so good. - But the scent of it is just so perfectly pungent as eventually Lethika slides the pizza, the Druskinvold pizza, the night pizza, into the oven and it begins to cook.

The temperature was perfect. You're able to get this pizza in the oven and out within 15 minutes. I'm gonna have so many slices. Melty cheese, bubbling tomato sauce, crispy pepperoni. No fucking joke. I'm gonna eat the whole pizza. I also made this marinara sauce. So last week, I had a fucking panini because of you asshats. And this week, I'm gonna have to have a pizza because of you asshats. I'm gonna take a coffee break. I gotta order a pizza. You guys wanna order our Mama Lucia's real quick?

10:07? Fuck! Yeah, so there's no way they're open, right? Anyway. Baba! We're gonna go there and just kick the door down. Let's break in. Baba! I mean, that's where I got my panini, so it makes sense I would get my pizza from Wawa, too. Well, uh... Here's the full pizza. Well, you make that, uh... that slice of za'a. I'm gonna make my classic favorite.

that I'd like to make is a big old pot of ham and beans and some cornbread. The fire is ready. I will make, if they have something to make a pot of ham and beans and cornbread. They have everything you could possibly think. They have everything? I'm having a root beer float. Oh, God, do you have any sarsaparilla?

There's a barrel of sarsaparilla. Hell yeah. Oh, fucking sweetie, a ring popped here. Use the skeleton hand. Oh, you're right. It just spins. You have to rip it in your fist. This is the worst curse. All of this is wonderful. Thank you for preparing some sustenance for us, but...

I have to say, Lethica, I was a bit disappointed to hear that you're looking to stay here in Druskinvold. I'm worried you forgot you said you were going to take me to Galtica. You almost immediately hear a voice in your head. "Oh, tsk-tsk-tsk, Merideth, you know who you belong to. Trying to make a date in front of me? What a shame. You pay for that, boy."

And you look down, you look around, no one else seems to hear anything, but you begin, you smell the scent of roses and you look to the weapon that you hold at your side and you see that the thorny vines are moving around the blade.

and they are moving up towards your hand almost predatorily before they slink back towards the blade. I may have made a grievous mistake. What do you mean, Darius? I thought you liked black olive. Ah, yes, of an alna. Is it done? Can we eat?

You may. I grab a big slasher. See? All the cheese slides off and lands in your lap, and you just have a hanging piece of pizza crust with tomato sauce on it. And it's incredibly hot. It burns you. What the fuck?

It's a lasagna pizza? Who the fuck makes lasagna pizza? I did make lasagna pizza. Your taste buds must be off.

Why would I make lasagna pizza? I think canonically is the identical to the Goof Troop pizza. Obviously. Real ones know what I'm talking about. That's right. There's like just the cheese pull. Well, there's also the pizza in Goofy Movie. Oh, that's what I meant. The Goofy Movie. Yes, the Goofy Movie pizza. That's the shit. No, I don't do that. It's the Leaning Tower of Cheese.

Oh, it's burning my tongue, fellas. You have forgotten how to eat. It's burning my tongue. Rigby, you must take your time. It's amazing. Thank you. Well, see here, I mean, see, if I wasn't a scarecrow, I still got this hand, so I can still chop carrots with this. See, I don't need no knives. I don't need no knife skills. That's very effective. And now the celery. He's a slap chop.

Merius, to your point, I do not know if we can go back to the mortal plane. If we go back, then I will happily take you to Galtica. I can show you Strega as well. But, as I said, there is something that draws me here. Until I know what that is, I feel right at home. I'm confident we can return. I've seen it. I've seen it in the water. You saw it in your vision in the cup? Yes, that's correct. Interesting.

Were we all there? No. No, you were not. Where were we? I don't know. Oh. All I know is that I must return. There are things that I have to do. Things that I have to fix. That is understandable. You will have much more to worry about, I think. If you have embraced your full self, that is. The point is, if I can return, why not all of us? Of course. Unless you choose to stay. But...

There's no reason I would be able to go and you all wouldn't. I have faith that we're going to succeed. We're going to do it very well. Oh! No, yeah, we're gonna kill all the witches. Everything's gonna be fine. If all of the witches were dead and a train were suddenly to emerge out of mist, I would ask if I could buy two tickets and then get on that train. I miss that frog. Yes, I wonder what he is doing and where he is right now.

Yeah. I wonder what he's up to. I wonder... Mr. The Vagrant, help us out. Oh. Come on with your train and take us out of here. We want to go home, maybe. We have pizza. If only it were that convenient. Can you hear us? He's got two tickets to Draskin Vault. Won't you... What rhymes with Draskin Vault? Not Fudge.

To be fair. Oh, leave the- Bong? Leave the singing to Jerry. Ooh, uh, I was working on that song you were talking about, uh, Brizzy. Uh, when you were old and your mind was a closed jar, you used to say "live and light live." Oh, it doesn't really work.

I'll workshop it after some ham and beans and cornbread. Okay, I'm taking the cornbread out. Why are you narrating what you're doing? See, I can just use my hand and just... You can cut this. Now it slides cornbread.

Oh god! I'm already full from pizza, but cornbread... I suppose I could... Ham and beans on! Why not? Everyone gets a... Nothing makes you feel more restored than ham and beans. We are all in a terrific mood, I think, because of our... I can actually, like, use my filthy sack hole like a genuine mouth. This is wonderful.

It's like I'm learning from Virgil! I can be like a genuine human! I know I ain't ever gonna be a human. I'm more machine than human. I'm less human than human. I'm more demon than human. I think he might be broke. Gosh, is there anything better than a big ol' bowl of ham and beans with a slice or two of cornbread? Ooh, don't forget the butter. Yes, I buttered mine first. It was quite good. You make a mean cornbread, Jericho. Isn't it kinda weird?

It's just weird when Jerry's not miserable and depressing, you know what I mean? You're usually such a sad sack. You should be happy for a good friend. Not just he's different, I don't know. The man has been tortured for who knows how long. And he's found a moment of reprieve. We all have. Only because we were lucky. Had the witches decided to do anything with our statues, destroy us, disintegrate us,

There would have been nothing we could have done. By the grace of Striga, we survived, returned, and... Our artifacts have breathed new life into us. Yeah, I feel... I feel real good. I feel like I've got a new... a new lease on life. What? All these new crew appendages. What I'm hoping it means is that they didn't know that our, you know, friends on the other side were gonna help us out and break us free.

So maybe we can use that to our advantage. They thought they had all the time in the world to do their dark machinations and won't they be surprised? I can't tell you what it feels like to have pretended for your whole life and to be rescued by the one you are about to be stabbed in the back. Do you feel like a little sour about that? Does that feel like bad? How do you mean?

I mean, I don't know if like someone's like, oh hey, I'm gonna save you in my last moment. And then you're like, oh, thanks a lot. Now you're dead. Like busy as gun. It is no different than the many blessings that Shar put upon me and those that I led to her. I, you remember, I made churches, made gatherings, made followers of Shar.

in order to achieve the position of priestess that I enjoyed. But she was evil. A twisted view of death. She believed in despair and torment and oblivion. Oh. It was... What a bummer. It was hypocritical for her. And I wonder if she had hope even at the end. Ironically, we'll never know.

Well, we're following your proselytizing and you left out all the nasty stuff. I tried not to proselytize too much. Well, I'm sorry, we're all in a cryptic shit you were saying. Well, it had to be cryptic, didn't it? Oh yeah, she was plain, uh, pretend. But I could have gone on about tenets, couldn't I? You certainly could have. Oh. Well...

It's a little odd, now that we're all saying, well, we, for so long, we was like, oh, hooray Lathander, hooray Shar, and now we're like, fuck Lathander, fuck Shar. Well. If you pardon my goblin. Fuck Shar. I do not know if it is fuck Lathander. Those are very dangerous territories to tread on. Like I said, some might find that blasphemy. Do you, have you considered

If he were to shine his light on you again, if you were to hear him, if you were to see the morning, what you would face? I believe that the Morning Lord left me the moment I became this. From that moment on, there was no Lathander. It was the Duchess. It was all just false hopes. It wasn't real. After all this time, you think he's just going to show up again? Not like this.

Well, that's awful sad.

You was a devout worshipper of the morning lord and as soon as that bad thing happened to you he turned his back on you leaving at night time and how what else are you gonna do when you're left in the darkness? That ain't right. My thoughts exactly. Yeah that dude sucks.

If I'd been granted eternal life, why would I waste another single moment praying to someone who isn't listening? That's right. Didn't you see the future where we all make it back to a ventress and we're all living wonderful lives as we're succeeding? To clarify, I saw that I make it back. But that's not to say that you all won't. Well, we'll all make it back together. I've been given this power. I'm certainly not going to let anything happen to any of you. When you saw yourself getting back, did you...

return to your kingdom? Is that why you know what has happened there? I did. I did. And when I thought that there may be hope in the Morning Lord, the truth is, the hope lies with the Duchess. Did you feel that this was a... How do you say? A projection of the future? A divination like a delicacy? I'm not sure. It was different in a way, but...

reassuring and promising. I think it's a possibility. I am glad that you have graduated from the shame that you felt all these long decades. Yeah, none of us would feel shameful about anything what's happened to us or the nature of our construction or being made by three beautiful but morally questionable hags. I need you all to roll perception check for me, please. The other pizza! We'll have it!

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And don't forget to snag all the extra goodies like dice, miniatures, plushies, a tarot deck, and more. Thank you. I got a natural two. I got a natural three. Natural fucking 20 plus four. I got an eight. I'm busy adding more butter to my cornbread. I've got the butter. You are still kind of drunk, Briggsie. And that is unfortunate.

except it's helpful in this moment, because what it means is that you're distracted, and they've been saying a lot of serious, deep shit, and you just want to eat your pizza.

And so as you pull the cheese off of your lap from yet another slice where all of the cheese slid off and landed there, you... Stupid Lathander. Focusing on stupid Lathander, and I wonder how hot the Duchess really is. Same from the bees and the beehole. I hope I never have to see Jericho looking like that again. And will Lethika ever take off her mask, or just masks her thing? And it's in these thoughts that you hear down the hallway a voice. Stop.

Softly calling out. You can't tell what it's saying, but that was definitely a voice. You pause for a minute and you listen again. And between the words of your friends, you are able to hear a voice. - Wait, wait, wait, stop, stop, stop. - What? - Do you hear that? - What? - Do you hear that? - What, Brixie? - No, a voice. - What? - What? - Listen. - Sounds like-- - Shh, we're trying to listen. - I'm sorry. - We're trying to listen. - We listen. - You hear nothing but silence.

Briggsie, you've had a lot of wine. You've had a considerable amount of wine. You've had a considerable amount of wine. No, I just ate four pizzas, I'm fine. Are you sure you're fine? I could have sworn I heard something. I forgot to take the cardboard round on the bottom of the pizza before baking it. I thought I was a second pizza. While we're arguing over whether or not Briggsie is fine, I will scoop up my wine cup and quickly walk over to the entrance of this

just like open the door and stick my head out into the hallway. Roll a perception check at advantage. So, Leff, are you telling me this whole time it wasn't delivery, it's DiGiorno? I got a 19 with advantage. You hear Briggsie exclaiming about the DiGiorno. Will you please be quiet? But you are able to hear what sounds like from down the hall all the way at the opposite end of the hall

and one of the rooms, you see about four doors down that side. And you're not sure what's in those rooms, but very clearly there is a voice coming from one of them. - Briggs is right, I can hear it. - Say it, I'm not crazy. - Lead the way, Marius. - Come on! And I will set down my cup and help steady Briggs as we rush into the hallway and go towards where we're hearing the voice. - I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine.

You love me. You love me. Stop it. Stop it. I'm fine. I'm fine. Let me go. I walk in a perfectly straight line. I'm touching my owl nose like this.

You rush out of the kitchen, make your way down the servant's hallway, and eventually find yourself at the very end. The wall sconces, you begin to realize the light in the chateau itself is just overall dimming.

as the candles are burning down to near nothing with none of the servants there to change them out and you for all intents and purposes this place is running on fumes as you make your way towards the end of the hall you listen and you hear absolutely nothing you make your way into the first room and you look around and

This seems to be a large room that houses the china for this place. Just shelves after shelves of cutlery and plates and goblets and anything that could possibly... You see that the tea services are housed here.

There doesn't seem to be anyone here. You see a couple of servants frozen in place as they were getting plates down off of one of the shelves. But aside from that, there's nothing strange. You make your way into the next room and it's a very similar atmosphere.

A very similar situation, this is a large linen closet where the tablecloths are housed as well as you see curtains and things of that nature all here and freshly pressed you see a couple of servants turned to stone who were in the middle of getting new

napkins, cloth napkins from one of the drawers. You make your way into the next room. This is a much larger room. Even more servants turn to stone in here. This is a large washing room where dishes and laundry is cleaned for this place.

There's nothing of note in here. As you make your way to the final room, the one at the very end, and this appears to be some sort of lounge room for the servants. You see a couple of them turned to stone on beautiful couches. You realize that Philip and Adela spare no expense, even for the people that work here. This room mirrors the entertaining room that you all share.

But this one, Lethica, you immediately feel that same heat that you remember feeling in the kitchens. And the difference from this room is the others is the hearth up against the wall. There are no embers burning but as you move through the room you feel it gets warmer and warmer and warmer as you get closer and closer to the hearth. You place your hands next to the bricks and there's

They're cold, cold as can be. You take the poker and similarly poke through the ash and none of the coals are illuminated. There's no fire that has been burning in here for quite some time. And yet all of you can feel that there at least was, up until recently, some form of heat. And as you look around, you check the floors to see if they're

I heard it.

I swear I heard it. You were right. There was a voice. And just now, that same sensation I had at the oven. A sense of warmth. You feel nothing. As though the hearths were blaring. No, I feel it too. Something is wrong. I was distracted on my to-go ham and beans. I hate to say it, but I think I know what it is. What? We're being haunted by a spooky ghost.

Prizzy, we've dealt with like a million ghosts here. Why are you so feared? We saw a literal army of ghosts. We're in a land of death. That's like more likely than not that there's a spooky ghost. No, but I mean, this time we've been like haunted by one, you know what I mean? That feels totally different. Do you feel particularly haunted? Well, in these stories, sometimes when you feel warmth or cold somewhere where they really shouldn't be,

Or you hear like a weird thing off in the distance that kind of sounds vaguely like a word if you really like ear squint hard enough. That's a ghost! It's been like 95% of our time here. Gosh, what's an ear squint? I never had ears. Ear squint. Ear squint. Squint, yeah. What's an ear squint? When you listen real hard, you're sort of like... You know, and your ear kind of does this. It's a great name for a band. Oh, that's pretty cool.

Are you sure that you don't feel that? No, no, no. Wait. I'm gonna investigate this. What if there's, what if they're trying to peel for the, uh, the treasure trove of Sir, of Lord Phillip? That would certainly be bad because we can't even find it ourselves. Maybe Virgil knows. Virgil, weren't you snooping around? Oh gosh, are you resting? I will try to see if Virgil knows where the vault is.

Roll an intelligence check at advantage. Okay. Oh baby. Oh baby, intelligence? 17. You reach out to Virgil, and with the transformation that you've undergone, your ability to communicate with him and ask for assistance from him has been greatly improved. And though you have no memory, it seems that Virgil does.

Come on, I got some ham and beans! Those are pretty good, Rogel. I mean, those are pretty good, Jericho. Yes, I know. I know where they are. You know where the vaults are? Yes, I know where the relics are. And do you know who is here? No, I do not. Do we have to do anything with the fireplace? Fireplace? The fireplace appears to be cold, but when I came into the room, there was a sensation of warmth. Do we need to, like, be lighted? I mean, well, you felt that warmth at the door.

If there is possibility that the witches came back to pilfer the treasury of Philip Druskinplow, then we shouldn't make our way. I was not able to enter it on my own when I was in my small, helpless, weak form. But to 13 powerful witches, I'm not so sure that the defenses will be able to hold up. If you know the way, then let us go.

Follow me. I will lead the way. He's over-dixing. It's the ham. There's something to the beans. It's just amazing. I'm so hungry. I hate you guys. I'm finishing my root beer float. You make your way back out into the hallway and you begin...

the trek through Chateau Cler de Lune. And it is a long trek. It was not easy to get here the first time. But now with the candles, some, I would say at this point at least half of the candles that were illuminating the chateau have completely gone out. The wax burning to, the wick burning to the very end. This place feels far more ominous in the darkness. But

Virgil was ever watching, and it seems easy for him to begin to lead you through the corridors of this place. And you eventually get to a place that you do remember. It was the archway that led down deep within the bowels of the chateau itself. Here, it is almost completely dark. Almost completely.

except for that faint glow of pink up ahead, magenta light. This wasn't here. As you move further in, you begin to see splashes of paint lining the stone walls of this place. Oh no. Little droplets at first, before eventually you see what appear to be arrows drawn on the wall, the words, ha ha, little faces. We've seen this before. He's antic. Did I get in?

They were here. I do not know how long they've been gone. You look, you walk up to some of the paint. The way that it glows is supernatural. It's, there's no light shining on this. There's no reflective pigment. It is, whatever this paint is made of is, you can feel the thrum of magic coming from it. It glows all on its own.

and it is completely dry. You imagine it has been hours, several hours since this was painted. They may have just, they may have been here after petrifying the entire ball. They must have come here for a reason and they must have done what they did in order to get to the valuables. Zillop had untold treasures here. Yes, he did.

Let us survey the extent of the damage. Oh no. We'll try to proceed in however we can. You think they're still in there? Be ready for anything. We would hear them.

You continue down the corridor, eventually coming to the place with the circular staircase that leads even deeper down. All the while, the paintings on the walls get more extravagant. They get larger and they become closer together as if

The further Antic got into this place, the more fun she was having sending you little messages. You see little pictures of your characters of yourself interacting with each other. There is even a very macabre drawing of Marius sucking Lethica's blood until she's nothing but a shriveled husk.

And yet again, those singular words, "Ha ha," after it, and a little smiley face. Delighting in your pain, there is a drawing that she's done of Brigsy where all of his flesh is completely rotted away and his bones have fallen apart. And he's nothing more than a pile of rotting mush. Another of Jericho being completely consumed and devoured by a horrible demon.

The avian demon that watches overhead. Next to it, the word "lonely" with a question mark behind it. All of these you watch, you even see some of Philip and Adela. It is...

You see one of the Iron Maiden where she's completely turned to rust, no longer able to move, no longer able to sing. All of these you see as she clearly had the most fun making her way down to this place and eventually you spill out onto the balcony that would lead you to the room filled with all of these treasures. The door itself has been completely blown off of its hinges. You can see

almost as if a bomb had gone off. But where there would be ash from an explosion, there's nothing but splattered paint all over the outside of this door. Though everything up to this point had been dark, this room glows with almost an eerie neon light. You make your way in and you see that every single artifact that had been in this place is completely gone.

You look towards the alcoves where you had seen your artifacts, where you know that Jorggrim and Farron's artifacts had been, but there's nothing on those pedestals. You look towards the wall where you had seen that strange hat with those weird mechanical contraptions and that lantern, and all of those are gone.

Every item, the thousands upon thousands of items that had been in here are gone. The only thing that you see is the very center of this room, a neon spotlight placed directly on it. There is a pedestal with a busk of Philip Druskin vault, a clown nose attached to the nose of the bust, that bright paint painted over his face. And at the very base of it,

What looks to be a mechanical big red button. There are huge painted arrows that have been painted onto the floor pointing directly at the button and in front of it painted in a very lazy script the words "Push Me." We're being mocked. It's all gone! We are every single one of these. The secrets in this room that they have pilfered and destroyed.

That thing Yogi was looking for! Virgil, what do you make of this? Friggsy, use your hand to press the button. What?! Use your hand to press the button, we must find out what happens. Everyone back up. I can do this! I can do this! Yes, of course! Do not hesitate! I'm brave! I'm a fan of this bold Virgil. We have much to do, boy. He's right, you can do it. Come on, you have much to do.

♪ The gazpacho is the one to bring us choices ♪ ♪ Reaching around the world of entrance wide ♪ I slowly approach the button and I look at it, do I see like it's going to, like can I press it or is it like a fake button? - It is exactly what you would expect. It is a small square metal base with a big red circular button.

Back up your mage hand! Yes, your mage hand. All over the place. Back up, back up. I'm gonna like... I'm moving everyone back. ...has been taking place. More and more... Your mage hand's like... ...families! Time seems to be...

I just like looking at the other two. What is he doing? And culture kings are rediscovered. They're redefining what's really important in their lives. Okay, he's had a psychotic break. Everyone take several steps back. Because Pacho's is the place where we have choices. That's what I'm saying! I don't know this song. How does everyone know this song? It's everywhere. Let him cook, let him cook. Oh, shit.

Wait, oh, so I'm like about to press it and finally it clicks in my head what Virgil's saying. Oh, like this. And I'll pull my hand, my skeleton hand off and it'll be floating in the air. Oh, all right. Well, if it blows up, you owe me a new hand and I'll take a few steps back and hit the button.

You take a few steps back and slowly the button itself, or the hand descends down before it depresses the button. Immediately the spotlight that had been on this bust of Philip Druskinvold

begins to spin around and move around, this bright magenta light swirling all around this place before another one illuminates, this one in a beautiful purple, and then a yellow, and then a green, and then a blue. Before all of these colors begin spinning around the room, you hear, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da

the Antic. Sorry to get you stoned and run, but places to be and things to blow up, you know. And all that, just wanted to leave you this little message from me and the sisters. I know old Phil had such a treasure trove down here. Thanks so much for showing us the way, kittens. So many of the trinkets are gonna be a great use to us. Antic's got some new toys for a toy room, you know. It's all thanks to you. Love you bunches. Mwah!

And then silence as one light after one light after one light goes out, and you are left in nothing but darkness. That's it. Did they assume that we would break free from our rocky state? I guess they just needed time. Perhaps it was just a backup plan, just in case anyone was not captured. Well, we'll kill them and take the...

Take their artifacts back, the secrets that they hold, we'll just kill them all. Every last one. Consume them. I know I've said it a few times, but I really like this guy. He has grown on me as well. He seems smart, which is kind of what we're missing in our party makeup from a certain point of view. I think what he's trying to say is that you can teach us all so much, and I think we're all eager to learn.

Then allow me to continue to feast, to gorge, to rest, to gain power. I cannot maintain this control for long periods of time. I must. Out I regouse. Oh, look at all these nice paintings! Oh god damn! That's handsome! That's a handsome moniker! That's a handsome visage of you, Briggs. See, look at you, you're like a Dry Bones!

What I'm really impressed with is over here. You know, she drew Mary and her arm, his old armor of his is really fucking hard to draw. Look at that. It's pretty impressive. I am impressed by the rendering, I agree. If only she had just waited a little longer. Wait, without Virgil, we're missing leadership. Someone tell us what to do.

Kick us into gear! And lead the way! I think Vergil just needs a little bit of time to rest. I mean, if you had seen what was happening in my room, I can't believe y'all didn't hear. It was pretty intense. We summoned a demon, there was shrieking, there was feathers, there was crows, there was demonic chanting. And I think he just needs a little bit of time to rest. I think he just needs a little bit of time to get his strength back. I gotta eat more ham and beans to feed Vergil. He's a smart one, though.

That's what Virgil said.

Okay. And presumably, if you, Jericho, are able to hear things that are happening out here, while you're in the backseat, so to speak, perhaps Virgil can listen in while we're all talking now. He can pick his moments carefully. He can come forward when it matters. Tell him if you can to save his strength. Yeah, I think he can hear everything. But, uh, Virgil, did you get all that? Oh, he's tuckered out. He's a tuckered out little crow, ain't that...

That's sweet, that's nice. And as far as leadership goes, we know where we have to go, we know what's next. Yeah, right, but I just-- now this makes sense. Why? What? I would say you remember that almost immediately after leaving the ballroom, before your transformations, you attempted to find this place, potentially leading them directly

to the vault, or at least putting it on their radar that it existed in the first place. I'm choosing to ignore that. We did not make any mistakes. There's no way. Couldn't be. Impossible. Edge of Midnight, we've never made a single mistake in this entire campaign. No, no, no. That's true. We've never fucked anything up, and we've never made this thing worse, that's for sure. Oh yeah, also, Beggar's dead. Oh no!

I forgot to mention. Oh, wait, is that in canon you just said, Matt? No, I don't know. Well, good. You've been freed. You've been freed, the horrible curse. That disgusting, horrible mom's abomination did all them kids? That's right. I know that I said it before, and maybe I don't know. If you didn't believe me, I was sincere. I felt awful that I gave you that.

How did he die?

I sacrificed it to power the magics that I needed to destroy Char. You committed a ritual sacrifice by murdering the abomination in the bag? I called him Lurker. I thought that sounded pretty cool. That's very cool. Lurker in the bag? You could have done that at any time. I could have, but I did not have the death knell. Another surprise. I'll just figure you kept him around for weird reasons. He was pretty handy.

That was very nice. Well, I say there's no use crying over spilled corn pone on account of there being a hole in the corn pone bag, on account of mice getting into the barn again, that old tomcat

was never good at catching any mice, and now there's corn pone all over the floor. We shouldn't cry about it. Corn pone on the floor is a fact of life. Please stop saying corn pone. He said it once. Stop saying corn pone immediately. Lafayette, this might be a strange question, but... Medias. What happened to the contents of the bag?

I lost a few trinkets, a healing potion, nothing more important than that. Oh, good. Well, I'm glad you, I'm glad that at the end of the day, Bag could do a little bit of good inadvertently. He probably agreed about paying.

Yes, the more violently that awful creature died, the better. I know not where Strega took him, but given her domain... Oh well. That guy is fucked. We need a plan! Vergil has said we need a plan. We need to find a way to get to Astramar, and I think we need to check the stables. See if we can find a horse, see how Witch Maw will do it.

Witchjumper! Oh, there he goes, there he goes. Oh, he's gone. Let's follow him. Okay, let's go, let's go. Ah!

You make your way to the-- I run as fast as stumbling. You stumble and run and make your way outside over the moors. Falling off the steps. You hit every suit of armor. I'm fine. Through the gardens, back past, out towards the back, and you eventually come upon the stables.

These stables are incredibly large. These are not the stables that you saw in Cyril. These are enormous. There you see there is a carriage house, that there is an entire building for the stable headquarters. And that the stables themselves, they don't just house horses, but there are creatures of all kinds that were here

that were stabled here as well as Phillip's carriage and his spectral horses and every single one of them has been turned to stone.

It takes a while moving through these stables until you eventually find the section of the stables that was used to house the mounts that you rode over from the Crooked House with. And there is, in the smallest stable of all the stables, Little Witch Stomper. He had been eating a healthy portion of hay when the spell hit. He looks happy. If horses could smile, there'd be a smile on his face.

And as you look at him, you see that he's a little more muscular. He looks a little chubbier. He's been eating well. And he's growing. But he has been turned to stone. - I see your bulk has been going well. - Well done, oats and squats. - Oats and squats. - Oats and squats and oats and squats and oats and squats.

We'll fix this. We'll fix this. We've stopped it. Oh, no. But you... It becomes very clear to you as you look around and you see what's in front of you that if your plan had been to ride to... Not only do you not know where Ashtamar is, but if your plan had been to mount up and travel there via land in this way, that there is no chance of that.

Garsh. We will have to proceed on foot, it appears. Yes, it appears as well with my diminished state. I've lost connection with Don. Your horse, it is not in the stable? Don was a magic horse, right? That's correct, from a certain point of view. Magic horse. Witch Dombo was a magic horse. He is a magic horse!

He's right there! He ain't going no place! You're right.

Shadow Frank was a strong horse. Oh, Shadow Frank is dead. Unfortunately, Shadow Frank is dead. They're all in Folsons. Didn't we bring a few of them? It was only Wedgeton. You were in the carriage. But we would see the horses all turn to stone and then one of them dead also turns to stone. The legs are just straight up. A pile of stone blow against a spider. A pile of stone blow.

Oh, yes, and Shadow Frank and Chester. Oh, Chester and Shadow Frank. They're fighting horses. Probably eating a whole bushel of apples right now. Back at the farm in Folsom's. Well, I'm optimistic. I feel good. We should gather supplies. If we can, I would love it if we could find a map in order to make our way and navigate through these forests. You vaguely remember, now that you think back, that there had been a...

mounted above the fireplace in your common room there had been a map of Druskinvald. It was a beautiful painted piece, painted on silk. It was far brighter than you know Druskinvald to be. At first you just thought it was an art piece, but now that you think back to it, you realize it might serve at least to give you a general direction of where Ashtamar is in relation to the Crescent Court.

I will pull it free from the frame. Oh, you're in the stables right now. No, I will eventually go there. I will eventually go there, pull it free from the frame. This is gigantic. And I will start to roll it up, but I'll look at it and go, Gander Hall must be an old map, and then I'll roll it up.

That's very funny. Actually, all of a sudden, we see reality. Oh, God! It's a Screamwipe coming at us. Oh, God, no! Screamwipe, and then we Screamwipe back, and we're in the common room. Oh, man. I was going to waste an entire spell slot to summon Dawn and say, see you losers and astral mobs.

But then I realized I don't have that spell anymore because we de-leveled. Oh, that's right! Oh yes, that's right. They really tapped us, didn't they? We're level three now. That's right. I am back to cobweb style. Could Vergil just fly us all there? No, no, you see, Vergils aren't just taxis. They're a proud people. And also the Nazgul would see us coming a mile away. Now the portal. That's very funny.

Oh that was very funny

We lost Richie. He's gone. He's gone. I'm mourning my horse. Come out without me. I'll catch up later. We make our way. Let's stock up on supplies and then we can take the map and try to find the... We'll backpack all our way. We'll knapsack our way to... We'll rucksack our way to Astromar.

You make your way back towards the kitchens and the pantry area, and it doesn't take you that long. You summon up the illuminated pumpkins. At this point, all of the lights in Chateau Clair de Lune have completely burned down to the end of the wick, and you are stumbling through this place.

occasionally bumping into statues of servants, but you make your way back to the kitchen area and you find the pantry and the smokehouse and you take all the things that you imagine that you can carry and will serve you well on what will be potentially a long journey. It takes you about an hour or so to collect all the things you feel like you desperately need.

- Luminance? - You make a mental note of things that you might decide to bring with you if you were to leave in the morning. And you make your way back up towards the room. And as you round the corner, you see the illumination from under the door.

You look around, this entire place is completely quiet. All of the lights have gone out. The fire that was in your hearth had gone out well before your transformations happened. And yet, the glow that is spilling out from beneath the doorway is very clearly that of a flickering fire roaring in the hearth. I will race forward and open the door to see if...

The mansion is in danger. Is there a fire or is it just the burning of a hearth? Are you rushing forward and opening the door? I am. I'm right behind Lothar. You rush forward, you open the door, and everything is quiet. There is a fire burning in the hearth. But as you look at it more closely, you realize that the coals are completely dead. The ash is black. The...

The fire does not extend down. There's no wood to burn it. It all burned away. And yet, the fire is still there, flickering. You feel that same exact warmth you'd felt in the other rooms. As the fire turns from orange to blue to purple. And as you stare into it, you begin to see... Is this a face? A familiar face. One you all recognize.

is Lady Narcissa Voss. That's right. Hello? Anybody hear me? Is there anybody there? Please!

Oh, for the love of the gods. Narcissa. Oh, oh my god, you're there. We're here. We made it. Oh, you're there. Oh, thank god. You're the spooky ghost that's been haunting us all day. No, see, this is communicating with me at the fireplace. I've been calling for you for hours. How did you die? She's not dead. I'm not dead, you idiot. Absolute buffoon. Stop drinking. I can smell it on your breath all the way from outside. I'm fine.

How did you escape? We all escaped on account of dark souls, entities that own our souls. Do you have a dark entity that owns your soul too? Are you completely abhorrent?

oblivious, did you not look for my statue? We did not find your statue. But you did not look for where it had been? We assumed that you had escaped or that you had been taken. Of course I had escaped. I was turned to stone for a brief moment, but I don't ever leave my house without my protectionary amulet, and it only took a moment for the amulet to activate and to bring me to my senses, and then I quite frankly got the hell out of there, if you will pardon my...

French. Is French a thing in a Vantress? Goblin, goblin. Well, yes, after the dressing, correct? After the French dressing, I mean. It's goblin dressing now. How do we know that you're not behind this? That's right. Well, I guess quite frankly you don't, aside from the fact that I did ask you and warn you about, why can't I, sister effigy.

We were ambushed. Honestly, the hallmark of what she's been doing, I told you that the monsters beneath Ashtramar were stirring, that she was affecting our ley lines. I was lucky enough to get out when I was, and I...

prayed and hoped, though not a religious woman, that you would be able to free yourself from her curse. We were lucky. Philip and Adela, how are they? I know he's a buffoon, but... They have both been turned. Everyone, everyone here in the mansion, including the horses in the stable, have been made into stone. That furthers my thought that he's a buffoon, that I was the only one of all of the lords and ladies of the Crescent Court to come prepared to a gathering. It's absolutely ridiculous. Yes.

Regardless, our plan was to come to you either way, to figure out what happened to you when we noticed you were missing. Well, we shouldn't speak all much here. You never know who's listening. There is one important detail that you must know. Philip's vault, all of the treasure that he had is empty. Effigy has all of the items in his vault. We may, we think it may have been antic. It's unlikely.

that if one has them, they will keep them all to themselves. I'm sure they're spreading them around Druskinvold, providing each of the witches with the items that will help them the most to fulfill their end goals, which means regardless of how many she has, that effigy at least will be provided with something that will help her. That would explain, since I arrived home, the ley lines have been acting more erratic.

It's disturbing. I can provide you a teleportation circle to Ashtramar, but I cannot guarantee that you will arrive to my chambers. I will do my best. If you can get us as close as you can, that's all we need. I can at least get you to Ashtramar. That's all we need.

Well... Please, we don't even know where it is! Yeah, we were gonna ask you how to go. We... Virgil can't fly us, and also all the horses are stoned, so we were just gonna rucksack it, but if you could just bring us there, that'd be mighty kind of you. And this map is old! Well, I... I can do a small amount. I will provide you with a teleportation rune. I will activate it on the floor in front of you. And when you're ready, do not rush. It will be active for the next two and a half hours. It's the most I can do. But when you're ready...

You will all step inside of it and focus on the word, the name, Astramar. You do not need to know what it looks like, what it smells like. Just think of Astramar. Think of me. And the rune will get you to where you need to go. Do we all have to hold hands? No, you don't have to touch each other. Oh. You can if you wish. It's not necessary. No, I just... Thank you, Narcissa. Thank you. I know that what is happening now is...

It is a worst-case scenario, but I... What I can say is that the spell that Evergy cast seems to only be affecting the Crescent Court. Astramar does not seem to be affected by it, and thus, I do believe that the other provinces of Druskinvald are also not turned to stone, so it is not Druskinvald-wide.

which is at least a pleasant turn of events, but it means everything to me that you are here, that you are coming to help, and we will talk more upon your arrival. Yes, we will. I have many, many things to update you on and to tell you about, but it is not safe to speak via this means. I know that there may be people listening, but if it is any comfort, as plain as you can see my face, the armies of the barrows are still there.

That is wonderful, I am glad to hear. Turn to stone, I have no doubt. Indeed. Yes, well, at least Philip has done something right. I, yes, I'm coming, I'm sorry. I, I, I have... You're still there, why didn't they do anything? I have very, very important matters to deal with. I will provide you the teleportation circle. Please come as quickly as you can, and you see the fires begin to shift there. The magic is clearly fading, and with a quick...

burst of light. You watch as a, almost like a projection of teleportation runes and magic appears in the middle of the common space for you. They are almost, it's as if the flames have licked out of the fire and burned into the wood and the carpet of the floor before illuminating with that same purple and blue magic. And just as quickly as she appeared, Narcissa Vos,

disappears from the fireplace, a soft tendril of smoke is there for but a moment before there's nothing left but that soft, gentle heat that you remember feeling in those two other rooms that you'd experienced in Shattro's family. This must have been the heat that I was feeling, that I described when we made our way into the kitchen and elsewhere it was Narcissa trying to find us. Well, that's nice of her. It's nice to be sought after, I suppose.

If this is a trap, regardless, we were going anyway. We know where we have to go and we know what we need to do, so... Yeah. If we're being deceived, then at the very least, hopefully we end up in Ashramor. We only have two and a half hours before we have to progress. I got everything that I need. I just... It might be a long while before we see this place again. It's comfortable and comfortable and so comfy. Yes. It was...

I am going to make a bag. Not a bag. I'm going to pack. Me too. Couldn't hurt. Yeah, I suppose, unless it's stealing, I'd like to take that mighty fine bluebird outfit I got. That was the nicest thing I ever did wear. I plan to keep my dress and the silk pajamas. They are very comfy. Very comfortable. Well, let's reconvene in, I don't know, 20 minutes? Done.

Done. Okay. Done. This place is awfully comfortable. Mighty comfy. I'll go pack everything that I can, all the supplies that we gathered.

Yeah, I would just make sure I didn't leave anything in my room. You know, anything of importance. You have more than enough time to collect everything that you imagine you would need and would be important to you. Thinking back on Phillip and Adela, they have been nothing but gracious hosts and you imagine even if something wasn't technically yours should you choose to take it, they would not, they would neither miss it nor begrudge you it. And so you feel confident in taking all of the things that you need.

Though you had said you were going to take half an hour, it takes about an hour for you to finish getting everything you need and even changing into an outfit that you imagine is more appropriate for potential travel, not knowing exactly where you will wind up in Ashkramar. So not the PJs? Not the PJs. They're in your satchel, but not on your purse. Okay. I'll join everyone in the rune still there. Can we get back? Mm-hmm.

Yep, it's still glowing and pulsing with that beautiful... It's mostly a blue arcane light, but occasionally you'll see arcs of purple that shoot out from it. I will go... I'll be going through my things, and I will get to the bottom of my bag, and I pull out an old coat and hat that I haven't worn for a long time, and I look up on the

hangers in my room that has my large, oversized red captain's coat and ridiculously large captain's hat. And I look at it and silently I'll put on my old jacket and my old, much smaller, more reasonable hat when I was a younger crocodile pirate. And I will head for the door and I'll look back at it and I'll leave it hanging up in the room. I'll close the door and turn the phones off. I'll finish packing and

Before I turn back to the group, I will say a prayer. And it's the first time in as long as I can remember that I can pray to the goddess that I truly believe in. For the first time, I'm not saying a false prayer, but praying that we can make the best of our lives and guide ourselves to the goals that we want to achieve. That we can rely on each other. That we can

overcome the obstacles in front of us and make the best time that we can of what time we have. Finishing putting my things together, I'll join everyone in the common room. Before I would have come back out, I would have, I guess, taken the like the new fresh clothes that have been made and I will have

my old ratty stitched together outfit that I've been wearing for years and years and years. I think I would take all of that and kind of look at it and say, "You're right, Virgil. I should be more dignified than looking like just a gross old scarecrow in a random pumpkin patch or a cabbage patch or a carrot patch anyways." Well, there's the garbage. And I'll throw it in and I'll stop for a moment and I'll kind of pluck a few strings.

You really think we can do it, Virgil? I know we can. Do you trust me? You've been right so far. Then keep listening to everything I say and follow my instructions very closely. I always do, Virgil. I always do. And I'll close the door behind me as I join my friends. With that, you all find yourselves in the common room, all of your tasks completed.

completely packed, ready to go as best you can. And you all step into the arcane room. Yeah. You step into the arcane room. You are silent as you... Briggsie, please stop trying to touch my hand. I know we do not need to hold hands, but I think Briggsie's idea is a good one. So we don't get lost. We must think of Asramar, but wherever we end up, I would rather it be together.

Alright. Whoever wants my crow hand, I'll give you mine. I'll take the crow hand. Skeleton hand. That's fine. And you all hold hands and begin to think of Astramar. You say the name over and over and over in your mind. Astramar. You think of the way Lady Narcissa Boss looked and smelled and acted.

And you feel a tug behind your belly button as you're ripped out of time and space and flown through the world of Druskinval before crashing and landing into soft ground. You're all standing high on a precipice overlooking a mountainous region covered in sloping highlands and rolling hills amidst the spires that rise up towards the Hagmoon above you.

You see brightly colored foliage dotting this landscape and even the grass itself is twinges of blue, purple, and green as you feel the arcane magic humming in the air all around you. Across this new province, you see floating islands of earth suspended presumably by the magic that thrives throughout this land. And as you observe, you notice settlements with beautifully ornate architecture favoring tall and thin towers and grand domes gazing at the stars above.

You realize now that you're standing atop a stone platform with a permanent runic circle carved within. The etchings glowing with azure light, you see streaks in the ground running from this rune deeper into the province, occasionally popping with arcing arcane magic, each one more chaotic and violent than the last.

As your gaze follows the ley lines that thread throughout this strange new world, you realize that you have no idea what lurks deep beneath the earth and is enveloped in this unbound magic. No matter the threats ahead, you are here to do what you set out to do when you first arrived in Druskinvald. To kill a witch. And that is where we will end the session. Yeah! Let's fucking go! Yay!

Gotta give it up for Nicky. What an amazing season of Edge of Midnight. Fun season. So fun. Holy shit. Witches to kill. What a fun season of Edge of Midnight. Did I leave the oven on? Boosh, smash cut back to the burning chateau. Oh, I'm alive! It's me, I'm really, I didn't die! Oh, my fabric does fall!

They stole my clothes! I bet it was that snake bitch! They stole the trailer! It was that snake bitch! I was saving that for the new season of Bridgerton!

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