Anthony 0:00
Greetings, adventurers and welcome to the adventure incorporated podcast. I am your dungeon master, Anthony Reed. This is episode 35, and it is part of the Whisperer of Lies story arc. Big shout out to the Patrons at patreon.com/adventureinc. Look, we know it’s a tough time, right? There’s a lot going on, people are buying gifts for one another, it’s cold, and we just want to say thank you to everyone who helps keep us warm, keeps the lights on by paying a little bit every month to our Patreon at patreon.com/adventureinc. We have had some awesome awesome guests this year. I’ll be putting out a Patron only survey soon too for them to, to talk about the guests that we’ve had this year and which were their favorites, which stories we’ve done that were their favorites. And oh man, there’s a whole bunch of more guests coming as well. It’s been a real- a lot of fun. That’s really the best place for us to bring people on the show on those little one shot episodes that are canon. You don’t have to onboard the whole franchise on the main show, but it’s a great place for us to, to hang out and interface with some people that you might not have heard before. So, head over to patreon.com/adventureinc. Check out those bonus episodes. I’m sure if you ask in the Discord all the Patrons will tell you they enjoy them quite a bit. Or at least many of them- well I don’t know. I haven’t asked explicitly, I guess, but you should at patreon.com/adventureinc on our Discord. All right, you know what, let’s get started.
Nobles and farmers, knights and scoundrels, gather round, gather round to hear a tale of excitement and mystery. Brave adventurers facing grave dangers.
Belroth, the Ranger.
Belroth 2:05
She’s a Grimalkin. That’s, uh, but that’s understood. No pets allowed, even though she’s not a pet. I will wait outside. Everyone, if anyone needs anything, I am outside.
Anthony 2:15
Skarpin the Cleric.
Belroth 2:18
Should I just try and snipe them from over here?
Skarpin 2:20
Yeah, okay. I did say there was good as dead. I would hate for, you know, to break my word on our first contract with Adventure Incorporated.
Anthony 2:28
Ellori, the Bard.
Ellori 2:30
We would want you to leave this warehouse.
Anthony 2:35
He points behind it. Church!
Ellori 2:37
Oh, sorry. We want you to leave this church.
Anthony 2:41
Deeran, the Wizard.
He say, you no worship Shattered Fang.
Deeran 2:47
Yeah, man he’s like, super wrong. We love Broken Tooth- uh, Shattered Fang, man.
Anthony 2:52
Prepare yourselves, for these are the tales of Adventure Incorporated!
There’s still a trail that you believe you can follow from this place in the woods. And you can tell you’re no longer being followed. You have dealt with that.
Skarpin 3:23
Before leaving the Deathwatch people Skarpin just goes over one and kind of pays a bit. He says, forgive us, Oliander, these were brethren even though they, they hated us. They hated me and Ellori, but forgive us and we’re gonna continue doing what’s necessary. And he just continues on.
Anthony 3:52
A gust of wind blows by.
Skarpin 3:56
He shivers.
Deeran 4:01
You had mentioned that they have silvered weapons. Is any of them carrying a silver dagger?
Anthony 4:09
Yes, you can get a silver dagger from them.
Deeran 4:12
He would like to upgrade his regular ass dagger to silver.
Belroth 4:17
Sexy ass dagger.
Anthony 4:19
Yeah, amongst them each was carrying a sword. And they did have silver arrows as well. Silver tipped arrows.
Belroth 4:27
Oh, how many?
Anthony 4:29
Between the 4 of them you, you acquire 30 silver arrows.
Belroth 4:36
Whoa. All right. That’s great. I think I have 35 silver arrows.
Skarpin 4:48
How should I play the short sword that I’ve had intermittently attached to my staff? Like, I don’t want to-
Ellori 4:57
Choose a funny voice for it. That’s step one.
Deeran 5:01
Make it super horney.
Ellori 5:03
And then make it want to get in stuff.
Deeran 5:06
Everyone loves a super horny weapon.
Anthony 5:08
Are you proficient with a halberd?
Skarpin 5:12
No. I can’t imagine I am.
Ellori 5:17
Me? Mikey? No.
Belroth 5:22
What a dumb question? Why would you think that?
Skarpin 5:24
Well, also I want to be casting with my shield so I feel like, no.
Deeran 5:30
No, a halbard’s 2 hands.
Anthony 5:33
Yeah, but you can cast with your shield as long as you don’t use this as a weapon. And then if you try to use it as a weapon, you would have to drop it. That’s what I think is probably the case here because, I mean, honestly, a quarterstaff with a sword strapped to it is nothing. So, if you want it to be a thing, it has to be something else.
Skarpin 5:54
I was gonna hold it like, in between- like, hold the staff and then the sword in between my fingers so it’s like, pointing perpendicular to the staff.
Anthony 6:01
No. Do you have martial weapon Proficiency as a cleric? I think that you probably do, right?
Belroth 6:09
Uh, I don’t think so. I think they have simple.
Skarpin 6:12
Simple.
Belroth 6:13
Is it a long sword or a short?
Anthony 6:16
It’s a short sword.
Belroth 6:17
Which I believe is a simple weapon, but I can double check for you.
Anthony 6:20
No, it’s not. It’s martial. So, you really don’t have any proficiency at all with the weapon.
Skarpin 6:26
I feel like I don’t ever hit anybody with it.
Anthony 6:28
So, ultimately, what that means is when you attack with the weapon, you do not get your proficiency bonus as an addition to the attack.
Skarpin 6:42
Cool.
Anthony 6:43
It also means you don’t get your Strength bonus to damage.
Skarpin 6:49
Cool. Cool. Yeah, as soon as he finds a smelter, he will be melting it down and coating his staff.
Anthony 7:01
Okay.
Belroth 7:02
That’s gonna change the balance of that a lot.
Skarpin 7:05
Not if I do it evenly.
Belroth 7:09
World’s most expensive staff.
Deeran 7:11
Yeah, how do you powder coat in D&D times, Anthony?
Anthony 7:17
Oh, it’s very easy.
Belroth 7:18
How do you do it without burning the wood?
Anthony 7:22
Yeah, no it’s super simple. It’s not like trying to smash a diamond. It’s very simple.
Deeran 7:28
Good. Thank goodness.
Anthony 7:32
Okay, so what are the 4 of you plus a cat doing?
Belroth 7:39
The cat is grooming.
Skarpin 7:41
It’s a grimalkin?
Anthony 7:44
You’re right.
Belroth 7:46
We can say cat. That’s fine.
Anthony 7:49
It’s a subset. It’s like a square rectangle.
Ellori 7:51
Okay, yeah a cat is a grimalkin, but a grimalkin isn’t always a cat.
Deeran 7:57
Also ‘cat’ is in the SRD so we can, we can say that word.
Ellori 8:04
What’s the SRD?
Deeran 8:05
It’s like, the open license for this game.
Belroth 8:07
I really thought that was gonna be an SRDeez nuts joke and I just, I feel like-
Deeran 8:13
I fucked up? Anthony, let’s go back. SRDeez nuts!
Skarpin 8:18
Ohhh!
Deeran 8:18
Just put that in there instead.
Ellori 8:19
Oh.
Skarpin 8:27
Yeah, I thought that played well.
Ellori 8:30
Um, does anybody need to rest, or are we okay to keep going?
Belroth 8:36
I think we could probably use a rest.
Deeran 8:40
Uh, I’m okay if- oh, sorry, I- okay, we’ll rest.
Skarpin 8:51
Okay.
Ellori 8:52
That’s okay.
Belroth 8:54
I mean, if nobody needs a rest, I assumed everyone needed a rest.
Ellori 9:00
I mean, I, I was, I was getting kind of antsy, but if we met more Deathwatchers along the way I also think that maybe if we get to, to see my parents and my grandmother then maybe you know, we could rest there. But I don’t want to push anybody. I know that I’m a little bit emotionally clouded right now so I am leaving it up to you.
Deeran 9:33
I’m good. That was a surprisingly easy one for me. I know probably not for everybody.
Ellori 9:44
Skarpin?
Skarpin 9:46
Yeah, I say we keep going.
Ellori 9:48
Okay, let’s keep going.
Belroth 9:50
Okay.
Anthony 9:50
I think Skarpin was the one who got like, the most-
Belroth 9:53
Yeah.
Deeran 9:55
Skarpin and Ellori.
Ellori 9:57
Yeah.
Anthony 10:00
Yeah, fair enough.
Belroth 10:00
That’s why I was like, hey, we can rest. It’s fine.
Ellori 10:05
She doesn’t care. She only needs half her hitpoints anyway.
Deeran 10:09
Oh boy.
Ellori 10:11
I’m gonna Cure Wounds open. I’m fine.
Belroth 10:14
Combat starts, Cure Wounds!
Anthony 10:18
So, I needed an Investigation from Ellori, and I need a Survival from Belroth. And I need Deeran to just keep doing what he’s been doing.
Deeran 10:30
Yeah, yeah, I was gonna say Deeran’s doing the back work, you know?
Belroth 10:34
Deeran has been keeping watch. If he didn’t see those Deathwatchers we would have been effed. Belroth rolled the 12 for Survival.
Ellori 10:48
16 for Ellori?
Anthony 10:51
Okay.
Deeran 10:53
And that is a natural 10 for Perception from Deeran.
Belroth 10:59
Critically average!
Deeran 11:03
Unremarkable Perception in every way!
Anthony 11:07
You’re just watching, you’re just watching the middle of the road. You’re just staring at the middle of the road behind you.
Deeran 11:14
Bare minimum baby!
Anthony 11:19
Okay, so you all march off further into the woods. Ellori the signs that you are looking for you still find a couple of them. For you, Belroth it’s almost like this area is starting to be traveled enough that you are losing the path. It’s clear there’s someone in the area who has- this is a traveled area for some reason because you’re still in the middle of the woods. But Ellori you’re still able to see a few of the things you were looking for signs, hints of your grandma having passed through here and your family and before long you all come to a clearing. The clearing seems to be surrounding the mouth of a cave that leads down into the ground. You don’t know anything about this, Ellori. This is not a thing you have seen before. It’s not like, aha, the spot grandma always took us. It’s not that.
Ellori 12:28
Okay, um, I think that maybe we should check for traps. My grandma was very clever, and you know, when, when the goats were, were trying to get into the windows, you know, to get that fresh, fresh baked bread she would always, you know, make it so the goats couldn’t get in the windows.
Belroth 12:55
Oh, okay. Yeah, Belroth is gonna check for traps. Investigation, I assume?
Anthony 13:01
Yeah. Give me an Investigation.
Belroth 13:04
Um, Belroth has no idea what he’s looking for. He rolled on an 8.
Anthony 13:12
Okay, you find no traps.
Deeran 13:13
Deeran is, yeah, Deeran is doing classic Deeran shit which is like, accidentally knocking like pebbles into the path of where traps might be. And yeah, exactly like, putting his hands up and turning around. He gets an 18 for his Investigation Check.
Anthony 13:31
Okay, yeah, you kick a bunch of pebbles forward down the path and then freeze as you watch the pebbles come to rest. Nothing happens.
Deeran 13:43
Yeah. Deeran feels cool with like, moving forward.
Ellori 13:50
I would just- I think that it would be good to check this place. It doesn’t, you know- it’s not a place I know or recognize, but it looks as good as any, as any other place that we’ve seen for hiding. It actually- it looks better than any other place we’ve seen for hiding.
Deeran 14:06
Yeah, all right.
Skarpin 14:08
No, I don’t see anything either.
Deeran 14:10
It’s pretty dark in there. And Deeran lights at torch because he’s just a stupid old human.
Anthony 14:18
As you approach the mouth of the cave with a torch a deep wind rushes from the inside of the cave, and the torch goes out immediately. And it is followed by a deep resonant voice: who dares stumble upon this place?!
Ellori 14:35
Oh, that doesn’t sound like my grandma.
Deeran 14:37
Oh, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean- the pebbles like, we’re an accident, man. Oh, I’m Deeran Lincoln, hey.
Anthony 14:47
Fool! Flee from this place, and do not return!
Ellori 14:55
Um, excuse me. I was just wondering- my name is Ellori. I was wondering if maybe, maybe you’ve seen my grandma?
Anthony 15:05
The wind continues to flow from the cave, but no voice accompanies it. And then emerging from the back, the darkness of the cave comes an old woman.
Ellori 15:21
Yeah, I really didn’t want to say, have you seen an old lady walking by? Just in case it really was them. Have you seen this old bitch? She looks like me, but like, 1000.
Anthony 15:42
I mean so, Ellori’s grandmother, she looks older for sure. She is still elvan. So, “old” is a relative term for them. So, as she comes out, you know, slightly like, you know, you’ve been hearing all these stories about Ellori’s grandma, this woman has like, graying hair, but is otherwise like, you know, a very attractive elven woman. And she comes out and she says, granddaughter, is that you?
Belroth 16:17
Sexy grandma, is that what you’re implying?
Deeran 16:19
Yeah, it’s like Aunt May all over again with graying hair.
Anthony 16:28
It’s like, ugh, so old. Am I right?
Ellori 16:34
Grandma? Grandma, it’s me.
Anthony 16:37
She turns back she says, it’s them Eridar, come! She says, oh Ellori! And she runs over to you and embraces you.
Ellori 16:48
Ellori is very happy.
Deeran 16:53
Steph is fighting back tears, listeners.
Ellori 17:00
I haven’t had a grandma in such a long time. I’m literally like-
Belroth 17:07
Oh. We were convinced that Anthony was just going to kill her just outright.
Ellori 17:17
Wow, this is unexpected.
Anthony 17:20
Ellori, I told you not to come. There’s too much going on here.
Ellori 17:24
Grandma, we were so worried and, and there are demons and we’ve got to fight demons, and, and we came and they’re, they’re here, but then we looked for you, and oh, Brad, Brad said he sent you away, and, and I just, we had to find you.
Anthony 17:39
Well, Brad can see what he likes, but you know what I always say, get out of town before they push you out of town. And that’s what we did, we ran as fast as we should.
Belroth 17:51
Belroth makes eyes with Deeran and Skarpin being like, she does say things like that!
Deeran 18:01
Yeah, Deeran is, Deeran is like, in his head he’s thinking and it sounds so much wiser when she says it.
Ellori 18:12
Oh, Grandma, grandma, these are my friends. This is Deeran and Skarpin and Belroth and Freya.
Deeran 18:18
Hey there. We met earlier. Your voice is way different outside of the cave. That’s crazy.
Anthony 18:28
Oh no, that wasn’t me. And well behind her walks a human male with a large gray-white beard. He is in long silver robes, and he’s carrying a large walking staff.
Deeran 18:46
Gandalf?
Anthony 18:50
I’m sorry, what did you say my name is?
Deeran 18:53
Oh, no, that was, that was Mike. I understand that confusion because it’s a stupid thing to say.
Anthony 19:06
She says- my favorite part about this is the last time you saw this character, you named him Dumbledore. He walks out behind her and she says, this is Eridar. He’s the one I thought might be able to help us deal with some of the problems that are happening here.
Ellori 19:36
Oh, Eridar, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Ellori.
Anthony 19:40
It is nice to meet you too. I have heard a great deal about you though I did not expect to have visitors to the cave.
Ellori 19:50
Um, so we’ve been, we’ve been doing a lot of adventuring. And grandma you would be so proud of me. I’ve got so many stories to tell.
Deeran 19:58
Deeran looks behind the group to see like, if there’s anyone coming down the path that they may have created. He gets a 3, but he’s pretty convinced he sees something. So, he turns back to the group and is like, ugh, guys should we like, do this elsewhere? Like, after we like, had to, you know, fight all those bad guys on the way here?
Ellori 20:26
Oh no, you’re right. Can we, can we come inside?
Anthony 20:30
Uh, yes, we should be able to have room for y’all inside, but remember what I always say, hands and pockets otherwise you’ll break something. And she turns and walks into the cavern.
Ellori 20:43
Ellori puts her hands in her pockets.
Deeran 20:45
Deeran puts his hands in his pockets.
Anthony 20:51
Yeah, so she and Eridar walk back into the cave. The cave is not very big. As you enter this cave, it looks like there’s like, a large pile of hay across the floor of this cavern, and then a small pile of hay. And that’s it. This is all this cavern has within it. And it’s just the 2 of them in here. And they’re like, just find a seat on the floor.
Ellori 21:18
Grandma, where mom and dad.
Anthony 21:21
I sent them away.
Ellori 21:23
Where?
Anthony 21:25
Well, it’s probably best if we don’t say. It’s not that I don’t trust you, girl. It’s that there are other things listening here.
Ellori 21:36
Okay, um, but, but they’re okay.
Anthony 21:39
Faile and Caghan will be just fine.
Ellori 21:42
Okay.
Deeran 21:45
Deeran is very interested in other things listening here, and so he whips out his notebook, and he writes in it, “The lizards?”. And he shows it to Ellori’s grandma.
Belroth 21:57
No context.
Anthony 21:58
Ellroi’s grandma squints her eyes, looking at the page, and then looks at him very confused.
Ellori 22:06
Deeran, Deeran has a lot of deep thoughts, grandma. He, he’s really good at putting the pieces of the puzzles together that, you know, nobody ever really talks about.
Anthony 22:19
Oh, well my only advice for that there Deeran is that, you know, if you’re looking for something special, you gotta be careful because you might miss all the special things around you.
Ellori 22:32
Ellori’s like, beaming?
Deeran 22:37
Oh, that’s really good. Deeran copies that one down into a different notebook. So that’s 3 that he’s had out already. The first being a spell book. The second one being the lizard notebook. And now this one.
Anthony 22:52
She, she sits in the small pile of hay and begins to fiddle with some of the strands of hay, there. And Eridar sits at the, on the other one. He says, please feel free to have a seat here. This is my home.
Belroth 23:10
Freya like, goes over to one of the straw piles and just starts like, you know, doing that thing cats do when they’re making a bed, just like, just like, kicking hay all over the cave.
Ellori 23:22
Oh, Freya, that’s a bed.
Belroth 23:26
And then like curls up and then purrs.
Anthony 23:29
Eridar speaks to Freya in purrs and grunts. And Freya speaks back to Eridar, and Eridar speaks back to Freya. And Freya moves away from the bed.
Belroth 23:48
What? You never do that when I tell you to do that? I don’t understand. That’s fine.
Anthony 23:53
She just looks at you.
Belroth 23:56
It’s fine, Freya. It’s fine. I would give you a treat, but Deeran ate them all.
Deeran 24:03
Man, it was a long walk. I was hungry. It’s not my fault we decided oh, no, we can’t get lunch. You know, we had to insult the neighbors before they fed us.
Ellori 24:17
Okay, no, I yeah, you might want to know that I did tell them that their casserole is bad.
Anthony 24:25
Oh, Ellori.
Ellori 24:26
It was a moment of weakness, and I’m so sorry. I know you always say that you got to be kind before you can make a friend. But I just- I was so angry, and I was so scared for you.
Anthony 24:39
Well, I understand, and things are strange in the village and I suspect in general most probably will not remember what happened at all, or at least I certainly hope not if we can do what we need to do.
Ellori 24:53
What did happen?
Anthony 24:55
There has been a troubling presence in the village and the area around. Our, our dreams have been invaded by a creature of darkness. Red eyes burning in a field of black. No one’s been sleeping right for weeks. And on top of that the dreams have built paranoia and mistrust amongst our people, and those who could possibly do us harm. The first band of Deathwatchers came through. They started tearing up people’s homes looking for hidden vampires, but it was clear the violence wasn’t going to stop there. Obviously, they didn’t find any, but we knew it wouldn’t be long before they started turning on us. And then we started turning on each other. Small things at first, but you could feel the tension more and more. And that’s when I took the family away. Something is not right. And I came here to Eridar to hopefully solve and figure out what was going on, but we haven’t had a whole lot of luck yet.
Ellori 26:24
Eridar, what do you do?
Anthony 26:28
He looks to your grandmother who hands you a crown of straw that she has made and then hands one to each of you so that you all have a straw crown.
Ellori 26:43
Ellori puts it on.
Deeran 26:45
Yeah, Deeran puts his on.
Anthony 26:47
She puts on one as well.
Belroth 26:50
Belroth puts his on Freya and then realizes there were 2 and then puts one on his head too.
Anthony 27:00
Eridar says, I have lived many lives, and I have done many things. What I am now is not what I have always been. There was a time when I was a creature bound to gods. Things have shifted and changed. Now I am a creature of change, one who cultivates. I am a creature known in the old ways as the dragons. Wings begin to sprout from his back, and his body transforms. And before you after his full transformation is this very large, shimmering scaled dragon. Down his back are wings like that of a butterfly. And his scales are iridescent as they shift in colors back and forth along this Fae creature. You can feel that feeling of Fae that you felt from Lanier in the court just radiating off of this creature.
Deeran 28:22
Whoa. Ugh, Deeran in the same notebook that he wrote Ellori’s grandma’s quote like, start scribbling down notes about dragons.
Belroth 28:35
Belroth also starts sketching furiously.
Ellori 28:44
Eridar, if I may say so, you’re beautiful.
Anthony 28:47
Thank you. That is very kind of you to say.
Deeran 28:54
That’s the voice. Now I hear it. It sounds kind of the same.
Anthony 29:00
Ah yes, I felt it best if I make first impressions in my more acceptable form.
Belroth 29:12
Is the straw crown still on Eridar.
Anthony 29:16
Eridar doesn’t have one.
Belroth 29:17
Oh, boo.
Anthony 29:18
She didn’t, she didn’t give Eridar a straw crown for him to meet Eridar.
Belroth 29:21
I didn’t know if they were like, a magic like, rune. Like, I was like, oh, she’s giving us a thing to like, protect us.
Anthony 29:27
No, no, it’s just that whenever you meet an old god, you should have a fancy crown.
Ellori 29:34
That’s something she always says.
Anthony 29:42
She, I mean he, Eridar says, I have felt this creature in the world. It touches on the dreams of the people here. It feeds on them, but I do not know what this creature is.
Belroth 30:03
I think we might know a little bit about that. Where we came in this area looking for a demon that I believe goes by the name Old Scratch.
Ellori 30:18
And Scarpa knows everything about dreams.
Skarpin 30:21
Yes, that’s right. I’m a Dream Cleric.
Anthony 30:28
You have walked the way?
Skarpin 30:31
At one point I have, and I’m able to access it in one, one manner or another. But yes, yes, I know dreams.
Anthony 30:42
That is good. There may be need of one who can Walk the Way in this place.
Belroth 30:48
I believe these creatures, they were bound away a long time ago. And that’s- I don’t know if you’ve heard the news of the Demon Isles, but they’ve been- that, that is basically where they have come from. And I believe this is the- I think it’s also called the Whisperer of Lies so the fact that people are turning on each other sounds like its M.O.
Anthony 31:18
Indeed.
Ellori 31:21
Grandma, we were there when they came back. We were supposed to be trying to save them, and we tried really hard, but we were basically dead. And we couldn’t. And then they came out of this portal. And they all came one by one. And, and there were just so many of them. And then, and then, grandma, and then we traveled back in time. And then I can’t, I can’t even-
Anthony 31:41
Child, this story is not over. Tell me the story when it is all complete. You don’t even know if this is a good story or a sad story yet. How can you just tell me the pieces?
Ellori 31:54
No, you’re right. I’m sorry, I just got too excited.
Anthony 31:57
I know, child. I’m thrilled that you’re finding your own tales to tell, and I can’t wait to hear them when they’re all together.
Ellori 32:09
Yeah, yeah, I- yeah, I’ll work on, I’ll work on getting it finished so that it sounds better too because the word choice in that was really just awful.
Anthony 32:22
It’s not just finishing the story. As I always say, you got to stop and look around and make sure if you’re telling a story that you’re part of that you’re really feeling what’s happening and not just observing.
Ellori 32:37
Yeah, I can do better on that.
Anthony 32:41
Child, I’m sure you’re doing fine.
Ellori 32:44
Thanks, Grandma.
Skarpin 32:47
So, we were- we came here to see you of course, but it was to stop Old Scratch. We wanted to get rid of him. Do you know where they are?
Anthony 33:07
I think that they are everywhere. I believe that they have found their way to walking the Realm of Dreams. And now they move between us, all who walk that realm.
Ellori 33:27
Skarpin, Are we gonna have to go to dreamland to fight him?
Deeran 33:31
Yeah, can you make us go there, Skarpin?
Skarpin 33:35
I’ve never brought anyone else. Anytime I’ve traveled with somebody there they were able to go themselves. Eridar, can you send them with me?
Anthony 33:51
I am a creature of Transformation. That is what I do best. I make things change. I cut back so that it may flourish. I alter. I rearrange. Me and my siblings, we all share this destiny now. If you look at Eviara, there are things here that are different and strange from the rest of the world. That is our doing. If you look to the forests to the north, the ones where things have twisted and changed, that is our doing. There are places we have touched wild and untamed that are our hand at work. We seek to cultivate. You can be cultivated. Your ability to travel the Dreamscape, to walk that world and to bring them with you in a state other than their normal dreams, it can be brought forth. But what we have learned these long years is that transformation, it has a toll. It takes so that it may grow. Sometimes, you must cut the head off a flower, that it might grow back stronger, and more vibrant.
Ellori 35:40
Grandma, that sounds like something you might say.
Anthony 35:43
I’ve heard him say it before, and I think it’s, it’s really a beautiful sentiment.
Ellori 35:47
Yeah.
Deeran 35:48
Um, if we’re looking for stuff that’ll like, give us visions and like, stuff that you can transform those visions into reality I saw some like, I saw some plants growing on the way that I totally recognized. They need to be like, dried out for a little bit, but like, let me know. We can go pick some real quick.
Belroth 36:12
When we- do we need to offer something that would be, I don’t know, related to the demons to like, get there?
Anthony 36:23
What I can offer has nothing to do with that creature.
Belroth 36:28
Okay.
Anthony 36:29
I can offer access to a place I believe to be tainted by that creature, but to do that, one would have to provide a way for me to allow that to come out in you. Dreamwalker, if you wish to bring others to this place, this realm that you can walk, it must be a part of you that changes, that allows that.
Skarpin 37:07
I should tell you, ever since I spent too much time in the Deadlands, I lost, I lost the ability to dream the regular way. So, when I fall asleep I don’t- I no longer dream. Is that something you could remove, and that could be changed? Now that would be actually ideal.
Anthony 37:31
The World of Dreams is 2 pieces of the same place. It is a thing that we can touch, each of us, unconsciously by accident. This is how most interact with this world. They slip their consciousness into it. When they go they go lightly to the World of Dreams. It is enough to allow for communication, but it is not enough to put oneself fully there. You, as a Walker of dreams, you have the ability to put yourself there more fully, to manifest in that world. That you have lost one aspect and not the other means you have not lost your connection to dreams. Something blocks you, that much is true. But a block can be lifted. I cannot cut away your block to make you blossom. Sometimes, one must bleed for what they want. I have to take from you something you value that you may access parts of yourself you did not know even existed. I wish that this were not the case. There was a time once where I might be able to look upon you and simply embolden you. That time has passed, and now I have a price I must take.
Skarpin 39:34
What do you- is- do you know what you need, or do I have to decide?
Anthony 39:44
I can never know what I need. And I can never truly know if the price you pay will be enough. But you can offer a price, and I can try to cut away those pieces, and allow them to grow anew within you. And we shall see what you arrive at. We will all be surprised by what should become. My recommendation, we seek the Realm of Dreams. That is a realm connected to your mind. It should be from your mind that you offer.
Skarpin 40:37
Well, I could- the most recent time that my family and the other clans gathered outside the High Basilica, Our most recent Refresh, that was the last time I saw any of them. Would a memory be acceptable?
Anthony 41:17
Memories help to shape who we are. If you wish to become someone different than who you are, a memory is a key piece to give away. But I do not think you wish to become someone different. I think you wish to do something different.
Skarpin 41:45
Skarpin looks down at his shield. It’s his grandma, and he looks at Ellori’s grandma. Skarpin’s relationship with Oliander’s a little bit different of the tortles, so he worships Oliander less as the Winter Queen and more as the goddess of bounty and renewal. And he feels like it’s time to change his holy symbol to a more fitting holy symbol, instead of the snowflake on the outside of the shield. So, Eridar, this was my, my grandmother’s. He holds up his shield. This, while not directly from my mind, it’s very important and very connected to my access to the Dream World. I would give this up.
Anthony 42:52
He takes the object in one large paw, and he closes his eyes, and he breathes in deeply over it. This object, you are right, it is heavily endowed with your connection to the Dream. Curiously, it is not connected with strands of your mind, but is with your spirit that it has bonded. This is a fragment of your soul that has connected to this thing. This is quite a change to call such a thing from yourself and what it means.
Skarpin 43:59
This is important. We saw the world change as a result of these demons. We can’t- we have to do something different. So, I’m willing to sacrifice this for that.
Anthony 44:24
In some ways the transformation you ask for is not enough for the cost you will be paid. But in other ways, it is difficult to transfer between types of power like this. There may be- I believe what you are looking for can occur. There may be unintended side effects. Are you prepared for such a thing?
Skarpin 45:01
Skarpin looks at the group.
Deeran 45:04
Man, it’s not too late to like, go get those, you know, those plants I saw earlier.
Skarpin 45:10
Skarpin turns around, looks at Eridar.
Anthony 45:13
I do not believe those plants will have the effect you are hoping for unless you wish to bring shadowy amalgams of your friends into the Dreamwalk with you.
Skarpin 45:25
That probably wouldn’t work or be good enough, right?
Anthony 45:29
If you wish to fight this creature alone, that would be good enough.
Skarpin 45:34
No, no, I don’t. Skarpin looks at Belroth and Ellori.
Ellori 45:45
I mean, maybe you could give him something like, a little less special.
Belroth 45:49
I mean, if it, if it has to be connected to the mind, and it’s not a memory what’s something that you know, or something that you dream of even, something that you want and desire, you could give that up? That seems pretty powerful. It’s not necessarily like, like Ellori said it’s not something as valuable, but it’s still value.
Ellori 46:21
But this is something that you’ve really wanted for a long time. Ever since the first time I’ve met you this is all you’ve really talked about, right?
Skarpin 46:30
Yeah, reclaiming what I felt made me, me. Made me special.
Ellori 46:38
So, I think if it’s worth it to you, you should do it.
Deeran 46:44
Yeah. Like, the Magic Man said that you would so like, this might be the chance, you know?
Skarpin 46:53
Yeah. Yeah-
Belroth 46:58
I trust your judgment. I think you’ll make the right decision.
Skarpin 47:01
I feel like I’m going to get hit a lot more, but Eridar, I think this is, this is it.
Anthony 47:13
Very well. He lifts the shield up and puts it in his mouth, inside his massive jaws. And he takes in another breath and then crunches down on to the shield and it shatters in his mouth. And he crunches crunches and crunches and then blows out a breath of hot air, not like, fire just like, hot warm, humid air and flecks of shell spray against you, Skarpin, but there is also a feeling that comes with it. First, of great loss. Any feeling that you have of disappointment is magnified as this washes over you. And then there is a small ember that is left as that begins to fade. That ember begins to grow into a fire in your soul, and you feel a strength awaken within you. And now, when the darkness comes again you can take up to 4 other creatures with you on a Dreamwalk.
Skarpin 48:49
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Deeran 48:50
What a convenient number.
Belroth 48:53
Oh yeah, because Freya as well. Freya can come.
Skarpin 48:57
Eridar, I choose you.
Belroth 49:02
Unintended consequences.
Skarpin 49:09
Skarpin’s still a little bummed.
Ellori 49:12
Skarpin, how do you feel?
Skarpin 49:15
It feels really weird not having grandma’s- grandma anymore. But I feel like we gained something too.
Ellori 49:33
Ellori gives him a hug.
Skarpin 49:35
We could do this, Ellori.
Deeran 49:37
Yeah, once Ellori finishes hugging him Deeran also gives Skarpin a hug. And he looks at Ellori and then Ellori’s grandma and then back at Skarpin and puts his hand like, on Skarpin’s chest, and he says, somebody wants told me that somebody really wise once said, you know, it doesn’t matter where you, where you go or how far away they are you can bring the important people with you right here, man. And he taps Skarpin’s chest.
Belroth 50:13
And as Deeran finishes, Belroth puts a hand on the shoulder and says like, remember that you didn’t lose this. This was changed. It was transformed to be more part of you in a different way to make you stronger. You haven’t lost it, you’ve lost the thing, but now the thing is more part of you than ever
Skarpin 50:39
I like that, Belroth. Thank you.
Anthony 50:44
~In Deeran’s voice~ What about the other thing?
Deeran 50:50
No, Deeran’s good. Deeran’s good. He’s fine.
Skarpin 50:57
Skarpin hugs Belroth again.
Belroth 50:59
This is the first hug. I only put the hand on the shoulder.
Skarpin 51:03
Oh, that’s fair.
Anthony 51:08
And we hug again for the first time. Like Ellori’s grandma always says, you can’t hug someone again if you haven’t hugged them for the first time.
Skarpin 51:25
Eridar, is there any tips? I don’t know, we learned a little bit about the demons, but now that I can bring them there has he been trying to accomplish anything here that maybe will help us find him and within the Dreamscape?
Anthony 51:45
He has been whispering into the minds and dreams of those who slumber. He has been touching their thoughts. He will find places that he can do the most damage.
Ellori 52:03
I just had this image of like, Shrek voice and ~Get out of my thoughts!~ That’s all I could think of when he said that, sorry. That’s it. Go back to being dramatic.
Anthony 52:18
I do not know the power- I will. I’m just- I’m going to. I do not know the power of this creature. It is something I have never encountered before, and its power may be greater there. I do not know, but seek it in the Dream. And search for whatever advantages you can find because it will not be easy.
Skarpin 52:51
Okay, no, we will, and we will destroy them. Ellori’s grandma, we’ll make it safe for you to go back.
Anthony 53:03
I’m sure you will, dear. I trust anyone that my granddaughter has chosen to be one of her companions I am sure is very capable of doing anything you say you can.
Ellori 53:22
That being said though, grandma. Maybe, is it okay, if we rest here for a little while until we go into the Dream World and fight a demon.
Anthony 53:31
I think it would be kind of hard for you to go into the Dream World without resting, dear.
Skarpin 53:37
Ellori- oh, go on, sorry.
Anthony 53:40
I was just- it’s hard to dream when you’re not sleeping.
Ellori 53:43
Yeah-
Skarpin 53:44
That one’s right.
Ellori 53:45
-you always say that. But is there is, there a way that we could like, maybe get a full night’s sleep and then right at the end of our full night’s sleep then we go into the Dream World?
Anthony 54:02
I don’t know how it works, dear.
Ellori 54:07
Yeah, I don’t either. I guess that was a question for Skarpin.
Skarpin 54:10
Yeah, I’ll be able to- I know I’ll be able to control that. I’ll wait until we’re ready.
Deeran 54:19
Yeah, that’s good, man. I usually have my most vivid dreams like right before I wake up, you know what I mean?
Belroth 54:25
How do you know?
Deeran 54:27
Well, because, you know, I have the dream and then I wake up, you know?
Belroth 54:33
Sure.
Anthony 54:58
Hey, everyone. DM Anthony here just reminding you that if you’re enjoying the show, tell your friends, tell your family, let people know word of mouth. And you can support the show at patreon.com/adventureinc, or you can check out the shop at adventureincpod.com/shop. Make sure you check the show notes on the website for all our social media including our Discord where you can come and hang out with some great people. We’ll see you there, and until next week, I wish you nothing but Critical Success.
Adventure Incorporated 55:32
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Transcribed by https://otter.ai