High Rollers DnD - Altheya: The Dragon Empire #18 | Gifts of the Tiefling (Part 2)

Episode Date: April 11, 2024

The gang follow up on some promising leads and attend a dinner with the Lamplighter's Guild! Love the podcast? Give us a glittering 5 star review! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/high-rollers-dnd/id1401508198?see-all=reviews Support the High Rollers on Patreon and get early access to Podcast episodes, vods and more: www.patreon.com/HighRollers Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound, TCT Adventures (Solasta: Crown of the Magisters), Monument Studios and Jolene Khor! Check out Jolene Khor and all her wonderful work on High Rollers on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1WX3ICiTmf4GpHwImnQMs6 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pickaxe. That's crypto on Kraken. Powerful crypto tools backed by 24-7 support and multi-layered security. Go to Kraken.com and see what crypto can be. Not investment advice. Crypto trading involves risk of loss. See Kraken.com slash legal slash ca dash pru dash disclaimer for info on Kraken's undertaking to register in Canada. Peanut butter and bacon biscuits? Has HomeSense always had all this great pet stuff? Oh, and Dad, look. Huh?

Made with locally sourced ingredients. We should get these for the dogs. Peanut butter and bacon biscuits. That sounds like human food, not dog treats. But they're only $10. $10? You know I love to spoil my little fur babies. Put them in the cart.

Deal so good, everyone approves. Only at HomeSense. Welcome back to part two. Our heroes having had a long conversation with the Typhoon Caliphras about the ways that they may be able to help them as well as the gift that has been given to our heroes. They have parted ways and now our heroes are continuing their investigations

into a number of matters here in ash and rest um we're going to jump straight into let's do uh daisy and rowan going to speak with the guard uh gavin sayer sayer that's right thank you very much um about about some matters involving Kavon and the spirit of his wife. You guys, after spending a little bit of time trying to track him down, you find Gavin in the barracks of the forge, basically finishing up, putting up his equipment for the day, and he's just about to head home, and you catch him just as he's leaving the forge,

coming out into the streets, as he's pointed out to you. And you see that Gavincea is quite an older guard. Must be close to kind of the age where he's probably going to be asked to step down or retire, but he's not moved past, yeah. But he's not moved past, like, a he's not moved past like a small rank. He's a sergeant. He's not, you know, this is not somebody who's been particularly ambitious in his life.

He's old, bald, wrinkled, and you see him just kind of like, see you tomorrow, bye bye. And he just kind of begins shuffling his way off towards his home. Daisy, I think you're a little more diffusing than I am. Sometimes people don't like my big statue. Okay. So maybe you could introduce yourself.

Oh, okay, okay. I'll stand back. Excuse me! Hello! Like torn between looking down and looking up. I'm sorry, I had to say hi. Wait! It's okay.

He's fine. He's very nice. He's just very tall. I'm not on duty anymore. Is there something I can help you with? Who are you? What do you want? Are you Gavin Sayre?

Who's asking? Oh, we're just new residents of the town. We wondered if we could ask you about... We've recently inherited the old haunted inn. Oh, sorry to hear. Yeah, it's... I've heard that play is The Scarred Lady, right? I've heard that she spooks people.

Wasn't sure if it was real. Is it real? Yeah. It's very real. Blimey. But we wanted to ask you about Kavan, who was the former owner. Oh, yeah, yeah. Cavan, I remember him. Yeah. Yeah, all that business with the church,

and they didn't like the name, did they, the place? What was it called? Enticing Devil. Enticing Devil. I was going to call it the Slutty Devil. Cavan. The Enticing Devil, yeah, yeah, yeah. Now, I remember all that business.

There was a right old stink about it. And then, yeah, old Cavan, he had to sell the place, yeah, yeah, yeah. Now, I remember all that business. There was a right old stink about it. And then, yeah, old Cavon, he had to sell the place, wasn't doing much business. His wife left him and all that. It was terrible business. Now, we were speaking to the High Authoritor, and this was years ago now,

and they had a file on it when they were working on this case. Right. It went cold. Unfortunately, they didn't have time to finish up. But Cavan went on the run. And apparently... What? Cavan went on the run? He just left town.

You were the last person to see him. Yeah, he wasn't on the run. He was leaving. He'd sold off the inn. He'd packed up his stuff. He had, like, a pack with him. And he said he was heading back to Kelskaris. He was going after his wife, going to try and win her back.

Kelskaris. Yeah. OK. That's what he told me. That's what he said. Yeah, that lines up with what we've heard. I think. It was a long time ago, but I don't remember him being on the run. He seemed awfully calm. And you haven't seen him come back to Ashford?

No, no, not at all. I thought he'd gone off and wasn't sure if he'd got back with his wife or not, but figured he was done. He either wasn't coming back or he was, you know, he was going to stay there. So he killed Scaris then. It's funny, I haven't thought about that in a long time, but I remember it, it was... Because he was oddly calm.

What does he look like? Oh, he's a human, he's a bloke. OK. Must be in his, like... Must be in his, like, 50s by human, he's a bloke. Must be in his, like, 50s by now, I reckon. He was younger than me. He's got, like, dark hair, little beard. Brown, black hair.

You know, sort of dark brown, not black, but dark brown. And he had one of those little shitty chin beards. He wasn't... He was... I suppose some people might call him a handsome fella back then. He was quite a good-looking young man. Blue eyes, brown eyes. I couldn't tell you. It was a long time ago, mate.

I don't remember something like that. You know, he was... He was normal. He was just, like, you know, kind of friendly innkeeper bloke. Do you know what I mean? Did he not... When he was leaving, did he seem more... ..aggressive, angry?

No, he was calm. I remember it because I saw him and, you know, we normally check everybody that's going through the gates normally and I checked in with him because I could see he had a pack with him and I said, you know, where are you off to, Kavan? And he said, you know, I are you off to, Kavan? And he said, oh, I've, you know, I said, I heard you sold the inn. And he said, yeah, I've sold it back to the Duke and I'm going to the city, I'm going to Kauskaris,

I'm going to try and find Tyria, track her down and make up for, you know, make up for things. And I was like, oh, I said, well, good luck with that, you know. It's good that you've, you know, you're going to try and win her back or whatever. And he was like, and he just said, yeah, yeah, I've, you know, make up for things. And I was like, oh, I said, well, good luck with that, you know. It's good that you're going to try and win her back or whatever. And he was like, and he just said, yeah, yeah, I've got to make my peace with it. And he went off. You see Gavin's face kind of twitches.

It was like, that's one thing. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm remembering that conversation. I did remember thinking at the time, he didn't look like he had enough stuff. Because, you know, it's like a week's day. It's a week's travel to the city from here. We've travelled from Burnell and, yes, it... It's about five days or so, right, from Burnell.

Yes, because Gareth is even further. You're talking another three, four, five days on top of that. But his pack didn't seem that full. Like, he wasn't going to go that far. But I thought, well, maybe he's going to resupply at Burnell. Maybe he's, you know, carrying light or something like that. So he was heading in that direction. He went out the north gate.

I mean, I don't know where else he would go. There's no other villages. I mean, there's other villages, but the Imperial Highway goes north. I mean, I guess there's Hearth. That's like three days out, but that's west. It's not north. You'd have to turn off the Imperial Highway. You'd head west and you could get to Hearth.

There's a little village out in the Rustwale Woods, but that's a tiny place tucked away in the forest. It's very small it's only a handful of people i think that live up there i can't even remember the name of the place um something something hill or something veil or something like that it's a it's tucked away um would i know where um you've heard of hearth you've been to hearth um you've traveled up that way before. You didn't stay there very long.

Not long enough for you to say if you saw Kavan there or something like that. But you know Hearth. It's three days off the Imperial Highway. So, yeah, like, if he left out the North Gate, Kavan could have gone there if he wanted to. The other place you've not been to, it must be, like, deep in the woods, and I don't think you and nim on your

own would have traveled there's too much risk doing something like that um it's quite risky to travel through like you know thick woodland or like mountains on your own um but you know that there's lots of like like anything on the map or any place that you've been daisy are like populations big enough to be quite substantial there There's dozens of little villages that have got 20, 30 people in them. Do you know what I mean? There's a lot of places like that scattered all over the place. Did you know him personally? Went to the devil for a drink once or twice when it opened.

Didn't really see him that much after that. After all that fuss with the church, you couldn't risk it't so you never went near at the time where he sold it no no no i didn't go anywhere no i wasn't barely anybody was going in there at that point really just hardcore drunks and beggars and you know the poor and things like that anybody that couldn't really afford to go anywhere else but um no i went in there when it opened but then as soon as all that business with the church happened couldn't couldn't risk it but yeah i saw him saw his missus around you know she would go to the shop she'd see her on patrol every now and then you know she was quite well liked tyria she a lot of people liked her she was quite nice you know don't blame her for running though

cavon he apparently was a real real drunk and a bit of a nasty prick after it started all turning wrong. You don't know anyone that would have seen Tyria. Well, I think I saw her when she left. I wasn't on the gate. I was nearby. And the ones on the gate were young kids, so they weren't really doing the proper checks. But I saw somebody who looked like her, and she had a pack with her, and she, you know, had a pact with her and she left, you know, the town a few days before Kavon. I didn't really see her up close, though. I mean, it looked like her, but it might not have been, I suppose,

but I don't see why anybody would be pretending to be her. This has all been extremely helpful. Thank you so much. It's all right. It's an old thing. I only remember it because there was such a fuss. Like, it's one of those things that sticks in your mind, but the details are a bit fuzzy.

Do you know if there's any photographs or drawings of what Kavan looks like? There wouldn't be photographs, but there'd be, like, sketches and things like that. I mean, I don't think so. You know, people normally get portraits or sketches or magical things done for them and things like that, but I don't think they were wealthy enough.

You know, when things started going bad with the inn, I can't imagine there would be. I mean, I'm not a bad... You know, I can give you a description. Yeah? Yeah. If he gives me a description, do you think I could try and draw something and show it to him and say, does this look like...

It's like a play sketch, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think the thing is, Gavin's old, but something about this kind of is obviously stuck in his mind, whether it was the incident with Ian and everything else. And even for an old god, his memory's pretty good, and he can recall details that a lot of people wouldn't normally pick out on.

Like, once you get him talking and he starts remembering it, he's like, no, no, the brow's a bit more furrowed, a bit deeper, the chin's a bit stronger. Like, he kind of helps you craft it. And I think with your artistic ability, Daisy, yeah, you're absolutely able to produce a really solid sketch of this guy um give me a so you're gonna have that automatically but he does say like as you're talking to gavin he's like but he would be like you know five years well however long it's been

older um you can if you want to like make a probably intelligence or wisdom so just straight intelligence or wisdom um to just straight intelligence or wisdom, to see if you could adapt, or do a new sketch with him maybe looking five years older kind of thing, if you wanted to. Just add lines. Well, it's like adding lines,

like greying the hair a little bit, sagging the skin maybe a little bit. A lot can happen in five years. He was unfortunately kicked in the face by a horse. Yeah. Dude, I know I looked at myself pre-COVID and after COVID, and I was like, there's a difference in that man. He's seen some shit.

I will add a fate dice. Okay, sure. It's not a super high DC on this. 11. 11? I'd say you do an okay job, but it's like, yeah, it's not like an incredible. But you've got two versions now, like,

Kavon as Gavin remembers him, and then a sort of slightly aged up version that kind of gives you an idea of what he might look like now. Okay. Okay. We won't keep you any longer. We appreciate that you've only just finished your shift. Ah, that's all right.

I mean, you said that you're helping the High Authority out. That's right, yes. Well, you know, put in a good word for me if you're helping with some sort of investigation, you know? A little... You know, a little bit of a pay rise before I finish and retire would be quite nice, you know? If I've helped out with, like, something,

that would be always nice, always appreciated. I've got thorough information about Kevin's last whereabouts and his appearance. I mean, why are you asking, anyway? What's all this business about? Why ask about Kevin now? Can we tell you a secret, Kevin? Yeah, I'm a guard. One of the Duke's guards.

We've spoken to the Scarred Lady. The ghost, it's real, it's actually real? It's real, I'm cursed. Blimey. He is cursed, that's true. Well, I'm sorry to hear that. It possessed one of our friends, and they were able to...

Really? ...see from their perspective. You're pulling my leg. I... She did also find a knife in... In the basement. You think it was a murder? I don't think that his wife ever left town and I don't think he ever made it to Kelskares.

But they never heard because her family's there. This is why it's confusing that you may have seen someone like her leaving town a few days before. Well we heard that from before. Like I said it was a distant though, I didn't see her up close. And the kids, it was the younger lot, and they don't take the job seriously like I do,

and they just let her pass. You're supposed to ask what business, where you're going, what's going on, so you can record it, but they just waved her through. We think, like Daisy says, Tyria never left, and the anger grew, and that they left. And the anger grew. And that they were not in a good place. You think it's Tyria's, the scarred lady?

Indeed. Blimey. And we need to find the loose end that is Kavon to lay this spirit to rest. Oh, that poor woman. What a piece of shit. Well, look, if there's anything I can do to help, you know, I'm an old guard now, Poor woman. What a piece of shit. Well, look, if there's anything I can do to help, you know, I'm an old guard now,

but if, I don't know, if I remember anything, I'll come and let you know. If you remember anything, well, you know where we are. You know, I've got, I'll ask the other guards about it as well, see if they know anything, if any of them have heard from Kavan or if they knew anything about the... If any of them remember... I know a couple of them. They're a bit older now. Maybe they'll be able to, like...

If they remember anything funny about her leaving, I'll go and talk to them. And if any of them are fearful of this spirit, rest assured that in the daytime they've assured us that they will not be doing anything nefarious. All right. All right. OK. All right. So all your insistence on a ghost...

Blimey, you lot have been busy, haven't you? Well, we just wanted to find some justice for her because if this happened, then... It's awful, really. Yeah. And everyone in town seemed to really like her. Yeah, they did. She was sweet.

She was a nice lady. Yeah, no, she was. And, you know, honestly, I don't think anybody really took the ghost business very seriously. I think most of us guys, we all thought of it as a bit of a joke. Like, you know, the newbie... You send the newbie to patrol that street to spook them and they'd be like, oh, I saw a face in the window

and they'd all be like, whatever, bunch of bollocks, innit? But it sounds real. It sounds like... It sounds real. It is real, but... Can't be having no ghosts in the Duke's town. Can't be having that. I wouldn't's town. Can't be having that. I wouldn't advise coming... He's like a pigeon. His head is almost perfectly round, like a ball.

It's not like a head shape. It's like a completely... Like Moss's face. Yeah, like Carl Pilkington. Carl Pilkington. Imagine like a 60-year-old Carl Pilkington. That's what I've got in my brain for this guy. Yeah, I got it now. Locked in.

Yeah. Monkey fella. If you do... If you do come by, maybe just wait out on the street. She's not keen on people coming in, but we could come out and meet you. If you find out anything else... Blimey. You can leave

a note or something. Yeah, yeah. I mean, look, I'm fucking 60. I'm not scared of no ghosts. But yeah, no, alright. I'll come by if I learn of anything. Yeah, alright. Thank you so much, Gavin. Yeah. You know, compensation for your help. I give him a silver piece. Oh, that's very nice of you.

Thank you very much. Technically, I'm off duty, so I can accept it. If I was on duty, this would be bribing one of the Duke's guards, and I wouldn't be able to say yes. But we're off duty. I'll spend it on a good beer. Or there's a lovely place right next to the Enticing Devil

called a Latte Fun. Right. You need a caffeine boost. Fantastic. All right, okay. Maybe I'll save it for fun. Right. You need a caffeine boost. Fantastic. All right, OK. Maybe I'll save it for tomorrow. I'll have it before me shift. All right.

All right, lovely. All right, lovely. What's your name? Rowan. Rowan. It's an honour to meet you. You can call me Big Green. I like Big Green.

I like that. All right, Big Green. What's your name, little one? I'm Daisy. Hello, Daisy. All right, lovely. Well, listen, pleasure to meet you both. I hope that I've helped.

You have. And this sketch is really helpful because then now we know the person we're looking for if he's still around. Listen, you find this fucking prick, you give him one for me, eh? Right on the old kisser. Oh, hit them.

Yeah. Oh, wow. Or stab them. Or beat them. Oh, my God. You know, sounds like a right prick. Thank you, Gavin. Cut his legs off, throw him in a river.

Make him eat him. He doesn't eat him. Fucking scum. Yeah, with that, you guys can... Man, the energy you put into... Oh, what a piece of shit. Fucking killed me. Yeah, yeah.

But, yeah, you guys finish up chatting with Gavin Sayre and can start making your way back. Meanwhile, Xanthius and Ophelia, you guys had headed to the records kept at the... House of the Quill and Scale. House of the Quill and Scale. Which we haven't, we've walked past it before. Which you haven't been to yet, yeah.

So this temple is dedicated to Saint Abranor, who is known for their study of magic and mathematics, as well as creating a number of systems of record keeping. Okay. He was the first dean of the Imperial Academia and is said to have been the first to decipher the mysteries of the Proto-Magi vaults. And that is what caused his ascension to becoming a saint.

The House of the Quill and Scale serves as a temple to his ascension, as well as a public library and a vault of records. The shrine is attended to by, you see as you enter, there is a polite, elderly-looking half-elf in a sort of long robe. And he has a necklace which has a series of interlocked rings, which are the symbol of Saint Avernor. He has unique symbols which has a series of interlocked rings, which are the symbol of St. Avernor. He has, like, you know, unique symbols for the saints. And you can see there are a few people quietly, like, you know, reading books

or, like, some people, like, checking records and things like that. In fact, actually, no, because this is a roundabout. You guys are doing this in the afternoon. You see the keeper, the kind of the law keeper is the official title he is desperately trying to deal with a group of children uh who are running around uh with a very flustered looking teacher um a wild heart woman with like cat ears and a cat tail uh bright red hair and bright red furred ears and tail um in a kind of Victorian, like, bustly kind of gown. Like, children, stop, no, no, no, put those down.

And, like, she's, like, desperately trying to cajole all these kids that are running around, like, blah, blah, blah, doing, like, what kids do when they're overly excited. And the law keeper is like, please, do not disrupt. You need to put them back in their place, children. There is a very delicate... And he's just like, Miss Farah, please get them under control.

Please, I cannot. We mud the saint by the saints. Please, please. Oh, my goodness. And he sees you come in. He's like, he goes to the teacher, please get them under control. And just any books they take off the shelves,

put to one side. I will deal with them later. And she's like, I'm so sorry, Lord Keeper. And she's trying to gather these children up. And with them later. And she's like, I'm so sorry, Lord Keeper. And she's trying to gather these children up, and he just comes over and he's like, I'm so sorry, my children. You've come at a rather boisterous time. Welcome to

the house of the Quillenscale. Thank you. No, much louder than I was expecting, I'll be honest. Yes, we are the local school, the Ignaxa Academy. They are having a bit of a trip here. They're supposed to be learning about local history.

And their teacher, she's a bit, she's like, Timmy, come down. And there's a child on, like, climbing, like, I'm a knight! Ah! Like, screaming around, like, ha-ha! Like, jumping off these things. She's like, no! Chasing after him. And. She's like, no, chasing after him.

And he's just like, as you can see, it is not going very well. But yes, how can I help you? Welcome to St. Abernor's Sanctum. Well, yes, we were wondering if we could look into perhaps a town census or records, something like that. You certainly can, madam. Forgive me.

You all right? It's just sneeze, just. Oh, right, okay. Didn't do anything. Oh, it like just came but didn't do anything. A vanishing sneeze. I got a cough first. That's the worst.

Sorry, Carol. He says, yes, of course, please forgive me, but by your accoutrement, I don't believe that you are from Osseous. Yes, I am Sister Ophelia de la Rosa of the House of Blood. Ah, yes, I have done some reading on your country and your beliefs. Isn't it wonderful? It is very different.

Very different to here. Yes, I could, yes. I mean, the records are public. They are available for anyone who wishes to look at them. They are just in a separate room down here. I can take you to it and help you find with... Is there something in particular you are looking for? Well, I just wanted to.

Perusing. Yes. We are recent new residents of the town. Residents? Yes, we acquired a tavern, the Enticing Devil. And it immediately makes a sign. It's all real, yes, it's haunted, yes, we've dealt with it. Haunted?

I mean, I heard that, I did not believe any of the stories about a haunting, but that place, you should sell it back to the Duke. It is a place of ill omen. And it's a work in progress. Yes, the Scions and the Saints would not approve of such a place, such a ghastly name. Oh, we intend to change the name.

Oh, good, good. I was thinking maybe the Gilded Skull might be quite nice. What do you think? Oh, we'll see how people respond to it. What do you think? Gilded Skull? It is certainly better than the Devil. Doesn't seem that bothered by the Gilded Skull. The immediate word impression, that doesn't seem to bothered by the Gilded Skull. The immediate word impression,

that doesn't seem to be as a faux pas thing, because I think the Scions have their own death saint who has got a skull image and things like that, so that's actually more acceptable to them, right? Whereas devils is literally... Yeah. Galvasar's Rest, then. What?

We call it Galvasar's Rest, then. What? We call it Galvasar's Rest. Galvasar's favourite place. You could literally not call something worse than this town. This place was nearly wiped out by the Gold Dragon Rebellion. It would be very bad. The Duke would probably... Galvasar's Rebellion. The Duke himself would probably come and burn it to the ground.

Oh, okay, well, I guess we'll call it the enticing devil, then. The dragon empresses. Well, go on, finish. There was a bit you didn't finish there, Rhiannon. The dragon empresses. Coffin. Coffin? Coffin!

Oh, lovely. Come on down to the local pub, Queen Elizabeth's Grave. And that's for a monarch we don't particularly like that much. She's quite laughing. But yeah, the law keeper, who you would learn, by the way, he introduces himself as Ulan Cain. Law keeper Ulan Cain. Ulan Cain.

Dope. He takes you past. You do notice that going through the library, leaving the screaming children of the local school behind, you would see that there are a number of locked and, like, sorry, not guarded, but warded doors. You can actually see glowing runes on them as you go past. All have signs of like restricted access, you know,

no access, not for public use and that sort of thing. But he takes you to a back room where there are these huge, like built into the walls, like cylinder chambers. And they have these these engraved slots, and there are dates and names, and you have to scroll through them, and then you pull out a tome out of these giant cylindrical things that are built into the wall.

And he will say, well, are you comfortable researching yourself, or would you like me, if you give me dates or names, I can pull out records for you. I don't think we have a lot of information to immediately go off of to start with, so I think maybe we'll start alone, perhaps? We can go through the censors ourselves. Is there any literature about maybe the history of the guilds of Ashen's Rest? Oh, yes, of course.

That would not be here. We have some local works of actual tomes and things that are research have been done. Yes, we keep a local history of Ashen's Rest and the guilds. Yes, we have things like that as well. I think we were both enamoured by the works of the Lamplighter's Guild. Oh, yes, yes. They're quite ingenious.

Quite the rise to popularity and wealth they've had. Quite ingenious, the people that are leading it. They've very, very fresh ideas. Oh, well, we would love to learn more about the guild. Well, we have a record of its history, but I'm afraid the actual details, you'll need to go and speak with them yourself. But I will fetch you the book.

We have a few books on that matter. Would you like them brought here? Yes, please. Yes, of course, of course. Thank you. Just please be careful with the record devices. Don't give them too much force or anything like that. And then we look down the hallway,

there's kids swinging off of him. He's like, oh, oh, oh, saints and scions, and he goes chasing after them. But yeah, you guys are left momentarily alone. It does look like Ulan's going to come back with those books, but you've got some time to go through this stuff. But these, like, sense of, I guess, are alphabetical? It's by date.

It's by date and year. So, like, you would have to, like, go back and, like, things like that. They're split into, basically, records of land and, like, ownership. And so they track like oh this house was sold to this person or the duke gifted this land to this person okay um then you have like any uh you have like important dates and events that have taken place and like their records are kept of like you know this date this thing happened you know odd oddities magical events the weather they keep records of that stuff as well. And then things like census data,

like births, deaths, family trees, that sort of thing are all kept on another one as well. Yeah. But it's generally organized either by date or by, like, your alphabetical name. So, like, if you wanted to be, like, Tobias Leto, let's, like, find out his, like, birth, you know, when he was born, who his family is and stuff like that.

Yeah, I think there's any information we can possibly get about that. And if there's anything in the Lamplighter's history book or tomes or whatever. Yeah, so this is going to be two checks. You can choose which one you want to make. If you do a history check, now wait just before you roll, a history check is going to be you going through the books

and doing the research and methodical thinking, right? Or a straight intelligence if you're not proficient in in history um or you can do a perception check uh or an investigation check and that is going to be more like trying to find oddities and things that don't quite add up so it's like looking for inconsistencies or like looking for things that are unusual versus the history check which is more just a good skill at researching and learning, basically. Oh, God. How are you all?

How are you suited for this sort of stuff? Yeah, I've got proficiency in perception. Okay, I do not. And also, with the curse, I am worse at perception recently. Okay. So it's basically intelligence or wisdom at this point, whichever one is. I'm just getting distracted.

So maybe I... Is this something I could like just help Ophelia with? You could, but then you'll only obviously get one source of information. Right, okay. So it's worth trying. You'll have to try. You've got your dice as well. Well, I mean, like, it's either do you guarantee more... Do you try and get a

better chance of success in getting some more, do you try and get a better chance of success in getting some information, or do you try and split your attention and gamble on getting more information? Yeah. Are we the gambling type, Rhi? No, we never gamble. What would we do?

There's a point. I think we'd go for the security, right? We're going for two. Yeah. Sure. We're gambling. Are you spending any points? Yes. So what was the check? We're going for two. Yeah. Sure. We're gambling. Are you spending any fake points? Yes.

So what was the check, sorry? Perception, history, investigation. All right, just as a point, if you're both spending a fake point, that's gonna max me out, so. It is, and we've got a dinner to go to. That's true. But we want information.

All right. So add a D6. Okay. So yeah, I'll go for, I guess, a history check. I'll go perception. All right. So add a D6. Okay. So, yeah, I'll go for, I guess, a history check. Okay. I'll go perception. All right. Sure.

Three, two, one, go. Go. Yeah. Yeah, great. Yeah. How'd you, yeah, what were we talking? Eight. Eight.

Total. Total. Eleven. Eleven total. Thirteen. Thirteen. Total. Not a huge success, but also not terrible.

13. 13. Not a huge success, but also not terrible. You basically spend all of your time and don't quite glean, like you don't find any super juicy gossip, but you'd get two pieces of information, I think, here. You would find out that... They killed Tyria.

I knew it. It all came together. Tobias Leto is... He's quite an older gentleman. Like, he's the last one of his family. He doesn't have any heirs. He never married. He didn't have any children.

His family, his parents died, you know, a long time ago. His brother died when he was quite young. So he's the only member of his family. his brother died when he was quite young so he's the only member of his family he worked as a relatively small time clerk, like a blacksmith's

apprentice for a long time and then about sort of 20 years ago he started up the Lamplighters Guild and well no it would be the guild would be older than that he moved into the Lamplighters Guild so he transferred guild older than that. He moved into the Lamplighter's guild. So he transferred guilds from the blacksmiths

to the Lamplighter's guild, and he basically began creating these, like, new innovations to kind of take a very low, not very wealthy, not very well-loved guild, which was kind of seen as a bit of a sort of, like, afterthought, you know, and he started developing, like, magical lights and started, you know, bringing in all these new ideas. He's very wealthy.

He owns property. He has, like, the Pharos is, you know, in his name, the actual tower itself. But he also has a manor up in the richer district, up in the Duskrise district. Which is where we're heading to, right? For the dinner, I believe, is at the Pharos. Oh, right, yes.

Yeah, the Pharos, the dinner. Okay. Yeah. He has, like, he's bought, like, shares in, like, other businesses and things like that around the town. Yeah, and this would be the main information you find out. You would also actually find out one piece of information that you might find out.

The other piece of information that you might find out um the other piece of information that you would find out uh is that tobias leto um knows uh sunsword ilkara very very well um they tobias actually uh basically paid for sunsword ilkara when she was younger um and like helped her get her set up on her feet here in Ashland's Rest. He actually owns her house and things like that and has been a father figure in her life and helped her basically become the person that she is today. And that was the person we immediately got bad vibes from. Okay. But nothing...

Oh, and heavy donations to the church as well. Tobias makes lots of donations to the Church of Pyrrhus, the main bright-shadowed cathedral. Okay, but potentially one of the original architects of the first magical lights. Yeah. Yeah. Okay.

One of them, not the sole one, but him and another group of lamplighters, which would include Morris Goldsite and the chief illuminator who's missing and a few others as well. Okay. But would be able to identify anything that's gone wrong with recent ones.

Maybe better than anyone else that we know. Maybe. So that's good. But otherwise, on the up and up, what a chill, cool guy. maybe better than anyone else that we know. Maybe. So that's good. But otherwise, on the up and up, what a chill, cool guy. Yeah. Not gonna murder us. Gives to charity, big part of the community. Yeah. Okay.

Very influential. Goes to church. Well, I found nothing, I guess, not incriminating, but untoward. Yes, potentially. Seems very influential on the town. If they are an honest and valuable resource, then we could at least maybe throw some ideas about the at least current versions of the lights at him and see what he thinks. Constructive feedback. We remind you, you don't have any of those lanterns.

They are all with your forresters. Oh, that's true. But we could at least, like, maybe talk about something. I don't know. Just as a reminder, you don't physically have any of the discs on the lights. They were all taken by the authorities. We might be able to describe it.

Yeah, you could describe it. Yeah. We found this in these, blah, blah, blah. Yeah. Yep. Okay. All right. But yeah, unfortunately, those rolls don't gain much more information from that.

They wouldn't know the main production line of the lanterns as well. Yes, they would. As in how they make them? How they make them, where they're made. Yeah, absolutely. And I guess where potentially adjustments could be made. I imagine the discs are made in a completely separate place.

Maybe. But still. As you kind of wrap up your thing, you can see that the poor teacher and the law keeper have managed to cajole the children. Things are kind of in disarray, but they begin making their leave the teacher the sort of cat ear the the wild heart kind of catches your attention at one point and as

the the law keeper's kind of funneling the children out um she actually rushes over um uh and uh is uh let me just get my notes up here for a minute uh where is it i think if we're walking towards the exit any books on the floor I'd pick up and try to... Like put on the pile that's been... Yeah, not putting them away, but... I'm so sorry, I'm terribly sorry, excuse me. I'm in a bit of a rush. Are you sort of adventuring types?

I've not seen you in town before, and I've heard that there's a group that have been sort of dealing with things in the town. Yes, we've helped out in certain places before. And do you know, you've done things like magic and you've been to strange places and you can do things like fighting. Have you encountered monsters before?

We have. One or two, yes. Wonderful. Would you be considered, we have some paid opportunities to come and do some talks at the school, and we're looking potentially for people who can take the children on little expeditions and things like that.

It's paid, it's not for free. Would you be interested? I could give you some information. Wait, taking the children on an expedition? Well, we do little things here and there. In the future, we might be able to schedule one, but also just come in and doing talks about things. Children are ever so interested in a variety of subjects. I could talk to them about my home.

Oh God. Where are you from? I'm from Osseous. I don't know. Is that? It's across the sea. Oh my goodness, that would be most wonderful. That would be delightful to have. I would love to inspire their young minds. Oh, that's exactly what we're looking for indeed. Oh, I'd love to inspire their young minds. Oh, that's exactly what we're looking for indeed.

Oh, and she brings out like a little business card and it has Ignaxia, Ignaxa Academy of Schooling, Miss Visa Feyre. And she's just like, yes, if you'd let myself or the headmaster, Headmaster Hawks know that we have spoken to you. But yes, please come on down and we'd love to have a chat about you coming and doing a paid talk.

Oh, thank you. Yes, I'd be most honoured. Most wonderful. Thank you so much. Lovely, lovely. Thank you. Oh, Timmy, come back! And then he just chases after them.

If that's how you want to earn a little bit of money? Talking to children? It's not for me. Well, it's thinking about the future. Sure. How are you, by the way? I haven't checked in on you for a while. How am I?

How's your hand? Oh. Okay, let's leave here first and maybe go to a quieter place. Okay. Okay, by all means. If this is what you wish to discuss so openly. I just haven't checked in on you for a while.

I just want to know how you were doing in the curse business dreadful. It's awful, I'm sorry if I've been so distracted. It's, there's a lot going on at the moment. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, yes. But no, my hand is, I mean, has there been any developments? It's not changed.

It's still what it is. Still glowy, still flamey. developments. It's not changed. It's still what it is. Still flammy. Oh, yes. Scarred and cracked and, yep, exactly as you remember it. Yes, yes. What's this smile? Nothing, I was just checking. I'm glad you're okay.

Okay, and you've been good since, you know, the Scarred Lady? Just a small matter of undead. Well. All is well. I would like to smash this cavern over the head, but... Oh, yes.

Yes, well, hopefully they've found some information about it. I hope so. But I'm just impressed that you managed to come out of this unscarred. Well, not without your help. Me and Rowan seem to have been hit by it quite hard. Yes, you do seem to have bore the brunt of that little excursion. But you don't know anything about removing these curses?

There's, I presume, ghosts in your lands? Would I know? So, I mean, you know that, yeah, like, spectral undead are capable of doing things, but lots of other kinds of undead are able to deliver deliver curses the touch of one of the liches um some of the the house of runes the the mummies can deliver terrible curses as well um you know there's the curse of the banshee and you know you've encountered many of these things in your in osseous it would be the responsibility of of the local priests in the House of Blood,

like the sanguine priests, to remove these kind of curses. It happens. There are skirmishes sometimes between the houses, but generally they're not supposed to fight each other. So it's very rare that these curses afflict the citizens of Osseous. You would know that there are rebels that fight against the houses, and that the spectral undead go and unleash these curses on them

and things like that, that happens. But in terms of how to remove them, you would normally just go seek out the Countess or one of the sanguine priests, and that would be done if you were to have that problem. Yes, grisly business, curses, but. Yes, I have. All work of the undead, and I'm afraid it would be up to.

What was that? Sorry, sorry, I dropped my coffee. It'd be priests and priestesses, I believe, that would remove such ailments. Okay, well, hopefully something we will solve soon. We'll get to the bottom of it. Yes. And your hunger?

Mm. How in check is that? Water skin's getting a little low. You did feed on one of the carpenters, I think. A couple of days ago. What is that? Water skin's getting a little low. You did feed on one of the carpenters, I think. A couple of days ago, yeah. While you were... Oh, yeah, I guess Ophelia wouldn't know that, yeah.

You did take a... I did wonder about this, because would Nim have done anything? It is a case of, I think, because you didn't get knocked down. You did fight her off eventually, yeah. There was no threat that you were going to turn or anything like that, you know?

For you, it was a case of she bit your arm and you quickly got her off, right? But it wasn't feeding. It wasn't feeding, right? It was just a bite. But I guess from my perspective, you did... I say you, the scarred lady. Yes.

In your body did bite Daisy's arm. Yes. You remember this? I don't remember doing it, but yes, Daisy did remind me, and I was horrified. But was that? What, my dear? I don't think you would... Like, the Scarred Lady wouldn't know to feed,

so she just bit. She didn't actually, like, drink the blood. No, I didn't drink any of her essence. Right, okay. So we might need to resolve this somewhat soon. Potentially, yes. Okay. Okay.

Good. I'll let you know when I start getting hungry. You're looking at me in a very particular way. I'm just curious about you. Me specifically? Yes. Or just people in general? No, I'm just very curious about you.

Okay. Mm. Well, I... I trust you, Ophelia. I trust you too. So if there's anything you wish to know? Within reason? What kind of reason?

How far may I pry? Depends what the questions are. What's going on? In general? With you. Oh. Those, uh, priestesses seemed very interested in you. Inquisitors.

Yes, those ones. The very scary ones. They might actually be able to help me. Hmm. They said that I might be able to visit them and they might be able to find out more. I just don't know if I can trust them. Do you trust them?

No. Did you see the way they looked at me? Well, yes, you did, however. It was all in good faith. Your good faith is not their good faith. Well, I didn't ask for a blessing from them and I received it with grace.

Yes, but, I mean, we've seen how even just the name of our tavern was enough to stir up, um, anger. Well, I need to loosen up a little bit. Maybe. It's just a name. It's just the name of our tavern was enough to stir up anger. I need to loosen up a little bit. Maybe. It's just a name. It's just a name.

But they offered help. If you don't trust them, then maybe I shouldn't trust them. Maybe. I may just have preconceived notions about other religious factions that impose their own beliefs on their own citizens. So militantly, should I say. And when you give talks to these children... Educational.

Educational? Yes. Not... They can make up their own mind. Okay, okay. That's how it is. A children's atheist, not a monster. No, I know.

It's just you're thinking about the future, as you said. Just as long as it's not conversion as much as just, yeah, you know? No. The word I was about to say, educational. Yes. All right. As you guys finish up this conversation, you pretty much make your way back to the enticing devil.

Rowan and Daisy, you guys have made your way back as well from your investigations, and you guys sync back up. Very lovely little tower. You bored? Do we need to, you know? No. No, you okay? It's just really...

It's nine dice! It is a very tall dice tower, I will say. Very tall. What's that, nine deep? Oh my God. Is that what made the noise? Yeah, that's what made the noise. It was an old man dropping his coffee.

Hello. Hi. How did it go? Well, we, honestly, not a huge amount of information. About, at least, Tobias. Very of information about at least... Very mundane information. Yeah, seems like a good person. Nothing that suggests that we should be concerned, to be honest.

Right. Really? No. Gives to charity, shares in multiple companies, has been with the Lamplighters for around 20 years, is potentially one of the original architects of the lights themselves, so could give us some good information about their intended construction. Well, that's very reassuring.

That means we can actually just enjoy our meal without worrying that we're getting ourselves stuck into something. Yes. Because I'm very hungry. Okay, good. Oh, also, Ophelia's going to teach some children about Ossius. I am. Oh, that's wonderful.

Yes, this is so exciting. How did that happen? I'm very curious. We went to the House of the Quill in Skale. There were children there being, I want to say, corralled, maybe not successfully, by a teacher there. And they recognized us as adventurers, mercenaries, who had seen a lot of the world and asked us to give some talks

about our adventures, our journeys. You might do very well in this. Here's her card if you'd like to give a talk as well. And there'd be... You could sing them a song. I could provide some backing music. Get them into music! And Daisy, you could show them your art! Your delightful art! I'm just curious if teaching the young children about the House of Blood is maybe a bit scary

for them? They would be very... I mean, I have scary stories when I'm young. Yes. Yeah. Plus, there's vaults spawn out there. There's all kinds of horrors. It would just desensitise them to the real horrors of Valfeid. Okay, okay. But there is a small financial reward if you do intend to do this. Well, then we can pay for your curses to be ruined.

Potentially. Well, how much? I don't know how much yet. Well, we don't have anything. It won't be like hundreds of gold. Well it sounds like a lovely way to involve ourselves in Ash and Rest in a way that isn't killing gnolls and that sort of thing.

Unless we do that and show them how adventurous we really are. We get a gnoll and that sort of thing. Unless we do that and show them how adventurous, really. Because a gnoll's head and we go. Here's a gnoll's head. Here's a gnoll's head. Well, maybe. No, no, no. I would have loved that as a kid.

Really? Yes. A gnoll's head. Yes. Really? I don't think that the teacher would like to bring a vault spawn demon enemy corpse to a classroom. Not that we could deal with anything like that anyway.

It would be dead, hopefully, we'd find it dead. Yes. There is a null problem, you know, so we probably wouldn't find it dead. We would find it. Oh, I mean the vaults. Yeah, nulls are vaults. Oh yeah, of course they are. Yeah, they are a type of vault spawn.

With this conversation, you guys wrap up. If you guys want to roll, you can, but otherwise we'll jump ahead to you guys making your way to the pharaohs. Share all info. Yeah. I pressed that button. He gets in his fancy suit that he wore for the duke. Okay, yep.

I'm washed. You guys get ready, you get changed, you head on over. The Pharos at night is one of the kind of blazing beacons of Ashen's Rest. Like, it is, the light atop it is brighter than anything else in the city, and it kind of creates this dull glow that, you know, provides illumination all around.

The lower floors of the guild are being closed off. You can see things like workshops and exhibits and things like that are being closed off to the public. But when you arrive, you are met by a couple of the Lamplighter's private guards. They have completely private mercenaries that are their guards here. They seem to be expecting you. They say, oh, yes, you're the guests of the Guildmasters tonight. Yes, please, come with us.

They've secured the dining room at the top floor for us. Thank you. They lead you upstairs. In fact, actually, there would be a sort of rudimentary kind of elevator, like one of those old-school ones that doesn't, it just has like a cage and then it's like a winch kind of thing. But it's all automated by magic, using like a magical winch,

like a tensors floating disc and then like it uses like a platform kind of thing. And you guys make your way up to the top. When you emerge out, you can see the wealth of the Lamplighters Guild really on display here. Excellent, perfect precision stonework, gorgeous fabric drapes hung. Everything is

decorated to show off its affluence and wealth. Magical lights everywhere you can see of all different colors and shapes and sizes creating these beautiful scintillating patterns. The floor is actually polished as like a stone and it has magical lights built into it so it looks like you're almost walking on a bed of starlight as you make your way down around a circular building to a door that leads into a chamber. Inside is a large dining table with enough places for five of you so there'd be a space for Gruff, um, plus the two others who are basically sat down, looks like they're in the middle of a conversation, just as you are announced by the guard who brings you up. Like, uh, Guildmasters, I have the, uh, the individuals that you, uh,

sent for, that you sent the invitation to. Um, and you see sat down, um, an old human man. He's kind of got the classic, like, friars kind of like balding like haircut like bald on top but like a little bit of hair around here grown long very luxuriously kept but definitely the age kind of taking the hair away from the top of his head um a close clipped beard very well manicured and groomed but you can see that he's definitely older in age. Very, very fine jacket and vest with like a pocket watch. And he kind of looks over to you like long, slender fingers. And he's just like, oh, hello. Welcome. Welcome. Please come in. Come in. Forgive me if I don't stand. My knees aren't quite what they used to be. But you see the woman next to him,

she's a little bit younger, maybe more in sort of like human ages. She would be around sort of like mid-40s, mid-50s. But she's a halfling, tight brown hair, slicked back into a high ponytail, wearing another kind of similar well-dressed outfit. This would be almost like an evening gown, but with like a shawl around her shoulders. And she doesn't stand. She sort of delicately places her hand on the table and she just nods in your direction. Doesn't really show any sign of any formal greeting.

And her stare is quite icy towards you. But Tobias, Letoito just kind of smiles he's cauldron like tan skin deep set wrinkles you know this is a man who's probably spent a lot of his time actually outside or in like uh you know working um but now he's living this very affluent life and he's just like please please, come in, come in, have a seat. He'll, like, gesture over, he'll be like, Marco, please, if you could send word to the kitchen staff to begin our courses, make sure we have some wine, and would you care for anything else to drink? Preference for ale or spirits or anything else?

We can have whatever you want. Oh, wow. Can I have some sparkling water? We can manage that, I'm sure. We have been... I've had a few experimentations with adding bubbles to juices and water and things like that. I'm sure we could do something like that, yes.

Wow. Of course, of course. I think I'll join you in the wine. Well, you are in Caldra. It is the something like that, yes. Wow. Of course, of course. I think I'll join you in the wine. Well, you are in Cauldre. It is the land of wine, yes. I've got a very fine vintage here that we can open. What about yourself? Our guest from such far climbs. Oh, thank you.

Thank you for the gracious invite. Most welcome, most welcome. Sister, is it? Yes, yes, thank you. Would wine be all right? Oh, yes, Cauldre and red if you have any. Oh, most welcome, most welcome. Sister, is it? Yes, yes, thank you. Would wine be all right? Oh, yes, cauldron red, if you have any. Oh, of course.

We are in the North Vale. We have fine, fine wine here, yes, absolutely. Delightful, thank you. Yes, of course. And what about you, my dear? Could I just have some water, please? Of course, of course. We'll have a pitcher brought out.

Would you care for, I quite like to enjoy it with a bit of lemon in the water. No. Yes, yes, would that be... Is that all right? That sounds phenomenal. He'll gesture. And the guard is like, of course, Guildmaster.

Yes, absolutely. We'll just be outside if you need anything, but otherwise we'll leave you to your conversation. And he shuts the door. He's like, oh, he's very good, Marco. He's been with me for a while now. Oh, please. You see, like, He's been with me for a while now. Oh, please. You see, like, Rowan is playing with the cutlery.

Stop fucking letting your dice. That's a teacher warning. Pay attention. Yes, sir. Right. There are plates and settings for all of you. The light is sort of ever so slightly dimmed. There are windows that look out onto the town of ashen rest

from up high it gives you this gorgeous it's almost like a like a restaurant that's got one of those huge windows that like looks out on the city um and it just this twinkling city of all the different little uh everlights coming on the red tiled roofs all below you with the ducal palace with dominus ignarum You can see it so clearly from up here. It's this gorgeous, gorgeous view of the hills and the river behind it. Was this the tallest tower in Ashenshire? The Pharos is currently

the tallest tower, yes, it is. It's something of a competition, like you're always trying to build high, but this is currently the tallest one. It's technically just below the Dominus Ignarum, but only because the Duke's dome, like where he flies in and out, just peaks it. And there's kind of like an unwritten rule

that you're not allowed to go taller than the Dominus Ignarum, right? Like you have to always be lower than the Duke, but this is very close. They're pushing the limit. They are certainly pushing the limit. Nobody else is as bold, it seems. But he says like, it's a wonderful view.

Please take it in. Stunning. Yes, it is quiet. It is quiet. It's been a good number of years to get us to this point, but I'm very proud of what we've accomplished. Janya, please, introduce yourself. It's just like, a pleasure.

It's nice to meet you. I am Guildmaster Janya Cooper. A pleasure. introduce yourself. She's like, a pleasure, it's nice to meet you. I am Guildmaster Johnia Cooper. A pleasure. And yes, a pleasure to meet you both as well. I don't want to be rude, I have heard some of your names from some others, but would you do me the honor of telling me your own names?

I never like to refer to people based on what I've heard from others. I like to call people by the names they've given me. I'm Daisy. Hello, my dear. Hello. Xanthius. Xanthius. I'm Rowan.

Hello. Hello, Rowan. I'm Sister Ophelia de la Rosa of the House of Blood. Wonderful to meet you. Wonderful to meet you. I'm sad that your companion, the Wildheart, could not join us. They may yet arrive. Ah, perhaps running a little late.

Perhaps. But what is it you have heard of us from others? I mean, I was there, you know, I did not linger too long, but I heard of you presented a duke's favour to the Duke Ignarius, and that is no small feat. You performed some sort of heroic deed in Burnell. And then, again, here in Ashen Rest. I mean, the reason that I have brought you here today

is very much because I wish to talk to you about the incident in Riverside. But, of course, I've heard of that and your heroic actions there to protect the people and deal with this horrid thing. But also that you have been making the rounds in town. You have met with various important people. I know that you visited our friends at the Stonemason's Guild. It's a large town, but a man in my position does... We hear a lot of things.

I feel like I know you quite well. We've been trying to make a name for ourselves. It's an honour to know that our efforts are not in vain, but... We've certainly accomplished that, I can assure you. Well, we've been attempting to accept any jobs that might come our way, and the lamplighters caught our eye at one of the boards. Well, that is indeed, and thank you for bringing me to that matter, for that is something I wish to address with you.

And he pulls just out of his pocket almost like a leather kind of folded wallet, and he opens it and reveals six platinum, thin sheets, like bars, like thin, long bars of platinum, like, thin sheets, like bars, like thin, long bars of platinum, six of them. And he says, it was, I understand that you had taken a contract and you were to protect one of our engineers,

one of our illuminators as they were repairing these lights, and then this affair with this thing happened. And I learned that you had not come to collect payment, perhaps thinking that you had not accomplished the task, but I think it is only fair, if it were not for this awful business, you would have easily accomplished this task. You were defending our engineer as appropriate.

Well, I feel that it is only appropriate that you be paid for that work. He pushes the little leather wallet in your direction. I mean, how much is... It would be 200 gold per light, so it would be about 600 gold, and those sheets of platinum would probably be 100 gold each, so it would be about 600 gold. Oh, have mercy on me. It seems only right that you would have accomplished the job if it were not for this terrible thing that happened.

And it is thanks to you that it has come to light. It has been brought to our attention so that it can be resolved. That is most generous of you. Oh no, not at all. I firmly believe in that if a man or woman does good work, they should be paid. They should get their reward. I do hope the halfling that was with us is doing all right. Teresa, is she okay? Yes, Illuminated Laventail, yes. Yes, Illuminated Laventale, yes.

She has been... She's being held by the authorities, by the authorities, which is only right, as they must conduct their investigation. Please, rest assured, I am doing everything I can to make sure that anyone who is innocent is not held accountable.

I unfortunately have to only go by what the authorities determine. My understanding is that there is still some possibility that Illuminator Lavendaire may be involved in this matter. When you say this, you... We were kind of talking. You see... Fate dice.

I did spend a fate dice. For podcast listeners, I spent a fate dice. You see... Fate dice. I did spend a fate dice. For podcast listeners, I spent a fate dice. You see Janya Cooper, the other guild master, like, folds her arms and is, like, glaring in all of your directions. But Tobias just says, like,

yes, it is my belief that there is some... The authorities want to make sure that the Illuminator at Lavendale is not involved in any of this. So she is being held in custody. I am doing my best. My own personal authorita, I've sent for the best from Kelskaris, but it may take them some time to arrive, to plea on her defence. Yes, and we've obviously given our witness report to the High Authority, claiming that of what little we know

of her, she was extremely innocent in the proceedings and awful what did happen to her. She was terrified. Yes, yes. That was the Authority said that there was some belief that maybe it was she was afraid

and that that triggered something or some matter with these sabotaged Everlights. Janya Cooper leans in. And just so we're clear, you had never met this Teresa Lavendale before your job. You got this job, right? You did not know each other before then. No. No.

We're very new to the town. Yes, but people can have connections even before they meet in person, but it's just strange to me that a group of strangers from outside of Ashenrest, outside of the Dragon Empire, come and then these strange disks are found

and there's some business with some affair going on and it's just a little... suspicious. I'm afraid these discs predate our arrival in Ashen's Rest. According to... According to me. Convenient. You can see that she's just sort of like...

And Tobias is like, Janja, please. We talked about this. Tobias, if I may. Yes, yes, please, Rowan. As we are, I'm going to say it, quite huge fans of your work.

Oh, thank you very much. Thank you. It's not all mine. I can't take all the credit. I had a few ideas here and there, but it was a team of us. You know, we know that 20 years ago, you stepped into the Lamblighters Guild

in its fledgling days, and you know, you... You've done some research on me, I see. Well, a little bit. A little each way, I suppose. A nod to when you see the Pharos Tower and you think, how did that get there? Yes, no. Either way, you know, you developed this technology.

Oh, I helped, yes. I mean, it was, I was a blacksmith for a long time, and I was very unhappy in that guild and everything else, but really it was working, it was meeting Morris and meeting many of the others that, we formed a team, you know, in our spare time we would

tinker with things. I used to, not so much any more ages unfortunately catching up with me but i used to be very good with my hands and we dreamed about what was possible you know combining magic and skill um and we we thought about it and you know it was at the time such a simple idea you know there are spells to create lights but they require resources and once they are gone they go out, you can't automate them or anything like that. And so there was a few of us and we put the ideas together. And now really it's been wonderful

to have the resources and the time to experiment. Figure a few things out. Please tell me that original crew with Morris is still here and working with you. Sadly, Morris and I are the only ones remaining. We're all getting on in our years. Some of them fell to sickness, others, unfortunately, to the likes of bandits whilst traveling. You know, it is a dangerous world out there.

I'm sorry to hear that. Oh, it is all right. You know, when you get to, and he's like in his early 70s, late 60s. He's like, when you... My age, you start accepting that time is running out. Well, hopefully. Hopefully I've got a bit more time in me yet.

I feel like I've just begun my career and my life. I feel like, you know, it's only 20 years ago, as I said, that I really brought this all to bear, and I feel like I've barely had time to enjoy it, but... Well, if I can attest to anything, so much can be done in such little time. Well, I hope so. Look at what we've done.

As arriving in Ashen's Rest, so much has happened to us. Oh, indeed, you are... I think that you are exactly the sort of people that we need. In Ashen's Rest, you're so full of courage and bravery and ambition and everything. Wonderful, very wonderful. Please, you make me blush. Oh, no. Either way, Janya quite rightly raises this disc thing.

And that's something that we discovered as well while we were helping Teresa with the lamplighter's defense. We obviously were incredibly surprised and taken aback by this horrible creature that came seemingly out of nowhere and possessed the poor halfling. And we wanted equally, because we were quite inquisitive, to find out what was going on and whether other people could be harmed. And so we took it upon ourselves to look at the broken light and see if there's anything untoward. And we also discovered this disc,

which we handed over as evidence. Yes, there was some report of it. I mean, when they came here, they were asking us about these discs, but I've not seen them. And it's not something that is in the technology of all the lights? No, no. I mean, there is a compartment. We have sort of a small power source. We use some elemental essence and things like that to power the lights sometimes when they break it they need to be repaired and replaced um so there is a compartment i mean that one could tamper with i suppose i imagine that that's what these discs are some something that replaces the normal power source something i i didn't i hyper focused i sorry. And I really researched you, Tobias, because I'm not very smart,

but I'm fascinated by the technology. How is it that you utilise technology to make the lights stay on? Well, it's a rather complex matter. It involves the use of magical essences and there is a sort of ley line of power here in Ashen Rest, one that we've established over many years. And what it does is, you know,

normally there are spells that can create a permanent light. It is the difficulty in maintaining them, but also automating them for when the sun goes down and activating them in sequence and things like that that we need to engage with. So it is a process of drawing on these sort of primal energy forces that we use to power the land. The earth, you know, there is a general energy to our world and it is drawn from there really.

Like I said, there is a sort of nexus of power within this land and it is just a matter of learning to tap into it and draw upon it and things like that. Much like a water wheel takes the flow of water. Yes one could call it that. Yes something like that yes yes. Well know, we have the heated pools here in Caldra for the bathhouses and things like that. They're heated by a geothermal spring. There is a sort of source of heat and magma, and then that heats the water and so forth.

It's sort of similar to that in a way. Fascinating. Yes, yes, yes. We're talking all this business here. Sorry, I got carried away. No carried away of course and we have fine fine company you know food is being brought in at this point um it is a variety of cauldron dishes um you know you have like grilled vegetables with like a kind of sprinkled salt um there is like fresh breads are brought in uh sliced meats, like a charcuterie

kind of thing is laid out for everybody. A mixture of things for different diets and things like that. Wine is brought in, all the water and drinks, fruits and vegetables and stuff like that. Janya is icily quiet throughout most of it and is just kind of like uncomfortably present and is just kind of like uncomfortably present and does not seem to like you being here, but is not saying anything directly. It's very obvious though. She's making no illusions that she does not like you being here.

I think that even after what she said to Xanthias, there was like a fire in his chest that started to grow a little bit that was like, oh, really? Yeah really yeah oh you're suspicious of us are you okay okay what do you mean by that john yeah listen i mean if you want to bring it up you can do but like eventually i think the conversation between rowan and tobias this very sort of like that kind of like dominated the conversation for a little bit and like the it kind of glances between the two. Yeah, there's, yeah,

there's like a not super subtle, like that hits Xanthius quite, in a weird way. Yeah. It hit on his pride, I'd say. okay,

yeah. Tobias, sort of as you begin eating, Tobias will actually turn to you, Ophelia. My dear, thank you.

It is quite an honour to have somebody from outside of the Empire. Oh, thank you. You is quite an honour to have somebody from outside of the Empire. Oh, thank you. You are the first guests of your homeland that I've been able to entertain. It is quite interesting. I do not know much of Osseous, but you do not follow the Scions and the Saints, is that right? No, no, I do not, no.

You have your own belief? Mm-hm, yes. How fascinating. What would this affair with this, I do not even wish to say its name, but this creature that came from... How would this be dealt with in your country? Do you have people that... Do you have authorities?

Do you have people that enforce laws and things like that? We have people of higher authority than ourselves that maintain control over the land and its laws. And have your people ever encountered these other, like these... And he makes the sign of, like, the sun. He's like, demons and devils. Have they ever... Have you ever encountered these things before?

They can occur, I suppose. Like, they can occur in Althea. They can crop up, but they're... But your faith is that... Oh, we don't worship devils and demons. You stand against them. We fight against them, yes. Do you think that it is...

Do you think that your people have a strong moral character and you are able to resist it? Oh, yes, yes, 100%, yes. I mean, that is what I hope of the Empire. You know, we are very devout people and whilst we may differ on our opinions, I know that there are some who are very zealous in their beliefs and things like that. It is, it was my hope that the people of Althea would never dream of, the people of the Empire would never dream of associating with these creatures of this like.

Yet they do show up. Yes. A weakness, perhaps. A weakness in their spirits. A shame. A terrible shame. Although I don't think Theresa is... I don't think pointing the finger at her is right, if that is what you're insinuating. that her faith is... Heavens, no....somewhat led her astray. Heavens, no, no, by all means. I think that, I mean, it seems that you said that she was quite scared and terrified. Perhaps it is, perhaps it is we who have failed her, not shown her that there is nothing to be afraid of,

that she would have been safe and protected. Or that she was just simply out of her depth and she didn't know what she was getting herself into? Yes, a belief in herself perhaps is lacking, but no, I did not mean to insinuate anything of the sort. It is my dearest hope that we can help the Illuminator with this matter. I hope so. I don't think prison would be a very pleasant place for her to be right now.

Oh, well, I must say I do not know if things are different in your homeland, but if it is, if she has been involved with these creatures, I think that jail would not be, she would not be sent off to a labor prison. It would be execution, I imagine. Jan, and at this point, Jan is just like, she's like, when Tobias says that, she's like,

like, disgusted by it. Like, you know, there's like this anger that builds up in her and she's just like, when Tobias says that, she's like, like, disgusted by it. Like, you know, there's like this anger that builds up in her and she's just like, you and your saints and scions, Tobias, just stop with the religious crap for a second here. You know, she's just like, look, for all we know, this Illuminator and these people are the ones who have summoned this thing and are now bringing our guild, our hard work into disrepute. Why are we even here? And she's like mad about it. Why indeed are you here, Genu? Because my fellow guildmaster asked me to come and meet with the people he thinks are helping.

But all you've done is make people lose faith in something I have worked immensely hard for. We've done no such thing. We just discovered what's happening. So you say. How do we know that you've not been paid off by one of these other guilds by the stonemasons or the blacksmiths to try and disrepute us? As I said these discs we found predate our arrival in Ashen's Rest. We found some from four years ago. Show me proof. I use my performance of creation, and I'm going to perfectly recreate the disc

and float it in front of Janya. Fucking god king. She, like, looks at it. It's physical, right? She can pick it up and stuff. I can create an object. Well, I mean, surely you're just showing me that you can create the exact thing

that you say you claim to find. Yes. You could have made this. You could have been the ones who inserted these and brought this demon or devil or whatever it was. These are all very accusatory. Can I show her? I think Daisy did a sketch of it

when we picked it out of the first lamp. Can I just show her my sketch as well and say this is from what we saw. We haven't brought these with us. What are you hoping for? You're showing me that you know exactly what these things are, that you could have made them.

The only word, the only proof that you have that you aren't the ones who did it is your word that you found them four years ago. Who are you to give me your word? Who are you? A dragonborn? What family are you from? I am Xanthius

of Host Oregon, and I am telling the truth here. We discovered these things. It's why we're able to recreate their likeness so well. Oh, God, I've never... That's no cauldron host. Like...

It isn't. A host from Gildai. But... She's just like, now we have another dragon host, another province. Of course they want to disrepeat us. Like, she's just like, this is host, another province. Of course they want to disrepute us. Like, she's just like, this is ridiculous, Tobias. If you want to speak to these people,

you're more than welcome to. And she gets up to leave. And she throws the disc on the ground. She's just like, I've heard enough. If you really cared about the guild that you worked so hard on, you would help us to find out what's happening with it. I don't need your help to do that.

I'm doing my own work. I don't trust you. I'm going to get'm doing my own work. I don't trust you. I'm gonna get to the bottom of this. And then she leaves. Oh. I am so sorry. I am so sorry. Janya is very protective of the guild

and she's very suspicious of outsiders. She is, she does not have as open mind as I do. I'm deeply sorry. It is fine. No. It is not fine. It is not fine, Rowan. That is very kind of you to say, but it is not fine. I may have to speak with the others. It may be time that we consider

taking Janya out of her position as guildmaster. I think it's important that we focus on what's important here, and that is that something bad is happening, yes. And that... Now that we are alone, may I confide a little in you? Please. He is an old friend of mine, our chief illuminator. I genuinely in my heart do not believe that Morris would willingly work with these. I do not believe that Morris would purposely develop something that could be involved in all of this, but he has gone missing and he was the last one

to speak with Theresa Lavendale. I'm afraid. I'm afraid that he's being blackmailed or coerced or something. I worry that he may be dead. How long has he been missing for? That is just the thing. I saw him the day just before the authorities came that afternoon. And by the evening,

when they came to us first thing in the morning to investigate, Morris was missing. I said goodbye to him. He went to his chambers, and then he vanished. Do you know any places that he goes frequently? Anyone that he talks to regularly that we could maybe talk to? He mainly stayed within the Pharos.

He was so dedicated to his work. Now, that said... There was something... mentioned a place... Yes, there was somewhere he was going for business arrangements. Afraid I don't know much more than that. It was outside of Ashen Rest, is all I can tell you. But it was rare for him to leave.

I do not believe he would have left of his own accord. What? Maybe... Maybe... Maybe it could have... He travelled somewhere. It was a few days he was missing. Before, long before, Farros, maybe, or perhaps even beyond Emberford.

To the south, at least. Why are you bringing this to us and not to the authorities? Well, the authorities are currently treating Morris as a suspect. He's my oldest friend. I do not believe him to be involved in the way that they think that he is. I mention this now to all of you in the hopes that maybe you can find him before they do. Prove that he is not involved, that he's a victim in all of this. prove that he is not involved, that he's a victim in all of this?

It's not a terrible idea. We don't want people to be throwing around baseless accusations. Now, what do you know about these discs and what actually happened? Very little. I know that there was some sort of disc, something that was placed in the light, that it conjured some sort of disc, something that was placed in the light, that it conjured some sort of smoke creature.

I've heard the word demon and devil mentioned, but that is all, I'm afraid. We know a little more based on our research. I'm spending a fate dice. Okay. Looking at these discs, there are markings on hidden inside.

He picks up the creation. You said that this is one that you found before. Yes, it's not my best work, but it's pretty accurate. Based on what I know of it, how accurate is it? Yeah, I mean, it's not my best work but it's pretty accurate based on what i know of it like how accurate is it yeah i mean it's like 100 like rowan can create a perfect recreation of something as long as he's okay he's familiar with it yeah yeah like so he's exactly it's the prototype one you created like the four years ago one right yeah so he's looking at it like yes i can see

how this could be this could be placed where the usual conductor, we would call it, an elemental conductor, that normally draws on the primal power. This is something else, so it fits similar in design, but different. This is unfortunately tapping into energies and connecting itself to the Twin Pits. Saints and Scions.

Makes the sign of the sun over himself. This is terrible. Not only did it create that demon. Sorry to say the word. But the light itself. Poor Teresa was in that light with this disc and it was causing her emotions to run rampant. She got more and more panicked.

My goodness. That's why some citizens got really angry. It heightens emotions. Negative emotions, specifically. Well, thank goodness that you found them and you've disabled them for now, but, I mean, surely we would have found... There would have been more reports of this

if this was happening. Could I do an insight check? Sure. See if he... Can I use the device? Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. I'm too distracted.

I'm boiling. Fucking Jenny. I think Jenny's going to fucking die in her sleep. 21. Oh! Whisper! And they're just... We've found three so far from years ago.

Sorry. Yeah? In my, while this is happening, can I please use one of my radiant dice and I want to connect to Rowan and Xanthias because they're doing most of the talking and say to them, he's hiding something, he's not telling the truth. Well, I think I would be...

This is rehearsed. Mid-sentence, right? Like when I was saying... Yeah, but you can continue that thought, yeah. There might be like a moment where I'm always like... There's like a stutter or a stammer where you have to recover yourself. I'll just say...

I'm spending a fate dice. I'll say, this is rehearsed. He's got a fucking gun. We need to keep digging. He's got a fucking gun. We need to keep digging. He's got a shooter. Yeah, I would finish the sentence of like, we found three, one in the bath house, one outside, et cetera, et cetera.

Terrible. So yes, we believe there would be many more in the city if someone was to investigate all the lights. Do you know about the Enticing Devil? The old inn that was, I remember that there was, the church quite rightly made, was upset with the naming convention. And there was some business, it was sold, I've heard that there's some

rumors about ghosts and spirits and the like. Yes, well your lights may be responsible for the ghost that currently resides there. Am I sorry, how is that possible? Well, Kavon was not a very nice man and the aura that the lights produced may have heightened his emotions, and we suspect that he may have murdered his wife. My goodness, by the sights and sounds, that is quite a... We found an early prototype of this disc in that light. Still, that is quite a statement

to make. Can you even be sure that he was under the effects of this whatever it was? It could have just been that he was some nefarious ne'er-do-well, surely. I've had direct contact with

the lady who currently resides there. I see. And she showed me what she saw. And it... If it's a coincidence, it's a very close one. I see. Surely it's not entirely out of the question, given how extreme Teresa's effects were from the lights,

to think that it could have affected someone else, especially if it was an earlier version of the same discs. Yes, yes, yes. Very, yes, yes. You're right, yes. It is possible. It is shocking, but possible. The placement of these discs also seems to align with Geralt's.

This is all very important information. I think you have highlighted to me it is more important than ever that we find Morris. I think that he holds much of the information that is important to this. Would you, I could arrange for you to examine his quarters. I mean, the authorities have already been there, but... Can we have dessert?

Yes, of course, yes, I can have that brought for you, but you could arrange to examine his quarters. I mean, the authorities have already been there, but... Can we have dessert? Yes, of course, yes, I can have that brought for you, but you could arrange to examine his quarters. Perhaps you might find something the authorities missed. Sorry, while Ophelia was speaking with him there, I wanted to almost, in my mind... You can still talk to me. Yeah, yeah. Oh, how many hours? One hour. One hour?

Talk to me for an hour. Okay, I just need to me. Yeah, yeah. Oh, how many hours? One hour. One hour? Talk to me for an hour. Okay, I just need 12 seconds. Yeah. What do you mean? What is he hiding? I don't know, but he's hiding something. This whole thing is rehearsed. I don't think this is the first time he's heard any of this,

but he's acting like it is. He's acting like this is the first time that he's heard the full effects of it, and he's passing... He says that he doesn't the full effects of it, and he's passing... He says that he doesn't think Morris is involved, and I don't know, there's a bad vibe. I think maybe he's... He already knows everything we're telling him.

Yeah, I think so. Yeah, it's like the way that he's reacting to the stuff, like Daisy was able to pick up that he was just too quick to... The responses just didn't feel quite right and genuine. Whereas the rest of you are like, yeah, this seems pretty legit, like, he's on it. Roman's gonna say, and he's really bad at multitasking, so if he was speaking, he'd be like, like this.

Yeah. This is bad, because now he knows we know everything. I don't think we should, I think we should actually go and talk to Janya. Oh, please. With that, because we are pretty much out of time here, the sort of dessert is brought out, and Tobias will, you know,

this conversation's been going on while you've been eating, Tobias will say, I would be very grateful, and I would be willing to put my vast amounts of wealth and resources into helping find Morris. If you were able to do that, I could arrange for payments. If there is anything you need to help that investigation, consider it. I would be more than willing to pay for it. I seem to remember... Yes, he mentioned one thing. There is an old ruin not far from here. There was once a citadel that was

between here and Gildai, and the ley lines of power within this land, the primal energies are quite strong there. Moris always used to talk about it. Wonder if... No, no. But if you could search for him, I would be most grateful.

This party... brings justice to light. We will do everything in our power. Thank you, I'm pleased to hear this. I know that Ashen Rests and this guild are in good hands. We are by your side, Tobias. Thank you, my friend. I wink really hard at the rest of the party.

Yeah, Okay. Don't do that. Want to spend a fate dice? I don't know. I spent one on mine. Two more. You hear the wink. The really wet eyelid.

Huh? Right. Go on. Just before we finish the episode, I would say that we refuse, I would suggest that we refuse the money as well for the job, just in case it would interfere with the investigation. Or we could take it and spend it and get your curses removed. I am wary of them coming up, cooking up some kind of lie about...

600 gold sat right there. We will accept the gold once we're on the other side of the investigation, but for now, what's that? It's the money I'm offering. I know, Mark! And I want it, Mark! First you reject demon-infused loot. I know, but. And now platinum!

I don't trust these. I would say we can accept it on the other side of the investigation when everything is cleared up, but for now... You're no gildi. I don't trust these people not to cook up some story. Is everyone like, yep, cool with that? Yeah, fair enough, yeah. Rowan's taking it?

No. All right. In that case, you don't get the 600 gold. I'm so sure. And with that, we're going to end today's episode. Thanks so much for joining us if they're good people we'll get it on the other side

I feel like Gruffydd would force us to not take it as well well Gruff's not there that is it for today's episode

thank you so much for joining us everybody and we will see you next time for more Althea the Dragon Empire bye goodbye See you next time for more Althea, The Dragon Empire. Bye! Bye!