Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:00 Hey, Barry. Hey Al, when I hear a D and D joke, not particularly, but go ahead. Faco it's signed for compelled. <inaudible> hello everybody. And welcome back to compelled duel. I Al and I'm Barry and we are a single-player Cody and fifth edition Dungeons and dragons, actual play podcast. Last time
Speaker 1 00:00:37 Compelled duel Ferrara, Val sign had just the roughest day. She lost her best friend slash friends with benefits question Mark. She learned a lot of things about her birth mother and her life that she previously did not know. And she perhaps against her will made a new friend, a young Druid named Verity from the enclave of worshipers of an ancient goddess known only as the storm bringer that make their home in a ruined silent city in the South of us.
Speaker 0 00:01:13 Yeah. And the time before that, Oh boy, Later, they'll sign a woke up, having been taken captive to the city of Esther myths in the sovereign principalities of tore down, his life was kind of threatened just like a bit. Um, and also he had to break up with his girlfriend. So that sucks. It sucks
Speaker 1 00:01:41 Just so bad what's happening now.
Speaker 0 00:01:46 So we pick back up, I would say about two weeks after that whole thing, Zed, stone bloom. After that whole event, the morning after said that he thought it would be best if your ragtag little crew, uh, took refuge with his mother who resides under the protection of the order of the golden tusk, which is a monk order that is located in the mountain range to the West of the sovereign principalities of her dune. It takes a little while to get there. You are hiking the entire way. Two weeks pass. You are cresting the Ridge of a mountain when Zed just kind of stops because I think he's at the front of the pack. So he just stops. And he like crosses his arms over his chest. Well, we're here. Leo teeth chattering says, how far are we from the nearest blanket?
Speaker 0 00:02:50 Zed got down in the back. As you dry, even with him and says, uh, 15 minutes, give or take. And you see over Ridge, a bunch of little houses that all were visibly like built in different era's there's a big stone square where you can see where it has been expanded, like where the stone changes. There's a big public building that has pretty much an open front. You see a bunch of people milling around in there. A bunch of people practicing like the same martial arts forms that Zed uses when he's fighting Zed, heaves, a big sign, and just starts walking down a path on this Ridge, into this big town.
Speaker 2 00:03:32 Leo is just going to mutely follow him for a lot of reasons. He is not feeling up to par to question anything, Mia and ravine are still with us, right? Yup. Okay. Yeah. I'm just going to follow him. I don't think,
Speaker 0 00:03:48 Or ravine is really going to say much because they have also been hiking for the past two weeks meal looks fine.
Speaker 2 00:03:55 Ravine is
Speaker 0 00:03:57 Not having a good time. That leads you down into this big square roll perception.
Speaker 2 00:04:03 That's a 17, uh,
Speaker 0 00:04:06 Zed told you that the order was largely orcas, but not exclusively. You see that reflected. There are a lot of people that are either entirely or partially of orcas descent, like visibly. And you notice that pretty much everybody you run into does a double-take when they said,
Speaker 2 00:04:23 Can I do an insight check on Zed to see how he's doing. Go ahead. That will be a 23.
Speaker 0 00:04:32 You watched Zed notice all the looks that he's getting. And he like rolls. His neck, rolls his shoulders back. He looks visibly uncomfortable. You watch him like reach up to scratch the back of his neck, cross his arms over his chest and like scratch at the inside of his elbow and shit. He is visibly nervous. You see it a little kid, maybe like 14 yell, Zed, welcome back. And he goes,
Speaker 2 00:04:56 Yeah, ducks his head and keeps walking. I'll roll another insight. Check if I have to. But what I know about <inaudible> history is that he has told me that he used to be a part of this order. They didn't like his extracurricular activities and he can't name drop too often, or else things will go bad. Can I roll something to see what I can put together about that? Or maybe we could use my passive insight. I mean, my passive insight is a 17. Yeah. I think just passive insight, like as you're watching you
Speaker 0 00:05:31 Together, that is at least to his own mind, not supposed to be here, but you don't know if that's just because he hasn't been back in a while, but he looks like he doesn't feel like he belongs here right now.
Speaker 2 00:05:43 I note that and just keep following him. I think
Speaker 0 00:05:47 Sleeper vein has got to go, uh, was this a bad idea?
Speaker 2 00:05:54 Ravine, all due respect. This was the only that didn't
Speaker 1 00:05:58 End up with us all scavenging for acorns in the woods until we got hunted down and killed. So I don't know how bad we can relate.
Speaker 0 00:06:06 We call it, he purchases lips into a fine line and goes, fair enough, I guess, and said, put the hand up at both view and goes, look, it's fine. We're not going to get in deep trouble. I don't think that a Tawny define deep
Speaker 1 00:06:25 Because my definition of deep trouble has changed dramatically over the years,
Speaker 0 00:06:30 Past month. Look, the order takes in asylum seekers. So the three of you are fine. He leads you down a little stone path to a very nice little house. It's very small, but it's very cozy looking. There's a vegetable garden out front and you see a woman fussing around with it, pulling weeds, not super tall, but like willowy average height, not as distinctly of orcas heritage as Zed is, you know, Zed to be a half work. But she has like a bit of a point to her ears. She has dark skin with a green undertone, big black and gold eyes like sad does. And the tiniest little bits of tusks coming out over her top lip, long hair pulled back in pretty thick locks in a ponytail. She just fussing around pulling weeds and she straightens up to like crack her back. And you watch her notice that Zed is there. She drops the basket that she has in her hands and that she says Zed. And then she grabs it and she just hugs him like bear hug, Zed, like hesitantly hugs her back, pats her back gingerly and into her shoulder says Camilla, it's so great to see you.
Speaker 0 00:07:49 They hug for a second. And then gingerly backs up and then half turns to look at you and ran and Matt and says, uh, this is Kamiyah. Um, she's my mother's. And then he hesitates. And then Camila says life actually and says, Oh shit, you guys got married. And Camila says, yeah, that's what happens when you don't write for four years, said stuff, changes.
Speaker 1 00:08:19 Leo's eyes go a little bit wide. And he just looks down at the ground. He's not saying anything
Speaker 0 00:08:26 Who then just like reaches back again and like rubs the back of his neck. And then he says, yeah, got it. Uh, this is, and then he points at you and says, uh, Leo ravine, Mia, uh, they're friends of mine. We didn't have anywhere else to go. I think
Speaker 1 00:08:46 Just out of courtesy and practice, Leo is going to step forward and do a very respectful bow and say, layer of Val sign grand Duco. Steria very pleased to meet you.
Speaker 2 00:08:57 Yeah, I think she like, Bob's a little bowtie. You also, and she says, can we let you better? It's very nice to meet you. Uh, any friend of Ed's I suppose, role insight 12 with a 12, um, she shoots Zed kind of a look as she says that, but you can't interpret the look. She's going to pass that on the shoulder and say, ah, your mom's inside and Zed slumps a little bit and says, I got to go in there. Huh? She like raises her eyebrows and nods and says I would recommend it. Yeah. I would recommend going inside. Now
Speaker 1 00:09:39 If set goes in, I suppose that I follow him. I don't know what ravine and Mia are doing.
Speaker 2 00:09:45 Ravine is actually going to raise a hand and go, I don't think I need to be involved in this. Can I help you with your garden? And Camila says, sure. Yeah, that sounds great. And Mia, without saying anything to anybody just sits down on the road.
Speaker 1 00:10:03 I mean, apparently said need some fucking emotional support for whatever the hell is about to happen. So I go with him.
Speaker 2 00:10:10 Yeah. Zed walks into the house and you follow the second you walk in, you smell rich, meaty, spicy smells. Something is cooking in like the back of this house is that immediately kicks off his shoes. Just first step in the door immediately kicks them off and then looks at you pointedly and says she's off now, Leo
Speaker 1 00:10:34 Frowns, but toes, his six inch stilettos that he's been hiking in for two weeks off and kind of size and relief and goes, Oh,
Speaker 2 00:10:43 Okay. That's nice actually. And as you're doing that, someone comes out from this back room. You got a good look at her before anything happens. Woman of orange descent, probably like a half work. You think it looks a lot like Zed, Zed has kind of around her face. Like she has a very square jaw. She has a nose that has visibly been broken at least three times. But otherwise she looks very much like said they have very similar features like through the cheek bones of the forehead, same phase, same like golden black model. It eyes, same straight black hair. But hers is cut very short. She is, I would say about 50. You think just wearing very plain monks garb. There is a moment where she just like walks out and then she stops. And just very calmly. She says Zed and Zed immediately tenses up. He starts to say, I know, I know. And then she is charging across the room. Oh, you don't understand what she's yelling. She's yelling in orchid. I'd like to cast. I have
Speaker 3 00:11:54 Tongues prepared, which means that like any creature that I touch, which that can be myself can understand and communicate in any language that they need to. I'd like to do that as subtly as possible.
Speaker 2 00:12:08 That still just has an arm up. He goes ma wait. And you immediately understand what this woman is saying. Just very loud. She is yelling. You don't write for four years young man. And you come into my house on announced and Zen just replies in orchestra. I know, I know. Listen, listen. And then she is yelling back. You didn't have an address. I had no way of contacting you.
Speaker 3 00:12:33 It just has a fist up to his mouth. Like, Ooh, I'll check on all of this. Go down.
Speaker 2 00:12:42 And just frantic, Oregon. That is going, okay, listen, listen, a lot happened. I forget to write. Okay. I just forget it happens. You know, it happens. And other yells back for years, Zen, Liam, those
Speaker 3 00:12:57 Eyes are just getting progressively bigger and bigger throughout this exchange.
Speaker 2 00:13:02 Yeah. Zed out of the corner of his eyes sees you. And just like with the demeanor of someone reaching for a lifeline gestures at you and say, look, my friend and I were in a tough spot and we just need somewhere to stay for a little bit. And that's mom turns and looks you in the eyes. Oh, so your friend is in some trouble. The young man has baggage. Does he Zed? Where are we going to store his baggage? Is, is it going into your room? I take a step forward. Yeah.
Speaker 3 00:13:36 And just nod in her direction. Hi, I'm so sorry for the intrusion. I wasn't aware. And I look over, it said that we were rolling in on announced and possibly unwanted. My name is Layal foul sign. I'm the grand Duke of Australia. And I so appreciate your hospital.
Speaker 2 00:13:58 Her body language shifts in a way that you recognize as like Zed, when he's trying to be professional, she like straightens her shoulders and like cracks her neck. And then very calmly says, I apologize for my rudeness. And then she likes side-eye Zed. And then she sticks out of hand,
Speaker 3 00:14:18 Leo frowns down at the hand and kind of tilts his head to the side because Australians don't shake hands unless they're making a deal.
Speaker 2 00:14:26 Zen just puts his head in his hands and then very quietly. It says, Leo, this is my mother Lynn stone bloom. Um, I hate this. And then Lynn very sharply says don't be rude. I also really don't like that.
Speaker 3 00:14:44 The idea of myself coming across as rude.
Speaker 2 00:14:49 Do you have an apothecary here at the order and apothecary a pharmacy, a healer. Oh, anywhere Leo flinches. He's like
Speaker 3 00:15:02 Dirty as shit from hiking through the mountains for two weeks in his I'm sure. Now ripped formal robes and worn down.
Speaker 2 00:15:12 Um,
Speaker 3 00:15:13 We have been on the road for a while and our departure was not expected. And um, I have been without a certain medication that I really need to function normally for about two and a half weeks now. And I feel like dog shit right now.
Speaker 2 00:15:34 Yeah. She looks you up and down. She says, ah, yeah, got it. And then she turns to that and she says, do you want to take your friend to the apothecary that Camila? And I usually go to, or you want to stay here and continue this discussion that says I got it. I got it. I'm going. Um, then his mom says, good, good. I'll just get your room ready, which I could have done. If you had, you know, sent me a letter that you were coming to visit Zed. And that says, I know, I know, I know Leo.
Speaker 3 00:16:08 I was just looking frantically back and forth between the two of them. Like, what the fuck have I gotten myself into? But then yeah, I'm walking back outside.
Speaker 2 00:16:17 He leads the outside. And then he like grabs her vein by the shoulder and says, okay, YouTube pharmacy time. Let's go. Oh no, no, no,
Speaker 3 00:16:25 No, no, no, no, no, no, no. What the hell was that? I mean, please do continue taking us to the apothecary because I am at breaking out in a way that I haven't, since I was 80 and have been cramping for the last three days. So super need to go. But also what the fuck was that?
Speaker 2 00:16:42 That Irvine like quietly says, yeah, I need to go to, I have like a layer of oil on my skin that is very unpleasant. And then that again just puts his head in his hands and Camila very quietly says, so I take it. She wasn't happy that just says understatement, understatement of the decade. And then Camille just nausea goes, I'll go inside and talk to her and said, just says, thank you. Thanks. Yup. And Camelia goes inside and then he just keeps a big sign. So the short version is, uh, some stuff happened a few years ago for me and I haven't been home since. And I just, I just forget to write, okay, I have ADHD. I do my beds. I had like
Speaker 3 00:17:39 Cool insight on him. Like as to is he limiting this because he doesn't want to talk to me about it or because he doesn't want to talk about it
Speaker 2 00:17:46 In front of her vein. Okay. Yeah. Rolling site. That is a 21. He is mostly looking at you as he's saying this and like grimacing, you get the impression that he would be open to talking to you about it. He doesn't want to talk about it in front of ravine and Mia and he doesn't want to talk about it in the open where strangers can hear,
Speaker 1 00:18:08 Okay. I'm filing that away for later reference and then just following him to the apothecary. Okay.
Speaker 2 00:18:14 You go to the apothecary, you get your meds.
Speaker 1 00:18:18 Yeah. Leo pops the top off the potion bottle and just like slugs probably a little bit more than he should back and goes, you know how I cried over a squirrel yesterday?
Speaker 2 00:18:29 Yeah. I noticed that this
Speaker 1 00:18:31 Is what I need to not have to worry about. That
Speaker 2 00:18:35 Society was like looking at the potion bottle that he has in his hand and going, I don't know how the dosage matches. I mean, I do two capsules every night, you know what, fuck it. Pop the top off at glug glug. Did you also cry over a squirrel? I haven't cried yet, but I just feel so bloated.
Speaker 1 00:18:55 He puts his hand up for a high five rather than begrudgingly
Speaker 2 00:19:01 Zed still just had in his hands goes. Okay. Yeah. We should, uh, time to face the music, I guess guys
Speaker 1 00:19:12 There or anywhere. Um, baths. Like, could I take a bath? I'm so done.
Speaker 2 00:19:19 Uh, yeah, we got hot Springs. That would be, yeah, that would be great. That would take some time that we would not be there at the house.
Speaker 1 00:19:26 Okay. Yeah. It seems like you and your mom had some things to work out. So why don't we just go handle that first and I can be a little stinky while that goes down and then I'll just go do my own thing later. How, how does that sound? It's fine. Yeah.
Speaker 2 00:19:40 You know what, all three of you go. I will go finish that conversation with my mom.
Speaker 1 00:19:48 Just based on my earlier insight check. I'm kind of going to narrow my eyes at him. You sure you want to do that without backup? It seemed like it was a little, uh,
Speaker 2 00:20:00 She means, well, she is just a little, Hmm. She just has a very particular idea of how things should work. Okay, Beth. It is. Where do I go? Yeah. And he'll give you directions to like a hot spring, you and Mia and ravine, all kind of like shuffle off.
Speaker 1 00:20:20 I am just taking the most luxurious bath I possibly can and washing my hair like four times
Speaker 2 00:20:27 You intervene in me. I'll have very nice baths. Uh, do you want to do anything or do you want to head back to the house?
Speaker 1 00:20:33 Um, just while we're at the hot spring, I'd like to have a conversation with Mia. Oh, great. Yeah. Just very calmly while they're all I guess, sitting there getting clean two weeks
Speaker 4 00:20:48 Of hiking up a mountain, Leo says so, um, for somebody who, by the way, intents and purposes appears to have been sent by Kimmerle you've really been in the mutton the shit these last couple of weeks, huh? Yeah. It gives you just the slow sideways smile, darlin. This is not the worst position that I have been in, in service to him. Like to roll insight on them. I want to make it very clear that even after two weeks of hiking up a mountain together, Leo does not trust them still. And that's fair all on say that's a dirty 20 Mia looks totally relaxed. Just not even really caring about this conversation. I think as they're talking, they're like reaching back and washing their hair. I'm also trying to cross-reference all of their like mannerisms behaviors, things they do with things that will be typically as true, just mannerisms wise in your experience, assurance tend to be a little more buttoned up and like careful Mia is body language wise, very loose, like leaning back in this hot spring, kind of like running their hands over the rocks, touching a lot of things in a way that is not typical.
Speaker 4 00:22:05 You think they seem like they are someone that is used to being in a position of authority. That's about all you get though. Cool. That makes me trust them even less. They're like reaching back to wash their hair and they go darlin, listen, I do what is needed of me, where I am sent. And then I move on to the next thing. So this is all very, yeah. Fun and everything, but I'm not particularly attached. I don't particularly care about your opinion or really realistically your laugh. If we're being honest, we both know whose approval I am looking for here. And in a language you recognize the Sherry and priests tongue, they say, and until he asked me to go somewhere else, you ain't getting rid of me.
Speaker 4 00:23:05 Good to know where we stand. Isn't it just, I'm a little bit more worried about said safety than my own right now. I feel like we should probably go check on him. He might be dead. That'd be a shame. Wouldn't it? I saw you flirting with him, by the way, darlin. I got to test the waters. At least once the waters aren't safe, there are sharks Nan. Now, no need to get caddy. And they climb out of the hotspotting ravine just on the side. Cause huh, Mia's gone. Right? Like they've gotten up and walked away. I turned back to her a vein and say, this that's a grown man. He can do, but he wants, I fully respect that. I don't trust them. And I don't think you should either. Riban kind of frowns very slowly. Like he's picking his words carefully. He says after the month that I've had, I don't really think I should take advice on who to trust from you, which I'm not saying to be mean just an observation. I'm going to go.
Speaker 2 00:24:34 The horrible thing is that you're right. And then Leo gets up and gets out of Lodz spring and he goes back to his dad's mom's house. You get back to the house. Things are calm, roll insight. 24, you walk in Zed. And the woman who identified herself as Camila are setting a table and says, mom is with like restrained annoyance, ladling soup into bowls. She looks very annoyed, but calm, like in a calm way. And then shoulders are pretty tense. It seems like they had a very difficult conversation that maybe wasn't resolved the way anyone wanted it to be. But they don't know what else to say about it. Camila is going to say, okay, hi everybody. Let's sit down. Let's eat. Everybody looks hungry. She looks almost manic. Like she's grinning super wide. I haven't eaten anything that wasn't squirrel. That was why I cried over the squirrel yesterday, by the way said, or like salvaged mushrooms for the past two weeks.
Speaker 2 00:25:41 Soup. Sounds amazing. Thank you so much, Ms. Camila. I really appreciate it. Oh, well, uh, Lynn made it and Linda's like aggressively ladle soup into a bowl and says, everybody sit down. I do. So Zed is like scarfing food, trying to get done with this as quick as possible finishes in record time, puts the ball down and says, so Leo, let's go to my room and uh, let's talk. We should talk. We should talk in a room that is not this one. I'd like to roll insight on that. Go ahead. 17. It looks so awkward. He's having a rough day. Yeah. That's pretty much all you pick up. He does not want to be in this room right now. Okay. Yeah. I'm going to follow him set of windows. And then he leads you into this modestly appointed little room. There's like a cot in it. Bits and bobs that very recognizably look like brick, a BRAC that like Zed would have picked up carved figurines and shit. And then Zed sits down on the cot in the middle of the room and just put the sat in his hands.
Speaker 3 00:26:53 So, um, uh, are we gonna both talk freely now? Cause I know that that's been a thing that hasn't been happening for the last couple.
Speaker 2 00:27:04 Yup, yup, yup, yup. Let's yeah. We should have a serious discussion and then he'd reaches up and does his hair from his ponytail and just says, uh, so I,
Speaker 3 00:27:20 I'm starting to realize that you gave up a lot by bringing me here. That's about all I've realized. So I feel like I should lead into the conversation with, thank you because I know I haven't been super functional since Esther meth. I regret putting you in a bad situation, but also you may have saved all of our lives. So genuinely, truly thank you.
Speaker 2 00:27:53 He just sits back up and runs a hand back through his hair. It's it's fine. She, she means well, and we have a pretty good relationship. Usually I just didn't leave on the best terms. You know,
Speaker 3 00:28:15 I've got a good bit of my own experience with ending things on bad terms. But if you don't want to talk about it, I'm not going to push you to, you saved all of our lives by bringing us here. You don't even own us that much less anything beyond it.
Speaker 2 00:28:37 Zed takes a very deep breath. Look at just stuff. I was young and stupid. I got involved with someone that I really thought I could trust and thought wanted the same things that I did. And that turned out to not be true.
Speaker 3 00:29:04 Yeah. And now your mom's pissed at all of us, right? So what happened before?
Speaker 2 00:29:10 She's not pissed. It, I have legendarily shitty taste in men. She knows this and she knows that the last time I got involved with someone that he, uh, took advantage of me in some really deep and personal
Speaker 4 00:29:42 And it didn't work out so great. She's not pissed at everybody. She's just very aware that I have a tendency to let people in that take advantage of me. And she's worried that that's what's happening here. And she knows that. I wouldn't tell her if it was Leo flinches super hard and says, I wouldn't put that on you. If I knew I, I offered to go. I didn't want to make things hard for you. I'm sorry. No, it's okay. Look. And then he grabbed the hand over his face and he says, you know the version of me now I'm 27 goddamn years old. I'm relatively stable. And we all know, I like to drink now and then, but it doesn't go further.
Speaker 4 00:30:49 The last, the last guy I dated, I was 23. I was into some hard shit that put me in a really bad place. And I ha I was losing hours at a time. And I don't know all that went down in that time that I don't remember. I know that he had some very specific ambitions and that I am a big intimidating guy. Who's willing to do a lot for people. This is not that situation. I know what I'm doing here. I just can't seem to convince my mother of that purchases, lips nods and says, so this guy, Oh, well, what, what meant? Where does he live? Look, it's none of your business. And I don't want to risk him coming back into my life. So let's just drop it. I wasn't born yesterday said I can figure out that this person has already come back into your life by way of a knife in your back in the time that I've known you. So are we going to talk or are we going to talk? Look, he has a lot of money and a lot of pull. And if I had just keep my head down, then I can mostly stay out of the way. And that is all I'm looking to do here. So, uh, hitching your horse to my particular wagon, probably didn't. Do you any favors then? Did yeah. Well
Speaker 0 00:32:42 Chimes priorities change besides don't give yourself too much credit. I'm very capable of getting in trouble
Speaker 4 00:32:50 On my own Theo, quietly, snorts to himself and goes, yeah, I know you are. It's why we get along so well that laughs
Speaker 0 00:33:03 Slumps back down and puts his head back in his hands. Oh, this sucks.
Speaker 4 00:33:10 Yeah. I, I know it does. And I get that. It's at least partially my fault that it sucks this bad. So if there's anything I can do to make it suck less while we're hanging out here, just let me know. Okay. Yeah. Let's just get through the next 48 hours and figure out what conditions are on me saying here sounds like the most detailed game plan any of us have had in the past month. At least. Yeah. Yeah. God shut out. I'm sorry that I, I haven't been in the kind of shape I needed to be, to make calls over the last couple of weeks. I know that that, wasn't what you signed up for and it wasn't your job. I'm I'm working on it. I thought I'd be doing better than this, but I guess not that nods. And then he just gets to his feet and then claps you on the shoulder and says, like
Speaker 0 00:34:21 I said, as someone with a lot of experience with hitting rock bottom,
Speaker 4 00:34:24 Adam that's, ain't it, that scares me a hell of a lot more than it comforts me, but okay.
Speaker 0 00:34:33 He just shrugs. He says, yeah, I never said I was good at advice. And then he pushes past, back into the main room of the house.
Speaker 4 00:34:42 Okay.
Speaker 0 00:34:42 You have a relatively peaceful day. And then the next morning, a very stuffy older Orkin man comes by the house and has a conversation with says, mom, you can cast tongues if you want to. I've had a long rest at that point. Why not? So it's a conversation and an orchestra, basically it boils down to this old man says, yeah, Zed is not supposed to be here. And his mom says that he and his companions are seeking asylum, that they won't be here for very long. And this old man basically says, Lynn, you know why he's not supposed to be here. And that's mom says I've got a handle on it. And it boils down to Zed is not to leave his mother's house without being accompanied by her or Camila for the duration of your stay.
Speaker 4 00:35:34 What about the rest of us? So like Leo ravine, Mia,
Speaker 2 00:35:38 You guys are fine. He doesn't say anything about you. How long ago
Speaker 3 00:35:43 Stay are we looking at? Cause I have thoughts.
Speaker 2 00:35:48 It seems like you can stay as long as you want. It's just kind of, how long is it going to take you to get your shit together and how long can Zed stand being stuck at his mom's house? I think
Speaker 3 00:35:59 First thing Leo would do would be to approach her vein like a day or two. And
Speaker 2 00:36:05 There are not a lot of places to get away from people in Ms Lensa and William's house. You can corner a vein pretty easily. I mean,
Speaker 3 00:36:16 On a corner, him and it's not a conversation that needs to be had in private, but I feel like kind of, as soon as he can, Leo approaches him and says, Hey, we're vain. Um, I'm really sorry for all the shit I said after Esther myth. And I know that that doesn't fix anything, but, um, I just wanted it on record.
Speaker 2 00:36:43 You caught revamp leafing through his spell book and he looks up at you flip the page, looks back down and says, apology noted
Speaker 3 00:36:52 Everything. You said you were right. I made a promise and some bad shit went down and I tried to back out on it, which wasn't fair. So if you'd like to go take a walk with me, maybe we can try a couple things and I can try to take a couple steps towards fulfilling that promise if you're interested.
Speaker 2 00:37:17 Well, I haven't really slept since that whole thing. So yeah, I would love to get a handle on this because I am currently doing a lot of caffeine so that I don't turn into a big mushroom man. Okay.
Speaker 3 00:37:34 So maybe we should, uh, not be in town for this. Yes.
Speaker 2 00:37:38 Yeah. Historically bad shit has happened when other people get too close. If I am sleepwalking
Speaker 3 00:37:48 To be fair, you've already tried to kill me once and you didn't succeed. So my track record is pretty
Speaker 2 00:37:54 To be fair. You had backup when I did that, I think I can take you. Let's go. He looks like he's going to make a comment and then doesn't end, this is the book. And he just gets up and follows you. So yeah,
Speaker 3 00:38:09 To take ravine out into the woods, beyond the monastery where nobody hopefully is going to interrupt us and potentially get hurt and we're going to wait for nightfall and I'm going to wait for him to go into a trance. And then as soon as that happens, I'm going to cast, detect poison and disease. As a ritual,
Speaker 2 00:38:31 He starts to go into his trance. It's very to watch you watch like the Moonlight hit him in a weird way and just suddenly little tiny mushroom heads start sprouting out of his skin. You see his fingernails lengthen and sharpen. As you're sitting there, you do not detect any disease. You definitely detect poison. The mushrooms can add will fuck you up is what you're detecting. Okay, cool.
Speaker 3 00:39:05 Cool. I am going to try to get a hand on him and as non-threatening of a manner as possible and cast lesser risk,
Speaker 2 00:39:15 Remind me what lesser restoration does. You can touch.
Speaker 3 00:39:18 Sure. And, and either one disease or one condition afflicting it, the condition can be blinded deaf and paralyzed or poisoned. So if it's a disease, I can cure it. Or if it is one of those conditions, I can also,
Speaker 2 00:39:34 You try to cast lesser restoration. There is no disease affecting him. This is not an illness. It is just a condition that he operates under. And as you do that, you take three necrotic damage. Okay? Well that didn't feel good so far. He hasn't done anything to you by nature of being in proximity to him. You have taken damage from the mushrooms. Okay. All right. So that didn't work musty
Speaker 3 00:40:10 Again, this is a touch rain spell. I'm going to touch him and cast.
Speaker 2 00:40:16 Tell me what it does. All curses
Speaker 3 00:40:18 Afflicting one creature or object end. If the object is a curse magic item, its curse remains, but the spell breaks it's owner's attunement to the object so it can be removed or discarded. So essentially if ravine himself or anything he has on him
Speaker 2 00:40:33 Is cursed. That's done. As you do that, you feel something magical bend under the spell is the best way I can phrase it. You feel like a magical force. Get hit with this spell and push back. You get the impression that you would need a stronger spell, but that you're on the right track. And you take one more necrotic damage. Okay. Does it look like he's getting rest in the state? Yeah. As far as you know, he's still transferring. He hasn't gotten up. He's just kind of sitting there. His eyes are still closed. Long claws, long teeth mushrooms. He's just kind of hanging. Okay.
Speaker 3 00:41:17 Okay. I'm going to move back a little bit. So I'm not choking on mushroom. Dustin.
Speaker 2 00:41:23 The range is 10 feet for his halo of spores. Cool.
Speaker 3 00:41:27 I backup 10 feet so that that's not happening to me anymore. And I'm going to forgo my own long
Speaker 1 00:41:34 Rest to let him trans
Speaker 2 00:41:36 And get some rest. Right. So you're just staying out here all night.
Speaker 1 00:41:40 Yeah. He needs to sleep and I apparently can't help him otherwise because that was the strongest curative spell that I have. So I'm just going to make sure he doesn't
Speaker 2 00:41:49 Wander off. He transits for four hours. He wakes up a week,
Speaker 1 00:41:55 Wakey eggs, and Bakey, there are no eggs and Bakey, I'm very sorry, but I did figure out part of what's wrong.
Speaker 2 00:42:02 He squints at you part of what's wrong with me. The mushroom thing,
Speaker 1 00:42:08 Namely, it's some kind of curse. I'm not enough of a bad-ass to solve it. It really pains me to admit this, but we're on the right track. It's a curse. We need to research curses for sure.
Speaker 2 00:42:22 Okay. Interesting. All right. I don't want
Speaker 1 00:42:27 To pry ravine because
Speaker 2 00:42:30 That would be rude. But um,
Speaker 1 00:42:33 Anybody in your family ever like piss off a hag or maybe make a God angry or perhaps strike an ill faded deal with a violin wielding devil outside of crossroads one
Speaker 2 00:42:51 Night. You know, if you give
Speaker 1 00:42:53 Me this information, it will make me much better equipped to help you is the only,
Speaker 2 00:42:59 I wouldn't know everybody that could give me an answer on that. One is dead so
Speaker 1 00:43:07 Well, that sounds like the answer of somebody that's probably definitely cursed. So again, I think we're pursuing the right path.
Speaker 2 00:43:17 This is more than we had yesterday. This is a win. So it's a win in that. I still sleep, walk and turn into a mushroom man. And we still don't know why, but we know the genre of thing that we're dealing with. Hey, we're vain.
Speaker 1 00:43:36 Did you know that the genre of thing that you were dealing with was yesterday? Did you, I just want you to answer me honestly. Did you know what the genre of thing you were dealing with was
Speaker 2 00:43:45 Yesterday? Well, I, a lot of things that it wasn't will now.
Speaker 1 00:43:49 No, what it is. Thank you. Leo are the words that we're looking for.
Speaker 2 00:43:55 He sighs heavily and says, thank you, Leo. You're very annoying. And just lays down on the ground. Oh honey. I know. So a little more time passes. Like I said, Zed is very cooped up in the house. I think you ended up keeping him company a lot because he just can't fucking go anywhere. He's so bored all. And also
Speaker 1 00:44:21 Like nobody here has probably seen anybody that looks like Lee.
Speaker 2 00:44:27 I think all of you are relative oddities, but like Leo is really weird. And I think it's not a large group of people at this monastery. I think word gets around that you're very close to the ed and things get a little weird when you're going out in public. You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 00:44:46 And we're staying with Lynn this entire time. Oh yeah. How does she do with Leo? How is our world?
Speaker 2 00:44:56 She doesn't like him. She's not mean, but she makes no secret of the fact that she does not like, or trust Leo. You know what I mean? I'm fucking used to it at this point. I think things are very tense. They are tens enough that after breakfast one morning you've been there for like a week and a half Camilo claps, her hands and goes, okay. So I know you guys needed a place to stay for a while. Is there something that we here could help with that would help you find young people get on your way or
Speaker 1 00:45:37 Camila? You've been amazing and it has been so nice hanging out with you the last couple of,
Speaker 2 00:45:44 Um, unless you have a way to get me
Speaker 1 00:45:49 Back to Australia and also give me an army. I don't have a next step.
Speaker 2 00:45:56 Zed. Leo looks over. It said very sharply Viv looks up from his breakfast, like, uh, Hmm. We could nose around in the library, I guess. Wait, there's a library, Lynn. He's a deep side. Yeah. We have a lot of history archived. There's a lot of political upheaval in the continent. Every few decades, the order stays out of it. And we keep the records.
Speaker 1 00:46:33 Leo perks up more than he has in the last couple of weeks. Like his ears perk up, he sits straight up, right? He says, you're telling me there's a library archive of all of the things we might need to know to figure out our next steps going forward. Who do I need to talk to, to get access to the most restricted files in that life?
Speaker 2 00:46:52 Right? Camila like is a hand slowly. Uh, I'm a healer and a record keeper. So I have pretty universal access record keeper. Okay. Leo claps. Anybody
Speaker 1 00:47:10 Wants to go on a library trip with me and Camila right now should come right now. Ravine. I feel like you might be interested in this Zed. You've definitely, won't be Mia also. Probably
Speaker 2 00:47:25 Not, not on your lap sport, but Zed, for example, a little bit. He goes, I would love to go to the library and lens has since when is that says since right now, thank you. You guys all pack up everybody except Mia and Lynn is going to the library. Camila leads you up. One of the winding paths through the monastery back behind that big old public building in the middle of the square, through a side entrance. It's not a big library. You're used to very grand expansive libraries. It's a couple of rows. Very, I don't want to say small. So I'll say cozy bookshelves, scroll cases, very meticulously filed, but not super expansive.
Speaker 1 00:48:17 It was going to take two steps into this place and say, all right, great. Where's the card catalog.
Speaker 2 00:48:23 Camila says the what?
Speaker 1 00:48:26 Camila. I love you so much. Don't fuck with me. I dated a librarian for 40 years.
Speaker 2 00:48:32 Where's the card catalog. Uh, we don't really, we just kind of, it's not really organized in that way. It's kind of organized chronologically. Great. Where's the librarian Kameelah shrinks a little bit. She goes, we don't really it's. It's kind of just everybody that is sort of in the healing arm of our order. Just sort of pulls double duty as it were. I guess I'm the librarian you cause you're the, okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. A stretch area. Um Asturian is this ringing any bells? Could we pull any files? Can we look?
Speaker 1 00:49:15 He's helped me out. I love you so much. You're so nice
Speaker 2 00:49:19 That just kind of Pat you on the back and says, guess you're just going to have to start writing. Huh? Leo sucks in a deep breath and goes, thank God I got plus three to intelligence. Huh?
Speaker 1 00:49:37 Do I have to roll to make anything make sense?
Speaker 2 00:49:41 I'll let you roll investigation or history. My history.
Speaker 1 00:49:44 He is just so much better because of my noble background. So
Speaker 2 00:49:48 Give me a second. That's a 15 to history. Okay. So you will find what you're looking for. Eventually it takes a long time. This is a very tightly packed little archive room. I'm gonna
Speaker 1 00:50:05 <inaudible> help in this. I feel like he is also suited.
Speaker 2 00:50:09 This ravine actually is going to talk to Camila and like pursue the line of thought of there is a healing arm to this monk order. Ravine is out of commission with the research for at least a week. I would say Leo is also
Speaker 1 00:50:24 Interested in the healing arm of this order. So I don't know how we're going to split this up
Speaker 0 00:50:29 Check wise. Cause I would like
Speaker 1 00:50:31 To equally distribute my interests between what this order knows about healing and what they know about history that I can use to get the hell out of here politically.
Speaker 0 00:50:44 Um, those I think would be separate questions. The healing side of the order is something Camila is very familiar with and can just tell you about, whereas the history is something that she doesn't know anything about.
Speaker 2 00:50:59 Okay.
Speaker 1 00:51:00 Like to pursue that with Camila
Speaker 0 00:51:03 First, to put it in very short terms, Camila is a way of mercy monk. If you choose to look into this healing arm of this order, it's a lot about the flow of energy within the body and how that affects disease, how that affects how good you are at whatever physical task you are involved in, fighting gardening, crafting things like that. Camila tells you like straight out there are people there who can raise the dead, but only in very limited circumstances. Fascinating. Okay.
Speaker 1 00:51:38 No a limit to like what resources I can pursue while I am here because I'm really into pursuing this, but I don't know what else I can follow up on. And I feel obligated to do whatever I can to help her have a out while we're here,
Speaker 0 00:51:55 You get this healing kind of explained to you and it's all about energy flows, putting people in tune with their body and you think over veins curse. If you bring it up to the healers, I think one of them just like lays hands on ravine and says, this would take some time to try to untangle, I think. Oh,
Speaker 1 00:52:17 Okay. Noted. We're in agreement. It's curse based. Yes.
Speaker 0 00:52:23 Solar monk just says, Oh absolutely. Uh, you can tell there's a certain energy signature to it. And then doesn't elaborate on that. And ravine, just like with this old, old Ork man's hands, just on the sides of his head goes, huh? Interesting. This is a very vulnerable position for me.
Speaker 2 00:52:41 Yeah. We're just
Speaker 1 00:52:45 All in very vulnerable positions right now.
Speaker 2 00:52:53 Pardon me?
Speaker 0 00:52:55 Ruthann says, I don't want to hear about your relationship drama. There is a large man whose hands are both on my head talking about curses and I'm just trying to get my shit together. You know what? That's fair enough. And then I would like to
Speaker 1 00:53:11 Effort into the library. I would like to read everything I can. I would like to use whatever knowledge I have from being with a librarian for so long to possibly help me out with figuring out what can help me.
Speaker 0 00:53:28 It's going to take a long time. Cause you rolled a 15 on that history check. It's going to take a while, a couple weeks pass just of you trying to make headway, trying to like make heads or tails of the filing in here and have like ravine getting his curse untangled. And I think that helps you out a lot. Yeah. Because he
Speaker 1 00:53:50 Can leave if Camila is with us. Right.
Speaker 0 00:53:53 Exactly. Yep. I think just for lack of anything better to do that helps out in the library a lot. He doesn't seem that into it. He doesn't make as fast a progress as you do going through these texts, but he's helping, he's doing his best,
Speaker 1 00:54:11 Like Leo or appreciates the company. Yeah. I feel like they have some nice moments in there of just research and yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:54:19 I think anything that's said is looking through that, he is noticing the word Asharia he just slides over to you. He's slowly making his way through things and just kind of keeping you company more than anything. He's there for moral support van subs going into the healing halls and starts trancing through the night. You don't notice any mushroom occurrences. You think that is as handled as it is going to be. If you talk to her vain about it, he'll tell you, it feels really weird. And he feels like there is a piece missing, but mushroom man does not rear his head. Okay,
Speaker 1 00:54:55 Cool. What do I find out in these weeks, digging through the library?
Speaker 0 00:54:59 I think you are there for, it is about a month of just researching because there are a lot of texts just shoved into this room. And a lot of it, it seems like there's a pretty coherent chronological filing system, but it also seems like a lot of things are misfiled. You eventually in like an old, old, old historical tax that like spells a Sheria differently in a more archaic way. Doesn't have a of little labels on lands. This old, old text just has most of the continent you're on labeled as Dow rare as opposed to like coastal sliver that, you know, what was down here now. And it has just little Xs. There's one just North of where you are, where, you know, the present Bay city of GIM term is. And there are a couple more just dotted around, not really many on this continent, but one there one far, far North, a couple on other continents, there are four of the same markings in a Sharia. It's hard to translate sort of the archaic ness of the text. It seems to flip between what, you know, as modern day common and the what Elvin language that ravine speaks and what, you know, as modern day Assuri and Elvish. A lot of the passengers seem to flip languages a lot, but from what can tell it is all about transportation.
Speaker 2 00:56:26 Okay. Transportation as somebody who has studied magical theory, I'd like to roll in our Connor check on what I'm reading. Absolutely. That was a natural 20. Okay. So you're looking at,
Speaker 0 00:56:47 Through this, you noticed what looked to be arcane equations like for wizardry there's discussion of roots between some of these markings. You flip the page and they're like arrows dotted out. There are times stamped with these hypothetical routes and they are way faster than any traditional mode of transportation that you were aware of. There's no way that anybody could be going this fast, not even with like a fly spell. It is near instantaneous travel between these marks.
Speaker 2 00:57:23 Yes. I would know that these are equations for essentially teleportation spells, right?
Speaker 0 00:57:32 You've never seen a teleportation spelled that uses this equation, but it seems to have like bare bones similarities to teleportation spells that Soren has studied. And that like you had to brush up on when you were studying the order of I Luna. And you put that together with the fact that the travel times between all of these markings are near instantaneous and they're all equivalent, no matter the distance between the places.
Speaker 2 00:58:02 As soon as Leo finds this, he slaps his hands down on the table and goes, it's a network, it's a teleportation network. It's a fucking teleportation that work. And he just starts laughing, throws his head back and laughs
Speaker 0 00:58:24 Looks up from his own book and goes, what are you talking about?
Speaker 2 00:58:29 Leo flips back the page to the map that has all of these markings on it and goes, this is a network of permanent teleportation circles. They're all interconnected. If we can figure out how to activate the network, I can go home. Where are these markings in Australia?
Speaker 0 00:58:50 There's one in the far North where, you know, nobody lives, there is one outside modern day city of OMA growth. There's one outside the modern day said he had illness. And there is one almost directionally on top of where, you know, <inaudible>,
Speaker 2 00:59:08 It's an interconnected network of teleportation circles. And one is right outside the capital of Australia. This it fuck. It don't make sense. We go through the network of circles. We have someone here that is highly
Speaker 4 00:59:24 Skilled at taking out people in an efficient and subtle way. We hop through the network. We have Mia take out my
Speaker 2 00:59:34 Father. It's done that very softly says just like that.
Speaker 4 00:59:41 Maybe not just like that, but as far as the Australian consulate still thinks we're still the master meth.
Speaker 2 00:59:48 Right? I mean, that seems about right. Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:59:53 So we get in, we put a knife in the old man's back and all of this is
Speaker 2 00:59:59 Done. Yeah. Wow. It's all over. Just like that.
Speaker 4 01:00:06 Can I roll insight on Zed right now?
Speaker 2 01:00:09 Yes. That's a 26,
Speaker 4 01:00:19 Zero nine 11 on deception. He looks upset distinctly. He looks like he is trying to put up a good front of being extremely happy for you. But there's some sadness in there. Leo reaches up and gets him by the collar and then like hauls him outside of the library. Okay. So we've been here before on both of our parts. Are you going to talk to me? He just laughed a little bit and he says, I got nothing to talk about. Bus said I haven't paid you in two months. Uh, yeah, I'm just, uh, I'm just putting it on your bail, man. You always land on your feet. Eventually Leo actually looks really deeply hurt. Yeah. Yeah. I guess I do forget. I said anything. I guess we're headed to GIM Tara after this. And again, looking deeply, deeply hurt. Leo goes back inside the library and I'm looking for a vein. Now you
Speaker 2 01:01:49 Go back inside the library. This is a couple of
Speaker 4 01:01:51 Weeks after ravines, home mushroom.
Speaker 2 01:01:54 So he is in there helping you research. You turn a corner and you find him very easily pouring over a book ravine. Um,
Speaker 4 01:02:04 I have a really weird question for you that I can't ask in polite company, but I think you have an answer for me.
Speaker 2 01:02:11 That sounds upsetting for you.
Speaker 4 01:02:14 I don't think it will be actually, can we
Speaker 2 01:02:16 Just step outside you step outside, you pass it in the doorway. He is just kind of walking back in. He doesn't really look at you as he does it. He just walks back in and sits back down at the table,
Speaker 3 01:02:30 Just taking ravine outside and getting him as far from the general population as I can.
Speaker 2 01:02:37 Okay. So the whole thing is
Speaker 3 01:02:40 I need to know where to find skeletons. And I went to the local church a little bit back and asked if I could borrow some. And they got really upset with me. So do you know where all the good bones are around here? Because we're getting ready to shoot.
Speaker 2 01:02:58 I mean, yeah. I can find skeleton. There's skeletons for free all over in the woods. Where are we going?
Speaker 3 01:03:04 Oh, Oh, Oh, okay. So we have different approaches to this because usually in Australia, if you have a talent for necromancy, you can just go to the nearest church and ask for whatever person has donated their skeleton to the service of Kimra and you can just take the bones. Um, I tried that and it didn't go so well for me here.
Speaker 2 01:03:29 Well, I've never been to a church, so I usually just get my skeletons from the ground. Well, I couldn't
Speaker 3 01:03:35 Any skeletons that I was allowed to use here. And I would like to have at least three before we roll out to vaudeville door, because I've heard that shit there is.
Speaker 2 01:03:45 Oh, so we're going to <inaudible>. That was the question that I asked and you neglected to answer. Okay. Um, yeah, let's go in the woods and get some bones. Okay.
Speaker 3 01:03:52 I feel like this is going to be such a ponding activity for us.
Speaker 2 01:03:56 I mean, I'm always good to talk about bones. I enjoy bones. And then he like reaches up and scratches, sweeties head. I would love to get some bones and actually running short. I kept all of my bones in the tower and if I had to go anywhere, which I usually didn't sell, like I had a bag where I could put all of my bones and now I don't have Celica or her bag for my bones. Bone bags are a thing that's good to know. Let's go find some bones together. You go to find some bones rule investigation, twenties
Speaker 3 01:04:26 Two. Does that mean I get my three skeletons for an animate dead.
Speaker 2 01:04:31 You find three, relatively complete skeletons. As you're going around, you find a goat that is like half buried. Like it got slaughtered and then buried somewhere. You find a possum just kind of chilling out in some tree roots and you find a mostly complete Wolf skeleton. Okay.
Speaker 3 01:04:48 I find them in that order. Like I'm just putting the bones away.
Speaker 2 01:04:53 Yeah. It takes like a few hours, but you do find these three relatively complete skeletons.
Speaker 3 01:04:58 I'm going to stash the goat and possum skeletons just in whatever bag I have. Just because those are relatively small animals. The Wolf skeleton though, I'm gonna back up and go a hair ravine. Just get out of the way for a second. I have an idea. I cast
Speaker 2 01:05:18 Animate dead on the Wolf's Kellison these bones leap into formation and the skeleton Wolf slowly gets to its feet. Hey boy, come here. Come on. The Wolf. Does the dog play bow from its non-existent throat comes a ghostly. Real good boy. Come here. Yeah. The Wolf comes up on you. Leo pets. It's horrible. Bone head
Speaker 3 01:05:52 Scratches behind. It's a non-existent ear on its skull. I guess I'm going to call you
Speaker 2 01:05:57 Dexter. Okay. Dexter. The skeleton Wolf. Yup. All right. I mean, I've got three. I can do this
Speaker 3 01:06:10 Three skeletons with this spell. So I'm pretty much good. I have 24 hours of animate dead. Dexter is my buddy for the next 24 hours. So we were all back to the house.
Speaker 2 01:06:24 Yeah. You opened the door. Zach and his mom are sitting on a couch, obviously in deep conversation you walk in and there is a brief pause. They both shut up immediately. Dexter. The bone Wolf walks in and Zed leaps to his feet and goes, Holy shit. Hi.
Speaker 3 01:06:43 Um, I don't know if said, told you Mrs. Stone bloom. We're going to be out of your house soon, which I know will make you super happy. At least as far as I'm concerned, this is
Speaker 2 01:06:54 He's going to be coming with us. We're headed to vaudeville door like tomorrow. Zen is still standing up just like hands up goes, Oh, the skeleton dog is coming with us. Great. Texture is a good point. Aren't you buddy. Hey,
Speaker 3 01:07:14 Leo reaches down and pets. The horrible skeleton dog on its horrible skeleton head,
Speaker 2 01:07:20 Len just kind of knobs to herself and then stands up. Claps her hands, dust yourself off and says, well, she claps that on the shoulder. And then she taps at the side of his head and says that thing never misses Hong kid and said just size so deeply. Do
Speaker 3 01:07:39 You have a problem with Dexter
Speaker 2 01:07:41 Zed? A hands up the skeleton dog, the dead dog. Do I have a problem with the dead dog that is now in my mom's house? He's a good boy and said, he's a dead boy. Leo, is
Speaker 3 01:07:57 This the weirdest thing that's happened to you? Since you've
Speaker 2 01:08:00 Met me? There is a long pause and then dad puts his hands down. Actually. No, that's a good point. Yeah. All right. And then he just walks off to the kitchen and I think a Mia comes in then and immediately drops onto the floor and says, Oh, who's a good boy. Right? Isn't he precious? Oh, he's beautiful. What a big boy. Mia just has a grand old time playing with your new bone dog. I think Lynn serves everybody dinner. She does that most nights because she cooks for a lot of people at once. Zed, pointedly, skips dinner. He goes to bed early. I think the rest of you go to bed after dinner. What are the
Speaker 3 01:08:48 Sleeping slash transit arrangements? Like
Speaker 2 01:08:51 Zed sleeps in his room, obviously Lynn and Camila sleep in their room. Obviously there is a main room
Speaker 3 01:08:57 In this house where there is room to sleep or trans. What does Mia do? Does me asleep? Like have we ever seen that?
Speaker 2 01:09:06 No. As far as you know me at trances, although it doesn't seem like normal transferring to you get seems more like there may be just chilling out, but it,
Speaker 3 01:09:16 It looks like trancing, if that makes sense. Okay. Weird. Um, yeah. So I feel like since we have three people in the house that trance rather than sleep like ravine and Mia and I probably just chill out in the living room. Leo stays up after ravine and Mia go into their trance. Just kind of sitting there in front of the fire with Dexter in his lap, petting his awful
Speaker 2 01:09:41 Skeleton head. And
Speaker 3 01:09:43 He sits by himself and thinks to himself for a long time. And then in the wee hours of the morning, he's going to get up and as quietly as he can walk into dad's room,
Speaker 2 01:09:59 You do that, um, real stealth 17. Okay. You do not
Speaker 3 01:10:04 Disturb Mia or vain.
Speaker 2 01:10:08 Go ahead. At all insight for me 21 here too. So the door creeks open and you instantly know you have woken said,
Speaker 4 01:10:24 Leo just pauses in the doorway
Speaker 3 01:10:27 As non threateningly as possible. Just kind of hands on,
Speaker 4 01:10:30 Halfway up. Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you Zed
Speaker 2 01:10:39 Slowly sits up in his bed. Runs a hand back through his hair, which is like loose around his shoulders. No, no, I'm good. I'm good. I'm great.
Speaker 4 01:10:49 What's up? I just can't. I can't trans my head. Won't shut up. You know, like couldn't think of anybody else to talk to. All right. What do you need to talk about, about how I'm tired, about how I'm sad about how I pissed? What are you pissed about? Leo opens his mouth. Like he's going to say something and then freezes and his whole body just shutters under the impact of our rage that he's been stomping down for probably years at this point, pissed about everything. Are you kidding me? Me pissed for 75 years. Sometimes I feel like pissed is all. I even am any more. I have lost everyone that's ever given a damn about me.
Speaker 4 01:12:08 My mother is dead. Soren hates me. I will never see Eleanora again. I have been so mad for so long and now I am facing down, going home and marching back over every bridge I ever burnt to get here and finally getting what I want and finally winning and not having to be mad anymore. And I'm fucking terrified because what happened because when I go home and I win and I get what I want and I don't have to be mad anymore. What happens when all those burned bridges collapsed behind me and I don't have anything left.
Speaker 4 01:13:03 He slowly gets to his feet and he takes a couple steps across the room, over to you. So he's standing in front of you and he says, see, you've got no one left, huh? Leo's jaw sets. And his lips press into a super thin line. And he says, no one who I know where I stand with. No one. Who's not putting caring about me on a tab that leans in and he kisses you on the mouth. It's his hands on his hair. And he kisses him back super like fucking intense. This carries on for a second. And then that's hands come up and the tangle in his hair and they pull his head back and then very quietly said, says, you need to get out of my room now. Why? Because if you don't, I'm going to do something stupid. Leo, let's
Speaker 3 01:14:35 Go over his hands, have been INSEAD's hair
Speaker 4 01:14:37 And take a step back. And his jaw sets even harder and he nods slowly and goes something stupid. Okay.
Speaker 3 01:14:54 And then he turns around and he fucking leaves
Speaker 4 01:14:58 The door shuts behind them. And that's,
Speaker 3 01:15:03 We're got our wrap up for this week. Once again, I need to go lay down. Fucking hate it here. How does this keep getting worse?
Speaker 4 01:15:18 Gay people real. See you guys next time. I'm compelled <inaudible>
Speaker 3 01:15:39 Hey, everybody Barry here with the postscript, just clearing up a couple of housekeeping things here at the end of the episode, as always, we are on social media. You can find us on Twitter, Tumblr and Tik TOK at compelled dual. You can also find us on Tik TOK at compelled duel, adios, where we post audio snippets from the show. We have a Q and a show that we do every Monday at 3:00 PM, PST over on our YouTube channel. So if you head on over to YouTube and search compelled duel, you should be able to find us there. We'd love for you to come hang out with us. If you're interested in supporting the podcast, we ask that you consider pledging to our Patrion. You can find us on patrion.com/compelled dual. And we have lots of cool perks, including priority for questions in the Q and a access to exclusive Playlist's on our official Spotify account.
Speaker 3 01:16:25 And also the ability to get a letter from your favorite compelled dual character every month. If you're interested in helping us out in ways, other than pledging to our Patrion, if you're listening to us on Apple podcasts, we ask that you drop us a rating and a review because that will help us get promoted to a wider listener base. And as always word of mouth advertising helps us just so much more than anything else. So if you're enjoying the podcast, we just ask that you tell three friends about it, and if they enjoy it, ask them to tell three friends to our next episode is going to be going up on Friday, March 26th, 2021. And if you are a member of our Patrion, it will be available to you on Thursday, March 25th. Thank you guys so much and we will see you next time.
