Session 22 - Transcript

[DM (Aarya)]
Alright, this is Phantom Chains session 22. I'll let our Recap Goblin do his thing.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Alright, so I'm going to recap session 21, because we're doing session 22 today. For session 21, we started off right after killing the hags. So, one of the first things that we did in session 21 was done by Saturno.

She checked the oven to find that it was still running with a pastry inside, referring to the oven that was in the hag's house. She also tried to put a hag in the oven, but mostly fails, and they're half in the oven. And I think we left it like that, so who knows what is happening at that place now.

Anyway, we found the stone that we need, the Heart Stone. It is gross and slimy, but Sildur retrieves it. We remember that there were children, so we make our way upstairs to go help them.

We find their Myrtle and Theodore hidden in a crate. We free them from the crate, and Ember and Saturno give them piggyback rides out of the castle. And Sildur gives them a point of healing each to touch them up a bit.

We head out and talk with Wachter a little bit about the fight. And as we're heading back to town, Mercurio gets a strange feeling coming from some standing stones, also called megaliths. And we go investigate while Irdel and Solalis stayed and watched the kids that we just rescued.

At the stones, we find crests on at least one of the stones, imagery of ravens. It was actually a raven over a three-pointed star. Mercurio is also hearing a melody coming from the stones.

There's one kind of strong melody and one softer one with a calming effect. But the second one is almost impossible to hear, just barely audible. And somehow he comes to the conclusion that the latter sound is a curse, but the shorter one is probably the natural sound of these stones and of this area, more natural magic, and isn't malevolent.

In a more discordant sound, he's also able to hear the word corruption. What else? That's right.

Irredel, if we long rest, we also want you to prepare Dispel for the sake of dispelling the bad sound on those stones. So just a little note for next time we long rest. But yeah, we continue back and Irdel passes out.

Sildir starts carrying her. So now there are two kids and one Irredel being carried around. Wachter notices that something's off and questions us, but we just kind of blamed it on the horrible, horrible, bloody fight we had with the hags.

Kind of makes sense. And she continues on questioning us on some other things, including our apparent connection with Strahd, and Mercurio decides to take on the role of an info broker and starts trading with her. So for her side of the bargain, she tells us that there are much older powers in Barovia than Strahd, and Strahd is not the only power here.

There's also three goddesses, a.k.a. the Ladies Three, known as the Huntress, the Seeker, and the Weaver. And there was also the First Folk who inhabited these lands that worshipped those three. Worship of all of them fell out of practice during Strahd's rule.

But there are still descendants of the First Folk, including the Forest Folk, who would be... We met one, the Druid of the Woods, who was talking to us strangely from a tree one time. And also the Mountain Folk.

She also tells us that she has her patron, Lady of the Night Ezra, who is goddess of the mist. We have some thoughts about the goddess of the mist, because maybe the mist that brought us here were related to Ezra. And there are also rumors, according to Wachter at least, that the Old Gods had some interactions with Strahd.

We share our whole story about what we've done with Strahd so far, with her in return, our involvement with Ireena, and so on. She also asks to look at the Heartstone and begins demanding to know who our friend is that is going to help us complete the ritual that the Heartstone requires. Sildir actually kind of roasts her and gets a nice high intimidation roll, saying that basically, where would she be without us, so she should just chill and trust us with this Heartstone if we don't want to tell her.

We also learn that Ireena is working with Ernst to begin a caravan back to Barovia Village, after we've kind of brokered peace for Barovia Village. We also explain... We take Irredel to the church.

We go to the church, Father Lucian and Bryce are there, they give her an examination. They find it odd that there was any transformation, and they're pretty concerned, so they're going to take her down into the basement and keep her in silver shackles for the time being. We also ask them about the Morning Lord, that's where she is currently, correct?

We also ask about the Mourning Lord to them, just because of all the deities discussion we've had. So he's a deity that watches over Barovia, and apparently counterpart to Ezra. There was also a paladin named Lugdana, about a hundred years ago, who was able to crusade in Barovia under the Morning Lord's name and purge all the vampires around at the time.

Strahd was sleeping, so he was not in that group. Coming back later to the church, they will give us some scripture on Lugdana, if we so wish. But then we head to Vallakovich Manor, knock on the door, there's frantic Footsteps, Victor's there.

Sildir tosses him the stone and tells him to get a move on. He tells us that he did some reading and he needs to perform the spell at a full moon. So Mercurio's definitely going to return there at night to help him.

We also go to Erwin's to ask about the raven symbology we saw earlier. Erwin gives Mercurio a nice champagne, after some interaction with Mercurio and Erwin. It's just a nice thing that he did.

Champagne de l'Estompe. We ask him a bit about Lady Ezra and ask him to keep an eye on Lady Wachter for us. Using his spy network, we tell him about Victor, etc.

He's going to keep an eye on things here for us. It seems like the group wants to now bring Wachter to Victor and put their heads together on completing this ritual. Because she's good at this certain type of magic that's required.

As we leave the inn, Erwin reminds us of his father and the help that he needs. And yeah, that is what's up. That's the recap.

[DM (Aarya)]
Pretty good recap. About 8 minutes. Pretty good.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Oh, you timed it. Cool. Thank you.

[DM (Aarya)]
Alright, so with that I'm going to go ahead and switch the scene. We were just at the Bluewater Inn. We'll probably move right after this.

Let me also change the music as well. We'll resume at the Bluewater Inn. At this point, four of you are leaving this location.

Sildar, Mercurio, Saturno, and Ember. Currently, Iridel is in the basement of the church. Where she is currently shackled in silver in anticipation of the full moon.

Silolus currently is out assisting Iridel with the caravan back to Barovia Village.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Irina then, I suppose.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, Irina. I misspoke.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I just don't want the AI to get confused.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, yeah. Good catch. Sildar is with Irina, not Iridel.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Computer.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Silolus is with Irina.

[DM (Aarya)]
Fucking hell. Okay.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
And Sildar has huge jugs right now.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes. Silolus is with Irina and Sildar is here with Mercurio, Saturno, and Ember.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
With his massive jugs.

[DM (Aarya)]
He does not have massive jugs. Yeah, they're ginormous. Oh my gosh, guys.

Alright. As we resume here, I'll say you guys are moving out from the inn to your next location, wherever that may be. It is about 9pm on this night, so three hours left until the full moon.

And as the hour approaches, Sildar, why don't you tell me what's going through your head right now? In a mere few hours, a couple of very important things will be taking place.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Sure. So, I would say just mentally, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. Knowing that, you know, in some manner, some way, we're going to have to go track down Wachter, bring her back to Viktor.

Someone in our group, maybe just Mercurio, maybe several people, will have to help with the spell to try to bring her daughter back. And then, beyond that, I have a more personal interest in checking on Iridel. Basically, at the same time that that needs to happen.

And even beyond that, just earlier today, I witnessed some really nasty, horrible things, including children nearly to death. Some really nasty hags, and I had to touch their nasty heart stone. It's been a rough day, overall.

I don't think I have any time to slow down, though, and feel bad for myself. I feel task-oriented, because that's the only way I can cope. Just, what's next?

What can I do now?

[DM (Aarya)]
And true to that, I think you've reflected this in your actions throughout thus far. But can you reaffirm for us all the oaths that Sildur swore when you first pledged yourself?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yes, I can. I would like to pull them up directly, get you a quote. And if you have them, just ping them to me, because I'm searching through a fuck-ton of notes.

[DM (Aarya)]
I had them earlier. Let me double-check as well.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yes, sorry about that.

[DM (Aarya)]
No worries.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'll probably find them too, but one of us will be faster.

[DM (Aarya)]
This is actually a very nice use of NotebookLM. You can just ask it, and it'll go back to the session where it happened and tell you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
That is pretty cool.

[DM (Aarya)]
I have it for you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Thank you.

[DM (Aarya)]
I'll paste it in Discord for you.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
We make NotebookLM give us a recap of the last episode, and then we put it in Discord, but we use the TTS.

[DM (Aarya)]
I would hate that. Okay. I like when Tristan does it.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Okay, me too.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
So, my oaths. My blade will become the voice for those who have gone unheard. My shield will protect those who would be trampled by the negligence of the ambitious.

[DM (Aarya)]
And I think you've done a pretty good job of upholding these, but maybe Sildur feels the same or otherwise.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I think overall I feel good about it, but part of those oaths is because, you know, let me start over. I feel good about my actions recently, but those oaths were taken in the context of my own past where I have caused people to go unheard. And I have trampled people with my own ambitions.

And I think every day that I'm here, I see examples of it happening around me. And I can't help but worry that, you know, I'll slip up or that I already have and haven't noticed.

[DM (Aarya)]
All valid concerns. So with all of this on the mind, Sildur is probably visibly pretty tense, but working through it as best he can. Any of his companions that are with him right now could plainly see this.

Does anyone see this and say anything to Sildur or otherwise?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I think Mercurio notices. Mercurio probably pretty stressed, but after a couple of drinks, taking it a little bit better than Sildur maybe. And I'm going to pat Sildur on the back and just, you know, tell him it's going to be all right.

You know, I'll go check up on the boy. You'll go help out our priest buddies with Iridel and this night will soon be over. And I'll give him a little cheeky wink and a bardic inspiration, too.

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh, nice.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Thanks, Mercurio. I just... there's nothing for me to do right now.

I just have to wait. I can't help but feel like I'm missing something. Like, if I don't act now, I could have prevented something horrible from happening.

There's nothing to do.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Upon Saturno hearing this, I want to see she goes up and she just reminds him that sometimes you have to give yourself a little break to be able to keep helping people.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
You have to be in your best shape, both mentally and physically.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
And then she flexes. And then she flexes, lovely.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, I could ripple my muscles like that in my youth, but I'm an old man now and the things I've done in my life, the things I've seen, the things I've seen here, it's hard to remember that, what you said, that you have to give yourself some space. I feel like the damage I've caused myself, you know, when do you take too much space? It's hard to say.

Yeah, you're right. You're right. I don't think there's anything we can do.

Hey, you know, it's been a good day today on some levels, right? We saved those kids.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah, those hags got their ass handed to them. We gave them a taste of their own medicine. As tired as I am and injured, I have to say I'm glad we did what we did.

And that's the least I can use to propel me forward.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'm glad I have you guys at least to keep me on the right track.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
We're here for you, man.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, it feels like this world we've been taken to just does what it can to erode us away.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
This is tough.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Before I left, I mean, before I was whisked away, I was working on righting all my wrongs. I still have all those waiting for me at home and they feel almost meaningless now compared to the horrors I've seen in this world. But they still are there waiting for me, my wrongs that I've created.

I don't know. I think Irredel being away got me in a weird mood.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I'm worried about her.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. So where is the party headed right now? What's the course of action?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
What time is it right now?

[DM (Aarya)]
It's 9pm.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
9pm. Well, if we still have some time, I'd like it if you could come with me before we split up. Just to be backup for Lady Wachter.

As it turns out, she's the person who understands this sort of magic the best. We're going to have to break our vows of secrecy and bring her to the boy to make sure that spell doesn't get terribly messed up.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I can make sure that you guys get off on the right track, but I'm going to have to go see Erdal for sure. We'll probably leave from her manor to go to the church.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, I wouldn't have it any other way. Somebody should be there for Erdal.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I guess she has the two fathers, but they're a little weird, honestly. They're good guys, don't get me wrong. I just feel like if she woke up half-wolf or something to just father Lucian and Bryce, she would be very disturbed.

Again, no knocks against them. They've done great things in this city. Yeah, they've definitely got a few loose screws.

Exactly. They're certainly not sane. Maybe we can say the same for ourselves, but I digress.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
You mean living here?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, exactly. Imagine if we were born and raised in this dump.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right, so Sildur right now is definitely going to Irredel is what I'm hearing.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'll go with Mercurio like requested to make sure that Wachter doesn't crash out on us, basically. That's how I was reading it between the lines, and then I'll leave from there to go to the church. Because we have a couple hours, right?

I would definitely want to keep myself busy as much as possible, so I'll go with Mercurio big time.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, so we're all going to Wachter house? That's right. Okay, let me switch the scene for you.

Let's activate this scene. Yeah, things were quite different here last time we were around. Let me move these tokens around.

I'll bring you all up front. Irredel isn't actually here, but I'm going to leave her token in the scene just so you can see stuff.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Bartering for peace in Barovia was pretty on brand with the oaths.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, I think so too. Pretty cool. But yeah, so you wander through the streets of Vallaki, moving with purpose.

There's much to do on this evening. And pretty shortly you find yourself standing in front of the familiar site of Wachter house. The place still seems to be in some state of disrepair.

It hasn't been that long since the mansion was attacked by vampire assassins. And with all the commotion that's been in town since, you aren't quite certain what kind of state you might find its residents in.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Okay, I'm going to go up to the door and knock.

[DM (Aarya)]
Alright. Got your back. So the door opens and you are greeted with the familiar sight of the Wachter house butler.

He looks to you all, he himself, when you last saw him he was pretty calm and put together, but now he seems rather disheveled. But attempting to put on a brave face. Ah yes, Lady Wachter's new friends.

How may I be of service tonight?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I need to talk to Lady Wachter immediately.

[DM (Aarya)]
Hmm. Very well. She's in the den.

Follow me. And he leads you on inwards where you are met with the sights of Lady Wachter pacing around the den area anxiously. Lady Wachter looks to you all and stops in place.

Well, any news?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, it looks like, well, I guess before that. So you have a good knowledge of magic having to do with the ethereal plane?

[DM (Aarya)]
I'm familiar with it, yes. But what does that have to do with anything?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, the spell you casted earlier, right? It had to do with the ethereal plane.

[DM (Aarya)]
A simple anchoring spell, yes. What of it?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, I'm not as familiar with schools of magic outside of enchantment, so I'm going to require your assistance in... Remember our friend earlier that we mentioned that you wanted to know about?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, the very same friend that you assured me knew what they were doing.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, some details came to light and it seems that they may need some extra assistance.

[DM (Aarya)]
You're not inspiring a lot of confidence in me, Mercurio.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, let's just... my apologies. But there isn't a whole lot of time, so would you agree to come back, meet our friend, and assist with this spell?

We only really have one shot at midnight tonight.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, yes, of course I can assist, but why don't I just go over there now?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Sure.

[DM (Aarya)]
Who is this mystery friend?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It has to be done in the full moon, if I recall.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, the full moon is our best shot because it's when our plane will be the closest to the ethereal plane.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I think the moon will be at its absolute fullest at midnight is how I remember the story. Could be wrong, though.

[DM (Aarya)]
That makes sense. And this only just came up now?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, I think the confidence in the spell, it wavered a bit when some extra details and nuance were revealed upon further study of the spell.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Mercurio, I think we might need to practice it again in advance, if you know what I mean.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah. Who is this mystery expert that you spoke of?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, you know the Burgomaster's son.

[DM (Aarya)]
Victor?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
The boy?

[DM (Aarya)]
You can't be serious.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, he feels a great deal of sadness over the condition of your daughter, and he's been inconsolable ever since the events that happened, and he's tirelessly worked to look for this solution. He was, as far as I could tell, right so far that these hags had something to do with it, and we would need the Heartstone in order to bring your daughter back.

[DM (Aarya)]
I don't believe this. You are going to entrust this ritual to a child?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, now we're going to entrust it to you and a child. And to me. So let's go figure this out while we still have a few hours.

[DM (Aarya)]
I always knew there was something off about that boy. It's probably his fault that Stella was sucked away in the first place.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Listen, it's not his fault, and Stella still seems to be on good terms with him. Be on good terms with him?

[DM (Aarya)]
How would you know that?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, through a little bit of magic, she was able to communicate with us and the boy.

[DM (Aarya)]
But she didn't reach out to me.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
She was able to corroborate the plan that we would need to get this Heartstone. I'm sure it was a very limited amount of communication she had, and she had to use it for this very important moment to coordinate us and Victor so that we could enact the plan and go get the Heartstone.

[DM (Aarya)]
So as you're speaking, Mercurio, you can see that Lady Voctor is becoming more and more visibly distraught. Go ahead and roll me a Persuasion check to see how well you can calm her nerves. 21!

Wow, nice.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Plus 10 bonus.

[DM (Aarya)]
Plus 10 bonus is crazy, yeah. So with a 21, Lady Voctor, you can see her almost start to hyperventilate. And then upon hearing you speak and explain the situation plainly, she starts to calm down a bit.

And she says, Very well, very well. Alright, well I'm not going to leave anything up to chance. She walks out into the foyer and calls up the stairs.

Boys, bring down your sister at once. And after a few moments, you are greeted with the familiar sights of... Let's see, there's not a lot of space in this house.

Carl and Nikolai Voctor, with Stella herself in tow. She turns to the boys. I'm going to be taking your sister out for a bit.

And you have the run of the house until we return. And with that, she turns to the rest of you all and says, Well, let's be on then.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Action-oriented. Couldn't agree more. Let's go.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
No parties. And then I walk out.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
How much time do we have now?

[DM (Aarya)]
I'll say with all the commotion and everything that happened here, and then on your way... Are you headed to Polikovec Manor now?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yes, I would be headed there, but I just want to make sure that still the air is still coming along.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, I understand.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, it depends how much time I have.

[DM (Aarya)]
I'll say it'll take about, with everything, by the time you arrive at the manor, it'll be an hour from now, so like 10, 10pm.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It'll be 10 when we get there? Mm-hmm. And then how long would it take to get there to the church?

[DM (Aarya)]
It would take you about 20... Let's see, I think it's on the opposite side of town, so about 20 minutes, not too long.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Okay, that's cool.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
So you'll come for a bit.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, also this girl is a brick wall, just like Robbitt's.

[DM (Aarya)]
I'm going to sit just here anyway, so give me a sec. Uh-uh-uh-uh-um. Let's see.

Let's get Stohalis out of the scene. And we got... Vakhtar.

Let's see. Lady Fiona, Vakhtar, and Stella. I'll pull in here, it helps here for a good measure.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
On the way over, I'll say, do you guys think Stohalis has a crush on Irina? I've never seen him help anybody for anything, much less trek across several days worth of traveling for someone on a whim.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
And this isn't the first time, either.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, I think maybe, you know, if she can catch the eye of Strahd, catch the eye of a couple other guys, too, I bet.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Maybe Strahd isn't the only one who's into redheads around here.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
That's what I'm saying. Crazy elf.

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh my gosh. All right, so after your trek, you find yourself standing in front of Valakovich Manor. You find yourself standing in front of the front door, and without any hesitation, Lady Vakhtar immediately shoves her way in front of you and knocks on the door quite adamantly.

A few moments later, you are once again greeted with the familiar sight of Viktor. And he seems to be, like, in the middle of rambling. I told you, there's so many things that need to go right for this spell.

I don't have time for distractions. And he looks up and sees the sight of you all, and he sees Lady Vakhtar and Stella in tow, and he stops. Hey, what's going on here?

He looks to you all expectantly.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Reinforcements are here, Viktor. So, as it turns out, you're in luck. Lady Vakhtar happens to be another very knowledgeable spellcaster, as myself and Iridel.

And she also happens to be familiar with magics related to the Ethereal Plane. So, I thought the three of us would have a go at studying that spell, just to really cement that everything goes right tonight.

[DM (Aarya)]
Hearing you say that, he very slowly turns his gaze to face Lady Vakhtar, and he looks terrified. Lady Vakhtar looks at him. You and I will be having some very stern words after all of this is over, and I hope for your sake that this ritual goes as expected.

But for now, we have work to do. So, take us to your workroom, or whatever it is you have prepared. And, sure enough, Viktor doesn't say a peep, and he immediately walks inwards to lead you upstairs.

So, I'm going to switch the scene over to, let's see, the attic where Viktor is set up. So many maps in this silly module. Village of Barovia.

Fuck, where is it? Not Barovia, it's Vallaki. Burgomaster.

The attic, right? Yeah.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yes, all will not be well, Dorestein.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, let me pull you all in.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I pull out my lantern, because it's dark. And I have a lantern, and I might as well. And I realize it's actually not that dark in here.

[DM (Aarya)]
It's quite well lit in here, actually. Yeah.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
No, before my token was in, it looked darker, of course.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, of course. All right. So, you are greeted with a familiar sight of this rather messy looking attic, where Viktor has kind of hastily set up a magical lab of sorts.

You can see that he's pushed a bunch of things around and made some space for what appears to be some kind of ritual circle, and placed in the center of it, in the middle of some strange looking patterns drawn out in salt, is the heart stone that you recovered from the hags. He turns to Lady Voktor, and as he's doing so, he's holding the book that you recovered from her about ethereal magic. I've made all of the preparations.

I've been double-checking, triple-checking my work. I think everything should be in place. I just need to make sure that I have all the incantations and somatic components of the ritual down correctly.

Perhaps you could come here and review my notes to make sure I haven't missed anything. She comes over, takes a look at this book, and starts flipping through the pages. She kind of looks lost in thought as she's reading through the journal.

Where did she even find this book? Never mind that. You can tell at this point, this is going to take some time while the two of them get everything ready.

In the meantime, what is everyone else thinking as the hour approaches?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I don't know what to do. I could just sit here, but I'm not good at magic.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, true. What's the... I guess a better question is who's planning to go to the church and who's staying here?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I think...

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I don't know. I'll go to the church for sure.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Amber's going to stay here.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'm not necessarily expecting... Everyone can do what they want, I think. If they want to stay or go with me.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I look at Mercurio and I ask him, do you want me to stay here? Or should I accompany? How do you feel?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, Amber, you said you're staying here. Then, Satorno, you should give Sildir some backup. He's going to need it.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Okay, then I'll do that. I've been dismissed by Mercurio.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Until further notice, you serve Sildir in his mission to make sure Iridel ends up okay.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Got it.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I've already cleared a line in this room so that I could pace back and forth. A bunch of furniture is disheveled. I made sure to avoid the ritual circle, though, or whatever they need.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, all right. Let me see.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Say, is there some clock in here?

[DM (Aarya)]
Clock? Who are you asking?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Victor, yeah.

[DM (Aarya)]
Victor doesn't seem to hear what you're saying, but then he... What? You were asking something?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
The time, the clock. Do you have one?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, yes. It's nearing 11 at this point, so why, you have somewhere to be?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I do. It's an accurate clock?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Maybe I should just leave.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right, well, I think I might have been able to use someone with a bit of muscle. If I'm understanding this correctly, it might be no small task to keep the stone anchored during the ritual. That's...

Hmm. Are any of the rest of you physically able? Ah, well...

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Saturnal needs to... Maybe they need to trade off Ember and...

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Is that okay with you Ember?

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah, it's okay with me.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Okay. Okay.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. Never mind. Well, if you can come stand over here, I'll need you to make sure that this stone doesn't shift out of this ritual circle that I have.

And he continues to instruct you in what's going to happen here. In the meanwhile, I'll say, Sildur and Ember, you two are heading over to the church now?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yep.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right, let's switch over to that scene for a moment.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Before they leave, I'm going to scoop them up with a big hug. Thank you. Scoop them up with his great strength.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
All right, relax, Mercurio. We're going to be back. Also, on her way out...

Of course, I'm also on her way out. Ember is offended by the physically able comment and shoves, like, sort of bumps into Victor on her way out.

[DM (Aarya)]
What's her deal? Anyway.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I give Ember bardic inspiration also.

[DM (Aarya)]
Nice. Okay, so Sildur and Ember both have bardic right now. Yep.

You get a bardic, you get a bardic. I'm going to switch this over to the church. Let's see.

Let's go to the basement. Excuse me. Oh yeah, I still had these guys in this scene earlier.

Let's see, Mercurio's not here, Saturno's not here, so it's... U3. Let's use this room for this.

Ah, good old Iridel, hanging in there, doing her best. Is it dark in here for you guys?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
It's dark.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It's like doing a darkvision meme. Okay. I'm not sure which one.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
My icon is black and white.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay. That means it's no light source. Let me add a light source real quick for you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Pull up my light source.

[DM (Aarya)]
And then in the scene here is Father Lucian. Wait, no, that's Bryce. Lol.

Bryce and Lucian are here. All right, so you can see as you come down into the script, we've got Ember and Sildir. Bryce is currently ensuring that the shackles on Iridel are in place.

And you see that Father Lucian seems to be administering some kind of healing magic to heal her up. Let me go ahead and actually do that for you as well. Put you out of nice.

There we go.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Anyways, as I was saying, if you're really considering a new organization system for your library, there's this fantastic new one that's been invented that divides basically every category of work that you can think of into 10 different main classes, ranging from general works all the way to history and geography. And then within each main class, you use additional digits organized by author, year published, and a few other metrics.

[DM (Aarya)]
Well, you're awake.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Iridel is intact.

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh, thank goodness you're here. I don't think I could have stood another minute listening to this decimal system, was it you said?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, the Dewey Decimal System.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
She loves explaining the Dewey Decimal System to people who have a lot of books. You didn't tell her that you have a lot of books, did you? You brought it upon yourself, if so.

But if she's talking about that, it means she's in better spirits than she was before. How are you feeling, Iridel?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Well, I'm on the verge of becoming a terrible monster, so there's certainly days where I've been better.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
We don't know that.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
I like the smiles on her, shaking her head.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
These silver shackles, they should keep you in place. If you do.

[DM (Aarya)]
And Lucien pipes up on hearing that. They aren't too tight, are they? We can loosen them.

No, we can't, Lucien. Everybody seems to be very adamant on this.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, totally understand. In fact, if I am going to be turning into a wolf, you probably should make sure that they're placed in a way that wolf paws also wouldn't slide out of them once I transform. Just practically speaking.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, you're correct, of course. Fortunately, this is not my first time dealing with werewolves.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, you see that, Iridel? We've got a seasoned expert on the job. Nothing to worry about, right?

[DM (Aarya)]
It's still so strange. I don't understand why a partial transformation even happened even after administering the potion.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, there was that strange moon room, and there was some odd device that Strahd's wife, lover, one of many wives, he confuses me, had. Do you think that could have anything to do with it?

[DM (Aarya)]
What do you mean?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, there were little artifacts that kind of reminded me of the moon in a way. One was literally a model of the moon, and I don't know if you remember this, but you were very attracted to it and wanted to go be in that room with it. And she also had this, the wife of Strahd I mean, had this wand-like device, but it had a small white stone at the end of it that also reminded me a bit of a moon.

We actually kept the remnants of that one. We crushed it though.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, if you want, I have a bag of holdane in the pocket under my cloak if you wanted to inspect those shards.

[DM (Aarya)]
You have it on you, and he immediately rushes to take the bag from you and ripples around in it.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, don't take it out if you're worried about it.

[DM (Aarya)]
How long have you had this on your person?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
How long has it been since the Maw of the Wolf?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
A day maybe? I took it off and left it on the dresser overnight.

[DM (Aarya)]
How long were you in close proximity to these stones?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I guess the young question, how many days has it been since the Maw of the Wolf? I think it's been a couple days. I think two days, right?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
About two days, give or take half a day. We've been very busy.

[DM (Aarya)]
They're all blown together, honestly. And you've kept this bag on your person this entire time?

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Multiple layers of clothing in between, and it's a bag of holdane.

[DM (Aarya)]
Clearly that wasn't enough. Moonstone is very potent, and certainly potent enough to counteract the effects of a wolfsbane potion. That would explain why your transformation has persisted.

No matter, it's too late for this now. He's going to toss the bag of holdane to Ember. Keep this far away from her.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Oh, all right. And then she caches it.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Puts it away.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. So with that, Lucien and Bryce will continue to fuss around with the preparations, and midnight approaches. All right.

Let's see.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
The moonstone. What's the deal with that? Is it...

I've never heard of this. I don't think we have this moonstone back home.

[DM (Aarya)]
It's a relatively recent discovery. Some rather nasty alchemists found a way to synthesize a stone that imitates the effects of a full moon. It's not a naturally occurring mineral.

It can only be synthesized in an alchemical laboratory, but with great difficulty. But it seems this bride of Strahd you spoke of, she seems to have that capability.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, when we rescued you, we fought her in the alchemical lab. I mean, we destroyed it. Once we were done, which maybe was short-sighted, but that lab seemed very advanced and had a tank with two people in it that we rescued.

I don't know if that has anything to do with it, but you should remember them as well.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, yes, I do.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
You didn't trust them in your care, after all.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, and we had them in a separate room down in the basement. We're still trying to work that mystery out, but that seemed to have been related to the assassins they were sending out. Something I'd seen before.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Were they creating assassins in there?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, they had discovered some kind of means to create undead thralls that were completely pliant to her will. It's very reminiscent of, actually, vampire spawn that powerful vampires like Strahd himself are able to create, but this is on a lower scale. But that's besides the point.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Really weird. Sure, so what do we have to do? I mean, Iridel seems like the Moonstone has caused her to go beyond and begin to transform.

What do you think is going to happen now that you know this, and what do we need to do to help her?

[DM (Aarya)]
The worst-case scenario is that she transforms into a werewolf, in which case we have taken the necessary precautions. She is shackled to the wall. She is bound in silver.

Lucien and myself are carrying silvered weapons. Do you have anything of that sort on you?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I do. I don't think I... I mean, we're not going to use a weapon on her, are we?

I mean, she'll be fine. She's shackled to the wall.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, it shouldn't be necessary, but it pays to be prepared.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
What about a cloak of protection?

[DM (Aarya)]
A useful protection to have, but that alone won't guard you from a werewolf's fury.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
A silvered short sword?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, a silvered weapon will do nicely. But again, that's only a precaution. It shouldn't be necessary.

The shackles will hold.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I did not mention this is a...

[DM (Aarya)]
You're muted.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I did not mention this is a pretty secure basement. I don't really see many ways out, but you can also bar me in.

[DM (Aarya)]
And leave you to your fate alone. I couldn't in good conscience do that.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
How long is she going to be transformed for?

[DM (Aarya)]
It's difficult to say. It's different for every werewolf. You haven't transformed before, have you?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Nope, this is the first time for me. I think I would have mentioned if it had happened before.

[DM (Aarya)]
It will likely be difficult for you to regain control of your senses. You very well could be transformed all night. So what I'm saying is at the latest, you should be back to your human form by morning.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
So what, there's this moonstone, but there's no opposite? There's no sunstone?

[DM (Aarya)]
If only there were.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Are there any scientists in this world that will pay them top dollar... I guess I don't have any money here.

[DM (Aarya)]
It's actually... So Lucien speaks up upon you saying that. It's actually interesting that you should bring this up, but earlier you were asking about Champions of the Morning Lord.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, Lugdana, I... Yeah, did you get the books that you had, the scripture?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, yes, we have some scripture available for you, but my points...

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Just for the record, that would be 200 under the Dewey Decimal System. Think of how easy and quickly you could have found it if you had the system in place.

[DM (Aarya)]
In response to that, you'll see Bryce pinch the ridge of his nose. Yes, I'll keep a note of that.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I quietly say to them, this is part of how she copes with stressful scenarios. Oftentimes the Dewey Decimal System comes up, sometimes other various classifications of things.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
It soothes her.

[DM (Aarya)]
She can smile warmly. Well, we all have our ways to cope. I understand your situation.

But as I was saying, the Champion Lugdana, on her crusade 100 years ago, it is said that she bore a blazing holy symbol of the Morning Lord, and it shed the lights of the sun. She used this as one of her weapons against the creatures of the night and vanquished various vampire nests spread throughout Barovia.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
So what effect did it have on the werewolf and vampire respectively? They were weakened by it? They were made powerless?

They were torn back?

[DM (Aarya)]
For a vampire, the light of the sun is deadly, and lesser vampires will perish immediately upon its exposure.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Wow. Do you think even, you know...

[DM (Aarya)]
You're asking if the devil would succumb to this artifact?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It felt silly coming out of my mouth, but would he?

[DM (Aarya)]
It's a fair question. It's perhaps safe to say that it would not destroy him outright, but it would undoubtedly have an effect on him. After all, he is many things, but he is still a monster of the night and the light of the Morning Lord.

He is his natural enemy.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
So this Lugdana, how did she get in so well with the Morning Lord? I have something of a relationship with a similar god.

[DM (Aarya)]
Good question. Let's see. Let me pull up my notes for you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
And what was the name of the weapon again that she had?

[DM (Aarya)]
The Holy Symbol of Ravenkind.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Ravenkind. Interesting. Poor Erwin.

She's going to hear from me every time.

[DM (Aarya)]
As the legends say, Lady Lugdana was gifted this symbol by an angel in the guise of a raven, and hence it was dubbed the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind. It's quite unfortunate having such a weapon or such a symbol of power with us now would inspire such great hope for the citizens of Varovia. But it was lost.

You see, towards the end of her crusade, Lugdana faced a terrible demon lord on Yester Hill. And in her battle, she managed to successfully destroy the demon lord, but sustained, well, she succumbed to her injuries and the symbol itself was lost.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Lost. With her, was she ever found?

[DM (Aarya)]
As far as we know, her body was never recovered. Interesting. But tales of her crusade live on with her two companions.

They spread her legend to the people of Varovia and she became an inspiration for us all.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Who were they? Are they still alive, the way you're talking of them?

[DM (Aarya)]
No, not any longer. They both passed of old age some time later. But one was a skilled archer by the name of Livius.

It was said that he moved between the treetops with such grace that it appeared he was flying. And the other was Ismark the Great.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Ismark?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, an accomplished swordsman who stood shoulder to shoulder with Lady Lugdana herself.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Ismark. Was he from the village of Varovia by any chance? We know an Ismark from the village of Varovia and he's a Burgomaster now.

[DM (Aarya)]
He is his ancestor.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Maybe we'll need to pay him another visit to see if he knows anything, if anything was left behind from Ismark the Great.

[DM (Aarya)]
Upon discussing this, you do recall it's been a while now, but when you first came to Varovia village in the town square there was a statue dedicated to Ismark the Great.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, I guess I mean, I knew of him, I just didn't realize when they said great they meant assisting and killing demon lords great.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, well.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Not just some local hero.

[DM (Aarya)]
Many stories were lost to time. So it's not surprising to hear that some of his legend has diminished over the years.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, even his statue is a bit eroded these days.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
And I will say it makes sense how difficult the devil and his legions came down on the village of Varovia considering the history there.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, the devil did turn his eye upon that poor village.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, it also makes it a little bit extra strange that he's so infatuated with Irina. The more I learn of this devil, the more I know we have to do something about him. But this Lugdano, all the scriptures that you can provide, I would like to read them.

[DM (Aarya)]
Very well. Once we are finished here then I can provide these scriptures to you before you leave. So as you are discussing the legend of Lugdano, the minutes tick by and soon the bewitching hour is upon us.

Let's see. All right. So midnight arrives.

Let me see if I have any funny music for this actually. Let me check my notes. Okay.

So midnight arrives. Iridel, you cannot see the full moon but you definitely feel its power. And as you are basking in its glow, you start to feel a fire burning within you.

And slowly but steadily you feel your muscles bulging, fur sprouting all over your body and you start to strain and struggle against your shackles. You feel your mouth elongate into a snout and you try to lunge forward. As you do so, the shackles binding you tug a little bit loose.

With all the excitement, Isildur, you rush up to try to help your friend. And Iridel, right or left?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Left.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. As Isildur rushes up to you, panicked upon seeing your transformation, you lash out and you sink your teeth into Isildur's left arm. And as soon as this happens, your vision blacks out.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Stay back. It's okay. I'm fine.

Iridel, stop.

[DM (Aarya)]
Actually, hold on. So, Iridel, you are powerless to stop yourself, but you manage to very briefly gain a moment of control before your vision goes to blackness.

You see Isildur having been just bitten by you and you have just enough time to speak very briefly. Do you have anything to say?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I'm so sorry. Don't let me harm anyone else. No matter what.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Everyone stay back. These shackles will hold, right?

[DM (Aarya)]
You see Bryce rush forward and pull you backwards. We aren't prepared to deal with a second werewolf. And you see Bryce begin to pull out a hatchet that he had on his side.

I'm sorry, but this is all I can do for you now.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
What do you mean?

[DM (Aarya)]
Lucian, could you hold him?

And you see Lucian raises his quarterstaff and slams it to the ground. And as he does so, a Guardian of Faith springs forward and restrains Isildur. Isildur, you look a bit panicked.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
What are you doing? What are you...

[DM (Aarya)]
And Bryce will come over with his hatchet and he turns to you. I'm sorry.

And he will hack off your left arm right below the shoulder. Not the shoulder, the elbow.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Oh my god.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. And now we'll turn to Iridel. Your vision went to darkness and you are now experiencing a vision similar to what you had the previous night.

Let's see. Why isn't this working? There we go.

You're running through the woods, fleeing from some monster that is in pursuit. And as you are frantically fleeing through the brush, you hear its snarls and rapid footfalls getting closer and closer to you. In your rush, you step on an unsteady patch of ground and suddenly fall through the foliage into a deep pit.

You find yourself alone, afraid, and trapped in the darkness of the pit. And as you look up, you see the light of the full moon peeking through the foliage far above you. And you hear the growling monster growing continually louder as it approaches.

You feel your panic building as you realize the beast will be upon you soon. You see a shadow fall over you. You look up once more and you see a figure standing at the edge of the pit.

It's the same feral woman that you saw in your last vision. The familiar sight of her war paints adorning her body is glowing a vibrant red as she radiates an aura of strength. You feel that her very presence seems to embolden you.

You see her crouch down to regard you with a curious expression just as one might study a cat caught in a trap. She could easily reach down and pull you out from here, but you get the impression that she's debating if doing so is worth her while. And you feel in this moment that you have a choice to make.

You can stay here in the pit, wallowing in your fears and uncertainty, or you can reach up and seize the strength to determine your own fate. So, Iridel, what do you choose?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I'm instead going to say, what will it cost me?

[DM (Aarya)]
What will it cost you?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I already serve Tyr. I don't need another master.

[DM (Aarya)]
I would make you your own master.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I enjoy what I do. I enjoy following the law. I like to do what is right.

Will I have to give that up?

[DM (Aarya)]
You will keep everything that you have the strength to claim as your own.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
What's the practical effect of that?

[DM (Aarya)]
You live.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I'll die for real?

[DM (Aarya)]
Hmm.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Is this a metaphor or something literal? Just speak to me literally.

[DM (Aarya)]
It depends on how you see death. If you see yourself succumbing to becoming a monster, are you still living?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
No, I don't want to become a monster. I'll do anything to avoid that.

[DM (Aarya)]
Then it seems your path before you is clear.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Okay. I'll control it. I will not allow this monstrous form to break the law, to break my ideals.

[DM (Aarya)]
Hmm. There might be hope for you yet. And she reaches down and gives you her hand.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Okay, and then I will pull myself up with the assistance she provides.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. And with that, you come too. And I'm going to switch over to the other group in the meantime.

Let's see. Where will be Theron's house? Activate this scene.

I'm going to get you two out of here. Get you out of here. Okay.

If Savannah is speaking, she's muted.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
She's not.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, cool. Let's see. All right.

So back at the attic in Balakovich Manor, Victor and Lady Voktor have been busy preparing this ritual. And they seem to be just about ready right as midnight approaches. She turns to Lady Voktor will turn to Saturno and Mercurio.

At this point, Saturno, you have been positioned directly next to the heart stone. Victor has instructed you that you need to keep it from being pushed out by any magical forces here. And Mercurio, you are positioned in a triangle position alongside Victor and Lady Voktor on the outskirts of the ritual circle.

You yourself won't need to recite anything or cast any particular spell. You're kind of just there to provide any magical assistance that will be needed to stabilize the other two.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Okay. Just to start out, can I cast Enhance Ability on Saturno? Sure.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
All right. I'm going to cast Enhance Ability on Saturno. And I give her a wink. Bardic Inspiration.

[DM (Aarya)]
Which ability are you enhancing?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I thought you got this. I imagine Strength. Yeah.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, cool. So for the duration, any Strength checks that Saturno makes will have advantage. All right.

So...

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Before we start, I'd like to just look at him in the eye and be like, it's funny how you need help with things that aren't written in books.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
How what?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
How you need help with things that aren't written in books.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, yes. I'm very lucky to have you. I get it.

Can we be honest?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Sure. Anything for you?

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. So with that, you see Midnight approaches and Victor and Lady Voxra begin chanting the verbal components for this ritual. The ritual circle all around begins to glow with an eerie blue light.

As they are chanting, let me see what I have. I'm going to have these two make a couple of arcana checks. See how well they do this.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Maybe they needed the fucking enhance ability.

[DM (Aarya)]
Let's do Victor first. Victor rolled a 23. Pretty good.

So Victor, he is focused completely on this ritual and he's reciting everything perfectly. You can see that the flow of magic coming from him is strong and steady. Now we'll move to Lady Wachter.

Damn, okay. She rolled pretty well, too. She got 20.

So Lady Wachter herself also seems to be on her A game. It seems that she's quite dedicated to bringing her daughter back in one piece. Now let's go to Mercurio.

Why don't you give me an arcana check as well?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh, I gotta give arcana, too? Oh, shit. Eight.

Okay. I have inspiration.

[DM (Aarya)]
Go ahead and use it.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh, my God.

[DM (Aarya)]
Six.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
What the fuck?

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh, my goodness. Yeah, so between the three of you, the flow of magic coming from Victor and Lady Voxra seems to be pretty stable. Mercurio, you move into assist.

However, you are a bit out of your wheel. It seems that the other two have you covered. The only thing is that you won't be able to provide much more aid at this point.

Let's see. So as the ritual progresses, Saturno, the heart stone at the center begins to shake and kind of vibrate. And you can feel it trying to escape somehow as if it's alive.

Give me a strength check to see if you can keep it in place.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Got it. I do normal?

[DM (Aarya)]
It's fine. Advantage. You have an enhanced ability still.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Okay, just make sure. Oui.

[DM (Aarya)]
Eighteen. Pretty good. All right.

Yes, so with an eighteen strength check, you can definitely feel that the heart stone is really tugging to try to escape. It's clear. It feels like the stone itself has a mind of its own and is wanting no parts of this ritual.

But with the sheer force of your strength, you're able to keep it in place. And as that happens, let's see. You see a portal start to appear directly above the center of the ritual circle.

And you are greeted with the ghostly form of Stella. Lady Voktor looks up and sees her daughter and she appears overcome with emotion. She looks to her daughter and she says, we're almost there.

You can come through now. And it seems that the moment is a bit too much for her and her concentration begins to waver. And Victor turns over to her and says, don't lose focus now.

We're almost there. If either Mercurio or Saturno, either of you can offer some kind of words of encouragement to boost their resolve, I'll let you do a persuasion check or anything else that might be appropriate.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
What's your persuasion?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
One million. Okay. Plus ten.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
It's hard to lock in and like mew or something. Do a face, you know? Yeah.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Lady Voktor, just snap out of it. Okay. You need to lock in.

This is about your daughter. You need to focus. You only get one chance at this.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. Fourteen. That's pretty good.

Okay. Yeah. So as you are doing that, you see Lady Voktor turn to you.

Yes, yes. You're right. Of course.

And her confidence is renewed. She continues to hold the spell and slowly but surely you see the spirits of Stella come through the portal and move back into her body standing on the edge of the room. And as that happens, you see Stella, her body at this point was like comatose basically.

Just kind of like standing but not really like doing anything. Like nobody was home. But as her spirit is reunited with her body, you see for a moment her face and expressions become animated once more and she collapses with exhaustion.

And just as that happens, both Victor and Lady Voktor release the spell and Lady Voktor moves over to her daughter to catch her. You see Victor turn to you both. It worked.

It worked. Yes, of course it worked. We made all the preparations.

Lady Voktor will turn to both Mercurio and Saturno. Thank you both, truly.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
You're welcome.

[DM (Aarya)]
Thanks for locking in. There was a lot at stake here. It's been so long.

It's been weeks. If you'll excuse me, I need to bring my daughter home. And she'll scoop up Stella's unconscious form and walk out of the room.

At this point, Victor has collapsed onto the ground. He's kind of stunned, speechless. It almost seems like he himself is surprised that it worked.

And he looks to you both. You guys were... You're all right.

You did good.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, good shit, kid.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
It's good for someone that I can't stop talking about. How do I put it? I can't cast fireball, but you know, I can tell when someone's a jackass, but you did a good job today.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Hopefully you've learned a thing or two about asking for help when you need it.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, yeah. But I hear you. It's just...

Well, the stakes have never been this high.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
They don't have to get this high.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well, just... Your buddy Mercurio won't always be here to read your mind and know that you need help even though you didn't ask for it, so... Just for next time, you know?

[DM (Aarya)]
Your buddy Mercurio... Are you trying to say we're friends now? What's...

What do you mean?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh my god, this fucking kid. Don't overthink it. All right, well...

Sorry, but... Yeah, we gotta jet now. We got another meeting after this, so...

Get some rest, and...

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
See you later.

[DM (Aarya)]
Right. See you. And with that, we'll go back over to the church.

Let's see. No, this basement. The other basement.

Did I not have the scene pens? That's why.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
So you and me sit together and I can't fucking believe that shit actually worked.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah, I thought we were all dead.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, I thought we were all gonna die.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I was like, I can't believe I'm dying because of this loser teenager.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
And that portal opened up, I was like, oh no. It's...

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
It's over. When that stone started moving, I was like, okay.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Stones aren't supposed to move by themselves.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah, I don't read a bunch of books, but I know that, like... Stones are not supposed to move.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
And then they pass the mic to me and I'm supposed to know. I didn't study the book. They didn't tell me to study ahead of time.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah. And then they need help because they're not strong enough. That's so funny.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Forget about that up ahead of time. He was about to do the ritual by himself. Imagine if we let him do it.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah. I don't think he could even hold a door open for himself. Have you seen his shoulders?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh my gosh. What shoulders?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Exactly. The concavity. I know that word.

That's a cool one.

[DM (Aarya)]
Concavity. Oh my gosh. All right.

So at this point, we're going to be back in the basement of the church. Irdel, you have just come to from your vision. You can see before you that Sildur is crouched or on his knees on the ground.

Father Bryce has wrapped up his wounds. His stump, as you can now see. And Father Lucian has just finished administering some healing magic to stop the bleeding and all.

And you, Irdel, despite everything that you just went to, are in perfect health. You aren't a werewolf. You are currently in your regular human form.

And the shackles that were binding you have come loose.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Quick question.

[DM (Aarya)]
What's up?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Sorry.

I wish there was a raise your hand feature.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
So Mercurio and I are on the way to the church now, technically. Okay, that's it.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Okay, okay. The wolfsbane is working. Quick, the shackles are loose before the spell breaks again and something else happens.

Put them firm.

[DM (Aarya)]
Bryce turns to you and he looks you up and down. I'm not sure that's needed still.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Is she like completely untransformed now? Like back to herself?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Okay.

[DM (Aarya)]
Not only that, but she even seems a bit healthier than she would be normally.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Like the best she looked in a long time kind of deal?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah, pretty much.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
What? Why not take additional precaution?

[DM (Aarya)]
Very well, if you insist. And Bryce will come over and affix the shackles to you once more. Though he doesn't seem to be convinced that they're necessary.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, Iridel, what do you remember? What happened?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I only remember lunging at you and then it all went black. But what happened to your arm?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, these two here made a choice for me.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
And I don't know if I could have done it, but I think they were right. They're stronger than they look, these old men. We old men are all stronger than we look.

I always did say to you I'd pay you an arm and a leg, so I guess I'm halfway there now.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Let's keep the leg attached to you, please.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'll try.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, no more in our situation. I'd be the one in charge of wheeling you around. That sounds like a burden.

I'd do it, of course, but you'd hear about it.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah. I don't know. I'm just so shocked.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Any paved roads here? In general, none of the inns are very accessible. Yeah, no more limbs.

Every other limb must stay affixed.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Iridel, I'm just glad you're okay. And do you see like Sildur swinging his arm, his left arm towards her as if he was going to you know, either clasp her on the shoulder or hold her face and he just goes way too far. His arm goes across his body as if he was expecting more resistance and you know, expecting to make contact and looks down and says I have a lot of a lot of change to get used to.

I don't know how I'll hold my shield or I'll I'll be at the front lines for We'll figure out things for you. I mean, Ember.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, I was about to say You could help teach him.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah, I could.

Maybe I can build you an arm.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
That's true. I do like tinkering with armor too. You can show me a few tricks we could Yeah, we could make it work.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah, maybe maybe Your life isn't over. And not to mention considering all the other tinkerings that you do with your armor you could definitely come up with some interesting modifications.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
As long as I can hold a shield and a sword and keep I'll make sure that happens. Well, thank you both. I uh I have only one arm now, but I have countless good friends here.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right. And as you say that as if on cue Mercurio and Saturno you come rushing onto the scene there and here and you are greeted with a sorry sight.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Oh, wow. This is like an arm on the ground.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Wrong arm. What's he got there?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Just yeah I say hi guys and I wave my stump at them and I'm like, ah, yep.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Most regretfully.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well good news everyone Iridel has figured something out. Bad news my arm is gone. Good news you're here just in time for Iridel to tell us what she figured out.

Do you want to tell us? Is there anything for you to tell us? How did you come out of this?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Deep within I found a wellspring of resolve a deep commitment to not become a monster or allow anyone else to get hurt.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
You know it really would be that simple for you Iridel.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
So you just chose to not be a werewolf? Why didn't you do that before?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I don't think it's that I chose to not be a werewolf. It's just a willing extremely deep extremely stubborn choice to not allow myself to become a monster ever to continue on my life's path to continue serving Tyr. Whatever it is I'm just glad you were able to do it. Yeah. I mean to be clear I still will be taking utmost precautions for every full moon and I think we did have the wolfsbane to help me out.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Iridel is the type to take simple principles to the absolute extreme. When she says that she was able to overcome it with just her will I honestly believe her.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I mean with all the stuff we've seen around these parts I...

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I mean candidly I did have what felt like a vision but it feels more psychological like a reflection of my resolve.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well I'm just glad you're okay. And before you went out you said make sure that I don't hurt anyone else and I think while I didn't have to do too much seems like you did that yourself everyone else is okay.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
But I mean it seems like I was out for a while so even making sure that the shackles held for a couple extra seconds allowed everyone else to stay safe. Imagine if I had fully broke free. Even those few spare seconds I could have done so much harm.

I could have bitten everyone in this room.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
You didn't so it's okay. We don't have to go there.

[DM (Aarya)]
And you see Bryce speaks up at that. We wouldn't have let it come to that. I only regret that I couldn't save Sildur here.

It seems not quite as quick as I used to be in my old age.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
You know you've been through quite a lot yourself. I would have to imagine that you're still recovering from your time in the mall. You know it's okay.

Me and Irdel came here together we'll leave here together and if we have to burden each other a bit along the way that's fine.

[DM (Aarya)]
You're comforting me. I should be saying this to you. You're the one who just lost an arm.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I guess so. It hasn't really set in yet. But yeah I'm sure I'll learn the real implications of that soon.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
You're still valuable without your arm.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
You know Amber thank you. I know you have years and years on me in experience with this so I have a lot to learn from you and thank you for being here for me.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
No problem. I'm just I was in shock I didn't even do much either. I just stood there watching it happen.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well you were standing so far away to keep the the Moonstone or whatever it is away from her and couldn't get to me in time it's you were just doing what you were supposed to. I think we all were. We did our best.

And I'm just glad it wasn't anybody else. It's okay.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Sildir I really will dedicate the rest of my life to making it up to you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah are you gonna come up with a classification system for bodily injuries or something along those lines?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I think it already exists.

[DM (Aarya)]
At that there's various scales for pain and for blood loss and you hear Father Bryce just like barely stifle a chuckle at that. Mm-hmm.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Can you itemize the psychological damage I just went through with this teenage boy? You know?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
How did that go by the way guys?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I'm so done man.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Did Stella make it?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah she did.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Oh you guys are amazing. And that brat is still a bitch.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well there was a few hitches let's just say it's good that we were there and it's good we brought Lady Voctor because yeah we made it by the skin of our teeth and yeah.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
And he was gonna do it alone imagine.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Imagine, yeah.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
How do teenagers think that they can do everything by themselves? It's a good thing you were there to jump in. I can say that's probably unique to him.

When my younger siblings went through their teenage phases good god probably what gave me the patience to deal with you a lot half the time but they uh know everything all the time every hour of the day. It's insufferable.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Yeah that sums it up.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Well me I was always an angel.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
No you weren't.

[DM (Aarya)]
In a literal sense.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
You really put the ass in Aasimar. As an Aasimar myself.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah you're allowed to say you have the pass.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I have the pass.

[DM (Aarya)]
All right so as you all are discussing amongst yourselves Father Lucian will ask you all I don't mean to interrupt but where were you planning to stay for the night? If you need somewhere you're welcome to rest here.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I think we should head back to the inn honestly I need a comfortable bed for for the number of Z's I'm going to need to catch.

[DM (Aarya)]
Very good yes the inn is much more suitable to host you than the church but of course you are always welcome here. I appreciate it. I appreciate it but maybe you should invest in some padding for those pews I mean you know Mercurio that isn't a terrible idea perhaps your friend has some ideas to classify away any plans or schematics for that sort of thing?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Oh like a building code?

[DM (Aarya)]
Something like that I'm no expert on these sort of things.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah actually there's really detailed rules in terms of building restrictions architectural review in the library in the Burgomasters house. Is there any documentation as to what to do with an arm or limb?

[DM (Aarya)]
Bryce will speak up to answer that. The safest thing to do is to destroy it though it should be it should be harmless at this point.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Could something happen like if it wasn't disposed of properly?

[DM (Aarya)]
Well if it fell into the wrong hands I'm sure I'm sure some kind of evil alchemical expert could do all sorts of terrible experimentation with it. I see. Unfortunately we do have one of those running about.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Is there any non-evil experimentation we could do with it? If not then just destroy it.

[DM (Aarya)]
What do you mean?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well I assume if alchemy can be used for evil it can be used for good and if you guys think that there's anything we could do in that vein then let's say I'll donate my body to science but if not then blast the thing I have no more use for it.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes well unfortunately that is neither mine nor Lucian's area of expertise but we'll hold on to this.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I don't think Volenta will be helping us out anytime soon so no that is unlikely. Might as well just get rid of the thing burn it with holy magic or whatever you choose to do.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes I think that's the safest course of action.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well goodbye I say to my arm.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
You wave with your other arm.

[DM (Aarya)]
And you'll see Bryce will scoop up your arm and very carefully tuck it away and he'll head on out of the crypt. Father Lucian will turn to you. I can escort you out of the church if you'd like.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
You don't want one last high five Sildir?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It's okay. I still got my handshaking hand at least. The one I made all these deals with.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
And your signature hand.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Exactly. Who needs a left hand anyway? All I need is a a way to maneuver a shield with this arm and I'll be good to go.

[DM (Aarya)]
Alright so are you guys headed to the inn?

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I mean I guess I'm staying here. At least till morning. Why take any more risks?

I've already given a grievous bodily injury to my most dear friend. And frankly you should probably stay down here and jackal through. I mean typically it'd be three to five years depending on if punitive factors are added in.

But that isn't exactly practical in terms of what we're trying to accomplish in this world. And there's no guarantee that the legal system here is anything like what we have back home.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah. You know I don't think we're ever going to convince her not to spend the night in silver shackles.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
They're saying the silver shackles to go or something.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Mercurio this is serious.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I'm sorry. Irredel if that's what lycanthropy looks like then just go ahead and bite all of us.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
You look snatched.

[DM (Aarya)]
Lucian's going to look over to you. We can prepare just manacles that she can keep her hands bound with so you can take her with you if you'd like.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah. I nudge with my elbow I'm like yeah the manacles that suppress the lycanthropy throughout the entire night remotely. Tell her about them.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I see what you're trying to do. I'm going to draw the line here. Irinelle stay the night here.

It's fine. But we're not going to be lugging around some manacles and counting on them. You can't have that kind of crutch.

I know you. You willed yourself out of this. You will do it again and again until you have full control.

Cope for the night in these shackles that you don't need but we're not taking around any manacles. That's what I say.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
I'll see you all in the morning.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Do you want any company? Maybe the afternoon even. I'm really planning on sleeping in guys.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yeah, I hear if you lose a lot of blood in a limb you need a little extra sleep especially if you're an old man like me. So, noon? Haven't done that in a while but it sounds good.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I actually just remembered we have to go help Oh, okay. What's the innkeeper's dad's name?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Irwin. Irwin.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, we have to help Irwin's dad. So, actually no sleeping in everyone.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yes, in Iridyll we did pass some strange stones. You were protecting the children while we were investigating but if you have anything that you can ponder overnight that could remove a curse using the power of fear maybe ponder it and we'll talk about it in the morning.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Yeah, of course. That's certainly something that should be in my capabilities.

[DM (Aarya)]
And off to bed. Alright, so everyone's going to the inn except Iridyll?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Maybe I'll stay in the pew up above.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, so yeah Sildur's gonna stay at the church.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
God dammit he's guilt tripping us. No, no. We're all staying at the church now.

We're all staying at the church now, I think.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
I'll stay at the church.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
This is not a guilt trip.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Please go sleep in comfort at Irwin's. It's fine.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, right. I'll stay at the church. I take off my jacket and I just lay it on one of the pews and I fuckin' lay down and I just knock out.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Alright. You hear a muffled voice from below the stones underneath. You're all ruining my penance.

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh my goodness. I will remind Mercurio you do have that old tome that you recovered earlier. You don't have to do anything with it now but it is still with you.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Okay, yeah. Maybe in the middle of the night when Mercurio wakes up from sleep apnea he's gonna go...

[DM (Aarya)]
Oh my gosh.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh, we're doing this again?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Steal some communion wine if that's a thing.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah. Oh my gosh.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, I'm gonna go sneak some communion wine and maybe take a few you know, turn a few pages of the book.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yeah. Alright. So everyone can take a long rest.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I guess that everyone ended up deciding to stay.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah. Should I take a long rest yet if I'm gonna read the book?

[DM (Aarya)]
Are you gonna read the book?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Oh yeah, that's what I was saying.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay, okay, okay. Let's... Let's actually...

Yeah, you can take a long rest as you read the book. Okay. And as you do so you have it on your person, right?

Where is it? There it is.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I like the summary of what you recover on your long rest. That's a cool picture.

[DM (Aarya)]
Alright. So Mercurio, as you study this book over the course of your rest you are able to identify it as the Tome of Strahd. No.

It is a magical item and it is now... You are now attuned to it. You'll...

You'll figure out what exactly that entails in short order but for now let's see... Everyone's in the church right now, right?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Oh god. Depends.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
The Strom of Todd has returned. The Strom of Todd is back. Yes, we're all in the church though.

[DM (Aarya)]
Okay. Perfect. Alright.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Is there a ramping slow still or just a flat?

[DM (Aarya)]
Let me see what I have for you.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Where did that book come from, by the way? Sorry.

[DM (Aarya)]
Mercurio found it tucked away in some odd corner in the attic in the Baron's house. But yeah. So Mercurio, as you leaf through the pages some are torn or like blurred and eroded away.

You see some branded... Some pages are branded with unknowable symbols and others still are artfully scribed with a murky black ink. The tale you are leafing through is long and written in a series of foreign scripts except for the first page and as you read over it the characters seem to like shift and transform before your eyes until you're able to read a short paragraph clearly and it reads I, Strahd Lord of Varovia well aware certain events of my reign have been desperately misunderstood by those who are better at garbling history than recording it hereby set down an exact record of those events that the truth may at last be known. And you see the pages flutter open to the book's centre and mist begins to pour from the binding. You feel lightheaded your vision fades and from the blackness now surrounding you a hungry fog rolls along the ground.

You shout and there is nothing the mist chokes closer and a man clad in a black cloak and a regal red tunic looks at you through the cloud with a stern face and piercing eyes. He steps towards you with the grace of a king and your eyes meet his cold glare as it bears down on you. He speaks I am the ancient I am the land my beginnings are lost in the darkness of the past.

You see the visage of the man disperses into a black and red cloud before reforming into a young boy no older than 12 with a small sword at his side and tears streaming down his cheeks. The mist recedes further revealing a well adorned sunlit castle courtyard the low buzz of insects and humidity add weight to the summer air and hanging on the ramparts overhead are red banners depicting the same raven iconography cast in metal on the cover of the tome. The boy that stood before you moments ago now sits atop a small set of stairs leading to a wooden door and from beyond it you can hear distant but boisterous laughter.

I'm going to switch the scene for y'all. Let's see. So notably Mercurio when you opened this book you were alone but now as you come to you appear to be in some kind of dream except everyone else is with you too.

You are joined by Ember, Iridel, Saturno and Sildur. Okay.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
And like are we perceiving this as well?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, you are.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Okay.

Um where am I? I'm so tired.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Can we perceive that this is a dream but not really?

[DM (Aarya)]
Um to you it feels pretty lifelike. Although you don't know how you got here.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Is it like a memory?

[DM (Aarya)]
You aren't sure. Um you'd have to ask Mercurio.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
What's going on Mercurio?

[DM (Aarya)]
I guess you may not even know that this is what all Mercurio is doing.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Mercurio, I'm asking you because I'm asking you.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Have I been in a coma? We must be having some kind of shared dream.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I don't like these.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
But hey at least look there's sunshine here.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Always the optimist.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
But no no no I really think what I don't know if we're in Barovia.

There's sunshine here. Maybe we left? If we left how do we stay here?

Maybe it's also a way to get out.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I'm gonna go ask this kid over here.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Maybe this whole thing has just been an awful awful dream.

[DM (Aarya)]
So as you approach the child Mercurio, he tries to collect himself and he stands tall with his back straight. He doesn't come up he's about like four feet tall. He's a young boy.

And he looks to you and he tries to compose himself with a sort of forced confidence and he says who are you? Are you my new teachers? My new instructors?

What are you doing here?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yes, I'm a visitor. A noble from a distant land. And who might you be?

[DM (Aarya)]
I am Strahd von Zarovich, prince of this kingdom and castle, heir to King Barov II.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Do we hear this?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, we do. King who? King Barov.

Barov, okay.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Should we kill him?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
And what is going on today? Are you expecting any other visitors today?

[DM (Aarya)]
Well, Rahadin did tell me that I would have new instructors shortly, but he's always been directly in charge of my instruction up until now. I don't know. He's always been a difficult master, but I know he only pushes me because he knows I can succeed.

I assume you are the new instructors that he hired?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yes, of course.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Hmm. I whisper, I don't want to kill a child.

[DM (Aarya)]
Your timing couldn't be worse, unfortunately.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Why is that?

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Are we in the past?

[DM (Aarya)]
Who are you speaking to, Amber?

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Is it Saturno, Mercurio, whispering?

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I don't know yet.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, young Strahd, apologies, we're coming from a faraway land, you see. Rahadin is wise, like you think, and was able to source some of the best teachers from across these lands and other ones that you've probably yet to have learned of. Why do you say it is bad timing?

We did work very hard to travel here.

[DM (Aarya)]
Well, he kind of like turns to behind him, looking towards the door, which is just barely ajar, and from within you can hear like sounds of boisterous laughter. Father is celebrating, and he's indisposed. I'm afraid if you wish to speak to him or with Rahadin, then you'll have to wait a bit longer, as I have been.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
I sort of step forward to young Strahd and I say, what are you celebrating? Or what is he celebrating?

[DM (Aarya)]
Well, mother is about to give birth to her second son, Sergei, my soon-to-be younger brother. Of course, it'll be up to me to teach him everything that I know, and father's expectations are high for us all.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
That sounds stressful.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, I am. Candidly, I'm not sure that I can live up to my father's expectations.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Well, surely coming from a noble family, your brother will also have the same tutors that you had. Surely it's not all falling on you.

[DM (Aarya)]
That's not how father will see it. He'll expect me to take charge, take the lead, as he always has. He says that if I am to inherit his throne someday, then I'll have to learn to be a natural leader.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Do you want his throne?

[DM (Aarya)]
Does it matter what I want? It'll be mine anyway.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It does. It does matter.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Yeah, not a very kingly mentality to just surrender to your situation.

[DM (Aarya)]
It is my duty. My duty to my father, to our lineage, to the kingdom of Zerovia. I don't have a choice in the matter.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Well, it is said that some of the best and worst kings take up the throne not by their own choice.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Do you have any dreams for yourself? What do you want to do?

[DM (Aarya)]
I want to make my father proud. I want to make my ancestors proud.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Is that what you want to do with your life?

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes. What greater calling could there be?

[Ember (Spurthi)]
But you seem stressed and depressed.

[DM (Aarya)]
I'll grow out of it.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Oh, cool.

[Irredel (Savannah)]
Well, I will say.

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
Sorry, I have a thing where I make sounds.

[DM (Aarya)]
Yes, you are making some very curious sounds. I hope that you are not too stressed.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I hope that you are not depressed. hope that you not too stressed. I that you are not too depressed.

[DM (Aarya)]
hope that you not too stressed.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
I I What war do you speak of?

[DM (Aarya)]
Are you... you don't know about the war? Where are you from exactly that you wouldn't have heard of us?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
As I mentioned, Rahadin can source his teachers from these lands and other lands. Let's just say we're from other lands.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah, we're from other lands. We've just come here for you and your kingdom to serve.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
Obviously we have to be from distant lands or else we would be nervous. That's so funny. That we would be enemies soon.

[DM (Aarya)]
Well, if Rahadin has hired you then you must be thoroughly vetted. Although it's strange that he wouldn't have brought instructors who would know of our history. Anyway, I best see to father now and you'll see.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Before you go, back home one of our greatest fears was vampires. We were overrun with them where we're from.

[DM (Aarya)]
Vampires?

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Yes. How frequent do you get those here? We're just hoping to relax a bit.

[DM (Aarya)]
There's no such thing as vampires. Vampires are simply creatures of legend.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Kid, we've seen them.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
I'm glad we'll be able to relax then. And I'm glad you just think they're legends.

[DM (Aarya)]
If you've seen them then you must be mistaken.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It was a privilege to think that way, young Strahd. But I'm glad you have the privilege. You seem to be...

[DM (Aarya)]
A privilege, yes. The throne is a privilege, I should think. And as he says that, you see the mists roll in and cloud your vision.

And the voice of Strahd the Elder rings in your ears. Yet that past now is filled only with regret. And you all awake from your slumber.

Let's get back to the church.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
It's maybe a good stopping point. Otto's going to poop his pants. Either that or I can go walk Otto and come back.

Depends what we're all down for.

[DM (Aarya)]
How's everyone feeling?

[Saturno (Stephanie)]
I'm good both ways. If you want to call it, that's totally fine. If you want to continue, that's okay.

[Mercurio (Guillermo)]
I'm good both ways.

[Ember (Spurthi)]
Yeah, me too.

[Sildir (Tristan)]
Alright, let's call it then. I'll have the opinion. But I just want to say, everyone fucking went ham today.

Good job, everybody. Seriously, there was not a moment where I wasn't just captured by what everyone was doing. And good job, Arya, of course.

[DM (Aarya)]
Thank you. I mean, I agree. Everyone brought their A game today.

The end. Good session.