#laudna's is of course pate

[iolypse]

slowburn imodna dragon tamers au. yay or nay

[astralleywright]

playing with dolls

[hugahufflepuff1]

Chaos Crew

So we know Travis definitely sees Dorym and Ashley must too. Wouldn't it be funny, if they try to get Orym or Dorian to confess to the other? Or Laudna goes to Dorian and is like "listen, we're friends right. Hopefully we are" "of course Laudna, what's up?" "I just want to tell you.... *Sigh* I really like you Dorian and I just wanna say... If you ever hurt Georgie... I'll have Pate peck your eyes and have my wolf eat your guts" and Dorian just looks horrified"👀... What?! Who's Georgie? And what do you mean Pate will peck my...." "Georgie is my boy and he's a very good boy. He deserves to be happy and so do u" then Pate comes out and talks to Dorian and Dorian just has this look of "what the fuck is going on?!"

[unicyclehippo]

imodna 45! yippee!

45. out of anger

she did it on purpose. she did it on purpose, of course she did. she was speaking to everyone and keeping them so rigidly three paces away and their eyes turned so sweetly so watchedly away until she was surrounded on all sides by people who had sworn they were her friends but watched, watched, watched her out of the corners of their eyes like she was a thief, a murderer, a witch! well fine. she was all of those things, after all, and she understood, she understood yes of course she did.

laudna?

she understands and she can be so so welcoming, she can split her mind into three pieces, see? and it doesn’t even hurt! this is the piece she can carve away for delilah, who is hungry, and this is the part that imogen can fold herself into when she needs it and—damn, well, she miscounted and there’s nothing left for herself but that’s fine she likes her skull well enough, she doesn’t need her mind, she can live in pate’s if it gets too crowded in here or maybe she can animate sashimi and knock-knock-knock against her wooden head and bed to be let in. begging at the door like a fucking dog. not bad enough that there’s one in her ribs chewing on her ribs the starving thing and how dare it! she needs those ribs, she needs that space, maybe not to breathe but it’s hers, isn’t it?

laudna, sweetheart—

‘i’m not sweet!’ laudna snarled. ‘i’m rotten! i’m rotten and disgusting and i’m not sweet!’

purple eyes went wide. imogen—not-sweet imogen, lightning-sweet imogen, oh how laudna wanted to be that, she could be sweet if sweetness was that! she would love to be sweet if it cut into her arms, if it made her look powerful and bold and dangerous. that would be sweet, oh, she could taste that in the back of her throat, that power would be so so sweet. but no sweetness was always plum soft plum ripe the purple squish of fruit sicksweet on a purple tongue and purple lips and oh, sweetheart, well why not swallow that down next bite after bite after bite.

‘you’re not sweet,’ imogen agreed.

laudna stared at her. hard. flaying. she wants to see wants to know. no one else does. they stare sidelong. they don’t want to see her they want to see her shadow. if it’s still hers.

‘you don’t mean it,’ laudna announced. she’s sure. mostly sure. as sure as she can be of anything these days. it makes her sound soft and weepy. there’s supposed to be a stone in here somewhere. she’d love to hear that one day. she’d love for Delilah to choke on the fucking thing shove it down her throat.

did imogen mean it? was she lying to her? was she only saying what laudna wanted her to say? of course she was, she loved like she knew laudna like she knows she’s that plum holding her gently gently in her palm she doesn’t want to squish her and, oh alright, that’s kind of her but laudna is rotting away because imogen won’t eat her, sweet or not, but that doesn’t mean something isn’t nibbling away on the inside and her skin is cracking open and all the juices are going to stain imogen’s pretty powerful power-sweet skin and all the while she’s thinking about how sweet laudna is and she won’t eat her!

i don’t understand, h— i don’t understand, laudna. can you explain it to me?

can she explain can she explain imogen is in her head, two thirds of it, maybe. maybe less? how much had she portioned up for her? she is in her head but she still can’t understand. fine.

laudna stepped up close to imogen and curled her hands around her cheeks—honeygold and freckled, sweet, sweetgirl, she could just. eat her up. she ducked her head, drank down imogen’s shaking breath, and kissed her. could she feel it? taste it. the rot the sweet rot and the everything else. how could she call her sweet? imogen was supposed to know her better than anyone else, maybe not better than Delilah. maybe not. how could she treat her so sweetly? she wasn’t! she wasn’t!

imogen’s lips were. soft. so soft and she didn’t taste good, they hadn’t had time to wash up after their fight. there was blood behind her teeth and laudna kissed her mouth open and licked it up and let go of the stitching in the back of her head that kept her all together—she couldn’t focus on it right now, see, because imogen thought she was sweet and dying and she’s tired of it, she’s tired of matilda and the lady’s face and she’s tired of the being sweetly dead and sweetly lead on the leash the noose she’s tired of being sweet. she kisses imogen with sharp teeth and there’s something hot in her veins, her arms, the tips of her fingers where she cradles imogen’s face because imogen takes it, she tastes the blood and anger and the unsweeteness of it, her, and moans. gorgeous. imogen sounds sharp and bright. panting. her lips were soft, red. laudna wanted to set her teeth against the soft parts of her and start eating until she got to her heart and—imogen moaned again, and dragged her close and kissed her hard and she didn’t hold her gently and and and

‘i’m not sweet.’

[sparring-spirals]

Love the divides of:

Orym provides a fun fact in alignment with the one that was given, a nice way of reciprocating the intent of it and maybe taking the heat off Deni$e scoffing over it as a fun fact.

Ashton provides a fun fact that is heavy, bordering on Too Much- a hole in his head, one of the worst things that happened to him, offered up with careless abandon.

Laudna shares a fun fact thats true, but also very clearly geared to impress, to share- eager and enthusiastic. Magic! Just like you two! And, Pate, of course.

[quietblueriver]

Wading into an Imodna au? Meet equine therapist Imogen, children’s vlogger Laudna and her co-host Pate, and the various other current and future employees of Camp Prudaj.

-

Imogen was tossing an eggshell into the trash, her ramen bubbling happily on the stove, when her phone buzzed with a call from an unknown number.

She gave herself one moment of exhausted frustration before taking a deep breath and preparing to answer. This was a new ritual, in the months since she sent in her MSW applications.

She hated speaking with strangers. Hated it. But declining risked the option of panic-ignoring the voicemail or, worse, having to leave one of her own, and she had years of practice working retail for some of the most unpleasant assholes in, she’d wager, a 300 mile radius, so she could manage the almost unfailingly polite university employees who had begun to call her about interviews and application supplements, and, most excitingly, scholarship offers.

She reminded herself of this last possibility specifically as she said, in her best customer service voice, “This is Imogen.”

“Ms. Temult. I’m glad I caught you. My name is Ariks Ehsteross. I’m a friend of Wilmer’s.”

Well. That was unexpected. It took her a beat longer than it probably should have to answer.

“Hi, Mr…”

Shit. Shit. The source of the call, not to mention hearing her boss called Wilmer, had distracted her so badly she hadn’t paid good enough attention and now she was going to butcher this man’s name.

He laughed, not unkindly, before she could spiral too much further. “Eshteross. But Ariks is absolutely fine.”

No way in hell she’d be calling any friend of Mr. Faramore’s—Wilmer’s—by their first name like that, but it was a nice thing to say.

“Sorry, Mr. Eshteross. Um, what can…what can I do for you, sir?”

“Well, Ms. Temult, do you have a few minutes to talk?”

She eyed her ramen, the clock, and the burner, resigned to the loss of her egg.

“Of course.”

It felt, strangely, like an interview, and thankfully, she’d had enough of those recently to answer well despite her lack of preparation and, well, total lack of information about what, exactly she might interviewing for.

She must’ve done well enough, though, because fifteen minutes and one surreptitious removal of a saucepan later, Eshteross said, a smile evident in his voice, “Thank you for that. I know this is out of the blue, and I do apologize. I hope to make up for it now.”

“It’s not…it’s no problem, sir.”

“Very polite of you, after twenty minutes on the phone with a strange old man.” She was silent, because she was entirely unsure what to say to that, but he seemed not to expect a response, chuckling to himself before he said, still cheerful, “Now, Ms. Temult, I’ve got a proposition for you.”

-

It had been a good proposition. Great, even. Nearly perfect, she might say, if she weren’t so wary of jinxing it.

Estheross was looking to resurrect a summer program on his farm, and he wanted Imogen to help lead equine therapy. He’d run it for its founder for nearly two decades before she got sick and they made the decision to close while she recovered.

“Unfortunately, she died a few years later. And I…” he cleared his throat. If he were her daddy, or Mr. Faramore, or basically any other man she knew, she would’ve tactfully pretended she didn’t notice.

For some reason, he felt different, so she did something different.

“I’m very sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you.” It was immediate and, from what she could tell, sincere rather than embarrassed. “Ellia was a wonderful woman, and many of us felt her loss deeply.” Another clearing of the throat. “Which is, I fear, why it took me much longer than it should have to get the program up and running again. It’s been nearly a decade since we last had children on the farm, and that’s far too long. I’m sick of the quiet, and we’ve got too much of everything here to let it go to waste.

“I understand you’re likely heading this way for graduate school.”

She hadn’t made the decision, officially, but unless she got miracle money from U of Issylra (and even then, she wasn’t sure she wanted something somehow more rural than Gelvaan), he was right.

“Yes, sir. I haven’t made a final decision yet, but I’m…it’s looking like I’ll be up there to start in the fall.”

“Well, from what I hear, anywhere would be lucky to have you, but you’ll forgive me if I say that selfishly, I hope you land in Jrusar.”

And that was interesting, because Imogen was fairly certain Mr. Faramore didn’t like her that much. Or really at all, if she was honest. She wondered what exactly Mr. Eshteross had heard from him. Maybe more importantly, what he hadn’t heard.

She’d waited too long again.

“Thank you, sir. That’s…that’s very kind of you.”

“Not at all. And of course, there’s no pressure, but I do hope you’ll think about my offer. And either way please let me know if you’re coming this way. I’d love to have you for supper, even if you decide work at Prudaj’s isn’t for you.”

Turned out Imogen was much better at dealing with assholes than men with manners, apparently, as she once again found herself a bit speechless.

“Thank you. Again. I really appreciate it.”

“Absolutely. Good luck, Ms. Temult. Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from you soon.”

Her egg was, as predicted, rubber by the time they hung up, and she ate her lukewarm noodles around it while she thought about Eshteross’s offer, clumsy as always with her chopsticks.

She was qualified for the job. Faramore knew that, and it was obvious from her LinkedIn, which she hated updating and avoided checking if at all possible but which had gotten a suspicious number of views in the last three weeks.

It made note of her equine therapy certification, which she’d received while she was in college, and her volunteer and later paid work at the program affiliated with the local university for two summers and her last year of school. It had been a few years since she’d been there in a long-term way, but she still did a few weeks for them at least twice a year, and her profile reflected that, too.

She felt a twinge of smug pride as she thought about her daddy’s regular and disapproving reminder that she was forgoing a paycheck for no reason every time she went over there, no matter if Mr. Faramore gave his approval and liked being able to put her certification on his website. It was ugly, but she was alone with her ramen and a job offer, so it lingered longer than it otherwise might’ve.

She added another tick in the pro column as she picked over the spinach in the bowl. It would be an additional paycheck and a steady summer gig. She’d get to do work that she knew she loved and get actual money for it. Not only that, it would be relevant for her program.

By the time she was slurping down the last of her broth, rubber egg sitting forlornly on a triple folded paper towel waiting for the trash, she was wondering how hard it would be to get her time at Prudaj’s counted as experiential learning. Eshteross said they had certified therapists on staff…

A week later, when she got the official scholarship offer from U of Issylria—generous but not enough to compete with Jrusar—she made two calls.

First, to the Jrusar admissions officer who had been ridiculously nice to her through this whole process. She was more enthusiastic than Imogen could’ve hoped, and it buoyed Imogen into an almost giddy state for the five minutes it took her to finish the intent to enroll form.

Second, she called Eshteross.

“Oh, wonderful! I couldn’t be more excited that you’ll be coming to join our team.” He sounded, incredibly, like he very much meant it. “Actually, there’s someone near Gelvaan that I’ve been looking at, and I wonder if you wouldn’t mind having coffee with her and giving me your impression?”

She worried, more than a little, about how much faith this man was putting in her but relaxed as he added, “I’ll be sending down a manager, Orym, to do a formal interview if all goes well. I did things a little differently with you, but, well, I’ve known Wilmer since we were children, and frankly, if you’ve lasted this long with him, that’s its own endorsement.”

He was right, of course, but she couldn’t exactly say that, so she said nothing for the second it took for him to fill in the blank himself.

“No need to respond to that. Apologies. In any case, her name is Laudna Bradbury, and she’s an…interesting art therapist. Academically qualified but she now runs a somewhat popular show on…the apps, apparently? You might’ve seen it. She does crafts, and there’s a stuffed rat-like creature called Pate who tells stories.”

Quite the sell. She was glad to be able to say, with honesty, “I’m not really on…the apps.”

“Ah, me either. Fearne, another…well, she does a little of everything really, but I suppose manager is as good a title as any, found her.

“She’s in the Taloned Highlands right now, it seems. Not terribly far from Gelvaan. I have her contact info, if you wouldn’t mind sitting down with her? Maybe Pate will join you!”

While he laughed at his own joke, Imogen forced herself to wait to look up Laudna’s name until after their call and tried not to get carried away imagining a rat…creature telling stories to children.

“I’d be happy to. Of course.”

“Oh, thank you. I’ll send you her information now.”

[elementalladymallorie]

I love Laudna and Ashton's relationship so much.

They care about each other, and the also understand each other in a way that's different from the other Bells.

Like Ashton when Imogen and Laudna were fighting, just takes her aside and tries to help her figure out a way to make up with Imogen. They were even right about the rock idea. Now Laudna's returning that favor with the Orym situation, with different context of course but still.

They both even understand how the other is operating when it come to the people they care most about, and how they want something better for that respective person. They both try to act like they're indifferent or nonchalant about what's happened to them, but in this conversation they've just had both are admitting they're not that indifferent or as okay as they want to appear about it.

Laudna basically admits that making Pate to not go crazy during 30 years of being alone is kinda messed up. Ashton's very clearly hung up about their lack of memories/identity and the whole Ashari thing,

There's so much more too like Laudna trusting/tasking Ashton with looking out for Imogen when she wasn't there. Ashton immediately chasing down Percy after the conversation about bringing Laudna back. Both of them having occasionally similar interest, like both wanting to have a drink with Ira.

These two are locked on to each other, and they're not going to let the other person's bull shit slide. They're gonna nudge and offer a direction to fix with the problem is, but they're not gonna push and they're not gonna let the other get away without talking about their problems I think.

[utilitycaster]

I've also seen people say (on twitter of course lol) that Matt interjected deliberately and pointedly after Orym's family question which also feels a little wild to me, like there are "sides" between the cast and he's taken one. I don't think I've ever seen how far people in this fandom can run with something, so I'm surprised even though I shouldn't be. The Bor'dor discourse still also bothers me because in-game Laudna was simply not aware of the nod or anything else but what she wanted to do.

Hey anon,

I agree entirely, that this is conspiracy-level thinking. But ultimately I think what's more important is that if the ship I'd claimed to have desperately wanted for months became canon, and when the most recent episode that aired had the two characters in this ship canonically dancing together and one putting their head in the other's lap, I still found myself spending far more time talking about what a guy who isn't even attracted to either of the characters involved did ten episodes ago? I think I'd simply delete my account and walk into the woods never to return.

Like truly, I wonder, what is it? Is it that Imogen still hates Pate? Is it disorientation from the constant whiplashing between opinions depending on which character they've decided to hate this week, of which the rapid flip from "Bells Hells has a tight Found Family Bond, you guys are just haters" to "Bells Hells is on the VERGE of a BLOW-UP" is only the latest example? Is it because not only did Laudna say nothing about the Turn Undead from two weeks ago, but asked FCG specifically to Scry on Delilah and even seemed amenable to them asking the Changebringer for help on this matter? Is it because in that aforementioned dance, instead of doing anything to return Imogen's affections, Laudna just wandered off to make small talk with someone else? Is it because the cast cheered harder for Cyrillia/Novos? Is it because Imogen and Laudna didn't even bother to take watch together on Slival? Is it because nearly every opportunity onscreen seems like a lost one and the fans are running out of people to blame? Is it because the latest 4-Sided dive made it clear that there's been no planning, no intent, no change, and six episodes later still no out of episode conversation, and the Rose City Comic-Con Panel has no new information and is giving "contractually obligated"? Is it because more so than the ship, the people wanted it to be the Popular Ship, and it's not, because there's no connective tissue, none of the little moments that made up the magic of every past canon relationship on the show, just an accommodating blank canvas to play back whatever one is projecting onto it? Is it because if they keep blaming Orym, and FCG, and Ashton, and coins, and dice, and the DM, and the other fans, and every one else, they don't have to admit that they would rather be pining for the actually good slow-burn they dreamed of, instead of experiencing a Pyrrhic victory if ever there was one?

This isn't about Bor'Dor, or Orym, and it's barely about Laudna. Unless a chemistry that has not yet existed comes into being in the next episode, they'll either post some other conspiracy theories about an episode from three months ago, or they'll make up some other bullshit Us Vs Them thing to get mad about that Laudna will again fail to validate for them in game, and then rinse and repeat on this miserable treadmill of their own making.

[12pt-times-new-roman]

c3e81

As a reminder, because I sort of missed it in my last post: Fearne absorbing and re-activating the shard also awakened Ashton's shard, and they were both transformed.

"What if every so often an ancient stone titan surfaces on Ashton's face and he goes, 'oh, the ancient times!'" boy that is RICH coming from Laudna--

On the bright side, now that the shard has been absorbed, Delilah's want for it has subsided.

Chetney talks about his family. He doesn't blame them for leaving, not at all — they were fleeing a red dragon — but he's considering making a deal with Nana Morri for his youth.

Outside, Ashton and Fearne are figuring out their new powers. While in their transformed state, Ashton can glide through unworked/loose earth or stone freely, and it sounds like their speed is increased. They can use this to run up sheer cliff-faces, and by submerging themself only halfway in the stone they can carry people up with them like an elevator. Their pain is gone in this state, and when it returns, it feels welcome.

For Fearne, while in her transformed state she's immune to fire damage, a creature that hits her takes 1d8 fire damage, and her fire spells are more powerful now. She also floats about a foot off the ground, so her movement ignores difficult terrain, and when she touches the ground she leaves little black scorch marks. Even in her un-transformed state, she has a slight smoke drifting from her hair, and a little flame in her pupils.

Both Ashton and Fearne have abilities that they can unleash that will exhaust them significantly. It's unclear how long their transformed states last for and how many times they can use them per day.

Meanwhile, Chetney goes to Nana Morri to ask about a "wish."

Monsters, frost worms, opening bottles, wind, fire — whatever. I will always be impressed by the quality and variety of Matt's hinge creak sound effects.

Morri reveals that she doesn't grant wishes, she makes deals — there has to be collateral, and if people don't hold up their end of the deal, they become like the topiaries in the garden.

Chetney very, very carefully proposes a deal: he gets imbued with some of Morri's power, in exchange for the ability for her to exert more of her power over the mortal realm. (Chetney's shadow touched feat suddenly makes a lot of sense — a suspicious amount of sense, actually.) Morri changes the scenery to a dark, empty space with a single table.

"What is it that you want specifically? Tell me your dreams." "Well, I would love to never die, but that seems a little much. So — I was wondering... do people ask to return to their youth?" Both are things she's granted before, but she cuts to the root: Chetney came in here with a singular desire, greater than either of those requests. "I want to be the most famous toymaker the world has ever known." "Now that just requires a little bend of fate, doesn't it?" Morri pulls a golden thread from Chetney's chest, it stretches from dark to dark, and as she pulls on it a cold sensation courses through Chetney. "And what will you give me?" "What would you want?" "Bring me a piece of what you hunt. Bring me a piece of the God-Eater." "Let me do some simple arithmetic here — it's a deal." As it is stricken, she runs her hand over the lantern, alights her palm with white fire and clasps Chetney's hand with it — the cold touches his palm and that golden thread seems to twist and tangle a bit, then she withdraws. "Very well. Make me proud, and you'll be notorious."

(god this is going to backfire so badly — like, if Predathos is anything like the Lovecraftian horrors it's very clearly modeled after, a piece is all it needs. am I the only one thinking of a color out of space here?)

They start their long rest and have the campaign's first heroes' feast! FCG feeds the Bells Hells plus Allura, Pate, and Mister. Their HP max goes up by 13, they are immune to being poisoned and frightened, and they make all wisdom saves with advantage for the next 24 hours.

For the first time in many, many days, they set up their dream ritual. FCG brings everyone except Chetney and Fearne into Imogen's dream.

Imogen's intent with this dream is to enter the beam and travel to Ruidus, to see what happens when she does. She glides past clouds beneath the starry sky and eventually finds herself in a corkscrew, drifting — all five of them are already gliding along the Bloody Bridge, hurtling upward toward the Moon of Ill Omen. Sparks pulse through it and almost catches them up in it — they're shunted, dragged through, like a rollercoaster. Before long, they untether from the beam and start free-falling toward the dusty surface of Ruidus. There are mountain ranges, chasms, and slivers of silver carving through the landscape — before they arrive at the core of the Ruidian storms. In this lost space, there is no sense of up or down, just the storm, the wind — they're lost.

Imogen opens her mind, and for a brief moment she feels like she's tapping into a greater consciousness, minds like background radiation that flicker beyond reach; the storm clears like she's in the eye and she sees Exandria above. The ground itself is vibrating like there's a stampede, it's warm, the stones seem to shift. And she lets go.

The only thing that's kept her dangling above an abyss, Imogen allows it to snap. She tumbles into the ground and the black warmth envelops you; to the rest of them, the dark is rough, jagged, scary. They see and feel nothing except for dread, and an alien presence that washes over and through them — but Imogen feels comfort, sensations of running into Liliana's arms, Laudna's arms, memories of hugging her horses, a sense of belonging. They pass through rock, flashes of color — cavern networks that snake like a labyrinth beneath the crust of the moon. Glimpses of teal crystal and subterranean rivers, water, oceans — alien, red life that swim through it whose green eyes track them. But darkness, still. A distant voice calls — "wait, Imogen, no—" and it's gone.

Their descent stops. The rest of them drift into suffocating darkness, Imogen is gone — the shared dream spell ends.

Imogen senses a presence unlike anything she's ever experienced. It's so immense that her entire being vibrates with power, she worries as it suffuses her that she might be pulled apart — that white flash she saw, these moments where the world rent itself around her, that power pulls to rend her but she belongs here. She is home. This is the womb, and she wishes nothing more than to return to this place with her entire core — but she wakes, then. Moments later.

This is an excellent setup for this, especially because it's giving Laudna and Imogen conflicting information and motives. Laudna, FCG, Orym, and Ashton all know that this darkness is rough and lifeless and it will shred them, suffocate them — but Imogen is being supernaturally coerced into selfishness. This feels like a big red flashing sign that says "some powers are not worth embracing, sometimes giving in to power will change you irreparably and you will not like what you see in the mirror anymore" and yet they're still pushing her to embrace it against her better judgment.

I am once again begging someone to acknowledge that FCG does not, in fact, need to sleep and can keep constant watch with no detriment to themself

Their long rest passes without issue, but in the middle of the night, when he's sure no-one is watching, Orym knocks on Nana Morri's door.

"The way I understand it, from what Fearne tells me, you can help people. You make deals. Well, um... my friends are all pretty amazing, the things they can do, I can't even fit it all in my head, and I'm really good with a sword but I'm a little nervous I'm not ready for what we're about to do tomorrow. [None of you are ready.] The point is, I feel the least ready in our group, and I wanna see this through, I wanna get it done, and I wanna get them back. I wanna get Fearne back, and all of them. So... if you can somehow make me better at protecting them, or stronger, more capable at what I do, I might agree to a lot."

Morri's eyes look past Orym, beyond, and when Orym looks back he's in the same dark space, with the same white lantern on the same table. "Your passion is to protect your friends, yes?" "My friends, your granddaughter — I don't know if there's a friends and family discount, but...?" "And what do you have to offer, little Ashari?" "Well, if I see them all through and we get it done, I'll serve you." "You smell of the touch of divinity. That makes you enticing. Well, now that Fearne's all grown up and might be finding her own way, it does get a bit lonely here in the manor. Maybe it'd be nice to have a caretaker." "These have to be worded just right, Imogen said — that's if we see it through. Every one of Bells Hells makes it back and we see it through. That's an easy trade. Back alive, happy, safe, and healthy." "Well, you have to leave happy to return happy, and health is in varying states at least. Return at least as you are." "Return alive." "Very well."

Morri grants Orym the ability to call upon her when he's in need (and probably some other abilities, too) in exchange for his service to her, provided that every one of the Bells Hells returns from Ruidus alive.

They get a long rest, but Imogen falls asleep missing that sensation she experienced at the core of the moon.

I have 3 primary thoughts about Orym's deal. First is that there is a Laudna-sized hole in Orym's insistence that everyone returns alive — in fact, he specifies that against Morri's stipulation of "returns as they are," so it sounds like Orym was working in a loophole. Second, this has the potential to be a big act 3 setup centering around breaking or finding a loophole int hat deal. And third, FEY PALADIN ORYM !!!! (he doesn't have the stats to multiclass into warlock but ancients or devotion paladin?? yeah.)

In the morning, they have a meal, then head back to Exandria. It's hardly been an hour since they left. They arrive in the familiar Hellcatch Valley, where there is a strong reddish hue to the entirety of the landscape. Ruidus hangs above them, larger than they've ever seen, silent and consuming the air above them. They're miles away from the Tishtan excavation site, and as they walk towards the west encampment (where Allura's allies are), then can see numerous legions, signs of battle, skyship wreckage — there has been warfare here, skirmishes, sides testing boundaries but nothing all-in. There's an air of held breath.

As they enter, Allura is met by three authority figures: Myth-Taker Qi Mandozi, an older orcish man, of Ashanedoor; Guardian Tofur Bratoris, a silver Dragonborn woman in full plate armor, wearing the symbol of the Council of Tal'dorei; and Dawnmarshal Earthbreaker Groon, the most muscular grandpa they've ever seen, leader of Kord's temple in Vasselheim.

All of them carry a presence, but Groon has a force that carries a massive weight; he is an individual who walks with the strength of the gods. "Underestimation is a powerful thing."

Into the war-tent!

Ohohoho, Earthbreaker Groon has some kind of Ruidus-born radar — Fearne catches him staring at her and Imogen like a parent looks at a child who's done something wrong.

Also inside the war-tent are Percy and Keyleth! They explain that the reason the Bells Hells are so important in this endeavor is because they are not being watched, they are not being paid attention to — "because so few, for now, know of you."

The Ruby Vanguard is trying to divide the world. Doomsday cults are rising in response to recent events, and the Vanguard is taking advantage of them to raise support for their cause; in doing so, they are waging ideological war on the home-front in addition to waging a militaristic war around the Malleus Key.

Percy unveils one of their distraction attempts: "butcher wagons," cloaked with illusions to look like a massive assault but instead stocked with buckets of blood; the Vanguard's forces will be drawn away and the wagons will be detonated, creating the illusion of an actual battle to keep them occupied for up to 30 minutes. That's how long the Bells Hells will have to get to the key. Luckily for them, the Vanguard's most intelligent members are already on the moon.

The Bells Hells will enter from the opposite side and slip in unnoticed during the battle. Because of their sabotage of the key earlier, the dispelling field is not present, but there are a significant number of Reilorans on the ground who can sense their minds — the scrolls will help with that.

"If you are discovered, ensure there are no witnesses. Whatever that means to you — whether silencing them or taking them with you — this is war. This is about all of us. All of us." Groon speaks with the voice of Kord on that last line.

Allura advocates for redemption and rehabilitation of the members of the Vanguard, if possible, when Laudna questions what the threshold is. But again — this is war. Keyleth, without eye contact, pipes in. "Save who you can, but do what is right."

Their mission while on Ruidus is to learn what they can. Who the Reilora are and what they want, whether they have a leader who can be parlayed with, what Ludinus' intentions are and how long he needs to achieve them — anything they can get, until they feel it is too dangerous to continue.

Fearne approaches Groon and asks about the look he gave them. "These eyes do not look anywhere; I sensed you. You are Ruidus-born, both of you." The entire tent knows, now. Keyleth advocates for them in good faith, not knowing what Imogen just did the night before.

They had tried to work with Ruidus-born before, and at a certain point, they just forgot what they were doing and joined their new friends. "Well, that's not gonna happen with us." FCG, you fucking wish, buddy—

Allura advocates for them too, and Groon looks back at them. "I trust they are capable, for they know that if they turn, the storm will find them. But you are of the storm, are you not?" "I am the storm, baby." "It seems your friends have more faith in you than you have in yourself. Be prepared to rely on them, when the time comes."

"You are the tip of the spear, and we are everything to follow. We just need you to guide us." Keyleth turns to Percy. "Why does it always take a bunch of assholes to get anything done?" (Ashton, reading Percy like a book: "He likes us!")

And here we go with Laudna enabling Imogen in literally anything even when it means giving up everything. "What if it is your calling? I don't want to stand between you and what you really want—" I am going to s c r e a m

But Laudna goes and asks Keyleth about what was distracting her before: it's Vax, trapped in that orb. "We need to set him free." She also confirms that the bridge is the only connection Exandria has to Ruidus; the moon is completely shielded against divination, teleportation, and everything else. The bridge needs to stay, Vax needs to keep screaming, until their business is done.

Before they leave, FCG casts telepathic bond — y'know, that one spell that allowed the Ring of Brass to hear each others' last thoughts as the ground came up to meet them and that eventually enabled the escape of a flighted scion who carried their memories into the after-times?

Earthbreaker Groon puts a hand on Imogen's shoulder, and she sees a flash of Kord in a roiling storm, and she hears his voice, growling. "You have my eye. There is greatness in you. Do not let us down." "I won't."

something something about how Ruidus being tethered to Exandria may have opened it up to the influence of Exandria's pantheon and the one who would have the greatest influence over the surface and of Imogen's dreams would, of course, be the Storm Lord

But as the preparations end, the two fronts roll out.

Allura, Qi, and Percy accompany the wagons, while Keyleth brings the Bells Hells in close. She casts gaseous form on them all, and they begin their trek toward the Malleus Key.

From above, they can see the illusions overtake the butcher wagons: a charging wave of gargantuan armored beasts, thirty feet high and four arms each, like massive gorillas; rhinos, armored; an entire frontal assault, flanked by massive elementals with flaming rock-wings, the married imaginations of two high arcanists working in tandem.

Their bodies reform at the edge of the crater and Keyleth turns to them. "You have a few minutes to gather your thoughts; then, be on your way." The clouds above her grow thick and dark, flashes of lightning break, and the entire vicinity is as if a thunderous hurricane has touched down in the center of Marquet. Lightning strikes clear a path for them as they don Ruby Vanguard robes, but they can already see the entire perimeter guard doubling as the attention is drawn to the surface, then to the wagons.

Gaseous form lasts for 8 hours, so it could be of use to them down the road — not just now, though, because of how long it takes to transform into and out of the form.

They begin to approach, and horns sound from inside the site — the first group stealth roll of the encounter rounds to about 28-30, so I think they're in the clear for now as dozens of crawlers and Reiloran warriors collide with the illusion. Spells are being flung from inside the illusion, Percy's contraptions fire cannons and explode payloads, the illusion shapes and reacts — it's a magnificent display of arcane prowess as they crest the edge of the Tishtan site.

[spookydicks]

Since its the Spookiest day of the year, Here's Bell's Hells Trick or Treating Headcanons

Chet: He goes ALL OUT on trick or treating. His costume is just his wolf form. No one questions it and its glorious. All the neighborhood kids thinks its awesome and ask to give wolf!chet some scritches. For trick or treating., he has a big ass pillow case thats bigger than he is and you bet he makes sure that it filled up by the end of the night. As for trick or treaters, he doesnt make anyone say "trick or treat" to get candy. He also gets the regular sized candy. Kids love him.

Orym: Orym's pretty chill about Halloween. He also does easier costume but he's mainly there to make sure that his trick or treat buddies are safe. His candy bag is one of those McDonalds trick or treat buckets but, because of his size, its half the size of him maaaybe smaller. For trick or treaters, he makes sure to have candy options for any dietary restriction.

Fearne: For trick or treating, she dresses like shes going to a ren faire for halloween. She uses aa bag with flowers that are on fire on it for her candy stash. As for trick or treaters, we know that she puts a tiny bit of her shrooms for the older trick or treaters. She's a hit with teenagers. She tends to use more sour candies because fire.

FCG: Our lil' robit loves halloween. They mainly go as pets for his costume. Unlike his other party members, he uses himself as a candy bag. He uses his chest compartment Glamrock Freddy style. As for trick or treaters, he's the kindest lil' candy giver. He has extra options for anyone with dietary restriction but he does tend to say a little bit about the Changebringer to the trick or treaters tho........ It's not to annoying or noticable tho.

Laudna: Halloween is our girl's TIME TO SHINE! Our favorite living dead girl is a theatre kid, so OF COURSE she goes all out. She mainly goes as "fun scary " characters such as Emily the Corpse Bride and Lydia Deetz. One year, her and Imogen went as Jack and Sally, she was Jack ofc, and it was adorable. She even dressed pate up at Zero. As for trick or treaters, she LOVES talking to the kids. She tells pate to "mind his manners" with the younger kids but if there are older kids/teens, he goes all out. Both the older and younger kids find her delightful.

Imogen: Imogen goes hard for halloween costumes. Sometimes, she does a duo costume with laudna, but sometimes, she does a costume on her own. She uses a pillow case with horses on it as her candy bag. As for trick or treaters, she does the handing out while Laudna does the conversation since child and teenager thoughts are rough.

Ashton: For trick or treating, they just wear normal clothes and just say that they're going as an npc. Honestly, he's mainly going trick or treating to hang out with the Hells and to get candy. Iconic. He also likes to people watch, aka see everyone's costumes, all while subtlety roasting those that didn't get the assignment. As for trick or treaters, he mainly has a bowl with a sign that says something like "Take what you want. Don't take the bowl". His candy bag is also a pillow case.

[isagrimorie]

I think I need to rewatch that episode as more of a first part of a two-parter, I built the tension up in my head but I suppose with the looming 8th anniversary there was an unconscious or conscious choice to move the Big Fight back to the 8th anniversary.

This is turning out to be a very Avengers Endgame moment.

I love Laudna throwing Pate around like a rubber chicken and the way Laudna and Imogen both ended the Big Robbit.

And two Big Name Players appeared on the board -- Beau and Caleb. I have some concerns but I'll keep them to myself.

I hate two-parters when I'm not immediately given satisfaction, which is ironic for someone who adored Doctor Who Flux's week-to-week thing.

I love how Marisha's characters are so integral to the future of Exandria, they're in positions of being Big Goods that in big events, of course, they'll be around.

Into the Marisha-verse!

The excited faces around the table with Marisha doing the Travis Intense Look of Inquiry with Bonus Laudna Spider pose as Beau introduced herself is fantastic.

But also, Marisha's excitement melted into instant concern when she realized Beau Would be the type of person to break Imogen's neck if she said the wrong thing.

And then swinging back to excitement.

[rosenrot234]

I miss Pate. Laudnas got reasons of course for ignoring her emotional support horny rat but still

[antlereed]

For the writing ask thing - accursed? If you're still up for it?

this unlocked something in my brain, so enjoy my (mainly) second person delilah thing

send me a number!

It was almost pitiful, how much you didn’t know. That was by design, of course. We picked people from the fringes of town, dirt-smeared children whose entire worlds revolved around their parents and their farms. A little gnomish girl with shabby blonde hair who only knew how to scatter feed for her long-starved chickens, dressed up and fed for the first time on the longest night of her very short life. That poor drunk we saved from the gutter, so close to the real thing I nearly jumped for joy.

We got lucky with you, truly. An older girl, nearly an adult but still childishly naive. You lived close to the Parchwood, which was a boon when I had to slip into the eyes of my wolves. It was a despicable sensation, one you surely relate to now with your little Pate, but I shuddered each time I had to do it.

That first time was when I found you, shivering and frightened in the boughs of one of the Parchwood’s trees. My wolves had found you there, a few circling around the trunk with an engineered, intimidating silence. I tore their vocal chords free when they wouldn’t quit yipping and whining at all hours of the day. It lent itself very nicely to the little stories people told themselves about what happened in those woods. Though it didn’t do much to deter you from their hunting grounds.

“I wanted to make sure they were okay. Wolves are so particular about their howling, you know.” Laudna tried to squirm through a gap between the branches of her cage. She managed to get a hand through before she heard Delilah tut-tut-tutting from the bottom of the tree. Laudna snatched her hand back before the wood all but slammed shut around her wrist, the wood creaking with the force it was under.

You ought to know better than to speak out of turn child. What was I saying? Oh, yes, they caught you in a tree out in the Parchwood. I was going to let them have at you, honestly. You were such a whisp that it wouldn’t have been worth it to bring you back to the castle for dinner that night. But then you did the strangest thing and dropped down to greet them. They were moving on for better prey and then you went and made yourself easier to reach.

It did give me a better look at you, though, and that really was your saving grace. I was hard pressed for a decent doppelganger, and you were close enough to the other child I had found the day prior. So I humored you, let you coo and pet the wolves that had been so dead set on making you a meal only seconds before, I even let one follow you home, made sure you didn’t get found by any other beasts in those woods.

Your parents knew the truth of it, but you were so painfully oblivious to it. I expect your poor mother and father tried to hide you away, to keep you away from any prying eyes. But, well, we both know how that ended up, don’t we.

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 91

A long episode with an ominous title ... yeah, this can't bode well at all ...

Sam's a cat again. Great ... oh, Taliesin's a mouse? Of course he is. This is more like it ... Travis is loving this already ... ah, short but sweet, definitely ... oh yeah, I totally agree with Ashley, massive Donnie Darko vibes ... XD

Liam: "I want Sam and Tal to reenact that scene from The Shining." Um ... okay? O.O

So, picking up right where we left off, then ... chaos, and LOTS of craziness, with VERY heavy implications ...

Oh, so Liliana is HUNTING, now? For them in particular? Or just ... ANYTHING? Hmmm ...

Yes, SHUSH, Pate! You're REALLY loud right now ...

Chetney-wolf: "Hold onto my tail! Tighter!" Stop it, Travis ... XD

This is going to be a complicated getaway, clearly ...

PANIC!!! Great ... how long is it gonna be before they get spotted? CAN THEY get away from this?

Mystics? Crap ... "a Murder of Mystics" ... yeah ...

A little on-the-run healing and repair work ...

Balls, good point ... yeah, they have NO IDEA where they are or where they're going ... and now Ashley's cocking dice all over the place ... O.O

Oh, this can't be good ...mystical shenanigans ... FUCK!!! Invisibility is now GONE!!! Shit! Oh this is SO FUCKING BAD ...

PLEASE don't tell me they just lost their Telepathic Bond too ... oh for the love of the GODS, Matthew, you cruel bastard ... NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOO!!!

Hide! Just fucking HIDE, people!

Wow ... Taliesin rolled amazing, but Sam and Ashley rolled BALLS on Stealth ... that's so bad ... oh shit, and now they've got GLoamglut RIGHT ABOVE THEM!!! Ouch ... does it see them? Oh no, Fearne, PLEASE do not try to PET the fucking thing!

Marisha: "There are no dumb ideas in D&D!" Are you SERIOUS? OF COURSE there are!

AAAAAAAAAND now they're blown ... good one, Fearne! Now they're coming down ...

Ashton, WHAT THE FUCK are you doing? Oh, that's right, HE IS still in his powered state ... 32 points of damage on the wall? Holy fuck ... oh yeah, that's just a FANTASTIC distraction/escape ... nice! Just run. RUN!!!

Another wall? Oh yeah ... BOOM!!! Ashton's just a demolition MACHINE right now ...

NOW he's knocking down a building they're not even going into ... bit overly much for cover, isn't it? Jeeze, Ashton ... STOP ENCOURAGING THIS, Matthew!

Oh yeah, they're TOTALLY broadcasting their location now ...

Seriously, just HIDE while you got cover, seriously ...

Crap, Dex saves for the three of them? O.O ... oh hell, what's that fucking Fay dragon gonna do? Darkfire? Oh hell ... whoa, 16 points is HALF damage? Ow ...

Oh, NOW Imogen's casting Invisibility? Yes, do that ...

Evoroa gives directions ... yes, good move ... do that now!

Quart mile away? No, HALF of that? Hmmm ...

Back to the panicked chase ... RUN RUN RUN!!!

Can they fit through that? Ashton's going under, apparently ... just SQUEEZE guys ... yeah, shquish in those fantastic tits and that luscious butt, Fearne! Crap, it's coming again! I hate that fucking dragon!

Oh wow, the Sorrowlord speaks! He knows she's here! Crap!

Pass Without a Trace! Finally!

Fearne: "Do we need to cut off your wheels?" FCG: "127 hours!" Cue sawblade startup whir ...

Wow, Zathuda is actually MONOLOGUING ... Fearne: "Can you say all that again?" LOL ...

Fungus? Great ... Annihilation? Cool ...

"Pussy in Bio"? Nice flask nonsense this time, Samuel ...

PEG IT!!! Once it's clear, anyway ...

Polymorph, yes ... a "moon thing"? Hmmmm ... so she turns FCG into a Slither ... okay ... and then she Wildshapes into one too ... okay, get tunneling guys!

Ah, yes ... where ARE THEY going?

A Survival roll? Oh boy ... 28? Nice one, Ashley! Heading back towards their exit, then ...

And so back to the others ...

A Wisdom save IMMEDIATELY? Fuck, Matthew ... 15? Hmm ... wait, THAT'S not good enough? Shit! O.O

Laudna: "You're not like a sleeper agent, are you?" No, really, please don't even put that karma OUT THERE!

The Sprawl Grotto? Cool ...

Yeah, they don't know WHERE they're going right now ...

Bronze fountain! OKay ... oh hell, what's THIS shit?

And now they're very effectively TRAPPED. Great ... is this them SPECIFICALLY, or just general? Oh, it's DEFINITELY for them ... not good ...

SHIT!!! LIliana is now RIGHT ABOVE THEM ... "Did ... you ... KNOW?!!!"

Is Imogen REALLY gonna try and bluff this? Wow ...

Oh, so she has been THROUGH IT ...

The locket? Oooooh ... O.O

Can she talk her down? Get through to her somehow? COME ON ... Persuasion roll? Oh boy ... 16? Whoa ... um ... is that enough?

Wait ... DID THAT just work?

Yeah, just RUN ...

Oh, for fuck's sake ... NOW what? Damn it, more mystics? Crap ... oh yeah, they're proper BUSTED ... crap, this is the ACTUAL Weave Mind?

Oh, so this MIGHT be an illusion? Hmmm ...

Hold on, are they doing something to Chet? Crazy werewolf shit? Crap ... and Travis totally fails that save ... O.O ... bollocks, this is so bad ... Sam: "Quick! Distract them with a toy!"

Liam: "If we keep making these jokes for 30 minutes we won't have to deal with this problem!" LOL

Orym is choosing NOW to invoke Nana Morri ... oh boy ...

What just happened?

Nothing immediately around, but they're in the area ... just GO. Right now, just FUCKING GO. RIGHT NOW.

Back to the Burrowers ...

It's oh so quiet ... that CANNOT be good ... yeah, just BOOK IT ... nuts, more mystics ...

Oh, they FOUND THEM? Okay ... yeah, just FOLLOW THEM!!! Quick!

Going up? Yes, seems the smart way to go.

Yeah, they DO NOT speak Slither ... aaaaand they're finally back together ... in the most ridiculous way possible ... XD

Yeah, sending a merssage to the Volition would probably be the smart move right now ... maybe they could send somebody to find you ...

So, where to go now?

Imogen Sends to Rashinna ... so the safehouse is out ... hmmm ... so they're just going to have to find alternative digs ...

OOh ... yeah, do that! A giant mole sounds so cool ... like that one in City of Ember! O.O That'd be sweet ...

FCG's still a Slither? Oh boy ...

Crap! What's this? Oh no, what the fuck ... PLEASE don't be fucking Otohan! No ... NO!!! Fuck ... that bitch is SO FUCKING CLOSE now ... hell ... JUST RUN, guys!

Ashton pops up out the ground and SMACKS THE ROOF OF THE TUNNEL with his hammer once they're through ... smart and sweet ... oh fuck ... you mean he COULD collapse the whole thing? Thankfully not ... phew!

Bollocks, Otohan is COMING!!! Fuck ...

RUN!!! JUST FUCKING RUN!!!

Crap ... SHE'S FOUND THEM!!! They're in deep shit ... AND NOW he chooses to call a break? Seriously? Matthew!

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck ... and now he's producing a Battlemap ... AAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! Cut Wizzkids plug! Also FUCK!!!

Fuck me ... is the rest of this episode JUST gonna be combat? Gods no ... I'm not ready for this ...

ROLL INITIATIVE!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!

So ... Orym's up first ... he slips between her leags and turns round to attack her fancy backpack ... OKAY!!! A Crit! Go, wee man! 38 points of damage! Yeah! Another hit! Yeah! ANOTHER Crit! Sweet! 25 points ... anmd she's Hexed too ... nice ...

Legendry Action? Crap ... Telekinetic Control? Fuck ... and even with Indomitable Orym can't resist it ... she flings him like a ragdoll! Ouch!

Laudna unleashes her Hellhoud because she is FURIOUS right now! Yeah ... FCG names the pooch Caviar? Cute ... now she Banes Otohan ... goody!

Otohan dashes off ... giving the Hellhound an attack of opportunity ... which fails ... crap! She attacks Chetney ... oof ... 27 points of slashing damage! Ow! Plus the Psionic knocks him prone ... another 16 points with additional Force? Argh ... and another 13 plus 9 more ... AND another hit? 13 plus 10! Fuck ... he is BARELY alive now ... O.O

fuck, and she has ANOTHER attack with an offhand weapon? Fuck ... ACTION SURGE?!!! Matthew NO!!! PLEASE don't do this! Silvery Barbs from Laudna ... which fails? Shit! Fuck ... and now he's OUT!!! She keeps hitting him, 2 IMMEDIATE Death Saves ... argh ...

Fuyck ... she just straight MURDERED him ... LAST WORDS? What the fuck?

Sweet fuck ... CHETNEY'S FUCKING DEAD?!!! Are you serious, Matt?

Now she's going after Fearne? FUCK!!! No ... and now SHE'S on the ground too ... fuck!

Ashton pops up out of the ground RIGHT IN FRONT of Fearne to block the coming attack ... he swings at her with the hammer ... "Gosh, you got a punchable fucking face!" 23 points of damage and he knocks her back HARD ... Density Well? OKay ... he batters a nearby platform and knockd it RIGHT ONTO HER ... YES!!! She sort of dodges so it's just a glancing hit ... he's monochrome now ...

Otohan rushes Imogen ...

Fearne is FURIOUS about Chetney as she flames on like the Human Torch! Nice! Oh, nice fiery Fearne mini, Matt! O.O She comes in right behind the bitch ...

Oh, so Otohan's like doing MONK SHIT? Fuck ...

FCG goes to Chetney's corpse and casts Revivify at 7th Level ... please ... please please PLEASE let this work ... come on, Changebringer! Come thorugh in clutch ... please ... YES!!! THE WOLFMAN IS ALIVE AGAIN!!! Thank fuck ...

Caviar! Attack! Kill this bitch, you wonderful Hellhoud! 19 MISSES? Seriously? Fuck ...

Otohan attacks Imogen ... 14 points of Force damage ... she gets knocked BACK but not down, at least ...

Imogen Telkinetically grabs the backpack and tries to tear it right off her ... oh wow ... and it WORKS!!! Oh yes! Let's go! She pounds it into the ceiling and smashes it to fuck! BEAUTIFUL!!! She grabs her hand and casdts Shocking Grasp ... go go go ... 14 points of damage! Yes!

Orym Misty Steps to her and pulls a Bat & Switch with Imogen, then takes a swing ... NAT20!!! YEAH!!! 23 points of slashing damage! Then 14 points! A Crit! 28 points! VENGEANCE!!! YES!!! Go wee man!

Laudna drops a 5th Level Blight on the bitch ... oh fuck, Legendary RESISTANCE? Damn it ... whoa ... 51 damage? Even halved that is SWEET ... Eldritch Blast! Yeah! Hit! Hit! And another hit! SWEET!!! 13 damage, then 15, then another 15! YEAH!!!

Now Otohan goes for Imogen again? Oh for fuck's sake ... thankfully she fails miserably ... second hits though ... ouch ... Orym to the rescue! Nice defence! And Silvery Barbs from Laudna! Yes ...

She keeps going for Imogen ... she is just POURING the hurt on ... and now she's going for Orym? Hmmm ...

Three way attack of opportunity? Fearne CRITS IT!!! Nice! 16 damage! Yeah ... Orym gbets another 22 on her ...

Now she goes for Laudna ... just hits her Mirror instead ... and the second ... and the third ... but then gets her with a CRIT!!! Oof ... 14 slashing and 12 Force damage ... ow ... and she's knocked down ...

Chetney shakes off the rust ... as he flanks he Misty Steps to Imogen and pours a healt potion into her for 12 points back, then slopes back away to safety ...

Ashton powers up as close as he can to Otohan, then holds until she gets into range ...

Otohan uses anothe Legendary Action to attack Laudna ... 10 points of slahsing damage and 18 of Force ... ow ...

Fearne casts 6th Level Blight on her ... gah, only half? 39, down to 18 ... fuck's sake ... it's STARTING to take a toll, but still ...

She's going for Laudna AGAIN?!!! Fuck ...

FCG rolls towards Orym, then pulls a mass Cure Wounds on everyone. ALL OF THEM get 23 points back except himself ...

Caviar attacks again and it's another miss ... crap!

Imogen gets up AGAIN and hurls a Psychic Lance at her ... a Nat20 on her save? Are you FUCKING KIDDING? Argh ... 30 points halved to 15 ... nuts ... so so tries to Telekinetically Push her towards Ashton ... but it fails ... crap ...

Orym tries to jump on top of her and slash down into her ... it hits! Yeah! 9 points, then a Crit ... 18! Third misses, though ... then he backs off to give Ashton room to attack ... she gets an attack of opportunity ... OUCH!!! 16 slashing and 10 Force damage ... shit ...

Why does she KEEP attacking Laudna?

Destroy this bitch, Laudna! HUnger of the Shadow Shard? Oh sweet ... wait ... WHAT? That doesn't work? COME ON, Matthew! Argh ... so she Quickens a 5th Level Hunger ... which HITS ... 48 damage on this bitch! Yeah ...

Oh, she's FLARING? Fuck ... Exultant's Fury? Double fuck ...

But now she's been pulled into Ashton's Gravity Well and he attacks ... 23 plus 2 of fire damage! POW!!!

But now it's HER turn ... she goes for Ashton ... and hits him ... ow ... twice ... AND ANOTHER? Fucking hell ... I can't believe he's still up ... wait, he has Erratic Defence? Okay ... so he slams her right into the wall! Nice ...

She retreats ... and attack Imogen while she does it? Fuck ... Imogens's knocked down ... AND she gets an Action Surge? What? FCG takes half of the damage, BARELY saving her from going out right there ... second hit takes her out, though ... FUCK!!! Now she's going for Chetney instead ...

FUCK ME, CHetney's out AGAIN?!!! Un-fucking-FAIR!!!

Now she's going for FCG ...

Top of the round ... come on Ashton ... he charges her flat out while charging up ... Nat20 on the first hit! Yes! Chaos Burst ... 64 points of damage in a single hit? Wow ... how is she STILL UP?

Otohan goes for FCG ...

Fearne pulls Scorching Rays on her ... fuck ... that doesn't work out HALF as well as we'd expect ... wait, she's FIRE RESISTANT? FUCK!!!

She attacks Letters ... and he's OUT!!! Fuck! Death save ... 19 ... oh thank fuck ...

Wow ... Caviar is just COMPLETELY BALLS on this fight, isn't he?

Imogen Crits her Death Save ... SHE'S AWAKE again! Oh thank fuck ...

Orym picks himself up and draws Seedling, using it to pull himself to Ashton, bouncing off him to attack her ... first attack misses ... second hits ... 12 slashing damage ... next hits ... eight damage ...

Laudna casts Wither & Bloom at 3rd Level to get FCG up again ... spends a sorcery point to quicken qnd pours 12 Necrotic damage points into Otohan ... quckens again, pours an Eldritch Blast into her ... two hits one miss ... 16 damage altogether, halved to 8 ... oof ...

Otohan goes for Orym ... fuck, she is just KILLING It tonight and I hate it ... Orym is BARELY UP right now ... wait ... where the fuck ... she just DRANK A SUPERIOR HEALING POTION?!!! Son of a bitch! 66 POINTS BACK?!!! Fucking hell ...

Chetney succeeds his second Death save ...

Legendary attack on Fearne ... gods fucking DAMN IT ...

Ashton attacks ... first hit is a CRIT!!! 46 points of damage! Yeah ... next hit is a miss? Fuck ... what, is that ALL he can do? Shit ...

She hits him right back ... FUCK!!!

Fearne casts Aura of Life ... it helps, i guess ... zand there's NOTHING ELSE she can do ... O.O

Otohan hits HER ... nasty hit ... but she's got Armour of Agathys, so she burns her right back ... but Aura of Life is GONE ... fuck ... as if she NEVER cast it ...

FCG flips his coin and asks "Run or fight?" Hmmmm ... it lands on its side? Interesting ... so he casts a mass Cure Wounds ... 23 points back to everybody but Fearne ... and now his mood has turned RED?!!! Fucking hell ... so he's gone berserk again ...

Caviar tanks YET ANOTHER FUCKING ATTACK ... oh my GODS why is the Hellhound even OUT?

Imogen casts Sending to her mother ... REALLY?!!! Fucking hell ... and she's COMING?!!! Wow ... mothering instinct is STRONG. Otherwise there is NOTHING she can do right now ... so she's just gonna continue to play dead? Nuts ...

Orym is in shitty condition but pushes through ... makes an attack, small hit ... he's barely hanging in on this fight ... fuck ... so he downs a potion on the bonus action? Okay ...

Laudna casts Phantasmal Force to make Otohan see Liliana coming in to FUCK HER UP?!!! Wow ... and the bitch RESISTS IT ... shit ... that was almost so cool ... so she just Eldritch Blasts her instead ... a hit and a Crit ... 7 on the hit ... she Empowers the Crit ... 11 altogether ... not spectacular but it chips away at her ...

She attacks Orym ... and he's DOWN ... FUCK!!! Next on Fearne ... Shield protects her! Yes! So she goes for Ashton instead ... now an Action Surge on him too? Fucking hell ... and he's ALMOST down except that he's RAGING so he keeps 1 hit point ... fuck ... but her next takes HIM down too ... FUCKING HELL!!!

She attacks Imogen while she's down ... Deception Check? OMG ... barely makes it through ...

Is there ANYTHING Chetney can do? He pulls out Turmoil and casts Shatter ... 19 points of Thunder damage ... and that's all he wrote ... fuck ...

Now she attacks FCG ...

Fearne cuts her off and inflicts 48 points of damage on her ...

She attacks FCG again ... he is BARELY alive at this point and completely insane right now ...

FCG casts Guiding Bolt ... on HIMSELF?!!! Fucking hell ... what the fuck is he DOING? He's self-destructing? What the hell, Sam? Oh, this sounds SO BAD ... is this genuinely going to DESTROY him if he does this?

Oh my gods he is genuinely making a fucking MEAL out of this self-sacrifice ...

Fuck me ... is Matt CRYING? Wow ... whoa ... EVERYBODY IS LENDING HIM DICE to do this ... O.O ... what the epic FUCK, Sam? Oh my fuck that is A LOT of rolls ...

79 damage ...

Sam's description of FCG's death is BEAUTIFUL in the most heartbreaking way possible ... his eyes go white again? Oh my fucking gods ...

Otohan is RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT ... holy fuck, she is DEAD ... and so is Letters ... oh my fucking gods I don't believe it ... what the fuck, Samuel?

Holy shit, the whole table is just IN SHOCK right now ...

Just like the rest of the party ... slowly they start to pick themselves and each other up ... those who are down are nursedc back enough to get them on their feet ...

IS THERE anything left of FCG? Ashton finds the coin ... Chetney collects Otohan's backpack ...

They throw what's left of Otohan in the Hole.

Ashton POUNDS an exit into the wall with his fists. They're on the surface again ... and here comes Liliana ... she can already tell they just lost someone ...

So is she with THEM now?

That's it for the night ...

Fuck ... we're all exhausted and completely devastated and SO FUCKING SAD ... oh my gods ... seriously though, NOW what?

[unicyclehippo]

as a prompt: imogen and laudna and images of vex?

there are people sitting on the tempest’s bed when they return. keyleth’s skin is split and red and it’s awful to see except when you love her enough that pain means alive, means here enough to hurt.

these strangers love keyleth. they sit on her bed as people who are welcome to it, they hold her staff and she trusts them to take the place of her powerful artefact, to help her to her feet when she struggles to stand—scarred hands in scarred hands—and laudna considers the few of her own people who have carried her (dead) and carried her (alive) and offered a helping hand and knows keyleth loves them too.

it takes some minutes for laudna to realise they are not strangers at all.

‘lady vex’ahlia,’ imogen greets warily. and then, ‘lord de rollo.’

‘bells hells,’ lady vex’ahlia returns in much the same tone, wary as everyone is these days. her tone softens tremendously when she says laudna’s name, alone. laudna trembles. imogen takes her hand. lord de rollo looks at her too, too keen. then orym speaks, and keyleth, and there’s flowers and busy work as tinctures and healing begins and laudna mostly is thinking about the fact that they’re inside of a tree and how funny that is, really, because sometimes she turns treelike herself, and it’s a bit strange to be a dead woman inside a tree that’s inside a dead woman inside a tree.

she smiles, touches imogen’s elbow. ‘might we go outside, darling?’

orym glances over—the quickness of mental communique that laudna so admires, and misses, the crackle of imogen’s thoughts so bright and light and powerful—and he nods and there’s something in his gaze that makes laudna think she ought to say something, but fear is a starving rat eating her tongue, which is awful, isn’t it, because she can’t speak while it’s there but it’s better for everyone if she keeps her mouth shut so they don’t see the tongue and the rat and the cavern and the rat can’t get out and it can’t bite anyone but her and she doesn’t really need a tongue anyway she’s dead after all so why deal with the blood and pity when she could just eat the rat and be done with it. also, there’s a beautiful woman whose ears are uncut into points who is her reflection, brilliant life billowing out from her, sun-warm, and she’s watching her, and laudna thinks she might cry or perhaps scream if this woman gets a glimpse of laudna’s insides.

imogen loops their arms together. they walk outside like lovers do, beneath trees bejewelled with flowers and buds. the fabric of their dresses brush together as they walk. their hands do not part.

‘are you alright?’

laudna keeps her mouth closed. the rat is gone, she doesn’t think it was real, but she’s not sure about the state of her tongue.

imogen touches her own forehead, the circlet there. ‘do you ever think of her?’ she asks. ‘that lady?’ when laudna nods, imogen sighs. ‘i wish… i wish so much hadn’t happened to you. i wish it couldn’t hurt you anymore.’

‘if it’d never happened, we wouldn’t be here,’ pate says, crawling out from his house. he perches on the roof, balancing with paws against the faux-chimney—laudna knew it was ornament only because she’d taken pate’s eyes as her own and they’d clambered through the space together, small and secure, and pried into each expert corner until they were satisfied. ‘and then you wouldn’t get to explore wi’ her. an’ by explore—‘

‘don’t you finish that thought,’ laudna snaps.

‘—o’ course i mean explore her body,’ pate chortles. he has to launch into the sky when laudna tries to grab at him, palm full of dark lightning. ‘oh fuck! don’t - laudna!’

‘get back here! apologise to imogen!’

pate hides behind imogen, wings flapping, chortling. ‘won’t!’

‘you will! right now!’

‘won’t! can’t make me!’

‘i did make you, you - you - you little beast!’ she races around her - girlfriend? her imogen - who spins, laughing, keeping herself between laudna and pate.

they’re drawing eyes. who could possibly be laughing, loving out in the open? who could possibly dare draw the ire of the red, glaring moon? imogen catches laudna’s clawing hands in hers, holds her. pate crawls up purple hair, splays, exhausted, atop her head.

‘do you think she knows?’ laudna gives voice to her fear. ‘what i am? what i did?’

‘how could she?’

‘she could be watching. me. if she suspects, if he does… she did such terrible things to them, darling, and i am—i literally embody that for them.’ imogen is shaking her head but laudna doesn’t see it; sees the tree, and the de rollo’s, and the shadow of the blossom tree with its curling branches stretches out in front of the sinking sun like a grasping hand. ‘i’m afraid, imogen,’ she admits, mouth open, everything soft and bitten and hurting on full display. imogen looks right into her eyes, her mouth. she sees everything. nothing changes. imogen still holds her hands, still holds her close.

‘what are you afraid of? that they’ll try and hurt you?’ imogen shakes her head. ‘i won’t let them. we won’t. you’re not bad, laudna, and you’re not her.’

‘but she’s in here. she’s back, i did that—‘

‘did you ever think that you didn’t let her in? that she was waiting out there in the dark and when you were scared and hurt, she let herself back in?’ imogen reaches up. strokes the hair back from her face. which does nothing, because the wind is fierce and playful and endless here in zephrah. ‘you’re not to blame for the fact that she hurt you. and if they blame you for that,’ she says, tilting her head back to the tree, ‘they’re wrong.’

‘she hurt them too.’

‘i don’t care.’ she didn’t. laudna could see it. oh, she cared enough for them—hearing what had been done to whitestone and the family there was dreadful and imogen had a sweet heart—but the care was dwarfed, obliterated, by how she cared for laudna. it did not compare. how could it? what was as a single raindrop to the scorching desert, a handful of gravedirt to the mountain. what was sympathy to the way imogen loved her?

‘i don’t want to see her today,’ laudna says, and helps to tie back imogen’s hair with red string. ‘can it be as it was, once? the two of us?’

‘oí.’

‘three of us,’ she amends, and when imogen laughs, and kisses her—hidden from their friends behind the huts—laudna glances over to ruidis, smouldering on the horizon, and smiles. it would all be alright, eventually; after all, what was the red moon to the way she loves imogen?

[sparring-spirals]

Laudna, to Pate: "You're proud of who you sre, aren't you?"

Pate, cheerfully: "Of course!!! You made me!!!"