BlackwaterDnD

Em:
Welcome to BlackwaterDnD, where good friends tell better stories. This series, Balance, is a miniseries using the Powered by the Apocalypse system, Godkiller, which was created by Connie Chang, now available on Itch.io for purchase. This series is proudly sponsored by Hero Forge and Moonbeam. This tale takes us back, long before the and of the universe, to a time when we begin to explore & understand old divine wounds that run so very deep, and what happens when love is caught in the middle. This story encouraged us as creators to strive for genuine emotion and connection, relish the space we create at the table, and take big swings with the way we approached our narrative. For this story, your GOD, everyone else, and the thrum of the Cradle, is myself, Em Carlson, and my GODKILLERs are played by Gina Susanna & Jannes Wessels. As this game falls within a holypunk and dark fantasy genre, it may contain themes and depictions that are triggering for some listeners. Please take care of yourself and access safe support as you see fit.

Content warnings for this episode include:
Betrayal // substance use // fantasy violence // body horror // falling // unsafe water // power dynamics and struggle // religious overtones // complicated relationships // threats // gaslighting // parent-child conflict // death of a parent // sacrifice // confinement // murder // being followed // grief // knives as weapons

So sit back and relax, heretics. And welcome to Godkiller: Balance.

Em:
As this universe moves towards its close, The Cradle on the precipice of the anding of everything by a twin-souled priest shackled to a fated and foretold divinity, we see that this place, what is left of the world, has become one of extremes. There is no moderation anymore, no middle ground. Everything is either famished or flourishing, thriving or surviving. Too much or not enough.

Divinity, too, is much the same. When the river dried up, the gods quickly found themselves scrambling to make sure that they would not be going without. They scraped and dredged their lands, their domains, and even their worshippers for magic, some going to dire ands to try and grow their power without resorting to the inevitable. Some gods granted knowledge to those that followed them to try and bring more into the fold. Thissera, the Architect, let some of her most trusted followers craft at her sacred workbench, hoping that what they created would draw more into the round amphitheatres where sermon on the power of innovation and technology took place. Some 50 artifacts were created by mortal hand, given the finishing touches by someone to whom detail, form, and function are the quintessence of art. Some tried to enrich the land - Thlaspi, Autumn's Maiden, gave bountiful harvests and spread beauty through the wildlands of the Valley, in hopes that the people would remember that some of the world's most precious gifts come from the earth beneath their feet. Some made promises that would be nigh impossible to keep - Lanize, Our Lady of Commerce, promised riches beyond dreams to those who tithed to her. Whatever they gave, the power they received in return was no match for what it felt like to kill another god.

A surge of extreme power, the thrill of the kill, the fear that this act could happen to you if you left yourself open and exposed your downfall. It was ambrosia. And for those who partook, it very quickly became the only thing that would scratch that itch, the only thing that would abate the terrible knowing and paranoia that one day the dry bed of the River would shed its last speck of dust, and magic would cease to exist within the Material Plane. That the gods themselves would run out of magic. Because what then? Would they retain their domains, their hungers, their powers? Would they walk the Cradle as mortals? Or would they wither away altogether? When you revel in being known and beloved, omnipotent and everlasting, the thought of being forgotten and powerless may be worse than death itself.
When we as mortals try to wrap our minds around what it means to be divine, we are drawn again to extremity. Those who embody good and bad, Heavenly and Hellish, Light and Dark. We see these archetypes across the Lyrician Pantheon with only a few gods straying anywhere close to some semblance of neutrality. Celiat, The Avatar of Unity, God of Balance & Unification had little choice in the matter - their very hunger was dependent on them taring the scales between the dichotomies that emerged amongst the divine. Tayo, the Lost, chose to flee into hiding, staying forever unseen amongst the mortals they helped form and shape. This was easier, they thought, than becoming a plaything for their kin to try and manipulate for favour and control. And Aipay, Body of Rot, God of Pestilence, Disease and Decay, remained neutral in the essence that penance does not see good nor evil, but simply must be paid. The ultimate tithe, no matter the life you lived.
Two gods, however, found their alignment so far out of this extreme scale that it broke any prenotioned binary altogether. Archeveleon, The Endless Oblivion, we know - concerned only with the end of the universe and reaching its own fate at the hands of the Godkiller. The other, The Matron of Vengeance, Wings without Relent... Now she is another story altogether. Upon its surface, the desire for justice, for wrongdoing, is not inherently an evil thing, but it can push anyone to great lengths if given the right, or perhaps wrong, set of circumstances.
After millennia stuck and banished in the Negative Energy Plane, with nothing to stew on but the set of events that landed her there, the Matron of Vengeance had become a twisted version of herself. Swift. Exacting. Purposed. Able to find that which stoked the fire of betrayal and help these poor souls seek reprisal and retribution, and let the costs play out as they may. And she was able to do this from atop a shadowy throne in the plane she was trapped in. Never fully corporeal in the Material Plane, but she could hold enough influence to feed her Hunger of Exacting Vengeance.
And thus this barrier between her realm and the rest of the cosmos remained, until the River dried up and the magic that had held her there could not be maintained any longer by those who forged it in the first place. But she did not burst forth into the Prime Material and immediately seek to enact a brutal retaliation for the wrong that had been done to her. No. This was not the way. Instead, she waited. Bided her time and using the vast droves of power she had accumulated over the many thousand years, created a small place for herself - an inbetween that gave her all the access she required to the world she both missed and despised, but that let her siphon the energy she required to spurn those who unknowingly pledged their fealty to her every time they vowed revenge.
So there she waits. Within this place she calls the Flood, with whirling machinations and calculating plans. Because when things have not been working out for you, sometimes, the only thing left to do is to break the world in order to fix it. But more on that later.
To balance the lightness we saw in Temisset, the thriving verdant greens and sprawling expanses of natural beauty, we should also find ourselves getting a bit more comfortable in the dark. And that's what the skies above this town we arrive in are... dark. It is nighttime, and we close in on Hood. Situated to the south of Glass, this comparatively small town sits just on the edge of everything it needs. Enough fertile land to grow food and resources, enough access to fresh water to sustain thirst, and far enough from Glass so that the things it does produce come in high demand. Overseen by Soevan, the Lucid, Hood is responsible for all the tinctures, salves, balms, and potions of the Cradle. The streets are filled with the medicinal smell of apothecaries or the smoke of woodburning fires, and its inhabitants always sit on the cusp of a raucous nature that comes from not needing to hide their vices. Any and all substances that change the mind or body are found here, some more readily available than others. But therein lies the fun. The thrill of the chase, or the joy of the trip. If there's something you want in Hood, there is someone who can either make it. or get it for you, for the right price.
The holy folk of Soevan, led by Drifter Ryland Arno and a small group of paladins, feel little drive to enact order in Hood. It is simply understood that people come to Hood to get what they need. The common phrase amongst its denizens of, “I won't stand in your way”, grants everyone permission to come as they are, do what they must, and exit simply and gracefully when and if they feel they are ready to go. Some say that Soevan herself keeps the town half asleep, as a tithe, so she may visit them from her place in the Dreamscape and have Hood stay consistently in a state of relative peace.
We meander our way down the cobblestone streets, hearing jaunty music from a tavern, cheers and laughter from revellers seeking their evening's entertainment, and the sound of… enjoyment from an upper floor window with closed red curtains. But our attention is drawn instead to the sound of soft chimes and singing bowls, and the whistling of a kettle. We sneak in a partially open door to a room hazy with smoke intermingling with the steam from a line of porcelain cups on the bar. The Apropos Tea House is open all hours of the day and encourages you to bring what you wish to imbibe with you. Or peruse some of the back rooms for people and experiences that may interest you, because as it is repeated time and time again by those who work here, the only thing they sell is tea.
Our gaze slowly drifts around, and we settle on someone. It takes us a second, but as our eyes adjust in the dim lamplight - Jannes, who do we see?

Jannes:
You see seated at the bar a tall, lithe man. He stands close to six foot two, but his slight frame makes his limbs appear almost impossibly long. He has a hooked nose and deep sunk eyes that give him sort of an unusual attractiveness. He rests there at the bar with a sense of not caring, a sort of aloofness… but at the same time, the angle of his brows and the intensity of his eyes give him a predatory look.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
He exudes a sense of always being watching. He's the kind of person who knows when he walks into a space where all the exits are. He clocks everyone in the bar... But he's gotten so good at hiding this over the years that you really have to pay attention to see it. He hides it behind this aloof, easy smile, charming nature. He has dark hair that he wears back in a ponytail, and he wears fitted leather armor with buckles down the one side, matching black leather pants, and black leather boots that if you look have little silver caps at the toe. He is currently sitting at the bar, swilling what you assume to be tea. I think at this point he's just watching. I don't know if he's actively conversing with anyone at this point, but he is at the bar watching as he always does.

Em:
Hmm. The swill of your tea, the steam that peels off of it, curls around your face mixing with the haziness of the bar, the different smokes, the different substances moving around you. One of the bartenders comes by, a pot in front of them, and wordlessly gestures to you towards your cup.

Jannes:
You see Rake nod, indicating he would like a refill.

Em:
A brief nod in return and their hand begins to tip, moving up and down a steady stream of a tea that you know doesn't take everything away, but makes everything just a little bit duller. It doesn't poke as much. It doesn't ache as much. That's why you come here. At least to this tea shop. Why have you come to Hood in the first place? What brought you here on this trip?

Jannes:
I think Rake came to Hood for the first time after he'd been injured, and needed time to recuperate. He had come seeking healing, he had come seeking pain relief, and he found those things. But what I think he also found that he didn't expect was… he found that this was one of the few places he'd ever been where, though people still glanced in his direction, they didn't know who he was, or if they did they didn't care. And I think he found that for the first time in a long time, he could just be. And so I think any time that he finds himself… between jobs, he sort of eventually ends up back here.

Em:
So you come to Hood to get away when the rest of the world is too busy, or too much, or you need time to not think about work, to not think about the jobs… you come here. And as the bar moves around you, we stay on you here. You sit for a time. Your glass is filled a couple more times. And is there anything else you take from the bar? Is there anywhere else you go, anything else you look for in this establishment? Because you know if you're going to find something that you want, it's here.

Jannes:
I think that Rake would go and visit some folks that he's met over the years about some substances that… in his mind is always for aiding in whatever job comes next, but also sometimes finds its way being imbibed before they are used for the job.

Em:
Hmm. You get up from the bar, walking down the narrow hallway towards one of many rooms in the back of the tea house. You come to the first door, slightly ajar, and you see a fine grey-blue mist sneaking out from the crack in the door. You hear hushed speaking, slow voices, and a slight metallic smell to the smoke. You would know that this room, if you wish it, has wraith vapours in it. Down the hall you watch someone leave a room. They call back over their shoulder, a thank you, and as they open their mouth to smile, you see the remnants of a shine, an iridescence on their gums and on the inside of their mouth. Shimmer, easily procurable here as well. And a little bit further down, you would hear the soft strumming of a stringed musical instrument, maybe a sitar or a lyre. And you would know that… quiet and calm of individuals doing vermel husks would await you in that room.

Jannes:
I think as Rake finds himself standing at the beginning of this hallway, he remembers the times he's been here before, and he remembers the first time he was here, the allure of escape that all these things offered had been too hard to deny. And while enjoyable at first, if you did enough of them, they all gave you visions. And the things that Rake had seen were things no one should have lived once, let alone a second time. And so I think Rake knows that the first three doors in this hallway are the only ones safe for him to go into. I think he swings by, and he picks up some shimmer. And then I think he goes and takes a seat amongst the strumming of the strings, and purchases some vermel husks.

Em:
You would see the proprietor in this room, Kellan, clock you as you walk in, giving you a nod, and he looks towards you,

Em (as Kellan):
“How many tonight?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“I think I will do the same as I do every night. Just enough to take the edge off, please.”

Em (as Kellan):
“Of course, not a problem. On your tab?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Yes.”

Em:
You see him give, flash you a smile and he packs a jar with five vermel husks. They're probably about the size of pea pods and they sit in a brine, and you watch him pull out his own jar and wordlessly to you lifts one out, gives it a crack, and packs it underneath his lip as he sits back and begins to relax.

Jannes:
I would take the jar, I would look to him and say,

Jannes (as Rake):
“It's been a while since I've been here. If I was looking for… somewhere to have some fun, to drink, to meet people... Where are people partying these days?”

Em:
Kellen laughs,

Em (as Kellan):
“I mean, there's a different kind of party in this city for what you're looking for, if you're looking for something like this, well then my friend, you are in the right place. If you are looking for something more raucous, I would say Penelope's, down the street. The tavern always seems to have something going there. Someone fun to dance with, some new drink to slide down your throat. Or if you're looking for something to appease, potentially something more… obscure, I would say go to Lux, which is two streets over.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Thank you.”

Em (as Kellan):
“Anytime.”

Jannes:
And Rake would pull one of the pods out, crack it, pack his lip, put the jar of remaining four in his bag, and make his way out the door.

Em:
You leave the smoky hazy establishment behind, walking up the stairs back onto the main streets of Hood. While you're here in the city, where do you stay, usually?

Jannes:
I think the first time he came he stayed just at an inn. He just found a place, sort of didn't really know where to look, or what to do. But seeing as this has sort of become his constant crossing point on his journeys, I think he probably has some sort of arrangement with… an inn or a tavern that has sort of a, not a permanently set aside room, but something that sort of he could come at any time he can leave some things behind… I think it's about as close to a home base as he has.

Em:
Hmm. Mm-hmm.

Jannes:
But I think tonight, as he makes his way out onto the street, and the vermel husk starts to make itself felt…

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
There's a moment where… He feels… very human and very normal. And I think he finds his feet taking him towards Penelope's.

Em:
You place one foot in front of the other, feeling a little bit of lightness, courtesy of the husk. As you follow the tune of a jaunty song that seems to ring out through the streets, you hear laughter and enjoyment. You hear the sound of glasses clinking, and you know it's not far. What do you carry with you as you're on the walk to this tavern?

Jannes:
Rake would have stopped by his room upon first arriving to Hood, and would have most of his travel belongings currently there. He would have a small change purse on him with some coin. He would have a small sort of sling style satchel pack that he uses to carry his, the shimmer that he's just bought, and what remains of the vermel husk. He's also, while he's been here, he's been picking up sort of supplies for, he knows that his jobs come at a moment's notice. So it pays for him to always be stocked on the essentials for what he does. And then he also never leaves, or goes anywhere, without his weapons… He currently has tucked away in sort of a pocket in his pants.

Em:
And we don't have to see those now.

Jannes:
No, it'll become more clear how they're tucked away when we do eventually see them.

Em:
Okay. So you're walking down the street, trying very, very hard not to think about work. It's been a bit of time since work has called you, and as you've said, it really strikes me that Hood would be a place where Rake would spend time finding himself returning over and over. This place is an opiate, dulling the senses not so much that it would leave you unprepared, but it allows you to forget that you need to be prepared in the first place. You can lose yourself here, time and its passing ceases to be important, and it makes the waiting between calls less noticeable. As you walk forward, ready for the upswing of the husk that you know is probably about 15 to 20 minutes away, you feel an ache begin. Not in your stomach. You ate a couple hours ago. And not in your head. You've drank enough tea to numb yourself out for the next few hours. And not in the majority of your body. The husk tands to toughen you up a bit. Your hand instinctively reaches to your left side under your pectoral muscle. Because of course, of course she'd call now. As your fingers brush over the area, you're reminded not to press too hard lest you heed the call right here and now. There are likely better ways to do that in more private spaces.

Jannes:
I think Rake comes to a complete stop on the street and… in his tea and husk addled state. There is a fleeting moment where… He sees himself continue, and walk into Penelope's, and he sees himself buying a drink for a pretty girl at the bar, and he sees himself laughing, and her laughing. and her looking at him with something that isn't fear for a change. And he sees it all play out as he stands there in the street, before he spins on his heels and makes his way back to his room. He… enters the room through the back set of stairs that the help uses to come and clean the rooms, as not to be noticed by the clientele. He also uses that way so that people can't track when he comes and goes. He makes his way into his room, and… he starts a bath.

Em:
Hmm. So we follow you in. We see it's actually a rather lavishly outfitted two room suite, a full size four poster with luxurious linens of a deep blue, fit for nobility. The walls are covered in rich tapestries, with a fur rug on the floor in front of a small fire in the hearth that is kept going. For when… This room, this suite's resident, returns back. But the reason you rent this suite is for that other room. Off to the side, we see a fully appointed bathroom with a large black clawfoot tub. Above the basin, there is a skylight that allows for a clear view of the open sky. And on a night like this, it is dark enough to get lost in. Because that's what you need to do. You need to lose yourself for a bit, and shed the you that lives up here. Because we both know that that's not who she needs you to be right now. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
Rake draws a bath, that would be so hot that most people wouldn't be able to sit in it. He needs that heat. He needs that burning sensation to sort of act as a focus for what he is about to do. And when the bath is full, he strips down and climbs in the bath, in a way that is practiced, in a way that is clear that this is not the first time that he has been called in this way, and answered in this way. And he sinks into the bath until the water is just below his chin, and once there… He lets his fingers find the scar, and he presses.

Em:
As your fingers move through the water, towards the scar, we see it in its entirety before your fingers cover and press it. It is black and inky. But instead of it being reminiscent of a chasm that we could fall into, we see more structured shape, more purposeful,more featherlike. As you sink your head down under the water, you wait. And then comes the drop. It is as if the bottom of the basin falls out from beneath you and you go into free fall, leaving the water behind you as you pull through nothingness. A liminal space that you have come to loathe and recognize that goes on for too long. The distance between your plane and hers, this space that she created just for herself… It is a bit much, really. Impressive the first time, and now just how you get where you need to go. You fall, and you fall, and you fall, and you hate it, and you fall. You finally start to make out some shapes below you. You know there is a large pool of water waiting beneath you. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
I think as I'm falling with the water beneath me, in an act of supplication, I don't brace or attempt to avert the impact, and I enter her realm exactly as she intended people to, and I would like to use the move Do As You're Told.

Em:
Our first move in this episode. So when you do as you're told, say how you show submission, which you have, and answer one. The GM will show you a glimpse of their true intentions as they answer the other. You may choose one of these two questions. How are you rewarded? And what vulnerability do you reveal?

Jannes:
I think I will answer what vulnerability I reveal. I think in this… in the act of doing this, in the act of not bracing and not attempting to avert impacting the water, which I know from experience is not pleasurable, I reveal that I am still very, very much under her control. I am still very much… hers to command.

Em:
And how are you rewarded? Every time you've come this way, falling into the basin once you've figured out exactly how she wanted you to get here, the ritual for it, I think there's been some fight in you, but this time you show true supplication, and as you impact the water it does not feel like it's going to break you, as it often does. Maybe because she feels like she's already done that. She's already broken you. You came here naked after climbing in your bathtub, and as you surface, gasping for air, you pull yourself out of this pool, and you see your clothes folded neatly in a pile next to the basin, with all of your accoutrement for travel. Even a packed bag, ready to go. Interesting. Lately, she's been calling just wanting to chat. But this must be different. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
Do I know where I am supposed to go meet her? Is it far from here where I've arrived?

Em:
This place that she's created for herself, the Flood, changes often. New corridors and hallways, pathways you've never seen before, more rooms and caverns. The more bored she gets, the more she creates. But to where she usually is, not far. A couple minute walk.

Jannes:
I would walk over to my things and I think I would feel a sense of… I think now that I have impacted the water and I have shifted to this in between, the effects of the tea and the husk are no longer as fresh as they were. And the edge that they helped remove is back.

Em:
Mm-hmm.

Jannes:
And I think that in that moment there is a… It's somewhere between embarrassment and revulsion at how… quickly I came when I was summoned,

Em:
Mm-hmm.

Jannes:
And how under her control I still am. The fire that those substances sort of put out is now back and burning and… I think in an act of almost a protest, in an act of… defiance, though very small, and… almost laughably silly, I take the clothes that are laid out and I put them in the bag and I walk stark naked down the hall to confront her, in my… I think my thought process is… I want her to see my humanity.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
I don't want her to see me in her colours, essentially.

Em:
Mm-hmm. So you pick up your things. And once more, one foot in front of the other, you make your way towards the main room within the system of tunnels and caverns that she has here. It seems that it has grown from the last time you've been here, this home she is making for herself. Perhaps as she regains more of a foothold of her power, the more space she can create here for whatever it is she does when you're not in her company. A thick, acrid smell begins to permeate the air, starting to sting your eyes, and now stinging most of your exposed skin. You should be used to this by now, but it just gets worse every time. She must be bored. And having to create new playthings to keep herself entertained. As you round the final corner and enter into the main chamber, we see a large, long room with no outside light. There are some sconces on the walls that burn with heatless fire, but we know that neither of you need those to see in here. There are pools containing a thick, black, tar like substance that bubble quietly, and pop, before sinking back down again, likely the source of that really sharp smell. You navigate your way forward on the walkways between them, and as you pass by one, some of the substance in the shape of the hand reaches up and grabs your ankle, seeing the exposed skin. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
I think I stop, and I look down at the hand. Is it a hand made of black tar?

Em:
Mmhmm. Attached to the pool itself, but it seems to have reached up and now has a grip around your ankle and is beginning to tighten. Does not feel strong, yet.

Jannes:
I think I looked down at the pool. And I say,

Jannes (as Rake):
“I would think twice about who you attempt to grab.”

Em:
There is a pause. The grip does not constrict further, as you seem to have caught whatever this is, its attention. It is not pulling and it is not gripping. But it holds you still.

Jannes (as Rake):
“Her playthings grow quite brave if they think that hindering my arrival when I am summoned will be tolerated.”

Em:
You feel an active recoil.as the grip unfurls from your ankle and slips back down into the pool.

Jannes:
I spit into the pool, and I continue my walk.

Em:
As you get further down this room, her throne room, you see a chair carved from jagged black obsidian and white porcelain inlaid together, garlanded by barbed wire that spreads out in many directions. But she is not atop it, nor is she up with her flock as your eyes drift upward to the roosting ravens that line the top part of the room. Barely any space is left unclaimed with a quiet chorus of cause ripping through against the unnerving silence of the rest of the room. The Matron of Vengeance stands next to one of the largest pools, her clawed hand gripped around the throat of a humanoid figure that looks to be made from the sticky black tar like substance itself. It stands taller than her by about a foot, and yet it is very clear who holds the power in this situation by a divine mile. The creature has no discernible features other than long, talonlike hands and a wide mouth with bright, white, pointed teeth. And while it has no eyes, its attention is wrapped by her. She stands wearing her full regalia, twisted in darkened armour warped and disfigured by her time off the Material Plane. You see her metal wings folded in, tight against her back but ready to unfurl at a moment's notice. She wears a long black cloak, darker than night. The only thing darker you've ever known than that is the space between, the void where nothing exists, vast and echoing empty, that liminal space. Her long, dark, flowing black hair runs wild behind her. And while you can't see it from your vantage point upon your entrance, you know that her face is covered by a mask. Cracked in half, and held together by sheer will, with one visible eye glowing red. The glow from her eye reflects off the shine of the creature like an oil slick as you watch the tongue move around its teeth with its maw widening as it regards her. She turns its head left and right and we hear her voice cut through. It feels like a metal pick against stone, grating and cold, each word a cut of its own meant to leave a mark, sharp and calculated. Hers is not a voice that yells. It does not have to.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“If I ever find out about your lack of follow through on the task I have for you and the steel, I will not hesitate. I will take your jaw and your teeth, and use them as my own to devour you into nothing. You will be consumed and obliterated and cease the pathetic existence I have granted you by my gracious hand. Save for your teeth, which will be mine to do with as I see fit. Disobey me again, and you will not believe what I will make that mouth do.”

Em:
With that she turns away from the creature and it melts into the muck below it. The last thing we see, its toothy smile fading into the pit of thick black liquid.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Well, look who decided to finally join us. Should I call louder next time?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Good evening, Mother. It's a pleasure, as always.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Took you long enough. What could you have possibly been busy with?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Well, contrary to popular belief, I don't just sit beside the bathtub waiting for you to call.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Ah, yes, because I am so needy, I in the corner with my monstrous needs. Too busy for me are we, Rake? Do you forget your place, and what I give you?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“It's interesting because you need me to be human, yet you hate what makes me human.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“And yet, still you flaunt it, parading in like you own the place.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Well, my mom does.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“It is good to see you. And we have cause for celebration. It's time. We can finally begin. After I have been so patient, I have found someone perfect. It's like the cosmos has aligned just for me. Well, for the both of us, but mostly for me. She will be a good test of whether all our planning has worked so far, and if we succeed… You and I are going to change the world.”

Em:
And from the inside of her cloak, she pulls out a knife, the knife. There is a pang that you hope does not sound as it echoes in your chest, a shockwave that snaps you out of any of the haze of the substance you may have had before, and it almost overwhelms you. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
I think in that moment when Rake sees that knife… He... He gets that… stinging feeling behind his eyes. The threat of tears. It can be disorienting for him, to flit so fast between human and divine. But that knife, and everything its tied to, it just screams of what he's lost.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
I think there's a moment where he knows that he's not hidden it well.

Em:
Mmhmm.

Jannes:
I think there's a moment where he catches himself, and what he knows was too late, and I would like to use Do As You're Told again, by saying,

Jannes (as Rake):
“Of course, Mother. I will leave at once.”

Jannes:
And the vulnerability that I am showing is that fear and trepidation about that knife.

Em:
Before we do this move, I think we also need to see what you see. What flashes behind your eyes that she would so clearly clock. Where you would know that you've really done it now. Your eyes are flicking back and forth between her and the blade. It's so different now than how you first saw it. So I think we should see the first time you ever saw that knife.
The first time you ever saw, at least the previous version of this knife, it was in your home. How old do you think you were when you found it the first time?

Jannes:
I think the first time I found it was probably… When I was just shy of 11, I think it took me that long to sort of realize that there are things that your parents, or in this case, parent, keep from you.

Em:
Mmhmm.

Jannes:
Until that point there had been no reason for him to believe that his dad would have secrets. Their life was simple. Their life seemed to make sense and follow a very logical pattern. But as he got older… the.. and he became more logical and he paid more attention and he started doing that thing that he ended up being so good at, which was watching. He started seeing gaps in the things that his dad told him.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
And he grew curious. He never assumed it was anything bad, but it was a mystery. It was something that he needed to make sense of. And so… He went looking for answers.

Em:
Can you describe this home for me and where in this house you found the knife?

Jannes:
The home was very small, but comfortable. It was the kind of place where they were very fortunate, and very well off for that class of people. So though not large and lavish, they weren't wanting and they were even things that could be called luxuries.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
They didn't share a bed. A lot of his friends growing up, there was one bed to the household. He had his own, which was something that a lot of people considered him very lucky for. Though he did share a room with his dad in this one bedroom, sort of, I guess you could call it a house. They basically, the house only had two rooms, a sort of kitchen, living room area, and a one bedroom. And being a labour and a farm hand, the house was set up amongst others very similar to it, as I think a lot of the housing had been provided for the labourers and the farmhands in the area, and the bathroom was sort of communal, so there wasn't even a bathroom in the house, it was literally just two rooms. I think there was an area where his dad kept his work tools, and knives, and shears, and sickles, and all the things that his dad had to do his job. And he'd always been told not to mess around or go through them as they were sharp and could be dangerous. And that had always made sense to Rake, why, you know, his dad was just looking out for him. And he'd seen his dad use the things. They didn't hold any sort of mystery or intrigue. They were just farm tools. But I think when he went to go and investigate, he found, sort of hidden underneath them, a compartment or a soft cloth bag that had the knife in it.

Em:
So your father kept his tools there, so that would be the logical place to hide something. Amongst other pieces of weaponry, or sharp things, especially when you've told your son not to go there. Can you describe your father for us? Can you describe Avisan?
Accessibility note: As Rake’s name when he was younger is different than what it is now, it has been redacted and denoted by a tonal/static sound in the episode to reflect the fact that it has been purposefully removed. Until he is officially anointed with his name as Rake, he will be referred to as [STATIC].

Jannes:
I think one of the few things [STATIC] got from his dad was his height. Avisan was also very tall. But... [STATIC] is slender and lithe, and Avisan was broad and strong. He had these huge calloused hands. They're one of the few things that [STATIC] really remembers about his dad was he had these hands that could be so gentle and caring towards him, but could make things look so small and fragile a second later.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
He was always so quick to smile, and laugh, and help others. He... He did everything from a place of… accepting his lot in life, and being happy to just have what he had. I think [STATIC] grew up so well taken care of and so loved, he now realizes years later that that was all because of his dad.

Em:
And as we focus in on this young version of you, probably still taller than most kids your age, lanky, not yet grown into your body, we see this version of you gingerly picking up this blade. And you hear the front door swing open. As we see your father, Avisan, walk into the room. And you're holding the knife, Rake. Well, it's not Rake. Your name wasn't Rake then. You know you had another name. But she got rid of it. Coming into the room, Tim, you see your son holding the knife. Your knife. What would you like to do?

Tim:
Avisan would stop in his tracks in the doorway,

Tim (as Avisan):
“Son. I need you to put that down.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Um, yes, of course. I'm sorry. I- I was just curious. I- I'm not trying to…”

Jannes:
And he would sort of be very embarrassed of being caught in the act of snooping through his dad's stuff. He knows that it's a… He knows that it comes across as a violation of his dad's little privacy that he has with such a small living arrangement. And he very quickly puts the knife down and takes a step back.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I'm very sorry.”

Tim:
Avisan would move over and kneel down, kind of in one gesture, pick up the knife and put it in his back pocket, and then put a hand out on his son's shoulder. He's kneeling, but he's almost eye level with you. I'm gonna use one of my mortal moves to Connect with Someone.

Em:
Okay, so when you try and Connect with Someone, you tell them something intimate, and answer one of the following questions. And the GM will reveal a fragment of the pain present as they answer the other. So the questions that you can answer for us above board are, what common ground do we share, or what still divides us? As you can also tell your son something intimate, as you try and connect with him.

Tim:
He- he's family. He's my son. And I love him. And Avisan is, his heart is racing in this moment.
Tim (as Avisan):
“My son, this… is not like the other tools in the shed. It is something that can be used to bring great harm. It's something I wish to forget, but I can't. So I must keep it close, so that it can cause no harm. I want to know. What sparked your curiosity?”

Em:
And to answer the question and finish the move before we hear the response. The thing that still divides you is that you know what you are. You know who you are, and your family's history. He does not.

Tim:
Mmhmm.

Em:
And from the sounds of things you intend to try and keep it that way.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I have never... found anything... or… seen any trace of mother, and you have told me so little, and… I thought there must be something. A clue or… something as to who she was, or what she was like. It only made sense that the place you would keep it, was the one place you told me never to look, or the one place you told me never to go. I'm sorry, I was just- I was just looking for something to tell me who she was. I’m very sorry, I shouldn’t have gone through your things.”

Tim:
May I ask a question above board as well?

Em:
Of course, go ahead.

Tim:
What colour is [STATIC]'s hair and eyes?

Em:
Black hair,

Tim:
Yeah

Em:
And what colour are [STATIC]'s eyes?

Jannes:
I think at this point, [STATIC]'s eyes would be the same colour as his father's. And I think it's sort of the… I think it's a brown. It's like a… It's like a dark brown around the edges and right as it comes towards the irises, it's sort of almost the colour of hay. It gets very, very light right before it gets to the irises.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
And I think if you were viewing this scene… you would notice that his eyes are definitely not that colour when you saw him just before with his mother.

Tim (as Avisan):
“I know, I... I don't speak of your mother. And... I want you to understand, it's not... because I want to hide her away from you. It is because I see her in you every day. The way you watch. The way you take your time. You are patient. Even the way your hair parts. It is... It is hard because I can feel her presence here, even though I have not seen her, or felt her touch in quite some time. And I forget.. that you don't know what that's like. And I am sorry.”

Jannes:
I think [STATIC] would be... His dad has always been loving and caring and understanding, but he has never… felt so truly vulnerable to him before. I think to [STATIC] the knowledge that something that he'd done, a question that he'd asked, had in any way, taken that smile off his dad's face would only add to the embarrassment that he felt on being caught going through his dad's things. And as much as he is dying to ask more questions about his mother, to know more about her, he's desperately looking for something to change the topic, and his eyes fall to the knife.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Umm… Aren't all knives dangerous, Father?”

Tim (as Avisan):
[Chuckles] “Yes, I suppose so. I should tuck this back away. Would you like a knife of your own? Not like this, but a hunting knife, perhaps? It's about time you have a tool.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Yes, Father, that would be wonderful, but why... why do you hide this knife? Knives aren't just tools, are they not?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Sometimes, they are tools... Sometimes, they are weapons... And sometimes they are symbols.”
Em [unable to contain faerself in the background about the brilliance of this table]:
Fuck.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Symbols of what father?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“That is perhaps a discussion for another time. There is still much for you to learn about the world. You don't need to take it all in at once. Come.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Alright. I… I will... not go through your things again.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Thank you.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But maybe… Maybe you can tell me more about mother and what she was like?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Alright.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“And why she left?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“That [clears throat] that will have to be a conversation for another day. I am weary. I should get some dinner on the table. Come. We'll speak of it soon.”

Tim:
And he would bring him into an embrace, kind of pull his head into a solar plexus.

Em:
And Avisan, as you pull him in close, there is a deep guilt that you feel hit the very core of you. You feel that knife in your pocket, when the only thing you want to do is feel your son. It's been a long time since you touched that knife. Before that it was your mother's, and her father's before that, and his father's before that. Do you hide it again?

Tim:
I would. I would have it in a different place. That night, Avisan would go out, and wait until [STATIC] was asleep, and he would dig a small hole near the corner of the house, and he would lay two bricks as a marker. And he would bury it. Not terribly deep. but he would do his best to conceal it, make it look like nothing was out of place.

Em:
Hmm. Okay. And as we see you stand up, wiping the dirt from your hands, your eyes flicking back to the house to make sure he hasn't stirred. Our gaze hangs on you as we see you age. A few years. Maybe four or five. You're probably a young man now, [STATIC]. No longer a child, coming into your own, and we're seeing the glimpses of you, that you could become. Avisan, what looks different about you now? And what looks different about your son?

Tim:
There is considerably more salt than pepper in the hair. He didn't have black hair like [STATIC]. His hair was a darker brown, but now it's flecked with white. Quite a bit more white than before. He… He still has… He has deeper wrinkles than before, not drastically so, but the lines on his face are starting to show a little bit more. And the bags under his eyes are a little bigger. And there's a pain in his shoulder, his body, an old injury. It flares up now and then.

Em:
What looks different about [STATIC]? In your eyes?

Tim:
He is starting to fill out a bit. He's still lithe, like his mother. But his adolescent body is becoming stronger as he turns from a boy into a young man. I watch his focus grow. Avisan has noticed that he can spend hours working on something singular. There's a dedication that surprises him a bit, not something he necessarily had as a young man. But [STATIC] seems to be able to focus when he sets his mind to something. It's admirable. to mark a pride for Avisan.

Em:
You contemplate all the changes in your life and his. It's early morning. You've always been an early riser. A bit of time when the house is quiet, before morning chores need to be done, before you have to go to work and the bustle of the day gets started. You let the quiet wash over you, near an open window above the kitchen sink. Taking a deep inhale of the smell of the strong coffee you brew each morning. The small morning ritual, the peace you feel in a world that is changing so quickly around you. With many soldiers and others at war for gods, both alive and dead. That war is still far away. Not here. Not where you've chosen to put down roots. And there's a comfort in that, I think. A comfort that you don't need to be part of that, at all. You've chosen to step outside it, and live the life that you want. Far clearer of that form of duty, or obligation. The rest of your family, wherever they are, can handle that however they please. Whatever they choose to look for in those ruins… There's nothing but ghosts there now. You take your first sip and the hot liquid rolls down your throat, hitting your stomach. This is usually your most calm point in the day. Things can begin properly after a good cup of coffee. Except that sated feeling is quickly replaced by a weightlessness that begins like a knot in your stomach and is overtaken by nausea. There is this gutting, hollow feeling. You feel like you're about to pitch into free fall or throw up. You know this feeling, and it can only mean one thing. It means that it's his time. What would you like to do?

Tim:
Is he there, in the room?

Em:
He would be probably in the bedroom, with the door closed. He's not up yet.

Tim:
I - I'm going to use a mortal move and I'm going to… I'm going to Pray for Guidance.

Em:
Okay.

Tim:
Something he has not done in a very, very, very long time.

Em:
So when you Pray for Guidance, name the aid you seek and answer one. The GM will describe the aid that actually comes as they answer the other. The questions are what kind of god answers your prayers? And the other is, what unclear omens or visions besiege you?

Tim:
As that feeling of weightlessness takes over, Avisan would soften his gaze like he was taught. Trying to find almost… a blackness. Almost like tunnel vision, but staring into the sides, trying to find that void. As he would scream out inside. His voice desperately clawing at the void. Until his voice grew hoarse.

Tim (as Avisan):
“No. No. No you can't, you... you... you can't have him. No. Why him? Why him? Answer me. Why him?”

Em:
Are you asking your god to answer you?

Tim:
I am. But I also know that… No answer, is typical. No answer is an answer.

Em:
So you've taken what kind of god answers your prayers.

Tim:
Mmhmm.

Em:
And I will answer the other, describing the aid that actually comes. [deep breath] Ohhh, man. While you don't hear your god, you've never heard them before, your gaze shifts for a moment, hoping to see something, anything, try and find that tunnel. To keep it, to hold it. Keep the channel open. Your eyes glance outside, and you see a black cat perched on a fence post. Just sitting. But the rest of your calls go unanswered. Do you go to him?

Tim:
I would stand outside of our room. But he can't bring himself to open the door. He stands right at the threshold, his nose almost touching the door. But he cannot bring himself to open it. He cannot confirm what he knows. He's... clinging... to some shred that if I don't, that if he doesn't confirm it, if he doesn't see it, if he doesn't see the mark, it doesn't exist. That if he witnesses it, if he bears witness to it, he can never live in a world where it's not there. And he can't do it. He can't open the door.

Em:
[STATIC], you lie in bed. The morning sun creeping in your bedroom window. It's late. You probably should have been up a couple hours ago at this point. Help out with chores. What do you dream about?

Jannes:
I think for a long time, [STATIC] has always had a version of the same dream. It's a dream in which his dad comes through the door and finds him with that knife. In this dream instead of telling him to put the knife away, he tells him that he has something he wants to show him. And he takes him out of the house, and takes them through the fields, to the forest that lays just beyond the farmed land. And as they walk through the trees, they come on a clearing. And in the far end of the clearing stands a woman with her back to them. And [STATIC] knows instantly that it's his mother. And he runs for her. And every time, no matter how hard he runs, or how fast he runs, or if he pauses before he runs, every time right before he's about to get to her, her silhouetted form dissolves into that of hundreds of ravens, that fly up into the tree. And the dream shifts to that of a nightmare as he stares up at this tree heavy with ravens, all cawing. And he turns back to see that his father is no longer there and he is alone. And then he wakes.

Em:
You're pulled sharply from the dream as always. And you take stock of yourself, and you feel an ache in your side, between your ribs. It's almost like you're winded. It's a nasty feeling. It's not unbearable, but really, really uncomfortable. You hop up out of bed and you look at the small mirror atop your dresser in the room, and you see an inky black scar that is in the process of spreading out, coming to rest, centre, next to your sternum. It looks like a chasm, a crevasse, a bottomless nothing. Your eyes almost fall into it and you have to catch yourself and shake yourself out of it. You hear the floorboards shift outside your room and all of a sudden you feel unbearably sick. Instinctively you retch, an empty stomach with bile as you've yet to eat breakfast. Avisan, you're outside the door, hand on the knob and you hear him throw up.

Tim:
Avisan would run outside. He would go to the tool shed and grab a shovel. And he would go to where he buried the knife. And he starts trying to dig it up.

Em:
You know that you didn't bury it more than two or three shovel fills deep. The bricks are right there as you left them. After three or four swift pitches into the forgiving dirt, there is no knife.

Tim:
I would keep digging. He would keep digging.

Em:
You find nothing.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Father, what are you doing?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Where is the knife? Where is the knife? Where is the knife?”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I don't know father -”

Tim (as Avisan):
Where is the knife?

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I haven't touched it father, you told me not to.”

Tim:
Avisan wouldn't be looking at you during this whole exchange.

Tim (as Avisan):
“I need you to tell me where the knife is.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Father, I would if I knew. What is going on?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“We need to find the knife. I need to find the knife, you… Go and heat up some water for a bath. Go. Go put some water on the stove.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“No, not until you explain what's going on.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Just do it. Don't ask questions. You get the biggest pot that we have. Go.”

Jannes:
And I think one of the most noticeable differences that you would see about [STATIC]… now that this time has gone by is that there is a… an anger in him. Fueled by the hormones of puberty combined with the fact that he never feels like he belongs where he is, that he's somehow different. He doesn't move, as if by protest. And then he concedes, because he's never seen his dad talk to him like this before. And he feels that burning sensation behind his eyes that he did when he saw the knife. And he turns on his heels and he runs for the kitchen. And he finds the biggest pot.

Tim:
You hear the shovel crack in half at the handle.

Jannes:
He feels like his world is turning upside down and the echoes of that dream that he awoke from ring in his head as he, he loses most of the water out of the bucket, or out of the pot, as he attempts to get it from where they fill it, to the stovetop, and once it's on and it starts to heat, he finds himself needing to do something, and not being able to decide what to focus on and what to do. And so he goes back outside to see where his father is.

Tim:
You would see Avisan kneeling down, the shovel splintered. He's leaning against the house. You can see there's tears streaked down his dirt-covered face.

Tim (as Avisan):
“I never wanted this for you. I'm so sorry.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Wanted what, father? I - I don't understand what's going on. And you're scaring me.

Tim (as Avisan):
“I'm sorry, I'm sorry, child, come. So, sit, sit. I tried to leave a life behind. A life I did not choose, but that was chosen for me. I just wanted to break the cycle.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“The cycle of what?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Exactly. The cycle of killing, endless wars, prophecy, all of that nonsense. It's all bullshit. All of it. We're supposed to believe something because we bear this mark. [sniffles] It's all meaningless. All of it. The only thing that matters is what you can see and what you can touch. That is it. That is all we have.”

Tim:
He would reach out, grab your shoulder.

Tim (as Avisan):
“This, this is real. Right here. Right now. This. This is real. if I don't tell you what it means, it can't shape any decisions you make. It bears no influence on you. It is just a birthmark. That is all.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But sh - But she's real, right? Mother? I can't see her,”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Yes,”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I can't touch her. But she, she must be real?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“She was very real. She was beautiful. She was... She was tender in her own way.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“What do you mean was? I thought you said she left?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“She did. I- I-”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Did she leave because of the knife? Did she leave because of this? The prophecies of which you speak?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I don't know. I don't know. Perhaps I have asked myself this very question. It keeps me awake at night. I toss and I turn, and I go over every conversation we ever had. Every glance, every touch. And I wonder why. Why she left. She was there… Do you want to know something?”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I want to know everything and you just -”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I asked her to marry me every day for an entire year. She said no. She said it didn't change anything. She said she still wanted to be with me. And I said I would ask again tomorrow. Maybe she would change her mind.”

[Em noises, in awe of faer players]

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Who was she, Father?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Her name was Vera. She'd come through town with a caravan. She was a merchant starter. We fell in love quite quickly. It was a bit of a whirlwind. She never liked the gods either. [chuckles] Something we bonded over. When she got pregnant, I thought, surely she would let me marry her. Surely, she must. And still she said no. I told her, what would the neighbours think? She laughed. She had such a funny laugh. Sharp. she could give it just as well as she could take it. After you were born there was… the most beautiful, beautiful time. Was only, maybe three months? But it was like a lifetime. She was so tender with you. She was not tender with me in the same way. It was something I had never seen in her before. And some way, I fell even more in love with her. And then she was gone. No letter. She didn't even take most of her things. She was just... gone. There's times that I have thought perhaps I was mad, and she never existed at all. But then I would look at you. And I knew, she was real. This is real. I can feel you. I can touch you. I can speak with you. This is real. She was real. So, I say was because I don't know if she's still out there, or if she's dead. Maybe she died in a ditch. Maybe she fell in love with someone else. They ran off. Maybe she lives in a palace. I don't know.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]:
“I wish I could remember her.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Sometimes I wish I could forget her.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But father, this feeling. This pain in my ribs. This nausea in your presence. This is real.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Yes it is. It is a terrible scar.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“What does it mean?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I can't tell you.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But you must.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“All I can say is that you should hide it away. Forever. Do not let anyone ever know that you bear that mark. It will only bring pain.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Father, do you know what they say about me? The other kids?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“What do they say?”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“They say I'm too quiet. I'm too... too focused. I'm... I'm too different. They say I'm too much. And… for the longest time, I tried to make myself less. I didn't want to be different. I didn't want to be too much. But father, there's only one other option other than making yourself less. And that's accepting that you are more. Father, if I am more you must tell me.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I don't know what your destiny will be, [STATIC]. I don't know if you will be more, or less, or just as you are. You can only be. Take and seize each moment.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Then let me be!”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I only have my wisdom to offer you, and if you are wise, you must hide that mark. It will only bring you suffering, son. Do not. Do not share in this burden. Let it die with me.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But it won't. I will carry it, with ignorance. You will leave me unprepared.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“No son, you will be blissful in your ignorance. Say it was a bad tattoo you got. Say you got in a fight with a madman. Make up any story you like. It's better than the truth.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I’m going to find that knife.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I pray you never do.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“And when I do… I want answers.”

Em:
This moment held between the two of you forever changes the relationship afterwards. Something has to shift. And for us to be able to work our way back to what is happening right now, we have to remember the last time you saw that knife in your home. It's evening. A deep midwinter. The sun set very early despite it not being late. It's still very dark out. We finish supper, and we hear the beginnings of the house start to settle in the cold night air. [STATIC], you are about 18. And, Avisan, as he sits by the hearth, you see him. You see your son. No longer a boy. But a man. You know the years that you will be able to share space with him are coming to a close. There will come a time when he will go out and forge a life of his own. Away from the ghost of the burdens of his birthright that you've tried so hard to hide from him. Away from having to be a Eutoches. Maybe one day he'll finally let it go, once he gets some distance, and be free of it, more so than you could ever have been. As you settle in for the night, you feel the air get very cold. Even inside. You see the fire flicker, and a draft starts coming in from the front door of the house. As you go to grab something to block the draft, a blanket, or something like that, You hear a knock, at the door. What would you like to do?

Tim:
Avisan would open the door.

Em:
When you open it, you see a woman standing outside. Despite being ill dressed for the cold, Avisan, she looks exactly the same as the day she left. But her expression… That is so very different. Hard. Emotionless. Calculating.

Em (as Vera):
“I've come for the boy, Avisan.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Wha-”

Em (as Vera):
“It's time.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“What?”

Em (as Vera):
“The war will be ending soon, and I have things I must attend to.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“What do you mean? Come inside my love-”

Em (as Vera):
“Did you not hear me?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Please-”

Em (as Vera):
“I have come for the boy.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Please, please… just come sit awhile…”

Em (as Vera):
“Your job is done, Avisan.:

Tim (as Avisan):
“What do you mean?”

Em:
Her eyes moved to [STATIC].

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Father, who is it?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“What? It's your mother. She's.. She’s back. It's a miracle. Please just come sit. We can have some tea. We can warm you up. Come, please.”

Em (as Vera):
“I am fine, thank you.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“What do you mean?”

Em:
A smile creeps across her face, and it is unnerving. You've never seen this smile, Avisan.

Em (as Vera):
“Look at you. Almost as handsome as your father was at that age, I reckon. But his heart is darker than yours. No matter. Did you teach him to be soft, Avisan? To ignore not just who he is, but what he is?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Why are you speaking like that? You were... You are not her.”

Em (as Vera):
“You know nothing of who I am.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“[STATIC]”

Em (as Vera):
“What- What is this name you call him? What is this name? No, no, no, that won't do it all. We will find something better, more suiting of who you will become now.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I don't know who this is wearing your mother's face, but it is not her.”

Em (as Vera):
“Stand aside, Avisan.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“You need to go. You need to go, Spectre.”

Tim:
He would move to close the door.

Em:
She puts a foot, and it is strong.

Em (as Vera):
“I had hoped… that you would just let him go quietly, but I should have known better. Fine. I'd say this is the hard way, but that would mean I would be expending effort. Know that I'm not. And we can both say that you fought for him to the bitter end.”

Tim:
I’d like to use a mortal move.

Em:
Yeah, what's that mortal move you want to use?

Tim:
I'm gonna Act Impulsively, and I'm going to try to push her out of the doorway.

Em:
Okay. When you Act Impulsively, describe the emotion that drives you and answer one. The GM will tell you something you didn't notice until now as they answer the other. The questions are, what advantage do you seize? Or what trouble hits you hard and fast?

Tim:
It is a sense of fear that drives Avisan in this moment. He feels as though this is a nightmare come to life. That his whole world is shifting underneath his feet, and the woman he has loved for all these years is not the same. And there is this dissonance that is utterly terrifying to his core. And he, in that moment, he chooses fight over flight.

Em:
Hmm.

Tim:
And he pushes her, and reaches out his hand, and I think the thing that hits him hard and fast, as he lays a hand on her and gets close enough… She smells the same. She feels the same. He can feel her skin. And even though it's cold, he knows that sensation, and it's even more shaking to his core. Something shatters inside of him.

Em:
The advantage you seize... There's a door stopper behind her. And you catch it just in time, and you push her. She stumbles backwards. and instinctively her arms fly outward to the sides. [STATIC], I want to give you a chance to do something here. If you wish.

Jannes:
I think. [STATIC] is watching all of this unfold and he doesn't know what's going on, and he finds himself frozen in this moment. The brief joy that he felt that his mother might be back, quickly overshadowed by the reaction of his father, and he feels an anger deep in the pit of his stomach. An anger that is… at both of them. For claiming that they loved him, yet never sharing enough for him to make sense of any of this. He knows there were many, many opportunities. Since that conversation by the hole, that he feels in his ignorance, could have somehow prepared him for this, somehow made this make sense and I think in that moment of fear and anger and confusion. I think I want to use a divine move and I want to… Unleash my divinity.

Em:
Okay.

Jannes:
And I think… the way that that manifests. Is he, almost as though he's about to be sick, he feels that sort of feeling of retching coming on. And he just yells,

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Stop!”

Jannes:
and that word carries power.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
That word is a command that cannot be ignored. That word is an attempt to just buy some time to make sense of this all.

Em:
Okay. Your divine trigger as a godling is when you hurl yourself into obvious danger to help a mortal. You awaken your divinity. So while you are not fully actualized into the Rake that we met at the beginning of this session. there is something very deep within you. As you see your father take these steps to protect himself, and you, watching him fight against every nature, when you know that all he wishes to do is pull her into an embrace and have everything be okay. When you unleash your awakened divinity, describe how your godhood surges forth from you as you exert your will upon reality. You accomplish a single, brilliant feat with one side effect of your choosing. It is brief. It is obvious. It is unstable. And afterwards, your divinity becomes dormant once more.

Jannes:
I think... when he… when he yells this. It… The way it manifests on him is the sound of the “stop” that he yells has an echo to it, as if it was yelled into a chasm. It reverberates. And as that sound dies, you hear the fluttering of wings as though he's scared a roost of birds outside. And I think the… The side effect is that as much as he was hoping to buy time, the effect is brief.

Em:
A moment suspended. You feel time slow down. Your word carrying weight. Across the fabric of reality itself. You have more seconds to survey the room than your father. And this woman, potentially parading as your mother. But as you're desperately trying to gather information, trying to make sense of what is happening, you see a smile pull across her face. and you hear in your head,

Em (as Vera, telepathically):
“You will be perfect.”

Em:
As her arms pull out and open backward, her cloak moving along with it. An unkindness of ravens flies out, beginning to fill the room. They swirl around fast and dark. You are both mortal. Mostly. And she is a god. Mostly. You are surrounded and everything goes dark. When you wake up, you are in the Flood, though you don't know the name for it now. Bound, shirtless, strapped to chairs at your wrists and ankles, you sit facing each other, a table between the middle of you. On it is an open jar filled with a thick, viscous, green substance. The smell is so toxic it stings the inside of your nose and mouth, making it painful to breathe. And suspended within that liquid is your knife. She sits on her throne, less opulent at this point, but still a sight to behold. [STATIC], you awaken first. Your father's still unconscious across from you.

Em (as Vera):
“That took you long enough. You will be faster.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Who are you?”

Em (as Vera):
“I am your mother. Welcome home, my son.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“That can't be true.”

Em (as Vera):
“Why not?”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“You're nothing like what he said you were.”

Em (as Vera):
“You say that as if I ever let him know who I really was. You are always the plan. Because of the many years I spent away from this place, this plane you mortals inhabit, I was never as powerful as the other gods. And while they tear themselves apart for sport, they've lost sight of the real problem. So I needed to fix it. So I needed you.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“All right. You have me. You can let him go.”

Em (as Vera):
“No, no, no, no, no, my boy.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“But you don't need him, you just said... You just said that he was... I was the and goal.”

Em (as Vera):
“You are not ready yet, but you will be. That's why we're all here.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Please…”

Em (as Vera):
“You've come just in time for the show.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Please let him go.”

Em (as Vera):
“No. I can't do that.”

Jannes:
I would like to use the mortal move, Feel Someone or Something Out.

Em:
Yeah. Okay.

Jannes:
When you try and feel out a person, place, or thing, say what you want clarity about and answer one. The GM will provide you the clarity you seek as they answer the other. What feels welcoming on the surface? What feels dark or unnerving when I peer deeper? I think… I think I will answer what feels dark or unnerving when I peer deeper. And I think for [STATIC], what that is, is this whole thing feels dark and unnerving. And I think the thing that… I think the thing that terrifies him most and unnerves him most, is those qualities that his dad always said remind him of her,

Em:
Mmm.

Jannes:
He sees them in her, even in this cruel, twisted form of what he thought his mother was.

Em:
What feels welcoming on the surface, is that you have grown up with someone who held nothing back from showing you that he loved you. You know what it looks like on someone's face when they are genuinely prideful. Have genuine care. Have genuine love, for someone. And despite the overtly cruel presentation, you see it when she looks at you. But not at your father.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“If you love me, you will spare him, please. I... I won't ever ask anything more of you. Don't… Don't take my father.”

Em (as Vera):
“I am doing this because I love you. Because I know what you can become, what we can do together. You have needed me, have you not? And I wasn't there. Now I am. And this is what I can give you. This is what I will give you. My son.”

Jannes (as [STATIC], voice shaking):
“But he was there. He was always there. And I didn't always appreciate it. And I didn't... I took it for granted. But he was there when you weren't. I will come with you, but I… I need him.”

Em (as Vera):
“It was so easy to find my way into his heart. He wanted someone to ease the pain of his family's burden. He wanted a family of his own. To shed hundreds of years of history, of birthright. What you never saw was the vengeance so dark in his heart that I could hear it from across the plains. A bitterness towards every god who massacred his people and took his history from him. People he didn't even know and most likely wouldn't have liked anyway. The Devoid Massacre was a beautiful act of foresight on their part. It will not keep the gods safe, but we should applaud its merits regardless. Your father has failed, my son, and I will not let you fail like he did. It has taken a long time for things to fall into place. I had to be patient. And when that wretched poisoner died, it was only a matter of time. He was easy enough to find. I just followed the trail of bodies with the tongues cut out. That's what they do to liars, you know. There are things I want. Things I need. And you are part of this plan, my beautiful boy.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“He didn't fail. He did exactly what he set out to do. He got away. And he took care of me.”

Em (as Vera):
“And now it is my turn. We will enact the Tribus Sanguis, and I will welcome you home.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“What is that?”

Em:
She approaches the table. Avisan, you start to rouse, hearing the clink of the metal scraping across the floor. She walks over to the table, putting her hand in the jar. You hear a singeing sound as any flesh on her hand begins to burn off, but she does not flinch, as she removes the Eutochan blade from what looks like the consistency of blood.

Tim:
As that smell of her hand singeing hits Avisan's nose, his eyes would snap open, and there would be a kind of steely determination inside of him, and I would like to use a divine move to Recognize a God.

Em:
Oh boy, our first roll of the evening. So when you want to recognize the signs or the influence of a God of the Cradle, roll 2d6 and you'll add one for each true statement. You're in or near the domain. Yes. You're familiar with their gospel. I'm gonna say no to that one. and it would be bad if you didn't know and didn't recognize. Yes. So that's a plus two.

Tim:
I got two sixes.

Em:
Okay. So...

Jannes:
That's an overkill.

Em:
On an overkill, you realize that your divinity is actively trespassing against them right now. And the GM will say how. So with two sixes for a 12 plus two for a 14. Tell me what is in your heart right now, Avisan.

Tim:
Do I recognize who she is?
Em:
You do. You recognize... not the place. But the iconography of ravens.

Tim:
There is a crack in his determination that lets forth a flood, as there is only forgiveness in his heart. Knowing who she is and the power she wields, he feels only forgiveness. As he looks at her, his gaze softens.

Em:
She looks up to meet your gaze,

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Oh good, you finally joined us.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I forgive you.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“You what?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I forgive you. I want you to know that despite everything, and all that you've done, I forgive you. I hold no ill will in my heart. You gave me the greatest gift.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“It has been so long since I was a mortal. I forget, I think, what you’re like.”

Em:
She looks to you, [STATIC].

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Take a moment to look at him, and know that I have only ever wanted the best for you.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“My son,”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Father -”

Tim (as Avisan, through tears):
“I forgive you, and I pray. No, I do not pray. I hope. I hope that one day you can find it in your heart to forgive me. And forgive your mother.”

Jannes (as [STATIC], through tears):
“Father, I have... you have done nothing that would require me to forgive you. I love you.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“I love you too.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I'm sorry. I should have…”

Tim (as Avisan):
“No -”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I should have listened.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“No, you’ve done nothing wrong. You're right. You are more. You are Eutoches.”

Jannes (as [STATIC] fully sobbing):
“No. I am all because I'm your son. I- I am not who I am because I am Eutoches, I am not who I am because she is my mother, I am who I am because you are my father.”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Whatever comes next, know that this is real. You and I.”

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“And what will I do? When I don't have my anchor to tell me what is real?”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Trust what you can touch, what you can see, what you can smell. Trust yourself.”

Em:
She stands poised at the edge of the table, allowing you this final exchange. She dips the knife in the jar, coating the blade with the liquid.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“I invoke the blood of the liar to keep this blade's aim true. May it find any weakness and exploit it with pleasure.”

Em:
She looks back and forth between the two of you.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“I invoke the blood of the Void. For while this knife is not my own, I will it to act under a hand guided by me and my bloodline, blessed by the sacrifice of one of its own.”

Em:
Her eyes lock on you, [STATIC], as she walks behind your father. You see his scar, like yours, and you feel the ache between you, wishing more than anything that you could reach out and touch him.

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“Please, please no…”

Tim(as Avisan):
“It's all right.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“On cometh the void.”

Em:
As she reaches around and she slices open his scar,

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“No -”

Em:
The knife pierces through, blood gushing from his chest.

Jannes (as [STATIC] weakly and desperately, while crying):
“No…”

Tim (as Avisan):
“Forgive her. Forgive her.”

Jannes (as [STATIC] voice breaking):
“I… can't…”

Em:
You hold on. To that shred of his spirit as you watch it leave him. You've remembered this moment time and time again. If there was anything now you as Rake, you as the Rake that stands in your mother's chambers with this series of visions flashing between you, if there was anything you now could tell him in his dying moments that you wish you'd have known then, what was it?

Jannes (as [STATIC]):
“I love you. And I will make sure that she suffers for what she's done. She will regret the day that she crossed us.”

Em:
Avisan, somewhere in the River, as you drift along, you hear it. And you know. She looks back at you, [STATIC].

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“And finally, I invoke the blood of vengeance itself. This knife will know justice where there is none. It will know retribution where it has been lacking. It will know resolution to the betrayal that started everything. The grievous error, I will see done right.”

Em:
She takes the knife and slices her palm, dripping the blood onto the blade. You see the knife alight with a red glow, the same one coming from her exposed eye as runes are burned into the blade. The purple crystal woven into the metal is gone, replaced with a bright, deep red. The handle now a bright white, still wrapped in that void black leather. She marvels at herself and her creation as she stalks towards you.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“With this knife, we strip you of your name and any ties to this mortal coil. With this knife, we cut out the void and have you know the truth. With this knife, we gift you your true birthright, your ounce of divinity. You do not belong to the empty god. You never did. You belong to me.”

Em:
She kneels before you, taking the blade in her hands. You expect her to stab, and she presses it against your scar. The pain is excruciating. She is burning away that part of you, burning out your life as the son of Eutoches, burning away your tie to anyone in the world but her. As the searing dies down, and you manage to regain your senses. She places the knife in your lap, almost gently, with an uncharacteristic reverence for it. She reaches one clawed hand up to caress the side of your face. What does she see in your eyes?

Jannes:
I think she sees helplessness. She sees someone whose tether to reality is no longer there. I don't know if she recognizes it in that moment, but in that moment… She has made him more of a voidwalker than anything else possibly could have.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
She has made him crave the release of the nothingness. More than anything.

Em:
A quiet fills the room, before you hear her finish her ritual. The closing line of a malevolent sermon.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“My son. You will Rake my talons across the face of anyone who opposes me, and they shall know the true meaning of vengeance.”

Em:
And you know that your name is now the one she has given you. Rake. And now, you must get to work. And with that… You steady yourself and we find ourselves back in the Flood. Unbound, and here of your own volition. Doing as you're told. She cannot help but show you her true intentions, regardless of how much supplication you show. You know you've been caught. She sees you remember. And there is no time. She flies towards you faster than you can blink and she pins you to the floor. The knife gripped in her hand and placed far too close to your ear for your comfort.

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“You may think of him softly from time to time, holding those moments in the palms of your hands as if they were a fragile baby bird. But I will cut off those hands, those gifts I give to you, if you ever reach for him again. Do you hear me, Rake?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Yes, mother.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Good. Now if you're done daydreaming, perhaps you have enough attention left so we can get started.
Yes?”

Jannes:
I think you would see Rake immediately relax into that sort of like can't be bothered, sort of easygoing attitude that he uses to sort of mask his underlying anxiety. I think it's like a combination of just sort of general disregard for his life at this point.

Em:
Mmhmm.

Jannes:
Like, he, he knows that he can't actively seek out his own demise, but he also doesn't really care if he was to die at this point.

Em:
Mmhmm.

Jannes:
So there's a sort of like, yeah, whatever, this is what it is, and I just go along for the ride, as he sort of stands up and goes,

Jannes (as Rake):
“Alright, well, who am I to convince now?”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Hmm. It's simple, Rake. There will be a young woman, blonde hair, light eyes, freckles across her nose. She will be wearing simple travelers' clothes, and she is bound for Temple Lybica in Glass. She is on her way there now. I do not know her name, but she has it. My son, she has a bone to pick with our dear sweet pussycat, and it is about time that we even the playing field once and for all, hm? All you have to do is find her.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“She doesn't really sound like my type, but... If I must…”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“She's been busy trying to bury her vengeance against Nepthysaket in love, but it won't last. Not with all the rage she has within her.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Ohh.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“You'll have to stoke it, Rake.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Believe it or not, stoking rage for the gods is not as hard as it might seem.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“You must make it burn, so that once you teach her what to do with that knife, she won't hesitate. She won't falter. She cannot falter. We need her ready.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“That I can do.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Good. Do whatever it takes, I don't care. Wrap her around your talon, and once she does it, we'll know it can be done. This will be the test. Because after the work I've put into you, I'm not gonna risk you dying or being destroyed because of a careless mistake that we rushed into. Because if she can do it, untrained, as a mere mortal, untouched and untethered to the divine, so can you. And if she dies in the process, then we take what we've learned and we try again. We are going to make a godkiller, my son. What a fine feathered pair we will make.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Yes we are.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Good. If you hurry along, you can probably get there with enough time to reingratiate yourself back in Glass, because it seems you've been galavanting around Hood for a while. Slumming it, are we?”

Jannes (as Rake):
“Well, you know, it's nice once in a while to, ah, mix it up with the delinquents.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Hmm, that just won't do. I need you sharp. Like a good boy. You can use the basin to head there if you wish, or you can walk. I really don't care. Just get there. I'm going to see if I can delve back into my plane to draw some strength, so I will not be here to pick up the slack if you falter. I want what these gods have left to be a pittance to compare to what we bring to the table. And perhaps, if there is enough, and you do your job right, there will be some magic for you.”

Jannes (as Rake):
“As you wish, Mother.”

Em:
She makes a small motion with her hand that you may leave.

Jannes (as Rake):
“I love you too. Always a pleasure to see you. Hope we can see each other again soon.”

Em (as The Matron of Vengeance):
“Pick up those clothes on the way out, will you? I can't have you walking naked into Glass.”

Jannes:
I would walk over to the pile of clothes, showing her my rear, and then make a big act of bending over to pick it up.

[Em laughs]

Em:
What would you like to do now?

Jannes:
I would get dressed, get everything in order, as much as I dislike my mother, and do what she says begrudgingly, it is not in me to not do it well. So I prepare, I make sure everything is in order, and then I will take... I will take the basin to Glass.

Em:
Okay. You head back towards the pool, the basin that you fell into upon your arrival here in the Flood. You know that you can use it for travel whenever you wish to go across the Cradle, but you must give it something. Anything, really. But travel can be expensive these days.

Jannes:
I think he walks up to the edge of the basin and… he takes out the remaining of the husks. And knowing that they would, are the only thing that give him any sort of respite… And then getting rid of them, it'll be a while before he can procure more. He tosses them in the basin.

Em:
You watch a small whirlpool start to form around the place where you throw the husks in. And as you do every time, without thinking, you simply step in. You walk out of an alley in glass. Your shoes are a bit wet. But other than that, you are dry and look like you've just come in off the road. You've been to Glass many times before. What would you like to do now?

Jannes:
I think I would head right to the Chime, and as I make my way there I sort of… start to think about what angle I'm going to take on this job, what I'm going to try and do. Because I've learned from experience in dealing with people, this is the first time we've attempted this, but this isn't the first time that I've been sent to stoke the vengeance in someone to do something for us so that it wouldn't come back directly on me. And so, I know from experience that I can't just lead with the end goal. There is a certain amount of almost courtship that comes into play with building trust with a person,

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
Before I start to stoke that fire of vengeance that allows my mother to take control of them and their will. And I'm walking and I'm trying to figure out what is the best way to het this person to trust me first.

Em:
Hm.

Jannes:
And I think Rake decides as he's walking that he's just gonna fall back to the one thing that he knows that he's very confident in. And that's his ability to charm. And I think as he's walking, he takes the ponytail down and sort of shakes his hair out so that it falls messily to his shoulders. He sort of wipes the dirt off of his face, not enough to come across as clean, but just so that he's got that sort of slightly travel stained look. I think he… tidies himself up. He adds a couple of random pieces of metal to his coin purse so that it sounds like it's jingling more than the actual amount of gold contained within it.

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
I think he… He stops for a second. outside of a building with a window to observe his reflection. And as he stares at it. And he stares at it. He does the thing that he does every time he sees his reflection. It always starts off as an innocent glance to check his appearance. And it always ends with him studying his face trying to see any resemblance that he has with his dad,

Em:
Hmm.

Jannes:
And when he doesn't. See it. He concludes that it must not be real. And he turns, and he goes to find her.

Em:
You head towards the Chime. Milling about the main square, keeping the steps of Temple Lybica in your field of vision. The architecture of this temple differentiates it from the bottom of the Chime. The sandstone and the obsidian stand in contrast to the reflective and seemingly fragile surface of the tower above. This part of the Chime, though Glass is very new at this point, seems complete, with the temples to the major seven taking precedence at the base of the tower before they got to work, with the precarious construction of the tower above. You see the steps of the temple before you, with a few people moving in and out, the door slightly ajar, as it always is, as you would know, and you see a few priestesses of Nepthysaket move in and out over a few hours of watching. You watch. Many parishioners come and go, and everyone, despite the way they walk in, seems to walk out with a profound look of peace on their face. And then you see her. It must be her. She crosses the square with purpose, carrying a large travelling backpack on her back, carrying a large travelling bag on her back and followed by a small fox that keeps close to her heels. Your mother did not mention she would be beautiful. You are like shrapnel. A dark instrument meant to exact your will on a target. And you cannot help but think as she crosses the square, she is a solar flare. Absolutely alight, and radiant while doing nothing at all but simply existing. What would you like to do?

Jannes:
I see her, crossing the street, and you're right. My mother didn't mention that she was beautiful… and Rake is no stranger to indulging himself when the occasion presents himself. He has known beautiful woman before. But her beauty doesn't come from her appearance. I think for him… Her beauty comes from… the way that she moves across that square, the purpose in her step, the determination in her goal that she is set to try to achieve. There's… Somehow… He takes a step back. It can't be. But he's got to know. Because there's no other explanation. And he uses a divine move.

Em:
[gasp] Wonderful!

Jannes:
He would like to try and Recognize a God. Because surely… Someone like her can't be anything but.

Em:
Oh, wow. When you want to recognize the signs or the influence of a god of the Cradle, roll 2d6. You can add one for each true statement. You're in or near their domain. Well, if she had a domain, it would be Temisset, so no. You're familiar with their gospel. You know nothing about her other than what your mother's told you, and that she has some vengeance in her heart for Nepthysaket, so no. And it would be bad if you didn't know. That's half the joy in what you do, getting to know people. So no, it wouldn't be bad if you didn't know. So that's a flat roll.

Jannes:
And I rolled an eight.

Em:
Okay. So on a hit, the GM will give you a clear interpretation of the omens. You can ask your GM a single follow up question of your choosing, and they must answer honestly [sigh of excitement and joy]. As someone who is touched with divinity, you are a godling, you recognize divinity when you see it, and you know that if she holds divinity it does not come from the gods themselves, but of the way she interacts with the world. You see… traces of Thielia. The Maiden of the Deep Woods. The Wild Mother. Especially in the fox that travels with her. You see traces of...Nepthysaket. But you're having a hard time placing why. Perhaps her desire to go to the temple, but it could be more than that. Something different than the vengeance that she holds, because there is that. You see a pain. You see a loss. You see a grief so strong, it is barely held below the surface. But she is radiant. You can ask me one question and I will answer it honestly.

Jannes:
I… I couldn't do this when I was younger. But now that I see it in someone else… Am I able to recognize it as similar as to what my father had?

Em:
Are you asking me if she is Eutoches?

Jannes:
No, I'm asking if… if my father had some of the same buried divinity.

Em:
If the way we love each other could be the magic that flowed through this universe. The love your father had for you would overflow the river. It would be perpetual. You see that capacity in her, a love that could approximate divinity.

Jannes:
And I think when Rake comes back to his senses, he finds himself already moving towards her, even though he didn't know he started.

Em:
She pauses at the base of the steps. You realize coming from the flood, you might be colder than the air around, but you don't care. You call out to her.
Jannes (as Rake):
“Hey sunshine, you're not gonna find what you're looking for in there, I can promise you that!”

[Dark: Rake’s Theme by Sean McRoberts]

Em:
Godkiller: Balance is performed by Em Carlson, Gina Susanna & Jannes Wessels. The voice of Avisan Eutoches is Tim Carlson. This season’s dramaturge is Tim Carlson. Special thanks to our campaign artist, Mischi, who you can find @Mischiart on twitter! Our main theme for this episode, Light & Dark, was composed by Sean McRoberts. Music and effects by Epidemic Sound. Cartography for this series by Chaim Holtjer of Chaim’s Cartography. For more stories, come follow us everywhere at @blackwaterdnd, and make sure to check out our Main Campaign on Monday nights at 8pm PST at twitch.tv/blackwaterdnd. To play your own campaign of Godkiller and dive into your own divinity, go support Godkiller by purchasing the ashcan on itch.io today, with the print version published soon by Evil Hat Productions. This show is made possible by our sponsors who graciously support us playing pretand and having feelings about it. We are grateful to be sponsored by Heroforge, who offer fully customizable miniatures made with their online 3D character creator! Head on over and design your own Godkiller, and get them printed in a variety of materials, including colour printing options! With new content added each week, check out www.heroforge.com to start bringing your character to life! This show is also proudly sponsored by Moonbeam, a better and safer way to stream! Dive into Realms for vibrant community hubs where creators keep 100% of what they earn while protected by Pyxis, a revolutionary moderation tool that learns and adapts to your boundaries. So check them out and join Moonbeam today! Finally, we’re thankful for our Patrons for joining us on our second journey through the Cradle. You too can come join us on Patreon, where you can check out behind the scenes info, our talkback show Chatwater, as well as exclusive Godkiller bonus content and so much more. Head on over to patreon.com/blackwaterdnd for all the info. See you next time, heretics, and to all the gods out there, be safe!