Volume 1: In the Blood Ep. 6 - The Aspect of Arete
TRANSCRIPT - In the Blood Ep. 6 - The Aspect of Arete
Tau
A product of the Whisperforge.
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Tau
You're listening to a parody that is not affiliated with or endorsed by Supergiant Games in any way. We're just big old nerds making improv fanfiction. ROGUE RUNNERS is rated R for pretty much everything you can find in Greek mythology, violence, assault, self harm, offensive language, insensitive humor and intense themes. We encourage everyone to check out our show notes and transcripts on our website at whisperforge.org. Are you ready to run? Then Welcome to Volume 1: In the blood.
[SFX: Title music.]
Tau
You are unsure how long you've been in the blood. When you rise from it, it is as if stepping out of your own flesh. The air of the House of Hades feels icy cool against your skin, made hot by the boiling blood that sloughs off your body in a thick and sizzling ooze. Your wounds from battle still feel all too recent, though it is as if they never even struck you. Slowly, you extract yourself from the pool of Styx. Before you, an orderly line of shades awaits their eternal fate by administrative processing.
[SFX: Water splashing as players gasp.]
Michael
"Well, that was... a little disappointing."
Giancarlo
"Oh, are you all alright?"
Nicholas
"Do we see anything at the end of the line?"
Tau
Make a perception check.
Nicholas
That's a 18.
Tau
You look far down the line. And what you know is that normally what happens is that these shades are brought here, they're checked in by Hypnos, and then they stand before Lord Hades who ascribes them certain punishments or offers them contracts for what services they will be providing to the House of Hades for eternity. It appears no one helm, the Lord of the House of Hades desk today. Behind it, you study an ornate tapestry of the god of the Underworld, meeting out his sacred charge in his eternal domain, his eternal prison. Only Hypnos is holding court.
Nicholas
Kay, Alexander is just gonna walk up to the front of the line.
Michael
"Nice talking to you too, Alexander."
Giancarlo
Seeing him just walk away, I think Rolf is just going to check on the others and say "Annie, Arete, are you alright? How are we feeling after that?"
Michael
"Well, Rolf, I'll tell ya, I've been better, friend. But you know, we all knew what we were getting into. I'm sure this won't be the last time we all die together. So take heart friend."
Giancarlo
"I'm not sure, I'm not sure I was ready for that. I mean, I, another chance at life, sure. But I was nothing close to a warrior in life. I didn't think that passing could be so terrible."
Michael
"All will be well in the end, friend. And Arete claps his hand on Rolf's shoulder and kind of looks him in the eye and smiles."
Giancarlo
"Annie, are you okay?"
Amanda
"Annie just shakes her head."
Giancarlo
Unsure whether she would feel comfortable with a hug, Rolf just kind of like rubs her back lightly.
Michael
"Well, I think the best thing for us is to move forward with our not-life and carry on as best we can." So Arete follows after Alexander to go to the front.
Giancarlo
"I suppose the nice thing about death in this world is that you know, your friends will be waiting for you when you get out. None of that disappearing for the rest of eternity until you die thing that happens in the other world. So, shall we Annie?"
Amanda
Annie just stands there, Annie's not really making any active choice to stay or go, so.
Giancarlo
"Oh, I have just the thing." And Rolf reaches into his pack again, and pulls out the emergency backup carton of chocolate milk.
Nicholas
(smiling) What the fuck.
Amanda
Annie sees... Annie sees this chocolate milk, and she'll grab it. And she gives you like a small like fleeting smile, but it doesn't really reach her eyes. And then she starts walking forward towards Arete and Alex.
Giancarlo
And Rolf will follow.
Tau
On the carton, you see a very, very happy looking cow. And it says "House of Hades pasteurized!".
Giancarlo
(laughs)
Tau
Having kind of pushed your way past the shades saying "Excuse me, pardon me" unless you don't, in which case--
Nicholas
No, Alexander's a dick, he's just marching forward, if the--
Tau
Here, Alexander stomps, how do the rest of you interact with the shades?
Giancarlo
Rolf very politely works his way through every single one.
Tau
Rolf make a... what's your passive insight?
Giancarlo
It's a 16.
Tau
So as you push your way through all of these shades, Rolf, you start to feel kind of this vast spectrum of emotions as you pass through all of these shades, and you feel like you're getting these tiny, tiny little impressions of how they lived and how they died. And you're also getting a sense of what their anxieties are about coming into the Underworld, and some of them are scared. And some of them, like you, were not expecting this Underworld. It's not something that they believed in, and you're also picking up various causes of death, you're picking up that some of them died from dehydration and others from, you know, brutal combat. There seems to be a raging war on the surface that a number of them have died from that have just come in very recently. And you see that others fell to disease, and others still seem to have died for reasons that are perhaps too traumatic to even bring to the surface. So that is the sense that you're getting as you're just walking physically through these shades. Nonetheless, the group arrives at Hypnos, who is quickly scribing something with his quill on a tablet, which again somehow manages to carve into stone. And then he looks up and he just beams at you and he says, (higher, nasally voice) "Wait, wait, don't tell me! Let me guess. Lady Megara got you well and good, didn't she? Tell me, was it the giant whip? I heard some people like being on the receiving end of that thing. Can you imagine? Or did you die from the giant pink energy explosions? Little pro tip for next time. Try not getting hit by those. It'll save you a lot of trouble. Maybe even save your life."
Giancarlo
"How do you take such joy in this? The trauma, I-I--"
Tau
"Well that's how I get to meet you, of course!"
Giancarlo
"All these people suffering... and, and you smile."
Nicholas
"Do not forget where you are, old man. We're ready to try again."
Michael
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, slow your roll. Alexander. We've got some things to attend to here. Yeah, sure. We want to try again. Of course we want to try again. But we have a few matters at hand that need handling.
Giancarlo
"We we're the lucky ones, we've been chosen. Why are we ready to try again? Because you're trying to escape this death. Those, these people being processed what they end up like you, Alexander. Tortured for an eternity and you smile, Hypnos. How?"
Tau
Hypnos is still smiling, but his eyes are wide as they kind of like dart back and forth between you guys bickering with each other. It goes "Well, I mean, yeah, it was my job to administer the escape attempt. I'm going to be keeping records of all of your escape attempts right here on this tablet. But please, don't let me keep you from starting your second run if you want to go for it again. Buuut I mean, if I might just offer some helpful advice? Might I suggest finding a use for all those gems and darkness crystals burning a hole in your pockets? Perhaps even that nectar, which I definitely didn't see peeking out of your things."
Giancarlo
"You want some?"
Tau
(nervous) "Oh, my gosh, I don't know what you're talking about. That's super not allowed here. Okay. All right. Carry on."
Giancarlo
"Okay, then I won't give you any if it's not allowed. That's fine."
Michael
"So with our burning pockets, where do you recommend we, uh, unload some of our loot?"
Tau
"That's a great question. Well, let's see. Hmm, have you triiied... uh, talking to the house contractor? The house contractor drafts up all of your contracts, in fact, he's the one who drafted up the contract for you guys to be able to escape in the first place. Lord Zagreus, showed up one day with a giant pack of gems and said, 'Make this contract happen.' And so it happened. Then again, you could also spend your darkness crystals on the Mirror of Night. That could be really helpful. Oh, but I guess you would need a license to use the mirror of night, which you could get from the house contractor, then you could also you know, relax at the bar. There's a merchant there. You could try trading over there. I mean, you've been in here as long as I have, haven't you? You should know these things by now."
Michael
"I guess I took one too many hits from Meg on the way out there. Yes, of course. I remember. Thanks a lot, pal."
Giancarlo
"Hypnos quick question. So since you do kind of administer people and bring them in, is do you process every soul that comes through here?"
Tau
"Uhh, yeah, every single one of them." And then you see Hypnos kind of panicly looks down at his tablet and then quickly makes sure that nobody has like slipped past you guys in the line that you just cut.
Giancarlo
"Um, so you get people from all places? Every every human who dies comes here?"
Tau
"Every human I've seen."
Giancarlo
"Would there be any way to make a, um, an inquiry through your files for someone?"
Tau
"Hmm. An inquiry through the files, that sounds like you'd need administrative privileges and that sounds like something you would need approval for, say from...? I don't know, Lord Zagreas? Or Lady Nyx or from the house contractor?"
Giancarlo
"Okay, yeah. Thank you."
Tau
"Anytime! Buh-bye! Happy dying!"
Michael
"Thanks, Hypnos." And Arete turns on his heel and starts heading further down the hallway.
Giancarlo
I'll follow with the intention of speaking to the house contractor.
Nicholas
I'll follow Arete for now.
Tau
Okay, there's some light tuning of a lyre happening a short distance from you but it stops abruptly as Orpheus notices Annie. (light and airy) "Oh! my student."
Amanda
Uh, that entire conversation that everyone else was having, Annie went ahead and like poked the straw into the chocolate milk. So as soon as she hears Orpheus, she'll turn towards him, but all you really hear is just (slurps through the straw twice at length) "Hi, Orpheus."
Tau
Orpheus nods at the slurping and says "Ah, music to my ears."
[SFX: More slurping, a few laughs.]
Nicholas
Everything is music to your ears.
Tau
"Tell me my student, are you prepared to regale you with tales of your adventures?"
Amanda
Mmmmm. Maybe not so soon, Orpheus. I'm not feeling too great.
[SFX: Calming string music plays.]
Tau
"Ah, yes, I understand. Well, for what it is worth, I have seen many pass through these halls and emerge from that pool. And they always emerge discouraged, but never forever, or I should say rarely forever. The Prince of this house once emerged from that pool hundreds of times. And he wasn't always in the brightest of spirits either. But neither was I. And it was only through our time together that we both managed to move past that. I hope in time, that is something that I can do for you, my student."
Amanda
"Thanks Orpheus."
Tau
He nods and opens his mouth again, as if there's more he wants to say that then closes his mouth and thinks better of it. And then kind of looks like he's returning to tuning his instrument but you're actually not hearing any sound. So it looks like he's kind of just like busying himself. You ,Rolf, make your way to the house contractor. And you see this kind of slender bowling pin shaped shade with a construction hat sitting behind a table and it just seems to be waving kind of a formless hand over these various pieces of parchment. And as the hand gets waved over the parchment, the writing on the parchment that lights up and then fades away as if it's kind of like a barcode scanner of sorts. And it just seems to look up at you and regard you.
Giancarlo
"My good shade. How are you?"
Tau
You see an almost invisible emoji of a smiley face above it.
Giancarlo
"Ah, good. Good to see. Listen, I'm going to be straightforward with you. I don't believe in this whole kind of sneaky, all of this. There is someone I'm interested in finding. They died. A while ago."
Tau
You get a frowny face emoji.
Giancarlo
"Me too, buddy. Me too. And so, as I'm sure you're aware, I'm not really from these parts. I was not expecting to find myself in a place like this. I was far more expecting to find myself in a place called Hel with very different people. But the recent events have led me to believe that if I found myself here, then maybe this person might be here as well. Is there any way you could help me or any direction you could point me towards maybe getting access to administrative files or anything that that might give me some indication whether this person is even here at all?"
Tau
Okay, so the house contractor can answer that question in emojis.
Giancarlo
(smiling) Yes.
Tau
So make an insight roll...
Giancarlo
Okay.
Tau
A fairly difficult insight roll to get an answer to a very complex question.
Giancarlo
That is a 15.
Tau
You get the sense that the house contractor can't specifically go into the files and pluck what you're looking for. But if someone else higher up, like one of the major Chthonic Gods said to the house contractor, "Drop a contract allowing this person access to, you know, our administrative files," the contractor would be able to draft that up for you
Giancarlo
Okay.
Tau
For a price.
Giancarlo
In that case, I'm going to go "I think I understand. Well, we have goodies to purchase." Gah, is the gang with me?
Michael
I followed you.
Tau
So the house contractor perks up and then holds out a list of contracts that it can provide for you at this moment. If you want to study it, make an investigation check. It's all Greek to you at the moment.
Giancarlo
That is 22 for Rolf.
Tau
Even with all their legal ease, you're able to make them out with astonishing accuracy. There are two contracts that are available to you right now to commission and you get the sense that as you commission more contracts, more contracts will become available to you. The first contract that is available to will cost 200 gems and it will allow you access to something called the Mirror of Night. Additionally, for 500 gems, you will be granted access to something called the Fated List of Minor Prophecies.
Giancarlo
Can I roll history to see if I'm aware of the mirror of night?
Tau
Yes.
Giancarlo
14.
Tau
So you've heard many stories of Lord Zagreus trying to escape the House of Hades. And essentially the defenses of the House of Hades are so powerful that he ended up getting killed over and over and over and one of the ways that he grew his power was by reflecting in a large magical mirror called the Mirror of Night which was gifted to him by his adoptive mother, Nyx, who is kind of the matron of this House of Hades. So you suspect that what this contract does is it would allow you to spend the darkness that you've earned, empowering your own abilities at the Mirror of Night.
Giancarlo
"Arete, how many gems do we have?"
Michael
"We have 290 to spend just enough for the mirror contract."
Giancarlo
"We need to discuss it with the group but I think it would be most beneficial and as a side-- we, we'll go find them in a moment as a side note. Arete, who have you... I don't mean to pry. I know you're a private person. You have to understand I'm not from here. I don't know these deities or hell. I need to meet someone, someone who can help me. Do you know anyone?"
Michael
"Someone that can help you find someone?
Giancarlo
"Yes, some some deity here or someone. I'm aware of Zeus and Zagreus, of course, Hades. Have you any connection to them being a Grecian man?"
[SFX: Music quietly fades in.]
Michael
"Well, I have paid tribute to a much darker force, a much all knowing force that might be able to help you if they feel tempted. But I am not sure that this is the path you want to go down, friend."
Giancarlo
"Who are they?"
Michael
"Their name is Chaos."
Giancarlo
"That sounds exactly like the kind of person I need to talk to."
Michael
"Very well. I will take you to them when the time is right."
Giancarlo
"Great. We should probably go check in with the others."
Tau
In the meantime, Alexander, you have gone to Annie.
Nicholas
I guess we see Annie sipping on chocolate milk with Orpheus talking to her and then we see, off screen, a hand comes from Alexander and puts it on Anastasia's shoulder. "Come Anastasia, let us bolster your defenses."
[SFX: Annie slurps her chocolate milk.]
Amanda
"What do you mean? What do you mean by that? What do you mean?"
Nicholas
"We are not so different? You and I. I too could never be quenched. My thirst for conquest was unqui-unquen (struggle sto pronounce it)." Cut that out.
Players
(laughs)
Tau
Commit to the bit!
Nicholas
"My thirst for conquest has never ceased even in death."
Amanda
"I think it's a bit of a reach, but I'll let you have that. Sure, I guess. Okay."
Nicholas
And I, he leads her there kind of, to the contract.
Tau
As you're doing that Arete and Rolf are just turning around as if they want to speak to you about it.
[SFX: Annie slurps her chocolate milk.]
Giancarlo
"Oh, you're right next to us the whole time, I suppose. Hello."
Michael
"Thanks for joining in. Here's the deal team. We have 290 available gems to spend with the contractor here. I think the best deal is for the access to the Mirror of Night where we can spend our darkness to help reflect upon our journeys together."
Nicholas
"I don't follow. What what would this... do."
Giancarlo
"It's something that, um, best best example, when Lord Zagreus was trying to undertake the same journey that we are, he used it to reflect on his many escape attempts. And by spending that darkness those crystals we gathered as rewards in some of the rooms, you can use that darkness to empower us, the team, the squad, the boys and girl, and so we become more powerful with each attempt, thus granting us a better chance at escaping."
Nicholas
"I trust you."
Michael
"Excellent." And Arete turns to the contractor and says. "We'll take access to the Mirror of Night please, my good sir." And Arete hands over 250 gems.
Tau
It changes to a smiley face emoji as it accepts the gems, and then waves its hands over a blank piece of parchment and then new Greek scribing appears all over it. It's kind of like a laser printer hand.
[SFX: Laser tone.]
Tau
And then it holds it out for all four of you to sign.
Nicholas
Is there a pen?
Tau
So it is used to waving its hand over everything to sign so it realizes that you can't do that and then it like quickly searches for a quill and then finds you one and hands it to you.
Nicholas
I'm gonna sign, I guess.
Giancarlo
As do I.
Michael
With a great flourish, Arete write out his signature.
[SFX: Sluuuuurrrrp.]
Amanda
Annie's going to crush the chocolate milk carton thing on her head, throw it behind her, pick up the pen, and she'll sign her name. And that, she's, she'll burp. (burps)
Giancarlo
And Rolf's gonna pick up the carton of chocolate milk and put it in his bag with the cup that Alexander threw in the courtyard at the beginning.
Tau
Okay, once everybody signs, the house contractor beams, rolls up the contract, binds it up with some small twine, and then it bows and gestures to your right as if the Mirror of Night is that way and you can access it at your leisure. I will describe just the layout of the House of Hades for folks who are not familiar. So right now you're at the heart of the House of Hades. Behind you is the pool of Styx, which you came from, right? Ahead of you is this administrative desk where Lord Zagreus and Lord Hades would preside over the House of Hades. Also, there is the house contractor and Orpheus also there in that center chamber. On your left hand side, there is a whole separate wing, which is highly akin to an art gallery. Alexander, you would know that as the area where Achilles stands his post a lot of the time. And if you wanted to see him, he's there. On the right hand side, there are essentially two branching wings. So on your right will be the bar or the lounge of the House of Hades. And then on the left, once you go into that rightward wing will be the entrance to Lord Zagreus' bed chambers, which is also what you typically have passed through to access the courtyard on the other side for your escape attempts.
Giancarlo
Rolf is going to try and take Arete aside really quickly.
Michael
Mhm.
Giancarlo
And discreetly say, "I understand it's for selfish purposes. But do you think this Lord of yours could offer benefit to the rest of the group? Perhaps that's a good expenditure of our nectar."
Michael
"Well, Chaos is a Lord that takes its pleasure when it feels like it wants to. I have no control over when I can visit. Nor do I know what possibilities there are of any helpfulness there might be. So there's that for you."
Giancarlo
"Right. Well, gang apologies just, I'm trying to find something but I think, (to Arete) am I at liberty to share?"
Michael
"Certainly."
Giancarlo
"Arete has some sort of connection with a Lord of this realm, if any of you familiar with Chaos, and I think Chaos could help me. I-I, granted, I do not know much about them, but I would I would love to speak with them given the chance. I think that might be a good use of nectar BUT by all means, if anyone has a better use or someone you want to give it to, please, feel free. We are a group and I hope that you know if one of us can make it out safely, then that's a win for all of us. So whatever benefits the team."
Amanda
Ah, can Annie roll like a history check, just to know if she knows about Chaos or not?
Tau
Yeah.
Amanda
That's an 18.
Tau
Okay, Annie, what you know this Chaos that everyone is talking about is considered pretty much one of the oldest most primordial forces in all creation and even darkness even night was born from Chaos first. It is pretty much the oldest entity that you could possibly hope to interact with. What you also know is that it is extremely dangerous but not intentionally so, just indifferently so. And that people who try to court its favor or try to leverage Chaos to their will, almost inevitably fail because that's not how that works. It is pure randomness. You know that Chaos seems to operate by whims and impulses completely alien to other thinking, feeling people. And you have never heard of anyone being able to meet or talk to them.
Amanda
Annie this entire time has had like kind of just like a glazed over look. But as soon as you mentioned Chaos, she kind of like wakes up and she looks at you she's like, "Chaos like Chaos Chaos?"
Giancarlo
"Yes. Listen to Annie I am from a very faraway land. I had, in all honesty despite being well read, not ever read much about these lands I now find myself in. So if there is anyone responsible for my being here, I believe an entity named Chaos might know a little something about that."
Amanda
"Don't yell that name so loudly either. Not everyone's very--"
Giancarlo
(whispers) "Sorry, sorry."
Nicholas
"You're here because you died."
Giancarlo
"But why here? Why, why was I wrong? Why is this, what is?
Nicholas
"What do you mean?"
Amanda
"Where else were you supposed to go?"
Giancarlo
Hel!"
Nicholas
"You're in it."
Giancarlo
"I mean, preferably Valhalla."
Nicholas
"What? What is Valhalla?"
Giancarlo
(emotional, desperate) "Exactly my point. The way you are responding to what I am saying now, is how I felt when I found myself here. I'd never heard of Hades and Olympus, Zeus. I thought there were entirely different realms. So either there must be more than this and ways to move between them. Or for some reason, the rest of the world is wrong."
Nicholas
"Old man you are wrong. And senile. I'm afraid to tell you. This is the reality. You're in Hades."
Tau
Rolf, when you hear this from Alexander, you hear this with some authority. Also, because Alexander has also traveled all over the world, that's something you know about him. And he has seen other people who obviously believe in other afterlives. So I mean, that doesn't mean he knows with any serious authority, but he certainly says it with authority based on his lived experience.
Giancarlo
Okay. And Rolf does not respond.
Michael
"Well, Chaos will show themselves when it sees fit. So in the meantime, friends, I think it's a worthwhile adventure, to go to the mirror, shall we?" And Arete turns to the right and starts heading down the hallway to the mirror in the chambers of Zagreus.
Giancarlo
I follow.
Nicholas
I will follow.
Amanda
Annie's just gonna pull Rolf back for a quick second to have a small, just little private conversation, be like, "Rolf, I don't, I don't think you're senile. I don't think you're crazy or anything like that. I just, I'm sorry if you don't feel like you fit in here. Or, or if it's actually just that you don't belong here. But if you feel like that's something you need to do, work with Chaos, I guess I support it."
Giancarlo
"Thank you, Annie. It was, ah, it was silly of me. I'm sorry. I should not have taken up all time with that."
Amanda
"No, well, hey, silly is good, silly's not bad. That's okay."
Giancarlo
(chuckles softly) "You reminded me so much of someone I knew."
Amanda
"I sure hope that's a compliment."
Giancarlo
"It is. Shall we?"
Amanda
"Alright. Sure. Yeah, let's go."
Tau
You enter a dimly lit chamber once occupied by the prince of the Underworld, who seems to be away on business for quite some time still. You find a fluffy but empty bed, messy bookshelves, some chests stuffed to the brim and spilling over with bubbles and trinkets, collections of various sized skulls and other sundries. To your left you find a desk covered in poorly organized sheets of parchment. in front of you a basin of swirling crystal clear water whirls mysteriously. Along the walls, you find various ornamental weapons, none that compare to the infernal arms he once wielded, however. On the walls you find two large wall scrolls. One depicting Achilles in his prime and the rages of war, and another of Aphrodite that seems a bit more fitting for a horny teenager to have. At the far left, you find a massive black mirror several times your height. You can't even see your reflections in it, is it a mirror at all?
Michael
Arete approaches the mirror.
Tau
When you approach the mirror, nothing happens.
Giancarlo
Rolf touches the mirror.
Tau
Okay, when you touch the mirror, the seemingly matte surface becomes glossy and ripples as if you're touching into black liquid.
[SFX: Woosh.]
Tau
Anybody who was standing by the mirror, make an arcana check.
Giancarlo
Oof, 10 despite my plus six.
Michael
13.
Amanda
23!
Tau
From that roll, what you know is that the Mirror of Night is offering you a series of selections that can empower you. Now the way this works is every upgrade has a cost of darkness. When you expend it, the entire party gets that benefit. You have two benefits that are available to you. So one benefit for 300 darkness is that you can gain proficiency in a skill of your choice.
Amanda
Ooo.
Tau
Furthermore, if you put it into a skill that you're already proficient in, you can essentially double your proficiency in it. For 500 darkness, you can increase an ability score by two.
Michael
"We only have 340 darkness to spend everyone."
Tau
Furthermore, with your really high Arcana check, you get the sense that once you purchase any of these upgrades, that you might actually be able to flip the mirror and gain a separate benefit that is similar to it, but not quite the same as it instead. So for example, it says gain proficiency in a skill. But if you've got that you might actually have a second benefit that you could choose instead of that.
Giancarlo
"What do we think? I think the improving our abilities would be massively helpful. I know on my end, if I could become a little more dexterous and harder to hit, that would help me quite a bit. I don't know what everyone else is feeling."
Nicholas
"I would agree, we usually are in trouble with dextrous challenges. However, it appears we don't have enough for this ability."
Tau
Oh, one more thing. Annie, you also know that it is possible to get back darkness you spent on the mirror. So for example, if you spent 300 now and then you wanted that 300 back to put into a different ability, you could use an item called a Chthonic Key to essentially reset the mirror.
Michael
"Annie I seen your eyes that the mirror might have a return policy."
Giancarlo
"How many days do we have?" (laughs)
Tau
Okay, Arete, you definitely don't see THAT. But Annie is welcome to share that information if she wants.
Amanda
Yeah. "Well, Arete, I was gonna say if we make any purchase now, it's alright. We can, we can get back whatever we put into it. So long as we have a Chthonic Key."
Giancarlo
"I guess we just have to make sure to pick one up next time we're going through the chambers, just in case, right?"
Amanda
"Sure, sure. Yeah."
Tau
What you also know is that there are further upgrades that you can unlock on the Mirror of Darkness with more Chthonic Keys. So if you put multiple Chthonic Keys into it, there might be even further upgrades that you can use.
Amanda
Yeah.
Tau
Actually, with a 23. You notice one more upgrade in there that does not require an unlock.
Amanda
God bless!
Tau
And that is called death defiance.
Players
(gasp)
Tau
And that costs 700 darkness. So you remember when you got reduced to zero hit points, you died instantly? The way death defiance would work is when you get reduced to zero hit points, instead, you would immediately gain one max amount of your hit dice in HP back.
Giancarlo
"Annie, anything else you see in the mirror?"
Amanda
"I hate you guys. I'm gonna tell you, I just need a second to phrase it in my head to make it make sense!"
Tau
Yeah, yeah. It's literally this mirror is just talking to you and like unintelligible arcana telepathy and you're trying to translate it. So.
Amanda
"The mirror is also telling me that-- you guys, you can't hear the mirror?"
Giancarlo
"No."
Michael
"I kind of hear this like (makes strange bellowing noise)."
Tau
Annie is like peak haunted girl vibes, 'You can't hear the mirror?'"
Amanda
"You can't hear that the mirror? That's fine. Um, well, the mirror also is telling me that there's another option that we have. We can't afford it right now. So we should just probably go with the first option, purchase that, and then once we have enough, we could add it all together. And also, I guess a Chthonic key to then get the darkness back to then buy this one. But this one's really good. It's called death defiance."
Nicholas
"We're doing that now, aren't we?"
Giancarlo
"That sounds promising. What does it do?"
Amanda
"You just, you know, you you die but you don't, you're not just dead yet."
Giancarlo
"So it's like false life, the vapors?"
Amanda
"Yeah, it's like false life without the scary vapor."
Giancarlo
"Okay. I think we should save our darkness for THAT."
Amanda
"You don't, you don't even want to spend it on the first part?"
Giancarlo
"But imagine what that would become if we upgraded it with keys."
Amanda
"Well, yeah, sure. But also, once you've, once you buy something, you can flip the mirror around and..."
Giancarlo
"But then..."
Amanda
"Also get a little something more."
Giancarlo
"Group vote! Group vote! Ready? I say save the darkness. Who says by the, uh, proficiency?"
Michael
"I'm inclined to say buying the proficiency would be a good use of our time."
Nicholas
"I agree. I don't intend to ever be here again."
Amanda
"I-I agree in buying proficiency."
Giancarlo
"Alright."
Michael
I present 300 darkness to the Mirror of Night.
Tau
You drop the crystals into the Mirror of Night. Annie, do you want me to tell you what the flip benefit is?
Amanda
Yes, please.
Tau
The way this works is all of you can choose which one you have individually. So all of you have this benefit. So all of you can take proficiency in a skill. But some of you could take the flip benefit if you want. So you gain proficiency in a skill. But the hidden one is instead of gaining proficiency in a skill, you can gain proficiency in a saving throw.
Giancarlo
Mmmm, I'm taking that dexterity.
Nicholas
I'm taking that dexterity (laughs).
Michael
Yeah, I don't have a great history modifier. I think I'm going to do that. Because we've used fairly frequently, even for like small things.
Amanda
I'll do history.
Tau
Okay. Furthermore, Annie, once you do this, you realize that each of these upgrades actually have ranks associated with them and can be upgraded multiple times. So for this first upgrade, either gaining proficiency in a skill or gaining proficiency at a saving throw, it has two ranks, meaning you can invest in it twice. So you've invested in it once. But you could also put another 300 in and get this benefit again, cumulatively.
Amanda
Woah. "The mirror told me also that if we wanted to, we can purchase this again, it has a rank of it has like different rank. So there's two ranks for it. We're at the first rank."
Michael
"Well, thanks for letting us know, Annie. I guess you're good at... self reflection."
Amanda
"Ha. That was a good one, Arete."
Michael
"Alright, team. Where do we want to go next? I have this infernal arm here that I need to figure out."
Giancarlo
"Well."
Amanda
"Let's do that."
Giancarlo
"I believe you needed to attune yourself, right?"
Michael
"Correct."
Giancarlo
"I believe Pandaie was wielding one and she said it came to her in a dream, right? Do you need to sleep? You gotta take a nap?"
Michael
"I'm thinking that perhaps it would be best just to investigate the infernal arm pillars and see if anything comes to me there."
Giancarlo
"That could work. Let's go do that."
Michael
"Well, that is in the courtyard. Is there anything else that we want to do within the House of Hades?"
Tau
That's a good question. So just to reiterate, the other places you haven't been yet are the art gallery on the far left side, which is just outside the administrative chambers, which are locked. And then the lounge and then yeah, you have the courtyard.
Nicholas
Something's locked you say?
Tau
The administrative chambers where all the contracts are kept.
Nicholas
Mmm.
Giancarlo
"Well, all I want to do is nonsense. So you you all may not agree with it, but I would love to stop by the lounge. Say hello to my replacement. I could use a drink I suppose. Who knows who we'll find there too."
Amanda
"I'll go to the lounge with you Rolf."
Nicholas
"You all do that. I'm going to... look for something and I'll meet you at the entrance."
Tau
So Alexander you exit Zagreus' bedchamber, you cross the atrium again, over into the westward wing. You come upon a gallery of ornate paintings, statues, and reliefs punctuated by green flame sconces along the walls. On the one hand, you're certain every single work of art here is priceless. And on the other, you're a certain that in eternity, hardly anything material can have that much value. A ways away, you see Achilles standing by his posts outside the administrative chambers. He regards you with a nod, perhaps curious how your first escape attempt went, but not enough to dare leave his post.
Nicholas
Alright, can I just roll to make some check to know what's in the administrative chambers?
Tau
Yeah, make history check.
[SFX: Dice rolls.]
Tau
15.
Tau
By and large is the repository for contracts of that House of Hades. Everybody who dies, yourself included, is bound by a contract when you first arrived here. So like, the job you were doing as a Wretched Shade, like when you were a training dummy? Like that was in your contract. And then when Lord Zagreus dropped a bunch of gems to make a new house contract for the creation of the Olympiads that essentially superseded your role as a shade. So contracts are the mechanism by which people are assigned roles and carry out duties here. And furthermore, those are all kept in those administrative chambers.
Nicholas
I'll walk up to Achilles.
Tau
Okay, he is there. He nods at you expectantly, but doesn't want to say anything unless you do.
Nicholas
Alexander will look at the doors and then look at Achilles and say. "Why am I here?"
Tau
(low silky voice) "I don't know how to answer that question, lad."
Nicholas
Would I, I was... "It would, it seems I should be in Elysium. And yet I've been brought here. Have I been punished? I was doing the Gods' will."
Tau
"I will admit, I thought it was strange that a famous warriors such as yourself would end up here rather than in Elysium where most famed Greek heroes go. I confess I do not know the answer."
Nicholas
"Have you been inside?"
Tau
Are you referring to the administrative chambers?
Nicholas
Yeah, he nods towards it.
Tau
"I have not."
Nicholas
"It is your job to guard the way, yes?"
Tau
"That is correct."
Nicholas
"Could you be persuaded to look the other waves if one were to enter?"
Tau
Achilles kind of looks around like a little panicked, like that's a very odd question to be asking aloud in this echoey art gallery. And then in a low voice he says "Do not mistake me lad, I I do wish to see you succeed. And I do wish to see you get answers but what you are asking of me is not something I could do lightly. Tell me, how did your escape attempt to go?"
Nicholas
"It was not good. I'm here, so that should be enough."
Tau
"What was it that got in your way?"
Nicholas
"It was Megara."
Tau
"Ah." He smirks a little bit but not in like a condescending way just like, yeah, that'll do it type of way.
Nicholas
(laughs)
Tau
"Don't let Lady Megara discourage you. I couldn't tell you the number of times she brought our prince to heel. Eventually, he returned the favor several 100 fold. Maybe that'll be you someday. Lately, he seems stressed, distracted, more so than usual, anyway. (grunts) Forgive me. It isn't provided us to be sharing such confidences outside the royal family."
Nicholas
"Make no mistake, I do not plan on coming back."
Tau
"I will be proud to see you go."
Nicholas
"Thank you for all that you've done. And for all the training you've given me, but I must go now." And I'll walk towards the entrance for the trials.
Tau
Rolf, Annie, and Arete. In the lounge, you see four figures you recognize as the Olympiad you didn't have a chance to meet before they hopped in the portal, the moment Hypnos announced the escape attempt. One of them drops a magma covered lobster on the counter to the head chef, a shade who happily accepts it and begins hacking away at it. The Olympiad returns to their drinks. The house broker on the other hand, recognizes you immediately Rolf, and says "Mwoo?"
Giancarlo
"Oh, hello, broker. How are you doing?"
Tau
"Wawh." and then at this loud exclamation, other people that you recognize kinda clink their glass on the table to welcome you back.
[SFX: Glasses clink.]
Giancarlo
"Good to see you all again. I must admit I'm getting used to this whole second death thing but for those of you interested, you'll be pleased to know I think we did quite well. I'm here with Arete and Annie. I think they put on quite a powerful display of their abilities and I look forward to giving it another crack."
Tau
They smile and acknowledge you. The Olympiad that you didn't have a chance to meet hears you say all this and they kind of just nod and then go back to their drinks.
Giancarlo
I'm going to go up to the head chef, I'm going to say, "Excuse me, when, uh, just when you get the chance, I see you're busy, but when you get the chance, if you could grab one of the chocolate milks from the cooler behind the bar, where I keep them, give one to Annie. Give Arete the French 75. And an extra round of whatever this Olympiad had, you can put it on my tab."
Tau
"The head chef pauses for a moment, and then it does draw the chocolate milk and French 75 out for you. However, make an insight check.
Giancarlo
22.
Tau
So you're able to make out this very complex emotion from its flustered nature, that it's not able to give you a round of whatever the Olympiad is having, because that's actually not from the bar. So what the Olympiad is having is something called Ambrosia.
Giancarlo
I see. Okay, so in that case, I'm going to thank the chef, "Thank you so much." And I'm going to hand Annie the chocolate milk. I'm going to give Arete his friend 75.
Michael
"Thank you, Rolf."
Amanda
Annie would like to accept the chocolate milk, poke the straw in and she's gonna follow behind Rolf.
Giancarlo
I'm going to pour myself a little glass of mead.
[SFX: Liquid pours into a glass.]
Giancarlo
Because Rolf needs it right now. And I'm gonna waltz over to the the other Olympiad and introduce myself. I'm gonna go "Hello. I don't think I got a chance to meet any of you beforehand. Hi, my name is Rolf, Rolf Yannik."
Tau
When you approach the Olympiad, there's a table and then there are these three lounge chairs. Three of them are reclining and fairly tired in these chairs and one of them is standing talking to them at the table as she had just brought over their Ambrosia and glasses. Make a group perception check. And a group history check.
Giancarlo
That's a 21 perception. My history is a 13.
Michael
I got a net 20 but then my bonus brings it to 22 for the perception. Ooo. Critical fail on my history check. I really ran the gambit there. With the bonuses, the history is a five.
Amanda
I got a 16 for history and a nine for perception.
[SFX: Music fades in.]
Tau
So first, I'll start with the woman who is standing at the table. You see a black woman. She is tall, she has long, thick, curly black hair, and her dark skin is also covered in vines and bark. She seems to have leaves coming off of her that resemble a laurel tree. So that's the woman that you see. Let's talk about the people who are sitting down. So you see another woman sitting down. She is dressed in long white robes with colorful jewels. She has these thick black long braids that are hanging down from her and she has her quarterstaff resting across her lap. Another person that you see reclining is this short, handsome man. He seems to be dressed in these skin tight draped cloths. He's wearing this mantle that's only covering his very very upper body. And then across his chest, you see a deep gash like a deep scar that you would think would have been healed up in the pool of Styx, but it was not. He has brown skin, short black kind of spiky hair. He's also just swirling his Ambrosia, regarding you all. And then, the last person that you see, he has this long curly brown hair. He's got this armor that seems to have all this feather detailing on it a very noticeable feature about him as he has this really big burn mark on his lips and that burn mark kind of blossoms from his lips and fades away on the rest of his face. But it's it's very, very noticeable. Rolf, you recognize this person to be Icarus.
Giancarlo
Ahhh.
Tau
So Rolf, you have gotten up, you have introduced yourself, you said hello. So they all regard you and the woman who is standing, she smiles and says (brightly) "Hey, you're the other Olympiad."
Giancarlo
"Yes. Like I said, Hi, I'm Rolf. This is Annie."
Michael
"And I'm Arete."
Tau
She nods and says, "I'm Daphne. That's Nausicaa over there." And she points to the woman with long thick braids and the robes and the colorful jewels. And then she points to the man with the deep exposed gash in his chest. She says "That's Cinth." And then she turns to Icarus, who you already recognize, and she says "And that's Icarus." For Cinth, make a history check. Anybody who heard that name.
Giancarlo
Critical fail so that's a four.
Michael
18.
Amanda
11.
Tau
So Arete, you recognize that Synth is a nickname. So this person that you're looking at, his name is Hyacinthus. You know that the Hyacinth flower was named after him and he goes by Cinth for short.
Giancarlo
"Pleasure to meet all of you. How, uh, how'd that run go? How did you die, I guess?"
Tau
"Oh, geez. This is the icebreaker, huh? Um, let's just say really, really bad magma situation, just kind of just flooding everywhere. I wouldn't recommend it."
Giancarlo
"Apple of discord?
Tau
Mm. She thinks for a minute and then she kind of looks at the rest of the Olympiad who kind of look at her quizzically. They go "What's, what's an apple of discord?"
Giancarlo
"Ah, you'll figure it out."
Tau
Okay.
Giancarlo
"Um. I saw that lobster over there. Fresh catch?"
Tau
"Yes, we just fished it out earlier today."
Giancarlo
"Ahh."
Tau
"Or whatever days mean here."
Giancarlo
"Annie, didn't you..."
Amanda
And like Annie hears that. But she's in the middle of drinking chocolate milk, but she stops and "Pbbbt!" She does aspit take. "Oh my gosh! Thank you so much! I almost forgot. Oh, where can I? Where? I'm sorry I'm not I don't mean to be rude but the, can you tell me where I could find a fishing rod?"
Tau
So at this, Icarus, the blonde one with the big burn mark on his lips, he says, "Oh, um, Oh, that's right. We got it from, ah, which one was it? Oh Poseidon, right? He, uh, you know, he said he taken a bit of a liking to us and he gave us a fishing rod to use. Isn't that sweet of him?"
Amanda
"Oh."
Giancarlo
"I told you we should have talked to the water guy."
Tau
Cinth, the guy with the gash on his chest, he says "It was a real pain catching it though. I'm tired of fishing. Just standing there, waiting for the perfect moment, and then having that perfect reaction time. It's not my strong suit. Plus, have you ever tried fishing in magma?"
Amanda
"No, no, I can't say I have, actually, no."
Michael
"There's a first for everything." And Arete kind of just winks at Annie.
Amanda
Annie blinks back at you.
Michael
(laughs)
Giancarlo
"Well, I see you're enjoying a delicious beverage. Hard end on the field?"
Tau
So Daphne says "Oh, I don't know about hard end on the field. We got it from the house broker over there." And she gestures to the merchant says "It was the last one though. Sorry."
Giancarlo
"Ah, no worries."
Tau
"You guys want some?"
Giancarlo
"Um, well, I don't mean to intrude, but as a sort of recreational button. I'd love to just have a taste."
Tau
"Uh, sure." She holds out her glass.
[SFX: Glass clink.]
Giancarlo
And Rolf literally takes like the faintest of sips and just like kind of savers as, it's a very like academic approach almost.
Tau
You try to maintain an academic composure as you sip this thing in. But in all your years of bartending, it is unquestionably the most delicious thing you've ever had. And the second you taste it you like immediately need more of it right now.
Giancarlo
"Hot diggity shit! That's a good drink. Wow! Um, oh, take this away from me. I'm going to down that if you do not."
Tau
"I don't blame you." And she kind of just moves her glass back to herself and then sips it, but eyeing you over the glass.
Giancarlo
"Wow. Hoo, ha. I need to remove myself from this situation. I just want to say, ah, pleasure to meet you. And I wish you all the best of luck. Um."
Tau
"Oh well don't go just yet. Icarus pipes up. You didn't even tell us how you guys died."
Michael
"Let's just say we were on the wrong end of the whip."
Amanda
"It was it was it was with Megara."
Tau
"Oo, yeah, that'll do you." He nods. And then, Cinth says "I wouldn't mind being on the receiving end of that thing."
Amanda
"You know, most people say that. But then when you're actually there, you mind a little bit."
Giancarlo
(laughs)
Tau
He eyes you and then almost lecherously, but then things better of it an says "When you're older, you're understand."
Amanda
"Okay."
Nicholas
"Are we ready now?"
Giancarlo
"Oh."
Amanda
"Ah!"
Michael
"Ah, here we are. This is our fourth member of our Olympiad. Allow me, uh, this is Alexander the Great."
Giancarlo
Rolf does not genuflect this time.
Tau
They just give you a friendly wave. Daphne says, "Oh, yeah, uh, hi. Nice to meet you. I guess I'll just do this again. Real quick. I'm Daphne. That's Nausicaa. That's Icarus. And that Cinth."
Nicholas
Alexander just gonna nod but not smile or anything. Just nod and then turn to the team again. "I'm going now. Are you coming with me?"
Giancarlo
"Well, daddy's calling. Again, pleasure meeting you all. I wish you well, in your future attempts. Perhaps we'll run into each other on the field."
Tau
Very well.
Michael
"By the way, before we go. You guys seen the other Olympiad pass through here at all?"
Tau
"Oh, um." They kind of look a little uneasy. And then Icarus says, "Yeah, though, I heard them before I saw them. I think I saw them storming off into the courtyard already."
Michael
"I hear that. You definitely hear that group before you see 'em."
Tau
"Yeah, they're really really aggressive about getting those infernal arms. So I would recommend snatching them up if we were you guys."
Michael
"Well, luckily, we found this!" and Arete like draws the infernal arm that they found.
[SFX: Metal whips out.]
Tau
Everybody looks like you kind of just whipped your dick out.
Players
(laugh)
Tau
Like, it's certainly impressive, but like, why did you have to do that here, man?
Michael
"Why, what? Only Pandaie can show off everyone?"
Tau
And Nausicaa nods and she goes "It's very impressive. I'll give it that."
Michael
"Well, do you guys know how this kind of stuff works? Do I just kind of approach the statue out in the courtyard and then shoom?"
Tau
Nausicaa shrugs, she says "None of us have ever bothered to grab any of them so we wouldn't know but good luck."
Michael
"Well, thanks a lot." And then Arete prepares to leave with the others.
Amanda
Annie's just gonna probably wave bye. "If you're finished with that drink, I recommend the chocolate milk!" And then she'll just head out.
Tau
Icarus beams and he says "I'll have to give it a try."
Amanda
And she'll smile right back.
Michael
And as they walk out, Arete finishes off his French 75 and puts the glass on the bar as he walks by.
[SFX: Glass clink.]
Tau
So you go into Lord Zagreus' bedchamber. You pass it and you go outside again, into the courtyard. In the courtyard, you hear a howl of rage as Ajax obliterates a skeleton with his great sword.
[SFX: Bones clatter to the ground.]
Tau
Its bones fly everywhere. (like a bro) "I can't stand that smug little bitch with her shiny hair or shiny lipstick it you're never getting out of your alive Wretched Shit!" His Olympiad tries to console him. When one of you catches their eye, you see them take notice. Adonis gives you a small wave.
Giancarlo
I wave back.
Amanda
Annie waves back as well.
Michael
Arete, seeing Adonis wave, kind of he has very ashen cheeks but you see just the slightest bit of color come to Arete's cheeks as Adonis waves.
Amanda
(laughs)
Tau
Adonis similarly blushes. And then about like six seconds after all this happens, you see all the scattered bones around the courtyard start slowly, as if by magic, moving and stitching themselves back together into a new skeleton.
[SFX: Bones clatter slowly.]
Tau
And this skeleton that you see has these two giant pink orbs for eyes and somehow it is balding for a skeleton. So it has these like little bits of kind of like toupee-esque hair hanging off the back of it in like a shabby curtain. The skeleton grins, even though Ajax just obliterated it, it goes (mocking) "Is that the best you got, pal? Come on, let me have it." And Ajax happily obliges as he just swings his great axe again.
[SFX: Metal thwack and bones clatter again.]
Tau
And just smashes into this skeleton. Who again, with a smile on his little scully face, is once again just blown to bits.
Nicholas
"I believe this time we should, while they're distracted, go back in. But first, Arete. You have something to do with the infernal arm maybe here at these statues?"
Michael
"I sure do." And Arete will, avoiding the central area where I'm assuming the skeletal creature is getting blown to bits by Ajax the Lesser, he'll kind of skirt around the edge, trying not to draw too much attention to himself as he approaches the line of infernal arm statues.
Tau
You see the shadowy pedestal which has basically a shadow copy of your weapon rotating on it.
Michael
Arete draws out his infernal arm.
[SFX: Metal shink.]
Michael
And presents it to the podium and kind of just stares for a moment to see if anything happens.
Tau
Once you do this, you see that your weapon floats over to the shadow
[SFX: A deep woosh.]
Tau
And they essentially overlap with each other. So it's almost like your weapon is slotting into it. And as you do this, you feel this rush of power and this blinding light flashes throughout the entire courtyard.
[SFX: Another deep woosh followed by gentle music]
Tau
And the short sword has changed its appearance. So it no longer has those five crosses on its hilt and it's no longer this like beautiful rust free dagger. Instead it is this really shadowy looking dagger. And the way its hilt is made is that its hilt essentially looks like a doll. And then there are all these needles going into the doll and that comprises the hilt and then its shadowy the blade kind of comes out from it and you understand that this blade has changed into something called the Aspect of Arete. And you immediately attune to it and when you attune to it, you learn this blade's name. So this blade is called La Voix so L-a V-o-i-x. When it changes to the Aspect of Arete, do you remember that like heavenly choir you were listening to?
Michael
Yes.
Tau
It is now this very sinister series of like quiet whispers almost like when you were looking at the Chaos gate. First, you know that this is a short sword slash dagger. So you could use either of its stats, whichever one is more convenient to you. Furthermore, It functions as a plus one weapon. So what that means is it adds one to both your attack rolls and your damage rolls. Furthermore, when you deal sneak attack damage, you deal with extra die of sneak attack damage. Lastly, you gain plus one on stealth checks.
Michael
(quietly) Woo hoo hoo.
Tau
So even though this weapon seems so strange and alien to you before, you feel like its form has shifted to kind of reflect your inner ethos, and it is very happy to be in your presence. And now you can kind of use its full capabilities.
Michael
Sweet.
Tau
Make an Arcana check
Michael
17.
Tau
With that now that you're attuned to it, you also understand some further things about infernal arms. You also understand that there are other aspects to this weapon. So you can actually change this weapon;s form to reflect the abilities and sensibilities of some other character throughout history, past, present or future. However, in order to do that, you essentially would kind of need to find out whatever awakening phrase you need to say to it to unlock that other aspect. So you unlock that infernal arm and you hear some mild applause behind you.
[SFX: Mild applause.]
Michael
Arete turns to see who is applauding.
Tau
So Adonis, Pandaie, and Palaestra are all clapping for you. Ajax is kind of throwing his whole weight on to the point of his great sword, which he's leaning against on the ground, and he's just kind of like panting.
Michael
Seeing the applause, Arete spins La Voix in his palm.
[SFX: Whirling sound.]
Michael
And tosses it up in the air.
[SFX: Swoop then a clink.]
Michael
Catches it, and gives a small bow. "Thank you everyone."
Tau
They continue to be impressed,
Michael
And uh, Arete returns to the rest of his Olympiad and says "Well, are we ready to go?"
Nicholas
And with that Alexander will lead to the entrance of the trials.
[SFX: A flowing river fades in then fades away, replaced by energetic music.]
Tau
ROGUE RUNNERS Volume 1: In the Blood stars our players Nicholas Benetatos as Alexander the Great, Amanda Facosta as Anastasia Pantazis, Giancarlo Herrera as Rolf Yannik, and Michael Pisani as Arete Laskaris. Dungeon mastering and NPC voices are by Tau Zaman. Cover art by Chandler Candela. Sound design and edited by Giancarlo Herrera. Title music by Sage G.C. with vocals by Jessica Dahlgren and Sage G.C. Character Theme Music by Giorgio Volpe. Additional music by Epidemic Sound. If you liked what you heard, we hope you'll consider helping us make future tabletop parodies of your favorite stories. You can support us at patreon on patreon.com/roguerunradio. Patrons get access to our community discord Channel, as well as our behind the scenes chat cast Out of the Blood where we talk about everything on our minds after the episode. There are free ways to support the show too. We hope you'll leave us a glowing review on your listening app of choice as well as spread the good word about us on Twitter and Instagram where you can follow us @ROGUERUNradio. We love hearing from you. So hit us up there or email us at rr@whisperforge.org. We're very proud to be in The Whisperforge collective and hope you'll check out our other shows. We think you'll like Remarkable Providences, a witty and informative exploration of the Salem Witch Trials. Get ready to run with us next week. New episodes drop every Friday. 'Til next time sinners, I'll see you in hell.
[SFX: Title theme music slowly fades out] Escape... escape... escape....