Tensions rise as the Patina descends deeper into the Guts.
Tensions rise as the Patina descends deeper into the Guts.
Cast:
- Marathon Messenger is played by Penn Van Batavia. She can be found on Twitter at @acquiredchaste and in drag as horror king JOHN on Instagram at @john.is.risen. Penn is an indie TTRPG designer whose most recent work includes SLICE *IT* OUT, a grisly carving RPG about cutting pieces of yourself out to fit in. Check out faer other work at pennharper.itch.io.
- Cassidy Shard is played by Sydney Whittington. She is our wonderful editor. She’s also a contributing editor and occasional guest player for the Orpheus Protocol, a cosmic horror espionage actual play podcast. Find her on Twitter at @sydney_whitt.
- Emma Blackwood is played by Cameron Robertson. Find her on Twitter at @midnightmusic13 and on Instagram at @reading_and_dreaming. Cameron is also a player on Tabletop Squadron, a Star Wars Edge of the Empire actual play podcast.
- Birdie Foundling is played by Kit Adames. Find her on Twitter at @venusvultures. Kit is also a voice actor and writer on Elevator Pitch Podcast, a queer genre-hopping anthology podcast that can be accessed on Spotify and YouTube.
- Our GM and narrator is Nick Robertson. Find him on Twitter at @alias58. Nick is also the GM for Tabletop Squadron and can also be found as a player on the Orpheus Protocol.
Music & Sound Credits:
- This podcast features the musical talents of Dora Violet and Arne Parrott. You can find Dora at facebook.com/doraviolett. You can find Arne at atptunes.com.
- old radio Channel search sound effect by Garuda1982. Link & License.
- Dripping (Zoom) » Dripping, Slow, A.wav by InspectorJ. Link & License.
- rusty wheel 07.wav by tim.kahn. Link & License.
- Collapsing Building Interior (Small) (Mixed) by EvanBoyerman. Link & License.
- Big Water by Sergey Cheremisinov. Link & License.
- His Last Share of The Stars by Doctor Turtle. Link & License.
- Wastelands by Sergey Cheremisinov. Link & License.
Art Credits:
- The official artwork for this podcast was created by Rashed AlAkroka, who can be found on Instagram and Artstation @rashedjrs.
Find Us Online:
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A Knight of Shreds and Patches Transcript
Season 3 Episode 24: Death's Door
Transcript by Cameron Robertson
Intro:
[hurdy gurdy music begins]
Nick: Welcome, listeners, to A Knight of Shreds and Patches. An immersive actual play podcast. This episode features the talents of –
Penn: Penn Van Batavia as Marathon Messenger and Gwendolyn Rozenthall.
Kit: Kit Adames as Birdie Foundling and Vaus Foundling.
Cameron: Cameron Robertson as Emma Blackwood and Janus Foundling.
Sydney: Sydney Whittington as Cassidy Shard and Winifred Foundling.
Nick: Nick Robertson as GM and Narrator.
Sydney: Hello listeners, this is your editor, Sydney, with today’s messages:
Thanks for joining us on this auspicious day, a day where 12 + 12 makes 24 and it still makes sense without needing the silly American date format. Such auspices bring great tidings as well, because we are joined by a new patron! Nick Mertes [rhymes with Curtis], welcome to the crew! We’re always honored that you choose to support us. And in return, backing our Patreon gives you access to bonus episodes, campfire conversations, and other fun rewards.
And with that, we wrap up today’s announcements and head into Season 3, Episode 24: Death's Door. And so…
“Join us, for now our tale to yours attaches
To carry hope: a Knight of Shreds and Patches.”
[hurdy gurdy music ends]
[electronic beeping]
[robotic powerup noise begins]
Distorted Robotic Voice: Power restored. Systems online. Reconfiguring audio connection.
[robotic powerup noise fades to radio frequency static]
[over radio]
Sydney (as Cassidy): Last time on a Knight of Shreds and Patches, we managed to stumble our way into a big angry octopus den, including one especially big angry octopus. Birdie apparently had a stash of ethanol octo-poison, which would have been great to know earlier since Marathon poured it on herself and then Birdie lit the stuff on fire. One of those could have been fine, both together is potentially fucking disastrous, but, you know, I guess relying on luck to be the thing that separates us from shuffling off our precious mortal coils instead of, you know, preparation and good choices, is on brand for our current guide. My dear competent Emma saved me from the big angry octopus after it jumped over everyone to get me, but even in victory, we all ended up worse for wear and now there's footsteps, so time to see who's getting a piece of us next.
[radio static]
Episode Start:
Nick: The hot, humid air of this large metal tank in the depths of Sasnak Traveling is filled with the smell of machine oil and octopus blood. This is immediately after the Patina's victory against a wayward nest of cephalopods that attacked them. And the group, before they could gather themselves, overheard in the distance the voice of a patrol that has heard the sound of conflict and rushed to investigate. You all know that part of your mission was to stay undiscovered as much as possible.
Cameron: Emma waves her arm at the group to get everybody to look at her and then whisper yells like
Cameron (as Emma): [whisper yell] Go over there!
Cameron: And points to the far side of the room from where the voices are coming from, and on her way over there, goes and flips the light switch that she turned on when they first came in, plunging the room back into murky darkness.
Sydney: Cassidy, who had frozen pulling her last arrow out of an octopus, finishes doing that and quickly darts over to where Emma had indicated, and then hits the button to turn off the flashlight on her headset, dropping them into even murkier darkness.
Penn: With some effort, Marathon pushes herself up from a loose piece of column that she'd been supporting herself on and hobbles over to where the rest of the Patina is hiding in the dark.
Kit: Birdie will also have an immediate response to this. She does slip a little in the ethanol slash octopus goo that's now covering the floor, but I think she manages to slide walk over there in time.
Nick: There is a long couple of minutes, as you hear the clank of approaching boots. You can hear some voices echoing down this corridor talking about investigating this nest and what's got all these octopuses stirred up. I had a running Threat Counter of how much noise you all had made during this fight, and you all stayed well under the threshold, so because of that, there is very little chance for you to be discovered. You had plenty of time to hide in the shadows. In the dark, you see the last flickers of the ethanol flames burn out and a rusty screech as a hatch up the wall is pushed from partially open to fully open, and you see a beam from a powerful flashlight start to sweep the floor back and forth. So the Patina is able to hide in the shadows as this hatch creaks open, you see the flashlight beam piercing the darkness, and you can hear multiple voices from what must be a Drain Boy patrol.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): [sneeze]
Nick (as Drain Boy): Hey, be careful about the sneezing. There's a -
Kit (as Drain Boy): [sad sick noise]
Nick (as Drain Boy): - you're you're gonna attract them.
Kit (as Drain Boy): Sorry.
Nick (as Drain Boy): It looks like they've been fighting again down there. Hey one of you scramble down there and see if the octopuses are all dead, if they killed each other, or if they're just, like, trying to lure people in. Something pissed them off.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): That's really scary. Can you send somebody else?
Kit (as Drain Boy): Your consumption is worse. You should go down there.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): That's that's the reason I shouldn't go. You should go.
Nick (as Drain Boy): No Squeak is right. You're probably on death's door, so it would make sense resource wise, for you to go risk yourself in this case.
Kit (as Drain Boy): [groan]
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): Ah frickle sticks.
Kit (as Drain Boy): Whatever.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): Damn.
Nick (as Drain Boy): Fine. We don't - look we got put on this stupid route because the two of you couldn't be quiet when they were asking if there were any questions at the last meeting, so nobody even knows where we are.
Kit (as Drain Boy): What if I had valid questions?
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): Yeah. I wanna know when lunch is.
Nick (as Drain Boy): No see they they asked, 'does anyone have any questions?' They didn't ask, 'what questions do you have?' So that really translates to 'don't ask questions. The meeting is over.'
Kit (as Drain Boy): Well, maybe my questions are important too.
Nick (as Drain Boy): I'm 14. I know these things. I have a lot of experience. So
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): Can we go to the bathroom?
Nick (as Drain Boy): Yeah, that's what the walls are for. Just go wherever.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): [disgruntled noise]
Nick (as Drain Boy): It's the Guts. That's the best part of the Guts - everywhere is a bathroom.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): [overlapping] I don't want to be here. It smells.
Kit (as Drain Boy): [overlapping] Ew. I'm going dow- I'm going downstairs. [bleh]
Nick (as Drain Boy): All right well.
Kit (as Drain Boy): Do we have to?
Nick (as Drain Boy): No, no one knows we're here and nobody heard anything. I - screw it. Like whatever's going on here, it's not worth it. Let's just go back to where it's less humid and -
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): Yay~.
Nick (as Drain Boy): - just wait for our shift to be over. But you owe me, you owe me at least one of your desserts for lunch next week.
Kit (as Drain Boy): What? This is, this is an abuse of power.
Nick (as Drain Boy): Yeah. Yeah, I'm 14. I get to do that. If you live to be 14, you get to abuse the newbie orphans.
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): You can have all my desserts.
Kit (as Drain Boy): You're such a pushover, Squeaks.
Nick (as Drain Boy): Yep Squeaks, you're promoted. You are now Lance Corporal Squeaks.
Kit (as Drain Boy): [overlapping] What?!
Penn (as Squeaks the Drain Boy): [overlapping] Yay~. [coughing]
Nick: You all hear a high five and continue squabbling as these Drain Boys stomp back off further into the more populated part of the Guts. And after a couple of minutes, their voices fade and you have some time to yourselves. It's just you, the smell of burned octopus, and piles of viscera around.
Sydney: Cassidy toggles her light back on.
Sydney (as Cassidy): People intact?
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah...
Cameron (as Emma): Mhm.
Kit (as Birdie): Feel bad for those kids.
Penn (as Marathon): Scratched but intact.
Kit (as Birdie): Covered in ethanol.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Think I have like, the entire side of me as a bruise.
Penn (as Marathon): Oof.
Kit (as Birdie): [overlapping] Yeah...
Cameron (as Emma): [overlapping] Yeah, you got an octopus hug~.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah same.
Penn (as Marathon): I got some bites on my arms.
Kit (as Birdie): Um.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So the Drain Boys are just all orphans?
Kit (as Birdie): Not all of them.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Or kids?
Kit (as Birdie): Well, the ones who are actually in charge are the adults. The ones that they send to patrol down here, are kids.
Penn (as Marathon): If one of those kids come down here, it would have gotten eaten by octopuses. Octopi?
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): Like that - Yeah that sucks. [breathy laugh]
Cameron (as Emma): Probably not in this particular scenario, because we're still down here, and they decided that we weren't worth it, so that would probably -
Penn (as Marathon): [overlapping] So if we hadn't walked in here,
Cameron (as Emma): [overlapping] -be level of protection. [end overlap] Oh yeah, that kid would have totally been octopus chow.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah. Yep, and they're probably just gonna go off to some other nest.
Penn: Marathon looks a little bit horrified at the ground of octopuses around them, almost scanning for child skeletons.
Nick: So roll me a Fortune die.
Cameron: One Misfortune.
Nick: Uh there are some small bones laying around that could be really big rats or might be human bones, hard to tell.
Penn: Marathon shudders slightly.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So we should, based on earlier, keep moving so that the bigger group of octopuses doesn't come eat this group?
Cameron (as Emma): Mhm.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): Gah.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah, they're gonna smell the burning meat and they're gonna come.
Penn (as Marathon): How did you know this - you said it was ethanol, Birdie?
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): How did you know this eth- what - why is this ma-magic liquid good at burning octopi?
Sydney (as Cassidy): It's just alcohol. It just smells like alcohol.
Kit (as Birdie): It's, so Juno actually told me about it when he was really into training Biscuits and we all live together and stuff. And he had one version of Biscuits that was larger than the other ones, and so they'd mix this super weak solution with barely any, like a couple of drops in it and they'd kind of used it to, like spray Biscuits whenever it was being bad.
Penn (as Marathon): Brutal.
Kit (as Birdie): And told me, you can use it as a euthanasia thing, or you can use it as an anesthesia thing on them. Either way, it kind of just immobilizes them. So I brought some down. I don't know. I didn't really know if we were going to run in any.
Penn (as Marathon): Well, thanks. Worked real good. Stopped getting bit.
Cameron (as Emma): Glad you had it.
Kit (as Birdie): Yep.
Cameron: Emma stands up and reaches down to help Cassidy up.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Ouch.
Cameron (as Emma): Do you have any like, lacerations that need to get washed out?
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, I have giant suction marks on my arms. That's probably fine.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah...
Sydney (as Cassidy): I can move them.
Cameron: Emma leans her head sideways.
Penn (as Marathon): Bet you that's a battle scar you haven't had.
Cameron (as Emma): It kind of looks like someone was very aggressively making out with your arm.
Kit (as Birdie): [laugh]
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, it basically was.
Cameron: And she stands back up fully.
Cameron (as Emma): Marathon, you said you have bites?
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah, it looks like they'll be fine, though.
Sydney: Cassidy starts getting the map out and charting the next part of the path.
Cameron (as Emma): You're covered -
Penn (as Marathon): Flesh wounds.
Cameron (as Emma): - in goo, Marathon.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): And ethanol. [long exhale] But we don't have time for a shower in this stinky sewer. So,
Cameron (as Emma): I mean I guess the - guess the ethanol could help disinfect the bites.
Kit (as Birdie): [medically knowledgeable concern noise] Uhh.
Cameron (as Emma): I don't know how it's gonna do through all the goo~.
Penn (as Marathon): It stings.
Cameron (as Emma): Okay, that's a good sign, I guess? [laugh] Um.
Kit (as Birdie): Just -
Sydney (as Cassidy): Just watch, you know, we could, we could light it on fire again I bet.
Penn (as Marathon): No~.
Cameron (as Emma): Let's not.
Kit (as Birdie): Just um -
Penn (as Marathon): Bad.
Kit (as Birdie): Try and take deep breaths and take your time doing things. Inhaling that stuff isn't great for you.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, you'll get drunk off of it.
Penn (as Marathon): Oh, don't worry, I can feel it.
Nick: So Cassidy, if you're using one of the maps that the Patina has to chart the next leg of the journey, go ahead and make me a Survival roll at average difficulty.
Sydney: So Survival, I'm rolling a yellow and two greens against two purples.
[dice rolling]
Sydney: One failure and an advantage.
Nick: Ah~ boy. Okay. Cassidy, you know that this room was back on the general path that was marked on the map originally. The issue is, while this piece does make sense and is very distinctive as a landmark, being a large open area, the trails leading off of here are all fairly vague looking. And the part that is marked as the direction you're supposed to go should be that gap in the back of the tank with the gantries. That is directionally exactly the path you should be taking, so it should work.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So it looks like next is out through this the next bottomless pit.
Kit (as Birdie): Huh?
Cameron (as Emma): Is this a smaller bottomless pit than the last bottomless pit?
Penn (as Marathon): Another hole.
Cameron: Emma starts walking towards the hole.
Nick: So as you all approach this exit from the octopus nest, you can see that this bottomless pit is a very deep chasm that goes straight down. It appears to be between two major bulkheads for Sasnak Traveling. If this was a house and you were very small, this would be like the gap between two walls where all the electrics and things are routed. And there is a criss crossing web of gantries and cat walks that connects what looks to be dozens of different pathways that go across. You know from the map that the circuit key and this smuggling entrance is as close to the bottom as you can get, because it has to be accessible, and you know it would be on the far side of this chasm.
The part that's going to take a while is that this map is not three dimensional, and so it's very difficult to tell which gantries connect to what and which routes lead down the most efficiently. The gantries lead to hallways on the far side and on the near side, there's a honeycomb of routes that connect to various staircases up and down and ladders up and down further in, the part that's more difficult is you don't know from looking at it, which hallways lead to which stairs that go to which level, so connecting the dots will be harder.
Kit (as Birdie): Um.
Penn (as Marathon): How do we start? Birdie, Cassidy - got a direction that we can just start heading in? Hoping to get into some dry clothes soon.
Kit (as Birdie): Cassidy, do you know the general direction we're supposed to head from this area?
Sydney: Cassidy points over and down.
Kit (as Birdie): Hm. Just down?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Well, I mean, unless you want to impart some more of your Guts knowledge from times long past.
Kit (as Birdie): These never used as staircases, so I uh [stressed laugh] think we should just try some staircases.
Sydney: Cassidy shrugs and starts walking.
Nick: The Patina is able to set off further into this labyrinth of passageways. Sporadic red emergency lights give this whole region of the Guts a nightmarish air. The temperature is warmer than is comfortable, it is more humid than is comfortable, and there is constant mechanical noise in the background that changes just enough that nobody ever quite gets used to it, and you all continue deeper and deeper.
Sydney: Cassidy is munching on a nicer than tuna and mustard sandwich that they'd gotten in Merchants Alley before headed down.
Penn: Which reminds Marathon, who is squelching up at the back of the pack to break out her own sandwiches of tuna and mustard and realizes that one of them has exploded in her backpack as she pulls it out.
Penn (as Marathon): Ah, dirt. [sigh] Dang it.
Kit (as Birdie): Cassidy, if you want me to look at your scrapes and stuff when we get to the key I can.
Sydney: Cassidy just shrugs and keeps walking.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean there's the skin is not really broken, I guess? It's fine.
Kit (as Birdie): Okay.
Penn (as Marathon): Anybody want tuna and mustard?
Cameron (as Emma): No thank you~.
Kit (as Birdie): I'm good. Thank you.
Penn: Marathon holds up a sandwich.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Uh, more for you, Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): Do octopi like tuna?
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Cameron (as Emma): You know, I've never asked one.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah.
Cameron (as Emma): It is fish.
Penn (as Marathon): Good to know. Maybe we can get a new Sports. Am I right?
Kit (as Birdie): [awkward laugh]
Penn: Marathon tries to have a little chuckle.
Kit (as Birdie): It's a significantly more evil Sports.
Sydney: Cassidy continues tromping through, unaffected by this attempted levity.
Penn (as Marathon): Seems like we're doing pretty good, you know, stink, octopus aside.
Cameron (as Emma): [short laugh]
Penn (as Marathon): How we feeling uh, mission one in Sasnak going? Well, I guess mission two since Founding Reunion Tour was number one, but, and I guess maybe number three? Because number two was probably the ball. Yeah.
Cameron (as Emma): You know, it could have gone better.
Kit (as Birdie): I think it's going fine.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah, Marathon's not doing super great.
Sydney (as Cassidy): What - Birdie what is your mark for going fine? Everyone's alive?
Kit (as Birdie): [statement of fact in trauma] Yeah.
Sydney (as Cassidy): High standards.
Kit (as Birdie): Well, due to past infractions, I'm inclined to just keep my head up as long as we're all walking.
Penn (as Marathon): Nobody got shot. So that's a perk.
Kit (as Birdie): I'm -
Sydney (as Cassidy): Well that's a good thing octopuses -
Cameron (as Emma): I mean,
Sydney (as Cassidy): - don't hold guns.
Cameron (as Emma): [laughing] Yeah luckily the octopuses didn't have guns.
Kit (as Birdie): [laugh]
Penn (as Marathon): Exactly. You know, it's nice to fight something without guns every once in a while.
Kit (as Birdie): [deep sigh] Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): I'm just glad I got to punch something, you know?
Kit (as Birdie): [soft laugh]
Sydney (as Cassidy): Maybe we can trip on the Ramp Girls next and they can catch us for trying to go around them with this smugglers door, because they have guns.
Cameron (as Emma): I thought you meant literally trip over them for a second, and I was like, I don't understand -
Sydney (as Cassidy): It'd be a long fall.
Cameron (as Emma): - how we would end up in that situation.
Penn (as Marathon): I know somebody who's fallen for Ramp Girls, if you know what I mean? [teasing laugh]
Kit (as Birdie): Okay.
Penn (as Marathon): Are we, uh, having fun yet?
Cameron (as Emma): No.
Penn: Marathon stretches her arms out as we keep walking.
Cameron (as Emma): Marathon, are you having fun?
Penn (as Marathon): Look, I'm just, uh, trying to bring up the mood, you know? I don't know. I'm kind of hurting, but we got this.
Cameron (as Emma): Before the octopus fight, you were at a 7 out of 10. What are you at now?
Penn (as Marathon): 7 out of 10 of what? Pain?
Sydney (as Cassidy): [overlap] Pain.
Cameron (as Emma): [overlap] Pain. That's what you, that's what you told us.
Penn (as Marathon): You know what? I'd say it's fated to a dull roar, that pain. I would say I'm still around a 7, maybe an 8, with these octo-wounds. You know, I'm just trying to keep my brain off of 'this sucks. My my clothes are wet. Trudge, trudge, trudge.' So, yeah.
Kit (as Birdie): [sigh] Yeah. Yep.
Cameron (as Emma): Wet and gooey.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Maybe Birdie has some more secret octopus repellent that you can drink and take the edge off.
Kit (as Birdie): It wasn't -
Cameron (as Emma): [combo of concern noises and oh no a fight is starting noises]
Kit (as Birdie): Wasn't - wasn't secret.
Penn (as Marathon): Did you just -
Sydney (as Cassidy): If we had, if we had known that that was a thing, -
Sydney: Cassidy turns around to face Birdie.
Sydney (as Cassidy): - we could have brought more of it and maybe not poured it on ourselves and then had fire be thrown around everywhere with this terribly flammable liquid all over one of our teammates.
Penn (as Marathon): Ope Cass, let's keep moving forward.
Kit: Birdie, who was walking directly behind Cassidy, is forced to, like skitter to a stop to avoid running directly into her and is not exactly making a happy face right now.
Sydney: Cassidy turns and keeps walking.
Kit (as Birdie): So I could have - Look. I didn't know we were going to run into an entire run into an entire nest. We - that's not usually what happens down -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] You're the person -
Sydney: Cassidy turns back around again.
Sydney (as Cassidy): You're the person who knows anything about anything down here.
Kit (as Birdie): But I thought we'd, we maybe -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] How were we gonna know that Juno's secret trick to disarming octopuses was a bottle of alcohol?
Kit (as Birdie): It's not alcohol. It's not that simple to get. This was -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Birdie we have literally a distillery in the back of the rig that we use to power the Knight.
Penn (as Marathon): Cass I think you're going a little hard on Birdie.
Kit (as Birdie): It was on -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] We're all fucking - our lives are at risk down here and we're trying to follow Birdie and she's making her pathfinding choices based on games of Rock Paper Scissors, because she knows this is her home turf, and then as soon as we follow Birdie's lead, you get smashed by a giant piston out of the wall.
Kit (as Birdie): I'm sorry, that I'm not -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] If this is hostile terrain, then we can treat it like hostile terrain and actually give it the respect it deserves. But it's not a casual stroll.
Kit (as Birdie): It's always been hostile terrain. I thought that that was clear.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah, I'm gonna back Birdie on this one.
Kit (as Birdie): It's always been dangerous. It's always been life threatening. Everything down here wants to kill you. There are people down here who want to kill you. There are animals down here who want to kill you. The entire sphere of the city wants to kill you down here. I don't -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Then why are there secret things in your pocket that you're waiting to break out just in case?
Kit (as Birdie): There are tons of things I carry around just in case. Do you guys [Cassidy interrupts here so this overlaps] want 'what's in Birdie's bag'?
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] That are relevant specifically to octopuses?
Penn (as Marathon): Hey, I'm in the back of the line here and feeling pretty bruised. I know you are, too, Miss Cassidy. Let's keep the line moving forward, right?
Penn: And Marathon grimace smiles.
Kit (as Birdie): Again -
Sydney: Cassidy about faces and starts walking again.
Penn (as Marathon): Oh, thank god.
Cameron: Emma lightly squeezes Birdie's shoulder in front of her.
Kit (as Birdie): [under breath to Emma & Marathon] Whatever. It's fine.
Penn (as Marathon): So, um, did you do any like singing games while down here or anything?
Cameron (as Emma): I don't really think that's the vibe, Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): Okay. Completely fair.
Kit: Birdie is going to turn her backpack around to her front and start rummaging through it while they're walking and handing Marathon a roll of gauze and like a couple of butterfly bandages and a couple of things to just put on things while they're moving, as well as a little compact mirror so that Marathon can see.
Penn (as Marathon): Oh, god I look disgusting. [huff laugh]
Cameron (as Emma): Mhm.
Penn (as Marathon): Cool. Well, um,
Cameron (as Emma): Kind of gloopy.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah. How long do these stairs go?
Kit (as Birdie): [said on a sigh] Pretty long.
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, think think of how big Sasnak looked as we were driving up to it, -
Penn (as Marathon): Ah, shit.
Cameron (as Emma): - until you got to the point where, like, the buildings started. That that's probably about how far these stairs go. At least we're going down. Ooh, don't think about the fact we're gonna have to go back up.
Penn (as Marathon): Mm.
Cameron (as Emma): I just did, and that was a sad thought.
Penn (as Marathon): Are we, uh, Cass, I'm not trying to um, are we back on the map yet? No pressure, no pressure, no pressure.
Sydney (as Cassidy): When we get to that wall at the bottom,
Sydney: And Cassidy points into the distance.
Sydney (as Cassidy): - then we'll be there.
Penn (as Marathon): Awesome.
Penn: Marathon slips a little bit on one of the steps, but catches herself.
Kit (as Birdie): You good?
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah. Did anybody pack any extra clothes?
Kit (as Birdie): Um.
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, I have an extra pair of socks because I figured sewer and thought that that might come up.
Penn (as Marathon): I appreciate it, but I think my socks are probably one of the only dry things on me right now.
Kit (as Birdie): I have an extra Birdie sized shirt that you're welcome to try.
Penn: Marathon looks dubious.
Kit (as Birdie): It could, it -
Cameron (as Emma): [interrupting] You know, best option might just be to try to wring the goop out of yours.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah I've got a wet turtleneck on. So
Kit (as Birdie): If you want, we could also maybe take scissors to your turtleneck and just cut the collar off, unless you really like that turtleneck.
Penn (as Marathon): I mean, I only have so many. Is this wash - does this shit wash out?
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah?
Penn (as Marathon): Okay.
Kit (as Birdie): [under breath] If you pound it with a rock.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah let's just keep it. I can suffer for a little bit longer. Hey, we got this. Right, Miss Cassidy?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Sure.
Penn (as Marathon): Mm hmm. Mm hmm. Go Patina ~.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [annoyed but full of good ideas] Tie it around your waist, Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): Hey, as long as I got everybody's permission.
Cameron (as Emma): Do you have anything on under that?
Penn (as Marathon): Yes, I do.
Cameron (as Emma): Okay.
Kit (as Birdie): Mhm.
Cameron (as Emma): Go for it.
Penn (as Marathon): Hell, yeah.
Penn: Marathon lifts her sweater over her head and ties around her waist.
Cameron (as Emma): Oh, gross. It touched me. It touched me.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah, sorry. Now you just got -
Cameron (as Emma): [shudder noise]
Penn (as Marathon): - now you just got me in my tank top. But,
Kit (as Birdie): [trying to regain normal group dynamic] Yeah, too bad Cassidy is in the front so she can't see.
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, if you're more comfortable that way, Marathon, that's -
Penn (as Marathon): Well, my skin is now extra exposed to sewer, which I feel uncomfortable about.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah you'll be fine.
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, just don't touch anything with your arms?
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah. Um. Any conflict resolution we [laughing] want to get out of the way?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Nope.
Cameron (as Emma): [totally not sarcastically] Cool.
Penn (as Marathon): So, um, yeah.
Penn: Marathon just starts whistling.
Cameron (as Emma): So we talked about Cassidy and Marathon's injuries - Birdie, how are you doing?
Kit: Birdie is visibly shaking at this point, not because of nerves or anything, but because she's angry, and she is pretty visibly banged up, but she just gives a tight shrug.
Kit (as Birdie): Oh, you know I'm doing great, because I have this place memorized, and I know it like the back of my hand, and I know everything that's gonna happen to us. So, yeah, I think everything's going really great right now.
Cameron: Emma makes a pained look.
Cameron (as Emma): Mm. Great. Okay.
Nick: You all continue to walk through this maze of gantries. The hallways are mostly short, but sometimes they split into dead ends. Sometimes the way forward is a hole in a passageway that seems to have been worn by time. You continue to work your way down and towards the outer wall of Sasnak Traveling without really knowing exactly where you're going to end up. The further down you go, the louder the machinery becomes as you get closer to the exterior and the wheels of this massive mobile city.
Cameron: As we've been walking, Emma has been making a thinking face, as if she's trying to formulate the best way to say something, and eventually just softly shakes her head and looks in front of her to Birdie.
Cameron (as Emma): So [long exhale]
Kit (as Birdie): So?
Cameron (as Emma): I realize that there are some pretty high tensions at the moment, uh, but I do feel that it is important to do a check in and ask - Birdie, I know you're not feeling great physically as octopuses,
Cameron: And Emma waves her arms around, mimicking octopus legs.
Cameron (as Emma): - but are are you doing okay overall? Cause it it - I'm not asking to make it any harder for you, but it can't be easy being down here on another mission.
Kit (as Birdie): I [bunch of start of talking noises] Um thank you, Emma. I don't want to talk about it.
Cameron (as Emma): All right. Kind of figured but wanted to give you the chance.
Kit (as Birdie): Thank you. [sarcastic at Cassidy] That's very nice of you.
Cameron (as Emma): [wind punched out of her]
Cameron: [laughing] Emma winces and turns around and looks at Marathon like, 'oh no, I made it worse.'
Penn: Marathon has her teeth gritted and is cringing as well, and gives Emma a slight tap on the shoulder before nodding her head to keep moving forward, and then rubs Emma's back a little bit.
Cameron: [laughing] Emma has deflated a little bit. She's like, 'oh, I wasn't trying to be a contrasting point to Cassidy~.'
Penn (as Marathon): So, uh, how those songs sounding about now, huh? Any singing games~ in the Guts~?
Kit (as Birdie): Not unless you want to -
Penn (as Marathon): [interrupting] 99 Octopuses? Octopi?
Kit (as Birdie): Not unless you want to try and attract more of them.
Penn (as Marathon): Okay, not that one then. Almost - so no singing in general.
Cameron (as Emma): Probably not anything louder than how we're talking right now.
Kit (as Birdie): Yep.
Cameron (as Emma): If you wanted to, like hum it quietly to yourself to keep yourself entertained. [laugh]
Penn (as Marathon): No, you know, [sigh]
Cameron (as Emma): [overlapping] That's not - I know that's not as fun.
Penn (as Marathon): [overlapping] just doesn't have as much charm.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah I know.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah. [clicks teeth] Uh~ Cassidy how are - how are you feeling up there? How was your sandwich? Is your - not that, not that I'm making a direct correlation - [quietly] Shit. I shouldn't have said that. [normal volume] - but you uh, how are you feeling now that you ate a little bit? [translation from transcriber Cameron: here, have a snickers]
Cameron: Emma's shoulders are quietly shaking. [laughing]
Sydney (as Cassidy): I'm so good, Marathon. All of my bruises and all of my octopus marks have just gone away. I'm rejuvenated.
Cameron (as Emma): [voice a bit strained from held laughter] It's the magical power of tuna.
Penn (as Marathon): Hey~. You say it like that, but manifestation!
Cameron (as Emma): I don't think that's how that works.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Ask me when the last time I got over major injuries was and I'll tell you how long it took.
Penn (as Marathon): Well, you got shot, right?
Cameron (as Emma): [yikes inhale] Mmhm.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Wow.
Penn: Marathon tries to give a cheesy smile.
Sydney (as Cassidy): You remembered~.
Penn (as Marathon): This isn't gonna be as bad. I mean, you're walking. You're not bleeding. How are your stitches, by the way?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Well they're out.
Penn (as Marathon): Yeah!
Sydney (as Cassidy): Cause I had to wait till I healed to be able to do anything.
Penn (as Marathon): But everything's feeling all right? Like,
Sydney (as Cassidy): No.
Penn (as Marathon): Oh, okay. Well, I mean about the - okay, no. But in in general, no. Yeah. And also,
Kit (as Birdie): [prim and angry voice] Well, the offer is still open for me to look at them, Cassidy.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Well you can see them from back there. It's okay.
Kit (as Birdie): Fine. I'm happy to just look at them and not do anything about them.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Well you're doing it right now. So.
Penn (as Marathon): Ah man, the back is feeling real uncomfortable right now. Maybe, maybe I should take the middle. Front, middle in between, just right behind Cassidy probably.
Kit (as Birdie): Yep, I'm really happy to keep walking and complaining at that. That's great.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I was asked how I felt, actually, I wasn't just volunteering it. So
Penn (as Marathon): Emma, I'm just gonna scoot past you.
Cameron (as Emma): Mhm. Go right on ahead.
Penn (as Marathon): Birdie, I'm coming on your left. Okay. Okay, this feels like a good distance.
Sydney: Cassidy has not turned around during this process and has continued walking at the same pace that she has been maintaining for what has been an interminably long time.
Penn (as Marathon): Moving a little quick down these stairs, huh Miss Cassidy?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Nope.
Penn (as Marathon): We want to get out yeah, right?
Sydney (as Cassidy): I would love to get out. Yep. But we've got a job to do.
Penn (as Marathon): And uh we're gonna do it so good. Okay. Um. [long sigh]
Cameron (as Emma): Birdie, while we're walking, can I take a look at Wander's circuit key?
Kit (as Birdie): Uh yeah. Yeah, you can.
Kit: And she'll pull it out of her pack and hand it to Emma, and then turn her backpack back to the front, because she realized she looked really stupid wearing her backpack over her chest. [laugh]
Cameron (as Emma): Thank you.
Cameron: Emma starts studying this normal-ish circuit key, except for the fact that it sparkles.
Nick: The circuit key is a T shaped circuit board, like you would see in a computer. It is mostly like a green stone like plastic with many small soldering connections. The thing that makes it stand out much more is that it has periodic crystals embedded in it of a material that you have not seen before.
Cameron: Can I mechanically examine this?
Nick: Sure.
Cameron: Doing a comparison to the white paper that Opal gave me for the actual circuit key. Comparing - is it just that this one glitters slightly, or are there other differences?
Nick: Yeah, so go ahead and roll me a daunting Mechanics check, but you can have two blue die because you have already been given notes about this, but you have a black die because you're trying to do it while you walk.
Cameron: Yeah, that's fine - she's just trying to distract herself now. So I have a Knack for Mechanics, so the darkness does not bother me. I'm going to remove the black die.
Nick: Okay.
Cameron: So for a daunting Mechanics check, I'll be rolling three yellows, one green, two blue, and four purple.
[dice rolling]
Cameron: Two successes, two advantages and a Triumph.
Nick: Cool. So what exactly are you looking for?
Cameron: Trying to determine how it differs from the legitimate one, and see if I can figure out why it is glittery. If there's any hints that I can figure out with what material it is or anything like that.
Nick: So you want to know more about how this thing works and what this fake one does?
Cameron: I am trying to arm myself with the information so that I can make a knowledgeable decision on if I want to actually implant this thing and replace it, or if I want to give the actual one to Opal.
Nick: So as far as how this works, based on the research that you were provided by Opal and holding this counterfeit and able to compare the two, it looks like the way the circuit key would work is that it connects to some sort of computational slot, like in a computer you would expect RAM to be slotted in or a processor, like it has hundreds of little sensitive connections on the back where that must hook in. The part where it gets interesting is rather than it just being something that processes data, this appears as though it would generate a subtle but persistent electromagnetic field in a certain combination that would unlock things. So it's like a key for a lock in the most technologically dependent and overly complicated way you can think of, because you could use a physical metal key that could be inserted to shift tumblers around and instead, this requires power and specific programming and situations to emit a field that could be messed with, that shifts something around that you assume would open a door, or something like that based on what you know. As far as what this counterfeit one does, the Triumph is going to help you out here quite a bit.
It takes you a while to figure out why this is a counterfeit, because compared to every piece of documentation that Opal gave you, this is literally the circuit key. Everything matches perfectly. As you're looking at it and you're walking and continuing down into this maze of corridors, it seems like Wander provided you with a copy of the key that already exists, which doesn't make sense and you know that's not what he did. But as you look further, with the success you see that some of the connecting materials are different than what you would expect. So the circuit key, all of the soldered connections and all of these micro circuits, should be the same material - it doesn't make sense for them to be different materials. You see that some of these circuits are made out of a different material, which is weird, but if you had a supply issue, that's something you've seen people do before, because you have to, because materials are scarce. With that Triumph, what you realize is that the other material that's used for these connections would probably wear down over a couple of uses, and you see that if those connections broke under the electric current, that it would create a different pattern of circuits that would probably do something really bad to whoever used that circuit key that time. You wouldn't be sure until you see what it plugs into if it would just damage the door or potentially explode, but it is a very subtle booby trap in that this key will work three to four times, and then at some point, it will fail spectacularly. Almost as if, if someone were to test it a few times to make sure it was the correct one, they would be set at ease as and then when they put more resources into using it, they would have a much bigger loss. It is devious in that it is so subtle and that it still actually works. Do you have any other questions about it? Because you did pretty well.
Cameron: I think I would just like to noodle about it for a little bit and think through is there any way that I could alter this additionally to, like, give it more, more of a lifetime, or make it less of a issue when it stops working and just have it stop working rather than triggering anything else.
Nick: You think that is definitely an option. You would need to see what the interface looks like.
Cameron: Yeah. Now that I have this information, I'm just brainstorming and thinking through what, with just the piece that I'm holding in my hand, what could I potentially do with it to make it so that I wasn't gonna cause injury to anyone.
Nick: The benefit to how well you understand this piece of machinery, and then also the benefit to it being such a functional forgery, is that you could do a lot with it, especially because you have figured out how it was altered in the first place. You'd have to see what the interface is, but that is definitely on the table. You would just have to decide what exactly you want to do.
Cameron: So I'm just going to think on it as we keep walking down these stairs.
Sydney: As the group gets to a three way fork with a little bit more space, Cassidy takes the opportunity to stop, throw her pack on the ground, and start digging around for another round of snacks and some water, with a little bit of extra space.
Penn: Marathon in coming to a stop, almost slips again on the slime that is coating almost everything about her. And then, as she regains her balance, has a moment of nervous clarity.
Penn (as Marathon): Uh, hey, Birdie, are there other traps that I should be aware of around here? Am I gonna get pistoned off this platform?
Kit (as Birdie): There's really no way to know.
Penn (as Marathon): Awesome.
Kit (as Birdie): I mean, every path is going to be dangerous as the uh last. I don't - There's no way to tell.
Penn (as Marathon): I love this sewer. Okay, well,
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, just step where the person in front of you stepped, I guess.
Penn (as Marathon): Okay.
Cameron (as Emma): That that's why -
Penn (as Marathon): I'm leaving slime.
Cameron (as Emma): Ew, that's gross.
Penn (as Marathon): Guess that's why I should have been in the back.
Cameron (as Emma): Maybe you go in the back?
Sydney (as Cassidy): You're gonna run out of slime eventually, Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): Eventually yeah.
Cameron (as Emma): You would think so, but she hasn't yet.
Penn (as Marathon): Um, Cassidy, I feel - I'm I'm - I love your leadership skills in this sewer. You've been an excellent leader.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Uh huh.
Penn (as Marathon): I was wondering how you felt,
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Were you?
Penn (as Marathon): [flustered noise]
Sydney (as Cassidy): Oh?
Penn: Marathon is suddenly going a little red.
Penn (as Marathon): About -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] No, go go ahead. Share.
Penn (as Marathon): About - no um
Cameron (as Emma): Feel like this is a terrible way to start any suggestion. [laugh]
Penn (as Marathon): Shit.
Penn: Marathon realizes this, and her eyes have gotten kind of shifty, and she decides to step back.
Kit (as Birdie): No Marathon, what were you gonna say?
Penn (as Marathon): No, uh, I was wondering if maybe, just for the sake of -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] You were wondering?
Penn (as Marathon): - not -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Uh huh?
Penn (as Marathon): - getting pistoned and shit. Uh
Cameron (as Emma): Let her- let her talk, Cassidy.
Penn (as Marathon): No, it's okay. No, it's okay. Hey -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] No, I'm just trying to encourage her. She's she needs to -
Penn (as Marathon): I gotta -
Sydney (as Cassidy): - convey ideas.
Penn (as Marathon): I'm gonna spit it the fuck out. Okay?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah.
Penn (as Marathon): Can Birdie take over for now? Like, I know we have some issues. Like, are you - you have - I know that you have some issues with Birdie specifically right now and -
Kit (as Birdie): [very quietly] Thanks Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): - you know, you're feeling really uncomfortable with the way this mission has been going, but I do not - I feel most safe with Birdie leading us through potential traps, and I hope you can understand that, but I understand if you're angry, and you know what, if you are angry, I'm just gonna say, hey take a breath, Miss Cassidy. It's gonna be okay, okay?
Penn: Marathon has kind of stumbled herself into being abrasive, but has kind of embraced it a little bit, and has her hands a little outstretched as a little bit of slime drips from her wrist.
Sydney: Cassidy gives Marathon a long, empty stare.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Ah you know, I thought the zero traps we'd hit since I started leading was good and you know, Birdie was leading when you got hit by that piston in the first place, but, yeah. Fine. Birdie, go ahead. You're in charge again.
Penn (as Marathon): Hey, look, just a breath. That's all I'm asking.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [super overexaggerated breath] Okay, so is that? Do you trust me again, or metaphorically?
Penn (as Marathon): Let's just keep walking and see what happens. I think it's gonna be all right.
Kit (as Birdie): [under breath] Act like the traps were my fault.
Cameron: Are there more stairs that we'll need to go down? Or are we in tunnels now?
Nick: You're at a split. You are probably close to the bottom at this point. You don't currently see any stairs, but there's no way to know if you're like, there isn't a sign that says, now at Ground Zero or whatever.
Cameron: Seeing no more stairs in their immediate immediate future at least, Emma puts the circuit key into her bag and takes her sword back out because there wasn't any room at all to maneuver on the stairs, so she's had it on her back. But now that we're off stairs, at least for the moment, she has re-armed herself.
Kit: Birdie is now standing up a little straighter.
Sydney: Cassidy sits cross legged on the ground and eats a breadstick looking at Birdie.
Cameron (as Emma): Where did you get breadsticks?
Sydney (as Cassidy): We stopped at the market. Do you want one?
Cameron (as Emma): Where did they have breadsticks?!
Sydney: Cassidy pulls a second one out of her bag and hands it to Emma.
Cameron (as Emma): Aw, thank you.
Cameron: Emma happily takes a bite of breadstick.
Cameron (as Emma): I didn't see the breadstick maker.
Kit (as Birdie): Well, Marathon, that's very nice to know that you trust me to that extent, and I'm happy to do -
Penn (as Marathon): I don't want to make a big thing out of it.
Kit (as Birdie): No, no, no, I'm happy to do whatever, because um, no one actually knows where the traps are, not even the little map, not even me, so it doesn't really matter who leads.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah, I'm sure none of us have, like, made a living out of looking for booby traps.
Kit (as Birdie): Oh! Oh, really. I'm sure none of us have, really. I'm truly, yeah, I agree. I'm sure none of us have, and none of us have done it alone.
Cameron (as Emma): [overlapping] [getting tired of this shit] Yes, yes, you're both very pretty.
Penn (as Marathon): [overlapping] Okay keep moving! Hey, hey, hey, let's keep moving. Okay? I'm getting a little, a little sick of this.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Marathon I'm eating my breadstick.
Penn (as Marathon): Okay.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah. Let her eat.
Penn (as Marathon): Finish the breadstick. Eat the freaking breadstick instead of talking to Birdie, is all I'm gonna say.
Cameron (as Emma): [either under breath or mouth full of breadstick] Goodness gracious, Marathon.
Penn (as Marathon): My tooth really hurts right now, okay?
Cameron (as Emma): Is your mouth still bleeding?
Cameron: Emma says, taking another bite of breadstick.
Penn: Marathon, who has had a steady trail of drool blood coming out of the corner of her mouth, spits a little bit.
Cameron (as Emma): Birdie gave you more gauze. Bite some. Bite bite back on that.
Penn (as Marathon): [groan]
Cameron (as Emma): It's gonna keep bleeding. That's what mouths do.
Kit (as Birdie): Here. I can, I can look at it again if you want me to.
Penn (as Marathon): Nope. Thank you. No thank you. Thank you. Let's - I appreciate you volunteering to check for traps.
Penn: Marathon bats away.
Cameron (as Emma): Birdie do you have any non octopus gooed gauze?
Kit (as Birdie): Uh yeah. I mean, all of my stuff is kept in my first aid kit so it's - it should all be fine. I handed - oh. [overlapping] Oh Marathon got her goop all over the - okay.
Cameron (as Emma): [overlapping] Yeah. I just don't want her putting any of that in her mouth. [laugh]
Kit (as Birdie): Okay.
Cameron (as Emma): Uh huh.
Kit (as Birdie): Yeah, we need more. Yeah.
Kit: Birdie will put her pack down and pull out more gauze for Marathon alongside a fold up little moist towelette, and will hand the little towelette to Marathon first.
Kit (as Birdie): Just wipe - just wipe your hands clean, so that they're disinfected, so that you can put the gauze in your mouth and you won't get some nasty tooth infection.
Penn (as Marathon): Okay. [said on a groan] Okay. As long as this gets us moving.
Kit (as Birdie): Okay. Um, yeah, okay, that's that's good.
Penn (as Marathon): Thank you, Birdie.
Kit (as Birdie): Here's the gauze. Okay, yeah, I'll take another look at it when we get home.
Penn (as Marathon): When we get home.
Kit (as Birdie): Yep.
Cameron (as Emma): Yep. Bite down on that.
Penn (as Marathon): [gauze in mouth] Okay.
Sydney: Cassidy eats the last bite of her breadstick unhurriedly, and then grabs her pack and stands back up.
Kit (as Birdie): Okay.
Penn (as Marathon): [gauze in mouth] Thank you for your prompt finish.
Nick: So you continue further into the bowels of Sasnak. Surely you are getting close at this stage, as you've been traveling for about half a day at this point. The total distance you've covered may not be enough that the amount of time it's taken would make sense, except for the fact that you've had to retrace your steps multiple times, and the paths criss cross over each other. You have traveled a very great distance, step wise, if not actual distance from where you started. So Birdie is currently leading the group taking point. What order is everyone else walking in?
Sydney: Cassidy has decided that okay, her attention in spotting traps isn't required, necessary or helpful, and so is bringing up the rear, leaving enough space that if they get trapped by anything, she's out of the splash radius.
Penn: Marathon is trudging right behind Birdie, the adrenaline from the octopus fight worn off totally and looks absolutely miserable holding this gauze in her mouth.
Cameron: Emma is serving as the anger barrier between the two factions.
Nick: As you continue on, Birdie, you are being as vigilant as possible, taking point, trying to prove that you know your way around down here. I need you to make me a hard Perception check, please, but you will have a black die because it is very dark down here, and I am going to flip a GM Story Point to upgrade the difficulty.
Cameron: All right. But you also have two blue dice because I have Heightened Awareness so anyone in short range of me gets bonuses to Perception and Vigilance checks.
Nick: Cool.
Cameron: Are we in short range of each other or engaged if there is Marathon in between us?
Nick: Probably short range.
Cameron: Okay, then only one blue die.
Kit: Okay, I am rolling two yellows, one green, one blue, one red, two purples, and one black. One advantage.
Nick: Uh, good. So Birdie, the thing about the Guts that has always been kind of unsettling to you is it has always felt as though the city itself was out to get people who came down here. What you all have been referring to as traps, there are occasional booby traps set up by criminals who are hiding out down here or Drain Boys trying to prove a point, but a majority of the things that are considered traps are just pieces of the city that have fallen into disrepair in a dangerous way, or bits of engineering that don't work the way anyone expects anymore. You can only look at rusted floor for so long before it all starts to blend together, especially in this dark. So with your advantage, you have stepped far enough along the hallway that when the floor starts to give away, you are already passed it.
Unfortunately, as there is a loud tearing, crashing noise, the floor does go out from under Emma and Marathon as they are swallowed up by the city itself.
Penn (as Marathon): [quick yell] Dirt!
Nick: And then the sound of metal crushing together becomes even louder as part of the ceiling crashes in, clogging up the hole where your friends just disappeared. You don't know how close to the bottom you are, but you have this horrible feeling that they may have taken a similar journey to the one you took so long ago and been dropped out of the bottom of the city entirely.
Kit: Birdie had barely managed to drop to her knees to try and grab one of them before the hole was very quickly closed, and she had to yank her hand back to avoid it getting crushed and she's just looking at the floor.
Sydney: Is the whole hallway just filled with rocks, like is Cassidy can't see?
Nick: You can see over the pile of rubble. It's just the floor fell out and then pulled other bits of the walls and ceiling in to clog it again. You can see Birdie where she is. The hole does not fill the hallway from side to side. There is a thin piece of floor that did not collapse, and the rubble pile goes up to about mid-thigh on you.
Sydney: Cassidy starts moving this rubble pile, one piece at a time, trying to get to the hole that had swallowed her crew mates.
Nick: Every piece of metal that you move seems to destabilize this hallway even more. It reminds you on some of your more risky hiking expeditions of piles of scree where any small touch could cascade into something that crushes people. You realize very quickly that trying to dig into this could potentially be more dangerous for your friends than any hope of rescuing them through this hole.
Sydney: Cassidy clears the radius of the rubble and stays on her hands and knees and then leans back onto her butt, just looking at this pile of metal, contemplating whether if she had been in front, she would have been able to do something about it.
Kit: Birdie is still just staring unblinkingly at the floor, like she is stuck in not believing that this is real, and if she moves, it's going to be real.
Sydney: Cassidy reaches to tap her radio headset, hoping that someone on the other end thought to turn their radio on.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [over radio] Marathon? Emma?
Nick: Cassidy, you are surrounded by metal and electronics and shielding and so far from the open air that radio waves need to travel unimpeded and all you hear is the gentle hiss from your headset of no one being on the other end of a radio call.
Sydney: Cassidy keeps saying their names, asking if they can hear until her throat is hoarse, because touching this pile that is between her and them only makes things worse.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [over radio] Emma Marathon! If you're out there, just say something. I know you you're, I'm sure it's fine. You're - it's just, you're just you're forgetting to turn your radio on, or the rock hit it, or -
Kit (as Birdie): Signals, signals blocked. Signals gonna be -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Okay. Then you you yell at them. [back on radio] Just turn your radio on and it'll be okay. We're waiting right here.
Kit: Birdie finally breaks her line of sight and looks up at Cassidy, and she's completely like tears streaming down her face. She's gross crying. She's not even ugly crying. She's gross crying, and all she can really say while watching Cassidy,is
Kit (as Birdie): [said through sobs] Cassidy, I'm so sorry.
Sydney: Cassidy looks up with empty despair on her face and goes,
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] What now?
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] I don't know. I don't know I wasn't - what can we - there's nothing we can do. I don't, I don't, I don't even know how far what's beneath is what's - I don't even know if there's anything.
Sydney: Cassidy looks back from Birdie to the pile of metal that has claimed their friends.
Nick: As you look at this rubble, there is the high pitch rending sound of metal being ground against itself as the pile collapses further, locking itself in place.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] We hav- we have to keep going.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] Why?
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Because this isn't this entire area is unstable. We have to - why do you want us to stay here?
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] Emma and Marathon.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] They're - we can't do anything for them if we fall into and then we go somewhere else, or we get hurt too. I don't -
Sydney: Cassidy is just looking at this pile of debris.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] I didn't know, I didn't know this was gonna happen. I didn't know, but we can't stay here. We can't stay here. Someone heard that. We have to keep going or or or more octopus shits heard it.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] Let them come. We're armed.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Cassidy, this is not a time. This, this, this. Can you just listen to me, please?
Sydney: Cassidy pries her eyes away from the debris and looks up to Birdie again.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] And just go on like nothing happened?
Kit (as Birdie): [crying and hurt] No! No! Why why why would I even say anything like that. I'm saying that we have to - we can't just sit here.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [despondent] If they're fine, [soul crushed laugh] then they get out of there and we move, they'll never be able to find us again.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Well, then they'll just leave the Guts. They'll just leave. They know that. They they have, they have maps. I, I can't.
Sydney: As the reality of the situation, that there is nothing that they can do, starts breaking through to Cassidy, her empty facade crumbles as she stands up.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [walls back up] Fine, go. Let's let's go.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Okay, okay. Okay. They have to, they have to be okay.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [nihilistic and vindictive] Nope, they're probably lying twisted corpses at the bottom of a tomb,
Kit (as Birdie): [shocked through the tears] What the -
Sydney (as Cassidy): - or dropped out of the city.
Kit (as Birdie): [shocked] What the fuck Cassidy!? Cassidy! God, why? [breaks down] What the fuck is wrong -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [nihilistic] What? My dead friends? Yet more dead friends -
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Fuck -
Sydney (as Cassidy): -put on the -
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Fuck you.
Sydney (as Cassidy): - pile.
Kit (as Birdie): [crying and strained breathing] You don't know what the fuck you're talking about. [que interruption and overlap]Just fucking walk I don't wanna fucking hear you talk about this anymore.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting and overlapping][nihilistic] What? Oh, what more dead friends? [end overlap] [gets louder] Let's just all have dead friend bonding time right here above the tomb.
Kit (as Birdie): [sobbing] [sniffed breath] Oh my god. I should have go with the fucking Rust.
Sydney: Cassidy gives an apathetic shrug,
Kit (as Birdie): [crying] Whatever. [goes real quiet] Whatever. Just - [bit louder] I'm just gonna start going, okay? You can follow if you want to, since you obviously know everything about the Guts and you have your fucking map and you know everything.
Sydney: Cassidy looks at the pile of stuff that fell on people when she wasn't leading, and then looks back to Birdie.
Kit (as Birdie): [voice still a beat teary but more pissed that Cassidy is blaming her] Nice. Really nice Cassidy.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [nihilistic] I think it's that way, by the way, if we're gonna go finish this fucking mission.
Kit (as Birdie): [teary but pissed] Great. There's only one way to go, so I guess we're going to have to go -
Sydney (as Cassidy): [interrupting] Well, we could go - we could actually go back and go, try and be safe.
Kit (as Birdie): Oh, do you know the safe way?
Sydney (as Cassidy): [nihilistic] Every further step we take is another death trap.
Kit (as Birdie): You're welcome to lead Cassidy, since that's all you care about right now. You're welcome to lead.
Sydney (as Cassidy): [antagonistic] Oh, sorry - there was only one way. We're going this way.
Sydney: Cassidy starts just walking towards the way forward, regardless of where Birdie is.
Kit: Birdie hangs back for a couple of seconds and will turn in her own time and realize that she has to keep walking forward and she can't keep looking back at the pile of metal that's swallowed her friends.
[hurdy gurdy music swells]
Outro:
Penn (as Marathon): Welcome back folks, you’re tuned to Going the Distance: Traveler’s Guide on road dial 1558. That’s a wrap on today’s log and we’re set to loop after these considerations. Further detail for the following is cataloged in the show notes.
This has been A Knight of Shreds and Patches, an actual play podcast using the Genesys game system from Fantasy Flight Games. The show is edited by Sydney Whittington, and features the talents of:
Kit Adames as Birdie. Kit can be found on Twitter and Instagram @ venusvultures. Kit is also a voice actor for Elevator Pitch Podcast, a queer genre-hopping anthology podcast that can be accessed on Spotify and YouTube.
Penn Van Batavia as Marathon. She can be found on Twitter @ acquiredchaste and in drag as horror king JOHN on Instagram @ john.is.risen. Penn is an indie TTRPG designer whose most recent work includes SLICE IT OUT, a grisly carving RPG about cutting pieces of yourself out to fit in. Check out faer other work at pennharper.itch.io.
Sydney Whittington as Cassidy. Sydney can be found on our Discord server, which is linked in the show notes, and on Twitter @ sydney_whitt. She’s also a contributing editor and occasional guest player for the Orpheus Protocol, a cosmic horror espionage actual play podcast.
Cameron Robertson as Emma. Cameron can be found on Twitter @ midnightmusic13 and on Instagram @ reading_and_dreaming. Cameron is also a player on Tabletop Squadron, a Star Wars Edge of the Empire actual play podcast.
And Nick Robertson as narrator. Nick can be found on Twitter @ alias58. Nick is also the GM for Tabletop Squadron. Nick can also be found as a player on the Orpheus Protocol.
This podcast features the musical talents of Dora Violet and Arne Parrott. You can find Dora at facebook.com/doraviolett. You can find Arne at atptunes.com.
The official artwork for this podcast was created by Rashed AlAkroka, who can be found on Instagram and Artstation @ rashedjrs.
You can follow the Patina on Twitter @ akosap_podcast or visit the website: www.akosap.com. To further support the show, consider joining the Patreon at www.patreon.com/AKoSaP, where we’ll be bringing you weekly content including bonus episodes, campfire conversations, and other fun rewards.
Until you tune back…
…stay bold and stay kind