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First Kisses and Last Words is the thirteenth episode of season 1, Fantasy High.
Gorgug journeys into the world of dating, Kristen loosens up, and Fig disguises herself for a clue.
Recap[]
"Guys, last we left off, you guys were on the roof of Ostentatia Wallace's house, where you still are. Aelwyn Abernant is laughing hysterically and you guys are surrounded by Hudol students that are stopping here and flying and spells are going off."
Synopsis[]
A Hudol student named Percival commends The Bad Kids on their fighting skills and comments on the size of the battle. Most of the party finds him obnoxious and Fig suggests they push him off the roof, but Fabian stops them. Adaine shoves a sock into Aelwyn's mouth, Fabian ties up her hands so that she can't spellcast, and Fig casts Minor Illusion to make it appear that she has "a little fat bulge, to make her feel bad" . Suddenly, the group remembers that Riz is dying in the yard and Fig rushes to heal him.
Riz asks Percival if the elemental cheerleaders often come to their parties. Percival tells the group that the Hudol girls throw parties, conceal them from divination, and don't invite any of the boys. The boys began paying Aelwyn to come to their parties and create elemental cheerleaders. Adaine asks him to repeat what he just said so that she can tell her parents and Fig takes out a crystal to record him. He gladly repeats himself and the Hudol students begin vanishing away.
Fig uses Thaumaturgy to make herself look like a demonic goddess, casts Whispers of Terror on Aelwyn, and asks her, "Where do you and your bitches party?" After they take the sock out of her mouth, Aelwyn reveals that she goes to Ostentatia's house to create the elementals for the Hudol boys. Ostentatia Wallace's father arrives and is distraught over the state of his home. Adaine and Fig both cast spells to try and make the house look better than it is, to no avail. Adaine apologizes to him, tells him to call the police, and informs him that Aelwyn trapped Ostentatia inside the palimpsest. He wonders if he should put Ostentatia into Mumple to keep her safe, but The Bad Kids quickly protest. He calls the police.
Riz asks Aelwyn why she was trapping girls inside crystals. Aelwyn tells him that Ostentatia was her first try. They ask her where she got the idea from and she cryptically says that they should already know. Aelwyn is smug at their confusion and tells them to just kill her; The Bad Kids instead threaten to send her to Mumple and give her a Mumple uniform in her size from Adaine's Jacket of Useful Things. A fearful Aelwyn tells Adaine to look in her room at their house and says that she literally cannot tell her anything.
The cops arrive and Sklonda Gukgak is upset to find that Riz is, once again, in the middle of a demolished crime scene. He tells her that Aelwyn trapped Ostentatia in a palimpsest and that they were trying to stop her. Sklonda asks him to please stop taking the law into his on hands. The police provide a ladder to get down from the roof, but only Kristen uses it; everyone else jumps off, uses magic, or climbs down the side of the house. As Aelwyn is brought down off the roof, Angwyn and Arianwen Abernant arrive. Adaine greets them coolly. Angwyn tells the police that there's been a misunderstanding, his entire family is protected by diplomatic immunity, and the police must release Aelwyn at once. Adaine asks him if Aelwyn still going to get in trouble; she trapped a girl in a palimpsest and lied about studying so she could go to a party. Angwyn maintains Aelwyn's innocence even when presented with the recording of Percival. Kristen whispers to Adaine to check Aelwyn's room when she gets home. Riz pulls Adaine aside and asks her if they should steal her parents' car so they don't have a chance to destroy any evidence before the party can get to it. The Bad Kids begin formulating a plan for getting to Adaine's house.
Angwyn is incredibly rude to Sklonda, and Adaine turns bright red with embarrassment and anger. Angwyn demands that Aelwyn is released at once. Sklonda, with a gleam in her eye, tells him flatly that diplomatic immunity can be revoked if any member of the diplomat's family feels unsafe in the presence of said individual. Adaine immediately pipes up and declares that she feels unsafe. Sklonda thanks her, grabs Aelwyn, and shoves her into the back of a cop car. Angwyn, furious at Adaine and Sklonda, demands again that Aelwyn be released. Sklonda tells him to go fuck himself, and the party gushes about what a great mom Sklonda is. Before getting all the way in the car, Aelwyn makes flirty eye contact with Fabian. Sklonda tells Riz to go home and pulls away in the cruiser to take Aelwyn to the police station downtown.
Adaine, Riz, and Fabian take The Hangman to Adaine's house to beat her parents there. They go straight to Aelwyn's room and begin investigating. Riz discovers drugs, money hidden under the bed, handcuffs, and a couple of loaded guns. Fabian sneakily takes the handcuffs. Adaine looks in Aelwyn's spell books and finds both Modify Memory and Conjure Elemental. She also finds a third spell that was apparently crafted by Aelwyn with the help of the notes she borrowed from Adaine. The spell has a disturbing name: Detect Maiden. Riz tells the group about the dream he had where Penny told him she was running out of time.
Riz also finds the runic circle around the model of The Harpy that Adaine found earlier in the closet. Adaine's Identify spell reveals that it is an effigy used in the casting of long-range evocation spells. The storm summoning sigil uses a small effigy that is carved to resemble the target of the spell. This wooden model of The Harpy was made from wood that was taken from the actual Harpy itself, making the spell almost impossible to avoid. The runes outside of the actual evocation spell include an element of illusion magic to hide the spell from powerful diviners such as prophets and oracles. Adaine asks if she can discover when the spell will hit The Harpy; the Identify spell reveals that it was already cast on September 1st of the previous year. Adaine is confused because the ship that the Elven Oracle died on was called The Cerulean. They realize that if anyone would know about the ships, it would be Fabian's dad. They take pictures of all the evidence, text the group chat that they're going to Fabian's house, and exit the Abernant home.
As they walk out the front door, they see Adaine's parents coming up the garden path. Angwyn scolds Adaine and tells her that there will be "drastic consequences". Adaine tells him that they have always favored Aelwyn, even though she's not inherently better than Adaine, and that Adaine is, in many ways, better than Aelwyn. Angwyn begins to tell Adaine that she should apply herself more to her studies and Adaine casts Invisibility on herself. Angwyn, believing she teleported away, storms off into the house. Arianwen stays behind, saying aloud that Angwyn isn't a very talented practical caster and that he was never good at identifying spells. She tells Adaine that she believes her and that she's very sorry. A tear forms in her eye and she walks into the house. Riz, Fabian, and Adaine briefly discuss how awkward that conversation was before heading off to Seacaster Manor.
Meanwhile, Fig, Kristen, and Gorgug go to the Elmville Police Station. Fig casts Disguise Self as Penelope Everpetal and enters the police precinct to try and talk to Aelwyn. Fig (as Penelope) asks to speak to Aelwyn, but the cop at the front desk tells her that Aelwyn isn't taking visitors. Gorgug briefly thinks that the cop is his father until the cop asks him if he's "that freaky kid who steals backpacks". Gorgug gets the sense that this cop is just generally antagonistic. Fig tells him that she can call Mr. Everpetal down to the station if there's a problem, and he takes her to the cell where Aelwyn is being held.
Fig, disguised as Penelope, asks Aelwyn what happened. Aelwyn says that she was caught by her sister. Fig asks where the crystal is and Aelwyn tells her that it's probably in the evidence locker. Fig tells Aelwyn that "he's not going to be happy" and asks her if she wants her "to talk to him for her". Aelwyn agrees. Fig tries to ask Aelwyn if she knows where "he" is, but Aelwyn says, "You know that I don't know" and that he only contacted Aelwyn through Penelope. Fig says she needs to use the bathroom. She climbs out of the bathroom window, runs around to the front of the police precinct, and knocks on the door to tell Gorgug and Kristen to come outside. They decide to meet the other half of the party at Fabian's house.
Outside Fabian's house, the party discusses the Harpy carving and the runes that surrounded it. Kristen examines the photographs and determines that it is neither good nor evil; it was a powerful storm evocation that sunk a ship. They question why Aelwyn would still have the effigy if the spell had already been cast. The group enters Seacaster Manor and finds Bill Seacaster in the drawing room with the same banker from Episode 11, Mr. Hughes. Bill greets the party warmly and commends them on their battle scars. Fabian boldly begins to ask his father about the The Harpy, but the party quickly cuts him off and pulls him off to the side to talk for a second. They tell Fabian that they probably shouldn't be mentioning anything about the ship in front of the banker.
While the rest of the party talks to Fabian, Fig talks to Mr. Hughes. He tells her that he works for KVX Bank, which is based out of Bastion City. Fig asks him if KVX is the bank that doesn't have free lollipops or pens and he confirms it. Kristen cries out that she's bored at Mr. Hughes' dull conversation. Bill Seacaster tells her that he and Mr. Hughes are in the same line of work: they're both thieves. Adaine says that she thought Bill was a privateer; Bill, confused, emphatically tells her that he's a pirate, through and through. Fabian tells Bill that he tells people his father is a privateer "in mixed company" so he can come off as "more of a gentleman". In an attempt to diffuse the tension, Fig shouts that Fabian made out with a hot girl earlier that night. Unfortunately, it doesn't distract Bill, who grows angry and upset because he feels that Fabian is ashamed of him. Bill kicks Mr. Hughes in the head and swings away sadly into the crow's nest.
As Riz helps Mr. Hughes up, he swipes a business card from his pocket. The card says, "Alston Hughes, KVX Bank". The KVX Bank logo is red and slanted. The card also has Mr. Hughes' crystal number and an address for an office in Bastion City. His department is called "Special Investments". The group mulls over the logo but can't decipher its meaning.
Fabian walks off into the manor toward his room. The rest of the group follows him to try and cheer him up. Fabian's room doesn't have "a ton going on". The floor is clean, the bed is massive, and a large picture of Bill hangs over the bed. There are various heirlooms and trophies hung up all over the room. Fabian lies on the bed and looks out the window sadly. Adaine apologizes for getting him in trouble and Fig offers him some gnomish whiskey. Adaine asks her if she still has the elven wine and the entire party (except for Riz) decides to get really drunk. Cathilda enters with a tray of shot glasses and asks if they'd like anything else to drink. She pours everyone a tequila shot and gives Fabian a tin of kippers. Fig gives her some Bardic Inspiration. The group thanks Cathilda and she leaves.
Riz apologizes for being a downer but asks Fabian why he thinks that his father was talking to Mr. Hughes. The group tosses out many ideas for gathering information, including taking a road trip to Bastion City and stealing Bill Seacaster's phone. Ultimately, they decide to check the KVX Bank website to try and discover what "Special Investments" means. Fabian's massive wall of computer screens lights up and the party interacts with the pirate-themed interface, using Fantasy Google to navigate their way to the website. They go to the description of Alston Hughes, who is described as the Head of Special Investments. His blurb is, essentially, corporate gibberish: "Helping the bank make specific individual investments to further the dynamic mission statement of this bank". Adaine suggests they look for conspiracy theories on Fantasy Reddit, but Fabian stops her and asks what information, exactly, are supposed to be looking for.
The group reviews the facts: Penelope Everpetal is involved, Penelope is the reason that Aelwyn captured Ostentatia at the party, and KVX Bank is "shady as hell". They Fantasy Google Penelope and find her social media account. It's filled with pictures of her with Dayne, on vacation, and one with Sam Nightingale. Riz, through sophisticated account-hopping, finds a folder of old photos that Penelope untagged herself from. There are pictures of Penelope with Penny Luckstone, Katya Cleaver, Danielle Barkstock, Antiope Jones, Sam Nightingale, and Ostentatia Wallace. There is one photo, posted earlier that same day, of Penelope with Zelda Donovan. The group quickly deduces that Zelda is Penelope's next victim.
Continuing to review information, Fig reads some of the history they learned about Kalvaxus and his empire in the Red Waste. Adaine suddenly realizes that "KVX" stands for Kalvaxus. Adaine tells Riz that his father was in the Solesian Secret Service and died on The Harpy earlier that year. Riz, confused, corrects her - his dad died five years ago - but the group continues to ruminate on what the sinking of The Harpy means and whether or not it was intended to start a war between two countries, possibly Spyre and Highcourt. Gorgug says, "Maybe we don't have all the answers." Adaine replies, "I don't think that we do, but I feel like we're closer."
Fig tries to call Gorthalax to ask him about Kalvaxus and whether he is immortal, but the call doesn't go through. Gorgug, with the help of the party, tries to text Zelda to ask her to meet up that night, but he doesn't have her crystal number. He asks Fabian if he can use his computer, but Fabian says no, and accidentally pulls up porn on the screen, which is eye-opening for Kristen. Finally, Gorgug decides to just use his crystal to talk to Zelda. He finds her social media account and friend-requests her. Zelda accepts it, then immediately unfriends him, then friend-requests him, then deletes it, and continues in this cycle. The group worries briefly that she might already be in danger, but they realize that she's just nervous about talking to Gorgug. The group helps Gorgug write his first message. After a few minutes of debate, Gorgug sends the following message:
Hey, how's your semester, I think you might be in trouble? lol
Zelda responds:
not much, you?
*good not not much
**not not much
i didn't mean to type not much, i meant to say good
my semester's going good
i'm in trouble lol? like, how
do you... lol... what?
Gorgug says:
Hey, do you wanna get ice cream tonight? I know that's wild lol
There is a long, two-minute pause. The group despairs. Finally, Zelda responds:
so sorry, i dropped my phone in the toilet
i'm on my computer now
lol forget about the toilet thing
that didn't happen
something else happened
i took a pause in the conversation for a different reason
not the toilet
forget about the toilet thing i said
Fabian tells Gorgug that he cannot date Zelda, Kristen says he absolutely should, Adaine asks Fabian who else Gorgug is supposed to date, and Fabian concedes. Zelda says:
on my way to basrar's right now lol
hope that you like banana sundaes
because i also like them
and then that would be a thing we had in common
Gorgug artfully replies:
That would be a good thing for me, too, to eat a banana split. I guess I like them too.
Fig berates Gorgug for saying "I guess" - "Commit, man!" - and the group decides to head over to Basrar's. On the way, Riz is grappling with the possibility that his father might have also died in a shipwreck, but one that happened five years ago. He remembers that his father died on the first Saturday after September 1st five years ago. Fig texts her dad and tells him that they're going to Basrar's if he wants to meet them there. She also asks him if he knows anything about Kalvaxus. She doesn't get an immediate response. The group discusses whether or not the event of perditional controdoxy was intended to bring about a monarchy. Fig reminds the group that Penelope wanted to bring about a monarchy; she was petitioning to be Prom Queen.
The party arrives at Basrar's with full health and finds Zelda seated at a booth, holding a rose. They give Gorgug a pep talk before he goes to talk to Zelda. They tell him to ask her about how she knows Penelope, but they also remind him that he's a great guy and that he should be confident.
The rest of The Bad Kids sit in a booth across the room. Adaine reviews her notes and remembers that Sklonda had not said that Riz's dad had died in a shipwreck, but that he had died on a mission of some kind. Her wording was unclear enough that she may have meant to say that the mission had something to do with the shipwreck. Adaine explains this to Riz, who considers asking his mom about it later.
Gorgug approaches Zelda, who immediately tenses up. She notices Gorgug's friends and asks him if the date was a prank, but Gorgug reassures her that they just came because they wanted ice cream, too. Adaine sends Gorgug a text:
Tell her she looks nice!
Fig also sends him some Bardic Inspiration, but he fails to put her at ease. They both admit that they're nervous. Zelda describes his friends as "popular and loud". The rest of the party laughs, screams, and plays various instruments on the other side of the room as Gorgug tells her that he wishes they would be quiet more often.
Basrar approaches Zelda and Gorgug, congratulates the "young couple", and asks if they're celebrating an anniversary. Zelda, panicking, eats the rose she had brought for Gorgug. Gorgug asks Basrar if he could get them a sundae with flowers on it, but Basrar sorrowfully tells him that he can only grant ice-cream-related wishes. The teens order a flower-flavored sundae instead and Gorgug pays. Zelda explains that her family worships the god of wine and ecstasy and that she's training to be a battle dancer. Zelda gets embarrassed and says that it makes some people think she's a freak, but Gorgug insists that he thinks it's really cool. She tells him that the reason she acted weird when Gorgug fought Ragh in Episode 5 was because she thought it was really hot when Gorgug went into a rage. Gorgug asks her if she rages, and she tells him that she does, but that she can't be in the regular barbarian classes at school because her divinity makes her rage so intense. Gorgug tells her that he thinks it's awesome.
Gorgug asks Zelda if she knows Penelope. She says that she doesn't really, but Penelope asked her to hang out earlier that day. He tells her that he and his friends think that Penelope has been acting pretty weird. Zelda agrees that she doesn't really know why Penelope is doing this. She reveals that Penelope asked her if she and Gorgug had hooked up; she and Gorgug confess to each other that they're virgins. Gorgug tells Zelda that Penelope might be a bad person. Zelda says that, although Penelope asked to hang out with her at school the next day, she's not going to. Gorgug asks Zelda what kind of music she likes. Zelda gives a long list of variations of emo and metal music. In the middle of her listing genres, Fig throws something at the back of Gorgug's head. Zelda asks him what he listens to and he says, "The same stuff".
Riz goes outside to see if anyone has followed Zelda and finds nothing. Fig has still not heard back from Gorthalax. Adaine does a ritual casting of Detect Magic on Zelda to see if she can find anything weird. She finds besides a trace of divine magic, which isn't out of the ordinary. Zelda tells Gorgug that, although her parents get mad at her if she doesn't stay out too late, she should go home. Gorgug tells her that his parents are gnomes as a drunk Kristen shouts, "You should go home together!" Zelda, incredibly embarrassed, says goodbye and runs away.
The group debates as to whether or not they should follow Zelda home and keep watch at her house overnight. Most of the party offers to keep watch, but they accept that they all need to rest to get their strength and spell slots back. Finally, The Hangman offers to go to Zelda's house and keep watch over her. Adaine and Kristen stay with Fig and Riz at Strongtower Luxury Apartments.
Fabian returns to Seacaster Manor and goes to talk to his father in the Crow's Keep. Fabian tells him that he is Bill's son, "through and through", but that he isn't a pirate. Fabian shows his father the model of The Harpy from Aelwyn's bedroom. Bill calls it a cursed ship, explaining that it was once the flagship of Kalvaxis' navy centuries ago. Bill says that The Harpy, along with the rest of Kalxavus' wealth, was destroyed long ago. The ship was fearsome; it was imbued with illusory magic and could become invisible, look like another ship, cloak itself, and disguise itself. Bill asks Fabian if he is the captain of the Owlbears. Fabian replies that he killed the coach of the Owlbears, which would make him King of the Owlbears. Bill says that he can tell that Fabian's friends view him as an equal, not as someone to be feared, before saying, "I don't know what you're captain of, Fabian." Bill sends Fabian away.
Cathilda checks on Fabian and asks him if he's alright. Fabian replies that he is: he just isn't used to his father being angry with him. Cathilda consoles him, saying that sometimes parents get upset as their children grow older because they realize that they're running out of time to help their children change for the better. She pinches his cheek and goes off to get him some kippers.
Gorgug arrives at the Thistlespring Tree. His parents are outside, working together on welding some tall apparatus. They tell Gorgug that they're creating a power source for the new arcade at the Elm Valley Mall. Gorgug is about to go to bed, but then tells his parents that he went on a date earlier that night. His parents are incredibly excited for him and very supportive. They tell him that if he ever wants to "have a drink," "do a smoke", or "kiss somebody", they prefer that he do it at the tree where they know he's safe. His parents mishear something Gorgug says, and it leads to a brief lesson about "docking". They also give him a lecture on the importance of consent and respect as Gorgug tries to end the conversation and go to bed. They put on some music to "give Gorgug some privacy".
The other four Bad Kids are staying at Strongtower Luxury Apartments. Gilear washes steak sauce out of his hair and Adaine casts Mending in an attempt to help. Gilear tells them that a student at Aguefort dumped a plate of Salisbury steak on his head. When questioned by Fig, he reveals the student to be Ragh Barkrock. The Bad Kids vow to fuck him up. A ridiculously drunk Kristen tells the group a secret: "I think I like girls." The group tells her that she definitely does and that they already know. Kristen tells them that she hasn't told that to anyone before and that they can't tell anyone else. Fig encourages Kristen to tell everyone, especially Tracker. Kristen immediately falls asleep on the floor.
Gilear asks Adaine, since she is staying in the apartment complex for the night, if a room has opened up in her house. Adaine tells him no, saving him from the ordeal of asking her parents himself. Fig tells him that Adaine's house sucks compared to his apartment. Gilear unconvincingly agrees. Adaine questions Gilear about The Harpy and the death of the Elven Oracle; he doesn't know much, but they bond over their disbelief that the Elven Oracle died despite being able to see the future. Riz turns a sleeping Kristen on her side so she doesn't choke on her own vomit.
Fig asks Gilear if he had seen Gorthalax lately. He tells her that he saw him earlier that day, and that he was on his way to speak with Sandra Lynn. Fig grimaces as Gilear hypothesizes that Gorthalax and Sandra Lynn are hooking up. Riz asks Gilear how it's going with his mother, but Gilear says that Sklonda is "too much woman" for him to handle. Fig protests, but Gilear counters with the fact that there is steak sauce in his hair and that their dinner that night is an order of garlic knots mistakenly ordered from a pizza that he found. Fig brings Gilear over to the mirror and makes him say some positive affirmations to himself. He deeply struggles with "I believe in me". She tells him that she's proud of him and Gilear leaves to try to get free snacks from the vending machine. Riz leaves to go to his apartment and wait for his mom to get home. After he leaves, the three girls fall asleep in Gilear's apartment. Fig and Kristen platonically snuggle.
When Riz gets to his apartment, he finds his mom's full box of case information on the kitchen table. After a brief period of internal debate, Riz opens it. He discovers that his mom's case is being shut down at the end of the week and is becoming a federal case. The Elmville P.D. has had no success with getting any cooperation from Highcourt, specifically in obtaining both information and the palimpsests that were transported there. It's unclear exactly what the problem is, but a lot of incorrect information and dead ends has led to a legal clusterfuck with no successful conclusion. The case has information on The Harvestmen and the arrest of its members. Sklonda's chief is pressuring her to close the case because the arrest of The Harvestmen was a good enough accomplishment for the department. Riz realizes that the department made an error in determining Zayn Darkshadow's time of death; because he regularly took pills that lowered his body temperature, his time of death would have been much later than the police projected it to be. This means that Zayn was murdered during the same window of time that Biz Glitterdew was attacked in his home weeks earlier. Both the murder and the attack were attributed to Coach Daybreak; but, with this new realization, Riz understands that Coach Daybreak could only have been responsible for one of them and that someone else had to have been involved. Riz also finds records of money being paid from KVX Bank to Bill Seacaster. It doesn't appear that the investigation was targeting Bill or that he was responsible for the block of information from Highcourt. A main piece of evidence in the case file is a handwritten letter from Coach Daybreak to an unidentified contact in Highcourt about obtaining more palimpsests.
Suddenly, Edgar the rat jumps out of Riz's briefcase, runs over to an area behind Sklonda's desk, and starts pawing at the wall. Riz investigates the wall and finds a secret door in the wall blocked by the placement of the desk. He enters and finds a small, dark room with two desks. Almost everything is covered in dust. One of the desks has a picture of Riz's father lying face down on it - Sklonda likely sits here to look at Pok's picture and have a drink. The other desk has a small picture of Riz as a baby with his mom - this desk obviously belonged to Pok. Riz starts going through his dad's desk. He finds a picture of Sklonda standing next to Pok, but it's a version of Pok that Riz has never seen before, Riz remembered his father as a typical office clerk; in this picture, he's wearing a black tuxedo and an arquebus in a holster. Riz discovers that his father was a secret agent who infiltrated evil armies for the Solesian government. Riz finds evidence that Pok collected about The Harpy. On a report of its supposed destruction, Pok had written a note saying, "Wrong ship, dud, never destroyed". There is also a side-by-side picture of The Harpy and The Cerulean. Underneath that, Pok wrote, "Illusory capabilities... same ship".
Riz notices Edgar scrounging around on the ground for something and finds Zayn Darkshadow's necromancer's pearl that the party was given in Episode 7. The pearl is now gray, signifying that Zayn is neither fully dead nor fully alive. Riz also finds a small crystal on his dad's desk. When he interacts with it, it starts playing a video. Pok comes into view, fiddling with the crystal and setting up the camera. A nine-year-old Riz plays with a magnifying glass on the couch until Sklonda picks him up and carries him out of the room. Pok speaks to the camera as Riz occasionally runs in and out of frame. He looks into the camera and says,
"Okay, this is Pok Gukgak recording. It is August 31st, about to head out on a dangerous mission. Bud... you're nine years old right now. I've already said goodbye to you, but I don't think you really know how dangerous this is and I don't really want to tell you. God, I had a whole thing prepared and now it feels kinda stupid. Kiddo, there's a lot I that I wanna be around to be able to tell you. The world's a hard place for goblins. We're small. People look at us and see an image of a certain kind of creature. Something that is wicked and disposable. Threatening, but also kind of a joke. It's the worst of all worlds. It's not really fair, but... you have a ton of work ahead of you that, in a more just world, you wouldn't have to do. Knowing how hard a road you have ahead of you, I wanna say this: I'm not worried about you at all. I got nothing but hopes for you, kid. And... hopefully you'll never have to see this. Clues are always out there. And the one thing nobody's counting on is that you'll never give up. When you're smaller than everything else in the world, the one thing you can have bigger than everybody is will and grit. And that's you, kiddo. Love you, pal."
The video ends. Riz quietly tells his dad that he loves him. Then, he immediately starts looking for Pok's gun so he can kill whoever killed his father with his own gun. Riz finds the gun - midnight black arquebus with a silencer and a bandoleer of twenty magical bullets. Riz hears his mom unlocking the apartment door and waits for her to find him there. She walks into the secret room and Riz tells her that he knows about Pok. She tells Riz that a part of her hoped that he wouldn't follow the same path as his father. Riz tells her that there was no other way; they're a trio of goblin badasses, and he's so happy to finally know the truth. Sklonda tells him that his reaction - that of pure excitement - is the reaction she was trying to avoid because "the world is gonna knock you on your ass, kid". They hug, and Sklonda tells Riz that they can go visit Pok's grave sometime soon so she can tell Riz all about him. Riz apologizes for going through his mom's stuff and she says that it's okay; finding out through snooping was probably the best way it could have happened.
The Bad Kids meet up at school the next day. Fabian bursts in and announces that he cracked the case overnight. The group shushes him, but he tells them what he learned about The Harpy's wards against divination magic. Riz reveals what he learned about his father and shows off his cool new gun. He also tells them that The Harpy and The Cerulean are almost certainly the same ship. Kristen tells the group a secret of her own: she is gay. The group tells her that they already know and she already told them. She gives them an Inspiring Speech, during which she kisses all of them.
The group returns to their discussion of their newly gathered information. Fig posits the theory that KVX Bank is bribing Bill Seacaster to keep quiet because he knows that The Cerulean was actually The Harpy. Kristen mentions the Zayn/Biz attack discrepancy and asks Fabian if he thinks Bill was the other assailant. Fabian replies by saying his father couldn't be beaten into anything. Gorgug tells the group that his parents are working on a power source for the arcade. Adaine reminds the group that they're looking for a power source to deal with the palimpsest they have.
At that moment, The Hangman contacts Fabian and alerts him to trouble at Zelda Donovan's house. The group tries to convince Gilear to drive them to Zelda's house. As Gilear protests, Riz successfully picks his pockets and steals his car keys. The group tells him to get back to work and they thank him for his hard work. The group bamboozles him with varying pieces of information, including an offer of Elven bread and further affirmation of Kristen's sexuality. The Bad Kids take off in Gilear's car. When they get to Zelda's house, they find The Hangman covered in blood in the front yard. It is surrounded by a group of shirtless satyr warriors and the dead bodies of several elemental creatures and fiends. One of the satyrs asks the group which one of them is "the boyfriend". Fabian pushes Gorgug forward. The satyr lifts him up, firmly kisses him on the mouth, and introduces himself as Zelda's father. He holds out a palimpsest to the group and tells them that Zelda is trapped inside. The party takes the palimpsest and tells Zelda's family that they will try to get her out.
Adaine investigates the summoned creatures using Detect Magic and discovers that it was her sister's magic. The group deduces that Aelwyn must have gotten out of prison somehow. Adaine gets a text from her mother with a news article. The Solesian government discovered that an elven strike team liberated a diplomatic family member from custody; in response, Solace declared war on Fallinel. Gorgug suggests that they text Biz and ask him for help with the palimpsest. Kristen suggests Strongtower Luxury Apartments as their new "headquarters" instead of school. Riz agrees, saying, "There's a war, fuck school." The party picks Biz up from his house and heads to Gorgug's house. On the way, the group looks deeper into the article describing the declaration of war. They find that Aelwyn has been remanded to elven custody.
The party arrives at the Thistlespring Tree. Fig goes into "bouncer mode" and patrols the perimeter. Gorgug tells his parents and Biz that Zelda is trapped in the palimpsest. Biz gets an idea: he tells the party to meet him in the new arcade at the Elm Valley Mall later that night. Since they can't move the Thistlespring's power source with Gilear's car, they can go to the arcade after it's already been transported there and use it to break into the palimpsest. Kristen questions why the power source was on its way to the arcade already, noting that it's a suspicious coincidence. The group dismisses this, though, choosing to prioritize doing whatever they can to save Zelda. Fig texts Gilear to tell him that they need to borrow his car for a bit longer. Gilear responds by saying that he had already reported the theft to the police and that she needs to tell him these things in advance.
The party heads to the mall after-hours with the Thistlesprings. Gorgug asks his parents to leave after they set up the power source, saying that the party can handle it from there. The Thistlesprings agree and leave the arcade. Adaine sends her mom a passive-aggressive text. Kristen somehow obtains a margarita in a novelty cup. Biz asks Riz to help him move something into the back room. In the back room, Riz notices a video game console called "Lucky Stones". A halfling girl appears on the screen and says, "Hi, I'm Penny! Wanna play?" Riz starts to freak the fuck out.
In the front room, Adaine casts Detect Magic on one of the games in the arcade and finds powerful conjuration magic. Kristen casts Detect Good and Evil on the arcade and finds a faint malevolent presence in the same game. Adaine taps some of the buttons and the game powers up. It's a fighting game with a character named Katya - another one of the missing Aguefort girls. Kristen casts Guardian of Faith.
In the back room, Biz notices that Riz seems off. Riz tells him that he recognizes his babysitter in the arcade game. Biz gives a "nice guy" speech about how "guys like us don't really get a chance to be cool" and how "hot guys get all the attention". Biz pulls a blank palimpsest out of his pocket and says, "We get to call the shots when they're in here." Riz, pretending to be impressed, asks if Biz is the one who set up the palimpsests; Biz responds by saying that he's good at what he does. Biz says that he got an extra palimpsest from his new supplier that he intends to use to trap Adaine. Riz asks if he can see the palimpsest. Biz asks if he's in, and Riz eagerly affirms it. Biz hands over the palimpsest and Riz immediately draws his gun. The Bad Kids roll initiative.
Locations[]
- Wallace Residence
- Abernant Home
- Elmville Police Station
- Seacaster Manor
- Basrar's Soda Fountain
- Thistlespring Tree
- Strongtower Luxury Apartments
- Aguefort Adventuring Academy
- Zelda Donovan's House