[UNKNOWN]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_03]: getting a character.
[SPEAKER_07]: R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R. R.
[SPEAKER_08]: That's just it's good things to do.
[SPEAKER_08]: In the immortal words of the tick, smells like ambush.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, well, I, you know, I think it's just good.
[SPEAKER_07]: You know, I think the people sometimes crave.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh, look at how this sausage is made.
[SPEAKER_07]: You know, and sometimes podcasting is about collectively with a group of friends, making weird noises with your mouths.
[SPEAKER_07]: But I am GM Nathan as per usual around the table with the excellent players here who make even better mouth sounds that I'm so excited once more to roll some dice with and make some goofs with.
[SPEAKER_07]: Starting with the individual sort of to my left, but not directly to my left.
[SPEAKER_05]: Hi everyone.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm Jonathan and I play checkers the grung through it and it's just your frog pals mango and junior and now that combat is kind of over and we're in this little dense conversation negotiation kind of thing checkers is just staring down some own the giant snake creature just like what what what are you gonna do huh what you got
[SPEAKER_05]: So we're having a stand-off over here in the corner.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh god, I'm just imagining in the background and every you know like the the eventual visual novel that is going to be created from our campaign just in the background of every single shot is Mango and Simone just staring daggers for each other.
[SPEAKER_05]: Mm-hmm
[SPEAKER_05]: and to my left.
[SPEAKER_05]: Hi, everyone.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm David and I play Cascar and Brightmean, the door of an sorcerer.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think that there's nothing that says that you are on the right side of the law more than a giant twenty foot tall sky whale plushy holding a sword.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, the well.
[SPEAKER_07]: I mean, celestially alignment speaking, you have a compelling argument.
[SPEAKER_05]: Because I mean, like, what kind of place, like, there's no better place of power to negotiate from than literal divine symbol glowing for all to see that Skywall's are pretty good, actually.
[SPEAKER_07]: It does stay there for eight hours, still there.
[SPEAKER_02]: Unless it drops to zero hit points, but it's got forty seven of them.
[SPEAKER_08]: It'll be there for a bit, I'm sure.
[SPEAKER_08]: And to my left.
[SPEAKER_08]: Hi everyone, my name is Steve and I am playing SELVE Asterlin, the Dragonborn monk who at this very moment does not know that combat has ended and so they're quite possibly could be
[SPEAKER_08]: more great rain of whalers as they plummet down from the sky ship after getting knocked off, but he does also have a pretty high passive perception, so maybe sell will notice that the fighting has stopped down below and maybe there won't be a rain of whalers.
[SPEAKER_07]: Uh, for any listeners that kind of in the future, uh, if you hear dice sounds rolling in the background of just normal dialogue, it is because Steve is also secretly still doing a combat, totally by himself.
[SPEAKER_07]: And we are running that simultaneously and don't worry, we'll, we'll let catch you up later.
[SPEAKER_07]: And across from me.
[SPEAKER_02]: Hi, everyone.
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm Sophie, I play a less Carter, the human-astrict cleric, astric of the Archana domain.
[SPEAKER_02]: And Val is trying to turn down her bloodlust and turn on her logical reasoning skills.
[SPEAKER_02]: It's not going great, but you know, she's trying.
[SPEAKER_07]: So, we find ourselves in a very interesting situation here with all of our various guilders.
[SPEAKER_07]: I would say kind of the one having the least tense time at the moment, might be the one who is approximately two hundred and seventy feet up above everyone.
[SPEAKER_07]: Because, self-assulin finds himself in a maybe empty skyship, still tethered to the ground while the rest of the guilders
[SPEAKER_07]: are still in kind of a standoff with that ship's crew including, of course.
[SPEAKER_07]: Captain Silvertooth Livingstone, the largest dwarf that you have ever seen.
[SPEAKER_07]: Things have gone strangely.
[SPEAKER_07]: I feel like there's a lot of swings of momentum across the comet that we've had the last episode in half.
[SPEAKER_07]: But things are paused, at least for the moment.
[SPEAKER_07]: Captain Living Stone.
[SPEAKER_07]: Locks eyes with each of you.
[SPEAKER_07]: Again, as a reminder, I think he was a towering five foot eight, and therefore equally as wide on.
[SPEAKER_02]: He is taller than everyone down here.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, that's in our part.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, you loom, loom.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, he's the eight inches taller than all of us.
[SPEAKER_08]: Wow, I really thought about that actual head and shoulders.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_08]: Wow.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, when when self is not a part of the immediate.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_08]: Oh, yeah, average height plummet.
[SPEAKER_08]: plummet, absolutely.
[SPEAKER_05]: Technically, it's a large creature given that he can't fit in a five foot square.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh, he's five foot.
[SPEAKER_05]: He's five foot eight.
[SPEAKER_05]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_07]: Guys, we got to go back to the end of the start of the combat because I have everything would have been different.
[SPEAKER_07]: I had I know that he's technically one and a half squares.
[SPEAKER_07]: So
[SPEAKER_07]: He's glaring at you with his one good eye still, a light with this kind of reddish, very focused bit of light that you can see still traces onto your chests as he looks around at each of you and makes eye contact.
[SPEAKER_07]: At his feet is a magical wand that spouted gouts of flame
[SPEAKER_07]: Behind him, some of his loyal crew.
[SPEAKER_07]: And he, he hasn't raised his arms in surrender.
[SPEAKER_07]: But he has his palms out to you all.
[SPEAKER_07]: All right, all right.
[SPEAKER_07]: Let's talk.
[SPEAKER_07]: And the last words, as I recall, were close enough, with something about the Pharaohs.
[SPEAKER_02]: Oh, yes, yes.
[SPEAKER_07]: a very if there's an organization that can both be extremely well known and also extremely mysterious it is them.
[SPEAKER_07]: Long story short, they are an organization filled with spies, with assassins, with power brokers, generally, who have for centuries and centuries had their nimble little fingers and a whole bunch of pots, including the recent attempted theft of some fire dragon eggs from a certain fire dragon avi during a certain martial arts tournament.
[SPEAKER_07]: And so he has dropped this on you.
[SPEAKER_07]: He says, if you want more information, but what's facing you and yours back at the Red City, I'll share it, but I'll need some assurances for me in my men.
[SPEAKER_07]: And he looks around at each of you, waiting for the next move and would assure to be a grand chess game.
[SPEAKER_05]: This feels a little bit silly, but can I make an insight check and see, oh, does he actually have information?
[SPEAKER_07]: I think a hundred percent that's a perfect thing to do.
[SPEAKER_05]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_05]: Because like it, it really is just like, can we even negotiate with him?
[SPEAKER_07]: Absolutely.
[SPEAKER_07]: And this is specifically if he's telling the truth about, uh, I'm knowing things about the fairies.
[SPEAKER_05]: Absolutely.
[SPEAKER_05]: How that would impact the red city.
[SPEAKER_07]: Mm-hmm.
[SPEAKER_05]: That is, my was a zombie high, so it's a sixteen.
[SPEAKER_07]: That is enough.
[SPEAKER_07]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_07]: Actually, it seems like he's got something.
[SPEAKER_07]: I'll put it this way.
[SPEAKER_07]: It's not quite high enough that you're like, oh, he's definitely telling the truth and it's something juicy or it's nothing.
[SPEAKER_07]: But he is sincere in that he has information.
[SPEAKER_07]: Gotcha.
[SPEAKER_05]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_05]: And what exactly would you know that the Raven Mount don't know?
[SPEAKER_05]: That the red guard doesn't know.
[SPEAKER_05]: That multiple cities and their best men and women could not figure it out.
[SPEAKER_05]: And yet, somehow only you have this information.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm not buying it.
[SPEAKER_07]: First of all, if your bar for knowing what's going on is the raven mounts.
[SPEAKER_07]: You should find better people to supply you your information.
[SPEAKER_07]: We've been flummixing those people for weeks, months, years at this point.
[SPEAKER_07]: And yet you're here.
[SPEAKER_07]: And yet I am.
[SPEAKER_07]: The type who may have some information for you, the person who's a skilled enough
[SPEAKER_07]: Captain and fairer of these skies to stay out of so many nets for so long.
[SPEAKER_07]: My wouldn't die have information.
[SPEAKER_07]: Hey boys, and all the other be various.
[SPEAKER_07]: Uh, God, who's even left?
[SPEAKER_07]: Uh, the various Joe's and Tim's.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_07]: The Joe's and Tim's all uh, I'll give a little bit a little.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, you tell him, you tell him, Captain, we believe in you.
[SPEAKER_07]: Are we at a point where we can like huddle?
[SPEAKER_07]: So yes, it's kind of one of those of like who's watching them.
[SPEAKER_07]: It's just the it is at the on the ground.
[SPEAKER_07]: It is just the three view guys.
[SPEAKER_07]: It is checkers slash mango and vowel and cascarin.
[SPEAKER_07]: you don't know what self is up to just yet it's only obviously been a few seconds but you can if you'd like them to also be able to huddle or them to watch you or them to you know like uh not be paid attention to whatever you're willing to give up I suppose uh vowel or mindling cast okay
[SPEAKER_05]: And checkers will just kind of keep a close eye on the Captain and the Joe's and the Tim's because he knows that like there's kind of a communication going on between Val and Cass right now.
[SPEAKER_02]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_02]: We probably can't kill them.
[SPEAKER_02]: Moreally speaking at this point.
[SPEAKER_02]: I have never wished for battle continue, but it would have been easier.
[SPEAKER_02]: morally.
[SPEAKER_02]: But now we are faced with a bit of a paradox.
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, Val?
[SPEAKER_05]: I actually don't think we are.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't think this is simple, but in low trust where I come from, we don't worships without with pirates.
[SPEAKER_05]: I saw the bounties on some of these people's heads.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I saw how long they went on for the rate of terror, stealing, killing.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I feel like I don't like any more than the next person, but I think if we let them go, if we don't somehow put a permanent stop to them here, the people who get hurt next time, the people they kill next time, the people they steal from next time, that would be on our hands.
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm not saying we let them go.
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm saying at this point, there's no law on any books that applies in the area we are in.
[SPEAKER_02]: Like, we in pirate terms aren't international waters.
[SPEAKER_02]: Agmar does not have jurisdiction here.
[SPEAKER_02]: Low trust has no jurisdiction here.
[SPEAKER_02]: I hate these men and what they have done, but morally speaking killing is wrong.
[SPEAKER_05]: I think you have a point, but like you said, there is no law that applies here.
[SPEAKER_05]: If we send them back to Agmar, if we have them fly the ship, if we fly the ship back and draw them off,
[SPEAKER_05]: What's gonna happen?
[SPEAKER_05]: They're gonna be forced to community service for not for killing skywheels, but probably for stealing.
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm sure we could add the charge of killing skywheels.
[SPEAKER_05]: But still, that's what, longer community service?
[SPEAKER_02]: True.
[SPEAKER_02]: Could we call the raven mounts?
[SPEAKER_05]: Yes, but now, again, international waters that ravenants don't have legal right down here.
[SPEAKER_05]: We would be sending them back to deep wood.
[SPEAKER_05]: I think that Ravennons have enough to deal with on their hands with the ultra-giant.
[SPEAKER_05]: I think we have the ability to provide a solution here.
[SPEAKER_05]: This is no different than making pirates walk the plank.
[SPEAKER_05]: In actual waters.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, sure we don't see them die, but we all know what happens to them.
[SPEAKER_07]: Checkers.
[SPEAKER_07]: You see the captain fishing with something.
[SPEAKER_05]: In the guise of... maybe approaching the captain.
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers is actually gonna... go up and say... Got the living stone, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: I... You're the captain of the sky stalker?
[SPEAKER_05]: I... You don't know me, but I've actually been a huge fan of yours for a while.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh no, you introduced yourself's good and well.
[SPEAKER_05]: Then you know I'm Captain Checkers.
[SPEAKER_07]: I had assumed as much yes.
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, either way.
[SPEAKER_05]: Can I get your autograph?
[SPEAKER_05]: And Chuck is going to pull out his own little hand-drawn captain living stone trading card.
[SPEAKER_05]: He doesn't have a name for it.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's just a captain with a captain's hat.
[SPEAKER_05]: But now he's scribbled in captain silver to the living stone.
[SPEAKER_05]: So he knows who this person is.
[SPEAKER_07]: Eagle-eyed listeners will actually notice that there's one either bonus or action that Chuckers did not do.
[SPEAKER_07]: And that's what it was used for.
[SPEAKER_05]: So he's actually been keeping an eye on the sky stalker for a while now and he has like sort of little crayon drawing as of all the different crew members.
[SPEAKER_05]: So in addition to asking the captain for his autograph, he's going to go around just like see if he can match the faces from his trading cards onto the different Joe's and Tim's.
[SPEAKER_05]: And like he looks at a craig over there on the ground he's like okay that one's retired.
[SPEAKER_07]: Give me a give me a persuasion check.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh, I'm so good at this.
[SPEAKER_05]: Can I use intimidation?
[SPEAKER_07]: No.
[SPEAKER_05]: No, not with this situation going on.
[SPEAKER_05]: Just like take a autograph at a knife point.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: I rolled a fifteen dollar die for a fourteen total.
[SPEAKER_05]: Don't you have a bandage on this?
[SPEAKER_08]: Not for Slajjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj
[SPEAKER_07]: I don't know if I could make that soon.
[SPEAKER_07]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_07]: Well, I suggest you get in on whatever weirdness is going in but on between your other two party members.
[SPEAKER_05]: Cass, foul, can we let them go?
[SPEAKER_05]: I want their autographs.
[SPEAKER_05]: No.
[SPEAKER_05]: You won't sign my card until we let them go.
[SPEAKER_05]: Too bad.
[SPEAKER_05]: Alright, Captain Livingstone, you drive a hard bargain.
[SPEAKER_05]: What about you?
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm going to go over to one of the joes and be like, you seem pretty cool.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm just going to go down the line, just like ask each individual for their autograph, partly to buy time, partly to be like, I actually do want their hearted ass.
[SPEAKER_05]: Uh, while this conversation is happening.
[SPEAKER_07]: Each time you ask and go up to someone, each individual, Craig, and Tim, etc.
[SPEAKER_07]: In turn, look at the capsy.
[SPEAKER_07]: Cabin?
[SPEAKER_07]: And he just shakes his head.
[SPEAKER_07]: Not yet.
[SPEAKER_07]: Val, you're killing me here.
[SPEAKER_07]: Not yet.
[SPEAKER_05]: Check his little break before we do.
[SPEAKER_07]: I untied him, I don't know.
[SPEAKER_07]: I can't go, go, go, go, go.
[SPEAKER_07]: I can't go.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, pasted that trace on the mull.
[SPEAKER_07]: Don't worry about it.
[SPEAKER_08]: from up above on board the sky ship.
[SPEAKER_08]: You see a the head of a silver dragonborn peek over the edge with another large harpoon in his hand and just looking down and seeing that apparently the fighting has stopped.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yes, you haven't heard any any sounds of combat or any any other explosions, that sort of thing.
[SPEAKER_08]: and then looks around and then turns back and there's maybe the voice carrying on the wind or so, but he says, good news for you.
[SPEAKER_08]: There seems to be a ceasefire at the the crew still on the ship.
[SPEAKER_08]: They're all dead.
[SPEAKER_08]: Oh, you feel right.
[SPEAKER_07]: There's bodies everywhere.
[SPEAKER_07]: All of that.
[SPEAKER_07]: The only question is whether there's anyone under like underneath, but you also maybe spoke to them.
[SPEAKER_07]: But yeah, all of the.
[SPEAKER_07]: Right.
[SPEAKER_07]: That was the.
[SPEAKER_07]: Okay, whoever.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, that was that was who I was yelling the oh good news.
[SPEAKER_08]: There's a ceasefire.
[SPEAKER_02]: Is you are yelling to dead body?
[SPEAKER_08]: Well, it was to the people fire in the can.
[SPEAKER_08]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yes, or whatever that was, but okay, so you were holding up these bodies and talking to them as if they were gone.
[SPEAKER_05]: That is metal.
[SPEAKER_08]: Oh, no.
[SPEAKER_08]: So, all right, and in that case, self goes back and just starts untying the sky whale.
[SPEAKER_05]: I actually want to try something.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, definitely.
[SPEAKER_05]: Jasper and I have been having this kind of discussion back and forth.
[SPEAKER_05]: And checkers is going up to, you know, it's been like, you know, kind of buying time.
[SPEAKER_05]: And all of a sudden, Jasper can get this kind of like distasteful kind of nasty look on his face.
[SPEAKER_05]: He goes up to Captain Livingstone.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm actually going to try and intimidate him.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know the exact wording, but the kind of the vibe I'm going for is what makes you think you can bargain with us.
[SPEAKER_05]: We hold your life in our hands.
[SPEAKER_05]: You should be offering us this information just for us to keep you alive.
[SPEAKER_05]: This is not something you can hold onto.
[SPEAKER_05]: Tell us if you want to live.
[SPEAKER_05]: Go for it, give me a roll.
[SPEAKER_05]: That was a nineteen on the die for twenty seven.
[SPEAKER_07]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_07]: The stone dwarf.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, I have little doubt of your ability, or any of yours, to do us further harm, more than you've already done this night.
[SPEAKER_07]: If I didn't think that, I wouldn't be talking to you.
[SPEAKER_07]: And hey, if that's a trade you're willing to make, lives for information.
[SPEAKER_07]: Let me put it this way.
[SPEAKER_07]: There are two things I care about deeply.
[SPEAKER_07]: First is the lives of me and my crew, and second is freedom.
[SPEAKER_08]: When he says that,
[SPEAKER_08]: That's when the sky whale is seen lifting off the ship.
[SPEAKER_08]: The baby sky whale, yes.
[SPEAKER_08]: As so, finally cuts or cuts the final rope or prize open the final chain.
[SPEAKER_07]: You see his one good eye dart up, seeing that his catch is gone.
[SPEAKER_07]: And he says, yeah, you ask an interesting question.
[SPEAKER_07]: What do I think this information's worth?
[SPEAKER_07]: Life for a life hours for what might be yours and the lives of the people in that city of yours.
[SPEAKER_07]: My people for your people.
[SPEAKER_05]: So, Catherine sees the sky well kind of flying away, you know, kind of making its glorious and sad sound.
[SPEAKER_05]: And he makes a comment to Captain Livingstone.
[SPEAKER_05]: He says something like, you care for freedom.
[SPEAKER_05]: But not freedom for others.
[SPEAKER_05]: Only for yourselves.
[SPEAKER_07]: Freedom.
[SPEAKER_07]: Well, it comes down to one's ability to defend it.
[SPEAKER_07]: You all have bested me, and my crew.
[SPEAKER_07]: I admit that.
[SPEAKER_07]: And so, I understand, my freedom is in your hands right now.
[SPEAKER_07]: I'm free, I believe, to do as I will at least out here, at least after those ultra giants tore down the walls of the world.
[SPEAKER_07]: People are free to defend themselves.
[SPEAKER_07]: Free to explore free to live.
[SPEAKER_07]: And so I'm asking you, how much is granting my freedom worth to you all?
[SPEAKER_02]: Val will mind-link, cast-grin and say,
[SPEAKER_02]: He needs to offer information on the ship and on sky whales, along with the Pharaoh information, to be considered.
[SPEAKER_05]: And at this point, checkers has gotten staunch refusals from every single member here.
[SPEAKER_05]: So he's like, sulking away.
[SPEAKER_05]: but he's gonna join the conversation with Val and Cascran and it's gonna be like, all right, all right, had a lot.
[SPEAKER_02]: No, to be clear Val has not left the warm glowing brace of the Skywell Guardian.
[SPEAKER_02]: She's not punching up next to Captain Livingstone with the two of you.
[SPEAKER_02]: I don't care if he's drunk.
[SPEAKER_02]: He's just wanted fireballs to the ground.
[SPEAKER_07]: You can huddle inside of the Guardian.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, you could come to Val.
[SPEAKER_07]: That might be good.
[SPEAKER_05]: And checkers will say, out loud, not in the mind like, yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: And out now, I don't really like what he's done.
[SPEAKER_05]: But I do like him as a person.
[SPEAKER_05]: He seems kind of cool, actually.
[SPEAKER_05]: Come and keep him.
[SPEAKER_05]: I guess a pet?
[SPEAKER_05]: No, I mean, like, he can help us, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: He has all this cool sky-sip knowledge.
[SPEAKER_05]: He's a captain.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's a sky stalker.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's pretty cool.
[SPEAKER_05]: I thought you wanted to capture this sky stalker.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, I do, yeah, but...
[SPEAKER_05]: Think about it.
[SPEAKER_05]: They know how to fly at a ship.
[SPEAKER_05]: We can use help with the ultra giant, and they would still be free.
[SPEAKER_05]: We can all, we can all get what you want.
[SPEAKER_02]: Captain Livingstone.
[SPEAKER_02]: What do you think of checkers proposal?
[SPEAKER_05]: And I get my trading card signed.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's a win-man deal.
[SPEAKER_07]: So what you're saying is what?
[SPEAKER_07]: I take orders from you, in the red guard.
[SPEAKER_07]: I don't get to choose where I fly my ship, where I take my crew.
[SPEAKER_05]: At least until we defeat the altar diet.
[SPEAKER_02]: And there would be an eternal ban on hunting sky whales.
[SPEAKER_07]: Look, I want to be clear.
[SPEAKER_07]: I don't give a dire ads ass about the sky whales.
[SPEAKER_07]: Take them leave them.
[SPEAKER_07]: It's not important to me.
[SPEAKER_07]: They were convenient.
[SPEAKER_07]: Convenient for getting us what we wanted.
[SPEAKER_07]: Money supplies.
[SPEAKER_07]: Hell, something to do some days.
[SPEAKER_07]: But it's not important to me.
[SPEAKER_07]: If you're saying, I get to walk out of here with my crew.
[SPEAKER_07]: Some supplies to face what is, let's be honest, low odds of survival in the wilds of rixia.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, you won't find me searching for whales anytime soon.
[SPEAKER_02]: Val will mine like cast and say, but what of it?
[SPEAKER_02]: What if we could convince him to take orders from Dina to be a skyship of Agmar?
[SPEAKER_05]: I've seen men like him dozens of times, hundreds of times.
[SPEAKER_05]: There's nothing we could do that would truly make him be one of us.
[SPEAKER_05]: Listen, take orders, be loyal.
[SPEAKER_05]: without the threat of him stabbing us on the back of the second we turn away.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't think it's worth risk.
[SPEAKER_07]: Checkers, what's your insight?
[SPEAKER_07]: Plus four.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_07]: You would note he didn't answer your question.
[SPEAKER_07]: Like, the question of like, would you serve, would you whatever?
[SPEAKER_07]: He just didn't answer it at all.
[SPEAKER_02]: Mal was going to then directly ask him, is your life and your cruise life worth taking orders from the city of Agmaar?
[SPEAKER_07]: Way we see it.
[SPEAKER_07]: Is a life really a life if you're taking orders from someone who you don't trust, you don't believe in.
[SPEAKER_07]: Who you don't care about.
[SPEAKER_07]: Not us.
[SPEAKER_05]: I know too, like, I wasn't really part of the conversation between Val and Kaspin, but Kas your statement made me think about.
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers' early days with the Golden Tree Guild was very similar to what you described.
[SPEAKER_05]: How do you get someone to sort of join you to become loyal to you?
[SPEAKER_05]: How do you, like, how can you trust this person?
[SPEAKER_05]: and checkers join the golden tree on a whip, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: He just showed up, he was like, yeah, that sounds fun.
[SPEAKER_05]: And over the course of our adventures has turned into, in my opinion, a fairly reliable ally.
[SPEAKER_07]: Especially in the sliding seals, checkers.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I know I'm just kind of interjecting here in kind of this space, but, you know, I'm trying to convince Cascran to like, I kind of like the captain, you know, he has some similar opinions to checkers and how he behaves.
[SPEAKER_05]: And, you know, we can actually get the captain on our side, even for just a short duration.
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers in the captain are not so dissimilar that you have to stab the captain in the back right now, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: Fair.
[SPEAKER_05]: So think about that.
[SPEAKER_07]: Also, can I offer two?
[SPEAKER_07]: I think I know the at least initial first plus answer to this question, which is does checkers feel that way about himself?
[SPEAKER_07]: Or think about any part of that himself?
[SPEAKER_05]: I think in this moment, yeah, he part of the reason why he's trying to advocate for getting the captain on our side, at least for the short term, is because he sees a little bit of the captain in himself.
[SPEAKER_05]: He cares about his life.
[SPEAKER_05]: He cares about freedom.
[SPEAKER_05]: He cares about not taking orders from anyone.
[SPEAKER_05]: And checkers, that is partially the core of checkers as well.
[SPEAKER_05]: So, you know, he doesn't see that the captain has a bad person, just, you know, a person who's living in their life doing what they want.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, they ran across the wrong people in the form of the golden tree guild, and are in the situation now.
[SPEAKER_05]: But that's not something that has, like you don't have to murder someone for that, you know.
[SPEAKER_02]: I want to now, I think, offer the captain, give us the information.
[SPEAKER_02]: You and your crew can live.
[SPEAKER_02]: Help us, you and your crew could potentially earn the sky ship back.
[SPEAKER_02]: Of like, teachers about the sky ship, teachers about sky whales.
[SPEAKER_02]: You know, for all more information than that, the more that's in it for you to, you know, we have missions we have to do.
[SPEAKER_02]: You fly us, you help us, you know, something like that.
[SPEAKER_02]: Because then I think it goes to like the captain's point of taking orders from somebody, you don't know, you don't trust.
[SPEAKER_02]: Maybe we can, to check our point, earn his trust.
[SPEAKER_03]: Captain Livingstone.
[SPEAKER_03]: And cast one stairs up and down.
[SPEAKER_05]: Can you give us a second?
[SPEAKER_07]: We have many seconds ahead.
[SPEAKER_07]: These are... I'd wager a pretty important next few moments.
[SPEAKER_07]: For me and my crew were happy to be patient in the face of overwhelming odds.
[SPEAKER_02]: Insect check.
[SPEAKER_07]: Hmm?
[SPEAKER_02]: That's a sixteenth.
[SPEAKER_07]: It seems like everything he said was truthful.
[SPEAKER_05]: And Casquid will turn around and just kind of gather everyone and be like, okay, okay.
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, does not take her eyes off the air.
[SPEAKER_08]: So from the ship, self-seize cats trying to gather people together to level up.
[SPEAKER_07]: And no gunfire has happened in the last several minutes, clearly.
[SPEAKER_08]: OK.
[SPEAKER_08]: I'm going to basically glide.
[SPEAKER_08]: And so for every ten feet, he drops, he can move ten feet.
[SPEAKER_08]: And so he kind of, he can glide down and around.
[SPEAKER_08]: And so I'm going to kind of spiral in and then come to a landing where the sky ship is more right so we're the rope is where everyone else is where there's a large sky whale guardian and just kind of like falls through that almost and just be like
[SPEAKER_08]: What, uh, what are we deciding here?
[SPEAKER_00]: Missed, did I miss anything?
[SPEAKER_00]: Anything important happened?
[SPEAKER_07]: No, okay, good.
[SPEAKER_07]: Here, listen, here, take this earbud, listen to the last few minutes of the podcast.
[SPEAKER_07]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: So Cascar isn't bringing everyone into a huddle.
[SPEAKER_05]: Mango is keeping watch over the pirates with explicit instruction to cope loudly.
[SPEAKER_05]: In case anyone, if they seize anything unportable.
[SPEAKER_05]: And Cascar and it's kind of catching everyone up on what's been talked about so far.
[SPEAKER_05]: And we're trying to decide what do we do with these guys?
[SPEAKER_05]: kind of the options we have are we could let them go.
[SPEAKER_05]: We could try to get them to help us give us some information or we can make them walk the plank.
[SPEAKER_02]: Val will now, like, interject Nathan before you roll that dive.
[SPEAKER_02]: Val has not taken her eyes off of the pirates.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yep.
[SPEAKER_02]: Val will suggest the, like, working to get their ship back kind of, uh, offer of, like, help us give us more information, like, first step.
[SPEAKER_02]: Give us information for the Pharaohs.
[SPEAKER_02]: You and your crew's lives are saved.
[SPEAKER_02]: then teach us about the sky ship, teach us how to fly it, keep earning, like, I don't know, I don't have the reward system built out yet.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: One reward.
[SPEAKER_05]: We'll have a whole little chalkboard with stars and everything that they can earn for you to points with.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_02]: But kind of that way, you know.
[SPEAKER_02]: It will be dicey getting back to Agmar, and then assuming they will try to get us to not get back to Agmar, maybe they have to ride in the brig on the way there.
[SPEAKER_02]: But I think that's that's Dallas proposal for now.
[SPEAKER_05]: So now, if I understand correctly, you want them to essentially earn their freedom back, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: You want them to fly the sky ship for us, you want them to show us that they can be good stewards and good community members, essentially, for as long as we need them to be.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, sums it up pretty nicely.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, I don't know about you, but I wouldn't take it.
[SPEAKER_02]: So... That's fair.
[SPEAKER_02]: I don't, I don't anticipate it being a great deal.
[SPEAKER_02]: It seemed like a better deal than them walking off into the woods.
[SPEAKER_05]: And let me tell you what I mean real fast.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm hearing a lot about what Captain Livingstone cares about.
[SPEAKER_05]: He cares about his man.
[SPEAKER_05]: He cares about freedom.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I have to agree with a lot of that.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't really think I'm so different from the captain and all of my months here with the Golden Shigield building self-awareness and knowledge and all that fun stuff, you know?
[SPEAKER_02]: We're really proud of your emotionally intelligent property, you know.
[SPEAKER_02]: You did great.
[SPEAKER_07]: The perfect, I'm glad that Val's like, no, we need to make space for that.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_07]: To celebrate that victory in this moment.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think about when I first joined the golden tree gale, you know, I did this on a whim.
[SPEAKER_05]: I did it because I didn't think Kaspen was going to be very good gilder.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I was going to be the best gilder.
[SPEAKER_05]: Remember that?
[SPEAKER_05]: That was great.
[SPEAKER_03]: Mm-hmm.
[SPEAKER_05]: Still think that.
[SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I still think that.
[SPEAKER_03]: I still think this far hasn't proved me wrong.
[SPEAKER_05]: I feel like the captain maybe can be that kind of person for us.
[SPEAKER_05]: Not just because we're forcing him to, as our prisoner,
[SPEAKER_05]: But you know, like me, I didn't really have anything else to do at the time when I joined the Golden Tree.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I feel like if we can just give him the opportunity to prove himself, maybe he can grow and change the way that I have.
[SPEAKER_02]: That's my honest hope.
[SPEAKER_02]: I just don't know if we how to give him that opportunity.
[SPEAKER_02]: with us also gain a scholarship to do the missions we need to before the Ultra Giant arrives.
[SPEAKER_08]: Self is just standing there.
[SPEAKER_08]: mouth open.
[SPEAKER_08]: Eyes wide.
[SPEAKER_08]: I'm super glad I was gonna ask.
[SPEAKER_08]: Just like just staring at checkers.
[SPEAKER_08]: And then kind of like shakes his head a little bit, closes his eyes, shakes it off, and just says, that is surprisingly self insightful.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm impressed to checkers.
[SPEAKER_05]: You want to see my trading cards?
[SPEAKER_00]: I made them of crayons.
[SPEAKER_00]: Maybe on the ship.
[SPEAKER_00]: One other thing to consider is that the captain has clearly held the loyalty of his crew and has their best interest in mind that is not something that comes through intimidation or fear.
[SPEAKER_00]: I believe he truly cares about his crew and their well-being, and has kept them safe for this long, which also leads me to believe that if his word is given, he will keep it.
[SPEAKER_00]: Maybe to the letter of the word and not necessarily the spirit, but that's not it.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's neither here nor there, but if we can get him to give his word that he will do something, I believe he will do it.
[SPEAKER_05]: A castren has just kind of a dark look on its face, and he turns to self and says, self, these men may be loyal to him, but if we just let them go, what do you think they're gonna do?
[SPEAKER_05]: They're gonna survive, and they only have one skill set.
[SPEAKER_05]: They're going to pillage, they're going to steal, they're going to hurt people.
[SPEAKER_05]: And checkers.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I know you see a little bit of him in you.
[SPEAKER_05]: You see that your name for freedom.
[SPEAKER_05]: You see that he can be something different.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I saw that in you, too.
[SPEAKER_05]: Back in low trust.
[SPEAKER_05]: When we first met, when you were doing petty crimes and stealing from people.
[SPEAKER_05]: But you also ran an orphanage.
[SPEAKER_05]: You made me take out a loan.
[SPEAKER_05]: You could buy a building.
[SPEAKER_05]: You also have a lot of good fundamentally in you.
[SPEAKER_05]: And you thought you could be a good gilder, and that's why you are today.
[SPEAKER_05]: But these are pirates.
[SPEAKER_05]: They're sky pirates.
[SPEAKER_00]: People can only change when given the opportunity to change.
[SPEAKER_05]: But we don't have the luxury of time.
[SPEAKER_05]: If we could give them months of rehabilitation, we could bring them to the city of Eggwater and help them teach them to be different people.
[SPEAKER_05]: I would love to do that.
[SPEAKER_05]: Twelve gods know it's taken me years to get to where I am, and you've seen part of that journey to checkers, but we don't have that time.
[SPEAKER_05]: We don't have that chance.
[SPEAKER_05]: We can take them with us if they're willing to help, if they're willing to fly the ship.
[SPEAKER_05]: We could let them go, but clearly I think there's problems with that.
[SPEAKER_05]: Or we could do what I have seen, done in low-trust, to pirates, dozens of times where I know, works.
[SPEAKER_05]: So checkers looks Casparan in the eyes.
[SPEAKER_05]: And he's thinking into the back of his head about what Val was saying with her proposal about getting information from them, building a framework for how they might earn their freedom, earn their ship back.
[SPEAKER_05]: And in his mind, he's already rejected it.
[SPEAKER_05]: He's thinking, the captain would never follow something so strict, so regimented, much like he wouldn't.
[SPEAKER_05]: But he's thinking about what did work for checkers, all those months ago.
[SPEAKER_05]: How about this, Cass?
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll personally take responsibility for what?
[SPEAKER_05]: What?
[SPEAKER_05]: Again, so-so-so-so-so.
[SPEAKER_05]: Ooh, say those words together.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll personally take responsibility.
[SPEAKER_04]: Oh my god.
[SPEAKER_06]: That is beautifully delivered around hit a lot of highs, a lot of lows.
[SPEAKER_05]: This is the culmination of checkers and the golden tree guild and all of the work that has gone into this tiny three foot tall frog man.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll take responsibility.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll take responsibility for captain silver to living stone and his men.
[SPEAKER_05]: for however long we need their help to defeat the older giants.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'll be sure to keep them on, not the straight narrow, but I'll make the checkers pass.
[SPEAKER_05]: On the right path.
[SPEAKER_01]: On the right, checkers pass.
[SPEAKER_05]: Correct.
[SPEAKER_05]: Leave it to me.
[SPEAKER_02]: You see a single tear.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, go down fouls, Camo's face.
[SPEAKER_07]: And not just because she also was laughing as hard as we were.
[SPEAKER_05]: Do you trust me, Chaskrin?
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers, you know I do.
[SPEAKER_05]: And of course it's fine.
[SPEAKER_05]: Why don't you tell them that then?
[SPEAKER_05]: Tell them your idea.
[SPEAKER_05]: See if he goes for it.
[SPEAKER_05]: And Castro knows has this like resign look on his face it's like such a weird mix of emotions where he's like proud he's indignant he's like checkers has won like there's no way Castro could be like no we have to kill them now because it's like yeah
[SPEAKER_07]: I think you've described it almost as like a parent seeing an idealistic kid right make a choice they like boy I've been hurt by like I've seen how this plays out right a lot of times and I've become jaded
[SPEAKER_07]: Man, I don't want to be the one to tell you that this doesn't work out because like whoa Right exactly like Castro's like I've seen this happen.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah before I'm trying to for us not to get hurt but like Yeah checkers if you want to take responsibility Go and tell him your idea We'll see if he goes for it
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers is going to leave the group puddle and halfway between walking over to the captain.
[SPEAKER_05]: He just turned around and looks at Cass and Val and Selv.
[SPEAKER_08]: Selv just gives you a thumbs up.
[SPEAKER_02]: Val, mine link.
[SPEAKER_02]: Checkers, I'm proud of you.
[SPEAKER_05]: And he's going to go over to Captain Livingstone and tell them about what their proposal is.
[SPEAKER_05]: In that checkers wants them to join.
[SPEAKER_05]: We'll be responsible for them.
[SPEAKER_05]: He wants their help in taking down the altar giants.
[SPEAKER_05]: And essentially like being responsible for them and vouching for them.
[SPEAKER_02]: If Captain Livingstone looks any type of shady, Val is casting magic visual at her highest level and obliterating that.
[SPEAKER_07]: I am assuming it is turning him into a tight check after a tight check.
[SPEAKER_01]: Classic Vibes checks.
[SPEAKER_07]: You are summoning additional preachers to give additional insight checks.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yes, understood.
[SPEAKER_01]: That tiny frog band has grown so much.
[SPEAKER_01]: That tiny baby giant.
[SPEAKER_08]: A hundred percent.
[SPEAKER_08]: And actually, self is going to keep an eye on the ship and the cannons to see if they, oh, yeah.
[SPEAKER_08]: If he was somehow communicating, if they like start moving and, uh, like various things.
[SPEAKER_07]: You guys are high alert.
[SPEAKER_07]: Like, you know, this could go, this, this by all logic should go badly.
[SPEAKER_07]: Maybe now, maybe later, maybe whatever.
[SPEAKER_07]: So I am assuming you all are treating that this moment with the caution and insight and perception required.
[SPEAKER_07]: Checkers, you go over to the captain and the rest of you guys see them talk for a few minutes.
[SPEAKER_07]: And it is in pretty quiet tones for these two kind of boisterous individuals.
[SPEAKER_07]: there's some you know some head shakes some very business like gestures with a hook and eventually the captain looks over at the three remaining guilders looks over at his crew and you can see exactly what he's looking at because he still has the laser pointer right looks back at checkers
[SPEAKER_07]: and spits into his hand and extends it.
[SPEAKER_05]: Checkers will similarly spit into his hand and give Captain Livingstone his firmest frog handshake.
[SPEAKER_07]: One of the wetest handshakes in Rixie and recorded history.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's just like the tiniest frog hand and like the giant dwarf hand.
[SPEAKER_07]: It is a ham fist.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah, it is a shovel.
[SPEAKER_07]: But it's a firm one.
[SPEAKER_05]: And the last thing that the Golden Tree Guild sees from this conversation is, checkers, turns around with a wide grin on his face, holding up the trading card of Captain Livingstone with a clear signature on it.
[SPEAKER_02]: And he just yells out, he said yes, he said yes!
[SPEAKER_02]: Double thumbs up from Mal.
[SPEAKER_06]: And that is where we'll end this week's episode everybody.
[SPEAKER_06]: See you.
[SPEAKER_06]: Oh, next time.
[SPEAKER_06]: That was tenth.
[SPEAKER_06]: Bye.
[SPEAKER_01]: Bye.
[SPEAKER_06]: Bye.
[SPEAKER_07]: Time out.
[SPEAKER_03]: Arthur is robbed.
[SPEAKER_07]: Arthur farted so bad.
[SPEAKER_07]: And he doesn't care at all hasn't moved just even a little bit.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you got to turn that fan out.
[SPEAKER_07]: It's like, it's like a, I was just the worst dog fart I've ever.
[SPEAKER_07]: It's not a great.
[SPEAKER_05]: We can open the door.
[SPEAKER_05]: We can air now.
[SPEAKER_07]: Pretty bad.
[SPEAKER_04]: Buddy, what did you eat?
[SPEAKER_04]: Oh, he's sitting me.
[SPEAKER_04]: Oh, but he's got it here.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yep.
[SPEAKER_04]: I'm staying next to him.
[SPEAKER_07]: Oh, you should save save yourself.
[SPEAKER_07]: We need someone.
[SPEAKER_07]: We need someone to keep their wits about them as we as we carry on.
[SPEAKER_04]: We can take a two minute break.
[SPEAKER_07]: something something assurances.
[SPEAKER_07]: I need some assurance.
[SPEAKER_07]: It was like it definitely hit Sophie and I at the same time too.