Episode 213 - Imp-rov Theatre

## Synopsis

The Gamblers woke the next morning, finding the crowds of people trying to except the casino from the previous night had dispersed. Bou suggested they find Kreshol, and ask if he knew about any boats that could potentially take them out of the casino. Serinepth also said she would feel comfortable in some different clothes, after she had been seen being hauled away by casino security. Integrity immediately ripped the curtain off the wall and began fashioning it into a new cloak for her cousin. She also swapped clothes with Mira and took off her fox mask, eventually looking quite different.

While Bou waited for them to finish, he heard a knock at the door. He knocked back. A voice behind the door stuttered in confusion before he heard the scrapping of locks and the door creaked open. Bou looked out to see a dark-skinned gnome carrying a smoking wooden case. The gnome apologised for the intrusion, and said they had brought something from the Fiend of Death for them to sign. Bou took the box, thanked him for his service and slammed the door in his face. Bou took the box over to the bed and opened it, releasing a sweet smell and revealing a rolled piece of parchment and feather quill. Bou read the parchment, which was an invitation from the Fiend of Death, as well as the terms for them entering their personal chambers. The party would not be able to harm anyone without her permission, they could cheat at any table not under her control, they couldn’t tell anyone the layout of her personal chambers, and finally they had to be kind and respectful while in her presence.

Bou passed the contract for the others to read. Integrity complained about only being offered one meal; Mira was concerned about the first rule, and if they could add provisions for it they were attacked first. Bou asked if any of them could detect if the contract was inherently magical, to which Mira replied she could cast *Dispel Magic* and be sure that it wasn’t. She tapped out a rhythm over the parchment, sending waves of magic across it. Any magical power the contract held was dispelled, but it also caused the ink to run across the page, rendering the contract illegible. Also a moment’s thought, Serinepth suggested she could use *Prestidigitation* to completely clean the parchment, then Bou could use their forgery kit to rewrite the contract, plus a slight alteration to the first condition.

After the forgery was complete, the group signed it and put it back in the box. Integrity opened the door to their room, finding the gnome still standing there, looking awkward after Bou had slammed the door in his face. He explained that he needed to take the contract back after they finished signing it, but they couldn’t say so before the door was shut. Serinepth tried to apologise for their behaviour, but this caused the gnome to start taking the blame, and the chain around his neck grew tighter. Bou rushed over, shoved the box into their hands, and shut the door before any more harm was done. They heard him stumble back to the elevator, which then climbed into the higher floors.

The party took another elevator down to the casino floor to look for Kreshol. The chaos from the night before had vanished, replaced with the same sights of gambling that had greeted them when they first arrived. As they walked through the crowd, they heard cheers and laughs, but nothing about the cutting of the chains and how they were now trapped. They arrived at the restaurant where the host flipped through an empty book before saying they couldn’t get in any time in the next three weeks. Mira told them that they had a prior meeting with Kreshol, and after a brief disagreement they pushed past and into the restaurant. They looked round the bar, seeing several business people drinking and laughing, a familiar foxfolk trying to avoid being seen, and the spindly, hollow figure of Kreshol.

As they approached them, Kreshol invited them to a drink and to sit down. The group declined their offer of a drink before awkwardly sitting on either side of them. Bou asked about them being a boat captain, to which they replied that there weren’t any real boat captains anymore. Mira asked if there were any real boats anymore, to which Kreshol squinted at her, before leaning back and saying in a practiced voice that all the boats had been bought up, and no one knew how to use them anymore. Bou pressed them for who they sold their boat too. They took a large sip of their drink before saying a boat collector, and that part of the contract they signed prevented them from saying to who. Mira asked if it was one of the Fiends. They smiled a little and said it was a private collector, who they couldn’t name or their fortune would be forfeit. Mira then asked if they could name those who didn’t have the boat, to which Kreshol said if she gave names, they could confirm who didn’t have their boat. Mira asked about the Fiend of Whimsy, Kreshol said they couldn’t afford the boat. She then asked if the Fiend of Death had it, and he replied that they didn’t think they were interested in boats. She pressed and asked if they had it, Kreshol sighed and said they couldn’t possibly know given how there was a large used boat market in Lem.

Having seemingly found their answer, Bou asked if hypothetically they found a boat, and they needed a pilot. Kreshol cut them off, saying they would only pilot their boat and no one else’s. They sighed and reminisced about their boat, and the times when they were still allowed to use it. Mira asked if they knew about the chains being cut, hence their questions about the boat. Kreshol nodded, but said that even so, it was not permitted to go in the river. Bou asked who would stop them, to which Kreshol simply replied that they would find a way. Integrity asked for specifics on what the boat looked like, which Kreshol gave, and said they would also need a lantern for travel along the river. The entire time, they had a giddy smile, and said that they would love to see their boat again.

When they had finished, Mira said they had a dinner later with the Fiend of Death, and asked if there was anything they should know. Kreshol said she was a lunatic compared to the Fiends of Avarice and Whimsy. They quietened down and said that if she had her way, the Fiend would probably turn the casino into a place of worship for Lem. Integrity asked if they knew anything about the changing of hands in Lem, to which Kreshol shushed her and warned not to speak of it.

As the conversation died down, Serinepth tapped her cousin’s shoulder and told her she would be back, before walking over to the foxfolk. As she approached, he looked hopefully towards her and asked if they had seen his son. Serinepth looked around before whispering that they had seen his son, and that he had been freed. A weight seemed to lift off his shoulders and he slumped onto the bar. He thanked her and asked if there was anything he could do to pay them back, perhaps give them some advice. She nodded and leant in closer to him, where he told her that although he lost his son to the Fiend of Avarice, he had lost him on a table belonging to the Fiend of Whimsy, so they needed to be careful around those tables, as they didn’t often take chips as payment. Serinepth thanked him then headed back to her friends. She arrived just as Kreshol handed Mira a napkin with the number 715 scrawled on it, in case they weren’t at the bar later.

For the rest of the day before the dinner, the group decided to use some of their chips to play some of the games. Walking around, they heard an announcement coming from the direction of the Fiend of Avarice’s arena. In two hours, there would be a play about the death of the Fiend, performed by a trope of imps called the Hell’s Bells. They all immediately decided they needed to see this. They spent the time beforehand playing some lower stakes games, loosing almost everything except for Bou, who was doing exceptionally well. As the dealer announced he had won the jackpot, they collapsed onto the floor, dead. A small obsidian slate slid towards him, and began spewing a fountain of chips for Bou to collect. A large fiend waked over to congratulate him, then helped him take the chips over to a currency exchange.

When the time came, they joined the line for the arena, and eagerly awaited the play. When they reached the front of the line, Mira asked if they could take a VIP box, seeing as the show was about them. The person directing people to their seats sighed and asked for their names. After initially refusing, the group all gave fake names. The attendant took out a small crystal before her eyes glazed over black. A moment later she shook her head and said the names didn’t check out, so they would have to leave. Integrity quickly began apologising and saying they just really wanted to see the show. The attendant said if they just went in and took a normal seat she wouldn’t stop them, but she also wouldn’t do them any favours. They walked into the theatre, now much cooler as the lava around the stage had been turned into glassy obsidian.

The lights around the arena dimmed, an imp pirouetted onto stage, and the play began. What followed was three and a half hours of dramatic monologues, bad stage fights, and a fifteen minute musical solo by the imp playing Mira. The group agreed it was one of the best shows they had ever seen. Mira went up after it finished and got an autograph from the actor playing her.

They spent the remaining hours before the dinner wandering around the casino floor. As the time drew nearer, they were approached by the same gnome from before, who happily told them that the Fiend of Death had accepted their terms. They unrolled the contract for a brief moment to show the a signature that read “*Horst, Fiend of Death and More…”*. All of the terms that they and written were still in the contract. The gnome rolled the parchment up again, and instructed them to follow him to the dinner. He ran over to an elevator, but before getting in, he lifted his hand to reveal a ring of thorns and flowers, which puffed out a small cloud of black dust onto the door. The door turned bone white, then opened to reveal a very well dressed imp with a chain around their neck. The group, including the gnome entered the elevator, which slowly began cranking upwards towards the Fiend of Death.