Session 39: Slow and Steady

## Key Plot Developments

Trix is pale and petrified after seeing a vision of the Demogorgon. He whispers what happened to Glyn, who rushes outside to confront the demon--and sees nobody except Chipgrin, who is calmly waiting outside the cave. Longears is gone. The wererat wants to leave Pix some flowers; Misu leaves her work station with Jimjar to briefly explain how Pix, despite appearances, is a child. Chipgrin, disconcerted, decides to go home. First, Trix casts remove curse on him and intuits that Chipgrin has been mind-controlled or had his memory modified in some way; Chipgrin's hands are hurting, so he likely killed Longears and forgot about it. Trix also thinks the Demogorgon was an illusion. After interrogating Chipgrin, they realize he was charmed to give Pix flowers.

Misu, terrified of the demon lord of deception's possible plans, inspects Chipgrin. She brushes through his fur to find a little crystal at the base of his neck: Nicholas Ice Cream's calling card. She compares the crystal to the diamond Kazook sold to Trix (the one he said he got from Fiddleplitz). Misu pulls out the very small crystal; it was nearly indistinguishable from the wererat's fur. Trix explains the situation to Chipgrin, who bunks with Gunrik. Trix organizes a watch.

Tremble and Bogtooth take first watch and have a small conversation about Bogtooth's maturity. Misu is terrified of the crystal and orders Tremble to destroy Trix's diamond from Kazook before calming down and asking that it be locked away for study. They remember they have Dawnbringer, who can do Greater Restoration.

Trix compares the diamond she got from Tremble (who received it from Sark Axebarrel) with the diamond he got from Kazook. The little silver from Chipgrin's fur is more similar to Sark's diamond. Glyn speaks with Graz'zt, who tells him to ignore Nicholas Ice Cream's machinations and just perform the ritual.

Bogtooth summons some animals to help them get to the bottom of Nicholas's plan. As Misu and Tremble work on JImjar's new limbs, Glyn speaks with Lemon (who is supportive). Next morning, Chipgrin cooks porridge for the goblins. He awkwardly avoids eye contact with Pix, who realizes that (a) he was very into her until he realized she was a kid and (b) he was mainly attracted to her storytelling abilities as the chieftain of a tribe who mainly inspires and connects through an oral tradition.

Trix tries to divine who's serving Nicholas Ice Cream in this town; he receives a message that, right now, he is. Trix, paranoid, casts greater restoration on the whole of the party (giving Misu a second wind to keep working on Jimjar). They leave Tremble and Misu with Jimjar, Chipgrin, and Gunrik. Then, they seek out Sark Axebarrel to trace the diamond he gave to Pix. Sark talks about Kazook, who he got the diamond from. Over the course of the conversation, they reach an awful realization: Kazook's wife, who he constantly references, has been dead since the ooze attack. After a period of mourning, Kazook's demeanor totally changed and he went back to acting like nothing bad happened. Sark thinks Kazook is coping by outwardly pretending she's still alive, but the gobs think he's probably been deceived into believing she's still alive.

The group decides to use Dawnbringer on Kazook. Pix agrees to lie to him for his own good. Bogtooth inspires the group with a speech before they encounter him in the trader's grotto. Kazook agrees to follow Pix through an abandoned part of the town to meet about a business proposal at Tappy's. When Trix asks about Nicholas Ice Cream, Kazook instinctively scratches at a crystal at the base of his neck (!!!). Trix intuits Nicholas's plan--this is a quickly devised trap to distract them from getting in the way of his true goal, and isn't as complex as his machinations in Gracklstugh. Glyn impulsively rips the crystal out of Kazook's neck before casting any protective magic. The crystal shatters and morphs into a void to a pocket plane. Bogtooth is sucked in and the other three decide to voluntarily join to save him. Pix recognizes the storm of emotions in this plane as the same sort of thing that Nicholas used when he appeared in her dream as Graz'zt and damaged her with Glyn's emotions. Here, she acutely feels the emptiness, loneliness, and abiding sorrow Kazook must be experiencing.

They see a creature in this incomplete pocket plane. Black ichor oozes from its eyes. It has the face of a crying gnome but a horribly distorted, childlike body. The embodiment of pervasive melancholy slashes into them, reaching out for warmth and companionship. Glyn, not willing to be victimized by Nicholas again, brutally slaughters it. Trix turns it into a turtle, sends it hurtling up to the top of the dimension, and lets the fall crack it open.

With the personification of sorrow slain, Pix dispels Nicholas's charm and they return to Blingdenstone.

Jimjar speaks with Tremble as they keep crafting his limbs. He's speaking clumsily, not quite used to his new tongue; he overextends himself and has to stop.

Meanwhile, the non-artificers re-emerge--but don't see Kazook. Glyn tracks him to his home; Bogtooth uses a new ability to see through the walls of the home. Kazook holds a small shield and rocks back and forth gently on a chair, humming Nicholas Ice Cream's song. He's been driven mad. Pix uses Dawnbringer to release him from the curse. He drops the shield--the last thing his wife crafted--and weeps.

## Memorable Quotations

* **Glyn:** I guess you’re really strong, Chipgrin. You probably just killed him in his sleep.
* **Chipgrin:** I killed your dog?!
* **Glyn:** No, it's okay. He dies a lot. It's all cool.

**Chipgrin:** Hey there, bunk mates!

* **Glyn:** Misu, snap out of it!
* **Misu:** HMMM? HUH, YEAH?!
* **Glyn:** Misu, you’re freaking out right now!

**Tremble:** Bye, Trix! Bye, Glyn! ...Hello, Bogtooth.

* **Bogtooth:** That’s a Tremble the Destroyer type of event!
* **Tremble:** Oh, actually, I wanna start going by Tremble the Above Average Artificer.

**Trix:** Suck my d\*ck, Nick!

* **Longears:** My loyalty is vigilant and ever-lasting, my master! My nose can sniff out the most pungent of scents!
* **Glyn:** Did you get beat up by a rat?
* **Longears:** I am ashamed to say that I was felled by what you say is a rat. May I mangle something to make up for this, my master?
* **Glyn:** I’ll write it down that you have a mangling scheduled at some point…
* **Longears:** YES! When the time comes, ALL shall be mangled in your name, Lord Glyn!

**Graz'zt:** Ignore his bullshit! Either you’re going to burn Blingdenstone to the ground to weed him out or….just do the ritual and ignore him!

* **Lemon:** Yeah, we can hang! Hey, who’s the dog?
* **Glyn:** What? That’s Longears!
* **Lemon:** Oh, I though that was one of your other names.
* **Glyn:** No…they called me short ears.
* **Lemon:** What? That doesn’t make sense! I can tell the weight of your ears. They’re valuminums.
* **Glyn:** What’s that mean?
* **Lemon:** I dunno….

**Longears:** I HAVE CONQUERED THIS PORRIDGE!

* **Longears:** As a vassel of Lord Glyn, I will thoroughly smite your enemies as well!
* **Lemon:** Okay…they are smote.

**Trix:** Oh, hey, guys! [Casts Greater Restoration.]

* **Tremble:** What's going on, bro?
* **Bogtooth:** Yeah, what’s good, bro?
* **Tremble:** You don’t get to call him that…

**Tremble:** Bogtooth, this is your time to prove to everyone that you’re good at being a leader!

* **Misu:** Don’t take advice from the most disgusting little creature in the universe! He’s an ugly, gross, wormy little demon!
* **Glyn:** He’s actually kinda hot…
* **Misu:** 'Cause he USED to be a DEVIL!

**Bogtooth:** As much as Kazook has taken our hard-earned gold, we gotta help him out.

**Glyn:** Sometimes. you need to do hard things for the people you care about.

* **Trix:** So…so this is like a bed and breakfast thing? That you have with Kazook? A bed and breakfast? You gotta tell people about it?
* **Bogtooth:** Is it like a franchise drive through situation?

**Bogtooth:** Who’s the more silver tongued out of all of us--besides Jimjar?

* **Trix:** Can you lie good, Pix?
* **Pix:** I CAN LIE! Wait, I’m lying to Kazook?? I’ll do it…if it's for Kazook--to save him--I’ll do it.

**Bogtooth:** F\*ck off, Nicholas Ice Cream! This is OUR TOWN! And I don’t wanna see your sorry ass here!

**Kazook:** Hello! Step right up! It is my favorite customers AND the people who threaten my life! The venn diagram, she is a circle!

**Kazook:** HEEEY! You’re going tone seeing this mug all over the Underdark real soon!

* **Kazook**: I do not know the big dog. Hello, puppy!
* **Longears:** FRIEND OR FOE?
* **Glyn:** Uh, acquaintance?
* **Longears:** Hmmm. He may live for now.

**Trix** (to the Lonely, polymorphed to a turtle): I’m sorry….you never knew what you were.

* **Bogtooth:** He’s uh…he’s in there. He’s singing a song.
* **Trix:** What kind of song?
* **Bogtooth:** Something about a candy man who can make the world taste good.

**Jimjar:** The work isn't done.

* **Pix:** Kazook...I know it hurts to lose someone.
* **Glyn:** Pix...he's not there anymore.
* **Trix:** Use the sword.

**Bogtooth:** Kazook, I’m sorry. I’m sorry we didn’t kill all the oozes in time. I’m sorry for everything.

**Jimjar:** When the time comes...when I am well. I will see her. We will see her. On our own two feet.