Ink and Blood: Episode 04

### Reddit Thread

***Ink and Blood* Episode 4** was streamed on Arcadum's Twitch channel on July 19, 2021, and premiered on Arcadum's YouTube channel on July 23, 2021.
The spider Yokai, Ili'ith, tries to convince the party to prevent another Akuma from escaping the Black Library. However, they return to Lord Goda and experience an interesting revelation.

## Summary

*Summary originally written by u/Ironzol24*

Onna’s unconscious yet alive body is on the floor after the Akuma controlling her left the vessel. Upon the conclusion of the battle, Jerry looks up to see a spider descending from the ceiling. A possible spider Yokai, Sokai, descends from the ceiling to introduce itself to Jerry who promptly freaks out and runs to tell the others. Still dealing with the moral implications of Kouki’s alignment and actions, Elliot is undisturbed by the news while the others join Jerry to converse with the creature. Sokai introduces herself and reveals that it is deeply troubling that these Akuma have been released. They were once prisoners of Black Library and cannot simply escape on their own. She also reveals that Otikata, the most powerful Akuma in the world, has been released upon the world, and another greater Akuma will soon follow. She asks if the group will take on her mission. The task is to travel to the Black Library in order to prevent another Greater Akuma, the one of Rage, from escaping soon. They have been instructed to travel south to the docks where an associate of hers will be waiting and make themselves known.

During the conversation, Jerry stealthily climbs into the spider's web in order to see if anything is up there that can be looted. He finds a corpse and its pack. He grabs into it, but Jerry is in a weak spider web. The body, Jerry, and the bag all fall to the floor in a heap. Elliot and others investigate the corpse and discover it had died from thousands of tiny spider bites. Naturally, the group becomes suspicious, and after some intimidation and convincing Sokai reveals that the body is her former human form. She was known as Ili’ith and was once a helper of the last Cyclops. For her service and companionship she was granted the Cyclops' Sight and is able to see time for what it is. Jerry points out to time cop Tiri that he should investigate this, but Tiri ignores the suggestion.

The party hands her the notes and book that they found which were signed with the signature, *S.S.* Sokai reveals that the initials stand for one known as "Sinning Scrya". This indicates that the Stranger’s influence has returned once more to the East.

The spider reveals its desire to possibly one day return to its former body. Her motivation to revive her old body greatly angers Elliot. He draws his weapon and moves to attack the spider. In the ensuing chaos, Jerry stealthily moves to the pack and rummage through the contents. He finds an amber amulet and the handle of a loom. Elliot is the only one who notices this, but he is only focused on his current task. Eventually, Elliot stops his aggression after making some notes in a notebook and retreats from the area while looking at Ral. Pulling his own knowledge on the arcana, Jerry realizes that these tools can weave a Tapestry of Fate, and one can view or even change fate. Naturally, Tiri the time paladin cannot allow this and takes the items. However, he does not destroy them as they can be used as a bargaining chip in the future.

The party returns to Lord Goda who is incredibly thankful to have his wife returned, and his assistants take her to her room to recover. With the revelations discovered during their mission, the party begins to press and intimidate Lord Goda for answers. It is evident Lord Goda is hiding something. During the interrogation, his voice chokes up as a thin needle suddenly strikes throat, and his paralyzed body collapses to the floor. The perpetrator reveals and introduces himself as Bai-Sho Shiid, a member of the Onmyoji who are defenders of the Black Library. He thanks the party for helping the order of the Onmyoji, albeit unknowingly, and he reveals that Lord Goda is a cultist who meddles in things he should not have been. Goda used Akuma blood in order to halt his wife’s aging for some time, and one of the blood doses was stronger than Goda thought, corrupting her. Shiid’s associates appear to cleanse the estate of any evil presence. As the episodes end, the party are invited to speak further with the Onmyoji.

## Featured Characters

### Main Characters

* Elliot Mylic
* Jerry
* Kouki Subeuroko
* Ral'Sazesh
* Tiri Anand

### New

* Ili'ith (Sokai)
* Bai-Sho Shiid

### Returning

* Onna
* Lord Oma Goda
* Brunhilde Goda

### Mentioned

* Crowley
* Otikata
* Xetor
* Sinning Scrya
* Tyre, The Stranger
* Raquel

## References

1. ↑ Date is shown on YouTube VOD
2. ↑ Verum Weekly: Summaries of Streamed Games of the Week (July 22nd, 2021)