Session 59-A: For Goodness' Sake

## Key Plot Developments

We’re nine days away from Zuggtmoy’s dreaded wedding. The group, aided by Tremble (interpreting Scout-Commander-Friend’s directions) and Finn (scouting ahead), escapes from Menzoberranzan before things get more complicated.

As they leave the city of spiders, they take stock of their goals. Pyrite still wants revenge on Miss Anna and Glyn for their destruction of clan Demonbane on the endless battlefield. The party ponders how to untangle the complicated web of villainous ambitions—from the Demogorgon rampaging through groves to access Elysium, to Orcus gathering powerful artifacts, to Zuggtmoy’s wedding, to Lolth’s greater machinations, to whatever Glyn and Graz’zt are planning, there are significant hurdles to overcome.

At this point, Pyrite, trying to focus on the party on Glyn, reveals a new piece of information to Trix: Glyn stole a little goblin girl from the afterlife and didn’t put her in a soul coin like the rest. Trix, asking probing questions, realizes this girl was likely Drigglezub, his lost love. Trix gets emotional and leaves to fish. Tremble follows him. For the first time, Trix opens up to his brother about his emotions concerning Drigglezub.

The group takes stock of their allies. They teleport to Sloobludop and see Shuushar’s progress in training his countrymen to fight against the demon lords. Shuushar tells them that they’ve noticed far more spores (Zuggtmoy’s influence) throughout the Underdark in the last month; whenever the spores get too close, they dive underwater to avoid infection. They’ve noticed hordes of myconids and fungally-infected creatures marching; sometimes, slimes and oozes get in their way, provoking minor skirmishes.

Tremble tinkers around and creates masks to filter spores—a tribute to his teacher, Misu. Tremble use some of Shuushar’s natural slime and bodily secretions to help plug holes in these masks. With the help of the kuo-toans, he’s able to manufacture fictional versions of N-95 masks. They leave Finn with the kuo-toans for his own protection; since he’s revealed some of Vizeran’s paranoid secrets, they worry about reprisal from the archmage.

After finishing checking in with Shuushar, the group returns to Vizeran and drops off the grimoire. When they reveal they were allowed to leave Menzoberranzan after speaking with the Baenres, Vizeran drops his patient façade and lashes out at the goblins. His paranoia sets in; since the Baenres destroyed his house and sent him on the path of vengeance so long ago, he worries that this is a long-term plot of the Baenres to harm him further. Pyrite tries to take advantage of his emotionally distraught state and steal some of his hair for scrying purposes, but he’s not fooled. Vizeran dresses her down and proclaims that he’ll have nothing more to do with the goblins after the demon lords are banished.

The goblins, while expecting to be betrayed by Vizeran at some point, are taken aback by his outburst. Bogtooth reorients them: even if the wedding is in a little over a week, Dulcinea needs their help on the surface to push back against the Demogorgon immediately. They agree to go with him to the surface.

For the first time in the entire campaign, the group teleports to the surface—to the Dawnshard grove. After taking in the scintillating sights of the sun and fresh air, they see two familiar faces: Maerad, one of the Knitting Club Heroes who was there when their clan was destroyed, and Fox, her animal companion.

## New NPCs

1. Maerad Dawnshard, druid of the Knitting Club Heroes
2. Fox, Maerad’s wolf companion

## Memorable Quotes

* **Pyrite:** We should go to the Abyss.
* **Bogtooth:** Out of ALL the places we should go, WHY would we go to the ABYSS?
* **Pyrite:** Cause that’s where all the goblins and Annarei are. And there are fewer demon lords there than there are here.
* **Bogtooth:** I’m more concerned with getting demons out of OUR house than the few demons that are in THEIR house!
* **Pyrite:** BUT THEY HAVE ALL OF THE GOBLINS!!

* **Pyrite:** FINE—then, alternatively we go to Elysium and tell them the Demogorgon is coming….and demand they give us an army.
* **Pix:** Well, what I can tell you of Elysium is there are a ton of cute little creatures, and a guy with a flaming sword, and some doodoo la deeds and doodoo la dadas. But armies? No!

* **Trix:** Dear Glyn. Hi. It’s Trix. Are you ok?
* **Tremble:** We miss you.
* **Trix:** We miss you…. are you on the material plane?
* **Tremble:** Love, everyone!
* **Trix:** Yeah…love, the gang.
* **Bogtooth:** I love you means I hate you in demon, or something.
* **Glyn’s Sending:** Trix-- is that really you? It’s been SO, SO long! Why now? How are you doing this? Did Pix get out?

* **Trix:** Where did you get all those fork thingies?
* **Pyrite:** From the magic shop?
* **Tremble:** You went to a magic item shop?
* **Pyrite:** Yes…I had to get things…
* **Tremble**: Why were you going to a magic shop without telling us?
* **Pyrite**: Cause…. I was gonna go to the Abyss alone?
* **Tremble:** I believe Mr. Jimjar had a saying about this. It was SOMEthing about putting a cart in front of a horse….

* **Pyrite:** Oh, and Trix, if you ever buy one of these fork thingies, make sure you buy another one to return to this plane.
* **Trix:** I…I’ve never bought one of those before….so I don’t know what you’re insinuating? Did I forget something?
* **Lemon:** All is lost! What about MY fork?!

* **Pyrite:** I’m trying not to be a goblin.
* **Lemon:** Wait, you can OPT OUT of it?
* **Pyrite:** Mmmmyyeaaaah. It’s magic, wizard, stuff, you should’t really know about it.
* **Lemon**: I think being a goblin’s real cool… I think it’s neat.
* **Bogtooth:** Yeah, it’s not as bad as you make it out to be!
* **Trix**: And you’re a great goblin, Lemon!
* **Tremble:** It’s a goblin thing.
* **Lemon:** I get it. [His pseudopods start dancing.]

* **Pyrite:** Hey Pix…can you come here?
* **Trix:** What’s going on?
* **Pyrite:** Nothing that matters to you, Trix!
* **Trix:** Fuck you! Things matter to me!
* **Pyrite:** Can you make people forget things, Pix?
* **Trix:** Nothing that matters to me, huh?
* **Pix:** Um I can make things go boof but I can’t do that.
* **Trix:** I can make people forget things! I LITERALLY have that spell prepared right now!
* **Lemon:** Yeah, fuck you!
* **Trix:** Yeah!

* **Trix:** If Finn goes up to the surface, he’ll die!
* **Lemon:** Yeah, fuck that!
* **Trix:** Finn, what do you think about this?
* **Pyrite:** WHY IS FINN A PART OF THIS CONVERSATION?
* **Trix**: Because Finn is a real person whose opinion I value….

**Finn**: Alright, I will say that Master Vizeran is the most paranoid person I have ever met, and if you think that he won’t plumb the depths of my mind to discover what’s wrong, then you are SORELY mistaken.

* **Pyrite:** Does the sun really kill you?
* **Finn:** YES! I’m a DARKLING!

* **Dawnbringer**: I’d be proud to admit blinding light as a beacon of goodness--for science!
* **Pyrite:** is Glyn here?
* **Trix:** WHAT? You heard GLYN’S voice?
* **Pyrite:** Yeah, but it sounded like a younger version of him?
* **Tremble:** Well maybe that means that the person you trust the most is young Glyn.
* **Pyrite:** What? No, that can’t be!
* **Tremble:** I think that means that the person you trust the most—
* **Pyrite:** —DOESN’T. EXIST. ANYMORE!
* **Lemon:** Is there something wrong with Glyn?
* **Pyrite:** Yes. He’s evil now.
* **Lemon:** No, but that happened before so he can be better again
* **Pyrite:** But this time it’s worse--so now, he is a demon.
* **Trix:** How do know it’s worse this time?
* **Pyrite:** Because he tried to kill me and massacred EVERYONE and he stole a little goblin child and everyone!
* **Trix:** What?
* **Pyrite:** Yeah, in the middle of his party, he stole a little goblin girl….it was that girl…. After Glyn and I stopped being friends, the two of them… we you with her, Trix? Was she like your girlfriend or something?
* **Trix**: It was Drigglezub, yeah…..
* **Pyrite:** He didn’t put her in a soul coin….
* **Trix:** Yeah, I know what he put her in….
* **Pyrite:** He tried to turn her into a demon like he was? That was stupid of him…
* **Trix:** Yeah. But it was probably worse than stupid. It was evil.
* **Pyrite:** Yeah. Which is probably why we should go kill Annarei!

* **Tremble:** Hey, bro. Um. Well. I know you’re probably not okay right now, and it’s okay if you don’t want to talk… but it seems like when we have troubles, it’s better when we….talk about it. I can just listen if you need an ear.
* **Trix:** It’s alright, Tremble. I’m really fine. I’ve known about this for a while. I was just hoping that it wasn’t Glyn.
* **Tremble:** I know that Pyrite really wants to kill Glyn. But I really don’t want to have to fight any of my friends anymore.
* **Trix:** I’ve been ready to kill Glyn this whole time. Ever since Gracklstugh. But… I thought that maybe we could make up or something. I don’t think Glyn has been our friend.
* **Tremble:** I can’t say that I know exactly how you feel, but when we go to the Neverlight Grove, we’ll probably have to fight Stool. I haven’t really thought about it that much. But it seems that sometimes in life, there are things that happen to us and other people. Whether it’s our choice or their choice, we all end up as different people than we were when we first met them. Even if we have to fight our friends and the people we cared about, it doesn’t erase that version of them. It just means we headed to separate destinations.
* **Trix:** I just wanted to be good. She told me that I should be good! How am I supposed to be…. Good people don’t kill their brothers. They find another way or another way out. But how am I supposed to be good when he killed her?
* **Tremble:** No matter what choice you end up making, it doesn’t erase all the good you’ve done. All the people you’ve saved. Mr. Shuushar, the people captured by the gnomes, the people at the Sanctum of the Unseen, our family. You brought Pix back. It doesn’t change that you did all those things and you ARE a good person. And we love you. At the end of the day, we’re just kids. It’s not really our job to have all the answers.

* **Tremble**: Mr. Jimjar said, ”The only time that goodness dies is when good people stand by and do nothing.” Whatever it is, a good decision or bad… we’ll make it together.
* **Trix:** Yeah. I’ve really missed her, Tremble. I’ve missed her this whole time.
* **Tremble:** I know, bro… it’s okay.

* **Lemon:** You’re so good, Trix.
* **Trix:** ……thanks, Lemon…. I’m trying.

* **Shuushar: A** threat?
* **Trix:** Shuushar!
* **Shuushar**: Oh, hi, Trix!
* **Trix:** SHUUSHAAAAR!
* **All the Kua-toan:** BLULULULULULULULULU!

* **Shuushar:** Well met, friends. Why is it that you have come here on this day?
* **Trix:** Well, I miss you, but also we want to drop Finn off here.
* **Shuushar:** Is this a friend of yours? Or a prisoner of war?
* **Trix:** We’re kinda trying to keep him away from his master Vizeran.
* **Shuushar:** The drow who teleported here and then teleported away? Say the word and we will kill him.

* **Shuushar:** This is a place of peace, refugees, and healing where people get nourishment. Trix, have you been eating?
* **Trix:** Not enough.

* **Trix:** It turns out that Glyn’s evil again.
* **Tremble:** Maybe for real this time.
* **Shuushar:** How does that make you feel?
* **Trix:** Really bad.
* **Shuushar:** Would it make you feel bad to kill him?
* **Trix**: I don’t think either way would make me feel good.

* **Shuushar:** Trix, who is this tall glass of water?
* **Trix:** That’s Tremble!
* **Tremble**: Gee!
* **Shuushar:** Well, look at you, young man! I’m glad we can be light-hearted in light of a demon lord of fungus marrying a dead child.

* **Tremble:** Lemon, you’re a ooze right?
* **Lemon:** I am a most handsome one.
* **Tremble:** So you know a lot about oozes right?
* **Lemon:** You fucking bet!
* **Tremble:** Okay! Wanna help me with my science experiment?

* **Vizeran:** Hello, everyone? How are we, my friends?
* **Trix:** Good—we’re dropping off the book and we’re gonna go get some demon blood.
* **Vizeran:** You survived Menzoberranzan without a scratch!
* **Trix:** Bogtooth got pretty beat up.
* **Vizeran:** Aaaah, nothing Bogtooth can’t handle!

**Vizeran:** Oh Gromph, you poor…. dumb idiot.

* **Vizeran:** Beware of Zuggtmoy. Her vision is to create…alternative life. Should you fall under her sway, well, you will no longer be yourself. You’ll be beyond any hope of redemption, beyond hope of being fixed. Your organs replaced with plants, your blood replaced with bile.
* **Bogtooth:** So you mean your brother wasn’t always like that? He seemed full of bile.

* **Vizeran:** Please tell me you didn’t interact with House Baenre.
* **Pyrite**: No….
* **Vizeran:** And don’t lie to me. What interactions did you have with House Baenre?
* **Pyrite:** We were offered an opportunity to make sure that Gromph’s actions were not discovered.
* **Vizeran:** You helped House Baenre save face?
* **Pyrite:** In order to succeed, yes.
* **Vizeran:** You were played. Am I being played?
* **Tremble:** How were we played?
* **Vizeran:** Finn, tell them! [Finn is not there.]

* **Vizeran:** Why did you lie to me?
* **Pyrite:** Because Baenre is dangerous—
* **Vizeran:**  And yet, you spoke with them? What is wrong with you!? You’re supposed to be the smart one!
* **Pyrite:** I’m sorry—
* **Vizeran:** SORRY?! THERE ARE A HOST OF MAGIC WORDS, and SORRY IS NOT ONE OF THEM! I think I must revoke your apprenticeship. We are now WORK ASSOCIATES! Get the demon blood, save the Underdark, and I never want to see you again.