Riptide Episode 24: Empress of Malice

> "The crew faces off against Malice, The Empress of the Isle, in one final encore." -*Episode 24 Official Description*
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## Summary

Chip negotiates with Empress Malice, learning of her connection with Niklaus. He tries to convince her to stand down and free the island, but she refuses. They fight and the party defeats her. They debate whether to kill her, and learn the secret ingredient to freeing the island from stone.

## Episode Events

The episode opens up with the party standing in Malice’s throne room. They are about to begin negotiations. Chip holds out the compass. He confidently says he’s very impressed with what she’s done to the island, but wants to be freed from her “parlor trick” (the stone). He rolls well on persuasion and she frees him. He says that she’s done very well in leading the party to the compass, and that “Niklaus will be pleased”.

Malice is suddenly angry. She demands to know what the party have to do with Niklaus, reminding them that she still has Earl in stone. Chip casually says that she has no leverage anymore. Gillion shows her the Niklaus tattoo, and Chip insinuates that they are working with him. Malice reveals that she wasn’t looking for the compass because she was scared of Niklaus, but so she can “deal with him”. Chip laughs and responds that they could have given her a meeting with Niklaus the whole time. She says that either he gives her the item or Niklaus, or Earl dies. He asks her again to free Earl.

Chip points out that if she’s so powerful, why couldn’t she just kill them? She respond that it’s starting to sound like a lovely idea, but does command Maria to free Old Man Earl. Chip asks what Niklaus did to her, and she reveals that he cursed her to make her music turn people to stone. She wants to get revenge, and for him to turn her back. Chip pretends to be taken aback, asking why she didn’t say so sooner.

He says that she should know that she can’t beat him on her own. So he wants to strike a deal with her. He says that the party has served Niklaus for far too long, and they also want out of their deal with him. He says that have much more experience with him than she does. He tells her to free the island, free the girls, and wait. When the time is right, which only the party will know, they will call upon her.

Malice commends him for having a silver tongue. But she is sick and tired of deals and waiting. She and the sisters attack them. Chip yells at Maria that this isn’t what her father would want, causing her to stand frozen and not attack. Jay tries to show Satasha her father’s diary, but then realizes that she doesn’t have eyes. Gil smites her with his father’s book. Chip shouts at Malice that if she can’t beat them, how is she going to beat Niklaus? Maria breaks out of the control and grapples Malice. Satasha attacks Maria, but freezes right before the strike. Jay punches the empress unconscious.

Maria and Satasha don’t attack them, but know that they’re not free from the control. The party asks them if they know the stone antidote, and Satasha knows that she makes it from something and her own blood. Gil freezes ice around Malice so she can’t get out, and tries smack her with the book until she comes to. Chip tries to stop him, saying that there’s a lot more they can do with Malice than just saving the people, like working together to stop Niklaus. Gillion is unmoved, arguing that she froze an entire island of people to get this compass. Jay responds by asking “but who made her to that?”

Jay heals Malice up, and Gillion demands to know what the second ingredient is. She tells them it’s sea lavender. Gillion asks what her wish with Niklaus was. She wanted to be a rock star. But after the wish, her music began to turn people to stone. Niklaus had spoken to her about the compass, and she felt if there was any way to find Niklaus, it would be that. Gil commands her to give up music. He says that maybe then she’ll be able to walk away from this.

Chip tries to convince her that she can still come back on top, that they want her help to fight Niklaus. But she doesn’t want to live anymore. Jay says that even though she can’t play music now, it won’t be that way forever. Malice says that the sisters will be released if they kill her, so now Gillion really wants to. But the other two don’t want him to. He storms off to get the sea lavender.

Malice says that she isn’t throwing her life away, which Jay doesn’t believe. Malice listlessly responds that “You live two decades or more seeking revenge, after losing everything that you ever wanted, and then you lie on the floor and tell me it doesn’t feel a little empty.” Satasha says she wants to see John again, and Chip teases her that she has a crush on him. Gillion walks back in and gives her the John callnch shell.

## Transcription

A Google Doc of this episode's transcription is not currently available.

Transcriptions are made by pistolwaltz and their transcription team on Discord.