Episode 21

Episode 21: A Madman’s Truth.

Ajax brings Wood, Taylansta, and Callisto together to interrogate the Apostle cultist that they captured and knocked unconscious. However, the Apostle speaks in confusing riddles and vague proclamations, even while being threatened with violence. The cultist claims that the coded letters found on them are orders from their Disciple, a strange and cryptic being this cult seems to follow. The cultist claims that the orders can only be read for a certain amount of time after they are written, and after reading it becomes mindless scribbles that no one else can read. Apparently, the cult has knowledge of The Shepherd crew and their plans, and the Apostle alludes to the cult having similar ideas. The cultist tells them,

“We want order. We want to see order come back to Velstrana, just like you do. Oh, you miss the order, you miss when things were nice. You miss when the Gods still loved you. Well, we miss when there was someone who would take up the throne of the Gods. That’s not gonna be you guys…” (Apostle, Episode 21: A Madman’s Truth)

The cultist tells them that the cult was following their tracks, knew they were in Ikar, and set fires only to get their attention. The Disciple reads their upcoming orders to the three of them, saying it tells them to cut out Wood’s eyes, and bring them to a meeting location, and then meet in the Kenai Pass to look for the champion in Ker Jarra. They have more knowledge than the Shepherd crew, however. The Apostle details rumors about Ophelia’s Children, a story of a mother who molded her children into monsters, and that the champion in Ker Jarra is one of those very children. The mother Ophelia now haunts the continent of Canderous, where they are from, but her children escaped from her grasp through the underground. This about all the Shepherd crew is able to get out of them before they decide that their time was well spent. They bite into a pill on them and die immediately in front of them, giving them no more information. With that, there isn’t much more to do except take their letters, and head back into the coterie for their celebration.

After Gemevieve and Wood have a discussion about her confidence and Wood helping her talk to a girl she likes, the celebration gets started, to celebrate the peace between the Teraidrans and the people of Ikar. Maybe people show off their skills, perform dances and songs, read stories and poetry, and other artistic routines. Gemevieve shows off her gymnastics abilities, the dazed Onyx reads a poem about rocks before disappearing, Wood details his dramatic history with flashy swordwork, and Callisto reads a heated, angsty poem about morality. It’s clear that there’s still some feelings not confronted among the heroes, but it’s time for them to make their way up to the dangerous Kenai Pass before it's too late.