Season 2 | Ep. 23 | The Chimera's Bargain

Summary

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Dark Dice – Season 2, Episode 23: "The Chimera’s Bargain"

Date: September 8, 2025
Produced by: Fool and Scholar Productions

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Episode Overview

In this chilling chapter of Dark Dice, the adventuring party finds themselves deep within the "Madhouse of Tasha’s Kiss," separated and subjected to a series of harrowing, reality-bending trials involving an endless maze of mirrors, sanity-rattling reflections, and ultimately, a confrontation with a monstrous entity known only as the Chimera. The party’s choices—particularly regarding the memories and trauma they are willing to trade away in exchange for a chance to escape—test the very core of their identities, friendships, and the bargain between safety and self.

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Key Discussion Points & Story Highlights

1. The Mirror Maze: A Test of Self and Sanity

[04:31 – 17:01]

• The party, after falling through a seemingly endless void, awakens in a nightmarish hall of mirrors.
• Each character is confronted by deeply personal and often disturbing alternate versions of themselves, revealing paths not taken and trauma from their pasts.
  • Glom grapples with reflections that force him to relive moments of self-loathing, fraternal conflict, and happier, simpler lives he will never know.
  • Ildrix recognizes that the mirrors carry the power to alter reality itself. When he touches a reflection, his entire backstory shifts, his memories rewriting on the spot.
  • The danger is underscored repeatedly: “Yeah, let's not touch the mirrors, Glom. Just saying don't touch the mirrors. It's bad.” – Ildrix ([16:51])
• A motif of emotional support amid horror, with Gael, for instance, comforting her brother:
  • “Look, there's nothing here. Don't worry, just keep walking, keep walking forward. Look at the floor.” – Gael ([13:42])
• The segment culminates in Glom smashing a mirror in distress, providing a literal and symbolic way forward.

2. The Chamber of the Winnower: Torture as Spectacle

[18:06 – 23:03]

• The focus shifts to Sorin Arkwright, isolated from the group. He finds himself in a grisly workshop, witnessing souls wrenched from bodies as a form of grotesque entertainment.
• Other figures seem disturbingly at ease with their fate, suggesting the pervasive, corruptive influence of the place.
  • Sorin’s reaction: “Looks like fun. I’m next.” ([19:18])
  • The party's relief at finding Sorin, even in this dire scene, is captured when Glom says, "Is it a little weird that I'm relieved to be seeing this?" ([20:51])
• The team must use quick thinking and deception to extract Sorin—convincing the monstrous “Winnower” to let them leave under the pretense of returning.

3. The Chimera’s Bargain: You Are What You Remember

[23:16 – 35:38]

• The group enters a warped, familiar tavern, where they are confronted by the Chimera, a horrifying being composed in part from pieces of each adventurer.
• The Chimera offers a sinister trade: safe passage in exchange for a memory from each party member—one memory given away, to be replaced by another.
  • Chimera: "If you want to leave, that can be arranged. But you'll miss out on the fun.... Each of you can willingly give me a memory. And in kind, I shall return one in its place and let you pass without harm." ([25:19])
• Each party member’s choice reveals deep, often tragic secrets, with their personalities and histories subtly (or drastically) altered by what they choose to surrender or gain:
  • Glom: Offers up anything about his abusive father, only to gain a memory of causing a boy’s fatal accident—a secret he never spoke of.
  • Ildrix: Gives away the incident where he burned Glom, receiving instead a trauma surrounding a lost lover and subsequent revenge.
  • Gael: Surrenders the pain of being taken from her brother, but receives a new, deeply ambivalent memory of raising a disappointing, unloved son.
  • Sorin: Forgets a child he accidentally killed, only to be flooded with memories of his own traumatic childhood and abusive father.
• The tone is heavy, with altered realities and emotional scars lingering even as the team is technically allowed to “pass”.
• Reflection on the process is laced with both sarcasm and sadness:
  • "It was actually really easy, wasn't it, Ildrix?" – Glom ([30:09])
  • "Not regretting life choices at all." – Ildrix ([30:12])
  • "You know, I feel like I have a part of me that I never want to speak about ever again." – Ildrix ([30:25])
  • "Oh, I have one, too." – Glom ([30:33])
• The episode closes with the group’s collective sense of unease increasing as they press onward, their identities irrevocably changed by the bargains struck.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

The Mirror Maze (Identity and Trauma)

• "When we get out of this, if we get out of this, we are never going down dark stairs ever again."
  — Glom ([06:51])

• "Had to open the wardrobe, didn't you?"
  — Gael Vogelberg ([07:00])

Emotional Impact and Support

• “Look, there's nothing here. Don't worry, just keep walking, keep walking forward. Look at the floor.”
  — Gael Vogelberg to Glom ([13:42])

The Power of Decisions

• "If I touch the mirror, does anything happen? I'll do it."
  — Ildrix ([15:08])

• "Yeah, let's not touch the mirrors, Glom. Just saying don't touch the mirrors. It's bad."
  — Ildrix ([16:51])

• "Is it a little weird that I'm relieved to be seeing this?"
  — Glom ([20:51])

The Chimera’s Bargain (Consent, Memory, and Identity)

• "If you want to leave, that can be arranged. But you'll miss out on the fun. ... Each of you can willingly give me a memory. And in kind, I shall return one in its place and let you pass without harm."
  — The Chimera ([25:19])

• "Oh, that's great. Okay, sure. Let's do it then. I'll offer my memory of burning Glom."
  — Ildrix ([29:03])

• "You know, I feel like I have a part of me that I never want to speak about ever again. To anyone."
  — Ildrix ([30:25])

• “Sorry, hold on just a second.”
  — Glom, as Gael protests his decision ([27:53])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [04:31] – The adventure resumes: Recap, start of the mirror maze.
• [06:52] – Emotional character banter and initial confrontation with mirrors.
• [10:29] – Glom’s disturbing reflections and emotional breakdown.
• [12:22] – Glom’s outburst: shattering the mirror.
• [15:08] – Ildrix tests the reality-altering power of the mirrors.
• [18:06] – Sorin’s hellish workshop scene.
• [23:16] – Entering the Chimera’s lair, the central bargain is struck.
• [25:19] – The Chimera proposes the bargain.
• [26:51 – 31:56] – Each party member trades away a memory, gain new trauma or revelations.
• [35:38] – Aftermath, the team moves forward profoundly changed.

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Tone and Style

The episode maintains Dark Dice’s signature blend of horror, psychological suspense, and dark fantasy role-playing. The characters cope with existential terror through gallows humor, dry wit, and moments of vulnerable sincerity. The environment and story seamlessly adapt to the party’s fears and flaws, leveraging the D&D format to explore deep character development and intrusive personal horror.

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Conclusion

"The Chimera’s Bargain" is a stand-out episode where the mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons serve as a vehicle for intimate, devastating storytelling. The growing sense of unease, the reality-warping mirrors, and the Chimera’s predatory transaction all force the party—and the listener—to reckon with what it means to be haunted not just by monsters, but by the memories we carry and the ones we might wish to forget. The team moves forward, but nothing will ever truly be the same.

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Transcript

[Narrator / Game Master]

Greetings adventurers. As we get closer to the Spooky Season, we're proud to inform you that Domain of the Nameless God and the True Necromancer Class for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition. Both versions are now available for purchase on darkdice.com that's right this very moment. You can pick up both books in time for the Spooky Season and in the next weeks we'll be adding some additional physical merch as well, like stickers, new shirt designs and more. So be sure to check out darkdice.com, our brand new website and help support the creation of this show. Also, a quick reminder that this episode features sections from the amazing horror adventure the Madhouse of Tasha's Kiss by Jeff C. Stevens, used with permission and will contain some spoilers for that adventure. Though there is a lot of customization and work that goes through every playthrough, so in a sense our version will also be quite distinct. Finally, thank you to everyone who came out to our first ever live show at Worlds Lair in London. It was so very amazing to meet you all. To high five everyone and it was great seeing and playing in person with the cast of Dark Dice. We got so very close to a total party kill and it was a blast having an audience join us for all of the festivities. Well, enough of me gushing about how much I appreciate you all and I really do. One final note is to really check the content warnings with this episode because it's going to get traumatic. And with that out of the way, let's get started.

[Podcast Host (Caitlin Riley)]

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[Narrator / Game Master]

Do you seek him?

[Gael Vogelberg]

Do you seek Him?

[Narrator / Game Master]

Do you seek Him? Do you seek Him?

[Gael Vogelberg]

Do you seek the nameless God?

[Narrator / Game Master]

You have found yourself among those who roll the dark dice. What you are about to hear happened Long a story brought back from the edge of oblivion, dutifully transcribed and enhanced orally to better captivate your attention. Previously, a team of adventurers came across a ghost town and descended into the depths of a magical wagon toward Tasha's madhouse. After being sorted and separated, they will soon discover what terrors await them. Dark Dice the long road Chapter 23 the Chimera's bargain glam and Gael Vogelberg, Ildrix and Clymore, their traveling half elf companion, watched in terrified silence as Sorin Arkwright, the human ranger, passed through the other portal. And after the old woman before them passed through their own portal, stood before the swirling morass, their way out had long vanished. And so they could only traverse deeper into whatever hells this place would take them toward.

[Ildrix]

Alright, let's do this thing.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Hildric stepped through first and the team followed closely behind, discovering that their feet failed to land on the other side, as all at once they began to free fall. And fall they did. 10 seconds passed. 20, 30. A full minute of falling. And they required sanity saving throws.

[Glom]

Is this me as well?

[Narrator / Game Master]

Just checking. No, Soren was fine. He was having a great time.

[Ildrix]

Sure thing. 18 for Ildrid.

[Narrator / Game Master]

2.

[Ildrix]

4.

[Narrator / Game Master]

As Gale and Glom gained tense stress from this nightmarish experience, they suddenly woke up on the floor of a strange room.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Ah, where are we?

[Graham]

Some kind of maze of mirrors. Different paths. But more worrisome, I don't like what I'm seeing in these reflections. Especially after what that boy said about mirror demons.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Well, apparently it can get creepier.

[Ildrix]

Mm.

[Glom]

Okay. When we get out of this, if we get out of this, we are never going down dark stairs ever again.

[Ildrix]

Sure. Yeah, that seems like it checks out.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Yep.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Had to open the wardrobe, didn't you?

[Ildrix]

This whole room is just a friggin hallway of mirrors. Oh, there's different branches. It's a maze. Great.

[Glom]

So we are in an amusement park hall of mirrors, basically.

[Graham]

I've never seen a hall of mirrors, but I'll trust your word on it.

[Ildrix]

No discernible tracks. I can't tell where anyone's been. Oh, the old woman is here at least.

[Gael Vogelberg]

I've seen this sort of thing before when I was younger.

[Ildrix]

Well, you got out, so that must be good.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Yeah.

[Ildrix]

Alright.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Yep. Are you a dragon?

[Ildrix]

Yeah, I'm a dragon born. But yeah, we can say that now, right? Ah, Travis is nodding. D and D. Finally dropped the trademark on that one. So Scale, Skin and Dragonborn will both work.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Do you have a dragon horde? I guess you wouldn't tell me even if you did. No, you know what? I'm old enough to be blunt. I can ask.

[Ildrix]

Yeah, no, not fully fully dragon don't really have the big rigamarole with needing all of the things. Very, very minimalist is the way I like to roll.

[Glom]

Sorry for the banter. We might have some pressing problems. Ma', am, your name is Graham.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Works.

[Glom]

Graham. Great. Can we smell blood or anything?

[Ildrix]

Just from your lip there.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Okay.

[Gael Vogelberg]

I have 16 grandchildren who all call me Graham.

[Ildrix]

Got it. Graham. Name's Ildrix Glymore.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Hi. This one understands.

[Graham]

Um, Graham, would you mind moving behind the larger of us so you don't get Hurt, maybe between Glomengale and myself. Just so you're safe. I don't want to see you get hurt.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The old woman complied with the suggestion, stepping between Glom and Clymore, who seemed increasingly nervous as he glanced at the reflections in the mirror.

[Ildrix]

Graham says we're gonna be fine down here, Kymor.

[Graham]

You know. You know, I hear you saying that, and I keep seeing things in my reflection that I don't rightly appreciate.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Hmm.

[Graham]

Probably just best keep on keeping on, as they say.

[Ildrix]

All right. Anybody gotta just wanna spin something and see which way we're going.

[Gael Vogelberg]

We've got left, right and straight. Take your pick.

[Glom]

Or we have a through.

[Ildrix]

You want to go through the mirrors?

[Glom]

Yeah. Break a mirror.

[Ildrix]

Go for it.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Glom looked at the closest mirror, readying his sword. But what he saw stilled. His actions upset him. He saw Ildrix, Clymore and Graham. But then he saw himself. Only himself, wearing a mix of his own clothing, but also Gael's. They both normally shared the same dark eyeliner, the same moisturizer and even makeup sometimes. But now he was dressed up as his sister, as Gale. And as he met his own gaze, he could see the long red wig on his head fitting poorly. But then the image shifted as he looked at a different mirror, shifted to a more familiar version of Glom yelling at his sister, each sharing their deep rooted hatred for one another as they bickered in a distant and different room. In the reflection, Glum stared at these reflections, perhaps too long, and they deeply disturbed him.

[Ildrix]

You alright there, Glum?

[Glom]

Yeah. These. These mirrors are a little weird.

[Ildrix]

Mm.

[Graham]

So which is it? Glam and Gale, which way are we going?

[Narrator / Game Master]

The words of his friends felt even further away as Glum shifted his focus to a reflection that faced away from him in another mirror. And as this reflection turned to face him, Glom saw himself again wearing that wig, but dressed in the formal white garb of an esteemed knight, standing next to Ser Percy. A glorious sunrise cresting the horizon before an army that Glam somehow knew he led would soon lead into a final charge into the very heart of the Darklands. He felt so comforted by this reflection. His hand unconsciously reached out to touch it, only stopped by Ildrix's interruption.

[Ildrix]

So straight then?

[Glom]

Yeah, yeah, that'd be. I think, straight.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Yeah.

[Ildrix]

Okay.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Yeah, that'll be Gale. Yeah. Are you okay?

[Glom]

No, I'm fine.

[Gael Vogelberg]

You seem quiet.

[Glom]

Fine. Just don't look at that mirror there. Just. Let's go.

[Narrator / Game Master]

As they continued, Glom was repeatedly confronted by his lone Reflection, wearing a mix of his clothes and Gale's. In one reflection, he became a prestigious wizard. No, that one only showed Gale, but distorted with Glum's features. Maybe it was so confusing. In another, he was an inquisitor for Eastwood, a blade of nellium, uncovering heretic plots on behalf of the faith. In another, he stood proudly under a beautiful, masterfully stitched banner of House Vogelberg. And in another, he saw himself as a pirate, swashbuckling and even at one point, battling with an older Gale during a rough storm. He saw a brief crack in one mirror where his father didn't drink so much, one where he was just plain old Glom, unremarkable, but maybe happier. This Glom never amounted to much of anything, and it looked like he very much wanted to catch enough fish for them to survive the coming winter.

[Glom]

Glom screams suddenly and just goes aaaaa. And smash. Tries to smash one of the mirrors. I rolled. A critical hit.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Glom shattered the mirror with his scimitar, revealing a stone wall behind it.

[Ildrix]

Well done, Glom. Well done.

[Glom]

Thanks.

[Ildrix]

I feel like that was a good idea.

[Glom]

Okay, well, threw us out.

[Ildrix]

All right. Straight it was, until we freaked out there for a sec. You okay? You good?

[Glom]

I'm good, yeah.

[Gael Vogelberg]

All good. Does he always talk to himself like this?

[Graham]

You sort of get used to it.

[Ildrix]

I give Glom a little shoulder squeeze, you know, just reassuring him before we move on.

[Glom]

I'm good, I'm good.

[Ildrix]

Yeah, good.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Glom made the mistake of peeking at one of the mirrors as he moved and saw.

[Glom]

Oh, got him. Let's move straight, straight ahead. Let's just look at the ground.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Yes, let's go this way. Oh, by the way, makeup suits you. You should wear it more.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Failing a wisdom saving throw, Glom took one final peek, revealing a reflection, a world where his father was a kind and just man who loved his son more than anything else in the world. Their mother was gone in this version of the world, but the two men were happy and content working together on their family trade.

[Glom]

Glom is silently crying as silently as he can as they walk forward.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Gaylis continuing her walk. And I think what she's going to do, she's going to take her brother's hand and just give her brother's hand a squeeze and go, look, look, there's nothing here. Don't worry, just keep walking, keep walking forward. Look at the floor.

[Glom]

Just walking, just, just walking.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Ildryx, however.

[Ildrix]

Yeah, I'm gonna probably look.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Ildryx saw numerous versions of himself reflected in the mirrors all around Him. One where he actually murdered his father in a drunken argument and followed roughly the same path thereafter. One where he found the killer instantly and had been exonerated by his clan. And what a powerful leader he had grown into. And one more standing exactly where he was right now. But the expression Ildrix's eyes told him all that he needed to that he was a spy sent by his clan to learn more about their human enemies to the north and what great intel he'd gathered. When he reached a dead end, Ildric saw himself disregard the teachings of the monks and to pursue a life of crime. Another where he missed the monks entirely, instead meeting human trappers from the Bright Vale. Or in another, a hunting party from the Blackstone Forest. Trained as a huntsman, he had joined a band of elves and saw that his other self now wore strange armor that resembled a tangled weave of leaves. He thought he could almost hear the whisper of the clan name as he leaned his head closer.

[Ildrix]

If I touch the mirror, does anything happen? I'll do it.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Which one did Ildryx touch?

[Ildrix]

The huntsman one.

[Narrator / Game Master]

For those not playing the game, I just sent Russ a new character sheet for Ildryx of the Shadesteel Elves. Visually, he now wore a weave of leaf like armor that fitted like a second set of skin or scales. His class shifted from monk to ranger. He was also given a new background with new experiences. He'd always been Ildrix and he had only known the life of a huntsman, not a monk. He had come across Sorin's party much in the same way when he was separated from his friends in the dead pines while searching for game. One winter on a trading pilgrimage and standing before Ildryx of the Shadesteel Elves, he could see a reflection of himself. Dressed in the garb of a monk, curiously holding a flask through which he drowned out the screams of the murdered family. He had been framed and exiled from his clan. For that, Ildryx swore that he'd find his family. Murderers.

[Ildrix]

I touched it again.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Ildryx required his sanity saving throw 15. Gaining 15. Stress. And because it's not cool to take this level of agency away from players in a D and D table, unwillingly, in such a long lasting gut punch way, without player buy in, Ildrix was now, or perhaps once again, the version of this hero that we've edited this show to match, we'll never tell.

[Ildrix]

Perfect. I'll stop looking at the Player's Handbook then. Do I know? Sorry? Do I realize what has happened? Or just my memory's shifted and now it's all good.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Let's say roll a D20 if it's over a 10, you know. 14 Ildryx remembered making the connection that these mirrors could apparently shift reality.

[Ildrix]

Yeah, let's not touch the mirrors, Glom. Just saying don't touch the mirrors. It's bad.

[Glom]

Don't look, don't touch, don't look, don't touch, don't look, don't touch.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Ildrix was unsure if Clymore touched a mirror at any point, but felt confident that Glom did not. And after reaching another dead end and backtracking before the path split to follow a new direction, the team continued in this manner for a few minutes more until they reached a portal much like the one they'd passed through earlier, surrounded by mirrors that showed them alternate realities, some of which were seen so very appealing. Graham hesitantly reached toward one before remembering the terrified shriek Ildryx gave when he'd done so and reconsidered. She had always longed to be a hero, but ultimately was unwilling to sacrifice her family. It was there they spotted a reflection, one where Ildryx led Clymore, Graham and Gael, who stood beside them, very much alive and well. Iltrix took a while to realize what he was looking at, as if a spell had broken all at once, opening his mouth to ask, but the words never formed.

[Glom]

That's just normal. Glom steps through the portal, Gael's following.

[Ildrix]

Then, yeah.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Clymore and Graham followed. And now we return to our dearest human, Ranger Sorin Arkwright, who found himself in a different room at least a few moments before the team arrived to potentially rescue him. Or not. I guess we're about to find out.

[Ildrix]

Oh boy.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Sorin found himself within a workshop of sorts, a generally bare room, though a few humanoid corpses were piled into a corner, occasionally being pulled through a hole in the wall by curious fur covered appendages. A bald, nearly naked giant hunched over, working a series of chains that wrapped around its arms in a pulling dance. The giant was literally leering and grinning, the far side of the chains ending in hooks which latched into a naked human's flesh, the gaps in the skin leaking an unnatural green miasma that formed an agonized ghostly figure. The apparition of the shrieking human was pulled away from its identical body that watched on in laughter. Crates and tables topped with green glass, filled jars and rusty tools waited in a corner behind the giant. The agonized specter screamed again as the smiling farmer who stood just ahead of Soren raised his hand Excitedly.

[Ildrix]

Looks like fun. I'm next.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Soren couldn't help but smile back as the tortured spirit continued to scream and its corresponding body laughed.

[Ildrix]

Can you believe this guy? He's had like five minutes already. Let the rest of us have some fun. Jeez, I hope I get to have that much fun.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The giant pulling the chains ignored the banter, so focused on the task. Soren, however, required a sanity saving throw.

[Ildrix]

The quiver is a 10 for the.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Sanity check, and he gained 15 stress with a strange realization that he was probably okay with all of this. It felt like home after all. In some strange way, for the sake of expediency, we'll say that after about a minute, the spirit was winnowed from the laughing man and collected into a small jar, which was sealed and placed onto the table by the giant before the dead corpse was thrown into the pile with the others. The next person in line, the farmer in front of Soren, winked at Soren giddily as he undressed.

[Ildrix]

All right, it's my turn now.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The farmer moved into position and stood still as the barbed chains lashed him, hooking into his very soul and winnowing his flesh. It was at this moment that the team arrived, visibly upset by whatever they had experienced before reaching this new hell. They stared on in a deeper confusion as Sorin giggled to himself with excitement at this grisly display.

[Glom]

Ildrix Gale. Is it a little weird that I'm relieved to be seeing this?

[Gael Vogelberg]

Maybe, yeah.

[Narrator / Game Master]

With a 23, 18 and 19 on their respective sanity saving throws, the team was indeed relieved to see Soren and so chose to focus on that.

[Glom]

Do we want to leave Soren in that line?

[Ildrix]

Hey, Soren, how you doing over there? There, bud?

[Narrator / Game Master]

Great, man.

[Glom]

I'm next.

[Ildrix]

Oh, great. Hey, there was this cool thing over here. Maybe you wanted to come check that out first? I don't know.

[Glom]

I'm pretty excited.

[Ildrix]

I'm trying to persuade you, Sorin. Let me at least roll a persuasion roll before you refuse my offer. It's pretty cool, if I do say so myself. I rolled a 19. I start to push Soren with me.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The giant severed the soul from the naked farmer's body, so scooping it up with their second set of arms before placing it into the next empty jar, sealing it with a satisfying click as the corpse fell in a heap, the Winnower of souls then looked at the group with a casual curiosity that a seasoned city guard might have to a potential trespasser. Just where are you going?

[Ildrix]

Oh, yeah, he has an appointment and we were Just running a little bit behind in this house and we just needed to take the, you know, the secret back door that normally is in these type of places. We're gonna take that and just. We'll come back later.

[Glom]

We'll bring him back. We'll bring him right back.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Ildryx required a deception check.

[Glom]

Can I assist?

[Ildrix]

Please do. Because my first roll was a 4.

[Glom]

I have a 19 natural.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The winnower didn't trust Ildrix. But as both sets of eyes shifted to Glom, the human politely bowed, which brought a smile to the Winnower's face.

[Glom]

Yeah, we'll have him right back. Right back. That's acceptable. However, you're going the wrong way. You need to take that door, the brass one.

[Ildrix]

Oh, there's a secret to opening it.

[Glom]

Let me get that for you. Oh, thanks. Thanks so much.

[Ildrix]

No problem at all. Have a pleasant meeting with the Chimera.

[Narrator / Game Master]

They do so hate to wait. The team stepped through the doorway, quickly.

[Glom]

Shoving, shoving Soren, who's glancing backwards at the.

[Ildrix]

Aw, come on.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The door closed behind them before they could take in the next room. A familiar space. A spacious, empty two story bar which housed numerous booths and a small stage along the back wall that was roped off with a sign that read no music after dark in common. But there was no fire in the hearth, and all sense of belonging and welcome had been stripped from this place. The room was familiar, yet altogether different. Somehow it looked like the inn where Squabbin's birthday had taken place. But darkness permeated every corner, warping the room's proportions and obscuring the world beyond its windows. A flickering row of candles at the bar illuminated the creature, also familiar, also alien, seated at the middle stool, which slowly turned to face them. Its features were a mix of pink and gray flesh with patches of brass colored scales, long and short, flowing and fraying hair, red, black, gray horns, and part of a blond beard cut at chin length as if by a dagger. One eye was steel blue, the other matched Glom's reflection. And the clothes it wore were a clear combination of the party's own fashion, including a dagger, bow, shortsword and flask. The visible ear was almost as pointed as its visible teeth. Ildrix reasoned that this must be the Chimera, a sort of shapeshifter formed by giants or some creature altogether new to Ildridge, that the name simply fit. Taking a swig from its flask, it regarded the team with interest. Those still seated speaking in a voice that felt familiar to everyone.

[Ildrix]

Welcome to the Madhouse look, we're. We're just trying to get out of here. Wherever here is. You can either help us with that or. Or get out of the way.

[Narrator / Game Master]

If you want to leave, that can be arranged. But you'll miss out on the fun. The Chimera blinked a second set of eyelids as it leaned forward. And as Ildrix regarded his surroundings, they had shifted slightly to resemble the village he'd called home. Cushioning the chairs with fine furs and draping the curtains in familiar hides from beasts he knew the stories of.

[Ildrix]

You know. Now I'm even more unsure what's going on here. At first I thought she might try to attack us or something, but I feel a bit more at home now.

[Glom]

That chair looks really comfortable.

[Ildrix]

It's very comfortable and sort of took a long time to make. It's perfectly suited to folk like myself. With tails. Yeah.

[Narrator / Game Master]

So how about we make a bargain? I shall not descend upon you. Shall not pluck your eyes. Shall not delicately ply your skin from the red beneath. Shall not suck the marrow from your bones. If you will make a trade with me, each of you can willingly give me a memory. And in kind, I shall return one in its place and let you pass without harm.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Do not trust such a devil, Sparken.

[Glom]

Yep, no problem.

[Podcast Host (Caitlin Riley)]

Really.

[Glom]

We're good then.

[Narrator / Game Master]

What memory would you like to offer, Glom of House Vogelberg?

[Glom]

Anything to do with my dad.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Gael opened her mouth to protest, but all at once Glam began to forget his father. The way he drank, the way the things he would say, the accident. And instead he found himself focusing on a different memory. One where he had desired to be a knight more than anything in the world. And in his enthusiasm. In a play fight with a friend, an eight year old named Edgar swung a wooden sword a little bit too well, striking Edgar in the neck. The boy fell, convulsing, and before Glum could even realize the extent of what had happened, the convulsions ceased. Edgar was dead. And Golomb wished he was as well. In the moment. In his state of panic, Glam fled and Edgar's body was never found. A secret he had never told anyone and never would speak of again. Gael, who was unaware of what had just transpired, stepped in front of Glam.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Just a second, brother.

[Glom]

Yeah?

[Gael Vogelberg]

I'd like a word before you make such a deal.

[Glom]

Sorry, hold on just a second.

[Gael Vogelberg]

And how did that creature know your name?

[Glom]

That's a good point.

[Gael Vogelberg]

You never told them. Yeah, I have an idea.

[Narrator / Game Master]

But you're a door on the upper Floor was suddenly visible as the darkness receded. Glom may pass. Who is next?

[Graham]

I'll make the deal.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Clymore stepped forward and whispered to the Chimera, which nodded firmly before its eyes blinked again. Clymore may pass.

[Graham]

Well, what are you waiting for?

[Glom]

Everyone else?

[Graham]

Yeah, that's what I mean. Make this deal. It's fanciful, but at its core, it's a simple transaction. Let us continue our journey with haste, friends.

[Ildrix]

So, just to be clear, if we make this deal, you take a memory and you perhaps give us something different, better, worse, whatever, and then we're good? We can just go?

[Narrator / Game Master]

The Chimera nodded.

[Ildrix]

And if we don't, what happens?

[Narrator / Game Master]

You really won't want to find out. Hildryx.

[Ildrix]

Oh, that's great. Okay, sure. Let's do it then. I'll offer my memory of burning Glom.

[Narrator / Game Master]

And though Ildrix could tell that the Chimera was offended from such a meager offering, Ildrix could no longer remember that incident, perfect as it was, instead replaced with a different memory, one Ildryx could not remember how he'd forgotten until now. A few years ago, Ildryx had met a sea elf whose name meant of the sunlit depths. They quickly became friends, lovers, and they were set to be married. However, Ildryx's nephew was a jealous brat who'd grown into a jealous man. And before they could be married, his nephew had poisoned Ildrix's fiance. In a fit of rage, Ildryx murdered his nephew and left his home by the sea. He vowed on that day never to return to the ocean again. Ildryx may pass.

[Ildrix]

All right. Well, that was an experience. Thank you.

[Glom]

It was actually really easy, wasn't it, Ildrix?

[Ildrix]

Super easy. Not. Not regretting life choices at all.

[Glom]

Okay, I feel a lot better.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Good, good, I'm glad.

[Glom]

Like, I'm less duplicitous.

[Ildrix]

You know, I feel like I have a part of me that I never want to speak about ever again. To anyone.

[Glom]

Oh, I have one, too.

[Ildrix]

Yeah? Yeah, that's cool. Yeah.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Gail is gonna step forward and offer a memory of being taken away from her brother.

[Narrator / Game Master]

All at once, Gael forgot ever leaving her brother. She had, in fact, always been with him, after all. Right. But there was a little bit of time when she'd taken a small journey without glam to have her son. And how she hated that boy. Gentry Hull had never impressed her, not once. She knew she'd make a terrible parent. But she didn't know that a child could turn out this poorly. He was just never good at anything. Every time she handed Gentry a task, she knew she was setting the boy up to fail again. And each time he went out to look for wood or berries or even to tell his sister to come inside. Somehow this creative brat would find a way to disappoint her.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Wow.

[Narrator / Game Master]

She wasn't a monster, though Gale felt remorse at having these feelings, but this useless child would never amount to anything and might not even grow to be self sufficient by the time he was in his teens. Gods. She sometimes even found herself wishing that the boy could be polished off by the next plague, and these thoughts made her realize just how terrible of a person she might be. As Gale visibly stared at a wall for a few moments before passing the Chimera, the old grandmother sneered before going next, and Sorin began to weigh his options.

[Glom]

Oh, I'm tempted still. Soren is coming out of a fog still, but he's determined, walks forward and just says the child.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Sorin forgot the face of the child he'd shot by mistake while within the domain of a nameless God, forgot that he'd ever pulled the string in that moment, and Sorin found himself thinking of his own childhood, the memories that this transaction had sparked to the foreground, his small home by the rocky shore and the small house his family shared. Sorin remembered why he'd chosen to forget these memories for some so long as the sneering face of his father came into view. A short gray and red beard wrestling under hurled insults that preceded thrown objects. Sorin's father hated magic, hated witchcraft, and Sorin had shown signs of certain talents as a child, predilections that infuriated the old man. The abuse started long before his father had lost his post with House Vogelberg and only got worse after Mother died. Soren did his best to make his father happy, but he was admittedly a bit of a slow learner, a bit too feminine for his father, a bit of a flirt with boys who didn't understand his feelings and responded with a violence that Soren was only too happy to reciprocate, a language his household was fluent. But these scuffles only seemed to make his father more angry. It was around this time that his sister started to visit him, to offer help, to read bedtime stories, to offer a reprieve during the darker nights. How had he forgotten her visits? While he slept, she read books on magic and cleaned and drank and tried on all manner of dresses. And while she slept he did all the things that Father wanted him to do. He was a Good son. And Gael? She wasn't bad. But she got into trouble. All sorts of trouble that got blamed on Soren. And yet, whenever Soren was going to get punished, Gale was there to take responsibility, to shield him from that responsibility. Until one night when Father caught Gael reading a spellbook, a secret book Mother had given them. That was a bad night, and Soren couldn't watch Gael be hurt that badly. Soreness. Sorin didn't dwell on that night, and in the following weeks, he remembered watching Gael try on Mother's dresses while he tended to his sickly father. Father died eventually, and for the funeral pyre, Sorin used his favorite book of childhood legends to start the fire. The book that included the recent exploits of the infamous pirate captain, Gail Vogelberg. He always liked that name. Gael. And as he stared into the mirror, donning his father's nicest cloak, a stolen signet ring in service to House Vogelberg, and a red wig, Gael burned down their family house for good measure before booking them passage to the mainland. House Fife was looking for heroes. Now, in the present. A woman suddenly stood beside Sorin. Her round face was pensive at first, but she smiled at him reassuringly.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Are you done, then?

[Podcast Host (Caitlin Riley)]

Sorin?

[Gael Vogelberg]

Did you make the deal?

[Narrator / Game Master]

I. I think I feel better, but I'm not really sure.

[Glom]

I'm just frankly glad to have you around.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Gale, you may pass.

[Glom]

If we wanted to come back and do this again, how do we get here?

[Ildrix]

Let's go glum.

[Glom]

Okay?

[Narrator / Game Master]

Sorry.

[Gael Vogelberg]

No more to see here. Thank you.

[Narrator / Game Master]

The team's collective stress levels rose as Ildricks glanced from Glom to Soren curiously, and they continued with haste through the door ahead, ready for whatever hells this place had in store. Next Dark Dice Chapter 23 the Chimera's Bargain Featuring Peter Joseph Lewis as Soren Arkwright, Holly Billinghurst and Shawn Howard as Galen Glam Vogelberg, Rusty Moore as Ildrix, and featuring Robert Clotworthy as Clymore, Ryan McQuinn as the manic farmer, Andreas Somville as Torturee, Dane Leonardson as the Winnower, Charlotte Norup as Graham and Travis Vengraugh as the Chimera and Game Master. This episode was produced and edited with sound design by Travis, mixing and mastering by Fenner Nielsen, and features executive producers Dennis Greenhill, Michael Villegas, AJ Punkin, and Carol Vengrof. This episode featured music by Andrey Vidonogrov, Neil Martin, Travis, Travis Vengraf, Austin Wintory, Hitoshi Sakamoto, Brandon Boone, Dane Leonardson, and Stephen Millen. To help support this show. Please check out patreon.com and please check out our new website, darkdice.com, now, complete with new merch. We're also making Dungeons and dragons content on TikTok as fool and Scholar. Dark Dice is a Fool and Scholar production. Thank you for listening.

[Chris Wimmer]

American history is full of infamous tales that continue to captivate audiences decades or even hundreds of years after they happened. On the Infamous America podcast, you'll hear the true stories of the Salem witch trials and the escape attempts from Alcatraz, of bank robbers like John Dillinger and Pretty Boy Floyd, of killers like Lizzie Borden and Charles Starkweather, of mysteries like the Black Dahlia and D.B. cooper, and of events that inspired movies like Goodfellas, Killers of the Flower Moon, Zodiac, Eight Men out, and many more. I'm Chris Wimmer. Join me as we crisscross the country from the Miami drug wars and Dixie Mafia in the south, to mobsters in Chicago and New York, to arsonists, kidnappers and killers in California, to unsolved mysteries in the heartland and in remote corners of Alaska. Every episode features narrative writing and cinematic music. And there were hundreds of episodes available to binge find Infamous America wherever you get your podcasts.

[Narrator / Game Master]

I'm Amy Nicholson, the film critic for the LA Times.

[Glom]

And I'm Paul Scheer, an actor, writer and director. You might know me from the League.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Veep or my non eligible for Academy Award role in Twisters. We love movies and we come at them from different perspectives.

[Glom]

Yeah, like Amy thinks that, you know Joe Pesci was miscast in Goodfellas and.

[Narrator / Game Master]

I don't he's too old.

[Gael Vogelberg]

Let's not forget that Paul thinks that.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Dune 2 is overrated. It is. Anyway, despite this, we come together to host Unspooled, a podcast where we talk about good movies, critical hits, fan favorites.

[Glom]

Must sees, and in case you misstems.

[Narrator / Game Master]

We'Re talking the Home Alone From Grease.

[Glom]

To the Dark Knight.

[Gael Vogelberg]

We've done deep dives on popcorn flicks.

[Narrator / Game Master]

We'Ve talked about why Independence Day deserves a second look, and we've talked about horror movies, some that you've never even even heard of, a Ganja and Hess. So if you love movies like we do, come along on our cinematic adventure.

[Glom]

Listen to Unspooled wherever you get your.

[Narrator / Game Master]

Podcasts, and don't forget to hit the follow button.