Isaac Allen Burns: Hey. It's a podcast. Hey, everybody. That's right. This is an inter this is a d size.
Rachel Baker: A d size.
Isaac Allen Burns: Is d size with two very special guests. To my right, I have one Holly Baker.
Hollie Baker: I'm on your left. Are.
Isaac Allen Burns: That's right. You sure are?
Rowan Collins: Oh, he does this all
Rachel Baker: the time.
Rowan Collins: I am always been on his left.
Isaac Allen Burns: I know. I'm really glad I get these new people.
Rowan Collins: If you listen to
Hollie Baker: the I accept my lefts and rights too. It's alright.
Rachel Baker: There you go.
Rowan Collins: It's okay. Just admit it.
Isaac Allen Burns: And even further to my left, almost behind me is one Rachel Baker. Hello. Hello. And finally, sitting right directly in front of Rachel is one Rowan Collins.
Rachel Baker: We're all in a line
Hollie Baker: behind me.
Rachel Baker: We're in a line. Yep.
Rowan Collins: Rachel, your breath is down my
Rachel Baker: neck. Hey, bro.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hey. But anyways
Rowan Collins: But anyways.
Isaac Allen Burns: A brand new adventure for us to go on. Are we excited?
Rowan Collins: Yes.
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, then I guess it's time. Hit that music. So one of those red buttons is actually the music. Try Really? Try one of them and see what happens.
Yeah. We did it. Wow, everybody. Hello. So Altea.
Rowan Collins: Altea.
Isaac Allen Burns: The beautiful world that we live in, that we've seen before. Once again once again, we find ourselves up here in the air looking down on this place. Wow. It's not. It's been a
Rachel Baker: while since we've been up here. Nice to
Isaac Allen Burns: see you again. We're looking down at this beautiful landscape surrounded by oceans. And this time, we're gonna go to a different place. We're not gonna go to Voldain. No.
We're crossing over into Polaris. Polaris. Polaris to the Southeast of Voldain, a brand new place to explore. Oh my goodness. You know, it's such a beautiful place.
It's such a wonderful place. You wouldn't even know there are things that are going on inside that aren't great. You'd say, wow, what a what a crazy place. What an insane place. This is a hotbed of magical activity and has been for centuries.
Tied to the very identity and culture of Polarans is magic. The land is marked by experiments of the past gone awry, and thus many challenges that Polaris has such as a lack of arable land and perhaps a lack of resources and maybe fish don't get very close, making fishing difficult, is pretty well mostly due to past experiments gone poorly. In fact, this is no more clear than in the very capital, the center of Polaris, which is city of Aylock, the twin city of Aylock. This city is on both the East Coast and the West Coast Of Polaris. And it's called the Twin Cities because many thousands of years ago, a experiment was done to try and get the city to be lifted into the sky.
It went horrifically wrong. And instead of lifting up the whole city, it sent half the city to another side of the coal continent. Oh gosh.
Hollie Baker: Did this kill people?
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, it's funny you should mention that because it did not break cleanly. It was not a split in half. It was more of a checkerboard type situation where all that was left in the wake of where these things left were tears in the very fabric of space. Thankfully, no one was too terribly harmed. Just a lot of people were displaced.
But on the plus side, those space time terrors are perfect teleportation. And so the city rebuilt around these places, and now it's just simply a part of the public transit. You can start on one side of East Eidolon, take a little subway, and wind up in West Eidolon with no problem at all. And if that doesn't encapsulate the spirit of Polarins, one of flexibility and of constant flux and change, I don't know what can.
Rowan Collins: Really, truly, I love that here. That's really This is fantastic. That's really cool.
Isaac Allen Burns: Most of the citizens are able to do a touch of magic, a simple prestidigitation, and that's where most people get to. You can think of it almost like a driver's license because you wanna practice magic in Polaris, you do need to have a magic license that you can apply for once you become of age. It can show some magic aptitude. Again, most people here can cast prestidigitation. But for those who wanna delve deeper into the magical arts, for those who wanna know a little more, look no further than the bastion of higher learning and education that is Polaris University.
Rowan Collins: Woo. The stinkers.
Rachel Baker: The what? The stinkers.
Isaac Allen Burns: The stinkers?
Rowan Collins: PU.
Rachel Baker: PU. Oh, no. Oh my god.
Hollie Baker: And you're not even our athlete.
Isaac Allen Burns: You're not even just named
Hollie Baker: the team.
Isaac Allen Burns: That's right. Immediately coming in with the derogatory derogatory name that all the other universities in Altea call them Polaris University stands tall. And Polaris University is on the Western Shores of Eidolon. The Eastern Shores of Eidolon has its own university, but it is the military academy that is tied to the Citadel, which is tied to the Council of War. The other half of that coin, the Council of Knowledge, is based here in Polaris University.
And I can't wait to find out more about this wonderful institution as we build it together.
Rowan Collins: Mhmm. Woo hoo.
Isaac Allen Burns: So to start off, it's the first day. And on our first day, is orientation. But before you get to all the orientation activities, all students come in, have a meeting with their adviser. Mhmm. And so can I have everyone here roll me a d 12?
First roll of the game.
Hollie Baker: A six. Also a six. Seven.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, I see who gets to go first.
Rachel Baker: Let's go.
Isaac Allen Burns: So Rachel
Rachel Baker: Yes.
Isaac Allen Burns: We're here at Polaris University. And I want a detail about Polaris. And I think what I'm gonna ask you is I wanna know what is the general surrounding of Polaris University? Is it smack dab in the center of the city? Is it off kinda to the side, so kinda like in a suburb?
Or is it a bit of a trek away from the city proper to actually get to Polaris? What surrounds the university?
Rachel Baker: It is connected to the city, but it's only connected to the city by a giant bridge.
Rowan Collins: Oh. Oh.
Rachel Baker: And otherwise, it's surrounded by water.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, okay. Giant bridge that comes to it. Often a little island that is connected to Polar. And I think because it's magical, it's like obnoxiously long of a walk to get there.
Rachel Baker: It's a it's a labyrinth.
Isaac Allen Burns: It's a bit of a labyrinth. The the bridge kinda changes directions a few times too just to keep you on your toes. Sweet. Makes the whole thing nice.
Rowan Collins: There's also a loop de loop you have to go through.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. They've talked about getting rid of that for a while, but, you know, at this point, it's kind of a rite of passage to get through.
Rachel Baker: I mean, they have the pro loops and the anti loops.
Isaac Allen Burns: It's true.
Rachel Baker: Yeah. It's messy.
Isaac Allen Burns: It's true. And so, Rachel, your character, tell us a little bit about your character.
Rachel Baker: My character? Okay. My character is Hickory Duck. He's a son of nobleman, and he is a giant fawn. I would call him a dire fawn even.
Oh. A fawn with giant lineage, which puts him over seven feet tall. Wow. Which is is a little tall for a fawn.
Isaac Allen Burns: We have to have one character in each of these seasons that's just a very, very tall.
Hollie Baker: Just yeah. Sure.
Rachel Baker: He's a Yes.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh my god.
Rachel Baker: Yes. And because he's a fawn, he's also an athlete. So he's not just tall, he's also really broad and strong. But not muscly. Just just broad.
Isaac Allen Burns: Just broad. Not obnoxiously strong.
Rachel Baker: No. He's also teal colored with, like, navy hair that really needed to be cut, like, a few months ago. But he likes to keep it long because his horns are really small. They're like normal sized horns
Rowan Collins: Oh my god.
Rachel Baker: For a fawn. But he's not normal sized, and they just never got anything.
Isaac Allen Burns: He got micro horns. Yeah. You know, and that's and that's a bit of an insecurity for a lot of young fawns out there. So it's very understandable.
Rowan Collins: Somewhere in Altai is somebody.
Hollie Baker: He's waiting on his growth spurt.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. Yeah. His horns are he's a grower, not a shower when it comes to the horns.
Rachel Baker: You know what
Isaac Allen Burns: I mean?
Rachel Baker: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. He's just waiting for that.
He is hooved, but he wears some sick kicks. Sick kicks? Oh, Hell yeah.
Rowan Collins: What do kicks look like for a fawn?
Rachel Baker: They're arcane kicks. Oh. So they're magic. So they can look like anything I want.
Rowan Collins: What do they look like?
Rachel Baker: Which means normal shoes with like a lightning bolt on the side.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. Nice. There you go.
Rachel Baker: They're not light up. I thought about it. But
Isaac Allen Burns: So, Hickory Yeah. It's your first day. And you stand outside the office of your adviser, which happens to be professor Foswald.
Rachel Baker: Foswald?
Isaac Allen Burns: You know that he is a professor who specifically researches Magitech, which is the application of magic and technology. That's awesome. So, Hickory, what how are you feeling as you're approaching this first meeting?
Rachel Baker: Absolutely calm. Nice. I knew I was gonna be here. I'm not a first year.
Isaac Allen Burns: There you go.
Rachel Baker: No. No. Exactly right.
Isaac Allen Burns: You are in front of this. You knock on the door. You hear a, come in. Come in.
Rachel Baker: Hey, Foswald.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hello, Hickory. You see inside this very simple office. Right? Not too adorned is an older fawn individual wearing the robes of a Polaran professor. He's rather aged along in years, but he's got a little glint in his eyes.
He sees you and he says, Hickory, come on in. Come in.
Rachel Baker: You didn't get me a new chair.
Isaac Allen Burns: No. I they it's not in the budget. Oh.
Rachel Baker: Not in the
Isaac Allen Burns: budget for a new chair. I'm really sorry about that. But, you know, you know how these things go, Hickory. You know, obviously.
Rachel Baker: No. I get anything I want.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yep. Yes. All we know. All we know. You know, we don't have to go through the normal rigmarole.
You know? It would you know, they they send me the athletes to advise because I know who to talk to to get you where you need to go. So don't you even worry about it. Great.
Rachel Baker: So can I can I leave?
Isaac Allen Burns: Or Well, before you go, you know, we have to have to ask the usual question I ask all of my students. So and again, because you're an athlete, I will make sure to ask this to everybody. If the sports thing doesn't work out, what's your backup plan?
Rachel Baker: Well, if the sports thing doesn't work out, I will just find a new sport.
Isaac Allen Burns: Okay. Now what if we can't find a new sport?
Rachel Baker: Oh, no. Well, I don't have to do anything important because I'm, you know, the younger son. So I can do whatever I want. Maybe I'll invent a sport?
Isaac Allen Burns: You know, you you could take on a bit of a desk job for an athlete. I guess that is possible. Desk job? Well, yes, you wouldn't be able to play the sport. In this follow me on this hypothetical, shall you?
Let's say you you can't both your knees leave your body. Oh my god. You can't you can't kick anything. You can't play sports. My nightmare.
Yes. Let's say this comes true. What's what is your backup plan? Have you thought about it at all?
Rachel Baker: Oh my god. I wouldn't have my kicks?
Isaac Allen Burns: No. You wouldn't have your kicks?
Rachel Baker: I couldn't use my longboard? You couldn't use your longboard. Why are you doing this to me on the first day
Isaac Allen Burns: of school? Well, because I'm trying to prepare you. My job is to prepare you for your future. And, hopefully, that future is bringing home the championship for Polaris University, which hasn't happened in a long time.
Rachel Baker: Well, I wasn't captain before.
Isaac Allen Burns: That's true. That's true. We have big play. You feeling good about this season?
Rachel Baker: Yes. Good.
Isaac Allen Burns: You know, this year, the first first game first game of the season is against Voldain University.
Rachel Baker: What?
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, yeah. Have you not gotten the schedule yet? The first game of the season is against Voldain University. Oh. Big rivals.
Rachel Baker: Oh, yeah. I was not aware. Oh boy. I need to contact some people.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory's you're the captain. You gotta stay up on these things. Alright? You really do.
Rachel Baker: I'm just got here. There's a Frisbee game outside I was pulled out of. I'm busy.
Isaac Allen Burns: I understand. I understand. You have to keep up appearances. You know, it's very important that we win. I have a good feeling this year that this is the year we're gonna take it home.
Because after all, you know, not not that I'm big into the stats, but for the last three times that we've had we've hosted Voldan University here on the first game of the season on an odd numbered year, we've lost that game.
Rachel Baker: Wow. I know the stats as well as everybody else on my team.
Isaac Allen Burns: Of course. I so I don't need to tell you. I don't need to tell you these well known, well documented things. But I'm just letting you know that this year, we're trying to break the curse.
Rachel Baker: You don't have to tell me twice.
Isaac Allen Burns: Nor will I. Nor will I. Okay? Listen. As long as I'm around, you don't have to worry about your school.
You just keep doing it. You just keep bringing us the wins.
Rachel Baker: Okay? I sure will. You don't need to ask me anything else about my future future or or any any magic magic ever. Ever.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. Of course. Of course. Well, Hickory, you have a get back to your Frisbee game. I'll handle the paperwork.
We'll meet again next month, and good luck this year.
Rachel Baker: Alright? You got the check from my mom. Right?
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, yes. I did.
Rachel Baker: Okay. Great. Okay. Bye. Goodbye.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory, you leave. And both of my other characters rolled the same number. So I think in deference of seniority, I think I will save Rowan for last. And so, Holly Mhmm. Tell us about your character.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. So my character's name is Lorraine Tucker. She goes by Rainy with her friends and peers. She is a, classically, a lore born wizard. Just makes sense for our setting.
And for her ancestry, she's a mixed ancestry. So she's what I'm calling a halfari. She is a halfling and Qatari. She is small and sturdy and flat footed with the stature of a halfling, but otherwise her features are all primarily Qatari. She's got soft gray fur and ears that are kind of tilted down at her tips, like folded cat ears.
And she's got whiskers and sharp green slit pupil eyes. She has a spiky, somewhat messy tuft of hair that she's kind of haphazardly tossed some barrettes or bows into to kind of maybe try to give the illusion that she's tried to do something with her parents, but she's too busy to spend too much time on it. Because once again, Lord Born Wizard, she's she's busy. She's here to study. She's here to do a good job and to work hard while she's here, and she's very serious about that.
Isaac Allen Burns: You are very serious about that. And because you are also a student, that means that this is also the time for your you to meet your adviser. And before I forget though, I need an answer about university. Mhmm. So I'm curious.
How many buildings does the university purport? Is it many different buildings kind of all spread around the small island? Is it basically one giant building? What's the spread?
Hollie Baker: I picture that there's maybe three primary towers that have some different sections going up and then some bridges that connect to these three towers. So it's primarily a very vertical campus. And it gives a lot of space for any of its students and faculty that can fly as well. So it's it's, you know, it's pedestrian friendly and also flying friendly.
Isaac Allen Burns: Pedestrian friendly is so important nowadays. Yeah. And I love that.
Hollie Baker: It's got a really kind of classic university academic feel. So it's really leaned into the the more ancient architecture of of the some of the surrounding cities as well.
Isaac Allen Burns: Nice. Walking through hallways that echo your footsteps. And you happen to be advised by none other than professor Delilah Tomas. Oh. Head of resource rejuvenation and development, a very busy woman.
As you are sitting in her office, you see that she's actually not there. You got there on time, and it is about five minutes past when the door opens. And you hear Delilah strutted, and she says, oh, I'm so sorry, Rainey. I'm so sorry. I'm late again.
Oh my goodness. She, like, plops down and
Hollie Baker: says It's it's okay. Do what you gotta do. I and Rainey will be she she had both a package on one knee that she was kind of precariously balancing while she was sitting on a chair and then also sorting through her her flashcards, just kind of juggling things. And the door opening scared her a little bit, so she kind of is is kind of gathering those things back up.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hardly studies. It's good. That's good. Listen, Rainey, you know how much I appreciate all the help that you were last year. And this year, I'm assuming you're gonna be just as much help.
You're so helpful.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. I'm I mean, I'm still on a work study program, so I've I've got, I think, five jobs.
Rachel Baker: I it's
Hollie Baker: it's work it's fine. It's fine. I'm making it work.
Isaac Allen Burns: You're making it work for me. You work so well, and all the extra work that you're doing for me, I just so appreciate
Hollie Baker: it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I because I I TA one of your classes,
Rachel Baker: and it
Hollie Baker: it was really good last last year,
Rachel Baker: I
Isaac Allen Burns: was hoping I
Hollie Baker: could do that again.
Isaac Allen Burns: Of course. Absolutely. You will absolutely be a TA for a few of my classes. You know, I love it. And I know that you've sent me a few messages.
I haven't. I'm so sorry. I've been so so scatterbrained.
Hollie Baker: Everything okay?
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, just a little bit of family business here and there. I have to go do some traveling. Nothing to worry about, you know. And you want to major in and focus on? Remind me one
Hollie Baker: more Oh, I was hoping to eventually go into the Novocyte Research Program.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. That's right. Novocyte Research. Yes. Big big
Hollie Baker: I know it's competitive.
Isaac Allen Burns: Very much so. It is such a burgeoning field. You know, a lot of our younger students want to go into it. Big technological revolution. I think that you're well on your way to getting there for sure.
For sure.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I'm I'm gonna be a third year, so I'm hoping, you know, I I've proven myself. I'm hoping we can make it work.
Isaac Allen Burns: And I think we can. I think we can. I'll definitely talk to the right people who I need to talk to. And
Hollie Baker: It's it's been a few years. Is there is there something I can do to improve? Is there
Isaac Allen Burns: Truly, at this point, really, you know, some other students, you know, they have different connections and, you know, things fill up quickly, but this year is gonna be your year. I'm so sure of it. I have a package that I need delivered Right. Downstairs to professor Bellor. Can you handle that for me as well?
Yeah. Perfect. Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Rainey. Oh, I'm going to I'm going to be away for a little while.
I have a little more traveling to do some more family business. So you I probably I'd be out of touch rest of this week, but you just keep it up. If anything comes through, you know what to do. You can handle it, I'm sure. Did you have any other questions?
Hollie Baker: No. I no. That's fine. I think everything's good. When when did you want me to jump jump in with your first class?
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. If you don't mind. If you don't mind. I'll be yes. That would be great.
Thank you so much.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. I can do that. Wonderful. Thank you tomorrow, so Eight
Isaac Allen Burns: Awesome. Bright and We got it. Much sharp.
Hollie Baker: So I think Rainey will be gathering up for things and and heading out of the room. And I think as soon as the door closes behind her, she'll, like, just take a deep breath and be like, she's she's not very helpful.
Isaac Allen Burns: You hear the sound from inside since you're right next to the door. You can hear the sound of, like, a corp popping. Can feel like a goblet, like, just heavy sighs.
Hollie Baker: She just, like, marches off. And she, like you we've noticed that her demeanor was obviously very gentle in the room, and now she's just in a full, like, stomping down the hallway, just fully upset.
Rachel Baker: Stompy little kid.
Rowan Collins: The stompy little kid.
Hollie Baker: Yep. Flat footed, just stomping down. Just mad.
Isaac Allen Burns: Randy, as you stomp down the hall, we flash cut over to our last and not least character of this story here, Rowan. What's about your little character?
Hollie Baker: Yeah.
Rowan Collins: So this time, I am playing a fairy named Vivi Prism. Prism, the last name which should be familiar to those who have heard the other ones as she is the sister of one cerulean prism. Similarly, they are both fairies with big old feathery antennae on the top of her heads and little fluffy tufts around their necks. But very dissimilarly is instead of like a luna moth where cerulean is kind of based and he's very small, Vivi is a very tall fairy, about five foot six. She's bright pink and yellow.
Think more of a rosy maple moth. And she's got a kind of scantily drag she's well tailored. Everything is fitting very well. And if she were to move too much the wrong way, something might slip, but she never does. She never does.
Hollie Baker: She is composed.
Rachel Baker: Is
Rowan Collins: composed. Is composed. She's also got like very long striped yellow and white socks on her feet that go all the way up to like her thighs.
Isaac Allen Burns: Nice.
Rowan Collins: Yep. She's got like beautiful yellow hair too.
Isaac Allen Burns: Beautiful hair.
Rowan Collins: Beautiful hair. Short, asymmetrical, all that good stuff.
Isaac Allen Burns: And I'm curious, Rowan, what's the new thing on campus this year?
Rowan Collins: We've got Tamagotchis this year.
Rachel Baker: Tamagotchis. Tamagotchis. It's Tamagotchis. Is that
Hollie Baker: is that trademark?
Rowan Collins: That's trademark.
Hollie Baker: Did we
Rowan Collins: say that even?
Rowan Collins: Can't say that. They're Gamatachis.
Isaac Allen Burns: Gamatachis. We got Gamatachis
Rowan Collins: in this school. Essentially, as a new fangled toy that people typically have as a little symbol of wealth. There's like an egg shaped, I guess, arcanotech item that has trapped in it what looks like a tiny little familiar. And everybody's got one of these. And they take real magic, actually.
Isaac Allen Burns: And that's why it caught really big in Polaris because a lot of people at Polaris have a kind of base level of magic. And so incredible. So you have do you does Vivi have a Gamatachi?
Rowan Collins: Vivi does have a Gamatachi. It is bright pink. It is the third one that she's gotten. And this one looks like a little flower creature.
Isaac Allen Burns: Aw. A little flower creature.
Rowan Collins: Yep. And it's beeping. And she has been ignoring it for, like, the last two seconds because she's in a conversation with somebody else at the school.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, nice. Who are talking to right now?
Rowan Collins: She's talking to another person from the sports team, This guy named Brad. Brad from the Stinkers. Brad from the Stinkers. Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: My cool pool my cool Magic University is not the Stinkers.
Rachel Baker: It's not the Stinkers. It's just what they call colloquially. Colloquially the It's
Rowan Collins: called colloquially the stinkers.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh my god. So Brad from okay.
Rachel Baker: Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. So, like, that's why
Isaac Allen Burns: I think we're gonna do good this year because we're definitely gonna be idle on each this year for sure.
Rowan Collins: Of course. Yeah. And more importantly, have you noticed any kind of romantic relationships blooming between anybody else on your team and anyone? What? Does anybody like anybody?
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, you know, Cindy's got a fat ass,
Isaac Allen Burns: so I'm hoping to hit that this year. Yeah.
Rowan Collins: Have that. Is anybody, like, tackling each other really hard recently?
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, yeah. Listen. Our captain is, like, the best tackler on the team. Yeah. I do.
I'm a wing player, so, like, I don't tend to I tend to be more on offense. I'm not doing
Isaac Allen Burns: much of the tackling. I'm doing more of the, like, wing stuff.
Rowan Collins: But Yeah. Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: It's tell you, our captain is, like, the hardest tackler. Like, I
Isaac Allen Burns: hate lining up next to our cabs because, damn, Hicks, like, got a hit that's just gonna take you down.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Hick does.
Isaac Allen Burns: We call it getting hit.
Rowan Collins: Getting hit? Wow.
Isaac Allen Burns: He kicks like a motherfucker. He did. Let me tell you.
Rowan Collins: He does kick like a motherfucker. Yep. Yep. I
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. So he's got some strong tackling. He's got those good fundamentals.
Isaac Allen Burns: I think that cap and, like, I'm really excited that
Isaac Allen Burns: he's the captain right now because,
Isaac Allen Burns: you know, he was definitely he's gonna do
Isaac Allen Burns: better than our old captain Wilson who,
Isaac Allen Burns: know Wilson. Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: He was a good guy, but, like, you know,
Isaac Allen Burns: he just didn't have it. But this year, we're really turn
Rowan Collins: into a volleyball of some sort?
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. He turned into a volleyball. And, you know, it was just a magic thing gone wrong. Like, you know,
Isaac Allen Burns: a couple of guys were just digging around, and they were like, oh, look. I got my ball's bigger than yours, and then he turned to
Isaac Allen Burns: a volleyball. So we hang him up. He's up on
Isaac Allen Burns: the shelf now. He gets to watch us practice. Because the bet, you know, we haven't figured out how to turn him
Isaac Allen Burns: back yet.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Unfortunate. Well, Brad, this has been fantastic. I enjoy always speaking to you, but I actually have to get to my adviser.
Isaac Allen Burns: Alright. Cool. Keep it tight.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Of course. And she clicks off the recorder that she had been recording on in her pocket and goes, I thought I would get something juicier than that. And she'll flutter down to where her adviser is.
Isaac Allen Burns: Your adviser, professor Belhor Lysander, he he tends to bounce around a lot. No one kinda knows which part of the university he actually teaches. His classes range all over the place. Right now, he's teaching moral philosophy. He's a tall elven man, very fine features, a jawline that could just cut you right in half, and short tousled hair.
And you step in to his office. It's very neat, very clean. Mhmm. And he smiles as you come in and says, hi, Viridian. Yes?
Rowan Collins: Ah, Vivi, please.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. Vivi. Thank you so much. So this is what year is Vivi?
Rowan Collins: Vivi is the same year as Rainy. So third year.
Isaac Allen Burns: Third year. You see that he sort of looks at the little sheet in front of him and says, okay, journalism. Very fascinating choice. In a university such as this where magic runs rampant, we forget sometimes that the ones who control what the messaging is are the ones who truly hold the power.
Rowan Collins: It's true.
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, you know, ultimately, this is just a conversation about what you wanna accomplish. And if there's anything that I can help you out with on your journey to achieve what you ultimately desire here.
Rowan Collins: I well, okay. So I guess, where have you been before? I know this is, again, your first year in this part of the department.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. So I've been at Polaris for a long time now. I'm an old elf, wouldn't tell. But, you know, try to change it up. Try and keep it fresh.
Rowan Collins: Right.
Isaac Allen Burns: I'm a good teacher, so they keep me around.
Rowan Collins: Right. Okay. And then she clicks the little recorder. And what would you say are you in this type of work, this particular document right now?
Isaac Allen Burns: You see that he leans over and grabs your little recording thing and like puts it
Rachel Baker: Mhmm.
Isaac Allen Burns: And says, not every conversation you have, Eevee, needs to be an interview. You can just ask about people's day.
Rowan Collins: Fine.
Isaac Allen Burns: How are they doing?
Rowan Collins: How are you doing?
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, well, I'm quite well. I had a delicious cup of coffee this morning, Oh, where
Rachel Baker: where did you get the coffee from?
Isaac Allen Burns: He sighs very heavily and says, if it will make you feel better to remember the words that I give you, then by all means, why did you wanna get into journalism, Vivi?
Rowan Collins: I mean, it's a it's a long story. She clicks off her recorder.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, you don't wanna remember the words you say?
Rowan Collins: Oh, no.
Isaac Allen Burns: I Very well.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. No. I just feel like when you're around so many people all the time, there's always some sort of weird conspiracy thing going on. Especially, you know, my grandmother and I would be around so many different people and there was always a scandal. I just wanna find out what that is.
Like, for example, have you noticed that the Bracken Road apple cider has changed flavors recently. What is up with that?
Isaac Allen Burns: You see that he smiles, and he says, well, you know, about a month ago, something happened at Bracken Road.
Rowan Collins: Right. They said a landslide is what they said.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. That is the story that they're sending out, but I'm sure you of all people would know what proper messaging is is perhaps not exactly the truth.
Rowan Collins: Right.
Isaac Allen Burns: You see, he's just got like a light smile on and he says, your propensity to ask questions is quite commendable. And I would hope that with your time here in Polaris that you'll be able to hone in this ability and maybe not the number of questions you ask, but what you ask about can be fine tuned and sharpened.
Rowan Collins: And I think Vivi is also respecting the fact that he's not thrown off by the amount of question that she's asking. So she goes, say, if I had to find, you know, something interesting to look into, do you have anything that I could maybe a lead?
Isaac Allen Burns: Well, I think that's a great question. And I think that you finding the answer to that question is, I think, the first goal that I can put down on this paper to talk about where it's right here at Polaris. You see that he slides the paper over and under where it says goals, you see he writes down, find the right question.
Rowan Collins: I guess you do have to do your job, but just like I have to do mine. Alright.
Isaac Allen Burns: I will say this. This is a very old university. Normal seems behind every brick is a new secret.
Rowan Collins: Well, I'll be interested to find out how many of those I can uncover while I'm here.
Isaac Allen Burns: You see that he smiles and the door opens and Rainey, you have a package.
Hollie Baker: Yep. I do indeed.
Rowan Collins: Hey, Rainey.
Hollie Baker: Hey. Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt.
Rowan Collins: Oh, you're fine. We're basically done here.
Hollie Baker: Doctor Lysander, I I just have a package for you from, doctor Thomas.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, very nice. Thank you so much. Thank you so Put much, it on the desk. Yeah. You know, you work very hard, Rainey.
Hollie Baker: I try. I don't really have a choice.
Isaac Allen Burns: You too lean. And I wanna cut forward and ask a wild question of the three of you. So the three of you find yourselves together, and I'm curious. Why are the three of you currently in the Polaris University version of Detention? I wanna discover what put y'all in detention.
No.
Rowan Collins: Okay. So I I have the perfect answer for this. Okay. Vivi wanted to know what was in the package.
Rachel Baker: Oh, my god. Oh.
Rowan Collins: She was asking Rainey how weighty the package was and whatever, when we bumped into Hickory and decided to steal it.
Rachel Baker: More like Hickory was chasing a frisbee.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Well, we bumped
Hollie Baker: into you.
Rachel Baker: And bumped into you.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. That
Rachel Baker: And knocked you both.
Isaac Allen Burns: We flashed back to that scene. You two are talking and suddenly a frisbee goes over your head, Vivi, and Woah.
Rachel Baker: Watch out. Woah. What?
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory runs into you. Hey. Hickory, you see Rainy and Vivi standing in front of you.
Rachel Baker: Can you hand me my frisbee?
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Here I am. Here's your frisbee. Hey, what was in that package? Do you have any idea?
Hang on.
Isaac Allen Burns: Brad, here's the Frisbee. What's up? Oh, thanks. Hell yeah.
Rowan Collins: Oh, hey Brad.
Hollie Baker: I'm busy. Hi Brad.
Isaac Allen Burns: Alright. Later.
Rowan Collins: Later. Anyways, yeah. So doctor Tomas gives me some real vibes. Cause she's like She's the worst. She is the She's
Rachel Baker: the worst. You hate her?
Rowan Collins: Well
Hollie Baker: I don't appreciate people that just skirt by and don't actually work. Yeah. I wouldn't know what that's like. Sure.
Rowan Collins: Well, that's what I'm thinking about this package. If we can find
Rachel Baker: out While they're talking, Corey's gonna open the door to the office.
Hollie Baker: Because we're still standing on fire.
Rachel Baker: We're still standing on door? Yeah. Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: See Blake Frisbee in the hall. Yeah. Oh, yeah.
Rachel Baker: I made that very clear.
Isaac Allen Burns: The halls are big. I did say the halls are big.
Hollie Baker: Even leave. We're just right outside the door. Okay.
Rachel Baker: And Bellhore is still in there.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. He's still there.
Rowan Collins: If we can just find out what kind of, like, shit that doctor Thomas is giving, then we maybe have some strings for her is what I'm saying. And we look over and the door is open.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hecarious, you open the door, you see that in a classic fashion, you see that the package is still there on the desk unopened, and you see that professor Lysander is currently preparing for his next class, and he's writing moral philosophy on the board. And his back is to you.
Hollie Baker: Was Brad walking down the hallway away He from
Isaac Allen Burns: left. He's leaving.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. Is he still within far range per chance? Yeah. Okay. We're just gonna say because I'm gonna try to create a diversion just to try to get Lysander out of his office.
I think Grady is hoping that the sooner she knows there's no arguing with Vivi, and Vivi wants to do this. Yeah. And she's gonna be late to a shift if she doesn't just make this happen. So she's gonna use mystic tether on Brad just to, like, immobilize it because Brad doesn't know how this shit works. So she's just gonna cast a spell on Brad and then try to get Lysander's help
Isaac Allen Burns: to Tell fix us about mystic tether.
Hollie Baker: So mystic tether is in the book of Nori, and it's make a spell cast roll against a target within far range. On a success, they're temporarily restrained and must make mark a stress.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, no. Okay. Go ahead and roll.
Hollie Baker: It's a 19 with hope.
Isaac Allen Burns: 19 with hope. Go ahead and gain a hope. You cast that spell that is successful. What happens to Brad as you cast this spell?
Hollie Baker: I imagine Brad is maybe like almost mid step. His his strides are his gait is kind of equal. And so as this spell takes hold and he's just immediately, like, magically restrained, he just falls straight forward like a plank of wood.
Rachel Baker: Oh. Oh, you Just faced him.
Rowan Collins: And here up.
Rachel Baker: Randy, what did you do?
Isaac Allen Burns: Rainey, who did not apparently communicate to Hickory
Rachel Baker: what the
Isaac Allen Burns: play was.
Rachel Baker: I'm gonna caprene leap over to my friend.
Hollie Baker: Rainey, knowing Vivi is gonna catch on to this really quickly, is gonna go, oh my gosh. What happened to Brad?
Rowan Collins: Oh my gosh.
Hollie Baker: Oh my gosh.
Rowan Collins: Oh my gosh. Professor. Professor.
Rachel Baker: It's gonna look like Hickory tackled Brad. Brad.
Isaac Allen Burns: And for starters, Hickory, as you leap up to Brad, you see that he's on the ground. He's busted his nose. He's like, Fred. Ah. Dude.
What the fuck was that? Heck, did you do that shit? No. It's not fucking cool, man. I mean, no.
Why can't I move? Am I like this forever?
Rachel Baker: Yes. I think that's it.
Isaac Allen Burns: Fuck. No. They always told you know, that that weird professor always asked me what I do as a backup planer. I always told her to fuck off, but now I have to leave
Rachel Baker: a backup planer. Oh, no. Okay. We're gonna invent another sport.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, we're gonna invent another sport? What's the sport gonna be?
Hollie Baker: I don't know, but you don't need knees.
Rowan Collins: Professor. Know
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, hell yeah. You see that professor Lysander turns around really confused.
Rowan Collins: Professor Brad has, like, hit his head and might be paralyzed for life.
Rachel Baker: Are you claiming the hallway again?
Rowan Collins: Of course.
Isaac Allen Burns: He walks over to Brad.
Hollie Baker: Brad's down
Rachel Baker: the hallway.
Isaac Allen Burns: Far right. Ben is down the hallway.
Rowan Collins: Yeah. Alright. And Phoebe just flutters in, and she's gonna go ahead and try and open the package.
Isaac Allen Burns: Very nice. You open the package, and you see that inside is a very well adorned box. Mhmm. It's got the bold purple of Polaris with a little bit of gold filigree. And the box is open before you, and inside you see a note.
Rowan Collins: He looks at it and reads it.
Isaac Allen Burns: You read nonsense. Letters are just kind of across each other making zero sense. And because you're a journalist, I'll just let you know this is clearly a ciphered note.
Rowan Collins: Okay. I think she's gonna take out a piece of paper and quickly, like, do an impression on the paper to get the note to pull it kind of out. Like, just, like, write it back down so she can grab it.
Hollie Baker: For posterity sake, Rady is still standing at the threshold of the door Yeah. And watching what's happening with the professor and Hickory and Brad Dunham.
Isaac Allen Burns: We cut over to Hickory.
Rachel Baker: He's having a hard time.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory, what are you trying to do to help Brad right now?
Rachel Baker: He's trying to lie, he's not very good at lying.
Isaac Allen Burns: Okay. And what's Hickory saying
Isaac Allen Burns: right now? Oh my god.
Rachel Baker: I I accidentally tripped you and tackled you for the Frisbee that's right there.
Isaac Allen Burns: Why? You tackled me? Why'd you do that, man? You almost broke my legs. I can't feel anything now.
You tackled me so hard. I can't move the rest of my body.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh my god.
Rachel Baker: Are you serious?
Isaac Allen Burns: Hicory, you feel a hand on your shoulder as professor Lysander says. Now, Hicory, what happened here?
Rachel Baker: I wanted the frisbee that he he was running away with, and I I ran at him. It was instinct. This is all I do.
Isaac Allen Burns: And you felt it was appropriate to fully tackle him? You don't understand. I have one job. He he he kinda squeezes your shoulder and says, Hickory, I
Rachel Baker: Yep. Keep look keep looking here.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yes. I can recognize a mystic tether, and I know that
Rachel Baker: Oh, okay.
Isaac Allen Burns: That's beyond you. So
Isaac Allen Burns: would you like
Isaac Allen Burns: Damn. Would you like to explain exactly what's going on?
Rachel Baker: I am so sorry. What are you sorry for, agree? For not tackling Brad. Okay. Okay.
We
Isaac Allen Burns: feel sorry about that. Yes. And he turns around to look at his office No. No. Look at door wide open.
And we come forward with it to Detention. So Rainey, since you're proctoring detention, I'm curious. You know, it's probably not actually detention here. It's probably something more magic themed. But I'm curious, what is the form of punishment common here in Polaris University?
Hollie Baker: What would the Polaris University equivalent of banging out erasers be?
Isaac Allen Burns: Banging out erasers.
Rachel Baker: Are you that was a very last We just really dated ourselves again. That's a subpoena.
Hollie Baker: In IRL, in a world where whiteboards don't exist yet, people used to use chalk on blackboards. Yes.
Rachel Baker: Yeah. We under we understand And you
Hollie Baker: have to go outside and bang the erasers
Isaac Allen Burns: to get
Hollie Baker: the chalk dust out.
Isaac Allen Burns: Is this so you had to do?
Rachel Baker: Yes. Who didn't have to do this? I don't
Isaac Allen Burns: think I
Rachel Baker: ever had
Isaac Allen Burns: do like
Rowan Collins: I went to tension.
Isaac Allen Burns: I was
Rowan Collins: such a good dude. A rebel.
Isaac Allen Burns: Oh, think in many ways, there's something very tactile about it. And so I think
Hollie Baker: There's something mundane.
Isaac Allen Burns: Something mundane. Yeah. It's still chalk, but it's purple. Oh, nice. Instead of that's like the standard color.
Hollie Baker: That's it. Yeah. And we're not allowed to use magic. That's the
Isaac Allen Burns: That's the key.
Hollie Baker: That's the key.
Isaac Allen Burns: They actually it was another failed experiment, and so now the erasers actually are anti magic. And so if you try to write anything with magic, they actually won't be able to get it off. So you have to actually bang out the erasers.
Rowan Collins: While we're, like, bumping erasers, I guess.
Hollie Baker: Oh, I don't know that I like the way you said that.
Rachel Baker: We'll take erasers.
Isaac Allen Burns: No. No. No. We bang erasers.
Hollie Baker: Should play patty cake with our erasers.
Rowan Collins: Vivi is actually gonna sit down and take out her thing and go, hey, Rainey. Do you wanna see this note that was like clearly cryptographed?
Hollie Baker: Wait. You actually saw what was in the box?
Rowan Collins: Of course. I actually saw what's
Hollie Baker: the Yes. What was in the box?
Rachel Baker: Well But I wanna see.
Rowan Collins: I made this impression of the letter.
Rachel Baker: Oh, it's letters. Never mind.
Rowan Collins: Don't worry. You can't read anyway.
Rachel Baker: Yes. I can. I can read. I can't read that.
Rowan Collins: Well, neither can I? And I can read. So this is clearly a cipher of some sort. Yeah. So they are doing something nefarious.
Hollie Baker: Have I seen anything like this before the cipher?
Isaac Allen Burns: Make a I'm gonna say make a knowledge check for me right now.
Hollie Baker: Cool. I'm gonna use my arcane cram session experience too.
Isaac Allen Burns: That would make a lot of sense with this.
Hollie Baker: It would indeed. That is a with fear, 16.
Isaac Allen Burns: A 16.
Rowan Collins: With fear.
Isaac Allen Burns: With fear?
Hollie Baker: Mhmm. With fear.
Isaac Allen Burns: I'm gonna say I'm gonna say you have seen this before because doctor Tomasz would have given you notes to give me. I probably didn't hide them at first and was a little careless. And I think the memory of that comes back of just another example of Delilah just sort of using you as an errand cat, I and think you're gonna take one stress from having to relive.
Rowan Collins: Oh. Great.
Isaac Allen Burns: But you definitely have seen this before. She sends this pretty much only to a few specific individuals, to professor Lysander for one. Mhmm. And the other one you know that she would send these things to is professor Costello, who is sort of a lead researcher in the Novocite research. I'm gonna say on a because you were 16.
Mhmm. I'm gonna say that you haven't been able to decode it yet. Okay. You think that there's some kind of word that you need to crack it. Okay.
Like you need a keyword, but you haven't been able to figure out that word yet. As you're sort of standing there pondering this note, you hear a crash. You hear the sounds of magic and a struggle, and there sounds like some kind of fight going on near y'all. In the hallway? Maybe in the hallway.
It's because he used be coming from the hallway. Whether it's in the hallway or not, you're not sure. But you hear a scream as professor Foswell's voice Oh. Screams.
Rachel Baker: Rainey,
Rowan Collins: can we be dismissed from detention since you're working this?
Rachel Baker: Hickory's already leaving.
Hollie Baker: And this is clearly an emergency. Let's just go by
Isaac Allen Burns: your bike.
Hollie Baker: But before Rainey leaves, she's gonna go and straighten up the erasers real quick and then walk her friends out.
Rowan Collins: Alright.
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory running out first, you look down the hall, and sure enough, you see that a couple of doors over, there's some doors that are open, and you see flashes of magic coming from inside of it.
Rachel Baker: Professor Foswold?
Isaac Allen Burns: Hickory, as you bust in, What room are you in right now?
Rachel Baker: It looks something like a laboratory. A laboratory?
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. You're in a laboratory. It is There's, like, bits
Rachel Baker: and bobs everywhere, chemicals that he doesn't know. Beakers and flasks.
Hollie Baker: Yeah. Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: Yeah. Classic, like, glass tubes kinda everywhere. Yeah. You're in one of these research labs, and it is chaos in here. Things are broken.
The shelves are all amok. And lying on the floor, dead as a doornail, is one professor Foswell. And as you discover this dead body, that is where we're gonna end this session
Rachel Baker: Why?
Isaac Allen Burns: Of the Daggerheart.
Rachel Baker: So I knew I shouldn't have sat at this table. No.
Isaac Allen Burns: That's right. A mystery is afoot and on our hands. Thank you so much for joining me in Polaris. I can't wait until next time when we discover what else is afoot. So thank you so much everybody for listening.
Shout out to Darrington Press for making such a good game. Thank you all so much for listening. If you haven't yet, highly recommend it. It would mean it from the bottom of my heart. You could go to your Podcast app of choice.
Leave us a five star review.
Rowan Collins: That's nice.
Isaac Allen Burns: You read every single one. They make us smile. They make us laugh. It really goes a long way to help us. And we're excited for this session of d sides with our two new table mates.
Rachel Baker: Yeah.
Isaac Allen Burns: And, you know, we'll still say squawk. Even though it's a g side, we'll still say squawk on three for sure. And so with that being said, squawk on three. One, two,
Rowan Collins: three. Squawk.
Isaac Allen Burns: Nice. Woo hoo. Hey, it's a podcast.