Phantom Nirvana: A Dungeons & Dragons Podcast

S2 Ep3 - Deja Vu

• Phantom Nirvana • Season 2 • Episode 3

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In our last episode the Adventurers were again on the run trying to escape a massive sandstorm. Attempting to take shelter in the nearby caravan, they mistakenly extinguished a sacred candle and summoned a giant titan. The titan destroyed the caravan and the adventurers were left in darkness. This is Season 2 Episode 3: Deja vu. 

Music in this episode by: Sun Umbra and Gypsy Vision

Warning: Contains dark themes that may not be suitable for all audiences. Instagram @phantomnirvana
Email phantomnirvana@gmail.com

SPEAKER_01:

Close your eyes and open your mind. This is Phantom Nirvana, a Dungeons& Dragons podcast. Be advised, this story contains dark themes that may not be suitable for some audiences. And now we present Phantom Nirvana. Phantom Nirvana In our last episode, the adventurers were again on the run, trying to escape a massive sandstorm. Attempting to take shelter in the nearby caravan, they mistakenly extinguished a sacred candle and summoned a giant titan. The titan destroyed the caravan and the adventurers were left in darkness. This is Season 2, Episode 3, Deja Vu. The characters awaken on the sand in the same spot as before. Oh, come on. The same pose when you awaken. You look around. It is the same sandy desert with billowing sands. There's the same small rock. pile there next to you, grayish ovules in the sand at the center of your group. But none other than Lucas is sitting there on one of the rocks and he's smoking a joint. Hand that over, brother. Come on. What the fuck, Lucas? And he says, well, here we are again. Welcome to Ataxis. And he reaches out towards Axel with the joint. You had asked for it, and he offers it to you. He takes a long rip, and then he offers it to others. He says, well, you're stuck here now. There's no way out of these chained realms. You probably noticed the museum and the paintings was just a strange circle or loop. And this is too. Because here you are again. And he gestures across the sand. And sure enough, there is the caravan, just as it was before. The same tents, the same large rock outcropping. You could get out of this loop, he says, just before you ask, I'll tell you. But you're not going to like how it involves becoming a mindless husk. forced to wander the realm of the living as a spirit for all time. I'll take that back. And he takes the joint, takes a long drive. So how are you? Wait, what's our other option? Oh, good question. And you can tell he's a little bit stoned. Those people over there, they're called the undying light. You've got to help them find peace. Now, I'm not entirely sure what that means, but that's what you've got to do. Find peace. Help them find peace. Another riddle again. Hey, I brought you here, and here's something you have to do. We have to help them find peace. No, I can tell you more now. It's fine. It's fine. I can tell you more. God, he's always pressuring me. Marcus. Oh, another sandstorm. Do we

SPEAKER_00:

want to...

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, listen, there's this entity you probably heard it referred to. It's the Valerian. Did you hear that word before? The Valerian? Yes. The Valerian is an ancient evil, all right? I mean, we're talking evil, evil, crueler than a black dragon. This thing is more manipulative than a beholder, more power hungry than a mind flayer. The Valerian exists in this desert. It also exists in the desert that is... Our imagination, our minds, it exists there. It's in that expanse of space and time of failed dreams. It's all the abandoned ideas you ever had, all the lost inspiration, all the dark thoughts that we entertain and then shake from our minds. That is the Valerian. They all come here. They all come to attack us. The Valerian is vengeful. It's vengeful because it's been forgotten. It's ignored. It's pushed down and punished. But it believes that its power should be celebrated and worshipped in the living realm. So art, like was in the museum, art like that is the purest representation that we have in the realm of the living of the imagination that the human mind can create. And the Valerian desires to turn art All of the art, all the buildings, all the design, all that is cultivated and cooked and created, food and drink, all that is an exhibition of imagination, isn't it? All clothing, all vehicles, possessions, money, even children, you know? It wants to destroy them. Children are cared for and molded. They're They're given dreams of their own to achieve. The Valerian wants to devastate all life and leave all living things as mindless husks. In order to do that, it must weaken our world. It must weaken these realms. It must put them in a state where they are easily conquered, and that process is called, or at least I call it, the sorrowing. And it uses lesser creatures like the Vargin, like Alistair, to carry out this sorrowing. Creates these henchmen to support its will. And I believe these people, and he gestures to the caravan, are being targeted. The Undying Light. There's some sorrowing happening there. So you have to help them find peace. You have to help them escape. this devastation from the valerian so if you want to get home or at least have a chance to get home that's what it's going to take um are we in like a groundhog situation are we back where we started oh yeah that's A good question, Axel. Time doesn't pass here like it does in our world. Sometimes things happen over and over and over and over again. And sometimes things don't happen at all. Oh, I've got something for you. And he reaches into his pocket and he pulls out a single gold coin. And he flicks it up into the sky and it glimmers and it falls onto the sand right in front of Mal. And Mal picks it up. Really? This is it? I don't have anything else to give you. I'm bound here just like you. I get what I can where I can. But you can't help us. You're bound here, but you can't come with us. You've got knowledge, but only enough to be cryptic, and we have to figure out the rest. What are you? What is your role in life? I'm the Watcher. Isn't that what he called me? I'm the Watcher. Okay. Well, I got a question. You got any more of that good stuff, man? The good good? Yeah, can I get some more of that? That was great. That was a good one. He reaches into his pocket and he pulls out a very small bag of herb. I will take that. That will be coming with me. I can't stay here much longer because you're a watcher. That's right. You're not a doer. I'm not a doer. All right. Can I be a watcher? How do I be? You don't want to be a watcher. I don't?

UNKNOWN:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

That's funny. That's funny. That's funny. Looking over her shoulder at how Marcus is having sort of a meltdown, Mal is just creeping closer to Lucas to see if she can hug him. Is he, like, corporeal? Yeah, you touch him and he... Do you want to touch him? I assume you do. It's the same deal, right, as it was before, where his body is just sort of like a hologram almost, where you touch him and it pixelates as you wipe your hand through it. Yeah, she sort of sighs and walks back to the boys. So, like, are you dead, man? Like, what's going on? I am dead. I'm dead as far as the living realm is concerned, but I'm not gone. Shit. And then... Is this real? Real. This is as real as a heart attack, man. So, like, I'm not still tripping? You're not tripping. You're here. You're in a Texas. It's funny. It's funny, right? It's funny. Man, this is fucked up. He stands up and he starts to sort of stumble. He says, I hope you do better this time. I wish I could help. I wish I could help. You should have had us sign a waiver for this. I wish I could help you more. Well, do you have any tips of how we can do better? What did we do wrong last time? Help us more. Have you helped us yet? I gave you gold. I gave you all kinds of things, man. I gave you stuff last time. What have you got? I see you've got things on you. He did give me jorts. You've given us nothing but riddles and vague. I'm opening your mind, Marcus. I'm showing you the world that's beyond the reality that you always knew. Look at you, Guitar Center. Guitar Center. Working in your minimum wage job. Your band is shit. This is reality, man. Make something of yourself. This is your chance to really create, to really go out there and be a hero instead of just some minimum wage drone. I tried to be a hero in Wolf's Water. And look what happened. It didn't matter. Valerian was already there. It was too late. Well, is Valerian here now? I don't know. I don't have any way of knowing. We're in the loop. You just have to see where the loop began this time. Where it began. That's right. That's wacky, man. He says, listen, I've got to go. This is really bumming me out. Yeah, you got other stuff to do. I get it. He stands up and he dusts the sand off his pants and he says, I wish you luck. This is your chance to make something of yourself. And he looks down at Marcus. And with that, he winks and pulls on his ear and he disappears in that bright purplish green light. Axel is running over to where he was. Wait, wait, you didn't give me any rolling papers for this stuff, man. I got nothing to smoke this with. That's good. Mal's looking around. Is that same dust storm like on its way? It is not. That's a great question. It is not. It is not. It's just casual blowing sands. But everything looks how it looked when we first got here. Absolutely identical. In fact, for those of you who haven't moved, it is still the same spot, the way you were sitting when you came through or standing. And is there a roundish object poking out of the sand? Yep. Yep. The same ovules. One of them is. Okay. Marcus walks over. No, I'm just kidding. Wait, hold on. Clarity, is one of them broken or no? No, not broken. Wow. Okay.

SPEAKER_00:

How about we all just cartoonishly take gigantic big steps over that? Are we

SPEAKER_01:

damaged? Are you sure we don't want to grab one? I mean, it might make a really delicious, spicy omelet or something. I'm getting no. I've had enough battles with fire snakes for one day. Let's just head to the oasis and meet the candle people. Why don't we take this and ask for shelter at the big tent? Are we still injured? I'm going to say no. Whatever you lost, get it back. Thank goodness.

UNKNOWN:

Damn.

SPEAKER_01:

And to pick even more nets, what about spell slots? Yeah, whatever you lost, get it back. That's fine. I think it's a full reset. I'm sure I don't have... spicy egg that i had grabbed before no you do not have a spicy egg ah so unfortunate okay yeah what do you guys want to do should we toward the tents let's go marcus marcus walks off just uh josh josh catches up to marcus and says uh hey marcus don't listen to him man i thought your band was pretty good thanks josh my band sucks but that's not the point Hey, Marcus, what's your deal with him, man? Like, he's dead. Like, you won, you know? It's long and forgotten at this point. My problem is that he... It's embarrassing. He got the life that I want. You know, we both talked about it all the time. Being some sort of famous musician, he went and did the DJ thing and just forgot about... everyone and and i just now we're running around doing his bidding and i i just sure man but the grass ain't always greener yeah i have i have a life a lot of people would love lots of money lots of time traveling all the time i hate it i hate my life all right well that's a great story axel thanks that makes it feel a lot better oh well when lucas is acting like a jerk like that i'd rather have this marcus with me Thanks, Sam. So as you approach the caravan, the same four guards come out to greet you. They carry the same spears and the same rags and robes and leather armor. They approach you and they say, halt. Marcus says, hello. Hey, do you remember us by chance? Do you know who we are? There is a moment where of slight recognition in one of their eyes. You've come across a taxist, correct? That's right, I think. Right, guys? Are you following our caravan? No. We haven't been following, but we just saw your caravan over from a distance. Are you seeking shelter? We are actually seeking shelter. Do you know where you come from? Stockton. Where is this place? It's across the Texas. How long have you been traveling?

SPEAKER_00:

Feels like forever.

SPEAKER_01:

Very well. Come with us. You will meet the queen. Do you mind if I get your names? My name is Hilroy. This is Mikael. And then a woman steps forward and says, I'm Sonora. And another woman says, I'm Glenn. Come with us. And they lead you toward the caravan of all the tents. Late afternoon, it's very hot. So a lot of people have created little shade structures with different animal hides. And there's tents there in the openings of tents. There's people doing a bit of work on rocks. You can hear clinking, people hammering on rocks. It looks like they're sort of Some kind of specialized mining that they're doing. You're not sure. There's also these, as you walk through the caravan camp, there are these creatures, large pig-like creatures. They look like big boars, hairy hides, and they have saddles on. Some of them have saddles and are adorned with all kinds of jingly jangly little gold and silver adornments all over them. And as you're kind of walking through, you're seeing these. There's even like a little makeshift stable that they've put together where a half dozen of these things are kind of milling around eating slop. They're large. They're probably eight feet tall. It's giant. Oh, those are the Gorox, he says. We ride them. Have you seen the Gorox before? Are they a blessing from Yonogu? Because I'm really done with that. That whole shtick, to be honest. He just stops and looks at you confusedly. Oh, don't worry about it, man. Never mind, never mind. So you are brought towards the large tent with all the furs and things on top of it, the big pikes holding it down. Inside, again, is the same royal opulence as before, Axel. You're brought through and Hilroy looks at what you remember to be the queen, Axel. And he says, we found these travelers in the desert. They're seeking shelter. We brought them to you. This is Queen Rehana. Introduce yourselves. I think Axel is going to stand furthest away as far as he can from the candle. Yeah, I should mention that the candles there, there is no fishbowl over it, but there are people bowing to it. And it's probably like 30 feet away from you. It's a pretty big tent. There's like sort of a throne area, but it's like soft couches and chairs and stuff sort of piled up. Introduce yourselves, he says. Marcus steps forward. It's Queen Rehana. I am Marcus Birdhead from a land across the Texas known as Stockton. I'll step up. My name is Mal. And I'm Sam. I'm Josh, Queen Rehana. axel from very far away just kind of like i'm sir axel sin jorts wearer of stockton here we go it worked well last time he thinks

SPEAKER_00:

so i looked them over a little bit suspiciously but not unwelcoming i say welcome to the tribe of the undying light aside from shelter is there anything in particular that brings you here

SPEAKER_01:

To be honest, Queen, I would like to cut to the chase and just ask you, having been in vast deserts before, what is the likelihood of a large sandstorm in this area?

SPEAKER_00:

Sandstorms happen quite frequently. We are in a desert.

SPEAKER_01:

Great. We're seeking shelter. We've been traveling for a long time and just wanted to know how safe you would be here if, per se, a large sandstorm were to strike.

SPEAKER_00:

Typically, a normal sandstorm we can withstand. We haven't had any issues in the past.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, great. Why are you called the Tribe of Undying Light?

SPEAKER_00:

Well, as you may notice over to the side, we do have a lit candle. Our tribe's purpose is to keep the candle lit.

SPEAKER_01:

Forever?

SPEAKER_00:

Forever, yes.

SPEAKER_01:

It doesn't melt away? It's a candle?

SPEAKER_00:

No. This task was passed on to me by my father, and I will see it through to the next generation.

SPEAKER_01:

How long have you, as a tribe, kept it lit? I think the answer to that is probably 20 years.

SPEAKER_00:

So I would respond, for about as long as I can remember.

SPEAKER_01:

That's very admirable. Where

SPEAKER_00:

are you guys going? We are nomads, but you are welcome to find shelter and water and resupply in our humbled tribe.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you. Thank you. Very generous. Is there any way that we can help the tribe?

SPEAKER_00:

Well, we are always in search of resources. I must warn that we do often come across the sand snakes or fire snakes in the desert. Their eggs are delectable and their hearts are very valuable, especially at night when it gets cold if you collect the heart. It can really heat up a tent, so... also used for forging of weapons. It's a very, very valuable object to the heart of the snakes, but they are quite fierce.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow. What about big giants? Do those ever come along with these sandstorms? Have you had any experience with those?

SPEAKER_00:

You can see my character kind of stiffens up a little bit as she looks Josh over and says, no, why do you ask?

SPEAKER_01:

You can see that there are four older people that are sort of seated nearby her, nearby Rehana. And as you ask that question, they start to sort of lean closer as if they're listening more attentively to this line of questioning. One of them in particular leans up and whispers something into her ear. He looks older, wrinkled, tan skin, and Rehana brushes her hand, kind of batting him away. Like, you just stop that sort of talk to me. I just had a dream of this sandstorm and this giant, and I don't know, it just felt so real that I...

SPEAKER_00:

Do you dream of these things often?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

I hope you have better sleep while you are within our tribe.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you, me too. So one of the four stands is an older man with a beard. And he says, all are welcome here. The queen has clearly embraced you as welcome to find shelter here. And we do have some rules. There's no violence within the boundaries of the camp here. You're also required to provide for yourself. There's no shops or you can do a bit of trading, but commerce is really not how we get by. We find resources for ourselves. And so you're sort of on your own is what I'm getting at. But clearly, and he looks at Rehana, you've been given leave to travel freely here through the caravan. Is that correct, Queen?

SPEAKER_00:

That is correct.

SPEAKER_01:

And you can hear another woman of the four, she sort of clears her throat and goes, I don't see why. They've done nothing here to prove that they aren't just more spies. Why should we trust them here in the camp? Likely they're here to cause some sort of insurrection. I don't even think they should be this close to the candle. He says, listen, now the queen has given leave for them to travel around the camp. I don't think that we should stand in the way of that. Isn't that right? What is the grumpy one look like? That's a middle aged woman, ball buster, short hair. Here are my notes. I'm writing down hero. It says here. Ball buster short hair.

SPEAKER_00:

I turn to the ball buster short hair lady. I say, I understand your concern, but we've always welcomed travelers. We will not treat these strangers who are obviously in need of shelter any differently. If you would like additional cards and you would like additional shifts set up around the dent, we can discuss it afterwards.

SPEAKER_01:

So the older wrinkled man who whispered in your ear earlier, Rihanna, he says, well, I think it is a bad idea to invite them into our camp. Again, I agree with Carol. They've done nothing to prove their trust to us. And I believe that we don't have the resources for them to be able to find shelter here without taking from some folks who have stockpiled for themselves. And I wouldn't want to deplete the resources from our valued constituents here. Don't you think it would be a bad idea to take from the group to give to these strangers?

SPEAKER_00:

You can tell that I'm getting quite irritated, but trying to keep my cool. New to me.

SPEAKER_01:

Besides, we're about to leave. The sandstorm is coming soon. We've got to find the next oasis, don't we? Excuse me, if I can interrupt. I'm sorry. Ma'am, over there, I believe your name is Carol. This man referred to as Carol. Carol, you said more spies. What spies do you encounter? Is this frequent? Spies of whom? Why should I tell you? about spies. Likely you are a spy. Prove you're not a spy. Open your mouth and stick out your tongue. Well, I don't know if that proves all of it, but... I did what you asked, ma'am. I will do much more if you like. There's no forked tongue, but that doesn't seal it.

SPEAKER_00:

Perhaps we can utilize them in the move to the next oasis. They do look capable. They look strong. If they want the protection from the sandstorms, we can keep an eye on them. Better the enemy within sight than the one behind your back.

SPEAKER_01:

So the final woman of the four, she sort of sidles forward and says, well, I don't think there's anything wrong with them. They haven't done anything to offend us. Maybe they have something to add to the tribe. Yeah. And perhaps the next oasis will have resources and we can just stay there rather than continuing to travel. It'd be nice to have a home and settle again.

SPEAKER_00:

With that, you can see Rehana kind of bristle again, but she shakes it off. And then she turns to the group and says, would you assist us in moving? What skills do you bring?

SPEAKER_01:

We're here to help. My ghost friend told me to. he reaches in that little bag that lois gave him to picks out like the smallest like the tiniest bit check this out this is pretty good it considered a gift from us mal's gonna cast message to the queen and say i can help with communication in her mind

SPEAKER_00:

can i um message back directly to her? Like, is that how that works? Or is it just a one way thing?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, that's how it works.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay. In that case, I lock eyes with Mal and I say, oh, this is a new skill set. And I kind of nod at her. I

SPEAKER_01:

nod back.

SPEAKER_00:

Then I look at Axel in the back that he's holding. And I can say that my character is way too uptight to relax and partake in that. But Phil, would my character know what that is? I

SPEAKER_01:

don't think you would. I honestly don't think that that exists here. So I think him holding up a piece of that drug would probably just register as a piece of like desert grass. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

How about this? He

SPEAKER_01:

said, put it in some food or light it on fire. You do your thing. You're welcome. And he walks away. Just so weird, this guy. Just so weird. Fucking druids. In my imagination, he's still just like pancaked up against the wall of the tent away from the candle. Just like holding up a mug. I got this. I got this, anybody. Okay, so the first man who was very supportive before steps forward and says, okay, so there you have it. You are free people. We have no reason to distrust you. You may move about freely within the caravan. When it comes time to move, we would appreciate your help and support. If you intend to stay a very long time, we'd like to know about that so we can assign you some tasks. But for the time being, as I said, you're on your own. All right? And he looks at you all sort of sternly. And then back at Rehana for sort of approval of what he's just said. And she nods. The guards who you met, Hilroy, Mikael, Glenn, and what's the other one's name? Sonora. Sonora, that's right. They pull open the flaps of the tent and allow you out. And you can see the desert beyond. I guess we'd better go make some friends. What about Josh? What's Josh's take on all this? Josh immediately says, feels the need to impress and show that he's capable so he's just kind of flexing which kind of translates into just like really bound rigid movement so he's trying to like flex and walk like coolly and casually out of the tent what about Sam what is Sam's whole take on all this he's gotten his bearings but he doesn't know what direction any of this is going. This is a situation where we need to figure out what's going on, almost like a puzzle. And he doesn't understand the puzzle right now. And so he's therefore unsure about what to do and just sort of in that in his own mental loop, trying to figure out what it is he's supposed to be doing and can't get there yet. What about Mal? What's her take on all this? I think Mal isn't, trusting this reality very much, so she's pretty amped and kind of antsy. And what about Axel? What's going through his head? I think he wants to stay away from the candle, and he wants to find something to smoke his weed with. What about Rehana? What's her take on them?

SPEAKER_00:

She's pretty excited and curious about these oncomers, but she's also very cautious.

SPEAKER_01:

I could

SPEAKER_00:

write a story and you supply the mood you write an ancient small print under titles piles of your

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you for listening to this episode of Phantom Nirvana, a Dungeons& Dragons podcast. Our cast is Regan as Axel Johnson, Michael as Joshua Ames, Ben as Sam Campbell, Kevin as Marcus Burkhead, Yvette as Rayanna, Phil as the Dungeon Master, and myself, Courtney, as Mallory Reed. Our music is by Seiji, Sun Umbra, Gypsy Vision, Gang Colors, and Turn Try.