The One Within Many is a patient God. Nearly a millennia of neglect by humanity has left every Forgotten God patient, and when it took notice of the worship surrounding a forgotten unicycle it lay in wait for uncounted weeks. Spoke by spoke it ensnared those wayward souls who venerated The Singular Wheel, and a boon from the Demon Princes gave it the last boost of power it needed to make itself manifest on board the Pride of Duskwall. Pip imposes a will even more forceful than his own. Drix trips on some rats. Andrel has a horrible time. Jamu'kha feels regret far too late.

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For the full transcript, go to https://ghosts-on-a-train.captivate.fm/episode/ep-25-hell-raised

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Ghost Lines by John Harper. Music by Sebastian Black. Art by Yoshiko Agresta.

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Andrel 0:00

Previously on Ghosts on a Train.

Passenger 0:03

I don't knowhow to say this, but I saw this guy in the, in the back. And he had a unicycle.

Stefen 0:10

How can I enter this, er, this house on the ghost field?

Proctor 0:14

This is a summoned manifestation of the Lady of Thorns. It will not perish. There is no hope of defeating this as there is a ghost.

Andrel 0:25

Are you okay? Did something happen?

Jamu'kha 0:28

Many things have changed, Andrel. Many things.

Andrel 0:32

Okay, but, like, what does that mean?

Jamu'kha 0:34

You will know in time.

Andrel 0:36

I'm worried about you, though.

The Singular Wheel 0:38

I am the One Within Many. I accept this boon, and you shall be spared as I make myself manifest once more in this world.

Jack 0:51

I'm just taking it all in. I got nothing to say.

Andrel 0:55

Aren't the ghosts usually not on the train? Why are we -

Radio Announcer Greg 0:59

Before the cataclysm, some human beings had the natural ability to perform magic, bending reality and calling forth mind-shattering miracles. This trait has since been lost, leaving all people with the same simple capacity for the lesser ritual sorcery. Some objects from before the cataclysm still retain their magical power, although most of these have been confiscated by the Imperium, save the known arcane fortresses in the wilds of Severos. Though mankind may never make such wondrous items again, humans will always yearn to them, as though their old abilities are a phantom limb. However, this yearning is ripe for exploitation by entities seeking worship. The Forgotten Gods, still so desperate to be venerated by humanity, may take an archetypical object used in prayer or rituals as a symbol, pushing some of themselves within it. The object becomes the deity as the deity becomes the object, and their arcane power is accessible to human beings who may wish to wield it. But alas, the wielders of these objects eventually see that this power is not truly theirs, as the crew with the Pride of Duskwall discovers now, as the Singular Wheel reveals itself to be merely a tool of the One Within Many's own agenda.

Greg 2:36

Welcome back to Ghosts on a Train! This is a podcast where we play Ghost Lines, an RPG by John Harper. I'm Greg, I'm still your conductor, this, the puppeteer behind the, the grand little show that you witness here, running the game for my actors and actresses.

Jack 2:59

Ooh, promotions.

Hannah 3:00

I'm Hannah, I play Andrel, I am having a terrible time.

Guy 3:08

I'm Guy, I play Pip, and I, I'm sure I would discuss this in therapy if I had a therapist.

Hannah 3:19

Oh, you should get a therapist. Everyone should get a therapist.

Guy 3:21

That was, that was mostly, like, for Pip, but also, like, the...I don't think there's therapy in the Shattered Isles.

Hannah 3:25

This, there should be. This is a pro-therapy podcast.

Stefen 3:33

This is definitely a pro-therapy podcast.

Guy 3:35

Oh my god, who's that?

Stefen 3:36

This is Stefen. I play Drix, currently possessed, and wow, yeah, that's a, that's not something I ever expected. But hey, here we are.

Hannah 3:48

It was a ghost game. It's bound to happen eventually.

Stefen 3:51

But was it supposed to happen to me?

Hannah 3:53

Evidently.

Greg 3:56

And joining us as a guest, for perhaps one final episode...

Jack 4:03

Hello, I'm Jack and I'll be playing Jamu'kha again. And I believe I'm the one causing the trouble.

Hannah 4:08

Yes, you are. You've been a real bastard.

Greg 4:11

You've been a little scamp.

Jack 4:12

It's kind of my, it's kind of my thing, you know, just a little bastard.

Hannah 4:17

Real bastard man we've got here. Real bastard child.

Greg 4:20

The -

Jack 4:21

I'm just a dirty little bastartd...

Hannah 4:23

Oh no, don't do that. Don't do that. Please don't do that.

Greg 4:29

Oh, here on board the Pride of Duskwall, currently we are in the caboose. The unicycle, the Singular Wheel that all the laborers were cult-like worshipping, was an artifact of the Forgotten God the One Within Many. Jamu'kha was sent - he is a Gua'ata, a servant of the Demon Prince Ixis - he was sent to exchange a boon to get some knowledge from the One Within Many through this artifact. He has completed this exchange and retrieved some knowledge, but now the One Within Many is manifesting itself here in reality, manifesting as a summoned horror. The unicycle has, for lack of a better word, hatched, into a horrid monstrosity - brain matter where the rubber of the wheels normally is, taut sinew for the spokes, a spinal column for the, the neck of the thing, and a horrid eyeball for the seat. The laborers were possessed, but their connections were severed by Drix, who accidentally opened himself up to the understanding that we are all just one within many, and therefore he is, of a sorts, possessed of the, the entity, the Forgotten God, the One Within Many. Although this is not immediately apparent to those around him, perhaps. So I think there's no other way to start this out, gang, except you...you four, we'll still say you four, who is leading you four against the supernatural that is this summoned horror?

Guy 6:18

This...

Greg 6:19

The Singular Wheel is what we'll call it. It's a facet of the One Within Many.

Hannah 6:22

I mean, fuck it, it's me or Pip, I assume.

Guy 6:25

Yeah, it's - do you want this, Andrel? Or can I take it? Because I do have something in mind that I would like to do.

Hannah 6:32

Yeah, go for it.

Greg 6:34

Cool, cool. We'll just quickly go through the questions. And by questions, I mean, two questions. You got - technically, you're all Bulls in each, in the same roles. You've got your apprenticeship, you've worked this thing. Will all the other Bulls follow your orders without hesitation?

Hannah 6:48

Probably not!

Greg 6:49

I feel like probably not. So it's a straight roll for you, Guy.

Jack 6:53

No, definitely not.

Guy 6:54

Oh, boy. Here we go. These dice have not fucked me on this one. It is a 7 to 9.

Greg 7:05

Alright.

Guy 7:05

May choose one. I am going to seize the initiative and say this thing just hatched and hasn't sort of, like, fully come to terms yet. And there is something that I would very much like to do.

Greg 7:21

Go for it. What's your opening move?

Guy 7:23

My opening move is to turn to Jamu'kha, and I am going to impose my will. I will describe how this goes after the roll.

Greg 7:34

All right. And so, imposing your will is a thing that hasn't come up as much. But again, we just real quick check in, I don't know if you checked in with Jack separately -

Guy 7:43

I did check in with Jack separately.

Greg 7:45

Cool, cool.

Guy 7:45

He gave the approval. But basically, like, Pip come in. And, like, he heard the conversation between Andrel and Jamu'kha. He sees the chaos that is going on. And his first instinct was to wreck this thing. It has now fully manifested, or at least manifested enough. And, like, the only thing that he can think of is basically, like, you are responsible for this. You are going to help. So I will let you know how this goes after.

Greg 8:17

Cool. So -

Hannah 8:18

Jack needs to roll too, right?

Greg 8:19

Well, no, no, no, here's what it is. So what's - the, there's stuff to talk about. Steel? What's your steel scores? Whose steel is greater?

Guy 8:26

Plus two.

Greg 8:27

Okay.

Jack 8:28

Oh, I guess I'm zero, plus zero.

Greg 8:30

Okay, so, your level is the same. Pippin is a noble of Akaros, and Pippin, are you threatening, are you threatening bodily harm?

Guy 8:37

Oh, he's about to, yes.

Greg 8:41

Okay, so that's a total of plus three.

Guy 8:43

Cool.

Hannah 8:45

This does feel like a bodily harm situation.

Guy 8:49

That is a three plus four, that is a 10. So you get the choice of doing what I say or taking two trauma.

Greg 8:59

Or you could also take two harm if you call his bluff, although you are pretty beat up.

Jack 9:04

What happens with trauma? What happens if I take two trauma, and, like, I get full on trauma?

Greg 9:08

Trauma is basically a second, a second life bar, so to speak, for your mental well-being. So if it maxes out then you also, you, you'd also lose, but also you could take a horror. So, so trauma is like a second life bar.

Jack 9:23

Okay, can I take two trauma?

Greg 9:25

Ooh, so let's describe the scene. Pip, what do you do?

Guy 9:31

Pip, for the first time probably ever, at least as far as his friends have seen him, stands up to his full height.

Hannah 9:42

Oh my god, Pip's tall.

Guy 9:45

And just, in a bellowing voice, just - it starts off with normal, just like -

Pip 9:51

I don't know what you've done here. I don't know what you intended to do here. But you have currently threatened the lives and livelihoods of those on this train, amongst myself and the others. You have broken your vow as a Line Bull. You have broken your vow as someone who would come along this train and ride the Imperial Railways.

Guy 10:20

Pip's eyes, I've never fully described, apparently deliberately. Normally, they're kind of a lifeless, steely grey. But this time, staring into them as he stares back at you, you can see them glowing with the same blue energy as the tattoo that sometimes appears over his left wrist, crackling with electricity from deep within.

Greg 10:46

Yeah, and Jamu'kha, so obviously you've chosen to take the trauma, so you're not listening. But in a sense, but in a sense, you, you still feel coming from Pippin - you all, you all feel it from Pippin - a kind of like a deep spiritual authority that, like, you don't necessarily need to heed, but like, it's impossible to ignore. It's, it's different than when a noble of the house speaks to you, Jamu'kha. This is, like, a deeper, more human power.

Jack 11:22

Okay.

Greg 11:23

But it's, it's undeniable.

Pip 11:25

Whatever it be that you choose to do, know that you have been commanded as such, and if you do not heed my words, then you shall suffer the consequences of your choice.

Greg 11:44

Do you think Pip's accent is fake?

Andrel 11:45

What the fuck is happening?!

Stefen 11:49

Drix - no, Drix, Drix is possessed, he doesn't know!

Andrel 11:54

Oh my God, Pip's accent was fake the whole time!

Greg 11:59

I mean, that's not what I was going for, but okay.

Greg 12:02

No, I'm just joking.

Jack 12:03

I love it, I love it.

Greg 12:04

You're talking all intensely. Yeah, Jamu'kha, what do you do in response to this?

Jack 12:09

Okay, so I think, like, after the trauma, like, I'm assuming it's just, like, kind of like, willpower in my brain, like, to overcome this. To, like, not be compelled.

Greg 12:16

Yeah, exactly. That's exactly what it is. You overcome this

Jack 12:18

While, like, I let go of Drix for a second and, like, kind of like drop to a knee from, like, the pain, and, like, as I stand back up, like, I wipe, like, a little bit of blood from, like, under my nose, like, from, like, how I overcame - like, from my willpower. And, like, as I get up, I kind of just, like, look at Pip and just, like, smile and, like, glare at him. And then I turn back to Drix, grab him by the arm again, and I want to, like, kind of do, like, a judo move with my finesse and throw him into, like, the tricycle God and try and run.

Greg 12:47

Hell yeah! Unicycle God. But yes, roll finesse.

Jack 12:51

Unicycle, not tricycle, excuse me, excuse me.

Greg 12:53

Roll finesse.

Jack 12:55

Okay, it's an eight.

Greg 12:57

Ooh, which one do you want to do? Quickly, without cost, or impressively?

Jack 13:02

I want to do it without trouble or compromise.

Greg 13:05

Okay.

Guy 13:06

Hey, hey, Greg. So that was the opening move, right?

Greg 13:09

Yes.

Guy 13:10

I'd like to assist.

Greg 13:12

Well, the opening moves still counts...the, what it means is, like, it's before the supernatural entity goes. So all of your Line Bull actions, all four of you, your Line Bull action will happen before the Unicycle God does anything.

Hannah 13:25

I'll assist.

Greg 13:26

Yes, Hannah can assist.

Hannah 13:28

Hannah will assist. I'll also use finesse.

Greg 13:31

Okay.

Hannah 13:34

That is a 13.

Greg 13:35

Cool, cool. So what are you aiming to do? Not only can you give the minus two to Jamu'kha's, so - causing them to fail because he had an eight - but yeah, you got, like, 13 right? So that means you can do two other things.

Hannah 13:45

Great. I think I see him going to judo flip my boy and I just kind of straight, straight up, like, I think I dive and, like, grab him around the legs.

Jack 13:59

Me or Drix?

Hannah 14:00

You.

Jack 14:01

Okay.

Hannah 14:02

Which hopefully - the hope would be to at least hinder him from running away.

Greg 14:08

Yeah, yeah. So do you do - like, what's the thing? Do you, trouble, compromise, or cost, quickly, impressively, to greater effect, like, you, this is a whole action of yours.

Hannah 14:15

Oh, great.

Greg 14:15

Not only have you ruined his action, but you can effectively reverse it and take your own.

Hannah 14:19

Great. Trouble, compromise, or cost and greater effect.

Greg 14:24

Cool. So all - is all you want to do grab his legs? Or do you want to do anything else?

Hannah 14:27

Can I, like, pin them to the ground?

Greg 14:29

Yeah, greater effect.

Hannah 14:30

Yeah, sure. So you've been, you've been judo pinned to the ground by a 13-year-old who is, like, 90 pounds soaking wet.

Jack 14:38

Okay.

Hannah...