0:00

Today's episode is brought to you by

0:02

Progressive, where drivers who save by switching save

0:04

nearly $750 on average. Quote

0:08

now at progressive.com. Progressive

0:10

Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. National average

0:12

12-month savings of $744 by new customers

0:16

surveyed who saved with Progressive between June 2022

0:19

and May 2023. Potential savings

0:21

will vary. When

0:24

you need mealtime inspiration, it's worth shopping

0:26

Kroger, where you'll find over 30,000 No

0:32

matter what tasty choice you make, you'll enjoy

0:35

our everyday low prices. Plus, extra ways to

0:37

save, like digital coupons worth over $600 each

0:39

week. You can

0:41

also save up to $1 off per gallon at

0:43

the pump with fuel points. More

0:45

savings and more inspiring flavors. Thanks

0:53

for supporting the Fable & Folly

0:55

Network. Here's another show we

0:58

know you'll love. Where

1:01

am I? Welcome to

1:03

Desert Skies, traveler. Your

1:06

journey through the physical plane has come

1:09

to an end. I

1:12

am the attendant. My colleague here

1:14

is the mechanic. Yo! This

1:16

is your last stop on your way to

1:19

the great beyond. It's

1:21

our job to make sure you're prepared

1:23

for the ride. Now, before hitting the

1:25

road, we have an impressive selection of

1:27

over 34 varieties of

1:30

microwavable burritos. Um,

1:33

what's going on? There's gotta be a better

1:35

afterlife than this. I mean, come

1:37

on! Uh, that's offensive. Something

1:39

seems to be wrong here. You

1:42

left something major undone.

1:44

I have a life outside of this

1:46

gas station, you know. You quite literally

1:49

do not. Any hobbies? Nope.

1:51

Ever travel? Are you

1:53

kidding? Oh my god. You're like the human

1:56

version of a plain bagel. Cash register. How

1:59

can I help? you attended. Play some music? You got

2:01

it. It's

2:04

kind of funny though. What I needed wasn't

2:06

back there. It was here, waiting

2:08

for me. I wonder what it feels like,

2:10

Mac. To miss the physical plane, the people

2:13

you left behind. You know I had a

2:15

wife who died three years ago. Wish I

2:17

could go back. No, you don't need to go

2:19

back. You just need to be here. And

2:22

a new traveler approaches. Ready team?

2:24

Ready. Good. Let's do this. Find

2:27

Desert Sky wherever you listen to

2:29

podcasts. And

2:57

veiled and gloved against

2:59

it. Huddled under

3:02

the shade of a somber

3:04

and ornate parasol. Leading

3:07

the procession. A

3:09

silent spectre. A bandolier

3:11

of quietly pumping hoses and

3:14

black vials. Circling

3:16

his body. Keep

3:18

disembodied rapid in the beam. This

3:21

is serious. We're taking this

3:23

seriously. This is a somber moment.

3:26

A dead wind blows. It just so

3:28

happened that there was a disembodied

3:30

rabbit head tumbleweed. Weep is the

3:33

disease of your confused. Weep

3:35

has come to lay Saskia

3:37

to rest. Where

3:40

she belongs. At home, on

3:42

midst. Other than

3:44

them, not a soul is in

3:47

sight. Just the strange reincarnated

3:49

version of Stationary Hill, but the

3:51

terror left in its wake. Weep

3:54

takes it in. The ruins.

3:57

The buildings. Reimagined.

4:00

and rebuilt and rearranged. Impossible

4:03

avenues, improbable angles.

4:06

A town resurrected from a bad

4:09

dream. While

4:11

Weep has been going through transformations of

4:14

his own, he now sees that

4:16

his would-be hometown has

4:18

transformed just as drastically.

4:21

This march is

4:23

moving parallel to the

4:25

hovering creek, babbling down

4:27

the hill, displaced by

4:29

about three feet hovering

4:32

above its one bed. The

4:34

general store, front door a

4:37

jar, interior empty. The

4:39

shop sign swings gently,

4:41

reading, closed. Patricia's

4:44

cafe, all fresco chairs

4:47

on the patio abandoned. A

4:50

cup of coffee cold on a plate. The

4:52

aroma of both fresh and

4:55

moldy breads laughed

4:57

from an open window. Joe's

5:00

gr-g-g-g-g-doors are

5:03

open, half-serviced

5:06

bocular contraptions laying

5:08

inside, abandoned. A

5:12

small team of lingering

5:14

company spot the approaching

5:16

march and peek

5:18

out from behind a barricade-like

5:20

pile of doors, many

5:23

of which appear to be strapped down

5:25

in a very deliberate manner that are

5:27

stacked inside of the garage bay. The

5:30

company watched the strange funeral

5:32

procession march past, uncertain

5:34

of what is expected of them, uncertain

5:37

of everything now. Weep

5:40

and his guard pay them barely any notice. They

5:43

pass the fractal district, formerly West

5:45

Hill, and its twisting side alleys,

5:47

endlessly repeating out into the desert,

5:51

a street made of porcelain

5:53

glints in the on-light. Just

5:56

beyond, the procession

5:59

stops. Before

6:01

them, a twisted, multi-story

6:05

mutation of a building.

6:08

A surreally glamorous

6:10

architecture of dark

6:13

windows, asymmetrical

6:15

awnings, doors

6:17

and stairs to nowhere.

6:20

The Black Candle Cabaret, version

6:22

2.0. Weep

6:25

raises a gloved hand, and the

6:27

procession comes to a halt. He

6:29

looks up at the building from

6:32

under a wide brimmed hat. He

6:34

removes his little unglasses, wincing

6:38

in the bright light of day, and

6:41

with ink-shot eyes examines

6:44

his former place of business.

6:49

It's way taller than it used to be. The

6:51

floors are all mismatched, the walls

6:53

strangely reconfigured, an entirely new porch

6:55

growing out of one side of

6:57

the building. Under other circumstances,

7:00

he'd be very pleased to see

7:02

this kind of killer renovation

7:04

of his old place. He does kind

7:06

of love it, in a way. But

7:09

right now, he just feels... Well,

7:13

he doesn't know what he

7:16

feels. He

7:18

just knows what he has to

7:20

do. He

7:22

pushes open the doors, gratefully entering

7:25

into the shady darkness within, the

7:27

company bearing the casket. Follow

7:29

him inside. The

7:32

interior of the Black Candle Cabaret

7:34

has clearly seen a lot of

7:37

use in recent days. As

7:39

warped and weird and haunted as

7:42

it is, this space has obviously

7:44

been repaired, worked on and

7:46

inhabited. He can see

7:49

Saskia's influence all over

7:51

this work, this loving attention to

7:53

detail, these attempts to

7:55

heal what is clearly ruined. He's

7:58

strangely inviting. and

8:01

comfortable here, a

8:03

port in a storm. It

8:05

also looks like it was decorated for a party...

8:08

recently. Confetti

8:11

litters the floor, flies

8:13

buzz around a sticky punch bowl,

8:15

and colorful streamers hang from the

8:17

walls and ceiling. There's

8:19

a big banner that says, Welcome

8:21

Home. We pretty sure that's

8:24

not intended for him. The

8:27

procession circles the bar. Now

8:29

just a swirling counter twisting

8:31

and turning throughout the room,

8:34

glimmering with unimaginable bottles. And

8:36

he enters the cabaret theater. The

8:40

stage is dark, the

8:43

curtain half drawn across it. The

8:46

supper club tables are abandoned, all

8:49

of their lamps extinguished.

8:53

There's only a single ghost

8:55

light there on the stage.

8:59

It has become a tomb. From

9:02

the shadowy VIP balcony above

9:04

Weep, an unmistakable

9:07

voice echoes down over the empty

9:09

theater. More

9:11

closed. Weep's

9:16

heart, such as it

9:18

is, seizes up in his

9:20

chest. It seems to stop

9:22

beating entirely for a moment. He

9:27

slowly turns

9:32

and peers up into the shadowy

9:34

alcove of the VIP balcony above.

9:38

Now warped, twisted, bent,

9:41

crooked, bizarre. No

9:44

one to be seen. A

9:47

single green glass lamp casts

9:49

ghostly light against the ceiling. Get

9:53

out. He says

9:55

quietly to his guards. Leave

9:58

The Casket. In

10:01

the final out without. Waiting

10:05

for him outside and.

10:07

Weep. Is alone. Is

10:16

worth of the spiral staircase. Seems

10:18

to just for ever. partly

10:20

because. It is at least half again

10:22

as tall as it used to be each

10:25

step leaning. At a strange imperfect

10:27

angle as weird me twinge

10:29

is painfully, he takes his

10:32

time. Air. Corps

10:36

libor and. He

10:39

isn't in a hurry to get to the top. In

10:42

a way he wishes. This. Climb would

10:44

last forever Vip balcony.

10:47

Like some juice? Is

10:52

a bizarre echo of

10:54

what he remembers. The

10:56

round tables be intimate

10:59

foods, stained glass lampshades

11:01

all smeared, twisted, really

11:04

skin and real facts.

11:07

On the darkened balcony, there

11:09

is that single green glass

11:11

lamp lit up over one

11:13

Tampa. Two people

11:16

there. One

11:18

time on a deeper. Meaning

11:22

of. Their. Only silhouettes

11:24

to weep. They

11:26

turned to face him as he approaches. We've.

11:36

Barely registers recognition of

11:38

his former doctor. His

11:42

former ne. Oh

11:46

he can focus on is the

11:48

other person. Turning

11:50

weekly to regard him. From the

11:52

day that points by two

11:54

and one. The

12:00

dogs' hackles go up. A

12:02

long weep appears. And

12:04

they seem to recognize him. A

12:07

friend? A familiar

12:09

smell. But

12:11

changed now. They're

12:15

confused. Their

12:17

hackles go back down. But

12:20

they remain tense watching weep closely

12:23

for any sign of danger.

12:26

They don't leave Saskia's side. Weep

12:30

is silent for some

12:32

time. Motionless,

12:36

paralyzed, composed,

12:40

but a

12:42

visible tremor moves through him.

12:45

Everything that moves through him is visible these days.

12:49

Hello again, Saskia

12:51

Murmur's dream leaf. What

12:54

have you done? Weep's

12:57

blackened eyes track to the

13:00

dark horned spectre of the

13:02

mother. What have you done

13:04

to her? Yours still a

13:07

ray of unshine. I see. I

13:10

have merely delayed the inevitable. Weep

13:13

glances between Saskia and

13:15

the balcony. The body

13:18

that stares the

13:20

coffin. One of two. A

13:23

byproduct of the recent fold

13:26

activity, not my

13:28

imagination. Weep. They're

13:31

both real. So

13:34

Saskia, weakly, they're both me.

13:37

The mother leans down

13:40

to whisper something. Just

13:42

ask, yeah. And she nods slowly.

13:47

I understand. Thank you, mother,

13:51

for everything. The

13:54

spectral figure departs from

13:56

Saskia's bedside. It pauses

13:58

briefly beside you. You

14:02

look like shit. If

14:04

you've done what we prescribed and

14:06

sent your blood samples regularly, instead of

14:08

selling them for profit, maybe

14:10

we could have delayed. He

14:12

gestures to weep. Whole deal.

14:16

This. Weep

14:18

looks numbly surprised. Oh

14:21

yes, we found out about your

14:23

little racket. How's the knee?

14:26

Weep just stares. Eyes

14:28

still on Saskia. Still

14:32

weird. Well,

14:35

clearly you have bigger problems. Who

14:38

is Swincy? He turns

14:40

his black, shrouded face back towards

14:42

Saskia. Half of her. Has

14:45

perished. One cannot

14:47

survive without the other. She

14:49

is facing. Bring

14:52

her back. Weep's

14:55

voice is hollow, and he

14:58

turns slowly to face trauma

15:00

directly. I'm

15:02

so you can. But

15:05

trauma shakes his horned, veiled

15:08

head. This is

15:10

different, Swincy. She doesn't

15:12

have long. And neither, I

15:15

dare say, do you? And

15:18

with that incredible display of

15:20

bedside manner, mother trauma

15:23

glides into the shadows of the dark

15:25

balcony and vanishes. Weep

15:27

and Saskia, and the two

15:30

dogs, are alone. The

15:35

silence is loud, and

15:38

Saskia is the first to speak. Swincy?

15:44

She peers at him, eyelids

15:46

heavy, tired. Why

15:49

did the mother call you that? Because

15:52

it's my name. He

15:55

can't look at her, the

15:58

memory of her. dying in front

16:01

of him in the vault. Her

16:03

body engulfed in fire is

16:06

burned into his mind. And

16:09

this ashen ghost,

16:13

this fading echo

16:15

of her in the daybed, he can't

16:18

take it. He turns

16:21

away. It

16:23

leans on the balcony rail, hands

16:26

shaking, knees weep.

16:30

The ghost light on the

16:32

stage below pulses dimly, casting

16:35

haunted shadows around the theater.

16:38

Weeps not real. He never

16:41

was. Just a

16:45

lie on top of a lie, on

16:47

top of a lie, on top of

16:49

a lie. He

16:51

forces himself upright, turning

16:54

back to face her. Are

16:57

you real? Who are you?

17:00

Are you really Siskia? It's me,

17:03

Weeps. What's left of me? I

17:06

watched you die. I

17:08

saw you die in front of

17:10

me in the vault. Just

17:13

part of me. I

17:16

hoped that maybe I'd

17:18

go back to the way I was before, but

17:22

it felt more like getting cut in half. It

17:24

doesn't matter. It

17:28

was a risk I was willing to take. Weeps

17:31

looks at her, helpless

17:33

to do anything. Please

17:36

tell me what happened after I died.

17:40

Did the others make it? Clark

17:44

finished, did they? They're alive. They

17:48

escaped. And

17:50

you completely fucked up the trust. A

17:54

calm seems to settle over,

17:56

Siskia. A tiny

17:59

smile. A relief

18:02

of satisfaction, hearing

18:05

that her sacrifice wasn't for nothing. We

18:09

know this is the only thing

18:11

he has to tell her that

18:13

can make her happy, and,

18:16

wretchedly, he

18:19

savors it. She

18:21

closes her eyes for a moment, only

18:24

to open them again, assessing

18:27

his face. His ichor

18:29

pump, his translucent skin.

18:33

How did it get so bad? You

18:37

took your medical case with you. Did

18:40

it stop working, or did

18:43

you stop using it? Mel,

18:46

I've done this to me. She was

18:49

trying to teach me a lesson. She

18:52

made me believe what she believes.

18:55

I, I'm torturing you.

18:58

I, I don't understand. Of course

19:00

you don't. You couldn't be more different from her. But

19:04

I do understand. Mel,

19:07

then, I... We

19:10

have a lot in common, and

19:12

there's no better teacher than me. She

19:16

takes a shaky breath. So,

19:20

what's next, dry

19:22

potentiary? You

19:25

know what? I

19:27

have to fight this sasquia. He

19:30

looks angry and

19:32

sad and resigned.

19:35

Black poison slithers under the skin

19:37

of his deathly face. It's

19:40

not over until larks dead until

19:43

they all are. No,

19:45

you can stop, Weep. You

19:47

can just stop. I

19:49

can't. I have to finish this. You

19:51

don't have to do anything. Do

19:54

you actually believe in the trust now? Do

19:57

you actually believe that you can salvage anything?

20:00

after what the breach did. You

20:02

can do the right thing and just quit

20:04

this. No, I can't. You can. I can't.

20:06

I'm not like you, Saskia. I'm not a

20:08

good person. I don't do

20:10

good things. It's not a choice.

20:13

It is a choice. Stop

20:16

writing your own self-fulfilling prophecy. It's

20:18

easy for you to say you're

20:20

good, you're kind, down to your

20:22

bones. Everyone loves

20:24

you. Everywhere

20:26

you go, everyone just adores

20:28

you. Your heart,

20:32

soul of myths. It's just

20:34

being around you special, but

20:36

me? I'm a fucking freak.

20:39

A problem, a mistake

20:41

you've been in my whole life. I

20:44

just hurt people and make things worse

20:46

and burn everything to the ground. What? The

20:50

gleam of the green lamp

20:52

catches a shimmer around Saskia's

20:54

neck. A string

20:57

of pearlescent valor rising

21:00

and falling with each of her shallow

21:02

breaths. Weep

21:05

reaches for the abacus, running

21:08

the warm beads through

21:10

his translucent fingers. Bartimaeus

21:13

growls a soft warning

21:16

and weep withdraws his hand.

21:19

Why are you still wearing this

21:23

thing? A

21:25

fair question. I'm

21:27

well past the point of needing to keep

21:30

up appearances, but I

21:33

actually wear it more now than

21:35

I ever did before the terror. I think

21:38

it reminds me of what

21:41

the trust used to mean to me before

21:43

I got disillusioned, before

21:45

I came to midst. No

21:48

matter how much you do, no matter

21:50

how many deeds you accumulate like beads

21:53

on a string, there's

21:55

no end point. No

21:57

one has ever finished becoming a... It's

22:03

the endeavor that matters. Also,

22:07

I just happen to think the beads look pretty.

22:11

She chuggles weakly. The

22:13

beads do look pretty. Weep's

22:17

own unparalleled valor glimmers

22:19

on his tripotentiary vestments,

22:23

his bones naking under the

22:25

weight. You don't

22:27

know everything about me, Weep. I've

22:30

done bad things too, you know. Not

22:32

like I have. His

22:34

bandolier pump is starting to choke.

22:37

To spot her, to struggle. I

22:40

stabbed you in the back, I destroyed

22:42

everything. You and I built together this

22:44

eskia. It was fun when it lasted,

22:46

but I always knew I was gonna

22:48

fuck it up eventually, and if I'm

22:50

gonna fuck it up, I wanna be

22:52

in charge of when and how I

22:54

fuck things up. Things

22:57

always end bad for me, for everybody involved

22:59

with me, because I'm a fucking piece

23:01

of shit. I'm not a good person, sasqui.

23:03

I'm not. You don't know what I've

23:05

done. You don't know who I am. You

23:08

don't know who I was. Weep,

23:11

and I'm not Weep. I'm

23:14

a liar, and a murderer, and a

23:16

thief, and I always have been. When

23:19

I hurt people, I destroyed things.

23:22

Like you, like Mids, Swayze, everybody's sasqui

23:25

of the town's people, do they

23:27

know you're dying? She shakes

23:29

her head. They don't know how bad it is.

23:32

I didn't want them to worry about me

23:34

when they should be worrying about you. They

23:36

should be worried about me. Are you hiding

23:38

them from me? They're somewhere safe. Somewhere

23:41

you can't hurt them. Thanks

23:43

to the terror, this town has hidden

23:46

places now that an outsider could

23:48

ever find their way through. And

23:50

that includes you. This

23:52

isn't your town anymore. Well, we'll

23:55

see about that, because unless you got them all

23:57

off, I would somehow. Which I doubt I'm gonna

23:59

find out. So they met him behind

24:02

me. I don't wanna know what I'm gonna hurt him

24:04

anyway, whether I want to or not, just like I

24:06

do. You, but here we are. I

24:09

should have been you with you. With

24:12

the terror change. You would have changed

24:14

mid-star. Maybe it could have

24:16

fixed me, because I just don't

24:18

care to fix myself. And

24:21

then that's what I want. I'm gonna kill Larkin, and

24:23

I'm gonna kill the rest of the breach, and then

24:25

the trust. And it becomes

24:27

something so much worse than

24:29

it was before, because we have

24:33

to know you're dying, because of

24:35

me. What am I doing? Just

24:37

ask you, what's wrong with me?

24:39

What's wrong with me? He

24:42

ventures himself away from her,

24:44

a tabletop, a lamp broke.

24:46

It comes bendily as struggling,

24:48

failing. He's lost her, I don't know.

24:50

Believe me, I'm a big fucking freak,

24:53

I'm a fucking fucking fucking... He's

24:56

tearing at his wee old bottle

24:58

with horror and rage, ripping the

25:00

needles and hoses from his skin.

25:03

He violently hurls the pump over the

25:05

edge of the balcony, into the darkness

25:07

below. I

25:10

didn't ask for this. I

25:13

didn't want this. But

25:15

I fucking deserved this. Cosma,

25:18

you're the parents. They didn't say

25:20

maybe you said I wanted to

25:22

hurt this. Weep collapses

25:25

to the ground, shaking,

25:28

sizzling, smoke curling

25:30

off his body. Marty

25:32

and Lloyd whine and growl

25:34

in sniffy air, huddling

25:37

and tighter around Cecilia. I

25:40

can't even count how many people I killed.

25:44

But you families are

25:46

so wise when I was bearing

25:49

the suffering. I got it.

25:51

Just because I got it. And

25:54

the other parents, they had just taught me to act,

25:56

and throw me down a business card. Weep

26:07

is silent for a moment,

26:11

a million miles away, trembling

26:14

with guilt and

26:17

grief and pain.

26:21

Saskia watches, weakly,

26:25

wordlessly, and

26:28

when Weep does speak

26:30

again, his voice is

26:32

hollow and sick

26:35

and lifeless. I

26:39

was dead, Saskia. I

26:42

was dead. And

26:45

I should have stayed dead. But

26:49

the mothers brought me back. All

26:52

sick, twisted,

26:56

full of fold. Why?

27:00

Because they could. Because

27:03

they can. Because

27:06

they listened to the fold and

27:08

the fold told them down. That

27:11

barely fucking humans, Saskia, they

27:13

don't answer to anyone, they

27:15

don't explain themselves. They

27:18

sure as hell didn't ask me. Coming

27:22

back was a curse, Saskia. Coming

27:25

back was a fucking curse. No,

27:29

I mean, why are

27:31

you telling me this? It's

27:33

too late, Weep. I can't

27:35

forgive you. Saskia struggles

27:38

onto her elbows, her

27:40

cheeks suddenly flushed with

27:42

exertion. I

27:44

can't imagine what you've been through, and

27:47

I'm sorry for your pain, but

27:49

whoever you used to be, whatever

27:52

was done to you, it doesn't

27:55

really change anything. You

27:57

had everything you needed to

27:59

become so. someone different and you

28:01

turned your back on that

28:03

possibility because you were too much of

28:05

a fucking coward to try something new and

28:08

now you have the gall to

28:10

come back here and unburden yourself to

28:12

me in my final moments with your

28:15

fatalistic bullshit. If

28:18

you expect me to just lie

28:20

here and let you delude yourself

28:22

you never did anything to hurt

28:24

me until you decided to hurt

28:27

me and you did that on

28:29

purpose. You did that with

28:31

plenty of time to change your mind.

28:34

It didn't just happen. Stop

28:40

blaming your own choices on your

28:43

your soul or whatever it

28:45

is you believe you have. Up

28:48

until the moment you threw us to the

28:50

trust like a carcass to the scavengers you

28:55

were good to me. Her

28:59

eyes are shiny with tears. It

29:02

almost seems to bring the spark of

29:04

life back into them. You

29:07

appeared in my life just when

29:09

I needed you. I

29:11

didn't know what the hell I was doing with

29:13

the cabaret until you showed up. This

29:16

weird loner from the fold with

29:19

no past and no connections and

29:22

no money. The cabaret

29:24

wouldn't have lasted three more

29:26

weeks let alone gotten to the point

29:29

where it could shelter and protect hundreds

29:31

of people and provide

29:33

for me and bring

29:35

music and community to an entire

29:37

town and make a profit. If

29:40

it hadn't been for you we'd... and

29:44

it wasn't just about the business. I... I

29:47

liked having you around. You

29:50

were my friend. So

29:53

what if you never cared about helping the

29:55

breach the same way I did? Maybe

29:57

you were only in it for the sense of power.

30:00

or the showbiz or just the chance

30:02

to screw me over somewhere further down

30:04

the line. But you

30:06

still helped me. You

30:09

came up with things and did the

30:11

ledger books and made something

30:14

tangible out of this dream I

30:16

had. Even

30:18

if the other things didn't really matter to you, I

30:21

think you liked seeing me

30:23

happy for some reason. We

30:27

can't answer her. Can't

30:30

breathe. She

30:33

collapses back onto the day bed again,

30:35

a distressingly far away

30:37

smile appearing on her pallet

30:39

face. Do

30:42

you remember the night after we finally got

30:44

the new stage built? Everyone

30:46

else had gone home, but

30:48

the stage lights were still on and

30:51

it felt like the full house somehow.

30:54

And our numbers were finally in the black and

30:56

we had just seen our first ship full

30:58

of breech people safely onto

31:01

their next destination and I

31:03

was just so happy.

31:07

Weep remembers. He

31:09

definitely remembers. And

31:12

you put on some music and lifted me up

31:14

and twirled me around the stage and I was

31:16

laughing and I

31:18

just felt like I'd

31:21

finally built a

31:24

home for myself. You

31:26

were there when I realized I had

31:28

a future ahead of me. And

31:33

you're here again now that

31:36

that future is almost used up. And

31:40

that's why I can't forgive you, Weep.

31:44

Not because you're some intrinsically

31:46

evil creature, but because

31:49

you're not and

31:51

you choose to be anyway. Weep

31:56

is still slumped on the ground.

32:00

Feeling his blood do irreparable damage

32:02

to his insides without his medical

32:04

device holding the worst of it

32:07

at bay anymore. He

32:10

feels calmer than he has at any

32:12

point since he walked up

32:14

those stairs and saw what awaited

32:16

him. He observes

32:18

his own deterioration with

32:21

detached curiosity, like

32:23

watching a crushed bug rise on

32:26

the sidewalk. I

32:29

don't want you to forgive me. I

32:32

just want you to know me. You

32:35

should have told me all this before then. Everybody

32:39

comes to Minsk because they're running from who

32:41

they used to be. Everybody

32:44

deserves a chance to change. You

32:48

could have started over if that's what

32:50

you really wanted. I

32:53

would have understood. I would have tried to

32:55

help you. He

32:58

drags himself closer, collapsing

33:00

against the bed, gazing

33:02

out into the darkened balcony. You

33:06

did help me. You

33:09

did. The

33:12

one good thing about being

33:14

brought back was

33:16

meeting you. Good

33:19

for me. Bad

33:21

for you. You

33:25

were so fucking kind to me, Saskia.

33:29

Nobody's ever been kind to me like

33:31

you. I

33:35

didn't know what to do with kindness

33:37

like yours. You

33:40

deserve so much better. You're

33:44

good and you deserved

33:46

a good life. I

33:49

stole that from you. What

33:52

have I done, Saskia? What

33:55

have I done? What have I done? He

33:59

can barely speak. Inside

34:01

his translucent skin, his bones

34:03

are taking on the scorched

34:05

color of charcoal, of

34:08

burnt firewood. The

34:10

pain is overwhelming, but it

34:13

is also all that is sustaining

34:15

him, his closest companion, and

34:18

his most familiar presence. Saskia's

34:21

breathing isn't labored anymore. It's

34:24

soft. Too soft.

34:28

He turns around again, kneeling

34:31

against the daybed, and is

34:33

shocked to see just how much ghostly her

34:35

she has become in the last few moments.

34:38

She's fading before his eyes. I'm

34:42

sorry, Saskia. I'm

34:45

sorry. Saskia,

34:48

please don't die. She's

34:50

nearly gone, Saskia. Marty

34:53

and Lloyd are whining softly,

34:56

licking her hands. Saskia, please.

34:59

He wants to do something, anything,

35:02

but it's too late. He

35:04

wants to take her hand, but

35:07

doesn't want to inflict his touch on

35:09

her in her final moments. There's

35:12

nothing left of the

35:14

trust, and there's

35:16

barely anything left of you. Her

35:19

eyes grove over him, holding

35:22

a flicker of the empathy they used

35:24

to for him. You're

35:27

not far behind me. Is

35:29

this really how you want to go? Ripping

35:32

these slabs apart at the head of

35:34

a cult we both know you

35:36

don't believe in? If

35:39

being a monster makes you feel so terrible,

35:42

you truly have one last choice. One

35:46

last chance to do the right thing. You

35:49

can end this without hurting anyone

35:52

else. Can

35:54

he? Will

35:57

he? He clings

35:59

to the ground. the bed beside her, eyes

36:02

wide, afraid,

36:05

nearly insensible with pain. Her

36:09

breathing is slow. Her

36:11

voice is quiet. Her eyes are

36:14

closed. Whatever

36:16

you choose to do, at

36:18

least Mist will outlive both of us.

36:22

Barty and Lloyd don't even seem

36:25

to notice Weep anymore. They

36:28

have eyes only for Saskia.

36:32

They are quiet and solemn,

36:35

with effort. Her eyes open

36:37

one last time, looking

36:40

at Weep with a fullness and

36:43

a realness that both

36:45

warms and

36:47

paralyzes him. It

36:50

was always so heart-stopping when she looked directly

36:53

at you. He

36:55

could never quite handle it. He

36:58

usually would look away. But

37:01

he doesn't know. Nobody

37:05

can give you what you want,

37:08

except you. The

37:10

cosmos won't wait for you to figure it out.

37:14

The current will keep flowing, and

37:17

Mist will keep turning. And

37:21

her rare, precious,

37:24

unearthly gaze remains on

37:26

him, inert,

37:30

unbroken, until

37:33

there is no one left within.

37:37

He reaches for her, says Saskia, and

37:39

pulls himself back, unable

37:41

to touch her even now. Saskia,

37:46

come back. Come back.

37:50

I'll be good. I'll be

37:52

good. Please

37:54

come back. But

38:03

she does not come back. She

38:06

is gone. And

38:10

so is he. Everything

38:22

in awe beneath a glittering

38:24

tree of glass is

38:27

Arc Auditor Imelda Goldfinch.

38:30

Unlight refracts through crystalline

38:32

branches, prismatic rainbows

38:35

dancing across the flattened

38:38

template of the post office. The

38:41

undulating kaleidoscope reflects up

38:43

into her face from

38:45

the multilayered abacus she wears around

38:48

her neck. Her once

38:50

mission is choked

38:52

with the knobbly knees

38:54

of the glass trees'

38:56

cypress-like roots. A

39:00

breeze passes through the glassy

39:02

boughs above, and

39:04

a gentle rain of black and

39:06

white bead-like berries falls

39:08

from on high, pattering the

39:10

flat floor plan around her. Arc

39:13

Auditor Imelda takes a deep breath, heady,

39:16

fresh, unfiltered, melmica,

39:20

and rests a hand upon the

39:22

clear, tubular bark of the tree,

39:25

feeling a swirl of strange life

39:28

within. The

39:30

breeze rustles her curled hair. It's

39:33

been a hard time for her, since the

39:35

destruction of the vaults and the effective decimation

39:37

of her society. But

39:40

she's taking it better than you might think.

39:43

After all, she already wanted big

39:45

changes for the trust. She's

39:48

been afraid of a little change, and

39:51

sometimes it's easier to build what

39:53

you want after destroying what it

39:55

used to be. Though

39:58

she doesn't look at him, She

40:00

senses the arrival of the

40:02

Tripotentiary. I

40:04

hope you feel better now that that

40:06

little errand is all taken care of. It's

40:10

unfortunate, but she chose

40:12

her path. Now

40:14

we can move forward with total

40:16

focus. By we, she

40:18

of course means you. She

40:22

doesn't mind at all that the Del Norma

40:24

woman is dead. She

40:26

had always been an error

40:29

in all of Imelda's carefully

40:31

crafted formulae. A

40:33

complication to the very end. Past

40:36

the very end, given the frustrating

40:38

way the Tripotentiary had reacted to

40:41

her dramatic martyrdom, demanding

40:43

a special trip just to come lay her

40:45

to rest in the ruins of her little

40:47

town. But she's

40:50

gone. He'll forget about her

40:52

now. He doesn't wallow

40:54

in the past, her Tripotentiary. Imelda

40:57

closes her eyes, watching

41:00

the opalescent light shift and

41:02

fade across her eyelids. I

41:05

know things seem bleak right now, but

41:08

all the same I find myself

41:10

feeling excited.

41:14

I am excited to see

41:16

what we can build together, just

41:19

you and I. The

41:21

trust cannot return, not

41:24

the way it once was, but

41:27

it was already holding us back

41:29

even then. Now, it

41:32

has no limits. It

41:35

can be a new dream we

41:37

craft together. Imelda

41:39

opens her eyes again, gazing

41:42

onward, watching

41:45

the gentle sway of the beaded

41:47

branches. A

41:49

varicose tangle is knotted through

41:52

the postal mast, the

41:54

inter-ilitary cable to sequester,

41:56

gently waving high above.

42:00

A gloved hand rests upon Amélda

42:02

for a moment, gently

42:05

tracing the abacus' path along her

42:08

neck. She reaches up, entwining her

42:10

fingers in his. I

42:13

don't mean to toot my own horn, but I

42:16

daresay we have already changed

42:18

the cosmos, and

42:20

we're only getting started. A

42:24

gloved hand withdraws from Amélda's

42:27

to resume playing with her abacus. I

42:30

knew I saw something incredible within you,

42:32

Mark. Something

42:35

truly florist. You

42:38

miscalculated, says

42:40

Willy Swinsey, as he

42:43

strangles Amélda with

42:45

her abacus. And

42:48

rainbows dance as

42:50

the wind returns. Thanks

42:57

for listening. If you're enjoying the story,

42:59

please rate and review to help someone

43:01

new discover the cosmos. You

43:04

can catch Midsed every Wednesday anywhere

43:06

you stream podcasts, or watch illustrated

43:08

video episodes on the Critical Role

43:11

YouTube channel. And if you're

43:13

looking to dive deeper into the

43:15

story, become a fold member

43:17

on Midsed.co to get early ad-free

43:20

access to episodes, behind-the-scenes exclusives, lore-expanding

43:22

bonus content, music downloads, and more.

43:25

You can also find magnificent Midsed

43:27

merch on our website. To stay

43:29

up to date, sign up for

43:31

our newsletter on Midsed.co or find

43:33

us on social media at Midsed

43:36

Podcast. And if you just

43:38

want to hear this podcast without sponsor breaks,

43:40

get an ad-free subscription now on Spotify or

43:42

Apple Podcasts. The fable

43:45

and holly network where fiction

43:47

producers flourish. No

44:01

One. The girl

44:03

appears briefly under the last streetlight. that

44:06

phone snuggie answer. Years to walk and

44:08

class to her hip. She's oblivious as

44:10

she walks, lost in her own world.

44:13

Hey, stop, I didn't talk to you

44:15

when she swallowed up by the darkness

44:17

again. Elena, wait a second. It

44:22

strikes or in the gloom. so sassy, barely have

44:25

time to screen. She

44:28

falls into the into the lamp lice

44:30

and lies definitely the most since. the

44:36

man skyn a scaling flaking and they're a

44:39

patches of sit on the since. He

44:42

stares at me with eyes like

44:44

midnight eyes that are devoid of

44:46

remorse, devoid of humanity. Is

44:49

one of them. I

44:53

turn and run. And. The.

44:59

Road of Shadows, a new mystery

45:01

in suspense audio drama by Mark

45:03

Are Healing Cradle of the Strada

45:06

with and Now at the Right

45:08

of shadows.com.