Well, well, welcome back. It's been a while, and let me
just say I'm glad you're still here. So enough of the gushy gushy,
lovey dovey stuff. Why don't we get into it? So why don't you
all sit down, shut up, and welcome to from a Far Podcast.
Last time I'm from a Far podcast. Kept you you've been following this black
robe goat mesk figure through the dust covered ancient destroyed city of ben Brandt,
the city of ben Bridge. That's irrefutable. We have to go. I
know you quest front Lands. You mean American horror story. Definitely recognize the
outline of Billy and a trilli. What are you doing? What are you
doing to the wire? Why did you bring me here? And you pass
up, you go unconscious, and you're now do with zero eight points.
The only thing you do know is that you're still moving and that you're you're
you've been picked up by something. As you look around and there's just you're
now surrounded by like a pot of whales. But these whales are massive.
Each one of these creatures is wearing very long, very tattered, almost miss
Borns type cloak, all with the hoods up and you recognize these as a
regiment of the Don Walkers. Oh yeah, it's apparently. Yeah, so
not even not even that much, miss not even that spelled differently. It's
just I'm saying it differently. Um, Kushmir, Cushmir, Hey, you're
not You're kidder there filling into that there, Cushmer. May I had the
craziest cushmer last night. I smoked a lot of kushmir and now I'm having
some. Now I'm in the ethereal play to get out of here eehaw.
Or well, guys, it's good to be recording after so long. Yeah,
it's and I mean, as everybody who listens to this show now,
it's like the only time we actually talk to each other is when we were
recording, yea, behind the scenes planning. Just how has life been?
What's chance? I mean, to be fair, that has been kind of
this like past break a little bit. But it's true we've been relatively quiet,
I mean, just straight out the gate. Me and knocks, not
together, but we both have children, so that's that's been an update,
or maybe together. They don't know that. I don't know, are they
true? What of the what variety of children? Every s? Oh?
They're the heavily furred kind kinds in my case, uh six titted as well.
Blows my mind, but it's it's true. Yeah, just really does
it make you jealous? Does it really just get you frustrated? Why do
they get to have it all? I'm good, I'm good. Really bless
these babies right here with damn with the spaghetti monster in the sky or God
or whoever was making us there was someone like assigning tits to the different creatures.
Actually cranked it way too far up on cats and cows, I guess,
but anyway, really cranked. They must have really cranked. Yeah,
cow, I feel like was like like a broken dial like whoever who yeah,
whoever was in charge of of cows was too excited on that tip meter.
Then they had they had to play it off later at the at the
review. Yeah, so we noticed that, you know, of all the
stats for this one or the nipples are baxed out. Yeah, so actually
this is kind of a nipple centric creature. It's gonna give a lot of
things through the nipple. So yeah, Christian and Knox to get back to
some sort Oh yeah, I forgot all right, the update. We both
had my my son, Stephen has been a blessing to my life. What
about you, you two Tilster boys. Have you guys produced any my boys
named Cosmo? Yeah? Just say real quick. Knox got a cat named
Cosgo, Christian got a dog named Stephen. I feel like we were being
very cryptic about Okay, well I'll cut that out. I'll get that out
then. So then to finish that bit, Knox got a cat named Cosmo,
Christian got a child named Stephen, And we're just gonna leave it at
that. He's hairy. He's a hairy child. He's a hairy bull.
I've moved. That was pretty much it for me. I moved to a
new spot in La just which is cool. So if my room is a
little echoe, deal with it, because I'm not doing anything about it.
I can't do anything about it. Did I talk? I guess not.
Yeah. I got any job that's been that's been fun fully remote. Been
sitting in this chair a lot. I'm at the I'm like at that age
where like my tailbone will literally hurt if I sit for too long. So
I need to dude, you get in one of those like extra like pillows,
extra like a thing that gets laid over your desk chairs. It's like
a donut. Yeah, that's that's not a terrible idea anyway. I mean,
yeah, that's us. Everybody who's listening, we're here, We're here.
Now, how are you guys doing that? How's how's the listener?
And now give us up? Yeah, all of you go, oh what
I don't believe it. No, the haircut does look very nice. Girl
stopped, girl stop. So, for the first time in seven months,
shall we dive into this thing? Are you ready? Yeahs fruit? Well
with that, with all the bladders emptied and the colon's cleansed, and the
palette satiated, and the questions answered, the thirst questions are you all ready
to you know? Yeah? Are you already just to part the veils of
reality and dive on into this story? Is yeah, I'm so red.
It's the quench. I'm the quench that saved Christmas. Come here, bar
quench, bark quench. I require that that feels wrong, that feels wrong.
Just have said that out loud with my mouth and my words. Okay,
well, here we go. I'll do my best to whisk you away
into a into where we were seven months ago. Kip On you sit dumbfounded.
You were surrounded by a group of people you thought were dead. You
see Franklin, Ashwood, Finden, Nib Nibble, Rabbit, leg Win,
Earth, Brace, COLLEENI, Flint, spell Ellen, Hogfoot, Willows,
Night man Edomo, Flink Hill had Green Bottle, and Fay Fine copper sky.
You're overwhelmed, Your friends, your family, your home is here sitting
across from you. But then a thought creeps into your mind. So few
the once mighty don Walkers, those of the village, who served the seely
court, who served the Queen Titania, the ones who risked life and limb
to ensure that bent branch survived. The ones who would brave the ever changing
and intoxicating Faye wilds. Their numbers were many, not only nine survive.
What happened? As you start to regain your senses, this question forces its
way to the forefront of your mind. What happened? How is Franklin here?
How are the Don Walkers here in this horrible place? You remember Arius
and Nil, You remember Atlantis, you remember Phantom Peak, You remember the
un Horses. You remember falling, falling down deeper and deeper into yourself,
And now you are here and so are they. So what happened? Is
there some confusion on Kippa's part still about whether he is in some sort of
a dream state or in the nightmare realm or is it just kind of like
he's still Oh shoot, whatever's in front of me. I'm accepting his reality.
I think we should have a wisdom saving through a disadvant because last time
we did this, you did not realize what's going on. You didn't realize
you were in a dream. I just rolled two threes, baby, So
then yeah, kind of like what I said, you you remember everything before,
like you remember going on your adventure, like it's not like your mind
has been like taken from you, remember meeting areas and it's like sleep dream
brain where it's just like oh yeah, that makes sense. Yeah, and
then I'm here. Now you're here, and you're still you do know this
place as shitty and terrible and horrible, and you're confused why they are here
because they shouldn't be here, like nobody should be here, You shouldn't be
here. To succinctly answer your question, absolutely, there's still a ton of
confusion and Kippa's face and mind and body and soul. Yeah, So the
Kippa kippa who's looking raggled and and and and very beat up, like a
like a wet sock. I imagine that he is still kind of like on
the ground, not like sitting on his butt like you know, legs like
he was just like got up from laying down, pushed himself up halfway.
Saw these people that he you know, some of them he knows better than
others. Franklin is one of his closest friends. But you know, being
a part of the Don Walkers and being a part of Vent Branch, everyone
pretty much knows everyone doing extent. So yeah, there's all those things you
described. And he just wide eyed looks at Franklin. He says, Ashwood,
what the hell happen here? I can't say I know exactly where we
are, but can't say that I always do know where I am. Oh,
I mean that's not that hasn't changed. And sorry this is and it's
been so long, Hi guys. You see a big smile across across split
across Franklin's face as hearing you talk and hearing your kind of kipp A logic.
He stands up and walks over to you because he was like sitting on
like a rock a few feet away from He stands up and walks over and
he's like announce standing above you and he loris. He reaches down and like
offers you a handle, like help you up. Yeah, it takes it,
pops up. He pulls you up, and he pulls you just into
a very just genuine embrace. And you hear you hear him to start to
laugh and you hear the tension kind of leave the room as the other don
walkers realize like this is a good thing. And Franklin's like, here,
loon, it is so confusing, but so good to see you, brother.
Um so many questions. Oh, okay, all right, you said
you don't know where you are, that's fine. You said you don't know
what's going on. That's fine. The best we can tell you're in a
we're in a pickle here. We're in a place called Kushmar. And since
you're here, I feel like you might know a little bit about what's going
on. There's the ethereal plane, there's a veil of dreams. There's a
way that people can access other folks dreams. This is this is kind of
part of that. It's sort of the antithesis of veil of dreams. This
is the negative side of that. This is where a lot of fear comes
from, and a lot of well nightmares. And the process of their embrace
was like Kippa was returning it. And as you know, they got into
that embrace it, Franklin could feel Kippa just getting like tighter and tighter,
almost clinging to the one thing that he knows is good right now. And
as they sort of pull away and Franklin continues to explain all of that,
I feel like, with more clarity, some of the horrors that kept a
saw earlier before being you know, woken up here on them come into more
clarity and more focus. And he's like, ah, that makes sense.
I've seen some things that I got to be honest, I'm of a little
bit relieved to hear not well, I don't know if they're not real,
but let it you see, I stuff that would probably make a lot more
sense if we actually got on the same page. Franklin, it's been it's
been a long time, and it's been a very long time. Be honest,
I assume that you were friend. I had mourned for you already,
and you see you feel that kind of somberness and sadness kind of creep back
into the room as the other Don Walkers starts to like the joy of meeting
you and seeing you again is starting to fade a little bit as as the
reality and history is starting to be remembered. One thing you noticed real quick
though, as as you're starting to say that, in fact, actually Franklin
cuts you off a little bit. Well, Kip, Yeah, no,
we the same, brother. We We thought you were dead. We thought
you were gone. I don't know if you know what happened back in Bent
Branch. I mean you were we were gone. We you were gone.
What come on, spit spit it, spit it out, man, what
did it? Just Just tell me? I need to know. Airline Ben
Branches is gone. Houses are there, the trees are there, the barracks
are there. I mean the memories still exist, but people are gone.
Airline. I mean that people don't just all yeah, I mean clearly,
I mean all of y'all are here, you know, people, the whole
people don't just up and up and disappear. We were out, We were
out on a mission for bur Titania, and we came back and then okay,
but do you remember that, how how complicated it was just to come
back home, how crossing the threshold? How oh yeah, trust me,
I've been on my own journey. It looked like someone broke the main rule
of us in Ben Branch. They let someone in that wasn't supposed to be
there. And and if I ever find the person who who did that,
and you see, you kind of see this ripple go throughout the entire Don
Walkers as like he starts talking about this, this betrayer of of of Bent
Branch, and he says, if if if we ever find the trader,
the son of a bitch who let the Unsealy court in, you better believe
they're not gonna live to see another sunrise. All right, that's not that
here. You're you're back, kep You're here, You're this is this is
hopeful you there's Ben Branch is still alive. We're here, You're here,
there's there's still hope, Kevin, Right, yeah, yeah, there's uh,
there's some But first of all, two things I started to drop that
on you, brother. No, that's it's it's fine. What are you
doing here? How are how are you here? And at much like y'all.
I was asked to, and you see, kept it really kind of
struggling here. Elder fall on he um he had asked me to do something
for him. I wasn't supposed to be very hard or complicated, but I
needed to go get something near the border of dusk and I as far as
I crossed again. And it wasn't on purpose. And when I was suddenly
I found myself in them terial plane some ways. We hadn't been to to
us and since we were kids, and I didn't know where the hell I
was or what the hell to do. So I've been, Uh, we've
been. I've been on a journey, not without purpose though it was for
a while, but I met some people and uh, I'm gonna try to
I can't, but Franklin, I can't believe that all of bent branches just
gone and done and there. I can't believe that because if I do,
then there's nothing left for me. So I need to I can't. What
can I do? You know, what can we do? Well? It's
actually very uh protuitous that our paths crossed. We're kind of on a mission
here, I mean, we're stuck here. But there's some problems here in
Kushmar. Aside from the fact that it's a literal round of nightmares. Um,
there's a growing power, there's a growing darkness that we seem to find
ourselves in a very unique position to actually stop and uh having another one of
the don walkers. Well, yeah, I mean I was never you know,
I never really rose in the ranks or anything. I have. I've
gotten some new skills and new tricks and stuff since the last time we saw
it. Chokes hopefully that'll be of use. That does a raise a question,
and he kind of steps back and like sort of he starts like walk
around you, like in a circle, and he's looking at your cloaks specifically,
and he's like, well, forgive me, friend, I mean you
you are one of us, but I don't I don't seem remember giving you
one of these cloaks last time we met. How did uh right? Yeah,
I know this thing. Um yeah, I never did never you know,
pass the test out too. I mean you got close. It was
like a seventy percent you were. You were close, like we could have
given it to you, but you also could have killed yourself if we didn't
let you train up a little more. Well, I mean, would you
believe that I found this one? Well, I would absolutely believe that because
you have it before I before I say, any other sort of ideas would
do. Yeah, would you believe that with that pass? I would like
to it Probably wouldn't, but let's yeah, I can understand that. Like
I said, I would absolutely believe you found it because you're wearing one right
now, right right. But the means in which you found it, I
mean, everything invent Branch and everything in our backstory is all sorts of top
century right now, so you have the Dawn Walkers cloak. Ain't the most
confusing thing about this situation. Okay, alright, fine, I mean,
Titan, you gave it to me. Can you roll me a persuasion check
with with advantage? Actually, because because you're you're you're you are absolutely telling
the truth. Yeah, he definitely like kind of sheepishly. So that to
Tanya that that's a twenty four for me on that persuasion. Damn, first,
roll I forgot about these crazy as numbers. Yeah, I got a
lot of plus to that. You see Franklin a smile across this face.
It says, well, I mean to Tanya, gave me mine as well,
so, I mean, that's good enough for me. I might be
asking me a little more about those details in the second because that and that's
fine. Sorry, sorry, just to be clear as well, I haven't.
I haven't been back. I haven't. It was a bit of a
bit of one of them confusing sort of visits where I was partially there but
here line, everything about our village and our life is confusing and halfway and
halfway out, and I get it. I just didn't want you to think
i'd been back home. And I just I need you to know that I
have not forgotten. I've been alone for a long time now, for a
while, all right, I've just been trying to get back, okay.
I just need to know that my girls are okay. Franklin puts a hand
on your shoulder. He says, we're all trying to do that here a
long And if I know anything about the way this world turns, the fact
that you're here right now, we're here right now, that can only be
a good sign. You. I mean, you were the keeper. You
were you were the It's been a long time since anybody had called me the
keeper. I mean, Kip always did fit a little better than the keeper.
But but like I said, brother, there's still hope. Ben Branch.
Ben Branch is in trouble. It's in a lot of trouble. And
just seeing you here, seeing might of the don Walker is starting to be
restored. Nothing we can't do, friend, right right, right, yeah,
So let's let's focus up. Let's focus up. We're here, uh
right, um night kushmarus night, realm of fear. I'll be honest with
you, don't remember exactly how I got here. Uh well, maybe maybe
talking about our plan and talking about what's actually going on here can help help
jog that that old nog and a yours keeper. That would be great,
That would be great. I mean, I can tell you that I've been
doing some some journey and across you know, planes and and and and distance
and has you know, been on a lot of adventures and something about one
of those with me here. Uh final answer, that's a good, good
final answer. And you see, if anything, kind of stand up and
start to get a business. He snapped his finger and he he says,
Adomo, come on over here, we need to we're about to head out.
But keep us looking, my dear rough and you see one of your
old friend z Adomo come over and start giving you a little bit of medical
attention. As Franklin starts telling talking about the plan, We're gonna cut away
a little bit to the thanks you're you're will I talk real slows my business?
Oh you you sweet sweet demo sir here, Yes, you're welcome,
thanks for joining my coming to my hospital anyway. Uh and we cut away
to uh Arius and Nil. You have no idea any of this is happening.
You don't know where Kippa is, You don't know where you you barely
know where you are in all honesty. Um, and you are riding on
a boat with a Dyson playliss fan attached to the back of mine, with
Sebastian man the weirdest things on the ethereal plane. It's quite handy, though,
yeah, yeah, it's quite handy. Um. Yes, but we
find all of you all on this boat as these fairly gargantuan whales are kind
of swimming and floating by your boat. And Nil, you get the feeling
kind of like a gentle, very large, very ancient presence starts you feel
it but kind of press on your on your mind. You're not sure how
you know this, but you get the sense that this is one of the
whales trying to communicate with you. And as you have that thought physics be
hmmed, a humongous head starts to raise up out of the water in front
of y'all's boat, coming up waters kind of cascading off of the ripples in
this giant whale's skin. As as it its head raises up above your boat
and starts to look down at you all and nail that that pressure gently increases
in your mind. Doesn't hurt No, not at all, Like I said,
you don't. You don't get the sense that this you get the sense
that this whale is trying to speak with you. You don't get the sens
it's trying to hurt you. Okay, what do you do? That's the
one that's pooking its head out right? You you assume at this point unless
unless it's a big ruse and the one behind you is really the one that's
talking to you. So nil kind of you know, like when when like
you want to get someone's attention, you just kind of like hit their arm
or like slap their leg or something. Um. She starts hitting arias Um
right in the face and like and like the whale there's there's there's a whale
outside, like out there on the sea. It's like it's trying to say
something. Are you trying to say something me, I'm not trying to anything.
I'm trying to sleep. Use a whale? Why would why would the
whale talk to us? I don't know. And Arias, at that point,
you feel this pressure as well. Like and Arias, you do feel
very very ful for you, just like flats himself on the bottom, he
feels the pressure when you feel, you feel this this gentle sort of I
think we've said it this way. Someone's knocking at your mind's door, and
the boat's going to stop. This whale as sort of halfway out of the
water looking down at you all again, physics, get the funk out of
here ethereal plane, feel this presence questioning, a questioning presence in your mind?
Well, no, I think I think they're trying to speak too.
Um. Do you feel it? It's like a pressure of some sort.
Well, like suppose we except can I roll an insight check for sure?
Absolutely? Are you looking for anything specific? Motive of meanness? You get
the sense that this is a like I said a very ancient, very benevolent,
the good, a very benevolent vibe and aura from this this thing.
You get a quick series of flashes of both of You actually get a quick
series of flashes from this thing as you see these whales and for lack of
a better term, it looks like they're escorting dreams to different parts of the
ethereal plane. And you get like this very deep rumbling voice in your head
and it says, no, children run, and it takes off its whale
mask and it's you. You actually get kind of a chuckle. You hear
like a you feel a sense of an amusement as you say grandfather, and
it says, in a way, why why do too so small and so
young travel these dangerous So No, this is this is pretty wild. Well,
I mean, considering everything we've gone through, I don't think the wildest
thing that we've really counted. Um yeah, but um um sorry, I
love that interactions is like, no, this is insanially actually it's not really
He's like, yeah, totally totally sorry. There was a long break.
That's that nap really knocked it out of me. I feel like six months
I travesported so many of your dreams. Well, we're actually under dire straits
at the moment um. We are trying to find a way to the deep
ethereal see or the deeper etherial see. I don't remember what we called it.
We are in the okay, no, no, sorry, sorry,
sorry, sorry, it's been enough. Started working at nine and it's God.
Didn't have time for lunch. I have seven bumps to care for and
provide for working triple chiefs. That's a dream is very difficult. Anyway,
you need a break, sir. I was heading that way towards my fifteen
minute break when I ran across. Oh, I don't nice of you to
spend it with us. Well, you don't know if I would have the
same have coffee? Do any of you have a cigarette? Not larger for
you? I'm sorry, that's fine, my Yeah, you know, he
said to answer your question you, he reminds you that you are in the
ethereal sy and there is a section deeper in the ethereal sity called the deep
ethereal Um. That is where the veil of dreams tends to be where that's
where Senza is you. You you are under dial yes um to ask hibout
where Kipp is well, you see, I mean this that'll require some explanation.
We had a spot of trouble earlier, Um, and one of our
friends, a very different Um, was sent into what the kids call the
shadow realm, Um, and we're trying to find our way in there so
that we can rescue him because it is quite dangerous from what we've been told.
And Um, yeah you speak of Yes, if that's what it's called,
it is, that's what we're going. Is that's where we're trying to
find colderful. As you start to talk about this the shadow realm, and
as he as he references cushmrk, that the pressure that's kind of on y'all's
mind turns into like I said, you get a very drastic sense of panic
from this area, scripts chest really quick. One of these days, it's
just gonna hit. I'm just that's I forgot how you will played him as
an old guy, and I love that you you sent this sense of panic
and fear come from this this giant whale, and it's just the Coushmar.
It was a motorcycle guy, Ummar threatened Terry, escorting, Ope, Yes,
that's a leather clad motorcycle riding what walrus take the dream? I know,
he said, Kusheman. He threatens the balance of the ethereal plane and
even the planes themselves. It's growing. The power is growing, and it
is taking over the veil. The nightmares, the fear there's are spreading that
the powers within Kushemar are gaining strength and soon, if something doesn't change,
Kushemar will overrun areas A cross his arms and frowns, kind of taps his
chin, you know, crosses his eyes, squats reveal deep just now airs
crossed his arm and frowns, looks up at the whale um and he says
that does not sound good for us or for the ethereal planes. Friend,
would you be able to direct us to the to how to access Kushmar or
I guess first? Maybe what is your name so we can address you?
You get that sort of sense of of of humor again as you ask about
a name and you get you get my name is Benjo. You get you
don't get a name. This is my son, Kaz. It's a dream
war than in training. You don't get a name. He doesn't tell you
a name. You just get a sense of like a whale sound. Yeah,
my name is but my friends call me Frank. Yeah. You get
like the sense of like different dreams that were escorted into the deep. You
get the sense of happiness that these dreams have given to the sleepers. You
get a sense of different journeys this creature has taken, and you you get
the sense that it is ancient and it has taken this this trip several times,
and it has given people the dreams that they needed to help people to
find their dreams, and it has helped take people out of nightmares and have
them help them like dream Well, and he sort of chuckles, and it
says, my name, Well, you can refer to me as he who
cannot be named or voldemolt you he says, you can. You can refer
to me as dream Ward if that is, if you must refer to me.
But to answer your question, yes, I can show me a way
into the vein to find Kushmar. You will have to journey through the vein
and find him away through there. Um, I cut you off. No,
no, no, Aris, this primary's bows um, you know,
and then kind of looks at that nail too, and oh, that would
be extremely helpful to us, um, And whatever we could do to repay
the favor if if you're willing to take us there. We have a friend
who is stuck, who was taken into cashmere cashmir that is you referring to
a type of fabric. Close enough, He's not sorry, cush cushmir Um.
We have a very important friend there that we need to retrieve as soon
as possible. You too seem noble, good hearted. Your dreams seem clear
and roll. Really because I haven't dreamed in several years. Well, dust
dusty does not imply that. Boy, your dreams are quite dusty. He
says. Oh, I requires one, two, three, four two things.
You must make me a promise. Oh I thought you were going to
ask for sandwich, and then he like stops. You do you have this
sec You must make me a sweater, making me a promise bracelet, he
says. A shadow is growing and balance seems to be three. The mother
looks for her youngest, but her attention is diverted, which the youngest must
be found. The mother must be protected. We were talking about your children.
No, your female. I'm so sorry. I must submit. I
didn't mean to distender you know, male female other whale the ultimate life phone,
he says, as you ask about the mother and the youngest. He
says a couple more things. He says, the planes are at a risk.
The careful nance that has been attained, that has danced across our reality.
This threatened. The greed of the two is threatening to destroying everything we
know. The ancient city is returning. We must unite. If you can
promise that you will help preserve this balance, I can show you the way
to the fan Um areas looking at Nil very confusion. Yeah, Yeah,
I was gonna say Nil is looking at areas also very confused. Can you
describe that with an apple? Oh, yes, that would definitely help.
Yes, just in the context of fruit. No, I don't not area
doesn't canotically ask that that you wouldn't. Yeah, As you guys are sort
of looking at each other in confusion, which is a very app response.
In this situation. You you realize that this the dream wardened mind is very
difficult to grasp. The logical jumps that he is making and the references he
is making you can tell make sense to him, and he's confused. Why
they don't make sense to you? Yeah, And he's like, it's like
the aliens in the Arrival. Yes, and he as you're sitting there,
he says, may be this Willhelm. As the story knows, there were
two brothers driven from their own They had to fight and kim to survive,
but they had each other. They journeyed the long years, the lifetimes with
each other, but then to return home they started a great war. And
as the years went on, as the fighting continued to grow and spread across
reality and the plains, one brother fell in love with the fighting and forgot
about returning home. The other brother was worried, so he went to ask
the mother for help. The mother sent the youngest sibling to remind the eldest
and the power hungry brother what their home was. The eldest brother was greedy
and took the power of the youngest sibling. Then the brothers began to fight
each other. The eldest was shattered into a million pieces and scattered across the
heavens, but the eldest continued to rage his ward, and their home was
lost by the greed of the eldest brother. And you, as as this
the dream worden is talking, you see these images of of these two people,
one dressed in a black robe, one dressed in a white robe in
a place that Arius you actually do, weirdly enough remember, and actually Nil
you do too, but for a different reason. Arius you remember it from
one of the visions you saw the day that Prism came to the Sea Monster
and transported all of you into sort of a mindscape area. And as she
was talking about Atlanta and Neth and Bash, you you see images that are
very similar to that, and Nil a quick refresher, but those images would
be yes, very much like these two figures, one dressed in black,
one dressed in white, in these sort of cosmic spaces where where they're they're
like sort of sitting there. I mean, no in an inception when like
they're sitting at the beach on the beach and like they're building sand castles and
like the buildings are being built or like destroyed behind them. Imagine that.
But like in a cosmic setting. And Nil, you see images, but
it's interesting because you feel like you've seen the places that as the dream warden
is talking and showing you these images you see, it's like you're seeing images
you've seen but before they were destroyed, before they were desolate. Like you
see a city that you're like, oh wow, that looks like this other
city I saw, but it's alive right now. It just doesn't look like
a bomb went off in it. And it's confusing. No, No,
that's that's that's totally funny. No, no, that was that wasn't me
asking a question. That that was me saying, And it's very confusing to
you, all right, because I'm building and hold on, that was great.
That was really there's a siren going by, hold on, siren's got
what were you saying? How are you praising me? It's a good scene.
That was really good. Thank you. Good story too. He as
he finished the story, he looks. He he was like, yeah,
that should have cleared it out now that that I just explained it to you.
That is exactly the way this song went down. I wish I had
my camera on so that I could just make the face that Nils has currently.
But just imagine she's like squinting up at this thing and her mouth is
kind of open, like she's trying to figure out what what the hell just
happened, Like she's trying to process all the information, and she's just kind
of trying to trying to understand everything, like she she sees the world and
she understand, like she makes a connection right, that those are like the
living versions of the things she's seen. Um, but she doesn't understand like
how that's relevant to what he's talking about yet, because she doesn't understand the
connection various titans his jaw. Um kind of looks at Nil. He says,
well, I mean, I don't think we haven't much of a choice,
but hopefully it will make itself more clear as we move on, Pretty
Morton, I I think we'll do the best in our abilities to make you
that promise. He always asks you to protect the mother. Ah, Yes,
to protect the mother, We promise you. He's looking over at Nil.
Do you okay, wait before we make any promises. Wow, we're
gonna get to cush beer. Well, we need to know exactly who this
mother is. We can't just randomly pick a random mother that we find on
the street. It's it's Karen Telstra. You gotta protect Karen tells. Asia
scratches his head. He's like, are you guys having this conversation out?
Lad? Probably? Yeah? Can we can we talk? Okay? Can
we communicate? No? No, that's it. Yeah, you're right,
so you have to have in this conversation. So as you're as you're saying
this, like as and I was like hold on, hold hold on,
sevast fire Sapphire comes up to you, and it's sort of like, I
think I could get us there. It might take longer, but if you
don't want to make some sort of weird ethereal promise, the problem isn't quite
the promise, it's the actual task that he's giving us, Like I don't
mind going out of our way, especially since we're going in the same direction,
but it's so vague, like who's the mother, who's the child?
What are these brothers? What are these cities? Like that nothing makes sense.
The pressure sort of turns into a like frustrated that it's having a difficult
difficulty communicating with you. And as you're asking the question like who is the
mother, Like what is the mother, you get the sense that it's like
and and dream Warden says, like the mother she is everything. She is,
she is me, she is you, she is the connections between everything.
And you get the sense that dream the dream Warden is trying very very
hard to like communicate this cosmic power. Yeah, so so you know the
tin cans rattling and know's mind are trying to like piece everything together like with
with that new explanation, and she turns to areas and just I think he's
just talking about life. Hmm, Well, I mean right, that's what
that sounds like. Yeah, I can't because I'm not a mother. I
can tell you that, sure you go. He since he's a mother,
that would technically also mean that you are the mother, all right, and
that the world is the mother. Whatever this face is, I love him.
Yeah, this is where I rely on you, pill U Right.
I feel like the answers will become more clear as we go forward. I
call it a belief. I just I don't think we have to know exactly
who they are. Well, what if we can't save something? Right,
he's asking us to save the mother, but then who is the mother?
And what if we failed? Then we've failed our promise and that dude,
we have a whale coming after us for the rest of my life. Maybe
we can't dream ever again, which seems pretty good for you don't seem to
do it anyways, So well, that is true. I'm just trying to
get to Kushmer as fast as of course. Yes, if that requires it's
no I'm not. I'm not upset with you. I'm just that if that
requires me accepting some ambiguity, that's okay with me. But I don't want
to. I don't want to drag you into it. Um Sapphire did say
that he can get us there, but he said he did say it would
take a lot longer, right right? Um? Okay, how about this,
um, miss dream Warden, missus dream Warden, mother dream Warden,
wherever you are, I'm looking at this flipper with a watch on it remains
on break? Could could we forget a promise and more of a we will
make an attempt to do whatever it is that you are seems too I guess
I'll make an attempt to show you. Please make me a make me a
persuasion check please. Sixteen. The pressure, this pressure sort of turns into
one of sadness for a second, and just a little a little bit of
disappointment as as this dream Warden looks looks down on you all, and you
get this, you feel that he's not like angry with you. You can't
tell if the sadness or disappointment is like directed at you or if he's more
directing it at himself. Being like, I failed in communicating what I needed
to communicate to these people who could help me. And he says, if
what I ask us to rate of cost I understand. She's like mumbling to
herself, can Canary try? Arias kind of goes over to Nail, puts
his hand on her shoulder. If that is nil? Okay with physical touch
up? And he says no, and sorry, just add a little extra
spice to this because I feel like I know you're about to do. Dream
Warden starts to lower back into the water with oh, definitely, yeah,
he's definitely. Now, what if what if I told you that no matter
what happens, whether we make this promise or not, whether we break it
or we fail it, that I will be there with you and I will
support you with whatever happens. Do you think that we can we can trust
this dream Warden and also are just our own selves to do what needs to
be done. But we need to think of the cons and the pros in
the in the what if we there's like side eyeing the whale is it's gonna
lower lower lower, He just has one eye up. He's like, oh,
but he looks, he looks back. He's like really like he's like
m hm, yeah, I will say this. And Arius, when you
grow the inside on the dream warden, you didn't. There was no sense
of malice, no sense of like trickery, like this thing seemed extremely honorable
and extremely honest with you. And Nil is on not necessarily on the virgin
of the panic attack, but she is very much like Waying. It's like
like how heavy a promise is versus if they can deliver, Like she's waffling
very different, like it's very difficult for her to like you know yeah no
yah sa fire so that you could still get us there. So whatever you
your choices, I don't like being disappointed in it is like a face.
It's like I know what that feels like. I'll put this above the table.
There isn't really a right or wrong answer to this. This whatever you
choose will have ramifications either way. So like it's up to you, like
there there. If you don't want to make this promise to this giant fish
that just came out of the water and is asking you to make a promise,
that's fine. It's the giant man the plane. No blowholes baby only
again? Yes? Is that is that what you think makes breathing breathing air,
not breathing water. It's a good point. I always thought it was
going to hads. Well, there's a lot you done just through the ocean
swag. What what plastic surgeons are out there getting some breast enhancements to these
grand devices at that point, Um okay yeah. So so like you know,
having the visual of the whale leaving, the disappointment in its eye area
is coming at like like come on, like you know, we don't we
need to make a decision of some sort. She just like closes her eyes
for a moment and just like Dickson of big deep breath, and it's like
okay, all right, fine, fine, fine, yes, yes you
were right areas, yes there is oh, okay, yes, um it's
okay. Dream for you. I'm here for you. Dream Dream dream dream
one m Yes, we we will do as you ask. It's just oh
that we can deliver as you as your request. And you sense the pressure,
which has been very gentle this entire time. It you get the vibe
in the field that it is just a huge sense of relief taken off of
its back, off its humpback U and you sense gratitude like an immense amount
of gratitude and nil for you, specifically, in the back of your mind,
you you you hear that the very very calm sound of waves crashing on
a shore, and you feel Lady moon Tied smiling down on you at that
after having made that choice, and both of you feel the weave and the
magic of the reality shift ever so slightly, as you all have made a
promise to an incredibly powerful, magical creature that will come into effect later.
As it turns and starts to swim off in a direction and you get the
sense that it wants you to follow. Arius grabs the rudder and pushes it
to the side. That makes the boat do a quick donut and it spins
out after the silent, bladeless dion Fan pushes it towards. There's also horses.
Yeah, you my horses, which sank in the last episode a joke.
No, they start running off towards chasing this whale, and that's that's
what we're gonna end this scene. Yeah, as you're kind of chasing this
like slowly breaching whale as it runs off quickly towards say the least that you
my horse is chasing after an e Wall riding alongside having maybe feeling a little
nervous, maybe feel a little excited. Um, I Noah's extremely nervous.
Yeah, quick, A quick moment where Aaron just sits next to Nil and
like looks at her and he nods, is I'm proud of you. I
know that's scary for you. So we'll also say thank you. I just
have such a sense of urgency. But I know that wasn't that was out
of your comfort zone. Well, I mean, we do need to save
Kippa and and my personal grievances with decision making. I should not hinder all
chances at getting to him sooner. Relevant Ar's laughsy lights one up real quick.
It's like you would wonderful as we cut back into Kushmart. Okay,
so that's what happened in that part of the story that I don't remember it
like that. Thank you for jumping in here, bored, because I also
don't remember it happening like that. I remember there was a lot more mayonnaise.
There was a little bit more of mayonnaise. I can't help but don't
take this personally, bored. Don't take this personally earl. But are you
are your skills kind of slipping. You know what. It's something that every
locksa don fears as they get older. The mind isn't what it used to
be. Yeah, we all know that the locks down never forget, but
when they do, they do, they really forget, They really forget.
Hey, I take this moment to think about your life and I'm going to
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but if you if you are tired of well, I mean, if
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Also, describing sleep as crispy is horrifying. But yeah, tune in
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That's it. What would you do if I told you that the world
is not what it seems? You're telling me that potato salad is the key
to other world is not even the best side ish, and people are not
who they appear to be. I don't know that we can trust Master Grouchet.
Well, I know, for damn sure we can't trust Charles Edward Cheese.
My name's not Mike, where puns run rampant through the streets. The
Global Adventurers guild Master Enterprises will not stand for this. Well, it's gag
me for sure. So I'm pretty sure they take everything on their knees,
don't they. And it's hard to tell who the real monsters are. Well,
yeah, it's a mimic. But I'm Francis the Lion. Three heroes.
You have my sword, you hit my kazoo, oh god, my
hip, face off against three villains. Never again will they enslave me?
Well, make damn sure of that. I'm Francis the Lion. We know
to keep the world of You Frey from ripping apart. It's damn coal ol
clothes. We tried turning it off and back on again and Tim and Terry
from getting even more screwed. They're totally werewolves. Yep, they're definitely werewolves.
Holy shit, those guys are werewolves. Welcome to a Fool's Quest.
Fools Quests can be found on all major podcasting platforms simply by searching A Fool's
Quest and the end of the Bourgui's Time and Earl. Sorry, I I
totally forgotten we were talking about. Oh no, it's happening. What is
this blinking red number counting down from thirty over my head. Right. Oh
no, everyone, we need to get Earl to the doc, get him
downstairs quick. So anyways, this is how this story went. I believe
Kippa you are. You're feeling a little better as Adomo is healing you.
I'm gonna say you have half health now, okay, instead of was one
hpiece in the as you've been getting healed a rapture woops. Franklin has been
laying out some information and some plans to you. He has mentioned that the
Don Walkers and him after Ben Branch. After they returned to Ben Branch and
found it deserted and people, the residents taken away, they went on a
journey to try to find them, and that led them eventually to the ethereal
plane where they crossed paths with rapture, and rapture was like, yo,
dog, come race in this race and everything's gonna be good. They did
that. After that they were taken and thrown into this nightmare room. They
were promised something very different, but they got thrown into Kuschmar and so,
waite a minute, did you win the race? We did? We did,
and we were promised information answers and the next thing we all knew Rapture
had taken us here and me and sorry to interrupt, but uh, that
that Rapture character there, he's uh we we me and my friends might have
also encountered him, but there's just like, well, not great, not
great. You know, I am here as well, and uh, it
seems like he has something out for us by sending us to this. This
just the pits, you know, just something doesn't match up for me because
I mean when you encountered him and you engaged in this race, I mean,
it just doesn't make sense because I was just around him, but he
wasn't even in deep etherial yet. I think throughout our our our journeys and
our adventures with Rapture and incense, A, I think I might have some
not great news because it seems like the leader of the city and Rapture or
in league with each other, because it seems like they're making promises and they're
they're quote unquote guiding these lost souls to arrest in place. But if if
from what we found out down here, what he's actually doing, he's taking
these souls and using it to power something down here in Kouschmar. That is,
he's trying to take over the veil of dreams with this nightmare rim,
which would put all sorts of things out of whack. And he's using the
souls and winners of this race to to power this this beast man. This
guy's uh, he's reminded me of column. I hate it when people take
winners and drinkle like that. I mean, y'all want fair and square.
I mean, how long have e been down here? How long has it
been since y'all you know, should be all down and this is done.
Honestly, I couldn't tell you. It feels like an eternity. It might
have been, it might be one day the year. That's just I mean,
obviously, and you found me. I wasn't exactly had all my wits
about me. But it just doesn't make any goddamn sense. I mean,
I don't think I've been here that long, but if you all have been
here longer, and oh boy, man, I need to I need to
get out of here and find my friends. Well, I mean, I
heard you are a friend in front of me, But I mean in the
time that we've spent a part of I've made some made some bonds that mean
a lot. Honestly, that's great, and I know I would expect nothing
less. I mean, you've been traveling all over the place. It makes
sense the year forging bonds and forging friendships with these folks or other folks other
than us. I mean, we weren't around. I get it, I
get a cure. But I think there might be I think there might be
something we can do here. Okay, if we can get you out,
do you think you could take on rapture with these new friends? I mean,
oh, man, that's a that's a tricky question. I mean,
we did just try to take him on in a sense, and uh,
you know, he had some prep time to be fair, but you know
I didn't it did It didn't go too well? Um for us. I
mean I don't want to assume, but I mean it kind of appears like
we have some interests that aligne here, and I mean, in more ways
than one, we're after the same thing, but it seems like we're also
after the same guy. We are. But here's here's the thing. I
think we might be able to give you a bit of an upper hand if
I if me and the don Walkers, if we stay back here and sever
Rapture's connection to koschmater I might give you the advantage you need to finally finish
him off. Well well, well we'll wait a minute. I mean,
you all are going to come with me, get out of here, because
I mean, Rapture is not going to stand a chance against the contingent as
some of the don walker's fatness that does that does want my heart to hear
that, and you are correct, But well we'll see because here's here's here's
the way it shakes down. Rapture has been feeding this this entity, this
this beast, this this power here in Kushmar that is growing every soul he
takes to it, every soul he condemns to an eternity of nightmares, and
not well nightmares. I mean, I don't know how much worse he can
get than nightmares. Um his grasp of Kushmar grows stronger, the power and
Kushmar grows stronger. If we can find a way to kill this thing,
to to stop this thing, that would we can his hold here on the
etherial plane, we can his hold on the veil of dreams, and we
can his hold on the on Kushmar, which would set the balance back right,
and the thing is that is no easy task in and of itself.
And it sounds like you have some powerful friends. Sounds like, I mean,
I know you are powerful, and this might be a chance for you
to earn that Don Walker's cloak. Wink, it's not creepy. Um well,
I mean, Franklin, I'm not gonna There's no way I'm gonna leave
y'all here, and Kushmar it sounds like a great plan, But like y'all
staying back behind here, I feel like I'm not going to leave you again.
That's very kind of you, kid. I mean, I'm not saying
we're gonna be stuck here for forever. Remember your days in the Don Walkers.
There's a lot of a lot of not easy, not nice things that
had to be done that we did. We were the ones who stood between
the light and the dark, and we we did with those Yeah, I
get, I know, we do hard things. I just fucking found you,
Franklin. I'm not gonna leave you. I've missed you two here long.
How about we just go and we check it out. We check out
what this beast is, We check out what this situation is, and we
we assess from there, something's got to be done. And the longer we
stay here long, the longer that gives Rapture a chance to to strengthen his
hold. And like I said, if if what we're seeing here is his
plan, and if his plan comes to fruition, not just the ethereal plane
is going to be out of whack, but everything's going to be out of
whack, even back home at the Faye wis I hope we were talking about
that small bit of hope that's extinguishing. If the Ethereal plane grows strong enough
to overcome and take over these other planes here long, I'll tell you what
I'll do it. I'll say yes on the condition that this is this is
going to be also mind Don Walker cloak ceremony. Yeah, I mean,
I'll say yes to it on that, on that regard. But I'll tell
you one thing. Don't care what you just said. You aren't fucking staying
here in Kushmore, all right, There's no way we'll let y'all get lost
here. He raises a hand to to like do the Don Walker handshake.
It's very complex and very silly. You end up kissing and smacking each other's
butts uh uh no, he says, means a lot, Kipper, we
won't get lost here. Don't worry about that. We're too We're too strong.
Ain't that right? Ain't that right? Willows? Yeah, Willows?
Her voices are just wilder shit. Yeah, he's just like sharpening. He's
adding weight to a hammer, crush some dreams. It's like welding on,
just like that old So now we're not gonna get lost here. And I
mean, it's especially like knowing that you're you were, you survived whatever the
fuck happened to Bent Branch. Yeah, yeah, knowing that there's there's still
folks from Bent Branch, knowing that there's still people fighting. I mean,
just holding on to that. I'm not gonna get lost in some nightmare,
as shitty as it seems, just having that kipp has already already helped a
bunch. Kippa's like kind of staring at the ground as he's saying that any
kind of He looks up, makes eye contact with Franklin, gives him a
hand on the shoulder, pat and he says, couldn't have said it better
myself. Friend. Well, let's get going. Just a couple of Bent
Branch boys out branch. No, imagine that every knee is getting slapped,
yea knee there there's hand bones happening like yeah, like the tub with the
one like string bass, like somebody's like got like a cloth with clothes walker.
They start doing some of that that hill scat you know that that.
Yeah, one of them has one of those like really big like ceramic jugs
and he's just like and as you guys are walking through Kushmar is making all
this noise like just just nightmare of the Nightmare's charging you all, just just
ruining the whole vibe. No um. So so then the next few things
that are starting to happen are happening simultaneously, and I need you to vision
with me as as Arius and Nil are following the dream ward and through the
ethereal sea and Kippa. You are following Franklin Ashwood and the rest of the
don Walkers through Kushmar. And the first thing we see is, after not
a ton of time, Arius and Nil, you all are skimming along the
top of this water, following this gigantic whale um and you you come to
what looks like like fog. I remember that the fog that Patrick made during
the Armada battle. It's like that, but not as goofy and carrot orange.
It's fully opaque. That's the one you can't see through. Yeah,
fully opaque, like white, thick fog. It looks like if you touched
it, you'd be able to like grab bits of the fog. It's so
thick and it's like a cloud. It's just there's a very defined borders to
this fog. You've reached the boundaries of the video game. Yeah, and
you look into this this just dense, dense fog, and you see the
tail of the dream word just without hesitation, start to to swim deeper into
this fog, and you all take a breath, and Sebastian and Sapphire also
take a breath, and they're like, wow, this ship is Wow,
this shit is really intense. Sebastian Sapphire says, as you just plunge straight
into this fog, and for a moment, it feels like you stop moving
because the water is the crystal clear, it's like glass smooth, and the
fog is so dense and heavy around you, it doesn't feel like you're actually
making any progress forward, if that makes sense. Yeah, And Kippa.
You start to walk out of your safe, the safety of your cave with
the Don Walkers, and you look up as you're making your way through this
forest of these twisted trees with these grabbing fingerlike branches. You and the don
Walkers make next to no noise, but you start moving your way. You're
making you start to make your way through Kushmar. And as you're making your
way through Kushmar, you hear the wind how and it sounds like a thousand
candles in the wind. It's a thousand candles in the wind. No,
it sounds like it sounds like yeah, ripping cloth and screaming and like this
sort of haunted, tortured voice on the wind. It's not saying anything in
particular, but it is very unsettling. You will occasionally see shapes moving in
the dark forests, and you see eyes looking out from between branches. And
as you as you are journeying through this first part of your journey, we're
going to cut back to Arias and Nil. Almost all of a sudden,
the fog kind of clears up and you are standing your boat comes to rest
right in front of you, know, like the northern lights, like they
look like like almost like hard light a rouble realist. Yes, you see
in front of you is this stretching out. It looks almost like a curtain
sort of waving, sort of undulating, a curtain of turquoise light. The
dream warden has stopped, and you have stopped, and that pressure and that
presence comes back onto your mind, and he says, journey through there and
you will find your way to kushm. Be careful in the nightmare round things
on always as they seem. Weaker minds can lose more then the game.
And with that he turns and he starts to you feel his presence swimming away.
And as you all are standing looking at this turquoise blue or this turquoise
curtain of light, you see what looks like have you ever seen like dropping
ink into water? You see this sort of splotch of just pure black appear
in this beautiful turquoise light curtain, and it starts to grow and spread like
ink on water, and it starts to mix and mingle with the turquoise and
turning it this like this smoky gray, and it doesn't look good. And
you hear sapphire kind of gasp and surprises I don't know that. It looks
like Rapture's plan and his control is starting to spread throughout the veil of dreams.
We we we're losing time. We need we need to hurry. And
with permission, he starts to move the boat forward unless any of you are
trying to say anything, No wall, And you all head towards this veil
and you see the you may horses pass through. They start to walk and
look like they're about to hit this hard light or this turquoise glowing wall.
They pass right through it. Then the wall is coming closer and closer towards
you. The tip of the nose of the boat hits the wall and starts
to disappear behind it, and now it's coming right at your face, and
all of a sudden, you guess, take your breath as this the light
passes over you, and it feels like you feel tingles run up your spine,
and you feel your hair stand on end. You close your eyes and
you hear the sound of rushing water and howling wind as you open your eyes,
and all of a sudden, you the areas Snill, Sebastian and Sapphire
are standing standing looking at over this vista of what looks like Rainbow Road from
Mario Kart, just these pathway and these connections swirling all over where one where
a pathway ends, it ends in this in this pool of colored light,
and it looks beautiful. And you see these these pathways moving and shifting and
changing and dipping into different pools, and you see what looks like ghostly images
flowing through these pathways and flowing into these pools and out of these pools,
and it looks beautiful for a second. And then we're gonna cut back to
Kippa. As Kippa, you're walking through pushmar and you look up into the
sky and for the first time you get the sense that you actually see in
the sky. Um you see there's no stars, but there's this very intricate
pattern of what looks like like a spider web up in the sky. And
you see any every point where these threads cross, you see a pool of
blackness. You know that like super dark paint that like just absorbs all the
light. It's just like that, or it's just a vanta black vanta black
pool of light. And what sucks to you and for you is you see
this vanta black starting to spread out through this spider web network, and it's
causing more of the threads to turn this this black that is so black that
light can't even escape out of it. And as you're walking, you you
make it to this cove, you can hear the water at your feet,
you can hear the water around you, and you get frankly kind of stops
you and pulls you to the side, and you all kind of peek around
the corner of this of this cove into this You peek around the corner of
this rock into this cove and you see this actually okay, but before any
of this happens, can you roll me a quick investigation check as a seventeen
Awesome, We're gonna do this. We're gonna do this very quickly. But
you you've passed the DC. Hey, as you were walking, you actually
walk right through what looks like an old destroyed campsite. And that's that brings
your mind, that brings your attention down from this like spider web, evil
looking sky down into this campsite you passed through. And as you pass the
opening of a tent, you look in and you see a book sitting on
the ground. And with that investigation check of seventeen. You see the cover
of this book has an anchor with a twisting rope going down the shaft of
Kippa lets out a little quick, little like whistle bird column and though they
aren't maybe even visible to him, like he knows that everybody's like stopping for
a second. I imagine Franklin might just like melt out of some shadows in
a tree or something like and be next to him. He's like, yeah,
wondering what he what he saw it? Like, is everything okay?
Do you know what's going on year? This? This camp? It's so
familiar about it? Well, this looks like a camp with some poor soul,
poor group that made their way into kushmore and didn't didn't make their way
out of it. All right, um, give me one sick. I
just Kippa like goes under the flat real quick, makes a show of like
looking around, and then like grabs the book and kind of tucks it away,
says had I just just had to make sure there wasn't anything else going
on there, makes sense? Can you roll me a slight of hand check
this, sir? Oh that's eight you Franklin gives you that kind of knowing
like the questioning. Look, he's not he doesn't like bust your scene,
but he's he saw he saw you take the book. Um, and then
all the thing that I said happens. Where you're walking through and you see
that spider webs guy and you make a way to this cove and you look
out, you look around this cove and you feel you just feel this sense
of of despair and fear and terror just kind of emanating from this this cove.
And as you all look out, very hidden, very sneak. I'm
not gonna make you all of all for that because you're the dawn Walkers.
Nobody they can't even see themselves. Um. You see what looks like a
twenty foot tall creature with large almost like Texas long horn horns, blue and
black. Fire runs down its spine in the back of its legs its face
as it turns, and it's sort of pacing. You see there are no
eyes on this face. There's no eye holes, but there there's seems to
be just an open, gaping mouth with just long teeth that seems to take
up majority of its face. You see that it's muscular, It has goat
hooves and long spiny or long fingers that end in an evil looking claws.
And what's wild about this is that's actually not the most terrifying thing you see.
You see this thing very disgustingly, lovingly providing for just this giant,
festering oozing looks like pile of sludge. And as you look closer into this
pile of sludge, it's fifty sixty feet tall, you see bones dissolving,
You see faces appearing in this undulating mass. You see just oozing, dripping,
teeth and claws like forming and then disappearing, and you see faces and
hands reaching out but then getting sucked back into this this sludge. And I
imagine like there's like three like we're looking around a corner at that let me
all come back around the corner, because it was like, all right,
so what's plan B think, Yes, you come back around the corner,
and you Franklin is just right there. You didn't hear him get there,
but he is right there. He pulls his his don Walker hood up and
he's doing these elaborate hand gestures and you see these shadows kind of moving out
from him and even to your very trained eye, and you know exactly what
he's doing he's giving commands to the Don Walkers. You even though you know
that they're moving, you cannot see them other than just like the brief memory
of a shadow that is just you're this elite crew just moving out and getting
into position. Yeah, I mean I because you know, Kip is not
by any means weak at this point. No, but I still imagine that
these Don Walkers are just like next level miles beyond these these are basically like
the eight Captains of like the eight factions of like the seven Warlords of the
Don Walker versus like just like Franklin got very lucky, but it was it
was a it was a middle management retreat, and they came back from David
Buster. Yeah, you've seen this, this aw inspiring site several times,
but it still gives you goose bumps basically. And Franklin grabs you by the
collar and he says, all right, Kip up, here's the thing we're
going to take on, the night Stocker, the night Walker sorry, it's
called a night Walker, you know what it's called. That thing is like
a gardener. He's tending, he's he's he's growing this infestation for rapture.
If we can, we can stop him. The infestation will eventually die if
we can distract him long enough to give you a chance to get into that
pool and get out and face off against rapture. He's looking very serious that
you're right now. He says, I'm not coming with you. At this
point, kip Up, I beg the differ. You're definitely coming with me.
I would like to see you try, and I'd like to see you
try to stop me. Um And he says, Kip Up, this is
what it means to be a don Walker. We have to do the impossible.
We have to face against the things that go bump in the night.
We have to stop the nightmares and the terrors before they reach the people that
we love. And I need you, and he pulls you in tide.
At this point, he says, I need you to focus up and go
do this for me. I'll see you on the other side. I promise
you that. But at this point, if that thing chases you out of
this portal, it's a portal, by the way. If that thing chases
you out of this portal, there is no telling what can happen. Me
and the eight we're staying behind, and we're keeping its attention while you pokes
you on the one on the chest while you do what you need to do.
Look at the Kip Earn that Don Locker's cloak. It's a very steely
look. He looks back up at Franklin's Yes, sir, and you see
just a little bit of like he's been getting that more of that commander essence
about him. And you see just a little crack as he smiles, and
he said, God Dahim, it's good to see you again. And he
snaps his fingers and like wraiths from the night the Eight start to the Eight
appear out of the shadows, and you hear this awful sound as the night
Walker turns and starts to engage with your friends and your family, and Franklin
turns you says, all right now, just to speed things along here a
little bit. You know that the cove that like the water that this big
infestation is in, is the point that you need to get through. So
you know that you need to run and get into that pool and hopefully fucking
find your way out while while Franklin and the Eight protect your backside. Sound
like a boy band. Yeah, Franklin and the Eighth, how does that
look? As as as the night walker's attention is diverted and you have the
briefest of moments to get into the pool. As soon as all this motion
starts, Kiffa draws out the face hoo hoo hoos, slices it through the
air and phases into didn't we say he goes in it's like the ethereal nous.
Yeah, well okay, so then this is this is what it looks
like because technically you're in you're in a bit of a demi plane. Within
this plane, you actually like you open up this this rift in in reality
and you like walk through what looks like you're walking out our ocean. You
get the briefest images of like being in the ethereal sea. You you feel
like you can't touch it, You feel like you can't really get get to
it, but you just like the flavor in the imagery of your back kind
of running along the ethereal see. And we'll say, like Bernest deming Way
is like out on another expeditions like very much. Oh wait no, he
like pinged out like a like like team Rocket. Yes he's been and uh
you see old Bernest sitting there like fishing and smoking a smoking a pipe as
as like a ghost kid, but just lands on this front of his boat
and then like just chokes farther out into the ethereal scene. He's just like,
wow, holy shitas the Dreams players, they're coming for me, and
it's all these cannons start to blast off on his boat and he's just immediately
an attack mode. As yeah, as you you cut the faint you and
you now do you run towards the portal? Are you? Yeah? Kippa's
going to run towards the portal. Uh, he's trying to. I'm assuming
that they're like engaging. There's you know shadows, you know, like attack
on Titan, yes, versus the survey cores versus the tight end as they're
all just like you know, flying across this thing and hit it. That's
exactly what you say. As yeah, as as the Elite start to engage
this thing they mailed out of a shadow strike, it returned to to mist
and shadow as there's a flyer on this thing. This you see the nice
stockers reaching and screeching and scraping and trying to find these these shadows are attacking
it. And you look back at this right before you dive into the pot
exactly, and Kippa's he's taken that wide flank, and I imagine that the
night stalker night walker. I imagine the night Walker is like, you know,
he's standing relatively close to the edges of it. So Kippa's now getting
up close to behind him, and that mass, that gross, decaying,
evil mass is, you know, it's around and encompassing this portal. So
Kippa, as he's running, the ethereal nous sort of like the faint fades
away of its effect, and then he jumps straight into where he imagines one
of the deeper parts of the pool and the portal might be. But he's
also casting thunderwave as he goes, so that when he attacked, when he
hits the like massive sludge and you know, like at least like open up
in an area big enough for him to dive through. That's exactly what happens.
As you were running and jumping. You see like these tendrils of this
sledgehow took reach out towards you. But then you cast this thunderwave and it
feeds them back and it opens up just the smallest liver and you see like
this crystal clear water underneath this sledge and you pass right through it as the
sledge covers back up over top of you, and you hear that sound of
like someone diving into water with a splash, and then just like them.
And what's strange is you're you're just running, even though you're underwater. You're
running, and you're you're making it farther and farther away from the battle that
is behind you. You're going to cut back to Arias and know real quick,
oh yeah, ast you all don't know that that all just happened.
But you do see something as you're looking at over this this glorious rainbow road
nervous system connection. You you see this evil dark presence start to erode away
at the pathways and these rainbow roads. You see this reaching, grasping sludge
start to appear deeper within this vista that you're seeing. And very much like
I said the Kepper, you seen faces and hands in the sludge reaching out
and consuming these light pathways. Noill just like grabs Arias and puts them in
front. Arias is like squinting and like looking for He's like, oh that
doesn't look very good. No, it doesn't looks disgusting actually, and Sebastian
is just like, shit, oh god, it's it's worse than I thought.
I I hate to say it, Sebastian Sapphire. Sapphire, thank you
for recognizing which voice I was trying to do. Yeah, that sounds like
um as Sebastian as Sapphire. He pulls out his dream daggers and uh,
he says, I didn't know I had these, did you? Um?
He says it's far it's far worse than we thought that, and he points
to the sludge that is like growing and undulating and it just it consuming these
these light rainbow road pathways. Says that's uh, that's cushmr. Oh all
right, and he starts to run towards it. Let's make it happen.
Excellent, Nil, how do you feel about running towards great? Yeah,
she's like like she's like like wiggling a little bit, and just like they're
they're running, they're going off ahead, and she's like hesitating, but like
following her. I don't I love this image of almost without a without a
second thought, Arius drosses sort and it starts to charge it this gibbering black
mass, and Nil is doing it too, but just a little bit reluctant
as like just like they're like we gotta fucking go, and you guys are
charging down this entity in this force and you eventually get there. I'm imagining
that the pathway is going like circular and like yeah, it's like they're like
gravity is more centered on where you're standing rather than like what are those what
are those paintings where it's like it looks like a very cube. Yeah,
like you're running down this thing else and you come out like a doorway over
here. Oh man, excellent, Yeah, I know it's exactly, you
know, like glances because like maybe Areas ran ahead further and then suddenly he's
like above her and like yeah he runs and then he runs past you again,
and then he like he runs past you. It is the sec he
just keeps lapping me. But like in different directions said it is running backwards,
like I've been here before. I know how this works, and he's
like running backwards and that's that's the secret. Um no, you um,
you're you're running in as you're running, like yeah, the gravity is changing
and you oh okay, no, this is this is the way it goes.
You you're starting to follow Sapphire, who is in fact the dream to
answer, So he's kind of he's been in this situation before. He's oh
yeah, and he's like, this is my time to shine. And you're
following him, and he like he runs up through this like sort of loop
de loop of this like pathway and it ends in this pool and he's like
here we go, and he he just jumps in and you all follow him.
Arius No no, No does like the jump and like plumbs her nose
thing and just like she does like like she's like all tight, abolish all
and Elwen's also on her shoulders plug his nose. And as you pass through
this portal, Arius, you remember very strangely, actually, uh, the
only thing you could compare this to is the time that you were teleported,
that that prison teleported you from never Winter to closer to Garship Island. As
you you land and you're in the middle of it looks like a giant arena.
But the warriors and the gladiators look strange. They're wearing uh, they're
not wearing any they're they're not wearing any metal. They're it's very they're wearing
bright colors and you're standing on like grass, it's like green grass. You
and no standing on this green grass, and there's there's crowds around them cheering
as it looks like there's two groups of warriors wearing like what looks like plastic
armor, and they're all standing over like this small oblong shaped brown ballum you
you just see above you, This giant looks like sort of a mirror with
people on it making recommendations for what types of hot dogs to eat. You
don't know what a hot dog is. A man from prison comes out with
a whistle. Yeah, I have one of those outfits. And then all
of a sudden, all of a sudden, you're back out into back in
imagine we we didn't stop running like you would, and you back into the
veil of dreams, and then Sapphire dives into another another portal, and you
land into a world that looks like it's made entirely out of candy, because
it is. You landed in candy world as you like sit and you see
like there is a fifteen cavities. Small child's dreaming up this like whirl made
of candy, and it looks like record Ralph Sugar rush Land and you can
pass out of that one, and you finally you're getting Every time you pass
in and out of these these realms, you get closer and closer to this
black sludge that is starting to like very much like Consmuternecke style, like getting
faster and grabbing more of the veil of dreams um and then you you you
you jump into another portal and it looks like you're on top of a mountain
and you like, there's this person looks like very strange winter you close that
keeps them warm climbing this mountain with these like just these like spiky hands and
spiky shoes. You guys, pass out of that one, and now you
are finally at this your your you come face to face with the sludge and
as as you can say this sludge, you see it, the pot part
that's in front of you stops advancing, but the sides that kind of slide
around you and start to encompass you. And Sapphire's breathing hard. If i
haven't done that many jump in a very long time, I'm just gonna hold
on and he just like sits down, ums like circles around like like lays
down his tail swoops around and he's just like to exist, starts making biscuits
and you Nil and Arius, you're face to face with this black sludge and
you just see this like face come out of it and then come and turned
back into just this black sludge. And as it disappears, you see something.
You see what looks like dear Kippa the wind struggling is absolute hardest to
get out of this sludge. Oh hell yeah, Arius goes into a rage
baby. Okay, you see kipp Kippa's inside this sledge and he is fighting
and running and struggling and trying to get out of it. You see,
we'll probably like do the like you know, yeah, And Arias and Horse
stands and you see he's like getting like that. He's starting to like how
do we describe it? Like he's starting not to glow red agency's rageing baby
or the initiative or we and no, no, how what are you guys
gonna do? What would you do to extra Kate Kippa? How would you
try to get Kippa? What would you do? Arias pulls out his wand
of switchero and points it at him. What he says, Neil get ready
to catch him and then he activates it. And then all of a sudden,
Kippa. You from Kippa's perspective, you've been running through this water,
through this sludge for what feels like forever, and you feel this strange presence
come over your mind as you're as you're running through this, like you've felt
despair and you've felt sadness before, but this is a different level, Like
you can physically feel this despair and it is all around you. And as
you're as you're running, you close your eyes and you're reaching and your your
breath is leaving your body, and you finally hear it. You hear it's
Kippa, and you look up and you see like the silhouette of your two
companions standing in front of you, and you have no idea how they got
there. And that's that despair starts to dissolve away, and you try to
call out, try to reach out to them. All of a sudden,
you're with Nil and Nil. You look down at Kipps as you kind of
catch him, not like a baby, but like you just like catch him
like someone like falling into you. And uh, yeah, I don't know
if you've actually ever seen this, but you see both of Kippa's eyes are
just glowing yellow and almost like goat eyes. The one well you see both
of them like full on goat and a yellow And now Arius is stuck in
the sledge. Oh yeah, but Arias Arias is was coming. You took
a big breath. You see this sword activated, the activated the wand and
he has his grasp claws activated. And when he gets in there, because
like the mechanics of rage, if you don't take damage, he lose it.
He's like he like stabs his shoulder and he starts like he starts like
pushing forward to get back. He starts like slowly, like like digging it
through him to like keep the keep the pain going. Nil doesn't know where
to like, she's like watching this man stab himself. Keep us over here?
Two wild eyes, like what is happening? Quick hand? Yeah,
that's why I was like, this is probably gonna be strength based. I
don't think kip was gonna do very well. That was brilliant. No,
it was brilliant. Alright, I I think I have advantage with Red.
You do all right? Boom? I got a four to five, so
that's a twelve. You you guys see Arius in there stab into his arm
and start stab into his just like shoulder, and I start to also take
four damage because that's take that's actually eight damage, and I take eight damage.
As you stab yourself and you feel the sledge start to get inside of
you, Oh, you're starting to try to muscle your way through it.
But Kippa and Nil, you see Arias start to like actually get pulled back
just a bit from probably from like the shoulder where he stabbed himself. You're
still raging. And that's that was That was cool. I have a question.
It's it's darkness essentially, right, yeah, okay, uh continue,
I have a plan. My next thing I was gonna say is you see
your friends starting to potentially lose the fight against this darkness. What are you
doing? Right? So kipps Nil, what I need concentrate, So give
it a second. And then she's like, like again, like in her
usual cadence of like beautiful minding her plan. She's watching this happen. Kippa,
he's technically yeah, he's technically alive. He seems fine. Question mark.
Um. But Arias is now like getting sucked in, which was not
part of the plan. Um. So she she like puts keep it down,
like just like lets him sit on the floor. It's like just like
wait there type of thing. Um and then she she runs over and she
custs wall of light okay, trying to effectively like put it behind areas so
like to try and cut off. Okay, I love that alright, So
burn that spell in areas. You see you feel yourself getting pulled back.
And then all of a sudden, like like like you hit a wall.
You just you realize your your friends are supporting less go baby, and you
will make make make me another strength saving through could I could I argue you
can argue anything of constitution instead of strength. The group does need to make
a constitution save the constitution save from a pilot that is a five on the
dice. I don't think that's gonna be what you mean you had, so
you Neil, you see your spell starting to it's starting to receive. You
see the pathways of light, like the darkness and the sledge that is surrounding
you start to recede and like starts to like get like agitated as like this
like pure force is in is conjuring inside of it twenty damage If that helps
for the moment. No, but that's very good to know. Um,
Kippa, what do you do? Are you trying to do anything? As
you're starting to assess the situation, Uh, Nil kind of turns away from
Kippa. He's still very disoriented and not sure what's going on or if this
is even real. But all of a sudden, his friends are here,
so he's like and he sees what she's trying to do with the wall.
So then he says, you're not taking my place, and not another one
today, And then he's puts out a hand and he's going to cast wall
of force, oh shit, and try to have this like bird cage whatever
dome like you know, like those like things that kikes around and there's the
glass topper on top of one of those is gonna come basically like in from
the sky and just crashed down so that it like is around areas of giving
him a second layer of separation from those things and you can fight harder.
So then I'll say that with that areas, you feel this force come around
you, and you feel some of the sledge get like separated from you and
almost like like you're coming up out of the water. For the first time
you take a breath, as like some of this sledge is getting knocked away
from you. And yes, I'll say with this now, with what Kippa
said, with what kipping in him, with what Nail's doing, make me
a constitution saving throw as you are not just physically fighting your way out of
the sledge. You are. It is, it is in you, it
is, it is in your mind. I do also want to say that
she can move it around. Okay, then yeah, so she's like like
struggling against maybe maybe that's what she moves in So the con save is like
Arias is like using it as like leverage with the with the wall of force
around it. Now and he's like like a sigma like a sigma shield.
Yeah, it's h's slowly, very slowly. It's like fighting against whatever.
I got an eighteen on that consent. And then this is this is this
is what happens as As with the wall of force and the wall of life
and helping Arias, he's like you're getting he uses it to get his footing.
He's starting to push his way out and you see and dig his claws
even deeper into his arm, into his shoulder, and he starts. You
see that the focus and the rage and cross over his eyes and he reaches
and he gets his hand just outside of the of the sludge, and he's
reaching out to you too with the with the eighteen. He's he's almost there.
No, sorry, he's he's there. And and Kippa and Nail grab
his hand, and even Elbin puts a little pop on you all pull and
you pull and use it with this like you feel, Arias just come free
and lose his pants pants a little far too as he falls forward, as
you fall forward, and strange enough, as you exit this this sludge,
it starts to recede back away. Areas just starts like laughing, like sorry,
I thought I could. I thought I could deal with that. And
he's just easy, son of a bitch man. I could well thank you
first of all. Mills splayed on the floor tired. Oh well, and
Areas is like puts a hand in his forehead. He's like, good thing
I had you too, good thing we have had for me. I love
you, guys, I love you too. A little guy. Y'all are
back together after seven months of being separate. Sitting in the sitting on the
Rainbow Road, neurological neurosystem of the of the Veil of dreams. Finally together,
things have happened, but y'all are back together. I think that we're
gonna end for days. Hell everybody has been Andy Tilster playing Arius Onos the
Snoring sailor see you next time. Hey, everybody, this is Christian Spanilla.
I've been playing chip Boy Kippa Guillo winds Um, he's just been now
in that goopy goo. And I'm Erie Escobar playing Nil, who is very
bad at making decisions and potentially putting her friends at risk for it. It's
all about girl, and I'm David Telstral. You're the dungeon master and the
no longer nervous boy. Because we're back ready, Thank you so much for
listening, and we will catch you all in two weeks. Thanks by our
theme song was written by John Lowell Anderson. Sound effects and music provided by
artless dot Io and freesound dot Org, edited by David Tilstra, and sound
design by Christian Spanoma and finally, a huge thank you to Kendari O'Connor for
his invaluable sound mastering. Well, welcome back, everybody. Oh my gosh,
it has been too long. I know we've been releasing other episodes other
parts of the story, but we're all very excited to be releasing the main
story again with you all or for you all, So yeah, thank you
so much for hanging out during the interim. Thank you so much for all
the support and love and messages we got during the time we were away.
But yeah, we're back. Now, we're back and we're kicking. So
yeah, I'm just I'm so excited to be to be back with you all
telling this main story from a far podcast. So um, yeah, I
don't think there's anything too important, well anything to announce coming up. There's
always very important things coming up. There's important things in your lives, there's
important things in our lives. There's a lot of important stuff. But in
regards to this show, I don't think there's any serious announcements coming up.
But as always, keep a keep an eye on our social media stuff,
keep an eye on our discords, keep an eye on or twitters, and
yeah, if anything comes up, we will announce it all there. So
once again, huge, huge, huge, huge thank you to you all
for for sticking with us and just for your constant unending love and support.
It honestly means so much to us. Um. So yeah, with that,
uh, don't forget to stay happy, stay healthy, and always remember
to go and buy yourself a nice pair of pants. Everyone needs a nice
pair of pants, you know, like when you get like when you put
on that one pair of pants that you own and you're like, oh,
yeah, I can take on the day. I've done it. I'm I
have I have arrived as a as a human being, as an adult.
If you don't have that, if you don't have that pair of pants,
go get it right now. It's it's worth it, trust me. Um.
Anyway, anyway, uh, I hope you all have a great,
great two weeks and we will see you in two weeks. Thanks. Bye,