WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:02.759 This program is intended for mature audiences only. 2 00:00:18.519 --> 00:00:29.199 You are not listening to observe the radio. 3 00:00:36.399 --> 00:00:42.960 Good evening listeners. It's me Purporina at Observable Radio. We're 4 00:00:43.000 --> 00:00:45.719 tinkering away at season two. If you'd like to see 5 00:00:45.719 --> 00:00:47.759 a taste of what we're building up to, please check 6 00:00:47.799 --> 00:00:50.359 out our Patreon, which is linked in the show notes 7 00:00:50.439 --> 00:00:54.079 and on our website. Tonight's story is about a person 8 00:00:54.359 --> 00:00:57.719 who never consciously knew she wasn't at home in this world, 9 00:00:57.880 --> 00:01:02.840 but lived her life going through the until something profoundly 10 00:01:02.920 --> 00:01:06.439 strange happened to her. But first, a word from the 11 00:01:06.439 --> 00:01:08.439 Observable Radio Company store. 12 00:01:09.879 --> 00:01:13.359 Following exposure to Observable Radio, you or your loved ones 13 00:01:13.400 --> 00:01:16.439 may find yourself struggling with any of the following. 14 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:18.719 Symptoms strying out ey eyes, Tonsleston's anxiety, dread at essential 15 00:01:18.719 --> 00:01:20.599 to spare anti capitalist you, rotation's loving a skin, blassy, 16 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:22.920 emotional apetite, development of bony plates, dancing, minian systemic discuss, 17 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:24.920 crossed peperal confusion, rickets, alvalescents, or dysentery. 18 00:01:25.120 --> 00:01:27.680 If so, you may be entitled to get yourself a 19 00:01:27.799 --> 00:01:31.599 nice little treat from the Observable Radio Company store where 20 00:01:31.599 --> 00:01:34.480 you can find yourself pins, stickers and t shirts. It 21 00:01:34.560 --> 00:01:37.840 won't fix what els you what. They're pretty neat. You 22 00:01:37.920 --> 00:01:40.920 are now by prom observable. 23 00:01:40.280 --> 00:01:51.280 Radio turning over. There was something stuck in her throat. 24 00:01:51.760 --> 00:01:56.280 She was no stranger to tonsilstones, those nasty, calcified bits 25 00:01:56.280 --> 00:01:59.239 of food debris that got caught in her tonsils. But 26 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:02.879 typically she could get them out on her own, just fine. 27 00:02:03.000 --> 00:02:06.040 A vigorous cough here, a poke with a cute tip there, 28 00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:09.479 and she was good to go. She even got so 29 00:02:09.639 --> 00:02:12.080 used to the process that sometimes she could dig them 30 00:02:12.120 --> 00:02:14.639 out with her finger, not even looking in the mirror. 31 00:02:16.199 --> 00:02:21.840 It was disgusting, but it worked. This this felt different. 32 00:02:23.159 --> 00:02:25.039 She tried to ignore the fact that she had the 33 00:02:25.080 --> 00:02:28.280 sore throat for days with no relief, no matter what 34 00:02:28.400 --> 00:02:32.759 she tried. She was now on day fourteen of salt water, 35 00:02:32.840 --> 00:02:37.319 gargling a rigorous hydration schedule and possibly brushing her teeth 36 00:02:37.360 --> 00:02:41.360 a little too often. Never before had she found herself 37 00:02:41.439 --> 00:02:45.520 so distracted by something that was usually a non issue. 38 00:02:45.560 --> 00:02:48.680 She forced herself to swallow saliva, as though that would 39 00:02:48.719 --> 00:02:51.319 bring any relief, and tried to put it to the 40 00:02:51.319 --> 00:02:55.080 back of her mind. She had completely zoned out the 41 00:02:55.159 --> 00:02:58.439 last fifteen minutes of her meeting with the regional director, 42 00:02:58.879 --> 00:03:01.000 who was looking to her for an answer to a 43 00:03:01.080 --> 00:03:05.080 question she never heard. The pain in her throat throbbed 44 00:03:06.080 --> 00:03:09.000 that evening. She widened her mouth as much as possible 45 00:03:09.199 --> 00:03:12.360 and hit the usual angles with her phone's flashlight so 46 00:03:12.479 --> 00:03:15.080 she could peer right into the crips of her tonsils. 47 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:20.159 A doctor once told her that they were exceptionally large. 48 00:03:20.400 --> 00:03:22.960 She thought it somewhat amusing that this would be the 49 00:03:23.039 --> 00:03:27.360 one area in her life where she could be considered exceptional. 50 00:03:28.240 --> 00:03:31.520 As she looked down her throat, she couldn't see the whitish, 51 00:03:31.639 --> 00:03:35.400 yellowish lumps that she expected. In fact, for the most part, 52 00:03:35.560 --> 00:03:39.039 her tonsils looked normal. As she slowly moved the light 53 00:03:39.240 --> 00:03:45.199 to see between the fleshy crevices, something unfamiliar caught her eye. 54 00:03:45.240 --> 00:03:49.719 She almost dropped her phone. There, toward the back of 55 00:03:49.759 --> 00:03:53.719 one of her tonsils was a dark spot. She felt 56 00:03:53.759 --> 00:03:56.639 like she stared at that spot for hours, but no 57 00:03:56.719 --> 00:04:00.240 matter how hard she looked, she was unable to identify 58 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:05.759 this odd form. It definitely seemed solid, not like a scab. 59 00:04:05.800 --> 00:04:09.000 On the surface of her tonsil. She could feel her 60 00:04:09.039 --> 00:04:12.840 heart beat quickened, fighting tears and the urge to look 61 00:04:12.919 --> 00:04:16.639 up dark spot on tonsil is at cancer on the Internet. 62 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:19.800 She quickly washed her hands and went straight to bed. 63 00:04:20.879 --> 00:04:23.639 After an hour of lying in the dark, she finally 64 00:04:23.639 --> 00:04:27.560 felt herself drifting off to sleep. She heard faint whispers 65 00:04:27.600 --> 00:04:31.839 of her name, which she ignored. Just like the tonsil stones, 66 00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:35.279 she was used to the hypnogogic hallucinations that came to 67 00:04:35.319 --> 00:04:39.040 her from time to time. She had experienced them for 68 00:04:39.079 --> 00:04:42.000 as long as she could remember, long before she even 69 00:04:42.079 --> 00:04:45.560 knew that they could be considered scary by some folks. 70 00:04:46.519 --> 00:04:49.399 By the time she was old enough to have that understanding, 71 00:04:49.800 --> 00:04:53.879 their phantasmic visitations happened so frequently that she saw them 72 00:04:53.920 --> 00:04:57.279 as completely benign. They were nothing more than the brain 73 00:04:57.439 --> 00:05:01.199 getting its wise crossed. After all, the whispers faded to 74 00:05:01.240 --> 00:05:04.639 nothing as she sank into the dark of a dreamless sleep. 75 00:05:06.439 --> 00:05:08.800 For the next few days, she tried to ignore the 76 00:05:08.839 --> 00:05:12.720 growing soreness in the back of her throat. She maintained 77 00:05:12.759 --> 00:05:16.360 her tried in true Antitonsilstone regime, but it didn't seem 78 00:05:16.360 --> 00:05:19.560 to help at all. Her sleep became more and more 79 00:05:19.600 --> 00:05:24.399 restless every night, and she grew exhausted from sleep deprivation. 80 00:05:25.839 --> 00:05:28.959 One night, she woke up in a panic. It was 81 00:05:29.000 --> 00:05:32.639 still dark outside, Her heart was racing a mile a minute, 82 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:35.519 and she could see a figure standing at the foot 83 00:05:35.600 --> 00:05:38.920 of her bed. It was a being that appeared skeletal 84 00:05:38.959 --> 00:05:42.920 at first, towering above her at six or seven feet tall. 85 00:05:43.759 --> 00:05:47.199 As she stared, she realized that it was not skeletal, 86 00:05:47.879 --> 00:05:51.600 but an entity that was made of twigs and sticks. 87 00:05:52.439 --> 00:05:53.199 It appeared to be. 88 00:05:53.160 --> 00:05:57.079 Bound at the joints with twine or some other fibrous material. 89 00:05:57.839 --> 00:06:01.519 Its triangular hair tilted down at her her with ampler 90 00:06:01.720 --> 00:06:06.360 like bows jutting upwards and nearly scraping the ceiling. Its 91 00:06:06.480 --> 00:06:11.519 arms reached out toward her, gnarled fingers widespread. She could 92 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:15.319 hear the creaking of wood straining against movement as the 93 00:06:15.360 --> 00:06:19.680 being extended its limbs in her direction. A low rumble 94 00:06:19.720 --> 00:06:24.639 accompanied its presence, like an earthquake, rattling only inside her 95 00:06:24.680 --> 00:06:29.519 ear drums. She sat up and blinked, expecting it to disappear, 96 00:06:29.920 --> 00:06:34.399 but the vision of the being lingered, its limbs still outstretched. 97 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:39.360 After a few moments, the being and the rumble finally vanished, 98 00:06:39.600 --> 00:06:43.000 but she found it difficult to allow herself to breathe. 99 00:06:43.199 --> 00:06:48.000 It was just another hallucination, she told herself, attempting to 100 00:06:48.040 --> 00:06:51.839 soothe her nerves, But as she reorientated her body under 101 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:54.319 the covers, she was afraid to turn her back to 102 00:06:54.399 --> 00:06:59.360 the corner where the entity stood moments ago. The next morning, 103 00:06:59.480 --> 00:07:02.720 the pain in her throat was agonizing. It was worse 104 00:07:02.759 --> 00:07:05.199 than the strip throat she remembered having as a child. 105 00:07:05.680 --> 00:07:08.040 She called in sick to work and stood in front 106 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:12.000 of the bathroom mirror, stealing herself for what she might see. 107 00:07:12.319 --> 00:07:15.519 She slowly brought the flashlight to her lips, afraid to 108 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:20.800 part them. She reminded herself doing nothing fixes nothing, and 109 00:07:20.920 --> 00:07:24.639 allowed herself one more deep breath before dropping her jaw. 110 00:07:26.079 --> 00:07:30.439 The dark spot was larger, It was more solid. Dread 111 00:07:30.519 --> 00:07:34.480 resonated in her rib cage. Carefully, she stuck a cue 112 00:07:34.519 --> 00:07:38.600 tip in her mouth to poke it. The spot was hard, 113 00:07:38.839 --> 00:07:43.079 but it moved. It moved like a tonsilstone. That was 114 00:07:43.120 --> 00:07:46.399 some small measure of relief that meant it could come out. 115 00:07:46.959 --> 00:07:49.439 She took the cue tip and gently pushed the object 116 00:07:49.480 --> 00:07:52.199 out toward the front of her mouth. It caught on 117 00:07:52.319 --> 00:07:55.680 some of her tonsil flesh as it moved. Inducing a 118 00:07:55.800 --> 00:08:00.120 terrible coughing fit. She hoped she wouldn't accidentally inhale the thing. 119 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:03.920 She had coughed violently, she managed to spit something out 120 00:08:03.959 --> 00:08:07.360 into the sink. Through tears, she could see the object 121 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:11.680 sitting in the white porcelain. It looked like a raisin. 122 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:16.279 She picked it up to inspect it. The object unexpectedly 123 00:08:16.439 --> 00:08:21.240 had a very rough texture that felt somewhat familiar. As 124 00:08:21.279 --> 00:08:24.560 she examined it closely, she was shocked to discover that 125 00:08:24.639 --> 00:08:29.000 it was a piece of bark, like tree bark from 126 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:32.559 the outside. She dropped it in surprise, and it tumbled 127 00:08:32.559 --> 00:08:36.200 down the drain. She was simultaneously thankful that it was 128 00:08:36.240 --> 00:08:38.799 out of her sight and angry that she had lost 129 00:08:38.879 --> 00:08:42.960 her only physical evidence of this strange situation. On the 130 00:08:43.000 --> 00:08:45.720 bright side, there didn't seem to be anything else in 131 00:08:45.759 --> 00:08:49.399 her throat, aside from the slight redness and irritation from 132 00:08:49.399 --> 00:08:52.519 poking at her tonsils. She went to bed, thinking she 133 00:08:52.519 --> 00:08:57.279 could rest easy now the object was gone. She was wrong. 134 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:03.679 That night, she dreamt. She dreamt about a forest. It 135 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:10.279 was dark and warm and damp. She was inside this forest. 136 00:09:11.080 --> 00:09:14.840 She heard shuffling in the trees around her. She moved slowly, 137 00:09:15.279 --> 00:09:18.519 like she was wearing heavy weights on her legs. What 138 00:09:18.679 --> 00:09:22.080 little dapple sunlight made it through the leaves above only 139 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:25.320 made it harder to tell where she was going. She 140 00:09:25.480 --> 00:09:32.279 had to move forward deeper. She couldn't breathe, or she could, 141 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:37.879 but these lungs were not her own. They were foreign, borrowed. 142 00:09:39.080 --> 00:09:42.159 Each breath felt like she was inhaling through a damp cloth, 143 00:09:42.960 --> 00:09:47.639 straining to fill her chest with air. Her hum rumbled 144 00:09:47.679 --> 00:09:53.440 in the forest around her, deep and thrumming. She knew 145 00:09:53.519 --> 00:09:56.159 this noise. She knew it from a time when she 146 00:09:56.240 --> 00:10:01.799 was too young to know to be afraid more, moving, more, shuffling. 147 00:10:02.600 --> 00:10:06.879 She strained against the resistance of the thick air. It 148 00:10:06.960 --> 00:10:11.480 was here, she could feel it. She made it to 149 00:10:11.519 --> 00:10:16.360 the clearing. It was waiting for her, its limbs reaching 150 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:20.840 out toward her, its triangular head tilted at her. The 151 00:10:20.919 --> 00:10:24.919 antlers appeared to grow before her, reaching higher and higher. 152 00:10:25.799 --> 00:10:29.440 The shuffling grew louder and louder, until it crashed around her, 153 00:10:29.759 --> 00:10:32.559 combining with a hum that was now so rich and 154 00:10:32.679 --> 00:10:35.799 so heavy, creating such a clamor that it sounded like 155 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:39.120 boughs breaking above her head, until finally it was on 156 00:10:39.200 --> 00:10:41.360 top of her, and it was all she could do 157 00:10:41.480 --> 00:10:47.720 to nod do. She woke up in her bed, sweating 158 00:10:48.799 --> 00:10:54.600 and crying. Her throat was dry. She forced herself to 159 00:10:54.639 --> 00:10:57.840 work every day, knowing that she didn't have enough paid 160 00:10:57.840 --> 00:11:01.919 time off saved up to stay at home rest. Her 161 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:04.919 hair started falling out by the handful in her showers, 162 00:11:05.159 --> 00:11:08.679 and she stopped wearing make up. Her wardrobe shifted from 163 00:11:08.759 --> 00:11:12.519 carefully planned outfits to barely meeting dress code as she 164 00:11:12.559 --> 00:11:15.399 wore the most casual and comfortable clothes she could get 165 00:11:15.399 --> 00:11:19.559 away with. She noticed that people stopped making small talk 166 00:11:19.639 --> 00:11:22.879 with her in the office. Some of them even avoided 167 00:11:22.919 --> 00:11:26.000 eye contact with her. She was too tired to care. 168 00:11:27.559 --> 00:11:31.279 The dream became reoccurring, sapping her of her rest and 169 00:11:31.519 --> 00:11:35.240 energy day after day. Every night, she stayed up later 170 00:11:35.519 --> 00:11:38.360 as she dreaded returning to that clearing and hearing the 171 00:11:38.440 --> 00:11:42.799 droning and the crashing. Strangely, she was never afraid in 172 00:11:42.840 --> 00:11:46.879 the dream. It was almost like she was excited. But 173 00:11:46.919 --> 00:11:49.840 the terror flooded back to her bones upon waking as 174 00:11:49.879 --> 00:11:52.360 she ruminated on the fact that she did not know 175 00:11:52.480 --> 00:11:57.039 what was happening to her or why her skin started 176 00:11:57.080 --> 00:12:00.320 breaking out with what appeared to be black heads, not 177 00:12:00.480 --> 00:12:03.320 just on her face, but across her limbs and torso. 178 00:12:03.840 --> 00:12:06.600 There was one particular bump on her forearm that she 179 00:12:06.639 --> 00:12:11.720 found herself picking at often. The sensation wasn't pleasant, but 180 00:12:11.799 --> 00:12:14.879 it wasn't painful either. She knew she should leave the 181 00:12:14.879 --> 00:12:19.039 bump alone, but she couldn't help it. One day, as 182 00:12:19.080 --> 00:12:22.559 she absent mindedly picked at the bump, she noticed that 183 00:12:22.600 --> 00:12:25.600 something was moving inside the enlarged paw every time she 184 00:12:25.639 --> 00:12:29.200 poked it. She squeezed it, and it was clear that 185 00:12:29.240 --> 00:12:32.279 the thing inside was much larger than the small opening. 186 00:12:32.720 --> 00:12:34.840 It reminded her of the video she had seen of 187 00:12:34.879 --> 00:12:39.000 butterfly lava, except it didn't move on its own. She 188 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:42.480 dug her nails into the flesh around the opening, coaxing 189 00:12:42.480 --> 00:12:46.080 the object closer to the surface. She was surprised to 190 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:50.200 find something green coming out. It was still attached to 191 00:12:50.200 --> 00:12:52.679 the inner layers of her skin, but it was clear 192 00:12:52.720 --> 00:12:55.919 that whatever this was, it was rolled up in there. 193 00:12:57.360 --> 00:12:59.799 She grabs some tweezers from her desk and got a 194 00:12:59.840 --> 00:13:04.799 fur grasp. Pulling slowly and steadily, She could feel it 195 00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:08.639 heavily anchored inside her arm as it resisted her but 196 00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:12.480 she didn't stop. The dull pain barely registered in her 197 00:13:12.519 --> 00:13:18.240 mind as she concentrated on the excavation. Relief overpowered this 198 00:13:18.360 --> 00:13:22.000 stinging sensation. As the object was freed from her flesh, 199 00:13:22.559 --> 00:13:25.799 she uncurled it and found that it was a leaf. 200 00:13:26.919 --> 00:13:29.159 She was thoroughly unsure as to whether or not she 201 00:13:29.200 --> 00:13:33.600 was hallucinating, and found herself giggling loudly at this bizarre veal. 202 00:13:34.919 --> 00:13:37.600 Her manager called her into the office and gave her 203 00:13:37.639 --> 00:13:41.960 information on stress related leave, encouraging her to consider taking 204 00:13:41.960 --> 00:13:47.120 a break. The words bounced around meaninglessly, sounding as though 205 00:13:47.159 --> 00:13:50.279 they were traveling to her ear drums through water. She 206 00:13:50.320 --> 00:13:53.039 responded as though she was powered by a motor, going 207 00:13:53.039 --> 00:13:56.399 through the motions of expressing gratitude and nodding. Though she 208 00:13:56.440 --> 00:13:59.120 felt like some one else was guiding her through it. 209 00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:02.919 She was too focused on the smell of damp moss 210 00:14:03.240 --> 00:14:07.480 that seemed to come from nowhere. She lost track of 211 00:14:07.480 --> 00:14:11.080 time even more. At home, she vaguely remembered a life 212 00:14:11.120 --> 00:14:16.200 of paperwork. Was that yesterday, five weeks ago? She lost 213 00:14:16.200 --> 00:14:19.799 her phone somewhere in the apartment. The battery was probably 214 00:14:19.919 --> 00:14:22.840 long dead. Who knows if any one had been trying 215 00:14:22.879 --> 00:14:27.440 to reach her. She didn't care. She was exploring her body. 216 00:14:29.240 --> 00:14:32.480 Since she had found the leaf, she discovered other oddities 217 00:14:32.519 --> 00:14:36.159 growing out of her paws. Some of them bore leaves, 218 00:14:36.440 --> 00:14:39.200 just as the first one did. Some appeared to be 219 00:14:39.279 --> 00:14:43.000 the start of twigs. Those wouldn't come out, no matter 220 00:14:43.080 --> 00:14:47.080 how hard she tugged on them. In fact, pulling at 221 00:14:47.080 --> 00:14:50.080 those seemed to make them stronger. Some of these growths 222 00:14:50.080 --> 00:14:54.759 started happening in impossible places. She found a thorn on 223 00:14:54.759 --> 00:14:57.720 one of her knuckles. Her teeth started to loosen. In 224 00:14:57.799 --> 00:15:01.360 her gums, all of the flesh inside her mouth shifted 225 00:15:01.399 --> 00:15:04.120 from pink to a sort of faint shade of green, 226 00:15:04.600 --> 00:15:07.759 not quite as sickly green, more like something that seemed 227 00:15:07.759 --> 00:15:11.799 to need sunlight to feed. She couldn't remember when she 228 00:15:11.799 --> 00:15:15.639 stopped eating, but she kept showering. She spent more and 229 00:15:15.759 --> 00:15:19.480 more time showering and letting. The bathroom become humid and foggy. 230 00:15:19.720 --> 00:15:23.039 As the water ran over her, she found it nourishing. 231 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:26.960 One day, as she massaged her hair, she felt something 232 00:15:27.000 --> 00:15:30.759 come loose. She expected another clump of hair, and she 233 00:15:30.840 --> 00:15:34.639 was mostly right. Within the tangle, she found some kind 234 00:15:34.679 --> 00:15:38.600 of vine. She smiled as she traced her fingers over it, 235 00:15:39.080 --> 00:15:43.159 touching the delicate leaves attached to the stem. She was 236 00:15:43.240 --> 00:15:46.360 delighted to find a small yellow flower near the end 237 00:15:46.360 --> 00:15:50.720 of the vine. When she wasn't showering, she was dreaming. 238 00:15:51.240 --> 00:15:55.000 She returned to the clearing over and over again. Now 239 00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:57.799 she was earnestly trying to get close to the entity, 240 00:15:58.200 --> 00:16:00.440 but she was never able to reach it. Before the 241 00:16:00.519 --> 00:16:04.759 dream ended, what used to be tears of fear upon 242 00:16:04.840 --> 00:16:09.759 waking were replaced with tears of sorrow. Every time she woke, 243 00:16:10.200 --> 00:16:12.799 she found her body to be more stiff than before. 244 00:16:13.399 --> 00:16:16.240 She struggled to bend her joints a little more every day. 245 00:16:16.759 --> 00:16:19.840 Her skin was no longer as pliable as it once was, 246 00:16:20.120 --> 00:16:24.039 as it slowly became a rough, protective shell. She felt 247 00:16:24.120 --> 00:16:28.000 like her internal structure was somehow different with these still 248 00:16:28.039 --> 00:16:32.759 bones inside her. Did her heart still pump blood? Did 249 00:16:32.840 --> 00:16:37.039 it matter? Somewhere in the back of her mind, she 250 00:16:37.120 --> 00:16:39.840 knew her days of exploration were coming to a close. 251 00:16:40.600 --> 00:16:43.559 She knew that if she indulged too long, she would 252 00:16:43.600 --> 00:16:46.279 be stuck and all of this would have been for nothing. 253 00:16:48.240 --> 00:16:50.879 The day she left, she didn't bother closing the door 254 00:16:50.919 --> 00:16:54.320 to her apartment. She simply found her keys and walked 255 00:16:54.320 --> 00:16:58.360 to the car. She still had a full tank of gas. Good. 256 00:16:59.080 --> 00:17:01.759 She knew she was moving slowly, but she was sure 257 00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:05.480 that she left with plenty of time. She did not gps, 258 00:17:06.160 --> 00:17:10.319 she knew exactly where she needed to go. She drove 259 00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:13.279 until she met the tree line. She left the car 260 00:17:13.480 --> 00:17:16.720 off the side of the highway, partially covered by some bush. 261 00:17:18.759 --> 00:17:22.039 This time it was not a dream. She made her 262 00:17:22.039 --> 00:17:25.720 way through the plants, each one a familiar sibling to her. 263 00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:29.400 There was no man made path, but this did not 264 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:33.359 stop her. She did not need it. She made her way, 265 00:17:33.640 --> 00:17:37.640 her limbs stiffening slightly more with every step. Her hands 266 00:17:37.640 --> 00:17:40.599 were nearly frozen in place, her fingers now no more 267 00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:45.440 than small branches, slightly twisted with lively green leaves bouncing 268 00:17:45.480 --> 00:17:49.400 at the tips. She tried not to rush her pace 269 00:17:49.799 --> 00:17:52.960 lest she break something and be unable to move entirely. 270 00:17:53.599 --> 00:17:56.839 She could hear her limbs groaning in protest with every movement, 271 00:17:57.559 --> 00:18:00.920 she willed them to keep pushing her forward. She could 272 00:18:01.000 --> 00:18:04.279 hear the faint droning, and made her way in its direction. 273 00:18:05.079 --> 00:18:10.720 The shuffling, she now realized was only her. She felt 274 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:13.559 a bit silly now, looking back at her initial reaction 275 00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:17.559 to the dreams. If only she knew, if only she 276 00:18:17.640 --> 00:18:20.680 could have seen back then, how freeing this would be. 277 00:18:21.559 --> 00:18:27.400 Every step brought her closer to home. She approached the clearing. 278 00:18:27.960 --> 00:18:32.240 The entity stood there, beckoning her with an outstretched arm. 279 00:18:33.640 --> 00:18:37.599 As she made her way to it, ancient knowledge surfaced 280 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:41.319 from the depths of her mind, delicate blooms of story 281 00:18:41.400 --> 00:18:45.640 and pictures that had been buried for so long. Such 282 00:18:45.680 --> 00:18:48.960 an understanding would have been impossible to conceive of in 283 00:18:49.039 --> 00:18:53.079 her lifetime before, But here and now there was nothing 284 00:18:53.200 --> 00:18:59.319 but comprehension and acceptance. The entity guided her to a spot, 285 00:19:00.240 --> 00:19:04.400 her spot there in the clearing, the remains of her 286 00:19:04.400 --> 00:19:08.200 feet melted away as roots quickly grew over the spots 287 00:19:08.200 --> 00:19:12.000 of flesh that were left. She stretched the limbs that 288 00:19:12.200 --> 00:19:15.640 used to be her arms upward and tilted her face 289 00:19:15.759 --> 00:19:19.799 to meet the sun. She could feel the roots penetrating 290 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:23.519 the soil beneath her, reaching the nutrients and moisture that 291 00:19:23.599 --> 00:19:30.079 she craved, and she felt strong. An ancient song echoed 292 00:19:30.079 --> 00:19:33.880 in her mind, and something within her clicked into place. 293 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:35.759 She made it. 294 00:19:36.559 --> 00:19:40.160 She was here. She settled into her spot as the 295 00:19:40.240 --> 00:19:45.039 song grew louder within her spirit, reverberating through her and 296 00:19:45.119 --> 00:19:50.480 connecting her to her surroundings. Her body fully hardened in 297 00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:58.559 its position, she was comfortable and at peace. Here she 298 00:19:58.680 --> 00:20:04.920 could grow, and here she would be. 299 00:20:18.240 --> 00:20:22.480 You have been listening to Observable Radio. Tonight's episode, Turning 300 00:20:22.519 --> 00:20:27.079 Over was performed by The Ensemble featuring Maria Corcobado and 301 00:20:27.200 --> 00:20:31.759 Jason Smith. Written by Perporina, produced by Cameron Suey, Phil 302 00:20:31.880 --> 00:20:35.839 Van Hest, Perperina and Wendy Hector. Edited by Cameron Suey. 303 00:20:36.039 --> 00:20:38.960 Turning Over was originally published June fifth, twenty twenty one, 304 00:20:39.039 --> 00:20:42.559 on Gaily Dreadful for the twenty twenty one Gaily Helpful fundraiser. 305 00:20:42.839 --> 00:20:45.480 Big thanks to Terry Minard for initially hosting the story 306 00:20:45.519 --> 00:20:49.400 and supporting. Our psychology consultant is doctor Elissa Leal. Art 307 00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:53.039 by Krinn Fletcher. Our theme is the back Rooms, performed 308 00:20:53.039 --> 00:20:57.440 by Mew. Additional music from this episode provided by Christian Anderson, 309 00:20:57.640 --> 00:21:02.400 Blue Saga, Lennon Hutton, Tim Kool, Polar Nights, Ethan Sloane, 310 00:21:02.440 --> 00:21:05.960 and August Wilhelmson. Observable Radio is listener supported thanks to 311 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:10.240 all of our patrons and listeners, including Kathleen John tid Russ, 312 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:14.680 Rick Callison, Brianna Zach and Jasper. Patrons fund the production 313 00:21:14.759 --> 00:21:16.720 costs of the show, as well as get access to 314 00:21:16.759 --> 00:21:20.160 behind the scenes information, extra production material, a discount at 315 00:21:20.200 --> 00:21:23.039 the Observable Radio Company Store, and an ad free early 316 00:21:23.079 --> 00:21:26.119 release feed of this show, all at patreon dot com 317 00:21:26.160 --> 00:21:28.599 slash Observable Radio. With the help of our patrons, we've 318 00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:31.799 launched the Observable Radio Company Store at observable radio dot 319 00:21:31.839 --> 00:21:34.559 com slash store. There you'll find stickers, enamel pins, and 320 00:21:34.640 --> 00:21:37.000 our very first shirt on sale and shipping anywhere in 321 00:21:37.000 --> 00:21:38.680 the work. We'd be grateful if you stop by to 322 00:21:38.680 --> 00:21:41.839 take a peek. Thank you for listening, and stay tuned.