Speaker 1: Hello, excursionists. It's been a little while, and I want
Speaker 1: to thank you truly for sticking with me through the quiet.
Speaker 1: Life has been shifting behind the scenes, and I've been
Speaker 1: building towards something new. A few projects are in the works,
Speaker 1: not quite ready to announce just yet, but trust me,
Speaker 1: when they arrive, you'll understand why the pause was needed.
Speaker 1: More than anything, I've been working on how I show
Speaker 1: up here for you and for the stories that deserve
Speaker 1: to be told. So here's what's changing. Into the Night
Speaker 1: Anthology is moving to a seasonal format. From now through
Speaker 1: the end of the year. You'll hear new episodes every
Speaker 1: other Thursday, right up until our New Year's special. After that,
Speaker 1: the show will take a short break, returning in March
Speaker 1: for a brand new season. This new rhythm lets me
Speaker 1: bring you deeper stories, better production, and a more consistent experience,
Speaker 1: one you can count on without wondering when the next
Speaker 1: tale will appear. So thank you again for being here.
Speaker 1: Let's step back onto that twisted path together and as always,
Speaker 1: take care of yourselves and each other. Are you ready?
Speaker 1: Welcome to Endo the Night. I'm Narri your guide on
Speaker 1: today's excursion down a Twisted Path. Be careful not to
Speaker 1: get lost. Be it dark or light, it's easy to
Speaker 1: lose your way. Are you ready, then let's begin. This
Speaker 1: episode contains themes of parental emotional abuse and themes of death. Listener,
Speaker 1: discretion is advised the best and brightest Ben Being a
Speaker 1: third anything can be difficult, but it seemed especially dreadful
Speaker 1: to Benjamin Buckley the third. Even as a toddler, the
Speaker 1: unrelenting sense of disappointment he felt from his parents overshadowed
Speaker 1: his every move. Benjamin Harris Buckley the second and his
Speaker 1: wife Maud didn't need to verbalize their opinion of their
Speaker 1: only child, although they often did. Little Ben knew he
Speaker 1: wasn't the type of son they wanted, or, more specifically,
Speaker 1: that they demanded. Deep in his soul, he knew the
Speaker 1: caustic words only reaffirmed the sad state of his existence.
Speaker 1: Why can't you be a good boy and learn your
Speaker 1: alphabet from mamma? Maud Buckley squinted her eyes as she
Speaker 1: stared down at her son. His eyes brimmed with tears,
Speaker 1: but she paid no.
Speaker 2: Mind to him.
Speaker 1: Glaudius, son knows his alphabet already. It's embarrassing. Try harder.
Speaker 1: These words were some of the earliest memories. Benjamin recalled
Speaker 1: he was not quite two at the time that his
Speaker 1: mother chided him for falling so short. The disappointments only
Speaker 1: compounded over time. He knew without a doubt that he
Speaker 1: was the greatest failure of his parents adult lives, and
Speaker 1: the strain bore down on him from that day forward.
Speaker 1: At three, piano and dance lessons began. At four, his
Speaker 1: parents added tea ball, soccer, tennis, and swimming. Art lessons
Speaker 1: followed soon after. Maud and her husband lamented the fact
Speaker 1: that their son showed neither athletic prowess nor intellectual aptitude
Speaker 1: at an early age. Nothing pained them more in the
Speaker 1: idea that their only product performed so pitifully. There were,
Speaker 1: after all, appearances to be upheld, and it was completely
Speaker 1: unacceptable that anyone could feel superior to the Buckleys in
Speaker 1: any way. Perhaps Harris, as Maud always called her husband,
Speaker 1: we made a mistake having a child. He is not
Speaker 1: at all what we thought he would be, seldom involved
Speaker 1: in his son's upbringing. Harris nodded in agreement and encouraged
Speaker 1: his wife to do what she could with what they
Speaker 1: had to work with. For a child Maud, always a
Speaker 1: stickler for details, devised a schedule she displayed on the
Speaker 1: corkboard that hung in the wall in the foyer. Every
Speaker 1: waking moment of young Ben's day was filled with one
Speaker 1: activity or another. Laytime never appeared on the schedule. Ben's
Speaker 1: efforts to have it added were quickly quashed. Mother, Can
Speaker 1: I please play with Jimmy and the other kids in
Speaker 1: the neighborhood.
Speaker 2: I won't stay out.
Speaker 1: Long, Benjamin, don't be ridiculous. You know you have piano
Speaker 1: lessons now, but what about after that? Can I play? Then?
Speaker 1: Maud wrapped her index finger on to the schedule. It's
Speaker 1: three o'clock. Here at four, you have math tutoring. That's
Speaker 1: nothing new. Why do you insist on arguing with me?
Speaker 1: Ben opened his mouth to speak. Don't just don't, Ben,
Speaker 1: The schedule cannot be changed. If you're ever going to
Speaker 1: catch up with others in your life, you can't take
Speaker 1: time off to play. You've already shown that you're behind.
Speaker 1: Play is a waste of time. I don't care what
Speaker 1: Jimmy's parents do with their son, but no six year
Speaker 1: old is going to dictate to your father and me.
Speaker 1: Now get to the piano. This minute, tears welled in
Speaker 1: his eyes, but he did the best he could to
Speaker 1: not cry in front of her. History had proven that
Speaker 1: only made his mother angrier. No, it was better for
Speaker 1: him to bottle his feelings up inside and remained the
Speaker 1: beautiful son he so desperately tried to be. That followed
Speaker 1: resulted in one failure after another. Harris, we have to
Speaker 1: do something about Benjamin. What will others say if he
Speaker 1: continues to be so defective? Her husband furrowed his brow
Speaker 1: as he considered her question. I may know of a solution, Maud.
Speaker 1: Let me talk to a few people I know at
Speaker 1: the university. There may be a program we can enroll
Speaker 1: him in there that will help. It's cutting edge, but
Speaker 1: I think I can pull some strings to get Benjamin
Speaker 1: in hutting edge. I like the sound of that. Yes,
Speaker 1: do whatever you can to enroll him in the program
Speaker 1: before we are embarrassed any further. I swear I caught
Speaker 1: Monica and Luen saying it's a shame our son isn't
Speaker 1: up to paw. A tear formed in the corner of
Speaker 1: her eye.
Speaker 2: There there dear, no need to cry.
Speaker 1: I'll talk with my colleagues tomorrow, I promise we can
Speaker 1: fix Benjamin. It's not too late. Harris pulled her close
Speaker 1: to him and held her. Fixing their son was exactly
Speaker 1: what Maud wanted. What Maud Buckley wanted she usually got.
Speaker 1: Harris returned home from work the next day to tell
Speaker 1: her the exciting news. I spoke with doctor Bremerman. He
Speaker 1: said he'd be thrilled to include Benjamin in his program.
Speaker 1: There's paperwork we need to fill out, but he's optimistic
Speaker 1: this will help him. His wife's eyes sparkled for the
Speaker 1: first time in months when discussing Benjamin. He'd prove to
Speaker 1: be more of a burden than a blessing, and Maud
Speaker 1: openly admitted that she'd felt she'd lost the child lottery. Harris,
Speaker 1: this is the best news I've heard in years. Thank
Speaker 1: you for giving Benjamin a chance to not be a disappointment.
Speaker 1: I know how this has troubled you, Maudie. I'd do
Speaker 1: anything for you. In the coming weeks, Ben's parents shuttled
Speaker 1: him back and forth to one doctor at the university
Speaker 1: after another. Mother, I don't feel sick. Why am I
Speaker 1: at the doctor? Don't question me. Benjamin. You may not
Speaker 1: feel ill, but you are not well at all. You
Speaker 1: need to do what.
Speaker 2: Your father and I tell you to do.
Speaker 1: Still confused, Ben watched the passing sights out of the
Speaker 1: car window. He didn't like these doctors his parents dragged
Speaker 1: him to, but he knew it did him no good
Speaker 1: to tell his mother that his father wasn't around enough
Speaker 1: for him to tell. But Ben knew if he could
Speaker 1: tell Benjamin Buckley the second how he felt, it wouldn't matter.
Speaker 1: Maud the Mighty ruled Supreme weeks filled with brain scans
Speaker 1: and sleep studies followed by surgeries. Physically, Ben felt miserable,
Speaker 1: but the treatments worked in his mother's estimation. With every
Speaker 1: new step and every procedure, Ben's IQ grew, with more
Speaker 1: abilities gained came something he'd never had before, his mother's
Speaker 1: love and approval. For the first time in his life,
Speaker 1: she had pride in her eyes when she looked at him. Intellectually,
Speaker 1: he knew this was an improvement. His emotions, however, weren't
Speaker 1: affected to the degree they should have been, and this
Speaker 1: made Ben wonder, why shouldn't I be happier now.
Speaker 2: That mother isn't embarrassed by me? Why can't I enjoy
Speaker 2: the love she's showing me now?
Speaker 1: Ben didn't have the answer to those questions. He didn't
Speaker 1: let his mother know his emotions were unmoved by her
Speaker 1: sudden increase in affections. He smiled, played the dutiful son,
Speaker 1: and acknowledged her interest in him. He noticed other changes
Speaker 1: in his emotional health as well. While his academic success
Speaker 1: was undeniable, the higher his IQ rose, the less he
Speaker 1: wanted to socialize with others. I remember begging my parents
Speaker 1: to let me play with other children in the neighborhood.
Speaker 1: I cried and pouted because they invariably said no. I
Speaker 1: don't know why, but now that I'm older, I don't
Speaker 1: care to be around other children. I'm perfectly content with
Speaker 1: my books. Maybe I'm simply growing up. Ben shrugged off
Speaker 1: his indifference about friends, and his parents never noticed. So
Speaker 1: enraptured were they in his growing intellect that they scarcely
Speaker 1: cared about his social and emotional well being. He's going
Speaker 1: to do great things now, Harris Maud beamed at her
Speaker 1: reflection in the mirror as she readied herself for the
Speaker 1: dinner party that evening. Now we are the envy of
Speaker 1: the other parents, and it's lovely, isn't it. Harris put
Speaker 1: his arms around her and looked into the mirror with
Speaker 1: her Yes, Dear, it certainly is time that we had
Speaker 1: something to brag about. I know that the doctors have
Speaker 1: helped to a degree, but I truly believe that Benjamin's
Speaker 1: natural abilities are finally coming out. He was a late
Speaker 1: bloomer and undoubtedly would have eventually come around. I couldn't
Speaker 1: agree more. I'm sure he would have done just fine
Speaker 1: without the doctor's but I believe they sped up the process.
Speaker 1: I can hardly wait to compare our scores to the
Speaker 1: other children's. Over dinner, Harris smiled. He too was now
Speaker 1: proud of his son, but he was especially pleased with
Speaker 1: his wife's improved humor. Maud referred to any of Benjamin's
Speaker 1: achievements as out successes. She wasn't about to be left
Speaker 1: out of the limelight he now garnered among their peers.
Speaker 1: She had, after all, been a driving force in his improvements.
Speaker 1: While Harris contacted the medical team, it was she who
Speaker 1: demanded that something be done to help their son, so
Speaker 1: she considered herself an equal part in his new found accomplishments.
Speaker 1: Every Tuesday, Maud took their son to the university, where
Speaker 1: he met with the medical team. While pleased with her
Speaker 1: son's improvements, Maud often appeared bored and impatient while dropping
Speaker 1: Benjamin off or picking him up. The medical professionals, among
Speaker 1: themselves worried that the Buckleys may not be vested emotionally
Speaker 1: in the study. Doctor Bremerman, what do we do if
Speaker 1: the Buckleys choose to remove Benjamin from the study. He's
Speaker 1: too valuable to lose. The following Tuesday, doctor Bremerman broached
Speaker 1: the subject with the Buckleys and implored them to continue
Speaker 1: the appointments. I can assure you that his gains will
Speaker 1: be thwarted if we do not continue.
Speaker 2: He's made oh.
Speaker 1: Much progress that it would be a shame to lose
Speaker 1: ground at this point. It's vital to his success that
Speaker 1: Benjamin continues in our program. Maud may have deluded herself
Speaker 1: over her role in her son's development, but she was
Speaker 1: a realist. Of course, doctor Bremerman, we wouldn't dream of
Speaker 1: ending Benjamin's treatments. The man let out a sigh of
Speaker 1: relief and ran his fingers through his gray hair. The
Speaker 1: team will be very happy to hear that Benjamin is
Speaker 1: making such progress. It's important that we see this through
Speaker 1: Harris spoke up. Of course, we want Benjamin to reach
Speaker 1: his full potential. We're pleased with the improvements we've seen
Speaker 1: in the past year. Lee's continue helping him for the
Speaker 1: next several years. Benjamin Buckley the Third spent countless days
Speaker 1: either in the hospital or being observed by members of
Speaker 1: the university team. At first, he didn't understand what was
Speaker 1: happening to him.
Speaker 2: I'm not even sure mother and father know what being
Speaker 2: done to me. What's all this about.
Speaker 1: Eventually, however, Ben became self aware, and he even surprised
Speaker 1: the doctors who cared for him with his level of
Speaker 1: understanding of the project. Doctor Bremerman, now a man in
Speaker 1: his seventies, felt a sense of paternal protection for the
Speaker 1: subject of his long term study. While his parents barely
Speaker 1: noticed Benjamin's social Withtrawal, it troubled doctor Bremerman. Ben, I'm
Speaker 1: worried about you. You seem sad, Thank you, Doctor Bremerman.
Speaker 1: But I don't think what I feel is sadness. Instead,
Speaker 1: it's isolation that bothers me. I can't relate to other people.
Speaker 1: Give me any mathematical formula and I'll solve it. Ask
Speaker 1: me to tell you information about a thousand random topics,
Speaker 1: and I'll do it quickly and accurately. I'm missing something though,
Speaker 1: missing something. Yes, I'm big here pointed to his head.
Speaker 1: I'm small here he pointed to his heart. I understand theories.
Speaker 1: I can calculate problems, but I can't relate to other people.
Speaker 1: I don't belong and I worry that I lack empathy.
Speaker 1: I can see where that would trouble you. Think of
Speaker 1: all the amazing advancements you've made in science with your abilities.
Speaker 1: Though a sense of satisfaction should come with that, right,
Speaker 1: Benjamin's shoulders slumped.
Speaker 2: Yes, I suppose so. Thank you for talking with me, doctor.
Speaker 1: After the elderly man left the room, Benjamin's sighed, I don't.
Speaker 2: Think he understands. How could he? How can he?
Speaker 1: Benjamin's success in the world of science and business was undeniable.
Speaker 1: At night, however, when he no longer had to smile
Speaker 1: and pretend to be social, he sat alone on his
Speaker 1: couch and contemplated the emptiness he felt inside. Amount of
Speaker 1: knowledge replaces what I'm missing.
Speaker 2: In fact, the more I learn, the more empty I feel.
Speaker 1: Years passed, and in time the people who surrounded Benjamin
Speaker 1: became ill or died. His mother's demise was most distressing
Speaker 1: in her older years, when she lost her beauty and
Speaker 1: need for appearances, she underwent a humbling of spirit. Instead
Speaker 1: of caring about social standing or what others thought of her,
Speaker 1: she now realized what she needed in her life was
Speaker 1: the love of her family. She wanted genuine emotion, and
Speaker 1: with her husband long deceased, she turned to Benjamin for
Speaker 1: the love she craved. As her time drew near, Benjamin
Speaker 1: sat stiffly next to his mother's hospital bed. She reached
Speaker 1: out and held his hand, but he did barely more
Speaker 1: than briefly squeeze her hand. In response, Anny, I know
Speaker 1: I wasn't the best mother in the world to you,
Speaker 1: but your father and I have loved you. Won't you
Speaker 1: show me any sign that you loved me back? He
Speaker 1: stared blankly into her eyes.
Speaker 2: I wish I could. Mother. You made me this way.
Speaker 1: You got what you wanted. What do you mean, Ben,
Speaker 1: I've only ever wanted the best for you. No, you
Speaker 1: wanted me to make you look good. Do you think
Speaker 1: I don't remember when you were embarrassed by me, when
Speaker 1: simply being myself wasn't good enough for you. A tear
Speaker 1: trickled down the corner of maud Buckley's eye. Please, Benny,
Speaker 1: he stopped her. No, mother, you did this, he pointed
Speaker 1: at himself. Do you think I don't know what you
Speaker 1: did to me, what the doctors at the university did
Speaker 1: to me. I'm not a simpleton. No, I'm the genius
Speaker 1: you demanded I become, and you didn't care what lengths
Speaker 1: it took to turn me into one. You created a genius,
Speaker 1: but you destroyed me as a person. Benny, we only
Speaker 1: wanted what was best for you. No, you wanted what
Speaker 1: was best for you. The doctors of the clinic wanted
Speaker 1: to make history. No one cared about Benjamin Harris Buckley
Speaker 1: the Third, no one. Now he's gone, and you are
Speaker 1: left with nothing but what you asked for. Porely somewhere
Speaker 1: inside you is love for your poor dying mother. After
Speaker 1: all I've done for you, all you've done for me.
Speaker 1: When you sent me to that clinic of torture, you
Speaker 1: gave them permission to implant a neurlink into my brain.
Speaker 1: You killed me. I can't give you the love you
Speaker 1: ask for, mother. It's not that I won't, I can't.
Speaker 1: Long ago I realized what a monster you turned me
Speaker 1: into I'm not half man and half computer. I've lost
Speaker 1: what made me a man altogether. He rose from his
Speaker 1: seat next to her and walked to the window. Don't
Speaker 1: talk like that, Benjamin. Your father and I tried our best.
Speaker 1: The Doctor's truly cared for you too. I was used
Speaker 1: as a prototype, nothing more. Thanks to you and the
Speaker 1: mad scientists in that clinic, you've unleashed the undoing of
Speaker 1: mankind as it was. No more emotions, only cold understanding.
Speaker 1: The neurlink is more powerful than humanity. Mother, you helped
Speaker 1: create the end of humanity. Benjamin, Please don't say these things.
Speaker 1: Not now. I'm dying. I need you. He turned and
Speaker 1: smiled a cold smile at her. Of course you still
Speaker 1: only care about you now, of all times, it's still
Speaker 1: about you.
Speaker 2: Don't worry though.
Speaker 1: When I'm gone, others will do the bidding of the
Speaker 1: monstrous wheels now set in motion.
Speaker 2: I was the guinea pig. I not need it anymore.
Speaker 1: Maud Buckley reached her hand out to him, but he
Speaker 1: ignored her.
Speaker 2: It's a lovely view. From here. I can see exactly.
Speaker 1: Twelve point eighty six miles. It will take exactly four
Speaker 1: point two seconds for impact. I've lived to provide you
Speaker 1: what you wanted, a son you could be proud of.
Speaker 1: I became your winning ticket in the child lottery you
Speaker 1: so desperately sought. Now you're dying and I am free
Speaker 1: from that burden. It's time to stop this madness. You've
Speaker 1: had your best and brightest ben for long enough. Goodbye, mother,
Speaker 1: No Benny, don't he ignored her. Please opened the window
Speaker 1: and plunged to his death. His last thoughts brief as
Speaker 1: they were, celebrated the closest feeling to emotion he'd had
Speaker 1: in years, and it was the sweet sensation of freedom.
Speaker 1: Thank you for joining me for this episode of the
Speaker 1: Into the Night Anthology podcast. Written by Caroline Giamanco, narrated
Speaker 1: by Nari Quack. Theme music by Nico Rodriguez, all other
Speaker 1: original music, sound design and editing by Omenhawk Studios. You
Speaker 1: can find our links in the show notes. Into the
Speaker 1: Night is on your favorite podcatcher, so make sure to like,
Speaker 1: subscribe and leave a five star review to help other
Speaker 1: excursionists to join us. I'll see you next time, and remember,
Speaker 1: whether in the shadows or in the daylight, all twisted
Speaker 1: paths lead you into the night. Into the night, Anthology
Speaker 1: is a creative TYPO entertainment production